Chaos in USA

A place to discuss politics and things related to Govts
Message
Author
prospector
Capt
Capt
Posts: 1151
Joined: Sun Jul 22, 2018 12:37 am
Location: New Zealand
Gender:
Age: 84

Re: Chaos in USA

#3261 Post by prospector » Thu Mar 09, 2023 8:56 pm

What a farce the Jan 6th enquiry is and was.

https://thepostmillennial.com/jan-6-com ... pitol-riot

"Chair of the January 6 Committee Bennie Thompson says that neither he nor members of the Committee, including Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger, never personally viewed the 40,000 of surveillance footage taken from the Capitol on that fateful day in 2021.

CNN political reporter Alayna Treene posted this revelation to Twitter by way of describing the process for lawmakers with the 118th Congress to view the material. "

User avatar
llondel
Chief Pilot
Chief Pilot
Posts: 5909
Joined: Wed Oct 03, 2018 3:17 am
Location: San Jose

Re: Chaos in USA

#3262 Post by llondel » Fri Mar 10, 2023 12:11 am

40,000 hours is over 4.5 years of continuous viewing. I would say the committee had better things to do than sit through it, that's what you get the staff to do. They must have viewed some of it, because it was included in some of their public presentations, although they might just have seen the edited clips rather than thole thing.

User avatar
llondel
Chief Pilot
Chief Pilot
Posts: 5909
Joined: Wed Oct 03, 2018 3:17 am
Location: San Jose

Re: Chaos in USA

#3263 Post by llondel » Mon Mar 13, 2023 4:51 am

Here's an interesting headline. People live longer in blue states than they do in red ones. The article also claims there's a trend between red and blue counties, too.

https://www.scientificamerican.com/arti ... -counties/

PHXPhlyer
Chief Pilot
Chief Pilot
Posts: 8239
Joined: Sun Jun 17, 2018 2:56 pm
Location: PHX
Gender:
Age: 69

Re: Chaos in USA

#3264 Post by PHXPhlyer » Mon Mar 13, 2023 5:08 am

llondel wrote:
Mon Mar 13, 2023 4:51 am
Here's an interesting headline. People live longer in blue states than they do in red ones. The article also claims there's a trend between red and blue counties, too.

https://www.scientificamerican.com/arti ... -counties/
I wonder if they can get more granular and see if red or blue leaning at an individual level has any effect. :-?

PP

User avatar
llondel
Chief Pilot
Chief Pilot
Posts: 5909
Joined: Wed Oct 03, 2018 3:17 am
Location: San Jose

Re: Chaos in USA

#3265 Post by llondel » Mon Mar 13, 2023 5:11 am

PHXPhlyer wrote:
Mon Mar 13, 2023 5:08 am
llondel wrote:
Mon Mar 13, 2023 4:51 am
Here's an interesting headline. People live longer in blue states than they do in red ones. The article also claims there's a trend between red and blue counties, too.

https://www.scientificamerican.com/arti ... -counties/
I wonder if they can get more granular and see if red or blue leaning at an individual level has any effect. :-?
I suspect that's where the county data comes in. State data is affected significantly by policy, county stuff is going to be more based on the attitude of the residents.

User avatar
boing
Chief Pilot
Chief Pilot
Posts: 2714
Joined: Thu Aug 27, 2015 6:32 am
Location: Beautful Oregon USA
Gender:
Age: 77

Re: Chaos in USA

#3266 Post by boing » Mon Mar 13, 2023 5:45 am

“It joins an already existing, pretty robust literature showing that politics [and] polarization do have life-and-death consequences,” Montez says.

Might be interesting to see a similar graph of health resources per head of population. Red States tend to be more rural and have greater area to population densities. Medical services, despite what would like to think, are 'for profit' businesses so they will naturally trend towards higher density locations which effectively means Blue States. I found out recently from my own experience how being even a few miles from an urban boundary causes a rapid reduction in available medical help, especially emergency services.

To claim that politics and polarization effect relative death rates seems to be a shallow interpretation of what may or may not be a genuine relevant statistics. I doubt that these people have taken any care in looking for possible likely causes for the differences. These changes could be due to such simple factors as aging of the population as young people move to the cities to find jobs, the change does not have to be effected by the State's politics. .

.
the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act on their dreams with open eyes, to make them possible.

