Mona Smitte
@monalisazelf.bsky.social
Let's find out what happens next
Reposted by Mona Smitte
The budget bill is one data point in the US' continuing war on science. @alexanderfurnas.com and @dashunwang.bsky.social are right to point out that Congress did the right thing in not cutting the budget, but the carnage continues (and Congress won't intervene).
www.thenation.com/article/soci...
www.thenation.com/article/soci...
The Scientists Groveling to Trump Are Kidding Themselves
The government has pulled back from massive cuts to the NIH, but it’s still destroying scientific research. So why are some groups appeasing the president?
www.thenation.com
February 19, 2026 at 12:17 PM
The budget bill is one data point in the US' continuing war on science. @alexanderfurnas.com and @dashunwang.bsky.social are right to point out that Congress did the right thing in not cutting the budget, but the carnage continues (and Congress won't intervene).
www.thenation.com/article/soci...
www.thenation.com/article/soci...
Reposted by Mona Smitte
Remember when people thought he would never be taken seriously as a monarch? Seems to be doing OK
February 19, 2026 at 12:12 PM
Remember when people thought he would never be taken seriously as a monarch? Seems to be doing OK
Reposted by Mona Smitte
King Charles on Andrew's arrest:
"What now follows is the full, fair and proper process by which this issue is investigated in the appropriate manner and by the appropriate authorities... they have our full & wholehearted support & co-operation.
Let me state clearly: the law must take its course."
"What now follows is the full, fair and proper process by which this issue is investigated in the appropriate manner and by the appropriate authorities... they have our full & wholehearted support & co-operation.
Let me state clearly: the law must take its course."
February 19, 2026 at 12:10 PM
King Charles on Andrew's arrest:
"What now follows is the full, fair and proper process by which this issue is investigated in the appropriate manner and by the appropriate authorities... they have our full & wholehearted support & co-operation.
Let me state clearly: the law must take its course."
"What now follows is the full, fair and proper process by which this issue is investigated in the appropriate manner and by the appropriate authorities... they have our full & wholehearted support & co-operation.
Let me state clearly: the law must take its course."
Reposted by Mona Smitte
Antonia Romeo appointed as UK’s first female cabinet secretary ft.trib.al/ANUhz90
Antonia Romeo appointed as UK’s first female cabinet secretary
Appointment ends days of speculation over who will hold country’s most senior civil service post
ft.trib.al
February 19, 2026 at 9:34 AM
Antonia Romeo appointed as UK’s first female cabinet secretary ft.trib.al/ANUhz90
Reposted by Mona Smitte
Starmer appoints Antonia Romeo as Britain’s first female cabinet secretary – UK politics live
Starmer appoints Antonia Romeo as Britain’s first female cabinet secretary – UK politics live
The appointment follows allegations she was previously spoken to about her management style
Keir Starmer has appointed Dame Antonia Romeo as cabinet secretary and head of the civil service.
The appointment follows allegations she was previously spoken to about her management style. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
February 19, 2026 at 9:44 AM
Starmer appoints Antonia Romeo as Britain’s first female cabinet secretary – UK politics live
Reposted by Mona Smitte
NEW: Keir Starmer confirms that Antonia Romeo has been appointed new UK cabinet secretary - the first woman to hold the role in its 100 years plus history.
February 19, 2026 at 9:47 AM
NEW: Keir Starmer confirms that Antonia Romeo has been appointed new UK cabinet secretary - the first woman to hold the role in its 100 years plus history.
Reposted by Mona Smitte
Starmer appoints Antonia Romeo as head of the civil service
Starmer appoints Antonia Romeo as head of the civil service
PM ‘delighted’ to fill position with ‘outstanding public servant’ – who becomes first woman to hold cabinet secretary role
*
UK politics live: latest news updates
Keir Starmer has appointed Antonia Romeo as cabinet secretary, the UK’s most senior civil servant.
Romeo, the first woman to hold the post in the role’s 110-year history, has been a key figure behind the scenes in multiple government departments including spells as permanent secretary at the Home Office, International Trade and the Ministry of Justice. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
February 19, 2026 at 10:33 AM
Starmer appoints Antonia Romeo as head of the civil service
Reposted by Mona Smitte
wow, I'd assumed they would have not said anything about it
February 19, 2026 at 12:05 PM
wow, I'd assumed they would have not said anything about it
Voor het eerst getuigt Mark #Zuckerberg voor een jury over de veiligheid van zijn platform. ‘Ik ben hier heel slecht in’
www.trouw.nl/buitenland/v...
www.trouw.nl/buitenland/v...
Voor het eerst getuigt Mark Zuckerberg voor een jury over de veiligheid van zijn platform. ‘Ik ben hier heel slecht in’
In een grote rechtszaak over socialemediaverslaving verdedigde een nerveuze Mark Zuckerberg woensdag zijn beleid aangaande minderjarige gebruikers. Die mogen eigenlijk niet op de sociale media van Met...
www.trouw.nl
February 19, 2026 at 11:10 AM
Voor het eerst getuigt Mark #Zuckerberg voor een jury over de veiligheid van zijn platform. ‘Ik ben hier heel slecht in’
www.trouw.nl/buitenland/v...
www.trouw.nl/buitenland/v...
