Chaos Ensues
Dec. 30th, 2021 04:27 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
* It's been a truly terrible several weeks here at the Cat Asylum. A longer explanation is below. I have literally weeks of newslinks I haven't posted. My body is doing incredibly painful things. On top of the brakes emergency, we've had snow bad enough to knock out power in a bunch of places in town and imprison me likely for at least another week, and we've had some of the wiring fry, an expensive prospect that I haven't much hope of solving short of a miracle.
So 2021 continuing the streak, really. I have reached the fuck it point and am posting the aggregate with the understanding I'm sitting on I'd guess 100-200 prepped links that aren't included and that weeding and sorting are likely a bit rough.
* "200 years ago, everyone lacked democratic rights. Now, billions of people have them:" https://ourworldindata.org/democratic-rights
* "Afghans push through snowy Alps toward new lives in Europe:" https://apnews.com/article/afghanistan-migrants-trek-through-alps-seek-new-future-02613cb26351c9249c27ee20f5d1681f
* "Lesbian risks life and flees Afghanistan to escape forced marriage to Taliban brute:" https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/12/27/afghanistan-lesbian-taliban-forced-marriage/
* "Shining shoes for a piece of bread:" https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-asia-59761535
* "Guterres in Lebanon: Fair elections in 2022, an ‘essential opportunity’ for voices to be heard:" https://news.un.org/en/story/2021/12/1108552
* "Lebanon's Aoun calls for defence dialogue, hinting at friction with Hezbollah:" https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/lebanons-president-calls-national-dialog-reach-understanding-defense-economic-2021-12-27/
* "Security forces loyal to Somalia PM gather outside presidential palace:" https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/us-says-supports-somalian-pms-efforts-rapid-credible-elections-2021-12-28/
* "Why Authoritarian Regimes Bother With Elections:" https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2021/12/hong-kong-stunt-election-democracy/621071/
* "Hong Kong universities remove more monuments marking Tiananmen:" https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-59752089
* "Hong Kong pro-democracy news site closes after raid, arrests:" https://www.npr.org/2021/12/29/1068696336/hong-kong-police-raid-pro-democracy-news-outlet-arrest-6
* "'Erasing history': Russia closes top rights group, capping year of crackdowns:" https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russian-orders-closure-top-rights-group-2021-12-28/
* "How the Kremlin Is Militarizing Russian Society:" https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/21/world/europe/russia-military-putin-kremlin.html
* "Georgia: The rise of the right:" https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-europe-59763185
* "We should all be worried by what Liz Truss is doing to our equalities watchdog:" https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/12/24/trans-equality-watchdog-liz-truss/
* "Barrister who slammed Stonewall trans inclusion advice given key equalities role:" https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/12/20/stonewall-akua-reindorf-ehrc/
* "Why North Shropshire result is good news for Labour as well as Lib Dems:" https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2021/dec/17/north-shropshire-byelection-result-good-news-for-labour-lib-dems
* "The Secretive Prisons That Keep Migrants Out of Europe:" https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/12/06/the-secretive-libyan-prisons-that-keep-migrants-out-of-europe
* "Indian Christians fear attacks or jail over conversions:" https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-59724425
* "Arrests, Beatings and Secret Prayers: Inside the Persecution of India’s Christians:" https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/22/world/asia/india-christians-attacked.html
* First they came for the Muslims, then they came for the Christians....
This all looks part of the same violent Hindu nationalism that strips away basic rights and encourages violence and torture from both police and mobs.
* "Myanmar massacre: two Save the Children staff among dead:" https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/28/myanmar-massacre-two-save-the-children-staff-among-dead
* "The ultra-violent cult that became a global mafia:" https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-59614595
* "The U.S. predicted his downfall but Maduro strengthens his grip on power in Venezuela:" https://www.npr.org/2021/12/07/1061290155/maduros-grip-on-power-in-venezuela-only-gets-stronger
* "Chile breathes sigh of relief as pro-LGBT president elected over far-right bigot:" https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/12/20/chile-election-gabriel-boric-president-lgbt/
* "Nonbelievers across Africa risk freedom and family support:" https://apnews.com/article/africa-religion-nigeria-ce936d8627ca1c233e479961ac440944
* "Kenyans find rural lifeline after Covid city exodus:" https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-59630164
* "Bruno Le Maire - An Inclusive Future for France:" https://www.cc.com/video/v9jyq7/the-daily-show-with-trevor-noah-bruno-le-maire-an-inclusive-future-for-france
* "Mali Says Chad to Send 1,000 Additional Troops as France Backs Off:" https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2021-12-18/mali-says-chad-to-send-1-000-additional-troops-as-france-backs-off
* CW: Torture "Jailed for the killing of Haiti's president, five suspected assassins say they're innocent:" https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/18/americas/haiti-assassination-colombian-prisoners-exclusive-intl-cmd/index.html
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* "Omicron infects 70 times faster than previous COVID strains:" https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/586074-omicon-infects-70-times-faster-than-previous-covid-strains-study?rl=1
* "A tantalizing clue to why omicron is spreading so quickly:" https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2021/12/15/1064597592/a-tantalizing-clue-to-why-omicron-is-spreading-so-quickly
* "UK data suggests hospitalization is less likely with omicron:" https://apnews.com/article/covid-omicron-variant-symptoms-hospitalization-less-likely-8ed5a786604ac1df349464296aa7e3c8
* "Europeans Ponder Living With, Not Defeating, Covid:" https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/24/world/europe/europe-covid-pandemic-omicron.html
* "Spain's COVID-19 infections soar after Christmas:" https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/spains-covid-19-infections-soar-after-christmas-2021-12-27/
* Let Them Eat Cake. "Why is anyone surprised at Boris weaselling his way through another scandal?:" https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/12/08/boris-johnson-christmas-party-downing-street-covid/
* "Ecuador: Coronavirus vaccination mandatory for most citizens:" https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/ecuador-coronavirus-vaccination-mandatory-citizens-81919392
* "Pfizer pill becomes 1st US-authorized home COVID treatment :" https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-pfizer-medication-f5f65e7e61d6aa9c7dfa193053e8878a
* "Game changer: New Covid treatment pill could be key to ending pandemic:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/game-changer-new-covid-treatment-pill-could-be-key-to-ending-pandemic-129431621896
* "CDC recommends Moderna, Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines over J&J's:" https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/blood-clot-rates-after-jj-vaccine-higher-than-previous-estimates-cdc-advisers-2021-12-16/
* "Chris Hayes: How the booster shot messaging got muddled :" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/chris-hayes-how-the-booster-shot-messaging-got-muddled-129230405826
* "'No slack in the system': Struggling hospitals despair at prospect of Omicron wave:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/-no-slack-in-the-system-struggling-hospitals-despair-at-prospect-of-omicron-wave-129243205641
* "Maddow: If you've been putting off vaccination, the time to do it is now.:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/maddow-if-you-ve-been-putting-off-vaccination-the-time-to-do-it-is-now-129251909682
* "'It's a balancing act': New CDC guidance weighs practicality but raises questions:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/-it-s-a-balancing-act-new-cdc-guidance-weighs-practicality-but-raises-questions-129740869850
* "Hospitals' concern: Volume of Omicron cases could counter lower hospitalization rate:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/hospitals-concern-volume-of-omicron-cases-could-counter-lower-hospitalization-rate-129340997873
* "Army: 98% of active duty got COVID-19 vaccine by deadline:" https://www.kvoa.com/coronavirus/army-98-of-active-duty-got-covid-19-vaccine-by-deadline/article_ef26a17e-5e87-11ec-82a0-43255e602142.html
* "White House labels Orange County Florida ‘rapid riser,’ as state reports 29,568 COVID-19 cases:" https://www.orlandosentinel.com/coronavirus/os-ne-florida-coronavirus-dec-17-20211217-zbdv6y3cefd3lnqa2wqazfrlzi-story.html
* "University of Texas sees 'alarming' spike in COVID-19 cases likely due to omicron variant:" https://www.statesman.com/story/news/2021/12/16/ut-austin-spike-covid-19-cases-likely-omicron-variant/8923174002/
* "Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton says he’ll take fight against federal vaccine mandate for large businesses to Supreme Court:" https://www.texastribune.org/2021/12/17/vaccine-mandate-businesses-texas/
* "Kansas City COVID-19 deaths more than doubled in the past week, data shows:" https://amp.kansascity.com/article256597306.html
* "Kansas hospitals brace for 'long, tough winter' of COVID. Here's what experts fear if omicron surges.:" https://www.cjonline.com/story/news/coronavirus/2021/12/16/covid-19-kansas-hospitals-omicron-transfers-surge-full-beds/8908272002/
* "Tennessee nursing homes to enforce vaccine with federal mandate back in place Wednesday:" https://newschannel9.com/news/coronavirus/tennessee-nursing-homes-to-enforce-vaccine-with-federal-mandate-back-in-place-wednesday
* "New York state reports highest number of daily Covid cases of entire pandemic at more than 21,000:" https://www.cnbc.com/2021/12/17/new-york-state-reports-highest-number-of-daily-covid-cases-of-entire-pandemic-at-more-than-21000.html
* "‘We've Never Seen This Before in NYC': COVID Positivity Rate Doubles in 3 Days on Omicron Spread:" https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/coronavirus/weve-never-seen-this-before-in-nyc-covid-positivity-rate-doubles-in-3-days-as-omicron-spreads/3454450/
* "NYC offers 500,000 free rapid Covid tests, 1 million masks amid case surge:" https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/nyc-offers-500000-free-rapid-covid-tests-1-million-masks-amid-case-surge/vi-AARTnRJ
* "Classroom closures spike as COVID-19 cases climb in NYC:" https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/education/2021/12/16/nyc-doe-school-closures-spike-as-covid-cases-climb-in-nyc
* "Several NYC Restaurants Temporarily Close Due to COVID Spike:" https://www.thrillist.com/eat/new-york/nyc-restaurants-are-closing-due-to-covid-surge
* "As Virus Cases Surge, New Yorkers Feel a Familiar Anxiety:" https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/16/nyregion/new-york-covid-cases.html
* "U.S. Surgeon General decries Fox News commentator urging conservatives to ‘ambush’ Dr. Fauci:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/jesse-watters-urging-conservatives-to-ambush-dr-fauci-decried-by-u-s-surgeon-general-129330245886
* "House oversight committee releases report detailing efforts of Trump administration officials to 'undermine' Covid-19 efforts in US:" https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/17/politics/house-committee-trump-covid-19/index.html
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* "Congress approves import ban targeting forced labor in China :" https://apnews.com/article/science-business-china-asia-beijing-d73f6a5b82a58209480f5aa010895100
* "President Biden reaches year's end with growing list of successes:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/president-biden-reaches-year-s-end-with-growing-list-of-successes-129655877954
* "Manchin says he won't vote for Biden's Build Back Better Act:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-sunday-show/watch/manchin-says-he-won-t-vote-for-biden-s-build-back-better-act-129114181654
* "Rep. Cori Bush: It's "not a huge surprise" that Sen. Joe Manchin won't vote for Build Back Better:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-sunday-show/watch/rep-cori-bush-it-s-not-a-huge-suprise-that-sen-joe-manchin-won-t-vote-for-build-back-better-129118789504
* "Wearied by Manchin perfidy, progressives eye 'two track process' to achieve BBB's goals:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/wearied-by-manchin-perfidy-progressives-eye-two-track-process-to-achieve-bbb-s-goals-129244229595
* "Manchin negotiated in bad faith to obstruct bill that would help his state Joy Reid says:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/joe-manchin-slammed-or-withdrawing-support-for-biden-s-build-back-better-bill-129331781669
* "Bernie: Striking workers ‘courageous’ in face of Kellogg’s ‘abrasive’ tactics :" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/bernie-striking-workers-courageous-in-face-of-kellogg-s-abrasive-tactics-128943685558
* I hope they win. "Workers at candle factory hit by tornado file class-action lawsuit against employer:" https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/16/us/mayfield-candle-factory-lawsuit-tornado/index.html
* "MLK III on King holiday: "No celebration without legislation":" https://www.msnbc.com/the-sunday-show/watch/mlk-iii-on-king-holiday-no-celebration-without-legislation-129117765664
* "The Senate filibuster isn't what it used to be because the Senate isn't either:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/the-senate-filibuster-isn-t-what-it-used-to-be-because-the-senate-isn-t-either-129053765588
* "Senate Democrats get serious about protecting elections, voting rights:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/senate-democrats-get-serious-about-protecting-elections-voting-rights-128958021557
* "Sen. Klobuchar: I would get rid of the filibuster in a minute if I could:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/biden-agenda-struggling-due-to-gop-conservative-democratic-senators-discussed-by-sen-amy-klobuchar-128948293717
* Have something you want to tell your Senators? If you can't safely 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.
