sascha benjamin cohen
@saschaben.bsky.social
"'In this world, Elwood, you must be oh so smart, or oh so pleasant.' Well, for years I was smart. I recommend pleasant.
You may quote me."
- Elwood P. Dowd
Baker of Bread. Brewer of Beer.
Altogether awkward but not entirely unpleasant person.
You may quote me."
- Elwood P. Dowd
Baker of Bread. Brewer of Beer.
Altogether awkward but not entirely unpleasant person.
Pinned
Sascha Benjamin Cohen: books, biography, latest update
Follow Sascha Benjamin Cohen and explore their bibliography from Amazon.com's Sascha Benjamin Cohen Author Page.
www.amazon.com
Poetry, you say? Odd short fiction, you say? Snarky humor, you say? Serious work on religious and biblical narrative, you say?
Why yes, I've written some stuff like that...
www.amazon.com/stores/Sasch...
Why yes, I've written some stuff like that...
www.amazon.com/stores/Sasch...
Reposted by sascha benjamin cohen
According to a new study, members of Congressional leadership perform 47% better in stock market trades than their rank-and-file peers, thanks to access to nonpublic information.
Today would be a great day to ban ALL elected officials from trading stock, don't you think?
Today would be a great day to ban ALL elected officials from trading stock, don't you think?
December 5, 2025 at 8:45 PM
According to a new study, members of Congressional leadership perform 47% better in stock market trades than their rank-and-file peers, thanks to access to nonpublic information.
Today would be a great day to ban ALL elected officials from trading stock, don't you think?
Today would be a great day to ban ALL elected officials from trading stock, don't you think?
Reposted by sascha benjamin cohen
OPINION: In this last play, he finally stepped into his own narrative, acknowledging the weight of ghosts and the reach of memory. He left us with an elegy for a people, for a lost world, and — unknowingly — for himself.
religionnews.com/2025/12/01/n...
religionnews.com/2025/12/01/n...
Near the end of his life, playwright Tom Stoppard finally told his own Jewish story
(RNS) — He was a creator of absurdist stories, but his own was largely hidden from view.
religionnews.com
December 6, 2025 at 11:00 PM
OPINION: In this last play, he finally stepped into his own narrative, acknowledging the weight of ghosts and the reach of memory. He left us with an elegy for a people, for a lost world, and — unknowingly — for himself.
religionnews.com/2025/12/01/n...
religionnews.com/2025/12/01/n...
Reposted by sascha benjamin cohen
Reposted by sascha benjamin cohen
I think we could all use this timeline cleanse today. ☀️
December 6, 2025 at 9:28 PM
I think we could all use this timeline cleanse today. ☀️
I think it's time again to post my One Weird Trick to Being An Excellent Human Being.
Don't be an asshole. Work hard every day at *not* being an asshole.
That's it. That's the trick.
Now someone give me a peace prize, please.
Don't be an asshole. Work hard every day at *not* being an asshole.
That's it. That's the trick.
Now someone give me a peace prize, please.
December 6, 2025 at 9:38 PM
I think it's time again to post my One Weird Trick to Being An Excellent Human Being.
Don't be an asshole. Work hard every day at *not* being an asshole.
That's it. That's the trick.
Now someone give me a peace prize, please.
Don't be an asshole. Work hard every day at *not* being an asshole.
That's it. That's the trick.
Now someone give me a peace prize, please.
Reposted by sascha benjamin cohen
"Just one more thing... Is that wall load bearing? It is? Well, how about that."
Doing interviews today for my Frank Gehry's obituary, one of his friends told me the architect was good friends with actor Peter Falk. I ran out of time before I could include that. But imagine the conversations those two must've had.
December 6, 2025 at 2:07 PM
"Just one more thing... Is that wall load bearing? It is? Well, how about that."
I will need to book my stay now, yes I will yes
Wait, what? My son’s friend, traveling in China, is staying at a hotel chain called ‘James Joyce Coffetel’, and instead of a Gideon Bible, they leave a copy of Ulysses by the bedside.
December 6, 2025 at 8:08 PM
I will need to book my stay now, yes I will yes
these AI hallucinations are starting to get completely out of hand.
Also, if you publish "news," DO NOT USE ChatGPT YOU NUMBNUTS
Also, if you publish "news," DO NOT USE ChatGPT YOU NUMBNUTS
Anchor Brewing Not Leaving SF, Despite False Report Claiming Otherwise
There hasn’t been any news on the rebirth of Anchor Brewing in a while, but there was some fake news about it this week, as a craft beer publication wrongly claimed the company was leaving SF.
sfist.com
December 6, 2025 at 7:58 PM
these AI hallucinations are starting to get completely out of hand.
Also, if you publish "news," DO NOT USE ChatGPT YOU NUMBNUTS
Also, if you publish "news," DO NOT USE ChatGPT YOU NUMBNUTS
And David Lean spins in his grave, howling curses and epithets from beyond death
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos says BARBIE and OPPENHEIMER would have been just as big on Netflix.
