A blog about societal, cultural, and civilizational collapse, and how to stave it off or survive it. Named after the legendary character "Crazy Eddie" in Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle's "The Mote in God's Eye." Expect news and views about culture, politics, economics, technology, and science fiction.
The marching bands from Michigan and Michigan State teamed up for a Halloween-themed show during halftime of the football game between the schools on October 30, 2021 at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing.
He uploaded another Halloween recipe today, but I'm saving it for next year. After all, I'm an environmentalist; I conserve my resources.
That's it for Halloween and October 2021. Stay tuned for November's first post tomorrow, when I might extend spooky season one more day by writing about Day of the Dead.
For today's treat, I'm continuing my tradition for the past twoyears of blogging about monsters on Candy Corn Day. This year, Dr. Emily Zarka of PBS Digital's Storied explored the history of werewolves for Halloween, just as she exhumed the history of zombies last year. At least her werewolf history spanned only two episodes in contrast to three for zombies. Watch The Killer Origins of the Werewolf to see the first part.
Long before a full moon could transform a human into a beast, the werewolf was present across the literature, lore, and mythologies of ancient Europe. Whether a punishment for the wicked, a cure for the unlucky, or a blessing for the strong, the human to wolf shapeshifter is almost always violent. Real wolves posed a real threat to humans and their livestock, but how did these predators come to be associated with cannibalism, sorcery, and mental illness? The first in a two-part series, featuring werewolf expert and Gothic scholar Dr. Kaja Franck, this episode tackles the rise of the werewolf in its myriad of forms, looking at what happened when Christianity interceded and turned the werewolf into the embodiment of evil—a change that reached its devastating climax with the persecution and execution of accused werewolves.
While I appreciated both the history and the science used to explain it, I agree with Dr. Zarka's final question, "but why?" For the answer, watch part two, The Werewolf’s Modern Metamorphosis.
Modern interpretations of werewolves include grotesque transformations, bloodied muzzles, and loyal packs. Many of these tropes first appeared on film but how did the modern world integrate older fears of lupine shapeshifters into haunting depictions of modern anxieties? The second installment in Monstrum’s werewolf series looks at the evolution of the werewolf through Gothic fantasy, horror films, literature, and video games, exploring the monster’s evolution into one of popular culture’s most malleable metaphors. With insights from werewolf expert Dr. Kaja Franck, horror critic Meagan Navarro, and werewolf graphic novelist Olivia Stephens, this episode will help you understand why the popularity of the werewolf only continues to grow.
Werewolf of London is a classic horror film. This cocktail has nothing to do with that film, and draws flimsy inspiration from Warren Zevon's 1977 novelty song. This episode, we're bringing you a Piña Colada twist on the Trader Vic's classic that'll have you howling for another round!
THE RECIPE:
1 oz Pusser's British Navy Rum
1 oz J. Wray Overproof Rum
3 oz Pineapple Juice
1/2 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Cream of Coconut
2 dashes Angostura Bitters
Haha! I enjoyed this video enough that I left the following comment: "Your channel needs more subscribers, so I subscribed, and this video needs more viewers, so I'm embedding it on my blog for an entry about werewolves. Happy Halloween!" I hope my actions encourage the creators to make more videos. Since Spirits of Horror is a Canadian channel, it also has a recipe for "Ginger Snaps." I'll save that for a future post about lycanthropes, just in case Dr. Zarka and her guests are right about the rising popularity of werewolves in literature and media. After all, I'm an environmentalist; I conserve my resources in addition to recycling my comments.
Stay tuned for one final Halloween post for this year. Trick or treat!
The irony is that neither of the Haunted Mansions at Disneyland nor the Magic Kingdom in Disney World is a Victorian Mansion. The former is an antebellum plantation house and the latter is a Gothic Revival. On the other hand, Phantom Manor in Disneyland Paris is. Maybe I'll write about it next.
Our final look at The Haunted Mansion takes us all the way out to Paris, Disneyland Paris that is. To a unique version of the attraction called "The Phantom Manor". The manor presents an entirely new storyline throughout it. One that we'll be diving into with this video...
