David J. Voelker

"The United States is no longer inching toward fascism; it has descended into its abyss – where truth is sacrificed to spectacle, reason collapses into myth, and power feeds upon fear." --@girouxh.bsky.social

BREAKING: A federal judge has temporarily blocked President Trump from deploying federalized National Guard troops into Chicago.

This ruling reinforces what we already knew: It is illegal for the president to use manufactured emergencies to send soldiers into our cities.

Donald Trump is not a king — and his administration is not above the law.

Today, the court confirmed what we all know: there is no credible evidence of a rebellion in the state of Illinois.

And no place for the National Guard in the streets of American cities like Chicago.

This is the genius of the Portland protests - they make the claims of lawlessness look not just wrong, but comical

I am once again asking... does anyone in the Trump administration know what habeas corpus is?

Illinois judge blocks ICE from using force against peaceful protesters, clergy and journalists. Also requires visible ID. An overdue victory for the First Amendment.
storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

Trump is openly committing treason. He must be impeached and removed from office. - Free Speech For People By mobilizing U.S. troops against civilians, Trump is levying war against the United States.

BREAKING: We have officially updated our articles of impeachment to reflect Trump’s treasonous war against the United States and its people. #ImpeachTrump

Context matters

Trump Fires Black Officials From an Overwhelmingly White Administration

"Trump Fires Black Officials From an Overwhelmingly White Administration" www.nytimes.com/2025/10/08/u...

The only effective opposition is through the language of morality and documented harm—not legal technicalities that can be swept away with a 6–3 vote.” The text is centered on a neutral background, with “morality” and “documented harm” slightly emphasized to underscore the moral and empirical contrast with “legal technicalities.”

As the Supreme Court term begins, keep this framework in mind: Autocratic Legalism.

Instead of “rule of law” (law constrains the power), we get “rule by law” (law as a weapon for power).

Authoritarians usually have to install allies. Trump started his second term with that step already complete.

Opinion | You Beat Trumpism by Banding Together. It’s as Hard and as Simple as That.

"The struggle over regime change is about whether the aspiring authoritarians can subdue civil society. Their strategy is to play divide and conquer, rewarding friends and brutally punishing opponents." -- Henry J. Farrell www.nytimes.com/2025/10/08/o...

University Administrations: Reject Trump's "Loyalty Oath" Compacts The Trump administration is trying to blackmail schools to let him and his unqualified bureaucrats run our schools. They want to dictate what schools teach, who they admit and hire, what researchers s...

NO LOYALTY OATHS IN HIGHER ED!

Trump's attacks on our universities are an attempt to consolidate power. This loyalty oath directly undermines our right to academic freedom & goes against every democratic principle our country should uphold.

Please click below, sign, & share.

#DefendHigherEd

NEW: We filed a brief in support of the Associated Press in their lawsuit against the Trump administration.

Media outlets shouldn't have to parrot the government's worldview — whether it's the name of the Gulf of Mexico or anything else — in order to access White House events.

These two things are of a piece, even if the motivations and details differ.

Trump’s justification for his authoritarian crackdown is an America that doesn’t exist.

@lizzieohreally.bsky.social

Fifth National Climate Assessment The Fifth National Climate Assessment is the US Government’s preeminent report on climate change impacts, risks, and responses. It is a congressionally mandated interagency effort that provides the…

Back online! The 5th National Climate Assessment, which was released by the US Global Change Research Program in 2023 (and taken offline by the Trump administration in early 2025) is back. The assessment is the most recent state of the science report on climate change impacts and risks to the US.

Excellent reporting on SCOTUS and the emerging threat of the "dual state" by @pemalevy.bsky.social of @motherjones.com.

"The dual state is dual in two respects: First, it divides the law into the prerogative and normative zones; next it uses the normative zone to create an illusion of normalcy to cover up an authoritarian reality. This 'smokescreen' ... fosters acceptance by the people until it’s too late."

Today’s Daily Cartoon, by Adam Douglas Thompson. #NewYorkerCartoons

Sign up for our humor newsletter to get Daily Cartoons delivered to your inbox: nyer.cm/0EivDaD

The media trots out the "deplorable" comment from a decade ago to castigate the left. Once a week now Trump implies that the military should destroy democrats, and it is just how things are.

September 2025 was the third warmest September on record at 1.47C above preindustrial levels in ERA5, behind only the prior two years (2023 and 2024).

With 9 months of the year now in, I estimate 2025 will approximately tie with 2023 for the second warmest year on record at ~1.48C.

Ernie Stevens Jr., chair of the Indian Gaming Association and Oneida Nation leader, has died Ernie Stevens Jr., longtime leader of the Indian Gaming Association, has died at the age of 66. The association announced Monday that Stevens died Friday at the Oneida Nation in Wisconsin.

Kathy and I extend our condolences to the family of Ernie Stevens and the entire Oneida Nation.

As a fierce defender of Tribal sovereignty and Indian gaming rights, Ernie's advocacy and generosity will have a profound impact on Wisconsin for years to come.

What??

Are they invading blue cities the “smart way??”

DONT’T NORMALIZE THIS.

"Should Universities work together to fend off the administration's attacks on academic freedom and free speech?" is a key question that rank-and-file faculty (i.e., @aaup.org) are answering in the affirmative and University administrators are mostly shrugging off. Time is running out.

With the shutdown, there's a lot going on, but I think that the POTUS publicly boasting that he told the Secretary of Defense that the United States military should be deployed against American cities led by Democratic politicians deserves not only more media attention but a general alarm.

Trump Gave the Military’s Brass a Rehashed Speech. Until Minute 44.

"“I told Pete, we should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military.”https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/30/us/politics/trump-military-brass-speech.html?smid=bs-share

Interesting for Hegseth and Trump railing about “political correctness” after the admin spent two weeks policing what people can and can’t say about Charlie Kirk

An unprecedented violation of our civic and Constitutional traditions. Calling every military leader in the world back to the U.S. to hear a wildly inappropriate partisan campaign speech followed by a fascist call to use the military against Americans.

Mining requirements of different electricity sources Measured in kilograms of material per gigawatt-hour (GWh) of electricity generated. Metals and minerals include all of the materials used used for manufacturing and construction. Rock includes mined c...

Can you give sources? This shouldn't surprise me - I've referred people (who express concern about mining for EV/batteries) to this - but need one specifically on rare earths

*shifting to clean energy will reduce mining for energy rather than increase it*
ourworldindata.org/grapher/mini...

Founders Online: John Jay to George Washington, 25 February 1795 John Jay to George Washington, 25 February 1795

"Demagogues will constantly flatter the Passions and Prejudices of the multitude; and will never cease to employ improper arts against those who will not be their Instruments."

- John Jay (1795)

founders.archives.gov/documents/Wa...

A lot of people think that every international student admitted means one fewer spot for domestic students, when the opposite is more likely true - the tuition revenue international students bring allows public universities to provide substantial discounts to domestic students, improving access.