Tom Pepinsky
LightNews LightNews
banner
tompepinsky.com
Tom Pepinsky
@tompepinsky.com
22K followers 1.2K following 2.9K posts
Teacher, researcher, globalist, republican.

tompepinsky.com
Posts Replies Media Videos
tompepinsky.com
or… process anything sold, bought...
November 17, 2025 at 7:59 PM
tompepinsky.com
I am the very model of a modern periodical
Scrupulous in coverage with questions quite methodical
We have to write these pieces, but no one will be responsible
From mouth the bullet theoretical launched the bullet possible
davidrvetter.bsky.social Dave Vetter @davidrvetter.bsky.social · 8h
In case you writers out there have ever felt imposter syndrome, "From his mouth the bullet theoretical launched the bullet possible" is an actual sentence in whatever this is.
vanityfair.com Vanity Fair @vanityfair.com · 11h
Vanity Fair's West Coast Editor Olivia Nuzzi was a star political correspondent until scandal led her into exile—and to a California up in flames.

In an excerpt from her book, ‘American Canto,’ she takes stock of scorched earth.
November 17, 2025 at 2:37 PM
tompepinsky.com
I’ve added Mexican oregano.

I’ve added Mexican

Whoa-oh

Oregano
November 16, 2025 at 8:14 PM
tompepinsky.com
If I could read two and only two things about regime change, thinking about the current global moment, I would read these:

www.wilsoncenter.org/publication/... by @adamprz.bsky.social

and

openlibrary.org/books/OL2710... by O’Donnell and Schmitter
More precisely, we assert that there is no transition whose beginning is not the consequence-direct or indirect-of important divisions within the authoritarian regime itself, principally along the fluctuating cleavage between hard-liners and soft-liners. The essay reviews some theoretical and methodological problems involved in the study of the transition to democracy. Two explanations frequently cited to explain breakdowns of authoritarian regimes are examined first. I argue that loss of legitimacy is not a sufficient condition of breakdown of such regimes and that what is required for liberalization is an open break within the ruling bloc. The coherence of the ruling bloc is highly vulnerable to any signal that a conflict may be impending. The latter part of the essay is devoted to the analysis of conditions for a democratic compromise. The argument is that substantive compromises are not possible since democracy means that outcomes of conflicts are at least to some extent uncertain. Institutional compromises can be developed, however, in such a way as to provide sufficient guarantees for the conflicting parties. The only problem is that these guarantees may have to be so strong that democrati.zation will be limited to formal political arrangements, with no consequences for the social and economic structure of the society.
November 16, 2025 at 4:10 PM
tompepinsky.com
👇 Not only is this true, it is literally the only non-revolutionary path to a political transition. There is no option for a regime change where your only allies are the people who always shared your values!
ianmhartshorn.com Ian M Hartshorn @ianmhartshorn.com · 1d
People getting mad here about anyone saying it's good that MTG and Trump are fighting. I teach democratization every semester. The first slide says 'elite fracture.' That's always where it starts. It's good when people with bad politics are fighting one another.
olufemiotaiwo.bsky.social Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò @olufemiotaiwo.bsky.social · 1d
I do not regret to inform you that we are going to win
November 16, 2025 at 3:44 PM
tompepinsky.com
Neo-Royalism and the Maritime Southeast Asian Order

