Morning Update: 04/08/24

Morning Update: 04/08/24

April 8, 2024

Create Your Own Reality [recovered and modified from 2004 original]

ECLIPSE DAY!

This is it! The most anticipated/dreaded day of the year (so far)! The sun was reflecting brightly off the back of the turn three grandstands at IMS as I took the dogs out this morning. There are signs of some high clouds back to the southwest, but meteorologists are promising that it won’t dramatically reduce viewing abilities. We have our glasses ready. The only issue now is staying awake. Full totality hits right smack in the middle of what is normally my nap time. I’ll have to take an earlier nap if I’m going to see anything. In fact, I’m not sure anyone slept all that well last night, so it may mean mid-morning naps for everyone!

IMS is having a big eclipse viewing party. Honestly, I don’t see much difference between viewing the eclipse from the infield versus our backyard other than I’m not going to charge anyone to stand out here and look at the sky. I really don’t see the point. The sun is going to look exactly the same here as it does 300 yards from here. What remains to be seen is the degree to which the event messes up local traffic. People around here don’t typically drive with a lot of common sense anyway, so there’s a reasonable chance of vehicular disaster.

On the upside, today’s high temperature is supposed to be 74 degrees Fahrenheit.

Yesterday was significantly less exciting. The sun shone for a while, then it rained, then the sun was back out. I napped while it rained so that the accompanying pain could be ignored. The kids did kid stuff. G tends to be particularly loud when playing on the VR headset, but that may be part of its “charm” for now.

One particularly frustrating moment came when a friend tried to help out financially. They sent a bit of $ via Zelle, which goes directly into our bank account. Since the account is overdrawn (because of automatic deductions), their gift reduced the deficit, which is greatly appreciated, but did not fulfill their desire to help us with food. We’re still negative by a little over $40. Until that is paid, we’re just stuck.

Who all is trying to “like” posts but can’t? I understand that’s being a problem for some people. I’ll look into it and see if that’s something I can address.

Also, is anyone here genuinely offended by nudity? There’s going to be some in my next post as I’m about to go off on Internet trolls and those who make headlines of their actions. Keep watch as I won’t be able to post a direct link to that on FB. 🙄

Be careful out there this afternoon! Don’t be as stupid as a certain former president and try looking at the eclipse without protection.

Current Issues / News & Comment / Photography / Politics / Social Commentary

Taking Pictures That Offend

April 7, 2024

Being Silly [recovered from 2004 original]

Almost everyone has taken a photo they wished later hadn’t happened. Maybe it was on a drunken spree with friends, or a vacation where it didn’t seem to matter. Perhaps you were caught making a funny face as you sneezed. There are a lot of embarrassing pictures floating around all over the Internet. We tend to laugh at them and move on.

Other pictures might have seemed okay when they were taken but didn’t age well. For example, those intimate pictures of you and your spouse felt loving and romantic when you took them. The day after the divorce is finalized, though, the pictures feel offensive. I’ve gotten take-down requests for such pictures multiple times over the years and, most of the time, I reluctantly oblige.

Life isn’t so simple for a photojournalist, however. They don’t have time to “set up” a shot. They don’t get to choose better-looking “models.” They don’t get to wait until the light is better, and they never have a full crew hanging around to make sure everyone looks their best. Photojournalists take the shot that’s in front of them. That’s all. They don’t run the subject past an editor first. They don’t have time to get permission from everyone involved. The moment happens, you take the shot. That’s the job.

Such appears to have been the case on October 7 last year when amateur photojournalist Ali Mahmud took a picture that won the Reynolds Journalism Institute at the Missouri School of Journalism‘s Photo of the Year. Nikon and the Associated Press jointly sponsor the award. In the midst of Hamas’ attack on a music festival being held in Israel, Mahmud snapped a photo that includes an image of the corpse of a German-Israeli citizen killed by Hamas terrorists. The image’s content is horrible, frightening, and offensive. However, the photographic quality is on point. The image provokes emotions and captures the reality of war. War is not pretty.

Plenty of people are upset that Mahmud won the award. They claim the photo dishonors the memory of the young woman killed. Some are protesting both the school and the sponsors of the award. Their opinion is that he is taking advantage of a person who was killed in this act of war.

Director of Photojournalism at the Missouri School of Journalism’s Reynolds Journalism Institute, Lynden Steele defends the decision: “The Reynolds Journalism Institute and Pictures of the Year strongly condemn the Hamas attack on October 7, and we continue to mourn the loss of innocent lives and human suffering that is occurring in the ongoing conflict. Reactions to the team Picture Story of the Year express the greater emotions related to that conflict. This year and every year, the photos in the competition are selected by a panel of professional journalists tasked with identifying compelling representations of the significant news events of the year. While we understand the reactions to the pictures, we also believe that photojournalism plays an important role in bringing attention to the harsh realities of war.”

Now, to be fair, there is some reasonable concern that Mahmud and those he was with (including a videographer) may have only been in the position to capture the photo because they had advance knowledge of the attacks. If they did have advance knowledge of the attacks, they had a responsibility to report those attacks. There’s not a lot of question on that matter. However, Mahmud denies having any such knowledge. He was just there, part of the crowd, as these horrible things happened in front of him.

Here’s the thing: war is offensive. From its start until its final cease-fire, there is nothing about war that is acceptable. To illustrate war with benign images of explosions from high above, pictures of warplanes flying in the sky, or even soldiers hiding safely behind a wall, is immoral because it removes the danger, the disregard for life, the utter destruction, and the gut-wrenching reality of war’s horrors. There is no way to adequately, honestly, sufficiently capture war without showing crushed, broken, bombed, shot, hung, and dishonored naked bodies of innocent people who didn’t ask to be involved in the conflict.

We don’t want photos of war that are so watered down that we can’t see the war. We need to be offended by war lest we accept it as a normal part of life. We need to be angry about those who initiate and those who perpetuate war. We need to be disturbed that there are people among us who find these detestable conditions acceptable. Anything less is immoral and makes us accessories after the fact to the murder and destruction taking place.

Yes, the photo makes my stomach turn. No, the young woman didn’t deserve what happened to her. Yes, this is a photo we need. We need to see what really happened. Words are not enough. We need the photo and it deserves the award.

No, I’m not going to show it to you.

Cancer Update / Current Issues / Morning Update / Personal / Status

Morning Update: 04/07/24

April 7, 2024

Tipper, responding to Hamilton prancing eagerly in the hallway, waiting to go outside: “Maybe we should check Hammy for ADHD, he’s so hyper.”

Me: “Should I check him for autism as well?”

Tipper: “Maybe, but it’s definitely not the smart kind of autism.” 🤣

This morning’s update is not chronological because that’s not the way my brain is working at the moment.

Yesterday was beautiful. The kids mowed the lawn. The dogs ran laps around the house. Neighbors made too much noise. The kids mowing the lawn was kind of a big deal because I wasn’t out there with them as I’ve been in previous years. The lawn is too uneven and I have too much trouble standing up. They’re 14 (almost) and 15 this summer, so realistically there’s no reason they shouldn’t be able to handle the lawn by themselves. Still, it’s difficult to let go and let them be unsupervised. I stayed awake well past my nap time just to make sure they were safe, then passed out until after 6:00.

I fixed fish cakes for dinner with the leftover cod from Thursday night, but it still wasn’t much better than the original disaster. Both kids ate it this time, but I’m pretty sure that was more due to hunger than enjoyment. I need to up my game a bit.

The upside to the nicer weather is that there hasn’t been as much pain. I was able to actually rest last night. Today should be similar, but tomorrow, when the much-anticipated eclipse occurs, is still questionable. The National Weather Service is saying we’ll probably have high clouds but that they shouldn’t interfere with viewing the eclipse.

Just for the record: there is a total eclipse approximately every 18 months. They’re not new. They’re not even all that unique. The area of totally just happens to pass right over the middle of the US this time around. NOT the end of the world. NOT a sign from god. NOT a reason for anyone to behave more stupidly than normal. This is just science doing its thing.

Tipper just announced that this morning’s rice is done. I’m going to go eat. Wasn’t this an exciting experience? I’ll write more later. PLEASE, read.

Current Issues / News & Comment / science

Unintended Consequences From Reduced Pollution

April 6, 2024

The world, especially the northern hemisphere, has been consumed with reducing pollution for over 50 years. Compare the skylines of major cities today with those of 50 years ago and you’ll see a startling difference. A lot of effort has been put into reducing the smog and belching smoke that covered our skies as the post-WWII industrial boom built an economy on manufacturing. Now, our manufacturing is cleaner, and our skies are bluer. You might think that this is a good thing.

Not so fast there, slim. A study published this last Wednesday (April 3), tells us that those cleaner skies contribute to global warming. The multi-authored paper, “Recent reductions in aerosol emissions have increased Earth’s energy imbalance, “calculates that cleaner air could account for 40% of the increased energy warming the planet between 2001 and 2019.” Stop and think about that: FORTY PERCENT. That almost sounds like something we might expect from a conspiracy theory nut. Nope. This is 100% science.

To some extent, this isn’t new news. We’ve known for a while that less pollution has an impact on warming. Pollutants reflect more light into space and increase the number of droplets in clouds, causing them to grow brighter or last longer. That has the net effect of keeping solar energy out of the atmosphere. Kill the pollutants and the solar energy increases. What this new study shows, however, is a significant impact much larger than scientists had expected.

