Mike Westphal
@mfwestphal.bsky.social
280 followers 240 following 1K posts
Biologist, writer, father of three, anti-fascist. he/him https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Michael_Westphal/publications
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Reposted by Mike Westphal
mattzollerseitz.bsky.social
Incredible interview with Tim Curry, with great stuff about his development of the Dr. Frank N. Furter performance, his father's early death, his explosively bipolar mother, and surviving a stroke. I wish nothing but the best for this amazing man.
thatdocphoenix.com
I love him so much (same problem on mobile)
john-self.bsky.social
Good interview with Tim Curry but annoying format where you have to pause and read a couple of pull-quotes every so often before you can move on. (On desktop anyway.)
mfwestphal.bsky.social
This rabbit hole is well worth going down
goldwagnathan.bsky.social
We are living through the most consequential shift in the constitutional government of the United States in over a hundred and fifty years and nobody seems to have even noticed yet.
mikeblack114.bsky.social
Congress no longer holds the power of the purse, the executive can just do whatever they want with federal monies
Reposted by Mike Westphal
kevinmkruse.bsky.social
They are terrified of the No Kings rallies and doing everything they can to discredit them.

If you're on the fence about going, just think of how much it'll piss off these assholes.
atrupar.com
Emmer: "We call it the 'Hate America' rally because you'll see the hate for America all over this thing when they show up. The rumor is that they can't end this shutdown because this small but very violent and vocal group is the only one that's happy about this."
Reposted by Mike Westphal
richardkadrey.bsky.social
Spotify is running recruitment ads for ICE and their owner is helping to develop military AI. Maybe hit that "cancel my account" button?
santiagomayer.com
Spotify is now running recruitment ads for ICE.

It’s time to cancel your account.
Reposted by Mike Westphal
jwomack.bsky.social
The depths of the slush pile even thirty years ago are scarcely to be imagined.
Reposted by Mike Westphal
jamellebouie.net
the position of the administration it seems is that it is illegal discrimination and divisive racism for historically excluded groups to organize on that basis to improve their position. it’s basically just a genteel version of david duke’s complaint that there wasn’t a NAACP for white people
victorerikray.bsky.social
I know it is beside the point because this administration simply wants resegregation but conferences for Black professional associations have always been open to everyone. Typically, the started as a response to white exclusion, and did not replicate that.
blmckean.bsky.social
Very bad: OSU unilaterally cancelled the registration of grad students attending the joint conference of the National Society of Black Physicists and the National Society of Hispanic Physicists. And OSU won't fund recruiting at the Society for Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science.
Reposted by Mike Westphal
Reposted by Mike Westphal
flowerhorne.com
Spouse was trying to show me a thing yesterday about how important it is to be bored sometimes because important things happen to your brain when you run out of stuff to think about and I'm sure that's real but also

Run out of stuff to—?

Think? About?

You can do that?
Reposted by Mike Westphal
stephenblackmoore.com
Because of a large storm moving into Southern California over the next couple days the areas of the Palisades and Eaton burn scars are under flood evacuation warning.

If you live in those areas you might want to consider leaving now. Mudslides are not to be fucked with.

abc7.com/live-updates...
Evacuation warning issued for Eaton, Palisades burn scar areas due to possible mud, debris flows
Ahead of showers across Southern California overnight and on Tuesday, an evacuation warning has been issued for the Eaton and Palisades fire burn scar areas.
abc7.com
Reposted by Mike Westphal
hntdove.bsky.social
Laura and I saw it in the theater. It was fine as long as it stuck with Bradbury. When it didn't, the screenwriters weren't up to improving on Ray or even matching him.
Reposted by Mike Westphal
Reposted by Mike Westphal
jordantyranny.bsky.social
FINDS THEM AND KILLS THEM

"Finds Them and Kills Them (Osh-Tisch) looked like a man, but wore women's clothing and had the heart of a woman.... she was brave and good."
― Pretty Shield