PHXPhlyer
Chief Pilot
Chief Pilot
Posts: 8239
Joined: Sun Jun 17, 2018 2:56 pm
Location: PHX
Gender:
Age: 69

Re: Chaos in USA

#3267 Post by PHXPhlyer » Mon Mar 13, 2023 2:56 pm

Good points Boing.

PP

User avatar
Woody
Chief Pilot
Chief Pilot
Posts: 10244
Joined: Tue Aug 25, 2015 6:33 pm
Location: Sir Kenny Dalglish Stand
Age: 59

Re: Chaos in USA

#3268 Post by Woody » Sat Mar 25, 2023 8:56 am

When all else fails, read the instructions.

User avatar
Dushan
Capt
Capt
Posts: 1479
Joined: Sat Aug 22, 2015 8:23 pm
Location: Right wing
Gender:
Age: 71

Re: Chaos in USA

#3269 Post by Dushan » Sat Mar 25, 2023 7:57 pm

Woody wrote:
Sat Mar 25, 2023 8:56 am
Education, Education,Education =)) =)) =))

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-65071989
Well, while a picture of Michelangelo's David may in effect be fine, the next thing you know these kids will be shown are going to be pictures from a gay pride parade with naked people performing simulated sex acts on a float and dressed in S/M garb. The advocates for the latter will say, you showed David's junk, so why not ours?
Because they stand on the wall and say "nothing's gonna hurt you tonight, not on my watch".

User avatar
Woody
Chief Pilot
Chief Pilot
Posts: 10244
Joined: Tue Aug 25, 2015 6:33 pm
Location: Sir Kenny Dalglish Stand
Age: 59

Re: Chaos in USA

#3270 Post by Woody » Sat Mar 25, 2023 8:43 pm

As well over a million people per year view the original, obviously it’s only a matter of time before we sink into the abyss, or we should be inspired by its beauty.
When all else fails, read the instructions.

PHXPhlyer
Chief Pilot
Chief Pilot
Posts: 8239
Joined: Sun Jun 17, 2018 2:56 pm
Location: PHX
Gender:
Age: 69

Re: Chaos in USA

#3271 Post by PHXPhlyer » Sat Mar 25, 2023 9:53 pm

Art or pornography? Michelangelo's David has been controversial since the beginning. Here's how

https://www.tallahassee.com/story/enter ... 041343007/

On Sept. 8, 1504, Michelangelo’s towering marble statue of David was unveiled to the public in Florence, Italy. The 17-foot-tall, 12,000-pound statue carved from a single block of white Italian Carrara marble has been considered a masterpiece of High Renaissance art ever since, and a topic of controversy for nearly as long.

The statue depicts David, hero of the Jewish Torah and Christian Bible who slew Goliath and went on to become a king. Most depictions of David in paintings and sculptures to that point showed him as a boy facing or standing over the fallen giant, but the 26-year-old Michelangelo depicted him as a muscular nude man, alone and defiant, before the fight. The sculpture is a symbol of the strength and independence of the Florentines, according to the Galleria dell'Accademia di Firenze, the museum which displays it, and it has become of the world's most recognizable and treasured works of art.

The statue also has been challenged throughout its history for its unabashed nudity, especially when copies are displayed in different cities or reproductions or photos are displayed in public. Even when it was unveiled, while he praised it as a masterwork, Leonardo da Vinci suggested it be given a loin cloth.

Most recently "David" was called out by parents at a Florida charter school. The principal at Tallahassee Classical School in Leon County resigned after three parents complained that the required Renaissance art class, which included "David" as well as the "Creation of Adam" fresco painting and Boticelli's "Birth of Venus," upset their children. Two said they wished they'd been informed beforehand, and one parent called the lesson pornographic.

There are copies of "David" all over the world, including a cast-bronze replica in the courtyard of The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota where it became the focus of the official seal of the city.

Here are some other notable controversies in the life of "David."

Michelangelo's 'David' has been political from the start
When "David" was put outside Florence's government offices in the Palazzo Della Signoria it was seen as a defiant sign against the powerful Medici family, who had been exiled from Florence a decade previously. It was said the statue's glare was intentionally aimed at Rome.

Protestors attacked it with rocks the year it debuted, and in 1527 an anti-Medici riot resulted in David's arm getting broken in three pieces.

