About Half the News

[gwydion]

* "Iraq PM's resignation accepted amid unrest:" https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-50619997

* "China suspends US Navy visits to Hong Kong:" https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-50626796

* The Russian Agenda at work in the White House. "Trump administration to cut its financial contribution to NATO:" https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/27/politics/trump-nato-contribution-nato/index.html

* Fuckssake. "White House opens new fronts in trade war, targeting Brazil, Argentina and France:" https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2019/12/02/trump-announces-tariffs-steel-aluminum-brazil-argentina/

* "Will Democrats pass Trump's new NAFTA?:" http://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/will-democrats-pass-trump-s-new-nafta-74389061866

* "Trump campaign to blacklist Bloomberg News:" https://www.axios.com/trump-campaign-bloomberg-news-credentials-de53650c-f275-4e83-a884-02677d3de6a3.html

* I was against the Patriot Act on Civil Liberty grounds from the time it was first proposed. I stand by that. He wrote one illegal check and they want to hold him forever. His sentence ended in 2017. "Trump Is First to Use PATRIOT Act to Detain a Man Forever:" https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-invokes-patriot-act-to-detain-palestinian-adham-amin-hassoun-forever

* "Intelligence Committee to begin circulating draft Ukraine report Monday:" https://www.politico.com/news/2019/11/30/intelligence-committee-draft-ukraine-report-074518

* "White House won’t take part in first House Judiciary impeachment hearing:" https://www.politico.com/news/2019/12/01/trump-impeachment-response-house-judiciary-074712

* "Schiff: Ignoring Trump obstruction hurts Congress oversight power:" http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/schiff-ignoring-trump-obstruction-hurts-congress-oversight-power-74394693639

* "First Trump endorsements in Congress indicted, plead guilty:" http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/first-trump-endorsements-in-congress-indicted-plead-guilty-74397765793

* "Rep. Duncan Hunter,:" http://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/vaping-congressman-duncan-hunter-will-plead-guilty-74391109534

* Can we take a moment to appreciate that Republican Duncan Hunter initially claimed that his wife was somehow responsible for lavishly spending campaign money on his mistresses amoung other things.

* "GOP helped Donald Trump Jr. get to the top of the Best Sellers list:" http://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/gop-helped-donald-trump-jr-get-to-the-top-of-the-best-sellers-list-74390597767

* "The Philosophy of Antifa | Philosophy Tube:"

"The Philosophy of Antifa | Philosophy Tube" (Watch on YouTube)

* "Over 200,000 People Sign Petition for Marriage Equality in China:" https://www.advocate.com/world/2019/12/02/over-200000-people-sign-petition-marriage-equality-china

* "Police officer told to ‘tone down gayness’ may not get $19 million in damages as county argues discrimination is fine:" https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2019/12/02/gay-police-officer-lawsuit-damages-st-louis-county-missouri-discrimination-human-rights/

* "Italian and German Unification: Crash Course European History #27:"

"Italian and German Unification: Crash Course European History #27" (Watch on YouTube)

* "Watchmen Episode 6: Every Easter Egg and Hooded Justice Origin:"

"Watchmen Episode 6: Every Easter Egg and Hooded Justice Origin" (Watch on YouTube)

* The social stuff on Friday and Saturday went well, and I think the shoofly pies were particularly good despite some small issues that led to the texture not being ideal. I need to buy a lot of pie related supplies this month. I am really tired. I don't think sick tired, just burning spoons to fast tired. This week isn't going to be any better, really. Monday, I chose sleep over forage. When I tried to turn on the outdoor arry in the evening it was clear a fuse had failed. I thought I had a spare, but couldn't remember where. It turned out the used lights I was given earlier in the season included a couple c9 strings. I ended up doing a full replace and restring before remembering where the c9 fuse actually was. I now have a couple spare c9 fuses. I stowed the scavanged bulbs and string properly in the light box. The spares I pulled off the new string are good replacements for the 20-25 year old bulbs in a different string that are dwindling. Next year I'll redo that string back to the old pattern. there was also a c7 string in that back with like a million multi coloured replacements. This is excellent news as I don't have a back up seven string for Halloweentown and the big exterior halloween decorations generally take C7'sexcept for the one that needs a refrigerator light and i like doing those in colors. The other bag ha c7 string on top too, but I didn't did since other had visible nines. This basically ate my evening.

