Frustration with corn-soy-CAFO ag—and its vast pollution problem—is boiling over in Iowa before Illinois. In Iowa there's no hiding from it; it's everywhere. But Chicago insulates Illinois’ political & economic center; our leaders can keep pretending “we’re feeding the world.”

‘Cancer Doesn't Care What Party You Belong To’: Poisoned Water Is Turning This Rural State Bluer

Democrats see an opening in rural states for the first time in decades. In Iowa, it’s about water.

politico.com

Robert Hirschfeld@rfhirschfeld.bsky.social · last mo.

It's a real problem that Chicago is so divorced from what is happening across the rest of the landscape. Too many people don't understand it, don't feel like they have a stake in it, and as a result, fail to address ag's problems through public policy.

roald dahl's grandson is a former london-based journalist who once freelanced for the daily dot and then married princess raiyah of jordan during covid but then got divorced and moved to the US where he became a cop in south carolina and just married an american tiktoker

Just finished this one by @tomphilpott.bsky.social. As a CA water guy, I can confirm that it’s actually really good and I appreciate how he doesnt just fall back on some “small is beautiful“ drivel as most US food system critics tend to. www.bloomsbury.com/us/perilous-...

My complaining about Illinois aside, great piece about how so many across the political divide are getting sick of (sometimes literally!) the corn-soy-CAFO-ethanol pollution. Written by @tomphilpott.bsky.social and @ninaelkadi.com

‘Cancer Doesn't Care What Party You Belong To’: Poisoned Water Is Turning This Rural State Bluer

Democrats see an opening in rural states for the first time in decades. In Iowa, it’s about water.

politico.com

This year, the corn is sweating for a different reason. @ninaelkadi.com and @tomphilpott.bsky.social profile the one and only Chris Jones @theswinerepublic.bsky.social.

Nina B. Elkadi@ninaelkadi.com · 4w ago

Good morning from Turin, Iowa, RAGBRAI Day 1. Out today in Politico Magazine, @tomphilpott.bsky.social and I collabed to report a profile of Chris Jones, a Democrat running for secretary of agriculture in Iowa.

This week's POLITICO Magazine cover story: Poisoned water is turning this rural state bluer. “Cancer doesn’t care what party you belong to. Republicans don’t like drinking poisonous water any more than Democrats do." 🔗 politi.co/4bSaHiN Also in this issue 🧵👇

Fellowship highlight: ’25 fellow Nina Elkadi @ninaelkadi.com & CLF’s Tom Philpott @tomphilpott.bsky.social co-authored a @politico.com story on how Iowa’s water quality crisis is becoming a public health and fairness issue with political consequences. www.politico.com/news/magazin...

‘Cancer Doesn't Care What Party You Belong To’: Poisoned Water Is Turning This Rural State Bluer

Democrats see an opening in rural states for the first time in decades. In Iowa, it’s about water.

politico.com

Well look 👀 at that, Lawyers Guns & Money featuring @ninaelkadi.com amd @tomphilpott.bsky.social ‘ piece on @theswinerepublic.bsky.social !

The politics of water in Iowa - Lawyers, Guns & Money

One interesting thing about the political landscape in 2026 is that Democrats are looking surprisingly competitive in statewide races in Iowa. even relative to the favorable national context. Accordin...

lawyersgunsmoneyblog.com

If we want clean water, we need to take on Big Ag. Nowhere illustrates this better than Iowa, where concerns about ag pollution, cancer, and water are taking center stage this election cycle. Insightful reporting out of Iowa by @ninaelkadi.com & @tomphilpott.bsky.social buff.ly/egKgxFx

‘Cancer Doesn't Care What Party You Belong To’: Poisoned Water Is Turning This Rural State Bluer

Democrats see an opening in rural states for the first time in decades. In Iowa, it’s about water.

politico.com

“While vehicle safety is critical, blaming larger vehicles for pedestrian deaths overlooks systemic issues.” No, you shill—it IS a systemic issue. We need to limit hood height and charge based on vehicle weight (as in Paris).

The Deadly Rise of Giant Trucks and S.U.V.s (Gift Article)

The vehicles on American roads have grown larger — and they are killing thousands more pedestrians, a Times investigation found.

nytimes.com

New newsletter: Generative AI is becoming the new crypto and multi-level marketing scam, promising non-techies that they can vibe-code their way to prosperity, without being candid about the costs and risks. www.whatwelo.st/p/generative...

Generative AI Is Having Its Herbalife Moment

How predatory vibe coding startups are selling false hope to young people

whatwelo.st

Had @author-calnewport.bsky.social on Better Offline to talk about AI companies “doom-trolling” consumers using scary stories about conscious computers, and how we need to make fun of those leading the scare-mongering. podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/b... Linktr.ee/betteroffline

The AI Industry Must Stop Doom Trolling w/ Cal Newport

Podcast Episode · Better Offline · June 19 · 1h 2m

podcasts.apple.com

Jeff (Hot Type) Jarvis@jeffjarvis.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Cal Newport -- @author-calnewport.bsky.social -- is so right. Gift link. Dear A.I. Companies: The Doom Trolling Needs to Stop www.nytimes.com/2026/06/17/o...

