An earlier version of this article said that Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) was the reimbursement program’s top spender for 2023. That analysis was based on data released by the House as of last week. But additional data The Post reviewed Tuesday showed that Rep. Jack Bergman (R-Mich.) was reimbursed for more than Gaetz was. This article has been updated.
Rep. Gaetz tried to spend the most but his “policy meetings” with the Woodrow Wilson High School dance team just couldn’t compete with whatever the hell Rep. Jack Bergman was expensing.
And a weird front for the Falun Gong cult/religion. The Washington Times, the conservative newspaper in DC, is owned by the Moonies (aka Unification Church) a different cult/religion from SE Asia.
If only there was some connection between U.S. conservative media and weird cults of personality.
He’s an openly corrupt coal baron whose daughter quadrupled the price of EpiPens when she was CEO of Mylan (while the company donated the max allowed to Joe Manchin’s campaign and probably more to Super PACs).
I realize Republicans are worse but he and his whole family should at least be required to sit in the exit row of unrefurbished Boeing 737 MAX planes. The first good thing they’ll have done for humanity will be helping identify a plane that didn’t get the exit door bolted on properly.
There’s refugee resettlement charities if you need people to help. Like, in Atlanta, New American Pathways helps families fleeing awful situations to get English classes. jobs, housing, enroll kids in school, etc. Lots of cities have similar charities. People who teach English at libraries and the like.
Jail time isn’t realistic but I want him sentenced to community service tasks that have the funniest photo potential. I want pictures of him in a hairnet and apron holding a ladle at the soup kitchen.
I live in New Orleans, the part of the state that isn’t the Bible Belt. If you think you’re sick of the Bible Belt, imagine how we feel when they pass all these dumbfuck, unconstitutional laws and we have to dispose of them like when a cat brings you a dead mouse.
Aside: one related, if minor annoyance of living here (or South Florida, presumably) is being told I “live in a bubble” when I tell a conservative on social media to fuck off. I am surrounded by the biggest bubble of morons there is. If anything, I’m the prick that’ll pop it if it gets too close.
A lot of countries develop by copying. I mean, there was a point when Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, etc. were “copying” and often making inferior products. But they eventually became innovative in their own right. China is already innovating in some spaces.
Actually, America even did that during the Industrial Revolution. Francis Cabot Lowell tried to obtain the designs for a power loom on a visit to England. He couldn’t get the designs so he memorized how one worked. The English even searched his bags when he was leaving to make sure he didn’t steal the designs. But they couldn’t search his noggin and that’s how America got a textile industry.
There’s two sides to every tortilla and as a gun runner, I’m very upset my personal information might be involved in this hack. We need comprehensive privacy laws and real consequences for data breaches. Otherwise, these tech companies will treat this like a cost of doing business.
Israel’s military said on Thursday that it was fighting in neighborhoods near the heart of the city of Rafah in southern Gaza, apparently expanding its campaign against Hamas in a week when Israel has faced mounting diplomatic and legal pressure over its war effort....
No gender affirming care until you’re 18? Well, I’m sure all the laws ban breast implants, gynecomastia, and other plastic surgery for everyone, right?
Are there any good resources for helping someone getting into Linux? One of my friends I never thought would get into Linux is asking me for help. He specifically is an advanced Windows power user. I also had someone who was a complete noob, even to Windows....
That’s why I always vote against my Rep by mail from his mom’s address and have her seal the envelope with a big kiss of full-on old lady lipstick. Challenge that ballot, Brotankhamen. I’ll show you my ID and the bed where I filled it out.
My favorite story about Ted Cruz is that he lost a drinking game in college and had to run around the dorm naked late at night and everyone hated him and just locked the doors or the dorm and went back to the party.
This is a reference to Leisure Suit Larry and the Land of the Lounge Lizards and not some nerd game, by the way. I was cool when I was 11 and playing on the computer.
Treasury secretary came out against the proposed global levy, which proponents say would stop the rich from shifting wealth into countries where they can avoid paying the tax
Wealth isn’t that hard to quantify. An assessor comes to my house every few years and quantifies what it’s worth for property tax reasons and most people’s wealth is basically their house and maybe a retirement account. Private companies almost all have a valuation. When a start up raises a round, they literally set a valuation for the round. When a traditional business gets a loan, the bank estimates what it’s worth.
But no one even wants to tax small business owners. Every wealth tax proposal is on the super wealthy who can sure as fuck value their net worth. Donald Trump just went on trial for lying about his. If we had a formal assessment system, he would have never even been able to do frauds.
One time, Walgreens had a charity thing where they sold clown noses and I got one, got a boost from a friend, and put the clown nose on Jefferson Davis.
