*with a $60 donation to Lar’s MS Research fundraiser. It’s May 8th (legitimately in case you didn’t know), which means there are only a few weeks in the 2020 edition of the DeSouza MS Research fundraiser. For the final stretch, Lar is changing the rules. Instead of a theme for May, May’s theme is ALL […]

awww... my blog... i love you this means i'm out of china i'm in tokyo!! and for kokuritsu, what else^^first of all, i must say i was lucky to have been through the period where arashi front row con tickets cost under 30k for stands, and a random arena seat (not first row block a) cost under 20k at the auctions.and watching continuous shows without winning a single ballot was actually not such bad

as my office's server is based overseas or whatever i think i can access here while i'm working thus a great reason to O.T. here are my trip's pic^^http://www.flickr.com/photos/fybabe/sets/72157624890186184/

kyaaaa~~~ finally something hopefully useable from jun's endorsements though i bought both his fasio mascara, and used them, but erm... honestly hor, they suck anyway,look out oct 1st^^http://www.elleair.jp/

congrats!!2010年09月09日18時00分音楽ファン2万人が選んだ好きなアーティスト　毎年恒例となった好きなアーティストランキングの結果が、ついに発表となった。2万人にアンケートを実施し、栄えある第1位に輝いたのは、男女ほぼ全世代から支持されたモンスターグループ、嵐だ。10代総合、20代総合、30代女性、40代女性ランキングで軒並み1位に上り詰め、さらに女性総合ランキングでも1位になるなど、その人気はとどまることを知ら

i'm sure those observing from mars have aseen this 【オリコン】嵐、2010年初のミリオンセラー達成　大野「これからも嵐を見捨てないで…」2010/10/12 13:49

Talks about product design are a great tool for thinking about sociology because they show us just how much work goes into understanding our basic assumptions about the things we use everyday. Design shows us which parts of a product are absolutely essential for function, and just how much is only there for show. Small […]

As the primary season heats up, the spotlight is back on political advertising and social media. Recent controversies over “fake” ads on Facebook raises questions about the ethics of campaign strategies that target voters with misinformation. It doesn’t help that many of these tech companies are not exactly transparent about processes for addressing biased or […]

For centuries, nations have expanded geographically and economically by taking land and labor from indigenous people. One of the narratives used to justify this colonialist expansion portrays indigenous land and space as empty, simply there for others to occupy. This narrative is known as indigenous absence. Kleinman and Kleinman write that this kind of erasure […]

Modern policing is often characterized by quasi-militaristic tendencies, from “wars” on drugs and crime to its use armored vehicles and automatic weapons. The Department of Defense 1033 Program, which provides military equipment slated for storage to law enforcement agencies, is a popular way that police and sheriff’s departments acquire military gear. According to data from […]

Sociologists studying emotion have opened up the inner, private feelings of anger, fear, shame, and love to reveal the far-reaching effects of social forces on our most personal experiences. This subfield has given us new words to make sense of shared experiences: emotional labor in our professional lives, collective effervescence at sporting events and concerts, […]

Tis’ the season for throwing down at dinner. Every year the humor and the horror stories about Thanksgiving hit our social media feeds. This isn’t just about politics, either. Family dinners have a strong symbolic significance. When the stakes are high for a once-a-year gathering, other kinds of social conflicts are primed to play out as well. […]

I just wrapped up my political sociology class for the semester. We spent a lot of time talking about conflict and polarization, reading research on why people avoid politics, the spread of political outrage, and why exactly liberals drink lattes. When we become polarized, small choices in culture and consumption—even just a cup of coffee—can become signals for […]

Mattel, creator of the Barbie doll, has launched “a doll line designed to keep labels out and invite everyone in—giving kids the freedom to create their own customizable characters again and again.”  This doll has minimal makeup, a short hairstyle with an attachable long-hair wig, a flat chest, flat feet (for wearing sneakers, hiking boots, […]

Sociologists spend a lot of time thinking about lives in social context: how the relationships and communities we live in shape the way we understand ourselves and move through the world. It can be tricky to start thinking about this, but one easy way to do it is to start collecting social facts. Start by […]

