I reread on the the Mrs Polifax books that I brought with me to the Philippines, and wondered where I could find more to read now that the used book kiosk is no longer there.
Yes, they are on ScribD
but I also found that someone loaded many of the audiobooks on youtube.
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they also have the 1999 movie with Angela Landsbury playing Mrs Pollifax, which I haven't watched yet.
but an earlier version of the book was filmed in B&W....it was also the last film by Rosalind Russell (which is not, alas on youtube). She was most famous for her role in Aunti Mame... a film that is not Youtube so is presumably made impossible to watch because it is a Turner classic film.
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If you want to know who is Harriet Tubman, a story about her work is available HERE at librivox.
Tubman was a heroine, but not exactly a household name, and if she never existed, history would not have changed. Putting her on currancy is sort of an insult to those who actually had something to do with the country's history or did the heavy non glamourous work for many years to stop slavery...
But I guess putting Harriet Beacher Stowe (the lady whose book started the Civil war, according to Abe Lincoln) or Frederick Douglass (who actually did inspire much of the anti slavery groups...biography here) weren't PC enough.
Here is a list of anti slavery activists who actually did change history.
FINEST KIND CLINIC AND FISHMARKET.... Discussing medicine, culture, and the joys of cooking Pansit.
Tuesday, May 17, 2016
Monday, May 16, 2016
Remaking humanity to order
The Pope links gender theory to those who exploit the environment: because both ignore that personal selfish wishes do not trump reality, and that distorting reality leads to an ecological collapse (as the US is seeing in the collapse of the family).
Ah but it won't stop there: Be afraid. Be very afraid.
NYTIMES: scientists are discussing making an artificial human genome.
ethics? We don't need no stinkin' ethics:
think GM food and animals, but worse.
Actually I have no problem on GM food that will feed people: e.g. inserting a gene to make it resistant to bugs or fungi, so the farmers don't have to use toxic chemical pesticides etc.
But the real problem is the next sentence:
But full chimera? Inserting human genes so pigs can be organ donors? (Will the pigs have a high IQ as a "side effect?) Dr. Moreau or Cordwainer Smith's Underpeople come to mind.
other NYT articles:
Scientists Seek Moratorium on Edits to Human Genome That Could Be Inherited DEC. 3, 2015
British Researcher Gets Permission to Edit Genes of Human Embryos FEB. 1, 2016
Article about genetic modification of embryos.
Catholics would note that experimenting on and then discarding these "unwanted" embryos is morally evil.
correcting defects or modifying humans?
Same moral problem here, even if done to prevent disease, you are discarding/ killing a lot of "unwanted" embryos.
PopeFrancis on GM food: his main problem is the "big ag" problem that destroy the biological and social ecology in poor countries, but as I like to point out: uh, who else will grow food for the city folks? This is a good, nuanced article that discusses the pros but does insist we note the cons...
An old policy paper about the pros and cons of the human genome project here.
Ah but it won't stop there: Be afraid. Be very afraid.
NYTIMES: scientists are discussing making an artificial human genome.
ethics? We don't need no stinkin' ethics:
oh, but such things aren't being discussed, another claims:
Dr. Endy, though invited, said he deliberately did not attend the meeting at Harvard because it was not being opened to enough people and was not giving enough thought to the ethical implications of the work.
George Church, a professor of genetics at Harvard Medical School and an organizer of the proposed project, said there had been a misunderstanding. The project was not aimed at creating people, just cells, and would not be restricted to human genomes, he said. Rather it would aim to improve the ability to synthesize DNA in general, which could be applied to various animals, plants and microbes.
think GM food and animals, but worse.
Actually I have no problem on GM food that will feed people: e.g. inserting a gene to make it resistant to bugs or fungi, so the farmers don't have to use toxic chemical pesticides etc.
yet even these could lead to lethal bacteria or new diseases as unforseen consequences of the manipulation.
Scientists and companies can now change the DNA in cells, for example, by adding foreign genes or changing the letters in the existing genes. This technique is routinely used to make drugs, such as insulin for diabetes, inside genetically modified cells, as well as to make genetically modified crops.
But the real problem is the next sentence:
And scientists are now debating the ethics of new technology that might allow genetic changes to be made in embryos.
But full chimera? Inserting human genes so pigs can be organ donors? (Will the pigs have a high IQ as a "side effect?) Dr. Moreau or Cordwainer Smith's Underpeople come to mind.
other NYT articles:
Scientists Seek Moratorium on Edits to Human Genome That Could Be Inherited DEC. 3, 2015
British Researcher Gets Permission to Edit Genes of Human Embryos FEB. 1, 2016
Article about genetic modification of embryos.
Catholics would note that experimenting on and then discarding these "unwanted" embryos is morally evil.
correcting defects or modifying humans?
Same moral problem here, even if done to prevent disease, you are discarding/ killing a lot of "unwanted" embryos.
PopeFrancis on GM food: his main problem is the "big ag" problem that destroy the biological and social ecology in poor countries, but as I like to point out: uh, who else will grow food for the city folks? This is a good, nuanced article that discusses the pros but does insist we note the cons...
An old policy paper about the pros and cons of the human genome project here.
