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Melissa

@mkverson.bsky.social
1.5K followers 3K following 2.6K posts

Humanist, mom, earth lover.

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Reposted by Melissa
Robert Reich @rbreich.bsky.social · 3h
New research indicates Walmart is working to compile massive amounts of data on individual shoppers and potentially charge them different prices, despite the company’s denial. This shady tactic is called surveillance pricing, and Walmart isn’t the only corporation planning to use it. Watch.
youtu.be
The Shady World of Surveillance Pricing (Ft. Lina Khan)
Should corporations be able to weaponize your personal data to rip you off?Well, they may already be doing that thanks t
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Sanho Tree @sanho.bsky.social · 1h
Great interview with former FTC Chair Lina Khan about Surveillance Pricing — the technology by which Broligarchs and corporations can estimate your personal “pain point” so that they can shake every last penny out of your pockets. Ban it now!
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Dave Troy @davetroy.com · 1h
📻 NEW PODCAST: Gil Durán says explaining our politics without Thiel, Yarvin and the network state is like explaining 9/11 without Al-Qaeda. He joins me to talk tech fascism, crypto corruption, and the midterms. america2.news/podcast-nerd...
america2.news
Podcast: Nerd Reich Redux with Gil Durán
Gil joins Dave for a discussion of his recently-released New York Times bestselling book, "The Nerd Reich: Silicon Valley Fascism and the War on Democracy" and what it might mean for the midterms.
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Oliver Willis @owillis.bsky.social · 1h
the guy interviewing hegseth once held up a "rape melania" sign at a rally to try and blame democrats and he was one of the main people pushing the pizzagate conspiracy theory that inspired a would-be mass shooter.
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Ari Berman @ariberman.bsky.social · 2h
In 1868 Louisiana elected first Black congressman. He was never seated In 1875 Louisiana elected second Black congressman. He served just one term It took 114 years for Louisiana to elect another Black member of Congress And now Roberts Court wants to wipe out Black representation across South
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Katie Phang @katiephang.bsky.social · 2h
Soulless ghoul, Stephen Miller, has ordered DHS officials to have “inhumane” & "cruel" detention facilities. ICE is still on our streets terrorizing men, women, & children. I share one of the latest horrors in NJ & explain how ICE may be violating yet another court order: youtu.be/aA8UE8DDmPw?...
youtu.be
Trump’s ICE SPIRALS After COURT ORDER VIOLATION EXPOSED!?!
YouTube video by Katie Phang
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Jonathan Cohn @jonathancohn.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Terrible for the film industry to be owned by the Saudi government. What a joke the FCC is. apnews.com/article/para...
apnews.com
FCC grants Paramount's indirect ownership request for Gulf funds in Warner Bros. Discovery buyout
As Paramount looks to take over Warner Bros. Discovery, it’s racked up billions of dollars in financial backing from three Gulf countries.
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Mark Copelovitch @mcopelov.bsky.social · 2h
👇🎯 I, for one, also look forward to Elissa Slotkin, Brian Schatz, President Obama, & Ezra Douthglesias offering their thoughts on how the Republican Party has a Funny Words problem.
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Melissa @mkverson.bsky.social · 1h
(Whispers…) It always did! “Conservatism” as a governing identity is generally cover for authoritarian/totalitarian ends, where one specific group of people get to decide what everything means, which groups people must sort into, and how those groups may live their lives—in groups vs out groups.
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Bobby Kogan @bbkogan.bsky.social · 2h
The Big Beautiful Bill cut corporate income taxes pretty substantially. Corporate tax revenues came in even lower than expected.
corporate tax revenue was at around 1.7% of GDP when BBB was enacted. Now it's down to 1.2% of GDP.
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Eric Rauchway @rauchway.bsky.social · 2h
let's be honest there is more than one dril tweet for these times
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Right Wing Watch @rightwingwatch.bsky.social · 1h
Can't emphasize enough that "Bring Back Public Executions" has long been a fundamental tenet of radical Christian nationalists.
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Mark Copelovitch @mcopelov.bsky.social · 1h
Two men who should be in prison for the rest of their lives for unprecedented corruption & crimes against the Constitution & ~all of the laws.
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Dave Jorgenson @davejorgenson.bsky.social · 2h
If you’re voting by mail, do it soon!
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Oliver Willis @owillis.bsky.social · 4h
Trump debases science award by giving it to crackpot donor Musk www.dailykos.com/stories/2026...
dailykos.com
Trump debases science award by giving it to crackpot donor Musk
The president treats a top honor as a donor reward.
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jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 4h
vance is more like the reincarnation of alexander stephens, one of the Contemptible Little Pig Men of the 19th century american history
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Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 17h
New, from me: Kimberly Guilfoyle was caught soliciting money for government favors. Normally we call that a bribe. If she is corrupt, it is only because she has adapted to Trump's corrupt environment, where everything is for sale. 🧵 donmoynihan.substack.com/p/stop-paper...
donmoynihan.substack.com
“Stop Papering Things”: Corruption in Trump's America
Kimberly Guilfoyle is one more symptom of endemic graft under Trump
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Oliver Willis @owillis.bsky.social · 4h
describing elon musk as racist is not partisan. it is a clear description of a major figure that has tons of evidence to back it up. when the mainstream press chooses to ignore this, they are endorsing his bigotry.