“There’s no reason to believe that the movie itself is better in any size of screen for all people. My son’s an editor, he watched ‘Lawrence of Arabia’ on his phone.”
via
@nytimes
“There’s no reason to believe that the movie itself is better in any size of screen for all people. My son’s an editor, he watched ‘Lawrence of Arabia’ on his phone.”
via
@nytimes
December 6, 2025 at 7:47 PM
And David Lean spins in his grave, howling curses and epithets from beyond death
in a world of disappointments, disasters, setbacks, cruelties, and conflagrations, this may be the most personally depressing thing I have encountered so far today.
Artificial intelligence research has a slop problem, academics say: ‘It’s a mess’
AI research in question as author claims to have written over 100 papers on AI that one expert calls a ‘disaster’
www.theguardian.com
December 6, 2025 at 7:42 PM
in a world of disappointments, disasters, setbacks, cruelties, and conflagrations, this may be the most personally depressing thing I have encountered so far today.
Reposted by sascha benjamin cohen
"The secret of Nazism in practice, as Mein Kampf states time and again, is to do the most outrageously secret things quite openly. The Nazi success with this practice has been so great that there is nothing they will not dare."
- Bella Fromm, Berlin, 3/20/1938
- Bella Fromm, Berlin, 3/20/1938
December 6, 2025 at 5:30 PM
"The secret of Nazism in practice, as Mein Kampf states time and again, is to do the most outrageously secret things quite openly. The Nazi success with this practice has been so great that there is nothing they will not dare."
- Bella Fromm, Berlin, 3/20/1938
- Bella Fromm, Berlin, 3/20/1938
Reposted by sascha benjamin cohen
‘ “Then why do you want to know?”
“Because learning does not consist only of knowing what we must or we can do, but also of knowing what we could do and perhaps should not do.” ‘
📚 Umberto Ecco, The Name of the Rose
📸 Umberto Ecco
#BookWormSat #HistoricalFiction
“Because learning does not consist only of knowing what we must or we can do, but also of knowing what we could do and perhaps should not do.” ‘
📚 Umberto Ecco, The Name of the Rose
📸 Umberto Ecco
#BookWormSat #HistoricalFiction
December 6, 2025 at 3:36 PM
‘ “Then why do you want to know?”
“Because learning does not consist only of knowing what we must or we can do, but also of knowing what we could do and perhaps should not do.” ‘
📚 Umberto Ecco, The Name of the Rose
📸 Umberto Ecco
#BookWormSat #HistoricalFiction
“Because learning does not consist only of knowing what we must or we can do, but also of knowing what we could do and perhaps should not do.” ‘
📚 Umberto Ecco, The Name of the Rose
📸 Umberto Ecco
#BookWormSat #HistoricalFiction
Reposted by sascha benjamin cohen
‘If only the idiots had taken me into their confidence this story would have had a very different ending.’
‘To use the majesty of law for revenging any petty act of private spite is to make a public confession of weakness, cowardice and an ignoble spirit.’ ~ Graves, I, Claudius.
#BookWormSat
‘To use the majesty of law for revenging any petty act of private spite is to make a public confession of weakness, cowardice and an ignoble spirit.’ ~ Graves, I, Claudius.
#BookWormSat
December 6, 2025 at 5:00 PM
‘If only the idiots had taken me into their confidence this story would have had a very different ending.’
‘To use the majesty of law for revenging any petty act of private spite is to make a public confession of weakness, cowardice and an ignoble spirit.’ ~ Graves, I, Claudius.
#BookWormSat
‘To use the majesty of law for revenging any petty act of private spite is to make a public confession of weakness, cowardice and an ignoble spirit.’ ~ Graves, I, Claudius.
#BookWormSat
This was a fascinating (and clarifying) conversation. The parallel of model training with extractive industries is a metaphor I plan on stealing.
Talking With Paul Kedrosky
So, about this AI thing ...
open.substack.com
December 6, 2025 at 6:16 PM
This was a fascinating (and clarifying) conversation. The parallel of model training with extractive industries is a metaphor I plan on stealing.
Late to this, but as far as I can tell Marco Rubio and Stephen Miller got together and birthed a wordbaby.
It's not a strategy: it's an accusation.
It's not a strategy: it's an accusation.
www.whitehouse.gov
December 6, 2025 at 6:12 PM
Late to this, but as far as I can tell Marco Rubio and Stephen Miller got together and birthed a wordbaby.
It's not a strategy: it's an accusation.
It's not a strategy: it's an accusation.
"Feckless"
"Shambolic"
Two words that are getting a much heavier workout in rotation by the universe right now than I would have ever imagined in my youth.
And let me tell you, I have seen feckless. I know from shambolic.
"Shambolic"
Two words that are getting a much heavier workout in rotation by the universe right now than I would have ever imagined in my youth.
And let me tell you, I have seen feckless. I know from shambolic.
December 5, 2025 at 8:36 PM
"Feckless"
"Shambolic"
Two words that are getting a much heavier workout in rotation by the universe right now than I would have ever imagined in my youth.
And let me tell you, I have seen feckless. I know from shambolic.
"Shambolic"
Two words that are getting a much heavier workout in rotation by the universe right now than I would have ever imagined in my youth.
And let me tell you, I have seen feckless. I know from shambolic.
