Language watchdog targets brunch spot over Yiddish word 'nosh' - "Over the years, as Quebec’s language laws have tightened, the province’s language watchdog has taken issue with all kinds of non-French words on storefronts and elsewhere, from “pasta” to “Burgundy.” Now it is grappling with the Yiddish word “nosh.”... the Burgundy Lion Pub, further east on Notre-Dame St., faced a similar encounter with the OQLF. Owner Toby Lyle told The Gazette the agency deemed “Pub” and “Lion” acceptable on the establishment’s sign but raised concerns about the word “Burgundy,” which refers to the neighbourhood’s name, Little Burgundy — or Petite-Bourgogne in French — a name he said has been used in English for generations. The agency later apologized and allowed the sign to remain unchanged... Since taking office in 2018, the CAQ government has strengthened the Charter of the French Language and encouraged Quebecers to file language complaints. It has also doubled the OQLF’s annual budget to $49 million."
'Feels like harassment': Montreal café owner says years of language inspections taking a toll - "Inside SoLIT Café in downtown Montreal, orange-grove-inspired decor hangs from the ceiling above customers sipping coffee, chatting with friends and working on laptops. Like many small business owners, Maryam Rahimi does a bit of everything in her shop — takes orders, helps in the kitchen, serves customers and manages staff. But she says another part of her job has increasingly taken up her time over the past several years: responding to compliance requests and follow-ups from Quebec’s language watchdog. "To be honest with you, I’m not quite sure what’s happening," Rahimi said... "They basically audited everything that was in writing, including our receipt paper," she said. One of the first concerns involved the word "Thank you" printed in small letters at the bottom of customer receipts. "They sent me a formal letter and then so many emails," she said. "You have to make sure it says 'merci.'" She says other requests followed. She recalls being asked about terms such as "chicken nachos" and "flat white." "They said your chicken nachos is in English," Rahimi recalled. "So we changed it to 'nachos au poulet', but they said, 'no, the word nachos... you should find a French equivalent for that.' I said, ‘What do you mean?'" she laughed in disbelief. The issue that frustrated Rahimi the most involved the café’s name. She says one OQLF inspector questioned whether "SoLIT" could be interpreted as an English phrase if separated into two words: so lit. "I said, well, any word that you separate could mean anything else," Rahimi said. At one point, another inspector said she might have to go to court if she doesn’t comply, which she welcomed. "I actually want to be heard," she said. "I want to present my case to a judge and say, 'How is this fair?'" Instead, she continued making the requested changes. Most recently, she installed three new signs in French after receiving a compliance deadline earlier this year. But she says she feels as though the process is never-ending. "We’re always under review," she said. "It really feels like harassment because mentally it’s exhausting." Rahimi estimates that redesigning materials, replacing signage and consulting lawyers has cost her thousands of dollars over the years. For a small business operating on narrow margins, she says the time spent dealing with compliance issues can be just as costly. "To have to put my energy into something else that doesn’t help me sustain my business or make it profitable," she said. "It’s frustrating."... The office says it has received 22 complaints concerning the café since March 2022, although it notes some complaints may ultimately be deemed inadmissible or unfounded."
Of course, there were people criticising her
'Feels like harassment': Montreal café owner says years of language inspections taking a toll : r/montreal - "The OQLF always goes a step too far. She wasn't in compliance, fair. She fixes it and then they complain again about fucking nachos? Everyone calls them nachos. No one calls them "des croustilles au maïs avec du fromage et sauce de legumes pimentée". They complained about an Italian restaurant having Italian-named dishes with the French description underneath. While the SAQ was using the word vino in ads at the time. They wasted taxpayer dollars making the STM change Go Habs Go when even the idiot leader of the PQ said he would keep using Go Habs Go. All this while "grilled cheese" is officially Québécois French. Just do your job and avoid the power trip. Fucking hell."
Meme - "HOW TO KNOW you'RE IN A
CULT VOTE BLUE NO MATTER WHO.
NO PRIMARY ELECTION JUST VOTE FOR WHOEVER WE TELL YOU TO.
GET COVID SHOT OR LOSE YOUR JOB.
GET INSURANCE OR PAY A FINE.
SILENCE PEOPLE YOU DISAGREE WITH.
DO WHAT WE TELL YOU NO MATTER WHAT.
