Jonah Blank
@jonahblank.bsky.social
Anthropologist, author, dad. Order purely alphabetical
Pinned
Jonah Blank
@jonahblank.bsky.social
· Nov 14
Arrow of the Blue-Skinned God: Retracing the Ramayana T…
The three-thousand-year-old epic Ramayana chronicles Lo…
goodreads.com
Who am I? What am I doing here?
Intro thread with links to some of my work.
My first book was "Arrow of the Blue-Skinned God: Retracing the Ramayana Through India"
goodreads.com/book/show/17...
[🧵 of publications]
Indeed:
♦️A guy with a long track record of using US military force to try to overthrow Latin American government(s).
♦️And being convicted for it.
♦️A guy with a long track record of using US military force to try to overthrow Latin American government(s).
♦️And being convicted for it.
Because when I want to get ideas for how the US should manage a brewing crisis in Venezuela, I want to hear the perspective of a guy who served in the Reagan Administration, one noted for its restraint and skill in South America.
War criminal says what
November 24, 2025 at 12:13 AM
Indeed:
♦️A guy with a long track record of using US military force to try to overthrow Latin American government(s).
♦️And being convicted for it.
♦️A guy with a long track record of using US military force to try to overthrow Latin American government(s).
♦️And being convicted for it.
As the father of two teens:
♦️I could've determined this without a minute in the lab.
♦️I could've determined this without a minute in the lab.
DNA reveals stone age teenager as chewer of 10,500-year-old ‘gum’
DNA reveals stone age teenager as chewer of 10,500-year-old ‘gum’
The prehistoric birch tar found in Estonia contained traces of saliva that were analysed by genetics experts
A piece of stone age “gum” chewed by a teenage girl 10,500 years ago has been discovered by archaeologists in Estonia.
The Institute of History and Archaeology at the University of Tartu discovered the prehistoric birch tar had impressions of teeth marks and traces of saliva. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
November 23, 2025 at 8:53 PM
As the father of two teens:
♦️I could've determined this without a minute in the lab.
♦️I could've determined this without a minute in the lab.
True fact I was never taught in school:
♦️After the enslaved people of #Haiti wrestled their independence from France, they were saddled with a debt to their former enslavers. It was the equivalent of half a billion dollars today-- and not paid off until 1947.
Some context for this:
♦️After the enslaved people of #Haiti wrestled their independence from France, they were saddled with a debt to their former enslavers. It was the equivalent of half a billion dollars today-- and not paid off until 1947.
Some context for this:
Two Texas men planned to recruit homeless people to partake in an armed coup of a Haitian island, murder all the men, and turn the women and children into their sex slaves, according to an indictment.
Texas Men Plotted Coup of Haitian Island to Enslave Women and Children, U.S. Says
The men, who planned to recruit homeless people for the invasion, took Haitian Creole classes and one enrolled in the U.S. Air Force to prepare for an attack by sailboat, prosecutors said.
nyti.ms
November 23, 2025 at 3:10 PM
True fact I was never taught in school:
♦️After the enslaved people of #Haiti wrestled their independence from France, they were saddled with a debt to their former enslavers. It was the equivalent of half a billion dollars today-- and not paid off until 1947.
Some context for this:
♦️After the enslaved people of #Haiti wrestled their independence from France, they were saddled with a debt to their former enslavers. It was the equivalent of half a billion dollars today-- and not paid off until 1947.
Some context for this:
Putin's ploy:
♦️By rejecting a "deal" that is merely his own wish-list, he hopes to make it look like a compromise.
♦️And it'll prompt Trump up the ante: Why settle for just SOME of #Ukraine if you can hold out for it all?
♦️By rejecting a "deal" that is merely his own wish-list, he hopes to make it look like a compromise.
♦️And it'll prompt Trump up the ante: Why settle for just SOME of #Ukraine if you can hold out for it all?
