A Trump administration with the base level of competency of Trump I would have turned this summer into a wall-to-wall national patriotism-equals-MAGA fest. It really is a stark illustration of the collapse of administrative capacity under Trump II that that just ... didn't happen.

It's hard to convey to someone who didn't experience it how culturally ubiquitous the bicentennial was at the time. Kids had red-white-and-blue SHEETS on their beds. Like many, many, many kids.

If I were writing Taylor Swift’s and Travis Kelce’s wedding vows, here’s what I would say. by Aaron Sorkin

Kaliningrad resumed retail sales of 92-octane gasoline & diesel at some stations. 30-liter gas and 60-liter diesel caps are still in place, and fill-ups at other stations remain limited to vehicles on official business. Days earlier, the exclave cut bus routes, partly over fuel shortages.

"No, he's just defying the will of California voters because he wants to run for president!" -He can't exactly win a presidential primary without California, can he? This explanation makes no sense. -If this is caused by running for president, explain Katie Porter. www.agalert.com/california-a...

Why Taylor and Travis should’ve invited Trump to their wedding.

Russia struck a supermarket in central Kramatorsk, Donetsk region, with an aerial bomb. Five people were injured, including an 11-year-old boy. "This is an ordinary urban space where people go about their daily lives. These are exactly the kinds of places Russians deliberately strike -

Please don't link to shit on X Here it is on YT www.youtube.com/watch?v=NsTV...

Farmer & farm worker tips on working outside in hot humid weather: First, the normal stuff. Stay hydrated. Take breaks in the shade. These are the basics! They'll get you pretty far & you won't make it without them! They are also not enough to get through a day on the farm IME!

Great(?) news, I am this person! And I was a farm worker for years before I found out "Oh! Not everyone blacks out when they stand up?" I just thought that was normal! 🤣 So I just got real good at standing up slowly & uhhh... well, continuing to work while greyed out.

RFK Jr come fight me, praise the Lord & pass the Adderall amen

There’s a new AI chat assistant on the block, "Aisha", which centers Black sources & history for users to be informed & connected. Founder and CEO of Onyx Impact, @esosaosa.bsky.social, joins with exciting news about the launch & why it’s about to transform the world. youtu.be/_FJBEuM72Do?...

Just sayin’.

The most famous 4 July mishap video ever. x.com/nocontexthum...

I've lived outside my home state, CA, for 20+ years, but I'd still rather say that I'm from there than an American. And my home state of the last 20 years has been Texas, and I sure as hell won't claim that. It's a train wreck. I'm a Californian or a Los Angelino through and through.

I'd be interested in some thoughts from Americans on here on an idea: Over the last 5 years, have you found yourself identifying more with your home state than the US as a whole over time?

This July 4th I am not feeling it. I have been quietly reading the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the Preamble. Going over history as well. As someone pointed out that is a mark of celebration, to revisit what made this country.

7/4/2002.

Not to be an asshole but when did Independence Day become another Veteran’s Day?

HUR destroyed a Russian MiG-29 with a drone at the Belbek airfield.

Ukraine’s HUR reports its Unmanned Systems Department struck Belbek airbase in occupied Crimea on the night of June 25–26, destroying a Russian MiG-29 fighter. The operation targeted the military airfield with drones, according to the military intelligence agency. #Ukraine

Ukraine's ambassador to the UK thanks Britain for another 21 fire trucks in its latest vehicle convoy for Ukraine. Valeriy Zaluzhnyi was keen to pay tribute to the country's support.

Was waiting for that one to show up. Another fave. Have to add this one then youtu.be/TzFnYcIqj6I?...

It’s time to stop letting Republicans claim the mantle of patriotism. They’ve done nothing to deserve it.

Goedemorgen from Evi, Ebba, Bliksem and Franklin. It’s gonna be a lovely day.

Before the attack on Dnipro, Russia had fired one ballistic, one Kh-59 missile and 86 drones. Neither missile was stopped and 'just' 69 drones were intercepted. The success rate for UAVs was 80.2% The 19 total strikes hit 16 places.

There has been a ballistic missile attack on Dnipro this morning. Two more locomotives have been damaged. The crews managed to take shelter due to the alarm being raised.

St Petersburg appears to be sending out smoke signals for help, to the rest of the world. The "cultural capital" of the Terrorist State is covered in smoke and smog as cars queue for the fuel they see burning a couple of miles away! #EATP

During my drive south, Ukraine's Special Ops team confirmed the strike on the oil terminal in St Petersburg, one of the main export hubs for Russian oil products. President Zelenskyy had also said there were hits on nearby Kronstadt - "an important military target."

Here's the video which didn't load earlier. Still having problems with this site.

And the oil terminal in St Petersburg has also been spectacularly hit.

Two big hits in northern Russia by Ukraine's drones. Here you can watch them hit the important port of Vysotsk in Leningrad region.

Russia's 24-hour losses show SIX air defence and 100 artillery systems. Also over 400 more logistical vehicles.

It's Day 1592 of the war in Europe. Russia throws more and more bodies at the frontline and has increased its terrorism, Ukraine defends heroically where it's outnumbered on the frontline, and stifles the enemy's logistics. This is Saturday's daily thread

Also here are satellite photos from a strike on Kerch airfield, Crimea, 11 days ago. Russia's most expensive drones, the Orion (cost $3m each) were based here. They were no match for Ukraine's birds this time.

Video has been released of one of Ukraine's strikes on an airfield in occupied Crimea. This is from 8 days ago, at the Belbek airbase, as a drone hit a Russian MiG-29. #CrimeaIsUkraine

Russia is a cowardly, one may say, a chicken state. To emphasise that, it has dropped an aerial bomb on what's believed to be Europe's largest poultry factory. No employees at the site in the Muzikovskaya community of Kherson were injured.

Ukraine also says it hit a Russian helicopter over the Sea of Azov. It's evaluating the damage - there's no video yet. Another logistical strike was on a railway bridge over the Siversky Donets River in occupied Luhansk. They also claim 2 🇷🇺command posts in Donetsk were struck.

Russia has hit more gas production sites. "Naftogaz" says it has had to stop its operations in Poltava region and "it's impossible to assess the extent of the damage. All employees were able to take shelter in time and were not injured."

NASA's fire monitoring system picked up 3 attacks in Crimea today. There's a high chance the hits were at: ♦️Novotroitskaya wind power plant; ♦️military airfield in Dzhankoy; ♦️on the territory of the ferry terminal in Kerch.

The missiles hit Odesa region. Ukraine says a supermarket's food warehouse was targeted. Nearby warehouses were also damaged. Two people were.

Medvedev has become Iran's spokesman and is threatening the West with a new weapon. "Iran has discovered another weapon, one no weaker than a nuclear weapon - the Strait of Hormuz. Iran also possesses a 'thermonuclear weapon' - the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.

‼️🇺🇦💥🇷🇺- Zelensky : putin a menti sur Konstantinovka à l'occasion de la fête de l'Indépendance 🇺🇸 pour « mentir au monde et au président 🇺🇸» sur la situation au front. 🇬🇧⤵️2/2 1/2

When he talks today we should all sing this at the same time. Loudly.

Danish shipyard races to service Putin’s LNG fleet before sanctions bite