Virgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 12hI think the AI aspect of this isn't that special -- it wouldn't have been much different if a human actor and makeup artist were used. But it's certainly instructive about how American Christianity works. ... coa1.azcourts.gov/Portals/1/Op... 150
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 24/09/2026Holy cow. To anyone else who doubted: that’s not Liz’s exhibit A for why it’s ridiculous for Trump to complain about professionalism and decorum. That’s literally the post Trump attached as Exhibit A to his claims that others are insufficiently decorous to be allowed in the White House! 131
Reposted by Virgil AbtLiz Dye @lizdye.bsky.social · 24/09/2026Exhibit A: Trump fulminating that he would NEVER NOT EVER hijack a monument to a slain president and turn it into a shrine to himself. [cough] 4415
Reposted by Virgil Abtacallan1, god emperor of the Unites States @acallan1.bsky.social · 23/09/2026open your minds to the possibility of a tauntaun situation 2152
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 19/09/2026Denmark has now posted it's preliminary report from reality, in English. I wonder if the U.S. press will even notice that that country still pays attention to things like the need for a treaty to be ratified. I'm not expecting anything to be presented to the U.S. Senate. stm.dk/en/press/pre... 143
Virgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 18/09/2026Wow, the Trump administration has usually been slow to provide the actual text of things, but they've already posted our glorious new agreement that the vanquished Danes were just forced to sign. tile.loc.gov/storage-serv... 152
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 16/09/2026NHTSA's order is not so much demanding proof as asking that Tesla explain whatever its bullshit theory is for deciding that black is now white and there's actually no difference between having a steering wheel and not having a steering wheel, you imbeciles, you fucking morons. 042
Reposted by Virgil Abte.w. niedermeyer @niedermeyer.online · 16/09/2026here's NHTSA's special order to Tesla, demanding proof that the Cybercab in fact complies with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards Tesla's response will inevitably be completely redacted, but it's nice to see the regulator pretending to make an effort here static.nhtsa.gov/odi/inv/2026...static.nhtsa.gov 620424
Reposted by Virgil AbtBrian Finucane @bcfinucane.bsky.social · 15/09/2026The text of Massie's articles of impeachment against Hegseth: massie.house.gov/uploadedfile...massie.house.gov 215555
Virgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 15/09/2026I am mystified by John Eastman's ability to continue practicing law. He filed notice today that he intends to do the oral argument at the 3rd Circuit for Amy Wax on Nov. 16. And the court's website says his status was just updated on Aug. 16 and is "active". 68214
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 10/09/2026Missouri Supreme Court's Judgment of Civil Contempt against Denny Hoskins is out. Says defiance was intentional and his argument disingenuous, but because the point of civil contempt is to coerce compliance, which has been obtained, that's the end of the matter. www.courts.mo.gov/fv/c/SC10180... 053
Reposted by Virgil AbtSpicy Bonus Content @spicybonuscontent.bsky.social · 10/09/2026Gonna try the ol' LLM method at my next appointment. "You're absolutely right—I disregarded your previous instruction to stop eating a pack of Hostess™ Ding Dongs every day, and instead added a weekly fifth of Jim Beam. That's not just unhealthy—it's gluttonous. Here's what I think happened:" 1362
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 05/09/2026Yes, Bsky consensus has been impervious to facts about this for almost a year now, but the "Trump coin is clearly illegal" takes are all wrong. You can find all the citations in the administration's brief here: storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us... bsky.app/profile/abtn... 032
Reposted by Virgil AbtEric Columbus @ericcolumbus.bsky.social · 05/09/2026Sadly, these stupid Trump coins seem to be legal under 31 USC 5112(y)(1)(C). There's a ban on living people on the reverse of such a coin per 31 USC 5112(aa)(1) but apparently no ban on the front. And the 1866 law banning living people applies only to bills. www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/... 184822
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 04/09/2026Sorry, Castro's first appearance in Minnesota has been set for 09/18/2026 at 1 :30 PM CDT before Magistrate Judge John T. Huse (as written on the release order in TX, but not yet entered on the docket back in MN). 134
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 04/09/2026S.D.Tex. grants ICE agent Christian Jeremiah Castro release on bail, with GPS monitoring. I just RECAPped the order. No court date yet set for him to appear in Minnesota. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...storage.courtlistener.com#10 in United States v. Castro (S.D. Tex., 7:26-mj-03103) – CourtListener.comORDER Setting Conditions of Release as to Christian Jeremiah Castro. Christian Jeremiah Castro (1) $75,000 Unsecured Bond (Signed by Magistrate Judge Juan F Alanis) Parties notified. (nc7) (Entered: 0... 153
Virgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 04/09/2026The indictment against ICE agent Christian Jeremiah Castro has been unsealed. Six counts of materially false statements. A detention hearing is set for 12pm CDT today (20ish minutes from now) in McAllen, Texas. www.courtlistener.com/docket/74749... 274
Reposted by Virgil AbtToo Big to Fail @toobigtofail.bsky.social · 03/09/2026Ok, look... no. When you're an appellate judge, you are not writing for the parties in front of you. You are not writing for journalists. You are writing to create *law*. And you should hope you're getting it right. If you do get it right, people will be citing your words for decades. Centuries! 2252
Reposted by Virgil AbtMaggie Astor @maggieastor.bsky.social · 01/09/2026This argument is so absurd that I want to know if the lawyers felt embarrassed writing it. Nobody (except people who bought the NFT hype 🫠) thinks they own an *exclusive* copy of a digital product. They think they own A copy. A copy that can't be yanked off their device later. 55514
Virgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 25/08/2026This is pretty wild, Gov. Abbot arguing from first principles that an ICE officer told by his boss to leave the state he just committed a crime in didn't technically "flee", so Abbot doesn't have to extradite him. Does he have any case to support that? No, just the dictionary. 241
Reposted by Virgil AbtDan O’Sullivan @osullyville.bsky.social · 21/08/2026I never got an answer to the letter of inquiry I wrote to Ed Martin, in the style of Ed Martin :( 3628
Reposted by Virgil AbtBenjamin A. Engel @benjaminaengel.bsky.social · 17/08/2026Trump’s post about downsizing joint military drills with South Korea is pretty bonkers from a Korean domestic political angle. The downsizing is very helpful to Lee Jae Myung who just days ago called for reopening talks with North Korea. 1/ www.koreatimes.co.kr/foreignaffai...koreatimes.co.krTrump orders Pentagon chief to 'substantially' reduce S. Korea-US military drills - The Korea TimesU.S. President Donald Trump said Sunday that he has instructed the Pentagon chief to "substantially" reduce joint U.S.-South Korea military exercis... 25321
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 28/07/2026I wasn't expecting the CFR to suddenly switch from "inmate" to the second person. Hey! I'm just reading, here! www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/... 161
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 17/07/2026What a great photo. For anyone else wondering where and when one might encounter this mix of theater patrons: it's Bankside (London), 1973. www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-... 062
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 15/07/2026Yes, it's a semiquincentennial dollar. Like a state quarter, it will be mixed in with the general distribution of dollar coins. But because dollar coins, unlike quarters, are so rarely used, you're unlikely to see a Trump coin unless a MAGA derp tries to use one to own you.govinfo.gov 362
Reposted by Virgil AbtEric Columbus @ericcolumbus.bsky.social · 15/07/2026This is incorrect. That language refers only to a specific 2007 commemorative coin program authorized under 31 USC 5112(n). That's why the quote from 31 USC 5112(n)(2)(E) refers to coins minted "under this subsection"—i.e. subsection (n). (It's still outrageous, but it appears to be legal.) 52510
Reposted by Virgil Abtmuch ado about muffin @muffindoin.bsky.social · 13/07/2026a post about a news article about a lawsuit without linking either the article or complaint. among the worst genres of post 1192
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 12/07/2026Right, the highlighted section is self-refuting, but the last two sentences are solid. On April 15, 1888, Le Figaro really did print a devastating summation of Alfred Nobel's life on page one, and in the next day's correction, it said numerous people contacted him about it. 162
Reposted by Virgil AbtDedekind Slut @chasmat.bsky.social · 27/06/2026If I ran the FTC, the two buttons on Amazon video would say "Rent (48 hours)" and "Rent (TBD)" 183
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 25/06/2026Looks like they’ve been releasing announcements audio in October, but last year they didn’t release them until January, for unknown reasons, so I guess it’s indeterminate when or if today’s audio gets released. fixthecourt.com/2026/02/the-...fixthecourt.comThe Up-Until-Now Missing Audio of SCOTUS Opinion Announcements from OT24 | Fix the Court 001
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 16/06/2026The source (Hevrat HaHadashot/N12/Mako), with a Google translation to English. I'm not sure the Israelis are stupid enough to believe Trump's representation that he has the capacity to "read a document word for word". www.mako.co.il/news-world/2... 012
