Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 4h

"Is the US losing the race with China for global leadership? No, I think that race is over. Even if Trump losees power in 2028, everything I see says that by then America will have fallen so far behind that it’s unlikely that we will ever catch up."
paulkrugman.substack.com/p/china-has-...

China Has Overtaken America

And Trump’s policies guarantee that we will never catch up

paulkrugman.substack.com

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Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 6h

"The greatest con in American political history isn’t just that Trump sold himself as their champion. It’s that Democrats stopped talking to them at all."
www.dailykos.com/stories/2025...

Trump won the America that Democrats forgot

President Donald Trump won in 2024 largely by arguing that he—unlike the Democrats—was focused on people’s economic insecurities. While Democrats debated Gaza, transgender rights, abortion, ...

www.dailykos.com

Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 6h

"A high-speed chase involving Border Patrol agents led to the pursued person’s arrest Tues afternoon on Chicago ’s South Side, authorities said, and footage from the scene shows protesters gathering before agents deployed a tear gas to disperse them."
apnews.com/article/chic...

High-speed Border Patrol chase ends in arrest, tear gas used on protesters on Chicago’s South Side

Authorities say a high-speed chase involving Border Patrol agents has led to the pursued driver's arrest.

apnews.com

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Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 7h

"Hundreds of people poured into the streets of Rogers Park, a result of months of work building solidarity and networks."
truthout.org/articles/whe...

When ICE Came to Our Chicago Neighborhood, We Were Ready to Respond

Hundreds of people poured into the streets of Rogers Park, a result of months of work building solidarity and networks.

truthout.org

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Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 7h

"In a remarkable series of avoidable mistakes, elected officials in Illinois have demonstrated to the rest of the country the impossibility of meaningful regulation of police use of surveillance technology."
truthout.org/articles/by-...

By Enabling Police Surveillance, Elected Officials Fuel Trump’s Agenda

Illinois officials have quietly constructed a statewide surveillance apparatus that fuels ICE’s deportation machine.

truthout.org

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Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 18h

Wordle 1,578 4/6

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Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 18h

"That they’ve gone along with Noem reflects how normalized lawbreaking has become in today’s Republican politics led by a 34-times-convicted felon and alleged rapist."
hartmannreport.com/p/why-are-ai...

Why Are Airport Managers Risking Their Jobs to Air GOP Propaganda?

Kristi Noem’s shutdown blame-game video could cost them fines and their livelihood...

hartmannreport.com

Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 18h

"A weekly newsletter about how right-wing extremism has exploited the weaknesses in American journalism, and what we can do about it."
www.stopthepresses.news/p/im-handing...

I’m handing out pro-democracy grades to the media

The Guardian gets an A, the NY Times gets a C, CBS gets an F

www.stopthepresses.news

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Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 21h

"These grades are just my opinions, based on whether the outlets follow the facts to expose the assault on our democratic system."
www.stopthepresses.news/p/im-handing...

I’m handing out pro-democracy grades to the media

The Guardian gets an A, the NY Times gets a C, CBS gets an F

www.stopthepresses.news

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Reposted by Bill Atkinson

Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 1d

"The current « antifa » scare is an attempt at generating a panic, by people who do panic for a living and who have, unfortunately, succeeded before, at great cost to the rest of us. The price of an « antifa » panic is likely more than we can bear."
snyder.substack.com/p/the-truth-...

The Truth about Panics

One is being generated right now

snyder.substack.com

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Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 1d

"The current « antifa » scare is an attempt at generating a panic, by people who do panic for a living and who have, unfortunately, succeeded before, at great cost to the rest of us. The price of an « antifa » panic is likely more than we can bear."
snyder.substack.com/p/the-truth-...

The Truth about Panics

One is being generated right now

snyder.substack.com

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Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 1d

"What’s the reason for this silence? As usual, I believe, it’s the mainstream media’s fear of identifying with those who oppose Trump. I often complain about “both-sidesing” in the press. But this failure of coverage is worse than that."
margaretsullivan.substack.com/p/the-media-...

The media is largely ignoring the trauma of millions. Here's why.

Plus: Watch George Stephanopolous pushes JD Vance with follow-up questions, cringe at Bari Weiss's pep talk to CBS journalists; and more

margaretsullivan.substack.com

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Reposted by Bill Atkinson

Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 1d

@climatecasino.net a doom Data Point for today.

Daniel Rutschman @skogsvakt.bsky.social · 1d

"Industrijätten SCA skövlar naturskogarna för samerna, Europas sista ursprungsbefolkning"

Långt och klargörande reportage i franska 'La Relève et La Peste'.

SCA är en skam för Sverige.

lareleveetlapeste.bsky.social @lareleveetlapeste.bsky.social · 22d

Dans le centre de la Suède, les Samis, dernier peuple autochtone d’Europe, voient leurs forêts ancestrales mourir sous les coupes du géant de l’industrie forestière SCA. La résistance inédite s’organise pour défendre les dernières forêts anciennes du pays. ⤵️ lareleveetlapeste.fr/le-geant-ind...

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Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 1d

@climatecasino.net a doom Data Point for today.

