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Orange County neighborhood rallies to Asian-American family's defense

https://people.com/human-interest/neighbors-stand-guard-protect-asian-american-family-after-racist-attacks/

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I wonder how many of the kids harassing them are the kids of parents that are standing guard.

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all.

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that's great but surprising knowing how racist OC is

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https://twitter.com/michaelharriot/status/1367331068827881473?s=20

@michaelharriot: I think I may know why white people are so upset about this Dr. Seuss/cancel culture thing. I was reminded of this story today.

It goes back to the second-most devastating day of my life:

The day I found out the Hardy Boys were white.

A thread

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Really interesting read. I thought this part was really well articulated:

"But here's the thing: I understand why they can't understand it. Who cares if Dr. Seuss was racist one time in that one book? Should he be canceled?

They don't realize that the ONLY time a Black child saw themselves in a Seuss book was in a racist illustration.

They can't comprehend because, even if there's 1 bad characterization of whiteness, there are ONE HUNDRED other characters in the book. Even when the villain in the TV show is white, so is the hero...And the hero's sidekick...And the lawyer...And the cop...And judge..

And the anchor on the news...And the weatherman...And the QB...And the commentator...And everyone except the ONE Black person.

The point is: THEY GET TO CHOOSE!"

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It's been really hard to find people/characters that look like my sons (who are black, I am not) in my extremely white world. Representation has gotten better in the last few years, especially with characters like Miles Morales and Black Panther hitting mainstream, but I 100% understand what that mom did. There just aren't a lot of heroes represented to them that look like them.

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Do you have Martellus Bennett's book, Dear Black Boy?

https://www.dearblackboy.com/buy-the-book

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No, but will definitely be buying.

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This here seems to be the real solution to the problem described above: more examples of media that give that kind of broad representation to all groups of Americans, not so much going back and erasing what came before (though to be clear, I do think that we need to be extra careful about the content of children's books like those of Seuss, so I don't disagree with the company's decision here).

It's getting better, though there's still a ways to go to make up for most of American media history.

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Since the topic is broadening a bit--my experience has been that since I was the only Chinese person people knew in many situations, people would assume that anything about me was "because you're Chinese."

"Can't run too fast. Must be because you're Chinese."

[later in life] "You're pretty fast. Must be because you're Chinese."

"You never heard that kids song? Must be because you're Chinese." No, it's because I grew up in California rather than the East Coast.

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Also, it's not like all of Dr. Seuss is being canceled. It's a handful of books that are going out of print.

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The two that baffle me are "On Beyond Zebra" and “McElligot’s Pool” - two of my faves as a child.

Mainly just curious.

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This take I tend to agree with, but I would just say "Asian Stereotyping", it's not really "anti"

"For many people, regardless of their politics, there is a disconnect between books that feel cozy and familiar from their childhood, and accusations that they could be offensive or hurtful.

“Folks are not remembering the text itself, they are remembering the affective experiences they had around those texts,” said Ebony Elizabeth Thomas, an associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education. “White children or parents might not have noticed the offensive anti-Asian stereotyping in ‘Mulberry Street.’ I certainly didn’t.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/04/books/dr-seuss-books.html

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The funny thing is that even though I'm half-Asian I had this book as a kid and also didn't notice the offensive stereotyping. Looking back at the image in question, I'd agree that it's not really "anti" Asian though it is definitely a caricature.

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Yeah, agreed. And in a way, the most "offensive" aspect is the "wow, a Chinese person, they're so exotic" - but for 95% of the American population at time the book was first published, that would have been true.

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A depiction of a Chinese man with a Qing dynasty queue and Japanese sandals and an exotic farmer hat is a straight shot into "they're not from here, they're not American"

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Well, that was the whole point of the book, that the protagonist saw wild and unusual things on a "normal" street.

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And you don't see how characterizing Chinese people as wild and unusual and NOT AMERICAN leads to otherization of Chinese Americans?

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that was a fascinating thread, most of his are

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Fascinating. Reminds me of Ralph Ellison's The Invisible Man. Sort of, since I read that several decades ago and my memory is weak.

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SpaceX

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They did it. Starship SN10 went up 10 km, it rotated flat and dropped, they relit the engines and rotated back and landed straight up. Then a few min later it went BOOM.

https://youtu.be/ODY6JWzS8WU?t=333

Pretty amazing. i still love to watch their launches and landing the first stage boosters.

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When I looked at that link, it didn't get to the explosion. So try this one:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jWbqhP5eJI

8:26:14 "Oh God it just blew up!"

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The guys that were commenting on the Nasa feed I was watching yesterday were awesome. So pumped for all of it, so nerdy but earnest, and so horrified and excited by the explosion. It was awesome.

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I was watching that feed too, but turned it off a few seconds too soon. So I didn't know until today about the explostion.

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I had seen that it blew up so I rewound and watched the launch through the explosion. It was great.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOQkk3ojNfM

Go to about 10:39. Or see Du's notes.

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The guy that laughed with joy when it blew up just kills me. It's exactly what I would do.

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Ah...sorry. I didn't realize that one didn't have the explosion. Now that I think about it I watched this last night and didn't realize it exploded until I saw a different video.

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The Starship design is like something out of 1950's sci-fi tabloids

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Very much so, it's a classic.

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I think the grain silo is strictly for testing the engines and the software. I think the actual starship design is different isn't it?

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it will end up pretty grain silo-y. maximize internal space while trying to maintain some manner of aerodynamic shape for the launch

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Bittersweet

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More sweet than bitter, more bitter than sweet...BHTM!!

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My ex used to use Guittard or Callebaut bittersweet chocolate for baking. I would go to GB Rattos and get a 5 lb Guittard packages for her. Also Valrhona cocoa.

