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Michael Leo Owens

@milophd.bsky.social
1.6K followers 1.8K following 2.8K posts

A pluviophile, melomaniac, gardener, karaoke fiend, & academic. Atlantan by labor; New Yorker by birth.

PostsRepliesMedia
Reposted by Michael Leo Owens
Mekka Okereke @mekka.mekka-tech.com · 11h
Again, I find the "No! Don't capitalize Black!🤡" conversation both mind-numbingly boring and not useful at all. It's not going to change what I do. I'm going to capitalize Black. And dudes that get mad about this, usually have never done anything meaningful to reduce racism in the real world.
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Nicole Foy @nicolefoy.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
For almost 2 years now, DHS has repeatedly told me they're not detaining U.S. citizens It's simply not true So @propublica.org published the receipts: a searchable database of the 500+ citizens detained by immigration agents during this Trump administration 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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Opinion Today @opiniontoday.bsky.social · 12h
“WARNING. This area is being patrolled by the National Ballot Security Task Force.”: In the history of voter suppression in the United States, Republican tactics in the 1981 New Jersey gubernatorial race stand out. (Mark Krasovic) theconversation.com/armed-poll-w...
theconversation.com
Armed poll watchers: New Jersey’s 1981 racist voter intimidation campaign is a cautionary tale ahead of 2026 midterms
An armed voter suppression campaign in New Jersey in 1981 finds echoes today in the Trump administration’s persistent efforts to suppress the vote and undermine trust in elections nationwide.
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Pat Bagley @bagleycartoons.bsky.social · 18h
America is currently a nation ruled by ignorants We have lost our way Take our country back to thriving on diversity, justice and hope
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Tesla Takedown UK @teslatakedownuk.bsky.social · 11h
"Putin, Musk, Trump, Erdoğan, Modi, Netanyahu. I’m quite politically active & I’m very preoccupied at the moment with the fact that most of the world is run by authoritarian men who are terrifyingly rolling back women’s rights, human rights, progress, civil rights, generating racism and homophobia"
theguardian.com
Juliet Stevenson: ‘Do I have a nemesis? Where do we start? Putin, Musk, Trump, Erdoğan, Modi, Netanyahu’
The British actor on the genius of Bend It Like Beckham, the role she lost to Emma Thompson and why some actors get worse with age
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David Simon @audacityofdespair.bsky.social · 13h
No doubt this has occurred to other bystanders as well, but it would seem that a handful of billionaires dropping $150 million into a single state's election in an attempt to defeat a wealth-tax initiative just about makes the entire case for a wealth-tax initiative.
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The Associated Press @apnews.com · 13h
Knicks champion Karl-Anthony Towns marked World Mental Health Day by sharing his ongoing emotional journey following the death of his mother to complications from COVID-19.
bit.ly
Knicks champion Karl-Anthony Towns opens up about grief for World Mental Health Day
Knicks champion Karl-Anthony Towns is still grieving the loss of his mother six years ago to COVID-19.
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cowvin.bsky.social @cowvin.bsky.social · 13h
Billionaires can clearly afford to pay more taxes if they can spend this much on political influence. Tax the rich! If you're in California, vote for the wealth tax.
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Mark Copelovitch @mcopelov.bsky.social · 20h
Again, I never again want to hear the Republicans claim the mantle of, or be referred to as, the "party of national security." This, as with threatening to invade our NATO allies, should have long ago immediately ended his presidency. It also should again now.
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Adam Serwer @adamserwer.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
Yes this is stupid but it’s also a corrupt transfer of taxpayer money to a political ally www.washingtonsun.com/agencies/fbi...
washingtonsun.com
FBI Is Angling to Hand the UFC a No-Bid Contract to Train Agents
The contract would expand an existing partnership between the Trump administration and the UFC.
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Covie @covie93.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
So a book with two gay penguins will traumatize kids but a public execution wouldn't???
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StrictlyChristo 🇺🇦🌻 @strictlychristo.bsky.social · 12h
“Let’s use capital punishment the same way we use sports and television in this country to distract people and take their minds off how bad they’re being f*cked by the upper one percent.” - George Carlin www.mediaite.com/media/legend...
mediaite.com
Legendary Comic George Carlin Once Predicted Televised Executions to ‘Distract People’ From ‘How Bad They’re Being F*cked’
Three decades before plans to livestream an execution were announced, George Carlin imagined that capital punishment could become televised entertainment.
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Michael Leo Owens @milophd.bsky.social · 12h
Maybe, just maybe, don’t literally cater to awful humans, as they will always prove to be awful humans. Stop being suckers!!!
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Carceral Abolition @carceralabolition.bsky.social · 12h
Paris, France Protesters demonstrating against what they call an overcrowded, ill-equipped and understaffed education system gather around the Monument à la République in Paris www.theguardian.com/artanddesign...
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Carceral Abolition @carceralabolition.bsky.social · 12h
Nantes, France Protesters clash with gendarmes as high school and university students attend a demonstration as part of a nationwide day of protests and blockades to demand better school conditions www.theguardian.com/artanddesign...
