Sunday, January 07, 2018

7 January - My Feedly! 1 of 2

Today
The most popular articles in your Feedly

New in blogger-following

New York's JFK Airport turns into a mob scene as disasters pile on
It's rare for a single airport to make headlines, but that's what happens when a cascading series of events shuts down one of the world's biggest transit hubs. John F. Kennedy International Airport is in a state of disarray on Sunday as nasty weather, blistering cold, and human error conspired to create a logjam that's left travelers stranded and planes grounded or redirected. Not a great mixture
Debra Messing calls out E!'s hypocrisy over gender equality straight to E!'s face
Debra Messing definitively proved that the women of Hollywood are absolutely done being silent. The Will and Grace star wasn't afraid to let things get necessarily awkward when she kicked off her E! Golden Globes red carpet interview by calling out the network for its own hypocrisy with gender equality. It began when host Giuliana Rancic asked her about the hottest topic of the night and past sev
Sydney “hottest ever” mistake generates fake news
The BOM announced it was the hottest ever day in Sydney today, then realized it had it wrong, but not before headlines spread across the country. For a million dollars a day you’d think the BOM would check their own “high quality” database. A scientific agency would take great care before announcing “historic all time records”for a city of five million people. A shameless PR agency might see that
Hunt for missing flight MH370 set to resume
A US-based exploration firm is set to begin hunting for the whereabouts of the missing plane's wreckage. Exactly what happened to Malaysia Airlines Fl...
Extended weightlessness causes 'space fever'
Astronauts who spend a lot of time in space are at risk of experiencing a rise in core body temperature. A new study has revealed that spending an ext...
The More I Read About Meltdown And Spectre…
The more I wonder: Are these bugs, or features?

New in news

Dumb as a rock Chelsea Clinton denies worshiping Satan after wishing Church of Satan happy new year
As previously reported, Chelsea Clinton cheerfully exchanged Happy New Year greetings with the Church of Satan on Twitter Tuesday. "It's been so long! Happy New Year!" Chelsea tweeted to the Church of Satan.
The lying, coup-staging CIA recently escalated psyops in Iran
The CIA recently escalated its involvement in Iran, and they ain't there for the baba ghanoush. Back in June the Wall Street Journal published a report saying that America's Central Intelligence Agency had set up a new organization whose sole task would be to focus on Iran under the direction of "Ayatollah Mike" D'andrea, an aggressive Iran hawk. "The Iran Mission Center will bring together analys
Moody Blues singer Ray Thomas dies at 76
The musician, who played the flute solo on one of the band’s biggest hits, Nights in White Satin, had suffered from prostate cancer The Moody Blues star Ray Thomas has died at the age of 76. The flautist and vocalist died suddenly on Thursday, his record label said. Cherry Red Records and Esoteric Recordings said in a statement: “We are deeply shocked by his passing and will miss his warmth, humo
Oprah Winfrey to powerful, terrible men: “Time is up”
Winfrey incorporated a lifetime of social justice movements into an epic Golden Globes speech. “I want all the girls watching here now to know that a new day is on the horizon !” Oprah Winfrey said, in the way only Oprah Winfrey can, where it seems like a proclamation has been issued from on high. “And when that new day finally dawns, it will be because of a lot of magnificent women, many of whom
Pope Francis Once Again Encourages Mothers To Breastfeed In The Sistine Chapel
During an annual baptism ceremony in the Sistine Chapel Sunday, Pope Francis once again encouraged mothers to breastfeed if their infants were hungry, saying this was a "language of love." (Image credit: AP)
Ivanka Trump wants to be the first female US president. Perhaps she already is | Arwa Mahdawi
Michael Wolff’s explosive book about Donald Trump’s White House exposes the ambition of the First Daughter. But with the power she already has, why bother with a tedious election? Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner are quite the adorable pair, aren’t they? Their relationship is truly something to aspire to. While other couples spend their evenings eating dinner and watching TV, Javanka, it would appe

