While the deaths of Travon Martin, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and Sandra Bland galvanized the #BlackLivesMatter movement, the killings of Rayshard Brooks, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery have forced America to reckon with centuries of racial injustice and police brutality in unprecedented ways. Not only have protests demanding change been widespread, but major corporations — which, until now, have been largely silent and hesitant to embrace Black Lives Matter — are pledging to fight racial injustice and declaring their support of the nearly seven-year-old movement. We discuss the significance of those corporate responses, as well as new challenges these companies face to commit to righting past wrongs.

America’s mayors have taken center stage in 2020. Big city mayors feuded with state and federal officials over COVID-19 protections and resources, and have been praised — and condemned — for their handling of protests sparked by the death of George Floyd. These crises may be unfolding on a national scale, but affect lives in every American city and town. With Atlanta officials already in the national spotlight, On Second Thought turned to local leaders in Savannah — Georgia’s first city and the state’s largest coastal municipality — to see how they are responding. We begin with Savannah Mayor Van Johnson , who took office in January of this tumultuous year. He shed light on his decision-making processes and vision for the city’s future.

John Lewis has served as U.S. Representative for Georgia’s 5th Congressional District since 1987, and is known for his passionate work both in the civil rights movements and on Capitol Hill. A new documentary called John Lewis: Good Trouble goes beyond the highlight reel of his storied life and reveals more personal elements of the man and the figure. On Second Thought hears from the film’s director and producer Dawn Porter and producer Erika Alexander about how the film connects his legacy of seeking justice from his youth to his role as a revered congressman today.

Growing up, Mahalia Latortue says she had three career options — doctor, lawyer or engineer. But despite starting her undergraduate studies at Oakwood University in Alabama focused on pre-law, she graduated with a passion for filmmaking. Today, she’s a recent Savannah College of Art and Design film graduate who founded her own Atlanta-based production company called Anacaona Pictures . The company’s mission is to “create diverse, untold stories and provide a voice to the voiceless.”

October was the 150th anniversary of Charles Ives's birth (in 1874). It's always a good time to reconsider him.

Although famously an insurance executive, Ives had studied music at Yale and continued to work as an organist and to compose music even as he developed life-insurance packages for wealthy customers. He suffered from many ailments, real or mysterious, and after 1926, he stopped composing, saying "nothing sounds right". He continued to revise old compositions, however, retiring from business in 1930 and dying of a stroke in 1954 at the age of 80. Early on, his compositions did not attract much interest, but later, by the 1940s and 50s, composers and conductors began to champion him, and he was sometimes considered a pioneer of modernist American music; in the 70s, his music was inescapable on concert programs. However, his tinkering with old compositions led to questions of whether he made his old works appear more innovative than they actually had been. Today he may be best known for his symphony #3 "The Camp Meeting"(1908-10) (with different folk tunes battling it out in the second movement) , his transcendentalist orchestral piece "The Unanswered Question"(1908; revised 1934, in a splendid performance by Leonard Bernstein and the NY Philharmonic) and the "Concord" sonata (1909–47) [The third movement called "The Alcotts" played by Pierre-Laurent Aimard). His songs are loved for their mixture of avant garde and Americana. They are usually heard sung by trained operatic singers (as in this wonderful clip of Donald Gramm introduced by Aaron Copland), but it is revealing to hear this recording of Ives singing one of his own compositions, the World War I song "They Are There!" (1917; revised for WWII). He's not a good singer, but his untrained voice combined with the raucous jumble of the song sounds original and utterly American.

It's dark, it's late, you're drunk, and you're ready to admit to MetaFilter that you're really a famous cult filmmaker. But if you're not sure, follow this handy flowchart by Adam Fromm: Which Contemporary Film Snob Director Are You? It's funny, it's clever, it's easy to navigate, it's a giant JPG image.

Here's a discussion on the Criterion Collection subreddit about an earlier version of this flowchart.

P. S. I am Agnès Varda.

In November, the typically straitlaced Office of Government Ethics surprised observers with a series of tweets mimicking Donald Trump's bombastic style, exclamation points and all: "Brilliant! Divestiture is good for you, good for America!" The controversy was two-fold: (1) The OGE doesn't typically air its positions publicly, advising White House transition teams behind the scenes. (2) Trump hadn't promised the total divestitures of business interests implied by the tweets. New records shared with NPR on Friday show that behind the curious tweets was the head of the OGE himself, Director Walter Shaub Jr. In two emails, dated Nov. 30, just several minutes apart, Shaub sent to OGE Chief of Staff Shelley Finlayson the nine tweets that took the Internet by storm that day. He then followed up with a link to a legal document referenced in one of the tweets and writes: "Get all of these tweets posted as soon as humanly possible." The emails were part of a 365-page document shared with NPR in

I can help you understand the essential elements required for a" Hit Song". I will bring my considerable experience to bear on assessing the strengths and weaknesses in your music submissions and guide you towards that elusive Hit. I can help you become a better song writer as I enhance and redefine your creative song writing abilities.

Successful / "Hit" songwriting... is the very foundation of the music industry. It is all about "The Song...You Cannot Polish A Turd'. The difference between a great song ...and "a hit song" can be in fact be tiny. The trick is knowing how to build on the core idea...and find true clarity in its content.

Discover the perfect balance between the key elements needed for success which is a top quality melody and lyric combined with solid structure and arrangement.

