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In this economy?
Smith Point Lighthouse isn't for the faint of heart (or stomach). Getting there, about three miles from shore, requires a journey by boat that can take up to an hour on a choppy day. The entrance consists of two corroded ladders wobbling with every gust of wind. A railing with missing rungs hovers above the tempestuous waters below. More photos here. Previously & Previously
The Person Behind the OK Dept of Wildlife Conservation is Stepping Down
Federal Standard 595
AMS Standard 595
The generous impulses of all were awakened by the danger that threatened
It cost a recruit $12.50 for the privilege of enlisting in the exclusive 4th Battallion of Rifles, but before considering the fee, the applicant needed to be approved by a vote from members of the Boston Militia group. In spite of the cost there were plenty of applicants & there was no problem filling each company to its full compliment of men. The four rifle companies of the Fourth Battallion, Companies A, B, C, & D, became the nucleus of the 13th Regiment Massachusetts Volunteers (...) Many of these men chose to go directly to the seat of war as privates in the 13th rather than wait for a chance at an officer's commission with another organization.(...) "They are a damned insubordinate lot," said brigade commander General John J. Abercrombie when asked what kind of troops they were. Amongst the material gathered here is this outstanding story attributed to (Union) Lieutenant Edward Rollins: Dr. Stringfellow's Slaves
55 Years After Stonewall, Police Reform Stalls at Symbolic Gestures
Fifty five years after a police raid at a popular drag bar in Greenwich Village led to the Stonewall uprising, interactions between police and queer folks can certainly appear a lot different than they did in the 1960s. The laws banning crossdressing, obscenity, and same-sex sexual relations that enabled police to harass LGBTQ people have largely been overturned in court. The pride parades that commemorate the Stonewall uprising now often have a police escort. Many police departments have hired LGBTQ community liaisons, fly rainbow Pride flags in June, and issue proclamations honoring Transgender Day of Remembrance.
Far from signs of progress, however, these symbolic gestures obscure the many ways police harassment, profiling, and violence continue to target sexual and gender minorities, with poor, Black, and transgender people often facing the worst of it. In our new report, Policing Progress: Findings from a National Survey of LGBTQ+ People’s Experiences with Law Enforcement, we found that routine and widespread mistreatment by police continues to fuel mistrust between LGBTQ people and the very law enforcement that claims to protect and serve them.
Using survey data collected by NORC at the University of Chicago, the ACLU, in collaboration with the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the University of California, Irvine, found disparities between LGBTQ people and non-LGBTQ people, and within the LGBTQ community in reported experiences with police. As a group, LGBTQ people reported more adverse treatment by police than non-LGBTQ people. This is particularly pronounced among bisexual, transgender, and nonbinary people, who more commonly experience insulting language and physical force from the police.
More than one in four (27 percent) transgender people report experiencing physical force by police. Black transgender people were the most likely to have experienced physical force by the police among all LGBTQ people. Transgender and nonbinary respondents (45 percent and 33 percent, respectively) were significantly more likely than LGBTQ cisgender men (15 percent) to have experienced insulting language by the police.
This kind of mistreatment can range from misgendering transgender people, profiling someone as a sex worker because of their gender expression, subjecting them to needless physical searches, and even physical and sexual violence. For example, earlier this month, a transgender man won a $275,000 settlement after being forced by New York prison officials to undergo four separate and illegal genital examinations. A 2021 survey of transgender people currently held in New York prisons found an astonishing three quarters reported at least one act of sexual violence by a corrections officer.
The ACLU has combated instances of police abuse in the LGBTQ community, including in 2019, when the New York Civil Liberties Union reached a settlement with the NYPD on behalf of Linda Dominguez, a 45-year-old transgender Latina, after they charged her with “false personation” for carrying an ID with her former name (or “deadname”) on it. Officers chained her to a pipe and verbally harassed her following her arrest. Two years prior, in 2017, the ACLU of the District of Columbia settled with the Metropolitan Police Department on behalf of Lourdes Ashley Hunter, executive director and co-founder of the Trans Women of Color Collective, after police entered her home without a warrant, physically assaulted her, and left her with multiple injuries.