New in science

Dozens Evacuate In Washington State, Fearing Landslide
A massive crack on top of Rattlesnake Ridge in south-central Washington state has nearby residents evacuating, as geologists and government officials predict a potentially devastating landslide. (Image credit: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call,Inc.)
NASA: Legendary astronaut, moonwalker John Young has died
Legendary astronaut John Young, who walked on the moon and later commanded the first space shuttle flight, has died, NASA said Saturday. Young was 87.
How Meltdown and Spectre Were Independently Discovered By Four Research Teams At Once
The uncanny coincidences among the Meltdown and Spectre discoveries raise questions about "bug collisions"—and the safety of the NSA's hidden vulnerability collection.
SpaceX to Launch Mysterious Zuma Spacecraft Tonight: Watch It Live
SpaceX plans to launch the secret Zuma payload for the U.S. government this evening (Jan. 7), after a nearly two-month delay.
Report: Google Can't Stop Getting Its Bikes Jacked
Photo: Getty Images A helpless, flailing Google is unable to stop people from running off with hundreds of the free bicycles available at its Mountain View, California headquarters a week, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday. Google maintains approximately 1,100 “Gbikes” for employee use on its massive campus there, but locals and employees alike have apparently decided that it’s open seas
The Weirdness of Weirdness
Is weirdness only in the eye of the beholder, or is it an objective quality of reality? -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com

New in youtube

TSIRKU - Director's Cut
Located deep in the Saint Elias mountains where Alaska, British Columbia, and the Yukon converge, there is a place most skiers and snowboarders only dream of visiting. Brought to you by The North Face and Sherpas Cinema, Tsirku is a big-mountain adventure ski film featuring snowboarder Ralph Backstrom and skiers Hadley Hammer and Sam Anthamatten, who set out to tackle the fabled Corrugated spine
Ellen Meets Viral College Acceptance Brothers
Ellen met two amazing teen brothers, Ayrton and Alex Little, who both received full scholarships to Harvard and Stanford, and videos of their acceptance reactions went viral. Ellen and her friends at Shutterfly had a huge surprise for their single mom, Maureen. For more Shutterfly moments, go to: https://www.ellentube.com/campaigns/shutterfly.html From: TheEllenShow
Byton's electric car event in 10 minutes | CES 2018
The Byton Concept EV is the Chinese based car company’s first concept all-electric vehicle. The $45,000 electric SUV concept, which was unveiled at CES 2018, has a touch sensitive screen on the steering wheel, iHealth devices, video chat and rotating front seats. Subscribe: https://goo.gl/G5RXGs Check out our full video catalog: https://goo.gl/lfcGfq Visit our playlists: https://goo.gl/94XbKx Lik
For 40 Days of the Year, These People Live in Complete Darkness | Short Film Showcase
For the first time in 40 days, an Inuit fisherman and his family watch as the sun crests the mountaintops of their northern Greenland home. In this harsh frozen landscape, the first dawn of spring brings both celebration and reflection. ➡ Subscribe: http://bit.ly/NatGeoSubscribe ➡ Get More Short Film Showcase: http://bit.ly/ShortFilmShowcase About Short Film Showcase: The Short Film Showcase spot
This lamp beams internet to your laptop
Oledcomm’s MyLiFi lets you get internet wirelessly using a lamp with infrared light and a dongle that plugs into your computer’s USB port. Circuit Breaker editor Jacob Kastrenakes got to test the lamp out at the 2018 CES Unveiled event. Subscribe: https://goo.gl/G5RXGs Check out our full video catalog: https://goo.gl/lfcGfq Visit our playlists: https://goo.gl/94XbKx Like The Verge on Facebook: ht
Up and Above #2017
Up and Above is a series I intend to do every NYE with aerial footage shot during the whole year in Romania. Every year should bring new landscapes from new perspectives. Cast: Bogdan Teodorescu Tags: nature , lanscape , aerial , drone , mavic , mavic pro , romania , rosia montana , brasov and dji

New in The Corbett Report

Episode 326 – We Need to Talk About the Iran Protests
[audio mp3="https://www.corbettreport.com/mp3/episode326-lq.mp3"][/audio] Are these protests in Iran spontaneous, or are they the result of another regime change operation? This week on The Corbett Report, James explores the past, present and future of US and Israeli involvement in Iran, and the attempts to foment unrest in the country.
We Need to Talk About the Iran Protests
Are these protests in Iran spontaneous, or are they the result of another regime change operation? This week on The Corbett Report, James explores the past, present and future of US and Israeli involvement in Iran, and the attempts to foment unrest in the country.
Episode 325 – The Information-Industrial Complex
[audio mp3="https://www.corbettreport.com/mp3/episode325-lq.mp3"][/audio] Half a century ago, outgoing President Dwight D. Eisenhower coined the term "military-industrial complex" to describe the fascistic collusion between the Pentagon and America's burgeoning armaments industry. But in our day and age we are witnessing the rise of a new collusion, one between the Pentagon and the tech industry
Interview 1334 – New World Next Week with James Evan Pilato
[audio mp3="http://www.corbettreport.com/mp3/2017-12-14%20James%20Evan%20Pilato.mp3"][/audio] This week on the New World Next Week: the World Bank helps ring in the technocratic future with climate financing; pigs fly as the Pentagon gets an audit; and Facebook rolls out machine-learning suicide-predicting algorithms.

