Trump on Thursday directed the Justice Department to investigate #ActBlue,
the fund-raising platform that powers virtually every Democratic candidate and cause.
The move steps up Republicans’ effort to cripple their opponents’ political infrastructure.

It was the third time in three weeks that Trump has directed the government to target a perceived political enemy.
He has drastically expanded the use of his powers to try to damage domestic opponents, eroding a post-Watergate norm of Justice Department independence far more than he ever did in his first term.
Trump’s action represents a threat to one of the key financial cogs of the left,
potentially hindering Democrats’ ability to compete in elections.
It is likely to please elements of his base, for whom ActBlue has become a top target.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/24/us/politics/trump-actblue-democrats.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

Same place, same bird, one year later. Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis, 🇩🇪 Eisvogel, 🇵🇱 zimorodek)

#birds #birdphotography #birdsofmastodon #birdwatching #nature #naturephotography #vogelflausch #ptaki

A look at one of the most pressing problems of 2023: the lament that "the left" wouldn't be friends with "the right," over "political views."

Defining these terms and dealing with a strange spectacle: the world's most unfriendly people, demanding friendliness.

https://www.the-reframe.com/if-you-want-to-be-friends-then-why/

Let's be crystal clear about what this means. Israel has blocked the entry of any and all food for eight weeks now. Another four weeks at the most, and there will be 2,000,000 dead. Anyone not lucky enough to have fully starved by then won't survive being buried in decomposing corpses.

This is not alarmism. It's not hyperbole. It's a biological matter of fact. https://kolektiva.social/@bifouba/114402933707081676

The US trying to sign a deal for Ukraine’s rare earths for nothing in return.

#Ukraine #Russia #NAFO #MAGA #rareearth

#astrobiology thread time!

A paper came out a few weeks ago about "habitability". Specifically, the habitability of Saturn's moon Titan.

We (am one of the co-authors) found that Titan's chemistry could support the equivalent biomass of a small dog.

Is that....bad?
(And what does "habitability" mean anyway?)

Here is the press release from the University of Arizona: https://news.arizona.edu/news/saturns-moon-titan-could-harbor-life-only-tiny-amount-study-finds

(Next post will have link to full paper)