Daniel Rutschman @skogsvakt.bsky.social · 1d

"Industrijätten SCA skövlar naturskogarna för samerna, Europas sista ursprungsbefolkning"

Långt och klargörande reportage i franska 'La Relève et La Peste'.

SCA är en skam för Sverige.

lareleveetlapeste.bsky.social @lareleveetlapeste.bsky.social · 22d

Dans le centre de la Suède, les Samis, dernier peuple autochtone d’Europe, voient leurs forêts ancestrales mourir sous les coupes du géant de l’industrie forestière SCA. La résistance inédite s’organise pour défendre les dernières forêts anciennes du pays. ⤵️ lareleveetlapeste.fr/le-geant-ind...

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Reposted by Bill Atkinson

Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 2d

"The Brutality Is the Message: Why America’s Violence Against Immigrants Isn’t About Immigration."
hartmannreport.com/p/the-brutal...

The Brutality Is the Message: Why America’s Violence Against Immigrants Isn’t About Immigration

Every raid, every body slammed to the pavement, is a public ritual meant to teach us obedience. The goal isn’t enforcement — it’s submission...

hartmannreport.com

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Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 2d

The Brutality Is the Message: Why America’s Violence Against Immigrants Isn’t About Immigration
open.substack.com/pub/thomhart...

The Brutality Is the Message: Why America’s Violence Against Immigrants Isn’t About Immigration

Every raid, every body slammed to the pavement, is a public ritual meant to teach us obedience. The goal isn’t enforcement — it’s submission...

open.substack.com

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Reposted by Bill Atkinson

Prof. Eliot Jacobson @climatecasino.net · 2d

Back over 1.5°C again and on the way up.

Coral has tipped. AMOC, Amazon, boreal forests, Antarctica, Greenland, permafrost, etc., are tipping.

The Climate 8-ball says, "Not to be!"

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Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 2d

Gaza and Protest
open.substack.com/pub/snyder/p...

Gaza and Protest

Why freedom of speech matters

open.substack.com

1

Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 2d

"The Brutality Is the Message: Why America’s Violence Against Immigrants Isn’t About Immigration."
hartmannreport.com/p/the-brutal...

The Brutality Is the Message: Why America’s Violence Against Immigrants Isn’t About Immigration

Every raid, every body slammed to the pavement, is a public ritual meant to teach us obedience. The goal isn’t enforcement — it’s submission...

hartmannreport.com

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Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 2d

"For unfit “leaders”, mental health experts are most threatening. Because they have the potential to give away their secret: that their “leadership” is not leadership at all, & that the populace would be better off with no leader than a pathological one."
bandyxlee.substack.com/p/the-seriou...

THE SERIOUS AND IMMINENT THREAT OF DONALD TRUMP, Part 3

The Pathocratic Effects of Psychopathy

bandyxlee.substack.com

Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 2d

"The Guardian wrote a feature on us. We hold The Guardian in the highest regard. Their profile describing MeidasTouch as the biggest pro-democracy media voice in the United States was an incredibly meaningful moment for us in the history of our network."
www.meidasplus.com/p/this-is-wh...

This Is Why They Want Us Destroyed…

By Ben Meiselas

www.meidasplus.com

Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 2d

"Mike Johnson lies with a monotone smooth sliminess that reminds me of the character Kevin Spacey played in The Usual Suspects. But Vance tells preposterous lies with a tone of indignancy if you dare suggest that he might be full of shit."
www.meidasplus.com/p/this-weeke...

This Weekend in Politics, Bulletin 227

… JD Vance lied repeatedly on Sunday shows with his trademark smug insufferability.

www.meidasplus.com

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Reposted by Bill Atkinson

Jonathan Cohn @jonathancohn.bsky.social · 3d

An assault on the livability of the planet, the vitality of local economies, and the livelihood of workers because Trump wants to further enrich fossil fuel barons

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Trump officials cancel major solar project in latest hit to renewable energy

Esmeralda 7 in Nevada would have produced enough energy to power 2m homes

www.theguardian.com

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Bill Atkinson @atkinsopht.bsky.social · 2d

No.
Salt is dull.
Sugar sparkles.

Anonymous ⩜ @youranona.bsky.social · 3d

Two pairs of large, weathered hands hold small piles of fine white granules between thumb and forefinger, sprinkling them downward in symmetrical streams against a warm, dark brown background. The left stream appears as salt, the right as sugar, both indistinguishable in appearance. Centered below the falling granules is white text on a beige overlay: "Be careful who you trust. Salt and sugar look the same." The composition evokes caution through visual similarity and subtle wordplay.

Reposted by Bill Atkinson

Prof. Eliot Jacobson @climatecasino.net · 3d

Your 'moment of doom' for Oct. 12, 2025 ~ The end of bees.

"Fifteen species of bumblebee, which play a crucial role in pollinating peas, beans, peanuts and clover ... are now classified as threatened."

www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Number of wild bee species at risk of extinction in Europe doubles in 10 years

Number of endangered butterfly species also surging amid habitat destruction and global heating, finds study

www.theguardian.com

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