I've been trying to work out how best to handle moving the fish. It looks like the best solution to moving the fish involves buying a new thirty light. Good news? Good news? LED's are half as expensive as florescents. Bad news? Fish store burnt down which means Amazon and it would still take two to three months to save up for one figuring in shipping, if I bought nothing else except gas and meds. Inevitably I will need things like catfood and TP too. Sigh.

I can get a cheapy, but I need a proper bright grow light. The idea is move the occupants of the 20s and their plants into the thirty I can no longer afford to light, as that clears that whole section for the workmen and the fish will be safe in the office. I'm now working with half the old thirty (bulbs are no longer made, so not replaceable), and a couple sup lights that are not really adequate for the plants, which have been slowly dying back which is a problem for fry survival.

Issue is, I really need a Finnex Stingray 36", but even if I skimp on everything else, the best I'll have money for is a Beamswork, which according to reviews is a good working light, but not really strong enough for what I'm doing. So I'm just going to hope Solstice money turns up to put me over the top on the cheapest Finnex 36". (Here if you want to see what I'm babbling about https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07RDMB99R/?coliid=I2KNICFAS8ALFV&colid=1EVWGXWUM3YU7&psc=1&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it). I don't need the fancy extras, but I do need a really bright light.

Also, I'm still grieving the burned fish store, damnit.

Cat wise, I'm rationing Livia's goosh, which is not ideal, but stretching it's going to be essential because I'm running out of time on fish stuff, and ideally, I'd like to move at least one breeder tank if not both in December. I flat out run out of time in January and clearing the rooms for the contractors, even if they let me do it one by one is going to take all the spoons. Anything I can clear ahead of time is a win.

Livia's goosh is this one: https://www.chewy.com/wellness-core-signature-selects/dp/147047

The dry food I was going to try (less urgent) is this one: https://www.chewy.com/blue-buffalo-wilderness-flatland/dp/176663

We'll see what December brings.

....And we had another internet outage, at the worst time, when I had no work loaded.

UPDATE: I checked mail and there is money and it's sorted. I will need to move money around, and a friend is going to take me to a Fish Store further South mid-December. I'm going to call ahead and make sure they have the right light. Once I have it I need to get a friend to help me do the transfer, but it's for real going to be all right. Livia should be okay on goosh once the money lands where it needs to, and we have sufficent to get us there.

I know they are just cheap breeder fish, but I love watching the little poop machines swim around of an evening and fish are now irreplaceable, since it requires research and a trip to another town, and my car doesn't travel that far.

* These are RL friends and good people, who do so much for others. Want to help? https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-a-gig-worker-get-through-the-winter/share

* "Agrarianism in the United Federation of Planets:" https://twitter.com/SarahTaber_bww/status/1200166974292140033

* "Skin Game Brings Us to the Current Conclusion:" https://www.thefandomentals.com/skin-game-current-conclusion/

*****
* Full list of Resistance and charity links has been migrated to my profile as it was getting out of hand.

* "How you can help Hurricane Dorian disaster relief:" https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/sep/08/hurricane-dorian-disaster-relief-how-you-can-help

* A small, cheap thing to help climate change if you have little money to spare: https://onetreeplanted.org/products/amazon-rainforest-peru

* How to donate to Rainbow Road: https://www.rainbowrailroad.com/donate

* Here are a bunch of state level links to help people in immigrant detention: https://taibhsearachd.tumblr.com/post/186058182962/woundability-this-4th-of-july-celebrate-the

* Angry about the concentration camps on our Southern Border? Here is a list of useful things you can do: https://medium.com/@togetherandfree/feel-helpless-amidst-the-horrific-immigration-news-youre-not-how-you-can-make-difference-today-108dc42de88e

* "More Organizations to Support Helping Kids in Concentration Camps:" https://thisfinecrew.dreamwidth.org/201920.html

Here is a massive list of things you can do to help refugees inside and outside of the Camps: https://s-leary.tumblr.com/post/185783586806/so-youve-probably-seen-the-post-going-around

* A list of organizations to help you run for office: http://lovingmyselfishard.tumblr.com/post/167330144634/psst-hey

* Have something you want to tell your Congress Critters? If you can not protest in person, here are some other options:

Call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask to be connected to the representative of your choice.