Russia flat out rejects Trump's 28-point peace plan: "Even in a reduced military and territorial form, Ukraine would remain a significant danger, requiring us to keep our forces on the western borders."
November 22, 2025 at 9:47 PM
Putin's ploy:
♦️By rejecting a "deal" that is merely his own wish-list, he hopes to make it look like a compromise.
♦️And it'll prompt Trump up the ante: Why settle for just SOME of #Ukraine if you can hold out for it all?
♦️By rejecting a "deal" that is merely his own wish-list, he hopes to make it look like a compromise.
♦️And it'll prompt Trump up the ante: Why settle for just SOME of #Ukraine if you can hold out for it all?
Reposted by Jonah Blank
Meets Zohran on Friday, dressing like an East Village poet who wrote something called "A Fairest Autumn" by Saturday.
November 22, 2025 at 8:31 PM
Meets Zohran on Friday, dressing like an East Village poet who wrote something called "A Fairest Autumn" by Saturday.
✋🏼 Ooh-- I know this one!
♦️Because she lied about Trump's complicity with #JeffreyEpstein.
Next question?
♦️Because she lied about Trump's complicity with #JeffreyEpstein.
Next question?
Why is Ghislaine Maxwell getting the Club Fed treatment? | Arwa Mahdawi
Why is Ghislaine Maxwell getting the Club Fed treatment? | Arwa Mahdawi
Her privileges in America’s two-tiered legal system reportedly range from from unlimited toilet paper to puppy playtime
www.theguardian.com
November 22, 2025 at 6:27 PM
✋🏼 Ooh-- I know this one!
♦️Because she lied about Trump's complicity with #JeffreyEpstein.
Next question?
♦️Because she lied about Trump's complicity with #JeffreyEpstein.
Next question?
First sentence: ✅
Second sentence: ❌
Second sentence: ❌
Trump on Marjorie Taylor Greene: "Once I left her, she resigned because she would never have survived a primary. But I think she's a nice person."
November 22, 2025 at 5:50 PM
First sentence: ✅
Second sentence: ❌
Second sentence: ❌
Reposted by Jonah Blank
It’s unbelievably embarrassing that a newspaper with some lingering pretensions to be serious would run with this kind of drivel.
The fear of not having enough money is familiar. But there’s a quieter struggle at the top: feeling uncomfortable with having too much, says money psychotherapist Vicky Reynal ⬇️
Why my ultra-rich clients are ashamed of their wealth
www.thetimes.com
November 20, 2025 at 9:14 PM
It’s unbelievably embarrassing that a newspaper with some lingering pretensions to be serious would run with this kind of drivel.
This "plan" is merely a set of surrender-terms Trump (acting on behalf of Putin) is trying to impose on #Ukraine.
The Ukrainians don't need Trump to tell them how, when, or whether to surrender.
If they'd wished to do so, they would have done it when Putin launched his brutal invasion.
The Ukrainians don't need Trump to tell them how, when, or whether to surrender.
If they'd wished to do so, they would have done it when Putin launched his brutal invasion.
It isn’t a peace plan. A peace plan would seek to ensure Ukrainians can live in peace.
⚡️ Sen. Lindsey Graham says parts of the US peace plan are “very problematic.”
November 22, 2025 at 5:48 PM
This "plan" is merely a set of surrender-terms Trump (acting on behalf of Putin) is trying to impose on #Ukraine.
The Ukrainians don't need Trump to tell them how, when, or whether to surrender.
If they'd wished to do so, they would have done it when Putin launched his brutal invasion.
The Ukrainians don't need Trump to tell them how, when, or whether to surrender.
If they'd wished to do so, they would have done it when Putin launched his brutal invasion.
Reposted by Jonah Blank
Almost a year now since I received this absolutely classic burn from the Canadian government.
November 22, 2025 at 3:14 PM
The most disturbing of these firings is CIA's General Counsel:
♦️Firing the NSC's legal advisor is less important, since the NSC now barely exists. There has been no National Security Advisor for half a year (Rubio holds the post on a part-time basis, along with two other jobs apart from SecState).
