Hi,
I just wanna have a better grasp of spread of H5N1. From what I am understanding it's an illness that can be transmitted through the air primarily amongst birds but also as of late being transmitted to many other non-human beings (like seals, cows))
And with cases amongst human beings happening who are in close proximity to infected animals. From what news exists - non-human being/animal to human transmission has been confirmed, but no news of human to human transmission at present (6/6/2024)
EDIT: I decided I didn't do enough research and got some answers from the CDC website (mind you I'm weary of CDC info staying up to date or downplaying the seriousness of viruses spread and illness but I appreciate that the some of the info is accessible to a lay person/non-scientist. STILL if you know more info that the CDC has yet to include, put it in the comments and if you can include the link you got the info from*).*
So to clarify:
My Questions: Does H5N1 spread through the air only? And does it's spreads through sharing air with infected animals?
The Answers (from CDC):

• Infected birds shed avian influenza viruses through their saliva, mucous and feces.
• Other animals infected with avian influenza viruses may have virus present in respiratory secretions, different organs, blood, or in other body fluids, including animal milk.
• Human infections with avian influenza viruses can happen when contact with the bodily fluids, feces, and respiratory secretions of infected birds or other animals gets into a person’s eyes, nose or mouth, or is inhaled.
• Recommended preventions include (I've included the things that they seem to want only ppl working closely with livestock to do, frankly I think the more precautions we want to employ the better):
  • Don't eat raw poultry or eggs. Cook poultry and eggs to an internal temperature of 165˚F which kills bacteria and viruses, including bird flu viruses.
  • Don't eat raw beef. Cook cut of beef to 145°F internal temperature and ground beef to 160°F which kills bacteria and viruses, including avian influenza viruses.
  • Don't drink, eat, touch unpasteurized (raw) milk or other unpasteurized (raw) dairy products
  • Don't visit a live bird market
  • Don't touch your mouth, nose, or eyes after contact with birds/other animals or surfaces and materials that may be contaminated with saliva, mucous, or feces from wild or domestic birds/other animals.
  • Do wash your hands with soap and water.
  • Do use protective equipment like gloves, an N95 respirator, and eye protection (e.g., goggles).
  • Do change your clothes, and shoes: after coming into contact with potentially infected birds and other animals. Throw away used gloves and n95 respirators.

Other things I learned:
From a podcast Public Health on Call - Dated April 8, 2024
So its not only cows, seals, and a variety of birds getting sick with H5N1, Dr. Andy Pekosz and Dr. Meghan Davis also mentioned skunks, foxes, bears, cats.
Paraphrasing what Dr. Andy Pekosz was saying: "Virus in milk of cows is a unique thing because it means the virus has gone from the respiratory tract like nose lungs of cow and made it to the milk through lots of organs, blood, through infecting other cells, which is something we don't see in influenza virus in humans it stays within the respiratory tract. We have seen H5N1 move out of the respiratory tract in other animals and usually as soon as virus leaves lungs animals are so sick that they die. Seeing a case were the animals don't seem to be really sick but the virus is making it to other parts of the animal. This could tell us something unique about the H5N1 virus. If there is spread of virus from cow to cow...its important to continue tracking what mutation looks like to see what that will mean for possible human to human spread"
Though as of 6/6/2024 there was a news timeline updated by Forbes that reports cows are dying from H5N1 or been slaughtered for not recovering in Colorado, Ohio, Michigan, South Carolina and Texas. It's very sad to learn how many living beings are being affected by this flu. And honestly how it will affect people working with livestock who already work in very harrowing conditions and god knows what PPE their companies are skimping out on.
All in all, trying my best not to spread misinformation, and get more clarity about what's going on in a way I can understand cause not gonna lie all the science jargony stuff is hard to sift through to be able to get clear about what are good precautions to take atm and what to look out for as this progresses.

