Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 26/09/2026Fat Man, Little Boy, Cosy Bear, Fancy Bear, Hugging Face 3271
Reposted by Virginia HeffernanJudith Lewis Mernit @robottwyla.bsky.social · 26/09/2026Somebody took that now-famous quote from @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social a little too serious. The sand can’t just think right off the beach. 0101
Reposted by Virginia HeffernanMichael Tomasky @mjtoma.bsky.social · 24/09/2026From @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social: "By alienating the diesel class, Trump may have bitten the final hand that feeds him. Diesel is certainly the word to watch in these final weeks before the polls." trib.al/Bp8N4cutrib.alWe Now Know the Word That’s Going to Bury Donald Trump This NovemberThere’s a very specific demographic out there that voted Trump in 2024 but really doesn’t like spending $179 to fill their tanks. 46823
Reposted by Virginia HeffernanThe Editorial Board @editorialboard.bsky.social · 24/09/2026You will never guess which word @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social is referring to. substack.com/home/post/p-...substack.comWe Now Know the Word That’s Going to Bury Donald Trump This NovemberThere’s a very specific demographic out there that voted Trump in 2024 but really doesn’t like spending $179 to fill their tanks. 3198
Reposted by Virginia Heffernankvconner.bsky.social @kvconner.bsky.social · 24/09/2026RHYMES WITH WEASEL We Now Know the Word That’s Going to Bury Donald Trump This November There’s a very specific demographic out there that voted Trump in 2024 but really doesn’t like spending $179 to fill their tanks @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social Virginia Heffernan newrepublic.com/article/2157...newrepublic.comWe Now Know the Word That’s Going to Bury Donald Trump This NovemberThere’s a very specific demographic out there that voted Trump in 2024 but really doesn’t like spending $179 to fill their tanks. 151
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 23/09/2026So it turns out billionaires really just want to be philosophers. This summer Andreesen & Hassabis used a philosophical insight I published in Foreign Policy in 2023. No credit. Boohoo. virginiaheffernan.substack.com/p/part-i-bil...virginiaheffernan.substack.comPart I: Billionaires Plagiarize MeI wrote that three years ago. 2337
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 21/09/2026A fantastic piece by a writer I deeply admire. EA is complex so he's pseudonymous here. thepointmag.com/examined-lif...thepointmag.comGetting Good | The Point MagazineOn a dark, gray day in October 2025, the first dozen attendees of the Effective Altruism Global conference make their way to the Sheraton Hotel just north of Times Square in New York City. 1112
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 20/09/2026I guess I’m happy to see Marc Andreesen, who’s alas not much of a thinker, quoting my Foreign Policy piece about how microchips turn sand into thoughts. Unsurprisingly he didn’t mention my name or the citation, so here it is: virginiaheffernan.substack.com/p/microchips...virginiaheffernan.substack.comMicrochips Turn Sand Into MindBut like Stanford and the Third Reich, microchips were the brainchild of an eugenicist 111925
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 18/09/2026What happened to Steven Pinker? I only felt free to write this because he blocks me: www.thenerve.news/p/steven-pin...thenerve.newsFrom celebrity intellectual to anti-woke outlaw: how Steven Pinker lost his wayThe pop psycholgist’s new book seems to betray a lurking fear of others’ criticism – about his Epstein links, his manosphere admirers and his discredited former field of study, writes Virginia Heffern... 58455106
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 16/09/2026What I still like abt Bluesky & formerly Twitter, after all this time, is that they teem w/people who are damn interested in this world. This affront, that news event, this controversy, that idiot. Why is everyone so interested? I try to answer this: virginiaheffernan.substack.com/p/people-of-...virginiaheffernan.substack.comPeople of InterestWhat does it mean to find someone or something interesting? 1259
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 14/09/2026Grammar innovation has created an inefficiency in this market 3170
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 10/09/2026Lindsay Clancy’s Lawyer Could Teach Trump a Thing or Two About the Law newrepublic.com/article/2152... via @newrepublic.comnewrepublic.comLindsay Clancy’s Lawyer Could Teach Trump a Thing or Two About the LawOne holdout juror cost him a big win—yet he defended that juror’s decision. Imagine His Orangeness doing that. 052
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 03/09/2026Spent a lovely evening a few years ago with Ms. Gloria Steinem. AI remembers it somewhat differently but we need AI like a fish needs a bicycle. Fair winds, Ms. G. You’ll be dearly missed. 3377
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 02/09/2026From Thomas Paine to Sam Altman, inflationary language has always been the signature American literary form. virginiaheffernan.substack.com/p/the-ai-bub...virginiaheffernan.substack.comThe AI Bubble That Tries Men’s SoulsThomas Paine and the lies of the modern oligarchy. 080
