"Red State Bailouts"/"Blue States Pay More" - Let's Add Some Context
OK, I’ll admit it — I’m from Kentucky, and I’m a wee bit ticked off at y’all right now.After Mitch McConnell (R-KY) launched his “let states go bankrupt” talking point, the proverbial fur has been...
View ArticleKY: Registration Deadline NEXT WEEK (Plus: get your absentee ballot...
[NOTE: When I originally posted this diary, an error I made entering the web links gave several readers the impression that I had posted ‘scam links’. Since I know that most of us tend to honor such...
View ArticleKY: Governor Beshear (D-amn Right) Responds to Being Hanged in Effigy - You...
As most of you have probably heard, Kentucky’s Governor, Andy Beshear, was hanged in effigy by some right-wing “Three Percenters” just outside the Governor’s Mansion on Sunday. (If you’re playing...
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Lexington KY Protests - You Won't See These on National Media
We’ve all seen the police violence in Louisville, Kentucky — but what about Kentucky’s second-largest city, Lexington?Well, both nights of protests have been peaceful; the Lexington PD has been present...
View Article1550+ Free Nonfiction E-Books? Why, Sure!
The worldwide chaos brought by COVID-19 has moved Springer Nature, one of the world’s larger educational publishers, to make a range of texts available as PDF downloads at no charge.As Springer...
View Article1500+ Free Nonfiction E-Books - Until July 31st
[Reposting for awareness — heading into the last week of availability]As part of their COVID-19 support initiative, Springer Nature has made more than 1500 non-fiction PDF titles available for...
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Kentucky: Back-to-School Means a Mishmash of Decisions
Local control is usually a good thing...but not always.COVID-19 is showing us the weaknesses of local control, specifically local control of public schools. Kentucky has 120 counties, each of which...
View ArticleEpoch Times Mass Mailing?
I don’t usually write such short diaries, but this was….weird.Today, I received a “sample copy” of The Epoch Times, which is not just a conservative rag but a strongly pro-Trump, QAnon-advancing,...
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Let's Change the Narrative on "Militia" Groups
So-called “militia” groups have come to the forefront of US politics in recent years. They’re drenched in faux “patriotism”, decked out in ‘tactical’ gear, and just LOVE to engage in theatre with...
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An apolitical, non-COVID discussion: Our First "Home Computers"
I don’t know about you, but I can definitely use a break from politics, Trump, and COVID-19.The Daily Kos community spans multiple generations of people, which means we also span multiple generations...
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Speaking of the Markets...It's Time for a Transaction Tax
With the GameStop “hedge funds vs. Reddit investors” brouhaha drawing attention to the stock market in recent days, I thought it a good time to bring up something I’ve suggested for a LONG time.Many...
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Fascinating AND Icky - Nature's Answer to All Those *%(#($ Cicadas
The media is breathlessly reporting on this year’s reappearance of the periodical cicada, aka the “17-year locusts”, known for blotting out the sun, deafening all within earshot and wreaking havoc on...
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US Military Folks - Want to Learn Beekeeping in 2022?
Are you (or do you know) a current or former service member interested in entomology and/or beekeeping?Neat logo, eh?Michigan State University’s “Heroes to Hives” program is currently determining...
View ArticleKY: Gov. Andy Beshear (D-amn Right) Issues Executive Order Mandating Masks in...
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear (D) continues to lead the Bluegrass State down the proper course in navigating the COVID-19 pandemic, despite opposition from Republicans at every turn (including...
View ArticleThe "Vaccine-Hesitant" In Their Own Words
At this stage of the COVID-19 pandemic, everyone is talking about the un-vaccinated folks. We’re seeing all sorts of theories about why different persons are choosing not to take the COVID-19...
View ArticleThis is my sixth pandemic - how about you?
I was having a conversation on social media this weekend, and as we discussed the COVID-19 pandemic, one person said, “Well, I’ve lived through quite a few of these, but this is the first one with such...
