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mrtomrad.bsky.social
Writer, Editor, Educator Author - 'It Won't Be Easy' 'Raising Ollie' '50 Strategies for Learning without Screens' www.mrtomrad.com
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It’s pretty interesting that both Tim Walz and Gavin Newsom are clearly positioning themselves to run for President and one thought he should publicize that he’s having diplomatic conversations with Canadian provinces close to Minnesota and the other thought he should publicize that he sucks

“I revere sports, so the issue of fairness is completely legit,” Newsom said. “And I saw that the last couple years, boy did I [see] how you guys were able to weaponize that issue at another level.” Kirk challenged Newsom over use of the word “weaponize,” and Newsom replaced it with “highlight.”

This sucks.

Republicans are obsessed with trans people and it's upending their ability to think about anything else. There is actual work to be done and actual problems to solve, but they can't because they are too busy thinking of new ways to harm and bully a tiny minority group. It's gross, weird and sad.

The Onion Magazine: Acts Of Profound And Unspeakable Evil Get A Bad Rap: Do They Really Deserve It?

Gender expansive and transgender youth (and adults!) deserve to be happy, healthy, safe, and affirmed. Lies and ignorance are being weaponized. The policies are awful, but the damage and danger of living in a country where these messages are amplified and celebrated shouldn't be ignored.

If you aren’t listening to @socialistdogmom.bsky.social ‘s podcast ‘Weird Little Guys,’ you should. One thing she’s been underlining is just how many statements by ppl in the current admin would have been considered fringe white supremacist talking points just a few years ago.

This is the type of comms work I aspire to: www.audubon.org/news/when-bi...

The rightwing obsession with this tiny minority is frankly bizarre

Nominations are now open for the 2025 Ursula K. Le Guin Prize for Fiction—and anyone can nominate work for this $25,000 prize! We hope you'll nominate books you love that meet this year's criteria:

An estimated 300,000 children globally are expected to lose access to a nutrient-dense peanut butter that’s specially formulated to treat severe acute malnutrition.

Supported by USAID, the Ethiopian clinic provides lifesaving medicine for HIV-positive kids and teens to suppress the virus. First came the 90-day freeze — and now an immediate termination of support.

I have so much appreciation for those who have (and do) love this world and its people so much that they craft stories and projects and processes for what should and will be, who engage in the resistance of building towards something better.

i got extremely bored waiting for my doctor on telehealth, so I made a canva template that anyone can use for free to make their own mini zines in canva (or you can just print and doodle/color/collage away!) i also made an example mini zine about naked mole rats link: tinyurl.com/moleratzine

Every job posting should have a salary range. More importantly, every job posting should have the Myers-Briggs, Top 3 Favorite Movies, and a general summary of the sense of humor of the person you will work closest with.

This is a gut-wrenching, beautifully written essay. A doctor must watch helplessly as children die because USAID's freeze on aid has limited access to nutritional supplements. time.com/7258248/us-f...

Oh no… on my rewatch of the West Wing Andy is about to tell Toby that he’s too sad. As someone who has never connected with a fictional character more than I do with Toby Z, this one hurts.

About once a month I send out an email of upcoming conference proposal due-dates. Lately, I've been adding assorted resources to protect schools and students. If you'd like to be on the email, sign up here: forms.gle/guL7peTuZR3L...

I highly encourage absolutely everyone to take 10 minutes and sit and read this piece by @smathewss.bsky.social without skimming. It is so, so, SO good. smathewss.substack.com/p/how-it-is?...

This little guy has been in the backyard today and I think he wants to be friends.

This is the ultimate dick boss move from Musk - except he isn’t even the boss, he’s just a dick.

A friend was more recently laid off than me. She reached and asked how I was handling it so well, and I realized I'd been focusing a little too big on the small wins of side quests. Here are the Top Ten Hardest Things about Unemployment. medium.com/@mrtomrad/th...

I did not expect 'Zero Day' to be so sexy, but every time they show that man's office/library/cottage...

Here’s the thing about teaching: It can be many years since you taught, and you can be having a bad day, and then you see a face light up across a store or restaurant because 15 years ago, you were their teacher, and you get to hug and hear what they’re up to, and then it was a good day.

This weekend, I got to do a quick trip down to Chicago via Amtrak to train a K-8 staff on student engagement, discourse, and shared learning. It was an absolute blast to be working face to face with teachers all day (and then reading a book).

What I can’t stop thinking about is how hard it’s been made to un-do that misinformation. Our bubbles have thick walls, by design. It’s going to take non-tradition modes of information sharing.

Trump rode to political prominence on birtherism and spent the last month of his campaign claiming that Haitians were eating cats. The rise of authoritarianism in America *must* be understood as a misinformation crisis.

This makes me ill. The official White House Instagram page posted an "ASMR" video with the sounds of shackles and chains. This is humanity-stripping propaganda. This is delight in human suffering. This is the exact kind of messaging that often precludes government-sponsored atrocities.

Anecdotally, yes. The job market is FLOODED right now, and a lot of places seem to be freezing their process or not posting because everyone is "wait and see." It's all pretty cool and awesome.

It seems almost unavoidable at this point that we are headed for a deep, deep recession. Just based on 200K+ federal firings & pullback of contracts, the March employment report (to be released April 4) seems certain to show bigger job losses than any month ever outside of a few in 2008-9 and 2020.

Attorney General Ellison speaking the truth at the #FundOurFutures rally at #mnleg today. We are the many. They are the money. We outnumber them, and we are going to win.

One thing I'm really proud of in the three Bucket and Friends books how they trust students to think big, dream big, and wrestle with big issues. If you want to read the first book NOW, you can sign up for a NetGalley account and read the whole thing online. www.netgalley.com/widget/77984...

How do I feel about SSRI’s? I mean… last year I ordered a Zoloft t-shirt. Like, I have SSRI MERCH because I’m such a big fan.

If you'd like some (very occasional) updates on my book series coming out in August, drop your email here! forms.gle/KhGuDmiRFg9q...

Over the past year, I wrote three books. I'm so ridiculously excited I get to share about Bucket, and for people to read it, and so, SO terrified to share fiction I've written with the world. Links to read online NOW, sign up for more info, and pre-order: mrtomrad.medium.com/how-to-save-...

“Unsurprisingly, she opted for coffee over carcerality.” ☕🏫 

I’m excited to share my new paper in Sociology of Education, “Sent out, Kept In: Detainment-Based Discipline in a Public High School.” journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....