Monday, October 19, 2020
Saturday, October 3, 2020
A Trumpist friend liked this article
https://freebeacon.com/2020-election/biden-has-earned-11-pinocchios-from-fact-checkers-during-coronavirus-crisis/?fbclid=IwAR1zx_v_7WYpdlU5IX1T8yRB7Z1WnWPk5KtAG_HX3-U7ZYQtaCusbeEJgR4
Which cites
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/03/13/biden-ad-manipulates-video-slam-trump/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/03/24/biden-campaigns-false-claim-top-cdc-official-was-silenced/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/04/03/how-much-pressure-did-trump-put-china-access-concerning-coronavirus/
https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2020/mar/16/joe-biden/biden-falsely-says-trump-administration-rejected-w/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/03/20/was-white-house-office-global-pandemics-eliminated/
This is curious since Trumpists normally consider these sources to be fake news.
In the mean time, WaPo identified 20k instances in which Trump lied
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/07/13/president-trump-has-made-more-than-20000-false-or-misleading-claims/
Sunday, September 20, 2020
Meme about filling SCOTUS openings copied from a friend
#ThatWasThenThisIsNow #ResistTheTrumpPenceFascistRégime
#BidenHarris2020
2016, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas): “It has been 80 years since a Supreme Court vacancy was nominated and confirmed in an election year. There is a long tradition that you don’t do this in an election year.”
2018, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.): “If an opening comes in the last year of President Trump’s term, and the primary process has started, we’ll wait to the next election.”
2016, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.): “I don’t think we should be moving on a nominee in the last year of this president’s term - I would say that if it was a Republican president.”
2016, Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.): “The very balance of our nation’s highest court is in serious jeopardy. As a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, I will do everything in my power to encourage the president and Senate leadership not to start this process until we hear from the American people.”
2016, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa): “A lifetime appointment that could dramatically impact individual freedoms and change the direction of the court for at least a generation is too important to get bogged down in politics. The American people shouldn’t be denied a voice.”
2016, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.): “The campaign is already under way. It is essential to the institution of the Senate and to the very health of our republic to not launch our nation into a partisan, divisive confirmation battle during the very same time the American people are casting their ballots to elect our next president.”
2016, Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.): “In this election year, the American people will have an opportunity to have their say in the future direction of our country. For this reason, I believe the vacancy left open by Justice Antonin Scalia should not be filled until there is a new president.”
2016, Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.): “The Senate should not confirm a new Supreme Court justice until we have a new president.”
2016, Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Col.): “I think we’re too close to the election. The president who is elected in November should be the one who makes this decision.”
2016, Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio): “I believe the best thing for the country is to trust the American people to weigh in on who should make a lifetime appointment that could reshape the Supreme Court for generations. This wouldn’t be unusual. It is common practice for the Senate to stop acting on lifetime appointments during the last year of a presidential term, and it’s been nearly 80 years since any president was permitted to immediately fill a vacancy that arose in a presidential election year.”
2016, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.): “I strongly agree that the American people should decide the future direction of the Supreme Court by their votes for president and the majority party in the U.S. Senate.”
Copied. Please share.
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Addendum:
Great speech by Jaime Harrison
Jaime Harrison just won his debate with Lindsey Graham by a landslide. pic.twitter.com/fNZOxpdhfq
— Scott Dworkin (@funder) October 4, 2020
Tuesday, September 15, 2020
Down the Rabbit Hole: How I got into @EricWhitacre’s Virtual Choir 6
This summer I took FTS 212 at Lehman College, with Professor Ulises Gonzalez. This course was an introduction to film and television. It involves writing 10 papers. Professor Gonzales liked my papers. He encouraged me to keep writing film reviews after the course. Here is my first after course effort. Maybe I will post what I wrote in class as well.
Tuesday, August 25, 2020
Voting information for this fall in NY
- absentee ballots sent out late
- post office failed to postmark many ballots, especially in Brooklyn
- long lines in Westchester on election day
- voters not given all the ballots that were supposed to be voted on
- poll workers not able to get to polling locations due to subway closures
- voting locations refusing to allow voting to occur there
- order the ballot through the online portal, if possible Ordering by snail mail means you go through a vendor and a lot of those were mailed out late during the last election cycle. The portal goes directly to the BOE
- you can order an absentee ballot based on fear of covid
- if you use the postal service, mail at least 15 days early to avoid postal service issues
- you can drop off absentee ballots at: the BOE, early voting locations, and the polls. There will be a box at the entry so you don’t have to stand in line
- you can drop off an absentee ballot for some one else if the ballot is in a privacy envelope. There is no limit as to how many you can drop off for others, but please try to avoid dropping off suspiciously large numbers to avoid allegations of fraud
Friday, June 12, 2020
Choral works by African-American composers
Composers and pieces:
- joiharper.com (has recordings of several of her works on her website)
- ysaye m. barnwell (2 votes)
- I Got a Song — Colin Lett
- Travelin Shoes — Faith Morgan
- William Grant Still’s “And They Lynched Him On A Tree”
- Dr. Rosephanye Powell - “sacred and secular works for mixed chorus, women’s chorus, men’s chorus, and children’s voices.” example: https://youtu.be/HLqrIOI86hg == esp "Non Nobis Domine" (2 votes for her)
- Andre Thomas's gospel mass: A Celebration of Life and Joy
- Duke Ellington’s Sacred Concert
