Dan Robitzski
LightNews LightNews
banner
danrobitzski.bsky.social
Dan Robitzski
@danrobitzski.bsky.social
230 followers 360 following 64 posts
Editor at SpaceNews. Epee Fencer and Coach at Swordplay LA. Producer at Super Trashed TV. He/Him.
Posts Replies Media Videos
danrobitzski.bsky.social
Photographed the Den Music Festival this weekend
November 10, 2025 at 6:49 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
October 24, 2025 at 5:31 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
and more!
Two epee fencers compete in a national tournament. Two epee fencers compete in a national tournament. Two epee fencers compete in a national tournament.
October 9, 2025 at 9:23 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
More from the NAC
Two epee fencers compete at a national tournament. Two epee fencers compete at a national tournament. Two epee fencers compete at a national tournament. Two epee fencers compete at a national tournament.
October 9, 2025 at 9:11 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
Scenes from Division 1 Men's epee at last weekend's @usafencing.bsky.social North American Cup
Two epee fencers compete in a national tournament. Fencer on the left fleches at his opponent, who recoils like he's doing the iconic matrix dodge. It didn't work. Two epee fencers compete in a national tournament, running and jumping at each other and barely avoiding a collision. Fencer on the Right's blade is bent to an impossible degree, stuck on Fencer on the Left's hand. Two epee fencers compete in a national tournament. Fencer on the Left lunges at Fencer on the Right, sending him recoiling in defense. Two epee fencers compete in a national tournament. Fencer on the left scores a headshot, and his blade arcs in a sine wave shape as it sticks on Fencer on the Right's mask.
October 8, 2025 at 6:53 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
"Mourn, or else" by @tressiemcphd.bsky.social

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/01/o...
The president of the United States has both direct coercive power of the state and, by and large, indirect power over communication institutions. He has shown how he will use that power. He will punish enemies, yes. And if you agree that teachers, librarians, professors, left-leaning journalists and anyone who isn’t white, conservative and Christian are enemies, you may enjoy this comeuppance. But he has also shown that he will punish people who agree with him — but not enough or not in the right way or just because it is a Tuesday. The merging of state power and economic power around one man who accepts that power as his due would not be possible without the algorithmic grift that has so all-consumingly captured our attention. The internet and the people who, for all intents and purposes, now own it have excelled at making Trump good at authoritarianism. They commodified information. They quelled regulation. They escaped blame for degrading collective action while raking in profits for spectacles of violence that degradation predictably produces. Now, via their president, they are using it to crush the First Amendment, to supercharge the Second Amendment, to stand up bot armies and real armed militias to defend their ownership of your civil liberties.
October 1, 2025 at 3:54 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
Two of my students had to face each other at a tournament last weekend, so here's my top-tier, conflict-of-interest-free coaching
My dumb mug taking a selfie at a fencing tournament, where the two fencers pause to give a thumbs up during a break in the bout.
September 2, 2025 at 7:35 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
I've got another article in the US Fencing Coaches Association's latest issue of The Swordmaster!

I broke down what I saw working for some of our best epee fencers at National Championships, and how coaches can teach their students to do the same.

