Author | Lightnews

Reposted by Meghan Scott Molin

Alt CDC (they/them) @altcdc.altgov.info · 2d

This is bad. Very bad.

DHS quietly eliminates ban on surveillance based on sexual orientation and gender identity

The DHS quietly updated its policy manual earlier this month, removing LGBTQ+ identities from the section prohibiting surveillance based solely on immutable characteristics.

www.advocate.com

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Mike Chen @mikechenwriter.bsky.social · 19h

I found a really good summary of why the White House's demolition process is illegal. It's in the comments of this architect trade journal/forum archinect.com/forum/thread...

1. Initial Proposal: The White House is managed by the National Park Service (NPS) but used by the Executive Office of the President (EOP). Any proposed change, even by a sitting president, begins internally through the Office of the Curator and the White House Facilities Management Division.

2. Historic Review: The NPS, as custodian of the White House under the Presidential Residence Act and National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), must review all alterations for compliance with Section 106 of the NHPA. This requires assessing potential impacts on historic and cultural resources in consultation with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) and the D.C. State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO).

3. Planning & Environmental Oversight: The National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) evaluates all major federal projects in the National Capital Region, including work on the White House grounds, for design, planning, and environmental impacts under NEPA (the National Environmental Policy Act). Public comment and design reviews are part of that process.

4. Aesthetic Review: The U.S. Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) reviews and advises on the design and appearance of any exterior modifications to the White House or its grounds.

5. Final Authorization: After approvals from NPS, NCPC, and CFA, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the White House Chief Usher / Facilities Management Office finalize funding, scheduling, and logistics.

Only after completing this full process could any major construction or demolition legally begin.

Section 107, let’s talk about it.

The above process has always been the process taken, and here’s why.

Section 107 of the National Historic Preservation Act exempts the White House, the U.S. Capitol, and the Supreme Court from being legally required to go through the Act’s formal Section 106 review. In other words, the law doesn’t automatically force those branches to follow the same procedures as other federal buildings. That exemption exists only because each branch of government controls its own seat of power, it was never intended as a free pass to ignore preservation, planning, or environmental rules altogether.

In practice, every administration since the 1960s has followed the same review structure out of duty, accountability, and executive-branch policy. The White House is still federal property, managed by the National Park Service under the Presidential Residence Act and subject to Executive Order 11593, which requires federal agencies to protect and consult on historic resources. Major exterior or site work still triggers National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) and U.S. Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) design reviews, along with NEPA environmental assessments. Any project involving government resources must also comply with the Anti-Deficiency Act and federal ethics rules on funding and gifts.

Section 107 means the NHPA can’t force compliance, but presidents are still bound by a network of executive orders, planning statutes, environmental laws, and constitutional duties. That’s why the process described isn’t optional, it’s the framework that has always protected the people’s house from unilateral or politically motivated alteration.

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Courtney Milan @courtneymilan.com · 3d

Hey, so another piece of advice for people who are S-Corps: there is a company called Opolis that acts as your employer of record and will provide health insurance and other benefits.

John Scalzi @scalzi.com · 3d

If you're a writer/other creator in the United States, consider creating an LLC for your business and then signing up for a local area Chamber of Commerce. Many of them have health insurance plans that pool their members and members of other CoCs to create insurance efficiencies relative to ACA.

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Chris Murphy @chrismurphyct.bsky.social · 2d

I find it amazing too that Republicans’ boycott of Washington isn’t the biggest story of them all.

The shutdown can’t end if they refuse to show up for work.

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John Scalzi @scalzi.com · 3d

If you're a writer/other creator in the United States, consider creating an LLC for your business and then signing up for a local area Chamber of Commerce. Many of them have health insurance plans that pool their members and members of other CoCs to create insurance efficiencies relative to ACA.

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Rachel F @bibli0rach.bsky.social · 2d

You guys, I had to go in front of the Landmark Preservation Committee and got my plans for safety renovations DENIED because the changes would disturb the vision of the architect (Michael Graves, deceased) on an under 30 year old building. This is madness.