Since this video came out three years ago, Vincent Price's narration has returned to Phantom Manor. It's almost enough to convince me to put Disneyland Paris on my bucket list just so I can hear it and experience what is probably the best version of the ride — almost.
This is a Haunted Mansion cocktail. Inspired by the attraction at Disneyland and Walt Disney World, this cocktail calls in the spirits wherever they're at. It has tequila, rum, vodka, and gin among other delicious mixers.
Drink responsibly and stay tuned for more Halloween posts through the end of the month. Trick or treat!
The Gilded Age left a legacy of decay on the American landscape.
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Haunted houses are often depicted with similar features: decaying woodwork, steep angles, and Gothic-looking towers and turrets. The model for this trope is the Victorian mansion, once a symbol of affluence and taste during the Gilded Age - a period of American history marked by political corruption and severe income inequality.
After World War I, these houses were seen as extravagant and antiquated, and were abandoned. Their sinister relationship to the troubling end of the Victorian Era in America eventually led to their depiction as haunted and ghostly in both fine art and pop culture, and is now an unspoken symbol of dread.
Why write about a copy when I can go to the original?*
INGREDIENTS
2 oz. scotch
½ oz. simple syrup (infused with cigar smoke)
1 dash orange bitters
INSTRUCTIONS
Add a lit cigar to a decanter and fill with smoke.
Mix ingredients in a cocktail shaker.
Strain into decanter and shake.
Strain over ice.
MORTICIA
INGREDIENTS
1 ½ oz. gin
¾ oz. lemon juice
½ oz. simple syrup
1 oz. raspberry liqueur
2 oz. champagne
INSTRUCTIONS
In a cocktail shaker, combine gin, lemon juice, simple syrup, and raspberry liqueur. Shake vigorously.
Strain into a chilled champagne flute and top with champagne.
Drink responsibly and stay tuned for more Halloween posts through the end of the month. Trick or treat!
*The irony is that neither of the Haunted Mansions at Disneyland nor the Magic Kingdom in Disney World is a Victorian Mansion. The former is an antebellum plantation house and the latter is a Gothic Revival. On the other hand, Phantom Manor in Disneyland Paris is. Maybe I'll write about it next.
I can use the concept for this entry next year, as Santa Clara Vanguard played "The Phantom of the Opera" in 1988 as well and The Phantom of the Opera has at least two more drink recipes. Works for me, as I'm an environmentalist who likes to recycle.
Learn how to make the perfect #PhantomHalloween drink with our spooky #SweetIntoxication cocktail!
Drink responsibly and stay tuned for more Halloween posts through the end of the month. Trick or treat!
*Courtney also has a reaction video to The Academy's "Drum Corpse Bride" show. If it's still up next year and none of the 2021 or 2022 shows inspire me, I might use it.
"Tainted Love" is a song composed by Ed Cobb, formerly of American group The Four Preps, which was originally recorded by Gloria Jones in 1964. It attained worldwide fame after being covered and reworked by British synthpop duo Soft Cell in 1981 and has since been covered by numerous groups and artists.
National Farmers Union President Rob Larew made a point that Food, Inc. makes about industrial agriculture; food processing has become too centralized and concentrated for the good of farmers, workers, and consumers and a more diverse food system would serve them better. To get students to think about that, I ask them "In 1970, how much of the beef market was controlled by the top beef packers? In 2010?" The answers show how much meat packing has consolidated during those 40 years.
In 1970, the top five meat packers controlled 25% of the beef supply. In 2010, the top four controlled 80%.
"Food, Inc." focused on how this concentration of power led to abuses of workers and outbreaks of food-borne diseases and could lead to disruptions of the food supply from market forces.
Corporate consolidation is making it impossible for cattle ranchers to stay afloat.
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Cattle auctions happen every day throughout the US; they serve a crucial purpose for the cattle markets. Inside one of these auctions, like the one we profile in St. Onge, South Dakota, you can see how a competitive market functions. There are multiple producers and buyers competing for a commodity, which results in a value, or price, for that commodity.
But over the past 40 years, the meatpacking sector — made up of the companies that buy and slaughter cattle for consumption — has undergone a dramatic degree of corporate consolidation. In the 1980s, the US relaxed its approach to antitrust enforcement, one tool the government uses to rein in market concentration. Today, only four companies process 85 percent of all the cattle produced in the US.
