Disney Plus Subscribers Fall in Q2, Down 4 Million - "Disney+ shed another 4 million subscribers in the first three months of 2023, marking the streamer’s second consecutive quarterly drop after closing 2022 with its first-ever decline. On the bright side, the Mouse House also managed to narrow its streaming business losses by $400 million, down 26% year over year... Disney ended the quarter with 157.8 million subscribers at Disney+, significantly missing Wall Street’s estimate of 163.17 million subs. That projected figured would have been up from the 161.8 million subs Disney+ fell to the prior quarter."
Parental income might influence the probability of homosexuality and bisexuality in adult children - "“There appears to be a biological influence on same-sex attraction through exposure to testosterone prenatally (low testosterone in gay men and high in lesbians). Prenatal testosterone levels are probably influenced by genes and homosexuality tends to reduce offspring number,” said study author John T. Manning, a professor and honorary research fellow at Swansea University, and author of “The Finger Book: Sex, Behaviour and Disease Revealed in the Fingers.” “We have recently shown that a marker for prenatal testosterone (the 2D:4D) varies in children across the income groups of their parents. Children from parents with low income show evidence of low prenatal testosterone and those from high income parents have high fetal testosterone.”... The researchers found a curvilinear relationship between parental income and self-identified sexual orientation of their adult children. The highest frequencies of homosexuality and bisexuality for both women and men occurred among those who described their parent’s income as “much lower than others.” The lowest frequency of homosexuality occurred among those who described their parent’s income as “slightly higher than others,” while intermediate frequencies of homosexuality occurred among women and men who described their parent’s income as “much higher than others.”"
Commentary: The nature of MP Tin Pei Ling’s new role at Grab muddies perception - "The news that Member of Parliament (MP) Tin Pei Ling has joined tech giant Grab in a full-time role as director of public affairs and policy at Grab Singapore has been widely reported in the local and international media, and lit up the Internet... I am surprised that Grab, being a company listed in the US, would employ an MP, who is considered a politically exposed person. Perhaps Grab’s head of ethics and compliance and general counsel deemed this a non-issue because she is not a board director or senior officer and her appointment is Singapore-based... even perceived conflicts can be problematic. Further, declaring an interest or conflict is the minimum - it merely makes others aware of the interest or conflict but often does not resolve it... Even if Ms Tin’s role is not Singapore-based and does not involve interactions with the government bodies and officials here, perceptions of conflicts will likely remain because Grab is ubiquitous in Singapore and facing potentially increasing regulation impacting its business, particularly regarding the rights of gig workers. Also, how would Ms Tin address perceptions that information she receives as an MP may be used to benefit Grab, even if unconsciously? As director of public affairs and policy, the potential conflicts are intensified because her job responsibilities are likely to require her to oversee government relations and ensure that Grab’s views are communicated to the Government. All MPs face challenges when treading the line in balancing roles, but in this type of position, the challenges are even more acute."
There were actually people defending this. There was a specious comparison made to He Ting Ru. This ignores the facts that a Head of Legal and Communications is a very different job to Head of Public Affairs and Policy, that He Ting Ru oversaw/oversees those matters for Asia, North America, Europe and Africa while Tin Pei Ling is overseeing them for Singapore, that Opposition MPs have no power, and that He Ting Ru got the job before becoming an MP, not after as with Tin Pei Ling
MP Tin Pei Ling joins Grab: Conflict of interest or much ado about nothing? | The Straits Times - "But there may be double standards here, given that there seems to be less public outcry over MPs being practising doctors or lawyers. "One does get the feeling the public is more accepting of some MP jobs than others," said Prof Theseira, suggesting that some constituents may feel that their MPs can more flexibly manage their affairs with such jobs."