Scholars of precolonial Southeast Asian state forms have posited the galactic polity, mandala, hulu/hilir, and related ontologies of the state, yet the domestic political foundations of rule in such systems are poorly understood. In this essay I..
abenewman.bsky.social Abe Newman @abenewman.bsky.social · 2d
I dont think this needs to be semi-serious!
@segoddard.bsky.social
have a very related approach in what we call neo-royalism and how it could shape the international system. Now I'm going to do a deeper read of Anderson.
www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/mxthh...
www.dropbox.com
November 15, 2025 at 8:32 PM
Reposted by Tom Pepinsky
tompepinsky.com
I semi-seriously believe that you can make sense out of the second Trump administration by imagining that he is a Javanese king, demonstrating power through his wahju (enlightenment/revelation), tédja (glow/radiance), possession of sacred objects, and willingness to showcase his virility...
f he represented the first ruler of a new dynasty, he emerged as the man believed to have received the wahju, the divine radiance which passed from the disintegrating Power of one kingdom to the founder of its successor. Very often, the new ruler would be a parvenu of relatively humble origins—such as Ken Angrok, Panembahan Sena- pati, Sukarno, Suharto—coming to power after a period of turmoil and bloodshed usually instigated by the new ruler himself. Though Javanese history is replete with stories of rebellions, the leaders of these rebellions were never said to have the wahju unless they suc- ceeded in establishing a new dynasty. Failure in itself meant retro- spectively that the rebel leader did not have the Power; if he had, he would have succeeded. The main claim to legitimacy of the founder of a new dynasty rested on his successful destruction of a previous center of Power and the belief that in so doing he had received the divine wahju. But it is typical of the Javanese urge toward the center, toward the accumulation of all pools of Power, that the parvenu ruler frequently tried to associate himself through court chronicles with the residues of previous centers of Power and greatness. Schrieke, Berg, and Moertono have amply demonstrated the concerted attempts to link parvenu founders of dynasties with their predecessors through complicated (and often falsified) lines Power to be diffused by indulging their passions without restraint, whereas the former maintain that steadfastness, that tense singleness of purpose which assures the maintenance and continued accumulation of Power.16 Besides this orthodox view of the road to Power, another, hetero- dox tradition exists in Java, historically best exemplified in the per- son of the last ruler of Singhasari, King Kertanagara. In this Bhairavist (Tantric) tradition, Power is sought through a kind of Rimbaudian dereglement systematique des sens—drunkenness, sexual orgies, and ritual murder.17 But even this tradition, which still finds more or less clandestine adherents in contemporary Indonesia, ultimately aims at the same objectives as the more orthodox tradition. For in the Bhairavist belief-system, the system- atic indulgence of the sensual passions in their most extreme form was believed to exhaust these passions, and therefore to allow a mans Power to be concentrated without further hindrance. Thus in both traditions the ultimate aim was concentration for the sake of Power, although the paths chosen to reach this purpose radically diverged. The psychological grip of this image can be glimpsed in a remarkable speech given by Sukarno in 1963, on the occasion of receiving an honorary doctorate at the University of Indonesia in Djakarta.^5 On that occasion he spoke at length about the tedja, noting that various European figures had possessed it, among the most notable of whom was Adolf Hitler. Sukarno's discussion of Hitler and his tedja evoked dismay among some Western observers present, who judged it within the frame of reference of European history. But seen within the Javanese tradition, Sukarno's references were calmly analytical. Nowhere in his references to Hitler was there any mention of the moral qualities of the Fuehrer's rule. The reason for this omission was not that Sukarno lacked appreciation for moral questions, but rather that within the categories of Javanese political theory, the specific moral- ity of a government is quite secondary (both in historical and in analytical terms) to its Power aspects. The fact that Hitler had the tedja was central and formed the starting-point of any analysis of his regime.36 The glow of the tedja was traditionally associated with the public visage of the ruler. Moertono cites the case of Amangkurat III (1703-1708), of whom it was said, when he was about to be de- posed, that having "lost his tjahja (radiance), he looked pale as a Chinese with a stomach-ache." 3T By contrast, of Amangkurat II ( 1677-1703), at the moment of his resolve to resist the incursion of Trunadjaja and to defend the crumbling empire of Mataram, it was related that his followers "did not recognize their lord; formerly his expression was wan and without expression, now his countenance became bright and of a stately gravity." eath of Amangkurat II in 1703, was designed to indicate why Pangeran Puger, who with Dutch assistance usurped the throne from his nephew Amangkurat III, was the deceased sovereigns legitimate successor. "The story is told that the [dead] king's man- hood stood erect and on the top of it was a radiant light (tjahja), only the size of a grain of pepper. But nobody observed it. Only Pangeran Puger saw it. Pangeran Puger quickly sipped up the [drop of] light. As soon as the light had been sipped, the manhood ceased to stand erect. It was Allah's will that Pangeran Puger should succeed to the throne." 39 Indeed the sexual fertility of the ruler is one essential sign of the Power that he holds, for his seed is the microcosmic expression of the Power he has concentrated. The fertility of the ruler was seen as simultaneously evoking and guaran- teeing the fertility of the land, the prosperity of the society, and the expansionist vitality of the empire. The Sukarno period once again provides a striking modern parallel to this old idea. Outside ob- servers of the Indonesian scene frequently remarked that Sukarno's well-publicized sexual activities appeared to do him no political harm. It was even said that the Javanese indulgently expect their rulers to act in this way. But if the foregoing analysis is correct, the political aspects of Sukarno's personal life are overlooked in such a perspective. For signs of the ruler's virility are political indicators that he still has the Power. Conversely, any marked decline in sexual activity could be taken as sign of waning Power in other respects. More sophisticated observers of late Guided Democracy were indeed inclined to suspect that Palace officials deliberately spread exaggerated stories about the President's personal life as part of a continuing effort to maintain his authority.
