Diogenes Club

Diogenes In ReviewThe thirteenth episode of the Diogenes Club opens on a title that sounds like a joke and lands like a thesis. Nick Paro has been working all night on the line — “What are they good for?” — and Eric Lullove walks straight into it: “I just know that they’re gonna take my vote away next week.” Within two minutes, Walter Rhein has named the moment as a finger-counting exercise — “Can we count from 10 to 0 on the 10 list of rights that they are going to take away?” — and Nick has refused the premise. “I’m done letting them take any rights. I am taking their right to take my rights away back from them.” The naming dispute that follows is the episode’s tonal anchor. Nick wants to retire “Republican” because they aren’t that anymore — “they’re just the regressive right.” Eric pushes harder: “No, they’re fascist Nazis. Call them what they are.” Walter goes further still and corrects them both: “No, they’re fascist Confederates. They’re older than Nazism. They’re fascist Confederates.” The distinction is not pedantry. It is the operating frame for the rest of the hour. Eric reads Niemoller’s “First They Came” into the record, places himself inside it as a Jew, and observes that the regime is running out of constituencies to alienate. “Who’s left to speak for him when this is all said and done?”The core argument arrives with the Supreme Court’s 6-3 evisceration of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act and Louisiana’s overnight response. Eric reads the Landry-Murrill joint statement aloud — the state is “currently enjoined from carrying out congressional elections under the current map,” primaries postponed, ballots already mailed — and the room metabolizes it in real time. Dana DuBois, calling in while walking to her day job in Seattle, names the tactic: “chaos agents. They’re just trying to put elections in so much chaos because Americans already have a problem with not voting in big enough numbers.” Eric collapses the legal logic into a sentence: “The remedy that was supposed to cure the remedy basically undid the remedy, which now makes it legal to go back to where we were back in the 1800s.” Nick remembers it was the Court itself that telegraphed the destination: “Well, I mean, they did say they wanted to go back to the 1800s.” Eric draws the through-line — Rucho v. Common Cause in 2019 blocked political-gerrymandering claims, this ruling kills the racial ones, and what remains is a permission slip. The John Lewis Voting Rights Restoration Act sat on the table; Schumer would not “pull the nuclear weapon” on the filibuster, even after the Senate had already shredded it for appointees, judges, and treaties. The receipts are stacked. The complicity is bipartisan.Nieta Greene’s arrival reframes the fight as continental, not regional. She makes it explicit that the Court did not just gut a Southern protection: “It’s also language minorities.” She walks the room through the 1920s New York English-literacy regime, the disenfranchisement of Puerto Ricans by the 1960s, and the Latino-majority municipal fights in places like Port Chester, then closes the loop: “every community needs to wake the fuck up and understand that this shit is going to roll downhill.” Nick hears her and revises in public — “we forgot that the entire fucking country exists, and there is no north-south in the U.S.” From there the conversation moves to the harder question Walter has been holding all season: defending rights without asking the abuser for consent. Nick names it directly: “we cannot ask for consent to defend our rights.” He links it to imposter syndrome as a tool of oppression — “That’s entirely white supremacy thinking, where you’re afraid to even try to make things better because you’re so convinced you’re going to make it worse.” Brittany Jones’s gubernatorial pitch on enforcing treaty law surfaces as a concrete lever Democratic governors and AGs are simply not pulling. Nieta sharpens the broader stakes: the gutting will be used “so they can reverse gay marriage across the country and make it hodgepodge legal depending on which state you live in. And so they can say they don’t have to educate people with disabilities.”The closing movement turns the analysis into a marching order. Walter refuses the trap of “we can’t fix anything because anything we implement will also be sabotaged” and tells the room their job is to act anyway. Nick hands him the frame: “we’re not problem finders. We’re supposed to be problem solvers.” Eric points to a Palm Beach state Senate special election where the progressive Democrat beat the Trump candidate by thirty points and notes that the people who pushed back have “more money than I could ever attain in a lifetime” — the wealth-versus-fascism alignment is not as fixed as the regime needs voters to believe. Nieta closes her segment with a class-and-race correction that none of the men try to soften, traces post-1968 Black flight and the gentrification cycles that followed, and pitches Disability Community for Democracy’s “Nothing About Us Without Us” — five bucks a month, last day of the annual sale — because that newsletter is the only thing paying for the Restream and Zoom subscriptions that get candidates booked. Eric trails Peter Thiel’s capture of HHS, CDC, and FDA into a forthcoming Blue Amp piece on MAHA and eugenics, and notes Alex Karp’s pitch that legalizing war crimes would be more profitable. Nick lays out a matching-fund plan to seed independent younger creators with every annual subscription. The episode does not tie a bow on the VRA — there isn’t one to tie. What it does instead is what the title actually demanded: refuse to count down from ten, name the regressives as fascist Confederates, and stop asking permission to fight back.Sources & References* Voting Rights Act of 1965, Section 2 — Gutted by a 6-3 Supreme Court ruling the day before this episode aired, ending the racial-vote-dilution claim as a viable cause of action* Louisiana primary cancellation — Joint statement from Governor Jeff Landry and Attorney General Liz Murrill announced postponement of the in-progress 2026 congressional primary after the VRA ruling vacated the stay on Louisiana’s existing map; reporting attributed to Erin Parnas* John Lewis Voting Rights Restoration Act — Federal legislation to restore the VRA’s preclearance and Section 2 protections; remained un-passed because Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer would not move to suspend the filibuster* Rucho v. Common Cause (2019) — Supreme Court decision foreclosing federal partisan-gerrymandering claims; cited by Eric as the prior step in the same dismantling project* Martin Niemoller, “First They Came” — German pastor and author of the canonical poem on the cost of silence under fascism; read aloud in full by Eric* Clarence Thomas — Supreme Court Justice; named by Nick as part of the 6-3 majority and described as a racist white supremacist in alignment with the rest of the bloc* Greg Abbott — Texas Governor; cited as proof that disability does not protect a person from being “ableist and racist as hell”* Viktor Orban — Hungarian Prime Minister; Eric’s benchmark for the regime’s compressed timeline (“trying to do here in two years what Orban did in 16 in Hungary”)* Peter Thiel — Tech billionaire; subject of Eric’s forthcoming Blue Amp Media piece on Thiel’s placement of allies inside HHS, CDC, and FDA, with JD Vance named