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Celerity
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Celerity's Journal
March 16, 2021
https://thebanter.substack.com/p/biden-has-accomplished-more-in-fifty
President Joe Biden
Because it’s never a good idea to live inside an echo chamber, I regularly engage with MAGA supporters even though it’s terrible for my blood pressure and peace of mind. Some of the MAGAs I talk to are recurring conversations and others are transients but all of them are filled with incoherent rage. Part of that rage is, naturally, Fox, OAN, AM Hate Radio, and right wing hate sites pumping out white nationalist propaganda 24/7. Another part is Trump spewing hate speech and his Big Lie, and another the uppity women, Blacks, and LGBTQ people daring to tell the vaunted White man “No”. But a key component of the MAGA rage is that Joe Biden is everything Donald Trump isn’t. Aside from being president. Put aside the reflexive “I hate Democrats!” reaction of your typical MAGA. We’re all aware, or should be by now, that MAGAs despise every Democrat for the crime of existing. That’s a given. What’s a little less clear is why they hate Biden so much. He’s just...a guy. And kind of a nice guy at that. Biden has been in the public eye just as long as Trump and people just like him. They don’t always agree with what he does or says but the closest he’s ever been to cruel or malicious was during the Anita Hill hearings. He’s...Joe. His personality and lack of artifice led to the right’s total inability to smear Biden during the campaign. Not for lack of trying, mind you.
They tried every single page in their big bad playbook of scumbag politics. Biden is corrupt. Biden is incompetent. Biden is too old. He’s sick and frail. He’s racist. He’s a rapist. He’s a paedophile. The right’s smear machine went into overdrive and still came up short. All the bile poured on Biden just sluiced off of him, leaving rank and file Republican voters not loving Biden but certainly not hating him. The press commented on this regularly as they also couldn’t seem to generate any scandals that lasted long enough to make a difference. It must have been infuriating for journalists (Chuck Todd) whose entire business model is predicated on creating false equivalences. What was so simple to do in 2016 turned out to be nigh impossible in 2020. Now that Biden is president, the same dynamic continues to play out (so far). Even though Biden just signed the American Rescue Plan (ARP), a massive bill more progressive than anything the country has seen since LBJ and FDR before him, it is simply impossible to label Biden as some kind of radical or extremist. He’s Joe Biden. Who are you kidding? Biden is even refusing to crawl down into the mud to accommodate the right’s culture war nonsense. The White House is refusing to engage with Trump, won’t get into twitter fights, and won’t take the bait from Fox or OAN. The discipline is astonishing. It’s nice to have adults in charge again. Now compare that to Trump’s four years and you can start to see why MAGAs hate Biden so much.
Trump: The Shit Sandwich Presidency
The entire Trump presidency was shaped by Trump’s pathetic need (and abject failure) to destroy his vastly more competent predecessor: Barack Obama. Trump’s entire post-presidency will be defined by the ease with which his successor, Joe Biden, outshines Trump. It’s been less than two months and it’s already painfully clear that Trump is going to be remembered as four years of crap between two historically superior administrations. He’s a ‘shit-sandwich’ president and everyone knows it. By this point in Trump’s presidency, he had already been forced to fire his compromised national security advisor, disgraced former General Michael Flynn. That was after firing acting AG Sally Yates, informally for exposing Flynn and formally for refusing to defend an unconstitutional ban on Muslims; a ban which sparked massive nationwide protests. It all went significantly downhill from there. I can’t list everything Trump ruined during his four years because I’m not writing a book. I expect there will be several on the shelves by next Christmas and the more definitive versions to be multi-volume affairs. But just to pick a few lowlights that have an apples to apples comparison to Biden:
When Covid first started to spread, and for months afterwards, Trump lied to the public about how dangerous it was. He said it was just like a flu and it wasn’t going to be a problem. Biden, on the other hand, has been upfront and honest that Covid is a killer to be taken seriously by everyone. Trump and his regime of soulless monsters deliberately withheld a government-led plan to deal with the spread of Covid, with the explicit intent of letting it hurt blue states and Demcratic governors. This directly led to over 500,000 dead Americans. Biden has begun to implement a national strategy. Many Republican governors are going to fight it tooth and nail in but not all of them. And even in red states, there will be large swathes that respond to a coherent message from the federal government on what to do and how. Trump let the economy implode and didn’t lift a finger to stop it. As long as the stock market was doing well, he really didn’t give a damn about the rest of us. Republicans begrudgingly passed the Cares Act but they larded it up with billions for their corporate donors and then Trump’s cronies abused the programs to “disappear” billions more. Biden and the Democrats put together and passed the $1.9 Trillion American Rescue Plan in 50 days. The ARP is crammed with dozens of different ways to help the poor, the middle class, small businesses, schools, and more. By way of further comparison, Republicans took 12 months to pass their $1.9 Trillion tax scam, the overwhelming amount of which went to making the rich richer. Trump had so many “infrastructure weeks” he could fill a calendar with them. Nothing was ever done and it's a humiliating punchline now.
snip
Biden Has Accomplished More In Fifty Days Than Trump Did In Four Years
If you want to understand why MAGAs hate Joe Biden, look no further than his astonishing track record over the past seven weeks.https://thebanter.substack.com/p/biden-has-accomplished-more-in-fifty
President Joe Biden
Because it’s never a good idea to live inside an echo chamber, I regularly engage with MAGA supporters even though it’s terrible for my blood pressure and peace of mind. Some of the MAGAs I talk to are recurring conversations and others are transients but all of them are filled with incoherent rage. Part of that rage is, naturally, Fox, OAN, AM Hate Radio, and right wing hate sites pumping out white nationalist propaganda 24/7. Another part is Trump spewing hate speech and his Big Lie, and another the uppity women, Blacks, and LGBTQ people daring to tell the vaunted White man “No”. But a key component of the MAGA rage is that Joe Biden is everything Donald Trump isn’t. Aside from being president. Put aside the reflexive “I hate Democrats!” reaction of your typical MAGA. We’re all aware, or should be by now, that MAGAs despise every Democrat for the crime of existing. That’s a given. What’s a little less clear is why they hate Biden so much. He’s just...a guy. And kind of a nice guy at that. Biden has been in the public eye just as long as Trump and people just like him. They don’t always agree with what he does or says but the closest he’s ever been to cruel or malicious was during the Anita Hill hearings. He’s...Joe. His personality and lack of artifice led to the right’s total inability to smear Biden during the campaign. Not for lack of trying, mind you.
