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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 2h

Okay so if nobody can actually buy stuff and everything is free (or bartered), how are the rich people going to make money? What will "rich" even mean? Did they think of that?

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Reposted by Barbara O'Brien

Dean Obeidallah @deanobeidallah.bsky.social · 6h

The only reason that Trump is allowed to personally profit from the White House and break laws is because of Pam Bondi. She is the most corrupt AG we have seen in our lifetimes.

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Reposted by Barbara O'Brien

Dave Earley @earleyedition.bsky.social · 1d

When a Guardian reporter pointed out on social media that the image was not a genuine photograph of the generally small and tame protests outside the ICE field office in Portland, the Oregon Republican Party’s X account replied: “We’re not reporters, just bad memers”

Republicans post fake image of Oregon protest – using photos of South America

A federal judge had blocked Trump’s request to deploy California national guard to Portland

www.theguardian.com

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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 2d

Trump seems to be confused by linear time now. It's a fact that a whole lot of people not named Trump were warning that Osama bin Laden posed a terrorist threat to the U.S. before 9/11. Unfortunately, those people were not in the Bush Administration.

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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 3d

As for the rest of your comment, I'm sure you know Pentecostalism better than I do. I grew up in a Bible Belt community surrounded by Pentecostals and Baptists, but my family was Lutheran. And since 1988 I've been a formal student of Soto Zen Buddhism. I don't always keep up with the Christians now.

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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 3d

Thanks for letting me know about the link. I have fixed it now. Here it is -- www.patheos.com/blogs/therel...

When Evangelicals Were Liberal

There were liberal evangelicals? What if I told you that evangelical Christians were the original social justice warriors? Seems unlikely, I know, but Evangelical Christians in the 18th and 19th centu...

www.patheos.com

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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 3d

This is a history post that points to the rise of the New Apostolic Restoration (NAR), a truly dangerous new movement that makes standard right-wing evangelicals look like cupcakes. NAR has a lot of clout in the Republican Party and Trump Administration. www.patheos.com/blogs/therel...

This Is A Third Great Awakening?

Claims of a Third Great Awakening echo history—but today’s movement leans toward dominion, not unity, raising spiritual and civic concerns.

www.patheos.com

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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 6d

The Jewish Insider article is behind a very stubborn firewall that swears you can read the article free but is not clear about how. See Reuters for more. www.reuters.com/world/us/fbi...

FBI cuts ties with Anti-Defamation League, FBI director says

The FBI said on Wednesday it had cut ties with the Anti-Defamation League, a prominent Jewish group that tracks antisemitism, after Republicans criticized the group for including slain activist Charlie Kirk's organization in a glossary on extremism.

www.reuters.com

Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 6d

Yom Kippur greetings. This is from Jewish Insider. The ADL said something disrespectful about Charlie Kirk.

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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 6d

All the ways Pete Hegseth reminds me of every bad manager I've ever worked for. www.mahablog.com/2025/10/01/h...

How Not to Address the Military Brass - The Mahablog

Welcome to Day 1 of the shutdown. We'll see how it works out. It's telling, perhaps, that Chuck Schumer went ahead with it. Last March when he supported a continuing resolution he got slammed by other...

www.mahablog.com

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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 7d

‘To Terrorize Americans Into Quiescence’: Reagan Judge Excoriates Trump talkingpointsmemo.com/news/to-terr...

‘To Terrorize Americans Into Quiescence’: Reagan Judge Excoriates Trump

At least one judge gets it. U.S. District Judge William Young for...

talkingpointsmemo.com

Reposted by Barbara O'Brien

Steve M. @stevemnomoremister.bsky.social · 9d

Hakeem Jeffries is the Merrick Garland of Nancy Pelosis.