Carin Ruff @carinr.bsky.social · 2d

Short 🧵 of White House-related resources. 1st, from an unexpected source (an engineering news publication), a very helpful overview of what has happened, what preservation review should have happened, and related matters: www.enr.com/articles/616...

White House Ballroom Build Advances as Oversight Gaps Emerge

Crews are remaking the East Wing for a $200-million White House ballroom as questions rise over design review and oversight.

www.enr.com

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Reposted by Meghan Scott Molin

NBC News @nbcnews.com · 15d

Latest: Some 500 National Guard members have arrived in the Chicago area and are mobilized for an initial period of 60 days, despite an ongoing lawsuit challenging their deployment there, according to a statement from U.S. Northern Command.

500 National Guard troops arrive in Chicago area amid resistance from Illinois governor

The troops, composed of units from Texas and Illinois, are based at an Army Reserve station about an hour southwest of Chicago.

nbcnews.to

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NPR @npr.org · 15d

The price of gold hit $4,000 per ounce for the first time ever. It's a bad sign for the U.S. economy n.pr/4mYSvqy

Why gold is having its best year since 1979

The price of gold hit $4,000 per ounce for the first time ever. It's a bad sign for the U.S. economy

n.pr

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Mike Chen @mikechenwriter.bsky.social · 15d

I was on @megdowell.com's podcast to discuss the Revenge of the Sith novelization and how that ties back into how I used a very specific Twitter moment to help put me in front of the Star Wars editorial team.

Listen: open.spotify.com/episode/6dAH...

Conrad Hackett @conradhackett.bsky.social · 16d

Has anything great happened in your life because of social media?

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Rep. Ro Khanna @khanna.house.gov · 15d

@democracynow.org had @adelitaforcongress.bsky.social and me on together to explain that she is not being sworn in because she is the 218th signatory for the release of the Epstein files. Swear her in today.

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Kyle Cheney @kyledcheney.bsky.social · 15d

JUST IN: A federal judge has granted the New York Times’ demand for a list of Elon Musk’s security clearances. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

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Sly 🐺 @slywolfy.bsky.social · 15d

You gotta go into the sourced court docs but he was fedposting to chatgpt at the time the fire started, had a history of being really focused on fire with image genAIs, and they have video & gps data to show he was exactly where it started when it started and that it grew too fast to be from a cig

NPR @npr.org · 15d

Authorities have charged a 29-year-old man in connection to starting the Palisades Fire, which killed 12 people and destroyed more than 6,800 homes and buildings. (via @laist.com)

Uber driver charged in connection with starting the Palisades Fire

The Palisades Fire erupted on Jan. 7 and went on to kill 12 people and destroy more than 6,800 homes and buildings.

n.pr

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AltSSA @altssa.altgov.info · 15d

Hey, Christians!! This is what it looks like to be oppressed for your beliefs!! Rev. David Black, hit in the face with pepper balls while praying. Where’s your righteous anger for his suffering???

Psalms 105:15 “Saying touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm.”

Don’t worry, I’ll wait.

Preorder Read This When Things Fall Apart @mskellymhayes.bsky.social · Sep 20

CW: protester being struck in the head by a pepper ball

Footage I took earlier of the moment Reverend David Black, a regular protester outside of the Broadview Detention Center, was shot in the head with a pepper ball by ICE agents on the roof of the facility.

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Reuters @reuters.com · Sep 24

Diamonds and drones: Pakistan tax unit scans social media for evasion reut.rs/3KfQp85

Diamonds and drones: Pakistan tax unit scans social media for evasion

Diamond sets and a drone light show at a near-million-dollar wedding have become evidence for Pakistan's tax authorities under a new "Lifestyle Monitoring Cell" tasked with scanning social media for lavish spenders, officials said.

reut.rs

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Preorder Read This When Things Fall Apart @mskellymhayes.bsky.social · Sep 15

Do not assume that everything they set out to do is inevitable. They have been successfully fought on multiple fronts, from courtroom wins that have actually stuck to city and state governments that haven't backed down, to activists in the streets organizing against their violence.

