www.bbc.co.uk Venezuela election: Protesters clash with police after Maduro victory claim
Security forces fired tear gas and rubber bullets against people as thousands gathered in Caracas.
This surely varies by state, but in Alaska, for example, I'm told Japanese vacationers LOVE to try out guns. So, if you can rent a gun on a range, shooting off weapons is the most American thing I can think to do before you leave.
When I hear 'government bloat', I think $500 hammers and fat cat contracts where big companies get huge contracts that mostly go in the pockets of a handful of rich owners while little goes to the actual project.
I do NOT think it means randomly removing workers. Salaries cost little and are the support structure of the government. I might not want to buy a 'bridge to nowhere' but I certainly don't want to take out 10% of the supports on each bridge.
Everything DOGE has done seems destructive and none of it seems to reduce government waste. In fact, the opposite. p.s. I know there's more to the hammer story, but -- like transgendered instead of transgenic mice -- the public mostly only heard the price tag.
Nah, gotta got vinyl because cassettes deteriorate just sitting in their cases while vinyl stays pristine ... until you actually play it, anyway -- but if you want to store an audio recording for longevity, press a gold version of a vinyl album.
Not the OP, but I imagine "vendor harassment" means people hawking gutters, phone services, and other 3rd party people/items inside Costco.
I, too, have considered not renewing because I feel like the quality of products has gone way, way down. For me the issue is mostly heat-and-eat food but I've also been dissatisfied with some household items -- plastic laundry baskets that broke too quickly, for example. For food stuffs, I posted a while back on bake-at-home pre-made pizzas with bad crusts and bad toppings. I miss the old mesquite chicken wings that were replaced with garlic wings that have the mildly chemical flavor of jarred pre-chopped garlic. At the food court, I understood them getting rid of fresh onions for hot dogs during covid, but I didn't understand why they got rid of the sauerkraut. I stopped buying anything from the food court once that happened.
Also, they keep removing my core purchases; particularly cheeses. They used to stock a triple creme brie-like round that I loved. It is gone. I miss it. The remaining soft cheeses do not compare. That was a bit of a luxury, so I didn't NEED that, whereas my biggest problem was the removal of 2lb bricks of cheddar cheese. I'm not talking about the fancy cheddar like kerrygold (which doesn't melt well), but the generic 'commodity' cheddar that had been stocked in the main cold cases near bacon, hot dogs, and bags of shredded cheeses. I don't want shredded cheese. I want a big block I can slice or shred myself as needed. They also used to carry a locally made cheese/horseradish spread I liked buying with local pretzel sticks but both of those are gone, too. There were other similar items but you get the idea.
As for produce, I live near farm country so I can usually find plain produce in season for a better price than Costco if it is local. Produce from other countries can be cheaper at Costco some of the time, but very often our local bulk-produce outlets can beat Costco on price at the cost of a reduction in freshness. Where you have the choice of 5 celery sticks for x or 40 celery sticks for 2x, my choices are: 1 head of celery for x (regular grocer), 3 heads of 'ugly' celery for 2x (bulk produce outlet), 3 trimmed heads of celery 'hearts' for 2x+ (Costco). I get the ugly celery and put the leaves in whatever celery-using soups/stews I make in the next few weeks. I find those leaves add a pleasing flavor in such dishes, so I feel ripped off if I only receive 'hearts'.
When I was in high school, I was very anti-authority and swore all the time to be "against the man". When I started working in day care I had to cut out all swearing all the time because it was too automatic to ONLY stop in front of kids. When I got a real job, I continued my no-swearing bend as a general rule because -- at least until you get to know the people around you -- people will treat you with more respect if you don't sound like a foul mouthed low life.
Swearing all the time for no reason is a very low-rent affect. Letting out a rare swear will add considerable emphasis when your peers know it is not your normal behavior. Always swear when you hurt yourself. It helps.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_herbs_with_known_adverse_effects
The list itself says it is incomplete and I immediately thought of a couple items not listed that have known toxicity issues:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perilla_frutescens#Traditional_medicine,_phytochemicals,_and_toxicity
Review: Blount Italian Wedding Soup works for me!