Cattle ranchers say this is affecting their ability to compete for good prices and make a living. This is one way industrialized agriculture is making it difficult for independent farmers and ranchers to stay in business in America.
This is approaching the state of chicken farming, where the processors have total control over the animals and near total control over the farmers. That may be good for consumers in the short run, but it will likely drive independent farmers out of business, setting up the chicken model for beef. I don't know if that will be good for anyone but the meatpackers in the long run.
That's it for this year's exploration of "Food, Inc." for FoodDay. Stay tuned as I go all Halloween from now to the end of the month.
Squirrel Awareness Month is an annual designation observed in October. Yes, you read that right. A whole month dedicated to giving those furry, quirky little creatures a little appreciation. It’s a time to look around at a local park, or even right outside your window, and giggle at the silly mannerisms of squirrels.
They may come off as a little mischievous and troublesome when they get into the bird feeders or even your attic, but you may not realize why they do what they do. Squirrels spend most of the warmer months gearing up for winter. Here’s the craziest part: experts estimate that squirrels find and bury three years of food during the warm months! They don’t hibernate during the winter, but they do like to stay cozy in their dens so they can sleep and snack until it warms up again.
SciShow describes how Eastern Gray Squirrels use their mischievousness to defend their food caches in 7 Animals That Can't Be Trusted.
Almost every human has told a lie at some point or another - but did you know that we are not the only species to do this? From dogs to cuttlefish to thornbills, these 7 animals also lie!
For years, I have closed these entries by writing "May the Wester Squirrel not steal anything from you and hide it!" I didn't realize that the squirrels may be thinking the same thing about us!
*Today is also NationalFoodDay. I'm postponing my post about that until tomorrow. Stay tuned.
Happy National TVTalkShowHostDay! Since tomorrow is both NationalFoodDay and Wester, I'm going to blog about entertainment today instead of tomorrow for the Sunday entertainment feature. I'm not avoiding politics, just current real-world politics, as the subject of today's entry is "Dune," which features a lot of futuristic politics and political allegory in its science fiction. I should know, as I have read the book and watched both the 1984 David Lynch movie and the current Denis Villneuve release.
Stephen Colbert is a known "Dune" superfan so he delights in picking the brain of director Denis Villeneuve, who explains the delicate process of adapting such a far-reaching novel into a film and expresses his admiration for its star Chalamet.
My wife and I watched "Dune" at home on HBO Max, but I can imagine what the experience would have been like in a theater. Because of the pandemic, we're passing on that.
Follow over the jump for Stephen's interviews with the stars of "Dune."
Michigan drivers were overcharged more than $1 billion in auto premiums in 2020, according to a study by a national consumer advocacy group.
This report repeats what I wrote about last month; driving decreased, but fatalities increased. Also, it's a good thing that Michigan drivers received rebates last year, but could have received more, as the follow graphic shows.
At least our rates are lower now.
Follow over the jump for the details of my driving the past month-and-one-half.
Hagfish are slimy sea noodles that wear their skin like a pair of loose pajamas... and that isn't the weirdest thing about them.
Right now, I'm showing my students the Smithsonian Channel video I embedded four years ago. I might show them this video instead. I think it's more informative and swaps out the sensationalism and horror for humor. Here's to the humor helping my students learn.
Planting trees serves as an example of "Nature knows best" for sequestering carbon, but this video shows it's not a good short-term solution. Another PBS Terra video shows one possible technique, but I'll save that for another video. Stay tuned.
Can we turn atmospheric carbon dioxide into stone?
...
Spoiler Alert: carbon dioxide emissions are causing the planet to get warmer. But we may be able to use chemistry to solve this problem.
Out of Our Elements hosts Caitlin Saks and Arlo Pérez Esquivel, joined by NOVA Producer Alex Clark, investigate how the planet naturally turns CO2 into stone over long periods of time, and how scientists and engineers are trying to speed up this process in hopes of capturing and storing atmospheric CO2.
They’re joined by Cornell University Environmental Engineer Greeshma Gadikota, who illustrates how you can test out a small-scale form of carbon sequestration in your own home, and Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory’s Angela Slagle, who explains which places on Earth and the kinds of oceanic rocks that could play a role in scaling up CO2-to-stone transformation.