EVERYONE ELSE IS A NAZI AND RACIST THAT HAVE DIFFERENT POLITICAL VIEWS THAN US.
YOU HAVE TO SUPPORT BLM. LGBTQ. AND ABORTION.
WAVE OTHER COUNTRIES FLAGS INSTEAD OF THE US FLAG.
PROTEST ANYTHING REPUBLICANS DO.
BE A VICTIM.
PLAY THE RACE CARD.
BLAME REPUBLICANS INSTEAD OF TAKING RESPONSIBILITY.
ALWAYS MENTION TO JUSTIFY THE SUMMER OF LOVE.
BLAME TRUMP FOR EVERYTHING."
Meme - "Haspengoud *very young girl with 2 apples in her top* De appels en peren van het nieuwe seizoen zijn er."
People were clutching their pearls, because they needed to virtue signal. The lady doth protest too much, methinks
Meme - *Pool*
"No entry. Restroom closed"
Spellbreaker on X - "Why would "witches" die for a lie? If they were willing to die for their religion, "witchcraft" must be the true religion, according to what passes for Christian logic these days."
Controversies That Soured Bill Gates' Reputation Beyond Repair - "Bill Gates appeared multiple times in the Epstein files
He admitted to having two affairs during his marriage to Melinda Gates
Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen claimed Bill Gates betrayed him
He earned scrutiny for his rude handshake with the South Korean president
Melinda French Gates was unsatisfied with Bill Gates' handling of an employee's sexual harassment case
Bill Gates had a reputation for pursuing women he worked with
His climate memo gave fuel to climate change deniers, including Donald Trump
In 2015, Bill Gates founded Breakthrough Energies, an initiative to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and fight climate change. Hence, it was quite surprising a decade later when Gates posted a climate change memo to his blog, Gates Notes, in which he seemed to reverse his stance on the issue. The memo begins by denouncing the "doomsday view of climate change," and claiming that, while it will have serious consequences, climate change won't "lead to humanity's demise." The Microsoft CEO goes on to argue that America should pivot away from fighting climate change and reducing emissions and instead direct the resources it has devoted to these efforts toward human welfare. While he makes it very clear that he believes climate change is a serious issue that should be addressed, he continues to argue for changing society's approach to it and to push the "truth" that climate change won't end civilization. Unfortunately, a lot of climate change deniers pounced on the memo, twisting it to fit their narrative that climate change doesn't exist. Among these deniers was Donald Trump, who gloated on Truth Social that he "just won the War on the Climate Change Hoax" because Gates allegedly "admitted that he was completely WRONG on the issue" (via The Conversation). While climate change deniers were grossly simplifying Gates' climate memo, it still drew some scrutiny from scientists, who questioned why he was attempting to make solving climate change and solving poverty an either/or situation. Additionally, he spent a lot of time deconstructing an argument that very few climate activists have made. Many already know that climate change won't end civilization and are instead focused on reducing the human suffering it will contribute to.
Bill Gates' deposition in Microsoft's anti-trust case garnered ridicule
He was a notorious 'office bully' in his younger years
The Gates Foundation has been accused of hurting Africa through its agricultural strategy...
In 2024, several African leaders penned an open letter to the Gates Foundation and other charitable foundations, demanding "reparations" for the damage the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) has done to Africa's ecosystems. The Gates Foundation is the biggest funder of AGRA, which seeks to revolutionize agriculture in Africa. On the surface, it sounds like a good initiative aimed at improving food security and farmers' incomes. However, years after its founding, AGRA has yet to achieve results. Studies have even found that hunger has increased in AGRA countries since its founding. In their open letter, African leaders argued that the initiative has caused harm by promoting industrial models and synthetic fertilizers that disrupt Africa's agricultural traditions. AGRA has had years and billions in aid from donors and the government to achieve its goals, and its failure has raised eyebrows. The Gates Foundation stands out as one of the primary funders of AGRA. However, it's certainly not the only one, especially since it launched the initiative in partnership with the Rockefeller Foundation.