Here is one that will send your reps a fax: https://resistbot.io/
* "Accountability elusive as Trump's Big Lie runs amok in Wisconsin:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/accountability-elusive-as-trump-s-big-lie-runs-amok-in-wisconsin-129341509806
* "Absent accountability, Republicans run roughshod over election system in Wisconsin:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/absent-accountability-republicans-run-roughshod-over-election-system-in-wisconsin-129341509594
* "Republicans bullying election officials achieve their ends even in failure:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/republicans-bullying-election-officials-achieve-their-ends-even-in-failure-129431621674
* "Republicans overhaul local election board, look to eliminate six of seven polling stations:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/republicans-overhaul-local-election-board-look-to-eliminate-six-of-seven-polling-stations-129434181622
* "Fmr. top general warns of potential ‘2024 insurrection,’ urges preparedness:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/fmr-top-general-warns-of-potential-2024-insurrection-urges-preparedness-129231941834
* "Michael Eric Dyson: American democracy is only as good as we are willing to fight for it:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/jan-6-capitol-insurrection-anniversary-a-reminder-of-our-endangered-democracy-experts-say-129649733982
* "Is this seriously who Republicans want representing Georgia instead of Raphael Warnock?:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/is-this-seriously-who-republicans-want-representing-georgia-instead-of-raphael-warnock-129502277945
* "California's Out Insurance Commissioner Gets Reelection Backing:" https://www.advocate.com/politics/2021/12/15/californias-out-insurance-commissioner-gets-reelection-backing
* "Softening Trump political potency seen in endorsement flops, limp ticket sales:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/softening-trump-political-potency-seen-in-endorsement-flops-limp-ticket-sales-129051205777
* "Lawmaker targeted by Trump shares disturbing death threat voicemail:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/lawmaker-targeted-by-trump-shares-disturbing-death-threat-voicemail-129648709644
* "New details paint 'insane' picture of how right wing media obtained Biden daughter's diary:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/new-details-paint-insane-picture-of-how-right-wing-media-obtained-biden-daughter-s-diary-128959557852
* "Sketchy Chinese company under investigation is well suited to partner with Donald Trump:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/sketchy-chinese-company-under-investigation-is-well-suited-to-partner-with-donald-trump-129502789793
* "Legal expert says Trump lawsuit against New York attorney general will likely be thrown out:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/trump-lawsuit-accusing-new-york-attorney-general-of-bias-will-likely-be-thrown-out-expert-says-129233477757
* "Republican Party helping Trump pay his personal legal bills:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/republican-party-helping-trump-pay-his-personal-legal-bills-wapo-128956997854
* "Basis of new Cohen lawsuit over Trump abuse of power warrants concern among Americans:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/basis-of-new-cohen-lawsuit-over-trump-abuse-of-power-warrants-concern-among-americans-129051717673
* "Jan. 6 committee weighs possibility of criminal referrals:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/nyt-jan-6-committee-weighs-possibility-of-criminal-referrals-129230917531
* "Legal expert: DOJ must immediately conduct 'full-blown' Jan. 6 probe:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/legal-expert-doj-must-immediately-conduct-full-blown-jan-6-probe-129492037712
* "Joy Reid: House GOP is trying to throw all the sand it can into Jan. 6 probe gears:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/house-minority-leader-attempting-to-install-jim-jordan-on-jan-6-select-committee-129495109652
* "Jim Jordan and Trump's coup: The calls were coming from inside the House:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/jim-jordan-and-trump-s-coup-the-calls-were-coming-from-inside-the-house-128938565877
* "Legal expert believes Jim Jordan text to Mark Meadows is probable cause for criminal charge:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/rep-jim-jordan-text-to-mark-meadows-probable-cause-for-criminal-charge-legal-expert-says-129041989724
* "Rep. Aguilar on why Rep. Jordan was never ‘fit to serve’ on Jan. 6 committee:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/rep-aguilar-on-why-rep-jordan-was-never-fit-to-serve-on-jan-6-committee-129420357806
* "CIA expert: Can you imagine what’s on Mark Meadows’ encrypted Signal app?:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/mark-meadows-plotted-with-six-house-republicans-to-overturn-2020-election-washington-post-reports-128945733905
* "Legal expert believes Jim Jordan text to Mark Meadows is probable cause for criminal charge:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/rep-jim-jordan-text-to-mark-meadows-probable-cause-for-criminal-charge-legal-expert-says-129041989724
* "Many who mock the Jan. 6 committee actively plotted with Trump’s White House:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/trump-s-phone-calls-with-jim-jordan-on-jan-6-of-interest-to-house-select-committee-129423941806
* "Jan. 6 committee requests testimony, documents from Republican Rep. Scott Perry:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/jan-6-select-committee-investigating-capitol-insurrection-reportedly-considering-more-criminal-referrals-129332805580
* "Legal expert says Department of Justice is ‘not doing its job' regarding Jan. 6 prosecutions:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/jan-6-plot-reportedly-launched-by-steve-bannon-and-peter-navarro-analyzed-on-the-reidout-129731653881
* "'Rosanne didn't radicalize herself': After death on 1/6, family seeks accountability:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/-rosanne-didn-t-radicalize-herself-after-death-on-1-6-family-seeks-accountability-129653317889
* "'We took the Capitol’: Proud Boy pleads guilty to Jan. 6 conspiracy charges:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/-we-took-the-capitol-proud-boy-pleads-guilty-to-jan-6-conspiracy-charges-129493061593
* "Jan. 6 rioter provides evidence that may impact sentencing:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/jan-6-rioter-provides-evidence-that-may-impact-sentencing-129039429661
* "'We took the Capitol’: Proud Boy pleads guilty to Jan. 6 conspiracy charges:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/-we-took-the-capitol-proud-boy-pleads-guilty-to-jan-6-conspiracy-charges-129493061593
* "D.C. Attorney General Files Civil Lawsuit Against Proud Boys, Oath Keepers:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-sunday-show/watch/d-c-attorney-general-files-civil-lawsuit-against-proud-boys-oath-keepers-129117253787
* "Right’s ‘celebration of violence’ on full display at Turning Point USA convention:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/right-s-celebration-of-violence-on-full-display-at-turning-point-usa-convention-129328197797
* "Rep. Bass on Kim Potter guilty verdict: Communities fear she'll get a slap on the wrist:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/kim-potter-guilty-verdict-for-killing-daunte-wright-could-still-result-in-slap-on-the-wrist-rep-bass-says-129494597620
* "‘Surprising is an understatement’: Civil rights attorney on Kim Potter verdict:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/-surprising-is-an-understatement-civil-rights-attorney-on-kim-potter-verdict-129493061543
* "Lawyer of Tulsa Race Massacre survivors: We must have closure, know where the mass graves are:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/tulsa-race-massacre-survivors-have-lawyer-send-letter-to-department-of-justice-requesting-federal-investigation-129732677906
* "US regulators lift in-person restrictions on abortion pill:" https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-abortion-health-medication-a6634601a37fb048aecdd9f030e0863a
* "FDA makes access to abortion medication by mail permanent:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/fda-makes-access-to-abortion-pills-by-mail-permanent-128959045505
* "Campaigner Christie Elan-Cane dubs gender-neutral passport ruling an 'abomination':" https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/12/15/christie-elan-cane-supreme-court-passport-ruling/
* Another reason to boycott all JK Rowling: https://seananmcguire.tumblr.com/post/671138868165296128
"But, of course, the law doesn’t (shouldn’t) discriminate, and if autistic teens and/or adults can’t legally consent to treatment of gender dysphoria, we can’t legally consent to the treatment of anything. We won’t be able to access any treatment or medication without approval from a responsible adult."
