I’d say the big three are California (fire, potential earthquakes), Florida (hurricanes with tidal surge), and Texas. But as you say, Texas is the one that refuses to do anything to mitigate their risks, even those of their own making - and it does seem that so many of the disasters Texas has are massively exacerbated by their refusal to mitigate risks.

A friend of mine suggested that Texas’ nickname should be “The One Star State”.

Campers were not allowed to bring mobile phones, and counselors were made to surrender theirs, leaving them unable to see the emergency alerts themselves

The kids, I understand, but I think the counselors should have been allowed to keep their phones, at least after hours.

The Post said the NWS alert did not contain an order or recommendation for evacuation, a power it said rests with local government officials.

Yeah, the local government officials that debated a flood warning system for over a decade because they didn’t want to pay the $1 million themselves, then were given $10 million in pandemic funds and re-directed most of it to the sheriff’s department, and a footpath.

“We’ve heard accounts of trailer after trailer after trailer being swept into the river with families in them. [We] can’t find the trailers, we don’t know how many of them there are,” the county judge, Rob Kelly, said. One trailer was found “completely covered in gravel” 27ft below the surface of the river, he said, adding that sonar crews were searching the river and local lakes. Two reservoir lakes attached to the river would be drained to aid the search, officials said.

The more I hear, the sicker - and angrier! - I feel.

To my mind, that just makes it worse: he knows he’s in a flood plain, he’s got repeated exemptions to expand his camp in excess of normal regulation and procedures, be gets a flash flood warning, and he still doesn’t evacuate?

3.5% for a sustained protest posting several days. Unfortunately, we’re nowhere near that yet.

USC law students have set up a hotline to help move immigrants move their in-person hearing to online format, reducing the risk of getting kidnapped.

He’s just absolutely determined to break the healthcare system, isn’t he?

In May, there were relatively elevated shares of delisted homes in metro areas including Miami–Fort Lauderdale–West Palm Beach in Florida, Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler in Arizona, and Houston–Pasadena–The Woodlands in Texas

When Trump was threatening to annex Canada, as well as having his goon squads kidnap people off the streets, there were a lot of Canadians who decided not to vacation in the States and more. And there were a bunch who owned summer homes in Florida and Arizona who decided to sell.

The economic uncertainty provoked by the massive layoffs, the tariff threats and the cratering value of the dollar, is also making people less secure, making them less likely to make big-dollar purchases.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke about US President Donald Trump’s proposal that the US take over post-war Gaza and permanently resettle its population elsewhere.

This can only end well …

RFK wants to open “wellness farms” where people with “mental health” and addiction issues can “raise their own food”.

It’s always the same: “We can’t take because we’re busy focusing on the issue at hand” —> “We can’t talk because we’re busy investigating the problem” —> “Why are you talking about old news, we’re focused on something else that’s more important”.

CDC site showing current variants, their lineages, and percentages. Also possibly a NowCast for your state or region.

Wastewater scan for covid and other infectious diseases. Filter by state or selected individual sewage processing plants that are part of the wastewater scan project (note that not all plants test for all diseases). Tells you how prevalent those diseases are in that area, potentially before diseases start to surge. May also have variant information.

PMC data dashboard. Lots of potentially useful stuff.

Cmdr. Lillian Carranza said it was irresponsible for people to describe the arrests as “kidnappings” and encourage people to call 911, saying that there is misinformation circulating online about how and when federal authorities can arrest someone. Authorities don’t need to present a warrant when encountering someone on the street, she said; all they need is probable cause. “If people have concerns about the conduct of federal agents, they need to seek justice in court,” she said. “That is the place to litigate the case. Not the streets.”

A) ICE is moving people beyond their local jurisdiction as quickly as they can, and are deliberately not updating records as to where people have been taken, specifically to avoid being held up by the courts.

B) How do you seek justice in the courts when the officers won’t show their faces, won’t identify themselves or the agency they work for, and reports they file don’t name the officers or departments involved? How do you seek justice in the courts when they’re deliberately and repeatedly moving people around specifically to keep them beyond the reach of the courts?