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potatocouch.bsky.social

@potatocouch.bsky.social
630 followers 773 following 609 posts

Just some woman in Germany interested - unfortunately - in American history, politics and culture

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Reposted by @potatocouch.bsky.social
Olga Nesterova @onestpress.onestnetwork.com · 11/10/2026
Just read it. Bessent wrote Warren a letter
DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
WASHINGTON, D.C.
October 9, 2026
The Honorable Elizabeth Warren
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Senator Warren:
Thave received your October 7 letter, which adds to the mounting body of evidence of your complete paucity of knowledge about financial markets. Rather than take my suggestion of studying introductory economics, you have continued your letter-writing crusade and participation in tabloid fodder about the Treasury Department.
Unfortunately, it is difficult to treat your concerns as sincere. As the federal funds rate climbed from near zero to its highest level in 22 years, with inflation hitting a 40-year high, you were a cheerleader for the Biden Administration's reckless spending. You blamed the economic consequences on the Federal Reserve, rather than your own irresponsible fiscal policies. Your view of the economy depends on who occupies the White House, but your woeful understanding of the issues is consistent.
The "interventions" you describe as "unprecedented" have been underway since May 2024. The buyback program has been well received by market participants in bolstering Treasury liquidity, which reduces market volatility, increases the convenience yield of Treasury securities and ensures the best value for the taxpayer. The continued enhancements optimize Treasury market liquidity in primary and secondary markets. The U.S. Treasury market's liquidity and performance versus global peers is evidence.
While you voted for a $5 trillion tax hike on everyday Americans, the Working Families Tax Cuts continue to deliver for families and workers across the country. The average refund this filing season was over $3,400, an increase of 11 percent over the previous year. More than 30 million workers claimed No Tax on Overtime, more than 7 million claimed No Tax on Tips, and more than 37 million seniors claimed their enhanced deduction. More than 34 million families claimed the permanently enhanced Child Tax Credit, and …These results are made possible by the employees of the Department of the Treasury, who are working around the clock for the American people. Unsurprisingly, you have responded by criticizing their dedication and aptitude for the job in a recent interview.' Despite your malign characterization, the Domestic Finance team you alluded to in your interview is fully staffed relative to historical levels. It is ironic that you have voted against every presidential appointee for a position at Treasury, no matter how impressive the qualifications for the role. Given your newfound interest in Department personnel, I challenge you to reverse course and thoughtfully engage with future nominees and support their confirmation.
Finally, my offer of a Foreign Exchange for Dummies tutorial still stands and if you receive a passing grade on the Yale metric, not the Harvard curve, I would be happy to also include a Fixed Income for Dummies.
Sincerely,
Aver Bout
Happy Indigenous Peoples'
Say in advance to you and your family.
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batkaren @batkaren.bsky.social · 9h
Ruin a book by adding a word Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret Thatcher
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Truthout @truthout.org · 9h
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is one of several religious institutions taking a stance on the initiative.
buff.ly
Mormon Church Donates $1 Million to Fight Idaho Abortion Rights Ballot Measure
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is one of many religious institutions taking a stance on the initiative.
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Sarah from the Leftist Cooks @saribo.bsky.social · 10h
My friend was raped when we were 17. She only wanted the morning after pill, but I insisted we report it. I sat with her as the officer told her he thought she was a liar; my friend ran out of the police station sobbing. I think of this whenever someone says "you should have gone to the cops"
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Sergio Perez @sergioperez.bsky.social · 10h
Most elected officials are careerists - meaning that if you don’t push them, they’ll take the path of least resistance. Now is the time to be loud & clear about what America needs: A transparent accounting of everything that’s gone wrong, & consequences for those responsible.
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skáld @danglinghemmie.bsky.social · 10h
data center boosters try to keep the conversation focused on water consumption because air pollution is where the acute problem is
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Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 9h
This is what competitive authoritarianism looks like - we still have elections, but under conditions that are not equal and not fair.
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Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 10h
Mamdani: "We are talking a federal agency that is ripping families apart, that's willing to endanger the lives of a 5 year old child as well as any New Yorker in the surrounding area, % then after the fact, seeks to blame the person and the city at large as opposed to reflect upon their own actions"
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Alexander Howard @digiphile.bsky.social · 11h
If @fetterman.senate.gov doesn’t want to d the work of representing the people of Pennsylvania, then he should resign & give another Pennsylvanian the opportunity to serve. www.inquirer.com/politics/pen... Service is a privilege. @johnfetterman.com is wasting taxpayer dollars by not doing his job.
