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johnmckendry.bsky.social
Carter's Dad
@johnmckendry.bsky.social
1.4K followers 3.9K following 2K posts
Old hippie, bewildered socialist, math, old music, grows apples. A harmless drudge.
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johnmckendry.bsky.social
Please have your media team learn to use ALT-text.
Today, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries released the following statement: House Democrats have consistently maintained that bipartisan legislation that funds the government must also decisively address the Republican healthcare crisis. For seven weeks, Democrats in the House and Senate have waged a valiant fight on behalf of the American people. It now appears that Senate Republicans will send the House of Representatives a spending bill that fails to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits. As a result of the Republican refusal to address the healthcare crisis that they have created, tens of millions of everyday Americans are going to see their costs skyrocket. Many will not be able to afford a doctor when they or their children need one. America is far too expensive. We will not support spending legislation advanced by Senate Republicans that fails to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits. We will fight the GOP bill in the House of Representatives, where Mike Johnson will be compelled to end the seven week Republican taxpayer-funded vacation. Donald Trump and the Republican Party own the toxic mess they have created in our country and the American people know it.
November 10, 2025 at 2:14 AM
johnmckendry.bsky.social
silicate.
I spent some time reading about this stuff, so please indulge me. Some of you already know this stuff, so I know you will correct me if I'm wrong. Zunyite is built around pairs of tetrahedra that are joined at one corner, a structure called a pyrosilicate anion. For people who want to 4/n
A ball-and-stick chemical model of a pyrosilicate anion, a structure made of two skeleton tetrahedra that share exactly one oxygen atom. Each tetrahedron stick figure consists of a sulfur atom joined to four oxygen atoms, such that if you shrink-wrapped the figure you would get a solid tetrahedron (first Platonic solid). Picture an equilateral triangle sitting on a table. Now draw an equilateral triangle on the outside of each side of that triangle. Now fold up the outside triangles like a dim sum dumpling so they meet at a point above the original triangle. That's a tetrahedron. Now make another one and connect one corner of the first one to one corner of the second. That's a pyrosilicate anion. (Anion means it's negatively charged so it has at least one extra electron that is eager to bond somewhere else. That's as deep as I go down that rathole, sorry.)
September 12, 2025 at 3:17 AM
johnmckendry.bsky.social
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, in Lunn v. Commonwealth, held that state and local law enforcement agencies may not arrest individuals solely based on immigration detainer requests from the federal government, absent a criminal warrant. 477 Mass. 517 (2017). The Boston Trust Act and its amendments codify the Lunn decision. Our City's longstanding and productive partnership with state and federal law enforcement to protect the people of Boston far predates your tenure. The Boston Police Department, the first municipal police department in the United States, works closely with state and federal agencies to address counterterrorism threats, protect our airport and our harbor, combat drug and human trafficking, and hold perpetrators accountable for crimes. Just last week, Boston Police arrested thirteen people as the result of a joint human trafficking investigation with the FBI and Massachusetts State Police. The week before, Boston Police worked alongside the FBI in an investigation that led to an arrest and the recovery of five firearms, including an assault rifle. Boston works every day with partners in the community and in law enforcement to keep our residents safe, and the City maintains full compliance with the law. On behalf of the people of Boston, and in solidarity with the cities and communities targeted by this federal administration for our refusal to bow down to unconstitutional threats and unlawful coercion, we affirm our support for each other and for our democracy. Boston will never back down from being a beacon of freedom, and a home for everyone. Sincerely, Michelle Wu Mayor of Boston
August 19, 2025 at 8:51 PM
johnmckendry.bsky.social
The Founding Fathers included these protections as a direct result of the attempted coercion of Boston by an unaccountable and distant monarch, and this city's refusal to bow down to tyranny. Two hundred and fifty years later, these hard-won freedoms are the legal backbone of our system of government. And these freedoms have nurtured the vibrant and diverse cities across every region of this country, which have fueled commerce and innovation to the benefit of all Americans. Courts have consistently held, as recently as last month, that local public safety laws like the Boston Trust Act are valid exercises of local authority and fully consistent with federal law. See, e.g., United States v. California, et al., 921 F.3d .865 (9th Cir. 2019); United States v. State of Illinois, et al., No. 25-cv-1285 (N.D. III. July 25, 2025). Since the country's founding, the principle of state sovereignty, enshrined in the Tenth Amendment, has been fundamental to our republic. See, e.g., Gregory v. Ashcroft, 501 U.S. 452, 457 (1991). It is indisputable that the drafters of the U.S. Constitution made "the decision to withhold from Congress the power to issue orders directly to the States." Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association, 584 U.S. 453, 470 (2018). "[T]he Federal Government may not compel the States to enact or administer a federal regulatory program" nor "conscript state or local officers directly" nor "coerce States to action through improper influence."Illinois, No. 25- cv-1285, slip op. at 19 (citing New York v. United States, 505 U.S. 144, 188 (1992); Printz v. United States, 521 U.S. 898, 935 (1997); Nat'l Fed'n of Indep. Bus. v. Sebelius, 567 U.S. 519, 578 (2012)). As the federal court in Illinois wrote just weeks ago: "[A]nticommandeering is a bulwark against abuse of [federal] government power." Id. Additionally, in Massachusetts, state law places clear limits on participation in federal immigration enforcement.
