Meme - Egypt: "WHEN WE STACk Rocks iN A BiG TRIANGLE SHAPE, THEY USUALLY DONT Fall OVER... "
Mexico: "WHEN WE STACk Rocks iN A BiG TRIANGLE SHAPE, THEY USUALLY DONT Fall OVER... "
Cambodia: "WHEN WE STACk Rocks iN A BiG TRIANGLE SHAPE, THEY USUALLY DONT Fall OVER... "
"Ancient Aliens!" *Coincidence? Chariots of the Gods? Magic! Atlantis!*
Toronto swaps sand for cobblestones at popular Humber Bay beach. Locals are not happy - "Part of the project necessitated resurfacing the beach on Humber Bay Park East, something residents have recently taken issue with. In photos provided by residents, the beach was filled with what looks like sand. It has since been resurfaced with cobblestones, according to the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA), which is doing the construction on behalf of the city. Local resident Aman Somal said he understands erosion protection is necessary but is frustrated a balance couldn't be found between that work and preserving the previous state of the beach... "We live in small condos here, we don't have backyard gardens, we don't have backyard pools. So the park is our backyard and the beaches are our pools. We want to protect it."... "If you walk on the beach, [it] means that you've got to put on running shoes," Persaud said. Fellow resident Marie Braz agreed. "I can't imagine walking on that, never mind plopping a chair down and, you know, a picnic basket," she said."
"Sustainability" reduces quality of life
Massive bank glitch lets people withdraw millions from their accounts - "People across Ethiopia have managed to withdraw large sums of money from their bank accounts after a system glitch. More than £31million was withdrawn mainly by students from the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) after they found out they could take out more money than they had in their bank accounts"
Author Takano says Japan has become ‘outlying zone’ in the world - "In Takano’s opinion, inbound visitors from China and South Korea are flocking to Japan because they see the Asian neighbor as a declining country. “Seeking to take temporary refuge from harsh competition in their societies, tourists wish to come into contact with natural surroundings, smiles and traditional lifestyles that have been lost in their own countries due to rapid development and urbanization,” he said. Takano believes foreign sightseers are coming to Japan en masse today for the same reason Japanese once visited other Asian nations as well as Africa in search of “backwardness” that had disappeared in Japan due to economic growth. Presenting his view on the action Tokyo should take from now, Takano said Japan should promote itself as “an ancient capital of the globe given its deteriorated politics, economy and technology.” “Japan’s value basically lies in its history, cuisine and scenery,” he said."
Meme - "Fantasy is when Karl Urban has long hair and sci-fi is when Karl Urban has short hair" *Lord of the Rings* *Pathfinder* *Star Trek* *Doom*
Meme - "Friday Night. Spaghetti Wrestling *2 bikini women*
Saturday Morning. All the Spaghetti You Can Eat. $1.00"
Meme - "If you put a fleshlight up your ass, leaving pussy side out, and a guy fucks the fleshlight is it technically no homo? I mean the dick isn't touching your ass and the other guy is fucking a pussy right...?"
"Gay to Straight Adapter"
Meme - Tomi Lahren: ""Don't be afraid" is written in the Bible 365 times- a daily reminder from God to live everyday fearlessly."
"The word "kill" is written 419 times. I'm not sure I want to use the same logic."
About the fish doorbell - visdeurbel - "Every spring, fish swim right through Utrecht, looking for a place to spawn and reproduce. Some swim all the way to Germany. There is a problem, however: they often have to wait a long time at the Weerdsluis lock on the west side of the inner city, as the lock rarely opens in spring. We have come up with a solution: the fish doorbell! An underwater camera has been set up at the lock, and the live feed is streamed to the homepage. If you see a fish, press the digital fish doorbell. The lock operator is sent a signal and can open the lock if there are enough fish. Now you can help fish make it through the canals of Utrecht. Pressing the fish doorbell notifies the lock operator that there are fish waiting to pass. The operator can decide whether or not to open the lock. The lock seldom opens in spring, but can now be opened daily, if necessary. The fish doorbell allows us to work together to ensure that fish do not have to wait as long at the Weerdsluis lock. This is good news, because it means they are less likely to be eaten by other animals, such as grebes and cormorants."
