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Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 1d

And on US censorship: “When They Came for Culture”

drive.google.com

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Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 1d

Read all about it—

How Germany Silenced Its Artists to Support Israel

As Israel intensified its genocide in Gaza, Germany ramped up its long-simmering war on dissent, silencing Palestine solidarity while bolstering its own far right.

www.thenation.com

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Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 1d

She seems to be back already? Or at least, her account is here.

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Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 1d

So true. Maybe I will write one for you.

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Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 2d

I grew up with the still-living @thedanrather.bsky.social, who was always my favorite of the three big network anchors. You could tell he actually cared about the stories he was reporting.

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Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 2d

I am still so confused about this language. Why should we care if people get sick, if people die? If these kinds of comments have you nodding your head in approval, you just might be a piece of shit.

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 2d

Sean Duffy on polls showing Republicans losing the shutdown: "I haven't seen the polling to which you refer ... why are we so concerned about illegals' healthcare? Why is that an issue? We should care about Americans."

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Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 2d

Seems he said this in August!

Mamdani, Skeptical of Casinos, Won’t Try to Block Them in New York City

www.nytimes.com

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Reposted by Nikki Columbus

Al Jazeera English @aljazeera.com · 2d

BREAKING: Israel deports 171 Gaza Sumud Flotilla activists, including Greta Thunberg.

🔴 LIVE updates: aje.io/erhxpu

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Reposted by Nikki Columbus

Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 5d

Oyoun, an arts space in Berlin, lost its state funding and building when it held an event hosted by . . . Jüdische Stimme. A shiva.

Louna Sbou, Oyoun’s co-founder and artistic director, is part of the Global Sumud Flotilla. Her ship was intercepted by the IDF.

The Nation Magazine @thenation.com · 8d

“In Germany, fascism repeats itself: first as antisemitism, then as anti-antisemitism.” So writes @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social in this feature exploring Germany’s crackdown on Palestine solidarity. www.thenation.com/article/worl...

How Germany Silenced Its Artists to Support Israel

As Israel intensified its genocide in Gaza, Germany ramped up its long-simmering war on dissent, silencing Palestine solidarity while bolstering its own far right.

www.thenation.com

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Reposted by Nikki Columbus

Max Kennerly @maxkennerly.bsky.social · 2d

Other states need to begin intentional punishment of the hostile Texas government, including cancelling state government contracts with Texas companies and interfering with their commerce such as by imposing onerous Texas-company-specific certifications and licensing.

Daniel Gilmore @gilmored85.bsky.social · 2d

This is both true and also we need to note how eager Texas has shown itself to be to send its own NG into blue states to try and forcibly occupy them. The Texas GOP is a source of evil in this country snd the next Dem administration needs to go about breaking them as an R power center.

Henry @henrythedog.bsky.social · 2d

okay but its kinda funny that every time Trump is like "I'm going to war with America's cities!" it just kinda falls apart and a judge dunks on him for being a criminal moron

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Grudgie the Whale @grudgie.bsky.social · 2d

Look. Invading our own country is about as straightforward a case as you can have for impeachment. The GOP abandoning the Constitution is kind of the only story there is and it gets no coverage.

Seth Cotlar @sethcotlar.bsky.social · 2d

Guys. I just had a crazy idea. What if the President DIDN’T deploy troops in American cities. Just a thought. Have we tried that before?

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Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 3d

That’s great and I would love those examples. But by and large, by far, they did not.

Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 3d

Ackman said he was a Dem before the campus protests. Rosenbury—ack, sorry, maybe that was a poor example. I’m sure there are many better ones. More important is that Dem electeds didn’t stand up for the protesters. You don’t agree that the anti-antisemitism campaign quickly revealed its true aim?

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Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 3d

If the line were a person it would look like Bill Ackman. Or, less extremely, Barnard prez Laura Rosenbury, who disciplined pro-Palestine students and then after Kirk’s death wrote a NYT op-ed valorizing “difficult speech” on campus. (Wow, my phone autocorrected that to “vaporizing” . . . )

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Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 3d

I wrote about this a bit here. But it was for a (German) contemporary art magazine, so the political explanations are a bit abridged.

drive.google.com

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Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 3d

Student protesters were accused of antisemitism, which was the excuse to crush protests, while pro-Israel rallies on campuses had far-right antisemitic figures. Columbia & alums aided arrest of Mahmoud Khalil. It wasn’t the start of alliance between the right & pro-Israel groups, but it was a leap.

