Gabriel Garcia
@solidgarcia.bsky.social
American reverberating between Berlin and Brazil. Translator, musician, writer. Husband, father. Third-culture person. Cardigan punk. Champion of mediocrity.
linktr.ee/solidmaybe
linktr.ee/solidmaybe
Been trying to relearn old songs recently and wasn't really sure why. Only just occurred to me that the anniversary of my brother's death is approaching and they were all songs from the album I recorded about him.
I Lose, by Shitwolf
10 track album
shitwolf.bandcamp.com
January 6, 2026 at 1:13 PM
Been trying to relearn old songs recently and wasn't really sure why. Only just occurred to me that the anniversary of my brother's death is approaching and they were all songs from the album I recorded about him.
When all the global superpowers are authoritarian ethnonationalist bad actors, it might be a good time to define what democratic resistance looks like in the 21st century.
January 4, 2026 at 6:18 PM
When all the global superpowers are authoritarian ethnonationalist bad actors, it might be a good time to define what democratic resistance looks like in the 21st century.
I had an Austrian-German professor who was a pre-teen on 1 September 1939. He told us about how the invasion of Poland was announced over the PA system at a public pool, and how the reaction was quiet murmuring and bewilderment. People asked "What do we want with Poland?" 1/2
January 4, 2026 at 2:22 PM
I had an Austrian-German professor who was a pre-teen on 1 September 1939. He told us about how the invasion of Poland was announced over the PA system at a public pool, and how the reaction was quiet murmuring and bewilderment. People asked "What do we want with Poland?" 1/2
Yemen re-united the same year as Germany. Back to North and South Yemen after 36 years.
#BREAKING Yemen separatists announce two-year transition towards independence in south
January 2, 2026 at 5:06 PM
Yemen re-united the same year as Germany. Back to North and South Yemen after 36 years.
It bears endless repeating that Russia is the largest nation in the world, with the largest nuclear arsenal, and the second largest (now battle-tested) military in the world. This is what we call "geopolitical little dick energy" aka classic autocratic imperialism.
There are literal grown-ups who believe that NATO expansion is a prelude to 'Operation Bum-Rush Russia', where all the NATO countries will charge into nuclear-armed Russia one day for no particular reason and that's why invading Ukraine is anti-imperialist Praxis.
this is the simple answer to people who keep saying NATO expansion matters. Sure, it matters because it presented an obstacle to Russian imperial ambitions. Putin didn't invade because he hated NATO expansion, he hated NATO expansion because he wanted to invade
December 28, 2025 at 1:22 PM
It bears endless repeating that Russia is the largest nation in the world, with the largest nuclear arsenal, and the second largest (now battle-tested) military in the world. This is what we call "geopolitical little dick energy" aka classic autocratic imperialism.
Offering up a quick translation of the German-language tirade re. the immigration/migration debate that I've been harassing German newspapers with as of late. Clear sign that I'm reaching peak middle-aged dad.
Who, us?!
Translation of a German-language tirade on the immigration/migration debate that I've been harassing German newspapers with as of late. Clear sign of reaching peak middle-aged dad.
solidmaybe.substack.com
December 17, 2025 at 1:11 PM
Offering up a quick translation of the German-language tirade re. the immigration/migration debate that I've been harassing German newspapers with as of late. Clear sign that I'm reaching peak middle-aged dad.
Has anyone written about or done a study as to why people record their insights/drop truth bombs from inside their cars? Seems like it developed into the agreed environment for a specific kind of information communication.
December 5, 2025 at 2:15 PM
Has anyone written about or done a study as to why people record their insights/drop truth bombs from inside their cars? Seems like it developed into the agreed environment for a specific kind of information communication.
Wrote something about how my experience working at mainland Europe's biggest refugee center in Berlin led to the realization that no one is actually interested in dealing with immigration as a reality of our world.
Immigration as Reality
How my experiences working at a refugee center led to the realization that no one is actually interested in dealing with immigration as a reality of our world.
solidmaybe.substack.com
December 2, 2025 at 12:24 PM
Wrote something about how my experience working at mainland Europe's biggest refugee center in Berlin led to the realization that no one is actually interested in dealing with immigration as a reality of our world.