We're getting divorced. We met when she was 17, I was 21 and had an on-off relarionship (she didn't want to commit) up until 2006. when we started going steady till today. Married only recently (less than 2 years), and we have 2 kids, autistic 4yo and a 3mo together, and a recently bought house on a 25y loan.
After the birth of our first son, my wife became a different person and even though I was a VERY engaged parent, even stay at home dad for 2 years, she progressively gave me less and less love, affection, care, intimacy and sex.
We had sex 3 times on my initative in 5 years up until she threatened divorce (while 8m pregnant) and I said yes, but she folded and we had a month and a half long hysterical bonding phase with the best sex of my life even 2 times a day sometimes.
After the birth of the 2nd child, she came back to her normal non-affectionate self. She's a very gentle and good mother, but can't apply that gentleness towards me, as she pushed me and pushed me always further up until I broke down physically and mentally. This didn't bother her much, and I even ended up on ER due to severe panoc attack whete I thought I was going to have a nervous breakdown due to exaustion from work, house and kid chores and feeling of loss of a trusted partner and anchor.
She confronted me today after I did the gray rock for a month or two (I was the one always apologizing in our relarionship, even though my concerns were legit and valid).
I told her I probably won't change because I need this emotional distance to save my ego and keep sane and not get hurt all the time by constant rejection. She didn't want to hear anything I had to say, as "she heard it all before" and copy/pasted my entire issues with her and projected them onto me: I'm not tying, I'm this and that.
I held my ground (mosty due to support by my close friend in a similar ungappy marriage, and a younger girl who I met recently - she likes me but nothing happened ever apart from some drinks and a coffee) and the decision is to get a divorce.
She's staying in the house, as I told her selling it would be idiotic and a complete loss (I gave my half in cash, and she took a 25y loan on her's). We'd get nothing back if we sold it today.
She wants me out of the house soon, very soon, and wants 100% custody and add her surname to the kids' family name. I also can't take my kids to summer vacation with me as she doesn't trust me yet, even though I spent 2 complete years with that kid alone and as stay at home dad. Vacationing together is rejected outright.
I told her I'm not holding any grudges and I'm not angry or resentful but she is and told me I ruined her life.
A little background, when we met she was failing her college and after we started dating she changed college, moved into my parent's flat for 8 years, was the best student of the generation, got a job, got a driver's licence, a better job, stopped smoking, drinking, doing pot, became a mom. I took her 18 times for a month long vacations, catered to her every wish and whim. Never denied her myself, my time, my love or my money.
I lost all of my friends, didn't go out for 15 years, had nobody to talk to but her, I don't smoke, drink, gamble, cheat, abuse her or the kids, if I'm not at work (I make 1.5-2x her salary), I'm with the kids, I do house chores, house and yard work. When they go to sleep I used to steal time from my sleep to read or play some computer games. I never hit her and in 20 years maybe insulted her 2-3 times in a heated argument for which I apologized.
Give me your thoughts.

Word count: 1712
With the recent move by Biden to close the border, all of the lesser-evilism of the past years, and the rise of the far-right in Europe. I wanted to explore the true nature of liberal ’’’’’democracy’’’’’. Which functions more as a psychological trap and tool to prevent worker unity, rather than a system that gives power over to the people.

The two-party system is not democracy, but a tool to divide the working class

Biden’s presidency has been similarly bad to Trump’s in many ways. His current hawkishness on the border and using terms like ‘illegals’ once again proves this.
Realistically, Biden is the ideal right-wing conservative president. He continues Trump's border policy, he breaks strikes, he sides with police violently ending protests, he cucks the country for the ruling class, he is a war hawk, he vehemently supports Israel, he was a racist senator, and the list goes on.
Biden has everything to be a beloved president (by lib standards), but he is not.
The modern Republican party is the outlet for the reactionary petit bourgeoisie who don’t want to fix the system. But also for people who recognize that the system is broken, but because of anti-communist propaganda, can never understand why it is broken. From this comes the culture war. The never ending brain rot from billionaire funded think tanks like Daily Wire, PragerU, and mainstream news like FOX. Who stream 24/7 stories of Democrat baby-eating elitists who are coming to trans your children and genocide white people. All while the real problems are never addressed or even mentioned, because the purpose of the culture war is specifically to prevent the working class from talking about capitalism.
Biden does everything Republicans want, but they’ll hate him no matter what. Because he’s a baby eating communist who wants to genocide all straight white men.
Dems and Lesser-evilists force themselves to like Biden simply because he’s their guy, and they are powerless in choosing a different representative. So, in the face of powerlessness, they surrender to the system and give in to its demands. What kind of democracy is one where you simply accept that you have no influence or say in said democracy?
Democrats can continue justifying this spinelessness, by looking at the brain rot from the republican side and arguing that Dems can’t be bad as long as republicans exist, because look, they think we eat babies!
The two-party system exists specifically to fuel the fires of the culture war and prevent worker unity.

Lesser-evilism further promotes division

When you vote for the lesser-evil, you are not making a brave stance against fascism. You are giving up. By promoting lesser-evilism, you kill conversation surrounding the foundational corruption of the system. You prevent unity in the working class by shaming people for not voting against their own interests.
Another thing to note, is that Trump is so incompetent and uneducated, that he accidentally manages to be a little useful to the worker movement. As a European, I’m not so sure if Biden is the lesser evil. Trump is more openly hateful and reactionary, for sure. But what I’m talking about is Trump’s stance on NATO, and the fact that his dumbass was undermining US hegemony over Europe. He’s known for demanding Europe pay its fair share in NATO. But, the USA paying for most of the military expenses of NATO is exactly what allows the US to have so much dominance over Europe.
US hegemony, NATO, operation gladio, and programs like the Marshall plan, have been massive crippling blows to the worker movement in the imperial core. Weakened US hegemony is always a good thing. Biden however, is the perfect representative for the ruling class, because he understands this and protects these programs and institutions.
Democrats condemn Trump for being a traitor to the USA. I say, it’s the only thing I like about that sack of yankee-dankee doodle shite.