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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 10d

I've been looking for news stories about violent protests in Portland. The most recent I've found were about some arrests at the No Kings protest in June. But this story came out last week. Is this the real reason Trump is sending troops to Portland? www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Portland threatens to evict Ice from Oregon facility over permit violations

Records obtained by Street Roots and the Guardian back claim from Oregon city’s mayor that Ice violated a land-use permit to detain people overnight

www.theguardian.com

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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 12d

Trump assumes Hep B is an STD, but you can get it all kinds of ways. Back in the 1950s I got it at age 8 from an injection with an improperly autoclaved needle. Lots of people have the virus without symptoms. Babies can get it in utero. A vaccine at 6 months prevents the disease.

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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 12d

Texas has a new school prayer law that is supposed to allow students to voluntarily participate in prayer or scripture readings. The law doesn't stipulate that the prayer scripture must be Christian. But AG Ken Paxton keeps saying the quiet part out loud. www.patheos.com/blogs/therel...

New Texas School Prayer Law Seems A Tad Fuzzy

Texas has a new prayer in public school law that went into effect September 1. It's not clear if there has been any public school praying going on yet,

www.patheos.com

Reposted by Barbara O'Brien

Dean Obeidallah @deanobeidallah.bsky.social · 15d

Trump literally uses his UN Speech to slam the UN for not hiring him years ago to do renovations of the UN. I'm serious. This is the moron pretending to be President

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 15d

Trump is now whining to the UN about the UN working with another developer and not him on their building

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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 15d

Dig it. www.patheos.com/blogs/therel...

The Beat Zen Movement: When Zen Became Cool

The Beat Zen movement was one of the more unlikely developments in all of Western cultural history. Somehow, in the 1950s, Zen -- a centuries old mostly monastic sect of Buddhism -- became cool.

www.patheos.com

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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 15d

Disney/ABC must have gotten scorched.

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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 23d

The enforced political correctness continues. WaPo has been gutt4ed. The Washington Post Fired Me — But My Voice Will Not Be Silenced. open.substack.com/pub/karenatt...

The Washington Post Fired Me — But My Voice Will Not Be Silenced.

I spoke out against hatred and violence in America — and it cost me my job.

open.substack.com

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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 23d

Kirk's body was flown from Utah to Arizona on Air Force Two, accompanied by J.D. Vance. And there appears to be a military detail acting as pallbearers in the videos of this. Kirk never served in the military. How much are taxpayers paying to give Charlie Cook a quasi-state funeral?

MSN

www.msn.com

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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 23d

WaPo reports that Kirk's memorial is "next Sunday in the Phoenix area at State Farm Stadium, where the Arizona Cardinals play. President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Cabinet secretaries and members of Congress are expected to attend," wapo.st/4gkCIAE

Kirk shooting suspect had ‘leftist ideology’ but motive unclear, Utah gov. says

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said authorities are speaking with suspect Tyler Robinson’s family and romantic partner as they investigate Charlie Kirk’s killing.

wapo.st

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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 24d

Right-wing activists found pronouns! Oh, no! Pronouns are of the devil. We must not use them. Wait ... "we" is a pronoun! And so is "them"! See how sneaky they are! Whups, "they" is a pronoun! There is no escape! What will (pronoun deleted) do? www.kpbs.org/news/local/2...

San Diego Navy doctor fired after right-wing activists find pronouns on social media

Cmdr. Janelle Marra, a 21-year Navy physician, was the commander of Expeditionary Medical Facility 150 Bravo.

www.kpbs.org

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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 24d

I'm saying don't let them turn Kirk into the next Horst Wessel. People who are just learning about him need to know who he was. This is important. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horst_W...

Horst Wessel - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 24d

All phenomena inter-exist; nothing is separate. It's still important to remember who Kirk was. At least half the country probably never heard of him until last week and have no idea who he was. Don't let the Right turn him into a sympathetic figure and martyr.

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Barbara O'Brien @mahabarbara.bsky.social · 25d

Bless Jamelle Bouie. www.nytimes.com/2025/0. 9/13/opinion/charlie-kirk-assassination.html?unlocked_article_code=1.lk8.gl5h.Yd1ufhX3WRhe&smid=bs-share

Opinion | Charlie Kirk Didn’t Shy Away From Who He Was. We Shouldn’t Either.

www.nytimes.com

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