Michelangelo's 'David' was immediately covered up
When the statue was first installed in the Piazza della Signoria, authorities placed a garland of 28 copper leaves around his waist to cover his nakedness, which remained there until they were quietly removed around 1550.

But the Catholic Church cracked down on nudity in art as immoral and several powerful figures in the Vatican weren't happy with the nudity Michelangelo displayed on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. The Church issued an edict in 1953 demanding that “figures shall not be painted or adorned with a beauty exciting…lust.” Loincloths and fig leaves were added to statues and artworks across Italy.

When the statue was moved to the Galleria dell' Accademia and replaced in the piazza with a copy, there was a raging debate over whether the copy also should get a fig leaf. Ultimately, it was decided to leave him the way Michelangelo intended him.

After shocking Queen Victoria, England's replica of 'David' received a detachable fig leaf
There are about 30 full-size replicas around the world, all created by permission from the Galleria dell'Accademia di Firenze. The first one was placed in the Piazza della Signoria in front of the Palazzo Vecchio, where the original David statue was originally before being moved inside.

But the one sent to Queen Victoria as a gift from the Grand Duke of Tuscany in 1857 got a last-minute addition. She was reportedly horrified by the statue's nudity and a detachable fig leaf made out of plaster was added to preserve David's modesty before it went on display at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. The leaf was kept in readiness in case of a royal; visit.

Chinese TV blurred him out
During a program on an art festival in Beijing where "David" was one of 67 masterpieces on display in Beijing as part of the 100th anniversary of the National Museum of China, state-run China Central TV blurred the statue's genitals. Outrage over this spread and the TVB station removed the blur for its evening show.

'David' has been forcibly clothed around the world
A copy was installed at the Forest Lawn Cemetery in Glendale, California, in 1939 with a fig leaf in place. It was removed in 1969 and the 'David' remained nude. There were three replicas there for years until the newest one was taken out by an earthquake in 1987.
In 1995, the city of Jerusalem initially refused the offer of a 'David' replica from Florence. After negotiations, the city accepted a different, clothed statue — "David," by Verrocchio — instead.
A local woman in St. Petersburg, Russia, called a plastic replica of "David" that was part of a "Michelangelo. World Creation" exhibition a bad influence on students at a nearby school and called for it to be covered up. "This giant spoils the city's historic appearance and warps children's souls," she wrote in a letter to the children's rights ombudsman. The organization responded with a "Dress David" campaign to invite people to come up with new couture for the hero and a vote to decide what, if anything , they would put on the statue.
Pope Benedict XVI issued a statement in 2011 calling for 'David" to be covered to protect the innocence of visitors, although the edict did end with a message of hope and encouragement for everyone to enjoy a "Happy April Fools Day."
The Simpsons covered the 'David' controversy

In Season 2 of "The Simpsons," episode 9, "Itchy & Scratchy," the show took on the problems of violent children's television, nudity in art, and the problems when a few concerned parents try to make decisions for everybody.

In it, the Simpsons baby Maggie brains her father. Homer, with a mallet after seeing a cat and mouse attack each other on a popular cartoon show. Her mother Marge unites with other concerned mothers to form a protest group, S.N.U.H: Springfieldians for Nonviolence, Understanding and Helping. The group manages to intimidate the animation studio into making the carton safe, and utterly bland. Children across the city. bored now, go outside and play instead.

But S.N.U.H. (without Marge) also protests the display of Michelangelo's "David" at the Springfield Museum and Marge is forced to admit that she can't object to censoring one work of art while trying to censor another.

Helen: Get dressed, Marge. You've got to lead our protest against this abomination! (shows Marge a newspaper with the statue of David on the cover)Marge: Hmm, but that's Michelangelo's David. It's a masterpiece!Helen: (gasps) It's filth! It graphically portrays parts of the human body which, practical as they may be, are evil.Marge: But I like that statue.Maude: I told you she was soft on full-frontal nudity.

The show, one of the run's most popular, helped set the tone for the long-running series by taking the different concerns seriously and showing the humor from all sides.

A doctor from Indiana diagnosed 'David's' bulging neck vein

During a visit to Florence in 2018, Dr. Daniel Gelfman, a Marian University cardiologist, noticed a bulging vein on the right side of the hero’s neck, usually a sign of heart disease.