Ridiculous spin. As if being a doctor or lawyer has this type of conflict of interest
Tin Pei Ling - Digital Marketing Asia 2022 - "she concurrently serves as the Chairperson of the Government Parliamentary Committee (GPC) for Communications & Information (also includes Smart Nation & Digital Government), and a member of the GPC for Culture, Community & Youth"
Commentary: Tin Pei Ling's Role At Grab Puts Her In A Tricky Situation - "The old Singapore Press Holdings’ (SPH) stable of newspapers would move journalists who become MPs to non-editorial positions. One reason was to save the individuals from attacks of being pro-party (or Government) when they write news reports or commentaries... Doctors and lawyers do not deal with the Government on a day-to-day basis as part of their job scope. Ms Tin will be doing so. It’s her job. In fact, it is a sign of how tone-deaf and half-blind Grab and Ms Tin are to feelings on the ground that they settled on such a corporate title... There are those who point at her wonderful constituency record, arguing that the criticisms are just attempts to tar the PAP. They put up social media posts detailing the resumes of opposition politicians with jobs. I find it amusing because these posters surely realise that there are plenty more such resumes on the PAP side. And what has a wonderful constituency record got to do with “conflict of interest’’?... Ms Tin can very well declare her interest when speaking about the industry in Parliament. But the issue is also about her day-to-day dealings with civil servants as part of her work. I would say that there would be little impact if ordinary people relate to MPs as ordinary people, rather than members of the ruling party which is the Government. This is Singapore, where having a network is an advantage, and respect for one’s position is still a value... no one can deny that the bottom line is that politicians should be (if not seen to be) as white as they can be, if not whiter. That means extricating themselves from tricky situations that could test their loyalties or cause others to question them. Politically, it’s a no-brainer. Ms Tin shouldn’t have accepted her job. She would have saved herself – and the PAP – a lot of aggro. Now that she has, she will be working, both as an MP and an employee, under a cloud."
MP Tin Pei Ling’s initial role at Grab could pose some challenges 'especially under current circumstances': PAP - "The People’s Action Party (PAP) on Friday (Feb 10) said it is essential that Members of Parliament (MPs) “rigorously” separate their public role from their interests in their private careers and acknowledged that Ms Tin Pei Ling’s initial appointment at Grab could pose some challenges, “especially under the current circumstances”... PAP said that it initially did not object to Ms Tin taking up the position when she first informed the party in September... It did not elaborate on what the current circumstances are"
Questions remain over Tin Pei Ling's role at Grab; firms should be more careful in hiring MPs, say analysts - "Associate Professor Chong Ja Ian of National University of Singapore's (NUS) Department of Political Science said that while Grab addressing the potential conflict of interest is “more helpful than not” doing so, the question remains as to why Grab wanted to hire Ms Tin in a role relating to public affairs and policy in the first place. “They must know that it would raise questions about conflicts of interest,” said Assoc Prof Chong... Prof Mak Yuen Teen, a corporate governance expert who is professor (practice) of accounting at NUS, said that Ms Tin will have to be “extremely careful” in how she handles information she receives in her role as MP and chairperson of the GPC for Communications and Information that would seem to be relevant to Grab's business... Grab’s move on Friday will also set a precedent for a parliamentarian to not work in a role where potential for conflict of interest is probable, and not just possible, he added... Analysts said that companies must be more careful when hiring office bearers in roles that could potentially lead to conflict, as well as the public perception it might create. Describing Grab's initial appointment as "naive", Prof Mak said that companies and individuals should ask how they will look if their appointment appears in the news... Assoc Prof Chong said that he hopes there will be more stringent measures on MPs working for private firms, especially as they may affect public perception about conflict of interest."
"CEO is too young and inexperienced", says former employee at Business China on Glassdoor - "several PAP MPs served as Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of Business China, a non-profit organization (NPO) registered in Singapore, presumably paid in the range of S$200,000 to S$300,000 annually... Despite the relatively high salary of the organization’s key management personnel, reviews on the job search platform Glassdoor have raised concerns about the organization’s direction and work culture."
Meme - Rob Sand @RobSandlA: "QUICK: think of -anything- where you only have 2 choices. Never very satisfying is it. So let's stop accepting a system of running our government that limits us the same way" - 28 Dec 22
Rob Sand @RobSandlA: "School vouchers are an imported idea pushed by powerful groups who are focused on ideology, not on what's best for lowa." - 28 Dec 22
Japanese porn company wants to use virgin power to create electricity for romantic Tokyo event
Meme - "Harry Potter Die Hard Fans
I am a superfan
Like: Lord of the Rings
Love: Harry Potter
Like: 4.6k. Love: 3.3k
I love democracy."
Meme - "JESUS IS MY COPILot AND WE'RE CRUSING FoR Pussy"
Meme - "I have always wondered what it means to be human. Is it the ability to reason? The ability to love? Nope, turns out it is the ability to select all of the images with a traffic light."
Meme - Jackson Peters: "Rule 34 states that if it exists then there's porn of it, but I exist yet there's no porn of me. Checkmate."
Proud Degenerate: "You sure about that? http://rule34***"
Jackson Peters: "Yo fucking delete that, don't draw me like that. What the fuck is wrong with you?"
Proud Degenerate: "I've fapped to it twice already, going for a third once I recharge."
molly on Twitter - "Was in Paris on Friday night and a handsome French man was flirting with me and I asked him what his name was and he said (very Frenchly) “Ah you will be disappointed” and I thought what a silly thing to say and then he said “it is Kevin” and you know what? I was disappointed."