* "Jury Awards $4M to Trans Boy After School Denies Him Restroom Access:" https://www.advocate.com/transgender/2021/12/15/jury-awards-4m-trans-boy-after-school-denies-him-restroom-access
* "Uber Reportedly Blocked Trans Drivers’ Accounts For Being “Fraudulent”:" https://www.advocate.com/news/2021/12/15/uber-reportedly-blocked-trans-drivers-accounts-being-fraudulent
* CW: Elder Abuse. "How Nursing Homes Hide Profits While Residents Suffer:"
* "How do Outbreaks End? Vaccines and Recovery: Crash Course Outbreak Science #14:"
* "Debunking Anti-Vax: The Real History About Andrew Wakefield:"
* "Autopsy: Severe brain trauma in ex-NFL player who shot 6:" https://apnews.com/article/nfl-sports-health-shootings-football-15b2c553682a7d122dbbc0d1eb76731c
* "Fresh Express Announces Recall of Fresh Salad Products Due to Potential Health Risk:" https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/fresh-express-announces-recall-fresh-salad-products-due-potential-health-risk
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* "Chile Writes Its Constitution, Confronting Climate Change Head On:" https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/28/climate/chile-constitution-climate-change.html
* "‘Receding before our eyes:’ Vancouver Island glaciers likely to be all gone by mid-century:" https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/receding-before-our-eyes-vancouver-island-glaciers-likely-to-be-all-gone-by-mid-century
* "Super Typhoon Rai slams into the Philippines as rescue operations get underway:" https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/16/asia/super-typhoon-rai-philippines-intl-hnk/index.html
* CW: Dead Children. "Bouncy castle tragedy: Emotional police commissioner reveals 40 kids involved - NZ Herald:" https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/bouncy-castle-tragedy-emotional-police-commissioner-reveals-40-kids-involved/MNAAFFSSGHKDLTBUTYRMNR5ZOY/
* "Rebuilding tornado-ravaged Kentucky town could take years:" https://apnews.com/article/tornadoes-kentucky-weather-mayfield-d67943a53d55d95db354011b45bfd995
* "Hurricane Ida Recovery Reveals Climate Change Inequalities to Come:"
* "Entangled whale cannot be freed with newborn calf close by, ocean experts say:" https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/dec/15/entangled-whale-cannot-be-freed-newborn-calf
* "Archbishop Desmond Tutu dies at 90:" https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/26/africa/desmond-tutu-death-intl-hnk/index.html
* "Tributes pour in for anti-apartheid leader and LGBT+ ally Archbishop Desmond Tutu:" https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/12/26/desmond-tutu-death-lgbt-ally-anti-apartheid/
* "Harry M. Reid, pugnacious Senate majority leader, dies at 82:" https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/harry-reid-dead/2021/12/28/775787dc-43f9-11e8-bba2-0976a82b05a2_story.html
* "Queer Black Feminist Writer bell hooks Dies at 69:" https://www.advocate.com/people/2021/12/15/queer-black-feminist-writer-bell-hooks-dies-69
* "Joan Didion, peerless prose stylist, dies at 87:" https://www.politico.com/news/2021/12/23/joan-didion-dies-526068
* "'Dallas Buyers Club' director Jean-Marc Vallée dies:" https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/27/entertainment/jean-marc-vallee-obit/index.html
* "Princeton teaches Ge'ez for the first time:" https://classics.princeton.edu/department/news/princeton-teaches-geez-first-time
* "Sweden's Gavle Christmas goat torched... again:" https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-59696442
* "U.S. Warns Russia Not To Take Ukraine | Earth's Black Box Will Record Humanity's Demise:"
* "Meanwhile... Woman Seen Breastfeeding Her Cat On A Flight | Omicron (The Band) Is Not A Virus:"
* "Fox News Christmas Tree Fire Wasn't Politically Motivated | The Debt Ceiling Shouldn't Be A Thing:"
* ""He's Destroying His Legacy" - Scared Fox News Hosts Texted Mark Meadows During Capitol Attack:"
* "As Wrong As It Gets - Republicans Don't Want You To Know What Happened On Jan. 6th:"
* "GOP Says Covid Is Overhyped | Sheriff In Hot Water Over Pic Of Santa Getting A Gun Permit:"
* "On The Next Season Of Succession: Who Will Replace Chris Wallace?:"
* "Omicron Is Taking Over & Teachers Dash for Cash:" https://www.cc.com/video/srbo0b/the-daily-show-with-trevor-noah-omicron-is-taking-over-teachers-dash-for-cash
* "Mark Meadows Held in Contempt:" https://www.cc.com/video/piaqpv/the-daily-show-with-trevor-noah-mark-meadows-held-in-contempt
* "Dul-Sayin' - The History of Kwanzaa:" https://www.cc.com/video/lrx340/the-daily-show-with-trevor-noah-dul-sayin-the-history-of-kwanzaa
* "If You Don't Know, Now You Know - China's Africa Investments:" https://www.cc.com/video/xhwr8p/the-daily-show-with-trevor-noah-if-you-don-t-know-now-you-know-china-s-africa-investments
* "Man with Thong Mask & MLK's Family Calls for No Celebration:" https://www.cc.com/video/63uk0a/the-daily-show-with-trevor-noah-man-with-thong-mask-mlk-s-family-calls-for-no-celebration
* "Viral Clip Of Runaway Airport Luggage Is The Pixar Film We Needed | Seditionist Roundup Round Up:" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dxsJAbchko&list=PLiZxWe0ejyv8n24CSzVDLGdvDR1qCX6jY&index=2
* "Santa Song - SNL:"
* "Hotel Ad - SNL:"
* "The Global Warming Christmas Special - SNL:"
* "The Viral Cat Spreading All That Misinformation Has Been Found:"
* "Men Writing Women...Badly:"
* "Santa Is Packing Heat:"
* "The Hallmark Channel Presents: Frankenclaus:"
* "The Late Show Presents: A Conspiracy Carol:"
* "Colbert's "Lord of the Rings" Rap Celebrates 20 Years Of The Greatest Trilogy In Movie History:"
* Today I learned that Tumblr forcing me to look at the severed lady bits and buttocks from behind ad is significantly less disturbing than the dismembered anatomically correct torso, though still very do not want. I want to be clear that I don't judge people who buy these sex toys, I just think the images should be opt in.
* I've been thinking a lot about the Figure Skater, now choreographer, Kurt Browning. There were a lot of figure skaters I loved in his era, but there was something about him that really made him linger in my mind. I think that special something was that he fundamentally looked like he loved what he was doing. Oh, he definitely wanted to win, and he had bad skates like everything else, but that fundamental love was baked into his choreography, into his artistic expression, into the style of every element. It radiated out of him in interviews too.
The longer he skated both as an amateur and professional, the stronger his personal voice was in his work. He didn't always make choices to my taste. That happens when you have a strong and particular artistic voice. Still, I adored so many of his routines and even the ones that weren't for me were memorable.
At some point after he started to do choreography, some skater would come back from summer training completely transformed. They wouldn't be skating like him, but they would be skating with a new joy and with their own clear voice. They would have new routines that fit them like gloves, that helped them reach out to the audience, that gave them a particular magic they'd never had before. I would watch them and think "I wonder if they've been working with Kurt," and they almost invariably have.
What a beautifully gift to give the world.
I've no idea what he's like as a person beyond his public persona, but damned if he hasn't had a beautiful ripple effect in the world.
* So this is what's going on with me. My AS has been really terrible the last two months. It's hard to explain the level of debilitating too someone who's body works. To give yo and Idea of how hard basic stuff is, on the twenty third, it took me four hours to get dressed and do physio. My legs kept buckling as I shuffled about trying to do the bare minimum as far as feeding cats, fish, and myself. I literally scream from pain and nearly went over when I tried to feed Livia.
It's why the post schedule is so weird and I why I have...idk a couple weeks of link back log as of this writing. I am doing what I can, but even my high pain threshold ass can't make this work. The barometer has been yoyoing, and that generally just fucks me up.
So on the twenty forth, I was going to run out to grab a last minute thing before the store closed with the last of my EBT. Three hours for dressing and physio, two cats in cling mode. To give you an idea of the cling level, I was trying to put my shoe on, got as far as one sock and getting a shoe half on when Tavy leapt onto me and proceeded to nap in my arms. Me: Well I guess I'm doing lungs before instead of after the errand.
I was latter than I meant, but surely the shop was still open, right? We're a fairly secular college town. It is not that cold, but I step out to find flurries and a thin layer of snow on my car, though none sticking yet on the ground. I grew up with snow. the quality of the air and the look of the flurries told me they would be sticking soon. I figure I should be fine on a fifteen minute errand, but I'd been snowed in all weekend.
The temperature kept dropping noticeably; the snow was coming faster. Shop was closed. I likely would have made it if I'd fought Tavy over the shoes, but no matter. I'd guess I was gone five to seven minutes and it was brutal cold and coming down hard by the time I'd parked again. Squirrel had work and the driving was scary. I'd guess we got six inches, which is a lot in a town where the only people with snow tires either regularly commute over the Mountain pass or are skier/snowboarders. Our large town/small city has a snow plow, but they hit the big streets first, and generally the snow is melted before they get streets like ours, our worse the last three streets I lived on. My current street is an increasingly busy feeder instead of the true back streets I've always lived on between coming North and this place. Saturday it warmed up just enough for what little melted to freeze over after dark making it incredibly unsafe after. Squirrel was white as a sheet when he got home from work 7ish Sunday morning. It had snowed hard all night and my end of town the wind was so high it was blowing nearly horizontal. The cats sat in the window watching in fascination. It did that all day, i suspect, as it was still going past noon when I looked.
Luckily Squirrel didn't have work, and I don't leave the house unless all paths and streets are clear except for emergencies as I don't want to break anything or tear ligaments. The snow it utterly beautiful, but I'm someone finding the hobble to the bathroom challenging, and i don't want to go to the ER and spend a month laid up like last time.
Except the fire alarm kept going off. Nothing was on fire. I'd been trying to get him to change the battery in his detector for a couple of months, but he kept spacing it. I knew it wasn't mine as I changed them last... it was before I got my second shot end of March, so I'd say less than a year ago, but not by a lot. The little detectors are wired to the big ones. It went on for hours, waking people up, terrifying cats. I finally gave him a battery, because I had one, being exactly that sort of anal retentive and the chirping will drive me bats because of my sensory stuff. (I hate being caught without an emergency 9 volt). A couple hours passed, but I could hear it chirping in his room again and it went off again, because of course it did. He pulled it out, which the management company hates. his theory is it's old and the equipment needs replacing, so I guess I'm staying up to deal with them.
I am tired and everything hurts, and I've lost track of how long the aggregate posting gap is. I am sorry. It likely won't be any better until the weather evens out.
* Tuesday I went to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, flipped on a switch, and there was a flash of light and blue sparks. Attempts to flip the fuse elicited more of the same. This means no microwave, not bathroom or kitchen lights, no small appliances, no bathroom electricity at all. We suspect the wiring's fubared. squirrel is wondering if this it what was setting the fire alarms off. So I'm staying up to call iyt in, but i haven't much hope of a solution any time soon with snow and the holidays.
We've been waiting for nearly two years for them to connect squirrel's bathroom vent to the outside. They took three years not to fix a hole they put in my ceiling. I gave up and paid for fixing it myself. Who wants to bet they don't consider wiring burning in the walls an emergency?
* ...And We’re hosed. Even though the contracts said things inside the walls are them, they are making us pay for the wiring.
I have no idea how we’re going to manage it. I have no idea what it will cost even to get an estimate.
Bonus and extra 70.00 uncovered copay came in. Why the fuck not?
paypal.me/Gwydion
are there any lawyer friends/legal aid places that might remotely type up an official-sounding letter for free?
* FAQ: Everyone is asking some version of: "Are there any lawyer friends/legal aid places that might remotely type up an official-sounding letter for free?"
It’s not a stupid question at all. It is the one everyone asks and I’m well familiar with the process. It’s just an incredibly complicated answer.
Part 1: A decade ago, I could have called Law advocates downtown and they’d hook me up with a pro bono lawyer to help fairly quickly.
It all got centralized though and, which I found out the hard way last year. This means spending hours every morning trying to win through the log jam of panicky people from multiple counties with legal and housing emergencies to get one of a handful of coveted slots to speak to a screener down in Seattle. A tiny fraction of those get passed to lawyers. There are so few of them and so many people getting evicted or having sever health and safety issues with landlords, that I don’t have a lot of hope.
I will likely spend a few weeks doing this anyway in January. I know the hours are shorter because of the holidays for most things like this. I think they don’t take new calls Fridays anyway if I’m remembering last Winter-spring correctly.
Even if I win all the way through to a lawyer against incredibly steep odds, that’s months of legal wrangling and unlikely to be solved until spring at best. it also opens me to retribution so it’s a dangerous fucking gamble.
Part 2: I spent all day calling every social service and charity number I could think of, starting with my social worker and an agency who I dealt with before who fixed my plumbing two years ago. That agency is a few months to process even if they do let people double dip in the program which I’m not convinced they will do.
Up side here is if we do get this, they will likely rewire the whole apartment, as I am concerned that the other two dicey circuits will fail as well. the one that burnt out is the one I’ve had concerns about since I moved in, but living room circuit and another one that runs in to the bedrooms both have a lot of surprise outages and are now under more strain because the bathroom electricity/kitchen lights circuit is out. We had an outage of everything but the appliances between 10 and 11 this evening for example. So long shot, long time line, but in effect free unless I ever move out.
I also called a bunch of similar things and asked questions like “Is this only for 62 and older or does it also cover disabled adults over 50?” (Some social programs will wave an age restriction if you are disabled enough. again, I’m not sanguine, but I tried.)
My Social worker is calling around too. I’m medically fragile, a fall risk, and it is very cold outside. She’s making the correct argument that I could trip and fall in the dark and I can’t go to a warming center if it gets bad again as they are expecting it too outside because medically fragile in a pandemic. I’m okay right now with things like layering, insulation, het coming in from the hall and neighboring apartments, body heat, and the things that are on other circuits that aren't fried yet like the water heater/dishwasher/oven.