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Michael Leo Owens @milophd.bsky.social · 12h
The woman in the collarless red blazer behind him, after chuckling like a fool, mouthed… “That’s true.” 🥴
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The Bulwark @thebulwark.com · 13h
"The United States military is far better than this. Senior officials should protest, and if necessary resign, rather than being complicit in the voyeuristic degradation of our democracy."
lnk.thebulwark.com
Hegseth Wants You to Watch a Snuff Film
Neo-fascism as spectacles of violence.
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Urban Affairs Association (UAA) @uaanews.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
⏰🦉 14 days to save on the ICUA registration fee! Early Bird pricing ends 10/23/26 urbanaffairsassociation.org/conference/r...
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Jake Grumbach @jakemgrumbach.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
New working paper: the Norwegian wealth tax was a huge success. The "exodus" of wealthy people never happened (less than 100 individuals left). Tax revenue increased by 71.5%. No changes in business activity or investment. www.nber.org/papers/w35854
Taxing Entrepreneurial Wealth: Evidence from
Norway, 2021-2025
Marius A. K. Ring
WORKING PAPER 35854|
DOl 10.3386/w35854
ISSUE DATE October 2026
Whether imposing higher taxes on business owners adversely affects business activity by constraining investment and inducing capitalist flight is a central question in the ongoing debate on how to tax the ultra wealthy. To shed new light, I exploit a series of related Norwegian reforms during 2021-2024 that increased dividend tax rates, removed migration-related capital gains tax loopholes, and nearly doubled the effective marginal tax rate on business wealth. These reforms spurred international debate and, allegedly, an "exodus" of Norwegian billionaires (Financial Times,
2023). While I document clear effects on migration, these responses are concentrated among the top 0.1% of the wealth distribution and mostly confined to 2022 and 2023. My results indicate that at most 100 individuals left due to the reforms. I find no evidence of significant outmigration or reduced inflows of startup founders or inventors. I estimate that absent any outmigration, wealth tax revenues would have increased by 75% from 2021 to 2024. Reform-driven outmigration lowers the revenue gain to 71.5%. My findings further show that outmigrating owners' firms remain economically active and do not reduce investment. In a broader set of analyses, I examine whether business outcomes are affected, regardless of whether owners outmigrate, since firms may reduce investment both due to liquidity constraints or distortions to owners' savings decisions. I compare firms owned by Norwegian individuals subject to the wealth tax with firms owned by foreigners and other tax-exempt entities. By merging historical ownership data from Orbis with the Norwegian shareholder register, I perform these analyses on both Norwegian and foreign-domiciled firms.
Across settings, I find no evidence that Norwegian-owned firms pay out more dividends or invest less after the reforms,…
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Laura Bassett @lebassett.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
“If you don’t like public executions just don’t watch it” says the crowd trying to ban drag shows and books
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Omar Wasow @owasow.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
“Our research suggests that Trump was not necessarily attracting male supporters who are as confidently masculine as the former president presented himself to be. Rather, our findings suggest that Trump appeared to appeal more to men who may be insecure about their manhood.” — Knowles & DiMuccio
psychologytoday.com
Why Do Some Men Support Aggressive Policies and Politicians?
Does the idea of "precarious manhood" contribute to aggressive politics?
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paulpro @mariopro.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
threads.com/@dariomonero
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paulpro @mariopro.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
threads.com/@jeffkoterba
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gamera obscura october edition @ohrobin.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
I think what frightens me most is that the sheer volume of things to be horrified by has become its own kind of protection for the people responsible. Nothing has to be explained or resolved becuase a story or a scandal or a tragedy only has to survive until the next thing happens in five minutes.
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Covie @covie93.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
Maybe hegseth watched ICE agents carry out public executions all year and thought people have become numb to it.
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Covie @covie93.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
Can't wait for rand paul to hear that rfk jr sent nearly $800K to a research project tied to the Russian plague lab so he can hold multiple hearings like he did with Dr. Fauci.
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Michael Leo Owens @milophd.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
Right?!?!?! LOL
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Urban Affairs Association (UAA) @uaanews.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
📣 🏆️ REMINDER: Emerging Scholars! Apply by 10/16/26. More info: urbanaffairsassociation.org/awards/alma-...
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Urban Affairs Association (UAA) @uaanews.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
📣 🏆️ REMINDER: New! Distinguished Mentor Award. Nominations due 10/16/26. More info: urbanaffairsassociation.org/awards/disti...
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Michael Leo Owens @milophd.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
“Dear dark father, let us stand now unbowed and unfettered by arcane doctrines born of fearful minds and darkened times. Let us embrace the Luciferan impulse to eat off the tree of knowledge and dissipate our blissful and comforting delusions of old.” 🤯🫢🤭😆😂🤣
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The Bulwark @thebulwark.com · 08/10/2026
Corruption. Tremendous. The biggest. Like you've never seen before. Billions and billions.
lnk.thebulwark.com
‘Trump Is the Picasso of Corruption’
The grift is relentless, the conflicts are everywhere, and the public keeps getting stuck with the tab.
