Potempkin Village Idiot
@ixak.bsky.social
Baltimore climate dad anthropologist fighting existential terror w/ existential counter-terrorism. The soft underbelly of the cutting edge. Working on resilience, local governance, urban gardening, tool repair, fermentation.
https://medium.com/@ixak
https://medium.com/@ixak
Pinned
Conversation w/ my son:
Him: What was your favorite movie when you were a kid?
Me: Short Circuit
What's it about?
A robot who comes to life.
What was your favorite movie when you became a grownup?
Blade Runner
What's it about?
A guy who hunts and kills robots who have come to life.
Him: What was your favorite movie when you were a kid?
Me: Short Circuit
What's it about?
A robot who comes to life.
What was your favorite movie when you became a grownup?
Blade Runner
What's it about?
A guy who hunts and kills robots who have come to life.
Spend more time with my kids and my partner. Spend more time in the garden. See my friends more. Learn how to do more stuff. Teach a free class or two at the local free school. Start playing in a band again.
Honest question: If everyone got Universal Basic Income, no strings attached, what would YOU do with it?
Re-post with your quote or drop your take below.
Re-post with your quote or drop your take below.
November 29, 2025 at 4:58 PM
Spend more time with my kids and my partner. Spend more time in the garden. See my friends more. Learn how to do more stuff. Teach a free class or two at the local free school. Start playing in a band again.
Hey, Kissinger's been dead for two years!
November 29, 2025 at 4:12 PM
Hey, Kissinger's been dead for two years!
Reposted by Potempkin Village Idiot
Every single congressional Democrat needs to be out there, right now, insisting that Pete Hegseth resign right now and announcing that he will be held accountable for committing war crimes.
If you do not demand accountability here and now, they will only become more emboldened.
If you do not demand accountability here and now, they will only become more emboldened.
Exclusive: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gave an order to “kill everybody” in the first strike on suspected drug boats in the Caribbean. After two men survived, the mission commander ordered a second strike to comply with Hegseth’s instructions, according to two sources.
Hegseth order on first Caribbean boat strike, officials say: Kill them all
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued a verbal order to kill all crew members in the Sept. 2 strike on a suspected drug boat. Navy SEALs fired a second missile.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 28, 2025 at 7:19 PM
Every single congressional Democrat needs to be out there, right now, insisting that Pete Hegseth resign right now and announcing that he will be held accountable for committing war crimes.
If you do not demand accountability here and now, they will only become more emboldened.
If you do not demand accountability here and now, they will only become more emboldened.
Chicken & waffles means something very different in central PA than it does elsewhere.
The traditional Southern version is just regular waffles served alongside fried chicken. A nice mix of sweet/savory components. The PA version (i.e., PA Dutch) is shredded chicken in gravy, ladled over a waffle...
The traditional Southern version is just regular waffles served alongside fried chicken. A nice mix of sweet/savory components. The PA version (i.e., PA Dutch) is shredded chicken in gravy, ladled over a waffle...
November 28, 2025 at 9:03 PM
Chicken & waffles means something very different in central PA than it does elsewhere.
The traditional Southern version is just regular waffles served alongside fried chicken. A nice mix of sweet/savory components. The PA version (i.e., PA Dutch) is shredded chicken in gravy, ladled over a waffle...
The traditional Southern version is just regular waffles served alongside fried chicken. A nice mix of sweet/savory components. The PA version (i.e., PA Dutch) is shredded chicken in gravy, ladled over a waffle...
Van Hollen remains S-tier by simply doing his job, genuinely helping people, and not being a creepy focus-group chasing weirdo.
Van Hollen is being personally credited as the chief pressure point that made Israel release a Palestinian teenager with American citizenship from their dungeons, where he was held for 9 months without even a criminal charge.
⭕️ Sen. Chris Van Hollen (@vanhollen.senate.gov) credited for key role in release of US teen from Israeli detention
Palestinian-American child Mohammed Ibrahim, 16, was freed today after 9 months of Israeli imprisonment w/o charge. Journalist Jasper Nathaniel, who has been a major advocate for...
Palestinian-American child Mohammed Ibrahim, 16, was freed today after 9 months of Israeli imprisonment w/o charge. Journalist Jasper Nathaniel, who has been a major advocate for...
November 28, 2025 at 7:49 PM
Van Hollen remains S-tier by simply doing his job, genuinely helping people, and not being a creepy focus-group chasing weirdo.
Post-Thanksgiving breakfast: Peanuts and Chex Mix dust.
