AJ
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ajoytobehold.bsky.social
AJ
@ajoytobehold.bsky.social
25 followers 45 following 28 posts
Weirdo. Queerdo. I do public health stuff and read too much and have a cute dog.
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Reposted by AJ
thejenniwren.teamlh.social
ICE detained Purple Heart veteran William Vermie for hours at the Whipple Federal Building.

He says he’s speaking out because he’s white, he has privilege and if he doesn’t use it to stand up for others, who will?

That is what solidarity looks like.
January 20, 2026 at 2:47 PM
Reposted by AJ
theonion.com
All 6 Branches Of Armed Forces Present At Arrest Of Undocumented Nanny https://theonion.com/all-6-branches-of-armed-forces-present-at-arrest-of-undocumented-nanny/
All 6 Branches Of Armed Forces Present At Arrest Of Undocumented Nanny
January 16, 2026 at 10:00 PM
ajoytobehold.bsky.social
too much news, everyone cuddle with my dog for a spell. rejuvenate.
A black dog asleep on a grey couch
January 14, 2026 at 8:36 PM
Reposted by AJ
thewaroncars.bsky.social
A 2021 study from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics showed that 52% of all trips in the U.S. were less than three miles. 28% of trips were less than one mile. With slight tweaks, many of those trips could be done on bikes, e-bikes and other light electric vehicles, and walking.
wxdam.com Dennis Mersereau 🛰️ @wxdam.com · Oct 23
I'm tempted to listen because I've yet to read an argument about "car addiction" that factors in that the continental United States covers 3.7 million square miles.
adamconover.net Adam Conover @adamconover.net · Oct 23
Check out the new Factually! episode with Sarah Goodyear and Doug Gordon: How to Break America's Car Addiction.

» Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a...

» Spotify: open.spotify.com/episode/5JDV...

» YouTube: youtu.be/0rDO6FbYQrE
October 24, 2025 at 9:39 PM
Reposted by AJ
lisamjarvis.bsky.social
"Preparedness is a deterrent," Nuzzo says. Walking away from an investment in mRNA also "sends a message to our adversaries that the United States is uncommitted to preparing for future health emergencies - that the United States is now more vulnerable than it has ever been because we are systematically taking off the table multiple approaches to protect ourselves."
August 7, 2025 at 2:47 PM
ajoytobehold.bsky.social
A transformer blew, the power is out, and it's still 80°F outside at 11pm. My feet are hot; send help (socks made of ice).
June 26, 2025 at 4:03 AM
ajoytobehold.bsky.social
Takes vyvanse. Immediately takes a nap. Think I need to up my dosage? /s
June 22, 2025 at 6:00 PM
Reposted by AJ
everylibrary.bsky.social
Grifters gonna grift.

Spend two minutes browsing in the children’s section, and you will see what Alabamaians without political motives see: zero porn or sexually explicit material in the children’s sections.

buff.ly/4ssyw5E
John Wahl is gaslighting Alabamians about library content: op-ed
It’s time we stand up to Wahl and demand his resignation.
buff.ly
May 13, 2025 at 10:02 PM
ajoytobehold.bsky.social
It must be horny bird season cause there's an owl hooting away in the middle of the afternoon.
May 4, 2025 at 6:42 PM
Reposted by AJ
readingtheend.bsky.social
attn please, here is some further Murderbot footage to enjoy incl the definitely best little moment in All Systems Red
Murderbot — An Inside Look | Apple TV+
YouTube video by Apple TV
www.youtube.com
April 28, 2025 at 6:59 PM
Reposted by AJ
marthawells.com
A few more photos, hopefully to brighten a sucktastic day. Some were taken by me and some by @troyce.bsky.social #murderbot Descriptions in the alt text.
Close up of the Murderbot helmet, being held by one of the props people. You can see the careful scarring and damage added by props, which I felt was one of the elements that highlighted the creativity of everyone who worked on the show. I just thought this sign in the lunch area was cool. It says "Sanctuary" because that's the code word Apple was using for the show at the time. This area was also used for people who just needed a table to work on. When the unit publicist was interviewing me, there was a props person working on making the pieces of one of the weapons look like it had been blown apart in an explosion. This is a run-through of the scene we got to watch filmed the day we were there. We were sitting on a bench inside the hopper. You can see Noma Dumezweni, Akshay Khanna, Alexander Skarsgård, and Sabrina Wu, some not in costume yet. There's also a crew member standing in the back. This is part of the gigantic camera that extended through into the back of the hopper. Also you can see the two monitors, one for the big camera and one for (I think) the steadycam. This is where we sat for most of the day, in a little area in front of the monitors where the producers and guests sit. You have to be careful moving around the soundstage, especially when the lights are down. It was so big it was easy to get lost.
April 21, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Reposted by AJ
carlbergstrom.com
Trump's 3/27 executive order targets the Smithsonian for advancing "the view that race is not a biological reality but a social construct."

