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spaghettisundays.bsky.social
@spaghettisundays.bsky.social
42 followers 160 following 2 posts
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sbagen.bsky.social
No secret that I'm a huge @rebeccasolnit.bsky.social fan. This piece is tough, important, and excellent. www.meditationsinanemergency.com/how-big-shou...
How Big Should Your Tent Be?
It's striking to me that a lot of people want politics to be about their personal feelings, in which case they're not engaged in politics, though they may be engaged in the sabotage of politics. This ...
www.meditationsinanemergency.com
November 17, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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wck.org
WCK is serving free meals for furloughed federal workers impacted by the U.S. government shutdown. These meals are available to federal employees and their families. Below are locations and hours. #ChefsForFeds (1/2)
October 27, 2025 at 1:25 AM
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wck.org
📍Washington Canal Park - 200 M St SE, Washington, DC 20003
⏰11 a.m. to 2 p.m
Locations will be updated daily here: wck.org/news/distro-sites-govt-shutdown
#ChefsForFeds
October 27, 2025 at 1:25 AM
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melodyschreiber.com
Demetre Daskalakis was a key figure in the Covid, mpox, and bird flu responses. This is a huge loss.
donmoyn.bsky.social Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · Aug 28
Full resignation letter from Demetre C. Daskalakis, a CDC leader, does not hold back.
"The recent shooting at CDC is not why I am resigning. My grandfather, who I am named after, stood up to fascist forces in Greece and lost his life doing so. I am resigning to make him and his legacy proud."
My resignation letter from CDC. Dear Dr. Houry, I am writing to formally resign from my position as Director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), effective August 28, 2025, close of business. I am happy to stay on for two weeks to provide transition, if requested. This decision has not come easily, as I deeply value the work that the CDC does in safeguarding public health and am proud of my contributions to that critical mission. However, after much contemplation and reflection on recent developments and perspectives brought to light by Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., I find that the views he and his staff have shared challenge my ability to continue in my current role at the agency and in the service of the health of the American people. Enough is enough. While I hold immense respect for the institution and my colleagues, I believe that it is imperative to align my professional responsibilities to my system of ethics and my understanding of the science of infectious disease, immunology, and my promise to serve the American people. This step is necessary to ensure that I can contribute effectively in a capacity that allows me to remain true to my principles. The recent change in the adult and children’s immunization schedule threaten the lives of the youngest Americans and pregnant people. The data analyses that supported this decision have never been shared with CDC despite my respectful requests to HHS and other leadership. This lack of meaningful engagement was further compounded by a “frequently asked questions” document written to support the Secretary’s directive that was circulated by HHS without input from CDC subject matter experts and that cited studies that did not support the conclusions that were attributed to these authors. Having worked in local and national public health for years, I have never experienced such radical non-transparency, nor have I seen such unskilled manipulation of data to achieve a political end rather than the good of the American people. It is untenable to serve in an organization that is not afforded the opportunity to discuss decisions of scientific and public health importance released under the moniker of CDC. The lack of communication by HHS and other CDC political leadership that culminates in social media posts announcing major policy changes without prior notice demonstrate a disregard of normal communication channels and common sense. Having to retrofit analyses and policy actions to match inadequately thought-out announcements in poorly scripted videos or page long X posts should not be how organizations responsible for the health of people should function. Some examples include the announcement of the change in the COVID-19 recommendations for children and pregnant people, the firing of scientists from ACIP by X post and an op-ed rather than direct communication with these valuable experts, the announcement of new ACIP members by X before onboarding and vetting have completed, and the release of term of reference for an ACIP workgroup that ignored all feedback from career staff at CDC. Their desire to please a political base will result in death and disability of vulnerable children and adults. Their base should be the people they serve not a political voting bloc. I have always been first to challenge scientific and public health dogma in my career and was excited by the opportunity to do so again. I was optimistic that there would be an opportunity to brief the Secretary about key topics such as measles, avian influenza, and the highly coordinated approach to the respiratory virus season. Such briefings would allow exchange of ideas and a shared path to support the vision of “Making America Healthy Again.” We are seven months into the new administration, and no CDC subject matter expert from my Center has ever briefed the Secretary. I am not sure who the Secretary is listening to, but it is quite certainly not to us. Unvetted and conflicted outside organizations seem to be the sources HHS use over the gold standard science of CDC and other reputable sources. At a hearing, Secretary Kennedy said that Americans should not take medical advice from him. To the contrary, an appropriately briefed and inquisitive Secretary should be a source of health information for the people he serves. As it stands now, I must agree with him, that he should not be considered a source of accurate information. The intentional eroding of trust in low-risk vaccines favoring natural infection and unproven remedies will bring us to a pre-vaccine era where only the strong will survive and many if not all will suffer. I believe in nutrition and exercise. I believe in making our food supply healthier, and I also believe in using vaccines to prevent death and disability. Eugenics plays prominently in the rhetoric being generated and is derivative of a legacy that good medicine and science should continue to shun. The recent shooting at CDC is not why I am resigning. My grandfather, who I am named after, stood up to fascist forces in Greece and lost his life doing so. I am resigning to make him and his legacy proud. I am resigning because of the cowardice of a leader that cannot admit that HIS and his minions’ words over decades created an environment where violence like this can occur. I reject his and his colleagues’ thoughts and prayers, and advise they direct those to people that they have not actively harmed. For decades, I have been a trusted voice for the LGBTQ community when it comes to critical health topics. I must also cite the recklessness of the administration in their efforts to erase transgender populations, cease critical domestic and international HIV programming, and terminate key research to support equity as part of my decision. Public health is not merely about the health of the individual, but it is about the health of the community, the nation, the world. The nation’s health security is at risk and is in the hands of people focusing on ideological self-interest. I want to express my heartfelt gratitude for the opportunities for growth, learning, and collaboration that I have been afforded during my time at the CDC. It has been a privilege to work alongside such dedicated professionals who are committed to improving the health and well-being of communities across the nation even when under attack from within both physically and psychologically. Thank you once again for the support and guidance I have received from you and previous CDC leadership throughout my tenure. I wish the CDC continued success in its vital mission and that HHS reverse its dangerous course to dismantle public health as a practice and as an institution. If they continue the current path, they risk our personal well-being and the security of the United States.
August 28, 2025 at 1:45 AM
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markwarner.bsky.social
D.C. has more residents than two U.S. states. They pay more per capita in federal taxes than any other state.

