Reading

We Are a Picturesque Small Town and We Refuse to Be the Setting for Your Romantic Comedy

https://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/we-are-a-picturesque-small-town-and-we-refu…
Created
Wed, 28/12/2022 - 12:18

Our 12th most-read article of the 2022.

- - -

Originally published September 15, 2022.

- - -

As of this date, the citizens of Spirit Falls approve the following resolutions:

1. Any ex-lovers of residents of Spirit Falls must file, in writing, their intent to enter city limits ninety days before an intended visit. The paperwork must include a notarized affidavit of intent to not participate in, instigate, or be the recipient of romantic gestures.

2. We, as a community, no longer have boutique small businesses that require saving. The following businesses have been brought back from the brink of corporate take-over and/or foreclosure and/or family disagreement threatening financial ruin:

The vultures are circling

https://digbysblog.net/2022/12/27/the-vultures-are-circling/
Created
Wed, 28/12/2022 - 12:00
But their quarry may not be dead It looks like the GOP race for the presidential nomination is on. Trump is probably fine with a bigger crowd since it may work for him in the long run. With winner-take-all primaries, if he does end up politically crippled by all his baggage, he could slip under the wire with his solid 30% of the GOP base. (He didn’t start winning majorities until the very end of the process in 2016.) The Washington Post reports: Potential contenders are well into laying groundwork for campaigns, as more than a dozen have signaled interest or have declined to rule out a run amid speculation. Yet it’s unclear how many will actually take the plunge. A crowded field could play to Trump’s advantage, as it did in 2016 when the rest of the party did not unite around a single alternative as Trump won key early contests with a plurality of the vote. “We figured by the first quarter next year, we need to be hard at it if we’re going to do it,” said Pompeo in a recent Fox News interview. Pompeo’s political action committee did not respond to a request for comment. Nikki Haley, the U.N.

IDAD 2022: Celebrating the freedom to share with a new advocacy video

https://www.defectivebydesign.org/blog/idad_2022_celebrating_freedom_share_new_…
Created
Wed, 28/12/2022 - 10:49

In our sixteenth annual International Day Against DRM (IDAD), we stood up for the freedom to share cultural works, continuing our fight against Digital Restrictions Management (DRM). Each year, the Free Software Foundation (FSF) rallies anti-DRM advocates from all over the world for a day of action against digital restriction. This year was no exception, building on the recent efforts we've made in our year-end fundraiser to draw attention to something vitally important for the free software movement and cultural endeavors alike: the freedom to share.

Summer Series – Joseph Stiglitz: The Role of Government in the Modern Economy [Webinar]

https://australiainstitute.org.au/post/summer-series-joseph-stiglitz-the-role-o…
Created
Wed, 28/12/2022 - 10:36

Our summer podcast series brings you some of the best conversations from our webinars in 2022. Earlier in the year the Australia Institute hosted Nobel Laureate Professor Joseph Stiglitz for a speaking tour of Australia. In this episode he, Richard, and Ebony discussed the need to expand the role of governments, unions, and civil society.

The post Summer Series – Joseph Stiglitz: The Role of Government in the Modern Economy [Webinar] appeared first on The Australia Institute.

Summer Series – Lone Wolf: Albanese and the New Politics with Katharine Murphy [Webinar]

https://australiainstitute.org.au/post/summer-series-lone-wolf-albanese-and-the…
Created
Wed, 28/12/2022 - 10:33

Our summer podcast series brings you some of the best conversations from our webinars in 2022. A prime minister in the making, and a nation on the move. In Lone Wolf, Katharine Murphy offers a new portrait of Anthony Albanese. She reveals a leaderwho has always had to think three steps ahead, who was an insurgent for

The post Summer Series – Lone Wolf: Albanese and the New Politics with Katharine Murphy [Webinar] appeared first on The Australia Institute.

Measuring the risks

https://digbysblog.net/2022/12/27/measuring-the-risks/
Created
Wed, 28/12/2022 - 10:30
COVID is still here. How to figure out what makes sense. I know that most people are just done with COVID and are living their lives, accepting that they may get it the way they accept getting colds and flu. But those who are older or have underlying illnesses or live with people who fit those categories need to be a little bit more analytical about this because COVID is still super contagious and the threat of serious illness and the residual effects of it loom large. I would feel terrible if I thought I gave it to someone. When there is a surge, I mask up in public spaces. Since I live in Southern California I have the good fortune to be able to go to restaurants and bars and stay mostly outside or in well ventilated places. (And I will never get on an airplane unmasked again — I always caught something before and now I am well when I travel. Yippie!) Anyway, here is UC San Francisco’s Dr. Bob Wachter’s latest tweet thread about how to mitigate your risk which I have often found very informative: Covid (@UCSF) Chronicles, Day 1013 As we enter Covid Year 3, it’s clear we’ll be in our current predicament for the foreseeable future.