New in The EnvironmentaList

Saving Africa’s Largest Antelope from Extinction
Kenyan conservation groups coming together to bolster wild Eastern bongo populations
Community Leader Tortured and Killed for Opposing Land Trafficking in Peru
José Napoleón Tarrillo Astonitas murdered for work to protect Chaparrí Ecological Reserve, say local witnesses
Mexico’s Standing Rock? Sempra, TransCanada Face Indigenous Pipeline Resistance South of Border
Yaqui and Otomi communities challenge natural gas projects on the ground, in court
Tiny Houses, Big Resistance
Indigenous activists erecting tiny homes along proposed path of Trans Mountain pipeline
Vehicles Now America’s Biggest CO2 Source But EPA Is Tearing Up Regulations
Transport overtook power generation for climate-warming emissions in 2017 as the Trump administration is reversing curbs on auto industry pollution
Tiny Bubbles Wrapped in Feathers
The delicate work of raising and releasing orphaned baby hummingbirds

New in @ the chalk face

General Human Rights
Human Rights are a term heard often, all over the world. Many people cannot define this term and also do not know that they have these rights. So, what are Human Rights? A “Right” is something that we are allowed to do, or to have, and to be, simply by being human. There are 30 basic Human Rights included in “The Universal Declaration of Human Rights”. This document is seen as a milestone in the

New in The Rules of Exposition

'words dilute meaning'
Eric Hoffer : Wordiness is a sickness of American writing. Too many words dilute and blur ideas. There is not an idea that cannot be expressed in 200 words. But the writer must know precisely what he wants to say. If you have nothing to say and want badly to say it, then all the words in all the dictionaries will not suffice.
Apparently I'm out of the loop
These days, words seem to change faster even than technology. I was at Forbes trying to read Adam Ozimek amid all the flashy things on the screen. In the sidebar, Star Wars caught my eye: Star Wars, and the bare arms below it: How to make your side... My side? How to make your side hustle... Hustle? I was expecting something like How to make your side pain go away... Does my side hustle? Does my s
Grandma stands corrected
Our 8-year-old grandson is here for the holidays. It's time for bed. "Do you want to say goodnight to everyone, Jake?" Grandma asks. "Everyone is in the dining room and Grandpa is in the red room." Without a moment's hesitation, Jake asks: "How can Grandpa be in two places at once?" "Well," Grandma replies, "Grandpa is in the red room, and everyone else is in the dining room."
Maybe that's why I have so many readers I can count them on one hand
Writing for my econ blog, I change It doesn't work like that to It doesn't work that way. Why? because I like the alliteration in work that way . That's alliteration, right? Is it worth doing? Yeah. Writing is like making somebody eat something they don't want to eat. I try to make it like a live eel, slippery, so it goes down easy. You may have to grit your teeth, but at least it goes down easy.

New in A Closer Look: Jody Paterson

Three stories to knock that Christmas cheer right out of you
'Tis the season for sharing, which in this case means sharing some of the stories that caught my attention today. Putting them into a blog post will not only add (incrementally) to their profile, but will ensure I have them here for whenever I need them, to remind me why my favourite bumper sticker of all time was "If you're not outraged, you're not paying attention." Plus it's my birthday today,

New in Activist Teacher

Benjamin Zander on how to give an A (video)
David F. Noble has a friend. Here is Benjamin Zander explaining his student-grading method, and harmful effects of rank ordering.
Obama's character and legacy
After you pick up the Nobel Peace Prize (sic), look the man in the eyes, shake his hand, and give him a warm smile, before you murder him and virtually all his extended family (target their residential compound directly), and watch him be killed on your satellite TV screen, visibly celebrating for the USA media cameras with the self-identifying "feminist" Hillary Clinton (I will never

