"Walmart is recalling an essential-oil aromatherapy spray after a 'rare and dangerous bacteria' that can cause a potentially fatal condition was reported, the Consumer Product Safety Commission says. Officials are investigating four confirmed cases and there have been two deaths, including that of a child, associated with the bacteria, according to the agency."
"Last year Nigerian author Innocent Chizaram Ilo won one of the Commonwealth Short Story Prizes. However, receiving the prize money soon demonstrated to Ilo how excluded he was from banking in his country. He wrote a must-read column in the Guardian about the issues he faced in receiving the prize money and how red tape and other barriers exclude many people from accessing vital financial services." Jason Sanford with an important point. As a creative who makes a little more than pizza money and uses these pay system, JFC are they a PIA. I can't image the shit people in countries without a stable banking system (or solid connections to the world banking system) face.
"It's not a total surprise: NOAA announced earlier this month that La Niña conditions had already developed, with an 87% chance they would remain in place during that three-month period. Now it's forecasting wetter-than-average conditions across portions of the northern U.S., namely the Pacific Northwest, northern Rockies, Great Lakes, Ohio Valley and western Alaska." Already seeing it.
"If you hear one new thing today, how about making it the sound of wind on Mars?"
"State officials on Thursday defended their response to a lead crisis in a small southwestern Michigan city, telling lawmakers that steps to reduce corrosion in aging water pipes began in 2019, just a few months after tests revealed troubling results… Benton Harbor residents will be urged to use free bottled water for drinking and cooking for weeks more, until a federal study confirms that filters can work effectively with the city's tap water, Liesl Clark, the head of Michigan's environmental agency, said."
In the UK "Supermarkets are using cardboard cutouts of fruit, vegetables and other groceries to fill gaps on shelves because supply problems combined with a shift towards smaller product ranges mean many stores are now too big… Tesco has begun using pictures of asparagus, carrots, oranges and grapes in its fresh produce aisles, prompting ridicule on social media."
"The U.S. budget deficit totaled $2.77 trillion for 2021, the second highest on record but an improvement from the all-time high of $3.13 trillion reached in 2020. The deficits in both years reflect trillions of dollars in government spending to counteract the devastating effects of a global pandemic."
"Safety issues plagued the set of Rust in the days leading up to the fatal accident, according to new reports. On Thursday, Alec Baldwin shot and killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, 42, on set of the Western indie. Director Joel Souza, 48, was hospitalized but has since been released. The Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office is investigating the shooting, which occurred 'during the filming of a scene.'… Both outlets report that the film's camera crew walked off the set in protest of their working conditions before the accident."
"Going into their second week of sit-ins, students at Howard University in Washington, D.C., are continuing to fight for answers from the campus administration as they protest the school's poor housing conditions… A top Howard official says the school has worked with student leaders to 'provide a best-in-class university experience'"
"There’s an absolutely bonkers flame war going on in the dark web right now. It’s nuts, but American companies and government agencies might want to pay attention. Because (likely) Russian hackers are venting rage against the US and vowing revenge." Stay safe, my Russian friends.
"California’s cannabis market is booming nearly five years after voters legalized recreational weed. But there’s a catch: the vast majority of pot sales are still underground… Rather than make cannabis a Main Street fixture, California’s strict regulations have led most industry operators to close shop, flee the state or sell in the state’s illegal market that approaches $8 billion annually, twice the volume of legal sales."
"The Border Patrol recorded nearly 1.7 million migrant apprehensions at the southern border over the past year — the highest number ever, eclipsing the record set more than two decades ago… But that doesn't mean it's the biggest number of individual migrants who've illegally crossed from Mexico into the U.S. in a single year… In fact, it's probably not even close." The more attempts, the more the CBP can justify spending, the more power it can accumulate.
"Have you been wondering exactly what it means to Build Back Better? On this week’s On the Media, hear why political coverage seems to address everything about Joe Biden’s bill--except what’s in it. Plus, find out if social media really does turn nice people into trolls."
"The White House on Friday signaled Democrats are closer to securing a deal on legislation that would enact the administration's social safety net agenda after President Joe Biden met with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer earlier in the day."
"Joe Biden has given the strongest indication yet that he is willing to end or whittle down the Senate filibuster as a means of overcoming Republican intransigence and moving ahead with reforms to voting rights, the debt ceiling and possibly more." Call me when it happens.
"By the time Facebook banned the first Stop the Steal group on Nov. 5 for falsely casting doubt on the legitimacy of the election and calling for violence, the group had already mushroomed to more than 360,000 members. Every hour, tens of thousands of people were joining… Facebook removed the group from its platform. But that only sent Stop the Steal loyalists to other groups on Facebook filled with misinformation and claims the election was stolen. It was a classic game of whack-a-mole that Facebook tried but failed to stay on top of. Droves of Trump fans and right-wing conspiracists had outwitted the world's largest social network." You can't outwit someone who is actually trying to help you. The best way to stop these movement is to curate a culture that doesn't allow them to thrive. Facebook is the exact opposite. The platform is built around "engagement" (to help form more valid profiles they can sell for a higher price). The whole system is designed to amplify emotions and draw people into self-minded groups (that marketers can profile and Facebook can sell advertising to).
"Appearing on MSNBC's the 11th Hour with host Brian Williams, former GOP campaign consultant Steve Schmidt warned that Democrats need to accept that the Republican Party has changed drastically after four years of Donald Trump and the Jan 6th riot -- and failure to recognize that simple fact puts the entire country at risk." So the fault with the Republican party becoming more fascist and authoritarian lies with :: checks notes here :: the Democrats? Listen, buddy, you fix the problem you created and stop wanting other to fix things for you (like Democrats have done since Nixon).
"A former politician who called for the overthrow of the French government has been charged with terrorism in connection with what authorities have said was an extreme-right plot to attack vaccination centers, a masonic lodge and other targets."
"The quick growth happened despite legal problems faced by some prominent People’s Rights leaders, and continued even as some of the organization’s Facebook groups were removed from the social media platform. The organization has grown by roughly 53% in the past year in large part because of continued anti-public health sentiment, according to the report."
"An Arizona political commentator charged in the US Capitol riot spoke at a small right-wing rally in Phoenix last month that was attended by over a dozen Proud Boys, even though a federal judge had ordered him not to associate with any members of the extremist group." Sounds like someone shouldn't deserve pre-trial release.
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