Eric Coulson
@ericcoulson.bsky.social
Author, retired diplomat, ex- forces, recovering lawyer, husband to Karen. Bond, Springsteen, and dog fan.
Author of the Chrysalis Option
https://linktr.ee/coulsonwrites
Author of the Chrysalis Option
https://linktr.ee/coulsonwrites
Pinned
Eric Coulson
@ericcoulson.bsky.social
· Dec 7
The hardest part of being a dog care taker is letting them go. RIP Angel - 20 June 2012 to 7 December 2024.
Reposted by Eric Coulson
The American people electing Trump after he staged a coup attempt 5 years ago was a nail in the coffin of our democracy. You can rationalize it all you want - But inflation! But wokeness! - but ultimately it was a societal suicide attempt and probably the dumbest collective voting decision ever made
January 6, 2026 at 2:51 PM
The American people electing Trump after he staged a coup attempt 5 years ago was a nail in the coffin of our democracy. You can rationalize it all you want - But inflation! But wokeness! - but ultimately it was a societal suicide attempt and probably the dumbest collective voting decision ever made
Reposted by Eric Coulson
Tim Walz dropping out of the race for a third term is the direct result of Republican threats to kill his entire family after they had already murdered one of his state’s representative and her husband. — Anyone still believe both parties are the same?
January 5, 2026 at 10:22 PM
Tim Walz dropping out of the race for a third term is the direct result of Republican threats to kill his entire family after they had already murdered one of his state’s representative and her husband. — Anyone still believe both parties are the same?
Reposted by Eric Coulson
I can’t think of a case in which DOD invoked the UCMJ against a retired officer, & there are many instances of dangerous behavior (Mike Flynn inciting violence or impugning elections) where it might be appropriate. Attempting to penalize anodyne speech by a sitting Senator is not one of those cases.
NEW: Sen. Mark Kelly RESPONDS to Pete Hegseth for censuring him, cutting his military pension, threatening to demote his rank, and warning of possible criminal prosecution for telling soldiers to obey their oath.
January 5, 2026 at 6:09 PM
I can’t think of a case in which DOD invoked the UCMJ against a retired officer, & there are many instances of dangerous behavior (Mike Flynn inciting violence or impugning elections) where it might be appropriate. Attempting to penalize anodyne speech by a sitting Senator is not one of those cases.
Administrative reduction in rank at or post retirement is to the rank at which the person "last honorably served at." The problem for Kegsbreath is that he is taking action based on post retirement conduct. Setting aside numerous issues, there is no accusation he did this as an active duty officer.
Has anyone written an up-to-date treatment on the application of the First Amendment to Article 88 for retired servicemembers? Or can someone point me to a well-informed smarter person who may know?
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says Sen. Mark Kelly will face administrative action
January 5, 2026 at 6:08 PM
Administrative reduction in rank at or post retirement is to the rank at which the person "last honorably served at." The problem for Kegsbreath is that he is taking action based on post retirement conduct. Setting aside numerous issues, there is no accusation he did this as an active duty officer.
This newsletter is worth your money - it is an important time to under what Dr Zimmer is talking about.
If you’ll indulge me for a second:
The newsletter has really struggled to attract new subscribers since I left Substack - while the monthly churn (existing subscribers canceling their subscription) has gone up significantly.
Not sure what the reasons are. But it is definitely concerning.
The newsletter has really struggled to attract new subscribers since I left Substack - while the monthly churn (existing subscribers canceling their subscription) has gone up significantly.
Not sure what the reasons are. But it is definitely concerning.
Sunday reading:
America is no longer a democracy. That doesn’t mean authoritarianism has won. There is reason to feel more optimistic now than last spring.
But the country needs a democratic transformation rather than merely a restoration of the pre-Trump status quo.
This week’s piece:
America is no longer a democracy. That doesn’t mean authoritarianism has won. There is reason to feel more optimistic now than last spring.
But the country needs a democratic transformation rather than merely a restoration of the pre-Trump status quo.
