A list of independent user-supported news/analysis/opinion websites I read:
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/
https://www.texasobserver.org/topics/politics/
https://theconversation.com/global
I also read these commercial news sites:
https://www.theguardian.com/international
and I am also a very active user of Blue Sky
https://bsky.app/profile/amerliberal.bsky.social
Let's look at the BIGGER PICTURE of gendered sports and gendered restrooms, and look at the nature of segregation in general - and the similarities between racial segregation and gender segregation...
In the Jim Crow era, a LOT of time and effort was spent arguing over who could use "Whites Only" restrooms and play on "Whites Only" sports teams. What about those who looked White but had a trace of African ancestry? What about Arabs and others who didn't fit neatly into the binary racial segregation system in the United States?
The answer - obvious in retrospect - is that RACIAL SEGREGATION was the problem! Once there were no longer "Whites Only" facilities or "Whites Only" sports teams, there was automatically no longer a question of which restroom an Arab (for example) was required to use, or which sports teams they were allowed to play on.
Today, a LOT of time and effort is spent arguing over who can use "Women's Only" or "Men's Only restrooms and play on "Women's Only" or "Men's Only" sports teams. The parallel between GENDER SEGREGATION and RACIAL SEGREGATION is obvious. In MY Opinion, the solution is also obvious. Instead of arguing over where an individual fits into the binary gender segregation system, LET'S ELIMINATE the GENDER SEGREGATION SYSTEM. If "Whites" and "Coloreds" can learn to use the same restrooms, so can "men" and "women." Same with sports teams. Same with the military. Same with the legal system. Same with all of life. Like Racial Segregation, Gender Segregation is an evil that we need to relegate to history.
[and for those who argue that race is clearly not binary, while gender is, look at the reality of the Jim Crow era: the racists of that time absolutely did believe that an individual WAS definitively either "White" or "Not White."]
----- Background - AI Generated (Gemini)
During the era of Jim Crow segregation in the United States, the concept of race was rigidly defined and enforced, but it wasn't always straightforward. Here's how some groups outside the strict White/Black binary were dealt with:
People of Arab Descent:
People of Indian Descent:
People with Darker Skin Tones:
Multiracial People:
Important Considerations:
Disclaimer: This is a simplified overview, and the experiences of individuals within these groups varied greatly.
It's crucial to remember that the Jim Crow era was a period of systemic racism and oppression. The experiences of individuals who did not fit neatly into the dominant racial categories highlight the complex and often arbitrary nature of race classifications and the devastating impact of racial prejudice.
----- end-of-AI-generated
Misogyny: This is far more than not wanting a female president, this is the feeling among men, especially young men, that women have been granted special legal protections AT THE EXPENSE OF MEN. These men want a return to the time when men were granted exalted status in legal affairs, in society, and in the home, simply for being male.
Racism: This is far more than not wanting a non-White president, this is the feeling among Whites, especially White men, that people-of-color have been granted special legal protections AT THE EXPENSE OF WHITE PEOPLE. These Whites want a return to the time when Whites were granted exalted status in legal affairs and in society, simply for being White.
Xenophobia: Let's be clear, what LOOKS like prejudice against people who live, or used to live, in other countries, is NOT that, it is just another version of RACISM. No MAGA ever suggested deporting Elon Musk or Melania Trump, even though they were born in other countries and both broke the rules of their immigrant visas (and are thus both legally subject to deportation). Those who say "immigrants" should be deported ALWAYS mean NON-WHITE immigrants should be deported.
Homophobia/Transphobia: This is the feeling, especially among men, that LGBTQ+ people, especially Trans people, have been granted special legal protections AT THE EXPENSE OF STRAIGHT PEOPLE. These men want a return to the time when straight people were granted exalted status in legal affairs, in society, and in the family, simply for being straight.
Homophobia/Transphobia is also a major issue in Religious Extremism.
Note that when MAGAs say "Stop WOKE" they mean: Bring back Misogyny, Racism, and Homophobia/Transphobia.
Religious Extremism: This is a huge and complex issue, so let's look at the component parts:
Religious Extremism - Privilege: This is the feeling among some Christians that their religion is being diminished. These Christians want a return to the time when the Christian Religion was granted exalted status (even exclusive status) in legal affairs and in society.
Religious Extremism - "Morality": American law and American society have long been dominated by "conservative" "Christian" views toward "morality" regarding marriage, family, sexual orientation, birth control, abortion, "Protestant Work Ethic," and more. These "Christian" Religious Extremists want a return to the time when THEIR version of "morality" was the basis for American law and American society.
Religious Extremism - "Protestant Work Ethic": The Protestant Work Ethic is the view that a person's religious duty "is to achieve success through hard work and thrift, such success being a sign that one is saved." Among many other ugly side effects, this leads Protestant Religious Extremists to oppose most social programs, including subsidized healthcare, SNAP, WIC, UBI, etc.
Prices/Rents: Nationally, rents have increased 20% from 2019 to 2024. In some areas the increase has been much greater. In my part of Florida, rents are up 50% from 2019 to 2024. Many Trump voters were INFURIATED by Biden and Harris and their surrogates continually harping on "declining inflation & rising wages!" REAL people demand MORE than that the rate of increase of prices slow, AND they demand more empathy from their leaders! Probably there is nothing any President could have done to bring rents and other high-impact prices (groceries, gas...) back to 2019 levels, BUT they could and should have acknowledged the PAIN, rather than telling Americans they were just crybabies for complaining!!!
