Matthew Sheffield
@matthew.flux.community
🟦 Analyst and writer focusing on cognition, politics, religion, technology, and media
🟦 Host, Theory of Change
🟦 Writing @flux.community, and frequently quoted or published in NYT, WaPo, NBC, Variety…
Signal: matthewsheffield.01
🟦 Host, Theory of Change
🟦 Writing @flux.community, and frequently quoted or published in NYT, WaPo, NBC, Variety…
Signal: matthewsheffield.01
Pinned
Non-religious people still need to think about meaning and selfhood
J. Eric Oliver on knowing yourself without gods
plus.flux.community
🧵 About 30% of American adults say they are unaffiliated with a religious tradition, but as people are rejecting ancient epistemic systems, many of us are struggling to find meaning from life, to take care of ourselves, and to even have a concept of what selfhood is.
That's a problem.
That's a problem.
This true, and yet it's also true that judicial supremacy is why the reactionaries who took over the Republican party have been able to build a political coalition. They use the courts to push their unpopular agenda rather than voting for it in Congress.
In my latest essay, I write about the deeply dangerous threats being made against U.S. Judges — and how, despite this, U.S. judges are displaying the courage to stand up to authoritarian threats and attacks on Democratic notions of the law.
More at my Substack at Lucid.Substack.com.
More at my Substack at Lucid.Substack.com.
Lucid | Ruth Ben-Ghiat | Substack
A newsletter for big-picture thinking about autocracy and threats to democracy around the world. Click to read Lucid, by Ruth Ben-Ghiat, a Substack publication with hundreds of thousands of subscriber...
Lucid.Substack.com
September 18, 2026 at 4:27 PM
This true, and yet it's also true that judicial supremacy is why the reactionaries who took over the Republican party have been able to build a political coalition. They use the courts to push their unpopular agenda rather than voting for it in Congress.
Reposted by Matthew Sheffield
Longtermism runs on the same mathematical trickery as Pascal’s wager, with the same unethical results.
longtermism is so repugnant that I hesitate to address it on its own terms but: on its own terms this shit is clearly wrong. the best way *now* to encourage a happy future for umptillion beings who use technology we can't imagine is to make the current world more just for everyone.
Nick Beckstead, noted longtermist and "effective altruist,” just comes out and says it:
"But it now seems more plausible to me that saving a life in a rich country is substantially more important than saving a life in a poor country, other things being equal."
"But it now seems more plausible to me that saving a life in a rich country is substantially more important than saving a life in a poor country, other things being equal."
September 17, 2026 at 3:10 PM
Longtermism runs on the same mathematical trickery as Pascal’s wager, with the same unethical results.
Reposted by Matthew Sheffield
Correct. Anybody else raising a question of privilege like this puts it on a two-day countdown. The minority leader has the perk that he can force the vote immediately, if he wants.
If Jeffries did think that the House should vote on impeaching Hegseth, he could have offered Massie’s resolution for him – it would then have to be considered immediately.
September 16, 2026 at 11:05 PM
Correct. Anybody else raising a question of privilege like this puts it on a two-day countdown. The minority leader has the perk that he can force the vote immediately, if he wants.
So many judges having to resort to such things because the Trump people are so corrupt
NEW: Judge Sullivan isn't buying Todd Blanche's excuses for refusing to hand over handwritten FBI notes underlying four Epstein survivor FBI interviews. He's ordered Blanche to hand them over for in camera review by 9/24. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
September 17, 2026 at 1:20 AM
So many judges having to resort to such things because the Trump people are so corrupt
Reposted by Matthew Sheffield
The same Big Tech billionaires building AI tools we didn't ask for are devouring TV networks, movie studios, and major newspapers.
They want to watch us AND control what we watch.
A 🧵 on the intersection between media consolidation and the growing surveillance state >>>
They want to watch us AND control what we watch.
A 🧵 on the intersection between media consolidation and the growing surveillance state >>>
September 16, 2026 at 2:28 PM
The same Big Tech billionaires building AI tools we didn't ask for are devouring TV networks, movie studios, and major newspapers.
They want to watch us AND control what we watch.
A 🧵 on the intersection between media consolidation and the growing surveillance state >>>
They want to watch us AND control what we watch.
