patrickz.bsky.social

Hi! I'm a farmer! This NYT article is sweet, saccharine bullshit. Farmers knew Trump was going to hurt our business. Because he already did a trade war in his 1st term. I even did a video on why so many farmers support Trump, WHILE knowing he'd hurt our farms.

All right, this piece has triggered me so I have to yell a bit (though this is bluesky, so I realize I'm just preaching at the choir):

A tale many know well, told in three striking colors. A reinterpretation taken from both modern and ancient tellings, concentrating on the belief in humanity's salvation. THE HARROWING OF HELL by Evan Dahm is on sale, today only, for 30% off! store.ironcircus.com/products/the... #easter #religion

A great blue heron in flight

Anna’s hummingbird posing for me. #Birds #Nature

I wrote about MAGA for Mamdani Guy, what a vibes-based Democratic Party might look like, and popularism's promise of losing forever. badfaithtimes.com/vibes-arent-...

🧵There's a pernicious myth that Republicans have more money than Democrats. In fact, Democrats have raised more—including so-called "dark money." Republicans have less money but understand politics better. This is why they win. My upcoming e-book "What Republicans Know" discusses…

This is actually a little galaxy dressed up as a ghost, with its arms outstretched, unsuccessfully trying to scare all the bigger galaxies around it.

Sunday reading: I wrote about the aggrieved extremist who is currently firing thousands of federal workers and ravaging state capacity based on conspiratorial nonsense - and about mainstream media’s infuriating tendency to sanitize Russell Vought and the regime he serves. This week’s piece:

What he’s railing against is a profound shift in culture, status… He’s obsessed with the idea that America is controlled by a leftist “ruling elite” - but “elite” isn’t defined socio-economically or by political power, it means something like: Getting to define “real America” and who gets to belong.

“They stepped on our heads, handcuffed us, and took us to the station. And we didn’t know why we were being arrested. We were scared, because they could shoot us or use a Taser. That’s how it works there: If you make any sudden move, they can shoot.”

Video taken one hour ago outside the Portland ICE facility of the violent insurrectionists in question

By the power of Grayskull!

As a theoretical cosmologist, I'm frequently asked "what is the benefit of the work you're doing for people's lives?" Nothing I work on makes money or cures disease. There are a few different answers one can give, at various levels of "convincing" / "actually relevant to why the work is done." 1/🧵

The Plague by Camus came in handy when trying to help the 12yo through an unexpected existential mini-crisis. Anyway reading is good and ya never know how that book you read 20 years ago might be applied to parenting. #booksky

Just in case you wanted 6 seconds of a big orange cat in a cat wheel for #internationalcatday #cat

you've heard about the college kids who can't do anything without ChatGPT's help—but what about the students who oppose generative A.I. for myriad reasons and refuse to rely on it as a shortcut? well, I found and spoke with a few of them here: slate.com/life/2025/07...

it's a testament to how american political parties are less some set of structures and institutions than they are the totality of public perception, media coverage and casual impressions

Perfectly safe flower #nature #flower #spider #camouflage

I often get asked to help with bird ID problems when the answer is: it's a female of a common species! Here's a poster celebrating the often-overlooked intricacies of female bird plumage. During June, proceeds from my shop sales go to @instbirdpop.bsky.social topatoco.com/collections/...

Is this a dark-eyed junco nest? At first glance, I thought these little ones were dead, but at least one of them was moving. I didn’t see the parents around. #birding #birds #nest #birdidentification

1v1, crow vs red-tailed hawk. The hawk was possibly hunting meadow voles, which we also saw. Crow wasn’t having it. #birds #birding #hawk #nature

BREAKING: Trump admin says it mistakenly deported a Maryland father who had *withholding of removal* back to El Salvador on March 15. Govt told court Monday it won't bring Kilmar Abrego Garcia back. "What.The.Fuck..." one govt attorney told me. www.theatlantic.com/politics/arc... @theatlantic.com

"Overall, just 40% of respondents believe that God exists and affects people’s lives. That figure rises to 53% among self-identified Christians, 60% among theologically-identified born-again Christians, and 100% among Integrated Disciples." www.christianpost.com/news/most-am...

There are days in life that shake you. I’m shattered 💔 to share that I just found out that the US Government terminated my 2024 NIH Director’s Early Independence Award (~$2 million), threatening my long-promised assistant professor job at Columbia University & academic career... 1/🧵

Comet pic

We’ve all become desensitized, but it’s amazing how at this point the Trump campaign rests entirely on denouncing things that aren’t happening — a imaginary bad economy, imaginary runaway crime and now an imaginary failure of Biden and Harris to respond to natural disaster

Happy Sea Otter Awareness Week! Sea otters keep kelp forests healthy. By eating urchins, they prevent overgrazing and help fight climate change. Follow our pawtners at @elakhaalliance.bsky.social to learn about bringing them back to Oregon!

Sunspots through a small telescope

Merry Blepmas to those who celebrate

Bald eagle bath

Sleepy day at the zoo

Recently adopted rescue cat has to explore every nook and cranny.