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james_davis_nicoll) wrote2026-01-25 09:01 amThe Memoirs of a Survivor by Doris Lessing
Fostering a teen is a challenge at the best of times. The end of civilization is not the best of times.
The Memoirs of a Survivor by Doris Lessing
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balloon_juice_feed) wrote2026-01-25 12:38 pmSunday Morning Open Thread
hang it in the fucking louvre
— Schnorkles O'Bork (@schnorkles.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 7:21 PM
Minnesota’s justice system will have the last word.
— Governor Tim Walz (@governorwalz.mn.gov) January 24, 2026 at 5:06 PM
One year after she urged Trump to have mercy, Bishop Budde leads clergy protests in Minneapolis religionnews.com/2026/01/23/o…
— Ian Kremer (@leadcoalition.bsky.social) January 23, 2026 at 6:35 PM
MINNEAPOLIS (RNS) — Almost exactly a year ago, the Rt. Rev. Mariann Budde, the Episcopal bishop of Washington, stood in a pulpit in front of the newly inaugurated President Donald Trump and preached a sermon that called on the commander in chief to have “mercy” on immigrants and other communities.
The sermon quickly drew backlash from the president himself, who called her “a Radical Left hard line Trump hater,” and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, who called her message “radical.”
But if Budde’s message was radical, it’s one that has resonated nonetheless. A year later, she stood in another church in Minneapolis, this time surrounded by an array of clergy who represented the hundreds of faith leaders who flocked to the city this week to protest the administration’s mass deportation campaign.
“In our varied and united faith traditions, love of neighbor is not optional,” Budde declared.
The bishop sat down with Religion News Service shortly after that appearance on Thursday (Jan. 22) to reflect on the year that has passed since her barn-burning sermon and on what she expects will be even more faith-based activism on behalf of immigrants…
What brought you out here? Why did you want to be a part of this particular convening?
The call was issued. This is my home state — where I raised my family. I saw how the ICE raids across the country have been happening — they seem to be increasing in intensity and in vitriol and brazenness. It just seemed like whenever there’s a possibility to show up and cast a light on that and shine a national spotlight, that felt really important.
You’re about a year removed from your sermon, in which you called on this administration to have mercy. JD Vance is actually here right now talking while we’re here. Do you have any reflections on that sermon now that you’re here with hundreds of clergy who are issuing a similar call that you did a year ago?
I don’t think a year ago we could have fathomed how quickly and how dramatically this country would change. The degree to which the goals and aspirations of the Trump administration as they came into office, how soon they would actually come into being and what it has cost the country. And then also, as has been said today, history is calling us to step up. I’m doing this for the country that I’m passing on to those coming up behind me and for the people who are here. It feels like a generational struggle. I wish it weren’t so, but here we are. And it’s our country to preserve and protect. It’s heartbreaking, but here we are…
Alex Pretti grew up in Green Bay, Wisconsin, where he played football, baseball and ran track for Preble High School. He was a Boy Scout and sang in the Green Bay Boy Choir.
apnews.com/article/immi…— Eric Michael Garcia (@ericmgarcia.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 7:57 PM
Kare 11 local news just read, in full, this statement from Michael and Susan Pretti, the parents of Alex Pretti.
"Please get the truth out about our son."— Jeff Rueter (@jeffrueter.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 7:43 PM
You have to read this. Firsthand affidavit from one of the women who was there and recording the video. She talks about how Alex Pretti was directing traffic when she arrived. She watched him be killed in front of her. She's afraid to go home, worried she'll be arrested.
— Aaron Reichlin-Melnick (@reichlinmelnick.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 8:15 PM
“Get it all on record now — get the films — get the witnesses — because somewhere down the road of history some bastard will get up and say that this never happened.”
Dwight D. Eisenhower, after visiting liberated concentration camps in April 1945— Andrea Junker (@strandjunker.com) January 24, 2026 at 4:24 PM
Federal Agent Reportedly Said ‘Boo Hoo’ After Minneapolis Man Was Shot Dead, Mayor Asks ‘How Many More Americans Need to Die?’
people.com/minneapolis-…— Latricia May (@shawnone.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 8:58 PM
Protesters flooded the intersection of Nicollet Avenue and W. 26th Street in south Minneapolis, near where Alex Pretti was fatally shot by federal agents Saturday morning.
