[A monthly link list of recommended articles, videos, podcasts, photos, toots … you name it]
[Videos]
Tech Billionaires Want Us Dead | Taylor Lorenz
Trump clearing his throat for 90 minutes – If that’s your beat.
Programmierte Kriegsverbrechen? | 39c3 [media.ccc.de] – A brave talk in Germany, home of the anti-antisemites.
[Music]
An extended re-release.
First song of the new album.
DakhaBrakha – Ptakh – Technically from December 2025, but.
[Podcasts]
All about “reactionary centrism” [volts] – “Why do so many influential voices spend their time policing the manners of the left while the right dismantles democracy? In this episode, Michael Hobbes — cohost of the much-celebrated “If Books Could Kill” podcast — joins me to discuss the “reactionary centrist,” a type of commentator who believes that both sides are to blame for everything and demonstrates this by spending every waking moment scolding Democrats” Anything with Michael Hobbes will be amazing, fast-speaking fun, even if concerns such a sucky topic. How does he do that?
Dispatch from Occupied Minneapolis w/ Melissa Gira Grant | Death Panel [.soundcloud.] – “Beatrice is joined by Melissa Gira Grant to discuss what’s happening on the ground in Minneapolis, the murders of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, and the broader currents of fascism nationally producing the context for the battle going on in the streets of the twin cities.” There have been a few “from the ground” reports, but the way Beatrice and Melissa frame it seems the most relevant.
Health Fascism and the Anti-State State [substack] – The excellent end of year #DeathPanel episode, Health Fascism and the Anti-State State, now no longer paywalled and also fully transcribed.
I also listened to THE WORST PODCAST EVER this month, but i won’t mention which one it is. Not streisanding it.
[Toot Threads]
All Eyes On Rojava
Riseup 4 Rojava
[Pandemic Roundup]
Covid: January 29, 2026
Covid: January 22, 2026
Covid: January 15, 2026
Covid: January 8, 2026
Covid: January 1, 2026
[The Must Read[s] This Month]
The Disconnected Present: Neoliberal Fascism and the Politics of Erasure [counterpunch] – “What we are witnessing is not simply a return to older forms of authoritarianism but the consolidation of neoliberal fascism as a pedagogical project. This project does not rule primarily through persuasion or democratic consent but through the management of consciousness, the normalization of cruelty, and the systematic dismantling of the public imagination. It educates people to disconnect, to see violence as inevitable, to accept militarism as common sense, normalize racial cleansing, white Christian nationalism, and authoritarian cruelty. It replaces political agency with fear, historical memory with amnesia, and solidarity with atomization.” Miller, Vance and Trump must all have books by Goebbels on their night stands.
Public health collapsing as COVID pandemic enters its 7th year [wsws] – “The assault on public health must be understood within the broader framework of class rule under capitalism. From the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the decisive priority of governments was not the preservation of life, but the protection of profit, financial markets and corporate interests. This orientation was articulated openly in calls to “reopen the economy” even as mass death unfolded.” It continues to make me sad that the best reporting on the ongoing pandemic comes from the fucking socialists. But hey, too many anarchists do not seem capable of this kind of meta-analysis.
The Left-Wing Propaganda Machine: Ridicule, Minimization, and the Normalization of Risk During COVID [substack] – “The brutality is in the deception. Vulnerable people face mockery or isolation for basic self-protection, while evidence of excess deaths, overwhelmed Long covid clinics with no treatments, and immune harm gets sidelined. Let me remind you; these people laugh believing they are untouchable, but recent studies have found T cell loss of about 10 percent in normal people at least for 22 months, and over 80 percent loss of T cells in cardiac patients.” The article makes one major error, in the headline. Stewart, Favreau, Oster and Tufekci were never “left-wing”, but belong to the reactionary and radicalized centrist clusterfuck. Other than that, a decent analysis on the eugenic turn we have witnessed from that crowd.