The geologist in me approves of this "Nature knows best" method of capturing carbon dioxide and sequestering it. So does the Crazy Eddie in me.
I tell my students that income inequality is visible from space. That's because of the relative density of trees, with wealthier neighborhoods having more tree and poorer ones having fewer, which satellites can photograph from orbit. That has important environmental effects, as Vox depicts in How America's hottest city is trying to cool down.
Can trees help save Phoenix from extreme heat?
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It’s time to stop looking at trees as a form of “beautification.” They are, instead, a living form of infrastructure, providing a variety of services that include stormwater management, air filtering, carbon sequestration, and, most importantly for a city like Phoenix, Arizona, they cool the environment around them.
Trees can lower neighborhood temperatures in three ways:
1) Their shade prevents solar radiation from hitting paved surfaces like concrete and asphalt, which absorb energy and rerelease it into the air as heat.
2) Their leaves pull heat from the immediate area in order to evapotranspirate water that’s drawn from the soil.
And, 3) If you’re standing under one, a tree protects your body directly from the sun’s rays. If you’ve ever made a summer visit to a dry, hot city like Phoenix, you’ll know how important shade is for making any outdoor experiences tolerable.
As Phoenix deals with a rising frequency of extreme heat waves — which aren’t only deadly, but also cause worrisome spikes in energy demand — the city is looking to trees as part of its heat mitigation strategy. Phoenix isn’t devoid of trees, but they’re distributed unevenly across the city. A quick glance at a satellite image of the metro area reveals substantial green splotches in the north and east and brown ones in the south and west, where many lower-income neighborhoods are located.
So Phoenix recently pledged to reach “tree equity” by 2030, under an agreement with American Forests, a national tree organization. I visited Phoenix recently to take a look at the current state of the city’s urban forest. In this video, we use drone imagery and thermal cameras to understand how the urban design of the city contributes to extreme heat, and what it can do to cool down.
I wish Phoenix luck in achieving "tree equity." They'll need it, especially with the challenges of drought and aridification working against the effort.
For decades we’ve been planting trees in hopes of reducing carbon pollution. But when it comes to carbon sequestration, have we actually been getting it all backward?
As the UN Climate Conference (COP26) approaches this November, the topic of carbon capture and storage will be hotly debated. In this episode, we travel to the Pacific Northwest forests of Oregon to see what we can learn about forest carbon sinks from Beverly Law and her groundbreaking research with Oregon State University’s Department of Forestry.
What do you think about planting trees and forest carbon storage? Let us know in the comments!
Planting trees serves as an example of "Nature knows best" for sequestering carbon, but this video shows it's not a good short-term solution. Another PBS Terra video shows one possible technique, but I'll save that for another video. Stay tuned.
Both of these are great videos to show my students. I'll be sure to find places in my curriculum to do so.
Proudly clutching The Late Show's new Emmy statue, Stephen looks back at his acceptance speech, then looks ahead to his conversation with Bob Woodward and Robert Costa about the revelations in their book, "Peril."
The authors of "Peril," Bob Woodward and Robert Costa, tell Stephen some of the most shocking details they uncovered about the previous president's maneuvers in the months following the 2020 election.
Robert Costa, co-author with Bob Woodward of the book "Peril," points out that the GOP has largely embraced the previous president's lies about election fraud and have no political will to oppose him.
Personally, I'd rather call it Trump's dangerous delusion, his fixed belief that the election was stolen from him despite allevidence, which I see as related to his vulnerabilitytoconspiracy theories, but "the Big Lie" is the established phrase used by CNBC and others, so I'm calling it that instead. It's a lie, too.
Costa's comments demonstrate once again that Trump's delusion is not just dangerous but contagious.
Bob Woodward and Robert Costa spoke to many sources on deep background for "Peril," and they found Gen. Mark Milley to be the only brave person in the former president's orbit in the time between the election and President Biden's inauguration.
I'm glad Milley had a plan and stuck with it.
Follow over the jump for Colbert's acceptance speech and "winnerview."
