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Pittsburgh New Liberals

@pghnewliberals.bsky.social
464 followers 250 following 426 posts

Advocating for abundant housing, accessible transit, technological progress, and clean air & water in the Pittsburgh region Open, optimistic, pragmatic

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Pittsburgh New Liberals @pghnewliberals.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
“John Anderson, the Baird Family Professor of Economics at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln, said in his letter that regular countywide tax reassessments are “essential for an equitable and transparent tax system.” “
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Scott Santens @scottsantens.com · 17/04/2026
It was under Biden that pandemic era programs expired, and we now know that it directly caused consumer sentiment to fall. The monthly child tax credit was a great policy that helped 40 million families, and when it stopped, Biden got the blame. It should be brought back and extended to adults too.
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Physicians for a Healthy Democracy @physiciandemocracy.medsky.social · 10/04/2026
@drneilstone.bsky.social
Sometimes vaccine efficacy is subtle.  Sometimes it isn’t. 
Graph showing the number of measles cases after the 1st and 2nd MMR vaccines were recommended.
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Brent Toderian @brenttoderian.bsky.social · 09/03/2026
Hi everyone. If every single one of you seeing this post considered clicking “follow” on our new account/movement, @urbantruth.bsky.social, our work would start regularly reaching a BIG audience, and that’s KEY to us having the REAL IMPACT we hope this initiative will have. Thanks for considering!
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Andy Fraser @andyfraser.bsky.social · 06/04/2026
One of the things that is so positive about the transformation of Paris is it was FAST. Converting a choked polluted city into a space for humans to thrive, move, and enjoy can be done within a decade. It’s within reach today: we just have to elect leaders that care about people more than cars.
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Alan Elrod @aselrod.bsky.social · 08/04/2026
We can’t unring the bell of an American president threatening to do genocide
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Michael Clemens @mclem.org · 07/04/2026
The man who coined the term genocide, Raphael Lemkin, defined it as a greater atrocity than mass murder explicitly because it involves the intentional killing of a civilization.
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Catherine Rampell @crampell.bsky.social · 07/04/2026
Brookings is partnering with Urban, AEI, Niskanen, Upjohn Institute to launch the Economic Indicators Initiative (EII), a collaborative effort with the mission of highlighting risks to the federal statistical system and strengthening the production of economic statistics
brookings.edu
Understanding the risks to economic statistics | Brookings
The Economic Indicators Initiative presents four papers framing the issues faced by the Federal Statistical System.
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Yonah Freemark @yonahfreemark.com · 08/04/2026
Conventional wisdom about the American electorate, be gone—even these St. Louis suburbanites are willing to pay taxes for their public services
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Pittsburgh New Liberals @pghnewliberals.bsky.social · 28/03/2026
No Kings in Pittsburgh!
No Kings protest in Pittsburgh. Mar 28, 2026
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David Zipper @davidzipper.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
New analysis suggests that researchers moved the goalposts in their randomized control trial evaluating fare-free transit in Pittsburgh, making results seem better than they were. Eliminating fares had minimal effects on income or healthcare use. nospin.evidencebasedpolicy.org/articles/fre...
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Mike Eliason @holz-bau.bsky.social · 21/03/2026
was touring a property that uses a trash valet and thought of @stephenjacobsmith.com and his excellent report on the hidden cost of trash centerforbuilding.org/publication/...
centerforbuilding.org
The Hidden Cost of Trash — Center for Building in North America
The Center for Building partnered with the Center for Zero Waste Design to calculate, for the first time, the costs to building owners of New York City's partic...
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Urban Truth Collective @urbantruth.bsky.social · 13/03/2026
"Cars are the most absurd means of transport in a city. They are parked 95 per cent of the time. It takes two tonnes to move someone who weighs 70 kilogrammes. And the denser the city, the more absurd it is." It’s not wrong. #UrbanTruth
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Boo!-per Lund @cooperlund.online · 11/03/2026
The idea that America isn’t for everyone who wants to be an American is something that makes my blood boil. Posting a photo of yourself as a Congressman smiling next to these words is wicked. It’s antithetical to the concept of America.
