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February 26, 2022
Friends from Texas attending CPAC in Orlando, Fla., on Thursday. Credit...Scott McIntyre for The New York Times
Assholes On Parade In Florida
Friends from Texas attending CPAC in Orlando, Fla., on Thursday. Credit...Scott McIntyre for The New York Times
February 26, 2022
https://www.macobserver.com/news/apple-stops-apple-pay-russia/
Apple Pay in Russia
Since the start of the invasion Russians have withdrawn over US$1.3 billion from banks. Banks such as Novikombank, Promsvyazbank, Sovcombank, Otkritie, and VTB are on the sanction list from the United States. The Bank of Russia confirmed:
snip
In the Russian market Apple has also:
Removed LGBT Emojis
Removed voting guides from the Russian App Store
Turned Private Relay feature off in the Russian Market
Allowed government apps on Russian iOS devices
Apple Stops Apple Pay Transactions in Russia
A number of Russian banks have faced sanctions due to the country’s current invasion of Ukraine. Apple has suspended transactions for Apple Pay for Russian customers.https://www.macobserver.com/news/apple-stops-apple-pay-russia/
Apple Pay in Russia
Since the start of the invasion Russians have withdrawn over US$1.3 billion from banks. Banks such as Novikombank, Promsvyazbank, Sovcombank, Otkritie, and VTB are on the sanction list from the United States. The Bank of Russia confirmed:
Cards issued by banks subject to the sanctions of Western states also work and will work throughout Russia without restrictions. Customer funds in accounts linked to cards are also fully stored and available. At the same time, customers of banks subject to sanctions (banks of VTB Group, Sovcombank, Novikombank, Promsvyazbank, Otkritie) will not be able to pay with cards of these banks abroad and use them to pay for services in online stores and service aggregators registered in countries that support sanctions.
Also, the cards of these banks will not be able to be used with Apple Pay, Google Pay services, but standard contact or contactless payment on these cards is available in full throughout Russia.
Also, the cards of these banks will not be able to be used with Apple Pay, Google Pay services, but standard contact or contactless payment on these cards is available in full throughout Russia.
snip
In the Russian market Apple has also:
Removed LGBT Emojis
Removed voting guides from the Russian App Store
Turned Private Relay feature off in the Russian Market
Allowed government apps on Russian iOS devices
February 26, 2022
https://www.thrillist.com/eat/nation/best-soul-food-restaurants-in-the-us
For the first few weeks after moving to Brooklyn, I felt homesick. I longed for a meal that resembled something even remotely close to my grandma’s Sunday meals she’d cook when I was younger. To put it plainly, I missed soul food.
I was born and raised in Georgia and my palate craved collard greens cooked with ham hocks, fried chicken with hot sauce (legs are the best part, no debate here), and pork chops. But even though I was states away from my forever home, New York proved itself to have a soul food scene where I was reminded of who and where I came from.
Not to be confused with Southern comfort food, soul food has historic roots that differentiate it from other American cuisines. The legacy of soul food is marinated in tenacity and soaked in a pot of togetherness.
“Soul food is the Southern food that Black migrants took outside the south and transplanted in other parts of the country,” says soul food scholar and culinary historian, Adrian E. Miller. “Soul food is usually more intensely seasoned, relies on the use of a variety of meats, and usually borders the line between savory and sweet.”
snip
The Best Soul Food Spots in America to Visit on Your Next Road Trip
Indulge in mac and cheese, fried catfish, and sweet potato pie.https://www.thrillist.com/eat/nation/best-soul-food-restaurants-in-the-us
For the first few weeks after moving to Brooklyn, I felt homesick. I longed for a meal that resembled something even remotely close to my grandma’s Sunday meals she’d cook when I was younger. To put it plainly, I missed soul food.
I was born and raised in Georgia and my palate craved collard greens cooked with ham hocks, fried chicken with hot sauce (legs are the best part, no debate here), and pork chops. But even though I was states away from my forever home, New York proved itself to have a soul food scene where I was reminded of who and where I came from.
Not to be confused with Southern comfort food, soul food has historic roots that differentiate it from other American cuisines. The legacy of soul food is marinated in tenacity and soaked in a pot of togetherness.
“Soul food is the Southern food that Black migrants took outside the south and transplanted in other parts of the country,” says soul food scholar and culinary historian, Adrian E. Miller. “Soul food is usually more intensely seasoned, relies on the use of a variety of meats, and usually borders the line between savory and sweet.”
snip
February 26, 2022
https://www.thrillist.com/news/nation/hubble-on-your-birthday-nasa-photos
The Hubble Space Telescope may be one of the most famous objects humans have put in space. It has provided iconic images that have inspired thousands and left an indelible mark on the way we think about the universe. 2020 was the 30th anniversary of Hubble's arrival in orbit after launching on April 24, 1990.
