samson

Every year, this has to be the one report I look forward to the most: the Democracy Perception Index, compiled by the Alliance of Democracies Foundation (in partnership with Nita Data). In fact, my yearly thread on the report is apparently such a tradition that, this year, its lead researcher personally sent me the report with this message: "every year, I look forward to your thread about it!". That's how you start wondering whether you tweet too much 😅 Why do I like this report so much? A few reasons: 1) The Alliance of Democracies Foundation, the organization behind the report, cannot even remotely be suspected of being some sort of anti-West outlet: it was started by an ex-NATO Secretary General (Anders Fogh Rasmussen) and its stated purpose is "to unite world democracies" 2) It's surprisingly honest and the methodology is actually democratic. Unlike other reports on democracy the scoring isn't done by the report's authors (like the report by Freedom House or The Economist's "Democracy Index"). It simply asks people what they think and, when it comes to democracy, that's kind of the point 🤷‍♂️ 3) I love the expression "perception is reality" because, like it or not, what people believe about their system is what determines its legitimacy. A democracy that nobody actually experiences as one can't credibly claim to be one. And conversely, a so-called "autocracy" that its people overwhelmingly believe is actually a democracy might... actually be a democracy. Anyhow, this year's edition did not disappoint. The data is absolutely fascinating and frankly, a little terrifying. So here you go: my thread on the 2026 Democracy Perception Index 🧵

Extremely funny country where people get paid to shill against Medicare for All then end up paying it all back in medical bills anyway

May the Lord help you to become a society in which everyone, each according to their respective responsibilities, works ever more fully to serve the common good rather than private interests, bridging the gap between the privileged and the disadvantaged. May there be greater room for freedom, and may the dignity of the human person always be safeguarded.

When they speak of Iran holding the world economy hostage by choosing who can access it's waterway, just recall that 1 in 4 humans on this planet live under US sanctions. These are a form of economic terrorism and collective punishment enforced to secure its political interests.

@FarmThe119 @Rooke_bay @ElseFetherhead @jimstewartson excuse me??

@HeyTingles @Rooke_bay @ElseFetherhead @jimstewartson Nigga needs the false security of consensus

Fun Fact: The reason Maye was in the Kalahari is that her father was so racist that he spent 15 years searching for a lost white civilization in Africa because he couldn’t believe humans originated there unless there were white people there to start.

@FarmThe119 @Rooke_bay @ElseFetherhead @jimstewartson There is a broad scientific consensus on the origin of homo sapiens. I’m sorry you had to find out this way

@Rooke_bay @HeyTingles @ElseFetherhead @jimstewartson We agree actually

@eaconner @MandelaFace This whole exchange makes me imagine what it was like in the 30s. Do you think the PWA canceled building a dam because of a single digit marginal cost

@MandelaFace Yes, this is exactly what happens. Added costs kill development projects. Developers aren't going to build if they can't cover their costs. And you cannot pass along costs for income-restricted affordable housing like you can market-rate housing. betterblocksnj.org/2026/02/23/jc-…

This is what YIMBY Twitter actually believes about building regulations that cost an additional 1% in construction

@rallynate @WhiteHouse lol congrats on getting duped at least four times. come back when the next candidate you vote for inevitably bombs another country

Why is the @WhiteHouse posting cringe memes of us dropping bombs on Iran after they just blew up an elementary school full of children? And no I’m not a “libtard” I’m a Jan 6er that voted Trump 3 times, but I didn’t vote for this retarded ass shit.

@FarmThe119 @ElseFetherhead @jimstewartson odd considering your predilection for quack theories

@HeyTingles @ElseFetherhead @jimstewartson I'm not religious

@FarmThe119 @ElseFetherhead @jimstewartson You should contact the Scientists, they’d be ecstatic at your discovery

@ElseFetherhead @jimstewartson Yes. Human populations have evolved since then. Science™ needs to update the taxonomic classifications.

Watto

@Rutibex @MandelaFace @ChiefTeef8 lol you’ve convinced me. vietnam and both iraqs don’t count

@MandelaFace @ChiefTeef8 wrong! the USA has not gone to war since WW2

A dem hasnt started a war in 60+ years and ended the last one but for some reason they are blamed for republican wars

the borg vs israel??

You should be as angry about this as you were about Alex Pretti and Renee Good.

Los Angeles once had the biggest trolley system in the world -- connecting LA's 400 'Historic Main Streets and Historic Villages' -- and each had a 'main street' of small retail where people could do their errands. Residents could also catch a Trolley to the rest of the city.

Rep. Delia Ramirez to DHS officials: "I have as much respect for you as I do for the last white men who put on masks to terrorize communities of color. I have no respect for the inheritors of the Klanhood and the slave patrol. Those activities were criminal and so are yours."

All these white people mad about Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl performance… I hope next year they get Bad Bunny performing the whole set in Spanish.

@anonnotbot @MandelaFace @PerfectGameLex @JoePostingg look man, you believe whatever you want. I got home in a cheaper ride while some of these people were probably still impatiently looking at their phones waiting for their driver.

@HeyTingles @MandelaFace @PerfectGameLex @JoePostingg Really? Did you survey them as you walked passed? How do you know their preferences? Seeing as you dont, the logical thing would be to default to revealed preference

Enshittification is the fakest thing ever. Computers are faster. Running shoes give you more energy return. You can get macro friendly junk food at the grocery store. There is so much good in the world.

@anonnotbot @MandelaFace @PerfectGameLex @JoePostingg not at all. They were doing it out of years of habit and dependence

@HeyTingles @MandelaFace @PerfectGameLex @JoePostingg If cabs were easily available and people were choosing to get ubers that proves my point. It might not be your preference but most people prefer an uber as a service

@anonnotbot @MandelaFace @PerfectGameLex @JoePostingg I went to a major city recently and walked straight to a line of waiting cabs while nearby dozens of people stood around waiting for their Ubers. The cab ride was cheap, clean, and not driven by a weirdo

@MandelaFace @PerfectGameLex @JoePostingg Yes, its a mprovement lol. I think very small innovations are still good, they still build, they push everyones productivity up that fraction of a percent and thats how life gets better for more people.