Tuesday, March 22, 2022

 And another day of panic buying iodine tablets, worrying about variants, forced to alter diversity training, a nurse facing prison for deadly error, the health care problem in TX, the KBJ hearing, a GOP Senator wanting states’ rights regarding interracial marriage, and the world’s first Vagina Museum comes to a close:

“Not going to listen to lectures about lenient sentence guidelines from the guys who think the punishment for trying to violently overturn the votes of 81 million Americans should be four more years as president.” -- LOLGOP

“Democrats try to get elected by insisting that they can work with Republicans. Republicans try to get elected by insisting that Democrats are Satan worshiping child pornographers.” -- Schooley

Deaths

US: 999,792 (+1859 over two days)

World: 6,121,926 (+20,913 over two days)

Cases

US: 81,476,269 (+66,168 over two days)

World: 474,082,767 (+3,013,625 over two days)

Belarus could "soon" join war in Ukraine, US and NATO officials say. The US and NATO believe that Belarus could “soon” join Russia in its war against Ukraine, US and NATO officials tell CNN, and that the country is already taking steps to do so.

Why People Are Panic Buying Iodine Tablets Amid Fear Of Nuclear War. People across Europe are stocking up on iodine tablets against the backdrop of fears that the Russian invasion of Ukraine may “go nuclear.”...Panic buying has also hit the US with high demand for iodine tablets seeing packets selling on eBay for upwards of $149. But can iodine tablets really protect against radiation poisoning?...Does Iodine Always Protect Against Radiation? Simply put: no. People shouldn’t take iodine as a regular preventive measure. Not only will it be largely pointless until the day a nuclear incident does occur, it can also cause a bunch of unpleasant side effects, including damage to the heart and kidneys. As such, iodine tablets should only be taken on the advice of health authorities. Furthermore, iodine will not protect you from many of the nasty impacts of radiation exposure. First of all, iodine will only protect you from radioactive iodine, not other kinds of radioactive material. Secondly, it only provides protection for the thyroid gland, not other parts of your body.

Russia sentences Kremlin critic Navalny to nine years in prison. A Russian court sentenced jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny to nine years in prison on fraud charges, in a ruling that will keep President Vladimir Putin's most prominent opponent out of active politics for years ahead.

“Graham emerged from hearing and said it’s ‘fair to say’ he sees red flags with Jackson nomination. He criticized her explanation of defending Guantanamo detainees as an attorney. ‘It just doesn’t make sense to me,’ he told me. He was one of 3 Rs who voted for her for DC Circuit.” -- Manu Raju

“Lindsey Graham has been a lawyer for a long time and knows damn well that a lawyer’s brief on behalf of an attorney is the client’s position & not the personal position of the attorney.” -- Jamie Harrison

Note: Lindsey Graham is a waste of flesh.

REPORTER: "You would be okay with the Supreme Court leaving the issue of interracial marriage to the states?" SEN. MIKE BRAUN (R-IN): "Yes. If you are not wanting the Supreme Court to weigh in on issues like that, you are not going to be able to have your cake and eat it too." -- To be clear: A US Senator believes the US Supreme Court should let states decide if interracial marriage should be legal. The GOP have shown how racist they truly are today. If you support them, then yes, you are a fucking racist, too. See the video here.

Note: Obviously, the GOP doesn’t plan to stop with just overturning Roe v. Wade.

Senate GOP eyes Hunter Biden and Fauci probes after midterms. As Senate Republicans feel increasingly bullish about November, when they are fighting to regain control of Congress, they are floating using a new majority to dig into President Biden and his administration starting in 2023. — The new witch hunts, brought to you by the GOP.

Scientists worry virus variant may push up COVID cases in US. With coronavirus cases rising in parts of Europe and Asia, scientists worry that an extra-contagious version of the omicron variant may soon push cases up in the United States too. Experts are also keeping their eyes on another mutant: a rare delta-omicron hybrid that they say doesn’t pose much of a threat right now but shows how wily the coronavirus can be.