They tried every single page in their big bad playbook of scumbag politics. Biden is corrupt. Biden is incompetent. Biden is too old. He’s sick and frail. He’s racist. He’s a rapist. He’s a paedophile. The right’s smear machine went into overdrive and still came up short. All the bile poured on Biden just sluiced off of him, leaving rank and file Republican voters not loving Biden but certainly not hating him. The press commented on this regularly as they also couldn’t seem to generate any scandals that lasted long enough to make a difference. It must have been infuriating for journalists (Chuck Todd) whose entire business model is predicated on creating false equivalences. What was so simple to do in 2016 turned out to be nigh impossible in 2020. Now that Biden is president, the same dynamic continues to play out (so far). Even though Biden just signed the American Rescue Plan (ARP), a massive bill more progressive than anything the country has seen since LBJ and FDR before him, it is simply impossible to label Biden as some kind of radical or extremist. He’s Joe Biden. Who are you kidding? Biden is even refusing to crawl down into the mud to accommodate the right’s culture war nonsense. The White House is refusing to engage with Trump, won’t get into twitter fights, and won’t take the bait from Fox or OAN. The discipline is astonishing. It’s nice to have adults in charge again. Now compare that to Trump’s four years and you can start to see why MAGAs hate Biden so much.
Trump: The Shit Sandwich Presidency
The entire Trump presidency was shaped by Trump’s pathetic need (and abject failure) to destroy his vastly more competent predecessor: Barack Obama. Trump’s entire post-presidency will be defined by the ease with which his successor, Joe Biden, outshines Trump. It’s been less than two months and it’s already painfully clear that Trump is going to be remembered as four years of crap between two historically superior administrations. He’s a ‘shit-sandwich’ president and everyone knows it. By this point in Trump’s presidency, he had already been forced to fire his compromised national security advisor, disgraced former General Michael Flynn. That was after firing acting AG Sally Yates, informally for exposing Flynn and formally for refusing to defend an unconstitutional ban on Muslims; a ban which sparked massive nationwide protests. It all went significantly downhill from there. I can’t list everything Trump ruined during his four years because I’m not writing a book. I expect there will be several on the shelves by next Christmas and the more definitive versions to be multi-volume affairs. But just to pick a few lowlights that have an apples to apples comparison to Biden:
When Covid first started to spread, and for months afterwards, Trump lied to the public about how dangerous it was. He said it was just like a flu and it wasn’t going to be a problem. Biden, on the other hand, has been upfront and honest that Covid is a killer to be taken seriously by everyone. Trump and his regime of soulless monsters deliberately withheld a government-led plan to deal with the spread of Covid, with the explicit intent of letting it hurt blue states and Demcratic governors. This directly led to over 500,000 dead Americans. Biden has begun to implement a national strategy. Many Republican governors are going to fight it tooth and nail in but not all of them. And even in red states, there will be large swathes that respond to a coherent message from the federal government on what to do and how. Trump let the economy implode and didn’t lift a finger to stop it. As long as the stock market was doing well, he really didn’t give a damn about the rest of us. Republicans begrudgingly passed the Cares Act but they larded it up with billions for their corporate donors and then Trump’s cronies abused the programs to “disappear” billions more. Biden and the Democrats put together and passed the $1.9 Trillion American Rescue Plan in 50 days. The ARP is crammed with dozens of different ways to help the poor, the middle class, small businesses, schools, and more. By way of further comparison, Republicans took 12 months to pass their $1.9 Trillion tax scam, the overwhelming amount of which went to making the rich richer. Trump had so many “infrastructure weeks” he could fill a calendar with them. Nothing was ever done and it's a humiliating punchline now.
snip
March 16, 2021
https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2021/mar/16/coronavirus-live-news-keep-using-astrazenecaoxford-vaccine-says-who
Breaking 'no indication' AstraZeneca vaccine has caused blood clots, says European health authority
European Medicines Agency says number of blood clots in vaccinated people ‘seems not to be higher than that seen in the general population'https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2021/mar/16/coronavirus-live-news-keep-using-astrazenecaoxford-vaccine-says-who
March 16, 2021
TEXAS IS already one of the toughest states in which to cast a ballot, and Texas Republicans want to make it even harder. As in many other GOP-dominated states this year, the pretext is restoring faith in the election system, following then-President Donald Trump’s 2020 torrent of lies about fraud. The real goal is to suppress voting in Houston and other areas trending blue. The consequence ought to be voter backlash against a party that displays such contempt for democracy. Texas GOP lawmakers introduced on Friday a wave of anti-voting measures. One proposal would force counties to close polling places at 7 p.m., making it harder for shift workers to vote.
Most Texas voters already may not vote by mail; a Republican plan would require those claiming disability as a reason to cast an absentee ballot to provide onerous levels of written documentation to prove they qualify. Another proposal would bar counties from distributing absentee ballot applications unless voters formally request them. These are only a few of the useless hassles Texas Republicans want to impose on the state’s voters. Drive-through and outdoor voting would be banned. Texans would be restricted from dropping off completed absentee ballots. Deputy voter registrars, who help voters sort through the process of registering and casting ballots, would be eliminated. Volunteers who drive voters to polling places would be discouraged. Mass voting sites would be effectively eliminated. Overzealous voter roll purges seemingly designed to disqualify many eligible voters would be mandated.