Even as the pandemic rages on, vaccinations and masks are allowing Americans to go back to in-person work, myself included. However, a record number of Americans left their jobs in August, a phenomenon called "The Great Resignation." I'm sharing a silly to serious examination of this subject, beginnin with "The Daily Show with Trevor Noah" asking Why Is Everyone Quitting Their Jobs? - Getting Back To Normal-Ish.
From quitting to take care of family or leaving because of health concerns to the desire to pursue a new career, it seems like everyone is quitting their jobs right now. Here’s everything you need to know about The Great Resignation.
Businesses across the country are experiencing vacancies as new data shows a record number of people quitting their jobs. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, 4.3 million people quit their jobs in the month of August. CBS MoneyWatch reporter Aimee Picchi joins CBSN with the latest.
The September jobs report shows that the unemployment rate fell to 4.8% and job openings are at a record high with wages increased again last month, as companies tried to attract new employees. But more than 25 million people quit their jobs in the first seven months of this year. And it's now called “the great resignation.” Business and economics correspondent Paul Solman explains.
This segment not only described the stress of returning to in-person work, but the particular stresses of remote work, including for educators like myself. While I joked early during remote work when I asked on Facebook how everyone's commute was from their bedrooms to their home offices, I also observed that working from home is still work. It was also a big adjustment.
All three segments mentioned that "The Great Resignation" is one of the factors leading to a labor shortage. Here is a meme I saw on Twitter this morning that lists the rest of the causes.
That sums it up. Also, I finally have a Spongebob Squarepants meme on this blog more serious than his yelling "It's Leif Erikson Day! Hinga dinga durgen!" May my readers appreciate it as much as I do.
John Oliver discusses the current attacks on voting rights, who’s behind them, and what we can do about it.
I wrote "eliminating the filibuster is worth doing, even if it's a double-edged sword" in last year's version of this post and I still think so, as does Oliver. Some things haven't changed.
Follow over the jump for my coverage of the three Emmy Awards won by "Last Week Tonight" last month.
William Shatner became the oldest person to go to space today after Blue Origin sent up their second round civilian passengers, Jeff Bezos welcomed him back to Earth and they shared a special moment, state run media in North Korea broadcast a defense exhibition where soldiers did their best to dazzle Kim Jong Un, Halloween is coming up and people across the country have started decorating, airlines are refusing to follow Texas Governor Gregg Abbott’s vaccine mandate ban, a Louisiana zoo is giving out vaccines to animals, health experts are warning that cold weather could ramp things up again as people move indoors, and we look back a year ago this week in a new edition of “This Week in COVID History”
I don't blame Kimmel and his writers for making Bezo the butt of the jokes. As for Shatner himself, congratulations! I'm glad he lived long enough to go into space for real and not just on a sound stage.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren talks about Biden’s infrastructure agenda, Sens. Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema and why the Democratic Party needs to show how they can help the American people.
I agree with Senator Warren that Manchin and Sinema don't have all the power, but they have enough to gum up the works for the infrastructure bills. Here's to hoping both pass, if in scaled-down form.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren calls out the absurdity of billionaires going into space and talks about writing a children’s book.
I'm not as critical as Senator Warren is to a private space race, which Saturday Night Live called "Ego Quest," but I do think that Jeff Bezos and Amazon could pay more in taxes. He, Branson, and Musk would still have enough money to go into space. Speaking of which, there is another Blue Origin launch scheduled for today, but I won't write any more about it for fear of jinxing it. Only after it's successfully completed will I say anything else about it. Stay tuned.
I've spent most of the past week ragging on Facebook and its sister platform Instagram for their practices that are harmful to a healthy democracy, so I'm not going to do that today. Instead, I'm turning my attention to other platforms that spread misinformation, beginning with WhatsApp, featured in Misinformation by "Last Week Tonight with John Oliver."*
John Oliver discusses how misinformation spreads among immigrant diaspora communities, how little some platforms have done to stop it, and, most importantly, how to have a very good morning.
After a year and a half of watching John Oliver recording his show in "a blank void" with no one laughing at his jokes, seeing him in the studio was reassuring, but I'm still not used to hearing a studio audience.
