A #BlueskyLullaby for tonight: A 2016 cover of James Taylor's "You've Got a Friend" by Jillian Edwards. See you around. www.youtube.com/watch?v=DY-4...
Executive editor, The Bulwark (thebulwark.com) /// Cofounder of The New Atlantis (thenewatlantis.com) and American Purpose (americanpurpose.com).
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A #BlueskyLullaby for tonight: A 2016 cover of James Taylor's "You've Got a Friend" by Jillian Edwards. See you around. www.youtube.com/watch?v=DY-4...
A #BlueskyLullaby for tonight: A 2016 cover of James Taylor's "You've Got a Friend" by Jillian Edwards. See you around. www.youtube.com/watch?v=DY-4...
The country is so poorly run we can’t receive packages from overseas anymore, and I’m not sure it makes the top 10 of the administration’s dumbest, unforced errors
"I put the little boys with their fingers off and hands crushed and maimed on a platform. I...made the statement that Philadelphia’s mansions were built on the broken bones...of these children....They did not care that these children were to be the future citizens of the nation."
I’m thrilled that @climate.us exists, and also devastated that it is needed. Thank you for rescuing our data. Science and facts will survive this administration because of projects like this.
You’ll enjoy this more than you think you will.
"There is no cleavage between white-collar workers and manual workers, between artists and artisans, musicians and mechanics, lawyers and accountants, architects and miners. Labor Day...belongs to all of us."
“Every day little children came into Union Headquarters, some with their hands off, some with the thumb missing, some with their fingers off at the knuckle. They were stooped things, round shouldered and skinny. Many of them were not over ten years of age…”
“But our march had done its work. We had drawn the attention of the nation to the crime of child labor…The Pennsylvania legislature passed a child labor law that sent children home from the mills, and kept others from entering the factory until they were fourteen.” www.thebulwark.com/p/labor-day-...
talk about timing, wow
This Labor Day, reread Carl Sandburg's magnificent poem of working America. www.thebulwark.com/p/labor-day-...
FDR: "Labor Day...belongs to all of us....Anyone who calls it a class holiday challenges the whole concept of American democracy." www.thebulwark.com/p/labor-day-...
A Labor Day classic: www.thebulwark.com/p/labor-day-...
A #BlueskyLullaby for tonight: Julius Katchen's stunning recording of the first (Adagio) movement of Brahms's last composition for solo piano. See you around. www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxKK...
A recent video from Tonebase about this exact recording: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ky_f...
A #BlueskyLullaby for tonight: Julius Katchen's stunning recording of the first (Adagio) movement of Brahms's last composition for solo piano. See you around. www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxKK...
Maybe — just maybe — fully funding our parks and libraries and community centers could be a more effective, more life-affirming, and less expensive means of ensuring community *safety* (and vitality!) than bulking up the police budget!
NEW: Anti-vax extremism. Cuts to Medicaid. Rising costs of health care. Some Democrats believe Republicans have stuck a big ol' "Kick Me" sign to their own backs. www.thebulwark.com/p/democrats-...
YES thank you
was teaching her at the piano how procul harum's "whiter shade of pale" is based on bach and she was not impressed
ICONIC. (And not in a good way.)
we are devouring sandra boynton books at the moment literally devouring, in one of our cases
Afternoon reading buddy
The top hit for this statement is the Economic Times, which churns out fake AI-generated bullshit. I don't know if the guy has released a statement, but that's a huge red flag for me.
MAHA & MAGA see the entire public-health establishment as the enemy. Still furious over COVID restrictions, they feel purging anybody who had anything to do with the pandemic response is as essential as purging anybody who prosecuted Jan 6th rioters or investigated Trump's relationship with Russia.
always read @citizencohn.bsky.social
NEW: "Long the envy of the world…the CDC finds itself no longer able to advocate for what its scientists believe the best available research shows….The agency has since January shed literally centuries' worth of collective experience through a combination of firings, retirements, and resignations."
A #BlueskyLullaby for tonight. See you around.
A #BlueskyLullaby for tonight. See you around.
"Agnes Callard’s Socrates is not merely depressing. He represents a new achievement in tragic literature." Mary Townsend reviews "Open Socrates": www.thebulwark.com/p/agnes-call...
"She did not die defending the Constitution. She died trying to overturn it." www.thebulwark.com/p/honoring-a...
I love Nina Simone and love that song.
THANK YOU on behalf of all editors everywhere for correctly spelling "straitlaced."
When there's an awkward or uncomfortable conversation underway, and our 10-month old daughter wakes up, crying, so we have to pause the conversation, I'm now calling it "saved by the belle."
The bizarre astrologer-affair story: www.thecut.com/article/astr...
Did you hear about the Pentagon official who allegedly had some kind of messy affair with an astrologer? (No, that's not the setup for a joke, that's an actual news story.) I just realized today that it's this bigoted guy we wrote about five years ago. www.thebulwark.com/p/a-terrible...