It’s not just ‘Don’t Say Gay.” Florida also ordered Disney to alter its diversity training. For decades, Disney and Florida politicians have had a symbiotic relationship — kind of like dung beetles and skunk cabbage…Disney got tax breaks, incentives, taxpayer-funded advertising, even a law guaranteeing companies would never have to offer employees paid sick time if they didn’t want to. Basically, the two sides were political cronies who swapped favors for cash. But now the wheels have come off … over culture wars…Earlier this year, Republican legislators unveiled a new law aimed at stopping Disney from running its diversity and inclusion program in its current form. It was part of legislators’ whitewash-history agenda. First, they didn’t want school teachers giving history lessons that might cause anyone “discomfort.” But then they thought: Why stop there? Let’s stop private companies from talking about the realities of racism and sexism in ways we don’t like as well…In case you read over that last sentence too quickly, let me recap it for you: A private company was holding private discussions with its own employees. Yet because a politician didn’t like some of the things he’d heard they were talking about, he wanted to outlaw the speech he found objectionable. Welcome to The People’s Republic of Florida. — There are no true conservatives in the GOP. Just wanna be authoritarians. 

As a nurse faces prison for a deadly error, her colleagues worry: Could I be next? Prosecutors do not allege in their court filings that Vaught intended to hurt Murphey or was impaired by any substance when she made the mistake, so her prosecution is a rare example of a health care worker facing years in prison for a medical error. Fatal errors are generally handled by licensing boards and civil courts. And experts say prosecutions like Vaught's loom large for a profession terrified of the criminalization of such mistakes — especially because her case hinges on an automated system for dispensing drugs that many nurses use every day.

A health care problem too big for the Texas Legislature. Texas, unlike all but 11 other states, hasn’t expanded its Medicaid program. And it also hasn’t addressed the problem that’s supposed to help solve: The state’s worst-in-the-nation ranking for people without health insurance. Texas has more uninsured people than any other state, whether you count in raw numbers (about 5.4 million) or in the uninsured percentage of the total population (18.4%).

The South is being walloped with severe weather. Aside from the tornado watch, millions of people from Louisiana up to Arkansas and Tennessee are under a flood watch, Ward said. It's important that people don't forget about hazards other than tornadoes, including straight-line winds, large hail and flooding, Lisney said.

Founder of world’s first Vagina Museum explains why it’s for everyone – cis, trans, dads and kids. Its crowning glory is the “vulva wall” – a wall of photographs showcasing incredible vulva diversity. “It’s my favourite part of the whole museum,” Schechter told PinkNews. “Something that people always say to us is ‘I want to see real pictures of vulvas.’ I want to see all the diversity, I want to see what they look like, I want to see if mine is normal.”...Since the very beginning, The Vagina Museum has been committed to queer and trans-inclusive education because – unsurprisingly – many queer and trans people have vaginas...“It’s really important for us to have absolutely no minimum age limit,” said Schechter. “The main reason for that is that children have vulvas, and they need to learn about them too.”

In a major milestone, NASA has now confirmed 5,000 known planets beyond our solar system. "It's not just a number," one researcher says. "Each one of them is a new world — a brand-new planet." -- We are not alone.

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

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

Sunday, March 20, 2022

 And another day of just the start, spontaneous psychosis, secret authors, the Kremlin manipulating Twitter, the GOP’s continuing war on women, the anti-trans crusade, ghost guns, firing squads, incels, heatwaves at both poles, and  ‘shrinkflation’ comes to a close:

“You know those white women you see in pictures screaming at the black girls walking into schools? That’s who so many of you are right now when it comes to trans kids. It’s disgusting.” — Imani Gandy

Deaths

US: 997,933

World: 6,101,013

Cases

US: 81,410,101

World: 471,069,142

Covid-19 Isn’t Done With Us. Are We Prepared For the Next Surge? Experts explain what a new variant, lifting of mask mandates, and some disheartening news from D.C. might mean for the country. While outbreaks in Europe and Asia are on the rise— and a spike in cases in the United States likely on the horizon, Congress this week removed $15 billion in Covid-related funding from a $1.5 trillion spending bill. The White House warns this will mean dire cuts to testing, treatment and vaccine distribution, with some services suspended as soon as next week. That same day the Senate voted to overturn the public health order requiring masks on airplanes and public transit. All of this has left many public health and infectious disease experts—and confused members of the public—concerned about what’s coming our way next, and how we, as a country, are going to deal with it…This is not exactly the position we’d like to find ourselves in two years into the pandemic — especially with a new variant spreading, and masking now being the exception rather than the norm. But it’s not March 2020. This time, we do have the tools to prevent and treat severe infections: we just may not be able to access them.

‘This is just the start': Research into Covid-19 opens doors to understanding other diseases and conditions. The billions of dollars invested in covid vaccines and covid-19 research so far are expected to yield medical and scientific dividends for decades, helping doctors battle influenza, cancer, cystic fibrosis, and far more diseases.

