Sign in

Hal Espen

@halsf.bsky.social
1.6K followers 1.2K following 574 posts

Formerly at The New Yorker and Outside, currently in Santa Fe, presently in Seattle and environs. Now listening to on vinyl.

PostsRepliesMedia
Reposted by Hal Espen
Colin @colin-fraser.net · 02/10/2026
( > It never produces facts which are not plagiarized, copied, regurgitated. outputs are random, of course. So let's say it *almost* never produces facts which are not plagiarized, copied, regurgitated. But this distinction is not very important. You get the idea. )
1852
Reposted by Hal Espen
Caroline Fraser @calfraser.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Hoboes and their history — www.nybooks.com/articles/202...
nybooks.com
Boxcar to Nowhere | Caroline Fraser
American lore about hoboes has sugared over the economic and environmental forces that drove people from their homes and onto the rails and roads in the first place, as a new history lays out.
132
Hal Espen @halsf.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
The hysterical hyperbolic self-medicating ecstasy expressed in this era of New York Time cooking display copy — “My Wife Is Actually Crying Right Now Because This Cake Is So Good” — might not be so weird without the pervasive lack of affect or anything radical in other regions of the house style.
020
Reposted by Hal Espen
Kate Carpenter @katecarp.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Hey it's @robertsuits.bsky.social and THE HOBO in the NYRB! Hooray! www.nybooks.com/articles/202...
nybooks.com
Boxcar to Nowhere | Caroline Fraser
American lore about hoboes has sugared over the economic and environmental forces that drove people from their homes and onto the rails and roads in the first place, as a new history lays out.
182
Reposted by Hal Espen
🧌🥛 🏨 @comraderobot.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
we gotta prevent taylor swift from making music until she does drugs. lots of em. hard stuff too.
4212
Reposted by Hal Espen
Caroline Fraser @calfraser.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Twas ever thus— Like My Jesus Sweatshirt? How Christianity Went Consumerist. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/16/b...
nytimes.com
Like My Jesus Sweatshirt? How Christianity Went Consumerist.
In “Live Laugh Love,” Kristin Kobes Du Mez examines how Christian women absorbed the idea that material abundance was evidence of divine favor.
143
Reposted by Hal Espen
elia ayoub @ayoub.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Friend shared this video of a man unveiling the library he hid when he fled Damascus in 2011. It’s incredible
25150303941
Reposted by Hal Espen
Dan Froomkin/Press Watch/Heads Up News @froomkin.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
The NYT ran an article in April raising questions about Trump’s mental status, quoting people calling him “clearly insane,” “an extremely sick person,” “unhinged,” “out of control,” “batshit crazy,” and “a genocidal lunatic.” Then they never mentioned it again. presswatchers.org/2026/04/new-...
presswatchers.org
New York Times finally reports on concerns that Trump is ‘clearly insane’ | Press Watch
That’s a big deal. But now what? It’s more than a one-day story.
29679239
Reposted by Hal Espen
Joel Pinckney @jpinckney.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
New one today for @defector.com: in the wake of the most recent declaration of reading's demise, I was curious what booksellers, almost always ignored by the post-literate prognosticators, made of such claims. Here's what they told me:
defector.com
What Do Booksellers Make Of “The End Of Reading”? | Defector
If you haven’t yet encountered the cover story for the August issue of The Atlantic, I have some bad news to share: “The End of Reading Is Here.” It’s an intentionally provocative headline for a sligh...
1023480
Reposted by Hal Espen
Will Oremus @willoremus.com · 26/08/2026
randomly giving out genuine compliments is such an easy way to make the world a little nicer, i'm always surprised more people haven't figured that out and have a ton of respect for those who have
Screenshot of tweet by Eminem. Text of Eminem's post reads: 

I'm sorry we never got a chance to meet, but getting this note from Dolly really had a an impact on me. She definitely didn't have to take the time to do it.  Even for a kid who mostly listened to rap music, she was an icon. A superstar in every sense. Rest easy Dolly. And thank you for the kind words.

