Becoming Brandon

@becomingbrandon

College football fan. Gamecocks fan. Cubs fan. Aspiring polymath. AI ultra-skeptic. I could say so much, but I don't go there cuz I don't want to #CFB #Cubs

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Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· 20d

Are we really this bad off?

Headline: In 'King of the Hill,' Mike Judge Finds Hope for America

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· 21d

I don't want to share this person's identity, but this was publicly posted on another social media site. The only thing I can add is I would like everyone to read it

I never thought I would have to say this, but after being accepted into law school, I may not be able to go...

I grew up believing that if I worked hard enough, I could create a different future for myself and my family. As a first-generation college graduate, a minority woman, and someone who did not grow up with financial security, becoming a lawyer was never just a career goal, it was a dream built on years of sacrifice, perseverance, and hope. I was going to be the first lawyer in my family.

When I received my acceptance letter, I cried. It represented every late night, every challenge I overcame, and every person who believed I could make it this far.

Now, because of the recent changes to Grad PLUS loans, that dream has become uncertain.

The hardest part is knowing that I earned my place. I did the work. I proved I belonged. But despite all of that, financial barriers may prevent me from stepping into the classroom.

We talk about the importance of having more women in law and creating opportunities for first-generation lawyers. I am exactly the kind of person those conversations are about. I want to use my voice, my experiences, and my education to serve others.

Yet I am now facing the possibility that the opportunity I worked so hard to earn may be out of reach...

Right now, I am allowing myself time to grieve. (I am grieving the possibility of putting a dream on hold after coming so close.

I am grieving for the younger version of myself who believed that hard work would always be enough to open the door.

But I am not giving up. I will take this time, process this moment, and continue searching for a way forward.

Because this dream means too much to walk away from.

I hope we remember that behind every policy change is a real person, a real story, and a future that could be changed forever.

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· 22d

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· 23d

Gosh, why could the economy be improving and vast swaths of middle income people not feel it? Really is a mystery. Anyway, here's a chart

Chart showing the share of GDP going to corporate profits sharply increasing over the last 40ish years

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· 23d

I mean, come on. There's an unexplained shadow right there!

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· 23d

Marvel might want to be a little more subtle when they edit multiple characters out of a frame

A screen shot of a meeting in the Doomsday trailer with large gaps between several of characters

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· 23d

Well, at least he's seeing reasonable goals

Headline: "Burnham Becomes U.K. Prime Minister and Pledges to End Homelessness"

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· 23d

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· 23d

This was a key socialist figure talking about FDR newpol.org/is-the-new-d...

Emphatically, Mr. Roosevelt did not carry out the Socialist platform, unless he carried it out on a stretcher. What is true is that when Mr.
Roosevelt took office he had to act vigorously.
We had demanded Federal relief for unemployment.
Hence any attempts Mr. Roosevelt made at Federal relief could perhaps be called by his enemies an imitation of the Socialists platform. It was an extraordinarily poor imitation. We demanded Federal unemployment insurance. Hence any attempt to get Federal security legislation could be regarded as an imitation of the Socialist platform. It was an amazingly bad imitation.
Indeed, at various times Mr. Roosevelt has taken particular and rather unnecessary pains to explain that he was not a Socialist, that he was trying to support the profit system, which by the way, he defined incorrectly. In his last message to Congress his attack was not upon the profit system but on the sins of big business.

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· 24d

They actually did the thing. Maybe irony is dead bsky.app/profile/wesl...

A post from July 15 sarcastically saying: "Another historical inaccuracy from Nolan—IMAX had not yet been invented in the Mycenaean period, so this is not the aspect ratio that people saw in! Smh"

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· 26d

A story in four pictures

A chart showing "The Odyssey" has "universal acclaim" from critics but a 5.5 from Metacritic users

A Metacritic user review of "The Odyssey" that says:

"It's absolutely revolting how Greek mythology is disrespected under the pretext of 'diversity' in this movie. This should not be supported, and everyone should speak out about it. Historical literature, such as mythology, must be protected, and these stories must be told as they were originally written."

