Nostr notes by Dan Sinker

Tomorrow! Chicago! Come hang out with me and Joe. @ 12:30 ...

2026-03-09T01:32:41Z

Tomorrow! Chicago! Come hang out with me and Joe. @ 12:30 Columbia College 618 S Michigan 3rd floor. Will be wild. https://allium.colum.edu/readings-and-events/storytelling-week-featuring-joe-meno-and-dan-sinker

“We accidentally killed all the folks we’d want to lead ...

2026-03-03T20:20:11Z

“We accidentally killed all the folks we’d want to lead Iran” is 100% the girlfriend-in-Canada for not actually having a succession plan.

The best thing you can do in light of the Ellison takeover of ...

2026-02-27T00:14:05Z

The best thing you can do in light of the Ellison takeover of Warner Brothers invest your time, energy, and money in supporting independent creators and independent distribution networks and independent venues. It is absolutely crucial to make independence a viable option.

Teeth are the stupidest bone. Just give me a baleen and let me ...

2026-02-26T20:24:23Z

Teeth are the stupidest bone. Just give me a baleen and let me slurp krill or something.

Just had to scrap a whole blog post highlighting a bunch of rad ...

2026-02-21T00:02:43Z

Just had to scrap a whole blog post highlighting a bunch of rad signpainters because Instagram doesn’t allow inline playback of reels, instead the “embed” function is basically just a gigantic box with a link back to Instagram. We used to have a functional web and we gave it all away for nothing.

It’s endlessly funny to me that the one guy these folks have is ...

2026-02-09T20:05:53Z

It’s endlessly funny to me that the one guy these folks have is Kid Rock. That’s it. That’s the whole bench.

The whistle goblins shipped 100,000 whistles in the first four ...

2026-02-06T00:23:57Z

The whistle goblins shipped 100,000 whistles in the first four days of February. And today? The fifth day? 37,000 more. This is perhaps the most inspiring act of collective action I’ve ever been lucky enough to be a part of.

Help by buying filament: https://linktr.ee/WhistleWishlists

They renamed the entire company around this. ...

2025-12-05T05:10:38Z

They renamed the entire company around this.

Got turned down on a piece about ICE in Chicago for an ...

2025-11-12T17:27:24Z

Got turned down on a piece about ICE in Chicago for an international news org because they believed I couldn’t be objective about my neighbors getting kidnapped. And well, guilty as charged I guess.

The most heartening thing about right now is the propensity of my ...

2025-11-07T16:35:18Z

The most heartening thing about right now is the propensity of my neighbors to run towards trouble

Nostr event nevent1qqsw944uum84fudqkds59ec6fghewk5dlz0fjxh8luad4cc350xslhgzypvs835muu36smx6444u3n2ke4j7ksvsyxrydy0f9cw8yncc2437gaj2x29

2025-11-07T15:31:56Z

Happy Four Seasons Total Landscaping Day to all who celebrate.

I spent Halloween chasing ghosts. Not kids in costumes, or ...

2025-11-05T17:13:38Z

I spent Halloween chasing ghosts. Not kids in costumes, or jumpscares in a haunted house. I spent Halloween chasing ghosts of a different kind: careening from one ICE spotting to another. I wrote an essay about it, and about other ghosts we’re chasing. https://dansinker.com/posts/2025-11-05-ghosts/

Text in the night from my kid. ...

2025-11-05T12:43:41Z

Text in the night from my kid.

Nostr event nevent1qqsqkxqrv7h2y64zy6zkhf3cjkzl7hvycuf99sz69tqr22hvhhkxjmqzypvs835muu36smx6444u3n2ke4j7ksvsyxrydy0f9cw8yncc2437guxt0n4

2025-11-03T00:28:42Z

Unfuckwithable.

Just spent nearly two hours in a line of cars to drop food off ...

2025-11-02T19:22:41Z

Just spent nearly two hours in a line of cars to drop food off for families losing their SNAP benefits. Right now is a literal nightmare but it is incredible to see communities coming together. Everyone understands that the only ones to save us is us.