The Cathlic Church has not made any formal statements about the Human Genome Project as such. But the present Pope, John Paul II, has commented, albeit very briefly, on various aspects of genetic manipulation. Genetic interventions which are therapeutic (e.g. gene therapy), namely, directed to the correction or amelioration of a disorder are acceptable, in principle, provided they promote the personal well being of the individual being so treated. Genetic interventions which are not therapeutic for the specific individual involved but are experimental and directed primarily to improving humans as biological entities are of dubious moral probity, but are not necessarily to be totally rejected out of hand. To be morally acceptable such genetic intervention should meet certain conditions which include due respect for the given psychological nature of each individual human being. In addition, no harm should be inflicted on the process of human generation, and its fundamental design should not be altered. Any genetic manipulation which results in, or tends to, the creation of groups with different qualities such that there would result a fresh marginalization of these people must be avoided. It has been also suggested by a few that because the Son of God took on a human nature in Jesus Christ, one may not so alter the human genome that a new distinct species would be created....
Bathroom wars: The larger agenda
The Bathroom wars are in the news: and some have noted that it is merely one item in a larger constitutional problem: the ability of government bureaurocracies to expand a previosuly passed law so that essentially it allows unelected bureaucrats to make laws (instead of Congress).
But how many are reporting the real agenda behind the bathroom kerfuffle?
It is about the deconstruction of gender: insisting men and women are the same and interchangeable. And this idea has many ramifications beyond bathrooms.
Lot of the feminist writings that discuss this agenda can be found quoted on theOtherMcCain website, but he is not PC: How dare he actually quote someone and ridicule them for being absurd.
But actually the Popes have noticed the problem, as far back as Benedict XVI, who the press hated.
But isn't it strange that the press missed the part of Pope Francis' letter that said the same thing?
from the very orthodox Catholic paper, the NCRegister:
Pope Francis has decried gender ideology for seeking to undermine the proper understanding of marriage, as well as human sexuality. He has called it “demonic,” compared it to the educational policies of Adolf Hitler and said it fails to recognize “the order of creation.”
Read more: http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/gender-ideologys-completely-mad-attack-on-the-family-and-society/#ixzz48mFhDKPR
and from the left wing NCReporter:
VATICAN CITY Pope Francis has strongly criticized modern theories that consider people's gender identities to exist along a spectrum, saying such theories do not "recognize the order of creation." Speaking of gender theory in an interview in a new book released in Italy, the pope even compares such theories to genetic manipulation and nuclear weapons.
..."Let's think also of genetic manipulation, of the manipulation of life, or of the gender theory, that does not recognize the order of creation."...In other it ignores reality, so is destructive of society and humanity.
and the story notes another rarely reported item: the push by the EU/US/Obama administration to push these theories on poor countries.
Francis' remarks on gender theory in the book follow similar remarks he made in a press conference on the papal plane in January in which he criticized what he called "ideological colonization" of less developed countries by those with more resources.
Recounting the story of a public education minister he knew who was offered money to construct new schools for the poor, Francis said to receive the money, the minister had to agree to use a course book with students that taught gender theory.
"This is the ideological colonization," the pope said. "It colonizes the people with an idea that changes, or wants to change, a mentality or a structure."
"It is not new, this," he continued. "The same was done by the dictators of the last century. They came with their own doctrine -- think of the Balilla [youth groups of Fascist Italy], think of the Hitler Youth."
Stories below the fold
The pressure on coeds from the "hookup" culture is the real under-reported story: it is the background for the "rape" epidemic...
yes, now a girl is no longer encouraged to say "no", is considered fair game when she is drunk, and not believed when she does say no.
but no one wants to hint that maybe promiscuity is bad. "who am I to judge"....
and religion is so weakened that it does not stop the behavior, except in "strict" evangelical schools.
Catholics in the past were strict, but this was discarded after Vatican II, and now the Pope, instead of proclaiming the "good news" and promoting the idea of living an ethical life is important (and that Jesus will help you do this), is busy trying to change the church into the church-of-what's-happening-now.
All in the name of "compassion", of course...ignoring the fact that the rules were made to protect the weak from the strong....
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rewrite the history books: People hunted bison before the Clovis people
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StrategyPage has a report on China's corruption...they are using the GreatFirewall of China to keep out the information in the Panama Papers.
and the bad news is that they might use a nice little war in the West Philippine sea to distract their people from the corruption in high places.
preferably in June when the International court decides they are wrong...and before a President Trump takes over. (duh).
and I am still waiting for the green tree huggers to protest China's destruction of the ecology when they build their artificial islands. Even Mom Jones is ignoring the ecological disaster and hints both sides are wrong....
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via ImprobableResearch:
The physics of cats.
According to professor, counselor, and researcher Donna Freitas, the hookup – casual sex with no commitment – has come to dominate the college experience. It has also fueled the current epidemic of alcoholism, campus rape, and suicide.
yes, now a girl is no longer encouraged to say "no", is considered fair game when she is drunk, and not believed when she does say no.
but no one wants to hint that maybe promiscuity is bad. "who am I to judge"....
and religion is so weakened that it does not stop the behavior, except in "strict" evangelical schools.