November 15, 2025 at 1:55 PM
tompepinsky.com
I semi-seriously believe that you can make sense out of the second Trump administration by imagining that he is a Javanese king, demonstrating power through his wahju (enlightenment/revelation), tédja (glow/radiance), possession of sacred objects, and willingness to showcase his virility...
f he represented the first ruler of a new dynasty, he emerged as the man believed to have received the wahju, the divine radiance which passed from the disintegrating Power of one kingdom to the founder of its successor. Very often, the new ruler would be a parvenu of relatively humble origins—such as Ken Angrok, Panembahan Sena- pati, Sukarno, Suharto—coming to power after a period of turmoil and bloodshed usually instigated by the new ruler himself. Though Javanese history is replete with stories of rebellions, the leaders of these rebellions were never said to have the wahju unless they suc- ceeded in establishing a new dynasty. Failure in itself meant retro- spectively that the rebel leader did not have the Power; if he had, he would have succeeded. The main claim to legitimacy of the founder of a new dynasty rested on his successful destruction of a previous center of Power and the belief that in so doing he had received the divine wahju. But it is typical of the Javanese urge toward the center, toward the accumulation of all pools of Power, that the parvenu ruler frequently tried to associate himself through court chronicles with the residues of previous centers of Power and greatness. Schrieke, Berg, and Moertono have amply demonstrated the concerted attempts to link parvenu founders of dynasties with their predecessors through complicated (and often falsified) lines Power to be diffused by indulging their passions without restraint, whereas the former maintain that steadfastness, that tense singleness of purpose which assures the maintenance and continued accumulation of Power.16 Besides this orthodox view of the road to Power, another, hetero- dox tradition exists in Java, historically best exemplified in the per- son of the last ruler of Singhasari, King Kertanagara. In this Bhairavist (Tantric) tradition, Power is sought through a kind of Rimbaudian dereglement systematique des sens—drunkenness, sexual orgies, and ritual murder.17 But even this tradition, which still finds more or less clandestine adherents in contemporary Indonesia, ultimately aims at the same objectives as the more orthodox tradition. For in the Bhairavist belief-system, the system- atic indulgence of the sensual passions in their most extreme form was believed to exhaust these passions, and therefore to allow a mans Power to be concentrated without further hindrance. Thus in both traditions the ultimate aim was concentration for the sake of Power, although the paths chosen to reach this purpose radically diverged. The psychological grip of this image can be glimpsed in a remarkable speech given by Sukarno in 1963, on the occasion of receiving an honorary doctorate at the University of Indonesia in Djakarta.^5 On that occasion he spoke at length about the tedja, noting that various European figures had possessed it, among the most notable of whom was Adolf Hitler. Sukarno's discussion of Hitler and his tedja evoked dismay among some Western observers present, who judged it within the frame of reference of European history. But seen within the Javanese tradition, Sukarno's references were calmly analytical. Nowhere in his references to Hitler was there any mention of the moral qualities of the Fuehrer's rule. The reason for this omission was not that Sukarno lacked appreciation for moral questions, but rather that within the categories of Javanese political theory, the specific moral- ity of a government is quite secondary (both in historical and in analytical terms) to its Power aspects. The fact that Hitler had the tedja was central and formed the starting-point of any analysis of his regime.36 The glow of the tedja was traditionally associated with the public visage of the ruler. Moertono cites the case of Amangkurat III (1703-1708), of whom it was said, when he was about to be de- posed, that having "lost his tjahja (radiance), he looked pale as a Chinese with a stomach-ache." 3T By contrast, of Amangkurat II ( 1677-1703), at the moment of his resolve to resist the incursion of Trunadjaja and to defend the crumbling empire of Mataram, it was related that his followers "did not recognize their lord; formerly his expression was wan and without expression, now his countenance became bright and of a stately gravity." eath of Amangkurat II in 1703, was designed to indicate why Pangeran Puger, who with Dutch assistance usurped the throne from his nephew Amangkurat III, was the deceased sovereigns legitimate successor. "The story is told that the [dead] king's man- hood stood erect and on the top of it was a radiant light (tjahja), only the size of a grain of pepper. But nobody observed it. Only Pangeran Puger saw it. Pangeran Puger quickly sipped up the [drop of] light. As soon as the light had been sipped, the manhood ceased to stand erect. It was Allah's will that Pangeran Puger should succeed to the throne." 39 Indeed the sexual fertility of the ruler is one essential sign of the Power that he holds, for his seed is the microcosmic expression of the Power he has concentrated. The fertility of the ruler was seen as simultaneously evoking and guaran- teeing the fertility of the land, the prosperity of the society, and the expansionist vitality of the empire. The Sukarno period once again provides a striking modern parallel to this old idea. Outside ob- servers of the Indonesian scene frequently remarked that Sukarno's well-publicized sexual activities appeared to do him no political harm. It was even said that the Javanese indulgently expect their rulers to act in this way. But if the foregoing analysis is correct, the political aspects of Sukarno's personal life are overlooked in such a perspective. For signs of the ruler's virility are political indicators that he still has the Power. Conversely, any marked decline in sexual activity could be taken as sign of waning Power in other respects. More sophisticated observers of late Guided Democracy were indeed inclined to suspect that Palace officials deliberately spread exaggerated stories about the President's personal life as part of a continuing effort to maintain his authority.
November 15, 2025 at 1:55 PM
Reposted by Tom Pepinsky
marlo.ooo
could i make it any more obvious
meakoopa.bsky.social Anthony Oliveira @meakoopa.bsky.social · Jul 9
AI slop now making up saccharine Bible verses that do not exist
HOLY BIBLE Holy Bible © @Holy_Bible1 Follow Matthew 18:19 MATTHEW 18:19 "He prayed for her, she prayed for him and God smiled knowing that their names are already written next to each other."
November 15, 2025 at 12:51 PM
tompepinsky.com
One thing about “Mar-a-Lago face” is that it is a very good public commitment device.