NASA had planned on celebrating the milestone in several ways, but many of those events have been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Agency nonetheless celebrated the landmark observatory online. Those online activities include a photo gallery, a tour of the telescope, e-books, and a site where you can enter a date and see an image Hubble took on your birthday. That last one might be the most fun thing the site has launched thus far. (We also collected some NASA staff members' favorite Hubble images.)
The Telescope is watching the cosmos night and day, every day of the year. That makes digging for your birthday picture a bit of a lottery with the chance that you'll find something iconic or revolutionary pop up, like the Monkey Head Nebula, the Eagle Nebula Pillars, or a glamour shot of Jupiter. (To be clear, the images are from your birth date and not necessarily the year you were born.)
It's not an overstatement when NASA writes that the telescope "has transformed our understanding of the universe." You can share your birthday image on social media and get a glimpse of what others have found by searching the hashtag #Hubble30 on Twitter and Instagram.
snip
here is a pic from taken on my 1 year birthday in 1997:
Beta Pictoris Disk
In 1984, Beta Pictoris was the very first star discovered to be surrounded by a bright disk of light-scattering dust and debris. Planets are thought to form in such disks, and astronomers have discovered two planets orbiting Beta Pictoris.
NASA Will Show You the Stunning Space Photo the Hubble Took on Your Birthday
The Hubble telescope has taken hundreds of images since it launched in 1990. NASA has built a tool that lets you see images taken on your birthdayhttps://www.thrillist.com/news/nation/hubble-on-your-birthday-nasa-photos
The Hubble Space Telescope may be one of the most famous objects humans have put in space. It has provided iconic images that have inspired thousands and left an indelible mark on the way we think about the universe. 2020 was the 30th anniversary of Hubble's arrival in orbit after launching on April 24, 1990.
NASA had planned on celebrating the milestone in several ways, but many of those events have been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Agency nonetheless celebrated the landmark observatory online. Those online activities include a photo gallery, a tour of the telescope, e-books, and a site where you can enter a date and see an image Hubble took on your birthday. That last one might be the most fun thing the site has launched thus far. (We also collected some NASA staff members' favorite Hubble images.)
The Telescope is watching the cosmos night and day, every day of the year. That makes digging for your birthday picture a bit of a lottery with the chance that you'll find something iconic or revolutionary pop up, like the Monkey Head Nebula, the Eagle Nebula Pillars, or a glamour shot of Jupiter. (To be clear, the images are from your birth date and not necessarily the year you were born.)
It's not an overstatement when NASA writes that the telescope "has transformed our understanding of the universe." You can share your birthday image on social media and get a glimpse of what others have found by searching the hashtag #Hubble30 on Twitter and Instagram.
snip
here is a pic from taken on my 1 year birthday in 1997:
Beta Pictoris Disk
In 1984, Beta Pictoris was the very first star discovered to be surrounded by a bright disk of light-scattering dust and debris. Planets are thought to form in such disks, and astronomers have discovered two planets orbiting Beta Pictoris.
February 26, 2022
The Reflex in the Sweatbox mix for The Blessed Madonna's BBC6 show as aired on Saturday 5th February 2022.
Tracklist:
Ruth “Silky” Waters – Everybody Loves A Good Funk [The Reflex Revision] (Discolidays)
The Reflex – Weekend (Sweat It Out)
Bobby Thurston – You Got What It Takes [The Reflex Revision]
Cerrone – Look For Love [The Reflex Revision] (Because Music)
Destiny II – Play To Win (Z Records)
Q – The Voice Of Q [The Reflex Revision] (Discolidays)
Roisin Murphy – Narcissus [The Reflex Revision] (Skint/BMG)
Inner Life – I like It Like That [The Reflex Revision] (Salsoul/BMG)
Track ID [The Reflex Revision]
JH x Mousse T. – Do The Boogie [The Reflex Revision] (Warner)
Claptone ft Barry Manilow – Nobody [The Reflex Revision] (Different/PIAS)
Bruise – When Pianos Attack [The Reflex Revision] (Foundation)
Sylvester – Dance (Disco Heat) [The Reflex Revision]
The Reflex - The Blessed Madonna BBC6 The Reflex Sweatbox Mix
https://soundcloud.com/thereflex/the-blessed-madonna-bbc6-the-reflex-sweatboxThe Reflex in the Sweatbox mix for The Blessed Madonna's BBC6 show as aired on Saturday 5th February 2022.
