Inspiring short podcast. TEDFellow, global health eye surgeon and kind, evolved human Dr. Andrew Bastawrous talks about his vision (ha!) for outstanding health care at scale. With TED Fellow director Lily James Olds. Slow down and soak it in. podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

Afghan women have so many barriers to education (secondary school and beyond currently banned in Afghanistan). This beautiful Go Fund Me helps them to apply to university in the US: www.gofundme.com/f/help-afgha...

This is another effort that has taken a HUGE amount of local activism, led by community folks who care. It CAN be done. Get involved where you live and push back. www.elpasotimes.com/story/news/i...

The importance and difficulty of confirming the Iran death toll: www.aljazeera.com/opinions/202...

Yikes. Our crumbling geopolitical structure…people thought I was overreacting when I became a Trump refugee

Excellent article by @janehu.bsky.social of @slate.com, exploring the tricky terrain of double-blinded, placebo controlled randomized controlled trials of psychedelics. slate.com/technology/2... We in Western medicine undervalue the very real placebo effect (ask me about my NIH-funded RCT of Reiki).

100% this on false choices and imposed binaries benefitting those in power. There is another way for Iran if we are a bit slower and steadier in political and economic pressure. Another must read by SAIS’s @nargesbajoghli.bsky.social www.facebook.com/share/p/1Cp5...

Run to see Jafar Panahi's latest film "It was just an accident" or Simple Accident. Secretly filmed in Iran. Such poignant themes today about the human desire for revenge and reconciliation, the complexity of human emotions, the reverberations of torture/PTSD, and the resilience of ordinary people.

Everything is connected. From Gaza to MPLS. We are in the days of transnational empire--networked, distributed, enabled by big tech/corporations. Trenchant analysis by the ever wonderful Dr. Narges Bajoghli of SAIS: www.facebook.com/share/p/18H4...

Latest numbers out of Iran.

Incredibly powerful, beautiful, and heartbreaking letter from a young man in Iran in the midst of his military service writing about the days following the protests, the "suspended agency" quieter than despair. www.equator.org/articles/teh...

This is too good. Greenlanders talk about Trump deserving the Nobel Peace Prize...with a twist: www.facebook.com/share/p/1DQ5...

Disheartened by in-fighting (not new) in Iranian diaspora. Those on the "right" supporting Reza Pahlavi cyber-bully (+ much worse) those who don't agree with them. I've received online hate + kicked out of a supposedly apolitical med humanitarian group 4 questioning their support of foreign bombing.

The most helpful, concise analysis on the Iran-USA-Israel access and next steps I'm reading lately come from @citrinowicz.bsky.social on Twitter (lamentably). He's an Israeli, a political Iran, peace and security expert, and Atlantic Council Fellow. Balanced views. Follow him: x.com/citrinowicz

Meticulously researched (including by friends of mine), horrific, brutal account by @nytimes.com about what happened in Iran: www.nytimes.com/2026/01/25/w...

This is cold-blooded state murder of an US citizen. Stephen Miller called Alex Pretti a "domestic terrorist" & claimed he was trying to "assassinate" federal officers. A total lie. Only a cretin would hurl this falsehood & stick with it. This a fascistic and reckless disregard of life & the truth.

WOW on Pretti's denial of medical treatment "I informed the ICE agents that I am a physician, and I asked to assess the victim. At first, the ICE agents wouldn't let me through. ... But none of the ICE agents who were near the victim were performing CPR, ... None of the agents were helping him."

"I am a children's entertainer who specializes in face painting," writes a woman now in hiding from the federal government for witnessing a state-sanctioned street execution

BREAKING - Iran update As some Iranians have been able to use messaging apps, confirmed fatalities, arrests, etc have skyrocketed. Currently 22,490 fatalities have been confirmed and are under investigation.

“There is a logic, and this logic has a name. It’s called state terror.” www.nytimes.com/2026/01/24/o...

This is such an important point and here in Europe we should be building the skills and connections now to make sure that the truth continues to matter and powerful people can be held to account. The alternative is going down and down the spiral of democratic disenchantment and erosion…

This is brilliant re-framing. The best scientists ask the right question (which is often refocused), they don't necessarily arrive at the right answer. Wonderful perspective published in Genome Biology in 2019 thanks to discovery in Tim Ferriss' 5 bullet Friday link.springer.com/article/10.1...

The US withdrawal from #WHO became official today, leaving the world less prepared for dangerous disease outbreaks. “When that will bite us in the ass, it’s impossible to predict. But there is a 100% certainty that it will bite us in the ass,” one expert told me. www.statnews.com/2026/01/22/u...