Personality changes following heart transplantation: The role of cellular memory - "Personality changes following heart transplantation, which have been reported for decades, include accounts of recipients acquiring the personality characteristics of their donor. Four categories of personality changes are discussed in this article: (1) changes in preferences, (2) alterations in emotions/temperament, (3) modifications of identity, and (4) memories from the donor’s life. The acquisition of donor personality characteristics by recipients following heart transplantation is hypothesized to occur via the transfer of cellular memory, and four types of cellular memory are presented: (1) epigenetic memory, (2) DNA memory, (3) RNA memory, and (4) protein memory. Other possibilities, such as the transfer of memory via intracardiac neurological memory and energetic memory, are discussed as well. Implications for the future of heart transplantation are explored including the importance of reexamining our current definition of death, studying how the transfer of memories might affect the integration of a donated heart, determining whether memories can be transferred via the transplantation of other organs, and investigating which types of information can be transferred via heart transplantation. Further research is recommended."
Thailand revokes visas for New Zealand tourists arrested for attacking police officer - "Immigration authorities banned brothers Hamish Day, 36, and Oscar Day, 38, from ever returning to Thailand. Thai news outlet Bangkok Post reported that the brothers have been charged with offences including robbery, causing physical harm to an on-duty officer, attempted bribery, and driving a motorcycle without a licence... Video of the incident has gone viral online, where onlookers can be heard shouting at them to stop. Both brothers have denied all charges and the police said on Monday they would ask the court for permission to deny their release on bail."
Student Persuaded by Friend to Amputate Legs for $1.3M Insurance Scam - "A university student in Taiwan who had his legs amputated in hopes of receiving a $1.3 million insurance payout has been arrested on suspicion of fraud, local prosecutors say. The 23-year-old, identified only by his last name, Zhang, plunged his feet in a bucket of dry ice for more than 10 hours to get them so badly frostbitten that he would need a double amputation... The bureau said a friend of Zhang's from high school, identified only as Liao, persuaded him to carry out the insurance scam. Liao, also 23, suffered losses from trading cryptocurrency, and he tricked Zhang into signing a legal note obligating him to pay about $800,000... Liao and Zhang rode around Taipei on a motorbike at night, wanting to present the claim that Zhang was afflicted with frostbite while riding the vehicle in the late evening, investigators said. Just days before, Zhang bought several expensive policies for life insurance, travel insurance, and accident insurance... His legs bore no shoe or sock marks, and his injuries appeared symmetrical, which were inconsistent with a naturally occurring frostbite injury, investigators said. The weather on the night of January 26 was also nowhere close to below freezing, with its coldest temperature at about 42 degrees Fahrenheit... "As Taiwan is a subtropical region, cases of severe frostbite requiring amputation are unheard of due to natural climatic conditions"... When police investigated Zhang and Liao in November, they found the plastic bucket used to freeze Zhang's feet, insurance documents, a white polystyrene box for dry ice, eight mobile phones, and a tablet computer"
New Zealand set to scrap world-first tobacco ban - "New Zealand will repeal on Tuesday a world-first law banning tobacco sales for future generations, the government said, even while researchers and campaigners warned of the risk that people could die as a result. Set to take effect from July, the toughest anti-tobacco rules in the world would have banned sales to those born after Jan. 1, 2009, cut nicotine content in smoked tobacco products and reduced the number of tobacco retailers by more than 90%... The decision, heavily criticised over its likely impact on health outcomes in New Zealand, has also drawn flak because of fears it could have a greater impact on Maori and Pasifika populations, groups with higher smoking rates. Repeal flies in the face of robust research evidence, ignores measures strongly supported by Maori leaders and will preserve health inequities, said Otago University researcher Janet Hoek. "Large-scale clinical trials and modelling studies show the legislation would have rapidly increased the rates of quitting among smokers and made it much harder for young people to take up smoking," said Hoek, co-director of a group studying ways to reduce smoking."