If we get another big drop like last weekend though? Not so much. I am from snow country originally and have protocols for if that happens.
If all the non-appliance circuits go, likely all you will see here is preprogrammed posting as it all goes, including internet. Yes, I have candles and battery lanterns. I just don’t own a gas generator. (I know the washer and dryer were checked at the beginning of the pandemic by honest contractors. I know the fridge/stove/dishwasher circuit got checked when we moved in. I can remember if those are the same or different circuits and I'm not going back into squirrel's to check. All that stuff gets heavy city inspection when they build. The crooked builder skimped everywhere else, but those are the least likely bits to be shoddily done if you follow).
Part 3: The least likely option is we somehow raise money to pay for the wiring fix and then go through the dispute process to get reimbursal. The Management company lady was not sanguine about my chances. The conversation left me with the impression that a lot of the wiring in the building is bad and they are making people living here pay to fix it themselves. idk.
The honest, reliable, and hard working father/son duo who the city hired to fix assorted things, but particularly plumbing two years ago, had an honest, reliable superhero sub-contractor that did electricals. I called them and asked for the electrician number. Alas, he retired last year and is irreplaceable. They did give me three numbers to replacement electricians.
I signed up with the best of them for him to come poke at it. It’s the holidays. A chunk of my small city/large town has no power due to last weekend’s storm. There is still a massive backlog of electrical work because of the flooding... was that November? Earlier this month? So many disasters this year, it all blurs a bit and what even is time. they will see what they can do.
Head Millennial is coming Thursday afternoon to see if we can string some temp lighting up so the bathroom is less risky, shift things around so I can use the smallest space heater, and get power to the beta fish tank heater, all of which will again, add more burden to at risk circuits, but I have to prioritize heat, light, and safety for myself and fish.
(There are also questions to be answered like: If we empty the tiny storage cabinet of specialized glassware and turn everything off but overhead lights, big tank heaters, and things like the router, can I run a heavy duty outdoor level power cord into the kitchen to use the microwave without blowing a fuse? This project would require a Millennial who can stand on a ladder, and has too many steps for me to do at this mobility level.)
Part 4: The security company responsible for fire suppression had a cancellation opening for Thursday morning. I am secretly hoping that when they plug in a new unit to the system they will discover a circuit flaw there that they will HAVE to fix as a fire hazard and it will solve the rest.
Squirrel is insistently hoping that the flaw is in or behind the panel and easily fixed by an electrician.
Wishful thinking though and best not to plan on it, so I am focusing on practical stuff like how to learn to live without non-major appliance power in the darkest parts of the Cat Asylum, and setting long term solutions in motion (See Parts One and Two).
You see why I’ve been short handing it. :)
* I am so used to normal blackouts that I am having a vaguely surreal time dealing with the current crisis. This is not a complaint, just an observation. The house we moved into just before I started high school was super prone to blackouts, just like the part of town where I've lived a majority of the time since I moved up here for third college, used to get regular black outs. The ones back East could be a day or two long, and happened a bunch of times in the November through December with such regularity, we all had assigned blackout chores in my family. We get little black outs here all the time, also most in November or December, but blackout season starts in October and runs until true spring. Most years we lose power all night at least once. Sometimes we have a good year or a bad year. Sometimes it's a day or two, but that's rare.
I'm that person with emergency candles and battery lanterns and black out contingency plans, so I have a battery lantern where I can grab it entering the bathroom with what light reaches from the living room. I have a stronger lamp set up further in that I can use the cheap light to find. (If the cheap light breaks it's not a big deal. I don't want to risk the expensive light where I can knock it off and break it easily or near water.) It a good spot to grab it if I need it in the kitchen. I'm basically living off stockpiled emergency vegetarian cup of soups because low mobility/low visibility stove top cooking is harder than it sounds because while I can navigate in there okay, it's hard to see details and the counters are in shadow. The range light and hood are dead, which means things like pasta aren't a good idea. I can make tea and cup of soups safely so it's that and cold foods and energy bars right now. I may branch out into stove top regular soup heating, but I can't walk away and sit down while I do that.
I desperately needed a bath so in the period Wednesday midday while I was waiting for return emails and phone calls, I took a bath. That's the surreal part. I've had power go out mid bath a bunch of times. I have a protocol for it. Turn off water (to save what hot water is left) and motor (so it doesn't turn on when the power does. I think there's a safety shut off when power goes out, but I don't want to chance it. Turn on the good emergency bathroom lantern (Stored where I can easily grope it in the dark, but where it's apt to stay safe from falls and water). Finish shampoo and rinse. Turn off any other switches that were on. Use the good emergency lantern to do last meds and set things up as far as bedroom emergency lighting for when I inevitable shamble out later to pee or if I'm unlucky and have to start the next meds cycle in the semi dark.
So water heater's on a dedicated circuit. So is my tub. I don't worry about either as they were city inspected at the beginning of the pandemic. It was so fucking weird to have hot water and the hydrotherapy motor going while bathing by light of a battery lantern. Did my head in, it did.
(Long term readers may remember the city buying me a new tub and my doctor managing to talk them into jets for my back and shoulders on medical grounds. These have been a life saver given how much my joints have deteriorated in the intervening twoish years. It was a whole saga that involved most of the plumbing and a bunch of appliances being replaced along with small stuff like us getting working exterior doorknobs).
Nearby Millenial has spiked hiking boots and lives a long block away in my old complex, so came for her shift. She also has a head lamp. (She's legally blind, but has low vision and walks around at night, so has things like a reflective safety vest and a powerful headlamp. She does chunk of her job by touch and she is very, very good as an Aid. Not kidding 10 out of 10). Picture her doing the dishes with her headlamp on. Picture us endlessly moving from dark to light flipping dead switches. She did a brilliant job today.
Still so fucking surreal to watch her doing it.
unless we are super super lucky in the morning, This will likely be how it is for weeks or months. If we are unlucky, this is our life now. I will get used to it, but it's strange.
It was just weird.
* "It's A Sweet Day For A Winter Wedding:" https://www.cakewrecks.com/home/2021/12/26/its-a-sweet-day-for-a-winter-wedding
* "Sunday Sweets: Your Holiday Happy Place:" https://www.cakewrecks.com/home/2021/12/19/sunday-sweets-your-holiday-happy-place
*****
* Full list of Resistance and charity links has been migrated to my profile as it was getting out of hand.
The help links are at the bottom under the cut.
* "Help Kevin Strickland After Wrongful Conviction:" https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-kevin-strickland-after-wrongful-conviction
* My Oldest Continuous friend's Elder Cat is getting up there and her special diet and health care for kidney failure is expensive. Gigi is a sweet, extremely cuddly girl and could use extra help. "Click here to show your support to Karrin Jackson's story *SupportGigiInHerOldAge:" https://www.spotfund.com/story/18393388-9914-4f6c-9f99-876aa019bdee
* Help LGBTQIA+ people escape Afghanistan: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-lgbtq-afghan-refugees-rebuild-their-lives
* "The Rainbow Railroad:" https://www.rainbowrailroad.org/take-action
* Organizations working for reproductive rights in Texas: https://minoanmiss.dreamwidth.org/796848.html
* Even more Organizations working for reproductive rights in Texas: https://wendelah1.dreamwidth.org/788132.html
* Want to help Kimi Cole run for statewide office in Nevada? https://secure.actblue.com/donate/kimi-cole-4-nevada-1
* I used all the bill money to fix my brakes. I need about 250.00-300 to cover bills for the month. Paypal Lethran@gmail.com or paypal.me/Gwydion
* Want to help get Rand Paul out of the senate? Support Charles Booker:" https://secure.actblue.com/donate/cb-ads-dd-google-senate-launch?source=ads_ms_CHB_20210701-DD-GS-SenateLaunch_brandedkw-Natl-1865U-MF_a003-CHB-cbfuss-gstxt-txt&gclid=Cj0KCQjwxJqHBhC4ARIsAChq4auMxkyB4EqbiJYINuvQfZwWndHRj6juSW_B_MPhbIc8BhM8dJPkZbEaArBaEALw_wcB
* Want to help Chris Jones against Sarah Huckabee sanders in Arkansas? https://secure.actblue.com/donate/chrisjonesar
* Chicksaw bead artist and cool person has Kiamichi Beading suitable for non-native sale: https://www.instagram.com/kiamichi_beading/
* My oldest continuous friend made this. "Echoes of Kyrill:" https://www.dmsguild.com/product/366097/Echoes-of-Kyrill
* Mutual Aid Link Round Up: https://laughingacademy.tumblr.com/post/645696532415447040/popss-great-big-mutual-aid-masterpost
* Want to help the Asian Community?
https://nymag.com/strategist/article/where-to-donate-to-help-asian-communities-2021.html
https://www.gofundme.com/c/act/stop-aapi-hate
https://www.advancingjustice-atlanta.org/
* Cat Rescue Fundraiser: https://gwydionmisha.tumblr.com/post/642429918533304320/design-a-tea-where-tea-leaves-dream-custom
* "The Midwest Immigration Bond Fund!:" https://secure.actblue.com/donate/midwestibf
* What to help fight for queer people in Africa? Try the Initiative Sankofa D’Afrique de l’Ouest www.ISDAO.org
* Organizations to help trans folk: https://gwydionmisha.tumblr.com/post/620857152453640195/about-us
* "How to Safely and Ethically Film Police Misconduct:" https://www.teenvogue.com/story/how-to-film-police-safely
* Master Post for how to help organizations fighting Police violence: https://gwydionmisha.tumblr.com/post/620861026680881152/oberynmartell-list-of-black-lives-matter-and
* How to donate to Doctors Without Borders: https://donate.doctorswithoutborders.org/onetime.cfm?source=ADD200U0U00&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=googlepaid&utm_content=brand&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIz8D9kYu46QIVqh6tBh2WogxQEAAYASAAEgK4FfD_BwE
* My oldest continuous friend's next project. "Goblingrief: A D&D 5e Adventure:" https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/482738549/goblingrief-a-dandd-5e-adventure?fbclid=IwAR0jBz9AdmIPSOk4KiCxiykxktX_ePCGTI0iCv9YFcnN2ENmdj5zna3LZnk
* Want to help Maxwell frost go to congress? https://secure.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/119806
* Want to help Val Demings unseat Marco Rubio? https://secure.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/117824
* Want to contribute to Morgan Harper's campaign? https://secure.actblue.com/donate/ads_ms_mh_gs_202109_dd_launch?source=ads_ms_MH_20210903-DD-GS-Launch-National_mhkywrds-Natl-1865U-MF_a003-MH-ad3-gstxt-txt&gclid=Cj0KCQjwqKuKBhCxARIsACf4XuGuQ_qm_8NW3mAhIySgB61jwTijPejfpvU6Gkt_JHp3b5YG4E75aWAaAhwTEALw_wcB
* Register to vote: https://vote.gov/
* A list of organizations to help you run for office: http://lovingmyselfishard.tumblr.com/post/167330144634/psst-hey
* The Indivisible guide exists to help you organize effective resistance: https://indivisible.org/
* Have something you want to tell your Congress Critters? If you can't safely 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.
Here is one that will send your reps a fax: https://resistbot.io/
* Help pay for cat food, litter, meds, medical copays: Paypal Lethran@gmail.com or paypal.me/Gwydion
* Birthday/Solstice master list: https://gwydion.dreamwidth.org/2108835.html
So 2021 continuing the streak, really. I have reached the fuck it point and am posting the aggregate with the understanding I'm sitting on I'd guess 100-200 prepped links that aren't included and that weeding and sorting are likely a bit rough.