Attached is an image of a classy and generous letter Dolly Parton sent to Eminem after missing a chance to meet him at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
625440855
Hal Espen @halsf.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
The best investigative reporting in the New York Times often dissipates and fades without crusading follow-through. Meanwhile there are the bizarre crusades the paper does prosecute — But Her Emails, Mamdani Threat Alerts, etc. And relentlessly, Reefer Madness. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/24/o...
nytimes.com
Opinion | Today’s Weed Is Way Too Dangerous for Teens
Are we willing to regulate and enforce cannabis safety, especially to protect the most vulnerable among us?
030
Reposted by Hal Espen
Elliott Lusztig @elliottlusztig.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
The leader of Canada just gave a speech where he said the US "attacked" his nation, and we are now "at war." There are VERY few Americans who support this crap, but Washington DC is so busted no one will stop Trump. If you voted for this: Go straight to hell. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/22/w...
nytimes.com
Carney Slams U.S.-Canada Trade Proposal and Vows Retaliation
Prime Minister Mark Carney gave a powerful speech to Canadians on Saturday morning, hours after ordering negotiators to suspend U.S. trade talks despite President Trump’s punishing tariffs.
1432061
Reposted by Hal Espen
James Fallows @jfallows.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Further on Carney's speech: It was full of careful bits of rhetoric like ones noted here. More powerful when spoken, w with carefully matched emphasis, than they might look on the page. All the more powerful for being so simple and direct. Plain, short words. "Ask not..." "I have a dream.."
Speech text:

We cannot accept what they have offered, and we will not give what they have asked.

In short, they asked too much and offered too little.

The new U.S. tariffs are designed to hurt and divide us. 
They are a miscalculation, because Canadians will always take care of each other.

We are vacationing in our national parks. Buying Canadian products. Choosing Canadian.
Small acts of solidarity. Repeated millions of times that make a statement: we are the masters of our destiny.

Last spring, I warned that America is trying to break us so that they can own us.
And I promised: “That will never, ever happen.”

