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Post by mhbruin on Feb 23, 2023 8:58:35 GMT -8
A grenade thrown into a kitchen in France would result in Linoleum Blownapart.
Of Course He's a Member of the QOP? But Still, WTF??
An Alaska lawmaker has been censured after asking whether fatal child abuse could actually serve as a "benefit to society".
Alaska's House of Representatives voted 35-1 to censure Republican Rep. David Eastman on Wednesday.
Mr Eastman - who has a history of making controversial remarks - was the only dissenter.
His question arose during a Monday hearing where experts testified about the long-term effects of child abuse.
Mr Eastman asked the experts how they would respond to what he said was an argument that "in the case where child abuse is fatal, obviously it's not good for the child, but it's actually a benefit to society because there aren't needs for government services and whatnot over the whole course of that child's life?"
He added that some have made the argument the abuse could amount to a "cost savings" measure because the child would no longer need to rely on state government support.
"Did you say, 'a benefit for society?'" responded Trevor Storrs, the president and CEO of the Alaska Children's Trust.
"I'm not even sure how to answer that," Mr Storrs said, adding that the loss of a child was "unmeasurable" to a family and society.
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Post by mhbruin on Feb 23, 2023 8:59:45 GMT -8
What's the Charge, Spilling Paint?
Four people have been arrested after protesters painted the road outside the Russian Embassy in London in the colours of the Ukrainian flag.
Led by Donkeys covered a street in Kensington in yellow and blue paint ahead of the first anniversary of the war in Ukraine.
The group said it wanted to remind Russia's president of Ukraine's "right to self-determination".
The Met Police said three men and one woman remained in custody.
Led by Donkeys, which began in 2018 as an anti-Brexit group, said it had poured 170 litres of yellow paint on the eastbound carriageway of Bayswater Road and a similar amount of blue paint on the westbound side, with passing traffic then spreading the colours along the road.
Explaining the protest in a tweet, the group said: "Tomorrow is the first anniversary of Putin's imperialist invasion of Ukraine, an independent state and a people with every right to self-determination.
"The existence of a massive Ukrainian flag outside his embassy in London will serve to remind him of that."
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Post by mhbruin on Feb 23, 2023 9:01:45 GMT -8
Raise Your Hand If You Didn't Know That Almond Milk Doesn't Come From Cows
Soy, oat, almond and other drinks that bill themselves as “milk” can keep using the name, according to draft federal rules released Wednesday.
Food and Drug Administration officials issued guidance that says plant-based beverages don’t pretend to be from dairy animals — and that U.S. consumers aren’t confused by the difference.
Dairy producers for years have called for the FDA to crack down on plant-based drinks and other products that they say masquerade as animal-based foods and cloud the real meaning of “milk.”
Under the draft rules, the agency recommends that beverage makers label their products clearly by the plant source of the food, such as “soy milk” or “cashew milk.”
The rules also call for voluntary extra nutrition labels that note when the drinks have lower levels of nutrients than dairy milk, such as calcium, magnesium or vitamin D. They would continue to allow labels that note when plant-based drinks have higher levels. Fortified soy milk is the only plant-based food included in the dairy category of U.S. dietary guidelines because of its nutrient levels.
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Post by mhbruin on Feb 23, 2023 9:03:20 GMT -8
Just Like Previous Guy. I Wonder What Law Firm Wants to Defend Him.
A law firm that represented former Trump adviser Steve Bannon is suing him for nearly $500,000 in unpaid legal bills.
In a lawsuit filed last Friday in New York state court, the law firm Davidoff Hutcher & Citron alleges that Bannon has an outstanding bill of more than $480,000 for legal services it provided from around November 2020 through November 2022.
“This action simply seeks payment of an outstanding bill for legal services rendered in the amount of $480,487.87 in addition to scheduling a hearing on the reasonable attorneys’ fees DHC is contractually entitled to as the prevailing party in this litigation,” the firm's lawsuit says.
OTOH, It's What They Deserve For Working for a Scumbag Like Bannon
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Post by mhbruin on Feb 23, 2023 9:04:18 GMT -8
Contraption of the Day
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Post by mhbruin on Feb 23, 2023 9:05:20 GMT -8
Poor Vlad. Is Vlad Sad?
Overnight, the Ukrainian military produced its usual graphic showing Russian losses in the illegal invasion. Those losses include 708 men lost in 24 hours. That might seem extraordinary, but over the last month, such numbers have become absolutely typical as Russia has engaged in repeated fruitless attacks against well-defended positions.
What is astounding in the numbers reported for Wednesday is the hardware: 16 tanks, 24 APCs, and 7 artillery batteries were lost in a day. That’s amazing. How and where did Russia manage to render so many tons of armor into scrap?
The biggest news of the day may be simply how disappointed Vladimir Putin will be. Because in advance of the anniversary of his invasion, it appears his forces have delivered to him … nothing.