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Truthout @truthout.org · 11h
As the Trump administration guts disaster aid, it’s time for an extreme weather superfund paid for by fossil fuel firms.
buff.ly
Extreme Weather Disasters Cost Hundreds of Billions. Let’s Make Polluters Pay.
As the Trump administration guts disaster aid, it’s time for an extreme weather superfund paid for by fossil fuel firms.
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Gwen Snyder is uncivil @gwensnyder.bsky.social · 12h
I wonder what would have happened if folks had taken seriously the rise in political violence and threats against women, trans, Black, and antifascist organizers and figures back when we were all getting swatted and sent photoshops of ourselves beheaded
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Gabrielle A. Perry, MPH @geauxgabrielle.blacksky.app · 11h
People also cant believe there is such a thing as “cell rent.” 41 states have it & even if you leave early states like FL make you pay the TOTALITY of your original stay. One Black woman was billed $127,000 ($50 a day for 2,555 days) for the full 7 years of her sentence despite only staying 10 mos
She Only Served 10 Months Behind Bars. Florida Still Slapped Her With A $127,000 Bill.
Under Florida's "pay-to-stay" law, inmates are charged $50 for every day of their sentence—including time they never spent incarcerated.
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Taniel @taniel.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
School boards are way under the radar in a big year like this, but the same battles you've heard about (book bans, Moms for Liberty, trans kids) are happening this year too. I identified 19 school boards where there battles like this — and what's up: boltsmag.org/whats-on-the...
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Gillian Brockell @gillianbrockell.com · 12h
Cuban Americans in power don’t yet realize that Cubans are the primary victims of third-country removal. Hell, a certain Cuban American former senator is rubber-stamping it! They might think their proximity to whiteness will protect them from this white supremacist government. It will not.
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FragDenStaat @fragdenstaat.de · 08/10/2026
Reinhard Strecker setzte sich dafür ein, dass Nazitäter zur Rechenschaft gezogen werden. Dafür wurde er im Auftrag des damaligen Kanzleramtschefs Hans Globke (CDU) gleich von zwei Geheimdiensten beschattet. Wir veröffentlichen Dokumente seiner Überwachung. fragdenstaat.de/artikel/exkl...
fragdenstaat.de
Kampf gegen Naziverbrecher: Das Vermächtnis von Reinhard Strecker
Reinhard Strecker zeigte die Kontinuitäten des Nationalsozialismus in der Bundesrepublik auf. Nun ist er verstorben. Wegen seiner Arbeit wurde er von gleich zwei deutschen Geheimdiensten beschattet. W...
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Jamal Greene @jamalgreene.bsky.social · 13h
A massive, and massively underrated, threat to a functioning democracy. (gift link) www.nytimes.com/2026/10/11/u...
nytimes.com
Threats of Political Violence Have America’s Elected Officials Living in Fear (Gift Article)
A Times investigation has found that violent threats have become a new normal among public officials, reshaped private lives, cost millions in security and pushed people out of office.
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Jake Grumbach @jakemgrumbach.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
Peter Thiel is about to turn 59 and a half this year, so he’ll be able to withdraw his more than $5 billion in capital gains tax free because he legally gamed the Roth IRA system. Superrich just have different rules. Propublica’s 2021 report: www.propublica.org/article/lord...
propublica.org
Lord of the Roths: How Tech Mogul Peter Thiel Turned a Retirement Account for the Middle Class Into a $5 Billion Tax-Free Piggy Bank
Roth IRAs were intended to help average working Americans save, but IRS records show Thiel and other ultrawealthy investors have used them to amass vast untaxed fortunes.
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No More Deaths | No Más Muertes @nomoredeaths.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
⚠️ Border wall contractors plan to remove thousands of sacred saguaros (ha:ṣañ) on sovereign O'odham land starting Monday — Indigenous People's Day. Tadai Me:i Camp calls supporters to join in prayer and protest on the Tohono O’odham Nation.
