In general, there is a couple of reason that Asian countries have been more successful in fighting COVID than western countries. One of them is the fact that they have very strict contact tracing. Personally, i dont have a problem with this. Taiwan has not had a locally transmitted case in 200 days. Pretty much everything is open. Thailand has not had a locally transmitted case in about the same time. Pretty much everything internally is open. South Korea has had limited cases (I believe single digit) in the last many days. Most things are open. People complain about restaurants being closed. Well, do the right thing to allow them to be open!!!!!!

Yeah, but... Christopher Eisgruber, the president of Princeton, got his university in trouble when he said that “systemic racism” persists at Princeton and that it damages people of color there. The Department of Education took Eisgruber at his word and launched an investigation of Princeton. Now, the interim dean of Northwestern’s law school has gone one better. James Speta described himself as a “racist.” He did so during an online “town hall” event. The only decent thing for Speta to do is to resign — not just as interim dean, but as a professor at the law school. Avowed racists shouldn’t be running a law school or teaching students. If Speta doesn’t step down, Northwestern should fire him. If not for being a racist, then for being an idiot. Speta wasn’t the only official at the law school to admit to racism during the online town hall. Emily Mullin, executive director of major gifts at the law school, confessed, “I am a racist and a gatekeeper of white supremacy.” Apparently, others joined in the festival of self-criticism. The event sounds more than vaguely Maoist to me. Instead of confessing to be a “running dog capitalist imperialism,” members of the Northwestern law school ruling class confessed to being racist gatekeepers of white supremacy. The Department of Education should launch an investigation of Northwestern’s law school, which, because it participates in Title IV federal financial-aid programs, is barred from discriminating on the basis of race. In fact, four members of the eight-member U.S. Civil Rights Commission have sent a letter to Education Secretary Betsy DeVos urging her to investigate Northwestern law school’s “potentially discriminatory practices.” If anything an investigation of Northwestern is more urgently required than the investigation of Princeton is. At least Eisgruber had enough sense not to proclaim himself a racist. Speta has left Northwestern with even less wiggle room than Princeton has.

Year's ago there was an older woman who played the piano occasionally during matinee shows when the unknowns were doing a show at the grand ole opry for Opryland audiences. This woman was utterly convinced she was a great piano player. But she was not. In fact, some of the other musicians called her "ham hands" behind her back. She didn't have a clue musically. But she loved being bragged on, so it became a little game among the other musicians to see who could zing her the hardest and have her think she was receiving compliment. The winning line... "Mrs. ________ , the way you play that piano, I bet they could strap a 2X4 block to your hands and no one would even know it"

@Klaus said in Bad Password: (after making sure that no sensitive data can be recovered) Well, there's that, of course. I was thinking, why would the son of the former Vice-President have the personal contact information of two former presidents, the secretaries of state, leader of the Democratic party, and various senators? Is that standard?

I'm really amazed that he didn't know, or perhaps he wasn't told, what "RT" means. I've seen some interesting things there, but I always take them with a huge lump of salt, because, well, "RUSSIA today."

Expensive but much more efficient. There would have been a lot more Germany left.

Read it.

I know. There's way too many dumb people these days to trust they'll vote intelligently.

When i was in the piano business I had stores it the Tri Cities area of Tennessee that were in big malls. The Johnson City store was located on a corner just outside Sears main entrance, and was completely open on the front and down the side as you walked to swears. That store would average a tractor trailer load of grandfather clocks each month, and a tractor trailer load or pianos and organs every two months. When a semi load of something came in, there would be so many to enter into inventory and unbox and assemble, that they would have to line then 2 or 3 wide all the way down the long open side wall. It NEVER failed - someone would walk up and say "y'all closing down?".... "Yes sir! We always order a shit load of stuff right before we close a store..." Here's your sign....

I know. I was praising Poland for banning them. I was also making the point that our own society is sick.

Re “Can they do this” see Citizens United. Roberts main pushback to the solicitor general on that case (who was anti-Citizens United) was something like: why should, say, the Murdoch organization have that power but not other companies? The guy never had a good answer.

Couple of exchanges between my anesthesiologist and I when I went in for my gallbladder removal: He walks into the room "Hey there. Know who I am?" "Yep. You're wearing the hat." "Okay, great. I'll forego the talk about how the surgery isn't going to be scary then and get right to the questions." Later, down in the surgery waiting area: Me: "Say..." "Yes?" "Do you mind if I get up and go to the bathroom before you take me in?" "Oh please God yes. THANK you." "Yeah, I know the game." "The game?" "The Code Brown game." "Yes. Okay good for you. Good for us too I suppose."

My head hurts.

@Mik said in So, I did the 23andMe thing.: I know my family tree back to the early 1700’s on my father’s side and the 1800’s on my mom’s. I am hesitant to put my info in this data base and I have a pretty good idea of our genetic background already. I'd say that: You can choose whatever you'd like to share. (Yeah yeah I know, then you've got to trust the company, etc.) You don't have to make anything accessible to others that you don't want. Guaranteed you'd learn something interesting. People swear up and down their family ancestry is completely known and accurate. Interestingly, most are proven wrong about that after they see the data. I get the hesitation, though. You're not missing out if it's not something of huge interest.

Byrd got a pass for his racist pass, kkk and filibuster of the Civil Rights Act and voting rights act. Later he changed, for whatever reason. It was unnecessary at the time for Biden (Under Obama) to reflect on an “only human transformation” and Instead gave an unequivocal account of the man’s life in his 20 minute eulogy at Byrd’s funeral. I think a woke person’s head would explode. It’s a good lesson on the way we used to think.

Americans who think they are so savvy now with their instant access to “news” on their devices likely no nothing about China’s Belt and Road Initiative. We are too busy obsessed and wallowing in silly rabbit holes.

@Jolly said in Three stabbed to death in Nice: I think I read where over 60% of French citizens now have a very dim view of Islam. OTOH, young men are still trying to leave the ME for whatever reasons, Mainly economics I think. I think that is the main reason people are willing to leave their homeland for an unknown place. (Of course, there is smaller amount that leaves because of safety, abuse, etc., but the main reason in economy I believe)

@jon-nyc For your question here, is there a "limit" on the number of decimal point for the 100 numbers or does it not matter? For example, could one number be 0.1 and another be 0.100000001?