Author | Lightnews

Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 4h

Wait....what?

What... what does this even mean?

more mr. nice guy @juniorhoncho.bsky.social · 1d

CNN ANCHOR: As President Trump's approval ratings drop, how can Democrats harness the protest movements we see today?
HAKEEM JEFFRIES: Well I call him President Parachute Pants ok? Too much ballroom. Yet he's fumbling the ball of protecting healthcare. So I urge all Americans to obey federal agents.

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Reposted by Matt Calcara

@DUH4Healthcare @duh4healthcare.bsky.social · 5h

Most Americans Support M4A:
Economist/YouGov Poll July 2025
Including about 9 in 10 Democrats and 1 in 3 in Republicans

Data: Economist/Yougov poll, July 2025, available from:
d3nk13psvxxpe9.cloudfront.net/documents/ec...

Most Americans Support M4A:
Economist/YouGov Poll July 2025
Including about 9 in 10 Democrats and 1 in 3 in Republicans
85
59
57
Percent
50
34
27
24
7
Total
Democrats
Independents
Republicans
• Support • Oppose
Data: Economist/Yougov poll, July 2025, available from:
https://d3nk13psvxxpe9.cloudfront.net/documents/econTabReport_haeOEK5.pdf

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Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 5h

Kansas, PLEASE VOTE TOMORROW, in our local elections for City Councils, school boards, community college trustees and water boards.

Need help deciding who to vote for?

The Beacon has you covered for WyCo & JoCo, at least-->
thebeaconnews.org/kansas-gener...

Voter guide: Get ready for the Wyandotte County and Johnson County, Kansas, General Election on Nov. 4.

Kansans will head to the polls on Nov. 4 for the 2025 general election. The Beacon has put together candidate Q&As, explainers and a few other stories to help you prepare for Election Day in Wyandotte...

thebeaconnews.org

Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 5h

Oh man, Citizens United is probably the worst Supreme Court decision since Dred Scott, and I am not even exaggerating.

Although I think disaffected leftists in Kansas are probably considerably to the left of the Greens. Most are probably outright democratic socialists in the American sense.

Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 5h

Fuck you, Lenexa City Council candidate Bill Nicks, and the racist horse you rode in on for your answer on the citizenship question.

That's your fucking colleague, dude, and to question her citizenship after all she went through is racist AF.

johnsoncountypost.com/2025/10/23/l...

Lenexa city council candidates on the issues: Policing

Earlier this summer, the Post asked our readers what issues you wanted to hear candidates running for Lenexa City Council to address leading up to the Nov. 4 election. Based on that feedback, we devel...

johnsoncountypost.com

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Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 5h

Reminder: Columbus was so evil & brutal that even his own sponsors stripped him of his land & titles in response to that brutality.

His sponsors? The people who invented the Spanish Inquisition.

Teen Vogue @teenvogue.com · 21d

In 2023, then-President Biden enshrined Indigenous Peoples Day. Now Trump is blaming left-wing "radicals” and “arsonists” for "canceling" Columbus.

Trump and Republicans Want to "Un-Cancel" Columbus Day, Erasing Indigenous Peoples Day

In 2023, then-President Biden enshrined Indigenous Peoples Day. Now Trump is blaming left-wing "radicals” and “arsonists” for "canceling" Columbus.

www.teenvogue.com

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Reposted by Matt Calcara

Andrew Goldstein @andrewmakebluesky.bsky.social · 1d

A story! Most of the 7 hours of canvassing I did today was educating people about when they could vote and celebrating the people voting for Zohran (yay to our amazing pep squad! we had a cow bell! we got cars honking for voters! so much fun!). But most meaningful was...

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Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 6h

Amount the average American taxpayer spends per year to support the SNAP program: $36.

Amount the average American taxpayer spends per year on corporate subsidies: $670.

www.counterpunch.org/2025/10/31/r...

Roaming Charges: Grave Disorders

More than half of new ICE recruits failed an open-book test after taking a course on Immigration and the Fourth Amendment. This pervasive constitutional ignorance might seem like a grave disorder for ...

www.counterpunch.org

Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 6h

"Hate Republicans *and* Democrats but feel like not voting for a major party is wasting your vote--because under our current system it effectively is--then there are some simple fixes we can make so new parties can break through and end the duopoly."

I think most voters would be open to that.

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Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 6h

This is an absolutely bonkers story about the KCK Police & how they kept a LOT of bad cops on their payroll, despite knowing they were doing bad things.

www.kcur.org/news/2025-11...

Hack exposes Kansas City, Kansas, Police's secret officer misconduct list

A major breach of the Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department reveals for the first time, a list of alleged officer misconduct including dishonesty, sexual harassment, excessive force, and false arrest...

www.kcur.org

Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 1d

As someone whose Dad is both a veteran and a breast cancer survivor, this hit home hard.

