DL Open Thread: Sunday, May 22, 2022
Finally figured it out: There’s no such thing as a ‘digression’ in an Open Thread. That’s why it’s an Open Thread.
Which reminds me, did anybody place a bet on ‘Early Voting’ in the Preakness b/c the horse was named ‘Early Voting’? Were I a wagerer, I would have. Would’ve cashed a winning ticket.
Something you might have missed from the world of pro rasslin’: CM Punk, one of the biggest stars in the AEW stable, and a huge draw, came out on AEW Dynamite this week wearing a shirt that read ‘Abortion Rights Are Human Rights’. Always liked him. Now I like him more. In the parlance of the game, ‘That was a shoot, not a work’.
But, I don’t digress.
How France Guaranteed The Impoverishment Of Haiti. Followed, of course, by the Americans. They/we took all of Haiti’s wealth in exchange for freedom. Haitians never had a chance. Well-done story with pictures from the NYTimes. You know, ‘multi-media’. The word ‘reparations’ instantly comes to mind.
FUCK Live Nation. Stole (well, manipulated the system to receive…) millions of dollars earmarked for independent music venues. They. Are. Evil.:
Congress was wary of allowing grants to publicly traded companies such asLive Nation, worrying that the funds could be used to bail out stock market investors.In the end, lawmakers wrote the law to exclude large companies like Live Nation, as well as firms they own or control.
But the parameters set by Congress and the Small Business Administration, which disbursed the funds, allowed several companies in which Live Nation has significant investments to receive grants: Nearly $19 million went to firms listed as subsidiaries on Live Nation’s 2022securities filings or in which Live Nation has a substantial, though not majority,ownership stake, according to a Washington Post review of Securities and Exchange Commission filings, state corporate documents and SBA data, as well as interviews with executives at companies that received grants. The grants do not appear to have violated the law or any rules set by the SBA.
Nevertheless, the revelation demonstrates how a large company with stakes in hundreds of smaller businesses could, while following the rules, reap a benefit that some legislators didn’t want.
How Should I Feel About Mysterious Fires In Russia? Here’s what I know: There have been quite a few of them. Including this most recent, at an aerospace development institute.
It’s True. Trump Voters More Likely To Die Of Covid. At least two times more likely. Blissful ignorance, followed by death:
National Public Radio examined deaths from COVID-19 per 100,000 people in roughly 3,000 counties across the country from May 2021, a time when most Americans could obtain vaccines. Those living in counties that voted 60% or higher for Trump in 2020 had 2.26 times the death rate of counties that voted in comparable percentages for Biden, NPR reported.
Counties with a higher share of Trump votes had even higher mortality rates.
While COVID-19 death rates in regions are affected by several factors, including things like wealth and access to health care, death rates closely followed rates of vaccinations, which Republican lawmakers, activists and media personalities often railed against. Not only did they urge people not to get the vaccine, but often spread frightening disinformation about the vaccines.
And political affiliation continues to be the largest predictor of vaccination status, according to the non-partisan think tank the Kaiser Family Foundation. In the NPR study, 81% of adults were vaccinated in the counties that went strongly for Biden, compared to 60% of adults in counties that went for Trump.
Oh Noes! Jumping Worms Here To Terrify You! Yo, this is why you should never import plants that don’t belong to your native region. This is how you’re supposed to get rid of them:
Experts have recommended several strategies to detect and eliminate the worms, including using a mustard pour – a mixture consisting of water and yellow mustard seeds – over soil to drive out any worms to the surface, and covering moistened soil with a sheet of transparent polyethylene for two to three weeks until soil temperature exceeds 104F for at least three days, destroying the worm’s cocoons.
Another strategy to eliminate the worms is to bag them and throw them in the trash, or place them in a bag and leave them out in the sun for at least 10 minutes before discarding the bag.
You up for that?
RIP: Dante Marini: If you live in north Wilmington, Marini’s Produce is a must-stop at least once or twice a week. I’m fortunate to know several of his children, and I can tell you this is a great family. It was left to Norman The Pot-Belly Pig to break the news on social media. Norman has been a favorite of kids who come to Marini’s for, well, quite a long time now. Pot-belly pigs live long and happy lives. This obituary does Dante Marini justice. A life well-lived. Deepest condolences to the family.
What do you want to talk about?
Mr. Marini was the definition of a Renaissance man,
My dad was friends with ‘Old Man Marini’, Mr. Marini’s dad. Think he was a professor of horticulture at U of D.
Having to survive through the Thunderbirds/Blue Angels air show this weekend as I live a mile from Dover Air Force Base.
What a stupendous waste of money and fuel, rattling my house every five minutes for four straight hours because ‘Murica.
Further adventures of the great outdoorsman Don Trump Jr., courtesy of the Daily Mail:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10841583/Utah-hunting-guide-charged-illegal-baiting-trip-Don-Trump-Jr.html
Voters finally get it right. CBS News poll:
More Americans label GOP extreme, but Democratic Party as weak
Yep. D’s will continue to be viewed as weak as long as they stand for nothing and are the political party equivalent of Neville Chamberlain.