#189 February 1: How many times have you put down an argument by saying “Its just common sense?” I know I have! In the paper today, it was pointed out that this logic implies that those who disagree have no common sense and must be idiots. Researchers analyzed more than 4000 common sense claims and found that there was very little sense that was truly common. Using the “common sense claim” closes down a useful discussion. I’m guilty, I’ll try to refrain and try to understand others and state my opinion in less incendiary rhetoric.
#190 February 2: Yesterday’s coverage of Mark
Zuckerberg apologizing to parents for the dangers Facebook poses to teens was
pretty dramatic. Yet in Thursday’s paper
there was an article that said that less than 10% of parents use the parental
controls offered by social media companies. However, it was also pointed out
that the parental controls require multiple steps that are often difficult to
complete. I think we have opened a Pandora’s
Box that will require everyone, not just the companies and government
regulation to close.
#191 February 3: I’m always eager to learn new fund raising schemes. An ASPCA in NJ has come up with a good one that literally made me LOL! For $50 you can name a feral cat after your ex (or whoever pissed you off last) and have them neutered. The “Neuter your Ex” campaign (because some folks just shouldn’t breed!) has raised enough money to neuter 80 animals! They have decided to do it as an anti-Valentine fundraiser every year.
#192 February 4: I read two great contrasting articles this morning. In today’s paper a guy reports that his LG Smart washing machine uses the 4th most data in his home, accessing not only his personal data but photos! 3.5 Mg. I don’t usually subscribe to conspiracy theories, but maybe the Chinese are truly airing our dirty laundry! (Couldn’t resist!) Another article outlined a town in West Virginia’s Allegheny Mountains, Green Bank that houses the Green Bank Observatory. It has 141 people and is 3 square miles of the National Radio Quiet Zone (to enable the Observatory to listen to outer space). There is no Wi-Fi, cell service, or radio transmissions. Microwaves and electric toothbrushes are not allowed. All transactions are by cash and you must use a paper map to find the mountain trails, no GPS. Supposedly you can hear what the Earth sounded like before the buzz of human technology. 2/4
#193 February 5: Without getting too political,
Nikki Haley and Donald Trump often talk about taking or passing cognitive
tests. I ran across an article that
indicates that asking rulers to pass a fitness test is NOT a new thing. The difference was it was a physical test. In
ancient Egypt, (3000 BCE) in the 30th year of a ruler’s
reign, he was required to run and finish (not win) a race to prove he was
physically fit. Only a few lived long
enough to take the test at a Sed festival, and not all of them passed the test and
those who did not had to make way for younger rulers. Pharaohs were often obese consuming much
beer, wine, bread and honey and suffered from maladies related to in-breeding,
making physical tests a necessity. The image of Biden and Trump running a race,
(beside Nikki in high heels)… literally makes me LOL.
#194 February 6: I had never heard of an “atmospheric river” before last year. I’ve sort of wondered how they differ from our hurricanes here in the East. There was a good article in today’s paper that explained it so that I learned something. Like a hurricane, an atmospheric river moves tropical heat and moisture, often with storms and wind. But unlike a hurricane, it “flows like a river” rather than circulating around a dynamic low pressure. According to the article, they can occur most anywhere on earth. But I guess the east-west air currents and big expanse of the Pacific to our west coast makes them happen in California to Washington most likely.
#195 February 7: I found this very
clever. The Apollo 11 astronauts could
not buy life insurance because their mission was so dangerous. While they were in quarantine before the
mission they came up with a clever way to provide for their families should
they not return (and as it turned out even after they returned!). They signed “covers” or envelopes so that
their families would have autographs to sell.
In the 90’s they hit the memorabilia auctions and some sold for tens of
thousands of dollars. The crews of
Apollo 12-16 continued the tradition through 1972.
#196 February 8: For 65 million
years the Amazon has been the earth’s carbon “sink”. By 2050 it will change from a rainforest to savanna
grassland because of deforestation mainly though clear cutting. According to Bernardo Flores in a study in Nature, at the end of this process our
planet will reorganize itself, and find a new equilibrium. But humans and other species will have to
readapt to unpleasant conditions such as unbearable aridity or higher
temperatures. Welcome to global warming
and climate change!
#197 February 9. 81% of GenZ believe they can write a self help
book! That’s takes some audacity and
“chutzpah”! (Gen Z are folks 12-27 – my
granddaughters!! Lol – yep what teenager doesn’t think they know MUCH MORE than
their parents!! Lol). The percentage
goes down to 48% of millennials (ages 28-43, like my daughter, and just 28% of
boomers (me!). The inference according
to the survey is that the longer you live, the less wisdom you believe you have
to impart (so much for wise old owls!!).
