Health update, Tiny Win: These past two weeks I’ve managed to do 2 extremely minor things for others that I’ve been wanting to do for months. But I just haven’t been able because they required me to physically do things I haven’t been able to do. Being useful to others is so important for the mind.

Cat Helping with Vacuum Cleaner

Alt: Cat Helping with Vacuum Cleaner

static.klipy.com

And the Spanish “ojala” isn’t ‘let’s hope’ as it’s sometimes translated, it’s a direct derivation of Inshallah.

For uneducated Americans only (because almost everyone else in the world knows this already): "Inshallah" is not a Muslim phrase. Inshallah is an Arabic phrase. Christians that speak Arabic, say inshallah. "Allah" is how you say God in Arabic. "Inshallah" is how you say "God willing" in Arabic.

The piece they are discussing. «The portrait of America as an imperial power cuts against its self-image as a righteous cradle of democracy. But from its inception, the country has been aggressive and expansionist»

Did Kamala Harris's Silence on Gaza Cost Her the White House?

Ta-Nehisi Coates reckons with that question, and what it means for the 2028 election.

vanityfair.com

Black and brown voters are losing protections at the ballot after the far-right U.S. Supreme Court decimated the 61-year-old Voting Rights Act. Stephen Wentzell and Team Zeteo break down the law's legacy — and what's at stake. Read more: zeteo.com/p/the-suprem...

I don’t know if Musk actively wants to erase the majority of people on earth, but I do believe that he is indifferent to their continued existence. And I do believe that if he found their existence inconvenient, he’d be equally indifferent to their deaths.

Two of my favorite thinkers together? Yes, please.

Is America The Bad Guy? with Ta-Nehisi Coates

YouTube video by Hasan Minhaj

youtu.be

Patricia Aas 🐢🏳️‍🌈@patigallardo.bsky.social · last mo.

Ta-Nehisi Coates is one of the greatest contemporary American thinkers, perhaps even the greatest.

Now I’m crossing my fingers for Talarico in Texas.

Barack Obama meets James Talarico's niece, Jane

YouTube video by James Talarico

youtube.com

Here's a supercut from Abdul El-Sayed's first post-primary news conference:

🥊 Abdul El-Sayed comes out swinging 🥊

YouTube video by Aaron Rupar

youtube.com

Past Patricia: «The only advantage of human shaped robots is that they can operate tools and facilities made for humans.» Elon is the most overrated man to have ever existed.

FinTwitter@fintwitter.bsky.social · 6h ago

$SPCX - SPACEX PLANS MOON FACTORIES POWERED BY HUMANOID ROBOTS

I can’t find the clip, but dr. El-Sayed recounted this a few weeks ago. Guy: «You know, I don't like you much... but I'm gonna vote for you.» El-Sayed: «Why?» Guy: «Because I believe that you really want me to have healthcare»

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 4h ago

El-Sayed: "If all Mike Rogers got is that 'his name is Abdul, and my name is Mike,' you're gonna be surprised how many people are like, 'Yeah, but that's the Abdul who wants to bring down the price of my groceries and make sure I got healthcare. So yeah, I like Abdul over your Mike from Florida.'"

El-Sayed: "If all Mike Rogers got is that 'his name is Abdul, and my name is Mike,' you're gonna be surprised how many people are like, 'Yeah, but that's the Abdul who wants to bring down the price of my groceries and make sure I got healthcare. So yeah, I like Abdul over your Mike from Florida.'"

Everyone knows that the Republican Party is the party of abusers, but saying it out loud like a pro for your candidacy is an eyebrow raising move. So you’re saying you did it?

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 5h ago

Max Miller on why he's staying in the race: "When we go back to 2015 and 2016, & people in the media looked at President Trump, & everyone came out with allegations. Dozens of women, dozens of crazy allegations, dozens of nasty criminal misconduct. And you know what he did? He stayed in the fight."

Abdul El-Sayed won the Dem primary for Michigan’s open Senate seat, a critical race in the Dems’ bid to retake Congress

Abdul El-Sayed Triumphs In Michigan In Major Victory For Progressives

After defeating moderate Democratic Rep. Haley Stevens, he’ll face former GOP Rep. Mike Rogers in a must-win race in November.

huffpost.com

WASHINGTON (AP) — Abdul El-Sayed wins Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate in Michigan.

PSA: ANYONE you see saying "voting does nothing" from now to the election is an op. Block them, and tell your friends.

