Nostr notes by Anirvan Chatterjee

Hello Mastodon! Need a dose of hope in dark times? Come join me ...

2026-05-05T01:15:18Z

Hello Mastodon! Need a dose of hope in dark times?

Come join me on the San Francisco South Asian Radical History Walking Tour on Sun, May 24!

We’ll be sharing some of our favorite activist histories—queer Desis, Muslim punks, anti-colonial movements, and more. Spots are limited.

https://www.berkeleysouthasian.org

Flickr Commons is the best kind privately-owned public ...

2026-05-02T13:15:08Z

Flickr Commons is the best kind privately-owned public infrastructure

https://www.anildash.com/2026/04/30/artemis-photos-flickr/

Jamelle Bouie is (rightly) on fire ...

2026-05-01T23:45:01Z

Jamelle Bouie is (rightly) on fire

https://kottke.org/26/05/the-supreme-court-is-corrupt-this-is-what-we-can-do-about-it

"The Chinese government pressured Zambia to cancel RightsCon, ...

2026-05-01T22:15:06Z

"The Chinese government pressured Zambia to cancel RightsCon, the world’s largest digital human rights conference, at the last minute, according to the conference’s organizers. Beijing was upset that the speaker’s list included prominent figures from Taiwanese civil society, AccessNow, the group that organizes RightsCon, wrote Friday."

https://www.404media.co/china-pressure-canceled-worlds-largest-digital-human-rights-conference/

"And the crazy thing is: The oil industry has already ...

2026-04-23T20:45:04Z

"And the crazy thing is: The oil industry has already achieved legal immunity in a couple states. It hasn’t been covered much in mainstream media, but Utah and Tennessee recently passed laws shielding fossil fuel companies from climate lawsuits."

https://heated.world/p/republicans-introduce-extreme-bill

“A government need not ban a publication to silence it. It need ...

2026-04-18T19:15:01Z

“A government need not ban a publication to silence it. It need only ensure that the publication cannot afford lawyers, cannot retain platform access, cannot attract advertisers and cannot bear the cumulative carrying cost of regulatory compliance.”

https://americankahani.com/perspectives/the-quiet-extinction-in-america-as-in-india-press-freedom-dies-without-a-shot-being-fired/

It's so painful for Indians (and many others) to get a ...

2026-04-17T04:15:01Z

It's so painful for Indians (and many others) to get a *tourist* visa to the U.S.

https://americanbazaaronline.com/2026/04/16/multiple-us-visa-rejections-indian-parents-denied-b1-b2-4-times-479089/

"It was understood among staffers that the new leaders’ ...

2026-04-17T01:15:01Z

"It was understood among staffers that the new leaders’ plan to bring in donations was to emphasize the association of the center with President Trump. They put together a fundraiser for a preview of Les Misérables, where one could pay $2 million to sit in a box seat and attend a private reception with the president."

https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/2026/04/inside-kennedy-center-shutdown-drama/686801/?utm_source=feed

"After that decision, the Justice Department admitted it had ...

2026-04-10T23:45:01Z

"After that decision, the Justice Department admitted it had provided incorrect information to the court and revealed new details about DOGE’s actions. Those admissions included that DOGE used an unauthorized server to handle SSA data and that staff entered into an agreement with a 'political advocacy' group to analyze voter data in an effort tied to overturning election results."

https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/doges-secret-voter-data-deal-was-alarming-court-finds/

"Still, today marks a striking and mostly unsettling moment ...

2026-04-08T16:15:10Z

"Still, today marks a striking and mostly unsettling moment in the development of AI systems. One of the world’s three frontier labs has now created a model it says is too dangerous to release to the general public."

https://www.platformer.news/anthropic-mythos-cybersecurity-risk-experts/

“In December, a Mobile-based talk radio station held a listener ...

2026-04-04T23:45:01Z

“In December, a Mobile-based talk radio station held a listener poll to choose its annual Alabamian of the Year, with ‘Inflatable Fairhope Protest Penis’ receiving the most votes.”

https://theintercept.com/2026/04/03/penis-costume-no-kings-protest-alabama-censorship/

"As irritating as that is, the important thing is that the ...

2026-04-01T19:15:03Z

"As irritating as that is, the important thing is that the DOJ has stated, in court, that pretty much any immigration courthouse arrest performed by federal officers was illegal. And that’s going to make it way easier to sue the government itself over its mass deportation program."

https://www.techdirt.com/2026/04/01/doj-admits-ice-has-engaged-in-illegal-courthouse-arrests-for-most-of-the-past-year/

I’m a long-time volunteer with Bay Area Solidarity Summer, a ...

2026-03-21T15:22:16Z

I’m a long-time volunteer with Bay Area Solidarity Summer, a 5-day training project for emerging South Asian American activists, ages 18-23.

Our alumni have called it life changing.

Know someone in that age range, anywhere in the U.S.?

