Jeff Sharlet
@jeffsharlet.bsky.social
I wrote a book about now, THE UNDERTOW: Scenes from a Slow Civil War, & 2 about how we got here, THE FAMILY & C ST, also a Netflix series. Also THIS BRILLIANT DARKNESS & SWEET HEAVEN WHEN I DIE. Professing @ Dartmouth. That's not my cat.
Great! Push back against it. Saying you know it's not gonna be close isn't pushing back against doom. It's saying to a real threat, that we can fight, "La la la, I can't hear you!"
February 9, 2026 at 11:10 PM
Great! Push back against it. Saying you know it's not gonna be close isn't pushing back against doom. It's saying to a real threat, that we can fight, "La la la, I can't hear you!"
Yeah. It's melting my brain. I've seen a bunch of posts along these lines, and some from some normally astute people.
February 9, 2026 at 11:08 PM
Yeah. It's melting my brain. I've seen a bunch of posts along these lines, and some from some normally astute people.
Um of disagreement or um of "it's insane to say midterms are all sewn up, no worries"? (As if victory for this incarnation of the Democratic Party would put an end to our worries.)
February 9, 2026 at 11:06 PM
Um of disagreement or um of "it's insane to say midterms are all sewn up, no worries"? (As if victory for this incarnation of the Democratic Party would put an end to our worries.)
The above is as far from a doomer post as can be. At this late date, declaring it's all going to work out, nobody *you* know supports Trump--that's a kind of doomerism by delusion. Democracy is a struggle, not a tide just sometimes comes in.
February 9, 2026 at 11:05 PM
The above is as far from a doomer post as can be. At this late date, declaring it's all going to work out, nobody *you* know supports Trump--that's a kind of doomerism by delusion. Democracy is a struggle, not a tide just sometimes comes in.
They are wonders. The kind of book for which even the splendid word “book” seems inadequate. Marvels, strange objects.
February 9, 2026 at 6:02 PM
They are wonders. The kind of book for which even the splendid word “book” seems inadequate. Marvels, strange objects.
I was not serious…
February 9, 2026 at 3:06 AM
I was not serious…
Six of my books are in the database Anthropic agreed in a settlement it took, for which it is compensating me. You’re entitled to your opinion about AI; you’re not entitled to dictate mine or to falsify facts.
February 9, 2026 at 12:40 AM
Six of my books are in the database Anthropic agreed in a settlement it took, for which it is compensating me. You’re entitled to your opinion about AI; you’re not entitled to dictate mine or to falsify facts.
Tell you what -- as the one who's had his books stolen, and had to deal with students unlearning how to write, and his field, journalism, decimated, I'll decide for myself what the "proper response" is.
February 8, 2026 at 11:25 PM
Tell you what -- as the one who's had his books stolen, and had to deal with students unlearning how to write, and his field, journalism, decimated, I'll decide for myself what the "proper response" is.
Reposted by Jeff Sharlet
The best bit in 1984 about the novel-writing machines: Julia (who works in the Fiction Department) "could describe the whole process of composing a novel, from the general directive issued by the Planning Committee down to the final touching-up by the Rewrite Squad."
October 29, 2025 at 3:02 PM
The best bit in 1984 about the novel-writing machines: Julia (who works in the Fiction Department) "could describe the whole process of composing a novel, from the general directive issued by the Planning Committee down to the final touching-up by the Rewrite Squad."
This is like saying big ag disrupts the priestly class that calls itself farmers. Work is work. If you can’t respect that of others, you’re a scab at heart. All the rest is commentary.
February 8, 2026 at 10:45 PM
This is like saying big ag disrupts the priestly class that calls itself farmers. Work is work. If you can’t respect that of others, you’re a scab at heart. All the rest is commentary.
Neato! And Laurie Anderson used AI to make a bible. What, meanwhile, does that have to do with the theft of six of my books? Should I be glad because… Bowie?
February 8, 2026 at 10:38 PM
Neato! And Laurie Anderson used AI to make a bible. What, meanwhile, does that have to do with the theft of six of my books? Should I be glad because… Bowie?
Reposted by Jeff Sharlet
Republicans have weaponized the non-sequitur.
February 8, 2026 at 9:09 PM
Republicans have weaponized the non-sequitur.
Reposted by Jeff Sharlet
Often forgotten is the detail in 1984 of a song writing machine that cranked out slop for the proles. Cranking out romance novels seems to be in the same vein.
February 8, 2026 at 7:53 PM
Often forgotten is the detail in 1984 of a song writing machine that cranked out slop for the proles. Cranking out romance novels seems to be in the same vein.
Just keep reading what you love to read. Don't let slop force us into reaction.
February 8, 2026 at 7:48 PM
Just keep reading what you love to read. Don't let slop force us into reaction.