Catholics in the past were strict, but this was discarded after Vatican II, and now the Pope, instead of proclaiming the "good news" and promoting the idea of living an ethical life is important (and that Jesus will help you do this), is busy trying to change the church into the church-of-what's-happening-now.
All in the name of "compassion", of course...ignoring the fact that the rules were made to protect the weak from the strong....
------------------------
rewrite the history books: People hunted bison before the Clovis people
Scientists said on Friday that the tools, animal bones and a mastodon tusk found at the site showed that people already had occupied the American Southeast by 14,550 years ago — 1,500 years earlier than previously known.
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StrategyPage has a report on China's corruption...they are using the GreatFirewall of China to keep out the information in the Panama Papers.
and the bad news is that they might use a nice little war in the West Philippine sea to distract their people from the corruption in high places.
preferably in June when the International court decides they are wrong...and before a President Trump takes over. (duh).
and I am still waiting for the green tree huggers to protest China's destruction of the ecology when they build their artificial islands. Even Mom Jones is ignoring the ecological disaster and hints both sides are wrong....
--------------------
via ImprobableResearch:
The physics of cats.
Nope. Supporting murderers didn't make him popular in his home town
LATimes article on the late writer Garcia Marzquez notes he isn't popular in his home town.
He didn't help them in their time of need, and to make things worse, he supported the thuggish Marxist druggie "insurgents" who, after years of war that led to 5 million plus people being displaced, a quarter millio dead, plus kidnapping, finally made ordinary Colombianos angry.
His novels are nice, but are in the meme of "fantasy realism", where fantasy is incorporated into a realistic story...the problem being that the people involved are not really people, just flat figures for the author to show off how he can write prose.
oh, his prose is mesmerizing, but half way through the story is dissolves into confusion and you are left without any "there" there...
I mean, do you remember the name of any one of his characters, or care about them?
Of course, I loathe this type of fiction: authors who write it are popular (often third world types, although Helprin's award winning book is another). Yet people don't think this way, and so don't bother reading them if you want insight into how people in these countries actually think.
===
related item: Strategypage on Colombia
He didn't help them in their time of need, and to make things worse, he supported the thuggish Marxist druggie "insurgents" who, after years of war that led to 5 million plus people being displaced, a quarter millio dead, plus kidnapping, finally made ordinary Colombianos angry.
Over the course of my time in Aracataca, six people told me that García Márquez gave money to the FARC, a crime akin to murder (nothing I turn up verifies this claim). One man told me García Márquez secretly worked for Pablo Escobar as a courier between the drug kingpin and Fidel Castro, which makes sense given the close friendship between the Cuban and García Márquez. A former lieutenant of Escobar’s sold this story to a newspaper years ago and then recanted. In a Colombian move familiar to García Márquez, the Cataqueros (as people of Aracataca are called) insist this fiction reveals a greater truth than fact.
His novels are nice, but are in the meme of "fantasy realism", where fantasy is incorporated into a realistic story...the problem being that the people involved are not really people, just flat figures for the author to show off how he can write prose.
oh, his prose is mesmerizing, but half way through the story is dissolves into confusion and you are left without any "there" there...
I mean, do you remember the name of any one of his characters, or care about them?
Of course, I loathe this type of fiction: authors who write it are popular (often third world types, although Helprin's award winning book is another). Yet people don't think this way, and so don't bother reading them if you want insight into how people in these countries actually think.
===
related item: Strategypage on Colombia
FARC opposes having all Colombians vote on the peace deal, in part because FARC understands the degree of hatred many, if not most, Colombians feel towards the leftist rebels and their half century of violence that has left nearly a quarter of a million dead.
Sunday, May 15, 2016
Factoid of the day
via StrategyPage:
ISIS is using carrier pidgeons to send messages to their "refugees" in Jordan
SP includes a short summary of using the pidgeons in wartime, but what is that about the Bedouins being experts in spotting and taking down the birds?
There is a long history of falconry in the desert:
UAE report on Bedouin falconry.
more photos at NatGeo.
Related item: The use of pidgeons to carry military information goes back 3000 years.
ISIS is using carrier pidgeons to send messages to their "refugees" in Jordan
some of the million or more Syrian refugees in Jordan are actually ISIL members or sympathizers. ISIL has learned to be very careful with communications so that their few operatives in Jordan remained undiscovered by the police. Now that the Jordanians are aware of the ISIL use of carrier pigeons they can bring in specialists (Bedouins expert in spotting and taking down birds) to deal with the problem.
SP includes a short summary of using the pidgeons in wartime, but what is that about the Bedouins being experts in spotting and taking down the birds?
There is a long history of falconry in the desert:
UAE report on Bedouin falconry.
 |
| Rashid Hamad Al Suwidi has been training falcons since he was six, when his father gave him his first bird. |
--DUBAI // Falcons have been an indispensable hunting tool for Bedouin for hundreds of years. More than that, they have often come to be regarded as a family member.And the necessity of survival in the desert meant a strong bond of trust was forged between the falconer and his bird.
