Does That Make Me Crazy? Possibly.

  2 In 100 Million

Business Insider did a piece last week that explored why two voters have chosen not to vote at all in 2020. In 2016, 100 million eligible voters did not vote. This is the story of two of them. One is a 23 year-old man from Connecticut. He is not voting because he doesn’t believe either candidate would be a good president. He said,”we’ve seen one, and the other I just don’t believe is a good alternative, so I don’t think that my vote should go to either one.” He was also concerned with both candidates having sexual assault allegations. 

The other non-voter is a 31 year-old woman from Ohio. She is not voting, although she has voted in previous elections. She says politicians don’t care about their campaign promises and they will ultimately do what they want.

“Insider found that 11% of non-voters in its surveys do so out of systemic problems, disagreements with the process, or contention that their vote is ineffective.” A common theme is thinking one vote doesn’t count. However, to say your vote is ineffective these days means you’re just not paying attention. Elections are being decided by small numbers on all levels. And there is more to voting than just the presidential race. Yet, I will NOT get on a soap box right here, right now, maybe some other time though. Today, I’m just sharing information.

Facebook, You Can’t Be Serious?

I feel like I’ve been talking about Facebook a lot, lately. But, if they would stop doing stuff, I could stop talking about it. So, what did they do now, you ask? Oh, just forced their site moderators in Dublin to work in the office despite a lockdown. The moderators say they were told they’re considered essential workers, and therefore, not bound by Ireland’s Level 5 restrictions, which requires people to work at home unless they’re “providing an essential purpose for which your physical presence is required.” Ireland implemented the lockdown to combat their rise in COVID-19 cases. Amazing isn’t it!  This is an actual option, for an actual country, for a response to a rise in COVID-19 cases, Just Amazing. But, I digress. 

Facebook for its part says that, if a worker is considered vulnerable, they can work from home and they are trying to make the office safe. But come on, Facebook, you don’t have any essential workers. You’re a social media platform. Nice try, but this is messed up. 

What also makes Facebook look bad is that The Guardian reported workers returned to the office in July and were told that if there was a confirmed COVID-19 case in the office, there would be a 72-hour shutdown. Yet, there have been 3 cases since the end of September but, no shut down. Tsk, Tsk. I know Facebook has been catching a bunch of heat, lately, but really, you can’t put people at risk to make that better. 

Pandemic Puppy Anyone?

I find the ridiculousness of this story refreshing. As if 2020, couldn’t get any crazier. Let’s add a concierge puppy delivery service who call themselves flight nannies. Yes, some Americans are having puppies flown in from Colorado and other parts of the country. People are literally paying other people money to escort puppies to them. I am aware that lots of people are getting puppies during the Pandemic. Even, I must admit, it’s the perfect time to housebreak a dog. But, I did not have in mind purchasing an “11-week-old mini bernedoodle–a cross between an 85-pound Bernese mountain dog mother and a 13-pound miniature poodle father.” The visual of which is not lost on me. The cost: $3,950 plus $450 and a plane ticket for the flight nanny, who will escort your new puppy to you. I’m sorry, but, this sounds a little crazy. 

Last month​, Ms. Murphy, a dog flight nanny who lives in Colorado, made trips to Boston, six trips to California, six to New York City, and one each to Phoenix and Seattle. 

There are several “flight nannies” working, many of whom are former airline employees, that can still get ticket discounts to offset the cost. One dog was being trained before delivery and by the time that happened the dog was too big for the airline approved carriers. So, the nanny was paid $2300 to drive from South Carolina to California. 

Now, I don’t want to count their pockets, but they seem to be doing pretty well. Here’s a business that is thriving during the pandemic. So, get your puppies here or have them brought here!

As If Santa Wasn’t Busy Enough

The Department of Health and Human Services previously offered to vaccinate Santa Claus performers as part of a $250 million taxpayer-funded public relations campaign. The plan would have allowed Santas that participated to receive early access to the future, currently non-existent, COVID-19 vaccine. So, what do we get for $250 million and some of the coveted vaccines? Santa, Mrs. Claus, and some elves would promote the vaccine to the public and participate in holiday events organized by the Trump administration. You cannot make this dumb stuff up!

Luckily, they abandoned this idea, but, they didn’t do that until last Friday. “The deal was the brainchild of, Michael Caputo, an HHS assistant secretary, [appointed by Trump] who took a 60-day medical leave last month. The rest of the campaign now is under an HHS review.” – WSJ

Ric Erwin, chairman of the Fraternal Order of Real Bearded Santas (I know, it sounds like I’m making this stuff up), called the news “extremely disappointing,” adding: “This was our greatest hope for Christmas 2020, and now it looks like it won’t happen.”

I also find it “extremely disappointing” that THAT was their greatest hope for Christmas 2020.

But Also This…

1. Amy Coney Barrett is confirmed. She is now a Supreme Court Justice. It is what it is. 
2. There’s a new Black Archbishop in town!  “Archbishop Wilton Gregory is set to become the first Black U.S. prelate to assume the rank of cardinal in the Catholic Church, a historic appointment that comes months after nationwide demonstrations against racial injustice.”
3. So, how backed up is the mail? The WSJ, looked into how slow the mail is running these days. They found that “of the 29 states that require mail-in ballots to arrive on or before Election Day, 28 have since late July seen periods of average delivery times exceeding six days. Among them are battleground states like Florida, Arizona, Wisconsin, and Georgia.”  So, vote early and use drop boxes, if available.