Patrick LaForge
@palafo.bsky.social
15K followers 2.2K following 5K posts
Writer. Reader. Meditator. Traveler. Cyclist. Ex-NYT. http://Palafo.org. Signal: Palafo.38
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palafo.bsky.social
Buy some poetry. All profits go to cat food. Don’t let Audrey and Max go hungry! www.broadstonebooks.com/shop/p/the-e...
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
jon639.bsky.social
Curtis Yarvin—the anti-democratic ideologue who helped shape Donald Trump’s approach—now believes American democracy will outlast this administration.

He’s so sure democracy will survive that he’s already planning his exit: www.theframelab.org/good-news-jd...
Good News: JD Vance‘s Favorite Blogger Plans Escape from USA
“I feel that I personally have to start thinking realistically about how to flee the country.”
www.theframelab.org
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
palafo.bsky.social
Then it wasn’t a warrant. Know your rights.
paleofuture.bsky.social
Border Patrol “attempted to arrest a plumber working inside a Logan Heights home but left empty-handed after the homeowner refused them entry.

The homeowner told agents she would not allow them inside because the warrant they presented did not include her address and lacked a judge's signature.”
Federal immigration operations target San Diego neighborhoods, sparking community resistance
Federal immigration agents conducted operations in Logan Heights and Southeast San Diego on Friday, with community members capturing footage of the enforcement actions.
www.10news.com
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
paleofuture.bsky.social
Border Patrol “attempted to arrest a plumber working inside a Logan Heights home but left empty-handed after the homeowner refused them entry.

The homeowner told agents she would not allow them inside because the warrant they presented did not include her address and lacked a judge's signature.”
Federal immigration operations target San Diego neighborhoods, sparking community resistance
Federal immigration agents conducted operations in Logan Heights and Southeast San Diego on Friday, with community members capturing footage of the enforcement actions.
www.10news.com
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
svartflagg.bsky.social
Part of what's happening now was laid out by Stephen Miller on a podcast with Charlie Kirk in early 2024, then shortly after in an article on Feb 8 from The Atlantic. Trump's court losses only lead to further blurring of the lines between "legal" and overt dictatorial power.
screenshot of an article, text reads; How Trump and his advisers intend to staff such a program would make a prospective Trump deportation campaign even more volatile. Stephen Miller, Trump's top immigration adviser, has publicly declared that they would pursue such an enormous effort partly by creating a private red-state army under the president's command. Miller says a reelected Trump intends to requisition National Guard troops from sympathetic Republican-controlled states and then deploy them into Democratic-run states whose governors refuse to cooperate with their deportation drive.
Such deployment of red-state forces into blue states, over the objections of their mayors and governors, would likely spark intense public protest and possibly even conflict with law-enforcement agencies under local control. And that conflict itself could become the justification for further insertion of federal forces into blue jurisdictions, notes Joseph Nunn, a counsel in the Liberty & National Security Program at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
longtimehistory.bsky.social
ICE use tear gas on families in Chicago residential neighborhood—just because citizens gather to film.

"Tear gas was deployed in our backyard right next to the Lutheran church," wrote Megan Elk.