Please boost to amplify!

https://www.SolidaritySummer.org

Ugh, Cesar Chavez. I always grapple with the pros and cons of ...

2026-03-17T20:45:02Z

Ugh, Cesar Chavez. I always grapple with the pros and cons of honoring individuals as symbols of larger movements.

https://www.expressnews.com/news/article/cesar-chavez-allegations-march-cancel-san-antonio-22080919.php

“Aurat March organizers and participants gathered at a ...

2026-03-14T17:45:04Z

“Aurat March organizers and participants gathered at a supermarket…Before the rally could begin, police detained the group and transported them in prison vans. Their mobile phones were confiscated, and they were taken to the Women’s Police Station”

https://globalvoices.org/2026/03/14/authorities-push-back-against-international-womens-day-march-in-pakistan/

This isn't the compliment that Indian media thinks it is. If ...

2026-03-14T16:15:05Z

This isn't the compliment that Indian media thinks it is. If they're coming for one nationality today, they're going to come for everyone else soon:

"'The largest percentage of international students studying in the United States comes from India,' Wood said. 'Nobody to my knowledge has raised questions that Indian students coming to the United States pose a security risk.' The hearing focused largely on concerns about China’s influence in American universities"

https://indiawest.com/us-senate-hearing-commends-indian-students-studying-in-america/

The Direct File Act has 40 co-sponsors, all Democrats. Not a ...

2026-03-13T13:15:06Z

The Direct File Act has 40 co-sponsors, all Democrats. Not a single Republican wants to reduce the cost and irritation of filing your taxes.

https://codeforamerica.org/news/statement-from-code-for-america-ceo-amanda-renteria-on-the-direct-file-act-of-2026/

"In the complaint, according to the Post, a whistleblower ...

2026-03-12T22:15:02Z

"In the complaint, according to the Post, a whistleblower alleges that the former DOGE employee sought help transferring a set of data from a thumb drive to a personal computer so he could 'sanitize' it before uploading it for use at a private-sector company. The former DOGE employee allegedly said that he expected to receive a presidential pardon if his actions were unlawful, the complaint reportedly stated."

https://www.wired.com/story/john-solly-doge-operative-accused-social-security-data-leidos/

"The company’s confrontation with DOD has proved more ...

2026-03-07T17:15:03Z

"The company’s confrontation with DOD has proved more effective than some of the world’s most expensive advertising—at least according to one metric…The day after Hegseth announced that the government was severing ties, it took the No. 1 spot, a position it still holds as of this writing."

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/03/anthropic-pentagon-contract-openai/686285/?utm_source=feed

“In a state where changing one’s legal sex marker has now ...

2026-03-06T23:15:02Z

“In a state where changing one’s legal sex marker has now been rendered impossible, Ellis’s story shows that even just changing one’s name can be enough for a transgender person in Kansas to be identified, targeted, and forced to surrender their legal documents.”

https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/kansas-revokes-license-no-gender-change

“The strategy suggests that scammers are trying to capitalize ...

2026-03-06T00:45:02Z

“The strategy suggests that scammers are trying to capitalize on people’s revulsion to ICE by coming up with strategies that would cause users to quickly log into their accounts to disable the setting”

https://www.404media.co/ice-phishing-scammers-are-sending-support-ice-emails-to-steal-credentials/

"Trump threatens something outrageous. Then he backs off ...

2026-02-23T18:45:04Z

"Trump threatens something outrageous. Then he backs off slightly from the outrageous thing. The media reports the backing-off as if it’s the story, rather than the fact that the outrageous threat was made in the first place. It’s like praising someone for only punching you once instead of twice."

https://www.techdirt.com/2026/02/23/the-media-still-cant-figure-out-that-trump-says-things-that-arent-true/

Plug: Spring dates just opened for the Bay Area's South Asian ...

2026-02-17T18:30:16Z

Plug: Spring dates just opened for the Bay Area's South Asian Radical History Walking Tours:

• Saturday, March 21, 2026 in Berkeley (almost sold out)
• Sunday, March 29 in San Francisco

Both tours cover 100+ years of local South Asian activist histories.

The SF tour's offered pretty infrequently, so if you've been curious, this might be a good time to join us!

Details and registration https://www.berkeleysouthasian.org/

"Perhaps most critically, the Library has completely ...

2026-02-14T17:15:03Z

"Perhaps most critically, the Library has completely reimagined its backup and recovery strategy around one central assumption: modern ransomware destroys, not just encrypts. Backups are now immutable, so they cannot be altered or deleted even by someone with administrator credentials. And they’re air-gapped – physically or logically isolated from production networks so attackers can’t reach them even if they gain extensive access."

https://informationsecuritybuzz.com/the-cyberattack-that-exposed-the-fragility-of-digital-heritage/

"If ICE can get them on a plane headed south [e.g. to Texas] ...

