ICE Blinked, and other stories...
We're NOT Doomed: Thu, July 23. 2026
If Kamala was president do you honestly think Gaza would be in as bad shape as it is now?
Do you honestly think she would be working with Bibi to harm Palestinians further?
Okay fine, for arguments sake, let’s say you’re right.
So how would Palestinians be worse off exactly?
If she would do literally everything Trump is doing now, how would that be worse?
And more importantly, would nothing else matter?
So she’s as bad as Trump on Palestine. How about ICE? Would she have signed a bill to give them $75 billion more in funding?
Would she be opening detention centers all over the country?
Would she be letting agents get away with murdering people?
How about Medicaid and Medicare and ACA?
Would she have signed a bill to cut their funding?
Would the Corporation for Public Broadcasting have disbanded cause they lost all funding?
And elections. Would she be trying to pass a bill to make it harder for people, especially women to vote?
Would she be putting an additional 50% tariff on all goods from Canada for daring to have a wildfire that brought smoke to the US?
Would she have stopped FEMA from helping places recover from natural disasters that didn’t vote for her?
I could keep going and going and going.
If she would have been exactly as bad on Palestine as Trump, then how was it the right thing to help him take office?
Because no matter how bad you think she would have been on Palestine, these things matter too, right?
Healthcare is important, non-state media is important, elections are important, protecting immigrants is important, right?
When I say “vote blue no matter who” this is the only thing I’m talking about. I’m saying these things matter. I’m saying no matter how bad a given Democrat is, they are united against these things, and more.
Isn’t that enough?
Perfection doesn’t exist, but progress does.
Ignoring these things isn’t going to make that progress happen. In fact it’s going to make perfection even further out of reach.
I know this little essay won’t be seen by the people who need to see it most, but I can only hope it makes those who are on the fence, those who thought the logic made sense but didn’t think to hard about it, really think.
We have a chance to begin to heal democracy in November. But that just can’t happen if we won’t settle for anything other than perfection.
Vote for whoever you want in the primary, but in the general, it’s gotta be the Democrat (except in certain circumstances like Nebraska Senator, but if you have one of those, you know who you are.)
Your vote is your voice and that voice is your superpower. Don’t use your voice to say you’re okay with what’s happening now if the alternative isn’t everything you ever hoped and dreamed.
And, if, hopefully when, Dems take back power, they’re gonna have to reverse the damage Republicans created before they can focus on making things better. They’re not gonna make progress at the speed you want, but that doesn’t mean voting for them was the wrong choice.
Please understand that, I BEG you.
York, Pennsylvania
Thu, June 18 - The York Revolutions hosted Pride Night, unfortunately less than 9 players on the team were willing to wear the Pride Night jerseys so the team forfeited. This is one of, if not the first time, that has had to happen because of Pride Night.
But even though the players are homophobic, the team is not and they continued with Pride Night sans game.
To be clear; this action by the players is completely inconsistent with our vision as the Most Welcoming Place in York. As a small token of our regret for the last-minute change of plans and support for our LGBTQIA+ representing partners we are making a $10,000 donation to the Rainbow Rose Center to support and further their work in making sure the York community is as inclusive as we strive to make WellSpan Park in York, Pennsylvania.
Most players stayed home but first baseman, Jacob Teter, showed up anyway. He wore his Pride Night Jersey and signed anything people wanted him to sign:
I think representation matters. I think that this is a night for people who are often misrepresented or underrepresented to have a great time at the ballpark. And if somebody likes baseball, then me and that person already have something in common.
Being an organizer and making a statement are both very important, but sometimes, the most important thing you can do is just show up. I think we all need that reminder sometimes. Especially when it comes to our own actions.
Norway
Fri, June 19 - The government has proposed a new law that would place sanctions on the Israeli settlements.
Epsen Barth Eidie, the Minister of Foreign Affairs said:
The Israeli settlements in Palestine are in breach of international law. They contribute to displacement, extreme violence and a situation that makes a peaceful solution impossible. We intend to prohibit trade with the unlawful settlements.
The press release specifies that this includes import and export of goods as well as real estate and that violators would be “subject to criminal liability.”
This is just a proposal for now, and public comment is open till Sept 19. So if you are Norwegian and can find the public comment link, cause I have been looking for the last five minutes and can’t find it, let them know how you feel before the deadline.
Personally I really appreciate this proposal, cause the settlements are horrific, and always have been, no matter how you look at it. For any chance of any sort of solution, the settlements have to end. Sanctioning like this is a great start, so I hope this proposal is successful. We’ll know soon, and I’ll keep you posted.
Gilroy, California
Mon, July 13 - DHS has agreed to a voluntary stoppage on construction of their Gilroy detention center, that even still, they are insisting isn’t actually a detention center.
If it sounds like I’m giving them credit, don’t worry, I’m not. This agreement is because of a lawsuit from Attorney General Rob Bonta and Santa Clara County Counsel, Tony LoPresti.
The lawsuit argues that the land can only be used for farming: “that has limited the Holsclaw Property to agricultural uses since 1967.”
And that ICE gave no notice, which is against DHS’ own rules:
Defendants’ actions fly in the face of DHS’s own guidance stating that agencies must “schedule sufficient time and make diligent efforts to ensure that potentially interested parties are identified and notified and have an opportunity to provide input in a manner that could have a practical influence on proposed DHS actions before decisions are made.”
DHS knew they couldn’t argue with that, so when Bonta and LoPresti filed a temporary injunction, they acted first.
DHS now has till Sept 30 to respond to the lawsuit, a month longer than they did before they agreed to stop work, and till August 12 for the injunction.
There’s still work to be done and there are still protests to have in order to stops this for good. This is a temporary work stoppage, but it was a masterful job by Bonta and LoPresti.
I hope these stories help remind you to keep fighting back!
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