Amber from Seattle

I need more of these.

A whistleblower's disclosure details how DOGE may have taken sensitive labor data A whistleblower tells Congress and NPR that DOGE may have taken sensitive labor data and hid its tracks. "None of that ... information should ever leave the agency," said a former NLRB official.

Oh dear you’re going to want to read this. Looks like DOGErs were caught exfiltrating NLRB data, likely on unions, for private (seemingly Elony) use. This is must read. What we’ve all suspected. But now details. www.npr.org/2025/04/15/n...

🚀🚀

DOGE takes over federal grants website, wresting control of billions A DOGE engineer removed users’ access to grants.gov, threatening to further slow the process of awarding thousands of federal grants per year.

Scoop: DOGE now controls how grant opportunities get posted across government.

DOGE engineer removed users’ permissions to post to Grants-dot-gov without telling them. Now requests flow thru DOGE-controlled mailbox.

with @carolynyjohnson.bsky.social + @hannahnatanson.bsky.social

Final_Version_of_Tarrifs_actualFINALcopy_version7_USETHISONE.docx

The problem with most machine-based random number generators is that they’re not TRULY random, so if you need genuine randomness it is sometimes necessary to link your code to an external random process like a physical noise source or the current rate of US tariffs on a given country.

Just gonna leave this here…

Andrew Chen, co-founder of one of my favorite denim brands, 3sixteen, breaks down how the tariffs affect his company

IG 3sixteen

Barbarians and mandarins "As soon as it stops accelerating, it stalls and explodes."

Curtis Yarvin, a close ally of Peter Thiel, recently declared that the system is “irreparable,” that “To capture an elite, you have to demolish its institutions,” & that “Every existing institution of science, outside the scientists & the labs themselves, must be fully cremated…” 1/

DOGE says it needs to know the government's most sensitive data, but can't say why DOGE staffers have skirted privacy laws, training and security protocols to gain virtually unfettered access to financial and personal information stored in siloed government databases.

DOGE staffers have skirted privacy laws, training and security protocols to gain virtually unfettered access to financial and personal information stored in siloed government databases.

Texas Banned Abortion. Then Sepsis Rates Soared. ProPublica’s first-of-its-kind analysis is the most detailed look yet into a rise in life-threatening complications for women experiencing pregnancy loss under Texas’ abortion ban.

Dozens more pregnant and postpartum women have died in Texas hospitals since the state banned abortion, our analysis shows.

As the maternal mortality rate dropped nationally, it rose in Texas by 33%.

Musk’s SpaceX Could Secure Billions in New Contracts Under Trump (Gift Article) Elon Musk’s role in the White House allows him to cancel contracts and influence policy, potentially benefiting his companies. Supporters say he has the best technology.

Elon Musk might be cutting government spending, but not on his own projects — billions in extra federal money is likely headed toward SpaceX, thanks to policy changes that will make the world’s richest man even richer. A NYT investigation examines the Trump-era shift toward SpaceX

nyti.ms/4kPE8VJ

Savor the beauty of the moment.
ko-fi.com/sophielabell...

Because DOGE has shut down USAID's payment system (Phoenix), our housing electricity and the electricity in our USAID building have not been paid for. Mission leadership has informed us that the only reason our electricity is on is because we've asked for an extension from the electric company. The Mission asked for a waiver but because our payment system is down, the Treasury has no way to issue money to USAID and State Department representatives here are hesitant to make payments on our behalf for fear of not being reimbursed. 7. Once the electricity goes out in our homes, we lose access to our security cameras and radios. Again, I live in a high-risk post, so access to security systems is very important to me. 8. I have been told by Mission leadership that the cell phone and internet bills are due this week with no way to pay them. This is despite the so-called "waiver" process that has been allegedly implemented to preserve such access. 9. Our cell phones and radios are also the only way to communicate with the Regional Security Office about security threats. We have access to no other USAID security systems.

The agency is also considering spending about $25,000 to install a washer and dryer on the building’s 6th floor, according to a Feb. 25 invoice obtained by POLITICO. There is also a child’s play area decorated with a stuffed animal and toys, according to a photo of the room shared with POLITICO. “People are definitely … sleeping there,” said one GSA staffer.

DOGE cut off payments for the electricity, cell phone, and internet service of U.S. government employees who work in a high-risk area in Central America.

Meanwhile, DOGE apparently plans to spend $25,000 to install a washer and dryer for their own personal use in a federal office building in DC.

you’re fired. wait you’re rehired. email us a list of things you’ve done today wait forget it you’re fired again. come back your job was important. you’re fired. or hired. come in to the office. wait the office has no computers go home. we are the department of government efficiency.

Batavia is about the craziest thing I’ve read about ship wrecks.

I'm down to my last avocado.

Do I make guacamole?

Or do I sell it and use the money to buy a lesser Picasso?

The stock market is tanking so badly it almost feels like we are being governed by someone who went bankrupt six tim— oh.

a man is covering his eyes with his hands in front of a group of men . ALT: a man is covering his eyes with his hands in front of a group of men .

Me: I can’t believe UK voters chose to torch their economy with Brexit. That can never be topped.

American voters:

My friend worked for IRC getting refugees into jobs and housing. Another friend worked on HIV vaccines in South Africa. I work at a public hospital who may do layoffs because we can’t get paid or get our research grants.

can't believe it's 2025 and i'm stressed about tariffs and measles, like am i a character in an american girl book

"Developing a device that could treat severe bleeding. It seems to have caught the committee’s attention for using the words “victims” — as in gunshot victims — and “trauma.” Creating biosensors to detect infectious diseases. The grant appears to have been tagged for the repeated use of “POC,” an acronym often used for “people of color” but in this context meaning “point of care” — that is, the place where people receive medical treatment — and “barrier,” referring to a part of the biosensor itself. Designing eye-tracking technology for diagnosing and treating concussions. It appears to have gotten flagged for referencing “traumatic” brain injuries and the “status,” meaning the condition, of patients."

ProPublica looked into science grants that Ted Cruz's team flagged as "radical" and "neo-Marxist" and, uh.

This would be good comedy if it didn't matter so much www.propublica.org/article/ted-...

I have a breakfast cookbook with an entire chapter of straight up cakes for breakfast! Cardamom cake with coffee is worth getting out of bed for.

Mr Garcia, I have drafted an appropriate response for you. You're welcome.

One of our supporters shared this with us—people are getting creative tonight!

Just got a tip from a guy at the FAA. You'll never believe who is still getting new government contracts while all the contracts at the Department of Education and USAID and other agencies are being nuked from orbit.