Negative peace

Presidents like Obama and Biden are comfortable, and even Bush, because they maintain the facade of civility. The facade that ‘the people’ are in charge and that everybody can go on with their lives in blissful ignorance.
In the words of MLK; ‘the white moderate who is more devoted to "order" than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice’
Liberals aren’t looking for a good leader. They want someone to lie to them and maintain the facade, the “order”. They want to believe that they are free and democratic, but not put in all of the praxis, energy and effort that is required to maintain these things. Freedom is not something simply given by your authority, it is something that needs to be understood, analyzed, critiqued, and struggled for constantly, as long as authority/class exists.
In the west we have completely surrendered and given in to negative peace. This can be seen in things like the moderate’s reaction to protesters who throw soup at paintings, or block highways. “I agree with the cause, but this is not the way to go about it.” What happens here, is that the protesters bring the tensions, that are always underneath the surface, to the surface. The moderate gets angry at the protesters for bringing attention to it, rather than willing to engage with the actual conditions that caused the tensions.
MLK take it away;
‘You deplore the demonstrations that are presently taking place in Birmingham. But I am sorry that your statement did not express a similar concern for the conditions that brought the demonstrations into being.’
If blocking highways causes someone to get fired from their job, then you shouldn’t be angry at the protesters. Your anger should be directed at the employer, who has the power to ruin someone’s life on a whim. Your anger should be directed at the weak governments who refuse to address climate change in favor of the ruling class’ profits, which forces us to go out and protest. Protests are inherently disruptive. Don’t be angry at the disruption, be angry at the need for disruption.
Liberals don’t hate Trump because he was a bad president. They hate Trump because he exposed how corrupt and broken liberal democracy is.

One party states

Even if you're a liberal. How can you prefer the US system over, say, the Chinese? Both are one-party states, but the US divides on cultural issues while the capitalists always get everything they want. In China, you know exactly who is responsible. If the government is corrupt, everybody will know who to blame. It does away with the manufactured division. China has 1.4 billion citizens. If the government failed its people, they would be overthrown. In the USA, the government has already failed its people, voting does nothing and revolution is prevented through the division caused by the two-party system and privately owned media. If China wanted to tighten its grip on its people, would it not be smarter for them to implement a two-party system with two communist parties divided on cultural issues to keep the people fighting each other?
Europe is the same, they just have more parties. But that means nothing if all parties are liberal. Current election in NL, I can choose from 18 liberal parties ranging from progressive to fascist, and 2 socdem parties. Not one socialist, or marxist, or communist, or even trotskyist option that I can vote on. What’s the point then? If the result is liberalism no matter what, then is the only possible purpose of said election not to divide the people?

Authoritarianism

The absolute most authoritarian system is one where nobody is even aware that there is an authority. Yes, the Chinese government is a dictatorship, but it is honest about it and everybody can see that they hold the power. Western states are also dictatorships, but they have built a facade of freedom and democracy. Governments serve as punching bags who divide the people on cultural issues, while the capitalists privately own all of our resources, all of our workplaces, all of our media, all of our energy. They determine what hours we work, what clothing we wear at work, our salary, the prices, our rent. We live atomized in car-centric cities, because the capitalists realized it allowed them to sell more and more and more. Everything we are today, was determined by capital, and nobody in the west has any fucking clue about it. Nobody knows about Marxism. Resistance is frowned upon. Critical thinking is discouraged and made fun of. Protesters are threatened with being run over. Police get praised when they send attack dogs at students protesting a genocide.

Positive peace

Even if the Dems win every single election from now on, fascism will still take hold as the contradictions of capitalism worsen and class consciousness will grow. Fascism will become necessary to suppress the worker movements and maintain the status quo.
The true solution is one that is difficult, it takes learning, it takes organizing, and it is going to involve violence. Truthfully, nobody wants to go to war. We all want to live our lives as best as possible. Living in blissful ignorance is enticing. But, just as a tumor will continue to grow, even if it isn’t diagnosed, so too will the contradictions of capitalism. It will rise to the surface and need to be addressed some day.
It is best to be prepared for the coming chaos by educating ourselves and those around us, and encouraging real direct action, class consciousness and unity. Rather than participating in the electoral systems designed to divide us, and being at the mercy of the fascists and the ruling class, we can be united under a vanguard party and take control of the coming chaos and crises.
Sorry to say democrats who are trying to “prevent fascism”. You will need to do more than just voting.

Conclusion

We’re cooked.
But we don’t have to be.
There is hope, and there are alternatives. Decades will be happening in weeks. They’re gonna be rough, violent, and horrific years, but I believe humanity will live to see the other side. We will survive capitalism, and we will enter a new, fairer epoch.

I have lost everything, and I'm not sure how to continue. This summer I invested $17,500 (six months salary and my entire life savings) into ornamental gourd futures, hoping to capitalize on this lucrative emerging industry. After watching a video about Vincent Kosuga and his monopoly on onions, I decided I'd try to do something similar with another vegetable. I did some research and found out many agricultural forecasters expected this year's gourd yield would be far smaller than the past, due to deteriorating soil conditions in central Mexico and a warmer-than-average spring. At first, demand soared around Halloween and prices skyrocketed, but the gourd bubble burst on November 12th. Unfortunately, the coronavirus caused a massive drop-off in demand due to fewer families decorating their tables for thanksgiving, and prices plummeted. I had invested early enough that I thought I would still be fine, but then on the morning of December 2nd, a new email in my inbox caused my stomach to turn into a pretzel. The massive gourd shipment from Argentina, scheduled for early March, had arrived. I was planning on selling off my futures right before this, in February, but this ruined everything. To top it off, the gourds in this shipment were absolutely gargantuan, some topping 4 pounds each, causing the price-per-pound to drop like an anchor into the range of 6 cents per pound. I am ruined.