I like this soup. I've tried several pre-made soups that were not worth comment (crab & corn, clam chowder, vegetable barley), but the Italian Wedding soup hit all the right notes for my pallet. I found the broth sufficiently chicken-y (rather than watery) and found the meatballs to be delightful.
I do prefer more vegetables in my soup, but adding extra spinach didn't improve it much for me. I did find that tossing in some leftover brussel sprouts that I'd tossed in olive oil and italian seasoning then roasted with and [romano cheese](https://sameday.costco
It is easy insta-food, so just look at it as a day without needing to plan or cook. That said, if you have roasted peanuts and/or cilantro to use as garnish, I think both will improve the meal.
Is cops being evil/lazy/incompetent a USA specific thing, or is it the same everywhere in the world?
I think Germany is known for serious police. In fact, I half remember a joke about that... something about the perfection of a British Cop, a German car, and an French Chef -- compared to the misery of a German Cop, a French car, and a British Chef.
Obviously not funny in the mangling, but the joke wasn't that German cops were bad, just not the generally pleasant 'fair cop' stereotype of Brits.
Personally,. the stereotypes that have stuck in my head are: that low-level officials in India (including cops) can be bribed to look the other way for minor things, Nordic cops are well trained in de-escalation and restraint techniques where no one gets injured, Brit cops might be fair or might be racist, but the laws give better protection to citizens, and that German cops are stern, and will rigidly follow and enforce all laws and rules... generally. Not sure if it is true or not, but I've also heard that German cops will fuck you up if you give them reason, but you'd really have to give them reason.
If you mean the dry-shelf instant noodle bowls, then yes. I think of those as an alternative to ramen noodles since they don't need refrigeration and cook in a similar manner. In both cases, there's no pretense of either having fresh ingredients or being anything like a complete dinner-style meal. I like instant ramen (especially with an egg and some greens in it) and I like the instant pho (also preferred with greens, but no egg).
While I expect dry instant noodles to be a minimal affair that one might opt to dress up, I thought the Pad Thai would be more of a complete meal -- and it is, but it didn't taste much like Pad Thai. I understand that bean sprouts are impossible to keep shelf-stable, but Snapdragon could have included little packets of peanuts and chill flakes to improve the meal.
Review: Snapdragon Chicken Pad Thai is okay but not special
I warmed it on the stovetop (not microwave) and found it lacking, but acceptable.
After adding:
- tamarind paste,
- onions,
- bell peppers,
- a thai hot pepper,
and then topping with:
- cilantro,
- fresh lime, and
- some chopped up roasted peanuts,
... the additions (standard ingredients) made it much better.
Still, it was missing the contrast of bean sprouts. It isn;t the same without them and if I'd had bean sprouts, I would have added, but at that point I might have opted to just make my own pad thai -- which would have tasted better for almost the same amount of cook/prep time.
I gather it is widely distributed.
bake-at-home Margherita pizza is disappointing
Costco has brought back Margherita pizzas, but now they are rectangular -- not round, and no longer have basil. Basil is a key ingreditent and they've gotten rid of it in favor of their oily, salty, pesto topping. Also, the dough is no longer pizza dough, but this foccia-like flat bread that is far too tough. So we have an oily mess on hard bread with way too much salt and not much else in flavor. It is edible, but not worth the price ($16.99 -- item #1816582).
I thought I was going to rely to this question, but you covered it so perfectly that I've nothing useful to add. Thank you for putting in the time.
The vast army of Georgia poll workers report for duty only about three days a year and get paid about $7.25 an hour. Every time we come in, the rules have changed, so we train for eight hours to learn the new protocols. Election day itself, including set-up and break-down, starts at 5:30 am and ends at 9:00 pm, two hours later if you’re a manager delivering the ballots to the regional office. Most of us are retired, and many are elderly (read: not tech-forward).
And poll workers are not perfect. One of them puts on a sweater and inadvertently obscures her name tag (not allowed). Another shows a new person how to work the check-in station (not allowed). Another tells a nonprofit they can set up their food hand-outs inside the building so as to stay out of the rain (not allowed). And at some point during the 15 hour work day, all of you find yourself accidentally socializing with one another (also not allowed). Likewise, the clerks are socializing with the voters (you guessed it: not allowed), which, worst case, is akin to being smothered in grandmas.
