Apparently Kellyanne Conway tweeted a revenge porn topless pic of her underaged daughter Claudia this morning, since taken down. Just a downright awful person and even worse mother.
My electric smoker died at the end of last summer and I'm looking to replace it with one of those fancy ceramic ones this spring. It's been a long several months going without smoked beef/fish/pork.
There's a place in Shanghai (Garlic Barbecue) with Turkish owners who spent like 2 months in Central Texas learning how to smoke brisket. They've adopted the Franklin model - and while it's not up there with the best of central Texas, it's probably as good as any "normal" barbecue place in Texas which means it's pretty darn good. The one thing is they don't have normal Texas sides, instead opting for Turkish sides - and they do this mashed eggplant which is fantastic.
My ex's great aunt had an oven recipe that the kids want every Christmas. Liberally sprinkle onion powder, garlic powder, celery salt, and liquid smoke over the brisket. Marinate it overnight. Cover with Worcestershire sauce and put in the oven at 275 for 6+ hours, fat side up. open it up, flip it fat side down, and put BBQ sauce on top. bake another 1.5 hours. It's good, not Texas smoked good, but still good and much less labor than using a smoker.
steak is overrated. I don't really care for it and will rarely order it, unless it's like a 32oz bone-in cote de boeuf. Other forms of beef are fine. I love hamburgers, carne asada, slow cooked meats like stew or barbacoa, but traditional steaks like filet or NY strip, or even ribeye don't really excite me.
I really like hamburgers, but the downside (for me at least) is that they are just eaten too quickly. I like to enjoy a leisurely meal, almost always with a 1/2 bottle of wine.
I usually don't get steak when I'm out but we were in Dallas or work and went to an upscale-ish place in Highland Park. Medium Rare Ribeye. Was incredibly good.
I'm not a spokesperson for the Beef Council, but I enjoy a good prime rib, the streak at Corso's last March (Bone-in 36oz at least, fed three of us) or the rare occasions my wife makes some sort of steak. One of my fave dinners is sliced skirt streak with chimicurri, with a medley of roasted veggies as a side. And Italian potato salad.
No. It's not that I'm opposed, I just don't find it that exciting as a meat. It's okay in stews and such, but if you told me the only beef I could have was whatever remnants they put in hamburgers, I could live with it.
If you don't understand and appreciate good brisket then you clearly never had the good stuff. It is true though that brisket is one of the most underappreciated cuts. (Pro tip: For that reason, its also cheaper as a result.)
ummm, you need to come visit Casa de Fire Starkey where I am acknowledged as one of the world's great brisket smokers. Even the Missus, who says frequently that I am not good at anything except pissing her off, acknowledges the delight of my smoked brisket and has proclaimed it "better than anything we get at restaurants." And this in the city with the world's greatest brisket
I can confirm that there are 100’s of places in Texas that have mouth watering brisket. Franklin’s, Kruez Market, Lockhart Salt Lick among others. But there is a place in California (Cardiff By the Sea) at Seaside Market that sells/makes a brisket called Cardiff Crack that is just as good as Texas brisket - so much so that I know people here that have it shipped from California to Texas. It’s that good. And, it’s not made with liquid smoke. Liquid smoke (smh).
I still mildly regret not forcing myself to roll out of bed and go sleep/wait in line across the street at Franklin's for the brisket during that Texas trip. Our AirBnB was right next door. I did really enjoy the brisket from the food truck Micklethwait which had no line and was recommended by Texas Alumni, but I do wonder how much marginally better Franklin would have been.
My sister had a vacation in Austin a few years ago but Franklin was closed due to a fire then.
Had some at a small place on the Riverwalk in San Antonio when I was there for an Alamo Bowl that I will never forget. Also had a Brisket dinner in Boise that was tremendous.
I think we only waited about 15 min. If I remember we got there sometime after 8, maybe 830. HSB drove and I slept the whole way since I didn't get to the hotel until maybe 1230-1 AM and we left around 630-7.
I’m watching the Netflix documentary called Fear City, about the FBI’s use of surveillance to attempt to bring down the Mafia in 1980’s New York. It’s fascinating to see & hear government efforts in real life as opposed to, say, Goodfellas. As someone that lived in NY & has visited often, sometimes simply to BOO the Yankees, the actual footage from NYC is pretty cool.