ICE marauding around Evanston all day, snatching people near ...

2025-10-31T18:00:16Z

ICE marauding around Evanston all day, snatching people near schools, all schools on soft lockdown, on fucking Halloween. 🖕🖕

Full ICE whistle assembly line over here. ...

2025-10-12T00:12:44Z

Full ICE whistle assembly line over here.

I am never ever going to forgive a single one of these ...

2025-10-11T01:59:23Z

I am never ever going to forgive a single one of these motherfuckers.

Definitely a choice to demonstrate how much of a weird loser you ...

2025-09-30T14:05:59Z

Definitely a choice to demonstrate how much of a weird loser you are in front of the entire upper ranks of the military.

Every day I am like well THIS is the craziest thing to have ...

2025-09-30T13:58:12Z

Every day I am like well THIS is the craziest thing to have happened so far. And then the next day happens.

I have no tolerance or time for masked pieces of shit whose ...

2025-09-18T19:52:10Z

I have no tolerance or time for masked pieces of shit whose entire mandate is to snatch people standing outside Home Depot in hopes of getting a few bucks for a day’s work.

Nostr event nevent1qqsdx89ahyelfdyspf3v9j43m4rl9urqnl7prwtu2cj25zfmxazhn6szypvs835muu36smx6444u3n2ke4j7ksvsyxrydy0f9cw8yncc2437gwz6yc4

2025-09-18T00:57:08Z

Turns out the fuck-your-feelings crowd has A LOT of feelings.

Gifting your child a high-powered rifle is also an ideology. We ...

2025-09-17T01:20:44Z

Gifting your child a high-powered rifle is also an ideology. We just refuse to speak of it as such.

Sat in the breakfast area of a Hampton Inn today and overheard ...

2025-08-26T15:38:07Z

Sat in the breakfast area of a Hampton Inn today and overheard three silver-haired white women talk about how great it is that Trump is bringing chip manufacturing back to the US.

spent like five hours there. if we weren't all dying of ...

2025-08-01T19:55:20Z

In reply to nevent1q…4qlv
_________________________

spent like five hours there. if we weren't all dying of hunger we probably would have stayed longer!!

During this hot, difficult summer I took a trip to the largest ...

2025-08-01T19:33:28Z

During this hot, difficult summer I took a trip to the largest arcade in the world and fell in love with the art of the video game marquee. So I created a little gallery: https://dansinker.com/posts/2025-08-01-marquees/

I wrote a post about visiting the last stamp store in Chicago and ...

2025-07-18T20:23:54Z

I wrote a post about visiting the last stamp store in Chicago and living a life that’s fun, but worthless. I really like this one, hope you do too. https://dansinker.com/posts/2025-07-18-stampking/

Since I went to the dentist one (1) week ago, I’ve had a crown ...

2025-07-02T13:14:16Z

Since I went to the dentist one (1) week ago, I’ve had a crown fall out and another one crack. My lesson learned is never go to the dentist.

One in every 70 Americans was on the streets yesterday and it’s ...

2025-06-16T02:24:03Z

One in every 70 Americans was on the streets yesterday and it’s not on the NYT front page 24 hours later.

Deploying ICE, the Border Patrol, the LAPD, the LA County ...

2025-06-08T13:00:33Z

Deploying ICE, the Border Patrol, the LAPD, the LA County Sheriffs, and now the National Guard and maybe the Marines over a small protest at a Home Depot is not the show of force they think it is.

The Times finally reporting what we all could see: Musk was ...

2025-05-30T12:03:18Z

The Times finally reporting what we all could see: Musk was absolutely tripping balls the entire time he destroyed the government. Very polite of them to wait to drop this until he’d left the position.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/30/us/elon-musk-drugs-children-trump.html

We're living through the Who Cares Era, where completely ...

2025-05-24T01:37:24Z

We're living through the Who Cares Era, where completely disposable things are shoddily produced for people to mostly ignore, while the government stomps its uncaring boot on our necks. But there's an easy way to fight back: Care.