As MTG and LB show, you can always take off the red hat when things go sideways.

www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-...
Trump Pulls His Endorsement Of Marjorie Taylor Greene
In a response on X, Greene wrote Friday that Trump had “attacked me and lied about me."
www.huffpost.com
November 15, 2025 at 1:13 PM
Reposted by Tom Pepinsky
alahav.bsky.social
Announcer: And now we turn to the hot dog suit guy to ask, Who did this?
tompepinsky.com Tom Pepinsky @tompepinsky.com · 3d
Higher education “got in trouble” by paying men like this exorbitant salaries to ruin the liberal arts teaching function while sucking up to trustees for perks. As a former subject of a Gee administration, E. Gordon Gee is a synonym for high-profile foolish waste of money.
E. Gordon Gee: ‘Universities Have Become Isolated and Arrogant’
The former university president on how the sector got into trouble.
www.chronicle.com
November 14, 2025 at 1:29 PM
tompepinsky.com
it gives me great pleasure to announce that “third base” in Dutch is "derde honk"
manucleardevice.bsky.social Curb Your Malthusiasm @manucleardevice.bsky.social · 3d
beautiful language
rtl.nl RTL Nieuws @rtl.nl · 3d
Honkballer Ohtani van Los Angeles Dodgers voor de vierde keer MVP #sport
November 14, 2025 at 3:50 PM
Reposted by Tom Pepinsky
cityjane.bsky.social
At *Vanderbilt* they had to create a board committee to monitor Gee's spending, which included $6 million to renovate the Chancellors house and $700K for parties: ordinary-times.com/2023/08/29/t...
November 14, 2025 at 1:29 PM
Reposted by Tom Pepinsky
rambleratx.bsky.social
Like, my brother in Christ you RAN the universities
tompepinsky.com Tom Pepinsky @tompepinsky.com · 3d
Higher education “got in trouble” by paying men like this exorbitant salaries to ruin the liberal arts teaching function while sucking up to trustees for perks. As a former subject of a Gee administration, E. Gordon Gee is a synonym for high-profile foolish waste of money.
E. Gordon Gee: ‘Universities Have Become Isolated and Arrogant’
The former university president on how the sector got into trouble.
www.chronicle.com
November 14, 2025 at 1:22 PM
tompepinsky.com
Higher education “got in trouble” by paying men like this exorbitant salaries to ruin the liberal arts teaching function while sucking up to trustees for perks. As a former subject of a Gee administration, E. Gordon Gee is a synonym for high-profile foolish waste of money.
E. Gordon Gee: ‘Universities Have Become Isolated and Arrogant’
The former university president on how the sector got into trouble.
www.chronicle.com
November 14, 2025 at 1:18 PM
Reposted by Tom Pepinsky
williamadler78.bsky.social
Live shot of all of us reading the emails today
November 13, 2025 at 1:10 AM
tompepinsky.com
It is utterly remarkable that the Democrats have stumbled on a robust mechanism to purge the party of everyone who palled around with Jeffrey Epstein. Once in a lifetime opportunity.
ashtonpittman.bsky.social Ashton Pittman @ashtonpittman.bsky.social · 4d
"This could take down Democrats, too."