Texas Republicans are almost surgical in their cynicism. Many of their proposals are in direct reaction to the methods that Harris County, home of Houston, used to ease voting in 2020. This despite — or, perhaps, because of — the fact that Texas ran a smooth, high-turnout election last year. After 22,000 hours of work, the Texas secretary of state’s office demonstrated only 16 instances of minor fraud — such as voters providing inaccurate addresses on their registration forms — in last year’s elections, according to the Houston Chronicle. If there was a threat to election integrity, it was that the state’s gratuitously strict voter-ID law and mail-in ballot policies deterred eligible people from voting.
But that, after all, is the point. Take it from Arizona state Rep. John Kavanagh (R), as he defended GOP voter suppression proposals in his state. “If somebody is uninterested in voting, that probably means that they’re totally uninformed on the issues,” Mr. Kavanagh said on CNN last week. “Quantity is important, but we have to look at the quality of votes, as well.” In a follow-up interview with The Post, Mr. Kavanagh said that he does not favor an information test to vote, but that “I don’t think people who are disinterested should be forced to the polls in the interest of turnout.” Declining to purge people from voting lists is not “forcing” people to the polls. Neither is sending out absentee voting applications, keeping voting locations open, allowing ballot drop boxes or permitting drive-thru voting. The primary “quality” many Republican officials — not all, but a disturbingly large number — appear interested in cultivating is a preference for Republican candidates. This should only steel voter determination to navigate the obstacles and throw them out of office.
snip
Washington Post Editorial Board: Texas Republicans declare war on democracy
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/texas-is-on-the-cutting-edge-of-voter-suppression/2021/03/15/5c274fce-85cd-11eb-8a8b-5cf82c3dffe4_story.htmlTEXAS IS already one of the toughest states in which to cast a ballot, and Texas Republicans want to make it even harder. As in many other GOP-dominated states this year, the pretext is restoring faith in the election system, following then-President Donald Trump’s 2020 torrent of lies about fraud. The real goal is to suppress voting in Houston and other areas trending blue. The consequence ought to be voter backlash against a party that displays such contempt for democracy. Texas GOP lawmakers introduced on Friday a wave of anti-voting measures. One proposal would force counties to close polling places at 7 p.m., making it harder for shift workers to vote.
Most Texas voters already may not vote by mail; a Republican plan would require those claiming disability as a reason to cast an absentee ballot to provide onerous levels of written documentation to prove they qualify. Another proposal would bar counties from distributing absentee ballot applications unless voters formally request them. These are only a few of the useless hassles Texas Republicans want to impose on the state’s voters. Drive-through and outdoor voting would be banned. Texans would be restricted from dropping off completed absentee ballots. Deputy voter registrars, who help voters sort through the process of registering and casting ballots, would be eliminated. Volunteers who drive voters to polling places would be discouraged. Mass voting sites would be effectively eliminated. Overzealous voter roll purges seemingly designed to disqualify many eligible voters would be mandated.
Texas Republicans are almost surgical in their cynicism. Many of their proposals are in direct reaction to the methods that Harris County, home of Houston, used to ease voting in 2020. This despite — or, perhaps, because of — the fact that Texas ran a smooth, high-turnout election last year. After 22,000 hours of work, the Texas secretary of state’s office demonstrated only 16 instances of minor fraud — such as voters providing inaccurate addresses on their registration forms — in last year’s elections, according to the Houston Chronicle. If there was a threat to election integrity, it was that the state’s gratuitously strict voter-ID law and mail-in ballot policies deterred eligible people from voting.
But that, after all, is the point. Take it from Arizona state Rep. John Kavanagh (R), as he defended GOP voter suppression proposals in his state. “If somebody is uninterested in voting, that probably means that they’re totally uninformed on the issues,” Mr. Kavanagh said on CNN last week. “Quantity is important, but we have to look at the quality of votes, as well.” In a follow-up interview with The Post, Mr. Kavanagh said that he does not favor an information test to vote, but that “I don’t think people who are disinterested should be forced to the polls in the interest of turnout.” Declining to purge people from voting lists is not “forcing” people to the polls. Neither is sending out absentee voting applications, keeping voting locations open, allowing ballot drop boxes or permitting drive-thru voting. The primary “quality” many Republican officials — not all, but a disturbingly large number — appear interested in cultivating is a preference for Republican candidates. This should only steel voter determination to navigate the obstacles and throw them out of office.
snip
March 16, 2021
https://www.thrillist.com/news/nation/laurenzana-italy-selling-homes-for-one-dollar
Home ownership is but a pipe dream for many Americans. Homes across Italy, however, are apparently flying off the shelves. Of course, the reasons behind this oft-reported trend are complicated, but who are we to stand between anyone and international property fantasies?
Laurenzana is the latest Italian town offering homes for the truly rom-com price of €1, or $1.20 USD. It spans 37 lovely square miles about 122 miles south of Naples. Its present population is about 1924, but, with prices like these, and no deposit necessary, it would appear that they’re ready to make room for more.
"We want to help newcomers purchase the house of their dreams without making it hard for them to follow tedious procedures and tight requirements," Mayor Michele Ungaro told CNN. "At times it can be difficult to navigate through regulation, particularly if you're a foreigner. We want this adventure to be a pleasure, not a burden." "That's why we are not asking for any deposit guarantee to ensure the works are speedily carried out. It sounds as a sort of threat,” Ungaro told the outlet.