Like your most rhythmically-challenged friend, TikTok is having a hell of a time mastering its latest challenge: stopping the spread of harmful misinformation. To prevent dangerous conspiracy theories and lies from going viral, everyone's favorite clock app needs to do better!
Of course, some of the worst misinformation is about the pandemic. Sigh. I wish I were surprised.
That's what I'm doing. Before I write about the Emmy Awards won by "RuPaul's Drag Race" and "Queer Eye," I'm sharing the updated description of National Coming Out Day from National Day Calendar.
Each year on October 11th, National Coming Out Day encourages civil awareness recognizing and supporting those in the LGBTQ community.
The day celebrates individuals who publicly identify as bisexual, gay, lesbian, transgender – coming out regarding their sexual orientation and/or gender identity being akin to a cultural rite of passage for LGBT people.
One in two Americans knows someone who is gay or lesbian. The ratio applied to transgendered Americans is one in ten.
The day is dedicated to rais[ing] awareness of the civil rights of the LGBTQ community. Through education and support, and sharing their stories, it is hoped they may be more able to live openly and safely.
Without any further ado, here are the five Emmy Awards won by "RuPaul's Drag Race," along with one each by its spinoff series "RuPaul's Drag Race: Untucked" and "Queer Eye."
Outstanding Competition Program
The Amazing Race (CBS) Nailed It! (Netflix) RuPaul's Drag Race (VH1) Top Chef (Bravo) The Voice (NBC)
...
"RuPaul's Drag Race" has won this award three years in a row, so I consider it the favorite on that criterion as well as its leading in nominations among competition programs with nine for the main show as well as two for "RuPaul's Drag Race: Untucked."
Senators (Cecily Strong, Mikey Day, Kyle Mooney, Aidy Bryant, Chris Redd, James Austin Johnson) on Capitol Hill question the Facebook whistleblower (Heidi Gardner), Mark Zuckerberg (Alex Moffat) and Tom from Myspace (Pete Davidson) during a hearing.
That was more fun than watching the actual hearings and it still got the point across.
Best Documentary about Politics or Government of 2020 (Best Political Documentary)
20/20: In the Cold Dark Night
31 Days in March: The Month Coronavirus Unraveled American Business
76 Days
A Concerto Is a Conversation
A Love Song for Latasha
Advocate
Agents of Chaos
All In: The Fight for Democracy
Assassins
Athlete A
Belly of the Beast
Boys State
Bully. Coward. Victim. The Story of Roy Cohn
Challenger: The Final Flight
City Hall
Coded Bias
Colette
Collective
Crip Camp
Do Not Split
Essential but Deportable: Undocumented Immigrants in the Trump Era
Father Soldier Son
Feels Good Man
Finding Yingying
Frontline: Amazon Empire: The Rise and Reign of Jeff Bezos
Frontline: Inside Italy’s COVID War
Frontline: Opioids, Inc.
Frontline: Policing the Police 2020
Frontline: Return From ISIS
Frontline: Tutwiler
Frontline: United States of Conspiracy
Hunger Ward
I Am Greta
In Event of Moon Disaster
John Lewis: Good Trouble
Kill Chain: The Cyber War on America's Election
Kingdom of Silence
Lessons of Auschwitz VR project
MLK/FBI
Mr. Soul!
Not Done: Women Remaking America
Notturno
Once Upon A Time In Iraq
Rebuilding Paradise
Rewind
Rising Phoenix
Scandalous: The Untold Story of the National Enquirer
Softie
Stockton on My Mind
The Art of Political Murder
The Fight
The Last Ice
The New Yorker Documentary: When Humanitarian Aid Is Considered a Crime
The Perfect Weapon
The Social Dilemma
The Trade
The Zo
The Way I See It
The Weekly: The Sicario
This Ain't Normal
Time
Totally Under Control
Trafficked with Mariana van Zeller: Scams
VOCES: Building the American Dream
Welcome to Chechnya
With Drawn Arms
Now that I've finished the updated list, I'll post the shortlist for Best Appearance of a Government Official in a Documentary during 2020 in part 4. I'm already compiling it, so stay tuned.
