To Fight Heat, NYC Sets 2040 Tree Canopy Deadline, With Riskiest Areas First How the plan will be funded is unclear. The Mamdani administration has not earmarked money for its tree-expansion initiative.

trees as cooling infrastructure! this is a fascinating story from @smaldo.bsky.social:

A group of Ecuadorian fishermen survived a US drone strike, were detained at gunpoint, hooded, phones wiped, ship blown up, disappeared to El Salvador, then released without charge.

“They knew we were fishermen. Even the Salvadorian authorities said things had been handled very badly.”

You know who else famously used paid informants to infiltrate extremist groups?

The Justice Department.

remember that atlantic article that pretended to be a first person account of a mother's loss of a child from measles? this is the real thing and it's brutal.

“By stripping the right to asylum, nations are creating a growing underclass of placeless, rightless people to police in perpetuity, and an ever-greater policing apparatus with which to crack down on them—and, increasingly, everyone else.”

Absolutely essential reading on global borders and asylum.

“Government issued identification documents are necessary to access public life. When they do not accurately reflect a person's sexual identity, the transgender Montanan is prevented, based on their sex, from obtaining the same attributes of public life that a cisgender Montanan may obtain.“

The 11 most challenged books of 2025, according to the American Library Association The ALA says 4,235 titles were challenged at U.S. libraries — the second-highest year on record. Forty percent of the challenged works involved LGBTQ+ subjects or the experiences of people of color.

As the editor of a book on this list, allow me to say again that book banning is a catastrophe for freedom of speech in America. There is no silver lining. It's all harm.

You can fight back by calling your reps to demand they vote against HR 7661, which is effectively a national book banning bill.

"This couldn’t be a simpler scandal to sum up for the American people, if anyone cared to do so: This is Donald Trump ordering the looting of the public treasury for his own benefit."

Introducing Middle School Students to "The Secret Ghost Workers of 'Artificial Intelligence'" — Civics of Technology Upcoming Book Clubs: We’re reading The Digital Delusion: How Classroom Technology Harms our Kids’ Learning - And How to Help Them Thrive Again by Jared Cooney Horvath. Join us on Wednesday, Ap...

I really appreciate @elizabethwithaz.bsky.social's reflections on how she explored the social impacts of technology with her students by introducing them to the people - the ghost workers - whose labor makes “AI” systems possible.

Read this week’s @civicsoftech.bsky.social and find the lesson at:

I've heard both firefly and lightning bug, living in South and New England.

Glow worm is the non-flying female firefly

Trump Administration Live Updates: F.B.I. Director Files Defamation Suit Against The Atlantic

There's this thing called discovery, and he's not going to like it one bit.

(gift link)

www.nytimes.com/live/2026/04...

It was all managed so Abell could hit the winning runs while simultaneously reaching his 100.

And worth noting that this is a better start to the season than last year!

From “The Simpsons” house genius John Swartzwelder, interviewed in The New Yorker by Mike Sacks

Gift link: share.inquirer.com/rUIphW

today in 'the uk is not ready to resist fascism':

the new chair of our largest lgbtq+ charity praises j k rowing & wants to find common ground with her

And don't let the pigeon drive the bus!

I keep seeing "all authors use AI, the real issue is they're being forced to be sneaky about it" headlines.

Full stop No. This is a lie peddled for normalization. It's schoolyard-level pressure tactics "C'mon, all the cool kids are already doing it. We won't tell. It's fine. We're on your side."

All of the Founders' worst fears about how American democracy could go off the rails - lack of separation between church and state, a populist demagogue assuming dictatorial powers - are happening just in time for the 250th birthday

Federal judge unloads on ‘unserious’ RFK Jr., says anti-trans policy showed his ‘cruelty’ Judge Mustafa T. Kasubhai vacated the “Kennedy Declaration,” finding it unlawfully attempted to override medical standards and restrict care for transgender youth.

Breaking: HHS’s ban on gender-affirming care is struck down. Rarely have I read a ruling this sharply worded.

“This case is one of a long list of examples of how a leader’s wanton disregard for the rule of law causes very real harm to very real people.”

www.advocate.com/politics/nat...

When we were in Hungary last week, this kind of corruption is exactly the kind of thing that people we spoke to were complaining about. And look what happened there.

Mayor Mamdani and President Obama read a picture book to a group of children.

Mayor Mamdani and President Obama chat and laugh with a group of children.

Mayor Mamdani and President Obama chat and laugh.

Children hug Mayor Mamdani.

Today, President Barack Obama and I read to a group of toddlers at Learning Through Play Pre-K Center in the South Bronx. 

In between singing wheels on the bus, we discussed our administration’s vision for this City — one where New York’s Cutest have the strongest start possible.

3 days left to enter! www.deareditor.com/2026/04/free...

If you have the time and capacity, this is a great place to put your energy into for the next few days. The polling shows that this is going to be a very close vote, and the political implications are obviously huge.

Rules for creative work always end up being rules for life as well, & they all come down to the same six principles, IMO:
1. Pay attention.
2. Tell the truth.
3. Honor your work.
4. Love your people.
5. Have fun.
6. Stay open.

A primer for all (not just PB) wannabe writers!

Please enact a two-year moratorium on the use of AI in NYC Public Schools The use of AI in the NYC schools is expanding, despite the lack of rigorous protections and the growing evidence that it can undermine student privacy, cognitive skills, creativity, critical thinking,...

actionnetwork.org/petitions/pl...

Heavy cream would coagulate if the soda was acidic, but otherwise not, I think...

Authors Guild Statement on Use of AI in Publishing and New Model Contract Clause - The Authors Guild The Authors Guild is concerned about reports that some publishing professionals are uploading manuscripts and authors’ personal information into consumer-facing AI systems for uses such as generating ...

A new model contract clause from the @authorsguild.org addresses the use of generative AI in publishing workflows (such as uploading mss into AI systems to generate summaries, marketing copy, etc.) authorsguild.org/news/use-of-...

I'm glad she was able to complete her degree and go home safely, but good lord, what a shameful episode for the US. It's a loss to the children's literature community that she wasn't able to stay here without fear of further violence and reprisal.

This is a really odd argument because I think at the heart of it, there is a deep misunderstanding about what writing is for. I write to communicate my thoughts and ideas, and to bring people along with me, which AI cannot do for me because it isn't me.