OMG 😂😂😂
— Leah (@leahvallee) December 3, 2021
Who did this??? pic.twitter.com/TvnKMmJLGj
Dec 3, 2021
COVID-19 Update
A hundred years ago, Radium Water was all the rage. Then there was x-ray imaging for fitting shoes, and eventually we got to pet rocks, and mood rings, and now we're learning about - Magic Dirt.
The social media posts started in May: photos and videos of smiling people, mostly women, drinking Mason jars of black liquid, slathering black paste on their faces and feet, or dipping babies and dogs in tubs of the black water. They tagged the posts #BOO and linked to a website that sold a product called Black Oxygen Organics.
Black Oxygen Organics, or “BOO” for short, is difficult to classify. It was marketed as fulvic acid, a compound derived from decayed plants, that was dug up from an Ontario peat bog. The website of the Canadian company that sold it billed it as “the end product and smallest particle of the decomposition of ancient, organic matter.”
Put more simply, the product is dirt — four-and-a-half ounces of it, sealed in a sleek black plastic baggie and sold for $110 plus shipping. Visitors to the Black Oxygen Organics website, recently taken offline, were greeted with a pair of white hands cradling cups of dirt like an offering. “A gift from the Ground,” it reads. “Drink it. Wear it. Bathe in it.”
BOO, which “can be taken by anyone at any age, as well as animals,” according to the company, claims many benefits and uses, including improved brain function and heart health, and ridding the body of so-called toxins that include heavy metals, pesticides and parasites.
By the end of the summer, online ads for BOO had made their way to millions of people within the internet subcultures that embrace fringe supplements, including the mixed martial arts community, anti-vaccine and Covid-denier groups, and finally more general alternative health and fake cure spaces.
And people seemed to be buying; parts of TikTok and Instagram were flooded with #BOO posts. The businessman behind Black Oxygen Organics has been selling mud in various forms for 25 years now, but BOO sold in amounts that surprised even its own executives, according to videos of company meetings viewed by NBC News.
The stars appeared aligned for it. A pandemic marked by unprecedented and politicized misinformation has spurred a revival in wonder cures. Well-connected Facebook groups of alternative health seekers and vaccine skeptics provided an audience and eager customer base for a new kind of medicine show. And the too-good-to-be-true testimonials posted to social media attracted a wave of direct sellers, many of them women dipping their toes into the often unprofitable world of multilevel marketing for the first time.
But success came at a price. Canadian and U.S. health regulators have cracked down on BOO in recent months, initiating recalls and product holds at the border, respectively. And just as an online army of fans powered BOO’s success, an oppositional force of online skeptics threatened to shut it down.
Just before Thanksgiving, the company announced in an email it was closing up shop for good. Sellers packed video calls mourning the death of their miracle cure, railing against executives who had taken their money and seemingly run, and wondering how they might recoup the thousands of dollars they paid for BOO that never arrived.
The announcement was the apparent end of one of the most haltingly successful companies to ride a wave of interest in online and directly sold alternative medicines — immunity-boosting oils, supplements, herbs, elixirs and so-called superfoods that, despite widespread concerns over their efficacy and safety, make up a lightly regulated, multibillion-dollar industry.
In a world where consumers flock to alternative health products, BOO seemed to provide an answer to the question: Just how far are people willing to dig to find their miracle cure?
Of course the anti-vax rubes lapped it up as the latest in the parade of bullshit fantasies about how the medicos and the media are suppressing all this "lost wisdom of the ancients", and if they just remove all that gubmint interference, we'd be done with COVID tomorrow and blah blah blah...
Anybody still wondering why I call this place The Stoopid Country?
Magic dirt': How the internet fueled, and defeated, the pandemic's weirdest MLM
Black Oxygen Organics became a sudden hit in the fringe world of alternative medicines and supplements, where even dirt can go for $110 a bag.
Magic dirt': How the internet fueled, and defeated, the pandemic's weirdest MLM
Black Oxygen Organics became a sudden hit in the fringe world of alternative medicines and supplements, where even dirt can go for $110 a bag.
The social media posts started in May: photos and videos of smiling people, mostly women, drinking Mason jars of black liquid, slathering black paste on their faces and feet, or dipping babies and dogs in tubs of the black water. They tagged the posts #BOO and linked to a website that sold a product called Black Oxygen Organics.
Black Oxygen Organics, or “BOO” for short, is difficult to classify. It was marketed as fulvic acid, a compound derived from decayed plants, that was dug up from an Ontario peat bog. The website of the Canadian company that sold it billed it as “the end product and smallest particle of the decomposition of ancient, organic matter.”