Video by Aaron Lavinsky, Genevieve Ross, Kyeland Jackson and Louis Krauss.— Minnesota Star Tribune (@startribune.com) January 24, 2026 at 6:21 PM
my Governor, Janet Mills, pointed out our Senator Susan Colins could get ICE out of our state with a phone call, but she chooses not to.
— Henry (@henrythedog.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 3:10 PM
tell you what need to be done to make it stop….hm….
vote, vote out the Republicans, it ends when they don't have the power to hurt people any more, Democrats are telling you "we will end it if you let us" so give them the power to end it.— Henry (@henrythedog.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 5:15 PM
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sovay) wrote2026-01-24 10:58 pmI cannot feel it, the veil of black, a fine spray of white paint
I have been re-reading my second edition of Estel Eforgan's Leslie Howard: The Lost Actor (2010/13) which remains a wealth of otherwise inaccessible information with a close eye to the complex interplay of his biography and screen persona. I still disagree frequently with her criticism, but the detail of her research does things like offer a potential reconciliation between the family stories that Leslie was shell-shocked out of the First World War and the absence of his name from any records of active service in France: toward the end of his short stint as a second lieutenant with the Northamptonshire Yeomanry in the spring of 1916, his regiment was billeted with various divisions at Harponville, Ypres, and Arras, where it would have been possible to be officially non-combatant and still, in the immortal words of Frederic Manning, shelled to shit. Leslie himself never claimed to have seen combat, confiding in one of his broadcasts in 1940, "I am willing to let you figure out the degree of my senility by telling you that during most of the last war I was a very junior officer in a cavalry regiment. However, long before I got anywhere near the battlefront, everybody had settled down into trenches, and as horses are practically useless in trenches I found myself near Divisional Headquarters, pretty bored but pretty safe." His daughter records in her memoir A Quite Remarkable Father (1959) that his violent nightmares which could wake anyone within earshot were understood by his family to be connected to his war. She does not seem to have wondered the same about his self-admitted knack for dissociation or his rare but explosive losses of temper. Eforgan follows her in attributing his conviction of heart trouble to hypochondria; it occurred to me that pre-DSM, a person who regularly woke himself shouting and dreaded traveling alone, especially by train in case he shouted his fellow passengers awake with him, could be forgiven the common confusion of a panic for a heart attack. I found Leslie Ruth Dale-Harris née Howard through some cross-checks on Eforgan and the interstitial material contributed by Ronald Howard to Trivial Fond Records (1982) and her portrait of her father is fascinatingly the most fragile of the three, especially since much of what she regards affectionately as his eccentricities and his foibles looks very little out of the ordinary to me, e.g. a capacity for effortless, spellbinding charm right up until his social meter ran out and he had to leave his own party to fall asleep. A droll sense of humor on his own time, a steel-trap comfort with last-minute rewrites and improvisations, and he couldn't tell a formal joke to save his life without cracking himself up over it or lie without self-conscious same. Fifteen years after his death, his daughter still seems amazed that her famously disorganized father, the same nervous mess who had forgotten the ring at his own wedding and needed reminding of everything from call times to the necessity of food, a regular Menakhem-Mendl of the British film industry if she had just acknowledged his Jewishness—like his non-monogamy, it is elided with mid-century tact—threw himself so obstinately and intently into the war effort even when it ran him directly against the prejudices and proscriptions of the Ministry of Information and the BBC. He doesn't just start to look his age in the last years of his life, he looks recklessly burning himself to make his films and his broadcasts and his tours and his connections that Eforgan documents with the Free French and SOE. About a month into the Blitz, he noted with characteristic self-deprecation that after his London flat took a direct hit, "I decided to heed the exhortation of the popular song and 'get out of town'. In fact, I got out of town with a quite undignified haste, arguing to myself that one can prepare a film for production just as well in the country." He continued to travel weekly into London for work until his final tour for the British Council in 1943 and I don't know what he dreamed for any of it. R.I.P. ADH2*2, three cocktails put him literally on the floor.
