I don’t recall ever seeing this picture before.

Epic.

Buchholz High School student discovers and publis…

We need so much more of this in life….using our brains to unravel the universes mysteries instead of remembering the names of absurd celebrities

https://www.wuft.org/news/2022/02/18/buchholz-high-school-student-discovers-and-publishes-new-calculus-technique/


Short. Sweet. To the point. That's the beauty Dave's iPhone.

How do you like them apples?

Governor dimwitty here in Florida was hoping to see a disruption caused by the trucking convoy here in Florida because…yeah he didn't really give a reason.  

But it's funny. Because last year he signed into law an anti riot piece of legislation, most of which has been blocked by a federal judge. 

At the time…

DeSantis called it "the strongest anti-riot, pro-law enforcement legislation in the country." And it is. While other Southern states like Alabama have passed laws limiting where protests can be held, charging fees for cleanup costs, and paying local law enforcement, no law is as sweeping—or as potentially damning—as Florida's H.B.1. 

The new law also undermines the community's collective power. In direct opposition to rallying cries to defund police, DeSantis has new permissions to take control of city budgets to block attempts at reducing funding for law enforcement.

The law also redefines the term "riot," giving police the power to interpret what makes a gathering violent or dangerous: 

"A person who participates in a public disturbance involving an assembly of three or more persons acting with a common intent to mutually assist each other in disorderly and violent conduct resulting in injury or damage to another person or property, or creating a clear and present danger of injury or damage to another person or property." 

So I would assume that police could use the law to arrest the truckers? Or is it just "riots" that he, personally, is opposed to?

A little pessimism

People say they want for the pandemic to be over, and return to life as they knew it.

First off, we will have an endemic when nature decides it's ready. No amount of wishing will change that. But why haven't we invested into anything that may hasten that, short of a vaccine of course? We humans are ill prepared for much in spite of our intelligence and advances in technology.

Second, from where I sit, there is no way I (and I suspect many others) can return to what we had before.

My dad died. My boys went to college. We found out that sports is a big lie, and should be consumed only for entertainment. It's about money and nothing else. Disney has turned out to be about a cash grab. I'm happier at home watching movies on my schedule. I decided I really didn't care for restaurants anyway, and cook great things at home. People I thought were my friends moved, flaked out, or otherwise showed they're really not my friends (save a few of course). I'm older and closer to retirement, and don't have a passion for working - and anyway we went remote 100% and I'm just as happy with that. There's no office to return to, per se.

So any- and every- thing I had pre-pandemic is gone. I have nothing to return to. And in my seemingly-rewired brain, I feel different. Maybe anti-social to a point. I have no real interests. The things I enjoyed and enjoyed doing don't really exist anymore.

So for me it's a whole new normal. Different that pre-pandemic. Closer to pandemic. But not that, either.

Maybe we'll travel at some point. Maybe there's something in that?

See Trump Denialism Debunked By Astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson

Reading in 2022 with Levar Burton | The Daily Show

About that Russian skater

The Olympics are struggling in many ways. No spectators. All time low tv ratings. Athletes no longer being amateurs. Athletes crossing borders to seek their own fortune (thus subverting the idea of "international competition")

And of course countries putting pressure on the events in various ways.

Plus payoffs and scandals surrounding hosting (because there's big money to be made)

Including from Russia of course.

Russia has a huuuuuge doping scandal. So much so that they are not allowed to compete as Russia. They are the "Russian Olympic committee."

It pisses them off. Because they get caught.

There is much back and forth and legal wrangling.

And of course they don't stop doping - why would they? This is about money. About winning.

So a 15-year-old skater gets caught. It's not her fault! Maybe she tested positive because she drank from the same glass as her grandfather! You can't keep her from competing!

There're a lot of lawyers involved. No decisions. No idea what to do.

The Olympic committee, corrupt to the core, is trying to stay relevant. They can not win in any case. So why not sluff it off until after the games are over?

Because the alternatives are (1) that the rest of the world gets pissed and stops competing or (worse) people stop spending money. Or (2) Russia says they're not playing anymore and forms their own worldwide games.

In either case, there is a revenue issue Who makes money then?

This is 100% about money and power.
The Olympics are not about competition. Though certainly to some athletes it is.