Ray Pride
@raypride.bsky.social
Daily newsletter/column, Today in Culture, free sub @ Newcity.com. Film critic. Photographer. Editor. raypride.substack.com; [my name] everywhere / weekly film column newcityfilm.com
Pinned
Ray Pride
@raypride.bsky.social
· Dec 15
Rob Reiner: “Silence in the face of authoritarianism is complicity. Speaking out is a patriotic act. Democracy doesn’t defend itself. It requires participation, vigilance, and courage from ordinary people."
Reposted by Ray Pride
NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani said on Wed. at a press conference that he supports disbanding the NYPD’s Strategic Response Group (SRG), the counterterrorism unit that carried out the first mass arrests of his admin. on Tue. evening during anti-ICE protests at a Manhattan hotel.
Mamdani said he is in...
Mamdani said he is in...
January 28, 2026 at 9:39 PM
NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani said on Wed. at a press conference that he supports disbanding the NYPD’s Strategic Response Group (SRG), the counterterrorism unit that carried out the first mass arrests of his admin. on Tue. evening during anti-ICE protests at a Manhattan hotel.
Mamdani said he is in...
Mamdani said he is in...
Reposted by Ray Pride
FBI & DOJ won’t investigate murder of two American citizens in Minneapolis by ICE but now seizing ballots in 2020 Georgia election that was audited three times
January 28, 2026 at 10:02 PM
FBI & DOJ won’t investigate murder of two American citizens in Minneapolis by ICE but now seizing ballots in 2020 Georgia election that was audited three times
Reposted by Ray Pride
One year into Trump’s second term, some journalists have been “surprised” by the administration’s organized agenda. But Project 2025 was publicly available. Advocacy groups read it and warned us. The press read it and… 🤷♀️ www.readtpa.com/p/this-is-li...
This is Literally the Job
Political journalists need to stop pretending they don't know what Republicans are going to do.
www.readtpa.com
January 27, 2026 at 6:06 PM
One year into Trump’s second term, some journalists have been “surprised” by the administration’s organized agenda. But Project 2025 was publicly available. Advocacy groups read it and warned us. The press read it and… 🤷♀️ www.readtpa.com/p/this-is-li...
Reposted by Ray Pride
"'We lost all trust,' a current ICE official added. 'I’m not sure I can see how we exist three years from now.'”
If an ICE official can see there being a world without ICE, there's no reason any of us shouldn't be able to do the same thing.
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/a...
If an ICE official can see there being a world without ICE, there's no reason any of us shouldn't be able to do the same thing.
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/a...
Morale plummeting among ICE agents over long hours, quotas and public hatred: reports
While immigration officers support the Trump administration’s goal of deporting undocumented migrants, many of them have grown ‘disillusioned’ with leadership’s tactics, according to reports
www.independent.co.uk
January 26, 2026 at 6:35 PM
"'We lost all trust,' a current ICE official added. 'I’m not sure I can see how we exist three years from now.'”
If an ICE official can see there being a world without ICE, there's no reason any of us shouldn't be able to do the same thing.
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/a...
If an ICE official can see there being a world without ICE, there's no reason any of us shouldn't be able to do the same thing.
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/a...
Reposted by Ray Pride
Page after page of DHS agents too ashamed to be pictured doing their job isn’t actually sending the power signal Pam Bondi thinks it is.
Scrolling through the photos of Pam Bondi's "Minnesota rioters," it's just hero after hero. Every photo includes a cowardly DHS agent with their back to the camera.
Bondi thinks she's going to win the propaganda war with this shit, but it's never been more clear that they're losing.
Bondi thinks she's going to win the propaganda war with this shit, but it's never been more clear that they're losing.
January 28, 2026 at 8:46 PM
Page after page of DHS agents too ashamed to be pictured doing their job isn’t actually sending the power signal Pam Bondi thinks it is.
Reposted by Ray Pride
They are in fact are scared of a whistle.
January 28, 2026 at 9:54 PM
They are in fact are scared of a whistle.
