Naomi Kritzer

@naomikritzer

Writer of SF/F and Minneapolis/St. Paul election guides. she/her. Website: www.naomikritzer.com My next book, OBSTETRIX, comes out June 9, 2026.

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Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 5d

I have also seen just one. It was in Florence, Italy, in the Palazzo Vecchio (the town hall).

A plaque. It's white, maybe marble, with the red fleur-de-lys that is the symbol of Florence and the words:

LA CITTA DI FIRENZE
NON DIMENTICA I SUOI CITTADINI
VITTIME DELLA PANDEMIA COVID-19
E DEDICA A LORO
E A QUELLI CHE LI AMANO
UN RICORDO PERENNE

In small letters at the bottom it also says

IL COMMUNE DE FIRENCE POSE NELL ANNO 2021

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 6d

Seeing The Odyssey made me want to revisit this outstanding bit from one of Daniel Lavery's Western Art History pieces from The Toast: "Normal Moments In Art History Where No One Is About To Get Murdered." the-toast.net/2014/06/16/f...

An image of the painting "Circe" by painter Wright Barker; Circe is a beautiful woman holding a lyre in one hand and holding the other out in a welcoming gesture. She's surrounded by a bunch of slightly mopey looking lions and wolves and standing on a tiger skin rug. Underneath, in italics, it says (entirely in lowercase):

come in i have no plans to turn you into an animal
i have to be telling the truth
see how many men turned into animals i already own???
like why would i need more
my turning men into animal servant days are over swear to god

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 8d

Also the discussion of how Homer was no stranger to the Rule of Cool (honestly I think the Rule of Cool was probably invented by the first person to ever tell a story to another person).

The Rule of Cool is also hugely important here. For instance, in Iliad 6.230–236, the Akhaian hero Diomedes and the Trojan hero Glaukos trade their armors as a sign of guest-friendship, and the armor that Glaukos gives to Diomedes is made of solid gold. No one in human history has ever actually gone to battle wearing solid gold armor, because gold is an absurdly impractical material to make armor out of; it is extremely rare and expensive, it’s extremely heavy, so it would make the wearer less mobile, and it’s very soft and malleable, so it wouldn’t provide the wearer very effective protection. But none of that matters, because solid gold armor sounds cool.

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 8d

My favorite detail is near the beginning, and it's all the faux-old-timey anachronistic stuff from the original epic.

To give an example, in the Bronze Age, archers would ride chariots into battle and shoot arrows from their chariots. By the time the Iliad and the Odyssey were composed in the seventh century BCE, however, chariots were no longer used in warfare and were instead only used for sports racing. The poet of the Iliad apparently has some vague sense that, at some point in the past, people had used chariots in warfare, but he doesn’t understand how chariots were used, so he describes heroes as using them sort of like battle golf carts: they ride in their chariots to get to battle, and then they dismount to fight on foot.

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 11d

This is an outstanding screenshot and deserves alt text so I'm adding it. The right wing has really gone fully mask-off with the whole "we heart racism and human trafficking and genocide and destroying America" collection of ideologies.

Adam Kinzinger tweeted (about the Confederacy), "The flag of a traitorous, defeated nation. The UNION won. And I'm proud to say that the Kinzinger family, though just off the boat from Germany, fought to preserve the union."

This was QT'd by fascist sympathizer and human trafficking fan Adam Johnston (adamkjohnston), who said, "The Union army was 25% foreign-born, rising to nearly 45% when including second-generation immigrants. They were fighting an American South that was between 90%-95% native born. Not surprised people named "Kinzinger" are celebrating the defeat of the South, considering the German "Forty-Eighters" were the driving force behind radicalizing Northern immigrants into an ideological war against heritage Americans."

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 11d

Early voting selfie!

A selfie of me standing outside the Ramsey County voter center on Plato Blvd, with an I Voted sticker.

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 12d

More details on the locker room "talked about the other woman's breasts" incident:

In the locker room of the gym at police headquarters on one occasion, the female deputy chief was changing and Her was on the other side of the room, Thompson said.

“The mayor walked over to her and displayed her breasts” and Her asked whether own breasts were “too big,” Thompson said of what the long-time officer told him. Her then commented on the deputy chief’s breasts, saying along the lines that the deputy chief was “so lucky because of the size of her breasts.”

During the incident, Her “got up really close” to the deputy chief, who didn’t know her well and the situation made her uncomfortable, said Thompson. The woman doesn’t want her name publicly released because she was a victim of harassment, according to Thompson.

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 12d

This incident took place while she worked at City Hall, so probably when she was Mayor Carter's policy director, which she was from January 2018 through September 2021 (per her LinkedIn).