How We Will Separate You from Any Lingering Hope and Other Important Topics of Today’s Faculty Meeting

https://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/how-we-will-separate-you-from-any-lingering…
Created
Wed, 28/12/2022 - 10:19

Our 13th most-read article of the 2022.

- - -

Originally published January 10, 2022.

- - -

Dear Teachers,

As we continue to grapple with unavoidable disruptions caused by the pandemic, it’s important that we remain prepared and flexible for any and all circumstances. Please read the following scenarios and be ready to discuss them at this afternoon’s faculty meeting:

Scenario 1

There are ten students at home (Zoomies) and ten students in person (Roomies). You have been drinking steadily since 2020 and can’t stop crying. You’re also in-person, double-masked, and weigh fifteen pounds more than you did when this all started.

To the fans, Thank You.

https://vanishingsydney.tumblr.com/post/704834333561831424
Created
Wed, 28/12/2022 - 10:06

To the fans, Thank You.

Our intrepid Inner West explorer did his best to press on after the major league surgery, but sadly died on February 20, 2023. Deeply missed.

still here!

Still here! (28 December 2022) But still indisposed, unfortunately. Have some fairly major league surgery scheduled for mid-January, that’ll keep Vanishing Sydney off the streets of the Inner West for another three months at a minimum. Recuperating for the rest of the summer here down under the equator, but sincerely hope to be back in the cooler weather with some fresh material.

In the meantime, enjoy the back catalogue. You can find 2,800 original unique photographs of the Inner West of my beloved Emerald City - Sydney, Australia - snapped over the past four years. The best resolution is seen in the Archive Box on your million pixel desktop, or just keep scrolling back forever on your device. Explore the neighbourhood vicariously! It’s disappearing fast.

Go well in 2023, find some peace, and all power to your oars.

A government tragedy

https://digbysblog.net/2022/12/27/a-government-tragedy/
Created
Wed, 28/12/2022 - 09:00
There is no excuse for this The only reason they could be this inept is if they are looking for reasons to deny disability benefits to people who need them. (And yes, I’m sure there are people who have abused the system, but that doesn’t make this ok.) He had made it through four years of denials and appeals, and Robert Heard was finally before a Social Security judge who would decide whether he qualified for disability benefits. Two debilitating strokes had left the 47-year-old electrician with halting speech, an enlarged heart and violent tremors. There was just one final step: A vocational expert hired by the Social Security Administration had to tell the judge if there was any work Heard could still do despite his condition. Heard was stunned as the expert canvassedhis computer and announced his findings: He could find work as a nut sorter, a dowel inspector or an egg processor —jobs that virtually no longer exist in the United States. “Whatever it is that does those things, machines do it now,” said Heard, who lives on food stamps and a small stipend from his parents in a subsidized apartment in Tullahoma, Tenn.

Updates from Russia

https://crookedtimber.org/2022/12/27/updates-from-russia/
Created
Wed, 28/12/2022 - 06:35
And so it begins… Yulia Galyamina, the first Russian professor who got fired because “she is a foreign agent”. And here’s Dmitry Vasilets, a Real Russian Hero. Also, while we’re talking about Russia: Please consider supporting Meduza. Russians must have access to free press, just like all of us – and after it got banned, […]

Every Episode of a Television Show Written by Julian Fellowes

https://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/every-episode-of-a-television-show-written-…
Created
Wed, 28/12/2022 - 06:09

Our 14th most-read article of the 2022.

- - -

Originally published February 8, 2022.

- - -

Downstairs to Downstairs

HOUSEHOLD SERVANT: I’m worried about Rich Lady.

OTHER HOUSEHOLD SERVANT: Don’t be. She’s rich, ain’t she?

HOUSEHOLD SERVANT: Being rich doesn’t mean her horse can’t die/ her husband can’t die/ she can’t die/ she can wear a hat well.

BUTLER: Stop arguing, you two! Someone needs to take this duck liver blancmange up to the dining room on the double!

OTHER HOUSEHOLD SERVANT: Humph! (Exits to the kitchen)