Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 31m

They make a very good point

ggwash.org/view/101232/...

Opinion: Everyone was “new” at some point, and even if they were born here, their family was “new” at one point too. They may have come here for work or for school. It may be a forever home, or a stop...

ggwash.org

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 42m

LR: "corporate sludge" is a good term for when cost cutting doesn't take into account the hidden soft costs that do not go away even as profits rise
www.thebignewsletter.com/p/corporate-...

Amazon Web Services Had a Very Bad Day, Amazon's Stock Price Did Not

The outage of Amazon Web Services caused hundreds of billions of damage, yet Amazon's stock went up. How do we account for all of that cost?

www.thebignewsletter.com

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 14h

Mike Johnson sure doesn't want those Epstein files released! I wonder why?

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 14h

I'm sure some future historian will use this as a metaphor for the past 274 days.
open.substack.com/pub/marygedd...

The Ballrooms of Babylon

As the White House collapses behind him, Trump declares victory over mud, Medicare, and math.

open.substack.com

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 15h

Books are the most wrenching thing that one has to downsize
reactormag.com/there-comes-...

There Comes a Time in Every Reader's Life When You Have to Move the Books - Reactor

A lot of books have come in and out of my front door. But now they all have to go out, because I’m moving.

reactormag.com

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 15h

Mayflower movers never recovered after the Colts left in the middle of the night.

Just saying.....
www.bizjournals.com/washington/n...

ACECO met with online hostility amid White House East Wing demolition controversy - Washington Business Journal

A Silver Spring demolition contractor has found itself at the center of White House East Wing demolition firestorm.

www.bizjournals.com

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 15h

Gee, I wonder how far $230 million would go to propping up the expiring healthcare subsidies?

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/21/u...

Trump Said to Demand Justice Dept. Pay Him $230 Million for Past Cases

www.nytimes.com

1

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 16h

Rightwing talking points: "crude racism, outlandish political conspiracy theories, brazen misogyny, medical quackery, and homophobia."
open.substack.com/pub/populari...

A month in the manosphere

One of the most significant political developments in the last few years is the emergence of the “manosphere,” a loose network of longform podcasts that are especially popular with young men.

open.substack.com

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 18h

The dear leader didn't even get a permit for construction...
apnews.com/article/trum...

The White House starts demolishing part of the East Wing to build Trump's ballroom

The White House has started tearing down part of the East Wing to build the ballroom President Donald Trump wants added to the building. Demolition started Monday.

apnews.com

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 18h

Thanks to SCOTUS and the excessive use of the shadow docket, "...there is now established precedent for not setting precedents and not explaining anything"
courthousenews.com/no-explanati...

No explanation

Are all those unexplained Supreme Court rulings a good thing or a bad thing? I have no explanation.

courthousenews.com

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 19h

Part of the existing White House is being demolished as construction continues on the ballroom no one but the deal leader wanted
www.axios.com/2025/10/20/t...

Photos: Trump hails demolition of part of White House for ballroom construction

Trump said he's "honored" that the project, which ethics experts cricticized, is under way "with zero cost" to taxpayers.

www.axios.com

1

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 1d

The good news: taxpayer money going to rejuvenate waterfront property

The bad news: only 1 of 533 miles of that waterfront is open to the public

www.thebanner.com/community/cl...

The hidden cost of saving the Chesapeake Bay: millions for private waterfronts

Virtually all of the Chesapeake Bay’s shoreline is privately owned, which means taxpayer-funded waterfront improvements go to properties with limited public access.

www.thebanner.com

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 1d

IF WDW follows through with their plans and actually recreates the Animation experience, then I applaud the progress even while missing the landmark
www.disneytouristblog.com/end-of-an-er...

End of an Era as Disney World Demolishes Iconic Hollywood Studios Archway

It's been a bittersweet year for Walt Disney World fans and a time of transition, as we've had to say some tough goodbyes ahead of demolition and construction for major new projects that'll open in

www.disneytouristblog.com

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 1d

Friday: MAGA declares Newsom is just being an alarmist
Saturday: test rains shrapnel down on the highway
Sunday: crickets from MAGA, the VP, and Pentagon Pete

open.substack.com/pub/robertre...

The Other Demonstration on Saturday

Friends,

open.substack.com

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 1d

Realizing that diversity is good for business, most company's are losing the "DEI" label and quietly continuing the practices
www.pcbb.com/bid/2025-10-20

Weighing Risks and Rewards as DEI Views Change

Though many organizations are pulling back their DEI efforts, some businesses have seen success from DEI and want to maintain their initiatives. We detail large corporations’ approaches and how to man...

www.pcbb.com

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 1d

Once again, a phone call with Putin and the dear leader shifts his position, mouthing Putin's talking points, and agreeing to meet him to decide Ukraine's fate
www.politico.eu/article/ukra...

Trump told Zelenskyy he’d try to end the war ‘on the current line’ in difficult White House meeting

Ukraine’s leader left Washington without a promise of Tomahawk missiles from his U.S. counterpart, but insiders blamed poor timing given events in the Middle East.

www.politico.eu

1

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 2d

Why would anyone ever trust the word of the US again?
wapo.st/4qoSuzi

Rubio promised to betray U.S. informants to get Trump’s El Salvador prison deal

To secure U.S. access to President Nayib Bukele’s notorious CECOT prison, Rubio agreed to turn over several MS-13 leaders central to a long-running Justice Department investigation.

wapo.st

1

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 3d

Banking on Tomorrow:
#SilentSunday 10.19.2025v
bankingontomorrow.blogspot.com/2025/10/sile...

#SilentSunday 10.19.2025v

bankingontomorrow.blogspot.com

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 3d

While the exposure is not new, the modern intensity of that exposure is
phys.org/news/2025-10...

Human ancestors were exposed to lead millions of years ago, and it shaped our evolution

When we think of lead poisoning, most of us imagine modern human-made pollution, paint, old pipes, or exhaust fumes.

phys.org

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 3d

He's right - when all reliable information comes with a cost and "... accessing it takes knowledge, desire and knowhow. Good information, and the ability to find it... is more and more a matter of privilege and money"
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/o...

‘Americans are democracy’s equivalent of second-generation wealth’: a Chinese journalist on the US under Trump

The long read: Once a stalwart of Hong Kong’s journalism scene, Wang Jian has found a new audience on YouTube, dissecting global politics and US-China relations since the pandemic. To his fans, he’s p...

www.theguardian.com

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 3d

it's a choice

follow @whitehouse.wtf
or @whitehouse-47.bsky.social

or both 🤔

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 3d

“Supercharging this law enforcement agency and at the same time you have oversight being eliminated”

www.propublica.org/article/trum...

How Trump is Building a Violent, Shadowy Federal Police Force

Trump’s DHS appointees have dismantled civil rights guardrails, protected agents’ anonymity and encouraged them to wear masks, threatened groups that stood in their way, and overwhelmed legal challeng...

www.propublica.org

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 3d

birds of a feather.....

Ron Filipkowski @ronfilipkowski.bsky.social · 3d

All the convicted felon Republicans love Trump since he has created an environment where they know they can crime as much as they want without any consequences.

Bela [AKA CarolHTucker, beladona Memorial, NeoBela, Belamomma] @belamomma.bsky.social · 3d

"very fine people"
www.techdirt.com/2025/10/17/c...

Convicted Fraudster Trevor Milton Rides His Trump Pardon To Another CEO Job, Somehow

While we chronicled the fall of Nikola, a company that promised over-the-road trucks built with hydrogen propulsion systems, it’s useful to note that it was literally only this past February …

www.techdirt.com