John Refior
@johnrefior.bsky.social
Supporter of progressive economic policy. Aspiring small business owner. Volunteer lawyer. Amateur economist. Software developer.
—
#BLM #economics #TIARA
https://johnrefior.com
https://hachyderm.io/@jrefior
https://www.trumpisarussianasset.info
—
#BLM #economics #TIARA
https://johnrefior.com
https://hachyderm.io/@jrefior
https://www.trumpisarussianasset.info
Pinned
The SALT tax deduction is a handout to the rich. It should be eliminated not expanded | Brookings
Rather than seeking to remove the cap on the SALT deduction, policymakers would do better to consider steps towards the removal of the deduction itself.
www.brookings.edu
So, you're in favor of taxing the rich, eh?
Do you really mean it, or is it just something you post on Bluesky?
Because if you really mean it, you should be a zealous advocate for higher property taxes, and a vehement opponent of the SALT deduction.
A short 🧵
Do you really mean it, or is it just something you post on Bluesky?
Because if you really mean it, you should be a zealous advocate for higher property taxes, and a vehement opponent of the SALT deduction.
A short 🧵
Reposted by John Refior
Great account of how the bus boycott movement, started by Rosa Parks' refusal to leave the whites only section of the bus, eventually succeeded www.theguardian.com/commentisfre... This is the history the Trumpers don't want you to know
What we get wrong about the Montgomery bus boycott – and what we can learn from it | Jeanne Theoharis
The movement’s success was never a given. It took much longer and required tremendous sacrifice without certainty it would work
www.theguardian.com
December 8, 2025 at 12:41 AM
Great account of how the bus boycott movement, started by Rosa Parks' refusal to leave the whites only section of the bus, eventually succeeded www.theguardian.com/commentisfre... This is the history the Trumpers don't want you to know
Reposted by John Refior
Inspired by an exchange here yesterday, I wrote up a short piece at CAMPAIGN TRAILS about an infamous Lee Atwater quotation that just about everyone gets wrong.
Southern Strategies
This week, I saw someone on social media trot out a notorious quote from Lee Atwater that's wildly misunderstood. I went back to dust off my old Twitter thread about it, but I found that a lot of the ...
campaign-trails.ghost.io
December 7, 2025 at 10:07 PM
Inspired by an exchange here yesterday, I wrote up a short piece at CAMPAIGN TRAILS about an infamous Lee Atwater quotation that just about everyone gets wrong.
Color me shocked
"Russia on Sunday welcomed the Trump administration’s new national security strategy in comments by the Kremlin spokesman published by Russia’s Tass news agency. Dmitry Peskov said the updated strategic document was largely in line with Moscow’s vision."
"Russia on Sunday welcomed the Trump administration’s new national security strategy in comments by the Kremlin spokesman published by Russia’s Tass news agency. Dmitry Peskov said the updated strategic document was largely in line with Moscow’s vision."
The Kremlin praises new US security strategy as Russian strikes kill 4 in Ukraine
Russia has welcomed the Trump administration’s new national security strategy. That's according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
apnews.com
December 7, 2025 at 11:20 PM
Color me shocked
"Russia on Sunday welcomed the Trump administration’s new national security strategy in comments by the Kremlin spokesman published by Russia’s Tass news agency. Dmitry Peskov said the updated strategic document was largely in line with Moscow’s vision."
"Russia on Sunday welcomed the Trump administration’s new national security strategy in comments by the Kremlin spokesman published by Russia’s Tass news agency. Dmitry Peskov said the updated strategic document was largely in line with Moscow’s vision."
Reposted by John Refior
There was revolution in the air in New Orleans when the Border Patrol invaded their city - as brave citizens blew whistles, chased convoys, and confronted masked agents of a tyrannical government
From Minneapolis to Manhattan, an uprising has begun. A special report www.inquirer.com/opinion/immi...
From Minneapolis to Manhattan, an uprising has begun. A special report www.inquirer.com/opinion/immi...
In New Orleans and across U.S., anger over ICE raids sparks a 2nd American Revolution | Will Bunch
Everyday folks are rising up to resist immigration raids with whistles, car chases, and noisy protests. Revolution is in the air.
www.inquirer.com
December 7, 2025 at 7:30 PM
There was revolution in the air in New Orleans when the Border Patrol invaded their city - as brave citizens blew whistles, chased convoys, and confronted masked agents of a tyrannical government
From Minneapolis to Manhattan, an uprising has begun. A special report www.inquirer.com/opinion/immi...
From Minneapolis to Manhattan, an uprising has begun. A special report www.inquirer.com/opinion/immi...
