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Preparedness during COVID-19 lockdown
Public Service Announcement. April 1, 2020
During this frightening time of COVID-19 it is important to keep stocked up on essential supplies. Especially ammunition for your firearms. As part of your preparedness you should ensure that you have a minimum of two firearms for each member of your household. Discount multi-packs of firearms and ammunition are being made available during this time to make it easier for you be prepared. Various companies with manufacturing capability will be mobilized to increase our national manufacturing capacity to ensure sufficient firearms can be made available to everyone.
Starter Guns will be available which are sized just right for the little ones. The NRA offers discounts to those who can show proof of mental impairment or illness.
Please use firearms responsibly both during and after drinking. Remember, there is nothing to fear. Keep a minimum of one handgun always within arms length and be ready to draw it and begin shooting. Social distancing makes it easier to aim. It is important to protect yourself from the insidious threat of COVID-19 during these dangerous times.
<no-sarcasm>
The Department of Homeland Security has deemed gun shops as essential businesses to remain open even though clothing for newborn babies is not essential.
New York and other authorities have deemed liquor stores to be essential services.
</no-sarcasm>
Betsy De Vos, death penalty?
Anyone who has held a cabinet level office, and so egregiously fucked it up, as has Betsy "Amway" DeVos, deserves impeachment, excommunication, drawing and quartering, and getting a D, for effort. Sorry, not link, nothing new, just had to vent, seeing the bitch in the audience where Garth Broken ripped off hits of the Hippies, when Country Music was stupid and brain damaged, as in Dueling Banjos, which was actually between a hillbilly banjo (well played, btw), and a liberal guitar. So now, we need to forgive for-profit universities for fucking over their students, their faculty and the United States and the Funching World???? I think not. Let intellectual vengeance roll down like the might waters of justice, and may the DeVoses, and that Mercenary scumbag brother of hers, Erik Prince, both face justice before the proper tribunal. Oh, shit. Will American ever live up to the principles of justice it stood up for in the aftermath of WWII? Can American ever be the Shining City on the hill, that attracts immigrants with values, with liberty, with freedom and equality? Or will it only be a gig job at a Trump resort from here on out? Rome fell with more dignity, and, to be clear, with more outright honest corruption and imoluments. Tax the rich, they already are agreeing to give money to the poors, which pains them greatly, so you know they are afraid. Tax them till it hurts. Tax their estates, tax their wealth, and tax their intellects! Wait, that last one will not bring in much money, but, oh, the satisfaction!! !
I remember when this happened with the court of Polycrates, he raised taxes, and destroyed his own rule, sent Pythagoras to exile in Italia. Trump is even more stupid than Polycrates, and less charismatic.
Deeper Fakes (Updated)
NEW!: This AI Makes "Audio Deepfakes" (5m37s)
Neural Voice Puppetry: Audio-driven Facial Reenactment
Everybody Can Make DeepFakes Now! (6m55s)
Hyperparameter Tuning As Easy As 1-2-3
First Order Motion Model for Image Animation
Older video: This AI Makes The Mona Lisa Speak…And More! (4m22s)
Older video: This AI Makes Amazing DeepFakes…and More (4m48s)
The audio synthesis part might be more difficult, or the code is being deliberately held back.
Coronavirus is climate change, compressed
The coronavirus is climate change, compressed and distilled from many decades into the 7 months between now and the November elections. "Scientists", at least those who have the microphone, demand bold action with a huge economic cost to fend off predicted horrors. Even though the ultimate risk is uncertain, and society will disagree about the significance of any ill effects, public experts and their sycophants are boldly taking action to "flatten the curve" and reduce CO2, with little regard for people's economic livelihoods. Universities have been leading the charge and are among those who went the farthest onto this limb.
Essential science is missing: What fraction of infected people is asymptomatic and undiagnosed? Cooler heads are not prevailing and the only choice in November for people who decide that the CDC, governors, local politicians and "experts" jumped the gun will be Trump. If people think that the country was shut down for bad reasons, Democrats will have hell to pay.
Helen Branswell (Boston Globe 3/27, "What do we know about the coronavirus?") wrote that this essential scientific data is being collected in China, but for unknown reasons it hasn't been made public. China is not America's friend...
These are known as serology tests, and the WHO has been urging countries to do this work for weeks. It is unclear why China has not yet published data on these types of studies. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it is developing the tests."
[I am still journaling in private, but spending less time on the web, and may not have a chance to participate in any comments.]
One guy pukes on a plane, and everybody pukes
I forget what they call that, but you don't need a virus to prove it.