I also recently watched the 1984 film The Pope of Greenwich Village with Mickey Rourke & a Splash-era, pre-Wall Street Daryl Hannah...filmed on location. Solid cast, an ok movie, tho the NYC setting is pretty cool. Anyone that had any lingering doubts as to why Eric Roberts never amounted to much of an actor, THIS is exhibit A, however....
I think he's always been this lame, but the mob folks used him to control their membership, and for 'retirements' that didn't involve putting someone down.
This is the most seen I've ever been in a media story (applicable to Gen X and older millennials) - its just documenting the weird link between growing up in the 80s and early 90s and a shared love of New Order, Depeche Mode, Erasure, the Cure, Pet Shop Boys etc. etc.
For me personally, I first heard Black Celebration at my older cousin's place in Vancouver in 1986, then a trip to Thailand ended up with me taking home bootleg casettes of New Order and the Cure. Add in 3 summers of nerd camp at CalTech's summer science program (4SP) where I picked up Erasure from the Lee siblings - and then my first concert was 1990 Depeche Mode Violator - and then the change from KIIS to KROQ sometime around 7th grade (1987-88) and the story of my junior high and high school is written into this blog post.
My wife remains befuddled that I saw the Cure with Love and Rockets as the opening band - at Dodger Stadium. I've found that people from the northeast or midwestern college cities can't quite believe the scale of "alternative" shows in southern California.
It's possible that her awareness of the Rose Bowl could be described as "cultural" rather than detailed, despite (because of?) growing up in Ann Arbor. It's also hard for me to remember sometimes that it wasn't just possible but typical to be indifferent to regional differences, for oldies like me.
Some have said they are concerned about both re-electability and party support of campaigns. Some have expressed concerns about physical security and safety. Both are obviously potential considerations when choosing to empower (or benefit from) someone like Trump, though practically speaking, what happened with him was beyond the individual control of the average state senator.
Nevertheless, if you don't have the results, for whatever reason, its nothing but a publicity maneuver, those that too has some utility come the next contested election.
Former Army Sec'y Ryan C. McCarthy will be at a closed briefing at the House Appropriations Committee to explain why the DC National Guard was restricted from acting at the Capitol Insurgency. The DC National Guard is the only national guard that reports to the US President.
Heh...but he didn't get anything in writing. They could just go back and vote for the filibuster. Hmm...what other senators have voted the opposite they've said??
IMO you have to get the Republicans to hold up some kind of super-popular legislation and turn public opinion against them before you'll get moderate Dems to vote to overturn the filibuster. It might never happen. It might only happen for another narrow type of vote (like it was for judges). But that's the prerequisite.
I saw some dude on twitter declare that Andrew Jackson was a consequential president who deserved to be ensrhined on money and Harriet Tubman wasn't even a historical footnote. As you might imagine, lots of minds were changed.
I did see an interesting observation from a black woman that she was having some philosophical unease with the idea of someone who was treated as property becoming part of the iconography of money and property. I'm not sure I agree, but I can understand that a lot more than the dismissal.
This is one area where we could take some notes from other countries using paper notes for general commemoration rather than only political figures who have been dead for a while.
Kamala Harris about to get her second shot. She's talking with an NIH doctor who apparently has a Cal background and worked at Lawrence Berkeley Lab. On a personal note, I hate watching people get shots.
"China’s coronavirus vaccines were supposed to deliver a geopolitical win that showcased the country’s scientific prowess and generosity. Instead, in some places, they have set off a backlash.
Officials in Brazil and Turkey have complained that Chinese companies have been slow to ship the doses and ingredients. Disclosures about the Chinese vaccines have been slow and spotty. The few announcements that have trickled out suggest that China’s vaccines, while considered effective, cannot stop the virus as well as those developed by Pfizer and Moderna, the American drugmakers.
In the Philippines, some lawmakers have criticized the government’s decision to buy a vaccine made by a Chinese company, Sinovac. Officials in Malaysia and Singapore, which both ordered doses from Sinovac, have had to reassure their citizens that they would approve a vaccine only if it had been proved safe and effective.