Reposted by Ray Pride
Given the earnings Tesla just reported, it makes sense to shift money they don’t have out of making cars they can’t sell and into a speculative AI venture focused on hallucinatory non-consensual nude image generation.
JUST IN: Tesla said it had agreed to invest about $2 billion in Elon Musk's artificial intelligence startup xAI, deepening ties between the companies as the automaker pitches itself as an autonomy and robotics-driven company reut.rs/4ajihma
Tesla to invest $2 billion in Musk's xAI startup
Tesla said on Wednesday it had agreed to invest about $2 billion in Elon Musk's artificial intelligence startup xAI, deepening ties between the companies as the automaker pitches itself as an autonomy...
reut.rs
January 28, 2026 at 9:46 PM
Given the earnings Tesla just reported, it makes sense to shift money they don’t have out of making cars they can’t sell and into a speculative AI venture focused on hallucinatory non-consensual nude image generation.
Reposted by Ray Pride
For those not familiar with "destructive scanning", this means Anthropic would buy up millions of physical books, use “hydraulic powered cutting machines” to chop them up, scan the pages on “high speed, high quality, production level scanners,” then send the pages to recycling companies!!!
Absolutely damning from @aaronschaffer.com, @willoremus.com, & @nitasha.bsky.social.
To get more data, Anthropic:
* "destructively scanned" millions of books
* downloaded the shadow library LibGen
* hailed another shadow library's arrival as "just in time!!!"
www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...
To get more data, Anthropic:
* "destructively scanned" millions of books
* downloaded the shadow library LibGen
* hailed another shadow library's arrival as "just in time!!!"
www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...
Inside an AI start-up’s plan to scan and dispose of millions of books
Court filings reveal how AI companies raced to obtain more books to feed chatbots, including by buying, scanning and disposing of millions of titles.
www.washingtonpost.com
January 28, 2026 at 9:26 PM
For those not familiar with "destructive scanning", this means Anthropic would buy up millions of physical books, use “hydraulic powered cutting machines” to chop them up, scan the pages on “high speed, high quality, production level scanners,” then send the pages to recycling companies!!!
Reposted by Ray Pride
they're killing Americans in the street and her response is to "negotiate to replace Noem with someone that doesn't skirt the filibuster"?
(no I have no idea what the fuck it means to have a cabinet secretary who "doesn't skirt the filibuster" and neither do you)
bsky.app/profile/prem...
(no I have no idea what the fuck it means to have a cabinet secretary who "doesn't skirt the filibuster" and neither do you)
bsky.app/profile/prem...
Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (one of 7 Democrats who just voted to fund DHS) defends her stance.
Argues funding for ICE "is not the question." Instead, Senate Democrats have leverage for various demands.
"I think they could negotiate to replace Noem with someone that doesn't skirt the filibuster."
Argues funding for ICE "is not the question." Instead, Senate Democrats have leverage for various demands.
"I think they could negotiate to replace Noem with someone that doesn't skirt the filibuster."
January 28, 2026 at 9:49 PM
they're killing Americans in the street and her response is to "negotiate to replace Noem with someone that doesn't skirt the filibuster"?
(no I have no idea what the fuck it means to have a cabinet secretary who "doesn't skirt the filibuster" and neither do you)
bsky.app/profile/prem...
(no I have no idea what the fuck it means to have a cabinet secretary who "doesn't skirt the filibuster" and neither do you)
bsky.app/profile/prem...
Reposted by Ray Pride
Not the main point but it remains hilarious to me that despite eleventy billion dollars in funding all these ICE dudes clearly had to bring their own hats.
NEW: The firm behind the Mobile Fortify app, which ICE and CBP use for running facial recognition scans on the public, was revealed today to be NEC, according to DHS docs reviewed by @wired.com. NEC makes its of face rec platform called Reveal. @regret.bsky.social & @dell.bsky.social with the scoop:
Here's the Company That Sold DHS ICE's Notorious Face Recognition App
Immigration agents have used Mobile Fortify to scan the faces of countless people in the US—including many citizens.
www.wired.com
January 28, 2026 at 9:46 PM
Not the main point but it remains hilarious to me that despite eleventy billion dollars in funding all these ICE dudes clearly had to bring their own hats.