Falling pollution levels aren’t the only factor, though. Pollution has fallen primarily in the northern hemisphere because, duh, that’s where the majority of manufacturing takes place. However, the increase in warming is the same across the planet, including the southern hemisphere where there never was a severe pollution problem. How do we explain this?

The answer reveals a cause-and-effect type of situation. As the planet has grown warmer, snow and ice have melted leaving dark land masses in their place that absorb more light. At the same time, warming also causes low clouds over large bodies of water to dissipate. That blue ocean is a dark blue that, you guessed it, absorbs more heat. This is why we’ve been seeing more active hurricane activity in recent years.

How do we solve this problem? The paper doesn’t say. What it does say is that it takes a long time to see the effect of pollution reduction, decades in fact. We may not yet realize the full impact. Making matters more challenging is that some of the tools used to measure the aerosols are going offline before new ones are in place. There will be years where no one has a clue how much change is taking place, only the knowledge that it’s happening.

No, this isn’t going to cause the world to end any fast. You still have roughly five billion years for that, give or take a century. However, you might want to check the SPF on your sunscreen going forward.

Current Issues / Natural Light / News & Comment / pop culture

Lose Weight, Have A Baby

April 6, 2024

Here is an interesting if not somewhat disturbing statistic: Among married women ages 15-49 years who haven’t had a baby before (live birth), roughly 1 in 5 are unable to conceive after a year of trying. While I’m tempted to ask who the fuck is marrying 15-year-olds and getting them pregnant, the greater issue is the rate of infertility. There are plenty of reasons why infertility rates are increasing, what’s interesting is the odd place from which some surprising relief is coming: Ozempic.

To be specific, it doesn’t necessarily need to be the brand-name drug. Any GLP-1 Agonists seems to do the trick, but Ozempic has the advantage of name recognition and is popular for another reason other than its popular intent: losing weight. GLP-1 Agonists were originally designed as anti-diabetic drugs specifically treating Type II diabetics. Even now, the clinical requirements for prescribing a GLP-1 Agonist start with diagnosed Type II diabetes. The idea is that GLP-1 Agonists are a backup medication when Metformin and other standard diabetes medications haven’t worked, leaving one with an A1c over 6.5. The list of GLP-1 Agonists includes:

Dulaglutide (TRULICITY)
Exenatide (BYETTA)
Exenatide Extended Release.
(BYDUREON BCISE)
Liraglutide (VICTOZA)
Lixisenatide (ADLYXIN)
Semaglutide subcutaneous.
(OZEMPIC)

A couple of years ago, however, it was noticed that the use of Ozempic and similar drugs resulted in significant weight loss in a number of patients. Who doesn’t like the idea of taking a shot to lose weight? It certainly beats the hell out of dieting and sweaty exercise. The FDA approved the use of the drug for weight loss in 2021 and the number of prescriptions has skyrocketed to over nine million, driving prices up.

Drug maker Novo Nordisk isn’t complaining.

Now, it seems a second off-brand benefit is coming to the forefront: pregnancy, even among women previously diagnosed with infertility. While studies of this effect are still too new to consider a universal response to the challenge of having babies, the research is promising.

The reason for this increase in unplanned pregnancies is that the medications slow down the process by which the stomach empties, changing how food and medications are absorbed. The result is that oral contraceptives are rendered practically useless. If you don’t want to get pregnant, you may need to talk to your doctor about non-oral options.

The effect on infertile women is still too recent to be certain but seems to be connected to weight loss. Even modest (less than 5%) weight loss can increase metabolic health, allowing conception to occur. Many patients with high BMI do not ovulate, some have polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), and many just don’t ovulate regularly. With the drug-induced weight loss, regular menses and normal levels of fertility return.

While this is far from being a cure-all, this could be good news for women who have struggled to become pregnant.

Of course, the opposite is true for women who do not want to be pregnant.

Either way, if you are using Ozempic or any of the related drugs and become pregnant, you need to contact your doctor immediately. Your body is not playing a joke on you. There are serious risks to taking the drug while pregnant. Not nearly enough studies have been done to give doctors a solid plan of action for treating pregnancy under these conditions. This new phenomenon can dash hopes just as quickly as it raises them.

Still, if you’re taking Ozempic and think that you may be pregnant, don’t be surprised if you’re correct. Call your doctor. Now.

Art / Current Issues / science / Social Commentary

Have Sex, Avoid Alzheimer’s? Well, Maybe

April 5, 2024

My paternal Grandfather died of Alzheimer’s disease before it had that name. He was 82 and the last five years of his life were among the most horrible I’ve witnessed. Last year, my Uncle Joe also died of complications from Alzheimer’s. He was 89 and had been much healthier than Granddaddy, but the last few years of his life weren’t any walk in the park, either. Poppa was 72 when cancer took him, so we don’t know if there were signs of Alzheimer’s in his future or not; there were other medical priorities. Still, it seems obvious that Alzheimer’s runs in the family. Therefore, it makes sense to take reasonable precautions against it.

A Washington Post article from February of this year came across my feed this week with an interesting premise: Viagra may reduce the frequency of Alzheimer’s disease in men over the age of 50. Researchers at University College London studied 270,000 men over the age of 40 between 2000 and 2017. All had been diagnosed with erectile dysfunction. During the study, 1,119 of the men were diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. A pattern was noticed: The men who were prescribed Viagra or a similar drug had an 18 percent lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease, compared with men who weren’t given the medication.

But wait, there’s more: “The researchers also found an even larger difference in men who appeared to use Viagra more often. Among the highest users, based on total prescriptions, the risk of being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s was 44 percent lower.”

So, to be perfectly clear, the study appears to indicate that, if you have erectile dysfunction and take Viagra, and have sex regularly, you may reduce the chance of getting Alzheimer’s by as much as 44 percent.

Maybe. The study shows an association between Alzheimer’s and Viagra use; it does not show cause and effect. Men who have erectile dysfunction and are prescribed Viagra are told that a) if you take the pill, you need to have sex, and b) don’t take more than one pill a day. To have sex with the level of frequency that might result in a significantly lower risk factor for Alzheimer’s requires a pretty decent amount of physical activity. Physical activity has a higher association with lowering the risks for Alzheimer’s. Therefore, it may be that running around the block each morning helps just as much as having sex, though, I would argue, that one is definitely more fun than the other.

How is this possible? Not surprisingly, this was never the anticipated outcome. Sildenafil, the generic name for Viagra, was developed by Pfizer as a heart medication. During clinical trials for the drug, some men reported that taking the pill resulted in getting an erection. There was no way in hell that Pfizer was going to pass up that marketing opportunity.

For both heart and ED issues, Sildenafil works by increasing blood flow throughout the body. It is also used to treat pulmonary arterial hypertension in both men and women. We’ve known for a long time that there’s a link between erectile dysfunction and coronary artery disease. We also know for certain that there is a link between increased blood flow and certain kinds of dementia, including Alzheimer’s. This study shows a significant association as to warrant additional, focused study as to whether there is a direct cause and effect of the medication.

However, the study also raises a lot of questions. The one bugging me most relates to men as they age. For a 40- or even 50-year-old man to have sex on a regular basis doesn’t seem like that much of a stretch. Men of that age are more likely to be in a relationship (for the third or fourth time) and it makes sense that they would be sexually active.

Once we get over 60, though, the entire environment begins to break down. Other diseases, like cancer, interfere with one’s ability to be active. Partners die and finding new ones becomes increasingly difficult. Body parts, such as knees and hips, begin to give out, and replacing them seldom results in a full range of motion.

There are also questions on the sex side of the equation. Is jerking off enough, or do you need to involve your body in the act fully? Does it matter who’s on top or how many positions are used? Who wakes up for the 3:00 AM feeding of one of those little swimmers gets through?

If a direct correlation between Viagra and treating Alzheimer’s disease can be established, can a sex worker then be prescribed as a medical necessity? Would Medicare/Medicaid pay for it?

I agree that a great deal of study needs to happen, and I would hope that it began a couple of weeks ago. In the meantime, I would like to volunteer myself for additional personalized study. Who wants to help?

Current Issues / News & Comment / Politics / Social Commentary

No Mistake: They Were Targeted

April 4, 2024

Benjamin Netanyahu is lying through his ugly mug. After Israeli drones murdered seven aid workers yesterday, the Prime Minister did exactly what I predicted: He said it was an accident and that these things happen in war.

If these things happen in war, it is because someone made them happen.

Late yesterday, US time, World Central Kitchen’s founder, Chef Jose Andres’, told Reuters in an exclusive interview that it was, in fact, no accident at all. He said that the vehicles in the convoy were targeted, “systematically, car by car.” Furthermore, he said that this was not the first time! This was the THIRD time that the drones had targeted the convoy! This repeated targeting makes it exceedingly clear that Tuesday’s event was not an “accident.”

“This was not just a bad luck situation where ‘oops’ we dropped the bomb in the wrong place,” Andres said.

“This was over a 1.5, 1.8 kilometers, with a very defined humanitarian convoy that had signs in the top, in the roof, a very colorful logo that we are obviously very proud of,” he said. It’s “very clear who we are and what we do.”