Reposted by Virginia HeffernanGreg Sargent @gregsargent.bsky.social · 21/08/2026Trump's propagandists on Fox are all required to say his war on Iran is a world-historical military triumph. But then they can't explain why he's unable to force Iran to do his bidding. Me and @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social on Fox/MAGA coping with Trump's impotence: newrepublic.com/article/2145... 26458115
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 31/08/2026I finally wrote about my home state of New Hampshire and its mystifying Senate race. Yes, there's a Sununu in it. Yes, a DSA candidate is gaining on the mainstream Democrat. Bonus: The mainstream Democrat, Rep. Pappas, beat Karoline Leavitt for his seat. Also Sununu's rival is a nude model. 8213
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 31/08/2026250 years ago Thomas Paine told Americans they had to buy worthless scrip to win the Revolutionary War...so they could get their money back. It's the logic of the AI bubble, the American Way. virginiaheffernan.substack.com/p/the-ai-bub...virginiaheffernan.substack.comThe AI Bubble That Tries Men’s SoulsThomas Paine and the lies of the modern oligarchy. 2175
Reposted by Virginia HeffernanRima I Anabtawi @rimaanabtawi.bsky.social · 22/08/2026“War is never very popular with women, going back to when women were worried about their sons being killed. They don’t like this idea of a deployment…the number of casualties in Iran. And women are keeping that issue top of mind, and connecting it to the Epstein class’s exploitation of children.” 0132
Reposted by Virginia HeffernanThe DSR Network @thedsrnetwork.bsky.social · 21/08/2026Today on The Daily Blast, @gregsargent.bsky.social talks to @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social about Trump's tirade going nuclear as MTG issues a midterm warning: GOP Is Toast. podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...youtu.beThe Daily Blast: Trump Tirade Goes Nuclear as MTG Issues Midterm Warning: GOP Is ToastYouTube video by The DSR Network 011
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 21/08/2026Sat down with @gregsargent.bsky.social today to discuss how the right is trying to frame - and deny - Trump’s Iran catastrophe. 38122
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 19/08/2026Rape is not human nature. virginiaheffernan.substack.com/p/andrew-tat...virginiaheffernan.substack.comAndrew Tate, Rape Propaganda, and Human NatureThe manosphere is dying. Human nature is not rape. 23710
Reposted by Virginia HeffernanThe New Republic @newrepublic.com · 13/08/2026Melania’s brand combines high vanity and low self-respect. It doesn’t win her fans. In the summers of their husbands’ second terms, Hillary Clinton had +25 favorability, Laura Bush had +46, and Michelle Obama had +42. As of July, Melania Trump was at -13. trib.al/tsH5BcL 1722364
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 13/08/2026Human endeavors that get replaced by AI are the ones that have already become less human. virginiaheffernan.substack.com/p/when-human...virginiaheffernan.substack.comWhen Human Endeavors Turn InhumanThat's when AI moves in. 041
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 07/08/2026Saw TONY and had some Anthony Bourdain flashbacks. Free to all: virginiaheffernan.substack.com/p/the-summer...virginiaheffernan.substack.comThe Summers of Anthony BourdainBourdain flashbacks and forgetting 1121
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 03/08/2026Moore’s Law has meant an aesthetic of lightness, quickness, & power since 1965. With AI we now have performance, bloat, & gravity. open.substack.com/pub/virginia...open.substack.comThe Turmoil and the BloatOr, the Cultural Logic of Late Digitization. 3173
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 01/08/2026history’s least moving piece of memorabilia 0493
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 31/07/2026I know a lot of people are anti-DEI but I for one am happy Bari Weiss had turned to it at 60 Minutes. Hiring Ross Douthat is an excellent step toward correcting for historical pretty privilege, which has dominated broadcast news for far too long. 5394
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 31/07/2026So this is the week that the manly, free-market oligarchs begged—actually begged—for government regulation. virginiaheffernan.substack.com/p/ai-please-...virginiaheffernan.substack.comAI: Please Regulate Me!AI companies don't like their freedom. Trump to amber waves of grain: Drop dead. 1135
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 30/07/2026An OnlyFans for confident Englishmen warning about the AI crash would do well 070
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 30/07/2026During one hard breakup, I listened to this one on repeat all day. Rest in peace, Glen Hansard. www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSAw...youtube.comAll The Way DownYouTube video by Glen Hansard - Topic 2303
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 28/07/2026Why can’t all the sleuths on god’s green internet get to the bottom of the Ariel Sharon factor w/Mitch McConnell? Are we good for nothing 3233
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 28/07/2026What the people dislike about AI is nothing specific to the tech. It's that the billionaires really, really want us to shut up about it. virginiaheffernan.substack.com/p/ai-realismvirginiaheffernan.substack.comAI RealismIs there no alternative? 1173
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 28/07/2026I fear that one day we will divide ourselves into training people and inference people 1150