Bill Gates has an enormous carbon footprint despite his climate advocacy"
You're not allowed to speak facts and question climate change hysteria if the "wrong people" will benefit from it. The motte and bailey is clear here, since climate change hystericists have traumatised children into feeling despondent
Chilling final post of bungee jumper who plummeted to death when she was thrown with no cord - "Maria Eduarda Rodrigues de Freitas, 21, jokingly wrote, “Who was the crazy person who let me jump off a bridge???” on her Instagram Story Saturday before she went on what she thought would be a thrilling bungee jumping adventure in Limeira, São Paulo. Instead, Rodrigues de Freitas fell to her death after the bungee company failed to attach a cord to her harness as they hurled her over the cliffside... A sickening video posted on social media captured Rodrigues de Freitas being thrown off the edge of the “Skeleton Bridge” without her bungee cord after the grim joke... The witness filming could then be heard shouting, “Guys, the rope!” and pointing to the crucial safety device lying on the ground. Rodrigues de Freitas, a physical education and sports management student, was pronounced dead at the scene, the outlet said. Her fiancé was watching as she plummeted to her death, according to cops. Six people have been arrested following the incident, including three people at the scene of the jump. Two of the suspects tried to flee, but were ultimately tracked down by a helicopter in the wooded area, according to the military police."
The strange demise of Europe’s once-great airlines - "It has been downhill for BA almost ever since, with cost-cutting, strikes, IT meltdowns and lost bags leaving many declaring: “I’m flying ABBA” – anyone but British Airways... How and why did the golden era of European airlines end? Two men – and a structural change in the industry – are responsible. The two men could not be more different. Michael O’Leary of Ryanair is, by his own admission, a “sweary gobs----”, who claims his cheap and not-so-cheerful airline runs on “leprechaun wee and bulls---”. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum is the conservative ruler of Dubai, who created the ultra-luxury Emirates airline with on-board bars and showers, and chauffeur service to and from airports. O’Leary ate BA’s lunch in short-haul and “Sheikh Mo” ate BA’s dinner on long-haul. O’Leary’s bet that passengers “will crawl b-----k-naked over broken glass to get low fares” – as low as €15 (£13) in some cases – paid off spectacularly. His no-frills carrier now transports more than 200 million passengers a year. To put that figure into perspective, BA carries fewer than 50 million passengers a year across both short-haul and long-haul services... Álex Cruz, BA’s chief executive until 2020, decided that the only way BA could maintain market share was by cutting costs. He crammed so many seats into the company’s short-haul jets that legroom is now the same as Ryanair, and the lavatories are minuscule. Worst of all, he scrapped free food and drink in economy class in 2017. An airline with the word “British” in its name would no longer serve a free cuppa (although it has reintroduced the world’s smallest bottle of water). The cutbacks continue to this day. The white headrest covers in short-haul business class recently disappeared, while the legroom on BA’s Embraer jets that operate from London City Airport has shrunk, and many seats no longer recline... As the quality and innovation among European carriers dipped, Emirates took to the skies, redefining long-haul travel – and in its vapour trails followed other shiny new Gulf airlines: Qatar Airways and Abu Dhabi’s Etihad. Each of the new Middle Eastern carriers has introduced innovations that have raised the bar and attracted a new generation of travellers. Emirates was the first airline to put showers and a large bar with a dining table for four people on its Airbus A380 superjumbo. It is setting new standards in premium economy."
9/10 of Skytrax's five-star airlines are East Asian and the last is Qatar. It's no coincidence that they have almost no strikes
America’s tipping culture is completely out of control - "On the unofficial Facebook group for British tourists visiting Orlando – which has nearly 200,000 members – the topic has been banned entirely. “Please don’t post about tipping as it causes too many arguments,” reads the group’s official rules that are upheld by strict moderators. To be fair, they may have made the right decision. Look at the bitter arguments that tipping has already caused on social media. Last year, a post in which a New York waitress complained that her customers had only tipped a paltry 7 per cent – on a bill of $3,000 – led to incendiary rows on X, with the post attracting 16 million views. That was far from the only crazy tipping story to go viral online. How about the Illinois restaurateur who was caught on video chasing down a customer who had failed to leave a tip? When the video made the news, some Americans even took the angry chef’s side, suggesting that he was right to berate the customer who had the audacity to pay the advertised price. Could all this madness have some upside in persuading the Americans to rethink their obsession with tipping? For decades, our transatlantic cousins have defended the practice, insisting that it leads to better service and more customer choice. Now, surveys suggest they might be having a rethink, with more than three in four saying that tipping has gone too far in one recent poll. In the meantime, the tipping menace shows no signs of slowing down just yet, as the standard demand for a 20 per cent gratuity appears on every Epos terminal across America. Good luck, then, to the England and Scotland fans heading to the World Cup, where stadiums are already charging the best part of $20 (£16) for a beer, and around one third of that for a bottle of water. In the current climate, perhaps we should just be glad that Fifa isn’t demanding a 20 per cent tip on ticket prices – at least not yet anyway."