I know. And I frankly wouldn't give even an itty bitty damn if it implicated every Democratic man in Congress, every Democratic hopeful for 2028 and every Democrat who has even thought about running for office.

Down with the sex predators, wherever they are.
November 13, 2025 at 2:01 AM
tompepinsky.com
Gaze at our fallen, degenerate politics and society, my fellow Americans. And then, remember that the real Epstein files aren’t even out yet
andycraig.bsky.social Andy Craig @andycraig.bsky.social · 4d
The attorney general and the FBI director, a manosphere podcaster bro, pulled into the situation room a member of Congress best known for getting kicked out of a Beetlejuice musical for drunkenly giving her date a handy, in order to pressure her about the president's child sex trafficking scandal.
November 13, 2025 at 1:58 AM
tompepinsky.com
I think I now understand why they had to invent Gen-AI, many of our wealthy elites actually cannot type out complete sentences or spell
internethippo.bsky.social Better Things Are Possible @internethippo.bsky.social · 5d
Seen a few of the epstein emails now, all with different people and it's not the main issue here but is everyone illiterate
November 12, 2025 at 6:59 PM
tompepinsky.com
I encourage everyone to click through this and browse the website and the organizers’ websites. You get the distinct impression that the whole thing is a kind of performance art, or perhaps a scam, and that you are reading words written by a computer, right in the "uncanny valley” of human cognition
Being dubbed the Max Verstappen of her field, she brings over 30 years of experience and has provided guidance and training to individuals at many organizations and universities worldwide.
November 12, 2025 at 2:05 PM
tompepinsky.com
To paraphrase Judith Sklar, liberalism is political philosophy concerned with establishing a society where every individual may flourish.

Fascism opposes such a society. And so, liberals must give no quarter to fascist beliefs.
November 12, 2025 at 12:15 PM
tompepinsky.com
that, plus the fact that this is CLEARLY MADE UP. Report card for pre-K with math and reading concepts? Really now, tell me more.

There is no richer text than “things that influencer parents make up to post on the internet for clicks"
sambiddle.com Sam Biddle @sambiddle.com · 6d
I think the belief by the powerful that "people will put up with many things if you are excellent at math" is incredibly revealing in terms of understanding How We Got Here
November 11, 2025 at 11:56 PM
tompepinsky.com
"middle-aged blogger becomes confused and agitated at the airport"

Reading this must be what it’s like for my children to hear me yell at the phone tree
jacktindale.bsky.social Jack Tindale @jacktindale.bsky.social · 6d
Noah Smith is paid in the high six-figures to write a blog read by Americans who believe themselves to be intelligent. Yet, he is both unable to read a sign and also for some reason chose to have a 90 minute layover for a flight that takes 90 minutes.

onemileatatime.com/news/economi...
Economist Doesn't Follow Signs At Heathrow: Proof The UK Is Failing?
A economist had a bad experience connecting at Heathrow, suggesting it's reflective of bigger issues in the UK. There's only one issue...
onemileatatime.com
November 11, 2025 at 2:37 PM
tompepinsky.com
This story of how the Trump administration is dishonoring the sacrifices of American soldiers, who gave their lives in defense of freedom, fills me with a white hot rage
suika.bsky.social Emily @suika.bsky.social · 6d
"The province of Limburg has asked the American ambassador to the Netherlands to [re-install] the information panels about Black soldiers in the visitors center of the Netherlands American Cemetery in Margraten."
Limburg demands answers over U.S. whitewashing of Black history at WWII cemetery
The province of Limburg has asked the American ambassador to the Netherlands to replace the information panels about Black soldiers in the visitors center of the Netherlands American Cemetery in Margr...
nltimes.nl
November 11, 2025 at 2:08 PM
tompepinsky.com
Well, then the Minority Leader very publicly lost.
November 11, 2025 at 1:06 PM