“They were targeting us in a deconflicting zone, in an area controlled by IDF. They knowing that it was our teams moving on that road … with three cars,” he said.

“Even if we were not in coordination with the (Israel Defense Forces), no democratic country and no military can be targeting civilians and humanitarians,” he added.

What’s worse than being inexcusable? The attack was inexcusable two days ago. Now that we find that the attack is part of a repetitive chain, of deliberate and unprovoked attacks on unarmed international aid workers, the only designation left is to recognize this as a WAR CRIME.

I’m furious that the US is believing Netanyahu’s bullshit about it being an accident. The time has come for the UN, led by the US, to stand up to the litany of lies that Netanyahu is telling and DEMAND that this war be brought to an end NOW. There is no room for any level of tolerance at all. The war must stop and the US must take the lead in making it happen because Netanyahu is a ridiculous buffoon making a dangerous and deadly power grab.

Current Issues / News & Comment / Social Commentary

Don’t Trust The Messenger

April 3, 2024

Stairway To Hell [original photo 2006 with AI inset]

For much of the past month, I’ve been getting ads between YouTube videos for a set of speakers, all of international origin, trying to get me to invite them to my church to talk about sexual trafficking. They claim that if they can come to my church, together we can help eliminate the horrible global problem of sexual trafficking. The ad shows photos of them speaking against a black background, laid over some random crowd shot that could have just as easily been a basketball game.

There are many problems with this ad. First, I don’t have a church and I did its regular attendance number would be around three, on a good day. Second, none of the names were recognizable and there was no way to check their credentials. Third, the photo felt fake. The solid black backgrounds matched too perfectly. Nothing was defining about the “crowd” to legitimize a specific location. Fourth, there were no endorsements from well-known third parties, such as UNICEF. I don’t know if you’ve worked around legit NGOs, but I assure you this is not how any of them work.

Then, one of the first things I read this morning was this headline:

Philippine court orders arrest of religious leader with ties to Duterte

The article centers around a megachurch pastor, Apollo Quiboloy, who calls himself “owner of the universe” and “appointed son of god.” He is charged with sex trafficking and sexual abuse of a Philippine woman. The Philippine court reversed a 2020 decision dropping the charges because the victim in this case continued to press the matter, making it impossible for the court to deny her charges.

Quiboloy also faces charges in the United States of sex trafficking based on accusations of coercing girls and young women to have sex with him. He is on the FBI’s “Most Wanted” list.

And this is why the church cannot be trusted to actually do anything to end sex trafficking. Sure, they make a lot of noise about it, and it’s become an election-year rallying cry for right-wing congregations who are sure that governments as responsible for the problem because, are you ready… Epstein. However, churches are not in the policing business, are they? Consider a few highlights:

In the US alone, 4,392 priests have been accused of sexual abuse.
In 2019, a Houston Chronicle report found roughly 380 clergy, lay leaders, and volunteers had faced allegations of sexual misconduct, leaving behind over 700 victims since 1998.
The Church has a long history of either ignoring or punishing women who bring allegations against men in the church.
“Mission work” has been a frequent cover for funneling young women into sex work, telling the young women that this is a way of “repenting” for their sins.

And yet they want to be the ones who put an end to the very activity that has been one of their core interests for centuries? Let’s not forget that these same organizations supported slavery for over 400 years. They were adamant that by taking black people out of godless Africa they were helping to save their souls. Are we really going to fall for this trick again?

There’s no question that sex trafficking is a problem, but religion is absolutely not the way to solve it. First of all, churches have no legal authority outside the confines of their own addled minds. They can’t go running around internationally taking on the bad guys and putting them in jail. One doesn’t just walk into a sex trafficking operation and shut them down without a lot of authority, and usually a lot of firepower. This is dangerous work that needs to be carried out by professionals, not a group of folks with questionable divinity degrees.

Another huge issue is that the church’s mission of forgiveness lies in opposition to the legal need for punishment and restitution. We don’t need anyone cornering a bad guy and letting them off with a warning that “if you say 34 Hail Marys and promise to never do it again, we’ll let you go. Solving the problem of sexual abuse and sex trafficking first requires that people listen to the women and children who tell them what is going on, and believe what they’re being told. The church cannot be trusted to do that. They’ve never done it before, so why would anyone in their right mind trust them now?

Sex trafficking is rampant around the world for a number of reasons. Not only is there this long-standing problem of not listening to women, but it is far too easy to escape capture simply by moving from one country to another. There’s little cooperation between law enforcement authorities around the world, even in places where they share borders. Even if people are kidnapped in China, for example, getting sex trafficking charges in the US to stick is difficult because a) some of the people wanted to come to the US in the first place, and b) the Chinese government isn’t terribly cooperative in taking victims back or filing charges on their end.

Without a universal law enforcement agency that has the ability to make arrests regardless of a person’s country of citizenship and a court that can actually enforce international law promptly, all manner of international crime falls between the legal cracks. The bad guys succeed because international law is broken and toothless. These are the same empty laws that allow smugglers, drug dealers, and spies to get away with their horrible acts. Until there’s some stronger enforcement around the globe, there’s not a lot to stop the bad guys.

One thing that could work is responsibly legalizing sex work. I know a lot of conservatives, and especially religious conservatives don’t like having this conversation because they don’t want to understand human sexuality, but there are at least four benefits to legalizing sex work.

Enpowerment. Legalization can empower sex workers to report abuse or exploitation without fear of legal repercussions. This helps break the cycle of silence and prosecute traffickers.
Regulation. When sex work is legalized, it can be regulated safely, away from the cartels and other ill-minded power brokers. This means enforcing standards, such as health and safety regulations, and ensuring that sex workers are treated fairly. Regulation can also help in monitoring and preventing exploitation by traffickers.
Destigmatization. Legalizing sex work helps reduce the stigma associated with the industry. When sex work is viewed as a legitimate profession, sex workers are more likely to see help and support, including from law enforcement, without fear of judgment or discrimination.
Reduction of Demand. Legal sex work can potentially reduce the demand for trafficked individuals, as those seeking sexual services can access them through legal channels. This can lessen the profit for which traffickers exploit vulnerable individuals.

Other things we can do include addressing poverty, the lack of opportunities (especially being able to move between countries freely), and inequality. These are all critical to effectively combating sex trafficking and abuse.

Several states now require that signs be posted in businesses that say something to the effect: “If you or someone you know is being forced to engage in an activity and cannot leave, whether it is prostitution, housework, farm work, factory work, retail work, restaurant work or any other activity, call the National Human Trafficking Hotline.”

Human trafficking isn’t only about sex work. The high demand for farm work and low-wage warehouse work are perfect conditions for human trafficking because there’s little public interface or knowledge of the situation. I am aware of one instance from two years ago where traffickers attempted to push warehouse work that required a lot of walking and lifting onto a 74-year-old Senegalese woman who could barely walk without assistance, couldn’t lift, and had severe breathing problems. The argument for human trafficking was, in my opinion, one of the most obvious I’d ever seen. Yet, the management at the warehouse didn’t want to report the incident because of the high number of “good” workers the “agency” provided.

We don’t need the church involved in solving human trafficking. We need real laws that stick and the international clout to enforce them. Until we have that, poor and desperate people around the world remain in danger.

Current Issues / News & Comment / Social Commentary

Cancel The Outrage

April 3, 2024

Spring Fields [2009 original photo with AI background]

People love to bitch. If there’s one thing the Internet has done, it’s brought out the false outrage factor in a lot of people over things that are often insignificant. We get upset over the tiniest little things that, in the grand scheme of things, make absolutely no difference… until they do. False outrage can result in the passage of ridiculous laws attempting to fix a problem that never actually existed. We’ve seen several states do just this in regard to a non-existent problem regarding immigrant violence. Now, Louisiana’s governor seems ready to do the same thing over a fucking basketball game.

Here’s what happened: Monday night, prior to the LSU/Iowa game in the NCAA women’s basketball tournament, LSU coach Kate Mulkey guided her team back to the locker room following their warm-up period, per normal. While they were there, the national anthem was played in the arena. They weren’t there. They didn’t even hear it playing. This is normal.

However, the bitch force that already didn’t like LSU, primarily for extremely racist reasons, decided to get upset about the Louisiana team not being on the court and standing up. They complained. Loudly. So much so that Louisiana’s sorry excuse for a governor, Jeff Landry, decided that the state needs a law that would cause any athlete in the state to lose their scholarship if they missed the playing of the national anthem. Is it just me or is that extremely stupid? Talk about a knee-jerk reaction!

Coach Mulkey said later, “Honestly, I don’t even know when the anthem was played. We kind of have a routine [for leaving the court at a certain time].”

Cody Worsham, the school’s associate athletic director, added, “Our basketball programs have not been on the court for the anthem for the last several seasons. Usually, the anthem is played 12 minutes before the game when the team is in the locker room doing final preparations.”

Furthermore, in the other women’s game that night, neither UConn nor USC were on the floor for the national anthem. BEING PRESENT FOR THE NATIONAL ANTHEM IS NOT A REQUIREMENT ANYWHERE! Teams warm up and then return to the locker room until it’s time to start the game. They need the time to concentrate and make sure they’re all on the same page.

