sascha benjamin cohen

@3141pie.bsky.social

820

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"'In this world, Elwood, you must be oh so smart, or oh so pleasant.'

Well, for years I was smart. I recommend pleasant.

You may quote me."

- Elwood P. Dowd

[all links are gift links if at all possible. I don't always agree.]

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sascha benjamin cohen

It's important to note that in France, yes, a fascist majority was prevented, but they still doubled their presence in parliament. The fascists didn't stay home. They went & voted. It's just that enough decent people showed up to beat them back to a significant degree (& make them cry). SHOW UP.

After reading the news this morning, and getting just a whiff, a plaintive echo, of the sort of daily anxiety we all had back in the bad old days of 2016-2020, I am thinking about that odd little story by P.J. Farmer, "A Bowl Bigger Than Earth".

sitting here, watching old tv shows on a Sunday evening, and thinking on just how incredibly badly I have failed with so many critically important moments of adulting in the last ten years. it's not a good feeling, I'm afraid.

getting the strong ‘kirche kinder küche’ vibe from all this.

I really don’t think most people realize just how hard the boot will come down if Trump and the Republicans win the election. Most people have never experienced the totalitarian surveillance state with the power to reach into their homes and minds at will they are telling us is their plan.

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sascha benjamin cohen

a long run in the park, some quality time in the sun with my guitar, a fine dinner of fresh corn on the cob, bbq ribs, and a cold beer - topped off with a half of mini watermelon - and I feel as though I have successfully saturdayed.

Clear, accurate, explanatory, and fair. gonna go bury my head while I scream now.

New from me: Where is your "institutionalism" now? radleybalko.substack.com/p/the-suprem...

The Supreme Court foldsradleybalko.substack.com Faced with the most potent threat to democracy in more than a century, our most revered institution didn't just fail to hold, it aligned itself with the threat

Really hoping that this letter has more impact for France than the historians amicus brief for tossing out presidential immunity did for America.

The French republic is under threat. We are 1,000 historians and we cannot remain silent | Patrick Boucheron, Antoine Lilti and otherswww.theguardian.com We implore voters not to turn their backs on our nation’s history. Go out and defeat the far right in Sunday’s vote, say Patrick Boucheron, Antoine Lilti and others

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sascha benjamin cohen

Loving these quotes from Iranians explaining their vote. CC: Americans who think there’s little difference between Biden and Trump.

Whoa.

Karl The Fog has returned to our local shores and I'm thinking today will be a great day for a 5 mile run and beer

say it loud. say it proud. “War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength.”

strong opinions require no homework.

I took the basic civics education I received SO for granted. Truly astonishing to me how many people with such strong opinions know so little.

it's Saturday morning in America. Welcome to another 24 hours of histrionic media, hyperventilating shitposters, magical thinking, climate catastrophe, poisoned water, pandemic threat, pontifications, platitudes, house pets wearing sunglasses, and coffee. I'm ready.

Why is the pundit class so desparate to push Biden out of the race? | Rebecca Solnitwww.theguardian.com Yes, Biden had a bad debate – but so did Trump. The media is once again repeating the mistakes of 2016

well that's it then: in this morning's NYT, Ross Douthat states that Joe Biden will step aside. Therefore, according to the laws of nature, it will never happen.

watching the interview. there's no way in hell Joe's gonna agree to step aside. and his decision is the only decision that matters at this point. For better or worse. god help us all, we're gonna need it no matter what happens.

I can't "like" this post, because I hate what it says about our current moment, hate how close it cuts to reality, and how dark a future it portends not just for us & the world, but even for satire.

TRUMP: I am going to drop daisy-cutter bombs on Seattle just cuz BIDEN: I'll have the Bob Salad — ha, COBB Salad, whoops. NYT: Biden's Gaffe Sends Shockwaves Through Democratic Party; Trump Pledges Infrastructure Changes to Northwest

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sascha benjamin cohen

This photo is pure 2024.

My hot take for this hot morning? The 5 greatest threats to society right now from which all other threats blossom, are: - Illiteracy - Innumeracy - Willful Ignorance - Selfish Arrogance - Magical Thinking Focus on tackling these & we may be able to ride out the other less tractable horrors we face.

watching casually as the polls come back from the UK election. and on the one hand, yay for the left center guys and their landslide victory! On the other hand, the massive gains by the ur-brexit fascists (Reform) is both terrifying and utterly in line with our global moment of enshittification.

Exit poll suggests Labour set for huge landslide win in UK general election - latest live newswww.theguardian.com Exit poll predicts Labour will win 410 seats, securing a majority of 170, to the Conservatives’ 131

tbh "conservative", "brain", and "trust" are three words which I, personally, would struggle to string together while still making rational sense

Historical Moment Me is sort of wishing I were out in London tonight. But Introvert Me is really appreciating the lack of wild crowds here in my living room...

outlier. nevertheless, huzzah for the massive win of the less shitty option. may it be a harbinger of things to come.

Shocking scenes as a major G7 country votes decisively for the not completely shitty option

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sascha benjamin cohen

Remember how the "retail theft crime wave" disappeared as soon as companies had to do their annual reports? That's because it's illegal to lie to shareholders. AI is booming (if you're a pleb) but if you have money - Goldman Sachs will be honest with you instead web.archive.org/web/20240629...

🤷🏿‍♂️

There's a Small Problem With the AI Industry: It's Making Absolutely No Moneyfuturism.com AI is not making money for investors which may be connected to businesses having trouble adopting the technology.

web.archive.org

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sascha benjamin cohen

Born on this day in 1883, San Francisco native Rube Goldberg made his mark creating comics of complex devices for simple tasks. In 1995, the U.S. Post Office released a stamp featuring his 1931 cartoon 'Professor Butts and the Self-Operating Napkin.'

$4.2M. I've crunched the numbers. repeatedly. usually after a day filled with strategic planning meetings.

How much cash would it take for you to quit your job? https://www.ft.com/content/85fa4497-ddbc-4b2f-86ed-6c83ee3c5180

How much cash would it take for you to quit your job?www.ft.com Economists are turning to new ways of finding out

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sascha benjamin cohen

here’s a fucking marker: biden does not step down, trump loses. make your arguments against it, but that’s the baseline you would expect if you don’t read the times and the atlantic writers shitting their pants in public. show your work, and i will show mine.

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sascha benjamin cohen

America is not perfect. Far from it. But there are ideals worth fighting for, values worth pursuing, even when we fall short. Don’t abandon it to the totalitarians. https://www.popehat.com/p/the-fourth-of-july

The Fourth Of Julywww.popehat.com The America That Could Be

it's a sunny 70°F it, there's no work today since the university is shut for the holiday, and I think I'll spend the day re-watching episodes of The Prisoner, drinking iced espresso, and tuning out.

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sascha benjamin cohen

The CW like 10 minutes ago - which I think was correct - was that the best Dem scenario is a "referendum" election about Trump. Focus on his criminal behavior and record. Hard to do that when BIDEN OLD drowns you out. Putting the Dem contenders onstage now to hash out their weaknesses? Insane idea!

Wild to watch horserace journalists suggest the most politically suicidal shit and pretend it's savvy. www.theatlantic.com/politics/arc...