Paternalism towards indigenous groups is anti racist
St. John's woman notes every step of a new flight scam on social media - "She publicly tweeted at Air Canada, asking for a resolution — and received responses from nine different accounts claiming to be Air Canada agents. "They had the Air Canada logo ... saying they were supervisors, [but] they didn't have any followers. So that triggered some alarm bells for me," she said. So, she ignored the messages and went directly to the company's website. A few days later, she noticed she kept getting messages from agents saying they could resolve her issues. "Curiosity got the best of me," she said. "So I played along." They asked for her booking reference number and, using that, obtained her phone number. They then contacted her via the messaging app WhatsApp. She says she was concerned about how they were able to get her number as it wasn't in any email or booking reference. Then they asked her to download an app called Remitly — an international money transfer app. "There was no Canada-to-Canada ability to transfer funds," she said, noting she could only make transfers to countries like Kenya. That triggered more alarm bells, she said. The person on the other side of the screen assured her they would reimburse her money in Kenyan dollars: all they needed was her bank account number."
Adam Rossi on X - “Kids who nibbled their nails were less likely to get allergies and had stronger immune systems overall. Nail biting allowed bacteria and pollen trapped under the kids' fingernails to get into their mouths, boosting their immune system.”
Thumb-Sucking, Nail-Biting, and Atopic Sensitization, Asthma, and Hay Fever - "Children who suck their thumbs or bite their nails are less likely to have atopic sensitization in childhood and adulthood."
More evidence for the hygiene hypothesis
Jake on X - "Universities are funny. Hey what if we took a medieval institution for training priests and aristocrats and combined it w a hedge fund, sports franchise and resort for teenagers Oh and it'll be the backbone for fundamental research for our entire civilization"
Actual Fact Bot: Revived | Facebook - "When Steve Madden was convicted of fraud and forced to resign as CEO of his own company, he created a new position for himself that paid $700,000 per year while he was in prison."
Meme - "Looks like your mom bought herself a van
B.J. Champion"
Dating app billboard criticised by Korat women's right group - "The leader of a women’s rights protection group in Thailand’s Nakhon Ratchasima province has described a dating app’s advertisement as being disrespectful to women. “The word ‘delicious’ should only be used about food, but the ad used it about women. That is not appropriate. I personally think that the ad disrespects women,” said Chanyanut Surachat. Several billboards promoting the Tinder dating app have popped up in the Muang district of Nakhon Ratchasima, known locally as Korat. On the billboards, a question is asked: ‘What is delicious in Korat?’ There were two choices: ‘Fried Korat Noodles’ or ‘Korat ladies’. There was a checkmark next to ‘Korat Ladies’ and a cross next to ‘Fried Korat Noodles’. Chanyanut added that the ad also implies that fried Korat noodles are not delicious, clearly belittling the signature dish of Korat. She said that the noodles are also mentioned in the province’s motto, which features the province as the ‘Land of brave women, excellent silk, fried Korat noodles, Phimai Historical Park, and Dan Kwian pottery’."
I used vibrators to relieve a tortoise's constipation - "“This is actually a very normal and often used technique,” Emily Cehrs, a vet at the Safari West wildlife preserve in Santa Rosa, told Caters News Agency of her unlikely scat extraction technique... the US Food and Drug Administration recently approved the use of Vibrant, a vibrating pill that achieves the same affect in humans sans the need of a dancing dildo... Unfortunately, while high-tech, stool-propelling vibrators might sound like an innovative constipation remedy, they’re not often used due to the stigma of using a sex toy as a laxative"
WOMAN ORDERS AND CANCELS FOODPANDA DELIVERIES REPEATEDLY - "A Foodpanda rider shared his experience with an unruly customer on Facebook. The rider, Bryen Yap, is also the owner of the restaurant that received the order from the woman... "Guess what, I have your gate access, it is linked to my phone. I also have your lift lobby access key, I even have your house key.. If you are not happy about it… You can move out of the house end of this month. Because the person who cooks your food, the person who sent your food and the person who owns the place you currently live in- Is your landlord.”"
Meme - Circle K: "If you are buying slushies and videoing for TikTok - in our store OR parking lot, the police will be called. Thank You"
Cookie Monster on X - "Me hate shrinkflation! Me cookies are getting smaller. 😔"
Frank Oz on X - "@MeCookieMonster I'm shocked to see a news article on Cookie Monster talking about "shrinkflation". Jim would NEVER have allowed this. The SS Muppets need to live in their own pure world. Not our world. What has happened to the integrity of the character and the integrity of Sesame Workshop?"
