Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

beka valentine @bekavalentine.bsky.social · 8h

When an makes art from an era of science fiction design that is no longer in fashion but which is immensely more rich and intense and evocative than the stuff we have now

Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social · 22h

FRIDAY (1982)
Acrylic - 30” x 20”

Robert Heinlein does create memorable characters!

Not even halfway through this book, I had a nearly photographic image of Friday in my mind. By the time I finished, I felt confident about the substance and approach my painting would have. 1/4

A woman in a blue denim jumpsuit stands in front of a view of space as seen through a gold trimmed porthole. The central zipper of her outfit is drawn down to her waist exposing bare skin. Her short cropped, sandy blonde hair has a slight curl. Her eyes reflect vibrant blue set in a gaze directly forward. The silhouette of a planet can be seen in the round viewport behind her. A star emerges from behind the planet and flares above her right shoulder. A moon with bright crescent highlight hangs over her left shoulder.

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𝔻𝕖𝕖𝕡 𝕋𝕙𝕠𝕥 @thatsgoodweb.bsky.social · 15h

Oscar Chichoni, illustration for Starship Titanic, 1997

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𝔻𝕖𝕖𝕡 𝕋𝕙𝕠𝕥 @thatsgoodweb.bsky.social · 15h

Oscar Chichoni, cover art for Starship Titanic, 1997

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Anna Bower @annabower.bsky.social · 11h

Ghana’s foreign minister just posted this to X:

“The Ghanaian Government is pleased to note that our refusal to accept Abrego Garcia has been duly acknowledged and complied with by the US Department of Homeland Security.”

Sam Okudzeto Ablakwa &
@S_OkudzetoAblak
X.com
The Ghanaian Government is pleased to note that our refusal to accept Abrego Garcia has been duly acknowledged and complied with by the US
Department of Homeland Security.
We have also followed with satisfaction that DHS has today taken the appropriate steps to inform Garcia's lawyers and amend court submissions to reflect the fact that Ghana cannot be an option for Garcia's deportation.
The Mahama Administration will continue to be transparent and truthful to Ghanaians at all times.
For God and Country E
anana was premature
abe NEWS
LAURA ROMERO
Fri, October 10, 2025 at 6:03 AM PDT|
凸
to

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beka valentine @bekavalentine.bsky.social · 12h

like, sure, you have to learn how to use a vernier, but it's not that hard, and once you've learned it for calipers, you can use it for things like micrometers which are often still mechanical to this day

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beka valentine @bekavalentine.bsky.social · 12h

also, they never run out of batteries

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beka valentine @bekavalentine.bsky.social · 12h

they basically don't have any kind of significant zeroing issues, unlikely digital calipers, which need zeroing after pretty much any closure of the jaws

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beka valentine @bekavalentine.bsky.social · 12h

mechanical vernier calipers are far superior to digital calipers for day to day use in my experience

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Christopher Mathias @letsgomathias.bsky.social · 19h

antifa bogeyman in nutshell: label whomever opposition is "antifa" — in this case Resistance 2.0 "No Kings" folks — creating pretext to target them w/ state/vigilante violence

also sews division, w/ moderates fretting abt appearing too extreme, making them punch left, undercutting solidarity

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 22h

Mike Johnson: "We're so angry about it. I mean, I'm a very patient guy, but I've had it with these people. The theory we have right now -- they have a hate America rally that's scheduled for October 18 on the National Mall. It's the pro-Hamas wing and antifa people ... "

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Emma Evans @trance.bsky.social · 1d

It also destroys the BIG SCARY ANTIFA THUG GANGS TZERRORIST BURNING CITZY OMGERD bullshit when you see
a bunch of awesome dorks dancing around

TKarney @pecunium.bsky.social · 1d

"There’s been a nice overall whimsy that has shown up. The frog is amazing... What they rely on is fear. So by coming out in an absurdist manner, it speaks to them, to some extent, that we’re actually not that afraid."

And it makes ICE look ridiculous.

www.wweek.com/culture/2025...

An Interview With the Portland Chicken

Jack Dickinson, 26, says “we’re winning this.”

www.wweek.com

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John Scott-Railton @jsrailton.bsky.social · 18h

Now we're seeing confirmation of the NSO acquisition.

Mark my words, this is the path through which Pegasus gets put on Americans iPhones & Androids.

This dictatorship-in-a-box belongs nowhere near our constitutional rights.

Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai @lorenzofb.bsky.social · 18h

SCOOP: Spyware maker NSO Group confirmed to us that the company has been acquired by a U.S. investment group.

NSO's spokesperson said the group "has invested tens of millions of dollars in the company and has acquired controlling ownership," but declined to say who is behind the investment.