You will be required to do a little bit of lifting before signing on the dotted line, however. According to CNN, prospective buyers must submit a “detailed restyle plan” (these homes do need, in real estate-speak, a little love) to even be considered, then begin work within three months of purchase to be completed within three years. The mayor also said that buyers should expect to spend about €20,000 ($23,908 USD) to get the homes in ship shape condition. It’s still a fraction of the cost of, say, a vial of air bottled in a two-bedroom apartment in New York City.
snip
Serious buyers should send inquiries to comunelaurenzana@rete.basilicata.it
Leave It all Behind and Start a New Life in Italy for about $1.20
Plus the cost of renovations, travel, and moving.https://www.thrillist.com/news/nation/laurenzana-italy-selling-homes-for-one-dollar
Home ownership is but a pipe dream for many Americans. Homes across Italy, however, are apparently flying off the shelves. Of course, the reasons behind this oft-reported trend are complicated, but who are we to stand between anyone and international property fantasies?
Laurenzana is the latest Italian town offering homes for the truly rom-com price of €1, or $1.20 USD. It spans 37 lovely square miles about 122 miles south of Naples. Its present population is about 1924, but, with prices like these, and no deposit necessary, it would appear that they’re ready to make room for more.
"We want to help newcomers purchase the house of their dreams without making it hard for them to follow tedious procedures and tight requirements," Mayor Michele Ungaro told CNN. "At times it can be difficult to navigate through regulation, particularly if you're a foreigner. We want this adventure to be a pleasure, not a burden." "That's why we are not asking for any deposit guarantee to ensure the works are speedily carried out. It sounds as a sort of threat,” Ungaro told the outlet.
You will be required to do a little bit of lifting before signing on the dotted line, however. According to CNN, prospective buyers must submit a “detailed restyle plan” (these homes do need, in real estate-speak, a little love) to even be considered, then begin work within three months of purchase to be completed within three years. The mayor also said that buyers should expect to spend about €20,000 ($23,908 USD) to get the homes in ship shape condition. It’s still a fraction of the cost of, say, a vial of air bottled in a two-bedroom apartment in New York City.
snip
Serious buyers should send inquiries to comunelaurenzana@rete.basilicata.it
March 15, 2021
https://www.themarysue.com/avatar-reclaims-box-office-throne-from-avengers-endgame/?utm_source=mostpopular
James Cameron’s 2009 sci-fi epic Avatar has reclaimed its spot as the highest grossing film of all time over 2019’s Avengers: Endgame. Avatar previously held the crown for a decade with a gross of $2.7897 billion worldwide, which was beaten by Avengers: Endgame earning $2.7902 billion. If you’re wondering how a film that came out over a decade ago toppled the Avengers juggernaut, it’s all thanks to a re-release of Avatar in China. The re-release earned $3.5 million, pushing its total haul to $2.7926 billion. Avatar is once more the highest grossing film ever, landing comfortably at $2.802 billion.
Avatar producer Jon Landau said, “We are proud to reach this great milestone, but Jim and I are most thrilled that the film is back in theatres during these unprecedented times, and we want to thank our Chinese fans for their support, … We are hard at work on the next Avatar films and look forward to sharing the continuation of this epic story for years to come.” Marvel Studios acknowledged Cameron’s win with a tweet, writing “Congratulations to @JimCameron, @JonLandau, and ALL of Na’vi Nation for reclaiming the box office crown! We love you 3000.”
https://twitter.com/MarvelStudios/status/1370777527237578755
Of course, the real winner here is Disney, which acquired 20th Century Fox in the 2019 merger. Disney will now be raking in the profits from not only the MCU and the Star Wars universe, but the planned Avatar sequels as well.
https://twitter.com/JimCameron/status/1370779946356903941
Many took to social media to congratulate Avatar and pour one out for Endgame:
https://twitter.com/JamesGunn/status/1370805785236697090
https://twitter.com/Russo_Brothers/status/1370790032114479104
But let’s not lie: the real winner here is actress Zoe Saldana, who stars in both franchises. Saldana plays Na’vi warrior Neytiri in the Avatar films, and GOTG member Gamora in the MCU. That’s quite a feat in and of itself, but adding in her role as Uhura in the Star Trek films, Saldana may be the highest grossing actress of all time. All hail the queen.
https://twitter.com/benmekler/status/1370786601031192578
https://twitter.com/binge_mode/status/1370778461388697600
https://twitter.com/MelanieJESC/status/1370802177778782208
https://twitter.com/mihailo____/status/1370803344139116545
https://twitter.com/attackofthehomo/status/1369016442386067457
It’s Zoe Saldana’s world, we’re just living in it.
Avatar Reclaims Box Office Throne From Avengers: Endgame
The real winner here? Zoe Saldana.https://www.themarysue.com/avatar-reclaims-box-office-throne-from-avengers-endgame/?utm_source=mostpopular
James Cameron’s 2009 sci-fi epic Avatar has reclaimed its spot as the highest grossing film of all time over 2019’s Avengers: Endgame. Avatar previously held the crown for a decade with a gross of $2.7897 billion worldwide, which was beaten by Avengers: Endgame earning $2.7902 billion. If you’re wondering how a film that came out over a decade ago toppled the Avengers juggernaut, it’s all thanks to a re-release of Avatar in China. The re-release earned $3.5 million, pushing its total haul to $2.7926 billion. Avatar is once more the highest grossing film ever, landing comfortably at $2.802 billion.
