Links for you. Science:
Global health experts sound alarm over RFK Jr., citing Samoa outbreak. Experts and officials said a 2019 measles outbreak in Samoa, which came after a visit by Kennedy, exemplified the dangers of his rhetoric.
Scientists discover unusual new bacteria in deep-sea coral. The finding points to a life form that requires few genes to function
Mapping ‘gloop and mud’ sheds light on seabed carbon storage
taxid-changelog (seems fun for a small slice of NERDS)
Vaccine shows promise against aggressive breast cancer
Why there’s a 9-foot bronze wasp outside Oregon’s newest state building
Other:
How Mike Johnson’s Christian “morality” provides cover for Matt Gaetz. Shielding Matt Gaetz fits with the long religious right tradition of defending bad men at women’s expense
Young Women Will Never Stop Talking About Sexism
The Time-Honored Tradition of Blaming the Left for Democratic Defeats. This argument is particularly unconvincing this time around. And it doesn’t offer a realistic prescription for future success.
Truth Social investors hoped to get ‘very rich’ after Trump’s win. Not quite.
The Senate Must Draw the Line Now. Fear of worse nominees later is no reason to confirm bad ones now. (it’s Kristol, but he’s not wrong)
NEW DATA: Childcare costs remain an almost prohibitive expense
DNC layoffs with no severance leave staffers scrambling, union says
Pokémon Go Players Have Unwittingly Trained AI to Navigate the World
There’s a difference between remodeling and a wrecking ball
Breaking up with antisocial media: everyone pays for accepting antisocial behavior. Here’s why the migration to Bluesky might finally change things.
Inside the Republican false-flag effort to turn off Kamala Harris voters
Matt Gaetz, Trump’s pick to oversee Jan. 6 cases, backed rioters and spread conspiracy theories
Trump’s win has bitcoin soaring. The ‘normies’ want in. The president-elect’s promises of making the U.S. the ‘crypto capital of the planet’ has set off a gold rush.
Decisive margin probably came from whims of low-information voters
Gabbard’s lack of judgment and flights from reality are disqualifying
2 transgender women attacked in downtown Minneapolis, advocates say
Delta CEO says the Trump administration will reverse government ‘overreach’ seen under Biden (but Trump is a ‘populist’ something something)
Losing friends and family over MAGA and Trump
Press Glosses Over Fact Trump’s FCC Pick Will Decimate Consumer Protection, Media Consolidation Limits
Full Police Report on Pete Hegseth Sexual Assault Allegation (roofies)
The Reason Public Bathroom Stalls Have Gaps
Don’t Do Trump’s Work for Him on Mass Deportations
These retailers may raise prices if Trump’s tariffs take effect
Senate panel passes DC stadium bill, advancing Commanders’ possible return to District (DO NOT WANT)
The Dollar Still Has Its Mojo. X, Not So Much.
“Pete Hegseth Has Learned His Lesson” – Susan Collins (Probably)
mikethemadbiologist
Bloody Bill is right once or twice a decade. TFG seems to be improving his accuracy from 99.99% wrong to only 99.95% wrong.
It’s all chaos, and this isn’t even the tip of the iceberg yet. We’ve got four more years of fascist-flavored political Calvinball to look forward to. Most media pre-emptively bent over and stuffed their heads directly up their own asses even before the election, and this time TFG is outright threatening violence to his detractors in a way people are listening to. The zone will be so flooded the phrase won’t even make sense anymore.
On the other hand, the American public has now lost any remaining assumption of civility. As far as I’m concerned, at least a third of us can die in a ditch and I’m done pretending otherwise. “Who did you vote for” is now my first question to anyone for anything, and the wrong answer gets them a “I don’t associate with Nazis, kindly fuck off”. Red hats in restaurants? “Oh, I didn’t know you let Nazis in here, I’ll go eat somewhere else.” Don’t let the vicious little bastards feel comfortable anywhere.