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Saturday, August 12, 2017

Oh How I Miss President Obama!

http://deadline.com/2017/08/barack-obama-nelson-mandela-quote-donald-trump-potus-charlottesville-twitter-alt-right-racist-1202147755/

The United States of Amnesia

An excerpt from the NY Times -

Charlottesville and the Bigotocracy
By Michael Eric Dyson

The late, great Gore Vidal said that we live in “The United States of Amnesia.” Our fatal forgetfulness flares when white bigots come out of their closets, emboldened by the tacit cover they’re given by our president. We cannot pretend that the ugly bigotry unleashed in the streets of Charlottesville, Va., this weekend has nothing to do with the election of Donald Trump.

In attendance was white separatist David Duke, who declared that the alt-right unity fiasco “fulfills the promises of Donald Trump.” In the meantime, Mr. Trump responded by offering false equivalencies between white bigots and their protesters. His soft denunciations of hate ring hollow when he has white nationalist advisers like Steve Bannon and Stephen Miller whispering in his ear.

Such an ungainly assembly of white supremacists rides herd on political memory. Their resentment of the removal of public symbols of the Confederate past — the genesis of this weekend’s rally — is fueled by revisionist history. They fancy themselves the victims of the so-called politically correct assault on American democracy, a false narrative that helped propel Mr. Trump to victory. Each feeds on the same demented lies about race and justice that corrupt true democracy and erode real liberty. Together they constitute the repulsive resurgence of a virulent bigotocracy.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/12/opinion/charlottesville-and-the-bigotocracy.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=opinion-c-col-left-region&region=opinion-c-col-left-region&WT.nav=opinion-c-col-left-region

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What He Should Have Said

An excerpt from the Washington Post -

What a presidential president would have said about Charlottesville
By the Editorial Board

HERE IS what President Trump said Saturday about the violence in Charlottesville sparked by a demonstration of white nationalists, neo-Nazis and Ku Klux Klan members:

We condemn in the strongest possible terms this egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence on many sides. On many sides.

Here is what a presidential president would have said:

“The violence Friday and Saturday in Charlottesville, Va., is a tragedy and an unacceptable, impermissible assault on American values. It is an assault, specifically, on the ideals we cherish most in a pluralistic democracy — tolerance, peaceable coexistence and diversity.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/what-a-presidential-president-would-have-said-about-charlottesville/2017/08/12/9f1ffec6-7fa4-11e7-9d08-b79f191668ed_story.html?hpid=hp_no-name_opinion-card-c%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&utm_term=.cf3802db612c

AMEOW-ZING 50 Box Cat Maze!

The racist history of US immigration policy

Fly Me to The Moon (Solo Jazz Guitar)

How Crayons are Made

Shanghai's newest building is constantly moving

Combustion Engine - RIP

An excerpt form the Economist -

The death of the internal combustion engine
It had a good run. But the end is in sight for the machine that changed the world

The shift from fuel and pistons to batteries and electric motors is unlikely to take that long. The first death rattles of the internal combustion engine are already reverberating around the world—and many of the consequences will be welcome.


To gauge what lies ahead, think how the internal combustion engine has shaped modern life. The rich world was rebuilt for motor vehicles, with huge investments in road networks and the invention of suburbia, along with shopping malls and drive-through restaurants. Roughly 85% of American workers commute by car. Carmaking was also a generator of economic development and the expansion of the middle class, in post-war America and elsewhere. There are now about 1bn cars on the road, almost all powered by fossil fuels. Though most of them sit idle, America’s car and lorry engines can produce ten times as much energy as its power stations. The internal combustion engine is the mightiest motor in history.

https://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21726071-it-had-good-run-end-sight-machine-changed-world-death?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter_axiosam&stream=top-stories

Monk Life

An excerpt from the LA Times -

For the monks of Big Sur, the bonds of brotherhood grow after Highway 1 closure
By Elijah Hurwitz

Life for the monks at New Camaldoli Hermitage in Big Sur is by definition an exercise in isolation, but recent months forced that isolation to new levels. In February the monastery was effectively cut off from its normal stream of visitors and guests after winter rain storms dubbed "atmospheric rivers" pounded the California coastline, damaging Highway 1 and nearby access roads. Several monks and staff decided to ride out the isolation, enduring multiple health crises and two deaths as they persisted in their devoted, austere lifestyles in this remote mountain community. After six months, the Hermitage began accepting guests again this month.

