Prepping for a talk tomorrow re: the 1800 election & found this quote in a Jefferson letter post-election:

If the Federalists usurped the government (stole the election by declaring a president pro tem) he was "w/those who were determined not to permit it. because that precedent once set, would be artificially reproduced, & end soon in a dictator."

The 1st fraught presidential contest & already implications of "stretching" the Constitution (as the Feds put it) were clear.

#politics #elections

A 1937 poster demonizing jaywalking. In the early 20th century, it became clear that the proliferation of cars was dangerous for pedestrians. In order to make city streets easier for drivers to navigate, auto companies invented the crime of "jaywalking" ("jay was slang for "fool") in order to get pedestrians out of the streets. It was successful. Soon, after streets went from being places of commerce and communication to the domain of automobiles.

#history #histodon #histodons @histodons

Finally finished watching the Automat documentary (2021). Despite an annoying beginning, the bulk of it was quite interesting.

At times it threatened to turn into the Mel Brooks Show, which became a distraction. I do wish they had interviewed more employees to provide a balance to the management-heavy viewpoint. Also, given its success, I was curious why no equivalent eateries existed outside of NYC and Philadelphia, but that was never addressed.

#documentaries #history #TCMParty

Insulting and passively threatening people and then declaring that they are against free speech when they're offended is....quite a scam.

Free speech. You can say what you like.

Accountability. You're actually responsible for what you say.

#FreeSpeech #ElonMusk