♦️Firing the NSC's legal advisor is less important, since the NSC now barely exists. There has been no National Security Advisor for half a year (Rubio holds the post on a part-time basis, along with two other jobs apart from SecState).
On the patently unlawful boat strikes
It's hard for USGs to claim ‘mistake of law’ or ‘advice of counsel’ – when they’re firing lawyers who wouldn't sign off on the strikes.
WaPo's new revelations on firings or removals:
1) CIA General Counsel
2) NSC Legal Adviser
3) CIA Mission Center’s lawyer
🧵
It's hard for USGs to claim ‘mistake of law’ or ‘advice of counsel’ – when they’re firing lawyers who wouldn't sign off on the strikes.
WaPo's new revelations on firings or removals:
1) CIA General Counsel
2) NSC Legal Adviser
3) CIA Mission Center’s lawyer
🧵
White House blew past legal concerns in deadly strikes on drug boats
The Trump administration sidestepped skeptical lawyers across national security agencies as it pursued a military campaign against alleged narcotraffickers, officials say.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 22, 2025 at 3:14 PM
The most disturbing of these firings is CIA's General Counsel:
♦️Firing the NSC's legal advisor is less important, since the NSC now barely exists. There has been no National Security Advisor for half a year (Rubio holds the post on a part-time basis, along with two other jobs apart from SecState).
♦️Firing the NSC's legal advisor is less important, since the NSC now barely exists. There has been no National Security Advisor for half a year (Rubio holds the post on a part-time basis, along with two other jobs apart from SecState).
Yes, MTG is one of the very worst Members of Congress.
Yes, she's been a force for ill in the nation.
BUT:
♦️She went toe to toe with Trump-- and that appears to have terminated her career.
♦️Which will make all other GOP elected officials too terrified to stand up to him.
Yes, she's been a force for ill in the nation.
BUT:
♦️She went toe to toe with Trump-- and that appears to have terminated her career.
♦️Which will make all other GOP elected officials too terrified to stand up to him.
Breaking News: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene announced she would resign from Congress, days after President Trump called her a “traitor.” nyti.ms/4o71Flz
November 22, 2025 at 2:51 AM
Yes, MTG is one of the very worst Members of Congress.
Yes, she's been a force for ill in the nation.
BUT:
♦️She went toe to toe with Trump-- and that appears to have terminated her career.
♦️Which will make all other GOP elected officials too terrified to stand up to him.
Yes, she's been a force for ill in the nation.
BUT:
♦️She went toe to toe with Trump-- and that appears to have terminated her career.
♦️Which will make all other GOP elected officials too terrified to stand up to him.
The wrong lessons from NYC mayoral race:
-It's easy to win if you've got a media strategy and a smile.
The right lessons:
1. Focus on issues that voters care about.
2. Ignore the overpaid consultants. And Chuck Schumer.
3. Don't be a corrupt, elderly nepotistic sleazebag.
4. Be tough, but nice.
-It's easy to win if you've got a media strategy and a smile.
The right lessons:
1. Focus on issues that voters care about.
2. Ignore the overpaid consultants. And Chuck Schumer.
3. Don't be a corrupt, elderly nepotistic sleazebag.
4. Be tough, but nice.
Zohran is a generational talent, but I really worry the democrats are gonna take away all the wrong lessons from this, because none of the rest of them can do this.
November 22, 2025 at 12:07 AM
The wrong lessons from NYC mayoral race:
-It's easy to win if you've got a media strategy and a smile.
The right lessons:
1. Focus on issues that voters care about.
2. Ignore the overpaid consultants. And Chuck Schumer.
3. Don't be a corrupt, elderly nepotistic sleazebag.
4. Be tough, but nice.
-It's easy to win if you've got a media strategy and a smile.
