5 Things You Should Know: 12.26.2016

Current Issues / News & Comment

5 Things You Should Know: 12.26.2016

December 26, 2016

charles i. letbetter - 5 Things You Should Know 122616

The year just keeps getting worse

If you’re reading or watching this, then congratulations, you survived the holidays, which is more than a lot of people can say. We deliberately skipped over all the bad news on Saturday in an attempt to give the weekend a positive spin. It didn’t work, though, did it? The universe just couldn’t go two days without inviting some disaster into our lives.

So here we go, the last week of 2016. We have snow in the Northernmost states, rain across the South and Midwest, with a chance of tornadoes just strong enough to make sure the steps down to your fraidy hole are clear. Bubble wrap your favorite living musician, I have a feeling that fate might try to finish the year strong. From all the disasters, we chose 5 things you should know.

We’ve lost our Faith

Both the US and the UK is in mourning at news of the death of singer George Michael yesterday. The 53-year-old singer is said to have died quietly at his home in London of heart failure. Michael first came to prominence as half the pop duo Wham! but it was as a solo artist that his career really took off and captured the hearts of millions of people around the world. Tributes started pouring in the moment the word hit the news yesterday afternoon.

There are a number of songs for which George Michael is remembered. Faith, Freedom ’90, I’m never gonna dance again, and the holiday favorite of the broken-hearted, Last Christmas. These are the kind of songs that are likely to dominate many of the memorials we’ll inevitably see popping up all over the Internet today. However, the song that might be most responsible for catapulting him to stardom isn’t on most George Michael playlists: I want your Sex.

Released in 1986, the salacious song was wildly popular but left radio stations and the still=new MTV channel with a conundrum as to whether to play the song. Conservatives were outraged that the word sex had gotten onto an album without any warning. Most stations refused to play the song at all. Those who did, limited it to late-night hours. The singer also courted controversy with the song Outside after an LA police officer outed the singer as gay.

Rest In Peace, George Michael, and thank you for letting us know it’s okay to think about sex. Here’s the video:

Russia Loses A Choir

Unfortunately, George Michael wasn’t the only loss to the music world yesterday. There was at first a sense of suspicion when news hit the wire yesterday that a Russian plane in route to Syria had gone down in the Black Sea. The suspicion turned to sorrow, though, when it was announced that the group known widely as The Red Army Choir was on that flight, heading to entertain troops at a military base².

Formally known as the Alexandrov Ensemble, the all-male group was known for their loud if not stirring recordings of Soviet and Russian anthems. However, they group had their lighter side as well and was especially popular for their cover of Daft Punk’s, Lucky during the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. Sixty-four members of the ensemble, including director Valery Khalilov, were aboard the plane yesterday. Russian officials this morning are saying that mechanical malfunctions were responsible for the plane going down, dismissing any idea that terrorism might have played a role.

While the full group has 186 members, most of the singers were on the flight. While the group will almost certainly rebuild, the loss for the people of Russia is significant. Here is a video of the group doing its cover of Lucky:

https://youtu.be/BYbtAZjB8QM

Carrie Fisher Is Hanging On

Fortunately, not all the news was bad yesterday. Star Wars fans around the world took a deep breath and held it when word was released late Saturday that actress Carrie Fisher had suffered a “cardiac episode” while on a flight from London to Los Angeles. We finally release that breath yesterday when Ms. Fisher’s mother, actress Debbie Reynolds, announced that her daughter was in stable condition and resting comfortably³.

While Ms. Fisher is both an accomplished actor and writer, it is her role as Princess Leia in the Star Wars franchise that made her’s a household name. In fact, the actress had been in London promoting her latest book, The Princess Diarist, a memoir depicting her time filming her iconic turn as Princess Leia in the Star Wars film series³. In recent years, Ms. Fisher has not been shy talking about the amount of sex and drug use on the film sets of the 1970s and 80s.

Here’s video of her latest interview just a few weeks ago with The Late Show’s Stephen Colbert:

Fake News Creates An International Incident

Fake news has reared its ugly head again and proven that even those in power can sometimes be fooled by an article that appears to know what it’s talking about. Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif found an article on the site AWD News claiming that Israel’s former defense minister threatened to attack Pakistan if they sent troops to Syria. Naturally, that’s the kind of news that doesn’t set well with a defense minister. Asif did as other world leaders are increasingly doing and took to Twitter to register his objection. He reminded Israel that “Pakistan is also a nuclear power.⁴”

Focus on the key word, “also.” You see, Israel has never actually admitted that they have nuclear capability. Doing so would put any such program under United Nations observation, thus rendering it very much not a secret. Historically, the US has helped keep this not-so-secret secret by blocking attempts within the UN Security Council to demand inspections of the nuclear sites Israel won’t admit that it has.

With that same UN Security Council denouncing Israeli settlements in the West Bank last week, tensions between Israel and much of the world are very high at the moment⁵. The thinly veiled threat was considered very serious. Israel’s defense ministry tweeted back that the alleged news story was fake, but Pakistan has yet to reply to that tweet.

Is Your Makeup Too Heavy?

And finally, here’s something you might not think of too terribly often: the amount of lead in the makeup you use. The Food and Drug Administration released new guidelines last week on the amount of lead to be used in cosmetics made in the US⁶. The non-binding set of guidelines addresses the amount of lead in things such as lipstick, shampoo, eye shadows and body lotions. Generally speaking, most products have a lead content of less than 10 parts per million (ppm). However, there remain a few brands across every category that still have higher lead content.

The renewed concern about lead in products comes as an increasing number of cities are finding high levels of lead in their drinking water due to corroding pipes. Where lead levels in the body may already be higher than normal, lead in other products becomes a more serious issue as the lead builds up within the body and can reach dangerous levels. For people living in places such as Flint, Michigan or St. Joseph, Louisiana, this can be a very serious issue.

Complicating the matter is the fact that not all products list the amount of lead on their label. I talked briefly with Kat about the subject and she confirmed that most makeup artists don’t look at lead content as a point of concern and typically don’t check their products. Again, this new paper is not binding. However, it may indicate a much more carefully managed position by the FDA in the future.

That’s all we have time for this morning. We have some personal obligations today that require us to be on the road early, so we don’t have time to put this in video format before we need to leave. We’ll try and do that again tomorrow. Until then, please stay safe. Hear’s hoping this Monday is a good one.

Current Issues / Fashion / News & Comment / video

5 Things You Should Know: 12/23/2016

December 23, 2016

charles i. letbetter - 5 Things You Should KNow 12/23/16

https://youtu.be/QzanwGzbS7I

Festivus for the rest of us

Good morning, and Happy Festivus for those of you who celebrate that particular holiday. Today is the day you get to make your annual complaint. Just don’t make it in my direction because I’m not listening. We have rain moving into the Midwest this afternoon while to our North a major winter storm is developing that could interrupt holiday travel for a lot of people. Wherever you are, please be safe when you’re on the road.

There is a lot to discuss this morning. Uber has moved its driverless car fleet to Arizona after the California Department of Transportation revoked the registration of its 16 vehicles. JetBlue removed some rowdy passengers from a flight carrying Ivanka Trump. And A Lybian plane presumed to be hijacked has landed in Malta. That situation is ongoing and at this point we don’t have enough details to elaborate. Let’s get into our 5 things you should know.

The Tunisian driver in the German market incident is dead

Early this morning, police in Milan, Italy reported that they had shot and killed the man believed responsible for driving a truck into a crowded holiday market in Berlin earlier this week, killing 12¹. Anis Amri had been the subject of a European-wide manhunt, though as of last night Berlin officials said they believed him to still be in that city. Amri pulled a gun when stopped at a routine traffic stop in Milan and was killed in the subsequent shootout.

While attempts to actually connect Amri with the terrorist organization are questionable, the Islamic State has taken credit for the attack in Berlin, which may be part of a broader plan to boost its visibility. Early yesterday, Australian authorities said they foiled a plot to attack multiple locations there on Sunday². The five ISIS-inspired terrorists had planned the attack using explosives, knives, and guns for high profile locations in Canberra, Australia’s second-largest city.

At the same time, there are reports of a list of churches in the United States that have been targeted for attack by the group as well³. National Security Administration officials question whether the list has any authority to it or if it is just rhetoric in an attempt to disrupt holiday celebrations. Security across the US is already heightened after the attack in Berlin, but no credible threats have been identified.

The nuclear arms race may be back on

After decades of deliberate attempts at reducing nuclear proliferation, both Russia and the United States now seem poised to start up the nuclear arms race once again⁴. First, it was Russian President Vladimir Putin stating that strengthening his country’s nuclear capabilities should be a chief military objective in the coming year. President-elect Donald Trump quickly fired back with a tweet saying the United States needs to “greatly strengthen and expand its nuclear capability” until the rest of the world “comes to its senses” regarding nuclear weapons.

Sounds a bit scary, doesn’t it? There are a couple of things on this topic we need to keep in mind. First, the nuclear arsenals of both countries is getting old. Strategic Arms Limitation Treaties of the 1970s pretty much put a halt to any new nuclear weapons development. As our nuclear stockpile begins to age, there is some danger in radioactive material leaking from corroded containers. Plans have been under discussion for some time as to how the US might upgrade its stockpile without violating existing treaties.

At the same time, however, one has to consider the possibility that Putin was merely baiting the president-elect. If so, it would appear that the trap worked. Mr. Trump’s proclivity toward tweeting before thinking was an issue all through the campaign and this may well be another occasion where someone on his staff shows up today attempting to walk back the gaffe. Either way, there is plenty of reason to be concerned. Talk about nuclear weapons is not a joking matter and taken very seriously by leaders around the world. Any attempt at a new buildup would likely face UN restrictions as well as a Congress not terribly excited about funding such a project.

Worst year in history

If you’re thinking that 2016 has been the worst year ever, you may be correct, at least for the murder rate in Indianapolis. The murder of a man who opened his door and was immediately shot was the city’s 145th homicide. Murder number 146 came late yesterday as police found a man in the 4500 block of East 37th Street who had not only been shot but then set on fire. These murders make 2016 the deadliest year in Indianapolis history⁵.

All this comes on the same day that police chief Troy Riggs announced his resignation and at the end of the first year of Mayor Joe Hogsett’s administration. Hogsett ran in 2015 on a campaign of reducing violence in the city. However, despite aggressive efforts to bring the rate of violence under control, homicides have continued to rise. Officials are blaming everything from poverty to substance abuse and mental illness. Chief Riggs said in a statement on Thursday that the fundamental cause remains the fact that too many people are settling arguments with gunfire.

Nationwide, FBI statistics have shown violent crime to be decreasing across the nation. However, in the Midwest both Chicago and Indianapolis have defied that trend with homicides in both cities setting new records each year. Officials in both cities have struggled across multiple administrations without finding an answer to the problem, leaving certain parts of the cities as dangerous as war zones.

Forcing women to work

The president-elect’s transition team is having some difficulty finding artists and entertainers willing to perform at inaugural events next month. Just yesterday, Canadian singer Celine Dion released a statement adding her name to the list of people who have told the president-elect “No, thank you.⁶” This puts her on the same list as Elton John, Andrea Bocelli, and Garth Brooks, among others.

After all the many declines, inauguration planners were happy to announce yesterday that the Mormon Tabernacle Choice and the Radio City Music Hall Rockettes would be performing⁷. Neither addition is surprising as both have performed for inaugurations before. To some extent, their presence is pretty much old-hat.

Wait just one minute, though. It would seem there is some dissension among the ranks of the Rockettes. Pheobe Pearl, one of the Rockettes, wrote on her private Instagram account yesterday that, “Finding out that it has been decided for us that Rockettes will be performing at the Presidential inauguration makes me feel embarrassed and disappointed.”

It’s no secret that an overwhelming number of New Yorkers voted against the president-elect so the dissent isn’t surprising. However, the Rockettes are owned by the Madison Square Garden Company and a union boss responded to Ms. Pearl’s statement saying that any dancer who didn’t participate in the inauguration event would find themselves unemployed. Needless to say, that stance has not set well with the Broadway community nor social media. Something tells me this situation isn’t quite over.

And finally …

We end this week saying goodbye to Franca Sozzani, the editor-in-chief of Vogue Italia who passed away at her home yesterday with her son by her side⁸. Franca had been editor of the magazine for 28 years, taking on that position the same year Anna Wintour took the lead position at US Vogue. Immediately, memorials began pouring in from fashion’s most notable names expressing their condolences. Ms. Wintour described her as, “warm, clever, funny, and someone who could give the Sphinx a run for its money when it comes to keeping a confidence.^9”Jonathan Newhouse, Chairman and CEO of Conde Nast, the parent company of all the Vogue editions, said in a statement: “France was one of the greatest Editors who ever make a magazine. She was by far the most talented, influential, and important person within the Conde Nast International organization.”

More than just an editor of a fashion magazine, however, Franca Sozzani was a photographer. She was the daughter of a photographer and had an unquestionable passion for photography that was evident in how she put together her magazine. She championed hundreds of photographers over the years, most notably Steven Meisel. She was constantly on the look for emerging photographers and established and supported multiple programs to give those photographers a chance to show their work.

Make no mistake, she was demanding and set a very high standard for the photography that graced the pages of her magazine and even in its more expanded online galleries. Having that small Vogue Italia logo in the bottom left-hand corner of a photo was an incredible achievement, a statement to the world that the toughest of photo editors approved of your work. I am fortunate enough to have that logo on 18 photographs. We normally don’t include those images with our other portfolios, but for the next few days at least we’ve put them all online in memory of a fantastic person who pushed us all to take better pictures. You can see our Vogue Italia portfolio here.

We are once again out of time and space. We hope you will enjoy your Festivus activities and that you will join us again tomorrow as we try to find 5 special things you need to know for Christmas Eve. Don’t forget to subscribe, please. We hope you stay warm and dry. Have a great Friday.

Long Read / pop culture

10 Reasonable Predictions For 2017

December 22, 2016

Some bets are safer than others

Making predictions are always a messy gamble. If you play it safe, your predictions look obvious. If you reach of the extreme you increase the chance of missing, which never looks good. Yet, making predictions for the new year is a bit of a time-honored tradition. Okay, maybe not the smartest time-honored tradition, but hey, you’re the one sitting here reading this stuff, so I’m definitely not alone in the equation.

Typically, predictions stay pretty narrowly focused on a specific genre. There are all kinds of digital media predictions for next year and the number of financial predictions, most of which disagree with each other, is myriad. I’m taking a more global approach this year in an effort to keep it interesting. I mean, how many years can I rehash the same fashion predictions of designers shifting houses and mergers and acquisitions? Oh, and in photography, Canon, Nikon, and Sony will all release new cameras. Yawn. We know those thins are going to happen so let’s look at things that are perhaps not quite so certain.

At the same time, I’m not going to step too far out onto any tree limb. I’ve chosen predictions that are corroborated to some degree by at least one other source if not more. This increases the likelihood of the prediction being correct, even if it seems out there a little bit.

I’m not putting our predictions in any particular order. They’re rather all over the place and trying to rank them feels less than genuine. Any one of them could end up being a huge story over the next year, or no story at all. We’ll just have to wait and see, won’t we?

The End of Globalization As We Know It

When the Berlin wall fell back in the 80’s, about the time many of you were born, everyone cheered the new openness and the concept of sharing everything and one new, giant world where we could all travel with ease and share common values. We would be citizens of the world, not the US or UK or any other specific country. It was a nice dream and it might have worked were it not for religious zealots bent on taking over the world. Terrorism fueled our fear of immigrants and caused us to guard our borders more carefully. Global recession caused us to question a shared currency and economies where one country’s foolishness can bring down others. Then came global hacking of critical networks.

Now, we feel nothing is safe and as a result we are pulling back. We see this in the British exit from the UK. We see the fear in populist elections not only in the US but around the world. The fear has countries looking for ways to cordon off their section of the Internet, protect their networks from theft or the kind of DDOS attack that took down much of the Eastern United States earlier this year. We are pulling back fast and even if there’s not a physical wall between the US and Mexico, we’ve already started erecting other walls in terms of policy that put us fully in protectionist mode.

Globalization awaits a death sentence in 2017. At the very least, it’s looking at a lengthy prison term until we figure out how to get along.

20% of activities will involve at least one of seven companies.

That list consists of Apple, Google, Facebook, Amazon, Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent. Everything you do, from buying groceries to shopping for blue jeans is going to involve the technology of one of those companies and the greater majority of the time you won’t even know it’s happening. Technology has permeated every part of our lives. We’re not just talking about the Internet here. Financial systems. Appliances. New home construction. Every last bit of it involves some form technology from at least one of those companies.

Where we will feel this transition the most is in the information arena. While social media is already a pervasive source of news, both real and fake, increasingly we’re going to see those same interfaces distributing far more personal information. For example, a simple connection between your Samsung appliance app and your Android phone could pop up a message on Facebook when your cookies are ready to come out of the oven. Or maybe your child’s school sends you a tweet when weather cancels school for the day. Already, Amazon can let you know seconds before the UPS delivery shows up at your front door.

Seven companies control the bulk of digital information and data being transferred from one place to another. These companies are larger than many of the governments around the world. They do what they want and are largely immune to any legislation that might be levied against them. The more I think about it, 20% may be too conservative a number. We’ll wait and see.

Separation of friends along ideological lines

One of the casualties of this past election season has been our friends list and who we follow on social media. We were passionate about this election and many of us were surprised when people we thought we knew, people we otherwise respected and thought were reasonable, expressed support for the political opposition. We unfollowed. We unfriended. And then we blocked. Social media users everywhere reported the destruction of their lists and the frequency with which they had to remove yet another name of what had been a long-term friend.

Now that the election is over, all is forgiven and we’re adding those people back, right? Nope, absolutely not. In fact, we’re still very much on edge about the whole matter. Those who lost are still angry about losing. Those who won are still aggressive about rubbing it in. We’re not friends anymore. That’s not going to change this year, and possibly not any year from here on out. We no longer trust those long-term friendships, not even the ones we held since high school.

Ideological divisions run deeper now than they did a year ago. We’re less likely to agree to disagree because the things over which we disagree matter too much. We don’t want to be friends with someone whose racism rose to the surface three months ago. We don’t want to continue a relationship with people who are willing to judge an entire religion on the actions of extremists. What we have seen this year is that too often those ideologies result in actions we cannot dream of supporting. So, we’ll keep weeding out our friends lists and unlike other post-election years we won’t be making up. Those friends are just gone.

More vegan & vegetarian menu choices

2017 could be a huge year for food on just about every culinary level imaginable. We’re seeing new restaurant concepts popping up in cities such as Indianapolis where food hadn’t been that big a deal before. More people in rural locations are caring about the quality and source of the things they eat. Even small town groceries are changing the stock on their shelves to reflect changes in our eating habits.

Where I think we’ll see some of the biggest changes in 2017 is in the number of vegan and vegetarian menu choices. There are a couple of reasons for this. As much as I thoroughly enjoy being carnivorous, meat prices continue to rise as maintaining production facilities free of diseases seems to be increasingly difficult. I actually saw a roasting hen for which I would never have paid more than $4 or $5 priced at $12 before Thanksgiving. Hell no, I’m not going to pay that price, and chances are a lot of other people are going to, at the very least, cut back on their meat consumption as well.

At the same time, more young people are taking up a pure vegan or vegetarian lifestyle and no, it’s not just a phase. As a result, there is a significantly larger audience looking for meatless options, whether because of price or because of preference. Expect restaurants to take notice of this opportunity and respond accordingly. What we will notice at first is the number of new places opening specifically to serve a vegan/vegetarian clientele. After all, these kids like to eat out. A lot. What will slip up on us, though, is an increase in vegan menu items at traditional meat places, especially fast food. It’s no secret that fast food powerhouse McDonald’s has been testing vegan and vegetarian menu items for a while now. 2017 may well be the year someone finally gets it right.

Streaming video on demand completely takes over

Stop and think for a minute about how many streaming video on demand accounts you have. Netflix. Hulu. Amazon. Those three are likely a given. Oh, but don’t forget HBOGo so that you don’t miss Game of Thrones. And then there’s that Showtime on demand subscription. When all is said and done, you may well be spending just as much money on SVOD services as you once did on a cable package. They add up quickly.

What we’re going to see in 2017, though, is a complete domination of entertainment by various SVOD services. Even the networks are starting to get in on the act with CBS offering its own subscription service apart from needing any kind of cable account to access live shows. Yes, this has your cable company a little frightened, but it’s not something they haven’t seen coming. This is one of the reasons AT&T wants to buy Time/Warner. This is also one of the reasons Comcast and NBC are joined at the hip. Content producers on every level are making deals and acquisitions with streaming providers as fast as they possibly can. By this time next year, you likely will be able to watch any show, any where, any time through a streaming service.

This streaming thing applies to more than video, though. Increasingly over this year, you’ll see more muscle put behind music streaming services, especially through three of the Big 7, Apple, Google, and Amazon. Don’t be surprised if by this time next year they’ve gobbled up smaller services like Pandora and Spotify. If you want to listen to music non-stop it will cost you $10 a month, or you can start buying CDs again. Yeah, they still make those. There could be a backlash against streaming at some point, but I don’t think it will happen in the next 12 months.

Mergers & acquisitions will rock the choice landscape

AT&T and Time Warner. Verizon and Yahoo! and possibly CBS. Mergers and acquisitions are positioned to be one of the biggest areas of business growth, gaining a strength and ferocity they’ve not seen since the late 1990s. What this comes down to is big companies have not been able to develop the technology to keep up as quickly as smaller companies. So, it makes sense for the big companies to buy the smaller companies. This makes the technologies available to a broader audience, increases the services of the larger company, and positively affects the bottom line. Everyone’s happy, right?

Wellllll, that’s not always the case, especially when it comes to technology and media acquisitions. When Rupert Murdock bought the National Geographic magazine, for example, there was wide-spread concern as to whether Murdock’s political ideology might affect the objectivity of the famous magazine. With pending deals such as the AT&T/Time Warner merger, not only does the Securities and Exchange Commission have to look at how the merger affects competition in the cable industry, they also have to consider whether the deal might limit access to content developed by Time Warner’s many creative holdings.

