Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by tenorune

Sharon @sharonk.bsky.social · 2h

thiel, man, what the fuck are you talking about

He describes the plot of Watchmen, a 1986 graphic novel involving superheroes grappling with moral questions about humanity against the backdrop of impending nuclear war:

The antihero Ozymandias, the antichrist-type figure, is sort of an early-modern person. He believes this will be a timeless and eternal solution – eternal world peace. Moore is sort of a late-modern. In early modernity, you have ideal solutions, ‘perfect’ solutions to calculus. In late modernity, things are sort of probabilistic. And at some point, he asks Dr Manhattan whether the world government is going to last. And he says that ‘nothing lasts forever.’ So you embrace the antichrist and it still doesn’t work.

Thiel later finds biblical meaning in the manga One Piece, discussing how he believes it represents a future where an antichrist-like one-world government has repressed science. He believes that the hero, Monkey D Luffy, represents a Christlike figure.

In One Piece, you are set in a fantasy world, again sort of an alternate earth, but it’s 800 years into the reign of this one-world state. Which, as the story unfolds, gradually gets darker and darker. You sort of realize, in my interpretation, who runs the world and it’s something like the antichrist. There’s Luffy, a pirate who wears a red straw hat, sort of like Christ’s crown of thorns. And then towards the end of the story, transforms into a figure who resembles Christ in Revelation.

Thiel, along with a researcher and writer at Thiel Capital, explored these ideas at greater length in an essay for the religious journal First Things earlier this month.

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Bill Kristol @billkristolbulwark.bsky.social · 1h

Pope Leo quotes Hannah Arendt:

“The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the convinced Communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction and the distinction between true and false no longer exist."

www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news...

Pope Leo calls for news agencies to stand as bulwark against "post-truths," lies and manipulation

Pope Leo XIV has encouraged international news agencies to stand firm as a bulwark against the "ancient art of lying" and manipulation.

www.cbsnews.com

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ghostly gwen howerton @kissphoria.bsky.social · 2d

fresh off of getting the houston pride crosswalk removed, Libs of TikTok is also celebrating getting a free pride event in New Braunfels removed from the Comal County Fair & Rodeo: x.com/libsoftiktok...

COMAL COUNTY FAIR
& RODEO
Press Release: Tuesday October 7, 2025
Following discussions with the organizers of the New Braunfels Riverside Pride Festival, and after expressing concerns related to age appropriateness, safety, and the well-being of all involved, the event organizers have decided to relocate their event to an alternate venue.
The Fair Association is a nonpartisan organization. Facility rentals are open to the community based on availability, and the Association does not sponsor or endorse outside events. We recognize the importance of ensuring that all activities held on our grounds reflect the highest standards of public safety and a positive community experience. Moving forward, we will be revising our rental contracts to align more closely with the mission of the organization while maintaining a nonpartisan approach.
We appreciate the constructive feedback and concerns shared by members of our community, as well as Riverside Pride's professionalism in their decision. We remain committed to providing a facility where our community can hold events in a safe, and respectful manner for all residents of Comal County.
Thank You,
Comal County Fair Executive Board

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Josh Marshall @joshtpm.bsky.social · 1d

www.military.com/daily-news/2...

Veterans, Who Saw One of Their Own Arrested by ICE and Charged, Say Feds Are Undermining Democracy

Days after a 70-year-old Air Force veteran was among five people charged while protesting outside a suburban U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility, fellow veterans and others gathered at t...

www.military.com

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tenorune @tenorune.bsky.social · 12h

"A Catholic flavored frog costume".

Yes. Fascists are totally unprepared to face love and joy.

Kara Jorgensen @authorkaraj.bsky.social · 14h

I love this. yes, more Catholic priests bringing out ALL THE POMP AND ICONOGRAPHY outside ICE facilities. It is a Catholic-flavored frog costume.
Catholicism is deeply woven into Latinx communities and Catholic charities are often very immigrant focused. Use the money and gravitas for good for once.