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Cheryl Rofer @cherylrofer.bsky.social · 4h
Now I've listened to the other half. If you want the bong session, listen to the first half. If you want the important things that the news is mostly not covering, start about halfway through.
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Chris Geidner @chrisgeidner.bsky.social · 4h
Here’s the superseding Maduro indictment: storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
storage.courtlistener.com
Indictment – #342 in United States v. Carvajal-Barrios (S.D.N.Y., 1:11-cr-00205) – CourtListener.com
(S5) SUPERSEDING REDACTED INDICTMENT FILED as to Nicolas Maduro Moros (2) count(s) 1ss, 2ss, 3ss, 4ss, 5ss, Cilia Adela Flores De Maduro (8) count(s) 1s, 2s, 3s, 4s, 5s. (jm)(Filed under seal on 10/6/...
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emptywheel @emptywheel.bsky.social · 5h
In the Broadview 6 case, DOJ has filed an apparently sealed request to release grand jury material. Judge Perry was like, "Sure, but you already did that." I have noted that the existing transcript does not match known events.
MINUTE entry before the Honorable April M. Perry: The Government's request to disclose grand jury materials 272 is granted. That said, the Court notes that the 10/9, 10/16, and 10/23 Grand Jury transcripts - in both redacted and almost entirely unredacted form - are already on the public docket. See Doc. 129-1; 129-2; 229-1; 219; 220; 221. Mailed notice. (jcc,) (Entered: 10/08/2026)
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Ashton Pittman @ashtonpittman.bsky.social · 4h
This should be shocking to the senses. The fact that it isn't surprising says a lot.
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Melissa @mkverson.bsky.social · 4h
Yes, but also being a wealthy Nazi/confederate/apartheid adjacent family’s failson helps too. So, yes, it’s eugenics.
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Victor Ray @victorerikray.bsky.social · 5h
so...eugenics
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Victor Ray @victorerikray.bsky.social · 4h
For JD Vance, I think this involves calipers and measuring the distance between people's eyes.
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Catherine Rampell @crampell.bsky.social · 4h
Trump admin is suspending a bunch of tech companies (Microsoft, Adobe, Cognizant, Infosys, Tata, Wipro, HCL, Capgemini) from participation in the H-1B PERM program, alleging fraud. Some other tech firms (Apple, Amazon, Google, etc.) notably absent from the list.
apnews.com
The Trump administration is suspending Microsoft from a green card program, alleging fraud
The Trump administration is suspending tech giant Microsoft from a program to apply for green cards for workers who come to the U.S. to live and work using H-1B visas, accusing the company of fraud.
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Catherine Rampell @crampell.bsky.social · 4h
Never forget: www.theguardian.com/media/2019/f...
theguardian.com
'Germs are not a real thing': Fox News host says he hasn't washed hands in 10 years
Pete Hegseth denies existence of germs, saying: ‘I can’t see them, therefore they’re not real’
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emptywheel @emptywheel.bsky.social · 13h
After this story posted, Steven Cheung stopped following James Blair. Trump is pretending he'll "fire" them. It can't be the Russian influence. I suspect it's that they got caught caring more about Russian puppets than GOPers in the US. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/06/u...
But it is notable that the trip to Republika Srpska, from which Mr. Blair and Mr. LaCivita returned on Monday, came as they were playing key roles in the Trump team’s efforts to limit Democratic gains and preserve Republican control of Congress.

Mr. Blair, who was the political director of Mr. Trump’s 2024 campaign, left his role as a deputy chief of staff at the White House in the spring to run MAGA Inc., the Trump-backed super PAC expected to spend heavily to help Republican candidates from the $415 million it had in the bank at the end of August. Mr. LaCivita, the co-manager of Mr. Trump’s 2024 campaign, is a senior adviser to MAGA Inc.
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Prisonculture @prisonculture.bsky.social · 11h
The deployment of National Guard troops into cities has been so normalized that it barely merits a mention in the press or among the public anymore. D.C. remains occupied, Memphis is occupied, so is New Orleans... It's incredible to me.
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Melissa @mkverson.bsky.social · 10h
They all find their way to forced birth.
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Prisonculture @prisonculture.bsky.social · 11h
The solution demanded and offered is never to simply adopt universal healthcare free at the point of service...
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🗽LOLGOP🗽 @lolgop.bsky.social · 10h
“… experts discussed how to counter Russian disinformation, but all the discussions about countering US disinformation lacked ambition… and therefore didn’t address the extent to which trolls in official positions, like Rogers, are themselves vectors for Russian disinformation.”
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emptywheel @emptywheel.bsky.social · 11h
Sarah Rogers Censors Conference on Disinformation emptywheel.net/2026/10/08/s...
emptywheel.net
Sarah Rogers Censors Conference on Disinformation - emptywheel
The Undersecretary of State for Public Diplomacy Sarah Rogers pressured the EU, Lithuania, and Canada into pulling support for a disinformation conference that already had pulled its punches when disc...
