Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 9hBecause I knew Frederic Chopin lived and was buried in Paris, I always assumed he was French. But I learned that he was born and grew up in Poland, and always self-identified as Polish, so I just moved him from the French to the Polish section of my record collection. 000
Reposted by Joel S. BergAaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 09/10/2026Ossoff: "If John Lewis were marching today from Selma to Montgomery, Mike Collins would be grabbing a billy club" 510152333401
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 09/10/2026Remember, a few weeks ago, when a few MAGA nut jobs claimed that Trump has miraculously ended hurricanes forever? apple.news/AA0o7ls0jQqC...apple.newsHurricane Isaias strengthens to Category 2 storm, evacuations expand across Gulf ahead of dangerous landfall — FOX WeatherHurricane Isaias is continuing to strengthen in the Gulf after becoming the first Atlantic hurricane of the season and is forecast to make landfall along the northern Gulf Coast later this week as a d... 000
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 08/10/2026Not only are many political consultants overpaid, many are lazy, recycling anodyne messages for multiple candidates. I can’t tell you how many fundraising emails I have received from multiple candidates with the subject line “My Decision” - even though they have nothing to do with an actual decision 010
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 07/10/2026The racism on the Right knows no bounds: www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...washingtonpost.comOpinion | The new welfare queen is Brad. Right-wing pundits are furious.An Arkansas campaign ad reveals how race still shapes the politics of welfare. 000
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 07/10/2026www.politico.com/news/2026/10...politico.comMamdani’s approach to the NYPD is not what reform advocates expectedPublic safety advocates are growing frustrated with the mayor’s hands-off approach to policing. 021
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 05/10/2026N.Y.C. Leaders Want Integrated Schools. Advocates Want a Plan. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/05/n...nytimes.comN.Y.C. Leaders Want Integrated Schools. Advocates Want a Plan.For a city as diverse as New York, the school system is one of the most segregated in the United States. 000
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 04/10/2026Here’s Senator Cotton’s Cell Number, Trump Says, in Dispute Over Daylight Saving Bill www.nytimes.com/2026/10/03/u... Why do we keep tiptoeing around the glaring reality that the current President of the United States is just nuts.nytimes.comTrump Urges People to Call Senator Tom Cotton Over Daylight Saving BillThe president urged people to call Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas and accused him of blocking a bill to cement daylight saving time. 010
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 02/10/2026queenseagle.com/all/2026/10/...queenseagle.comQueens SNAP enrollment falls by 25,000 as officials warn of more cuts — Queens Daily EagleOver 25,000 Queens residents have lost access to federal food assistance programs over the past year — and elected officials said more could lose the benefit once new cuts go into effect this week. 010
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 02/10/2026Oh no, Calypso legend the Mighty Sparrow has passed on to the great carnival in the sky at 91: youtu.be/HZ2_3hqFZvkyoutu.beMighty Sparrow - Jean & DinahYouTube video by CanchozI 010
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 02/10/2026Few would argue that it it should be considered legal — or moral — to mug anyone who happens to be intoxicated. Then why in the world would anyone argue that it should be considered legal — or moral — to rape anyone who happens to be intoxicated? 010
Reposted by Joel S. BergKSNT 27 News @ksntnews.bsky.social · 02/10/2026TOPEKA (KSNT) — Rising diesel prices have been adding another expense for Kansas farmers as harvest continues across the state. Diesel fuel is a major operating cost for farmers, powering combines,…ksnt.comRising diesel prices could add pressure for Kansas farmers during harvestTOPEKA (KSNT) — Rising diesel prices have been adding another expense for Kansas farmers as harvest continues across the state. Diesel fuel is a major operating cost for farmers, powering combines,… 023
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 02/10/2026A lot of the most insane events in American history have occurred in the Trump/Vance years, but I still think the most bonkers incident in U.S. history is that time that a sitting Vice President shot and killed a former Treasury Secretary. 000
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 01/10/2026Important reminder that this SCOTUS majority is not only extreme Right, but it’s also financially corrupt and abjectly partisan. 061
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 30/09/2026Of course, it’s both dangerous and hysterical that the G.O.P. sought to prosecute Jack Smith because they got the basketball game he attended wrong. But we should also note they were trying to prove his supposed crime of coordinating with a local prosecutor, which federal prosecutors do daily. 000