NB Positive critique is my watch word and no musician will be harmed in the honing process :-)

- KILLERSONGS

I'm struggling to go through perimenopausal changes with grace, but also struggling with some disordered eating habits as I try to find a balance between accepting what nature wants to do to my body and trying to maintain a healthy weight. I'm not overly restrictive during the day. I eat when hungry. I don't crave junk early in the day. But at night once everyone is in bed I crave junk and binge. I'm not sure if I am using that word correctly in a clinical sense. I am doing HRT and my meds seem to work ok to balance me out.

I'm pretty sure this is mostly mental, like I'm trying to make healthy choices but I have a shadow self that doesn't like the rules and I keep her at bay til the end of the night. Idk. I had this problem when I tried keto a few years back. Many years ago I decided to do a raw food diet temporarily and maintained it perfectly. I didn't feel restricted or rebel against myself. But then after having children and breastfeeding my relationship to carbs changed maybe. So I tried keto and I feel AMAZING in ketosis but I end up eating tons of garbage because the mental aspect of restriction just doesn't work well for me.

So even though I am not intentionally "restricting" early in the day I am prioritizing healthier foods and I guess in some way it's effectively the same thing.

I also have PDA autism which is probably relevant as I wonder if the food choices are a "demand" and how to navigate that. I also suspect part of the current issue is due to having to take a break from my Vyvanse until I get checked by the cardiologist - since Vyvanse is also prescribed for binge eating disorder it isn't surprising if I'm struggling more with this while I can't take it. (As an aside, if you've done research into the safety of stimulants for cardiac patients, specifically those with late discovered congenital issues like a hole in the heart, please share citations for clinical studies about this as I want to advocate for the doctor to let me stay on my meds.)

I don't want to just get fat. But I also don't want to have so much mental energy taken up by this inner battle. What do?

Routine pap with my NP shows 'wow, big cervical polyp!' so then off to the gyno who says 'let's just pull it all out!' Is this a normal go-to solution for a healthy 55yo? YANMD. Have you done this? What do you know? Seeking feedback and related experience around polyps and fibroids and hysterectomies. All my life I have been among the fortunate to have regular and painless periods. It's now been a solid 3 years since my last. My recent pap showed an apparently giant cervical polyp, so off to the (new-to-me) gyn I went (to have it removed I thought). She tells me it's very large and that my uterus is also, which apparently indicates to her that it's full of fibroids. I am healthy and have no symptoms of anything.

She assures me there's nothing to worry about (I lost my person to cancer so yes, this does scare me, because I know 'nothing to worry about' can also mean you'll be dead in a year) and says if I was her sister, she would recommend 'removing it all.'

Apparently a hysterectomy is laparoscopic, and all the parts come out your vag and ...it's no big thang? (she had one herself and was 'back to work 3 days later'). Next is me making an appt for a pelvic ultrasound, followed by another appt with her in early Feb to establish what we do next. Any thoughts? And sure, maybe it's not cancer, but if they noticed a polyp 6 weeks ago and my post-ultrasound appointment to talk about next steps isn't for another 6 weeks, and procedure maybe isn't for yet another 6 weeks, I mean... what if it is cancer and I'm giving it all this time to grow? Also, is a decision like this something that merits a second opinion? I live in a small town with two gynos, and at least 2 hours from more.

Just trying to wrap my head around this (recognizing that I have some health anxiety due to my loss) and learn if it's a totally standard approach. If you have something to share but don't want to do it here, feel free to PM.

Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: Here is a very brief history of American testing in the pandemic. The United States started out drastically short of coronavirus tests. The few people who got them had to wait many days for results. Then the United States engaged private companies to make up the difference. Mobile testing centers appeared in parking lots in many cities. Millions of people were tested. But now, as NPR has reported, most states are short of the testing numbers they need, and people getting tested report delays in getting results. Admiral Brett Giroir is on the line. He is an assistant secretary of health, and he has been in charge of the federal testing response. Admiral, welcome to the program. BRETT GIROIR: Thank you. It's good to be here with you this morning, Steve. INSKEEP: I want to quote Mick Mulvaney, President Trump's former chief of staff, who wrote, quote, "it isn't popular to talk about in some Republican circles, but we still have a

It can be expensive to install rooftop solar panels, but they do pay for themselves over time. Not only does it save on energy costs, but a new University of Michigan study says the value of rooftop solar panels will continue to increase. It will also be vital as the climate continues to warm, and we will need more energy to keep cool. WEMU's David Fair was joined by U-M Energy Systems Assistant Professor Dr. Michael Craig to learn more about the research.

You may not have noticed, but the Ann Arbor Climate Corps has been quietly working this year to combat the affects of climate change and help the city achieve its goal of carbon neutrality by 2030. The program is designed to increase the Ann Arbor Office of Sustainability’s outreach capacity and help residents take action toward that end. WEMU's David Fair talked it over with Ann Arbor Climate Corps program manager, Maggie Halpern.

The Ann Arbor School District is transitioning away from the use of fossil fuels. The district was the first to sign up for DTE Energy’s MIGreen Power Program to get to 100% use of renewable energy, and the district will add four more all-electric school buses this academic year. WEMU's David Fair spoke with the Ann Arbor Schools' Director of Capital Programs, Jason Bing, about where the district is today and where it’s headed.

Some of Ann Arbor's streetlights can be distractingly bright. New LED lighting is helping with the city’s A2Zero Climate Action plan, but some worry over increased light pollution. WEMU's David Fair talked with Ann Arbor City Council member Dharma Akmon about how the city can move forward while addressing sustainability and accommodating public concern.