I’m expected to tip for my delivery driver’s healthcare in the US. The UK is next - "an increasing number of restaurants have started to adopt US-style tipping measures, with Gordon Ramsay leading the charge. At the end of last year, the celebrity chef started hitting diners with a 20 per cent service charge on festive menus at his Lucky Cat restaurant in Bishopsgate. His other eateries – including the Savoy Grill and The River – also have a higher-than-usual tipping charge, at 15 per cent. And with more top London restaurants – such as The Delaunay and Brasserie Zédel – increasing their service charges from the traditional 12.5 per cent to 15 per cent of late, this may soon become standard... In cafés or hairdressers, you will now often be presented with the preset options of 10 per cent, 15 per cent or 20 per cent. (And to be clear, everyone will watch as you wrestle with your conscience and judge you according to which box you tap.) Likewise, in black cabs, where traditionally one always rounded up to the nearest pound... while my most farcical “tipflation” experiences include being asked by a medical clinic if I would like to tip the nurse who just removed a small mole from my back, and being handed a restaurant bill in which the tipping options started at a hilarious 25 per cent, Reddit is buzzing with even more preposterous anecdotes. Think self-service checkouts asking to have their talents recognised. Think funeral parlours."
A service charge isn't tipping
Why the drugs you’ve been prescribed may not work well - " “It’s clear we are in a mess with medicines,” says Prof Nick Barber. “They are a trillion-dollar technology delivering reliability we wouldn’t tolerate in a dishwasher. Drugs don’t work well – they are badly prescribed, erratically taken, and cause immense stress, harm and waste.” And yet we rattle with pills and our bathroom cabinets groan with them, as we blindly trust our medications to improve, even save, our lives. Barber should know: He has been prescribing and researching medicines for 50 years during a career in which he’s served as a director of clinical pharmacy at University College London and as vice-president of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society. Today he is an emeritus professor of pharmacy at UCL and the author of an entertaining new book, How to Take Drugs.“I want people to know that drugs aren’t as effective as we think,” he says. “That doesn’t mean we don’t take them. Despite their limited effectiveness, drugs are more likely to work better than nothing at all. But we do need to have an honest and open relationship with them.”... Much of this approach, says Barber, is down to the way modern society views illness. “We’re treating the disease, not the patient,” he says. “Plus, most technologies develop because of feedback from the user: For example, they improve a car model every five years and regularly update the software on our phones. But you don’t have that feedback loop with medicines because in the end the sale is to a health system.” Before drugs come to market, they go through exhaustive rounds of clinical trials, but these don’t take into account a person’s sex, age, or genetic make-up... The difference matters, because women may metabolise drugs more slowly than men – meaning the medication stays in their system for longer – or they may react in a certain way depending on where they are in their menstrual cycle. Factors such as body size, genetics, liver or kidney function, and the interaction with other medications can also have a big impact. According to Barber, the future lies in creating a more personalised prescription model based on an individual’s specific make-up. There are already trials taking place in this area, which is known as pharmacogenomics... The trick, says Barber, is not just to take medicines, but to “take control”. His book contains a useful acronym, Nabr, which he pronounces as “neighbour”. This stands for do Nothing, discuss Alternatives, and examine the Benefits and Risks of the drugs... “Doing nothing has a fine tradition.” This pause is what GPs call “watchful waiting”. “An ‘alternative’ could mean upping your exercise to 150 minutes a week, instead of immediately starting a blood-pressure pill,” says Barber. “If you do need a drug, ask: ‘What are you recommending? What are the benefits and the risks?’ What would they do in your position?”... Many people accumulate drugs on repeat prescriptions as they go through life; not all are needed indefinitely... Every GP service should offer you an annual medication review. These are increasingly being offered by pharmacists in the practice rather than GPs (and the pharmacists are the people who really understand the drugs)."