Reposted by Mona Smitte
New Mexico is pursuing long-overdue answers by investigating Jeffrey Epstein’s Zorro Ranch through a new subcommittee that was just created by the New Mexico House.
I’ve got the details, including why the state’s AG’s Office stopped investigating Epstein back in 2019.
youtu.be/eTfTAvLSv6Q?...
I’ve got the details, including why the state’s AG’s Office stopped investigating Epstein back in 2019.
youtu.be/eTfTAvLSv6Q?...
Epstein NM Ranch UNDER INVESTIGATION After DAMNING Evidence REVEALED
YouTube video by Katie Phang
youtu.be
February 18, 2026 at 10:39 PM
New Mexico is pursuing long-overdue answers by investigating Jeffrey Epstein’s Zorro Ranch through a new subcommittee that was just created by the New Mexico House.
I’ve got the details, including why the state’s AG’s Office stopped investigating Epstein back in 2019.
youtu.be/eTfTAvLSv6Q?...
I’ve got the details, including why the state’s AG’s Office stopped investigating Epstein back in 2019.
youtu.be/eTfTAvLSv6Q?...
Reposted by Mona Smitte
JUST IN: Judge Provinzino in Minnesota has held a Justice Department attorney in civil contempt for violations of her order requiring the return of a released ICE detainee’s ID documents. He must pay $500 a day until the documents are returned.
February 18, 2026 at 11:41 PM
JUST IN: Judge Provinzino in Minnesota has held a Justice Department attorney in civil contempt for violations of her order requiring the return of a released ICE detainee’s ID documents. He must pay $500 a day until the documents are returned.
Reposted by Mona Smitte
4th Cir. upholds conviction of a man for murdering a trans woman he was in a relationship with over his challenge to a trans woman juror.
Defers to trial judge's finding that trans juror could be impartial.
www.ca4.uscourts.gov/opinions/244...
Defers to trial judge's finding that trans juror could be impartial.
www.ca4.uscourts.gov/opinions/244...
February 18, 2026 at 7:41 PM
4th Cir. upholds conviction of a man for murdering a trans woman he was in a relationship with over his challenge to a trans woman juror.
Defers to trial judge's finding that trans juror could be impartial.
www.ca4.uscourts.gov/opinions/244...
Defers to trial judge's finding that trans juror could be impartial.
www.ca4.uscourts.gov/opinions/244...
Reposted by Mona Smitte
Reposted by Mona Smitte
🇮🇳 🇵🇸 With 48 hours left before India’s new 3-hr takedown rule takes effect on Feb. 20, scrutiny is mounting over how platforms like Meta, YouTube, & X will handle rapid censorship orders from PM Modi’s Hindu nationalist gov't, which critics say has increasingly targeted dissenting & Muslim voices...
February 18, 2026 at 7:42 PM
🇮🇳 🇵🇸 With 48 hours left before India’s new 3-hr takedown rule takes effect on Feb. 20, scrutiny is mounting over how platforms like Meta, YouTube, & X will handle rapid censorship orders from PM Modi’s Hindu nationalist gov't, which critics say has increasingly targeted dissenting & Muslim voices...
Reposted by Mona Smitte
Twitter is FOX News without the veneer of plausible deniability.
X's algorithm is in fact doing what you think it's doing. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
February 18, 2026 at 7:42 PM
Twitter is FOX News without the veneer of plausible deniability.
Reposted by Mona Smitte
Amerika 2026:
De uitkomst is niet wat de regering-Trump wenst, dus de regering wil dat de onderzoekers worden bestraft
De uitkomst is niet wat de regering-Trump wenst, dus de regering wil dat de onderzoekers worden bestraft
Kevin Hassett, a top economic adviser to President Trump, strongly criticized a study that said U.S. companies bear most of the cost of tariffs.
He called the research an “embarrassment” and urged the central bank to penalize the researchers behind it.
He called the research an “embarrassment” and urged the central bank to penalize the researchers behind it.
White House economic adviser says Fed researchers should be punished
One of President Donald Trump’s top economic advisers assailed Fed research into the administration’s tariffs policies, saying the authors deserved to be punished.
www.washingtonpost.com
February 18, 2026 at 7:42 PM
Amerika 2026:
De uitkomst is niet wat de regering-Trump wenst, dus de regering wil dat de onderzoekers worden bestraft
De uitkomst is niet wat de regering-Trump wenst, dus de regering wil dat de onderzoekers worden bestraft
Reposted by Mona Smitte
Kevin Hassett, a top economic adviser to President Trump, strongly criticized a study that said U.S. companies bear most of the cost of tariffs.
He called the research an “embarrassment” and urged the central bank to penalize the researchers behind it.