as one of his proteges* Alex Karp — Palantir CEO; cited for publicly arguing that legalizing war crimes would be more profitable* Dana DuBois — Host of The Daily Whatever; called in mid-episode to react to the VRA ruling and recommended attorney Anne P. Marshall’s analysis* Anne P. Marshall — Attorney whose published take on the VRA decision was recommended by Dana as a less-catastrophic legal read* Nieta Greene — CEO of Disability Community for Democracy, publisher of the “Nothing About Us Without Us” Substack newsletter; serves on the Cambridge, Massachusetts Disabilities Commission* Brittany Jones — Oregon gubernatorial candidate; interviewed by Nick and Eric the prior day; pitched enforcement of treaty law with First Nations as an immediate executive lever governors and AGs are not pulling* Courage Candidates network — Progressive primary-challenger ecosystem coordinated through Kira Havens; named again as the pipeline for booking candidate interviews* Erica Kopp — Colorado primary challenger; referenced as an active candidate-interview booking* Jessica Denson — Forthcoming guest; flagged as scheduled in the coming weeks* Civil Rights Act of 1968 / Fair Housing Act — Cited by Nieta in her closing on Black homeownership, suburban migration, and the pre-1968 “shell games” required to buy property* Palm Beach state Senate special election — Florida race in which the progressive Democratic candidate beat the Trump-aligned candidate by thirty points; cited by Eric as proof of bottom-up resistance even in wealthy districts* EPA groundwater testing decision — Referenced in passing by Eric as a same-week ruling on testing for misoprostol metabolites; flagged for a future episodeCommunity to Check OutActions You Can Take* Check out the new: Sick of this Shop!* Check out the new network and affiliate calendar: BroadBannerSubmit questions, feedback, and artwork for Notes of the Week with Nick and Walter:* Sick of this Shit Community Comment FormCall your public servants on important issues:* 5calls.orgJoin the efforts to unmask law enforcement and de-flock the States:* deflock.meService members can get un-biased information on legal vs illegal orders:* Orders Project* Reach out on Signal: @TheOrdersProject.76Learn empathy forward, human centered, experiment based Leadership & Growth Courses for Higher Ed & Non-Profit Professionals:* B. Cognition LabsThank you Dana DuBois, Beth Cruz, PJ Schuster, Lynette, THE TRAJECTORY, and many others for tuning into my live video with Evan Fields, Walter Rhein, and Eric Lullove! Join me for my next live video in the app.Nick’s NotesI’m Nick Paro, and I’m sick of the shit going on. So, I’m using poetry, podcasting, and lives to discuss the intersections of chronic illness and mental wellbeing, masculinity, veteran’s issues, politics, and so much more. I am only able to have these conversations, bring visibility to my communities, and fill the void through your support — this is a publication where engagement is encouraged, creativity is a cornerstone, and transparency is key — please consider becoming a paid subscriber today and grow the community!Join the uncensored media at the 1A CollectiveSupport as a paid subscriber however you can — to help get you started, here are a few discounted options for you* Forever at 50% off* Forever at 60% offA special thank you to those who are a part of the Sickest of Them All~ Soso | Millicent | Courtney 🇨🇦 | Eric Lullove | Terry mitchell | Carollynn | Julie Robuck | Mason/She/Her🩷💜💙 | Kimmy Win ~For support, contact us at: [email protected] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sickofthis.substack.com/subscribe

Diogenes In ReviewThe twelfth episode of the Diogenes Club covers the full terrain of topics the club has been circling all season: grief, complicity, consent, accountability, the collapse of media as a public trust, and the ongoing project of building something new out of the rubble. If there is an idea embedded in the title, it is not that the groove has already been found — it is that finding it is the work, and the work is always in progress.Eric Lullove opens the episode by honoring his grandmother, who passed away last week, and he tells us two stories. In the first, she calls him from Florida during the 2000 election to say she thinks the fix is in because the punch card didn’t align. In the second, she takes a call from a pollster arguing that marriage should be between a man and a woman, considers the pitch, and responds: “That’s okay — I’m a lesbian.” She was in her eighties. She was not joking. She was a staunch Democrat who worked for the Palm Beach Democratic Party her whole life, was put on a Smucker’s jar at 100, and read books on her Kindle until her mobility slowed. “She was a big part of why I turned out on the right side of the grass.” Walter responds by making the case that grief is not a reason to go quiet — it is a reason to speak. His friend lost a son to suicide and told him he wanted to talk about his boy, not around him. “That’s how we keep the memory alive. That’s the opposite of toxic masculinity.” Nick reflects on his own relationship to grandparent loss — one grandfather died when he was four or five, a grandmother developed Alzheimer’s — and expresses genuine gratitude that Eric’s daughter had eighteen years of relationship with her great-grandmother. “Most kids don’t even know their great grandparents.” The episode begins, in other words, not with a topic but with a person — and by doing so, it establishes what this room is before it gets to what this room does.Eric’s pivot from grandmother to politics is not accidental — it is the same move the group has been making all season, and it lands hard. We live disconnected from each other because of technology, he argues, even as we use technology to try to reconnect. Walter’s candidate interview series — which by this episode has grown to include Shelby Campbell (Michigan), Dr. Melissa Bird (Oregon), Emily Berge, and others through the Courage Candidates network — is named as the counter-model: using the platform not to broadcast but to introduce. And from the disconnection thesis, Eric goes directly to the CNN investigation into motherless.com, a coordinated network in which thousands of men shared pharmaceutical techniques for drugging and raping their wives, livestreamed the assaults for a paying audience, and charged viewers $20 a session. He has been holding this for a week. He is not restrained about it. “You fucking piece of shit. That is not how you treat your best friend and life partner.” Walter, characteristically, moves from the individual to the system: “The guys who have the power to stop these rapes, to hold these men accountable, are deliberately not doing it. I’m assuming malice. I’m straight up assuming malice.” Nick answers the “do you love Israel?” question from the YouTube chat, places himself clearly against the Israeli government’s conduct in Palestine, and then refocuses: “Our society has basically accepted rape culture as culture. We cannot sit by idly.”The accountability architecture runs through the entire episode and surfaces most clearly when Nick addresses the Congressional Sexual Assault slush fund directly. He has a public challenge: “We need one male Congress member to put his career on the line and go on the floor and name them. Not a female. A male. With the most privilege in the world. Don’t ask for approval. Don’t wait for approval. Just