[WSJ] Spring is usually harvest time for Big Sam Williams and other New Orleans musicians.
Mr. Williams and his band, Big Sam’s Funky Nation, expected to play more than 25 shows at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival in late April. During those weeks he can bring in $50,000, a big part of his annual income and enough to sustain him when the humid summer quiets the city’s streets.
This year the Funky Nation is in his driveway, socially distanced and streaming live on Facebook for tips.
"There is no side job," Mr. Williams, a trombonist, said. "This is what I do."
New Orleans and Louisiana are taking a direct hit from the coronavirus pandemic. More people in the state are currently on unemployment rolls—300,000—and more have died—2,500—than when Hurricane Katrina slammed the shores 15 years ago. The New Orleans area at one point had the worst coronavirus death rate in the U.S.
As with Katrina, the burden is falling disproportionately on black Louisianians.
Black residents make up 32% of the state’s population but 55% of its deaths from Covid-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. The numbers are similar in New York, Chicago and across the country.
Economists and civic leaders are warning that the deaths are only the start of what could be a devastating setback to black communities in America. Black workers are losing jobs at elevated rates and are less prepared for the shock. Many black-owned small businesses have been unable to access a government-supported loan program meant to keep them afloat.
"Even if you have been able to get ahead, these disasters set us back," said Ashley Shelton, executive director of the Power Coalition, a Louisiana advocacy group. "We are in the quiet time before the storm."
A recent study showed how little they have to fall back on. Black families have a median of only 32 cents in available cash or other liquid assets for every $1 a white family has, according to the JPMorgan Chase Institute, the bank’s internal think tank. Black families in New Orleans had only 27 cents.
The institute spent two years matching anonymous data from its banking records to race disclosures in voting records, compiling information on 1.8 million households in three states.
The JPMorgan data showed that black families cut their everyday spending after an involuntary job loss more sharply than white families, buying fewer groceries and essential goods. It also showed that black families increase health-care spending after getting tax refunds, evidence they delay regular health spending.
#2
They voted for Governor Most Honorable West Point Graduate to allow the actual industries left in the state to be sued into a state of permanent hemmoraging and then _this_ happened.
BLUF:
[Spectater - America] I am hugely bearish on the economic impact of the pandemic, but I am still adding to my pension every month and it is 80 percent invested in global equities. Why? Because the alternatives are terrible. Currently the 10-year gilt yield gives me just 0.2 percent interest a year, below inflation. I lose the purchasing power of my money by buying UK government debt.
It’s not a great bull argument for shares, but where else do I put my cash? Emphasis added.
#4
Same reason Beijing real estate values are so high. The money has to go somewhere.
Because life will go on. Electorates will get over the shock of pandemic deaths and resume normal activities, even in the face of hundreds of thousands of additional dead per year. The asterisk? Stores may require patrons to wear masks so they don't infect each other.
Bottom line, while whatever trillions of dollars of GDP were lost during the shutdowns are gone forever, that doesn't mean we're destined for permanent economic desolation. It’s not money that powers the West. It’s talent, knowledge, skill, access to materials and governments that mostly stay out of the way as those ingredients are used to make new products and services that revolutionize the way the world lives. The rest of the world lacks one or more of the above ingredients.
We're basically doing postwar recovery without the bombed-out cities, or the loss of hundreds of thousands or millions of young people at the peak of their productivity. It's hard not to be optimistic. Postwar booms
And eventually the media will get their marching orders and move on to another "crisis". The damage to the economy is/will be real, though. If Trump and get some stifling regulations rescinded and perhaps even some tax code changes, the "post-war boom" might come even quicker.
#6
England shut down for an entire summer in 1665; there were weeds growing on the streets of London because there was so little traffic. Commerce in the countryside was shut down, as well -- roadblocks and local militias shut down the roads. The following year London burnt down.
Modern economists don't see any break in England's economic growth through the 1600s.
The economy just needs to be unleashed; it will restart itself.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
05/23/2020 17:21 Comments ||
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#7
Those deaths mean inheritance which means more money in more pockets.
I hate to look at it like that but this is part of it.
[American Thinker] It is obvious that people cannot make a serious judgment about anything if the information available provides only half of the truth and not the rest, or if the media present stories in a way that makes it difficult to tell the truth, or if the media express only one side of a disputed issue, or if, as Daniel Boorstin argued, an "image" is presented as a replica of reality.
