Nat Taylor

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is wrong about most social issues, but she's right about this one. I give her a lot of credit for speaking out. Very, very few politicians--Republican or Democrat--are willing to do so.

@RonaldJMoeller Definitely. I personally think we should have crushed their ballistic & nuke capes, but Trump has a plan, he has definitely earned the confidence of any clear eyed observer.

Joe Kent testified before the Senate one year ago that Iran and its terror proxies threatened U.S. servicemembers in the Middle East. He said it would be an honor to return to the fight against terrorism, and he pledged to lead with integrity and accountability. The virulent anti-Semitism of his resignation letter makes it clear that Mr. Kent is incapable of upholding these pledges, and those who mistake its baseless and incendiary conspiracies for brave truth-telling are only fooling themselves. Isolationists and anti-Semites have no place in either party, and certainly do not deserve places of trust in our government.

Interesting to read this after listening to @asymmetricinfo, @jbarro, and @NateSilver538’s (excellent and thoughtful) discussion about gambling.

One thing to note about the “no infighting” crowd. You’ve never had the slightest hesitation to viciously attack Reagan conservatives or Bush conservatives until they flee or yield. But when neo-Nazis arise, that’s the kumbaya moment? Sorry. No.

But the food trucks are just undocumented.. Another story to perfectly encapsulate the Seattle /Olympia theory of governance 1) Regulate activity so hard that food trucks have to pay $50,000 a year just for the privilege of doing business 2) through regulation create a government sanctioned cartel 3) watch food truck prices skyrocket 4) rising prices encourage illegal competition 5) turn a blind eye to the “undocumented” competition 6) Only Penalize those who follow the law 7) Don’t enforce the law against “undocumented” food trucks 8) Cause further financial harm to those who do comply with the law 9) make prices go up even more due to over regulation 10) achieve nirvana when the public is no safer than without the regulation but prices have gone up

Hey @googlemaps what is this? No way to turn off 3D layer in CarPlay? Are you trying to get me to switch to Apple Maps?

And I’m furious that people are wasting this short window of time laundering Naziism and Stalinism to ingratiate themselves with those audiences instead of focusing on winning.

@cerealandwings @Mitch_Seattle Poor decision by Wilson. Crawford *can* bunt.

@Mitch_Seattle Imagine if we could bunt?

Anyone still breathing?

If there is any justice in professional basketball, @EnesFreedom will be remembered years from now in much the same way Muhammed Ali is remembered today—as a courageous athlete who paid a very steep price for taking a very principled position. Of course, that would mean the NBA would need to come to its senses, get off the Chinese tit, and welcome Enes back into the sport so he can go on to distinguish himself as a dominant player in the game he was born to play. And then, in the fullness of time, be properly lauded for speaking the truth, when no one else was willing to. Alas, it seems unlikely that the NBA will come to its senses. And it seems equally unlikely that today’s greatest and most beloved stars will join him in taking a stand against China. (Paging Lebron, Steph"?) There’s just too much money to be made by remaining silent, and too much to lose by speaking up. And so, for daring to speak out publicly against a long list of human rights violations perpetrated by the Chinese government, Enes Freedom will likely remain separated from his career, his friends, and most tragically, from his family in Turkey, whom he misses every day. His book is called In the Name of Freedom. His conversation with me is called the same. Both are worth your time. Our whole conversation is here bit.ly/TWIHI453EnesFr…. His book is here bit.ly/EnesFreedomBook.

I'm seeing quite a bit of comment about this, so I want to make a couple of points. I'm not owed eternal agreement from any actor who once played a character I created. The idea is as ludicrous as me checking with the boss I had when I was twenty-one for what opinions I should hold these days. Emma Watson and her co-stars have every right to embrace gender identity ideology. Such beliefs are legally protected, and I wouldn't want to see any of them threatened with loss of work, or violence, or death, because of them. However, Emma and Dan in particular have both made it clear over the last few years that they think our former professional association gives them a particular right - nay, obligation - to critique me and my views in public. Years after they finished acting in Potter, they continue to assume the role of de facto spokespeople for the world I created. When you've known people since they were ten years old it's hard to shake a certain protectiveness. Until quite recently, I hadn't managed to throw off the memory of children who needed to be gently coaxed through their dialogue in a big scary film studio. For the past few years, I've repeatedly declined invitations from journalists to comment on Emma specifically, most notably on the Witch Trials of JK Rowling. Ironically, I told the producers that I didn't want her to be hounded as the result of anything I said. The television presenter in the attached clip highlights Emma's 'all witches' speech, and in truth, that was a turning point for me, but it had a postscript that hurt far more than the speech itself. Emma asked someone to pass on a handwritten note from her to me, which contained the single sentence 'I'm so sorry for what you're going through' (she has my phone number). This was back when the death, rape and torture threats against me were at their peak, at a time when my personal security measures had had to be tightened considerably and I was constantly worried for my family's safety. Emma had just publicly poured more petrol on the flames, yet thought a one line expression of concern from her would reassure me of her fundamental sympathy and kindness. Like other people who've never experienced adult life uncushioned by wealth and fame, Emma has so little experience of real life she's ignorant of how ignorant she is. She'll never need a homeless shelter. She's never going to be placed on a mixed sex public hospital ward. I'd be astounded if she's been in a high street changing room since childhood. Her 'public bathroom' is single occupancy and comes with a security man standing guard outside the door. Has she had to strip off in a newly mixed-sex changing room at a council-run swimming pool? Is she ever likely to need a state-run rape crisis centre that refuses to guarantee an all-female service? To find herself sharing a prison cell with a male rapist who's identified into the women's prison? I wasn't a multimillionaire at fourteen. I lived in poverty while writing the book that made Emma famous. I therefore understand from my own life experience what the trashing of women's rights in which Emma has so enthusiastically participated means to women and girls without her privileges. The greatest irony here is that, had Emma not decided in her most recent interview to declare that she loves and treasures me - a change of tack I suspect she's adopted because she's noticed full-throated condemnation of me is no longer quite as fashionable as it was - I might never have been this honest. Adults can't expect to cosy up to an activist movement that regularly calls for a friend's assassination, then assert their right to the former friend's love, as though the friend was in fact their mother. Emma is rightly free to disagree with me and indeed to discuss her feelings about me in public - but I have the same right, and I've finally decided to exercise it.

