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Firthermor

@firthermor.bsky.social

680 followers 2.1K following 4.5K posts

Mid-Atlantic nature. Natural world. Photography. Plays with words. Grovers Mill Martian invasion survivor 😉. Popular sovereignty, voting rights, democracy, and good governance stan.

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Firthermor @firthermor.bsky.social · Nov 13

Hi! I am new around here.

Sometime doomscroller. Sometime hopescroller. Sometime serendipitous learnscroller. First time BlueSky poster.

It may look dark now, but with our work & what we build can reconstruct our democracy for the better. Succession happens, sometimes with a bit of engineering.

A beaver pond showing a lot of open water. A fallen tree is in the water extending from the nearest bank. There is a blue sky with clouds that is reflected in the water.

The beaver pond in the first picture has now been filled in with grassy vegetation.
A fallen tree is in the water extending from the nearest bank. There is still a small amount of water extending into the frame just to the right of the fallen tree.

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derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 28m

when you tie a tie, try to put in a dimple, like so

a black and white photo of a man in a pinstripe worsted suit, white shirt, and textured necktie. the tie has a nice dimple under the knot.

a photo of donald trump upside down. there is also a nice dimple on his red tie

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Brian Finucane @bcfinucane.bsky.social · 15m

Given the now fifth U.S. strike in the Caribbean, reposting my recent essay in @justsecurity.org.

There’s a word for premeditated killing outside of armed conflict.

www.justsecurity.org/120568/carib...

Asserting a License to Kill: Why the Caribbean Strike is a Dangerous Departure from the “War on Terror”

An absence of credible legal basis for the Caribbean strike suggests the Trump admin is asserting a prerogative to kill outside the law.

www.justsecurity.org

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Chris Geidner @chrisgeidner.bsky.social · 2h

Truly abhorrent and a mockery of the rule of law that Emil Bove is a federal judge.

Kyle Cheney @kyledcheney.bsky.social · 3h

JUST IN: The 3rd Circuit *denies* a push by national GOP to reconsider ruling on misdated mail ballots in Pa.

Judge Emil Bove may have cast his first vote here in dissent of the decision -- and plans to write about it later. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

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Hunter Walker @hunterw.bsky.social · 3h

NEW: I took a long look at the Proud Boys and found some of their most extreme chapters are sharing ICE recruiting materials on encrypted apps and even suggesting members have joined up. talkingpointsmemo.com/news/in-the-...

The first
Antifa
Counter Terrorism
Task Force
Trump already gave so many of us jobs with ICE. We may have to start recruiting soon to fill all these spots.

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Kevin Morris @kevintmorris.bsky.social · 3h

Tomorrow, SCOTUS will hear arguments in Louisiana v. Callais, a major threat to (what remains of) the 1965 Voting Rights Act. But this isn't the first time the VRA has faced dire threats; in 2013 and 2021, SCOTUS weakened other provisions. We can learn from those why Callais could be so dangerous 🧵

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Firthermor @firthermor.bsky.social · 1h

Congratulations for your 📖 publication day! 🎉🎉

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Benjamin Pope @benjaminpope.bsky.social · 15h

Thrilled to have two years' of work out, in a pair of papers led by @gradientrider.bsky.social and @maxecharles.bsky.social.

We've built a data-driven calibration of the James Webb Interferometer to near its fundamental limits for high-res imaging - explainer at @aunz.theconversation.com!

How we sharpened the James Webb telescope’s vision from a million kilometres away

The only Australian hardware on board the legendary telescope is starting to fulfil its duties.

theconversation.com

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Firthermor @firthermor.bsky.social · 1h

I wish that Bezos would sell to more responsible owners and stewards. He will be very reluctant to give up the value of what the Post’s history still conveys and having the owner’s influence over the editorial pages.

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Sam Brunson @smbrnsn.bsky.social · 1h

This is why Bezos's destruction of the Post hurts: it has *really good* journalists doing *critical* journalism.

But it's going to fail because its billionaire owner wants Trump to like him.

The Washington Post @washingtonpost.com · 3h

He supported America’s war, escaped Afghanistan and started a family in the U.S.

Then ICE arrested him.

If he is deported, he expects the Taliban to kill him.

America saved him from the Taliban. Trump wants to send him back.

He supported America’s war, escaped Afghanistan and started a family in the U.S. Then ICE arrested him. If he is deported, he expects the Taliban to kill him.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Elliot Blake @elliotblake.bsky.social · 2h

And if you have a flag, bring it. Conservatives like to think it belongs to them, but it doesn’t, and if the administration’s goons start cracking down on peaceful, American flag-bearing protesters, it’s going to look really bad for them, so it might offer some protection, too.

Greg Sargent @gregsargent.bsky.social · 7h

If Republicans are going to label you a terrorist for peacefully protesting Trump's failing presidency, abuses of power, and treatment of blue America as an enemy nation, let's turn out in even bigger numbers.

On the pod, @jilldlawrence.bsky.social and me on this:
newrepublic.com/article/2016...