Over the summer, the Huron River Watershed Council conducted an extensive survey of freshwater mussels in the Huron River to determine potential impacts when the Peninsular Paper Dam is removed. It found that removing the Pen Dam could release sediment, potentially smothering downstream mussel populations. Once the dam is removed, though, the river will return to a more natural state, benefiting mussel species over time. WEMU's David Fair looked at the research and its implications with Huron River Watershed Council Ecologist Dr. Paul Steen.

The University of Michigan is forging ahead and working towards being a leader in generative artificial intelligence with its U-M-GPT program. As it does, there are environmental concerns to be addressed. The initiative is part of Michigan’s broader effort to integrate AI into its academic and administrative infrastructure, enhancing learning, teaching, and research. But, AI consumes a great deal of energy. WEMU's David Fair spoke with the Vice President for Information Technology and Chief Information Officer at U-M, Dr. Ravi Pendse, about how U-M is dealing with the environmental ramifications of AI.

WATCH THE ARCHIVES HERE!

When COVID first shuttered churches in 2020, no one but God could have foreseen that it would lead to the largest-ever gathering at the Amazing Facts W.O.R.D. Center. Yet it did precisely that!

From June 12 to 15, 2024, a record number of youth attended Stand: Unshakeable Faith, the 2024 Amazing Facts Youth Conference—including setting a record one-day Sabbath gathering of 1,500 people, who gathered to hear Pastor Doug Batchelor, president of Amazing Facts International, present his message to young people, “Standing on the High Ground.” Watch archives of this and other 2024 AFY Conference presentations by visiting www.afyouth.com.

Many young people traveled long distances to participate in the conference, which was designed to help them develop a resilient faith in the face of secular culture and peer pressure. They were joined by thousands more online! We praise God that the Holy Spirit moved mightily, as hundreds of youth recommitted to living for Jesus in these last days of Earth’s history. 

Said Pastor Doug, “This youth conference gave me such joy and hope for the future of our church. It was absolutely thrilling to see so many young people come to hear the Word.”

Throughout the weekend, speakers explored what it means to stand firm for Jesus. Their messages focused on being filled with the Holy Spirit, watching and praying with Christ, being a part of the remnant, understanding God’s love story for us, and the role of trials in our growth. Along with Pastor Doug, speakers included Anil Kanda, Carlos Muñoz, Diamond Garcia, Anella Poljak, and Darcee Christensen.[PQ-HERE]

AFY: Humble Beginnings

Worried about the church losing youth to the isolation of COVID restrictions and social distancing, Tony Scarpino, a youth leader at the Granite Bay Hilltop Church, took their Sabbath School programs online. Those initial social media broadcasts became the seed of Amazing Facts Youth (AFY), a worldwide ministry that meets online twice weekly, prays earnestly for one another, and leads out in the conference. 

From those humble beginnings, God has worked mightily to grow and prosper the movement, including leading Amazing Facts to present an annual youth conference. “I am in awe of what God did at this year’s conference,” says Tony. “I saw families coming alive together. The little kids were vibrant, the youth were engaged, and the parents were involved. It was incredible!”

Attendees from as far away as Honduras and New York enjoyed the engaging presentations, united prayer, community outreach, and fellowship with like-minded individuals. Evening sessions, free meals served by the local church members, and an afternoon outing to an adventure park provided opportunities for fun and friendship. 

“This was a wonderful weekend for our family,” reflects Tamara from Dayton, Ohio. “As a mom, I’m always looking for ways to get my boys involved in things that will grow their faith.”

For the first time, this year’s conference included presentations designed for kids. Presented by Amazing Facts evangelist Daniel Hudgens, Amazing Adventures introduced younger children at the conference to the importance of the Bible, standing against sin, and walking with Jesus. The kids also enjoyed music and rousing Bible games.

A Place Where Youth Have a Voice

Over the past four years, Tony and others have helped mentor a team of dedicated youth who now run AFY’s weekly meetings. The youth team even chose the theme Stand: Unshakeable Faith for the 2024 conference and organized many aspects of the event. “The youth have a real voice here,” says Tony.

On the final night of this year’s conference, Pastor Anil Kanda urged the youth not to let the enthusiasm they experienced at the conference end with the event. He said, “God is going to need another generation to rise up and stand in the gap. I’m getting a lot of grey hairs, [and] Pastor Doug isn’t always going to be here. God is calling you to share His love with the world. He is not interested in how prepared you are. He is interested in how willing you are. He will open incredible doors if you are willing.”

His message hit especially hard for the youth, who are challenged by worldly entertainment and distractions unlike at any other time in history. Aleah, a teen from California, says, “The meetings explained exactly what I’ve gone through.”

Her friend Marissa was also blessed by the speakers’ messages, saying, “They have been really helpful to me. The speakers have shown me how necessary it is to spend time with God each day and how to make it a priority.” 

Sharing the gospel is an essential part of every AFY conference. On Friday afternoon, after specialized AFCOE training with Carlos Muñoz, AFCOE director, and other staff, over 200 energetic youth went into the community to give out biblical literature and pray with people. 

An hour later, they returned eager to share what God had done. “This was my first time going door-to-door,” said Shivani. “I was very nervous, but we gave out all our books and prayed for seven or eight people. I realized that a lot of people are hurting, so I’m thankful God gave me the courage to go out. It was a good experience.”

Welcome to the AFY Family

Edward, a psychology student, is a leader at AFY who has been an active member ever since the first Zoom meeting. Smiling brightly, he shares, “We’ve built relationships with each other and God here. I want people to know that regardless of who you are or what is going on in your life, you are welcome in the AFY family.”