Who’s afraid of a global pandemic? We all are, at the moment. But like so many other forms of fear, concern about medical issues is much more acute for people in precarious and vulnerable social positions. The privileged—particularly those who are white and upper class—can more afford not to be preoccupied with health and medical […]

Because everything is currently terrible, I binge-watched Love is Blind. In case you are planning to do the same, this is a spoiler-free post. You probably know the premise: contestants in this romantic reality romp go on speed dates in little pods. They can’t see their conversation partners, and at the end of the dates […]

Can political leaders put partisanship aside to govern in a crisis? The COVID-19 pandemic has proved to be a crucial test of politicians’ willingness to put state before party. Acting swiftly to slow the spread of a novel virus and cooperating with cross-partisans could mean the difference between life and death for many state residents. […]

Fox News judicial analyst Andrew Napolitano said on Thursday that a Republican plan to shield businesses from coronavirus-related lawsuits is “dangerous.”

Earlier this week, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) suggested that he would not support additional relief funds to households and businesses unless the package also includes a measure shielding businesses from liability for coronavirus infections.

But Napolitano argued that the provision would be anti-conservative and violate states rights.

“Can the Congress tell state courts that they cannot hear claims of liability when someone goes into a public accommodation and contracts coronavirus?” the Fox News analyst explained. “Congress has been very reticent to do that. Conservatives who believe in states rights have been very reluctant to interfere with the operation of state courts.”

Napolitano pointed out that the only other instance where Congress has restricted state courts is a law that prohibits gun manufacturers from being sued over gun violence.

“I think that this liability shield business is very dangerous,” he added. “The decision of whose fault someone was harmed by should be decided by juries and not by politicians.”

Donald Trump issued an executive order late Thursday that environmentalists warned will accelerate the corporate exploitation of oceans by relaxing regulations on and streamlining the construction of industrial offshore aquaculture facilities, which critics deride as "floating factory farms" that pump pollution and diseases into public waters.

The Don't Cage Our Ocean Coalition, which was formed to oppose ocean industrial fish farming, said in a statement that Trump's Executive Order on Promoting American Seafood Competitiveness and Economic Growth "mandates federal agencies to craft a program for rapid authorization of industrial offshore aquaculture facilities, which use giant floating cages to cultivate finfish, allowing toxic pollution to flow into open waters."

"The federal government should strengthen local food security during this health crisis by supporting sustainable seafood, rather than allowing corporations to pollute the ecosystems we depend on."
—Marianne Cufone, environmental attorney

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Cats can be great companions, or they can sit on your keyboard.

Mine converted my Chrome "language" into Arabic.

You can see more videos at Furball Fables.

Open thread below...

After it was revealed Friday that Mike Pence's spokesperson, who is Stephen Miller's wife, Katie Miller, tested positive, Trump gave an illogical and moronic response to the media about her and coronavirus testing in general.

Trump said, "She tested very good for a long period of time, and then all of a sudden today, she tested positive."

That's the way any virus spreads, especially one as infectious as COVID-19. One day you don't have it, and the next, if you're not protecting yourself, you've got it.

Trump said he and Pence tested negative after her results came back.

"So she tested positive out of the blue," he said.

A person doesn't test positive out of the freaking blue. They were contaminated by somebody else. It's Basic Science 101.

Trump continued, "This is why the whole concept of tests aren’t necessarily great."

Trump has admitted how much he hates the idea of testing Americans in general, not because they are unreliable, but because it affects the number of cases that are reported, and makes him look bad.

What a swell guy.

Then he made another baffling statement that makes no sense in any reality. Trump said, "The tests are perfect, but something can happen between a test where it’s good and then something happens and all of a sudden…”

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In 1992, Bill Clinton’s campaign manager James Carville came up with one of the most famous campaign slogans in history when he pinned a note to the bulletin board of the campaign headquarters that said “It’s the economy, stupid.” There was a lot of stuff going on at the time, the tail end of the first Gulf War, the Rodney King Riots, Ross Perot’s quixotic campaign among other things. But we were in a recession that wasn’t particularly deep but it seemed to be hitting certain people very hard. Carville understood that everything flowed from being able to address that problem.