Misinformation may spread if no clear official information is present. The underlying problem is that there is no simple way to prevent that spread, nor is there a single root cause behind it. Different motives and goals contribute to that spread and to the discussion of the policies, competition, and legitimacy of public authorities. The internet has brought important changes in how information is spread and how communication occurs. What is more certain is that prominent public figures play a considerable role in that the spread has regrettably been shown in the context of discussing the responsibility and activity of officials to deal with the pandemic, COVID-19, such as the transmission and the accuracy of reported mortality rates in various countries.
A difficult problem is that much of the misinformation is not completely fabricated, but is the result of spin. There is no simply way to prevent misinformation, and there is no single root cause for the appearance of misinformation, and there are different motives for it. Yet it is evident that prominent public figures play a large role in formulating and spreading information, as in the present case about COVID-19. Attempts to check statements about actions or policies of public authorities are difficult, since they are spread not only in the media, but also in emails, private channels, and above all online. According to one survey by the Institute for the Study of Journalism, misinformation accounts for 87% of social media interactions while fabricated ones amount to about 12%.
In the modern age it may be difficult to ascertain the truth with the overabundance of information and the mix of half-truths, falsehoods, and state sponsored information. Misinformation can take different forms. The most frequent is misleading content, containing true information but with altered details in ways that make it false. Another form is to describe images as something different from what they are.
There is no direct connection, but it is engaging to note the interest of fiction-writers in misinformation, disinformation, and even lies regarding themselves. They may be taking advantage of the fact that human beings are often fascinated by evil and fear of the unknown, and are titillated by accounts of extreme behavior. What else can explain the years spent by Truman Capote, writing in In Cold Blood, the story of the murder of a family in Holcomb, Kansas in 1959, or the obsession of Stephen Sondheim with Sweeny Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street?.
Bestselling French writer Stéphane Bourgoin, author of more than 40 books of fiction, many about serial killers, has recently confessed he faked his biography and invented his own experience, including his job as a professional football player and the story of his wife who was murdered in 1976 by a serial killer who confessed to the crime. But he was not a ball player, nor did the "wife" exist, but was a fiction drawn from a young woman he had met briefly in a bar in Daytona Beach, Florida. This story is even more strange because the young woman was in fact later murdered, in 1975, by a serial killer. Bourgoin claimed he had trained with the FBI in Quantico, Virginia and had interviewed 70 serial killers, including Ted Bundy and Charles Manson. His explanation for his lies and the disinformation was that he was not really loved, but he had now arrived "at a balance sheet time."
#1
It is obvious that people cannot make a serious judgment about anything if the information available provides only half of the truth and not the rest, or if the media present stories in a way that makes it difficult to tell the truth, or if the media express only one side of a disputed issue
[Weasel Zippers] Rev. Al Sharpton discussed Democrat presidential candidate Joe Biden’s comments on Black voters, calling them "ludicrous" and "inappropriate." Be sure to like, subscribe, and comment below to share your thoughts on the video.
[Babylon Bee] LEHI, UT‐Popular for-profit genealogy company Ancestry.com has revoked the family heritage of any African American who says they would not vote for Joe Biden. The company said they made the changes to reflect prevailing social beliefs about race and culture.
"It used to be if your ancestors were from Africa and your skin was a darker pigment, then you were considered black," said Ancestry spokesperson Sheila Reinold. "Times have changed. What really determines a person's blackness now‐beyond genes, DNA, family trees‐is Joe Biden. Any other determiner of race is pure malarkey at this point."
A frustrated Ancestry.com customer, Brian Jennings of Log Ridge, Kentucky says he logged in to find his account had been wiped clean and years of ancestral research had been deleted all because he said in a recent Facebook post that he didn't think he could bring himself to vote for "some 80-year old, white, dementia-riddled uncle creepy" for president.
Reinold says that Ancestry is not abandoning customers like Jennings. "We are working with non-black blacks to places them into all-white genealogies free of charge." "Be sure to fill out your 2020 Census where we end up placing you!"
Jennings says when he began seeking ancestral matches in his new account, his first match was a guy named Jethro Reginald Tinbucket who owned a cotton farm in West Virginia in the 1800s. After resubmitting his DNA, Jennings says he has come around to the changes receiving a huge amount of new matches to long lost relatives that are still alive today. "I plan to fly out to Colorado Springs to meet my real mom next month," Jennings said. "Her name is Belinda and she didn't blow her top when she found out I like Ben Shapiro. Thanks, Ancestry."
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/23/2020 00:00 ||
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#1
Black-balled. Would make a good Spike Lee movie. Sort of a serious version of Brother From Another Planet.