No matter which directions those decisions go, however, mergers and acquisitions are going to be big in almost every industry imaginable. Now is a great time to be an M&A attorney, to be sure. However, if you work at a mid-size company doing work that isn’t highly specialized (such as sales), I’d be sure to keep that resume polished and up to date.

Subscriptions become a really huge thing

Over the past year, I’ve seen plenty of marketing jokes about the dollar shave club. Those jokes are likely to fade into oblivion this next year as subscription services for a variety of products are poised to take off in a major way. Among those who are likely to be big winners are food and conglomerate personal toiletries. Think well beyond the dollar shave club. For $3 or $5 a month you can have everything from vegan toothpaste to organic deodorant along with brushes and combs. At the same time, you’ll be ordering specific food packages personally designed not only for your taste, but emphasizing locally-grown foods, and sustainable desserts.

What fuels this dramatic growth in subscriptions is the fact that the number of people who actually enjoy shopping is diminishing. Our lives are busier than ever and if we’re not working double shifts we’re maximizing our time with friends. The one thing we don’t have time to do is shop even for basic things such as toothpaste and snacks we can binge at 3AM. Subscriptions are an easy answer to that. We give the provider a list of personal preferences and they send us packages at predetermined intervals, all of which is conveniently billed to your credit card.

I’m anxious to see just what services show up with subscription services once they see that the trend has taken off. Will there be taco subscription services? Or maybe we can sign up for regular dress shoe upgrades. I’ve already seen ads for a service that provides one entirely new outfit a month. The foundation has already been laid. Just wait for it to explode.

Lower tax rates, fewer deductions

The last big tax overhaul was 1986 in the middle of the Reagan administration overseen by then Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich. Now, the Republicans are back in control and are ready to do the same thing again. Lower taxes, especially for corporations, were a big part of Republican campaign promises and now it’s time to make good on those promises. Wall Street is pretty much depending on some dramatic cuts and possibly the complete elimination of the inheritance tax, all of which would bouy stock prices.

The downside here is that there are likely to be fewer deductions and individuals and families might even see reductions in the earned income credit. Republicans have opposed raises to that credit the past few times it has come up but have compromised to get bills signed. Now that they don’t need to make that compromise there may be a number of deductions that are completely eliminated in order to pay for those cuts in corporate taxes.

While cutting taxes would seem to require a cut in spending, though, don’t expect that to actually happen. Much of the budgetary spending for the next several years has already been determined by contracts that would be even more expensive to renegotiate. So, it could be very interesting to see how the tax cuts affect the budget without adding more onto the national debt, which is another extremely sensitive topic in Washington. There are still a lot of people up there who don’t understand one can’t have a cake that’s already been eaten.

Your phone is your wallet

Credit and debit cards got an update this year with smart chips designed to make fraud much more difficult. Increasingly, though, we are less likely to have to pull our cards from our wallets at all. A mobile app from Google called Hands Free lets customers pay for stuff at stores without having to pull out their phones. Amazon is already testing their own hands-free technology with a special grocery store in the Seattle area. Plus an app being developed by Visa and Honda to allow drivers to pay for products without leaving their cars.

All this does require that you have a smart phone and that specific apps be functioning. What happens if you pull up to a drive-thru where you have no bars? I’m not sure. No one seems to want to talk about the inherent problems with this new cardless pay system. Hacking of personal data seems to be a high possibility, despite assurance from the big seven tech companies that each step brings with it increased security. The other downside is that this new technology eliminates the need for cashiers, so say goodbye to a whole bunch of unskilled jobs. The move also further marginalizes the poor and those whose credit is insufficient to have a bank account. As the number of stores with cashiers dwindles, where will these people have to go to buy food?

Advances in technology are wonderful and largely inevitable. What we have to do over the next year, however, is make sure that we are not leaving out those who lack the priveledges the rest of us take for granted.

A little more afraid

One of the most certain forecasts for 2017 is that we are all a little less trusting and a little more afraid than we were this year. 2016 showed us just how bad a year could be and how that even the best plans could fail in a colossal manner. Not only does 2017 not look any better, there are plenty of people telling us it could be worse. Given the amount of suffering and difficulty we’ve faced over the past 12 months, we are frightened about what might be coming next.

This fear is driving us in two different directions. On one hand, there is a new wave of activism coming, people who refuse to sit down and let the new administration roll over them and take away their rights. The success of the protests at the North Dakota Access Pipeline this year emboldened many people with its demonstration of how people can stand up to the government and win. Expect to see a lot more marching, a lot more protests, and a lot of requests for money to fund these campaigns.

On the other hand, however, people are more likely to guard their personal finances, to spend cautiously and carefully, and to minimize their personal risks. Expect banks to be more cautious in making loans, which could have a negative effect on the housing and car markets. We are likely to see fewer non-technology startups and people who have jobs are more likely to stay in them even if they’re not especially happy. When our global environment is this uncertain, we tend to be extremely careful about where we step.

That’s the end of our top ten predictions. If I had room to toss in a bonus prediction it would be that alternative energies are poised for a big boost this year, but there are some policy caveats that could derail that growth as well. I’m also concerned about US relations with foreign countries, especially China given its continued aggression in the South China Sea. My hope is that China might back down in order to prevent any disruption in trade, but that entire area of the world is very tentative as we enter the new year.

I’m still working on a separate survival guide for next year so be looking for that within the next week. 12 months can be a very long time and a lot can happen. When these predictions come true, though, remember that you saw it here first. Maybe. Unless you saw it somewhere else first, which would be very, very strange.

Advertising / Current Issues / News & Comment / video

5 Things You Should Know: 12/22/2016

December 22, 2016

charles i. letbetter - 20% of activities will involve at least one of the seven digital giants. That list consists of Apple, Google, Facebook, Amazon, Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent.

04:58:13 12/22/2016

https://youtu.be/eJKvb6KDcp0

A brief moment of clarity between confusion and chaos

Hey there! Welcome to Thursday, the one day this week that doesn’t have some form of holiday attached to it. This is your last chance to catch your breath before all the candles and tinsel and eggnog take over and send the next four days into a complete tizzy. Don’t ask me what a tizzy is. My mother used that word often around the holidays, though, and it is a rather fun way to describe the chaos of the season.

We have seriously bad weather shaping up for this weekend. What it comes down to is if you’re not getting snow you’re probably getting thunderstorms with the possibility of tornadoes across the central states. At least you won’t have to share road space with driverless Uber cars as they’ve had their registration suspended, and the last remaining civilians are leaving Aleppo, Syria today. I look at the news feeds from Reuters and the Associated Press and see a lot of chaos. Let’s see if we can provide a bit of clarity.

North Carolina lawmakers are still jackasses

The whole purpose of the North Carolina state legislature meeting in special session yesterday was so they could repeal the controversial HB2 bill that prohibited transgender people from using the restroom with which they identify. That didn’t happen¹.

Please note that the city of Charlotte kept their end of the bargain. They met Wednesday morning and repealed the anti-discrimination bill that started this whole mess. Heaven forbid transgender people have any legal protections in the state of North Carolina. What was supposed to happen next was a complete repeal of HB2. However, Republican legislators added language to the repeal that would have called for a “cooling off” period of indeterminate length wherein no city or county could enact their own anti-discrimination law, effectively making the repeal moot. Obviously, that didn’t set well with state Democrats who backed off the bill. Meanwhile, hardline Republicans were upset that any repeal was considered at all.

I don’t know what they’re putting in the water in North Carolina but this is one of the most ridiculous displays of improper governance I’ve ever seen. The Charlotte city council has not yet said how they will respond to this breach of trust. It seems almost certain that this could lead to a new round of boycotts and job losses for the state on top of the millions already lost. I think Santa can just skip the entire state of North Carolina this year.

Security concerns across the US

After the attack in Berlin that left 12 dead, and especially given the fact that authorities across Europe are still looking for the Tunisian man accused of the attack, security is on high alert this holiday weekend anywhere large numbers of people are planned to gather². If you are traveling, expect to see more police and TSA officers roaming the concourse and one is likely to see especially high security with international travel to and from Europe.

Here in the US, heavily-armed counterterrorism officers are standing guard at places such as New York’s pop-up Christmas markets in Union Square, Bryant Park, and Columbus Circle. In Chicago, the police presence is especially high at Daley Plaza with police vehicles parked so as to prevent a truck or any other vehicle from getting through. In Los Angeles, where there are several large events planned for the weekend and preparations are under way for the Rose parade, police have placed large equipment at the entrance to large events to prevent an attack such as what happened in Berlin.

While police presence in the largest cities are the most visible, smaller cities across the country have taken their share of precautions as well. Truck rental companies everywhere have been asked to contact local police should they encounter someone renting a truck who cannot give an adequate answer to what their plans for the vehicle might be. Police assigned to large events such as holiday football games and parades are more heavily armed and making good use of canine patrols. If ever there were a time for the phrase, “if you see something, say something,” this would be it.

Telephone patent wars

While many companies are winding down operations for the year and trying to end on a nice, tidy note, Nokia decided this would be a good time to file suit against Apple for patent infringement³. Nokia filed the suits in both Germany and the US, claiming that patents for displays, user interfaces, software, antennas, chipsets and video coding were being used by Apple outside their 2011 licensing agreement.

However, Apple says that Nokia is asking too much for the license to the disputed technologies. To that end, Apple has filed suit against Acacia Research Corp (ACTG.O) and Conversant Intellectual Property Management Inc [GEGGIM.UL], accusing them of colluding with Nokia to extract and extort exorbitant prices for the technology. Where this really gets confusing is when you realize that the Apple suit was filed just one day after Conversant named a former Apple executive as its new CEO.

What this ultimately means for consumers is that new editions of the famous Apple iPhone could be delayed and already high prices could go even higher. While Nokia phones hold an insignificant share of the market, the patents they hold are licensed by a number of phone makers around the world making this an issue that could affect almost everyone’s pocket book over the next couple of years.

The high cost of advertising

Yet another price fixing scandal is in the news this week and this time it involves the four largest holding companies in the advertising industry. Omnicom, Publicis, WPP, and IPG have all confirmed that they have received subpoenas from the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division⁴. The subpoenas are part of an ongoing investigation into allegations of bid fixing for video and post-production services within the industry.

Without talking too much shop, what the Justice Department is claiming is that subsidiaries of the holding group, with the knowledge and implied consent of the partners in each group, are colluding with video and post-production companies to rig bids on large projects in exchange for promising the production companies additional business down the road. Those within the ad industry know this is not an uncommon practice in an effort to win a large, competitive account. Officially, however, the agencies all state that such practices are forbidden.

Where this all shakes out is that the smaller sub-contracted production companies often end up taking a loss while the big holding groups reap the profits. Small companies are hesitant to turn down the request, especially if it means getting to work on a high-profile account such as Ford or Coca-Cola. The downside is that even if the Justice Department is able to prove the big four are guilty of bid rigging, there is not a lot of teeth to their bite. Fines are the only punishment likely to be imposed and the companies would simply compensate by raising prices for their services.

And finally …

We had to do some digging to find much in the way of good news this morning, but we found it out in Arizona where a Virginia couple announced yesterday they had given birth to a set of quintuplets earlier this month⁵. Margaret and Michael Baudinet are the proud parents of four girls and a boy after a very careful and quiet pregnancy. The family temporarily moved to Phoenix moved to be closer to Dr. John Elliott, a specialist in multiple-birth pregnancies.

Anyone who has experienced multiple births knows how fraught with anxiety they can be. Even having twins presents a series of complications not seen in a single childbirth. However, doctors at the Arizona hospital say the delivery of the quints went extremely well. The babies all weighed a little more than three pounds at birth and were delivered within 17 minutes of each other thanks to a team of 24 medical professionals.

While the babies are still in neonatal ICU, they are all breathing on their own and are being bottle fed. The Baudinets plan to return to Virginia with their new family sometime next month.

That’s all we’re telling on this Thursday. Please do be careful as you are out and about with all those last-minute activities. We really do hope you’ll do us the favor of subscribing. That’s all we want for Christmas. Stay warm and we will see you again tomorrow.

Fashion / video

Our 5 Favorite Fashion Films For 2016

December 21, 2016

A different way of looking at fashion

Custom film has become a major factor in how brands communicate their message and even establish some level of dominance. Part of a complicated, multi=-million-dollar marketing campaign, these films are stories unto themselves, dialogues that express a unique perspective on what it means to wear a brand’s clothing. The best frequently employ award-winning directors and several also include recognizable actors.

We’ve watched dozens of fashion films this year, but these five stand out. They go beyond just presenting a set of clothes. They capture our imagination and give us aspirations for how our lives might be should we wear these clothes.

What’s especially interesting is that almost all fashion films are presented without dialog. The viewer is left to interpret the story for themselves, just as we must ultimately interpret a brand’s clothes for ourselves. Labels want to send a strong message that the clothes don’t define the person. Rather, the person defines the clothes.

So here are my five favorites in no particular order. Pour yourself a drink and enjoy.

Christian Dior: Drift

Film by Vincent van de Wijngaard. A little stereotypical with the use of the LA Causeway, but still very well done.

Calvin Klein Jeans, Spring 2016

Featuring FKA Twigs and Kaner Flex

Gucci Stories: The Myth of Orpheus and Eurydice

This is a four-part modernization of the Greek myth that is quite interesting

KENZO: Snowbird

This award-winning film by Sean Baker was shot entirely on an iPhone

https://youtu.be/Bkgc6rqOc8w

PRADA: Past Forward

This very futuristic and esoteric film by David O. Russell is a beautiful piece of noir. Be sure to look for appearances by John Kaczynski and Sasha Baron Cohen.

Current Issues / News & Comment / video

5 Things You Should Know: 12/21/2016

December 21, 2016

charles i. letbetter - 5 Things You Should Know: 12/21/16

8:11:14 AM 12/21/2016

https://youtu.be/w1R_6E5YXRE

And A Happy Solstice To All

Hey there! Happy Winter Solstice! It’s the shortest day of the year, among other things, which means that from here on out the days start getting longer. That’s a good thing, isn’t it? We certainly hope it is. And we’re still looking at warming temperatures as we head toward the Christmas/Hanukkah weekend so hopefully travel problems will be few.

As we look at the news this morning, there is still a lot of clean up from Monday’s events. Police in Germany released the person they initially thought was the driver of the truck that slammed into a holiday market in Berlin and a manhunt is underway. Russia has doubled down on its relationship with Turkey. And officials in Geneva said that the person who shot up a mosque there was not a Muslim extremist. Those situations are likely to be ongoing for a while. So, our five things you should know this morning takes us in a slightly different direction.

And then things went boom

By now, if you’ve been on social media much at all, you’ve likely seen the video a passerby took yesterday as the San Pablito fireworks market in Mexico exploded yesterday¹. While the site was a spectacular event to watch, the death toll in that chain reaction explosion now stands at 29, with 72 still being treated for injuries. Some of those injured have burns over 90 percent of their body.

There is no word yet as to who or what might have caused the explosion. Inventory at the market was higher than usual because of the upcoming holidays. The fireworks market is an integral part of the local economy and something that is carefully guarded. However, this is not the first time that the San Pablito market has gone up in flames. A similar incident in May of 2005 did a similar amount of damage, though fewer lives were lost in that explosion.

Amidst the chaos of the explosions and huge plumes of smoke, survivors ran for the nearest exit, many becoming separated from their families and leaving behind personal items such as cell phones. Relatives are still scrambling to find those who are missing. Sadly, explosions like this are all-too-common an occurrence in Mexico, especially around holidays and religious festivals. Yesterday’s explosion, however, was the worst the country has seen in several years.

Someone has to take responsibility

With tragedy inevitably come lawsuits as victims’ families look to hold someone, somewhere, responsible for the event that took the life of a loved one. Such is the case in Orlando as the families of three men killed in the Pulse nightclub shooting filed papers in Detroit federal court on Monday naming major social media companies Facebook, Twitter, and Google saying that the companies “provided the terrorist group ISIS with accounts they use to spread extremist propaganda, raise funds and attract new recruits.”²

While the grief of the families involved is understandable, one has to wonder if this is not yet again a case of an over-zealous attorney either trying to make a name for themselves or bilking the grieving families out of thousands of dollars in attorneys fees. The families would have to prove intentional and deliberate collusion on the part of the social media giants to win their case, something that is not likely to happen. Pile First Amendment arguments on top of that and the lawsuit is practically dead in the water before it ever starts.

While only Facebook responded to the lawsuit yesterday, the issue of shutting down the accounts of known terrorist cells has been a primary project for every social media outlet over the past couple of years. Twitter was very public back in August when it announced that it had deleted 360,000 accounts since mid-2015 for violating policies related to promotion of terrorism. All three companies, along with Microsoft, are part of a joint effort to prevent known terrorist accounts from proliferating online. Section 230 of the federal Communications Decency Act protects software companies from speech users post on their sites, making the lawsuit against them even more improbable.

Our sympathies are with the families of the victims, but this lawsuit is nothing but desperate foolishness.

American Apparel is dying

Anyone who once shopped the big malls across the country knows the name American Apparel. They’ve been a mainstay of malls everywhere for over 30 years. However, the retail market has not been nice toward mall-based chains and American Apparel has spent the past several months in the middle of bankruptcy proceedings trying desperately to keep the brand alive. Yesterday, however, a judge agreed to allow the store to close nine locations and approved a liquidation plan should a buyer not be found within a reasonable timeframe.³

The nine stores, which are among some of the brand’s highest profile locations in Atlanta and Dallas, may just be the tip of the iceberg. The entire chain goes up for auction next month, and Gildan Activewear has already set a starting bid of $106 million. However, Gildan is not required to follow through on that bid and analyst are pessimistic about any other buyers attempting to save all 107 locations.

What this means for shoppers is multiple rounds of clearance sales as the company begins divesting itself of as much inventory as possible. However, it is also a warning sign as other mall retailers are beginning to hire bankruptcy attorneys. Fast fashion retailers such as H&M and Zara have taken much of the fire out of mall stores and that entire sector of the industry has been in steep decline for five years now. Expect more fashion-oriented stores to fall over the next two years.

Bobbie Brown exits stage left

The beauty world was caught off guard yesterday as Bobbie Brown, founder of the incredibly popular Bobbie Brown cosmetics line, announced she is stepping away from the brand at the end of the year⁴. Ms. Brown did not say exactly what she was going to do next. She told WWD that the celebration of brand’s 25th anniversary was a milestone “that made me realize it was time to start a new chapter and move on to new ventures.”

The 59-year-old makeup artist certainly has plenty of options available to her as she has dabbled in a variety of closely-related ventures over the years. The brand itself is owned by Estee Lauder and will continue operating under Peter Lichtenthal, global brand president. Ms. Brown is known for being energetic and creative so it will be interesting to see just where she might apply her incredible talent next.

And Finally …

President Obama may have found something that the incoming administration can’t undo upon its arrival next month. Yesterday, the president banned new oil and gas drilling in federal waters in the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, a move that, understandably makes environmentalists extremely happy⁵. The move protects nearly 120 million acres of coastal waters controlled jointly by both the United States and Canada.

Normally, we might throw some shade at the move on the expectation that the next president would simply revoke the ruling using the same Presidential power with which it was made. However, this is one instance where the ruling is almost permanent. The president utilized the little-known Outer Continental Shelf Act that allows presidents to limit areas from mineral leasing and drilling. If Mr. Trump attempts to reverse President Obama’s move, he could only do so through a series of lawsuits that would likely take longer to get through the courts than his administration would be in place.

At the same time, it’s not like anyone has been chomping at the bit to drill in the Arctic waters. Shell Oil was the last company to give it a try and they abandoned those efforts after a tanker lost several thousand gallons of crude thanks to a giant gash in its side caused by ice flows in the area. Drilling there is extremely expensive compared to land-based operations. Still, the American Petroleum Institute criticized the move. The president-elect’s transition team has not yet responded.

We’re running incredibly late this morning, so we’ll have to end the conversation there for now. As always, we hope you’ll stay warm and safe. Don’t forget to subscribe, and we’ll be back with more tomorrow.

Just For Fun / pop culture / Social Commentary

10 Things We Don’t Want In 2017

December 20, 2016

Think of this as the anti-list

There are plenty of things we could make lists about, and probably will over the next couple of weeks. One of the big ones, though, is the list of things we really don’t want to see in the next year. With everything we’ve been through this year, there’s not much we really want to carry over. In fact, we’re rather selective about anything new that might be coming along. We’re concerned about what might happen over the next 12 months.

The thing about the future, of course, is that it is what we make of it. No one has a lock on what might or might not happen. We can make the next year better if we put forth the effort.

Of course, I’m not sure I have any faith in people putting forth the effort. We don’t exactly have the best track record given the way we’ve behaved over the past 12 months. So, here’s our list of things that absolutely, positively, unquestionably, should not happen in 2017. And if any of them do happen, we’re going to publicly shame whoever is responsible.

The Bottom Five

10. Awkwardly flavored soda. Actually, we don’t need any new soda at all, but I’m sure someone at Coca-Cola or Pepsi will convince executives that they have a can’t miss proposition that scored really well with a test group that has never actually had soda before. The problem with new sodas now is that, having already explored most of the flavors that occur naturally, all that’s left are the mashups one gets by standing at the soda fountain mixing different flavors together in uncertain quantities. While popular among 14-year-old males, these strange mixes are really just bad ideas with mediocre marketing. No more.

9. Cookie mashups. What are we, two-year-olds trapped in a high chair? I swear, half the new snacks we’ve seen this year have to be the products of parents who were trapped at home with their toddler on a rainy Saturday. Oreos with Doritos? No thank you. Honey-dipped cheese sauce? Please, there’s a reason the kid didn’t actually eat that combination. What’s worse is that these new snack combinations are doomed to some of the worst marketing ideas we’ve ever seen. Honestly, Hershey’s, the Snack Patrol? Someone’s been watching too many late-night reruns. Try keeping things simple this next year.

