Iconic moment at the Downton Abbey premiere
• Novelist, The Great Eastern, Destiny Express. • Screenwriter, Joe Gould's Secret, Savage Grace. • Past President, WGAW • Vice President & Governor, AMPAS • Professor, USC School of Cinematic Arts • Postpunk guitarist • Home barista
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Iconic moment at the Downton Abbey premiere
As a governor who cares about the well-being of my people, I can’t live in a fantasy land where I pretend Trump is not tearing this country apart for personal greed and power.
Today marks eight years since Walter Becker's been gone. He was a friend since childhood, and I was honored to give the keynote at the street renaming ceremony of Walter Becker Way — in front of the apartment house of his youth.
Great historical bilingual pun. Last week I learned that the French left wing would caustically refer to the appeasement-pushing British PM as “Monsieur J’Aime Berlin”. I mean, that’s classy.
This might be a good opportunity for some service journalism on what the president can and cannot do regarding murder
This was the *point* of these things being taken up by corporations. If you're just hiring people to "fix" something, you can pay them less than if you're asking them to create it -- even though it requires them to do more work. In particular this was the reason for the WGA strikes around this.
My kingdom for a single fact-checker at the nation's most prestigious opinion page www.nytimes.com/2025/09/03/o...
It’s not just that the President of the United States posted a video of eleven people being murdered in international waters it’s that the President of the United States ordered the murder of eleven people in international waters so he could post a video of it.
Pritzker: "Any rational person who has spent even the most minimal amount of time studying human history has to ask themselves one important question: once they get the citizens of this nation comfortable with the current atrocities committed under the color of law, what comes next?"
What exactly is the point of continuing to pretend you are a journalist if you literally just print what this known and obvious liar says? They just murdered 11 people. They've claimed similar threats but never proven them. We're murdering Venezuelan citizens. Write that down.
I had the great good fortune to grow up with Walter, to catch the books and films and music left aswirl in his slipstream. I miss him all the time.
I know, I know, but: The president of the US saying, literally, "we're going in" in reference to sending the military to an American city for no reason beyond terrorizing the local population should be the most immediately impeachable shit imaginable
The U.S. Secretary of Energy does not know that electricity is energy. I'm glad we've gotten rid of DEI programs and are now giving America the leadership it deserves.
Think medical insurance companies deny too many claims already? Trump's bringing in AI "death panels" to supercharge the process! AI gets paid based on how many Medicare claims they reject. Automated cruelty. They're turning healthcare into a video game where killing old people scores points.
See also popular.info/p/trumps-lab...
I'll stand with Joe on this one. (And all mentors become tormentors at some point...) Let's dish about Gore when we sit down for a proper drink or meal, and shall I let you know next time I'm coming to NY?
Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., the vice chair of the Intelligence Committee, says he was denied a meeting with career intelligence workers because Laura Loomer objected.
Laura Loomer has more power over your government than US Senators.
Pritzker: "He has no idea what's he's talking about. There is no emergency that warrants deployment of troops. He is insulting the people of Chicago by calling our home a hellhole, and anyone that takes his word at face value is insulting Chicagoans too."
The president is sending the military to control American cities and if you're a reporter who's framing that illegal power grab as "pushing the boundaries of constitutionality" or "acting boldly to fight crime" or whatever, please go find another line of work where you won't get us all killed.
Stressed out by layoffs, salary freezes, 19% budget cuts? Don't worry, be happy! "Mindful USC cultivates mindfulness, compassion and community on and beyond campus." Classes! Retreats! Drop-in meditation groups! Sound baths!
What's that 'golden rule' thing? Treat others as you would wish to be treated? Or something like that?
I knew *of* you, of course, because you were a publishing god. Joe Savago, of blessed memory, spoke of you and Ann Patty with appreciation and reverence. I suspect we were in many of the same rooms; I'm sorry we didn't meet then; I'm glad we get to meet now.
👇. 👇. 👇. 👇. 👇. 👇. 👇. 👇. 👇
Oy.
But the implication of the subhed is that maybe military occupations are effective, so why not deploy troops to your own cities. @nytimes.com is utterly incapable of not BothSidesing things. They would if they could but they can't so they don't.
Likely true!
I am amused that Mamdani is seen as a raving communist for suggesting mid-tier FDR type reforms and there's an actual Eugene Debs dude running for Senate in Maine and he's not freaking out anybodyyyy oh yes. Shit. He's white. Sorry, I just got it. Go about your business.
How the Trump Death Fantasies Reveal a Democratic Party That Refuses to Face Its Own Flaws, by Some Very Serious Guy at The Atlantic, coming sometime this week, I imagine.