New in Cherchez la Verite

Over the past decade, the federal government has seized more than $28 billion. But that’s done absolutely nothing to deter crime. he government steals more from the American people through confiscations than is lost outright to robberies and muggings. It’s been reported that in 2015 civil forfeitures exceeded the amount stolen by all robbers.
Justin’s note: U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions wants to steal your property. Since taking office in February, he’s done all sorts of idiotic things. He’s threatened to crack down on the legal marijuana market. He’s attacked gay rights. And he even wants to amp up asset seizures. This is when the government takes money and property from people. You don’t even need to be convicted of a crime. I
Paul Craig Roberts states that "Russiagate is an orchestrated hoax. That has now become so aparent that even insouciant Americans are catching on, even those low IQ ones who sit in front of TV news. I often disparage Congress, but here is a member who is admirable, Republican Representative Jim Jordan from Ohio." Be sure to play the videos two and eight paragraphs below. In the second one Republican Representative Jim Jordan from Ohio tells it like it is!!!
De Facto Travel Restrictions Now Exist For Americans December 21, 2017 | Categories: Articles & Columns | Dear Friends, I apologize for dumping this on you at Christmas, a time for peace and joy. But these are the facts. We can ignore them only at our peril. De Facto Travel Restrictions Now Exist For Americans Paul Craig Roberts Green Party presidential Candidate Jill Stein is being investigated
Beware. The U.S. is a police state. U.S. cops kill innocents without reason and get away with it.
We’ve all been there before. You’re driving along and you see a pair of flashing blue lights in your rearview mirror. Whether or not you’ve done anything wrong, you get a sinking feeling in your stomach. You’ve read enough news stories, seen enough headlines, and lived in the American police state long enough to be anxious about any encounter with a cop that takes place on the side of the road. F

New in Craig Murray

A Great Day
My body and mind are still in Ankara, fully engaged with the Syrian peace talks. But my heart is in Catalonia. A great day. The achievement is colossal – a pro-independence majority achieved despite the leadership being in jail or in exile, and on an 84% turnout. The lies being spewed out day by day by the neo-liberal media about a “silent majority” are well and truly exposed, as is the EU’s cont

New in DAMMIT JANET!

2017: A Very Good Year
After the dismal Harper decade in which pro-choice forces had to fight rear-guard actions and stay alert for more sneak attacks on our rights, we racked up some significant WINS in 2017. Locally and nationally, activists pushed the "Pro-Abortion Agenda." And won. Here, in rough chronological order are the highlights. (If I've missed anything, please add it in the comments.) In January, we learned
Lies, Damn Lies, and BAD Science
The War on Truth and Science continues. Today, another story about women regretting abortion. A majority of American women who aborted their unborn babies say that their lives didn’t improve at all or refused to answer a question about any positive effects of aborting, a new study reports. Roughly 54 percent of women said that their lives post-aborting weren’t any better than before they had their
MASSIVE Temper Tantrum over Canada Summer Jobs
OK, it was to be expected that Fetus Freaks would freak out over having their funding threatened, but not even long-time observers (ahem) of their hilarious hyperbole saw this banshee-like SHRIEEK-fest coming. Here are just a few of the terms used to characterize the very modest change to Canada Summer Jobs program eligibility (insert mandatory exclamation marks after each entry!!!!!): "thought/be

New in Dr Cintli

Between Black and White: Red-Brown Color Consciousness
Monday, December 18, 2017 By Roberto Rodriguez , Speakout | Op-Ed The large banner outside the prestigious National Museum of Art in Mexico City reads: "Discursos de la piel." Translation: "Discourses on skin." The accompanying image is that of a mulatta from Mexico's colonial era. When I first saw the banner, my mind automatically added the word "color" after the word "skin." I assume that my mi

New in GEEZERPOWER

In Trump We Trust n ZZZZZzzzzzz.....
In Trump We Trust n ZZZZZzzzzzz.....

New in Greg Mankiw's Blog

Tax Cuts for the Rich?
As I have stated repeatedly , I have mixed feelings about the tax bill going through Congress. There is a lot of it that I don't like. But I nonetheless disagree with much of the commentary of its critics. A common refrain is that the bill entails big tax cuts for the rich. I am not so sure. True, the top tax rate is reduced by 2.6 percentage points. But for those in states with a personal income
A New, More Affordable Way to Read My Favorite Textbook
From Inside Higher Ed : The new offer, called Cengage Unlimited , will give students access to more than 20,000 Cengage products across 70 disciplines and 675 course areas for $119.99 a semester.
A Quick Quiz
According to the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation, before the recent change in the tax law, taxpayers earning more than $1 million a year were scheduled to pay 19.3 percent of all federal taxes in 2019. What impact does the new tax law have on this percentage? (a) It falls to 17.8 percent. (b) It falls to 18.7 percent. (c) It stays the same. (d) It rises to 19.8 percent. Find the answer he
The Case Against Taxing Higher Ed
Click here to read my column in Sunday's NY Times .
I talk with NPR