8. Book sequels not written by the original author. I don’t envy book editors whose job it is to publish material that is going to be profitable before it is actually released. The number of great authors is limited and, for better or worse, a number of those who might have penned blockbuster novels are choosing to self-publish instead. There are a number of classic novels that, at least on some level, seem to demand a sequel that the original author never wrote. Once a writer is deceased, however, there are fewer ethical problems with hiring someone else to write the sequel for them. There’s just one problem with that: the sequels stink. In fact, quite often they stink when written by original authors. Let’s just limit the sequels not part of the original literary plan, okay?

7. New social media sites. Nope, don’t need ’em. I don’t care how wonderful the idea seems. Social media has picked its dominant tools. Only Twitter has any chance of being replaced by a newcomer, and that’s only if it captures the fancy of the Great Orange President. New social media applications are dangerous. We sign up for them, find them to be the most boring things ever, and then promptly forget that we signed up for them, leaving the information in our half-finished profiles open to hackers. Making a bad situation worse is the fact that the hacks are so insignificant that they never get reported. As a result, we don’t know that our information has been hacked. So, let’s try going 12 months without signing up for anything new, okay? Give it a try.

6. New photography/art sites. Photographers and artists are so desperate to sell anything to anyone that they’ll jump on every new site that comes along without bothering to think whether there’s really any chance of one site working any better than another. There’s not. People don’t buy art online in significant enough volume for any site to actually boast any success. Of course, part of that could be due to the fact that the creative work being put on these sites isn’t commercially viable in the first place. Still, we really don’t need any more creative sites that do nothing more than waste our time with empty promises.

The Top Five

5. New terrorist organizations. Sorry, we have too many terrorist groups to keep track of already. I don’t give a fuck how niche your religious beliefs might be or how passionate one might be in their zealotry. Just stay home, keep your fucking opinions to yourself, and put up that bomb-making kit before someone gets hurt. Terrorists need to learn that we’re not going to give in because of violence and they’re not going to win any favor by trying to kill everyone on the planet who doesn’t agree with them. We’re tired of this shit. If you’re thinking of starting a new terrorist organization, just go fuck yourself and call it a day.

4. Attacks on civil rights. One of the most disgusting aspects of 2016 has been the severity with which civil rights have been attacked. This nonsense needs to stop right now and shouldn’t be carried over into the next year. If you’re a member of the KKK or any other white supremacy group then feel free to kill yourself. We promise to not mourn your passing. Hate is a blight on this world and you’re doing nothing but making the planet a less tolerable place to live. And don’t give me that shit about those who dislike hate groups being intolerable. Hate is a choice we can no longer accept. If you choose to hate, you need to not be present in the next year.

3. New reality programming. Reality TV has been nothing but disastrous, culminating this year in the election of a reality personality as president. Given that each new reality program inherently tries to do something more absurd than the shows before it, we simply cannot risk anything new over the next year. We aren’t likely to survive anything more ridiculous and dangerous than the Trump administration. This has to stop here. Please. For the sake of all humanity.

2. Celebrating people who have done nothing of value. This goes hand-in-hand with the reality programming, and for the same reason. Our national obsession with making celebrities of people simply because they’re rich has to stop. We don’t need any more Hadids or Jenners or Trumps. This stupid and nonsensical obsession damn-near destroyed democracy this past year and has placed us on the brink of complete destruction. It is time we started celebrating people who actually help society, people who know what it means to actually work rather than just bossing people around and firing them for stupid reasons. Leave this bad habit right here. No more.

1. Ignorance. Come on, we’re entering 2017. We have access to every bit of wisdom ever recorded and we can get that information at any time on our phones. So, why are we, collectively, so fucking stupid? We need to leave the stupidity behind and make a concerted effort to become a more intelligent and better-informed society over the next year. By doing so, we will inherently eliminate many of the problems that have cause 2016 to be such an incredibly horrible and distasteful year. We also would be taking a giant step toward ensuring that our species won’t be exterminated in the next hundred years or so. If we are going to survive, we have to put ignorance and all the problems it creates right here in 2016. There is no place for it in the future.

Current Issues / News & Comment / video

5 Things You Should Know: 12/20/2016

December 20, 2016

12/20/2016 05:26:21

https://youtu.be/sYns1yuT2TU

It Was A Really Bad Monday

Whew! You made it! You’re one of the lucky ones. Temperatures are even warming up a bit today. We have a balmy 14 degrees here in Indianapolis and the forecast calls for continued warming through the weekend. This is not going to be a white Christmas or Hanukkah for most of the Midwest. Wet, perhaps, but no new snow covering the ground.

I wish I knew where to even begin this morning. Yes, the Electoral College did the deed and elected Donald Trump as the 45th president of the United States. China gave the US Navy its drone ship back, and stocks are looking a bit nervous this morning. Yesterday will be remembered, though, as a day of incredible violence, none of which was justified in any way. Of the five things you should know for today, the first three should never have happened.

Death Toll At 12 in Berlin

Berlin, Germany really gets into Christmas. Its open-air holiday markets are a tradition that spans generations. Millions of people from around the world flock to the city during the month of December to shop the artisan crafts and old-world goods that can only be found in this one place. One finds happiness in Berlin this time of year, so it’s not surprising that when a truck plowed into the holiday market there yesterday, the initial reaction was that it must have been a drowsy driver. It wasn’t.

This morning, police in Berlin are saying that the act was intentional and that they are treating the incident as a terror attack¹. Twelve people are now dead as a result of the attack. One of those appears to be the original Polish driver of the truck who was found in the cab. The truck was apparently hijacked earlier by a man German media is claiming to be a Pakistani national. We’re waiting for a press conference later today to confirm that information.

Berlin markets are closed as both the investigation and mourning continues. The archbishop of Berlin held prayers for the victims at noon today.

Assassination In The Gallery

One of the most frightening things about terrorism is that it attacks us in the most unsuspecting of places. When Russian ambassador to Turkey, Andrei Karlov, was invited to speak at the opening of an exhibition of photographs from Russia’s westernmost Baltic region, I’m sure it seemed like another mindless affair of state; the sort of things ambassadors do on a regular basis. He’d read a short speech, shake a few hands, say nice things about the photographs, and be gone.

That’s not what happened. Associated Press photographer Burhan Ozbilici was attending a photo exhibition simply because it was on his way home². He describes the scene as quiet, the ambassador, “was speaking softly and… lovingly about his homeland.” That silence was soon shattered, though, as a police officer fired several shots killing the ambassador. He then menacingly continued yelling, in Arabic, smashing some of the photos on the wall. He would later be killed in a shootout with police.

Tensions between Russia and Turkey have been high over Russia’s support of the Assad regime in Syria, especially in regard to the humanitarian tragedy in Aleppo. Many of the Syrian refugees have fled to Turkey for safety. In a separate attack, a Turkish man is being detained after firing a shotgun outside the US embassy in Ankara³. No one was injured in that incident, but tensions still remain very high even as both Russian and Turkish officials pledge to work together in resolving their differences.

Shooting At Prayer Time

Even Switzerland, which we normally think of as being peace-loving, quiet, and accepting, was marred by violence late yesterday as a gunman opened fire in a Geneva mosque frequented by Somali Muslims⁴. Three men were injured, though, thankfully, none of the injuries appear to be life-threatening. A regular worshipper at the mosque said this was the first time they had any problems at the center and that normally no one bothered them.

Even in Switzerland, though, where two-third of the population identifies as Christian, relationships with the Muslim community there, many of which are immigrants from the former Yugoslavia, is tentative. Back in 2009, a constitutional referendum banned new minarets in the entire country.

The body of the gunman was found later on a street nearby, but police in Geneva are being quiet about the shooting, hoping to prevent the panic that often accompanies terroristic incidents such as this. Still, for a shooting to happen in as place like this, where there was no hint of any discord, gives the entire international Muslim community reason to be on guard, especially during this holiday season.

Bathroom Doors May Be Open

The state of North Carolina seems to have difficulty keeping itself out of the news. After passing bills last week limiting the executive powers of the incoming Governor, it appears that same state legislature may be ready to repeal the controversial HB2, dubbed the “bathroom bill,” that required transgendered persons to use the restroom facility matching the gender identity on their birth certificate⁵.

How this all went down is a bit complicated. The whole thing started when the city of Charlotte passed an anti-discrimination bill that guaranteed transgender people the right to use whichever restroom they wanted. That bill motived the state legislature to pass HB2 specifically to stop the Charlotte law. The law proved to be bad for the state, though, costing it several high-profile events and thousands of jobs. So, a deal was made over the weekend. If Charlotte would repeal their law, the state legislature would repeal theirs. The Charlotte City Council took the necessary action yesterday and the state legislature is being called into emergency session specifically to repeal HB2.

Is this really a victory, though? While the elimination of HB2 is a good thing, the deal leaves transgendered people without any legal protection. This sort of “don’t-ask-don’t-tell” approach isn’t likely to work for long. Without specific anti-discrimination laws in place, transgender people are still too easy a target.

And finally …

“You are free to go,” are words being said at federal prisons all across the US as President Obama set a new record yesterday for the most individual clemencies issued in one day by any president. The president pardoned 78 people and shortened the sentence of 153 others convicted of federal crimes⁶. And this is while the man is on vacation with his family, mind you.

Issuing pardons is a fairly common activity among lame-duck presidents during their final days in office. Every sitting president has done the same thing, but President Obama has been much more proactive about the matter. All total, he has pardoned 148 people during his presidency and has shortened the sentences of 1,176 people. He has been very vocal about the need for prison reform, even though his administration was never able to get much legislative traction on the issue.

What many people are waiting to see is whether the president takes any action regarding Leonard Peltier. Peltier is the native tribesman and leader of the American Indian Movement who was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences for the murder of two FBI agents on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in 1975. From the very beginning of that incident, many have believed that Peltier was a scapegoat and not the person actually responsible for the shootings. Amnesty International still lists this as an unfair trial⁷ and it has been the subject of intense controversy. While native tribes civil rights groups have been lobbying heavily for Peltier’s pardon, however, it seems more likely that President Obama might shorten the sentence to match the time already served. This would allow Peltier to be released but would not remove the conviction.

We are so very out of time this morning. Let’s hope that Tuesday goes much smoother than our Monday did. I have holiday treats to bake. Bundle up and stay safe. Subscribe to our freakin’ post already! Share our articles so we can grow, please. May your Tuesday not be terrible. We’ll see you tomorrow.

Current Issues / News & Comment / video

5 Things You Should Know: 12/19/2016

December 19, 2016

charles i. letbetter = 5 Things You Should Know: 12/19/16

12/19/2016 06:00:43

https://youtu.be/w96bFSw_rpA

A Monday by any other name

It’s Monday and I hope you’re staying warm. The temperature outside is all of one degree Fahrenheit as we look at the world this morning. Most of the nation is going to stay in the ice box for the greater part of the week with some hope for a warm up just in time for the weekend.

Our Muslim friends are celebrating the prophet’s birthday today and for everyone else, the number of shopping days continues to dwindle, especially if you’re ordering anything online. The water is back on in Corpus Cristi this morning, but the good news ends there, I’m afraid. We’ve certified five things you need to know for today, so let’s get to it.

And The Winner Is …

The big day is finally here. In all 50 states and the District of Columbia, the Electoral College meets today to put it’s rubber stamp on the United States presidential election. While Hilary Clinton won the popular count by nearly three million votes, Donald Trump took the electoral count sufficiently enough for there to not be any real conflict. While protests are planned for several state capitols¹, quite honestly folks, you’re better off staying inside where it’s nice and warm. You’re not going to change anything.

The Associated Press polled electors yesterday and confirmed that all the emails and letters have not had any effect in changing most elector’s votes.

Wirt A. Yerger Jr., a Republican elector in Mississippi, said, “I have gotten several thousand emails asking me not to vote for Trump. I threw them all away.”

It would take over 70 electors changing their vote for there to be any variance in the outcome. This was the balance the founding fathers wrote into the Constitution². Republican elector Mary Sue MccClurkin from Alabama told the AP: “Our Founding Fathers established the Electoral College because those larger states, those larger areas, don’t necessarily need to be the ones that rule.”

Across the country, Mrs. Clinton won the predominantly urban areas while Mr. Trump swept the rural areas and small towns.

Even when today’s vote is done, however, the election is still not over! Congress must meet in joint session on January 6 to certify the vote of the Electoral College. Our founding fathers wanted to make extra certain there was no hanky panky going on.

Trying to escape Aleppo

The horrendous story of Aleppo, Syria continues this morning, long after this horrible chapter should already have been closed. The latest reports we have from the Associated Press³ and Reuters⁴ say that evacuations are under way this morning after buses were set on fire yesterday, blocking the evacuation of several thousand. Today’s evacuation, which is the last under this very shaky cease-fire, is set to happen in three phases with 1,250 people in each of the first two sets, and the remaining 1,500 in the third.

The United Nations Security Council is expected to vote this morning, deploying U.N. monitors to Aleppo immediately in order to prevent what France has warned could be “mass atrocities” by Syrian forces and allied pro-government militias as they assume control. There are still several thousand people attempting to live in what was once Syria’s largest city. With all the cruelty and genocide we’ve seen over the past several months, the safety of those few remaining is of grave concern.

Of course, this opens questions as to where the civil war might move next. While the battle for Aleppo is ending, the war against Assad-controlled government forces is not and likely won’t be ending any time in the next year. As horrible as this war has been, there is still every chance it could get worse.

Terror at the Castle

Our next story reads almost like the script of an action adventure movie, but unfortunately, it’s all too real. Crusader castle in Karak, Jordan is an extremely popular tourist destination. Built in the 12 century by, you guessed it, Christian crusaders on their way to liberate Jerusalem, the castle was part of a chain built across this region that was once the ancient kingdom of Moab. Tourism in the area is strong and typically does not see much violence.

However, that all changed yesterday as four gunmen took a group of tourists hostage and began shooting at security forces⁵. There aren’t a lot of details other than the fact that the resolution took several hours. In the end, all four gunmen were killed, but so were seven police officers and three tourists, including a Canadian woman. The site is understandably closed this morning as Jordanian security officials try to piece together exactly what happened.

No one has claimed direct responsibility for the attack as of yet, but the Associated Press⁶ notes that violence against tourist areas in Jordan has increased with the rise of Islamic State terrorists in neighboring Iran and Syria.

Death of a Legend

The woman who likely coined the phrase, “famous for being famous,” Zsa Zsa Gabor, died yesterday at her home in Beverly Hills⁷. She was 99, just two months shy of her 100th birthday. Ms. Gabor was one of three sisters, born in Hungary, all of whom made their way to the United States in the 1940s. Eva came first, making a big splash on the big screen. Zsa Zsa came next and tried her hand at Hollywood as well, but turned out to not be the actress or singer that her sister was. Instead, Ms. Gabor became famous for simply being herself, a social icon who married often, flaunted her wealth, and sported a fierce temper.

Zsa Zsa Gabor was known for standing out at a time when most women were expected to be little more than decoration⁸. She not only spoke her mind, but she made sure people heard her when she spoke. Ms. Gabor has arguably been credited, or blamed, for creating the template for those like the Kim Kardashians or Paris Hiltons of the world who become famous without actually doing anything of value. In fact, Ms. Gabor was married for a time to Conrad Hilton, Paris Hilton’s great- grandfather.

Ultimately, though, age took its toll. Ms. Gabor has spent the past five years in her Beverly Hills mansion⁹, suffering from dementia, stroke, and complications from hip replacement surgery, being fed through tubes. In the end, she might not have known who nor how famous she was, but the rest of the world does and remembers her fondly.

And finally …

There is one piece of good news this morning, as National Geographic Magazine revealed that a nine-year-old transgender girl, Avery Jackson of Kansas City, will be on the cover of the magazine’s January issue. Miss Jackson is the first transgender person to grace the cover of the storied magazine and does so as National Geographic devotes an entire issue to changing opinions about gender both in terms of science and public perception.

Robin Marantz Henig writes in the magazine that we are surrounded by “evolving notions about what it means to be a woman or a man and the meanings of transgender, cisgender, gender nonconforming, genderqueer, agender, or any of the more than 50 terms Facebook offers users for their profiles. At the same time, scientists are uncovering new complexities in the biological understanding of sex. Many of us learned in high school biology that sex chromosomes determine a baby’s sex, full stop: XX means it’s a girl; XY means it’s a boy. But on occasion, XX and XY don’t tell the whole story.”

While there has been some criticism, Susan Goldberg, editor-in-chief for National Geographic, says in defense of the issue, “Today, we’re not only talking about gender roles for boys and girls—we’re talking about our evolving understanding of people on the gender spectrum.”

Personally, we applaud National Geographic for taking such a visible stand on gender issues and especially for giving trans people this level of visibility. Hopefully, this facilitates positive conversations and a greater level of understanding.

That’s all we have time to talk about this morning. I’m sure there will be plenty happening today and we’ll do our best to stay on top of everything and bring you the five most important stories you need to know again tomorrow. Thank you for subscribing. By all means, stay warm. Good day.

Advertising / Fashion / News & Comment / video

5 Things You Should Know: 12/18/2016

December 18, 2016

charles i. letbetter - 5 things you need to know for 12-18-16

https://youtu.be/6PRETGoM1I0

Partially frozen, never faked

Welcome! This is Sunday morning, December 18. We’re desperately trying to get a grip on things here as we’re now only one week away from both Christmas and the first day of Hanukkah. The prophet’s birthday is tomorrow for all our Muslim friends. The stores would be packed if the entire Northern United States weren’t under a sheet of ice this morning. We’ll talk more about that in a little bit. What’s important is that everyone stays warm and safe as much as possible. We’ll try to keep you informed with what’s going on.

The president-elect is still making more cabinet and senior advisory appointments, there are conflicting reports coming out of Syria as to whether people in Aleppo are actually able to leave safely, and apparently Saturday Night Live was a real hoot. I wouldn’t know, I was already sound asleep. We have confirmed and verified five things you need to know, though, so let’s take a look at those.

One nation, under ice

We’ve been talking about snow and ice for a few days now, but the weather is very much dominating the news this morning as yet another wave of snow and ice fell across the Northern half of the United States yesterday and early this morning. So far, the storm is being blamed for at least nine deaths yesterday, though that number could increase as investigations are continuing¹.

While there were pileups and backed up traffic all the way from Colorado to Maine, the biggest seemed to be along I-95 where reports of anywhere from 55 to 70 cars were involved in a pileup that killed at least two people. Indianapolis police reported over 500 accidents before 8:00 yesterday morning with at least two deaths there as well. The weather has created a mess all across the country that has caused a number of holiday plans to be canceled for this weekend. Exactly how bad this will affect last-minute holiday shopping remains to be seen, but it certainly isn’t good news for retailers who were already struggling to end this year on a positive note.

Don’t think the South got off scot-free, either. From Missouri down through Mississippi there were severe storms and threats of tornadoes yesterday afternoon and throughout the night. While there have not yet been any reports of death, there has been considerable property damage.

Weather like this is enough to dampen even the most stalwart of holiday spirits.

A problem with the water

Everything being cold and wet across the Eastern half of the country reminds us of just how much water has been a factor in news stories this year. Both Detroit and St. Joseph, Louisiana continue to struggle with finding clean drinking water, and this week we added Corpus Christie, Texas to the mix². In case you missed it, a chemical leak is to blame for a ban on any use of water coming from the public water supply in the city of over 300,000 residents. This is so bad, that officials there say even boiling the water isn’t good enough. Bottled water has been brought in and is being distributed.

What we’re hearing now, according to the Associated Press, is that city officials had three warnings prior to this current catastrophe. In fact, Corpus Christie Mayor Dan McQueen, who just took office this past Tuesday, won his position in part by campaigning against the previous mayor’s inability to handle water problems in the city. Officials are hoping that test studies released later today will determine the exact source of the chemical leak. An asphalt plant has been the culprit before, but the city also has a problem with aging lead pipes.

Across the country, the deteriorating conditions of public water systems initially installed in the 1940s and 50s are giving way and pose a serious health threat. Unless Congress acts and provides a serious amount of funding to repair these systems, I fear we could see even more water safety issues throughout the next year.

On your mark, get set …

I’ve heard a lot of people say that they feel like running away, whether because of the political climate or financial pressures or just the challenge of trying to survive. A number of people wouldn’t mind strapping on their running shoes and taking off.

Well, if you can hold on a couple of months, you might be able to get those shoes custom fitted. Adidas has startedselling their 3D-printed shoe in limited release³. For now, if you want a pair of the shoes, you have to order them through the Adidas Confirmed app. Then, when your shoes are ready, you have to be able to pick them up at the Adidas flagship store on Fifth Avenue and 46th street in New York City. You’ll also be paying $333 for the privilege of wearing these state-of-the-art sneakers.

This is a huge move for both the footwear and fashion industries. Designers have been working with 3D-printed clothing and materials for a couple of years now, and both Under Armor and New Balance released their 3D shoes earlier this year. Adidas has significantly larger market share, however, and could easily dominate the market if they are able to get 3D shoes into high scale production quickly. Adidas says this is the first step in being able to provide “customized shoes based on an individual’s footprint – including their running style, foot shape, performance needs and personal preferences.”

With custom-fitted shoes, running may be a lot more plausible.

An insult is a good thing

Around the world, magazines and other periodical publications have struggled to remain profitable in an increasingly digital age. Magazine publisher Condé Nast, who owns brands such as Vogue, GQ, and Brides, has certainly seen its share of problems and has even shuttered some publications and moved several to online-only strategies. However, they may have accidentally hit on a new strategy that could save them all.

Earlier this week, Condé Nast magazine Vanity Fair published an absolutely scathing review of the new Trump Grill in New York⁴. In fact, the headline on the review reads: “Trump Grill Could Be The Worst Restaurant In America.” Now, I’ve eaten in some really bad restaurants and at least three of them were in New York. So, to say the Trump Grill could be the worst in America is really quite something.

Unsurprisingly, the president-elect didn’t like that review too terribly much. He responded with a tweet, as he tends to do, saying, “Has anyone looked at the really poor numbers of @VanityFair Magazine. Way down, big trouble, dead! Graydon Carter, no talent, will be out!” If the president-elect held any respect among the American people, that could have been a death knell for the magazine. But he doesn’t and it wasn’t.