Don't be jealous.
Don't be jealous.
November 28, 2025 at 1:44 PM
Post-Thanksgiving breakfast: Peanuts and Chex Mix dust.
Don't be jealous.
Don't be jealous.
Introduce yourself with 5 animals you have seen in the wild
Red Fox (Baltimore alley near my house)
Bald eagle (eating roadkill rat on a Baltimore street)
Blue Heron (Baltimore skyline at dawn)
Common Raven (pair swooping over JHU)
Opossum (killed by a fox near my house)
Red Fox (Baltimore alley near my house)
Bald eagle (eating roadkill rat on a Baltimore street)
Blue Heron (Baltimore skyline at dawn)
Common Raven (pair swooping over JHU)
Opossum (killed by a fox near my house)
Brown bear (forests of Muskoka, Canada)
Raccoons (every public nook and cranny in Toronto)
Hawks (a park just west of downtown Toronto)
Canada Geese (Humber Bay Park, my neighborhood!)
Albino squirrel (Trinity Bellwoods Park)
Raccoons (every public nook and cranny in Toronto)
Hawks (a park just west of downtown Toronto)
Canada Geese (Humber Bay Park, my neighborhood!)
Albino squirrel (Trinity Bellwoods Park)
Introduce yourself with 5 animals you have seen in the wild
- beaver (in Scotland)
- platypus (in Queensland)
- skunk (in California)
- raccoon (in Massachusetts)
- boar (in Italy)
- beaver (in Scotland)
- platypus (in Queensland)
- skunk (in California)
- raccoon (in Massachusetts)
- boar (in Italy)
November 28, 2025 at 1:37 PM
Introduce yourself with 5 animals you have seen in the wild
Red Fox (Baltimore alley near my house)
Bald eagle (eating roadkill rat on a Baltimore street)
Blue Heron (Baltimore skyline at dawn)
Common Raven (pair swooping over JHU)
Opossum (killed by a fox near my house)
Red Fox (Baltimore alley near my house)
Bald eagle (eating roadkill rat on a Baltimore street)
Blue Heron (Baltimore skyline at dawn)
Common Raven (pair swooping over JHU)
Opossum (killed by a fox near my house)
Got another night here at a family member's house, so I'm not going to talk shit about the music they like. But, MAN, this post malone halftime show is garbage. Just mediocre garbage indistinguishable from AI-slop.
November 27, 2025 at 11:19 PM
Got another night here at a family member's house, so I'm not going to talk shit about the music they like. But, MAN, this post malone halftime show is garbage. Just mediocre garbage indistinguishable from AI-slop.
Reposted by Potempkin Village Idiot
On this day, Indigenous people and allies confront the settler-colonial narratives of “Thanksgiving,” observing it instead as a National Day of Mourning.
November 27, 2025 at 3:12 PM
On this day, Indigenous people and allies confront the settler-colonial narratives of “Thanksgiving,” observing it instead as a National Day of Mourning.
Introduce yourself with 5 concerts you’ve been to:
David Bowie/NIN
Thievery Corporation/Manu Chao
J. Roddy Walston and the Business (NYE in Baltimore)
Soul Coughing (reunion tour)
Flaming Lips (Yoshimi 25 year anniversary tour)
David Bowie/NIN
Thievery Corporation/Manu Chao
J. Roddy Walston and the Business (NYE in Baltimore)
Soul Coughing (reunion tour)
Flaming Lips (Yoshimi 25 year anniversary tour)
Introduce yourself with 5 concerts you’ve been to:
Less Than Jake
The Get Up Kids
Jets To Brazil
My Chemical Romance
Manchester Orchestra
(All of these were in sub 250 cap venues)
Less Than Jake
The Get Up Kids
Jets To Brazil
My Chemical Romance
Manchester Orchestra
(All of these were in sub 250 cap venues)
Introduce yourself with 5 concerts you’ve been to:
The Aquabats
The Vandals
My Chemical Romance
AFI
Coheed and Cambria
The Aquabats
The Vandals
My Chemical Romance
AFI
Coheed and Cambria
November 27, 2025 at 6:39 PM
Introduce yourself with 5 concerts you’ve been to:
David Bowie/NIN
Thievery Corporation/Manu Chao
J. Roddy Walston and the Business (NYE in Baltimore)
Soul Coughing (reunion tour)
Flaming Lips (Yoshimi 25 year anniversary tour)
David Bowie/NIN
Thievery Corporation/Manu Chao
J. Roddy Walston and the Business (NYE in Baltimore)
Soul Coughing (reunion tour)
Flaming Lips (Yoshimi 25 year anniversary tour)
Reposted by Potempkin Village Idiot
This is a good insight. No computer could have predicted, nor can it properly replicate: Esthero, Leikeli47, Missy Elliott, Björk, Jill Scott, Big KRIT, UGK, The Roots (definitely not Black Thought on his own), Brandy, The Clark Sisters, HAIM, Fiona Apple … there’s a strong indication here.
