Oliver 🏳️🌈
@ojc.bsky.social
🇺🇸🇬🇧🏳️🌈 | Tend to talk about climate, bikes, transit, infrastructure, politics | Opinions my own.
📍Worcester MA
📍Worcester MA
This place isn't perfect, but it's so much better:
Thank God for Bluesky: A little love letter to the people who would not compromise with Nazis iandunt.substack.com/p/thank-god-...
Thank God for Bluesky
Yes, it's eager. Yes, it's censorious. But it has the very considerable advantage of not being fascist.
iandunt.substack.com
December 5, 2025 at 5:29 PM
This place isn't perfect, but it's so much better:
Pleasant st recap:
Busy room.. Very split between supporters and opposed.
For commentary, I think it was about 60/40 support/opposition. @kvgoins.bsky.social was keeping count.
The state is doing a good thing. They need to not be discouraged or derailed with pointless additional traffic studies.
Busy room.. Very split between supporters and opposed.
For commentary, I think it was about 60/40 support/opposition. @kvgoins.bsky.social was keeping count.
The state is doing a good thing. They need to not be discouraged or derailed with pointless additional traffic studies.
December 4, 2025 at 4:14 AM
Pleasant st recap:
Busy room.. Very split between supporters and opposed.
For commentary, I think it was about 60/40 support/opposition. @kvgoins.bsky.social was keeping count.
The state is doing a good thing. They need to not be discouraged or derailed with pointless additional traffic studies.
Busy room.. Very split between supporters and opposed.
For commentary, I think it was about 60/40 support/opposition. @kvgoins.bsky.social was keeping count.
The state is doing a good thing. They need to not be discouraged or derailed with pointless additional traffic studies.
🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️
Wayne Griffin is opposed to adding sidewalk because he thinks people will need construction equipment to remove snow from the sidewalks.
December 4, 2025 at 12:02 AM
🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️
Pleasant street revamp meeting. Lots of people..
December 3, 2025 at 11:33 PM
Pleasant street revamp meeting. Lots of people..
Let’s help massdot see that this has support:
MassDOT is holding a public meeting re: Pleasant Street/Rt.122 pedestrian & bicyclists improvement project. West Tatnuck Elementary school, 300 Mower St, 6:30 pm.
December 3, 2025 at 2:07 PM
Let’s help massdot see that this has support:
Reposted by Oliver 🏳️🌈
I learned about Chesterton's fence today from an op-ed in the NY Times.
It's a philosophical trope: When you see something - a fence blocking the road, say - and you have the urge to tear it down, a sensible person first tries to understand why the fence is there in the first place.
1/?
It's a philosophical trope: When you see something - a fence blocking the road, say - and you have the urge to tear it down, a sensible person first tries to understand why the fence is there in the first place.
1/?
March 2, 2025 at 3:21 PM
I learned about Chesterton's fence today from an op-ed in the NY Times.
It's a philosophical trope: When you see something - a fence blocking the road, say - and you have the urge to tear it down, a sensible person first tries to understand why the fence is there in the first place.
1/?
It's a philosophical trope: When you see something - a fence blocking the road, say - and you have the urge to tear it down, a sensible person first tries to understand why the fence is there in the first place.
1/?
"Schrödinger's douchebag: A person who says offensive things and decides whether he was joking based on the reaction of people around him."
^ Very useful for our current cultural moment. Don’t know who to credit.
^ Very useful for our current cultural moment. Don’t know who to credit.
December 3, 2025 at 11:28 AM
"Schrödinger's douchebag: A person who says offensive things and decides whether he was joking based on the reaction of people around him."
^ Very useful for our current cultural moment. Don’t know who to credit.
^ Very useful for our current cultural moment. Don’t know who to credit.
Wish I’d seen this earlier! I love this way of putting it!
This is not the rapture. Things will not magically get better if we make them terrible by voting to enable more evil.
As @rfkuang.bsky.social puts it so beautifully, “We don’t vote for candidates we admire so much as we vote for the next fight that we want to have.”
www.nytimes.com/2024/10/20/u...
As @rfkuang.bsky.social puts it so beautifully, “We don’t vote for candidates we admire so much as we vote for the next fight that we want to have.”
www.nytimes.com/2024/10/20/u...
December 1, 2025 at 12:04 AM
Wish I’d seen this earlier! I love this way of putting it!
Yet more moves in the wrong direction 🤦♂️😡
Realtors know that, in many parts of the country, if you educate people about climate risk, the housing market will collapse.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/30/c...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/30/c...
Zillow Removes Climate Risk Scores From Home Listings
www.nytimes.com
November 30, 2025 at 5:50 PM
Yet more moves in the wrong direction 🤦♂️😡
Reposted by Oliver 🏳️🌈
They'll build a statue to the first reporter who tells this old dumbass to eat shit on camera
“You’re a stupid person” — Trump lashes out at a reporter who presses him on the fact that the suspected DC shooter was actually thoroughly vetted before he was let in the US from Afghanistan
November 28, 2025 at 1:50 AM
They'll build a statue to the first reporter who tells this old dumbass to eat shit on camera
Reposted by Oliver 🏳️🌈
PSA:
There will be far more drunk drivers on American roadways than normal, both today and tomorrow. Be careful.