“Right now, I would not take any Chinese vaccine, because there’s insufficient data,” said Bilahari Kausikan, an influential former official at Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He added that he would consider it only with “a proper report.”
No, I did mean New York. I have wandered about a good part of the west, but not so much the east. There are a number of places I find more attractive in the east for what's bound to be limited wandering time in the area.
some of my fellow alumni seem upset that Chris Claiborne (former SC RB) has taken a job at ASU, but he might actually learn some coaching skills there, so I'm not sure what the downside is.
Yes, and they even rewarded him by putting him on the actual roster (although inactive) for one game. I think the move today is just formality with regards to next year.
Baseball HoF announcement is at 3 pm PT today. Apparently, the only potential new inductee is Curt Schilling but many believe that he will once again fall just short. Schilling deserves it based on his baseball merit, but I really hope he doesn't get in for a long time until his association with the far right is ancient history.
No one is elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame this year. Certain parts of the baseball Twitter freaks out again, arguing for Schilling and for Bonds/Clemens.
oh wow. interesting. I don't think Bonds and Clemens will make it next year. I think the writers will force the veterans committee to vote them in. Maybe Schilling makes it next year on his last year.
For 2022, here's the first time eligibles: Carl Crawford, Prince Fielder, Ryan Howard, Tim Lincecum, Joe Nathan, David Ortiz, Jonathan Papelbon, Jake Peavy, AJ Pierzynski, Alex Rodriguez, Jimmy Rollins, Mark Teixeira.
Basically David Ortiz and A-Rod. Here is where it will be interesting. If A-Rod gets the votes, then I think the same voters vote Bonds and Clemens. So maybe 2022 is the Steroids year.
Yeah, Ortiz and A-Rod make it interesting for the next ballot. Not sure if voters can justify voting for those guys and not Bonds/Clemens. And I think they really want to vote for Ortiz.
Yeah I think Ortiz is the one guy they'll want to vote for. That's a good point. The one that everyone loved, well maybe not Yankees fans. Would they dare vote Ortiz but not A-Rod, Bonds, Clemens? I don't think so but that would be something.
I think they will get in via the veteran's committee and the steroid usage will be noted, if not on the plaque but in some other form. The record-breaking homer with the branded asterisk is already at the Hall of Fame.
A year since Kobe and his daughter and his daughters teammates were killed in a helicopter crash. What a strange year - 5 days later I was on a plane to Bangkok, where I would stay for 70+ days.
I was in LA visiting my sister and her fiancee and they had wanted me to get them McD breakfast (or rather they are willing to pay Uber Eat a lot more money and I was willing to walk the few blocks and pocket the difference). Anyhow, the girl at McD counter was asking everyone if they believe the news that Kobe Bryant had died. My sister also called me with the news.
Somewhat similarly, when Michael Jackson died, I was at Nationals Park (for a game that ended up being rained out). The cashier at Ben's Chili Bowl informed me that MJ had passed.
I was in a shared Lyft on my way to Classof87's house for a shindig she was having, and one of the other passengers said to her friend, "Did you see this???"
In a personal odd turn of events (unrelated), when I left Classof 87's house, I got the same driver!
The driver was Asian (like me), and we talked about what we'd been hearing about the respiratory illness and whether we should be wearing masks.
Thailand is pretty great if you like 85 degree weather with 90% humidity. Great food, cheap living, polluted crowded metropolis. But since the addition of the subway and the skytrain, the traffic is more tolerable.
Also my cousin has a pretty big condo that has an outdoor Olympic sized swimming pool downstairs so that was pretty key.
Nice attempt that's severely handicapped by only looking at the shortened 2020 season stats (I guess that's all that's available) while also ignoring how the opposing pitchers are not all of the same calibers in college.
TIL: NCAA Women's soccer rankings only included teams that played in the fall. This means that the final rankings for the top 15 teams in the country did not include any Pac-12 teams. About 2 months later, they played the NCAA tourney and three of the four teams in the semi-finals were Pac-12 teams. Cal plays a 14 game season in 2021 with their three "non-conference" games against Pac-12 foes, including playing defending national champion Leland Stanfurd Junior College twice.