Trying to hurt trans people hurts us all.

And for what? How does this help anyone?

ProPublica @propublica.org · 1d

Citing a Trump order about “restoring biological truth,” the VA is making it more difficult for male veterans with breast cancer to get their care covered by the government.

The disease is deadlier than for women and “notably higher among veterans,” research shows.

By @ericumansky.bsky.social

Citing Trump Order on “Biological Truth,” VA Makes It Harder for Male Veterans With Breast Cancer to Get Coverage

A Department of Veterans Affairs memo obtained by ProPublica erects new roadblocks to care for veterans with the rare but deadly cancer. The agency cites no new science but relies on an executive orde...

www.propublica.org

Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 1d

Imma just leave this right here.

Do with it what you will...

www.psypost.org/trump-suppor...

Trump supporters report higher levels of psychopathy, manipulativeness, callousness, and narcissism

Support for Donald Trump is linked to darker personality traits, including increased psychopathy and decreased empathy, new research finds. The study also connects conservative political beliefs to lo...

www.psypost.org

Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 1d

Raise your hand if, against your better judgment, you still have a Twitter account.

🙋‍♂️

jacobin.com/2025/10/ensh...

How Elon Musk Ruined Twitter

Twitter used to represent the best of the internet. Under Elon Musk, it has become the home of AI-generated pornography and pay-to-play engagement farming, Cory Doctorow writes.

jacobin.com

Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 1d

Are there even going to be any swing districts left in America?

Pre-determined election results seem, uh... pretty anti-democracy.

www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...

America’s redistricting fight: how could the US congressional map shift?

Republicans hold a 219-213 majority in the House, but they could lock in more seats if reapportionments go their way

www.theguardian.com

Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 1d

Exactly this.

(Although the lack of buildable infill lots varies widely between cities, with the coasts having almost none, but Midwestern cities having more...but it's still a problem basically everywhere!)

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Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 1d

Fusion voting would be a good first step toward that.

Democracy in the United States is clearly in desperate need of a major overhaul.

Probably most people can agree on that, at least. Less agreement on what to do about it.

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Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 1d

Time to go get the Democrats of my precinct to turn out to vote in our local elections Tuesday.

Remember, Kansas, your local elections for city councils, school boards, water boards & community college trustees are when your vote matters MOST, since far fewer folks turn out.

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Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 1d

Rent control is absolutely crucial to turning enough renters into YIMBYies to get tons of new housing built.

www.theatlantic.com/economy/arch...

Mamdani Has a Point About Rent Control

In an interview, the candidate argued that the policy is essential to get voters on board with pro-housing reforms.

www.theatlantic.com

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Reposted by Matt Calcara

shauna @goldengateblond.bsky.social · 2d

tired: great gatsby parties
wired: bastille day parties

Tim Dickinson @timdickinson.bsky.social · 2d

Apparently there was a Gatsby party at Mar a Lago, while Trump is trying to kick 42 million off SNAP

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Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 2d

So this image of a possible new congressional district map has been making the rounds on Facebook.

And it is exactly the sort of evil map that DC consultants who have never been to Kansas would push.

If you live in northern JoCo, congrats! Your new congressional district makes zero sense.

Proposed new congressional district map for the state of Kansas. Notably, the state's most populous county, Johnson, appears to be kinda jigsawed in half at random, with the northern portion of the county on Kansas's northeastern border placed in a district that stretches all the way to the southwestern corner of the state.

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Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 2d

I will bet anyone $50 that Donald Trump couldn't point out Nigeria on a map.

So you gonna release the Epstein files or not, Donny boy?
www.dw.com/en/nigeria-f...

Nigeria flaunts religious freedoms after Trump designation – DW – 11/01/2025

The Trump administration re-added the West African country to a US watch list over alleged Christian persecution. Trump later threatened that US forces might "go into" Nigeria to strike Islamist group...

www.dw.com

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Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 2d

Margaret Atwood seems like she would be a really fun friend to have.

One who would tell you if you were being an idiot (but nicely because Canadian) & would knock back a bottle of wine with you to celebrate a win.

www.theguardian.com/books/2025/n...

‘It is the scariest of times’: Margaret Atwood on defying Trump, banned books – and her score-settling memoir

At 86, she’s a literary seer and saint – and queen of the Canadian resistance. So what does the writer make of our dystopian world?

www.theguardian.com

Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 2d

The one on the left clearly has a guilty conscience.

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Reposted by Matt Calcara

Polling USA @usapolling.bsky.social · 2d

"Governments should (X) to balance the budget"

Raise taxes on corporations/the wealthy: 69%

Cut services: 31%

Clarity Campaign Labs / Oct 23, 2025

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Matt Calcara @mattcalcara.bsky.social · 2d

Fun fact that I just learned today.

In Brazilian Portuguese, "legal" means (roughly) "cool."

[Insert your own lawyer joke here]