Vanity Fair told Adweek⁵ that subscriptions for the magazine were 100 times the amount they typically sell in a day, setting a record for the number of subscriptions sold in a single day for any Condé Nast publication. The review has had more than a million views online and Vanity Fair’s Twitter followers increased by more than 10,000. Not bad for a “dying” magazine.

Of course, what Condé Nast has to figure out now is how to get the president-elect to issue similar insults for all its brands. One of the best marketing concepts for 2017 may be getting a diss from the new president.

Is all hope gone

The effect of Donald Trump’s insult toward VanityFair underscores not only a severe lack of respect for the president-elect, but a general feeling across much of the United States that we are entering a phase of the country’s history where the president acts without regard to the people on a regular basis.

The current First Lady, Michelle Obama, gave voice to that emotion when she taped an interview with Oprah Winfrey for CBS and the Oprah Winfrey Network that airs this week. Here’s a clip from that interview:

Mrs. Obama’s words struck home:

See, now we’re feeling what not having hope feels like, you know? Hope is necessary. It’s a necessary concept. And Barack didn’t just talk about hope because he thought was just a nice slogan to get votes. He and I and so many believe that what else do you have if you don’t have hope? What do you give your kids if you can’t give them hope?”

The clip has been shared widely since its release this week with a large number of people identifying with the emotion that the First Lady describes. As the nation prepares to inaugurate the 45th president of the United States, it does so knowing that his victory occurred only in the Electoral College and is not reflected in the popular vote nor popular sentiment.

Mr. Trump responded Saturday night to the clip, saying, “she made that statement not meaning it the way it came out.”

We’re out of time for this morning. We’ll have more pictures and possibly a long read later today, so be sure to check back or, better yet, subscribe so that you don’t miss anything! Stay warm. Stay safe. We’ll see you tomorrow.

Holidays / Photography

Making Your Photographer’s Holiday Happy

December 17, 2016

charles i. letbetter - giving your photographer a happy holiday

Because you love us all so much

The holidays are the happiest time of year, are they not? And I just know you can’t wait to share all your happiness and generosity with your favorite photographer. After all, if you had pictures taken any time this year and paid less than $3,000 for the set, then you owe him/her. I mean, my father paid $300 for a single black/white head shot in 1968. What we’ve done for you is probably a bit more complicated. Not that we really care about that sort of thing. We’re only in the business for the art of it all. Eating is totally optional.

Now, I know you must think that we’d all like a new camera, but we don’t necessarily look for you to go with the big bucks. After all, your families should come first. Although, if you think of us like family then, by all means, feel free to respond accordingly. Still, there are plenty of things you could get or do for your photographer that would make them very happy this holiday season. We’ll break them down into three easy-to-remember categories and then you can do what you find appropriate from there.

Big Ticket Items

Okay, so no self-respecting photographer is going to ask you to buy them a new camera for the holidays. Still, some of you have taken advantage of a generous soul and gotten pictures for free. Some of you have been doing this for years and yet, when the holidays roll around, what have you done for your photographer? So, here are some big ticket things you can get that will make them happy.

New Glass. Now, be careful. Not all lenses are created equal and chances are your photographer is pretty picky about the kind they use. Also, not every lens fits every camera. In fact, lenses have to specifically match the brand and type camera your photographer is using. Still, if you have an extra $1,500 or so you’re not using, I’m sure there’s something they wouldn’t mind adding to their collection. Don’t be afraid to ask.

Pack Gear. Carting expensive gear all over the place can be scary. I wince every time I see a camera sitting in the seat of someone’s car with no protection. If you’ve observed your photographer handling their camera in this manner, then getting them some kind of pack or case is something they would almost certainly appreciate. There are several different kinds. My preference for every-day use is an over-the-shoulder bag that allows me to pull my camera out quickly and start shooting. Others prefer backpack styles and hard cases are a must for the photographer who has to fly frequently. This doesn’t have to be a high-dollar buy, but the more padding and flexibility a pack has the better and, sadly, more expensive.

Light Modifiers. Please don’t consider this option unless you know your photographer fairly well and can get the make and model of his lighting gear without being obvious. Many photographers, especially those with smaller operations, are limited in the number of modifiers they can afford. The more modifiers they have, though, the more creative they can be with your photographs. Prices range from a couple hundred dollars to a couple thousand. Budget accordingly and, by all means, be careful.

Small Ticket Items

Okay, so you don’t have a couple of thousand dollars to dump on your favorite photographer. That’s okay, we still love you and promise you’re our favorite clients ever. You don’t have to spend all that much to make us happy-er. There are a number of things that would make almost any photographer happy to see under their make-shift tree that sits forlornly in the corner of their tiny little apartment.

Camera straps. Think the broad kind. If your photographer is still using that crappy little strap that came with the camera, they need help. Those little straps are practically worthless in a pinch. I’ve been using the same strap for the past 25 years and even though it’s extremely tattered at this point, I know it could still hold my weight if I need it. Embossed leather is a nice touch, or artisanally woven is colorful if your photographer is vegan. Even the best straps are under $200 this time of year, so you should be able to find something that would fit your budget.

Lens Wraps. As simple as these cloths are, they can really do a let to protect lenses, especially if you happen to live in a climate particularly prone to dust and/or sand. They also come in handy if your photographer travels a great deal. Lenses often get jostled around quite a bit during transport and even if the photographer has a good case having a lens wrapped is great protection. This is a perfect gift for the cash-strapped person as most start around $20.

Tripods. Even if your photographer already has a tripod or two, they can never have too many. There are a variety of sizes and kinds appropriate for different shooting situations. Best yet, some table-top varieties cost as little as $20, so it won’t break your budget. Consider what your photographer already has and help them complete their collection.

Won’t Cost You A Dime

Okay, I get it, money’s tight this year for a lot of people. That’s why you asked if we could discount our already-discounted prices. That doesn’t mean we don’t still love you, though, and anything, absolutely anything you want to do for us is still very much appreciated. You don’t have to spend any money to help us out with some of these gifts.

Referrals. I don’t know of any photographer who couldn’t use some extra business this next year. Even if we looked busy this past year, that doesn’t mean we don’t have openings going into 2017. Of course, we’ll be much more appreciative if they’re referrals that pay full price, but we’re honestly thankful for all the business we get. Thank you in advance.

Credit us when you post photos. Chances are we mentioned this when we first took your pictures but we know how easy it is to forget when you’re in the heat of a picture-posting frenzy. We’re not as likely to be upset if the pictures are over two years old and you’re just posting them for memories’ sake, but the new stuff? Yes, please, by all means. We will be most appreciative.

Food & drink. How well do you know your photographer? Almost all of us have a sweet tooth and more than a few of us enjoy an alcoholic beverage here and there. Okay, so this might cost you a little bit. Still, I know very little makes me happier than a tin of homemade fudge or sugar cookies. Granted, they won’t last very long, but for those few moments, we’ll be thinking nice thoughts of you.

By the way, please be considerate when giving a gift to your photographer to make sure you are sufficiently respecting their religious beliefs. Fortunately, both the first day of Hanukkah and Christmas are on the same day this year. If your photographer is Muslim, however, you don’t have as much time as the prophet’s birthday is this Monday, the 19th. Of course, several of us celebrate Festivus and the Solstice and Kwanzaa as well. It’s not going to hurt you to ask which holidays we celebrate, though, because some come with limits on what is acceptable. Me, personally, I’m good with anything at any time. Especially if you’re bringing alcohol. Scotch, please.

Look around. There are a lot of people in your life who provide services for you at or below costs. You know who they are. Show them all some appreciation, even if it’s only a handful of cookies. Your gestures of kindness really are appreciated.

Current Issues / Fashion / News & Comment / science / video

What You Should Know For 12/17/2016

December 17, 2016

charles i. letbetter - 5 things you should know 12/17/16

https://youtu.be/iEwClQMQuck

Chipping away the ice for hot news

Wow, it’s a good thing this is a Saturday and most people can stay home this morning. As we’re writing this, roads around Indianapolis are still a complete mess with a number of people on the Interstate having been stuck in traffic most the night. The good news is that temperatures are finally above freezing and the rain that’s currently falling should help melt most the ice. The bad news is that temps drop back down below freezing after about 7:00 this evening and at that point the rain could turn to snow. Your best best is to stay inside if you can. If you must go out, please be careful.

The news takes a couple of interesting turns this morning. The President reaffirmed his earlier statements on Russian hacking during the election and Republicans in North Carolina are being complete assholes toward their incoming Governor. There’s also plenty still developing so we’ll leave those stories alone and go with these five things you really should know.

China stole our drone ship!

China apparently didn’t think they were getting enough of our attention since the US has been focused on Russia pretty much all week. So, they went out into the South China Sea and took an underwater drone being tested by the US Navy¹. The drone was about 50 nautical miles off the coast of the Philippines and the USS Bowditch was on its way to retrieve the unmanned vessel when China decided to pluck the thing out of the water.

It’s no secret that China has been feeling very territorial about the South China Sea and this event happened the same day satellite photos seemed to confirm that the communist country has militarized a number of artificial islands it has built in disputed waters². Still, this is the most aggressive action that China has committed in the past 50 years and is part of a continuing aggression that is more than a little disturbing.

Fortunately, this morning, China says that the matter is being handled amicably between the two militaries³ and that the US will get their drone back. The Navy says the unmanned vessel was built using commercially available technologies and that no top-secret information was compromised.

Uber Is Making Waves

Uber has been getting in trouble this week with the city of San Francisco after one of its driverless cars was caught running a red light in the city⁴. The problem stems from the fact that San Francisco requires a permit for testing driverless cars, something that limits the days, times, and locations of such testing. Apparently Uber doesn’t like those limitations, so they set about running their cars through the city anyway, hoping that their technology was good enough that they wouldn’t get caught. It wasn’t.

On Thursday, California transportation officials demanded that Uber stop its testing until it had obtained the required permits. Seems like a reasonable request, doesn’t it? Not if you ask Uber. On Friday, the head of Uber’s self-driving car program, Anthony Levandowski, said the company would keep right on testing despite objections from the state. He argues that because there is a back-up driver in the car at all times that, technically, they are not driverless under state law.

Yeah, that excuse isn’t going to fly. Late Friday evening the state’s Department of Justice sent a letter to Uber threatening legal action if they didn’t stop testing⁵. Uber promptly sent another fleet of SUVs into the streets⁶.

Bypassing The Press

Here’s an interesting question for you: how many politicians do you follow on social media? If you’re like me, you see enough of them in the news to not want their ugly mugs popping up between videos of kittens playing and puppies frolicking. Most of us like our social media feeds to be happy places.

You may want to change up your approach, however, if you want to keep up with what’s going on. The Associated Press is reporting that politicians at both the state and federal level are increasingly bypassing the press and using social media as a means of getting their message directly to the voters⁷. Most famously, we’ve all see how the president-elect makes effective use of his Twitter account. By contrast, Mr. Trump hasn’t had an actual press conference in over 140 days according to NPR⁸.

Using social media is attractive for a couple of reasons. First, it’s cheap. All one needs is a cell phone and they can broadcast live on a number of platforms. Secondly, it removes any chance for a sharp reporter to directly challenge the politician’s statements. Without a challenge, however, the politician, as we’ve frequently seen, can lie through their teeth. People then believe those lies and vote accordingly. There’s no question this is a dangerous trend, but those who want to stay informed have no choice but to follow along.

And baby makes … 4?

You know that talk you had with your adolescent child about how babies are made? Well, you might need to adjust your story just a little bit. Britain’s fertility regulator has approved a controversial method through which doctors can use the DNA of three people rather than two when creating new babies⁹. The method is intended to avoid incidents of children inheriting mitochondrial disease from their parents.

This is an extremely significant development in the field of medicine and trying to explain it quickly is almost impossible. Damaged mitochondria can result in life-threatening diseases such as muscular dystrophy, organ failure, and muscle weakness. The new process removes the nucleus DNA from the egg of the would-be mother and inserts it into an egg from someone else which has had the donor DNA removed. This occurs before the egg is fertilized.

The procedure is not legal in the United States at this time. The FDA has been very slow in approving measures such as this given the legal and social implications surrounding parenthood. Critics also claim that this procedure opens the door to genetically modified “designer babies.” The ethics are quite blurry for some, but from here it seems that saving the life of a child is more important than the threat of future misuse of the technology.

And finally …

Five UK modeling agencies are in trouble after Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority fined them a total of £1.5 million ($1.8 million) for fixing prices charged to fashion retailers between April of 2013 and March of 2015¹⁰. The CMA claims the agencies, “colluded with each other over their approach to pricing and, in some instances, the agencies agreed to fix minimum prices.” The agencies involved include some major names in the UK market: FM Models, Models 1, Premier, Storm, Viva, as well as their trade group, the Association of Model Agents.

Of course, the agencies say they’ve done nothing wrong and are only trying to protect the best interest of their models. Yeah, right. What they’re protecting are their profit margins. Models are seen as a commodity and incidents of mistreatment and even abuse run rampant. While the agencies all say they’ll fight the fines in court, the reality is that unless clients are made aware of set minimums ahead of time they’re illegal.

Could the same thing be happening in the United States? Quite possibly so, but since model agencies here are all independent proving such a claim would be almost impossible.

That’s all we have time for this morning. Looking out the window, I’m not sure road conditions have improved from when we started. Please be careful out there. Better yet, stay inside and catch up on some of the stories you’ve missed this week. We have plenty that you likely haven’t seen yet. Take care and make the most of your day.

News & Comment / video

5 Things You Need To Know: 12/16/16

December 16, 2016

https://youtu.be/oF6T8wd7nMc

Do Friday’s Matter Anymore?

Hi there. I would say, “Thank goodness it’s Friday,” but I’m not sure Friday matters that much anymore. The news keeps churning and we’ll be watching it all through the weekend. I’m up at 4:00 AM every morning making sure the world hasn’t completely blown up while we were asleep. There really should be at least six people doing all this work, but it’s just me. Yes, I’m patting myself on the back, and perhaps that’s the value of Fridays. Find a reason to pat yourself on the back, even if it’s only because you managed to survive the other four days of the work week.

We’re skipping over the war between North Carolina’s governor and it’s state legislature for now. We’re also refusing to enter into the speculation of what cabinet nominees might or might not do. We only work with news we can verify as being accurate and you should be doing the same. So, that being said, let’s take a look at our top five stories for today.

1. The White House Says Russia Hacked US

One of the many questions we have this morning is whether the whole Russian hacking scandal has gotten out of control? If you were watching yesterday afternoon, White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters, “Only Russia’s senior-most officials could have authorized these activities,¹” in reference to reports from three US intelligence agencies that not only was Russia involved in hacking the servers of political parties, but that Putin himself knew and directed the attacks. That the White House would officially support the intelligence reports is a pretty big deal since both the Kremlin and the president-elect has been denying them.

If you’re listening to NPR this morning, you’re hearing President Obama tell Steve Inskeep, “I think there is no doubt that when any foreign government tries to impact the integrity of our elections … we need to take action. And we will — at a time and place of our own choosing. Some of it may be explicit and publicized; some of it may not be.”²

If the statement from the president sounds just a little ambiguous, it is. That might be because, at least from a public information perspective, actual evidence of Russian involvement is a little ambiguous. Yes, the White House likely has access to evidence that the public does not. What we see on this side of the fence, though, is a bunch of anonymous sources, none of which can be confirmed. We need some names, we need some faces, and we need their butts sitting in front of a Congressional hearing to give validity to all these accusations.

Furthermore, there is no precedent for how to react to this situation if the reports are indeed true. There’s nothing in the Constitution that adequately covers direct intrusion into an election by a foreign power. What President Obama might have up his sleeve isn’t clear, either, but we know he doesn’t have long if he’s going to do something before he moves out of the White House.

2. Venezuelan Parents Are Giving Away Their Children

We talked earlier this week about the Venezuelan government confiscating some four million toys and promising that “every child will get a toy.” News coming out of the beleaguered country yesterday shows us that those toys may be all many Venezuelan children have. Reuters is reporting that three local councils and four national welfare groups are all confirming a rise in parents giving their children away, sometimes to other family members, sometimes to neighbors, because they can no longer afford to feed them and keep them safe³.

If you’re a parent or plan on ever being one, I want you to stop and think a moment about just how desperate one has to be and how devastating it must feel to have little choice but to give up your child. Average wages in Venezuela are less than the equivalent of $50 a month. Normally, in places where wages are so low, we see food prices around the same level. Not here. Food prices are in some cases higher than they are in the US, and that’s when food is available. Food scarcity across the country has caused unrest there for over a year.

Children’s rights groups say that the increase in parents giving away children is exponential, with many of the children already suffering from malnutrition. Plunging oil prices are partly to blame, as well as social policies of president Nicolas Maduro. Yet, more than politics, this is a humanitarian disaster of untold proportion. Some parents are simply abandoning their children, leaving them to die on the streets.

So much for a merry fucking Christmas.

3. Dyllan Roof Found Guilty Of Murder

We knew when the jury left the South Carolina courtroom yesterday that they would come back with a guilty verdict. Roof has been convicted of a total of 33 counts involving hate crimes in the shooting of nine people in a Charlotte, South Carolina church⁴. He never shied away from the fact that he was guilty. In fact, at one point during the trial, he fired his attornies and disastrously tried defending himself. Immediately after the verdict was announced, Roof fired his attornies again.

The jury returns on January 3 to determine exactly what his sentencing will be. There are only two options available: life in prison or death by lethal injection. Roof has already said he doesn’t want to introduce embarrassing evidence that might save his skin. Yet, as we saw last week, lethal injection hasn’t necessarily been going all that well with multiple botched attempts around the country over the past couple of years. There are also plenty of arguments against capital punishment.

One thing for certain is that this horrible massacre has left a lasting impression upon the state of South Carolina. The confederate flag no longer flies at the state capitol. The effects of hate are very visible and efforts to defuse that hate are strong. Dyllan Roof is a good example of why we cannot allow the alt-right white supremacy movement to go unchecked. We don’t need another incident like this to happen anywhere in our country. Ever.

4. A Colorado School Approves Guns in the Classroom

As incredible as it may seem, a school district in Colorado has actually approved a measure allowing some teachers and other school employees to carry guns inside classrooms⁵. That this decision would come the same day as the third anniversary of the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary shouldn’t be ignored. The Board of Education for Hanover School District #28 voted 3-2 to approve the resolution on Wednesday night.

Now, before we all go off on some knee-jerk reaction, we should be aware that the Hanover School District is very small and very remote. The board’s president, Mark McPherson, who didn’t vote in favor of the plan, told the press that it was the town’s distance from any kind of assistance that fueled support for the resolution. The school is 30 minutes away from the nearest law enforcement. The resolution lists “national events” and, get this, potential trouble from marijuana grows, as the justification for the action.

Now, for any teacher or staff member to actually carry a gun on campus, they must first volunteer for extra duty as a security officer. Then, they must complete training before receiving their permit to carry. There is no limit as to how many of the school’s 20 teachers can carry weapons. Let’s just hope their finals weeks never get too stressful.

5. And Finally …

Facebook announced yesterday that they’re going after fake news and enlisting a number of partners, including Snopes, the Associated Press, and ABC News, to help validate stories⁶. The announcement comes as the world’s most dominant social media company attempts to wrestle with accusations that fake news shared on its site contributed to the outcome of the US presidential election.

Understand, Facebook has yet to say that it would actually remove content that is flagged as being fake. Instead, the content will be marked as “disputed” with a link to the reasons for the decision. In fact, they’re only focusing on what they call “the worst-of-the-worst” of fake news producers, those who create deliberate lies for financial gain.

However, this hasn’t kept publications with a right-leaning tilt from going all boo-hoo over the new policy⁷. Ben Shapiro, editor-in-chief of the conservative-leaning Daily Wire wrote, “It’s an attempt to restore gatekeepers who have a bias as the ultimate arbiters of truth.”⁸Perhaps someone should tell the whining little brats that if they’re not producing fake news then they don’t have anything to worry about. Facebook’s efforts are gentle compared to what they could have done. Hell, you’ll still get in more trouble for posting a picture of women’s nipples on your profile than you will for distributing blatantly false news. Some alleged news sources need to grow the fuck up.

But hey, this whole fake news thing is exactly why we bother bringing you these reports every morning. We always verify our stories and provide links to our sources. We want news we can trust and know that you do as well. Thank you for your time. Here’s hoping your Friday kicks some ass.

Music

Our Top 10 Songs Of 2016

December 13, 2016

charles i. letbetter - top songs of 20116

We listen to a lot of music, but these are the top of our list

We get down to this time of year and top ten lists start popping up everywhere. I’m sure we’ll have our share of lists as well. After all, this has been an extremely eventful year. There’s a lot to consider as we move into the new year.

Through everything we’ve endured, we’ve been listening to music. A lot of music. While we do try to keep the mix current to some degree, the songs we listen to the most tend to be older. We’ve needed a lot of emotional comfort this year and the songs that are familiar help provide that. The mix is interesting. I don’t know that I’d actually want to put all ten of these together on a mixtape. At the same time, though, these are some damn good songs. We’ll count them down backward just to create a false sense of drama.

The Bottom Five

10. My Funny Valentine – Etta James

Yeah, it’s old school, but then, so am I. There’s something about the sound of Ms. James’ voice that is like drinking a cup of hot cocoa on a snowy day. I really like the simple guitar accompaniment in this version of the song as well. I can just imagine sitting in some smoke-filled speakeasy when the lights go down, the room gets quiet, and her deep voice begins …

9. New Day – Alicia Keys

Change of tempo, change of style, change of era. New Day is essential Alicia Keys. I have this song on multiple playlists so I’m actually a little surprised that it didn’t rank higher. This is a must for those early mornings when we’re trying to get the kids out the door to school. More than just the song, though, I have mountains of respect for Ms. Keys so just hearing her voice makes me happy.

8. Everyday People – Sly & The Family Stone

This is another happy song with the added benefit of bringing a little high school retro feeling to the mix. The song is a bit of a distraction, though. There’s seldom a time when it comes on that I don’t have to stop what I’m doing and dance in my chair a little bit. If there’s no one around, I might even get out of my chair, though that tends to scare the dog.