Stanford's top player, Catarina Macario, who made her USWNT debut recently has turned pro by signing with Olympique Lyonnais (the best pro team in the world thanks to an owner who is willing to spend...thus they got Alex Morgan several years ago). There will also be a lot of weird situations with some of the NWSL draftees opting to turn pro, particularly if they played their season last fall but won't wait for the NCAA tournament this May.
Apparently Kellyanne Conway tweeted a revenge porn topless pic of her underaged daughter Claudia this morning, since taken down. Just a downright awful person and even worse mother.
Both of those parents are awful
But it’s the Democrats, liberals and Hollywood elites that are into child porn and pedophilia according to QAnon and conservatives.
You stay classy, Kellyanne
I see they are trying the "it was hacked" excuse
even if it was...why does she have topless pics of her daughter?
If it was a hack, that's likely not the first thing off her phone I would have posted.
The texts from trump about how to do the coup would have been higher on the exposure list.
Speculation is that the picture was being kept for blackmail purposes, but honestly in that freakshow family, who can say
jeezus. I don't generally advocate for violence, but shooting her seems appropriate.
oh my good lord. she seems so awful.
Child pornography charges to follow.
Good. That is utterly reprehensible and she needs to face dire legal consequences.
My red-beans-and-rice is made with monkey tears
https://abc7ny.com/pets-animals/target-drops-coconut-milk-over-monkey-labor-allegations/10030001/
Monkey labor? Sure, why not?
Autoplaying a video that begins with 15-second ad on a news article that's only about 150 words long? Get bent, ABC7 NY.
Brisket
My electric smoker died at the end of last summer and I'm looking to replace it with one of those fancy ceramic ones this spring. It's been a long several months going without smoked beef/fish/pork.
There's a place in Shanghai (Garlic Barbecue) with Turkish owners who spent like 2 months in Central Texas learning how to smoke brisket. They've adopted the Franklin model - and while it's not up there with the best of central Texas, it's probably as good as any "normal" barbecue place in Texas which means it's pretty darn good. The one thing is they don't have normal Texas sides, instead opting for Turkish sides - and they do this mashed eggplant which is fantastic.
FS feel free to skip this comment.
My ex's great aunt had an oven recipe that the kids want every Christmas. Liberally sprinkle onion powder, garlic powder, celery salt, and liquid smoke over the brisket. Marinate it overnight. Cover with Worcestershire sauce and put in the oven at 275 for 6+ hours, fat side up. open it up, flip it fat side down, and put BBQ sauce on top. bake another 1.5 hours. It's good, not Texas smoked good, but still good and much less labor than using a smoker.
skip the liquid smoke, and it's probably lovely.
True. I may try that next time.
I find that using a smoker isn't much labor. A few minutes of set up, throw the meat in there, and wait all day until it's done.
I...I...I can't skip this. Liquid smoke? LIQUID SMOKE?!?! WHY NOT JUST SHIT ON IT?!?!?
Yes, this!!
It's a recipe from someone from Kansas. The result is pretty good for a low maintenance brisket, though obviously not as good as an actual smoker.
Kansas. So much is explained
Yeah. I'm surprised there's not a can of Campbell's condensed soup in this recipe
ewwwwww
#beefconsomme
the most delicious of all the meats. Speaking of, I have a prime in my freezer that I should get out and thaw. NOMNOMNOMNOM
I can't say I've ever understood the appeal but maybe I've never had the right kind.
I should also point out that I'm not much of a beef enthusiast anyway
steak is overrated. I don't really care for it and will rarely order it, unless it's like a 32oz bone-in cote de boeuf. Other forms of beef are fine. I love hamburgers, carne asada, slow cooked meats like stew or barbacoa, but traditional steaks like filet or NY strip, or even ribeye don't really excite me.
I really like hamburgers, but the downside (for me at least) is that they are just eaten too quickly. I like to enjoy a leisurely meal, almost always with a 1/2 bottle of wine.
I usually don't get steak when I'm out but we were in Dallas or work and went to an upscale-ish place in Highland Park. Medium Rare Ribeye. Was incredibly good.
