I was suspended from BlueSky for defending the honor of Johnny Cash. I wish I were joking. In early October, I referenced the "I shot a man in Reno just to watch him die" lyric of "Folsom Prison Blues" in response to a terrible Wall Street Journal article saying that Johnny Cash was uncool. I quote-tweeted the article and everyone understood the reference. There was no outcry. I stand by my assessment that Johnny Cash is cool. I do not like being the subject of so much attention, especially when I cannot see the discussion. But the BlueSky admins are now claiming that I wrote a post saying, out of nowhere, "I want to shoot the author of this article just to watch him die". They are not posting a screenshot of the actual tweet, which shows that I am quote-tweeting an article about Johnny Cash, and that my post is obviously not a threat but a play on "Folsom Prison Blues." BlueSky is lying and saying I posted this line on November 10. I did not. I posted it in early October, when the WS) article came out. You can see that they are lying about the date from this page showing my last BlueSky tweets: I was not given any explanation for my suspension the first two times l inquired. Later I was told it was for the "Folsom Prison Blues" reference, and I asked for clarification but did not receive it. I thought it might be a prank until a reporter reached out this morning and confirmed it. BlueSky's behavior is bizarre and unwarranted. I have lost access to friends and all my posts and photos. I am incredibly grateful for the outpouring of support here on Substack and also on BlueSky - though I cannot see it, because I am suspended. To quote another Johnny Cash song: "I ain't never done nothin' to nobody/ I ain't never got nothin from nobody, no time/ And until I get somethin' from somebody, sometime, I don't intend to do nothin' for nobody, no time." As for BlueSky...

Well I can see Bluesky is handling a PR crisis in their normal competent manner

Bsky: *starts first largely-adopted twitter competitor*
Trans shitposters: *flock to site due it it's not-twitternes*
Early adopters: *come to hang with the cool trans folk and post Alf hog*
Mainstream, mostly chill posters show up: *all is good, for a while*
Bsky: *inexplicably implodes as an org*

Thomas Jefferson was 44 when he started in creeping on 14-year-old Sally Hemings. And Sally, who was enslaved, shared a father with Martha Wayles Jefferson—Tom's wife.

He's been dead literally centuries and the US refuses to reckon squarely with what this meant for definitions of American greatness

Okay, so, we’re all going to have to agree that it’s wrong to have sex with children. Like, if you don’t agree with me inside your own head, you should keep that inside until you tell a therapist. Also, people who defend pedophiles can not be trusted with your children. At all. AT ALL. EVERRRRRRRRR.

Ava Cordero attacked by the US media for trying to sue and stop Jeffrey Epstein. 'GENDER-BEND SHOCKER - Kinky-sex suit gal is a man' 'S(HE) HAS A HISTORY - Bogus sex suit'

And one of the first survivors to step forward to try to stop Epstein? A trans woman, who was promptly mocked and villified by the New York Post, New York Magazine, the courts and law enforcement.

Right now, Karoline Leavitt is being coached on how to say “ephebophilia” in the least creepy way possible.

Never forget the words she had towards grieving Palestinian Americans and allies:

"I'm SPEAKING!"

be ashamed of yourself forever, @kamalaharris.com.

I've been doing video game VO since 2003. In my 20+ years, only ONE game has ever paid "royalties/residuals/bonus payments."

That game?

Date Everything.

And that's ONLY because it's a game produced by professional voice actors who purposefully created a special contract for the game w/ SAG-AFTRA.

My takeaway from every new Epstein revelation is that some powerful people victimized many powerless young women, many more knew, some actively enabled it--and we're still being told that MeToo and accountability for sexual violence have gone too far

i mean c’mon. the president’s best friend was the most notorious pedo in the country’s history who ran a massive child trafficking ring. every bit of circumstantial evidence we have says that trump was a participant. if this were a criminal trial we’d have enough evidence to compel a plea deal.

Join Kat following her arraignment, Nov 12 at 2:30pm at Federal Plaza in downtown Chicago for a press conference

Federal Plaza, 2:30 PM.
See you there.

A direct email exchange from 2011 between Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, just released by House Oversight Committee Democrats.

Journalist friends, you know what to do.