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
05/23/2020 3:11 Comments ||
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#2
I got an alternate theory on Biden's campaign.
He don't actually want to be president, 'cause he knows it'll be extremely tedious for him, and might end up getting him whacked by one of his underlings. The reason he pushed forward with it was to cut off investigations into his finances, and that hasn't worked. But he can't quit at this point. Or it could be flat out incompetence.
Posted by: ed in texas ||
05/23/2020 13:10 Comments ||
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#3
I'll take Diversion from investigation into Biden Family Corruption for $600, Alex
#4
An alternative alternative theory is the Dems simply don't have anyone better. I cannot think of any prominent Democrat whose appeal is not even more selective.
Followup to actual article: Biden To Black Radio Host: If You're Considering Voting For Trump, "Then You Ain't Black"
[Babylon Bee] In a recent interview with a female representative of the segment of the human species identifying as female, Biden made a strong case for why all women everywhere should vote for him without question, or at least let him sniff their hair.
"Look, the thing, you know what it is," Biden said. "The womenfolk know what's at stake in this election. It's hairy simple. Just let me vote on you, or you vote for me, the vote, b-b-b-blond applesauce baloney. Simple choice. If you don't let me smell your hair, you ain't a woman!" Biden then sat back in his chair with a smile, having "totally nailed" another interview.
The female interviewer blinked a couple of times and followed up with some clarifying questions. "Mr. Vice President Biden, sir, if I may follow up on that, did you just say that if a woman doesn't let you stick your nose in her hair then she's not a real woman?"
"I b-didn't think I could possibly be more not clear!" Biden said with a perplexed look on his face. "If you don't let me personally walk up behind you unannounced and bury my shnozzola deep within your flowing locks of cascading curly hair, YOU AIN'T A REAL WOMAN! NO MALARKEY!"
Witnesses then walked in on Biden conversing with a Cabbage Patch doll who he mistook for a female interviewer. After hearing the news, feminists around the country responded by lining up outside Biden's house to get a complimentary hair sniff, thereby affirming their statuses as real women.
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/23/2020 00:00 ||
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[New York Post] A bionic eye could give sight to millions in just five years, experts say.
The world’s first 3D artificial eyeball is capable of sharper vision than a real human eye.
Images are converted through tiny sensors that mirror the light-detecting photoreceptor cells.
The sensors are packed into a membrane of aluminium and tungsten shaped into a half sphere, mimicking a retina. The electrochemical eye, name EC-EYE, resembles sinister super computer HAL in 1968 sci-fi film 2001: A Space Odyssey.
Prof Zhiyong Fan, of Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, said animal and clinical trials were now planned.
He said: "Our ’biomimetic’ eye has a size comparable to a human eye — a bit more than two cm in diameter. "It can be used for visual prosthesis to help the blind or those visually impaired. It can lead to a bionic eye."
"We hope to further improve our device in terms of biocompatibility, stability, and performance. "I think if everything is on track, perhaps in five years the technology will become practical."
#1
Human vision is a miraculous thing. I have no doubt the visual cortex can probably process more data than the eyes we have now provide. Just don't turn it all on at once. For reference to what happens then, see X The Man With X-Ray Eyes.
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
05/23/2020 2:59 Comments ||
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#2
That would be fantastic, it could sight to millions.
#4
..but expect the usual hustlers to be against it because it would deprive the blind of their victim status and position on the hierarchy of victimhood.
#5
A person gets two bionic eyes and gets a clear vision of what their mate looks like . " I'm sorry honey , you've been good to me , but every time I look at you I throw up a little . "
#20
I'm sorry honey , you've been good to me , but every time I look at you I throw up a little . "
No Problemo, sir! We've got software that can fix that for you. And although it is an upgrade, we can "adjust her visual parameters", if you know what I mean. *nudge nudge* *wink wink*
#26
And the coyote ugly has a full paid up subscription. There will be no telling what is real.
I could use new eyes.
Did the Cadillac thing both eyes, VA hospital. I COULD WRITE A BOOK or two. Start with the anesthesiologist saying "Let me turn this on" after I report twingey pain during the eye cutting. Didn't feel good.
Thank GOD I am major pain tolerant. Pretty much all that keeps me going.