This sounds very like my experience back when I used to work the polls. We all did the best we could and we all knew a fair chunk of the voters, so chatting was frequent.
I believe the main issue is that it doesn't get 'clicks' these days because everyone already knows about it. "Dog bites man" doesn't get as many clicks as "Man bites dog" and all that. Still, a quick search brought up a couple articles from the last 12 months that weren't stifled:
- https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/energy/article/produced-water-midland-pollution-18561991.php
- https://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/31/texas-oil-gas-fracking-wastewater-spills-railroad-commission/
- https://www.cleveland.com/open/2024/05/fracking-waste-wells-owned-by-an-ohio-senator-are-leaking-the-state-paid-13-million-to-clean-it-up.html
- https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/2024/04/30/athens-co-fracking-leak-inaction-show-the-dire-public-health-dangers-of-ohio-regulatory-capture/
- https://www.denver7.com/news/front-range/erie/an-erie-oil-well-surrounded-by-homes-leaked-toxic-chemicals-as-cleanup-continues-neighbors-fear-health-risks
- https://www.alleghenyfront.org/rager-mountain-equitrans-gas-leak-fine/
Are you trying to greenwash fracking??? Industry never cleans up. There's no profit in it. You would hear them advertise their 'commitment to nature' if they rescued one tree or bunny from their own contamination. When you hear nothing, they are continuing to wreak havoc.
It's because of the electoral college. Most states give all their electoral college votes to whomever wins the state rather than dividing the votes equitably. This means Pennsylvania -- a swing state -- will go either all-red or all-blue. The state has a lot of fracking, and a lot of people making money off it, so Democrats are trying to appease pro-fracking to get votes.
The people getting harmed by fracking are stuck without anyone on their 'side', but will presumably be more likely to vote blue because that side favors more regulation and pro-environment stuff. Note that all Harris said was she wouldn't ban fracking. She didn't say she wouldn't make it difficult to do. My guess is any attempts to make it cleaner will get crushed by Congress and the Corrupted Supreme Court that has sided against Unions, workers, citizens, and the planet -- all to favor of their sugar daddies. So even if the next President wants to do something about fracking, it would be a hard to actually do anything.
And for hot peppers.
Well, yeah, but that'd take a government not captured by Corporations.
This should be addressed by fixing the software, but it seems to be easier or cheaper to instead further burden the workers.
Does this archive version render any better for you? https://archive.ph/xIOUo
I saw 'ants are everywhere' and thought it was going to be a nature story about the secret lives of ants -- something like this: https://scienceblogs.com/startswithabang/2013/02/24/weekend-diversion-down-the-ant-hole
The actual story was a much sadder read. :-(
Before you read that, see also: Choreographed celebrations in Venezuela as Maduro claims win
There are some things that are indisputable. Some which I, as an observer on the ground, was witness to.
There were the huge queues at polling stations, but only tiny amounts of people being let in at one time.
This led to accusations of deliberate delays, perhaps in the hope some people would give up and go home.
When our BBC team arrived at one polling station, the organiser of the station took a call saying the international media were there. 150 people were then suddenly allowed to be admitted.
There were some poll stations that didn’t open at all, leading to protests and clashes with the authorities.
There were allegations that some of those who work for the state, including police students, were told how to vote.
The protest coverage says:
The opposition has disputed Mr Maduro's declaration of victory as fraudu
www.theguardian.com Exclusive vegan recipes from Meera Sodha’s new book | The new vegan
In this exclusive extract from her new book, Dinner, our star food writer reveals what she really cooks at home, from family meals to feeding a crowd
ghost archive | Article has several recipes from author's new book. Sodah has been writing recipes in "The new vegan" column for about seven years, totaling 348 recipes.
The recipes are heavy on Asian ingredients and include: Simple tomato dal, Turnip cake, and Sesame noodles with spicy fried soya mince.
FYI to U.S. readers: aubergine=eggplant and courgette=zucchini.
