There But for Fortune Phil Ochs (1940–1976)

There But for Fortune
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The U.S. must ensure that any ceasefire agreement includes Lebanon. Netanyahu is brutally bombing Beirut, killing civilians, and destroying critical infrastructure.

This regional war must end now.

A firefighter in Istanbul performed CPR on a cat affected by a fire, bringing it back to life.😍👍💙

How Israel is destroying healthcare infrastructure in southern Lebanon Israel's attacks on hospitals, medical centres and healthcare workers are fuelling displacement and a health crisis.

As in Gaza, now in Lebanon.

www.aljazeera.com/features/202...

Give it a go

Employment History Work Experience, 2006 – Present

"But surely, you say, writing is a career? Theoretically, anything is a career, but until you start regularly making your rent with it, calling it one feels somewhat overoptimistic, like declaring yourself CEO at Me on LinkedIn."
open.substack.com/pub/jackshee...

I keep seeing "all authors use AI, the real issue is they're being forced to be sneaky about it" headlines.

Full stop No. This is a lie peddled for normalization. It's schoolyard-level pressure tactics "C'mon, all the cool kids are already doing it. We won't tell. It's fine. We're on your side."

Employment History Work Experience, 2006 – Present

What I've learned from 20 years of work (little):

open.substack.com/pub/jackshee...

BREAKING: Israel's Knesset has passed a law to execute Palestinian detainees.
Death by hanging. Mandatory sentencing. No pardon. 90 days to carry out.

It applies through military courts with a 96% conviction rate. It does not apply to Israelis.

‘Succulent Chinese meal’ speech added to Australia’s National Film and Sound Archive Jack Karlson’s rallying cry of ‘democracy manifest’ added to national collection of sound recordings that hold historical, cultural and aesthetic significance * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Thirty-five years ago, when Jack Karlson was hauled into a police car outside a Chinese restaurant in Queensland, he couldn’t have known his bombastic speech would be watched by millions around the world, become a meme and now, be preserved for ever in Australia’s National Film and Sound Archive. Karlson’s declaration – “Gentlemen, this is democracy manifest! … What is the charge? Eating a meal? A succulent Chinese meal?” – is one of nine pieces of audio that have been added to the NFSA’s Sounds of Australia collection this year, along with a pedestrian crossing signal and Missy Higgins’ 2004 hit Scar. Continue reading...

‘Succulent Chinese meal’ speech added to Australia’s National Film and Sound Archive

Worldview: The majority of Americans oppose the war. So why aren’t they protesting? The section of the US public that opposes Donald Trump is exhausted by relentless right-wing dominance of public life

Relevant in light of the huge No Kings mobilizations this week, I wrote about the muted opposition to a widely unpopular war:
www.irishtimes.com/opinion/2026...

Irish Unification, 2024 | Jack Sheehan It has become common to hear talk from across the political spectrum of the inevitability of Irish reunification. But what, in practice, would it look like?

What would it take to get to a united Ireland? In 2024, @jacksheehan.bsky.social described the bureaucratic and legal obstacles that stand in the way of a true reunion.

Opinion: Zohran Mamdani has lifted New Yorkers out of their pessimistic and reactionary funk The promise is simple: a city worth living in, that everyone can afford to live in

My instant reaction to Zohran's once in a lifetime win
www.irishtimes.com/opinion/2025...

ENCYCLOPEDIA - Your mangled brain would like you to know there is a boxer called Contact Mike.

YOU - Yeah? Any news on my wife's name? How about my mother?

ENCYCLOPEDIA - Nope.

As we await a verdict in the trial of Soldier F, another reminder that in 2010 the Bloody Sunday inquiry found

- the killings were unjustified
- none of the 14 dead (7 of whom were children) had guns
- no warnings were given
- no soldiers were under threat
- the troops were the first to open fire

Join us at Spring Bar in Chinatown as we celebrate the launch of Baffler no. 81, “After Words.”

116 Madison St., Manhattan
7–10pm

Goodbye to Old Gav The 2025 Irish Presidential Election

I wrote a potted history of Irish presidential elections, and my favourite political moment of all time, when Gavin Duffy couldn't remember how many people he had hit with his car.

Goodbye to Old Gav
open.substack.com/pub/jackshee...

Thanks pal! Hope you're well!

👑Javier Bardem at the Emmy's yesterday. Discussing the Film Workers' for Palestine pledge: "I won't work" with any company that is in business with Israel: "I cannot work with somebody who justifies or supports the genocide."
Can't stop the tide! #BDS #FreePalestine
Video: Variety

Had a few conversations recently that make me think, for the first time in ages, there are some exciting things happening in media. This is one of the highlights: Equator, a new magazine set up by Nesrine Malik, Pankaj Mishra, Jonathan Shainin and others. Sign up for info here: www.equator.org

‘We took the gloves off’: ex-IDF chief confirms Gaza casualties over 200,000 Retired general Herzi Halevi says ‘not once’ had legal advice constrained Israel’s military decisions in the strip

ex-IDF chief confirms Gaza casualties over 200,000

That’s 10% of the entire population of Gaza in 2 years

www.theguardian.com/world/2025/s...

Hearts Touched With Fire: Horror and Hope in a Time of Genocide Move him into the sun– Gently its touch awoke him once, At home, whispering of fields unseen. Always it woke him, even in France, Until this morning and this snow. If anything might rouse him now T…

@jacksheehan.bsky.social on fighting horror and finding hope as slaughter in Gaza continues.

'The real “productivity gains” seem to come from layoffs and squeezing more work from fewer people not AI.'

Senate Probe Uncovers Allegations of Widespread Abuse in ICE Custody Led by US senator Jon Ossoff, the investigation cites hundreds of reports since January, including accounts of miscarriages, child neglect, and sexual abuse at ICE detention centers in dozens of state...

A United States Senate investigation has identified more than 500 credible reports of human rights abuses in US immigration detention since January, including alarming allegations of mistreatment of pregnant women and children.

Far right demagoguery - thanks to crucial, repeated validation from the political mainstream - has painted a target on the back of every man of colour in this country.

Everyone knows what is likely to happen next.

The secret to Baltimore's extraordinary year This April, Baltimore saw five homicides.

what's happening in Baltimore really gives the game away. a Dem major has drastically cut violent crime with a services-focused approach, even including police too, and none of these people give a shit popular.info/p/the-secret...

This week, we're reading; a review by @jacksheehan.bsky.social of @praddenkeefe.bsky.social's SAY NOTHING; an off-the-rails short story by Maria Margaret Alvarado; and an article by Anna Hezel on wellness capitalism cum hydration industry. These and more in our newsletter: buff.ly/TTiwRs6

All for Palestine Hope in a hopeless time.

Another essay about Palestine, this one with some hope.

open.substack.com/pub/jackshee...