Unfortunately, in most places what qualifies as best "teacher of the year" is the one whose kids score highest on standardized tests - studying for which does NOT help learn how to "think for yourself". But then schools were made to turn out compliant workers, not independent thinkers.

Research Fanatic@research-fanatic.bsky.social · 19h ago

Ice arrests award-winning teacher in Texas. Oh yeah, good teachers are dangerous... They might actually teach students how to think for themselves and how to read the Constitution. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...

Oh, they have spines, they've just sold their souls to the highest bidders. Mercentary bunch of opportunists. Can you identify any exceptions? Locally? Here's one place to check: www.trackaipac.com

Track AIPAC - Follow Israel lobby spending in U.S. politics

Track AIPAC provides in-depth analysis and insights into the influence of the Israel lobby on U.S. democracy. Our mission is to foster transparency and accountability by tracking lobbying efforts and ...

trackaipac.com

🌺Red Hibiscus🌺@redhibiscus23.bsky.social · 17h ago

Seattle understood the assignment

You don't have to go to Africa to see such beauty. Just drive out to the Mojave Desert after it rains to see it come alive. And it's not the only more easily accessible desert. Read: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desert_...

Desert Solitaire - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Luca@lucagalletti.bsky.social · 3d ago

When enough rain falls in Maltahöhe, Namibia, millions of desert lilies bloom across the landscape for just a few days each year. This natural phenomenon briefly transforms the arid desert into a sea of flowers almost overnight. IG: @ earthpix

Warning: the President of the United States is kidnapping American citizens off the streets of blue states. Some of them return —most do not. Some are murdered in concentration camps owned by the President’s cronies. All of it is one big fat crime. None of our electeds will stop him. Will you?

Click & watch. This why, besides them being cute, that we treat them nicely & recite "Lady bug, lady bug, fly away home." When we send them back out to fly, & feed & thrive.

Massimo (mirror)@rainmaker1973-m.bsky.social · 2d ago

Ladybug saves this plant by feeding on aphids (time-lapse) Original post

Long live Jimothy & every other critter (including human ones) who don't look like the models commonly held up as "beautiful" & to be emulated or mimiced, despite the injury to all who are made to feel inadequate. Keep on truckn' little fella.

Joseph William Marek@j-w-marek.bsky.social · 3d ago

Unfortunately, it'll take more than killing Citizens United to end the capitalist use of money to buy politicians & policies they want. It was going on long before CU and will continue after its end unless stopped by the creation & enforcement on ALL buying of politicians.

many ruths@r-uthseugeneor.bsky.social · 3d ago

House Dems Want To End Citizens United So We Never Get Musked Again www.wonkette.com/p/house-dems...

It ain't "humans" that are responsible for draining our rivers, its uncontrolled & therefore unlimited capitalist growth that uses up ALL resources in the pursuit of short-term profits without regard to longterm consequences.

Caroline B@vegancb.bsky.social · 2d ago

Colorado River. Humans are the most selfish, ignorant & destructive species on earth. If you have children/grandchildren, you might want to get engaged & be proactive in working with your government officials to save what is left of our natural resources. They will thank you ~

A "fundamental tenet of communism"? Only of the fake "communism" of the USSR & its client states, that were all state-capitalist regimes masking their nature under the rubric of "socialism" or "communism", while the exploited their workers like the rest of capitalism.

Ron Filipkowski@ronfilipkowski.bsky.social · 2d ago

The tricky part for a future Dem Admin is going to be finding a way to divest the US govt from these companies without tanking their stock price & hurting them over the long term. What Trump is doing is a fundamental tenet of communism while he distracts by claiming Dems are.

Fact: it remains the case that the most durable, hardest to destroy way to save writing & other forms of information is hard copy, print. That's why the fascists want to burn our books, defund then close libaries, control mass media - so they can control & limit what we can know.

mary@roughrider994.bsky.social · 3d ago

If I tell a blind man that it's safe to cross the street when I can see a bus is coming & he is killed, I will be arrested, & rightfully so. If I tell an ignorant man not to get vaccinated because vaccines are deadly, & they die of a preventable disease, I'm not arrested. What's the distinction?

Yep! The only reason for oil pipelines is to carry oil. But we don't need either the oil or the pipelines. Replace fossil fuels as a source of energy with renewables & no such pipelines will even be suggested, much less threaten the health of our planet.

Research Fanatic@research-fanatic.bsky.social · 3d ago

I am so glad There are sane people On the Michigan Supreme Court. apnews.com/article/enbr...

In the 1960s, one of our chants was "Into the streets, vote with our feet!" It's that time again folks, without mass protest the onslaught of White Christian Nationalist fascism will continue & destroy the lives of millions, first immigrants then the rest of us.

Olivia 💙 4thTransformer@olivia4t.bsky.social · 3d ago

🗣️ 🗣️ 🗣️ Hundreds of protesters marched through #Fishers, #Indiana in opposition to #GregBovino ’s “ #MassDeportationRally,” with demonstrators condemning the event and calling for immigrant rights and due process‼️

Regardless of the energy path chosen, as long as capitalism persists they will profit from its development. Remember when Amory Lovins touted renewables in Foreign Affairs, October 1976, because they'd create more jobs? More jobs, more profits, more capitalist control over society.

Research Fanatic@research-fanatic.bsky.social · 5d ago

They keep trying so hard to push us away from renewables and into nuclear or hydrogen, both of which are highly profitable for the owners of such plants, but extremely dangerous for workers and those that live near them. #OnlyRenewablesAreSafelyCheap interestingengineering.com/energy/us-la...

