Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

Celerity

Celerity's Journal
Celerity's Journal
April 30, 2020

I Was Skeptical of This Hyped, Award-Winning Bourbon from Washington State. Then I Drank It

https://gearpatrol.com/2020/04/30/best-booze-april-2020/

Woodinville Straight Bourbon Whiskey



If you don’t know Woodinville yet, you will soon. The distillery has earned numerous accolades, including Craft Whiskey of the Year and, more recently, Best Straight Bourbon at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition this year. Bourbon authority Fred Minnick said he’d “buy every single bottle of Woodinville.” Its straight bourbon is an easy-drinking 90 proof that’s aged in standard 53-gallon drums for five years which, for a non-major distillery (like Jim Beam, Buffalo Trace or Brown-Forman), is a rarity. What’s rarer, the booze is better than its stats. It’s rich, buttery and sweet, and, at $40, it won’t cost you a fortune.

https://www.woodinvillewhiskeyco.com/products/straight-bourbon-whiskey/



2016 Craft Whiskey of the Year
-American Distilling Institute Craft Spirits Awards

Woodinville® Straight Bourbon Whiskey, 45% ABV

This truly small-batch bourbon starts with traditionally grown corn, rye and malted barley. All of our staple grains are cultivated exclusively for us on the Omlin Family farm in Quincy, Washington. The grains are mashed, distilled, and barreled in our Woodinville® distillery, then trucked back over the Cascade Mountains to our private barrel houses, where Central Washington’s extreme temperature cycles promote the extraction of natural flavors from the oak. Prior to being coopered, the barrel wood is seasoned in open air, rain, wind, sun, and snow for eighteen months, softening the wood’s harsh tannins. The barrels are then slowly toasted and heavily charred to further enrich the wood’s desirable flavors. This meticulous process yields a truly hand-crafted spirit with aromas of crème brûlée and spice cabinet, as well as notes of rich caramel, dark chocolate, and vanilla bean on the palate with a sweet, lingering finish.

*Also available in Cask-Strength at distillery only.
April 30, 2020

You Know That Little Hole in Your Pen Cap? It Could Save Your Life

https://gearpatrol.com/2020/04/30/hole-pen-cap-explained/

Welcome to Further Details, a series dedicated to ubiquitous but overlooked elements hidden on your favorite products. This week: the hole in the cap of your favorite cheap pen.





Pop open a fresh box of Bic’s famed Cristal pens and you’ll come face to face with a bunch of pen caps with holes in them. As an everyday function, the hole equalizes pressure so that uncapping and capping the pen isn’t a struggle. The hole’s other function is to save your life.

According to Iconic Designs: 50 Stories about 50 Things, Bic has been manufacturing vented pen caps since 1991 in an effort to reduce deaths by asphyxiation after accidental ingestion of the pen cap, particularly by children. Pen cap inhalation is a common issue with school-aged children, and the results can be deadly if not addressed immediately. The hole of the pen cap allows for airflow to continue even while lodged within the body. But the safety measure is only good for buying time until one can seek medical attention; one teenager in the UK died when he inhaled a pen cap and the cap’s vent became clogged.

https://www.instagram.com/p/ByjNxKMApxn

Bic may have been the first in the implementation of the pen cap hole, but other pen manufacturers have since adopted the safety measure in accordance to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), an independent organization that sets product standards for 164 countries. In 1993, the ISO released the safety standard ISO 11540, which dictates the design specifications of pen caps. These guidelines only apply to writing utensils that may be used by those aged 14 and younger — pen caps that are targeted towards adults, or are too large, aren’t subject to these measures.

The specifications include the condition that pen caps be ventilated with an aperture that will allow someone choking on a pen cap to maintain somewhat regular breathing functions until medical help arrives. The hole in the pen cap can literally be the difference between life and death if the cap is ingested. So the next time writer’s block hits, and the urge to chew your pen cap comes, maybe stick to chewing gum.

snip

The Bic Cristal (stylised as BiC Cristal and also known as the Bic pen) is an inexpensive disposable ballpoint pen mass-produced and sold by Société Bic of Clichy, Hauts-de-Seine, France. It was introduced in December 1950 and is the best-selling pen in the world – the 100 billionth was sold in September 2006. It has become the archetypal ballpoint pen and is considered ubiquitous, to the extent that the Museum of Modern Art has made it a permanent part of its collection. Its hexagonal form and design mimics a classic lead pencil and it is sold in 6 types of point and 18 colors around the world.
April 30, 2020

