Kelsey Halliday Johnson
@plutobandit.bsky.social
for the first time ever it feels hyper-critical to say: views/re-shares are absolutely only my own. 🦀
GoFundMe has proven this week it is reprehensible/exploiting profits at the expense of community services/aid. Its AI machine made 1.4mil (nonconsensual) “fundraiser” sites for hardworking 501c3s. Mutual aid must exist outside of this company. I’ll be asking how to pay otherwise from now on.
October 31, 2025 at 10:27 PM
GoFundMe has proven this week it is reprehensible/exploiting profits at the expense of community services/aid. Its AI machine made 1.4mil (nonconsensual) “fundraiser” sites for hardworking 501c3s. Mutual aid must exist outside of this company. I’ll be asking how to pay otherwise from now on.
Reposted by Kelsey Halliday Johnson
Confession: I thought there was some kind of technical definition of a "weed" like I thought you could show it to a plant expert and ask "is this a flower or a weed?" and they could tell you. But no, weed is just a slur for any plant you don't personally want around
July 8, 2025 at 3:02 AM
Confession: I thought there was some kind of technical definition of a "weed" like I thought you could show it to a plant expert and ask "is this a flower or a weed?" and they could tell you. But no, weed is just a slur for any plant you don't personally want around
Reposted by Kelsey Halliday Johnson
So odd that Congress is so willing to have their power usurped and stripped from them.
June 22, 2025 at 1:00 AM
So odd that Congress is so willing to have their power usurped and stripped from them.
Reposted by Kelsey Halliday Johnson
illegal war started by a man constitutionally ineligible to be president
June 22, 2025 at 12:34 AM
illegal war started by a man constitutionally ineligible to be president
Reposted by Kelsey Halliday Johnson
The plan to defund Planned Parenthood would cost taxpayers $300 million over the next decade, according to a leaked preliminary estimate compiled by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO).
The GOP's plan to defund Planned Parenthood would add $300 million to the deficit
So much for cutting costs.
www.motherjones.com
May 14, 2025 at 11:15 PM
The plan to defund Planned Parenthood would cost taxpayers $300 million over the next decade, according to a leaked preliminary estimate compiled by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO).
Reposted by Kelsey Halliday Johnson
Cost of the four jets? Just over $60 million a pop, roughly the same as the entire annual budget for the National Endowment for the Arts.
Another Navy jet falls into sea, marking fourth major mishap in months
www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
Another Navy jet falls into sea, marking fourth major mishap in months
The latest loss of an F/A-18 fighter jet occurred during a failed landing aboard the USS Harry S. Truman, an aircraft carrier in the Red Sea.
www.washingtonpost.com
May 9, 2025 at 3:23 PM
Cost of the four jets? Just over $60 million a pop, roughly the same as the entire annual budget for the National Endowment for the Arts.
Reposted by Kelsey Halliday Johnson
Yay for Kara Peruccio repping Maine well (and in the answers to boot!) on Jeopardy!
May 10, 2025 at 12:16 AM
Yay for Kara Peruccio repping Maine well (and in the answers to boot!) on Jeopardy!
Reposted by Kelsey Halliday Johnson
Nice to see that everyone is referring to the new pope by his chosen name.
🏳️⚧️ Do the same for trans people! 🏳️⚧️
🏳️⚧️ Do the same for trans people! 🏳️⚧️
May 9, 2025 at 11:16 AM
Nice to see that everyone is referring to the new pope by his chosen name.
🏳️⚧️ Do the same for trans people! 🏳️⚧️
🏳️⚧️ Do the same for trans people! 🏳️⚧️
“Every American, and anyone who cares about global peace, should wish Rubio well and hope for his success.“
A Crisis Is No Time for Amateurs
The unfolding conflict between Pakistan and India needs to be handled with the utmost care and competence.
www.theatlantic.com
May 8, 2025 at 3:48 AM
“Every American, and anyone who cares about global peace, should wish Rubio well and hope for his success.“
Reposted by Kelsey Halliday Johnson
President Trump proposed eliminating the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities in the budget he released Friday, taking aim once again at two agencies that he had tried and failed to get rid of during his first term.
Trump Seeks to Eliminate the NEA
The president’s budget proposal also called for getting rid of the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
www.nytimes.com
May 3, 2025 at 2:30 AM
President Trump proposed eliminating the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities in the budget he released Friday, taking aim once again at two agencies that he had tried and failed to get rid of during his first term.