I seem unable to think about movies except in this secondhand fashion, but I wrote another fill (AO3) for
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threesentenceficathon. This year it's a lot of noir.balloon_juice_feed) wrote2026-01-25 09:36 amSunday Morning Garden Chat: Seattle Garden in A Mild January
I think we all need a reminder that Spring will return, eventually, so thank you Dan B:
There are some bright spots in the garden just as we’re getting some mild freezes. One hard freeze is forecast for Saturday, although 27° may not seem like a hard freeze to many folks especially those that are in the Path of Storm Fern and the polar vortex.
Top photo: Some single flowered Hellebores are showstoppers despite being less floofy.
More blooms are opening on the Hellebores. And the Arum italicum pictum hybrid sports spots from one very spotted parent.
This very pink double Hellebore is sporting some rotting flowers. It’s also got some bugs as you can see here on the upper right. It’s not my favorite so I’m not too concerned.
The Camellia ‘Buttermint’ is going full tilt.
The fallen petals are coating the ground. Reminds me of light snow.
Daphne odora, appropriately named except its perfume is very sweet. It is potent. One bud opened today so it won’t be long before full bloom / full perfume.
I believe this is Blushing Bridesmaid but Seriously Sunburned or Mortally Embarrassed might be more appropriate.
Wedding Party, the first to bloom, is going to town.
Foliage can be very important in winter and early Spring as these groundcovers demonstrate.
And it’s important to raise one’s gaze every once in a while, because there’s beauty in distant things. This is Glacier Peak, serene far back in the Cascades, so not well known to most Seattleites. It’s had massive eruptions that spread heavy ash all the way to western Ontario and sent 50 foot deep mud flows eighty miles to Puget Sound, where there are thousands of acres of Tulips in Spring and Snow Geese in winter.
***********
What’s going on in your gardens (planning / starting / indoor), this week?
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fred_mouse) wrote2026-01-25 05:43 pmshort fiction - november & december 2025
only slightly lost in the drafts folder
The Viy by Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol, Translated by Claud Field. Described as a horror novella from 1836. Uneven, didn't really get it.
Within the Wall - Patrick Kuklinski, January, 2024. This is entirely from the point of view of a rat living in a colony in the wall, but it has some interesting things to say about aspects of human society as well. 4/5
Regarding the Childhood of Morrigan, Who Was Chosen to Open the Way - by Benjamin Rosenbaum, Nov 19, 2025 - This story is doing some interesting things. I absolutely did not give a damn, and noped out, mostly because I didn’t have the brain space to track what was going on. But also because child neglect.
The person who reminds the other person to cast a spell - by Bogi Takács, December 2024 - short poem, does very interesting things with language. 4/5
The Girl That My Mother Is Leaving Me For by Cameron Reed, April 2025 - before reading: this is dystopia, so I may not make it through, but the title has me intrigued (I'm a bit hmmm about the one sentence summary though). After reading: It's clever, but at no point did I warm to the characters, and I think it would have been necessary to do so to really appreciate this. 3/5
The Specialist’s Hat by Kelly Link (undated) - this is a very clever ghost story, where exactly what happens is never made clear. 4/5
The Starlight on Idaho by Denis Johnson, 'winter' 2011 - odd epistolary fic from a person in drug and alcohol rehab; quite a lot of unreality, beautifully written. 4/5
[001: JAVELIN] - Derin Edala - this is a web serial; I'm not sure if it is finished. Far future science fiction. ... technically not short fiction, and I haven't finished it because the tab it is in keeps getting lost in the sea of open tabs
balloon_juice_feed) wrote2026-01-25 05:28 amLate Night Open Thread
This was a great clip from one of our best and brightest:
She understands the urgency of the moment. Another one of our rising stars, it turns out, was assaulted for… being brown in Trump’s Amerikkka:
Rep. Maxwell Frost said Saturday that he was assaulted at the Sundance Film Festival, linking to a news article describing a hate crime at a party for the film festival.
“Last night, I was assaulted by a man at Sundance Festival who told me that Trump was going to deport me before he punched me in the face,” Frost posted on social media. “He was heard screaming racist remarks as he drunkenly ran off. The individual was arrested and I am okay.”
Frost, a Florida Democrat, linked to a Variety story about the alleged incident, which said a party crasher allegedly “punched a person of color in the face” after telling people in the restroom that he is proud to be “white.”
