Melissa Jo Peltier
@melissjpeltier.bsky.social
Veteran film/TV/media maker; NYT bestselling author; storyteller; dog mom. Direct descendant John Alden & Priscilla Mullins 1620. My American ancestors were defending democracy since 1776. 🇺🇸 🇮🇪 & #Ally 🇺🇦 🇨🇦 🏳️🌈 🏳️⚧️
America, the UK, Germany, France, Italy - Putin has done alright for himself.
But democracy ain’t dead yet!
But democracy ain’t dead yet!
November 17, 2025 at 2:09 AM
America, the UK, Germany, France, Italy - Putin has done alright for himself.
But democracy ain’t dead yet!
But democracy ain’t dead yet!
Reposted by Melissa Jo Peltier
Yeah. It’s not all happiness for him.
Of course, I was referring to just how chaos in America was doing.
Of course, I was referring to just how chaos in America was doing.
November 17, 2025 at 1:41 AM
Yeah. It’s not all happiness for him.
Of course, I was referring to just how chaos in America was doing.
Of course, I was referring to just how chaos in America was doing.
Reposted by Melissa Jo Peltier
Bless you, Charlotte communities!! 💛
November 17, 2025 at 1:52 AM
Bless you, Charlotte communities!! 💛
Reposted by Melissa Jo Peltier
I think this is the reason monsters like Epstein love this book. I don’t believe that Nabokov was motivated by anything more than a debased mental state.
Child rapists cling to the lie that when these kids grow up, they might offer redemption, even love.
They are sustained by these lies.
2/
Child rapists cling to the lie that when these kids grow up, they might offer redemption, even love.
They are sustained by these lies.
2/
November 15, 2025 at 1:00 AM
I think this is the reason monsters like Epstein love this book. I don’t believe that Nabokov was motivated by anything more than a debased mental state.
Child rapists cling to the lie that when these kids grow up, they might offer redemption, even love.
They are sustained by these lies.
2/
Child rapists cling to the lie that when these kids grow up, they might offer redemption, even love.
They are sustained by these lies.
2/
Reposted by Melissa Jo Peltier
Often missed is that this novel violates and betrays the victim in even more insidious and degrading ways. All similar victims are further harmed by this. It is worse than silencing them.
As an adult, Nabokov imagines that Lolita tells her abuser that he “was not that bad”. She consoles him.
1/
As an adult, Nabokov imagines that Lolita tells her abuser that he “was not that bad”. She consoles him.
1/
November 15, 2025 at 12:48 AM
Often missed is that this novel violates and betrays the victim in even more insidious and degrading ways. All similar victims are further harmed by this. It is worse than silencing them.
As an adult, Nabokov imagines that Lolita tells her abuser that he “was not that bad”. She consoles him.
1/
As an adult, Nabokov imagines that Lolita tells her abuser that he “was not that bad”. She consoles him.
1/
Reposted by Melissa Jo Peltier
This list just scratches the surface.
November 15, 2025 at 1:21 AM
This list just scratches the surface.
Reposted by Melissa Jo Peltier
Reposted by Melissa Jo Peltier
Great essay! These rich assholes, aside from being monsters, are just so full of themselves. They think they're very sophisticated because they've all read (or heard of) the same half dozen books. It also makes me wonder about claims of 70 hour work weeks. What do they count as work?
November 15, 2025 at 4:54 PM
Great essay! These rich assholes, aside from being monsters, are just so full of themselves. They think they're very sophisticated because they've all read (or heard of) the same half dozen books. It also makes me wonder about claims of 70 hour work weeks. What do they count as work?
Reposted by Melissa Jo Peltier
Reposted by Melissa Jo Peltier
Journalist Edward Jay Epstein (no relation) wrote about his encounters with Jeffrey Epstein, and says that in 2013, Epstein told him that Lolita was his favorite book and that he kept it by his bedside. Again, it could be a lie, but it was the image Epstein wanted. 2/
airmail.news/issues/2019-...
airmail.news/issues/2019-...
November 15, 2025 at 12:45 AM
Journalist Edward Jay Epstein (no relation) wrote about his encounters with Jeffrey Epstein, and says that in 2013, Epstein told him that Lolita was his favorite book and that he kept it by his bedside. Again, it could be a lie, but it was the image Epstein wanted. 2/
airmail.news/issues/2019-...
airmail.news/issues/2019-...
Reposted by Melissa Jo Peltier
Of course! And just saw now that Alex Yablon had responded to a question with a caution about the timeline - he says Epstein's last email of the draft (10/8/2016) was after Yablon had left New York Mag, so the story may be a bit more complicated.
x.com/AlexYablon/s...
x.com/AlexYablon/s...
November 15, 2025 at 1:40 AM
Of course! And just saw now that Alex Yablon had responded to a question with a caution about the timeline - he says Epstein's last email of the draft (10/8/2016) was after Yablon had left New York Mag, so the story may be a bit more complicated.
x.com/AlexYablon/s...
x.com/AlexYablon/s...
Reposted by Melissa Jo Peltier
I've been assuming it was a Wolff profile, given everything else and the timing of the piece, and that it was killed for many reasons, including that Epstein seemed to have collaborated on it. But I decided not to include that under a byline without any documentary proof, for legal reasons...
November 15, 2025 at 1:00 AM
I've been assuming it was a Wolff profile, given everything else and the timing of the piece, and that it was killed for many reasons, including that Epstein seemed to have collaborated on it. But I decided not to include that under a byline without any documentary proof, for legal reasons...
Reposted by Melissa Jo Peltier
Context: the New York Mag. profile about Epstein was by Michael Wolff, but was ultimately spiked because Wolff let Epstein draft it himself. So this is Epstein writing that his favorite book was Lolita and that he kept it by his bedside - that's what he wanted to project, and he'd said it before. 1/
@segyges.bsky.social found it: the Epstein emails contain several drafts of a fawning article, likely one by Michael Wolff (which got spiked since Wolff had "let Epstein dictate" it). It paints Epstein as socializing with the wealthy "Dalton fathers", traveling with Punch Sulzberger in his limo. 2/
November 15, 2025 at 12:45 AM
Context: the New York Mag. profile about Epstein was by Michael Wolff, but was ultimately spiked because Wolff let Epstein draft it himself. So this is Epstein writing that his favorite book was Lolita and that he kept it by his bedside - that's what he wanted to project, and he'd said it before. 1/