In an interview this week, a former City Hall staffer recalled how, on numerous occasions, Her — who was then a City Hall employee — would approach him at public events, grab him by the glutes and simultaneously announce to others around him that she had once grabbed him by the glutes.

The incidents unfolded in front of his friends and family, and appeared to be her way of sliding into group conversations he was in. “‘Oh, did he tell you about the time I grabbed (this guy’s) butt?’,” he recalled her saying to the group. “I never felt unsafe about it, but it was bizarre.”

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 12d

And a new detail that apparently was part of why the deputy chief decided she just could not work with Her, and retired:

Her’s behavior has also raised eyebrows outside the gym. She taped her own mayoral portrait over framed photos of high-ranking police officials mounted on the wall of the police department’s administrative offices.

Over the face of another deputy chief, Her allegedly posted a promotional image of 10 shirtless UFC fighters with glitzy championship belts draped over each of their shoulders. But the faces of real St. Paul Police officers had been superimposed on their bodies; Chief Henry stood front and center.

The Minnesota Star Tribune viewed a photograph of the wall of altered photos — evidence later submitted to the outside law firm as part of the harassment probe — which clearly shows the doctored image.

At the time, the deputy chief tried to push back against the mayor for defacing the pictures. The mayor’s behavior, both in the gym and in the office, was so unsettling to the veteran law enforcement official that she had several discussions with her family about what to do. She later resigned from the department.

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 12d

Her's new statement, in response to questions from the Star Tribune:

But on Thursday afternoon, as more details began to trickle out about the nature of Her’s comments to staff, she released a statement saying the police force had welcomed her into their circle and was now manipulating that trust.

“The way this is being portrayed in the media does not reflect what I understood to be mutual communication,” Her said in response to questions from the Minnesota Star Tribune. “I am disappointed that I was invited and brought into their space and culture and now this is the outcome. As I stated yesterday, I respect the investigative process and believe it is important to allow it to reach its conclusion.”

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 12d

Oh, I forgot to include Her's statement. www.startribune.com/st-paul-mayo...

“As Mayor, I take my responsibility to treat every employee with professionalism and respect very seriously. I recognize that some of my attempts at humor fell short of the standard I expect of myself,” Her said in a statement, adding that her office has “fully cooperated” with the investigation and will continue to do so. “I remain confident that the full facts will come to light, and I will continue to focus on serving the people of St. Paul with integrity and dedication.”

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 12d

Courtesy of Paul Ference, here's how you recall a mayor in St. Paul: library.municode.com/mn/st._paul/...

Sec. 8.02. - Petition.

Initiative, referendum or recall shall be initiated by a petition

(1)

signed by registered voters of the city equal in number to eight (8) percent of those who voted for the office of mayor in the last preceding city election in the case of initiative or referendum, or

(2)

signed by registered voters of the city equal in number to twenty (20) percent of those who voted for the office of mayor in the last preceding city election in the case of recall of the office of mayor, or

(3)

signed by registered voters of the relevant council ward equal in number to twenty (20) percent of those who voted for the relevant office of councilmember in the last preceding city election or fifteen (15) percent of the registered voters in the relevant council ward, whichever number is greater.

(C.F. No. 10-635, § 2, 7-21-10; Ord. No. 12-9, § 2, 3-28-12)

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 12d

The part of that story that's especially striking in light of the current allegations:

Yang said she was a suburban “nobody, twice divorced” and in the midst of a child-custody dispute when Her introduced her last year to state Rep. Ethan Cha, a DFLer who represents Woodbury and part of Washington County.

The two started an on-again, off-again romantic relationship, and Her began asking increasingly intrusive questions about their sex lives, oversharing about her own personal life, and calling or texting from 6 a.m. to 1 a.m., said Yang, who represented herself before the court.

“I tried to set boundaries without hurting her feelings,” said Yang, whose petition describes unwanted conversations Her allegedly initiated around spirituality, sexuality and the personal lives of the mayor’s children.

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 12d

By the way, I found the comedian (an Indigenous guy from Canada) who originated the meme. (That's the guy's own face.) www.facebook.com/SAVAGEDYNAST...

Savage Dynasty, March 21, a Facebook post that says "When she wraps you up in her blanket after you gave her a good weinering" with laugh emojis and a picture of smiling guy with chubby cheeks and a little bit of a mustache wrapped up in a fuzzy blanket

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 12d

Over on Twitter, in the post where Lou Raguse shares the video, there's also this: xcancel.com/LouNewsMan/s...

