He is a hero! So many heroes have stood up to Trump, yet the ones who bend the knee believe theirs is the way to go. If history is any thing to go by, it is not the right thing to do.
I was just thinking (but didn’t want to sully my thanks to Judge (Justice?) Merchan by mentioning them) that the bros and corporate media are not unlike those who defecated in our Capitol and smeared their waste on the walls. That’s how I see them, FWIW.
When I lived in Austin, I was very hopeful for awhile that the migration of California techies to Texas would help change Texas politics. After all, I was one of those techies – I got there a little earlier than the big migration.
But once again, I failed to read the room (like I did in this election). It turned out they were mostly libertarian tech bros. The very kind that would be attracted to that most highly publicized tech bro, Musk. Musk came to Texas, and so did they. Ugh.
Part of the reason I didn't read the room was because I worked for companies that weren't filled with these guys. The people that surrounded me in the workplace were much more progressive. I was lucky that way, but it blinded me to what was really happening in Silicon Valley politically.
Being libertarian may be the collection of personality traits which won many tech Bros their fortunes. Their attitude that 'it's mine now, all mine" - seems to make avarice the order of the day.
FYI, as someone who was diagnosed late in life on the Autism spectrum and also has a child on the spectrum, this term is no longer used in the U.S. and for good reason: Asperger's syndrome was a form of autism that was named after Hans Asperger, a doctor in Nazi Vienna. He was involved in the child euthanasia program which was murdering children considered to be disabled. Asperger Syndrome no longer exists as an official diagnosis according to the American Psychiatric Association. In 2013, it was reclassified as autism spectrum disorder.
I have thought the exact same thing -- actually, pretty much constantly -- but the one time I wrote that, I was BLASTED out of the water, attacked verbally from every direction. It was really upsetting. I agree with you 100%. Look at: Musk, Bezos, Zuckerberg, Gates -- and trump, himself. All with classic Asperger's syndrome.
Hi Charles. I’ve been thinking of you in these last weeks. Hope you are hanging in there. Take good care of yourself. Thank you for your presence among us.
I have found it very disturbing that the people shaping our world through tech are emotionally immature, and not very diverse, and they are missing most of the members of my gender in their machinations. See Kara Swishers book Burn Book about reporting on the Tech world.
So many of these rich tech bros didn't actually create a damn thing. They just screwed over the people who did. Steve Jobs was the king of stealing credit (amongst a great many other things Musk seems delighted to emulate), and he inspired generations of rich controlling assholes to follow in his footsteps.
EXACTLY!!!!! How can we forget Zuckerberg's robbery of twins Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, his Harvard classmates? And trump's -- robbery of everything (although not ideas). A bunch of sociopaths. I have been so thankful for Melinda Gates's actions. I keep waiting to see if Zuckerberg's wife, the pediatrician Dr. Priscilla Chan, will start channeling some of his billions into good causes. Jobs never gave one single penny to charity in his lift. Bezos's ex-wife, MacKenzie Scott, is another wife (ex-wife) who has given away billions of the money they got via divorce. What does that say about their ex/husbands?
Tristam, Kara Swisher seems to think that Steve Jobs did create, but I can believe it was another way as well. I do not want to live in a Tech Bro Kingdom. I guess that is one advantage of Germany being technologically behind, not in ways that affect my life, but I have been told we are not cutting edge there. So, maybe we will be saved from being ruled by the Tech Oligarchy.
Jobs absolutely had some creative nous, but it was entirely in the realm of style and presentation. The actual tech that worked was always created by others; every time he made something himself it was an absolute flop. If you have the time to spare, Behind the Bastards did one of their miniseries on him earlier this year and it was a real eye-opener.
It's downright disturbing how much he was nearly exactly like Musk, right down to treating his children like crap.
Unfortunately. Also want to mention that my friends and I are going to be involved in MLK activities on January 20 and ignore the inauguration, of a man who is not going to be my president. He is going to be president for 1 person in the US, and that is himself.
One reason I became a lawyer is because doing so, occasionally, allows one to act in such a way as to uphold our fundamenta values.
It is thus enormously gratifying to me to see a judge such as Mechan brave th enormous power Trump has accumulated and, doing so, uphold the rule of law, the bedrock principle tha "No One Is Above The Law".
I am so glad to hear that Judge Merchan stood his ground against the ex president. I was disheartened to learn that ABC news agreed to give $15M dollars if he would drop the defamation case. Unbelievable! DO NOT OBEY in ADVANCE.
Will ANY other people of power speak out?! The silence has become deafening. Patrick Soon-Shiong -- another South African billionaire, like Musk and Peter Thiel, who has become a major force in United States politics -- just ordered his editorial board at the LA Times to "take a break from writing about Trump".
Headline from today's news feed: "LA Times owner pushes paper to be middle of the road, suggests he'll sell it if not profitable."
Well, there ya go. Anybody who has a subscription should cancel now and hope he doesn't sell the damn thing to Alex Jones. As for pushing paper to be middle of the road, that must be a headline writer trolling the rest of us.