Reposted by Ray Pride
From the Vatican: The violence practiced by Trump's secret police in Minneapolis is not acceptable and must be called out for what it is. www.repubblica.it/cronaca/2026...
Parolin: “Inaccettabili le violenze degli agenti Ice a Minneapolis”
E monsignor Baturi sulla loro presenza alle olimpiadi invernali di Milano-Cortina: “Ci auguriamo che il rispetto dell'ordine pubblico sia assicurato il più pos…
www.repubblica.it
January 28, 2026 at 9:46 PM
From the Vatican: The violence practiced by Trump's secret police in Minneapolis is not acceptable and must be called out for what it is. www.repubblica.it/cronaca/2026...
Reposted by Ray Pride
I used to think the thing in cartoons where you could walk off a cliff and not fall as long as you stay oblivious was a joke.
New: Tesla 4th quarter profit plunges 61% year-over-year; annual profit down 46%
the brand damage:
-1 million lost vehicle sales, per study
-Declining revenue, profits, deliveries in 1st half of '25
-Lower total production/deliveries than '24
-Lost crown as world's leading EV seller
wapo.st/3LYTef1
the brand damage:
-1 million lost vehicle sales, per study
-Declining revenue, profits, deliveries in 1st half of '25
-Lower total production/deliveries than '24
-Lost crown as world's leading EV seller
wapo.st/3LYTef1
Tesla bet big on Elon Musk. His politics continue to haunt it.
Tesla struggles to regain its footing in the electric vehicle market, hindered by Elon Musk’s political activity, impacting its stock price and performance.
wapo.st
January 28, 2026 at 9:45 PM
I used to think the thing in cartoons where you could walk off a cliff and not fall as long as you stay oblivious was a joke.
Reposted by Ray Pride
100% Reliable Rule of Thumb:
Don't believe a goddamn word said by the administration that told us Alex Pretti was an assassin.
Don't believe a goddamn word said by the administration that told us Alex Pretti was an assassin.
SHAHEEN: It's been reported that the oil sold for $500 million and $300 million went to Venezuelan government. What happened to the other $200 million?
RUBIO: It's still sitting in the account is my understanding
SHAHEEN: The account in Qatar?
RUBIO: Yes
RUBIO: It's still sitting in the account is my understanding
SHAHEEN: The account in Qatar?
RUBIO: Yes
January 28, 2026 at 9:46 PM
100% Reliable Rule of Thumb:
Don't believe a goddamn word said by the administration that told us Alex Pretti was an assassin.
Don't believe a goddamn word said by the administration that told us Alex Pretti was an assassin.
Reposted by Ray Pride
SCOOP w/ @carolinehaskins.bsky.social: ICE Is Using Palantir’s AI Tools to Sort Through Tips
www.wired.com/story/ice-is...
www.wired.com/story/ice-is...
ICE Is Using Palantir’s AI Tools to Sort Through Tips
ICE has been using an AI-powered Palantir system to summarize tips sent to its tipline since last spring, according to a newly released Homeland Security document.
www.wired.com
January 28, 2026 at 9:41 PM
SCOOP w/ @carolinehaskins.bsky.social: ICE Is Using Palantir’s AI Tools to Sort Through Tips
www.wired.com/story/ice-is...
www.wired.com/story/ice-is...
Reposted by Ray Pride
"a prohibition"??
These people are living on another planet.
These people are living on another planet.
January 28, 2026 at 9:47 PM
"a prohibition"??
These people are living on another planet.
These people are living on another planet.
Reposted by Ray Pride
I wrote this eight years ago. EIGHT FUCKING YEARS AGO. To the boneyard with all of these decrepit losers. www.gq.com/story/chuck-...
Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi Have No Idea What Kind of Fight They're In
Drew Magary on why Democrats need new blood on top.
www.gq.com
January 28, 2026 at 9:48 PM
I wrote this eight years ago. EIGHT FUCKING YEARS AGO. To the boneyard with all of these decrepit losers. www.gq.com/story/chuck-...