Clearly, it's sexism to not include women in clinical trials because their bodies are different, but it's also sexism to think that women have different brains than men - neuro-sexism, even
Mother loses arm in great white shark attack - "The attack, which is the latest in several fatal shark attacks in Australia in recent months, has reignited calls for sharks to be culled. Tony Abbott, a former prime minister, said: “It’s so wrong that we don’t cull sharks after attacks. It’s so wrong we don’t put people before sharks.” But Chris Minns, the premier of New South Wales, pointed out that great white sharks are a protected species. “When it comes to shark culling, the truth is the great white shark is protected,” he said on Monday. “We’re not going to be contemplating a cull. I’m not convinced it would work. Certainly we haven’t received evidence or information it would work.” He said that low-flying, AI-enabled drones could be an effective way of monitoring the presence of sharks and warning swimmers and surfers about whether it was safe to enter the water. Coogee Beach was closed immediately after the attack on Saturday but opened again on Monday. Mr Minns also suggested that shark nets could be installed all year round instead of only during the summer months. Shark nets are controversial because other types of marine wildlife, such as turtles, dolphins and rays, get caught in them and die... The week before, a man died after being attacked by a shark while spearfishing off the coast of Western Australia. Last month, a 39-year-old man died after being attacked while spearfishing on Queensland’s Great Barrier Reef. Ten days before that, a 38-year-old was fatally bitten off Rottnest Island, near Perth in Western Australia. In January, dozens of beaches along Australia’s east coast were closed after four shark attacks in two days."
When animals/charismatic megafauna are more important than humans
How the vegan movement benefited this butcher - "“People are eating less meat but better,” Warren maintains. They “are going out less [to restaurants], but when they do, they want somewhere they’re going to get a bloody good meal. With the recent price increases, the difference between a good and bad steak isn’t as big as it used to be, so if you’re going to go, do it right.”... What customers are purchasing is also changing. “We got to a point where people were buying steaks for Tuesday night. That’s unheard of throughout history; it isn’t right. It should be a treat.”"
Burglar left passport photo at Belgravia crime scene - "A career burglar was caught when he left a passport photo of himself on the roof of a £4m Belgravia property. Glen Banks, 57, climbed through a window of a two-bedroom house on Cadogan Lane on Feb 14 last year. One of the occupants noticed that a window was open and that there were muddy shoe prints on his deck. He then found Banks, who fled the house before he was caught. However, in doing so, he left his jacket behind, which contained paperwork including his passport photo, Southwark Crown Court heard. The jacket was tested and Banks’s DNA was identified. He was later arrested."
Clear proof that it was a false flag. No one could be so stupid like "terrorists" who bring their passports along or play both good and bad cop characters themselves - it must be Mossad that was behind it
Social workers missed three chances to save baby Preston Davey - "Social workers and medical staff have been accused of missing a string of opportunities to spot the abuse suffered by baby Preston Davey before he was murdered by his gay adoptive father. The 13-month-old died in July 2023, just weeks after being handed to gay couple Jamie Varley, 37, and John McGowan-Fazakerley, 32. During his time with the pair he was physically, sexually and psychologically abused before eventually being suffocated by having an object placed in his mouth. Preston’s maternal grandmother has questioned whether fears of being accused of homophobia clouded social workers’ judgment. After an eight-week trial at Preston Crown Court, Varley of was found guilty of murder, two counts of assault by penetration, five counts of cruelty to a child, grievous bodily harm, sexual assault of a child, 13 counts of taking indecent photos or videos of a child, one of distributing an indecent photo of a child, to his co-accused, and one of making an indecent photo. McGowan-Fazakerley was found guilty of allowing the death of a child, two counts of child cruelty and one count of the sexual assault of a child... the pathologist’s report suggested the death had not been accidental, and identified several other injuries. He had 30 external bruises, internal bruising in his mouth and throat, internal bruising to his anus, bowel and bladder, lacerations to his anorectum, and a perforated bowel. One medical expert said a bruise on the baby’s bottom appeared to be a bite mark. Police found images and videos on Varley’s phone, including of the baby’s bottom and private parts, which prosecutors claimed were indecent and had been captured for sexual gratification."