Meme - Fly540.com: "We are waiting for you!" Cynthia is on board an ready to see you through your fight today on www.fly540.com"
Victor Ayoki: "Now this is what I call delicious"
Fly540.com: "We offer free snacks on board all our flights. No need to eat our crew..."
Meme - Liberal: "Okay Boomer"
Normal Person: *Impassive*
Normal Person: "Okay Groomer"
Liberal: *upset*
Meme - "500 years of America summed up in 1 photograph. *Teepees and police in an armoured vehicle*"
Meme - "Why Kangaroos don't have BOOBS *hitting themselves in face when jumping*"
Meme - "Thinking of the time I ordered olive garden online and I put "please speak to me in an Italian accent" in the special requests category and completely forgot about it, and when I went to pick it up the guy comes out and goes "eyyy I got-a your-a order bappada boopity!" and when I told him he didn't actually have to do it he was like "a-nooo I was-a looking forward to it! I was-a the only one-a brave enough to do it!""
Meme - "I saw a cute girl flirting in my comments with a guy and she ask him for his snap & I turned off the comments. If I can't find love, no one can"
Meme - "jesus: i can turn water into wine
professor x: sounds great for parties but not sure we need th-
security guard: [drops dead]
jesus: humans are 60% water"
Meme - "When the porno switches to the guy while your cumming *rainbow*"
Meme - "I like it when the hot woman dentist puts her fingers in my mouth and I gag"
merritt k on Twitter - "Nice post you got there. Be a shame if someone interpreted it in the least charitable possible way to make themselves look morally superior"
Meme - "Hi"
"Hello there"
"How's your girlfriend?"
"I don't have a gf"
"Haha I know, just reminding you"
"How's your dad?"
"You can't reply to this conversation."
A little farther, a little more — Unless you were a tech at NASA back in the day,... - "Me explaining how it's actually really awesome that fire burns in the visible light spectrum because otherwise we'd be fucked"
"Unless you were a tech at NASA back in the day, when one time some hydrogen a) escaped in a particular building, and b) caught on fire. This was extremely difficult because hydrogen does NOT burn on the visible spectrum humans evolved to see (and flee). Rather, it technically does, but it’s so pale that in practice, no one could see it. Additionally, pure hydrogen burns without smoke and with so little ambient heat that you can’t really sense it till you walk into it. So, per the lore, for a few days all the techs in that building just walked around brandishing brooms in front of them like lances. If your broom lit on fire, congrats! You have located more burning hydrogen! Do not proceed!"
Meme - "Just order the sex toy, they said. Ships in discreet, non-obvious packaging, they said.
Anal Sex Toys for Men Gay Butt"
Meme - "4 choses parfaitement inutiles
L'aéro-jet de Superman
La voiture de Sonic
La moto de Flash
Avoir une très très grosse bite"
Mi on Twitter - "I went through the chick fil a drive through bawling and the girl asked me if I wanted a chocolate or vanilla milkshake. And I was like no I ordered a sweet tea and she goes “no honey you need a milkshake” Service: unmatched"
Meme - "When people ask me why I'm always snacking on something
Without my cookies, I'm just a monster. *Cookie Monster*"
16 Interesting Facts About The Surreal Life Of Jean Bernadotte - "Charles XIV John of Sweden's reign was not much different than that of other kings. He sat on the throne during a time of relative domestic peace, prosperity, and stability. But his biography reveals a startling fact: he was not a man who was born to be a king. He was not from royal blood. He did not marry into a royal family. He wasn’t even Swedish. The man who would become Charles XIV John of Sweden was born Jean Bernadotte in France in 1763, and he had a memorable life even before he took the Swedish crown. Bernadotte was a soldier during the French Revolution and the wars waged in its aftermath. He served as a field marshal under Napoleon Bonaparte and saw action in some of the biggest battles in the Napoleonic Wars. Bernadotte even obtained a royal title before the one he more famously possessed in Sweden... For a man who would later become a king, Bernadotte was staunchly anti-royal in his youth. When the French Revolution erupted in 1789, Bernadotte was among the many who sided with the new Jacobin republican regime. According to some sources, he even had "death to all kings" tattooed on his arm... Why, out of all Napoleon’s marshals, had Bernadotte been chosen as Crown Prince by the Swedes? The answer requires a look back to Bernadotte’s ill-fated campaign in Prussia in 1806. As hostilities in that region were winding down, Bernadotte took a division of Swedes sent to aide their Prussian allies prisoner. Bernadotte was so polite to the Swedish prisoners and so accommodating to the officers that the division’s leader, Count Moerner, remembered him when the time came to select the man who would be King of Sweden... Charles John’s first days as Crown Prince of Sweden saw the country take a neutral course in the ever-raging Napoleonic Wars. That neutrality ended early in 1812, when Napoleon seized what was at that time Swedish territory in Pomerania (modern day northern Germany). Sweden entered the fray, with Charles John as the commander of its forces. Charles John and the Swedes played a role in the defeat of Napoleon in the Battle of Leipzig in 1813, which involved the most troops of any European battlefield clash until World War One."
