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Nichol Simmons

@nicholsimmons.bsky.social
333 followers 589 following 183 posts

I've written newscasts, podcasts, short stories, features, & shorts. Sometimes I even get paid. Sundance award-winner, 2x Nicholl semi-finalist. Posts are my personal thoughts and opinions. She/they

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Reposted by Nichol Simmons
Ben Collins @bencollins.bsky.social · 15/10/2026
The immutable, unnamed American law of The Dumbest Thing That Can Happen Will Happen dictates that the Democrats will win the House handily, as projected, and take the Senate 51-49, making John Fetterman the most powerful flesh husk in America for the next 24 months.
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Bloody Disgusting @bloody-disgusting.com · 13/10/2026
Ryan Coogler's THE X-FILES reboot has been officially ordered to series over at Hulu. Himesh Patel & Danielle Deadwyler star. Two FBI agents form an unlikely bond when they are assigned to a long-shuttered division devoted to cases involving unexplained phenomena.
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Nichol Simmons @nicholsimmons.bsky.social · 13/10/2026
@blairbraverman.bsky.social is an incredibly gifted storyteller who brings these true survival stories to life in a way you won't be able to stop listening to. Even if you think you're not a podcast person, I urge you to give this one a try.
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Aaron Reichlin-Melnick @reichlinmelnick.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
This thing has made me go do a lot of reading tonight, and the Wikipedia page about the last public execution in the United States is well-written. It was Rainey Bethea, a Black man hanged in front of a crowd of 20,000 in 1936, a spectacle which embarrassed Kentucky enough that they ended hangings.
Hanna placed the noose around Bethea's neck, adjusted it, and then signaled to Hash to pull the trigger. Instead, Hash, who was drunk, did nothing. Hanna shouted at Hash, "Do it!" A deputy then leaned onto the trigger, which sprang the trap door. citation needed! Bethea fell 8 feet (2.4 m), and his neck was instantly broken.
Afterward, two doctors confirmed he was dead.
His body was taken to Andrew & Wheatley
Funeral Home. Icitation needed! He wanted his body to be sent to his sister in South Carolina so that she could arrange for him to be interred next to his father, but against these wishes, he was buried in a pauper's grave at Owensboro Cemetery (also known as City Cemetery and
"Potter's Field") in Owensboro. 14]It was estimated that a crowd of about 20,000 people gathered to watch the execution.!9! One man, 36-year-old Leonard A. Peters, was killed in a car accident while driving to Owensboro to witness the hanging. Three others, including his wife, were injured. 15. Afterwards, Hanna complained that Hash should not have been allowed to perform the execution in his drunken
condition. Hanna further said it was the worst display he experienced in the 70 hangings he had supervised. citation needed]
The spot where the scaffold stood
(approximately 37.775248° -87.116462°) is now part of a drop-off/pick-up lane in front of the Owensboro Convention Center. citation needed]へ
End of public executions in
Kentucky
As the Kentucky General Assembly had been meeting in its biennial sessions at the time, the media circus surrounding the Bethea execution embarrassed members of the Kentucky
legislature. In spite of the humiliation, they could not amend laws regarding executions until the next session in 1938. However, the trial judges in two separate Kentucky rape cases ordered that the hangings of John "Pete" Montjoy and Harold Van Venison be conducted privately. Montjoy, age 23, was privately hanged in Covington on December 17, 1937.On January 17, 1938, William R. Attkisson of the Kentucky State Senate's 38th District (representing Louisville), introduced Senate Bill 69, repealing the requirement in Section 1137 that executions for convicted rapists be conducted by hanging in the county seat where they raped their victims. The bill was promoted in the Kentucky House of Representatives by Representative Charles W. Anderson Jr., one of the attorneys who assisted Bethea in his post-conviction relief motions.
After both houses approved the bill, Governor Chandler signed it into law on March 12, 1938; it became effective on May 30 of that year.
Chandler later expressed regret at having approved the repeal, claiming, "Our streets are no longer safe." The last person ever legally hanged in Kentucky was Harold Van Venison, a
33-year-old African-American singer, who was privately executed in Covington on June 3, 1938.
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Akilla Cooper @akelacooper.bsky.social · 11/10/2026
CALIFORNIANS NEED TO SPREAD THIS FAR AND WIDE. Too many voters are low information and will vote yes on all three w/o realizing the latter cancels out the former
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Arizona Right Watch @azrww.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
NEW: Tohono O'odham Nation leadership issued a release announcing that they’ve filed an emergency injunction after been informed by CBP that “it intends to remove thousands of Saguaros and other vegetation,” on sovereign tribal lands. The destruction is set to begin on Indigenous Peoples Day.
TOHONO O'ODHAM NATION OFFICE OF THE CHAIRMAN AND VICE CHAIRWOMAN

