The other day, we discussed the global authoritarian movement and how it will remain a threat, even after the worms stop playing pinochle on Piggy’s snout and begin the serious business of converting the organic matter of international authoritarianism’s current avatar into compost. We talked about how to neutralize the threat the authoritarian movement poses to democracy. I said:
Figuring out how to do that is above my paygrade, but taxing billionaires out of existence seems like an essential component, along with reestablishing a global democratic movement, hopefully with less cynicism and a more sincere commitment to human rights. I have no idea if that’s possible, but defining the opponent and understanding their weak points is a good start.
The next day, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez addressed these very issues at a Munich Security Conference panel. Here’s a clip where she talks about how concentrated wealth undermines democracies:
AOC: “Extreme level of wealth inequality leads to social instability and drives authoritarianism, right-wing populism, and really dangerous domestic internal politics. That is a direct outcome of the failure of democracies over decades to deliver.”
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) February 13, 2026 at 12:50 PM
And here’s a clip where she points out that cynicism and hypocrisy undermine a rules-based order.
AOC💪at the Munich Security Conference: “In a rules-based order, hypocrisy is vulnerability…kidnapping heads of state, threatening allies, colonizing Greenland, or looking the other way on a genocide”
— Van Jackson (@vanjackson.bsky.social) February 13, 2026 at 1:48 PM
I think she’s right on both counts, though I will note it’s devilishly hard for an average person to get through a day without at least a little hypocrisy, let alone a whole-ass superpower. Anyhoo, if you’re interested in hearing more about what AOC had to say in Europe, here’s a YouTube link to an interview she did this weekend at TU Berlin (link courtesy of pantsless paragon Baud).
***
Agree with her or not, AOC is no lightweight. Some pundits speculate that she went to the Munich conference to bolster her foreign policy chops because she plans to run for president in 2028, or perhaps she’ll run for a senate seat and then run for president.
I don’t know if that’s true or even if it would be a good idea, but I do know this: every shitty political media hack will immediately drop their frantic efforts to sane-wash the demented president’s ravings to make AOC look dumb:
Have you ever once seen the New York Times quote Trump like this?
— Sam Youngman (@samyoungman.bsky.social) February 16, 2026 at 1:24 PM
I suspect this tendency to reflexively undermine Dems and polish Republican turds is not unrelated to our corporate-captured media problem, which loops back to the oligarchy issue. So, something else to watch out for.
Open thread.
Heartening News Out of New York (via Jay Kuo)
Baud
QFT. It’s hard to be perfect. But that doesn’t mean we should treat all imperfections the same or get depressed that we fall short. IMHO
ETA: Yeah, that NYT quote is blatant. And not surprising.
Lumpy
I hope she runs for Senator. I would vote for her for President but I’m not convinced she could win yet, because of sexism. Kind of like the idea that lawyers don’t ask questions in court that they don’t already know the answers to, I think candidates should not run in races that they are not convinced they can win. But maybe she has polling that tells her to go for it. I do think she could win a Senate race in NY state.
bbleh
… every shitty political media hack will immediately drop their frantic efforts to sane-wash the demented president’s ravings to make AOC look dumb.
¿Por qué no los dos? But more to the point, I think that, no matter how the qualities of the overall organizations vary, ALL mainstream political media — very much including those parts of the Vichy Times and the WaPo — should now be considered in about the same way as commercial advertising, ie with a YUGE presumption of bias and/or outright falsehood.
The (relatively) good news is, I think that’s not much of a stretch for most people, including the less-connected
(And yes, they will undermine her at every turn. Misogyny is strong in the political media — as in many other places, including among the voters. And on top of that, she’s a woman of color. As you observe, she’s a real talent, which includes very good political instincts, and I think she knows all this perfectly well. She’s young yet — plenty of time!)
Luther M. Siler
I thought Obama was running much too early (I was one of his constituents in Chicago at the time, and had been calling him “the first Black president” in conversations for months) and clearly I didn’t know what the hell I was talking about, so sure, let her run.
