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Reproduced from a Point2Homes report. Map: Axios Visuals Axios - America saw fewer moves than ever in 2024, Axios' Sami Sparber writes from an industry analysis of census data. Only 1 in 9 people (11%) changed residences last year — a record low in data going back to 1948. |
November 30, 2025
Americans not moving as much
The gadfly thing
From our overstocked archives
Sam Smith, 2015 - I was recently described in an otherwise kind article in Washington's City Paper as a "political gadfly." This was neither the first time nor will it be the last. It has happened to me so often that I was able to tell the writer where the word came from (a fly that bites and annoys cattle). In fact, it has happened to me so often that I once had a dinghy named the Gadfly.
Gadflies are only barely further along in the evolutionary chain of things than maggots and slugs. They are frequently found resting placidly on a pile of excrement. As readers well know, I never am at rest sitting on a pile of shit.
Being called a gadfly is a little like being bitten by one. It's also, notes Jon Rowe, like Ralph Nader being called a "self-styled consumer advocate." Where, Rowe wonders, does one go to get a license to become an properly appointed consumer advocate? To the Washington Post Style Section?
People in Washington who call other people gadflies tend to be either players or people who wish they were. A player is someone trying to be Assistant Secretary of HUD, someone who represents a major polluter and claims to practice environmental law, someone who is paid large sums of money to shout down Eleanor Clift on national TV or who pays large sums of money to get politicians to wrestle with -- and ultimately defeat -- their own conscience. Players are annoyed by gadflies because they won't play according to the players' rules. On the other hand, gadflies don't clutter up the bureaucracy making dull speeches, and they don't create toxic waste sites or corrupt the political system. They tend to eat Mr. Tyson's chicken rather than fly on his planes. And at the end of the day, they have less explaining to do to their children.
Players consider themselves serious; gadflies not. Russell Baker, a serious man, addressed this matter best in a column in which he pointed out the difference between being serious and being solemn. Baker observed that children are almost always serious, but that they start to lose the trait in adolescence. Washington is the capital of solemnity and few of its elite are truly serious.
Gadflies, on the other hand, are usually serious. A gadfly tends to be someone with ideas, energy and a modicum of talent but who lacks a PR firm, ghostwriter and a proper flair for networking. A gadfly is someone who actually wants to get something done, but often can't -- largely because of all the players in the way.
EF Schumacher once said, "We must do what we conceive to be the right thing, and not bother our heads or burden our souls with whether we are going to be successful. Because if we don't do the right thing, we'll be doing the wrong thing, and we will just be part of the disease, and not a part of the cure."
Gadflies would agree. They think for themselves. But in Washington thought is something players purchase, just like they purchase gas, condoms or political access. People who think are considered part of the service industry with commensurate compensation and social regard.
When gadflies feel like using a bovine analogy, they think of themselves as mavericks -- animals whose only sin has been to wander off from their colleagues. Mavericks also, as they say in Texas, drink upstream from the herd, which if you know anything about cattle is not a bad idea.
Take a run-of-the-mill gadfly such as myself and then some average players -- say the editorial board the Washington Post -- and compare their records over a couple of decades. The gadfly approach to freeways, urban policy, Vietnam, the environment and Bill Clinton will, I think, hold up pretty well. The problem gadflies face is not that they are irrelevant or wrong but that their timing is a bit off. The FBI used to categorize members of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade as "premature anti-fascists." Similarly, many gadflies are just moderates of an age that has not yet arrived.
November 29, 2025
Polls
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CIVIQS - According to a new state-by-state breakdown, Trump's approval ratings remain positive in several Republican-dominated states, with the highest net approvals in Wyoming (+34 percent), West Virginia (+27 percent), Idaho (+23 percent), North Dakota (+18 percent), Montana (+17 percent), and Oklahoma (+17 percent).
In these states, Trump's base remains strong, continuing the trend seen in earlier periods of his presidency.
Other states posting positive net ratings include Alabama (+16 percent), South Dakota (+16 percent), Arkansas (+14 percent), Kentucky (+12 percent), and Utah (+12 percent).
Conversely, the president is experiencing significant disapproval in historically Democratic states, according to the polling.
Hawaii reports a net approval of -55 percent, Vermont sits at -50 percent, Maryland at -44 percent, Massachusetts at -42 percent, California and Rhode Island at -40 percent, and Washington and Oregon at -36 percent.
In populous states such as New York (-32 percent) and Illinois (-29 percent), the figures further reinforce national partisan divides.