@Softykjr Where’s the fullback?

Don't like that call on fourth and one. Nope. Don't like it at all. Go for it. But don't call that. Ever

MAGA: "Trump never asked for Kimmel to be taken off the air! It was just ABC making a business decision!" Trump: "LLLLLEEEERERROOOOOYYYYY JENKINS!"

Bravo. As Justice Sotomayor wrote for a unanimous Court, it's long been settled that "Government officials cannot attempt to coerce private parties in order to punish or suppress views that the government disfavors." If you want to engage in your deflecting whataboutism, please first embrace this elementary principle.

Hey @X @elonmusk, what can we do about these losers imitating @sophaller?

Bob#13 ALWAYS Flip flops on values - -drugs should be legal/illegal -we should fund/unfund drug tasks forces -lets use federal drug task force funds to spend on election worker protection/ lets prosecute republican election observers - we need to fund/defund the police -allow /disallow police to pursue criminals -respect/disrespect parents right to know -no new taxes/lots and lots and lots of new taxes -cut budget expenses/blow the doors off the budget -anti vaping/pro illegal drug use — what the?? ALWAYS Chooses Authoritarian Actions -Backed 975 days of Emergency rule - bend the knee -enforced mask mandates - bend the knee -fired critical personnel when they wouldn’t vax - bend the knee -Set up snitch lines- bend the knee -government employees have more authority than parents - bend the knee -threatened political opponents - bend the knee -threatened the SOS if he didn’t break the law - bend the knee -forced FB and X to ban political advertising - bend the knee -sued 1000’s of WA businesses -bend the knee -sued whistleblower Scott Smith- bend the knee -hounded/ persecuted Tim Eyeman- bend the knee NEVER Defends the rule of law — and always abuses democracy -Did i mention 975 days of emergency rule? -Fined $200K for “egregious and cavalier” withholding of evidence as AG -Abusing authority pressuring the SOS to break the law -Signed an illegal law removing the first amendment rights of clergy -repeatedly ignores federal law on drugs, immigration - used WA state taxpayer funds and resources to sue the president 97 times — 60 of which are still ongoing costing us money abusing taxpayer funding every single day -abandoned rule of law when radicals occupied Seattle -ignores rule of law when domestic terrorists block freeways or the airport -ignores rule of law when terrorists threaten Jews on college campuses -Did i mention he set up snitch lines? - oh and don’t forget has AG office tasked with defending the law and the state, kept a lawsuit that would have demolished the initiatives, completely secret all the way until it got to the supreme court… he never notified us, nor were we given a heads up that this secret lawsuit was proceeding quietly over 6 months until a reporter happened to find out and called me for comment on the day it was appearing in front of the WA supreme court Bob Ferguson you self righteous soy latte pathetic excuse for a governor. Don’t give us your self righteous tears. It is clearly evident that your fatal attraction to the other WA is abusive, authoritarian, and harmful to the citizens of WA State.

I’ve never understood why more conservatives aren’t anti death penalty. I don’t trust the government to run my healthcare. I definitely don’t trust it enough to kill people.

- $9bn in new taxes -More regulations on doing business -As AG you sued every business you could -You and NB spend millions of tax payer dollars suing the federal government -Climate grift taxes on anything that moves -More expensive than most other states in almost every category -Failing schools, roads, bridges, ferries -Oh and it is so difficult to be competitive that you had to ask a company from ron desantis’ state to build ferries for us Oh but its the tariffs —- thank you for fighting so hard for WA state

There’s at least one person who needs to hear it today: Your life matters. I’ve had my fights with mental health, so I know what it’s like—but stay in the game.

Woof