@russellfeldman.bsky.social
Reposted
The history of hard right populism is basically seeing the world as if through a tabloid lense, getting really angry about complex problems and imagining a simple, serious, manly solution.
Social media just energised that.
So these are are charging windmills of their own design, hurting people.
Social media just energised that.
So these are are charging windmills of their own design, hurting people.
New, from me: The Trump administration isn’t just using social media to shape a narrative. They view the world through a social media lens in a way that is plausibly corrupting their judgment and undermining their performance.
Welcome to the clicktatorship. 🧵
donmoynihan.substack.com/p/life-under...
Welcome to the clicktatorship. 🧵
donmoynihan.substack.com/p/life-under...
Life Under a Clicktatorship
What happens to government when everything is content?
donmoynihan.substack.com
January 7, 2026 at 4:31 PM
The history of hard right populism is basically seeing the world as if through a tabloid lense, getting really angry about complex problems and imagining a simple, serious, manly solution.
Social media just energised that.
So these are are charging windmills of their own design, hurting people.
Social media just energised that.
So these are are charging windmills of their own design, hurting people.
Reposted
RFK Jr's phone starts quacking (a bit on the nose)
January 7, 2026 at 4:48 PM
RFK Jr's phone starts quacking (a bit on the nose)
Reposted
The United States should not be a “predator force.” We are not brute animals scrabbling in the dirt for sustenance, we are human beings who can stand side by side with friends and allies.
Ogles: "It's important that we have a stake in Greenland, that they are quite frankly a protectorate of the US. They've been in relationship with Denmark - that needs to end. We've spilled more blood protecting Greenland than the Danes... we are the dominant predator force in the Western Hemisphere"
January 7, 2026 at 1:53 PM
The United States should not be a “predator force.” We are not brute animals scrabbling in the dirt for sustenance, we are human beings who can stand side by side with friends and allies.
Reposted
...has undoubtedly caused people to wrongly skip it.
The 2025/26 flu vaccine has been shown to reduce pediatric hospitalizations by 72-75%.
The 2025/26 flu vaccine has been shown to reduce pediatric hospitalizations by 72-75%.
Early influenza virus characterisation and vaccine effectiveness in England in autumn 2025, a period dominated by influenza A(H3N2) subclade K
Influenza A(H3N2) subclade K (J.2.4.1) has dominated the 2025/26 season start in England. Post-infection ferret antisera raised against northern hemisphere 2025/26 vaccine strains showed reduced reactivity to subclade K viruses in England, aligning ...
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
January 5, 2026 at 7:20 PM
...has undoubtedly caused people to wrongly skip it.
The 2025/26 flu vaccine has been shown to reduce pediatric hospitalizations by 72-75%.
The 2025/26 flu vaccine has been shown to reduce pediatric hospitalizations by 72-75%.
Reposted
all this is both foolish and unnecessary
January 4, 2026 at 9:47 PM
all this is both foolish and unnecessary
Reposted
Another galling example of this: It's been said that Trump's hatred of the "deep state" is rooted in hatred of its "warmongering." But Trump hates the deep state because it tried to hold him accountable for his crimes and because a professional civil service is a barrier to authoritarian corruption!
January 4, 2026 at 3:46 PM
Another galling example of this: It's been said that Trump's hatred of the "deep state" is rooted in hatred of its "warmongering." But Trump hates the deep state because it tried to hold him accountable for his crimes and because a professional civil service is a barrier to authoritarian corruption!
Reposted
Yeah, people are fixating on a Cabinet Secretary being given a sovereign country to run because the president waged war without congressional approval and kidnapped the old leader. Weird that they’d get hung up on that.
WELKER: Mr. Secretary, are you running Venezuela right now?
MARCO RUBIO: Yeah. People are fixating on that. Here's the bottom line -- we expect to see changes in Venezuela
MARCO RUBIO: Yeah. People are fixating on that. Here's the bottom line -- we expect to see changes in Venezuela
January 4, 2026 at 3:35 PM
Yeah, people are fixating on a Cabinet Secretary being given a sovereign country to run because the president waged war without congressional approval and kidnapped the old leader. Weird that they’d get hung up on that.
Reposted
We might “end up running into the flu” less often if government officials didn’t keep telling millions of viewers not to bother getting a flu shot.
Dr. Oz on the "super flu": "Every year there's a flu vaccine. It doesn't always work very well. That's why it's been controversial of late. But like many illnesses, the best news out there is if you can take care of yourself so that when you do end up running into the flu, you can overwhelm it."
December 31, 2025 at 12:27 AM
We might “end up running into the flu” less often if government officials didn’t keep telling millions of viewers not to bother getting a flu shot.
Reposted
For those of us who can’t get through the WSJ pay wall, here’s the nuts and bolts of what in any other era would be the greatest presidential scandal in history.
boingboing.net/2025/12/27/t...
boingboing.net/2025/12/27/t...