7. Embraceable You – Gloria Estefan

Yeah, I know, most people like Ms. Estefan’s livelier music with a Cuban beat. I totally get that. Those are fun songs. But her album of standards really provides a great vehicle for the rich warmth of her voice to shine through, something we don’t necessarily get with all those dance songs. This is ultimately a couple’s song, though. If Kat’s not around when it comes on you can be sure I’m messaging her the lyrics.

6. Focus – Ariana Grande

Ha! I bet you didn’t think I know who Ariana Grande is! WRONG! Just don’t ask me to pick her out of a lineup of children at the mall. How in the world such a powerful voice comes out of a small package defies physics and physiology. As much as anything, though, this is just one of those songs where the rhythm catches hold and my office chair magically starts moving on its own. Seriously. Old men like me aren’t supposed to dance to new music like this.

The Top Five

5. Isn’t It Romantic? – Ella Fitzgerald

The top five has a lot of older standard in it and this is another one of my early morning favorites. The song not only speaks to the romantic in me, the ease of Ella’s voice helps keep me calm on those days when the morning headlines have me ready to punch something. I can just close my eyes and imagine a ballroom full of lovely people, the women all dressed in classic Oscar de la Renta gowns, swaying gently to the music without a care in the world. Sure, it’s pure fantasy, but it works.

4. Thanks for the Memory – Bob Hope

When the late Bob Hope was cast as an unemployed writer for this 1938 movie, I doubt he knew the title song would one day become so closely associated with him that many people thought he was the composer. He wasn’t, of course. Ralph Rainger and Leo Robin wrote the original version. Over the years, though, it became a staple at the end of the comedian’s shows and with each one, he would re-write the lyrics to fit the show. This song is pure nostalgia for me, and hearing Bob’s voice again never fails to make me smile.

3. This Can’t Be Love – Nat King Cole

This is the second of three songs by Richard Rogers and Lorenz Hart in my top five. Yes, I know they’re all older than I am, which means a fair portion of you are likely to have never heard it before. Rogers & Hart were staples on Broadway and in pop music of the 1920s and 30s. When you hear people talk about “the standards,” this is the music to which they’re referring. Even Lady Gaga has covered Rogers & Hart songs. If you’re a singer, you have to be able to do well with this songs. Why this song and this version? Because it was the first song to come up after my first date with Kat. Shhhh, don’t tell her.

2. Hold on, Hold on – Neko Case

Neko Case has one of those pure voices I can recognize with the first word she sings. I’ve been a fan of her music for several years now and keep going back to this one song over and over and over. The line, “The echo chorus lied to me with its hold on, hold on, hold on” seems especially fitting right about now. There’s a good reason this song is number two on my list. It’s gotten a tremendous amount of play the past few months. Like, every day, multiple times a day.

1. The Lady Is A Tramp – Ella Fitzgerald

This is vintage Ella Fitzgerald when her voice was at its best. The Rogers and Hart composition is one of my all-time favorites and is at the top of my list of standards. There have been dozens, maybe even hundreds of artists attempt to cover this song, but no one ever has nor ever will do it as wonderfully as Ms. Fitzgerald. When I’m down, this song and lift me up. When I feel like I don’t fit in, this song reminds me that’s okay. The strength and power keeps me moving, keeps my head up, and helps me power through even the most difficult days. Ella recorded this song several times but this is my favorite version.

There you have it, our top 10 songs for 2016. Perhaps it wasn’t quite what you were expecting. I know I was a little surprised by a couple of the songs in the bottom 10, but I love them all. Spotify created a six-hour playlist of my top 100 songs for the year as well. I’m not going to take the time to go through all of them with you, but if you’re interested in listening, you can find the playlist before. Happy listening!

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12/13/2016: 5 Things You Need To Know

December 13, 2016

charles i. letbetter - 12/13/16 5 Things You Need To Know

Ready Or Not, Here Comes Winter

https://youtu.be/eGn8i6W1AYI

Hey there! I hope you’re ready for some white stuff falling from the sky today. The jet stream has dipped and not only are we going to see snow across most the Northern states, the temperatures over the next few days are going to get dangerously low. Those of you who have pets will want to be especially careful to limit the amount of time they spend outside. Be sure to check paws and get them nice and dry when they come in.

This is one of those days where we’re waiting to see how things develop before getting too involved in stories such as who might possibly be the next Secretary of State and just how serious the Russian hacking scandal is. We don’t want to get involved in speculation and end up delivering wrong information. We do have 5 things we’re sure about, though, so let’s take a look at those.

1. One Step Closer

This painfully long election cycle came one step closer to being over yesterday as the whole vote recount situation came to an end in all three states.¹ While the numbers in Wisconsin shifted ever so slightly, the outcome remains unchanged. Efforts in Pennsylvania and Michigan were effectively blocked by federal court judges, clearing the way now for the final step of the electoral college vote next week.

Yes, there have been some rumors of rogue electors possibly changing their vote, but don’t expect much from that hullabaloo, either. First of all, it is illegal in most states for electors to change their vote. Secondly, it would require a massive defection of more than 70 electors to align the electoral college vote with the popular vote. That’s never happened in our country’s history and I’m not seeing anyone with any authority suggesting it can happen now.

The bottom line is we’re tired of this whole election process and whether we like the outcome or not we all want it to be over. The electoral college votes on Monday and that should end this election for good.

2. Death Comes Quickly

Republican members of Congress campaigned long and hard that they would overturn and replace the Affordable Care Act as quickly as they could under the new administration. That issue alone has had a number of low-income families worried about the status of their health care going into the new year. I tried making an appointment with my own doctor yesterday and was told they’re full until mid-March except for emergencies. Everyone is trying to get care in before they lose whatever coverage they may have.

Initially, Republican leadership said they would replace the ACA as they dismantle it. However, comments yesterday by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell indicate that the replacement might not come as quickly as initially promised². Robert Laszewski, president of Health Policy and Strategy Associates, is expressing some concern that the system could collapse if a replacement doesn’t accompany any repeal. He told NPR: “I don’t think the Republicans have come to grips yet that it’s going to be their responsibility to keep the wheels on Obamacare.”

America’s Health Insurance Plans — the trade group that represents health insurance companies— seems to agree. Last week they circulated a statement saying, “Making sudden, significant changes now, or mid-year, will jeopardize the coverage [those insured] depend on.”

Any move Congress makes could potentially leave upwards of 20 million Americans uninsured. Let’s hope they use the upcoming winter break to think through this matter a bit more.

3. Bickering In The Fashion World

We typically don’t get a lot of serious fashion news this time of year because everyone is focused on getting the most out of holiday sales as possible and ending the year on a high note. However, Women’s Wear Daily (WWD) reported yesterday that there seems to be a kerfluffle between Italian powerhouse Dolce & Gabbana and German designer Philipp Plein³. Plein posted a copy of a letter he received from Dolce & Gabbana’s attornies to his Instagram account on Sunday. In the letter, D&G accuses Plein of trying to “steal” at least ten Dolce & Gabbana sales associates from the label’s flagship store in Milan.

Timing is part of the issue here. Phillip Plein is opening his own new store in Milan before the end of the year. Understandably, he would want sales associates who are well connected with luxury buyers in the city. Plein already has two former D&G employees working for him and the accusation is that they have approached their former colleagues about jumping ship.

Plein said on his Instagram post: “This is a free country and everybody can choose by themselves who they want to work for!!” To a large extent, we expect he’s correct. Unless Plein’s employees are trying to solicit Dolce & Gabbana employees inside the D&G store, there’s not a lot D&G can do to stop the employees from leaving unless there is already a non-compete claus in their employment contracts.

Nothing like a little drama to end the year.

4. Golden Globe Nominations Are Out

Nominees for the diverse Golden Globe awards were announced in Beverly Hills yesterday⁴ and, unsurprisingly, Hollywood is all abuzz with talk about who’s in and who’s out. Best actor in a drama nods went to Casey Affleck, Joel Edgerton, Andrew Garfield, Viggo Mortensen, and Denzel Washington. Meanwhile, Amy Adams, Jessica Chastain, Isabelle Huppert, Ruth Negga, and Natalie Portman took the nominations on the women’s side.

Of course, with every list of nominations comes the talk about who didn’t make it⁵. This time, it’s Hollywood legends Clint Eastwood, Martin Scorsese and Warren Beatty who get to sit this one out. There was, apparently, expectations that all three would get nominations for their directing efforts this year, but they didn’t and that makes all their fans very sad.

What we need to remember is that the Golden Globes are “feel good” awards. Many of their categories are divided between drama and musical/comedy so that the two disparate forms don’t have to compete with each other. The list of awards and nominees is long and while some pundits like to claim these awards might be an indicator of who gets the Oscar nods early next year, there’s no real evidence to support that theory. The Oscars have their own idiosyncracies that no one actually understands.

Still, the nominations remind us that there were some really fantastic films released this year and I didn’t see most of them. Let’s hope they make it to Netflix quickly.

5. And Finally …

Speaking of largely useless lists, AdWeek has released their list of the top 10 ads for 2016⁶. Again, this has been a good year for some very creative ad work. I’ve been very impressed with the social messages that many companies have put into their ads. Not only are the ads encouraging us to buy a product, but they’re also forcing us, in many cases, to stop and think about what we’re buying and why.

While there is plenty of reason to comment on all the ads in the list, it’s Under Amour’s ad featuring Michael Phelps that takes the top honors. The quality of the filmography plays a lot into the decision and it’s difficult to argue against such a powerful 90 seconds. The ad ran frequently throughout the Olympics and well represents the struggle, the pain, and the training athletes go through to be the best. Here’s a look at the winning ad [Note: due to player limitations, the video may not play well on some mobile devices]:

You can take a look at all ten of the winning ads on AdWeek’s website.

That’s all we’ve got for today. If you must go out, please bundle up and be extremely cautious. Don’t forget to subscribe to our posts and the videos on YouTube. Take care. We hope the rest of your day is enjoyable.

News & Comment / Photography

12/12/16: 5 Things You Need To Know

December 12, 2016

Brace yourself for one wild week

https://youtu.be/-uKr8dRmTXY

Good morning! Now that you’ve survived the weekend we all get to deal with the fact that not only does the weather for much of the United States absolutely SUCK this week, we’re also less than two weeks from Christmas, Hannukah, and Kwanza. Those of you who still have shopping to do might want to consider doing it online because the weather outside is going to be beyond frightful in many places.

It’s still early as we’re looking at the news this morning so all the Monday horribleness has yet to hit. However, we have five things you need to know.

1. Prepare To Pay More At The Pump

We’re going to see some higher gas prices this morning because of an agreement between OPEC and non-OPEC countries to reduce oil output over the next several months¹. Saudi Arabia, which has long been a hold out on reducing production, agreed over the weekend that they would pull their levels down below 10 billion barrels per day². The reduction is not as much nor as long as some OPEC members would have liked, but it’s enough to create a significant jump in prices.

Goldman is saying that this cut is primarily to balance out excess inventory and doesn’t see the production lasting too long. February futures rose to just above $56 a barrel this morning which is a bit scary for those of us on a budget, but that doesn’t mean a return to $3- and $4-dollar a gallon prices. With the rising prices, US oil production could increase quickly, which would send prices back down.

No one is saying yet what effect the higher prices might have on holiday travel. Most people have already made their plans and we all know how upset grandma would be if we didn’t show up. Still, this could be a difficult budget hit for those who don’t have much wiggle room for extra spending.

^{1. Reuters: “Oil surges after output cuts, strong dollar weighs” By By Saikat Chatterjee Dec 12, 2016, 3:18am EST

2. Reuters: “}^{Goldman says non-OPEC output cut deal aimed at inventory glut“ Dec 12, 2016, 3:15am EST}

2. The Grinch Came To Venezuela Early

Actually, the Venezuelan government says it’s playing Santa Clause after seizing nearly four million toys from a warehouse near Caracas¹. The government is accusing toymaker Kreisel of hoarding the toys in an effort to create scarcity, driving prices up. Stores throughout Venezuela have complained that the company hasn’t been fulfilling orders and when they did the prices were several times higher than normal.

The government’s official statement says that the toys will be sold at steep discounts. However, William Contreras, Venezuela’s national superintendent for the defense of socioeconomic rights, has promised that “every child will get a toy” for Christmas, so we’ll see exactly how that works out. No word yet from the toy company. All this story needs is a big dog and a bunch of meddling kids and we have a blockbuster movie for the holidays.

^{1. National Public Radio: “Venezuela Seizes Nearly 4 Million Toys, Saying They’re Overpriced” By Bill Chappell December 11, 20164:23 PM ET}

3. Cars Without Drivers Are Coming

If you find yourself driving through Michigan, particularly the Detroit area, don’t be surprised if you look over in the lane next to you and find that no one is driving the car next to you. That reality just became possible last week as the Michigan legislature passed a group of bills allowing autonomous cars to drive on public roads¹. The purpose, of course, is to allow Detroit automakers to compete with companies such as Google who have been testing driverless cars in California for some time now.

In fact, this new set of bills, which Michigan Governor Rick Snyder says he’ll sign, give Detroit automakers more freedom and less oversight with their testing than any other state with the possible exception of Florida. California, which has been the leader in autonomous car testing, still requires a human driver as backup, just in case something goes wrong. The Michigan bills don’t require any humans in the car at all. While this is exactly the type of laws automakers have been wanting, the safety issue is probably going to be a sticky one.

Michigan Transportation Director Kirk Steudle says they’re leaving it up to automakers to decide when a car is safe for the road. Uhm, he is aware that GM just recalled another 50,000 vehicles last week², right? I’m not sure trusting automakers to determine when a car is safe is necessarily the smartest move in the book. This could make driving in Michigan very interesting.

^{1. Associated Press: “MICHIGAN LETS AUTONOMOUS CARS ON ROADS WITHOUT HUMAN DRIVER” By TOM KRISHER Dec 9, 11:10 AM EST

2. Associated Press: “GENERAL MOTORS TO RECALL NEARLY 50,000 POLICE SUVS” Dec 10, 11:52 AM EST}

4. You’re Not Still Using That Samsung Phone, Are You?

We all know Samsung has had some problems with their Note 7 phones doing bad things like blowing up and catching fire. The company issued a recall of all the phones last month and one might think that would put the problem behind them. Apparently not. It would seem there are still a significant number of people who, for whatever reason, did not turn in their phones. That means there are still Note 7 phones out there ready to go boom when one least expects it.

So, Samsung has announced that it is disabling all Note 7 phones in the US with a software update.¹ Samsung issued a statement last Friday saying that the mid-December software update will render the phones completely useless. They won’t even charge properly. Danger averted, right?

Not necessarily. Those who bought their phones through Verizon won’t be getting the update. Verizon claims that it doesn’t want to strand customers who don’t have a backup phone. Therefore, it will not be pushing the software update out to its customers.

^{1. Reuters: “}^{Samsung to disable Note 7 phones in the U.S. via software update” Dec 9, 2016, 1:12pm EST}

5. And Finally …

Here’s one for all my photography friends and colleagues out there. Flickr, the photo hosting service owned by Yahoo, has released data for the year showing that camera phones dominated its service once again. Are we surprised? No, not at all. Flickr is a pedestrian service, not one limited to professionals. Therefore, it makes sense that pedestrian cameras would dominate. What we do find surprising, however, is that only two DSLRs, both Canon EOS 5D models, made the top ten and mirrorless cameras account for only three percent of the photos on the site.

I’ll be honest, while the data is certainly interesting, it doesn’t concern me a great deal as a photographer. I don’t use Flickr and haven’t since it sold to Yahoo several years ago. The site was designed for and is dominated by amateurs. That’s not a bad thing, but there is a definite difference between the tools used by Mom and Pop on vacation versus the professional taking your family portrait.

If anything, the report shows how dramatic the divide is between equipment used by professional versus amateur photographers. As the price for professional equipment goes up and the quality of cell phone cameras increases, we’re going to see that divide become more noticeable. This especially applies when discussing mirrorless cameras which are almost totally a tool used by the pros.

^{1. Flickr blog: “}^{Smartphones Dominate Flickr Uploads in 2016, Apple Leads Device Makers”}^{December 6, 2016}

That’s the five things we think you should know for this Monday. We’ll be keeping an eye on things as they develop today and be back with more news first thing in the morning. Now, get out there and make this Monday beg for mercy.

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12/11/16: 5 Things You Need To Know

December 11, 2016

charles i. letbetter - 5 things you need to know 12-11-16

Baby, it’s cold outside

https://youtu.be/ooHJxkcKr4U

Good morning! It is a brisk 21° this morning in Indianapolis. Many of us woke up to a dusting or a little more of snow covering the roads. Today’s forecast calls for a little more snow converting to ice and eventually rain before the day is over. The ice is what you’ll want to watch. While no significant accumulation is expected, we all know that any ice at all can make surfaces dangerous, so be especially careful before noon today.

Being the weekend, the world is a little quieter, which is a nice thing. We did manage to find five things we think you should know today, so let’s take a look at those now.

1. Tragedy in Nigeria

Worshipers at a church in Lagos, Nigeria were trapped this morning when the steel girders holding up the recently constructed structure suddenly fell. At this point, Associated Press is reporting at least 160 are dead, but that number is likely to rise.¹

Rushed construction is getting the early blame for the accident. Apparently, workers were rushing to finish the job in time for a special service there yesterday installing the church’s founder, Akan Weeks, as bishop. A crane being used to lift the steel girders out of the rubble is said to be hiding more bodies. Journalists in the area say that church leaders are attempting to prevent anyone from getting an accurate count of the dead or taking any pictures.

The Nigerian government has said there will be a full investigation. However, you should know that building collapse is common across Nigeria due to corruption with contractors and shoddy building practices. A similar collapse occurred at a church in 2014 killing 116 people. While two engineers and church leaders have been accused of wrongdoing in that collapse, the state government has not been able to bring anyone to trial.

^{1. Associated Press:}^{HOSPITAL DIRECTOR: 160 DEAD IN COLLAPSED NIGERIAN CHURCH}^{BY HILARY UGURU AND MICHELLE FAUL Dec 11, 4:43 AM EST}

2. From the You’ve-Gotta-Be-Kidding-Me Department

You’re probably not going to want to believe this, but the Ku Klux Klan has told the Associated Press that they’re not White Supremacists^₁. I know, crazy, right?

First off, let me just be very clear that the young woman in our picture is not a White Supremacist and does not support them in any way. We don’t have any pictures of sheet-clad idiots, though, and her posture in this image reflects the weariness we feel from having to put up with the constant babbling from the Klan and other white supremacy groups since the November election.

Of course, like most everything else the Klan and other hate groups say and do, this statement is utter nonsense. Even the Klan rulebook, published in 1915 and still used by many groups, declares them to be white supremacists dedicated to those ideals.

So, to all members of the KKK and any other neo-Nazi, white supremacists hate group, we have two words for you: fuck off. As long as you spew your hate, as long as you fail to recognize that all people have a right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, as long as you paint swastikas and burn crosses, as long as you hide your identities under robes that represent hate, as long as your actions lean toward violence, as long as you claim that white people are the only ones fit to govern, as long as you attempt to deny people of color and equal place and standing, as long as you divide people by religion and country of origin, we are going to call you what you are: white supremacists.

We’re going to call you something else as well: Haters. That’s what you are and no matter how hard you try to deny it, an ass doesn’t become a thoroughbred just because you put a saddle on it. We’re tired of this nonsense littering our public discourse. Sit down and shut up.

^{1. Associated Press: “}^{KKK, OTHER RACIST GROUPS DISAVOW THE WHITE SUPREMACIST LABEL”}^{BY JAY REEVES Dec 10, 4:27 PM EST}

3. Our longevity just slipped a bit

Children born in 2015 are not likely to live quite as long as those born the year before. Now, before you go getting upset, the difference is only about a month. A child in the United States has a life expectancy of about 78 years and 9½ months, on average. This is according to a report released by the Centers for Disease Control this past Thursday.¹ When compared to a 1950’s life expectancy of around 68 years, we’re not doing too bad.

However, this is the first single-year slip we’ve seen since 1993 when the US was in the middle of the AIDS epidemic. What is worth noting about this decline is that there is no outstanding disease or war factor that can claim responsibility. There were increases in deaths due to several of the nation’s top killers, from heart disease to chronic lower lung disease, accidental injuries, stroke, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, kidney disease and suicide.²

Who do we have to blame for this downturn? Ourselves, for the most part. While medical care among the poor and indigent remains a factor, the fact is we’re not taking care of ourselves, eating right, and exercising. I know I’m just as much to blame as anyone else. We all need to improve.

^{1. Center for Disease Control and Prevention: Mortality in the United States, 2015 By Jiaquan Xu, M.D., Sherry L. Murphy, B.S., Kenneth D. Kochanek, M.A., and Elizabeth Arias, Ph.D.

2. Associated Press: “US LIFE EXPECTANCY FALLS, AS MANY KINDS OF DEATH INCREASE” BY MIKE STOBBE Dec 8, 6:41 PM EST}

4. The Power of Pizza

Remember last weekend when some gun-toting conspiracy theorist walked into a Washington, D.C. pizza joint and opened fire? Well, as you might imagine, that wasn’t all too good for business. The pizza place, which has the rather strange name of Comet Ping Pong, has been struggling a bit this week since that happened. So have all the other businesses in that immediate vicinity. Even once the police finished their investigation and the tv cameras moved out, people were still a bit hesitant to satisfy their pizza craving in that part of town.

So, over 2,000 people showed up this weekend, starting on Friday, to show their support for Comet Ping Pong and other restaurants targeted by fake news stories. At one point, according to the Associated Press¹, patrons had to wait an hour and a half just to get a table and 45 minutes for take out. The restaurant has also been getting help through a GoFundMe that so far has raised over $28,000.

^{1. Associated Press: “}^{PATRONS USE DOUGH TO BACK PIZZA PLACE TARGETED BY FAKE NEWS”}^{By BY JESSICA GRESKO Dec 10, 12:38 PM EST}

5. And Finally …

If Kermit the Frog thought it wasn’t easy being green back in 1979, he’s really going to have problems with 2017. Pantone, those wonderful keepers of color definition, has decided that the color for 2017 is one called Greenery. According to AdWeek¹, the color was chosen to help us out with the year ahead. Given some of the other prognostications I’ve seen for next year, they could be right about this one. Green is widely known to be a color that has a calming influence. Given the political and economic landscape going into 2017, I would say we need all the calming influences we can get.

Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute, said in a statement: “Greenery bursts forth in 2017 to provide us with the reassurance we yearn for amid a tumultuous social and political environment. Satisfying our growing desire to rejuvenate and revitalize, Greenery symbolizes the reconnection we seek with nature, one another and a larger purpose.”

I’m not sure painting everything green is going to help that much if we see the economy turn South or find ourselves in yet another war. Still, it’s not a bad color to look at. Be thankful they didn’t choose Puce.

^{1. AdWeek: Pantone’s Color of the Year Is Greenery, Designed to Perk Us Up in 2017}^{By Kristina Monllos December 8, 2016, 4:08 PM EST}

That will have to do it for today. Thank you for sharing your time with us. We look forward to seeing you back here again tomorrow.

News & Comment

5 Things You Need To Know: 12/10/16

December 10, 2016

It’s cold out, so watch where you put your tongue.

https://youtu.be/d7_qSdp3jss

charles i. letbetter - news 121016

Good frosty morning to ya’. It is 4:30 AM EST as we start looking at the news this morning. We have a wind chill of 15° as we let the dog out. I was careful to warn him to not stick his tongue against the fence post, which raises the question whether dogs, or any animal for that matter, have the same danger when they stick their tongue against metal as humans do. I’ve never seen a dog’s tongue stuck to a flagpole.

Either way, this is our first attempt at gathering news and comment in the morning. I’ll admit that my model here is the late Paul Harvey, whose morning news and comment on the radio was a staple of our mornings when I was a child. I hated having to watch television news with Poppa, but I enjoyed Paul Harvey. Not that we’ll actually emulate the master. I’m not that witty, nor that friendly, actually. What we want to do is make sure you have the facts with just a touch of opinion. We’ll include our sources and you can take it from there.

First up, the CIA has confirmed Russia interfered in the election to help Trump win

charles i. letbetter - news 121016

We’ve been reading since October about allegations the Russians were behind hacks into the DNC servers resulting in sometimes damaging information being published on Wikileaks. What we’re finding out now, according to a story in the Washington Post ¹ is that the CIA believes Russians also hacked the RNC but held on to the information in an attempt to influence the outcome of the election. Outside influence of a national election is kind of a big deal, so it’s getting a lot of attention.

However, this isn’t the first time that the issue has come up. In announcing an investigation of foreign hacking of US elections, President Obama said they would be looking at the 2014 elections as well² because of allegations that China was behind hacks to both the major parties during the off-year elections. Lisa Monaco, White House homeland security advisor, said on Friday:

“It is incumbent upon us to take stock of that, to review, to conduct some after action, to understand what this means, what has happened and to impart those lessons learned, and that’s what we’re going to go about doing.”

There’s no question that this is new ground and it is highly possible that laws concerning this sort of spying and influence are insufficient to actually support any real retaliation should the incoming administration and/or Congress actually have the guts to do anything about it.

However, the signs are that neither the president-elect nor Republican leadership in Congress is quite ready to blame Russia for anything. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell questioned the accuracy of the CIA report³ as did the Trump transition team who tweeted the statement: “These are the same people that said Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction”. Granted, the CIA still has egg on its face from that massive foul-up. But that was 15 years ago. Methods of investigation have improved and this is a very different field of operation.

Nothing any investigation finds changes the outcome of the election. Influenced or not, you are still responsible for casting your own vote and we all have to live with the outcome.

^{1. Washington Post: “Secret CIA assessment says Russia was trying to help Trump win White House” By Adam Entous, Ellen Nakashima and Greg Miller December 9 at 10:45 PM

2. National Public Radio: “}^{Obama Orders Sweeping Review Of International Hacking Tied To U.S. Elections“ By Tamara Keith December 9, 2016

3. Business Insider: “The top Senate Republican had a defiant response to intelligence on Russia’s alleged involvement in the election” By}^{Bryan Logan December 10}

Meanwhile, killing people peacefully apparently isn’t easy

charles i. letbetter - news 121016

Robert Bert Smith, Jr. was convicted of brutally murdering an Alabama store clerk in 1994. There’s no question about that and no one is challenging that conviction. Smith was sentenced to death and after all the necessary appeals that sentence was carried out this past Thursday at 11:00 PM. However, things didn’t go as smoothly as everyone would have liked. According to a report from the Associated Press¹, 13 minutes into the process Smith coughed and heaved his chest. His arms then appeared to move twice after two tests.

This is a problem and there’s going to be a lot of arguing about it. The eighth amendment of the Constitution specifically states: “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” That is why the method of execution has changed so often over the years. Our definition of “cruel and unusual punishment” has changed along with our understanding of how people die. We want people, even those convicted of horrendous crimes, to die quickly and painlessly. In Mr. Smith’s case, that does not seem to be what happened.

At the center of the controversy is a drug called midazolam which has been called into question in other states. Part of a three-drug cocktail, midazolam is supposed to render a person unconscious so that they don’t feel anything through the rest of the process. However, multiple incidents like this one question the drug’s effectiveness.

Where we ultimately end up, though, yet again, is questioning whether the death penalty is a valid punishment for capital crimes. There are plenty of arguments on both sides of the question^{2, 3} and the topic quickly becomes very emotional when the families of victims are questioned on the matter. The frequency with which these incidents are happening, though, demand that we take a hard look at a subject that forces us to assess our entire philosophy of crime and punishment.

^{1. Associated Press: “CRITICS: ALABAMA EXECUTION HELPS CASE AGAINST SEDATIVE“ By Kim Chandler Dec 9, 5:41 PM EST

2. Internet Journal of Criminology: Reasons for Supporting and Opposing Capital Punishment in the USA: A Preliminary Study By ERIC G. LAMBERT, ALAN CLARKE & JANET LAMBERT, 2004

3. “The Impact of Incentives on Human Behavior: Can We Make It Disappear? The Case of the Death Penalty,” The Economics of Crime: Lessons For and From Latin America, 2010” By H. Naci Mocan, Professor and Chair of Economics at Louisiana State University}

What are you drinking this morning?

charles i. letbetter - news 121016

Whether you’re drinking coffee, tea, juice, or bottled water, chances run pretty high that the Coca-Cola company had something to do with it. They are the most diverse beverage company in the world with holdings and products in every conceivable form of beverage that can possibly be marketed. So, when Coke CEO Muhtar Kent says he’s resigning¹, it’s a rather big deal. Not only could this affect your morning beverage, but everything else you drink throughout the day.

Taking Kent’s place is chief operating officer James Quincey. Quincey has been an executive with Coke for a very long time so there’s little question he knows the business. What’s important is that Quincey is a strong advocate for cutting the company’s dependence on sugary drinks. He was the power behind the recent plan to reduce in the amount of sugar in soft drinks. More importantly, it is his strategy to put more emphasis behind “still” drinks, which is anything not carbonated, that is seen as the company’s best move forward.

Why is Coke moving away from soda? Because it’s not profitable. Soda sales are flat, at best, and have been declining over recent years. Meanwhile, last quarter Coca-Cola’s still beverages rose 3% mainly on higher bottled water and sports drinks volumes². If this is where the profit is, be sure that Coke is going to emphasize those products more.

This doesn’t mean we’ll stop seeing soda on store shelves anytime soon, but with cities imposing taxes on sugary drinks and doctors warning of health implications, there’s little question we need to consider better alternatives.

^{1. Reuters: “}^{Coke CEO Muhtar Kent hands reins to Quincey in widely expected move”}^{By Siddharth Cavale and Sruthi Ramakrishnan Dec 9,2016, 1:58pm EST

2. Market Realist: “}^{Coca-Cola’s Growth Strategy for Soda and Still Beverages” By Sharon Bailey | Oct 31, 2016, 3:35 pm EST}

Have you tried getting tickets to a concert lately?

charles i. letbetter - news 121016

There’s no question that concert tickets, even for relatively minor and unknown acts, are expensive. As long as Live Nation and Ticketmaster hold the ticketing rights to the vast majority of concert venues across the United States, that little detail is only going to get worse. Ticketmaster has already had to pay out a $400 million settlement two years ago and there’s absolutely no sign that they’ve learned their lesson. This is what a monopoly does to prices, folks. We need more players in the game.

At the same time, though, it’s difficult to get tickets to some concerts at all when they sell out within minutes, or even seconds, of those tickets becoming available. How the hell does that happen?

Bots. Unscrupulous scalpers use special software to get around ticket limits and buy up as many tickets as they possibly can. Then, they sell those tickets to you at even higher prices than Live Nation or Ticketmaster was offering them. If you want to go to the show, you have to buy your ticket through a scalper.

However, that practice is now illegal. Congress passed what is known as the Better Online Ticket Sales Act of 2016 this week¹ and it seems certain the president will sign the bill. The new law makes it illegal to try and get around set limits on ticket sales or to sell tickets obtained by such means. While no one expects the use of bots to stop overnight, this gives law enforcement new clout in going after resellers who don’t play by the rules.

While this still doesn’t change the monopoly on venue rights, it should make a difference in how much one actually pays for concerts. Unfortunately, even at list price, most concerts are still priced out of reach for the average person.

^{1. National Public Radio: “}^{Bots-B-Gone? Congress Bans Ticket-Scalpers’ Tool Blamed For Quick Sell-Outs” By Bill Chappell December 8, 2016, 1:27 PM ET}

Finally, A Bit Of Good News

charles i. letbetter - news 121016

H.W. Good Elementary School in Herminie, Pennsylvania had a visit from a Secret Santa this week. An anonymous donor decided to pay all the outstanding meal charges for all the students with overdue accounts¹. There is no mention as to exactly how much the generous donor paid to settle the accounts, nor how many of the school’s students were affected. I’m sure, however, that this gift put smiles on the faces of a lot of parents who struggle to keep their children fed.

School meal programs are especially critical in a number of towns and cities across the United States. Indianapolis is fortunate in that the school system here has resolved the problem by providing free meals, both breakfast and lunch, to all its students². However, there is always some jackass who just doesn’t get it and wants to end or reduce the program³. They don’t seem to understand that the quality of our educational system is directly linked to student nutrition. Moreover, theses same elected jackasses are so out of touch they don’t realize that for many of these students their school meals are the only food they get all day.⁴

So, when someone steps up and gives to students like this, it is a gift of unparalleled reward. We can only wish that every school had a secret Santa like this.

^{1. Associated Press: “‘SECRET SANTA’ PAYS OFF MEAL ACCOUNTS AT PENNSYLVANIA SCHOOL“ Dec 9, 9:06 AM EST}^{2. WFYI: “}^{IPS Offering Free Meals” By}^{SAM KLEMET}^{MAY 28, 2014

3. Indianapolis Star: “}^{Rep. Todd Rokita wants to restrict free school lunches” Maureen Groppe and Chelsea Schneider, IndyStar Washington Bureau6:26 p.m. EDT May 18, 2016

4. The Washington Post: “Majority of U.S. public school students are in poverty” By Lyndsey Layton January 16, 2015}

That’s all we’ve got for this morning. Please do us a favor and subscribe to all our posts. This undertaking is a huge effort involving several hours of research and writing. Knowing that we have your support helps keep my coffee warm. You’ll see the place to add your email just below this article if you’re on a mobile device, or at the top of the right hand column if you’re old like me and still use a desktop computer.

Here’s hoping your day is a good one.

pop culture / science

The Internet Of Things Isn’t Ready For Prime Time

December 5, 2016

Having everything in your life connected could be great or could be a giant disaster

Personal assistants sound like so much fun, don’t they? At least, if you believe the commercials they do.

“Siri, find me a Japanese restaurant in Riyadh.”

“Alexa, turn down the lights and turn up the music.”

“Google, what’s theweather forecast for her heart?” (Stormy, apparently, if one is married to a popular country musician.)

Chances are pretty high by now that you’ve seen the commercial. Google and Amazon are both being especially aggressive this season in selling various styles of their different personal assistant devices. The commercials do a very good job of showing the positive side of having as much of your life plugged in as possible. Unlocking the door so you don’t have to fumble for keys in the rain. Checking how to say “hello” in an obscure language just before meeting a guest from a foreign country. Reading your grandmother’s cookie recipe to you while you’re hands are covered with flour. There’s even a refrigerator whose contents you can check while at the grocery store. All of that sounds absolutely wonderful, doesn’t it?

Welcome to the Internet of Things, a growing atmosphere where, increasingly, every part of our lives, from what’s in our closet to the temperature setting on a slow cooker, are potentially available for control either by voice command or an app on your phone. Everything is right there, waiting for you to tell it what to do, or perhaps following previous instructions. Welcome to the future. The world looks extremely comfortable from this viewpoint.

Wait, though. Before you introduce Alexa or Cortana or Google to every aspect of your home, you might want to stop and think about the consequences.

Only In The Movies

Well, television, actually. The show is CBS’s political drama, Madame Secretary, wherein actress Tea Leoni plays Secretary of State Elizabeth McCord. One of the subplots this season came with the theft of her son’s laptop. There were threats and some suspicious activity here and there, resulting in increased security for the family.

Their real vulnerability was exposed, however, when a hacker takes over all the “smart” appliances in their home, turning them all off and on at random. The scene was almost comical as the ice maker in the refrigerator kept spitting ice at family members. For the family, however, the event was terrifying. They quickly became aware of the fact that the Internet of Things isn’t quite ready for prime time yet. There are still a number of bugs to be worked out before the system can be trusted with the finer points of our lives.

How close was the episode to reality? Probably closer than most of us would consider comfortable. While the ice throwing might have been a bit of a stretch, the rest of that scene is pretty accurate. There are a number of “smart” devices available on the market now that allow those devices to be controlled remotely, usually through an app on your phone. While the ice throwing part might be a bit of a stretch, the rest is entirely possible. Even “dumb” appliances can be made “smart” by plugging them into a connected outlet. If you have something that runs on electricity, it can, in theory at least, be connected to the Internet.

While that might sound convenient, the problem is that the Internet is not a terribly safe place to store things that are valuable. No matter how secure you might think the cloud is, there is someone out there right now trying to hack it.

Warning from the FBI

The dangers that come with the personal assistants and the Internet of Things are inherent to the beast. Everyone knows about them. The question is how to mitigate those risks down to reasonable levels. Last September, the Federal Bureau of Investigation released a rather lengthy Public Service Announcement addressing some of the more urgent and frequent security concerns. Here’s an excerpt from that statement.

The main IoT risks include:

An exploitation of the Universal Plug and Play protocol (UPnP) to gain access to many IoT devices. The UPnP describes the process when a device remotely connects and communicates on a network automatically without authentication. UPnP is designed to self-configure when attached to an IP address, making it vulnerable to exploitation. Cyber actors can change the configuration, and run commands on the devices, potentially enabling the devices to harvest sensitive information or conduct attacks against homes and businesses, or engage in digital eavesdropping;
An exploitation of default passwords to send malicious and spam e-mails, or steal personally identifiable or credit card information;
Compromising the IoT device to cause physical harm;
Overloading the devices to render the device inoperable;
Interfering with business transactions.

A couple of things here are worth noting immediately. Anything that is “universal” is universally at risk. That means that the device is open to accepting information from any number of potential sources, making it especially easy for hackers to access the system. Anything with a “default” password is vulnerable even before it’s shipped. Passwords that provide access to multiple objects in your home places your whole family at risk. While security has improved since these guidelines were released, there is still a very high probability that putting one’s home online is putting one’s home at risk.

Even systems you thought were safe can be risky. Remember that huge Target hack that happened last year? The hackers were able to get into the system by using credentials stolen from an HVAC worker. That’s right, Target’s HVAC is online. Not only is it online, when the hack occurred, none of the system’s default passwords had been changed. For hackers to break into the entire system was as easy as possible.

We should also probably mention that anything app controlled can be easily blocked, either by a person or by one’s ISP or by another app. There are myriad ways in which access to your control app could be blocked.

Improvement still requires caution

A lot has improved since the FBI’s warning came out last year. With each new iteration of a product, developers are getting infinitely better at building security into their devices. However, it is going to take a while before all connected services are totally safe.

A 2014 article from digital security provider TrendMicro contains some very valuable advice if you want to make your home both smart and safe.

Ensure that smart devices are secure – (ex: Username/password)
Regularly change smart device access credentials
Check/replace batteries in devices and sensors
Diagnose and Resolve device operational issues
Monitor device manufacturer notifications (ex: web sites, feeds, e-mail, devices) for notifications of device operational issues and firmware updates
Perform firmware updates, as required to ensure continued device security and operation
Perform device management app updates on smart phones/tablets of family members
Reconfigure existing devices to grant additional access by other family members
Identify new household convenience scenarios and configure/test devices accordingly
Assist other members of the household with smart device related issues

Those are very important consideration to remember before making anything in your home accessible through the Internet.

I was talking with a friend yesterday about this very topic and she raised the fear of losing her entire music collection. I countered that perhaps even worse than losing the collection would be having it corrupted. Imagine saying, “Hey Alexa, play Zeppelin.” and what you get is a familiar-sounding dinosaur singing, “I love you, you love me …” That is exactly the kind of horror to which we make ourselves available.

Not everything about the Internet of Things is bad, mind you. The potential for both convenience and learning are significant (Alexa, what sound does a whale make?). However, if we’re going to put more and more of our lives online, we have to understand the risks and, perhaps most importantly, be willing to accept the consequences.

Think before you connect yourself or someone else this holiday season.

Current Issues / PotD

When Stories Become Nightmares

December 4, 2016

Finding pleasant stories is becoming increasingly difficult

Storytime holds an honored and sacred place in the bedtime routine of millions of small children, including ours. Little man prefers reading his own story now, given that he’s reading at a higher level than twenty percent of American adults. Baby girl, however, prefers having me tell her a story. Not read her a story, mind you. Again, she could read stories herself if that’s what she wanted. Instead, she prefers, demands actually, that I tell her a story every night at bedtime. She won’t go to bed quietly without it.

I have to admit that finding a story that’s sufficiently easy to tell within a reasonable time frame every night is difficult. Some nights, her stories are extremely short, especially when her behavior hasn’t exactly been top notch. Other times, I just start off down a path with a character and see where it takes us. She really doesn’t mind as long as I make a couple of funny voices along the way. For her, it’s not just the story, it’s spending the last few minutes of the day with Daddy, something that is important to a six-year-old.

While I can easily enough make up stories to amuse the Tipster, however, finding stories that I can use here is considerably more difficult. I refuse to be yet another post-truth writer who just makes up bullshit without citing any references. I take seriously what we put online even if no one else does. Finding topics that are lighthearted, though, is becoming extremely difficult.

When I’m telling stories to the little one, it is important to keep them light and simple so as to not introduce anything that might become a nightmare. When I look through the headlines every morning, though, nightmares seem inescapable! Is this how our dystopia begins?

The Nightmare of a Factless World

Before I go off on a tangent here, let me request that if you have not read yesterday’s main article on challenging belief systems, please go and do so now. That article is infinitely more important than this one and has more of the qualities of our normal Sunday morning sermon. Please, I beg you, read and share that article before this one.

The stories I encounter on a daily basis come from a variety of sources, most of which are at least moderately journalistic at their foundation. Typically, the most important stories are listed at the top of a page, like a newspaper, with lighter fare and amusements coming further down the page, or at the back of the magazine. If nothing else, there’s always Reuter’s Oddly Enough section which finds those stories that are a little quirky and unusual. Reuter’s is having difficulting finding those stories, too, though.

Perhaps part of the problem here is the assertion by some that “There’s no such thing, unfortunately, anymore, of facts,” I’m not kidding. That quote comes from a paid CNN contributor talking with NPR’s Diane Rehm. You can read that totally depressing story in the Washington Post. If there is one thing that we have discovered in the past few months it is that approximately 46% of the US population believes a story based on the emotion it triggers rather than the credibility of its information. What that ultimately means is that everything one sees in print or reads on Twitter is now a fairy tale. Nothing is actually true. Everything is make-believe and one can just add to the story as though we were all participating in a giant work of fan fiction.

Unfortunately, the fairy tale we are creating is one full of nightmare-inciting characters and situations. Our minds can’t believe any of this is true and the more we try to make sense of any of it the more we find ourselves screaming out in terror.

When one of the children has a nightmare, they come running for a comforting hug. We have no one to give us that reassurance, though, because there is no one we can trust and there is no waking from this nightmare. We are stuck.

What Are We Talking About?

Tossing and turning and not sleeping at night seems to be plaguing more of us than usual. At the beginning of this year, I would get up at 4:00 AM and almost feel as though I had the Internet to myself. All my friends and associates on this continent were asleep. My middle son, the Marine, would be finishing up his day in Okinawa and we might chat back and forth a bit, or I might engage in brief conversation with an acquaintance in Europe. The whole setup was nice and quiet, making for a reasonably quiet start to my morning.

Today, however, there were three “live” streams taking place in my Facebook newsfeed. I left a comment on someone’s post and was surprised to receive an almost instant reply. The number of people I see complaining of insomnia has risen from maybe one or two a week to four or five every day. This is all anecdotal, mind you. There’s no science behind my observation so it is entirely possible that the finite size of my study group is producing a false result. Still, there’s no question in my mind that there are more nightmares in our world now than there are lullabies.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is a Nigerian novelist and a MacArthur Genius Grant recipient who has been called “the most prominent” of a “procession of critically acclaimed young anglophone authors is succeeding in attracting a new generation of readers to African literature” At least, that’s what it says on her Wikipedia page. I don’t know her personally. She also is an occasional contributor to The New Yorker. In her most recent opinion piece for that publication, she writes:

Now is the time to resist the slightest extension in the boundaries of what is right and just. Now is the time to speak up and to wear as a badge of honor the opprobrium of bigots. Now is the time to confront the weak core at the heart of America’s addiction to optimism; it allows too little room for resilience, and too much for fragility. Hazy visions of “healing” and “not becoming the hate we hate” sound dangerously like appeasement. The responsibility to forge unity belongs not to the denigrated but to the denigrators. The premise for empathy has to be equal humanity; it is an injustice to demand that the maligned identify with those who question their humanity.