[Articles English]
‘Suicide rightism’ and the penguin [substack] – “Fascism is a literally suicidal ideology, one obsessed with purging the body politic to the point of total self-negation. What’s funny about Suicide Rightism is how direct it is about all this. You don’t need some big theoretical analysis; there’s no level of abstraction to move through. It’s just pretty straightforwardly pro-suicide. I don’t think you have to be a professional psychologist to understand why dramatic, attention-grabbing suicide might be appealing to semi-employed guys who spend 14 hours a day watching Asmongold or whatever.” The not so subtle shift from death-cultism to suicide-ism.
Antifa used to unmask neo-Nazis, now it’s exposing ICE: ‘Predators don’t get anonymity’ [the guardian] – “Following in a long American tradition of identifying fascists, a network of leftists has set out to name and shame Trump’s immigration agents” Hear me out, but it’s a different ball game when state employees get doxxed instead of neonazis in the sticks.
Vitamin D & Omega-3 have a larger effect on depression than antidepressants [ncase.me] – “So, Vitamin D & Omega-3: possibly high reward, for low risk. That’s a positive “expected value” bet! These supplements are safe, cheap, over-the-counter, and have positive side-effects (on Covid & cognition). As always, “ask your doctor”, show them the peer-reviewed papers cited in this post.” That’s the way to frame this type of information. It all depends. Find out what works for you.
General Strike: Before Killing, Minnesota Showed a Way Forward [intercept] – ““The general strike is the name for when the riot, the strike, and the commune all happen at once,” late theorist Joshua Clover said in a 2024 interview. Community care, militant disruption, working class refusal. “That’s what the general strike really is. And that’s the day, the week, or the year where there will be a role for everyone.” There is a role for everyone, because that time must be now.” I mostly link to this for some of the quotes on general strikes.
Canary in the Coal Mine: Long Covid in Fiction [whoevenreads] – “The ongoing pandemic is affecting authors just as it’s affecting everyone else. We’re not supposed to talk about it, and we’re treated with disdain if we take precautions to prevent infection. Just the same, authors are not supposed to write about it. We see the tension in this emerging, as fiction writers quite commonly draw from their real lives, and thus this would seem a natural subject. If up to one-third of people who contract Covid-19 also acquire some form of Long Covid, this is something quite a lot of authors are dealing with.” Did i ever tell you that i am also trying to write a pandemic novel. It is very hard. And no worries, i am fully aware that it sucks. It will never get published.
Capitalism Without Humans [in these times] – “As new technologies (not immigrants) replace human labor, “machine breaking” as a tactic of rebellion is taking on a renewed vitality.” Motion to rename Silicone Valley into Dystopia Valley.
Being “Peaceful” and “Law-Abiding” Will Not Stop Authoritarianism : A Message from Germany [crimethInc] – “In the long term, it’s better not to compromise, not to let oneself be pacified and disarmed, whether literally or figuratively. Being uncompromising and taking risks is often safer than restoring the status quo.” Erm, sure.
Billionaire wealth jumps three times faster in 2025 to highest peak ever, sparking dangerous political inequality [oxfam international] – “The collective wealth of billionaires last year surged by $2.5 trillion, almost equivalent to the total wealth held by the bottom half of humanity – 4.1 billion people.
The number of billionaires topped 3,000 last year for the first time, while the richest, Elon Musk, became the first ever to surpass half a trillion dollars. Billionaires are 4,000 times more likely to hold political office than ordinary people. The $2.5 trillion rise in billionaires’ wealth would be enough to eradicate extreme poverty 26 times over.” The WEF came and went. We yelled a bit about inequality. Nothing changed.
Not All Women | Dayna Tortorici [nplusonemag] – “What do we call our political enemies whose feminist bona fides aren’t really up for debate in the eyes of the public?” A powerful review of the Sophie Lewis book Enemy Feminisms, a must-read book.
Immigration Agents Using Banned Chokeholds on U.S. Citizens [propublica] – “Chokeholds: We found over 40 cases of agents using chokeholds and other moves that can block breathing. “I felt like I was going to pass out and die,” said a 16-year-old citizen. Banned Tactics, No Punishment: There is a federal ban on chokeholds and similar tactics. But there is no sign of punishment for officers who’ve used them.” They get trained to perform illegal chokeholds.
