Why Are We Still Living with VANxiety? Despite a widespread consensus that Democratic tech needs a total upgrade, not much has changed since 2024. Better tools exist, but what's missing is money and will. Plus, what Hungary may portend.

While Dems warn about the SAVE Act and voter suppression, they’re ignoring how their own voter engagement tools make them miss many voters and waste resources. While nearly everyone wants an upgrade, so far the money to pay for it is absent. More in my latest post: open.substack.com/pub/theconne...

No offense to the band or the audience of friends who came to hear them play, and I am all for people making music and doing what they love, but not even a word about the madness of our times? #suburbs

So our president threatened a genocide Tuesday night and it’s Saturday night now and we’re at a bar listening to a local band, and you wouldnt know anything was amiss.

I gave it a pin instead of an X. And yes, this is just a quick thing. Gosh, why so picky?

No, the X is your marker. You place it down, and then click submit button below.

The X is for you marking the spot. After you mark it, you get a result telling you how close you were, and also the option to see where everyone else is guessing.

I built a thing: whereisiran.netlify.app Please play (no cheating).

First time I've seen a big activist org use Pol.is to try to crowd-source ideas on how to respond to breaking news. Worth checking out. #civictech

I'm beginning to understand what my parents must have felt during the Cuban Missile Crisis. The prediction markets don't appear to allow the 'will Trump nuke Iran' question, but I'm sure I'm not the only person worried he will. He's already disinhibited and stupid enough to think it will work.

Introducing ProDemStack: An Interactive Network Map of Pro-Democracy Substacks Fish need to be their own oceanographers. So building on my post 2 weeks ago about the "bad news echo-chamber," here's a deeper dive into the tilt and dynamics of the pro-democracy Substack ecosystem.

If you read any Substack newsletters that cover democracy, you’ll be interested in seeing how your favorite sites stack up, and whether they’re serving you with a lot of doom-and-gloom content or ways to organize and who’s doing the work. Check out my new post open.substack.com/pub/theconne...

Notes on No Kings 3: We're Going to Need a Bigger, Broader Movement Is the movement leveling off? Can it grow beyond its predominantly older, well-educated base?

The new playbook from @siembranc.bsky.social Defend & Recruit, which centers pro-immigrant organizing and massive relational work, could be just what the anti-Trump pro-democracy movement needs. For more on all of this, read my latest post: open.substack.com/pub/theconne...

#NoKings movement is now trying to escalate to a #MayDay social strike. IMHO, I question if we can pull off anything like the MN Jan23 strike, given the comparative thinness of the movement. We shall see. But more promising, perhaps...(7/n)

We The Students | We The Students United by our cause, cities across the country will open We The Students chapters, where members will learn about what it takes to do their part in creating a society with a civically engaged youth. T...

Fledgling efforts like www.wethestudents.us are beginning to build a youth wing for #NoKings movement. But honestly, so far this looks mostly like the children/grandchildren of NoKings activists to me. (6/n)

The big wave of #ICEout highschool walkouts in Jan/Feb shows many youth are pissed and want to defend their families, friends and neighbors. And grps like @sunrisemvmt.bsky.social are trying to be a home for that, despite the brand confusion that entails. (5/n)

Younger activists feeling that #NoKings3 generation doesn't understand, empathize with or prioritize their problems. Hidden gen gap keeping #NoKings3 from growing? (4/n)

#NoKings3 had maybe 7 rallies on college campuses out of 3300+ events. What's not clicking? Campus activists still freaked out by severe crackdowns on pro-Pal efforts, plus general insecurity and anxiety about their futures: debt, worthless degrees, etc, plus... (3/n)

#NoKings3 leaders are claiming 8 million of us marched Saturday, but so far there's no detailed evidence for that. IMHO, we may be hitting peak Boomer/GenX level of engagement. Better to face that honestly than sweep it under the rug. (2/n)

#NoKings3 was successful in demonstrating that the movement against Trump is growing and spreading to more places. But, look closer and there are warning signs: it's predominantly ppl > 50 & highly educated and that hasn't changed since it started. (1/n)

Notes on No Kings 3: We're Going to Need a Bigger, Broader Movement Is the movement leveling off? Can it grow beyond its predominantly older, well-educated base?

Can the No Kings movement keep growing? There are signs it may be leveling off, and its key challenge is growing past its predominantly older, well-educated base. More in my latest post. open.substack.com/pub/theconne...

If the estimates were right, there were about 9 million people at No Kings rallies today.

That would mean this protest was THIRTY TIMES AS LARGE AS THE TEA PARTY PROTEST which we were told, over and over again, was a massively important sign that US politics had shifted dramatically to the right

Hastings and Yonkers #NoKings3 marches met up, about 750 ppl in all. @nycd16-indivisible.bsky.social, local Yonkers NAACP, Concerned Families of Westchester co-sponsored.

Also, almost 50% of #NoKings3 events are in red states or battleground states, per Eunic Epstein-Ortiz, press spokesperson for the coalition.

Leah Greenberg of Indivisible talking on No Kings coalition press conference March 26 2026.

Most interesting fresh data about #NoKings3 from Indivisible's @leahgreenberg.bsky.social: 66% of RSVPs this time coming from outside urban centers; up nearly 40% from NoKings1 last June. Big surges in bellwether suburban counties in PA, GA and AZ. Double-digit # of events in ID, WY, MO, UT.

The Bad News Echo-Chamber of Pro-Democracy Substack Or, who talks to whom about what. How many pro-democracy Substack authors over-focus on gloom and doom and ignore organizing, and who's bucking that trend.

Judging from this network graph of "who talks to whom" on Substack Live, many of the leading lights in pro-democracy pundit land have formed an echo chamber. Details in my post below. (4/4) open.substack.com/pub/theconne...

The Grassroots Connector | Substack Amplifying the work and voices of the grassroots. Click to read The Grassroots Connector, a Substack publication with tens of thousands of subscribers.

This tracks with complaints from grassroots activist organizers like Susan Wagner (see grassrootsconnector.substack.com/p/dear-pundits) that too many liberal pundits overemphasize doom and gloom and fail to lift up organizing that works. (3/n)

While this isn't a study of everyone you could think of, the results are indicative. I was surprised to discover that until two days ago, ppl like @pkrugman.bsky.social @timothysnyder.bsky.social @ruthbenghiat.bsky.social and the whole @thebulwark.com crew hadn't even mentioned #NoKings3 (2/n)

I took a medium-deep dive into how some of the biggest name pro-democracy authors on Substack treat topics like the upcoming No Kings 3 protests (many have said nothing about them!) and how much they tend to talk to each other rather than actual organizers. (1/n)

Do Protests Matter? A timeline of the last 14 months shows how the breadth and depth of anti-Trump organizing has led to demonstrable changes. Also, why No Kings 3 is on track to draw a record 9 million participants.

The arc of the anti-Trump No Kings movement bends toward...growth and impact. So I argue in my latest post: open.substack.com/pub/theconne...

What does a democracy veteran and former Secretary of the State of Connecticut make of this moment — and what comes next? Podcast Episode · This Old Democracy · March 17 · 27m

The latest episode of “This Old Democracy” where I got to talk with Miles Rapoport, one of the prodemocracy world’s veteran organizers, is my favorite yet. Give it a listen: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

PA state rep Chris Rabb, who is running for Congress in PA-3

Add @chrisrabb.com to your list of progressives running for Congress who will be a true public servant, not another corporate-funded politician. I’ve known Chris since 2004 and he’s the real deal.