Landon D. C. Elkind

License Plate Reader Company Flock Is Building a Massive People Lookup Tool, Leak Shows Flock, which has license plate readers (LPRs) all around the country, wants police to be able to “jump from LPR to person,” according to leaked audio obtained by 404 Media.

404 Media reports on the license plate reader company building a massive surveillance network that could help police more easily track people without a warrant or court order.
www.404media.co/lice...

🧵

Wow, what the fuck is wrong with people. Thanks for your reporting.

KY students' lawyer tells judge they have right to sue for better public education • Kentucky Lantern Judge hears arguments on the rights of Kentucky students to sue for better public education in lawsuit harkening back to landmark decision.

Questions around the right of Kentucky students to sue for a better public education system were heard in Franklin Circuit Court Tuesday.
@mckennahorsley.bsky.social
kentuckylantern.com/2025/05/13/k...

This Lender Said Its Loans Would Help Tennesseans. It Has Sued More Than 110,000 of Them. The Flex Loan, a type of payday loan pioneered by Advance Financial, has burdened low-income borrowers while generating huge profits for lenders. Tennessee lawmakers declined to rein in the lending bu...

Advance Financial’s Flex Loan charges 279.5% interest, trapping thousands of borrowers in debts that end up in court, where the company has won over $200 million in judgments since 2015.

By @friedmanadam5.bsky.social, w/ @tennesseelookout.com

The California Ballot Measure That Could End Forced Prison Labor - Bolts Prop 6 would amend California's constitution to ban “involuntary servitude” and prohibit state prisons from punishing incarcerated people for refusing a work assignment.

California lawmakers passed legislation to limit probation against kids in 2022, but Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed the reform. Advocates are trying again this year.

Faculty House faces demolition alongside Cherry Hall renovations - WKUHerald.com Editor’s note: In a previous version of this story, the captions refer to the Faculty House as 125 years old. The Faculty House is 105 years old. The Herald regrets this error.  As a casualty to many ...

If you are at all interested in WKU history, you will want to read this.

wkuherald.com/84638/news/f...

How Federal Workers Without a Union Can Still Act Like a Union The reality for over 1.3 million federal government workers leading up to the second Trump Administration has been collective bargaining through unions recognized by the Federal Labor Relations Author...

"If recognition from the employer is off the table, we have to be able to build power through collective action instead. The reality is: There’s still so much workers can do!" Republished from @organizeworkers.bsky.social blog: labornotes.org/blogs/2025/0...

Columbia Will Pay Survivors of Abusive Doctor $750 Million After ProPublica Revealed University’s Failures The sweeping deal means the Ivy League school’s settlements will total more than $1 billion for over 1,000 claims of sexual abuse by former patients of OB-GYN Robert Hadden, who worked at the universi...

NEW: Columbia University has agreed to a $750M settlement with nearly 600 patients of Robert Hadden, a former doctor who sexually abused them while working at the school.

A 2023 ProPublica investigation revealed how the school shielded the OB-GYN for decades.

One mile on a bike is a $.42 economic gain to society, one mile driving is a $.20 loss Copenhagen, the bicycle-friendliest place on the planet, publishes a biannual Bicycle Account, and buried in its pages is a rather astonishing fact.

“One mile on a bike is a $.42 economic gain to society, one mile driving is a $.20 loss.”

“Which means that Copenhagen, a city of 1.2 million people, saves $357 million a year on health costs because something like 80% of its population commutes by bike.”

Via @grist.org
grist.org/biking/one-m...

Arizona has recovered 5% of taxpayer dollars lost in $2.5 billion Medicaid fraud scheme The state has so far indicted more than 100 individuals and recouped $125 million. But despite state and federal efforts, it’s likely that most of the stolen taxpayer money won’t be recovered, officia...

Two years after Arizona officials uncovered a $2.5 billion Medicaid fraud scheme that targeted Native Americans seeking treatment for addictions, the state has recouped just a fraction of the taxpayer funds lost to fraud.

With @propublica.org.

The Latest Trump and DOGE Casualty: Energy Data The Energy Information Administration has long provided reliable data on everything from oil and gas to alternative energy. Now one of its signature reports has been slashed and a second one canceled ...

NEWS: Reeling from Trump/DOGE cuts and chaos, energy data agency cancels major international report, deletes analytical centerpiece of its flagship U.S. energy outlook. www.propublica.org/article/the-...

Scientists just found a way to break through climate apathy In a field of muddy results, it's among the clearest findings that one cognitive scientist has seen in his career.

Scientists just found a way to break through climate apathy.

In a field of muddy results, it's among the clearest findings.

grist.org/science/brea...

#Science #Climate #Communication #Psychology #Greensky

The Latest Trump and DOGE Casualty: Energy Data The Energy Information Administration has long provided reliable data on everything from oil and gas to alternative energy. Now one of its signature reports has been slashed and a second one canceled…

NEW: The Energy Information Administration has long provided reliable data on everything from oil and gas to alternative energy. Now one of its signature reports has been slashed and a second one canceled entirely amid sweeping job reductions and turmoil.