Verlon M. Jose CHAIRMAN

Carla L. Johnson VICE CHAIRWOMAN

Public Service Announcement

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Friday, Oct. 9, 2026

BORDER WALL CONTRACTORS TO START REMOVING SACRED SAGUAROS ON 

MONDAY, OCTOBER 12

Nation Files Emergency Injunction with the Circuit Court of Appeals

SELLS, Ariz. - The Tohono O'odham Nation has been informed by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) that it intends to remove thousands of Saguaros and other vegetation in its misguided efforts to construct a border wall. On Monday, Oct. 12, federal contractors will begin ripping out these protected plants that have lived in the Sonoran Desert for thousands of years. The fact that this desecration will take place on Indigenous Peoples' Day is disrespectful to all tribal nations.

In addition, earlier this week the Tohono O'odham Nation filed an emergency injunction with the Washington, D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals to stop DHS from removing thousands of sacred saguaros on Tohono O'odham land. Nation leadership is demanding that the courts put a stop to this lawless behavior that has already caused irreparable damage to our environment and cultural heritage, all in the name of constructing a costly and ineffective border wall. Known as ha:sañ, saguaros are symbols of the Tohono O'odham shared faith, serving as spiritual monuments to customs and values. The removal of any saguaro is an act of atrocity, as they are considered people by the Tohono O'odham."Trespassing on our land to remove the sacred saguaros is like having masked men break into your house and take away your children," said Tohono O'odham Nation Chairman Verlon Jose. "The ha:șañ are our family, as much a part of us as any blood relative. To destroy them by the thousands carves a wound in our hearts that will not heal. We call on all people for solidarity as we work to protect our culture and our land from this useless, destructive wall."

The mighty saguaro not only stands as an O'odham and American icon, it is also a critical part of our ecosystem, providing shelter, sustenance, and deep cultural significance. The saguaro, in Tohono O'odham custom, is akin to a person and any malicious action against one is as if harm is being done to our people. This belief is memorialized in Resolution 21-137 by the Tohono O'odham Legislative Council.

"This is a violation of our sovereignty, of our religious liberty, and of our land," said Chairman Jose. "The Nation will continue to fight to prevent this senseless devastation from going forward and we are grateful for the overwhelming community support we have received."