I wrote about it: https://dansinker.com/posts/2025-05-23-who-cares/

Elderly woman sitting next to me on the plane with her screen ...

2025-05-10T18:14:51Z

Elderly woman sitting next to me on the plane with her screen text cranked up to max sending “DA POPE” to her entire address book.

I’m a few years when we’ve got the new Pope and JB’s ...

2025-05-08T17:41:06Z

I’m a few years when we’ve got the new Pope and JB’s president we are never gonna shut up ever.

Nostr event nevent1qqsxx0gdrm0yds2h4vqls0cud0zg9chztx6sflv0wu34vx6pxf6euvgzypvs835muu36smx6444u3n2ke4j7ksvsyxrydy0f9cw8yncc2437g4h4nqh

2025-04-28T22:55:24Z

Yesterday was like 40 degrees colder than today

To mark Independent Bookstore Day today, I wrote about the ...

2025-04-26T12:15:11Z

To mark Independent Bookstore Day today, I wrote about the bookshop that changed my life and why indies are more important than ever. https://dansinker.com/posts/2025-04-26-indie-books/

End stage capitalism, but make it food. ...

2025-04-19T17:11:26Z

End stage capitalism, but make it food.

Clone Wars getting real real over here. ...

2025-04-18T01:10:13Z

Clone Wars getting real real over here.

so how high will he go on China today before folding tomorrow? ...

2025-04-09T18:53:31Z

so how high will he go on China today before folding tomorrow? 200%?

I think what any company that wants to make a multi-billion ...

2025-04-09T17:41:23Z

I think what any company that wants to make a multi-billion dollar investment in domestic manufacturing that will take years to come to fruition and many more years that that to earn out is looking for is constantly-shifting decisions based on the ever-changing, chaotic whims of a mad king.

It’s OK I’m sure we didn’t need coffee, bananas, literally ...

2025-04-09T00:01:30Z

It’s OK I’m sure we didn’t need coffee, bananas, literally all electronics, or the rule of law anyway.

Sure there’s gonna be some short-term pain, but in 20-30 years ...

2025-04-07T22:10:31Z

Sure there’s gonna be some short-term pain, but in 20-30 years we’ll have established all the expertise, materials, and infrastructure we need to build and assemble a $25,000 iPhone right here in the USA.

I’m not going to read your “how to defeat fascism” post if ...

2025-04-03T23:50:54Z

I’m not going to read your “how to defeat fascism” post if it’s on Substack, a platform that actively supports fascists.

Guess where they got their weird trade deficit math from? ...

2025-04-03T00:32:30Z

Guess where they got their weird trade deficit math from?

Wisconsin fought and clawed to get out from under the thumb of ...

2025-04-02T02:07:19Z

Wisconsin fought and clawed to get out from under the thumb of the Kochs and Uihleins who had bought and paid for gerrymandered Republican dominance for years. And then another rich motherfucker showed up and the whole state said not today.

My day job is to help run a search for a fellowship program that ...

2025-03-22T23:21:27Z

My day job is to help run a search for a fellowship program that has always brought in some of the most amazing, creative, and righteous people I have ever known. And this year the search is being completely overrun with near-identical madlib answers generated with ChatGPT. It’s so disheartening.

The narrative of DOGE’s break-in (literally) at the US ...

2025-03-19T11:25:43Z

The narrative of DOGE’s break-in (literally) at the US Institute of Peace is fucking gnarly as hell. https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/03/18/doge-institute-of-peace-takeover-musk-trump/

Of course I bought it. ...

2025-03-15T17:56:44Z

In reply to nevent1q…x2u8
_________________________

Of course I bought it.

You can buy a blind box of my childhood. ...

2025-03-15T17:51:29Z

You can buy a blind box of my childhood.

Ran into a celeb while out trying to walk off my rage. ...

2025-03-14T22:32:58Z

Ran into a celeb while out trying to walk off my rage. Northwestern, pay your foodservice workers.

Would be genuinely curious to know if Donald Trump knows how to ...