Bandcamp’s Mission and Our Approach to Generative AI [bandcamp: shortcode must include 'track', 'album', or 'video' param] – “Today we are fortifying our mission by articulating our policy on generative AI, so that musicians can keep making music, and so that fans have confidence that the music they find on Bandcamp was created by humans.” Nice gesture, buddy.
Assessing the Global Temperature and Precipitation Analysis in 2025 [ncei] – “2025 ranked as the third-warmest year since global records began in 1850. The annual global surface temperature was 2.11°F (1.17°C) above the 20th-century average, falling behind the record-setting year of 2024 (by 0.22°F/0.12°C) and the second-warmest year, 2023 (by 0.04°F/0.02°C). The 10 warmest years in the historical record have all occurred since 2015. Additionally, 2025 exceeded the pre-industrial (1850–1900) average by 2.41°F (1.34°C).” And this in a La Nina year.
We’re Thinking About Addiction Entirely Wrong [jacobin] – “There is nothing intrinsically morally wrong with using drugs. […] there are many, many cases of drug use, both in addiction and apart from it, where absolutely nothing is done that is morally wrong. Remember, caffeine and nicotine are drugs. Alcohol is a drug. Many of the drugs we find on the streets are pharmacologically identical to the drugs used in hospitals and for medical purposes. It is simply a mistake to think that drug use is intrinsically morally wrong, however deep in our history the mistake goes.” The book sounds interesting. But i would like to ask the author how their theory differs from the self-medication theory.
Venezuela and the New Division of the World [ill will] – “Although the experience of popular organization that emerged from the Community Councils and Communes, as well as from mass protests against hunger (as in 2014), could hypothetically be reactivated to address the organizational and self-defense needs of the Venezuelan proletariat, it would be ridiculous to refer to this as a unified and conscious subject. The conditions of subsistence they face have severely deteriorated their capacity for action and divided their ranks. At the same time, Chavismo has done everything possible to eliminate every form of organization independent of the state, through “blacklists, the assassination of union leaders, the dismissal of state workers disloyal to Chavismo, and the manipulation of union elections.”” The nuance we need in the case of Venezuela. Even if the ultimate goal is of course to weaken Cuba.
“A World Governed by Force” : The Attack on Venezuela and the Conflicts to Come [crimethinc] – “As autocrats lose their hold on power, they become more dangerous and unpredictable. Netanyahu’s maneuvers to stay ahead of his corruption scandal—including his readiness to sacrifice hostages in order to continue perpetrating genocide—are instructive here. When crisis threatens them, such rulers create additional crises to distract those they rule. Any effective opposition should remember to keep the spotlight on what Trump is trying to conceal. That is what he fears most.” More of that.
Long COVID advocacy is incomplete without sex workers [the sick times] – “Long COVID and disability advocates must support efforts at sex work decriminalization, a public health response to the very AIDS epidemic they cite while white-washing a radical history of Black queer activists. And they must resist neoliberal frameworks like the SWERF, or sex worker exclusionary radical feminist, movement.” This is crucial.
The Post-American Internet [pluralistic] – “On December 28th, I delivered a speech entitled “A post-American, enshittification-resistant internet” for 39C3, the 39th Chaos Communications Congress in Hamburg, Germany. This is the transcript of that speech.” For those who have not listened to the congress talk.
How to Eat Weeds [substack] – “We’ve heard a little bit about foraging. As it turns out, you can eat a relatively wide variety of common weeds. Most of them aren’t super high in calories, but they do contain a lot of nutrients. They could boost any kind of diet considerably during a longterm emergency. They can save lives, or just lower your grocery bill. So, I’ve been digging in.” A cute, brief guide to foraging weeds, one of my favorite activities every spring.
We need to reassess our relationship to digital tech [tech won’t save us] – “there is a stronger argument forming with every passing month that rejecting the technologies being sold to us — and even going back to physical and analog alternatives — is the right move in the present. Maybe not everything has to be digital or digitized, maybe the internet shouldn’t be inserted into absolutely everything, maybe we shouldn’t be constantly connected in the way we’re now expected to be, and generative AI certainly does not need to be forced into every facet of society.” We should boycott US tech. But to be honest? It mainly feels neoliberal to shift the responsibility to us, the consumers, yet again. And it feels almost impossible.