2026-02-10T00:45:03Z

"If ICE can get them on a plane headed south [e.g. to Texas] before anything is filed in local courts, the Fifth Circuit’s ruling will override whatever rights migrants might have still had access to in the states they were removed from."

https://www.techdirt.com/2026/02/09/5th-circuit-says-due-process-rights-for-immigrants-no-longer-exist-in-its-jurisdiction/

"I need to repeat that. Donald Trump is trying to more than ...

2026-02-01T18:45:01Z

"I need to repeat that. Donald Trump is trying to more than double his personal wealth by simply demanding that the IRS, which he controls, give him $10 billion in taxpayer funds. This goes beyond corruption. You need a different word for this altogether."

https://www.techdirt.com/2026/01/30/trump-demands-10-billion-from-taxpayers-for-leaked-tax-returns-his-own-lawyers-get-to-decide-what-he-gets/

hell yes to ICE-free zones everywhere ...

2026-01-17T05:15:01Z

hell yes to ICE-free zones everywhere

https://www.berkeleyside.org/2026/01/16/ice-free-zones-alameda-county-oakland

"For the most part, hospitality giants have gone out of their ...

2026-01-06T20:15:02Z

"For the most part, hospitality giants have gone out of their way to accommodate ICE agents, even permitting the use of hotel rooms as temporary holding cells to detain immigrant families prior to deportation."

https://theintercept.com/2026/01/06/hilton-ban-ice-minneapolis-workers/

I’m surprised American conservatives haven’t tried applying ...

2026-01-03T02:15:26Z

I’m surprised American conservatives haven’t tried applying sin taxes to contraception

https://www.wired.com/story/china-to-tax-contraceptives/

The U.S. Digital Service was one of the Crown Jewels of the US ...

2025-12-24T05:15:01Z

The U.S. Digital Service was one of the Crown Jewels of the US government. DOGE killed it, and now they’re claiming credit for inventing something that’s similar, but worse.

https://www.techdirt.com/2025/12/23/trump-admin-reinvents-us-digital-services-program-after-elon-musk-fired-all-their-actual-tech-experts/

“They needed less than $20 million to fund lifesaving health ...

2025-12-15T18:45:02Z

“They needed less than $20 million to fund lifesaving health programs, including cholera response efforts, for three months at the beginning of the year — an eighth of what Trump recently approved to buy private jets for one cabinet secretary and just 3% of USAID’s budget in South Sudan last year.”

https://www.propublica.org/article/usaid-cholera-deaths-trump-humanitarian-aid-cuts-south-sudan

“Australians are abandoning travel to the US, and boycotting ...

2025-12-12T05:15:01Z

“Australians are abandoning travel to the US, and boycotting World Cup matches there next year, as the Trump administration flags new rules that will soon require visitors to hand over their social media history when applying to enter the country.”

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/dec/11/australia-us-tourism-new-visa-rules-social-media-history

“Early in Trump 2.0’s war on immigrants, San Diego’s Bishop ...

2025-12-06T02:15:01Z

“Early in Trump 2.0’s war on immigrants, San Diego’s Bishop Michael Pham discovered that ICE was less likely to engage in mass arrests of immigrants when clergy members were present. So he decided that clergy would go to the courthouse every day…”

https://www.thenation.com/article/activism/san-diego-clergy-immigrants-ice/

"'That’s absolutely false,' one USDA source says of ...

2025-12-03T17:15:07Z

"'That’s absolutely false,' one USDA source says of reporting that DOGE has disbanded. 'They are in fact burrowed into the agencies like ticks.'"

https://www.wired.com/story/what-is-doge-doing-now/

"Another slide deck explains that workers should not label ...

2025-12-01T20:15:02Z

"Another slide deck explains that workers should not label people inside cars but should label those riding motorcycles or walking."

https://www.wired.com/story/flock-uses-overseas-gig-workers-to-build-its-surveillance-ai/

“Republicans in the state have faced a wave of ‘swatting’ ...

2025-11-28T23:15:01Z

“Republicans in the state have faced a wave of ‘swatting’ incidents, in which a false call to emergency services draws a police response, for not endorsing the redistricting plan.”

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/2025/11/indiana-redistricting-republican-trump/685057/

“A young woman…was up early one morning to sell tamales ...

2025-11-28T21:45:02Z

“A young woman…was up early one morning to sell tamales outside a local school. ICE agents tossed her to the ground, injuring her so seriously she had to be hospitalized. She’s an American citizen and was released but now is so scared of ICE, she refuses to leave her house. She has been inside for 158 days.”

https://calmatters.org/commentary/2025/11/ice-experiences-unify-los-angeles/

"In the absence of heavy equipment, the civil defense teams ...

2025-11-28T18:45:03Z

"In the absence of heavy equipment, the civil defense teams use simple tools like hammers, axes, and shovels. Without excavators or heavy equipment, a single recovery can take days. Local civil defense workers estimate there are still 10,000 bodies buried under the rubble."

https://theintercept.com/2025/11/28/gaza-palestine-ceasefire-rubble-bodies/

"As a result of Hargett’s demand for libraries to complete ...