2025-03-11T20:39:54Z

Would be genuinely curious to know if Donald Trump knows how to drive.

he should just sign an executive order saying stocks can’t go ...

2025-03-11T16:07:41Z

he should just sign an executive order saying stocks can’t go down and then, voila, problem solved.

Imagine being the richest person in the world and needing your ...

2025-03-09T22:09:58Z

Imagine being the richest person in the world and needing your mother to come to your defense.

Think we’ve forgotten about the time that Elon was booed so ...

2025-03-05T22:35:50Z

Think we’ve forgotten about the time that Elon was booed so badly by fans of Dave Chapelle (of all people) that he locked himself in his office and Twitter employees considered calling the cops to do a wellness check.

What I’m saying is we can go harder.

https://www.mercurynews.com/2023/11/08/elon-musk-almost-needed-sfpd-wellness-check-after-breakdown-getting-booed-at-dave-chappelle-show/

These motherfuckers are so insulated in their weird little world ...

2025-03-03T01:42:47Z

These motherfuckers are so insulated in their weird little world that JD Vance thought that going skiing in Vermont was gonna work out for him.

Gutting out Medicaid to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy is such ...

2025-02-25T23:51:34Z

Gutting out Medicaid to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy is such absolute ghoul shit.

In light of everything happening, I wrote about how the KKK in ...

2025-02-24T01:07:03Z

In light of everything happening, I wrote about how the KKK in the 1920s felt unstoppable, about the people that fought against them anyway, and about how fascism always fails. https://dansinker.com/posts/2025-02-23-dale/

The problem with trying to write right now is you’ve got to ...

2025-02-23T17:56:49Z

The problem with trying to write right now is you’ve got to slog through hours of existential dread first.

I mean I guess that’s the problem with everything right now.

I know white house reporters are currently cowering for access, ...

2025-02-21T14:47:39Z

I know white house reporters are currently cowering for access, but it would be nice for someone to ask about Elon’s continued and ever-more-public drug abuse in the context of its threat to national security.

The little doge rats continue to be stymied by basic web tech. ...

2025-02-14T12:29:40Z

The little doge rats continue to be stymied by basic web tech. https://www.theverge.com/news/612865/doge-government-website-database-security-open

Well, my fascism coal mine canary just died. ...

2025-02-11T00:09:57Z

Well, my fascism coal mine canary just died.

I am begging you: if you are writing a thread of more than a ...

2025-01-31T00:43:18Z

I am begging you: if you are writing a thread of more than a couple posts, get a blog. I don’t mean this in a mean way. I mean: allow this thought to continue to exist, outside of this platform, in an actually coherent, readable format that sticks around for longer than 20 minutes. You deserve it!

Bookshop, the anti-amazon that gives $$ to local bookstores with ...

2025-01-28T16:35:50Z

Bookshop, the anti-amazon that gives $$ to local bookstores with every sale, now has ebooks. That’s a big deal: https://bookshop.org/info/ebooks

The other week I spoke at 20x2 about newspaperman George Dale who ...

2025-01-28T03:15:46Z

The other week I spoke at 20x2 about newspaperman George Dale who fought the Klan in the 1920s, at huge personal cost, and how our path forward involves being more like him than the folks bending the knee right now. https://youtu.be/eYokyfkVROY?t=118

My St Pauli ANTIFASCIST hoodie is all I’ll be wearing for the ...

2025-01-20T19:15:50Z

My St Pauli ANTIFASCIST hoodie is all I’ll be wearing for the next while k thanks.

I just keep writing pithy little posts and deleting them and then ...

2025-01-19T22:07:38Z

I just keep writing pithy little posts and deleting them and then writing new little jokes and deleting them and then just staring into the middle distance for a while and then trying again

As a parent of a Gen Z kid, I can tell you that their whole ...

2025-01-19T20:00:43Z

As a parent of a Gen Z kid, I can tell you that their whole entire lives they’ve seen the government put them last. Guns, covid, student loans, cost-of-living, it’s always their gen that has gotten fucked.