But they don’t get a serious seat at the table to decide how they’re governed.

D.C. statehood now.
August 22, 2025 at 7:47 PM
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propublica.org
1/ Ever received a random text or DM from a stranger looking to befriend you?

Here's how a simple message could be a small piece of a global fraud machine that exploits some of the world's largest banks. THREAD 🧵
July 6, 2025 at 1:09 AM
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nytpitchbot.bsky.social
Opinion | I am voting for the Senate megabill. But I'd still like the media to give me credit for expressing reservations about it.

by Josh Hawley
June 29, 2025 at 4:15 AM
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warren.senate.gov
What happened?
June 2, 2025 at 10:24 PM
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propublica.org
No matter which state you live in, Trump’s dismantling of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau affects your ability to be protected from scams.

We want to understand the fallout that comes with gutting the government’s consumer watchdog. Here’s how you can help us report: propub.li/43EycsC
Data visualization titled "Complaints to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Come From Across the Country." Below, a representation of a U.S. map, but each of the 50 states is represented as a single green square labeled with the state's abbreviation. A key to the top left shows a gradient that goes from white to light green to dark green, with white representing 5 complaints per 1,000 residents and dark green representing >50 complaints per 1,000 residents.
April 4, 2025 at 1:30 AM
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vermontgmg.bsky.social
Very normal thing for heathy democracy: Nation’s richest man gets involved in local election in state where he doesn’t reside and hands out million-dollar checks to people who vote for his position.
beyerstein.bsky.social Lindsay Beyerstein @beyerstein.bsky.social · Mar 28
Elon Musk is swanning around Wisconsin even though his favorability is so far under water you can see Atlantis.
Elon Musk tweet about how he’s giving a talk in Wisconsin for people who have signed his Supreme Court petition.
March 28, 2025 at 12:39 PM
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karaswisher.bsky.social
It’s also a self hate crime to drive them www.politico.com/news/magazin...
It’s Now a Hate Crime to Vandalize Teslas in DC
A splashy manhunt over anti-Musk graffiti shows just how far the capital will go to placate the Trump administration.
www.politico.com
March 28, 2025 at 1:47 PM
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kevinmkruse.bsky.social
I am so fucking furious at Chuck Fucking Schumer
March 13, 2025 at 11:20 PM
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ddayen.bsky.social
Pleased to have Sandeep Vaheesan on the site today running through some of the themes of his new book Democracy in Power and explaining how public utilities and rural electric co-ops can save America, and the world.
prospect.org/environment/...
Even Under Trump, Americans Can Fight Climate Change
And the most equitable way to do that is through publicly owned utilities.
prospect.org
March 10, 2025 at 2:32 PM
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ddayen.bsky.social
NEW: 14 declarations filed in a case over illegal firings at the CFPB detail Russ Vought's plan to reduce the agency to "a room at Treasury, White House, or Federal Reserve with five men and a phone in it."
prospect.org/2025-02-28-v...
The Plot to Destroy the CFPB
Declarations in a court case involving the union of the consumer protection agency detail a desire to whittle it down to “five men in a room.”
prospect.org
February 28, 2025 at 5:27 PM
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warren.senate.gov
Maybe instead of purging the Social Security workers who make sure seniors get their checks on time, we should be expanding benefits to make life a little easier for your parents and grandparents.
February 27, 2025 at 10:42 PM
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karaswisher.bsky.social
Exactly right
atrupar.com Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · Feb 20
Crockett: "Down in Alabama, who's broke. Down in Louisiana, who's broke. I can go through pretty much the entire south and tell you that they're broke and rely on a lot of welfare from the government. To be perfectly honest, it is tax dollars from these big blue states...we're in the find out phase"
February 20, 2025 at 2:07 PM
spaghettisundays.bsky.social
www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...
After ceding power of the purse, GOP lawmakers beg Trump team for funds
Republican senators find themselves in an unusual position these days: begging Trump officials to release funds they themselves appropriated.
www.washingtonpost.com
February 19, 2025 at 12:56 PM
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markey.senate.gov
Birthright citizenship order - BLOCKED.
Federal funding cut off - BLOCKED.
Illegal feds resignation plan - BLOCKED.
Access to Treasury's vital data system - BLOCKED.
Firing 2000 USAID workers - BLOCKED.
Drastic NIH Grant Cuts - BLOCKED.
Removing public health websites - BLOCKED.
February 11, 2025 at 8:37 PM
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carterd.bsky.social
A great example of a story where being a policy nerd (here: mortgages) intersects with understanding the political economy of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
ddayen.bsky.social David Dayen @ddayen.bsky.social · Feb 11
NEW from me: Russ Vought was on the verge of breaking the mortgage market by shutting down a core function provided by CFPB. But he blinked, and in so doing revealed that regulation is actually pretty important.
prospect.org/economy/2025...
Vought Restores CFPB Procedure That Sustains Mortgage Markets
The situation reveals that sometimes, even arsonists need the building they’re burning down to stay upright.
prospect.org
February 11, 2025 at 7:10 PM