With Summer Here And The Heat Rising, Cnetizens With Long Hair Are Looking For Hairstyle Tutorials That

the Guardian

New Mexico made childcare free. It lifted 120,000 people above the poverty line

The state, which has long ranked worst in the US for child wellbeing, became the first and only in the country to offer free childcare to a

"The state, which has long ranked worst in the US for child wellbeing, became the first and only in the country to offer free childcare to a majority of families

There was a moment, just before the pandemic, when Lisset Sanchez thought she might have to drop out of college because the cost of keeping her three children in daycare was just too much.

Even with support from the state, she and her husband were paying $800 a month – about half of what Sanchez and her husband paid for their mortgage in Las Cruces, New Mexico.

But during the pandemic, that cost went down to $0. And Sanchez was not only able to finish college, but enroll in nursing school. With a scholarship that covered her tuition and free childcare, Sanchez could afford to commute to school, buy groceries for her growing family – even after she had two more children – and pay down the family’s mortgage and car loan.

“We are a one-income household,” said Sanchez, whose husband works while she is in school. Having free childcare “did help tremendously”.

...Three years ago, New Mexico became the first state in the nation to offer free childcare to a majority of families. The United States has no federal, universal childcare – and ranks 40th on a Unicef ranking of 41 high-income countries’ childcare policies, while maintaining some of the highest childcare costs in the world. Expanding on pandemic-era assistance, New Mexico made childcare free for families earning up to 400% of the federal poverty level, or about $124,000 for a family of four. That meant about half of New Mexican children now qualified.

In one of the poorest states in the nation, where the median household income is half that and childcare costs for two children could take up 80% of a family’s income, the impact was powerful. The state, which had long ranked worst in the nation for child wellbeing, saw its poverty rate begin to fall.

As the state simultaneously raised wages for childcare workers, and became the first to base its subsidy reimbursement rates on the actual cost of providing such care, early childhood educators were also raised out of poverty. In 2020, 27.4% of childcare providers – often women of color – were living in poverty. By 2024, that number had fallen to 16%.

During the state’s recent legislative session, lawmakers approved a “historic” increase in funding for education, including early childhood education, that might improve those numbers even further...

When now-governor Michelle Lujan Grisham announced her candidacy in late 2016, she emphasized her desire to address the state’s low child wellbeing rating. And when she took office in January 2018, she described her aim to have a “moonshot for education”: major investments in education across the state, from early childhood through college.

That led to her opening the state’s early childhood education and care department in 2019 – and tapping Groginksy, who had overseen efforts to improve early childhood policies in Washington DC, to run it. Then, in 2020, Lujan Grisham threw her support behind a bill in the state legislature that would establish an Early Childhood Trust Fund: by investing $300m – plus budget surpluses each year, largely from oil and gas revenue – the state hoped to distribute a percentage to fund early childhood education each year.

But then, just weeks after the trust fund was established, the World Health Organization declared Covid-19 a pandemic.

“Covid created a really enormous moment for childcare,” said Heinz. “We had somewhat of a national reckoning about the fact that we don’t have a workforce if we don’t have childcare.”

As federal funding flooded into New Mexico, the state directed millions of dollars toward childcare, including by boosting pay for entry-level childcare providers to $15 an hour, expanding eligibility for free childcare to families making 400% of the poverty level, and becoming the first state in the nation to set childcare subsidy rates at the true cost of delivering care.

As pandemic-era relief funding dried up in 2022, the governor and Democratic lawmakers proposed another way to generate funds for childcare – directing a portion of the state’s Land Grant Permanent Fund to early childhood education and care. Like the Early Childhood Trust Fund, the permanent fund – which was established when New Mexico became a state – was funded by taxes on fossil fuel revenues. That November, 70% of New Mexican voters approved a constitutional amendment directing 1.25% of the fund to early childhood programs.

By then, the Early Childhood Trust Fund had grown exponentially – due to the boom in oil and gas prices. Beginning with $300m in 2020, the fund had swollen to over $9bn by the end of 2024...

New Mexico has long had one of the highest “official poverty rates” in the nation.

But using a metric that accounts for social safety net programs – like universal childcare – that’s slowly shifting. According to “supplemental poverty” data, 17.1% of New Mexicans fell below the federal “supplemental” poverty line from 2013 to 2015 (a metric that takes into account cost of living and social supports) – making it the fifth poorest state in the nation by that measure. But today, that number has fallen to 10.9%, one of the biggest changes in the country, amounting to 120,000 fewer New Mexicans living in poverty.

New Mexico’s child wellbeing ranking – which is based heavily on “official poverty” rankings – probably won’t budge, says Heinz because “the amount of money coming into households, that they have to run their budget, remains very low.

“However, the thing New Mexico has done that’s fairly tremendous, I think, is around families not having to have as much money going out,” she said.