JMG
NYT reporter who wrote the story is all of 28 years old. Either greatest journalist talent since Hildy Johnson, somebody’s nephew, or very good at sucking up to his elders.
Steve LaBonne
From the time when she began to demonstrate exceptional depth and political savvy, I have looked forward to voting for her for President someday. I hope that day will come.
rikyrah
@Lumpy:
she has to win statewide in NY before I’m convinced that she has future higher office potential
trollhattan
CNN posted a collection of great still photos from the Olympics, which are still going you curling junkies and you know who you are.
cnn.com/2026/02/07/sport/gallery/milan-cortina-winter-olympics
Sweep-sweep-sweep…yep!
Chetan Murthy
There may be many things wrong with representative AOC, but I will always remember that she asked the questions of Michael Cohen that produced the inquiry that got those 34 felony convictions for real estate tax fraud.
Betty Cracker
@Lumpy: & @Luther M. Siler: Perry Bacon at TNR weighs the pros and cons here.
Baud
Speaking of the title to this post, here’s the full video of Hillary at Munich.
Baud
FWIW, I’ve also noticed that recently she seems to be more visibly working with others to get legislation enacted.
Eric
@Chetan Murthy: I’m not sure what things are “wrong” with her.
Betty Cracker
@Baud: Thank you! I saw a clip on Bluesky where she ripped into Piggy. Good for her.
rikyrah
it’s been 32 days since the Orange Menace has been on a golf course.
take that for what you want it to mean.
I’m not moving from this belief…
He’s on the clock.
They all are. Which is why the evil is ramped up over 1000.
Tick tock
Tick tock.
terraformer
I suspect I’m not alone in saying that Betty’s writing style, the clever and tongue-in-cheek ways she refers to people in the news, and the descriptions and parallels she routinely makes in her writing, would be wonderful to have in a national publication on the regular. Her writing is a salve, it’s sublime, and I wish more normies could read it.
Baud
@rikyrah:
He looks terrible in the photo with Liz Truss I posted in the thread below.
rikyrah
Marc Elias
@marcelias.bsky.social
Follow
🚨BREAKING: A group of civil rights organizations including the NAACP have asked a federal court to protect voters’ personal information after the FBI seized ballots and other election materials during a raid on Fulton County. democracydocket.com/news-alerts/...
bsky.app/profile/marcelias.bsky.social/post/3meylvwzves2s
Chetan Murthy
@Eric: me neither, which is why I said “may be”. I’d be happy to vote for her!
Steve LaBonne
@Baud: She and now Mamdani have demonstrated that there can be genuinely serious and effective DSA politicians, something which I frankly have tended to doubt in the past.
rikyrah
needs to be placed on the NO FLY LIST
LongTime🤓FirstTime👨💻
@LongTimeHistory
MAGA grandpa kicked off plane—for threatening to call ICE on flight attendant.
“I’m American… you’re the illegal!” man yells.
“I’ve lived here my whole life… whatever, you’re a racist,” she retorts.
“I saw her and her uncles and aunts and cousins swim the Rio Grande,” he shouts at the other passengers.
“Sir, you need to take a seat until we get to the jet bridge—we are going to remove you.”
The incident occurred at the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport in Texas.
x.com/LongTimeHistory/status/2023165811490267445?s=20
Baud
@Steve LaBonne:
I don’t disagree except that Mamdani is still pretty green.
I think one difficulty they’ll have is that a portion of their supporters are lefty people who hate Dems. So they’ll have to manage that. Not too different from what reps in purple districts have to do.
rikyrah
BWA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA
ABC News
@ABC
This UPS driver was lucky to drive away unscathed after a wild run-in with a couple of turkeys on the streets of Branford, Connecticut. abcnews.link/W02QoMl
x.com/ABC/status/2023489312726352166?s=20
Thor Heyerdahl
@terraformer:
Agreed 100% about BC’s writing. Oh the punditerati that she should replace (the list is long and nearly ever-lasting). Replacing David Brooks…yes please. Replacing Peggy Noonan…make it a double.