Reposted by Kelsey Halliday Johnson
DOGE wanted to assign a team to… the Vera Institute of Justice, a completely independent nonprofit that is in no way part of the government…
www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
DOGE sought to assign a team to an independent nonprofit group
A representative of DOGE met with leaders of the Vera Institute of Justice, a nonprofit organization that advocates for lower incarceration rates.
www.washingtonpost.com
April 16, 2025 at 5:53 AM
DOGE wanted to assign a team to… the Vera Institute of Justice, a completely independent nonprofit that is in no way part of the government…
www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
Reposted by Kelsey Halliday Johnson
This is a test. If Harvard folds or loses the court fight, it's *terrible* news for every nonprofit, foundation, advocacy group, etc. This is very important.
The IRS is making plans to rescind the tax-exempt status of Harvard University, CNN reports
IRS making plans to rescind Harvard’s tax-exempt status | CNN Politics
The Internal Revenue Service is making plans to rescind the tax-exempt status of Harvard University, according to two sources familiar with the matter, which would be an extraordinary step of retaliat...
www.cnn.com
April 16, 2025 at 9:08 PM
This is a test. If Harvard folds or loses the court fight, it's *terrible* news for every nonprofit, foundation, advocacy group, etc. This is very important.
I don’t want AI; I want clean air, water, and old growth forests.
April 16, 2025 at 2:02 AM
I don’t want AI; I want clean air, water, and old growth forests.
Reposted by Kelsey Halliday Johnson
Instead of restoring access to The Associated Press newswire, as required by a federal judge, the Trump administration is removing the wire position in the daily press corps rotation altogether.
The Trump White House is axing the wire service spot from the coverage pool, the latest salvo in its battle with the AP | CNN Business
Instead of restoring access to The Associated Press newswire, as required by a federal judge, the Trump administration is removing the wire position in the daily press corps rotation altogether.
www.cnn.com
April 16, 2025 at 1:47 AM
Instead of restoring access to The Associated Press newswire, as required by a federal judge, the Trump administration is removing the wire position in the daily press corps rotation altogether.
Reposted by Kelsey Halliday Johnson
As a biologist, I'm appalled at pride the White House takes in willful ignorance.
In yesterday's executive order about NPR and PBS, their first example of "the trash that passes for `news' at NPR and PBS" is the statement that "banana slugs are hermaphrodites."
But this is unequivocal fact.
In yesterday's executive order about NPR and PBS, their first example of "the trash that passes for `news' at NPR and PBS" is the statement that "banana slugs are hermaphrodites."
But this is unequivocal fact.
The NPR, PBS Grift Has Ripped Us Off for Too Long
For years, American taxpayers have been on the hook for subsidizing National Public Radio (NPR) and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), which spread
www.whitehouse.gov
April 15, 2025 at 9:34 PM
As a biologist, I'm appalled at pride the White House takes in willful ignorance.
In yesterday's executive order about NPR and PBS, their first example of "the trash that passes for `news' at NPR and PBS" is the statement that "banana slugs are hermaphrodites."
But this is unequivocal fact.
In yesterday's executive order about NPR and PBS, their first example of "the trash that passes for `news' at NPR and PBS" is the statement that "banana slugs are hermaphrodites."
But this is unequivocal fact.
Reposted by Kelsey Halliday Johnson
Oh dear you’re going to want to read this. Looks like DOGErs were caught exfiltrating NLRB data, likely on unions, for private (seemingly Elony) use. This is must read. What we’ve all suspected. But now details. www.npr.org/2025/04/15/n...
A whistleblower's disclosure details how DOGE may have taken sensitive labor data
A whistleblower tells Congress and NPR that DOGE may have taken sensitive labor data and hid its tracks. "None of that ... information should ever leave the agency," said a former NLRB official.
www.npr.org
April 15, 2025 at 12:23 PM
Oh dear you’re going to want to read this. Looks like DOGErs were caught exfiltrating NLRB data, likely on unions, for private (seemingly Elony) use. This is must read. What we’ve all suspected. But now details. www.npr.org/2025/04/15/n...
Portland, Maine had an awesome adults arts and crafts week.
