Michael Markman
@mickeleh.bsky.social
Avid news reader. Occasional news kibbitzer. Retired marketer. Retired YouTuber. NYer transplanted to PNW. Blue to the core.
Young people may find it difficult to believe but, in my living memory, there was a broad consensus in US politics that air pollution -- not GHGs, just old fashioned particulates, NOx, etc. -- is bad & worth fighting. Now that concern is going overboard in the pursuit of AI.
Trump’s Push for More A.I. Data Centers Will Mean Major Air Pollution
nytimes.com
Lede headline in the Springfield, Ohio, newspaper, as TPS ends for Haitians: "At the mercy of God" www.springfieldnewssun.com/local/at-the...
‘At the mercy of God’: Springfield Haitians await next steps after TPS officially ends
The official end of temporary protected status for Haiti leaves many Haitians in Springfield “at the mercy of God,” said Haitian Community Help and Support Center President Vilès Dorsainvil.
springfieldnewssun.com
Donald Trump: "I'm going to raise tariffs and start a war to make everything more expensive for no reason." MAGA: "I can't afford to support my family because Joe Biden made schoolchildren trans."
“.. the first congressional candidate to lose despite the president’s support this cycle.” @politico.com #MI08 www.politico.com/news/2026/08...
Smart and sober analysis of the Michigan Senate primary outcome.
El-Sayed Wins in Michigan, but “The Establishment Fights Back” Is the Bigger Story
The Michigan Democratic Primary was a much-watched race with major national implications.
open.substack.com
“In London cyclists now outnumber cars in the City by 2 to 1. Paris, where they now outnumber motorists across the whole city, is catching up with Europe’s traditional bike capitals, Amsterdam & Copenhagen…In Copenhagen, bikes account for almost half of commuter trips to work/school.” @economist.com
Forget EVs. Cycling is revolutionising transport
Pedal power is booming, spinning up a new culture war
economist.com
It’s bad. Ukraine is still effectively hitting both inside Russia and occupied Crimea almost daily, but Putin (as usual) is targeting population centers instead of legitimate military targets.
Money out of politics. Money in your pocket. Medicare for All. Michigan... We won. I am so proud to be your Democratic nominee for US Senate. Let's win in November.
And I think we’re sitting at like a 5%-10% chance right now that Carlson runs for president pretty soon. Although I think he, much like Jamie Dimon, would much rather someone just hand him the job rather than having to do the work and risk losing.
Stan Oklobdzija@stano.bsky.social · 2h agoFor federal elections, splitting the GOP into two competing crank Nazi movements would be great for Democrats. At the state/local level, however, we'd be condemning large portions of the South and Midwest to governance by Crossfit George Wallace's.
For a political party that openly supports Max Miller, this tracks
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 2h agoEvery single Republican candidate for governor of Minnesota (including Mike Lindell!) makes clear that if Trump tried another Operation Metro Surge in the Twin Cities, they would support his efforts to brutalize residents
We got some quotes from @wyden.senate.gov about his wild report yesterday about banks withholding suspicious activity reports about Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking empire because they wanted to keep the lucrative relationship. Crazy conduct and Wyden has some good solutions for it.
Sen. Wyden Report: Banks Systematically Ignored Jeffrey Epstein’s Crimes - The American Prospect
The report shows how employees at Bank of America, Deutsche Bank, and JPMorgan helped to hide Epstein’s activities because he was a load-bearing part of their ‘wall of cash.’
prospect.org
Actually disgusting that nurses were treated like utter shit, overworked and dying during the pandemic and now RFK is on TV telling everyone that didn't happen. I can't even imagine a more thankless, hostile job right now.
More cops have been arrested for using flock cameras to stalk women than there are transgender athletes in youth sports.
Spreading lies to stir up fear and hatred. It's long past time that more people saw through the far-right's sickening tactics. Here's a useful burst of truth from @anneapplebaum.wsocial.eu to help.
Anne Applebaum@anneapplebaum.wsocial.eu · 3d agoVance, Farage and Weidel posted fear-mongering messages about a Spanish migrant crisis that weren't true. They haven't retracted them. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
A Sign of the Times Trump Superstore in Knoxville, Tn. is going out of business I stopped by Trump Superstore a few months ago. It was weird. Homages to Trump everywhere I looked. I lasted about 10 minutes until the clerk realized was I not MAGA Even Tennessee is no longer buying Trump crap
One year $150M contract to a small Texas firm that lacks immigration law experience
Politico@politico.com · 20h ago26-employee Texas law firm gets $150M to represent 24,000 children in immigration court
UN Human Rights Commission: "So grave is the scale, nature, systematic character, and transnational reach of these atrocities against women and girls, that a number of them may reasonably meet the legal threshold of crimes against humanity."
Flawed ‘Epstein Files’ disclosures undermine accountability for grave crimes against women and girls: UN experts
GENEVA – The so-called ‘Epstein Files’ contain disturbing and credible evidence of systematic and large-scale sexual abuse, trafficking and exploitation of women and girls, UN experts* said today.Acco...
ohchr.org
Lisa Guerrero@lisaguerrero.bsky.social · yesterdaySeveral women have now come forward saying that there was SEX TRAFFICKING & TEEN RAPE at the Playboy Mansion. Many similarities to the Epstein crimes and they were happening here in LA and glamorized on television. Watch Karissa Shannon’s heartbreaking but important story. youtu.be/DQLe35lkj2c?...
My reaction watching this train wreck of a dumpster fire of a shitshow of an interview:
Coco Character's Jaw Drop Shock
ALT: Coco Character's Jaw Drop Shock
static.klipy.com
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 21h ago🤯 Rep. Max Miller's interview with Jake Tapper was one of the most self-destructive things I've ever witnessed on cable news. Here's the whole thing:
Ukraine struck Russia's Syzran oil refinery again. Russian oil refining has now fallen to a 24 year low.
Just reread Article II of the Constitution. Nowhere in there is any mention of the President as being the nation's art director, gilder-in-chief, or interior decorator. Maybe we need to amend the Constitution. Or maybe we just need to get Trump out of office. HE MUST BE STOPPED
My (cynical) working theory is that the White House knows that its "AI Framework" is basically a much worse version than the AI framework the Biden admin released, which caused the VC bros of Silicon Valley to go all MAGA. Keeping it private avoids the comparison.
Maria Curi@mccuri.bsky.social · 23h agoNEW: White House plans to keep AI framework under wraps www.axios.com/2026/08/04/w...
It was never about leaving it up to the states when Dobbs fell. It’s only Tuesday. www.politico.com/news/2026/08... #Pinks
Blanche assures anti-abortion supporters that Dobbs will be ‘permanent in every single state’
The acting attorney general made the remarks during a private call with faith leaders.
politico.com
Heartbreaking and inexcusable.
Allison Gill@muellershewrote.com · 2d agoBREAKING: EXCLUSIVE: Five months ago, we learned that ICE seized drawings and letters from children in the Dilley ICE concentration camp. I sued under the Freedom of Information Act. Today, I got responsive documents. www.muellershewrote.com/p/breaking-e...
Directly related to RFK Jr's cuts to CDC which used to track this parasite. Now it has spread to 40+ states and causes "explosive diarrhea" apnews.com/article/mich...
Michigan reports the first 2 US deaths related to a diarrhea-causing parasite
State health officials say two people have died in the cyclospora outbreak in Michigan. They are the first confirmed deaths in the U.S. related to the microscopic parasite.
apnews.com
Trump needs to keep his hands off Head Start. Democrats have stopped him from dismantling it before. And we’ll do it again.