CAN THE FUCKING OUTRAGE

This is not an issue of nationalistic pride. This is not a matter of protest, though they have every right to do so. This is a matter of doing what is best for the outcome of the game. It’s been going on for years and to get upset about it now is fucking delusional.

But while we’re on the topic, let’s remind ourselves why, if they wanted to, the players (or anyone else) might want to protest the US national anthem.

The third verse of the anthem includes references to slaves who fought for the British during the War of 1812. This has led to criticism for glorifying the oppression of African Americans.
The anthem does not even come close to fully representing the diversity of the American population, a diversity that the GOP would love to completely ignore if given the chance.
The language and complexity of the anthem create a barrier for anyone for whom English, particularly 18th-century English, isn’t their first language.
Performances of the anthem vary so widely as to make its performance irrelevant and without a shade of meaning.
The whole damn thing needs to be replaced.

There are plenty of legitimate issues to be upset about around the world. Whether or not a basketball team is on the floor for the national anthem is not one of those issues.

Take your false outrage and shove it up your ass.

Cancer Update / Current Issues / Morning Update / Personal

Morning Update: 04/03/24

April 3, 2024

Drying Off [2005, contrary to what the border says]

Before getting into the daily mush, it would be inappropriate to not mention that our thoughts are with everyone affected by the 7.4 magnitude earthquake early this morning in Taiwan. The latest numbers show nine dead and over 700 injured, US military bases in Okinawa could potentially be affected by tsunami warnings. This is the strongest earthquake in the region in 25 years.

Wind. After all of yesterday’s rains coming through and making the day miserable, we were hit with strong winds last night. I haven’t walked around the house yet to assess the damage, but it was strong enough to rip one of the secure points away from our front tarp on the carport. A loose corner on the back tarp was flapping so strongly that it sounded at times like distant gunshots. This made the Gang of Five extra snuggly but also meant that I couldn’t move

Sleep was fitful and confusing. I’d dream for a while then wake up totally confused. What day is it? Am I waking from an afternoon nap or is it night? Is this the weekend? Did I oversleep? Wait, where am I? When that happens one time during the night there’s no reason to be alarmed. When it keeps happening over and over, four or five times a night, it’s impossible not to be troubled. Is this a new side effect from the chemo or something else? Is this a symptom of something not yet diagnosed? With a body in the condition mine is, there’s no way to know without visiting a doctor and I’m not going to waste copay on that.

With the wind has come a deep drop in temperatures, so we’ll be staying in again today. I’ve already warned G he needs to dress warmly. I’d tell Tipper the same but she just shrugs and does whatever she wants. If she’s cold it’s her own fault.

Here’s a question for you: how much cologne should a young man wear? Earlier this year, the young men in G’s class were admonished about personal hygiene. Apparently, the coaches don’t like the fragrance of teen spirit. Now, he starts the day with so much cologne I can smell him from the other end of the hallway. I’ll admit that teenage boys have a natural funk unlike anything else. I’m unsure if those natural feromones are supposed to attract a potential mate or ward off potential attackers, but it is distinct. Please leave your thoughts in the comments below.

There is a lot of news crossing my desk this morning. My energy level and my diminishing level of cognition will play roles in determining what I address. The item at the top of my list at this moment is the whole Krispy Kreme/McDonald’s partnership. I’m just waiting for McD to slip a sausage patty, egg, and cheese in the middle of a donut. I’d definitely try one, then slip into a diabetic coma for a few minutes.

Another issue is that Grammarly, which I use regularly, is now flagging every adjective I use. They can kindly fuck off. The world needs adjectives, especially online since they are the primary method of describing depths of emotion, the severity of a situation, and just how much it pisses me off that they think adjectives are inappropriate. I’m not sure what adjectives did to deserve such hate, but it needs to stop.

Both kids are off to school. I need to refill my coffee. Stay tuned for more!

Current Issues / News & Comment / Politics / Social Commentary

Morning Outrage

April 2, 2024

ISRAEL HAS COMMITTED A WAR CRIME

Early this morning, EDT, while those of us in the Midwest were sheltering from the storms, seven members of chef Jose Andres’ World Central Kitchen were murdered by an Israeli air strike. DESPITE HAVING COMMUNICATED APPROPRIATELY WITH ISRAELI AUTHORITIES, the caravan was leaving a warehouse where they had just delivered more than 100 tons of food via maritime routes. The workers killed include a Palestinian and citizens from Australia, Poland, United Kingdom, and a dual citizen of the U.S. and Canada.

The organization’s CEO, Erin Gore, put it this way: “This is not only an attack against WCK, this is an attack on humanitarian organizations showing up in the most dire of situations where food is being used as a weapon of war. This is unforgivable,”

Enough with US tolerance of Israel’s fucking war crimes. World Central Kitchen has found ways to peacefully deliver food all over the world, including war-torn Ukraine, without any issue. They are a highly effective and respected organization that takes to heart the need to address the tragedy of hunger and famine in hard-to-reach places around the world. And who the fuck ends up bombing them? Israel, whom the US refuses to recognize as a serial war criminal.

Israel issued a statement saying they would investigate the matter, but good money is on getting back a statement saying something to the effect that “This was a horrible tragedy as sometimes happens during war. Oops, we’re sorry, but we’re not going to stop.”

Please understand, I’m not antisemitic. I’m anti-Zionist. There’s a difference. I believe Jewish people, as well as everyone else, have the right to live wherever the fuck they want to live.

What is Zionism? According to the Anti-Defamation League, “Zionism is the movement for the self-determination and statehood for the Jewish people in their ancestral homeland, the land of Israel.” In short, skipping over several thousand years of history, it is a group dedicated to the formation and protection of the Jewish homeland as defined before an ancient Babylonian captivity.

Why is Zionism wrong? Because nationalism is wrong. Let me be very clear, for those in the back:

Everyone has the right to live peacefully wherever the fuck they want to live regardless of pretend borders, religion, gender, or sexual orientation.

If you disagree, please kindly step the fuck off the planet. Humanity would not exist today were it not for multiple, free-roaming migrations of our ancestors, all of them, looking for hospitable and reasonable places to live without fear of the danger posed by natural resources or greedy idiots. The freedom to exist and the freedom of movement is an inherent right that no country has grounds for limiting. Telling a people, “You cannot live here and we’ll kill you if you try,” is anti-human and in violation of international law. YOU HAVE A RIGHT TO EXIST.

What no one has is a right to govern where that government is not wanted. “The consent of the governed” is an extremely powerful clause. No one is obligated to recognize the authority of a government that actively denies the individual right to exist.

Yet, here we are, not only telling Palestinians to get out of Gaza and then killing them when they try, but now we’re killing the people who are simply trying to make sure no one starves to death in the process. Please, someone, reset that courtroom in Nuremberg. We have some crimes that need to be addressed.

The support of these activities by the US government is critical as well. While Israel is doing its best to exterminate all of Gaza, US states such as Florida and Texas are putting limits on who can travel in/out of their states in search of medical care such as abortions. We’re just as bad, if not potentially worse, than Israel so no wonder we’re supportive of the crimes they’re committing.

Wait, don’t we inherently have the right to travel between states? Sort of, but not really. The right to travel is generally covered under the Privileges and Immunities Clause of the Fifth Amendment. The specific portions reads: “The Citizens of each State shall be entitled to all Privileges and Immunities of Citizens in the several States.” Since 1823, that has generally been taken to include freedom of movement. However, since then, throughout the 19th century, the Court continued to let the states have the authority to decide who could move back and forth across state lines. So, if a state decides it doesn’t want people traveling to a “safe” state for medical care, precedent would indicate that they have the right to limit that travel and impose penalties.

In case you’ve not been keeping up, Texas is willing to impose the death penalty.

All of these actions are anti-freedom, anti-human, and grossly immoral by any standard. We’ve put up with far too many of these crimes and we’re past the time when people like you and me need to object and flood both the Internet and the halls of Congress with the noise of our opposition.

Consider this my first volley. ENFORCE A CEASE-FIRE IN GAZA NOW! Let’s make humanity more important than anyone’s nationalism.

Cancer Update / Current Issues / Morning Update / Personal

Morning Update: 04/02/24

April 2, 2024

After waiting all fucking day, putting off things we might have gotten done, it finally started raining around 11:00 last night and it has yet to stop. I just took the dogs outside. The yard is a swamp. Up the road from us, a lake has formed. I feel especially sorry for G who has to walk the quarter-mile to his bus stop in a few minutes. Thunder still rolls across the night sky.

I’m not sure how much sleep any of us got last night. Kat was up for most of it. G was up at 12 and 3, finally giving up around 5. I was able to at least stay in bed, dozing in and out. All the meds weren’t enough to induce sleep through all the pain. In a battle of arthritis vs. chemo, arthritis is definitely winning. Let’s set that pain level firmly at 10 and hope that it doesn’t go any higher. Tomorrow, it turns cold again. I feel like the weather has a personal vendetta against me.

We’re still 10-15 days from having any money in the account, assuming Social Security actually comes through. I don’t have any amount of faith in the system. We’re out of bread, margarine, and milk. I’m cutting back on coffee because that’s getting low as well. It’s not that we’re out of food, but that the food requires the addition of certain staples to be prepared and we don’t have the staples. The dogs will need food by the end of the week as well. This level of need is hurting almost as much as the arthritis. Right now, 10-15 days might as well be forever.