Baud
@Thor Heyerdahl:
Maureen Dowd. What an upgrade that would be.
cain
@rikyrah: You know I haven’t heard much news from the premier civil rights group the ACLU. Took a gander at their website, looks like they’ve been doing things but hasn’t gotten into my awareness.
We have to fight relentlessly against these people.
Leto
@rikyrah: Heather Cox Richardson has been all over this as well, talking about the importance of breaking the chain of custody related to these machines/documents. Need to remember Tulsi Gabbard’s seizure of voting machines in Puerto Rico.
lowtechcyclist
@Lumpy:
I think that makes sense in purple states, but in safe blue states, I think it’s worth having multiple viewpoints represented in a Dem primary if victory in November is pretty much guaranteed, whether or not the candidates think they can win the primary.
And at the other end, in red states where a Dem candidate is a long shot at best, we still want to show the flag, to be out there making sure people know what Dems stand for.
Scout211
@Baud: I saw that photo and apparently Truss posted it to her accounts but at least at the time I read the article, he had not. I can understand why.
His worst photos are typically ones where he is in his golf gear. I don’t think he golfs with the pancake makeup, nor does he wear the blousey jackets and pants that cover-up his girth. And a day golfing messes up his coifed tresses. He’s truly at his worst.
Betty Cracker
@terraformer: That’s very kind — thanks!
PS: Thanks to everyone who noticed my several typos in the OP and didn’t pedant me to pieces. I’m posting on a phone, and I find the backend mobile interface…challenging. Took me a few to clean it up!
Leto
@rikyrah: I’m sure piggy will give him the Medal of Freedom.
Thor Heyerdahl
@Baud: Donald the
dovedope.Baud
@cain:
These days, ACLU does a lot on immigrants rights, and some voting rights.
Another Scott
@Baud:
Obligatory:
47, his enablers, and the MotUs don’t have this “problem”.
Grr…
Thanks.
Best wishes,
Scott.
SC54HI
@rikyrah: All that and who thinks that the SOTU address will go well next week?
Maybe weʻll see a pre-recorded, AI-assisted version? Maybe Vance will deliver it instead?
cain
@rikyrah: yeah, but I am not interested in JD Vance as president. A much smarter asshole. I don’t know what he will do but has smarter people behind him other these clowns.
My hope is that Trump will find a way to get rid of him. He subscribes to that Highlander creed, “there can be only one”
Martin
“hard for an average person to get through a day without at least a little hypocrisy”
It doesn’t apply to the average person, though. This is where the hat wearing exercise comes into play. Martin, the individual can be hypocritical. Martin, the university administrator cannot be. You have to understand what hat you are wearing. It’s why Biden could be personally opposed to abortion as a Catholic and then promote abortion policy as president. That’s not hypocrisy, that’s understanding what role you play depending on what hat you are wearing.
It’s not hypocritical for Obama to promote the American beet industry and the benefits of beets and then personally dislike and not eat beets. That’s a crossing over from Obama wearing the hat of President to Obama wearing the hat of individual. It is a problem when Trump says that heads of state should be immune from prosecution and then prosecute heads of state. Those are both Trump wearing the hat of president and it’s a complete destruction of rules – because the rule can’t only apply to whoever Trump wants it to apply to.