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Meghan Scott Molin @meghanscottmolin.bsky.social · Sep 16

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Mike Chen @mikechenwriter.bsky.social · Sep 15

Battle doomscrolling by posting 5 small pleasures in life:

1. Dogs
2. Dogs
3. Dogs
4. Dogs
5. Coffee

Cass Morris @cassmorriswrites.com · Sep 15

Battle doomscrolling by posting 5 small pleasures in life:

1: Driving with the windows down in lovely weather
2: When a dog flops their fuzzy little head into your lap
3: Pouring yourself a glass of your preferred beverage
4: Random texts from old friends
5: Clothes you feel cute in

Preeti Chhibber @runwithskizzers.bsky.social · Sep 15

Battle doomscrolling by posting 5 small pleasures in life:

1. Reading the same book as a friend so you can discuss

2. Beating the hard part of a video game

3. Making a fav take out food at home

4. Seeing new pics of my niece WHO IS THE CUTEST BABY EVER

5. Nice, cool days as we shift to fall

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Meghan Scott Molin @meghanscottmolin.bsky.social · Jul 30

Okay, anyone else that is watching #SummerIturnedPretty Season 3? Aging Belly up to 21 instead of 18/19 has fallen flat for me where her parents are concerned. I get being upset if your 18yo is getting married, but 21? After 3 years together? It now feels like such a forced plot driver.

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Meghan Scott Molin @meghanscottmolin.bsky.social · Apr 28

This needs to end with: term limits in congress, no more lobbyists, a thorough review of our Supreme Court representatives and their actions, and legislation up to the EYEBALLS so this can never happen again. Y'know. After we get THIS crew in jail for treason.

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Meghan Scott Molin @meghanscottmolin.bsky.social · Apr 14

almost zero chance the man is still alive but... this is just proof that the administration plans to permanently disappear people into concentration camps. No due process. No retrieval. Just outright murder.

George Pearkes @peark.es · Apr 14

*BUKELE: DEPORTED MARYLAND MAN WILL NOT RETURN TO US

Reposted by Meghan Scott Molin

George Takei @georgetakei.bsky.social · Apr 14

"Do you know one thing I never did to cope or in response to my autism? Repeatedly fire off a Nazi Roman salute." An incredible piece from The Big Picture that doesn’t hold back.

Neither Neurodivergence Nor Mental Illness Made Them Bigots—They're Just Awful People

It's hard to admit your heroes are jerks, but the mentally ill and neurodivergent shouldn't be collateral damage.

thinkbigpicture.substack.com

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Kyle Griffin @kylegriffin1.bsky.social · Mar 26

Sen. Tammy Duckworth calls on Pete Hegseth to resign:

"Pete Hegseth is a f*cking liar. This is so clearly classified info he recklessly leaked that could've gotten our pilots killed. He needs to resign in disgrace immediately."

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Tim Onion @bencollins.bsky.social · Mar 26

The Massachusetts governor, the city, and the university needs to drop everything to locate and free this girl and make sure this doesn't happen again.

This is DEFCON-1. If they do this to someone who wrote an op-ed in a college newspaper, they will do this to anyone they don't like.

Matt Novak @paleofuture.bsky.social · Mar 26

Video of the international student at Tufts being arrested by "federal authorities" in Massachusetts has been released and it's terrifying.

They're not even uniformed officers. Just secret police thugs in hoodies and masks.

From WCVB: youtu.be/PuFIs7OkzYY

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Meghan Scott Molin @meghanscottmolin.bsky.social · Mar 27

Keep going!!!

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Shannon Watts @shannonrwatts.bsky.social · Mar 26

"...the Nazi regime managed to keep on track a capitalist economy governed by stable laws—and maintain a day-to-day normalcy for many of its citizens—while at the same time establishing a domain of lawlessness and state violence to realize its terrible vision of ethno-nationalism."

America Is Watching the Rise of a Dual State

For most people, the courts will continue to operate as usual—until they don’t.

www.theatlantic.com

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