do it.” Frederic invokes Cory Booker breaking the Strom Thurmond filibuster record: “Why can’t Democratic senators just start reading the Epstein files on the floor? You don’t even have to do it alone — you can pass it off to someone else.” Walter’s answer: we have surrendered the media, and even a senator reading those names on the floor would be trashed by every oligarch-owned outlet before the clip finished loading. “That is why you guys being here matters. We have to continue to grow. We are a fledgling. We are a seed.”The episode ends in something close to joy. Eric shares polling data live: Trump is minus 68 on the economy, Republican approval with their own base has collapsed from 93% to 89% in four months, independents have dropped from 35% approval in August to 25% in December — and this is last year’s data. Frederic takes partial credit for the independent numbers, having recently re-registered. Nick wraps it: “Fred’s being part of the solution.” The Diogenes Club’s twelfth episode doesn’t wrap anything up — the Epstein investigation is ongoing, Evan missed the conversation, Maxwell may get pardoned before the episode posts — but it does something the title promises: it finds the groove. The room knows how to work together now. They know when to hold a hard conversation and when to pass. They know when to call something out and when to call something for. That’s the groove. That’s what twelve episodes builds.Sources & References* Motherless.com — Subject of CNN investigative report in April 2026, exposing a coordinated user network sharing pharmaceutical techniques for drugging and assaulting spouses, with livestreamed assaults sold for $20 per viewer* DOJ Inspector General Investigation — Announced April 2026; targets the handling of Jeffrey Epstein files by Attorney General Pam Bondi and Deputy AG Todd Blanche* Ghislaine Maxwell — Epstein co-conspirator, convicted 2021; pardon discussions referenced as ongoing in April 2026* Congressional Sexual Assault Defense Fund — Taxpayer-funded mechanism used to settle and defend sexual misconduct claims by members of Congress* Alan Dershowitz — Attorney; referenced for reported statements advocating for lowering the age of consent to 14-15* Cory Booker — U.S. Senator; referenced for breaking Strom Thurmond’s Senate filibuster record* Courage Candidates — Progressive primary challenger network; operating in approximately a quarter of all U.S. House races in the 2026 cycle* Shelby Campbell — Courage Candidate running in Michigan; interviewed by Walter Rhein and Eric Lullove* Dr. Melissa Bird — Candidate running in Oregon; interviewed by Walter Rhein* Joseph Perez-Caputo — Courage Candidate running for Connecticut 4; scheduled for interview with Nick Paro* Jasmine Thomas — Senate candidate from Oklahoma; mentioned by a viewer in the live chat* Joy Reid — Journalist; cited as the one established media figure who has actually elevated independent creators* Eric Swalwell — U.S. Representative; named as a protected member of the Democratic establishmentActions You Can Take* Check out the new: Sick of this Shop!* Check out the new network and affiliate calendar: BroadBannerSubmit questions, feedback, and artwork for Notes of the Week with Nick and Walter:* Sick of this Shit Community Comment FormCall your public servants on important issues:* 5calls.orgJoin the efforts to unmask law enforcement and de-flock the States:* deflock.meService members can get un-biased information on legal vs illegal orders:* Orders Project* Reach out on Signal: @TheOrdersProject.76Learn empathy forward, human centered, experiment based Leadership & Growth Courses for Higher Ed & Non-Profit Professionals:* B. Cognition LabsThank you NeuroDivergent Hodgepodge, LeftieProf, Farmers AGAINST trump., MJ, Ms.Yuse, and many others for tuning into my live video with Evan Fields and Walter Rhein! Join me for my next live video in the app.Nick’s NotesI’m Nick Paro, and I’m sick of the shit going on. So, I’m using poetry, podcasting, and lives to discuss the intersections of chronic illness and mental wellbeing, masculinity, veteran’s issues, politics, and so much more. I am only able to have these conversations, bring visibility to my communities, and fill the void through your support — this is a publication where engagement is encouraged, creativity is a cornerstone, and transparency is key — please consider becoming a paid subscriber today and grow the community!Join the uncensored media at the 1A CollectiveSupport as a paid subscriber however you can — to help get you started, here are a few discounted options for you* Forever at 50% off* Forever at 60% offA special thank you to those who are a part of the Sickest of Them All~ Soso | Millicent | Courtney 🇨🇦 | Eric Lullove | Terry mitchell | Carollynn | Julie Robuck | Mason/She/Her🩷💜💙 | Kimmy Win ~For support, contact us at: [email protected] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sickofthis.substack.com/subscribe

In this 11th installment of the Diogenes Club — Nick Paro, Walter Rhein, and Evan Fields welcome special guest Frederic Poag — essayist and masculinity guru — with “The Ballad of Frederick Poag,” an epic poem Walter composed in Frederic’s honor. The ballad sets the episode’s emotional mood: this is a room of men who have chosen humor and solidarity as survival tools while the world outside burns. The poem is funny, yes — and it is also a form of life and love — the care of men for each other, for women as a whole, for the next generation — is ultimately what this episode is about.From there the conversation moves fast and wide. Nick is re-listening to Pierce Brown’s Red Rising series, which he uses as a framework for what’s happening in front of us: a society that replaced explicit racism with explicit classism, where your worth is determined by color — not of skin but of caste. Golds exploit Reds not because of hate but because of structural necessity; the system is designed to reproduce itself. Nick draws the line to the present — to warehouses and non-competes and gutted labor boards — and makes the argument plainly: when you make it impossible for people to survive with dignity, you create the conditions for radicalization. The U.S. government is doing that right now. This is a warning that has already proven itself.The labor rights thread anchors the middle section of the episode. Fred recounts the culture inside the aviation industry, where management treated above-and-beyond recognition cards as threats to authority rather than tools of human dignity. A worker earned nothing more than the absence of punishment. Nick’s counter-example — being told he should be grateful he has a job while selling his labor at rates he had to accept rather than rates anyone negotiated freely — is a description of the basic asymmetry of power in American employment. Walter connects this to Amazon: a warehouse worker died on the floor, colleagues with CPR training were told to step back and wait, and the terminal where the man collapsed would probably bear his name before his employer bore any liability. The unions, they note, are what separates “they offer CPR classes as part of the contract” from “they denied a dying man CPR to limit legal exposure.” The National Labor Relations Board has been effectively gutted. Weekends, eight-hour days, the right to organize — these were all fought for by people who died to establish them. We are watching them be