Maggie Caroline

True life I had a hedgehog who could not turn left ( @benjaminwittes.lawfaremedia.org can confirm). Her name was Matzoball.

Absolutely. Cultural fluency to ensure people understand the severity of a situation is a really tricky line.

I wrote it fueled by years of seething rage, but more from unbridled optimism. Would be grateful for reads/feedback/shares

@kschake.bsky.social @qjurecic.bsky.social @joshuajfriedman.com @queenofthinair.bsky.social @joegould05.bsky.social @thedanward.bsky.social @thedewline.bsky.social

Non-State Actress: The National Security Establishment’s Never-Ending Sin How America's Communication Failures Handed Democracy's Enemies the Keys

I am particularly proud of this piece, in part because several outlets said they “could not run the phrase human graham cracker.”

open.substack.com/pub/nonstate...

Non-State Actress: The National Security Establishment’s Never-Ending Sin How America's Communication Failures Handed Democracy's Enemies the Keys

The U.S. national security establishment equates sounding like a human graham cracker with being serious, intelligent, and important. And now? Democracy isn't just under attack - it's hemorrhaging from crusty self-inflicted wounds.

open.substack.com/pub/nonstate...

May Sean Combs rot in hell.

The only explanation of the outcome is this country sees the trafficking and sexual violence against Cassandra Ventura, and so many other Black and Brown women, as “a home matter.”

Women deserve a better. Will we ever get it?

The husband of Svitlana Tsikhanouskaya, President-Elect of Belarus, is a free man.

Siaheri is free after FIVE YEARS as a political prisoner in Belarus. His arrest and detention is what led to Svitlana’s candidacy.

Five years.

I am a Red Sox fan because my father is a Red Sox fan, and his father was a Red Sox fan, and this is what we do.

I am a Dodgers fan because the Dodgers know what rule of law is, and uphold constitutionally articulated rights.

We are *slowly* (VERY slowly) getting our life back together after last January’s bonkers flood. The status of our stuff is ??? including the dozens of archives of pro-democracy art I’d compiled over ~20 years.

I hope I don’t have to rebuild the whole collection, but empty walls ain’t it:

Non-State Actress: Stay Out of the Group Chat After 8pm Main Character Energy Welcome to Main Character Energy. On’t Touch Your Eyebrows After 8PM.

We’re all looking to Feel Something.

But please, do not Nair your eyebrows after 8pm (or ever tbh). Don’t assume a bunch of KC 135s in the air mean a war is imminent. And don’t check the group chat.

You can *absolutely* watch The West Wing though.

open.substack.com/pub/nonstate...

Non-State Actress: The Iceberg #10 June 10, 2025: Fight for Your Right to Troll Men on the Internet

You gotta fight.
For your right.
To….troll authoritarian men on the internet.

open.substack.com/pub/nonstate...

We will outlive, outlast, out build your fascist narcissistic wasteland. I promise.

For folks living in the United States, participating in this sort of thing is a federal crime and will land you on the radar of the US Office of Foreign Assets Control

If you don't go broke defending yourself from the federal indictment first, you'll likely go broke while you're in federal prison

Saw this for the first time in the ‘92

Non-State Actress: The Iceberg #9 May 28, 2025: Are we a Girl’s Girl, or are we a Pick-Me who thinks women are asking for it. And are we all ready to live with the choice?

Is America a Girl’s Girl, or are we a Pick-Me who thinks women are asking for it? And are we ready to live with our choice?

If you’re paywalled let me know - happy to comp a link or two.

open.substack.com/pub/nonstate...

Non-State Actress | Maggie Feldman-Piltch | Substack National Security but Not Boring. Click to read Non-State Actress, by Maggie Feldman-Piltch, a Substack publication with tens of thousands of subscribers.

Looking for hope? Try Non-State Actress’ paid newsletter- The Iceberg.

It’s in the early days. A thorough & efficient look at security/defense news below the surface AND how it can be opportunities for democracy.