Maybe Gen Z is so confident because their egos have not been punctured
yet. They don’t know what they don’t
know. You learn that on your first
“real” job!! With the push for more
emphasis on mental health, Gen Z does have a higher emotional vocabulary than
in past generations. With an explosion
of “self help” on social media, young people are more apt to give and take
advice vs. going to their parents and grandparents. Darn!
#198 February 10: I remember when we helped
settle some Polish refugees taking them to the grocery for the first time and
how almost paralyzed they became with all the choices in the grocery
store. The cereal aisle almost did them
in! I also used this analogy with
teachers and toys. Too many choices can
lead children to just clearing the shelves and not really playing with
anything. This came up with in the paper
in an article about Coca Cola and Dollar General reducing their different
products. Coke is removing the number of
products they produce (good by, Tab!) and DG is reducing the choices, for
instance instead of 6 different mayonnaises; they will only have 3 or 4. Kohl’s has also reduced the number of colors
of the same sweater they stock, and stresses a better organized store. Of course this allows them to have less waste
and discounts.
#199 February 11: I read somewhere that of events
that bring folks together in the US, Thanksgiving is tops followed by the Super
Bowl. What’s not to like about good
football, celebrities, and commercials?
We could hardly play bridge!
#200 February 12: : Super Bowl Flu has been coined as the cause of the least productive day of the year: the Monday after the Super Bowl! Suggestions have been to move the Super Bowl to the next weekend which is a 3 day weekend for President’s Day or moving it to Saturday, but TV viewership is better on Sunday. Getting better ratings equals more money for the NFL. I guess they don’t care about their advertisers losing money to the Super Bowl Flu! Between absenteeism and folks being less productive, about 1/3 of the workforce is affected
#201 February 13: Amache National Park is our newest one. It is near Granada Colorado and is the site of Japanese internment during WWII. National Park Service director Chuck Sams, noted that “while it is a dark chapter of injustice in our history, to heal and grow as a nation we need to reflect on past mistakes, make amends, and strive for a more perfect union.” This philosophy needs to be used on more of our history and mistakes!!
#202 February 15: Which brings me to another editorial about the “He Gets Us” commercial during the Super Bowl that is upsetting both liberals and conservatives (so it must be doing something right!!). These “Jesus commercials” have been airing for about a year and are produced by Come Near, a charitable organization who has among their prominent donors Catholic organizations and Hobby Lobby. Liberals found the commercial which featured culturally opposite characters (gay/priest; a woman in a hijab and a suburban mom, a white cop and young Black man) washing feet as Christ did on Maundy Thursday. Liberal and progressive critics criticized the group for spending money on pricey commercials rather than social services. While conservative detractors called it “too woke” with progressive tropes; they also pointed out that that the person on the ideological right was the one doing the foot washing (so they don’t want to be like Jesus?). They felt it was shallow. Then there were those who criticized it for promoting a “foot fetish”. OK some folks just have their minds in the gutter! Any short commercial that can get this many folks curious, engaged and talking is a success.
#203 February 16: Here is how men and women think
differently. I love to look at open
houses and today I noticed a cute bungalow with less than 1300 square feet and
contrasted it with a mansion in Eastover with 7000+ square feet. One was less than $500K the other over
$3.3M! When I showed them to my husband
his first comment was that it would cost you another ½ million to furnish the
big one, while I was thinking if you could afford the big one, you also could
afford a decorator and someone to clean it!
#204 February 17: I am glad I’m not famous. If you are famous, your private life becomes
public. While I understand that it is
important for General Austin, the Defense Secretary to let the President know
when he is incapacitated, but does the public need to know about his prostate
and bladder issues? And Fanni Willis was
romantically involved with one of her prosecutors. Do I really need to know about her dating
life? But would I feel the same way if
a) I was on the other side of the political divide or b) if the roles were
reversed and she was a man dating a new-hire?
Makes you think…. I also watched a biopic about Taylor Swift this week
and she had to convince several of her publicity handlers to “let” her endorse a
Democrat for Senator in Tennessee during the mid-terms. She felt she had to speak up against the
candidate who did not support the Protection for Women Act and who spoke openly
against LGBTQ folks. I guess with all of
the letters to the editor I have written, I’ll never be able to run for office
(thank goodness!)!!