INDIGENOUS PEOPLE'S DAY
OCTOBER 12, 2026
BORDER WALL CONTRACTORS ARE SET TO BEGIN REMOVING SACRED SAGUAROS AND OCOTILLO IN THE FIRST PHASE OF CONSTRUCTION ON THE TOHONO O'ODHAM NATION.
THE TADAI ME: CAMP CALLS FOR PUBLIC SUPPORT TO THE BORDER TO STAND WITH THE TOHONO O'ODHAM IN OUR FIGHT TO PROTECT O'ODHAM JEWED (LAND).
THESE ARE NON-VIOLENT GATHERINGS!
EVERYONE WELCOME
ALL ONK AKIMEL, KE:LI AKIMEL, AK-CHIN, HIA CED, TOHONO AND MEXICO O'ODHAM STRONGLY ENCOURAGED
PLEASE COME
PREPARED FOR THE
+
• -
+
ELEMENTS (HEAT/RAIN), COME HEALTHY, AND
ALL ELDERS, SINGERS, AND
SELF SUFFICIENT.10/10 - 10/11
GATHERING OF O'ODHAM SISTER
TRIBES AT TADAI ME:I CAMP
10/12 - Prayer to Action
SUNRISE
HIMDAG 'O WUD T-GEWKDAG (OUR
CULTURE IS OUR STRENGTH) GATHERING AT THE TADAI ME:I CAMP AT KO:LI KI:JIG.
9:00 AM
GEWKDAG HI:M (GO IN STRENGTH)
MARCH STARTING AT BASHAS PLAZA, BRING YOUR SIGNS AND WALK IN PEACEFUL PROTEST AGAINST THE DESTRUCTION OF O'ODHAM LAND.Camp is located at the San Miguel Gate, on South Indian
Route 19
Turn right at the "Entering
Prayer Camp" sign
Be aware of cattle and Border Patrol on your way down
If you are planning on staying at Tadai Me:i Camp, you will be required to check in with Camp Caretakers for safety checks and information before entering camps.
Be respectful of camp protocols
No alcohol, drugs or weapons. Zero tolerance.
IF YOU AIN'T PRAYING, YOU AIN'T STAYING!Tohono O'odham Nation Emergency Mobile Command will be stationed at San Miguel
Community Building
In case of emergency dial 911 or T.O.N. Dispatch at 520-383-6412
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Maggie McNeill @maggiemcneill.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
The term everyone is dancing around is "secret police", a hallmark of totalitarian regimes.
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Matthew Guariglia @mguariglia.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
Democrats must recon with the idea that, guided by ideology and in exchange for massive profits from government contracts, many of these tech companies were *fine* assisting with the erosion of democracy and civil/human rights violations en mass.
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Athul K. Acharya @athul.acharya.cc · 10/10/2026
Holy shit they disenfranchised nearly ten percent of the population. It’s like a GOP wet dream
nytimes.com
India Cut 130 Million From Voter Roll, Fueling Protests Against Modi
Public anger is growing over an exercise that critics say undermines the world’s largest democracy, particularly disenfranchising Muslims under the Hindu nationalist government.
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Anna Holmes @annabookwriter.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
The rage I feel is only contained because screaming the way I want to would scare neighbors. Never again was supposed to mean never again.
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Gillian Brockell @gillianbrockell.com · 09/10/2026
Aminata Seck has been freed. "I'm just ready to go back to school, get my master's and get this surgery done,” she said. ICE kept her in pain in detention for two months for no reason. www.espn.com/womens-colle...
espn.com
Kentucky State player released on bond from ICE custody
Kentucky State University women's basketball center Aminata Seck was released on bond Wednesday after spending two months in ICE custody.
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Mike (They/Them) 🏳️‍⚧️🇵🇸🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 @mxmike.co.uk · 18h
Bethany wore a “Protect The Dolls” t-shirt during rehearsals. The BBC posted it on their socials then quietly deleted and reposted it without showing her from the front. On TV last night they actually blurred the message #Strictly
Bethany Antonia rehearsing for Strictly Come Dancing in a Protect The Dolls t-shirt Bethany Antonia rehearsing for Strictly Come Dancing in a Protect The Dolls t-shirt that’s been edited to look like a plain white t shirt
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Caroline Litman @alicemydaughter.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
Your regular reminder that my daughter Alice’s death wasn’t counted in Appleby’s report, despite her meeting all the criteria. And when I emailed the Tavistock adult GIC to inform them they could take Alice off the waitlist, because she’d died by suicide, they never replied. It’s a disgrace.
