Sign in

Randolph

@somewingedthing.bsky.social
118 followers 214 following 63 posts

writer + visual artist + policy nerd | 😷 | 🩷💜💙

PostsRepliesMedia
Reposted by Randolph
Citizen.Coping @propcazhpm.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
Massachusettes "Millionaires Tax", which was targeted to fund transportation and education, has been a resounding success. It has funded FREE school lunch for ALL students, FREE buses in lowest income communities (people can get to work, etc.), and FREE community college. And "exodus" was minimal.
boston.com
Millionaires tax surges past expectations, once again
The voter-approved surtax has sailed past its $2 billion estimate for another year in a row.
192421808
Reposted by Randolph
Eek K. Blood 🎃💀 (Key K. Bird 🗝️🦉) @keychanged.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
Couldn't be happier to have the first glimpse at my in-progress novel, Conjoined States, at @miznaarabart.bsky.social! Go read the full excerpt and check out the rest of the Tongues Untethered folio! mizna.org/mizna-online...
The following excerpt is part of the Mizna Online digital curation, Tongues Untethered: Cross-Cultural Writing and Identity Beyond Language. We encourage you to read this piece alongside other works in the folio.

Wahmi by Key K. Bird

Mirages are the perfect tool to counter knowledge brokers. Appearing online like a charm at the moment Know Bros needed a lead, mirages offered everything data chasers prayed for on their knees at night: insider intel, state secrets, and reasonably reliable rumors. Mirages promised the impossible, distracted Know Bros by feeding and misleading, granting them their most selfish wish: all the data they could ever ask for. Flooding data warehouses with invalid, outdated details, the agents behind the mirage used the storm to hide their tracks while they searched the brokerage for high-end assets: the names of investors who avoided paying taxes in one state by buying property in another, real estate developers who built state prisons that charged a nightly rate, and donors who bankrolled junior police academies in exchange for easy tax breaks. Once the agents had these winners’ names, they vanished along with the sand. And like real mirages, proving they’d ever existed was a pipe dream. Mirages fit the space where trust rubbed shoulders with belief. That’s why Rahmi Naifeh chose Wahmi as her codename. Close enough to her first name to have its own magnetic pull, wahmi winked at Rahmi like an Arabic abracadabra. Among other things, in Araby, wahmi means mirage.Key K. Bird stands in front of a theatrical backdrop that shows a painted scene of a tree in a field with a curtain at its edge. Key wears a green keffiyeh, a mask embroidered with Palestinian tatreez, a brown blazer, vest, shirt, and pants. Their dark hair is curly and short. They face the viewer with a hand in their pocket. Text besides Key reads: "Wahmi by Key K. Bird, Mizna Online, Tongues Untethered." Mizna's colophon appears in the right corner in Arabic.
023
Reposted by Randolph
Eek K. Blood 🎃💀 (Key K. Bird 🗝️🦉) @keychanged.bsky.social · 30/04/2026
Three days, Boston! This Saturday, I'll be reading with @somewingedthing.bsky.social @bananascallops.bsky.social @toshines.bsky.social and Dominick Knowles at UNAUTHORIZED! See you in the Common near the bandstand! #FallOfFreedom #FallOfFreedomMayDay
011
Reposted by Randolph
Evan Greer @evangreer.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
THREAD: I've now analyzed @massgovernor.bsky.social's proposed social media legislation and ... ... it is somehow even worse than the House bill that passed last week (which was already one of the worst bills on this issue we've seen in the US.) You might wanna sit down for this. Here goes: 🧵
39547
Reposted by Randolph
Molly Knight @mollyknight.bsky.social · 31/03/2026
Please unfollow me if you are a transphobe or TERF or “just asking questions.” All human beings deserve the same rights. Nobody should be afraid they are going to get beat up or ridiculed or fired based on their gender identity. Protect the dolls today and forever. Always stand up to bullies.
539754
Reposted by Randolph
L Ron Mexico @lronmexico.bsky.social · 23/03/2026
This really is an encapsulation of what being an American is: experiencing something needlessly cruel and profoundly stupid while propaganda you can’t turn off blares about how free and lucky you are
5054121777
Reposted by Randolph
CJ Fogler @cjzero.bsky.social · 16/03/2026
"No to war... and free Palestine" Javier Bardem
181155143222
Reposted by Randolph
Sarah J. Jackson @sjjphd.bsky.social · 15/02/2026
Someone has sure already made this observation but the fact they can convert all those empty warehouses into prison camps means they could have converted them into housing, community centers, job training centers or, hell, libraries or schools all along. It’s always a matter of will not resources.
6474120613896
Reposted by Randolph
Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò @olufemiotaiwo.bsky.social · 13/02/2026
so about the relationship between the state and capital
8422132
Reposted by Randolph
Laleh Khalili @lalehkhalili.bsky.social · 30/01/2026
It is fitting that the US edition of concentration camps are going to be situated in disused warehouses (former data centres?): www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
bloomberg.com
ICE Begins Buying ‘Mega’ Warehouse Detention Centers Across US
Plans for such centers and jails in nearly two dozen communities have sparked protests over suitability, proximity to homes and schools.
35725
Reposted by Randolph
bob barker 🍸 @insortediaboli.bsky.social · 16/01/2026
Look at this absolute queen
When someone asked "Why would you as a business choose to piss off 1/2 of your potential customers? Just curious what sense that makes." the bakery responded with "I don't want those customers."
18214355312
Reposted by Randolph
Nina Jankowicz @ninajankowicz.com · 11/01/2026
I can't say this loudly enough: THEY ARE TRYING TO NORMALIZE THE KILLING OF CIVILIANS FOR PARTICIPATING IN FIRST AMENDMENT PROTECTED PROTEST ACTIVITIES.
23082252622
Reposted by Randolph
Ben Hart @pavlovforgoths.com · 09/01/2026
the discourse on what jobs are acceptable to replace with generative AI reveals a lot about what we think of other people's jobs
recently my friend's comics professor told her that it's acceptable to use gen AI for script-writing but not for art, since a machine can't generate meaningful artistic work. meanwhile, my sister's screenwriting professor said that they can use gen AI for concept art and visualization, but that it won't be able to generate a script that's any good. and at my job, it seems like each department says that AI can be useful in every field except the one that they know best.