- William Grant Still’s “And They Lynched Him On A Tree”
- "Treemonisha" an opera by Joplin
- Florence Price https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florence_Price
- Sydney Guillaume
- Rollo Dilworth (4 votes for him after my original question)
- William Dawson
- Brandon Williams
- Moses Hogan (4 votes) see esp https://youtu.be/OPL7gwKzpag at 25:45
- Robert Ray
- Victor Johnson
- André Thomas director of the London Gospel Choir
- Gia Music
- James Fuhrman wikipedia article about him a former student who has a collection of his works
- Mark Miller https://ism.yale.edu/people/mark-miller
- Lea Morris https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQ1XVD7jH-tOmuRjOA3HZvw
- Melanie DeMore
- Arnaé Batson
- Sweet Honey in the Rock, esp Ella’s Song
- Brandon Waddles -- arrangements of the works of Thomas Whitefield link on GIA music
- Uri Caine's "The Passion of Octavius Catto" (Chorus and alto soloist)
- Adolphus Hailstork
- Dr. Roland Carter
- Dr. Nathan M Carter, Jr
- "Elijah Rock" by Hall Johnson
- Jester Hairston
- Zanaida Robles
- Rosephanye Powell
- Sheldrake Alonzo Andrews https://www.facebook.com/erosdaartiste
Places to look for more information
- Tesfa Wondemagegnehu at St. Olaf's college in Minnesota
- Grace Chorale Brooklyn
- https://www.composerdiversity.com/
- Brooklyn College Choir
- https://www.mlagmusic.com/research/beyond-elijah-rock (in this case, non-idiomatic means stepping away from the generally accepted "Black" music (gospel, spirituals, Jazz, etc), because Black composers are more than capable of composing other styles of music (styles of music that white musicians don't often associate with Black composers))
- Nathaniel Dett Chorale (African Canadian) -- videos on youtube
- https://www.earthsongschoralmusic.com/ (website of multi cultural music)
- Clips from Pacific Chorale concert dedicated to female composers
Some choirs are commissioning pieces
Thursday, May 21, 2020
Mask and face shield adventures
I got the SDS (safety data sheet) for the shop towels that I used and I didn't see anything dangerous on there, but they still give me a sore throat, so I don't like them. They were tested by someone at the University of North Carolina and they supposedly functioned better than standard surgical masks. I did find that they fit my face well and didn't seem to have gaps around the edges. I also found that I could breath fairly well through them.
I also tried the double towel mask, which is supposedly even more effective, but I found that I couldn't breathe well through it, which the video that talked about it warned about.
The following is a video about a plastic face shield that I ordered off of an instagram ad. This was a dud.
Observations about soft plastic face shields
This is a video about a home made face mask that I got from a friend.
I've become convinced that the eyes are probably the primary way that COVID-19 would enter the body.
The mouth contains saliva, which is acid, and then you swallow a lot, which takes things down to the stomach, which is even more acid. I've seen doctors claiming that the SARS-COV2 does not survive stomach acid.
The nose is pointing downwards, so, while you might inhale viruses, they won't normally just go flying in there.
The eyes, on the other hand, are just sitting right there in the front of your face where anything can fly in. So I tried buying some prescription swim goggles, with the thought that they might be good for keeping viruses out of eyes. These are the ones I ordered
https://www.swimoutlet.com/p/sporti-antifog-s2-optical-goggle-22598/?color=29563
They came quickly. Given the very low price, I was astounded that I really could see very well. They aren't as sophisticated as the glasses you pay more for. They don't have astigmatism correction. They don't account for pupilary distance, but for eight bucks they're pretty amazing. If you can't afford glasses, you might try this. Here's a photo of me with them on
I do find though that they're not really comfortable enough to wear all day. They make my mug look oval, though, again, for the price, not so bad. There was a weird adjustment going back to my regular glasses after wearing them.
Another issue that they have is that the plastic strap is sort of staticky and is a definite hair tangling hazard. I accidentally pulled out a hunk of hair with them when I took them off. They probably work best over a swim cap.
If I ever dare go swimming again, I'm definitely going to use them. I do think that germs travel pretty fast in water, so I don't think that swimming is going to be a good option this summer. Still, as I said, for eight buck these have optical correction, UV protection, and anti-fog coating, which makes them pretty amazing to me -- and, since they are water tight, and definitely seal to my face, I do suspect they would keep virions out of my eyes.
Here's one about a face shield that I like
This is where I got this on amazon
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0882XZN5G/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I'm going to post more instagram videos soon about my adventures.
This is a video about putting buttons on your glasses to hang masks from. I'm putting the link here just in case I want to find it again
https://www.gif-fcv.com/reactions/gif/778/life-hax
This is about copper alloy devices for pushing buttons and opening doors
This video shows me with a turtle neck style mask with cooling, wicking material:
Athletic mask with vents. Are vents anti-social?
The problem is that many people end up pulling their masks off their noses, even indoors, because they're having problems breathing. The vents do improve the air quality inside the mask. I feel that viruses escaping from the vents will still have lower horizontal velocity than if you had no mask, especially if the vents are pointed downwards as these are. Moreover, most of your exhalation is going forward, not out the vents. With reduced horizontal velocity, the viruses, or respiratory droplets containing them, will fall to the floor sooner.
I think the move to make the vents illegal is short sighted. A mask with vents is better than someone who pulls their mask off their nose, because they can't breathe.
This is a "space mask" with nanofibers. One concern I have with nanofibers is that they are fairly new and I'm not sure what their structural integrity is. Do they break off? If they break off, do I inhale them? If I inhale them, is that going to injure my lungs?
I bought this lovely butterfly mask on impulse, when I already had plenty of masks, but I really like it. I later realized that the reason that the shield was milky was that I had neglected to remove the protective cover.
This one is a more convenient substitute for a bandana.
So, here is me trying to "fix" PPE that has issues.
interesting youtube video testing masks
Addendum 210321 -- EBY mask