Five years ago today. This SHOULD have been the end of Trump's reign of terror over his fellow Repubs.

Where can I buy a car like that??

My Books of the Year More Riffing about Reading

I call to your attention several overlooked but worthy books.
open.substack.com/pub/davedeni...

Words of wisdom from @ricktxaflco.bsky.social here. “For any organizer, their number one job is to organize themselves out of a job," Levy said.

“No one has done more than Rick Levy for the modern-day labor movement in Texas,” Greg Casar said.

Worst polls of T.'s second term now coming in. Even GOP-friendly Rasmussen has him underwater by 7 pts.

Dinner with a War Criminal | Dave Denison In the Trump era, we are often asked ”how bad can it get?” Look no further than Henry Kissinger.

Jeezus. Cass Sunstein should have read up a little about the history of that guy he enjoyed socializing with. It's all right here!
thebaffler.com/civilificati...

I profiled the great poet & eco-advocate Jane Hirshfield in a feature for @thenation.com, now included in my book Learning to Live in the Dark.

Tomorrow, 9/16, at 5pm ET, Jane joins me in conversation about "faith, humanism, and radical solidarity in a time of catastrophe." RSVP below...

My old friend Jim Harrington has dedicated his life to advancing justice in Texas. That takes a strong spirit.

I trust @chrislehmann.bsky.social and @rickperlstein.bsky.social and Thomas Frank are observing Sept. 10 with a nod to our friend George Scialabba.

Ten years ago, we celebrated George Scialabba Day in Cambridge, Mass.

Tobi Haslett noted the occasion in the New Yorker:

Living with Oswald

Seeing that Ruth Paine has died at 92, reminds me of Thomas Mallon's book "Mrs. Paine's Garage."
"Why did Mrs. Ruth Paine of Irving, Texas, make the notation 'LHO purchase of rifle' on the March 1963 page of her Hallmark pocket calendar?"

prospect.org/features/liv...

I've got TES And some thoughts about the HOF game

Congress has approved $40 million for stupid Trump's stupid "Garden of American Heroes." Another reason I've got TES.
open.substack.com/pub/davedeni...

We are pleased to announce that management of @thebaffler.com voluntarily recognized our union on the very same day that we filed our petition! We look forward to working together on our first contract.

White Text on a red background reads: "Since its founding in 1988, The Baffler has articulated an unapologetically pro-worker and pro-union politics in the reportage and criticism it has published. In seeking to reflect those values throughout the organization, we are proud to announce that we have formed a union as part of the Workers United New York New Jersey Regional Joint Board."

We, the staff of @thebaffler.com, are proud to announce that we have formed a union with @workersunitednynj.bsky.social. Read more about why we have formed a union here:

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Unsolicited Advice for Surviving a Journalism Industry In Terminal Decline Past results are not a guarantee of future returns.

I highly recommend this good advice about The Writing Life from the estimable @jacobsilverman.com.
open.substack.com/pub/jacobsil...

A charming, if rather sad, story in @thebaffler.com by Dave Denison about the decline of bowling in America. The tale is familiar to those of us subjected to Robert Putnam, but here it's actually about bowling and the writing is filled with life.

thebaffler.com/salvos/chang...

You read it here first! (I think.)

"Who Lost Texas," The Baffler No. 75.
thebaffler.com/salvos/who-l...

Substack Did Not See That Coming Let’s set Substack’s “Nazi problem” aside for a moment. What if the bigger issue is being stranded on a collapsing platform... with a bunch of Nazis?...

AMC on how Substack is moving "closer and closer to the chaos chum bucket that newsletters were supposed to stand out from."
newsletter.anamariecox.com/archive/subs...

Changing Lanes | Dave Denison How long can bowling endure the vulture capitalists buying up alleys around the country?

“Do proprietors want to run a center for serious bowlers? Or do they want a recreation center with rock-climbing walls and minigolf, blacklight bowling, and ‘family fun’?” @daveadenison.bsky.social on the state of bowling for @thebaffler.com: thebaffler.com/salvos/chang...

Amazing read as usual, Commissioner, with shoutouts to the late venerable L&G, and our very own A.A.B.L.!

An inside report on "the most popular declining sport in America." @longreads.com #longreads
‪https://thebaffler.com/salvos/changing-lanes-denison

Emily Bice captures a lot about bowling's past—and present—in this excellent story from Defector.

I was very surprised to read in the Sunday NYT that Trump's White House flack now acknowledges that America is experiencing climate change.

no. 79—Player Haters “America first does not mean America alone,” said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on April 23, seeking to reassure the market three weeks after the president declared Liberation Day and tariffed the…

New Baffler mag is all about #sports and competition.
thebaffler.com/issues/no-79

Changing Lanes | Dave Denison How long can bowling endure the vulture capitalists buying up alleys around the country?

How bout a little #sports chat on here? Where are the BlueSky bowlers? #bowling #tenpins
thebaffler.com/salvos/chang...

Ronnie Dugger, 1930-2025 The Observer's crusading founding editor—a profilific author and agitator who helped animate the spirit of a true Texas liberalism—has died at 95.

Ronnie Dugger, founding editor and longtime publisher of the Texas Observer and for many years the crusading conscience of the progressive movement in Texas and beyond, died of complications of dementia at a hospice center in Austin on May 27. He was 95.

We have thousands of pastors, rabbis, priests, and psychotherapists in this country and not a single one can have a conversation with Stephen Miller to ask him to reflect about the enjoyment he gets from the sadistic treatment of other human beings?

What if you eat too many Big Macs?

Dow Jones index falls to 37,666. Wall Street's opposition to Trump tariffs reveal the mark of the beast.

Boston Globe reports on persistent internet research that unearths a famous ad from the 1990s.
www.bostonglobe.com/2025/04/03/b...