Hey, if the Onion ends up not winning the bid for Infowars, could it buy the LA times and hire the serious journalists there? They could call the Onion "Original Onion" and the paper "LA Times, the Deadly Serious Onion." I doubt the advertisers would leave because the market is already established. At the very least, it would make room for another serious news organization to compete in the LA area.
Using the words “rich” and “libertarian” in the same sentence is redundant! 😂. Also, have you ever noticed that they also tend to be white? Just sayin’….
Other heroes will undoubtedly emerge. I hope that steps are taken to protect and safeguard those brave individuals who step forward. Trump's followers—his acolytes, lackeys, and enforcers—are surely poised to intimidate, threaten, and perhaps even harm not only those who speak out, but also their loved ones. After all, isn't that a hallmark of totalitarian regimes? They target resisters by threatening harm to their families. Heroes often accept the risks to their own lives, but their greatest concern lies with the safety of those they love.
I used to think that its followers would come around when they realized the true nature of what is about to happen to them under its fascist regime, but I now realize that the hardcore MAGAts will never come around. They will commit grievous harm to many under its direction without a shred of regret or remorse. Damn them all to hell. Or worse.
Judge Merchan is an absolute role model. He's refusing to bend the knee despite all kinds of pressure and straight up INSANITY being aimed at him and the people around him. The Supreme Court may eventually knock this ruling down, but Merchan will be remembered as a hero and the current Supreme 'Court' will only be known as a blight upon the legal landscape.
Judge Merchan is a heroic public servant. We need more judges like him to stop Trump and fascism. Take heart that many government workers will resist MAGA: https://democracydefender2025.substack.com/p/public-servant-democracy-defender-introduction
You are one of those heroic public servants, and I thank you for that.
He is a hero! So many heroes have stood up to Trump, yet the ones who bend the knee believe theirs is the way to go. If history is any thing to go by, it is not the right thing to do.
I was just thinking (but didn’t want to sully my thanks to Judge (Justice?) Merchan by mentioning them) that the bros and corporate media are not unlike those who defecated in our Capitol and smeared their waste on the walls. That’s how I see them, FWIW.
When I lived in Austin, I was very hopeful for awhile that the migration of California techies to Texas would help change Texas politics. After all, I was one of those techies – I got there a little earlier than the big migration.
But once again, I failed to read the room (like I did in this election). It turned out they were mostly libertarian tech bros. The very kind that would be attracted to that most highly publicized tech bro, Musk. Musk came to Texas, and so did they. Ugh.
Part of the reason I didn't read the room was because I worked for companies that weren't filled with these guys. The people that surrounded me in the workplace were much more progressive. I was lucky that way, but it blinded me to what was really happening in Silicon Valley politically.
Being libertarian may be the collection of personality traits which won many tech Bros their fortunes. Their attitude that 'it's mine now, all mine" - seems to make avarice the order of the day.
I would say that the Asperger syndrome social skills make understanding some ways of getting along in the world harder to navigate for them too.
FYI, as someone who was diagnosed late in life on the Autism spectrum and also has a child on the spectrum, this term is no longer used in the U.S. and for good reason: Asperger's syndrome was a form of autism that was named after Hans Asperger, a doctor in Nazi Vienna. He was involved in the child euthanasia program which was murdering children considered to be disabled. Asperger Syndrome no longer exists as an official diagnosis according to the American Psychiatric Association. In 2013, it was reclassified as autism spectrum disorder.
I have thought the exact same thing -- actually, pretty much constantly -- but the one time I wrote that, I was BLASTED out of the water, attacked verbally from every direction. It was really upsetting. I agree with you 100%. Look at: Musk, Bezos, Zuckerberg, Gates -- and trump, himself. All with classic Asperger's syndrome.
Yes. Libertarian Elon Musk has been visiting his buddy Milei in Argentina which is a big libertarian experiment. Clearly he wants to transport that here, and also get a piece of it while he can. It would be great if someone could follow Musk around and report on where he is traveling to, besides a young kid. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/feb/02/teen-tracking-elon-musk-jet-bill-gates-jeff-bezos-drake-jack-sweeney-tesla-flight-tracker-bot
Hi Charles. I’ve been thinking of you in these last weeks. Hope you are hanging in there. Take good care of yourself. Thank you for your presence among us.
"it blinded me to what was really happening in Silicon Valley politically." POWERFUL. I don't think that many of us have understood that.
I have found it very disturbing that the people shaping our world through tech are emotionally immature, and not very diverse, and they are missing most of the members of my gender in their machinations. See Kara Swishers book Burn Book about reporting on the Tech world.
So many of these rich tech bros didn't actually create a damn thing. They just screwed over the people who did. Steve Jobs was the king of stealing credit (amongst a great many other things Musk seems delighted to emulate), and he inspired generations of rich controlling assholes to follow in his footsteps.
