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22 Jan, 4 tweets, 2 min read
Microsoft held an employee town hall today. I obtained a copy of Microsoft President Brad Smith's remarkably candid explanation of why Microsoft will continue to fund politicians whose conduct is completely at odds with the company's stated values notes.pinboard.in/u:maciej/90342…
Picture of Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella with an unidentified Windows user from Queens
One reason we're talking about Microsoft here is that their leaders are at least willing to engage with employees about the PAC. Not so at Google, Facebook, or Amazon, whose political giving is even less defensible. Employees have the power to defund all this and should use it
A while back I compiled this long list of Microsoft's public statements on issues like immigration, climate, and LGBTQ rights, juxtaposed with their actual political giving idlewords.com/microsoft_word…

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More from @Pinboard

29 Oct 20
Ranked choice voting is an amazing electoral innovation that lets you mark one of the two major party candidates as your “first choice” instead of voting for them outright.
I was a fan of ranked choice until I tried to explain to a skeptical voter why "some people get to vote multiple times while others just get one vote" and realized that ranked choice adds both cognitive complexity and ballot complexity to an already difficult process
From ranked choice voting to end-to-end encryption and wood apples, I tend to like stuff a lot until I try it and realize it is way overhyped
Read 4 tweets
28 Oct 20
Be honest with me: does the bay leaf even do anything?
I've been putting these things in soups my whole life and I could not begin to tell you what 'bay leaf' tastes like. I'm tired and I want answers.
So far I've learned that a bay leaf is a dried aromatic you add to certain foods in order to have long online arguments
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27 Oct 20
A thread on how record fundraising has crippled a bunch of Democratic campaigns, which also ties in to people's question "can candidates do anything useful with donations a week before the election?" TL;DR no one can afford to pay for pre-reserved ad time because of Senate races
If you're running for Congress, you book a bunch of ad time right before the election, based on your anticipated budget. In most cases you can't pay up front for this ad time even if you wanted to.
There's a law that says candidates have to be charged the lowest rate available for ads they run within 60 days of the election. In the past, that has made ad costs fairly predictable in smaller media markets. It also means candidates get a better deal than Super PACs
Read 11 tweets
27 Oct 20
A thread expressing some concerns I have, too. I think a lot of the articles about the genius of Biden's low-key approach to campaigning are being too clever by half, and the vital lessons of Brexit and 2016 (things can move quickly in the last week) have not been absorbed
In particular, the arrogance of relying on election models in a year when we are entirely outside the parameters of those models gives me a feeling of dread. I am encouraged that Biden plans to leave the house this week and visit places we badly need to win
The country has become so politically segregated that it's hard for most voters to get a good read on how a national election is going. It's not like you have neighbors in the other party you can talk to. The polling is a lot like financial models—it works great until it doesn't
Read 4 tweets
27 Oct 20
It's a week before the election! A thread on where your money is still useful: First off, two House races in rural Maine and northwest Iowa with a record of overperforming in rural votes, both in states where we need every vote we can get to win the Senate secure.actblue.com/donate/great_s…
Second, state races in North Carolina! Not only are we in a position to win the state house there, but it's a swing state with a crucial Senate contest, and it's full of registered Democrats who don't vote. Help state candidates reach
them this year! secure.actblue.com/donate/state_s…
Third, state races in Florida. This is a must-win state for Trump, and another opportunity to win a state house, which would mean Medicaid expansion and fair redistricting in 2021. State candidates there have been badly outraised by Republicans, help them! secure.actblue.com/donate/state_s…
Read 6 tweets
27 Oct 20
A nice thing about agricultural areas of Nebraska and Iowa is that the grocery stores have the usual timid "ethnic foods" aisle with ramen noodles and the like, but also a separate and well-stocked "EXTREMELY MEXICAN" section, both in the produce and dry goods departments
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Err, I said migrant worker but these days it is mostly about people coming to work long-term in places like the meatpacking plants
Read 5 tweets

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