Thomas Friedman, the New York Times’ legendary innovator of the op-ed formula “I met a taxi driver in [random ass country] who helped me realize [opinion I already held],” penned a new piece on his political identity — “Waymo Democrat” — which was widely mocked online. While centrists just found the coinage kind of goofy, the MAGA crowd felt Friedman’s love for automation stood at odds with his purported concern for the working class. But in my opinion Friedman’s biggest problem was his definition by negative: in his opening paragraph, he contrasted himself with (of course) Trump. Because beyond opposition to some cartoon version of the president that only lives in their heads, Democrats don’t seem to know who they are. And that’s unfortunate! Because techno utopianism slaps, and with a little polish “Waymo Dem” might go hard as hell — though probably not as hard as “Abundance Dem,” which Friedman’s clearly ripping off.

Last week, Instagram launched “Blend,” a feature that creates a feed of reels among friends based on their shared interests (algorithms). Meaning, to borrow a phrase from BI, everyone finally gets to see “what a weird little gremlin you are” lol. To be sure, this is meant to monetize direct-messages (the Blend feed, complete with ads, will live inside group DMs). But whatever, I’m a fan. Like during lockdowns, when I was consuming a decent amount of domesticated raccoon content — would it have been slightly embarrassing to have a witness? Yes. But would it also have been potentially restorative to be wrenched from my stupor? Yes. As Jack Dorsey told Solana last year, a social media approach where people can choose the algorithms that make up their feeds is overdue. Maybe this is one step towards that kind of agency. And where separation — the worst of you, the best of you — isn’t necessarily the default.

New Mexico Judge Jose Cano announced his resignation this week after the Tren de Aragua gang member he was harboring in his house (this is a real story) was arrested for unlawful firearm possession. The gang member in question — Cristhian Ortega-Lopez — illegally entered the United States before later linking up with Judge Cano’s family, who promptly invited this gang member to stay at their home (as one does). There, Judge Cano even helped his new amigo file a request for immigration relief, all before the charming house guest was arrested after social media posts showed him brandishing firearms and displaying Tren de Aragua tattoos (other images found on his cell phone included decapitated / mutilated bodies… fun!). Now, I’m not saying Trump should disregard court orders — however. The next time some low-level judge gets involved in the process, can we at least check to make sure he isn’t literally roommates with a gang member?