I spent the whole day working with a break to walk Callie and go grocery shopping because I figured a week of soup and cereal was enough.
That’s it. That’s all I got.
Exhausted.
by John Cole| 6 Comments
This post is in: John Cole Presents "This Fucking Old House"
I spent the whole day working with a break to walk Callie and go grocery shopping because I figured a week of soup and cereal was enough.
That’s it. That’s all I got.
Exhausted.
by WaterGirl| 19 Comments
This post is in: Books, Open Threads
While he was in Arizona, John Cole put me in touch with a work connection of his, Benyamin Cohen. Benyamin is Einstein on social media, and he also wrote this book. Benymin is interested in coming to talk with BJ peeps on a zoom (for sure) and is also up for doing an Ask Me Anything post (if there’s interest).
For now, let’s plan the zoom.
If you think you might be interested in joining the zoom, let me know if April 17 at 7:30 would work for you. We’re thinking a 45-minute presentation and then questions.
This will be a fun, light-hearted, not particularly science-y talk about Einstein.
Benyamin gave me a .pdf copy of the book, and I enlisted kalakal to take a look at it, too, and help choose the topics we would like Ben to cover. kalakal was kind enough to supply a casual summary of some of the three areas we’ve asked Ben if he will share with us in his presentation.
War and Peace… and Einstein.
Covers Einsteins humanitarian work and legacy, how his experiences in, and as a refugee from, Nazi Germany led him to be deeply committed to humanitarian aid work throughout the rest of his life beginning with helping fellow Jews from the Nazis the organization he founded, the International Rescue Committee, still exists, helping millions suffering from conflict and crise. Also his support for the civil rights movement. **Special bonus Mandy Patinkin story!
Einstein and pop culture. Einstein 70 years after his death is the world’s most famous dead celebrity, he has a bigger social media following than, say, Tom Hanks. He’s the universal embodiment for science in popular culture, like say Beethoven for classical music or Sherlock Holmes for detectives. How did this come about and why, some entertaining & informative examples eg Yoda’s face and hair was based on him.
Einstein in the age of Fake News.
Einstein himself was a major target of fake news, both from the Nazis and later in the US. Both he and his work were attacked and lied about and he was under surveillance by the FBI up to his death. Discusses the phenomenon and poisonous effects of fake news generally and compares Einstein’s experiences with those of Lenny Pozner, father of one of the children murdered at Sandy Hook. How both men fought back, Einstein taught physics at black colleges to counteract the lower IQ myth, Pozner sued and won against Alex Jones.
Let us know what you think in the comments!
Who Wants to Zoom with Einstein? (sort of)Post + Comments (19)
by WaterGirl| 63 Comments
This post is in: Open Threads
Subaru Diane sent in this great video. It’s only 9 minutes.
This must be like the absurdity of dealing with MAGA people when they expect that facts are like opinions – everyone can have their own.
Open thread!
A Good Combination: Entertainment and Education Open ThreadPost + Comments (63)
This post is in: Open Threads, Politics
The courts won’t save us, and neither will corporate media. We are running out of saviors, dammit!
Politics is information warfare, and too many Democrats are content to outsource our messaging to the folks who think Ronna McDaniel is worth hiring.
I was struck by that comment from Dan Pfeiffer – who is arguably the smartest of the Obama Bros – in his latest article:
On one level, who cares that much about how NBC News wants to spend $300,000 a year? They are a big network owned by an even bigger mega-corporation. The line items for pastries in the green room is likely larger than McDaniel’s salary.
The whole Ronna fiasco shows that people who call the shots in the media aren’t coping with the reality of covering Donald Trump and an extremist movement prone to violence.
What was NBC thinking? Did they believe that someone publicly defenestrated by Trump possessed special insight into his campaign and possible future White House? Did they hope paying McDaniel would buy them credibility with Republican viewers or politicians? Maybe they thought McDaniel had some special insight or talent never previously demonstrated in countless media appearances.
They didn’t think it all. NBC hired McDaniel because that’s what they have always done.
.
NBC — and most of the press — have yet to accept the reality that this is not a normal election between a Republican and a Democrat. Donald Trump and his enablers represent an extraordinary threat to democracy.
This industry, which prizes objectivity above all else, is incapable of accurately covering an election where one candidate is a normal politician and the other is a dishonest, corrupt insurrectionist.
To accurately portray events would make the press out to be biased and they would rather stumble into autocracy than take a side.
At the end of the day, traditional media outlets are line items in the P&L sheets of larger corporations. Despite the democracy-saving work done by many journalists in often dangerous situations, their bosses are only judged on whether they make money for a parent company.
.