Donald Trump participates in a video call with military service members from Mar-a-Lago on November 27, 2025.
The battleground states that determined the 2024 election present a challenging landscape for the administration.
Trump's net approval stands at -12 percent in Arizona, -13 percent in Pennsylvania, -15 percent in Michigan and Nevada, -14 percent in Georgia, -11 percent in Wisconsin, and -8 percent in North Carolina.
Florida, Texas, and Ohio are all at -6 percent, maintaining the pattern of net-negative standings in all major swing states.
In these states, Trump's base remains strong, continuing the trend seen in earlier periods of his presidency.
Other states posting positive net ratings include Alabama (+16 percent), South Dakota (+16 percent), Arkansas (+14 percent), Kentucky (+12 percent), and Utah (+12 percent).
Conversely, the president is experiencing significant disapproval in historically Democratic states, according to the polling.
Hawaii reports a net approval of -55 percent, Vermont sits at -50 percent, Maryland at -44 percent, Massachusetts at -42 percent, California and Rhode Island at -40 percent, and Washington and Oregon at -36 percent.
In populous states such as New York (-32 percent) and Illinois (-29 percent), the figures further reinforce national partisan divides.
Donald Trump participates in a video call with military service members from Mar-a-Lago on November 27, 2025.
The battleground states that determined the 2024 election present a challenging landscape for the administration.
Trump's net approval stands at -12 percent in Arizona, -13 percent in Pennsylvania, -15 percent in Michigan and Nevada, -14 percent in Georgia, -11 percent in Wisconsin, and -8 percent in North Carolina.
Florida, Texas, and Ohio are all at -6 percent, maintaining the pattern of net-negative standings in all major swing states.
Study Finds - Eighty-one percent of dog owners genuinely believe it was fate that matched them with their pet, according to a Talker Research survey of 2,000 dog owners conducted in September 2025. The data backs up this feeling. Three out of four pet parents say their dog’s personality mirrors their own, particularly when it comes to energy levels, how they interact socially, and emotional sensitivity.
The connection between owner and dog personalities appears strongest along the introvert-extrovert spectrum. People who identify as extroverts were more than twice as likely to have outgoing dogs compared to introverts (38% versus 19%). Meanwhile, introverts were far more likely to describe their pets as shy, cautious, or quiet.
Extroverted owners were more likely to describe their dogs as friendly, affectionate, and energetic. They were also more than twice as likely to say their dog has an outgoing personality. Introverted owners more often described their pets as stubborn, calm, and easygoing. They were also more likely to characterize their dogs as shy, cautious, or quiet.
The connection between owner and dog personalities appears strongest along the introvert-extrovert spectrum. People who identify as extroverts were more than twice as likely to have outgoing dogs compared to introverts (38% versus 19%). Meanwhile, introverts were far more likely to describe their pets as shy, cautious, or quiet.
Extroverted owners were more likely to describe their dogs as friendly, affectionate, and energetic. They were also more than twice as likely to say their dog has an outgoing personality. Introverted owners more often described their pets as stubborn, calm, and easygoing. They were also more likely to characterize their dogs as shy, cautious, or quiet.
How capitalism really works
ProudSocialist posted: The average American household owes:
$10,000 in credit card debt
$18,660 in medical debt
$22,612 in auto loans
$58,957 in student loan debt
$241,840 in mortgage debt
$10,000 in credit card debt
$18,660 in medical debt
$22,612 in auto loans
$58,957 in student loan debt
$241,840 in mortgage debt
Just wondering
Sam Smith - When will Donald Trump force the deportation of Mrs. Trump as part of his war on dangerous immigrants?
Making Granola Helps Refugees Learn Job Skills and Find Community
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Nice News - For most, granola is simply a snack, enjoyed atop a morning bowl of yogurt or when the midday munchies hit. For refugees working with Beautiful Day, though, it’s a pathway to a better life. By teaching these individuals to make and package granola, the Rhode Island-based nonprofit helps equip them with the skills they need to find steady employment. |
Meanwhile. . .
About 46 million people remain under winter weather alerts, as two weather systems threaten to disrupt post-Thanksgiving travel with chilly temperatures, heavy snow and dangerous driving conditions.
Trump regime halts visas for Afghan nationals
The Hill - The State Department has paused visas for Afghan nationals after two National Guard members from West Virginia were shot close to the White House.
“The Department of State has IMMEDIATELY paused visa issuance for individuals traveling on Afghan passports. The Department is taking all necessary steps to protect U.S. national security and public safety,” the State Department said in a post on the social platform X Friday evening.
