Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Emily Pothast

@emilypothast.bsky.social

310 followers 130 following 57 posts

draw a shape to watch the time and watch history unfold

Posts Media Videos Starter Packs

Pinned

Emily Pothast @emilypothast.bsky.social · Mar 12

As the masks continue to fall from billionaire-owned media outlets, I remain grateful that The Wire is independently worker-owned. Please consider subscribing if you appreciate the magazine!

The Wire Magazine @thewiremagazine.bsky.social · Mar 12

Dive deeper into music. Join The Wire's online magazine library & get more than 490 issues of the best music magazine in the world to read on the web or in the app, plus download more than 90 albums compiled by Wire staff.

All from just £12 (or $16 or 14 Euros).

shop.exacteditions.com/gb/the-wire

2 12 67

Emily Pothast @emilypothast.bsky.social · 2d

Oldish news at this point, but I'm hono(u)red to have interviewed Natural Information Society for the 500th issue of @thewiremagazine.bsky.social

1 3

Emily Pothast @emilypothast.bsky.social · 5d

For libertarian types, "freedom" generally means freedom from regulation.

3 22

Emily Pothast @emilypothast.bsky.social · 6d

Please take the time to read about how these orders effectively criminalize all dissenting political speech and activity, allowing Trump to take the same actions he has taken against foreign terrorists against any citizen suspected of being opposed to fascism www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...

Trump’s Orders Targeting Antifascism Aim to Criminalize Opposition

Purporting to go after “domestic terrorism,” the president presents an imagined left-wing conspiracy and authorizes punishments for even tenuous connections to speech the administration doesn’t like.

www.brennancenter.org

2 4

Reposted by Emily Pothast

Mother Jones @motherjones.com · 6d

ICE is sending people to a prison in Africa’s only absolute monarchy.

A copy of the arrangement with Eswatini that Mother Jones reviewed shows that the US has agreed to pay the monarchy $5.1 million to take in up to 160 ICE detainees.

ICE is sending people to a prison in Africa’s only absolute monarchy

Inside the “legal black hole” in Eswatini, where Trump is sending detainees.

www.motherjones.com

18 180 250

Emily Pothast @emilypothast.bsky.social · 6d

This live feed of the Portland ICE facility is lowkey one of the funniest things I have ever seen.

Emily Pothast @emilypothast.bsky.social · 7d

KATU TV, a Sinclair-owned Portland station, has started broadcasting a livestream of the ICE building to let viewers decide if what is happening warrants a military presence.

I just turned on the livestream and this is what I saw.
katu.com/watch

Picture of a building on an almost entirely empty street.

1 6 8

Reposted by Emily Pothast

Brandi Buchman @brandibuchman.bsky.social · 8d

Today's word is plenary authority.
plenary authority | Wex | US Law | LII / Legal Information Institute share.google/E3GPEbFBmWNn...

Plenary authority is power that is wide-ranging, broadly construed, and often limitless for all practical purposes. When used with respect to public officials, the more popular term is plenary power.

3 51 140

Reposted by Emily Pothast

Frames @oxinabox.bsky.social · 11d

as a girl with a PhD in natural language processing and machine learning it's actually offensive to me when you say "we don't know how LLMs work so they might be conscious"

I didn't spend 10 years in mines of academia to be told ignorance is morally equal knowledge.

We know exactly how LLMs work.

67 1.6K 5.8K

Reposted by Emily Pothast

KOJAMF🤘🖤🤘 @kojamf.bsky.social · 11d

Dr. Jane Goodall filmed an interview with Netflix in March 2025 that she understood would only be released after her death.

810 17K 38K

Reposted by Emily Pothast

worm @rfksbrainworm.bsky.social · 14d

really enjoying all the people trying to explain the bible to the pope today

Pope Leo XIV
Today, more than ever, we must return to the heart, the center of feeling and emotion, the locus of freedom. Though it includes reason, the heart transcends and transforms it. Only by returning to the heart can we undergo a true ecological conversion that transforms our personal

Austin
I reject this whole heartedly. What you fail to see Mr Pope, the Bible says

340 2K 12K

Emily Pothast @emilypothast.bsky.social · 14d

satirical screenshot of a person suggestively eating corn on a website called "Cornhub"

Reposted by Emily Pothast

Ro Khanna @rokhanna.bsky.social · 16d

Trump's NSPM-7 represses freedom of speech & association, investigating any organization with "anti-capitalism" or "anti-American" views. I ran a primary in 2003 against the Patriot Act & war in Iraq. NSPM-7 is a greater infringement on freedoms than the Patriot Act.

