7+ hour, 27+ min ago (527+ words) Avatar of 'Amara M,' a fake account from Thailand that claims to be a 'Trump supporting MAGA girl' in the US Elon Musk has finally done something good with X, even if it wasn't necessarily the goal. Over the weekend, his social media company rolled out a new policy that allows users to see not only when an X account was created, but also where the account is from. The new feature has led a number of pro-Donald Trump and pro-MAGA accounts to be unwittingly exposed as foreign trolls'who have had great success amassing followers and thus payments from Musk's creator fund by capitalizing on the easily manipulated rubes in the Republican base. "This is an important first step to securing the integrity of the global town square. We plan to provide many more ways for users to verify the…...

5+ hour, 58+ min ago (765+ words) New housing under construction in California Ezra Klein had a classic column in the New York Times the other day which he advertises in its title: "America's Housing Crisis, in One Chart." The chart he highlights; new housing units per capita, is informative, but not quite in the way he says. Source: US Census Bureau The reason for highlighting the impact of the bubble and its bursting, rather than the problems cited by Klein, is we need to have a sense of relative importance. Restrictive zoning is definitely a problem, and we should look at regulatory constraints, especially on manufactured housing, that may needlessly limit supply and push up prices. But we had restrictive zoning and needless regulations before 2008 and still managed to build plenty of housing. That suggests that these are not the main obstacles to more construction. Construction…...

6+ hour, 33+ min ago (475+ words) Nearly half of Americans are trading turkey this Thanksgiving for cheaper options like chicken, according to a new report from Defend America Action. It's just one example of how rising costs are putting a damper on the holiday. The report was compiled at the behest of more than a dozen Democratic state legislators, who have personally witnessed their constituents cutting corners to make ends meet. "While Trump and Republicans spend billions bailing out their allies and handing out tax breaks to billionaires, Americans are facing higher prices with fewer resources," the lawmakers said in a joint statement. "Many Americans will find themselves clipping coupons, cutting costs, and waiting in long lines instead of settling in for a relaxing holiday with family and friends." The report found that 57 percent of Americans say that Thanksgiving trimmings are more expensive than last year....

18+ hour, 59+ min ago (417+ words) Republicans are increasingly anxious about the 2026 midterm elections, fearing a potential "wipeout" that could cost them their House majority and several Senate seats. The Hill reported Monday that off-year elections in Virginia, New Jersey, and municipal races around the country indicate they might be in trouble. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), who is not running for reelection, told the outlet, "If we are where we are today in the beginning of the second quarter [of 2026], then I think we're in for a really rough time in November." "We have plenty of time to address it. There are a lot of positive things that we're doing here, that the administration is doing. But if you mess with health care " if we don't get health care policy right, if we don't get some of the cost policies right, we're going to have major…...