August 19, 2025 at 8:51 PM
johnmckendry.bsky.social
I am going to post Boston Mayor Michelle Wu's response to Pam Bondi with alt-text here. It is going to have to be done in three parts, even with the generous bsky allowance of 2000 characters for alt-text. Screenshot is repeated to enable alt-text.
City of Boston, Massachusetts Office of the Mayor MICHELLE WU August 19, 2025 The Honorable Pamela Bondi Attorney General of the United States U.S. Department of Justice RE: Response to August 13, 2025 letter from Attorney General Bondi to Mayor Michelle Wu Attorney General Bondi, I write in response to your letter of August 13, 2025, threatening to prosecute local officials and illegally withhold federal grants and contracts unless the City of Boston agrees to actively participate in mass deportations. This federal administration's false and continuous attacks on American cities and millions of our residents are unprecedented. You have eliminated health care and food assistance for our families; unlawfully cancelled grants for our schools and roads; slashed funding for our universities, hospitals, and research institutions; and deployed military personnel to occupy our streets. These attacks all come back to a common aim: the Trump Administration seeks to divide, isolate, and intimidate our cities, and make Americans fearful of one another. The City of Boston is the safest major city in America. Our progress is the result of decades of community policing and partnership between local law enforcement and community leaders, who share a commitment to making Boston a safe and welcoming home for everyone. It is the result of our strong gun laws. And it is the result of our local policies-including the Boston Trust Act, which prohibits local police from engaging with federal immigration enforcement absent a criminal warrant, and which ensures that all Boston residents are able to report crimes and call 911 for help. The City of Boston follows the law-local, state, and federal. The United States Constitution establishes that local governments, closest to the people, hold the authority to enact public safety policies without the threat of unlawful interference from the federal government.
August 19, 2025 at 8:51 PM
johnmckendry.bsky.social
If I repost this with a graphic I can add alt-text.
It's a screenshot of an ad that appeared in the Wash, DC-area Craigslist below an AI-gen image of rows and rows of uniformed military officers (foreground) and snappy Special Forces in blue berets (background), all male, facing something offstage left, Text of the ad: " T-Mellon Events is looking for seat fillers and extras to provide their time for space maximization and attendance perception for an event taking place in Washington DC on June 14th. Extras and Seat fillers will check in on the morning of June 14th at 9:00 a.m. Extras are required to wear Red, White and Blue clothing and will be provided a RED hat to wear. GOLD accessories are acceptable as well. The team will advise the extras where to stand or sit according to the line of sight from a VIP viewing platform area. Extras and Seat fillers will be paid a flat daily fee and will be provided a lunch of fast food and soda. We encourage people of color and ethnic groups to sign up for maximum perception control and these individuals will be prominently displayed on the televised broadcast and local viewing screens to be seen by the VIP platform." In a separate box it adds "Compensation: Flat fee of $1000, paid in cryptocurrency - provided by FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT LLC" and there is a map with a circle centered on The Ellipse in DC (that's what it says on the map). I have confirmed that the link does in fact link to the depicted ad on DC-area Craigslist.
June 12, 2025 at 2:06 AM
johnmckendry.bsky.social
Someone pointed out that this needs alt-text, so I did that.
First image is a line chart, posted by Brianna Wu apparently on Twitter, of the prevalence of left-handedness among Americans between the years 1880 and 2000. It begins at about 5% in 1885, drops to 3% in 1895, and then shows a slow but steady rise until it reaches a plateau just below 12% in 1960. This is generally used to illustrate how social disapproval can cause people to suppress natural traits – happened to my left-handed sister in school in the 1940s. Next is a reply from one Kevin, @IdeasAndReality, saying “Maybe I’m missing something obvious, but what’s the connection between the content of the post and a graph on the prevalence of being left handed?” Last is Brianna’s reply: “There are two ways to read this chart. The way I do is the 3 percent are people that are actually left handed. The rest are people that are mailable <sic> to social pressures.”
March 13, 2025 at 6:52 PM
johnmckendry.bsky.social
Posting this with alt-text. I know we don't have until the next election to fix this, but Tim Walz going to bright red districts where the elected representatives are afraid to show themselves would be a powerful display right now.