I'm not a spokesperson for the Beef Council, but I enjoy a good prime rib, the streak at Corso's last March (Bone-in 36oz at least, fed three of us) or the rare occasions my wife makes some sort of steak. One of my fave dinners is sliced skirt streak with chimicurri, with a medley of roasted veggies as a side. And Italian potato salad.
So, so good.
you sure sound like the beef council spokesperson with this kind of endorsement
AS IF! We have a form of steak maybe 6 times a year, if you don't count leftovers.
okay I've got something to add to the mix - my younger daughter made birria tacos a few weeks ago and those were magical
but I will eat brisket, beef ribs and hot links all fucking day long
Well being Scottish, I guess it's all about the mutton?
No. It's not that I'm opposed, I just don't find it that exciting as a meat. It's okay in stews and such, but if you told me the only beef I could have was whatever remnants they put in hamburgers, I could live with it.
Along with good brisket, you've never had good prime rib? Tis' glorious.
had it, didn't care for it enough to repeat it.
If you don't understand and appreciate good brisket then you clearly never had the good stuff. It is true though that brisket is one of the most underappreciated cuts. (Pro tip: For that reason, its also cheaper as a result.)
ummm, you need to come visit Casa de Fire Starkey where I am acknowledged as one of the world's great brisket smokers. Even the Missus, who says frequently that I am not good at anything except pissing her off, acknowledges the delight of my smoked brisket and has proclaimed it "better than anything we get at restaurants." And this in the city with the world's greatest brisket
Have some in Texas. Melts in your mouth good.
I can confirm that there are 100’s of places in Texas that have mouth watering brisket. Franklin’s, Kruez Market, Lockhart Salt Lick among others. But there is a place in California (Cardiff By the Sea) at Seaside Market that sells/makes a brisket called Cardiff Crack that is just as good as Texas brisket - so much so that I know people here that have it shipped from California to Texas. It’s that good. And, it’s not made with liquid smoke. Liquid smoke (smh).
I still mildly regret not forcing myself to roll out of bed and go sleep/wait in line across the street at Franklin's for the brisket during that Texas trip. Our AirBnB was right next door. I did really enjoy the brisket from the food truck Micklethwait which had no line and was recommended by Texas Alumni, but I do wonder how much marginally better Franklin would have been.
My sister had a vacation in Austin a few years ago but Franklin was closed due to a fire then.
Had some at a small place on the Riverwalk in San Antonio when I was there for an Alamo Bowl that I will never forget. Also had a Brisket dinner in Boise that was tremendous.
We had some in Snow's in Lexington before the Texas game. Was tremendous.
How long was the line?
I think we only waited about 15 min. If I remember we got there sometime after 8, maybe 830. HSB drove and I slept the whole way since I didn't get to the hotel until maybe 1230-1 AM and we left around 630-7.
NYC
I’m watching the Netflix documentary called Fear City, about the FBI’s use of surveillance to attempt to bring down the Mafia in 1980’s New York. It’s fascinating to see & hear government efforts in real life as opposed to, say, Goodfellas. As someone that lived in NY & has visited often, sometimes simply to BOO the Yankees, the actual footage from NYC is pretty cool.
I also recently watched the 1984 film The Pope of Greenwich Village with Mickey Rourke & a Splash-era, pre-Wall Street Daryl Hannah...filmed on location. Solid cast, an ok movie, tho the NYC setting is pretty cool. Anyone that had any lingering doubts as to why Eric Roberts never amounted to much of an actor, THIS is exhibit A, however....
I watched that series when it debuted and following the aftermath of the election, I had to wonder wtf happened to Giuliani
in the sense that he's lost his marbles, or just that he was better at concealing the general thuggery then?
I think he's always been this lame, but the mob folks used him to control their membership, and for 'retirements' that didn't involve putting someone down.
Why do Asian Americans Love New Wave So Much?
https://themuse.jezebel.com/how-can-i-explain-an-incomplete-oral-history-of-asian-1845911631
This is the most seen I've ever been in a media story (applicable to Gen X and older millennials) - its just documenting the weird link between growing up in the 80s and early 90s and a shared love of New Order, Depeche Mode, Erasure, the Cure, Pet Shop Boys etc. etc.