COVID-19 may be linked to spontaneous psychosis. Researchers are trying to figure out why. There’s growing evidence that COVID-19 and new psychotic episodes are connected…“The situation was strikingly similar to one we’d expect from someone who had a schizophrenia spectrum illness.”…COVID-19-related psychotic breaks are rare—though researchers say that it’s too early to say exactly how rare—and plenty of experts believe that the connection between the two conditions, if any, is not causal…Still, researchers are investigating the link…There are more questions than answers at this point. It’s still unclear whether the severity of COVID-19 symptoms plays any role in the likelihood of a psychotic break…One other bit of evidence that COVID-19 is linked to psychotic breaks comes not from the current scientific literature, but from history. Following the influenza pandemic of 1918 and 1919, there was a spike in what was called encephalitis lethargica, which was essentially a form of early-onset Parkinson’s disease that often didn’t appear for a number of years after the infection—but left patients in what was effectively a state of catatonia…By no means is the case for virus-triggered psychosis closed…Of course, even a transitory psychosis is still a psychosis—something no one wants to experience even fleetingly. That puts a premium on avoiding infection in the first place. “The best way to treat COVID-19 and the risk of psychosis is to prevent it,” says Smith. “Even if neurological complications are rare, getting vaccinated remains the smartest choice.”

After reaching an agreement with labor unions, the Los Angeles United School District, the second-largest public school district in the nation, will lift its Covid-19 mask mandate starting next week.

Omicron survives longer on some surfaces, studies find, but it's no reason to panic. Under experimental conditions, the Omicron variant of the coronavirus survives at least twice as long on surfaces like plastic, paper and skin than the original strain that emerged from Wuhan, China, which may help explain how this variant has become so contagious, two recent studies show. There's no need to start obsessively wiping and washing, however. Even though Omicron may survive longer on surfaces, you're probably still more likely to be infected by inhaling the virus rather than by touching something that's been contaminated.

Justice Thomas hospitalized with infection, high court says. Thomas, 73, has been at Sibley Memorial Hospital in Washington, D.C., since Friday after experiencing “flu-like symptoms,” the court said in a statement.

Trump White House aide was secret author of report used to push ‘big lie’. The previously unreported involvement of the Trump White House aide in the preparation of the Dominion report raises the extraordinary situation of at least one administration official being among the original sources of Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

How Kremlin accounts manipulate Twitter. He looked at how many times each Twitter account retweeted one of the other 74 profiles within an hour. He discovered that the Kremlin's network of Twitter accounts work together to retweet and drive up traffic. This practice is sometimes called "astroturfing" - when the owner of several accounts uses the profiles they control to retweet content and amplify reach.

Is the GOP’s War on Women Now Pro-Rapist? One would assume that Republicans giving women 10 weeks instead of six weeks to terminate their pregnancy is a form of compassion and enlightenment, but not in this case where even ectopic pregnancies are not allowed. These pregnancies, which are not viable, are the leading cause of death for women in their first trimester as the fertilized egg implants outside the uterus and often leads to hemorrhaging if not aborted. But Republicans will never let science and women’s health stand in the way of their zealous, regressive crusade. If this bill is passed, the only choice a woman will have is the following: jail or death…With the upcoming midterms expecting to be a rout for Republicans, it seems any attempt to save Roe v. Wade is bleak and the latest GOP onslaught against women’s rights will only accelerate—even though the right to an abortion is supported by the majority of Americans. — The party of personal freedom sure the fuck goes out of the way to actively control women. Fuck you if you support making abortion illegal. You’re a disgrace to humanity. And you are certainly not pro-fucking-life. You’re a controlling asshole.

Washington governor signs bill blocking abortion lawsuits. Washington Gov. Jay Inslee (D) signed a bill on Thursday that blocks people or the government from bringing a lawsuit against those seeking an abortion or assisting someone looking for an abortion, a response to Texas's controversial six-week abortion ban, which allows such suits.

Texas’ Anti-Trans Crusade Is Spreading. But typical gender-affirming treatments for kids are deemed safe and effective by major medical associations like the American Medical Association, the American Psychological Association, and the American Academy of Pediatrics. They are often medically necessary to help kids who are struggling with suicidal thoughts and depression because of their gender dysphoria, or feelings of distress that are caused by a mismatch between their gender identity and the way they look. The treatments are given slowly, and only when children request it. And doctors aren’t performing any surgeries on kids that could permanently alter their bodies or make them infertile…Studies suggest these medical interventions can greatly reduce their risk of depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation, while helping them be more confident. (Researchers at the University of Washington found that trans teens who received puberty blockers and hormones were 73 percent less likely to be suicidal compared with those who did not.) It’s not until adulthood that they might opt for surgeries on their breasts or genitals. — Be a compassionate and loving human being. Don’t be a Republican.

