JLew McDermott

Rashida Tlaib for president

In today’s political discourse, deregulation like “reform” is almost invariably treated as a good thing. Deregulation means less bureaucratic meddling, and fewer rules and regulations to stifle innovation and commerce. This inflected usage puts those on the left in an awkward position, since opposing deregulation seems to imply a desire for more rules and regulations, and therefore more men in gray suits standing in the way of freedom. But this debate is based on false premises. There’s no such thing, for example, as an unregulated bank. Banks are institutions to which the Govt has granted the right to issue I.O.U.’s that it will recognize as legal tender. Govt regulates everything from a bank’s reserve requirements to its hours of operation; how much can be charged in interest, fees, and penalties; what sort of security precautions can or must be employed etc,,, . – David Graeber

David Graeber with the best take on deregulation.

Markets are all created to some extent by Govt regulation. They set the rules of profit extraction. Deregulation isn't a step back, but a change to who they've decided to reward

While global military budgets keep rising around the world. 🪖🌍

➡️ More than 2.3 billion people face food insecurity, and 673 million are undernourished according to a global report by UN agencies. 🍽️🚨

Politico Pro Headline: "Acting NLRB general counsel takes swipe at union agitators; The new memo to agency staff instructed them to deeply investigate a pro-union worker's genuine interest in a job."

The Trump NLRB wants to make it easier for employers to avoid hiring pro-labor job applicants.

It's illegal to not hire someone just for being pro-union, but new NLRB guidance is making it easier for employers to root out potential hires who might want to organize their workplaces.

The image is of Lisa Simpson on a stage with a projector behind her saying “ none of your problems are because Someone is on a welfare”

These so-called Church schools were nothing other than white supremacy academies and they still are today. They should not be funded with tax dollars because they really don't need to do that for hate

Retaliatory investigations are a favorite tactic among authoritarian leaders. @ianbassin.bsky.social explains why:

Project 2025 is gutting medical funding that helped Russell Vought's own kid Its architect's daughter has cystic fibrosis—and benefits from a "miracle drug" backed by an agency he's attacking.

Russell Vought claimed on CNN this weekend that NIH funding is corrupt.

As @juliametraux.bsky.social reported this February, his family has directly benefited from the NIH.

The Age of Supraliberalism: A Requiem for Neoliberalism, Capitalist Democracy, and the American Unipolar World — Hampton Institute By Joshua Lew McDermott   The Death of Neoliberalism, The Birth of the Supraliberal Age The present political moment is often only fully understood in hindsight. Analysts will one day lo...

Neolberalism is dead. We're living in the trail of destruction it's left behind: supraliberalism.

New little article of mine in @hamptonthink.bsky.social

www.hamptonthink.org/read/the-age...

Never entrust democracy to any process that requires Republicans to act in good faith.

New study shows huge groundwater losses along Colorado River The Colorado River basin has lost huge volumes of groundwater over the past two decades according to a new report from researchers at Arizona State University. Researchers used data from NASA satellites to map the rapidly depleting resource. The region, which includes seven western states, has lost 27.8 million acre-feet of groundwater since 2003. That’s […]

Colorado River basin faces severe groundwater depletion, NASA data reveals vast losses since 2003.
#ColoradoRiver #Groundwater #WaterScarcity

Donald Trump won 200+ counties that twice voted for Obama, and Republicans have been making electoral gains among voters of color.

Racism has long been a factor in American elections, but these facts destroy liberals' argument that racism singularly explains Democrats' electoral problems.

It’s 2025 & I’m only now accepting that a handful of very online middle-aged liberals will never forgive anyone who worked for Bernie & will forever define their politics on that resentment. It’s a derangement I hadn’t experienced before, but I accept it. It can’t be negotiated with. It just exists.

ICE now has a larger budget than most of the world’s militaries.

A reminder that police have only ever *responded* to alleged crime, but a living wage, food & water security, & accessible healthcare have always *prevented* crime.

So if you want safer communities, invest in people—not punishments.

The Oligarchs' Coup Against the Free Press Is Happening Now The American information space is not merely changing; it is undergoing a hostile takeover. It is a deliberate, coordinated campaign by a new class of oligarchs out of Silicon Valley that includes Jef...

Everyone needs to understand that the defunding of public broadcasting this week is part of a broader effort to dismantle the free press and control the means of reality production itself.

www.thedissident.news/the-oligarch...

KNOXVILLE: @RepTimBurchett defends voting to kill $42 million in grants to revitalize largely Black neighborhoods split by federal highways by saying the money wouldn’t have helped them anyway 🤔

#TrumpsTrillionsTransfer

Periodic reminder that the reason the Republicans are building palintir based comprehensive databases of all Americans is because they are building a police state and their end goal is the subjugation and murder of millions of humans they see as a threat to their power

Zionist-Hindutva Nexus: A Historical And Political Investigation| Countercurrents The convergence of Christian-Jewish-Zionist extremism, European neo-Nazism, and Hindutva ideologies — aided by arms lobbies and imperialist interests — has

"The convergence of Christian-Jewish-Zionist extremism, European neo-Nazism, and Hindutva ideologies — aided by arms lobbies and imperialist interests — has contributed to a global climate of war hysteria, racism, blasphemy, and social unrest."

countercurrents.org/2025/03/zion...

Palestine Action will be proscribed as a terrorist organisation - with the same legal status as ISIS and al-Qaeda - from midnight tonight.

No non-violent direct action group has ever been banned as a terrorist group before.

Supporters face up to 14 years in jail.

The Moral Panic Exception to the Constitution A rule has emerged from the incoherence of the Supreme Court's recent decisions

My latest premium newsletter is about how the Supreme Court is using roundabout methods to enshrine right-wing moral panics into constitutional law.

Ghost wolves: As Idaho aims to reduce its wolf population, advocates worry counts aren't accurate • Idaho Capital Sun Advocates worry that if Idaho doesn't have an accurate population count, it doesn't know how many wolves should be killed under its management plan.

Idaho is run by and for millionaire ranchers who want to kill wolves and destroy the ecosystem for profit

@westernwatersheds.bsky.social

idahocapitalsun.com/2025/07/02/g...

This is the archetypal Brownshirt. Not even exaggerating. The literature describes them and the Stalhelm guys who preceded them in almost the exact same terms.

Senator @johnfetterman.com — whose wife was an undocumented immigrant, and who said he was grateful that her family “broke the law” — now speaks up supportively of ICE as they terrorize others.

What a tremendous hypocrite.

WATCH:

Jesus Christ

Roads blocked in Kenya’s capital on anniversary of pro-democracy protests Event comes as young Kenyans, frustrated over economy, corruption and police brutality, are taking to the streets.

Event comes as young Kenyans, frustrated over economy, corruption and police brutality, are taking to the streets.

BREAKING: Zarah Sultana has quit Labour and announced the formation of a new political party with Jeremy Corbyn.

"In 2029, the choice will be stark: socialism or barbarism"

Senator Lee Withdraws Sell-off Proposal, Budget Bill Remains Deeply Anti-Conservation Last night (Saturday, June 28), Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) announced he was withdrawing his scheme to sell off public lands as part of the Budget Bill currently being considered by […]

Thank you to each and every one of you who reached out to your senators—whether it was a phone call, email, postcard, or social media post. This is a moment to celebrate!

Read the full update from SUWA Executive Director Scott Braden:

suwa.org/senator-lee-...