iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Michael Hart

Rachel Maddow @maddow.bsky.social · 12/10/2025

“With your patient and rigorous work, you can act as a barrier against those who, through the ancient art of lying, seek to create divisions in order to rule by dividing,” he said. “You can be a bulwark of civility against the quicksand of approximation and post-truth...” apnews.com/article/pope...

apnews.com

Pope urges news agencies to stand as bulwark against lies, manipulation and post-truths

Pope Leo XIV has encouraged international news agencies to stand firm as a bulwark against the “ancient art of lying” and manipulation.

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Bill Kristol @billkristolbulwark.bsky.social · 12/10/2025

Pope Leo quotes Hannah Arendt: “The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the convinced Communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction and the distinction between true and false no longer exist." www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news...

cbsnews.com

Pope Leo calls for news agencies to stand as bulwark against "post-truths," lies and manipulation

Pope Leo XIV has encouraged international news agencies to stand firm as a bulwark against the "ancient art of lying" and manipulation.

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Adam Serwer @adamserwer.bsky.social · 04/10/2025

Most American Jews are antisemitic, according to right wing gentiles who are constantly employing anti semitic dogwhistles www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

Many American Jews sharply critical of Israel on Gaza, Post poll finds
Most Jews say Israel is committing war crimes — and 39 percent say genocide — while often distinguishing between the country and its leadership.

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Jenny Shen @jennyqshen.bsky.social · 28/09/2025

The entire piece is worth a read. "The evidence suggests that compromising on basic humanity doesn’t broaden coalitions; it hollows them out. The work now is to find ways to expand our reach without abandoning our foundation—to bridge gaps, yes, but never at the expense of our neighbor’s humanity."

"The authoritarian playbook deliberately seeks to conflate these two forms of anger. First, you normalize hate by presenting it as merely another political position deserving of debate. Then, when people express righteous anger at this dehumanization, you accuse them of being the real problem—intolerant, divisive, unwilling to engage in public discourse. The aggressor becomes the victim; the defense of human dignity becomes the attack on civil discourse.

Klein’s strategic pragmatism—suggesting pro-life Democrats run in red states, seeking compromises that might expand the coalition—has an appeal, assuming one accepts the premise that the dwindling political center remains the main electoral prize. Sometimes difficult compromises have led to better outcomes: Obama’s calculated positions on same-sex marriage arguably helped him appoint justices who advanced equality. But these compromises carry profound risks. They signal whose humanity is negotiable. They tell vulnerable people that their rights are chips to be bargained when convenient. And crucially, such compromises should never be voluntary—they should only come when all other avenues have been exhausted, not as an opening bid for hypothetical coalition expansion.

But here’s where the strategic calculation becomes self-defeating: “Bridging gaps” cannot come at the expense of key parts of your coalition feeling abandoned and without a sense of belonging. When we muse about trading away reproductive rights or soft-pedal responses to hate speech, we don’t just lose moral clarity, we lose the very people whose passion and commitment form the backbone of progressive politics. The trans kids facing violence, the immigrants branded as invaders, the women losing bodily autonomy—they need to know their party won’t trade their humanity for swing votes. And so do their families and those who love them."

From Adam Bonica's "On Data and Democracy"
https://data4democracy.substack.com/p/you-cant-expand-the-tent-by-shrinking

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Karen Attiah @karenattiah.bsky.social · 19/09/2025

It was very telling that for three days, none of the major TV anchors would have me on air one-on-one to talk about my firing from the Washington Post over Charlie Kirk. The first offers were from Black media, independent media, Substackers, and podcasters.

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Gareth Watkins @garethwatkins.bsky.social · 19/09/2025

Dam been writing a book about this and she just TikToked it in 90 seconds.

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shauna @goldengateblond.bsky.social · 14/08/2025

the problem with “norms” is they’re just held together with common sense and a fear of shame. when people have neither, it all collapses.

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Brent Toderian @brenttoderian.bsky.social · 12/08/2025

“In Finland, the number of homeless people has fallen sharply. Those affected receive a small apartment & counselling with no preconditions. 4 out of 5 people affected make their way back into a stable life. And all this is CHEAPER than accepting homelessness.” It costs a lot less to house people.

thebetter.news

Finland ends homelessness and provides shelter for all in need - scoop.me

In Finland, the number of homeless people has fallen sharply. Why? The country applies the "Housing First" concept agains homelessness.

