Mark van Roojen
@markvr1.bsky.social
Phil prof, woodworker, metalworker, cabin builder, vegetable gardener, flyfisher. Leftish Dem, worried about climate, who believes in coalitions; old and cranky.
Pinned
Mark van Roojen
@markvr1.bsky.social
· Feb 10
I'm going to be harsh with my blocking - any follows that look like catfishing, crypto-promoting or vaguely scamish is going to be blocked. Will block those w no posts. Don't waste both of our time. I'll get some wrong - email me if I'm wrong - you know how to use Google.
Well, if he had anyone with any gift for planning and his appointees had any discipline, this would be a worry. OTOH, they couldn't wait to implement the long term cuts for even a month, and their hatred got ahead of their consolidation of power. So now they're stuck trying to jam it all through.
The endgame of authoritarian regimes is to no longer need popular approval. So don't be too sanguine about Trump's plummeting popularity.
Trump’s Wager and the Authoritarian Shift
Is Trump getting weaker, or is the authoritarian danger increasing? Yes.
lnk.thebulwark.com
December 14, 2025 at 7:30 AM
Well, if he had anyone with any gift for planning and his appointees had any discipline, this would be a worry. OTOH, they couldn't wait to implement the long term cuts for even a month, and their hatred got ahead of their consolidation of power. So now they're stuck trying to jam it all through.
The one with Bannon and the sex photo on the desk seemed a bit damning to me. Also Bannon and Chomsky being huggy was somewhat disturbing to those of us who hadn't written Chomsky off yet.
People keep saying how "disturbing" this latest release of photos from Epstein's estate are, but all I see are photos of people in social situations. Don't get me wrong, I'm NOT complaining about that. But I'm not interested in seeing truly disturbing photos. I want to see the incriminating docs.
December 14, 2025 at 7:25 AM
The one with Bannon and the sex photo on the desk seemed a bit damning to me. Also Bannon and Chomsky being huggy was somewhat disturbing to those of us who hadn't written Chomsky off yet.
Reposted by Mark van Roojen
In 1993, Trump signed a mortgage for a Florida home, pledging it would be his principal residence. Seven weeks later, he attested a neighboring property would also be his principal residence.
In reality, he does not seem to have lived in either home.
In reality, he does not seem to have lived in either home.
Trump’s Own Mortgages Match His Description of Mortgage Fraud, Records Reveal
The Trump administration has argued that Fed board member Lisa Cook may have committed mortgage fraud by declaring more than one primary residence on her loans. We found Trump once did the very thing ...
www.propublica.org
December 14, 2025 at 4:00 AM
In 1993, Trump signed a mortgage for a Florida home, pledging it would be his principal residence. Seven weeks later, he attested a neighboring property would also be his principal residence.
In reality, he does not seem to have lived in either home.
In reality, he does not seem to have lived in either home.
Mostly I would advise not cooperating with Fox, et al. But Tarlov is good at this so I think she is doing a service to us (and not to them).
🔥 @jessicatarlov.bsky.social : “If he was at the ‘top of his game’ Indiana Republicans would’ve approved his maps… people are saying we put you in to lower prices and you’re building ballrooms and saying we can only have 2 pencils.”
December 14, 2025 at 7:16 AM
Mostly I would advise not cooperating with Fox, et al. But Tarlov is good at this so I think she is doing a service to us (and not to them).
Maybe they can do a poll on each person they attempt to kidnap?
So the new reporting is that DHS has decided to go back to a primary focus on targeted enforcement that existed before the late May orders from Stephen Mille to ramp up numbers or else.
Quite frankly, I’ll believe it when I see it. And also at this point the public struggles to tell the difference.
Quite frankly, I’ll believe it when I see it. And also at this point the public struggles to tell the difference.
really don't see how they're going to manage to hit the Miller quota
December 14, 2025 at 7:14 AM
Maybe they can do a poll on each person they attempt to kidnap?
Reposted by Mark van Roojen
Reposted by Mark van Roojen
No president is legally allowed to tear down portions of the White House without any review whatsoever.
And no president is legally allowed to construct a ballroom on public property without giving the public the opportunity to weigh in.
And no president is legally allowed to construct a ballroom on public property without giving the public the opportunity to weigh in.
Trump gets sued for ruining the White House
A prominent preservationist group is suing President Donald Trump over his construction of ...
www.dailykos.com
December 14, 2025 at 12:47 AM
No president is legally allowed to tear down portions of the White House without any review whatsoever.
And no president is legally allowed to construct a ballroom on public property without giving the public the opportunity to weigh in.
And no president is legally allowed to construct a ballroom on public property without giving the public the opportunity to weigh in.
