Wednesday, October 28, 2020

NPR: Supreme Court allows ballot extensions in Pennsylvania, North Carolina, for now


What made Kavanaugh's opinion particularly noteworthy was that it contained multiple factual and important errors, and misrepresented the views of noted voting rights scholar Richard Pildes. 

Supreme Court allows ballot extensions in Pennsylvania, North Carolina, for now
It was the second time the high court refused a GOP effort to block a three-day extension for counting absentee ballots in Pennsylvania. Justice Amy Coney Barrett did not participate in either case.

Read in NPR: https://apple.news/AmglvzjBbRjeW3xI72-vA_g


Shared from Apple News


_- Steve

The Old Friends Hypothesis

http://www.grahamrook.net/OldFriends/oldfriends.html


_- Steve

Saturday, October 24, 2020

How The Social Dilemma Got Social Media Mostly Wrong | by Christopher J. Ferguson | Oct, 2020 | Arc Digital

https://arcdigital.media/how-the-social-dilemma-got-social-media-mostly-wrong-3bde48077140


_- Steve

Axiom Ocularis™ - SimpleShot

https://simple-shot.com/slingshots/1cxxxxxx/axiom-ocularis


_- Steve

The Government’s Case Against Google Is Good

The Government's Case Against Google Is Good

https://slate.com/technology/2020/10/google-antitrust-lawsuit-trump.html



_- Steve

Sunday, October 18, 2020

Solar is now ‘cheapest electricity in history’, confirms IEA | World Economic Forum

that for solar, the cost of capital is much lower, at 2.6-5.0% in Europe and the US, 4.4-5.5% in China and 8.8-10.0% in India, largely as a result of policies designed to reduce the risk of renewable investments.

https://www.carbonbrief.org/solar-is-now-cheapest-electricity-in-history-confirms-iea


_- Steve

Saturday, October 17, 2020

[Letter from Washington] The Enemies Briefcase, By Andrew Cockburn | Harper's Magazine

https://harpers.org/archive/2020/11/the-enemies-briefcase-secret-powers-of-the-presidency/


_- Steve

The Trump FB

In case you didn't know or remember who Donald John Trump really is.

I copied and paste this from a friend of a friend......

