Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 2m

Holy smokes -- I started scrolling through my feed and saw the image on the left, and thought "OH MY GOD, NOW HE'S DISMANTLING THE CAPITOL!!!"

Completely plausible.

And Mike Johnson would stand in the rotunda, covered in stone dust, and say, "I haven't seen that, so I'm not going to comment..."

Kevin M. Levin @civilwarmemory.bsky.social · 13m

In the midst of civil war, Lincoln chose to complete the construction of our temple to democracy. This president has chosen to dismantle it brick by brick.

Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 3m

Holy smokes -- I started scrolling through my feed and saw the image on the left, and thought "OH MY GOD, NOW HE'S DISMANTLING THE CAPITOL!!!"

Completely plausible.

And Mike Johnson would stand in the Rotunda, covered in stone dust, and say, "I haven't seen that, so I'm not going to comment..."

Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 11m

"In the 1500s this bug was combined with bear (as in the animal) to form bugbear, even though there is little evidence that either a bug or bugbear took an ursine form."

...but the key in all this is "imaginary spooky creatures"...

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Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 45m

Let’s start with the bug in bugbear, which refers not to an insect, but instead comes from the Middle English word bugge. This bugge was used for all kinds of imaginary spooky creatures — from ghosts and goblins to scarecrows — that cause fright or dread." /3

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Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 47m

"...based on its earliest known uses, bugbear began as an all-purpose word for things that cause fear or dread, not just supernatural beasties. This sense is still in use today, alongside the closely related sense of “a continuing source of irritation or annoyance.” /2

Definition of BUGBEAR

an imaginary goblin or specter used to excite fear; an object or source of dread; a continuing source of irritation : problem… See the full definition

www.merriam-webster.com

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Reposted by Dave Tait

Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 2h

There's a technical term for what antifa is; it's "bugbear."

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Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 58m

This will deny you a great deal of first-rate comedy.

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Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 1h

Don't start thinking "I got this!"

You don't.

Not yet.

Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 1h

Look to the left. I've turned.

Jeremy Littau @jeremylittau.com · 4h

Drop an old person you’re going to turn into in the future.

Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 1h

Do they work on commission?

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Reposted by Dave Tait

𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚕𝚎𝚜 𝙲. 𝙼𝚊𝚗𝚗 @charlescmann.bsky.social · 3h

This is remarkable. Four giant dams on the Klamath River along the CA-Oregon border were taken down last year. This year, salmon migrated all the way to the river headwaters, a 300-mile journey from the Pacific to central Oregon, for the first time since 1909. A fantastic success.

Salmon reach headwaters for first time in a century after California dam removal

Klamath River salmon have crossed a major threshold after dams were removed along the California-Oregon border, with the fish reaching the river’s headwaters for the first time in more than a...

www.sfchronicle.com

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Reposted by Dave Tait

The Fake History Hunter @fakehistoryhunter.net · 3h

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Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 2h

There's a technical term for what antifa is; it's "bugbear."

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Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 2h

Ooooooooooooo...I hope you're knocking on wood...

Reposted by Dave Tait

Marisa Kabas @marisakabas.bsky.social · 5h

this RULES

ct @cteeze-nuts.bsky.social · 6h

I like how the NYT tried to do a “some experts say” framing, and the expert was like, you do not need an expert opinion to see this is bad.

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Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 3h

And they're already accepting beardos -- Hegseth must be serious on Noem's case.

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Reposted by Dave Tait

Judah Grunstein @judah-grunstein.bsky.social · 5h

"In most ways, the Louvre heist bears little resemblance to Sarkozy’s conviction. But they share one thing in common: Both were crimes committed against le patrimoine national, or the national heritage that belongs ... to all French people."

Of course I had to write about the heist. Gift link.

A Tale of Two Crimes in France

In most ways, the Louvre heist bears little resemblance to the conviction of Nicolas Sarkozy. But they share one thing in common.

www.worldpoliticsreview.com

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Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 3h

Or paid for with the $230 million settlement he'll order his people at DOJ to pay him to cover "his" contribution...

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Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 3h

Wait...so this is almost exactly the cost of the new White House ballroom that he and private donors are supposed to be paying for...

So has the plan all along been that DOJ will settle with Trump for $230m, and then he'll make that "his" ballroom contribution, meaning taxpayers ARE paying for it?

The New York Times @nytimes.com · 6h

Breaking News: President Trump wants $230 million from the Justice Department for investigating him, people familiar with the matter say. Any settlement might ultimately be approved by senior department officials who defended him or those in his orbit. nyti.ms/4hmIi5X

Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 3h

Wait...so this is almost exactly the cost of the new White House ballroom that he and private donors are supposed to be paying for...

So has the plan all along been that DOJ will settle with Trump for $230m, and then he'll make that "his" ballroom contribution, meaning taxpayers ARE paying for it?

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Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 4h

"Murky floodwaters submerged berry-picking sites and hunting trails where valuable knowledge has been passed down for generations – the kind of lessons that aren’t taught in schools. It unearthed elders’ graves, a symbolic wound in a place where land and kinship are inseparable."

Swept away homes, unearthed graves, submerged hunting trails: how Typhoon Halong destroyed an Alaskan village

Nearly all of Kipnuk’s 700 residents were evacuated, but when they return the effects of climate crisis will still loom

www.theguardian.com

Reposted by Dave Tait

Kori Schake @kschake.bsky.social · 7h

Infuriating quote from President Trump: “Both sides should go home, go to their families, stop the killing.” The Ukrainians are home. A home that’s been invaded by Russia.

White House says no Putin-Trump summit anytime soon

The decision came after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Trump’s call for a ceasefire contradicted the understandings he reached with Putin.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 8h

Luckily, they have role models:

'David Laska, a New York Republican Party spokesman, [said] the state organization is under no obligation to pay off the club’s debts.

“The New York State Young Republicans are a separately incorporated legal entity,” Laska said. “That entity owes that debt.” ' /5

Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 8h

'Benedicte Doran, the former Onondaga County Republican Committee chair, said she tried to intervene and convince Giunta to pay up even though her group [wasn't responsible]…

“I did everything I could to get the guy to do the right thing, and he didn’t do it,” Doran said. “He’s just a bad guy.”' /4

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Dave Tait @davetait.bsky.social · 8h

“...the day before the event,...he said he was going to come with a check,” she said. “And then he had like 13 excuses: That somebody forgot the checkbook and he didn’t have it. Then there was a fraud. And their bank account was compromised. It was like this kid had every excuse in the book.” /3

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