Jessica Valenti at Abortion, Every Day:

Okay, I promised I wouldn’t work on my vacation, but this news was too good not to share: Massachusetts just legalized abortion throughout pregnancy, becoming the 10th state to allow abortion after 24 weeks.1

At a bill signing ceremony today, Gov. Maura Healey said, “We believe that health care decisions should be made between women and families and their doctors, not politicians.”

Until now, abortion later in pregnancy was only permitted to protect the patient’s life or health, or because of a grave fetal diagnosis. The Prioritizing Patient Access to Care Act changes Massachusetts law to allow abortion after 24 weeks “when based upon the professional judgement of the physician.”

“It comes down to a simple, but powerful conviction,” bill sponsor Rep. Christine Barber said. “Decisions about abortion care must remain between a patient and their provider. No one else.”
Barber said she was inspired to introduce the legislation after hearing from patients who were forced to leave the state for abortion care. Kate Dineen, for example, had to travel to Maryland after learning her son suffered a massive stroke in utero. As devastating as her diagnosis was, it didn’t fit the narrow legal requirements for abortion in Massachusetts.

“I am profoundly grateful that our state leaders are righting this wrong once and for all,” Dineen said today.

I wish women didn’t have to relive their most traumatic moments to create legislative change, but I’m so awed by those willing to do so—all in the hope it might save another woman from similar suffering.
Something that’s not getting nearly enough attention: the legislation also clears the way for clinic-based care after 24 weeks—it struck down Massachusetts’ requirement that abortions later in pregnancy be performed in hospitals. That’s a big deal!

Massachusetts just became the 10th state to legalize post-fetal viability abortions, permitting abortions after 24 weeks “when based upon the professional judgement of the physician.”

Right-wing and anti-abortion media are running with the inflammatory framing that the commonwealth legalized “abortion up until birth.”

See Also:

• Resistbot: Massachusetts Just Repealed the Compromise It Wrote in 2020

many of you just. genuinely don’t believe that people can grow and change.

Science is spiritual!

Learning how the world works doesn’t strip it of magic, it reveals even more of it. The more I understand the universe, the more sacred it feels.

ohhhhhhhh my GOODNESS 901jr is being ADORABLE right now!!!

clicking not interested on something used to mean they stopped showing it to you

favorite bits of the cast interviews in the LOTR special features:

• Dominic Monaghan, Billy Boyd, Elijah Wood and Viggo Mortensen all taking the piss out of Orlando Bloom for going on about a cracked rib too much, while Orlando Bloom desperately tries to wriggle out of talking about it (special mention to Elijah Wood’s “oh it hurts, babes, and I can’t ride the horse, babes” and Viggo Mortensen’s “they can be very fragile, elves, especially the…Mirkwood strain…”)
  
• Ian McKellen commenting that “they never did find any suitable underwear for Gandalf…”
• Dominic Monaghan going on and on about how Viggo Mortensen apparently had a crush on one of the Rohirrim extras (who like a lot of the Rohirrim extras was a woman in a fake beard) while Vigoo Mortensen just mutters “one could perhaps say something about Mr. Monaghan’s…proclivities…”
• Dominic Monaghan’s imitation of John Rhys-Davies ordering food at a restaurant for the whole cast. “You have partridge? BRING THE PARTRIDGE!”
• John Rhys-Davies talking about an incident with the Lothlorian boats and saying “if an elf and a dwarf are in a boat…and…the boat goes under…let us say that the blame was not placed on the elf” while Orlando Bloom splutters “he’s a big guy, man!” 
• Elijah Wood talking about how the hobbit actors shared a trailer with Ian McKellen and sometimes they would hear inarticulate bellows of protest from his side when they played loud music in the mornings
• Viggo Mortensen talking about how, while filming with those same boats, Kirin Shaw (Elijah Wood’s scale double) started telling him “if the boat tips over…save yourself…I can’t swim.” 
• Elijah Wood describing how Sean Astin would try to direct the helicopters to land while they were on location, while the other three hobbits were screwing around and throwing pinecones at each other
  
• Christopher Lee recounting how he had so much trouble going up some steps in Orthanc with his long robe that he stopped in the middle of the scene and said, “I cannot get up these goddamn steps, Peter.” 
• Viggo Mortensen mentioning that he left a weekend rehearsal and went walking down the street still swinging his sword around, and promptly got the cops called on him

ilya makes shane smile in that way where only the very corner of one side of his mouth twitches and turns up, the really sweet one when paired with his gentle eyes, and ilya reaches out and touches his thumb to that spot, says, "mine".

shane raises his eyebrows. "what?"

"this," ilya says, moving his thumb back and forth. "when this goes up. is mine."

"oh you're claiming my smiles now?"

"yes. also this—" ilya seeks out and pokes a spot high on shane's right cheek, "—this freckle."

"mmm, okay. anything else?"

ilya makes an 'I'm thinking' face. "probably. but I cannot think of anything now. I will get back to you on this," said in the tone shane reads his emails in. shane smiles fully and leans in. ilya copies him till they're nose to nose. brushing.

"well you don't have to think about it," shane says, "because it's all yours."

ilya asks, "what is?"

"me." shane puts his arms around ilya's neck, tilts his head, says into ilya's lips, "I'm all yours."

as a former escape room host i highly recommend doing an escape room as a first date. its a great way to learn how ppl react under pressure and how well they collaborate with you right off the bat. also more than once ive seen people enter an escape room as a couple and exit broken up LOL its a fantastic litmus test

They're dating, btw. The logos.