So I read something...: Reading archive 2023-10-30

Fear and anxiety can help. Here’s how to use them to your advantage. In the field of mental health, fear and anxiety are usually seen as pathologies. But there is necessary and appropriate fear and anxiety, which can be helpful.

Colony Ridge reflects Texas conservative values. It gets bashed anyway. - "Silva voted for Trump twice, home-schools her three children, opposes vaccine mandates and abortion. She considers herself a Hispanic conservative. But in Texas, she’s no longer sure that makes her Republican. She now identifies as Independent.

"'I told my husband I’m not voting red anymore,' she said. 'I’m not a Black Lives Matter person. And I don’t believe in structural racism. But do I believe there’s racism in towns like this? Yes.'"

Why is everyone so mad at Jada Pinkett Smith?: The actress has a theory about the backlash to her new memoir - [ed. note: unsupported accusations that the public thought/said things about Jada Pinkett Smith that I doubt and are not supported with evidence]

Slaying the vampire that is killing bats: How do you vaccinate bats living deep in caves — or, for that matter, stop any disease outbreak in wild animals?

A year later, Musk’s X is tilting right. And sinking.: The billionaire bought Twitter to revive its business and make it less ‘woke.’ He has succeeded at only one of those goals. - "Anika Collier Navaroli, a former senior policy official at Twitter who testified last year before the House Jan. 6 committee, said that Musk in many ways is taking Twitter back to its 'pre-2016' era, when the site took a laissez-faire approach to moderating user content. 'It seems a lot like Elon Musk’s version of free speech was for him and his friends to be able to do hate speech without getting in trouble,' she said."

Maine congressman reverses his opposition to assault weapons ban: Rep. Jared Golden, a Democrat who had enjoyed an A+ rating from gun rights advocates, said he regretted his past opposition to an assault weapons ban and said he would now support a ban

Local nuts are forecasting a harsh winter in D.C.

D.C. youth fatally shot by victim of attempted carjacking, police say

Teen charged in fatal D.C. carjacking was freed after earlier arrest

12-year-old admits to robbing D.C. Uber Eats driver of his moped: The youth was initially arrested in June when he was 11 for assault and multiple robberies. Prosecutors later dismissed those charges.

Spurned by moderates and MAGA: How DeSantis’s coalition has deflated: Centrists have recoiled at DeSantis’s entreaties to the Trump base. At the same time, he has lost ground with Trump supporters.