It should not be hard for a superpower because superpowers should not be acting out of a single individual. Any meaningful decision should involve multiple people, and those people should be able to catch the ‘hey, this violates the intent of our policy’ and steer actions in a different direction. But that also requires that you have staff you can trust, that you have institutional roles like inspectors general or office of legal council and the like that decisions need to route through, that any of these people can speak out and say ‘this is wrong’ and be listened to and not punished, and that all parties are interested in reinforcing the rules based order. Almost none of that is working right now, and some is narrow to Trump and some is much broader. Congressional democrats should not tolerate insider trading from Congress because it crosses that line, but democrats have blocked those efforts for some time. That’s not to both sides this, but to say that small erosions of the rules lead to big erosions of the rules. You have to be constantly diligent about this stuff, and the US has not been for quite some time now. Congress refusing to do their oversight responsibilities, refusing to regulate industry, the courts doing similar kinds of things, and so on. Some of that is deliberate but some is not. When an institution is overwhelmed, it can’t help but let things go. The main argument for public funding of elections isn’t that rich people have undue influence, it’s that fundraising means that Congress doesn’t have time to do all the things it needs to do and Congress can’t do what it was hired to do and what is lost is important – oversight, regulation, and so on. The rules based order frays as a result.
Melancholy Jaques
@Lumpy:
Anyone thinking of an AOC for president campaign should recall the political media’s hatred for and constant smearing of Hillary Clinton, then multiply by ten.
I’m an admirer and think she’d make a great senator, but the same shit’s going to happen there. Wall Street no only hates her personally, but they believe her success would be a catastrophe.
Scout211
ICE Barbie’s Alleged Lover Slammed by His Colleagues Over Cringey Side Hustle
. . .
Sheer institutional recklessness seems like business as usual for the Trump team. Ho hum.
rikyrah
The Atlantic
@TheAtlantic
The Democrats are lost,
@MarkLeibovich
argues. He traveled around the country and interviewed about four dozen Democratic candidates, elected officials, operatives, and voters to assess if the party is capable of regaining its power: theatln.tc/QDpWXHlw
x.com/TheAtlantic/status/2022769081334521991?s=20
Longtime Black Man Here
@groove_sdc
The problem isn’t with Democrats. The problem is reporters like you cuddle our most angry irrational and propaganda reliant voting bloc — uneducated rural white voters.
x.com/groove_sdc/status/2023402249314312498?s=20
lowtechcyclist
@Another Scott:
On occasion, memories pop up from ~60 years ago that make me cringe. I sincerely hope I’ve grown as a person since then!
bbleh
@rikyrah: now THAT is an interesting statistic. (who keeps count?)
@Baud: omg he DOES look bad.
rikyrah
CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP
Brian Allen
@allenanalysis
🚨 NEW: Hillary Clinton clashed with Czech Deputy PM Petr Macinka after he defended Trump as “responding” to policies that went “too far” — attacking “cancel culture,” climate action, and LGBTQ rights, and insisting there are “only two genders.”
He even argued that while Ukrainians are dying for freedom, “this is what the West focuses on.”
Clinton shut it down.
x.com/allenanalysis/status/2023165250065842432?s=20
schrodingers_cat
Is this blog going full DSA before 2026 elections?
AOC has had several problematic statements about Ukraine and Israel.
Steve LaBonne
@cain: I am far from impressed by his intelligence- he says ridiculously dumb shit all the time. In turn he is a creature of Peter Thiel who is also no genius and who reveres complete moron Curtis Yarvin as a great philosopher.
Baud
@schrodingers_cat:
Just Cole.
Jeffro
I’m great with AOC running for president for three reasons:
Scout211
Hyatt executive chairman steps down over Epstein ties
[Governor Pritzker’s cousin]
schrodingers_cat
@Baud: AOC and Mamdani fangirling says otherwise.
Another Scott
@Lumpy: Devils Advocate:
I like her, I think she has a good head on her shoulders, she’s smart, and she knows how to take advantage of her 5 minute question period in committee. She seemingly knows how to handle unfair pressure.
But I don’t know if she has a broad enough base – right now – to win a Senate or POTUS race yet.
E.g. Ballotpedia indicates that she wins her races by 2:1 or 3:1 or 4:1 the same way Crowley did (until he lost).