This TikTok ban vividly reinforces what they already know.

The best time to start building a little spot for yourself on the ...

2025-01-19T13:08:34Z

The best time to start building a little spot for yourself on the internet independent of platforms was yesterday. The second best time is right fucking now.

Hope the LA Times is being sure to print the fire’s point of ...

2025-01-08T04:45:29Z

Hope the LA Times is being sure to print the fire’s point of view too.

but there are a lot of people I wouldn't call ...

2025-01-07T17:20:04Z

In reply to nevent1q…udt2
_________________________

but there are a lot of people I wouldn't call "average" that are far too invested in Substack and Instagram and all the rest that should begin to mitigate their exposure.

the average person 100% doesn't care.

2025-01-07T17:18:56Z

In reply to nevent1q…cygv
_________________________

the average person 100% doesn't care.

The first small step in making a better internet for each other ...

2025-01-03T14:45:06Z

The first small step in making a better internet for each other is starting to establish a presence there that isn’t owned by a platform. Separate your self from Meta and Twitter and Substack and own your presence. Is it as easy? No, but it’s worth it.

Nostr event nevent1qqsrnvamlelnx7hxz38a2kfsltxj3mh5q6jusadvhyz3d38fl84j0tszypvs835muu36smx6444u3n2ke4j7ksvsyxrydy0f9cw8yncc2437g7gs7ft

2025-01-01T13:17:14Z

Waking up to carnage: an American story.

Nostr event nevent1qqsrxjsjzvp3pfx33ygf709c25u7myjqtq0z0pwrmp8yy849zhtunfszypvs835muu36smx6444u3n2ke4j7ksvsyxrydy0f9cw8yncc2437g5t3dms

2024-12-26T14:56:10Z

Boxing day death fog out here

Absolutely love that we have a ketamine-fueled shadow president ...

2024-12-18T22:17:46Z

Absolutely love that we have a ketamine-fueled shadow president with infinite money puppetmastering the government via tweet. Just love this for us.

This investigation of cops all over the place reselling tens of ...

2024-12-05T13:40:22Z

This investigation of cops all over the place reselling tens of thousands of guns on the sly over YEARS in basically full knowledge of the feds who won’t prosecute should perhaps be a bigger story? https://www.cbsnews.com/news/police-selling-restricted-guns-posties/

I went to write an essay looking back at the the seventh year of ...

2024-11-30T23:55:06Z

I went to write an essay looking back at the the seventh year of Punk Planet, but one of the issues we published that year felt too relevant to RIGHT NOW to keep the essay's focus on the past.

Read "Become the Media: Punk Planet, Year Seven" on my blog: https://dansinker.com//posts/2024-11-30-ppy7/

If you are traveling this week, consider listeing to Rebel ...

2024-11-27T16:39:22Z

If you are traveling this week, consider listeing to Rebel Spirit. 10 incredible episodes about how change really happens. Hilarious and maddening and really, really good. I mean I helped make it so I’m biased (but it is). https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rebel-spirit/id1752673109

Was at the library today. They are just the best spaces: free and ...

2024-11-24T04:29:48Z

Was at the library today. They are just the best spaces: free and open to everyone, no questions or judgement. No wonder the fascists hate them.

Current status. ...

2024-11-21T15:21:40Z

Current status.

“We constrain our imaginations when we subordinate our ...

2024-11-19T23:51:49Z

“We constrain our imaginations when we subordinate our creations to names owned by fascist tycoons,” Anil bringing the absolute fire in his Substack takedown. https://www.anildash.com/2024/11/19/dont-call-it-a-substack/

Nostr event nevent1qqsg3r35j575ge7zhz8yfwex0zf86mf5d96kxvugksg5w2a975af90qzypvs835muu36smx6444u3n2ke4j7ksvsyxrydy0f9cw8yncc2437g5jknwr

2024-11-15T09:23:53Z

*bangs gavel* insomnia club is called to order.

