Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by Jan Dohner

Sarah Taber @sarahtaber.bsky.social · 1d

With farm bailouts back in the news, it's a great time to remind everyone that US Treasury Secretary Bessent owns thousands of acres of of soybean farms.

www.nytimes.com/2025/08/13/u...

Bessent Has Yet to Fully Divest Assets, Raising Concern at Ethics Agency

www.nytimes.com

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Pete Buttigieg @petebuttigieg.bsky.social · 6d

The policy failures we’re living with didn’t begin with Donald Trump - and they very clearly won't end with him either.

My party has to offer a vision for how everyday life actually gets better under new and different leadership.

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Mike Nellis @mikenellis.bsky.social · 6d

Your daily reminder that the last three times the government shut down, Donald Trump was president of the United States and Republicans controlled the House and Senate.

They can't govern.

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Sarah Taber @sarahtaber.bsky.social · 8d

US farmers are saying they "just need temporary help, until things get better."

Here's the thing. US farm exports- which are mostly soy- CANNOT get better.

Other countries expanded their soy industries to fill China's demand.

We've walled ourselves out of the global market, folks. This is it.

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Jess Piper @piperformissouri.bsky.social · 9d

There is no bailout that will solve this problem.

It took decades to create the markets for beans and months to devastate the markets for beans.

NY Times: China Bought $12.6 Billion in U.S. Soybeans Last Year. [52% of exports] Now, It’s $0.

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Paul Waldman @paulwaldman.bsky.social · 10d

1. More Americans work at the Cheesecake Factory than in the entire coal industry, and that won't change. It's because of automation, not snooty libs.

2. Coal energy is now more expensive than wind and solar.

3. So this means: higher energy prices, more pollution, no jobs benefit. Genius!

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 10d

Energy Secretary Chris Wright on Fox: "We're announcing today expanded programs to help the American coal industry. We're helping it because for years it has been under assault. It was out of fashion with the chardonnay set in San Francisco, Boulder, and NYC ... coal just makes the world go round."

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Jess Piper @piperformissouri.bsky.social · 10d

Ann Selzer was somewhat correct in her prediction — she was just early. I am also right when I point out that Republicans representing the oligarchy have overplayed their cards. They are over their skis. They have jumped the shark.

Voters have noticed.
open.substack.com/pub/jesspipe...

Reporting From the Ground

Over their skis

open.substack.com

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Thor Benson @thorbenson.bsky.social · 13d

Our news networks should air an hour or two of European news every day to show Americans how flabbergasted the news presenters are here when they cover the U.S.

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Denise Wheeler @denisedwheeler.bsky.social · 15d

Epidemiologist Erin McCanlies spent much of the past two decades studying how parents’ exposure to toxic chemicals affects the chances that they will have an autistic child.

RFK Jr. has now cut her entire division.

RFK Jr. Vowed to Find the Environmental Causes of Autism. Then He Shut Down Research Trying to Do Just That.

While touting a $50 million initiative to identify the causes of autism, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is helping lead an administration that is rolling back protections against pollution and toxic chemicals,...

www.propublica.org

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Build The Era LLC @buildtheera.bsky.social · 15d

#RoundaboutsWeek
Ronda is heading to Texas to help folks in the City of Kyle with an education campaign about their roundabouts!

Hear from Kyle's mayor, Travis Mitchell, on why Kyle chose to be a roundabouts-first community: youtu.be/j-Na_pbg59U

Mayor Mitchell talks roundabouts in Kyle, TX

YouTube video by Travis Mitchell

youtu.be

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The Tennessee Holler @thetnholler.bsky.social · 15d

🤷🏼

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Radley Balko @radleybalko.bsky.social · 16d

Don't think I've ever felt this embarrassed to be an American. There's shame and anger too. But mostly embarrassment. We're the laughingstock of the developed world. And we should be.

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 16d

Trump to the UN: "I'm really good at this stuff. Your countries are going to hell."

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David Rothkopf @djrothkopf.bsky.social · 16d

This speech is such an extraordinary combination of lies, delusions, narcissism, hatefulness, ignorance and lunacy that it could have been given by no other person than the president of the United States. It could well be the low point of US public diplomacy in our history.

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Sarah Taber @sarahtaber.bsky.social · 17d

Alas, nope.

96% of US farms are family farms.

Most of the so-called "corporate" farms are family farms. The families that own them just happen to be wealthy & have a lot of capital.

A chart from USDA showing 96% of US farms are family farms. 86% are small family farms, 6% medium family farms, 4% large family farms.

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Michael E. Mann @michaelemann.bsky.social · 22d

"Antiscience Is an Existential Threat" | My op-ed with @peterhotezmdphd.bsky.social for #TimeMagazine on our new book, #ScienceUnderSiege: time.com/7317436/scie...

Antiscience Is an Existential Threat

The ideologically-motivated assault on science threatens us all.

time.com

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Pete Buttigieg @petebuttigieg.bsky.social · 20d

What's happening with Jimmy Kimmel is about politics and power.

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Jan Dohner @jdohner.bsky.social · 20d

We went to hear an actual person speak intelligently about the country last night. Highly recommend.

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Kara Swisher @karaswisher.bsky.social · 21d

Exactly this

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Outside/In @outsideinradio.bsky.social · 22d

The Trump admin is rescinding the Roadless Rule that's protected 59M acres of US forests since 2001. Conservationists say this would be devastating to wildlife. @bengoldfarb.bsky.social talks about why our roads are so deadly to animals in this week's episode.

outsideinradio.org/shows/why-is...

Why is there so much roadkill? — Outside/In

To paraphrase a famous line... it's the roads, stupid.

outsideinradio.org

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Pete Buttigieg @petebuttigieg.bsky.social · 23d

Right now there's a clear and obvious relationship between social media and anti-social behavior, and we cannot go on like this.

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Pete Buttigieg @petebuttigieg.bsky.social · 24d

What happens next is up to all of us - leaders and ordinary citizens alike.

In responding to this horrific violence, the most important categories aren't left and right, they are about helping versus hurting.

We should heed and amplify the voices who are helping.

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Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 25d

Buttigieg: "We are not getting the leadership we need to bring this country together from the White House ... in order to deprive political violence of its power, we have to reject anyone who would try to exploit political violence. The response to this cannot be for the government to crack down."

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E. Rosalie @erosalie.infoepi.com · 25d

Looked at my data collections for state-backed activity. If the report were a picture:

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Pete Buttigieg @petebuttigieg.bsky.social · 27d

Looking back on what happened in 2001 and all that has come since, we must hold to the memories and examples of those who were lost, those who responded, and what it was like for this country to come together as one.

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Jan Dohner @jdohner.bsky.social · 27d

Two things can be true st the same time.

Joan Walsh @joanwalsh.bsky.social · 27d

We can, and should, deplore Charlie Kirk's murder, without whitewashing who he was. ttps://www.thenation.com/article/society/charlie-kirk-assassination-tragedy/

Let’s Not Forget Who Charlie Kirk Really Was

The right-wing influencer did not deserve to die, and we shouldn’t forget the many despicable things he said and did.

www.thenation.com

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