The right lessons:
1. Focus on issues that voters care about.
2. Ignore the overpaid consultants. And Chuck Schumer.
3. Don't be a corrupt, elderly nepotistic sleazebag.
4. Be tough, but nice.
Reposted by Jonah Blank
Who can really say which approach is most effective
November 21, 2025 at 9:34 PM
Who can really say which approach is most effective
In their relationship with NYC's next mayor:
♦️Chuck Schumer, Kirsten Gillebrand, and most of the Democratic Establishment are further to the Reactionary Right than Donald Trump.
♦️Chuck Schumer, Kirsten Gillebrand, and most of the Democratic Establishment are further to the Reactionary Right than Donald Trump.
Q: would you feel comfortable living in NYC under a Mamdani administration ?
TRUMP: I would. I really would.
TRUMP: I would. I really would.
November 21, 2025 at 9:45 PM
In their relationship with NYC's next mayor:
♦️Chuck Schumer, Kirsten Gillebrand, and most of the Democratic Establishment are further to the Reactionary Right than Donald Trump.
♦️Chuck Schumer, Kirsten Gillebrand, and most of the Democratic Establishment are further to the Reactionary Right than Donald Trump.
Follow up, Mr President:
-Which Middle East war was being fought in 487?
-How about 1566?
-Or maybe, say, 2000?
Or do mean more localized bloodshed, rather than full-scale inter-state conflict?
...Like the kind happening nearly every day in, say, #Gaza?
-Which Middle East war was being fought in 487?
-How about 1566?
-Or maybe, say, 2000?
Or do mean more localized bloodshed, rather than full-scale inter-state conflict?
...Like the kind happening nearly every day in, say, #Gaza?
Trump: "We actually now have for the first time peace in the Middle East after 3,000 years"
November 21, 2025 at 9:30 PM
Follow up, Mr President:
-Which Middle East war was being fought in 487?
-How about 1566?
-Or maybe, say, 2000?
Or do mean more localized bloodshed, rather than full-scale inter-state conflict?
...Like the kind happening nearly every day in, say, #Gaza?
-Which Middle East war was being fought in 487?
-How about 1566?
-Or maybe, say, 2000?
Or do mean more localized bloodshed, rather than full-scale inter-state conflict?
...Like the kind happening nearly every day in, say, #Gaza?
Can it be delivered by an AI-avatar of Zuck?
Maybe one modeled on the current version of Zuck: Woody-Allen-with-a-talk-show?
Who wouldn't love to see that every morning? Before even having one's coffee!
Maybe one modeled on the current version of Zuck: Woody-Allen-with-a-talk-show?
Who wouldn't love to see that every morning? Before even having one's coffee!
November 21, 2025 at 9:13 PM
Can it be delivered by an AI-avatar of Zuck?
Maybe one modeled on the current version of Zuck: Woody-Allen-with-a-talk-show?
Who wouldn't love to see that every morning? Before even having one's coffee!
Maybe one modeled on the current version of Zuck: Woody-Allen-with-a-talk-show?
Who wouldn't love to see that every morning? Before even having one's coffee!
I don't see as Satanic-- whether as foiling the plans of God, or a Manichaean polar opposite of Good.
I see it as the ultimate Utilitarianism: Musk & tech-bros genuinely believe that their plans can save billions of future lives: therefore, present-day lives don't really matter.
Still awful.
I see it as the ultimate Utilitarianism: Musk & tech-bros genuinely believe that their plans can save billions of future lives: therefore, present-day lives don't really matter.
Still awful.
The so-called Christians should have caught on that this ideology is literally Satanic (narcissism above all).
Grok says it would kill every child on Earth to keep Elon's clothes clean.
What does this tell us?
1. Every #AI model is exactly as moral as its algorithm
2. Grok's morality is exactly that of most tech-bros:
♦️Benefit to me = benefit to humanity.
♦️Which therefore outweighs any harm to anyone else.
What does this tell us?