California bill seeks to make state a "refuge for transgender children and their parents". The bill, introduced by State Sen. Scott Wiener (D), would legally protect parents who support their children’s access to transgender health care by blocking out-of-state court judgements removing the children from their parents’ custody.

'Ghost guns' showing up in school shootings, experts fear trend will get worse. A "ghost gun" is a firearm that comes packaged in parts, can be bought online and assembled without much of a trace, which experts warn are becoming increasingly dangerous. The first is a plastic gun that can be made with a 3D printer and usually fires one bullet. The second version, which he said has been increasingly found at crime scenes, is do-it-yourself gun assembly kits that include all the parts of a gun, but without serial numbers or specific components. McCourt said these homemade guns bypass state and federal laws requiring tracing.

South Carolina says it's ready for firing squad executions. The S.C. Department of Corrections informed S.C. Attorney General Alan Wilson today that the department is now able to carry out an execution by firing squad as required by law under S.C. Code 24-3-530…The death chamber has been renovated to accommodate a firing squad. The chamber now includes a chair in which inmates will sit if they choose execution by firing squad. The chair is in a corner of the room away from the current electric chair, which cannot be moved. Bullet-resistant glass has been installed between the witness room and death chamber.

The firing squad chair is metal with restraints and is surrounded by protective equipment. The chair faces a wall with a rectangular opening 15 feet away. — Now will Texas top this with reintroducing public hangings? Here’s the AP story.

‘Incels’ are a rising threat in the US, Secret Service report finds. A new US Secret Service report details a rising threat from men who identify as “involuntary celibates” or “incels”, due to their inability to form intimate relationships with women. The report released on Tuesday and prepared by the National Threat Assessment Center (NTAC) highlights behavioral threat assessment themes identified in years of research examining targeted violence. Themes include concerning and threatening communications, concerning online content, chronic and acute stressors, elicited concern in others, interpersonal difficulties, history of being bullied, financial instability, failed life aspirations and lack of consequences…According to the report, NTAC research has shown no specific profile of an individual who plans or executes an act of targeted violence. Attackers vary in age, race, sex, education level, employment history and other characteristics. However, a unifying factor among most attackers is a set of concerning behaviors displayed before acts of violence.

Divesting From Fossil Fuels? Not in Texas. Texas is threatening to cut ties with some of the world’s biggest financial firms over their efforts to address the climate crisis. On Wednesday, Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar sent letters to 19 investment firms, including financial giants BlackRock and JPMorgan Chase, accusing them of violating a new state law that prohibits Texas from doing business with any companies that are divesting from the fossil fuel industry for environmental reasons. It’s the latest move from Texas leaders to stifle a climate movement that they believe threatens the state’s bottom line. It also highlights the state’s propensity to lean into America’s culture war, which continues to paralyze Congress in its ability to pass any kind of meaningful climate policy, even as public pressure to advance climate action grows and the nation experiences some of the worst extreme weather events ever recorded.

Heatwaves at both of Earth’s poles alarm climate scientists. At this time of year, the Antarctic should be rapidly cooling after its summer, and the Arctic only slowly emerging from its winter, as days lengthen. For both poles to show such heating at once is unprecedented.

Study raises questions about risks of using medical marijuana for mood and anxiety disorders. Some people with pain, anxiety or depression who obtain medical marijuana cards may overuse marijuana within a short time frame, leading to cannabis use disorder while failing to improve their symptoms, a new study found. Cannabis use disorder, also known as marijuana use disorder, is associated with dependence on the use of weed. People are considered dependent on weed when they feel food cravings or have a lack of appetite, irritability, restlessness, and mood and sleep difficulties after quitting, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at UCLA seeks applications for an Assistant Adjunct Professor on a without salary basis. Applicants must understand there will be no compensation for this position. — What the actual fuck?

Philly High Schools Pushing Start Times to 9 a.m. The change is designed to help students be rested and ready to learn.

The U.S. Tried Permanent Daylight Saving Time Before. Here's What Happened. “We’ve already tried year-round Daylight Saving Time, and we found that it was very unpopular. So I would expect some of the same problems might happen again,” says Prerau.