See GOJIRA bring fire, blood and heavy metal to Paris Olympics
cross-posted from: https://beehaw.org/post/15211295
After adding operatic vocals to Gojira's rendition of "Ah! Ça Ira," a song popular during the French Revolution, she went on to sing a portion of Georges Bizet's Carmen.
From NME:
The heavy metallers performed ‘Ah, Ça Ira!’ (which translates to ‘It’ll be fine’), a song that was popular during the French revolution, during a segment titled ‘Liberté’ (in reference to France’s famed motto ‘Liberté, égalité, fraternité’) that celebrated one of the most famous events in French history, as well as the nation’s emphasis on freedom.
Gojira appeared on the side of a castle surrounded by fire and bursts of red streamers to represent blood, with Viotti later appearing on a moving prop boat. Their performance followed a portion dedicated to Les Miserables and came just after a beh
www.scrippsnews.com Confronting neo-Nazi hate: 'When I look at you guys, I do not think master race'
A Scripps News reporter confronts an out-of-state neo-Nazi group who were demonstrating in Nashville, Tenn. They were said to have created havoc on the streets with symbols of hate and vile words.
Article details how reporter -- pre-armed with relevant facts and cameras -- confronts neoNazis in Tennessee. | Excerpts:
Members of the Goyim Defense League harassed people in the heart of Nashville's entertainment district, berating a lesbian mom who had just left a restaurant.
Later, the neo-Nazis assaulted a bartender who had confronted the group.
"I'm curious: Why Nashville? Why did you guys choose Nashville?" I asked Minadeo.
A fellow GDL member, Nicholas Bysheim, quickly answered.
"It's the only place that respects freedom of speech," Bysheim said.
Minadeo added, "Yeah, this city respects freedom of speech, but communist Jews like yourself don't."
A Californian who moved to Florida, Minadeo leads the hate group as it goes around the country trying to create scenes that they hope will bring them attention and followers.
One of their favorite tropes: Falsely accusing Jews of being pedophiles.
Over and over, it became clear that these are people
‘Hugely hammered’: Key senator sees momentum to pass Congress stock trading ban
www.rawstory.com 'Hugely hammered': Key senator sees momentum to pass Congress stock trading ban
For 12 years, Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) has pushed for a ban on congressional stock trading, calling the practice “corrupt,” “unacceptable” and “wrong.”The first time he and Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) presented an amendment in 2012 that would prohibit members of Congress from playing the stock market,...
For 12 years, Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) has pushed for a ban on congressional stock trading, calling the practice “corrupt,” “unacceptable” and “wrong.”
Now, Merkley is confident an amended version of the Ending Trading and Holdings in Congressional Stocks (ETHICS) Act has enough bipartisan support that it will come out of a markup meeting with the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs on Wednesday with the votes necessary to present the amendment for a vote.
EDIT: It passed out of committee, so now it can go to the floor. https://www.businessinsider.com/senate-new-ban-stock-trading-merkley-ossoff-hawley-2024-7
One key difference between this bill and previous proposals is that it doesn't allow for lawmakers to continue holding stocks via "blind trusts," which some have criticized as insufficient.
There are still certain assets that lawmakers and their families could continue to hold, such as mutual funds, US Treasury bills, and municipal bonds.
Desp
apnews.com Surprise blast of rock, water and steam in Yellowstone sends dozens running for safety
A hydrothermal explosion in Biscuit Basin sent people running for safety in Yellowstone National Park.
The hydrothermal explosion happened around 10 a.m. in Biscuit Basin, a collection of hot springs a couple miles north of the famous Old Faithful Geyser.
No injuries were reported, but the Biscuit Basin area was closed for visitor safety. The eruption damaged a boardwalk that keeps people off Yellowstone’s fragile and often dangerous geothermal areas.
On occasion they get much bigger: The largest known crater from a hydrothermal explosion on Earth is in Yellowstone and measures 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers) across, Poland said. Scientists theorize that a series of hydrothermal explosions created that crater some 13,800 years ago in the Mary Bay area on the northeastern side of Yellowstone Lake.
By comparison, the crater from Tuesday’s explosion will likely be measured in feet, Poland said.