2025-11-26T00:45:01Z

"As a result of Hargett’s demand for libraries to complete the [anti-DEI] review within 60 days, at least one Tennessee county has closed several of its library branches for up to a week."

https://popular.info/p/tennessee-public-libraries-close

"…she pulled out her phone to record the arrest. In ...

2025-11-25T23:15:01Z

"…she pulled out her phone to record the arrest. In response, an agent pointed a gun at her. Days later, while a man was videorecording a raid outside a Home Depot, DHS agents tackled him to the ground, arrested him and held him in detention for more than twenty-four hours."

https://www.aclu.org/news/free-speech/photographer-retaliation-foia

“Trials focused on infectious diseases saw the highest ...

2025-11-23T21:45:01Z

“Trials focused on infectious diseases saw the highest proportion of terminations (14.4%), followed by prevention-focused studies (8.4%)”

https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/public-health/nih-grant-terminations-disrupt-hundreds-clinical-trials-affecting-more-74000

"What fixes this with humans also fixes it with models. When ...

2025-11-21T14:15:07Z

"What fixes this with humans also fixes it with models. When I work with colleagues, I don't just throw goals at them and hope for the best. We talk about constraints, about trade-offs, about what success looks like and what we explicitly don't care about. We look at examples. We clarify edge cases. When I do the same in a prompt, the outcome improves in exactly the same way. People call that 'prompt engineering' now; I still think of it as just writing a better spec."

https://scatterarrow.com/content/en/all-your-coworkers-are-probabilistic.html

“Compare this to the sriracha success story. David Tran of Huy ...

2025-11-20T21:45:04Z

“Compare this to the sriracha success story. David Tran of Huy Fong Foods deliberately avoided trademarking “sriracha” early on, allowing dozens of competitors to enter the market. The result? Sriracha became a cultural phenomenon, and Huy Fong’s distinctive rooster bottle became the most recognizable brand in a category they helped create.”

https://www.techdirt.com/2025/11/19/how-trademark-ruined-colorado-style-pizza/

The smear campaign against CAIR sets a dangerous precedent. I ...

2025-11-19T02:15:02Z

The smear campaign against CAIR sets a dangerous precedent.

I personally witnessed their local chapter offer concrete skilled support to my gay, non-Muslim friends after they were assaulted. They didn't care about their religion or sexual orientation–they just stepped up

Are these the people being designated as "foreign terrorists" spreading "sharia law"?

https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2025/11/18/texas-governor-labels-muslim-brotherhood-as-foreign-terrorist-group/

Trump's level of corruption is astounding. ...

2025-11-18T23:15:04Z

Trump's level of corruption is astounding.

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/2025/11/trump-fundraising-ballroom/684963/?utm_source=feed

Shit. We lost the incomparable Alice Wong today. ...

2025-11-15T06:50:14Z

Shit. We lost the incomparable Alice Wong today.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DREMDNBjnqk/

“When we started this group, I initially thought that showing ...

2025-11-11T21:45:05Z

“When we started this group, I initially thought that showing solidarity with Zohran Mamdani and the Muslim community would be enough. But what we actually did went far beyond that. We didn’t just push back on hate – we neutralised the Hindutva influence in this election.”

https://scroll.in/article/1088439/how-hindus-for-zohran-pushed-back-against-hindutva-claims-in-new-york-mayoral-race

"One of Dunn’s defense attorneys, Sabrina Shroff, said the ...

2025-11-07T14:15:08Z

"One of Dunn’s defense attorneys, Sabrina Shroff, said the legal team was thankful that the jury 'sent back an affirmation that dissent is what is not just tolerated, it is legal. It is welcome.'"

https://apnews.com/article/sandwich-throwing-trial-justice-department-a2776c568a1ea4b8ce5b6af606669b63

Just everyday foreign policy things: “The intimidation included ...

2025-11-03T20:15:03Z

Just everyday foreign policy things:

“The intimidation included approaching country officials during coffee breaks to warn them they might not be able to transit via the US, or that they and their families could face restrictions on entering the country if they acted against American interests”

https://on.ft.com/47lq3dZ

“By closing comments, we’re following in the footsteps of ...

2025-11-03T18:45:03Z

“By closing comments, we’re following in the footsteps of other news outlets across the country, many of which made the call after finding they give outsize power to a tiny, non-representative portion of their overall readership.”

https://www.berkeleyside.org/2025/11/03/berkeleyside-closing-comments

“the people running it aren’t confused about this trade-off. ...

2025-11-01T01:15:02Z

“the people running it aren’t confused about this trade-off. They’ve actively chosen engagement metrics over governing because governing is for suckers, and engagement is how you maintain power while you loot the rest of the government.”

https://www.techdirt.com/2025/10/30/trumps-government-of-spite-political-performance-art-for-assholes/

Chilling dispatches from the attacks on Bengali migrant workers ...

