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I Support Banning TikTok Because I’m an Out-of-Touch Thirty-Something with No Interest in Figuring Out How to Use Yet Another Social Media Platform

https://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/i-support-banning-tiktok-because-im-an-out-…
Created
Wed, 24/05/2023 - 03:10

Montana has become the first state to completely ban TikTok for its residents, and I for one couldn’t be more supportive. As a proud American, I’m gravely concerned about TikTok’s parent company ByteDance, and their access to the personal data of me and my fellow citizens. Also, as a jaded, thirty-something marketing professional, I’m annoyed and vaguely threatened by any social media I didn’t grow up with. So, this is a win-win.

I’d actually like to see the federal government follow Montana’s lead and ban TikTok across the United States. The threats posed by TikTok to everyday Americans are many—security, safety, and control of personal data. And the threats posed to mid-thirties marketers, who pat themselves on the back for watching Hot Ones, are also many—vibe checks, dance challenges, Addison Rae, and so on.

The CNN debacle continues

https://digbysblog.net/2023/05/23/the-cnn-debacle-continues/
Created
Wed, 24/05/2023 - 02:00
The ratings are … bad Contrary to some certain beliefs, not everyone in this country wants right wing propaganda instead of news. And if they do, they have Fox, Newsmax and OAN to give it to them. CNN made a mistake: More than a week after CNN’s disastrous town hall with former President Donald Trump, the negative impact the fiasco had on the network’s ratings is coming into clearer focus. Last week, the cable news pioneer suffered its lowest-rated week since June 2015, averaging just 429,000 total daily viewers from Monday-Friday. CNN was also down double digits compared to the same week last year in both total viewership and in the key advertising demographic of viewers ages 25-54. MSNBC more than doubled CNN’s daily audience, drawing 976,000 total viewers, while Fox News averaged 1.4 million. Fox News was down 41 percent in the key demo year-to-year and 24 percent in total viewers, having seen its ratings plummet as angry right-wingers flee after Tucker Carlson’s shock firing. In fact, Fox’s post-Tucker weekday demo audience is the lowest its been since the first week of September 2001.

We’re slowly moving past the clichés of Clarence Thomas

https://coreyrobin.com/2023/05/23/were-slowly-moving-past-the-cliches-of-claren…
Created
Wed, 24/05/2023 - 01:43
If you haven’t been following all the Clarence Thomas news, I’ve been talking with a lot of media outlets about him, the corruption scandal, how it fits with his larger life story, and where things are headed with Thomas and the Court. At the bottom of this post is a roundup of all the interviews and programs and pieces I’ve been involved in. Aside from tooting my own, I’ve for a reason for listing all my media appearances about Thomas. As you’ve probably noticed, there has been a demonstrable uptick in interest about Thomas—and his Black nationalist origins—since last year. It began with his infamous concurrence in the Dobbs decision, which I wrote about at The New Yorker, and it […]

Democrats solve real problems

https://digbysblog.net/2023/05/23/democrats-solve-real-problems/
Created
Wed, 24/05/2023 - 00:30
When you want to go forward, you put it in ‘D’ Something David Roberts (@drvolts) tweeted Monday is worth your attention: As I say over & over, there’s no clearer way to understand the contrast between America’s two political parties than by looking at what they do when they control state gov’ts. Dems solve real problems; Republicans gang up to visit cruelty on vulnerable out groups. Roberts cites the transportation bill the DFL just passed in Minnesota as an example of Democrats solving real problems: Added to an already passed metro-area 0.25% sales tax for housing programs and projects, the seven counties of Hennepin, Ramsey, Washington, Dakota, Scott, Anoka and Carver counties will see a 1% sales tax increase. Taken together, the transportation tax and fee increases would raise an additional $1.48 billion for roads, bridges, transit and other transportation needs in the next two-year budget period and $2.22 billion for the following two-year budget. Memory of the Interstate 35W bridge collapse is still fresh in Minnesota. Rep.

Between a Yoga Mat and a Hard Place

https://tomdispatch.com/between-a-yoga-mat-and-a-hard-place/
Created
Tue, 23/05/2023 - 23:07

Are you worried about the rising political power of violent white nationalists in America? Well, you’ve got plenty of company, including U.S. national security and counterterrorism officials. And we’re worried, too — worried enough, in fact, to feel that it’s time to take a look at the experience of India, where Hindu supremacist dogma has increasingly been enforced through violent means. While there are striking parallels between both countries, India appears to have ventured further down the road of far-right violence. Its experience could potentially offer Americans some valuable, if grim, lessons. As a start, let’s look at two recent incidents, one in India and the other in the United States. Laws passed in most Indian states against the killing... Read more

Negotiating with terrorists

https://digbysblog.net/2023/05/23/negotiating-with-terrorists/
Created
Tue, 23/05/2023 - 23:00
The U.S. does it if they’ve been elected to Congress While President Joe Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy do the debt-ceiling two-step, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen cautions that the government is “highly likely” to run out of money as early as June 1, reports Axios: MAGA Republicans holding McCarthy’s short leash demand cuts to the federal budget, or else. Or else they’ll set fire to the country they failed to on Jan. 6 and likely revoke his speakership, Politico suggests, because “any single disgruntled member [is] empowered to orce a vote on ousting him.” The American Prospect sees the debt limit as an unconstitutional congressional veto on the Executive branch’s responsibility to authority to fulfill existing U.S. obligations: The Constitution gives Congress the power to make contracts. It does not give Congress the power to renege on these contracts. Once Congress has committed the United States to perform a promise, the president’s duty to “take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed” requires the executive branch to perform.

End-of-Year Dorm Move-Out Procedures That Will Make This Anything But a Smooth Process

https://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/end-of-year-dorm-move-out-procedures-that-w…
Created
Tue, 23/05/2023 - 22:01

Congratulations, you’ve made it to the end of the year. Here are a few tips to help you move out of your dorms:

Log on to your housing portal and click the button marked “Express Checkout.” This will immediately cut the power to your room and disable your key.

Be sure that previous step is the last thing you do. We probably should have mentioned that.

Have your parents try and find the designated parking lots since our student volunteers made the signs out of the brown bathroom paper towels, and they all blew away.

After driving a few laps around the entire campus, find the only remaining spot next to a large grass field you’ll have to carry all your stuff across.

There are three rolling bins to be shared between the thousands of students leaving today. If you’re lucky enough to find one, your stuff will constantly fall out of the large holes in them. They also will absolutely not roll over grass.

Even though it is ninety-two degrees, please wear jeans and long-sleeve shirts since our grassy field is riddled with ticks.

Policy Briefing: How the DPDI Bill harms migrants’ data rights

https://www.openrightsgroup.org/publications/briefing-how-the-dpdi-bill-harms-m…
Created
Tue, 23/05/2023 - 20:26
If you are a migrant in the UK, asylum seeker, refugee or working on this issue, you should read this carefully. The new Data Protection and Digital Information Bill (DPDI Bill) is going through parliament and is expected to be passed into law later this year. The changes in this Bill will exacerbate the existing […]