[Articles German/French]
Das Patriarchat ist zu Ende… und es ist nicht zum Lachen [gdg] – “Die Stärke dieser Denkerinnen ist es, Feminismus nicht auf eine Ideologie, eine soziologisch vordefinierte Gruppe oder eine bestimmte Aktionsform zu reduzieren. Feminismus ist für sie ein unvorhergesehener Bruch mit der patriarchalen Ordnung, die von ebenso unvorhergesehenen Subjekten auf stets unverhoffte Weise vorgenommen wird.” Feminism as a prefigurative practice. I like the approach.
Die Globi Diaries II: Memes of Production | Jessica Jurassica [substack] – “In der lokalen leftist Meme Bubble haben eine Weile lang durchaus progressive Vibes geherrscht. Es gab einige Accounts von FLINTA*-Personen, von queers und people of color, die jahrelang mit einer klaren Haltung gegrindet haben, die auch beim leidenschaftlichsten Shitposten durchdrang. Die meisten davon sind nicht mehr oder kaum noch aktiv, der Peak der linken Schweizer Meme-Szene war sowieso spätestens nach dem zweiten Pandemiejahren vorbei und geblieben sind vor allem manosphere Vibes.” Thank fuck i never followed the Swiss meme bubble. It always felt like a poor copy of a poor copy of a copy, many years late.
Ob ICE oder Schweizer Polizei: der Staat zeigt seine Autorität mit tödlicher Gewalt [das lamm] – “Diese unkritische Berichterstattung schützt und unterstützt das Narrativ und die Gewalt des Staates und dessen verschiedenen Arme. Vor allem Polizeikritik findet sich – trotz nachweisbarer struktureller Probleme – in bürgerlichen Medien wenig bis gar nicht. Das übergeordnete Ziel ist es, einen Konsens in der Gesellschaft herzustellen, damit der Staat weiterhin das tun kann, was er will – egal, wie gewaltvoll seine Praxis ist.” Never underestimate the role of the media in normalizing state overreach and violence.
Blut und Spiele – Mixed Martial Arts als reaktionärer Code [gdg] – “Dieses Jahr sind erstmals Mixed-Martial-Arts-Kämpfe im Weissen Haus geplant. Angekündigt als „UFC White House“ zum 250. Jahrestag der Unabhängigkeitserklärung, finden sie jedoch nicht am Fourth of July statt, sondern an Donald Trumps 80. Geburtstag. Damit festigt die Kampfdisziplin ihre Funktion als antiliberaler reaktionärer Code.” I just puked.
linksunten.indymedia.org: Durchsuchungsanordnungen wegen des Archivs waren rechtswidrig [netzpolitik] – “Im August 2023 durchsuchte die Polizei Wohnungen mehrerer Personen, die angeblich das Archiv linksunten.indymedia.org betrieben haben sollen. Doch es gab weder einen ausreichenden Anfangsverdacht noch waren die Maßnahmen verhältnismäßig, entschied nun das Landgericht Karlsruhe.” A bit late for that.
Als in Zürich ein Schloss knackte und in Chiapas der Aufstand begann [daslamm] – “Vor 30 Jahren besetzten in Zürich Aktivist*innen ein leerstehendes Haus, zeitgleich erhoben sich in Chiapas die Zapatistas gegen die mexikanische Regierung. Zwei Bewegungen, weit voneinander entfernt, doch verbunden durch dieselbe Frage: Wie widersetzen wir uns dem Neoliberalismus?” The causal link in the lead is erm misleading, the article does not go there.
[Older articles, still great]
David Graeber / Music Library – i spent way too much time digging through David Graeber’s music archive.
R.I.P.
Way too many still in Gaza, Sudan, Ukraine and all the other wars.
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Header Photo: Dramatic colored sky over a mountain range with the city of Bern in the foreground