This week’s piece:
January 4, 2026 at 4:12 PM
This newsletter is worth your money - it is an important time to under what Dr Zimmer is talking about.
Reposted by Eric Coulson
Sounds about right.
January 1, 2026 at 3:20 PM
Sounds about right.
Absolutely - let's get an M88 and pull it all down!
New in PN: Why every vestige of Trump must be torn down
"The truly devoted will still open their wallets to buy lifetime supplies of Trump Bronzer for Men, Trump Blast Energy Drink, & Trump Adult Diapers. But his name should not adorn anything official, anything representing our country & its govt"
"The truly devoted will still open their wallets to buy lifetime supplies of Trump Bronzer for Men, Trump Blast Energy Drink, & Trump Adult Diapers. But his name should not adorn anything official, anything representing our country & its govt"
Why every vestige of Trump must be torn down
He's trying to create a physical legacy. The moment he's out of power, it has to be smashed to bits.
www.publicnotice.co
December 29, 2025 at 1:51 PM
Absolutely - let's get an M88 and pull it all down!
Halfway through @andrewrsorkin.bsky.social ‘s 1929 and it gripping. Written like a thriller with so many parallels to today, this feels like a must read.
December 26, 2025 at 11:40 AM
Halfway through @andrewrsorkin.bsky.social ‘s 1929 and it gripping. Written like a thriller with so many parallels to today, this feels like a must read.
Your daily reminder.
”In My Home, The America I Love - The America I've Written About That Has Been A Beacon Of Hope & Liberty For 250 Years...
is currently in the hands of a corrupt, incompetent and treasonous administration.”
Bruce Springsteen 🩵🎸🗽
#DEFENDDEMOCRACY
is currently in the hands of a corrupt, incompetent and treasonous administration.”
Bruce Springsteen 🩵🎸🗽
#DEFENDDEMOCRACY
December 25, 2025 at 5:44 PM
Your daily reminder.
What a story!
While I was in prison, I was the food procurement clerk. It was my job to work with the first cook to design the daily food menu and then make sure the men were fed on a budget of $2.60 per person per day.
How I helped make the best Christmas prison meal, a thread.
How I helped make the best Christmas prison meal, a thread.
December 25, 2025 at 3:10 PM
What a story!
Reposted by Eric Coulson
1964, "A brand new Japanese guitar."
December 25, 2025 at 12:04 PM
1964, "A brand new Japanese guitar."
A1 analysis.
The GOP is being held together by a THREAD by one dude with a very tenuous grasp on 1/3rd of the electorate, and when that falls, it's fucking open season for everything.
December 23, 2025 at 4:25 PM
A1 analysis.
Reposted by Eric Coulson
1 - the exec branch can't decline to spend $ Congress appropriated
2- the fed govt can't use federal $ to extort states over policy/political disagreements
3-the fed govt can't use federal $ to impose conditions unrelated to the funding program
4-the fed govt can't use federal $ to coerce states
2- the fed govt can't use federal $ to extort states over policy/political disagreements
3-the fed govt can't use federal $ to impose conditions unrelated to the funding program
4-the fed govt can't use federal $ to coerce states
Sean Duffy on blue states: "What I can do is I can pull their money. That's the leverage I do have ... I guarantee you that the federal taxpayer is not going to fund their roads and bridges and their systems when they are putting illegals on the roads."
December 23, 2025 at 2:32 PM
1 - the exec branch can't decline to spend $ Congress appropriated
2- the fed govt can't use federal $ to extort states over policy/political disagreements
3-the fed govt can't use federal $ to impose conditions unrelated to the funding program
4-the fed govt can't use federal $ to coerce states
2- the fed govt can't use federal $ to extort states over policy/political disagreements
3-the fed govt can't use federal $ to impose conditions unrelated to the funding program
4-the fed govt can't use federal $ to coerce states
Reposted by Eric Coulson
The CBS investigation portrays a modern concentration camp, similar to the Soviet GULAG (like CECOT, an acronym): sadistic guards, 24 hour lighting, isolation cells.
Americans once opposed this inhumane system.