A 🧵 on the intersection between media consolidation and the growing surveillance state >>>
Reposted by Matthew Sheffield
“Why do people hate that I don’t want kids to be killed and starved?”
— Ms. Rachel talks to Rolling Stone about the backlash she faced for supporting Palestine, recalling moments when she felt like everyone hated her.
(www.rollingstone.com/culture/cult...)
— Ms. Rachel talks to Rolling Stone about the backlash she faced for supporting Palestine, recalling moments when she felt like everyone hated her.
(www.rollingstone.com/culture/cult...)
September 15, 2026 at 3:11 PM
“Why do people hate that I don’t want kids to be killed and starved?”
— Ms. Rachel talks to Rolling Stone about the backlash she faced for supporting Palestine, recalling moments when she felt like everyone hated her.
(www.rollingstone.com/culture/cult...)
— Ms. Rachel talks to Rolling Stone about the backlash she faced for supporting Palestine, recalling moments when she felt like everyone hated her.
(www.rollingstone.com/culture/cult...)
We will pay for this far more than in dollars. If not in the near term, certainly in the long term.
The cuts in staff across federal health agencies are staggering. Great analysis from @ourpublicservice.bsky.social.
1 in 5 people gone from NIH.
More than 1 in 4 gone from CDC.
Nearly 7 in 10 gone from AHRQ.
ourpublicservice.org/resource/the...
1 in 5 people gone from NIH.
More than 1 in 4 gone from CDC.
Nearly 7 in 10 gone from AHRQ.
ourpublicservice.org/resource/the...
The Cost of Cutting American Science: How Federal Cuts Diminish Public Health Capacity
ourpublicservice.org
September 16, 2026 at 1:13 AM
We will pay for this far more than in dollars. If not in the near term, certainly in the long term.
If you're covering Donald Trump's attempts to put his name all over the Kennedy Center, please do not refer to the organization's board as dominated by Trump appointees. He is the 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻 of the board.
I don't see the board notes online, but it seems that he is voting to rename KC after himself.
I don't see the board notes online, but it seems that he is voting to rename KC after himself.
September 15, 2026 at 9:23 PM
If you're covering Donald Trump's attempts to put his name all over the Kennedy Center, please do not refer to the organization's board as dominated by Trump appointees. He is the 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻 of the board.
I don't see the board notes online, but it seems that he is voting to rename KC after himself.
I don't see the board notes online, but it seems that he is voting to rename KC after himself.
We shouldn't have to celebrate obviously common-sense judicial rulings. But nonetheless, it's good that sanity is prevailing on the Kennedy Center and Trump's illegal vanity project has been shot down.
BREAKING: Judge Cooper, again, says the Kennedy Center board can't put Trump's name on the building. Also, Cooper says they can't name it Trump Plaza.
storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
September 15, 2026 at 5:55 PM
We shouldn't have to celebrate obviously common-sense judicial rulings. But nonetheless, it's good that sanity is prevailing on the Kennedy Center and Trump's illegal vanity project has been shot down.
A lot of Trump senior officials seem to know they're not that smart. Bessent really does not. He's a spoiled rich boy who never learned much, but thinks he's actually smart.
HIMES: You spent $10b to try to lower the yield on the 10 year bond. When you started, it was 4.8%. Today it's at a 20 year high of 5.04%. A 20 basis point rise. Was your intervention successful?
BESSENT: Yes
H: Wait- it went up by 20 points!
B: There's a counterfactual of what would it have done
BESSENT: Yes
H: Wait- it went up by 20 points!
B: There's a counterfactual of what would it have done
September 15, 2026 at 4:25 PM
A lot of Trump senior officials seem to know they're not that smart. Bessent really does not. He's a spoiled rich boy who never learned much, but thinks he's actually smart.
Reposted by Matthew Sheffield
Regular reminder that Kristen Gillibrand is one of the worst status quo / big money / conservative Democrats in federal office
It's Monday, so a deeply compromised Kirsten Gillibrand is trying to enable Trump fraud
www.politico.com/live-updates...
www.politico.com/live-updates...
Gillibrand privately urges Dems to advance crypto bill
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand's posture on the legislation puts her at odds with progressives in her party.
www.politico.com
September 15, 2026 at 2:25 AM
Regular reminder that Kristen Gillibrand is one of the worst status quo / big money / conservative Democrats in federal office
Reposted by Matthew Sheffield
🚨BREAKING: Agents of the Department of Homeland Security have been ordered to unlawfully access state voting records to carry out the department’s escalating elections-related probes, an anonymous federal whistleblower recently disclosed to Sen. Alex Padilla. www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/...
