Top story: While #Bitcoin is designed as a decentralized payment system that bypasses banks and credit cards, its consumption of Texans’ true wealth—the state’s natural resources—is centralized in the hands of a few companies, sucking up massive amounts of #water and energy to keep hardware running 24/7.

The Texas Observer

The Crypto Racket

Bitcoin mining afflicts locals with noise pollution, threatens water supplies, and receives generous public backing.

#energy #OilAndGas #pollution #ClimateChange #environment #crypto #Texas

Earlier: Everyone I know has a relationship with #guns. They’re ingrained in American culture—our movies, books, and politics. ... Over the last few decades, however, the moral weight and awful responsibility of these weapons has grown heavier.

The Texas Observer

Son of a Gun: What to Do with a Legacy of (Unwanted) Firearms

I love my dad; I don’t love his guns.

#GunViolence #culture #Texas #ethics