Reposted by Ray Pride
They camped out in front of schools during drop-off time this morning in SantaBarbara
January 28, 2026 at 9:30 PM
They camped out in front of schools during drop-off time this morning in SantaBarbara
Reposted by Ray Pride
This is what letting RFK jr go wild on health looks like
Holy moly this chart: Cumulative US measles cases
January 28, 2026 at 1:14 PM
This is what letting RFK jr go wild on health looks like
Reposted by Ray Pride
She's not a US citizen. In the past, she's said she came here illegally. She's covering her ass by becoming a kapo.
January 28, 2026 at 9:39 PM
She's not a US citizen. In the past, she's said she came here illegally. She's covering her ass by becoming a kapo.
Chuck Schumer is an eager collaborator with a violent regime that would dump him out of a van on the side of the road in a bag
SCHUMER says Democrats are “united” behind three DHS reforms
1/ End roving patrols; tighten the rules on warrants and require ICE to coordinate with local authorities.
2/ Enforce accountability; a uniform code of conduct.
3/ Require masks off, body cameras on, agents carry ID.
1/ End roving patrols; tighten the rules on warrants and require ICE to coordinate with local authorities.
2/ Enforce accountability; a uniform code of conduct.
3/ Require masks off, body cameras on, agents carry ID.
January 28, 2026 at 9:44 PM
Chuck Schumer is an eager collaborator with a violent regime that would dump him out of a van on the side of the road in a bag
Reposted by Ray Pride
Kristi Noem lives rent free in digs intended for Coast Guard commandant. She blew 200m of tax payer cash on a couple of Gulfstream private jets for use by her glam squad. She awards contracts in exchange for kickbacks. She is as corrupt a creature as DC has known. Fire Noem NOW!
January 28, 2026 at 9:39 PM
Kristi Noem lives rent free in digs intended for Coast Guard commandant. She blew 200m of tax payer cash on a couple of Gulfstream private jets for use by her glam squad. She awards contracts in exchange for kickbacks. She is as corrupt a creature as DC has known. Fire Noem NOW!
Reposted by Ray Pride
NEW: Our investigation for @thenerve_news reveals not only that Peter Thiel’s Palantir is completely enmeshed in our critical national infrastructure.
It’s also the ‘cloud support’ for our nuclear weapons system 🤯
1/
www.thenerve.news/p/palantir-t...
It’s also the ‘cloud support’ for our nuclear weapons system 🤯
1/
www.thenerve.news/p/palantir-t...
January 28, 2026 at 11:32 AM
NEW: Our investigation for @thenerve_news reveals not only that Peter Thiel’s Palantir is completely enmeshed in our critical national infrastructure.
It’s also the ‘cloud support’ for our nuclear weapons system 🤯
1/
www.thenerve.news/p/palantir-t...
It’s also the ‘cloud support’ for our nuclear weapons system 🤯
1/
www.thenerve.news/p/palantir-t...
Reposted by Ray Pride
I know posing the DHS officers with their faces to the wall is supposed to project "faceless horde of unquestioned power" but it's really giving "kindergartener who was sent to the corner for eating paste, again."
January 28, 2026 at 9:40 PM
I know posing the DHS officers with their faces to the wall is supposed to project "faceless horde of unquestioned power" but it's really giving "kindergartener who was sent to the corner for eating paste, again."
Reposted by Ray Pride
Since we published this, Pam Bondi's X account has started posting mugshots of Minnesotans arrested for impeding ICE/CBP. Sharing a defendant's photo publicly in this way is forbidden under DOJ rules
ICE and CBP are at the head of Trump's campaign to terrorize Minnesotans. But the Justice Department is not far behind.
ICE’s No. 1 Ally
The Department of Justice has rushed to shield federal agents from accountability and launched needless criminal investigations into Minnesota officials and residents.
www.theatlantic.com
January 28, 2026 at 8:23 PM
Since we published this, Pam Bondi's X account has started posting mugshots of Minnesotans arrested for impeding ICE/CBP. Sharing a defendant's photo publicly in this way is forbidden under DOJ rules