It seems that the Trump administration thinks that slogan applies to their circumstance. And it is true that the record high unemployment claims and the small business crisis is as acute as anything we’ve ever seen. They believe they can just “open the country” and everything will fall into place as people just go back to normal, maybe with a few adjustments and people over 60 staying inside their houses for the foreseeable future.

But, as always, they are missing the point. This piece in The Atlantic explains why:

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Remember the April 15th "Operation Gridlock?" in Lansing Michigan? In my piece on April 21st I said we needed to start tracking these protesters to show that they will spread the virus to other communities. Well, someone did.

The people at the Committee to Protect Medicare released data which shows the protesters dispersing to smaller communities across Michigan in the following days. The map above shows that cellphones that were in Lansing on April 15 scattered across the state. (Link)

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It's true what they say. Not all heroes wear capes. They wear gloves, masks, and gowns. That's especially true these days.

Source: Reuters

LONDON (Reuters) - A young boy chooses a nurse as the superhero he wants to play with over Batman and Spiderman in a new artwork by Banksy that encapsulates the gratitude Britons have felt toward the country’s National Health Service during the coronavirus crisis.

The painting by the secretive street artist was unveiled at University Hospital Southampton, in south England, on Wednesday.

An image of the work was also posted on Banksy’s Instagram page with the caption “Game Changer”.

Hospital chief executive Paula Head said: “So proud to reveal this amazing piece of art ‘Painting for Saints’, created by #Banksy as a thank you to all those who work with and for the NHS and our hospital.”

“An inspirational backdrop to pause and reflect in these unprecedented times,” she added on Twitter.

Full Article

We all know that the most oppressed group in all of history is (checks notes) White Christian Republican Men. They were sold into slavery, forbidden from drinking at certain water fountains or from riding in the front of the bus. They didn't get the right to vote until the last century. They have never won the Presidency. Hell, they don't even get to control their own bodies.

Wait. Wrong groups.

White men control pretty much EVERYTHING.

So, imagine Todd Starnes frustration when he was told by the mean store person that he had to not only wear a mask — but he had to use hand sanitizer — DURING A GLOBAL PANDEMIC. Yes, to put others' safety before your own convenience is hard for the White Christian Republican Man. After all, he has been raised to expect everyone else to bend to his will, not the other way around.

Here is Todd's super whiny tweet:

Twitter had thoughts:

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Here is the COVID-19 situation in Maryland and Washington, DC.

To date, 311 people have been tested statewide.

Delaware has eight cases of COVID-19, most of them connected to the University of Delaware.

The first COVID-19 death in Nevada was a man in his 60s with an underlying health condition.

Here's a look at the number of coronavirus cases in Nebraska, and the latest news on the COVID-19 outbreak.

Here are the latest updates on coronavirus in Kentucky.

Here is the COVID-19 situation in Minnesota.

Here's an update on the coronavirus case counts in South Dakota and the latest news on the COVID-19 outbreak.

Here's a look at the number of coronavirus cases in Oregon and the latest news about the COVID-19 outbreak.

Here's a look at the number of coronavirus cases in Rhode Island and the latest news about the COVID-19 outbreak.

Here's a look at the number of coronavirus cases in Idaho and the latest news about the COVID-19 outbreak.

Here's a look at the latest on the coronavirus in Michigan.

Cases of COVID-19 that fly under the radar — without being diagnosed — appear to fuel the rapid spread of the disease.

California has reported 472 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 11 deaths as of Monday evening (March 16).

Here's a look at the number of coronavirus cases in Louisiana and the latest news about the COVID-19 outbreak.

The case count in Alabama jumped to 36 on Tuesday (March 17).

Alaska has three confirmed cases of COVID-19 as of Monday (March 16).

Here is the COVID-19 situation in Massachusetts.

Georgia has 146 confirmed cases of COVID-19

More than 130 people in the state have been diagnosed with COVID-19, and one has died.

Here's a look at the number of coronavirus cases in Utah and the latest news about the COVID-19 outbreak.

Here's a look at the number of coronavirus cases in Indiana and the latest news about the COVID-19 outbreak.

Arkansas has reported 22 confirmed cases of COVID-19 as of Tuesday (March 17).

Here is the COVID-19 situation in Mississippi.