Over the next 5 years it has been estimated that withdrawing USAID funding will result in an additional 13.4 million deaths, 4.3 million of which will be children under 5.

This quote continues, and the whole article is a refreshing condemnation of hollowness of so-called centrists. “the storied choice between socialism and barbarism was made exquisitely clear a good many years ago in the United States, and both major parties chose barbarism.”

One of the worst things is the impact of wars and conflicts. The environment becomes filled with injustice; everyone has immense negative energy, polluting both the physical and the moral fabric. I truly don't know how future generations in Gaza will grow up I hope will be reconstruction,containment

Most kids don’t need another iPad. They need a bike lane so they don’t have relay on racing in a virtual environment but can cycle alongside each other.

Brilliant new ad campaign I just spotted at the Southwark tube station in London.

The consequences of cutting off aid are so tragic for everyone. But it does really undermine this whole fear of jihadist thing. Because these numbers are wild.

Obviously this is both stupid and cruel, but as a country with an obesity rate at ~42%, did anyone think about the possibility of reciprocity?

Palestinians are still facing shortages of food, water, medicine and other supplies as a result of Israeli restrictions.

“ICE agents took Milena Zapata away, while Zapata and [1.5-year old] Alaia stayed. Alaia could not stop sobbing as her mother was detained, Zapata said.”

You catch of glimpse of the toddler’s face - he looks terrified. This would be a horrific enough story without ICE involved, but there’s ICE. Who are we?

“Roughly 80-89% of the world’s people want their governments to ‘do more’ to address #ClimateChange, and nearly 2/3rds are on board with that action costing them a bit. Yet most think they are the minority, telling pollsters they believe that only around 30% also want stronger climate action.”

Somerville parents: take this survey about how you commute to school with your kids.

I usually bike to work on the Minuteman, a beautiful bike path abutting conservation land. My co-worker, who always drives, told me I should drive to really see the foliage. He’s not wrong, Rt 2 has great foliage, but I don’t think he realized that the bike path is its own magic.

By this time next week, the estimated deaths due to the illegal destruction of USAID and the shuttering of its aid efforts will breach 400,000. More than 260,000 will be children. Source: www.bu.edu/sph/news/art...

“They came into the building understanding it was a daycare. They did not have a warrant. It is a violation of our rights. It is a violation of these children’s rights. They are terrorizing our community.” Trump’s ICE goons raided a damn daycare.

LA: “They took a US citizen father out and left a toddler in the backseat. Two heavily armed border patrol agents got in that car and drove the child and the vehicle away.” What are we doing?

"'They’re spending more money than I would even tax them,' [Mamdani] said in an interview with MSNBC last week." This is the message. Make it clear that these billionaires aren't just worried about losing money. They're worried about losing the ability to exchange their money for power.

This is the best thing I’ve seen all day.

Such policy choices threaten our rule of law; this is a form of lawlessness "[the report] spells out how a bespoke bureaucratic process put in place by successive Republican and Democratic administrations advantages Israel over other countries facing similar allegations of human rights violations."

The failure of the “blue no matter who” crowd to rally behind Mamdani really just lays the reality of that position bare, doesn’t it?

Seems to me that Christianity is going through a whole new phase of enshittification under the current administration.

Speeding killed nearly 12,000 people in 2023—almost as many as drunk driving—and costs society an estimated $46 billion annually. And for what? For this: 🥴 Read our new White Paper about what we can do to stop the madness. #StopSuperSpeeders static1.squarespace.com/static/669fe...

Not sure how many Cheney obits will mention this murderous legacy of his.

My voting philosophy: don't vote for anyone who punches down. But the problem with this country is that the powerful are very good at claiming to be the victims. "Your taxes will hurt us." So mine is a simply philosophy, but requires thoughtful application.

The fact a *single* Amazon full-time employee requires SNAP benefits should be a crime. The fact Amazon is the largest employer of SNAP recipients is a disgrace. Jeff Bezos shouldnt be that rich; he should be in jail.