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Kevin Erdmann @kevinerdmann.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
The trend shift in adults per family household is so insane. its even more insane that every important policymaker and economist thought we were slowly soaking up a glut of homes even into the 2010s. And it’s even more insane that there are still supply-crisis skeptics today.
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critical slop studies @struthious.bsky.social · 23/02/2026
your strategy of building yuppie containment towers pales in comparison to mine, erecting internal borders or shaming yuppies into not moving to my city
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Michael Clemens @mclem.org · 01/02/2026
“If the person is a U.S. citizen or otherwise lawfully in the United States, that individual will be free to go after the brief encounter.” Justice Brett Kavanaugh www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24p...
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Patrick Siegman @siegman.biz · 31/01/2026
"The City of Castlegar has more parking spaces than it needs according to a recent report commissioned by the city.... Occupancy surveys done in May, August, and November 2025 found overall downtown parking utilization at 42%." Same old story! Minimum parking mandates lead to unused asphalt.
castlegarnews.com
Study shows Castlegar has more parking spaces than needed - Castlegar News
Downtown Castlegar has 1,444 total parking spaces
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Norm DePlume @normdeplume.bsky.social · 29/01/2026
Hannah Arendt did not mince words, did she? 'Totalitarianism replaces all first-rate talents with crackpots and fools whose lack of intelligence and creativity is still the best guarantee of their loyalty.' From "The Origins of Totalitarianism" (1951)
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M. Nolan Gray 🥑 @mnolangray.bsky.social · 28/01/2026
Massively expanding demand without doing anything on supply would only turbocharge housing crisis. A handful of incumbents owners would win big, many other incumbent owners would see property taxes rise, and few new homeowners would be created. www.wccsradio.com/2026/01/27/t...
wccsradio.com
Trump’s 401(k) housing pitch collapses into reality check as economists say supply is the real crisis
California's million-home shortage shows how strict zoning laws and environmental reviews drive housing prices to twice the national median, experts say.
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Sean Jursnick @seanjurs.bsky.social · 28/01/2026
Apartment floor plate comparison. Standard double-loaded corridor with single-aspect units on the left. Seattle single-stair project, with triple-aspect units on the right.
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Elizabeth Jacobs, PhD @elizabethjacobs.bsky.social · 28/01/2026
I am hearing that RFK Jr.’s minions are going to go after HPV vaccines. I’ve got problems with these people and now you’re going to hear about them, first from a personal perspective and then from a professional one. It all boils down to this: WE HAVE A SAFE VACCINE THAT PREVENTS CANCER.
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Michael Burchert @michaelburchert.bsky.social · 27/01/2026
🌡️Heat pumps convert 1 kilowatt hour into 3-5 kilowatt hours of heating / cooling power. 🏗️ Plant-based building materials absorb almost 4 kg of CO2 from the atmosphere per 1 kg of carbon, stored useful as buildings. 🪙 1 Euro invested in climate protection yields a return of ~ 5 Euros. Invest.
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Senator Dr. John Brown stan account, Esq., PhD, MD, JD, LCSW @johnbrownstan.bsky.social · 26/01/2026
This person is right, but it reminds me of how Republicans associated with January 6th clearly thought that they would go to jail for what they did, and then didn't because Democrats by and large chose not to pursue it to that extent.
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Senator Jeff Merkley @merkley.senate.gov · 26/01/2026
HELL NO. This is a clear violation of the Constitution and a chilling look into the Administration’s plans to terrorize our communities. Kristi Noem has to go. Now.
nbcnews.com
ICE says its officers can forcibly enter homes during immigration operations without judicial warrants: 2025 memo
The policy was revealed in a May 12 memo whistleblowers shared with a U.S. senator.