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[Tristan] Harris is one of the subjects of "The Social Dilemma," which won two Emmy Awards for Outstanding Writing for Nonfiction Programming and Outstanding Picture Editing for Nonfiction Programming last month. This week's events might be enough to change my mind about featuring "Ted Lasso" in my next installment of Emmy coverage and look at "The Social Network" instead. Stay tuned.
'The Social Dilemma's' Jeff Orlowski on illustrating the amorality of social media algorithms. Gold Derby senior editor Joyce Eng hosts our 2021 Emmy documentary panel series.
I think it's no accident that Orlowski compared social media to fossil fuels. His previous award-winning films are Chasing Ice and ChasingCoral, both about the effects of climatechange, so he's quite well-versed in the ill effects of fossil fuels on the environment.
'The Social Dilemma' documentary director Jeff Orlowski on how he believes social media is incompatible with a healthy democracy. The Netflix program examines how social media companies rely on getting people addicted to consuming content through their platforms. Gold Derby's Charles Bright hosts this 'Meet the Experts' documentary panel.
I going to be a good environmentalist and recycle my comment on this video for my reaction.
"If you're not paying for the service, you're not the customer. You're the product being sold." I'm glad Jeff Orlowski, who has shown in "Chasing Ice" and "Chasing Coral" that he knows how to portray scientific and technological issues, understands this.
Larissa Rhodes ('Social Dilemma' producer) describes how she was skeptical of tackling the harm of social media. Gold Derby's Charles Bright hosts this interview about the Netflix documentary nominated for 7 Emmys.
Not only does Orlowski understand the subject, so does Rhodes. As Netflix's advertising slogan for the movie states, "The technology that connects us also controls us."
Seth takes a closer look at Facebook’s absolutely disastrous week filled with a damning whistleblower interview, an unprecedented outage and a shocking Senate hearing.
While Mark Zuckerberg is right that advertisers say they don't want their ads next to angry or depressing content, Seth is right that all that really matters are eyeballs on the ads. What about consumer boycotts? That only works if the people who don't like the content they dislike can see the ads supporting it. If the algorithms don't show them the offending content and they don't know whose ads appear alongside it, then activists and consumers can't target the advertisers. That's one of the topics discussed in Tristan Harris - Facebook & Rethinking Big Tech | The Daily Show.
Tristan Harris explains why he thinks Facebook’s business model is a threat to democracy, discusses China’s latest tech regulations and shares his hope for technology becoming a force for good in society.
"Democracy plus technology equals a stronger democracy" — I like that goal! Tristan Harris is now officially a fellow Crazy Eddie.
Speaking of which, Harris is one of the subjects of "The Social Dilemma," which won two Emmy Awards for Outstanding Writing for Nonfiction Programming and Outstanding Picture Editing for Nonfiction Programming last month. This week's events might be enough to change my mind about featuring "Ted Lasso" in my next installment of Emmy coverage and look at "The Social Network" instead. Stay tuned.
COVID-19 has now taken more than 700,000 American lives. Caryn Ceolin with why health officials say the most recent 100,000 deaths could have been prevented.
I foresaw this happening in March, when I wrote "Total U.S. mortality from the pandemic could exceed 700,000 before this is all over. YIKES! May none of my readers be among this toll." This is one of those times when I wish I hadn't been right.
Dr. Anthony Fauci discusses the grim milestone of 700,000 Covid-19 deaths in the United States, religious exemptions from vaccines, and Covid-19 vaccines for children in an interview with CNN's Dana Bash.
The message is clear: If you aren't vaccinated and you can be, get vaccinated! I did that six months ago, which means that I'm eligible for a booster shot because of my age and diabetes. I'm planning on getting that, too, to protect me and help protect my readers as it will prevent me from spreading the disease. May my readers follow my good example.
Stephen investigates the worldwide outage at Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram, which came one day after dark corporate secrets were revealed by a company whistleblower.
I'm with Stephen. As appalling as Facebook's conduct has been, it shouldn't be surprising. "Are you telling me a corporation chose money over the safety of consumers?" Of course it did, which is why it needs more regulation. At least Twitter was having a good day yesterday at Facebook's expense, just like Stephen.
Frances Haugen says in her time with Facebook she saw, "conflicts of interest between what was good for the public and what was good for Facebook." Scott Pelley reports.