For me personally, I first heard Black Celebration at my older cousin's place in Vancouver in 1986, then a trip to Thailand ended up with me taking home bootleg casettes of New Order and the Cure. Add in 3 summers of nerd camp at CalTech's summer science program (4SP) where I picked up Erasure from the Lee siblings - and then my first concert was 1990 Depeche Mode Violator - and then the change from KIIS to KROQ sometime around 7th grade (1987-88) and the story of my junior high and high school is written into this blog post.
there's been a lot of great new wave/synth wave stuff released the past few years
The first concert I attended was Depeche Mode as well.
Summer 1990 Violator Tour at Dodger Stadium with Nitzer Ebb and Electronic opening for them.
My wife remains befuddled that I saw the Cure with Love and Rockets as the opening band - at Dodger Stadium. I've found that people from the northeast or midwestern college cities can't quite believe the scale of "alternative" shows in southern California.
I mean 101 was recorded at the Rose Bowl.
It's possible that her awareness of the Rose Bowl could be described as "cultural" rather than detailed, despite (because of?) growing up in Ann Arbor. It's also hard for me to remember sometimes that it wasn't just possible but typical to be indifferent to regional differences, for oldies like me.
1986 tour as I remember, Book of Love, another synth band, opened.
Our might be recovering democracy but still too early to tell
Senate votes 55-45 to NOT dismiss the impeachment trial. So the other 6 GOP members who said that Trump was in the wrong were apparently lying.
https://twitter.com/axios/status/1354164073630478336
Short a dozen votes of what will be needed to convict. I don't see anything on the horizon that will swing that many votes.
When it comes down to it they want trump voters voting for them the next election so they won't vote to impeach regardless of what they say.
Some have said they are concerned about both re-electability and party support of campaigns. Some have expressed concerns about physical security and safety. Both are obviously potential considerations when choosing to empower (or benefit from) someone like Trump, though practically speaking, what happened with him was beyond the individual control of the average state senator.
Nevertheless, if you don't have the results, for whatever reason, its nothing but a publicity maneuver, those that too has some utility come the next contested election.
My Pillow guy banned from Twitter
Former Army Sec'y Ryan C. McCarthy will be at a closed briefing at the House Appropriations Committee to explain why the DC National Guard was restricted from acting at the Capitol Insurgency. The DC National Guard is the only national guard that reports to the US President.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/dc-guard-capitol-riots-william-walker-pentagon/2021/01/26/98879f44-5f69-11eb-ac8f-4ae05557196e_story.html
Maricopa County Commissioner's lawyer uses the ol' Cleveland Browns retort to Turning Point USA's letter
https://beta.documentcloud.org/documents/20463697-tom-ryan-response-2021-01-25-ltr-to-lavely-singer-re-comm-kennedy
https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/cleveland-browns-letters/
McConnell allows Senate powersharing deal to go through after Manchin (D-WV) and Sinema (D-AZ) publicly pledge to not eliminate the filibuster
https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/25/politics/senate-republicans-power-sharing-deal/index.html
Heh...but he didn't get anything in writing. They could just go back and vote for the filibuster. Hmm...what other senators have voted the opposite they've said??
but the dems are too big of pussies to actually do that
Gotta appeal to that middle-of-the-road voter who probably doesn't even know what the filibuster is...
IMO you have to get the Republicans to hold up some kind of super-popular legislation and turn public opinion against them before you'll get moderate Dems to vote to overturn the filibuster. It might never happen. It might only happen for another narrow type of vote (like it was for judges). But that's the prerequisite.
Supreme Court drops two emolument cases against Trump
https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/25/politics/emoluments-trump-supreme-court-explainer/index.html
Bad news/
Biden replaces Trump's Andrew Jackson portrait with a Ben Franklin portrait.
https://www.al.com/opinion/2021/01/biden-replaces-trumps-andrew-jackson-portrait-with-ben-franklin.html
Biden administration restarts the Tubman-on-the-$20-bill program
https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/25/politics/harriet-tubman-20-biden-trump-obama/index.html
I saw some dude on twitter declare that Andrew Jackson was a consequential president who deserved to be ensrhined on money and Harriet Tubman wasn't even a historical footnote. As you might imagine, lots of minds were changed.