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Post by mhbruin on Feb 23, 2023 9:10:16 GMT -8
Pence Dreadful
Former Vice President Mike Pence is already a long shot to win the presidency in 2024, but thanks to some of the worst political calculations ever, his odds are decreasing by the day.
Appearing on CNBC's Squawk Box Wednesday, Pence sought to set himself apart on the issues of Social Security and Medicare. So as most Republicans do double back flips to reassure Americans they will not cut the wildly popular programs, Pence opted for political suicide.
“While I respect the speaker's commitment to take Social Security and Medicare off the table for the debt ceiling negotiations, we've gotta put 'em on the table in the long term," Pence explained.
Apparently He Thinks He Can Win Without Seniors or Women
Man: Are you thinking about what to do about abortion pills? Would you like to ban those?
Pence: To me, it’s … I’m pro-life, and I think that’s a real issue and it’s really dangerous. Really dangerous.
Man: I think you can ban them though, don’t you think?
Pence: Uh you can, and we need to. We need to. My daughter’s written a lot about it, she writes for The Daily Wire.
Man: Oh she does?
Pence: Look up Charlotte Pence Bond, she’s done a lot of really important writing on that topic.
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Post by mhbruin on Feb 23, 2023 9:14:16 GMT -8
Arizona AG Hid the Truth While He Lied
Arizona’s attorney general concealed records that debunked the claims of massive fraud in Maricopa County in the 2020 presidential election.
In April, the attorney general — who was running in the GOP primary for a U.S. Senate seat — released an “Interim Report” claiming that his office had discovered “serious vulnerabilities.” He left out edits from his own investigators refuting his assertions.
His office then compiled an “Election Review Summary” in September that systematically refuted accusations of widespread fraud and made clear that none of the complaining parties — from state lawmakers to self-styled “election integrity” groups — had presented any evidence to support their claims. Brnovich left office last month without releasing the summary.
That timeline emerges from documents released to The Post this week by Brnovich’s successor, Kris Mayes, a Democrat. She said she considered the taxpayer-funded investigation closed and, earlier this month, notified leaders on Maricopa County’s governing board that they were no longer in the state’s crosshairs.
The records show how Brnovich used his office to further claims about voting in Maricopa County that his own staff considered inaccurate. They suggest that his team privately disregarded fact checks provided by state investigators while publicly promoting incomplete accounts of the office’s work. The innuendo and inaccuracies, circulated not just in the far reaches of the internet but with the imprimatur of the state’s attorney general, helped make Arizona an epicenter of distrust in the democratic process, eroding confidence in the 2020 vote as well as in subsequent elections.
As for politicians like Sen. Wendy Rogers and Rep. Mark Finchem, who loudly claimed to have evidence of fraud and decried the stolen election? The ones who capitalized on their fake evidence to raise millions of dollars in donations?
They were silent when the time came to provide their proof to investigators, probably because it’s a crime to make a false report to a law enforcement agency.
As state and county election officials received death threats from across the country, Brnovich remained silent.
Even after he lost the primary, he remained silent about the findings of his investigators.
Count Maricopa County's elected officials among the disgusted, as they and their elections workers remain under attack.
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Post by mhbruin on Feb 23, 2023 9:15:50 GMT -8
While Red States Restrict Voting Rights ...
Minnesota’s legislature on Tuesday adopted House File 28, a bill termed Restore The Vote. It would grant ballot access to Minnesotans on parole or on probation, currently estimated to be roughly 50,000 people—though not to the more than 8,000 people in state prisons over a felony.
The legislature’s move on Tuesday sent the bill to Governor Tim Walz, a Democrat who has long supported this change. The bill’s lead sponsor, Bobby Joe Champion, the Democratic president of the Minnesota Senate, told Bolts he is certain Walz will sign it.
If and when he does, Minnesota would become the 25th state, plus Washington, D.C., to grant voting rights to anyone who is not presently incarcerated. (Maine, Vermont, and D.C., also allow anyone to vote from prison.) That milestone is the result of a rapid shift in blue-run states, with seven making this same move since 2018; North Carolina joined them last year due a court ruling that the GOP-held state supreme court may soon reverse.
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Post by mhbruin on Feb 23, 2023 9:17:38 GMT -8
Communists on the Mayflower?
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Post by mhbruin on Feb 23, 2023 9:20:00 GMT -8
It Looks Like Gov DeathSentence Wants Russia's Help in the 2024 Election
Chait quotes DeSantis’ position as articulated to a friendly audience this week on Fox & Friends:
–He described the Biden administration’s policy as a “blank check,” implying that his administration would restrict or end aide to Kyiv. (“Just saying it’s an open-ended blank check, that is not acceptable.”)
–He dismissed the notion that Russia poses a threat to American allies, interests, or values. (“It’s important to point out the fear of Russia going into NATO countries and all of that, and steamrolling that is not even coming close to happening. I think they’ve shown themselves to be a third-rate military power.”)
