EHess
@ehess.bsky.social
Old-school community organizer. I helped vanquish a few slumlords and helped a few tenants take over their buildings. A sentence a day, on a good day.
People might not appreciate how revolutionary it is for a mayor to order NYC’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development to listen to tenants. Previously the only way to get it to listen was to literally sue it and it responded with all the grace you’d expect of an agency being sued
Mamdani Names Housing Leader and Pledges ‘Rental Rip-off’ Hearings
www.nytimes.com
January 5, 2026 at 12:27 AM
People might not appreciate how revolutionary it is for a mayor to order NYC’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development to listen to tenants. Previously the only way to get it to listen was to literally sue it and it responded with all the grace you’d expect of an agency being sued
The NYC trade association for those most responsible for absurd housing costs - landlords - bemoans the lack of more opportunities to overcharge tenants
(Alternate reading: direct public development of affordable housing would be more efficient than subsidizing the private sector developments)
(Alternate reading: direct public development of affordable housing would be more efficient than subsidizing the private sector developments)
NYC Housing Gap Widens: 433K Units Needed - New York News Beep
A new REBNY report warns that New York City is far behind its goal of adding 500,000 housing units by 2034, with construction delays and stalled projects
www.newsbeep.com
January 4, 2026 at 5:32 PM
The NYC trade association for those most responsible for absurd housing costs - landlords - bemoans the lack of more opportunities to overcharge tenants
(Alternate reading: direct public development of affordable housing would be more efficient than subsidizing the private sector developments)
(Alternate reading: direct public development of affordable housing would be more efficient than subsidizing the private sector developments)
Reposted by EHess
You don't have to give a big speech. They're counting numbers - seeing how many constituents care enough to call in. Just tell them to impeach for this illegal war. Also, make sure you only call YOUR reps - they don't care about out-of-district calls.
You can do this. It'll just take a minute. 💪
You can do this. It'll just take a minute. 💪
January 3, 2026 at 7:47 AM
You don't have to give a big speech. They're counting numbers - seeing how many constituents care enough to call in. Just tell them to impeach for this illegal war. Also, make sure you only call YOUR reps - they don't care about out-of-district calls.
You can do this. It'll just take a minute. 💪
You can do this. It'll just take a minute. 💪
Thanks to Pataki and Andrew Cuomo rent laws, Pinnacle and other large investors scarfed up hundreds of NYC buildings with financing based on the premise that they could rid themselves of all their tenants and jack up rents on the vacant units. Thousands of families lost their homes in the process.
Mamdani Acts on Vow to Protect Renters With Move Against a Big Landlord
www.nytimes.com
January 3, 2026 at 4:08 PM
Thanks to Pataki and Andrew Cuomo rent laws, Pinnacle and other large investors scarfed up hundreds of NYC buildings with financing based on the premise that they could rid themselves of all their tenants and jack up rents on the vacant units. Thousands of families lost their homes in the process.
Something comes to mind about patriotism, last refuges, and scoundrels
Incredible. CBS Evening News announces five new “simple values” — instead of their “38-page handbook” — as they roll out Tony Dokoupil is lead anchor.
One of those values is simply: “We love America and make no apologies for saying so.”
One of those values is simply: “We love America and make no apologies for saying so.”
January 3, 2026 at 1:53 AM
Something comes to mind about patriotism, last refuges, and scoundrels
The meaning of e pluribus unum escapes some people
No. Hell no. This is a country founded upon rugged individualism/individual freedom. NOTHING should or will replace individualism. Not here. No MAGA authoritarianism in America, and no leftist collectivism in America. Yes, all of us should help those less fortunate, but hell no to this.👇
January 2, 2026 at 9:01 PM
The meaning of e pluribus unum escapes some people
I assume it must be pretty true across the board now at @nytimes that instead of reporting the news they’re just confirming their prejudices
Trans communities warned for years about the NYT's transphobia, but the specifics of how this was ordered were often shrouded behind corporate hierarchy.
No more. Sweeney lays out specifically how the highest ranks of the NYT rigged coverage in favor of anti-trans bigots.
No more. Sweeney lays out specifically how the highest ranks of the NYT rigged coverage in favor of anti-trans bigots.
![You've talked about the paper's treatment of the pretty infamous Cass report, especially from your spot at the international desk. What happened in that case?
It wasn't on my radar as much as it ought to have been. I was starting to wind down my time. I left the Times at the end of May of that year. There was an awareness that [Hilary] Cass was coming out with a report. The day before it officially came out, there was a lot of coverage in the BBC and UK media. Cass was already talking about it before its official release.