"They played an important role in helping families to survive in the desert," said Margit Mueller, the director of the Falcon Hospital in Abu Dhabi. "For that reason, they were integrated into the family. They were not merely a tool, they became regarded as a family member, even as a child."
more photos at NatGeo.
Related item: The use of pidgeons to carry military information goes back 3000 years.
It is said necessity is the mother of invention but more often than not war gives rise to them both. Falconry and the use of Carrier Pigeons are no exception. The practice of both is believed to have started in Egypt over 3000 years ago....
It can be speculated out of a needed to disrupt these communication lines the art of Falconry was born. Generally it is thought of as a sport and after the crusades became associated with the nobility of Europe. However the gamesmanship was primary used for hunting food; trained falcons and other birds of prey helped the Bedouin tribes of the eastern deserts survive 1000 of years ago by catching small animals.
A spin free report on the new Philippine president
StrategyPage has a summary. Read the whole thing.
he is the ultimate outsider:
Duarte is not from one of the old, rich and corrupt families that have dominated Filipino politics for centuries. He is a lawyer, served as a prosecutor and then mayor and considered quite competent, but very unorthodox and not bothered with breaking laws to do what his constituents want.
remember the kerfuffle about death squads?
Put it into context:
killing criminals "caught in the act" is something we often see here too...but it is not the same as sending hit squads against whistleblowers, reporters, leaders of unions/farmer's groups, or political rivals, as is done in our area with impunity.
And Duterte doesn't trust the US after a bomber got out of jail free thanks to the FBI...or maybe not.
more HERE.
he is the ultimate outsider:
Duarte is not from one of the old, rich and corrupt families that have dominated Filipino politics for centuries. He is a lawyer, served as a prosecutor and then mayor and considered quite competent, but very unorthodox and not bothered with breaking laws to do what his constituents want.
remember the kerfuffle about death squads?
Put it into context:
His most alarming tactic was to approve the use of death squads to murder criminals caught in the act. In the past bribes and a well-connected lawyer could get the worst criminals set free. No more.
The use of death squads by powerful men was not unusual in the Philippines, especially in the south. So Duarte was able to get away with it. Soon people realized that he maintained control of the death squads and the crime rate plunged after about a thousand accused criminals were murdered.
killing criminals "caught in the act" is something we often see here too...but it is not the same as sending hit squads against whistleblowers, reporters, leaders of unions/farmer's groups, or political rivals, as is done in our area with impunity.
And Duterte doesn't trust the US after a bomber got out of jail free thanks to the FBI...or maybe not.
more HERE.
Quote of the week
StacyMcCain has an article on the (fake) crisis of masculinity, and asks: What would Rick (in the movie Casablanca) do?
who despite his cynicism always did the right thing.
All of which
Dustbury comments:
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related item: The rumors are that the Disney company is going to make Elsa of the movie Frozen as a lesbian.
Are they nuts? If I were a lesbian, I'd be upset: or am I the only one in the world who noticed that Elsa is not exactly a nice lady...
This is the selfish sister who froze her country and killed (or tried to) her loving sister, while singing a "self empowerment" song to justify her actions....
and this was after Disney manipulated the original story to make her evil actions more sympathetic:
oh, so it's okay to cause a frost that probably resulted in the deaths of thousands of her people, and then try to kill her loving sister. In the film "you can relate to her". Sympathy for the devil, you know.
Sheesh. Where is Xena when we need her?
the backstory of Rick, for those of you who don't know the movie, is that he smuggled guns to and fought for the losing side in the Spanish civil war, and in Morocco was an enabler of those trying to get out of Europe to go to the USA. And at the end, he encourages his love to stay with her husband, and ends up joining a group that is fighting the Nazis.
Rick Blaine is a winner because he knows how to handle defeat. The Nazis overrun Paris? OK, fine. Au revoir, Paris! Off to Morocco. The woman he loves is married to another man? “Here’s looking at you, kid.”No complaining. Expect no pity in life. No one is obliged to acknowledge your personal suffering, and only a fool could ever expect “social justice” in this world full of corruption, cowardice, violence and cruelty.
This is how a man must look at life, if he is to have any hope of surviving hardship and misfortune, and yet this kind of heroic masculinity is now constantly mocked and maligned by our decadent intelligentsia.
who despite his cynicism always did the right thing.
All of which
Dustbury comments:
which might be why the Marvel universe exists....
Now I appreciate a interesting antihero as much as the next guy, but it’s the hero, the one who does the right thing because it’s the right thing, who’s going to save the world, or the part of it that’s worth saving anyway.
---------------
related item: The rumors are that the Disney company is going to make Elsa of the movie Frozen as a lesbian.
Are they nuts? If I were a lesbian, I'd be upset: or am I the only one in the world who noticed that Elsa is not exactly a nice lady...
This is the selfish sister who froze her country and killed (or tried to) her loving sister, while singing a "self empowerment" song to justify her actions....
and this was after Disney manipulated the original story to make her evil actions more sympathetic:
Earlier manuscripts included more antagonistic actions by Elsa, such as intentionally cursing Arendelle with an eternal winter. ...Within two months, however, scripts were altered to give emphasis to her lack of control over her powers.[8] ...
