And why do we have to be in such an almighty hurry anyways, hmm?

Jessica McKenzie@jessimckenzi.bsky.social · 5mo ago

ai is also promising to get us somewhere faster: to get through our schoolwork faster, and work-work faster, our emails and text messages and other uncomfortable human frictions and interactions. you think our brains aren't going to atrophy when we offload all that activity?

'You'll choke too' - an aerial embroidery landscape inspired by all the wildfires happening right now... I'm upset every time I smell smoke outside and somehow we have people starting them maliciously too! But we all breathe the same air so they'll choke too (1/2 - see thread for close-ups)

bret stephens and i are on the same page for once www.nytimes.com/2026/08/04/o...

Jessica McKenzie@jessimckenzi.bsky.social · 5mo ago

ai is also promising to get us somewhere faster: to get through our schoolwork faster, and work-work faster, our emails and text messages and other uncomfortable human frictions and interactions. you think our brains aren't going to atrophy when we offload all that activity?

Bombshell new report out from my investigators this morning spanning our four year investigation into Jeffrey Epstein’s financial records. This report shows exactly how Wall Street protected Epstein and enabled his sex trafficking for decades. Mega thread following with some key points:

Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan, BofA Enabled Epstein, Wyden Report Says

Democrat Ron Wyden cited nonpublic documents held by the US Treasury in a report that says banks delayed reporting suspicious financial transactions and calls for tougher anti-money-laundering rules, ...

bloomberg.com

omg out of the blue in my personal email. is this a new type of phishing attempt? this one could almost get me. looks almost like a google doc link

holy moly apnews.com/article/danu...

this is just objectively crazy but i feel like it dropped and people shrugged because ya of course he did. thinking about what follow up reporting/commentary could be done to keep this on people's radar and coming up short..

Trump overrode his own agencies to deny 4 Democratic disaster requests

President Donald Trump cast aside bipartisan precedent when he rejected eligible disaster requests from four blue states.

politico.com

Two mentions of protesters being dragged out of city meetings and neither was the one I was thinking of...

No Data Centers In My Backyard

money, power, and populism in the AI buildout

jasmi.news

holy crap is homemade mustard supposed to be that bitter? idk what i did wrong

i don't even want to think about the sums i would pay for a les miz immersive experience

Kyle Thomas@kylehemingway.com · 2d ago

Is it - The Mizzicle Ball - Jamie Lloyd - Loaf of Bread: the Diane Paulus immersive experience

CDC puts the number at about 75% of adults managing at least 1 chronic health condition. About 50% managing 2 or more chronic health conditions.

Jessica McKenzie@jessimckenzi.bsky.social · 2d ago

does anyone know the percentage of the US population with "underlying health issues" rn?? cause what i remember from the covid shot rollout is it's a LOT of people

this is just objectively crazy but i feel like it dropped and people shrugged because ya of course he did. thinking about what follow up reporting/commentary could be done to keep this on people's radar and coming up short..

Trump overrode his own agencies to deny 4 Democratic disaster requests

President Donald Trump cast aside bipartisan precedent when he rejected eligible disaster requests from four blue states.

politico.com

does anyone know the percentage of the US population with "underlying health issues" rn?? cause what i remember from the covid shot rollout is it's a LOT of people

The New York Times@nytimes.com · 2d ago

Breaking News: Two deaths in Michigan have been linked to cyclospora. Both people who had the parasite also had underlying health issues.

this is going to turn me into the joker

Jess' report here is instructive for conceptualising the issues in Canada too, and the potential legal issues that may arise should the Trump administration assert that Canadian forestry management restricted US commerce. Without an international standard, can the US determine the metric?

