Freelance writer, reporter, author. Kentuckian. rainesford.alexandra@gmail.com / Signal rstauff.20 www.rainesfordstauffer.com
You will be surprised to learn that I do not believe there is a “moral imperative“ to teach educators about AI.
Hypervisible“Teaching educators about AI is a ‘moral imperative’, said Randi Weingarten, the AFT president.” “And without outside funding, it was a choice between taking big tech’s money or doing nothing, she said.”
If your winning issue is trans women in sports, and you're struggling to uncover trans women in any league that anybody has ever heard of, then how do you keep trans athletes at the top of people's minds? Answer: You invent them. defector.com/the-right-ha...
The Right Has Created Their Perfect Trans Athlete | DefectorA lot of people in and around the WNBA are talking about trans women. In the aftermath of Indiana Fever role player Sophie Cunningham’s negative comments about trans people playing sports in an ESPN…defector.com
Bell County passed a data center moratorium. Resident worry that work continues. From @liamniemeyer.bsky.social kentuckylantern.com/2026/08/04/b...
Bell County passed a data center moratorium. Resident worry that work continues. • Kentucky LanternA construction contractor says a hyperscale data center developer asked him to continue to clear Bell County land where a data center is planned, despite a two-year temporary ban on data center constr...kentuckylantern.com
a horrifying new story from my colleague José Olivares
‘Stark example of brutality’: Trump’s ICE used court orders in plan to force-feed at least 10 hunger strikers in detentionExclusive: court records reviewed by the Guardian show that procedures included force-feeding, intravenous forced hydration and involuntary blood drawswww.theguardian.com
The van hands out food, water, clothes, first aid and free HIV tests. Locals recognize "Thrivey" as it drives across the Twin Cities. The van, and everything in it, is funded by federal money that has been suddenly revoked, as the government reroutes grants from nonprofits to state health agencies.
Running on empty: Can a red HIV outreach van outlast federal cuts?The Aliveness Project says that nobody else can replicate what they do for the high-risk communities they reach. They're still being defunded.19thnews.org
Can't think of a thing that will radicalize a generation faster than "you've gotta let that old man in the corner over there see what's inside those pants before you play Kindergarten volleyball."
Gillian BranstetterAn initiative on the ballot in Washington state in November would require all athletes seeking to play girl's sports from kindergarten to high school to undergo "genetic screening, a testosterone-levels test, or an examination of their reproductive anatomy" before they can play
Listen to @tressiemcphd.bsky.social when she writes that AI is "the backbone of a superstructure that merges regressive politics with unchecked economic power in the guise of technological innovation” - and then teach about and against the technologies with the help of the books she cites:
Opinion | Want to Fight Back Against Big Tech? Start Here.A.I. is a political theory. And it is gobbling up our democracy.www.nytimes.com
New: We found 50 cops who misused Flock cameras and other license-plate readers for personal purposes, often to spy on their girlfriends or ex-wives. He "watched every single move I made. ... Who do you turn the chief of police in to?" wapo.st/3S6rTuo
She left her ex. He secretly tracked her through a network of policing cameras.Flock’s array of license-plate cameras was built to fight crime. But at least 50 law enforcement officers were charged with or accused of misusing it and other systems.wapo.st
I first got 1000+ pages of court documents from Miller & Moreno's custody case. Anybody can request these from Cuyahoga County. I reviewed those by myself, one by one—no AI involved!—and the filings pointed to police reports. I then sought those out separately and spent days combing through them.
Max Miller said on X Live that "Journalism is supposed to ask difficult questions... and tell the whole story." Miller *repeatedly* declined to answer detailed questions from Mother Jones before we published our story.
There's a new measles outbreak in Delaware after a decade with no cases. In times of high transmission, outbreaks become more likely - and with falling vaccination rates across the country, these sparks are falling on increasingly dry timber. My latest: www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
US officials focus on identification and rapid action as measles cases riseAuthorities in Delaware tackle cluster with vaccination and contract tracing – but field has been weakened by cutswww.theguardian.comWhile writing this essay, among many grocery lists, I found old notes I'd forgotten, from a log of things I'd baked to drafts of texts asking for stuff back at the end of a relationship. Others shared what they'd saved—or were surprised to find. Here's to the notes app, junk drawer of memories:
Rainesford StaufferFor @time.com, I wrote a short essay on the notes app, and what my sister calls “notes app digest,” or scrolling back through the insight and nonsense in our notes. Loved talking to people about notes they’ve kept, and rediscovering all my old chaotic selves I could never delete.
A few overlooked details from my July 18 piece on Rep. Max Miller—threading them below. 🧵 www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
Assault, misogyny, verbal threats: Records detail new allegations against Rep. Max MillerPolice reports and filings in a bitter custody dispute raise new questions about the conduct of an Ohio Republican as he campaigns for a third term.www.motherjones.com
"“I am panicking. I can’t eat. I can’t sleep,” said Marlene [a TPS holder]. “My kid is wondering if he goes to school, will I be there when he comes home?”
Lauren Kaori GurleyThis week: Nursing homes terminated hundreds of Haitian workers with TPS. Major airports fired Haitian janitors, cabin cleaners and wheelchair attendants. Schools let go of drivers and landscapers. My reporting on the fallout of Haiti TPS termination. t.co/vCyqrl7hK3
Farmworkers, terrified of ICE and family separation, are living isolated, restrictive lives.
Top Farmworker Fear Is Family Separation - The American ProspectA first-of-its-kind survey by the UFW Foundation quantifies the impact of Trump’s mass deportation campaign on farmworkers, the vast majority of whom are undocumented.prospect.org
🚨 WE HAVE A DEAL! After three years, in a major step forward for our members, we have ratified our first contract with @propublica.org’s management. We deeply appreciate everyone who supported us along the way. Here are some of our big wins👇
Norma Bowe, a nurse in New Jersey, runs a mobile health clinic that stops outside Delaney Hall detention center, where she provides blood pressure checks, stroke assessments and other care. Yesterday, she told me about the day she says she was assaulted by an ICE agent. My latest via @19thnews.org
This nurse brings health care to people outside a detention center. She says ICE agents assaulted her.This week, the ACLU announced it has filed 54 claims on behalf of Norma Bowe and others who allege violence and additional harms from federal immigration officials.19thnews.orgIt's so bad. Even jobs at places that once seemed "stable" aren't. And with editors being laid off and budgets being cut, there are less opportunities for freelancers to pitch, while it feels like even more people are trying to freelance because of lack of full-time jobs.
s. e. smithI am so tired of witnessing media layoffs and publications just throwing away amazing talent as this career becomes less and less sustainable and growing numbers of people are pushed out. All for shareholder profits.
I wrote about how immigration arrests are at all-time highs, even as ICE is trying to assume a lower public profile. How are they doing this? Look to your local police.
ICE’s Secret Weapon Is in Your CommunityWhile attempting to maintain a relatively lower profile, ICE is managing to arrest record numbers of people. Here’s how it’s doing that.newrepublic.com
After being detained at the Louisville airport, friends and family say a local jail is holding Sarafinah Bukirwa for federal immigration charges and isn’t giving her proper care. Now, she’s in a health “crisis.” www.lpm.org/news/2026-07...