I apologize about the fog horns and assumption they were Octantis, I got a little excited and I haven't been able to really leave my apartment lately due to trouble being ambulatory.
Here's some stuff to make up for it, some information about Octantis and Polaris I find interesting.
First, they're relatively huge vessels.
Each is 202m in length which is longer than our usual big ships in Thunder Bay. For example off the shore right now are bulk carriers Federal Fraser, Federal Alster, IRMA, each around 200m and the LUDOGORETS which is around 190m. I imagine there's a maximum length due to the need to navigate locks.
If you haven't seen one in port you really should, big bulk carriers don't look anywhere near the size of something so much higher. The first time I saw the Octantis from over near Bay Street it didn't look real.
They look cool.
They've got straight bows which are rated as Polar Class 6 for dealing with ice up to 4 feet thick outside of the winter months, which lets them go where ordinary vessels could not. Octantis and Polaris were designed by VARD in Ålesund, Norway that is part of the Italian shipbuilding group Fincantieri. Octantis itself was built in Tulcea, Romania and Polaris at VARDs own yard in Norway.
The design also makes them carve through the water easy as a breeze, reducing fuel consumption, the ships are equipped with dynamic positioning systems which uses port and bow thrusters to keep them in place when dropping anchor is unnecessary or difficult which kinda sounds like GPS autopilot but it works in helping to reduce the impact on the waters bottom.
They were christened by awesome women.
The godmothers of these two vessels are very fitting. The Viking Octantis was christened by Liv Arnesen and the Polaris by Ann Bancroft in 2022, renowned explorers and educators both. As a team they were the first women to ski across Antarctica. Ann Bancroft was the first woman to trek to the North Pole Liv Arnesen was the first woman to ski solo to the South Pole. There's way more so I included Wikipedia links. Due to the pandemic at the time the christening was done remotely while the Polaris was docked in Amsterdam and the Octantis was docked in Toronto.
They perform scientific research, it's not just fun and games.
Each ship has a wet/dry lab onboard and does research in partnership with many entities including the NOAA , the vessels carry instrumentation for weather research, are capable and certified to launch weather balloons, have onboard submersibles for deep water research, perform studies on microplastics in the great lakes, all the fun stuff. The science teams aboard these vessels have even published scientific papers. You can read there how they were able to observe the Giant Phantom Jellyfish in deep water off of Antarctica, a jellyfish with a dome nearly a meter across and arms as long as telephone poles.
They also were able to facilitate the first survey of chinstrap penguins in 40 years which led to the discovery of a new colony of delicious friendly chinstrap penguins.
They're not just stopping for fuel.
It's easier to go off of the 2025 itinerary for activities because 2024 is underway so I apologize if the following isn't happening this year. Some of this is 2024.
Multiple cruises hit Thunder Bay on Viking, the 15 Day Great Lakes Collection, where we are the second to last stop before Duluth, The 8 day Great Lakes Explorer cruise where we are the final destination and the 8 day Undiscovered Great Lakes, of which Thunder Bay gets two entire days devoted to it at the beginning of the trip, focus on Silver Islet being the second day.
I'm just going to copy/paste the two day sales pitch regarding our home here from Vikings own marketing.
Day 1: Hike boreal forests, watch for wildlife and learn about Anishinaabe First Nations heritage.
"Embark your ship and settle into your stateroom. Thunder Bay is known as “Canada’s Gateway to the West” for its location at the final navigational point on the Canadian side of Lake Superior. Originally founded as a fur trading post, a settlement was established in 1803 and Fort William was erected. In 1970, Fort William and neighboring Port Arthur were merged to form the City of Thunder Bay. Today, it is one of Ontario’s most vibrant cities and a center of art and culture. Its Waterfront District is beloved for its views across the bay of the Sleeping Giant, a long line of mesas that resemble a giant lying on its back."
Day 2: Kayak over the remains of a submerged silver mine or visit the steep slopes of Ouimet Canyon.
"Silver Islet sits on the southern edge of the Sibley Peninsula at the mouth of Thunder Bay. Nearby Sleeping Giant Provincial Park attracts outdoor enthusiasts year-round with its diverse wildlife and many miles of hiking trails that lead to spectacular views of the Canadian Shield landscape. Less than a mile from its shores are the remnants of an abandoned silver mine. Located 1,200 feet below Lake Superior, this unique underwater mine was the world’s largest and most valuable silver mine, producing the modern-day equivalent of $78 million before flooding in 1884."
In the 2025 Itinerary for The Great Lakes collection it lists the shore excursion activities if you want to read about that check here
You should really read the sales pitches for the activities.
"Take in the natural beauty, culture and landmarks of Thunder Bay during a panoramic sightseeing excursion. Embark on a scenic drive by motor coach to the Terry Fox Monument and listen to the story behind cancer research activist Fox’s Marathon of Hope. Admire the sweeping views of Lake Superior and glimpse the famous Sleeping Giant across the bay. Continue your journey to pay visits to the Thunder Bay Art Gallery, home to a collection of works by Indigenous artists; the Centennial Conservatory, a botanical garden full of flowers, trees, tropical plants and cacti; and the Thunder Bay Museum, a repository for the rich heritage of the city and Northwestern Ontario. Along the way, stop to try a delicious local favorite called the “Persian,” a deep-fried, oval-shaped pastry covered with a pink berry icing. Afterward, you will return to your awaiting ship."
"Set out on foot to explore Thunder Bay’s Waterfront District and learn about its heritage. Meet your guide and walk through Marina Park to a Canadian National Railway caboose. This 100-year-old feature was discontinued as technology advanced to the point where fewer crew were required to man freight trains safely. After time for photos, continue to the Waterfront’s shopping district, where you will be able to view various art installations, an initiative that runs across the city. Stop at a local eatery, where snacks and beverages are available to purchase, then continue to a local creamery, where delicious gelato is on offer. Savor your sweet treat as you stroll to the Thunder Bay Tourist Pagoda; an iconic structure opened in 1909, it was built to attract the attention of visitors arriving by rail or by boat. After your informative tour, return to your ship."

