First Looks category archive

I just learned from an episode of Forensic Files that the “SKU” in “SKU number” stands for “stock keeping unit.”

(I am a long-time fan of Forensic Files, because it’s about real science, not science fiction a la CSI.)

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And AL.com’s political cartoonist, J. D. Crowe, asks and answers a question (follow the link for his cartoon):

Have we hit rock bottom yet? Not with this president.

The Las Vegas Sun comments on the Trump administrations selling out public lands along with the public trust. Here’s a bit from the editorial:

“It looks like an effort to exploit COVID-19 to give away public resources in ways that are ultimately quite destructive,” said Mark Squillace, professor of natural resource law at University of Colorado Law School, in a story reported by High Country News.

Precisely.

Oil leasing and fracking threaten our natural habitat and rob us of acreage that supports our growing outdoor tourism industry. It also diminishes the scenic beauty of the region, bespoils land of cultural and religious significance to Native American communities, and poses a threat to our most vital resource — water.

Thanks to the Kerry Greenwood mystery, The Green Mill Murder, I learned tonight that the word “jazz” has a much more interesting history than I would have ever expected.

Read more »

Are we there yet?

Sam muses about how advertisers are harnessing the current pandemic to pander to their potential purchasers by creating commercials of confoundingly conventional conformity.

Via Juanita Jean.

Aside:

If you are looking for something to read, try Project Gutenberg, the most worthwhile site on the inner webs.

During a test flight, a drone went rogue in Latvia. From El Reg:

The “experimental vertical takeoff and landing aircraft” was reportedly being test-flown when ground personnel lost communication with it, reported Apollo. The news site added that UAVFactory “also supplies drones for the needs of the Latvian army.”

Latvian news agency LETA added: “During a controlled test flight on Saturday, communication with an unmanned aerial vehicle owned by drone manufacturer SIA UAVFactory was lost. The company’s representative, Jevgenijs Sinikovs, confirmed that the aircraft can fly for up to 90 hours, and added that its gliding in orbit depends on the wind.”

The story adds that flight restrictions have been put in place pending recovery of the wanderer.

A local columnist at my local rag describes her search to keep her family supplied with the tissue of necessity.

At Psychology Today Blogs, Robert Muller explores the attraction of conspiracy theories in times to trouble. Give it a look; it helps clarify why folks willingly fall for stuff that makes no sense whatsoever. Here’s a snippet:

Research shows that conspiracy theories satisfy unmet psychological needs and provide security of knowledge in a time of uncertainty. When increased anxiety and powerlessness are present, conspiracy theories provide answers to complex questions and help relieve these unpleasant feelings. Additionally, some research has linked belief in conspiracy theories to the need for uniqueness. In other words, people want to feel powerful and special; as though they are in possession of important information that other people don’t have.

Occasionally, you hear of someone getting just what he deserves.

A man in Australia who purchased around $10,000 worth of toilet paper and hand sanitizer was recently denied a refund by a supermarket owner.

The story goes on to say that Mr. Upstanding Citizen purchased the product to sell on EBay, but his Ebay account got shut down.

Details at the link.

H/T to my brother in Virginia’s Northern Neck.

Yuval Noah Harari:

Nothing should be taken for granted, even if everybody believes it.

Nostalgic Afterthought:

When I was a young ‘un, it was always a big day when the Sears and Montgomery-Ward Christmas catalogs arrived in the mail.

They kept us out of our mother’s hair for hours.

Above the Law looks at feedom of religion as practiced at Jerry Falwell’s Liberty University.

(Me, I’m working my way through a volume of 200 Washington Post Sunday crosswords.)