Alex Contreras 🍉

It only took 7 months, but my “why tariff banana?” crusade has FINALLY been vindicated: the White House has exempted bananas (and a bunch of other tropical fruits) from the tariffs today

Now if they could just realize this whole trade war is stupid and counterproductive…

I just don’t see how we can pretend even for a moment that anything involving our federal government is remotely normal when the president is covering up his involvement in a child sex trafficking ring. Like, what are we doing here

In NYC due to a lack of housing and constant, rising demand, rents are well above the national average. In Oakland, my home, rents are remaining steady due to an increase in housing production. These are some national examples & I can get more specific but this is Bluesky & I only have so much time.

Housing prices are set by market demand, because there is a lack of housing and a constant demand, rents will go up. In areas where we see steady housing production, like in Texas, housing costs remain low.

A problem with city and transportation planning, is that not too many are focused on long term planning. If we're serious about climate change, we need 50 or 100 yr regional plans. The clock is ticking and we don't have the luxury of time.

Promotional event flyer with yellow text appears on a blue background reading "Eliminating Minimum Parking Requirements: Stories from Cities Across the Country." Below, additional text reads "A Mini-Symposium from the UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies." Event details appear at the bottom: Tuesday, Nov. 17 on Zoom at 10:00 AM Pacific Time

There is still time to register for our parking mini-symposium on 11/18! Whether your city has embraced parking reforms or is still in the early stages, hear from experts share their success stories from across the U.S.

More here ucla.zoom.us/meeting... #UCLATransportation100

Housing is too expensive because your local government acts like an HOA. It doesn't allow housing to be built, is extremely picky about what kind and where it can be built. This is just Nazi propaganda.

Stopped at this intersection again because the flooding was the worst here, looks like the water is supposed to drain into the bike lane?

One-third of Angelenos do not drive Walking back the "car-free" games promise is unconscionable in a city where the people who don't drive are also the most vulnerable users of our streets

Reflections on last week's #WeekWithoutDriving in a city that still refuses to acknowledge the existence of its nondrivers — which a comprehensive new report claims make up one-third of LA's population

This bus stop/bulb-out was just built literally yesterday in Berkeley. Seems like a great place to stand and wait for the bus, yes?

Note also the depth of water over the ADA ramp.

The way these structures are drawn, or the way the contractors read the drawings, isn't right.

Live downtown so if you need more photos I can probably get some, and you're welcome!

Bike lane on 14th and Webster flooded

Bike lane on 14th and Harrison full of dead leaves n trash

First day of heavy rain and all along the newly constructed bike lanes on 14th you'll see them flooded and full of trash 😬

How a flawed idea is teaching millions of kids to be poor readers For decades, schools have taught children the strategies of struggling readers, using a theory about reading that cognitive scientists have repeatedly debunked. And many teachers and parents don't kno...

how did i go so long not knowing we were literally teaching people to read wrong. i knew something wasn't right but jesus christ www.apmreports.org/episode/2019...

Two friends of mine, victimized by men in SF politics have watched the real time "rehabilitation" of their rapists image and had their own dragged through the mud. Rapists have no place in society.

My takeaway from every new Epstein revelation is that some powerful people victimized many powerless young women, many more knew, some actively enabled it--and we're still being told that MeToo and accountability for sexual violence have gone too far

This is impressive.

I'm in this post and I don't like it

I am governed by idiots

WHAT DID SCHUMER & THE JUDAS'S THINK WAS GOING TO HAPPEN?!?!?

In the most predictable development ever, Mike Johnson is not committing to hold a House vote on ACA subsidies

This is all Trump's fault to be clear but Democrats made the rallying cry Healthcare and now they're not going to even get what they wanted???

The Democratic Party is a national embarrassment, I do not understand what Chuck Shumer is thinking, if he's thinking at all.

Speaker Johnson has literally said he's "not promising anyone anything."

For once, I believe him.

Prop 15 will eventually come back to the voters and the second time around I believe it can pass.

I didn't expect to see major CEQA reform or SB79 pass 😅 so now I'm sitting here like wow, okay time to dream big again.

@muhammadspeaks.bsky.social has been banging the drum on condo defect law and I've been sharing thoughts on a revolving loan fund. These are the next reforms!

CA needs to unlock funds for housing, we can continue to tweak ministerial processes and upzone statewide, but if there's no funding, housing will not be built.

Don't break up the massing. Ornament the surface of your plain box with a decoration at the ground floor for the pedestrians, some stuff in the middle, and a fancy cornice molding at the top.

basically every 2024 truism is dead. Trump did not build a lasting multiracial coalition or turn young men into committed Republicans. You don’t need to cave on trans rights to win. The pundits have nothing left to tell you.

I regret to inform you that hoes are mad.