Note to those following the #rva code refresh closely. The tranche of emails provided to the public on the first module isn't comprehensive. I attended one of their office hours, was given two emails to contact w/ further questions, and my emails aren't in there. 🧵

#rva since we're on the topic of publicly available info, there are two competing Richmond FIOA Library bills on the agenda for the 12/08/25 city council meeting. Def recommend showing up to give public comment in support of transparency @ city hall.

Can't wait for the 2027 congressional inquiry into why the CIA AI told the DOD AI to order a drone strike in Wisconsin.

This sort of voter disenfranchisement is so common in #rva that we train canvassers to walk residents through applying to have their voting rights restored or check if they have been. In many cases, we're seemingly the first people to tell them this is possible.

I don't wanna sound too pessimistic here so I'll say I hope this is one of many bills introduced to protect folks from ICE brutality. Incrementally expanding the civil liability of ICE agents brutalizing residents cannot be the best we can do.

Tonight the #rva school board dealt a serious blow to collective bargaining in Richmond Public Schools. Their public facing message outlined the need for mutual compromise but they made sure the unions knew that they weren't required to take any public feedback into consideration on this topic.

They will call this practicality or fiduciary responsibility. It is cowardice and we should call it that.

When chaos erupts at the national level, some local officials will fail to raise the alarm and fight for the people they serve. Instead, they will attempt to quietly scale back policies and programs that protect the working class.

As Richmond watches Republicans & Trump drastically weaken key social welfare programs like Obamacare, food stamps, and Medicare we urge you to channel some of the outrage you feel into pressure on local officials to take a bolder and braver approach in supporting working class residents.

Amazon may have made VA a datacenter hub and be pumping money into the state for now but VA politicians would do well to remember they're a fair weather friend. If you need evidence of this, just look how Seattle is doing after effectively selling their city to Amazon.

Data centers create few long-term jobs, cause skyrocketing energy bills, and have major environmental impact. Meanwhile, Amazon just laid off 30k employees and the AI industry is already signaling the need for a government bailout.

When I was 24 I broke my wrist in a car accident & with permission from a sheriff that witnessed the accident got a ride from my step mom to the ER. A different sheriff showed up at the ER to tell me he should charge me w/ leaving the scene but wouldn't b/c he was such a nice guy

I think it's fair to say this framing is a little overblown but by many measures things have gotten harder for working class people. So I'd encourage folks to ask "Is this framing a huge problem or something I find personally annoying?"

Also Haley's son says some way wilder things in this piece

For both logistical and health reasons current American food systems rely on processed and fried foods just to meet the caloric needs. There's a reason Chipotle cannot stop giving people salmonella

I'm not trying to get spit in my Strange Mac

Tech guys six months ago: haha yes we’re cutting all this WASTEFUL spending by eliminating medical research and USAID

Tech guys now: yes I think taxpayers will be excited to bailout my non consensual pornography machine