Everyone who tours Cap. Hill should try it with all the horrible statues in that room.
As someone who lives in Louisiana’s 2nd district, the main problem (some) Republicans have with the map wasn’t that a 2nd black district was drawn. It’s that it was drawn so Speaker Johnson and Rep Scalise got even safer seats and they had to screw one Republican Congressman and they chose one to screw.
This isn’t really a fight over civil rights anymore. The Voting Rights Act requires 2 majority black districts in a state with 6 seats and a 33% black population. It’d be easy enough to make two without it being so weirdly drawn but that would have required two members of the Congressional Republican leadership to make their districts competitive and that wasn’t happening.
In fairness, it’s also fucking hard to draw maps in Louisiana. I work with GIS software to create maps sometimes and you basically need at least a gaming desktop to apply high res water layers to maps without your computer getting so hot for so long, it could be used as a Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator on a mission to the outer solar system.
I’m not a geologist by any means but isn’t South Florida uniquely screwed by rising sea levels? I’ve read articles about it basically being a geology problem. There’s a layer of porous limestone on top of the bedrock there. So, the types of flood protection you see in the Netherlands, Southeast Louisiana, etc. (levees, sea walls, pumps, etc.) aren’t possible.
The UN has denied that the estimated death toll of women and children in the war in Gaza has been revised downward, pointing towards a confusion between the total numbers of dead bodies recorded, and the number of those who have so far been fully identified....
Yeah, I’ve always found the Guardian to be one of the only reliable newspapers in the UK. I don’t know where that’s coming from. Maybe football transfer rumors or something? Even with that, they’re pretty responsible. The rest of the English media just makes shit up.
Lawmakers demand details of a Mar-a-Lago dinner where Trump promised to ease regulations on the oil industry while asking executives to steer $1 billion to his 2024 campaign....
For decades, Joe Biden has proudly declared that he is a Zionist, and he has repeated that claim since Hamas’s 7 October attacks on Israel. But for the student anti-war protests gripping the US, the words “Zionist” and “Zionism” have become a watchword – pejorative and emblematic of the violent state policies driving...
Zionism means different things to different generations. To younger people, it’s about expansionist Israel trying to take over the West Bank and Gaza. They take Israel being a regional power for granted. For older generations, it means Israel facing existential threats from other regional powers. But Israel hasn’t faced an existential threat for decades. As bad as Hamas and Hezbollah are, they’re fighting asymmetric warfare and not actually going to wipe Israel off the map.
There are, obviously, a few people who want decolonization but that just isn’t happening. It’s like demanding every white and black and Hispanic person in America go back to their homeland. Half the people have grandparents from different countries.
And on the other side, Israel has to dismantle settlements in the West Bank. Or, what they deserve, is to be minorities in a Palestinian state based on 1967 borders. No one will have that but me, though, so dismantling the settlements is the only realistic option.
Reading most media out there, Robert Kennedy sounds even wackier than Trump. But, someone shared this video with me and it’s changing my opinion about him. He seems to be a very good candidate for the next election to replace Biden....
Do Palestinians have a right to self defense or just Israelis? Because there’s a whole lot of settler attacks in the West Bank and mass graves full of kids in Gaza.
I’m not defending Hamas, who are just as shitty as the settler parties but you might logically expect violent resistance if you put a people under your boot for decades.
It’s not a genocide because of collateral damage. It’s a genocide because they used wholly inappropriate 2000 lbs bombs on civilian targets, used starvation as a tactic, refused to let meaningful amounts of humanitarian aid in, bombed schools and hospitals, and used genocidal language that demonstrates intent.
Go ahead and defend Itamar Ben-Gvir if you want but he’s a Kahanist. Go ahead and defend Netanyahu but he’s the one who is a disgrace to Judaism and arguably the worst leader of a major power in my lifetime. War crimes have happened. Mass graves exist and torture prisons exist. Genocide requires intent and I’d argue there’s been dozens of statements by members of Israel’s cabinet that constitute a very strong case.
At the very least, we can agree that this is not a normal war and both Hamas and Israeli actions require an investigation. Hamas, being a terrorist group and not a state actor, should be treated as a terrorist group. They don’t represent Palestine at the UN and no one in their right mind recognizes them as anything other than a stain upon the world.
Israel (and Fatah) have a different level of responsibility. I understand that October 7th was despicable. I hope Hamas disappears. But Israel, if it wants to be in the community of nations, has to conduct war in accordance with the laws of war. And I don’t think they have.