I did see an interesting observation from a black woman that she was having some philosophical unease with the idea of someone who was treated as property becoming part of the iconography of money and property. I'm not sure I agree, but I can understand that a lot more than the dismissal.
This is one area where we could take some notes from other countries using paper notes for general commemoration rather than only political figures who have been dead for a while.
Today in Covid-19
Kamala Harris about to get her second shot. She's talking with an NIH doctor who apparently has a Cal background and worked at Lawrence Berkeley Lab. On a personal note, I hate watching people get shots.
I recommend watching kitten videos instead. You will find them much less jarring.
Ham-handed attempt at soft power? Very much so:
"China’s coronavirus vaccines were supposed to deliver a geopolitical win that showcased the country’s scientific prowess and generosity. Instead, in some places, they have set off a backlash.
Officials in Brazil and Turkey have complained that Chinese companies have been slow to ship the doses and ingredients. Disclosures about the Chinese vaccines have been slow and spotty. The few announcements that have trickled out suggest that China’s vaccines, while considered effective, cannot stop the virus as well as those developed by Pfizer and Moderna, the American drugmakers.
In the Philippines, some lawmakers have criticized the government’s decision to buy a vaccine made by a Chinese company, Sinovac. Officials in Malaysia and Singapore, which both ordered doses from Sinovac, have had to reassure their citizens that they would approve a vaccine only if it had been proved safe and effective.
“Right now, I would not take any Chinese vaccine, because there’s insufficient data,” said Bilahari Kausikan, an influential former official at Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He added that he would consider it only with “a proper report.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/25/business/china-covid-19-vaccine-backlash.html
the theme picture is funny if you have a morbid sense of humor... fortunately, I do!
It's just another item on a needlessly long list of reasons why I have no desire to ever go there.
I would never, ever, ever live in New York, but it's a great place to visit.
what, New York?
No, the ground. AndyPanda plans to wander the earth as a restless immortal.
No, I did mean New York. I have wandered about a good part of the west, but not so much the east. There are a number of places I find more attractive in the east for what's bound to be limited wandering time in the area.
Other College
UW's Freshman TE (former 4-star) kicked off the team for felony battery and narcotics charges.
https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/uw-husky-football/former-uw-football-player-jack-yary-arrested-on-battery-narcotics-charges/
[Report] Sonny Dykes in running for U Tennessee HC job.
https://footballscoop.com/news/sources-clemsons-elliott-big-ten-coach-among-those-vetted-on-rocky-top/
it's lose-lose with that fan base no matter which direction they go
They could do worse, and certainly have recently.
Florida Man x41
https://twitter.com/FootbaIIism/status/1353906753650520065
You can take the man out of Florida, but you can't take the Florida out of the man.
URBANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
some of my fellow alumni seem upset that Chris Claiborne (former SC RB) has taken a job at ASU, but he might actually learn some coaching skills there, so I'm not sure what the downside is.
Pro
Davis Webb is now a Buffalo Bill
https://twitter.com/BuffaloBills/status/1354183579551625216
Hasn’t he been on there practice squad this season?
Yes, and they even rewarded him by putting him on the actual roster (although inactive) for one game. I think the move today is just formality with regards to next year.
Webb has now been on the roster of every NY NFL team.
Baseball HoF announcement is at 3 pm PT today. Apparently, the only potential new inductee is Curt Schilling but many believe that he will once again fall just short. Schilling deserves it based on his baseball merit, but I really hope he doesn't get in for a long time until his association with the far right is ancient history.
No one is elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame this year. Certain parts of the baseball Twitter freaks out again, arguing for Schilling and for Bonds/Clemens.
oh wow. interesting. I don't think Bonds and Clemens will make it next year. I think the writers will force the veterans committee to vote them in. Maybe Schilling makes it next year on his last year.
For 2022, here's the first time eligibles: Carl Crawford, Prince Fielder, Ryan Howard, Tim Lincecum, Joe Nathan, David Ortiz, Jonathan Papelbon, Jake Peavy, AJ Pierzynski, Alex Rodriguez, Jimmy Rollins, Mark Teixeira.
Basically David Ortiz and A-Rod. Here is where it will be interesting. If A-Rod gets the votes, then I think the same voters vote Bonds and Clemens. So maybe 2022 is the Steroids year.
