Elaine

switched to decaf after law school. the headache when i missed a day wasn't worth it.

Money Doesn't Buy Elections. It Does Something Worse. Campaign ads barely move the needle. The real influence is hiding in plain sight.

Study after study shows campaign ads barely move the needle. So where does money’s real power come from? I ranked the five ways money corrupts politics—from least to most corrosive. What I’ve learned from 15 years of tracking political money:

Exclusive: Boat at center of double-tap strike controversy was meeting vessel headed to Suriname, admiral told lawmakers | CNN Politics The alleged drug traffickers killed by the US military in a strike on September 2 were heading to link up with another, larger vessel that was bound for Suriname — a small South American country east ...

The boat wasn’t headed to the U.S., which we would have learned with a little due process instead of murder. www.cnn.com/2025/12/05/p...

Reminder: This vast consolidation of wealth and power at the top has not been due to neutral market forces.

There’s no such thing as a “free market.”

It is designed.

It either advances public purposes or it serves the monied interests.

160 years ago today, the 13th Amendment was ratified to end slavery, with one major exception: punishment for a crime.

The legacy of slavery lives on as people behind bars are still coerced into working for mere pennies or nothing at all.

It's long overdue to abolish slavery in all its forms.

America’s Inequality Is No Accident—Workers Know It This week on the Labor Force Podcast: Starbucks baristas escalate what may become the largest strike in the company’s history, demanding real movement at the bargaining table after years of delay tactics and retaliation. We break down the $35 million New York City settlement, the nationwide picket lines, and why workers say this moment is bigger than coffee. Then we head to Iowa, where 2,000 UnityPoint nurses are preparing for a union vote with Teamsters Local 90 after years of unsafe staffing, burnout, and violence on the job. In New York, over 350 nurses at Cayuga Medical Center form Cayuga United–CWA, citing deteriorating conditions and the need for a stronger voice in patient care. And in Florida, city workers in Titusville rebuild their union from scratch under the state’s brutal new anti-union law, SB256. After the labor headlines, we take on a deeper question: How did China eliminate extreme poverty while the richest country on Earth let millions fall through the cracks? We dive into inequality, policy choices, and the uncomfortable truth that America’s economic outcomes aren’t accidental—they’re engineered. Finally, we explore the growing argument for building a real Labor Party in the United States. From Mamdani’s people-powered organizing in Queens to Dan Osborn’s near victory in Nebraska, we look at what a working-class political movement could accomplish in deep red states where Democrats barely register. This episode connects the dots: workplace power, policy choices, and the political future of America’s multiracial working class.

America’s Inequality Is No Accident—Workers Know It

This week on the Labor Force Podcast: Starbucks baristas escalate what may become the largest strike in the company’s history, demanding real movement at the bargaining table after years of delay tactics and retaliation. We break down the $35 mi

"The themes of 'Yassification'… - Related. - Apple Podcasts Podcast Episode · Related. · 04/21/2025 · 35m

With Netflix purchasing WB, many people are talking about the increasing pace of enshittification in the services and goods that we consumers use.

Early this spring, @carlynfromrelated.bsky.social and I talked about this phenomenon and how it seemed to be spreading 😬

tinyurl.com/Enshittifica...

Bernie and Zohran were out in the streets of New York, standing with Starbucks workers fighting for better wages and dignity on the job.

This is what we mean when we say we need allies — elected officials who don’t just “support workers” in speeches, but who show up and fight alongside us.

The lavender marriage is back (did it ever really leave?) Podcast Episode · Related. · 12/02/2025 · 37m

A new Related. episode in which we discuss what "marriage" even means these days.

podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/r...

How to Avoid the Trump-Branded 2026 National Parks Pass "This is a man who is leading an administration taking a hacksaw to the National Park Service and our public lands."

⚠️❗PSA FOR NATIONAL PARK LOVERS❗⚠️

STARTING TODAY you have UNTIL THE END OF THE MONTH/YEAR to purchase an annual pass that provides National Park access through the entirety of 2026 WITHOUT the face of a convicted felon on it.

Do with that information what you will.

www.westword.com/opinion/trum...

The apple harvesting season is over in upstate New York, but post harvest orchard maintenance is still going on. Workers are removing the reflective runners that are used to improve fruit quality

The apple harvesting season is over in upstate New York, but post harvest orchard maintenance is still going on. Workers are removing the reflective runners that are used to improve fruit quality by reflecting sunlight back into the lower and inner parts of the tree. #WeFeedYou

We created health guidelines for fighting loneliness - here’s what we recommend Guidelines for social well-being can help health care providers identify when someone is socially isolated and provide goals and standards for policymakers.

Loneliness is now considered a public health crisis. An international team of public policy researchers has created the first official health guidelines for tackling it, and the recommendations go beyond just telling people to socialize more.

It was dreary in DC today.

So spent the afternoon at the National Gallery of Art to see THE STARS WE DO NOT SEE exhibit of Australian Indigenous Art and popped in to PHOTOGRAPHY AND THE BLACK ARTS MOVEMENT. I would highly recommend both!

My love of third spaces (and the Smithsonian) continues.

We now have an unprecedented level of income & wealth inequality.

It isn’t acceptable that the top 1% owns more wealth than the bottom 93%, while a majority of Americans live paycheck to paycheck.

We must stand together & create an economy that works for all, not just the few.

We talked about this phenomenon in our latest episode...

podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/m...

What do these corporations have in common?

Netflix
Ford
Tesla
T-Mobile
Duke Energy
DISH Network
Metlife
Dominion Energy
United States Steel

In recent years, they all paid their execs more than they paid in taxes.

This is what a corporate-rigged system looks like.

As you’re preparing for your Thanksgiving meal, remember the skilled work it took to get that food to your grocery store.

Tell us your favorite Thanksgiving dish, and we can share some of what we know about the work behind the ingredients.

We have said consistently that the Guard should not be here. It is unsafe for both members of the Guard and communities.

Our deepest condolences go to the two West Virginia families who will now spend this season mourning the loss of loved ones who died while deployed unnecessarily.

No contract, no coffee.

We don’t believe in sitting on the sidelines. Join our Transition co-chair @linamkhan.bsky.social , First Deputy Mayor Dean Fuleihan & @sbworkersunited.org at the picket lines.

Well, well, well…❤️

Gobble Gobble 🦃

Started watching #amanontheinside season 2 this weekend and was struck by their description of the billionaire character:

"A man...whose sole talent is extraction and not contribution."

What wonderfully succinct, yet insightful, phrasing.

Twitter now displays where accounts are from and it has confirmed that too many of the political accounts are out of country bots.

Why are folks still there? To argue with bots? A waste of precious time while enriching the richest man on Earth.

Delete your account.

Spread the Love 💕 Buy Local! 🛍️ WofA is proud to support small businesses here in Arlington and across the DMV area. We hope you all will consider shopping local this holiday season ✊🫶

#baking #cooking #pizza

I admit: I make pizza way more often than is prudent.

If you've been to a @washingtonspirit game this season you've heard the #FreeDC chant at the 51st minute — because the people of DC refuse to be silent in our demand for full rights, dignity, and full power from this federal administration.

DC, RISE UP! GO SPIRIT, WE LOVE YOU DC!

Americans have no idea what socialism means

In the civilized parts of the world it means people have the power to choose to not be screwed over by rapey, greedy corporate thugs. That’s it. That’s all it means

"It’s folks looking up rather than side to side."