Avatar producer Jon Landau said, “We are proud to reach this great milestone, but Jim and I are most thrilled that the film is back in theatres during these unprecedented times, and we want to thank our Chinese fans for their support, … We are hard at work on the next Avatar films and look forward to sharing the continuation of this epic story for years to come.” Marvel Studios acknowledged Cameron’s win with a tweet, writing “Congratulations to @JimCameron, @JonLandau, and ALL of Na’vi Nation for reclaiming the box office crown! We love you 3000.”
https://twitter.com/MarvelStudios/status/1370777527237578755
Of course, the real winner here is Disney, which acquired 20th Century Fox in the 2019 merger. Disney will now be raking in the profits from not only the MCU and the Star Wars universe, but the planned Avatar sequels as well.
https://twitter.com/JimCameron/status/1370779946356903941
Many took to social media to congratulate Avatar and pour one out for Endgame:
https://twitter.com/JamesGunn/status/1370805785236697090
https://twitter.com/Russo_Brothers/status/1370790032114479104
But let’s not lie: the real winner here is actress Zoe Saldana, who stars in both franchises. Saldana plays Na’vi warrior Neytiri in the Avatar films, and GOTG member Gamora in the MCU. That’s quite a feat in and of itself, but adding in her role as Uhura in the Star Trek films, Saldana may be the highest grossing actress of all time. All hail the queen.
https://twitter.com/benmekler/status/1370786601031192578
https://twitter.com/binge_mode/status/1370778461388697600
https://twitter.com/MelanieJESC/status/1370802177778782208
https://twitter.com/mihailo____/status/1370803344139116545
https://twitter.com/attackofthehomo/status/1369016442386067457
It’s Zoe Saldana’s world, we’re just living in it.
March 13, 2021
https://hypebeast.com/2021/3/netflix-the-last-blockbuster-documentary-march-2021-release
Netflix is officially dropping a documentary about the last ever Blockbuster video store. Titled, The Last Blockbuster, the film gives a nostalgic glimpse of the video store, featuring bevy of interviews from previous employees, fans and business people.
The documentary focuses on the last-ever remaining Blockbuster in the world in Bend, Oregon. A recent statement on the documentary’s official Facebook page reads, “A lot of people know that Blockbuster had the chance to buy Netflix early on and they passed on the opportunity. In an ironic twist of fate, our movie The Last Blockbuster is coming to Netflix one week from today. We are beyond excited for people to get to see this tribute to era of home video on the world’s largest streaming service. Just don’t forget to rewind it when you’re done watching it and bring it back by noon on Wednesday.”
The world’s remaining Blockbuster had been celebrated by many artists over the recent years. Even Drake marked his 32nd birthday with an ode to the 2000s, featuring a full Blockbuster video wall. The store itself was previously transformed into an Airbnb, allowing fans to reminisce watching TV on a pull-out couch.
The Last Blockbuster premieres on Netflix on March 15. In case you missed it, Steven Spielberg is set to direct a semi-autobiographical film based on his childhood.
Netflix Set To Release Documentary on the Last Ever Blockbuster Store
‘The Last Blockbuster’ premieres this March 2021.https://hypebeast.com/2021/3/netflix-the-last-blockbuster-documentary-march-2021-release
Netflix is officially dropping a documentary about the last ever Blockbuster video store. Titled, The Last Blockbuster, the film gives a nostalgic glimpse of the video store, featuring bevy of interviews from previous employees, fans and business people.
The documentary focuses on the last-ever remaining Blockbuster in the world in Bend, Oregon. A recent statement on the documentary’s official Facebook page reads, “A lot of people know that Blockbuster had the chance to buy Netflix early on and they passed on the opportunity. In an ironic twist of fate, our movie The Last Blockbuster is coming to Netflix one week from today. We are beyond excited for people to get to see this tribute to era of home video on the world’s largest streaming service. Just don’t forget to rewind it when you’re done watching it and bring it back by noon on Wednesday.”
The world’s remaining Blockbuster had been celebrated by many artists over the recent years. Even Drake marked his 32nd birthday with an ode to the 2000s, featuring a full Blockbuster video wall. The store itself was previously transformed into an Airbnb, allowing fans to reminisce watching TV on a pull-out couch.
The Last Blockbuster premieres on Netflix on March 15. In case you missed it, Steven Spielberg is set to direct a semi-autobiographical film based on his childhood.
March 13, 2021
https://www.gearpatrol.com/cars/a35821571/canoo-electric-pickup-truck-overlanding
Just last December, California-based EV startup Canoo revealed its boxy commercial delivery van. Now, they've just announced another vehicle on their multi-purpose platform — and much to our delight, it's an awesome overlanding-ready pickup truck. Canoo is calling it "the most cab forward and space-efficient" truck on the market, and the preliminary specs impress. Canoo's truck will come in both single- and dual-motor versions; the most capable will pack 600 horsepower and 550 lb-ft of torque. The truck will be able to accommodate a 1,800-pound payload; the target range is north of 200 miles. It will be the same approximate height and width of a Ford F-150, but more than two feet shorter than the smallest version — and with a longer bed, to boot.
Whether you're looking for a work truck or an adventure truck, this Canoo should be one versatile craft. A pull-out extension can extend the bed to eight feet long, and the frunk features a fold-down work table and electrical outlets for tools. The bed has fold-down tables on either side, modular space dividers and a multi-accessory charge port. Buyers can fit the Canoo truck with a roof rack and a camper shell to hold a rooftop tent.
There's no word yet on pricing for the new truck, but Canoo says it will begin taking pre-orders in the second quarter of 2021. Deliveries for the Canoo truck could begin "as early as 2023," which suggests the truck is some way off from being finished. Rivian went more traditional with the R1T, which looks more or less like an electric Tacoma and GM is building the Hummer EV into a genuine super-truck, but Tesla went avant-garde with the Cybertruck design. Canoo's truck could be a compelling middle ground that's novel and quirky and takes maximum advantage of the added functionality an EV offers...without going too over the top.
snip
Forget the Tesla Cybertruck. This New Electric Pickup Is Even More Wild
Canoo has a fresh take on the electric pickup that is simultaneously weirder and cooler than Tesla's concept.https://www.gearpatrol.com/cars/a35821571/canoo-electric-pickup-truck-overlanding
Just last December, California-based EV startup Canoo revealed its boxy commercial delivery van. Now, they've just announced another vehicle on their multi-purpose platform — and much to our delight, it's an awesome overlanding-ready pickup truck. Canoo is calling it "the most cab forward and space-efficient" truck on the market, and the preliminary specs impress. Canoo's truck will come in both single- and dual-motor versions; the most capable will pack 600 horsepower and 550 lb-ft of torque. The truck will be able to accommodate a 1,800-pound payload; the target range is north of 200 miles. It will be the same approximate height and width of a Ford F-150, but more than two feet shorter than the smallest version — and with a longer bed, to boot.