Schumer’s term ends in January 2029 (he’ll be around 78). Gillibrand’s term ends in January 2031 (she’ll be around 64).
But, of course, one has to strike when the iron is hot, so who knows…
Let’s win in 2026 and 2028 first!! :-)
FWIW.
Best wishes,
Scott.
sab
@rikyrah: The problem is these reporters only go to suburban diners.
rikyrah
LongTime🤓FirstTime👨💻
@LongTimeHistory
Idaho teacher files lawsuit—after ordered to take down signs saying “Everyone Is Welcome Here!”
District lawyer said because hands pictured were different skin tones “not everyone agrees they are welcome.”
“In this political environment, it’s considered a personal opinion,” he argued.
At the next school board meeting—they voted in agreement that the signs violate the policy requiring “classroom content to be neutral.”
Sarah Inama has now filed a lawsuit against Lewis & Clark Middle School in Meridian, Idaho—accusing the school of being “racist” and violating her First and Fourteenth Amendment constitutional rights.
She is demanding a trial by jury and to recover the cost of her attorney fees.
x.com/LongTimeHistory/status/2023367505763533176?s=20
Jeffro
@rikyrah: who does he think he is, trump?
LOL (darkly)
I can’t wait until the same thing happens to Vance on the national stage once trumpov shuffles off this mortal coil and/or the 2028 race
“JD…please take your seat…we are returning to the jet bridge, you charmless psycho…”
PatD
The savviest move AOC made over the last couple years was continuing to support Biden after the calls for him to drop out started after his poor debate performance and then quickly getting behind Harris. That helped sell her to a core demographic that didn’t like her and is still skeptical, mostly due to association with Bernie.
Steve LaBonne
@rikyrah: Jesus wept.
Baud
@schrodingers_cat:
I think they’re being recognized for their individual actions and statements, not for parroting any DSA lines against Dems. I have zero problems criticizing them if they go down that road.
rikyrah
OSINTdefender
@sentdefender
The FBI has formally notified the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) that it will not provide access to any evidence collected in the shooting death of intensive care nurse Alex Pretti last month in Minneapolis by agents with Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
x.com/sentdefender/status/2023444805032853508?s=20
VFX Lurker
“So let it be written. So let it be done.”
wizend_guy
@Chetan Murthy: Agreed. She made a couple of rookie errors in her first term, like trying to get in Pelosi’s grill. But AOC is a quick study and doesn’t repeat her mistakes. Sign of a disciplined mind.
different-church-lady
Leaving the stammers in a quote is a well-know hatchet.
Lumpy
@lowtechcyclist: The issue with AOC running for president and not winning the nomination is that then she’s out of the government completely. She cannot run for her House seat and President simultaneously. Whether she could find another office where she can serve again (after a national loss) is not so clear to me. Also, I’m not so sure that a Dem victory in November is “guaranteed”. I thought Hillary was guaranteed to win, and Kamala too. Imagine my surprise.
Shalimar
@Luther M. Siler: Yes, Obama was ready and he was an excellent president. On the other hand, he has also basically been retired from politics since he was 55. We may have been better off as a nation now if he had stayed in the Senate longer and been president later.
Betty Cracker
@rikyrah: We have tons of wild turkeys around here, and they aren’t aggressive at all (mostly they run away). Maybe proximity to humans make them cranky?
Baud
@Lumpy:
Same problem with her running for any other office.
Baud
@rikyrah:
Not even the evidence they’re fabricating?
Tony Jay
You can often guesstimate the ceiling a politician is capable of reaching by measuring the level of nonsensical frothing animosity they trigger in adherents of other parties and factions.
By that yardstick, AOC has a very high ceiling. Mamdani too.
It’s good to see.
Jackie
@Baud:
Maybe she’ll give FFOTUS the Queen Elizabeth curse.🤞🏻
Sally
@rikyrah: I posted this a couple of threads ago.