I read this guy's shit:
Sweden: Sweden has so far pursued the most liberal strategy in dealing with Covid19, which is based on two principles: Risk groups are protected and people with flu symptoms stay at home. "If you follow these two rules, there is no need for further measures, the effect of which is only marginal anyway," said chief epidemiologist Anders Tegnell. Social and economic life will continue normally. The big rush to hospitals has so far failed to materialize, Tegnell said.
German criminal and constitutional law expert Dr. Jessica Hamed argues that measures such as general curfews and contact bans are a massive and disproportionate encroachment on fundamental rights of freedom and are therefore presumably "all illegal".
The latest European monitoring report on overall mortality continues to show normal or below-average values in all countries and all age groups, but now with one exception: in the 65+ age group in Italy a currently increased overall mortality is predicted (so-called delay-adjusted z-score), which is, however, still below the values of the influenza waves of 2017 and 2018.
I would like to know if there is any factual dispute with the link.
Then, why not consider whether we are seeing an overreaction, or plain old sabotageee? Whatever the case, it cannot be disputed that the disaster is man made
Edit:
Since so many are bringing it up, freedom, as an issue, was not even remotely implied, in fact, it's offtopic. We are only trying to see who is telling the truth since the US federal government is completely whack.
The only real issue to deal with is mitigation, patient comfort and recovery, stopping bill collectors, and ensuring the flow of payroll. "Freedom" to roam the streets is bullshit. Shutting down Wall Street will prevent long term economic damage, well, it is a bit late, they already burned more trillions (and like coal mine fire, it is still burning) than what is in the trickle down "relief bill", but it will prevent further damage. But we already know that nobody cares, so why bother, right? This is part of the man made disaster. After it's over we will hear nothing but the need for cutbacks because of our debt to the stock market.
Edit 2:
So, Cuomo is becoming a standout. Can he replace Biden? If the democrats are interested in winning... Who is Tara Reade?
Edit 3:
On a scroll: ...comic relief package in American history -- twice as large as any...
Trump Approval Rating Goes Up During Coronavirus Crisis
President Trump's Job Approval Rating Up to 49%
Approval rating up five percentage points from prior poll
60% approve of president's response to COVID-19
Job approval higher among independents, Democrats
The data was collected from March 13 to March 22. Some gaffes were reported during this time but it might take another round of polling to measure any effect from those.
President Trump is as popular as he's ever been right now
Trump’s Reelection May Hinge On The Economy — And Coronavirus
A lot can go wrong for Trump, and even if the economy bounces back, a lot of local businesses could end up shuttered (say goodbye to comic book shops, many restaurants, movie theaters, gyms, real estate agents, etc). But he is riding high and the media has picked up on why:
The media must stop live-broadcasting Trump’s dangerous, destructive coronavirus briefings
Trump uses daily coronavirus briefings to replace campaign rallies
Are Trump's coronavirus briefings the new 2020 campaign rallies?
“They Are a Clown Show”: Media Orgs Wrestle With Covering Trump’s Campaign-Rally COVID-19 Briefings
CNN and MSNBC Staff Push Back on Airing Trump’s Coronavirus ‘Lies’
Trump’s White House coronavirus briefings draw ‘Bachelor,’ ‘MNF’ ratings
Trump’s Briefings Are a Ratings Hit. Should Networks Cover Them Live?
Trump Turns a Crisis Into His New Nightly TV Show
Trump's coronavirus briefings see big audiences. Some argue that's bad
Free press was helpful to Trump in 2016, when Hillary Clinton outspent him about 2-to-1.
Joe Biden Debuts His Own Briefing To Counter Donald Trump’s Daily Spotlight
Joe Biden found his footing — then coronavirus changed everything
The marketing blitz, though, is undermined by a Biden campaign that still seems unprepared for this moment. The jury-rigged television studio in the rec room of Biden’s house projects more like a home-movie production than a high-tech presidential campaign.
He gave his first speech — about COVID-19, of course — on Monday, amid confusion about when the remarks would start. Biden got out of sync with the teleprompter and lost his place. He called the governor of Massachusetts “Charlie Parker” (his last name is Baker).
That was the bad news. The good news was that viewership was limited. None of the major television stations carried it live. It both relieved and frustrated many backers of the former vice president. The operational glitches of the campaign right now make them cringe.
When low viewership is seen as a positive (because gaffes go unnoticed), you've got a problem. Reuters points out the effect on fundraising:
Biden battles for attention as coronavirus threatens to blunt Democrat's momentum
But when [Joe Biden] delivered the debut speech on Monday morning, major cable news networks broadcast New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s coronavirus briefing instead.