The day editor's counterparts are in Seoul and London. My counterpart in London — who was actually filling in that day, but did so on a regular basis — assigned a UK reporter to do a story.
That was standard practice, to be clear.
[Chuckling] There’s so many examples of how standard it was. She assigned it to a UK correspondent, who wrote it in the context of UK politics, talked about it being very contentious, talked about the criticisms of its findings. Cass was talking about them herself, this isn't jumping to any conclusions at that point. It really put it in the context of being this very contentious, very political sort of document.
When I saw it, because we're a few hours behind, there were 600, 700 words written. I had a pretty good sense of how the story was going to turn out. But within a few hours the story was to the top New York editors, and I don't know who exactly it was who did that. I assume it was Carolyn or her intermediary. They said ‘oh no, we want the science desk to do that,’ specifically that was Azeen [Ghorayshi], who had been a key reporter in a lot of the other anti-trans coverage.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:gm2gj4v7isgrlsww3ya7hpy2/bafkreiauimpnoaneahu2xoujps44cnvpgrbuuweyq764hwvswkize3jr7a@jpeg)
January 1, 2026 at 9:26 PM
I assume it must be pretty true across the board now at @nytimes that instead of reporting the news they’re just confirming their prejudices
Any real New Yorker recognizes any other person to be a real New Yorker if that person
1) was born in New York,
2) was raised in New York, or
3) stepped onto a New York sidewalk and said “wow”
#NYC
1) was born in New York,
2) was raised in New York, or
3) stepped onto a New York sidewalk and said “wow”
#NYC
December 31, 2025 at 11:50 PM
Any real New Yorker recognizes any other person to be a real New Yorker if that person
1) was born in New York,
2) was raised in New York, or
3) stepped onto a New York sidewalk and said “wow”
#NYC
1) was born in New York,
2) was raised in New York, or
3) stepped onto a New York sidewalk and said “wow”
#NYC
Reposted by EHess
Congratulations to Duffy for accidently using the phrase "begs the question" correctly.
October 13, 2025 at 3:00 PM
Congratulations to Duffy for accidently using the phrase "begs the question" correctly.
Doesn’t what someone stands for mean anything anymore?
This is really smart. Amazed at the hysteria over the ascendance of a woman entrepreneur who clearly knows how to cover and sell news and who's not afraid to take on a mob. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...
Don’t Bet Against Bari Weiss
The new editor in chief of CBS News triumphs over her critics.
www.theatlantic.com
October 12, 2025 at 4:59 PM
Doesn’t what someone stands for mean anything anymore?
We should set up tollbooths on the sidewalks so billionaires can’t use them for free
October 11, 2025 at 11:14 PM
We should set up tollbooths on the sidewalks so billionaires can’t use them for free
I’d like to know where Republicans are doing their shopping
A Harris/Axios poll finds a near majority of Americans say groceries are harder to afford today than a year ago
October 3, 2025 at 6:45 PM
I’d like to know where Republicans are doing their shopping
Reposted by EHess
Here's the easy lookup link: www.congress.gov/members/find...
All you need to do, is call the GOP and complain. Are your costs about to go up? Are you angry about cost of living? Mad they're not improving things in your state? Mad they chose ego over the health of Americans?
It's your time.
All you need to do, is call the GOP and complain. Are your costs about to go up? Are you angry about cost of living? Mad they're not improving things in your state? Mad they chose ego over the health of Americans?
It's your time.
October 1, 2025 at 5:26 AM
Here's the easy lookup link: www.congress.gov/members/find...
All you need to do, is call the GOP and complain. Are your costs about to go up? Are you angry about cost of living? Mad they're not improving things in your state? Mad they chose ego over the health of Americans?
It's your time.
All you need to do, is call the GOP and complain. Are your costs about to go up? Are you angry about cost of living? Mad they're not improving things in your state? Mad they chose ego over the health of Americans?
It's your time.
Reposted by EHess
Future historians will understand that the key factor in the slide to authoritarianism was the total collapse of the GOP as a pro-democracy party, & the total failure of its not-actually "moderate" & "pro-democracy" rump minority to ally with Democrats & put an end to fascism. But sure, Murc's Law.
September 29, 2025 at 10:19 PM
Future historians will understand that the key factor in the slide to authoritarianism was the total collapse of the GOP as a pro-democracy party, & the total failure of its not-actually "moderate" & "pro-democracy" rump minority to ally with Democrats & put an end to fascism. But sure, Murc's Law.