This kind of evidence made me run to get my Shingles vax. One down, one to go.

Two weeks without internet in Iran. What we already know is bad enough — just imagine what we’re going to find out in the coming weeks and months. The Islamic Republic is a criminal regime.

I want to know if Trump will sue or if he appreciates the Putin meme

Excellent, must-read piece by Siamak Namazi, a former political prisoner in Iran.

I wish @citrinowicz.bsky.social were actually using Bluesky. He's posting excellent political analysis on Iran on Twitter. eg. x.com/citrinowicz/...; x.com/citrinowicz/...; x.com/citrinowicz/... I much rather engage on this site but alas, most I follow on Iran are not here.

Super proud of fellow Iranian-American immigrant @repyassansari.bsky.social for speaking out about the brutality of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the need for human rights monitoring + international action without calling for bombing. Here's her video from the US Capitol: x.com/RepYassAnsar...

Excellent analysis on the IRGC, myths of a coup, post-Khamenei order and what could happen to the Islamic Republic following these latest fissures by Berlin-based Iran scholar @hamidrezaaz.bsky.social www.irananalytica.org/p/the-myth-o...

soooo good. do yourself a favor and listen. waiting for @thisamericanlife.org to do an episode about what's happening to civil society in Iran today.

I endorse every word of this article about the Iran protests by @sinatoossi.bsky.social: www.thenation.com/article/worl... I will post some excellent quotes in the thread.

Approaching a Critical Juncture on Iran Analysis by Danny Citrinowicz (Citrinowicz was formerly head of the Iran branch of Israeli defense intelligence, and I’ve found his analysis to be surprisingly non-idealogical, extremely nuanced, and, obviously, very highly informed.) 1/2

Endorse his intelligent and politically balanced views. Just wish Danny Citrinowicz was on Bluesky. Here's another excellent analysis: x.com/citrinowicz/...

level-headed next steps for the US and Iran following the brutal repression of the Iranian protestors. by head of the Iran desk at ICG Ali Vaez: time.com/7346661/trum...

For design geeks especially, a fascinating exploration of my new publisher's color palette and book cover art--from physiology to mathematics, artistic associations, historical nostalgia, and emotions provoked. from @zeytinpress.bsky.social Substack: wow zeytinpress.substack.com/p/viva-verde...

For those who think the situation in Iran can’t get any worse… think Iraq, Syria, Libya and Afghanistan. I so want the Islamic Regime gone but fear what happens next without an organized opposition structure www.politico.com/news/magazin...

Yesterday, the State Department expanded the immigrant visa ban to half of all legal immigrants, including all immigrants from 93 countries. No law was passed. Not even an executive order was signed. They just did it. Tweeted it. Banana Republic. www.cato.org/blog/new-ban...

A farcical disgrace and a disgraceful farce in every conceivable respect.

Good night, everyone. It feels like our so-called "leaders" have all but abandoned us, but we still have each other. I didn't know what else to do, so I made a little painting. Stay safe out there 💛

Of all the voices I trust on Iran, human rights, global feminism, and the peace movement, @sanambna.bsky.social may be #1. Listen to her unpack the Iran protests, her vision for how to proceed, and the dangers of foreign intervention (w/ the amazing Kavita Ramdas). podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/s...

Wise words from the International Crisis Group on what could happen next in Iran: www.crisisgroup.org/middle-east-... (all possibilities are accompanied with potential danger and suffering, but this analysis is clear-eyed and carries a smidge of hope).

As an Iranian-American born in the US w/ lived experience in 10 countries (including Iran), doctor, novelist, social justice advocate + reader of history, I've been trying to make sense of the Iran protests and what happens next. Here are my reflections: www.facebook.com/share/p/17Vq... -public post

Iranian protest rap. Too good. www.facebook.com/reel/9065725...

The great Hooman Majd clearly explains the significance of Crown Prince Pahlavi in Iran today (a close partner of Israel and the US): theintercept.com/2026/01/13/i...

Always excellent analysis by JHU/SAIS prof @nargesbajoghli.bsky.social on understanding today's protests in Iran and comparing them to those that led to the 1979 Islamic Revolution: time.com/7345623/iran...

This protestor's words from the article stuck with me: "This is no life. I used to call myself a zombie, but now, I feel human again. Standing up with everyone else and demanding our rights, our freedom, it has given us back our dignity."

excellent, credible, balanced reporting by another Iranian-American writer I trust very much: the wonderful @kaminmohammadi.bsky.social on what's been happening on the streets of Tehran: www.truthdig.com/articles/bey...