VIDEO OF THE DAY: Trump hit with surprise, unexpected court loss
The hits just keep on coming for Trump's wallet as yet another judge — this one in another country — adds another multi-hundred-thousand dollar penalty to Trump's legal bills. Ironically, it's because Trump tried and failed to sue former MI6 agent Christopher Steele's company for the scandalous allegations in the Steele Dossier, which included the now infamous story of the "pee tape." Turns out that sometimes a Trump's wealth does eventually...trickle down.
Take Action: End child poverty in America by expanding the Child Tax Credit!
Texas’ disastrous takeover of Houston schools triggers mass exodus of teachers, major library cuts
The GOP's war against education is unfolding at a shocking pace in Texas, where Houston teachers are calling for the resignation of the state-appointed superintendent amid a wave of resignations, library cuts, and strict curriculum reforms imposed on them by Gov. Abbott's ideological attack dog. At the heart of the issue is the state's New Education System (NES) reform program, where teachers are directed to teach based on provided curriculum and scripted lessons with their pay tied to standardized test scores and proficiency screenings to retain their jobs at NES schools. “They use this made-up evaluation system to make it look like these teachers aren’t good...it makes no sense that money is being spent on coming after certain teachers and using attorneys for the district to make sure teachers lose in whatever way possible," said one anonymous teacher, fearful of reprisal from the state. It actually makes perfect sense when you realize that Abbott is deliberately destroying the public school system in order to replace it with a for-profit charter school system.
Take Action: Stop Republicans from weakening child labor laws!
Insurrectionist Republican brings bad behavior to Washington
Eric Wilson for Congress: Wisconsin Republican Derrick Van Orden is a bad guy, with bad behavior, and bad politics. He’s made headlines for getting drunk at work and verbally abusing his pages; threatening librarians, and even throwing profane tantrums in hearings. Oh, and he was there for Trump’s January 6th rally in DC and is a MAGA extremist to boot. It’s time to send this cranky man-child home and replace him with a responsible adult, and a progressive one at that. If you agree, then Eric Wilson is your guy. He has vowed to fight for Medicare for All and refuses to take corporate money. Van Orden has no such principles, and has amassed himself a huge $1.6 million dark money war chest. Will you chip in to elect Eric Wilson and flip this critical battleground seat blue?
The NYPD is using social media to target critics. That brings its own set of worries
American police departments are notorious for the stunning, mafia-like hostility they show their critics and the impunity with which they behave, but the New York City Police Department is reaching new lows in their combative relationship with the public. The NYPD has added a production staff to make its own in-house copaganda videos while encouraging police chiefs "to go after judges and prosecutors seen as too lenient on crime and to criticize public policies that police oppose" in a department-wide intimidation campaign. Recently, Chief of Patrol John Chell lashed out at a state judge by name, saying she had released a man he deemed a “predator” who had been accused of stealing a cellphone and carrying drugs. But the message was later found to have misidentified both the judge and prosecutor involved, though not before it generated dozens of hateful comments, some of them featuring the judge’s photograph, which speaks volumes about the NYPD's general level of competence. “It’s a naked form of intimidation against the judiciary, which is dangerous and scary,” said Steven Zeidman, director of the criminal defense clinic at the City University of New York School of Law. “Their job is to investigate crimes, not to act as a mouthpiece to spew hate and fearmonger.”
Take Action: Pass the assault weapons ban!
Here’s why jalapeño peppers are less spicy than ever
Not even the humble jalapeño is safe from the destructive wiles of capitalism. If you've noticed that your peppers are not as hot as they used to be, you aren't wrong. It turns out that — we can't believe we're about to write these words — there is a grand conspiracy by the chile industry to standardize the taste of the chile for the use in prepared foods and to make it easier for companies to ensure their products reflect the "mild' or "hot" label on the salsa jar. This process was kicked into gear with the creation of the TAM II pepper, a line of jalapeños with very little heat that allows Big Snacks to control the level of heat by adding in oleoesin capsicum pepper extract. The crossbreeding of the TAM II pepper in the general pepper population and the food industry's insatiable desire for mild peppers (only 20% of all peppers are sold fresh) has led to milder peppers across the board.
"Musk needs to be adored … Zuckerberg is out of his depth": Kara Swisher on the toxic giants of Big Tech
Veteran tech journalist and podcaster Kara Swisher is spilling the tea on Big Tech's biggest bozos in her new memoir, Burn Book, in which she finally allows herself to let loose on the sociopathic weirdos who run Silicon Valley and their evolutions over the past 30 years as they grew more powerful and wealthy. The results, as we all know, are not great. Meta's Mark Zuckerberg sticks out to her for being completely in over his head but arrogant enough to think he could handle it. "That was my issue: someone who was so ill-prepared was making decisions that affected all kinds of people and unleashed an enormous amount of toxic waste.” Musk, for his part, is crippled by a desperate and obsessive need for attention. "The drug that’s hurting Elon Musk is all his enablers, who suck up to him. And needing to be adored. That’ll kill you." All of her words are a sharp reminder that these men should not be allowed to be in control of so much critically important online infrastructure — and nor do they deserve to have more money than they could literally ever spend.
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