Happy to share a test subscriptions if you’re curious :)
nonstateactress.substack.com

Non-State Actress's Main Character Energy Featuring Lord Farquaad, Ursula, Scar, Gollum, Raymond Shaw, Veronica Sawyer, Oscar the Grouch, Elle Woods, Pedro Pascal, and Kermit the Frog

This week’s Main Character Energy: Lord Farquaad, Elle Woods, Ursula, Scar, Veronica Sawyer, Kermit, & Pedro Pascal.

Said another way… it covers #Myanmar, #Mali, #Poland, China-#Belarus, #China-#Russia, #India-#Pakistan, #Soundwaves, Enes Banter Freedom, and T.Rex!
open.substack.com/pub/nonstate...

a woman in a suit and tie is standing in front of a field . ALT: a woman in a suit and tie is standing in front of a field .

Actual footage of me realizing no one has received anything I’ve written in 2 weeks because I forgot to “subscribe existing subscribers” to the sections, and it’s not that no one wants to open my emails anymore. Hopefully.

Non-State Actress | Maggie Feldman-Piltch | Substack National Security but Not Boring. Click to read Non-State Actress, by Maggie Feldman-Piltch, a Substack publication with tens of thousands of subscribers.

The next edition of The Iceberg, the Non-State Actress newsletter exclusively for paid subscribers goes out tomorrow.

You can subscribe here:
nonstateactress.substack.com

#NatSecGirlSquad Newsletter - May 5, 2025! You’re Invited: Women in Tech Happy Hour!

Here are more than 400 jobs, links and salary ranges confirmed, in national security, defense, international affairs, intelligence, and connected fields:

#NatSecGirlSquad

open.substack.com/pub/natsecgi...

Non-State Actress: The Iceberg #6 Neutrality is fake, only Lorde and Joni Mitchell are real.

Good morning!

There’s a free preview up for today's piece, covering the potential delisting of Chinese companies from the stock exchange, a Central Asian intel summit, Putin embracing his inner P.Diddy in Niger-Mali-Burkina Faso, & North Korea.

nonstateactress.substack.com/p/non-state-...

Show up and fight for the institutions, values, and country you love.

They’ll have to take me kicking & screaming. But, they won’t. Because I am better at this than they are. Can’t beat “genetically engineered to fight, survive, and thrive.” Many have tried and all have failed.

Life is busy… training tons of content creators to combat algorithmic warfare and make the case for democracy, and building something I am super proud of because I know it will make a difference.

I’m writing a lot more now “in public.” A roundup called The Iceberg 2x a week for paid subscribers covering US & intl security, plus a free weekly (below) and 1-2 longforms a month.

Plus Technical Directing a nightly show for one of my favorite people:

scottsimonspeaks.substack.com

Opinion | Our Dad, Leonard Bernstein, Would Want His Music Played at the Kennedy Center Some have urged us to withdraw our father’s music from the Kennedy Center to protest Trump’s hostile takeover. We asked: What would Dad have done?

There is a special place in heaven for Bernstein. I am absolutely confident he is sitting on the edge of his seat tonight.

Shout the big dreams, my friends. Shout them as loud as you can for as long as you can & teach someone else to do the same before you go.
www.nytimes.com/2025/05/02/o...

🥲

One Fire, Two Burned Homes and Wildly Different Insurance Outcomes Two neighboring families lost their houses in a Colorado wildfire. One was reimbursed for the contents of their home within seven weeks, and the other is still fighting.

A building engineer flooded our co-op unit with 8 inches of water, destroying everything inside, 422 days ago.

I joke this story will end up as a book, published after my upcoming book. It’s starting to feel less like a joke and more like a necessity.

www.nytimes.com/2025/03/07/r...

Non-State Actress #10: He's Just Vlad Sometimes, there are easy answers.

All
of
Ukraine
is
Ukraine

open.substack.com/pub/nonstate...

Non-State Actress #25:We Need to Talk About an Annoying Man From North Korea The Axis of Awful™️ (and Annoying)

There are ~10,000 North Koreans fighting for Russia. Did Putin ask for them or did Kim Jong-Un *offer to send them*?

open.substack.com/pub/nonstate...

www.youtube.com/live/uLakRVH...