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 29/09/2026I’m pretty sure that the vast majority of all the nearly identical posts complaining about the national Dems supposedly not giving enough money to Angie Dixon are either GOP/Russian-funded bots, or actual people who haven’t donated a penny of their own money to Angie Dixon. 010
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 29/09/2026GOP leaders are in such a insulated MAGA bubble that they have no clue that holding a hearing smearing Jack Smith right before mid-terms will only help the Democrats by reminding the public that they are Trump lapdogs that empowered January 6 and that they don’t give a squat about affordability. 031
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 29/09/2026I swear, if famed crime-fighter Eliot Ness was going after famed mobster Al Capone today, the GOP would be trying to jail Ness and give taxpayer-funded payments to Capone. 000
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 29/09/2026The G.O.P. senators grilling ultra-honest patriot Jack Smith about what basketball games he attended proves not only that they are corrupt idiots, but also that they don’t give a crap about the affordability crises slamming working families nationwide. 000
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 24/09/2026Dear Dr. Frankenstein: You can’t pretend to distance yourself from your monster just because the midterms are a few weeks away. 000
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 22/09/2026www.nydailynews.com/2026/09/21/b...nydailynews.comLegal Aid calls out increase in “broken-windows” policing under MamdaniCriminal justice advocates have argued that broken-windows policing, which cracks down on minor offenses under the theory that they lead to more serious crimes, does not decrease crime and unfairly ta... 000
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 21/09/2026I understand the justification for Mamdani genially hosting Trump and Bernie doing an event with Bannon; but those fulminated that Jeffries meeting with Kushner was supposedly a capitulation to fascism sure are silent now. 021
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 21/09/2026If one construction crew accidentally cutting one cable created this much transportation chaos, imagine how easily it would be for an enemy to intentionally cripple the U.S. www.cnn.com/2026/09/21/u... This should be a wake up call.cnn.comFiber cut by construction crew leads to ground stop and delays at several major airports | CNNA Federal Aviation Administration equipment outage is causing significant flight delays at five major Northeast airports after construction contractors dug up and cut a Verizon cable, the company said... 010
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 19/09/2026Remember when dumb-ass bros were conned into voting for Trump because they thought we was for free speech? 020
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 19/09/2026Most progressives, myself included, would have vigorously opposed it if Biden or Obama had tried to ban Fox News or the Wall Street Journal from the White House on First Amendment grounds. (Of course, they didn’t). How many conservatives will oppose Trump banning media outlets critical of him? 020
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 18/09/2026Unfortunately, there’s a long tradition on mentally incapacitated senators of both parties having staff essentially voting for them. We need a Constitutional Amendment to shorten senate terms from 6 to 4 years and/or create a process for removing those demonstrably incapacitated. 010
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 18/09/2026Huh??? Hundreds weere successfully prosecuted for J6 and Trump himself was charged before corrupt GOP SCOTUS majority bailed him out. 000
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 16/09/2026www.compass.com/homedetails/... This is latest example of how Brooklyn is pricing-out the non-rich. Just to get this parking spot, you have to buy it for $285,000 and then also pay $400 in maintenance per month. In much of the country, you could buy a very nice whole house for that.compass.com841 Union Street, Unit PS109841 Union Street, Unit PS109 is listed for sale at $285,000. This is a 0-bed, 0-bath property. 010
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 16/09/2026The most popular professional sport in America gives brain damage to one quarter of its athletes, and the public is fine with that. And you wonder why Americans politics is the way it is? www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/...espn.comStudy: At least 25% of NFL players in sample had CTEA new study published Tuesday by the British Medical Journal showed that at least 25% of NFL players who died between 2016 and 2021 had CTE. 010
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 16/09/2026All of that is because the Dems are in the minority. If you want accountability, you should work to give Dems more power, big blame them for not having it. 100
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 15/09/2026So you think it would have been better to have had an extra solid R vote in the Senate the last three months? Please. 100
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 15/09/2026For all of you here who were absolutely insistent that Mitch McConnell was secretly dead and that the Democrats were horribly weak for not exposing that, I don’t suppose any of you want to apologize now? 110
