"Over the course of three years, archaeologists in Peru uncovered the graves of 140 children, all killed by a swift cut to their chest, presumably to rip out their hearts. The massive gravesite is shedding light on the mysterious ancient Chimú Empire, and raises question on what could have driven these people to do such a heinous act." Some gods are more demanding than others. And when you thinking you're witnessing the death of your culture/civilization that can prompt you to extremely desperate acts. Not parallels in modern conservatism.
"So why do I care? As a health psychologist, I often see people choose unnecessary and unpleasant diets based on unsubstantiated claims. Sweeping statements that vilify entire food groups (or specific foods) lead to eating rules that can backfire into overeating the forbidden foods or can become unhealthy obsessions, occupying valuable mental space and leading to self-shaming and other miseries." No, sugar is not like heroin. And I know I'm being a little pedantic here in the same vein as people who shout, "I won't put chemicals in my body" and I want to say, "Well, Sunshine, I've got news for you." I know they mean "processed sugar", but basically anything listed as carbs are sugars. Fat is a lippo-protein with stacked sugars. Not all carbs are the same. And basically you'd die if you avoided all sugar. Neurons pretty much only subsist but by carbs. Yes, processed sugar is bad for you because it's a simple sugar and nothing else (your body processes it quickly, and there's no other good stuff that comes along for the ride with it). All processed foods should be avoided as much as possible (the only exception being breakfast cereal fiber). On the extreme end are the new Keto Diets. Before starting one I'd google the medical effects and potential problems with Keto Diets. (Grokked from Ann Leckie)
"Faced with a new tax that could force them to hike prices in a competitive soda market, the maker of Irn Bru decided instead to cut the sugar in half. These days Scottish shop owners aren't surprised to see customers, and the occasional reporter, squinting at the Irn Bru labels, checking the sugar content."
"Across the country, community groups, hospitals, government agencies and nonprofits are starting to do more to support at least some of the estimated 42 million friends and family members who are the primary caregivers of adults and children who have disabilities, are recovering from surgeries and illnesses or are coping with Alzheimer's and other chronic diseases."
"Researchers in the US say they have managed to keep the brains of decapitated pigs alive outside of the body for up to 36 hours by circulating an oxygen-rich fluid through the organs… While the scientists, led by Yale University neuroscientist Nenad Sestan, say the brains are not conscious, they say the feat might help researchers to probe how the brain works, and aid studies into experimental treatments for diseases ranging from cancer to dementia." Because, you know, if the brains were "conscious", that would be a severe ethical problem. So they're not conscious. Because they can't be.
"A new analysis finds that NASA will pay significantly more for commercial cargo delivery to the International Space Station in the 2020s rather than enjoying cost savings from maturing systems."
"The US and European space agencies are edging towards a joint mission to bring back rock and soil samples from Mars… Nasa and Esa have signed a letter of intent that could lead to the first "round trip" to another planet." Buys NASA and ESA dvd copies of Andromeda Strain.
Who needs regulations. "Safety officials have lifted an evacuation order for miles around an oil refinery in Superior, Wis., after an explosion and a large fire erupted Thursday at the Canadian-owned facility. Police officers went door to door to enforce the evacuation, which extended for miles around the refinery."
"The Happiest Hour denied that Piatek had been removed in the first place, stating Piatek 'was sufficiently pleased with his service at the bar [and] that he added' a $36 tip onto the $186 tab, according to the New York Post. The bar owners suggest Piatek’s lawsuit was a 'publicity stunt.'" But yet Fox News is outraged, Outraged, that somehow he racked up a $186 tab while simultaneously being refused service for wearing a MAGA hat. Little note, many NYC bars refuse service to people wearing hats (any hat, not just MAGA hats). So my guess is he put his hat on, and was told he could remove it or leave.
"Sacramento investigators tracked down East Area Rapist suspect Joseph James DeAngelo using genealogical websites that contained genetic information from a relative, the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office confirmed Thursday." So, good that they finally caught the bastard, bad that it makes the Facebook/Cambridge Analytica scandal look like small potatoes.
"We were recently made aware that @alhousedems had received a barrage of unexpected followers that look like bots." A tweet storm on spotting bots. (Grokked from Jim Wright)
"The infighting around the big Chaplain Conspiracy might seem melodramatic, but the actual reason some point to as to why Ryan was unhappy with Conroy is as petty as it gets. As a HuffPost reporter tweeted, during a prayer on Ryan’s signature tax bill, Conroy said he wished for no 'winners and losers' under the legislation, 'but benefits balanced and shared by all Americans,' which Ryan apparently didn’t like." (Grokked from Jer)
"But as my colleague Ishaan Tharoor summarized, after repeatedly hugging Trump, Macron tore down his worldview — delivering a clear rebuke of his core policy stances during a speech in Congress… In fact, throughout that speech, Macron sounded a lot like a president Trump certainly wouldn’t have invited back to the White House for three days: Barack Obama." Funny how being thoughtful and knowledgeable about how the world really works and caring for people makes you sounds like Obama and definitely not Trump.