I’ve been trying to find ways to articulate my hatred of AI-generated music that won’t come across as snobbish, but most of what I have to say about it can be boiled down to this:
None of the artists I like in any genre, regardless of era, make music that can be accurately predicted by a computer.
None of the artists I like in any genre, regardless of era, make music that can be accurately predicted by a computer.
November 27, 2025 at 1:41 PM
This is a good insight. No computer could have predicted, nor can it properly replicate: Esthero, Leikeli47, Missy Elliott, Björk, Jill Scott, Big KRIT, UGK, The Roots (definitely not Black Thought on his own), Brandy, The Clark Sisters, HAIM, Fiona Apple … there’s a strong indication here.
21st century political violence in the US doesn't really come from the left. It comes almost entirely from one of two places:
1. The far right.
2. Neurotic weirdos overwhelmed by pain and chaos with unmappable political opinions.
1. The far right.
2. Neurotic weirdos overwhelmed by pain and chaos with unmappable political opinions.
Breaking News: The suspect in the shooting of two National Guard members had worked with CIA-backed units during the war in Afghanistan, officials said. Follow live.
National Guard Shooting Live Updates: Suspect Worked With CIA-Backed Units in Afghanistan, Officials Say
The C.I.A. said that the suspect, whom officials identified as a 29-year-old Afghan, came to the United States in 2021 after the American military withdrawal. Two National Guard members were in critical condition after the shooting on Wednesday.
nyti.ms
November 27, 2025 at 1:46 PM
21st century political violence in the US doesn't really come from the left. It comes almost entirely from one of two places:
1. The far right.
2. Neurotic weirdos overwhelmed by pain and chaos with unmappable political opinions.
1. The far right.
2. Neurotic weirdos overwhelmed by pain and chaos with unmappable political opinions.
*Not to claim that I would drive one, but in terms of the Balkan material culture of their era, Yugos were a heroic achievement
www.flickr.com/photos/bruce...
www.flickr.com/photos/bruce...
November 27, 2025 at 12:29 PM
My prediction is that ex-Qanon & disillusioned ex-technolibertarians will be the stoachistic assassins of the next half-decade.
Rejecting their old ideologies, but still enamored w/ guns & violent solutions and no internal or social experience with moral struggle over the ethics of violence.
Rejecting their old ideologies, but still enamored w/ guns & violent solutions and no internal or social experience with moral struggle over the ethics of violence.
November 27, 2025 at 12:17 AM
My prediction is that ex-Qanon & disillusioned ex-technolibertarians will be the stoachistic assassins of the next half-decade.
Rejecting their old ideologies, but still enamored w/ guns & violent solutions and no internal or social experience with moral struggle over the ethics of violence.
Rejecting their old ideologies, but still enamored w/ guns & violent solutions and no internal or social experience with moral struggle over the ethics of violence.
My 9-year-old son has been waiting for T-giving w/ his cousin for weeks. He woke up at 4am this morning and shouted:
"Rebel Squad #2 - Depart for Andy's!"
Then paused and said,
"...after one more sweet breakfast of sleep!"
And then went back to sleep for two more hours.
"Rebel Squad #2 - Depart for Andy's!"
Then paused and said,
"...after one more sweet breakfast of sleep!"
And then went back to sleep for two more hours.
November 26, 2025 at 7:03 PM
My 9-year-old son has been waiting for T-giving w/ his cousin for weeks. He woke up at 4am this morning and shouted:
"Rebel Squad #2 - Depart for Andy's!"
Then paused and said,
"...after one more sweet breakfast of sleep!"
And then went back to sleep for two more hours.
"Rebel Squad #2 - Depart for Andy's!"
Then paused and said,
"...after one more sweet breakfast of sleep!"
And then went back to sleep for two more hours.
Reposted by Potempkin Village Idiot
Pediatricians say vaccines do not cause autism. A bear-eating heroin addict who fantasizes about sucking his own semen out of his lovers' orifices says they do. For busy parents, it can be hard to know who to trust.