1. Every #AI model is exactly as moral as its algorithm
2. Grok's morality is exactly that of most tech-bros:
♦️Benefit to me = benefit to humanity.
♦️Which therefore outweighs any harm to anyone else.
November 21, 2025 at 8:35 PM
I don't see as Satanic-- whether as foiling the plans of God, or a Manichaean polar opposite of Good.
I see it as the ultimate Utilitarianism: Musk & tech-bros genuinely believe that their plans can save billions of future lives: therefore, present-day lives don't really matter.
Still awful.
I see it as the ultimate Utilitarianism: Musk & tech-bros genuinely believe that their plans can save billions of future lives: therefore, present-day lives don't really matter.
Still awful.
Reposted by Jonah Blank
Grok says it would kill every child on Earth to keep Elon's clothes clean.
What does this tell us?
1. Every #AI model is exactly as moral as its algorithm
2. Grok's morality is exactly that of most tech-bros:
♦️Benefit to me = benefit to humanity.
♦️Which therefore outweighs any harm to anyone else.
What does this tell us?
1. Every #AI model is exactly as moral as its algorithm
2. Grok's morality is exactly that of most tech-bros:
♦️Benefit to me = benefit to humanity.
♦️Which therefore outweighs any harm to anyone else.
I literally could not stop myself from inappropriately laughing out loud for real
November 21, 2025 at 7:31 PM
Grok says it would kill every child on Earth to keep Elon's clothes clean.
What does this tell us?
1. Every #AI model is exactly as moral as its algorithm
2. Grok's morality is exactly that of most tech-bros:
♦️Benefit to me = benefit to humanity.
♦️Which therefore outweighs any harm to anyone else.
What does this tell us?
1. Every #AI model is exactly as moral as its algorithm
2. Grok's morality is exactly that of most tech-bros:
♦️Benefit to me = benefit to humanity.
♦️Which therefore outweighs any harm to anyone else.
First day in the yard, he filed a toothbrush into a shiv and shanked Dominique Strauss Kahn.
Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy spent 20 days in prison, and soon you can read about every single one of them.
‘There is nothing to see, and nothing to do’: Nicolas Sarkozy to release prison memoir
Former French president penned 216 pages looking back on his 20-day stint behind bars.
www.politico.eu
November 21, 2025 at 6:34 PM
First day in the yard, he filed a toothbrush into a shiv and shanked Dominique Strauss Kahn.
Reality check:
♦️Xi Jinping has no interest in your baby.
♦️Xi Jinping has no interest in your baby.
HINSON: As a mom, I think about watching a baby monitor. That's a very intimate moment with your baby and to think the Chinese could be spying on your morning routine
BARTIROMO: Why are they spying on moms?
HINSON: They just want to know what Americans are up to to undermine our way of life
BARTIROMO: Why are they spying on moms?
HINSON: They just want to know what Americans are up to to undermine our way of life
November 21, 2025 at 6:29 PM
Reality check:
♦️Xi Jinping has no interest in your baby.
♦️Xi Jinping has no interest in your baby.
Reposted by Jonah Blank
Which reminds me of one of my favorite New Yorker corrections
November 21, 2025 at 4:44 PM
Which reminds me of one of my favorite New Yorker corrections
Reposted by Jonah Blank
The Harvard Crimson kids are kicking ass on this Larry Summers story.
www.thecrimson.com/article/2025...
www.thecrimson.com/article/2025...
Summers Visited Epstein’s Island During 2005 Honeymoon | News | The Harvard Crimson
In the winter of 2005, just after their wedding at Elmwood — the Harvard president’s official residence — Lawrence H. Summers and his wife, Elisa F. New, traded Cambridge’s cold for a warmer escape.
www.thecrimson.com
November 20, 2025 at 8:58 PM
The Harvard Crimson kids are kicking ass on this Larry Summers story.
www.thecrimson.com/article/2025...
www.thecrimson.com/article/2025...