Linkee-poo Friday Oct 1

Sorry, this has been a rough week.

"Disney World, the largest theme park in the world, welcomed its first guests on Oct. 1, 1971. Over the next five decades the park — which covers more than 40 square miles in central Florida — grew into an entertainment complex that includes four theme parks, two waterparks, golf courses, a shopping destination and 27 resort hotels." Disney World was always a mythical place for someone of my generation, and it took until I was over 50 to finally be able to go see it.

"Experts with the university who analyzed the (Vinland Map) for authenticity found throughout it the presence of a 'titanium compound' that was not used in ink until the 1920s, according to Yale News. Researchers also pointed to an inscription in Latin on the back of the map as evidence that someone intentionally tried to make the map look as genuine as possible."

"Warming oceans cause fewer bright clouds to reflect sunlight into space, admitting even more energy into earth’s climate system… Warming ocean waters have caused a drop in the brightness of the Earth, according to a new study… Researchers used decades of measurements of earthshine — the light reflected from Earth that illuminates the surface of the Moon — as well as satellite measurements to find that there has been a significant drop in Earth’s reflectance, or albedo, over the past two decades." We're boned.

"Researchers for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have dispatched a surface drone inside Hurricane Sam as it barrels toward the Caribbean, giving scientists a new perspective of what it's like inside such a storm… The video and images shared were the first of their kind gathered by an "uncrewed surface vehicle" from inside a major hurricane as it moved across the Atlantic Ocean."

"A teenager running a two-mile race suffered a broken collarbone after being knocked over by a deer."

"Nurses and other staff at a hospital in Missouri have experienced such a surge in assaults from patients that they will have a panic button system installed on their badges allowing them to alert hospital security more easily if they are in danger."

"Domestic flyers within the United States may soon need to prove they're likely COVID-free if a proposed bill Wednesday becomes law… The U.S. Air Travel Public Safety Act, introduced by California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, would require all U.S. passengers to be fully vaccinated, fully recovered or test negative for the coronavirus before boarding a domestic flight." Cue right-wing freak out in 3… 2… 1…

"Drugmaker Merck said Friday that its experimental COVID-19 pill reduced hospitalizations and deaths by half in people recently infected with the coronavirus, potentially a leap forward in the global fight against the pandemic."

Why we can't have nice things… "Hours after the Supreme Court in 2012 narrowly upheld the Affordable Care Act but rejected making Medicaid expansion mandatory for states, Obama administration officials laughed when asked whether that would pose a problem… In a White House briefing, top advisers to President Barack Obama told reporters states would be foolish to turn away billions in federal funding to help residents gain the security of health insurance."

"After eight years of planning and billions of dollars in spending, the Middle East’s first world’s fair opened Friday in Dubai, with hopes that the months-long extravaganza will draw both visitors and global attention to this desert-turned-dreamscape."

"The governors of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin are joining forces to build a new network for charging electric vehicles. The bipartisan plan aims to improve the region's economy while also reducing toxic emissions from cars and trucks… The new plan is called REV Midwest — the Regional Electric Vehicle Midwest Coalition. In addition to creating jobs and improving public health, its backers say it will help the Midwest compete for both private investment and federal funding."

"The U.S. Commerce Department reported Friday that prices rose 4.3% in August from a year earlier. While only lightly higher than the previous month, it was still the largest annual increase since 1990. Energy costs have jumped nearly 25% in the past year, while supply backlogs have pushed up prices for cars, furniture, and appliances."

FOMO in business… "But Wall Street holds fast to tradition. It's an intensely competitive industry where advising on a single deal, or helping to take a company public, can bring in tens of millions of dollars in fees. And nobody wants to lose out to a competitor who proved their mettle by making the trek when others phoned it in." All macho, empty hat.

"The Institute for Supply Management, a trade group of purchasing managers, said Friday that its index of manufacturing activity rose to a reading of 61.1 percent in September, 1.2 percentage points above the August level of 59.9 percent."

Frontline's documentary, The Power of the Fed… "When COVID struck, the Federal Reserve stepped in to try to avert economic crisis. As the country’s central bank continues to pump billions of dollars into the financial system daily, who is benefitting and at what cost?"

"Scarlett Johansson and the Walt Disney Co. on Thursday settled her lawsuit over the streaming release of "Black Widow," bringing a swift end to what had begun as the first major fight between a studio and star over recent changes in rollout plans for films."

"While federal whistleblower protections can provide a shield when a current or former employee cooperates with regulators or lawmakers to expose wrongdoing or a cover up, obtaining confidential corporate records and sharing them with the press is legally precarious, potentially opening the individual up to legal action from Facebook, according to three whistleblower lawyers who spoke to NPR."

