Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Shelly Penton @plaidsilk.bsky.social · 2h

a drawing of a person sending a virtual hug .

ALT: a drawing of a person sending a virtual hug .

media.tenor.com

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Deanna @deannalaynne.bsky.social · 3h

Inject this into my veins

Razzball @razzball.bsky.social · 3h

Vladdy Jr. with his best Big Papi impression DAAAAA YANKEES LOSE

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Shelly Penton @plaidsilk.bsky.social · 4h

Yeah, I have to admit that most people hate who they hate, and as long as bad things happen to those people and not themselves, they love it.

Matt Gabriele @profgabriele.com · 4h

I’ll go a bit further and say that generally, unfortunately, many Americans like the idea of an autocrat-adjacent president

Nute @nutedawn.bsky.social · 16h

Sorry but if there is one single US political proposition that we have tested to destruction in recent years, it’s the idea that a critical mass of swing voters see democracy vs authoritarianism as a crucial and salient issue in judging Trump. They simply do not! I don’t like it either

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Sonja Drimmer @sonjadrimmer.bsky.social · 4h

Startling only to anyone who hasn’t been paying attention, but regardless: it’s not looking good!

futurism.com/artificial-i...

And whether they’ll ever be able to produce enough revenue is a looming question. A startling report by researchers at MIT spooked investors in August, finding that only a measly five percent of AI pilot programs help businesses succeed at “rapid revenue acceleration,” with the vast majority falling flat.

Yet according to recent estimates, generative AI now accounts for roughly 40 percent of the United States’ gross domestic product. In other words, if the AI spending boom falls apart, it could take down the entire economy with it.

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Shelly Penton @plaidsilk.bsky.social · 4h

"I, myself, love young, pregnant women and would love to tell them more about what to do."

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 15h

Mike Johnson: "If you're a young, pregnant American citizen women who shows up in an ER and you get treated and they pay the hospital less for treating you than some illegal rabble rouser who came in from some South American country to do us harm, that is wrong."

Shelly Penton @plaidsilk.bsky.social · 4h

😬

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Daniel Malmer @malmer.com · 5h

“the girlfriend of one of the founders of antifa”

Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia with her hair up, wearing a white poofy coat.

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Dominique Baker @bakerdphd.bsky.social · 4h

I'll be updating next week's current-state-of-state-higher-ed-policy slides.

Left is an article about the VA senate dems telling UVA their state funding will be in question if they agree to that odious compact. On the right is the key part of the senate letter.

www.cbs19news.com/news/state-s...

Screenshot from the top of the article. Title is "State Senate Democrats tell UVA to not consider education compact." Published today.

Main text reads "RICHMOND, Va. (CBS19 NEWS) -- The University of Virginia could lose state funding if it signs onto an education compact it received from the federal government last week."

Screenshot from the letter from VA dems which reads "Therefore, we call upon you to immediately cease all consideration of signing this compact.
Furthermore, we want to be explicitly clear: if the University of Virginia signs this compact, there will be significant consequences in future Virginia budget cycles. As the leadership of the Senate with responsibility for appropriations affecting higher education, we will work with our colleagues to ensure that the Commonwealth does not subsidize an institution that has ceded its independence to federal
political control."

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Shelly Penton @plaidsilk.bsky.social · 4h

Ibid.

Sharon @sharonk.bsky.social · 4h

what you see is what you get

Dana Houle @danahoule.bsky.social · 4h

I love that Trump says “Adam ‘Shifty’ Schiff” in DM’s. Demonstrates he really is witless.

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Jared Holt @jaredlholt.bsky.social · 6h

Here’s an angle for a journalist looking for a fresh take on the White House “Antifa” roundtable — most of the people who participated are employed by or have a direct financial connection to Turning Point USA. I think that’s pretty telling, no?

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James @gravitysra1nbow.bsky.social · 5h

It's difficult at times to hold both "this admin is doing lasting and serious damage to our institutions and the globe" and "this admin is full of the most bafflingly incompetent idiots you've ever seen who fall over themselves like a Vaudeville act constantly."

The duality of man is incredible.

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derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 6h

a high armhole allows for freer and more comfortable movement

Joey Mannarino in a dark brown tailored jacket. The low armhole is causing his jacket to lift.

Someone in an inflatable frog costume. The high armhole allows them to raise their arm without disturbing the rest of the garment

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Shelly Penton @plaidsilk.bsky.social · 4h

"Implications" are for poor people

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Shelly Penton @plaidsilk.bsky.social · 4h

Yep! 💚

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Shelly Penton @plaidsilk.bsky.social · 5h

idk Trump will quote Hitler positively at times. I honestly think these people do so little critical or moral thinking they have no idea what connects to what and why people come to the conclusion that they are bad people.

