nikder

nikder

@fictionally.substack.com

professional, amateur, ergodic, aleatoric. Serious(ish) writing here: https://nikder.substack.com Unserious writing here: https://fictionally.substack.com

34 followers68 following192 posts

Fascinating. The Guardian in the UK and other major newspapers across Europe have a ton of coverage of the protests in the US. The New York Times? Next to nothing. That's not journalism, just preemptive capitulation and obsequiousness. Cowardice.

I didn't know losing an eye not only affected your depth perception but also apparently destroyed your bullshit detector. You learn something new every day I suppose.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com

Dan Crenshaw dismisses Hegseth texting war plans to a Signal group that included a journalist: "We gotta move on. If Secretary Hegseth says there was no classified information, I'll take him at his word."

"Measles however, will be allowed. Everywhere."

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com

Rep. Mary Miller: "We're going back to male and female, and males are not allowed in girls' athletics. They're not gonna be allowed in girls' private spaces."

As much as I appreciate the advice: this is dystopian stuff.

WIRED@wired.com

Countries that warrant that paranoid approach to travel might include not just Russia and China but also America under the increasingly draconian and unpredictable scrutiny of US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), security experts say. A guide on entering the US with your digital privacy intact:

It's not the fall that kills you, it's the landing.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com

Duffy: "We've had a few bumps in the road ... when you have a new system like this, you'll get some bumps. But things are rolling now. The last three weeks have been much, much better."

Imagine a society where everyone pays what they can and receives what they need. Healthcare. Childcare. Education. A society without billionaires. Who needs more than 50 MUSD? It's just dick measuring beyond that point that just leads to the destruction of democracy through wealth disparity.

800 billion EUR in joint EU defence funding, Germany changed its damn constitution to allow for an addition 1 trillion EUR of investment in infrastructure and defence spending. Expect an additional 2+ trillion on top of that. With very, very little for the US.

"Incompatible migrants". Julius Streicher Vance is certainly showing his brown underpants. I mean shirt. And underpants.

WarTranslated (Dmitri)@wartranslated.bsky.social

"Europe is on the brink of civilizational suicide," US Vice President Vance told Fox News. "Countries don’t control borders, restrict free speech. If Germany takes in millions more incompatible migrants, it’ll destroy itself. America can’t save it."

Realistically none because they wouldn't be able to cast a vote in the presidential election otherwise. Stop blaming the palestinians for the failure of the democrats.

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I wonder when NZ will just tell foreign billionaires to fuck off and eminent domain the hell out of everything they bought up over the years. Looking at you Peter Thiel.

Normal democracy. Please tell us more about how Europe is a totalitarian hellscape.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com

Pam Bondi: "If you're gonna touch a Tesla, go to a dealership, do anything, you better watch out, because we're coming after you."

If the entire world is your enemy (except authoritarians) you have a problem. You see, very few things the US - THE ACTUAL US - produces are irreplaceable. The chips and cellphones are made in Asia. Best of luck when the boycotts bite.

Tell us more about your bullshit casus belli, dear Dive Bar Dictator.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com

Trump announces more tariffs on Canada and says, "The only thing that makes sense is for Canada to become our cherished Fifty First State."

Elon is smart but smart people just make exponentially more stupid mistakes, especially when they become convinced they are infallible. And that's Elon now - inherently incapable of understanding his limits and therefore an existential danger to his companies and to the US.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com

Rep. Mark Alford: "It is true that the Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security make up about 75% of our budget. We've got to find the savings there. We will do that."

"I could've been a physicist", says man who couldn't pass basic match apparently. Because theoretical physics is famously not about math at all. E=whatever really.

Justin Baragona@justinbaragona.bsky.social

Elon Musk says "10% of federal expenditures" are due to people having fake Social Security numbers, claiming it is "half a trillion dollars."

Hear that, MAGA voters dependant on subsidies, social security and other kinds of government largesse, it's not good for you. The Reichsarbeitsdienst is coming and you will love it. Someone has to work the farms you lost after all.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com

Kevin Cramer: "If you require work for benefits, you really have created some cuts because you've made people more self-reliant and less needy for the kind of largesse that they've just come to expect. It's not good for them."

"Who cares about your 401k, we shorted the market and made a killing YOLO."

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com

Asked about the stock market tanking, Tuberville says "I don't think President Trump needs to be concerned about it. He doesn't need to look at it ... he has told me people there's gonna be a little bit of pain with this. And there is. That's fine. The stock market has gone up and down before."

WE HAVE ALWAYS BEEN AT WAR WITH SYNTAX ERROR

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com

BOLDUAN: Target and Best Buy said last week that prices are going up in direct relation to the tariffs. Is that a good thing for your constituents? MALLIOTAKIS: I mean, but the tariffs, but, ut, shh ...

Just normal people debating normal things.

Erin Reed@erininthemorning.com

Meanwhile on Twitter, they are having a serious argument over whether or not Hitler should be rehabilitated, with most replying saying yes.

Say what you will about the Chinese but Wang Yi runs circles around little Marco. From a press conference earlier: “Small Yard, High Fence” cannot stifle innovative thinking, and decoupling or cutting off chains will ultimately isolate oneself.

"This job is too hard, I'd like to be much less influential."

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com

REPORTER: Are you gonna make it US policy that the US wouldn't defend NATO countries that don't pay their fair share? TRUMP: Well, I think it's common sense. If they don't pay I'm not gonna defend them. No, I'm not gonna defend them.

“We are so numerous that we are starving. Therefore we must encourage still larger families so as to become yet more numerous and starving. [Then] we shall have a right to take other people’s stores of seed. Besides, we shall by then have a numerous and starving army.” T.H. White

The new U.S. - preemptive surrender monkeys.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com

Trump on NATO: "If the United States was in trouble and we called them. We said, 'We got a problem, France.' Do you think they're gonna come and protect us? Hmm. They're supposed to. I'm not so sure." (Literally the only time NATO Article 5 was invoked was after 9/11 on behalf of the US.)

I mean, maybe he's not up on anti-mercantilist critiques. I mean they just go back to *checks notes* Adam Smith.

Chris Hayes@chrislhayes.bsky.social

Here's what I think people are missing about Trump and tariffs. The man has very very few sincere ideological commitments, but mercantilism is weirldy one of them. He's a true believer.

This is some Baghdad Bob shit right here.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com

CNBC: According to CDP, only 43 pounds of fentanyl were seized at the Canadian border last year LUTNICK: I think autopsy deaths, as horrible as that is, should be the statistic CNBC: But Americans are smuggling it over. It's not just Canadians. LUTNICK: Well look, crooks are cooks

If you believe this nonsense then I have some prime real estate on Venus for sale, you'll make 125K after all, why not get a sweet sweet prime location on the hottest little planet in the neighbourhood.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com

QUINTANILLA: Robots usually replace people, but you think it's gonna create jobs? LUTNICK: Oh, I'm sure of it.

How to tell everyone you're a snivelling spineless toad without spelling it out.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com

Markwayne Mullin on CNN calls Trudeau "Governor Trudeau," gets called out by the host, then confirms he did it intentionally