–He blamed the invasion not on Vladimir Putin but on Joe Biden. (“I don’t think any of this would have happened, but for the weakness that the president showed during his first year in office, culminating, of course, in the disastrous withdrawal in Afghanistan.”)
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Post by mhbruin on Feb 23, 2023 9:22:37 GMT -8
When Has the Government Ever Lied About the Safety of Water? We Can Trust them, Can't We?
The testing that Ohio authorities relied on to declare the municipal water in East Palestine safe to drink after a disastrous train derailment was funded by the railroad operator itself and did not initially comply with federal standards, HuffPost has learned.
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) on Wednesday afternoon announced that new testing from five wells that supply the town’s municipal drinking water “showed no evidence of contamination” after a Norfolk Southern freight train loaded with tons of hazardous materials derailed in the area on Feb. 3.
“With these tests results, Ohio EPA is confident that the municipal water is safe to drink,” DeWine’s office wrote in a news release.
On its web page about the derailment, Ohio Environmental Protection Agency links only to railroad-funded preliminary test results, which it said “so far confirm that … there is no indication of risk to East Palestine Public Water customers.”
The Columbiana County General Health District separately sampled East Palestine’s public water system last week. But as of Friday, the county’s testing results had not been made public. Laura Fauss, the public information officer for the Columbiana County General Health District, told HuffPost it did not receive preliminary results of its sampling from the lab until about 5 p.m. Wednesday — approximately two hours after the governor’s office sent out its water quality update.
DeWine’s office did not respond to HuffPost’s request for comment Friday, other than to send links to the governor’s press conference that day and the Ohio EPA website.
Although the drinking water in East Palestine may indeed be safe, as officials have repeatedly stressed in recent days, independent experts argue the initial batch of samples that a consulting firm hired by the rail company collected and submitted to the lab should not have been used to make such a determination. The lab report on the railroad-funded sampling indicates the samples were not handled in accordance with federal Environmental Protection Agency standards.
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Post by mhbruin on Feb 23, 2023 9:24:37 GMT -8
Let Then Eat Turnips
Shortages of salad and other vegetables in UK supermarkets could last up to a month, the environment secretary has said, as the government was accused of bringing the problem on itself by failing to support local growers and through Brexit policies.
Thérèse Coffey told parliament that the shortages could take some time to resolve, after Tesco, Asda, Aldi and Morrisons introduced limits on purchases of items including tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers owing to shortages partly caused by a cold spell in southern Spain and north Africa.
Responding to an urgent question about the empty shelves in supermarkets, Coffey said: “I’m led to believe by my officials, after discussion with industry and retailers, we anticipate this situation will last about another two to four weeks.
“It’s important that we try and make sure we get different sourcing options, and that’s why the [environment] department has already been in discussion with retailers, and why there will be further discussions led by ministers as well.”
During questioning, Coffey debated whether British consumers should switch to turnips and other seasonal vegetables.
She continued to blame the weather for the shortages despite MPs pointing out that European supermarkets appeared to have full shelves, as farmers in England warned that their polytunnels and greenhouses were at risk of going out of business because of the energy costs.
If Dr Oz Goes to the UK, Where Will He Go For His Crudite?
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Post by mhbruin on Feb 23, 2023 9:25:43 GMT -8
Somehow, I Don't Think DeathSentence Will Care
Florida college students are planning a statewide walkout Thursday in protest of recent education-related efforts by Gov. Ron DeSantis, including his policies targeting LGBTQ+ and people of color.
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Post by mhbruin on Feb 23, 2023 9:27:55 GMT -8
Here's a Group I Hope to JoinAllow me to introduce the next group of people who will be top 1 percenters. They may not be rich in income. Or wealth. But they will definitely be rich in years. The group? It will be the men and women (mostly women) who are at least 90 years old. Currently accounting for about 0.8% of our total population, the nonagenarians and centenarians will cross into the top 1% of our population sometime between 2031 and 2032, according to demographic projections. Even today, their numbers clock in at an impressive 2.7 million. That’s a lot of humans. It’s the equivalent of the entire city of Chicago, our third-largest city. It’s more than Houston (almost 2.4 million). It’s more than Dallas (1.3 million) and Austin (1 million) combined. It’s also more than Dallas and Fort Worth combined (2.3 million). But if you added Corpus Christi (321,000), you’d be nearly, but not quite, equal. You should also know that these figures aren’t pie-in-the-sky estimates. All of these people already exist. They were born long ago. Only two things will affect their numbers in the future. The big factor is whether their lives are longer, or shorter, than the demographers estimate. Becoming the new 1% is just the beginning. The 90-and-overs will continue to grow as a portion of our total population, reaching 2.1% by 2045, 2.4% by 2050, 2.9% by 2060 and 5.3% by 2100. 
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