Del Vecho added, "There are times when Elsa does villainous things but because you understand where it comes from, from this desire to defend herself, you can always relate to her."[10]
oh, so it's okay to cause a frost that probably resulted in the deaths of thousands of her people, and then try to kill her loving sister. In the film "you can relate to her". Sympathy for the devil, you know.
Sheesh. Where is Xena when we need her?
Now I appreciate a interesting antihero as much as the next guy, but it’s the hero, the one who does the right thing because it’s the right thing, who’s going to save the world, or the part of it that’s worth saving anyway.
Friday, May 13, 2016
it's the corruption stupid
for later reading: StrategyPage on corruption.
remember that part about the Panama papers? Some was businesses hiding profit but a lot was about politicians stealing billions in poor countries.
More at SenseofEvents blogspot
who points out how the Clintons got lots of money this way. Well, I remember that the Univ of Arkansas got a lot of money from the Middle East when he was an unknown governor...almost as if the rich guy knew that the powers in charge of the world had picked him as president, and wanted to be first to bribe him.
Spengler points this out in his latest essay:
SP also have another article about refugees: For exaple, where are there still a couple million "Palestinian" refugees sitting around in the Middle East 50plus years later, while an equal number of Jewish refugees from Muslim countries managed to get resettled?
It was a decision by the nearby Arab states.
It lets them keep the Jews to hate so they don't notice the corruption. But the dirty little secret is that the Palestinians often cause trouble locally and have been expelled from several countries for doing so.
And they note what the MSM won't note: A lot of them got killed in Syria for chosing the wrong side, or rather chosing both sides and not being trusted by anyone...a problem that got them thrown out of several other countries in the recent past..
and who notices that much of the aid for these long term refugees ends up in the pockets of their government or to build tunnels and bombs against Israel?
___________________
Related item;
The search for Nigerias billions of oil dollars.
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update 2
Chelsea Clinton husband's Hedge fund went belly up according to this NYTimes article.
remember that part about the Panama papers? Some was businesses hiding profit but a lot was about politicians stealing billions in poor countries.
More at SenseofEvents blogspot
who points out how the Clintons got lots of money this way. Well, I remember that the Univ of Arkansas got a lot of money from the Middle East when he was an unknown governor...almost as if the rich guy knew that the powers in charge of the world had picked him as president, and wanted to be first to bribe him.
Spengler points this out in his latest essay:
There is also the matter of Clinton corruption on the grand scale, in particular the use of the Clinton Foundation to solicit hundreds of millions of dollars of donations from despicable Third World kleptocrats and their cronies. Peter Schweizer's bookClinton Cash shows that Bill and Hillary are the worst scoundrels ever to crawl out of the cesspool of American politics. What enrages me is not merely their thievery but their sociopathy: They like flaunting the rules, just to show that they can get away with anything.
SP also have another article about refugees: For exaple, where are there still a couple million "Palestinian" refugees sitting around in the Middle East 50plus years later, while an equal number of Jewish refugees from Muslim countries managed to get resettled?
It was a decision by the nearby Arab states.
It lets them keep the Jews to hate so they don't notice the corruption. But the dirty little secret is that the Palestinians often cause trouble locally and have been expelled from several countries for doing so.
And they note what the MSM won't note: A lot of them got killed in Syria for chosing the wrong side, or rather chosing both sides and not being trusted by anyone...a problem that got them thrown out of several other countries in the recent past..
and who notices that much of the aid for these long term refugees ends up in the pockets of their government or to build tunnels and bombs against Israel?
___________________
Related item;
The search for Nigerias billions of oil dollars.
Yet while the missing oil money inquiry is Nigeria's highest-profile corruption case, it may just be the tip of the iceberg. Mr Buhari believes that up to $150 billion may have been stolen from the state over the previous decade, and according to Mr Oguntala, for every minister or senior figure detained, there is "usually at least 30 to 40 people who are benefiting from that corruption".
----------------
update 2
Chelsea Clinton husband's Hedge fund went belly up according to this NYTimes article.
Thursday, May 12, 2016
Family News
it has been raining hard all night.
That means the monsoon season has started, and the rice fields can be prepared for planting.
That means the monsoon season has started, and the rice fields can be prepared for planting.
Wednesday, May 11, 2016
it's the micromanagement of the nanny bureaucrats that annoy folks
When I was growing up, there was a phrase: "You don't have to make a federal case of it". That was said when someone overreacted to trivial things.
The implications was the the feds only got involved in major crimes: Mafia, spies, kidnapping.
Now the federal bureaucrats poke their noses into all sorts of things from what I read.
And for docs, it mean instead of a simple page summarizing what you saw, now you have to fill out all sorts of questions, while he or she sits there with a computer to tick yes or no according the the government offical list of symptoms/complaints (not to listen to you when tell the doc what you are really worried about).
In Europe, a lot of the smouldering anger is directed at EU bureaucrats.
so the UKTelegraph has this headline:
yes they want to ban "high powered" or "inefficient" toasters and electric tea kettles...but are delaying the enforcement for fear it will make the Brits mad enough to vote for a Brexit.
What did that saying go? First they came for your electric hairdrier, then they came for your toaster....