“The Department of State has IMMEDIATELY paused visa issuance for individuals traveling on Afghan passports. The Department is taking all necessary steps to protect U.S. national security and public safety,” the State Department said in a post on the social platform X Friday evening.
ICE Terrorizing Chicago’s Working Class
In These Times - When federal immigration agents thread through her Chicago neighborhood and circle above her home in a helicopter, Araceli hides with her husband. ?“You hear the whistles,” she says through an interpreter. ?“You hear the people yelling, ?‘Don’t go out! Stay inside! There’s immigration here!’ ”
Sometimes they are forced to hide for days.
“It’s alarming, it’s not normal, it’s like being in a crisis,” explains Araceli, who is 55 and originally from Mexico City, though she has lived in Chicago for 30 years. That means Araceli often misses work as an apartment cleaner and her husband misses work in construction.
When it’s not safe to leave, she and her husband rely on their two adult children to bring them food. And then, when missed work means missed pay, they rely on their children to help with the rent.
“What harm have we caused in this country?” asks Araceli, who is using a pseudonym to protect her safety, tears streaming down her face. ?“Do we really deserve this?”
Sometimes they are forced to hide for days.
“It’s alarming, it’s not normal, it’s like being in a crisis,” explains Araceli, who is 55 and originally from Mexico City, though she has lived in Chicago for 30 years. That means Araceli often misses work as an apartment cleaner and her husband misses work in construction.
When it’s not safe to leave, she and her husband rely on their two adult children to bring them food. And then, when missed work means missed pay, they rely on their children to help with the rent.
“What harm have we caused in this country?” asks Araceli, who is using a pseudonym to protect her safety, tears streaming down her face. ?“Do we really deserve this?”
Trump regime says nursing isn't a professional degree amid new limits on loans
NBC News - The Trump administration’s plan to redefine what constitutes a professional degree would exclude nursing and limit access to student loans — outraging national health care groups and leaving nursing students questioning how they will pay for graduate degrees.
Previously, graduate students could borrow federal loans up to the cost of their degree, but under the new proposal, there would be caps on loans based on whether students are enrolled in a program that is considered professional or not.
The change stems from President Donald Trump’s “one big beautiful bill,” the U.S. Department of Education said in a Nov. 6 news release. Students in graduate programs will now be capped at $20,500 per year with a lifetime limit of $100,000.
For students seeking a professional degree, loan limits are higher, at $50,000 per year, with a lifetime limit of $200,000, the news release states. The Education Department’s list of professional degrees includes pharmacy, dentistry, veterinary medicine, chiropractic, law, medicine, optometry, osteopathic medicine, podiatry and theology.
Undergraduate students will not be affected by the new lending limits.
Previously, graduate students could borrow federal loans up to the cost of their degree, but under the new proposal, there would be caps on loans based on whether students are enrolled in a program that is considered professional or not.
The change stems from President Donald Trump’s “one big beautiful bill,” the U.S. Department of Education said in a Nov. 6 news release. Students in graduate programs will now be capped at $20,500 per year with a lifetime limit of $100,000.
For students seeking a professional degree, loan limits are higher, at $50,000 per year, with a lifetime limit of $200,000, the news release states. The Education Department’s list of professional degrees includes pharmacy, dentistry, veterinary medicine, chiropractic, law, medicine, optometry, osteopathic medicine, podiatry and theology.
Undergraduate students will not be affected by the new lending limits.
Climate change
Texas Workers Keep Dying in the Heat
Inside Climate News - An Inside Climate News investigation has identified more than a dozen journalists who have faced retaliation for reporting on environmental destruction and human rights abuses tied to China’s ventures in African countries, likely a stark undercount. Many of those cases involve projects under Beijing’s $1.3 trillion Belt and Road Initiative, a massive investment effort into mines, ports, railways, pipelines and other infrastructure in mostly poor countries.
When a project carries political weight for both the Chinese government and local authorities, that’s often when repression happens, according to Sarah Cook, author of the UnderReported China newsletter who has studied the country’s media influence operations for more than 15 years.
“If there are muckraking journalists or whistleblowers who might expose environmental issues, it could potentially be in the interest of both the local actors and the Chinese-linked ones to put a stop to that,” Cook said.
That suppression hides or sanitizes environmental and human rights abuses, even as Chinese President Xi Jinping promotes the Belt and Road Initiative as a model of “green” development and positions China as a global climate leader.