Like many other members, Kyle wanted to follow God but had little practical experience. All that has changed through his participation in AFY. Today, he is strong in faith and active in ministry. He says, “Being a part of AFY has definitely changed me for the better. I wouldn’t be the person I am today without it. The community, the fellowship, the likemindedness—these people are my family.” 

That’s precisely what the team at AFY has been striving for. “We’ve invested years into these kids,” Tony says. “To see them grow as individuals and leaders is wonderful. And now to see AFY expanding to reach so many more youth—God is doing something really exciting!”

Says Pastor Doug, “I believe in the message of Joel 2:28, which reveals that our sons and daughters will play a vital role in the gospel work in the last days. That’s why I’m so thrilled to see our team training up the youth, these young men and women who will be part of the generation to fulfill this amazing promise.”

Plans are now being made for the 2025 youth conference. Visit afyouth.com to keep up to date. But you don’t have to wait to get involved in AFY. Check out these weekly events:

• Hey, Let’s Pray: Mondays at 6:00 PM ET

• AFY Live: Fridays at 6:00 PM ET

WATCH THE ARCHIVES HERE!

Beginning September 20, 2024, Amazing Facts International will present Prophecy Odyssey: You Can Know the Future with speaker Pastor Doug Batchelor. This evangelistic Bible series features 16 timely, power-packed presentations that will be broadcast in front of a live audience at the Manhattan Center in New York City, the “capital of the world,” during a time of great global upheaval.

It can also be seen around the world on AFTV, Hope Channel International, 3ABN, Facebook, Roku, YouTube, SUMtv, and SUMtv Latino. Additionally, you can watch Prophecy Odyssey on many satellites around the world, including HotBird (Europe, Middle East, and North Africa), Galaxy 19 (US), IS20 (Central and South Africa), VAST (Australia), and Freeview (UK).

Prophecy Odyssey is approaching fast. It’s not too late to register to be an event host, invite your friends, or sign up to be a Manhattan Missionary!

Devastating events across our sin-darkened planet—financial collapse, natural catastrophes, international conflicts, political strife—are causing many to feel anxious about what the future holds. But the Bible provides hope-filled answers to life’s deepest questions and prepares hearts for the soon coming of Jesus.

[PQ-HERE]Says Pastor Doug, “Communicating the most pertinent prophecies of the Bible is our goal. I believe these unique multimedia presentations will challenge what most people think they know about the world and their purpose in it. Our message is that God’s final prophetic Word will soon come to pass. Are you ready for it? Together, we’ll learn the what, the when, the why, and the how in a way that will prepare us for what is coming to our planet.”

Prophecy Odyssey will be a series like no other, leading viewers to the key prophecies of Scripture—where God gives vital but assuring messages that will change lives for eternity. Pastor Doug will also offer a clear understanding of our world’s current events and why they are happening—and why it all must culminate with the Second Coming.

The first three nights will get off to a quick and fascinating start … 

Night 1: Friday, September 20, 7:00 PM ET — Signs of the Coming King
Unmistakable signs signal Jesus’ soon return—and are you ready for it?

Night 2: Saturday, September 21, 7:00 PM ET — The Prophecy of History
What is the most comprehensive prophecy in all of the Bible?

Night 3: Sunday, September 22, 7:00 PM ET — The Arch-Villain of Prophecy
There is a fiendish effort to turn us away from understanding prophecy.

Other topics to be covered include the truth about hellfire, the afterlife, the millennium, the mark of the beast, the USA in Bible prophecy, and many more eye-opening revelations.

Get Active!

Would you or your church like to be part of this extraordinary opportunity to bring Bible prophecy to a world lost in spiritual darkness? We may not have many more chances to share every aspect of these messages openly, so please prayerfully consider hosting the event at your church or even your home.

Bible lessons are also being developed for this series, with plans for them to be available for sharing at your event. We’ll also make advertising easy. Let’s lead viewers into an eternal, joyful relationship with God together!

Mission Manhattan

We’re also inviting people to be part of this evangelistic project through Mission Manhattan! You will receive free AFCOE training, distribute literature, and do music and health ministry on the streets of Manhattan to raise interest and invite the community to the Prophecy Odyssey meetings in the evening. Training and literature are free, but you will need to cover travel, lodging, and meals. More information here.

Start planning now for this exciting outreach event! 

For more information about Prophecy Odyssey, visit prophecyodyssey.com. And keep watching for more details as we get ready to share God’s truths with millions!

It's only the first day of August, but the weather in Portland is such that it already feeling like plural dog days have elapsed. And yet, through it all, a podcast episode drags itself through the sun-baked streets to appear, sweating and winded, on your doorstep. Come along with Jessamyn and I as we...chatter about MetaFilter? Basically what we normally do. This one's about an hour and 45.

Helpful Links

Podcast Feed
Subscribe with iTunes
Direct mp3 download

Misc
- the wikipedia article on 175 has, since recording, lost the specific nag it had when we were discussing it!
- jessamyn has been catsitting
- more like the hooey decimal system
- wellllll, Godot? We're WAAAAAAITTIiiiing!
- freedom to tinker
- you ever (Stevie) Wonder about the clavinet?
- it's a BEACH that makes you OLD
- jessamyn's maple dealer


Projects
- Quarantine Happy Hour concert archive by hades
- Recollections Of A Summer by dng
- The Sound of the Far Future by ignignokt


MetaFilter
- Patterns by They sucked his brains out!
- A unanimous vote for the right to repair. by mhoye
- Nikole Hannah-Jones and Ta-Nehisi Coates joining Howard University by Nelson
- Whammy Clavinet by Harald74
- His last purchases—beer, cigarettes, pot—occurred 18 years ago. by Grandysaur
- Happy birthday, Metafilter! by Melismata
- Shawty Got Low in Those Apple Bottom Memes by jonp72
- All mountains are old, but the Appalachians are incomprehensibly old by Karmakaze
- The world's first 1541 disk drive graphics demo by JHarris


