C. Fray

My most optimistic opinion is that the combination of cheap AI-generated fake news and major legacy news orgs taking a torch to their reputations is going to create huge opportunities for independent journalists who maintain a reputation for honest, ethical reporting.

The Venn diagram of urban density and average household GHG emissions is pretty much a circle. Interesting study on “Mapping household GHG emissions in the Greater Golden Horseshoe” from the University of Toronto School of Cities schoolofcities.utoronto.ca/mapping-hous...

No meaningful free recycling that I know of, but several places that will take ragged Ts for a small flat fee and turn them into things like insulation. Marine Layer is one example.

This! Paris is a model for the rest of us to follow. I’ll be writing an article soon about how Anne Hidalgo’s efforts there have been some of the best urban planning policies of the decade.

give greta thunberg a gundam

Cass Review does not guide care for trans young people Good medicine is guided by the values of the patient, not those of a clinician, politician or commentator. The Cass Review, lacking expertise and compromised by implicit stigma and misinformation, doe...

6 Oct 2025 -- 16-person Aussie team publish a killer take-down of The Cass Review in the prestigious Australian Medical Journal titled, Cass Review Does Not Guide Care for Trans Young People ("lacking expertise & compromised by implicit stigma & misinformation..." @rikiwilchins.bsky.social

Text of a statement from Dr. Dixon

After a "suspension" of just a few days, UNC Professor Dwayne Dixon is re-instated, revealing the weakness of the fabricated issues used for the suspension. Here is his response. Stand up to the fascists--when we work together we can triumph.

The Battle of Cable Street.

A thread 🧵 with pictures and ALT text.

1/
On this day in 1936, the East End of London rose up against fascism. The Battle of Cable Street.

#TheyShallNotPass #NoPasaran

Faux "soft serve". Freeze the paw paw pulp, then put 15 oz of it into a food processor with a can of sweetened condensed milk and beat a bunch of air into it. Freeze for an hour before serving.

Complements the tropical flavor & smooth consistency, less work than real ice cream.

Advisers are worried that the GOP will take the blame for allowing healthcare subsidies to expire, raising costs for millions of Americans ahead of next year’s midterm elections, according to administration officials. Inside the White House, aides are discussing proposals to extend the enhanced subsidies for Affordable Care Act health-insurance plans, the officials said. Trump hasn’t yet decided whether he will endorse such a proposal, according to the officials. Republicans say they will only hold negotiations with Democrats on the matter after the government is reopened.

So the WH is belatedly realizing that the huge ACA price spikes might be a tiny bit problematic. But they're refusing to negotiate until the government is re-opened.

Why on earth would the Dems agree to vote for that CR on the GOP's word that they'll "negotiate?" Lol.

Not just the subsidies are at stake. Language that would ban healthcare facilities that receive federal funds from providing transition care must be expunged. Call your Dem senators and reps and tell them to protect trans people.

Text: Prevent mixed-use neighborhoods. The combinations of housing, shops, and civic spaces that people love about old neighborhoods are outlawed. Prohibit housing variety. The vast majority of residential zones only allow detached, single-unit homes, rather than legalizing different types and sizes. Prioritize automobiles. Roads are planned and prioritized for long-distance, high-speed rush hour traffic at the expense of safe, multimodal transportation systems. Impose “we know best” rules. Planners decide how tall buildings can be, how far they must sit from the street, how many parking spaces they must have—all based on pseudoscience or hot takes from neighbors.

Andy Boenau argues, "Today, status quo planners use the same city building framework from decades ago, so it should be no surprise that communities across the country are still dealing with the same headaches Jacobs highlighted. In 2025, local planning regulations… buff.ly/6g1CPxf

Finally: AI cannot do your job, but an AI salesman can 100% convince your boss to fire you and replace you with an AI that can't do your job, and when the bubble bursts, the money-hemorrhaging "foundation models" will be shut off and we'll lose the AI that can't do your job, and you will be long gone, retrained or retired or "discouraged" and out of the labor market, and no one will do your job. AI is the asbestos we are shoveling into the walls of our society and our descendants will be digging it out for generations:

This whole section really.

paved sidewalk with grey squares next to green space on left and cafe tables and trees on right.

Light brown sand/park with trees overhead.

Grey pavement and green space and picnic tables.