Hillary was/is awesome. The Czech gave himself away (again) when he argued about gender. “There is only one gender – I mean two”, he added as Hillary jumped in, eyes wide. So were mine. If ever there was a “Freudian slip”, that was it! These stupid men get away with their sweeping, nonsensical statements about “woke culture” and “cancel culture”, without ever being forced to EXPLAIN what they mean by those terms. Hillary was asking, but he was refusing to answer. These men throw these undefined terms around, without ever giving examples, and everyone winks and nods, and can interpret as suits them. To the racist it means one thing, to the sexist, another, etc. And it is all so puerile. Honestly. These guys need to grow up.
laura
@wizend_guy: and yet, she continues to happily make many public appearances with Bernie and so, I remain unimpressed, but not undecided. When she becomes a democrat, I’ll consider her as a qualified candidate. Third party’s guarantee more elected republicans.
Baud
@laura:
AOC runs as a Democrat. I don’t think she’d run third party, at least not in the foreseeable future.
Melancholy Jaques
@terraformer:
Do normies read?
lowtechcyclist
@rikyrah:
Dafuq?! That totally gives the haters a veto.
I mean, that’s just a step away from not being able to teach that slavery was wrong, if enough people in that Idaho school district disagree.
Jackie
Citizen Alan
@cain: I canceled my ACLU membership in a protest after they wrote an amicus brief in support of Citizens United when that case was before SCOTUS. A horrible lack of foresight on their part. They supported the free speech rights of billionaires and corporations to destroy the free speech rights of the rest of us.
Melancholy Jaques
@PatD:
Savvy move or something she actually believed was the right thing to do? Is there a difference? Does it matter?
E.
That NYT quote has my fucking blood boiling.
Betty Cracker
@Tony Jay: Fair.
lowtechcyclist
@rikyrah:
That is fucking appalling.
Even though I can’t say I expected better from this FBI, it still hits hard. And infuriates me.
There will be no impartial investigation of this murder, is what it means. Same is obviously happening with Renee Good’s murder.
I can only hope that in 2029, the DOJ opens obstruction-of-justice cases against everyone involved in withholding the evidence on each of these murders from the Minnesota authorities.
Anne Laurie
Speaking as someone who has these feathered dinosaurs in our neighborhood: As with any other wild species, familiarity breeds contempt. Turkeys are ‘protected’ in Massachusetts, so they run in flocks of… well, Massholes. Regular news reports of them disrupting traffic, attacking postal carriers, strutting down the streets of Boston & Cambridge as though they own the place.
Which would be less of a problem except — as you know — they’re so damned big. Chest-high to a short adult human (ask me how I know) & not smart enough to understand ‘when to hold ’em, when to fold ’em’.
zhena gogolia
@Sally: And the female moderator kept telling Hillary to “let him finish.” GAAAAAHHHHH!
Tony Jay
@Betty Cracker:
I always try my best to be scrupulously fair to everyone.
It’s why I can sometimes come across as judgemental. 8-)
Socolofi
I’d love to see her run for either Senate or Gov – and arguably needs to first before trying to run any kind of national election. She’s already been getting the Hilary treatment, but I think unlike Hilary she is better equipped to handle it and fight back.
I also realize she endorsed Hochul, so pending a huge surprise nothing for Gov until 2030.
I’m also trying to think which Cabinet position might make for a good stepping stone for higher office. Treasury or Commerce might be kinda fun.
jonas
@rikyrah: Yesterday I was driving on a local highway and two massive birds suddenly swoop down from some tree across the road and kind of glide onto a field on the other side — they were turkeys. I always knew they could fly, but had never actually seen any in the air before. They’re big SOB’s. Wouldn’t want to be chased around by a couple!
Sally
@zhena gogolia: Yes, very noticeable. Please don’t interrupt The Man.
lowtechcyclist
@Lumpy:
Sorry, I thought you were stating a general principle. I was not taking any position on whether AOC should run for President in 2028. Since the nation as a whole is unquestionably neither red nor blue, but some shade of purple where a win is not guaranteed for either side, that’s the part where I was agreeing with you.