dismantled in real time.The episode then turns to religion as a parallel system of protected abuse. Nick reflects on his family’s departure from organized religious life after a synagogue — where soon after his grandfather’s death his family was contacted to ask for a donation, but never condolences, and they never returned. The lesson his mother taught was simple: when an institution reveals it cares more about your money than your grief, you walk. He holds that against the dominant experience of religious life in America, which for the majority of people who talk about it involves trauma, coercion, and brainwashing. Evan provides the military chaplaincy comparison — the existential bargain between cleaning the barracks and sitting in a pew — while Nick names the positive exception: Qasim Rashid, Esq., who practices personal faith without imposing it, as the model of what belief can look like without becoming a weapon. The critique is not of faith. It is of institutional religion as a structure that consistently covers for the men at its center.This critique becomes explicit and devastating when the group addresses the week’s most disturbing news: the exposure of a coordinated network on motherless.com, in which thousands of men shared techniques — including pharmaceutical recipes — for drugging and raping their wives, then livestreamed the assaults for a paying audience. Sixty-nine million monthly visits. An “eye check” protocol. A man who charged $20 a viewer and performed on command. The women on Threads connecting this to the “choose the bear” conversation are not being hyperbolic. They are explaining why the default assumption of danger around men is not paranoia but evidence-based risk assessment. Evan says it directly: “You have to assume. We know other women are safe around us. But they don’t fucking know that.” The network exists. The men in it are somebody’s husband, colleague, neighbor. Nothing has happened to them yet.The political analysis that follows is unsparing. There is a congressional slush fund — taxpayer money — specifically reserved to help members of Congress defend themselves against sexual assault allegations. Not the accusers. The accused. Nick names Eric Swalwell as an open secret the Democratic Party protected. Ruben Gallego as someone currently under investigation for misuse of campaign funds with Swalwell on a trip to Puerto Rico. The argument is not partisan point-scoring. The argument is: Democratic attorneys general have jurisdiction. They have the legal authority to act. Democratic members of Congress could go to the floor and put the names of every member who drew from the sexual assault defense fund into the congressional record. The fact that they haven’t done this is a choice. It is a choice that protects rapists in the name of party stability. Nick’s counter-proposal is the opposite of stability: out them all, replace them all, and build something that doesn’t require protecting abusers to stay functional.The episode’s emotional peak comes from Walter’s story — which he tells, by his own admission, still getting hot. Several years ago his daughter came home having been spat on by a classmate in Spanish class. He called a lawyer (aggravated assault during a pandemic), then called the school resource officer. A meeting was arranged. The cop, buddy-tone and dismissive, tried to attribute words to Walter’s daughter that weren’t hers — and Walter, who knows precisely how his daughter speaks because she uses the long words you get from books, caught it. He cut the cop off before he could wind down and hang up. And then he made a speech. He told that cop that he had been on the search party that found the body of an eleven-year-old girl who had been raped and murdered in the woods. He told him that the reason little girls get raped and murdered is because some other little shithead in a classroom spits on a girl and not a goddamn thing happens. His daughter’s case was handled. The classroom kid was removed. The next time Walter saw this cop — who was also his daughter’s cross-country coach — the cop handed Walter the clipboard and would not make eye contact. He’d heard it. He would not forget it.Walter is not an uncommonly large or intimidating man. That’s the point. The confrontation worked not because of physical dominance but because of moral clarity, specifically deployed, at the right moment. Evan makes the connection to the broader feminist argument: because of how patriarchy has structured masculine emotionality, men have a kind of social permission to get loud, get angry, say unambiguously that something is unacceptable — permission that women are systematically denied when they try to assert the same thing. This is not a power to hoard. It is a power to spend. Frederic Poag puts it simply: think about every woman who protected you as a boy — every teacher who made you feel safe, who was almost always a woman. Now imagine those women in government. “It’s not that fucking hard to envision. Just give up control. It’s not a big deal, dude.”Evan closes with a reference to Chanel Miller — the woman formerly known as Emily Doe, survivor of Brock Turner’s assault behind a dumpster at Stanford — who is now a writer and Substack author. Fuck Brock Turner. Support Chanel Miller. This is how the episode ends: not with despair about how much is broken, but with a directive toward the specific woman who rebuilt herself after the system gave her attacker a gentle sentence because he was a promising swimmer. She’s still here. She’s writing. She’s on Substack. Go find her work.The episode title is the thesis. Belief: false accusations run at approximately 2% or less, meaning that statistically, epistemically, morally, we should believe women 98% of the time. We are not doing that. We should start. Calling out the bullshit: every system discussed in this episode — religious, corporate, electoral, educational — is set up to make the hard thing go away. The resource officer trying to wind down the call. The manager who resents giving the above-and-beyond award. The Democratic caucus that protects its predators. The church that phones the widow for a donation. Every single one of these is a system choosing comfort over accountability. The Diogenes Club’s answer is the same one it’s been all season: name it. Don’t let it go. You condone what you don’t confront.Sources & References* Chanel Miller — Author and survivor, formerly known as Emily Doe; published Know My Name(2019); active on Substack* Brock Turner case — Assault conviction, Stanford, 2015; sentenced to six months after assault behind a dumpster witnessed by two passersby* Pierce Brown, Red Rising series — Science fiction saga examining authoritarianism, caste, and labor exploitation across a colonized solar system* Qasim Rashid — Muslim-American activist and attorney; cited as a model of faith practiced without coercion* Congressional Sexual Assault Slush Fund — Taxpayer-funded fund used to settle and defend sexual misconduct claims against members of Congress; opponents, accusers* National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) — Federal agency overseeing labor organizing rights; subject to budget and staffing cuts under the current administration* Motherless.com — Adult website; subject of CNN investigative reporting in April 2026 exposing a coordinated user network sharing techniques for drugging and assaulting spousesActions You Can Take* Check out the new: Sick of this Shop!