Spyware maker NSO Group confirms acquisition by US investors | TechCrunch

NSO Group confirmed to TechCrunch that an unnamed group of American investors has taken “controlling ownership” of the surveillance tech maker.

techcrunch.com

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beka valentine @bekavalentine.bsky.social · 17h

uh oh. trump threatened more tariffs on china. guess that means you should buy some stocks now while they're low, before he retracts it and they all spoke again

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Henry Carnell @hencarnell.bsky.social · 1d

"What they rely on is fear. So by coming out in an absurdist manner, it speaks to them, to some extent, that we’re actually not that afraid."

Willamette Week @wweek.com · 1d

Jack Dickinson, 26, says “we’re winning this.”

An Interview With the Portland Chicken

Rachel Saslow

www.wweek.com

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jael holzman @jael.bsky.social · 1d

This is enough carbon-free energy to power maybe two thirds of Vegas btw

jael holzman @jael.bsky.social · 1d

SCOOP: The Bureau of Land Management says the largest solar project in Nevada — the Esmeralda 7 mega-farm — has been canceled

The news was quietly dropped via a sudden website update with no public word from any of the companies involved or a statement from the agency

@heatmap.news

Esmeralda 7 Solar Project Has Been Canceled, BLM Says

It would have delivered a gargantuan 6.2 gigawatts of power.

heatmap.news

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CZEdwards @czedwards.bsky.social · 1d

It won’t get the press it deserves in the US, but this was sovereign citizen, hard-right fundamentalist Christian terrorism that Australians picked up from US SovCits.

Piercings do not make a leftist; illegal gun rooms and End Times fantasies make hard right terrorists.

US man linked to Wieambilla shooters strikes plea deal with prosecutors

Donald Day Jr will have charges relating to allegedly threatening FBI agents and other officials dropped under deal

www.theguardian.com

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Chris Geidner @chrisgeidner.bsky.social · 1d

BREAKING: Federal judge issues a TRO in the Northern District of Illinois (including Chicago and the Broadview ICE facility), providing protections for protesters and journalists covering the protests.

storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

Some of the key elements:

1. It is hereby ORDERED that Defendants,' their officers, agents, assigns, and all
persons acting in concert with them (hereafter referred to as "Federal Agents"), are temporarily ENJOINED in this judicial district from:
Dispersing, arresting, threatening to arrest, threatening or using physical
force against any person whom they know or reasonably should know is a Journalist, unless
Defendants have probable cause to believe that the individual has committed a crime.
Defendants may order a Journalist to change location to avoid disrupting law enforcement,
' President Trump, one of the named Defendants, is not included in this Order.
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Case: 1:25-cv-12173 Document #: 42 Filed: 10/09/25 Page 2 of 6 PagelD #:836
as long as the Journalist has an objectively reasonable time to comply and an objectively
reasonable opportunity to report and observe;

b. Issuing a crowd dispersal order requiring any person to leave a public place
that they lawfully have a right to be, unless dispersal is justified by exigent circumstances as defined by Department of Homeland Security Use of Force Policy (updated Feb. 6,
2023), Sections III.F and XII.E;
С.
For purposes of this Order, a crowd dispersal order is a lawful command
given by a Federal Agent for all persons to leave a designated area when three or more persons are committing acts of disorderly conduct that are likely to cause substantial harm in the immediate vicinity;
d. Using riot control weapons including kinetic impact projectiles (KIPs), Compressed Air Launchers (e.g., PIS and FN303), Oleoresin Capsicum (OC) Spray, CS gas, CN gas, or other chemical irritants, 40 mm Munitions Launchers, less-lethal shotguns,
Less-Lethal Specialty Impact-Chemical Munitions (LLSI-CM), Controlled Noise and Light Distraction Devices (CNLDDs), Electronic Control Weapons (ECWs) - on members of the press, protesters, or religious practitioners who are not posing an immediate threat to the safety of a law enforcement officer or others;

To facilitate the Defendants' identification of Journalists protected under
this Order, the following are examples of indicia of being a Journalist: visual identification as a member of the press, such as by carrying a professional press pass, badge or credentials; wearing distinctive clothing or patches that identify the wearer as a member of the press; or carrying professional gear such as professional photographic or videography
equipment. Other indicia of being a Journalist under this Order include that the person is standing off to the side of a protest, not engaging in chanting, sign holding, shouting slogans, or otherwise protesting, and documenting protest activities, although these are not
requirements. These indicia are illustrative, and a person need not exhibit every indicium
to be considered a Journalist under this Order. Defendants shall not be liable for unintentional violations of this Order in the case of an individual who does not wear a press pass, badge, or other official press credential, professional gear, or distinctive clothing that identifies the person as a member of the press.