Doritos bags now have five fewer chips thanks to 'shrinkflation'. "Shrinkflation," as consumer watchdog ConsumerWorld.org explains, is when manufacturers sneakily reduce the size or amount of their products, but still charge similar prices. This apparently combats a need for businesses to raise prices on their products…Analysts estimate Frito-Lay will save more than $50 million by reducing the number of chips put into their bags. — Pay more, get less. It’s the American way.

Mike Tyson is selling ear-shaped cannabis-infused edibles called 'Mike Bites'. More than two decades after Mike Tyson bit off a chunk of Evander Holyfield's ear at the 1997 WBA Heavyweight Championship fight, the legendary boxer has released a line of edibles -- in the shape of ears. — Yep. It’s true. Oh the world we live in. 

36-million-year-old fossil of "sea monster" found in Peruvian desert. Paleontologists on Thursday unveiled the fossilized remains of an ancient whale that inhabited the seas 36 million years ago, found last year in a Peruvian desert. Scientists called the creature a "sea monster" that "surely did a lot of damage."…"The most incredible thing is that the skull is in a very good state of preservation, it has complete teeth; it was a first-order predator, at the top of that time that fed on fish penguins; a sea monster just as they imagine it and we think it is a new species," Salas said. The "Ocucaje Predator," as the researchers dubbed it, was about 55 feet long and used its massive, powerful teeth to feed on tuna, sharks and schools of sardines…"This finding is very important because there are no other similar specimens discovered in the world.”…The Ocucaje Desert is rich in fossils, the researchers said, providing scientists with 42 million years' worth of evolutionary evidence. Other fossils found there include four-legged dwarf whales, dolphins, sharks and other species from the Miocene period, between 23 million and five million years ago.

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

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

Thursday, March 17, 2022

And another day of not being done, bombing theaters, election police, Manchin’s coal corruption, the Amazon Rainforest’s tipping point, a ‘slave auction,’ banning same-sex marriage, signs of early Alzheimer’s, ticks, Amazon, Netflix, and Dolly Parton comes to a close:

“The best propagandists for Putin in the world are US Republican politicians.” — Ron Filipkowski

“When the leader of your nation starts talking about “cleansing” your people, it’s time to acknowledge that the real mess is located in the castle, not in the streets.” — John Collins

“Russia has attacked not just us, not just our land, not just our cities, it went on a brutal offensive against our values, against our right to live freely in our own country, against our national dreams. Just like the same dreams you Americans have.” — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky

“‘Protect your own health’ is not a PUBLIC health policy.” — Dr. Lucky Tran

Putin: “I am convinced that such natural and essential self-cleansing of the society will only strengthen our country, our solidarity, cohesion and readiness to respond to any challenges.” —  We’ve seen this movie before. We know how it ends. Putin must be stopped. 

Deaths

US: 996,072 (+3770 over two days)

World: 6,087,899 (+14,166 over two day)

Cases

US: 81,350,883 (+105,947 over two days)

World: 466,472,159 (+4,459,201 over two days)

Europe thought it was done with Covid-19. But the virus isn't done with Europe. It has been two years since the Covid-19 pandemic became a reality for millions of people in Europe and many of the region's leaders now believe it is time to move on. But as countries shed restrictions, cases and hospitalizations are slowly inching up and public health experts are worried about the consequences…The situation has caught the eye of American public health experts, who worry that Europe's rise in infections may be a preview of what's to come in the US.

Germany to let virus restrictions expire even as cases surge. The German government on Thursday defended its decision to let many pandemic restrictions expire at the weekend, even as the country hit a new record high for newly confirmed cases.

Moderna asks FDA to authorize second booster dose for all adults. It said it made the request based in part on recent data from the U.S. and Israel following the emergence of the highly contagious omicron variant.

Russia bombed a theater in Mariupol that had 'CHILDREN' written in Russian outside, satellite images show. The theater was serving as a shelter for hundreds of civilian refugees, including many children, in the embattled city of Mariupol, which has been left without water, heat, and food for several days amid Russia's escalating attack.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is a uniquely talented communicator. — He speaks directly to the Russian people about what is really goin on in its war with Ukraine. Hear what he has to say. It’s good.

Some GOP states seek new police units for election probes. Republicans responding to the myth of widespread voter fraud are turning to a new tactic to appease voters who believe the claims: election police.