Tracklist:
Ruth “Silky” Waters – Everybody Loves A Good Funk [The Reflex Revision] (Discolidays)
The Reflex – Weekend (Sweat It Out)
Bobby Thurston – You Got What It Takes [The Reflex Revision]
Cerrone – Look For Love [The Reflex Revision] (Because Music)
Destiny II – Play To Win (Z Records)
Q – The Voice Of Q [The Reflex Revision] (Discolidays)
Roisin Murphy – Narcissus [The Reflex Revision] (Skint/BMG)
Inner Life – I like It Like That [The Reflex Revision] (Salsoul/BMG)
Track ID [The Reflex Revision]
JH x Mousse T. – Do The Boogie [The Reflex Revision] (Warner)
Claptone ft Barry Manilow – Nobody [The Reflex Revision] (Different/PIAS)
Bruise – When Pianos Attack [The Reflex Revision] (Foundation)
Sylvester – Dance (Disco Heat) [The Reflex Revision]
February 25, 2022
https://twitter.com/nytimes/status/1497123147077890051
Ukrainian troops killed on Snake Island to be honored.
https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/02/25/world/russia-ukraine-war#ukraine-troops-snake-islandhttps://twitter.com/nytimes/status/1497123147077890051
February 25, 2022
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration will significantly loosen federal mask-wearing guidelines to protect against COVID-19 transmission on Friday, according to two people familiar with the matter, meaning most Americans will no longer be advised to wear masks in indoor public settings.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday will announce a change to the metrics it uses to determine whether to recommend face coverings, shifting from looking at COVID-19 case counts to a more holistic view of risk from the coronavirus to a community. Under current guidelines, masks are recommended for people residing in communities of substantial or high transmission — roughly 95% of U.S. counties, according to the latest data.
The new metrics will still consider caseloads, but also take into account hospitalizations and local hospital capacity, which have been markedly improved during the emergence of the omicron variant. That strain is highly transmissible, but indications are that it is less severe than earlier strains, particularly for people who are fully vaccinated and boosted. Under the new guidelines, the vast majority of Americans will no longer live in areas where indoor masking in public is recommended, based on current data.
The new policy comes as the Biden administration moves to shift its focus to preventing serious illness and death from COVID-19, rather than all instances of infection, as part of a strategy adjustment for a new “phase” in the response as the virus becomes endemic.
snip
CDC to significantly ease pandemic mask guidelines Friday
https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-health-pandemics-centers-for-disease-control-and-prevention-64f411f3b8c91faa091332ada342ab19WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration will significantly loosen federal mask-wearing guidelines to protect against COVID-19 transmission on Friday, according to two people familiar with the matter, meaning most Americans will no longer be advised to wear masks in indoor public settings.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday will announce a change to the metrics it uses to determine whether to recommend face coverings, shifting from looking at COVID-19 case counts to a more holistic view of risk from the coronavirus to a community. Under current guidelines, masks are recommended for people residing in communities of substantial or high transmission — roughly 95% of U.S. counties, according to the latest data.
The new metrics will still consider caseloads, but also take into account hospitalizations and local hospital capacity, which have been markedly improved during the emergence of the omicron variant. That strain is highly transmissible, but indications are that it is less severe than earlier strains, particularly for people who are fully vaccinated and boosted. Under the new guidelines, the vast majority of Americans will no longer live in areas where indoor masking in public is recommended, based on current data.
The new policy comes as the Biden administration moves to shift its focus to preventing serious illness and death from COVID-19, rather than all instances of infection, as part of a strategy adjustment for a new “phase” in the response as the virus becomes endemic.
snip
February 25, 2022
Moment before Ukrainian soldiers defending Serpent Island are targeted by a Russian warship.
https://twitter.com/Caucasuswar/status/1497106271761317915
February 25, 2022
https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2022/02/vladimir-putin-ukraine-taiwan/622907/
As Russian tanks roll over Ukraine, Vladimir Putin’s crisis will reverberate around the world, possibly most dangerously in the Taiwan Strait. An attempt by Beijing to claim Taiwan by force has just become more likely. That’s not necessarily because there is a direct link between Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and Beijing’s menacing of Taiwan, but because the war for Ukraine is the most unfortunate indication yet of the frightening direction of global geopolitics: Autocrats are striking back.