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Today in Covid

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Study of post-Covid complications in six pro leagues show 3.8% abnormal post-infection results, including only 0.6% myocarditis.

https://www.nfl.com/playerhealthandsafety/resources/press-releases/joint-statement-on-behalf-of-mlb-mls-nba-nhl-nfl-and-wnba

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so basically they're saying the most fit humans on earth have very few lingering symptoms from Covid? I bet there will be some people on the right that will point to this and say, see we don't need vaccines or masks since people aren't affected long term.

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The most fit, with access to high end health care.

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Also, these are the proverbial tobacco companies highlighting a study showing their product only sacrifices an acceptable number of humans.

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"Preliminary studies suggest that the variant that swept through the city of Manaus is not only more contagious, but it also appears able to infect some people who have already recovered from other versions of the virus. And the variant has slipped Brazil’s borders, showing up in two dozen other countries and in small numbers in the United States.

Although trials of a number of vaccines indicate they can protect against severe illness even when they do not prevent infection with the variant, most of the world has not been inoculated. That means even people who had recovered and thought they were safe for now might still be at risk, and that world leaders might, once again, be lifting restrictions too soon."

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/03/world/americas/brazil-covid-variant.html

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Elsewhere in college

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Sure, Cal got a recent gym and locker room upgrade. But look at how far behind we're falling in the arms race for the hearts and minds of 17-year-olds.

https://247sports.com/LongFormArticle/college-football-recruiting-2021-facilities-Alabama-Clemson-Ohio-State-LSU-Texas-Georgia-Florida-160189814/#160189814_18

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Left handed

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Lefty for everything except batting, using scissors, playing golf.

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As a lefty, using scissors left-handed is impossible. I noted earlier about my hitting. I also golf, to the extent that I did many years ago, righty. I wonder if that's because I felt more comfortable righty or if it was because the clubs available to me were righty. In my mind it was because it felt more comfortable righty.

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It's because I was taught to bat right handed by the kids in my neighborhood so swinging a club/bat that direction felt more natural.

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The Left Hand of Darkness is a great sci-fi read.

the main character shows up on a-sexual or ambi-sexual planet and it creates all sorts of cultural barriers as this planet is being considered to join some "federation of planets"

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i am and so are both my daughters. my wife is outnumbered.

also, my younger sister was probably born right handed but apparently she used to copy everything i did and ended up left handed. we are only 16 months apart.

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Switch hitter here. I developed it in Little League and continued on through high school ball, played catcher. Hit home runs both from the left side and right side.

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Right handed for everything, except when regarding feet where I surf and snowboard* regular, but ride a skateboard goofy footed. (*I haven't snowboarded in 10+ years)

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I swing a bat left-handed but am right-handed for everything else.

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Also lefties have the best swings. See Will Clark, Griffey, etc.

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My MLB The Show player throws right, bats left (Will Clark's swing), and plays CF for the Dodgers.

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Fact. I’m right handed everything except bat & golf, which is lefty...tho I can do both righty, just not nearly as well.

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Welcome Phil Mickelson!

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Truth.

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I write left-handed and bat left-handed but am right-handed or ambidextrous for everything else.

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I always have been. Not that I was good at either, but I was a better hitter righty than lefty. More power lefty though.

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my wife and my older daughter

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I know something you don't know. I am not -

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OUR CRUMBLING DEMOCRACY

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Now Greg Abbott is concerned about Texans' exposure to COVID...

https://twitter.com/GregAbbott_TX/status/1367243450140086274

"The Biden Administration is recklessly releasing hundreds of illegal immigrants who have COVID into Texas communities.

The Biden Admin. must IMMEDIATELY end this callous act that exposes Texans & Americans to COVID."

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I see we're back to the classics about dirty immigrants

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when in doubt...

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heh...two spots on my bingo card. Illegal immigration and Covid.

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It looks like Trump will not be sworn in today.

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Other than much heightened security around the Capitol there's no indication I can see of anything out of the ordinary today. Everything looked normal when I was in DC earlier.

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Shocking!

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Today (3/4/21) is yet another day that Qtards think Trump will actually be inaugurated. The House session was cancelled for the day. Here's my crazy idea. Let's not cancel the running of the country; let's have more than enough security.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2021/03/03/house-cancels-thursday-session-police-warn-possible-plot-breach-capitol/6911228002/

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Yeah, I agree with this. Cancelling the session means letting them win.

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PRO

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No dirty gaijin allowed in Edo. This is not a repeat article from the 16th century.

https://www.espn.com/olympics/story/_/id/30995036/report-no-fans-abroad-allowed-tokyo-olympics

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Japan barely just started vaccinations last week, and they expect to complete to all citizens by February 2022. I don't think they can afford to risk another outbreak this summer.

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Nobody can afford another outbreak this summer.

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been watching Age of Samurai on Netflix. it is pretty gory, but interesting glimpse into Japanese history

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CAL

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GO BEARS!

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MGolf: Bears finish 13th at Cabo Collegiate tourney out of 16th. Bears (combined 906) were 46 strokes above the leader Oklahoma. More importantly, they finished 14 strokes better than Stanfurd.

https://calbears.com/news/2021/3/3/mens-golf-cal-finishes-13th-at-the-cabo-collegiate.aspx

http://results.golfstat.com/public/leaderboards/gsnav.cfm?pg=teamPlayer&tid=21949

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WBB: one-win Bears keep it competitive vs. OSU, but still crash out of the first round of Pac-12 Championship (71-63)

https://calbears.com/news/2021/3/3/womens-basketball-bears-edged-by-oregon-state-in-the-pac-12-tournament.aspx

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MSwim: FOUR-PEAT PAC-12 CHAMPS!

https://twitter.com/calmenswim/status/1367305508646907905

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RE-HIRE EVERYONE!

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