for some context for this threadlet, Mitt Romney, who is rich (estimated net worth $235 million), spends $1.7 million/yr on personal security. Someone with some millions is very much a target, but can't afford to protect themselves like Romney can.

This is a vital message: one of the larger reasons BlueSky is refreshingly free of alt-right shitlords is because in the early days we made a gentleperson’s agreement to starve these fuckos out and it worked. No likes, no quotes, no engagement. They got bored and left. Please keep the Old Ways.

Things to do today in #Virginia: 1) Vote in the primary. (I voted early.) 2) Listen to any of Paradise Lost's first five albums. (n/p: "Icon") 3) Donate to a food bank/drive or make an appointment to donate blood if you're eligible. (Did the former Saturday, scheduling the latter.) 4) Watch results.

Every machine in a Hospital that diagnoses your body without cutting you open is based on a principle of Physics, discovered by a Physicist who had no interest in Medicine. If you think the world doesn’t need Basic Science, or that somehow Science has failed you, think again.

My sign today for the Charlottesville #NoKings protest. I couldn’t let the news about the ACIP go without comment. Lots of older folks similar to the hands off protest from May. But I was glad to see more younger protesters this time!

It is 100% carrying water for the opposition to participate in this collective delusion that Dems for some reason need to answer for every teen who throws a rock rather than hold the Trump admin accountable for intentionally creating chaos and breaking the law to stoke violence. They are in charge.

The Declaration of Independence specifies 27 grievances with King George III, and I count at least 15 of them that Donald Trump has also committed in whole or in part. Particularly notable right now: "He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures."

The world is tough right now bc a few selfish, intolerant folks are making it so. Buy a national parks pass to support national parks. Donate to a local election for someone who consistently stands up for truth. Support abortion providers, immigration lawyers, humanitarian work. Don't let evil win.

RFK jr is the biggest conflict of interest around in the vaccine world 😡😡 www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/...

i understand the framing, which is about RFK jr lying to a senator to get senate approval but RFK jr also lied to the american public just completely unacceptable for a public official and senator bill cassidy is not the only one who should take action for being lied to

If you're a Marine or other service member being mobilized to Los Angeles and you'd like to apply for conscientious objector status, call the GI Rights Hotline to get some guidance on your options: 1-877-447-4487

Fight the Empire.

NEW: I analyzed nearly 300 federal cases involving the Trump administration. Federal judges—across the political spectrum—are using language I’ve never seen before. One called government actions “unconscionable.” Another quoted Kafka. They’re begging us to pay attention.

hey don't forget to turn off biometric access to your phone and if you did happen to forget, in an emergency, pressing the power button 5 times on your iphone will lock it & it can't be unlocked again without the passcode even if you were silly & left face ID on 🙂

This is absolutely terrible news. With the shifting regulatory climate (i.e., antivax ratfuckery), Moderna has withdrawn their application for their eagerly anticipated COVID-flu combo vaccine. This vaccine offered better protection than getting each shot separately. h/t @merz.bsky.social

A Review in Nature Reviews Immunology provides an overview of the current vaccines that are offered during pregnancy and to newborns, explaining the rationale behind the different vaccination programmes and the unique challenges that come with immunizing these populations. 🔒

Remember when Republicans said that they just didn’t want “mandates” for COVID19 protections like masks and vaccines? They wanted a choice? Well, now they are mandating in the other direction. They are busily making sure that masks and vaccines are banned or unavailable.

So Canadian. Apologizing for calling someone an asshole.

The DOJ just pulled the rug out from under our communities by terminating community violence intervention funds with zero warning. This isn’t a policy change — it’s political punishment. We demand accountability. #ProtectCVI #FundCVI #CommunitySafety

NEW: Crowd now growing at the Capitol where Cory Booker and Hakeem Jeffries are staging a sit-in on the steps. Is this building into something? If you’re in DC, they’re encouraging folk to come down there & support. #Resist (📸 Sen. Brian Schatz)

The best!! 👏👏👏

What, and I repeat, the fuck? I trust any source Jeremy trusts and will be taking his advice tonight.

