A related reminder: The strongest position in any negotiation is held by the person most willing to walk away from the table.

In a lose-lose situation, the worst possible choice one can make is to make it easier for your opposition to win.

Finished reading: Hard Girls by J. Robert Lennon - Another good one from one of my faves. Less supernatural than some of his previous books but I appreciated that. Clearly leaves room for sequels which I’m hopeful for. I really like the characters

Another good one from one of my faves. Less supernatural than some of his previous books but I appreciated that. Clearly leaves room for sequels which I’m hopeful for. I really like these characters and want to find out what the future holds for them.

‘I’m going’: Tim Walz to hold town halls in Republican districts in wake of DOGE cuts - YouTube

This is a fantastic interview with my Governor. Very proud.

The shingles shot I got yesterday is kicking my ass today.

Typical breakfast.

How Much Do I Really Need to Know?

There was a coup. It was successful. It is ongoing and escalating. Elon Musk retains more or less total control over a huge amount of the federal government’s apparatus and its spending. Protests are building. Congress largely hasn’t reacted. The Democratic Party shows few signs of behaving like an opposition party. Some of the purges are being walked back, piecemeal. The judiciary is weighing in, slowly. There’s talk of cracks in the conservative coalition. We’re in a weird sort of stasis where each day’s events are both extremely significant and also just more of the same.

Watched Good Will Hunting with Beatrix last night. Still amazed that two young men not that much older than she is wrote such an emotionally complex film that still stands up to time.

Let’s Create “Town Hall Night in America” | Washington Monthly

The best way to channel our anger, fear, and patriotism is to speak out not just on cable news and in elite institutions but in the schoolhouses, libraries, municipal buildings, and churches where American democracy was born.

I recently attended one held by my State Senate Leader and it was so good for everyone involved that she and her team are pledging to try to do them monthly. This is the kind of leadership we need at at the top of our parties right now.