Your Funeral ‎- I Want To Be You





Label:
Local Anesthetic Records ?– none
Format:
Vinyl, 7", Single, 45 RPM
Country:
US
Released:
1982
Genre:
Rock
Style:
Goth Rock, Punk, Deathrock, Post-Punk

http://lifeonthedot.blogspot.com/2007/02/your-funeral-i-want-to-be-you-7-inch.html






April 30, 2020

The The ‎- This Is The Day (Original 12" Version)



Label:
Some Bizzare ?– TA 3710
Format:
Vinyl, 12", 45 RPM, Single
Land:
UK
Veröffentlicht:
1983
Genre:
Electronic
Stil:
Synth-pop




April 30, 2020

Cetu Javu - Situations (Razormaid Version)



Label:
Razormaid Records - RM-A22
Format:
2 × vinyl , 12 ", clear
Country:
US
Released:
1988
Genre:
Electronic
Style:
Synth-pop






April 30, 2020

Half of world's workers 'at immediate risk of losing livelihood due to coronavirus'

1.6 billion people face economic hit from Covid-19, says UN labour agency

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/29/half-of-worlds-workers-at-immediate-risk-of-losing-livelihood-due-to-coronavirus


A fruit vendor waiting for customers during lockdown in Prayagraj, India. About 2 billion people worldwide work in the informal economy. Photograph: Prabhat Kumar Verma/Zuma Wire/Rex

Almost half the global workforce – 1.6 billion people – are in “immediate danger of having their livelihoods destroyed” by the economic impact of Covid-19, the International Labour Organization has warned. Of the total global working population of 3.3 billion, about 2 billion work in the “informal economy”, often on short-term contracts or self-employment, and suffered a 60% collapse in their wages in the first month of the crisis. Of these, 1.6 billion face losing their livelihoods, the ILO warned on Wednesday.

“It shows I think in the starkest possible terms that the jobs employment crisis and all of its consequences is deepening by comparison with our estimates of three weeks ago,” the UN agency’s director general, Guy Ryder, told a briefing, foreseeing a “massive” poverty impact. “For millions of workers, no income means no food, no security and no future. Millions of businesses around the world are barely breathing,” said Ryder. “They have no savings or access to credit. These are the real faces of the world of work. If we don’t help them now, they will simply perish.”

North and South America were the worst affected regions following the rapid spread of the virus through the US and Brazil, but self-employed and contract workers in Europe were also in imminent danger of seeing their livelihoods disappear. In the Americas, the loss of working hours in the second quarter is expected to reach 12.4% compared with the pre-crisis level. In Europe and central Asia, the decline is estimated at 11.8%.

This translates into a drop in the incomes of informal workers of 81% in Africa and the Americas, 21.6% in Asia and the Pacific, and 70% in Europe and central Asia. An easing of the lockdown in China meant thousands of businesses had reopened and increased the hours of their workers. The ILO said this development meant the incomes of employed workers had increased on a global level.

snip
April 29, 2020

The (Almost) Worst Case Coronavirus Scenario Is On The Way

The nonstop efforts of Trump and conservative propaganda to downplay Covid-19 are leading us to disaster.

https://thebanter.substack.com/p/the-almost-worst-case-coronavirus



Four months ago, if you would have told me that white Republican voters were literally suicidal, I would have scoffed at you. Homicidal? Sure. The right wing produces domestic terrorists like rotting meat produces maggots. But suicidal? Not so much. I would have thought the MAGA Moron Mob was far too self-centered to throw their lives away on the word of Donald Trump and Fox News. But I forgot how much power a cult has over its victims.

https://twitter.com/Chica_LeoLatina/status/1254560230274248705

That’s a beach in a red-leaning California county and, presumably, most of the people there are of the opinion that the coronavirus that has killed over 50,000 Americans is not a big deal. Or at least it’s less important than their Gawd-given right to get some sun. This was the same scene at Florida beaches last weekend where Republican governor Ron DeSantis has been treating Covid-19 like a minor nuisance to be ignored whenever possible. It’s not like his state is filled with retired senior citizens or anything. Hundreds of thousands of (mostly) Republicans are delighted to rush back out into public right when we’re still in the middle of the first peak of a pandemic. And now it’s going to get so much worse.