“It struck me as odd, very paradoxical. You wouldn’t expect to see that,” Gelfman said. “There are certain clues that you can pick up on physical exam that tells you that someone has heart disease and one of those clues is jugular venous distension. As a cardiologist, when I saw that, it was very dramatic to me. It really stuck out.”

Gelfman wrote an article for JAMA Cardiology where he discussed it, and the usefulness for medical students to study artworks to improve their diagnostic skills. Later he said he realized Michelangelo was depicting David in a state of excitement when some people's jugular veins temporarily distends, just as other people flush when they’re emotional. The artist may have even realized this long before medical experts did, Gelfman said.

3D replica of Michelangelo's "David" in Dubai displayed from the neck up
In a world's fair in Dubai in 2021, controversy broke out when a 3D replica of "David" was displayed in all its glory, sort of. The statue was placed in a tall octagonal shaft between floors and most visitors to Dubai's Expo 2020 could only see David's head, with the rest hidden behind a partition. Only VIPs with special access were permitted to see it from head to toe.

"What the rich, the great and the good can see and what the ordinary folk can see shouldn't be two different things," said Professor Paul Gwynne, who teaches medieval and renaissance studies at the American University of Rome.

PP

PHXPhlyer
Chief Pilot
Chief Pilot
Posts: 8239
Joined: Sun Jun 17, 2018 2:56 pm
Location: PHX
Gender:
Age: 69

Re: Chaos in USA

#3272 Post by PHXPhlyer » Mon Mar 27, 2023 10:26 pm

Nashville school shooting live updates: Six killed, including three children
A 28-year-old Nashville resident with two "assault-style" rifles and a pistol was killed by police at The Covenant School, a private Christian school.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/li ... -rcna76861

What to know about the shooting at The Covenant School:
Three children and three adults were killed, and the shooter was killed by police
The school has students from preschool through sixth grade, and on a normal day, has about 200 students and 40 staff members on campus
The shooter was described by police as a 28-year-old former student who had detailed maps of the school

Suspect had maps of school and shot through door to get in

The suspect in Monday's deadly school shooting was a former student who had maps of The Covenant School, Nashville Police Chief John Drake said.

Audrey Hale, 28, who police said was a transgender woman, had conducted surveillance and prepared for the attack with detailed maps, officials said. Police said the shooter had a manifesto, the contents of which were not released.

Hale had attended the school as a child but police did not detail which grades.

Hale shot through a door to gain access to the school, Drake said.

The shooter, Drake said, was “prepared for a confrontation with law enforcement” and “prepared to do more harm."

The shooter was armed with two semiautomatic AR-15-style rifles as well as a handgun. At least two of the three guns had been lawfully purchased, Drake said.

Covenant School serves students from preschool through sixth grade

The Tennessee Christian school where a mass shooting Monday left six people dead, including three children, serves students ranging from preschool through sixth grade.

On a typical day, roughly 209 students attend The Covenant School, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department said.

The school is 9 miles southwest of downtown Nashville and was founded in 2001 as a ministry of the Covenant Presbyterian Church, according to the school’s website.

The school has 33 teachers, giving it an 8-to-1 teacher-student ratio. The school’s top administrator, Katherine Koonce, was among those killed in the shooting.
The leader of the school where a woman opened fire and fatally shot six people was among those killed Monday, according to a list of victims released by police.

Katherine Koonce, 60, is listed on The Covenant School's website as "head of school."

Three 9-year-old students were killed: Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs, and William Kinney, according to police. The other adult victims were Cynthia Peak and Mike Hill, both 61.

Suspected shooter identified

The suspected Nashville Christian school shooter is Audrey Hale, 28, a resident of Nashville, three law enforcement officials briefed on the matter said.

Authorities said the shooter killed three children and three adults at the private school Monday morning and was killed by responding police officers.

Hale's background was not immediately known and investigators are investigating a possible motive.
Of the 57 shootings that fit NBC News’ school shooting criteria since January 2013, six have involved a female shooter.


According to the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department, Monday's shooter carried two assault-style rifles and a handgun. Of the previous five school shootings with a female shooter, handguns were the primary weapon in four. The gun was not known in the other.

This will open a whole 'nother can of worms regarding categorizing shooters according to gender. :-o :-?