Trump argues that the exhibit's statement, below, is unscientific. He's wrong. As a biology professor and population geneticist, I agree with every word of it.
“Race does not provide an accurate representation of human biological variation,” the statement reads. “Humans are not divided biologically into distinct continental types or racial genetic clusters. Instead, the Western concept of race must be understood as a classification system that emerged from, and in support of, European colonialism, oppression, and discrimination.” “It thus does not have its roots in biological reality, but in policies of discrimination,” the statement says. “Because of that, over the last five centuries, race has become a social reality that structures societies and how we experience the world. In this regard, race is real, as is racism, and both have real biological consequences.”
March 31, 2025 at 11:27 PM
Reposted by AJ
erininthemorning.com
1. The 1Q 2025 Anti-Trans Risk Assessment Map is complete, and there are big changes.

I have issued a "Do Not Travel" for transgender foreign citizens.

Risk has deteriorated broadly across the US.

Transgender youth see changes in previously safe states.

Subscribe to support my journalism.
Anti-Trans National Risk Assessment Map: March Edition
At the two-month mark of Donald Trump's presidency, the risk for transgender people has deteriorated nationwide. The United States now carries a "Do Not Travel" rating for transgender people.
www.erininthemorning.com
March 25, 2025 at 10:15 PM
Reposted by AJ
carlbergstrom.com
So the guy leading RFK Jr.'s vaccine-autism study?

A total quack who was previously charged for practicing medicine without a license for using chemical castration drugs on autistic children.
Maryland physician board charges promoters of dangerous autism therapy.
March 25, 2025 at 10:59 PM
Reposted by AJ
theonion.com
Spray-Painted Penis Only Thing Holding Cybertruck Together
Spray-Painted Penis Only Thing Holding Cybertruck Together
March 24, 2025 at 6:00 PM
Reposted by AJ
imanibarbarin.bsky.social
We need to tread eugenics with the seriousness we treat the most vile forms of bigotry because eugenics is what turns those bigotries into action items.
March 21, 2025 at 12:20 AM
Reposted by AJ
sophygurl.bsky.social
We are the ThoughtCrimes portion of this fascist takeover, for anyone taking notes.
newseye.bsky.social News Eye @newseye.bsky.social · Mar 11
NEW: White House says the arrest and deportation of student activist & legal US resident, Mahmoud Khalil, is a blueprint for more.

The final line here is chilling. The White House specifically says Khalil was not breaking the law.

No evidence, no due process, no crime. He was just disappeared.
Indeed, a White House official told The Free Press that the basis for targeting Khalil is being used as a blueprint for investigations against other students. Khalil is a "threat to the foreign policy and national security interests of the United States," said the official, noting that this calculation was the driving force behind the arrest. "The allegation here is not that he was breaking the law," said the official.
March 11, 2025 at 7:41 PM
Reposted by AJ
luckytran.com
Since the start of COVID, the number of people reporting a disability soared. Yet the majority of the world acts like COVID is over, and Long COVID doesn't exist.
Chart: U.S. adults reporting a disability The number of people reporting a disability soared. Many Americans struggled with long Covid and reported cognitive issues like “brain fog.” Source: Census Here, adults refer to people older than 16.
March 10, 2025 at 6:10 PM
Reposted by AJ
karenguzzo.bsky.social
“Disabled people are almost twice as likely to be displaced by natural disasters. For some groups, like those who require nonverbal communication methods, the likelihood of displacement can be even higher.”

www.nbcnews.com/data-graphic...
Disability amid disaster: People with disabilities are disproportionately impacted by natural disasters
After disasters, people with disabilities are more likely to be displaced, more likely to never return home and more likely to receive scam offers, Census Bureau data shows.
www.nbcnews.com
February 23, 2025 at 2:20 PM
Reposted by AJ
nisishawl.bsky.social
Look! A list with me on it! winteriscoming.net/celebrate-bl... (also some other Major Dudes)
Celebrate Black History Month by reading these 16 sci-fi and fantasy authors who've shaped the genre
February is Black History Month, and that means it's a great time to take stock of some of the Black creators who have helped mold the artforms we so love. In t
winteriscoming.net
February 17, 2025 at 8:20 PM
Reposted by AJ
wiswell.bsky.social
They are after disabled people in every way they can find.

