Just Hush
“The Georgia division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans has filed a new lawsuit challenging the removal of a Lost Cause monument from the Decatur square. The suit filed last week in DeKalb County Superior Court asks that the 30-foot Confederate obelisk be returned to its “former place of honor.” It names Decatur city attorney Bryan Downs and all seven DeKalb County commissioners — including two who weren’t in office when the obelisk was removed — as defendants, suggesting that officials took “collusive action” to circumvent state law protecting Confederate monuments. Martin O’Toole, a spokesman for the Georgia Sons of Confederate Veterans, wrote in a Sunday afternoon Facebook post that putting the monument back up would “send a message around the state and nation vindicating our laws. Decatur and DeKalb [County’s] actions have been cited in several venues as an example of a legitimate means by the ‘Cancel Culture’ to censor history,” wrote O’Toole, who is also a leader with the Charles Martel Society, an Atlanta-based white nationalist organization. In an email to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Downs called the suit a “tardy, vexatious attack on properly entered rulings by a Georgia court of law.” The Decatur city attorney wrote that the Confederate group had more than three months to try and intervene before Seeliger issued his final order, but did nothing.” Atlanta Journal Constitution: Confederate group sues over removal of Decatur monument I cannot with racists people. Just shut up. Not to mention Decatur has a very high population of black residents and that’s where you choose to preserve your racism. This is just a stunt for other racists. Boy Bye.
Anti-Vaxxers Be Anti-Vaxxing
“Just as the Covid-19 vaccine rollout began in earnest in the United States, the Informed Consent Action Network (Ican) sent its subscribers a “legal update” on its war against employers and schools planning to require the shots. “If you or anyone you know is being required by an employer or school to receive a Covid-19 vaccine, Ican is pleased to offer to support legal action on your behalf to challenge the requirement,” read the January email. Ican was founded in 2016 by one of the loudest voices in the US anti-vaccine movement, Del Bigtree, who produced the widely discredited propaganda movie Vaxxed: From Cover-Up to Catastrophe. For the last year, the nonprofit has capitalized on fear surrounding supposed vaccine mandates, going on the offensive months before any life saving vaccines became available to the public. Now, as vaccine hesitancy persists, Ican’s legal blitz has fueled disinformation, using costly legal threats to deter schools and businesses from implementing vaccination requirements.The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has already given the go-ahead to employers who want to require vaccines for employees in the workplace, according to recent guidance. However, the idea of a “vaccine mandate” is misleading, as students and workers still have the right to refuse a jab and won’t be involuntarily vaccinated, said Y Tony Yang, a professor of health policy at George Washington University. Those who forgo a shot may be barred from some opportunities, although there’s still the possibility of waivers, exemptions and other work-arounds. Plus, they’ll likely have the ability to choose education or employment alternatives that don’t require vaccines.” The Guardian:Anti-vax group mounts legal blitz to sow disinformation against vaccinations Let’s stop pretending that vaccine requirements are not a thing. Schools, colleges, hospitals, travel to some countries, and more all have required vaccinations. This is just stupid. The anti-vaxxers are just opportunists. Because this group has the ability to outspend many businesses and organizations, their targets are opting to not have a vaccine mandate which just puts more people at risk while at the same time nudging people with any doubts not to protect themselves. This is all but guaranteeing a spike in COVID cases this fall and winter.
People are from Earth, Bezos can stay on Mars
“After announcing that he’s heading to space, two separate petitions have made the rounds to demand that the Amazon founder and CEO stays there. In one petition that has over 50,000 signatures, someone wrote “Being a billionaire in a world where poverty exists is unconscionable.” This was polite considering the more, well, explosive commentary on the petition website. Another simply said, “we don’t need this person on planet earth.” Meanwhile a different petition with over 20,000 signatures compares the corporate executive to Lex Luthor, the fictional Superman nemesis.” Essence: People Have Started Petitions to Stop Jeff Bezos From Coming Back to Earth After His July Space Trip Ha! Just Ha! Listen, if we are sending people off planet, I have a list.
Stupid Is as Stupid Does
“A 53-year-old father who had a heart attack after drinking between eight and 12 energy drinks every day for a year has spoken out about his experiences, issuing a warning over what he described as “dangerous” drinks. Lee Kamen, a pub owner in Hull, in northern England, told Hull Live how he had collapsed after suffering a heart attack in 2017, at the age of 49. “I was on eight to 12 a day at the time, I was drinking Red Bull and Monster, I used to go to Makro [a wholesalers] for the pub and would buy cases of 24 cans and just drink them like any other drink,” Kamen told Hull Live. “I was working a lot and drank them to keep me going. This probably went on for about a year. One day I collapsed with a heart attack and had to have a stent fitted. I am now on medication for life due to those dangerous drinks. When I was in hospital after the heart attack, the doctor told me the energy drink consumption was the cause. I didn’t have a clue there was anything wrong with drinking them until then.” Kamen decided to speak out about the risks of drinking excessive amounts of energy beverages after his 10-year-old daughter came out of school with a can of Monster in her hand.” Newsweek: Man Has Heart Attack After Consuming up to 12 Energy Drinks a Day for a Year The only danger here is stupidity. There is nothing wrong with the energy drink just its user. It’s simple he overdosed. No one in the history of the world would tell a person to drink 8 to 12 energy drinks per day. Duh!
Flavored with Plastic
“Plastic bottles have been converted into vanilla flavouring using genetically engineered bacteria, the first time a valuable chemical has been brewed from waste plastic. Upcycling plastic bottles into more lucrative materials could make the recycling process far more attractive and effective. Currently plastics lose about 95% of their value as a material after a single use. Researchers have already developed mutant enzymes to break down the polyethylene terephthalate polymer used for drinks bottles into its basic units, terephthalic acid (TA). Scientists have now used bugs to convert TA into vanillin. The research, published in the journal Green Chemistry, used engineered E. coli bacteria to transform TA into vanillin. The scientists warmed a microbial broth to 37C for a day, the same conditions as for brewing beer. This converted 79% of the TA into vanillin. Vanillin is used widely in the food and cosmetics industries and is an important bulk chemical used to make pharmaceuticals, cleaning products and herbicides. Global demand is growing and in 2018 was 37,000 tonnes, far exceeding the supply from natural vanilla beans. About 85% of vanillin is currently synthesised from chemicals derived from fossil fuels. About 1m plastic bottles are sold every minute around the world and just 14% are recycled. Currently even those bottles that are recycled can only be turned into opaque fibres for clothing or carpets.” The Guardian: Scientists convert used plastic bottles into vanilla flavouring Just what the hell is in our food?
The Culture Commentary 