Ive been neck deep in Lorton prison material all week and one thing that I just cant stop thinking about is how similar the architecture is to the colonial era plantation. Even the layout of these buildings follows the strict symmetry of the "big house" surrounded by dependency outbuildings.

The mainstream popularity of "yall" has really been an incredible thing in American popular speech to witness and tbh I'm all for it, but hearing the NPR marketplace guy use it is cringey as hell.

"Joel" shares, "We're staking young apple trees, tying them to support them against the wind, in Parker WA. We're wearing masks as protection from the polluted air but it's still bad. I leave with a headache and very irritated eyes. The AQI is 189. I earn minimum wage." #WeFeedYou

The extreme heat & drought in Puerto Rico have gotten too little attention in the rest of the US. Things there are very bad. apnews.com/article/puer...

Puerto Rican cities hit with water rationing measures as record dry conditions persist

Puerto Rico will implement water rationing measures in San Juan and other major cities as a drought grips the U.S. territory with no relief in sight.

apnews.com

Private prisons for any use are extremely disturbing. Re-opening one that has been shuttered for 16 years in a matter of months is scary. Have upkeep and maintenance been performed? Are all basic amenities functioning and safe? Is it actually safe for human habitation?

Matt DeLong@mattdelong.bsky.social · yesterday

The privately owned prison in Appleton, Minn., that was shuttered 16 years ago will reopen in the fall to hold ICE detainees

I’m grateful for the chance to save my teeth with these bone grafts, but not being able to eat tomatoes during the height of our summer harvest is a cruel twist of circumstance I didn’t expect…

I want to check out the new UVA press book on Gabriel's Rebellion, but this one is so good.

Gabriel's Rebellion

Gabriel’s Rebellion tells the dramatic story of what was perhaps the most extensive slave conspiracy in the history of the American South. Douglas Egerton ...

uncpress.org

Daniel Bachman@danielbachman.bsky.social · last yr.

Black August in VA history includes Gabriel’s Rebellion. IMO an under discussed revolutionary event that included white French abolitionists from Haiti & overthrow of the “Merchant” class. Gabriel & his compatriots planned their attack all month long, only to be thwarted by a tremendous rain storm.

Black August in VA history includes Gabriel’s Rebellion. IMO an under discussed revolutionary event that included white French abolitionists from Haiti & overthrow of the “Merchant” class. Gabriel & his compatriots planned their attack all month long, only to be thwarted by a tremendous rain storm.

Latest local police to do time… Virginia patrol sergeant fired, accused by FBI of paying for child porn material online

Virginia patrol sergeant fired, accused by FBI of paying for child porn material online

A former Stafford County sheriff's sergeant has been fired after the FBI accused him of getting child sexual abuse material through an online account.

wjla.com

Daniel Bachman@danielbachman.bsky.social · last yr.

Latest local police to do time. Culpeper co is a little different than where I grew up, but when I was working at Sammy Ts my manager was a similar corrupt local Fburg cop named Jimmy Crisp who did about 10 years for working with the NJ mob stealing stuff from the mall. They’re all corrupt as hell.

Have to get some teeth extracted & bone grafts done today (4000$) & really grateful for the financial help through the MusiCares foundation. I often feel resentment & dismissiveness from people when talking about how hard it is to be an artist in America but programs like this give me a little hope.

Not a bad morning rain in Charlottesville…

This is a good way to write about the anti-trans sentiment popping up around the WNBA lately, imo. It's gross and bad, and people should say that plainly!

WNBA Suspends Seattle Storm Minority Owner For Being Rude To Transphobic Shitheads | Defector

On Tuesday night, a small group of weirdos held an anti-trans rally outside of the Seattle Storm’s home arena. The occasion for their gathering was a game against the Indiana Fever and bench player So...

defector.com

The diarrhea lettuce company, Taylor Farms, uses slave labor contracted from the Arizona Dept. of Corrections. The backbreaking labor is often performed by imprisoned Mexican nationals who would be otherwise ineligble to work in the US. They are paid $1.50 an hour.

The Diarrhea Lettuce Company Has Been Linked to Forced Labor

The lettuce-producing Taylor Farms was linked to the widespread use of prison labor before its involvement in a cyclospora outbreak.

futurism.com

Starting to collect photos of the pre Shenandoah park era for my film & never seen this photo of the "Skyland orchestra" from 1900. Before Shenandoah Natl Park some of that area was a private resort called Skyland, & Black workers provided the entertainment as well as cooked the camp style meals.