Here's one of Barcelona's famous superillas, or superblocks, on Rocafort-Consell de Cent. All of this used to be asphalt and space for moving and storing cars. Now it's green, quiet, calm, and safe.

i love this part and i think it very much shows the difference in depth of thinking between someone like Klein, desperately fighting in the here-and-now and arguing to win a battle with compromise, versus Coates' position that he is a soldier in a long war.

The Woman Who Spoke to a Broken Asheville During Hurricane Helene, Lillian Govus was thrown into a role that she never thought she’d have. A year later, she talks about the trauma she saw, and the trauma she endured.

For the Rabbit Hole this week, @jessicawakeman.bsky.social talked to the woman who delivered information to the public during Hurricane Helene about what she saw and heard behind the scenes. www.ncrabbithole.com/p/the-woman-...

This, from the Quakers, is a pretty good example of how to resist pressure from bigot lobbying groups. Effectively “we legally can allow trans people to use the loo, we morally should, and we tried it and nothing bad happened”

Do apartment buildings really need two stairwells? - The Boston Globe Fire safety advances have made single-stair construction safer.

“Regulations that hinder building or add costs should be reexamined… State policy makers should, in consultation with developers & fire safety professionals, change the state building code to allow more single- stair construction.”
www.bostonglobe.com/2025/09/28/o...

I love cities that punch above their weight! You don’t need to be a big, famous city to make bold plans representing a turning point for you & a model for others. After our game-changing Langford Plan (see below), I’m helping them with their transportation, economic development & arts/culture plans.

"More than 1,000 renters across five states in affordable apartment buildings owned by the same private equity firm are launching a first-of-its kind coordinated union drive effort."

National Defense Ministry Honors 11 Soldiers for Refusing Illegal Orders National Defense Ministry Honors 11 Soldiers for Refusing Illegal Orders Honored for rejecting illegal orders during martial law, Marine death probe

The South Korean Ministry of Defense has awarded medals of merit to 11 officers for disobeying direct orders of superiors during the martial law fiasco, orders that they deemed to be contrary to the constitution and endangerment to democracy.
www.chosun.com/english/nati...

When times are tough and we’re stressed out, we have to take extra care to not make other people’s lives unnecessarily hard, especially if they don’t have the freedom to easily avoid us (e.g., employees, students, family).
Don’t let your shit roll downhill

ABOUT CARRBORO’S ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD The Town of Carrboro won 2025 All-America City by the National Civic League, marking a historic win in the town’s fir... CARRBORO, NC - All-America City 2025

Come celebrate the Carrboro All-America City Win at a special program to be held at the beginning of the Carrboro Music Festival. Join us at 1 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 28, at the Drakeford Library Complex!

CARRBORO, NC - All-America City 2025 https://monkeylink.co/33cf26

The Atlantic: not liking noise pollution is gentrification.

Me, a housing policy person, sobbing: you can’t just say everything you don’t like is gentrification.

The Guardian: turning a jazz club into single room occupancy housing in a neighborhood where 1br apartments cost $3200? Gentrification.

It takes both large projects at key points and tiny improvements everywhere to manage the kind of heavy rain events we are going to keep getting.

Separately, our stormwater utility has partnered with HOAs to get state grants for larger projects. And also looks for opportunities to improve public infrastructure.

I'd like to add practical advice for spongifying backyards that any homeowner could use to help their downhill neighbors.

I bet they would. Ours is still small but pilot was very successful.

Helps low-income owners make changes to prevent water intrusion. Helps anyone who borders a waterway make changes to control runoff. Free technical advice.

One of the municipalities that already helps owners pay for stormwater improvements is Carrboro!

In Carrboro, we saw that new development in key locations, because of its MUCH stricter standards, can even catch and slow water from neighborhoods without controls and reduce flooding locally, even in a huge storm like Chantal.

Want to stop flooding? Build smart and retrofit older neighborhoods!

CARRBORO MUSIC FESTIVAL 2025
🎵1PM SUNDAY, Sept 28
🎉 Celebrate Carrboro's AAC Win 1PM, Sunday
🎸FREE music ALL-OVER TOWN
📋Workshops Sunday (reg.required)
💿 HIP HOP & GROOVES:Cat's Cradle Sunday
🎤KICKOFF SHOW: Cat's Cradle Saturday
🚏FREE BUS SHUTTLE
📲Download APP
https://monkeylink.co/d1bbe0