China’s media influence campaign targets a continent crucial to the planet’s climate and ecological balance. Africa is home to the world’s second-largest rainforest, vast carbon-rich peatlands and a quarter of all mammal species, including endangered mountain gorillas, pangolins and chimpanzees. Its degradation threatens not only 1.5 billion Africans, but also Earth itself.
November 28, 2025
The problem is not just Trump
Sam Smith – Our problem is not just that Trump is our president but also a lying, manipulating, self-absorbed convicted felon. Part of our problem is how did this happen?
There are a few factors we don’t deal with enough. The first being the role of various media in creating our presumed realty. A recent report by Pew Research Center found that 56% of American adults get their news mainly from digital devices. Only 32% use TV and 11% radio. And the once major source of news – i.e. newspapers and magazines – only get 7% of the public’s attention.
Given the vast difference in standards between, say, a biased internet news site and the New York Times it is not hard to see how the effect of news has changed with time.
Another major factor that hardly gets discussed is the relationship of community in our society. If you examine the culture of media, education, and business there is little doubt that priority is given to individual achievement and power over what we can do together. We are trained, publicized and taught by standards that emphasize individual skills, while what we can learn and do about community, joint action and common goals is quietly ignored.
It doesn’t have to be this way. In fact, I was just wrestling with this matter when I got an email from a school one of my sons had gone to and enjoyed. The front page headline said “THE POWER OF COMMUNITY. MARET ANNUAL FUND.” and I realized I had never seen a pitch for a school fund that had emphasized community.
When I look back over my life, I realize I was blessed with learning that whatever skills or wisdom came my way they were to be shared and learned with others. With five siblings around you, going to a Quaker high school, serving as a white activist in a majority black city, playing in a jazz band where you had solos but most of the time were backing someone up, serving on a Coast Guard cutter where everyone depended on everyone else, and helping to start groups that could turn personal ideas into something with some collective power …. With all this I learned to be part of a community and to respect and admire the power of joint effort.
These are just two examples of how our culture – with its emphasis on individual publicity and power – has not only failed to serve us as well as been often claimed but has created the likes of Donald Trump.
Quebec to ban public prayer in sweeping new secularism law
The Guardian - Quebec says it will intensify its crackdown on public displays of religion in a sweeping new law that critics say pushes Canadian provinces into private spaces and disproportionately affects Muslims.
Bill 9, introduced by the governing Coalition Avenir Québec on Thursday, bans prayer in public institutions, including in colleges and universities. It also bans communal prayer on public roads and in parks, with the threat of fines of C$1,125 for groups in contravention of the prohibition. Short public events with prior approval are exempt.
Bill 9, introduced by the governing Coalition Avenir Québec on Thursday, bans prayer in public institutions, including in colleges and universities. It also bans communal prayer on public roads and in parks, with the threat of fines of C$1,125 for groups in contravention of the prohibition. Short public events with prior approval are exempt.
Donald Trump
Politico - A federal appeals court has upheld a penalty of nearly $1 million against President Donald Trump and attorney Alina Habba, concluding they committed “sanctionable conduct” by filing a frivolous lawsuit against Hillary Clinton and former FBI Director James Comey.
“Many of Trump’s and Habba’s legal arguments were indeed frivolous,” 11th Circuit Court of Appeals Chief Judge William Pryor Jr. wrote for a unanimous, three-judge panel, including Trump appointee Andrew Brasher and Biden appointee Embry Kidd.
Peter Baker - Trump and his administration have targeted at least 470 people, organizations and institutions for retribution since he took office, according to a Reuters tally – an average of more than one a day.
Meanwhile. ..
Music may ease surgical pain and accelerate recovery, researchers in India found (read more)
Child safety organization warns against giving AI toys to kids.
NPR - The nonprofit children's safety organization Fairplay is urging
gift-givers to refrain from purchasing AI toys for kids this holiday
season. In an advisory, Fairplay and other child and consumer advocacy
groups highlight the potential dangers of toys such as interactive dolls
and children's robots designed to mimic human behavior and engage with
kids as if they are friends. The advisory points out that these toys exploit children's trust and can disrupt human relationships, among other negative effects.
Polls
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Newsweek - A new Economist/YouGov poll shows that more Americans now favor reducing the number of legal immigrants entering the United States, but immigration continues to rank low on the list of national priorities—even as President Donald Trump doubles down on the issue in his second term.
According to the poll, conducted November 21–24, 35 percent of U.S. adults said the number of legal immigrants accepted annually should be either "decreased" (26 percent) or "reduced to zero" (9 percent).
