Oooops almost missed our 1st #WorldPublicTransport day! Reminder: without #railways we would not have opened continental interiors; moved #freight for Industrial Revolution; built #streetcars that made suburbs; dug #subways that crossed cities, ran #buses that gave #mobility to those without cars.

Campaign for Better Transport@bettertransport.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Today is the first ever World Public Transport Day. That's worth celebrating in a big way! Around the world, public transport moves billions of people efficiently & sustainably. At its best, it enables everyone to access opportunities & live fuller lives. @utg-uk.bsky.social #WorldPublicTransportDay

Despite public support & appeals to the 1st Amendment, the library board wasn't swayed, caving to those who deem the books "perverse" & "satanic." James: "Public libraries are community forums, serving the entire community, not just those who share the loudest voice or the most restrictive views."

The Tennessee Holler @thetnholler.bsky.social · 4mo ago

RUTHERFORD COUNTY: “library director Luanne James fired for refusing to relocate 132 children’s books to the adult section…. The board deemed the books inappropriate, citing LGBTQ+ themes, female empowerment, diversity, witches, social justice...” www.dnj.com/story/news/2...

What a great idea! I had no idea that shopping mall Easter Bunnies were still around. And, yes, that cottontail is where Peter's peter ought to be. The Alt Text notes that the human inside the rabbit is a sullen American teen. Perhaps the wardrobe malfunction is an act of defiance.

Brónagh 🇮🇪🇵🇸🚴‍♀️@beebsymca.eurosky.social · 4mo ago

The time I took our dog to meet the Easter Bunny. On close inspection, the Bunny has his trousers on back to front.

Here's a heads-up to history buffs, policy wonks and politics junkies. Wanna read? Be quick about it.

Cambridge University Press Political Science & IR@cambup-polsci.cambridge.org · 4mo ago

Free to read until the end of April 2026 from the latest issue of the Journal of Policy History - FDR’s Green Light Letter: Simple Decision, Complex Consequences - https://cup.org/40fIcpj - Michael Nelson

I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that defenders of press freedom in the US must get in the habit of speaking up very loudly whenever & wherever free expression is under threat, including at home. The First Amendment ain't gonna protect itself--and it's squarely in Trump's sights.

PEN America@penamerica.bsky.social · 4mo ago

The Journalist Assistance Network strongly condemns Russia’s designation of the International Women's Media Foundation as an “undesirable” organization, a flagrant act of retaliation against those who defend press freedom and support independent voices: pen.org/press-releas.... (1/2)

No refunds. Just liquidation blues. Organizer says festivals facing an “extinction event.” "Bluesfest is the latest in a growing tally of events that have skipped a year, or disappeared entirely ... Cost-of-living pressures, high operational costs & changing ticket-buying behaviors" are to blame.

billboard@billboard.com · 4mo ago

‘They’ve Done a Lot of Damage to the Festival Scene’: How The Demise of Bluesfest Has Been a Suckerpunch For an Industry In Crisis

More images from Saturday's No Kings rallies Stateside. Gotta love the yellow card at lower right that riffs on the vintage "Go to Jail" penalty card from the classic American board game Monopoly.

Sam Cohen@samcohen.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Wonderful creativity on display at Saturday's No Kings rally "down the Shore" on Long Beach Island in New Jersey's Ocean County. Wouldn't expect anything less from Jersey folk. But I gotta ask: Is it just me, or does Badgolf Shitler sound like the name of a villain in the "Lord of the Rings"?

Martha Hickson@sassylibrarian.bsky.social · 4mo ago

The most memorable signs I spotted at today’s #NoKings rally on Long Beach Island, NJ: Can we skip to the part where he shoots himself in the bunker? You can't spell HATRED without RED HAT Badgolf Shitler There's only one king (written on a velvet Elvis)

Upon reorganizing some accounts I follow into a new list titled 𝙇𝙞𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚 / 𝘼𝙪𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙧𝙨 / 𝙋𝙪𝙗𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨 / 𝙇𝙞𝙗𝙧𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙨, I noticed the Queens Public Library's Literary Thursdays talks are virtual events held 6-7 pm EDT via M'soft Teams. Starting times are 6 am & 7 am Fridays in HK & Tokyo, respectively.

Queens Public Library@qplnyc.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Our virtual Literary Thursdays series brings you live conversations with amazing writers. Learn More about our April guests: Lachi, Ashley D. Farmer, Clare Pollard, Jordyn Taylor, and Natan Last! www.queenslibrary.org/calendar?sea... #NationalPoetryMonth

What'd Trump call The Boss? A "dried out prune of a rocker" whose "skin is all atrophied"? Then rant that Bruce is "dumb as a rock"? LOL. Watch & see if any of that description rings true. Once again, Donny proves that he's the master of projection. Because he sure embodies all of those qualities.