Frank Oz on X - "I realize now what happened. My head and heart are still in the Sesame Street that existed when Joan Cooney was active in it and when Jim and Jon Stone were alive, and when I was still performing on it. But I have not kept up with it for years. I guess it's changed."
Frank Oz on X - "I understand what you're pointing out. Yes, the real world needs to come to Sesame Street. But that doesn't mean that The Muppet characters need to react in a real-world way. The Muppet characters' reactions need to rise from their own naive and pure world."
Frank Oz on X - "To clear something up, the real world does indeed need to come to Sesame Street. But that doesn't mean that The Muppet characters need to react in the same real-world way. The Muppet characters' reactions need to rise from their own naive and pure world."
Frank Oz on X - "No, Cookie Monster would react by having no idea what shrinkflation means. If he was told that it caused his cookies to be smaller he would be aghast. But he would not connect it to a concept. He would just be upset about the smaller cookies. He is a monster, not an adult human"
Clearly, Frank Oz is just an ignorant boomer who doesn't know anything about the muppets
From his other tweets he's a left winger, so this is about artistic purity, not politics
Meme - "When you both fucked the shit out of each other and you're just laying there trying to recuperate *wrestling scene with 2 wrestlers lying on ring floor*
I got no more in me"
Meme - "me, as my laptop fan suddenly becomes louder: what is it?? what program?? who is doing this to you????
*opening task manager* Who do I need to kill?"
Explaining Elections in Singapore: Dominant Party Resilience and Valence Politics - "The People's Action Party (PAP) of Singapore is one of the world's longest ruling dominant parties, having won every general election since the country's independence in 1965. Why do Singaporeans consistently vote for the PAP, contrary to the expectations of theories of democratization? We argue that valence considerations---specifically, perceptions of party credibility---are the dominant factor in the voting behavior of Singapore's electorate and a critical piece to the puzzle of the PAP's resilience. Furthermore, we argue that the primacy of valence politics arose in part by design, as the PAP has used its control of Singapore's high-capacity state to reshape society and thereby reshape voter preferences towards its comparative advantages. We use a multi-methods approach to demonstrate evidence in support of our argument through a within-case, historical analysis; a qualitative analysis of contemporary party competition and voter behavior; and a comprehensive quantitative analysis of the 2011 and 2015 general elections. Ultimately, our findings suggest that a focus on valence politics can increase the resilience of dominant parties, but that such a strategy also faces natural limits to the advantages it confers."
Cherian George - "This sober analysis by two political scientists attributes the PAP's electoral dominance mainly to its perceived capability in delivering generally desired outcomes – so-called "valence issues". Challenging the view that voters are driven by fear or by strategic motives, the authors argue that support for the PAP is sincerely motivated, by not just economic considerations but also the desire for social stability, national sovereignty, and efficient delivery of grassroots services. The PAP has benefited from the fact that a high-capacity dominant state can, over time, reshape society and bring voter preferences into alignment with the dominant party's comparative advantages, the authors argue. "The long-term reshaping of voter preferences, in short, constitutes an additional channel through which to entrench this 'self-reinforcing authoritarian equilibrium'.""
Meme - "When you ask a 1st grade class to write letters to people in a nursing home...
*hourglass with sand running out* times allmast up"
The Cultural Tutor on X - "Setting is a big part of any film, but how do you get the right place? You can use CGI, build a set — or find the perfect location. So from Star Wars to The Grand Budapest Hotel, here are some real places you might recognise from fictional worlds..."
U.S. Warned Russia Before Moscow Attack That Killed at Least 60 - "U.S. officials said they believed Islamic State was responsible for the attack. The group claimed responsibility in a statement issued by the Islamic State-affiliated news agency Amaq... On March 7, the U.S. Embassy in Moscow issued a cryptic warning to American citizens to avoid concert venues. The U.S. had information about a planned terrorist attack in Moscow potentially targeting large gatherings—including concerts—which prompted the State Department to issue a public advisory, White House National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said in a statement Friday night. “The U.S. government also shared this information with Russian authorities in accordance with its longstanding ‘duty to warn’ policy,” Watson added. This week, Russian state news agency TASS said Putin described U.S. warnings about a possible terrorist attack as “provocative” statements that resemble “outright blackmail and an intention to intimidate and destabilize our society.” He called on the Federal Security Service and other law-enforcement bodies to step up efforts at preventing terrorist attacks... The intelligence was considered “actionable,” potentially providing Russian authorities with enough time to mitigate an attack, officials said...