* "200 years ago, everyone lacked democratic rights. Now, billions of people have them:" https://ourworldindata.org/democratic-rights
* "Afghans push through snowy Alps toward new lives in Europe:" https://apnews.com/article/afghanistan-migrants-trek-through-alps-seek-new-future-02613cb26351c9249c27ee20f5d1681f
* "Lesbian risks life and flees Afghanistan to escape forced marriage to Taliban brute:" https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/12/27/afghanistan-lesbian-taliban-forced-marriage/
* "Shining shoes for a piece of bread:" https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-asia-59761535
* "Guterres in Lebanon: Fair elections in 2022, an ‘essential opportunity’ for voices to be heard:" https://news.un.org/en/story/2021/12/1108552
* "Lebanon's Aoun calls for defence dialogue, hinting at friction with Hezbollah:" https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/lebanons-president-calls-national-dialog-reach-understanding-defense-economic-2021-12-27/
* "Security forces loyal to Somalia PM gather outside presidential palace:" https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/us-says-supports-somalian-pms-efforts-rapid-credible-elections-2021-12-28/
* "Why Authoritarian Regimes Bother With Elections:" https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2021/12/hong-kong-stunt-election-democracy/621071/
* "Hong Kong universities remove more monuments marking Tiananmen:" https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-59752089
* "Hong Kong pro-democracy news site closes after raid, arrests:" https://www.npr.org/2021/12/29/1068696336/hong-kong-police-raid-pro-democracy-news-outlet-arrest-6
* "'Erasing history': Russia closes top rights group, capping year of crackdowns:" https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russian-orders-closure-top-rights-group-2021-12-28/
* "How the Kremlin Is Militarizing Russian Society:" https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/21/world/europe/russia-military-putin-kremlin.html
* "Georgia: The rise of the right:" https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-europe-59763185
* "We should all be worried by what Liz Truss is doing to our equalities watchdog:" https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/12/24/trans-equality-watchdog-liz-truss/
* "Barrister who slammed Stonewall trans inclusion advice given key equalities role:" https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/12/20/stonewall-akua-reindorf-ehrc/
* "Why North Shropshire result is good news for Labour as well as Lib Dems:" https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2021/dec/17/north-shropshire-byelection-result-good-news-for-labour-lib-dems
* "The Secretive Prisons That Keep Migrants Out of Europe:" https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/12/06/the-secretive-libyan-prisons-that-keep-migrants-out-of-europe
* "Indian Christians fear attacks or jail over conversions:" https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-59724425
* "Arrests, Beatings and Secret Prayers: Inside the Persecution of India’s Christians:" https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/22/world/asia/india-christians-attacked.html
* First they came for the Muslims, then they came for the Christians....
This all looks part of the same violent Hindu nationalism that strips away basic rights and encourages violence and torture from both police and mobs.
* "Myanmar massacre: two Save the Children staff among dead:" https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/28/myanmar-massacre-two-save-the-children-staff-among-dead
* "The ultra-violent cult that became a global mafia:" https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-59614595
* "The U.S. predicted his downfall but Maduro strengthens his grip on power in Venezuela:" https://www.npr.org/2021/12/07/1061290155/maduros-grip-on-power-in-venezuela-only-gets-stronger
* "Chile breathes sigh of relief as pro-LGBT president elected over far-right bigot:" https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/12/20/chile-election-gabriel-boric-president-lgbt/
* "Nonbelievers across Africa risk freedom and family support:" https://apnews.com/article/africa-religion-nigeria-ce936d8627ca1c233e479961ac440944
* "Kenyans find rural lifeline after Covid city exodus:" https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-59630164
* "Bruno Le Maire - An Inclusive Future for France:" https://www.cc.com/video/v9jyq7/the-daily-show-with-trevor-noah-bruno-le-maire-an-inclusive-future-for-france
* "Mali Says Chad to Send 1,000 Additional Troops as France Backs Off:" https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2021-12-18/mali-says-chad-to-send-1-000-additional-troops-as-france-backs-off
* CW: Torture "Jailed for the killing of Haiti's president, five suspected assassins say they're innocent:" https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/18/americas/haiti-assassination-colombian-prisoners-exclusive-intl-cmd/index.html
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* "Omicron infects 70 times faster than previous COVID strains:" https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/586074-omicon-infects-70-times-faster-than-previous-covid-strains-study?rl=1
* "A tantalizing clue to why omicron is spreading so quickly:" https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2021/12/15/1064597592/a-tantalizing-clue-to-why-omicron-is-spreading-so-quickly
* "UK data suggests hospitalization is less likely with omicron:" https://apnews.com/article/covid-omicron-variant-symptoms-hospitalization-less-likely-8ed5a786604ac1df349464296aa7e3c8
* "Europeans Ponder Living With, Not Defeating, Covid:" https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/24/world/europe/europe-covid-pandemic-omicron.html
* "Spain's COVID-19 infections soar after Christmas:" https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/spains-covid-19-infections-soar-after-christmas-2021-12-27/
* Let Them Eat Cake. "Why is anyone surprised at Boris weaselling his way through another scandal?:" https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/12/08/boris-johnson-christmas-party-downing-street-covid/
* "Ecuador: Coronavirus vaccination mandatory for most citizens:" https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/ecuador-coronavirus-vaccination-mandatory-citizens-81919392
* "Pfizer pill becomes 1st US-authorized home COVID treatment :" https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-pfizer-medication-f5f65e7e61d6aa9c7dfa193053e8878a
* "Game changer: New Covid treatment pill could be key to ending pandemic:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/game-changer-new-covid-treatment-pill-could-be-key-to-ending-pandemic-129431621896
* "CDC recommends Moderna, Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines over J&J's:" https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/blood-clot-rates-after-jj-vaccine-higher-than-previous-estimates-cdc-advisers-2021-12-16/
* "Chris Hayes: How the booster shot messaging got muddled :" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/chris-hayes-how-the-booster-shot-messaging-got-muddled-129230405826
* "'No slack in the system': Struggling hospitals despair at prospect of Omicron wave:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/-no-slack-in-the-system-struggling-hospitals-despair-at-prospect-of-omicron-wave-129243205641
* "Maddow: If you've been putting off vaccination, the time to do it is now.:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/maddow-if-you-ve-been-putting-off-vaccination-the-time-to-do-it-is-now-129251909682
* "'It's a balancing act': New CDC guidance weighs practicality but raises questions:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/-it-s-a-balancing-act-new-cdc-guidance-weighs-practicality-but-raises-questions-129740869850
* "Hospitals' concern: Volume of Omicron cases could counter lower hospitalization rate:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/hospitals-concern-volume-of-omicron-cases-could-counter-lower-hospitalization-rate-129340997873
* "Army: 98% of active duty got COVID-19 vaccine by deadline:" https://www.kvoa.com/coronavirus/army-98-of-active-duty-got-covid-19-vaccine-by-deadline/article_ef26a17e-5e87-11ec-82a0-43255e602142.html
* "White House labels Orange County Florida ‘rapid riser,’ as state reports 29,568 COVID-19 cases:" https://www.orlandosentinel.com/coronavirus/os-ne-florida-coronavirus-dec-17-20211217-zbdv6y3cefd3lnqa2wqazfrlzi-story.html
* "University of Texas sees 'alarming' spike in COVID-19 cases likely due to omicron variant:" https://www.statesman.com/story/news/2021/12/16/ut-austin-spike-covid-19-cases-likely-omicron-variant/8923174002/
* "Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton says he’ll take fight against federal vaccine mandate for large businesses to Supreme Court:" https://www.texastribune.org/2021/12/17/vaccine-mandate-businesses-texas/
* "Kansas City COVID-19 deaths more than doubled in the past week, data shows:" https://amp.kansascity.com/article256597306.html
* "Kansas hospitals brace for 'long, tough winter' of COVID. Here's what experts fear if omicron surges.:" https://www.cjonline.com/story/news/coronavirus/2021/12/16/covid-19-kansas-hospitals-omicron-transfers-surge-full-beds/8908272002/
* "Tennessee nursing homes to enforce vaccine with federal mandate back in place Wednesday:" https://newschannel9.com/news/coronavirus/tennessee-nursing-homes-to-enforce-vaccine-with-federal-mandate-back-in-place-wednesday
* "New York state reports highest number of daily Covid cases of entire pandemic at more than 21,000:" https://www.cnbc.com/2021/12/17/new-york-state-reports-highest-number-of-daily-covid-cases-of-entire-pandemic-at-more-than-21000.html
* "‘We've Never Seen This Before in NYC': COVID Positivity Rate Doubles in 3 Days on Omicron Spread:" https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/coronavirus/weve-never-seen-this-before-in-nyc-covid-positivity-rate-doubles-in-3-days-as-omicron-spreads/3454450/
* "NYC offers 500,000 free rapid Covid tests, 1 million masks amid case surge:" https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/nyc-offers-500000-free-rapid-covid-tests-1-million-masks-amid-case-surge/vi-AARTnRJ
* "Classroom closures spike as COVID-19 cases climb in NYC:" https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/education/2021/12/16/nyc-doe-school-closures-spike-as-covid-cases-climb-in-nyc
* "Several NYC Restaurants Temporarily Close Due to COVID Spike:" https://www.thrillist.com/eat/new-york/nyc-restaurants-are-closing-due-to-covid-surge
* "As Virus Cases Surge, New Yorkers Feel a Familiar Anxiety:" https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/16/nyregion/new-york-covid-cases.html
* "U.S. Surgeon General decries Fox News commentator urging conservatives to ‘ambush’ Dr. Fauci:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/jesse-watters-urging-conservatives-to-ambush-dr-fauci-decried-by-u-s-surgeon-general-129330245886
* "House oversight committee releases report detailing efforts of Trump administration officials to 'undermine' Covid-19 efforts in US:" https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/17/politics/house-committee-trump-covid-19/index.html
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* "Congress approves import ban targeting forced labor in China :" https://apnews.com/article/science-business-china-asia-beijing-d73f6a5b82a58209480f5aa010895100
* "President Biden reaches year's end with growing list of successes:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/president-biden-reaches-year-s-end-with-growing-list-of-successes-129655877954
* "Manchin says he won't vote for Biden's Build Back Better Act:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-sunday-show/watch/manchin-says-he-won-t-vote-for-biden-s-build-back-better-act-129114181654
* "Rep. Cori Bush: It's "not a huge surprise" that Sen. Joe Manchin won't vote for Build Back Better:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-sunday-show/watch/rep-cori-bush-it-s-not-a-huge-suprise-that-sen-joe-manchin-won-t-vote-for-build-back-better-129118789504
* "Wearied by Manchin perfidy, progressives eye 'two track process' to achieve BBB's goals:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/wearied-by-manchin-perfidy-progressives-eye-two-track-process-to-achieve-bbb-s-goals-129244229595
* "Manchin negotiated in bad faith to obstruct bill that would help his state Joy Reid says:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/joe-manchin-slammed-or-withdrawing-support-for-biden-s-build-back-better-bill-129331781669
* "Bernie: Striking workers ‘courageous’ in face of Kellogg’s ‘abrasive’ tactics :" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/bernie-striking-workers-courageous-in-face-of-kellogg-s-abrasive-tactics-128943685558
* I hope they win. "Workers at candle factory hit by tornado file class-action lawsuit against employer:" https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/16/us/mayfield-candle-factory-lawsuit-tornado/index.html
* "MLK III on King holiday: "No celebration without legislation":" https://www.msnbc.com/the-sunday-show/watch/mlk-iii-on-king-holiday-no-celebration-without-legislation-129117765664
* "The Senate filibuster isn't what it used to be because the Senate isn't either:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/the-senate-filibuster-isn-t-what-it-used-to-be-because-the-senate-isn-t-either-129053765588
* "Senate Democrats get serious about protecting elections, voting rights:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/senate-democrats-get-serious-about-protecting-elections-voting-rights-128958021557
* "Sen. Klobuchar: I would get rid of the filibuster in a minute if I could:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/biden-agenda-struggling-due-to-gop-conservative-democratic-senators-discussed-by-sen-amy-klobuchar-128948293717
* Have something you want to tell your Senators? If you can't safely 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.