My friend just published his book today! I Hate Job Interviews. I'm super proud of him and wanted to share.
His book teaches how to answer any type of job interview question: introductory, behavioral, hypothetical, opinion, personal, think-on-your-feet, salary, and self-awareness questions.
It focuses just on the interview itself—not applying for jobs, resumes, etc—and because it's so narrowly focused, he gets really nitty-gritty and shares actually useful content, not just the usual surface-level suggestions.
He got an endorsement from Stephen M. R. Covey—"For anyone wanting to elevate their interview skills, this superb book does the job!"—and FOX Business covered it last week.

I received the fox + anchor + house
Work at home is what I'm getting as my car is still at home waiting to get fixed.
Fox + Anchor = employee at work
Anchor + House = home is the place of employment
OR
My vehicle will be stuck at home waiting for work.
Employee stuck at home (I work from home)
Any suggestions? ( I called the mechanic and he said today but he said the same thing a few days ago and never showed up)
I wonder if the anchor can mean TOW.

The fallout from the New York jury’s conviction of Donald Trump on 34 felony counts last Thursday, May 30, continues. Trump’s team continues to insist that the guilty verdict will help him, but that’s nonsensical on its face: if guilty verdicts are so helpful, why has he moved heaven and earth to keep the many other cases against him from going to trial? And why are he and House speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) calling for the Supreme Court to overturn the convictions?
As political consultant Stuart Stevens put it: “I worked in five presidential races and helped elect Republican governors or Senators in over half the country. I have never heard anything more transparently desperate than a party trying to spin that there is some non-MAGA pool of voters who can't wait to vote for a convicted felon.”
On Friday, Morning Consult conducted a poll to gauge how voters were reacting to the guilty verdict. It showed that 54% of registered voters approved of it, while only 34% disapproved. Perhaps worse for Trump was that 49% of Independents and 15% of Republicans thought he should end his campaign. A Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 10% of registered Republican voters and 25% of Independents said that his conviction made it less likely that they would vote for him for president.
Then, on Saturday, there was what Danny Westneat of the Seattle Times called a plot twist. It turns out the state of Washington has a law on the books that prevents felons from running for office. But because a candidate has to be certified to be on a ballot before they can be challenged, the issue can’t be resolved until Trump officially becomes the Republican Party’s presidential nominee at the July convention. Westneat asked, “Republicans: You sure you want to go down this road?”
On Sunday, Trump appeared on Fox and Friends for his first interview since his conviction. The interview was heavily edited, suggesting his comments were problematic in some way, but what was there was still bad enough. He repeated his plans to fire generals who refuse to do his bidding and to deport immigrants by using local police to round them up. Notably, considering his own looming sentencing, he claimed he never said “lock her up” about Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, a claim that reporters on social media promptly shredded with video clips of him doing exactly that.
Media figures are puncturing Trump’s image. The verdict buried a story by The Apprentice producer Bill Pruitt, who is now free of a nondisclosure agreement, explaining how he and others created an illusion that Trump was a successful businessman and alleging that Trump used the n-word on set. On Saturday, an image circulated on social media of Trump leaving Trump Tower and waving as if to a crowd, but there was no one there.
Also on Saturday, top sports talk host Colin Cowherd pushed back on the idea that the trial was rigged, telling his listeners: “If everybody in your circle is a felon, maybe it’s not rigged. Maybe the world isn’t against you.” “Donald Trump is now a felon,” Cowherd said. “His campaign chairman was a felon. So is his deputy campaign manager, his personal lawyer, his chief strategist, his National Security Adviser, his Trade Advisor, his Foreign Policy Adviser, his campaign fixer, and his company CFO. They’re all felons. Judged by the company you keep. It’s a cabal of convicts.”
Cowherd went on: “[Trump’s] trying to sell me an America that doesn’t exist.” “Stop trying to sell me on ‘everything’s rigged, the country’s falling into the sea, the economy’s terrible,’” he continued. “The America that I live in is imperfect. But compared to the rest of the world, I think we’re doing okay.”
This morning, Robert Faturechi, Justin Elliott, and Alex Mierjeski of ProPublica reported that Trump’s businesses and campaign committees have funneled significant financial benefits to at least nine witnesses in the criminal campaigns against Trump, often at crucial moments in the legal proceedings. The pay of one campaign aide doubled; another got a $2 million severance package that barred him from cooperating with law enforcement. The daughter of one of the campaign’s top officials was hired onto the staff and is now the fourth-highest-paid employee, with a salary of $222,000. Payments to the companies of certain witnesses dramatically increased.
Faturechi, Elliott, and Mierjeski note that it is not uncommon for bosses to find themselves defendants, complicating their relationship with employees who might have witnessed alleged crimes. In such cases, lawyers advise the defendant not to provide any unusual benefits or penalties, to avoid the appearance of witness tampering.
Trump’s attorney, David Warrington, sent ProPublica a cease-and-desist letter saying that if the outlet and its reporters “continue their reckless campaign of defamation, President Trump will evaluate all legal remedies.” He demanded that ProPublica kill the article, keeping it from publication.