Another report I read said the perp yelled about having Frost deported, reminiscent of the vitriol leveled at someone here in the comments (before being quickly banned). I’m so fucking sick of this shit. I am so sick and tired of these racist goons.
I think what I realized is, to some extent, I want my elected officials (and no you do not need to throw it in my face that I have the worst elected officials in the world as a West Virginian, by my elected officials I mean the Democrats) to be visibly fucking angry. I want them to visibly hate the fucking ground Republicans walk on. I want them to be red in the face angry like Barney Frank and others would have been. Just fucking livid. I want it to show. The next democratic presidential needs to be willing to pull the throat out of a ghoul like the hero in a monster movie. Fucking “Aldo Raine/William Sherman 2028!- This Time We Finish The Job!”
As has been noted, the most enraging thing about this is it would only take a fucking couple handfuls of elected Republicans could end all this. But they won’t, because they like it and they are paid to like it and they are awful fucking people. And there is nothing we can do to persuade them.
It’s just so surreal to live through this. Like, it is fucking happening. That thing we have all watched happen multiple times all over the world in other places but we never thought would happen here is happening. And soooo fucking many people seem to be not noticing at all. Joelle made me leave the house so we drove through Paradise Valley and went to a thrift shop and everywhere we went I saw people just walking around living their life like everything was normal and in my mind all I am thinking is how is everything just happening like normal and going about their business when they are executing people in the streets. Why is no one freaking the fuck out why are we not all out in the streets and even worse why do so many people seem to want this and think it is great?
It’s fucking crazy. It’s like watching those hospitals being built during covid in China in like 27 days or something and everyone over here is just dickdancing around and it doesn’t even make the nightly news over here. That thing we have worried about and made a bazillion scifi movies and books and there’s probably even a fucking musical and paid for everything Michael Crichton could have ever wanted, well that thing is happening and no one is noticing
Except for most of you guys. Thank god for that.
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conuly) wrote2026-01-30 10:01 amIn other news, I've been watching Killjoys with E
Also, it is absolutely impossible to track down the music for that show. There was one song I liked, so I tried to look it up. No dice. I eventually gave in and searched up "Killjoys soundtrack" and then, armed with the song title and artist name, tried again. Still no luck. I did find an entirely different song that's apparently written by somebody with no internet presence at all. If it wasn't apparently their only song I'd suspect AI. That picture is AI, though, has "artificial" written all over it, in illegible text. Song's not too uncatchy, but - I honestly don't know why the music in Killjoys is so hard to find.
( Read more... )
sonia) wrote2026-01-24 09:40 pmA good day - until I looked at the news
I biked over to the ad hoc Balkan and Georgian singing group that meets once a month, and we successfully sang a bunch of songs, even ones that were newer to us or that we hadn't sung in a while, like Tsmindao Ghmerto. Felt great!
Then I got home and caught up on the news. Augh! Via
redbird, I was reminded about the Stand With Minnesota site with lots of organizations we can support to help their anti-ICE effort. I donated some money to Just The Pill.Adding Minnesota Indian Women's Resource Center via
ofearthandstars in comments. They are listed under Organizations Doing Work On The Ground.On the plus side, I'm so glad we are collectively screaming about ICE, not just passively letting it happen. So grateful for the people bearing witness, physically resisting, and sending support from afar.
balloon_juice_feed) wrote2026-01-25 03:36 amWar for Ukraine Day 1,430: A Brief Saturday Night Update
I know it’s been a long trying day for far too many, so I’m just going to run through the basics tonight.
My Ukrainian friend said this to me today and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it.
— Reid Southen (@rahll.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 7:17 PM
Apparently people are surprised that a man whose only friends on the world stage are a KGB agent & a North Korean Stalinist planned to unleash a murderous secret police on his population.
Looking back, there were signs.
— Darth Putin (@darthputinkgb.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 1:23 PM
President Zelenskyy turns 48 today!
Happy Birthday, Mr. President— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 8:45 PM
Here’s Russia’s butcher’s bill from its attacks on Ukraine last night/this morning:
Another fascist Russian Blitz air raid on Kyiv overnight: 1 killed, four injured, 6,000 buildings without heating, 60-70% of the city without power, some Ukrainian news channels claiming the electricity grid is on the point of collapse. Map shows tracks of Russian missiles and drones (yellow).
