October 30, 2021
Steven Donziger now in federal prison for his work against Chevron
After already serving 2 years house-arrest for a misdemeanor contempt of court charge, Donziger will now serve 6 months in prison. The charge stems from his refusal to hand over his cell phone and computer when Chevron demanded access to all of his confidential client communications. Donziger refused while appealing the request, and was charged with contempt of court. His term is by far the harshest sentence ever served by someone facing the same charge. Donziger explains his decisions and the events that occurred in his prior interview with Democracy Now from April 2021. [more inside]
"She settles on a diner in a small human town"
Three speculative stories about the logistical and emotional side effects of time travel and related phenomena. "Paradox" by Naomi Kritzer is heavier: "If you need to know you matter, don’t ask history, ask the people you matter to." "Cyclical" by Tanya Breshears (previously) is bittersweet and domestic: "A human's life is a rushing river: a moment, once lived, is rendered forever inaccessible, except by the poor substitute of human memory." "The Theory and Practice of Time Travel: A Syllabus" by David DeGraff is humorous: "Students will devise and perform experiments to test the nature of reality as long as there is minimal chance the experiment will destroy the universe. And no one dies. 3 credits."
The Secretary’s Legal Authority for Broad-Based Debt Cancellation
What Biden Can’t Do on Student Debt—and What He Won’t Do (New Yorker, web archive version): "The Debt Collective activists developed a theory: that the lawyers at the Department of Education had already written their memo, that they had advised Biden that he did have the authority to cancel debt [...] So Gokey, one of the organizers, submitted a request through the Freedom of Information Act. If a memo had already been drafted, then he asked the Department of Education to send it to him. On August 20th, he got the results: dozens of pages of e-mails among Department of Education officials, including a seven-page memo called 'The Secretary’s Legal Authority for Broad-Based Debt Cancellation.' The memo’s contents were redacted—in hot pink, for some reason—but it was proof that a memo existed."
Organic Grooves on Vinyl from High and Low, Near and Far
My Analog Journal's Youtube channel features guest mixes by DJs as well as those by its host Zag Erlat, a London based music producer. Usually shot from above to showcase the turntables and the record albums, Season 2's guests include Krishna Villar's set of Psychedelic Cumbia, Norsicaa's mix of Latin-influenced Southeast Asian singers, Westside MuzeeQ's exploration of 70s Indonesian Psych, Funk & Disco, Poly-Ritmo's deep dive into music from Guadeloupe, Martinique and Haiti, and Dona Carla's selection of funky Brazilian samba grooves from 1969 to 1984. All tracks time-stamped and labeled. Or if you prefer, go to the Soundcloud for just the audio. Submissions for guest mix slots are open at My Analog Journal.
Climate change good news: cutting methane in cow burps
A small dairy has been part of the first successful commercial trial for a novel way to reduce methane in cow burps by mixing seaweed into the cattle's feed. [more inside]
Clever, Those Salticidae
Spiders are much smarter than you think – Cognition researchers are discovering surprising capabilities among a group of itsy-bitsy arachnids, Betsy Mason, Knowable, 10/30/2021. Jumping spiders, champs of cognition whose brains fit on the head of a pin, exhibit signs of intelligence like dogs or human toddlers. “Jumping spiders are remarkably clever animals,” says visual ecologist Nathan Morehouse, who studies the spiders at the University of Cincinnati. “I always find it delightful when something like a humble jumping spider punctures our sense of biological superiority.”
"Imagine: Mr. Bean and capitalism had a child"
münecat takes on Gary Vee: The Youth Pastor of Capitalism, Why the UK’s "Fox News" Didn’t Work, How Tabloid Culture Vilifies Women & Gaslights Everyone, and the Sales Funnel of a TikTok Pick-Up Artist with humour, anger, and music.
Have You Not Heard of the File on BOFA?
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