My 3-year-old is delighted to discover that I can make fake snoring noises perfectly in pitch with and in tempo with the "Moonlight Sonata." My 6-year-old slightly horrified to discover same.
I have been doing so for years!
I invite anyone who agrees to join me in being a monthly supporter. Those servers don’t pay for themselves! archive.org/donate
Thank goodness for the Internet Archive. I'm so glad it exists—it's such an important tool for truth and for memory, especially at this moment. (This particular rant brought to you by finding that a report was deleted from the CDC website but is, thankfully, preserved in the Internet Archive.)
"The impulse behind honoring Ashli Babbitt...blurs the line between lawful sacrifice and unlawful violence. It tells those who gave their lives in defense of the Constitution that their oath was no more meaningful than the motivations of the mob that attacked the Constitution."
“…I am infuriated that the Air Force plans to grant military funeral honors to Ashli Babbitt. She did not die defending the Constitution. She died trying to overturn it.” My latest in @thebulwark.com www.thebulwark.com/p/honoring-a...
A #BlueskyLullaby for tonight: Since it's the birthday of sax genius Charlie Parker (born 105 years ago today, on August 29, 1920), here's one of his 1940s recordings of "All the Things You Are." One of my friends says every time he hears this recording it feels like coming home. See you around.
A #BlueskyLullaby for tonight: Since it's the birthday of sax genius Charlie Parker (born 105 years ago today, on August 29, 1920), here's one of his 1940s recordings of "All the Things You Are." One of my friends says every time he hears this recording it feels like coming home. See you around.
I took this picture myself at the CDC protest today. These are among the hundreds of bullet holes in CDC headquarters windows, visible from the street. I heard today that the admin has no urgent plan to fix these windows. Imagine being a CDC employee going to work under these conditions
"Kennedy would be less hazardous if he decided to do cardiac surgery. Then he would kill people only one at a time rather than his current ability to kill by the thousands." Former CDC Director William Foege: How public health can fight back in a time of dangerous nonsense
NEW: "The reality is that it feels like things have shifted over the last couple weeks. Maybe you disagree. Or maybe you feel it, too." www.thebulwark.com/p/democracy-...
NEW: What happens after ICE chews you up and spits you out? You may remember this 19-year-old's story. We follow up with her. www.thebulwark.com/p/what-happe...
“summat” for “something” is intensely charming (to me)
NEW: "The damage will be far-reaching, and the repairs—if we ever get a chance to make them—will not be quick or cheap." www.thebulwark.com/p/camelot-fo...
THE IMPACT OF RFK JR.'s BULLSHIT: Is your state one of the sixteen where CVS is suspending COVID vaccination? (Presumably the same sixteen where Walgreens will now require a prescription.) www.nytimes.com/2025/08/28/w...
A #BlueskyLullaby for tonight: Here's Tyler Joseph of Twenty One Pilots covering "Can't Help Falling in Love" (the Elvis song) back in 2012 while touring. See you around. www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ThQ...
What's even stranger about this is that the picture you see used in that banner on the Department of Labor building isn't even his mugshot—rather, it's his recreation of the mugshot, doing the same pose but with "better" (still very harsh) lighting for an official presidential portrait. Background:
A #BlueskyLullaby for tonight: Here's Tyler Joseph of Twenty One Pilots covering "Can't Help Falling in Love" (the Elvis song) back in 2012 while touring. See you around. www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ThQ...
"We've seen this story play out across every critical government agency.... This is all the same project: attacking the government and re-engineering it to serve as a weapon against the American people." www.thebulwark.com/p/the-cdc-th...
ICONIC. (And not in a good way.)
"Trump’s reign of terror is real, and it’s not posturing. But at least for now, Trump’s fascination with firing squads, hangings, and group executions is not something the country needs to worry about. Let’s take whatever good news we can get." www.thebulwark.com/p/no-trump-c...
"Under the Biden admin, the Justice Dept routinely cracked down on foreign lobbying activity to ensure most were following the law.…But the second Trump presidency has done away with any kind of enforcement.…Lobbying for foreigners is becoming a cash cow for opportunistic allies of the president."
"What do you do with interview footage of a fifth-grade kid talking about the panic of nobody knowing what to do or where to run, because they’d only drilled for an active-shooter scenario *at school*, not at chapel?...Where do you put the helpless rage?"
It's still so strange to me that more of a fuss wasn't made of the fact that one of the issues Putin made a point of discussing with Trump in Alaska was ... mail-in voting.. www.thebulwark.com/p/putin-trum...
Re-reading this piece for the first time in seven years, it's still so great.
The kid's dictionary, by the way, is an edition of the American Heritage Dictionary. Which gives me the perfect chance to trot out one of my all-time favorites among the things I've published—David Skinner's lovely essay on the history of that quirky dictionary. web.archive.org/web/20181215...
Hahaha, this is adorable—a young redditor receives a dictionary and turns to the internet for help: "What are these red dots on the edges of this book?...Can it 'infect' my other books?" www.reddit.com/r/BookCollec...
This takes courage.