It’s no wonder then that our report also found widespread mistrust among LGBTQ people towards law enforcement, with the very members of the LGBTQ community that face the highest rates of victimization reporting the least willingness to seek help from police.
Only 69 percent of bisexual and 60 percent of queer people indicated that they would call the police for help in the future, compared to 80 percent of gays and lesbians and 87 percent of straight, cisgender people. Less than two-thirds of Latine LGBTQ people surveyed said they would be likely to call the police for help in the future, compared to nearly three-fourths of white LGBTQ people. Less than two-thirds of transgender respondents were likely to call the police for help in the future, compared to 82 percent of cisgender LGBQ men. Approximately one-quarter of nonbinary people were willing to call the police for help.
At the ACLU, our advocacy recommendations have centered around the multiple, concrete steps communities and local governments can take to help ensure the safety of LGBTQ people from police harassment and violence, including:
- Reducing negative encounters between police and community members. Law enforcement must end policies and practices that require or incentivize officers to engage in aggressive tactics, such as quotas for citations or arrests, stop-and-frisk, and ceasing enforcement of consensual sex work.
- Adopting specific policies and practices that ensure fair and equitable treatment of LGBTQ+ people. We urge police to place prohibitions on the use of explicitly hateful language and frisks and searches aimed at determining someone’s gender.
- Reconsidering police presence in public LGBTQ+ spaces and events, such as pride parades and festivals.
- Implementing strong oversight with meaningful community involvement to provide transparent and accessible complaint processes and require law enforcement agencies to take corrective action when complaints suggest a pattern of problems.
- Repealing existing laws that explicitly criminalize LGBTQ+ people and expression, and opposing any proposed anti-LGBTQ+ laws, including those that would criminalize necessary medical care or criminalize drag.
Many states continue to advance laws that seek to further police LGBTQ life, including efforts to censor drag performers and criminalize transgender people who use public restrooms consistent with their gender identity. As outlined in our memo, Trump on LGBTQ Rights, former President Donald Trump and the extremists behind Project 2025 want to go even further, weaponizing the federal government to criminalize gender nonconformity and ordering the Department of Justice to repeal protections for incarcerated transgender people.
But many of these problems are perpetuated at the local level–often by the very same cities and municipalities who proudly host pride parades or fly rainbow flags on their police cruisers. LGBTQ people and our allies shouldn’t be fooled by flashy but shallow shows of support or lofty social media statements from police departments about “inclusion.” More than half a century after Stonewall, communities have a duty to move past symbolism and move us closer to a future built on safety, respect, and freedom.
Emily Greytak, ACLU; Jordan Grasso, University of California, Irvine; and Stefan Vogler, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign contributed to this article.
A victory for the LGBTQ+ community in the middle of Wyoming
lol, internet
21st-century mosque design
- The "winners" link is from the entry for the Naji Hamshari Mosque in Amman, Jordan. - Not all of the mosques are modernist; many are in a more traditional style, like this one.
"The law, in its majestic equality"
Supreme Court Says Ban on Homeless Camping Does Not Violate Constitution (WaPo) Supreme Court Allows Policy Targeting Homeless People (NBC) Supreme Court Rules Cities May Enforce Laws Against Homeless Encampments (LA Times) Supreme Court Gives Cities More Power to Crack Down on Homeless Camps (CalMatters) Supreme Court posts get a Supremes song: here's 'Tumbling Tumbleweeds.'
The End of the Administrative State
SCOTUSBlog on the likely effects. Elie Mystal: "Conservatives have now completed their generational goals of overturning Abortion, Affirmative Action, and Chevron. If y'all don't think Obergefell and gay marriage is next on the chopping block, you must read the New York Times."
Lessons from people already adapting to the climate crisis | Dorcas Naishorua
Tractor Supply Ditches DEI, Climate Goals After Online Attacks
"Going forward, we will ensure our activities and giving tie directly to our business. For instance, this means we will: 1. No longer submit data to the Human Rights Campaign 2. Refocus our Team Member Engagement Groups on mentoring, networking and supporting the business 3. Further focus on rural America priorities including ag education, animal welfare, veteran causes and being a good neighbor and stop sponsoring nonbusiness activities like pride festivals and voting campaigns 4. Eliminate DEI roles and retire our current DEI goals while still ensuring a respectful environment 5. Withdraw our carbon emission goals and focus on our land and water conservation efforts" This is the company that owns PetSense. Apparently this is a product of a campaign on Twitter by "Robby Starbuck" brought about via the company's webpage comment field.
motor city's train station
—Admit that Homer was no good. —No. —Admit. —No.