He called the research an “embarrassment” and urged the central bank to penalize the researchers behind it.
White House economic adviser says Fed researchers should be punished
One of President Donald Trump’s top economic advisers assailed Fed research into the administration’s tariffs policies, saying the authors deserved to be punished.
www.washingtonpost.com
February 18, 2026 at 7:30 PM
Kevin Hassett, a top economic adviser to President Trump, strongly criticized a study that said U.S. companies bear most of the cost of tariffs.
He called the research an “embarrassment” and urged the central bank to penalize the researchers behind it.
He called the research an “embarrassment” and urged the central bank to penalize the researchers behind it.
Reposted by Mona Smitte
Proof that one cannot make a deal with a mentally deranged man and expect it to last five minutes. #chagos
President Trump says Prime Minister Starmer is making "a big mistake" by entering a lease agreement for the US-UK air base on the island of Diego Garcia. www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...
Trump accuses Starmer of ‘big mistake’ over Diego Garcia lease
Trump said US may need the military base for an attack on Iran, and accused Starmer of ‘losing control’ by handing the Chagos Islands to Mauritius
www.thetimes.com
February 18, 2026 at 7:43 PM
Proof that one cannot make a deal with a mentally deranged man and expect it to last five minutes. #chagos
Reposted by Mona Smitte
President Trump says Prime Minister Starmer is making "a big mistake" by entering a lease agreement for the US-UK air base on the island of Diego Garcia. www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...
Trump accuses Starmer of ‘big mistake’ over Diego Garcia lease
Trump said US may need the military base for an attack on Iran, and accused Starmer of ‘losing control’ by handing the Chagos Islands to Mauritius
www.thetimes.com
February 18, 2026 at 7:25 PM
President Trump says Prime Minister Starmer is making "a big mistake" by entering a lease agreement for the US-UK air base on the island of Diego Garcia. www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...
Reposted by Mona Smitte
Reposted by Mona Smitte
Ticket sellers. Rental companies. Chain restaurants.
When they quietly charge nickel-and-dime junk fees, it can cost you thousands of dollars per year.
It’s about time for everyday Illinoisans to take control and get the relief they deserve by banning that practice.
When they quietly charge nickel-and-dime junk fees, it can cost you thousands of dollars per year.
It’s about time for everyday Illinoisans to take control and get the relief they deserve by banning that practice.
February 18, 2026 at 7:43 PM
Ticket sellers. Rental companies. Chain restaurants.
When they quietly charge nickel-and-dime junk fees, it can cost you thousands of dollars per year.
It’s about time for everyday Illinoisans to take control and get the relief they deserve by banning that practice.
When they quietly charge nickel-and-dime junk fees, it can cost you thousands of dollars per year.
It’s about time for everyday Illinoisans to take control and get the relief they deserve by banning that practice.
Reposted by Mona Smitte
Israel plans to revoke the Norwegian Refugee Council’s registration w/in 10 days, along w/ at least 40 other aid groups, in a move that would severely restrict life-saving assistance in Gaza & the West Bank, Jan Egeland, sec. gen. of the Norwegian Refugee Council, stated on X.
International NGOs...
International NGOs...
February 18, 2026 at 7:43 PM
Israel plans to revoke the Norwegian Refugee Council’s registration w/in 10 days, along w/ at least 40 other aid groups, in a move that would severely restrict life-saving assistance in Gaza & the West Bank, Jan Egeland, sec. gen. of the Norwegian Refugee Council, stated on X.
International NGOs...
International NGOs...
Reposted by Mona Smitte
🤔🤔🤔
All I’m saying is, some of you have been a little hasty in writing phrenology off as a science.
February 18, 2026 at 7:43 PM
🤔🤔🤔
Reposted by Mona Smitte
Reposted by Mona Smitte
FACT CHECK:
Of the ~$170B+ in Ukraine assistance approved since 2022, an estimated 55–65% was spent in the U.S. — replacing older weapons, boosting domestic production, and funding U.S. defense contracts.
Roughly 20–25% went as direct budget support to Ukraine.
It was not just cash sent overseas.
Of the ~$170B+ in Ukraine assistance approved since 2022, an estimated 55–65% was spent in the U.S. — replacing older weapons, boosting domestic production, and funding U.S. defense contracts.
Roughly 20–25% went as direct budget support to Ukraine.
It was not just cash sent overseas.
February 18, 2026 at 7:34 PM
FACT CHECK:
Of the ~$170B+ in Ukraine assistance approved since 2022, an estimated 55–65% was spent in the U.S. — replacing older weapons, boosting domestic production, and funding U.S. defense contracts.
Roughly 20–25% went as direct budget support to Ukraine.
It was not just cash sent overseas.
Of the ~$170B+ in Ukraine assistance approved since 2022, an estimated 55–65% was spent in the U.S. — replacing older weapons, boosting domestic production, and funding U.S. defense contracts.
Roughly 20–25% went as direct budget support to Ukraine.
It was not just cash sent overseas.