Quickies: Protests in Puerto Rico, Deadly Anti-vaxxer, Border Patrol agent opens up…
... but also Moon poop and Cute Animal Friday

It’s Friday and I’m jetting off to yet another conference today (gotta hustle for that tenure) but I’m stopping in quickly to share a few stories that have been of interest this past week. Thanks to the folks joining us over at Discord for helping, especially on weeks like this when I’m not paying the best attention to the world!
- “This is not a moment, it’s the movement” says Lin-Manuel Miranda as thousands of Puerto Ricans on the island and across the globe protest to demand the resignation of Governor Ricardo Rosselló after 900 pages of chat messages were leaked, containing misogynist, homophobic, and otherwise downright awful messages. This action comes after years of political corruption, economic difficulties, and the devastation wrought by hurricane Maria. Read a bit more on CNN’s coverage or listen to the coverage that I caught yesterday on The Takeaway.
- Pentagon contractor threatens to kill Congresswoman over vaccine bill – because apparently letting children die of preventable diseases isn’t enough death for him? The Congresswoman he threatened is Florida’s Frederica Wilson, known for her amazing hats, while she should also be known for her amazing political work. Story via our own Surly Amy
- A border patrol agent opens up about his experience detaining migrant children – My stomach did flips several times reading the descriptions of the squalid conditions while the agent numbed himself to the situation around him. Via Muscadine
- To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landing, read everything you didn’t want to know about astronaut poop on the Moon! (Sadly, we did not get a chance to discuss astronaut droppings on NHPR’s The Exchange this week, but here’s the audio and transcript of our show if you’re interested anyway. #ShamelessPlugAlert) h/t to Kupo, Muscadine, and @_Astro_Nerd_ on Twitter.
- Something I should definitely look into given my schedule… Should I carbon offset my summer holiday flights? Via Rhuu
Now go check out some cool fauna, like bees vs. elephants, a manta ray in need of assistance, a vibranium fairy wasse, named in honor of Wakanda, and a badass bird blowing “smoke” rings. H/t once again to Muscadine, the cute animal wrangler. Featured image is a cute adoptable bunny named Juniper at the Animal Rescue League of New Hampshire, where I did their monthly “bunny yoga” in June.
A Pentagon contractor indifferent to the welfare of children? How could that be?