November 26, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Pediatricians say vaccines do not cause autism. A bear-eating heroin addict who fantasizes about sucking his own semen out of his lovers' orifices says they do. For busy parents, it can be hard to know who to trust.
"Tell him he knows everything he needs to know and feels everything he needs to feel. And when the day comes, and those two pull together, he will be an unstoppable force for good. Tell him I love him more than anything he could ever do wrong.”
😭
#Andor
😭
#Andor
November 26, 2025 at 4:21 PM
"Tell him he knows everything he needs to know and feels everything he needs to feel. And when the day comes, and those two pull together, he will be an unstoppable force for good. Tell him I love him more than anything he could ever do wrong.”
😭
#Andor
😭
#Andor
Reposted by Potempkin Village Idiot
I want this moment for us
Good morning to Brazilian reporter Manuela Borges, who’s been waiting eleven years for this petty moment. ❤️ 🇧🇷
November 26, 2025 at 3:27 PM
I want this moment for us
Have not learned a scale on the piano since I quit taking lessons at the age of 12. Spent 20 minutes trying to learn the A♭ scale with proper fingering and was ready to cry by the end of it.
November 26, 2025 at 2:48 AM
Have not learned a scale on the piano since I quit taking lessons at the age of 12. Spent 20 minutes trying to learn the A♭ scale with proper fingering and was ready to cry by the end of it.
You know, I'm as much of a believer in keeping the line between the fall holidays and Christmas as firm as possible, but man, sometimes I really just want to play the Vince Guaraldi Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack before Thanksgiving.
November 25, 2025 at 10:24 PM
You know, I'm as much of a believer in keeping the line between the fall holidays and Christmas as firm as possible, but man, sometimes I really just want to play the Vince Guaraldi Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack before Thanksgiving.
Breakfast of champions in effect (Plus leftover Halloween light up skull necklaces were only 53 cents apiece)
November 25, 2025 at 1:35 PM
Breakfast of champions in effect (Plus leftover Halloween light up skull necklaces were only 53 cents apiece)
The characters from the last TV show you watched are trying to rescue you. Who's coming to save you?
What can I say? The guy probably has the right tools for the job.
What can I say? The guy probably has the right tools for the job.
November 25, 2025 at 11:29 AM
The characters from the last TV show you watched are trying to rescue you. Who's coming to save you?
What can I say? The guy probably has the right tools for the job.
What can I say? The guy probably has the right tools for the job.
Just spent half an hour watching my 9-year-old just mess around with a keyboard. He's got a very natural ear for music, but he's never really had a chance to just BE with a piano before. Fucking magical.
In my 20s this was my primary keyboard. I was mostly a bass player & a rhythm guitar player, but I kept this around for when I got stuck in a songwriting rut.
An absolute unit, I'm sure it's caused more than a few hernias. It ended up at a friend's studio for 15 years & just came back to me today.
An absolute unit, I'm sure it's caused more than a few hernias. It ended up at a friend's studio for 15 years & just came back to me today.
November 25, 2025 at 3:17 AM
Just spent half an hour watching my 9-year-old just mess around with a keyboard. He's got a very natural ear for music, but he's never really had a chance to just BE with a piano before. Fucking magical.
11 years ago I got sent to Nepal for two weeks to do data collection work. I wonder if I'll ever make it back.
November 24, 2025 at 7:54 PM
11 years ago I got sent to Nepal for two weeks to do data collection work. I wonder if I'll ever make it back.
Lots of angry discourse around this. I'm in a household w/ 2 kids & 2 working parents in an affordable city, w/ decent health insurance, living well within our budget. He's 100% right.
To live with minimal precarity as a classic nuclear fam in the US, you probably need to be making more than $100k.
To live with minimal precarity as a classic nuclear fam in the US, you probably need to be making more than $100k.
Mike Green is writing some amazing stuff at the moment. It's not in the delta, it's in the level and the cost structure. Read this and you will understand Angrynomics on a new level: www.yesigiveafig.com/p/part-1-my-...
Part 1: My Life Is a Lie
How a Broken Benchmark Quietly Broke America
www.yesigiveafig.com
November 24, 2025 at 5:45 PM
Lots of angry discourse around this. I'm in a household w/ 2 kids & 2 working parents in an affordable city, w/ decent health insurance, living well within our budget. He's 100% right.
To live with minimal precarity as a classic nuclear fam in the US, you probably need to be making more than $100k.
To live with minimal precarity as a classic nuclear fam in the US, you probably need to be making more than $100k.