profiles in courage all around

The regime is now dictating what political views are acceptable to air on television and paramount/cbs are collaborating in that censorship bsky.app/profile/ditz...

Scenes from a personalist regime: The Presidents personal assistant appointed to oversee a fundamental restructuring of the White House

"The Kurds had long wanted their own autonomous region there. But in recent weeks, the Trump administration withdrew its support from the Kurds and threw it behind Mr. al-Sharaa in his aim to unite Syria under his rule. Some Kurds saw the shift as a betrayal."

"Iran, like China, has some of the world’s most expansive known surveillance abilities. These digital surveillance abilities have received less attention than the internet blackouts that the government imposed during the violent crackdown to end the protests last month."

“.. using millions of dollars from the former U.S. foreign aid agency to pay for the security detail of Russell Vought ..” @reuters.com www.reuters.com/world/us/whi...

February 11, 2011 Fifteen years.

Great piece by @jamellebouie.net on the need for ICE hearings. Get it all out there. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/11/o...

Friends, can I ask you to spread the word that we have a THREE-YEAR postdoc in American history at Cambridge up for grabs - ANY field, but applications are due March 1 so don't delay - apply, apply, apply! networks.h-net.org/jobs/69790/u...

“Four of my children just evaporated,” Badran said, holding back tears. “I looked for them a million times. Not a piece was left. Where did they go?” There are no words to adequately describe the evil here.

“The Abu Omar case exemplifies how much the political elite have surrendered to the decisions of foreign powers: they’d do anything just by hearing the Saudi accent,” said Sami Atallah, founding director of Beirut-based The Policy Initiative think-tank."

You can just say "yes, he is a racist" or "yes, obviously he is a racist" or "are you fucking kidding me, what kind of stupid question is that in 2026?"

The Saudi investment package includes the creation of a joint airline; rehabilitating the international airport in Aleppo, one of Syria's largest cities & an economic hub in the north; and $1 billion towards developing Syria's telecom network. #Syria #menasky

this is so funny, god bless louise lucas, Hero of the Commonwealth

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A federal court cleared way for us @democracydefendersfund.org to depose Elon Musk over the unconstitutional shutdown of USAID Our case now moves into discovery As our Legal Director Tianna Mays explains: accountability starts w/ facts👇 - TN

Brilliant news: "Of the total DIV Fund has raised so far, $20 million has been allocated to former recipients, leaving $28 million for future grants. The fund will have an open call for applications this year, a process they are devoted to because it generates many new ideas."

Great visualization; just need to replicate for all of them

A piece worth your time: "In the coming months, ProPublica will use the IRS data we have obtained to explore in detail how the ultrawealthy avoid taxes, exploit loopholes and escape scrutiny from federal auditors.But few specifics about individuals ever emerge in public.

This moment is bringing out the best in some of us (like this speaker) and bringing out the worst in others of us. This is a time for choosing to live a life that you're proud of, or not. ❤️

Ian McKellen performs “The Strangers’ Case” speech from “Sir Thomas More” on Colbert.

"Securing energy deals has been a key focus of Sharaa’s nascent government. The timing is auspicious: western oil majors are looking to step up exploration, as new forecasts suggest oil demand will remain robust for decades because of a slower transition away from fossil fuels." #Syria #menasky

HRW: Egyptian authorities during 2025 systematically dismantled basic freedoms and suffocated civic space. Economic crises, coupled with authorities’ underfunding of public services like education and health care, undermined people’s socioeconomic rights www.hrw.org/news/2026/02...

A very normal thing to do when you want to go the college of your choice is to email that intention directly to the college president himself. After Epstein arranges the intro, of course, as a favor to your dad, Woody Allen. No need to worry about formalities & dusty things like salutations.

Exclusive: The top Democrat on a House committee overseeing U.S.-China competition has launched a probe into a $500 million investment by an Abu Dhabi royal in a Trump family cryptocurrency company.

The CIA just stopped publishing their World Factbook and took every page, including the archived copies of previous versions! This sucks. It was public domain, so I recovered the 2020 edition (the last one published as a zip file) and shared it to GitHub simonwillison.net/2026/Feb/5/t...

So many brilliant reporters have been laid off, but it's especially gutting that the entirety of the Post's staff in the Middle East, who've done incredible work over the years, seem to have been axed too. It’s hard to overstate how vital their reporting is for those of us in policy and academia.

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A staggering statement from former Washington Post editor Marty Baron: "This ranks among the darkest days in the history of one of the world's greatest news organizations."

God loves a terrier. Cooke Flecke and Winky forever.

This woman has shown more courage than the nominal leaders of the Democratic Party.

She’s asking about the Epstein victims And He’s telling @kaitlancollins.bsky.social to smile. I want to scream.

this particular line is maybe the best statement of purpose i have seen for those of us who want a more militant opposition to this administration

This implies death. Mass death. Caused directly by the decision of the White House and M*sk (then a top White House official) to recklessly obliterate—not reform—our overseas assistance capacity.

multiple trump-created crises converging with deadly results.

Chotiner shot that man right in the face with his own gun and he never heard the *click*.

Excellent reporting from the NYT: "Egypt, until recently, was mostly a diplomatic player in Sudan. But the drone activity suggests it has entered the fight alongside Sudan’s military, adding yet another layer to a war bursting with foreign powers on either side."

Every feminist: "We f&$king told you and you just didn't listen."

New from WSJ: Days before the inauguration, the Trump family secretly signed away 49% of World Liberty Financial, their crypto company, in a deal with a UAE royal, acc. to documents and people familiar. The $500M investment came months before the UAE won access to U.S. AI chips #menasky

The erosion of democracy in the US is clear even if you don't use intl comparisons. From the Century Foundation: "In the first year of Trump 2.0, the United States went from being a passing if imperfect democracy to behaving like an authoritarian state." donmoynihan.substack.com/publish/post...

In Scathing Ruling, Federal Judge Orders Release of Liam Ramos From Detention Judge Fred Biery said federal agents were “traumatizing children.”

Absolutely shameful and sadly not surprising given how A&M’s administration have treated women over the years.

Texas now following the lead of Hungary under Orban.

This January truly is just the goddamn worst. RIP to this absolute legend.

“the US amb to Jerusalem, Jack Lew & his deputy Stephanie Hallett, blocked the cable from wider distribution within the US government because they believed it lacked balance, according to interviews with 4 former officials & documents seen by Reuters” Hallett is now the US’ amb to Bahrain

The billions to DHS have built the for-profit panopticon surveillance state they were unable to fully push through after 9/11 because people fought back. It took 25 years but they have it now. This cannot be reformed. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/30/t...

Trump's awful post about Alex Pretti am confirms this point -- he's not sorry, he's not pivoting, and he'll use the same playbook as ever to survive yet another scandal that would have destroyed any other politician my new column: www.newyorker.com/news/letter-...