And then, this afternoon, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams, along with the U.S. Department of Labor and the State Department, unsealed an indictment charging Weidong Guan, also known as Bill Guan, the chief financial officer of the global news outlet The Epoch Times, with using the outlet to launder at least $67 million. The Epoch Times is affiliated with the ultraconservative Chinese anticommunist religious group Falun Gong and supports Donald Trump and other right-wing U.S. politicians with both press and cash. It was a major promoter of Dinesh D’Souza’s film 2000 Mules that claimed the 2020 presidential election was stolen. A voter depicted in that film sued for defamation, and just last week the distributor settled with the plaintiff, issued an apology, and stopped distributing the film.
The allegation that The Epoch Times is a money-laundering operation comes on top of yesterday’s story by Joseph Menn in the Washington Post, reporting that the editor of another media site that pushes disinformation from both the far right and the far left, The Grayzone, has worked for Russia’s Sputnik as well as taken money from Iranian government-owned media. One of the people who retweets Grayzone stories is Senator Mike Lee (R-UT).
In the middle of all this bad news for MAGA Republicans, it felt like desperation today when the House Oversight Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic tried to resurrect Covid conspiracy theories against Dr. Anthony Fauci. Fauci was director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) from 1984 to 2022, serving under seven presidents. President George W. Bush awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award in the U.S., for his work on combating the global AIDS epidemic.
Fauci’s position as NIAID director put him at the center of U.S. attempts to grapple with Covid-19, and for his work on developing a vaccine, Trump awarded him a presidential commendation. But first QAnon and then MAGA Republicans centered him as a villain who either started or covered up the pandemic, or forced people to mask or to get vaccines they told their supporters were unnecessary or even dangerous. QAnon conspiracy theorist Ivan Raiklin and convicted January 6 rioter Brandon Fellows were seated behind Fauci today; Fellows made pouty faces when Fauci was describing the death threats he, his wife, and his daughters have endured.
Video creator and political commentator Michael McWhorter noted that Raiklin has made dramatic threats of violence against those he considers members of “the Deep State” and that he should have been nowhere near Fauci. McWhorter also noted that the two men were likely invited to the hearing and that it would be useful to know who invited them.
Committee member Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), who has skipped seven of the last ten hearings and who has expressed sympathy for QAnon in the past, attacked Fauci by saying he should be prosecuted: “You know what this committee should be doing? We should be writing a criminal referral because you should be prosecuted for crimes against humanity,” she said. “You belong in prison, Dr. Fauci.” For all the nastiness, the hearing turned up nothing.
Later, Greene told Manu Raju of CNN that Speaker Johnson should shut down the government over the Trump verdict and prosecutions. “We're literally a banana republic. So what does it matter funding the government? The American people don't give a sh*t.”
While MAGA Republicans are insisting that a Manhattan jury’s conviction of Trump means that President Joe Biden has weaponized the Department of Justice and that they must take revenge, the trial of Biden’s son Hunter on federal gun charges, brought by a Trump-appointed U.S. attorney whom Biden kept on, started today. Former top Justice Department prosecutor Andrew Weissmann noted that Biden is “living the rule of law…in the most personal way. He is not telling DOJ to stand down…. He is not pardoning his son…. He is living what it means to have a rule of law in this country…. If you want to know if he believes it, you can actually see what is happening with his own son.”
—
Notes:
https://www.axios.com/2024/06/01/poll-trump-conviction-election-independent-voters
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/one-10-republicans-less-likely-vote-trump-after-guilty-verdict-reutersipsos-poll-2024-05-31/
https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/plot-twist-for-trump-wa-has-a-law-against-felons-running-for-office/
https://www.propublica.org/article/donald-trump-criminal-cases-witnesses-financial-benefits
https://slate.com/culture/2024/05/donald-trump-news-2024-trial-verdict-apprentice.html
https://www.mediaite.com/sports/its-not-bad-for-me-angry-colin-cowherd-blasts-trump-for-selling-bad-america-that-doesnt-exist/
https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pchief-financial-officer-multinational-media-company-charged-participating-scheme
https://www.cnbc.com/2024/06/03/money-laundering-epoch-times-cfo-charged-with-alleged-67-million-scheme-.html
https://www.thedailybeast.com/larry-elder-pocketed-up-to-dollar5-million-from-far-right-newspaper-the-epoch-times
https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/06/02/grayzone-russia-iran-support/
https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/trump-fauci-commendation/
https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/anthony-fauci-covid-origins-hearing-06-03-24/index.html
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2022/08/qanon-fauci-conspiracy-theories-retirement.html
https://www.npr.org/2024/05/31/g-s1-2298/publisher-of-2000-mules-election-conspiracy-theory-film-issues-apology
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2024/06/03/hunter-biden-gun-trial-live-updates-jury-selection/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/06/03/fauci-testimony-congress-covid-conspiracy/
X:
JayinKyiv/status/1797642197304766926
RonFilipkowski/status/1796987887054926101
TheTNHollestatus/1797026753304567828
stuartpstevens/status/1797072740383399978
kyledcheney/status/1797402289285570877
FPWellman/status/1797265151181124049
Acyn/status/1797246836329292150
MarkHertling/status/1797360216209563847
atrupastatus/1797257168548253746
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BillChristeson/status/1797667838527959276
ddiamond/status/1797661998744047897
Reichlin Melnick/status/1797728929891172762
TizzyEnt/status/1797704415958454658
briantylercohen/status/1797670282662215907
AWeissmann_/status/1797761774994751604

