@gignere.bsky.social
In Iran, Trump has three options. He either backs away with few conditions, or he sends in troops. Else we will continue to have what we have right now. None are good. I will give a dispassionate analysis to try to explain where we are likely headed in light of both sides' mentality. 🧵 1/n
Chinese researchers have created a bamboo-based plastic as strong as petroleum-based plastics, which can fully biodegrade in soil in just 2 months phys.org/news/2025-10...
Bamboo-based plastic can be made to biodegrade quickly, but still holds up in tough conditions
A new method to produce strong, biodegradable plastic from bamboo is reported in Nature Communications this week. The bioplastic resembles oil-based plastics in strength, shapability, and thermal stab...
phys.org
Now gasoline at $4.45 per gallon national average
Bill McBride@calculatedrisk.bsky.social · 3mo agoTo the moon ...! Gasoline at $4.36 per gallon (national average)
In @nytopinion.nytimes.com “Trump didn’t just hire incompetent people,” Frank Bruni writes. “He didn’t just hire lickspittles. He visited some perverse preserve of the morally degenerate — some superstore of grifters and goons — and said, ‘I’ll take the worst of the worst.’”
Opinion | And Then There Were None, Trump Administration Edition
Normal language is inadequate and precedents are irrelevant when it comes to appraising the senior administration officials of the president’s second term.
nyti.ms
Trump went from making insane genocidal threats this morning to hyping the “golden age” of Iran hours later, and he received no concessions in between. He’s an absolute basket case who needs to be removed from power before he follows through on one of his mass murder fantasies.
Donald Trump just threatened to unilaterally destroy an entire civilization. Is there genuinely no limit to what Republicans will allow this unhinged, unwell man to do? Congress must come back to Washington to rein in this dangerous behavior immediately.
Trump started a pointless and illegal war with Iran, he lost it almost immediately, he crushed America's economy and America's partners while making Iran and our rivals much stronger. He did it for no reason he can articulate. In any decent nation, he'd be forced to resign immediately.
Meet @leelagray.bsky.social the retired Brigadier General running to unseat Ana Paulina Luna, a MAGA crazy who organized a guided tour for Russian Duma members to Washington last week (as Russia was helping Iran target US bases in the Middle East). Let get her some followers and support. 🇺🇸
Nearly six-in-ten adults (58%) are not too or not at all confident that Trump can make good decisions about U.S. trade policy, and 63% express little or no confidence in his handling of tariff policy www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/...
Contrary to what right-wing media tell you, the $20 an hour minimum wage in California's fast-food industry is raising incomes, without costing jobs. The effect on prices is minimal irle.berkeley.edu/publications...
Effects of a $20 Minimum Wage: Evidence from Granular Data on Wages, Employment, and Prices – Institute for Research on Labor and Employment
irle.berkeley.edu
“Trump has already broken NATO in so many ways. The United States is no longer trusted in Europe. Trump’s military threats against Canada and Denmark were clear, specific, and obvious violations of the North Atlantic Treaty. The damage is done.” www.thebulwark.com/p/liberation...
Liberation Day Brought Us Here
Trump’s tariff catastrophe taught the world about TACO. We may have over-learned the lesson.
thebulwark.com
In honor of a judge halting Trump's ballroom construction today:
Allison Gill@muellershewrote.com · 9mo agoThis is brilliant
Donald Trump is using taxpayer funds to bomb Iran while he jacks up health care costs by thousands of dollars.
Exclusive: Prior to Iran attacks, CIA assessed Khamenei would be replaced by hardline IRGC elements if killed, sources say reut.rs/4l9SCAs
Exclusive: Prior to Iran attacks, CIA assessed Khamenei would be replaced by hardline IRGC elements if killed, sources say
In the run-up to the U.S. and Israeli attacks on Saturday, the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency assessed that even if Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in the operation, he would likely be replaced by hardline figures from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), two sources briefed on the intelligence said.
reut.rs
Donald Trump is once again sidestepping the Constitution and once again failing to explain why he’s taking us into another war. Americans asked for affordable housing and health care, not another potentially endless conflict. God protect our troops.
Donald Trump's incompetence leaves tens of thousands of his supporters without power cepr.net/publications...
Trump’s Incompetence Leaves Tens of Thousands in Red States Without Power
Trump’s administration failed to restore power and services in Red States after severe winter storms, exposing FEMA cuts and misgovernance.
cepr.net
Here’s their website, in case anybody needs to do some solidarity toy shopping. www.mischieftoy.com
Home | Mischief Toy Store
mischieftoy.com
Trump has reunited the world—with China. A parade of foreign leaders is suddenly visiting China after years away. On Friday, Canadian PM wrapped up a Beijing trip, 1st trip since 2017. Korean president was there earlier this month (last visit: 2019); British PM will be there soon (last visit: 2018)
Trump Is Making China Great Again
America’s friends and trading partners are running into the arms of our adversaries. What a mess.
thebulwark.com
Important Krugman piece on Trump's ICE goon squads attacking the country paulkrugman.substack.com/p/the-mad-ki...
The Mad King’s Madness Deepens
Trump wants war, war and more war – even against Americans
paulkrugman.substack.com
I am impeaching Secretary Kristi Noem, who is an incompetent leader and a disgrace to our democracy. She wreaked havoc in the Chicagoland area and has brought her reign of terror to Minneapolis. One of her rogue ICE agents shot and killed an innocent woman today. It must come to an end.
The “prosecute the former regime at every level” candidate has my vote in 2028.
@deanbaker13.bsky.social writes: *Given the prospect for Venezuela’s oil production and exports, the Bush administration’s pledge that Iraq would pay for its own reconstruction seems far more credible than Trump’s claims about Venezuela* cepr.net/publications...
Venezuela Will Pay for Its Own Reconstruction
From Iraq to Venezuela, history shows oil-rich regime change doesn’t pay for itself—and Trump’s promises look even less credible.
cepr.net
NYT owes us a front-page apology. Biden may have been tone-deaf in his comments on the economy. That is HUGELY different from Trump telling outright lies cepr.net/publications...
Being Tone Deaf Is Not the Same as Telling Outright Lies: That Should be Obvious
Media are not doing a good job explaining the ways that Trump lies about the economy.
cepr.net
Trump directs war planes to the Middle East. These are in transit. This is confirmed by Germans. I am seeking more confirmations
CDC leadership just told staff on Monday that they could stop sending their "5 things I did last week" emails. Finally. Per source, people were mostly just sending the same things every week. Many folks added read receipts and were able to see that no one at DOGE was actually reading the emails.
