Madison Malone Kircher , The New York Times; Meet Jimothy, the ‘Silly and Round’ Creature Taking Over Instagram Feeds
"Alexis Mercedes Rinck, a member of the Seattle City Council, announced that she would soon present a proclamation to “celebrate the majestic Jimothy” and “commemorate Jimothy Summer.”
“I think he’s an example to all of us that you don’t have to be perfect to be loved, and it’s what makes us different that makes us sensational,” she said."
CLAIRE TAYLOR , The Acadiana Advocate; Judge rules Michael Lunsford, Citizens for New La. owe librarian $50,000 in attorney fees
[Kip Currier: It's dizzying to remind ourselves via articles like this 7/2/26 one in The Acadiana Advocate of the legal twists and turns that librarian Amanda Jones has traversed to arrive at this $50,000 settlement agreement for attorney fees in her lawsuit for alleged defamation against Citizens for a New Louisiana.
Ms. Jones previously secured a recorded apology and $1 payment from blogger Ryan Thames in November 2025.
I was fortunate to speak with the greatly-in-demand inspiring intellectual freedom advocate Amanda Jones in April 2025 for a recorded interview that graduate students continue to be able to learn from in my MLIS degree's "required core course" The Information Professional in Communities at the University of Pittsburgh. Her profile is also included in the Intellectual Freedom chapter of my 2025 Bloomsbury book Ethics, Information, and Technology.
Ms. Jones shared on LinkedIn recently that she was "incredibly humbled and grateful" to learn that her 2024 Bloomsbury book That Librarian: The Fight Against Book Banning in America "has been included in The Obama Foundation Public Library collection of non circulating books, specially chosen by President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama."
Kudos to Amanda Jones -- and other dedicated librarians and information professionals throughout the world -- for courageously standing up for intellectual freedom and access to diverse viewpoints and voices through books.]
"A Livingston Parish judge has ruled that Michael Lunsford and the Lafayette-based Citizens for a New Louisiana owe $50,000 to a librarian in a defamation case that has not yet been tried on its merits.
Twenty-first Judicial District Court Judge Erika Sledge of Livingston Parish on June 15 awarded Amanda Jones, a Livingston Parish school librarian, $50,979 to be paid by Citzens for a New Louisiana and Executive Director Michael Lunsford.
In 2022, Jones spoke at a Livingston Parish Library board meeting against censorship and the proposal removal of books. Lunsford, who runs the social media for the conservative Citizens for a New Louisiana and blogger Ryan Thames blasted Jones on social media, equating her opposition to banning publications like “This Book Is Gay” to supporting the grooming of children and pornography...
Jones has since settled with Thames who issued a public apology."
Elena Moore, NPR; Pete Buttigieg and his kids subject to CPS, police investigation after false report
"Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says he and his children were the subject of an investigation by Child Protective Services following an anonymous report that was later determined to be false.
Buttigieg, who lives with his husband and their twin four-year-old children in Traverse City, Michigan detailed the experience in a Substack post on Friday, saying that a police officer and CPS worker had come to his home and notified him of an anonymous report that alleged his children were at risk...
When asked for comment, the Michigan State Police told NPR they had received an anonymous report this week that state police and CPS responded to and "determined the report was false."...
The Michigan State Police have not shared any additional information on a potential motive for the false report against Buttigieg and his family. But in his statement Friday, Buttigieg noted the incident had taken place during Pride Month, meant to celebrate LGBTQ+ people.
"It's not lost on me that this happened soon after we shared photos of our family on social media for Father's Day," Buttigieg said in his statement. "Or that this occurred during a month meant to make families like ours feel welcome and safe."
News of the incident prompted bipartisan support for Buttigieg, including from Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wisc., who replied to the Michigan Democrat's post on X saying, "this has happened to our family and I agree, this is horrible."
[Video] CBS News; Library's teen advisory board creates "Community Closet" to help those in need
"The South Park Township Library has a new program that helps provide necessary items for the community at large to use free of charge. But it's the group behind it that makes it such a special project. Josh Taylor reports on this week's On A Positive Note."
DOMINICK MASTRANGELO , The Hill; Olympics turn political as US athletes speak out against Trump
"A growing number of Olympic athletes competing for the U.S. in this month’s Winter Games are expressing discomfort with representing the country under President Trump’s administration, sparking intense pushback from the president’s supporters and Trump himself.
Trump attacked U.S. athlete Hunter Hess directly after Hess said he was conflicted about competing for Team USA given the country’s political climate.
“It brings up mixed emotions to represent the U.S. right now. I think it’s a little hard,” Hess, a freestyle skier, told reporters during a recent press conference. “There’s obviously a lot going on that I’m not the biggest fan of, and I think a lot of people aren’t. Just because I’m wearing the flag doesn’t mean I represent everything that’s going on in the U.S.”
The president in a Truth Social post hours later called Hess a “real loser” and said it is “very hard to root for someone like this” when watching the games.
Hess’s comments came days after Amber Glenn, an American figure skater, decried the administration’s policies toward people in the LGBTQ community."