2025-10-31T20:45:04Z

Chilling dispatches from the attacks on Bengali migrant workers in India

https://sanhati.com/articles/20436/

“…Kinslow began to reconsider all those gifts when the school ...

2025-10-31T04:15:01Z

“…Kinslow began to reconsider all those gifts when the school said the application for his diversity scholarship needed to be modified to comply with anti-DEI laws.”

https://www.friendlyatheist.com/p/donor-pulls-scholarships-after-university

“Nearly two months into ICE’s campaign in Chicago, ...

2025-10-27T13:15:11Z

“Nearly two months into ICE’s campaign in Chicago, disruptive, chaotic scenes like this are hardly surprising anymore. In recent weeks, agents have rappelled into an apartment building from a Black Hawk helicopter, fired pepper balls at peaceful protesters, and allegedly zip-tied the hands of children.”

https://www.themarshallproject.org/2025/10/25/chicago-ice-trump-judicial-discretion

Zohran’s latest video made me angry-cry ...

2025-10-26T01:15:01Z

Zohran’s latest video made me angry-cry

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DQN6MYOjk_J/

Live in the San Francisco Bay Area? Please join this emergency ...

2025-10-22T16:43:56Z

In reply to nevent1q…8rgu
_________________________

Live in the San Francisco Bay Area? Please join this emergency webinar tonight on how to respond if things escalate

https://actionnetwork.org/events/stay-out-of-the-bay-emergency-mobilization-call-know-your-rights-build-community-defense-mobilization-plans/

Here’s what to do in case troops invade the San Francisco Bay ...

2025-10-22T06:00:29Z

Here’s what to do in case troops invade the San Francisco Bay Area. Read, and pass it on:

https://www.bayresistance.org/get-ready

"Lorena Gonzalez, federation president, on the discussion ...

2025-10-22T01:15:02Z

"Lorena Gonzalez, federation president, on the discussion labor organizers had about turning out students on college campuses: 'Do we want to talk about ICE? Do we want to talk about LGBTQ (issues)? Do we want to say, ‘fight fascism?’ We settled on ‘f—k Trump.’'"

https://calmatters.org/newsletter/proposition-50-fundraising/

On our 310th Berkeley South Asian Radical History Walking Tour ...

2025-10-18T23:58:07Z

On our 310th Berkeley South Asian Radical History Walking Tour tour, we intersected with the #NoKings protests.

This is us with a sign honoring South Asians facing targeting, detentions, and deportations, including…

• Bibi Harjit Kaur: A 73-year-old Sikh Bay Area grandmother deported after over a decade of routine ICE check-ins despite strong community ties… (1/3)

“Discussing Cruz’s situation, a man from El Salvador who also ...

2025-10-16T16:15:09Z

“Discussing Cruz’s situation, a man from El Salvador who also suffers from heart problems, he noted, ‘We have a very literal show me your papers’ arrest.”

https://americanbazaaronline.com/2025/10/16/operation-midway-blitz-ice-fines-green-card-holder-130-468826/

More orgs need to break out of the MS/Google email hosting ...

2025-10-16T04:15:02Z

More orgs need to break out of the MS/Google email hosting monopoly

https://www.zdnet.com/article/german-state-replaces-microsoft-exchange-and-outlook-with-open-source-email/

“Russia has a new way to surveil its citizens: a ‘super ...

2025-10-12T01:15:02Z

“Russia has a new way to surveil its citizens: a ‘super app.’ Made by the Russian tech company VK, the app is called Max, and as of September 1, it’s required on every new phone sold in Russia.”

https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2025/10/russia-super-app-max/684524/?utm_source=feed

"Speaking of ICE, immigration officers told Guevara this his ...

2025-10-10T23:45:02Z

"Speaking of ICE, immigration officers told Guevara this his documentation of public activities by public officials in public places was literally a threat to the US government in general."

https://www.techdirt.com/2025/10/10/dhs-sends-a-journalist-back-to-his-home-country-to-be-tortured-because-live-streaming-ice-activities-is-threatening/

"The decision effectively treats federal immigration agents ...

2025-10-10T20:45:03Z

"The decision effectively treats federal immigration agents as a protected class — a novel interpretation of Apple’s hate-speech policy that shields one of the most powerful arms of government from public scrutiny."

https://www.techdirt.com/2025/10/10/apple-decides-ice-agents-are-a-protected-class-because-apparently-government-accountability-is-now-hate-speech/

"'To be here and to meet with so many in the Hindu ...

2025-10-07T01:15:02Z

"'To be here and to meet with so many in the Hindu community who have been showcasing what seva looks like for so many decades oftentimes without recognition – I am proud I would be the first Indian American mayor of this city,' he added."

https://indiawest.com/diwali-holi-raksha-bandhan-taught-me-many-of-my-values-mamdani-during-temple-visits/

"Valued for her combined expertise in computational biology ...