Jessica McKenzie@jessimckenzi.bsky.social · 2d ago

what an egregiously muddied and misleading argument

what an egregiously muddied and misleading argument

Opinion | How Green Policies Fuel Fires In Europe

Burned areas are disproportionately nature-protected lands.

wsj.com

A video taken Saturday shows former NYC Mayor Eric Adams in sales pitch mode in Wisconsin Rapids, as he's heckled by residents opposed to the data center he's trying to sell them on. "My name is Eric Adams," he begins, as the boos begin to rain down. "You belong in prison!" one attendee shouts.

Eric Adams Is Selling Data Centers in Wisconsin Now

The former mayor had a wild weekend, and other links to start your day.

hellgatenyc.com

Thrilled to finally share the great news that Sharon Weinberger is joining the @thebulletin.org as our next Editor-in-Chief! thebulletin.org/2026/08/the-...

The Bulletin welcomes Sharon Weinberger as editor-in-chief

The Bulletin’s new editor-in-chief, Sharon Weinberger, has dedicated her career to covering the intersection of science, technology, and national security and will guide the Bulletin’s editorial effor...

thebulletin.org

I'm just going to keep screaming this until I'm hoarse, but until Trump the norm -- for 50 years -- was that sitting presidents had their taxes audited by the IRS and released to the public to show they were clean. But Trump refused repeatedly, and sued when his return was leaked, and now ... this

Kyle Griffin@kylegriffin1.bsky.social · 2d ago

FLAG: Trump gets to keep tax immunity for himself, his sons, and the Trump Organization under the new 'deal' struck by Todd Blanche. The new order also reaffirms that Trump won't have to pay any taxes he might have owed the IRS.

There's a lovely woodchip path near my house that cuts across all of Manhattan and Hermosa Beach. I've long known it's an old rail line but did some historical research today...100 years ago one could take a 45-minute train ride from Manhattan Beach to Downtown LA. It's like 2 hours on transit now.😠

Fascinating thread. I had no idea typing is no longer taught in schools! In the mid-80s we took three years of touch typing, BASIC, etc, in middle school. (Meanwhile, I've often considered seeking out remedial handwriting instruction b/c decades of typing have compromised my writing motor skills.)

Jess Calarco@jessicacalarco.com · 3d ago

So, ultimately: I'd love to see some kind of study looking at the relationship between how fast students can type on a standard keyboard and how likely they are to jump to AI when asked to type a lengthy (and grammatically correct) answer to a prompt. 11/

I am looking for PhD students and postdocs to join my lab at the University of Pittsburgh in Fall 2027. Anyone excited about urban evolution, hummingbirds, & community engagement, please reach out! And/or find me at #AOS2026 this week! More info here: www.valentina-alaasam.com

Please hate gen AI even harder. You can do it. I believe in you. Do it for the planet. Hate the lazy, slop producing, environment killing, water draining, participation trophy seeking, poser creating, loser machine. Do it for humanity.

a republican congressman allegedly broke his two-year-old daughter's collarbone and he somehow hasn't been run out of congress. there really is no bridge too far for these ghouls.

‘Platner on steroids’: Max Miller abuse claims have Republicans silently sweating

The Ohio lawmaker denies the allegations as an Aug. 5 deadline to drop off the ballot approaches.

politico.com

ok now that this is leaving criterion tonight (sorry!!!) this movie is so good and the computer revolution/ai parallels are so good and resonant even if it's international business machine propaganda it still lands and slaps at the same time

Jessica McKenzie@jessimckenzi.bsky.social · 5d ago

why didn't anyone tell me about desk set

this is also how i found out nora ephron is a nepo baby

Jessica McKenzie@jessimckenzi.bsky.social · 5d ago

why didn't anyone tell me about desk set

why didn't anyone tell me about desk set

I'm not only mad as hell—I'm not going to take it anymore.

interesting perspective as a meat-writer, and maybe one-day meat-book writer hughhowey.com/the-end-of-a...

The End of an Era - Hugh Howey

We knew this day would come. Some of us have known for decades, have been writing and pontificating about this since Ken Jennings lost at Jeopardy and Kasparov lost at chess. The writing was on the wa...

hughhowey.com