Trump pardons "start at $1m," reports WSJ
A simple process: you give a lobbyist the money, they talk to someone in Trump's inner circle such as his son, then Trump pardons you.
boingboing.net
December 28, 2025 at 8:54 PM
For those of us who can’t get through the WSJ pay wall, here’s the nuts and bolts of what in any other era would be the greatest presidential scandal in history.
boingboing.net/2025/12/27/t...
boingboing.net/2025/12/27/t...
Reposted
Plato argued in the Republic that the 'tyrant,' or someone with unlimited wealth and power, would live the worst possible life because his soul would be devoured by lawless, unlimited desires that could never be sated. I think we've gotten confirmation of this from more cases than Trump lately
I always thought Plato was pretty pollyannaish on this point, but this is decent evidence for the view that a man of bad character will therefore be unhappy even with every external trapping of success and good fortune.
President Donald Trump gifted the world with nearly 200 Truth Social posts (and counting) on Christmas Day, where he amplified conspiracy theories about the 2020 election and called for a member of Congress to be deported.
December 26, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Plato argued in the Republic that the 'tyrant,' or someone with unlimited wealth and power, would live the worst possible life because his soul would be devoured by lawless, unlimited desires that could never be sated. I think we've gotten confirmation of this from more cases than Trump lately
Reposted
271,000 people have lost their jobs and federal spending has ctually increased. So people get less services, while we added debt paying for private jets for Kristi Noem, bulletproof cars for Kash Patel. This is what the rust belt voters demanded.
December 26, 2025 at 1:00 PM
271,000 people have lost their jobs and federal spending has ctually increased. So people get less services, while we added debt paying for private jets for Kristi Noem, bulletproof cars for Kash Patel. This is what the rust belt voters demanded.
Reposted
"Donald Trump calls himself the “Peace President.” But this week, as he outlined his plans to capture Greenland and hijack Venezuelan oil, his real agenda became obvious. It’s not peace. It’s extortion, conquest, and theft."
open.substack.com/pub/thebulwa...
open.substack.com/pub/thebulwa...
The Politics of Plunder
His domestic and foreign policies have one consistent theme.
open.substack.com
December 26, 2025 at 2:03 PM
"Donald Trump calls himself the “Peace President.” But this week, as he outlined his plans to capture Greenland and hijack Venezuelan oil, his real agenda became obvious. It’s not peace. It’s extortion, conquest, and theft."
open.substack.com/pub/thebulwa...
open.substack.com/pub/thebulwa...
Reposted
"If you don't fund the State Department fully, then I need to buy more ammunition.”
-James Mattis as Secretary of Defense testifying before Congress in 2017.
Succeeding with soft power is greatly preferable—and a lot cheaper—than having to address something with hard power.
-James Mattis as Secretary of Defense testifying before Congress in 2017.
Succeeding with soft power is greatly preferable—and a lot cheaper—than having to address something with hard power.
Context for Trump withdrawing dozens of ambassadors
*China has invested heavily in expanding diplomacy
*The US has significantly degraded soft power
*The US already has scores of diplomatic vacancies
*China has invested heavily in expanding diplomacy
*The US has significantly degraded soft power
*The US already has scores of diplomatic vacancies
December 25, 2025 at 12:33 AM
"If you don't fund the State Department fully, then I need to buy more ammunition.”
-James Mattis as Secretary of Defense testifying before Congress in 2017.
Succeeding with soft power is greatly preferable—and a lot cheaper—than having to address something with hard power.
-James Mattis as Secretary of Defense testifying before Congress in 2017.
Succeeding with soft power is greatly preferable—and a lot cheaper—than having to address something with hard power.
Reposted
The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) led a path of gutting and destruction of public, global health, and medical research resources, among others.
How much did it save in federal spending?
Nothing...it led to an increase
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/23/u...
How much did it save in federal spending?
Nothing...it led to an increase
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/23/u...
How Did DOGE Disrupt So Much While Saving So Little?
www.nytimes.com
December 23, 2025 at 5:17 PM
The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) led a path of gutting and destruction of public, global health, and medical research resources, among others.
How much did it save in federal spending?
Nothing...it led to an increase
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/23/u...
How much did it save in federal spending?
Nothing...it led to an increase
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/23/u...
Reposted
Unspeakably bad, evil, disgusting www.chron.com/life/wildlif...
Texas wildlife refuge could lose hundreds of acres to SpaceX
The plan follows authorization of new border wall segments in the refuge.
www.chron.com
December 24, 2025 at 7:29 PM
Unspeakably bad, evil, disgusting www.chron.com/life/wildlif...
Reposted
This is outright Nazi stuff, and Democrats in Congress aren’t doing enough to try and stop it.
WaPo reports that ICE is planning 7 massive human warehouses holding 5,000 to 10,000 people.