Call your member of Congress today. 5calls.org/issue/nation...

ACTION ITEM-----ACTION ITEM Implementation of Schedule F This is what a lot of us have been worried about. This allows for many civil service positions to replaced with political appointees. This could include NIH institute directors and even POs. BUT THERE IS A COMMENT PERIOD... 1/n

Free speech can’t be protected by allowing it to be a deportable “offense.” Education won’t be free when it can be corrupted. And abusing the rights of anyone endangers everyone. Thank you @senatormarkmann.bsky.social

🚨Report your NSF grant terminations! 🚨 We are starting to collect information on NSF grant terminations to create a shared resource as we have for NIH. The more information we collect, the more we can organize, advocate, and fight back! Please share widely! airtable.com/appGKlSVeXni...

Today I got on the phone with a colleague/friend, with whom I've been furiously texting for the past few days. In 5 minutes, we figured out something that had been bugging both of us & causing friction. This moment demands alliances, not arguments. Who might YOU call, today?

1. The DOJ has sent threatening letters to several medical journals, focused around whether these journals are spreading misinformation that harms the American people and suppressing alternative viewpoints. I study how the norms and institutions of science facilitate discovery and self-correction.

Y'all, there's a first time for everything: I'm telling you to read a David Brooks column. And to share it with your centrist friends (you know, the ones who always send his shit to you.) I know, this is weird for me too. But you should read this and share it. www.nytimes.com/2025/04/17/o...

Tragic news from a stellar investigator. I can only hope Dr. Hall will find a place to support his research, but as many of us know, building that level of infrastructure in a new place will be difficult. This is happening over and over within NIH. We will lose so much.

Good morning. Today is the 80th day that the U.S. President is running a backdoor bribery scheme in which any CEO or foreign oligarch can send him money secretly through his crypto coin scam in exchange for favors. It's the biggest scandal in the history of the Presidency.

This is nonsense

Yesterday, we sent a historically big message to Trump, Musk, and the GOP — and we also sent a signal to all those who agree with us but have spent the last few months feeling shaken, hopeless, and afraid. #handsoff

Where is our humanity?

If you’re a North Carolinian, you can check whether your name or the names of anyone you know is on the list of the 65K voters whose votes may be tossed. You could have an opportunity to fix it if so. thegriffinlist.com

Trump is not done attacking our elections. He and his supporters plot every day to undermine the right to vote. They are constantly looking for opportunities to exploit weaknesses in the election system. This is their top priority. The question for us is whether it is ours as well.

Not all “Hands Off” events were in-person. I attended two virtual events centering chronically ill and disabled people for @motherjones.com, who are terrified about attacks to Medicaid, Section 504, research funding, education and more. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Building a mass movement (instead of a subculture) will require a lot of cringe, so get comfortable with it

Check out the Society for Fearless Grandmothers, demonstrating at the Hands Off Santa Barbara Rally.

That’s roughly 8.9% of our population, and almost 2% if one considers the entire area.

3.5% of total population is the magic number 🙏 www.bbc.com/future/artic...

Even if you intend to blur protest photo faces, remove metadata when you get home before posting, possible your phone gets confiscated. Seems good to show crowds are big, diverse; model to your network how you're showing up (please *do* signal this is virtuous!); but pls keep other protestors safe

I've read to not take IDable/face photos @ protests w/o each's explicit permission; find ways to protect IDs (eg just posters, or backs); you don't know who could lose their job, unsafe home, or be doxxed. Once shared online, pics=part of some firehose collection even if you delete it here later.

4,000 people is like 10% of the population of Charlottesville. Impressive! bluevirginia.us/2025/04/phot... #HandsOff #HandsOff2025

Huge crowd in Charlottesville! #handsoff

Remember the task now is to disseminate the images of the protests to people who didn’t see them and project a sense of their size and significance. Huge numbers of people turned out today, let’s make their dedication count!

hey um, the National Weather Service is getting screwed. apparently tons of websites are set to go dark tonight because of lack of funds. Weather forecasters are saying this is going to affect warnings and predictions *immediately*