Tweet from Lou Raguse (@LouNewsMan):

Saint Paul Mayor Kaohly Her allegedly positioned herself in front of police officers in the weight room and made sex noises while stretching, among many other details I’ve confirmed from the sexual harassment investigation she faces.

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 15d

After a few minutes the car pulled forward into the parking spot again, and then the owner came and got in and then peeled out like assassins were after him at the Roseville Farmer's Market or something.

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 15d

When this car backed out of the space, blocking the driving aisle, and then just sat there, I tried to look at the driver to get a sense for where they were going. There was no driver.

A Tesla in a parking lot, with no front plate, blocking the driving aisle.

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 18d

I am back from Comic-Con. I was only there for one day, but I saw THE BEST COSPLAY AT THE CON:

A sleeping hairless cat in a Sailor Moon cosplay, napping on a pillow.

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 20d

Hello from San Diego!

A Comic Con Attending Professional badge with the Enterprise from Star Trek Strange New Worlds and also my name

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 24d

I'm signing this afternoon at Excelsior Bay Books! Stop by and say hi! Will be here until 3:50 (when my parking expires 😂)

View of a signing table and bookstore interior

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· 27d

Checking in from St. Paul

The AQI dial showing my air as "Hazardous," at 483 for the current air quality.

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· Jul 12

I am home from Tucson after an AMAZING event. Thank you so much to Stacks Book Club, TASC, Emily Walsh, and everyone who made this event possible!

Me, next to Emily Walsh, with a huge crowd of people behind us in a bookstore holding up copies of OBSTETRIX.

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· Jul 10

The traditional "view from hotel room" picture:

The Rialto venue in downtown Tucson, and the street around it

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· Jul 9

So yeah, gonna go make some edits! Also in case you're wondering, elsewhere on that brochure from last year:

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· Jul 9

Anyway, needless to say this is nowhere to be found on Aswar Rahman's website at this point. Here's what he says now:

GAZA:

I strongly support halting arms supplies to Israel, mandating war crimes investigations for the Netanyahu regime, and replacing the corrupt “Board of Peace” with a UN-led coalition to path the way for democratic elections and Palestinian statehood.

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· Jul 9

So I'm going to go update my post about the US House 04 (Betty McCollum) primary but I just wanted to share this ABSOLUTELY FUCKING FASCINATING info that was shared by, to be fair, Betty McCollum's campaign, which is this flyer that Aswar Rahman sent out fundraising last year.

A photo of a flyer. On the left side it says, "Aswar Rahman is challenging anti-Israel Rep. Betty McCollum in the MN CD4 Democratic Primary" and there's a photo of him in tie and vest. On the right side it says, "I need your help to defeat the most anti-Israel Democrat in Congress. My name is Aswar Rahman. I am a Minnesota Democrat, a businessman, a humanitarian serving Ukraine, and Betty McCollum's primary opponent. She's a 20-year incumbent of MN's 4th District who:

* spent decades trying to restrict US aid to Israel,
* branded supporters of the US-Israel alliance as members of "hate groups,"
* led the charge to deny Ukrainians the weapons they need to defend themselves and win the fight.

It's time for McCollum to go. If you help me, I will defeat her in the Democratic primary, and be a champion for America's democratic allies.

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· Jul 6

Okay, credit where it's due! I heard right back from Adam Schwarze (GOP-endorsed Senate candidate) and he'd support both S.4134 (the "Stop Insider Trading Act") and S.4299 (the "Ban Presidential Plunder of Taxpayer Funds Act."

E-mail from Adam Schwarze, sent 4 minutes ago, to me.

I would support both of those acts.

I hate fraud, and corrupt politicians even more.

I’m not in this for the “money or power” and want to go after politicians that are.

I have publicly stated I would fight to pass the “Stop Insider Trading Act,” as well as the “SAVE America Act.” Additionally, I have already publicly signed “Term Limits Pledge.”

Thanks for taking the time to reach out to my campaign and ask these questions.

God Bless,
-Adam Schwarze

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· Jul 5

And finally from the very first day of the con, Clippy!

A person wearing a backpack type arrangement of a silvery paperclip with eyes and a giant speech balloon that says "Looks like you're having fun at Convergence! Would you like some help with that?" and only one response, "Yes."

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· Jul 5

These two were really good with their puppets. Jim Henson is right, it doesn't matter if you can see the puppeteer.

Two people dressed as Star Trek red shirts, each holding a puppet with similar hair to theirs and also a Star Trek red shirt. The puppets are holding phasers.

Naomi Kritzer@naomikritzer· Jul 5

My friend Peg also came as the flag!