Manchin's Coal Corruption Is So Much Worse Than You Knew. The senator from West Virginia is bought and paid for by Big Coal. With his help the dying industry is pulling one final heist — and the entire planet may pay the price. The only reason anyone still burns coal today is because of the enormous political power and inertia that the industry has acquired since the 19th century. In America, that power and inertia is embodied in the cruel and cartoonish character of West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, who, paradoxically, may have more control over the trajectory of the climate crisis than any other person on the planet right now…The truth is, Manchin is best understood as a grifter from the ancestral home of King Coal. He is a man with coal dust in his veins who has used his political skills to enrich himself, not the people of his state. He drives an Italian-made Maserati, lives on a houseboat on the Potomac River when he is in D.C., pals around with corporate CEOs, and has a net worth of as much as $12 million. More to the point, his wealth has been accumulated through controversial coal-related businesses in his home state, including using his political muscle to keep open the dirtiest coal plant in West Virginia, which paid him nearly $5 million over the past decade in fees for coal handling, as well as costing West Virginia electricity consumers tens of millions of dollars in higher electricity rates (more about the details of this in a moment)…In contrast, Manchin is effectively taking money right out of the pockets of West Virginians when they pay their electric bills. They have no say in it. “It’s one of the most egregious conflicts of interest I’ve ever seen.”…However it plays out, the idea that the fate of the Earth’s climate has wound up in the hands of a Maserati-driving senator from coal country is a plot twist that belongs in a Hollywood disaster movie, not here in the real world where millions of people suffer as a consequence…There is no future for coal in America. It is a new Lost Cause. But that won’t stop Manchin and the fossil-fuel confederacy from spreading the big lie that life as we know it today depends on burning black rocks for power…”Joe Manchin doesn’t need to be in Congress,” Swearengin says. “He needs to be in jail.”…It’s difficult to overstate how fucked up this is. If the PSC were working in the best interests of West Virginians, it would have demanded that the money-losing Grant Town plant be shut down years ago. Instead, West Virginians have been paying millions of dollars each year in higher electricity costs in order to keep running a dirty, inefficient power plant that is sickening and killing people with dirty air, but paying the Manchin family handsomely. And who knows how deep this cesspool of corruption really goes…Once you understand how the Manchin family business works, you understand why the senator drives a Maserati (“Hollywood could not cast a better vehicle for this guy to be driving,” says Kidus Girma). And you can also understand why he knifed the Build Back Better bill, which has a variety of provisions that would accelerate the demise of coal…Manchin, who is up for reelection in 2024, also profited from right-wing donors who appreciated him mucking up Biden’s agenda. During the first nine months of 2021, he raked in $3.3 million in campaign donations — 14 times more than his haul through the same period the previous year. Not surprisingly, being the roadblock to climate action is a lucrative position…Like the disemboweled mountain itself, Manchin is a scar from a time when blasting the Earth to mine coal to burn for energy that cooked the climate was a profitable thing to do. As I stood there on the ridgetop, it occurred to me that if future historians want to tell the story of how humans turned our home into a hell zone of fire, drought, and rising seas, this would be as good of a place as any to begin. — Fuck Manchin. And fuck you if you support him.

The Amazon Rainforest May Be Reaching a Point of No Return. Scientists can’t yet say when the Amazon as a whole might reach that tipping point, as there are a galaxy of variables at play, like the rate of deforestation and how droughts might intensify. But in the rainforest’s southeast, they’re getting glimpses of what that point might look like. Here, as the forest fragments and the edges are exposed to more sun, big trees that need a lot of water are dying off. The ones that tend to survive are similar to those you’d see on a savanna—they might even lose their leaves during the dry season, unlike the evergreens of a rainforest. 

California man died screaming ‘I can’t breathe’ as police restrained him, video shows. Newly released clip from two years ago shows Edward Bronstein being forced to a mat with at least five officers holding him down

A North Carolina schools superintendent has apologized for a mock “slave auction” in which white middle-schoolers pretended to sell their Black classmates.

Bermuda ban on same-sex marriage is constitutional, London court says. A London tribunal on Monday ruled that a 2018 Bermuda law that bans same-sex marriage in the British overseas territory is constitutional, a departure from the broad trend towards legalization of gay marriage in the West.