Reposted by John Refior
Households face annual costs of roughly $400–$900 from climate change—mainly from disasters, higher insurance, and energy costs—with lower-income families and certain regions hit disproportionately, from @kclausing.bsky.social, Knittel, and @cwolfram.bsky.social www.nber.org/papers/w34525
December 7, 2025 at 2:01 PM
Households face annual costs of roughly $400–$900 from climate change—mainly from disasters, higher insurance, and energy costs—with lower-income families and certain regions hit disproportionately, from @kclausing.bsky.social, Knittel, and @cwolfram.bsky.social www.nber.org/papers/w34525
Reposted by John Refior
During ratification of the 14th Amendment, senators discussed whether the Citizenship Clause would apply to the children of immigrants and resoundingly concluded that it did. The text and history all point in one direction and the counter-arguments are patently fraudulent. I am going to lose my mind
The evidence is the text. All you have to do is read the Constitution.
December 7, 2025 at 7:19 PM
During ratification of the 14th Amendment, senators discussed whether the Citizenship Clause would apply to the children of immigrants and resoundingly concluded that it did. The text and history all point in one direction and the counter-arguments are patently fraudulent. I am going to lose my mind
Reposted by John Refior
The biggest project I've worked on for the last chunk of years was just published. It asks, how big are US Black-white lifespan differences?
This might seem like a narrow question. I hope to convince you by the end that there are answers you didn't anticipate. And I hope some of them will move you.
This might seem like a narrow question. I hope to convince you by the end that there are answers you didn't anticipate. And I hope some of them will move you.
Three Ways of Looking at Black–White Mortality Differences in the United States | Annual Reviews
Everyone agrees that US Black deaths happen earlier than white deaths on average, but it is surprisingly challenging to find the best ways to summarize, quantify, and compare this gap. This review arg...
www.annualreviews.org
April 30, 2025 at 8:27 PM
The biggest project I've worked on for the last chunk of years was just published. It asks, how big are US Black-white lifespan differences?
This might seem like a narrow question. I hope to convince you by the end that there are answers you didn't anticipate. And I hope some of them will move you.
This might seem like a narrow question. I hope to convince you by the end that there are answers you didn't anticipate. And I hope some of them will move you.
Reposted by John Refior
"Bradley told lawmakers that the orders he received from Hegseth were to kill the individuals on the approved target list, which included everyone on the boat, then destroy the drugs and sink the boat, those sources said."
They were civilians.
They were civilians.
Admiral told lawmakers everyone on alleged drug boat was on a list of military targets
Adm. Frank Bradley said U.S. intelligence had identified the 11 people on the boat and determined the military was authorized to kill them as part of Trump’s campaign against alleged drug-smuggling ve...
www.nbcnews.com
December 7, 2025 at 2:01 AM
"Bradley told lawmakers that the orders he received from Hegseth were to kill the individuals on the approved target list, which included everyone on the boat, then destroy the drugs and sink the boat, those sources said."
They were civilians.
They were civilians.
Reposted by John Refior
Thanks in good part to Trump's return to the White House, the MAGA Year in Education has been brutal. Here is a sampling of stories.
January:
-rural school funding cut
-TN passes private school voucher bill
-schools as sites of immigration enforcement
-DPS investigated for all-gender bathroom
January:
-rural school funding cut
-TN passes private school voucher bill
-schools as sites of immigration enforcement
-DPS investigated for all-gender bathroom
December 6, 2025 at 5:12 PM
Thanks in good part to Trump's return to the White House, the MAGA Year in Education has been brutal. Here is a sampling of stories.
January:
-rural school funding cut
-TN passes private school voucher bill
-schools as sites of immigration enforcement
-DPS investigated for all-gender bathroom
January:
-rural school funding cut
-TN passes private school voucher bill
-schools as sites of immigration enforcement
-DPS investigated for all-gender bathroom
Apparently this is real.
"This speaks to the idea that we will increasingly be viewing the world through the lens of AI."
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
"This speaks to the idea that we will increasingly be viewing the world through the lens of AI."
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
December 6, 2025 at 3:23 PM
Apparently this is real.
"This speaks to the idea that we will increasingly be viewing the world through the lens of AI."
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
"This speaks to the idea that we will increasingly be viewing the world through the lens of AI."
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Reposted by John Refior
"Gone is the long-familiar picture of the United States as a global force for freedom, replaced by a country that is focused on reducing migration while avoiding passing judgment on authoritarians, instead seeing them as sources of cash."
www.whitehouse.gov
December 6, 2025 at 1:20 PM
"Gone is the long-familiar picture of the United States as a global force for freedom, replaced by a country that is focused on reducing migration while avoiding passing judgment on authoritarians, instead seeing them as sources of cash."