Her strength as a warrior is what earned her the name Osh-Tisch, which translates to “finds them and kills them."
Who is Osh-Tisch?
Osh-Tisch was a Apsáalooke Badé, a role within the Crow Nation that defied traditional gender norms, embodying both masculine and feminine qualities. Before colonization, Badé were deeply respected for their unique spiritual gifts, artistry, and contributions to community life.
As a Badé, Osh-Tisch carried responsibilities tied to culture, ceremony, and social balance. Their life shows how many of our nations embraced gender diversity long before Western colonial powers imposed rigid binaries.
Reposted by Mike Westphal
gwillow.me
Some people are interpreting this as a criticism of DFW; it's not. I think he's the quintessential example of "shit prose, sublime powers of observation." The guy could barely write! But he had a *lethal* ability to pick out the most unnerving, accurate details of his class, environment, and time.
gwillow.me
A lot of writers seem to think the more mannered and self-conscious their prose, the better. They add SO much fluff. But the real power of any book comes from the precision of its observations, not the purpleness of its prose. David Foster Wallace wrote like an 8th grade boy taking an English test.
Reposted by Mike Westphal
mrmaresca.com
Publishers should be invested in promoting the books they publish.
rachelfeder.bsky.social
Tell me your most unhinged literary opinion, as a little treat
Reposted by Mike Westphal
jwomack.bsky.social
Re-upping this marvelous post for the evening crowd:
colindickey.com
Forgot to schedule this one at the usual time, but please enjoy some highlights of @jwomack.bsky.social's amazing collection of UFO literature along with a few of his indelible descriptions
Glacial Errata, No. 38
Five Things for the Week of September 15, 2025.
glacialerrata.beehiiv.com
Reposted by Mike Westphal
tapirtrouble.bsky.social
I just wanted to thank Glenn for stepping in. I've decided to opt for a paper as well as electronic version of the book. It's not going to be in stores, only available on this Kickstarter -- now in Canada. A jumbo selection of cartoons from 2020 to present, selected by the artist, Tom Tomorrow!
glennf.com
🇨🇦Canadian lovers of fine @tomtomorrow.bsky.social editorial cartoons🇨🇦: We now have a Canada shipping option! Go to www.kickstarter.com/projects/tom... to pledge and pick Your Fine Country as the destination! (The “we” is that I am the project manager.)
Our Long National Nightmare by Tom Tomorrow
Relive the trauma of the last five years through the cartoons of Herblock Award winner and Pulitzer nominee Tom Tomorrow.
www.kickstarter.com
mfwestphal.bsky.social
Today’s purchases. As the storm rolls in.
A DARKER SHADE OF NOIR ed. JC Oates and CHLORINE by Jade Song.
mfwestphal.bsky.social
According to my sister (65), her daughter, bless her, is worried that my sister won’t be able to make it to No Kings because she’s going to see Paul McCartney the night before. I’m pretty sure my niece will need to cuff my sister to the radiator to keep her from going to No Kings.
transferdinand.gay
My boomer dad at the age of 70+, fully fucking immobile from the cruelty of ALS wanted to go protest and was gutted when we politely tried to keep him inside.

Stubborn old fucks are like heavy artillery when it comes to activism I s2g.
Reposted by Mike Westphal
gillyarcht.bsky.social
This is making MORE people I know decide to protest, not less. Ramping it up.
ht @jwomack.bsky.social
atrupar.com
Bessent: "No Kings means no paychecks. No paychecks and no government."
Reposted by Mike Westphal
scalzi.com
It's time again as a notable Italian-American to note Christopher Columbus was an absolute piece of shit human who didn't land anywhere near this actual country so why the fuck should he stop the mail for the whole day

Anyway, Happy Indigenous People's Day, y'all
Reposted by Mike Westphal
nicholasgrossman.bsky.social
Police officers who publicly declare that they’ll quit if a mayoral candidate they dislike wins the election are (1) usually bluffing—sure buddy, toss away that paycheck and pension—and (2) exactly the sort of cops cities would be better off without, ones who don’t see themselves as public servants.
Reposted by Mike Westphal
citizenscreen.bsky.social
“The American Constitution was not written to protect criminals; it was written to protect the government from becoming criminals.”

– Lenny Bruce, born 100 years ago today #botd
Reposted by Mike Westphal
faineg.bsky.social
those ladies are already out there in pretty enormous numbers
Reposted by Mike Westphal
hayao.lol
democrats pretend winning elections is this Herculean task when all they have to do is follow the blueprint of the guy who won so hard they changed the rule to "you can only be president for 8 years"
logophobe.bsky.social
Step 1: disband ICE
Step 2: give ICE's entire bloated budget to the IRS
Step 3: record white collar crime task force kicking in penthouse doors and macing unresisting billionaires
Step 4: one hundred years of Dem reign