Acyn@acyn.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Springsteen: Well, this past winter federal troops brought death and terror to the streets of Minneapolis. They picked the wrong city. Your strength and your commitment told us that this is still America. And this reactionary nightmare and these invasions of American cities will not stand.

An anniversary worth celebrating--and a right worth defending tooth & nail. See Cohen's thread for NYT columnist Jamelle Bouie's comments about the clarity of the US Supreme Court's language upon handing down its ruling in the case of United States v. Wong Kim Ark. There's little room for quibbling.

Sam Cohen@samcohen.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Happy anniversary www.politico.com/magazine/sto...

Such ghouls. It's unclear if the boy is proficient in any sign language. ICE facilities can't accommodate Deaf people w/o assistive devices, which are hard to replace. "Hearing aids are highly customized to an individual’s hearing loss, & quality hearing aids can easily cost thousands of dollars."

Mother Jones@motherjones.com · 5mo ago

“Think about that for a moment: a six-year-old child with a disability suddenly in a different country, separated from the country he has come to know, now surrounded by silence. The horror stories from this White House continue from ICE.”

Note to self: Don't jump to conclusions. I admit I feared the worst for the former Dead Kennedys frontman, but the thread clarifies he's hospitalized in stable condition. His sense of humor is intact, too. Recounting his fall, he uses a classic line from the notorious '80s Life Alert TV commercials.

Alternative Tentacles Records@alternativetent.bsky.social · 5mo ago

On Saturday, March 7th Jello Biafra suffered a hemorrhagic stroke caused by high blood pressure. 

As per Jello:

No, that's not a lollipop. Boy, do I feel stupid now. Fool me once ... uh, shame on me. Just figured that's what 34-year-old candy looks like.

jesse jarnow@bourgwick.bsky.social · 5mo ago

also in '80, '88, '92, '00, '04, & whenever/wherever else one of those shitbags tries to run. (adventures in house winnowing, continued.)

Good to hear Brian Setzer's well again. Saw him solo at the now-defunct Punk Spring festival just outside of Tokyo in the early 2000s. Lars Frederiksen of Rancid introduced him with a heartfelt "Much respect!" Summer Cats tour includes stops in the south Jersey / Philly & north Jersey / NYC areas.

NJArts.net@njartsnews.bsky.social · 5mo ago

The Stray Cats cancelled their fall 2025 tour due to illness but Brian Setzer is healthy again and the band will tour again this summer, with stops including Mayo Performing Arts Center in Morristown and Ocean Casino Resort in Atlantic City. Tix go on sale this week. www.njarts.net/172422

These pix sum it up. I don't get the fear-mongering about "15-min. cities" back in the US. (Uh, something about herding sheeple into corrals.) Here in Tokyo, I can get the basics done w/in a 10-min. walk of home. My choices increase greatly when I cycle & grow exponentially when I take mass transit.

Jerome Alexander Horne@jahorne.bsky.social · 5mo ago

Love this! Cities are inherently for people, not cars. Yet, we allocate so much precious space to the automobile. There's a reason why cities with the best quality of life around the world have fewer cars. More room for greenspace, more housing and less noise. Credit: @urbancyclinginstitute.org

This account is proving to be very useful as I follow Stateside primary election results from my perch in Tokyo. I have little doubt that it's just as useful back in the US.

Decision Desk HQ@decisiondeskhq.bsky.social · 5mo ago

It’s Election Night, and we’re tracking over 6,600 elections in Arkansas, North Carolina, and Texas. Follow all the results on Votes throughout the night as we track both Texas Senate primaries as well as federal, statewide, and local contests. votes.decisiondeskhq.com

March 12: "Join game collective Reality Reload ... to try your luck as you experience H1B.Life. In this narrative simulation, the chaotic unpredictability of the US H-1B visa system--where chance, timing & bureaucracy determine who stays & who is deported--is ‘reloaded’ as a darkly humorous game."

Sean Tierney@seantierney.bsky.social · 5mo ago

If you are in San Francisco on the relevant date, please support this event. calendar.asianart.org/event/reload...

Didn't see "Stop Making Sense" upon its 1984 release, nor did I catch the 2023 restored IMAX version of what may be the greatest concert film of all time. Nonetheless, I'm sure neither featured David Byrne as roach-infested Johnny Cash lookalike. I do, however, truly love this style of poster art.

