m̴i̸rth

@mirth
29 Followers
78 Following
151 Posts
a twisty maze of passages, all alike

"President Biden is commuting the sentences of nearly 1,500 people and pardoning 39 convicted of nonviolent crimes, the largest grant of clemency by an American president in a single day, the White House announced in a statement on Thursday."

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/12/us/politics/biden-pardons-commutes-1500.html

Biden Commutes the Sentences of Nearly 1,500 Americans, a Record for One Day

Most of those being granted clemency had been placed in home confinement during the pandemic. Some Republicans have tried to push legislation that would have forced those people to return to prison.

The New York Times

GOP: It's not the guns. It's mental health.

Dems: Yes, it's people with poor mental health having barely restricted access to guns.

GOP: No, mental health is the sole problem.

Dems: So, invest more in mental health?

GOP: I mean... no. We're sure it'll take care of itself.

7/7

And in the art group discussion I was in, another participant shared this video (3:30min) of the Native American "Sun Dagger" in Chaco Canyon, New Mexico, also aligned for the solstices.

Amazing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OrrcsYk22Q

Incredibly Rare Ancient "Sun Dagger" Found In New Mexico?

YouTube
Thinking about getting my first tattoo. They say be careful not to get something that might no longer be relevant to you in a few years so I think I got the perfect thing that will never go away.
Accurate.
This November, Bellingcat hosted its first in-person Hackathon with over 45 participants at the University of Amsterdam. Learn more about the event and the incredible projects conceptualised over the 3 days…https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2023/11/29/here-are-the-results-of-bellingcats-first-in-person-hackathon/?utm_source=mstdn
Bringing Command Line Tools to the Browser and Investigating Russian Courts, Social Media Narratives, and Gaza's Landfills: Here are the Results of Bellingcat’s First In-person Hackathon - bellingcat

Earlier this month, Bellingcat hosted its fourth hackathon, our first to take place in-person. We’re excited to share the projects our participants brought to life over three days of intense hacking at the University of Amsterdam.

bellingcat
It has started snowing in Vienna which has improved things massively. We no longer have to do the boring sight seeing walks to justify sitting in a cosy bar or cafe all day. We can just go straight away.

A lot of people on the political left are angry or dismayed with Joe Biden, but they need to keep in mind that on almost any issue Trump's position is far worse than Biden's.

You don't have to like Biden, but he is at least willing to have a conversation. Trump will not only refuse it, he will arrest you for asking.

Some good takeaways from this essay by a former leftist opponent of Lyndon Johnson on what he learned from Richard Nixon winning in 1968: https://www.salon.com/2023/11/19/when-a-liberal-goes-to-war-lessons-of-the-lbj-era-are-relevant-today/

Progressives drove Lyndon Johnson from office, and look what happened. How does this apply to Joe Biden?

Commentary: Lessons from the Lyndon Johnson era still apply to Joe Biden and the Gaza war

Salon.com
One thing you can never say is that you haven't been told.

New paper on Masks:

Some claim scientific studies show masks don’t work, or that surgical masks are as good as N95s. Just released paper shows this claim is false. Masks work, and N95 respirators give a much higher benefit than surgical masks.

The controversy about N95 respirator and mask efficacy is based on claims that studies (RCTs and meta-analyses) have no observed effect. Our paper shows these claims result from the use of incorrect mathematical equations.

#covid @whn