"Benches are where optimistic visions of civic life meet reality. To remove them, or to curate who gets to sit, is to abandon the work of defining a civic ideal and determining, together, how to live up to it."
NEW: Why benches are slowly disappearing from public spaces — and why we need them back:
Agreed. We should not gerrymander as revenge. That implies that we wouldn’t gerrymander if they voluntarily didn’t. We should gerrymander because it’s good when Democrats win elections, and if there’s a danger of revenge, we can just congressionally ban gerrymandering nationwide. With our majority.
For a second I thought this was about BlueSky’s relatively new draft functionality and I was like surely some poster out there has done a thousand drafts in the last couple weeks.
Then again I guess it’s not that conservative to say people in advantageous positions (earlier boarding groups) should be held accountable for showing a bit of grace to people in disadvantageous positions.
My most conservative opinion is if you don’t know how to load an overhead bin efficiently & within the rules but you put stuff there anyway, everything you have bar medical needs is immediately checked. Stuff with rechargeable batteries that can’t be checked? That’s property of the gate staff now.
we all know I have no life, so:
I think about this absolutely constantly and it honestly makes me feel a little insane sometimes how it isn’t like the number one thought everyone is having all the time about society and public safety.
NYC has fewer pedestrian deaths than LA not just on a per capita basis, but in aggregate.
In 2025,
NYC: 111 deaths
LA: >150 deaths
GIBBY HAYNES We used to go into the Banshees’ dressing room and take the Gouda off their deli tray so that we could say we stole Siouxsie and the band’s cheese. It’s a pun—the highest form of humor.
The Butthole Surfers are culture
The NYT reporting also suggested the rest of the administration voices on this (minus Hegseth) were skeptical of Israel’s intel case, but Trump went for it anyway (in part because the skeptics wouldn’t make their case directly enough).
Which suggests a real both things can be true situation.
"Pancreatic cancer mRNA vaccine shows lasting results in an early trial: Scientists caution that more research is needed, but nearly all of the patients who responded to the personalized vaccine are still alive six years later."
One of the great heroes of modern life
The political history of the U.S. since the 1970s is basically that thing where a species' predator disappears and the species overpopulates and destroys the whole habitat. If centrists really wanted a "Normal" right, their top priority would be to bring back the left
Debases the office, but it’s also an act of pure treachery against his own family, and because of the elected office context of his actions, it’s honestly entirely in bounds to demand that he answer for that treachery against them specifically.
This was absolutely one of the most striking things about moving from suburban Atlanta to Manhattan when I was in my 20s. I remember being back home for a visit and, like, struggling to articulate to my parents just how different—and how much better and friendlier—the world felt on foot.
This explains a lot about why the median NBA game is a pretty exhausting and occasionally unpleasant live experience, even as I can’t get enough of it on TV
This is a screenshot from a server error issue on BlueSky. The word Following written in black on a white background, underlined in blue. Underneath it is a red field with a red exclamation point warning icon, and the word Forbidden next to it.
BlueSky's UX is just spoilers for The Iron Giant now
I played so much of this back in the day! And now it’s a grown up game making easy money for its maker, what a world
The 137-year-old Carroll Street Bridge has been under restoration for the past few years, and is almost set to re-open.
And now that the project is nearly complete, there's a rare opportunity to pedestrianize the historic landmark in a rapidly-changing community. youtube.com/shorts/_hN6a...
AITA for accidentally shrinking my wife to the size of a tiny doll?
I (46M) activated a shrinking device during an argument & made my wife (44F) small. She said she wants to leave me so she thinks it was on purpose. I said I'm sorry and I'm trying to fix it but you guys she is still so mad. AITA?
incredible name though
Very poorly. It's an awful, awful driving experience, to say nothing of its effect on everyone who isn't driving.
samuel beckett was born on this day 120 years ago. astonishing to think that if he had survived, and could run 100m in 9.57 seconds, he would be not only the oldest but also the fastest man in the world - together with his nobel prize for literature, an astonishing trifecta
Gonna be a tough day on the ol internet for Shane Torres
This is *fantastic* news.
🎯🎯🎯 If you have been angry about elite impunity, that’s Swalwell as well, folks.
This is extremely relatable civic tech shit.
Genuinely: great science will get the lifesaving shit correct, and it will probably screw up the basic comms management because it’s like #589445 on the priority list.
It’s hilarious and it’s awesome.
Oh shit I’m sorry I had my mic on mute, can you hear me now?