If a Muslim in the US publicly called for a missile strike on a famous celebrity activist onboard a civilian ship or plane, the FBI would be investigating them for terrorism.

But a rich white guy gets to incite violence without any consequences 🤷🏽‍♂️👇🏽

Elon Musk Goes Nuclear The world’s richest man and the president of the United States are now openly fighting.

The most interesting clash between Donald Trump and Elon Musk "is the one between two guys who thought they had bought each other off," @dgraham.bsky.social writes:

Why the Left Should Embrace Pronatalism If concerns over population decline are sometimes overstated, the effects of an aging society are genuinely troubling from a prosocial point of view.

The policies associated with pronatalism “naturally belong to the left, and there is a progressive case for making the country more welcoming to families in hopes of achieving a range of benefits, including a bump in the birth rate,” writes Elizabeth Bruenig:

What Gutting USAID Means for My Young Patients in Burundi “To my patients and their mothers, I offered apologies from the American people,” writes Dr. Jennifer Furin.

This is a gut-wrenching, beautifully written essay. A doctor must watch helplessly as children die because USAID's freeze on aid has limited access to nutritional supplements. time.com/7258248/us-f...

We are just fucked beyond belief.

Beautiful night in Chicago! Overlooking the metro trains going into Union Station. Over 200,000 people go in and out of Union Station every day.

Judge Blocks Elon Musk’s DOGE Team From Education Department’s Student Loan Databases The American Federation of Teachers, a union representing more than 1.8 million educators, had sued to keep members of Mr. Musk’s government efficiency team out of the Education Department’s systems.

A federal judge granted a temporary restraining order on Monday blocking the Education Department and the Office of Personnel Management from disclosing sensitive data to members of Elon Musk’s team and anyone assisting them.

Rode the Subways to school from 6th grade on. Not scary. Interesting but not scary. If you are lucky you have a musician on the platform to pass the time.

I cannot emphasize enough that the New York City subway is not scary. It’s one of my favorite parts of living here. I grew up in the suburbs having to drive on highways everywhere and that’s way scarier

Another in the series "Things Len says at CVS":

Pharmacist: This medicine isn't covered by your plan.

Me: That's OK. An insurance executive somewhere's going to get their bonus.

Pharmacist: ...

Me: Gotta look at the bright side, you know?

Eric Adams Live Updates: Judge Will Weigh Request to Dismiss Corruption Charges The Washington prosecutors who are seeking to end the prosecution of New York’s mayor are appearing before a seemingly skeptical judge at a hearing in Manhattan court.

Mayor Eric Adams of New York City has walked into a courtroom, where Washington prosecutors are seeking a dismissal of corruption charges against him. A federal judge is unlikely to approve the request. Follow live updates.

Young people are being ‘priced out of nightlife’ Turns out Gen Z aren’t boring – we’re just poor ❤️

the youth have zero imagination, it's called "gathering under an abandoned bridge in the woods in the dark with BLLs and someone's shitty bluetooth speaker" www.dazeddigital.com/life-culture...

If Russia invaded Alaska, what would you call a US president who "made a deal" to prevent war by allowing Russia to annex the state and occupy the 730,000 Americans living there?

Fired Park Rangers Try to ‘Open Some Hearts’ on Social Media Some rangers decided it was worth the risk to speak out online about their firings and share their love of the National Park Service.

The National Park Service fired many of its park rangers as part of a reduction in the federal work force. Some rangers decided it was worth the risk to speak out online about the cuts and share their love of the Park Service.

“It’s scary, but it was the right thing to do.”

MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber has a message for New Yorkers: Congestion pricing is working, and it’s making New York a better place.

Really enjoyed my day yesterday at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. The entire event was organized by students, and they did an amazing job. Plus I got to speak to a great room full of enthusiastic young people who reminded me that hope is never misguided.

Trump Targets Agency Overseeing the Presidio, a Cherished San Francisco Park An executive order from the president also took aim at three independent agencies that promote peace abroad and work on development in Latin American and Africa.

President Trump moved to drastically shrink the Presidio Trust, the federal agency that oversees the Presidio of San Francisco, a national park at the base of the Golden Gate Bridge and one of the city’s most cherished public spaces, in an executive order issued Wednesday.

GM patenting an EV battery pack that can charge twice as fast by plugging it into two chargers at once is the most American innovation I’ve ever heard 🦅

Many on the right complain - a lot - about China's influence in the world.

As we cut foreign aid, China will likely fill the vacuum and get even more influence.

That increases the chances of conflicts with China. Not a great idea.

Judge orders Trump administration to temporarily allow funds for foreign aid to flow again A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to temporarily lift a three-week funding freeze that has shut down U.S. aid and development programs abroad.

Hopefully this judgement will be honored by the Trump administration and aid will begin to flow again.
It's worth repeating: The President of the U.S. does not decide where or how our tax money is spent. That is Congress's job. That's why Trump keeps losing in court.
apnews.com/article/usai...

It's weirdly difficult to remember that Trump's popular vote margin was /less/ than Hillary's in 2016. Biden got more votes in 2020 than Trump got in 2024 and Trump surrogates all under-performed in congressional races.

This is not a mandate, I don't get why it is being portrayed that way.

Trumpflation Everything is going to be a little more expensive now.

Trump promised to end inflation and “‘make America affordable again,’” writes @annielowrey.bsky.social. “That is not happening. Worse, the White House’s early policies are making it more likely that the country’s cost-of-living crisis will endure for years to come”:

USAID Lifesaving Aid Remains Halted Despite Rubio’s Promise A new directive puts further exemptions on hold. Aid workers also say the U.S. government has made it impossible to pay partners around the world.

Even though Rubio promised life-saving aid wouldn't be interrupted, it has essentially been halted worldwide, interrupting HIV and TB treatment and threatening millions of lives. People are dying today because of these chaotic, inconsistent stop work orders. www.nytimes.com/2025/02/12/u...

Presidents May Not Unilaterally Dismantle Government Agencies That’s not how separation of powers works under the U.S. Constitution.

“History reflects the Framers’ decision to give Congress, not the president, the authority to generate the executive-organization chart,” @petermshane.bsky.social writes:

It’s a Model of Government Efficiency, but DOGE Wants It Gone Musk is going after an agency that exists to protect consumers.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says that over the years, it has helped resolve millions of complaints from consumers, protecting Americans from various forms of financial fraud and deception. Now DOGE wants the agency gone, @lilashroff.bsky.social writes.

Kendrick Lamar’s halftime performance signaled protest and patriotism at once, provoking without necessarily saying much, writes Spencer Kornhaber: theatln.tc/AsXZrESW

“Americans don’t want to ride trains!”

Americans on a Sunday:

How Progressives Froze the American Dream The U.S. was once the world’s most geographically mobile society. Now we’re stuck in place—and that’s a very big problem.

Mobility is what once made the U.S. prosperous—but choosing where to live has become a privilege of class. “Reviving mobility offers us the best hope of restoring the American promise,” @yappelbaum.bsky.social writes. “But it is largely self-described progressives who stand in the way”:

Business jets flying toward New Orleans shown on the Flightradar24 map.

Mid-morning business jet traffic en route to New Orleans for the #SuperBowl. About 75 flights inbound to various airports in the area right now.