Reposted by Mark van Roojen
This is what @MarshaBlackburn & @SenatorHagerty voted to let happen to hundreds of thousands of Tennesseans
www.facebook.com/share/1EHW4Y...
www.facebook.com/share/1EHW4Y...
December 13, 2025 at 3:26 AM
This is what @MarshaBlackburn & @SenatorHagerty voted to let happen to hundreds of thousands of Tennesseans
www.facebook.com/share/1EHW4Y...
www.facebook.com/share/1EHW4Y...
One on the right looks like a king bolete, though the last I heard there are now two different species in the Rockies that are hard to tell apart. (The dividing band seems to be around the WY?CO border but they overlap some.) Not an expert but I did read it in a reliable source.
December 14, 2025 at 4:38 AM
One on the right looks like a king bolete, though the last I heard there are now two different species in the Rockies that are hard to tell apart. (The dividing band seems to be around the WY?CO border but they overlap some.) Not an expert but I did read it in a reliable source.
Reposted by Mark van Roojen
Reposted by Mark van Roojen
We already gave him refuge. What the hell are we doing? Does anything matter anymore?
If they send him back, he will live in solitary confinement for the rest of his life, which may not be very long.
If they send him back, he will live in solitary confinement for the rest of his life, which may not be very long.
December 14, 2025 at 4:09 AM
We already gave him refuge. What the hell are we doing? Does anything matter anymore?
If they send him back, he will live in solitary confinement for the rest of his life, which may not be very long.
If they send him back, he will live in solitary confinement for the rest of his life, which may not be very long.
Reposted by Mark van Roojen
ICE snatched a human rights hero.
Guan Heng risked his life to capture video of Uyghur concentration camps. After escaping to the U.S., Guan was in hiding for years, not knowing his work had been crucial to substantiating China's mass detention practices.
On Monday, he has an asylum hearing in NY.
Guan Heng risked his life to capture video of Uyghur concentration camps. After escaping to the U.S., Guan was in hiding for years, not knowing his work had been crucial to substantiating China's mass detention practices.
On Monday, he has an asylum hearing in NY.
Our ex-BuzzFeed team has provided a testimonial to the immigration court about the value of Guan's work and his incredible bravery. I hope that this man - who I am in absolute awe of - is granted the asylum he needs and deserves. You can read more here: hrichina.substack.com/p/man-who-fi...
Man who filmed Uyghur concentration camps now fights for his own freedom in the United States
In 2020, Guan Heng embarked on a risky mission to prove the existence of concentration camp facilities used to imprison Uyghurs. Now, he faces the threat of deportation back to China, where he would f...
hrichina.substack.com
December 14, 2025 at 2:29 AM
ICE snatched a human rights hero.
Guan Heng risked his life to capture video of Uyghur concentration camps. After escaping to the U.S., Guan was in hiding for years, not knowing his work had been crucial to substantiating China's mass detention practices.
On Monday, he has an asylum hearing in NY.
Guan Heng risked his life to capture video of Uyghur concentration camps. After escaping to the U.S., Guan was in hiding for years, not knowing his work had been crucial to substantiating China's mass detention practices.
On Monday, he has an asylum hearing in NY.
Reposted by Mark van Roojen
Follow L.A. Taco.
Daily Memo: A Thousand Confirmed Kidnappings in the Past 90 Days, Plus Two More Deaths in Detention
@eltragon.bsky.social
@eltragon.bsky.social
December 13, 2025 at 3:29 PM
Follow L.A. Taco.
Reposted by Mark van Roojen
Trump is blatantly weaponizing the justice system to attack his political enemies while handing out pardons to his crooked allies and those who will commit violence on his behalf. So much for “law and order.” [Cartoon by Mike Luckovich]
December 13, 2025 at 9:01 PM
Trump is blatantly weaponizing the justice system to attack his political enemies while handing out pardons to his crooked allies and those who will commit violence on his behalf. So much for “law and order.” [Cartoon by Mike Luckovich]
Reposted by Mark van Roojen
This is because Nate Silver has 300K subscribers on Substack and Heather Cox Richardson has 2.7M. Mediocre men CAN'T STAND successful women, and even blame them for their own failures. Pathetic.
December 14, 2025 at 12:32 AM
This is because Nate Silver has 300K subscribers on Substack and Heather Cox Richardson has 2.7M. Mediocre men CAN'T STAND successful women, and even blame them for their own failures. Pathetic.
December 14, 2025 at 12:44 AM
Reposted by Mark van Roojen
In case you have never seen this.
December 13, 2025 at 10:38 PM
In case you have never seen this.
Reposted by Mark van Roojen
I've been saying since before MAGA, that the Republican party will do one of two things in my lifetime:
1) achieve a fascist state or
2) disappear for trying to achieve a fascist state
I think we're at that precipice.