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Greg Sargent @gregsargent.bsky.social · 25/07/2025

Good intervention from @brianbeutler.bsky.social demonstrating that liberals need to internalize and act on the idea that right wing bad faith actors "view liberal freedoms as loopholes to exploit in their pursuit of power." www.offmessage.net/p/how-libera...

offmessage.net

How Liberalism Sabotages Itself

Our intentional blindness to bad faith is a loophole fascists use to gain respectability and power.

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🗽LOLGOP🗽 @lolgop.bsky.social · 19/06/2025

Clearly, your first thought when you see another Elon rocket blowing up is, "Does that guy have any robot taxis I can put my kids in?"

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Brad Heath @bradheath.bsky.social · 16/06/2025

How distortion becomes reality:

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Mrs. Betty Bowers @mrsbettybowers.bsky.social · 11/06/2025

You can't call immigrants lazy moochers looking for government handouts and then round them up at Home Depots where you know they are looking for work. You can't say immigrants don't follow the rules and then round them up in courthouses where they are following the rules. Get your lies straight.

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Andrea Junker @strandjunker.com · 30/05/2025

Been saying this for awhile, but will repeat it for emphasis: If you love freedom but don’t care if it applies to everyone, what you actually love is privilege.

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Acyn @acyn.bsky.social · 24/04/2025

Walz: If you say you love freedom but you don't believe freedom is for everybody, then the thing you love is not freedom, it is privilege.

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Judd Legum @juddlegum.bsky.social · 17/03/2025

1. EXCLUSIVE An internal Social Security Administration memo, dated March 13 and obtained by Popular Information, lays out a plan to sabotage the agency. The memo itself predicts "service disruption," "operational strain," and "budget shortfalls" will result. Follow this thread for details. 🧵

An internal Social Security Administration (SSA) memo, sent on March 13 and obtained by Popular Information, details proposed changes to the claims process that would debilitate the agency, cause sign...

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Charlotte Clymer @charlotteclymer.bsky.social · 17/03/2025

The distance between a legal resident who's not a citizen being deported without due process and a citizen being deported without due process is a hell of a lot shorter than many folks seem to believe, and when it does happen to a citizen, just remember it started here and who was quiet in response.

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A.R. Moxon @juliusgoat.bsky.social · 12/03/2025

Hello, I’m a disruptor, very smart, here to create efficiency. I’m just going to drill holes in the bottom of this boat to see which parts of the hull are mission-critical.

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Chise @sailorrooscout.bsky.social · 09/03/2025

THIS IS HUGE! Researchers at Stanford University have developed a dual-antibody treatment that remains effective against ALL SARS-CoV-2 variants by targeting a less-mutable part of the virus. This breakthrough could lead to longer-lasting therapies that OUTPACE viral evolution. 🧪🧵⬇️

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Nicholas Grossman @nicholasgrossman.bsky.social · 09/03/2025

Now that the influential bigot who did a Hitler salute publicly claimed that organic protests against his malfeasance are secretly controlled by a list of foreign Jews, some of whom aren’t even alive today, are we allowed to call him a Nazi, or is there something even Nazier we have to wait for?

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Lora Kolodny @lorak.bsky.social · 07/03/2025

on feb. 28 FAA gave spacex permission to fly Starship again despite SpaceX not having completed a mishap investigation into its jan. Starship explosion — maybe it’s worth figuring out what went wrong & how to mitigate that before flying again? www.cnbc.com/2025/02/28/f...

cnbc.com

FAA clears SpaceX for another Starship test flight after explosion in January

SpaceX has attained authorization from regulators to fly its massive Starship rocket once again, the FAA announced Friday.

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Brent Toderian @brenttoderian.bsky.social · 06/03/2025

thebetter.news

Finland ends homelessness and provides shelter for all in need - scoop.me

In Finland, the number of homeless people has fallen sharply. Why? The country applies the "Housing First" concept agains homelessness.

