| Time |
Event |
| 8:48p |
Thugs shot at Robert Adams as he ran
San Bernardino thugs got out of an unmarked car, and after a few seconds
started shooting at Robert Adams who had done nothing but run away. |
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| 8:48p |
Urgent: Call on the Senate to pass the assault weapons ban
US citizens: call on the Senate to pass the assault weapons ban.
People have criticized this proposed law for drawing the line in not
exactly the right place. Perhaps that is true — but it is a step in
the right direction, even if it doesn't end up in exactly the right
place. It includes a ban on selling large magazines, and that will
generally reduce the number killed in mass shootings.
Although most people killed by guns are killed by handguns,
that doesn't make this measure ineffective — only less than perfect.
The Capitol Switchboard number is +1-202-224-3121.
If you call, please spread the word! |
| 8:48p |
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| 8:48p |
China risks provoking a backlash over Taiwan
*By taunting the US ‘paper tiger’, China risks provoking a backlash over Taiwan.*
Neither the US nor China is engaging in uncalculated emotional
reaction. Both countries are pursuing their conflicting goals,
driven by the strategic logic.
China's rulers' goal is to conquer Taiwan; this is not speculation, it
is what they say. As long as that does not change, the idea of
"stabilizing" this confrontation for the long term is self-delusion
because China won't accept that as an outcome.
China's "reactions" to whatever happens are not spontaneous emotion.
They are planned actions by officials, aiming at the goal of
conquering Taiwan. Sometimes they go softer, sometimes harder, but
either way it is tactics.
One of China's tactics — China uses it because it is effective — is
to twist the US up in the contradiction between its "one China" policy
and treating Taiwan as independent. In the long run, that
contradiction will be debilitating; so if the US is to protect
Taiwan's independence, it must move away from the "one China" policy.
China will threaten to break off relations, etc.; the US must respond,
"We can't prevent you from doing that, but you'll hurt yourself more
than you hurt us." Then it must stand firm until China comes to face
facts. |
| 8:48p |
Reports of torture of male prisoners in Olenivka prison
Anna Vorosheva was a prisoner in Putin's Olenivka prison, and reports
on the torture done to male prisoners there. As for female prisoners,
they were not tortured but were treated degradingly in many ways.
The article excuses the Putin forces of setting off an explosion a
week ago, inside the prison, which killed around 50 prisoners.
If Putin keeps refusing investigators access, it will be his word
against the satellite photos; but refusing access is a reason to
disbelieve his word. |
| 8:48p |
Fake news about leftest Kenyan politician
* Special [UK Foreign Office] unit spread fake news about leftist
[Kenyan] politician, Oginga Odinga, seen as threat to British
interests in 1960s.* |
| 8:48p |
Ruling on refusing emergency contraception
A judge ruled that refusing to give Andrea Anderson emergency contraception
wasn't discrimination based on sex.
That conclusion makes sense to me: it didn't fall under the heading of
"discrimination" because there is no reason to believe the pharmacist
would have treated a male patient differently. In my view, it was an
injustice for the pharmacist to refuse to fill her prescription, but
it was a different kind of injustice.
There is something in the article I don't clearly understand. Did the
jury award Anderson $25k in damages (under some other rubric), or not?
If it did, that could be a very good outcome: perhaps sufficient to
convince those pharmacies not to let this happen again. But if so,
I'd like to understand the reasons for it. |
| 8:48p |
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| 8:48p |
Pearson to "allow" the "resell" of digital textbooks
Pearson plans to allow students to "resell" digital textbooks, but not
freely: they will have to pay Pearson for the privilege, and let
Pearson track them.
Pearson uses the term "NFT" to describe these plans, but that's a red
herring, as the article explains — a marketing buzzword that has been
stretched to fit.
There is no sign that these ebooks will avoid any of the injustices of
existing digital textbooks: DRM, surveillance,
and "jerkmaking" contracts where you commit to be a jerk by refusing
to share copies with others.
It is unethical to agree to such a contract; however, carrying it out
(supposing you have agreed to it) is even more unethical. The less
bad option, if you have agreed to such a thing, is to disregard it. |
| 8:48p |
Texas and federal government to fight over abortion as medical care
Texas and the federal government are headed for a fight where federal
guidelines call for an abortion as part of proper medical care for a
pregnant female with certain kinds of dangerous medical conditions,
but Texas says it is a crime. |
| 8:48p |
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| 8:48p |
Opposing the merger of Amazon and Roomba
Opposing the merger of Amazon and Roomba, on grounds of competition and
privacy.
With proper privacy laws, no privacy issue would arise from this merger.
A product such as the Roomba would not be allowed to send any data
to anyone about the owner or the use of the product. |
| 8:48p |
Smoke from wildfires
Smoke from wildfires harms people even thousands of miles away. A
small concentration harms a smaller number of people but isn't
harmless.
Since even wealthy people don't know how to protect themselves, we
should have programs that aim at protecting everyone. Or perhaps
everyone with asthma, if only people with asthma are particularly in
danger.
In the long run, we can expect wealthy people to pay for this
protection themselves, once we make sure they know what is needed. |
| 8:48p |
Urgent: Call on the Senate to pass the DISCLOSE Act
US citizens: call on the Senate to pass the DISCLOSE Act.
The Capitol Switchboard number is +1-202-224-3121.
If you call, please spread the word! |