San Antonio Current@sacurrent.bsky.social · 5mo ago

Deadly Prey Gallery will bring its touring show of the stylized and often bizarre movie ads to Mercury Project in Roosevelt Park.

Russia not at fault? "Budapest [will] not support decisions important to Kyiv until Ukraine resumes oil transit to Hungary & Slovakia via the Druzhba pipeline. The dispute centres on the ... row over Russian oil supplies. Hungary has also threatened to block approval of a €90bn EU loan for Ukraine."

Belga_English (Belga News Agency)@belgaenglish.bsky.social · 5mo ago

EU unlikely to agree new Russia sanctions as Hungary blocks deal

The temporary suspension began at 6 am EST on 2/22. "TSA’s PreCheck program allows approved passengers thru a faster security lane at US airports ... to reduce wait times. Global Entry expedites US customs & immigration clearance for pre-approved, low-risk internat'l travelers entering the US."

The Guardian@theguardian.com · 5mo ago

Homeland security to suspend TSA PreCheck and Global Entry airport security programs

File Under: Better Late Than Never. "Stop Truth Decay"! That's a great one. Good work on the part of the mobilized residents of Annapolis, Maryland. If you're in the area, see the post for info on how to join them.

I've really got to catch up on some of the podcasts I follow, including CJR's "The Kicker." In this day & age, Americans can't take press freedom for granted. It's under constant attack. The overturning of NYT v. Sullivan would be a major blow to US media culture & the profession of journalism.

Columbia Journalism Review@columjournreview.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Why overturning NYT v. Sullivan would hurt conservative media first. Listen in to a special Kicker on press freedom, live in the CJR newsroom with @davidenrich.bsky.social, @jameeljaffer.bsky.social, and host @greenwell.bsky.social. podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

Just got off the phone with the President of Antifa. They said they have a cell in Florida that set up a fake tailoring shop, where they created this custom garment to humiliate Michael Flynn.

PatriotTakes 🇺🇸@patriottakes.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Flag code violation

Sound like crimes against humanity to me. Hope ICE, DHS, CBP, Noem, Homan et al. are saving the receipts.

Center for Reproductive Rights@reprorights.org · 6mo ago

❌ Inadequate food and water ❌ Denied timely medical care ❌ Put in solitary confinement We cannot sit by while pregnant women suffer and miscarry in ICE custody. Take action and tell Congress to investigate these atrocities TODAY: https://bit.ly/3MJ9pgN

If the only problem w/ Noem's job performance was her diva-like behavior & nonstop mugging for the camera in a never-ending quest to boost her public profile, she might be tolerable. But decimating the ranks of career ICE leadership is unforgivable. So is her incompetence. And now the blankie?

Susan Rinkunas@susanrinkunas.com · 6mo ago

Kristi Noem tried to fire a Coast Guard pilot for forgetting her blankie but then needed that pilot to fly her home www.wsj.com/politics/pol...

Let’s go Maryland Senate!

Kyle Griffin@kylegriffin1.bsky.social · 6mo ago

The Virginia Supreme Court has ruled that the state can put a redistricting plan on the ballot this spring that could add as many as four more Democratic seats in Congress. The referendum will take place on April 21.

The Capitol switchboard is (202) 224-3121. (Tip: put it in your Contacts.) For direct phone numbers, see this: bsky.app/profile/cdpo...

The Watchdog Coalition@thewatchdogco.bsky.social · 6mo ago

We absolutely must not let this pass:

I haven't lived in my native Maryland since I went off to university 6 weeks after my 18th b'day, but decades later I still do my best to keep up w/ goings-on there. Sure would hate to see ICE take up residence in the Free State--'cuz ICE has no respect for freedom. See the OP for sign-up details.

Project Salt Box@projectsaltbox.com · 6mo ago

⚫️🟡Maryland!🔴⚪️ Tomorrow is the hearing for HB 630. This bill limits the conversion of warehouses into detention spaces. While it doesn't stop ICE outright, it can limit their ability to use contractors & local resources to run these sites! Your testimony is needed! Instructions below. 👇

This is somewhat more of an old-fashioned ICE ruse. Arguably this is a sign of the agency going back to more standard “targeted enforcement” tactics designed to be not as disruptive as the more recent aggro-style arrests. Watch for more like this to come.

Tina-Desiree Berg@tinadesireeberg.com · 6mo ago

CCTV footage appears to show DHS agents posing as people having car trouble in order to lure a target out of his house before arresting them. The target comes out and starts helping them before 3 vehicles surround the scene. The car "experiencing" trouble then drives off with them.