The shooting carries echoes of terrorist attacks on the capital by Chechen insurgents in the 2000s and undermines the image of invincibility Putin had sought to portray"
Clearly, the US knew about it because they were behind it!
Monday briefing: Why Vladimir Putin won’t link Islamic State to Moscow terror attack - “Shaun Walker, Pjotr Sauer and Andrew Roth set out signs of “a catastrophic security failure on the part of Russian authorities”. They note a slow police response to the attack and claims that the FSB, the federal security service, has been largely focused on domestic opposition and potential threats from Kyiv, with thousands of security officials sent to occupied Ukraine. Another factor they cite is a view that the threat from Islamist terrorism had subsided in recent years. It is unlikely that these concerns will be aired in Russia in the coming days. Andrei Soldatov, senior fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis, argues in this piece that this is part of a deeply ingrained culture, instigated by Putin, of protecting the security agencies at all costs and ensuring the FSB is “completely immune to any criticism”. The FSB is expert at “killing and torture” and “investigating attacks after the event”, he writes. “But these are not the qualities that help to prevent attacks happening, and time and again, the FSB has failed.””
Lukashenko undermines Putin’s Ukraine claim on Moscow concert hall attack - “ISIS claimed responsibility for the massacre, which killed at least 139 people, and released graphic footage of the incident, but Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly suggested, without evidence, that Ukraine had helped orchestrate it. Putin on Saturday claimed that a “window” had been prepared for the attackers to escape to Ukraine, which Kyiv has denied. But Lukashenko, one of Putin’s most loyal allies, on Tuesday appeared to contradict the Kremlin’s claims, saying that the attackers initially intended to enter Belarus rather than Ukraine… Putin on Monday conceded the attack had been carried out by “radical Islamists,” but still tried to pin ultimate responsibility on Ukraine… Ukraine has vehemently denied involvement in the attack and called the Kremlin’s claims “absurd.” Others have speculated why the attackers would try to flee through a heavily militarized section of the border, with a large Russian troop presence.”
Russian defector sheds light on Putin paranoia and his secret train network - “A senior Russian security officer who defected last year has given rare insight into the paranoid lifestyle of Vladimir Putin, confirming details of a secret train network, identical offices in different cities, a strict personal quarantine and escalating security protocols. Gleb Karakulov, who served as a captain in the Federal Protection Service (FSO), a powerful body tasked with protecting Russia’s highest-ranking officials, said the measures were designed to mask the whereabouts of the Russian president, whom he described as “pathologically afraid for his life”. The 36-year-old said the train was used because it “cannot be tracked on any information resource. It’s done for stealth purposes.”… Karakulov described a virtual state within a state that includes firefighters, food testers and other engineers who travel with Putin on his trips abroad, providing a rare first-hand insight into the levels of paranoia and sheltered lifestyle of the Russian president. “They call him the Boss, worship him in every way and only ever talk of him in those terms,” he said… He confirmed that Putin relies heavily for information on reports provided by his security services. Putin did not use a mobile phone or the internet, Karakulov said, and did not even bring an internet specialist with him on foreign trips. “He only receives information from his closest circle, which means that he lives in an information vacuum,” he said. Putin is still in quarantine and requires all staff working in the same room as him to also undergo a two-week quarantine, severely limiting the number of people who have personal contact with him. Karakulov said Putin used identical offices in St Petersburg, Sochi and Novo-Ogaryovo, and that the secret services used fake motorcades and decoy planes to pretend he was leaving. “This is a ruse to confuse foreign intelligence, in the first place, and secondly, to prevent any attempts on his life,” he said. He said Putin’s behaviour and lifestyle had altered significantly since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, when the president retreated from most travel and public appearances. “He has shut himself off from the world,” Karakulov said. “His take on reality has become distorted.””
Meme - "I call for an immediate ceasefire between Russia and ISIS. Russia should be restrained, have a proportional response and operate according to international law. For their conflict to be over, there should be an independent ISIS state established next to Russia. I urge Russians to provide humanitarian aid to ISIS, including food, water, medicine electricity. FREE ISIS."