"An Indiana University instructor who showed a graphic in class that listed the “Make America Great Again” slogan as covert white supremacy has lost her job." www.nytimes.com/2026/06/17/u...

Indiana Professor Who Taught Anti-White Supremacy Lesson Loses Job

nytimes.com

“I have heard from our managers at ProPublica that they don’t intend to replace us with AI. And that’s great. But we’re gonna need that in writing.” This is why we’re fighting for protections against artificial intelligence:

The news shows that Madison Square Garden, operated by Jim Dolan, is not only deploying controversial facial recognition technology but keeping track of specific people who take issue with it. @evystadium.bsky.social has more. Story by @josephcox.bsky.social here: www.404media.co/madison-squa...

ICYMI, this is the next milestone in the criminalization of dissent. If you thought DHS was trying to be lowkey post-Minnesota, they were just buying time for cases like this. Subscribe to FOREVER WARS for journalism like this — what you need to know to stay free.

The Next Step in Criminalizing ICE Protests Is Here

First came Prairieland. Now an indictment treats mutual aid and road-blocking as a criminal conspiracy

forever-wars.com

New episode of @livablefuture.bsky.social‬ Unconfined podcast up! I interview the great journalist Ted Genoways on how some of the world's most vulnerable people stood up to global meatpacking goliath JBS at a beef plant in Greeley, Colo. clf.jhsph.edu/unconfined-p...

Fight the Power

clf.jhsph.edu

New episode of Unconfined: journalist Ted Genoways tells the unlikely story of how some of the world’s most vulnerable people took on a giant meatpacking company in Greeley, Colorado. clf.jhsph.edu/unconfined-p...

More reason to root against OpenAi: if they fail, the Ellison empire plunges into ruin.

Ed Zitron@edzitron.com · 4mo ago

Premium Newsletter: OpenAI needs to raise or make $852 billion through 2030 to pay for its compute costs, and must pay $75bn a year for Oracle's 7.1GW of Stargate data centers, or Oracle will collapse, destroying its share price and Larry Ellison's entire empire. www.wheresyoured.at/how-openai-k...

This is the largest oil supply shock in history in mb/d The enemy gets a vote. Iran is now delivering pain to Trump via multiple paths (1) Gulf Kings (2) Financial meltdown (3) AI tech oligarchs (4) Fuel, fertilizer, food disruptions Read our Polycrisis Dispatch: buttondown.com/polycrisisdi...

I suspect the Pope sounds "woke" to many Christian conservatives because the US is steeped in prosperity theology, where the point of worship is to deliver health and wealth to believers. Thus, "feed the hungry" and "show mercy for the poor" sounds needlessly political and "woke."

This is glorious

Stefanos Chen@stefanoschen.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Exclusive: Mayor Mamdani's DOT is planning to eliminate car traffic on one end of Grand Army Plaza, reconnecting its famous arch to Prospect Park. free link: www.nytimes.com/2026/04/13/n...

For more than a week, Amazon has managed to keep a death at its Troutdale, Oregon, facility out of public view. Workers I spoke to are pissed.

‘Everyone is Replaceable’: Death Rattles Oregon Amazon Facility

A worker died at Amazon’s Troutdale warehouse last week. Employees were told to look away.

thewesternedge.media

imagine arguing with your devout catholic grandma and shouting "the pope is WEAK on crime"

ICE agents shot another driver -- on Tues. He had just asked to call his wife. They shot him six times. One bullet his jaw. Now he can't speak and has been mostly unconscious. www.nytimes.com/2026/04/09/u...

Victim in ICE Shooting Suffered at Least Six Wounds, His Lawyer Says

nytimes.com

Amazing if true. I’d read a piece about this. Cc @motherjones.com

Will Stancil@whstancil.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Okay this isn’t really happening anymore so I can tell you how l had “internal ICE sources”: the 3000 very stir-crazy ICE agents were all going wild on Minneapolis Tinder. Local girls would match with them and string them along for intel. They loved to brag about what they were doing all day

Using your debt, your search history, and your private data to decide how much you’re worth? Hell no. This is what happens when technology is built to serve profit instead of people. This is why every worker needs a union.

How to gorpcore

derek guy@dieworkwear.bsky.social · 4mo ago

The Artemis II mission reminds me of these 1960s photos of NASA astronauts training in Iceland because they felt the terrain would be similar to what they'd encounter on the moon. The outfits are so great, even some 60 years later.

People seem to like listening to the show on YouTube, so here's the Better Offline @ronanfarrow.bsky.social/Andrew Marantz interview with a spinning skull logo youtu.be/U-Y52_xlkNU?...

Investigating Altman With Ronan Farrow and Andrew Marantz | Better Offline

YouTube video by Better Offline

youtu.be

ICYMI: “.. Almost half of the US data centers planned for this year are expected to be delayed or canceled. One big reason is the shortage of electrical equipment, such as transformers, switchgear and batteries.” @bloomberg.com www.bloomberg.com/news/newslet...