Alligator quotient growing. Everybody must have recovered from their turkey comas, because damn.
Jim Hines on World Fantasy Con Guests of Honor lack of diversity and their lame excuse. (Grokked from Jason Sanford)
NPR's Book Concierge guide to 2018's great reads.
"NASA’s InSight landed safely on Mars on Monday afternoon, with scientists now hopeful they’ll get a below-the-surface look at the Red Planet." (Grokked from Dan)
"Watch a rocket launch from space." Wow.
"Rice University has launched an investigation into one of its professors after reports surfaced that he is connected to alleged genetic editing in China that resulted in the birth of two babies with altered DNA."
"In the past decade or so, China has been expanding its commitment to scientific research, and it shows. Chinese researchers now produce more scientific publications than U.S. scientists do, and the global ratings of Chinese universities are rising." Because they value science and are willing to fund research as well as putting few ideological barriers on the extent of the research. America isn't about to fall behind, we've already fallen behind the rest of the world.
"President Donald Trump responded on Monday to the bombshell climate assessment released by his administration on Friday, saying he doesn't believe the economic impact it's predicted to have on the US." Water is wet.
Who needs regulations? "Every year, federal OSHA conducts an audit of all 28 state plans to ensure they are 'at least as effective' as the federal agency at identifying and preventing workplace hazards… According to this year's audit of Kentucky, which covered fiscal year 2017, KY OSH is not meeting that standard… The audit was sharply critical, depicting an understaffed, under-resourced agency that's failing to protect Kentucky's workers. It also included a special study exclusively examining how Kentucky falls short at investigating deaths on-the-job." And people are dying as a result of it. Yes, the "no regulations" (typically phrased in "fewer" regulations, or "light" regulatory atmosphere) is about profit over the lives of workers and the general populace.
How's that promise of "moar jobs" doing? "General Motors Co said on Monday it will cut production of slow-selling models and slash its North American workforce in the face of a stagnant market for traditional gas-powered sedans, shifting more investment to electric and autonomous vehicles." What the article doesn't tell you is American automakers (the traditional Big 3) have let their offerings of smaller cars rot on the vine, which is one reason sales are down. Add that to the US consumers' traditionally short memory and the temporarily low gas prices all contribute to sales shifting to larger vehicles. Sort of like 2005-2007. (Grokked from Matt Staggs)
"U.S. President Donald Trump demanded General Motors Co add a new product to replace a plant in Ohio that the company said it planned to close next year due to lagging small-car demand." That and a ten-dollar bill might get you a cup of coffee.
"On Monday, GM kicked off plans to close five plants, including the Detroit factory that built the Chevy Volt and the Ohio factory that built the Chevy Cruze compact car. It will kill those cars, and a few others, after the assembly lines shut down.Thousands of American workers are likely to lose their jobs, from the factories that are closing and from the parts suppliers, transportation workers and the like whose jobs support the assembly plants… We know what that's like in this country. We've seen it before." The Volt was an amazing car and the technology was a good mix. However, just like other great cars (like the Saturns), GM let it rot on the vine. They did little to sell it, did little to keep it fresh, basically didn't do much after the launch.
"North American customers want SUVs, crossovers, hatchbacks and trucks. Sedans have fallen out of favor." Well, one, that's what the car companies advertise (because they make a lot of money). Two, I remember another time when the "car is dead." That was right before $4 gasoline. The American consumer is notoriously short sighted.
How go the Trade Wars? "Wisconsin dairy farmers barely hanging on as crisis deepens with no end in sight." (Grokked from Joy Reid)
"Russia's seizure of three Ukrainian naval vessels near Crimea is an 'outrageous violation of sovereign Ukrainian territory,' says U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley, calling it 'another reckless Russian escalation' in a deadly and years-long conflict." Ukraine declares Martial Law in the border provinces. But they know this president won't do anything.
"Kushner, in a bid to symbolically solidify the new alliance between the Trump administration and Saudi Arabia while claiming a victory on the president's first foreign trip to Riyadh, pushed State and Defense officials to inflate the figure with arms exchanges that were aspirational at best, the officials said. Secretary of Defense James Mattis supported Kushner's effort and ultimately endorsed the memorandum, according to a former NSC official familiar with the matter." Ah, fake news from the headquarters of fake news, the Trump family (aka the administration). This is the car salesman asking if you'd like tires on that new car you bought. (Grokked from Joy Reid)
"'The president's behavior towards me made me wonder, what did he have to gain by saying such a thing about a fellow Republican?' (Representative Mia) Love said. 'It was not really about asking him to do more, was it? Or was it something else? Well, Mr. President, we'll have to chat about that. However, this gave me a clear vision of his world as it is — no real relationships, just convenient transactions. That is an insufficient way to implement sincere service and policy.'…cLove then tore into Republicans for their treatment of minority voters before vigorously defending conservative policies as more beneficial to all Americans." But of course she wonders why minorities don't wake up and vote conservative.
"As incoming House Speaker Nancy Pelosi works to consolidate votes for her leadership bid, a group of largely centrist House Democrats have remained holdouts. Publicly, they’re pushing for tweaks to House rules once Democrats take over the chamber in January. But behind the scenes, a leading advocacy group that has helped organize this coalition of moderates has been itching to make life hell for Pelosi." Yes, the left has it's own power hungry jerks who only care for themselves. The good thing is they aren't the entirety of the party, or diving the agenda. (Grokked from Kathryn Cramer)
"A Republican who will soon step down as chairman of the U.S. House of Representatives tax committee late on Monday released a sweeping, nearly 300-page tax bill that he said would affect Americans’ retirement savings, numerous business tax breaks and redesign the Internal Revenue Service." One last "fuck you" to the American people.
"Manafort lied 'on a variety of subject matters,' violating his plea agreement, prosecutors said in a three-page filing signed by both the defense team and prosecution. Both sides ask the judge to now move his case toward sentencing." Someone's betting on a pardon. Either that or they really aren't as smart as I give them credit for. Or, as some people have mentioned, he's worried about a radium sandwich or slippery door knob (either himself or his family). (Grokked in a roundabout way from Jim Wright)
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