Ask MetaFilter
- What to do in Vermont when traveling companion has mobility issues? by The Pluto Gangsta
- How does MetaFilter have such a high user engagement compared to others? by oracleia
- Nouns that you would never say "the" before? by ftm
- Library book with potentially valuable author's signature by clair-de-lune
- What song is this? by Trespassers William
- Songs with radio clips? by ftm
- Voices coming out of my iPad in the middle of the night by squink
- Why is my gas bill so high? by artificialard
- Friends' anxiety makes me angry/anxious by unicorn chaser
- Dating Failure by Aranquis
- How commonplace is crossing one's arms at Catholic communion? by Charity Garfein


MetaTalk
- Metatalktail Hour: Sneaky pet/kid stories by LobsterMitten
- MetaFilter's new Privacy Policy document by cortex
- A change in moderator coverage of the site by cortex
- 1. money 2. budget 3. ??? 4. profit!! by bendy
- Donated By "Anonymous" by cursed


MeFi Music
Featured in this episode:
- Car Music by gt2
- You Should Eat Your Yellow Vegetables by not_on_display
- Brazilian Brooks by CarrotAdventure
- Signal Tower by edlundart

Jessamyn and I managed to stumble our way into and through a podcast despite both having the needle pegged hard to E this afternoon, and here is recorded evidence of that fact, at about 75 minutes.

Helpful Links

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Misc
- Jessamyn is still cleaning out her mom's house.
- like seriously that's a lot of books
- Also, it is Virgo month of leisure, which seems fair, he works really hard in his movies and—oh, I'm being told that Viggo
- Samuel Taylor Coleridge is not Samuel Coleridge-Taylor and, by the commutative property, vice versa

Jobs
- Writing Editor by parmanparman

Projects
- Antarctic survival manual: art for the pandemic and other disasters by SinAesthetic
- New England Carnegies by jessamyn
- Pattern Explorer by reventlov
- Procedural bit-pattern art by suetanvil
- The Camera Offset Project: Hide your face. Save the world. by missjenny
- thoughts.page by wesleyac

MetaFilter
- Cats. Trees. Cat trees. by ardgedee
- 40 albums, 1 year, & Mike Townsend hit a Grand Slam by CrystalDave
- Nandi Bushell and Foo Fighters by mokey
- AIDS denialism in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? by The Ardship of Cambry
- Frank Herbert heard "shows within shows" and got excited by cortex
- All Your Mashups Belong to Us by WCityMike2
- If you're not Kubla Khan by Sokka shot first
- Come as you are? Nevermind by girlmightlive
- Hot coffee + brandy + tranquilizers + turpentine = Houses of the Holy by jessamyn
- Chuck Close 1940 - 2021 by ardgedee

Ask MetaFilter
- Can anyone identify this song? by marimeko
- Music copyright and TV licensing by soonertbone
- 2020 Olympics Best-Of, No Spoilers Edition by exceptinsects
- Cashing old checks by Anonymous
- Is the concern over vegetarians getting enough protein overblown? by rjacobs
- Commonly taught facts/trivia that are oversimplifications by Seeking Direction
- a comment by backseatpilot
- 1883 House - Money Pit? by imjustsaying

MetaTalk
- August is MetaFilter fundraising month by cortex
- Hey, it's a MetaFilter newsletter! by cortex
- Call Me By My Name: Mefi Newsletter 2, the Denominated by taz

It's episode 186 of the MeFi podcast, with Jessamyn and I...and loup! Who joined us to talk a bit about their experiences with internet past and present and their last couple of years as they've been working here. The three of us have a long and winding conversation about community management, internet ethics, MeFi in particular, the recent transition process, etc. Runs about 90 minutes.

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We were so busy just talking about Stuff that we did very little of the normal thread review this time, so the notes are real short. We mentioned in passing:

- jessamyn's adventures with the filtering Facebook
- the latest Transition Team update
- goofy amazon reviews e.g. this old post

Music

- On The Blue (With Apologies to John Coulton, Valve, Et Al) by cortex
- Make it Out Alive by Maaik
- A Conversation by thatwhichfalls

Cortex and I decided to make up for lost time after the delayed previous episode by knocking out another one quick-like, and here it is! Catching up on what we can of the last couple of months of MeFi, and also ranting and philosophizing a little bit about recent seismic changes in the social media sphere and also about design skeuomorphism and the semiotics of interfaces? That last bit is probably overselling it a little? Anyway, runs about 90 minutes.