The Trump administration sent innocent people there to suffer.
Americans once opposed this inhumane system.
The Trump administration sent innocent people there to suffer.
December 23, 2025 at 9:49 AM
The CBS investigation portrays a modern concentration camp, similar to the Soviet GULAG (like CECOT, an acronym): sadistic guards, 24 hour lighting, isolation cells.
Americans once opposed this inhumane system.
The Trump administration sent innocent people there to suffer.
Americans once opposed this inhumane system.
The Trump administration sent innocent people there to suffer.
Reposted by Eric Coulson
Failure to recognize this moment as part of the centuries long battle against white supremacist oppression is a dangerous denial, and a gift to the American fascist project. @sifill.bsky.social is right on.
“The white supremacist, anti-14th Amendment, post-Brown movement has the complicity or active engagement of all three branches of government as it works to undo the constitutional infrastructure of Reconstruction and the legacy of the Civil Rights Movement.”
open.substack.com/pub/sherrily...
open.substack.com/pub/sherrily...
Is It Too Late?
No. But We Must Better Understand the Nature of the Battle
open.substack.com
December 21, 2025 at 5:23 PM
Failure to recognize this moment as part of the centuries long battle against white supremacist oppression is a dangerous denial, and a gift to the American fascist project. @sifill.bsky.social is right on.
Reposted by Eric Coulson
This is my Christmas gift to my homeless neighbors, to the volunteers who get great joy from helping them…and, yes, to myself. Merry Christmas to all!
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December 21, 2025 at 2:51 AM
This is my Christmas gift to my homeless neighbors, to the volunteers who get great joy from helping them…and, yes, to myself. Merry Christmas to all!
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Reposted by Eric Coulson
It’s the “season of love and giving”…but this year, doesn’t it seem more like a “season of fear and taking”? Like many of you, I’ve been saddened by the human impact of draconian government budget cuts and how angry many housed Americans are at unhoused Americans.
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December 21, 2025 at 2:51 AM
It’s the “season of love and giving”…but this year, doesn’t it seem more like a “season of fear and taking”? Like many of you, I’ve been saddened by the human impact of draconian government budget cuts and how angry many housed Americans are at unhoused Americans.
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Reposted by Eric Coulson
not that the present economic picture is rosy, but i do think that popular culture — and specifically nostalgia bait television — is a big part of the reason that our public memory of the 1970s, 1980s and even 1990s seems to miss the real economic pain that marked each of those decades.
December 20, 2025 at 2:44 PM
not that the present economic picture is rosy, but i do think that popular culture — and specifically nostalgia bait television — is a big part of the reason that our public memory of the 1970s, 1980s and even 1990s seems to miss the real economic pain that marked each of those decades.
This is a fake account. Please report it.
December 20, 2025 at 2:43 PM
This is a fake account. Please report it.
This is a fantastic article.
those who predicted authoritarianism were both dismissed, & deeply misunderstood, by the media
my latest for @newrepublic.com
newrepublic.com/article/2042...
my latest for @newrepublic.com
newrepublic.com/article/2042...
The Americans Who Saw All This Coming—but Were Ignored and Maligned
Call them the Cassandras: the people—mostly not white and male—who smelled the fascism all over Trump from jump street. Why were they “alarmists,” and how did “anti-alarmism” become cool?
newrepublic.com
December 18, 2025 at 11:59 AM
This is a fantastic article.
Things the Constitution is crystal clear about - birthright citizenship and Presidential term limits- just to name two.
December 18, 2025 at 9:35 AM
Things the Constitution is crystal clear about - birthright citizenship and Presidential term limits- just to name two.
Good piece from Tom.
For 20 minutes, Americans watched Donald Trump address the nation, “drenched in pure panic as he tried to bully an entire nation into admitting he’s doing a great job,” @radiofreetom.bsky.social argues:
This Is What Presidential Panic Looks Like
Donald Trump delivered a fear-drenched rant live from the White House.
bit.ly
December 18, 2025 at 7:13 AM
Good piece from Tom.