A Metacritic user review of "The Odyssey" thar includes these lines:

"Let's start with the Helen of Troy problem. Casting Lupita Nyong'o in the role is the cinematic equivalent of casting Sydney Sweeney as Harriet Tubman. It is a deliberate, ideological insult to the source material. Helen of Troy is the archetypal Greek woman, golden-haired, fair-skinned, the face that launched a thousand ships.
Nyong'o is a good actress, but she cannot act her way into being something she is not. She looks about as Greek as a Maasai warrior. The cognitive dissonance is so severe that every scene she's in collapses under its own absurdity. You cannot 'act' your way into being the most beautiful woman in Greek mythology when you don't even share an ethnicity with the people who created that myth."

A Metacritic user review of "The Odyssey" that says:

"An ugly film, both spiritually and literally. It literally looks like an Al-made movie. Washed out colors, boring and ahistorical costume design, and not to mention the obvious, purposeful desecration of the source material in basically every way possible. This is less of a film and nore of a piece of agitprop meant to demoralize anyone unfortunate enough to have paid to seen it."

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· 27d

Take the Trump criticism out, if you want, because it's a broader point. No one is going to like a multipolar world order. It's not the downfall of "American imperialism," or at least not just that. It is a more malignant and violent world. Everyone will suffer www.theatlantic.com/magazine/202...

Americans are entering the most dangerous world they have known since World War II, one that will make the Cold War look like child's play and the post-Cold War world like paradise. In fact, this new world will look a lot like the world prior to 1945, with multiple great powers and metastasizing competition and conflict. The U.S. will have no reliable friends or allies and will have
to depend entirely on its own strength to survive and prosper. This will require more military spending, not less, because the open access to overseas resources, markets, and strategic bases that Americans have enjoyed will no longer come as a benefit of the country's alliances. Instead, they will have to be contested and defended against other great powers.

To recognize Russias and Chinas spheres of interest would mean accepting their hegemony over a swath of nations that currently enjoy sovereign independence. And in this emerging new world, Russia and China will not be the only ones seeking to expand their spheres. If Germany and Japan need to become great powers again, they will have spheres of interest too, which will inevitably overlap with China's and Russia's, leading to numerous conflicts in the multipolar future just as in the multipolar past.

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· 28d

Which one of these looks better to you?

Chart showing the latest sunrise on permanent standard time is generally before 8 a.m., with only a few areas having any post-8 a.m. sunrises at all

Chart showing that large parts of the country would have at least some post-8 a.m. sunrises, with the latest sunrises as late as 9:30 in some northern areas

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· Jul 11

The least surprising thing in this story www.huffpost.com/entry/surgin...

The candidate who made problematic remarks about Black political leaders is backed by Sen. Bernie Sanders

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· Jul 10

Congratulations, Netflix. You've invented cable television apple.news/A2cmLk0uDSi2...

To bolster engagement, executives at the company have recently discussed adding live channels that would continuously stream certain pro-grams, or shows and films from a certain genre, according to people familiar with the matter. The company has also explored bundling other sub-scription-based streaming services, including NBCUniversal's Peacock, into its offering. It would sell those subscriptions through its main app as rivals such as Amazon.com and Apple have long done, some of the people said.

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· Jul 4

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· Jul 3

This is false. Only truly naïve people did not realize this would happen. The entire reason some of us were hesitant about unregulated NIL deals was because we knew it would become pay-for-play. To say that you didn't is either revisionist history or saying you don't understand consequences

Headline: "College Athletes Are Getting Paid. No One Knew It Would Be Like This."

"Love it or hate it, NIL became something entirely different than what anyone in college sports envisioned five years ago, back when NCAA members begrudgingly bowed to years-long pressure from antitrust lawsuits, state legislatures and congressmen."

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· Jul 2

🎶 One of these things is not like the others 🎶 www.nytimes.com/2026/07/01/u...

