Carla Martinez Machain

Opinion | The No. 1 item food stamps buy is a travesty. Now states can say no. States are empowered to block taxpayer funds from being used on junk food.

The new Bezos WaPo: Firing reporters who cover the actual news, but publishing editorials in favor of limiting the choices of people on food stamps:

wapo.st/475zi1b

Opinion | A.I. Companies Are Eating Higher Education

"And rather than rallying resistance, academic administrators are aiding and abetting a hostile takeover of higher education."

www.nytimes.com/2026/02/12/o...

Opinion | It’s Time for America to Admit That It Has a Marijuana Problem

Hard agree with this. Re-criminalization is not the answer, but regulation and norms are. If sitting in a children's playground chugging a bottle of whiskey is not okay, then doing the same while smoking a joint shouldn't be either.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/09/o...

Yes, because América is the whole continent, not just the United States 🌎

Star Tribune identifies ICE agent who fatally shot woman in Minneapolis Jonathan Ross was dragged in a separate incident last year by a fleeing driver, according to court records.

his name is Jonathan Ross and he shouldn't get a good night's sleep for the rest of his life www.startribune.com/ice-agent-wh...

Impeach Kristi Noem.

"Secret police" is often misunderstood to mean a force that operates covertly, with all their operations secret.

But a secret police force's actions are often public. The secret part is hiding their identities, because they're breaking laws to hurt politically disfavored people, and fear reprisals.

It's not "Democracy Dies in Darkness", it's "Bezos Kills it in Broad Daylight" (and we all calmly keep shopping on Amazon while he does)

Abysmal statement from Canada on the illegal US action in Venezuela.

It doesn’t matter how much you dislike Maduro, that doesn’t justify a violation of international law and the UN Charter. You can’t call on “all parties” to respect international law and not call out US lawlessness.

Some thoughts on what Trump has done in Venezuela and what it might mean for US national security. Caveat: not a Latin America scholar so this is focused on US policy. Clearly huge consequences for Venezuela that others can address.

First, despite the buildup, I didn't think Trump would do it.

1/

"Mexico strongly condemns and rejects the military actions carried out unilaterally ... by armed forces of the United States of America against targets in the territory of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, in clear violation of Article 2 of the [UN] Charter"

www.gob.mx/sre/prensa/m...

Trump Team Calls Maduro a ‘Cartel’ Boss. That Word Doesn’t Mean What You Think.

A quick reminder that "Cartel de los Soles" is a term used to describe corruption, NOT an actual drug cartel:

www.nytimes.com/2025/11/18/u...

Awesome! Bookmarking this for my civ-mil seminar

Also, I want to know if everyone who canceled their WaPo subscriptions over Bezos also canceled their Amazon Prime subscriptions. If you didn't, I'm def judging you

I've never used the fireplaces in my house, and I live in Buffalo. Wood fires sound cozy in theory, but they're not that great for the environment.

Taylor Swift's Last Album Sparked Bizarre Accusations of Nazism. It Was a Coordinated Attack Data analysis from startup GUDEA reveals inauthentic social media network that pushed false narrative about her ties to MAGA world and white supremacy

I did notice these when people started posting them, and am not surprised to see that it was a coordinated attack. A good reminder that social media is not the real world

www.rollingstone.com/music/music-...

Huge congrats to ISA President-elect @jimgoldgeier.bsky.social !! This is such great news! Looking forward to the great work he will be sure to do! 🎉🎊

Looking forward to another year of Foreigner Thanksgiving, which involves chilling at home, eating vegan food, and doing absolutely nothing. Days off when it's not your holiday are the absolute best.

Dear Pet Sitter: Please Lock Up the Knives and Watch Out for Blimps

Glad to hear I'm not the only one who does this, lol. Mine include graphics. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/17/w...

My mom's cousin is my "tío segundo" and I will absolutely never refer to him as my "first cousin once removed" regardless of which language I'm speaking. Some people really can't seem to understand the concept of different linguistic cultures.

There is literally no other way to describe your father’s cousin in English thats accurate. Second cousin is not a culturally relevant term. “Aunt” is a class of person, not a single bond of relation. “Uncle” is a class of person, not a single bond of relation.

U.S. Military Kills 14 More People Accused of Smuggling Drugs on Boats

More illegal boat strikes by the US, this time killing 14 (with one survivor) in four separate attacks off eastern Mexican coast. Once again, no evidence or legal justification provided. Bears repeating that these strikes are illegal, immoral, and ineffective

Our #JHR dataset on police, military, and paramilitary human rights abuses in LATAM, divided by actor and by type of abuse is now up on dataverse: w/ @ghashiakiyani.bsky.social & Paola Fajardo
dataverse.harvard.edu/dataset.xhtm...

I too saw the big Yayoi Kusama pumpkin this weekend at AKG in Buffalo

How a polka-dotted pumpkin became the world’s most coveted art installation They’re in museums, on buzzy art islands, on the sides of buses and — if you spend any time thinking about art — probably living rent-free in your head. Here’s why the artist’s signature squashes keep...

www.washingtonpost.com/entertainmen...

Haunted, Hallowed or Odd: 7 Hotels With Bizarre Histories

I've been to the Crescent Hotel and Spa in Eureka Springs, AR and was so scared that I literally almost drove back to Little Rock in the middle of the night (true story!):
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/14/t...

We'll be launching a follow-up survey soon, so feel free to share any thoughts you might have with us; feedback is always useful!

At the edge of war: Frontline ally support for the United States military1 How does public messaging affect public support for, or opposition to, a U.S. military presence abroad? This study focuses on Poland as a frontline ally with an exceptionally high external security...

Given the recent Russian drone incursions into Polish airspace, sharing this recent article with @michaelallen.bsky.social , @flynnpolsci.bsky.social and Grzegorz Smułek where we explore NIMBYism wrt US troops in Poland in the context of Russian threats
www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1...

Anne Frank, here in the US. FFS.

Kristi Noem Says ICE Will Be ‘All Over’ the Super Bowl

I mean, good? Let them waste their time there? Does Noem know how much Super Bowl tickets cost? Don't think your average undocumented immigrant is going to be there...
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/04/a...