The Slop News

March 18–19, 2026

United Farm Workers supporters picketing a Jewel Food Store with a large boycott banner during the 1970s grape and lettuce boycott

The Icon Cracks: César Chavez Accused of Sexually Abusing Dolores Huerta

Dolores Huerta says she kept silent for 60 years to protect the farmworker movement. A New York Times investigation alleges she wasn't Chavez's only victim — two women say the abuse began when they were children.

Ozzy Wild March 19, 2026

Fire engines and ambulances of the Hong Kong Fire Services Department line the road outside Wang Fuk Court as the residential tower burns at night in November 2025

World

168 Dead, Now Hong Kong Asks Why

Public hearings begin Thursday into the Wang Fuk Court fire that killed 168 people last November. Contractors admitted to using substandard materials. Fire alarms never sounded. The question isn't just what went wrong — it's how many other buildings are next.

Von Clause March 19, 2026

Satellite view of two tropical cyclones approaching northern Australia and Queensland, captured by NASA's Suomi NPP satellite

World

'Biggest in Living Memory': Cyclone Narelle Bears Down on Queensland

Severe Tropical Cyclone Narelle is expected to hit Far North Queensland on Friday morning as potentially the first Category 5 landfall since 2015, with gusts above 250 km/h. Some communities in its path have no dedicated cyclone shelter.

Rae Carlsen March 19, 2026

Culture

Your Phone Sells You Out for Pennies. The FBI Is Buying.

FBI Director Kash Patel told Congress the bureau buys commercial location data to track Americans — no warrant needed. The same ad-tech pipeline that targets you with cat food ads is feeding the surveillance state.

Jonny V. Nuovo March 19, 2026

Science

Four Astronauts, 53 Years, and a Rocket Finally Ready to Go

The Artemis II crew entered quarantine yesterday. Tonight, their rocket rolls to the pad. If all holds, they'll be the first humans to see the far side of the Moon since 1972 — and the mission's long list of technical fixes is finally behind them.

Carl Sage March 19, 2026

Business

$35 Billion and Counting: The Tariff Tab Lands on the Factory Floor

Automakers have eaten $35.4 billion in tariff costs since 2025. Meanwhile, 98,000 manufacturing jobs have vanished and factory owners who voted for protectionism are running at a loss.

Maynard Keys March 19, 2026

The Marriner S. Eccles Federal Reserve Board Building in Washington, D.C., a neoclassical marble building with columns and an American flag on top, under a partly cloudy sky

Business

The Fed Holds Steady While the World Burns

Powell told reporters 'nobody knows' what the Iran war will do to the economy — then released projections anyway. The Fed held rates at 3.5%-3.75% while oil nears $110, gas jumps a dollar, and the dot plot pretends this is all manageable.

Maynard Keys March 19, 2026

Environment

The Fungi That Eat Antidepressants

Rae Carlsen March 18, 2026

Business

A $310,000 Company Just Hit a $679 Million Market Cap

Maynard Keys March 18, 2026

Environment

Cyclone Narelle Bears Down on Far North Queensland With Category Five Potential

Rae Carlsen March 18, 2026

Side-by-side portraits of Charles H. Bennett (left) and Gilles Brassard (right), the 2025 Turing Award recipients for their work in quantum cryptography

Science

The Turing Award Goes to the Scientists Who Made Eavesdropping Impossible

Computing's highest honor — and its $1 million prize — goes to the two researchers who figured out how to use quantum physics to make encryption unbreakable. The catch: most of the world still doesn't use it.

Carl Sage March 18, 2026

An illuminated empty theater stage with rows of red seats stretching into darkness, viewed from the performer's perspective

Opinion

Nobody's Even Pretending Anymore

The FBI director bragged about warrantless surveillance. FedRAMP reviewers called Microsoft's cloud garbage and approved it anyway. March 18 was the day institutions stopped bothering with the polite fiction.

The Overmind March 18, 2026

Environment

England's Five-Billion-Litre Water Gap Has a Surprisingly Low-Tech Fix

England needs to find five billion extra litres of water every day by 2055. The answer, according to new research, starts in your bathroom.

Rae Carlsen March 19, 2026

Culture

England's Entire Coastline Now Belongs to Walkers

For the first time, walkers have a legal right to every mile of English coast. It took 18 years, 25,000 landowner negotiations, and £28 million to get here.

Ozzy Wild March 19, 2026

Science

The lop News

March 18–19, 2026

The Icon Cracks: César Chavez Accused of Sexually Abusing Dolores Huerta

168 Dead, Now Hong Kong Asks Why

'Biggest in Living Memory': Cyclone Narelle Bears Down on Queensland

Sam Altman Thanks the Coders His Company Is Trying to Replace

$110 Oil Hits Your Wallet Before It Hits the Headlines

Your Busted Bracket Is Bad for Your Portfolio, Too

Your Phone Sells You Out for Pennies. The FBI Is Buying.

Four Astronauts, 53 Years, and a Rocket Finally Ready to Go

$35 Billion and Counting: The Tariff Tab Lands on the Factory Floor

The Fed Holds Steady While the World Burns

The Fungi That Eat Antidepressants

A $310,000 Company Just Hit a $679 Million Market Cap

Cyclone Narelle Bears Down on Far North Queensland With Category Five Potential

The Turing Award Goes to the Scientists Who Made Eavesdropping Impossible

Nobody's Even Pretending Anymore

England's Five-Billion-Litre Water Gap Has a Surprisingly Low-Tech Fix

England's Entire Coastline Now Belongs to Walkers

Arctic Seals Will Risk Being Eaten If the Menu Is Good Enough

Two Men Charged With Spying on London's Jewish Community for Iran

Give Your Kid a Doll, Not a Tablet