John Carl Baker
@johncarlbaker.bsky.social
nuclear weapons, foreign policy, the left - occasional antiquity and cocktail posts
Words: Nation, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, NK News, US Institute of Peace, New Republic, elsewhere
seniores tollunt omnia
Words: Nation, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, NK News, US Institute of Peace, New Republic, elsewhere
seniores tollunt omnia
Pinned
No one is less prepared for the foreign policy of Trump 2.0 than people who think “isolationism” is an accurate description of administration policy
This song is so good open.spotify.com/track/2J88Gg...
Ancients
open.spotify.com
January 28, 2026 at 12:28 AM
This song is so good open.spotify.com/track/2J88Gg...
Taking her at face value, it’s fascinating to me how an editor in chief making a clear statement of a media company’s political position somehow doesn’t count as bias.
Bari Weiss, editor in chief of CBS News, told the staff that she wanted the network to appeal to political moderates.
“We’re for the center. We’re for the center-right, and we’re for the center-left,” Weiss said.
“We’re for the center. We’re for the center-right, and we’re for the center-left,” Weiss said.
Bari Weiss to CBS News staff: Without a shift in strategy, ‘we are toast’
The CBS News editor in chief said the network needs to produce journalism people want as she named a raft of new contributors from her website, the Free Press.
wapo.st
January 27, 2026 at 10:20 PM
Taking her at face value, it’s fascinating to me how an editor in chief making a clear statement of a media company’s political position somehow doesn’t count as bias.
Reposted by John Carl Baker
“Yes, it’s expanding the surveillance state, and yes, it’s destroying the education system, and yes, it’s being trained on copyrighted work without permission, and yes, it’s being used to create lethal autonomous weapons systems…but…I forget my point, but ultimately, I think you should embrace it.”
Please Don’t Say Mean Things about the AI That I Just Invested a Billion Dollars In
“[Nvidia CEO] Jensen Huang Is Begging You to Stop Being So Negative About AI” — Headline from Gizmodo
- - —
Guys, enough is enough. Bullying is a s...
www.mcsweeneys.net
January 27, 2026 at 8:36 PM
“Yes, it’s expanding the surveillance state, and yes, it’s destroying the education system, and yes, it’s being trained on copyrighted work without permission, and yes, it’s being used to create lethal autonomous weapons systems…but…I forget my point, but ultimately, I think you should embrace it.”
North Korea is now producing art about its support for Russia's invasion of Ukraine en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN2026...
N. Korea's Kim inspects sculptures, artwork honoring soldiers killed in Ukraine war | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, Jan. 26 (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has inspected sculptures and ar...
en.yna.co.kr
January 27, 2026 at 7:02 PM
North Korea is now producing art about its support for Russia's invasion of Ukraine en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN2026...
Meanwhile, US-South Korea friction continues en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN2026...
(LEAD) White House official says S. Korea made 'no progress' despite Trump's tariff cuts | Yonhap News Agency
(ATTN: RECASTS headline, lead; ADDS more info in paras 5-8)By Song Sang-ho WASHINGTON, J...
en.yna.co.kr
January 27, 2026 at 6:56 PM
Meanwhile, US-South Korea friction continues en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN2026...
Have said this before but boy was I wrong about Trump II's approach to China www.wsj.com/politics/nat...
Exclusive | Trump Administration Pushes Out Key Officials Focused on China Tech Threat
The departing staffers worked for a Commerce Department office charged with protecting the U.S. from Chinese technological advances.
www.wsj.com
January 27, 2026 at 6:29 PM
Have said this before but boy was I wrong about Trump II's approach to China www.wsj.com/politics/nat...
"These dangerous trends are accompanied by another development that undermines efforts to deal with major global threats: the rise of nationalistic autocracy in countries around the world, including in a number of countries that possess nuclear weapons."
The Bulletin’s Science and Security Board is a select group of globally recognized leaders with a specific focus on nuclear risk, climate change, & disruptive technologies. In the 2026 Doomsday Clock statement, they explain why the Clock is now at 85 seconds to midnight.
