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David L. Passmore

@davidpassmore.bsky.social
1.8K followers 1.8K following 2K posts

• Distinguished Professor, Emeritus, Penn State (davidpassmore.net) • Lifetime member, Battle of Homestead Foundation (battleofhomestead.org/) • Advocate Member, Steelworkers Organization of Active Retirees • In Pittsburgh; Niagara Falls, New York, native

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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 5h
H.R.1 passed, July 2025. Five mill, including 1.5 mill children, lost SNAP benefits. USDA says that 47.9 million people in our country live in food-insecure households. Brooke Rollins, Sec of Ag, credits SNAP drop to a “better economy.” Sounds like a problem of political will. tiny.cc/BitM
bittmanproject.substack.com
Food Stamp Catastrophe
In the wealthiest country on earth, we are experiencing a human-made nutrition crisis.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 8h
ICE DETAINING U.S. CITIZENS All cases documented by ProPublica: projects.propublica.org/american-cit...
projects.propublica.org
More Than 500 U.S. Citizens Have Been Detained, Including Handcuffed or Held at Gunpoint, in Trump’s Immigration Crackdown — ProPublica
The government doesn’t track how often immigration officers detain U.S. citizens. So ProPublica did. We’ve found more than 500 Americans who were held against their will during this Trump administrati...
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 9h
www.nytimes.com/2026/10/04/u...
nytimes.com
Measles Outbreak in Amish Country Forces Some to Rethink Vaccines (Gift Article)
The spread of measles in Pennsylvania and Ohio is largely affecting Amish communities where vaccinations levels are low.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 10h
MEASLES IN MY STATE... Pennsylvania confirmed 1,004 measles cases; increase of 106 cases in past week. 99% unvaccinated; four cases vaccinated. 198 hospitalizations; hospitalization rate of 20%. Five people with measles died - all unvaccinated. Numbers perhaps underestimated. tiny.cc/MeaPA
tiny.cc
Pennsylvania confirms more than 1,000 measles cases
More than 99% of people with measles in Pennsylvania have been unvaccinated, with just four cases in vaccinated people, according to the health department.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 11h
HELPING ANY WAY I CAN... An emeritus prof at Penn State, but will do my best with the offense. I'll create a committee whose members will share their opinions for about 12 weeks, with no meetings when we have student appts or breakfasts and lunches with colleagues. Report in January or February.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 11h
EDUCATION IS... ...something that happens to you. Learning is something you do. tiny.cc/oqnb101
wsj.com
Opinion | The End of College as We Know It
AI is wreaking havoc in universities, but higher ed’s woes long predate ChatGPT.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
PETRO MARKETS HAVE CHANGED REMARKABLY The shale revolution and the U.S. transition from petroleum importer to net exporter have changed the macroeconomic effects of oil shocks www.nber.org/papers/w35864
nber.org
From Importer to Exporter: Oil Shocks and the U.S. Economy
Founded in 1920, the NBER is a private, non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to conducting economic research and to disseminating research findings among academics, public policy makers, an...
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
FATTIES, BEARDOS, WEIRDOS & WIMPS..... www2.thedailybeast.com/hegseth-summ...
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
43,000 TO 55,000 VOTE REJECTIONS? A new Post Office policy that may sound like a technicality—one truck per day to rural post offices instead of two—could result in tens of thousands of mail-in ballots being rejected in November. www.brookings.edu/articles/new...
brookings.edu
New post office policy could lead to the rejection of tens of thousands of mail-in ballots in November | Brookings
New analysis examines how a Post Office policy could affect mail-in ballot delivery times and lead to additional ballot rejections in November.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
AI COP, JUDGE, & EXECUTIONER AI weapon systems are already here. An algorithm has been deciding who lives and who dies. www.hrw.org/news/2024/09...
hrw.org
Questions and Answers: Israeli Military’s Use of Digital Tools in Gaza
Following the attack by Hamas-led Palestinian armed groups in southern Israel on October 7, 2023, there has been extensive reporting on the Israeli military’s use of digital tools in their operations ...