And "America first" as Nazi adjacent isn't new. Dr. Seuss saw it:
1) achieve a fascist state or
2) disappear for trying to achieve a fascist state
I think we're at that precipice.
And "America first" as Nazi adjacent isn't new. Dr. Seuss saw it:
December 12, 2025 at 9:06 PM
I've been saying since before MAGA, that the Republican party will do one of two things in my lifetime:
1) achieve a fascist state or
2) disappear for trying to achieve a fascist state
I think we're at that precipice.
And "America first" as Nazi adjacent isn't new. Dr. Seuss saw it:
1) achieve a fascist state or
2) disappear for trying to achieve a fascist state
I think we're at that precipice.
And "America first" as Nazi adjacent isn't new. Dr. Seuss saw it:
Reposted by Mark van Roojen
Earlier this week, Kristi Noem told me under oath that she has not deported veterans. I then introduced her to one that she did deport.
But it’s much worse than that:
@moulton.house.gov got DHS to admit that they’ve deported at least 8 vets and are planning to deport dozens more.
But it’s much worse than that:
@moulton.house.gov got DHS to admit that they’ve deported at least 8 vets and are planning to deport dozens more.
December 13, 2025 at 4:59 PM
Earlier this week, Kristi Noem told me under oath that she has not deported veterans. I then introduced her to one that she did deport.
But it’s much worse than that:
@moulton.house.gov got DHS to admit that they’ve deported at least 8 vets and are planning to deport dozens more.
But it’s much worse than that:
@moulton.house.gov got DHS to admit that they’ve deported at least 8 vets and are planning to deport dozens more.
Another good reason to stay off facebook, if the general tenor of too much of the posting wasn't already depressing you enough to stay away.
speaking of “you should never trust Meta and no one should have ever trusted them but there’s no time like the present to start”
Another first with the Meta sponsor just added to the Turning Point USA mega conference
December 13, 2025 at 10:08 PM
Another good reason to stay off facebook, if the general tenor of too much of the posting wasn't already depressing you enough to stay away.
Reposted by Mark van Roojen
Oh
Tyson is shutting down its Lexington, Nebraska plant in January 2026. That’s 3,200 workers gone in one shot, the largest plant shutdown in company history.
Blame Trump’s tariff chaos and the lowest cattle inventories in decades. Tariffs jack up costs. Supply shrinks. Plants close. Towns hollow out.
Blame Trump’s tariff chaos and the lowest cattle inventories in decades. Tariffs jack up costs. Supply shrinks. Plants close. Towns hollow out.
December 13, 2025 at 7:44 PM
Oh
Reposted by Mark van Roojen
All Republicans in Congress are faced with a choice. They either stand with Trump, Vance and Putin, or they stand with Ukraine, Europe, most Americans, and the civilized world. Of course, there is also a 3rd option which most of them usually choose - cowardly silence.
December 13, 2025 at 8:40 PM
All Republicans in Congress are faced with a choice. They either stand with Trump, Vance and Putin, or they stand with Ukraine, Europe, most Americans, and the civilized world. Of course, there is also a 3rd option which most of them usually choose - cowardly silence.
Reposted by Mark van Roojen
thanks brett kavanaugh!
Add to this that HSI just filed a declaration in our case challenging these policies saying they can’t trust REAL IDs as proof of status.
So showing your papers isn’t even enough to end the stop.
So showing your papers isn’t even enough to end the stop.
December 13, 2025 at 2:59 PM
thanks brett kavanaugh!
Reposted by Mark van Roojen
it's actually kinda funny in a way to get to the finish line of curing cancer and having the government go eh you know what. never mind
A tiny trial in New York has shown that personalized mRNA vaccines can provoke massive, lasting immune responses against pancreatic cancer, even as sweeping federal cuts now threaten the fragile labs required to produce them.
theintellectualistofficial.substack.com/p/a-breakthr...
theintellectualistofficial.substack.com/p/a-breakthr...
December 13, 2025 at 2:50 AM
it's actually kinda funny in a way to get to the finish line of curing cancer and having the government go eh you know what. never mind
Reposted by Mark van Roojen
Not only is this tantamount to reintroducing visas for these countries, it's actually stricter than any visa I've applied for (including Russia and China) in recent memory.
It's not just social media. Looks like visitors to the US from Europe and other countries that are part of the visa waiver program will have to submit an enormous amount of data about themselves and their families, including DNA, if proposed new rules are accepted
December 12, 2025 at 4:09 PM
Not only is this tantamount to reintroducing visas for these countries, it's actually stricter than any visa I've applied for (including Russia and China) in recent memory.