6 35 100

Reposted by Emily Pothast

Ro Salarian @rosalarian.bsky.social · 16d

I'm 30 minutes into watching Lost Boys for the first time, and there's no heterosexual explanation for every single moment of this so far. Every single person looks like someone in my friend group and my friend group is queer as hell.

8 19 200

Emily Pothast @emilypothast.bsky.social · 16d

You guys I have a theory about where the political violence is actually originating. newrepublic.com/post/201016/...

GOP Official Calls for Democratic Congresswoman to Be Executed

As the nation talks about the rise of political violence, a Republican official blatantly called for Representative Pramila Jayapal to be hanged.

newrepublic.com

Reposted by Emily Pothast

Ken Klippenstein @kenklippenstein.bsky.social · 16d

The new directive NSPM-7 targeting "anti-Christian," "anti-American" and "anti-capitalist" speech as terrorism is being taken very seriously by top DC law firms — but Congress is silent.
www.kenklippenstein.com/p/trumps-nsp...

Trump’s NSPM-7 Alarms Law Firms While Congress Is Silent

Domestic terror watchlist to double, sources say

www.kenklippenstein.com

14 130 430

Emily Pothast @emilypothast.bsky.social · 17d

Here's what appears to be a good legal explainer regarding the new 'antifa' executive order and NSPM-7, and how they are likely to be used.

www.lawfaremedia.org/article/the-...

The Situation: The Nonsense and the Menace

Reading the president’s new orders on political violence and terrorism.

www.lawfaremedia.org

Emily Pothast @emilypothast.bsky.social · 17d

I do understand how we got here and I did watch it happen incrementally but it's still pretty disorienting to go from "free speech is the cornerstone of our society" to "if you say you do not like fascism you will be hunted down as a terrorist" but I guess them's the breaks!

1 6

Emily Pothast @emilypothast.bsky.social · 17d

In other news from Portland...

Senator Ron Wyden @wyden.senate.gov · 21d

Following new reporting, I'm launching a new line of investigation to determine the extent of JPMorgan's compliance failures, the role of top execs in the decision to keep Epstein as a client until 2013, and the degree to which the bank enabled Epstein’s sex trafficking.

Senate Finance Committee @senatefinance.bsky.social · 21d

NEWS: Continuing Epstein Investigation, Wyden Probes Major JPMorgan Chase Compliance Failures

Emily Pothast @emilypothast.bsky.social · 18d

According to the Portland police, federal cops are are currently attempting to 'instigate' confrontations with protesters outside the ICE building.

Federal cops ‘instigating’ confrontations with protesters outside ICE building, Portland police official says in court

Assistant Chief Craig Dobson said federal officers were “causing some of the ruckus” at the ongoing protests.

www.oregonlive.com

1 6 25

Emily Pothast @emilypothast.bsky.social · Sep 15

I want to know about this stuff if it exists!

Emily Pothast @emilypothast.bsky.social · Sep 15

This is a good question. This reading certainly resonates w/ the anti-idolatry discourses in Rev. 13, etc. But in the case of evangelical Christianity, funding structures tend to be very top down by design, making it rare to see readings critical of aims of big capital gain much traction.

1 2

Emily Pothast @emilypothast.bsky.social · Sep 13

Dunkseeking is clickbait, yes.

Emily Pothast @emilypothast.bsky.social · Sep 10

Is this going to be the pretense for literal AI-powered witch hunts?

We Paid Some Etsy Witches to Curse Charlie Kirk

If the far-right misogynist with a bad haircut wants to villainize independent women, Jezebel is more than happy to be the hag of his nightmares.

www.jezebel.com

Emily Pothast @emilypothast.bsky.social · Sep 10

Who is that person and why is @cnn.com giving a platform to someone who thinks people should be locked up for schizophrenia for life?!

2 1 72

Emily Pothast @emilypothast.bsky.social · Sep 10

Thank you for calling her unhinged. That person is terrifying!

1 76