| Time |
Event |
| 10:02a |
White House boosts fossil fuels
*White House boosts fossil fuels while speaking to the urgency of
climate threat.*
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| 10:02a |
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| 10:02a |
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| 10:02a |
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| 10:02a |
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| 10:02a |
How to really know a person
*How can you really get to know a person? Ask to see [per] loyalty cards.*
If I showed you mine, you'd get to know me well enough. I have only
one — from a chain which let me have it without my giving any
personal data. That is why I judge it is acceptable to use.
The Boston subways and buses would let me pay a reduced rate
because of my age, but then it would associate all my travel with
my name and personal data. No thanks!
if you asked to see what store apps I use, the answer would be even
more revealing: none at all. I refuse to carry a snoop-phone, so I
can't use phone apps. Anyway, I don't want to, since all those apps
are nonfree programs,
which means they are not worthy of trust. So I don't trust them to run on my computers.
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| 10:02a |
UK parties pledge not to increase taxes on rich
The UK's third major party, the Liberal Democrats, has joined the
other two in pledging not to increase taxes on rich people.
All three have now sworn not to do the only thing that would make it
possible to fix "broken Britain": bring more money into the treasury
from the people who can afford to pay it.
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| 10:02a |
Education systems to fit world with internet
Proposing to reshape education systems to better fit a world with an
internet.
The author's misguided perspective can be seen fro the fact
that he thinks that the number of startup companies (and thus billionaires)
measures success. But his points about education may be valid nonetheless.
But they may not remain valid. By 2060 there may be no internet,
because globalized manufacturing may have been wiped out by climate
disaster. We may need old methods of education once again.
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| 10:02a |
First president to march in union picket line
Robert Reich: Biden is now the first President of the United States to
march in a union picket line.
Next he should oppose the dooH niboR policies that, since 1980, have
systematically transferred Americans' wealth from the non-rich to the
rich.
I marched in a union picket line before Biden did, but I was only
president of the Free Software Foundation, not president of a
potentially great country.
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| 10:02a |
Calling for stronger pipeline safety rules
Calling for stronger pipeline safety rules in the US.
If the pipeline carries fossil fuel, we must include in its safety
risks not only the risk of a leak, but also the risk that the fuel
will not leak and instead be delivered and burnt as intended.
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| 10:02a |
Inheritance tax debate in the UK
*The inheritance tax debate we should really be having [in the UK]?
Whether to set it at 100%.*
That goes for other countries too.
I don't see a need for inheritance tax on the rich to be quite so
high. Surely 90% of large fortunes is enough to collect as taxes.
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| 10:02a |
Britons support rejoining the EU
Britons rallied to support rejoining the EU.
I predicted that leaving the EU could be beneficial if Corbyn were in charge
but would be disastrous with Tories in charge.
Rejoining the EU would be beneficial for Britain if plutocatists such
as Tories or Starmer-Labour will be in charge.
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| 10:02a |
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| 10:02a |
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| 10:02a |
We should borrow from other cultures
Yascha Mounk: *Should we borrow from other cultures? Of course we
should, just as we always have.*
The article explains how "cultural appropriation" has been applied to
situations in which real wrong was done — but the real wrong was
something else, and that concept was an invalid explanation of it.
*Instead of condemning appropriation, we should seek to build a society
in which members of every group are valued equally – and all are free
to draw inspiration from the cultures of their compatriots.*
To do that is a big challenge; but it will be a little less difficult
if we stop thinking that inequality and prejudice can be part of the solution.
See also Kwame Anthony Appiah's brilliant analysis.
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| 10:02a |
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| 10:02a |
Disney silent on issues such as gay rights
Disney has yielded to right-wing culture wars and plans to be s silent
about issues such as gay rights and racial equality.
Since the right-wing extremists will surely continue fighting to impose their
views on everyone, this is a setback for society.
Please keep in mind that Disney's commercial activities are fully based on
injustice: DRM,
identifying all customers,
and antisocializing contracts which demand users commit not to share copies,
Sharing is good and should be lawful.
Thus, the only modern copy of a Disney movie or TV program that does
not do you injustice is an unauthorized copy.
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| 10:02a |
FDA warns pharma companies about patents
The FDA warned pharma companies to stop lying about which drugs
are covered by their patents.
The patent system is basically a scheme to give big companies power
over markets. In the area of medicine, they enable pharma companies
to make medicines so expensive that most people who need them, even in
a "rich" country (one with a comparatively large fraction of rich
people), cannot afford them.
The companies argue for this power based on the expense of developing
and then testing the drugs. Indeed, those are expensive, and we can't
just wish those expenses away. But the development expenses are often
paid for by the government (as they should be) and yet the government
allows the company to seize the profit for itself. As for the
testing, giving pharma companies control over testing of medicines
enables them to corrupt it.
We should most definitely remove testing of the effects
of medicines from their hands.
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| 10:02a |
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| 10:02a |
Reality TV show contestants
* Reality TV show contestants are more like unpaid interns than
Hollywood stars.*
Exploitation of interns occurs in many fields of business.
When there is competitive pressure on people starting out on
careers, they are compelled to accept whatever form of hazing might
get them started. A need for an unpaid internship can really cut down
the candidate pool. Meanwhile, the candidate or per parents needs to
have money in order to support the internship. It becomes one of the
things that keeps the children of poor families out of good jobs.
But let's not forget that enabling the most capable young people
get the best jobs is only part of what is needed for a good society.
We need to enable everyone to have a decent life — which means,
the less capable don't get so much less than the more skilled.
Likewise, social mobility is not as important as giving everyone a
decent life. Social mobility is one of the ways the wealthy try to
convince most of society to settle for a chance of getting rich
rather than demanding a decent life.
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| 11:02a |
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| 11:02a |
Urgent: Please phone your congresscritter
US citizens: phone your congresscritter and convey this message.
My name is NAME, I am your constituent. Please reject any budget that
slashes Medicaid, and publicly oppose any plan to create a closed-door
commission to cut Social Security and Medicare.
The Capitol Switchboard number is
+1-202-224-3121.
If you phone, please spread the word!
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| 11:02a |
Urgent: Stop funding JBS meats
US citizens:
call on Citibank and BofA
to stop funding JBS Foods, because of its deforestation.
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| 11:02a |
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| 11:02a |
Unemployment as antidote to arrogance
Plutocrats want working-class people to have to try desperately to
find a job, so that they will
take a subservient attitude
towards their so-called "betters".
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| 11:02a |
Public spending: a rationale
*It’s a lie promoted by the right [wing] that state help saps
people
of their drive.*
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| 11:02a |
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| 11:02a |
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