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COVID-19: Kentucky School Boards Step Up Their Game
Good news from Kentucky!As you may know, Kentucky Republicans used their legislative supermajority to significantly limit the emergency public health powers of the state’s Governor and Executive...
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We're "polarized" on the vaccine? I don't think so...
I’m getting extremely tired of hearing how we’re supposedly polarized over the question of COVID-19 vaccination. The latest iteration of this particular narrative crossed my Twitter timeline this...
View ArticleA Question to Keep in Mind for Those Claiming a "Religious Exemption" to...
We’ve all seen fringe folks frothing furiously about religious beliefs that prevent them from taking the COVID-19 vaccines. Most folks claiming such beliefs argue that the use of fetal cell lines...
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So, How Was Trick-or-Treat in Your Neighborhood?
This is a short-and-sweet community participation diary…Tell us how your neighborhood’s Trick-or-Treat went. Did you do anything special? How many kids visited your hosue? Was it more like a...
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Nation's First College-Owned Hydropower Goes Online
Berea College is a remarkable place. When it was founded in 1855 — just six years before the Civil War erupted — it was the first interracial and coeducational in the South. You may know that the...
View ArticleHow You Can Help Mayfield & Western Kentucky
I’m sitting here reading the various diaries trying to analyze the destruction in western Kentucky, debating whether folks had sufficient warning, and criticizing the candle factory for its $8/hour...
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So, about that whole "four comorbidities" thing...
After reading about CDC Director Rochelle Walensky’s comments regarding COVID deaths and comorbidities, I decided to take a look at the data CDC has been compiling...and, to be honest, I don’t...
View ArticleHealth insurers required to cover at-home COVID tests!
Everyone’s excited about covidtests.gov going online early, but there’s another piece of BIG news about at-home COVID-19 testing! The Biden Administration has directed health insurers to cover the...
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Elon Musk, Twitter, and a Gazillion Chicken Littles
Yes, the Twitter Board of Directors has accepted Elon Musk’s takeover bid.Can we please stop all of this “ZOMG ONOZ THE SKY IS FALLING” nonsense?It seems that many, if not most, of the folks here at...
View ArticleTomorrow, May 7th, Is Free Comic Book Day!
This will be short and sweet — FREE COMIC BOOK DAY IS TOMORROW, SATURDAY MAY 7TH!Free Comic Book Day (FCBD) is exactly what the name implies. Comic publishers print special FCBD issues/titles, and one...
View ArticleReport: Southern Baptist Leaders Covered Up Sexual Assault
Today, a long-awaited independent report on the Southern Baptist Convention’s leadership and its response to accusations of sexual assault by SBC pastors and leaders was released...and, simply put, the...
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Southern Baptists reject ultra-conservatives, advance sexual abuse reforms
A few weeks ago, I wrote about the bombshell report that exposed decades of malfeasance by leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), its Executive Committee (EC) leadership, and EC staff in...
View ArticleReport: FBI Investigating Sexual Abuse in Archdiocese of New Orleans
The Associated Press is reporting that the Federal Bureau of Investigation has opened a sweeping investigation of sexual abuse in the Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans. To date, more than a dozen...
View ArticleEEOC Sues NC Business for Religious Discrimination Against "Nones"
The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is suing a Greenville, NC business for religious discrimination against atheist and agnostic employees.As the EEOC press release of yesterday tells...
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Kentucky Restaurateur Boosts LGBTQ Agriculture Scholarships with "Classic...
For the first time, a Southeastern Conference (SEC) university is offering LGBTQ students scholarships tied to study in agricultural fields. The University of Kentucky’s College of Agriculture, Food,...
View ArticleAnother Grassroots Response to the Texas GOP
A Texas coffeehouse is taking the direct approach in its response to Texas Republicans’ draconian ban on abortion. As McClatchy Newspapers reported:When the Tumbleweed + Sage Coffeehouse started giving...
View ArticleListen to the Music - THIS WEEKEND! Songs of Slavery and Emancipation
I’ve already heard these works, but I’m not going to bore you with any sort of extended personal review; this press release by Berea College speaks better than could I, although I will add a bit of...