New in Inexplicata-The Journal of Hispanic Ufology

2018: Argentina's Potential UFO Flap
2018: Argentina's Potential UFO Flap By Luis Burgos 1. The provinces having the highest likelihood of sightings would be: Buenos Aires, Cordoba, La Pampa and Patagonia. 2. The 9 pm to 2 am rule would remain in effect. 3. The highest number of reports would occur during the second half of each month. 4. Evaluations will be conducted according to the Strangeness Index: Low-Average-Good-Very Good -
Argentina: Luis Burgos Forecasts a UFO-Active 2018
Argentina: Luis Burgos Forecasts a UFO-Active 2018 “A year of greater UFO activity is forecast throughout the country.” Article by Sebastián Aranguren for Mas Allá del Misterio (Diario Popular) A renowned ufologist has stated that 2018 will be a year with greater UFO activity, having its epicenter in the environs of Buenos Aires, Cordoba and the Patagonian region, especially in the summer, where
Backtracking: Early 20th Century UFO Mysteries
Backtracking: Early 20th Century UFO Mysteries By Scott Corrales There is one thing that UFO believer and skeptic, nuts-and-bolts advocate and psycho-social theorist, contactee and abductee can agree on (mostly): the modern age of UFOs kicked off in 1947 with Kenneth Arnold’s historic sighting over Mount Rainier. But cracks can be found in that monolithic supposition as researchers unearth cases
Haunted Deserts: UFOs in the Emptiness
Haunted Deserts: UFOs in the Emptiness By Scott Corrales (c) 2017 Many years ago I wrote an article for FATE magazine about lost civilizations in our planet’s desert areas – regions that may have once been suitable for large, organized communities, even cities, but had which had succumbed to erosion and were now simply uninhabitable. Even in the Sahara Desert we find the ruins of Roman settlement
Argentina: Not a Bird, Not a Plane...Was there a UFO Over Las Heras?
Source: MDZ (Argentina) and Planeta UFO Date: December 10, 2017 Argentina: Not a Bird, Not a Plane...Was there a UFO Over Las Heras? A small light shone in the skies over Mendoza. It was hard to tell whether it was a drone. See the video. It happens often and goes unnoticed. At this rate, technology gives us many tools to find an answer when a strange object appears in the sky, particularly a UFO
The Allure of Forbidden Treasures
The Allure of Forbidden Treasures By Scott Corrales © 2017 Anyone who ever read Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island , or was otherwise entranced by stories of daring pirates and corsairs burying chests of plunder on desert islands, or even brave explorers recovering the wealth of the ancient world from forgotten tombs, has felt the allure of treasure. The word alone elicits mental images of

New in Land Destroyer

Iranian Protests: Deep State's Unfinished Business
January 4, 2018 ( Tony Cartalucci - NEO ) - Protests have been reported across several cities in Iran over the last several days of December 2017. Protesters allegedly decry Iran's economy as well as the nation's involvement in nearby Syria. The Western media has attempted to cultivate two narratives - one focused on portraying the protests as widespread, spontaneous, and having focused first on
The Quad: US Searches Edge of Asia for Allies to Contain Beijing
December 28, 2017 ( Tony Cartalucci - NEO ) - There has been a recent buzz promoted around the so-called Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) - a coalition of sorts counting the United States, India, Australia, and Japan as members. Promoted by familiar corporate-financier funded policy think thanks, the Quad is being portrayed as a step past Washington's ill-fated "pivot to Asia" to address it
NATO Rolls Out Offensive Cyberweapons
December 26, 2017 ( Ulson Gunnar - NEO ) - NATO members including the US, UK, Germany, Norway, Spain, Denmark and the Netherlands have begun taking public steps in defining guidelines regarding the deployment of offensive cyberweapons. Reuters in its article, " NATO mulls 'offensive defense' with cyber warfare rules ," would state: A group of NATO allies are considering a more muscular response t
Western Media Consumed by Myanmar Monster of Own Creation
December 23, 2017 ( Tony Cartalucci - NEO ) - Years ago, those confronting and questioning the Western media's "pro-democracy" narrative regarding Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, her National League for Democracy (NLD) political party and her supporters including saffron-clad supposed "Buddhist monks," were ridiculed and dismissed. Warnings that Suu Kyi's political movement was nothin
EU "Restoring" Ties with Thailand Symbolic, Foreign Interference Will Continue
December 21, 2017 ( Joseph Thomas - NEO ) - A mid-December announcement by the European Union was made stating that the EU had agreed to restore ties with the Southeast Asian Kingdom of Thailand "at all levels" after suspending them in 2014 in the wake of a military coup which ousted the government of Yingluck Shinawatra. AFP reported in its article, " EU resumes official contacts with Thai junta
Thailand: US Creating "Space" For Destabilisation
December 13, 2017 ( Joseph Thomas - NEO ) - In late November, the US, Canadian and British embassies along with several other European partners as well as the US National Endowment for Democracy (NED) and Amnesty International, organised what they called the "Isaan Human Rights Festival" in northeast Thailand. Foreign embassies have funded and directed a number of events to breath new life into t

