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David Priess

@davidpriess.bsky.social

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David Priess @davidpriess.bsky.social · Dec 26

Welcome, new arrivals!

I served at CIA and the State Dept, followed by non-profit & private sector leadership roles. I offer info/insight on nat’l security, intelligence, and the presidency & how it all intersects with history and culture.

Celebrating books, all things Arctic, space, and dogs.

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David Priess @davidpriess.bsky.social · 3d

Well, I certainly have exceptional reading lined up for the next few weeks!

Congrats to three great authors on these great new books!

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Max Bergmann @maxbergmann.bsky.social · 5d

Bottom line, stop blaming renewables, blame the grid for the outage. Very useful report.

Christian Odendahl @codendahl.bsky.social · 5d

New stuff from @ember-energy.org on the Iberian blackout. drive.google.com/file/d/1UHSt...

Iberian Blackout - Factsheet for journalists.pdf

drive.google.com

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Brad Thor @bradthor.bsky.social · 5d

Straight out of BLACK ICE

Instead of navigating south, the ship steered a course through the frigid Arctic Ocean using the Northern Sea Rout - a major step forward in China’s quest to build a “Polar Silk Road” across the top of the world...

edition.cnn.com/2025/10/03/c...

This sea route has been dismissed as too treacherous. China’s taking the risk. | CNN

The Arctic journey is billed as the first step in China’s quest to open a “Polar Silk Road,” a commercial shipping route across the top of the world, and it’s only made possible by climate change.

edition.cnn.com

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Hourly Cosmos @hourlycosmos.bsky.social · 6d

IC 1396 "Elephant Trunk" Nebula in SHO (Hubble Palette) - From Ryan Kinnett (rkinnett.bsky.social) - https://flic.kr/p/2m8Jm1w

Imaged from suburb of Los Angeles with GSO 10" f/4 imaging Newtonian, asi1600mm, and ZWO filters. Approx. 2 hours integration.

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David Priess @davidpriess.bsky.social · 6d

More of this please

Kaja Kallas @kajakallas.bsky.social · 7d

Russia is causing tremendous damage in Ukraine.
It is not right that anybody else should pay for it.

At today’s European Council, we will discuss a reparations loan, backed up by frozen Russian assets, to help Ukraine defend itself.

My doorstep ↓

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David Priess @davidpriess.bsky.social · 6d

More of this please

Secrets & Spies Podcast: Current Affairs | Intelligence @secretsandspies.bsky.social · 6d

Captain of tanker linked to Russian 'shadow fleet' charged in France

www.bbc.com/news/article...

France: Captain of tanker linked to Russian 'shadow fleet' charged

The Chinese national faces a count of refusing to follow naval instructions while piloting the vessel.

www.bbc.com

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David Priess @davidpriess.bsky.social · 6d

More of this please.

Igor Sushko @igorsushko.bsky.social · 6d

💥 Russia: Ukraine struck the UralChem Azot chemical plant that supplies ingredients for explosives in Berezniki, Perm region — over 1,700km from Ukraine.

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David Priess @davidpriess.bsky.social · 7d

Ceiling

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David Priess @davidpriess.bsky.social · 13d

“Unlike many of its allies, Australia has no published national security strategy; this should be rectified as a priority.”

Great @engelsbergideas.bsky.social essay by @warinthefuture.bsky.social:

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/aus...

Australia must confront the perils that lie ahead

Like America's allies in Europe, Australia cannot afford to be complacent about the demands of the Trump administration or the aggression of authoritarian powers.

engelsbergideas.com

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David Priess @davidpriess.bsky.social · 20d

Looking forward to this one so much!

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ICDS Tallinn @icds-tallinn.bsky.social · 22d

NATO figures show Europe and Canada are catching up with the US: their share of #NATO defence spending rose from 28% in 2015 to 36% in 2024, and is expected to reach 38% this year.

⬇️ Felix Gasper reviews current defence spending by each NATO ally: icds.ee/en/defence-s...

Defence Spending: Who Is Doing What? September 2025 - ICDS

According to NATO's latest figures, most Allies have increased their defence spending compared to July 2024, when we last examined the data. But most also have a long way to go if they are to meet the...

icds.ee

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Marwella Zhang @marwellaspaceart.bsky.social · Sep 7

Total lunar eclipse (Blood Moon) from Bangka Island, Indonesia.

It was very cloudy, I almost gave up. Then in the last few minutes before the totality ended, the wind suddenly changed direction and I saw the faint sight of the moon.

The end of totality and back to partial phase

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Dare Obasanjo @carnage4life.bsky.social · Sep 7

The percentage of Americans that believe immigration is a net benefit to America reached its highest point this century, 79%, in Gallup’s most recent poll.

These reverses a downward trend starting in 2021.

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David Priess @davidpriess.bsky.social · Sep 7

And yet much of the world keeps calling for Ukraine to reward Russian aggression and war crimes. Disgusting.

Jim Goldgeier @jimgoldgeier.bsky.social · Sep 7

www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/0...