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Reposted by Michael Hart

jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 03/03/2025

the thing about “democrats should take popular cultural positions” is that what constitutes popular is a function of an interaction between the public and elites. if a faction of elites start screaming about a vulnerable minority and another faction says they have a point, this shapes the public.

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Josh Marshall @joshtpm.bsky.social · 02/03/2025

Seems like Hegseth's Stand Down Our Defenses Against Russia order should be getting a bit more attention.

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Mark Cuban @mcuban.bsky.social · 27/02/2025

If your employer self insured, share this with your management. Your CEO doesn't realize they are getting ripped off on their pharmacy benefits. Here is how www.nasdaq.com/articles/elo...

nasdaq.com

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Brandon Friedman @brandonfriedman.bsky.social · 25/02/2025

All the folks who exited NBC today. Seen together, hoo boy. Message received.

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Michael DiTullo @d2lo.bsky.social · 24/02/2025

The best part about the Model Y design facelift is that we’ll know beyond a shadow of a doubt who bought one after it came out the CEO of Tesla is a fascist out to destroy the country. 👀 insideevs.com/news/751503/... @patrickgeorge.bsky.social @insideevs.com @tlevin.bsky.social #teslatakedown #ev

insideevs.com

New Tesla Model Y First Reviews: 'Night And Day'

Reviewers say the new Model Y is way quieter, more comfortable and higher-quality than before.

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Kevin M. Kruse @kevinmkruse.bsky.social · 24/02/2025

Hey, when random guys with no badges and no authority try to grab a protester and drag her away, that's when you put down the phone, get out of your seat, and fucking help her.

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Andrea Pitzer @andreapitzer.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

If I had a band or a label, I would do a punk cover of "No More Kings" from Schoolhouse Rock. And then I would gather a bunch of people to write a whole album of next-generation Schoolhouse Rock songs, with songs about Social Security and Medicaid and NOAA. I am not kidding in the least.

youtube.com

SchoolHouse Rock - No More Kings

YouTube video by tennesseejed93

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Jason Koebler @jasonkoebler.bsky.social · 14/02/2025

Scoop: The databases powering DOGE.gov are insecure, and people outside the government have already pushed their own updates to the site to prove it: www.404media.co/anyone-can-p...

404media.co

Anyone Can Push Updates to the DOGE.gov Website

"THESE 'EXPERTS' LEFT THEIR DATABASE OPEN."

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Oliver Willis @owillis.bsky.social · 14/02/2025

It’s very interesting how media outlets like 404 and Wired who do tech and not DC cocktail party circuit slop have covered the Musk angle best because their guiding light isn’t getting a ticket to next weeks book release party in Georgetown

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Andrew Lawrence @ndrew.bsky.social · 13/02/2025

the only way to save civilization is to make the government stop the investigations into my company and start giving it a bunch of money instead

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Mark Cuban @mcuban.bsky.social · 10/02/2025

Something you won’t find on Twitter.

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Alasdair Beckett-King @misterabk.bsky.social · 05/02/2025

PITCH: An updated version of the curse of Cassandra where she's describing things that are happening now, in front of everyone, but still isn't believed.

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Mike Eckel @mikeeckel.bsky.social · 05/02/2025

Shimon Peres' prophetic insight--and recollection what he told Putin: "Why is America great? America is giving; people think it’s because they are generous. I think it’s because they are wise. If you give, you create friends. The most beneficial investment is making friends."

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Dr Fern Riddell @drfernriddell.bsky.social · 05/02/2025

This whole story is horrific, and exactly what the demonisation of trans people and trans kids leads too. The targeting of women & girls who do not conform to gender stereotypes. www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article...

dailymail.co.uk

Girls horrorified after coach asks to see 'evidence' of their gender

The talented youngsters came up against the cheating allegations while playing in their weekend league, with parents complaining from the touchlines.

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Anil Dash @anildash.com · 27/01/2025

Ok, quick thread on why DeepSeek is blowing up assumptions about LLMs and maybe the whole (U.S.) AI industry. DeepSeek is an AI lab funded by a Chinese hedge fund, their AI code is open source, meaning freely available to use, which most big U.S. models (aside from Meta’s) are not. That’s the start…

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Michael Hobbes @michaelhobbes.bsky.social · 23/01/2025

You don't say www.psypost.org/transgender-...