Helpful Links

Podcast Feed
Subscribe with iTunes
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Misc
- Do some last minute holiday shopping at The MeFi Mall
- Jessamyn's hone game memory was Kubrix

Jobs
- Setting up and moderating a Mastodon instance (but not hosting) by Shepherd
- Business Process Automation Specialist by chiefthe
- Software development guru by Dansaman

Projects
- Daily MRRP! by ignignokt
- Finishing my grandfather's work: stained glass menorah by cortex (MeFi Post)
- Part I of my graphic memoir "Growing In My Gray" by DMelanogaster (MeFi Post)
- Get Blogging! by bwerdmuller (MeFi Post)
- You've Been Played: How Corporations, Governments, and Schools Use Games to Control Us All by adrianhon
- More "More Info" for Netflix (desktop web) by staggernation

MetaFilter
- Dear Twitter Advertisers by autopilot
- Subterranean birdsite blues by nthdegx
- a comment by mark k
- Cohost, a new social media site by brainwane
- Mastodon is having its moment in the sun by toastyk
- Sick of Musk? by dobbs
- PSA: do not use services that hate the internet by mecran01
- We knew this was coming by May Kasahara
- Advent Incremental by juv3nal
- No, that can't be done.... WHAM!!! by Pendragon
- To a Nacreon in Heaven by Rhaomi
- Yummy: Spammer on Toast! by rcade
- Colonel Mustardle in the Yardle with a Petardle by taz
- The Great Purpling by Etrigan
- Explore Quasi-Periodic Tiling by gwint
- Everything in Conway's Game of Life can be constructed from 15 gliders by automatronic
- "we were, in effect, rewriting our own childhoods" by jessamyn
- The State of Ketchup in 2022 by Fizz

Ask MetaFilter
- What's your Check Please hand signal, and what does it signify? by cortex
- Help me give myself the gift of freedom by rebent
- MeFiGiftGuide2022 - The Metafilter Gift Guide by rebent
- Comparing apples and oranges by Just this guy, y'know
- What is up with these old french cars? by selenized
- Sci-fi Survey Course by darchildre
- Carnivorous Lamp by Just this guy, y'know

MetaTalk
- Mefi Mastodon server? by Pronoiac
- MeFi Posts for "Sale" by jessamyn
- What The MeFi BIPOC Board Does by brainwane

MeFi Music
Snippest of tracks this episode, at the beginning and end respectively:
- Death Scene Music for an Imaginary, Low-Budget Cyberpunk Movie by thatwhichfalls
- 73 Keep It Beautiful by chococat

For this edition of Atlanta Considered, I went to Chrome Yellow Trading Company on Edgewood Avenue during the A3C hip-hop festival and conference. A3C is one of the nation’s largest urban music events and stands for All Three Coasts, as Atlanta joins New York and Los Angeles as the pillars of hip-hop culture.

On Friday February 3, GPB Atlanta broadcasted "All Things Considered" live from the High Museum of Art's monthly " First Friday " event.

Updated at 8:39 p.m. ET Tuesday The Ventura County Medical Examiner's Office has ruled the death of actor Naya Rivera to be an accidental drowning. She had disappeared on July 8 while boating with her 4-year-old son, and her body was recovered from a Southern California lake on Monday. Best known for her starring role on the Fox show Glee , Rivera was 33 years old. Sheriff William "Bill" Ayub said Monday Rivera's remains were found in Lake Piru in the Los Padres National Forest, not far from Los Angeles. For six seasons, from 2009 to 2015, Rivera played the role of an unexpectedly popular television antihero. Glee 's Santana Lopez was a cynical, initially closeted high school cheerleader with charisma to burn and an ax to grind. "The only straight I am is straight-up bitch," Santana announced in Season 2. But the character's bullying eventually yielded to team spirit and a tender romance with another cheerleader, the sweet natured but dim Brittany. Glee fans pushed for the storyline,

Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: One of the most famous actors in India has COVID-19. Big B, as he's called, is Amitabh Bachchan. Bollywood fans are praying for recovery, as NPR's Lauren Frayer reports. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED GROUP: (Praying in non-English language). LAUREN FRAYER, BYLINE: At a Hindu temple in Bhopal, India, the faithful chant prayers for Amitabh Bachchan and his family. The 77-year-old Bollywood icon and his son were both hospitalized over the weekend with COVID-19. His daughter-in-law and granddaughter also tested positive and are isolating at home. The Bachchans are bigger than royalty. There's another Hindu temple dedicated to Amitabh Bachchan in Kolkata, complete with a life-sized idol of the actor on a throne. The sanctuary walls are plastered with movie posters. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: (Non-English language spoken). FRAYER: "We're not fans, we're devotees," this man told local TV.

Saturday Night Live 's Colin Jost knows there's something about his clean-cut image that rubs some people the wrong way. When he joined SNL as a writer in 2005, he worked off-camera — and didn't have to think about his looks. "When you're not on camera or on television, you don't really consider what you look like," he says. But all that changed when he began working on-air in 2014 as the co-anchor of the show's "Weekend Update." "Some people look at me and have sort of a visceral, angry reaction [to me]," he says. "You see it in our audience. When I get hurt or hit on camera — like when [castmate] Cecily [Strong] throws drinks in my face or throws up red wine on me — the audience really loves it." Jost's new memoir, A Very Punchable Face, describes his experiences growing up in a middle-class household on Staten Island . "Part of writing this book was being excited to talk about parts of my life and weird episodes in my life that I thought that would be entertaining for people," he

Copyright 2020 Fresh Air. To see more, visit Fresh Air . TERRY GROSS, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. At a time when many Americans are still home and life seems to have come to a standstill, our film critic Justin Chang says it could be an especially good time to watch "Palm Springs," a romantic comedy about two people forced to repeat the same day over and over again. It stars Andy Samberg and Cristin Milioti. It's streaming on Hulu and playing in some drive-in theaters around the country. JUSTIN CHANG, BYLINE: "Palm Springs" was a hot ticket at this year's Sundance Film Festival, one of the last public events to take place before the movie industry shut down. I didn't see it there, but having caught up with it months later at home, I can't help but feel as though this breezily entertaining movie plays a little differently in the era of COVID-19. It's a comedy about isolation and repetition, which might not sound too appealing at a time when many of us are also leading lives of isolation