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 13/09/2026abcnews.com/video/129829... Interview with me on the impact of the horrid G.O.P. grocery cuts.abcnews.comVideo New SNAP benefit rules: Who is affected by the 2026 requirements?Joel Berg, CEO of Hunger Free America, joins ABC News Live to discuss the fallout of new SNAP requirements and how the policy changes will affect food assistance for millions. 020
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 11/09/2026Another song to mark today: youtu.be/o5TmORitlKkyoutu.beMarvin Gaye - What's Going On (Official Video 2019)YouTube video by MarvinGayeVEVO 010
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 11/09/2026After the original 9/11, I played this song over and over again, often sobbing: youtu.be/Ssd3U_zicAI It’s basic question still moves me.youtu.beElvis Costello & The Attractions - (What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love And UnderstandingYouTube video by ElvisCostelloVEVO 010
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 11/09/202625th years ago today, I saw the Twin Towers burn and fall from my Brooklyn window. I later learned that actions that day represented both the worst and best of humanity. The top way to honor that day should be to work for a world with no hate and violence (or, at least, less hate and violence). 011
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 10/09/2026Dear America: Too many of you believing in Trump’s past bullshit promises is how we got in the mess in the first place. Don’t fall for it one more time. 010
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 10/09/2026www.politico.com/news/magazin... For all the self-proclaimed lefties absurdly blaming Schumer for Fetterman, let me remind you that it was the Left that first made him a senator.politico.comDemocrats Chose John Fetterman Over Conor Lamb. Now There Are Regrets.Progressives are wondering if maybe they were a little too tough on the once up-and-coming lawmaker. 072
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 09/09/2026A Doctor Sued 700 Patients for Debts; 81 Were Arrested. Now He’s a Senator. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/08/u... A 18% vig is a mob-level interest rate.nytimes.comRoger Marshall Sued 700 Patients for Debts; 81 Were Arrested. Now He’s a Senator.Patients sued by Senator Roger Marshall of Kansas were routinely charged 18 percent interest, The Times found. Some had bank accounts garnished. 000
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 04/09/2026To paraphrase (and update) Ben Franklin: Those willing to trade away democracy with lower gas prices will end up with neither. 010
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 04/09/2026Dear people who voted for Trump again in 2024 despite his sexual assault conviction, despite his racism, despite his crookedness, despite him shafting the working class, and despite his bungled COVID response - because you thought he would bring down gas prices: How did that work out for you? 010
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 04/09/2026Tell that the the 18 U.S. service people killed and the hundreds wounded. 000
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 04/09/2026Shame on you Google. This is exactly what corporate/government fascism looks like. 010
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 03/09/2026When I worked for the federal government, I went on a work trip to a nation in which its dictator had himself placed on all the country’s currency. At the time, I thought that was a sure sign of narcissism, insecurity, and autocracy of a leader. I still do. www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-1...cbsnews.comGold-colored $1 Trump coins are now available, but it will cost you more than $1 to buy oneThe U.S. Mint said the President Donald J. Trump $1 coin can be bought in packages of 25 for $61 or 100 coins for $154.50. 010
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 02/09/2026Ed Markey’s landslide primary win proves that what you stand for and what you fight for is much more important than how old you are. 000
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 27/08/2026Crazy idea: Reporters, editors, and pundits who decry the role of big money in politics — and who often report on how the best funded campaigns frequently lose — should stop breathlessly covering campaign finance reports as if they prove the relative popularity of parties or candidates. 010
Reposted by Joel S. BergBackyard Politics @backyardpolitics.bsky.social · 27/08/2026DNC/RNC are mostly about presidential campaigns and state parties. The party in the White House always raises more for the national committee. DCCC, DSCC, NRCC and NRSC and individual campaigns are about Congress, and the Dems have more money. Stop trying to create conflict where there is none. 162
Joel S. Berg @joelsberg.bsky.social · 27/08/2026This piece is both moving and instructive. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/26/b... Heartfelt empathy + truly understanding a problem + trusting aid recipients + smarts + generosity = highly effective philanthropynytimes.comDolly Parton’s Other Legacy: A Fortune Given Away, Dollar by DollarThe country star supported early childhood literacy, disaster relief, the development of the Covid-19 vaccine and more. 000