[...] Instead of the former vice president wrapping up the Democratic nomination, the coronavirus has taken attention away from the 2020 White House race and threatens to blunt Biden’s momentum by postponing state nominating elections and indefinitely halting in-person campaign events and fundraisers.
By contrast, Trump, who initially played down the virus’ impact, has used his daily televised White House briefings on the crisis to project optimism about getting the pandemic under control and grab media attention.
The turn of events frustrates Democrats who were eager to move past the nominating contest’s intraparty fighting. It is forcing the Biden campaign to recalibrate quickly to find new ways to connect with voters and donors and compete for attention as Trump leads the national response to the crisis.
“You’re not going to have high-dollar donor parties,” said Ed Rendell, the former Pennsylvania governor and Democratic National Committee chairman, who supports Biden. “That’s going to hurt.”
Trump can get free press as usual (for now), Biden's messaging can't seem to get the same traction, and you can kiss those $50,000-a-plate fundraiser dinners goodbye.
Some media outlets may stop giving Trump's daily briefings coverage, but that would hurt ratings and ad revenue. So history could repeat itself.
Wio Terminal
Raspberry Pi-Compatible Microcontroller Wio Terminal Arrives in April
Wio Terminal: ATSAMD51 Core with Realtek RTL8720DN BLE 5.0 & Wi-Fi 2.4G/5G Dev Board
This looks pretty interesting, and at a decent price.
I can't tell if the RTL8720DN supports the long range PHY (Bluetooth is a disaster).
Where's Fauci?
Zen 3 and Navi 2X: October?
something good come of the ̶d̶e̶m̶p̶a̶n̶i̶c̶ pandemic?
Professors worried students will share lectures with 'right wing sites'
Jon Street
Managing Editor
@JonStreet
on Mar 19, 2020 at 12:42 PM EDTProfessors across the country are expressing concern over courses being moved online as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
One professor expressed concern that "right wing sites" could expose what is being taught in college courses.Professors across the country are taking to social media to express their concern over being forced to deliver their course lectures online amid the coronavirus outbreak, sharing with each other tips on how to limit the number of people who are able to see what they're teaching students, and criticizing "right wing sites" and even Campus Reform, specifically.
Texas Christian University Associate Professor of Political Science Emily Farris tweeted Thursday, "if you are recording a lecture on anything controversial, be prepared for right wing sites to ask students to share it." Campus Reform reached out to Farris via Twitter Direct Messaging to allow her the opportunity to further explain her comments or to clarify. She later blocked the author of this article on Twitter.
LaSalle University Assistant Professor of Public Health Christen Rexing replied to Farris' tweet, asking why others could find topics such as "gun safety, women's health, elections, etc." to be "controversial, as they are "evidence-based."
"Seems like the flood gates could open," Rexing commented in response to courses moving online.
University of North Carolina political science graduate student Stephanie Shady also weighed in, saying, "Annnnd I just realized that the second half of my course focuses on public opinion towards and politicization of immigration. This will be interesting." Another user with the Twitter name "Prof CWO" replied "Sigh, I teach about white nationalism and this has been my biggest fear since we began transitioning to online instruction."
Columbia University political science professor Jeffrey Lax said he has been "thinking about" how students would be able to record classes.
Trinity College Associate Professor of Political Science Isaac Kamola who, as Campus Reform previously reported sought to hire a "Campus Reform Early Responder," specifically mentioned Campus Reform in his reply to Farris.
"If Campus Reform harasses you or someone you know, the best response is to 'follow the money.' Campus Reform receives $1.4 million from the Leadership Institute, a Koch-funded organization designed to delegitimize academics they consider too left. They are not a new [sic] source," Kamola tweeted.
A user whose website says they are a history professor at a "community college in North Texas" wrote, "I'm taking steps to limit this but nothing is foolproof."
Farris asked how Gunter was working to ensure her lectures are not made public, to which Gunter responded with one tip for her colleague.
"Instead of posting videos direct to LMS (which would then own them) I'm posting links to the videos on youtube. The videos themselves are 'unlisted' meaning you can't find them in a search or if you go to my page-only if you have the direct link. Doesn't stop link sharing though," Gunter said.
https://www.campusreform.org/?ID=14563
So, here I am, trying to wrap my head around the fact that liberals FEAR the possibility of the public learning what they are teaching. Does that make any sense at all? If I want to shape the world, wouldn't I WANT more people to hear the word, to understand my thoughts and goals, and hopefully to get on board with my agenda?
Instead, we have liberals who FEAR the idea that their thoughts might go viral.
Imagine that. We might suspect that liberal college professors are actually just propaganda indoctrination technicians. Brainwash the kids while they are young, before they develop critical thinking skills, right?