Luckily here in the Philippines, we don't have such problems.
Our problem is to find a product that was made in China that doesn't fall apart in three months because of shoddy workmanship.
(which is why the middle class goes to high end stores and buys stuff made in Korea or Japan or the US)>
The implications was the the feds only got involved in major crimes: Mafia, spies, kidnapping.
Now the federal bureaucrats poke their noses into all sorts of things from what I read.
And for docs, it mean instead of a simple page summarizing what you saw, now you have to fill out all sorts of questions, while he or she sits there with a computer to tick yes or no according the the government offical list of symptoms/complaints (not to listen to you when tell the doc what you are really worried about).
In Europe, a lot of the smouldering anger is directed at EU bureaucrats.
so the UKTelegraph has this headline:
EU to launch kettle and toaster crackdown after Brexit vote
yes they want to ban "high powered" or "inefficient" toasters and electric tea kettles...but are delaying the enforcement for fear it will make the Brits mad enough to vote for a Brexit.
What did that saying go? First they came for your electric hairdrier, then they came for your toaster....
Luckily here in the Philippines, we don't have such problems.
Our problem is to find a product that was made in China that doesn't fall apart in three months because of shoddy workmanship.
(which is why the middle class goes to high end stores and buys stuff made in Korea or Japan or the US)>
Stories below the news
TeaAtTrianon posts snips from two essays for why Catholics might back Trump.
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a preview of the coming summer of hate.
hey, it's fun to demonstrate and show off your boobs.
I especially like the part where the Mexican Captain America protester rescuse the US flag from being burned...
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Yes, the "sex drug" article linked to by Drudge is about MSM...Don't say it out loud or you will be called a homophobe.
-------------------
I was watching a BBC film about space archeology, but drones are another way to find things.
and this newly found village might be a transition between the Chaco canyon people and the Acoma...
and they ask a question: Why do many of the roads/trails lead to nowhere?
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via the Techguy: distracting Data by HMS Pinafore...
I know the song, but do kids nowadays know these classic satires? (Do they even know what a "pinafore" is?...)
enjoy the music here...and watch the PC brains of nearby SJW explode:
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Brazil, one of the up and coming countries, is in danger of imploding. CNN report here. (headup Instapundit)
a "former revolutionary" president who loves the poor has been involved in corruption? Say it isn't so bro.
It's the corruption, stupid.
and on top of this, a recession, low oil prices making profits lower, and the Zika kerfuffle keeping tourists away from the upcoming Olympics.
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StrategyPage items:
FYI: Terrorism continues:
Israeli police have, so far this year, disrupted 77 terror attacks. These included 15 bombings (five using a suicide bomber), seven kidnappings and 34 shooting attacks. For all of 2015 239 attacks were disrupted indicating that terror activity was declining this year. Suicidal “knife terrorism” attacks have lost their popularity despite Fatah still pushing them energetically in all the Palestinian media. This can be seen in the number of Palestinian terror attacks disrupted each year. It was 217 in 2014, 187 in 2013 112 in 2012 and 88 in 2011.
and this item makes one wonder if Germany has lost their cojones:
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Why the Army needs foam goat heads
to make war games more realistic
(headsup DaveBarry)
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a preview of the coming summer of hate.
hey, it's fun to demonstrate and show off your boobs.
I especially like the part where the Mexican Captain America protester rescuse the US flag from being burned...
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Yes, the "sex drug" article linked to by Drudge is about MSM...Don't say it out loud or you will be called a homophobe.
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I was watching a BBC film about space archeology, but drones are another way to find things.
and this newly found village might be a transition between the Chaco canyon people and the Acoma...
and they ask a question: Why do many of the roads/trails lead to nowhere?
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via the Techguy: distracting Data by HMS Pinafore...
I know the song, but do kids nowadays know these classic satires? (Do they even know what a "pinafore" is?...)
enjoy the music here...and watch the PC brains of nearby SJW explode:
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Brazil, one of the up and coming countries, is in danger of imploding. CNN report here. (headup Instapundit)
a "former revolutionary" president who loves the poor has been involved in corruption? Say it isn't so bro.
A sweeping investigation into a multimillion-dollar kickback scheme at the state-run oil company Petrobras embroiled dozens of the country's leading businessmen and politicians. While she isn't accused directly of profiting, Rousseff was the chairwoman of Petrobras during many of the years of the alleged corruption.
It's the corruption, stupid.
and on top of this, a recession, low oil prices making profits lower, and the Zika kerfuffle keeping tourists away from the upcoming Olympics.
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StrategyPage items:
FYI: Terrorism continues:
Israeli police have, so far this year, disrupted 77 terror attacks. These included 15 bombings (five using a suicide bomber), seven kidnappings and 34 shooting attacks. For all of 2015 239 attacks were disrupted indicating that terror activity was declining this year. Suicidal “knife terrorism” attacks have lost their popularity despite Fatah still pushing them energetically in all the Palestinian media. This can be seen in the number of Palestinian terror attacks disrupted each year. It was 217 in 2014, 187 in 2013 112 in 2012 and 88 in 2011.
and this item makes one wonder if Germany has lost their cojones:
and if you read the article it is not just Germany. They rely on Uncle Sam, but or course, the politicians and press love to demonize America. And the US is getting tired of it
Early in 2016 German troops in Norway for a joint training exercise complained that they were forced to pause during training not because of any technical or leadership problem but because of new rules that took effect in January. These new regulations mandated that German troops could not work more than 41 hours a week unless they received overtime pay. But it was discovered in Norway that there was no money left in the military budget for overtime pay.
