Gouache applied by airbrush — that was the secret behind the impossibly smooth, vivid covers Robert Tinney produced for Byte magazine across 80-plus issues from 1975 into the late 1980s. Each one took roughly a week to finish after phone calls with the editors about that month's theme. — Read the rest

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A federal grand jury on Tuesday unanimously rejected the DOJ's attempt to indict six Democratic lawmakers who posted a 90-second video reminding military personnel they can refuse unlawful orders. Trump had responded to the video on social media by writing, "SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!" — Read the rest

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Stephen Colbert said Monday that CBS's legal team called his show and told him, "in no uncertain terms," that he could not interview Texas state Rep. James Talarico on the broadcast, Variety reports. Then they told him he couldn't mention not having Talarico on. — Read the rest

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I think this photo captures many things, about me, about my cat, and about the relationship between the two of us. I don’t know how much more can be said. This photo may, in fact, be perfect.

— JS

Do you still want to cling to this pretense, Trump supporters? Do you still want to pretend ICE efforts are targeting “the worst of the worst?” Are you just going to sit there and mumble some incomprehensible stuff about “respecting the laws?”

Go ahead. Do it, you cowards. This is exactly what you voted for, even if it now makes you a bit queasy. Just sit there and soak in it. You are who you support, even if you never thought it would go this far.

“Worst of the worst,” Trump’s parrot repeat on blast. “This one time we caught a guy who did actual crimes,” say spokespeople defending whatever the latest hideous violation of the social contract (if not actual constitutional rights) a federal agent has performed. “Targeted investigation/stop” say the enablers, even when it’s just officers turning white nationalism into Official Government Policy. “Brown people need to be gone” is the end game. Full stop.

Here’s where we’re at in Minnesota, where ICE officers are being shamed into retreat on the regular, punctuated by the occasional revenge killing of mouthy US citizens.

I don’t want you MAGA freaks to tell me you’re OK with this. I want you to tell me why.

Federal agents detained three workers from a family-owned Mexican restaurant in Willmar, Minn., on Jan. 15, hours after four agents ate lunch there.

Does that seem innocuous? Does this seem like some plausible deniability is in play here? Well, disabuse yourself of those notions. This is how it went down.

The arrest happened around 8:30 p.m. near a Lutheran church and Willmar Middle School as agents followed the workers after they closed up for the night. A handful of bystanders blew whistles and shouted at agents as they detained the people. “Would your mama be proud of you right now?” one of the bystanders asked.

Nice. Is this what you want from a presidential administration? Or would you rather complain ICE officers have been treated unfairly if people refuse to feed or house them, knowing full well that doing either of these things will turn their employees into targets.

To be sure, the meal wasn’t a meal. It was half-stakeout, half-intimidation.

An eyewitness who declined to give a name for fear of retribution, told the Minnesota Star Tribune that four ICE agents sat in a booth for a meal at El Tapatio restaurant a little before 3 p.m. Staff at the restaurant were frightened, said the eyewitness, who shared pictures from the restaurant as well as video of the arrest.

I’m not saying ICE officers shouldn’t be able to eat at ethnic restaurants. I am, however, saying that they definitely shouldn’t because everyone is going to think the officers are there for anything but the food. And I do believe any minority business owner should be able to refuse service to ICE officers who wander in under the pretense of buying a meal. The end result is going to be the same whether or not you decide to engage with this pretense. You’re getting raided either way. May as well deny them the meal.

Especially if ICE and the DHS are just going to lie about what happened. Here’s what eyewitnesses, business owners, and local journalists said about this display of ICE shittiness:

El Tapatio Mexican Restaurant closed after WCCO confirmed agents visited the spot for lunch and later returned, detaining its owners and a dishwasher nearby after they had closed early due to the federal law enforcement’s previous appearance.

And here’s the DHS statement, which pretends ICE officers didn’t eat a meal at a restaurant and then return a few hours later to detain employees when they left the building:

“On January 14, ICE officers conducted surveillance of a target, an illegal alien from Mexico. Officers observed that the target’s vehicle was outside of a local business and positively identified him as the target while inside the business. Following the positive identification of the target, officers then conducted a vehicle stop later in the day and apprehended the target and two additional illegal aliens who were in the car, including one who had a final order of removal from an immigration judge.”

Nope. I don’t care what the ICE apologists will say about this. These narratives have places where they overlap but it’s impossible to believe this went down exactly like the government said it did. These officers picked out an ethnic restaurant, were served by an intimidated staff, and then hung around to catch any stragglers leaving the business that previously had graciously served them, despite the threat they posed.

Abolish ICE. It’s no longer just a catchy phrase to shout during protests. It’s an imperative. If we don’t stop it now, it will only become even worse and even more difficult to remove. Treat ICE like the tumor it is. Pretending its MRSA gives it more power than it should ever be allowed to have.

ICE agents are dressing up as utility workers in Multnomah County, Oregon, in order to trick people out of their homes. Local lawmakers are urging residents to be aware and use caution.

Additionally, Oregon public utilities are issuing warnings and informing locals how to check their workers' bona fides. — Read the rest

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