It is further ORDERED that all Federal Agents, excepting those who do not wear a
uniform or other distinguishing clothing or equipment in the regular performance of their official
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Case: 1:25-cv-12173 Document #: 42 Filed: 10/09/25 Page 5 of 6 PagelD #:839
duties or are engaged in undercover operations in the regular performance of their official duties, must have visible identification (for which a unique recognizable alphanumeric identifier sequence
will suffice) affixed to their uniforms or helmets and prominently displayed, including when
wearing riot gear.

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buy my book @nmamatas.bsky.social · 1d

On twitter one person with a million+ followers referred to the crowd as an "antifa army".

Michelle 🪷🇲🇽🇺🇸🌵 @chicana74.bsky.social · 2d

This headline 🤣🤣🤣

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Karl Bode @karlbode.com · 1d

you'd think a prominent news outlet like the New York Times might mention that "antifa" isn't an actual organization in a long story about antifa, but nope!

and the subhead helps props up a false claim this professor was up to something seedy as something up for debate

NYT headline: "Rutgers Expert on Antifa Tries to Flee to Spain After Death Threats"

subheadline: "Mark Bray was teaching courses on antifascism. Turning Point USA accused him of belonging to antifa, which he denies. His flight to Spain was canceled abruptly on Wednesday night."

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beka valentine @bekavalentine.bsky.social · 1d

ironically, this is generally not true. bubbles happen because of exuberance and irrationality. the more talk there is of a bubble, the more cautious people get

now, i'm not saying there isn't a bubble or that it won't pop, but there's been constant talk since 2010 and yet no pop

Nosferatu RBMK 🦇 @comraderobot.bsky.social · 1d

the thing about the bubble popping is that the more we TALK and THINK about the bubble popping, the more likely it becomes. because the economy follows warhammer 40k ork logic

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Jonathan W. Gray @elmcitytree.blacksky.app · 5d

My goodness, Baldwin could had written this last week.

Only a handful of the millions of people in this vast place are aware that the fate intended for you, Sister Angela, and for George Jackson, and for the numberless prisoners in our concentration camps-for that is what they are—is a fate which is about to engulf them, too. White lives, for the forces which rule in this country, are no more sacred than black ones, as many and many a student is discovering, as the white American corpses in Vietnam prove. If the American people are unable to contend with their elected leaders for the redemption of their own honor and the lives of their own children, we, the blacks, the most rejected of the Western children, can expect very little help at their hands: which, after all, is nothing new. What the Americans do not realize is that a war between brothers, in the same cities, on the same soil, is not a racial war but a civil war. But the American delusion is not only that their brothers all are white but that the whites are all their brothers.

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Jonathan W. Gray @elmcitytree.blacksky.app · 5d

You can read the full essay—that Baldwin wrote after Angela had been arrested and put on trail—here

An Open Letter to My Sister, Miss Angela Davis | James Baldwin

One might have hoped that, by this hour, the very sight of chains on black flesh, or the very sight of chains, would be so intolerable a sight for the American people, and so unbearable a memory, that...

www.nybooks.com

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Jonathan W. Gray @elmcitytree.blacksky.app · 5d

James Baldwin to Angela Davis in 1970, discussing white Americans:

Or, to put it another way, as long as white Americans take refuge in their whiteness— for so long as they are unable to walk out of this most monstrous of traps-they will allow millions of people to be slaughtered in their name, and will be manipulated into and surrender themselves to what they will think of-and justify—as a racial war. They will never, so long as their whiteness puts so sinister a distance between themselves and their own experience and the experience of others, feel themselves sufficiently human, sufficiently worthwhile, to become responsible for themselves, their leaders, their country, their children, or their fate. They will perish (as we once put it in our black church) in their sins—that is, in their delusions. And this is happening, needless to say, already, all around us.

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Ciara RayneCloud @ciararaynecloud.bsky.social · 12d

Hey so... did you know that the Mormon Church filed an amicus curiae brief on the 19th of September? Me either...

www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/24...

In short, "Giving trans people rights hurts us because it ruins our religious freedom to be bigots!"

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beka valentine @bekavalentine.bsky.social · 1d

this isn't bad. quite the contrary. scifi movies today raise all sorts of questions, and because of poor writing, they never answer

questions come up, and are dropped

80s and 90s movies tho? they raise questions that are entirely relevant and the answer matters

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beka valentine @bekavalentine.bsky.social · 1d

been watching a bunch of scifi movies from the 80s and 90s lately and there is a consistent tendency for the story to raise questions in the viewer about how the fuck something would happen, and almost IMMEDIATELY the movie then answers is

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