* Check out the new network and affiliate calendar: BroadBannerSubmit questions, feedback, and artwork for Notes of the Week with Nick and Walter:* Sick of this Shit Community Comment FormCall your public servants on important issues:* 5calls.orgJoin the efforts to unmask law enforcement and de-flock the States:* deflock.meService members can get un-biased information on legal vs illegal orders:* Orders Project* Reach out on Signal: @TheOrdersProject.76Learn empathy forward, human centered, experiment based Leadership & Growth Courses for Higher Ed & Non-Profit Professionals:* B. Cognition LabsThank you Evan Fields, NeuroDivergent Hodgepodge, Noble Blend, PJ Schuster, Ms.Yuse, and many others for tuning into my live video with Evan Fields, Frederic Poag, Walter Rhein and Eric Lullove! Join me for my next live video in the app.Nick’s NotesI’m Nick Paro, and I’m sick of the shit going on. So, I’m using poetry, podcasting, and lives to discuss the intersections of chronic illness and mental wellbeing, masculinity, veteran’s issues, politics, and so much more. I am only able to have these conversations, bring visibility to my communities, and fill the void through your support — this is a publication where engagement is encouraged, creativity is a cornerstone, and transparency is key — please consider becoming a paid subscriber today and grow the community!Join the uncensored media at the 1A CollectiveSupport as a paid subscriber however you can — to help get you started, here are a few discounted options for you* Forever at 50% off* Forever at 60% offA special thank you to those who are a part of the Sickest of Them All~ Soso | Millicent | Courtney 🇨🇦 | Eric Lullove | Terry mitchell | Carollynn | Julie Robuck | Mason/She/Her🩷💜💙 ~For support, contact us at: [email protected] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sickofthis.substack.com/subscribe

“We have to purge Blue MAGA from our movement. We have to start having these ideas about basic humanity. We can’t be embarrassed about them anymore.”~ Walter Rhein ~Diogenes In ReviewThe tenth installment of the Diogenes Club’s conversation turns inward, examining the structural rot of American institutions—healthcare, media, and electoral systems—while mapping a concrete path to democratic renewal. Nick Paro, Evan Fields, Walter Rhein, and Dr. Eric Lullove build their argument methodically, from the failures of insurance monopolies to the urgency of primary races, making a case that existing power structures will not yield without direct pressure from grassroots candidates and independent media.The episode opens with Eric Lullove’s account of a speaking engagement where he encountered Kate Rubins, a microbiologist and former ISS mission specialist who sequenced DNA in space. Rather than celebrating distant scientific achievement, Eric connects that story to immediate political stakes: the Trump administration’s $5 billion cuts to the NIH threaten the pipeline of young researchers who could develop the next generation of breakthroughs. His argument is not nostalgic. Instead, it’s about survival: when PhD candidates see no funding, they flee to private industry, leaving public health innovation to billionaire-controlled research agendas. This is how democracies die—not through one catastrophic failure, but through the slow draining of institutional capacity and public investment.We then drill into healthcare monopolies, using Evan’s personal experience (a $300 dental bill for an uninsured family) as a case study. Eric methodically explains how pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) conspire with insurance companies and pharmacies to deny claims not because the system lacks money, but to hold 5-15 percent in reserve for interest income. Insurance companies are mathematically designed to deny coverage. Meanwhile, dental and vision insurances have decayed into systems that cover only basic procedures while forcing customers to pay out-of-pocket for actual care. The system functions to extract wealth, not to heal people. Walter connects this to regional healthcare fragmentation: without intervention, monopoly insurance companies will balkanize America into regional fiefdoms where your healthcare access depends on geography and corporate affiliation. This is infrastructure for authoritarian control.But here’s the good news: we do not counsel resignation. Instead, we articulate a concrete political strategy. Walter has begun interviewing primary challengers—progressives running for Congressional seats against entrenched centrists who’ve done nothing to stop the Trump administration’s agenda. His core message: legacy media ignores primaries because they’re easier to rig; the Democratic establishment suppresses primary coverage to maintain “the illusion of a choice between two bought and paid for candidates.” But primaries are winnable. Face-to-face organizing beats money. Knock on enough doors in a district with 20,000 voters and you can beat a candidate with $80 million in ads. We bring the example of Edwina English, who is running for Congress without corporate donations, relying on high school students and disabled activists—the two groups “completely ignored by our entire political movement.”The practical framework is clear: one candidate, one creator, and independent media as the force multiplier. Walter will interview a candidate, then connect them with other creators who will do the same. Suddenly, grassroots primary challengers get visibility in a way legacy media refuses to provide. The goal is not purity—Walter explicitly reframes “purity tests” as “qualification tests”—but basic competence: Will you impeach fascists? Will you fund research? Will you guarantee healthcare? Will you fight for democracy or just play defense? These are not radical demands. They’re the bare minimum.We also name the systemic dilemma: young people are not entering medicine because they’ll graduate with $300,000 in debt and no salary pathway to justify it. Enrollment in podiatry schools is dropping. The medical pipeline is collapsing. And the Democratic Party, having won full control of government in 2020, did “a goddamn thing” to stop fascism’s return. This is why primary challenges are not luxury activism—they’re survival strategy. You cannot defeat the other side until your own house is pure. And purity here means: do you actually believe in universal healthcare, abolishing ICE, universal education, universal housing, and wealth caps? If not, you don’t belong in a pro-democracy party.Walter’s vision is of a transformed Congress within the next cycle, where primary victories bring in representatives who are willing to lose media battles in order to win the narrative wars. The right wing introduces “stupid bills” that shift the Overton window toward conservative ideas. Progressives must do the same—propose universal healthcare, Medicare for All, wealth redistribution, not because bills will pass, but because every proposal adds to the narrative. Young voters are already noticing. Kids on Reddit are tracking primary candidates by name. The system is frightening the establishment into silence, which is proof the strategy works.The episode closes not with despair but with momentum. We are concrete about next steps: interviews with candidates in Colorado Springs (a Republican stronghold where progressive organizing is urgent), collaboration with other independent creators to amplify grassroots primary challengers, and a refusal to allow the Democratic establishment’s “electability bullshit” to suppress new voices. The message to viewers is direct: your job is to support these candidates, not with money necessarily, but with attention, conversation, and door-knocking. The primaries are the arena. The money has already won too many times. This time, we organize.Sources & References* Senate Bill 3877 — The Breaking Up the Medicine Act, addressing PBM consolidation and insurance monopolies* Kate Rubins, PhD — NASA ISS mission specialist, first human to sequence DNA in space; now at University of Pittsburgh Center for MedicineActions You Can Take* Check out the new: Sick of this Shop!