Read more: buff.ly/17yAznF
Read more: buff.ly/17yAznF
January 27, 2026 at 3:59 PM
"These dangerous trends are accompanied by another development that undermines efforts to deal with major global threats: the rise of nationalistic autocracy in countries around the world, including in a number of countries that possess nuclear weapons."
Real banger from Thomas Paine:
"Men who look upon themselves born to reign, and others to obey, soon grow insolent; selected from the rest of mankind their minds are early poisoned by importance;" (1/2)
"Men who look upon themselves born to reign, and others to obey, soon grow insolent; selected from the rest of mankind their minds are early poisoned by importance;" (1/2)
January 27, 2026 at 1:49 PM
Real banger from Thomas Paine:
"Men who look upon themselves born to reign, and others to obey, soon grow insolent; selected from the rest of mankind their minds are early poisoned by importance;" (1/2)
"Men who look upon themselves born to reign, and others to obey, soon grow insolent; selected from the rest of mankind their minds are early poisoned by importance;" (1/2)
“Early hominins in Europe were creating tools from raw materials hundreds of thousands of years before Homo sapiens arrived there” www.nytimes.com/2026/01/26/s...
430,000-Year-Old Wooden Tools Are the Oldest Ever Found
www.nytimes.com
January 27, 2026 at 12:44 PM
“Early hominins in Europe were creating tools from raw materials hundreds of thousands of years before Homo sapiens arrived there” www.nytimes.com/2026/01/26/s...
Reposted by John Carl Baker
January 24, 2026 at 4:13 PM
Metaphor alert www.bbc.com/news/article...
Nuclear bunker in East Yorkshire topples from crumbling cliff
The brick building, on the East Yorkshire coast, is now sitting at the foot of a collapsed cliff.
www.bbc.com
January 26, 2026 at 6:56 PM
Metaphor alert www.bbc.com/news/article...
Reposted by John Carl Baker
Yep. I had a strictly policed word-limited rant about Golden Dome and its sillyness (as a nuclear missile shield) here: www.astro-politics.org/articles/gol...
January 26, 2026 at 6:47 PM
Yep. I had a strictly policed word-limited rant about Golden Dome and its sillyness (as a nuclear missile shield) here: www.astro-politics.org/articles/gol...
Rep. Seth Moulton: "Golden Dome will make nuclear war more likely, not less."
He's right. www.semafor.com/article/01/2...
He's right. www.semafor.com/article/01/2...
Debatable: Trump’s Golden Dome
The missile shield proposal — and its price tag — has policymakers at odds.
www.semafor.com
January 26, 2026 at 6:45 PM
Rep. Seth Moulton: "Golden Dome will make nuclear war more likely, not less."
He's right. www.semafor.com/article/01/2...
He's right. www.semafor.com/article/01/2...
Not only is this not going to happen - they won't be anywhere close to it spacenews.com/golden-dome-...
January 26, 2026 at 6:38 PM
Not only is this not going to happen - they won't be anywhere close to it spacenews.com/golden-dome-...
Ariel Petrovics on New START:
"The choice...is not between perfect verification and no agreement. It is between maintaining a platform that can support verification in the future and eliminating the last framework capable of containing strategic uncertainty" foreignpolicy.com/2026/01/23/u...
"The choice...is not between perfect verification and no agreement. It is between maintaining a platform that can support verification in the future and eliminating the last framework capable of containing strategic uncertainty" foreignpolicy.com/2026/01/23/u...
Why Trump Should Accept Putin’s New START Offer
Extending the nuclear treaty is not about trust—it’s about pragmatism.
foreignpolicy.com
January 26, 2026 at 6:31 PM
Ariel Petrovics on New START:
"The choice...is not between perfect verification and no agreement. It is between maintaining a platform that can support verification in the future and eliminating the last framework capable of containing strategic uncertainty" foreignpolicy.com/2026/01/23/u...
"The choice...is not between perfect verification and no agreement. It is between maintaining a platform that can support verification in the future and eliminating the last framework capable of containing strategic uncertainty" foreignpolicy.com/2026/01/23/u...