Something tells me Ms. Adichie is experiencing the nightmares, too. We want them to end. Yet, each morning when the alarm goes off we find that they continue.

We need better stories

The stories I’m reading this morning are only fueling the well-stoked fire of my ongoing nightmare. Generally, I find the words of Stephen Hawking to be somewhat comforting. He tends to have a rather positive outlook toward the future. This morning, however, I’m reading a recent article of his where he says:

… we are living in a world of widening, not diminishing, financial inequality, in which many people can see not just their standard of living, but their ability to earn a living at all, disappearing. It is no wonder then that they are searching for a new deal, which Trump and Brexit might have appeared to represent.

A bit later he goes on to write:

… we are at the most dangerous moment in the development of humanity. We now have the technology to destroy the planet on which we live, but have not yet developed the ability to escape it. Perhaps in a few hundred years, we will have established human colonies amid the stars, but right now we only have one planet, and we need to work together to protect it.

Dr. Hawking makes a noble attempt at ending the article on a positive “we can do it” kind of note, but this nightmare has stripped me of any faith that humanity can pull its collective head from its pompous and oversized ass. Sure, we can improve our world, but I’m not seeing sufficient desire to actually do so.

Last week (I’m just now getting around to reading it) Ian Buruma declared that we are at the end of the Anglo-American order. He goes to great lengths (translation: it’s a long read) to show just exactly how the US and UK are no longer fit to lead the rest of the world as they have done in the past. He writes:

The self-flattering notion that the Western victors of World War II are special, braver and freer than any other people, that the United States is the greatest nation in the history of man, that Great Britain—the country that stood alone against Hitler—is superior to any European let alone non-European country has not only led to some ill-conceived wars but also helps to paper over the inequalities built into Anglo-American capitalism. The notion of natural superiority, of the sheer luck of being born an American or a Briton, gave a sense of entitlement to people who, in terms of education or prosperity, were stuck in the lower ranks of society.

We’ve lost our grasp on what is real versus what is fantasy. We’ve become so accustomed to making shit up as we go, flying by the seat of our pants so-to-speak, that we think there are no facts because we’re too consumed with the fiction to recognize the reality when it is encountered. We have grabbed hold of the nightmare as though it were an amusement park roller coaster, screaming at the downward spirals and then laughing at ourselves as we prepare to plunge even deeper into the infinity of despair.

I don’t know about you, but I need a break from the nightmare. The stress has become noticeable. Kat has mentioned more than once this past week that I’m snapping at the children, yelling and screaming at the drop of a hat. Granted, I’m a grumpy old man on the best of days, but the stress of this continual nightmare, and the worry that we might never wake up, is removing any sense of pleasantness I might have.

We need better stories. We need stories that are not just fluff but genuinely good news about improvements to the overall human condition. I’m saying that while hoping it’s not too late, that the nightmare hasn’t completely taken over.

We need a break. I fear what happens if this nightmare of a story continues. None of us may be able to sleep ever again.

Art / Photography

Body Parts: A Reference Guide

December 3, 2016

Artists can’t always pay to have a model standing in front of them. Photographic reference is the next best thing.

long legs, sitting

We know a number of artists who work in mediums other than photography. Occasionally, one of those friends will ask if we have a photo of a specific body part, from a specific angle, in specific lighting. Often, we already have exactly what they want. If they don’t, shooting what they want isn’t all that difficult. We really enjoy being able to help out other artists this way.

The catch here, of course, is that sometimes artists need reference for a specific body. Many artists, especially paint and sketch artist, like working with live models so they can see exactly how the body looks from different angles. If one is doing something detailed, however, the cost of a live model mounts quickly. We can shoot a model from every conceivable angle and then crop the photos to focus on specific body parts such as hands, shoulders, chins, and jaw lines.

So, since it’s Saturday afternoon and we’re just content that the dogs are not trying to hump each other for the moment, we thought we’d give you a very, very, very brief sample of reference body parts. We’ve even labeled them for you in case some of you aren’t sure where you’re eyes are supposed to be looking. Enjoy this very brief set and then let us know if you need to purchase more precise images. We’re always ready to help!

Abs

ear, upside down

face, looking up

Arm, inked

back, inked

dirty foot

hand, inked

hands, plain

knees, folded

legs, feet

smile, freckles

Lips, profile

posterior

shoulder

Profile, with glasses

left profile

PotD / science / Social Commentary

Belief Systems That Need Challenging

December 3, 2016

charles i. letbetter - belief systems need challenging

Belief systems are personal constructions and some are just wrong

Take a careful look at the two pictures at the top of this page. What do you think you are seeing? How do they make you feel? What do you think they communicate?

The two photographs are part of a set we shot for a now L.A.-based designer and local jewelry designer. It’s the accessories that likely get your attention in these photos. While the designer originally intended the cuffs and collars to be worn by the same person, she decided on set that it might be interesting to give each model an element, essentially linking them together. Her intention was to emphasize how we are all linked together, connected across numerous chains without realizing it. No one on set at the time objected, so we went with it.

However, once we first showed the photos back in 2012, opinions changed. While the designer’s point of view is still credible, once one superimposes their own belief system and personal history, they tend to see something different, something not very positive. Are we connected or are we enslaved? Sometimes the difference is difficult to distinguish. The set was dropped from any additional publication. This is the only place you are likely to ever see the photos.

Belief systems alter how we see the world. They influence everything from how we view art to how we view each other. Our opinions regarding what we eat, what we read, what is acceptable entertainment, and sometimes who should be allowed to even exist are all matters determined by our belief system.

A current theme running through social media is that we should neither judge nor shame people for what they believe. I disagree. We should not judge or shame people for who they are, but belief systems definitely need to be challenged, especially when those belief systems are based on inaccuracies and ignorance. Let me give you five good examples.

Science Denial

So, have you been paying attention to the weather lately? How ’bout those fires that consumed Gatlinburg, Tennessee and a large portion of the Smokey Mountains? Did you see that? What caused that? Long-term drought, ladies and gentlemen. Regardless of how the fire actually started, the fact that it spread is directly because the land was so incredibly dry that forests burned hotter and faster than was anticipated. Firefighters couldn’t move fast enough to get in front of the fire.

Or how about those tornadoes in Alabama and Tennessee this week? Folks in the South are having a rough time of it. Yet those, too, are the result of changes in global climate patterns. Taking a look at the current statement made by the U.S. Drought Monitor regarding Southern states sounds horrifying:

Severe drought impacts continued to mount in this region and included parched soils, record to near-record low stream flows, and drying stock ponds. Impacts from southern Alabama, as submitted to the Drought Impacts Reporter, include shrinking aquifers, dried-up stock ponds, failed crops, and stressed feed for stock. In Lowndes County, Alabama, ranchers have been feeding hay reserved for winter since early September, and, except in a few places, pastures were absolutely bare. Soybean growers statewide have reported that soybean pods were shattering. Soybean pod shattering occurs as a result of hot and windy conditions and low humidity combining to dry the pod walls until they become brittle and break. As of mid-November, the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs’ Office of Water Resources had declared most of the state in emergency drought status.

Oh, but climate isn’t the only place we’re not too excited about science. NPR is reporting that “Americans Don’t Trust Scientists’ Take On Food Issues.” The article is based on a just-released paper from the Pew Research Center. Among the details are nauseating tidbits such as:

39 percent of the survey participants believe that genetically modified foods are worse for your health than non-GM food. However, there’s essentially no scientific evidence to support that belief — a conclusion confirmed most recently by a National Academy of Sciences report.

And this:

Americans believe that there’s no scientific consensus on GMOs. Just over 50 percent of respondents believe that “about half or fewer” of scientists agree that GM foods are safe to eat. Only 14 percent’s beliefs match the reality — that “almost all” scientists agree that GM foods are safe to eat.

Then this:

Americans feel that research findings are influenced in equal measure by the following factors: the best available scientific evidence; desire to help their industries; and desire to advance their careers. In the view of the public, all of those factors are more important to scientists than concern for the public interest.

A distrust of science is a particularly dangerous thing because it leaves us open to myth, conjecture, and the overwhelming amount of false news permeating the Internet. The American public displays a particularly high ignorance regarding even the basic matters of science, such as the term “theory” and the stratification of “hypothesis.” Without even a basic understanding of science and a complete dismissal of its findings, we are left open to consequences we won’t see coming. The fires and tornadoes are just a start. The planet has no problems eliminating humans in order to reclaim itself.

Those who deny science on any level need to be challenged every time they open their mouths. There is no acceptable level of ignorance. Science is not only predictive, it also has the ability to provide remedies if we’ll just pay attention. The future of the entire human race depends on using whatever means necessary, whether through shaming or complete public humiliation or academic discretization of those who encourage the denial of science. Allowing such ignorance to grow dooms us all.

Anti-intellectualism

I was deeply disturbed when I saw a news story out of Virginia yesterday. Accomack County Public Schools have, at least temporarily, pulled To Kill A Mockingbird and Huckleberry Finn from its shelves after one mother complained about the use of racial slurs in the books. The mother told the school board that her biracial son, who is in high school, “struggled” with getting through a page containing a racial slur.

Even more disturbing, however, might be the quote in the news story from a different mother of a 10-year-old: “It’s not right to put that in a book, let alone read that to a child,” she said.

Apparently, some of the folks in Virginia have forgotten the very purpose of literature. But then, such sentiments are not unusual anywhere across the United States. The American Library Association’s ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) compiles lists of challenged books as reported in the media and submitted by librarians and teachers across the country. Their most recent list from 2015 (because, in case you hadn’t noticed, 2016 isn’t over yet) includes the following books:

Looking for Alaska, by John Green
Reasons: offensive language, sexually explicit, and unsuited for age group
Fifty Shades of Grey, by E. L. James
Reasons: sexually explicit, unsuited to age group, and other (“poorly written,” “concerns that a group of teenagers will want to try it”)
I Am Jazz, by Jessica Herthel and Jazz Jennings
Reasons: inaccurate, homosexuality, sex education, religious viewpoint, and unsuited for age group
Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out, by Susan Kuklin
Reasons: anti-family, offensive language, homosexuality, sex education, political viewpoint, religious viewpoint, unsuited for age group, and other (“wants to remove from collection to ward off complaints”)
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, by Mark Haddon
Reasons: offensive language, religious viewpoint, unsuited for age group, and other (“profanity and atheism”)
The Holy Bible
Reasons: religious viewpoint
Fun Home, by Alison Bechdel
Reasons: violence and other (“graphic images”)
Habibi, by Craig Thompson
Reasons: nudity, sexually explicit, and unsuited for age group
Nasreen’s Secret School: A True Story from Afghanistan, by Jeanette Winter
Reasons: religious viewpoint, unsuited to age group, and violence
Two Boys Kissing, by David Levithan
Reasons: homosexuality and other (“condones public displays of affection”)

Find some of those titles surprising, do you? Would any of those books challenge your personal belief system? I really like what the ALA’s website has to say about banning books:

A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials. Challenges do not simply involve a person expressing a point of view; rather, they are an attempt to remove material from the curriculum or library, thereby restricting the access of others. As such, they are a threat to freedom of speech and choice.

“A threat to freedom of speech and choice.” Those words should send a chill down your spine. Book challenging and banning is one of the most visible and most emotional methods of anti-intellectualism, but it certainly isn’t the only one. Even worse, the problem is growing.

We’ve been hearing about the “dumbing down of America” for years. The truth is that there has always been a certain amount of anti-intellectualism throughout the United States since its founding. Not all the founding fathers believed that everyone deserved an education, or needed to know how to read and write. What’s disturbing is how that this belief system has spread and might even be considered at least partially responsible for the surprising outcome of this year’s presidential election. Smart people scare those who are ignorant.

Psychology Today has taken on the topic of increasing anti-intellectualism rather frequently. In looking back over an article from 2015, by David Niose, I was struck by this particular paragraph:

In a country where a sitting congressman told a crowd that evolution and the Big Bang are “lies straight from the pit of hell,” where the chairman of a Senate environmental panel brought a snowball into the chamber as evidence that climate change is a hoax, where almost one in three citizens can’t name the vice president, it is beyond dispute that critical thinking has been abandoned as a cultural value. Our failure as a society to connect the dots, to see that such anti-intellectualism comes with a huge price, could eventually be our downfall.

I cannot disagree with Mr. Niose. The increase in our national inability to reason is terrifying. What makes it difficult to stop this line of thinking, however, is that it is impossible to reason with an unreasonable person. For those who are willfully ignorant, especially, there is no argument that can permeate that thick helmet of absolute wrongness. When that anti-intellectualism is even further entrenched by eccentric religious beliefs, it is even more dangerous and more difficult to fight.

Yet, fight we must. We cannot let gross and rampant anti-intellectualism go unchecked. I don’t care if it is a part of someone’s core belief system, it is still wrong. That’s correct, I have no problem stating that anti-intellectualism is wrong. We have to challenge those mindsets and use whatever methods are necessary to push it back into some form of social submission. Ignorance has no place in the public discourse.

Issac Asminov rather famously said:

“Anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that ‘my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.’”

We have erroneously allowed anti-intellectualism to grow throughout American in the name of some manner of freedom to be stupid. No, you do not have a freedom to be stupid. Ignorance puts everyone in danger and is a threat to our way of life. I can think of no circumstance in which ignorance is to be tolerated. I can think of no circumstance in which ignorance should be protected. We should fight it at every juncture with all our might. While we certainly won’t see its end, we must see its diminishment.

Racism

How many of you just scrolled quickly to get the above image off your screen? I wish I could know what was your motivation. Why are people offended by this picture? Is it the nudity, the fact that both models are female, or the most obvious element that one is black and the other isn’t? Chances are, for far too many Americans, it’s the latter.

Racism in America has, like anti-intellectualism, been a part of the American reality since its inception. The very first Europeans to set foot on think continent enjoyed slaughtering indigenous people so much that after each such event they would have a feast and call it Thanksgiving. That’s just how incredibly deep racism flows through the American culture. As a belief system, racism has frequently been a core issue, backed up by religion, reinforced through oppression. America’s racist history is shameful and something of which we’ve yet to repent.

What is most bothersome, however, is the degree to which those who are most ardently racists have taken the election of a new president as reason to glory in their racism and demonstrate such deplorable ideology in a public manner. NBC News made public research from the Southern Poverty Law Center this week showing over 900 incidents of hate, most of which have involved racism or sexuality, since the November election. Specifically, “900 separate incidents of bias and violence against immigrants, Latinos, African-Americans, women, LGBT people, Muslims and Jews in the ten days after Trump captured the White House.”

Can we possibly make this any worse? Yes, yes we can. Most of those incidents occurred in schools. Quoting now from the NBC News article:

In a related SPLC online survey of 10,000 teachers and school officials, eighty percent of the respondents reported a “negative impact on students’ mood and behavior following the election,” and eight in ten said they detected “heightened anxiety on the part of marginalized students, including immigrants, Muslims, African Americans and LGBT students.”

Bigotry takes a lot of forms, and every one of them is deplorable. However, the worst of them all is racism and the speed at which racist events have accelerated should make everyone of a more reasonable mind a bit nervous. Just in case you haven’t seen any of the nastiness that’s been caught on camera, here’s a sample from earlier this week:

The young black woman toward whom this particular rant was directed has received a tremendous amount of support after the incident, but the fact remains that the incident shouldn’t have happened at all! Nothing like this should ever happen.

Hold on, there’s more. This isn’t the only recent incident. Consider some of the following headlines that have cropped up recently:

Here’s the thing: we know that racism is a problem, yet we continue to tolerate it from people we know. How often have I heard someone excuse the racist behavior of another by saying, “Well, they have a right to their opinion.” No! Racism is not an opinion! Whether or not you want fries with that is an opinion. Which color you should paint your living room wall is an opinion. You do NOT get an opinion about the color of someone else’s skin!

There is no such thing as a racial supremacy in any direction because, guess what, race is just something we made up to divide ourselves. We have known at least since 1998 that, from a genetic standpoint, there is no such thing as race within the human species. The pigmentation of one’s skin is wholly irrelevant as to one’s humanity.

Furthermore, as genetic research continues, there is increasing evidence that a considerable number of people who think of themselves as white actually have at least one black ancestor in their family tree. So much for the concept of racial purity.

Anyone who has racism as part of their belief system needs to be confronted, shamed, and socially outcast at every opportunity. This increasing trend is not something we can tolerate a second longer. We must address racism aggressively before we end up in yet another pointless domestic war.

Sexuality

Why the hell did I choose this specific picture? Because I have a challenge for you: Guess the gender of the two persons standing with their back to the camera. My guess is you’ll look at body curves and general physiology and try to make a guess. One male, one female? Both male? Both female?

Here’s the answer: it doesn’t matter.

Discrimination based on gender and sexuality is a belief system that is more than 6,000 years old. We see it in all the Abrahamic religions and the societies built on those traditions. Therefore, the belief system is deeply entrenched not only in those religions but through the societies around them. No matter how deeply entrenched those beliefs may be, however, they need to be challenged. Women are not property. Homosexuality is not wrong. Gender is more than physiology.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation didn’t begin investigating crimes based on gender identity until 2013. When they did, they listed crimes against a person because of “sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender, or gender identity” as hate crimes. Hate itself, the FBI insists, is not a crime. How one behaves in response to that hate, however, can be. So, with the FBI on the case, incidents of sexual-based crimes has gone down, right?

Uhm, no.

2016 has seen some of the most alarming incidents of hate specifically against the LGBT community. Most notable was the shooting at an Orlando gay club that left 41 dead. However, as the New York Times reports, even before that event, people within the LGBT community were more likely to be the victims of hate crimes. As incredible as it may seem, LGBT people are twice as likely to be the victims of hate crimes than are black people. The number of incidents has risen so dramatically that hate against the LGBT community now outpaces hate against Jews, which has historically taken the top spot for hate crimes.

Oh, but it gets worse. Numerous sources have ran with the story this week that the president-elect has pledged to sign the First Amendment Defense Act (FADA). The bill was first introduced in 2015 but languished in the House of Representatives knowing that there was no way it could ever receive a presidential signature nor override a veto. However, given vice-president-elect Mike Pence’s history with anti-LGBT legislation here in Indiana, and given the president-elect’s campaign rhetoric, supporters of the legislation feel certain that they can now get the bill through Congress.

We simply cannot let this kind of thinking continue. More than just an anti-LGBT law, such legislation further codifies hate into the American system, hate that inevitably spreads from the LGBT community on to any other group that finds itself out of favor with ignorant society.

Here again, we are dealing with belief systems that are based almost wholly on a religion-facilitated ignorance. When one speaks up against the hate and bigotry and discrimination, one is quickly told that their Bible or Quran or the Talmud prohibits such relationships. Yet, there are plenty of well-studied religious scholars who disagree. The portion of scripture that spans all three of the major Abrahamic religions, placed in the Christian Bible as Genisis chapter 27, has been widely misinterpreted to be preaching against homosexuality. Many preachers stand and fume against the “sin of Sodom,” but analysis reveals that Sodom’s sin had absolutely nothing to do with homosexuality! Consider (from the linked article):

The classic instance of this is in Ezekiel 16:49-50 which castigates the people of Jerusalem:

“This was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy.”

Another, Isaiah chapter 1, also enumerates the sins of Jerusalem, whom he addresses directly as Sodom and Gomorrah (v. 10):

Hear the word of the Lord,
you rulers of Sodom!
Listen to the teaching of our God,
you people of Gomorrah!

Verse 17 implies what those sins are, by stating what the people should be doing:

… learn to do good;
seek justice,
rescue the oppressed,
defend the orphan,
plead for the widow.

Not a word about homosexuality. As in Ezekiel, the sin is the abuse of the vulnerable.

Furthermore, not only did the alleged Christ or Prophet not address the matter, apologetics attempts to excuse that fact with, “you weren’t there so you don’t’ know for sure,” is as weak as some of the same apologeticisms’ denial of evolution.

Gender and sexual discrimination and hate as a belief system have to be confronted. Those clinging desperately to those beliefs need to have those beliefs condemned in very harsh terms because they are wrong and endanger the lives of others. There is no level of tolerance for such ignorance and hate. Shame on anyone who still holds to such antiquated beliefs.

Bullying

At this point, nearly 3,500 words into this missive, one might wonder exactly how bullying factors into the whole concept of challenging belief systems. The answer is that many beliefs, attitudes, and actions that we see demonstrated through society, regardless of their names, are nothing more than pure brutish bullying. Any attempt at intimidation in order to force the will of one onto the actions and behaviors of another is bullying, plain and simple. We see far too much of it, but perhaps it is difficult for you to recognize some issues as a matter of bullying. So, let me give you a few examples.

Abortion. Actually, this has very little to do with saving the life of a fetus and more to do with men, through their power in government, bullying women. Do men really care what women do with their bodies? No, not really. What men, in general with notable exceptions, care about is control. They like being bullies.

Unsurprisingly, we see this form of bullying in the results of this year’s presidential election. The president-elect has made it perfectly clear that he intends to use new legislation and judicial appointments in an attempt to overturn Roe v. Wade. The president-elect’s choice for Health and Human Service secretary supports defunding Planned Parenthood, which would not reduce abortions but would significantly affect the healthcare of millions of women. Both are classic examples of bullying.

Or how about the president-elect’s threat to deport immigrants? Not only is the threat illogical and impractical, it is another case of bullying, using fear and intimidation against a specific group of people. While some are standing up and saying they will defy the president-elect’s orders, he has still been able to create an atmosphere of fear among the immigrant community at a time when the world needs us to be accepting more immigrants, not fewer.

That whole deal about a wall along the Mexican border? Bullying.

Wage discrimination? Bullying.

Threats against companies moving outside the US? More bullying.

In fact, there is a lot of what we see in this white-male dominated society that is nothing more than well-entrenched bullying. We’ve been doing it for so very long that we’ve come to expect it and think that it’s just the way things are done.

No, we refuse to accept that line of thinking. Bullying, no matter the form it takes or who is the target, is wrong. Forcing someone else to act upon your belief system rather than their own, is wrong. No matter how much power one thinks they have, resorting to intimidation factors and fear is always wrong. You do not have the right to be mean. You do not have the right to push others around.