Why this sunken island is changing the way we think about myths
The Supreme Court Just Declined to Protect Emergency Abortion Care for Pregnant Patients. Here’s What to Know
Today, the Supreme Court declined to issue a ruling in Idaho and Moyle, et al. v. United States. Instead, it sent the case back down to the lower courts where anti-abortion extremists will continue to fight to strip pregnant people of the basic right to emergency care, including when their life is at risk.
While the court’s decision temporarily restores the ability of doctors in Idaho to provide emergency abortions required under the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act —EMTALA— by dismissing the case without affirming once and for all that pregnant people have a right to the emergency abortion care they need to protect their health and lives, the court continues to put pregnant patients at unnecessary risk.
Below, we break down why the case matters, and what happens next.
What Is the Emergency Medical Treatment And Labor Act?
EMTALA requires emergency rooms to provide stabilizing treatment to patients in emergency situations. Since it was signed into law by President Ronald Reagan, the federal government–across Democratic and Republican administrations–has consistently recognized that EMTALA requires hospitals to provide emergency abortion care to any patient who needs it. For nearly 40 years, EMTALA has been a crucial tool in guaranteeing the right to emergency care for pregnant patients in need.
Although the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade did not diminish these longstanding federal protections, extremist politicians still tried to prevent people experiencing emergency pregnancy complications from getting care in emergency rooms. In this case, Idaho, which has a near total abortion ban, went all the way to the Supreme Court for the power to criminalize emergency abortions required under EMTALA.
The ACLU and the Cooley Law Firm filed a friend-of-the-court brief in defense of EMTALA. We explained that the law clearly requires hospitals to provide emergency abortion care, regardless of state abortion bans like Idaho’s and others, and that pregnant people cannot be excluded from EMTALA’s protections. The court’s concurring opinion authored by Justice Elena Kagan, and joined by Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson, in part, echoes the arguments we laid out in our brief.
Who Will Be Most Impacted by the Court’s Decision?
The Supreme Court had the opportunity to affirm that every pregnant person in this country is entitled to the emergency care they need to protect their health and lives, and it failed to do so. The court’s refusal to safeguard the right to emergency abortion care–and put an unequivocal end to extremist attacks by anti-abortion politicians on this essential health care –puts pregnant patients at risk and devalues equality under the law.
On this episode, we’re going back into our archives to share an episode that unfortunately still has deep resonance today. Last year, we asked you what a year without Roe has been like in your lives and you responded in droves. Today, with abortio...
On this episode, we’re going back into our archives to share an episode that unfortunately still has deep resonance today. Last year, we asked you what a year without Roe has been like in your lives and you responded in droves. Today, with abortio...
Importantly, the court’s order does nothing to stop the chaos and confusion unleashed by abortion bans across the country, which still prevent providers from giving appropriate medical care to patients when they need it most. While the court’s order does provide a temporary reprieve for pregnant patients in Idaho facing medical emergencies, it also allows extremist politicians in the case to continue to fight to put doctors in jail simply for providing essential care. And, alarmingly, Justice Samuel Alito, joined by Justices Neil Gorsuch and Clarence Thomas, wrote a dissenting opinion that provides a roadmap for just how they would strip pregnant people of the right to emergency abortion care should this case return to the Supreme Court.
The dissenting opinion also indicates a willingness to endorse an extreme strategy to give legal rights to embryos and fetuses that will override the rights of the pregnant person, and could lead not only to a national abortion ban, but bans on other forms of reproductive health care like fertility treatment and birth control.
How Can We Fight Back?
This case proves that this battle is far from over. Extremist politicians are coming for our reproductive freedom and will not stop until abortion, including emergency abortion, is banned in all 50 states. They already went all the way to the Supreme Court for the right to put doctors in jail for providing life-and health-saving emergency abortion care, and they will do it again if we let them.
