Sunday, October 24, 2021

And another day of ‘dozens’ of planning meetings, FB’s role, focused attention on youth sports, ‘respectfully’ opposing marriage equality in TX, ‘inappropriate’ questions, the metaverse, sleep, and the most complete crab fossil ever comes to a close:

“I have a theory. As you age, you either become your best or worst self.” -- Steve Martin

Deaths

US: 756,362 (+657 over two days)

World: 4,963,666 (+10,281 over two days)

Cases

US: 46,312,782 (+48,847 over two days)

World: 244,424,381 (+693,669 over two days)

Jan. 6 Protest Organizers Say They Participated in ‘Dozens’ of Planning Meetings With Members of Congress and White House Staff. “I remember Marjorie Taylor Greene specifically,” the organizer says. “I remember talking to probably close to a dozen other…Along with Greene, the conspiratorial pro-Trump Republican from Georgia who took office earlier this year, the pair both say the members who participated in these conversations or had top staffers join in included Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.), Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.), Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C.), Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), and Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas)…And Gosar, who has been one of the most prominent defenders of the Jan. 6 rioters, allegedly took things a step further. Both sources say he dangled the possibility of a “blanket pardon” in an unrelated ongoing investigation to encourage them to plan the protests. —Lock all these fuckers up or there will be a next time. And next time they may get away with it. 

Not stopping 'Stop the Steal:' Facebook Papers paint damning picture of company's role in insurrection. The documents, including an internal post-mortem and one document showing in real time countermeasures Facebook employees were belatedly implementing, paint a picture of a company that was in fact fundamentally unprepared for how the Stop the Steal movement used its platform to organize, and that only truly swung into action after the movement, which played a pivotal role in the insurrection, had turned violent.

Again and again. Women's pro soccer players are just the latest to deal with abuse. The country's top women's pro soccer league, the NWSL, is still reeling from a scandal involving multiple coaches and alleged abusive behavior toward players. And it has re-focused attention on an all-too-familiar problem: female athletes throughout sports experiencing abuse and harassment…Former pro soccer player and now coach, Rachel Wood, thinks the problems start young. Especially at the elite youth levels, where those involved – coaches, athletes, parents, administrators – have practically accepted cycles of physical, mental and verbal abuse. "So we normalize a grown man yelling at a child and singling her out or humiliating her as an attempt to motivate," Wood said, "And we think, well, you know, this is kind of the way it's always been, and this is how you're going to actualize your potential. And so what ends up happening is we normalize that. We don't even call that abuse. We call that coaching."

Republican wants Texas to allow people to ‘respectfully’ oppose marriage equality. A lawmaker has paved the way for Texas’ Attorney General to decide whether people should have the option to no longer recognise marriage equality.

A-level textbook withdrawn over ‘inappropriate’ Native American question. The extracts asked students: “To what extent do you believe the treatment of Native Americans has been exaggerated?”...In May, the publisher was criticised by a student for asking whether slavery in the southern states before 1861 “could be justified”. The question was part of an exercise looking at the American civil war.

In Germany, global warming is changing more than just the climate. It’s changing politics, too. In the latest elections, the environmentalist Green Party won more votes than ever, giving it a seat at the table as a new government is formed.

White House delays release of JFK assassination files "to protect against identifiable harm". — WTF?

Facebook was well aware that hate speech was spreading on its site in India which could exacerbate ethnic violence, and did not deploy resources to curb the phenomenon, US media reported, citing internal documents.

Donald Trump's new social media app could provide him with an infusion of cash—but critics warn it could further the spread of misinformation. — The plan is to spread as much disinformation as possible.

Let computers do it: Film set tragedy spurs call to ban guns. The petition appealed to Baldwin directly “to use his power and influence” in the industry and promote “Halyna’s Law,” which would ban the use of real firearms on set. As it stands, the U.S. federal workplace safety agency is silent on the issue and most of the preferred states for productions take a largely hands-off approach.

What the metaverse is and how it will work. Think of it as the internet brought to life, or at least rendered in 3D. Zuckerberg has described it as a “virtual environment” you can go inside of — instead of just looking at on a screen. Essentially, it’s a world of endless, interconnected virtual communities where people can meet, work and play, using virtual reality headsets, augmented reality glasses, smartphone apps or other devices.

Older people who get roughly six to eight hours of quality sleep most nights appear to delay cognitive decline and keep their brains sharp, according to a new study.

Scientists have found the oldest aquatic animal preserved in amber — and it's the most complete crab fossil ever discovered. In looks, the 100-million-year-old creature superficially resembles crabs that scuttle around shores today. Computerized tomography scans revealed delicate body parts like antennae, gills and fine hairs on the mouth parts. The creature was only 5 millimeters long and likely a baby crab.

Life’s short. Live, love, create, and help others.

Until next time, my friends. Stay safe and stay sane. Good night.