Melissa
spunkyblah.bsky.social
Melissa
@spunkyblah.bsky.social
490 followers 150 following 580 posts
Math professor, friend of animals, tabletop games nerd, movie fan
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Is it because they are "more likely to succeed"? Community college is for everyone, no matter how "likely" they are to "succeed". Just give them the free education!
What is the point of the B average requirement for the free community college? Is it supposed to be an incentive? Because high schoolers are famously not incentivized by a reward that may not even effect them and only takes effect after 4 years of high school.
Reposted by Melissa
Citing a Trump executive order banning "gender ideology," the VA is withholding coverage and treatment for male veterans with breast cancer, an increasing condition among veterans exposed to toxic chemicals during service. 100 male veterans a year are diagnosed with breast cancer.
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
Before I realized I have aphantasia, I assumed people who don't use references are just more creative than me. Then I realized they were literally visualizing & using visualization as a reference. I now wonder if people who think using a reference is cheating have hyperphantasia & don't realize it.
Reposted by Melissa
The UC Regents finally released the “settlement agreement” the Trump administration proposed in August. It’s a doozy.

UC alumni, faculty, staff, students, parents, donors—and all citizens of California:

Now is the time to let the UC Regents know you do not want them to sign this bad deal.
Reposted by Melissa
I’ve been watching it, and it does what all good works about fascists should do: shows them to be pathetic, insecure pieces of shit underneath it all.
Helluva moment for MUBI to release an eight-part Joe Wright miniseries about the rise of Mussolini, but it's here, and it's as stylish as it is occasionally overwhelming.

My review of MUSSOLINI: SON OF THE CENTURY for @ebertvoices.bsky.social:

www.rogerebert.com/reviews/muss...
Mussolini: Son of the Century movie review (2025) | Roger Ebert
It's all very presentational and Brechtian, and the nonstop pace leaves you breathless.
www.rogerebert.com
Reposted by Melissa
New: Correctional staff at a Western Maryland prison shut off the water to a mentally ill man’s cell, then allowed him to suffer for eight days before he finally died of dehydration, according to a recent court filing.
www.thebanner.com/community/cr...
How a Maryland prisoner died an ‘excruciating’ death from dehydration
Lamont Mealy died of dehydration in an isolation cell at Western Correctional Institution in 2023. A lawsuit claims state officials covered it up.
www.thebanner.com
Could you post the link to the full video?
Reposted by Melissa
I do silly cat art! My big project right now is the Ask the Cats oracle deck, coming to Kickstarter in January! I have a coloring book available too! www.angrygatodesigns.com/cats
Reposted by Melissa
🎃Los Angeles! More dates have been added to our residency at Alamo Drafthouse Cinema!🎃

Check website for dates and times: drafthouse.com/los-angeles/...

#fleischerstudios #maxfleischer #cartoon #animation #cartoons #bimbothedog #kokotheclown #bettyboop
Reposted by Melissa
Left: White House last month.

Right: White House today.

Via ABC News.

abcnews.go.com/Politics/new...
Reposted by Melissa
Relatedly, I bought four great CDs for a total of $4 plus tax at a thrift shop the other day. 🤷
Spotify customer service is immediately ending conversations if you ask about them airing ICE advertisements on the platform.

Cancel your Spotify subscription.
#BoycottSpotify
The article states that the goal is to turn the school into housing. The parking thing is meant to be something that can be done quickly.
Reposted by Melissa
Why does everyone keep calling it “The Epstein Ballroom?” Please stop repeating “The Epstein Ballroom” because it is not called “The Epstein Ballroom!” Don’t tell the news that it’s called “The Epstein Ballroom” and please don’t repost this!!!!!
Reposted by Melissa
Good, and thanks to Amanda Moore, who has been reporting on Ingrassia a long time. So long that any notion that this collapse means Trumpism thinks Ingrassia went too far was absurd; they’ve long known and tried to get him in anyway.
Reposted by Melissa
Last week our local humane society took in 28 cats from a woman who had gotten in over her head with too many litters. They require a lot of care to get them healthy and adoptable - please consider a donation if you can! www.hsccvt.org/donate
That way if they are stopped, it can't be undone. So, it is less likely for anyone to stop them because it feels like a lost cause.
Even if this is wrong and he didn't know, that would show us he has no Jewish (or simply knowledgeable) friends that felt safe enough to tell him. That itself is damning.
Even if they are environmentally friendly, the act of blowing leaves and other debris around itself temporarily lowers the quality of air around them. And they often just move debris around rather than clean anything up. It's like the outside version of sweeping under a rug.
This is also not true. I am an atheist, but many protesters have signs that read "No king but Jesus" or "Jesus is my only king". And I have been just as welcoming to them as the other protesters.
Reposted by Melissa
Hello, Bluesky! We'd like to get this building across from the local library for the bookstore so we can reopen the bookstore in a brick and mortar format, so we're running a special sale on the website. Get 25% off your order with promo code Library at checkout.
carpelibrumbaltimore.com
Reposted by Melissa
EXCLUSIVE: One Saturday afternoon in October, my phone lit up with a notification.

I glanced down at the message.

“Anna, Lindsey Halligan here,” it began.

So began my text exchange with the woman who is prosecuting the president's perceived political enemies.

www.lawfaremedia.org/article/anna...
I am pretty sure it is a composite of two photos.