* Check out the new network and affiliate calendar: BroadBannerSubmit questions, feedback, and artwork for Notes of the Week with Nick and Walter:* Sick of this Shit Community Comment FormCall your public servants on important issues:* 5calls.orgJoin the efforts to unmask law enforcement and de-flock the States:* deflock.meService members can get un-biased information on legal vs illegal orders:* Orders Project* Reach out on Signal: @TheOrdersProject.76Learn empathy forward, human centered, experiment based Leadership & Growth Courses for Higher Ed & Non-Profit Professionals:* B. Cognition LabsThank you Marnie Screams Into the Void, Shālah B Pookie (she/her), Skutt Hope, Martin D. Vasquez, learnercurious1, and many others for tuning into the Diogenes Club with me, Evan Fields, Dr. Eric Lullove, and Walter Rhein! Join us for our next live video in the app.Nick’s NotesI’m Nick Paro, and I’m sick of the shit going on. So, I’m using poetry, podcasting, and lives to discuss the intersections of chronic illness and mental wellbeing, masculinity, veteran’s issues, politics, and so much more. I am only able to have these conversations, bring visibility to my communities, and fill the void through your support — this is a publication where engagement is encouraged, creativity is a cornerstone, and transparency is key — please consider becoming a paid subscriber today and grow the community!Join the uncensored media at the 1A CollectiveSupport as a paid subscriber however you can — to help get you started, here are a few discounted options for you* Forever at 50% off* Forever at 60% offA special thank you to those who are a part of the Sickest of Them All~ Soso | Millicent | Courtney 🇨🇦 | Eric Lullove | Terry mitchell | Carollynn | Julie Robuck | Mason/She/Her🩷💜💙 ~For support, contact us at: [email protected] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sickofthis.substack.com/subscribe

Actions You Can Take* Check out the new: Sick of this Shop!* Check out the new network and affiliate calendar: BroadBannerSubmit questions, feedback, and artwork for Notes of the Week with Nick and Walter:* Sick of this Shit Community Comment FormCall your public servants on important issues:* 5calls.orgJoin the efforts to unmask law enforcement and de-flock the States:* deflock.meService members can get un-biased information on legal vs illegal orders:* Orders Project* Reach out on Signal: @TheOrdersProject.76Learn empathy forward, human centered, experiment based Leadership & Growth Courses for Higher Ed & Non-Profit Professionals:* B. Cognition LabsThank you Martin D. Vasquez, Dominique, Sharon Rousseau, Robin Elizabeth Simpson Scott, Lizzy B, and many others for tuning into my live video with Eric Lullove! Join me for my next live video in the app.Nick’s NotesI’m Nick Paro, and I’m sick of the shit going on. So, I’m using poetry, podcasting, and lives to discuss the intersections of chronic illness and mental wellbeing, masculinity, veteran’s issues, politics, and so much more. I am only able to have these conversations, bring visibility to my communities, and fill the void through your support — this is a publication where engagement is encouraged, creativity is a cornerstone, and transparency is key — please consider becoming a paid subscriber today and grow the community!Join the uncensored media at the 1A CollectiveSupport as a paid subscriber however you can — to help get you started, here are a few discounted options for you* Forever at 50% off* Forever at 60% offA special thank you to those who are a part of the Sickest of Them All~ Soso | Millicent | Courtney 🇨🇦 | Eric Lullove | Terry mitchell | Carollynn | Julie Robuck | Mason/She/Her🩷💜💙 ~For support, contact us at: [email protected] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sickofthis.substack.com/subscribe

Actions You Can Take* Check out the new: Sick of this Shop!* Check out the new network and affiliate calendar: BroadBannerSubmit questions, feedback, and artwork for Notes of the Week with Nick and Walter:* Sick of this Shit Community Comment FormCall your public servants on important issues:* 5calls.orgJoin the efforts to unmask law enforcement and de-flock the States:* deflock.meService members can get un-biased information on legal vs illegal orders:* Orders Project* Reach out on Signal: @TheOrdersProject.76Learn empathy forward, human centered, experiment based Leadership & Growth Courses for Higher Ed & Non-Profit Professionals:* B. Cognition LabsThank you LeftieProf, Stephanie Munoz, Jack, Jason Gael, MLR, and many others for tuning into my live video with Walter Rhein and Eric Lullove! Join me for my next live video in the app.Nick’s NotesI’m Nick Paro, and I’m sick of the shit going on. So, I’m using poetry, podcasting, and lives to discuss the intersections of chronic illness and mental wellbeing, masculinity, veteran’s issues, politics, and so much more. I am only able to have these conversations, bring visibility to my communities, and fill the void through your support — this is a publication where engagement is encouraged, creativity is a cornerstone, and transparency is key — please consider becoming a paid subscriber today and grow the community!Join the uncensored media at the 1A CollectiveSupport as a paid subscriber however you can — to help get you started, here are a few discounted options for you* Forever at 50% off* Forever at 60% offA special thank you to those who are a part of the Sickest of Them All~ Soso | Millicent | Courtney 🇨🇦 | Eric Lullove | Terry mitchell | Carollynn | Julie Robuck | Mason/She/Her🩷💜💙 ~For support, contact us at: [email protected] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sickofthis.substack.com/subscribe

