chuckmcknight.bsky.social

erininthemorning.comDon’t Vote For The Worst Anti-Trans DemocratsThe Democratic Party should, and likely will, win big in the midterms. We must not send the worst anti-trans voices to join them.

I agree with this completely. This is exactly what I've been talking about with my "strategic harm reduction" voting as opposed to "vote Blue no matter who."

Erin Reed@erininthemorning.com

The elections are on next Tuesday, and so much is at stake, including the soul of the Democratic Party when it comes to transgender people. I am asking you to leave a very small number of races blank in which a Democrat has embraced extreme anti-trans hate. I make my case here.

Good news for Brazil, good news for the global left pushing back against fascism, and a good sign of where things are hopefully headed here in the US!

Erin Reed@erininthemorning.com

Lula pulls it off! Down with fascism!

erininthemorning.comIowa Dem Josh Turek Releases Anti-trans Ad Calling For A Federal Funding Ban On Trans CareThe impact of Turek’s proposal would be profoundly harmful for transgender people.

Josh Turek really saw the transphobia of folks like Amy Acton and Annie Andrews and said hold my beer. 🤬

Erin Reed@erininthemorning.com

Yesterday, Josh Turek released one of the worst anti-transgender ads to come from a Democrat this election cycle. It called for a federal funding ban on gender affirming care, which would impact countless trans Americans. Here is our article on the ad you have all undoubtedly seen by now.

Every time Trump says people don't know what something means, it's because he just learned what it means himself five minutes ago. 🤣

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com

Trump says Alaska’s ballot is illegal because people don’t know what “incumbent” means

Two of the most vocally anti-trans Democrats running for statewide offices this year are both white women, both physicians who absolutely know better, and both have alliterated AA names. That's weird, right? Amy Acton of Ohio and Annie Andrews of South Carolina.

I live in solidly blue Washington state. But "local" online discourse tends to be flooded with MAGA Republicans. To read the Facebook comments on literally anything posted by our governor, Bob Ferguson, you'd think we were Alabama. I suspect this is the combination of a few things:

All that being said, it's going to be pretty interesting seeing how the three statewide ballot initiatives turn out this year. All three are deeply conservative measures sponsored by MAGA multi-millionaire Brian Heywood.

In theory, they shouldn't stand a chance in solidly blue Washington state. But if online discourse were to be believed, they would easily pass. The results of this election will be a really good marker of just how real or fake the online discourse in our state has become.

Third, it's well established by now that online communities are flooded with bots and content farms sponsored by other nations seeking to interfere in our politics.

Knowing all of the above helps, but the floods of MAGA comments can still be pretty discouraging.

First, we do have plenty of red areas in our state, especially in Eastern Washington, so I'm sure at least some of it is real. It may be a matter of a particularly vocal minority.

Second, I know we get a lot of hate from outside the state. I'm not sure why non-Washington Republicans are so obsessed with us, but it's clear many are.

Wicker is brilliant! Hilarious. Touching. A searing critique of the patriarchy. And frankly sets a new standard for what masculinity should look like. Absolutely fantastic film that honestly just might be my new favorite of the year. Go see it!

I gotta say, as a trans person, it really stings to see so many "progressive" folks who think of themselves as allies absolutely fawning over Amy Acton right now.

If you're going to vote for her at all, it should be understood as truly the definition of a "lesser evil" vote, made because you really feel you have no other choice. But to openly praise her as if she isn't a terrible person? Fuck off with that. Your trans friends are watching.

And yes, the attack ads against Acton have been absolutely vile. It is evil to weaponize someone's assault and abuse against them. We can and should call that out. But it must not mean acting as if the transphobic person under attack is some kind of saint herself.

I gotta say, as a trans person, it really stings to see so many "progressive" folks who think of themselves as allies absolutely fawning over Amy Acton right now.

I'm not necessarily faulting anyone for a harm reduction vote because Acton is slightly less vile than Vivek Ramaswami. (Though I'm not recommending it in her case either.) But she is JK Rowling levels of transphobic.