“What we saw today was spectacular and definitely hazardous. But on the scale of what the Yellowstone system has done in the past, it was relatively small,” he said. “It’s a very good remin
Pluralistic: Holy CRAP the UN Cybercrime Treaty is a nightmare
Excerpts from very detailed article:
Look, cybercrime is a real thing, from pig butchering to ransomware, and there's real, global harms that can be attributed to it. Cybercrime is transnational, making it hard for cops in any one jurisdiction to handle it. So there's a reason to think about formal international standards for fighting cybercrime.
But that's not what's in the Cybercrime Treaty.
In authoritarian states like China and Russia (whose delegations are the driving force behind this treaty), "cybercrime" has come to mean "anything the government disfavors, if you do it with a computer." "Cybercrime" can mean online criticism of the government, or professions of religious belief, or material supporting LGBTQ rights.
This is the granddaddy of tech free speech fights.
www.rawstory.com 'Is Stephen Miller okay?': Dems gleeful as Trump adviser has 'meltdown' over Biden dropout
The left is giddy over the fact that Stephen Miller, the former senior adviser to then-President Donald Trump, is melting down due to President Joe Biden's decision to end his presidential campaign. Miller appeared on Fox News on Sunday, where he went off on a rant about the Democratic votes wer.....
Miller appeared on Fox News on Sunday, where he went off on a rant about the Democratic votes were thrown away as the party rallies around Vice President Kamala Harris.
"They held a primary. They had ballots. They filled out circles!" Miller shouted on Fox News. "They went to the voting booths. They spent money on advertisements!"
Still yelling, Miller says that Republicans also spent money running against Biden.
Biden drops out of the 2024 presidential race, leaving the Democratic nomination open
www.cbsnews.com Biden drops out of the 2024 presidential race, endorses Vice President Kamala Harris for nomination
President Biden is the first sitting president to drop out of running for reelection since Lyndon B. Johnson in 1968 — leaving the race against Donald Trump in turmoil.
"While it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as president for my term," Mr. Biden posted in a statement on social media.
U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, an icon of Houston politics, dies at 74 after cancer battle
First elected to represent the 18th Congressional District in 1994, Jackson Lee quickly rose to prominence within Houston’s congressional delegation, securing overwhelming victories, election after election. She became known as a fierce advocate for women and people of color and made a national name for herself with iconic House floor speeches and perennial media appearances.
She was poised to secure a 15th term in office this fall after achieving a decisive victory in the March primary against upstart challenger Amanda Edwards.
The far right’s Project 2025 also dodged a bullet, and they know it | Will Bunch
www.inquirer.com The far-right’s Project 2025 also dodged a bullet, and they know it | Will Bunch
A Milwaukee fest honoring the architect of Project 2025 spoke of a "silver lining" as the Trump shooting quells widespread criticism.
the director of Project 2025, Paul Dans, told the hundreds of RNC attendees ...
“We have to take the vitriol down” — seconds before he suggested that Biden’s amped-up rhetoric around Project 2025 created the climate for an assassination attempt.
The Republican Party line that it’s now time for national unity — and that this week in Milwaukee is about asking America what’s so funny ’bout peace, love and understanding — is clearly carrying the day. Never mind that most GOP calls for toning down the rhetoric are followed with an attack that blames Democrats for all the toxic political speech.
Just like the days after 9/11, Americans need to watch what they do, watch what they say — or so we are told. We continue to obey in advance.
“The more we as a society bow to the pressure and self-censor — the dream of autocrats is for you to silence yourself, doing their job for them — the more arrogant and lawless the enemies of democracy will become,” Ruth Ben-Ghiat, the New York Un
Live Updates: Judge Dismisses Classified Documents Case Against Trump
www.nytimes.com Judge Dismisses Classified Documents Case Against Trump
Judge Aileen Cannon ruled that the entire case should be thrown out because the appointment of the special counsel who brought the case, Jack Smith, had violated the Constitution. He indicated he planned to appeal.
Thanks to [email protected] for this gift link
No-Salt Seasoning as base for Potato Chip Dip
I usually make dip with a packet of soup mix powder, but I was out so I did the following and it turned out well -- and since it was mostly with Coscto items, I thought I'd post here.