There will be far more drunk drivers on American roadways than normal, both today and tomorrow. Be careful.
November 27, 2025 at 3:33 PM
PSA:
There will be far more drunk drivers on American roadways than normal, both today and tomorrow. Be careful.
There will be far more drunk drivers on American roadways than normal, both today and tomorrow. Be careful.
Wow, European cars have things like pop-up hoods to help absorb the impact of a pedestrian's head.
They have this because their regulators care about people outside the vehicle (unlike in the US).
They have this because their regulators care about people outside the vehicle (unlike in the US).
November 26, 2025 at 6:17 PM
Wow, European cars have things like pop-up hoods to help absorb the impact of a pedestrian's head.
They have this because their regulators care about people outside the vehicle (unlike in the US).
They have this because their regulators care about people outside the vehicle (unlike in the US).
And I’m sorry, i suspect it’ll make me no friends here but this rent control is bad policy.
We just had inflation over 5% for two years running, the 5% cap will ratchet down on money for repairs and maintenance over time.
I really get why ppl reach for price controls but this is not it.
We just had inflation over 5% for two years running, the 5% cap will ratchet down on money for repairs and maintenance over time.
I really get why ppl reach for price controls but this is not it.
I just despair. 67% support cutting the state tax from 5% to 4%. That would shatter our state government. Madness.
This is why I hate referenda, you get to ask unbundled policy questions. They need to say everything that’s getting cut if taxes come down.
www.bostonglobe.com/2025/11/25/m...
This is why I hate referenda, you get to ask unbundled policy questions. They need to say everything that’s getting cut if taxes come down.
www.bostonglobe.com/2025/11/25/m...
New Suffolk/Globe poll finds Mass. voters are eager for change in rent control, income tax, and more - The Boston Globe
The survey found a majority of voters would support at least five different initiatives proposed for the 2026 ballot.
www.bostonglobe.com
November 25, 2025 at 1:59 PM
And I’m sorry, i suspect it’ll make me no friends here but this rent control is bad policy.
We just had inflation over 5% for two years running, the 5% cap will ratchet down on money for repairs and maintenance over time.
I really get why ppl reach for price controls but this is not it.
We just had inflation over 5% for two years running, the 5% cap will ratchet down on money for repairs and maintenance over time.
I really get why ppl reach for price controls but this is not it.
I just despair. 67% support cutting the state tax from 5% to 4%. That would shatter our state government. Madness.
This is why I hate referenda, you get to ask unbundled policy questions. They need to say everything that’s getting cut if taxes come down.
www.bostonglobe.com/2025/11/25/m...
This is why I hate referenda, you get to ask unbundled policy questions. They need to say everything that’s getting cut if taxes come down.
www.bostonglobe.com/2025/11/25/m...
New Suffolk/Globe poll finds Mass. voters are eager for change in rent control, income tax, and more - The Boston Globe
The survey found a majority of voters would support at least five different initiatives proposed for the 2026 ballot.
www.bostonglobe.com
November 25, 2025 at 1:55 PM
I just despair. 67% support cutting the state tax from 5% to 4%. That would shatter our state government. Madness.
This is why I hate referenda, you get to ask unbundled policy questions. They need to say everything that’s getting cut if taxes come down.
www.bostonglobe.com/2025/11/25/m...
This is why I hate referenda, you get to ask unbundled policy questions. They need to say everything that’s getting cut if taxes come down.
www.bostonglobe.com/2025/11/25/m...
Uuuggghhh.
Was always a longshot, worth trying.
Bummer.
Was always a longshot, worth trying.
Bummer.
Breaking News: Moe Bergman remains in 6th place after the completed hand recount. He will be on the next City Council as an At-Large Councilor
Bergman 9,379
Kamara 9,347
Bergman 9,379
Kamara 9,347
November 23, 2025 at 10:14 PM
Uuuggghhh.
Was always a longshot, worth trying.
Bummer.
Was always a longshot, worth trying.
Bummer.
Reposted by Oliver 🏳️🌈
Elon Musk spending billions of dollars to buy a social network to replicate what it's like to have friends who like you, and an AI to replicate what it's like to have a supportive father who praises you, only to have both consistently turn on him is Promethean torture if Prometheus had deserved it.
November 22, 2025 at 9:52 AM
Elon Musk spending billions of dollars to buy a social network to replicate what it's like to have friends who like you, and an AI to replicate what it's like to have a supportive father who praises you, only to have both consistently turn on him is Promethean torture if Prometheus had deserved it.
Not Just Bikes has an incredible movie length, thoroughly researched, takedown of John Forester and the Vehicular Cyclists.