Here is one that will send your reps a fax: https://resistbot.io/
* "Accountability elusive as Trump's Big Lie runs amok in Wisconsin:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/accountability-elusive-as-trump-s-big-lie-runs-amok-in-wisconsin-129341509806
* "Absent accountability, Republicans run roughshod over election system in Wisconsin:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/absent-accountability-republicans-run-roughshod-over-election-system-in-wisconsin-129341509594
* "Republicans bullying election officials achieve their ends even in failure:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/republicans-bullying-election-officials-achieve-their-ends-even-in-failure-129431621674
* "Republicans overhaul local election board, look to eliminate six of seven polling stations:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/republicans-overhaul-local-election-board-look-to-eliminate-six-of-seven-polling-stations-129434181622
* "Fmr. top general warns of potential ‘2024 insurrection,’ urges preparedness:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/fmr-top-general-warns-of-potential-2024-insurrection-urges-preparedness-129231941834
* "Michael Eric Dyson: American democracy is only as good as we are willing to fight for it:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/jan-6-capitol-insurrection-anniversary-a-reminder-of-our-endangered-democracy-experts-say-129649733982
* "Is this seriously who Republicans want representing Georgia instead of Raphael Warnock?:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/is-this-seriously-who-republicans-want-representing-georgia-instead-of-raphael-warnock-129502277945
* "California's Out Insurance Commissioner Gets Reelection Backing:" https://www.advocate.com/politics/2021/12/15/californias-out-insurance-commissioner-gets-reelection-backing
* "Softening Trump political potency seen in endorsement flops, limp ticket sales:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/softening-trump-political-potency-seen-in-endorsement-flops-limp-ticket-sales-129051205777
* "Lawmaker targeted by Trump shares disturbing death threat voicemail:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/lawmaker-targeted-by-trump-shares-disturbing-death-threat-voicemail-129648709644
* "New details paint 'insane' picture of how right wing media obtained Biden daughter's diary:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/new-details-paint-insane-picture-of-how-right-wing-media-obtained-biden-daughter-s-diary-128959557852
* "Sketchy Chinese company under investigation is well suited to partner with Donald Trump:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/sketchy-chinese-company-under-investigation-is-well-suited-to-partner-with-donald-trump-129502789793
* "Legal expert says Trump lawsuit against New York attorney general will likely be thrown out:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/trump-lawsuit-accusing-new-york-attorney-general-of-bias-will-likely-be-thrown-out-expert-says-129233477757
* "Republican Party helping Trump pay his personal legal bills:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/republican-party-helping-trump-pay-his-personal-legal-bills-wapo-128956997854
* "Basis of new Cohen lawsuit over Trump abuse of power warrants concern among Americans:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/basis-of-new-cohen-lawsuit-over-trump-abuse-of-power-warrants-concern-among-americans-129051717673
* "Jan. 6 committee weighs possibility of criminal referrals:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/nyt-jan-6-committee-weighs-possibility-of-criminal-referrals-129230917531
* "Legal expert: DOJ must immediately conduct 'full-blown' Jan. 6 probe:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/legal-expert-doj-must-immediately-conduct-full-blown-jan-6-probe-129492037712
* "Joy Reid: House GOP is trying to throw all the sand it can into Jan. 6 probe gears:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/house-minority-leader-attempting-to-install-jim-jordan-on-jan-6-select-committee-129495109652
* "Jim Jordan and Trump's coup: The calls were coming from inside the House:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/jim-jordan-and-trump-s-coup-the-calls-were-coming-from-inside-the-house-128938565877
* "Legal expert believes Jim Jordan text to Mark Meadows is probable cause for criminal charge:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/rep-jim-jordan-text-to-mark-meadows-probable-cause-for-criminal-charge-legal-expert-says-129041989724
* "Rep. Aguilar on why Rep. Jordan was never ‘fit to serve’ on Jan. 6 committee:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/rep-aguilar-on-why-rep-jordan-was-never-fit-to-serve-on-jan-6-committee-129420357806
* "CIA expert: Can you imagine what’s on Mark Meadows’ encrypted Signal app?:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/mark-meadows-plotted-with-six-house-republicans-to-overturn-2020-election-washington-post-reports-128945733905
* "Legal expert believes Jim Jordan text to Mark Meadows is probable cause for criminal charge:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/rep-jim-jordan-text-to-mark-meadows-probable-cause-for-criminal-charge-legal-expert-says-129041989724
* "Many who mock the Jan. 6 committee actively plotted with Trump’s White House:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/trump-s-phone-calls-with-jim-jordan-on-jan-6-of-interest-to-house-select-committee-129423941806
* "Jan. 6 committee requests testimony, documents from Republican Rep. Scott Perry:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/jan-6-select-committee-investigating-capitol-insurrection-reportedly-considering-more-criminal-referrals-129332805580
* "Legal expert says Department of Justice is ‘not doing its job' regarding Jan. 6 prosecutions:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/jan-6-plot-reportedly-launched-by-steve-bannon-and-peter-navarro-analyzed-on-the-reidout-129731653881
* "'Rosanne didn't radicalize herself': After death on 1/6, family seeks accountability:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/-rosanne-didn-t-radicalize-herself-after-death-on-1-6-family-seeks-accountability-129653317889
* "'We took the Capitol’: Proud Boy pleads guilty to Jan. 6 conspiracy charges:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/-we-took-the-capitol-proud-boy-pleads-guilty-to-jan-6-conspiracy-charges-129493061593
* "Jan. 6 rioter provides evidence that may impact sentencing:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/jan-6-rioter-provides-evidence-that-may-impact-sentencing-129039429661
* "'We took the Capitol’: Proud Boy pleads guilty to Jan. 6 conspiracy charges:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/-we-took-the-capitol-proud-boy-pleads-guilty-to-jan-6-conspiracy-charges-129493061593
* "D.C. Attorney General Files Civil Lawsuit Against Proud Boys, Oath Keepers:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-sunday-show/watch/d-c-attorney-general-files-civil-lawsuit-against-proud-boys-oath-keepers-129117253787
* "Right’s ‘celebration of violence’ on full display at Turning Point USA convention:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/right-s-celebration-of-violence-on-full-display-at-turning-point-usa-convention-129328197797
* "Rep. Bass on Kim Potter guilty verdict: Communities fear she'll get a slap on the wrist:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/kim-potter-guilty-verdict-for-killing-daunte-wright-could-still-result-in-slap-on-the-wrist-rep-bass-says-129494597620
* "‘Surprising is an understatement’: Civil rights attorney on Kim Potter verdict:" https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/-surprising-is-an-understatement-civil-rights-attorney-on-kim-potter-verdict-129493061543
* "Lawyer of Tulsa Race Massacre survivors: We must have closure, know where the mass graves are:" https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/tulsa-race-massacre-survivors-have-lawyer-send-letter-to-department-of-justice-requesting-federal-investigation-129732677906
* "US regulators lift in-person restrictions on abortion pill:" https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-abortion-health-medication-a6634601a37fb048aecdd9f030e0863a
* "FDA makes access to abortion medication by mail permanent:" https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/fda-makes-access-to-abortion-pills-by-mail-permanent-128959045505
* "Campaigner Christie Elan-Cane dubs gender-neutral passport ruling an 'abomination':" https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/12/15/christie-elan-cane-supreme-court-passport-ruling/
* Another reason to boycott all JK Rowling: https://seananmcguire.tumblr.com/post/671138868165296128
"But, of course, the law doesn’t (shouldn’t) discriminate, and if autistic teens and/or adults can’t legally consent to treatment of gender dysphoria, we can’t legally consent to the treatment of anything. We won’t be able to access any treatment or medication without approval from a responsible adult."