Transgender athletes’ rights was opposed by those who viewed female athletes as undeserving, study finds

The researchers also found that adherence to traditional standards of femininity—such as prioritizing thinness and attractiveness—was a strong predictor of opposition to transgender athlete inclusion. For instance, respondents who endorsed the idea that women should be thin or that women’s muscles were less attractive were less supportive of transgender athletes competing in alignment with their gender identity.

Negative attitudes toward homosexuality were another powerful predictor of opposition to transgender athletes’ rights. Participants who expressed homophobic views, such as agreeing with statements like “I would be disappointed if I found out my child was homosexual,” were significantly more likely to support sex testing and oppose transgender inclusion.

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ProPublica @propublica.org · 16/01/2025

🧵 THREAD: Our reporter spent the past year reporting inside the State Department, trying to answer the central question of Biden’s foreign policy: How did the U.S. let Israel get away with widespread horrors in Gaza?

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Michael Hart @themichaelhart.bsky.social · 16/01/2025

I wonder if they debated making the third point of the plan “profit”

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southpaw @nycsouthpaw.bsky.social · 16/01/2025

Elon Musk secretly negotiated a prisoner swap directly with Iran and Italy that prevented a terrorism suspect indicted by DOJ, who allegedly participated in a drone attack on American servicemen, from being extradited to the United States. www.nytimes.com/2025/01/15/w...

nytimes.com

Musk Said to Have Intervened to Help Free Italian Jailed in Iran (Gift Article)

The Italian journalist was released soon after Elon Musk met with an Iranian ambassador, officials in Iran said. So was an Iranian detained in Italy who was wanted by the U.S.

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Soraya Nadia McDonald @soraya.press · 15/01/2025

"OptumRx, the group’s pharmacy benefit manager, along with its two main peers, Express Scripts and CVS Caremark Rx, have pocketed an extra $7.3 billion over cost thanks to price gouging, according to the findings of a report by the Federal Trade Commission." Lina Khan really is That Girl.

fortune.com

UnitedHealth, employer of slain exec Brian Thompson, found to have overcharged cancer patients for drugs by over 1,000%

The report is the latest indictment of America’s broken healthcare system.

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MeidasTouch @meidastouch.com · 10/01/2025

JUST IN: The U.S. added 256,000 jobs in December, surpassing expectations and bringing the total for 2024 to 2.2 million. The unemployment rate dipped to 4.1%, and wages grew 3.9% over the past year, far outpacing inflation.

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Axios @axios.com · 09/01/2025

Under Meta's newly relaxed moderation policies, women can be compared to household objects, ethnic groups can be called "filth," users can call for the exclusion of gay people from certain professions and people can refer to a transgender or non-binary person as an "it."

axios.com

Meta's new content policies will let many groups be targeted

Changes in moderation will release a flood of hate speech and could even fuel real-world violence, experts say.

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Dustin Moskovitz @moskov.goodventures.org · 09/01/2025

The year is 2038... I'm joining my 23rd social network in as many years. I am requesting an edit button, and the mods are telling me it's too risky because someone might get tricked into saying they hate something they love. The last social network eventually added one. So did the one before.

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Alejandra Caraballo @esqueer.net · 08/01/2025

Meta literally created a LGBTQ exception for calling someone mentally ill as an insult. You can't do it for any other group except LGBTQ people.

The image is from a "Transparency Center" document and lists guidelines regarding acceptable and prohibited content for insults. It mentions:

1. Insults about:

Character, such as cowardice, dishonesty, criminality, and sexual promiscuity or immorality.

Mental characteristics, including but not limited to accusations of stupidity, intellectual capacity, and mental illness, as well as unsupported comparisons among politically correct (PC) groups based on inherent intellectual traits.

2. Highlighted section:

The document allows allegations of mental illness or abnormality when tied to gender or sexual orientation, referencing political and religious discourse about transgenderism and homosexuality. It also acknowledges the non-serious use of terms like "weird."

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