Jerri-Lynn here. Some readers might be confused by the apparent contradiction between Sunday’s post announcing my impending retirement and the appearance of my by-line here today. The explanation: I am indeed retiring, but not ’til the end of this week. Before then, I’ll be posting a bit today and more on Thursday, and launching a farewell post as soon as I finish writing it.
Before then, I want to tell readers how much I appreciated the many kind comments they posted in response to Sunday’s announcement. There’s no better feeling a writer can have than to hear from her readers that they were touched by – or learned from her writing. And that’s especially so when the audience is the NC commentariat – the best commentariat. It’s been such a privilege to write for you.
Thank you so much!
***
Lambert and I, and many readers, agree that Ukraine has prompted the worst informational environment ever. We hope readers will collaborate in mitigating the fog of war — both real fog and stage fog — in comments. None of us need more cheerleading and link-free repetition of memes; there are platforms for that. Low-value, link-free pom pom-wavers will be summarily whacked.
And for those who are new here, this is not a mere polite request. We have written site Policies and those who comment have accepted those terms. To prevent having to resort to the nuclear option of shutting comments down entirely until more sanity prevails, as we did during the 2015 Greek bailout negotiations and shortly after the 2020 election, we are going to be ruthless about moderating and blacklisting offenders.
–Yves
P.S. Also, before further stressing our already stressed moderators, read our site policies:
Please do not write us to ask why a comment has not appeared. We do not have the bandwidth to investigate and reply. Using the comments section to complain about moderation decisions/tripwires earns that commenter troll points. Please don’t do it. Those comments will also be removed if we encounter them.
The 2022 Audubon Photography Awards Atlantic (David L)
All History Is Revisionist History Humanities
Explained: Why The Fight Over DNA Is Central To Biodiversity Conservation India Spend
Faroe Islands sets quota of 500 dolphins to be killed in controversial annual whale hunt CNN (The Rev Kev)
In Comeback Moment, Up to 150 Fin Whales Spotted Feeding off Antarctica EcoWatch (furzy)
Logjams Benefit Wildlife So Much That Scientists Are Intentionally Placing Wood in Streams Treehugger
Man in northeast Thailand pays 3.9 million baht dowry… for a buffalo Thaiger (furzy)
A First Year of Discovery Inference
James Webb telescope takes super sharp view of early cosmos BBC Wow!
New York city offers nuclear attack tutorial (VIDEO) RT (The Rev Kev)
When Coal First Arrived, Americans Said ‘No Thanks’ Smithsonian Magazine
Start cleaning your home more sustainably with these tips NPR (David L)
Education Doesn’t Work 2.0 Freddie deBoer
Floridian attempting to escape sheriff on a John Deere tractor fails to get away, this time Boing Boing. re Šilc: “nothing runs like a deere” is false advertising then
#COVID-19
Covid-19: Hong Kong to step up restriction enforcement with colour-coded app system, but health minister says change not aimed at ‘tracking’ residents South China Morning Post
Inaccurate pulse oximeter readings tied to less supplemental oxygen for darker-skinned ICU patients Stat
COVID Brain Problems May Stem From Attack on Endothelial Cells Medpage Today (carla)
Moderna to make two different omicron boosters: one for US, another for UK, EU Ars Technica
Is BA.5 the ‘Reinfection Wave’? The Atlantic (David L)
Don’t breathe it in. #COVIDisAirborne pic.twitter.com/czmr4ki2dC
— The John Snow Project (@JohnSnowProject) July 10, 2022
New Not-So-Cold War
White House: Iran set to deliver armed drones to Russia AP (re Šilc)
India’s takeaways from Bali ministerial Indian Punchline
Joe Biden’s Oil Gamble Set to Backfire as Saudi Arabia Sticks With Russia Newsweek (re Šilc)
Russia shuts down Nord Stream gas pipeline for repairs Deutsche Welle
Lithuanian crowdfunding drive gets Ukraine an armed drone AP. re Šilc: “the wide world of stupidity knows no bounds”
Remembering the Crimean War Russian Dissent
NYT Ground Report Debunks NYT Claim Of Strikes Against ‘Ukraine’s Civilians’ Moon of Alabama
RT’s “Cross Talk” is back on youtube.com Gilbert Doctorow
It appears that Sweden is saying it would be ready to host nuclear weapons on its territory. https://t.co/Wpx0FLo0DG
— Pavel Podvig (@russianforces) July 11, 2022
Julian Assange
Ithaka Craig Murray
Sports Desk
The life and career of baseball great Babe Ruth Daily News One of the highlights of Grandpa Scofield’s life was to have seen Babe Ruth play. That and being on a ship that sank. And passing through the Panama Canal.