So they really are planning to destroy any vestiges of civil society outside of their orbit. It’s time to dust off the word “totalitarian”
In a Hitleresque speech, JD Vance says there can be no unity with the left and vows to use the government to dismantle non-profit NGOs and liberal civil society who he says promote violence and terrorism.
September 15, 2025 at 6:58 PM
So they really are planning to destroy any vestiges of civil society outside of their orbit. It’s time to dust off the word “totalitarian”
The @nytimes.com discovers the law of the excluded middle
With his right-wing group Turning Point USA, Charlie Kirk engaged controversial topics. Some students, particularly young men, connected with his views. Others found them appalling.
The Young Men Who Saw Charlie Kirk as Their Champion
With his right-wing group Turning Point USA, Mr. Kirk engaged controversial topics. Some students were inspired. Others found his views appalling.
nyti.ms
September 11, 2025 at 8:28 PM
The @nytimes.com discovers the law of the excluded middle
Fire Island lighthouse
September 9, 2025 at 11:39 PM
Fire Island lighthouse
To be fair, this is a pretty good summary of the current thinking of six Supreme Court justices and of the majority party in Congress
Student, to professor: "I'm not entirely sure this is legal to be teaching, because according to our president there's only two genders... and I don't want to promote something that is against our president's laws as well as against my religious beliefs" www.kbtx.com/2025/09/09/a...
A&M Dean removed following student complaints over curriculum
The Department of Justice has also acknowledged the situation and said it would be investigating.
www.kbtx.com
September 9, 2025 at 5:31 PM
To be fair, this is a pretty good summary of the current thinking of six Supreme Court justices and of the majority party in Congress
We shouldn’t have to remind ourselves that you can’t just go around killing people
September 4, 2025 at 2:22 PM
We shouldn’t have to remind ourselves that you can’t just go around killing people
The @nytimes.com has discovered the limited equity co-op. They could have found them in the Bronx but that would have meant sending a reporter there instead of Lausanne
The way that housing co-ops work in Switzerland may seem foreign to many. But the central idea is simple: What if homeownership had no profit motive and no capital gains? Advocates say their model could reshape how the world thinks about affordable housing. www.nytimes.com/2025/08/26/r...
September 1, 2025 at 12:59 AM
The @nytimes.com has discovered the limited equity co-op. They could have found them in the Bronx but that would have meant sending a reporter there instead of Lausanne
Reposted by EHess
Out of respect for reality and our wellbeing, we probably need way less talk about what “Democrats” should do and way more talk about what “we” can do. We’re not going to look back and wish we complained about Democratic leadership more, especially when we’re clear enough to get why they’re stunted.
August 23, 2025 at 8:45 PM
Out of respect for reality and our wellbeing, we probably need way less talk about what “Democrats” should do and way more talk about what “we” can do. We’re not going to look back and wish we complained about Democratic leadership more, especially when we’re clear enough to get why they’re stunted.
Reposted by EHess
Just talk like normal people, for Christ’s sake.
If you’re thinking about it, you’re already overthinking it.
Stop looking over your shoulder for the hall monitor and just speak from the heart.
If you’re thinking about it, you’re already overthinking it.
Stop looking over your shoulder for the hall monitor and just speak from the heart.
August 24, 2025 at 2:55 PM
Just talk like normal people, for Christ’s sake.
If you’re thinking about it, you’re already overthinking it.
Stop looking over your shoulder for the hall monitor and just speak from the heart.
If you’re thinking about it, you’re already overthinking it.
Stop looking over your shoulder for the hall monitor and just speak from the heart.
People are thinking in easy tropes -- Obama had a supermajority! Get rid of the filibuster! Biden gave up! -- and they're drawing facile conclusions from them, rather than looking at the complexities behind them and learning from those complexities.
August 12, 2025 at 3:10 PM
People are thinking in easy tropes -- Obama had a supermajority! Get rid of the filibuster! Biden gave up! -- and they're drawing facile conclusions from them, rather than looking at the complexities behind them and learning from those complexities.
Reposted by EHess
Lisa Kudrow nailed it! This was the best
Republican impersonation I have ever seen, I was even getting upset thinking this was real. Love it!
Republican impersonation I have ever seen, I was even getting upset thinking this was real. Love it!
August 7, 2025 at 10:03 PM
Lisa Kudrow nailed it! This was the best
Republican impersonation I have ever seen, I was even getting upset thinking this was real. Love it!
Republican impersonation I have ever seen, I was even getting upset thinking this was real. Love it!