I genuinely think they are that stupid.

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Daniel Bachman @danielbachman.bsky.social · 6h

Thinking about all the local papers we’ve lost over the last 10+ years…this is a great doc.

Stripped for Parts: American Journalism on the Brink | PBS

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Laura Jedeed @laurajedeed.bsky.social · 5h

Oh sorry I forgot about the girlfriend of one of the founders of Antifa I can't wait to see what conservative they'll dress up in Black Bloc to act that out

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Shelly Penton @plaidsilk.bsky.social · 5h

File under: LIFE HACKS UNDER FASCISM

GHOULLIKEHELLMACHINE @golikehellmachine.com · 6h

had never before considered that the inflatable costumes offer pepper ball protection

Danny K @dannykpolitics.bsky.social · 3d

WATCH: ‘Portland Frog’ pepper balled by ICE agents

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Shelly Penton @plaidsilk.bsky.social · 5h

I was playing games with friends last night. This appeared on someone's news alerts. He read something about praying for Dolly, and I said "NOPE."

He tried again, and I was like "NUH UH." Which is when his girlfriend told him to shut up lol

Shelly Penton @plaidsilk.bsky.social · 6h

I consider this terrorism, and everyone else should, too.

Shelly Penton @plaidsilk.bsky.social · 6h

Straight to jail.

Screenshot of news story with headline: "'Didn't mean to scare anyone': Dolly Parton's sister clarifies after asking for prayers for country star"
News story has a picture of Dolly Parton performing on stage

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Scott Shapiro @scottjshapiro.bsky.social · 6h

We are ruled by criminal morons

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jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 18h

i’d day this nails the South as well

William Hazen @williamhazen.bsky.social · 1d

This is the most accurate depiction of the Midwest to date. Wichita has always felt like the last Midwest city while also being the first plains city.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 1d

Gonna be thinking about this lede for a minute.

(RNS) — Last month, the Rev. David Black stood in front of a Chicago-area U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility and spread his arms wide. Adorned in all black and wearing a clerical collar, the pastor looked up at a group of masked, heavily armed ICE agents on the roof and began to pray.

“I invited them to repentance,” Black, a minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA), said in an interview. “I basically offered an altar call. I invited them to come and receive that salvation, and be part of the kingdom that is coming.”

But when Black began to lower his arms a few seconds later, the agents responded to his spiritual plea by firing pepper balls, or chemical agents that cause eye irritation and respiratory distress, video footage shows. One struck Black in the head, exploding into a puff of white pepper smoke and forcing him to his knees. Fellow demonstrators rushed to his aid, and as the pastor rubbed his face in pain, the agents continued to fire.

“We could hear them laughing,” Black said.

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Shelly Penton @plaidsilk.bsky.social · 18h

Undergraduates still winning by a landslide compared to their university administrators on how to answer fascist coercion.

tfw teenagers and young twenty-somethings are exponentially better models of courage and truth than grown-ass adults

Screenshot from UVA Student Council email:

While the Compact contains elements that appear to have a positive impact on UVA, such as a tuition freeze and preferential access to federal funding, it also contains several concerning requests. Beneath the surface-level appeals lies a framework that would fundamentally alter the mission of higher education and threaten the independence that has allowed the University of Virginia to pursue its enduring ideal of being both Great and Good.

The Compact will restrict how universities can engage with political and social issues, create barriers to international student enrollment, define gender and sex in strictly biological terms, and require an administrative commitment to using "lawful force" to address violations of "civility." These few examples from the Compact threaten the very ideals of a liberal arts education—to promote interdisciplinary studies, diversity of perspective, and the freedom to learn without limit—and risk narrowing the vibrant exchange of ideas that defines life on Grounds.

Additionally, the Enforcement clause enables the Department of Justice to monitor our “adherence to the agreement,” enabling federal overreach to increase unimaginably and continue indefinitely. The University of Virginia’s structures of shared governance should not be bought out by partisan influence, and we reserve the right to govern ourselves.

This Compact, as it stands, will likely serve to the detriment of student life and experience at UVA, both inside and outside of the classroom. As the Student Council Executive Board, we reaffirm our commitment to the rights, opportunities, and quality of life for every student at the University of Virginia. We are closely monitoring the situation and meeting with the administration as well as the student governments of other universities in the meantime. Your input is invaluable and will guide our response, so please continue to reach out with your thoughts and concerns.

As we mentio…

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