A chart from The New York Times showing that Graham Platner is the only Democratic Senate nominee in a battleground race that is not doing better than the Democratic Party on the generic Congressional ballot in his state

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· Jul 2

Should be a wonderful Fourth of July! For, um, the UP. And central Washington State. And that's about it

A map showing basically the entire country having at least a minor heat risk, with most of the eastern half being moderate or worse

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· Jul 1

10-5. 🤣🤣🤣 This Is completely random

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· Jul 1

13-2. Which I guess is theoretically possible?

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· Jul 1

Wait -- there are TWO teams that pay Bobby Bonilla on Bobby Bonilla Day? LEGEND 🐐🐐🐐 sports.yahoo.com/mlb/article/...

One more fun note is that the Mets aren't even the only team sending Bonilla checks on July 1. He worked out a similar deal with the Baltimore Orioles, who are paying him $500,000 each year from 2004 to 2028.

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· Jul 1

www.acog.org/womens-healt...

What should I know about traveling by plane?
During a healthy pregnancy, occasional air travel is almost always safe. Most airlines allow you to fly inside
the United States until about 36 weeks of pregnancy.
Your ob-gyn can provide proof of your due date if needed.
If you are planning an international flight, the cutoff for traveling may be earlier. Check with your airline.

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· Jun 29

A margin-of-error lead before the millions of dollars of attack ads that are coming his way. Good job, everyone! www.nytimes.com/2026/06/29/u...

An oysterman who has never held elected office, Mr. Platner, 41, rode a populist message to the Democratic nomination despite reports about offensive online posts, a tattoo that resembled a Nazi symbol and his treatment of women. But the poll found that he is failing to attract some voters who otherwise want to see Democrats take power in Washington.
Fifty-four percent of voters said they would like to see Democrats control the Senate next year, a notably higher percentage than the percent of respondents who said they supported Mr. Platner.
In fact, Ms. Collins, the Republican, is winning 10 percent of voters who prefer Democratic control.

Chart showing 47 percent of likely voters view Platner as too extreme, compared to 34 percent for Collins, and give Collins huge advantages on "has good character" and "has the right kind of moral values"

Mr. Platner's support among female likely voters is seven percentage points lower than the share who said they would support the Democrat running for the House in their district. But he is still running ahead of the support the 2020 Democratic nominee for Senate, Sara Gideon, received from women in exit polls and a 2020
New York Times/ Siena survey.
About 60 percent of likely voters who support Ms.
Collins give a positive reason for their backing — either her politics or her personality — compared with just 36 percent of Mr. Platner's voters who pointed to a positive attribute about their candidate.

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· Jun 26

I always break these things, and yeah this is not at all correct britmonkey.com/2020s-politi...

My closest match according to this online survey is Emmanuel Macron

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· Jun 23

Take back control of our borders or something www.nytimes.com/2026/06/23/b...

A graph showing non-EU migration to Britain exploding after Brexit, while EU migration slumps, but not nearly enough to offset it

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· Jun 21

I am still mildly amazed that this is not a more widespread view, because when you put it like that . . .

Even late last week, some of Starmer's friends were still insistent he should fight on, and that it was hugely presumptuous of Burnham and his team to expect a prime minister who won a landslide majority less than two years ago to step aside for a regional mayor out of parliament since 2017.

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· Jun 19

There's something charming about the potential next UK Prime Minister having to hear election results standing between someone dressed as a trash can and someone in a fox costume

Picture of Andy Burnham standing between Count Binface and someone dressed as a fox

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· Jun 18

If I ever found myself writing these words in this order, I would strongly consider a year-long moratorium on writing anything lithub.com/how-to-put-a...

"Cicero has been my nemesis in this book ..."

Becoming Brandon@becomingbrandon· Jun 18

First, I knew the AI answer was false because I had already driven by three flags -- including the one at the Statehouse Dome -- that were at half staff. Second, the information showing that the AI answer was wrong was literally right above the AI answer