During the recent legislative session, lawmakers deepened their investments in early childhood education even further, approving a 21.6% increase of $170m for education programs – including early childhood education. However, other legislation that advocates had hoped might pass stalled in the legislature, including a bill to require businesses to offer paid family medical leave...

In her budget recommendations, Lujan Grisham asked the state to up its commitment to early childhood policies, by raising the wage floor for childcare workers to $18 an hour and establishing a career lattice for them. Because of that, Gonzalez has been able to start working on her associate’s in childhood education at Central New Mexico Community College where her tuition is waived. The governor also backed a house bill that will increase the amount of money distributed annually from the Early Childhood Trust Fund – since its dramatic growth due to oil and gas revenues.

Although funding childcare through the Land Grant Permanent Fund is unique to New Mexico – and a handful of other states with permanent funds, like Alaska, Texas and North Dakota – Heinz says the Early Childhood Trust fund “holds interesting lessons for other states” about investing a percentage of revenues into early childhood programs.

In New Mexico, those revenues come largely from oil and gas, but New Mexico Voices for Children has put forth recommendations about how the state can continue funding childcare while transitioning away from fossil fuels, largely by raising taxes on the state’s wealthiest earners. Although other states have not yet followed in New Mexico’s footsteps, a growing number are making strides to offer free pre-K to a majority of their residents.

Heinz cautions that change won’t occur overnight. “What New Mexico is trying to do here is play a very long game. And so I am not without worry that people might give it five years, and it’s been almost five years now, and then say, where are the results? Why is everything not better?” she said. “This is generational change” that New Mexico is only just beginning to witness as the first children who were recipients of universal childcare start school."

-via The Guardian, April 11, 2025

Nezushi Dance Scene Analysis

I was talking with a friend about how the way two people dance show a lot about the status of their relationship with each other. Then I decided to give my own thoughts about Nezushi’s Iconic Dance Scene and what was the dance scene trying to show.

This may be an obvious thing to some, but I wanted to express my thoughts anyway :)

In a scene before this, Nezumi passed out due to the Song of the Wind (Elyurias’s song) and later wakes up to Shion next to him. Shion then worries incessantly, checks him to see if there was anything wrong or if he was in any pain.

Nezumi sees his earnest worry about him and gets agitated and uncomfortable, since he’s not used to another person worrying about him. He gets especially narked when Shion tells him straight up that hes a human being and that he should look out for himself.

Having someone worry over you means more shackles on you, in order to put in the extra effort of being careful. Basically it means someone loves you.

To Nezumi, this was not necessary.

But even after his yell, Shion still continues to care. He then spontaneously decided to teach Shion how to dance.

To me, this dance was basically a show of their life together from the night that they met to now.

They start off with Nezumi asking if Shion has any experience in dancing, he says no.

Here I think it’s a reflection of his naivety of the world outside of No.6, with Nezumi saying he’ll teach him some basic steps, like he’ll give him the introduction of The West Block.

“Don’t look down.”

I highly imagine this being a direct reference to Nezumi saying, “Don’t look away, look at the world in-front of you.” We know he has said this to Shion many times.

Shion then says to cut it out, how it’s useless, and gives a few excuses on why they should stop dancing, like the times Shion would be on the verge of breaking down, saying how it’s useless, and was willing to give up. But a few words from Nezumi, became his guideline, and helped him overcome it. He stumbles and is slow to keep up, due to this being a whole new experience for him. It’s hard to take in.

As time goes on, Shion’s understanding of Nezumi and how he views the world becomes clearer and clearer. The more they dance, the more he understands. He is watching, seeing the world in Nezumi’s POV, he is empathising with him.

“Dance…dance, Shion.”

Nezumi encourages Shion to live in this new world.

After they finished dancing, Shion is out of breath, and laments how hard dancing actually is, saying he learned something new. Shion is huffing and puffing, while Nezumi is, assumedly, all right. This basically proves the point Nezumi wanted to make, to not worry for him, since he’s basically been doing this all his life.

He does not need the care and the love.

But even after all that, Shion still does anyway.

It’s a direct retelling of their story, and I had never noticed the underlying meaning behind the dance. I had first watched it in the anime and thought the scene was done so beautifully. I had recognised the purpose of them dancing through the West Block, like a show of their life spent with each other. Then I read the manga and novel, which I read through quickly without much thought since its a scene i’ve seen many times.

I played it off as a wonderful iconic scene in the novel, a show of love and intimacy. But what I didn’t know was how much it was a representation of the journey they had up to this point in time. Not only did it show their dynamic and connection, it was like watching them both reflect on the impacts they had on each other.

It was an amazingly written scene and I’m glad it is in the story.

