atmiger224

[atmiger224]

I am struggling to process the news about NIH-funded research. And the devastation planned for NSF.

Republicans are destroying biomedical research and scientific innovation in America. I don’t know to articulate how devastating this is, because I don’t think most people understand that NIH-funded research is a cornerstone of GLOBAL biomedical research.

If you or your family had any kind of serious medical issue in the last 50 years & modern medicine saved you, I can say with near certainty that NIH-funded research saved your life. Private companies dump their R&D money on focused projects, with the goal of developing something that will make the money back; companies are not funding the key early stage work, they are not funding what we call “basic” and “translational” science which is foundational. It’s the other way around: federally-funded research, available in the public domain, serves as source & springboard for biotech firms, for pharma, for everyone.

Federally-funded biomedical research is one of our crown jewels: true American excellence, for our own betterment & for the entire global scientific community. If you are an American, this legacy is one of the genuinely incredible & wondrous things done in your name, with your money, for you.

I am struggling so much to even be coherent, because this is blowing up my life, my career, the scientific & public health missions I have been devoted to for my whole adult life, and I am fucking shell shocked, and I can hardly even bear to read news about it because people are being so fucking cynical, and so fucking dumb, and they don’t even know what indirect costs mean in the context of biomedical research, and and and and

I don’t know what to say, what to do, it’s all so fucking bad

[atmiger224]

Strong Man heard about "soft power" and decided it sounded too girly

[atmiger224]

[atmiger224]

I saw something in the news today that truly took my breath away. If you have been paying attention to U.S. politics over the past few days, you’ve most likely seen this woman:

This is Bishop Mariann Budde, and on Monday (Trump’s inauguration) she led an interfaith prayer for Trump and the incoming administration. During the service she asked him to have mercy for LGBTQ+ Americans and undocumented immigrants. This was badly received by the Trump administration (as expected).

After seeing headlines about this woman, I read something that I wanted to share. In 1998 a man named Matthew Shepard was murdered for being gay. I’m not going to get into the details of his death on this post, but please be warned it is extremely triggering if you do choose to read more on your own. Matthew Shepard’s death caused a lot of change in the U.S. regarding how LGBTQ hate crimes are handled, and laws that were passed to protect LGBTQ+ people.

Now you’re probably wondering what Matthew Shepard has to do with an Episcopal bishop. For years after Matthew Shepard’s murder, his family had held onto his remains, too scared to lay him to rest in fear of his final resting place being vandalized. In 2018, Budde had his remains interred at the National Cathedral, which is also the place where the interfaith prayer for Trump and his administration took place. The impact of this really had an effect on me. Budde could have led a non confrontational prayer service, and chosen not to mention the harm that will come to the people Trump and his administration are going after. Instead she chose to call out hate and fear in front of some of the most powerful people on the planet, and at a place that has such a large historic meaning to the LGBTQ community.

In the next few years there will be many challenges in protecting free speech, standing up against hate, and protecting those in our communities. But I would like to believe that for every Donald Trump and Elon Musk, there are people like Marianne Budde. There are those of us who can’t speak up for themselves, so it’s important for those of us who can to amplify our voices, even if it’s not the ‘popular’ thing to do.

“And he said you should apologize. Will you apologize?

I am not going to apologize for asking for mercy for others.” - Mariann Budde’s response in a Time interview

Link to articles: x x x

Link to the Matthew Shepard Foundation if you would like to donate

[atmiger224]

DRAMAS in 2025

➼ 3 || The Trauma Code: Heroes On Call 중즌외상센터 (2025) dir. Lee Do Yoon

[atmiger224]

[atmiger224]

"The Golden Age of America"

[atmiger224]

Just think what this deference to the leader of this personality cult will look like a few weeks from now once Trump has comfortably taken control of every aspect of the government backed by the trusty safety net of Supreme Court-validated Presidential Immunity.

Congratulations, America.

[atmiger224]

#Caucacity

Trump was the biggest birther. How do people forget that?

[atmiger224]

Hunter S. Thompson wrote this a week after 9/11

[atmiger224]

Im gonna throw up

[atmiger224]

[atmiger224]

The people in the top three spots on Forbes' billionaire list—Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerberg—will have prime seats at President-elect Trump's inauguration next week. NBC News, citing "an official involved with the planning of the event," reports that the three tech billionaires will be sitting together on the platform with other high-profile guests, including Trump's Cabinet nominees. Bezos and Zuckerberg's companies, Amazon and Meta, have each donated $1 million to the inauguration, while Musk spent more than $250 million to help Trump win the election, reports Reuters.

[atmiger224]

What an unsurprising & completely expected turn of events that literally everyone saw coming 😮

Source 🔗

Free 🔗

[atmiger224]