Recalls the acting ICE director 2015 statement that he wanted to see a “business”-oriented approach to deportations, “like [Amazon] Prime, but with human beings”.
www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
Recalls the acting ICE director 2015 statement that he wanted to see a “business”-oriented approach to deportations, “like [Amazon] Prime, but with human beings”.
www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
ICE documents reveal plan to hold 80,000 immigrants in warehouses
The Trump administration wants to build seven large-scale deportation hubs to speed up deportations, internal ICE documents show.
www.washingtonpost.com
December 24, 2025 at 3:55 PM
This is outright Nazi stuff, and Democrats in Congress aren’t doing enough to try and stop it.
Reposted
This is totally underreported. Trump is not just going after "illegals." He's going after people who were here legally, by changing their status.
These are people who entered the US the right way, and never broke a law. Now they are subject to Trump's whim, his ICE goons, and inhuman detention.
These are people who entered the US the right way, and never broke a law. Now they are subject to Trump's whim, his ICE goons, and inhuman detention.
Trump has revoked legal status for at least 1.6 million immigrants over the past year by cancelling programs like TPS and student visas.
Remember: these are people who entered the country legally.
Trump never cared about “legal immigration" — just inflicting cruelty.
Remember: these are people who entered the country legally.
Trump never cared about “legal immigration" — just inflicting cruelty.
December 23, 2025 at 7:24 PM
This is totally underreported. Trump is not just going after "illegals." He's going after people who were here legally, by changing their status.
These are people who entered the US the right way, and never broke a law. Now they are subject to Trump's whim, his ICE goons, and inhuman detention.
These are people who entered the US the right way, and never broke a law. Now they are subject to Trump's whim, his ICE goons, and inhuman detention.
Reposted
The “free speech” and “cancel culture” panics have led to overt state censorship because that was always their purpose. (Gift link) www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...
December 23, 2025 at 4:54 PM
The “free speech” and “cancel culture” panics have led to overt state censorship because that was always their purpose. (Gift link) www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...
Reposted
For those who haven’t had to deal w ICE/CBP kidnapping your neighbors you may not be aware:
Feds have taken people from Lowe’s & Menards, & those stores haven’t been great, but Home Deport lets ICE/CBP just wander the aisles taking people.
Do not shop at Home Deport.
Feds have taken people from Lowe’s & Menards, & those stores haven’t been great, but Home Deport lets ICE/CBP just wander the aisles taking people.
Do not shop at Home Deport.
December 22, 2025 at 6:22 PM
For those who haven’t had to deal w ICE/CBP kidnapping your neighbors you may not be aware:
Feds have taken people from Lowe’s & Menards, & those stores haven’t been great, but Home Deport lets ICE/CBP just wander the aisles taking people.
Do not shop at Home Deport.
Feds have taken people from Lowe’s & Menards, & those stores haven’t been great, but Home Deport lets ICE/CBP just wander the aisles taking people.
Do not shop at Home Deport.
Reposted
I wrote about the conservative quest to restore the "true" Constitution, the Antebellum Constitution, shorn of the egalitarian nonsense in the Reconstruction Amendments, a document that replaces equality with a society of dominators and the dominated. www.theatlantic.com/politics/202...
December 21, 2025 at 2:59 PM
I wrote about the conservative quest to restore the "true" Constitution, the Antebellum Constitution, shorn of the egalitarian nonsense in the Reconstruction Amendments, a document that replaces equality with a society of dominators and the dominated. www.theatlantic.com/politics/202...
Reposted
Just so I'm clear on this, computer memory has tripled in price because a bunch of it that hasn't been produced yet has been ordered to populate GPUs that aren't installed in data centers that aren't built yet in order to service a demand that doesn't exist to make profits that don't happen.
December 15, 2025 at 12:21 PM
Just so I'm clear on this, computer memory has tripled in price because a bunch of it that hasn't been produced yet has been ordered to populate GPUs that aren't installed in data centers that aren't built yet in order to service a demand that doesn't exist to make profits that don't happen.
Reposted
A Chinese dissident filmed Uyghur detention sites and then released the video on YouTube after fleeing China. He sought asylum in the US. Now the Trump admin wants to deport him to a country with strong ties to China.
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/15/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/15/u...
He Recorded China’s Detention of Uyghurs. The U.S. Wants to Deport Him to Uganda.
www.nytimes.com
December 15, 2025 at 10:50 PM
A Chinese dissident filmed Uyghur detention sites and then released the video on YouTube after fleeing China. He sought asylum in the US. Now the Trump admin wants to deport him to a country with strong ties to China.
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/15/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/15/u...
Reposted
“Kennedy’s crusade will create even more doubt over vaccines’ effectiveness, as he uses his position to broadcast and legitimize debunked ideas about their risks,”
www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
Covid shots may get FDA's strongest warning
The agency's black-box label is meant to flag serious threats to life and health.
www.motherjones.com
December 15, 2025 at 4:50 PM
“Kennedy’s crusade will create even more doubt over vaccines’ effectiveness, as he uses his position to broadcast and legitimize debunked ideas about their risks,”
www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
www.motherjones.com/politics/202...