Just 3 days after judge prohibited tear gas from being used on protesters, clergy, or journalists.
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
50501movement.bsky.social
“CDC is over. It was killed. This administration only knows how to break things. They have made America at risk for outbreaks and attacks by nefarious players. People should be scared,” said Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, former director of the CDC’s National Center on Immunization and Respiratory Diseases
"CDC is over": RFK Jr. lays off over 1,000 employees in Friday night massacre
Amid the ongoing shutdown, the HHS secretary wiped out entire offices that investigate disease outbreaks, manage infectious disease responses and collect data.
www.msnbc.com
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
meredithshiner.com
It’s impossible to overstate how much “abolish ice” is the normie position now here in chicago — just countless random moms at toddler soccer on a park district field asking me where I bought my anti-ice t-shirt. average people don’t like our neighborhoods being terrorized.
lauraolin.bsky.social
A friend ran the Chicago marathon today and said he couldn’t count the number of FUCK ICE signs along the way.
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
robertscotthorton.bsky.social
WSJ reports that Ghislaine Maxwell is treated like a VIP guest at a five-star resort in her new minimum-security Club Fed prison. She recently received a special visitor, and the entire facility was placed on lock-down while the guest was there so that no one could see who she or he was. Creepy.
Lockdowns and a Mysterious Meeting: A Quiet Texas Prison Adapts to Life With Ghislaine Maxwell
The unexpected arrival of the Epstein associate upset the camp’s routines. Some inmates say she got favorable treatment.
www.wsj.com
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
charlottegarden.bsky.social
During this shortage, some cats have even had to make do with converted nightstands instead of traditional residences…
A tuxedo cat has his body in the top compartment of a nightstand
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
mrsbettybowers.bsky.social
On this date, Matthew Shephard died 27 years ago. He was beaten, tortured, and left for dead on fence for being gay. Please keep him and his wonderful mother Judy in your thoughts. And let's all work for a world where such horrific things do not happen to anyone. ❤️🏳️‍🌈
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
taniel.bsky.social
RESULT: New Orleans has a new mayor. Helena Moreno, a Democrat known as a progressive member of the city council, easily won today’s mayoral race and cleared the 50 percent threshold to avoid a runoff. She’ll replace the retiring Democratic Mayor, Cantrell.
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
joshuaeakle.com
In Chicago, four vehicles descended and eight ICE agents moved in to kidnap a child.

She screams, “I’m 15,” as ICE yanks her from the car and kneels on her neck.

This is not about immigration enforcement.

It's about terrorizing Americans.
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
cmgiulini.bsky.social
After spending 43 years in prison for a crime he didn't commit, evidence hidden by the prosecution reversed his conviction. Rather than finally enjoying freedom, ICE abducted him for deportation

Depraved.

www.miamiherald.com/news/local/i...
He was wrongfully imprisoned for 43 years. Moments after being released, ICE took him
Subramanyam “Subu” Vedam now faces deportation.
www.miamiherald.com
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
markharris.bsky.social
I don't argue with anyone who won't watch a Woody Allen movie; it's a personal choice, different for everyone. But Diane Keaton is a big reason I almost never say "[Movie X] is dead to me." My argument isn't "Separate the artist from the art"; it's that movies are never just one person's legacy.
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
conure.cc
the cost of denying another's humanity is paid with one's own
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
ndrew.bsky.social
lol this is crazy i mean this guys the president
atrupar.com
Trump Watches commercials are now running regularly on Newsmax
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
richraho.bsky.social
Chicago priest Fr. Larry Dowling describes procession to ICE facility: “No one had the courage to speak directly to us. No one from Homeland Security could stand in the presence of the Monstrance holding the Blessed Sacrament. No wonder. Evil is repelled, recoils in the presence of Christ.”
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
broadwaybabyto.bsky.social
Chicago journalist Debbie Brockman, who was thrown to the ground & handcuffed by ICE, has been released without charges

DHS said she assaulted an officer, but eye witnesses claim she didn’t

The lack of charges makes it clear that ICE is lying to try and cover up the fact that they attack the press
Reposted by Patrick LaForge
emptywheel.bsky.social
Huh. Gonna be an awkward day for Secretary of State-National Security Advisor-Acting Archivist Marco Rubio.

www.rickscott.senate.gov/services/fil...
Part of a letter sent by a bunch of GOP members of Congress in favor of granting Maria Corina Machado the Nobel Peace Prize, which she won today.

The last three paragraphs, before Rick Scott and Marco Rubio's signature, reads:

The Maduro regime's abuses and assaults on the civil society and legitimate
political activity of Venezuelan citizens have caused millions to flee to other countries,
while millions more have had no choice but to remain in the prison Maduro has
imposed on them. The peace of the region has been greatly disturbed by Maduro’s
welcoming of some of the world’s worst actors, including terrorists and dictators who
support him.
It is our firm belief that María Corina Machado’s courageous and selfless
leadership, and unyielding dedication to the pursuit of peace and democratic ideals,
make her a most deserving candidate for this prestigious award. Her efforts not only
highlight the urgent need for international solidarity in the face of aggressive and
expansive authoritarianism but also serve as a reminder of the power of individual
bravery in the quest for justice.