Nix Besser
Best case is that AOC convinces Schumer to retire — Lord knows he should retire already. I think she has considerable powers of persuasion. She wins in 2028. New York is reliably Democratic.
That sets up 2032, running against the rotting remnants of the cult of personality. Call it wishcasting, but I feel like AOC vs. Cokehead Jr. or Micro Rubio or Large Marge or whoever else is a layup.
PatD
@laura: She’s already a Democrat, as an elected representative of the Democratic Party. She’s not an independent.
I would not be surprised if she dropped her DSA affiliation.
PatD
@Melancholy Jaques: nope, no difference. Whether out of conviction or not, it was the right political move for her.
lowtechcyclist
@zhena gogolia:
At the link Baud gave, it gave the moderator’s name as Branwon Maddox. A fictional character from Madeleine L’Engle’s A Swiftly Tilting Planet was probably a less than ideal choice as moderator. ;-)
lowtechcyclist
@Nix Besser:
Well hopefully the Dems win the White House in 2028, and the Dem in question successfully runs for re-election in 2032. AOC is young enough that she can wait until 2036.
Martin
@Baud: Doesn’t matter, the purity police will do their job regardless. Gotta maintain the power hierarchy.
Baud
@Martin:
Everyone is entitled to their opinions. People can dislike whoever they want. My only hope is that whoever wins Dem primaries gets our support in the general election.
Geminid
@Nix Besser: Someone came in late one thread here and said he believed Schumer would retire after this term. I’ve said that myself, but what got my attention was that this person was a high school classmate of Schumer’s.
He hasn’t stayed in touch but he’s followed Schumer and his career, and he thinks Schumer will hang it up in 2028.
I only mention this because I think the idea that Chuck Schumer needs Rep. Ocasio-Cortez to persuade him to retire involves a lot of projection that makes him out to be some sort of idiot.
Martin
@Baud: Apparently not since she’s incapable of not telling us we’re wrong.
Baud
@Martin:
That’s an opinion too. No one is above being told their wrong, rightly or wrongly.
cain
@Citizen Alan:
Good point. That was an insane action.
Geminid
@PatD: It wouldn’t be that hard for Rep. Ocasio-Cortez to get herself thrown out of the DSA. They adopted a really strict anti-Zionism policy last August at their bienniel convention. This “Resolution 31” narrowly lost at their 2023 convention but it passed this time. It calls for expulsion of members who support Israel in any way, by deed or by word.
The Party’s National Committee is given discretion as to enforcement of Resolution 31, but I’ve noticed both Rep. Ocasio-Cortez and Mayor Mamdani are very careful as to how they discuss Israel and I think it’s because they don’t want to put the National Committee on the spot.
Baud
@Geminid:
It could be her Sister Souljah moment!
persistentillusion
@Anne Laurie: Same here, but with deer. Similar except for the intelligence. When you peer into the eyes of a deer, all you see is the back of its skull. So stoopid.
Eyeroller
@Anne Laurie: Gonna be very pedantic here but feathers long preceded birds. Most dinosaurs were feathered well before avialae evolved at all. But it seems likely that the large dinosaurs (T. rex and such) may have had only a smattering of feathers, at least as adults.
Eyeroller
I am completely snakebit and don’t think a woman will win the Presidency within my lifetime, or at best towards the end of it (so say 20-30 years), especially since young males seem to be more misogynistic than the generation before them. Maybe they’ll get better with age; at least I hope they might.
But I think AOC could win a Senate race.
PatD
@Geminid: if you look at Bluesky the far leftists think of AOC and Mamdani as sellouts.
Geminid
@Geminid: Correction: the anti-Zionism policy adopted last August at the DSA’s biennial convention was Resolution 22, not 31. It passed 56.3% to 43.3.
apocalipstick
@trollhattan:
Hurry hard!