New in Left I on the News

Looking for me? Check Twitter!
It's been a while since I've been writing long-form blog entries. But I'm still doing what I've been doing since 2003. You'll find me on Twitter at @leftiblog. Follow me there!

New in Middle East Today

Unite Nation’s Rebuke: President Trump Political Blunder
Recently, President Trump declared Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, and that the US Embassy will be relocated in it. Such political decision is in violation of all UN resolution and of International Law. Jerusalem and the West Bank were illegally occupied during the 1967 war. The occupation was condemned by the UN. It instructed Israel to retreat to the 1967 boundaries as stated by the UN Reso

New in NolanChart.com

For future historians, the mortal blow to the concept of America
It is January, 2018, and the United States of America is being destroyed from the inside. The enemies of the American Republic and the Constitution […]
NOTES FROM MEET THE PRESS, Sunday, December 17th, 2017
MEET THE PRESS is one of the Sunday morning “news,” (news being a questionable term – more like mainstream media narrative talk shows) that discuss […]
The Trump Era Glossary
The rise of Donald Trump has brought the United States of America into a new era, an era as yet unnamed. We are no longer […]
How do the Alabama results mean concerning MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN?
Most folks will chalk this win up to the Ruling Elite, they actually out general-ed the Moore campaign. I say the Moore campaign and not […]
Republicans Flirting with Treason
Various Republicans have been flirting with treason for a number years now, even decades. In the late 1980s, the Reagan administration sold arms to Iran […]

New in Not PC

Happy Christmas -- from Frank Lloyd Wright and us!
Architect Frank Lloyd Wright used to send out his poetic Christmas message every year. So I do too. He called it “Man the Enlightened Being.” “The herd disappears and reappears," says Wright's message, "but the sovereignty of the individual persists." What better time of year to take time out to reflect on that.* L iterature tells about man. Architecture presents him. The Architecture that our ma
QotD: "The secular meaning of the Christmas holiday ... "
"The secular meaning of the Christmas holiday is wider than the tenets of any particular religion: it is good will toward men... “The charming aspect of Christmas is the fact that it expresses good will in a cheerful, happy, benevolent, non-sacrificial way. One says: ‘Merry Christmas’—not ‘Weep and Repent.’ And the good will is expressed in a material, earthly form—by giving presents to one’s fri
QotD: "They’ve always been here. But not everybody’s joining up."
"Terrorism has ... come of age with the millennial generation. The Islamic State ... is miles from the Al Qaeda it grew out of. Its supporters aren’t coming from Afghanistan, Iraq, or Pakistan anymore. They’re living in Belgium, France, Britain, and ... even the United States. They’re not refugees or illegal immigrants. They’re legal, passport-carrying, Western-born or naturalised citizens of our
Holiday reading
It's that time of year again when I try to prune my book stack to take away. Because how many books can you fit in a small backpack. And this year I genuinely thought the only important summer reading to do was to re-read Thomas Sowell's brilliant trilogy on race and culture and migration and conquest -- because what could be more relevant, right! But the book stack just kept right on growing ...
A job Is not a thing
A business will hire anyone they believe will make them more money than they cost. It is as simple as that, but as Ryan Ferguson explains in this Guest Post , most people think about employment and jobs in a complex and abstract way. A business will hire anyone they believe will make them more money than they cost. It is as simple as that, but most people think about employment and jobs in a comp
This Time It's Different, Episode IX: 'The Rise and fall of some famous asset bubbles'
[Chart from the Zero Hedge post: ' It's Official: Bitcoin Surpasses "Tulip Mania", Is Now The Biggest Bubble In World History '] . Content is copyright PC.BlogSpot.Com © Permission to republish is granted, with link and attribution.