Key Topics* Healthcare & Vaccine Policies — Federal Judge Murphy (1st District) issued a preliminary injunction against RFK Jr. and HHS, invalidating ACIP appointments and rolling back all immunization recommendations made after June 25th.* Veteran Health & Benefits — the VA’s new AI fraud-screening tool is described as a cost-cutting mechanism disguised as accountability, targeting telehealth visits and third-party claim assistance.* Blatant Corruption at the Executive Branch Club — a members-only underground club in Georgetown, co-founded by Donald Trump Jr. and the Witkoff family, requires up to $500K for founding membership with NDAs and vetting.Actions You Can Take* Check out the new: Sick of this Shop!* Check out the new network and affiliate calendar: BroadBannerSubmit questions, feedback, and artwork for Notes of the Week with Nick and Walter:* Sick of this Shit Community Comment FormCall your public servants on important issues:* 5calls.orgJoin the efforts to unmask law enforcement and de-flock the States:* deflock.meService members can get un-biased information on legal vs illegal orders:* Orders Project* Reach out on Signal: @TheOrdersProject.76Learn empathy forward, human centered, experiment based Leadership & Growth Courses for Higher Ed & Non-Profit Professionals:* B. Cognition LabsThank you Evan Fields, Samantha Paige (she/they), Ms.Yuse, Agent#99, Jack, and many others for tuning into my live video with Evan Fields and Eric Lullove! Join me for my next live video in the app.Nick’s NotesI’m Nick Paro, and I’m sick of the shit going on. So, I’m using poetry, podcasting, and lives to discuss the intersections of chronic illness and mental wellbeing, masculinity, veteran’s issues, politics, and so much more. I am only able to have these conversations, bring visibility to my communities, and fill the void through your support — this is a publication where engagement is encouraged, creativity is a cornerstone, and transparency is key — please consider becoming a paid subscriber today and grow the community!Join the uncensored media at the 1A CollectiveSupport as a paid subscriber however you can — to help get you started, here are a few discounted options for you* Forever at 50% off* Forever at 60% offA special thank you to those who are a part of the Sickest of Them All~ Soso | Millicent | Courtney 🇨🇦 | Eric Lullove | Terry mitchell | Carollynn | Julie Robuck | Mason/She/Her🩷💜💙 ~For support, contact us at: [email protected] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sickofthis.substack.com/subscribe

Take advantage of the current:Poems of the Show* Dr. Eric Lullove* Evan Fields* Nick Paro* Walter RheinThank you Farmers AGAINST trump., Robin Elizabeth Simpson Scott, Dalai Mama 💗, Deb Marak, Debbie McPherson, and many others for tuning into my live video with Evan Fields, Walter Rhein, Eric Lullove, and STAND UP! With Pete Dominick on Sick of this Shit Publications! Join me for my next live video in the app.Actions You Can Take* Check out the new: Sick of this Shop!* Check out the new network and affiliate calendar: BroadBannerSubmit questions, feedback, and artwork for Notes of the Week with Nick and Walter:* Sick of this Shit Community Comment FormCall your public servants on important issues:* 5calls.orgJoin the efforts to unmask law enforcement and de-flock the States:* deflock.meService members can get un-biased information on legal vs illegal orders:* Orders Project* Reach out on Signal: @TheOrdersProject.76Learn empathy forward, human centered, experiment based Leadership & Growth Courses for Higher Ed & Non-Profit Professionals:* B. Cognition LabsNick’s NotesI’m Nick Paro, and I’m sick of the shit going on. So, I’m using poetry, podcasting, and lives to discuss the intersections of chronic illness and mental wellbeing, masculinity, veteran’s issues, politics, and so much more. I am only able to have these conversations, bring visibility to my communities, and fill the void through your support — this is a publication where engagement is encouraged, creativity is a cornerstone, and transparency is key — please consider becoming a paid subscriber today and grow the community!Join the uncensored media at the 1A CollectiveSupport as a paid subscriber however you can — to help get you started, here are a few discounted options for you* Forever at 50% off* Forever at 60% offA special thank you to those who are a part of the Sickest of Them All~ Soso | Millicent | Courtney 🇨🇦 | Eric Lullove | Terry mitchell | Carollynn | Julie Robuck | Mason/She/Her🩷💜💙 ~For support, contact us at: [email protected] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sickofthis.substack.com/subscribe

Diogenes In ReviewIn this episode — Dr. Eric Lullove, Evan Fields, Nick Paro, and Walter Rhein discuss geopolitical developments, domestic political accountability, and the lived experience of veterans navigating federal systems. Early conversation centers on news involving Prince Andrew and broader concerns about elite accountability tied to Epstein-related investigations. The panel then shifts to escalating military signals in the Middle East and possible U.S. strategic objectives related to Iran and the Strait of Hormuz. Later segments explore the structure of VA disability ratings and how reevaluations can destabilize the finances of injured veterans. Throughout the discussion, the hosts emphasize civic pressure, institutional accountability, and the practical consequences of policy decisions on ordinary people.Check out the related articles* Listen in to Kristofer Goldsmith’s words—and follow his plan of action on ensuring our voices are heard regarding the latest VA disability rating changes.* Check out Nick Paro’s latest article in the Intelligent Masculinity series.Actions You Can Take* Check out the new: Sick of this Shop!* Check out the new network and affiliate calendar: BroadBannerSign the Petitions:* Demand Congress Subpoena Key Figures on the Epstein Case* Investigate Presidential Use of the Autopen for Pardons and Executive Actions* Mandate that ICE agents show their face and identificationSubmit questions, feedback, and artwork for Notes of the Week with Nick and Walter:* Sick of this Shit Community Comment FormSupport Ukraine:* Donate towards generatorsCall your public servants on important issues:* 5calls.orgJoin the efforts to unmask law enforcement:* safedc.infoLearn empathy forward, human centered, experiment based Leadership & Growth Courses for Higher Ed & Non-Profit Professionals:* B. Cognition LabsThank you Lev Parnas, Amy Gabrielle, Stephanie G Wilson, PhD, Beth Cruz, PJ Schuster, and many others for tuning into my live video with Evan Fields, Eric Lullove, and Sick of this Shit Publications! Join me for my next live video in the app.Nick’s NotesI’m Nick Paro, and I’m sick of the shit going on. So, I’m using poetry, podcasting, and lives to discuss the intersections of chronic illness and mental wellbeing, masculinity, veteran’s issues, politics, and so much more. I am only able to have these conversations, bring visibility to my communities, and fill the void through your support — this is a publication where engagement is encouraged, creativity is a cornerstone, and transparency is key — please consider becoming a paid subscriber today and grow the community!Join the uncensored media at the 1A CollectiveSupport as a paid subscriber however you can — to help get you started, here are a few discounted options for you* Forever at 50% off* Forever at 60% offA special thank you to those who are a part of the Sickest of Them All~ Soso | Millicent | Courtney 🇨🇦 | Eric Lullove | Terry mitchell | Carollynn | Julie Robuck | Mason/She/Her🩷💜💙 ~For support, contact us at: [email protected] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sickofthis.substack.com/subscribe