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Patrick Siegman @siegman.biz · 27/01/2026
In #Detroit, “The ordinance would allow for more types of multi-family housing, accessory dwelling units and apartments in commercial corridors, loosen requirements on how far homes must sit from property lines and decrease minimum parking requirements.“
bridgedetroit.com
Advocates work to build support in Detroit for housing reforms - BridgeDetroit
The statewide nonprofit, Abundant Housing Michigan, is advocating for a package of eight bills being put together by state Rep. Kristian Grant, D-Grand Rapids.
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Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani @mayor.nyc.gov · 26/01/2026
ICE murdered Renée Good in broad daylight. Less than 3 weeks later, they killed Alex Pretti, shooting him 10 times. Every day, we watch as people are ripped from their cars, their homes, their lives. We can't allow ourselves to look away from this cruelty. Abolish ICE.
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Dr. Samantha Hancox-Li @sjshancoxli.liberalcurrents.com · 26/01/2026
"what if the next administration will be democratic and they cut all the contracts with us?" maybe a something all these corporations that decided to throw themselves whole-hog into trumpism should have thought about!
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Will Stancil @whstancil.bsky.social · 26/01/2026
HOW IT WORKS IN MOVIES: 1. Government lies 2. Brave heroes release video showing the truth 3. Press says “the government is lying!” HOW IT APPARENTLY WORKS IN REAL LIFE 1. Brave heroes release video showing the truth 2. Government lies 3. Press says “Oh no, what now? So confusing! So hard!”
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Joe Cohen @cohenhouse.bsky.social · 26/01/2026
"Upzoning is destroying LA neighborhoods" Oh yea? Here's the 1930 zoning map for this lot. It was zoned "B" aka "R4" What did R4 allow in 1930? Any residential use "without limitation on the height or area" This area has actually been DOWNZONED
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Michael Clemens @mclem.org · 26/01/2026
This is superb analysis of facts.
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Stephen Jacob Smith @stephenjacobsmith.com · 25/01/2026
They had to make every single square inch of the facade of this modular affordable apartment building in Marin County different, just to make sure to not recognize too many efficiencies or cost savings from building it modularly sfyimby.com/2026/01/modu...
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"Online Rent-a-Sage" Bret Devereaux @bretdevereaux.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
You read things like this and you can only hope that when the time comes, if it comes, when it is your community's turn to be tested, that you acquit yourselves half as well.
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Bike Pittsburgh @bikepgh.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
👏 Yesterday on @citycastpgh.bsky.social -- Mayor O'Connor discussed building off of Pittsburgh's #VisionZero efforts pittsburgh.citycast.fm/podcasts/may...
pittsburgh.citycast.fm
Mayor O'Connor on ICE, Affordability & AI - City Cast Pittsburgh
What has Corey O'Connor been up to during his first month in office? Host Megan Harris sits down with the mayor to hear about new initiatives, tigh...
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Dr. Samantha Hancox-Li @sjshancoxli.liberalcurrents.com · 22/01/2026
i don't want to jump down anyone's throat but there's a reason everyone should read HOW THE WORLD BECAME RICH afterwards, you will understand why "how the fuck did we lift ourselves out of the primordial mud" is the central question of economic history and "law" is one of the going answers!
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Dave Jones @cleanpowerdave.bsky.social · 22/01/2026
Imagine! How could wind and solar ever compete with fossil fuel electricity across an entire year, across an entire block of 450 million people!?😉
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Jason Kuznicki @jkuznicki.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
Secret police keep their identities secret, and they operate by secret procedures that override ordinary law. This is a secret police force.
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Tory Wegerski @producertory.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
Absolutely massive turnout at the ICE Rapid Response training in Pittsburgh tonight, hosted by Frontline Dignity. Over 500 people showed up, including dozens from out of county & out of state.
Rows and rows of the backs of people's heads. They are seated in the pews of a Presbyterian church.