2025-10-05T20:45:02Z

"Valued for her combined expertise in computational biology and bench research, she had been approved for H-1B sponsorship and expected to finalise the process by December — which would have allowed her to visit India for the first time in six years.Instead, the university has indefinitely paused her H-1B application, leaving her in limbo."

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/international-business/all-eyes-are-on-the-indian-plaintiff-who-joined-several-others-to-sue-trumps-entry-fee-of-100k-on-new-h-1b-applications/articleshow/124319245.cms

This is why so many fought back against JTTF tie-ups ...

2025-10-03T20:45:03Z

This is why so many fought back against JTTF tie-ups

https://www.kenklippenstein.com/p/trumps-nspm-7-labels-common-beliefs

"From there, [the Reagan-appointed judge] starts talking ...

2025-10-01T23:45:06Z

"From there, [the Reagan-appointed judge] starts talking about how totally fucked up it is that ICE agents are running around in masks, which he calls out as 'dishonorable' and 'cowardly'! No euphemisms. No mealy-mouthed language. Just calling out how masked agents arresting students for their speech is fucked up"

https://www.techdirt.com/2025/10/01/reagan-appointed-judge-torches-trump-admins-bullshit-chilling-effects-campaign-against-pro-palestinian-speech/

"As messaging guru Anat Shenker-Osorio has explained, the ...

2025-09-30T19:15:18Z

"As messaging guru Anat Shenker-Osorio has explained, the Democrats need to call things what they are: 'MAGA has turned our government into a weapon against our people. No funding for fascism. No dollars for dictators. No payouts for pedophiles. No complicity in the budget.'"

https://the.ink/p/make-it-make-sense-stop-calling-it

“Those who accept must report…after what amounts to a ...

2025-09-24T20:45:02Z

“Those who accept must report…after what amounts to a seven-month paid vacation, during which time the GSA in some cases racked up high costs—passed along to taxpayers—to stay in dozens of properties whose leases it had slated for termination or were allowed to expire.”

https://apnews.com/article/doge-musk-trump-gsa-fired-employees-ce18553b281fbf5816ec2fd491d79b78

"Perhaps Trump would instruct his Fed appointees to exercise ...

2025-09-23T17:45:04Z

"Perhaps Trump would instruct his Fed appointees to exercise that power with restraint…But little would stop him from instead treating the bank’s lending power as a bottomless slush fund. He could direct money to favored industries, such as crypto, or even his own businesses. He could reward media outlets that give him favorable coverage, companies that donate to Republican campaigns, and even the budgets of local officials who promote his agenda."

https://www.theatlantic.com/economy/archive/2025/09/trump-federal-reserve-control-unchecked-power/684279/

"Across the state, county health and human services ...

2025-09-21T16:15:21Z

"Across the state, county health and human services departments have made significant reductions to basic health programs in response to cuts and freezes from Trump initiatives such as DOGE and the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill…Orange County closed its clinics for children, emergency dental and family planning to deal with $13.7 million in cuts over the next two years. In October, the county will lose an additional $4 million to combat obesity and food insecurity."

https://calmatters.org/newsletter/federal-cuts-ca-health-programs-newsletter/

"The template is depressingly simple: take a polarizing ...

2025-09-18T17:45:03Z

"The template is depressingly simple: take a polarizing figure’s death, generate fake statements from celebrities that will appeal to different political tribes, slap together some AI-generated images, and watch the shares roll in. Each fake post becomes a little cash machine, harvesting clicks from people who want to believe their favorite celebrity shares their political views."

https://www.techdirt.com/2025/09/18/facebook-flooded-with-agitslop-of-ai-grief-farming-about-charlie-kirk/

Hey Bay Area and Desi community! Help rescue 73 year old East Bay ...

2025-09-13T19:15:02Z

Hey Bay Area and Desi community! Help rescue 73 year old East Bay grandmother Harjit Kaur from ICE

#BringHarjitHome

https://bringharjithome.com/

“Unlike birthright citizens, naturalized citizens can now be ...

2025-09-13T04:15:01Z

“Unlike birthright citizens, naturalized citizens can now be stripped of their status through a ‘civil process’ — which doesn’t guarantee a lawyer and uses lower standards of evidence.”

https://indiacurrents.com/attention-us-citizens-yes-you-can-now-be-deported/

Go Bangladesh! ...

2025-09-12T13:15:05Z

Go Bangladesh!

https://diff.wikimedia.org/2025/09/11/a-milestone-for-open-knowledge-bangladesh-press-information-department-releases-50000-images-to-the-public-domain/

I’m speechless. UC Berkeley has started handing over names to ...

2025-09-11T22:15:03Z

I’m speechless. UC Berkeley has started handing over names to the Trump administration. We know exactly who’s being targeted.

https://www.dailycal.org/news/campus/uc-berkeley-turns-over-personal-information-of-more-than-150-students-and-staff-to-federal/article_a4aad3e1-bbba-42cc-92d7-a7964d9641c5.html

This is exactly what happened in India ...