Big move means lots of sorting. Gazing at my Nirvana ticket for the concert that never was (long story), I saw that Germans/Europeans have been publicly grappling with the fact that foreigners (Ausländer) exist for 31+ years now. They're gonna come to terms with it any day now.
December 1, 2025 at 4:29 PM
Big move means lots of sorting. Gazing at my Nirvana ticket for the concert that never was (long story), I saw that Germans/Europeans have been publicly grappling with the fact that foreigners (Ausländer) exist for 31+ years now. They're gonna come to terms with it any day now.
Keeping the fun and light vibes going. Did an edit of an older essay about the death of my older brother and the insights it gave me re. certain aspects of suffering, trauma, and the shaping of perspectives through conflict.
About Death
Re-edit of an older essay about the death of my older brother and the insights it gave me re. certain aspects of suffering, trauma, and the shaping of perspectives through conflict.
solidmaybe.substack.com
November 11, 2025 at 12:43 PM
Keeping the fun and light vibes going. Did an edit of an older essay about the death of my older brother and the insights it gave me re. certain aspects of suffering, trauma, and the shaping of perspectives through conflict.
New long-form essay up. My ode to Berlin. A first-person account of my life there, the places and people I found, the networks of care I encountered, and the ways it has shaped me as a person. Bit of TW on this one, as it covers a handful of sensitive topics.
My Berlin Is Not Your Berlin
My ode to Berlin. A first-person account of my life there, the places I found, the networks of care I encountered, and the ways it has shaped me as a person.
solidmaybe.substack.com
November 5, 2025 at 12:55 PM
New long-form essay up. My ode to Berlin. A first-person account of my life there, the places and people I found, the networks of care I encountered, and the ways it has shaped me as a person. Bit of TW on this one, as it covers a handful of sensitive topics.
Trying to put my finger on something I kept stumbling across online. How our media landscape has led to widespread political and cultural amnesia, and what that means for people's general ability to orient themselves and their thinking in the wider world.
The Culture of Short-term Memory Loss
How the current media landscape has led to widespread political and cultural amnesia, and what that means for people's general ability to orient themselves and their thinking in the wider world.
solidmaybe.substack.com
October 21, 2025 at 2:57 PM
Trying to put my finger on something I kept stumbling across online. How our media landscape has led to widespread political and cultural amnesia, and what that means for people's general ability to orient themselves and their thinking in the wider world.
This is precisely the world and atmosphere I grew up in. Only realized recently how formative it was to have it simply dissolve and dissappear. Gave me a fair few tools and perspectives that have been useful ever since.
The Dos & Don’ts of Driving to West Berlin During the Cold War: A Weird Piece of Ephemera from the 1980s
The Dos & Don’ts of Driving to West Berlin During the Cold War: A Weird Piece of Ephemera from the 1980s
As generations have come of age with few or no memories of the existence of the Soviet Union, a common misconception about Berlin has become more common.
www.openculture.com
October 18, 2025 at 1:45 PM
This is precisely the world and atmosphere I grew up in. Only realized recently how formative it was to have it simply dissolve and dissappear. Gave me a fair few tools and perspectives that have been useful ever since.
If I talk about decentering myself, am I not just centering myself all over again?
October 17, 2025 at 3:59 PM
If I talk about decentering myself, am I not just centering myself all over again?
I reworked a 2017 essay addressing war and conflict as inherent features of human societies and behavior, updating and expanding it to incorporate our current drift towards widespread violence. Do we always have to end up here to learn our lesson(s)?
We Are War (Slight Return)
An edited version of a 2017 essay addressing war and conflict as inherent features of human societies and behavior, updated and expanded to incorporate our current drift towards widespread violence.
solidmaybe.substack.com
October 13, 2025 at 12:41 PM
I reworked a 2017 essay addressing war and conflict as inherent features of human societies and behavior, updating and expanding it to incorporate our current drift towards widespread violence. Do we always have to end up here to learn our lesson(s)?
Forget Sun Tzu, get on your von Clausewitz.