It's only ever the jobs we're unfamiliar with that we assume can be replaced with automation. The more attuned we are with certain processes, crafts, and occupations, the more we realize that gen AI will never be able to provide a suitable replacement. The case for its existence lies on our ignorance of the work and skill required to do everything we don't.

By magicmosshka, yesterday's
9595924305
Reposted by Randolph
Marisa Kabas @marisakabas.bsky.social · 15/12/2025
every post is like i bet you didn’t know this absolutely wonderful thing about rob reiner and each one is different
5482651291
Reposted by Randolph
Taylor Lorenz @taylorlorenz.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
🚨 URGENT!!!!!! Congress is trying to ram through 18 massive censorship/surveillance laws TODAY 🚨 CALL THESE REPS NOW and tell them —NO to KOSA —NO to Section 230 reform —NO to age verification laws —NO to the SCREEN Act —NO to digital ID laws (App Store Accountability Act) badinternetbills.com
1819902338
Reposted by Randolph
Danielle Froom 🏳️‍🌈 @danifroom.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
115 Democrats just voted to codify the first federal trans segregation law.
The FY26 NDAA delivers on President Trump’s pledge to end wokeism and restore lethality and the warrior ethos in our military.
Prohibits Men In Women’s Sports• Permanently prohibits men from playing on women’s sports teams at all military academies.
7925461100
Reposted by Randolph
Larry Ferlazzo @larryferlazzo.bsky.social · 04/12/2025
U.S. reinstates all canceled library grants after court order www.washingtonpost.com/style/2025/1...
washingtonpost.com
U.S. reinstates all canceled library grants after court order
A court ruled that Trump’s effort to dismantle the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the only federal agency dedicated to funding libraries, was unlawful.
12983277
Reposted by Randolph
Brian Hughes @bmhughes.bsky.social · 01/12/2025
This is actually quite brilliant, up to and including the final sentence 🔥
5682880011202
Reposted by Randolph
Josh Chafetz @joshchafetz.bsky.social · 29/11/2025
Oof. He was truly a master, from Rosenkrantz & Guildenstern to Arcadia to Leopoldstadt—just a lifetime of tremendous, thought-provoking, hilarious work. RIP. www.bbc.com/news/article...
bbc.com
Playwright Sir Tom Stoppard dies at 88
21677142
Reposted by Randolph
AndreaDC she/her✊🏼♥️🌿🌎🌍🌏🍉🌻Despair is a luxury we just can’t afford @andreadoremus.bsky.social · 27/11/2025
TODAY at 12noon, EST. www.youtube.com/live/6u-jF6p.... This zoom is ALWAYS beautiful and powerful. #Thanksgiving #ThanksgivingMorning #NationalDayOfMourning @universalhub.com
youtube.com
[LIVE] National Day of Mourning 2025, (27 November 25 @ 12pm ET)
National Day of Mourning Since 1970, Indigenous people & their allies have gathered at noon on Cole's Hill in Plymouth to commemorate a National Day of Mourning on the US Thanksgiving holiday. Many N...
0118
Reposted by Randolph
Rabih Alameddine @rabihalameddine.bsky.social · 27/11/2025
Happy Thanksgiving, America
201313284
Reposted by Randolph
Aparna Nair @disabilitystor1.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
I wonder how many employers might actually refuse to hire the post-ChatGPT generation or they might end up fired because they cant do the things their degrees say they can do Id be very angry with universities for hyping gAI the way they have, if I was a student or parent, tbh.
110128
Reposted by Randolph
Dr. Lucky Tran @luckytran.com · 15/11/2025
💔 Alice Wong’s last words: “Don’t let the bastards grind you down.” We can never thank Alice enough for fighting all the good fights and especially all the hard fights. We all learned so much from your brilliance, your courage, and your indefatigable leadership. We will never forget you.
This is Alice's friend Sandy Ho, posting. Per Alice's wishes, this message is being shared at the time of her passing.
Hi everyone, it looks like I ran out of time. I have so many dreams that I wanted to fulfill and plans to create new stories for you. There are a few in progress that might come to fruition in a few years if things work out. I did not ever imagine I would live to this age and end up a writer, editor, activist, and more. As a kid riddled with insecurity and internalized ableism, I could not see a path forward. It was thanks to friendships and some great teachers who believed in me that I was able to fight my way out of miserable situations into a place where I finally felt comfortable in my skin.