I was recently watching fox news and feel like i saw the spiral in some data one of the anchors was presenting on homelessness. Could this mean that solving homelessness is just a matter of applying the golden ratio?

CDK-this sword has one of the highest m1 damage out of all the sword with 3k , a good m1 speed and is recommended for pirahnas and sharks, especially with buhda. Both the z and x move do around 5k damage, however, this is not recommended for sea beasts or the leviathan as both are immune to m1s.
Shark anchor- This sword has a much slower m1 compared to the CDK, so it is not recommended against pirahnas and sharks, however, both of its moves deal slightly more damage than cdk and the x move ignores the damage resistence on ship raids, sea beasts and leviathans, so it is strongly recomended against those.
Fox lamp- This sword has an m1 speed to rival the cdk but has a lower m1 damage, both of its skills do over 5k damage, the x move is holdable and can do up to 6k damage when hold and will also stun, I recommend this sword if you dont have cdk or are too lazy to switch swords every sea event, as it is effective against all sea events, Tip, when m1ing on pirahnas and terror sharks, you can also hold down x move to stun while you other teammates can go to town on them.
Saber- This sword is often refered to as the bane of sea beasts(by me), boasting 5k and 8k damage for its two skills repectively, however it also has the lowest m1 damage and the second lowest m1 speed compared to the swords above, so i recomend this sword only for sea beasts the leviathan and ship raids.
Rengoku-" set you heart ablaze"-kyojuro rengoku,
This sword has although a slower m1 speed, does similar amounts of damage to the cdk, and the x move when held down, deals a massive aoe that does tick damage. use this imformation however you like. In memory of our beloved flame hashira, (no this isnt a tribute, the rengoku is definitely here for a legit reason, idk what your taling about :))
If there are more swords that you guys suggest please comment them

Hello StructuralEngineering,
I've run into a major crossroads in my career and was looking for some advice. I recently received my PE License after having passed the exam (Civil: Structural) last year. I feel very comfortable working on projects in my particular industry, and my coworkers and current EORs believe so as well, which is why they were references for me to take the exam and get my license.
However, I don't have enough experience outside of the types of projects my company works on. So much so, that I even doubt referring to myself as a structural engineer. So, I contacted a company that was hiring locally and asked them if they had any part-time, simple work. I knew this would be a great opportunity to expand my experience, as they tend to do more standard structural engineering. They were interested and wanted to see my capabilities and sent me some stuff that was pretty basic, and I had no clue how to do it. They called today and said they would be interested in hiring me full-time, but that if it was going to be part-time, then they'd need someone with more experience/autonomy. Which makes sense, and I understand. They said they'd be willing to hire me full-time, train me up, and mentor me, but I'm already making a PE-level salary at my current job, and I don't think I could return to making less money.
The reason that I want this job is that I just don't know how to do a lot of stuff that Engineers are supposed to be able to do, specifically with concrete. I went to school for mech. engineering and everything I know about concrete design is what I learned by studying for the exam. I've never taken a course on it and now that I'm nearly 30, I'm afraid that it is too late to learn without returning to some lower-paying job.
Does anyone know of a good way to expand my experience using real-world examples? For example: I know how to determine uplift in anchors through a base plate when given uplift, moment, and size of baseplate. Finding eccentricity, bearing at the edge of the plate, uplift in the anchors in tension, etc. But I have no idea how you would calculate the use of a rebar hook to increase the capacity of the concrete in tension. I understand it all conceptually, that a vertical piece of rebar would effectively strengthen the concrete's tensile breakout, but I don't know how to calculate it.
(I'm not looking for an answesolution to that specific problem, I'm mostly curious if anyone knows of resources besides just work experience for working on real-world solutions?)

