Today's Tweet

"War with Ukraine - Russia's shame"

Anti-war solo pickets like this are popping up in cities across Russia. It’s not much but they’re arrested almost immediately, often upon leaving their homes when the cops know to expect them. Here’s Sofya Rusova, co-chair of Russia’s Trade Union of Journalists. pic.twitter.com/5NVqdGyhFy

— Kevin Rothrock (@KevinRothrock) February 24, 2022

Black American History #24

Dr Clint Smith - Crash Course - The Great Migration

Today's Tweet

If you're arguing that Ukraine is rightfully Russia's because it was once part of Russia, and you live in Texas or the American southwest, I have some questions.

— Nicholas Grossman (@NGrossman81) February 22, 2022

COVID-19 Update

WaPo: (freebie)

As mask mandates end in all but one state, retailers and cruises follow suit

As coronavirus cases continue to decline across the country, all states but one — Hawaii — have dropped their mask mandates or have made plans to do so in the coming weeks. This week, Target and Apple stores joined other retailers in pulling back their own mandates.

In recent days, some cruise lines — including Norwegian and Royal Caribbean International — said they are relaxing mask requirements for vaccinated passengers after putting stricter rules in place during the omicron surge. The industry was hit hard early in the pandemic as horror stories of onboard outbreaks made international headlines.

Vaccinated people should still wear masks when indoors in an area of “substantial or high transmission,” according to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance. Those categories still cover more than 95 percent of the country.

But with new daily cases falling, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said last week that her agency is reviewing its recommendations. “We want to give people a break from things like mask-wearing, when these metrics are better, and then have the ability to reach for them again should things worsen,” she said.

Here’s what to know

• The Maryland State Board of Education voted Tuesday to rescind its statewide mask mandate and allow local school systems to set their own mask policies. Although the plan needs to be approved by state lawmakers, Gov. Larry Hogan (R) has voiced his support.
• Tamara Lich, a key organizer of the self-styled “Freedom Convoy” protests against vaccination rules in Canada, was denied bail Tuesday after a judge said there was a high risk she would reoffend if released. Lich is charged with counseling to commit mischief.
• Hong Kong will mandate testing for all 7.5 million of its residents starting in March, with each person being tested three times. The city has been slammed with a surge driven by the omicron variant and faces pressure from Beijing to contain the outbreak.

A Brief Passage

1894

Perhaps the highest praise an author can receive, John Steinbeck’s depiction of the harsh working conditions in Depression-era California was so brutal that it was banned in the county the Joad family moves to, despite historians confirming that Steinbeck’s portrayal was true-to-life. Local officials in Kern County convinced workers to burn the book in a number of photo opportunities, ironically further enforcing the manipulation experienced by migrant workers in the area that Steinbeck portrays so blisteringly well in The Grapes of Wrath.

Excerpt, Chapter 25:

There is a crime here that goes beyond denunciation. There is a sorrow here that weeping cannot symbolize. There is a failure here that topples all our successes. The fertile earth, the straight tree rows, the sturdy trunks, and the ripe fruit. And the children dying of hunger, must die because a profit cannot be taken from an orange. And coroners must fill in the certificates - "died of malnutrition" - because the food must rot if not sold at a profit.

...and in the eyes of the hungry there is a growing wrath. In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy - growing heavy for the vintage.

The soliloquy:

Today's Quote

Being a science writer is harder than being a sports writer because you don't have to deal with people who think basketball doesn't even exist.

--Carl Zimmer

Black American History #23

Dr Clint Smith - Crash Course - The Black Women's Club Movement

Today's Reddit

How do they do that? And I'm gonna ignore the holes in the science.

Jan6 Stuff

Per Reuters today:

WASHINGTON, Feb 22 (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday brought a formal end to former President Donald Trump's request to block the release of White House records sought by the Democratic-led congressional panel investigating last year's deadly attack on the Capitol by a mob of his supporters.

The court's decision to formally reject Trump's appeal follows its Jan. 19 order that led to the documents being handed over to the House of Representatives investigative committee by the federal agency that stores government and historical records.

- more -

We can hope

Overheard

there's nothing more satisfying

than a dry fart

after about 12 hours

of explosive diarrhea