Skyland orchestra (Historic photo)

Ca. 1900 historic black and white photo of the Skyland Orchestra. Will Grigsby 48836

flickr.com

Had my favorite running trail all to myself today, very rare…we live along the old blue ridge turnpike, and this section of the old road goes through Shenandoah Natl Park to the Shenandoah Valley. The road up there is looking rough, really a locals only vibe. Lots of swimming holes, worth a visit.

Rare video of Frank Sinatra and Count Basie performing at Lorton in 1965. I know Richard Pryor did a performance a few years after this for the prisoners, wish we could see that set!

Sinatra and Basie, Entertaing the Prisoners.wmv

YouTube video by swinginkatz

youtu.be

Also for any local growers out there in MD, WV, VA, NC, or similar zones, we are really excited to try some of the new greens offered by the Commonwealth Seed collective people. All their seed is regionally adapted to our local climate and fluctuations in climate in recent years.

Mira Red-Stem Kale (Certified Organic) - Common Wealth Seed Growers

A beautiful, ruffled green kale with purple stems.

commonwealthseeds.com

Daniel Bachman@danielbachman.bsky.social · 4d ago

On it this summer with making sure we have the seed for our fall garden. Got some mix color radish seed, 3 types of carrots, 3 types of beets, parsnips (first year growing those) white and purple top turnips, daikon, and spinach.

On it this summer with making sure we have the seed for our fall garden. Got some mix color radish seed, 3 types of carrots, 3 types of beets, parsnips (first year growing those) white and purple top turnips, daikon, and spinach.

A juvenile Virginia Rail popping out into the open. Rails have long toes to help them stay on top of the mud, which is coming in handy here; even with the long toes spreading out the weight this bird is sinking in a bit.

Anyone else attending Folkwise Con 26? Aldona has it on the TV and we’re really enjoying it.

Can’t stop thinking about this image. IMO I havent seen a photo that so concisely depicts the transition from 19 century southern power ways into 20 century Jim Crow apartheid. This Black woman in Edwardian dress carrying a basket on her head in front of the Confederate cemetery Fredericksburg 1905.

Daniel Bachman@danielbachman.bsky.social · 5d ago

Woman at Cemetery Gate, First Picture Taken in Fredericksburg | Fairfax County Public Library Local History

To me rn a lot of contemporary American music feels more like a neoliberal cos play of past cultural movements than anything radical or reflective of the brutalizing era we live in.

lil miss big boy@lighter.bsky.social · 5d ago

Post your hottest music take. Mine is New Order is better than Joy Division.

Americans are not talking enough about all the new fossil fuel powered computer technology and how it’s going to shorten the lives of their children.

Sue Sturgis@suesturgis.bsky.social · 4d ago

Amazon is planning to build a data center on a property next to an existing Duke Energy gas plant in Hamlet, NC. But until the interconnection is built, power would come from 57 diesel generators proposed to be built next to the data center.

Getting emotional watching this doc on the fight for the ADA. A good look at the kind of mass civil disobedience it takes to change public opinion, laws, social norms, etc. Watch Change, Not Charity: The Americans with Disabilities Act | American Experience | Official Site | PBS

Change, Not Charity: The Americans with Disabilities Act | American Experience | PBS

The dramatic story of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in 1990. The film highlights the determined people who literally put their bodies on the line to pass the legislation tha...

pbs.org

Bob Dylan should be forbidden by statute from putting that harmonica near his mouth until he learns to play the thing

lil miss big boy@lighter.bsky.social · 5d ago

Post your hottest music take. Mine is New Order is better than Joy Division.

New photo of John Browns Fort 1921 John Brown Fort, Harper's Ferry | Fairfax County Public Library Local History

John Brown Fort, Harper's Ferry

Read the full record details for Image: John Brown Fort, Harper's Ferry

fcpl.recollectcms.com

Daniel Bachman@danielbachman.bsky.social · 5d ago

Incredibly serendipitous timing for my tree project with the Fairfax county library and their Virginia Room launching their collection of digitized collections of photos and more. Really some incredible stuff in here. Fairfax County Public Library Local History

Incredibly serendipitous timing for my tree project with the Fairfax county library and their Virginia Room launching their collection of digitized collections of photos and more. Really some incredible stuff in here. Fairfax County Public Library Local History

Our cat Bevis just successfully executed the two dinner fake out with us…she is a master…

Have you checked out Alpha Boys School? I found it via Radio Garden and added it to my LC90. Best reggae/rock steady channel I've ever heard. www.alphaboysschoolradio.com/listen

Listen Now! | alphaboysschoolradio

alphaboysschoolradio.com