I'm a lifelong Republican. I'm also a veteran. Here's a list of just a few reasons I cannot support the current administration:
• ⁠In May 2020, the White House ended National Guard deployments one day before they could claim benefits.
• ⁠The Trump admin seized 5 million masks intended for VA hospitals. Kushner distributes these masks to private entities for a fee, who then sells the masks to the government.
• ⁠The Trump administration fired the captain of the USS Theodore Roosevelt after he warned superiors that COVID19 was spreading among his crew. The virus subsequently spread among the crew.
• ⁠After Iran's retaliatory strike, 109 US troops suffered brain injuries. Trump dismissed these as "headaches."
• ⁠On July 20, 2017, in room 2E924 of the Pentagon, Trump told a room full of Generals, "You're a bunch of dopes and babies."
• ⁠Pardoned multiple war criminals, which stomped on long-standing military values, discipline, and command. Trump has no military experience (May&Nov, 2019).
• ⁠Trump mocked Lt. Col. Vindman for his rank and uniform. He threatened said purple heart officer, resulting in the Army providing him protection.
• ⁠Trump's Chief of Staff worked—in secret—to deny comprehensive health coverage to Vietnam Vets who suffered from Agent Orange.
• ⁠There is a facility in Tijuana for US veterans that Trump deported. Wounded war vet, Sen Duckworth (D) marked Veterans Day 2019 by visiting this facility.
• ⁠Russia took control of the main U.S. military facility in Syria abandoned on Trump's orders. Russia now owns the airstrip we built.
• ⁠On Oct 7, 2019, Trump abruptly withdrew support from America's allies in Syria after a phone call with Turkey's president (Erdogan). Turkey subsequently bombed US Special Forces.
• ⁠Trump sent thousands of American troops to defend the oil assets of the country that perpetrated 9/11.
• ⁠In Sept 2019, he made an Air Force cargo crew, flying from the U.S. to Kuwait stop in Scotland (where there's no U.S. base) to refuel at a commercial airport (where it costs more), so they could stay overnight at a Trump property (which isn't close to the airport). Trump's golf courses are losing money, so he's forcing the military to pay for 5-star nights there.
• ⁠In Sept 2019, Pentagon pulled funds for military schools, military housing funds, and daycare to pay for Trump's border wall.
• ⁠In Aug 2019, emails revealed that three of Trump's Mar-a-Lago pals, who are now running Veterans Affairs, are rampant with meddling. "They had no experience in veterans affairs (none of them even served in the military) nor underwent any kind of approval process to serve as de facto managers. Yet, with Trump's approval, they directed actions and criticized operations without any oversight. They wasted valuable staff time in hundreds of pages of communications and meetings, emails show. Emails reveal disdainful attitudes within the department to the trio's meddling."
• ⁠Veterans graves will be "dug up" for the border wall after Trump instructed aides to seize private property. Trump told officials he would pardon them if they break the law by illegally seizing property.
• ⁠Children of deployed US troops are no longer guaranteed citizenship. This includes US troops posted abroad for years at a time (August 28, 2019).
• ⁠On Aug 2, 2019, Trump requisitioned military retirement funds for the border wall.
• ⁠On July 31, 2019, Trump ordered the Navy rescind medals to prosecutors who prosecuted war criminals.
• ⁠Trump denied a U.S. Marine of 6 years entry into the United States for his citizenship interview (Reported July 17, 2019).
• ⁠Trump made the U.S. Navy Blue Angels violate ethics rules by having them fly at his July 4th political campaign event (July 4, 2019).
• ⁠Trump demanded US military chiefs stand next to him at the 4th of July parade (reported July 2, 2019).
• ⁠In June 2019, Trump sent troops to the border to paint the fence for a better "aesthetic appearance."
• ⁠Trump used his D-Day interview at a cemetery commemorating fallen US soldiers to attack a Vietnam veteran (June 6, 2019).
• ⁠Trump started his D-Day commemoration speech by attacking a private citizen (Bette Midler, of all people) (reported on June 4th, 2019).
• ⁠Trump made his 2nd wife, Marla Maples, sign a prenup that would have cut off all child support if Tiffany joined the military (reported June 4th, 2019).
• ⁠On May 27, 2019, Trump turned away US military from his Memorial Day speech because they were from the destroyer USS John S. McCain.
• ⁠Trump ordered the USS John McCain out of sight during his visit to Japan (May 15, 2019). The ship's name was subsequently covered. (May 27, 2019).
• ⁠Trump purged 200,000 vets' healthcare applications (due to known administrative errors within VA's enrollment system) (reported on May 13, 2019).
• ⁠Trump deported a spouse of a fallen Army soldier killed in Afghanistan, leaving their daughter without parents (April 16, 2019).
• ⁠On March 20, 2019, Trump complained that a deceased war hero didn't thank him for his funeral.
• ⁠Between 12/22/2018, and 1/25/2019, Trump refused to sign his party's funding bill, which shut down the government, forcing the Coast Guard to go without pay, which made service members rely on food pantries. However, his appointees got a $10,000 pay raise.
• ⁠He banned service members from serving based on gender identity (1/22/2019).
• ⁠He denied female troops access to birth control to limit sexual activity (on-going. Published Jan 18, 2019).
• ⁠He tried to deport a marine vet who is a U.S.-born citizen (Jan 16, 2019).
• ⁠When a man was caught swindling veterans pensions for high-interest "cash advances," Trump's Consumer Financial Protection Bureau fined him $1 (Jan 26, 2019).
• ⁠He called a retired general a 'dog' with a 'big, dumb mouth' (Jan 1, 2019).
• ⁠He increased privatization of the VA, leading to longer waits and higher taxpayer costs (2018).
• ⁠He finally visited troops 2 years after taking office, but only after 154 vacation days at his properties (Dec 26, 2018).
• ⁠He revealed a covert Seal Team 5 deployment, including names and faces, on Twitter during his visit to Iraq (Dec 26, 2018).
• ⁠Trump lied to deployed troops that he gave them a 10% raise (12/26/2018). He tried giving the military a raise that was lower than the standard living adjustment. Congress told him that idea wasn't going to work. Then after giving them the raise that Congress made him, he lied about it pretending that it was larger than Obama's. It wasn't.
• ⁠He fired service members living with HIV just before the 2018 holidays.
• ⁠He tried to slash disability and unemployment benefits for Veterans to $0, and eliminate the unemployability extra scheduler rating (Dec 17, 2018).
• ⁠He called troops on Thanksgiving and told them he's most thankful for himself (Thanksgiving, 2018).
• ⁠He urged Florida to not count deployed military votes (Nov 12, 2018).
• ⁠He canceled an Arlington Cemetery visit on Veterans Day due to light rain (Nov 12, 2018).
• ⁠While in Europe commemorating the end of WWI, he didn't attend the ceremony at a US cemetery due to the rain -- other world leaders went anyway (Nov 10, 2018).
• ⁠He used troops as a political prop by sending them on a phantom mission to the border and made them miss Thanksgiving with their families (Oct-Dec, 2018).
• ⁠He stopped using troops as a political prop immediately after the election. However, the troops remained in muddy camps on the border (Nov 7, 2018).
• ⁠Trump changed the GI Bill through his Forever GI Act, causing the VA to miss veteran benefits, including housing allowances. This caused many vets to run out of food and rent. (reported October 7, 2018).
• ⁠Trump doubled the rejection rate for veterans requesting family deportation protections (July 5, 2018).
• ⁠Trump deported active-duty spouses (11,800 military families face this problem as of April 2018).
• ⁠He forgot a fallen soldier's name (below) during a call to his pregnant widow, then attacked her the next day (Oct 23-24, 2017).
• ⁠He sent commandos into an ambush due to a lack of intel, and sends contractors to pick them up, resulting in a commando being left behind, tortured, and executed. (Trump approved the mission because Bannon told him Obama didn't have the guts to do it) (Oct 4, 2017).
• ⁠He blocked a veteran group on Twitter (June 2017).
• ⁠He ordered the discharge of active-duty immigrant troops with good records (2017-present).
• ⁠He deported veterans (2017-present).
• ⁠He said he knows more about ISIS than American generals (Oct 2016).
• ⁠On Oct 3, 2016, Trump said vets get PTSD because they aren't strong (note: yes, he said it's 'because they aren't strong.' He didn't say it's 'because they're weak.' This distinction is important because of Snopes).
• ⁠Trump accepted a Purple Heart from a fan at one of his rallies and said: "I always wanted to get the Purple Heart. This was much easier." (Aug 2, 2016).
• ⁠Trump attacks Gold Star families: Myeshia Johnson (gold star widow), Khan family (gold star parents), etc. (2016-present).
• ⁠Trump sent funds raised from a Jan 2016 veterans benefit to the Donald J Trump Foundation instead of veterans charities (the foundation has since been ordered shut because of fraud) (Jan 2016).
• ⁠Trump said he has "more training militarily than a lot of the guys that go into the military" because he went to a military-style academy (2015 biography).
• ⁠Trump said he doesn't consider POWs heroes because they were caught. He said he prefers people who were not caught (July 18, 2015).
• ⁠Trump said having unprotected sex was his own personal Vietnam (1998).
• ⁠For a decade, Trump sought to kick veterans off of Fifth Avenue because he found them unsightly nuisances outside of Trump Tower. 1991.
• ⁠Trump dodged the draft 5 times by having a doctor diagnose him with bone spurs.
• ⁠No Trump in America has ever served in the military; this spans 5 generations and every branch of the family tree. In fact, the reason his grandfather immigrated to America was to avoid military service.
• He saluted a North Korean general.
• He stopped joint South Korea training with our troops so if there was a war, they would not be ready to fight it. He says this is to save money?
• Trump threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act (9/11/2020) to unilaterally deploy federal troops against American citizens.
• ⁠Trump still has not denounced or even mentioned, the bounty placed on American soldiers by Russia.