Team That Owes Most of Its Success to a Russian Oligarch Now Wants Other Teams to Be Punished For It. Last week, the United Kingdom sanctioned Abramovich, meaning his various assets, including Chelsea, were effectively frozen. With its financial backer in legal limbo, Chelsea was permitted to keep playing games and paying its players, but could not sell tickets or merchandise. Now, here’s the part where, if you are Chelsea, you eat it. You take the hit and move on. You’ve lived and been rewarded—as fans and as a club—by the money that is fueling a war and you admit, hey, that was fucked up. But, no. They did not do that. Chelsea instead acted like idiots. They drew a line in the sand over a domestic cup match this weekend against Middlesbrough, a club in the second division of English soccer. The club sent out a public request that Middlesborough not invite their fans, too.

Most people don't know these possible signs of early Alzheimer's. Mild cognitive impairment is an early stage of subtle memory loss or other cognitive ability loss, such as language or visual/spatial perception, according to research published Tuesday in the Alzheimer's Association's 2022 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures report. The signs can be serious enough to be noticed by the affected person and loved ones, yet mild enough that the affected person can maintain their ability to do most activities of daily living. Many people confuse this impairment, often called MCI, with normal aging, but it is different -- around one-third of people with mild cognitive impairment develop dementia due to Alzheimer's disease within five years, according to the research.

Long naps may be early sign of Alzheimer’s disease, study shows. Excessive daytime napping likely to be symptom rather than cause of mental decline, say scientists

Lone star tick, linked to Heartland virus, now found in 6 states. Not much is yet known about the Heartland virus, which when transmitted to a person by a tick bite can cause fever, fatigue, decreased appetite, headache, nausea, diarrhea, and muscle or joint pain. It's unclear if other ticks can also spread the virus or if people can be infected in other ways, the CDC said.

Amazon.com closes deal to buy MGM movie studio. Amazon.com Inc on Thursday said it had closed its $8.5 billion deal to buy MGM, combining the fabled movie maker behind "Rocky" and "James Bond" with the online retailing giant as it looks to draw consumers through more streaming video.

Netflix tests charges for sharing passwords between households. The days of sharing Netflix passwords could soon be over. The streaming company has begun testing a new feature that would charge people to add multiple profiles to an account.

Rock Hall of Fame: Dolly Parton Is On the Ballot Whether She Wants It or Not. “From its inception, Rock & Roll has had deep roots in Rhythm & Blues and Country music,” they wrote. “It is not defined by any one genre, rather a sound that moves youth culture. Dolly Parton’s music impacted a generation of young fans and influenced countless artists that followed. Her nomination to be considered for induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame followed the same process as all other artists who have been considered.”

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

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

Tuesday, March 15, 2022

And another day of battling multiple outbreaks, limiting abortion, prohibiting abortion, narrowing the gender pay gap, the plastics crisis, farmers fighting bird flu, nastier pollen seasons, and the US Senate voting to make daylight saving time permanent comes to a close:

"We will treat you the way people are supposed to be treated – as people, decently." — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky

Deaths

US: 992,302 (+491 over two day)

World: 6,073,733 (+7688 over two days)

Cases

US: 81,244,936 (+70,359 over two days)

World: 462,012,958 (+3,490,682 over two days)

China battles multiple outbreaks, driven by stealth omicron. China banned most people from leaving a coronavirus-hit northeastern province and mobilized military reservists Monday as the fast-spreading “stealth omicron” variant fuels the country’s biggest outbreak since the start of the pandemic two years ago. — We may be done with Covid, but COVID’s not done with us.

Second gentleman Doug Emhoff tests positive for Covid-19. Emhoff's positive test is the first known case of Covid-19 among the first or second families since President Joe Biden and Harris took office in January 2021.

Can states limit abortion and gender-affirming treatments outside their borders? Conservative lawmakers across the U.S. have unleashed a wave of state legislation attempting to restrict access to abortions and to gender-affirming medical care for transgender youth by allowing lawsuits to be filed against anyone who helps them. But now there's a new twist in what appears to be a broader Republican strategy: Representatives in multiple states are pushing bills that would attempt to limit what residents can and can't do even beyond state lines…At their core, Vladeck says, such bills are legal experiments intended to slowly erode constitutional protections. "What's ominous and scary about them is that if they work even a little, even the fact that they're part of public discourse, they've done a ton of damage to our constitutional system." — Republicans love to have big government run your life. Don’t fall for their “personal freedom” and “small government” bullshit mantra. They aim to control what you do—and it’s only what they approve. Fuck them. And fuck you if you support Republicans.

