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cathiharris.bsky.social
Writer, editor and opinionated human. Read more at www.diealtefrau.com and cathiharris.com. Berlin, Germany. She/hers
143 posts 193 followers 257 following
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Die Linke are not in any way the left equivalent of AfD and it’s dishonest to make out like they are

To focus briefly on the good things: there is no fascist 1/3 blocking majority in parliament; both the crazy neoliberals from FDP and the Russian embassy political wing BSW did not get in; the young voted for the left and not for the right. The rest? Not so great. But we can work with that.

Nothing less than the most important election since 1945 is taking place in Germany today. Around 65,000 polling stations are still open for 2 hours. This means that each polling station has only around 1,200 voters. Short, easy-to-walk routes and quick results. And all without computers.

This is important — closing Central #Madrid to cars over holidays resulted in a 9.5% boost in retail spending on its main shopping street: STUDY. There was also a 71% drop in air pollution. Via @carltonreid.com in @forbes.com. #citymakingmath #citiesforpeople www.forbes.com/sites/carlto...

Apart from reporting, I was at a loss for words today. I am so worried when I look at what is to come. Today is not only about Ukraine; this is a moment of truth for the world, and particularly for Europe. Ask yourself what kind of world order you are willing to live in, and act accordingly.

Begging some hero in the Department of Ed to rename the student loan record file folder "DEI training materials" before unlocking the door for the DOGE bros

Tesla's stock is ridiculously overvalued, and even a modest consumer boycott could tank the company, which accounts for the majority of Elon Musk's wealth. The divestment movement weakened apartheid South Africa. Let's do that again. slate.com/business/202...

Reposting to save thus info.

🇩🇰 Danes offer to buy California: “We’ll bring hygge to Hollywood, bike lanes to Beverly Hills and organic smørrebrød to every street corner. Rule of law, universal healthcare and fact-based politics might apply”. www.theguardian.com/world/2025/f...

Musk reportedly spent $40M on #Superbowl ads calling #USAID wasteful. Here's how we would've spent that $$: Purchased HIV treatment from U.S. pharma companies to keep 1M pp alive for 1 year: Tell Congress #saveforeignaid and #standwithUSAID

Section 504 is a law designed to protect the rights of individuals with disabilities that receive financial assistance from the U.S. Dept. of Ed. I cannot emphasize this enough: Disabled people had to FIGHT for this. Let me tell you about the longest occupation of a federal building in US History 1/

It was so cold in Vienna on Thursday that the Fiaker changed from open to closed carriages and the horses got jackets.

Baltic states switch to European power grid, ending Russia ties

A little 18th-century propaganda, Habsburg-style. This commissioned work by Neopolitan artist Franceso Solimena depicts Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI receiving an inventory of the imperial art collection in 1728. Notice both men are posed, staring directly at the painter, during the handover.

Some photos from the Hofburg, the former principal imperial palace of the Habsburgs in Central Vienna.

“Elon Musk admitted to his biographer that the reason the Hyperloop was announced—even though he had no intention of pursuing it—was to try to disrupt the California high-speed rail project to get in the way of that actually succeeding.” — @parismarx.com in @gizmodo.com

Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia will tomorrow permanently disconnect from Russia’s power grid. Russia can no longer use energy as a tool of blackmail. This is a victory for freedom and European unity.

“More people visited the Business Improvement Districts within Manhattan’s congestion relief zone in January than during the same month last year, dispelling some business owners fears that the toll would deter visitors to Manhattan’s core.” No surprise to those of us who follow this kind of thing.

So sad to learn that the Kleine Grosz Museum has permanently closed! Can't help but fear we will see more of these as Berlin further cuts art funding. www.daskleinegroszmuseum.berlin/das-kleine-g...

This makes sense when you understand that Trump now sees the U.S. Treasury as his personal asset + the U.S. military as his employees to be sent to seize 'valuable properties' that can then be carved up to benefit his cronies - and relatives, apparently.

Listening to Trump explain how he plans to have Pete Hegseth occupy Gaza, displace Palestinians into Egypt & Jordan and build a Riviera-like resort playground for rich folk on the shores of the Mediterranean And thinking about all those who couldn't hold their noses to vote for Kamala Harris 🤦🏻‍♂️

Trump doesn’t remotely have the legal or practical authority to seize Gaza, expel its Palestinian inhabitants, spend billions to develop a Club Med resort, and mug Hamas. He’s drunk with belief in his own unchecked power. Don’t treat this as an actual idea. The words of a dictator.

Lunch on our first full day in Vienna at Hungry Guy near Stephansplatz.

Photos from the Stephansdom (St. Stephan's Cathedral)

TIL we have the DDR to thank for Winterferien. per RBB: www.instagram.com/p/DFk0o0NOuQ...

Wien is beautiful! And I've mostly just seen the central station and the view from a tram ride to Alsergrund. Finally got here and tucked into some wienerschnitzel and kartoffelsalat and all is right with the world.

Lunch on the train. One of the few items left in the Bordrestaurant. Perils of traveling when everyone else is! Also, the drink cooler is broken, so no cold drinks. Even the beer is warm. 🤷‍♀️ Red wine, it is then.

Live 'skeeting' (?) our winter break trip to Vienna. Train depature delayed 15 minutes from Berlin Hbf. Nothing shocking, but still annoying to stand on the freezing platform for half an hour.

NEW: Sources tell my office that Treasury Secretary Bessent has granted DOGE *full* access to this system. Social Security and Medicare benefits, grants, payments to government contractors, including those that compete directly with Musk's own companies. All of it.

Just discovered PinkSky - the BlueSky alternative to the 'gram. I think it's awesome. Also great that all the people I follow here, I automatically follow there. One more step to de-Meta-size my life. @pinksky.app

I must not be wording this right. Lemme try again. There is only one (1) office (not even an institute) at the NIH dedicated to women’s health research. That office is now being dismantled, with only a bland landing page remaining on their website. This is a five-alarm fire! orwh.od.nih.gov

Democrats shld make clear to voters that this gives Musk's private sector employees the power to stop checks to any individual recipient in the US (Soc Sec, vets benefits, Medicare) as well as examine their private financial info. www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...

👇 But also, think carefully before putting info about vulnerable people + activities on social media or asking others to do so. Private networks are better for this.

It would be fantastic if major federal institutions would acknowledge that the executive branch cannot legally unilaterally cancel or redistribute congressionally appropriated funding on ideological grounds and thus they have no legal obligation to comply with such directives

My first 'Friday Walk' of the year - published just in time for the next walk scheduled for tomorrow!

Seeing the anti-environmental 'abundance' rhetoric tighten its grip on young male 'progressives' who get their education from podcasts is chilling. Net Zero isn't a game. Failure to deliver it is famine, drought, civil unrest, war, and death for your children. Wake up.

"This regularly causes confusion. Elon Musk, for instance, suggested at the end of last year that German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier would ‘lose the next election.’ Steinmeier certainly can’t lose the February election because he won’t be on the ballot paper."

Get a suit to a judge to issue an indefinite nationwide injunction on any pauses to appropriated spending, because that's the law. Congress should speak with one voice that they alone have the power of the purse for laws already passed and anything else is lawless. Enough of this already.

Holy moly. This should win an Emmy, a Grammy and a Pulitzer Prize.