"Toy-makers are warning of emptier shelves and pricier toys this holiday season. Their supplies are ensnarled in an unprecedented shipping crisis — floating traffic jams of container ships wallowing near key U.S. ports." The Year Without a Santa Claus. OMG, it'll be the Furby Craze all over again.

"Alex Jones, the conspiracy theorist who hosts the right-wing commentary website Infowars, was found legally responsible in two lawsuits for damages caused by his claims surrounding the 2012 Sandy Hook school mass shooting, according to court documents released Thursday… Judge Maya Guerra Gamble issued default judgments on Monday against Jones and his outlet for not complying with court orders to provide information for the lawsuits brought against him by the parents of two children killed in the shooting."

"Federal prosecutors in Maryland are recommending 25-year prison sentences for two neo-Nazi group members, calling them domestic terrorists who prepared for a civil war, discussed how to break racist mass killer Dylann Roof out of death row and talked about assassinating a Virginia lawmaker."

"London's Metropolitan Police has issued advice to women approached by lone police officers in the wake of Sarah Everard's murder, including telling them to run 'into a house,' 'wave down a bus' or call the police on 999 if they do not believe the officer is 'who they say they are' after questioning them." Okay, first of all, her attacker was an actual police officer. Two, aren't you telling us we should obey police officers or risk being injured? And three, how about you fucking clean house first. Seriously, this is victim blaming of the worst sort.

"Belarus' most prominent human rights group said Friday that some 100 people have been detained in the wake of a shootout that left an opposition supporter and a security officer dead."

"The Biden administration has unveiled new guidelines for federal immigration enforcement that prioritize the most urgent threats to public safety, while still leaving discretion in the hands of individual officers and agents."

"A group representing school board members around the country asked President Joe Biden on Thursday for federal assistance to investigate and stop threats made over policies including mask mandates, likening the vitriol to a form of domestic terrorism." Whackaloon quotient goes up.

"Embattled student loan servicer Navient announced this week that it is getting out of the federal student loan business, pending government approval… If it gets the authorization, about 6 million loan borrowers will be sending their monthly payments to a new servicer. Navient plans to transfer those loans to Maximus, a company that already contracts with the Department of Education to service student loans in default."

Also… "Next week, according to a source familiar with the plans but who is not authorized to discuss them publicly, the U.S. Department of Education will unveil a significant overhaul of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program, which has been a magnet of confusion, mistakes and mismanagement since its inception in 2007."

"In most regards, Moscow, Idaho, is the embodiment of the bucolic college town: tree-covered neighborhoods, quiet streets, quaint shops downtown, and a pretty University of Idaho college campus. But for people who live there, the insidious presence of Pastor Doug Wilson’s cult-like Christ Church—not at all obvious on the surface, but cumulatively overwhelming at times—can make life on the Palouse surreal, even nightmarish… Moreover, as a deep profile by Sarah Stankorb at Vice reveals, Wilson’s domineering evangelical church—which buys up property and businesses throughout the Latah County community and bullies both members and non-members who question either his edicts or his far-right theology—is built on a fundamentally misogynist worldview that permits male members to rape their wives, and threatens any women who object." Wackaloon quotient goes up. (Grokked from Xopher Halftongue)

"When embedded in military guns, RFID tags can trim hours off time-intensive tasks, such as weapon counts and distribution. Outside the armory, however, the same silent, invisible signals that help automate inventory checks could become an unwanted tracking beacon." Contrary thought, I could flood the field with RFI tags or use them to psych an opponent out ("It's a brigade" when it's just a guy in a jeep).

"President Biden has signed a short-term funding bill, avoiding a partial government shutdown that would have begun at midnight… The Senate and House sprinted Thursday afternoon to pass the legislation, which will keep the government funded through Dec. 3." And in early December they will punt again to Christmas.

"Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito launched a litany of acerbic barbs at critics of the Supreme Court's so-called shadow docket on Thursday… Noting that the term was coined in a 2015 law review article, Alito said that the term has been adopted by 'journalists and some political figures' in order to convey the idea that 'something sneaky and dangerous' is going on at the high court when it rules on emergency appeals seeking the court's intervention." The conservative justices on SCOTUS are upset about being called out.

"Rarely have so many justices uttered such provocative, off-the-bench comments at the same time. Some are at cross purposes, but they all highlight the potential for declining confidence in America's highest court. Public opinion polls and new congressional scrutiny reinforce a possible new threat to the court's reputation and legitimacy."