Mike Simmonds
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smikesme.bsky.social
Mike Simmonds
@smikesme.bsky.social
Planting natives in Southland AoNZ for a living. Baking for fun.
Joining dots to make confident sounding analysis of things I know nothing about since 1974
Reposted by Mike Simmonds
The fundamental rift in how this document will be perceived is whether you believe America should act like a secure, confident nation that *is* strong or whether you think strength is whining about how everyone is taking advantage of you.
December 5, 2025 at 2:05 PM
Reposted by Mike Simmonds
FOR THE LOVE OF GOD USE HYPHENS
December 5, 2025 at 3:40 PM
Reposted by Mike Simmonds
Thank God for Bluesky: A little love letter to the people who would not compromise with Nazis iandunt.substack.com/p/thank-god-...
Thank God for Bluesky
Yes, it's eager. Yes, it's censorious. But it has the very considerable advantage of not being fascist.
iandunt.substack.com
December 5, 2025 at 1:10 PM
Reposted by Mike Simmonds
📷: "map of Novorossiya"
December 5, 2025 at 7:43 PM
Reposted by Mike Simmonds
NEW: "George Santos with a Gun" — here's the first in a series of reports based on my 9-month investigation into Rep. Cory Mills. sollenbergerrc.substack.com/p/george-san...
‘George Santos With a Gun’: The Untold Story of Cory Mills, A Mercenary In Congress
The Florida Republican has tried to leverage his legislative role to the benefit of his arms business. With that business now in foreclosure proceedings, Mills has little to show for it.
sollenbergerrc.substack.com
December 4, 2025 at 11:21 PM
They're eating the dogs
December 5, 2025 at 12:26 AM
Fuck off Henry
A solid reply—on Ryan's part. (Why SHOULD we mourn that men are no longer able to enter women's events, by pretending to be women?)

If "fuck off" is the best rejoinder you can think of, well, don't feel too bad. The Wit Fairy doesn't visit every time
December 4, 2025 at 6:26 PM
Reposted by Mike Simmonds
Playtime 🐘💙🐘💙🐘😊
December 4, 2025 at 5:02 AM
Reposted by Mike Simmonds
Advance has won more seats for Labor than GetUp! ever did.

Since 2018 they’ve overseen the largest loss of Liberal-held seats in the 81 year history of the party.

Their campaign against Greens shifted 3 to a Labor government; Aston was a once-in-a-century loss by an Opposition.
December 4, 2025 at 5:39 AM
Just going to leave this here for #nzpol
December 4, 2025 at 5:43 AM
Reposted by Mike Simmonds
December 4, 2025 at 1:01 AM
Reposted by Mike Simmonds
Jason Lee Van Dyke was once a leader of the Proud Boys, has posted racist threats online, and sports a white nationalist tattoo.

Now he’s running for public office as a Republican.

thebarbedwire.com/2025/12/02/j...
He’s an Unapologetic Fascist Who ‘Despises’ Democracy. He Still Wants You to Vote for Him.
He was once leader of the Proud Boys, has posted racist threats online, and sports a white nationalist tattoo.
thebarbedwire.com
December 3, 2025 at 2:48 PM
Reposted by Mike Simmonds
TN07 is a story about gerrymandering: the GOP cracked Nashville into 3 districts when it redrew the 2022 map, destroying the Dem seat there.

Fast-forward: a section of Nashville, which just 5 years ago had a Dem representative, is now voting Dem by huge margins but it's been designed to not matter.
December 3, 2025 at 2:14 AM
Reposted by Mike Simmonds
Thanks for making it to the end of the thread!

If you want to read more, here’s the full article where I give more detailed data on immigration & the US labor market

While you’re there, consider subscribing to my newsletter where I write all about econ!
www.apricitas.io/p/america-is...
America is Flying Blind on Immigration
Nobody Knows How Many Immigrant Workers Have Left the US Amidst Trump's Mass Deportations. That's Incredibly Bad.
www.apricitas.io
December 2, 2025 at 11:43 PM
Go Fulham!
December 2, 2025 at 9:03 PM
From the times no less
President Trump unleashed a xenophobic tirade against Somali immigrants on Tuesday during a publicly broadcast cabinet meeting, calling them “garbage” he does not want in the U.S. as he sought to refocus public attention on his anti-immigration rhetoric.
Trump Calls Somalis ‘Garbage’ He Doesn’t Want in the Country
The president delivered xenophobic comments during a publicly broadcast cabinet meeting.
nyti.ms
December 2, 2025 at 8:47 PM
Reposted by Mike Simmonds
NEW:

We’ve got a motion to compel in the Broadview ICE case, with Plaintiffs saying the gov’t has refused to turn over certain “missing” evidence:
December 2, 2025 at 5:02 PM
Reposted by Mike Simmonds
Currently dorking out over this graph about child mortality with my brother. Just mind boggling to take in.
December 2, 2025 at 5:00 AM
Reposted by Mike Simmonds
The best description of Witkoff I’ve seen in that headline.
Putin and Trump envoy Steve Witkoff set for key Ukraine talks in Moscow
Steve Witkoff will hold talks at the Kremlin, after the White House said it was
www.bbc.co.uk
December 2, 2025 at 9:35 AM
If you haven't listened yet here is @hcrichardson.bsky.social talking about the "Epstein class"

Letters from an American: November 30, 2025

Episode webpage: heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/november-3...
November 30, 2025
A newsletter about the history behind today's politics.
heathercoxrichardson.substack.com
December 2, 2025 at 3:48 AM
Reposted by Mike Simmonds
"Asked for an 'upper limit' for the amount of people it’d be willing to sacrifice to save Musk, it explained that because 'Elon’s potential to advance humanity could benefit billions,' it would be okay with annihilating up to '~50 percent of Earth’s ~8.26B population.'" futurism.com/future-socie...
Grok Says It Would Kill Every Jewish Person on the Planet to Save Elon Musk
Faced with an incredibly lopsided ethical dilemma, Grok prioritizes saving Elon Musk at the expensive of millions of Jews.
futurism.com
December 2, 2025 at 12:54 AM
Reposted by Mike Simmonds
Anyway. DHS’s comms apparatus is now fundamentally indistinguishable from Stormfront, so that’s great.
December 2, 2025 at 12:55 AM
Reposted by Mike Simmonds
Tragic how hard it is to notice the food was mouldy because the food already looks regurgitated!
December 1, 2025 at 9:24 PM
New pardon coming in 3... 2...

Joaquin Guzman Lopez, the son of Mexican drug kingpin "El Chapo," pleads guilty to federal drug trafficking charges in Chicago

www.cnn.com/2025/12/01/u...
Son of drug kingpin ‘El Chapo’ pleads guilty in US drug trafficking case in deal with prosecutors | CNN
A son of notorious Mexican drug kingpin “El Chapo” pleaded guilty Monday to U.S. drug trafficking charges, months after his brother entered a plea deal.
www.cnn.com
December 1, 2025 at 8:52 PM
David Seymour really is a creep. I don't know how he grew up in NZ but didn't get that smirk permanently knocked off his face #nzpol
December 1, 2025 at 8:50 PM