Amy Acton has gone so far beyond the typical shitlib move of citing "fairness" in sports or some such BS. She has made it abundantly clear that she fully denies trans identity altogether. She openly calls trans girls "boys." Her stance is not just compromised or wrongheaded. It is despicably evil.

With Gerwig's film around the corner, let's chat book order for a minute. I'm a firm proponent of the idea that first-time Narnia readers are best served by following the original publication order (beginning with The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe).

Third, and arguably most important, The Magician's Nephew has never had a screen adaptation before. Wardrobe has had four, Caspian and Dawn Treader two each, Silver Chair one. The rest have never had their time on screen, so I absolutely support starting with one that hasn't yet had its shot.

All that to say, I am ridiculously excited for this film! If you haven't seen the trailer yet, you should really check it out.

First, I reject the idea that screen adaptations of literature should be judged by their faithfulness to the source material. Films and books are different things, and directors can and should take liberties to make the films stand on their own, even when it means divergence from the books.

Second, we live in a context where most people already know the basic concept of Narnia. The most recent film is only 16 years old. The sense of wonder at first entering Narnia through the Wardrobe isn't really applicable at this moment.

Yes, I'm aware of Lewis' remark to a young fan, affirming the fan's preference for chronological order. I don't think that changes the fact that the gradual revelation of Narnia through the Pevensie children's eyes offers the best emotional impact—one dampened by reading The Magician's Nephew first.

However, I also firmly agree with Greta Gerwig's decision to start the rebooted film franchise with The Magician's Nephew. And I have three reasons to support this.

The article and test attached to this cover is fairly confused, to say the least, about socialism. Safe to say @newsweek.com is no authority to be telling us whether we are or aren't socialists. But the poster is pretty rad!

Another four questions are random and circumstantial, relying on things you may or may not happen to have experienced, rather than any personal ideological beliefs or preferences.

The remaining 11/20 questions are okay, I guess. But then they go on to define socialism by citing six Republicans, one corporate Democrat, one progressive Democrat, one DSA Democrat, and exactly no one to the left of the Democratic party. 🤣 The article is also paywalled, naturally.

Two of the questions rely on you supporting Starbucks to get the yes-socialist answer. One relies on you using or having used X/Twitter under Musk. One relies on you having an Airbnb. And one relies on you stealing from public transit. 🙃

Just voted! Here are my recommendations if you're in Bellingham, Washington, or Whatcom County: www.sway.co/whatcom-prog...

sway.coWhatcom County Progressive Guide recommendations | SwaySee who Whatcom County Progressive Guide recommends in the November 3, 2026 election. 25 recommendations in all.

Bellingham / Whatcom County friends, your ballots should be arriving soon if they haven't already. I recommend getting them in a drop box as soon as possible this year. Here's my full set of recommendations: www.sway.co/whatcom-prog...

Whatcom County District Court Judges: 🗳️ Angela Anderson is running unopposed for Position 1 🗳️ Jonathan Rands is running unopposed for Position 2 I have no specific reasons to suggest voting or abstaining from voting for either of those uncontested positions.

Finally, my only recommendation I expect to be controversial: 🖊 Write in "Paula Stein" for Congressional District 2 U.S. Representative Rick Larsen has not earned our vote. I believe in harm reduction, but his seat is safe, so there's no reason to cast a compromised vote for a big-money warmonger.

sway.coWhatcom County Progressive Guide recommendations | SwaySee who Whatcom County Progressive Guide recommends in the November 3, 2026 election. 25 recommendations in all.

Whatcom & Bellingham Positions: 🗳️ Vote Jesse Corkern for Whatcom Prosecuting Attorney 🗳️ Vote Eddy Ury for Whatcom County Public Utility District Board District 1 🗳️ Vote Tor Benson for Port of Bellingham Board District 4 🗳️ Vote Chris Elder for Port of Bellingham Board District 5

Bellingham and Lynden Measures: ✅ Vote Yes on Prop. 2026-05 to fund community services ✅ Vote Yes on Prop. 2026-06 for salary transparency ✅ Vote Yes on Prop. 2026-07 for secure efficiency ✅ Vote Yes on Prop. 2026-08 to fund the fire department ✅ Vote Yes on Initiative 26-01 for renter protections

sway.coWhatcom County Progressive Guide recommendations | SwaySee who Whatcom County Progressive Guide recommends in the November 3, 2026 election. 25 recommendations in all.