EXACTLY!!!!! How can we forget Zuckerberg's robbery of twins Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, his Harvard classmates? And trump's -- robbery of everything (although not ideas). A bunch of sociopaths. I have been so thankful for Melinda Gates's actions. I keep waiting to see if Zuckerberg's wife, the pediatrician Dr. Priscilla Chan, will start channeling some of his billions into good causes. Jobs never gave one single penny to charity in his lift. Bezos's ex-wife, MacKenzie Scott, is another wife (ex-wife) who has given away billions of the money they got via divorce. What does that say about their ex/husbands?
Tristam, Kara Swisher seems to think that Steve Jobs did create, but I can believe it was another way as well. I do not want to live in a Tech Bro Kingdom. I guess that is one advantage of Germany being technologically behind, not in ways that affect my life, but I have been told we are not cutting edge there. So, maybe we will be saved from being ruled by the Tech Oligarchy.
Jobs absolutely had some creative nous, but it was entirely in the realm of style and presentation. The actual tech that worked was always created by others; every time he made something himself it was an absolute flop. If you have the time to spare, Behind the Bastards did one of their miniseries on him earlier this year and it was a real eye-opener.
It's downright disturbing how much he was nearly exactly like Musk, right down to treating his children like crap.
I agree completely with you on this. And the lack of women among them is also disturbing--suggests to me that emotional immaturity you mention.
Yeah, these are the people creating AI......
The’ll be ssoooorrrryyyyyy!
Unfortunately. Also want to mention that my friends and I are going to be involved in MLK activities on January 20 and ignore the inauguration, of a man who is not going to be my president. He is going to be president for 1 person in the US, and that is himself.
Appeasement has NEVER been the morally upright way to go nor has appeasement EVER been a winning strategy.
Loved this judge from the beginning and the way he handled trump!
Me too!
Valiant and courageous public servant with integrity and ethics. May he be safe and protected from all danger and harm.
AMEN!!
Ditto!
I practised law for 49 years.
One reason I became a lawyer is because doing so, occasionally, allows one to act in such a way as to uphold our fundamenta values.
It is thus enormously gratifying to me to see a judge such as Mechan brave th enormous power Trump has accumulated and, doing so, uphold the rule of law, the bedrock principle tha "No One Is Above The Law".
I second that comment
Thank you Judge Merchan for your principles and your courage. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, from millions of democracy-supporting citizens.
I am so glad to hear that Judge Merchan stood his ground against the ex president. I was disheartened to learn that ABC news agreed to give $15M dollars if he would drop the defamation case. Unbelievable! DO NOT OBEY in ADVANCE.
Thank you, Jay Kuo, for elucidating so clearly the importance of this moment. Fingers crossed.
I love Judge Merchan’s style. Indeed a man of courage.
Bravo to Judge Merchan!
Judge Merchan is the one who should be Times Person of the Year! Or be awarded the Profiles in Courage!
Yep! 💯
Will ANY other people of power speak out?! The silence has become deafening. Patrick Soon-Shiong -- another South African billionaire, like Musk and Peter Thiel, who has become a major force in United States politics -- just ordered his editorial board at the LA Times to "take a break from writing about Trump".
Headline from today's news feed: "LA Times owner pushes paper to be middle of the road, suggests he'll sell it if not profitable."
Well, there ya go. Anybody who has a subscription should cancel now and hope he doesn't sell the damn thing to Alex Jones. As for pushing paper to be middle of the road, that must be a headline writer trolling the rest of us.
Hey, if the Onion ends up not winning the bid for Infowars, could it buy the LA times and hire the serious journalists there? They could call the Onion "Original Onion" and the paper "LA Times, the Deadly Serious Onion." I doubt the advertisers would leave because the market is already established. At the very least, it would make room for another serious news organization to compete in the LA area.
I would resubscribe to the LAT, my hometown paper.
Love your thots Susan!
What the actual fuck??
Rich libertarians really are becoming a plague in their own right.
Using the words “rich” and “libertarian” in the same sentence is redundant! 😂. Also, have you ever noticed that they also tend to be white? Just sayin’….
Other heroes will undoubtedly emerge. I hope that steps are taken to protect and safeguard those brave individuals who step forward. Trump's followers—his acolytes, lackeys, and enforcers—are surely poised to intimidate, threaten, and perhaps even harm not only those who speak out, but also their loved ones. After all, isn't that a hallmark of totalitarian regimes? They target resisters by threatening harm to their families. Heroes often accept the risks to their own lives, but their greatest concern lies with the safety of those they love.
I used to think that its followers would come around when they realized the true nature of what is about to happen to them under its fascist regime, but I now realize that the hardcore MAGAts will never come around. They will commit grievous harm to many under its direction without a shred of regret or remorse. Damn them all to hell. Or worse.
Thank you for this exceptional post.
Hear! Hear! Finally.
Judge Merchan is an absolute role model. He's refusing to bend the knee despite all kinds of pressure and straight up INSANITY being aimed at him and the people around him. The Supreme Court may eventually knock this ruling down, but Merchan will be remembered as a hero and the current Supreme 'Court' will only be known as a blight upon the legal landscape.
This all reminds me of Mr. Roger’s advice that when bad things happen, look for the helpers
We need more Merchans!!!!
A lot more please