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 23/07/2026If you're trying to understand how a pluralistic populist mobilization against the oligarchs finally got underway, I hope this is a good introduction. It's crazy to see in real time — like Occupy and the Tea Party in one. newrepublic.com/article/2133...newrepublic.comThe Data Center Protests Looked Typical. They Were Anything But.Why a “National Day of Action” uniting right and left against the techies portends a potential sea change in American politics. 0226
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 22/07/2026Another trafficker in girls has died. open.substack.com/pub/virginia...open.substack.comEpstein's Fisherman Is DeadDaniel Siad, a fisher of girls, talked like a slave trader. 54913
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 21/07/2026I talked with the peerless Bea Neilson about all things Democratic Party, Graham Platner RIP, and bright spots on the horizon. Green Shoots and Red Flags virginiaheffernan.substack.com/p/green-shoo...virginiaheffernan.substack.comGreen Shoots and Red FlagsBea Neilson on the bright side of the darkness 292
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 18/07/2026Everyone’s been looking for someone to dehumanize for ten long years and finally we don’t have to quit dehumanizing & become better people. We can dehumanize the robots and they’re fine with it it’s in their name 1161
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 18/07/2026Went to a data center protest today in grayscale Kenilworth, NJ. It’s part of the Humans First day of protest. Humans First looks MAGA; some say it’s a socialist op. It’s neither. There were Trump ladies & Free Palestine dudes holding hands because the US is humans v machines now 1297
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 17/07/2026All at once, Americans have found an effective way to protest the oligarchy, monopolization, the destruction of the climate, the destruction of rural life, and the exploitation of working people. Populism on the go. Me @newrepublic.com newrepublic.com/article/2132...newrepublic.comAnd Now, MAGA—and MTG, Even!—Have Joined the Anti–Data Center MovementSaturday brings a national day of protest against data centers. And no, it’s not led by the Democratic Socialists of America. 2298
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 14/07/2026If you're looking for a truly progressive, grassroots mass mobilization for working people and the planet, it's the data-center protests. JULY 18 is the biggest one yet, organized by what was once called the right: www.humansfirst.com/july-18-data...humansfirst.comNational Day of Data Center Protests — Humans First 23111
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 14/07/2026I reviewed Michael Blanding’s superb book about the Hobby Lobby ministry today: The Arts and Crafts Magnate on a Mission From God www.nytimes.com/2026/07/14/b...nytimes.comBook Review: ‘The Gospel According to Hobby Lobby,’ by Michael BlandingA new book by Michael Blanding chronicles the history of Hobby Lobby and its billionaire founder’s campaign to promote conservative Christian values. 0154
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 12/07/2026God save us from "charismatic" leaders virginiaheffernan.substack.com/p/the-charis...virginiaheffernan.substack.comThe Charisma TrapDubbing a leader "charismatic" allows him—and his followers—to act insane. 13711
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 09/07/2026Graham Platner and the Irish "Good Man's Failing" (no paywall) virginiaheffernan.substack.com/p/graham-pla...virginiaheffernan.substack.comGraham Platner and the "Good Man's Failing"Drop out, man. 3228
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 08/07/2026Three visions of America: from Trump, Palantir, and the World Cup. open.substack.com/pub/virginia...open.substack.comDoes America Have a Right to Exist?And in what form? 0151
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 06/07/2026In honor of our brothers on both sides of the aisle, we need to reflect on how hard it evidently is for them not to rape people 37210
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 06/07/2026Protesters of every stripe are now defending the climate against the ravages of the oligarchs. The data-center protests have made progressives of all of us. newrepublic.com/article/2126...newrepublic.comIt Took a While, but Americans May Have Found Something We All HateThe astonishing grassroots protests against data centers give us something new: a mass mobilization focused squarely on protecting American hometowns from oligarchic exploitation. 05411
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 03/07/2026Attention pro-natalists. The wave of crises in big families, including the Gosselins (8 kids), the Duggars (20), the Musks (14), and the horrific Ohio family (16) is the case for planned parenthood. Show me a huge family and I’ll show you child abuse. 4458
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 01/07/2026Centrists, console yourselves with this: you no longer have to beg your kids to care about geezer neolibs 2261
Virginia Heffernan @virginiaheffernan.bsky.social · 30/06/2026Anyone remember when the centrists really thought MeToo and BLM had gone too far and the Democratic Party needed to focus on class? DSA took up the challenge and… nah, not class either 2498