Excellent:
NEW: Remember how conservative activist Matt Schlapp was credibly accused of groping men—allegations that are disturbing on their own also imply deeply fucked-up political hypocrisy? But MAGA types are always happy to excuse one another’s wrongdoing—so Schlapp's businesses are booming. Of course.
I'm just holding out for the Space Force's turn...
NEW: "This is a choice made democratically, by a free people with eyes wide open. They were not deceived. They had already seen Trump in action and he was fully transparent about his intentions. He literally said that he would like to be a dictator. He said those words, out loud."
Hahaha, the MAGA crowd over on X is annngry about this article. They can't believe anybody is still talking about Russiagate—that's how confident they are that they've convinced everyone it was a hoax, all the evidence notwithstanding. Good work, @saletan.bsky.social.
"That’s why it’s so hard to sell the lie that Trump doesn’t collude with Putin. He just goes out and does it again." www.thebulwark.com/p/putin-trum...
rye so serious?
Trump said the other day that "if somebody kills somebody in the capital...we're going to be seeking the death penalty." Nope. Even King Trump lacks the power to start executing people for (local) homicides in Washington, D.C. www.thebulwark.com/p/no-trump-c...
"Assault with a breadly weapon." www.thebulwark.com/p/the-sub-he...
Making us stupider, making us less safe: "If it can happen to her, it can happen to anyone.... What analyst in their right mind is going to write something that in any way challenges...what they think the administration's view is if they think they're going to get fired over it?"
cc @jfklibraryfdn.bsky.social
Reading the new details about what went down at CDC, one thing jumps out at me: In standing up to Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Director Monarez has shown the kind of backbone and integrity that often earns public servants a Profile in Courage Award— —awarded by the family of John F. Kennedy.
More on Yarvin here: www.thebulwark.com/p/curtis-yar...
Curtis Yarvin's book is "unreviewable and nearly unreadable." He "pontificates about his musings, affirming them strongly, without development or deep reflection." What makes the book "so disturbing is that such ideas are gaining traction among some conservatives." (h/t @andycraig.bsky.social)
"Trump tariffs cause chaos on eBay as every hobby becomes logistical minefield" www.404media.co/trump-tariff...
It’s worth looking at the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program data tables. It’s all very transparent; anyone with a basic grasp of statistics comes away with an increased sense that vaccines are safe and effective. Antivax propaganda, however, tells *stories*. www.hrsa.gov/vaccine-comp...
NEW: Trump's base is flipping out over his off-the-cuff remark suggesting he would be doubling the number of Chinese students at American universities. PLUS: Which Trump administration figure may be winking at QAnoners and Pizzagaters on social media? www.thebulwark.com/p/maga-meltd...
NEW: "The CDC is losing decades' worth of expertise and experience—this, after losing still more leaders and a big chunk of staff in the DOGE purges....There's simply no way the agency can function normally or effectively when it's in this sort of disarray." www.thebulwark.com/i/172169002/...
from the biggest public health association “RFK Jr. must be removed from his position.”
Heartbreaking to read that the Catholic school shot up yesterday in Minnesota had picked Jeremiah 29:11 as the school year's scriptural theme: "For I know full well the plans I have for you, plans for your welfare and not for your misfortune, plans that will offer you a future filled with hope."
early morning editing buddy
If it was possible to just eyeball someone and determine they have "mitochondrial challenges," those of us with ME/CFS, who actually do have wonky mitochondria, wouldn't constantly be told by able-bodied people, including doctors, "But you don't look sick."
One of the most remarkable resignation letters you will ever read.
"I realize the last two weeks have seemed interminable. But...we've got three and a half years left under the best-case scenario....I keep saying this, but: Trump is not behaving like a man who intends to ever vacate the White House." www.thebulwark.com/p/fast-times...
Awesome, thanks. Can't wait!
I haven't gotten to that one yet! bsky.app/profile/adam...
Probably the most-fun movie Darren Aronofsky has ever made. www.thebulwark.com/p/caught-ste...
Our review of Agnes Callard's book. The Socrates she presents is "not the know-nothing Socrates you remember from undergrad—the infuriating one, pulling out his pockets to show that they are empty, again. Rather, he’s a sort of buddy: Helpfully, he has clear answers to life’s fundamental questions."
www.thebulwark.com/p/soviet-sci...
"So much for the rule of law. So much for limits on the power of the executive. So much for the legitimacy of opposition to the government. "One can try to look away from the abyss for a while. But when the diversions end, one can’t help but see that we’re heading straight towards it."
Trump claims that (1) "half the restaurants" in D.C. were closed because of crime, but (2) in the two weeks since he took over D.C. they've reopened, and, what's more, (3) "new restaurants are opening up" (lol). Our @adriancarrasquillo.bsky.social shows that this is—all of it—utter bullshit.
As if you needed another reason to be angry at RFK Jr. today: There are signals he wants to blow up the "liability shield" that has kept the U.S. vaccine industry strong for the last forty years (and has sped payments to harmed patients). Hugely dangerous. www.thebulwark.com/p/hhs-kenned...