At the ACLU, we’ll continue to use every tool at our disposal to fight attacks on our bodily autonomy. We urge Congress to act now and pass federal protections for abortion rights that will end extreme bans in states and protect access to care nationwide.
For those who need a horror filter
While I hold my hand over my eyes, I need those brave members of Metafilter to peek between their fingers and tell me all is well.
Eyes on the T
Things that are supposed to be connected remain connected
Terminology Guide Categories: Triple-Action Twist Lock; Twist Lock; Slide Lock; Screw Lock; Other Locking; Multi-Gate; Non-Locking; Gated-Hook; Accessory; All Carabiners Virtual Exhibits Other Thoughts
"It provides for us"
Disclosing exactly what made the land sacred risked revealing to outsiders what they treasured most about it. In the past, disclosure of information about everything from food to archaeological sites enabled non-Natives to loot or otherwise desecrate the land." "The Yakama Nation feared similar outcomes if it fully participated in FERC's consultation process over the Goldendale development. But there are alternatives. The United Nations recognizes Indigenous peoples' right to affirmatively consent to development on their sacred lands. A similar model was included in state legislation in Washington three years ago, but Gov. Jay Inslee vetoed it. The requirements of the consultation process are poorly defined, and state and federal agencies interpret them in a broad range of ways. In the case of Pushpum, critics say that has allowed FERC to overlook tribal concerns. " "THE CONCERNS OVER FERC's engagement with the Yakama Nation are part of a wider discussion of U.S. government protections for tribal privacy and cultural resources. Speaking at a tribal energy summit in Tacoma in June 2023, Allyson Brooks, Washington's state historic preservation officer, said that even though the consent language was vetoed by the governor, state law for protecting confidentiality around tribal cultural properties is still stronger than federal law, which only protects confidentiality if a site is eligible for the National Register of Historic Places. In Washington, if a tribal historic preservation officer says, "'X marks the spot; this is sacred,' we say, 'OK,'" Brooks declared. "
Bones reveal first evidence of Down syndrome in Neanderthals
More than one in five US kids attends rural schools
An interview with the Director of the Rural Schools Collaborative, Taylor McCabe-Juhnke:
"In many rural communities, public schools are the largest employers, and, often, these schools are the last vestige of public infrastructure that engages the people of a given community. Therefore, the role of the teacher in a small town is often outsized. We believe that rural America is approaching a very tough intersection—a crossroads where the undermining of public institutions meets what is a very real rural teacher shortage."The National Rural Education Association is proud to release Why Rural Matters 2023: Centering Equity and Opportunity — the 10th in a series of reports analyzing the contexts and conditions of rural education in each of the 50 states [and source of post-title statistic.]
There are many faces of rural: from remote Indigenous reservations in the West, to small towns in the Great Plains and Midwest, to the Mississippi Delta and Southern "Black Belt," to Appalachia and New England. Rural can look different in each state: a town of a few thousand people, or tiny communities located several hours or even days from the nearest city, as is the case in parts of Alaska. Meeting the needs of nearly 10 million children is a challenge and an obligation that demands and deserves collective attention across the United States. Fulfilling that obligation requires educators, policymakers, caregivers, students, citizens, and employers to deepen our understanding of rural education issues and to move beyond simplistic and often harmful notions about rural schools and their communities.
Most of us just want to be heard, but never are.
In "Walk One Mile," the youth came up with images to expand on a poem written by one of their fellow students. "Letter to God" is also based on student poem; in this one you see one of the youth, as she was old enough to choose to be filmed (she said there was already plenty of bad stuff about her out there, so she'd like to have some good stuff). In "Please Understand," the students were given whiteboards to say what they would like people to know about them. The animated "Reflecting Resilience" has interviews with the students.
And many of the ones that were, probably shouldn't have been
I was going to make a big post listing all of them and which ones were made, but YT commenter @robmclean4352 already did in the top-voted comment. (Don't know if it's possible to link directly to a comment; I'm pretty sure that it's not kosher to copy-and-paste something like that.)