October 11, 2025 at 12:10 PM
Forget Sun Tzu, get on your von Clausewitz.
Left out the longing for the mundane, but here's a new one thinking about the relationship between analog and digital technologies and what they represent in terms of our relationship with the world around us and how we wish to experience it.
Digital vs. Analog – Socioexperiential Facsimiles
Thinking about the relationship between analog and digital technologies and what they represent in terms of our relationship with the world around us and how we wish to experience it.
solidmaybe.substack.com
October 6, 2025 at 12:57 PM
Left out the longing for the mundane, but here's a new one thinking about the relationship between analog and digital technologies and what they represent in terms of our relationship with the world around us and how we wish to experience it.
Thoughtful mind cleanser...
1970: KURT VONNEGUT Interview | Review | Writers and Wordsmiths | BBC Archive
YouTube video by BBC Archive
youtu.be
September 29, 2025 at 2:13 PM
Thoughtful mind cleanser...
After moving a household plus two kids across oceans wide and plenty, working, and recording/releasing an EP, I finally wrapped up this essay. Analyzing the obsession with generational differences and how it relates to the frenetic standstill we have been in since the beginning of the 21st century.
Generational Drama
A short discussion and analysis of our current obsession with generational perspectives and differences, why it anchors so much discourse, and how it relates to the frenetic standstill we have found o...
solidmaybe.substack.com
September 22, 2025 at 1:15 PM
After moving a household plus two kids across oceans wide and plenty, working, and recording/releasing an EP, I finally wrapped up this essay. Analyzing the obsession with generational differences and how it relates to the frenetic standstill we have been in since the beginning of the 21st century.
As an American who grew up outside the US, it became clear very early on in life, that when Americans say "the world," they essentially mean "Cleveland."
September 13, 2025 at 1:42 PM
As an American who grew up outside the US, it became clear very early on in life, that when Americans say "the world," they essentially mean "Cleveland."
The "Generational Drama" essay remains stalled due to belongings strewn across hemispheres, but Her Gang's German Graffiti Demo is starting to make the rounds and getting plays/noticed here and there. That's nice. Listed here with hundreds of other great releases.
In Shorts: New Releases, Aug 14th - Sept 5th - IDIOTEQ.com
We’re wrapping up the last three weeks in one go this time — vacation trips and summer chaos got in the way, but the upside is nearly two hundred quick notes
idioteq.com
September 5, 2025 at 5:40 PM
The "Generational Drama" essay remains stalled due to belongings strewn across hemispheres, but Her Gang's German Graffiti Demo is starting to make the rounds and getting plays/noticed here and there. That's nice. Listed here with hundreds of other great releases.
Things have been quiet due to trans-hemispheric relocations, but did manage to use a few free moments to record some songs for a new solo project. Available on tape at Cardigan Punk or via Bandcamp. I think it's good.
German Graffiti Demo, by Her Gang
4 track album
hergang.bandcamp.com
August 25, 2025 at 8:12 AM
Things have been quiet due to trans-hemispheric relocations, but did manage to use a few free moments to record some songs for a new solo project. Available on tape at Cardigan Punk or via Bandcamp. I think it's good.
Don't think any name is ever going to beat Boutros Boutros-Ghali.
August 20, 2025 at 1:50 PM
Don't think any name is ever going to beat Boutros Boutros-Ghali.
A documentary where Dave Grohl, Henry Rollins, and Thurston Moore talk at length about something, but it is never really clear what they're actually talking about.
August 11, 2025 at 5:27 PM
A documentary where Dave Grohl, Henry Rollins, and Thurston Moore talk at length about something, but it is never really clear what they're actually talking about.
Something that gets omitted when people throw around ideas about Nazism, is how the 12-year dalliance with facism killed up 10 million Germans, destroyed every major and mid-size city, ruptured a cultural inheritance stretching back over a millennium, and is still felt today, nearly a century later.
August 10, 2025 at 8:11 AM
Something that gets omitted when people throw around ideas about Nazism, is how the 12-year dalliance with facism killed up 10 million Germans, destroyed every major and mid-size city, ruptured a cultural inheritance stretching back over a millennium, and is still felt today, nearly a century later.