Meanwhile...

After a year of turmoil, cancer researchers see promising signs for mRNA vaccines The mRNA-based Covid vaccines helped blunt the impact of the pandemic but also sparked political backlash that has threatened to slow or derail dozens of potential cancer treatments. Now there are sig...

A mRNA-based vaccine shows a promising treatment for pancreatic cancer.
www.wral.com/lifestyles/h...?

NC Gov. Stein makes new budget pitch on General Assembly opening day. What’s in it NC Gov. Josh Stein makes his latest budget proposal as the General Assembly returns for the short legislative session.

NC Gov. Josh Stein makes new budget pitch on General Assembly opening day. What’s in it. The Democrat wants 15% raises for law enforcement and nurses, and starting teacher pay to be the highest in the Southeast. (Via @dawnbvaughan.bsky.social) www.newsobserver.com/news/politic... #ncpol #nced

Iran War Live Updates: Trump Extends Cease-Fire With Iran

SURPRISE!!!! TACO Trump Extends Cease-Fire With Iran www.nytimes.com/live/2026/04...

Fifteen Years Ago, It Was a Vacant Lot. Now Raleigh City Farm Helps Feed the City. The nonprofit urban farm celebrates fifteen years in Raleigh's Mordecai neighborhood, with a second farm now open in Marsh Creek Park.

The nonprofit urban farm celebrates fifteen years in Raleigh's Mordecai neighborhood, where it distributes much of its produce to community partners focused on food insecurity.

68 degrees in Raleigh this evening along the northern beltline. Easy to see why its nickname is 'City of Oaks'

This...makes my day...

Folk icon Bob Dylan is coming to Raleigh. How & when to see him play Here’s what to know about getting tickets for the concert.

Here’s what to know about getting tickets for the concert.

Book Banners Don't Know What a Book Ban Is People trying to remove books from libraries insist it's not a book ban. Everyone wants to ban a book, but no one wants to be a book banner.

Even though published almost 4 years ago, this is the best article I've read about book bans. I hope you'll read and share it. #BookSky

The Most Valuable Asset Class is Disinformation A peek inside the For-Profit Disinformation Machine.

A look inside the for-profit disinformation machine
cmarmitage.substack.com/p/the-most-v...

Our blackberries here are entangled with a healthy stand of poison ivy... will pick them very carefully :)

NC's record of support for public education is an embarrassment....

Some school districts add day off to allow teachers to attend planned rally on May 1 Educators, families and activists from across the state will gather in downtown Raleigh next month to call for improvements to North Carolina's public schools.

A statewide teacher rally for better investment in education is scheduled for Raleigh on May 1, even as many districts announce cutbacks due to lack of funds from the state. www.wral.com/news/educati...

Virginia to vote on redistricting plan that could boost Democrats in the midterms A constitutional amendment is on the ballot Tuesday that would allow Democrats to enact a congressional map designed to net them up to four seats.

Virginians vote today on redistricting plan that could boost Democrats in the midterms
www.nbcnews.com/politics/202...

Documents Reveal a Web of Financial Ties Between Trump Officials and the Industries They Help Regulate ProPublica is releasing a trove of disclosure records that detail the finances of more than 1,500 Trump appointees, including former lobbyists, industry executives and at least a dozen officials who d...

#ICYMI: We released a trove of disclosure records that detail the finances of more than 1,500 Trump appointees, including former lobbyists, industry executives and at least a dozen officials who declined to identify former clients.

It's time for our next installment of "Democracy in the Balance!" Today, our focus is on our NC Supreme Court. Check out who is "in the line up." *Yes, it is indeed Phil Berger's son, Phil Berger Jr. on the court.* Can you say, "conflict of interest?"

The Great Smoky Mountains near Clyde, NC this morning.
Clear skies. 46 degrees and headed for a high today of 73 #ncwx

'The absolute edge of precedent': Feds prepare to take on data centers FERC is pushing to get data centers onto the grid, and fast. The high-stakes move could tip the balance of regulatory power against the states.

Could the Feds override local governments? This is something to watch:
'The absolute edge of precedent': Feds prepare to take on data centers www.politico.com/news/2026/04...

Near Sunrise on Kerr Lake. Warmer temps on the way this week.

thanks for the heads-up...

A Snowless March is a Warning We Can No Longer Ignore Earth Day is a reminder to take climate change as the threat it is.

For the first time, the World Meteorological Organization has highlighted Earth’s dangerous, unsustainable energy imbalance.

The Town That Reveals All of Trump’s Bad Economic Ideas The first time I set foot in Hickory, a small city at the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains in

Hickory, NC- the town that Reveals All of Trump’s Bad Economic Ideas dnyuz.com/2026/04/20/t...

More fallout from the big beautiful rip-off

A hard freeze likely in some of our higher mountain communities tonight. Temp in Blowing Rock right now:
46 degrees

Advocates call for investigation into Alamance County facility polluting Haw River • NC Newsline An environmental group is asking the North Carolina Dept. of Environmental Quality to address ongoing wastewater pollution flowing into the Haw River.The Saxapahaw wastewater treatment plan in Alamanc...

An environmental group is asking the North Carolina Dept. of Environmental Quality to address ongoing wastewater pollution flowing into the Haw River in Alamance County #pollution
ncnewsline.com/briefs/advoc...

Can North Carolina lawmakers pass a budget? Here's what to watch as session begins • NC Newsline N.C. lawmakers return to work with a budget nine months overdue, staring at the same divisions that blocked progress last year.

Can North Carolina lawmakers pass a budget? Here’s what to watch as session begins, North Carolina is the only state to end the year without one. #ncpol
ncnewsline.com/2026/04/20/c...

Advocates Call on Cary to Invest More in Affordable Housing They want the town to put a housing bond on the ballot in 2027 and bolster its affordable housing budget, which has declined.

Advocates Call on Town of Cary to Invest More in Affordable Housing
A coalition of community and religious groups wants the town to put a housing bond on the ballot in 2027 and bolster its affordable housing budget, which has declined.

Pittsboro near sunrise. A cool day ahead.

The number of MAGAs and former MAGAs who are now "just asking questions" about the Butler assassination is growing daily

www.wired.com/story/maga-i...

The Iran War's wild spike in diesel prices is eating into your earnings It's "the fuel that powers the economy much more than gasoline does.”

The Iran War's wild spike in diesel prices is eating into your earnings [via @grist.org]