Put more simply, the product is dirt — four-and-a-half ounces of it, sealed in a sleek black plastic baggie and sold for $110 plus shipping. Visitors to the Black Oxygen Organics website, recently taken offline, were greeted with a pair of white hands cradling cups of dirt like an offering. “A gift from the Ground,” it reads. “Drink it. Wear it. Bathe in it.”
BOO, which “can be taken by anyone at any age, as well as animals,” according to the company, claims many benefits and uses, including improved brain function and heart health, and ridding the body of so-called toxins that include heavy metals, pesticides and parasites.
By the end of the summer, online ads for BOO had made their way to millions of people within the internet subcultures that embrace fringe supplements, including the mixed martial arts community, anti-vaccine and Covid-denier groups, and finally more general alternative health and fake cure spaces.
And people seemed to be buying; parts of TikTok and Instagram were flooded with #BOO posts. The businessman behind Black Oxygen Organics has been selling mud in various forms for 25 years now, but BOO sold in amounts that surprised even its own executives, according to videos of company meetings viewed by NBC News.
The stars appeared aligned for it. A pandemic marked by unprecedented and politicized misinformation has spurred a revival in wonder cures. Well-connected Facebook groups of alternative health seekers and vaccine skeptics provided an audience and eager customer base for a new kind of medicine show. And the too-good-to-be-true testimonials posted to social media attracted a wave of direct sellers, many of them women dipping their toes into the often unprofitable world of multilevel marketing for the first time.
But success came at a price. Canadian and U.S. health regulators have cracked down on BOO in recent months, initiating recalls and product holds at the border, respectively. And just as an online army of fans powered BOO’s success, an oppositional force of online skeptics threatened to shut it down.
Just before Thanksgiving, the company announced in an email it was closing up shop for good. Sellers packed video calls mourning the death of their miracle cure, railing against executives who had taken their money and seemingly run, and wondering how they might recoup the thousands of dollars they paid for BOO that never arrived.
The announcement was the apparent end of one of the most haltingly successful companies to ride a wave of interest in online and directly sold alternative medicines — immunity-boosting oils, supplements, herbs, elixirs and so-called superfoods that, despite widespread concerns over their efficacy and safety, make up a lightly regulated, multibillion-dollar industry.
In a world where consumers flock to alternative health products, BOO seemed to provide an answer to the question: Just how far are people willing to dig to find their miracle cure?
The piece goes on to describe an obvious cult-like obsession on the part of Facebook groups and the MLM sales pyramids.
for every problem that's
complicated and difficult and gnarly,
there's a solution that's
simple and elegant and wrong
Tonight's Tonight
Tonight, we observe Bummernacht - the end of the last day Frank Zappa refused to die.
Tomorrow begins Zappadan, culminating in the Feast Of Frank on December 21st.
Happy Zappadan, everybody!
Expect miracles
Dec 2, 2021
Today's Tweet
Half the citizenry will soon be demoted back to 2nd class status because Americans would rather be Good Germans.
Amy Coney Barrett's comments today about pregnant women were horrific and she was in the position to say them (in part) because of the:
— Don Winslow (@donwinslow) December 2, 2021
Don't be alarmed crowd
Because of the stay home and not vote crowd
Because of the protest vote crowd.
And because of the "no Hillary" crowd.
On SCOTUS
If you give government the power to prohibit abortion, then you give government the power to mandate abortion.
Democratic state lawmakers want to ensure abortion access remains legal in Colorado even if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade.
On the day the Supreme Court heard arguments over a Mississippi law that bans abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, a group of state legislators signed a proclamation to uphold Coloradans’ rights to abortion. They plan to introduce a bill next year codifying abortion rights into state law.
“Coloradans have affirmed over and over again that politics has no place in private medical decisions that belong between a pregnant person, their family and their provider,” Rep. Meg Froelich, a Democrat from Englewood, said in a news release. “Four times we have rejected political attempts to ban abortion on the ballot. It’s time to stop playing defense and move Colorado beyond the bans.”
- snip -
While Colorado has no state laws restricting access to abortion, it also doesn’t have laws protecting that access, said Laura Chapin, spokesperson for Colorado abortion rights and advocacy group Cobalt.
Colorado was the first state to liberalize abortion in 1967. Previously, advocates resisted passing legislation to affirm the right to abortion in the state, worrying doing so could become an organizing tool for those on the right. But now they say Colorado must act.
“We’re looking at a proactive bill to protect abortion access here in Colorado because, clearly, the courts are not going to protect us anymore,” Chapin said in an interview.