* "Jury Awards $4M to Trans Boy After School Denies Him Restroom Access:" https://www.advocate.com/transgender/2021/12/15/jury-awards-4m-trans-boy-after-school-denies-him-restroom-access
* "Uber Reportedly Blocked Trans Drivers’ Accounts For Being “Fraudulent”:" https://www.advocate.com/news/2021/12/15/uber-reportedly-blocked-trans-drivers-accounts-being-fraudulent
* CW: Elder Abuse. "How Nursing Homes Hide Profits While Residents Suffer:"
* "How do Outbreaks End? Vaccines and Recovery: Crash Course Outbreak Science #14:"
* "Debunking Anti-Vax: The Real History About Andrew Wakefield:"
* "Autopsy: Severe brain trauma in ex-NFL player who shot 6:" https://apnews.com/article/nfl-sports-health-shootings-football-15b2c553682a7d122dbbc0d1eb76731c
* "Fresh Express Announces Recall of Fresh Salad Products Due to Potential Health Risk:" https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/fresh-express-announces-recall-fresh-salad-products-due-potential-health-risk
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* "Chile Writes Its Constitution, Confronting Climate Change Head On:" https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/28/climate/chile-constitution-climate-change.html
* "‘Receding before our eyes:’ Vancouver Island glaciers likely to be all gone by mid-century:" https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/receding-before-our-eyes-vancouver-island-glaciers-likely-to-be-all-gone-by-mid-century
* "Super Typhoon Rai slams into the Philippines as rescue operations get underway:" https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/16/asia/super-typhoon-rai-philippines-intl-hnk/index.html
* CW: Dead Children. "Bouncy castle tragedy: Emotional police commissioner reveals 40 kids involved - NZ Herald:" https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/bouncy-castle-tragedy-emotional-police-commissioner-reveals-40-kids-involved/MNAAFFSSGHKDLTBUTYRMNR5ZOY/
* "Rebuilding tornado-ravaged Kentucky town could take years:" https://apnews.com/article/tornadoes-kentucky-weather-mayfield-d67943a53d55d95db354011b45bfd995
* "Hurricane Ida Recovery Reveals Climate Change Inequalities to Come:"
* "Entangled whale cannot be freed with newborn calf close by, ocean experts say:" https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/dec/15/entangled-whale-cannot-be-freed-newborn-calf
* "Archbishop Desmond Tutu dies at 90:" https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/26/africa/desmond-tutu-death-intl-hnk/index.html
* "Tributes pour in for anti-apartheid leader and LGBT+ ally Archbishop Desmond Tutu:" https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/12/26/desmond-tutu-death-lgbt-ally-anti-apartheid/
* "Harry M. Reid, pugnacious Senate majority leader, dies at 82:" https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/harry-reid-dead/2021/12/28/775787dc-43f9-11e8-bba2-0976a82b05a2_story.html
* "Queer Black Feminist Writer bell hooks Dies at 69:" https://www.advocate.com/people/2021/12/15/queer-black-feminist-writer-bell-hooks-dies-69
* "Joan Didion, peerless prose stylist, dies at 87:" https://www.politico.com/news/2021/12/23/joan-didion-dies-526068
* "'Dallas Buyers Club' director Jean-Marc Vallée dies:" https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/27/entertainment/jean-marc-vallee-obit/index.html
* "Princeton teaches Ge'ez for the first time:" https://classics.princeton.edu/department/news/princeton-teaches-geez-first-time
* "Sweden's Gavle Christmas goat torched... again:" https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-59696442
* "U.S. Warns Russia Not To Take Ukraine | Earth's Black Box Will Record Humanity's Demise:"
* "Meanwhile... Woman Seen Breastfeeding Her Cat On A Flight | Omicron (The Band) Is Not A Virus:"
* "Fox News Christmas Tree Fire Wasn't Politically Motivated | The Debt Ceiling Shouldn't Be A Thing:"
* ""He's Destroying His Legacy" - Scared Fox News Hosts Texted Mark Meadows During Capitol Attack:"
* "As Wrong As It Gets - Republicans Don't Want You To Know What Happened On Jan. 6th:"
* "GOP Says Covid Is Overhyped | Sheriff In Hot Water Over Pic Of Santa Getting A Gun Permit:"
* "On The Next Season Of Succession: Who Will Replace Chris Wallace?:"
* "Omicron Is Taking Over & Teachers Dash for Cash:" https://www.cc.com/video/srbo0b/the-daily-show-with-trevor-noah-omicron-is-taking-over-teachers-dash-for-cash
* "Mark Meadows Held in Contempt:" https://www.cc.com/video/piaqpv/the-daily-show-with-trevor-noah-mark-meadows-held-in-contempt
* "Dul-Sayin' - The History of Kwanzaa:" https://www.cc.com/video/lrx340/the-daily-show-with-trevor-noah-dul-sayin-the-history-of-kwanzaa
* "If You Don't Know, Now You Know - China's Africa Investments:" https://www.cc.com/video/xhwr8p/the-daily-show-with-trevor-noah-if-you-don-t-know-now-you-know-china-s-africa-investments
* "Man with Thong Mask & MLK's Family Calls for No Celebration:" https://www.cc.com/video/63uk0a/the-daily-show-with-trevor-noah-man-with-thong-mask-mlk-s-family-calls-for-no-celebration
* "Viral Clip Of Runaway Airport Luggage Is The Pixar Film We Needed | Seditionist Roundup Round Up:" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dxsJAbchko&list=PLiZxWe0ejyv8n24CSzVDLGdvDR1qCX6jY&index=2
* "Santa Song - SNL:"
* "Hotel Ad - SNL:"
* "The Global Warming Christmas Special - SNL:"
* "The Viral Cat Spreading All That Misinformation Has Been Found:"
* "Men Writing Women...Badly:"
* "Santa Is Packing Heat:"
* "The Hallmark Channel Presents: Frankenclaus:"
* "The Late Show Presents: A Conspiracy Carol:"
* "Colbert's "Lord of the Rings" Rap Celebrates 20 Years Of The Greatest Trilogy In Movie History:"
* Today I learned that Tumblr forcing me to look at the severed lady bits and buttocks from behind ad is significantly less disturbing than the dismembered anatomically correct torso, though still very do not want. I want to be clear that I don't judge people who buy these sex toys, I just think the images should be opt in.
* I've been thinking a lot about the Figure Skater, now choreographer, Kurt Browning. There were a lot of figure skaters I loved in his era, but there was something about him that really made him linger in my mind. I think that special something was that he fundamentally looked like he loved what he was doing. Oh, he definitely wanted to win, and he had bad skates like everything else, but that fundamental love was baked into his choreography, into his artistic expression, into the style of every element. It radiated out of him in interviews too.
The longer he skated both as an amateur and professional, the stronger his personal voice was in his work. He didn't always make choices to my taste. That happens when you have a strong and particular artistic voice. Still, I adored so many of his routines and even the ones that weren't for me were memorable.
At some point after he started to do choreography, some skater would come back from summer training completely transformed. They wouldn't be skating like him, but they would be skating with a new joy and with their own clear voice. They would have new routines that fit them like gloves, that helped them reach out to the audience, that gave them a particular magic they'd never had before. I would watch them and think "I wonder if they've been working with Kurt," and they almost invariably have.
What a beautifully gift to give the world.
I've no idea what he's like as a person beyond his public persona, but damned if he hasn't had a beautiful ripple effect in the world.
* So this is what's going on with me. My AS has been really terrible the last two months. It's hard to explain the level of debilitating too someone who's body works. To give yo and Idea of how hard basic stuff is, on the twenty third, it took me four hours to get dressed and do physio. My legs kept buckling as I shuffled about trying to do the bare minimum as far as feeding cats, fish, and myself. I literally scream from pain and nearly went over when I tried to feed Livia.
It's why the post schedule is so weird and I why I have...idk a couple weeks of link back log as of this writing. I am doing what I can, but even my high pain threshold ass can't make this work. The barometer has been yoyoing, and that generally just fucks me up.
So on the twenty forth, I was going to run out to grab a last minute thing before the store closed with the last of my EBT. Three hours for dressing and physio, two cats in cling mode. To give you an idea of the cling level, I was trying to put my shoe on, got as far as one sock and getting a shoe half on when Tavy leapt onto me and proceeded to nap in my arms. Me: Well I guess I'm doing lungs before instead of after the errand.
I was latter than I meant, but surely the shop was still open, right? We're a fairly secular college town. It is not that cold, but I step out to find flurries and a thin layer of snow on my car, though none sticking yet on the ground. I grew up with snow. the quality of the air and the look of the flurries told me they would be sticking soon. I figure I should be fine on a fifteen minute errand, but I'd been snowed in all weekend.
The temperature kept dropping noticeably; the snow was coming faster. Shop was closed. I likely would have made it if I'd fought Tavy over the shoes, but no matter. I'd guess I was gone five to seven minutes and it was brutal cold and coming down hard by the time I'd parked again. Squirrel had work and the driving was scary. I'd guess we got six inches, which is a lot in a town where the only people with snow tires either regularly commute over the Mountain pass or are skier/snowboarders. Our large town/small city has a snow plow, but they hit the big streets first, and generally the snow is melted before they get streets like ours, our worse the last three streets I lived on. My current street is an increasingly busy feeder instead of the true back streets I've always lived on between coming North and this place. Saturday it warmed up just enough for what little melted to freeze over after dark making it incredibly unsafe after. Squirrel was white as a sheet when he got home from work 7ish Sunday morning. It had snowed hard all night and my end of town the wind was so high it was blowing nearly horizontal. The cats sat in the window watching in fascination. It did that all day, i suspect, as it was still going past noon when I looked.
Luckily Squirrel didn't have work, and I don't leave the house unless all paths and streets are clear except for emergencies as I don't want to break anything or tear ligaments. The snow it utterly beautiful, but I'm someone finding the hobble to the bathroom challenging, and i don't want to go to the ER and spend a month laid up like last time.
Except the fire alarm kept going off. Nothing was on fire. I'd been trying to get him to change the battery in his detector for a couple of months, but he kept spacing it. I knew it wasn't mine as I changed them last... it was before I got my second shot end of March, so I'd say less than a year ago, but not by a lot. The little detectors are wired to the big ones. It went on for hours, waking people up, terrifying cats. I finally gave him a battery, because I had one, being exactly that sort of anal retentive and the chirping will drive me bats because of my sensory stuff. (I hate being caught without an emergency 9 volt). A couple hours passed, but I could hear it chirping in his room again and it went off again, because of course it did. He pulled it out, which the management company hates. his theory is it's old and the equipment needs replacing, so I guess I'm staying up to deal with them.
I am tired and everything hurts, and I've lost track of how long the aggregate posting gap is. I am sorry. It likely won't be any better until the weather evens out.
* Tuesday I went to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, flipped on a switch, and there was a flash of light and blue sparks. Attempts to flip the fuse elicited more of the same. This means no microwave, not bathroom or kitchen lights, no small appliances, no bathroom electricity at all. We suspect the wiring's fubared. squirrel is wondering if this it what was setting the fire alarms off. So I'm staying up to call iyt in, but i haven't much hope of a solution any time soon with snow and the holidays.
We've been waiting for nearly two years for them to connect squirrel's bathroom vent to the outside. They took three years not to fix a hole they put in my ceiling. I gave up and paid for fixing it myself. Who wants to bet they don't consider wiring burning in the walls an emergency?
* ...And We’re hosed. Even though the contracts said things inside the walls are them, they are making us pay for the wiring.
I have no idea how we’re going to manage it. I have no idea what it will cost even to get an estimate.
Bonus and extra 70.00 uncovered copay came in. Why the fuck not?
paypal.me/Gwydion
are there any lawyer friends/legal aid places that might remotely type up an official-sounding letter for free?
* FAQ: Everyone is asking some version of: "Are there any lawyer friends/legal aid places that might remotely type up an official-sounding letter for free?"
It’s not a stupid question at all. It is the one everyone asks and I’m well familiar with the process. It’s just an incredibly complicated answer.
Part 1: A decade ago, I could have called Law advocates downtown and they’d hook me up with a pro bono lawyer to help fairly quickly.
It all got centralized though and, which I found out the hard way last year. This means spending hours every morning trying to win through the log jam of panicky people from multiple counties with legal and housing emergencies to get one of a handful of coveted slots to speak to a screener down in Seattle. A tiny fraction of those get passed to lawyers. There are so few of them and so many people getting evicted or having sever health and safety issues with landlords, that I don’t have a lot of hope.
I will likely spend a few weeks doing this anyway in January. I know the hours are shorter because of the holidays for most things like this. I think they don’t take new calls Fridays anyway if I’m remembering last Winter-spring correctly.
Even if I win all the way through to a lawyer against incredibly steep odds, that’s months of legal wrangling and unlikely to be solved until spring at best. it also opens me to retribution so it’s a dangerous fucking gamble.
Part 2: I spent all day calling every social service and charity number I could think of, starting with my social worker and an agency who I dealt with before who fixed my plumbing two years ago. That agency is a few months to process even if they do let people double dip in the program which I’m not convinced they will do.
Up side here is if we do get this, they will likely rewire the whole apartment, as I am concerned that the other two dicey circuits will fail as well. the one that burnt out is the one I’ve had concerns about since I moved in, but living room circuit and another one that runs in to the bedrooms both have a lot of surprise outages and are now under more strain because the bathroom electricity/kitchen lights circuit is out. We had an outage of everything but the appliances between 10 and 11 this evening for example. So long shot, long time line, but in effect free unless I ever move out.
I also called a bunch of similar things and asked questions like “Is this only for 62 and older or does it also cover disabled adults over 50?” (Some social programs will wave an age restriction if you are disabled enough. again, I’m not sanguine, but I tried.)
My Social worker is calling around too. I’m medically fragile, a fall risk, and it is very cold outside. She’s making the correct argument that I could trip and fall in the dark and I can’t go to a warming center if it gets bad again as they are expecting it too outside because medically fragile in a pandemic. I’m okay right now with things like layering, insulation, het coming in from the hall and neighboring apartments, body heat, and the things that are on other circuits that aren't fried yet like the water heater/dishwasher/oven.
If we get another big drop like last weekend though? Not so much. I am from snow country originally and have protocols for if that happens.