— Euan MacDonald (@euanmacdonald.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 3:19 AM
Unfortunately, the news of people dying of carbon monoxide poisoning or the explosion of gas tanks isn’t rare these days. People were desperate to survive the subzero temperatures.
Make no mistake. They didn’t die of an accident. Damn terrorussia killed them.
— Olena Halushka (@halushka.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 10:07 AM
President Zelenskyy’s did not make an address to the nation today. He did address Ukrainian intelligence officers and presented them with awards. Video below, English transcript after the jump.
The President Congratulated Intelligence Officers on the Day of Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence and Presented Them with State Awards
24 January 2026 – 13:03
On the occasion of the Day of Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy congratulated intelligence officers on their professional holiday, conferred senior military ranks, and presented the Orders of Bohdan Khmelnytsky, II and III class, and of Danylo Halytskyi, as well as the medals “For Military Service to Ukraine.”
The Head of State thanked the intelligence officers for their daily service, thanks to which Ukraine receives vital information and in-depth analysis, as well as for their combat work and deep strikes. According to the President, the potential of the Foreign Intelligence Service is far greater.
“Ukraine needs a dedicated, strong intelligence unit capable of operating abroad at a level comparable to the world’s best combat foreign intelligence agencies. Your perspective lies in external operations – not just influence, not just the collection of data or recruitment of agents, but real combat and other asymmetric operations that are essential to protecting Ukraine’s interests,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed.
The President separately highlighted the work of all components of the Defense Forces that are developing Ukraine’s deep-strike capabilities, noting that there are good targets and very strong results.
“All our intelligence services, the National Guard, the Security Service of Ukraine, and the Armed Forces – all are working to destroy the enemy. Thank you for the fact that such a component has emerged within the Foreign Intelligence Service and has undergone such a profound transformation precisely during the full-scale war,” the Head of State said.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy also expressed his gratitude for the intelligence data provided by the Foreign Intelligence Service, which helps inform important decision-making.
Georgia:
On the #InternationalDayOfEducation, Georgians are marching to defend the education system and the independence of universities.
Day 423 of daily, uninterrupted protests.
— Rusudan Djakeli (@rusudandjakeli.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 11:17 AM
Georgia continues to protest.
#GeorgiaProtests
Day 423— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 4:07 PM
Day 423 of #GeorgiaProtests
1. Further international isolation of the regime, which is an enabler and sanctions evasion tool in the Russia-Iran-China axis;
2. Further targeted sanctions. It works;
3. Aid to CSOs and independent media.Please amplify! Thanks!
Merab Metreveli
— Marika Mikiashvili
(@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 11:29 AM
A big turnout today on the 423rd consecutive day of the #GeorgiaProtests.
Despite arrests, intimidation, and winter cold, people are still showing up.— Rusudan Djakeli (@rusudandjakeli.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 11:29 AM
Two days ago, Georgian Dream sent protesters to jail for peacefully standing on a sidewalk, claiming they “obstructed” pedestrians.
The streets are still filled today — day 423 of daily, uninterrupted protests in Georgia.
— Rusudan Djakeli (@rusudandjakeli.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 11:40 AM
For the 423rd day in a row, Georgians are in the streets across 8+ cities, resisting an illegitimate, pro-Russian regime and demanding a European future.
We continue to look to our allies abroad — especially for sanctions and international isolation of the regime.
— Rusudan Djakeli (@rusudandjakeli.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 12:08 PM
Italy:
Trump: NATO is nothing without America.
Meloni: Great. So what should Europe do then – shut down American bases, tear up trade deals, storm McDonald’s?
Balls of steel. Exactly what Europe needs.
— Maria Drutska (@mariadrutska.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 8:33 AM
Meloni: Italy was astonished by Trump’s remarks claiming NATO allies “stayed back” in Afghanistan.
NATO activated Article 5 in “an act of extraordinary solidarity” toward the United States, and Italy “responded immediately,” deploying thousands of troops and leading Regional Command West.
— MAKS 25
Italy paid “an unquestionable price: 53 fallen Italian soldiers and more than 700 injured.”
Statements minimising NATO countries’ contribution are “unacceptable,” and “friendship requires respect.”