I think I want to start the "Good Neighbors" political party.
Platform:
We are a good neighbor.
We work to help our neighbors also be good neighbors.
We share sugar.
We loan tools.
We watch one another's children.
We work with our community to repair fences, roads and paths.
We don't amplify hate.
Platform:
We are a good neighbor.
We work to help our neighbors also be good neighbors.
We share sugar.
We loan tools.
We watch one another's children.
We work with our community to repair fences, roads and paths.
We don't amplify hate.
December 5, 2025 at 8:30 PM
I think I want to start the "Good Neighbors" political party.
Platform:
We are a good neighbor.
We work to help our neighbors also be good neighbors.
We share sugar.
We loan tools.
We watch one another's children.
We work with our community to repair fences, roads and paths.
We don't amplify hate.
Platform:
We are a good neighbor.
We work to help our neighbors also be good neighbors.
We share sugar.
We loan tools.
We watch one another's children.
We work with our community to repair fences, roads and paths.
We don't amplify hate.
Reposted by sascha benjamin cohen
The entire debate over birthright citizenship is anti-constitutional because the purpose, intent, and text of the 14th Amendment were designed to foreclose any argument about who counts as an American citizen.
December 5, 2025 at 6:54 PM
The entire debate over birthright citizenship is anti-constitutional because the purpose, intent, and text of the 14th Amendment were designed to foreclose any argument about who counts as an American citizen.
So in the midst of our enterprise "return to office" process, our staff collective (org. for non-represented administrative and support staff) presented leadership with a detailed statement on RTO, showing quantitative evidence of harm in multiple areas, and asking for modification and review.
December 5, 2025 at 6:19 PM
So in the midst of our enterprise "return to office" process, our staff collective (org. for non-represented administrative and support staff) presented leadership with a detailed statement on RTO, showing quantitative evidence of harm in multiple areas, and asking for modification and review.
Me, opening the news in the morning, every single damned day
December 5, 2025 at 6:10 PM
Me, opening the news in the morning, every single damned day
Reposted by sascha benjamin cohen
Since becoming a parent I have not, in fact, understood the parents who say “if you were a parent you’d understand” about vaccine hesitancy. Being in charge of this fragile little miracle has me saying things like “give her all the vaccines. Turn this baby into a pincushion” to doctors
December 5, 2025 at 2:44 PM
Since becoming a parent I have not, in fact, understood the parents who say “if you were a parent you’d understand” about vaccine hesitancy. Being in charge of this fragile little miracle has me saying things like “give her all the vaccines. Turn this baby into a pincushion” to doctors
Good morning, and welcome to the 319th day of your government actively working to make your life and the lives of your children worse for an entire generation (or more)
An End to Hepatitis B Shots for All Newborns
www.nytimes.com
December 5, 2025 at 4:12 PM
Good morning, and welcome to the 319th day of your government actively working to make your life and the lives of your children worse for an entire generation (or more)
There is something quite appropriate and heartwarming about seeing a frog devour a murder hornet without harm or compunction.
I do wonder if the frog twerks after eating, though.
I do wonder if the frog twerks after eating, though.
Fearless frogs feast on deadly hornets [via Kobe Uni] 🧪🥼🐸🦟😋
"Kobe University ecologist SUGIURA Shinji discovered that the black-spotted pond frog seems to be unharmed and undaunted by #venomous stings from hornets such as the Asian giant #hornet"
www.kobe-u.ac.jp/en/news/arti...
#frog #immunity
"Kobe University ecologist SUGIURA Shinji discovered that the black-spotted pond frog seems to be unharmed and undaunted by #venomous stings from hornets such as the Asian giant #hornet"
www.kobe-u.ac.jp/en/news/arti...
#frog #immunity
Fearless frogs feast on deadly hornets | Kobe University News site
A remarkable resistance to venom has been discovered in a frog that feasts on hornets despite their deadly stingers. This frog could potentially serve as a model organism for studies on mechanisms und...
www.kobe-u.ac.jp
December 5, 2025 at 1:11 AM
There is something quite appropriate and heartwarming about seeing a frog devour a murder hornet without harm or compunction.
I do wonder if the frog twerks after eating, though.
I do wonder if the frog twerks after eating, though.
Reposted by sascha benjamin cohen
I love how we've just forgotten that the wife of Mr. Deport Everybody violated the terms of her visa when she first came to the US.
www.pbs.org/newshour/pol...
www.pbs.org/newshour/pol...
Melania Trump modeled in U.S. prior to getting work visa
Melania Trump was paid for 10 modeling jobs in the United States worth $20,056 that occurred in the seven weeks before she had legal permission to work in the country.
www.pbs.org
December 4, 2025 at 8:26 PM
I love how we've just forgotten that the wife of Mr. Deport Everybody violated the terms of her visa when she first came to the US.
www.pbs.org/newshour/pol...
www.pbs.org/newshour/pol...
Three days of consecutive good news. That's all I ask.
Is that too much, universe?
Is that too much, universe?
December 5, 2025 at 1:04 AM
Three days of consecutive good news. That's all I ask.
Is that too much, universe?
Is that too much, universe?