Canada is becoming stronger and less dependent on America. 
We are already giving ourselves more than they can take away.
19546143
Reposted by Hal Espen
Andrew Sabl @andysabl.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Full text of Mark Carney’s speech yesterday. Here’s a line that few are reporting but that seems crucial: because the US no longer can make—or wants to make—credible commitments, it’s kneecapped its own ability to reach agreements. www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/spee...
Our government understood, before many, that America would transform all its commercial relationships. That it would put a series of tariffs on its closest allies and use
economic integration as a weapon. That its signature was
written in pencil. [Last sentence emphasized by poster.]
201111295
Reposted by Hal Espen
New Yorker Covers 365 @newyorkercovers365.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
AUGUST 23, 1982 ARTIST: Saul Steinberg ADVERTISEMENT: Oneida | | | | | | #newyorkercovers #newyorker #newyorkermag #saulsteinberg #steinberg #illustration #1982 #dogtricks #violin #recital #sheetmusic #vintageads #oneida #silver #icecream
022
Hal Espen @halsf.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
ICE fascists brutally swept up patients, parents, and children at La Familia, a Santa Fe community health clinic just across the river from our house. mailchi.mp/searchlightn...
mailchi.mp
ICE arrests further strain healthcare for immigrants
042
Reposted by Hal Espen
Source New Mexico @sourcenm.com · 20/08/2026
U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.) said officials told her during her inspection of an Estancia detention facility that ICE agents detained eight people in Santa Fe on Wednesday. sourcenm.com/2026/08/20/n...
sourcenm.com
New Mexico U.S. Rep. Leger Fernández denounces ICE arrest in Santa Fe healthcare clinic parking lot • Source New Mexico
The New Mexico Democratic congresswoman's made a "disappointing" visit to an ICE detention facility to seek answers on the arrest Wednesday.
0218
Reposted by Hal Espen
The Santa Fe New Mexican @thenewmexican.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
As the Frijoles Fire continues to burn in the Pecos Wilderness near Cundiyó, U.S. Forest Service officials have issued a temporary closure for a central chunk of the Santa Fe National Forest. sfnm.co/4qnVrAj
sfnm.co
Temporary closure issued in Santa Fe National Forest as Frijoles Fire burns 9,300 acres
More than 650 firefighters were assigned to the Frijoles Fire on Sunday.
062
Reposted by Hal Espen
davidc1935.bsky.social @davidc1935.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
George Shearing, Nina Simone, Duke Ellington and Buddy Rich at the Madison Square Garden jazz festival in 1959. (Photo by Herb Snitzer)
0449
Hal Espen @halsf.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
Just spent an hour liking hundreds of Reacher kitten takes and they say social media is bad.
010
Reposted by Hal Espen
The Santa Fe New Mexican @thenewmexican.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
NEW: The Frijoles Fire grew to 6,200 acres overnight as the blaze continued to expand amid dry and hot conditions in the Santa Fe National Forest, raising concerns across Northern New Mexico Tuesday morning. A smoke advisory has been issued. sfnm.co/4fUfxPi
santafenewmexican.com
Frijoles Fire increases to 6,200 acres overnight; smoke advisory issued
Santa Fe County officials ordered residents of about 10 homes on Camino del Cañon in Cundiyó to evacuate.
052
Hal Espen @halsf.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
Frijoles Fire, northeast Santa Fe County, New Mexico, August 8, 1,000 acres
010
Reposted by Hal Espen
whet moser @whetmoser.com · 05/08/2026
“If built as planned, the gas burning plants — scattered across states including Texas, Ohio and Wyoming — could release as much planet-warming pollution in a year as roughly half of all the passenger vehicles in the United States”
13619
Reposted by Hal Espen
Aaron Hedge @aaronhedge.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
The Spokesman is doing incredible reporting on this story. Follow them for critical info. @alexdugganreports.bsky.social www.spokesman.com/stories/2026...
spokesman.com
'Never seen it this bad': Thousands evacuated in north Spokane as wildfire crosses river into city
A wildfire driven by high winds jumped the Spokane River Saturday afternoon, burning homes and quickly moving into the Indian Trail Neighborhood.
3244122
Reposted by Hal Espen
Mike Donohue @mikedmystery.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
Colson Whitehead's three favorite reads of the past five years: Hernan Diaz, Patrick Radden Keefe, and Caroline Fraser's MURDERLAND — about the possible causes of the serial killer epidemic in the '60s through '80s.
buff.ly
How to Die and Be Reborn in Colson Whitehead’s New York
The Pulitzer Prize–winning author opens up about midlife, the state of writing, and how his new book, ‘Cool Machine,’ makes sense of the world
021
Hal Espen @halsf.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
AI is, in fact escapable. I'm escaping it right now. I'll never not escape it. The sinister trope promising/threatening that inundation by AI is ineluctable and involuntary is *definitely* inescapable, though — repeated endlessly to manufacture consent and make resistance seem Luddite and futile.
000
Reposted by Hal Espen
Rep. Melanie Stansbury (NM-01) @repstansbury.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
NM is making waves! This year, helping to cover Medical School to keep doctors & healthcare professionals at home! So proud of our #NMLeg & Governor Lujan Grisham for making this investment in our healthcare system. And proud to have helped kick this program off years ago with Speaker Martinez!
627965
Reposted by Hal Espen
Christopher Brown @christopherbrown.bsky.social · 26/07/2026
Field Notes from a July visit to SpaceX’s South Texas Starbase, where the launch gantries tower over one of our wildest coastal wildernesses, and the alligators bellow back when the rockets fire: fieldnotes.christopherbrown.com/p/rocket-sum...
fieldnotes.christopherbrown.com
Rocket Summer
No. 199
05525
Hal Espen @halsf.bsky.social · 25/07/2026
Pure poison and darkness to read a seemingly heartfelt *bylined* blog tribute to a late writer whose work I revere, offering an account of his career and distinctive contributions, and this is how the remembrance ends: [this lightly edited profile was created by Claude, 9/6/25]
000
Reposted by Hal Espen
James Fallows @jfallows.bsky.social · 25/07/2026
Many stories have conveyed how crass and insulting Trump's "speech" last night was. Few have conveyed how literally insane he sounded. Long, LONG disquisition on The Ballroom, complete with "Sir" stories. Claim that 450k people came to hear him on July 4. Iran has no remaining weapons. WHCA: Why??