Carol Glatz , United States Conference of Catholic Bishops; Pope invites Catholics to 'disarm' language and build kindness, respect for Lent
In his first message for Lent, Pope Leo XIV asked the faithful to "cultivate kindness and respect in our families, among our friends, at work, on social media, in political debates, in the media and in Christian communities. In this way, words of hatred will give way to words of hope and peace."
"The Vatican released Pope Leo XIV's message for Lent, which begins Feb. 18 on Ash Wednesday.
Titled, "Listening and Fasting: Lent as a Time of Conversion," the papal message asked Catholics to come together as a community to listen to the word of God and to the vulnerable.
The pope also invited the faithful to engage in a "very practical and frequently unappreciated form of abstinence: that of refraining from words that offend and hurt our neighbor."
RYAN MANCINI , The Hill ; Indiana Republican with disabled child rejects redistricting bid after Trump-Walz spat
"A Republican state Senator from Indiana on Friday said he will vote against President Trump’s redistricting effort in his state after the president used a slur demeaning people with disabilities in his online spat with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D).
“Many of you have asked my position on redistricting,” state Sen. Michael Bohacek (R) wrote in a Facebook post. “I have been an unapologetic advocate for people with intellectual disabilities since the birth of my second daughter. Those of you that don’t know me or my family might not know that my daughter has Down Syndrome.
“This is not the first time our president has used these insulting and derogatory references and his choices of words have consequences,” Bohacek continued. “I will be voting NO on redistricting, perhaps he can use the next 10 months to convince voters that his policies and behavior deserve a congressional majority.”
Trump attacked Walz in a Truth Social post on Thursday and called him the slur. He slammed the governor for doing “nothing” about the number of Somali refugees in Minnesota, either “through fear, incompetence, or both.”"
Tyler Pager and Theodore Schleifer , The New York Times; Trump and Musk’s Unlikely Alliance Breaks Down in Rapid and Public Fashion
[Kip Currier: In the words of fictional billionaire Logan Roy from TV's Succession, these "are not serious people." As George Dillard wrote in a 2024 "We Are Not Serious People" piece for Medium:
"There were a lot of memorable lines in Succession, but Logan’s line is the one I often find myself repeating in my head, because there are not a lot of serious people left in America anymore."
https://worldhistory.medium.com/we-are-not-serious-people-00ca768240e3
These are not individuals of good character or emotional intelligence whom reasonable, thinking, morally-grounded people with sound judgment would want leading them, working for them, or in a relationship with any family member they care about.
Even more, Trump and Musk et al are not people you want with access to the nuclear codes or in charge of spacecraft and satellites your country depends upon. They care nothing about the well-being of anyone other than themselves and perhaps a tiny handful of people in their immediate oligarchic circles. They are rich in assets and bankrupt in any semblance of decency or dignity.
And yet...here we are. Remember this at election time in 2026 and 2028.]
[Excerpt]
"The sparring swiftly devolved into threats on their respective social media platforms, as Mr. Trump threatened to cut the billions in dollars in federal government contracts with Mr. Musk’s companies. For his part, Mr. Musk unleashed a tirade of attacks on the man he had once lavishly praised. He suggested it might be time to create a new political party, claimed there were references to Mr. Trump in government documents about the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and indicated his support for a post calling for the president’s impeachment."
Robert Reich, The Guardian; Three billionaires: America’s oligarchy is now fully exposed
"One of the unacknowledged advantages of the horrendous era we’ve entered is that it is revealing the putrid connections between great wealth and great power for all to see.
Oligarchs are fully exposed and they are defiant. It’s like hitting the “reveal codes” key on older computers that let you see everything.
On Wednesday, Jeff Bezos, the third-richest person in America, who bought the Washington Post in 2013, announced that the paper’s opinion section would henceforth focus on defending “personal liberties and free markets”.
Anything inconsistent with this view would not be published, according to his statement. “Viewpoints opposing those pillars will be left to be published by others.”
The Post’s opinion editor, David Shipley, promptly resigned, as he should have...
Elon Musk, the richest person in the world, bought Twitter in 2022, laid off everyone who was filtering out hateful crap on the platform, renamed it X and turned it into a cesspool of lies in support of Trump.
Mark Zuckerberg, the second-richest person, has followed suit, allowing Facebook to emit lies, hate and bigotry in support of Trump’s lies, hate and bigotry.
All three of these men were in the first row at Trump’s inauguration. They, and other billionaires, have now exposed themselves for what they are.
They are the oligarchy. They continue to siphon off the wealth of the nation. They are supporting a tyrant who is promising them tax cuts and regulatory rollbacks that will make them even richer.
They are destroying democracy so they won’t have to worry about “parasites” (as Musk calls people who depend on government assistance) demanding anything more from them.
When billionaires take control of our communication channels, it’s not a win for free speech. It’s a win for their billionaire babble."
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| Black Panther variant comic book cover by cartoonist Tom Beland. James "Kip" Currier (c) 2018 |