Meme - "SIGH. NOBODY LISTENS TO ME"
"WE DO" - FACEBOOK ADS, GOOGLE ADS
Cohava ~ 🌈 on Twitter - "Hot take. The reason why it's important to humanize villains is not so you can condone their actions, it's so you realize that, given the right circumstances, you could become a villain too. And that is what some people cannot handle."
julia on Twitter - "it's also important to humanize villains because the people who do the worst things imagineable are human. even if you couldn't become a villain, even if you would never do what they had done: they are human beings and it does no one any good to pretend like they aren't."
Meme - "It is time, Frodo."
"What does he mean?"
"Remember that time I got stabbed by a Morgul blade on Weathertop because you started a fire in the middle of the night while we're being hunted by a Nazgul death squad just because you wanted some tomatoes, sausages and nice crispy bacon?"
"Yeah....."
Meme - "Everyone Wants Your Email Address. Think Twice Before Sharing It."
"Thanks for reading The Times. Create your free account or log in to continue reading. Email Address"
Meme - "THAT'S ODD... MY NECK SUDDENLY FEELS BETTER...
EARLY ACUPUNCTURE *humans throwing spears at wooly mammoth*"
Facebook - "One thing that's been eye opening to me when reading reviews of The Last of Us Critics can't look past the culture war. They all can only ever like something if it supports their side, regardless of which side they're on. I'm sorta embarrassed it took me this long to realize that"
Meme - "I pay to enter your septic tank for an hour at a time. - $150 (Jacksonville, AL)
Some might judge me for this but it's what enjoy. I will pay you $150 an hour to bring my equipment in and gain access to your septic tank, then have my associate close the tank after I have set my tripod and camera up. Believe it or not, it's a great place to reflect"
Meme - "In Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows, Harry survives because Lily died trying to protect him, and the Magic of LoveTM saved him. However, Lily died despite her husband James dying while trying to protect her. This is because he didn't love her."
martin on Twitter - "I think Sisyphus would be much happier if they had a big number at the top of the mountain that incremented with each successful rock push, and also if they let him spend those points on fun stickers for the rock"
Meme - Cody Leuchtenberg: "Since you reported me and I somehow got a hate speech ban and you didn't. I've taken the liberty of screenshotting everything you said. I will be getting a lawyer, and I will be suing you for defamation. You should prepare for that. This person is unavailable on Messenger."
Meme - "Be My Valentine. $15. Ukrainian Sausage & Cheese Snack"
Meme - "Universe?"
"God did it"
"Humans?"
"God did it"
"Animals?"
"God did it"
"Cancer?"
"God di... Satan!"
"Satan!"
"God did it"
Facebook - "Everyone knows that the whale is a mammal, but what few know is that a small whale is breastfed, but not through direct contact like other land mammals... Instead, the female whale throws away her milk while her child is near her to breastfeed, but whale milk has a high-fat content of 50%. Therefore, the form of milk is thick and sticky and does not dissolve in water. So the baby whale can grab and eat the milk. A perfect breeding geometry."
Poilievre vows to expand Toronto's Billy Bishop Airport, taking pressure off Pearson - "Currently, only turboprop aircraft are allowed to land at Billy Bishop Airport, which means the only flights it can accommodate are short-haul regionals. Nonetheless, in 2019 it was the ninth busiest airport in the nation, with 2.8 million passengers going through the gates. Poilievre suggested that building a longer runway, thus allowing larger aircrafts to land, would bring the number of guests up to 4.8 million per year. He also argued it would "increase competition, shorten commute times, reduce gridlock, create 2,000 paycheques, and inject $55 million in tax revenue." "It's a win, win, win, win, win," he continued, "so of course, Trudeau sided with the gatekeepers who fought tooth and nail to stop it. Let's expand Billy Bishop Airport and open competition in a country where the sky's the limit."... After being elected, the Trudeau Liberals came out against plans for a longer runway, siding with residents of Toronto Island and waterfront condo owners who opposed the plan."