QoTD: “Los Angeles would have burned down if left to the devices of the mayor and the governor of that state. They’re thankful that President Trump came in with federal law enforcement...kept their homes and businesses from burning down, and made sure that law and order was restored." —Kristi Noem.
The hed seems to indicate that there is far more crime in Red states/cities than in the Blue ones to which Trump is deploying troops. The deck asks, if flooding the zone with armed forces works, why not do it everywhere? As Tom Waits says: "The large print giveth and the small print taketh away"
Photo passed along from a federal employee from inside the Dept of Labor building, where a giant Orwellian image of Trump's face is now draped outside. Big Brother is watching.
On this date 1979 I played a strike fund benefit for the workers of Strand bookstore in NYC. Commemorating the anniversary, which this year falls on Labor Day. Handbill by and courtesy @luxante.bsky.social , part of the larger Del-Byzanteen empire, who on this occasion performed with The Flags.
2023 post, but relevant this Labor Day. I am glad now as I was then to see Salt of the Earth first on Howard's list! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salt_of... There's also a movie about the struggle to make that movie. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_of_...
If you're 60, 69.1% of all job growth since your birth occurred under Democratic administrations. If you're 45, that number is 74.7%. If you're under 28, the number is 100%. Happy Labor Day.
Perfect! And yes, we're all in that hospital.
“Ok, so I can’t make jewelry, but I’m great at disarming an alarm system and smashing glass cases”
Every Labor Day I remember that the holiday was moved from May 1 to September not only for the Haymarket attacks but to break up the possibility between the US and the international labor movement (which celebrates in May). And it worked!
Happy Labor Day!
If you enjoy… Weekends Safe working conditions Retirement benefits Paid vacations Breaks at work Sick leave Paid holidays … then you’re part of the labor movement. Happy Labor Day.
If you say, “hey, Siri, is Trump still alive?” it responds with an article. From Deadline. From 2018. Repeated queries produce the same response.
I got to talk with @lataco.bsky.social's @eltragon.bsky.social about his tireless documentation of immigration raids in LA, and how his knowledge of the city's street food scene makes him a better immigration reporter
This is a great time to remind everyone that EOs aren’t laws, the federal government doesn’t manage voting in this way, and it’s all a scare tactic and any reporting that doesn’t provide that context is enabling potentially lawless activity.
AI's best use case will always be scams. It's scamtech, top to bottom. Everything about it is crooked. Its bedrock is theft and its legacy is the destruction of the environment, both physical and virtual. Even most of its 'legitimate' uses are a form of lying. "I wrote this." "I created this."
Donald Trump’s rumored death raises new questions about Joe Biden’s health
We built a calculator that doesn't work, but don't worry, it's also a plagiarism machine that will tell you to kill yourself. It runs on the world's oceans and costs 10 trillion dollars.
I applaud whoever decided (probably Miller himself) to have Stephen Miller act increasingly as “spokesman” for this Administration’s policies. He is so fundamentally repellent that I suspect even loyal MAGA adherents get the heebie-jeebies when they listen to him,& ask themselves, “Am I w/this guy?”
this is quite a split screen:
All Gaul is divided into three parts.
Yup. My dentist is Dr Chin.
If this is what the Republican ‘Lincoln Project’ folks are putting out, where are the Democrats who will say, “see you and raise you”?
This firefighter arrived in the US at age 4, has been here for 19 years, was on track to legal status, and was on a crew trying to contain a major blaze (in Washington state, vs Oregon, fwiw.) h/t @joshuajfriedman.com www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Your dad was Mario Cuomo.
August 30, 1948 is the birthday of Fred Hampton: revolutionary socialist and deputy chairman of the Black Panther Party. Slain December 4, 1969, by law enforcement in his Chicago apartment. He was 21 years old. "Nothing is more important than stopping fascism, because fascism will stop us all."
CHICAGO…
“I just sat at the drums and said, ‘Can I have a go?’ I just took to it.” — Honey Lantree #BOTD Lantree, hairdresser turned drummer for the Joe-Meek-produced (boy) band The Honeycombs. A boy band w/a girl drummer is still rare. In the 1960s it was unheard of. A wee thread on this inspiring figure!
any body want to help me plan sneaking around and raising all the flags back up to full mast
Aptonym!
Strongly worded tweet.
A boy can dream.
I daydream about being woken in the dead of night by the sound of shouts, cheers, and car horns.
Good news everyone we can all go back to shitting in the drinking water for freedom
"...a legally untested maneuver..." Is there a betting market for how many ways @nytimes.com can find to avoid saying "illegal"? Or "unlawful"? Or even, heaven forbid: "criminal"? I'll take the over.
