2 words: literacy crisis

I'm making one last push to let people know about this online talk -- sponsored by the British Library in conjunction with their current exhibition on fairy tales. The live stream starts at 7:30 tonight, but if you buy a ticket *before* the event you can watch it any time over the next 7 days.

THIS (I added the all caps to what I felt is the crucial sentence in the alt text)

I have made it 24% into Yesteryear, and I don’t know if I’ll finish. I have read some UNPLEASANT protagonists, especially in Teach Them A Lesson With Time Travel novels. (Tarr & Turtledove’s Household Gods comes to mind, but I had sympathy for Nicole’s unlikeable self…)

But what’s both emblematic —

Just a thought: How about we stop shaming the poor for buying things that may not be essential, and start shaming the rich for making a profit off things that are essential?

Two hooded figures with lamps approach a moonlit, isolated cottage. A woman answers the door. We have come for the child, says the hooded figure So soon? she asks It is time, says the hooded figure. The woman is distraught. We should never have got him a library card! What is done cannot be undone, says the hooded figure We couldn’t see the harm! We just wanted him to enjoy reading! For most, it ends there, says the hooded figure, turning away and walking into the wilderness Oh lord, What have I done! says the woman, the child walks past her and out into the darkness with them. Do not cry mother. I am a writer now.

my latest books cartoon for @theguardian.com

A cartoon showing soldiers sitting in a transport plane with jump door open. One soldier asks "Where are we heading, sarge?". The soldier next to him answers "Not sure. But @DonnieJunior just made a $150M Polymarket bet on Kharg Island beachfront futures. By Wintersart (substack.com@wintersart).

This is all too real. These days, satire is just news but in teaser format.

Clues by Sam A daily logic puzzle where you deduce who is a criminal!

It's been a tedious day writing up a grant report, so this was a nice little reward: I solved the daily #CluesBySam, Apr 18th 2026 (Hard), in 05:21
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cluesbysam.com

Mike Nellis @MikeNellis "I'M NO LONGER CATHOLIC!" Hannity ABANDONS HIS FAITH for Trump NELLIS X.com • +*+

Amazing that in the national divorce the libs are getting the NFL, butter and cooking oil, being attracted to adult women, standup comedy, Bud Light, and now also Catholicism

The May 1 general strike is in less than two weeks. I believe it has to succeed for American democracy to have a fighting chance

Our feeds should be flooded with posts like this, but they aren’t

I’m a little concerned

This is the devastated town of Kamianka in eastern Ukraine, where very few residents remain. But there are displaced pets still living here, so the team made sure this kitty had some lunch today.

Under the Trump administration, the Environmental Protection Agency is relaxing longstanding clean water requirements that had been used to force Duke Energy to clean up the company's toxic coal ash disaster.

More: www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government...

Many on the right say “feminism makes women hate men”.

I don’t think women hate men.
I think a lot of women fear men.
And men ask “why”?

A “rape academy” website teaching men how to sexually assault women, containing graphic video of actual rape, received 62 million views.

That’s why.

One of the silliest things about writing for young people is the shade authors get for it—as if it’s easier. This shows me that A. You don’t understand that this is where the big work is being done to help children build empathy and critical thinking, and B. You haven’t read the right books.

Can hardly wait for my hold at the library to arrive!

Look, not everybody needs to be a strawberry, okay? There's room for cranberries in this world too. You can be weird and sour and only tolerated by a handful of people around the holidays. I know you can. You can be fun if mixed with enough vodka. I believe in you. You can live in a bog

The end of encrypted DMs? Why Instagram is rolling back its biggest security feature Your Instagram DMs are about to become a lot less private

“The low adoption likely has nothing to do with what people want or even expect," EFF’s @thorinklosowski.com told @techradar.com. "Our messages should be protected with end-to-end encryption without requiring us to opt into the feature.” www.techradar.com/vpn/vpn-pri...

Archbishop of Canterbury expresses solidarity with Pope Leo XIV in calling for peace in Iran The Archbishop of Canterbury on Thursday expressed solidarity with Pope Leo XIV in calling for peace in the Middle East.

The Archbishop of Canterbury, ceremonial head of the Anglican Communion, has expressed solidarity with Pope Leo XIV in calling for peace in the Middle East. apnews.com/article/arch...

The only thing better than this video is that my cat went from sleeping to scrambling from the room - presumably to look for the cat making all that racket. 😹

Amid quarrel with pope, Trump strips Miami charity of funding to house migrant kids The move comes amid rising tensions between the administration and American Catholics.

INBOX: Amid rising tendons between Trump and Pope Leo, the administration has abruptly canceled an $11 million contract with Catholic Charities to shelter and care for migrant children who enter the U.S. alone, ending a relationship dating back to the first arrivals of Cuban exiles in South Florida.

I vetoed Senate Bill 266 for exactly this reason: because it would further expose North Carolina ratepayers to volatile fuel markets and shift the cost of electricity from large industrial users onto the backs of regular people, making your utility bills more expensive.

Cf Pace flouncing onto the throne gif

Once again asking folks to include useful alt text. I struggle with it myself, but I think providing more accessibility is worth it.

Chipotle is more customizable for dietary restrictions (gluten free, etc) IMHO. Also writing to ask if you would add alt text to your images? I won't repost images without it (and it makes social media more accessible).

This is the way (plus your library card for digital downloads from Hoopla, Libby, etc.)

My co-worker is on my lap every time I sit down. She also keeps demanding expensive snacks.

Im sitting in a chair on the upstairs porch, enjoying the potted flowers (pansies are most obvious) and the green yard below. A grey striped tabby is sitting on my lap also looking out at the view.

I've never had such an eager lap cat! (I'm trapped under her inside as I type this, but not as nice a photo).

There are some fantastic titles on the LibraryReads picks for May 2026 (titles that public library workers in the USA voted for as top reading suggestions). Sadly they don't do meaningful alt text, so not reposting. Check out their account, or the print-friendly PDF at libraryreads.org. 📚

“Amazon was given a 16 billion dollar tax cut to invest in AI and robotics so they can cut 600,000 jobs,” another person wrote. “Do you think Amazon cares about safety?”