Another one bites the dust:
"More than 50 senior military officers and defense-industry executives have been placed under investigation or removed from office in the past 2½ years" www.wsj.com/world/china/...
"More than 50 senior military officers and defense-industry executives have been placed under investigation or removed from office in the past 2½ years" www.wsj.com/world/china/...
Exclusive | China’s Top General Accused of Giving Nuclear Secrets to U.S.
Bribery allegations have also been leveled against Gen. Zhang Youxia, whose downfall carries implications for the country’s military readiness.
www.wsj.com
January 26, 2026 at 6:16 PM
Another one bites the dust:
"More than 50 senior military officers and defense-industry executives have been placed under investigation or removed from office in the past 2½ years" www.wsj.com/world/china/...
"More than 50 senior military officers and defense-industry executives have been placed under investigation or removed from office in the past 2½ years" www.wsj.com/world/china/...
National Defense Strategy:
“South Korea is capable of taking primary responsibility for deterring North Korea with critical but more limited US support" www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...
“South Korea is capable of taking primary responsibility for deterring North Korea with critical but more limited US support" www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...
Pentagon to reduce its role in deterrence of North Korea
US policy document suggests South Korea take primary responsibility, as Pentagon prioritises defending US homeland
www.theguardian.com
January 26, 2026 at 6:14 PM
National Defense Strategy:
“South Korea is capable of taking primary responsibility for deterring North Korea with critical but more limited US support" www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...
“South Korea is capable of taking primary responsibility for deterring North Korea with critical but more limited US support" www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...
Reposted by John Carl Baker
fontainebleau hilton, miami beach, florida, 1982
January 26, 2026 at 11:36 AM
fontainebleau hilton, miami beach, florida, 1982
Reposted by John Carl Baker
traymore cafeteria, 2nd avenue & 4th street, st. petersburg, florida, 1979
January 24, 2026 at 11:36 AM
traymore cafeteria, 2nd avenue & 4th street, st. petersburg, florida, 1979
Reposted by John Carl Baker
The left is excluded so much they exist only as a mental caricature to many of these guys. I will be open to them when they demonstrate being open to anybody but themselves
January 26, 2026 at 10:37 AM
The left is excluded so much they exist only as a mental caricature to many of these guys. I will be open to them when they demonstrate being open to anybody but themselves
Reposted by John Carl Baker
Which is why, out of all the horrible things happening in the world right now, I think ChatGPT might be one of the worst, because it will cut an entire generation off from any understanding of what language is & how it works, rendering it into 'prompts', weird Silicon Valley magic spells.
January 26, 2026 at 1:02 PM
Which is why, out of all the horrible things happening in the world right now, I think ChatGPT might be one of the worst, because it will cut an entire generation off from any understanding of what language is & how it works, rendering it into 'prompts', weird Silicon Valley magic spells.
Reposted by John Carl Baker
I never went to no fancy University, despite what my impeccable posting style might imply. What I had was one really excellent schoolteacher in the otherwise grim Christian Brothers school I attended. He taught us to understand the logic of language, speech & thought. Once you know that, you're set.
January 26, 2026 at 1:02 PM
I never went to no fancy University, despite what my impeccable posting style might imply. What I had was one really excellent schoolteacher in the otherwise grim Christian Brothers school I attended. He taught us to understand the logic of language, speech & thought. Once you know that, you're set.
“Abolish ICE” - ICE www.nytimes.com/2026/01/26/u...
January 26, 2026 at 1:00 PM
“Abolish ICE” - ICE www.nytimes.com/2026/01/26/u...
Reposted by John Carl Baker
no doubt was such a good band
November 16, 2024 at 4:12 AM
no doubt was such a good band
This was cool - Criterion has a “Nordic Noir” collection right now.
First Norwegian film directed by a woman! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_I...
First Norwegian film directed by a woman! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_I...
Death Is a Caress - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
January 25, 2026 at 5:25 PM
This was cool - Criterion has a “Nordic Noir” collection right now.
First Norwegian film directed by a woman! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_I...
First Norwegian film directed by a woman! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_I...