Absolutely true. For more details: la.utexas.edu/users/hcleav...

Charles Keener@charleskeener.bsky.social · last wk.

We DO have the right to disappear from our jobs, whether we delare "Take this Job & Shove it!" or not. Faced with poor wages, bad working condtions & sometimes options, workers do it all the time. The "crime" here is not that, it's the use being made of his situation to prevent his replacement.

M Meerkat@kackbro.bsky.social · 2w ago

AOC Makes A Great Point 👉.......

Read: religiondispatches.org/2026/07/22/l...

Lettuce Pray

Recent news reports allege the explosive outbreak of cyclospora-induced diarrhea in 34 states can be traced to lettuce produced by Taylor Farms, the largest producer in the country. (In the past day t...

religiondispatches.org

Christopher Webb@cwebbonline.com · 2w ago

🚨 A PUBLIC HEALTH FAILURE RFK JR: “We do have the outbreak under control.” Strange way to describe a “skyrocketing” outbreak. More than 11,000 people sickened with cyclosporiasis in 41 states.

As usual, click & read. HOWEVER, along with the pro-capitalist & misogynic aspects of Christian Nationalism comes racism - which also fits the needs of agribusiness that hires (& exploits as much as it can) a very multiracial labor force, the poorest paid of which are usually immigrants.

Katherine Stewart@katherinestewart.bsky.social · 2w ago

What's with the alliance between sectors of big ag and reactionary religion? My latest religiondispatches.org/2026/07/22/l...

Typical of capitalism: fuck things up (killing bees with pesticides for profit) then make money selling replacements for what you've destroyed. Like polluting & then being paid to clean up.

Digital Brain@yourdigitalbrain.bsky.social · 2w ago

Plan Bee is a drone developed by Anna Haldewang that collects and deposits pollen between flowers using cameras and specialized systems. It serves as complementary agricultural support and aims to raise awareness about bee decline.

Where there are platforms for folks to watch bears fish, mother bears sometimes stash their cubs under the platforms to keep them safe from males.

Patrick Barron 🐻〽️@bluebarronphoto.bsky.social · 2w ago

One of my views in Katmai National Park last week. Count the bears! The salmon are coming in and the bears are hungry!

"Custer"? I sure hope it wasn't named after the genocidal general.

atlasmind@atlasmind.bsky.social · 2w ago

Custer State Park, South Dakota ... so sweet

This is backbreaking labor! Why? Because capitalist agribusiness won't spend the money to create raised beds that would not require workers to bend over. They imposed the short-handled hoe with the same disregard for workers health until the UFW made 'em stop. revealnews.org/article/the-...

The long tale of the short-handled hoe - Reveal

A historic battle over workers’ rights in California started over a simple tool: the short-handled hoe. Known as a “cortito” in Spanish, this short hoe became a symbol of cruelty, oppression and liter...

revealnews.org

United Farm Workers@ufw.bsky.social · 2w ago

Because of the recent heat wave, this Ventura County CA leek planting crew started in the early morning. This way they can complete their work before afternoon temps reach the low 90’s. #WeFeedYou

"feel sorry for Americans"? Because they're stuck with a fascist president perhaps, not because Trump abuses Canada for his own political purposes. NEVER confuse the people of a country with those running it.

PEIPolitical 🇨🇦@peipolitical.bsky.social · 2w ago

Eby: "I feel sorry for Americans. If you can't be friends with Canada, then you almost certainly do not have a friend anywhere in the world. And that is a very lonely place to be." #cdnpoli

You'll note that Jacobs gives no evidence that Mamdami has done ANYTHING to hurt NYC Jews. He's just mouthing Zionist propaganda because they don't seem to have been able to buy Mamdami the way they have bought so many other politicians.

#StupidSuez@diplomatofnight.com · 2w ago

No I don't think that's true

"Society" is not a subject. It neither thinks nor makes choices. The bad choices cited below were made by policy makers bought & paid for by capitalists who profit from the exploitation of the earth & care not one whit about the consequences.

Jenn @ ChargeToTheParks ⚡️@chargetotheparks.com · 2w ago

Dwindling reservoirs aren't the result of "bad weather" or "natural cycles". They're a choice our society made. Growing thirsty crops like alfalfa and pecans in the desert is a choice. Refusing to reduce CO2 emissions is a choice. Refusing to change the water laws as reality changes is a choice.

"militarized public safety"? It's fucking fascism! Call it by its correct name. It's no time for mealy-mouth language & eliding the onslaught to destroy our pseudo-democracy.

Truthout@truthout.org · 2w ago

Tyrin Johnson’s killing is part of a larger militarization unfolding in Memphis, Tennessee, under Trump.

Border "control" has NEVER been about "border security"! It has always been about manipulating the supply of labor to meet capitalist needs of the moment. One sketch: Acuna's book OCCUPIED AMERICA.

Auntie Social@auntiesocial.bsky.social · 3w ago

If you're arresting people at the airport on their way OUT of the country, your goal.was never border security. It's filling for-profit concentration camps.

He also owns major stock holdings in the detention & deportation companies contracted by the administration.

And if you want to know about the people, organizations & money flows behind such policies, read Katherine Stewart's book MONEY, LIES & GOD (2025).

LoriPica 💙@loripica.bsky.social · 3w ago

I hate to say this but I agree this is what they want to do!! 😡

Nice! But you know what? The same should be true about policy making and deciding among policies. Both should be open to all who are interested & not monopolized by bought-off elites, whether in Think Tanks or Congress.

Rae Radford@raeradford.bsky.social · 3w ago

Amen. #BookSky