Copyright 2020 KHNS. To see more, visit KHNS . LULU GARCIA-NAVARRO, HOST: Southeast Alaska's economy is getting hammered without cruise ship tourists, who stayed home due to the pandemic. So one tiny town is using its federal relief money to write monthly $1,000 checks to every resident, paying them not to move away. Claire Stremple reports from member station KHNS. CLAIRE STREMPLE, BYLINE: The boardwalk-lined streets of Skagway, Alaska, are usually filled with tourists by midsummer. But this year, the streets are quiet. REBECCA HYLTON: I became unemployed March 13. STREMPLE: Like many people in town, Rebecca Hylton has depended on the tourism industry for decades. She ran marketing for a local brewpub. But no cruises means no business. She couldn't pay her mortgage until she and her 7-year-old son got their first $2,000 from the local government. Then she spent a little money downtown. HYLTON: So right away, we bought some new boots for him, whereas before, I definitely would've

Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit NOEL KING, HOST: There's something happening in the U.K. right now that is reminiscent of Prohibition in the United States. You remember those old pictures of bar owners pouring out gallons and gallons of booze? STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: Oh, yeah. Well, British pub owners today are dumping all the beer that's gone bad during the months they were in lockdown. DUNCAN SMITH: During the 14-week shutdown, a significant amount of our beers and lagers became out of date. KING: That's Duncan Smith (ph). He's been a bartender for 33 years, and one of the pubs that he operates has been around for 250 years. SMITH: It's been serving the community for that long and, you know, been through world wars and all the rest of it and, obviously, very different times that long ago. And something comes along like this, which could wipe it out, and we've got to take any benefit we possibly can, thrown out by the government and the suppliers, in order to survive. INSKEEP: The

The federal deficit ballooned last month as the U.S. government tried to cushion the blow from the coronavirus pandemic. The red ink in June alone totaled $864 billion . The federal government ran a bigger deficit last month alone than it usually does all year. Washington spent hundreds of billions of dollars trying to prop up small businesses and assist laid-off workers. With three months left in the government's fiscal year, the year's deficit of $2.7 trillion is already nearly twice as large as the previous record of $1.4 trillion, set in 2009 during the Great Recession. While the government is spending heavily on the pandemic , tax collections in June were lower than usual. The filing deadline for 2019 income taxes was postponed until July 15. Congressional forecasters expect the federal deficit for the full year to reach $3.7 trillion. With infections on the rise, Congress is expected to consider additional relief measures this month. Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit https:/

Prairie strips in fields of corn or soybeans can protect the soil and allow wildlife to flourish. This strip was established in a field near Traer, Iowa, in 2015. Omar de Kok-Mercado, Iowa State University Lisa Schulte Moore loves nature. To stand in an old-growth forest, she says, "I can only describe it as healing." When she moved to Iowa to teach ecology at Iowa State University, she didn't get that same feeling when she found herself amid acres of corn. She wasn't hearing birds or seeing many bugs. "All I can hear are the leaves of the rustling corn," she says. "Not one biological noise. You know, they call it the green desert." This is, in fact, the central environmental problem with agriculture. This year, corn and soybeans cover an area of the United States equal in size to all the East Coast states from New York to Georgia. It has displaced wildlife and left the soil more vulnerable to water and wind erosion. But Schulte Moore says that it doesn't have to be a green desert. She

In this inspirational article, Pastor Doug explores the theme of forgiveness through the lens of one of Jesus’ most challenging parables.

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST: A bipartisan delegation of Congresspeople is just back from Ukraine. It was a trip designed to strengthen the U.S.-Ukraine alliance, and it was planned before news broke of the whistleblower complaint against President Trump involving that same country. Congressman John Garamendi led the delegation as a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee. And the Democrat from California joins us now. Welcome, Congressman. JOHN GARAMENDI: Good to be with you. SHAPIRO: One central question in the impeachment inquiry is whether President Trump demanded help investigating a political rival in exchange for U.S. aid to Ukraine. And I know that aid was a central topic on your trip, so what did you learn about Ukraine's reliance on American assistance? GARAMENDI: Well, first of all, Ukraine is an extraordinary country. These citizens of that country are determined to be independent. They have been fighting a war against Russia for the last five years. They've lost 13- to 14

Copyright 2019 NPR. To see more, visit MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST: Over the weekend, we learned that a second whistleblower has come forward in the Ukraine affair. The anonymous individual is said to have firsthand knowledge of President Trump's dealings with Ukraine. NPR justice correspondent Ryan Lucas is here in the studio with more. Hey there, Ryan. RYAN LUCAS, BYLINE: Hello there. KELLY: So whistleblower number two - what do we know about this person? LUCAS: A lot remains a mystery, to be honest. The individual has been described as an intelligence official but remains, as you said, anonymous. He or she is being represented by the same legal team as the whistleblower who submitted the initial formal complaint to the Intelligence Committee inspector general, and it's that complaint, of course, that kicked off this whole Trump-Ukraine affair. One of the lawyers on the legal team, Mark Zaid, says this second individual has spoken with the inspector general. That means that this person

For decades, chef Charlie Hallowell was a culinary star around Oakland, Calif., as beloved for his restaurants' hip vibe, as he was for his passion for all the right social causes. Even the national critics raved about his creative modern California cuisine and his "cult following." Bon Appetit fawned, "Hallowell should run for mayor already." But in December 2017, as the #MeToo movement was boiling over, the man celebrated for his cool cocktails and organic, locally-sourced farm-to-table ingredients was suddenly splayed across the front page of the San Francisco Chronicle as a serial sexual harasser. Dozens of women accused him of everything from constant lewd comments to uninvited kissing on the mouth, long, handsy hugs – and more. Catalina del Canto, who worked for Hallowell as a cook and hostess, says he would come up behind her when she was stocking shelves in the walk-in cooler and press against her. And the crass sexual banter, she says, was constant. "He asked if I had a