This is a good thread on wheelchairs in particular. Mari has a lot of experience.
mariness.bsky.social Mari Ness, writer of things @mariness.bsky.social · Feb 16
Bloomberg is reporting that federal workers tasked with approving medical devices for Medicare have reportedly received termination notices. As a wheelchair user who also uses some other assistive devices (canes, shower chairs, that sort of thing) I want to add some context to this.
February 16, 2025 at 11:16 PM
ajoytobehold.bsky.social
That used to be the case in Mississippi too. Used to.
trudymiller.bsky.social Trudy Miller @trudymiller.bsky.social · Feb 16
Maine is this high only because religious and philosophical exemptions to school vaccination were disallowed by law several years ago. ONLY medical exemptions are allowed now.
February 16, 2025 at 4:34 AM
Reposted by AJ
marisakabas.bsky.social
i see people comparing this to the way trans youth healthcare was the canary in the coal mine for attacking all trans people, and i talk about this in the piece 🩷
marisakabas.bsky.social Marisa Kabas @marisakabas.bsky.social · Feb 15
New from me —

“What it comes down to is the removal of choice, especially when it comes to established health care. People should not have to suffer the anguish of being denied life-saving drugs because a couple of guys have decided to apply conspiracy theories instead of established science.”
You can pry my antidepressants from my cold, dead hands
A new executive order announced an "assessment" for the use of these meds in children. Adults aren't far behind.
www.thehandbasket.co
February 15, 2025 at 10:28 PM
Reposted by AJ
esqueer.net
We've created a tracker that covers all executive orders affecting LGBTQ folks along with federal and state legislation.

We're at 334 anti-LGBTQ bills.

docs.google.com/spreadsheets...

Credit
@alli.gay
@erininthemorning.com
@evanurquhart.bsky.social
@miralazine.bsky.social
@lizsaila.bsky.social
A screenshot of a multi‐column table listing several U.S. presidential Executive Orders relating to LGBTQ+ rights and antidiscrimination policies. Each row has columns for “Origin” (POTUS), “Number/Identifier” (e.g., EO 13988), “Title” (such as Preventing and Combating Discrimination…), “Action Type” (e.g., Broad Nondiscrimination, Military Nondiscrimination), “Summary” (key points of each order), and “Date Signed.” The listed orders span from early 2021 through early 2025, covering topics like preventing discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation, banning conversion therapy, rescinding prior harmful EOs, and restricting or expanding DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) initiatives. A spreadsheet at the top shows columns tracking anti‐LGBTQ bills by status and year: total bills (334), 2025 bills (327), 2024 rollovers (7), how many passed committees (3), passed one chamber (5), passed both chambers (0), enacted (1), vetoed (0), failed (3), and carried forward (0). Below that, another header row lists different types of anti‐LGBTQ legislation (e.g., gender‐affirming care bans, pronoun bans, “Don’t Say Gay,” drag bans, bathroom bans) with the total count of each category (e.g., 55 for gender‐affirming care bans, 20 for pronoun bans, 14 for “Don’t Say Gay,” etc.). A color‐coded U.S. map spans the lower half, with states shaded from light orange to deep red according to how many anti‐LGBTQ bills they contain. Texas appears in the darkest red (46 bills), with lighter shades indicating fewer bills in other states. A note at the bottom right explains that the map shows total tracked bills per state, which does not necessarily reflect each bill’s likelihood of passage.
January 29, 2025 at 5:25 PM
Reposted by AJ
roguesecunit.bsky.social
To expand on prior post: if you're into snarky speculative fiction involving neurodivergence, gender diversity, anti-corporate sentiment & a human/bot construct that names its files CodeBundle.LockItDown, CodeBundle.FuckThem & Code.Bundle.FuckThisToo, you want @marthawells.com's Murderbot Diaries.
February 5, 2025 at 10:35 PM