I would obviously say the same about the Rohingya genocide and the unfolding one in Darfur. Never again means never again. I’ve been to the genocide museum in DC and concentration camps in Europe but also the Rwandan genocide memorial and others. I think what we’re seeing is a genocide. Nothing is clear in the fog of war so it won’t be clear today or tomorrow but the UN is not wrong for investigating.
This is Kamala Harris. If we want to stop Trump and his MAGA cronies this fall, we need YOU to donate $13 by texting 90210 now. It’s never been more urgent!
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The Biden administration has concluded it is “reasonable to assess” that Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has violated international law, but has not found specific instances that would justify the withholding of military aid, the State Department told Congress on Friday....
I know some specific instances if they need appendices. There’s a bunch of mass graves with bullet holes in people’s heads where the dead were wearing hospital clothes and had a different injury. They bombed basically all the civilian infrastructure. We all watched starvation as a tactic happen. They killed more journalists and aid workers than any war I can recall.
On 9 May every year, Russia celebrates Victory Day, putting on a large parade in honour of the country’s victory over Nazi Germany 79 years ago - in what remains an important symbol of the country’s national identity....
Charred homes and cars dotting this hilltop village surrounded by olive groves are a searing reminder of Palestinians’ vulnerability to rising violence from Israeli settlers....
Do Palestinians have a right to defend themselves and should we be sending them defensive weapons like missiles and attack helicopters for free for some reason?
I’m a long time Windows user who has experience with WSL. Last year, I needed a laptop for university, and out of laziness, opted for a Macbook since, although they’re expensive as hell, are reasonably reliable....
I would say that you should check out Fedora as your first distro. Gnome is more like Mac than KDE (which is also great). Fedora is also built off Red Hat Enterprise Linux so it’ll will prepare you for server environments and your future career. You can learn bits of both at once.
I think it benefited my career to go in that direction. I (like everyone) distro-hopped and went through a phase where I customized everything and installed a new distro every few months. But if you learn the ins and outs of Fedora you’ll be well-positioned to manage RHEL and related servers. Debian is also a good choice for that, at least in the U.S.
And there’s nothing wrong with developing on a Mac while you use Linux for server stuff. Server level code will probably run on Linux but I found that using a Mac helped me when building front-end code because macOS devs tend to be design-forward. And don’t forget that you’re building something for other people. I barely use Windows but I try to revisit it every so often to see how the other half lives.
It’s already happening in the U.S. Look at New College in Florida or Texas A&M rescinding an offer to a respected journalism professor because she’s a black woman and they feared conservative backlash. Congress is basically having show trials of college presidents and demanding ideological conformity.
Robert F Kennedy Jr, the third-party candidate for US president, said a health problem he experienced in 2010 “was caused by a worm that got into my brain and ate a portion of it and then died”
It doesn’t have to be neofetch but even in my containers and docker stuff, I try to put a little message so I don’t fuck up something.
Running through a checklist is important. I learned that from a helicopter pilot at a bar but I do think it’s true in our field. It’s not life or death on a server but training yourself to go through a simple checklist (even if it’s just “make sure this is the right terminal tab”) is good advice.
Lawmakers expensed millions in 2023 under new program that doesn’t require receipts (wapo.st)
Must be nice not having to keep track of receipts to blatantly engage in corruption. I’m sure that was a minor inconvenience before.
Epoch Times CFO Bill Guan is charged in alleged $67 million global money laundering scheme (www.cnbc.com)
Joe Manchin leaves the Democratic Party, files as independent (www.axios.com)
Trump campaign donation page crashes after guilty verdict (www.thehill.com)
Former President Donald Trump found guilty on all counts in NY criminal hush money case (www.courier-journal.com)
Louisiana could become first state to require display of Ten Commandments in classrooms | CNN Politics (www.cnn.com)
China’s military shows off rifle-toting robot dogs (www.cnn.com)
Coming soon to a western military near you…
Hacked data reveals which US gun sellers are behind Mexican cartel violence (www.usatoday.com)
Israel’s military says it is fighting near central Rafah, apparently expanding its operation in the city. (www.nytimes.com)
Israel’s military said on Thursday that it was fighting in neighborhoods near the heart of the city of Rafah in southern Gaza, apparently expanding its campaign against Hamas in a week when Israel has faced mounting diplomatic and legal pressure over its war effort....
Florida won't light bridges in rainbow colors for Pride Month this year (www.advocate.com)
South Carolina bans gender-affirming care for trans youth. Now half the states ban it. (www.lgbtqnation.com)
Beginner Linux Guides
Are there any good resources for helping someone getting into Linux? One of my friends I never thought would get into Linux is asking me for help. He specifically is an advanced Windows power user. I also had someone who was a complete noob, even to Windows....