With a Democratic-controlled state legislature and governor’s office, bills to restrict or ban abortion in Colorado — such as the “Protect Life at Human Conception” bill — have not been able to move forward.
Don't dismiss that as a wild hypothetical.
And don't try to make the case that China is some kind of outlier. Governments have gone round-n-round on this for 40,000 years, and you don't have to go far to find authoritarian assholes who just want power. They look to control women as a way to fragment the population, which makes it harder for people to band together so they can stand up against the Daddy State.
This is, and always has been, a question of an individual's right to autonomy.
And, as always, it's about where we draw the line.
The Thomas Court (Roberts is "Chief Justice" in name only) is all but locked in on gutting Roe v Wade.
I imagine they'll try to sell it as something short of a full overturning - prob'ly because the wingnuts will bitch about how SCOTUS didn't go far enough no matter what happens - but it promises to be just like SCOTUS killing the Voting Rights Act simply by shit-canning the part that made the states play nice. Which of course triggered all of the shitty things states are doing now to squelch the vote.
So a coupla dozen states will probably spring into action and pass laws either restricting or outlawing abortion almost immediately if the Court guts Roe v Wade, while certain others say they're ready to go the other way.
DenPo: (pay wall)
Democratic state lawmakers want to ensure abortion access remains legal in Colorado even if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade.
On the day the Supreme Court heard arguments over a Mississippi law that bans abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, a group of state legislators signed a proclamation to uphold Coloradans’ rights to abortion. They plan to introduce a bill next year codifying abortion rights into state law.
“Coloradans have affirmed over and over again that politics has no place in private medical decisions that belong between a pregnant person, their family and their provider,” Rep. Meg Froelich, a Democrat from Englewood, said in a news release. “Four times we have rejected political attempts to ban abortion on the ballot. It’s time to stop playing defense and move Colorado beyond the bans.”
- snip -
While Colorado has no state laws restricting access to abortion, it also doesn’t have laws protecting that access, said Laura Chapin, spokesperson for Colorado abortion rights and advocacy group Cobalt.
Colorado was the first state to liberalize abortion in 1967. Previously, advocates resisted passing legislation to affirm the right to abortion in the state, worrying doing so could become an organizing tool for those on the right. But now they say Colorado must act.
“We’re looking at a proactive bill to protect abortion access here in Colorado because, clearly, the courts are not going to protect us anymore,” Chapin said in an interview.
With a Democratic-controlled state legislature and governor’s office, bills to restrict or ban abortion in Colorado — such as the “Protect Life at Human Conception” bill — have not been able to move forward.
COVID-19 Update
WaPo: (freebie)
The patient had mild symptoms that were improving and was in isolation, officials said.
Much remains unknown about the highly mutated variant, which scientists fear could be more transmissible and more resistant to vaccines. The new variant has been identified in more than 20 countries since it was first identified in southern Africa last week.
Post reporters answered your questions about the omicron variant
Here’s what to know
- World health officials criticized blanket travel bans on those coming from southern African nations, saying they will be ineffective against the spread of the omicron variant.
- Anthony S. Fauci, the country’s top infectious-disease expert, said the Biden administration is preparing for a possible “variant-specific boost” of vaccinations.
- President Donald Trump tested positive for the coronavirus days before he shared the debate stage with then-nominee Joe Biden in September 2020, according to his former chief of staff.
The new Omicron variant has been detected in a vaccinated Minnesota resident with recent travel history to New York City, the Minnesota Department of Health said in a statement.
Driving the news:
- The confirmed case involved a patient who developed mild symptoms on Nov. 22 and got a COVID-19 test on Nov. 24, per MDH. He is no longer experiencing symptoms.
State of play:
- The Minnesota case comes one day after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed the United States' first known case of the variant.
- Omicron cases have also been confirmed across Europe, Canada, Israel, Hong Kong and Australia, among other countries, since the variant was first identified by scientists in South Africa last month.
Dec 1, 2021
A Routine American Tragedy
WaPo: (pay wall)
Authorities are investigating what caused a student to allegedly turn a pistol on his classmates at a Michigan high school, leaving three people dead and eight others injured Tuesday as a small town is left to grapple with what has become a routine American tragedy.
The suspected gunman, who has not been named by authorities, is a 15-year-old sophomore at Oxford High School who attended class before he began shooting, officials said. It remains unclear how he obtained the gun allegedly used to fire 15 to 20 shots.
Officials said a motive also remains unknown for what appears to be the deadliest episode of on-campus violence in more than 18 months, while instruction shifted online during the coronavirus pandemic and school shootings largely dropped out of headlines.