mcusercontent.com/587dec442721...
Screenshot of a magazine article titled "Second Intention Took Fencers to the Top at the Div 1 Men’s Épée National Championships." Body: "Last month, I had the absolute pleasure of seeing USA Fencing’s National Championship tournament come to Los Angeles, where I live and teach. Aside from catching up with friends and old teammates who I hardly see nowadays (and seeing my fencing master of many, many years compete in Vet70s), I had the time of my life hanging out at the convention center as a spectator, geeking out over and cheering on the highcaliber fencing that had come to my back yard. I caught as many events as I could, and figured it might be helpful to break down some of the trends that I saw, in particular during the final rounds of Division 1 Men’s Épée. What I saw was a heavy reliance on second intention among fencers who wanted to add an extra layer of protection to otherwise aggressive fencing — they were using it to hedge against the devastating parry-closeout, and to continue attacks beyond their initial tempo — allowing them to continue fighting for a given touch longer than their opponent assumed they’d have to. Of course, there were plenty of bouts with the same strong reliance on single-tempo fencing that’s been heavily documented in recent years (Don’t worry, Damien!) with wins going to the fencer with slightly sharper feet, better point control, or a keener intuition of tempo and timing. But there was also interesting representation of multi-tempo fencing, largely built around the ways that a single-tempo attack or counter might fail. The USFCA’s glossary app describes second intention as “the tactical scenario of making initial preparations that are a believable opportunity for the opponent to score, but having a planned second action that takes advantage of the expected response.” Or, as just about everyone broadly understands it, a compound action where you intend to hit on the second action. ..."
June 25, 2025 at 10:22 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
Finally paid off my lifetime membership to USA Fencing! But uhhhh big assumption on their part about this expiration date
June 3, 2025 at 9:24 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
Tournament yesterday! It (always) could have gone better, but I'm riding high from a top 8 finish after being out of commission with a bum ankle for the last eight months
June 2, 2025 at 5:00 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
same energy
A Business Insider headline reading "House Democrats cheerfully sang 'God Bless America' on the steps of the Capitol as crowds protested the overturning of Roe v. Wade at the Supreme Court across the street"
May 15, 2025 at 5:31 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
Veteran Men's Epee at @usafencing.bsky.social nationals
April 21, 2025 at 7:39 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
More from Day 1 of USA Fencing National Championships
April 18, 2025 at 5:49 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
April 17, 2025 at 8:42 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
Scenes from @usafencing.bsky.social Division 1 Men's Epee National Championships in Los Angeles
April 17, 2025 at 8:37 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
The mission was literally saved by coincidental water cooler chat
March 3, 2025 at 6:03 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
Creativity and adaptive problem-solving are skills that need to be actively trained, in epee fencing or anything else.

I wrote about my work-in-progress system for teaching these skills to athletes who haven't had much opportunity to work it out for themselves at tournaments.
Screenshot of article text
January 2, 2025 at 10:07 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
My first article for The Swordmaster, the US Fencing Coaches Association's magazine, came out yesterday!

"Epee in Motion: Teaching Creativity to Beginner and Intermediate Fencers"

You can read the full thing at this nightmare of a URL:
mcusercontent.com/587dec442721...
Screenshot of the opening text of an article titled "Epee in Motion; Teaching Creativity to Beginner and Intermediate Fencers."
January 2, 2025 at 10:02 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
AI will replace us all
Google's AI showing a picture of Tom Holland and Zendaya after searching for "tobey maguire 2024"
June 7, 2024 at 6:26 AM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
Big news from the ol' "manmade horrors beyond our comprehension" factory!

www.tomshardware.com/pc-component...
A screenshot of an article reading: A Swiss biocomputing startup has launched an online platform that provides remote access to 16 human brain organoids. FinalSpark claims its Neuroplatform is the world’s first online platform delivering access to biological neurons in vitro. Moreover, bioprocessors like this “consume a million times less power than traditional digital processors,” the company says.
May 29, 2024 at 6:49 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
This headline would be so charming if blue-ear pig disease was just what it sounded like
A press release headline that reads "Using CRISPR gene editing to prevent pigs from getting blue-ear pig disease." Beneath it, a photo of three seemingly-blissful pigs playing in the mud, not a single blue ear in sight.
February 27, 2024 at 3:57 PM
danrobitzski.bsky.social
Just set up a recurring donation to PCRF - Palestine Children's Relief Fund, which is providing emergency medical support to children trapped in Gaza. Nearly half of Palestine's entire population is under the age of 18.

pcrf1.app.neoncrm.com/forms/gaza-r...
receipt for donation to the Palestine Children's Relief Fund
October 8, 2023 at 4:14 PM