This App phones your rep for you: http://takeastance.us/

Here is one that will send your reps a fax: https://resistbot.io/

* Some RL friends of mine who were barely scraping by just lost one of the part time jobs they collectively hold and it's really fucking things up for them. These are good people, who do so much for others. Want to help? https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-a-gig-worker-get-through-the-winter/share

* This is a cool person and the clothes are being made from an ethical source. Looking for cool inclusive Pride themed merch? www.nerdykeppie.com

* HorrorMux is open for apping the next story, which is a Max Mad type thing. Available Archetypes are here. I'm Martyr if you want to find me.: http://horrormu.com/index.php/Available

* Help pay for cat food, litter, meds, medical copays: Paypal Lethran@gmail.com or paypal.me/Gwydion

* If you are interested in helping, right now the Cat thing we need most is:
https://www.chewy.com/wellness-core-signature-selects/dp/147047

The dry food I was going to try (less urgent) is this one: https://www.chewy.com/blue-buffalo-wilderness-flatland/dp/176663

Or possibly this: https://www.chewy.com/instinct-by-natures-variety-limited/dp/44654

* Birthday/Solstice master list: https://gwydion.dreamwidth.org/2108835.html

Comments

O. M. G.

[psybelle]

Thank you so much for the link to the twitter thread about agrarianism in the StarTrek Universe - that just made my morning!!

Re: O. M. G.

[gwydion]

Tibicina found it. It charmed me to pieces

Re: O. M. G.

[psybelle]

Charmed? I was more bouncing in my chair, cheering the science and the snark - *why* would we retain Midwest monoculture and French primogeniture? That demands some serious side-eye... and much much more. We can do better than that...

Re: O. M. G.

[gwydion]

Oh definitely!

So many questions, but my friends and I also wondered about TNG era behavioral modification and the like because we had trouble believing humans would have gone... I'm not finding the right word, but ToS crews were openly racist, rule breaking, and often on the verge of mutiny. Within the lifetime of Scotty and McCoy they went from unruly and individualistic to the cooperative most of the edges smoothed out TNG behavior. you get blips like O'Brien's racism and the bullying of Barkley, but it's not like the Enterprise nearly full on mutinying a couple times because everyone's super racist about Vulcans which I noticed on a recent rewatch.

The TNG crew felt borderline Stepford to us when we were watching them in real time week to week. That suggested heavy systemic behavior modification to us which spells dystopia. I full on hate Mudd from ToS, but can you picture a human behaving in TNG the ways he behaved in ToS? Because I can't. Other non-human races, but you don't see humans like that in TNG and that kind of creepy sexist con man awful is a very recognizable awful from RL. so what changed? So we posited conditioning from childhood and touch ups if people strayed too far off the model. Which makes the Barkley material out right scary, because what do they do if Barkley's mental illness gets noticed? Is it something like what happens to Charles Wallace and the little boy who's ball is off beat in that first Madeline Engle book? Because Deanna Troi isn't even trying to address his situation psychiatrically. In fact, she doesn't really act or function like any psychiatrist we knew of and is written to be wildly in competent at her supposed job. So what if she's really there to watch for people who are deviating too far from the conditioning and need to be hauled in for touch ups?

Similarly, for Starfleet culture to have changed as dramatically as it did between Tos and TNG, they'd have to be seriously policing things like racism, harassment, and bullying within the ranks, but they don't handle the group bullying of Barkley consistent with the things they'd need to do to create and maintain the change in Starfleet culture. They allow officers and peers to group bully him instead of coming down hard on people doing it and nipping the behavior in the bud. It's like they are antibodies or the pod people in Body snatchers pointing and screeching when they spot the assimilated. Picard doesn't react as if something is dreadfully wrong with his officer's behavior and order and discipline on his ship. He reacts as if Barkley can be forced to conform.

it just gets creepier and creepier the more one picks at it. Picard periodcally asks Deanna to use her empath powers to spy on the mood of the crew and she does. Again creepy as fuck. Picard and Troi act as if this isn't a major violation of privacy, but rather a routine thing that everyone is okay with. It's also a major violation of psychiatric provider ethics.

She's not a psychiatrist. She's there to spy on the crew and report incredibly private things about their mental states to the captain. It's invasive and distopian and her behavior makes way more sense if she's there to enforce a dystopian conditioning regime, not help people deal with things like anxiety and trauma.

Re: O. M. G.

[psybelle]

*shudder*

That makes *so* much sense...

(And now I have one of those earworms that don't exist in the real world: Shiny Happy People moved to a minor key, with heavy discord throughout...)

Re: O. M. G.

[gwydion]

Oooo! I wish it did.