Hello everyone!
Some time has passed since I last posted on here about the female patron who left her belongings in the library I work at for almost two hours.
Well everyone, do I have an update for you!
I am now going to call her Sarah, because it is a common name and could very well be her actually name.
I’m kidding!
It’s a fake name.
shifts eyes around innocently
Anyway, Sarah came in last Tuesday with her boyfriend, who was the size of a pea pod. Looking like if Ichabod Crane liked NASCAR and Mountain Dew.
Long story short, as told to me by one of my part time employees, she wanted to check out a book but couldn’t because she had fines on her account.
Who’s shocked? Anyone? Bueller?
This made her annoyed, so her boyfriend was going to check it out on his account. We’ll call him Dale. Unfortunately, Dale couldn’t check out any books either because his library card hadn’t been sent to him. It kept being returned to us because the address wasn’t valid. Therefore, no valid address, no library card, no checking out books. Them’s the rules.
According to my part time employee, he was very polite and just kind of did a, ‘eh, what can you do’ response to it all.
Sarah, however, not so much.
I know, Charlotte Linlin from One Piece not happy about anything. Scandalous!
She inquired if they could change Dale’s address. In theory, yes. Did they, no. Because in order to change the address, we, the library, need to see proof of new residence (i.e. a license, a utility bill, paystub, anything that had the current address on it). They had none of that on them.
That’s when she started an R-rated tirade to the part time employee, going F-this and F-that to her.
To my employees credit, she told her, “ma’am, this is a public library and that language isn’t tolerated here and you will be asked to leave if you continue using it.”
I’ve never been prouder.
Sarah, who has the brains and personality of a former Fox News anchor that not even Ben Shapiro would hire, replied, “Well I know it’s an F-n library. It’s not the White House.”
Very good Sarah! You know your places! Now, can you tell what the difference between a Karen and a bitch is? Trick question: NOTHING!
Y’all I had to remind myself why I took out so much student loan debt for my Master’s degree. Because she worked the last two good nerves I had in my body.
My part time employee, after that incident, came to me and was so upset by the encounter she looked close to tears.
I. Was. Pissed!
So I immediately gathered my employees’ statement, found the security footage I needed, and I texted my manager and the district manager and said, “We are banning Sarah because this is unacceptable.”
And guys…
WE DID!
Two month ban from the library!
Which we got to tell her about today.
And this Ursula on dry land had the gall, the nerve, the absolute audacity to call our ban ridiculous and petty.
Oh, no, no.
That’s not petty.
That’s justice!
After you had the nerve to look at me, my manager, and the security guard who told you you were unwelcome for two months, you said, “this is some petty bull sh*t,” still showing no respect or remorse for anyone at the library, I showed you what petty was.
Petty was me following you out to the parking lot, cause I did NOT trust you not to cause a scene until you left, putting my hands over my mouth and yelling out, “bye Sarah,” as you drove off on your scooter, without a helmet I might add. Not like you hitting your head on concrete would improve anything.
And yes, I did see you turn your head to give me a scathing look.
And yes, it took all of my will power not to give you the bird as you looked back at me.
Still, my little petty moment was worth it.
I do hope when she inevitably comes back, Sarah has taken the two months to reflect on her behavior and is not still Aunt Sponge from James and the Giant Peach.
I also hope she feels entitled enough to come back to the library during her two month ban. Because if she steps foot on the property during that time, we have the right to call the police and report her for trespassing.
fingers crossed

De'Aaron Fox is the anchor and glue in the Kings Offense. His ability to move past defenders in iso and knocking down mid range shots has made Fox one of the most difficult matchups in the NBA today. Surrounded by great outside shooters near or at 40% from 3PT Fox's game blended in perfectly in the 1st season. The Kings finished at the top of the NBA in offense and Fox took home the first ever Clutch Player of The Year award. The offense strategy, easy to understand but hard to defend, you set a pick for Fox and now you have Fox set to do his thing 1 on 1 as defender will decide to cheat and it will be a choice of three high % 3point shooters ready for an open look. Defenses often had to stick to their assignment and play honest because of this.
The only thing that can really stop this formula is taking out the 2point midrange and drive out, and we seen that happen a bit in the 2nd following season. There was less drives to the key / mid range shots and more settling for threes off the picks. The Offense now found itself stagnant at times with Fox staying on the outside along with the three 3point shooters leaving Sabonis left in the Key area. We know how important Fox is to this team and offense and I hope the upcoming season we can get back to what made Fox clutch and the team successful.
~ attached are 3 plays from Fox playoff season and 1 from last season contested 3 example (hawks image) along with stat breakdown per 35 min.
https://preview.redd.it/s9vuferqnf4d1.png?width=1600&format=png&auto=webp&s=e368fc7f99ef75a5cefe7739ffe912e815f87d31
https://preview.redd.it/744f8cj7lf4d1.png?width=1798&format=png&auto=webp&s=5544f323bc39e2fed0c813707ef10c7f843a9e90
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https://preview.redd.it/knq0trkjlf4d1.png?width=1778&format=png&auto=webp&s=737d4033defacc6ac94c8ee18c35d5c8ffc5947a
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https://preview.redd.it/chjv0sqmlf4d1.png?width=1766&format=png&auto=webp&s=bf7ad1b858d200adc372103c7d9cdaa9a4986025
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