The Suicide Squad

Countries all across the globe that are much better prepared than the United States are finding out how difficult it is to ease their lockdowns without setting off new waves of infections. This goes for countries like China, which did an extremely poor job handling their initial outbreaks as well as countries like Germany, which did an astonishingly good job. But those countries are aggressively combatting the virus with testing and tracking on a national level. When they find an outbreak, they do something to keep it from spreading to the rest of the population. By contrast, the United States is doing literally nothing on a national level because Trump and his Republican regime of corrupt lackeys refuse to take any kind of responsibility.

Therefore, it is up to each individual state to do its own testing and tracking which is akin to having 50 people build a boat to escape a flood knowing that several of them will use cardboard for the hull. Even if the rest of the boat is solid, you’re all going to drown because of the idiots you’ve been forced to work with. Take idiot Georgia Republican governor Brian Kemp. Reports CNN:

snip
April 29, 2020

New Zealand health official claims 'elimination' of coronavirus as new cases hit single digits

https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2020/04/28/coronavirus-new-zealand-health-official-claims-elimination-virus/3038321001/

New Zealand's top health official said Monday that the country has achieved its goal of eliminating coronavirus as new cases dropped to single digits. Ashley Bloomfield, New Zealand's director general of health, reported one new case, four "probable cases" and just one new death at a news conference Monday. Bloomfield said the small number of cases gave officials "confidence that we've achieved our goal of elimination." "And again, that doesn't mean eradication, but it means we get down to a small number of cases so that we are able to stamp out any cases and any outbreak that might come out," he said.

The island nation of nearly 5 million has had 1,472 cases of coronavirus and 19 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern called the low numbers "incredible" and said the country had currently eliminated coronavirus. She said new cases may continue to appear, but that they could be managed through aggressive contact tracing which the country has scaled up. "There is no widespread, undetected community transmission in New Zealand. We have won that battle," Ardern said. "But we must remain vigilant if we are to keep it that way."

Ardern praised New Zealanders for adapting to life under the pandemic and extended her sympathies to those who have lost loved ones to COVID-19. She also announced that the country would be downgrading its lockdown measures from Level 4 to Level 3, which would allow businesses that can operate without face-to-face contact and schools to reopen. Up to 10 people will be allowed to attend funerals and weddings. New Zealanders are still encouraged to work from home if possible. She said the government would meet again on May 11 to make a decision about moving to Level 2 lockdown.

Ardern has garnered praise for her swift response to the pandemic. She shut down tourism and introduced Level 4 lockdown measures in March during which offices, schools and non-essential services including bars, restaurants, and playgrounds were shuttered. "It's been nearly five weeks living and working in ways that just two months ago would have been impossible," Ardern said. "But we did. And we have done it together."

snip
April 28, 2020

Dead Kennedys - Government Flu & Well Paid Scientist




Label:
Statik Records ?– STAT LP 71011, Alternative Tentacles ?– VIRUS 27
Format:
Vinyl, LP, Album
Country:
Belgium
Released:
1982
Genre:
Rock
Style:
Punk





April 28, 2020

I constantly see the 25th Amendment bandied about as a way to remove Trump, but it will not work.

2/3rds of BOTH the House and the Senate have to approve it if Trump challenges it. That is not going to happen. So it is even harder than Impeachment and Trial, Conviction, and Removal, as the House only needs majority to impeach. Plus the obvious barrier that the VP and the majority of the Cabinet has to invoke the 25th in the first place.

No idea why so many think the 25th is a viable option. The ONLY way Trump is leaving is if he loses the 2020 election, or his 2nd term runs out, or he dies or is permanently incapacitated via a illness or accident in office.


https://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/amendmentxxv


Profile Information

Gender: Female
Hometown: London
Home country: US/UK/Sweden
Current location: Stockholm, Sweden
Member since: Sun Jul 1, 2018, 07:25 PM
Number of posts: 43,498

About Celerity

she / her / hers
Latest Discussions»Celerity's Journal