Check out my latest article in the Intelligent Masculinity series — Disciplined & Practiced:Actions You Can Take* Check out the new Sick of this Shit Publications Merch Shop!* Check out Banner & Backbone Media’s new BroadBanner network and affiliate calendar — including all Sick of this Shit Publications branded shows!Sign the Petitions:* Demand Congress Subpoena Key Figures on the Epstein Case* Investigate Presidential Use of the Autopen for Pardons and Executive Actions* Mandate that ICE agents show their face and identificationSubmit questions, feedback, and artwork for Notes of the Week with Nick and Walter:* Sick of this Shit Community Comment FormSupport Ukraine:* Donate towards generatorsCall your public servants on important issues:* 5calls.orgJoin the efforts to unmask law enforcement:* safedc.infoLearn empathy forward, human centered, experiment based Leadership & Growth Courses for Higher Ed & Non-Profit Professionals:* B. Cognition LabsThank you Caro Henry, P. J. Schuster, Under the Golden Boot, Jennifer Wells, Sheryl, and many others for tuning into my live video with Evan Fields, Walter Rhein, and Eric Lullove! Join me for my next live video in the app.Nick’s NotesI’m Nick Paro, and I’m sick of the shit going on. So, I’m using poetry, podcasting, and lives to discuss the intersections of chronic illness and mental wellbeing, masculinity, veteran’s issues, politics, and so much more. I am only able to have these conversations, bring visibility to my communities, and fill the void through your support — this is a publication where engagement is encouraged, creativity is a cornerstone, and transparency is key — please consider becoming a paid subscriber today and grow the community!Join the uncensored media at the 1A CollectiveSupport as a paid subscriber however you can — to help get you started, here are a few discounted options for you* Forever at 50% off* Forever at 60% offA special thank you to those who are a part of the Sickest of Them All~ Soso | Millicent | Courtney 🇨🇦 | Eric Lullove | Terry mitchell | Carollynn | Julie Robuck | Mason/She/Her🩷💜💙 ~For support, contact us at: [email protected] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sickofthis.substack.com/subscribe

Actions You Can TakeSign the Petitions:* Demand Congress Subpoena Key Figures on the Epstein Case* Investigate Presidential Use of the Autopen for Pardons and Executive Actions* Mandate that ICE agents show their face and identificationSubmit questions and artwork for Nick and Walter to respond to and showcase on Notes of the Week:* Sick of this Shit Community Comment FormSupport Ukraine:* Donate towards generatorsCall your public servants on important issues:* 5calls.orgJoin the efforts to unmask law enforcement:* safedc.infoLearn empathy forward, human centered, experiment based Leadership & Growth Courses for Higher Ed & Non-Profit Professionals:* B. Cognition LabsThank you Cat, Jeanne Elbe, Brain of J-Hawk (he/him), TheGoldenMean, Jennifer Wells, and many others for tuning into my live video with The Opinionated Ogre, Evan Fields, Walter Rhein, and Eric Lullove! Join me for my next live video in the app.Nick’s NotesI’m Nick Paro, and I’m sick of the shit going on. So, I’m using poetry, podcasting, and lives to discuss the intersections of chronic illness and mental wellbeing, masculinity, veteran’s issues, politics, and so much more. I am only able to have these conversations, bring visibility to my communities, and fill the void through your support — this is a publication where engagement is encouraged, creativity is a cornerstone, and transparency is key — please consider becoming a paid subscriber today and grow the community!~Nick ParoJoin the uncensored media at the 1A CollectiveSupport as a paid subscriber however you can — to help get you started, here are a few discounted options for you* Forever at 50% off* Forever at 60% offA special thank you to those who are a part of the Sickest of Them All~ Soso | Millicent | Courtney 🇨🇦 | Eric Lullove | Terry mitchell | Carollynn | Julie Robuck ~For support, contact us at: [email protected] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sickofthis.substack.com/subscribe

Actions You Can TakeSupport Ukraine:* Donate towards generatorsCall your public servants on important issues:* 5calls.orgJoin the efforts to unmask law enforcement:* safedc.infoSign the Move-On Petitions:* Investigate Presidential Use of the Autopen for Pardons and Executive Actions* A Petition to End the Shutdown and Restore Representation: Remove Speaker Johnson* Mandate that ICE agents show their face and identificationLearn new skills:* B. Cognition Labs — empathy forward, human centered, experiment based Leadership & Growth Courses for Higher Ed & Non-Profit ProfessionalsThank you Shane Yirak, Melissa Corrigan, she/her, Cris, Courtney 🇨🇦, Christina Gurchinoff, and many others for tuning into my live video with Evan Fields, Walter Rhein, and Eric Lullove! Join me for my next live video in the app.Nick’s NotesI’m Nick Paro, and I’m sick of the shit going on. So, I’m using poetry, podcasting, and lives to discuss the intersections of chronic illness and mental wellbeing, masculinity, veteran’s issues, politics, and so much more. I am only able to have these conversations, bring visibility to my communities, and fill the void through your support — this is a publication where engagement is encouraged, creativity is a cornerstone, and transparency is key — please consider becoming a paid subscriber today and grow the community!~Nick ParoJoin the uncensored media at the 1A CollectiveSupport as a paid subscriber however you can — to help get you started, here are a few discounted options for you* Forever at 50% off* Forever at 60% offSpecial thanks to the Sickest of Them AllBecome one of the Sickest of Them All with an annual founding pledge of $200, or more!~ Soso | Millicent | Courtney 🇨🇦 | Eric Lullove | C. McGuire ~For support, contact us at: [email protected] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sickofthis.substack.com/subscribe

Show in ReviewI’m going to let this one speak for itself — it is all about the new manosphere, new masculinity — giving ourselves the space to be intelligent men while building friendships and processing emotions.Actions You Can TakeCall your public servants on important issues:* 5calls.orgJoin the efforts to unmask law enforcement:* safedc.infoSign the Move-On Petitions:* Investigate Presidential Use of the Autopen for Pardons and Executive Actions* A Petition to End the Shutdown and Restore Representation: Remove Speaker Johnson* Mandate that ICE agents show their face and identificationLearn new skills:* B. Cognition Labs — empathy forward, human centered, experiment based Leadership & Growth Courses for Higher Ed & Non-Profit ProfessionalsThank you Cat, Melissa Corrigan, she/her, Beth Cruz, Noble Blend, Cris, and many others for tuning into my live video with Evan Fields, Walter Rhein, and Eric Lullove! Join me for my next live video in the app.Nick’s NotesI’m Nick Paro, and I’m sick of the shit going on. So, I’m using poetry, podcasting, and lives to discuss the intersections of chronic illness and mental wellbeing, masculinity, veteran’s issues, politics, and so much more. I am only able to have these conversations, bring visibility to my communities, and fill the void through your support — this is a publication where engagement is encouraged, creativity is a cornerstone, and transparency is key — please consider becoming a paid subscriber today and grow the community!~Nick ParoJoin the uncensored media at the 1A CollectiveSupport as a paid subscriber however you can — to help get you started, here are a few discounted options for you* Forever at 50% off* Forever at 60% offSpecial thanks to the Sickest of Them AllBecome one of the Sickest of Them All with an annual founding pledge of $200, or more!~ Soso | Millicent | Courtney 🇨🇦 | Eric Lullove | C. McGuire ~For support, contact us at: [email protected] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sickofthis.substack.com/subscribe