— MAKS 25
India:
India’s drop in Russian oil purchases appears to be permanent.
2 major state-owned refineries, Indian Oil and Bharat Petroleum, are replacing Russian oil with oil from Middle Eastern, African, and South American countries.
This will have a big impact on Russian war funding.
— Maria Drutska (@mariadrutska.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 3:23 AM
Back to Ukraine.
— Maria Drutska (@mariadrutska.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 9:18 AM
For decades, the world was told a story that Ukraine was a ‘divided’ or ‘weak’ nation. International observers often viewed us through a Russian lens, assuming we were fragmented by language or geography.
But as we have shown the world, our unity is our greatest strength.
Glory to Ukraine!
— Maria Drutska (@mariadrutska.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 9:18 AM
Abu Dhabi talks stalled on politics as Russia demands Ukraine leave unoccupied Donetsk, RBC-Ukraine reports. Military talks made more headway on troop separation, ceasefire monitoring, a coordination center, and defining violations.
— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 1:41 PM
— The Ukrainian Review (@theukrainianreview.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 4:04 PM
Ukrainian drone operators working as a duo smoked out and eliminated a Russian drone crew. One drone forced the occupier from cover, the other finished the job.
— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 11:18 AM
Tesla AI is clearly not trained for use in Ukraine. www.instagram.com/yellowtail_2…
—
Special Kherson Cat
A Russian suicidal frontal assault using a stripped-down Ural truck, roof and doors completely removed, loaded with infantry and sent straight toward the frontline.
—
Ukraine’s SBU Alpha unit has downed over 400 Russian Shahed drones in just months using interceptor drones, protecting cities and critical infrastructure.
— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 5:55 AM
Debris recovered after a Russian attack on Ukraine shows a Kh-101 cruise missile manufactured in 2026. The finding indicates that Russia continues producing and using new long range cruise missiles despite sanctions and years of war. #Ukraine
— NOELREPORTS (@noelreports.com) January 24, 2026 at 8:10 AM
Russia is firing missiles straight off the assembly line, a sign stockpiles are gone, Ukraine’s sanctions envoy Vlasyuk says. Shaheds get the same treatment, launched as soon as they roll out.
— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 3:03 PM
Kyiv:
Tonight, in Kyiv.
No light? We’ll bring our own.
No heat? We’ll build a fire.We are Ukrainian. We will not be broken, and we will not surrender.
— Maria Drutska (@mariadrutska.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 3:10 PM
The first minutes after russian attack on Kyiv last night were published by the Patrol Police.
At one of the civilian enterprises, two workers were injured. Patrol officers quickly stopped the bleeding, applied tourniquets, and transported the victims to ambulances.
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 12:47 PM
Last night, a russian attack on Kyiv struck a chocolate factory and killed a 48‑year‑old woman who worked there.
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 4:49 AM
A Russian strike drone likely hit a residential complex in Kyiv during tonight’s overnight attack.
— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 2:44 AM
Irpin, Kyiv Oblast:
— MAKS 25
Kharkiv:
Russia struck Kharkiv 25 times last night, hitting 10 different locations.
This is one of them.
Yesterday, this was a home.
Today, it’s ruins.27 civilians were injured across the city.
— Iryna Voichuk (@irynavoichuk.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 5:21 AM
Kharkiv was under Russian attack for several hours last night.
This morning, my best friend sent me a video of russian drone striking her apartment building just a few meters away from her flat.
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 2:23 AM
I’m mortified and angry. I don’t know what she did to deserve such horror. I’m so happy she is okay. I hate russia with all my heart for doing this to her, and to all of us.
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 2:23 AM
The number of people injured in russia’s nighttime attack on Kharkiv has risen to 31, including two children.
— Iryna Voichuk (@irynavoichuk.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 6:44 AM
Russia’s overnight attack damaged 96 buildings in two districts of Kharkiv.
City services have boarded up over 660 shattered windows – 75% of the total.
— Iryna Voichuk (@irynavoichuk.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 12:14 PM
Sloviansk, Donetsk Oblast:
For the second day in a row, russia is attacking Sloviansk with FPV drones.
Today’s strike injured two girls — 14 and 15 years old.