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Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 3d

Is he blaming Dems for what GOP’s doing or for a muted protest response? Not sure I agree the protests are weak (or that big ones could stop ICE). But there’s a straight line from the center-lib weaponization of antisemitism against campus protests to Trump’s attacks (e.g., by way of Claudine Gay).

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Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 3d

Siberia is back?? Thank you, I needed some good news today.

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Reposted by Nikki Columbus

Max Kennerly @maxkennerly.bsky.social · 3d

This is a declaration they will use federal resources to deploy violence against judges, prosecutors, and attorneys general. There's no other coherent interpretation of the phrasing, including "only remedy," "legitimate state power," and connecting those people with "terror networks."

Stephen Miller
@StephenM
The issue before is now is very simple and clear. There is a large and growing movement of leftwing terrorism in this country. It is well organized and funded. And it is shielded by far-left Democrat judges, prosecutors and attorneys general. The only remedy is to use legitimate state power to dismantle terrorism and terror networks.
1:59 PM · Oct 4, 2025
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Reposted by Nikki Columbus

Anna Bower @annabower.bsky.social · 3d

Among other things, it remains extremely weird that the [checks notes] director of the FBI uses phrases like “ass clown factory” in public statements posted on his official account

FBI Director Kash Patel * ®
@FBIDirectorKash
X.com
BREAKING: MSNBC still an ass clown factory of disinformation. Same circus animals that slobbered all over perp walks of Stone, Navarro, Bannon...
MSNBC has no facts and no audience
In this @fbi, follow the chain of command or get relieved.
& Barb McQuade @ @BarbMcQuade • 15h
DOJ policy prohibits "perp walks," in which arrestees are paraded before the cameras.

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Reposted by Nikki Columbus

Patrick Chovanec @prchovanec.bsky.social · 3d

How exactly is this different from Kristallnacht?

Kristina Cooke @kristinacooke.bsky.social · 4d

I spoke to a Venezuelan woman who was arrested in this raid and later released with her 4yo son. She said agents broke down their door, pointed guns at them and made sexualized remarks about Venezuelan women. When she returned to her apartment it was boarded up and all her possessions were gone.

Ted Hesson @tedhesson.bsky.social · 4d

US Border Patrol raid sweeps in citizens, families as Chicago crackdown intensifies, w/ @reneehickman.bsky.social @kristinacooke.bsky.social www.reuters.com/world/us/us-...

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Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 3d

Bluesky should consider a prompt like on X that asks, “Would you like to read the actual article before you make a stupid comment?”

Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 5d

“In this story of cultural repression, we can also see the reorganization of society and the rise of a new far right. But we would do well to remember how it started: enforced by the liberal center and acceded to by the very people in a position to push back rather than roll over.” …in Germany & US.

Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 7d

My primer on German cultural politics in the October issue of @thenation.com brings together stories first reported separately, but need to be understood in concert. It’s the companion piece to my text on the US art world. “Fascism repeats itself: first as antisemitism, then as anti-antisemitism.”

How Germany Silenced Its Artists to Support Israel

As Israel intensified its genocide in Gaza, Germany ramped up its long-simmering war on dissent, silencing Palestine solidarity while bolstering its own far right.

www.thenation.com

Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 5d

"Mommy, I just made a drawing that you're really going to like. They're a major transgender activist on the Animal Planet.”

A child’s pencil drawing of a figure with a mullet, pockmarks, a big nose, and hairy armpits, in a skirt, standing with both arms raised above their head and both hands forming peace signs (according to my son) but looking rather like Nixon flashing “V” for victory. The figure is captioned up top with a very long name: “ahos Buktankie Denmervayennew foxcheply Heazen iri tufueofanfizix zoneinetnoyneero.” Next to the figure, my son has written: “major transgender activist on the animal planet.”

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Nikki Columbus @nikkicolumbus.bsky.social · 5d

Omg I love you

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