House G.O.P. Moves to Crack Down on Noncitizen Voting, Sowing False Narrative (www.nytimes.com)
Fertility Experts Say Ted Cruz and Katie Britt’s Bill to Protect IVF Isn't Helpful (www.jezebel.com)
A Global Tax on Billionaires? Janet Yellen Says ‘No’ (www.wsj.com)
Treasury secretary came out against the proposed global levy, which proponents say would stop the rich from shifting wealth into countries where they can avoid paying the tax
How Biden is winning over corporate America behind closed doors (www.cnbc.com)
In public, President Biden and corporate America appear to oppose each other’s interests and blame each other for the economy’s problems....
Biden slams ICC prosecutor’s ‘outrageous’ request for arrest warrants against Israeli leaders, Netanyahu (www.thehill.com)
Biden says pro-Gaza student protesters ‘voices should be heard’ in Morehouse speech (www.independent.co.uk)
Arizona officials say they can’t find Rudy Giuliani to serve him with indictment notice (www.cnn.com)
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As conservatives put religion in schools, Satanists want in, too (www.nbcnews.com)
Supreme Court orders Louisiana to use congressional map with additional Black district in 2024 vote (apnews.com)
DeSantis signs bill scrubbing ‘climate change’ from Florida law (wapo.st)
Meanwhile, it’s hotter than it has been in thousands of years
RFK Jr. accuses Biden and Trump of 'colluding' to exclude him from debates (www.nbcnews.com)
Ex-Capitol officer Harry Dunn loses congressional primary in Maryland after AIPAC spends millions on another Democrat (www.theguardian.com)
UN denies Gaza death toll of women and children has been revised down (www.theguardian.com)
The UN has denied that the estimated death toll of women and children in the war in Gaza has been revised downward, pointing towards a confusion between the total numbers of dead bodies recorded, and the number of those who have so far been fully identified....
House Democrats launch probe of Trump’s dinner with oil executives (www.washingtonpost.com)
Lawmakers demand details of a Mar-a-Lago dinner where Trump promised to ease regulations on the oil industry while asking executives to steer $1 billion to his 2024 campaign....
Thousands protest in Israel amid anger at Netanyahu over hostages held in Gaza (www.theguardian.com)
How Zionism became a synonym for violence and oppression (www.theguardian.com)
For decades, Joe Biden has proudly declared that he is a Zionist, and he has repeated that claim since Hamas’s 7 October attacks on Israel. But for the student anti-war protests gripping the US, the words “Zionist” and “Zionism” have become a watchword – pejorative and emblematic of the violent state policies driving...
The Bobby Kennedy video Meta doesn’t want you to see, narrated by Woody Harrelson. (x.com)
Reading most media out there, Robert Kennedy sounds even wackier than Trump. But, someone shared this video with me and it’s changing my opinion about him. He seems to be a very good candidate for the next election to replace Biden....
Name and shame: Pro-Israel website ramps up attacks on pro-Palestinian student protesters (www.reuters.com)
Joe Biden’s top advisors are worried the Democratic convention could erupt in protests — so they’re pushing to move it semi-online (www.politico.com)
Moms for Liberty accuses schools of antisemitism. The irony is rich. (www.motherjones.com)
The State Department said that Israel's military campaign in Gaza may have violated international law. (www.nytimes.com)
The Biden administration has concluded it is “reasonable to assess” that Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has violated international law, but has not found specific instances that would justify the withholding of military aid, the State Department told Congress on Friday....
Russia Victory Day parade: Only one tank on display as Vladimir Putin says country is going through 'difficult period' (news.sky.com)
On 9 May every year, Russia celebrates Victory Day, putting on a large parade in honour of the country’s victory over Nazi Germany 79 years ago - in what remains an important symbol of the country’s national identity....
A West Bank village feels helpless after Israeli settlers attack with fire and bullets (apnews.com)
Charred homes and cars dotting this hilltop village surrounded by olive groves are a searing reminder of Palestinians’ vulnerability to rising violence from Israeli settlers....
Moving to a Linux distro for dev
I’m a long time Windows user who has experience with WSL. Last year, I needed a laptop for university, and out of laziness, opted for a Macbook since, although they’re expensive as hell, are reasonably reliable....
Democrats make no promises about bailing out Mike Johnson again (www.axios.com)
To please Putin, universities purge liberals and embrace patriots (www.washingtonpost.com)
Robert F Kennedy Jr says health issue caused by dead worm in his brain (www.theguardian.com)
Robert F Kennedy Jr, the third-party candidate for US president, said a health problem he experienced in 2010 “was caused by a worm that got into my brain and ate a portion of it and then died”
Neofetch development discontinued, repository archived (github.com)
cross-posted from: programming.dev/post/13437386...