New in Obsidian Wings

Personal Fears Semi-Open Post
--Sebastian In this time of Trump, it seems almost indulgent to worry about personal fears of unverifiable things, but we can't let Trump be our only source of misery now can we? My paternal grandmother had a particularly nasty descent into Alzheimer's disease about 10 years before her death. The signs started earlier, but she had a long bitter spiral downward. One of her only great joys was bird
9 years
by liberal japonicus Scrolling thru facebook, was reminded that it has been 9 years .
A New Year's open thread
by liberal japonicus New Year's is a big holiday in Japan, but it snuck up on me (if that is possible) and I wasn't prepared for so many things to be closed. Still, it is a lot better than my first New Year's in Japan, when there were no convenience stores and everything was closed for 3 days. Not sure how I managed it. Anyway here's hoping that 2018 will treat you better than 2017 did. Feel free
Your Boxing Day Open Thread
by Doctor Science Mister Doctor Science had the peroneus tendons on his left foot reconstructed on Friday. He'd managed to completely rupture the brevis tendon, and longus was in pretty bad shape. The surgeon was able to reconstruct them into a single useful tendon that is predicted to make it possible for Mr Dr to keep fencing. For the next 6 weeks, though, he can't put any weight on that leg, s
Talking Past Each Other on #metoo
--by Sebastian I wonder if some of the reason we are talking past each other on sexual harassment in employment is colored by true experiences that people we personally know have had with companies that dealt with things very differently. I used to work in employment law in California (an employee friendly state). I’ve thankfully gotten out of an area of law that makes me want to wring people’s n
Wednesday books: fic and non
by Doctor Science I just engulfed & devoured the new book in "James S. A. Corey" (Daniel Abraham & Ty Franck)'s Expanse series, Persepolis Rising . This work begins the final three volumes of the series, and may possibly be self-contained enough to read if you haven't read the previous volumes; I'm a poor judge. The timeline leaps ahead 30 years, to a point where most of the main characters from

New in Paying attention

Why I'd kill Site C
I have no idea what the government will do about Site C. (I do know that anyone who claims it’s an easy choice to kill the project or go ahead is not to be taken seriously.) But if it was up to me, I’d opt for cancellation. The people pushing for completion rely heavily on three flawed arguments. First, that BC Hydro has already spent $2 billion, so despite the certainty of delays and cost overru
Carole James’s Big Budget Problem
(Belatedly posting my recent Tyee column.) Finance Minister Carole James put a good spin on this week’s quarterly update on the province’s finances. But the update highlights big problems the NDP government faces in crafting its first budget, due in mid-February. Without tax increases, the government won’t be able to deliver on its election promises or provide the changes supporters expect. The S

New in Pesticide Action Network

Killing two birds with one seed
Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released several scientific assessments that found commonly used neonicotinoid pesticides (neonics) can kill and harm birds of all sizes. This comes on the heels of new research from the University of Saskatchewan, with experimental evidence finding dramatic effects of neonics on birds inhabiting farmland or open countryside — causing migr
A year like no other
What an incredible — and challenging — year this has been. On the national stage, we've seen several key issues we work on here at PAN move into the spotlight like never before. Thanks to ill-advised federal policy decisions, it is now common knowledge that pesticides harm children’s health, and that farmland can be devastated by pesticide drift. The corporate capture of our public agencies has b
A year like no other
What an incredible — and challenging — year this has been. On the national stage, we've seen several key issues we work on here at PAN move into the spotlight like never before. Learn more Slideshow Category: Flex Slider
Support a Farm Bill for the future!
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New in Philosophical Comment

A Thought on the "One State Solution" to the Israel-Palestine Conflict
Since the Oslo Accords of 1993 and 1995 initiated what has become known as the "Oslo Process", the recognised vision of how to resolve the longstanding violent conflict between the state of Israel and Palestinian representatives, organisations and people have been the so-called Two State Solution, where the state of Israel is to mostly withdraw to its original 1947 borders, and a state of Palesti

New in Screw You Guys, I'm Going Home

If The Office Is Closed Due To A Blizzard, Do I Get Paid?
Now is usually when I run my posts about how I did on my predictions from last year, but with the snowicane bombarding the Northeast and even Florida, I thought I'd better re-run this ever-popular and necessary piece. Whether you’re entitled to be paid when the office is closed depends on whether you are “exempt” salaried or not. Just being salaried doesn’t necessarily mean you aren’t entitled to

New in Syria Comment

Beit Jann: Myths and Reality
By Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi The Syrian government’s recent recapture of the last rebel-held pocket in the vicinity of Mt. Hermon (Jabal al-Sheikh) near the border with the Golan Heights- comprising the three towns of Beit Jann, Mazra’at Beit Jann and Mughir al-Mir- has led to much exaggeration and distortion about the matter, primarily emanating from Israeli discourse and supporters of the rebels.