Since the 1990s the U.S. has increasingly resented this growing burden and has been uncharacteristically undiplomatic during the last few years in discussing logistical and equipment shortcomings of its NATO allies.
----------------
Why the Army needs foam goat heads
to make war games more realistic
(headsup DaveBarry)
Tuesday, May 10, 2016
The Silent Majority and the social media.
I was bemused when CNN Philippines (yes we have one) spent time with their "social media" correspondent, who was busy reporting that Miriam's supporters were upset and insisted someone stole the election. (I don't think so: she came in 4th in a five way race).
The problem? The social media here is full of activists, often associated with a US type agenda: No, not getting China out of the west Philippine sea, or reporting on corrupt politicians and shaming them, but instead they are busy pushing the gay agenda and abortion, both of which are priorities of the Obama white house.
Which is why my granddaughter and her church group are busy doing their thing opposing them.
my facebook page is a civil war between the SJW focusing on the latest enemy for their two minute hate, and my relatives posting "if you love Jesus share this photo" stuff.
But do such things represent opinion, or are they just fads for those posting to feel good, because they are part of the army of "good guys" fighting injustice by tweeting/posting.
yet how meaningful are these posts? Except for hurt feelings, doing such stuff doesn't put you in much danger.
But although they represent the "cutting edge" of opinion, they might not be representative of ordinary folks.
Yes, because although the poorest farmer has access to a cellphone, the smartphone texting is limited to the middle class high school and college kids: and gives you no information on how ordinary farmers will vote.
I suspect a similar bias in the US, although less so, and this might be why the arising of the Trumpettes was missed.
but the left are not the only ones manipulating the social media: so do activists, revolutionaries, and terrorists.
AustinBay at StrategyPage has a long article on how the government keeps an eye on you when you are posting.
I rarely go on Facebook because of this, but keep an eye on it to keep in touch with my relatives. But my sister in law and her daughter no longer go on Facebook after her kid's skate team was badly trolled. Teenaged girls are sensitive to these things, so she just told her daughter no.
The problem? The social media here is full of activists, often associated with a US type agenda: No, not getting China out of the west Philippine sea, or reporting on corrupt politicians and shaming them, but instead they are busy pushing the gay agenda and abortion, both of which are priorities of the Obama white house.
Which is why my granddaughter and her church group are busy doing their thing opposing them.
my facebook page is a civil war between the SJW focusing on the latest enemy for their two minute hate, and my relatives posting "if you love Jesus share this photo" stuff.
But do such things represent opinion, or are they just fads for those posting to feel good, because they are part of the army of "good guys" fighting injustice by tweeting/posting.
yet how meaningful are these posts? Except for hurt feelings, doing such stuff doesn't put you in much danger.
But although they represent the "cutting edge" of opinion, they might not be representative of ordinary folks.
Yes, because although the poorest farmer has access to a cellphone, the smartphone texting is limited to the middle class high school and college kids: and gives you no information on how ordinary farmers will vote.
I suspect a similar bias in the US, although less so, and this might be why the arising of the Trumpettes was missed.
but the left are not the only ones manipulating the social media: so do activists, revolutionaries, and terrorists.
AustinBay at StrategyPage has a long article on how the government keeps an eye on you when you are posting.
This massive, real-time combing of social media and open (to anyone) message traffic has yielded a much more accurate and timely analysis of political, religious, cultural, and military trends worldwide. It has also made the deployment of agents and other scarce resources (reconnaissance and electronic eavesdropping satellites, aircraft, and ships) more effective.yet I would note the same problem applies to the CIA as to CNNP: it will find the activists, but might not be able to evaluate the grassroots opinion of the "silent majority", especially when they hesitate to give their opinion because of the danger of arrest, losing a job, or just plain being trolled by organized minions.
I rarely go on Facebook because of this, but keep an eye on it to keep in touch with my relatives. But my sister in law and her daughter no longer go on Facebook after her kid's skate team was badly trolled. Teenaged girls are sensitive to these things, so she just told her daughter no.
Monday, May 09, 2016
ah yes poor civility...I knew you well
LATIMES:
This is what China does: They have loads of people who will troll you here if you post an article or comment cricizing China... "encourage" by the government there.
so, are they aiming for the Trumpettes? Probably not. They are aiming for BernieBros, and using astroturfing to make her appear popular:
how dare anyone criticize her! She is a woman! You must hate her for being a woman (not because you disagree with her).
presumably she'll break down in tears if you are mean to her. (wonder how she'd respond to something like, say, a terrorist attack on an embassy at 3 am?)
So criticize her at your risk: The Minions will get you if you don't watch out!
\leading to this comment:
at least BernieBros are doing it for free...