If all the non-appliance circuits go, likely all you will see here is preprogrammed posting as it all goes, including internet. Yes, I have candles and battery lanterns. I just don’t own a gas generator. (I know the washer and dryer were checked at the beginning of the pandemic by honest contractors. I know the fridge/stove/dishwasher circuit got checked when we moved in. I can remember if those are the same or different circuits and I'm not going back into squirrel's to check. All that stuff gets heavy city inspection when they build. The crooked builder skimped everywhere else, but those are the least likely bits to be shoddily done if you follow).
Part 3: The least likely option is we somehow raise money to pay for the wiring fix and then go through the dispute process to get reimbursal. The Management company lady was not sanguine about my chances. The conversation left me with the impression that a lot of the wiring in the building is bad and they are making people living here pay to fix it themselves. idk.
The honest, reliable, and hard working father/son duo who the city hired to fix assorted things, but particularly plumbing two years ago, had an honest, reliable superhero sub-contractor that did electricals. I called them and asked for the electrician number. Alas, he retired last year and is irreplaceable. They did give me three numbers to replacement electricians.
I signed up with the best of them for him to come poke at it. It’s the holidays. A chunk of my small city/large town has no power due to last weekend’s storm. There is still a massive backlog of electrical work because of the flooding... was that November? Earlier this month? So many disasters this year, it all blurs a bit and what even is time. they will see what they can do.
Head Millennial is coming Thursday afternoon to see if we can string some temp lighting up so the bathroom is less risky, shift things around so I can use the smallest space heater, and get power to the beta fish tank heater, all of which will again, add more burden to at risk circuits, but I have to prioritize heat, light, and safety for myself and fish.
(There are also questions to be answered like: If we empty the tiny storage cabinet of specialized glassware and turn everything off but overhead lights, big tank heaters, and things like the router, can I run a heavy duty outdoor level power cord into the kitchen to use the microwave without blowing a fuse? This project would require a Millennial who can stand on a ladder, and has too many steps for me to do at this mobility level.)
Part 4: The security company responsible for fire suppression had a cancellation opening for Thursday morning. I am secretly hoping that when they plug in a new unit to the system they will discover a circuit flaw there that they will HAVE to fix as a fire hazard and it will solve the rest.
Squirrel is insistently hoping that the flaw is in or behind the panel and easily fixed by an electrician.
Wishful thinking though and best not to plan on it, so I am focusing on practical stuff like how to learn to live without non-major appliance power in the darkest parts of the Cat Asylum, and setting long term solutions in motion (See Parts One and Two).
You see why I’ve been short handing it. :)
* I am so used to normal blackouts that I am having a vaguely surreal time dealing with the current crisis. This is not a complaint, just an observation. The house we moved into just before I started high school was super prone to blackouts, just like the part of town where I've lived a majority of the time since I moved up here for third college, used to get regular black outs. The ones back East could be a day or two long, and happened a bunch of times in the November through December with such regularity, we all had assigned blackout chores in my family. We get little black outs here all the time, also most in November or December, but blackout season starts in October and runs until true spring. Most years we lose power all night at least once. Sometimes we have a good year or a bad year. Sometimes it's a day or two, but that's rare.
I'm that person with emergency candles and battery lanterns and black out contingency plans, so I have a battery lantern where I can grab it entering the bathroom with what light reaches from the living room. I have a stronger lamp set up further in that I can use the cheap light to find. (If the cheap light breaks it's not a big deal. I don't want to risk the expensive light where I can knock it off and break it easily or near water.) It a good spot to grab it if I need it in the kitchen. I'm basically living off stockpiled emergency vegetarian cup of soups because low mobility/low visibility stove top cooking is harder than it sounds because while I can navigate in there okay, it's hard to see details and the counters are in shadow. The range light and hood are dead, which means things like pasta aren't a good idea. I can make tea and cup of soups safely so it's that and cold foods and energy bars right now. I may branch out into stove top regular soup heating, but I can't walk away and sit down while I do that.
I desperately needed a bath so in the period Wednesday midday while I was waiting for return emails and phone calls, I took a bath. That's the surreal part. I've had power go out mid bath a bunch of times. I have a protocol for it. Turn off water (to save what hot water is left) and motor (so it doesn't turn on when the power does. I think there's a safety shut off when power goes out, but I don't want to chance it. Turn on the good emergency bathroom lantern (Stored where I can easily grope it in the dark, but where it's apt to stay safe from falls and water). Finish shampoo and rinse. Turn off any other switches that were on. Use the good emergency lantern to do last meds and set things up as far as bedroom emergency lighting for when I inevitable shamble out later to pee or if I'm unlucky and have to start the next meds cycle in the semi dark.
So water heater's on a dedicated circuit. So is my tub. I don't worry about either as they were city inspected at the beginning of the pandemic. It was so fucking weird to have hot water and the hydrotherapy motor going while bathing by light of a battery lantern. Did my head in, it did.
(Long term readers may remember the city buying me a new tub and my doctor managing to talk them into jets for my back and shoulders on medical grounds. These have been a life saver given how much my joints have deteriorated in the intervening twoish years. It was a whole saga that involved most of the plumbing and a bunch of appliances being replaced along with small stuff like us getting working exterior doorknobs).
Nearby Millenial has spiked hiking boots and lives a long block away in my old complex, so came for her shift. She also has a head lamp. (She's legally blind, but has low vision and walks around at night, so has things like a reflective safety vest and a powerful headlamp. She does chunk of her job by touch and she is very, very good as an Aid. Not kidding 10 out of 10). Picture her doing the dishes with her headlamp on. Picture us endlessly moving from dark to light flipping dead switches. She did a brilliant job today.
Still so fucking surreal to watch her doing it.
unless we are super super lucky in the morning, This will likely be how it is for weeks or months. If we are unlucky, this is our life now. I will get used to it, but it's strange.
It was just weird.
* "It's A Sweet Day For A Winter Wedding:" https://www.cakewrecks.com/home/2021/12/26/its-a-sweet-day-for-a-winter-wedding
* "Sunday Sweets: Your Holiday Happy Place:" https://www.cakewrecks.com/home/2021/12/19/sunday-sweets-your-holiday-happy-place
*****
* Full list of Resistance and charity links has been migrated to my profile as it was getting out of hand.
The help links are at the bottom under the cut.
* "Help Kevin Strickland After Wrongful Conviction:" https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-kevin-strickland-after-wrongful-conviction
* My Oldest Continuous friend's Elder Cat is getting up there and her special diet and health care for kidney failure is expensive. Gigi is a sweet, extremely cuddly girl and could use extra help. "Click here to show your support to Karrin Jackson's story *SupportGigiInHerOldAge:" https://www.spotfund.com/story/18393388-9914-4f6c-9f99-876aa019bdee
* Help LGBTQIA+ people escape Afghanistan: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-lgbtq-afghan-refugees-rebuild-their-lives
* "The Rainbow Railroad:" https://www.rainbowrailroad.org/take-action
* Organizations working for reproductive rights in Texas: https://minoanmiss.dreamwidth.org/796848.html
* Even more Organizations working for reproductive rights in Texas: https://wendelah1.dreamwidth.org/788132.html
* Want to help Kimi Cole run for statewide office in Nevada? https://secure.actblue.com/donate/kimi-cole-4-nevada-1
* I used all the bill money to fix my brakes. I need about 250.00-300 to cover bills for the month. Paypal Lethran@gmail.com or paypal.me/Gwydion
* Want to help get Rand Paul out of the senate? Support Charles Booker:" https://secure.actblue.com/donate/cb-ads-dd-google-senate-launch?source=ads_ms_CHB_20210701-DD-GS-SenateLaunch_brandedkw-Natl-1865U-MF_a003-CHB-cbfuss-gstxt-txt&gclid=Cj0KCQjwxJqHBhC4ARIsAChq4auMxkyB4EqbiJYINuvQfZwWndHRj6juSW_B_MPhbIc8BhM8dJPkZbEaArBaEALw_wcB
* Want to help Chris Jones against Sarah Huckabee sanders in Arkansas? https://secure.actblue.com/donate/chrisjonesar
* Chicksaw bead artist and cool person has Kiamichi Beading suitable for non-native sale: https://www.instagram.com/kiamichi_beading/
* My oldest continuous friend made this. "Echoes of Kyrill:" https://www.dmsguild.com/product/366097/Echoes-of-Kyrill
* Mutual Aid Link Round Up: https://laughingacademy.tumblr.com/post/645696532415447040/popss-great-big-mutual-aid-masterpost
* Want to help the Asian Community?
https://nymag.com/strategist/article/where-to-donate-to-help-asian-communities-2021.html
https://www.gofundme.com/c/act/stop-aapi-hate
https://www.advancingjustice-atlanta.org/
* Cat Rescue Fundraiser: https://gwydionmisha.tumblr.com/post/642429918533304320/design-a-tea-where-tea-leaves-dream-custom
* "The Midwest Immigration Bond Fund!:" https://secure.actblue.com/donate/midwestibf
* What to help fight for queer people in Africa? Try the Initiative Sankofa D’Afrique de l’Ouest www.ISDAO.org
* Organizations to help trans folk: https://gwydionmisha.tumblr.com/post/620857152453640195/about-us
* "How to Safely and Ethically Film Police Misconduct:" https://www.teenvogue.com/story/how-to-film-police-safely
* Master Post for how to help organizations fighting Police violence: https://gwydionmisha.tumblr.com/post/620861026680881152/oberynmartell-list-of-black-lives-matter-and
* How to donate to Doctors Without Borders: https://donate.doctorswithoutborders.org/onetime.cfm?source=ADD200U0U00&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=googlepaid&utm_content=brand&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIz8D9kYu46QIVqh6tBh2WogxQEAAYASAAEgK4FfD_BwE
* My oldest continuous friend's next project. "Goblingrief: A D&D 5e Adventure:" https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/482738549/goblingrief-a-dandd-5e-adventure?fbclid=IwAR0jBz9AdmIPSOk4KiCxiykxktX_ePCGTI0iCv9YFcnN2ENmdj5zna3LZnk
* Want to help Maxwell frost go to congress? https://secure.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/119806
* Want to help Val Demings unseat Marco Rubio? https://secure.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/117824
* Want to contribute to Morgan Harper's campaign? https://secure.actblue.com/donate/ads_ms_mh_gs_202109_dd_launch?source=ads_ms_MH_20210903-DD-GS-Launch-National_mhkywrds-Natl-1865U-MF_a003-MH-ad3-gstxt-txt&gclid=Cj0KCQjwqKuKBhCxARIsACf4XuGuQ_qm_8NW3mAhIySgB61jwTijPejfpvU6Gkt_JHp3b5YG4E75aWAaAhwTEALw_wcB
* Register to vote: https://vote.gov/
* A list of organizations to help you run for office: http://lovingmyselfishard.tumblr.com/post/167330144634/psst-hey
* The Indivisible guide exists to help you organize effective resistance: https://indivisible.org/
* Have something you want to tell your Congress Critters? If you can't safely 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.
Here is one that will send your reps a fax: https://resistbot.io/
* Help pay for cat food, litter, meds, medical copays: Paypal Lethran@gmail.com or paypal.me/Gwydion
* Birthday/Solstice master list: https://gwydion.dreamwidth.org/2108835.html
(no subject)
Date: 2021-12-30 02:16 pm (UTC)Speaking of the US: dear Americans, maybe this time, instead of wringing your hands and claiming there's nothing to be done about tornadoes, *build your homes out of something thicker than cardboard*. No more excuses. That's *not* normal. Here in Europe, foot-thick reinforced concrete walls are considered *shoddy construction*. No, really.
And yikes. Between your health and constant blackouts, your situation is scary. Best wishes.