Homeland Security officers are illegally accessing state voter data, new whistleblower alleges
The searches likely resulted in "thousands of violations of state laws," Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) said.
www.democracydocket.com
September 14, 2026 at 6:47 PM
🚨BREAKING: Agents of the Department of Homeland Security have been ordered to unlawfully access state voting records to carry out the department’s escalating elections-related probes, an anonymous federal whistleblower recently disclosed to Sen. Alex Padilla. www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/...
Reposted by Matthew Sheffield
It was exactly ten years ago today, on my 33rd birthday, that I posted this comic online.
September 13, 2026 at 11:54 PM
It was exactly ten years ago today, on my 33rd birthday, that I posted this comic online.
Reposted by Matthew Sheffield
It’s always been true, for years and years. “Voter fraud” is a fraudulent propaganda campaign the GOP has been relentlessly pushing for decades, in spite of the many, many studies that have debunked their deceptive claims — including some from their own think tanks!
September 15, 2026 at 12:26 AM
It’s always been true, for years and years. “Voter fraud” is a fraudulent propaganda campaign the GOP has been relentlessly pushing for decades, in spite of the many, many studies that have debunked their deceptive claims — including some from their own think tanks!
Reposted by Matthew Sheffield
didnt know they'd invented racism that was too racist for karl rove
September 14, 2026 at 10:45 PM
didnt know they'd invented racism that was too racist for karl rove
The secondary villain in the right-wing cancellation of Macklemore is Ed Sheeran.*
He could easily have put a stop to the censorship, but decided to embrace it instead. As a result, his fanbase is going to turn on him, and rightfully so.
*Robert Kraft is the main one
He could easily have put a stop to the censorship, but decided to embrace it instead. As a result, his fanbase is going to turn on him, and rightfully so.
*Robert Kraft is the main one
September 14, 2026 at 6:03 PM
The secondary villain in the right-wing cancellation of Macklemore is Ed Sheeran.*
He could easily have put a stop to the censorship, but decided to embrace it instead. As a result, his fanbase is going to turn on him, and rightfully so.
*Robert Kraft is the main one
He could easily have put a stop to the censorship, but decided to embrace it instead. As a result, his fanbase is going to turn on him, and rightfully so.
*Robert Kraft is the main one
I'm sure the Harper's Letter people will be getting right on this.
Seriously though, this is oligarchs colluding openly to silence someone for stating an opinion most Americans agree with.
This is what actual cancel culture looks like. Students screaming at a speaker is nothing by comparison.
Seriously though, this is oligarchs colluding openly to silence someone for stating an opinion most Americans agree with.
This is what actual cancel culture looks like. Students screaming at a speaker is nothing by comparison.
Banned: Macklemore's powerful statement deserves reading.
www.instagram.com/p/DdRdsy0m2H...
www.instagram.com/p/DdRdsy0m2H...
September 14, 2026 at 4:55 PM
I'm sure the Harper's Letter people will be getting right on this.
Seriously though, this is oligarchs colluding openly to silence someone for stating an opinion most Americans agree with.
This is what actual cancel culture looks like. Students screaming at a speaker is nothing by comparison.
Seriously though, this is oligarchs colluding openly to silence someone for stating an opinion most Americans agree with.
This is what actual cancel culture looks like. Students screaming at a speaker is nothing by comparison.
It's been just over a year now since John Oliver released this absolutely damning segment on how Chuck Schumer admits that he caters his political strategies to an imaginary family called the Baileys--who actually seem to be Republicans.
Definitely worth watching again or as-new:
Definitely worth watching again or as-new:
The Baileys: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)
YouTube video by LastWeekTonight
www.youtube.com
September 14, 2026 at 3:51 PM
It's been just over a year now since John Oliver released this absolutely damning segment on how Chuck Schumer admits that he caters his political strategies to an imaginary family called the Baileys--who actually seem to be Republicans.
Definitely worth watching again or as-new:
Definitely worth watching again or as-new:
Reposted by Matthew Sheffield
You're watching a sand bubbler crab hard at work.
And bubbler crabs have one job: make balls. Lots of balls. With your mouth parts.