Nostr event nevent1qqs2ccu96adsx7sevjtwdmtalm8t3d59s9n4n0awx8lsgg9rtnk24vgzypvs835muu36smx6444u3n2ke4j7ksvsyxrydy0f9cw8yncc2437gxkqym9

2024-11-08T17:47:28Z

Hey dudes, get that vasectomy.

I know it’s only a tiny slice of a shit pie, but locking good ...

2024-11-08T15:24:19Z

I know it’s only a tiny slice of a shit pie, but locking good reporting behind paywalls for the last decade+ has been a fucking disaster

Sat quietly most of the day and researched people who fought the ...

2024-11-08T02:29:39Z

Sat quietly most of the day and researched people who fought the Klan in the 20s and feel more at peace and more ready than I have since everything went south Tuesday night.

TWO HUNDRED THOUSAND SUBSCRIPTIONS CANCELLED HOLY SHIT. ...

2024-10-29T00:06:00Z

TWO HUNDRED THOUSAND SUBSCRIPTIONS CANCELLED HOLY SHIT. https://www.npr.org/2024/10/28/nx-s1-5168416/washington-post-bezos-endorsement-president-cancellations-resignations

Everyone boosting clips from the MSG rally exactly like they want ...

2024-10-28T01:36:12Z

Everyone boosting clips from the MSG rally exactly like they want you to do.

The billionaire owners of newspapers are pulling endorsements ...

2024-10-26T19:54:22Z

The billionaire owners of newspapers are pulling endorsements because they want the government contracts for the camps

Well that should do it. ...

2024-10-24T02:45:32Z

Well that should do it.

Nostr event nevent1qqs294vvvav2va6appmuuluyrguxsc3k2hlmuj4dzuzfwhcnfhkxjzczypvs835muu36smx6444u3n2ke4j7ksvsyxrydy0f9cw8yncc2437gvg5rj0

2024-10-18T11:49:24Z

Cold early mornings in the fall over everything.

I love Vance's constant refrain that "we are focused on ...

2024-10-11T16:22:50Z

I love Vance's constant refrain that "we are focused on the future" like motherfucker have you met your running mate? He lives his entire life in an imagined vip room he wasn't invited into at the Roxy in 1982.

Rebel Spirit, the podcast I've been working on with Akilah ...

2024-09-03T12:40:53Z

Rebel Spirit, the podcast I've been working on with Akilah Hughes for the last YEAR, is out today! It's the story of Akilah's attempt to change her high school's racist mascot and all the people we meet and history we learn along the way. It's the best reporting project I've ever done and I am so excited that you can finally start this journey TODAY.

Out on all podcast platforms, here's a Spotify link. https://open.spotify.com/episode/2EUTtUFZKe3rJEjFvseVOZ?si=e8JmDYHXRbqKUYuQSBzD4Q

Nostr event nevent1qqszd9v0hmkfuhwj2g9mn7c269a5hcrnyqa064rlj2hmlx79yyk3sqqzypvs835muu36smx6444u3n2ke4j7ksvsyxrydy0f9cw8yncc2437gj0zc4n

2024-08-30T02:27:41Z

Does anyone have a Framework laptop and do you like it?

For the last year I've been working with Akilah Hughes to ...

2024-06-20T03:44:03Z

For the last year I've been working with Akilah Hughes to make Rebel Spirit, a podcast about her quest to change her high school mascot from the Rebels, named after the confederacy, to the Biscuits, a part of Southern heritage that everyone can get behind. It's been an infuriating, hilarious, and extraordinary journey and one I'm so excited to finally let you into.

Read "Rebel Rebel" on my site: https://dansinker.com/posts/2024-06-19-rebelsprit/

This week I gave a talk at the 11ty International Symposium on ...

2024-05-10T23:10:10Z

This week I gave a talk at the 11ty International Symposium on Making the Web Real Good. It was about Question Mark, Ohio and about how the web is still a place of endless possibility. I've adapted the talk into a blog post for you.

Read "Building a Town that Doesn't Exist" on my site: https://dansinker.com/posts/2024-05-10-doesntexist/