Israel/Gaza: Very few if any voters voted for Trump because of the Biden/Harris decision to support Israel's genocide of Gazans through weapons, money, and pressure on the UN & American allies, BUT a lot of voters chose to vote 3rd party or not to cast a ballot in order to avoid supporting either genocidal Biden/Harris or genocidal Trump. [remember that I am reporting, not condoning anyone's vote]
Change: Some voters just wanted change, and would vote for any candidate/party who was not the incumbent. This has been a global trend recently.
Smash the System: Some voters just wanted to destroy the status quo (legislators who get rich from billionaire and corporate money and stay in office for life, income inequality, Capitalism in general, etc.)
There are probably other crucial reasons Trump won, what have I left out?
There are 3 (and a half) reasons for the Silicon Valley Bank failure. Change any one of the 3 and everything would have been ok.
1) Large deposits were not FDIC insured. If they had been, depositors would NOT have panicked. Congress MUST extend FDIC insurance (which is paid for by a fee on banks, and NOT by taxpayers) to cover ALL deposits in regulated banks.
2) The Fed changed interest rates TOO FAST. Banks can live with high rates or low rates, but NOT with rapidly changing rates.
3) SVB management erred by buying longer-maturity treasury bonds.
3.5) Ending Dodd-Frank reduced regulatory oversight of banks in the $50B-$250B range. Even with DF, regulators might or might not have disallowed SVB's purchase of US bonds. Also, DF would do nothing to protect depositors in small banks.
"Most accidents do not have a single cause: there are usually multiple things that went wrong, multiple events that, had any one of them not occurred, would have prevented the accident." ― Donald A. Norman, The Design of Everyday Things
1) The right to do whatever I want as long as it doesn't cause undue harm to another.
2) Being protected (by my government) from being harmed by others.
Some of the freedoms I personally have and am grateful for:
The right to eat what I choose.
The right to live where I choose.
My right (as an American citizen with a passport) to travel almost anywhere in the world.
My right (as an old American on Social Security) to work or not work as I prefer.
Clean water, safe food, emergency medical services and hospitals
Some of the freedoms I do NOT have that I personally think I should have:
The right to #DeathWithDignity.
The right to use whatever drugs I want for whatever purpose without needing a prescription. (Why should anyone else have the the right to prevent me from controlling my pain.)
The freedom to live without fear that my car will be stolen or my home broken into.
The right to have a bumper sticker on my car without being harassed and threatened.
The right to use the phone, messaging, and email without being assaulted by spam.
Some of the freedoms that I have to a large extent, but NOT enough:
The right to access everything that exists electronically (internet) and on paper.
The right to live without religion being imposed on me.
-----------
Is freedom anything else than the right
to live as we wish? Nothing else.
- Epictetus
Conformity is the jailer of freedom and the enemy of growth.
- John F. Kennedy
Majority rule only works if you're also
considering individual rights,
because you can't have five wolves and one sheep
voting on what to have for dinner.
- Larry Flynt
Let's replace (most) content moderation with "Profile Matching." Yes, Profile Matching sounds like the way dating sites work, and that's intentional. Here's how it would work...
Everyone's account profile contains two rather long checklists - one is a list of subjects they want excluded from their timeline, and the other is a list of subjects they Post messages about. By default a new account would be marked as both posting and accepting most subjects, with a very few subjects like NSFW images defaulting to not posted and not accepted. Of course the account owner is encouraged to customize both lists.
As an example, an account that excluded #Politics posts, would not see any posts on their timeline from accounts that stated they posted about politics.
There would also be the ability when Posting to override the account setting, such as an account that seldom posted about politics making a single political post, or a politics account posting a cute cat photo and wanting to reach a wider audience.
Content moderation would consist of two functions:
1) Warn and quickly suspend accounts that post ILLEGAL content. (Illegal in the strict sense of breaking laws, such as child porn, libel/defamation, or copyright infringement)
2) MARK accounts that post types of content they said they wouldn't post. For example, FORCE an account to be marked #Politics is it makes political posts without having that checked on the profile.
Here are a few EXAMPLES of the many subjects to be on the "I Post" and the Exclude ("I don't want to view") checklists... There could also be sub-subjects, so someone could view Politics in general, but exclude Anti-Democratic Politics. These examples are from an American's perspective, but of course the post/exclude lists need to be globally applicable. The lists will need to be added-to over time. Whenever a new subject is added, the defaults would be "I Post" this, and I Don't Exclude this subject.
#Food
Images of food
Animal-based food
#BodyImage
Dieting
Weight reduction
#CurrentEvents
Government
Natural Disasters
War
Famine/Starvation
Climate
#Politics
Pro-Democratic Politics
Pro-Republican Politics
Anti-Democratic Politics
Anti-Republican Politics
Requests for political donations
...
#Religion
Christianity
Atheism
...
#Pro-LGBTQ+
#Anti-LGBTQ+
#Pro-Choice
#Anti-Choice ("pro-life")
#Mainstream-Science
#Anti-Mainstream-Science
Anti-Vaccination
# Advertising, Solicitation (other than political)