Soprano2
@rikyrah: My husband tried to catch a turkey when he was in Vietnam. I’m sure the NCO’s who were in the club still tell the story about the drunk officer who was almost beaten to death by a turkey behind the bar! It’s a Moth-worthy story for sure.
different-church-lady
@PatD:
Well, yeah, of course they’re sell outs. They sold out the moment they betrayed the cause by winning an election.
Miss Bianca
@rikyrah: you know what? That observation just made my day.
Yes, I know it’s evil to wish ill upon people and yes, I know that whatever follows TeMussolini stands a chance of being Even Worse, but still…
it warms the cockles of my cold, cold heart.
Castor Canadensis
@schrodingers_cat:
Any campaign needs some folks who are naturally “bad cop”, and others who are “good cop”. In Canada, Pierre Poilievre and Hugh Segal, respectively. Mr Poilievre by himself? Lost his seat in a “safe” conservative riding.
Geminid
@PatD: Oh, I’ve seen that on Twitter for at least a couple years in Rep. Ocasio-Cortez’s case. And it started with Mamdani before he even took office. I remember how, after Mamdani announced he would keep Jessica Tisch on as Police Commissioner, some guy complained that Mamdani had been “cucked.”
There’s a toxic subset of people on the Left– and they’re mostly guys– who simply cannot be pleased because they will not be pleased. I think most of the more toxic people are not DSA members because they’re too lazy and cynical.
But I have seen a cohort of DSA members who are very sceptical as to the party endorsing members who run on the ballot line of a “bourgeois” party like the Democrats. And outrage over the Gaza war has made anti-Zionism a paramount cause for many of these folks. In 2024, the mational DSA would not endorse Rep. Ocasio-Cortez because of this issue, although its large New York chapter did.
So Mamdani and Ocasio-Cortez have to watch their step because the party’s policy on Israel is really strict. Resolution 22 as adopted gives examples of speech that will not be tolerated.
For example, saying “Israel has a right to defend itself” is out of bounds because that argument has been “used to defend genocide.” A member can expelled for saying that, although the party is supposed to try “education” first.
So like I said above, it wouldn’t be hard for either Mamdani or Ocasio-Cortez to get themselves thrown out of the DSA,if they wanted to.
Martin
@Baud: Yes, but there’s a difference between saying ‘I don’t like blueberries’ and ‘you’re a bad person for liking blueberries’. They’re both opinions, but one is divisive and one is not. And we wonder why this community keeps fraying apart.
Another Scott
@Geminid:
Nit – DSA is not a political party.
I think your larger points stand, though.
Thanks.
Best wishes,
Scott.
MinuteMan
@Baud:
Are you sure it wasn’t the Truss head of lettuce she was seen with?
Geminid
@Another Scott: New Lines Magazine published a good article about last May. It’s by Patrick Patrick Hagen and titled, The Left Wing Activists Who Want To Change American Politics. The article is long, as New Lines articles typically are, and includes some historical material.
Resolution 22, the anti-Zionist policy adopted by the 2025 bienniel convention, has been covered by news sites including Drop Site News.
There’s a really long article about last August’s convention in International Currents. It’s by DSA members Philop Locker and Stephen Kimmerle and titled, “DSA’s 2025 National Convention: A New Chapter Opens Up for the Socialist Movement.”
The authors discuss the various resolutions voted on including Resolution 22. There’s also material on the organizations various caucuses which range from social democratic to Maoist.
chemiclord
If this was just a NYT problem, I’d be less bothered by it.
But let’s be honest, a lot of the very same people calling AOC “queen” or “the left’s biggest hope” are going to pivot almost immediately to “not THAT woman” they instant they decide she’s gone over her skis and have ambitions beyond the niche that the online left has made for her. It may be if she ever tries to run for Senator, or Governor, or President… but it will happen. Misogyny is as stubborn of a bigotry as racism (and possibly worse) in our collective consciousness.