Tim Walz responding to a Politico story, apparently on Twitter. Politico announces: “No more town halls, NRCC chief tells House Republicans ow.ly/LINQ1061i9B” Walz responds: “That’s a shame. If your Republican representative won’t meet with you because their agenda is so unpopular, maybe a Democrat will. Hell, maybe I will. If your congressman refuses to meet, I’ll com host an event in their district to help local Democrats beat ‘em.”
March 4, 2025 at 7:10 PM
johnmckendry.bsky.social
Once a year I drive up to Johnson, VT, which is way up north, so today I got curious about how close that is to the Canadian border, and it's really depressing how bad the major search engines do on the question "What is the distance from Johnson Vermont to the Canadian border?"
The picture shows Google's answer to "What is the distance from Johnson VT to the Canadian border?" - 728 miles. The correct answer is 33 miles. The accompanying map shows that Google is measuring the distance from East Johnson to a point on the US-Canada border in Lake Superior north of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Apparently in Google's world the US/Canada border is located at a single latitude and longitude. When I ask Bing the same question it tells me the answer is "approximately 0.6 miles (1 kilometer) across Lake Champlain." When I ask DuckDuckGo it doesn't attempt to tell me the answer, it just shows me a bunch of distance calculator Web pages that offer to tell me the distance from Vermont to Toronto. If that's not annoying enough, Google insists on autocorrecting every mention of Johnson, VT to East Johnson, VT. I am pretty sure that a year ago I would have gotten better answers. The AI-powered enshittification of Google search makes me sad. There is no good reason for it.
February 28, 2025 at 5:29 AM
johnmckendry.bsky.social
This needs alt-text, so I am reposting it with alt-text.
I don’t know what social media site this is from. It says it has 251 restacks, so maybe Substack? Author is someone named Dana Portwood. She writes: I work at the public library which means I see the books leaving and coming back in, and I can tell you this, my community is scared of what’s happening and what is likely to happen, and they intend to go down fighting. They are learning skills and reading about politics like I’ve never seen. And the books parents are choosing for their kids: allyship, inclusive, multi-culturalism. It’s beautiful. I’m making new cards for people by the literal dozen. This is why fascists hate libraries. It’s where people go to gird their fucking loins. We love to see it.
February 3, 2025 at 2:24 AM
johnmckendry.bsky.social
They don't have the authority to cancel a Federal holiday that's been proclaimed by Congress, but they will not hold any events or make any announcements that mention any of the cited events. Also, they are ending any internal support groups, interest-group chats, etc. This is on their FB today.
A screenshot of a Facebook post from the Defense Intelligence Agency posted Jan 29, 2025. It shows the DIA emblem, the words "MLK DAY" and "Martin Luther King Jr." in bold type and a dramatic portrait on MLK Jr, and the post reads "This Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday, we observe the 30th anniversary of #MLKDay as a National Day of Service. Join us in honoring the life and legacy of King, who dedicated his life to peace, justice, and equality for all." I am posting this on January 29, 2025, the day that an internal memo from the DIA was leaked showing that the DIA has been ordered by the Trump administration to end all activities and all mentions of activities that the administration characterizes as "diversity, equity, and inclusion." The memo specifically names MLK, Jr's birthday as an event that must not be mentioned or celebrated.
January 29, 2025 at 11:29 PM
johnmckendry.bsky.social
Leaked by Ken Klippenstein, photo of a memo on paper from the Defense Intelligence Agency stamped Jan 28 2025. To: DIA Workforce, Subject: Pause on Special Emphasis Programs and Related Activities and Events. 1. The Agency is working internally and with the department to implement the Executive Orders, Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing and Initial Rescissions of Harmful Executive Orders and Actions, dated January 20, 2025. We are receiving questions across the workforce on the way forward with Special Emphasis Programs, Special Observances, Agency Resource Groups, Affinity Groups, and Employee Network Groups. 2. DIA will pause all activities and events related to Agency Special Emphasis Programs effective immediately and until further notice. Additionally, Special Observances hosted throughout the year by the Command Element, Directorates, and Special Offices are also paused. These include observances related to the following: [ typist is not going to type the months] Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday Black History Month Women's History Month Holocaust Day/Days of Remembrance Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month Pride Juneteenth Women's Equality Day National Hispanic Heritage Month National Disability Employment Awareness Month National American Indian Heritage Month (MLK Birthday and Juneteenth have asterisks: asterisk says "The pause will not affect the federal holidays.) DIA will also pause Agency Resource Groups, Affinity Groups, and Employee Networking Groups, effective immediately and until further notice.