PP

User avatar
llondel
Chief Pilot
Chief Pilot
Posts: 5909
Joined: Wed Oct 03, 2018 3:17 am
Location: San Jose

Re: Chaos in USA

#3273 Post by llondel » Fri Mar 31, 2023 1:10 am

OK everyone, stock up on popcorn. It finally happened, someone managed to indict Trump.

I'm sure that if he's innocent he'll have a clear, coherent and solid case and will try to get things done quickly so he can be found not guilty and return to his normal life. At least until the next one comes along - now the seal has been broken, the rest might want to join the party.

G-CPTN
Chief Pilot
Chief Pilot
Posts: 7592
Joined: Sun Aug 05, 2018 11:22 pm
Location: Tynedale
Gender:
Age: 79

Re: Chaos in USA

#3274 Post by G-CPTN » Fri Mar 31, 2023 5:38 am

I believe Trump made a substantial payment to a porn star.

Was he being blackmailed?

User avatar
OFSO
Chief Pilot
Chief Pilot
Posts: 18597
Joined: Sat Aug 22, 2015 6:39 pm
Location: Teddington UK and Roses Catalunia
Gender:
Age: 80

Re: Chaos in USA

#3275 Post by OFSO » Fri Mar 31, 2023 5:45 am

Ooooh, racist!

User avatar
Dushan
Capt
Capt
Posts: 1479
Joined: Sat Aug 22, 2015 8:23 pm
Location: Right wing
Gender:
Age: 71

Re: Chaos in USA

#3276 Post by Dushan » Fri Mar 31, 2023 8:09 am

While it hasn't reached, yet, the level of falling out of 16th floor window, this sums it up:

Donald Trump Jr.:
"This is like communist level šit. This is stuff that would make Mao, Stalin, Pol Pot, it would make them blush."
Because they stand on the wall and say "nothing's gonna hurt you tonight, not on my watch".

PHXPhlyer
Chief Pilot
Chief Pilot
Posts: 8239
Joined: Sun Jun 17, 2018 2:56 pm
Location: PHX
Gender:
Age: 69

Re: Chaos in USA

#3277 Post by PHXPhlyer » Fri Mar 31, 2023 3:10 pm

Dushan wrote:
Fri Mar 31, 2023 8:09 am
While it hasn't reached, yet, the level of falling out of 16th floor window, this sums it up:

Donald Trump Jr.:
"This is like communist level šit. This is stuff that would make Mao, Stalin, Pol Pot, it would make them blush."
Putin not on his list? :-?

PP

Boac
Chief Pilot
Chief Pilot
Posts: 17199
Joined: Fri Aug 28, 2015 5:12 pm
Location: Here

Re: Chaos in USA

#3278 Post by Boac » Fri Mar 31, 2023 3:14 pm

No - he's a mate of his dad.

PHXPhlyer
Chief Pilot
Chief Pilot
Posts: 8239
Joined: Sun Jun 17, 2018 2:56 pm
Location: PHX
Gender:
Age: 69

Re: Chaos in USA

#3279 Post by PHXPhlyer » Fri Mar 31, 2023 3:19 pm

Boac wrote:
Fri Mar 31, 2023 3:14 pm
No - he's a mate of his dad.
That would explain the absence of Kim, Xi, and Erdogan on the list as well.

PP

User avatar
Fox3WheresMyBanana
Chief Pilot
Chief Pilot
Posts: 12979
Joined: Thu Sep 03, 2015 9:51 pm
Location: Great White North
Gender:
Age: 61

Re: Chaos in USA

#3280 Post by Fox3WheresMyBanana » Fri Mar 31, 2023 3:38 pm

I believe Trump made a substantial payment to a porn star.
Trump's lawyer made a payment to a porn star.
There is no evidence presented yet that Trump recompensed him.
Said lawyer has recently completed a three year sentence for lying to Congress.
Credibility as a witness: zero.

Whether Trump did it or not, there's no reasonable case.
There's quite a reasonable case for Biden to be in the dock for exactly the same offence of interfering with an election, suppressing all the dodgy stuff about his son's laptop just before the 2020 Election.

I have no dog in this fight. I regard pretty much all politics, not just in the US, as a complete cesspool these days. I do not care, nor does it much matter, who wins or loses.

Post Reply