Times be Timesin: they just can’t wean themselves from the supporters say/critics say format. Dear good gray lady: what if one of those two sides is observable truth and the other delusional bullshit propaganda?
Perhaps the most NYT headline in the history of NYT headlines www.nytimes.com/2025/08/28/n...
Wow. That is beautiful and moving.
That… is the entire point of the Federal Reserve.
These are great! Thank you.
Andalucia, Cale, but also the YLT cover.
Songs that evoke a certain type of yearning: As Tears Go By Waterloo Sunset Visions of Johanna Five String Serenade Darling Be Home Soon What are your favorites in this (sub)genre?
Oh, trust me.
62 years ago, Dr. King led the March on Washington with giants like John Lewis, Mahalia Jackson, A. Philip Randolph, and so many others. If you’ve ever wondered what you’d be doing during the Civil Rights Movement, this is your test. (1/2)
“The only real politics I knew was that if a guy liked Hitler, I’d beat the stuffing out of him and that would be it.” - Jack Kirby Happy birthday King
welcome to the era of Aryan public health. I imagine it will go about as well as Aryan physics, only with a vastly higher death toll
Odd — meaning not odd at all — that the Senate rules they now feel they need to change were not at all a problem to them when they poleaxed Merrick Garland. Recall too that when Democrats has the majority and could have nuked the filibuster they didn't because The Institution and all that...
This would seem to be the time to move for RFKJR’s impeachment, yes? Chuck? Hakeem? Hello?
imagine being so maniacally racist that you side with the fire over the firefighter
This is such a no-brainer that the lack of a coordinated response feels deeply damning. A Democratic leadership team that can't mobilize an instant all-hands-on-deck effort on RFK Jr. isn't a leadership team at all.
House Democrats could force a vote on impeaching RFK any time they want. Of course it would fail. But do you want to make an issue of it or not?
Watching Elizabeth Warren talk about Trump’s fascism as a distraction last night really broke something in me. Where I used to have this anger at the Democrats for folding to Trump I find myself numb. I don’t know if it’s going to last, but I don’t feel anything about their inaction anymore.
There is room for Lee in the McNairyverse, and room for Scoot in PaceWorld. Thank you, Matthew, for the very kind words. And we all of us salute Chris…
Thank you, Chris, for the kind and generous words; and bravo for your work.
You had me at Scoot McNairy.
She didn't even mean to tell the future ... she was just calculating the most plausible outcomes of racism in America
Quick question, is it bad when the dictator gets to decide who is a Jew? I’m not familiar with history, how does that usually work out for us?
"I first read Baudelaire when I was about 14 or 15: just perfect for corruption. At the convent we were given a list called the Index, all of the books banned by the Church. We decided to put ourselves through a training of reading everything on the list. It was a good start..." —Marianne Faithfull
Apps like Waze are being used to covertly warn immigrants about ICE activity: "Icy roads" "The street finds its own uses for things." — @greatdismal.bsky.social
Yup.
I mean Trump is literally trying to destroy the American free-market economy, the most successful economy in human history, because he wants to shake down our trading partners, he wants all corporations to pay him a personal cut, and he wants to directly control the money supply
You are living through the unthinkable: the president of the United States using the military to seize domestic power. The greatest crisis of executive power in American history, at the hands of the worst, most corrupt, and most unfit president in American history.
Among all the other things, "The President has screwed things up so badly that the world's other rich countries won't deliver mail to us anymore" really should end it immediately.
Dear journalists: The President has not fired Lisa Cook. The President is *trying* to illegally fire her. Your words shape people’s reality. Please be accurate in your reporting.
I cannot type the words I actually want to say, so for now I’ll just hope these people are haunted forever.
Just received this statement from Lisa Cook: "President Trump purported to fire me 'for cause' when no cause exists under the law, and he has no authority to do so. I will not resign. I will continue to carry out my duties to help the American economy as I have been doing since 2022."
Garland Jeffreys is among our living treasures — a singer/songwriter whose work endures in our culture and in our hearts. This documentary about his life and work is essential. Now streaming on Amazon Prime, AppleTV, Google Play, and YouTube. As Mr Springsteen says: "One of the American greats."
Since this all began, I've started carrying a first aid kit because I've seen people get that roughed up. I'm always terrified my phone is going to die while I'm out. The streets get more and more eerily empty every day. I carry a paper list of emergency phone numbers. It wasn't like that before.
This case is closed.
Israel bombed a hospital. Rescue workers and reporters rushed to recover the dead and the wounded. Israel bombed the hospital again. Live on TV. Read that again. Our government’s legacy will be its complicity in crimes against humanity. End all arms sales to Israel, now.
"The check is in the mail." "I promise I won't do it again." "The Israeli military will investigate."