Whether you're looking for a work truck or an adventure truck, this Canoo should be one versatile craft. A pull-out extension can extend the bed to eight feet long, and the frunk features a fold-down work table and electrical outlets for tools. The bed has fold-down tables on either side, modular space dividers and a multi-accessory charge port. Buyers can fit the Canoo truck with a roof rack and a camper shell to hold a rooftop tent.
There's no word yet on pricing for the new truck, but Canoo says it will begin taking pre-orders in the second quarter of 2021. Deliveries for the Canoo truck could begin "as early as 2023," which suggests the truck is some way off from being finished. Rivian went more traditional with the R1T, which looks more or less like an electric Tacoma and GM is building the Hummer EV into a genuine super-truck, but Tesla went avant-garde with the Cybertruck design. Canoo's truck could be a compelling middle ground that's novel and quirky and takes maximum advantage of the added functionality an EV offers...without going too over the top.
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March 12, 2021
A dose of voting reform, and scrapping the filibuster, would help
https://www.economist.com/leaders/2021/03/13/how-to-renew-americas-democracy
For President Joe Biden to sign a $1.9trn stimulus bill this week was an economic gamble—on inflation, the Federal Reserve and the capital markets. But politically, it was a dead cert. The Democrats, though in control of Congress and the White House, can pass only rare budgetary bills, under a procedure known as reconciliation. Any other legislation could be blocked by a filibuster, which requires a bill to muster a supermajority of 60 Senate votes. Because covid-19 is unpredictable, the stimulus had to be big enough to deal with new variants. Because the administration might not get another chance, the plan smuggled in pet priorities. Because, under the rules, it was not subject to scrutiny in Senate committees, Republicans made no contribution. It is a terrible way for the world’s leading democracy to pass laws. Congress is not the only political institution under strain: elections are, too. After Donald Trump’s victory in 2016, some Democrats thought the result was manipulated by Russia. After Mr Trump’s defeat in 2020 a large majority of Republicans accepted his baseless claim that the vote had somehow been stolen. Motivated by that conviction, Republicans in 45 states have since introduced bills to tighten election laws. For their part, Democrats in the House have already passed hr 1, which if enacted would rein in state Republicans, by imposing federal voting standards instead. But the bill will not get through Congress as long as the Senate has the filibuster.
Thus the task of fixing America’s democracy enmeshes both voting in the Senate and voting in the country at large. When politics is infected by bad faith, that can make the situation worse. If the rules of politics became the main field of combat, the system itself could come to seem even more illegitimate to voters. However, it is a bit late to worry about that. As the assault on Congress on January 6th suggests, a struggle over procedure and voting is already under way. America must emerge better able to govern itself without resorting to once-a-session monster-bills. As a result, the incentives which reward bitter partisanship could be tempered—including through voting reform. Fortunately, this is not an idle hope. American democracy looks tired. In 2010 Freedom House, a sort of ratings agency for democracies, gave America a score of 94 out of 100; its latest rating is 11 points lower. The Economist Intelligence Unit, our sister company, puts America 25th in its rankings, behind much younger democracies that it helped create such as Germany, Japan and South Korea. The judgment of America’s own voters, which is what matters most, is even harsher. According to the Pew Research Centre, a think-tank, the share who trust the federal government always or most of the time has fallen to just 20%, compared with scores in the 30s and 40s in the Reagan era. One cog at the heart of this creaking engine is the filibuster, a parliamentary convention that the Senate has increasingly come to rely on over the past century. Plenty of parliaments ask for a supermajority to change the constitution, but nowhere else requires one for routine legislation.
Despite that, its supporters in Congress, many of them institutional conservatives, see it as a brake on hasty lawmaking that encourages bipartisanship. They say that scrapping it would invite a seesawing of legislation from one election to the next. Take these arguments one by one. By making lawmaking so hard, the filibuster often prevents the kind of changes that conservatives want. The proof of that is the fact that, except for a piece of emergency covid-19 legislation, the Trump administration was able to get only one ambitious bill through Congress—a tax cut, also under reconciliation. By favouring stasis, the filibuster channels power from the legislative branch to the president and the Supreme Court, which also ought to alarm constitutional conservatives. The claim that the filibuster encourages bipartisanship is no longer true. Barring that covid law, no bill has passed with a bipartisan, filibuster-proof majority in the Senate in more than a decade. More often it kills bipartisanship. Sometimes a handful of Democrats or Republicans are open to voting with the other side, but not enough to get to 60. Rather than handing power to moderates across the aisle, the filibuster more often takes it away from them. That kills compromise. The risk of seesawing laws is real, but other democracies seem able to tolerate it. Indeed, the passing of legislation is a vital part of how voters hold governments to account. By contrast, the filibuster lets politicians campaign on divisive, hare-brained policies knowing that they will never have to enact them, and hence take responsibility for them.