Politics is information warfare, and too many Democrats are content to outsource our messaging to the folks who think Ronna McDaniel is worth hiring.
Mainstream media can make us crazy because we think they should care about Democracy. The days of the media being the fourth leg of the stool – the one that allowed the rest of the system to work – are long gone. Now it’s about making money and promoting the party line, and unfortunately for all of us, the mainstream media people consider them part of the elites.
Funny thing, though, the actual elites know that they are not. They are simply pawns.
What alternative media do you guys go to now that old media has lost its way? Talking Points Memo is the only one I support with my dollars. How about you guys? What sources do you think are worth paying for? Other good sources that are free?
This post is in: Open Threads
Just got home, I’ve got nothin’ but this awesome Biden ad and an open thread.
Boom. Dark Brandon rises again by releasing a new ad that drags Donald Trump for playing golf & driving golf carts while he has visited 8 swing states in only 18 days. THIS is how it’s done. So brutal. So freaking good. Watch & share this.
— Victor Shi (@Victorshi2020) March 28, 2024
Well, okay, and a little mocker of Judge (Loose) Cannon:
Undocketed filings in US v Trump (M-a-L) are stacking up. Yesterday the govt sought permission to file a surreply relating to a reply that isn't docketed yet, which related to a response that isn't docketed yet, which related to a motion that isn't docketed yet. pic.twitter.com/wYfVQ25M9j
— Roger Parloff (@rparloff) March 28, 2024
This post is in: 2024 Elections, C.R.E.A.M., Open Threads, President Biden, Proud to Be A Democrat, Vice-President Harris
Biden leans on his Democratic predecessors as Trump remains isolated from other Republican leaders https://t.co/LSHDpy4ip1
— The Associated Press (@AP) March 27, 2024
Per the Associated Press:
When President Joe Biden needs advice, there are two people he can turn to who know what it’s like to sit in his chair. Sometimes he will invite Barack Obama over to the White House for a meal or he will get on the phone with Bill Clinton.
The three men share decades of history at the pinnacle of American and Democratic leadership, making them an unusual trio in presidential history. Although there has sometimes been friction as their ambitions and agendas have diverged, they have spent years building toward a similar vision for the country.
On Thursday, their partnership will be on display in what has been described as a one-of-a-kind fundraising extravaganza in New York City to help Biden build on his already significant cash advantage in this year’s presidential election. It’s a dramatic show of force intended to rally the Democratic Party faithful to secure a second term for Biden despite his stubbornly low poll numbers and doubts due to his age (81)…
The display of solidarity is a sharp contrast to Donald Trump’s isolation from other Republican leaders.
Although Trump has solidified his grip on his party on the way to becoming the presumptive nominee, not even his own former vice president, Mike Pence, is willing to endorse Trump’s bid for another White House term. The only other living Republican president, George W. Bush, is not a supporter, either…
The reports from tonight’s big event should be interesting:
President Biden is bringing out the celebrities for high-dollar fundraiser with Obama, Clinton https://t.co/Zsmvnq66Fe
— Joey Garrison (@joeygarrison) March 27, 2024
Expanded access to Medicare and Medicaid.
Historic investment in youth mental health.
Strengthened the Affordable Care Act.Over the past three years, @JoeBiden and I have made health care more accessible and affordable for Americans. pic.twitter.com/NK1oEQ464U
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) March 27, 2024
The contrast is clear.
President @JoeBiden and I expanded access to affordable health care. Trump and extremists around the country are trying to take away health care coverage. pic.twitter.com/x6SilZb8Ar
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) March 27, 2024
An honor to be invited to the United States' @VP residence, along with the @WomensSportsFdn, for the first-ever celebration of women in sports. #WomensHistoryMonth #WHM pic.twitter.com/Al5ydZ21u8
— Billie Jean King (@BillieJeanKing) March 27, 2024
Thursday Morning Open Thread: Calling On the Super FriendsPost + Comments (186)
by WaterGirl| 25 Comments
This post is in: On The Road, Photo Blogging
We spent a little time in these two Oregon Coast towns. We were camped in Cannon Beach for four days and spent one of them on a day trip to Astoria, the first town settled west of the Rockies. The guidebooks say that many Victorian houses were built on the hills – if they were there we didn’t see them. We saw lots of nice bungalows and Craftsman houses though (I suspect the author wasn’t schooled in American residential architecture). We started our visit at the Astoria Column, browsed the Saturday market with street closures and walked around downtown.
The most notable part of Cannon Beach is Haystack Rock, just offshore. Low tide brings out families to investigate the tide pools, along with birders looking for puffins. The town itself is a typical upscale beach town, lots of good restaurants, and because it’s the Pacific Northwest, lots of coffee shops.
Astoria Column