Reposted by John Refior
In South Minneapolis, Minnesota, nearly two dozen neighbors confronted and surrounded ICE goons after rapid-response alerts were issued. The goons were questioning an East African man when the situation escalated, and they eventually left the area without making any arrests.
December 6, 2025 at 12:57 PM
In South Minneapolis, Minnesota, nearly two dozen neighbors confronted and surrounded ICE goons after rapid-response alerts were issued. The goons were questioning an East African man when the situation escalated, and they eventually left the area without making any arrests.
Reposted by John Refior
"In the days following the event, the woman says she hasn’t been able to sleep, is in physical pain from the way she was handled by the agents, and keeps reliving what happened. “The way I was treated left me feeling traumatized, humiliated, degraded, and unheard.”"
“Traumatized, humiliated, degraded.”
The nurse, a US citizen, 4’11”, 85 lbs, says she was following orders when she was dragged out of her car by masked immigration agents in Florida.
It was the 3rd time she had been stopped and told to produce ID.
Free link ⤵️
www.miamiherald.com/news/local/i...
The nurse, a US citizen, 4’11”, 85 lbs, says she was following orders when she was dragged out of her car by masked immigration agents in Florida.
It was the 3rd time she had been stopped and told to produce ID.
Free link ⤵️
www.miamiherald.com/news/local/i...
Exclusive: Woman detained by feds in Keys says she was following agents’ orders
“This is not the America that I grew up in, and this is not the America that we represent.”
www.miamiherald.com
December 6, 2025 at 2:01 PM
"In the days following the event, the woman says she hasn’t been able to sleep, is in physical pain from the way she was handled by the agents, and keeps reliving what happened. “The way I was treated left me feeling traumatized, humiliated, degraded, and unheard.”"
Reposted by John Refior
The BBC investigates British car bloat and "Chelsea tractors":
"The standard minimum width of an on-street parking space is 1.8m, [but] more than half of the 100 top-selling cars in the UK were fractionally wider than this."
"The standard minimum width of an on-street parking space is 1.8m, [but] more than half of the 100 top-selling cars in the UK were fractionally wider than this."
'Carspreading’ is on the rise - not everyone is happy - BBC News
In the UK and across Europe, cars are becoming longer, wider and heavier.
www.bbc.com
December 6, 2025 at 1:43 PM
The BBC investigates British car bloat and "Chelsea tractors":
"The standard minimum width of an on-street parking space is 1.8m, [but] more than half of the 100 top-selling cars in the UK were fractionally wider than this."
"The standard minimum width of an on-street parking space is 1.8m, [but] more than half of the 100 top-selling cars in the UK were fractionally wider than this."
Reposted by John Refior
Russian drones, missiles hit Ukraine power and transport sectors, Kyiv says reut.rs/4rHxlkg
Russian drones, missiles hit Ukraine power and transport sectors, Kyiv says
A large-scale Russian drone and missile attack damaged power facilities in eight Ukrainian regions, causing blackouts and forcing nuclear power plants to cut power output, officials and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said on Saturday.
reut.rs
December 6, 2025 at 11:05 AM
Russian drones, missiles hit Ukraine power and transport sectors, Kyiv says reut.rs/4rHxlkg
Reposted by John Refior
The boat was split in half. 9 men were dead. 2 more clung to a floating piece of wreckage and tried desperately to flip it over for 41 minutes straight. There was no possible way they were going anywhere.
Then they were killed in cold blood by the U.S. military.
Then they were killed in cold blood by the U.S. military.
December 5, 2025 at 1:19 AM
The boat was split in half. 9 men were dead. 2 more clung to a floating piece of wreckage and tried desperately to flip it over for 41 minutes straight. There was no possible way they were going anywhere.
Then they were killed in cold blood by the U.S. military.
Then they were killed in cold blood by the U.S. military.
Reposted by John Refior
Bulgaria rescuing sanctioned tanker that was hit by Ukrainian drone reut.rs/48k9Nug
Bulgaria rescuing sanctioned tanker that was hit by Ukrainian drone
Bulgaria's maritime authorities, border police and navy, are carrying out a rescue of a vessel that entered the country's territorial waters on Friday but the operation has been put on hold due to bad weather, the transport ministry said in a statement.
reut.rs
December 6, 2025 at 1:20 AM
Bulgaria rescuing sanctioned tanker that was hit by Ukrainian drone reut.rs/48k9Nug
Reposted by John Refior
I'm not exaggerating when I say following @boltsmag.org rn will unlock money for our journalism.
A generous reader, @russ41.bsky.social, has offered to donate $1 for every 1-person increase to our follower count.
If you're not following @boltsmag.org yet, it'll directly help fund our reporting!
A generous reader, @russ41.bsky.social, has offered to donate $1 for every 1-person increase to our follower count.