"'Hannity hates this deal (Iran Nuclear Deal) too, so there was not really a way to get a moderating voice into this conversation short of buying time on Hannity's show this week.'" So that's what John Oliver did. (Grokked from Ken McConnell)
"A federal judge in Washington state has issued a permanent injunction that blocks the Trump administration from slashing grants to a Planned Parenthood program that funds teen pregnancy prevention programs across the country." Hey, remember as all the conservative shouted that Obama was acting illegally and sued him. Some of those did rule that he acted illegally, or at least without authorization. But I think in the past year and a half Trump has lost more cases than the Obama administration did in 8 years all while protesting that he's the lawful acting president. (Grokked from Kathryn Cramer)
"Now new documents reviewed by HuffPost show that Pompeo’s links to foreign-owned oil and gas companies are even more extensive than was previously reported. But, despite the evidence, Pompeo continues to deny his foreign entanglements, according to a Senate source who asked to remain anonymous to talk to HuffPost about proceedings that haven’t been made public yet." While some Republican Senators are saying it's no big deal, if this was a low-level government employee this would be grounds for immediate revocation of security clearances and dismissal. And there's a big difference between this and buying shoes at K-Mart, because those shoes are typically less than $50, and you're buying them from a supplier who outsourced instead of thousand dollar equipment that you personally outsourced. And for most people buying those shoes it is no big deal, but for someone who is at the top level of government he should fucking know better. Is the actual contact reason to exclude him from service? Probably not. But failing to properly disclose it is. (Grokked from Kathryn Cramer)
"Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen on Wednesday warned that the federal government is prepared to prosecute Central American migrants from a caravan planning to cross the U.S. border this weekend." Good luck with that. My personal favorite is when she threatens lawyers with criminal prosecution for any attempt to help these people.
"A Utah militia leader accused of trying to blow up a federal cabin in Arizona pleaded guilty in a Salt Lake City courtroom Thursday, as part of a late-hour plea deal that avoided a potentially lengthy federal trial."
"Patrick Little is a Republican running for U.S. Senate in California on a platform so extreme that he is urging supporters not to donate to campaign 'unless you are doxed,' since campaign contributions are public record… The chances that Little makes it through in California’s top-two primary may be slim, but he still joins the ranks of open extremists running as Republicans… On his blog, Little urges supporters to 'vote with their feet' by supporting him at the ballot box to let the government know that 'we want to be around other whites, safe from non-whites.' Little also wrote that 'whites who advocate for their people, or just question certain historical narratives, are often thrown into prison without due process.'" If that were actually true, Patrick Little would be rotting in a jail cell somewhere. This, again, is projection. What they want to do is throw the rest of us in jail if we try to stop them. (Grokked from Laura J Mixon)
"President Donald Trump appeared to acknowledge Thursday for the first time that his attorney Michael Cohen represented him as part of a payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels." You know, after months of saying he had no idea or knowledge of Cohen's actions in this regard. If this weren't so dumb I'd wonder if this weren't a strategy to confuse everybody like a Three-card Monte dealer. And the president is increasingly unhinged and showing signs of dementia.
"The lawyer for porn actress Stormy Daniels suggested that a $1.6 million hush money payoff to a Playboy model was actually made on behalf of President Donald Trump — and not a Republican donor." Not enough popcorn in the world. This whole thing could have been handled so differently, but instead Trump and his lawyers followed (and are still following) their standard playboy and Acenatti and Ms Daniels are running three-steps ahead building the traps anticipating that this is what they'll do. (Grokked from Xeni Jardin)
"Rudy Giuliani and President Trump's newly reconfigured legal team met Tuesday with special counsel Robert Mueller and his staff to discuss a possible interview, sources close to the process confirm to CBS News' Major Garrett. Giuliani last week joined Mr. Trump's legal team, along with Jane and Marty Raskin, who are former federal prosecutors." I love how this is portrayed as a choice for the president. He can either willfully meet, or when the time is right be served with a subpoena to appear.
"Manhattan federal prosecutors seized as many as 16 cell phones when the FBI raided the home, office and hotel room of President Trump’s personal lawyer Michael Cohen." While some of these are historical purchases, you really need to dump burner phones on a regular basis. (Grokked from Chang)
"With (Trump's) victory, Republicans held more power than they have had in nearly a century. Conservatives had control the House of Representatives, the Senate, the White House, and held a majority of the country's governors mansions. Conservatives have a majority on the Supreme Court, in no small part because of Trump's election… But apart from politics, Hawkins said that the average American conservative feels bombarded daily with disrespect." I've got a crazy idea, try not being dicks. There's this joke, it comes in different forms, but basically it states, "When this person is an asshole to you, and that person is an asshole to you, when everyone is an asshole to you, maybe it's you that's the asshole." Dear conservatives, maybe the problem isn't us lefties, or the world, or the "media", or the movies/TV, or science. Maybe it's you. You know, when everyone agrees you're dicks, you might want to think about if you're a dick or not. I guess conservatives never watched 70s and 80s sitcoms where one of the family members would win some contest only to realize they still weren't popular.
Tweet of my heart: @feministabulous As you celebrate the cosby verdict, remember that it took dozens of women, dozens of news stories and several years for our court system to find him guilty of something he himself admitted he did to women. (Grokked from Laura J. Mixon)
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