Supply Chain/Shortages
Long Beach container backlog crosses red line as delays mount American Shipper
A Single Telecom Company Outage Sent Canadian Airports Into Havoc Jalopnik (The Rev Kev)
Need more power generation — ALL sources, particularly non-intermittent. https://t.co/HLVBLrxW5Z
— TexanObservator (@TexanObservator) July 11, 2022
Uber
« Uber Files » : révélations sur le deal secret entre Uber et Emmanuel Macron à Bercy Le Monde
The Uber whistleblower: I’m exposing a system that sold people a lie Guardian
Wildfires
Yosemite’s Mariposa Grove will survive Washburn Fire, says park’s forest ecologist SFGate (David L)
Old Blighty
Britain to have new PM by 5 September as Tory leadership rules announced Guardian (The Rev Kev)
Falling/failing at the first hurdle… https://t.co/FC6XVARg00
— Mark Seddon (@MarkSeddon1962) July 11, 2022
Class Warfare
On Prime Day, declare independence from Amazon Daily News
Congress showers the Pentagon with cash while Americans pinch pennies Responsible Statecraft
Matt Levine’s Money Stuff: The Price of Not Buying Twitter Bloomberg
‘Black Swans’ and ‘Perfect Storms’: Wall Street Reaches for Cliché to Excuse Your Withered 401(k) WSJ
Today, in America, just three Wall Street firms – BlackRock, Vanguard and State Street – manage $22 trillion in assets. These three firms are major shareholders in more than 96 percent of S&P 500 companies. Obscene.
— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) July 11, 2022
The Importance of Competition for the American Economy The White House
New Mexico’s Oil and Gas Revenues Are Breaking Records and Complicating Budgets Capital & Main
Biden Administration
Jill Biden can’t say ‘bodega’ — and it brought back Peggy Hill comparison NY Post
The Iran hawks’ dangerous hubris Responsible Statecraft
Trump Transition
Bannon suffers setback as judge rejects delaying contempt of Congress trial Guardian (furzy)
2024
Harris, despite wave of critical media coverage, still beats DeSantis in 2024 polling MSNBC (furzy)
Herschel Walker impresses crowd with incomprehensible word salad about air pollution Boing Boing. re Šilc: “has to be one of the greatest us senators if elected”
The Supremes
The Supreme Court Has Always Been a Reactionary Body Jacobin
In a historic term, momentum to move the law often came from the five justices to the chief’s right SCOTUS Blog
Abortion
What will US abortion sanctuary networks look like? Al Jazeera
Abortion providers embrace virtual assistants and automation to prepare for new flood of patients Stat (Dr. Kevin)
Democrats en déshabillé
RHODE ISLAND PROGRESSIVES PUSH FOR TAKEOVER OF STATE DEMOCRATIC PARTY The Intercept (JZ)
The people Dems laugh at most are the liberals who think they’re going to “push them left” yet who, at the same time, pledge their unconditional loyalty to vote for Democrats no matter what they do. The pre-MSNBC @Lawrence explained how pathetic this is:pic.twitter.com/mkpL5LIl4Q
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) July 11, 2022
Small State, Big Agenda? Nepal in the Gulf Labor Migration Market The Diplomat
India
Kali Faces the Wrath of a Hindi Colonialism Out to Destroy the Traditions of Her Followers The Wire
World Population Day: India will overtake China in 2023, says the UN BBC
World Population Day: India Has a Demographic Dividend To Reap – But Will It? The Wire
The India Fix: How five years of the GST regime has changed Indian politics Scroll
Proposed Megaproject in Great Nicobar Island Could Spell Trouble for Its People, Wildlife The Wire
How New Forest Diversion Rules Deal a Body Blow to the Forest Rights Act The Wire
Guillotine Watch
Richard Branson won the space tourism battle, but his company lost the war Ars Technica
Piet Mondrian and the six lines that made a masterpiece BBC
van ghosts The Smart Set
From Leonardo to Hepworth: the art of surgery The Spectator
Antidote du Jour (Tracie H):
I paid a visit to the local nursery, Roger’s Gardens, earlier this month and of course, even though I was there with a friend who was shopping for plants, I had brought my camera along. While she was busy looking something up on her phone, I had a chance to take a few shots of this strawberry tree. While I was busy framing the colorful fruit, this sweet Orange-crowned warbler popped in to feast on the abundant supply of aphids.
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.