_- Steve

Clarence Thomas Is Begging Someone to Sue Over Conservatives’ Most-Hated Internet Law

Clarence Thomas Is Begging Someone to Sue Over Conservatives' Most-Hated Internet Law

https://slate.com/technology/2020/10/clarence-thomas-section-230-cda-content-moderation.html



_- Steve

Durango, Colorado, fall road trip: 4 don't-miss things to do, plus where to eat and stay

Check out this article from USA TODAY:

Durango, Colorado, fall road trip: 4 don't-miss things to do, plus where to eat and stay

https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/destinations/2020/10/12/durango-colorado-road-trip-scenic-drive-things-do-restaurants-hotel/5966635002/


_- Steve

Monday, October 12, 2020

Saturday, October 10, 2020

The Face of American Insurgency

The Face of American Insurgency

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/10/michigan-plot-wolverine-watchmen-whitmer.html



_- Steve

Wednesday, October 07, 2020

New timeline on reptile evolution rebuts long-held theories – Harvard Gazette

https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2020/10/new-timeline-on-reptile-evolution-rebuts-long-held-theories/


_- Steve

Joe Biden's Gettysburg Speech Was 25 Minutes Long, Didn't Mention Trump Once

Today we're engaged once again in a battle for the soul of the nation, the forces of darkness, the forces of division, the forces of yesterday are pulling us apart, holding us down and holding us back. We must free ourselves of all of them," Biden said.


https://www.newsweek.com/joe-biden-gettysburg-trump-1536974


_- Steve

The “Good Guy with a Gun” Myth | Giffords

https://giffords.org/blog/2020/10/the-good-guy-with-a-gun-myth/


_- Steve

Thursday, October 01, 2020

In a pandemic we learn again what Sartre meant by being free | Psyche Ideas


https://psyche.co/ideas/in-a-pandemic-we-learn-again-what-sartre-meant-by-being-free

In short, the pandemic enables us to see more clearly the difference between the hollow freedom to act without impediment and the true freedom to act in accordance with our all-things-considered judgments. The American philosopher Harry Frankfurt in 1971 illuminated the difference with his distinction between the things that we simply want and the ones that, after consideration, we want to want. For instance, if I want a doughnut and eat it, I'm simply following my desires, the wants I find myself having at any given moment. But if, on reflection, I don't want to eat junk food (or, at least, not often) then I have the capacity to veto these wants in the light of what I know I want to want. This kind of freedom requires self-restraint. A person without this capacity is not truly free but is what Frankfurt calls a 'wanton': a slave to his desires.

_- Steve