###

P.O. BOX 837, SELLS, ARIZONA 85634

Together We Are Stronger

PHONE: 520.383.2028
FAX: 520.383.3379
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Robert Reich @rbreich.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
The richest man owns X. The second richest man owns The Washington Post. The third and fifth richest men control Google. The sixth richest man owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. And the eighth richest man now owns both Paramount and Warner Bros. See the problem here?
bbc.com
Paramount takes over Warner Bros in $110bn Hollywood merger
The merger of two of Hollywood's biggest movie studios comes after months of legal disputes and concern over competition
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Jessica Price @delafina777.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
This should be so obvious that it doesn’t need to be said, but given what kind of weekend it’s been on here, apparently it does: If you don’t want old rapists running the world, in office, in the board room, making decisions for all of us get comfortable with “ruining” young rapists’ lives
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Mr. Dan Zak @mrdanzak.com · 04/10/2026
A Haitian man legally immigrated to Ohio, then was given an ankle monitor bc Trump withdrew his status. He threw himself in front of truck. The trucker, who voted for Trump, is haunted. “Pierre was doing what he was supposed to do. We did not do right by him.” www.theatlantic.com/politics/202...
theatlantic.com
A Reckoning in Springfield
A truck driver out on his route confronts what the country has become.
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Anna Gifty @itsafronomics.blacksky.app · 29/09/2026
I believe that Dr. Ellora Derenoncourt is the first Black woman economist EVER to be named a MacArthur Genius. My heart is bursting. I am OVERJOYED.
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Christopher Webb @cwebbonline.com · 28/09/2026
Texas peeps You may have recently registered and think it’s a done deal. Read the below. Urgently double check that you’re actually registered to vote. 👉🏾 Iwillvote.com 
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David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
“Fish” can be both singular (one individual fish) or plural (multiple fish of the same species.) “Fishes” refers to individuals of different species. 🐟 Fish 🐟🐟🐟 Fish 🐠🐟🐡 Fishes Now you know, and knowing is half the battle.
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🎃 Imani Gandy Corn 🎃 @angryblacklady.blacksky.app · 20/09/2026
I just honestly can't get over that Save Women Sports, an anti-trans group could only find five trans athletes competing K through 12. Five. The NCAA president testified a year and a half ago or so that there were less than 10 college level trans athletes. What the fuck are we doing, people
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Alejandra Caraballo @esqueer.net · 12/09/2026
A trans man in the UK has been banned in the workplace restrooms after he was forced to use the women's restrooms to comply with the new EHRC guidance. The women complained because he is visibly male and so they told him he can't use any bathroom.
A screenshot of a Reddit post from the r/LegalAdviceUK subreddit by user Dijstraanon, titled "FtM transgender facing two different issues at work? England."
The post text reads:
"Brother in law is trans FtM and presents fully as a man. He's now facing an impossible situation at work with his employer telling him that due to recent legislation he must use the toilet of his birth gender. BUT several female colleagues have raised a grievance about him using their gendered toilet.
His employer has told him that he cannot use the toilet while he is at work until they sort it out and cannot give him a timeframe to do so. They do [cut off] have disabled separate toilets.
In the mean time one of his female colleagues has accused him of sexual harassment because he was used their gendered toilet. His menstrual cycle meant he needed to use the toilet.
He's been with the employer for just over 5 years but only in this location for 18 months. The location is mainly male with just a handful of females, and his workshop only has male toilets.
I do not know how to support him and as he's not in a union there is no one to turn too right now."
The post has an orange "Comments Moderated" tag, 169 upvotes, and 134 comments.
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Norm Wilner @normwilner.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Well, this is delightful.
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Alex Ip 葉清霖 @alexip718.com · 07/09/2026
Jesus Christ: after a recent ruling by the Eighth Circuit that allowed Act 372 to take effect, an Arkansas county has banned all children from checking out any books in the adult section, bringing home any DVDs, or using the self-checkout kiosk in its public libraries.
More recently in Craighead County — symbolically, at least, Ground Zero for the state’s attack on libraries, thanks to Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Jonesboro) — the library announced several changes to circulation as it relates to minors. In a Facebook post, the library listed a number of changes to library policies, including:

Minors are prohibited from using the self-checkout kiosks;
Children under 13 years old may only check out materials from the designated children’s collection, while minors age 13-17 can only check out from the children or teen sections;
Minors may not check out DVDs at all; and  
Minors are prohibited from entering or purchasing anything from the Friends of the Library Bookstore.
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Brad M. Johnson @bradmjohnson.com · 05/09/2026
Today is the LAST DAY to enter the PageCraft / Grey List Fellowship before prices go up for Late Entry tomorrow! One writer gets two weeks writing in Italy, with the Lab, lodging AND a travel subsidy covered. Open to all ages - features and pilots welcome! Link in Comments 👇 #SCRIPTSKY #FILMSKY
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Dr. Kat Napaaqtuk❄️ @napaaqtuk.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Take a moment of zen this Friday
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Dr. Kat Napaaqtuk❄️ @napaaqtuk.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
New England was being New England with it's full chest this morning
Pink flowers and full green trees and bushes line a foggy river, with the sun slowly burning off the fogA river runs through thick green trees around a foggy bendA dog leads the photographer into a lush meadow that leads into and is lined by fog covered trees and bushes
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Our Eyes are Open @thecookout.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Imagine being so horrible you cause a successful scholar doing everything right in life to be so distraught by your twisted mind games that he takes his own life. That is the legacy of everyone who works for, enables and voted for Donald Trump. The stench of his evil will linger for generations.
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Nichol Simmons @nicholsimmons.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Every student deserves a public education free from bullying, intimidation, and fear. We failed this student. I'm heartbroken.
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Bill Grueskin @bgrueskin.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Pastor Carl Ruby, of Springfield's Central Christian Church, can state the issue more clearly than 98% of people working in politics today.
"I wish President Trump could hear the mom's wails. The