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Gianmarco Soresi @gianmarcosoresi.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
Man who won’t give his employees piss breaks claims many piss breaks on the horizon
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ElieNYC @elienyc.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
Ah yes, I remember when Trotsky wrote about how Russian workers should be replaced by low wage immigrants from China so that strong Russian boys would have more time to play girls ice hockey. It's right there in the manuscript.
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BladeoftheSun @bladeofthes.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
"WE'VE STORMED THE BASTILLE", shout the students. Recreating a historic day when the power of the French Monarchy was ended.
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Kevin Gannon (now a Moo Deng fan account) @thetattooedprof.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
static.klipy.com
Lord Farquaad: Some of You May Die
Alt: Lord Farquaad: Some of You May Die but it's a sacrifice I'm willing to make
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Michael Leo Owens @milophd.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
“This that Black abundance. Y’all don’t even know.” Hahaha!!!! 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾
jbhe.com
Four Black Scholars With Academic Ties Named MacArthur Fellows | The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education
The four Black scholars with current affiliations with American educational institutions are Ellora Derenoncourt of Princeton University, Rodney McMillian of UCLA, Maaza Mengiste of Wesleyan Universit...
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paulpro @mariopro.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
@gkearney.bsky.social
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Ketan Joshi @ketanjoshi.co · 06/10/2026
This is a good illustration of how so much of AI theft isn't indirect (ie, data sucked into a model to train the chatbot) - it's actually **direct** copying, but *enabled* by GenAI. Of course it is: chatbots absolutely suck at creating good, new stuff.
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Cartoon Movement @cartoonmovement.com · 08/10/2026
Helpful AI. Today’s cartoon by Marian Kamensky. More cartoons: www.cartoonmovement.com #ArtificialIntelligence #AI #humanity #extinction
Cartoon showing a personified Earth sawing off the branch it sits on while a robot labeled "AI" in the bucket of a cherry picker, offering a chainsaw, illustrating technology accelerating humanity’s self-destructive nature.
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Daily Trix @dailytrix.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
One thing I respect about Trump is that he eventually makes everyone who supports or defends him — voters, Congresspeople, reporters, etc. — look like chumps.
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Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 08/10/2026
It’s really remarkable to me that 10 years into this people feel compelled to “clarify” Trump’s homicidal and often genocidal fantasies. It is deranged for the president to daydream about American cities in states he hates getting blown up. Full stop.
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Michael Leo Owens @milophd.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
Or is it a sweatshirt? Whatever. Go, Eagles!
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Michael Leo Owens @milophd.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
Cute baby. Love that Emory University t-shirt more!!!
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Rebecca Solnit @rebeccasolnit.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
Part (but far from all) of what's horrific here is: a woman weighing the consequences of speaking up about being sexually assaulted, because speaking up imposes burdens and costs (and so does not speaking up).
phoenixnewtimes.com
Congressional candidate is raped while repairing her campaign signs
Embarrassed, she initially didn’t want to report attack. Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office's investigation is ongoing. A Phoenix New Times exclusive.
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ProPublica @propublica.org · 07/10/2026
Amy Miller, an attorney with Disability Rights Nebraska, travels the state helping elderly and disabled people vote. Congress funds the work. But a new White House proposal threatens the efforts of Miller’s group and more than 50 others like it.
propublica.org
This White House Plan Threatens Funding That Helps Disabled Americans Vote
A new rule from the Office of Management and Budget would prohibit anyone from using federal grant money for voter registration drives. It’s part of the Trump administration’s broader efforts to restr...
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Khashoggi's Ghost @urocklive1.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Zumiez is a chain of skate shops which works with Voto Latino and Skate to the Polls to help young people register and vote. Now they're a target of ICE. Registering new voters puts you on this admin's naughty list and they will punish you for it. www.rawstory.com/ice-zumiez/
rawstory.com
ICE targets skateboarding store for helping register swing-state voters: report
Federal immigration investigators appear to have gone after Zumiez, the youth-oriented skate shop with locations in malls nationwide, after the company backed efforts to get people registered and voti...
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Michael Leo Owens @milophd.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
If you have never read, taught, learned it, here you go. Source: Brown University share.google/69MmOnfdecWQ...
share.google
Appendix | Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass | Manifold Scholarship
Frederick Douglass describes his youth as an enslaved person in Maryland and his desire to be a free man.
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Michael Leo Owens @milophd.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
BTW IMHO more Americans need to read, teach, learn Douglass’s appendix to his Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass. Hell, just read, teach, learn the appendix instead of the narrative!!! LOL
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Michael Leo Owens @milophd.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
“Never was there a clearer case of ‘stealing the livery of the court of heaven to, serve the devil in.’ I am filled with unutterable loathing when I contemplate the religious pomp and show, together with the horrible inconsistencies, which every where surround me.”
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