Rich Raho @richraho.bsky.social · 17h

Chicago priest Fr. Larry Dowling describes procession to ICE facility: “No one had the courage to speak directly to us. No one from Homeland Security could stand in the presence of the Monstrance holding the Blessed Sacrament. No wonder. Evil is repelled, recoils in the presence of Christ.”

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Malachite Tigerbunny @malachitetiger.bsky.social · 12h

For those who aren't familiar, this is basically the Catholic Priest way of pulling a switchblade and saying "Fuck you, try me."

Rich Raho @richraho.bsky.social · 17h

Chicago priest Fr. Larry Dowling describes procession to ICE facility: “No one had the courage to speak directly to us. No one from Homeland Security could stand in the presence of the Monstrance holding the Blessed Sacrament. No wonder. Evil is repelled, recoils in the presence of Christ.”

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tenorune @tenorune.bsky.social · 13h

unsolicited ick pick

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tenorune @tenorune.bsky.social · 13h

Happens all the time! Today it was that Verge article about shitposters and aura farmers. Then, even with my blockers off I still had to use the Wayback Machine.

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James “Jimmy” Gibbs @jimmyjamers.bsky.social · 14h

Rest easy, Diane Keaton. We have the watch and we’ll see you in Valhalla.

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Daniel Benneworth-Gray @danielgray.com · 17h

Diane Keaton by Annie Leibovitz, 1986

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tenorune @tenorune.bsky.social · 13h

Laughing at Stephen Miller for 15 minutes

youtu.be/x4UplNiIv2Y?...

Stephen Miller spraypainted hair on his head for Face the Nation

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derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 2d

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lauren @lauren.rotatingsandwiches.com · 1d

peter thiel (clutching chrome plated human skull) tell me oracle... does the world end in fire, or ice? the passionate flames of the activist thunberg, or the frozen doom yudkowski demands?

chatGPT: ✨ What a great question, Peter! ✨

Let's break that tough Q down 🕺, in your favorite epic style:

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tenorune @tenorune.bsky.social · 19h

He's a legal adult, he is fair game.

tenorune @tenorune.bsky.social · 20h

actually, I see it's more accurate to say that that accound is deactivated now. (jennbudd)

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Josh Moody @byjoshmoody.bsky.social · 2d

MIT rejects "compact" proposed by the Trump administration.
MIT prez wrote: it "would restrict freedom of expression and our independence as an institution" and "is inconsistent with our core belief that scientific funding should be based on scientific merit alone."
orgchart.mit.edu/letters/rega...

Regarding the Compact | MIT Organization Chart

orgchart.mit.edu

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Chris Geidner @chrisgeidner.bsky.social · 22h

Luttig has it right here: “[T]he Supreme Court has given them no choice but to speak out.”

Leah Litman @leahlitman.bsky.social · 1d

More judges speak to the press (the NYT) about what a disaster the Supreme Court (specifically the shadow docket) has been - “incredibly demoralizing & troubling”; a “judicial crisis”; a “slap in the face to district courts.” www.nytimes.com/2025/10/11/u...

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Dan Sinykin @dan-sinnamon.bsky.social · 22h

i am feeling, i am seeing, i am hearing, i am getting the vibes, that students this sem are better than they've been in years because learning offers a rare haven from authoritarianism, a place to convene, commune, think together, refuel for the fight

Anna Kornbluh @annakornbluh.bsky.social · 1d

week 7, in a city under siege for 32 days and counting, and the students who are able to come to class despite the blitz are showing up like their lives depend on those 50 minutes of togetherness, poetry, and big questions

Miriam Posner @miriamposner.com · 2d

IDK, man. School started 2 weeks ago for us, and once again students remind me that they’re so curious and interested in the world and anxious to ask big questions. We hear that these questions are no longer useful or relevant, but wherever that’s coming from, it’s not what students believe.

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tenorune @tenorune.bsky.social · 20h

fwiw, the source of the three armed journalist video deleted the post. just checked.

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G Elliott Morris @gelliottmorris.com · 2d

A majority of adults oppose Trump’s use of the National Guard in America cities www.gelliottmorris.com/p/a-majority...