I feel really bad sending G out in the storm. If I still had a car I could at least take him to the bus stop. But no, not only can I do little to help myself, I can’t help anyone else, either. We’re hoping that Tipper’s bus shows up on time today. Yesterday, all the buses from her school were late because, get ready for this, the bus company didn’t know that school was starting back after spring break. How is that even possible? I’m sure they were given the same schedule as the rest of us.

Remember when things like this didn’t annoy us? We could play out in the rain and have a good time! Getting soaking wet was part of the fun. Now, I sit here still shivering from having taken the dogs out 30 minutes ago. This whole aging thing is for the birds.

I can take more meds again in an hour. At least I’m still alive, right?

Current Issues / Holidays / News & Comment / Social Commentary

Stupid Things Xians Say

March 31, 2024

Don’t Wander [AI creation based on original 2010 photo]

Christianity is getting a lot of attention today (and all this past week) because of it being Holy Week. However, as they so often do, some pseudo-Xians just don’t seem to understand the whole concept of peace, love, and inclusion. They prove this by opening their mouths and saying some really inappropriate and ignorant things.

Take for instance, please, that time this week when the presumptive Republican presidential nominee said, “If you don’t like our religion [xianity], then we don’t want you in our country.” What this part-time Bible salesman is saying is that he’s more than willing to implement a religion litmus test for anyone wanting to come into the country. Now, where that gets interesting is trying to narrow down what he means by “our religion.” Obviously, he doesn’t like Muslims, Hindus, atheists, or Buddhists. However, he links religion to politics when he says that a Jewish person who votes Democratic (and most do), “hates their religion” and “everything about Israel.” So… are Jews getting in or not? Now, any reasonably-minded person knows that such a litmus test is a violation of the First Amendment. However, let’s just go crazy for a moment and assume he could get away with it. How long would it be before he tries to deport, round up, or terrorize anyone who doesn’t fit without his narrow (and farcical) religious expectations?

Then, there was all that hullabaloo today over the annual White House Easter Egg Roll. Somehow, pseudo-Xians just noticed this year that religious themes are not allowed on the decorated eggs used for the roll. Cue right-wing outrage because they’re an ignorant bunch of people who don’t seem to realize that the ban has existed since 1978. Take another look at that. 1978. Over 40 years ago. And they’re just now realizing it. And all this over a fictional rabbit that allegedly places eggs all over the yard. Apparently, these pseudo-Xians are also ignorant of the fact that Easter Eggs are a pagan tradition that predates xianity. Seriously, do these people ever pull their heads out of their asses and take a look at the world around them?

Taking the ugly lamb-shaped Easter cake is SBC megachurch pastor Josh Howerton who told his Dallas-based Lakepointe Church congregation that, on their wedding night (actually, he specifically emphasized “his” wedding night), the women should: “Stand where he tells you to stand, wear what he tells you to wear, and do what he tells you to do.” Incredulous, isn’t it? You would think, especially after all the abuse and marital cheating scandals the SBC has endured, that such misogyny would, at the very least, be kept on the down-low. Nope. Here it is, right out in the open. We even have it on video.

Dismantling this statement a bit, first, let’s realize that, by most accounts, fewer than 30% of people, male or female, are virgins on their wedding night. Most sane people realize that sexual experience is a good thing; find out what you like and what you don’t, take away the mythology of losing virginity, and hopefully avoid the pain and mess of your first sexual experience. If 70% of men are not virgins (and the real number is likely higher), then they have not necessarily been planning for their wedding night their entire lives.

Second, this is putting wayyyyyy too much pressure on the wedding night for it to be pleasurable. Weddings are a big deal and by the time the happy couple gets away from the reception and all the people and checked into the hotel for the night, they’re fucking exhausted! Why put all that pressure on the wedding night? It’s insane to create those kinds of expectations that are almost certainly going to lead to disappointment.

Third, and perhaps most important, if your spouse is telling you where to stand, what to wear, and what to do and this isn’t a sex game to which you’ve both agreed, then you’ve married a misogynist and need to get out of this marriage as soon as possible! Abuse, emotional and physical, is right around the corner. Nothing good comes from being in a relationship with a misogynistic person. Nothing. Get the fuck out while you can. PLEASE. A chocolate bunny would make a better partner.

If it seems like I’m picking on pseudo-Xians it’s only because they’re making so much noise as they show us how incredibly ignorant, thoughtless, and cruel they actually are. There’s no true spirit of love here. There’s no intention to bring peace. There’s no desire for inclusion. Everything they’re doing is fake and they’re loud enough with their actions to make sure we don’t miss them. As long as they keep doing and saying stupid things, I’ll keep calling them out for it.

Current Issues / News & Comment

Circus Rings

March 31, 2024

ARGUMENTS FOR TAKING THE BACK ROADS: CIRCUS WINTER CAMP [2019]

Waking up to the sound of gunfire isn’t nearly the rarity that it should be. Most of the time, the shots are fairly distant, over a quarter of a mile away. Last night, they were a lot closer, no more than a couple of blocks to our East. A single shot. No follow-up. I thought about going out to check before calling the police, but those are the kinds of actions that can get you killed. I stayed in bed and called no one. By the time cops arrived, no one was going to be around. This was around 2:30 this morning.

The dogs, sensing that spring break is over, want to go out at 5:45 this morning. As we stepped out into the dark between rain showers, the familiar “berries and cherries” of police lights could be seen at the entrance to our subdivision. A few years ago the dogs would have been straining at the fence to see what had happened. The lights have become so common in the neighborhood that the dogs ignore them now. Only the sound of sirens irritates them.

Coming back inside to avoid the rain, I turned on the local news. SEVEN teenagers between the ages of 12-17 were shot downtown around 11:30 last night. While all the victims are in stable condition, no suspects have been named. Local police are considering the possibility that there was more than one gun involved. This is the third weekend in a row with mass shootings. I find it interesting how this coincides with major sporting events in town all three weekends, bringing out a higher number of people than IMPD seems capable of policing.

Is this merely a local problem? Of course not. The law enforcement circus is a national disgrace. Opening this morning’s Washington Post, I see a headline that disturbs me deeply: The FBI is visiting people because of their social media. Every day. The person in question this time was a Stillwater, Oklahoma resident, Rolla Abdeljawad, who had the foresight to record the encounter. The “FBI” agents refused to identify themselves. Refused to show her their badges. Told the Muslim woman, “Facebook gave us a couple screenshots of your accounts.” The FBI refused to comment. Ms. Abdeljawad has been vocally pro-Gaza in her recent posts. No one is investigating whether the three men were real FBI agents or anti-Muslim troublemakers.

Welcome to the circus. No one’s responsible for their actions, especially if they’re drunk. No one’s responsible for their children running around downtown at 11:30 at night (even if they are leaving a sporting event). No one’s responsible for the harassment of non-Christians. It’s all one big, wild, raucous, many-ringed demonstration of carelessness, from sea to shining sea. Flack vests not included.

Current Issues / News & Comment / Politics

Wrath Warning

March 27, 2024

Nothing is more blasphemous than the former grifter-in-chief hawking “customized” Bibles during Holy Week. The level of backlash the entire party should receive for indulging in this nonsense would be never-ending if there were, in fact, genuine Christians at the head of any major denomination. There once was a time, not terribly long ago, when this would have been enough to end his campaign. But then, how many times have we said that same thing about other shenanigans and idiocies this over-hyped fool has perpetrated?

One of the aspects of this mess is the narcissist stating that he wants to “Make America Pray Again.” Say what? Is it just me or does that sound like a threat? Stop and think about it. When are people most likely to pray? When they’re afraid. When do even non-believing people start to pray? When their lives are in danger. When are we most likely to be afraid for our lives? If this idiot gets re-elected. He’s already been talking about retribution and he’s made it quite clear that he plans on taking an authoritarian, even dictatorial stance if he should get back into office. There is nothing about this move that is comforting or Christian. In fact, this is an insult to everything that is genuinely American.

This comes at a time when more people are leaving the church than joining it. The number of atheists has doubled. The number of agnostics has more than doubled. Of those leaving, 67% say they are doing so because they no longer agree with that religion’s teaching. Okay, so find a different religion, right? Nope, only 9% are looking for any kind of substitute. People are increasingly fed up with the nonsense that religions are spouting, especially aggressive anti-LGBTQIA+ rhetoric. A smart campaign manager would look at that trend and say, “Hey, we need to step away from the religious bullshit.”

Such a level of grift reminds me of the hundreds of thousands of people who gave money to the late televangelist Jim Bakker. There was the Christian theme park. There were the “End Times” food buckets. There were prayer clothes and “holy oil” and all manner of nonsense for which people would pay believing that it would somehow make them better Christians. The evidence, however, points to the fact that such devotion only leads to increased levels of hate, the church doing more harm than good, and innocent people victimized.

Furthermore, if one is going to believe the Bible at all, one has to be concerned that such blasphemy is inviting God’s wrath on anyone who participates in the nonsense. Remember the Golden Calf? 3,000 died and the rest were struck with a plague. [Exodus 32:1-35] Of course, there’s been no such wrath for 6,000 years, so either there’s no God to get angry or no teeth to his threats. But if you’re going to believe, then perhaps it would be a good time to repent of such idolatry.