The people yelling about a black woman in the Odyssey are the same people that have perma-cast a white guy as Jesus.

This is grotesque and fascist.

Ted Hesson@tedhesson.bsky.social · 2d ago

ICE is beginning to outfit Haitian immigrants with ankle monitors after the Trump admin ended their deportation protections www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/...

And all credit to politico for getting the audio of this call - I should have mentioned that in the clip!! @alicemiranda.bsky.social @joshgerstein.bsky.social www.politico.com/news/2026/08...

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

Strict Scrutiny Podcast@strictscrutiny.bsky.social · 23h ago

On Todd Blanche: (1) his written statement on the weaponization fund is a meaningless joke and (2) the danger(s) he poses to abortion access: m.youtube.com/watch?v=fJAY...

The people yelling about a black woman in the Odyssey are the same people that have perma-cast a white guy as Jesus.

omg this is the ultimate "YOU HAD ONE JOB"

Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai@lorenzofb.bsky.social · yesterday

NEW: Several hackers have been stealing $130 million — and counting — in Bitcoin from the owners of supposedly secure offline hardware wallets. By knowing how to make the keys, the hackers did not need to break into the safe that holds them. They essentially figured out how to cut keys at scale.

Now in blog post form: Cloudflare tried to phish me. textslashplain.com/2026/08/04/s...

Security is Hard, Y’all

It started innocently enough. I saw a tweet about a new product offering from one of my favorite companies, Cloudflare. Neat! I clicked through to the site and there it is: And huzzah!, my preferre…

textslashplain.com

These AI companies are valued based on a promise that shows absolutely no sign it will be fulfilled

404 Media@404media.co · yesterday

Microsoft is introducing budget limits for AI use but says it still wants to be an ‘AI-first’ company.

Wait… maybe the 403 in my CI/CD tests for my backend is not my fault after all? I need to google more…

Report That Cloudflare AI Bot Blocking Prevents Googlebot From Indexing Sites

Anecdotal report claims that blocking AI training bots with Cloudflare prevents Googlebot from indexing websites.

searchenginejournal.com

«HASHTAG NOT ALL BEARS 🐻» is a banger if I may say so myself.

Patricia Aas 🐢🏳️‍🌈@patigallardo.bsky.social · yesterday

«The bear in the comment section on BearBook: "wtf, what did he want me to do, huh?? I was just standing there on the stairs. Men are so fucking hysterical. Just go past me, dude. Should I have to go far into the woods just so he doesn't get scared? Wtf? HASHTAG NOT ALL BEARS 🐻"»

1.3 million Michigan voters have cast their ballots as of 10 am, about 300,000 more than those in the 2024 primary, according to Michigan Secretary of State's Office

A mechanical contractor who helped build con man Elon Musk’s Memphis-area data centers says SpaceXAI is dragging its feet on paying his company for work performed since 2024. Darryl Cuttell, owner of Ohio-based Darana Hybrid, said SpaceXAI owes his company more than $136 million: $SPCX $TSLAQ

Contractor who built Colossus and Colossus II says Elon Musk owes him colossal amount of money

A mechanical contractor who helped build Elon Musk’s Memphis-area data centers at breakneck speed says SpaceXAI is dragging its feet on paying his company for work performed since 2024.

actionnews5.com

Thomas Hansen@thomashansen.bsky.social · 2mo ago

US DOJ asked federal court to throw out Clean Air Act lawsuit against Elon Musk’s xAI, arguing company’s unpermitted gas turbines are matter of “national, economic, and energy security.” This puts Trump admin in court alongside Musk to defend methane-burning turbines running without permits $TSLAQ

Not the guillotine for the data center CEO 🔥

This is imo probably the most effective voter suppression techniques the US has deployed over the last decades. Put polling places far away from where people live and work, make the times inconvenient and inflexible, make the process so inefficient hours of queueing is needed. Make voting a luxury.

Phil Lewis@phillewis.bsky.social · yesterday

The NAACP has released a statement while the Tarrant County Commissioners Court considers a proposal today that would cut the number of Election Day polling locations nearly in half "Let's call this what it is… voter suppression"

How embarrassing it is, for a former superpower, to waste «virtually all» of its stockpile on a war it never actually needed to wage. Wasting in months of meaningless conflict, what will take years to replenish.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · yesterday

"The Army has used up 'virtually all' of its stockpile of highly accurate long-range missiles during its five-month war with Iran, raising concerns about the military's readiness for future conflicts"