https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/assads-final-hours-syria-deception-despair-flight-2024-12-13/

Looks like Asma, the Rose in the Desert, has survived.

«Human Rights Watch accuses Africa Corps (formerly Wagner Group) from Russia and Academi (formerly Blackwater) from the US of crimes. “They wipe out entire villages,” Romuald said.»

https://www.dw.com/en/foreign-fighters-defend-dr-congo-from-m23-rebels/a-71001093

Interesting to see Blackwater lumped in with Wagner Group.

https://www.dw.com/en/romania-bulgaria-become-full-members-of-schengen-zone/a-71031199

Huh. Interesting little piece of good news.

Saw two articles back-to-back today.

1. We’re apparently getting ready to roll back vaccinations.
2. Globalization has given people more jobs than they’ve lost, but the “working class” still hates it. (https://www.vox.com/politics/391059/democrats-working-class-voters-nafta-free-trade)

People’s kids will start to experience more and more outbreaks of measles, mumps, and polio, but it will always be somebody else’s kid until it’s not (at which point, gosh, it’s too late).

People will lose jobs but not connect that to retreating from global markets, and not understand why.

I think the issue is that most humans are simply incapable of thinking systemically (or abstractly) until slapped in the face with some need. Even the need to defeat fascism in Europe 80+ years ago was kind of a close call, until Pearl Harbor.

As long as bad things aren’t happening to our little group, we don’t care.

Here’s a familiar song:

«Less than one in five of the young people surveyed believed that they can make a difference to any particular cause through personal commitment, the survey by the Verian research institute found.»

https://www.dw.com/en/most-young-germans-see-no-point-in-politics-survey-says/a-71031111

https://gizmodo.com/bogus-ai-generated-bug-reports-are-driving-open-source-developers-nuts-2000536711

«Platforms like HackerOne offer bounties for successful bug reports, which may encourage some individuals to ask ChatGPT to search a codebase for flaws and then submit erroneous ones the LLM returns.»

Be careful what you measure/reward.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/donald-trump-walks-back-prices-down_n_675af8f3e4b04606476ba6cd

Huh. Who knew?

https://www.lawyersgunsmoneyblog.com/2024/12/the-demise-of-the-robocall-king

«As is so often the case, though, the real scandal here is what was perfectly legal:

“In 1988, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the First Amendment barred states from setting any limits on a charity fund-raiser’s fees.” [NY Times]»

«Brynn stood back up straight and walked right toward our destination.

“Always afraid, never a coward,” I mumbled to myself. My blood started racing. I stood up, tightened all the straps on my pack, and followed.»

This needs to be my motto.

“The Lamb Will Slaughter the Lion” by Margaret Killjoy.

Well, that’s just horseshit.

https://www.cnn.com/2024/12/11/politics/north-carolina-legislature-overrides-veto/index.html

«Under the bill, the incoming Democratic governor, Josh Stein, would be stripped of appointments to key state boards and control of the State Board of Elections will be transferred to the state auditor, a Republican. The legislation also shifts power away from the incoming lieutenant governor, attorney general and superintendent of public instruction, all Democrats.

The bill was introduced after last month’s elections, when Democrats broke the GOP’s legislative supermajority. Republicans will lose their ability to override gubernatorial vetoes after the new legislature is seated in January.»

Supposedly, for Hurricane Helene relief. 135 pages, of which 12 were devoted to moving money from one account to another, and the rest devoted to transferring power from Democrats to Republicans.