2023 is a weak year as well. No standouts.
2024 Beltré and maybe Mauer eventually.
2025 Ichiro.
Yeah, Ortiz and A-Rod make it interesting for the next ballot. Not sure if voters can justify voting for those guys and not Bonds/Clemens. And I think they really want to vote for Ortiz.
Yeah I think Ortiz is the one guy they'll want to vote for. That's a good point. The one that everyone loved, well maybe not Yankees fans. Would they dare vote Ortiz but not A-Rod, Bonds, Clemens? I don't think so but that would be something.
Interesting that Bonds and Clemens last year lines up with Ortiz and A-Rod. Almost like the steroids gods made it that way.
I mean, Bonds and Clemens should certainly be in, but it appears there is a just large enough contingent of moralists who believe they should not be.
I think they will get in via the veteran's committee and the steroid usage will be noted, if not on the plaque but in some other form. The record-breaking homer with the branded asterisk is already at the Hall of Fame.
A year since Kobe and his daughter and his daughters teammates were killed in a helicopter crash. What a strange year - 5 days later I was on a plane to Bangkok, where I would stay for 70+ days.
I was in LA visiting my sister and her fiancee and they had wanted me to get them McD breakfast (or rather they are willing to pay Uber Eat a lot more money and I was willing to walk the few blocks and pocket the difference). Anyhow, the girl at McD counter was asking everyone if they believe the news that Kobe Bryant had died. My sister also called me with the news.
Somewhat similarly, when Michael Jackson died, I was at Nationals Park (for a game that ended up being rained out). The cashier at Ben's Chili Bowl informed me that MJ had passed.
I was in a shared Lyft on my way to Classof87's house for a shindig she was having, and one of the other passengers said to her friend, "Did you see this???"
In a personal odd turn of events (unrelated), when I left Classof 87's house, I got the same driver!
The driver was Asian (like me), and we talked about what we'd been hearing about the respiratory illness and whether we should be wearing masks.
Man, one night in Bangkok and the world’s your oyster...the bars are temples but the pearls ain’t free.
Can’t imagine 70 nights!
Thailand is pretty great if you like 85 degree weather with 90% humidity. Great food, cheap living, polluted crowded metropolis. But since the addition of the subway and the skytrain, the traffic is more tolerable.
Also my cousin has a pretty big condo that has an outdoor Olympic sized swimming pool downstairs so that was pretty key.
Cal
Daily Cal does an article that does a little light sabermetrics on the baseball team
https://www.dailycal.org/2021/01/22/behind-the-numbers-cals-2020-batting-lineup/
Nice attempt that's severely handicapped by only looking at the shortened 2020 season stats (I guess that's all that's available) while also ignoring how the opposing pitchers are not all of the same calibers in college.
TIL: NCAA Women's soccer rankings only included teams that played in the fall. This means that the final rankings for the top 15 teams in the country did not include any Pac-12 teams. About 2 months later, they played the NCAA tourney and three of the four teams in the semi-finals were Pac-12 teams. Cal plays a 14 game season in 2021 with their three "non-conference" games against Pac-12 foes, including playing defending national champion Leland Stanfurd Junior College twice.
https://calbears.com/news/2021/1/25/cal-womens-soccer-announces-2021-spring-schedule.aspx
https://www.ncaa.com/rankings/soccer-women/d1/united-soccer-coaches
https://www.ncaa.com/brackets/soccer-women/d1/2019
Stanford's top player, Catarina Macario, who made her USWNT debut recently has turned pro by signing with Olympique Lyonnais (the best pro team in the world thanks to an owner who is willing to spend...thus they got Alex Morgan several years ago). There will also be a lot of weird situations with some of the NWSL draftees opting to turn pro, particularly if they played their season last fall but won't wait for the NCAA tournament this May.
Keith Hayward might be coming to Cal
https://writeforcalifornia.com/p/keith-heyward-california-golden-bears-deruyter
Seems like this story has been floating around for awhile. I hope it is confirmed.
he said goodbye to Oregon. Oregon and Cal mods all say he is coming... its probably UC bureaucracy holding it up