2025-09-11T20:45:03Z

This is exactly what happened in India

https://www.techdirt.com/2025/09/09/with-looming-cbs-hire-of-bari-weiss-two-of-the-four-major-u-s-networks-will-now-be-right-wing-propaganda-mills/

“It’s a dangerous mistake to think Trump’s immigration ...

2025-09-11T01:15:02Z

“It’s a dangerous mistake to think Trump’s immigration purge is just about Latinos…our high court has deemed brown synonymous with illegal, regardless of what country…False distinctions about who is being targeted create divisions at a time when solidarity is our greatest power.”

https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-09-10/latinos-are-in-danger-but-they-arent-the-only-ones

"My mother has told me that whenever she steps into her ...

2025-09-09T13:15:07Z

"My mother has told me that whenever she steps into her nephrologist’s office, she feels like a schoolgirl waiting to be scolded. She fears annoying the doctor with her questions. She also suspects that the doctor values the number of patients and earnings from prescriptions over her well-being. But in the office of Dr. DeepSeek, she is at ease."

https://restofworld.org/2025/ai-chatbot-china-sick/

"'The Government, and now the concurrence, has all but ...

2025-09-08T23:45:01Z

"'The Government, and now the concurrence, has all but declared that all Latinos, U.S. citizens or not, who work low wage jobs are fair game to be seized at any time, taken away from work, and held until they provide proof of their legal status to the agents’ satisfaction,' Sotomayor wrote."

https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/supreme-court-trump-immigration-stops-racial-profiling/

“Matthew D’Amico, 67, of New York City, said a Walgreens ...

2025-09-06T23:45:03Z

“Matthew D’Amico, 67, of New York City, said a Walgreens declined to administer COVID-19 vaccines to him and his 75-year-old wife on Friday because they didn’t have a prescription. They’re trying to get vaccinated ahead of a trip.”

https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-09-06/vaccine-chaos-even-some-vulnerable-seniors-cant-get-covid-shots-amid-spiking-cases

“The damage, he argued, is structural. Senior staff who spread ...

2025-08-29T22:15:02Z

“The damage, he argued, is structural. Senior staff who spread disinformation about COVID-19 vaccines now hold oversight authority. More than 600 employees have already been purged or reassigned. Programs for HIV prevention, overdose response, and smoking cessation are vanishing.”

https://www.advocate.com/politics/demetre-daskalakis-cdc-resignation-interview

"Burning the emergency food alone cost American taxpayers ...

2025-08-27T01:15:01Z

"Burning the emergency food alone cost American taxpayers more than $100,000; burning the contraceptives, the State Department says, will cost $100,000 more."

https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2025/08/usaid-fire-sale-donation-auction/684012/?utm_source=feed

“Jimenez Rosa’s time in custody ended with her alone, wet and ...

2025-08-24T22:15:02Z

“Jimenez Rosa’s time in custody ended with her alone, wet and begging for help at The Cheesecake Factory in the Burlington Mall, after ICE agents released her into the rainy street outside the detention facility Wednesday night. She was 30 miles from home, with no phone and a broken spirit.”

https://www.masslive.com/news/2025/08/mass-mom-detained-by-ice-for-10-days-over-decades-old-minor-marijuana-charge.html

“Students have been blocked from going to websites that ...

2025-08-24T16:15:02Z

“Students have been blocked from going to websites that web-filtering software categorizes as ‘education,’ ‘news,’ or ‘informational.’ But even more concerning, especially for some students who spoke with The Markup, are blocks against sex education, abortion information, and resources for LGBTQ+ teens—including suicide prevention.”

https://themarkup.org/digital-book-banning/2024/04/13/schools-were-just-supposed-to-block-porn-instead-they-sabotaged-homework-and-censored-suicide-prevention-sites

This train story is wild: “Digging into the code revealed a ...

2025-08-24T13:15:02Z

This train story is wild:

“Digging into the code revealed a software trap that would disable trains if they were anywhere near a repair facility that wasn’t run by the manufacturer, Newag. But Newag used a pretty inaccurate way to determine when the trains were in a rival repair shop, which led to some unexpected consequences.”

https://www.ifixit.com/News/112008/polish-train-maker-is-suing-the-hackers-who-exposed-its-anti-repair-tricks

“Food and drug facility inspectors are having to go to the ...

2025-08-23T22:15:01Z

“Food and drug facility inspectors are having to go to the store and buy supplies on their own dime so they can take swab samples to test for pathogens. Some labs have been unable to purchase the sterile eggs needed to replicate viruses or the mice needed to test vaccines.”

https://projects.propublica.org/federal-health-worker-cuts-rfk-trump-administration/

“India’s Department of Posts has announced a temporary ...

