Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · 4d

Government should ban everything I dislike, then allow everything else.

I am a libertarian.

Max Kennerly @maxkennerly.bsky.social · 4d

Ross Douthat treats this guy like they're having some deep conversation about the relationship of Christianity and the government, but the dude is a garden-variety dull, shallow, hateful, worthless bigot with nothing interesting to say, just endless riffs on "God hates everything/everyone I do."

Douthat: So that’s the first purpose of your political project, for America to stop making God angry.

Wilson: Yes. And most people think that when they are confronted with that project, they think that we want to get our tentacles into everything and start controlling everything. I actually think we need limited government. The government should be significantly smaller than it is, and we need to curtail a lot of the busybodyness that we have. That’s why I would call myself a theocratic libertarian. There is a true libertarian element in this, and yet, the transcendent grounding for what we’re talking about means that we acknowledge the authority of God.

We have racked up quite a body count of awful crimes, and I believe the only way out is for us to repent and turn to Christ. This would be things like no more Pride parades, no more drag queen story hours, no more abortion on demand, no more legalized same-sex unions — all of that, done. That’s the repentance part.

3

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · 26d

That’s deep and real

3

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · 27d

While we’re discussing crackdowns on expression, spare a thought for Media Matters @mmfa.bsky.social , already shrunken by attacks from Trump allies trying to force it out of business.

www.nytimes.com/2025/07/25/u...

Under Siege From Trump and Musk, a Top Liberal Group Falls Into Crisis

www.nytimes.com

1 4

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · 27d

Listen to @garrykasparov.bsky.social and @chrislhayes.bsky.social

2 4

Reposted by David Slifka

Leah Greenberg ❌👑 @leahgreenberg.bsky.social · 27d

this is incredibly true and tracks with a basic dynamic we've seen all along: the people who were cowed into submission by Trump's win were elites. regular people have never given an inch

Quinta Jurecic @qjurecic.bsky.social · 27d

generally speaking, and with the glaring exception of november 2024, the more directly democratic an institution has been, the better it has checked Trump (eg grand and petit juries); the more elite and insular, the less effective (the Senate, the Supreme Court, big business)

14 230 940

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · 28d

Scary stuff

Brian Tyler Cohen @briantylercohen.bsky.social · 28d

Hiding the truth.

1

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · Sep 4

That’s so good

1

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · Sep 1

You really wouldn’t want to stop along the way, or at your destination? Like are you just driving ten hours straight to drop off a package? If not then why wouldn’t you have time to charge?

1 2

Reposted by David Slifka

Ian Bassin @ianbassin.bsky.social · Aug 24

If a president wanted to become effectively a dictator, he’d likely:

1. Purge govt of non loyalists
2. Weaponize law against opponents
3. Use military to police opposition strongholds
4. Threaten media, schools, businesses w penalties to get them to heel
5. Change election rules in his favor.

510 4.6K 14K

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · Aug 23

Awesome!

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · Aug 13

Glad to see @mattyglesias.bsky.social picking up his bluesky posting.

1

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · Aug 5

Fox’s obsessive focus on the Sydney Sweeney nonsense is the closest thing I’ve seen to 1984’s Two Minute Hate.

Getting viewers to fear Democrats based on nothing.

TPM @talkingpointsmemo.com · Aug 5

To balance out the extremism of the GOP, the media and Republicans need an equally extremist figure on the left. As they rarely get that from Dems, they’ll often content themselves with people vaguely “leftist,” even if they aren’t part of the formal Dem Party, much less wield any influence over it

The Sydney Sweeney News Cycle Proves That Democrats Simply Can’t Win

This is your TPM evening briefing.

wherethingsstand.talkingpointsmemo.com

4

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · Aug 5

Wow guess DOGE went woke

/s

8

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · Aug 4

God bless @adambonica.bsky.social for showing how big a scam the Mothership fundraising machine is, and how much it sucks out of the party.

Adam Bonica @adambonica.bsky.social · Aug 3

The annoying spam texts destroying the Democratic brand:

$678M raised through those spam tactics

$282M to one consulting firm: Mothership Strategies.

$11M to actual campaigns (1.6%)

The party isn’t just treating donors like marks—it’s being fleeced itself yet continues to back Mothership.

The Mothership Vortex: An Investigation Into the Firm at the Heart of the Democratic Spam Machine

How a single consulting firm extracted $282 million from a network of spam PACs while delivering just $11 million to actual campaigns.

open.substack.com

2

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · Aug 2

I heard that nobody is writing up details of an abundance agenda for NY/NYC. What am I missing?

1

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · Aug 2

How so?

1

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · Jul 30

Evil ages people

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · Jul 29

You could look at the NYC Rent Guidelines Board which sounds like it has broad similarities.

Probably more efficient (bigger overall pie) to let the market price housing and then for govt to subsidize tenants as it wishes.

Markets are usually best at things like “how much should x cost.”

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · Jul 26

Enraging that the self-declared free speech advocates are doing this.

Predictable, but enraging.

Under Siege From Trump and Musk, a Top Liberal Group Falls Into Crisis www.nytimes.com/2025/07/25/u...

Under Siege From Trump and Musk, a Top Liberal Group Falls Into Crisis

www.nytimes.com

1 4

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · Jul 21

Great work! Any sign of this happening with the Guam Democratic Party, or no?

1 3

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · Jul 15

Supreme Court mostly greenlights Trump’s lawlessness.

Great data viz on an important topic by @adambonica.bsky.social

Adam Bonica @adambonica.bsky.social · Jul 9

Thanks for all the engagement on this. If you want to go beyond the data and into the stakes for democracy, I just wrote an article on the topic:
open.substack.com/pub/data4dem...

How to Dismantle a Democracy, Legally

The unitary executive theory is a masterclass in autocratic legalism.

open.substack.com

3

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · Jul 11

Buying late-model (22-24) certified pre owned EV can be a very good deal. The early depreciation has happened but car is still in good shape.

2 3

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · Jul 8

This sounds amazing and needed, congrats!!

1

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · Jul 6

Great example!

David Slifka @davidslifka.bsky.social · Jul 1

This is my best recollection of someone else's post from Trump's first term. I couldn't find it, but if anyone does, I'll delete this and boost that instead.

3