#205 February 18: Red crowned and lilac crowned
parrots are on the verge of extinction in Mexico, but are flourishing and breeding
in LA. The conjecture is with abundant
irrigation in urban gardens, they are finding the vegetation and food they need
and with global warming, they are finding a compatible climate.
#206 February 19: And while we’re writing about birds… here is a 50 cent word: gynandromorphic! It is a phenomenon in birds, insects, crustaceans and a few other organisms where the creature has both male and female properties. It probably comes from a genetic anomaly. The article showed a beautiful blue and green honeycreeper seen in the wild in Colombia. The blue side indicates male coloring while the green is classic female coloring. When will we learn that nature puts gender on a spectrum; and that this normal and natural!
#207
February 20: I had never heard of a
“fundi baby voice”, but supposedly it is a “thing” among evangelical
women. It was referenced as the voice
used by Senator Katie Britt during the Republican response to the State of the
Union Address. It is breathy, childlike
and wavers between smiles and the verge of tears. I’ve heard it from Southern women all my life
(and probably used it, Bless my heart!) and never knew it had a name. It is meant to evoke submission.
#208 February 21: I was reading an article about
Cargill a consulting firm who works on making beef more sustainable and taste
better. They have bred cattle to have
more tender meat by letting consumers bring back steaks for some more tender
and then tracking them genetically. What
impressed me about their business philosophy is the marriage of sustainability
with consumer satisfaction. Respecting
what is important to the consumer is key.
If the public won’t buy it, it doesn’t matter how sustainable it
is. Interesting.
#209 February 22: Today is George Washington’s
Birthday. As the Father of our Country,
myths, folklore, abound in his history.
Here are a few interesting facts.
He contracted small pox on his only visit outside the mainland of North
America while visiting Barbados.
Obviously he survived, and his natural immunity that resulted from the
exposure was crucial during a smallpox epidemic during the Revolution.
#210 February 23: George Washington did NOT have wooden teeth, but did have false teeth made of ivory which when stained may have appeared wooden. And his chopping down a cherry tree with a birthday hatchet has never been verified. It appeared in Mason Locke Weems 5th edition of Washington’s biography. The book’s folksy style made it a best seller, capitalizing on Washington’s popularity after his death.
#211 February 24: This headline
grabbed my attention: “Climate change
and nuclear waste are a toxic stew”. Apparently the wildfires in Texas came
dangerously close to the Pantex nuclear weapons facility just outside of
Amarillo. The plant was shut down
briefly and workers scrambled to build a wildfire barrier. They feared a repeat of a disaster at Rocky
Flats near Denver when a fire there spewed plutonium and radioactive dust
across Denver and its suburbs in 1957.
Mother Nature will always have the last word.
#212 February 25: A group of us were talking about Pat Cothram losing her seat on the County Commission partially because of the bad press her daughter has received from switching political parties. Pat of course loves and supports her daughter, even though she contends that she is a Democrat and has no intention of ever leaving the party. What we all agreed on is that we would not want to be judged by the decisions of our daughters. All 4 of us had strong daughters that often take stands with which we don’t agree. That is the joy and danger of raising a strong woman. I guess the “sins of the fathers” has morphed to the “sins of our daughters”… lol
#213 February 26: There is a new NC Hall of
Fame…. For BBQ! Of the first 9
inductees, Dave and I have eaten at 3:
Stamey’s, Lexington, and Alston Bridges in Shelby. I guess we are due for 6 road trips!!
#214 February 27: Somehow I don’t
think it’s a coincidence that sports’ betting begins in NC the same week that
March Madness begins. I’m not a bettor,
though I don’t have a big problem with it.
What I do have a problem with is all of the commercials announcing it!!
There was even a plane carrying a banner over the Spectrum Center while it
hosts the first round of the NCAA games.
#215
February 28: Statisticians at George Mason University looked at voting
data from 2000 through 2019 and found that using mail-in ballots had no effect
on voter fraud, showing no statistical increase though mail in ballots have
increased especially with the pandemic coinciding with the 2020 election. In fact illegal voting accounts for less than
1 in 1,000,000 votes. Why are we so
worried and spending so much energy on this?
I think it’s a solution in search of a problem!
#216 February 29: Happy Leap Day! Here’s something I learned about Leap Day and Leap Years. There is an exception to Leap Years occurring every 4 years. There is no leap day/year in years evenly divided by 400. For instance 2000 did not have a leap day, but February 1900 did. How did the ancient Greeks and Romans figure this stuff out?
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