None of this has any place in politics. Politics should be about who would be the best leader, not the best grifter, not the best preacher, not the biggest felon. Smart, intelligent people are onto the scam and want nothing to do with it. Those who are shelling out $80 for their package are just stupid. There’s no other way to look at it.

Cancer Update / Current Issues / Morning Update / News & Comment

Morning Update: 03/27/24

March 27, 2024

One sure sign that I’m dreaming is how healthy I appear. Have you ever noticed that? In my dreams, I’m more likely to be in my 40s, healthy, and strong. I can still do things like climb trees to get a shot, rescue the damsel in distress, and eat a fantastic meal without feeling ill afterward. Such dreams are a long way from this morning’s reality: old, cancerous, and in pain. I’m not as witty as I once was. I’m not full of quotable sayings. I don’t like how I look. Posture is an afterthought.

Have you ever noticed that television and media don’t know how to represent people like me? It’s easy to represent a gay couple as long as they both look good. It’s easy to represent someone handicapped as long as they can pull off witty banter. Including multiracial characters isn’t a problem anymore, either. But when was the last time you saw a well-defined character who has trouble physically getting out of bed in the morning? Has the crime ever been solved by someone who has to stop in the middle of a car chase to take their medicine? The closest I can think to that kind of inclusion was the old police drama “Ironside,” which started in 1967. Even there, they chose an actor (Raymon Burr) who was otherwise healthy and strong. He was extremely intelligent, and decisive, and showed no sign of muscle atrophy at all.

But then, who wants a main character that’s inherently weak, flawed, and frequently boring?

I was boring yesterday. I’ll likely be boring today. The wind is back out of the North today so I’ll likely spend a fair amount of the day wrapped in a blanket. There are plenty of leftover beans and cornbread so It’s unlikely that I’ll cook. I might take a shower.

The kids were all but invisible again yesterday. G is making friends in the VR community. Tipper is working on her art. Neither leave their room except to get something to eat. Sure, this is typical teenage behavior. To expect much more of them would be ridiculous. I don’t have anything exciting to keep their interest. I mean, what dad can compete with VR?

At least I’m not Utah state Rep. Phil Lyman who responded to yesterday’s collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge with the nonsensical statement, “This is what happens when you have Governors who prioritize diversity over the wellbeing and security of citizens.” In a second post, he wrote, “DEI=DIE.” And this numbskull is running for Governor of Utah. Other insane Republicans blamed the bridge collapse on Russia and open borders. How people get to be so fucking stupid is a situation I don’t understand. ‘Tis the season for desperate attempts to appear relevant, I suppose.

Maybe I’ll go back and re-process some older photos today. Or maybe I’ll just dream.

Current Issues / News & Comment

What’d You Say?

March 25, 2024

When the writers of the US Constitution made the First Amendment all about free speech, they were responding directly to the limitations imposed by the reign of England’s King George III, who aggressively punished those who spoke out against him and/or the Church of England. They wanted to make it very clear that such an impediment would not be tolerated in this “new” country. It was a novel idea, but it didn’t last. Relatively quickly in 1798, Congress passed the Sedition Act, criminalizing any criticism of the young government. Abolitionists were subjected to the Gag Rule in 1836, making it impossible to resolve any issues around slavery. In 1862, General Grant attempted to expel US Jews from “all land under my command.” President Lincoln quickly countermanded the order, but the action set the stage for a conflict still in action today.

Everyone likes the idea of free speech until someone says something they don’t like. Slander and libel laws exist specifically to keep people from publishing lies against other people, but they didn’t take into consideration a time when literally everyone in the country would have a publishing platform at their fingertips. The concept of free speech is undermined by the fact that each person is convinced of their opinion without having any understanding of the truth. For the majority of life’s events, we can’t “run back the tape” to confirm what did or didn’t happen, what someone did or didn’t say, or even the context in which a statement was made.

One of the greatest challenges to the Constitution, and to democracy as a whole, is the presumption of personal responsibility. When the Constitution was written, the right to vote and participate in government was limited to male landowners. This wasn’t unusual for the time and with it came an inherent assumption that landowners knew how to make responsible decisions. The founders too quickly discovered that they were wrong but no one knew how to put that horse back in the stable. We still don’t. We are all inherently selfish, greedy, and desperate to act in our own self-interest. We’re more interested in doing what’s best for me than doing what’s best for the entire population. We don’t want anyone telling us what to do when to eat, how to vote, how much money we can have, or anything that might cause us stress.

The Constitution wasn’t designed to handle the paradox that a statement can be both truth and fiction at the same time. For example, let’s pretend that I went to a new restaurant a meal with which I have a lot of experience: fried chicken. I understand how difficult it is to get fried chicken just right, where the meat is juicy but the coating isn’t too dark. Not everyone knows what they’re doing. I’ve had some really good fried chicken and some that needed to have been thrown away. Armed with this knowledge, I bite into this new fried chicken and am repulsed by the taste to the point that I am concerned that it may be contaminated with salmonella. Wanting to spare others the horror and potential illness, I hop on Yelp and write a blistering review about how dangerous the restaurant’s fried chicken is.

At the same time, someone a few tables over orders the fried chicken as well. Their fried chicken tasted delicious, to them, with the best coating and optimal juiciness of any chicken they’ve ever had. They want all their friends to know how wonderful the food is and patronize the restaurant so that it will stay around for a while. They, too, go to Yelp and write a glowing review about how wonderful the restaurant’s fried chicken is.

Who’s right? Who’s telling the truth? The interesting reality is that both can be right and wrong at the same time. Our pallets are different. Our food preferences are different. Our idea of what is “good” is subjective. Each person who goes to the restaurant can have a different experience, liking or hating different aspects of the experience. Each person has the right to tell everyone about that experience. But when the restaurant fails six months later because of bad reviews, can the owner of the restaurant, who thinks their food was wonderful, claim that the people who wrote those negative reviews were slanderous?

Implied throughout the Constitution is the idea that people are inherently responsible. We now understand, more clearly than ever, that they are not. If anything, the opposite is true. Responsibility is something that must be taught and, through means of social pressure, enforced. Where there is no responsibility, there can be no freedom. We must understand when it is appropriate to speak and when to keep our mouths shut. We must understand when it is appropriate to carry a weapon and when it should be secured in a vault. We must be responsible in everything we do or we turn freedom into a shackle.

Ultimately, the matter comes down to the fact that we can legislate neither morality nor responsibility without infringing on someone’s implied rights. If we cannot behave in a civil, responsible manner, then we’ve already lost the rights we claim.

Sigh. I had more, but my brain is gone. Feel free to ask questions in the comments below.

Art / Current Issues / News & Comment / Politics / Social Commentary

Can They See This In Texas?

March 24, 2024

In June of last year (2023), the Texas State Legislature, one of the most brain-dead in the union, passed a law requiring adult-oriented websites to use “reasonable” age verification to make sure that only people 18+ are accessing their websites. You know, they’re so obsessed with “protecting the children.” Lawsuits were immediately filed and the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals applied a temporary stay, but at the same time required adult websites to comply with the law. As a result, Aylo, who owns sites such as PornHub, had a choice to make. Aylo said no, thank you, and pulled its websites from Texas. The revenue they receive from Texas isn’t worth the trouble it would take to add the necessary age verification. Insert giant middle finger here.

Some people in Texas took Aylo’s departure as good news. They got rid of the big porn monster, right? Hardly. In fact, what it did was create a fun challenge for teenagers to get around the law. I’m guessing none of the people involved in creating the law know a damn thing about VPNs, IP masking, or anything of the other dozen or so technologies that can be used to hide the location of someone attempting to access a website. People who want access to the material have plenty of options. And should the courts finally decide, incorrectly, that the law is constitutional (let’s face it, no one has actually read the Constitution in 50 years), it’s unenforceable.

For now, though, we decided to check and see if anyone in Texas can see what we post here. We grabbed a handful of images from 2009-10 and we’ll see if anyone can see them. Let us know in the comments if you can, and we’re guessing you can.

Hidden on the Beach [2010 with AI background]

Morning Coffee [2010 with AI background]

Taco Seasoning [2010 with AI background]

As The Day Dies [2010 with AI background]

Current Issues / News & Comment / Politics

LGBTQ+ People Thrown Under The Bus… Again

March 24, 2024

No one is surprised anymore when a Republican legislator attempts to pass a bill aimed at removing the millions of LGBTQ+ people from American society. They’ve been emboldened, especially at the state level, over the past eight years and are making the removal of LGBTQ+ rights a campaign platform across the country. There’s little question that the GOP hates anyone who isn’t straight and Christian, despite the fact that many Republicans themselves are closeted gays. [Yeah, I said it.]

Proving my point is the fact that over 40 policy riders were introduced to the mission-critical budget funding bill passed by Congress and signed by the President this week. The goodness: only one of the riders made it through to the final bill. The bad news: one of the riders made it through to the final bill: banning US embassies from flying the Pride flag.

Why did Democrats, who we expect to be LGBTQ+ friendly, allow even one rider to get through? To get the necessary number of votes to pass the bill. In fact, House Speaker Mike Johnson was busy touting the flag ban as a reason for voting for the bill. Democrats allowed the rider to stay as a concession, saying they’d overturn the rider in later legislation.