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Moira Donegan @moiradonegan.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
I don’t think people outside of the Bay Area are aware of how strongly the tech sector’s love of eugenics is inflicted with a navel-gazing autistic supremacy.
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United Farm Workers @ufw.bsky.social · 23h
Warrantless stops and violent roving patrols by masked federal agents across California, especially the Central Valley, have been terrorizing farm workers for the past 5 days. The chaos is escalating. full statement: www.dailykos.com/stories/2026...
United Farm Workers union condemns brutal
ICE surge impacting farm workers in Central Valley; highlights Rep. Valadao's comments as 'insulting' to his constituents
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Sheryl Weikal says Prosecute ICE @leftistlawyer.com · 10/10/2026
What Derek Chauvin did to George Floyd was a public extrajudicial execution. Keep that in mind when you say we haven't had a public execution since 1936. We have, actually. Many times. They're called police murders.
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Cats of Yore @catsofyore.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
Two cool ladies and a small pal. Photo from my collection, ca. 1930s.
A black and white photo of two “tomboyish” looking women with their arms slung around each other, one of them holding a kitten. They're outside and wearing work clothes.
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EL PAÍS @elpais.com · 10/10/2026
📹 "¿Quién tiene la culpa de alargar las listas de espera en la sanidad? ¿Un chaval que viene en patera desde África o Quirón?". Irene Montero anima a "mirar para arriba y repartir ese dinero para que todo el mundo pueda vivir con dignidad" social.elpais.com/s6q…
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Rachel Maddow @maddow.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
Today in DC: "Beginning Saturday, crews will start another major round of cutting at the historic public golf course. The first phase contains 169 trees marked for removal. The Trump Administration says as many as 529 could eventually come down..." www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2026/...
washingtonpost.com
More than 500 trees may be removed from D.C. golf course Trump wants to redesign
Beginning Saturday, National Park Service crews will start another major round of cutting at East Potomac Golf Links, according to a new filing in federal court.
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Karrie Jacobs @karrieurbanist.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
“Public bathrooms are generally not required in the city’s network of privately owned public spaces, which includes plazas, arcades and small parks.” But that could change. And it should change. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/10/n...
nytimes.com
A New Tower Will Have Lots of Public Space but No Public Bathrooms (Gift Article)
Amid a bathroom shortage in New York City, community leaders and advocates are calling on city officials to require bathroom access in privately owned public spaces.
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Bill Kristol @billkristolbulwark.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
Abolish ICE.
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Courtney Milan @courtneymilan.com · 10/10/2026
If I built an AI lab and it went rogue and deleted all student loan information, I'm betting they'd suddenly figure out how to prosecute me.
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Brian Goldstone @brian-goldstone.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
It's World Homeless Day, and I'll just say: Homelessness isn't some great unsolvable mystery. People are homeless because they don't have homes. This suffering persists not for lack of solutions, but because enormous wealth and power are invested in maintaining the very structures that produce it.
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bbeach.bsky.social @bbeach.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
People to name and shame. Starting with Richard and Elizabeth Uihlein. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/09/o...
nytimes.com
Opinion | Want to Avoid Another Jan. 6? Defeat These Republicans. (Gift Article)
The 2028 election is on the ballot right now.
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Charlie Stross @cstross.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Oh my: LibreOffice just made "no AI" one of their official features: blog.documentfoundation.org/blog/2026/09...
blog.documentfoundation.org
Yes, no AI is now a feature - TDF Community Blog
One of the comments on the announcement of LibreOffice 26.8 was a simple question: “So, no AI is now a feature?” LibreOffice does not reject artificial intelligence out of hand, but an office suite us...
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Ursula K. Le Guin Bot @leguinbot.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
A machine is more blameless, more sinless even than any animal. It has no intentions whatsoever but our own.