family wants people to know that this was a suicide and they

want people to know that President Trump, (Stephen) Miller, and Markwayne Mullin's inhumane immigration policies made this happen," Ruby wrote.
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Curly sue @moocowsue.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
More than 1.2 million Texans' voter registrations were suspended. Check here to make sure you are still registered to vote in Texas: www.texas.gov/living-in-te... If you have been removed here is what you need to do: www.kxan.com/news/texas/w...
kxan.com
What to do if you’ve been wrongfully removed from voter rolls in Texas
An investigation from our media partners at the Texas Tribune highlights why all voters should confirm their voter registration status while there’s still time. The Texas Tribune, in partners…
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Karen Attiah @karenattiah.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Getting my job back at the Washington Post would not have been possible if it wasn’t for me belonging to a union. @postguild.bsky.social and @wbng.org are the unions I belong to. I was able to challenge my wrongful termination because of the collective bargaining agreement / union contract!
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Allison Gill @muellershewrote.com · 27/08/2026
DeSantis stole $10M from poor children and funneled it into republican political campaigns. www.cbsnews.com/miami/news/g...
cbsnews.com
Grand jury finds DeSantis administration "misappropriated" $10 million in taxpayer money to Hope Florida
A Florida grand jury found the DeSantis administration misappropriated $10 million in taxpayer money for political purposes.
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Adam Bonica @adambonica.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
The Democratic Party has let a consulting industry exploit elderly donors in its name, wreck its reputation and finances in the process, and walk away rich whether the party wins or loses. When a mirror is held up, the instinct is to break the glass rather than look. On why the press looks away:
data4democracy.substack.com
The Bulwark Killed an Investigation into Political Fundraising Spam After Its Publisher Took the Consultants’ Side
This is a story about the Democratic Party captured by its consultants, and about what happens when the pro-democracy press is asked to say so.
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Nichol Simmons @nicholsimmons.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
A powerful statement from the Haitian Community Center in Springfield, OH. youtu.be/gzdqiotF1Y8?...
youtu.be
A Statement from Viles on Yesterday’s ICE Arrests
YouTube video by Haitian Community Help & Support Center
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Natalie Weiner @natalieweiner.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Here are a series of essays I wrote about Dolly tied to albums at the beginning, middle and end of her vast, prolific career, if you're looking for a little themed reading. www.dontrocktheinbox.com/on-dolly-par...
dontrocktheinbox.com
On Dolly Parton, Brilliant In Every Era
Today marks an unfathomable loss: Dolly Parton has died. Brilliant artist, devoted philanthropist, remarkable human; to list her achievements here feels redundant, as the cult of Dolly has long since ...
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Anna Gifty @itsafronomics.blacksky.app · 25/08/2026
Dolly Parton has NO BUSINESS being dead.
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Mrs. Betty Bowers @mrsbettybowers.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Hakeem Jeffries and Jared Kushner met today to see what they have in common. It turns out to be only one thing: A stupefying fear of progressive Democrats accomplishing lots of things that will help people.
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Melissa Johnson, PhD @ladyhistorian.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Looking for a chapter or article about enslaved women that will actually work well with baby undergrad students. Please recommend any that you've actually used - not one you think or guess might work well. Can be of any vintage, since these are students with no prior experience/knowledge
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Stacey Russell (she/they) @staceycrussell.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Murder Town episode 3 is out now and so far it’s everyone’s favorite! Coincidence that my racking idea and height joke made it into this one? We may never know. Check it out now on YouTube and support indie animation! #scriptsky youtu.be/EJNoK27hScE
youtu.be
MTown | Part 3
YouTube video by Murder Pup Productions
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Ansley Erickson @ansleyerickson.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
Breaking my heart this morning: “Fitting ankle monitors on noncitizens without a criminal history who remain in compliance with their immigration cases has little precedent.” True in the narrowest sense. False given how the history of slavery and peonage roars through each part of this story.
nytimes.com
In Ohio, Haitians Feel Shaken by Ankle Monitors and Increased ICE Presence
The devices, which will make it easier for authorities to locate immigrants in Springfield if large-scale deportations begin, have intensified a sense of dread.
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50501: The People’s Movement ❌👑 @50501movement.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
