September 27, 2021
Stop the (for real) steal
@ThePlumLineGS: Reforming the Electoral Count Act as a key safeguard against a future stolen election [ungated] - "Democrats should push for ECA reform, and I expect they will. But nothing will pass as long as the filibuster remains." (via; previously) [more inside]
What if it's all bullshit?
What if it's all bullshit? An academic philosopher ponders discrimination, failed COVID policies, and bullshit [more inside]
"Previous management used to pay people to write or create things."
True Genius: How to go from “the future of journalism” to a fire sale in a few short years (SLNiemanLab) [more inside]
Hi, my name is Phil and I like talking about politics
leather, gray suits, motorcycles, folding chairs, and queer history
Aphyr, a gay leatherman, writes a history of "the relationship between queer leather and the larger LGBTQ community" covering the first few decades of Pride celebrations. "I want to give fellow LGBTQ people—both kinky and vanilla—an understanding of the interplay of queer and leather communities, a grasp of how normative and radical forces interpreted and shaped the expression of Pride, and an appreciation for the people who worked to achieve the culture we have today. I hope that this history gives readers a framework for thinking about leather and Pride in a more nuanced way." Long enough that it's also available as an 89-page PDF or ePub. [more inside]
"Have Pity on Us, Let us Land"
The Skyluck Journals. "In 1979, the Skyluck carried 2,700 refugees fleeing Vietnam into the Hong Kong harbour, where they were forced to remain on board for more than four months. Andrew Nguyen and his family were among them. Forty years later, his mother's journals reveal their story."
"'By the late ‘70s, people were fleeing the country altogether because of lack of food and jobs. My parents were labelled co-conspirators of the previous government. But even talking about escaping could mean imprisonment.
Quietly, my parents started discussing how they would leave. My mom was worried we would die at sea. My dad looked at her, and replied with a firm sincerity, “We will go together. If we die, we die together.'”" [more inside]
we’re not actually above anyone. we’re not smarter than this.
“Being a fat lady and trying to do all the things that fat ladies are supposed to do took me right there,” Ms. Gordon said. “I’ve been doing all the things, and it’s not really producing the result that I’ve been promised for, you know, the majority of my life. And I’m also seeing other people who have been in search of that promise for the majority of their lives also not getting what they thought was going to happen. At a certain point, you kind of got to go, well, maybe it just doesn’t work.” Aubrey Gordon and Michael Hobbes spend each episode of their podcast "Maintenace Phase" exploring what they call the “wellness-industrial complex,” debunking health fads and nutritional advice. [archived link]
Scotland Is Now the First Country to Require LGBTQ+ History in Schools
The new curriculum will also incorporate queer topics into everyday learning. More info from scot.gov. [via]
What ho, I claim this house as sovereign property!
The new and perplexing vexations of sovereign citizens [NYTIMES] Sometimes I read an article about a social phenomenon that is completely perplexing. This is one of those times. And if you liked the coverage of incidents reviewed in book A Libertarian into a Bear and here, this story is DEFINITELY for you. [more inside]
Why America has a school bus driver shortage
~81% of districts reported not being able to find enough school bus drivers to fill their needs. TLDR: Driver demographic is particularly susceptible to Covid19. Poor pay. Rough schedule. Amazon! An answer: busses with stripper poles. From The Hustle.
The corrupt system behind US medical supply shortages
Today, with supply chains tangled in knots and shortages everywhere in the economy, it’s easy to blame what’s gone wrong merely on the disruptions caused by Covid. Indeed, David Frum at the Atlantic is the latest to mock the idea that there is something wrong with our markets that set us up with a fragile system. Frum criticized the new approach to concentration as taking us back to the 1970s. Pursuing ‘resiliency’ translates in “plainer English as higher taxes and higher prices.” Instead, he suggests that we should, in the face of inflation and shortages, “do nothing,” because the immutable laws of supply and demand will work themselves out. There are a couple of reasons that dismissive attitude doesn’t make sense. Matt Stoller's newsletter, Big, explains how a buying cartel has controlled US medical supplies for 25 years.
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