What is most upsetting about these bullying tactics is that the bullies always think they’re in the right. The reason we’ve seen such a dramatic rise in the number of hate incidents across the US is because those who voted for the president-elect mistakenly believe that his election provides justification to their warped and improper belief systems. Since bullying is an underlying principle of their belief systems, they have joyously exercised that belief in some of the most frightening ways we’ve seen since the civil rights struggles of the 1960s.

Bullying is not just a crime against a given set of people, it is a crime against all humanity and it is not limited to those in the US. A young woman in Riyadh posted a picture to social media of her standing outside, in public, without her hijab. The response was calls for her execution.

The world has no choice but to confront such belief systems. We must take a stand against the bullying. We must fight against the implementation of legislation that codifies bullying. If there’s one thing of which I’m certain it is the fact that standing up to a bully almost always causes them to back down. Now is the time we need to make that stand.

Belief systems are not infallible. Even well-considered and carefully thought out belief systems need to be challenged in some form or fashion. Those elements that are necessary and true will hold. Those that are false and unjustified we have to change. Unfortunately, not everyone sees that. So, where we see belief systems that exercise hate, where we see belief systems that put others in danger, where we see belief systems that spread ignorance and lies, we must challenge them. We need not always be aggressive. We need not always be forceful. But we must always challenge.

To be silent is the greatest mistake one can ever make.

Fashion / pop culture / PotD

If You Didn’t Shop For A Year

December 2, 2016

charles i. letbetter- no shopping for a year

Sales are up this holiday season, but what if you didn’t shop at all for a year?

So, how is your holiday shopping going? I’m not quite done yet and I know I need to get on the ball and get finished so that I’m not stuck with rush shipping fees. Now that my all-important birthday is out of the way, I can get about the business of attending to the rest of the world.

Shopping for this holiday season is up a bit, with consumers spending over $2 billion black Friday weekend. A fair portion of that is online, as more and more people either don’t have the time or just don’t want to be bothered with going to the store. The amount we are spending, per person, however, is up. Generally speaking, that is a good thing. Our level of holiday spending is typically an indicator of how positive we’re feeling about the coming year. Obviously, some of you are tremendously more positive than I am.

What would happen, though, if none of us bought anything for an entire year? I know, it could never happen. We need stuff. The economy needs us to need stuff. However, I came across an article this week from a woman who just finished a year without shopping. She actually did it. The article got me thinking about the ramifications of such a thing becoming even moderately widespread. We could save money, but would that sink the economy?

What it takes to not shop

The article in question, My year of no spending is over – here’s how I got through it, was published on the Money Blog of The Guardian this past week. The author, Michelle McGagh, details some of the challenges of a decision she made to change her personal shopping habits. She writes:

I was spending without thinking, lured in by advertising and the promise that I could spend my way to happiness. I was stuck in a cycle of consumerism – earning money to buy stuff I didn’t really need, which wasn’t making me happy.

The problem she saw in herself is likely one with which a lot of us can identify, especially this time of year. We shop without thinking. We know we need X number of gifts for whichever holiday(s) you observe, but then we go beyond that, filling our baskets, and our credit cards, with things simply because, “ooh, that’s a really good price.” Do we actually need all the stuff we buy? Absolutely not. The question is, can we actually survive not buying it?

Ms. McGagh’s caveat is that bills and pre-arranged obligations came first. When it was necessary to pay her share on a roofing job between her and her neighbor, she did. Living in London, she also had to buy her food, not grow it. It’s not that she didn’t spend any money at all. She took care of her basic needs. What she didn’t do was shop and shopping is different than buying. We buy what we need. We shop for what we want.

Along the way, Ms. McGagh found that her attitude toward spending changed. She was not as affected by sales ads and commercials. She wasn’t drawn in by artificial discounts. She also made some sacrifices, such as biking instead of taking the bus, not hanging out at bars with friends, and choosing vacation options that many of us might find boring. In the end, though, she was able to pay down her mortgage significantly and save a great deal of money in the process. Her exercise in being frugal sounds successful. Still, that doesn’t mean we should all join her.

Your role in the economy

When we talk about personal finances, the emphasis is almost always on the personal. We look at out spending in relation to how we are affected directly. However, there is another element here that deserves some consideration before we all try to start a new movement of frugality or anything. What we do, whether buying or shopping, has an effect outside of ourselves. While helping our own finances, we can inadvertently do harm to others.

There is this thing called the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). This is, effectually, how much money the country spends in the course of a year. U.S. GDP was $18.657 trillion in the Third Quarter 2016. We’ve stayed pretty much on that level of spending the entire year. What’s important to our country’s economy is for that number to grow.

You, dear reader, participate in the GDP every time you make a purchase. This is known as the GDP per capita. If the simple GDP was $18.657 trillion and we divide that by the approximated population of the United States, we have a GDP per capita somewhere around $50,424.32. That’s a lot of buying for one person.

Obviously, a lot of us don’t spend $50K. This is an average. Roughly half the population spends more, while the other half spends less. Still, that number represents our level of participation in the nation’s economy. While a single person’s $50K may not seem like much, the aggregation of many people pulling back on their spending would have a considerable impact. You may buy only one “big ticket” (over $1000) item this year, but if a million people, less than one percent, were to skip that big ticket item, our economy would experience a moderate recession. If five million people reduce their personal spending by more than 50%, we’re looking at a full-blown depression. The economy is dependent not merely on you buying, but buying more than you earn. That’s why you see so many commercials pushing credit cards.

Striking the right balance

There is a balance, I think, between being as frugal as Ms. McGagh’s experiment and being an economically responsible citizen. We can grow the GDP without breaking the bank, which has been our typical approach.

First, we need to re-think how we shop and what we buy. Instead of giving in to the temptation of fast fashion and buying clothes multiple times a year, one can focus on spending a little more per piece for quality goods that don’t have to be replaced as often. You’re still spending, but you ultimately save money by not running to H&M every other week because that blouse or pants you bought six months ago is already falling apart.

Second, we need to consider where we shop. Buying local, especially at single-owner shops and boutiques, has a greater impact on the economy than shopping at big box stores. With large retailers, much of what you spend goes to international suppliers and does not have as much impact on the US GDP. However, when you buy locally made goods and services from entrepreneurs who live in your town, the vast majority of the money stays right here. You don’t have to spend as much to boost the GDP.

Third, be a little more self-sufficient, especially when it comes to food. Despite the fact that we raise immense amounts of food on farms across the United States, roughly 20 percent of what you see in the store, especially in terms of fresh fruits and vegetables, is grown elsewhere. That adds up to about 390 pounds per capita that’s not having a full impact on the domestic GDP. Yet, if stores are not providing local produce, what options do you have? For many Americans, a small garden in their yard could have a tremendous impact, saving you both money and, in the strange way that numbers sometimes work, boosting the economy. It might take a little innovation for some, but if even 20 percent of the population started growing 20 percent of the vegetables they consume, the impact would be considerable.

So, could you go a whole year without shopping? I know that might be asking a bit much, but given the uncertainties of the next few years, a bit of frugality is probably not a bad thing at all.

Art / Personal / Photography / PotD

It’s My Party & I’ll Post What I Want To

December 1, 2016

All niceties are tossed out the window. Nothing about this article is safe for work.

December 1. My 56th birthday. How did I start my morning? By doing children’s laundry. Damn school uniforms. School uniforms don’t make a damn bit of sense for children who are growing so fucking fast that you can barely keep them in underwear. What parent has the money to keep buying and replacing the same clothes over and over and over and over throughout the year? We don’t. So, their pants are either a bit too long or are riding at their ankles. We just ignore the scuffs on the knees.

It’s my birthday and I’m doing laundry at 4:00 AM so that the little ones will have fresh, warm clothes to wear to school. No one ever did that for me. Probably because the washer and dryer were out in the garage. Oh, and Poppa didn’t start getting up at 4 himself until after we were out of the house. If we wanted warm clothes on cold mornings, we had to set our clothes over the heat register the night before. Don’t give me funny looks over that. I know we weren’t the only ones who did it.

Of course, over the years I’ve heard of others trying to warm up their clothes by putting them on or close to space heaters. The results were not pleasant. At the very least, it’s a good way to lose your best set of jeans.

I sometimes look back at my childhood and wonder how the hell we didn’t die. We took risks—lots of them. Many of them with our parents’ blessing, the rest without their knowledge. If I had ever seen one of my boys trying to tight-rope-walk a barbed-wire fence, I’d have thrown a fit. Yet, we did it. More than once. We didn’t stop until I ripped the seam from a pair of jeans. There were dangerous makeshift bicycle ramps, tree houses that were not safe for occupancy, and daring feats of, “do you think that’s safe to eat?” It’s a wonder any of us made it to our 18th birthday. Yet, here I am at 56. Rather frightening.

A good age to die

Actually, it turns out that 56 is a fairly common age for people to start dying. Heartwarming thought, isn’t it? On one hand, there were all the news stories about the world’s oldest woman celebrating her 117th birthday earlier this week. Things like that didn’t happen when I was a kid. We should all be encouraged about our prospects for living a long life. At the same time, however, the list of notable people who died at 56 is a bit too long and too impressive. Death waits for no one, I suppose. Look at these names:

Alexander Pope, 1744
Abraham Lincoln, 1865
Ian Fleming, 1964
Charles Mingus, 1979
Betty Grable, 1973
Steve Jobs, 2011
Ludwig von Beethoven, 1827
John Hancock, 1793
King George VI (The Queen’s father), 1952

Looking at that list is daunting. Consider all that those people accomplished before they died. Here I am, having never been president during a civil war, never written a great spy novel, never composed thousands of musical masterpieces, never acted in any movies, never built a high-tech empire, haven’t signed a declaration of independence (yet), and am not even close to guiding Britain through a war. When I look at what I’ve done compared to all these people had achieved by the time they died at my age, I feel just a bit like a failure.

There is one name I intentionally left off that list. Adolf Hitler was 56 when he died. I guess that’s one thing I have going for me: I’ve not tried to rule the world and killed millions of innocent people. Perhaps I should put a “yet” at the end of that statement. I suppose anything is possible. After all, I once tried tight-rope walking on barbed-wire, you know.

Do we really want to live that long?

While I’m not in any mood to kick the bucket today, at the same time I have to wonder if any of us really want to live all that long. Consider the plight of Emma Moreno, the world’s oldest woman. She hasn’t exactly had a great and wonderful life, you know. Her fiancè was killed in WWI. She married an abusive brute she didn’t like. She kicked him out of the house, and shortly after doing so her only child, a son, died. She worked in a factory until she was 65, which seems young compared to where she is now. She has outlived her eight brothers and sisters. She eats the same thing every day: two eggs, one raw, one fried. Even she admits she hasn’t had a good life.

So, if living long means outliving everyone you love, being left alone in a nursing facility somewhere in Italy, having the only time people pay any attention to you is on your birthday, if you make it another year, or when you eventually give up and die, is it worth the trouble of even trying? I can see wanting to live a long time if we still have our friends and still have our families and can still go and do things that we enjoy. Take all that away, though, and what the fuck is the point? At this juncture, it seems that Ms. Moreno is more in torment than happy. She smiled for the cameras, but she had to force it.

I wonder if we make too much of living a long life. Certainly, as long as there are people around to love, then, by all means, keep going. But when one has outlived everyone of what value is life? I suppose one could claim that they are producing carbon dioxide for the plants and trees. At least that’s something productive, right?

There are still options

I don’t suppose all is lost. Not having been wildly successful by age 56 isn’t necessarily a major concern, is it? Look at all the people who were older when they finally “made it.”

“Colonel” Harlan Sanders was 65 when he started his chicken franchise.
Laura Ingalls Wilder didn’t publish her first novel until she was 65, and managed to get in 12 others after that.
Grandma Moses was 76 when she first slapped paint across a canvas, and she was productive for nearly 20 years.
Edmund Hoyle was around 70 years old when he first began recording the rules of various card games in 1741.

There are several others whose names you likely wouldn’t recognize, like the guy who invented the taser, or the guy who founded Hare Krishna. And how many presidents, including our president-elect, were well over 56 when they took office? Not that I would ever want to be president, mind you. There would probably be a civil war and then I’d get shot. I’ll let Mr. Lincoln keep that dubious honor, thank you.

Still, the point I’m trying desperately to make is that there are plenty of examples of people who didn’t even get a good start on whatever it is that made them famous until they were older and had a good bit of totally unrelated experience behind them. While I’m not sitting on any earth-shattering ideas right at this moment, in theory I’m well positioned to have a brainstorm of some kind that would propel me into the history books. Let’s just hope it’s for a good reason.

Of course, there’s still photography

I suppose, in some sense, all this sounds as though I’m giving up on photography. I’m not, despite how this year has gone. The past four years, for that matter. The number of photographs I’ve taken has been steadily declining, each year being the fewest yet that I’ve ever taken. Rather depressing when one stops and thinks about it. Although, one might say that the reduction in number makes the photographs that were taken all the more valuable. Scarcity can be a good thing, I suppose. Especially after I’m dead.

See, there’s that dead thing again. It keeps popping up.

Part of the issue with photography is a lack of models with whom I can enjoy working. The young woman who posed for the images here, all shot back in 2005, had just turned 21 when I met her. She was lively, adventurous, and willing to pretty much try anything. In fact, there was a lot she was already trying when we met. She was 5′ 10″, perfectly proportioned, and looked sufficiently wonderful dressed, but at the same time didn’t have much hesitancy about getting naked just about anywhere, including once at the ruins in Holliday Park. She understood the artistry and that getting the shots that no one else had sometimes involved taking some risks. As a result, I have a truck-load of archived images that I still enjoy pulling out and re-processing every once in a while.

I need more models like her. We’ve had several over the years, but inevitably, as they get older, they get married, have kids, or take advantage of better offers elsewhere, such as Las Vegas or LA. I don’t blame anyone for improving their lives, but they each leave a special void that is never filled. We once had relationships with our models that enabled us to do some really dramatic and interesting things. No one seems remotely interested in that anymore, though. Without willing subjects ready to step in front of the camera, it is difficult to feel inspired about taking new pictures. Sure, equipment, transportation, and space issues factor in as well, but it’s the litany of muses, the knowledge that for whatever concept I conceive I have the model(s) to pull it off, that is missing.

The Forthcoming Novel

There is no forthcoming novel. At least, not anytime soon. I tried the novel-writing thing in November. I made it two days. Writing a novel, for me, means not being interrupted by chores or children or news or presidential elections or idiots running the stop sign on the corner. Writing, for me, requires that I be able to dedicate my full attention to the process. I need to be able to research everything. Even this article had its share of research, every one of them does. I need to know that the things that I say, the ideas that I present, are at least plausible and preferably possible. I can do fiction, but fantasy is a bit beyond me.

If I ever do complete a full novel, it will be between moments of getting lost in the wonderment of watching cats playing across the living room rug. This morning, it’s the kittens who are leaping and rolling and butt-wiggling all over the place. Their energy is boundless and the entertainment factor is dramatically distractive. I have never been much of a cat person, but the past couple of years with our careful selection of rescued kitties has changed my mind in that regard. They are wonderful little creatures to have around. I can sit and watch them for several minutes at a time, becoming totally lost in their play. Of course, that means I’m not writing a damn thing.

Then, there’s the dog. I love the big guy. He loves me. And sometimes that’s an issue. He wants to play. A lot. And I enjoy playing with him. A lot. I can easily take a couple of hours from my afternoon out in the yard with him, playing tug of war and throwing balls. But again, if I’m doing that I’m not writing, am I? Perhaps I’m gaining little tidbits of information and experience that I might eventually work into part of a story, but I’m not piercing light with pixels (which is the modern substitution for putting pen to paper). Maybe I’ll get around to writing something great and wonderful one of these days, but I don’t see it happening this year, and probably not the year after. There are just too many distractions in life.

What will happen in this next year? Most immediately, I’ll re-work the website a little bit. It’s time to update the template. There’s a new version of WordPress coming out next week, so we might as well get all the kinks worked out of everything at the same time. I’ll move things around a bit, change header pictures, stuff like that. In general, though, I like the layout we’ve been using this year. The number of eyeballs has more than doubled what we had for last year. So, a little tweaking should suffice for the next 12 months.

I would love to shoot more this year, but again, that whole model issue is a concern. Perhaps we’ll meet some people. Perhaps we already have and just don’t know it yet.

Either way, we’ve completed 56 years now. Let’s see what happens next. I fear a new dystopia, but hey, maybe we’ll get cool robot overlords from it.

Current Issues / Social Commentary

The Nightmare Of Being An Immigrant

November 29, 2016

Being an immigrant is never easy and fears within that community have never been higher

The kids arrived home from school last night all abuzz about seeing their friends. They actually enjoy school most days. However, Inside their backpacks was a note that I found rather chilling. They attend a very diverse, multi-cultural city school. If the administration felt it necessary to send home the following letter, they are obviously responding to a real fear among the parents of our children’s classmates. Here’s the text of the letter:

What to Do Next to Protect Immigrant Communities

As America faces challenges in our long fight to uphold our founding values of liberty and justice for all, the National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) stands firmly with the immigrant communities who make our country strong. Though the president has the discretion to unilaterally alter some immigration policies, he cannot change the law itself. We will advocate strongly with the new Congress to retail protections for all immigrants.

In the meantime, here are four important things to know right now:

We do not recommend filing an initial application for DACA at this time. If you are considering filing a DACA renewal, first speak with qualified legal counsel, like NIJC, about the potential risks.
If you have a DACA, do not apply for advance parole. If you already have approved advance parole, return to the United States before January 20, 2017.
Make an appointment for a legal consultation with a qualified legal service provider like NIJC as soon as possible to see if you are eligible for a permanent form of relief.
If you have been a permanent resident for three or more years, consult with a legal service provider about preparing to apply for U. S. citizenship. If you have ever had an encounter with the police, do not apply unless you have consulted with an attorney.

[contact information for the NIJC is provided at the end]

A few things for those outside the immigrant community

First off, few of you are actually outside the immigrant community. Unless you are part of an indigenous North American tribal people, you’re part of the immigrant community so don’t go getting all huffy about immigrants. Someone in your family has been exactly where immigrants today are and they likely were just as scared. Being an immigrant in a new place, even if that place holds tremendous promise, is still frightening.

Beyond that, however, there are some other things we should all consider:

Not all Latino, Middle Eastern, Asian, or Indian people you meet are immigrants. Millions are natural born citizens exactly the same as you. Don’t insult them and their entire race by assuming that they all are immigrants.
The vast majority of immigrants currently in the United States are here legally, have been through the appropriate (and sometimes inappropriate) background checks, and are probably more conscientious about upholding the law than most of their neighbors.
Many of the immigrants currently in the United States were asked to come here by American-owned companies who needed their talents, especially in high-tech industries. Holders of these special visas, which also come with special limitations on travel, are critical to the U.S. economy. Should they all be required to leave, as some have suggested, it would immediately plunge the U.S. into recession.
Immigrants do not “take” anyone’s jobs. Rather, they fill a huge gap in work sectors that Americans are either not sufficiently skilled or not sufficiently humble enough to take. There always have been more than enough jobs for those willing to take them.

Where This Gets Personal

We live in a very multicultural neighborhood. Many are immigrants, including the darling little five-year-old who catches the bus with the kids. Her parents only recently moved to Indianapolis from New York because opportunities here were better. Yet, the day after the election, her mother confided to me that they’ve been warned to stay packed and ready in the event they might have to leave again. They are afraid to even unpack all the children’s clothes.

There are immigrants all around us. Indianapolis has been a very open and welcoming city despite the efforts of many in our statehouse to turn them all away. We rely on them for the services they provide and they equally rely on us to provide them with a safe and accepting community in which to raise their families.

Sure, there are a few bad apples. Ya’ know what, there would still be a criminal element without them. Every society on the planet is contaminated with those who would rather exist outside the law, so blaming immigrants is rather ridiculous and insincere.

Just as we have been quick to support women and our LGBTQ friends, we need to do the same for immigrants in our country. They’re scared. They have no idea what to expect from January 20 onward. Even worse, there are more than a few people out there who are willing to take advantage of that fear. Our immigrant population needs to know that we have their backs.

That the atmosphere has reached a point where letters such as this one need to come home is truly sad. This is our fault. We need to fix it. Please, support your local immigrant community however you can.

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Page 6 of 17

awareness

The year just keeps getting worse

We’ve lost our Faith

Russia Loses A Choir

Carrie Fisher Is Hanging On

Fake News Creates An International Incident

Is Your Makeup Too Heavy?

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Festivus for the rest of us

The Tunisian driver in the German market incident is dead

The nuclear arms race may be back on

Worst year in history

Forcing women to work

And finally …

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Some bets are safer than others

The End of Globalization As We Know It

20% of activities will involve at least one of seven companies.

Separation of friends along ideological lines

More vegan & vegetarian menu choices

Streaming video on demand completely takes over

Mergers & acquisitions will rock the choice landscape

Subscriptions become a really huge thing

Lower tax rates, fewer deductions

Your phone is your wallet

A little more afraid

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A brief moment of clarity between confusion and chaos

North Carolina lawmakers are still jackasses

Security concerns across the US

Telephone patent wars

The high cost of advertising

And finally …

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A different way of looking at fashion

Christian Dior: Drift

Calvin Klein Jeans, Spring 2016

Gucci Stories: The Myth of Orpheus and Eurydice

KENZO: Snowbird

PRADA: Past Forward

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And A Happy Solstice To All

And then things went boom

Someone has to take responsibility

American Apparel is dying

Bobbie Brown exits stage left

And Finally …

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Think of this as the anti-list

The Bottom Five

The Top Five

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It Was A Really Bad Monday

Death Toll At 12 in Berlin

Assassination In The Gallery

Shooting At Prayer Time

Bathroom Doors May Be Open

And finally …

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A Monday by any other name

And The Winner Is …

Trying to escape Aleppo

Terror at the Castle

Death of a Legend

And finally …

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Partially frozen, never faked

One nation, under ice

A problem with the water

On your mark, get set …

An insult is a good thing