With the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991, the long American struggle against global authoritarian threats seemed to have been won. Just about everywhere, dictators were on the run—Indonesia, Myanmar, Brazil, South Korea, the Philippines, Chile, and even Russia itself. Globalization was working its supposed magic, spreading liberal political and economic ideals, prosperity, and, hopefully, an end to big-power confrontation. Sure, the Chinese Communist Party was entrenched in Beijing, but its cadres appeared to be partners in the global order, content to get gloriously rich and immerse themselves in the trading networks and international institutions created by the democratic powers.
Putin’s Ukraine war exposes how wrong that line of thinking was. What the U.S. and its allies achieved in the 1990s was not a final victory over authoritarianism, but a mere respite. For years, the American-led liberal democratic consensus has been eroding: Take Viktor Orbán’s illiberal democracy in Hungary, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s undercutting of freedoms in Turkey, or Narendra Modi’s assault on India’s secular traditions. In Myanmar, the generals have reclaimed control; Jair Bolsonaro espouses antidemocratic rhetoric in Brazil; and Rodrigo Duterte has proudly prosecuted a violent and lawless drug war in the Philippines. Still, Putin’s invasion marks a new stage, heralds a new era—one of authoritarian aggression.
No country, though, is as big a threat to the liberal world order as China. Russia, in many respects, is a declining power, lacking the economic dynamism to sustain its political punch. The assault on Ukraine may be Putin getting what he wants while he still can. The story is different with China—a power with increasing economic, diplomatic, and military might. Russia is in the headlines today, but China will be the spearhead of the authoritarian cause. President Xi Jinping’s nationalist fervor, commitment to the restoration of Chinese power, and more aggressive approach compared with his predecessors when it comes to territorial and maritime disputes, relations with the U.S. and its allies, as well as the international system writ large, have already become a destabilizing force in Asia.
snip
Is Taiwan Next?
https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2022/02/vladimir-putin-ukraine-taiwan/622907/
As Russian tanks roll over Ukraine, Vladimir Putin’s crisis will reverberate around the world, possibly most dangerously in the Taiwan Strait. An attempt by Beijing to claim Taiwan by force has just become more likely. That’s not necessarily because there is a direct link between Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and Beijing’s menacing of Taiwan, but because the war for Ukraine is the most unfortunate indication yet of the frightening direction of global geopolitics: Autocrats are striking back.
With the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991, the long American struggle against global authoritarian threats seemed to have been won. Just about everywhere, dictators were on the run—Indonesia, Myanmar, Brazil, South Korea, the Philippines, Chile, and even Russia itself. Globalization was working its supposed magic, spreading liberal political and economic ideals, prosperity, and, hopefully, an end to big-power confrontation. Sure, the Chinese Communist Party was entrenched in Beijing, but its cadres appeared to be partners in the global order, content to get gloriously rich and immerse themselves in the trading networks and international institutions created by the democratic powers.
Putin’s Ukraine war exposes how wrong that line of thinking was. What the U.S. and its allies achieved in the 1990s was not a final victory over authoritarianism, but a mere respite. For years, the American-led liberal democratic consensus has been eroding: Take Viktor Orbán’s illiberal democracy in Hungary, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s undercutting of freedoms in Turkey, or Narendra Modi’s assault on India’s secular traditions. In Myanmar, the generals have reclaimed control; Jair Bolsonaro espouses antidemocratic rhetoric in Brazil; and Rodrigo Duterte has proudly prosecuted a violent and lawless drug war in the Philippines. Still, Putin’s invasion marks a new stage, heralds a new era—one of authoritarian aggression.
No country, though, is as big a threat to the liberal world order as China. Russia, in many respects, is a declining power, lacking the economic dynamism to sustain its political punch. The assault on Ukraine may be Putin getting what he wants while he still can. The story is different with China—a power with increasing economic, diplomatic, and military might. Russia is in the headlines today, but China will be the spearhead of the authoritarian cause. President Xi Jinping’s nationalist fervor, commitment to the restoration of Chinese power, and more aggressive approach compared with his predecessors when it comes to territorial and maritime disputes, relations with the U.S. and its allies, as well as the international system writ large, have already become a destabilizing force in Asia.
snip
February 24, 2022
Ukraine Broadens State Of Emergency, Calls Up Military Reservists
https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-conscripting-18-60-year-olds/31718145.html
BREAKING: Ukrainian President Zelenskiy orders general mobilization
https://twitter.com/BNONews/status/1496969989978472452Ukraine Broadens State Of Emergency, Calls Up Military Reservists
https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-conscripting-18-60-year-olds/31718145.html
Profile Information
Gender: FemaleHometown: London
Home country: US/UK/Sweden
Current location: Stockholm, Sweden
Member since: Sun Jul 1, 2018, 07:25 PM
Number of posts: 43,283