Paging Gen-X
Track listing "Schoolhouse Rocky" - Bob Dorough and Friends "I'm Just A Bill" - Deluxx Folk Implosion "Three Is a Magic Number" - Blind Melon "Conjunction Junction" - Better Than Ezra "Electricity, Electricity" - Goodness "No More Kings" - Pavement "The Shot Heard 'Round the World" - Ween "My Hero, Zero" - The Lemonheads "The Energy Blues" - Biz Markie "Little Twelvetoes" - Chavez "Verb: That's What's Happening" - Moby "Interplanet Janet" - Man or Astro-man? "Lolly, Lolly, Lolly, Get Your Adverbs Here" - Buffalo Tom "Unpack Your Adjectives" - Daniel Johnston "The Tale of Mr. Morton" - Skee-Lo
I am unbroken, I still wear this crown
Previously.
Ready to give them life, Henry? (click)
. . I was sure I first saw this video linked from Metafilter, but a search didn't reveal its post. I had figured that it probably got hit by an account wipe. Which would have meant that it's no longer a double, thus there was no reason not to post it again! But... on preview, the old post did turn up, from EXISTENZ IS PAUSED here. Thanks, wild E.I.P.! So, this is a double, but it's a double after eleven years, so I'm posting it under the recently relaxed attitudes towards ancient doubles. It's another classic by Peter Serafinowicz, and it's been lodged in my brain since I first saw it. I still often can't resist playing it at MST Club.
The hidden danger of lead in soil | Yvette Cabrera
Dania Furniture Recalls Hayden Bookcase Due to Tip-Over and Entrapment Hazards; 4-Year-Old Child Died from Tip-Over (Recall Alert)
The recalled bookcase is unstable if it is not anchored to the wall, posing tip-over and entrapment hazards that can result in death or serious injuries to children.
REI Recalls Co-op Cycles REV Children’s Bicycles with Training Wheels Due to Fall and Injury Hazards
The training wheel assembly knob can loosen and detach from the bicycle, posing fall and injury hazards to the riders.
At Home Procurement Recalls Toy Trunk Storage Chests Due to Entrapment and Suffocation Hazards
The toy trunk storage chests do not contain a lid support feature or ventilation holes, posing entrapment and suffocation hazards.
Southern Telecom Recalls Brookstone TurboVac Handheld Rechargeable Vacuums Due to Fire Hazard; Sold Exclusively at Belk
The vacuums can short circuit during or after charging the battery, posing a fire hazard.
Baseus Magnetic Wireless Charging Power Banks Recalled Due to Fire Hazard; Imported by Shenzhen Baseus Technology
The lithium-ion battery in the power banks can overheat, posing a fire hazard.
Daikin Comfort Technologies Manufacturing Recalls Daikin FIT, Amana Brand S-series, and Goodman SD Heat Pumps Due to Risk of Excessive Heat Exposure
A power interruption in the heat pump can result in the product providing heat when the power resumes, despite the thermostat being in cooling mode, posing a risk of excessive heat exposure to consumers.
"How to Make Newspapers Profitable Again"
i met Dante
'One in twenty people have walked out of a restaurant without paying...
Related: * In a plot twist - the psychology professor interviewed in the Guardian admits to previously being in a 'dine and dash'. * BBC: Dine-and-dash couple jailed and fined. * Law Society Gazette: 'Dine and dash' solicitor struck off. * BBC: Restaurant to charge upfront due to 'dine and dash'. * Yahoo News UK: Rise in 'dine and dash' customers blamed on police 'not taking action'. * BBC: Dine and dash hitting business hard - restaurateur.
"I want an actual creature"
One of a swelling series in The Cut's Summer of Smut
The law is where you buy it in this town
In 1988, Los Angeles PBS affiliate produced this half hour video telling of a particular 1930s scandal, the likes of which were inspiration to a hungry writer of pulp fiction, Raymond Chandler. Narrated by Richard Widmark. The story covers a bit of the Clifford Clinton bombing. Clinton, a L.A. restaurant owner and aspiring reform politico, drew the ire of Mayor Frank L. Shaw. Shaw sent Captain Earl Kynette, leader of the LAPD intelligence squad, to intimidate Clinton by bombing his house, and attempting to kill private eye Harry J. Raymond, who was in the employ of Clinton. The tricks failed and the aftermath upended Shaw and his administration.