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critical slop studies @struthious.bsky.social · 20/01/2026
I know it's not the full story but part of what keeps me going is knowing that enabling people to move to cities is key to removing prejudices
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"Online Rent-a-Sage" Bret Devereaux @bretdevereaux.bsky.social · 19/01/2026
Good lord. If Trump seizes Greenland, he will have launched an unprovoked attack on a treaty ally, a true knife in the back of an old friend who bled for us in Afghanistan. THAT, not healthcare, not anything else, is the story. Trump proposes to rob and murder our old friends, are we to let him?
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Dr. Samantha Hancox-Li @sjshancoxli.liberalcurrents.com · 17/01/2026
land value tax would solve this
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Stephen Jacob Smith @stephenjacobsmith.com · 17/01/2026
If it takes mayoral intervention to get a single-stair building with three stories and six units approved in Toronto despite all these safety features (few of which are required even in the US) even after years of warming them up in various forums, current Toronto building and fire staff needs to go
In late 2024, the couple decided to pivot to a single stairway and hired building code consultant Jack Keays to get a design approved by city officials. The workaround, known as an
"alternative solution proposal," can have "an acceptable level of risk," Mr. Keays explained. But it needs to outperform what's set out in the building code.
Mr. Keays and Office Ou proposed four key enhancements: a building-wide sprinkler system; fire-retardant floors, walls and doors made to withstand fire for longer than the thresholds required under the building code; a staircase and landings wide enough for firefighters to pass exiting residents; and a mechanical ventilation system, with a backup generator, that forces pressurized air into the stairwell in the event of a fire and so prevents smoke from filling that space.
Toronto building examiners initially balked at Office Ou's solutions. "It's all about negotiation with the city, which was very complicated and convoluted," said Office Ou co-founder Uros Novakovic.
Frustrated by the lack of progress, Mr. Green and Ms. Blais took to social media to complain about the roadblocks. Their posts came to the attention of one of Mayor Olivia Chow's staff. "There had to be political involvement," Ms. Blais said.
"The mayor requested that the chief building official resolve the matter."
"This was the first single exit stair project with an alternative solution proposal that has come to our attention," Ms. Chow's spokesperson, Shirven Rezvany, explained. "Our goal was to help find a way to make it work and set an example that this kind of building is feasible."
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Sam @samd.bsky.social · 17/01/2026
90% of populist housing discourse is just this
immigrants are responsible for high housing costs
greedy developers are responsible for high housing costs
NIMBYs are responsible for high housing costs
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Michael Clemens @mclem.org · 17/01/2026
Shattering NATO by seizing Greenland is almost impossibly stupid, and Americans know it. Conservatives and Liberals.
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John Lansing @pipedreaming.bsky.social · 17/01/2026
Operation Breakthrough, a HUD project in the 1960s, produced some significant advances in prefabricated building construction methods and also exposed the need for building code reform.
nytimes.com
How an American Dream of Housing Became a Reality in Sweden (Published 2024)
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Zach Weinersmith @zachweinersmith.bsky.social · 16/01/2026
As the guy who's been shouting into the wind against immigration restriction for 10 years, my new fantasy is to be an anti version of Steve Miller. I convince a president to send gov't employees into neighborhoods to set up welcome centers with language/employment services.
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Max Dubler 🏳️‍🌈 @maxdubler.com · 16/01/2026
There are only 2 real policy responses to a housing shortage. You can either get to work building enough housing for everyone or start making a list of the types of people you want to exclude. I know which side I’m on.
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"Online Rent-a-Sage" Bret Devereaux @bretdevereaux.bsky.social · 16/01/2026
These goons are flabby weaklings and cowards, the loser servants of a loser president whose policy of domestic authoritarian 'raids' has been defeated at every turn by plucky, mobilized, civic-minded citizens who banded together to protect their neighbors. That's the good narrative, in my view.
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Dr. Samantha Hancox-Li @sjshancoxli.liberalcurrents.com · 16/01/2026
terrific conversation with @whstancil.bsky.social about what's going on in his home minneapolis right now. at the end he puts it very bluntly: ICE is not an immigration agency that just needs some technocratic reforms. ICE is a terror agency operating under the fig leaf of immigration.
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