Posted by: Whiskey Mike ||
05/23/2020 23:45 Comments ||
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[Frontpage] Before there was Brett Kavanaugh, there was Clarence Thomas. Many who watched or participated in the grotesque circus that was the Kavanaugh Supreme Court confirmation hearings no doubt were unaware of, or had forgotten, the ugly spectacle that was Thomas’ confirmation hearings in 1991. As a black conservative, Thomas drew (and continues to draw) the vicious wrath of racist Democrats who reserve a special enmity for minorities that dare stray from the leftist plantation. Then as now, the Democrats waged their politics of personal destruction, and then as now a good man with impeccable legal credentials was demonized by an uncorroborated allegation of sexual harassment shored up by the full force of the leftist smear machine.
A riveting new documentary revisits the Clarence Thomas--Anita Hill controversy as part of a look at the Supreme Court Justice’s amazing life journey. Created Equal: Clarence Thomas in His Own Words, produced by Michael Pack of Manifold Productions, aired earlier this week on PBS, of all places, and is still available here for free through June 2. Don’t miss it. The producers interviewed Thomas and his wife Virginia for over 30 hours about his life, the law, and his legacy. As the movie’s website states,
the documentary proceeds chronologically, combining Justice Thomas’ first person account with a rich array of historical archive material, period and original music, personal photos, and evocative recreations. Unscripted and without narration, the documentary takes the viewer through this complex and often painful life, dealing with race, faith, power, jurisprudence, and personal resilience.
In his rich, sonorous voice, Thomas, the second black American to serve on the Court and, at 28 years, the longest-serving Justice, tells his life story beginning with his birth in tiny Pin Point, Georgia in 1948. Descended from West African slaves and born into rock-bottom poverty, Thomas later was raised by his grandparents in Savannah. His stern grandfather, "the greatest man I have ever known," believed firmly in hard work and even more firmly in the education he never had, the lack of which he blamed for his inability to rise above his station in life. He impressed upon his grandchildren the importance of committing themselves to school. He told Thomas and his brother that they would attend class every day, even when sick, and even if they were dead he would take their bodies to school for three more days "to make sure we weren’t faking."
Educated by supportive Catholic nuns and feeling a calling to the priesthood, Thomas entered the seminary and excelled academically but ultimately dropped out after a fellow seminarian’s hateful response to the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. confirmed for Thomas that the church was not doing enough to combat racism. Abandoning the seminary was unacceptable to his grandfather, who told Thomas in no uncertain terms that he was on his own now. Thomas goes on in the documentary to describe how the subsequent assassination of Robert Kennedy, combined with the blows from MLK’s murder and his grandfather’s rejection, pushed him into an angry downward spiral that led to his involvement with black radical activists (interestingly, Thomas’ brother, who had served in the Vietnam War, felt that Thomas and his fellow radicals should leave the country if they hated it so much).
The rest of Clarence’s story is just as compelling: his rejection of radicalism, his graduation from Yale Law School, his ultimate drift toward support for Ronald Reagan (thus becoming a target for Democrats and their "Uncle Tom" smears), his grandfather’s death, his appointment as a Circuit Court judge under President GWH Bush, and then, of course, his nomination as a Supreme Court Justice and the relentless attacks that followed — even before Anita Hill’s allegation of sexual harassment ignited a firestorm. By refusing to conform to Democrat expectations, he was the wrong kind of black man and therefore had to be destroyed, as Thomas says in the documentary.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
Wuhan genetic engineering or simply lifestyle practices and habits...or both? Might be something to have a look at. 
[American Thinker] It is obvious that people cannot make a serious judgment about anything if the information available provides only half of the truth and not the rest, or if the media present stories in a way that makes it difficult to tell the truth, or if the media express only one side of a disputed issue, or if, as Daniel Boorstin argued, an "image" is presented as a replica of reality.
[Babylon Bee] LEHI, UT‐Popular for-profit genealogy company Ancestry.com has revoked the family heritage of any African American who says they would not vote for Joe Biden. The company said they made the changes to reflect prevailing social beliefs about race and culture.
[New York Post] A bionic eye could give sight to millions in just five years, experts say.
[Frontpage] Before there was Brett Kavanaugh, there was Clarence Thomas. Many who watched or participated in the grotesque circus that was the Kavanaugh Supreme Court confirmation hearings no doubt were unaware of, or had forgotten, the ugly spectacle that was Thomas’ confirmation hearings in 1991. As a black conservative, Thomas drew (and continues to draw) the vicious wrath of racist Democrats who reserve a special enmity for minorities that dare stray from the leftist plantation. Then as now, the Democrats waged their politics of personal destruction, and then as now a good man with impeccable legal credentials was demonized by an uncorroborated allegation of sexual harassment shored up by the full force of the leftist smear machine.