By comparison, 23 percent favored increasing legal immigration, and 26 percent supported keeping levels the same. The data underscore a modest but noticeable shift in sentiment amid a political climate increasingly shaped by Trump's hardline policies.
Newsweek - According to The Economist/YouGov polling, the proportion of people earning less than $50,000 a year who approve of Trump's job performance is 34 percent, while 62 percent of people disapprove.
Newsmax - A new Rasmussen Reports and Heartland Institute poll found that a slim majority of likely voters ages 18 to 39 want a democratic socialist to win the 2028 presidential election.
The survey of 1,496 likely voters showed 51% favored a democratic socialist victory, while 36% said they opposed that outcome and 17% were unsure.
Axios - Nearly two-thirds of registered voters believe a college degree isn't worth the cost — a stunning shift in sentiment from just one decade ago, according to an NBC News poll out this morning.
The eye-popping shift "comes against the backdrop of several major trends shaping the job market and the education world, from exploding college tuition prices to rapid changes in the modern economy" — namely, AI.
63% agreed that it's "not worth the cost because people often graduate without specific job skills and with a large amount of debt to pay off."
Just 33% agreed that a four-year college degree is "worth the cost because people have a better chance to get a good job and earn more money over their lifetime." In 2013, 53% in a CNBC poll said a degree was worth it. 40% said it wasn't. More
Immigration
Axios - President Trump said late Thursday he "will permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries to allow the U.S. system to fully recover."
The big picture: Trump has stepped up his hardline immigration crackdown since authorities identified an Afghan national as the suspect in Wednesday's deadly shooting attack on National Guard members.
Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, 20, died from her injuries Thursday and fellow West Virginia National Guard member Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, is "fighting for his life," Trump said.
State of play: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services suspended all immigration applications from Afghan nationals with immediate effect on Wednesday night.
Bloomberg - Donald Trump called for “reverse migration” in the US as he outlined a further crackdown on immigration following the shooting of two National Guard members in Washington. Hours after announcing that one of the soldiers had died from her injuries, the president proposed measures such as permanently pausing admissions from “third world” countries and revoking citizenship for some naturalized migrants.
He also increased his hostility toward South Africa, saying he won’t invite the country to next year’s Group of 20 summit, which the president will be hosting at his private golf course in Miami. It may be a breach of protocol for a leader to decide which of the bloc’s members can attend the summit—let alone to host the event at their own hotel—but Trump has demonstrated he cares little for convention or the multilateral order.
November 27, 2025
Meanwhile....
Brian Allen - CNN just confirmed the [National Guard] shooter applied for asylum in December 2024 and was approved in April of this year under Trump.
Heavy snow and high winds in many states
Newsweek - Residents across many states in the U.S. have been given winter storm warnings, with some areas expected to get up to 24 inches of snow and blizzard-like conditions from Thursday through Sunday, according to the National Weather Service (NWS).
Snow and blustery conditions are likely to disrupt travel plans over Thanksgiving and into the weekend, with the NWS issuing warnings that visibility levels may fall to below a quarter of a mile in some affected areas, causing “treacherous” travel and “potentially life-threatening” conditions.”
What To Know
Several states across the U.S. are likely to experience high levels of accumulated snowfall and high winds, including Montana, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Alaska, Missouri, Iowa, Wisconsin, South Dakota, and Illinois.
Snow and blustery conditions are likely to disrupt travel plans over Thanksgiving and into the weekend, with the NWS issuing warnings that visibility levels may fall to below a quarter of a mile in some affected areas, causing “treacherous” travel and “potentially life-threatening” conditions.”
What To Know
Several states across the U.S. are likely to experience high levels of accumulated snowfall and high winds, including Montana, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Alaska, Missouri, Iowa, Wisconsin, South Dakota, and Illinois.
Trump regime puts restrictions on housing for immigrants
Newsweek - The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has updated its interpretation of immigration verification requirements on Wednesday, introducing changes that immigrants advocates say “effectively deny” immigrants lawfully present in the country access to housing programs.
For Protecting Immigrant Families (PIF) Coalition, which unites more than 800 organizations nationwide fighting for the rights of immigrants in the U.S., the consequences of the HUD’s redetermination are likely to extend “well beyond immigrants excluded under the notice,” the group said in a statement shared with Newsweek.
For Protecting Immigrant Families (PIF) Coalition, which unites more than 800 organizations nationwide fighting for the rights of immigrants in the U.S., the consequences of the HUD’s redetermination are likely to extend “well beyond immigrants excluded under the notice,” the group said in a statement shared with Newsweek.
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