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Dave Kamper

@dskamper.bsky.social

Avuncular unionist, uxorious husband, labor historian, cat guy. "Who's Got the Power?: The Resurgence of American Unions" coming in 2025 from New Press. Lives in Minnesota. Posts are personal. The cat in the profile pic is Laverne, aka Peanut.

5,666 Followers  |  2,406 Following  |  2,972 Posts  |  Joined: 03.07.2023  |  2.3558

Latest posts by dskamper.bsky.social on Bluesky

I love this for this guy. He went all in on the moxie and it paid off.

08.10.2025 03:01 β€” πŸ‘ 6    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

I just pointed this out to my wife. Her reason to not go: β€œHe might play Wings songs.”

08.10.2025 02:58 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

During the Red Scare some witnesses went to jail for contempt of Congress for refusing to answer. Terrible precedent, but precedent nevertheless.

08.10.2025 02:45 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Yeah

08.10.2025 02:41 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Fuck

08.10.2025 00:33 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

I am! Quite the charmer. But nothing compared to Mamdani. Or AOC. They’re way outta my league.

07.10.2025 22:58 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

I mean, I agree, but it's not always that they know which messages work, but that the messages worker because of their communications savvy and charisma?

Like, someone running on the exact same issues and messages and Mamdani, but with, say, my level of charisma, would get killed.

07.10.2025 22:29 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

At @rickperlstein.bsky.social's recommendation I read Thomas Ricks' Waging A Good War, on the Civil Rights Movement as a military campaign. Quite useful. Dovetails well with @erinrpineda.bsky.social's Seeing Like An Activist. Both look at nonviolence as it really was, not how many pretend it was.

07.10.2025 21:50 β€” πŸ‘ 12    πŸ” 2    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

4 and final) Stop reifying states. A state is not an organic entity that acts as a single unit. A state is a lot of people, and most of the money coming to and from states is actually money from those people.

07.10.2025 20:34 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

3) the federal government does not do accounting on a cash basis. Even if, say, a state govy (acting as an employer) decided to hold back payroll taxes from state employees, it's not like the feds automatically reduce their spending in consequence.

07.10.2025 20:34 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

2) the vast majority of the dollars the "feds send to the states" take the form of Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and K-12 education spending. The first two don't have anything to do with state governments at all, and states are effectively only the pass-through for the latter two.

07.10.2025 20:34 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

This is incredibly ignorant and foolish:

1) the vast majority of dollars a "state sends to the feds" is payroll taxes, capital gains taxes, and so forth. States play no role in these funds getting to the feds - companies withhold and send straight to DC. There is nothing they can do to stop it.

07.10.2025 20:34 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

In the 1930s, it was common for Brits to joke that Agatha Christie was murdering more people than the rest of the country, and there were times when it was true; the UK averaged about a murder a week.

07.10.2025 18:32 β€” πŸ‘ 8    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Begging people to never say, "it's been debunked" when you could say "it's not true."

07.10.2025 18:23 β€” πŸ‘ 10    πŸ” 2    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Dave Kamper is a wise person

02.12.2024 12:14 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 1
Preview
"An Optimistic Book for Horrifying Times": An Interview with Labor Writer and Historian Dave Kamper - Workday Magazine In the forthcoming book, Who’s Got the Power?: The Resurgence of American Unions, Minnesota-based labor writer and historian Dave Kamper unpacks the tumultuous wins and losses of the labor movement of...

β€œAn Optimistic Book for Horrifying Times”: An Interview with Labor Writer and Historian Dave Kamper

06.10.2025 15:15 β€” πŸ‘ 4    πŸ” 3    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Won’t take AIPAC money but still has Andrew Cuomo hatchet wielder Lis Smith on the payroll, so it’s still nope for me.

07.10.2025 03:37 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

I'm always funnier when the editors edit out the foolish stuff.

06.10.2025 16:51 β€” πŸ‘ 10    πŸ” 2    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

We need more union leaders in elected office. Go @kaela15.bsky.social!!!!

06.10.2025 20:56 β€” πŸ‘ 5    πŸ” 4    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

As a flight attendant and union leader, I’ve spent my life standing up for working people. That’s why it means so much to have the support of @emilyslist, @steelworkers, @afa_cwa, @CWAunion + leaders across Minnesota.

Together, we’ll win. ✊ #MN02

06.10.2025 20:50 β€” πŸ‘ 4    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 1

Indeed. Our greatest advantage right now is that WE CAN ACCURATELY PREDICT THE FUTURE and yet so many don't even try.

06.10.2025 20:00 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

ISTG, if I became dictator my first act would be to change the spelling to "organzing" so that I don't spell "organizing" wrong every goddam time I type it.

06.10.2025 19:56 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

Yeah those rich suburbs get all the perks, meanwhile my blue line extension is seven years behind schedule so I still have to DRIVE to Twins games like some kind of jerk.

06.10.2025 19:28 β€” πŸ‘ 4    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

I'm always funnier when the editors edit out the foolish stuff.

06.10.2025 16:51 β€” πŸ‘ 10    πŸ” 2    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
"An Optimistic Book for Horrifying Times": An Interview with Labor Writer and Historian Dave Kamper - Workday Magazine In the forthcoming book, Who’s Got the Power?: The Resurgence of American Unions, Minnesota-based labor writer and historian Dave Kamper unpacks the tumultuous wins and losses of the labor movement of...

Wherein @dskamper.bsky.social makes the surprising case for optimism, and is also really funny. Read about his forthcoming book! Interview by Isabela Escalona for @workdaymagazine.bsky.social

06.10.2025 15:41 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 4    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 1

Yup. By criminalizing sex work, the state has made it harder for sex workers to find safety anywhere.

06.10.2025 14:18 β€” πŸ‘ 7    πŸ” 4    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Yes, indeed. This is the biggest flaw in Lakshya Jain's arguments. People who run as Democrats but against the Party damage the whole party brand in ways that extend far beyond their individual race.

06.10.2025 14:11 β€” πŸ‘ 3    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

I didn't understand about 75% of this but I always find stuff like it pretty cool. I love scientists geeking out and doing pure science.

06.10.2025 14:08 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

There’s an essay to be written about how maga patriotism is just shitty fandom. Anyone who follows sports knows fans like this, it’s always the ref’s fault, the other team doesn’t exist, there’s some plot/player/coach holding the team back otherwise they’d always win easy bsky.app/profile/atru...

06.10.2025 01:10 β€” πŸ‘ 5229    πŸ” 1031    πŸ’¬ 234    πŸ“Œ 58

Every Trump speech now produces approximately two dozen 30-second clips peppering the feed that each alone should trigger impeachment or 25th amendment proceedings and are indistinguishable from what your worst uncle would produce if he had any idea how to make ai-generated videos

05.10.2025 21:05 β€” πŸ‘ 1870    πŸ” 399    πŸ’¬ 22    πŸ“Œ 12

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