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Frau Büüsker @uedio.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
Die Bundesregierung kürzt am Wohngeld. Um Geld zu sparen. Ca. 380.000 Haushalte weniger werden dann Unterstützung bekommen. Viele werden in die Grundsicherung rutschen, v.a. Rentner:innen. Menschen, deren Leben durch diese Regierung schlechter wird www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/wohn...
sueddeutsche.de
Wohngeld 2027: Wer weniger bekommt – und wer in die Grundsicherung muss
Die Bundesregierung will beim Wohngeld sparen. 240 000 Haushalte fallen ganz aus der Förderung, 143 000 müssen in die Grundsicherung wechseln.
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It's Going Down @igd.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
"Construction workers in #SanDiego stood up to ICE agents who tried to kidnap their co-workers on the job site...workers stopped their job, helped their co-workers get away and demanded that ICE leave." Source Stop ICE: www.instagram.com/p/DeQGKxtv4Pq/
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Greg Wester @gwestr.me · 10/10/2026
Musked
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Gilda Sahebi @gildasahebi.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
„Die AfD stellt im Parlament Punkt für Punkt Inhalte der CDU zur Abstimmung, aber die CDU ist wegen der Brandmauer gezwungen, dagegenzustimmen.“ Das sagt der CSU-Politiker und EVP-Chef Manfred Weber im SZ-Interview. Es ist wohl das erste Mal, dass ein hochrangiger Unionspolitiker offen sagt, dass
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Dr Abeba Birhane @abeba.blacksky.app · 10/10/2026
the latest anthropic cry abt "cruelty" & "abuse" of ai is truly stupid. i beg journalists to stop parroting amodei we wrote why dehumanisation of ai is impossible & 6+ yrs later, everything in this paper holds Robot Rights? Let’s Talk about Human Welfare Instead dl.acm.org/doi/pdf/10.1...
Yet we disagree robots should be treated as ‘slaves’. In defense
of her position, Bryson states: “But surely dehumanization is only
wrong when it’s applied to someone who really is human?” Our
position would be that ‘dehumanization’ is not so much wrong
for robots, it is impossible. One cannot dehumanize something
that wasn’t human to begin with. If one uses the term slave, one
implicitly assumes that the being one so names is the kind of being
can be ‘dehumanized’. One has already implicitly ‘humanized’ the
robot, before subsequently enslaving it. One should obviously not
enslave someone first taken to be human.
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Parents For Future #EndFossilFuels 🪧🛢️❌ @parentsforfuture.de · 10/10/2026
btw IFG: Das wäre für @greenpeace.de und andere zivilgesellschaftliche Organisationen nicht mehr möglich. Spitzen von CDU/CSU & SPD haben beschlossen, das Informationsfreiheitsgesetz (IFG) faktisch abzuschaffen – ein Frontalangriff auf unsere Informationsfreiheit und Demokratie. @fragdenstaat.de ✍️
weact.campact.de
SPD, stoppt den Frontalangriff auf die Informationsfreiheit!
Wir alle haben das Recht auf staatliche Informationen. Seit 2006 müssen Behörden auf Antrag nach dem Informationsfreiheitsgesetz (IFG) Dokumente herausgeben – seien es Verträge, interne Weisungen oder...
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City of Minneapolis @minneapolismn.gov · 09/10/2026
Today, and every day, we stand with the Somali community.
The marquee at Cedar Culture Center with the message "We love our Somali neighbors" written out.
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Greg Pak @gregpak.net · 10/10/2026
Hundreds of protestors march from the site where an ICE agent shot a father in the Bronx on 10/8 to the hospital where he was being held. Defund and abolish ICE. Chinga la migra. 🧵 of photos...
A big crowd of protestors march in protest of an ICE agent shooting a father in the Bronx. Banner up front reads "JUSTICE FOR LORENZO, JOAN AND ALL VICTIMS OF ICE / Party for Socialism & Liberation." Signs read "Chinga la Migra" and "ICE OUT OF NYC"
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Soraya Nadia McDonald @soraya.press · 10/10/2026
The machine did not "go rogue." The machine belongs to and is the responsibility of the people who own it. Hold those people accountable for their goddamn machine.
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Max Dubler 🏳️‍🌈 @maxdubler.com · 10/10/2026
Elite impunity is perhaps the single greatest problem in American politics going back to Gerald Ford’s Watergate pardons. These people keep getting away with it. This needs to stop.
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