I have been critical of Facebook ever since I wrote Facebook: There is no such thing as a free lunch ten years ago, so while I'm appalled, I'm not surprised. That's when I first used the following meme.
Facebook had an hours-long outage the day before a whistleblower, who is alleging the company of behaving dangerously, is set to testify to a Senate panel. We discuss with Kara Swisher, Philip Rucker, and A.B. Stoddard.
Haugen's testimony should be interesting. Stay tuned.
NBC's Stephanie Stanton reports outside of the Texas Capitol where more than 5,000 people are rallying against Gov. Greg Abbot's new law that bans nearly all abortions in the state.
That report focused on Texas, particularly in Austin and Houston, but the important action will took place in Washington, D.C., where the Supreme Court, which begins its session today, will decide on a case involving Mississippi restricting the time period for legal access to abortion. CBS Evening News reported on that demonstration in Thousands gather in D.C. for 2021 Women’s March.
Thousands gathered in the nation’s capital Saturday for the 2021 Women’s March. This year’s march focused on reproductive rights as a response to abortion restrictions implemented in some conservative states. Nikole Killion has more.
Yes, that's Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel being interviewed at the end. Go Dana!
Across the country thousands of women rallied for their reproductive rights, becoming the largest women’s marches since 2017. This comes as Texas recently placed a ban on abortions once a heartbeat is detected.
While I find the circumstances distressing, I'm glad this event had the highest attendance since the first Women'sMarch in 2017. The causes needs that level of popular support.
Attorney General Nessel participating in the Washington, D.C., Women's March wasn't the only Michigan angle to this story. Follow over the jump for two reports from the west side of the state.
President Biden (James Austin Johnson), Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (Cecily Strong), Sen. Joe Manchin (Aidy Bryant), Rep. Ilhan Omar (Ego Nwodim) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (Melissa Villaseñor) address the president’s infrastructure bill.
I got my wish for this episode right off the bat. Cecily Strong played Kyrsten Sinema. Perfect.
Weekend Update anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che tackle the week’s biggest news, like Biden getting his COVID booster shot.
I guess Jost and the "SNL" writers don't find infrastructure as exciting as the pandemic or 2020 election, but the joke about it was still funny, if a bit dark.
Texas’s new abortion law is the most restrictive in the country. Here’s why banning abortions isn’t an effective (or safe) way to lower the abortion rate.
None of this comes as a surprise to me, so I'm saddened but not disappointed. It's also the bad news. Full Frontal with Samantha Bee has some good news for reproductive rights in New Jersey Is Paving The Way For Reproductive Rights.
We love...New Jersey? As shocking as it may be, the Garden State has been planting seeds to ensure that Roe V. Wade always thrives within its borders. Sam breaks out the celebratory pork rolls with NJ Governor Phil Murphy and Kaitlyn Wojtowicz, VP Public Affairs at Planned Parenthood Access Fund of NJ.
This piece was produced by Amber Watson with Annie Kopp and edited by Daphne Gomez-Mena.
I wish Governor Murphy, Planned Parenthood of New Jersey, and all of the bill's sponsors and supporters good luck and success in passing the bill next month so the Governor can sign it.
Enough serious business, even if I filtered it through comedy. Stay tuned for more on the winners of the Primetime Emmy Awards, probably about "Saturday Night Live," the next biggest winner with eight Emmy Awards, as the Sunday entertainment feature.
I have good, bad, and ugly news about the federal government. The good news is that it avoided a partial shutdown, as Congress passed and Biden signed a continuing resolution to fund the federal government. The bad news is that the debt ceiling still looms. The ugly news is that both infrastructure bills are being held up by two senators who are saying little or nothing about what they want. Seth Meyers talks about the last topic in last night's Manchin and Sinema Derail Biden's Agenda as Fox Fearmongers About It: A Closer Look.
Seth takes a closer look at two centrist Democrats blocking the entire Democratic agenda without saying what they want.
Seth implied it, but I'll come right out and say it: Fox News shouldn't threaten my readers and me with a good time. Also, Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema need to state their demands instead of merely grandstanding while obstructing.
Congress passed a bill to fund the government for two more months, but moved no closer to solving the other crises on our hands: raising the debt ceiling and avoiding a catastrophic debt default.