A majority of Americans oppose Trump sending the National Guard to Democratic-run cities

The president is defying the will of the people, federal judges, and the Constitution

www.gelliottmorris.com

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Joe 👻 BOO! 👻 dek @joedudekjd.bsky.social · 1d

Holy footnote, Batman!

Hamilton: What kind of stupid, self-defeating, tyrannical maniac would send the National Guard hundreds of miles from home to oppress people in other states?! Sit down, Don.

$1 “A sample of this is to be observed in the exaggerated and improbable suggestions which have taken place respecting the power of calling for the services of the militia. That of New-Hampshire is to be marched to Georgia, of Georgia to New-Hampshire, of New-York to Kentuke and of Kentuke to Lake Champlain. Nay the debts due to the French and Dutch are to be paid in Militia-men instead of Louis d’ors and ducats. At one moment there is to be a large army to lay prostrate the liberties of the people; at another moment the militia of Virginia are to be dragged from their homes five or six hundred miles to tame the republican contumacy of Massachusetts; and that of Massachusetts is to be transported an equal distance to subdue the refractory haughtiness of the aristocratic Virginians. Do the persons, who rave at this rate, imagine, that their art or their eloquence can impose any conceits or absurdities upon the people of America for infallible truths?$

If there should be an army to be made use of as the engine of despotism what need of the militia? If
there should be no army, whither would the militia, irritated by being called upon to undertake a distant
and hopeless expedition for the purpose of rivetting the chains of slavery upon a part of their countrymen
direct their course, but to the seat of the tyrants, who had meditated so foolish as well as so wicked a
project; to crush them in their imagined intrenchments of power and to make them an example of the just
vengeance of an abused and incensed people? Is this the way in which usurpers stride to dominion over a
numerous and enlightened nation? Do they begin by exciting the detestation of the very instruments of
their intended usurpations? Do they usually commence their career by wanton and disgustful acts of
power calculated to answer no end, but to draw upon themselves universal hatred and execration? Are
suppositions of this sort the sober admonitions of discerning patriots to a discerning people? Or are they
the inflammatory ravings of chagrined incendiaries or distempered enthusiasts? If we were even to
suppose the national rulers actuated by the most ungovernable ambition, it is impossible to believe that
they would employ such preposterous means to accomplish their designs.”
The Federalist No. 29, at 186-187 (Alexander Hamilton) (Jacob Ernest Cooke ed., 1961).

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tenorune @tenorune.bsky.social · 23h

I found this report useful. It is certainly a stretch to the truth, ie a lie, palatable only to those that convince themselves through mental and ethical gymnastics. Meanwhile, 14.2 million people, the vast majority of whom are U.S. citizens lose coverage

1.4 Million Lawfully Present Immigrants are Expected to Lose Health Coverage due to the 2025 Tax and Budget Law | KFF

This policy watch outlines the groups of lawfully present immigrants that will lose access to federally funded health coverage due to the 2025 tax and budget law and the Congressional Budget Office’s ...

www.kff.org

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tenorune @tenorune.bsky.social · 23h

This last figure here:

Factchecking Claims about Medicaid and Marketplace Health Coverage for Immigrants – Government Shutdown Edition

We are getting a lot of questions about the U.S. government shutdown that began on October 1, 2025, after a bipartisan failure to reach a deal to fund the government. The main point reporters are t…

ccf.georgetown.edu

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tenorune @tenorune.bsky.social · 23h

I found this report useful. It is certainly a stretch to the truth, ie a lie, palatable only to those that convince themselves through mental and ethical gymnastics. Meanwhile, 14.2 million people, the vast majority of whom are U.S. citizens lose coverage

1.4 Million Lawfully Present Immigrants are Expected to Lose Health Coverage due to the 2025 Tax and Budget Law | KFF

This policy watch outlines the groups of lawfully present immigrants that will lose access to federally funded health coverage due to the 2025 tax and budget law and the Congressional Budget Office’s ...

www.kff.org

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tenorune @tenorune.bsky.social · 23h

Hot Priest