— Iryna Voichuk (@irynavoichuk.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 12:20 PM
Huliaipole, Zaporizhzhia Oblast:
A seven-man Russian assault group was captured by Ukrainian forces near Huliaipole on the Zaporizhzhia front.
— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 4:00 AM
Selidove, Russian occupied Donetsk Oblast:
Russian occupiers filmed Ukrainian drones hitting their positions, ammo storage, and equipment in occupied Selidove.
— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 3:03 AM
Penza Oblast, Russia:
An oil depot in russian city of Penza has been burning for over 30 hours
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 7:03 AM
Murmansk Oblast, Russia:
Meanwhile, in russian Murmansk and Severomorsk, the blackout has dragged on for more than a day. These stupid bastards can’t even fix their own mess, yet they’re busy trying to murder Ukrainians.
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 12:58 PM
Belgorod Oblast, Russia:
More footage emerges from Belgorod, now reportedly under a combined drone and missile attack. A power plant reportedly hit. Bryansk also reportedly under missile strikes.
— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 3:25 PM
Smolensk Oblast, Russia:
Dorogobuzh .. Smolensk region .. reports of a fire at the CHEMICAL PLANT … there is also a thermal power station located in the city.. busy busy
#russianLosses
#UkraineNews— Baba Yaga Fèlla (@babayagafella.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 7:04 PM
— Baba Yaga Fèlla (@babayagafella.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 7:05 PM
Kursk Oblast, Russia:
Ukrainian aviation carried out a strike on a location used by Russians to launch attack drones. The strike took place in the northern direction, possibly Kursk region. The operation aimed at disrupting Russia’s ability to conduct drone attacks against Ukrainian cities and infrastructure. #Ukraine
— NOELREPORTS (@noelreports.com) January 24, 2026 at 1:42 PM
Location: Tetkino (Теткино), Kursk Oblast, Russia at 51.27803, 34.28442 www.google.com/maps/place/5… #geoconfirmed-uaru
A Russian drone operator position is hit by a Ukrainian airstrike.— blinzka.bsky.social (@blinzka.bsky.social) January 24, 2026 at 6:00 PM
Bryansk Oblast, Russia:
Bryansk region
— MAKS 25
Oryol Oblast, Russia:
Oryol
— MAKS 25
Rostov Oblast, Russia:
Taganrog
— MAKS 25
Perm Krai, Russia:
In Zakamsk (Perm) blackout. In the city -23. Population – 130,000.
In this area is the Perm gunpowder plant. The reasons are being established.
— MAKS 25
That’s enough for tonight.
Your daily Patron!
There are no new Patron skeets or videos today. Here is some adjacent material.
Keeping the feeders filled in -20 degree weather
for displaced Ukrainian pups like this.
— Nate Mook (@natemook.bsky.social) January 19, 2026 at 12:18 PM
Open thread!
The post War for Ukraine Day 1,430: A Brief Saturday Night Update appeared first on Balloon Juice.
torachan) wrote2026-01-24 06:34 pmDaily Happiness
2. I took four walks today and walked almost ten miles total. It's really nice weather for it. Mostly cool and overcast, and though it was a bit sunnier around lunchtime it still wasn't really hot or glaring.
3. I wanted to walk somewhere for lunch today and go somewhere new, so I was just poking around at the maps app and seeing what was around and remembered this place called Pita House down the street that we'd wanted to try. I took a look at their menu as I was walking down and saw they have cheesy shawarma fries and that locked my decision in lol.
They were amazing. I still have half of them left, as well as a beef kebab and some pita, because the fries were listed as an appetizer so I thought it might be small, but I was wrong. The fries alone would be good for two people and the kebab was overkill. But now I have something to eat tomorrow for lunch as well.
4. I haven't seen the granola bar guy at the farmers market in a few weeks but he was there today. He said he was there a couple weeks ago, but that must have been a week I missed. He's got a new flavor, peanut butter and chocolate, and it's really good. I also got a couple of my favorite coconut macadamia ones.
5. Look at this blob!
redbird) wrote2026-01-24 08:40 pm(no subject)
It seems likely that Alex Pritti's murder mattered to people who were prepared to overlook their murder of Renee Good, because it shows that while ICE is profoundly racist, a white man with a gun permit isn't safe either.