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
DOES REGULATING AI POSE A RISK? "I’m terrified of...regulat[ing] something that we don’t understand, particularly when...fanned by … cynical forces at play....I am terrified [of] this process becoming a political hobby horse." ~ Oren Etzioni, AI entrepreneur (tiny.cc/OrenE) From: tiny.cc/AI-Reg
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
PREDICTION MARKETS RANKLED THE POPE---IN 1591 !!! Pope Gregory XIV, 229th pope of the Catholic Church, threatened excommunication for anyone caught betting on a College of Cardinals conclave. www.cato.org/commentary/p...
cato.org
The Pope Tried to Ban Prediction Markets in 1591. It Didn't Go Well.
The betting exchanges provide public intelligence. Suppressing them is a policy mistake.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
THE GREAT RAILROAD STRIKE OF 1877 U.S. 1877 strike brought railroads to a standstill. Thousands of rail workers across the country protested poor pay & working conditions in a massive, violent uprising. Militias attacked workers. 1,000 arrests & 100 deaths. See: www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRx3...
youtube.com
America in Turmoil! The Great Railroad Strike of 1877
YouTube video by Historian Brady Crytzer Official 🇺🇸
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
I HAVE MY OWN DOVE IN PITTSBURGH But read about Bruce. www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/r...
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Klein, P. D., & Boscolo, P. (2016). Trends in research on writing as a learning activity. Journal of Writing Research, 7(3), 311-350. www.jowr.org/jowr/article... Writing has small to medium effects on learning, although effects increase when moderator variables are considered.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
WRITE TO THINK, I SAY! I believe that you know nothing re a topic unless you can write about it clearly. Am I wrong? Britton 1970s: "If you can’t say it, you can’t write it."(primarytimery.com/2024/06/21/t...) But I believe: "If you can’t write it, you can’t say it." tiny.cc/WriteThink
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
FYI, when there is so much I FY
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
HOARD DIESEL? U.S. price of diesel rose from $3.69 earlier this year to $6.53 per gallon. Cost of transporting by heavy-duty truck, rail, or marine transport will rise. Secretary of Energy Wright said banning diesel exports won’t work. Trump does not agree. www.cato.org/blog/hoardin...
cato.org
Hoarding Diesel Is Not the Answer
A 90-day diesel export ban might lower prices at first, but it would also shrink the market for oil producers and Gulf Coast refiners.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
PROGRESSIVE FARMERS Farmers are stepping up to connect their stories to the myriad disasters the Trump administration has brought to voters across their districts. newrepublic.com/article/2156...
newrepublic.com
The Return of the Farmer Politician
One of the under-sung trends of the political cycle is the way Trumpian disregard for farm country has inspired workers in the industry to run for office.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
WHICH SIDE ARE YOU ON? Florence Reece, 1900-1986 myemail.constantcontact.com/Which-Side-A...
myemail.constantcontact.com
Which Side Are You On?
Email from Friday's Labor Folklore View and share as a webpage Friday's Labor Folklore Which Side Are You On? Florence Reece (1900-1986) The bloodiest battles to build a union have been in America's c
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Two centuries ago Secretary of State John Quincy Adams warned:
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
U.S. FEDERAL BUDGET CONCERNS No painless panacea to halt America’s slide toward fiscal oblivion. The starting target for retrenchment should be America’s expansive, even imperial foreign policy. Washington is foolishly play-acting as a globe-spanning empire. www.cato.org/commentary/b...
cato.org
A Bankrupt America Can’t Defend the World
As interest costs consume an ever-larger share of the federal budget, maintaining an informal global empire becomes fiscally and strategically indefensible.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Thank you for your attention to this matter.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Trump boasts that the only limit on his international power is “one thing. My own morality. My own mind. It’s the only thing that can stop me.” www.nytimes.com/2026/01/08/u...
