June 23, 2020
It's iconic.
パワハラ防止法
Japan: Law to Prevent “Powa-Hara” (Power Harassment) Takes Effect
The amended act obligates employers to take measures to prevent power harassment, such as establishing a proper system for providing consultations for employees regarding power harassment followed by responses to their concerns. (Art. 30-2, para. 1.) The amended act also prohibits employers from punishing employees for filing power harassment complaints. (Art. 30-2, para. 2.)[more inside]
BlueLeaks: Distributed Denial of Secrets 269gb collection of police data
On June 19, 2020, Distributed Denial of Secrets (DDoSecrets), an alternative to Wikileaks (Columbia Journalism Review) that publishes caches of previously secret data, released a partially scrubbed 269 gigabytes of data obtained from a security breach at Netsential (Krebs on Security), a Houston-based web development firm. Over the weekend, critics of police abuse took to social media to celebrate the leak and display documents that purportedly came from it (ArsTechnica), using the #BlueLeaks hashtag on Twitter. [more inside]
Invoke ̶P̶r̶e̶j̶u̶d̶i̶c̶e̶
Wizards of the Coast is addressing racist stereotypes in Dungeons & Dragons [Polygon] “Dungeons & Dragons publisher Wizards of the Coast has acknowledged the existence of racist stereotypes in its sourcebooks, and pledged to make changes to ameliorate the issue. In a blog post published on June 17 titled “Diversity and Dungeons & Dragons,” Wizards of the Coast said that depicting a diverse array of human beings — beyond “fantasy versions of northern Europeans” — is “one of the explicit design goals of 5th edition D&D.” The developers noted that while they want to feature characters “who represent an array of ethnicities, gender identities, sexual orientations, and beliefs,” the game still contains problematic depictions of fantasy races. Among these races are the orcs, who are often characterized as a savage horde of creatures who lust for battle, and the drow, an evil dark-skinned subrace of elves who dwell in a subterranean matriarchy.” [more inside]
Blackwashing, Policy, And Social Media
Writing for the New York Times, columnist Kevin Roose discusses how social media companies make public proclamations about support for movements like Black Lives Matter while refusing to address the weaponization of their platforms to attack and undermine those movements. (SLNYT)
"It’s all these kids in the street that are inspiring the most hope"
I’ve always felt everybody has this moral, spiritual geography, emotional geography, inside themselves. You may live in Barcelona, but you can feel you’re related to Asbury Park, some place you may never go. But if a songwriter is writing well and is writing about the human condition, you’ll take them there. They’ll get there. We have our greatest audience overseas—I think two-thirds to more of our audience now is in Europe. People are still captured by and deeply interested in America, what’s going on here and the American myth. The American story is a worldwide story, and it continues to have tremendous power. Bruce Springsteen talks to David Brooks about his Playlist for the Trump Era [via Dave Pell] [more inside]
if you say ‘patients’ when you mean ‘genetically modified mice’
Just Says In Mice retweets headlines touting new studies with the important and oft-omitted modifier "IN MICE".
The explanation: "Reporting preliminary animal research out of context. Often the easiest way to fix it is appending a simple suffix: IN MICE."
An example: Neurobiologists Discover an “On/Off” Switch for Pain IN MICE
The explanation: "Reporting preliminary animal research out of context. Often the easiest way to fix it is appending a simple suffix: IN MICE."
An example: Neurobiologists Discover an “On/Off” Switch for Pain IN MICE
A Class Divided
The day after Martin Luther King, Jr. was killed, Jane Elliott, a teacher in a small, all-white Iowa town, divided her third-grade class into blue-eyed and brown-eyed groups and gave them a daring lesson in discrimination. This is the story of that lesson, its lasting impact on the children, and its enduring power 30 years later. [more inside]
A succinct cut on the situation at CHOP
"...as we enter the final act of this Shakespearean tragedy of errors, it seems few will emerge unscathed."
An extremely fair overview of the situation that led to CHOP, where it is now, and the tensions within the Seattle political apparatus that will shape what happens next
Roc Emerson Was Right and Carl Winslow Was Wrong
In 90s sitcoms with primarily white casts, cops are recurring characters. In sitcoms with primarily black casts during the same era, cops are recurring threats.
90s black sitcoms tried to warn us about how policing is carried out in America.
Stop hating jellyfish
Jellyfish are not a mindless menace. They are not an angry invading hoard. They are part of the ocean landscape. They provide food and safety for countless organisms. Our perception of jellyfish as war-mongering hoards poised to take over the oceans is in stark contrast to the boom-and-bust biology of their natural life cycle. We are not paying enough attention to the economically and ecologically valuable role of jellyfish in the world’s oceans. To counter the risks we’ve caused, we need first to rethink the tarnished image of the humble jellyfish. An essay from marine biologist Rebecca Helm in The Correspondent.
Non-Trump Corona virus news and analysis cont.
South Korea has second wave as Israel ponders second lockdown. African countries have created a market place to lower the cost of PPE and tests. In Himachal Pradesh a WhatsApp group is helping to inform remote communities and counter rumours. Saudia Arabia has banned international pilgrims from Hajj. Foreign Policy asks if Sweden's failure started far before the pandemic. Jair Bolsonaro ordered to wear mask in public. Europe is easing out of lockdown but rules differ across the bloc. French tracing app fails to engage. Ireland's health workers have the highest rate of covid in the world. In the global scramble for the coming vaccine how can distribution be fair? [more inside]
"Slow the testing down!"
Re-telling the Ramp Walk in Indie Folk Style
... So then I finish saluting my final salute, I said, “Thank goodness. Thank you very much.” Think of it. So essentially almost 600 times. Now the general says, “Sir, are you ready?” I said, “I’m ready General, where are we going now?” [more inside]
Open Democracy: Reinventing Popular Rule for the 21st Century
Politics Without Politicians - "The political scientist Hélène Landemore asks, If government is for the people, why can't the people do the governing?" (via) [more inside]
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