January 29, 2025 at 8:52 PM
johnmckendry.bsky.social
Some right-wing group bought some shares in COSTO and ginned up a petition to the Board to eliminate DEI in hiring, and the Board said "nope". Someone posted screenshots of the response with alt-text saying "screenshot of the response." I'm going to try screenshots with more useful alt-text.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS' RESPONSE The Board of Directors unanimously recommends a vote AGAINST this proposal. Our Board has considered this proposal and believes that our commitment to an enterprise rooted in respect and inclusion is appropriate and necessary. The report requested by this proposal would not provide meaningful additional information to our shareholders, and the Board thus unanimously recommends a vote AGAINST this proposal. Our success at Costco Wholesale has been built on service to our critical stakeholders: employees, members, and suppliers. Our efforts around diversity, equity and inclusion follow our code of ethics: For our employees, these efforts are built around inclusion – having all of our employees feel valued and respected. Our efforts at diversity, equity and inclusion remind and reinforce with everyone at our Company the importance of creating opportunities for all. Our success at Costco Wholesale has been built on service to our critical stakeholders: employees, members, and suppliers. Our efforts around diversity, equity and inclusion follow our code of ethics: For our employees, these efforts are built around inclusion – having all of our employees feel valued and respected. Our efforts at diversity, equity and inclusion remind and reinforce with everyone at our Company the importance of creating opportunities for all. We believe that these efforts enhance our capacity to attract and retain employees who will help our business succeed. This capacity is critical because we owe our success to our now over 300,000 employees around the globe. We welcome members from all walks of life and backgrounds. As our membership diversifies, we believe that serving it with a diverse group of employees enhances satisfaction. Among other things, a diverse group of employees helps bring originality and creativity to our merchandise offerings, promoting the "treasure hunt" that our customers value. As our membership diversifies, we believe that serving it with a diverse group of employees enhances satisfaction. Among other things, a diverse group of employees helps bring originality and creativity to our merchandise offerings, promoting the "treasure hunt" that our customers value. That group also helps to provide insights into the tastes and preferences of our members. And we believe (and member feedback shows) that many of our members like to see themselves reflected in the people in our warehouses with whom they interact. Having diversity in our supplier base, including appropriate attention to small businesses, is beneficial for many of the same reasons diversity benefits our Company. We believe that it fosters creativity and innovation in the merchandise and services that we offer our members.
December 27, 2024 at 2:22 AM
johnmckendry.bsky.social
Thank you for wanting to do the right thing. This infographic shows up here from time to time; I don't know where it came from originally. I also point people toward Molly at @catsofyore.bsky.social, who consistently writes awesome alt-text.
Graphic image. Blue background with multicoloured bars, black text and a photo of a Capybara. Text reads: Writing Alt Text. Identify who. Expression. Description. Colour. Interesting features. A capybara looking relaxed in a hot spa. Yellow yuzu fruits are floating in the water and one is balanced on the top of the capybara's head.
December 12, 2024 at 1:49 AM
johnmckendry.bsky.social
This picture of an armed INS agent removing Cuban refugee Elian Gonzalez from relatives in Miami in order to return him to his father in Cuba made a big impression in 2000. Public sentiment did not favor the guy with the gun, as I remember it.
An Immigration and Naturalization Service agent points a semi-automatic weapon at 6-year-old Elian Gonzalez and tries to take him from the arms of Donato Dalrymple, who had earlier rescued Elian after the boat in which he had fled Cuba sank in a storm, and his mother and ten others drowned. After months of international diplomatic negotiation, Attorney General Janet Reno ordered that Elian be returned to his father in Cuba. Elian was staying with relatives in Miami who wanted him to stay in the US. When the relatives refused to let him go, Reno ordered the raid that led to this picture.
December 11, 2024 at 8:45 PM
johnmckendry.bsky.social
In 1959 Walt Kelly wrote this in the book "Ten Ever-lovin' Blue-Eyed Years with Pogo":
The eleventh day of the eleventh month has always seemed to me to be special. Even if the reason for it fell apart as the years went on, it was a symbol of something close to the high part of the heart. Perhaps a life that stretches through two or three wars takes its first war rather seriously, but I still think we should have kept the name "Armistice Day." Its implications were a little more profound, a little more hopeful.
November 11, 2024 at 4:00 PM
johnmckendry.bsky.social
It's Veterans' Day in the US. When Congress declared 11/11 a Federal Holiday in 1938 they called it Armistice Day to honor the end of hostilities in WWI. The name was changed to Veterans' Day in 1954.
Pogo cartoon from November 11, 1953. Pogo, Churchy, and Porkypine are drifting silently and pensively in the swamp boat. Finally Porky says "Y'know, it seems to me this is all backwards...We, ever'body ought to keep our big mouths shut all the whole year long so’s we’d have time to think of two minutes’ worth of somethin’ to say on the eleventh day of November."
November 11, 2024 at 4:00 PM