nytimes.com
Trump Lays Out a Vision of Power Restrained Only by ‘My Own Morality’
On topic after topic, President Trump made clear that he would be the arbiter of any limits to his authorities, not international law or treaties.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Using a nuclear weapon against a non-nuclear nation violates international law. But Trump deputy chief of staff, Stephen Miller, dismisses international law and treaties as “international niceties,” arguing that “the real world…is governed by strength, by force…by power.” tiny.cc/SMillCrazy
nytimes.com
Stephen Miller Asserts U.S. Has Right to Take Greenland
In a CNN interview, the Trump aide also echoed the president’s intent to run Venezuela as he laid out a case for the United States to control weaker states by flexing its military might.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
The Department of Defense is providing “credible, rational nuclear options that a President of the United States adopting the simple principle of being a normal human being with common sense would actually implement.” portside.org/2026-09-20/p...
portside.org
The Peril of Trump’s Final Act: Would He Use a Tactical Nuclear Weapon in Iran?
Donald Trump is trapped: His war of choice against Iran is lost, an abject strategic catastrophe. Now Trump has to choose: sustain another forever war until Iran breaks, a strategy his own generals op...
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
TACTICAL NUKE TIME? Trump warns that the US would be bombing the remote Iranian Pickaxe Mountain “very soon.” www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/9/...
aljazeera.com
Why is Trump threatening to strike Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain again, now?
As oil tanker struck off Kharg island, Trump threatens one of the remaining parts of Iran’s nuclear complex.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
"I AM THE CODE" James McCrery II, the first architect for the White House ballroom, clashed with Trump over design features that he believed violated building safety codes. The president maintains that building codes do not apply to White House construction. Costs? $600mil. tiny.cc/IAm-TheCode
tiny.cc
President Trump Ignored Safety Concerns From Former White House Ballroom Architect: ‘I Am the Code’
When it comes to the White House ballroom, President Donald Trump is determined to have the final say. According to a new report from The Washington Post, in the weeks leading up to his resignation la...
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
23 September -- the 100th birthday. For your long listen today, John Coltrane ballads: youtu.be/q9rZeSRze1s?...
youtu.be
Ballads by Coltrane | VINYL MIX VOL.09
YouTube video by STATIC SEOUL
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
WHERE? LOST? U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has stopped publicly revealing where it is holding thousands of detainees who are subject to final deportation orders, an unannounced move that has made it far more difficult for lawyers and relatives to find them. apnews.com/article/ice-...
apnews.com
AP Exclusive: ICE hides locations of thousands of detainees with final removal orders
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has stopped publicly revealing where it is holding most detainees who are subject to final deportation orders, in a move that has made it harder for lawyers an...
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
TRANE LIVES Tomorrow marks the 100th birthday of John Coltrane, a man who was, without doubt, the world's leading high priest and practitioner of the hot and holy rite of Jazz. View: jazzphiladelphia.org/coltrane/ Listen to “A Love Supreme:” www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMCH...
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
TARIFF IMPACTS Some recent tariff analyses. No “with and without” effects, only “before and after” effects. www.stlouisfed.org/on-the-econo... www.federalreserve.gov/econres/note... econofact.org/explainer/fi... www.investopedia.com/news/what-ar... budgetlab.yale.edu/research/tra...
stlouisfed.org
Tariff Effects on Inflation Stabilize in Recent Months
The upward pressure that tariffs exert on U.S. inflation appears to have moderated in the first half of 2026, according to new estimates of effective tariffs and pass-through.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Brief essay here: davidpassmore.github.io/papers/Lutti...