View ArticleEvangelicals - Cracks in the Theocratic Wall?
A new survey from Ligonier Ministries is raising eyebrows within the evangelical community, but it only echoes what many of us have been saying about evangelicals for some time — namely, that they are...
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Not Just Seniors: The GOP Attack on Social Security and Medicare Hits ALL of Us
This will be brief, but pointed — I think we’re missing a major GOTV opportunity.A comment in one of today’s stories caught my eye and generated an almost visceral reaction:We also need to target...
View ArticleElection Day Open Thread - How'd It Go for YOU?
This will be short and to the point — how was YOUR voting experience today?I live in a small central Kentucky town; my polling place is the local elementary school, which is only 100 yards or so from...
View ArticleKY: Governor Andy Beshear (D) Legalizes Limited Use of Medical Cannabis
This will be a short diary — the press conference is still going — but medical cannabis is one step closer to legalization in Kentucky.As part of his initiative to address the opioid crisis, Kentucky...
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Who's the most popular Democratic Governor?
Kentucky’s gubernatorial election is coming up this November, and the deadline for potential candidates to file the necessary paperwork passed last week. (You can see the list of candidates at the...
View ArticleLutheran Leader Calls for Excommunication of White Nationalists
The leader of the second-largest Lutheran denomination in the US has taken a strong stand against white nationalists. As Religious News Service reports (emphasis added):The president of the Lutheran...
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Janis Ian's "Life's Work" Preserved at Berea College
You may know of Berea College from its 1855 founding as the first integrated, coeducational institution of higher learning in the American South. You may know of its Appalachian focus and its...
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People of Faith March on Tennessee State Capitol
Hundreds of Tennessee clergy and people of faith took their protest to the Tennessee State Capitol on Monday. As The Tennesseean reported:Answering the call of the Rev. William Barber II, hundreds of...
View ArticleTucker Carlson out at Fox News
Mediaite reports, quoting a Fox News press release:NEW YORK — April 24, 2023 — FOX News Media and Tucker Carlson have agreed to part ways. We thank him for his service to the network as a host and...
View ArticleRailroaders get their paid sick days!
(Our friend xaxnar has also written on these events, with some important background information and some thoughts about where the US needs to go with rail. Do give it a read, won’t you?)The...
View ArticleConnecticut State Police fake (and hide) citations to cover racial profiling
Rolling Stone reports:A SINGLE STATE trooper logged 1,350 fraudulent traffic tickets into a Connecticut database meant to detect racial profiling. The finding is key to a damning new audit of the...
View ArticleKnow Someone Who Can't Afford Internet Access? Check Out the Biden/Harris ACP!
You may know of the Lifeline program, which provides cellular phone service to Americans living in poverty…but did you know that the Biden/Harris Administration created an even broader program, known...
View ArticleCompany pays $50K for harassing atheist & agnostic employees
Back in 2022, as reported here at DK, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission brought a legal action against Aurora Pro Services of Greenville, North Carolina:According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, since...
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Want to Beef Up Your Résumé? Microcredentials Can Help!
There’s a change underfoot in the business world; employers are starting to pay more attention to demonstrated skills and ability to learning than to the “piece of paper” approach of requiring specific...
View ArticleCan We Stop Blathering About Pelosi's/Hoyer's Hideaway Offices?
Come on, folks, this is getting ridiculous.Pelosi and Hoyer were NOT tossed out of their primary offices; those offices are located in the Longworth House Office Building.They were told to vacate their...
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Hey, did you hear about Biden making railroads better AND safer?
Here’s another Biden/Harris win about which you probably haven’t heard much...as reported in the latest issue of Progressive Railroading:The Federal Railroad Administration last month announced 70...
View ArticleHey, US Veterans - Get an ID that proves your veteran status
Do you hold an honorable (or general under honorable conditions) discharge, but DON’T have any sort of identification that proves your veteran status? If so, you’ve probably been frustrated by the...
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