They're filter-feeders/detrivores, combing through damp sand for microscopic food & the balls let them organize the "cleaned" sand so they don't nom it twice.
And bubbler crabs have one job: make balls. Lots of balls. With your mouth parts.
They're filter-feeders/detrivores, combing through damp sand for microscopic food & the balls let them organize the "cleaned" sand so they don't nom it twice.
September 13, 2026 at 11:09 PM
You're watching a sand bubbler crab hard at work.
And bubbler crabs have one job: make balls. Lots of balls. With your mouth parts.
They're filter-feeders/detrivores, combing through damp sand for microscopic food & the balls let them organize the "cleaned" sand so they don't nom it twice.
And bubbler crabs have one job: make balls. Lots of balls. With your mouth parts.
They're filter-feeders/detrivores, combing through damp sand for microscopic food & the balls let them organize the "cleaned" sand so they don't nom it twice.
Reposted by Matthew Sheffield
Reposted by Matthew Sheffield
If Democrats were serious they would go straight for the jugular of the crypto industry as soon as they take power.
There’s public policy reasons to do this (name a non-crime use case), but also it cuts off a major artery for Republican support and corruption.
There’s public policy reasons to do this (name a non-crime use case), but also it cuts off a major artery for Republican support and corruption.
Another clear and knowable downstream consequence of letting scammers get rich off crypto was that that money would boomerang back into politics in ways that were highly likely to try to skirt around fundraising laws and distort policy incentives.
September 13, 2026 at 11:24 PM
If Democrats were serious they would go straight for the jugular of the crypto industry as soon as they take power.
There’s public policy reasons to do this (name a non-crime use case), but also it cuts off a major artery for Republican support and corruption.
There’s public policy reasons to do this (name a non-crime use case), but also it cuts off a major artery for Republican support and corruption.
TIL: The first artificial sweetener was made from lead, and it made Romans crazy
Sugar Of Lead: The Thing That Ancient Romans Use To Sweeten Their Food!
'Sugar of lead' (lead acetate) is a sweet-tasting but toxic compound the Romans used to sweeten wine. Long-term exposure causes lead poisoning. The FDA finally banned its use in U.S. hair dyes in 2018...
www.scienceabc.com
September 13, 2026 at 5:53 AM
TIL: The first artificial sweetener was made from lead, and it made Romans crazy
Language doesn't produce meaning, it approximates it.
September 13, 2026 at 3:52 AM
Language doesn't produce meaning, it approximates it.
Donald Trump has done far more to curtail free speech than any recent president. His actions to use government power & private lawsuits to bully private citizens are unprecedented.
Great recounting which also relays Trump's false promises that he would protect free speech. Worth keeping track:
Great recounting which also relays Trump's false promises that he would protect free speech. Worth keeping track:
How Trump Is Wielding Power to Stifle Speech
President Trump has harnessed agencies across the government to curtail press freedoms, a sweeping campaign that free speech advocates say will have lasting effects.
www.nytimes.com
September 13, 2026 at 2:43 AM
Donald Trump has done far more to curtail free speech than any recent president. His actions to use government power & private lawsuits to bully private citizens are unprecedented.
Great recounting which also relays Trump's false promises that he would protect free speech. Worth keeping track:
Great recounting which also relays Trump's false promises that he would protect free speech. Worth keeping track:
This is why Democrats falling for disingenuous claims that retreating on trans rights or some other issue would ever work.
Republicans campaign against imaginary Democrats.
They'll accuse you of anything, so stand for the right thing and communicate constantly and very well.
Republicans campaign against imaginary Democrats.
They'll accuse you of anything, so stand for the right thing and communicate constantly and very well.
Tim Scott: "Think about how dangerous states like California [are] that want to take away your kids if you don't agree w/pronouns the schools chooses for your kids. They're coming for our culture. If you don't want to stand up & fight for the soul of this country, your wood is wet. It's that simple"
September 12, 2026 at 7:57 PM
This is why Democrats falling for disingenuous claims that retreating on trans rights or some other issue would ever work.
Republicans campaign against imaginary Democrats.
They'll accuse you of anything, so stand for the right thing and communicate constantly and very well.
Republicans campaign against imaginary Democrats.
They'll accuse you of anything, so stand for the right thing and communicate constantly and very well.