Washington State Supreme Court Justices: 🗳️ Vote Colleen Melody for Position #01 🗳️ Vote Jaime Hawk for Position #03 🗳️ Vote Ian Birk for Position #04 🗳️ Vote Theo Angelis for Position #05 🗳️ Vote Debra Stephens for Position #07

Washington State Legislative Districts 40 & 42: 🗳️ Vote Michael Shepard for State Senator 🗳️ Vote Debra Lekanoff for State Rep. Dist. 40, Pos. 1 🗳️ Vote Alex Ramel for State Rep. Dist. 40, Pos. 2 🗳️ Vote Alicia Rule for State Rep. Dist. 42, Pos. 1 🗳️ Vote Joe Timmons for State Rep. Dist. 42, Pos. 2

sway.coWhatcom County Progressive Guide recommendations | SwaySee who Whatcom County Progressive Guide recommends in the November 3, 2026 election. 25 recommendations in all.

Washington State Measures: ❌ Vote No on Initiative Measure No. IP26-645. It would give millionaires a tax break. ❌ Vote No on Initiative Measure No. IL26-001. It would further endanger at-risk children. ❌ Vote No on Initiative Measure No. IL26-638. It's transphobic and invasive to all children.

A truly alarming number of people seem to think that if/when the AI bubble pops, that means AI goes away. That isn't how bubbles work. 🙃

When the dot com bubble popped, we didn't lose the Internet. We just lost money. If the AI bubble pops, that means investments tank and the economy probably crashes. But the tech itself isn't going anywhere.

Its deployment may be scaled down. Pricing will likely catch up to reality. And hopefully we'll move past the overblown hype to settle on the realistic benefits it offers. But it'll still be around.

youtube.comNARNIA: THE MAGICIAN’S NEPHEW | Official Trailer | NetflixYouTube video by Netflix

This is not a drill, y'all! The Narnia trailer has dropped!!!

Wanted to bring y'all's attention to @votewithsway.bsky.social. It's a fairly new platform dedicated to voting recommendations. You can follow voices and organizations you trust, see all of their endorsements listed out in one place, and have trusted recommendations applied to your own local ballot.

sway.coWhatcom County Progressive Guide | SwayIdentifying the most progressive options to vote for in Bellingham, Washington, and the broader Whatcom County.

Whatcom County Progressive Guide: Identifying the most progressive options to vote for in Bellingham, Washington, and the broader Whatcom County. (These are my local recommendations.) www.sway.co/g/i9qaq4mq?u...

sway.coChuck McKnight | SwayView Chuck McKnight on Sway

So come check out Sway, give me or any of my groups a follow if you're so inclined, and let's get the word out about great candidates! www.sway.co/p/2e9zz2un?r...

sway.coProgressive Congressional Candidates | SwayFollowing progressive champions across the country who want to get money out of politics, enact Medicare for All, tax billionaires, end funding for Israel, abol...

Progressive Congressional Candidates: Following progressive champions across the country who want to get money out of politics, enact Medicare for All, tax billionaires, end funding for Israel, abolish ICE, support trans rights, and more. www.sway.co/g/ahq75hhx?u...

sway.coProgressive Mayoral Candidates | SwayZohran Mamdani showed us how a progressive mayor can lead the country by example. These are other socialist and DSA-adjacent candidates running for mayor in cit...

Progressive Mayoral Candidates: Zohran Mamdani showed us how a progressive mayor can lead the country by example. These are other socialist and DSA-adjacent candidates running for mayor in cities across the country. www.sway.co/g/jzo8zya6?u...