Author | Lightnews

Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · 17d

The Internet still makes it much easier to see perspectives directly from the sources, if you're willing to look. It is harder to ignore the correlation between "the American Dream" and "systemic oppression." I think a big piece of the angst that created MAGA is boomers having to reconcile that.

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Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · 17d

It was a lot easier for our parents' generation not to connect the dots between their positions and the real tangible harm those positions caused people. You had to dig a lot deeper to find a perspective that challenged your perception that people who were struggling weren't just "lazy" or "stupid."

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Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Sep 29

Listening to WWDTM and a commercial came on for Ritual Vitamins that claimed their product is, "filled with key ingredients." ...a claim the commercial stated multiple times.

What the actual f**k does that mean?

#WaitWaitDontTellMe
#YouAreFullOfKeyIngredients

Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Sep 27

Both Republicans and Dems want a society where a small group of ultra wealthy individuals control all the levers of power

Republicans wield chaos to keep that power consolidated

Dems try to use stability to keep the masses placated

I prefer stability to chaos, but redistribution would be better

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Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Sep 26

Can we collectively begin referring to the stock market as, "The Casino?" I think it helps provide some needed perspective.

"My employer is contributing to my casino fund for retirement."

"Our losses and winnings at the casino are not indicative of our country's overall financial health."

Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Sep 25

Pretty much the only levers of actual power 99.9% of us hold are:

1. How you spend your money

2. How you direct your attention

It is heartening to see the effects of large swaths of people beginning to realize this.

Changing habits might seem small, but the effect is cumulative... and powerful.

Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Sep 23

I appreciate your candor, and more than that I appreciate your authentic desire to give life to this weird and delightful art project. That authenticity is a big part of what sets Dropout apart, and it's a big reason why yours is a subscription I'm proud to pay for

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Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Sep 21

I just deleted all of my Meta accounts. I thought I would have immediate FOMO, but instead, I feel unburdened in a way that is difficult to describe.

Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Feb 6

Oh! We should probably also pretend that the small handful of stupidly wealthy individuals who control the vast majority of the media you consume were complicit or outright involved in the aforementioned disinformation campaign... maybe for promises of positions in the new regime?

Pretending is fun

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Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Feb 6

Your comedy is as important as it is entertaining. Thank you

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Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Feb 6

...whole supreme dictator for life thing doesn't pan out.

This is all pretend, of course.

Probably.

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Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Feb 6

Let's extend our pretend scenario into the future and imagine a situation where American resources are used to develop Gaza into an opulent extension of Mar A Lago, but the territory remains a sovereign country that conveniently doesn't have any extradition treaties with the US... in case the...

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Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Feb 6

opposition within the US government to prevent him from having his way with the Gaza strip, the Palestinian people are little more than collateral damage, and a loud segment of the progressive movement is still willing to say, "it would have been worse with Harris." Mission accomplished!

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Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Feb 6

...and destabilize Iranian proxies in neighboring countries... 'cause who would want to invest in developing an active war zone?

Remember this is pretend!!

Let's pretend that, now, Netanyahu's position is secured by his alliance with the Trump administration, Trump has an utter lack of...

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Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Feb 6

...the world was screaming that this would mean a second Trump presidency.

Let's pretend that ol' Bibi conveniently dug in his heels and waited on a cease fire agreement until the day before Trump took office... because, in our fantasy scenario, he needed as much time as possible to level Gaza...

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Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Feb 6

Gaza war that they were unable to focus on anything else. Let's pretend it was so successful that this remains a common sentiment in many progressive circles. Let's pretend it was so successful that a jarring number of Democrats either voted third party or didn't vote at all... even though...

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Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Feb 6

Israeli counterintelligence helped. Maybe Russia, too? Why not?!

Remember this is pretend!

Let's pretend the disinformation campaign was so successful that legitimately intelligent socially-minded individuals became so singularly focused on Biden/Harris' lack of a strong condemnation of the...

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Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Feb 6

Let's pretend that Trump's MAGA allies began a massive disinformation campaign aimed at progressives designed to pin the blame for the war in Gaza on Biden... and then when Biden bowed out of the presidential race, pivoted to placing the blame on Harris. Since we're already pretending, let's say...

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Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Feb 6

Let's pretend that a deal was struck wherein Netanyahu agreed to perpetrate an unnecessarily brutal campaign in Gaza, not to root out Hamas, but to displace the population and level the infrastructure... thus preparing it for American development and occupation in a second Trump administration...

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Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Feb 6

...ol' Bibi and Trump probably had some conversations about how great it would be if Trump were back in power.

Let's pretend, then, that later that year, Hamas committed a terrible atrocity against Israel... and let's also pretend that Netanyahu saw it as an opportunity rather than a tragedy...

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Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Feb 6

...Trump had a track record of being unwaveringly in favor of Israeli dominance in the middle east, and let's also pretend that Trump (and his family) had made multiple comments about wanting to develop Gaza and the West Bank.

Remember this is pretend.

Let's make a pretend assumption that...

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Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Feb 6

Let's play a game of pretend for a moment. Pure fiction. Just for fun!

Let's pretend it's early 2023 and Benjamin Netanyahu's hold on power is becoming increasingly tenuous. Let's pretend that he knew his support from the then-Biden administration was lukewarm, at best.

Let's also pretend that...

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Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Feb 5

It turns out I don't really know how to post long threads on BlueSky. I'm too long winded to be constrained to 300 characters!

Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Feb 5

spotting the strings and ignoring the noise.

"Follow the money."

I debated what my engagement with this platform would be, and I think I've landed on this.

Jon Leverkuhn @jonleverkuhn.bsky.social · Feb 5

get good enough at that, you can start to apply the same principals prospectively. What does this person/entity want? What actions are they taking to achieve that? Filter out the rest.

Apply this to the things you ingest. Apply this to me. Apply this to yourself. Soon, you will get good at...

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