All measurements were eyeballed, so change as you desire:
- 10oz frozen chopped spinach (cut spinach is too stringy, but if you want to use a food processor, you could use either, or substitute fresh spinach, kale, Yu Choy, Dau Miu, or anything else -- or skip completely)
- 1 cup mayonnaise (from the giant jug taking up all that refrigerator space)
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1-2 tsp "Better Than Bullion" "Seasoned Vegetable Base" ("Organic Reduced Sodium") soup starter -- this is in the spice aisle and any variety will do
- 1 tsp Kirkland "Organic No-Salt Seasoning" -- also in the spice aisle
- a chunk of a pepper, minced (Italian long hot) -- can sub red bell pepper, another hot pepper, or omit
- 2-3 fresh garlic cloves, minced (or skip if you don't love garlic)
Optional stuff you might like: chives/sca
Supreme Court stalls Trump’s federal election trial while weighing his immunity bid
cross-posted from: https://beehaw.org/post/12136649
politico archive: https://ghostarchive.org/archive/PS7WH
see also: https://thehill.com/homenews/ap/ap-politics/ap-supreme-court-moving-quickly-will-decide-if-trump-can-be-prosecuted-in-election-interference-case/ | thehill archive: https://ghostarchive.org/archive/W6bFe
Excerpts (politico):
In Wednesday’s order, the Supreme Court granted Trump’s emergency request to maintain that pause while the justices hear Trump’s immunity appeal.
But the court’s decision to keep the pretrial proceedings frozen is a blow to special counsel Jack Smith’s effort to bring Trump to trial this year. Smith has charged Trump with four felonies stemming from his bid to subvert the 2020 presidential election.
If they deny the immunity bid by the end of their term in June, it may still be possible for the trial judge overseeing the case, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, to schedule a trial to begin in late summer or fall.
prospect.org The Great Medicare Advantage Marketing Scam
How for-profit health insurers convince seniors to enroll in private Medicare plans
In 2023, a critical milestone was passed: over half of seniors are now enrolled in privatized Medicare Advantage plans. The marketing for these plans nearly always fails to mention how hard it is to return to traditional Medicare once you are in Medicare Advantage, and that the MA plans have closed provider networks and require prior authorization for medical procedures. Instead, the marketing emphasizes the fringe benefits offered by Medicare Advantage plans like gym memberships.
“There is no real organized lobby for traditional Medicare, or organized advertising efforts,” he said. “During open enrollment, 80% of Medicare-related ads have to do with Medicare Advantage. We regularly encounter very well-educated and savvy folks who are tripped up by advertising and lured in by the bells and whistles. The deck is stacked against the consumer.”
How a collection of raw Russian intelligence disappeared under Trump
edition.cnn.com The mystery of the missing binder: How a collection of raw Russian intelligence disappeared under Trump
A binder containing highly classified information related to Russian election interference went missing at the end of Donald Trump’s presidency, raising alarms among intelligence officials.
Archive link | Excerpts:
A binder containing highly classified information related to Russian election interference went missing at the end of Donald Trump’s presidency, raising alarms among intelligence officials that some of the most closely guarded national security secrets from the US and its allies could be exposed, sources familiar with the matter told CNN.
Its disappearance, which has not been previously reported, was so concerning that intelligence officials briefed Senate Intelligence Committee leaders last year about the missing materials and the government’s efforts to retrieve them, the sources said.
The former president had ordered it brought there so he could declassify a host of documents related to the FBI’s Russia investigation. Under the care of then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, the binder was scoured by
Pa. Republicans call on Penn to fire Liz Magill (live updates)
www.inquirer.com Penn president Liz Magill faces increasing pressure to resign; Gov. Shapiro calls comments ‘shameful and unacceptable’
Penn says president Liz Magill is staying put while rebukes increase over her comments on antisemitism on campus made on Capitol Hill earlier this week.
Excerpt:
“President Magill’s actions in front of Congress were an embarrassment to the university, its student body, and its vast network of proud alumni,” the six congressmen wrote in a news release. “She has shown the university and the entire world that she is either incapable or unwilling to combat antisemitism on the university’s campus and take care of its student body. As such, I respectfully call on you to relieve President Magill of her duties as president to protect the lives of Jewish American students at the University of Pennsylvania.”