If you're not following @boltsmag.org yet, it'll directly help fund our reporting!
December 6, 2025 at 12:07 AM
I'm not exaggerating when I say following @boltsmag.org rn will unlock money for our journalism.
A generous reader, @russ41.bsky.social, has offered to donate $1 for every 1-person increase to our follower count.
If you're not following @boltsmag.org yet, it'll directly help fund our reporting!
A generous reader, @russ41.bsky.social, has offered to donate $1 for every 1-person increase to our follower count.
If you're not following @boltsmag.org yet, it'll directly help fund our reporting!
Reposted by John Refior
“She showed up as scheduled, and when she arrived, officers were asking everyone what country they were from, and if they said a certain country, they were told to step out of line and that their oath ceremonies were canceled.”
www.wgbh.org/news/local/2... @gbhnews.bsky.social
www.wgbh.org/news/local/2... @gbhnews.bsky.social
Immigrants kept from Faneuil Hall citizenship ceremony as feds crackdown nationwide
Trump administration is pausing naturalizations for immigrants from 19 countries.
www.wgbh.org
December 5, 2025 at 10:56 PM
“She showed up as scheduled, and when she arrived, officers were asking everyone what country they were from, and if they said a certain country, they were told to step out of line and that their oath ceremonies were canceled.”
www.wgbh.org/news/local/2... @gbhnews.bsky.social
www.wgbh.org/news/local/2... @gbhnews.bsky.social
Reposted by John Refior
US lawmakers press Google, Apple to remove apps tracking immigration agents reut.rs/4rXZ0Oj
US lawmakers press Google, Apple to remove apps tracking immigration agents
The House Committee on Homeland Security has asked Google and Apple to detail what steps they are taking to remove mobile applications that allow users to track federal immigration officers.
reut.rs
December 6, 2025 at 1:01 AM
US lawmakers press Google, Apple to remove apps tracking immigration agents reut.rs/4rXZ0Oj
Reposted by John Refior
Excellent reporting from @charliesavage.bsky.social and @julianbarnes.bsky.social starting with the "plain reality" that there was no warship, and no fighting going on, in the Sept. 2 strike, or any of them:
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/04/u...
1/2
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/04/u...
1/2
December 5, 2025 at 10:46 PM
Excellent reporting from @charliesavage.bsky.social and @julianbarnes.bsky.social starting with the "plain reality" that there was no warship, and no fighting going on, in the Sept. 2 strike, or any of them:
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/04/u...
1/2
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/04/u...
1/2
Reposted by John Refior
On a vote of 57 to 41, the Indiana state House today adopted a new congressional map that would likely give all of the state's seats to the GOP, including by cracking Indianapolis into four different districts. The Senate will consider the plan next week:
Redistricting bill passes in Indiana House, setting up high-stakes Senate fight
Indiana state House Republicans passed a new state congressional map Friday, advancing the legislation to the state Senate.
www.wrtv.com
December 6, 2025 at 12:12 AM
On a vote of 57 to 41, the Indiana state House today adopted a new congressional map that would likely give all of the state's seats to the GOP, including by cracking Indianapolis into four different districts. The Senate will consider the plan next week:
Reposted by John Refior
History suggests that things don't go well when white nationalists are warning against "civilizational erasure" in Europe
The new US National Security Strategy makes for scary reading. I wrote about how the US wants to support forces in Europe to tear itself apart back in November 2024, and last May. This NSS confirms that's exactly the US objective for Europe.
www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/u...
www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/u...
December 5, 2025 at 12:44 PM
History suggests that things don't go well when white nationalists are warning against "civilizational erasure" in Europe
Reposted by John Refior
@npr it’s not a principle. It is a constitutional guarantee.
The Supreme Court will ultimately decide whether to uphold the longstanding principle that grants citizenship to the children of non-citizens born in the U.S., following a legal challenge by the Trump administration. n.pr/48E1oko
Supreme Court agrees to hear arguments in birthright citizenship challenge
The Supreme Court will ultimately decide whether to uphold the longstanding principle that grants citizenship to the children of non-citizens born in the U.S., following a legal challenge by the Trump administration.
n.pr
December 5, 2025 at 8:10 PM
@npr it’s not a principle. It is a constitutional guarantee.
Reposted by John Refior
It has long been clear that unalloyed racism lies at the core of Trumpism, and he is becoming increasingly explicit about this.
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/05/w...
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/05/w...
Trump Administration Says Europe Faces ‘Civilizational Erasure’
www.nytimes.com
December 5, 2025 at 4:29 PM
It has long been clear that unalloyed racism lies at the core of Trumpism, and he is becoming increasingly explicit about this.
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/05/w...
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/05/w...