Ideally America would scrap the filibuster completely. Although that needs a simple majority, because it is a procedural rule, it is unlikely because at least two Democratic senators want to keep it. Yet they may be ready to carve out exemptions, as happens today with tax bills and judicial nominations. One reform would be to require legislators to talk on the Senate floor for a long time if they want to delay legislation, as in the past, rather than just placing a hold on a bill. That could clear a path for voting reform with hr 1. This, too, should be a priority. State Republicans argue that their changes will safeguard elections, but many look like attempts to change the rules in their favour. In Georgia, for example, Republicans have passed a bill restricting Sunday voting, which by an amazing coincidence is when many churchgoing African-Americans vote. hr 1 would restrict the ability of state parties to game voting laws. It also asks presidential candidates to disclose their tax returns and ends gerrymandering, which enables politicians to redraw district boundaries once a decade. It is not perfect: it lets political operatives collect mail-in ballots, for example. But, suitably amended, it need not harm Republicans disproportionately. And besides, making voting easy and secure ought to be the aim of any party committed to democracy. A bold reform risks unforeseen consequences. But the United States is no longer viewed as the beacon of democracy it once was. To renew itself at home and set an example abroad, America needs to roll up its sleeves and get on with the repairs. ■
snip
Dig deeper
The filibuster is an oddity that harms American democracy (Mar 2021)
America’s battle over election laws (Mar 2021)
Joe Manchin, the wild man of the mountains (Mar 2021)
We are also tracking the Biden administration’s progress in its first 100 days
How to renew America's democracy
A dose of voting reform, and scrapping the filibuster, would help
https://www.economist.com/leaders/2021/03/13/how-to-renew-americas-democracy
For President Joe Biden to sign a $1.9trn stimulus bill this week was an economic gamble—on inflation, the Federal Reserve and the capital markets. But politically, it was a dead cert. The Democrats, though in control of Congress and the White House, can pass only rare budgetary bills, under a procedure known as reconciliation. Any other legislation could be blocked by a filibuster, which requires a bill to muster a supermajority of 60 Senate votes. Because covid-19 is unpredictable, the stimulus had to be big enough to deal with new variants. Because the administration might not get another chance, the plan smuggled in pet priorities. Because, under the rules, it was not subject to scrutiny in Senate committees, Republicans made no contribution. It is a terrible way for the world’s leading democracy to pass laws. Congress is not the only political institution under strain: elections are, too. After Donald Trump’s victory in 2016, some Democrats thought the result was manipulated by Russia. After Mr Trump’s defeat in 2020 a large majority of Republicans accepted his baseless claim that the vote had somehow been stolen. Motivated by that conviction, Republicans in 45 states have since introduced bills to tighten election laws. For their part, Democrats in the House have already passed hr 1, which if enacted would rein in state Republicans, by imposing federal voting standards instead. But the bill will not get through Congress as long as the Senate has the filibuster.
Thus the task of fixing America’s democracy enmeshes both voting in the Senate and voting in the country at large. When politics is infected by bad faith, that can make the situation worse. If the rules of politics became the main field of combat, the system itself could come to seem even more illegitimate to voters. However, it is a bit late to worry about that. As the assault on Congress on January 6th suggests, a struggle over procedure and voting is already under way. America must emerge better able to govern itself without resorting to once-a-session monster-bills. As a result, the incentives which reward bitter partisanship could be tempered—including through voting reform. Fortunately, this is not an idle hope. American democracy looks tired. In 2010 Freedom House, a sort of ratings agency for democracies, gave America a score of 94 out of 100; its latest rating is 11 points lower. The Economist Intelligence Unit, our sister company, puts America 25th in its rankings, behind much younger democracies that it helped create such as Germany, Japan and South Korea. The judgment of America’s own voters, which is what matters most, is even harsher. According to the Pew Research Centre, a think-tank, the share who trust the federal government always or most of the time has fallen to just 20%, compared with scores in the 30s and 40s in the Reagan era. One cog at the heart of this creaking engine is the filibuster, a parliamentary convention that the Senate has increasingly come to rely on over the past century. Plenty of parliaments ask for a supermajority to change the constitution, but nowhere else requires one for routine legislation.
Despite that, its supporters in Congress, many of them institutional conservatives, see it as a brake on hasty lawmaking that encourages bipartisanship. They say that scrapping it would invite a seesawing of legislation from one election to the next. Take these arguments one by one. By making lawmaking so hard, the filibuster often prevents the kind of changes that conservatives want. The proof of that is the fact that, except for a piece of emergency covid-19 legislation, the Trump administration was able to get only one ambitious bill through Congress—a tax cut, also under reconciliation. By favouring stasis, the filibuster channels power from the legislative branch to the president and the Supreme Court, which also ought to alarm constitutional conservatives. The claim that the filibuster encourages bipartisanship is no longer true. Barring that covid law, no bill has passed with a bipartisan, filibuster-proof majority in the Senate in more than a decade. More often it kills bipartisanship. Sometimes a handful of Democrats or Republicans are open to voting with the other side, but not enough to get to 60. Rather than handing power to moderates across the aisle, the filibuster more often takes it away from them. That kills compromise. The risk of seesawing laws is real, but other democracies seem able to tolerate it. Indeed, the passing of legislation is a vital part of how voters hold governments to account. By contrast, the filibuster lets politicians campaign on divisive, hare-brained policies knowing that they will never have to enact them, and hence take responsibility for them.