Russia’s largest ever drone attack on Ukraine burns Kyiv government building

Russia unleashed a massive air assault on Ukraine early Sunday, setting the main government building in Kyiv ablaze for the first time during the war.

www.washingtonpost.com

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David Priess @davidpriess.bsky.social · Sep 6

Blunt and necessary analysis from @glandsbergis.bsky.social:

“Europe’s plans A, B and C have not stopped the fighting. Putin simply has no need to stop… As we say in Lithuania—all this should be obvious even to a horse.”
landsbergis.com/europes-summ...

Europe’s summer charm offensive has failed

Unfortunately — Europe didn’t even wake up, let alone step up.

landsbergis.com

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David Priess @davidpriess.bsky.social · Sep 5

True beauty.

Hourly Cosmos @hourlycosmos.bsky.social · Sep 5

Jupiter's Scars and Eclipsing Europa - From Judy Schmidt (geckzilla.bsky.social) - https://flic.kr/p/2gjvcqC

In a discussion with Emily Lakdawalla about the Shoemaker-Levy 9 impact, I was looking through all the unprocessed data from this event just hanging out in the archive (let me tell you, there is quite a bit of it) when I spotted this, sent her the preview image, and we both boggled for a moment before realizing it was Europa in eclipse. I mean, it looks like a moon, obviously, but Hubble never sees the outer planets in anything but full illumination. She input the timestamp into the Jupiter Viewer which resulted in the realization that it was indeed a moon, and that Jupiter's shadow was merely being cast upon it, causing it to look partially illuminated. The funny thing is that I've looked for eclipsed moons before, but never managed to find one just at the edge of the penumbra like this. What a wonderful, chance finding.

Also visible are several impact scars all in a row along Jupiter's cloudtops where the comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 impacted it so many years ago, and we were so, so lucky to have the Hubble Space Telescope ready to take as many observations of the event as possible.

Then, of course, what image of Jupiter is complete without the Great Red Spot? That ended up in the picture, too. Wow! This is the Jupiter image that has it all.

Note that Europa is not in full color because it was only present at this stage of the eclipse in a single image, the F953N one. By the time the subsequent images required for the color had been taken, it had moved further into the penu...

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Meredith Hindley @mhindley.bsky.social · Sep 5

DC folks, I got a COVID vax appointment at CVS. Go get ‘em!

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Eric Adamson @eadamson91.bsky.social · Sep 3

So in Sweden there is a raging debate over the new “cultural canon.” What belongs? How were the selections made? Should the list even exist?

Whatever the merits, we can safely say that the Saab 37 Viggen puts the “canon” in “cultural canon,” where it now sits along side Pippi Longstocking.

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Marcel Dirsus @marceldirsus.com · Sep 3

The dictatorship that is currently attacking a European country despite saying that is has no desire to attack anyone says they have no desire to attack Europe

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Erin Sikorsky @erinsikorsky.bsky.social · Sep 3

Really interesting piece by @nilsgilman.bsky.social. IMO gives China a bit too much credit for being "bravely planetary" but nonetheless appreciate the effort to identify a new geopolitical model to understand our world.

The Coming Ecological Cold War

Decarbonization isn’t just about technology and markets—it’s a geopolitical revolution.

foreignpolicy.com

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David Priess @davidpriess.bsky.social · Sep 3

“Ukraine is still often incorrectly portrayed as a country occupying a geopolitical buffer zone between East and West. This is familiar to Finns, whose own country was condemned to similar geopolitical limbo during the Cold War.”

By @alanderminna.bsky.social:
www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/ukrain...

Why Finland thinks Finlandization is a bad idea for Ukraine

Some believe the Finlandization of Ukraine is the most realistic option to end Russia's invasion, but any attempt to impose neutrality would leave Ukraine in a precarious position, writes Minna Ålande...

www.atlanticcouncil.org

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David Priess @davidpriess.bsky.social · Aug 29

👏👏👏 Congrats!

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Engelsberg Ideas @engelsbergideas.bsky.social · Aug 28

Across the medieval world, the Moon induced feelings of fear and fascination.

Mystery in the Moon | @katherineharvey.bsky.social

engelsbergideas.com/reviews/myst...

Mystery in the Moon

Across the medieval world, the Moon induced feelings of fear and fascination.

engelsbergideas.com

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David Priess @davidpriess.bsky.social · Aug 28

“The Nordic and Baltic states have quietly demonstrated that Europe has done more than its fair share in helping an embattled ally. The continent as a whole is a lot stronger than it looks. Perhaps it’s time it knew its own strength.”

A+ by
@michaeldweiss.bsky.social
newlinesmag.com/argument/the...

The Farther East One Goes in Europe, the More ‘West’ One Winds Up

Nordic and Baltic states are driving the continent toward a more robust engagement on Ukraine amid apprehension over Trump’s dance with Putin

newlinesmag.com

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David Priess @davidpriess.bsky.social · Aug 28

Mike Carpenter nails it:

“Rather than devoting endless meetings to planning a reassurance force, Western policymakers would do better to focus on enabling Ukrainian success on the battlefield … and strengthening sanctions on Russia’s war economy.“

www.justsecurity.org/119673/ukrai...

The Fantasy of a European Reassurance Force for Ukraine

A European "reassurance force" for Ukraine risks being another notional "guarantee" offering little more than a false sense of security.

www.justsecurity.org

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