Sarah Kendzior was suspended, she doesn’t know why, and the head of T&S said he won’t confirm whether or not the suspension was intentional unless media requests hit a threshold

The identity of Sarah Kendzior, researcher on authoritarian states, and Sarah Kendzior's content discussing authoritarian states are...not really easy to separate.

So I'm struggling to see this as a response.

Hey @support.bsky.team What is going on with Sarah Kendzior? Why was she suspended with no explanation? Are you doing this to lesser-known people that we’re never going to find out about?

Sarah Kendzior • 4m I've been suspended from BlueSky. I don't know why. I wasn't online much today, and the last things I posted were excerpts from my substack newsletter articles. The suspension followed without explanation. It seems there's a crackdown. If you enjoy my work and want to make sure you can access it, subscribe! It's free - I would never paywall in times of peril — and voluntary paying subscribers keep it going. It would be great to have your support at this time. Thanks!

In a rare case of Substack notes usefulness, I just learned that Sarah Kendzior (author of They Knew and a brilliant writer) got bounced from Bluesky. What the hell? new @sarahkendzior.bsky.social

A chart showing a 20 year price change between sectors.

Pretty much all affordability discourse could benefit from just posting this chart.

If you're in the better off America, all the luxury goods you want in excess are for the most part much cheaper. If you're in the poorer America, most of the shit you need to live/grow is more expensive.

We pay for the government. Every time they're evil or callous, that's your money going to fuck with people.

I don't want them to be careful or slow or cowardly, I want them to sell tickets to the trials.

I'm losing my mind over how many reviewers are like "GDT's Frankenstein makes you wonder who the real monster is." THAT'S THE STORY! That's the story Shelley wrote!

New York Times snippet: A Decade Later, Supreme Court is Asked to Revisit Same-Sex Marriage Decision; Kim Davis, a Kentucky county clerk once jailed for refusing to issue same-sex marriage licenses, has asked the court to reconsider its landmark 2015 opinion. 6 minute read

I know this is pedantic, but Kim Davis was not "jailed for refusing to issue same-sex marriage licenses." She was jailed for contempt of court because she refused to follow a court order (she had stopped issuing all marriage licenses). NYT makes it sound like the Woke Police broke down her door.

Four fists with text that says reinstate the fired four

We sent a message to management today with a Slack icon change. More than half of our union participated and are demanding management reinstate the four people who were unjustly fired.

Ready to show your own support? Reach out to Condé Nast management telling them to reinstate the fired four.

Abolish. Fire. Prosecute.

This is the *moderate* position, by the way.

I know yall not falling for the MTG okie doke...please be fr

BREAKING: every Republican has died

You have to survive. There are graves to piss on that haven't been dug yet.

Ridge Holland feels like he’s been hung out to dry by WWE.

Hey. Fat people also deserve food. Fat people using snap benefits deserve to eat guiltfree. Going without will not make them instantly skinny, and in some cases, like those with diabetes, not eating on a set schedule can exacerbate health problems. Being fat does not equal laziness or weak morality.

Alt text: Music artist profile page showing a woman with smooth skin, long straight black hair, and natural makeup. The name “Xania Monet” appears below her portrait, along with “4.42M monthly audience.” Buttons for “Subscribe” (166K) and “Play” are visible. Below are her top songs listed: “Let Go, Let God” with 5.5M plays and “How Was I Supposed to Know?” with 8.1M plays.

This is so bleak. Xania Monet is not a real person. This is an entirely ai generated artist with AI generated music that has millions of monthly listeners and music getting actual radio play and millions of listens.

It's digital blackface.

He wants to kill Obamacare, but has no other plan. He is not satisfied with his deportation operation because his ICE agents are not abusive enough. He plans to continue murdering people in the Caribbean Sea because the law and these humans are of no concern to him. All this thanks to John Roberts.

ON THE LITERAL EVE OF A DEMOCRATIC SOCIALIST MAYOR BEING ELECTED, ANNA WINTOUR KILLS PROGRESSIVE AND PROFITABLE TEEN VOGUE POLITICS DESK WHICH HAD JUST INTERVIEWED HIM

*That’s* the headline.

(Unfortunately there’s hardly any news outlet left to run it 😭)