Shannon O’Mac

The optimistic scenario I have clung to since January is that in 2027 the bleeding will stop, and in 2029 we can start to repair. There is going to be so much hemorrhaging until that though. And I don't think it will get any better in the 2 years before 2029 but at least it will stop getting worse.

I keep thinking about how terrible it is that so many people will be losing their health insurance in January due to costs and cuts. I was rejected from insurance once before the ACA [preexisting conditions]. I was hospitalized that year and it almost bankrupted me. We need universal heathcare ASAP.

Handwritten notecard. Prompt at the top asks: What object was most devastating for you to lose, and how have you been coping? Answer below: Dentures. Were thrown away and coping isn't somthing I can do. It’s made me feel ugly, unworthy, can’t go get a job with no teeth. So how can get off the streets until another pair can be made?

ProPublica spoke to about 150 people who had lived in homeless encampments when cities cleared them out in “sweeps.”

We distributed notecards so people could tell us about the toll in their own words.

➡️ This is what they wrote: https://propub.li/3MTlm33

Goddam why does 1918 go so hard

A photo taken from the base of a tree looking straight up. It has a wide trunk with bumpy bark and bare branches against a bright blue sky.

I love to feel small and insignificant in nature. Perspective is good

#ArtAdventCalendar 🌿

This is SO important.

Absolutely THRILLED to hear that @bradlander.bsky.social is running for Congress!

Send the mensches to DC!!!

we are going to win.

it's not always going to feel like a victory. my heart is full of rage at how many will suffer while we get there.

but they are in free-fall now.

Photograph of a female Pine Grosbeak perched in profile on a shrub covered in frost, backlit by the late afternoon sun. Bird is a plump grey finch with bronze head, black and white wings, and a short, thick beak. Background is soft focus silvery grey.

Frosty perch (2025) #ArtAdventCalendar #Photography #birds

Disney will sue somebody for so much is breathing in the wrong direction of Mickey Mouse, but now suddenly they're feeding all of their IP to AI?

Not only is it stupid, it is finally suspicious.

Your Thursday reminder that when you meet a baby you DON’T actually have to guess their gender. Just say “And who is this tiny perfect person?” Guaranteed no one will ever, ever object.

A hawk with brown patterned back and wings and a graying tail with darker stripes. It is perched on a railing and facing left. It has yellow eyes and a sharp raptor's beak.

Sharpie hanging out, trying to look casual, at the bird feeders today. 🪶

Sharp-shinned Hawk, PA

Effectiveness of 2024–2025 COVID-19 Vaccines in Children... This report describes COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness among children ages 9 months to 17 years.

COVID-19 vaccines prevented 76% of healthy kids ages 9 monthss to 4yr visit to ER or urgent care, 56% among children and adolescents aged 5–17 years, compared with those who did not receive a 2024–2025 vaccine. www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes...

Senate rejects extension of health care subsidies as costs are set to rise for millions of Americans The Senate has rejected legislation to extend Affordable Care Act tax credits, essentially guaranteeing that millions of Americans will see a steep rise in costs at the beginning of the year.

I'm so tired. My patients are literally skipping tests & appointments every day because they can't afford them and our leaders consistently choose to do NOTHING for the people they represent.

Apparently we can afford everything but taking care of our fellow citizens

apnews.com/article/heal...

ACIP Leadership Shake-Up Before Hep B Vaccine Vote Alarms Experts New chair has questioned vaccine safety, promoted unproven COVID treatments

Useful context: www.medpagetoday.com/infectiousdi...

COVID Vaccines Slashed Kids’ ER Visits by 76 Percent, Study Finds A report published by the CDC reaffirms the effectiveness of COVID vaccines at preventing severe disease in children

COVID vaccines slashed ER visits by 76% in kids 9 mos-4 yrs, and 56% in older kids, CDC's latest MMWR report found (reposting with story): www.scientificamerican.com/article/covi...

a colorful fantasy worm or dragon creature with six limbs and a multicolored quilt like pattern on its body. it has a black head with three horns and antennae and is saying "boycott genAI" in a white speech bubble

worm for you

Twenty million Americans have a completely new chronic illness from a pandemic our government said was over in mid 2022, before the two highest waves even happened. And now they are ending the subsidies that allowed millions to afford healthcare. The rage I feel could birth a new galaxy.

LOOK AT HIM. LOOK AT HOW SMALL HE IS BEING

THEY TRIED TO BURY ME BUT THEY DIDNT KNOW I WASA POTATO The Velvet Bandit

I kind of love this. And potatoes 🥔

someone should invent a thing that's like a university but it's goal is to facilitate learning

Dark green salad with light green spears and dark purple and white flower

Large tortoise boy about to take a chomp of cucumber

Today in Jeremy's salad: collard greens, cucumber, and pansy

Time is owned by Marc Benioff, the CEO of Salesforce, which is currently trying to sell its AI tool to ICE in order to triple their recruitment. just a thing I think about sometimes while I’m at work, implementing his product for nonprofits.

Graffiti on dirty white brick wall in New York City that says “TRANS IS HOLY” with a heart symbol

🙏🏾

How We’ve Resisted ICE: Street Lessons From Chicago “I cannot imagine doing anything else in this moment,” says community defense organizer Gabe Gonzalez.

Our last episode of the year is a conversation about what resisting ICE has looked like in Chicago, what we've learned, what it's cost, and where we go from here. I'm so grateful to Gabe Gonzalez, Rey Wences, and Jocelyn Walsh for this convo. This one is special to me. Audio + transcript:

A been a freshly harvested citrus in a field

"Juana" is harvesting citrus in Fresno CA. "It's a hard job. I climb a 20 foot ladder carrying an 80lb sack of oranges. It takes 2-3 hrs to fill the bin in the picture. I earn $35-50/bin depending on the type. I work hard to provide food and shelter for me and my son." #WeFeedYou

this is a form of societal suicide. hermit nation curling up to die.

What's ominous is all of the trusted women of color who know a lot about AI are saying that a crash is on the way and the white guys are pretending they are taking it to the moon. This means that a crash is definitely on its way.

We are being poisoned every day, so why do we keep voting for more pollution? Ask a lobbyist | George Monbiot The dirty industries that dominate politics deceive us into accepting dangerous pollutants such as ammonia as part of life, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot

I think about this quote from @georgemonbiot.bsky.social a lot:

“The idea that some people may freely poison others is one of the most astonishing but least contested aspects of modern life.”