April 5, 2025 at 9:56 PM
Portland, Maine had an awesome adults arts and crafts week.
I had a pixie cut in the early years of high school and regardless of my gender identity, it was an important, powerful part of shaping me. Affirmative haircuts for people at any age!
We reported on this a few days ago, but I want to point out this headline because this is where we are at.
A bill in Arkansas would ban gender affirming HAIRCUTS for transgender youth.
HAIRCUTS.
This is a straight up North Korea state sanctioned hairstyle proposed law for youth.
A bill in Arkansas would ban gender affirming HAIRCUTS for transgender youth.
HAIRCUTS.
This is a straight up North Korea state sanctioned hairstyle proposed law for youth.
GOP bill could ban hairdressers from giving gender-nonconforming haircuts to minors - LGBTQ Nation
The bill would allow anyone to sue someone who affirms a young person's transition, and it specifically mentions hairstyles.
www.lgbtqnation.com
March 20, 2025 at 6:45 AM
I had a pixie cut in the early years of high school and regardless of my gender identity, it was an important, powerful part of shaping me. Affirmative haircuts for people at any age!
I looked it up on Snopes & felt truly sad (in fair measure to my disbelief / horror) to read it was true.
WTF?!? Elon Musk reposted this on X before quietly deleting it:
“Stalin, Mao, and Hitler didn’t murder millions of people. Their public sector employees did.”
“Stalin, Mao, and Hitler didn’t murder millions of people. Their public sector employees did.”
March 15, 2025 at 3:06 AM
I looked it up on Snopes & felt truly sad (in fair measure to my disbelief / horror) to read it was true.
Reposted by Kelsey Halliday Johnson
18F, the federal government’s technology shop, was just demolished by Musk’s team. It was a cost-recoverable org, charging agencies for their expertise, using a consulting model. Its cost to government was negligible, its benefits huge. My team there once saved DoD $500 million.
A thread about 18F:
A thread about 18F:
18F is *precisely* what Musk and team claim should exist within government. But when his team found it, they destroyed it, because it is evidence that government works well (can’t have that!), and because like Zelensky, 18F didn’t bend the knee.
March 1, 2025 at 3:32 PM
18F, the federal government’s technology shop, was just demolished by Musk’s team. It was a cost-recoverable org, charging agencies for their expertise, using a consulting model. Its cost to government was negligible, its benefits huge. My team there once saved DoD $500 million.
A thread about 18F:
A thread about 18F:
Reposted by Kelsey Halliday Johnson
18F staffers- who were summarily fired en masse overnight- issue statement expressing shock, bewilderment:
"18F was doing exactly the type of work that DOGE claims to want – yet we were eliminated."
"18F was doing exactly the type of work that DOGE claims to want – yet we were eliminated."
We're not done yet | 18F
18f.org
March 1, 2025 at 10:27 PM
18F staffers- who were summarily fired en masse overnight- issue statement expressing shock, bewilderment:
"18F was doing exactly the type of work that DOGE claims to want – yet we were eliminated."
"18F was doing exactly the type of work that DOGE claims to want – yet we were eliminated."
According to the NYT there are 330,000 of us who are unable to move forward with payments & would be owed forgiveness in the year since the Supreme Court injunction. 330k who have committed ten years to public service jobs & committed their end to a rotten deal. www.nytimes.com/2025/02/28/b...
Student Loan Borrowers Blocked from Affordable Repayment Plans
The Education Department has pulled down all applications for borrowers seeking to enroll in income-driven repayment programs. Here’s what to know.
www.nytimes.com
March 1, 2025 at 5:51 PM
According to the NYT there are 330,000 of us who are unable to move forward with payments & would be owed forgiveness in the year since the Supreme Court injunction. 330k who have committed ten years to public service jobs & committed their end to a rotten deal. www.nytimes.com/2025/02/28/b...
Reposted by Kelsey Halliday Johnson
This phenomenon known as a "planet parade," will feature Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune all present at the same time along a line in the night sky on Friday, NASA says.
A rare 'parade' of all 7 planets will move across the night sky this week
This phenomenon known as a "planet parade," will feature Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune all present at the same time along a line in the night sky on Friday, NASA says.
www.npr.org
February 27, 2025 at 6:06 PM
This phenomenon known as a "planet parade," will feature Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune all present at the same time along a line in the night sky on Friday, NASA says.