481465317
Reposted by Hal Espen
The Santa Fe New Mexican @thenewmexican.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
The New Mexico Supreme Court this week struck down a Republican bid to reverse the rules underpinning New Mexico’s growing universal childcare program. www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_n...
santafenewmexican.com
New Mexico Supreme Court tosses lawsuit challenging universal childcare
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham lauded the decision, which came after a state District Court judge also rejected the lawsuit.
1104
Reposted by Hal Espen
jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 15/07/2026
in a lot of ways the current republican government is just the worst, extractive red state governance taken national. total hostility to public goods, total indifference to long-term investment, and a monomaniacal interest in using the state to enrich private benefactors
7455161319
Reposted by Hal Espen
𝙉𝙤𝙞𝙧 𝙃𝙖𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙎𝙝𝙖𝙘𝙠 ♬ @noirbeachshack.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
Monday *makeup test for Tyrone Power for #FilmNoir Nightmare Alley (1947)
Tyrone Power in a makeup test photo for film noir Nightmare Alley. Makeup test in the movies is a pre-production trial where actors are put in their character's planned cosmetics, wigs, and prosthetics to be filmed under actual shooting conditions. It allows directors and cinematographers to see how the look holds up on camera and under specific lighting.
811622
Reposted by Hal Espen
wildernessed @wildernessed.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
My daughter just dumped some pics from The Colorado Trail #mountains #forest #wildlife #CT
722768225
Reposted by Hal Espen
Magdaloween! 🏳️‍⚧️ @magsvisaggio.com · 06/07/2026
i don't want infinite music. i want finite music. i want a collection i can comprehend and fall in love with. i want a range of choices, not every record every recorded. i get serious choice paralysis. just let me curate my own collection. i hate the future.
1434525
Hal Espen @halsf.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
It’s very difficult to imagine the vile Meta/Facebook Borg tolerating Ken White/Popehat’s transgressive bite the hand that hosts you tendencies (positive) indefinitely.
041
Reposted by Hal Espen
Brad Johnson @climatebrad.hillheat.com · 05/07/2026
Fireworks shows have a Clean Air Act carve out that was added by Jim Inhofe in 2005 to SAFETEA-LU, bipartisan legislation that passed overwhelmingly.
publichealthwatch.org
What Is the Exceptional Events Rule? The Loophole Letting U.S. Regulators Wipe Air Pollution From the Record. - Public Health Watch
First pushed through by the Republican senator and climate denier Jim Inhofe, the rule has become a ‘regulatory escape hatch’ for states that want to meet federal air-quality standards
312839
Reposted by Hal Espen
Musicology Duck @musicologyduck.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
Kennedy center being overwhelmed by a huge storm cloud
22268
Reposted by Hal Espen
Nate Chinen @natechinen.bsky.social · 04/07/2026
As you were, America. youtu.be/eKlL5X0iuEI?...
youtu.be
The Star Spangled Banner (Live at Newport Jazz Festival 1958)
YouTube video by Louis Armstrong - Topic
0125
Reposted by Hal Espen
Dorian Lynskey @dorianlynskey.bsky.social · 03/07/2026
18 months ago I would have believed that America’s 250th would be a fascistic spectacle: ghastly but impressive. The farcical incompetence of it tells you a lot about what’s happened to the Trump presidency. The sun is going down
718519
Hal Espen @halsf.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
Alex Ross writing on music is not only some of the best criticism going, it’s a tonic in these dark times.
030
Reposted by Hal Espen
Annie Leymarie @annieleymarie.bsky.social · 27/06/2026
"Emissions reductions plus habitat restoration and wildlife protection should not be treated as separate conversations. Healthy ecosystems are more resilient. Resilient ecosystems are better able to store carbon, support biodiversity, and keep functioning as conditions change."
23115
Hal Espen @halsf.bsky.social · 28/06/2026
I’ll stop the world and melt with you.
020
Reposted by Hal Espen
old roadside pics @roadside.xor.blue · 28/06/2026
classic bowl sign, canton, ohio, 1988
classic bowl sign, canton, ohio, 1988
214928
Hal Espen @halsf.bsky.social · 28/06/2026
Bill McKibben's framing of the grueling heat waves in the UK, Europe, and elsewhere in the context of the current reactionary political turn against green energy and climate science is a clarifying call for common sense, and for fighting back. open.substack.com/pub/billmcki...
open.substack.com
And so "climate" returns
The next--and most important--cycle in a long-running battle
010
Reposted by Hal Espen
Dan Sheehan @dansheehan.memyon.org · 28/06/2026
It's good to be Mel Brooks.
A man in a suit and tie, holding a microphone and smiling. It's Mel Brooks as Dr. Richard Harpo Thorndyke in a scene from the film HIGH ANXIETY (1977)
Filmsky moviesky MOVIES films botd happy birthday Hollywood legends funny comedy
Blazing Saddles
Young Frankenstein
The Producers
413421
Reposted by Hal Espen
SMD's pension @anothersmd.bsky.social · 26/06/2026
turns out there's a hard mode to the aircon discourse www.reddit.com/r/ElectricVe...
reddit.com
From the ElectricVehiclesUK community on Reddit: Our bedrooms reached 32°C yesterday. In desperation I discovered that a 100mm ducting hose fits perfectly around the circular air vents in my MG ZS EV ...
Explore this post and more from the ElectricVehiclesUK community
083
Reposted by Hal Espen
Momentum Magazine @momentummag.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
Norway has officially opened a new 13-kilometre cycling superhighway linking the cities of Stavanger and Sandnes. And, it’s a beautiful thing. momentummag.com/norway-opens...
08112
Reposted by Hal Espen
ElieNYC @elienyc.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
Let's see what fresh hell the court has for us today
3378668
Reposted by Hal Espen
Sierra Magazine @sierramagazine.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
America's cutest firefighter could be prairie dogs. New research points to prairie dog colonies being more resistant to fire when compared to areas without the charismatic rodent. They do this by feeding on the vegetation surrounding their burrows, reducing the fuel that fires have to spread. 🌎
sierraclub.org
Nature’s Answer to Combating Wildfire: The Prairie Dog
Behold the most adorable little firefighter you ever saw
0103