New in The Duck of Minerva

The top 5 issues in International Politics for 2018
2017 was not a great year for international politics. The sentence I heard the most during conferences and other academic gatherings was that “the global order is in crisis.” Granted. It all started in 2016 with the victory of Trump, Brexit and the No to the Peace Agreement in Colombia. Nationalist ideologies have nothing but grown in 2017, when the victories of Marine Le Pen in France and of Gee
Size Doesn’t Matter
Any woman would tell you that. What matters is what you do with it and whether you know how to use it. Whatever Brobdingnagian thing you’ve got going on there, it’s way more important to have a game plan and understand the sweet spots you need to target. Otherwise, both parties may come away less than satisfied from the encounter. I am talking, of course, about the nuclear arsenal size and the ev
President Trump, You’re No George Carlin
The Trump Administration has decided it’s finally time for it to whip out its best George Carlin impression. It’s announced its own list of seven words you can never say—at least not if you are working for the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention. In 1972, “ Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television ” was the last track on his stand-up album, Class Clown . In an interview with Terry Gros
Challenges to the Contemporary World Order
A guest post by Thomas Pepinsky , is Associate Professor of Government at Cornell University and Stefanie Walter, Full Professor for International Relations and Political Economy at the Department of Political Science at the University of Zurich. Many observers of contemporary global politics conclude that the present moment represents one of the most unsettled times in global politics since the
UFOs and the Hyperreal
On Saturday, the New York Times ran an investigative story that revealed a few significant facts about the US’s programs to study UFOs. There were some interesting findings in the article (and citations/paraphrases below are from the article, which can be found here ): A 22 million dollar program called “Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification” was operated at DoD from 2007 to 2012—and, in fact,
Us Too
We knew it was coming and here it is . An open source spreadsheet designed by The Professor Is In blog’s K aren L. Kelsky for the purpose of collecting up stories of sexual harassment, abuse, and plain old taking advantage from within the Academy in the wake of the #MeToo movement. “I am not surprised at the number. I am surprised at the severity of many of the stories. I expected more quid pro q

New in The Straight Goods

John Horgan-Once Gaining Power Veers NDP Party To Right-Abandons Grassroots-Rolls Electoral Dice-Can Horgan Garner BC Liberal(Conservative) Voters to Make up for Losing BC's Progressive "Activist" Support
Written by Grant G "Will the real John Horgan please stand up" I must say....John Horgan's year end message to me, to all BC's progressive voters, to all NDP issue savvy voters is rather disheartening, to say the least, it's actually more.. John Horgan is telling you to shut up, be quiet and except the status quo, except the New NDP Government, a government that administers better, administers BC
British Columbia N D P.....John Horgan, is he Dr Jeckyll or Mr Hyde(hide)
Written by grant G A first term government, merely months old and already fatigue has set in, the dog days of December, the fatigue I refer to is mutual, John Horgan's government has already turned stale and has resorted to using public communications bureau to silence critics, grassroot members speaking up on Site C are now ridiculed by the party insiders, dismissed as unreasonable activists....
I am brainwashed. You are brainwashed. We are brainwashed
Written by Robin Mathews Vast numbers of people (many more than we think, probably) are aware of a major, constant process by ‘Established power’, by the Mainstream Press and Media, by ‘Imperial Globalization’, by the Deep State, [there are more names} to blanket the population in misinformation, ‘ disinformation ’, misleading reporting, half-finished news and misanalysis of events … to use, in e
I am brainwashed. You are brainwashed. We are brainwashed
Written by Robin Mathews Vast numbers of people (many more than we think, probably) are aware of a major, constant process by ‘Established power’, by the Mainstream Press and Media, by ‘Imperial Globalization’, by the Deep State, [there are more names} to blanket the population in misinformation, ‘ disinformation ’, misleading reporting, half-finished news and misanalysis of events … to use, in e
John Horgan Approved Site C in Hopes He Can Secure a Big LNG Project....Site C power, paid for by BCers is...Freebie carrot power on offer to big LNG
Written by Grant G "Shock the monkey" Site C....2 years into a 10 year project and already it's nearly $3 billion over budget..from $8.2 billion dollar budget to a now projected $10.7 billion cost...expect that price-tag to rise to $14 billion...we're only 2 years into this 10 year project.. Why did John Horgan approve Site C?...Sunk costs...BC Hydro rate increases with nothing to show for it....
Straight Goods is taking a hiatus until the new year....or so
Talk to you later on.... Cheers Eyes Need Resting The Straight Goods

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