This is brilliant

92%: the percentage of funding for Nigel Farage's far-right political party Reform UK that comes from fossil fuel interests. Across the world, anyone blaming immigrants, etc, it's all just a smokescreen to allow the rich to keep on getting richer by killing our planet. share.google/W2gwfc0XVpUy...

There is a genocide & humanitarian crisis in Sudan. The reports of mass killings, starvation, and displacement in El Fasher are horrifying. The US must hold the UAE & any other arms dealers to the RSF accountable and act urgently to save lives.

This looks like a concentration camp.

We all know a hungry child can't learn.   But Republicans' government shutdown is threatening SNAP and Head Start—forcing parents out of work and kids to go hungry.   This hurt and harm is undeniable—and it's 100% preventable.

Rep. Clay Higgins of Louisiana blames SNAP recipients for not stockpiling a month's worth of food. He ends his tweet with "stop smoking crack."

Yesterday I learned that several of my friends have relied on SNAP benefits at some point in their lives. They talked about the dignity of SNAP vs. going to a good bank. It's a really valuable program, for more than just the money provided.

Remember: The richest 1% evade over $160 billion in taxes every year. That amount would fund SNAP for a year with money to spare. Ask yourself who the real freeloaders are.

Campaign finance data is now available for Somerville ballot question 3. I was interested that the anti-ballot group running the campaign "Focus on Somerville" raised so much money from outside Somerville. They can tell Somerville what to do, but we can't care about broader issues?

i think if you ride public transit enough you learn that most weird behavior is not dangerous, and conversely i think driving a car teaches you that everyone is trying to kill you at all times

The book Goliath's Curse argues that when societies get so hierarchical that they're really punishing ppl at the bottom, ppl leave (unless they're trapped). Voting with their feet. I think there's a lot of this that can be applied to the conversation around marriage.

Who are rules for? "Legal experts, including several former US prosecutors, said the arrangement was highly unusual and carried risks for the companies as the coded messages could violate legal obligations in the US, where the companies are headquartered, to keep a subpoena secret."

Israel just launched a wave of strikes on Gaza, killing over 100 - including, reportedly, dozens of children… then declared the ceasefire is back on. They have killed over 200 since the “ceasefire” www.cnn.com/2025/10/28/m...

I get that this headline isn't technically wrong, but it's ridiculous to say there's a ceasefire when 104 people just died in attacks. What a crazy rhetorical world we live in.

Coolest thing at this conference: Vendor for tactile delineator devices (for guiding pedestrians who are blind) has a fully tactile Lego streetscape

In case you're agonizing about Sudan, Doctors Against Genocide recommended this organization about two weeks ago, they operate in El Fasher. I don't know their current status, with the new developments, but it's supposed to be a good local org.

Meanwhile, Bill Gates has "shifted his stance" on climate change while admitting "climate change will have serious consequences — particularly for people in the poorest countries." I hate these people. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/28/c...

Really worried about this today. Tomorrow may be a very different world for all these people.

Yesterday I posted that something like Hurricane Melissa, as predicted, requires an Ark. I deleted it because I worried that people might think I'm being flippant. I am actually quite serious, sadly.

Whenever people complain about the number of folks relying on food stamps, it is worth reminding them that SNAP is, by too large of a degree, a subsidy for corporations that refuse to pay a living wage and their political allies who reject public policy prescriptions to reduce income inequality.

Just started my recurring donation. Now is the moment for the community to step up for our neighbors.

We all agree: vacant buildings don't help anyone. I was very pleased to vote unanimously to advance a plan to bring Transmedics, an impressive organ transplanation company, to Somerville. Not a done deal yet - hopefully soon. Here are my remarks on why I supported this: youtu.be/Sx4mtp-SywQ?....

Happy Labour Day Aotearoa. #nzpol