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
CONSTITUTIONAL CRISIS RE MIDTERMS ============= Retired Judge Luttig warns of a "final battle for democracy" on 3 January 2027 by preventing the seating of duly elected legislators. Listen to Luttig's remarks at youtu.be/sJ2XZoxFj3E?... I rendered Judge Luttig's argument in an infographic.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
50¢ PHRASE OF THE WEEK—KNOW IT, OR PAY IT "The leading American A.I. companies are hyper-focused on advancing 'recursive self-improvement'—using A.I. systems themselves to develop even better A.I. systems." www.nytimes.com/2026/09/17/o...
nytimes.com
Opinion | America and China Look at A.I. and See Very Different Problems
Until the two countries can agree on what risks to worry about, cooperation is a distant dream.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
FARMERS PAY AS ROLLINS EARNS ==== Farmers face soaring diesel/fertilizer prices. Dept. of Agriculture yanks support for cheaper renewable forms of energy. Agency chief Brooke Rollins & family hold millions in highly profitable oil & gas investments. View disclosure: extapps2.oge.gov/201/Presiden...
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
STUNNING EXAMPLE OF DUNNING-KRUGER EFFECT Tagging himself as "a STRONG AND SMART (High IQ) PRESIDENT" exemplifies the Dunning–Kruger effect, a cognitive bias describing the systematic tendency of people with low ability in a specific area to give overly positive assessments of their ability.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
ON THIS DAY IN 1787... ...The U.S. Constitution was signed during the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia.
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
ME? DARK ROAST; NO ROOM FOR CREAM Pittsburgh, home, is # 9. wallethub.com/edu/best-cit...
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
GRID DISRUPTION portside.org/2026-09-16/d...
portside.org
Deregulation, Not Data Centers, Broke the Grid
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
MACHINES OF LOVING GRACE? I like to think (it has to be!) of a cybernetic ecology where we are free of our labors and joined back to nature, returned to our mammal brothers and sisters and all watched over by machines of loving grace. ~Richard Brautigan, 1967 tiny.cc/LOGR
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation ============================== Circulation is weakening due to human-caused climate change, which could have major repercussions by changing the temperature and rainfall patterns humans rely on to grow food. www.sciencealert.com/the-atlantic...
sciencealert.com
The Atlantic Ocean Has a Hidden 'Heat Valve' That Controls Earth's Temperature – And It Could Be Closing
Our relatively stable global climate is governed by an incredibly complex set of factors, all interacting with each other in dynamic and changeable ways – but there are a couple of really big, key pla...
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
AT THE RISK THAT THIS POST WILL BE DELETED... More crack spread for you to see... rbnenergy.com/daily-posts/...
rbnenergy.com
Basket Case – With U.S. Refiners Already Running Hard, Relief on Diesel Remains Elusive
Today, we look at why high crack spreads don’t necessarily increase a refinery’s output, how market disruptions elsewhere can drain U.S. inventories, and the indicators that will help tell us whether ...
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
BARISTAS V BILLIONAIRES A new documentary film, "Baristas vs Billionaires," features Starbucks workers in Buffalo recounting their experiences as billionaire Howard Schultz descended on the city to quash unionization efforts. www.youtube.com/@BaristasvsB...
youtube.com
Baristas vs Billionaires
Academy Award nominee and Emmy-winning director Mark Mori and his production team investigate a generational uprising of working-class Millennials and Gen Z as they battle Starbucks Coffee for their r...
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David L. Passmore @davidpassmore.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
IT'S SO IMPORTANT TO HAVE GOOD FRIENDS "The oligarch, Umar Kremlev, spent hundreds of thousands on expenses like renting out a private island. He...met Trump Jr. only recently, but he attended the intimate wedding with a large group of other Russian guests." www.propublica.org/article/dona...
propublica.org
Donald Trump Jr.’s Wedding Bankrolled by Putin-Linked Russian Oligarch
The oligarch, Umar Kremlev, spent hundreds of thousands on expenses like renting out a private island. He appears to have met Trump Jr. only recently, but he attended the intimate wedding with a large...
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