Ideally America would scrap the filibuster completely. Although that needs a simple majority, because it is a procedural rule, it is unlikely because at least two Democratic senators want to keep it. Yet they may be ready to carve out exemptions, as happens today with tax bills and judicial nominations. One reform would be to require legislators to talk on the Senate floor for a long time if they want to delay legislation, as in the past, rather than just placing a hold on a bill. That could clear a path for voting reform with hr 1. This, too, should be a priority. State Republicans argue that their changes will safeguard elections, but many look like attempts to change the rules in their favour. In Georgia, for example, Republicans have passed a bill restricting Sunday voting, which by an amazing coincidence is when many churchgoing African-Americans vote. hr 1 would restrict the ability of state parties to game voting laws. It also asks presidential candidates to disclose their tax returns and ends gerrymandering, which enables politicians to redraw district boundaries once a decade. It is not perfect: it lets political operatives collect mail-in ballots, for example. But, suitably amended, it need not harm Republicans disproportionately. And besides, making voting easy and secure ought to be the aim of any party committed to democracy. A bold reform risks unforeseen consequences. But the United States is no longer viewed as the beacon of democracy it once was. To renew itself at home and set an example abroad, America needs to roll up its sleeves and get on with the repairs. ■
snip
Dig deeper
The filibuster is an oddity that harms American democracy (Mar 2021)
America’s battle over election laws (Mar 2021)
Joe Manchin, the wild man of the mountains (Mar 2021)
We are also tracking the Biden administration’s progress in its first 100 days
March 11, 2021
The Gateway Foundation has announced that it intends to open the first hotel in space, named Voyager Station, in 2027. Voyager Station will be built by construction company Orbital Assembly Corporation, which describes itself as "the world's first large scale space construction company". According to the organisation, construction of the 50,000-square-metre facility will start in 2026 with the first passengers visiting the hotel in 2027. When it opens, the rotating hotel will have rooms for up to 440 people. The rotating ring-shaped form will give the station gravity equivalent to one-sixth of the Earth's. "Going to space will just be another option people will pick for their vacation" The Gateway Foundation originally revealed its design for the space hotel, which was then called the Von Braun Space Station, in 2019. At the time, its senior design architect Tim Alatorre explained that the aim of the project was to make visiting space accessible to everyone.
"Eventually, going to space will just be another option people will pick for their vacation, just like going on a cruise, or going to Disney World," Alatorre told Dezeen. "Because the overall costs are still so high most people assume that space tourism will only be available to the super-rich, and while I think this will be true for the next several years, the Gateway Foundation has a goal of making space travel open to everyone." Since its first launch, Orbital Assembly Corporation has revealed more details about the structure and its construction. The first element to be built will be a central un-pressurised ring structure that will contain the docking hub at its centre.
Following this, the 200-metre-diametre outer ring truss will be assembled and connected to the central ring by a network of spokes. This ring will support the 24 habitation modules, which will be used for hotel accommodation, restaurants, bars, gyms, crew accommodation and scientific research pods. According to the organisation, Voyager Station will be designed to have the "feel of a luxury hotel", with comfortable interiors that reject the sleek futurist look often depicted in films. "In the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey, Stanley Kubrick's Space Station 5 is a sterile, white, museum-like hotel," explained Alatorre in an interview with Dezeen. "While it made for a clearly futuristic feeling in the movie, in reality, it wasn't a very inviting space. As humans, we innately connect to natural materials and colours."
Voyager Station will contain a range of holiday accommodation options with 500-square-metre "luxury villas" that will be available to be rented for a week, month or permanently. These villas will have sleeping space for 16 along with three bathrooms and cooking facilities. Alongside the villa, the space station will have numerous 30-square-metre hotel suites that will have beds for two people and a private bathroom. According to the Gateway Foundation, as the space hotel has gravity, guests should expect a similar experience to visiting a high-end hotel, with restaurants that "will rival the best venues on Earth". Guests will be able to relax in a triple-tier bar with a water feature that "will seemingly defy the laws of physics".
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First space hotel set to open in 2027
https://www.dezeen.com/2021/03/09/space-hotel-voyager-station-gateway-foundation/The Gateway Foundation has announced that it intends to open the first hotel in space, named Voyager Station, in 2027. Voyager Station will be built by construction company Orbital Assembly Corporation, which describes itself as "the world's first large scale space construction company". According to the organisation, construction of the 50,000-square-metre facility will start in 2026 with the first passengers visiting the hotel in 2027. When it opens, the rotating hotel will have rooms for up to 440 people. The rotating ring-shaped form will give the station gravity equivalent to one-sixth of the Earth's. "Going to space will just be another option people will pick for their vacation" The Gateway Foundation originally revealed its design for the space hotel, which was then called the Von Braun Space Station, in 2019. At the time, its senior design architect Tim Alatorre explained that the aim of the project was to make visiting space accessible to everyone.
"Eventually, going to space will just be another option people will pick for their vacation, just like going on a cruise, or going to Disney World," Alatorre told Dezeen. "Because the overall costs are still so high most people assume that space tourism will only be available to the super-rich, and while I think this will be true for the next several years, the Gateway Foundation has a goal of making space travel open to everyone." Since its first launch, Orbital Assembly Corporation has revealed more details about the structure and its construction. The first element to be built will be a central un-pressurised ring structure that will contain the docking hub at its centre.
Following this, the 200-metre-diametre outer ring truss will be assembled and connected to the central ring by a network of spokes. This ring will support the 24 habitation modules, which will be used for hotel accommodation, restaurants, bars, gyms, crew accommodation and scientific research pods. According to the organisation, Voyager Station will be designed to have the "feel of a luxury hotel", with comfortable interiors that reject the sleek futurist look often depicted in films. "In the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey, Stanley Kubrick's Space Station 5 is a sterile, white, museum-like hotel," explained Alatorre in an interview with Dezeen. "While it made for a clearly futuristic feeling in the movie, in reality, it wasn't a very inviting space. As humans, we innately connect to natural materials and colours."
Voyager Station will contain a range of holiday accommodation options with 500-square-metre "luxury villas" that will be available to be rented for a week, month or permanently. These villas will have sleeping space for 16 along with three bathrooms and cooking facilities. Alongside the villa, the space station will have numerous 30-square-metre hotel suites that will have beds for two people and a private bathroom. According to the Gateway Foundation, as the space hotel has gravity, guests should expect a similar experience to visiting a high-end hotel, with restaurants that "will rival the best venues on Earth". Guests will be able to relax in a triple-tier bar with a water feature that "will seemingly defy the laws of physics".
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