The gun taken from the suspect, a 9mm pistol with 15-round magazines, was purchased by the suspect’s father last week, four days before the shooting, according to Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard.
The suspect, who was booked into jail as a juvenile but could be tried as an adult, did not resist when he was arrested, and is not cooperating with the investigation, authorities said. About 300 law enforcement and emergency management personnel from two dozen agencies, including the FBI, responded to the scene, the sheriff’s office said.
It is illegal under Michigan laws for someone younger than 18 to possess a gun in public in the state. In schools, it is illegal to carry a concealed gun, and some school districts in the state also ban open carry.
The three people killed were all students at the school, the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office said, identifying them as 14-year-old Hana St. Juliana, 17-year-old Madisyn Baldwin and 16-year-old Tate Myre, who died in a patrol car while sheriff deputies were taking him to a hospital.
Seven of the injured were students between the ages of 14 and 17. Of those students, three were in critical condition at a hospital, the sheriff’s office said. A teacher, 47, was shot in the shoulder and discharged from a hospital.
A spokesperson for St. Joseph Mercy Oakland, where the sheriff’s office said a 17-year-old female in critical condition was taken in the aftermath of the shooting, told The Washington Post early Wednesday that the hospital is treating one patient, and that the patient is in stable condition, but it would not release identifying information about the patient due to privacy concerns.
Oakland County Undersheriff Mike McCabe would not say whether the suspect had made threats leading up to the shooting, but he said the possibility is part of the police investigation.
According to Giffords Law Center, a gun violence-prevention group that publishes information about gun laws, Michigan ranks 20th in the nation for states with the strongest gun laws.
“Michigan laws are certainly not the weakest in the country, but they could be a lot stronger,” Allison Anderman, the center’s senior counsel, said in an interview Tuesday night.
Anderman noted that school shootings are still exceptionally rare compared with other types of shootings. Yet in most school shootings, the weapon is a firearm left unsecured in the home.
Since 2018, when 17 people were killed during a shooting at a Parkland, Fla., high school, many states have passed legislation making it more difficult for children to access firearms.
Eleven states have laws concerning firearm-locking devices, including Michigan, in an attempt to reduce the risk of guns falling into the hands of children or criminals, according to Giffords Law Center. Michigan does not require firearm owners to lock their weapons.
Many of Oxford High School’s 1,800 students are now grappling with “what ifs” in the aftermath of the shooting in this quiet town that is home to 22,000 people. When a bullet pierced the door of an AP statistics class, senior Kristina Myers said she and her classmates began piling desks in front of the door and passing out calculators to potentially throw at the gunman should he enter the room.
“If my teacher didn’t close the door when she did, our class would have been dead. I know that for a fact,” she said.
COVID-19 Update
Starting to look like the winter wave is already here.
There's a fair probability that we'll be at 800,000 dead Americans before the end of December.
WaPo: (freebie)
The United States is preparing to require all inbound international travelers to be tested for the coronavirus one day before departure, regardless of vaccination status, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said late Tuesday.
The Biden administration is also considering a requirement for a second test within three to five days of arrival, and possibly requiring travelers to quarantine for seven days — precautions that have been enacted in other countries but would be a first in the United States at the federal level.
The World Health Organization warned Tuesday that in light of the omicron variant, people who are not fully vaccinated or have not recovered from covid-19, as well as people age 60 or older and those at high risk of severe illness from covid-19, should postpone travel to places where the virus is spreading. Those places now include much of the world, as countries across the Americas, Europe, Africa and Asia battle surges in cases.
Here’s what to know
- A group of advisers to the Food and Drug Administration advised the agency to authorize a coronavirus pill to prevent high-risk people from developing severe illness. The pill, molnupiravir by pharmaceutical giant Merck, could provide a simple, easy-to-administer tool to reduce the strain on hospitals.
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has significantly expanded its recommendations for booster shots, saying that all adults 18 and older should get them.
Todays' Tweet
The GOP is ruled by people who hate this country's ideals of democratic self-government.
Their project is to tear it all down and replace it with an authoritarian plutocracy.
And that sign behind Bannon is a perfect example of the Orwellian Newspeak sleight-of-hand bullshit they're peddling in order to make the rubes think it sounds plausible.
Marjorie Taylor Greene said, “this government deserves to go out of business.” pic.twitter.com/sCfl2AG4AE
— PatriotTakes 🇺🇸 (@patriottakes) December 1, 2021
In the view of these radical libertarians, government has only three main functions:
- Protect American business interests around the world with the best military ever
- Keep Americans in line at home with militarized law enforcement
- Adjudicate contract disputes among corporations
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