We need more stories about us and our culture.
You all, we all, deserve the everything and more in such a hostile, ableist environment. Our wisdom is incisive and unflinching. I'm honored to be your ancestor and believe disabled oracles like us will light the way to the future. Don't let the bastards grind you down. I love you all.
101115304
Reposted by Randolph
dan sinker @dansinker.com · 10/11/2025
How about we shut down the government for this very popular and specific goal and then, hear me out, we hold out for like a month and a half and then, ok this part is important, after a watershed election where we ran the table, ONLY THEN, fold and don't get the one thing we said we wanted.
255150774046
Reposted by Randolph
Gisele Navarro @ichbingisele.bsky.social · 07/11/2025
"AI is a direct attack on the way we verify information: AI both creates fake sources and obscures its actual sources. That is the opposite of what librarians do, and teachers do, and scientists do, and experts do." 🔗 www.404media.co/ai-is-superc...
16023
Randolph @somewingedthing.bsky.social · 03/11/2025
It's hard to overstate how systemically dangerous this type of securitization is.
000
Reposted by Randolph
Catherine Rampell @crampell.bsky.social · 02/11/2025
The USDA sent an email to grocery stores telling them they are prohibited from offering special discounts to customers affected by the SNAP funding lapse. I'm aware of at least 2 stores that had offered struggling customers a discount, then withdrew it after receiving this email
117794395231
Reposted by Randolph
Merriam-Webster @merriam-webster.com · 01/10/2025
We are thrilled to announce that our NEW Large Language Model will be released on 11.18.25.
648249418244
Reposted by Randolph
Karl Bode @karlbode.com · 08/10/2025
twice a year the entire U.S. press becomes a marketing extension of a single billionaire-owned retailer, and nobody in any position of editorial power thinks it's weird or gross
photo of Google News search results for Amazon Prime Day (the second this year)
18687962769
Reposted by Randolph
jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 04/10/2025
the usual story. rich guy wants to punish universities for not clamping down on pro-palestinian protests and for doing too much to recruit minorities. at base these guys want the top tier of american universities to become, once more, safe-spaces for their dunderheaded failsons
nytimes.com
The Billionaire Behind Trump’s Deal for Universities
12058771324
Reposted by Randolph
Vulture @vulture.com · 30/09/2025
‘Reading Rainbow’ is being revived on YouTube with new host Mychal Threets taking over from LeVar Burton. A new generation of public-media defenders is about to rise up.
vulture.com
Reading Rainbow Is Back for a Reread
‘Reading Rainbow’ is being revived on YouTube with new host Mychal Threets taking over from LeVar Burton. A new generation of public-media defenders is about to rise up.
1485
Reposted by Randolph
cait (and adonis) @cait.bsky.social · 30/09/2025
just guess
cait (and adonis)
@cait.bsky.social
i'm sorry to say this but if you send me a tiktok of a person telling a story into the camera for 3 minutes i'm not fucking watching it. just in general ever. people need to start typing things up again because i can read so much faster than you can talk and i'm not wasting my precious time on this
November 11, 2023 at 1:49 AM
1.3K reposts 265 quotes 5.8K likes
Everybody can reply 0
84111472261
Reposted by Randolph
Lupita Nihongo @otsumamiboy.blacksky.app · 28/09/2025
It is actually peak absurdity that we still have people arguing that voters should bend to the positions of their political representatives instead of the other way around.
8868121575
Reposted by Randolph
Brandon Friedman @brandonfriedman.bsky.social · 15/09/2025
This is the mugshot of a literal political prisoner, arrested, thrown in jail, then expelled from a public university, for yelling at Charlie Kirk supporters
fox4news.com
Texas Tech student expelled after video showing Charlie Kirk rant on campus
An 18-year-old Texas Tech University student is no longer enrolled at the university after a video appearing to show her mocking the death of Charlie Kirk went viral.
11745981459
Reposted by Randolph
Micah @rincewind.run · 12/09/2025