I can't do much for my friends in Minneapolis, but if there's something that would be useful, please ask.
ETA: After posting that, I realized I could afford to donate some money. So, I followed the links on Naomi Kritzer's recent post, donated $50 to Minnesota Rapid Response, and bought a bunch of dental floss to a group that was asking for that.
lannamichaels) wrote2026-01-24 07:48 pm[Daf Yomi] Maseches Menachos, perek 1 Kol HaMenachos
Menachos! Basically Zevachim except with flour offerings... FOR NOW.
My notes on perek 1:
( Read more... )
balloon_juice_feed) wrote2026-01-25 12:34 amSaturday Night Open Thread
Yep. Still fucking hopping mad. I need you all to understand I am exponentially madder than I was over Terri Schiavo/torture/the bankruptcy bill, and the gulf war lies and the smearing of Scott Beauchamp, which, if you will remember, drove me to not only leave the GOP, but to go on a scorched earth policy against that continues unabated. So I am pretty fucking volatile, and I am sorry if I have offended you, but I simply can’t be fucking arsed with quaternary issues like someone tone policing our outrage in the comments and trying to make this about race or religion or who knows what else.
While a great number of Dems are really doing superb work, most of the ones at the top have been failing us and I will continue to call them out by name and you can tell me to go fuck myself in the comments and I’ll tell ya right back. But you know what- maybe they are starting to fucking listen to the people like me who are screaming that we can’t keep doing nothing:
I mean, this is the bare minimum. They should have done this before Renee Good was fucking executed. And none of them have even mentioned Keith Porter.But it’s fucking something and the firmest step he has taken. Now let’s see if he follows through.
And again, I am sorry if I am angry and mean and disjointed as volatile. I don’t know how to fucking fake it and be something else. I’m angry and emotional and feel helpless and I need the people with tons more power than me to FUCKING USE IT AND USE IT LOUDLY. Lead the way, or someone in Minneapolis is going to take things into their own hands.
God I hate this so much and I hate myself for wishing physical pain on these motherfuckers.
The post Saturday Night Open Thread appeared first on Balloon Juice.
muccamukk) wrote2026-01-24 04:43 pmNature and Bunnies!
( Ten pictures: Some nature, one cat, one rabbit, the northern lights )
adafrog) wrote in fandom_checkin2026-01-24 05:46 pmDaily Check In.
Open to: Access List, detailed results viewable to: Access List, participants: 27
How are you doing?
I am okay
14 (53.8%)
I am not okay, but don't need help right now
12 (46.2%)
I could use some help.
0 (0.0%)
How many other humans are you living with?
I am living single
11 (40.7%)
One other person
11 (40.7%)
More than one other person
5 (18.5%)
Please, talk about how things are going for you in the comments, ask for advice or help if you need it, or just discuss whatever you feel like.
torachan) wrote2026-01-24 03:45 pmWeekly Reading
The Grapples of Wrath
New book in the Grave Expectation series! I had no idea this was coming out until very recently so it was a nice surprise. Still enjoying the series.
A Poison at Castle Gloaming
Second in the Jemima Flowerday mystery series. Enjoying this one as well.
Blackmail, My Love
Stand-alone mystery set in the early '50s with a queer woman investigating the disappearance of her (also queer) brother. I enjoyed this but didn't love it. Kind of slow-paced for a lot of it.
A High Five for Glenn Burke
Sweet middle-grade book about a boy who does a report in class about Glenn Burke, the baseball player who invented the high five, but is afraid that people will find out the other reason he likes Burke so much: that he was gay just like the MC.
Banned Book Club
Graphic novel about college student activists in South Korea in the '80s. This is not a period I had any background knowledge of so it was really interesting. I'm definitely interested in learning more.
The Great British Bump Off:-Kill or Be Quilt
New John Allison comic! I had no idea about this but it suddenly showed up on Hoopla. Although it shares the title with a previous comic from a couple years ago, it's not connected at all except by the main character (who is also a character from his Bad Machinery series). I love pretty much everything by him, and this was no exception. Very silly and cute.
Sakura, Saku vol. 9
I don't think I would have followed this series to the end of it hadn't been on Viz Manga, which I already subscribe to. It's cute enough, but started to feel annoying with the hurdles introduced. This was a decent ending to the series, though.