Tennessee lawmakers introduce Texas-styled abortion bill. The Tennessee version introduced Tuesday would ban all abortions rather than allowing a patient to have a six-week window. But similar to the Texas model, it still would make legal challenges difficult because the government would not be the enforcer. -- Republicans are hell-bent on making America a country of vigilantes. Soon there won’t be any Constitutional rights. Again: fuck you if you support Republicans, and fuck you if you think abortion should be illegal.

Biden moving to narrow gender pay gap for federal workers. The White House is marking Equal Pay Day by taking new steps aimed at ending the gender pay gap for federal workers and contractors. President Joe Biden on Tuesday is signing an executive order that encourages the government to consider banning federal contractors from seeking information about job applicants’ prior salary history. And a new Labor Department directive is aimed at strengthening federal contractors’ obligations to audit payrolls to help guard against pay disparities based on gender, race or ethnicity.

Mississippi governor signs law limiting discussion of race in schools. The short title of Senate Bill 2113 says it would prohibit “critical race theory.” But the main text of the legislation does not mention or define the theory, and many supporters of the bill also have said they cannot define it. The new law says no school, community college or university could teach that any “sex, race, ethnicity, religion or national origin is inherently superior or inferior.”

The Plastics Industry Says It Has a Clever Solution to the Plastics Crisis. Those systems, in theory, created a destination for plastics aside from landfills, assuaging consumer guilt about using polluting—and practically indestructible—products. But as the bottom fell out of the international market, an inconvenient truth was highlighted: Most plastics are impervious to traditional recycling…In response to the crisis, the plastics industry is pushing investments in so-called chemical recycling, hoping to give plastics a new, guilt-free life cycle…Of the billions of tons of plastic ever made, Geyer and two colleagues estimated in 2017 that only about 9 percent has been recycled. The rest has been incinerated or, more often, just dumped—at best into landfills, at worst into trash piles that can leak into rivers and streams…Not everyone agrees. Many environmentalists argue that chemical recycling simply provides political cover for the continued production of plastics and the fossil fuels it takes to make them. Consumers shouldn’t be fooled by a solution to plastics that, well, involves plastics. — 9%. We’ve been suckered. And it looks like they’re trying to play us as suckers again.

Disabled people facing ‘impossible choices to survive’ in cost of living crisis. Disabled people will face “impossible choices in order to survive” amid a perfect storm of soaring energy prices, increasing fuel and food costs and cuts to government support, charities have warned. As the UK steadies itself for a rise in energy bills next month at the same time as state benefits are cut in real terms, leading disability and poverty charities including Scope, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF), Leonard Cheshire, and the MS Society have said that disabled people and their families will be put under severe financial pressure. They warn that disabled people could be pushed to use food banks and unwashed soiled clothes in order to prioritise keeping lifesaving medical equipment such as ventilators running, as well as other vital goods. Disabled people typically have higher energy needs than the wider public, while being more likely to be in poverty.

India court upholds ban on hijab in schools and colleges. An Indian court Tuesday upheld a ban on wearing hijab in class in the southern state of Karnataka, saying the Muslim headscarf is not an essential religious practice of Islam in a ruling that is likely to further deepen religious tensions in the country. -- Why can’t we just let people be themselves? Why do so many feel this uncontrollable need to oppress others?

Chicken, turkey farmers struggle to keep birds safe from flu. Nearly 7 million chickens and turkeys in 13 states have been killed this year due to avian influenza, prompting officials and farmers to acknowledge that, despite their best efforts, stopping the disease from infecting poultry is incredibly difficult.

The Big Sneeze: Climate change to make pollen season nastier. As the world warms, allergy season will start weeks earlier and end many days later — and it’ll be worse while it lasts, with pollen levels that could as much as triple in some places, according to a new study Tuesday in the journal Nature Communications.

Dolly Parton turns down Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nomination. Dolly Parton has announced she is pulling out of this year's nominations for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, saying she hasn't "earned that right."

Senate approves bill to make daylight saving time permanent. The Senate unanimously approved a measure Tuesday that would make daylight saving time permanent across the United States next year. The bipartisan bill, named the Sunshine Protection Act, would ensure Americans would no longer have to change their clocks twice a year. But the bill still needs approval from the House, and the signature of President Joe Biden, to become law.

“AMERICA: ‘We want universal healthcare, a higher minimum wage, child care, and green energy.’

“CONGRESS: ‘Well, now you don't have to reset your clocks, so let's call it even.’ “

-- Mrs. Betty Bowers

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

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