MAGA Rage at “No Kings” Boils Over—and It Quickly Backfires on Trump

As Trump allies smear the coming protests, a good writer on MAGA skewers the absurdity of these attacks on large swaths of Americans—and explains why our best recourse will be to turn out in force.

newrepublic.com

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davidrlurie @davidrlurie.bsky.social · 2h

After Trump's internal army assaulted, demeaned, kidnapped, defamed and then threatening her with charges that have not been brought, a "Kavanaugh stop" victim is telling the truth about the "inconvenience" wrought by ICE and aided and abetted by the Supreme Court.

WGN employee released without charges after she was 'violently detained' by federal agents, her lawyer says

Debbie Brockman, of WGN's creative services department, is a U.S. citizen not acting in a professional capacity when she was arrested Friday in Lincoln Square.

chicago.suntimes.com

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Firthermor @firthermor.bsky.social · 2h

The HBOification of AppleTV.

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Monica Torres @monicatorrr.bsky.social · 1d

Wrote about what the National Guard can ask or do to civilians and how the Insurrection Act could dramatically change that: www.huffpost.com/entry/nation...

Can The National Guard Detain And Arrest You? Here Are Some Surprising Facts.

Trump's push to federalize troops "has no precedent," one expert said.

www.huffpost.com

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Sam Bagenstos @sbagen.bsky.social · 5h

Folks should read this post on the pathways for Democrats to win the shutdown -- and why such a win is surprisingly (to many) likely. open.substack.com/pub/firstbra...

The Queen of Hearts Shutdown

Through the looking glass on conventional CR wisdom as the House is late—late—for a very important vote

open.substack.com

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Aaron Reichlin-Melnick @reichlinmelnick.bsky.social · 3h

Sharing an excellent Q&A from Obama-era former ICE director John Sandweg about the ways in which operations today are totally unprecedented for the agency and the ways in which some times are unchanged — and how in his view, the admin is leaning into the aggression. www.politico.com/news/magazin...

‘Those Rules Are Gone’: How ICE Is Rethinking its Raids

ICE used to arrest the “worst first.” Under the new Trump administration, the agency is following a different playbook, says a former ICE chief.

www.politico.com

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Firthermor @firthermor.bsky.social · 3h

As Jeff Bezos would say (probably, 😉): “Look at that signal sent by free markets!”

Firthermor @firthermor.bsky.social · 4h

The failing of his paper is a more influential statement on free markets than can be found on the Washington Post’s revamped editorial pages.

Firthermor @firthermor.bsky.social · 4h

The University of Austin appears to be a Nigerian prince of education.

Firthermor @firthermor.bsky.social · 4h

The stories in their states and their districts should be that they are irresponsible and are not up for the job.

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Brian Klaas @brianklaas.bsky.social · 8h

The president (or maybe not president) of Madagascar—a radio DJ who overthrew the island’s yogurt kingpin in a coup d’état—just fled the country in a French helicopter after Gen Z protests. I wrote about the most interesting island you know nothing about, with bonus pictures of me with lemurs:

The yogurt kingpin, the radio DJ coup, and the most interesting island on Earth

Madagascar is a fascinating island home to 30+ million people. It's also home to bizarre, volatile politics that virtually nobody knows about. And the president just escaped on a helicopter.

www.forkingpaths.co

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Ian Millhiser @imillhiser.bsky.social · 5h

I hate every single word of this piece I just put up. But, given how unapologetically partisan the courts have become, I don't see how I could reach any other conclusion. www.vox.com/politics/464...

The uncomfortable problem with America’s greatest civil rights law

Maybe we don’t want to centralize power over elections in this particular federal government?

www.vox.com

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c0nc0rdance @c0nc0rdance.bsky.social · 5h

The frilled lizard is an iconic Australian reptile because of their utter fearlessness.

Their scientific name, Chlamydosaurus kingii, translates to 'King cloaked lizard' & you can see why.

They're one of a few modern lizards that can accurately be called bipedal, running upright on hind legs.

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Aaron Reichlin-Melnick @reichlinmelnick.bsky.social · 5h

So glad that @tanvi.bsky.social followed up on this group of people; those who were in Border Patrol detention centers on the days Trump took office, people from countries where deportation wasn't easy for the Trump admin, who ended up dumped in Panama to send a message to other migrants.

Tanvi Misra @tanvi.bsky.social · 5h

his summer, I went to Panama and met Jharana, a 33-year-old from Nepal who had been deported there in a group of 300 others — the 1st group to be sent to a third country. I wrote about what happened to her and others over the year for
@nymag.com -->

nymag.com/intelligence...

What Happened to The Migrants The U.S. Dumped In Panama?

Nearly 300 people were sent to a country they’d never lived in. The journey didn’t end there.

nymag.com

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Martin Rak @martinrak.bsky.social · 10h

Clash of Seasons

#dolomites #autumnsnow #nature #mountains

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Paul T. Levin @paultlevin.bsky.social · 8h

The people behind the inflated protests are performing a monumental service to democracy & peace in the US. The Regime wants riots, but these animal characters are not only an effective protest, grabbing attention & mocking ICE, they seem to reduce the risk of violent protests. It's perfect.

50501: The People’s Movement ❌👑 @50501movement.bsky.social · 17h

The Portland Frog army has now infiltrated Tulsa, OK and they’ve made an unlikely alliance with the T-Rex infantry and Sharks on Hoverboards mercenary forces.

This is truly terrifying.

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