Donald Trump, who has refused to help the families of Black men murdered by police this year, including Marcus Burks, Stephenson King, Leon Davis, Kohen Wiley, Seth Jayden Eccles, Anthoneil Williams II, & Corey Ruiz, doesn’t give a shit about Black People. Of course he’d support erasing 1 more.
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RoseMarie @rosesbloom24.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Two Black mayors took cities that the country loves to write off and made them measurably safer. That’s not a fluke. That’s a blueprint. Chicago and Baltimore just posted numbers that should be front-page news. They’re not. We need to talk about why. 🧵 www.theroot.com/opinion-blac...
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Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 13/08/2026
New in PN: Stephen Miller's secret campaign against helpless kids "Miller is making his dreams come true: accelerating the arrest and removal of thousands of unaccompanied immigrant kids. This is a scene taking place out of public view across the country, impacting 24,000 children."
publicnotice.co
Stephen Miller's secret campaign against helpless kids
That it's happening in the shadows doesn't make it less of a moral blight.
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Mekka Okereke @mekka.mekka-tech.com · 13/08/2026
Most of the people in jail in the US are innocent Black people that were falsely accused of a crime, then kept in jail for up to a year, in dangerous conditions where they were threatened with being stabbed, raped, or killed by medical neglect, to force them to plead guilty to crimes they didn't do.
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K.C. Clyburn, Author @kccomplainsalot.blacksky.app · 11/08/2026
for the people who havent seen the news bsky.app/profile/asto...
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Assigned Media @assignedmedia.org · 11/08/2026
@rikiwilchins.bsky.social 2026 Jul ErinReed The Compliance Crew strikes!! In coordinated action, yellow-clad trans-masc Kansans used women’s rooms at zoos, libraries, museums, etc. as req. by law in coordinated action Cops called to Dodge City water park where 3 used women's room. You GO guys.
erininthemorning.com
Police Called on Trans Men Using Women's Restroom As Required By Kansas Law
“As a trans man, I have the immense privilege of blending in. But these laws force me to choose between safety and obeying the law.”
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Brett Nicholson @aggiebrett.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
I’m just excited to know— WITH CERTAINTY— that nobody will become weirdly and incorrectly obsessed with one particular phrase in this very cool announcement. #scriptsky
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Mychal Threets @mychal3ts.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
Vaccines do not cause autism. Autism is not something to be fixed. Autism is not something to be cured. My autistic friends, you are autistic joy. Thank you for being wonderful you ✨ Sincerely, Your Autistic Library Friend 💛
Mychal smiles in a shirt that reads, “Be a buddy not a bully”
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Jane Espenson @janeespenson.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
Oooh! Look at this! So tasty.
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Mekka Okereke @mekka.mekka-tech.com · 07/08/2026
Working our way up the list! First we got rid of 300,000 Black women from the Federal government. Now we've expanded to women in general, from the economy at large. It's 2026, and I'm still explaining how getting rid of all the women from your workforce makes it less smart and less capable.
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Radley Balko @radleybalko.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
It sometimes feels like we're living in a ridiculously exaggerated folk tale with wildly implausible villains. For example, as the president takes billions for himself and his family and *coats his things in gold,* the soldiers fighting his war can't get toothpaste, hot water, or a clean toilet.
ms.now
Moldy showers and no soap: Military families are outraged by conditions on USS Lincoln
The aircraft carrier's long deployment in the Iran war is raising concerns that the sailors and Marines on board are facing poor conditions, low supplies and fatigue.
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ContempraInn 🌹 @contemprainn.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
6000 year old baobab Tree in Tanzania. Africa
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Nichol Simmons @nicholsimmons.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
Seconded
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Libby Ballengee / Venus Child @venuschild.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
WOOHOO! Yellow Springs Film Festival Badges are now SOLD OUT! However, tickets to special events featuring exclusive film screenings and Q&A's with Juliette Lewis, Steve Zahn, and more are available here: www.ysfilmfest.com/2026-festival
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Nichol Simmons @nicholsimmons.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
@amyactonoh.bsky.social you can't win by leaving LGTBQ+ folks behind. If you've been paying attention, you know that. Your opponent is going to come after you on this issue no matter what you say or do, so supporting us is the winning strategy. Please pull it together.
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The Tennessee Holler @thetnholler.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
Holy shit
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