2025-08-23T19:15:02Z

“India’s Department of Posts has announced a temporary suspension of most outbound mail services to the United States starting August 25, citing new regulatory hurdles introduced by the U.S. government. The suspension applies to all types of postal articles, except for letters, documents, and gift items valued up to $100”

https://indicanews.com/india-halts-most-america-bound-postal-services-amid-new-us-tariff-rules/

“The researchers found that 90% of employees regularly use ...

2025-08-23T16:15:03Z

“The researchers found that 90% of employees regularly use personal AI tools for work, even though only 40% of their companies have official AI subscriptions.”

https://venturebeat.com/ai/mit-report-misunderstood-shadow-ai-economy-booms-while-headlines-cry-failure/

"The supposed gotcha is that children with disabilities and ...

2025-08-20T04:15:01Z

"The supposed gotcha is that children with disabilities and preexisting health conditions, who cannot get the treatment and nutrition they need because of Israel’s genocidal siege, are not representative of the population. And — the horror! — photographs of these non-representative children are prompting global outrage."

https://theintercept.com/2025/08/19/bari-weiss-free-press-gaza-starvation-famine/

"For those keeping score at home, this is now the third time ...

2025-08-19T01:15:01Z

"For those keeping score at home, this is now the third time federal courts have had to block frivolous, retaliatory government investigations targeting Media Matters for the heinous crime of… accurately reporting that ads appeared next to Nazi content on X. Because apparently, in Trump’s America, doing your job as a journalist is grounds for federal investigation."

https://www.techdirt.com/2025/08/18/federal-judge-delivers-judicial-smackdown-to-ftcs-politically-motivated-attack-on-media-matters/

Happy 🇮🇳🇵🇰 independence days! August 14-15, 1947 ...

2025-08-15T14:59:20Z

Happy 🇮🇳🇵🇰 independence days!

August 14-15, 1947 meant the liberation of 400 million South Asians from colonial rule.

I found this lovely article about Indian and Pakistani students celebrating that moment together in 1947 at UC Berkeley’s International House.

Source:
"Birth of New Nation Feted By Indian Students at UC"
The Berkeley Gazette, Berkeley, California, Mon, Aug 18, 1947, Page 11

Full text below…

1/5

Been meaning to check out the Berkeley South Asian Radical ...

2025-08-15T00:20:01Z

Been meaning to check out the Berkeley South Asian Radical History Walking Tour?

We just had 3 spots open up for this Sunday. Go grab them before they sell out:

- Sunday, August 17 at 10 AM - 3 spots left
- Sunday, September 21 at 10 AM - 8 spots left

https://www.berkeleysouthasian.org/tour/berkeley/

“‘Sarah thought she was being kidnapped,’ she said. ‘They ...

2025-08-13T16:15:04Z

“‘Sarah thought she was being kidnapped,’ she said. ‘They didn’t really explain anything to her at first, they just kind of quietly took her and her son and immediately put them in like an unmarked white van.’”

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/aug/13/new-zealand-woman-six-year-old-son-ice-detention-us-ntwnfb?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

After the devastating trans healthcare loss, activists are ...

2025-08-11T19:15:02Z

After the devastating trans healthcare loss, activists are realizing the danger of appealing to the Supreme Court

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2025/08/net-neutrality-advocates-wont-appeal-loss-say-they-dont-trust-supreme-court/

"But growing evidence suggests that the electricity bills of ...

2025-08-11T17:45:02Z

"But growing evidence suggests that the electricity bills of some Americans are rising to subsidize the massive energy needs of Big Tech as the U.S. competes in a race against China for artificial intelligence superiority." https://apnews.com/article/electricity-prices-data-centers-artificial-intelligence-fbf213a915fb574a4f3e5baaa7041c3a

“‘This place is controlled by goons in masks in unmarked ...

2025-08-09T16:15:02Z

“‘This place is controlled by goons in masks in unmarked vehicles chasing down American citizens just because of the color of their skin,’ Doilez said. ‘Nobody should be afraid of their own government. They're here to protect, to serve, not to be pirates.’ George and Esmeralda said they both voted for…President Donald Trump.”

https://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/couple-alleges-racial-profiling-in-border-patrol-stop-they-recorded-on-video/3883679/

"Some international students told CalMatters they have ...

2025-08-08T20:45:02Z

"Some international students told CalMatters they have changed their involvement in campus activities, from the routes they take on campus to avoid free speech areas, to the topics they include in their research projects, to scrubbing their social media posts and limiting their political activism."

https://calmatters.org/education/2025/08/international-students-california-universities/

"Now that he’s free, Leonardo José Colmenares Solórzano, ...

2025-08-04T22:15:02Z

"Now that he’s free, Leonardo José Colmenares Solórzano, a 31-year-old Venezuelan, wants the world to know that he was tortured over four months in a Salvadoran prison. He said guards stomped on his hands, poured filthy water into his ears and threatened to beat him if he didn’t kneel alongside other inmates and lick their backs."

https://www.techdirt.com/2025/08/04/now-that-theyre-free-venezuelan-men-sent-to-cecot-on-what-they-endured/