Reposted by Virgil AbtLeah McElrath @leahmcelrath.bsky.social · 16/06/2026⚠️ “Israel asked to view the text of the peace agreement between the US and Iran, but their request was denied.” 714124
Reposted by Virgil AbtJared @jaredmcclain.bsky.social · 20/05/2026Good news for Leo: The court ruled he has standing & set an evidentiary hearing for next Wednesday. The court agreed we showed the DHS policies exist and that, despite Kavanaugh’s concurrence in Perdomo, Leo is likely to be injured by these policies again. www.courtlistener.com/docket/71498... 02214
Virgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 20/05/2026I missed this. In December 2022 after Trump's disregard of presidential audit policy came to light, the lame-duck House quickly passed a bill to require audits, but Senate didn't act on it in time. www.congress.gov/117/crpt/hrp... www.congress.gov/bill/117th-c... 041
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 20/05/2026Financial Times has now corrected this bogus headline, from Trump "to be 'forever' exempt from tax audits", to Trump being "granted ‘forever’ immunity from existing tax audits". The document doesn't purport to do anything about enforcement of future years' taxes. www.justice.gov/opa/media/14... 143
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 19/05/2026This is up there with Jeff Hancock (Stanford prof and Social Media Lab director) completely beclowning himself by holding himself out as an expert witness on AI misinformation and then submitting numerous AI-assisted fraudulent citations. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us... 153
Virgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 09/05/2026I just Recapped Rhode Island Hospital's first brief to the 5th Circuit about Judge Reed O'Connor's incredibly bogus (more bogus than DOJ requested!) order to enforce a transvestigatory subpoena. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us... 120
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 08/05/2026Especially with the context of the clear instruction on the left, I think you're free to touch two regions of the red button, per expressio unius est exclusio alterius. 051
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 04/05/2026Judge asks: Are American jailers, who are astoundingly incompetent and cruel whenever we happen to be watching, also that way when we aren't? x.com/KaelanDC/sta... 1105
Virgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 04/05/2026Here's Judge deGravelles's opinion and order prohibiting for 14 days the elimination of the position of Criminal Clerk of Court in Orleans parish, to which ex-prisoner Calvin Duncan was recently elected to a four-year term starting Monday. (49 pages) storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us... 0113
Virgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 04/05/2026Looks like 1st contested hearing in the Cole Tomas Allen (WHCD crasher) case will happen at Noon tomorrow. Judge Faruqui wants a jail official to personally appear and explain the solitary confinement bullshit. Probably also wondering about the earlier Hannibal Lecter bullshit. @joshuajfriedman.com 28832
Reposted by Virgil AbtApe Shit the zine for primates @monkeywire.bsky.social · 01/05/2026Antonio De Lima Junior, a fisher in Brazil, captured some awesome footage of spider monkeys creating a "body" bridge in the canopy to help others pass www.tiktok.com/@antoniojunior146/video/7626732564660669704 1144
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 01/05/2026And this order seems to have been granted completely ex parte. There isn't even a certificate of service on file. I also see no indication that petitioner was requesting same-day or any kind of urgent relief. First time I've seen a judge totally out-MAGA the MAGA DOJ. 2181
Virgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 01/05/2026In case you were worried that the viral post with public-speaking tips from 19th-century coke-fiend Sigmund Freud was fake, I'm quite happy to report that it's legit. 020
Virgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 30/04/2026Can't stand this horrendous obliviousness to dimensional analysis. What the debt exceeds is one year of production. The debt (in dollars) is always exactly equal to "the size of the economy" (in dollars/time) for some quantity of time. www.wsj.com/economy/u-s-... 010
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 30/04/2026Govt has responded to Allen's evidence request, and for the first time says that they found a possible fragment of a buckshot pellet shot by Allen. Also reassert that Officer V.G. "was indeed shot once in the chest" but still don't claim that Allen shot him. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us... 001
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 30/04/2026He's adopting 60 Minutes's strategy of asking the United States to confirm on the record that the "pedophile, rapist, and traitor" is obviously Trump. 162
Reposted by Virgil AbtVirgil Abt @abtnatural.bsky.social · 29/04/2026DC jail is using Hannibal Lecter protocols for Cole Tomas Allen. The warden definitely thinks this site has the juice. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us... 1164