｡.:*☆

If you have read this far THANK YOU SO MUCH GENUINELY um I really hope this was easy to read and understand, i still dont rlly know the mechanics around here, so if u had a hard time reading it, or some feedback, or maybe ur personal input on the dance scene, FEEL FREE TO LEAVE A COMMENT !! <3

i have a test tmr im supposed to be studying for and here i am talking abt nezushi sigh they have taken over my brain TvT

"If the Israeli assault stopped today, and we decided to hold a funeral every single day for each Palestinian killed in the last eight months, it would take us 100 years to honor them all."

The Palestinian speaker at the UN Security Council highlights the devastating toll of casualties among Palestinians resulting from the Israeli genocide in Gaza.

We always talk about the dorky and unstable side of Bokuto but he's also such an inspiration!

Sometimes a simple and positive outlook at things is actually the best approach when dealing with stuff you have no control over.

We waste too much energy on catastrophizing because we feel like a negative mindset somehow protects us from being surprised by the worst possible outcomes, but it doesn’t.

That’s why Bokuto saves Akaashi from the traps of his overthinking, just as much as Akaashi saves Bokuto from the traps of his overfeeling.

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Ciel just called Sebastian a whore

i'm obsessed with these lines because they speak so much to ciel's faith in own worldview - and there's this moment of doubt, where he recognises that what he thinks isn't necessarily fact, but belief

not only does it say a lot about his character, i think it majorly contributes to the events that occur later in the arc

🚫under the cut for being way longer than intended MAJOR spoilers, both for the rest of the emerald witch arc and chapter 126+🚫

faith and higher power

ciel doesn't just lose his faith once - he loses it twice. the first time is after he is tortured by the cult, when he denounces the christian god. but his faith in the protection of a higher power isn't actually gone, it just transfers to r!ciel.

it's only when r!ciel is sacrificed that his belief in higher power is truly broken, leaving a vacuum for a demon to exploit.

ciel never looks outside himself for strength after this. not to a god that he now has good reason to believe exists, and not to sebastian, the most powerful tool he has. he only trusts himself. it's worth noting here that he sees sebastian's power as something he owns the rights to, at least until his revenge is complete. it is his, gained not only through sacrifice, but through his own intellect.

through the terms of the contract, he believes he has successfully collared the demon without falling for it's tricks. he now views his intellect as the one power with which he can navigate the world - there is no higher power that is safe to rely on.

christianity and doubt

ciel doesn't believe in witches, not only because it isn't 'logical', but because without realising it, he still views the world through the lense of a christian upbringing. he 'knows' that witches and curses are pagan nonsense - at most, witches are humans that worship demons, a power that christianity recognises and one that's been confirmed to him as real. he converses with sebastian about it, but he doesn't consider sebastian's perspective above his own. ciel is the mastermind, and he trusts in his own logic above everything - sebastian is only a chess piece.

but there is a seed of doubt in ciel's mind that he might not know as much about the rules of this world as he thinks. and the second seed of doubt comes right after;

this is new information, and it has the potential to reframe the circumstances under which he made the contract. he brushes it off, choosing not to pursue that line of enquiry - deep down, i think he's scared of what the answer might be. it challenges the knowledge with which he negotiated the contract, and so it challenges his sense of control, and the strength of sebastian's collar.

whilst this conversation isn't what triggers his ptsd episode later in the arc, imo it does have a role to play in the severity of it.

the curse

when his ptsd is triggered and he passes out, he dreams of the moment he lost r!ciel. the last time he lost his faith.

he wakes up blind - he has quite literally lost his sight. to me, that is representative of the fact that he doesn't trust his own mind anymore. in a way, it's the third time he loses his faith. he held himself and his intelligence above everything, but the situation is perhaps not what he thought it was. he could overlook those two tiny cracks in his worldview, but with his ptsd delivering a final blow, he's stuck doubting every move he has ever made.

he doesn't know the rules of this world anymore, a world with witches and curses. he doesn't even know if sebastian told the truth about why he appeared that night. did he outwit the devil, or did he make a terrible mistake? with all these doubts, he can't be 'ciel phantomhive' any more. he can only be himself as he last left him - the weak, frightened twin.

and it's sebastian that frightens him the most. his demon suddenly feels much less like a tool, and much more like an active player.

it's only when sebastian forces him into a life-or-death decision that he decides to move back into play. these are the same dire circumstances under which the contract was made - and ever the opportunist, sebastian manipulates ciel all over again, even more thoroughly than before.

imo, the whole scene with ciel and r!ciel on the chessboard? it's sebastian. he's using the face of his twin to reiterate that it was ciel who sacrificed his soul, he's using the faces of the people tied to his deepest regrets to drive home that ciel is a selfish, greedy human being.

he must make his opening move all over again, this time for himself alone. he must disregard all the other circumstances that coaxed him into the first bargain, all the grief and love for his brother, and all the hatred for himself, who dared to survive. it's only with this new clarity in purpose that he is able to function again, to trust in himself and make the next move.