going from "transgender ideology" to "look at the poor misguided white kid" without even taking a breath, unconscionable
51128853562
Reposted by Randolph
Universal Hub @universalhub.com · 04/09/2025
Healey: Massachusetts insurers have to cover the cost of all vaccines approved by the state, no matter what the brainworm in chief says. This includes MassHealth and GIC.
13731181
Reposted by Randolph
emily blight 🐦‍⬛ @threnody.northsky.social · 04/09/2025
a family member yesterday said they’d just celebrated 25yrs at a job & had a pension & i’m almost certainly halfway done with my life & despite paying $21k toward my student loan, i owe more than i originally borrowed & own nothing real aside from a 15yo car. glad gen z sees the con before i did.
522647
Randolph @somewingedthing.bsky.social · 02/09/2025
Strange Currencies
020
Reposted by Randolph
Julia Métraux @juliametraux.bsky.social · 27/08/2025
Per the CDC, physical inactivity and mental illness puts people at severe risk of Covid complications. These are wide categories (though wish it was just open to everyone in this approval).
24322
Randolph @somewingedthing.bsky.social · 26/08/2025
I had only looked through the "round 2 selections." I very much did not know what I was missing.
010
Reposted by Randolph
Dr. Lucky Tran @luckytran.com · 26/08/2025
There are lots of rumors flying around about what might happen to COVID vaccine access, but please note we still do not have any official news yet. While we wait, there are things you can do: 1️⃣ Wear a mask to prevent COVID transmission 2️⃣ Push your elected officials to speak up about vaccine access
321431473
Reposted by Randolph
IYKYK 🌮 @nisslbody.blacksky.app · 08/08/2025
I hate the movement to shift responsibility for health onto the individual, knowing full well that A. health is social, and B. our society is structured so that most individuals are not privy to the resources they would need for full health.
013532
Reposted by Randolph
saint-timonious.bsky.social @saint-timonious.bsky.social · 05/08/2025
MA put in a 4% millionaires tax 2 years ago, & the GOP said we'd miss revenue targets & millionaires would flee. MA collected TWICE the projected revenues, & the number of millionaires went UP 40%. www.wbur.org/news/2025/04...
wbur.org
Not fleeing: New report shows more wealthy residents in Mass., 2 years into 'millionaire's tax'
Despite previous concerns, Massachusetts' "millionaire's tax" hasn't seemed to deter high-earners from continuing to live here, according to a new study from the Institute for Policy Studies.
181034411
Reposted by Randolph
Steve Herman @w7voa.journa.host.ap.brid.gy · 03/08/2025
The US could see a 30-40% decline in new international student enrollment, resulting in nearly $7 billion in lost revenue and more than 60,000 fewer American jobs. www.nafsa.org/fall-2025-internation…
12526621190
Reposted by Randolph
Julia Carrie Wong @joolia.bsky.social · 31/07/2025
Between March and June, Israel allowed just 56,000 tonnes of food to enter the territory, less than a quarter of Gaza’s minimum needs for that period … Even if every bag of UN flour had been collected and handed out … starvation was inevitable. Palestinians did not have enough to eat.”
theguardian.com
The mathematics of starvation: how Israel caused a famine in Gaza
Israel controls the flow of food. It calculated how much Gaza needs – but data shows how this is being withheld
1199102
Reposted by Randolph
James Fallows @jfallows.bsky.social · 24/07/2025
Without Hulk Hogan, Peter Thiel would not have been so effective in media-suppression Without Peter Thiel, we wouldn't know today's Musk or JDV Without Musk, we wouldn't have DOGE (and would still have Park Service, State Dept, NIH, etc) So we note Hulk Hogan's passing, as we might Roy Cohn's.
392717761
Reposted by Randolph
AAUP @aaup.org · 24/07/2025
You can never bend the knee enough to appease an authoritarian bully. This is a devastating blow to academic freedom & freedom of speech at Columbia. Never in the history of this nation has there been an administration so intent on the utter destruction of higher education as we know it.
nytimes.com
Columbia Agrees to $200 Million Fine to Settle Fight With Trump
551772629
Reposted by Randolph
Chanda Prescod-Weinstein 🌌 @chanda.blacksky.app · 24/07/2025
Columbia functionally returning to its original name King’s College
662746517