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ProPublica @propublica.org · 19h
The government doesn’t track how often immigration agents detain U.S. citizens. So ProPublica did. We’ve tallied more than 500 Americans held against their will in warrantless arrests and detentions during President Trump’s second term.
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Lawrence Hurley @lawrencehurley.bsky.social · 20h
This whole scheme is nuts
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Jay Willis @jaywillis.net · 07/10/2026
I don't think the Supreme Court is going to get rid of same-sex marriage tomorrow, but when the justice who says that overturning a landmark case is "not realistic" is the *same guy who wrote the opinion overturning Roe v. Wade*, you should not take anything he says seriously
ballsandstrikes.org
Sam Alito Wants You to Forget How the Conservative Legal Movement Always Works
Activists are chipping away at the Supreme Court’s decision in Obergefell because Alito told them exactly how to do it.
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mtsw @mtsw.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
The Plot to Enslave America requires them to destroy the notion of reality and truth. They will use the legal immunity conferred by the captured courts and the technology the tech oligarchs have developed to hasten this plan by flooding the information environment with fake video.
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Mark Copelovitch @mcopelov.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Along with the NSF/NIH/Title VI/FLAS budget cuts, an existential crisis for research universities in America. It would be nice if our chancellors & presidents finally decided that today was the day to get in front of microphones, together, & speak out against all of these disastrous policies.
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Democracy Docket @democracydocket.com · 07/10/2026
🎥 NEW: ICE never wanted you to see the internal documents it released last week. Why? It went so far as to outline a plan to use undercover agents to target nonprofits for registering voters. Marc Elias explains how deeply ICE has become involved in elections under Trump's second term👇
youtube.com
ICE Voter Plot EXPOSED in Smoking Gun Documents
YouTube video by Democracy Docket
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Alexander Kasprzyk @amkasprzyk.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
OpenAI didn’t simply stumble upon all these results down the side of the sofa whilst cleaning. They chose to systematically invest huge sums of money to produce them. And to keep on going. And going. And going. They systematically took our motivational questions, perhaps with the… #MathSky #LLM
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Taulby Edmondson @taulby.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
So what? Tell him to go fuck himself. I do not understand what is so difficult about that for organizations that he has zero control of.
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Austin Kocher, PhD @austinkocher.com · 07/10/2026
Ste. Genevieve is one of the rural Missouri county jails that holds an ICE detention contract. I wrote earlier this year about how county jail contracts shape immigration enforcement around St. Louis. austinkocher.substack.com/p/all-imm…
austinkocher.substack.com
All Immigration Enforcement Is Local: A City-Wide Conversation about Immigration Law, Policy, and Data in St. Louis
I'm heading to St. Louis March 5-8 for four days of public events on immigration enforcement with the Ashrei Foundation. Here's what the week looks like and how to join us.
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Ryan Goodman @rgoodlaw.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
"The Archdiocese of St. Louis has filed a lawsuit ... claims that the Ste. Genevieve County Jail and ICE have violated the First Amendment rights of immigrant detainees by preventing Catholic priests from delivering communion, hearing confessions and celebrating Mass." fox2now.com/news/missour...
fox2now.com
Archdiocese of St. Louis sues ICE officials over blocked religious services
The Archdiocese of St. Louis has filed a lawsuit against Ste. Genevieve County officials and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) leadership over alleged restrictions on Catholic religiou…
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CREW @citizensforethics.org · 07/10/2026
Months ago, we called for an IG investigation into a $620 million Pentagon loan to a Trump Jr.-linked company. Now, Trump's sons' investments are tied to over $6 billion in active or promised government contracts. This is exactly why we need answers.
abcnews.com
Trump sons' investments have won billions in Pentagon contracts since his election
The contract for a new plant in Baltimore is the latest linked to the brothers.
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Teddy Wilson @reportbywilson.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
KKK attempts ‘Knights Party’ rebrand while maintaining white nationalist beliefs
thegrio.com
KKK attempts ‘Knights Party’ rebrand while maintaining white nationalist beliefs
Ku Klux Klan rebrand, putting family and faith at the center of the group’s message as it claims growing support before the midterms.
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Mark Copelovitch @mcopelov.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
No, come on man. Where have you been for the last 40 years?
Debt/GDP since 1970s.
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Brian Finucane @bcfinucane.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
"I can do whatever I want, if I want." Today is the 10th anniversary of the public revelation of Trump's 'Access Hollywood' comments.
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Marisa Kabas @marisakabas.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Horrifying: Arizona Democratic congressional candidate Bernadette Greene-Placentia was raped by a man after he knocked her out. Another man approached her to do the same. “She began swinging her foot at him. ‘Not even worth it,’ she heard the man say as he moved away.”
phoenixnewtimes.com
Congressional candidate is raped while repairing her campaign signs
Embarrassed, she initially didn’t want to report attack. Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office's investigation is ongoing.
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