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST: A bipartisan delegation of Congresspeople is just back from Ukraine. It was a trip designed to strengthen the U.S.-Ukraine alliance, and it was planned before news broke of the whistleblower complaint against President Trump involving that same country. Congressman John Garamendi led the delegation as a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee. And the Democrat from California joins us now. Welcome, Congressman. JOHN GARAMENDI: Good to be with you. SHAPIRO: One central question in the impeachment inquiry is whether President Trump demanded help investigating a political rival in exchange for U.S. aid to Ukraine. And I know that aid was a central topic on your trip, so what did you learn about Ukraine's reliance on American assistance? GARAMENDI: Well, first of all, Ukraine is an extraordinary country. These citizens of that country are determined to be independent. They have been fighting a war against Russia for the last five years. They've lost 13- to 14

There are over 400 prophecies in the Old Testament that foretold the coming of Jesus. This message is about the ones that specifically deal with His coming as a child.

There is power in words. Words can bring life, and words can bring death. God wants us to speak words of encouragement.

Old Scottish ballad.

also known as Tam Lin. D minor slaps.

Hiya! I'll be in Toronto from Wednesday, November 27th through Saturday, November 30th and would love to say hello to some MeFites. I got to walk the St. Lawrence Market with Mandolin Conspiracy on a previous trip and chat and eat nice things. I'd be amenable to meeting up there, or maybe somewhere else. I'm flexible.

FWIW, we have cousins in Toronto and I have been many, many times. So I don't need any tourism assists, I just wanted to meet and spend a little time with MeFites, as you're the best, folks.

I know some of you already dressed up and went to your parties last weekend. And some of you have parties this weekend. And tonight (in the US) it trick-or-treat free-for-all. How have you decorated? What are you wearing?

We'll showcase the costumes during the podcast (scheduled to be recorded November 11) and pick three winners who will all get a free copy of the Pet Tax wall and the digital cookbook. Loose categories. * Spookiest costume * Simple but effective * Best Overall Costume Show us what you've got!

MLRv is a great tool for live performance, as proven by a number of talented button mashers such as Galapagoose and Daedelus. It creates an immediate feedback loop between button presses and sounds that audiences just “get”. But if you’re only using MLRv for button mashing, you’re missing out on a ton of potential it has […]

In my last post, I suggested that MLRv could be used to enhance your production workflow, outside of its abilities as a live performance tool.  In this post I’ll cover the configuration necessary to get MLRv set up for automation with Ableton.  In the post following this, I’ll give an example of how this setup […]

In post 1 and post 2 of this series, I talked about why it’s worth trying MLRv as a production tool, as opposed to a live performance tool.  Let’s get to some examples of what this really means. A couple months back, I was approached by Edison to do a remix of his track My […]

I just got back from spending the weekend with my brother in NYC building this contraption: It’s a of balancing the projector precariously on a shoebox, the projector is housed inside and a mirror is used to bounce the projections onto the screen: The whole idea is that the music interface is also the visual […]

Updated at 8:47 a.m. ET The coronavirus pandemic has pushed unemployment to its highest level since the Great Depression, but the pace of layoffs has been easing. And there are now some signs that the job market could slowly start to recover. The Labor Department says another 1.87 million people filed claims for unemployment insurance last week. That's down 249,000 from the previous week. While still very high by historical standards, the number has been declining steadily from a peak of 6.8 million the week ending March 28. In the past 11 weeks, 42.6 million new claims have been filed. Continued claims for unemployment went up 649,000, to 21.5 million, in the week ending May 23, the latest week for which data was available, after dropping the prior week. While some workers continue to get pink slips, others have started going back to work. The payroll processor ADP reported Wednesday that private-sector employers cut just under 2.8 million jobs between April and May. That's a much

After the coronavirus lockdowns forced it to shut down its 345 U.S. theaters, Texas-based Cinemark in April decided to do what a lot of companies have done: borrow money by selling bonds. The sale was made easier by the fact that the Federal Reserve was lending out trillions of dollars to businesses and governments, providing a much-needed boost to the corporate debt market in an effort to prop up the economy. Even as it was borrowing money, Cinemark also announced a number of steps "to endure a prolonged period of no revenue." They included laying off 17,500 workers with no guarantee when they'll be rehired. During the current crisis, the Fed, which began a two-day meeting on Tuesday, has pulled out all the stops to keep the economy afloat, lowering interest rates to zero and starting a series of unprecedented and historic new lending facilities practically overnight. "It has taken what were already extraordinary, exceptional, unusual, unconventional tools and has expanded them even

Updated at 4:12 p.m. ET The Federal Reserve left interest rates near zero Wednesday and once again promised to deliver whatever monetary medicine it can to an economy that's badly ailing from the coronavirus pandemic. "The Federal Reserve is committed to using its full range of tools to support the U.S. economy in this challenging time," the central bank said in a statement . While noting that "financial conditions have improved, in part reflecting policy measures to support the economy," the Fed's rate-setting committee reiterated its intent to leave interest rates at rock-bottom levels, "until it is confident that the economy has weathered recent events and is on track to achieve its maximum employment and price stability goals." Notes released along with the committee's statement suggest no rate increases are expected at least through 2022. "We're not thinking about raising rates," Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said at a news conference. "We're not even thinking about thinking about