TOP STORIESHillary Clinton’s Paid Troll PatrolHillary Clinton’s campaign has an answer for her online critics: One good troll deserves another. A task force of former reporters, bloggers, designers and others has been formed to "correct" criticisms of Clinton. And it's being paid for by a multimillion-dollar super PAC that, thanks to a loophole, works closely with her. Here's more about the brainchild of a onetime anti-Clinton operative turned Clinton confidant.
This is what China does: They have loads of people who will troll you here if you post an article or comment cricizing China... "encourage" by the government there.
so, are they aiming for the Trumpettes? Probably not. They are aiming for BernieBros, and using astroturfing to make her appear popular:
a quick google for "Bernie Bros" shows them accused of hating women and living on the internet with nothing better to do than twitter evil comments at Hillary's march in step minions.
“It is meant to appear to be coming organically from people and their social media networks in a groundswell of activism, when in fact it is highly paid and highly tactical,” said Brian Donahue, chief executive of the consulting firm Craft Media/Digital.
how dare anyone criticize her! She is a woman! You must hate her for being a woman (not because you disagree with her).
presumably she'll break down in tears if you are mean to her. (wonder how she'd respond to something like, say, a terrorist attack on an embassy at 3 am?)
So criticize her at your risk: The Minions will get you if you don't watch out!
\leading to this comment:
at least BernieBros are doing it for free...
The SOB lost
actually SOB is wrong: It's the daughter of a bastard who lost and our candidate won the mayorial election.
Hopefully no one will get shot in the near future in revenge.
Duterte is ahead by a large margin, and Ruby reports people going around the town square with fitsts up (his campaign sign). She is upset because she backed Mariam who got hardly any votes outside of the social media types.
there are firecrackers going off, but that might just be people doing their thing...we had fireworks a couple nights ago for no reason (probably a birthday party)...but George, our killer Lab, is hiding under the bed with Papa dog, just in case: He hates loud noises. Which leaves us with our night watchman and his puppies for defense.
Hopefully no one will get shot in the near future in revenge.
Duterte is ahead by a large margin, and Ruby reports people going around the town square with fitsts up (his campaign sign). She is upset because she backed Mariam who got hardly any votes outside of the social media types.
there are firecrackers going off, but that might just be people doing their thing...we had fireworks a couple nights ago for no reason (probably a birthday party)...but George, our killer Lab, is hiding under the bed with Papa dog, just in case: He hates loud noises. Which leaves us with our night watchman and his puppies for defense.
Trump Joke of the day
Donald Trump became the presumptive GOP candidate for president Tuesday after he won in Indiana, forcing Ted Cruz out. Pollsters said Trump did surprisingly well with Hispanic voters, with working women and the middle class voters. He now has six months to win over the Republicans.
Solzhenitzen predictions
The defense of individual rights has reached such extremes as to make society as a whole defenseless against certain individuals. It's time, in the West It is time, in the West, to defend not so much human rights as human obligations.
Destructive and irresponsible freedom has been granted boundless space. Society appears to have little defense against the abyss of human decadence, such as, for example, misuse of liberty for moral violence against young people, such as motion pictures full of pornography, crime, and horror. It is considered to be part of freedom and theoretically counterbalanced by the young people's right not to look or not to accept. Life organized legalistically has thus shown its inability to defend itself against the corrosion of evil.
And what shall we say criminality as such? Legal frames, especially in the United States, are broad enough to encourage not only individual freedom but also certain individual crimes. The culprit can go unpunished or obtain undeserved leniency with the support of thousands of public defenders. When a government starts an earnest fight against terrorism, public opinion immediately accuses it of violating the terrorist's civil rights. There are many such cases.
Chicken post of the day
“A preliminary investigation of piezoelectric effects in chicken feathers,” W. Van Dam, J.A. Tanner, and C. Romero-Sierra,IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, vol. 17, no. 1, 1970, pp. 71-71. The authors explain:
“Piezoelectric effects have been measured experimentally in chicken feathers. Quill sections subjected to alternating electric stress respond with an axial twisting motion that has a well-defined resonant mode. Conversely, subjecting the quill to mechanical stress produced an electrical signal.”
so how can this be used?
For circuit boards maybe...
Wool arranged a collaboration in which Tyson would provide waste feathers for experimentation. Tyson washed the feathers and stripped the quill material away, leaving behind the air-filled down, which the company pressed into thin mats.Wool coated the keratin fiber mats with two different commercial soybean oil preparations in several different proportions. The resulting boards were tested for qualities including rigidity and wetting (the fibers must be saturated by the soybean resin to achieve the desired dielectric constant), as well as vibration damping and thermal expansion, physical performance attributes important in applications including electronic, automotive, aerospace, defense, and farming equipment.
ModernFarmer has an article on more ways to use the feathers:
The list of things that the keratin-rich material has been used to make is vast: dishes and furniture, clothing, circuit boards, wall insulation, filters and planting pots (the feathers of one chicken makes three one-gallon containers). Feathers are used to make hurricane-proof roofing, shoe soles, and lightweight auto dashboards and glove compartments leading to fuel efficiency. While most are still prototypes, Schmidt says a “handful” of patents have been licensed by research institutes.
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