And I’m here for it!!! 😍
Forester was an arrogant, ignorant, blowhard who got many people killed and set back Anglosphere cities by 30 years.
youtu.be/pRPduRHBhHI?...
And I’m here for it!!! 😍
Forester was an arrogant, ignorant, blowhard who got many people killed and set back Anglosphere cities by 30 years.
youtu.be/pRPduRHBhHI?...
This is Why Cycling is Dangerous in America
YouTube video by Not Just Bikes
youtu.be
November 21, 2025 at 5:42 PM
Not Just Bikes has an incredible movie length, thoroughly researched, takedown of John Forester and the Vehicular Cyclists.
And I’m here for it!!! 😍
Forester was an arrogant, ignorant, blowhard who got many people killed and set back Anglosphere cities by 30 years.
youtu.be/pRPduRHBhHI?...
And I’m here for it!!! 😍
Forester was an arrogant, ignorant, blowhard who got many people killed and set back Anglosphere cities by 30 years.
youtu.be/pRPduRHBhHI?...
Reposted by Oliver 🏳️🌈
Jermoh is also going to raise funds to pay for the attorney. Consider making a donation.
docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
November 21, 2025 at 4:28 PM
Jermoh is also going to raise funds to pay for the attorney. Consider making a donation.
docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
The council is openly hostile to city residents.
Also, I didn't realize Bergman claimed ADUs as a success of the council. Wild, considering he tried endlessly to sink and/or water down the proposal and the Commonwealth then came in and forced a more reasonable set of rules state-wide.
Also, I didn't realize Bergman claimed ADUs as a success of the council. Wild, considering he tried endlessly to sink and/or water down the proposal and the Commonwealth then came in and forced a more reasonable set of rules state-wide.
The Worcester City Council continued its assault on resident participation in city government, prohibiting 13 individuals waiting to comment from speaking on items on the council agenda on Tuesday, Nov. 18.
Worcester City Council Escalates its Contempt for Residents
The Worcester City Council continued its assault on resident participation, prohibiting those waiting to comment from speaking on agenda items.
thisweekinworcester.com
November 21, 2025 at 1:52 AM
The council is openly hostile to city residents.
Also, I didn't realize Bergman claimed ADUs as a success of the council. Wild, considering he tried endlessly to sink and/or water down the proposal and the Commonwealth then came in and forced a more reasonable set of rules state-wide.
Also, I didn't realize Bergman claimed ADUs as a success of the council. Wild, considering he tried endlessly to sink and/or water down the proposal and the Commonwealth then came in and forced a more reasonable set of rules state-wide.
I’m very grateful that I live in a state that has some basic level of sanity.
Massachusetts health officials are scrubbing links to federal health data from their web pages after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week promoted the debunked claim that vaccines cause autism.
Mass. officials rebuke ‘dangerous’ vaccine misinformation added to CDC website
Massachusetts health officials are scrubbing links to federal health data from their web pages after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week promoted the debunked claim that vaccines ...
www.wbur.org
November 21, 2025 at 1:25 AM
I’m very grateful that I live in a state that has some basic level of sanity.
Reposted by Oliver 🏳️🌈
I still want a newspaper to do an Impeachable Offense of the Day column.
It would get a lot of attention and frankly be quite easy to do.
It would get a lot of attention and frankly be quite easy to do.
not sure I even need to say this, but Trump threatening the lives of Ds in Congress is in itself an impeachable offense for which he should be removed.
November 21, 2025 at 1:17 AM
I still want a newspaper to do an Impeachable Offense of the Day column.
It would get a lot of attention and frankly be quite easy to do.
It would get a lot of attention and frankly be quite easy to do.
I just can't believe we elected this disgusting human being President. Twice. Just boggles my mind.
"Quiet! Quiet, Piggy."
November 19, 2025 at 4:09 PM
I just can't believe we elected this disgusting human being President. Twice. Just boggles my mind.
I mean, yes, exactly this.
![4-panel vertical comic. (1) 100 Years Ago [two people standing next to bicycle with small car nearby] PERSON 1: It’s too dangerous riding a bike with these cars around. I should get a car, too. (2) 50 Years Ago [two people between smaller car and bigger car] PERSON 2 with short hair: Small cars are less safe in collisions with larger vehicles, so I should get a bigger one. (3) Today [two people between big car and even bigger car] PERSON 1: Everyone has huge SUVs now. If I don’t get the biggest one, I’m putting my family at risk. (4) Soon [two people next to large armored car with spiked clubs attached] PERSON 2: If I don’t install more whirling spike clubs, I’ll be destroyed by all the other drivers who...](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:cz73r7iyiqn26upot4jtjdhk/bafkreiby6can6k76yzfmv2czxs4pu2l7zie7bqbrpswi7h3ifmiadkuqvu@jpeg)
November 15, 2025 at 1:45 AM
I mean, yes, exactly this.