Once again, LGBTQIA+ were thrown under the bus for the sake of political expediency. Now you know where you really stand with politicians. Democrats love you until they need Republican votes and then they conveniently forget the millions of people and the rights with which they are endowed.

Across the country, Republicans are making a concerted effort to end Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts, especially at the educational level. Alabama was the latest state to remove funding and forbid DEI education. Many other states such as Kansas and Missouri are waiting to do the same.

Two bills, the “Protection of Women in Olympic and Amateur Sports Act,” and the “Equal Campus Access Act,” both of which target trans students, advanced in the GOP-dominated House of Representatives this week. The attack is unrelenting and ferocious as candidates up for re-election are spouting hate all up and down the campaign trail.

What can be done to stop this storm of hate that’s walking up to your front door and entering without knocking? There are a few things that come to mind.

Be visible. To the extent possible, show up at every public campaign event and make your presence known. Sure, there are private events from which we’re excluded but most are looking for public venues that attract the most people. Don’t let them make you invisible. Wear the rainbow proudly and make it impossible for anyone to ignore your presence.
Be heard. VOTE. The LGBTQIA+ community is large enough to dominate almost any election. But that means everyone has to vote, even though the Democratic and/or Independent candidates aren’t much more attractive. When they see how the community has the power to sway elections, they’ll start paying more attention.
Make noise. Use social media as a platform. Call out your local legislators. Make sure your friends are aware of what’s going on. Call and email your representatives’ offices. Organize or attend marches. Don’t leave any doubt about where you stand on the important issues.

There are too many times when legislation makes its way into law because we aren’t paying attention to what is going on, especially at the state level. There’s not a state in the union that doesn’t have a significant LGBTQIA+ presence. You can’t depend on others to protect your rights. You have to do it yourself. Believe it or not, you do have influence. Your voice matters and the more often it is heard the more power it has.

The GOP agenda is to make all LGBTQIA+ people socially invisible. We cannot let that happen. We can’t let Democrats throw us under the bus like that, either. We have to be so loud that we’re impossible to ignore.

Don’t let hate win.

Current Issues / News & Comment / pop culture

Make Stupidity Embarrassing Again

March 22, 2024

Dance The Night [2014 with AI background]

Stupid people have always been in existence. We tend to not hear of them in terms of history books because other people were too embarrassed to talk about them. Who ate that bad batch of mushrooms that told us they were poison? Oh, some random guy who put his stomach before his brain. We can learn what not to do from stupid people, but until recently we didn’t do things like making them internet famous or electing them to Congress. Here are just a few examples that came across my newsfeed today.

We noticed a few weeks ago that one of the windows at the Wing Stop on 10th Street was boarded up. Here’s why: Two people, one inside and the other outside, were shooting at each other. Over wings. Apparently, the in-store POS system was down and the customer was told they’d have to order and pay via the app. That didn’t set well and the customer went outside and decided to shoot up the store. Someone inside the store decided to shoot back. This is exceedingly embarrassing because who in their right mind gets that upset over Wing Stop wings?

Representative Marjorie Taylor Green has been a national embarrassment since she was first sworn into Congress. There’s no way to be sure, but she could be the stupidest person to ever occupy a seat in the legislature. Today, she filed a motion to oust House Speaker Mike Johnson because she didn’t like an appropriations bill the House passed to keep the government open. If a vote was taken today, the motion would lose significantly. What she fails to realize is that there is no true majority in the House at the moment. Whichever direction the Democrats vote is which side will win because the Republican party is too fractured to agree on anything. This makes it likely the next speaker could be a Democrat.

Being able to Zoom into funerals that are, for example, too far away to travel, seems like a nice perk, doesn’t it? But actually using Zoom safely can sometimes be a tricky affair and if you’re not on point, it can get embarrassing. A congregation in Barnet, north London was attending the service of a man who had died of cancer. A business acquaintance clicked the Zoom link not realizing that her camera was on. The entire church got to watch her take a shower.

Oh, and don’t forget the former president who looked at an eclipse without using solar glasses. It’s embarrassing anyone still mentions his name.

Seriously, let’s make stupidity embarrassing again.

Current Issues / News & Comment / pop culture

Raging Mad

March 21, 2024

Raving Mad [2014 original photo with AI background]

One of the things that drives me nuts is when the phone rings while I’m taking a nap and I can’t tell who it is. There are enough spammers and scammers out there that if there’s not a name I recognize attached to the call, I’m not answering the damn phone. Ever. The technology for listing a company name with a phone number has existed forever at this point. There is zero reason for your company name to not show up anytime anyone from your company calls someone else. There’s no legitimate reason for you to hide who you are.

I don’t understand why it is legal to mask your phone number. I especially don’t understand why it is legal to use someone else’s name on the number you’re masking. From my perspective, the entire practice seems to have absolutely no purpose but to commit fraud. So, why in hell would I answer one of those numbers?

The problem is, that I’m apparently missing calls from insurance and healthcare providers because there’s no identification when they call. I had a letter from my insurance provider a couple of weeks ago that started, “I’ve been trying to reach you by phone…” Okay, explain to me why, then, when I compare your listed phone number with the list of recent missed calls, there’s nothing remotely similar on the list. You work for a large company. When you call, I should see the name of the fucking company! If I don’t, then I’m going to assume that you’re not legitimate.

The FCC posted a warning in 2022 regarding what they call “spoofing.” Their first suggestion for avoiding spoofing is: “Don’t answer calls from unknown numbers. If you answer such a call, hang up immediately.” See? Even the FCC agrees you shouldn’t answer unidentified numbers! Their page also includes a form for filing a complaint, though I’m not sure it works since, for some stupid reason, the practice is illegal.

WHY is this legal? If you know, please explain it to me like I’m five. Okay?

On Monday, we published a long read about exclusivity in which we used Apple as an example of a company that relies heavily on the exclusiveness of its product to boost the company’s value. Well, low and behold, that practice has backfired. Earlier today, the Justice Department hit Apple with an antitrust lawsuit for unfairly monopolizing the market. At first glance, this might raise some questions because there are millions of people, like me, who don’t use any Apple products. My Samsung S22 Ultra works just fine, thank you very much, and has plenty of features that Apple doesn’t offer.

The phone market isn’t exactly what has the Justice Department concerned, however. In the filing, the Justice Department alleges that Apple used “a series of shapeshifting rules and restrictions in its App Store guidelines and developer agreements that would allow Apple to extract higher fees, thwart innovation, offer a less secure or degraded user experience, and throttle competitive alternatives.

Specifically, the complaint accuses the tech giant of boxing out smaller competitors by blocking the expansion of apps that allow for multifunctional use; disrupting messaging formats and capabilities between Apple and non-Apple devices; and monopolizing the use of tap-to-pay functions on iPhones so that they only use the Apple Wallet.

Here’s the rub: Apple made over $400 billion in revenue last year. There is no way in hell that this lawsuit is going to put the company in a financial position so severe that they dramatically alter their practices; it’s not going to happen. Sure, Apple will fight the lawsuit because they have a fiduciary duty to do so, but the move doesn’t scare them any. They will continue to be the tech juggernaut that they are. They will continue to overprice their products. They will continue to make sure life is difficult for their competitors. That’s the Apple way.

And you help them every time you buy their shit.

Yeah, if this kind of stuff doesn’t drive you a bit mad, I worry about you.

Current Issues / Morning Update / Personal

Morning Update: 03/21/24

March 21, 2024

Birds & Feathers [2015 original photo, AI background]

Everything was going sort of okay until I tried to get out of bed. Belvedere’s noggin was going one way, mine was going another, and they collided hard enough to knock us both down. Even now, 14 hours later, I can still feel where our heads met each other. I wasn’t good for the rest of the day. My balance is still off. I almost fell forward putting the food in the dogs’ bowls. This is 100% a side effect of the chemo, but it’s also one of the side effects that may never go away.

G had a better day. He’s been saving up his money for months and was finally able to purchase a Meta Quest 2 VR headset. Setting it up took a while, but once he had it going he was having all kinds of fun. Is there a chance this is going to be a problem? Yes. He isn’t aware of who/what is around him when he’s wearing the headset. The best move is to announce which side of him you’re on. Unfortunately, the animals can’t do that. I’m waiting for a cat to become an unintended victim of a wayward step.

Watching the kids as they eagerly anticipate the arrival of packages is almost as much fun as Christmas. The excitement isn’t about the surprise factor because they know what they’re getting. The joy is centered around the fulfillment of desire, seeing something for which they’ve worked come to realization. I hope they are able to keep that joy their entire lives.

Temperatures have dropped again this morning. Taking the dogs out required layering coats. Of course, the pups don’t understand why I can’t just hop out of bed and open the back door. They get antsy waiting for me to get dressed and the more I have to wear the more anxious they become. And why am I, and so many other older people, obsessed with the weather? I asked the internet but there’s no scientific conclusion. There are moderately entertaining guesses here, here, and here, but I wouldn’t put too much weight on their accuracy. I find it interesting, though, that the thing we teased my father about is now the same thing I do each morning.

Apparently, we now have to worry about the safety of our water. Newsweek reported yesterday that water systems around the US are being hit by cyberattacks that threaten the safety of the nation’s drinking water. While water companies would presumably have time to warn people about the quality of water, there are plenty of problems with this situation and no one seems to have a firm grasp as to how to handle them. Water utilities are, at best, controlled by local municipalities. At worst, such as in Indy, they’ve been privatized by companies who have a profit obligation above the need for safety. Since boiling the water usually makes it safe to drink, I’m sticking to coffee for now.