By @peterelkind.bsky.social

"Look, if we prevent farmers from killing themselves, then we'll have to prevent everyone from killing themselves. Is that what we really want to do as a society?"

Kentucky's average public school teacher pay ranks 42nd in the nation, education group says • Kentucky Lantern New reports highlighted by the Kentucky Education Association show that pay for public school teachers fell in national rankings again.

New reports highlighted by the Kentucky Education Association show that pay for public school teachers in the state fell in national rankings again this year.

@mckennahorsley.bsky.social
kentuckylantern.com/briefs/kentu...

EA's very normal and definitely not freakishly doll-looking CEO Andrew Wilson

For no particular reason, let's look at how much money EA execs made recently

aftermath.site/electronic-a...

Politically Connected Firms Benefit From Trump Tariff Exemptions Amid Secrecy, Confusion The administration’s lack of transparency about tariff exemptions has experts concerned that some firms might be winning narrow carve-outs behind closed doors. “It could be corruption, but it could…

One product that got a tariff exemption is PET resin, used for plastic bottles.

Reyes Holdings, a Coca-Cola bottler owned by two politically connected brothers, recently hired lobbyists with close ties to the Trump White House to advocate on tariffs.

By @robert-faturechi.bsky.social

Even the U.S. Government Says AI Requires Massive Amounts of Water

🔗 www.404media.co/even-the-u-s...

Officials Play “Accountability Ping Pong” With Jail Deaths in Texas A bipartisan push for more oversight comes after a sheriff flouted state law mandating independent investigations of jail deaths.

Texas law requires that sheriffs order an outside investigation when someone dies in custody. Bolts learned this is not happening in one of Texas' biggest counties—and the state agency in charge of oversight says it's powerless to make officials comply. boltsmag.org/texas-j...

Inspector General Probes Whether Trump, DOGE Sought Private Taxpayer Information or Sensitive IRS Material The request, spelled out in an email obtained by ProPublica, comes amid concerns that DOGE has overstepped its bounds in seeking highly restricted private information about taxpayers, public employees...

NEW: A Treasury Department inspector general is probing efforts by President Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s DOGE to obtain private taxpayer data and other sensitive information, internal communications reviewed by ProPublica show.

Inspector General Probes Whether Trump, DOGE Sought Private Taxpayer Information or Sensitive IRS Material The request, spelled out in an email obtained by ProPublica, comes amid concerns that DOGE has overstepped its bounds in seeking highly restricted private information about taxpayers, public employees...

New: A former senior Treasury official told @propublica.org the probe could lead to a criminal investigation if reviewers find evidence of lawbreaking.

But

That same official said it’s possible those leading the review could face political repercussions.

Nike Says Its Factory Workers Earn Nearly Double the Minimum Wage. At This Cambodian Factory, 1% Made That Much. Nike has made an expansive effort to convince consumers, investors and others that it is improving the lives of factory workers who make its products, not exploiting them. A rare view of wages at one…

NEW: Nike has made an expansive effort to convince consumers, investors and others that it is improving the lives of factory workers who make its products, not exploiting them. A rare view of wages at one Cambodian factory tests this claim.

With @oregonian.com

Politically Connected Firms Benefit From Trump Tariff Exemptions Amid Secrecy, Confusion The administration’s lack of transparency about tariff exemptions has experts concerned that some firms might be winning narrow carve-outs behind closed doors. “It could be corruption, but it could…

Major stakeholders are in the dark about why certain products face tariffs and others don’t. Trump administration officials have given conflicting messages about the tariffs or have declined to answer questions at all.

By @robert-faturechi.bsky.social

You're a special kind of fucked up if you are pro-rape in any circumstance.

White House Proposal Could Gut Climate Modeling the World Depends On Potential funding cuts for NOAA and its research partners threaten irreparable harm not only to climate research but to American safety, competitiveness, and national security.

The possible elimination of the lab threatens irreparable harm not only to global understanding of climate change and long-range scenarios for the planet but to the country’s safety, competitiveness and national security. @propublica.org www.propublica.org/article/trum...

The Trump Administration’s War on Children The administration is quietly putting America’s children at risk by cutting funds and manpower for investigating child abuse, enforcing child support payments, providing child care and much more.

Trump has indefinitely withdrawn federal funding for:
• Investigating child sexual abuse and internet crimes against kids;
• Responding to reports of missing children;
• Preventing youth violence

New, @propublica.org

ICE is Training Civilians to Conduct Violent Raids on Immigrants - UNICORN RIOT New details emerged about ICE's 'Citizens Academy' program after the Center for Constitutional Rights published internal ICE documents.

As you see people acting like ICE agents and targeting Latinos, I remind you that ICE and HSI have been willingly training civilians to do violent ICE raids. If you wonder where this was normalized, read my report from last year at @unicornriot.bsky.social.

unicornriot.ninja/2024/ice-is-...

Find Out Why Health Insurance Denied Your Claim You likely have the right to access records that explain why your insurer denied your claim or prior authorization request. Use ProPublica’s free tool to generate a letter requesting your claim file…

Your periodic reminder that you have the right to find out why your health insurer denied your claim.

We built a tool to help you do it: projects.propublica.org/claimfile/