http://www.latimes.com/visuals/framework/la-me-fw-big-sur-monks-unfurled-20170811-htmlstory.html#nws=mcnewsletter

Fascinating Traffic Data

From the Washington Post -

https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2017/national/escape-time/?hpid=hp_hp-top-table-main_rush-hour-340pm%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&utm_term=.24bff068b259#nws=mcnewsletter

Poop-Powered

An excerpt from KQED -

Poop-Powered Electric Feed Truck Debuts at Northern California Creamery
By Tiffany Camhi

One of the first things that you pass on the dirt road to Straus Family Creamery in Northern California is a pond. It has a white tarp over it, and you don’t want to get too close because the tarp is collecting methane gas — gas produced by the poop from the ranch’s nearly 300 cows.

“The cows’ waste is collected. It goes through our methane digester that produces methane gas,” says Albert Straus, founder and CEO of the creamery, located in the Marin County town of Marshall.

Then the methane is used as the fuel for a generator that produces electricity for the entire farm.

https://ww2.kqed.org/news/2017/08/11/poop-powered-electric-feed-truck-debuts-at-northern-california-creamery/

Friday, August 11, 2017

Too many people in their 20s make the same mistake when they take a new job

Lagoons Among Dunes: Brazil’s Disappearing Desert Oases

In Honor of the 44th Anniversary of Hip-Hop

Check out this interactive Google Doodle.

https://www.google.com

Talent Runs in This Family

An excerpt from the Hollywood Reporter -

How Donald Glover's Brother Went From Chemical Engineering to 'Atlanta's' Lead Writer
by Lacey Rose

Stephen Glover may not be as well-known as his older brother (yet!), but he's the sole credited scribe on nearly half of the FX series' Emmy-nominated first season — and he'll co-create the network's upcoming 'Deadpool' series.

As you enter Stephen Glover's apartment, your eyes can't help but settle on a cluttered corner to the right of the door. Mixed in with several pairs of shoes, some booze, a few pieces of musical equipment, a stack of papers, a framed poster from Atlanta's first season and a slice or two of day-old pizza sits a pair of Golden Globe statues and a collection of Writers Guild awards. Somewhere else in the Hollywood apartment, which he shares with his buddy Swank, also a writer on Atlanta, is the AFI award the show earned in January. And come mid-September, an Emmy or two could join the collection.

"It's all just so crazy," says Stephen, 29, who had never written an episode of TV before Donald enlisted him to join the staff. "I'm sure people thought, 'You're bringing on your friends and your brother? This is a train wreck ready to happen.' "

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/how-donald-glovers-brother-went-chemical-engineering-atlantas-lead-writer-1027637

I Agree. Stand Up For Kaepernick.

An excerpt form Salon -

Boycott the NFL: Athletes and fans need to stand up for Colin Kaepernick now
I love football, but I won't support a hypocritical corporation that punishes peaceful protest
D. WATKINS

This is the first year that I can honestly say that I’m not excited about the upcoming NFL season. I won’t watch it, support it or pay any attention to it. It’s not that I lost interest in the sport. I love football. But the NFL has been going above and beyond to show how racist they are as an organization. As if the dearth of minority owners and small number of black coaches — not to mention having a team called the Redskins — isn’t bad enough, Colin Kaepernick still doesn’t have a job.

He didn’t murder dogs like Michael Vick, who was able to be reinstated and has also criticized Kaepernick by saying “first thing we’ve got to get Colin to do is cut his hair.” Kap’s hair doesn’t matter; he has a better rating (QBR) than 20 starting quarterbacks currently preparing for the 2017-2018 season. Kaepernick was also never involved in a murder like Ray Lewis, who also criticized him by hopping on Undisputed and saying that he disagreed with Kap’s silent, peaceful protest. Kaepernick stood up against our racist law enforcement and criminal justice systems by taking a knee during the National Anthem — along with donating a million dollars to various charities — and he’s paying the ultimate price.

http://www.salon.com/2017/08/11/boycott-the-nfl-athletes-and-fans-need-to-stand-up-for-colin-kaepernick-now/?source=newsletter