Have you noticed how many critical world leaders are a lot older than I am? Not only is the US president and the opposition leader in the 80s, Russia’s Putin is 71, King Charles is seventy-something, and German chancellor Olaf Scholz is 65. Okay, 65 isn’t that old, but the other guys are at an age where the line between wisdom and tottering old fool is dangerously thin. We are entrusting our lives and our well-being to these idiots. You’d think the people of the world would be a lot more selective, but the systems are stacked against us. The Brits don’t really have a choice at all.

ABC News is reporting that the US has finally submitted a proposal to the UN for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza based on hostage release. I fail to understand why a cease-fire is being so difficult to pass. How can countries not be in favor of a cease-fire for any reason other than the selfish gain coming from the war? Of course, even if the UN passes the damn thing, it doesn’t have the power to enforce it. Israel will continue to do whatever the fuck it wants to do and the US Congress will continue to support them even as the rest of the world screams foul. This, among other things, is why the US is no longer in the top 20 happiest countries on earth. We keep making stupid choices.

Finally, I’ve talked all week about Comic Con being in Indy this weekend. Yes, that means thousands of strangely dressed people are heading downtown for three days starting tomorrow. You know what else, though? Indy is also hosting the first two rounds of March Madness. That means thousands of basketball fans descending on the same downtown area. Oh, and the Indiana National Guard is hosting a gun and knife show. I’m sure there’s no way those three things could collide horribly. And I’m just supposed to let my 14-year-old roam free down there with only her boyfriend for protection? I’m not going to tell her she can’t go, but this Dad is looking for ways to beef up her security. If you have any reasonable solutions, let me know.

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Current Issues / News & Comment

Information Randomized

March 20, 2024

Relaxing Afternoon [2014 original photo with AI background]

While I was napping, Dreamhost, my favorite web hosting company, moved all my sites to newer, faster servers. The result should be faster loading speeds, especially on posts with full-sized images. I’ve been trying to find a balance between having a lean website and still hosting full-resolution images. This is going to help considerably. Let me know if you continue to have any problems.

Meanwhile, the Republican Study Committee (RSC) is calling for an undetermined increase in the retirement age to offset longer life expectancy. This would mean that instead of retiring at age 67, one would have to work however much longer before being able to access the funds that you specifically invested in the fund while you worked. This is the Republican’s way of “going after Social Security.”

According to CBS News, The deal on the appropriations bill includes a ban on “all direct U.S. funding for… the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees until March 2025.” This would severely hamper any aid service for Palestinian Refugees displaced by the war with Israel. If this isn’t blatant government racism, I don’t know what it is. I’m severely disappointed that the White House would agree to such a ban.

Alanbama’s governor has signed into effect a law banning diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs across public schools, universities, and state agencies. If the law survives inevitable legal challenges, it will be a horrible step in the conservative effort to erase LGBTQ+ people from society. The bill also requires that higher education institutions designate bathrooms “for use based on biological sex,” banning trans people from using public bathrooms that align with their gender identity. Especially harmful, also bans discussions of “whether slavery and racism are aligned with the founding principles of the United States.” In other words, Alabama wants to live in a fantasy land full of lies.

The state of Tennessee has gone off the fucking rails. SB2691 passed the state senate on Monday. The bill states that is is “documented the federal government or other entities acting on the federal government’s behalf or at the federal government’s request may conduct geoengineering experiments by intentionally dispersing chemicals into the atmosphere, and those activities may occur within the State of Tennessee.” The bill also says, “The intentional injection, release, or dispersion by any means, of chemicals chemical compounds, substances, or apparatus within the borders of this state into the atmosphere with the express purpose of affecting temperature, weather, or the intensity of the sunlight is prohibited.” Two things are obvious. These senators have forgotten that federal acts and legislation supersede state law. Also, they flunked high school science classes.

For everyone else who missed that part of your education, here’s what really causes the contrails behind jet planes.

I’m constantly amazed at how stupid people are.

Art / Current Issues / Fashion

No Bra Needed

March 18, 2024

Let’s talk for just a moment about how incredible actress Sydney Sweeney looks in this sculpted top from Balmain! I really have to wonder whether Olivier Rousteing made this specifically to fit her body. I can’t imagine this ever being a look that one would find in any store anywhere! The look is nothing short of stunning on its own, but on someone like Sweeney, it reaches its pinnacle of artistry. Cheers to Olivier for such creative and eye-catching creativity!

So, why the hell is the media making such a big deal about the fact that Sweeney isn’t wearing a bra? What level of fashion senselessness does one have to have to even consider wearing a bra with a wonderful look like this? To do so would absolutely destroy the silhouette and cheapen the look! Enough with the damn prudishness already! 2024 is the year of sheer already! We’ve seen dozens of actresses and models out in public with sheer tops and dresses brilliantly showing off a lot more than we see here. There is zero reason for making a headline about there not being a bra under the top. Who the fuck is approving these articles?

We left Puritanism behind in the 16th century. Fashion has done amazing things since then and giving women the freedom to wear whatever they want, wherever they want is central to our progress as a society. Hell, if we can tolerate men wearing loafers without socks, we can tolerate women not wearing a bra, especially with a look as stunning as this one. There are a lot of people who simply need to get the fuck over themselves and let people live.

Cancer Update / Current Issues / Morning Update / News & Comment / Social Commentary

Morning Update: 03/16/24

March 16, 2024

Everyone slept. Both kids came in from school, went straight to bed, and didn’t wake up until late. No one had dinner. No one did chores. They just slept. I’m not complaining. I had a 16+ hour sleeping day myself. I can’t explain why yesterday was more tiresome than others, but we were all caught by the plague and I’m not hearing anyone complain about it this morning. Will that translate to increased activity today? That’s doubtful, but we’ll see. Tipper is motivated to finish up her costume for ComicCon next weekend, so that may keep her awake for a while. G, though, is still dragging a bit this morning.

I’m still kinda bummed that we don’t have corned beef to cook for tomorrow. The prices are too high. We can’t get a small amount, either. The kids plow through a three-pound slab without raising their heads. Meat, in general, has gotten too expensive for modest budgets. We have plenty of beans if I remember to put them on to soak the night before, but again, there’s that problem of falling asleep and not waking up in time.

One of my former babysitters (understand, she babysat me and my brother) posted last night that she was making cinnamon rolls from scratch and I swear I can smell them coming out of the oven. Of course, 500 miles is too great a distance to even think about having her send me a pan. Plenty of bakeries make cinnamon rolls, but there’s nothing like the texture, flavor, and smell of those fresh out of someone’s home oven. Do I need them? No, of course not. They sure would make me feel good while I was eating them, though.

Food is a critical element for anyone, but the combination of chemo and diabetes makes it a critical matter. Not eating isn’t an option and could potentially have deadly results. Eating comfort food, like cinnamon rolls, doesn’t help my sugar intake. I have to eat something when taking the chemo, but if it’s too heavy I get indigestion. In fact, eating too much blocks the effects of the chemo, so that’s not a helpful path. Trying to keep everything in balance is a daily challenge. We know lean meats and veggies are best, but for breakfast? Who wants green beans for breakfast?

The State of Indiana is getting its Happy Hour back. 40 years ago, the state banned the practice of Happy Hour at bars and restaurants out of concern that it encouraged people to over-consume alcohol within a short period of time, leading to more drunk driving. As of July 1, it’s back. The state legislature passed the bill earlier this year and Gov. Holcomb signed it yesterday at one of the city’s oldest bars.

Here’s the catch: Happy Hour cannot extend beyond 9:00 PM. That sets the stage for a number of hypothetical situations. One would be that people might be encouraged to get their drunk on earlier, releasing them into the wild during rush hour. Another might be that bars that offer Happy Hour could see a significant downturn in business after 9:00 PM. A third possibility is that it could bring back the after-hours office drinking that was once a regular part of any business.

Are those concerns still applicable, though? With so much work being done remotely, there aren’t as many people in offices who want to get together after work. They have children and pets to get home to. They have errands to try and run. And younger employees simply aren’t interested.

Bars and restaurants are still not the late-night draw that they were before COVID. Kat came out of a performance venue last night to nearly empty streets in one of the most fashionable areas of town. Bars struggle to pull people in late because young people especially are interested in things other than drinking until they puke. That doesn’t mean you won’t find a party here or there, but ask almost any bar owner and they’ll tell you that they’re struggling to attract and keep people very late, especially during the week.

As for the drunk driving concerns, rates of drunk driving fatalities have been steadily on the downturn since 1985. Sure, even one death is devastating, but once again, that 21-35-year-old demographic that was previously responsible for so many tragedies is more responsible for their drinking than their parents’ generation.

The proof is in the pudding and it seems natural that there could be an uptick in public drunkenness and drunk driving during the latter part of the summer. But overall, I don’t think there’s much danger of returning to the levels that existed all the way back when I was in college. We were the generation that defined rowdy drunken parties. I’m hopeful our children learned to not make the same mistakes.

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Morning Update: 04/07/24

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Morning Update: 03/21/24

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No Bra Needed

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