217 Comments
User's avatar
SGBear's avatar

Pac-12 Networks cuts 8% of staff, reduces senior staff salaries by 10%; Larry Scott 20% cut, forced to scrape by with $4.24m/year. Earlier, Scott had forecasted a net loss for Pac-12 Networks of $15.5m.

https://awfulannouncing.com/league-networks/pac-12-networks-reduce-workforce-eight-percent.html

goldenone's avatar

Now he really won't be able to secure the $500 million private equity investment!

rocksanddirt's avatar

Based on a twitter comment from on of you yokels, I re-watched the insight bowl last night. Good Times! #GoBears!

Terence's avatar

Attended reef's digital memorial this morning (China time) - avi, Nick and Nam spoke - it was funny, across a large swath of different friend groups, all the stories about larry's kept returning to the same themes: Cal, teaching, yelling, eating. It was sad, but uplifting as well.

SGBear's avatar

A celebrity who is perhaps not traditionally handsome/pretty, but you find quite nice looking.

TheBuckeyeBear's avatar

I think I tend to have very conventional tastes when it comes to physical appeal. Oh, but I'm really not into the beards that everyone's into these days.

SGBear's avatar

Apropos: I'm shaving part of my quarantine beard today. I'm think the C. Everett Koop, Lincoln, pornstache, Chester A. Arthur, and the Hulk Hogan are strong contenders for the 1-day fashion look.

Fire Starkey's avatar

facial hair is disgusting so this is a Fire Starkey approved opinion

Scootie's avatar

I am fully anti-beard so I support this message.

User's avatar
Comment deleted
Apr 8, 2020
Comment deleted
Fire Starkey's avatar

my beard growing skills exist in plenty, its just a sgraggly look. Plus Dr TBB doesn't like them so I am obviously correct

heyalumnigo's avatar

or that he doesn't want his SO to have a beard.

Cugel's avatar

Usually Catholic girls have tiny little mustache.

atoms's avatar

Hey, no personal attacks!!! 😛

User's avatar
Comment deleted
Apr 8, 2020
Comment deleted
TheBuckeyeBear's avatar

Well, that's good, because everyone's been getting pretty sloppy

atoms's avatar

I don't tend to be attracted to women who don't like beards. Just saying 😛

Class of 87's avatar

Like Scootie and TBB, I agree beards are not attractive. We need AndBears to weigh in.

DC Trojan's avatar

I already got that out of my system with the federal shutdown beard last year

sycasey's avatar

Now that everyone is supposed to wear masks, beards may become less popular.

DC Trojan's avatar

Hannah Murray, who played Gilly in Game of Thrones (not that she's unattractive, just that she's less conventionally attractive than most of the actresses that they cast.)

Ruey Yen's avatar

Hannah Murray kind of reminds me of Alex Morgan in looks, which pushes her to the attractive category.

Cugel's avatar

You sure you weren't responding to her character on not her looks?

DC Trojan's avatar

I know how shallow I am

Scootie's avatar

I think he's pretty traditionally handsome.

atoms's avatar

I think that's just turkey being turkey

atoms's avatar

Does Jeff Goldblum count?

SGBear's avatar

[Well...Uh...ThereItIs.gif]

SGBear's avatar

Think of a friend who has a good characteristic. What makes that person so great?

TheBuckeyeBear's avatar

One of my grad school roommates is probably one of the best people I know. She is very kind, and in a couple situations where I thought she might be more vindictive (for example, her longterm boyfriend cheating on her), she was always generous and caring.

SGBear's avatar

A good movie soundtrack

heyalumnigo's avatar

Jurassic Park. Top Gun.

sycasey's avatar

O Brother, Where Art Thou

Cugel's avatar

I have that soundtrack.

sycasey's avatar

I think it went to the top of the country music charts that year, pretty impressive.

Scootie's avatar

Amadeus, full of Mozart's greatest hits as played by the fabulous orchestra from St Martin in the Fields in London.

BearByBlood's avatar

The Nightmare Before Christmas

TheScientist019's avatar

Shows my age, but I loved the Garden State soundtrack. Fed would back me up if he were here.

sycasey's avatar

I'm not a big fan of the movie, but the soundtrack was good!

Cugel's avatar

La Dolce Vita, Nina Rota

The Third Man, Anton Karas

Tangtpt's avatar

Batman (the one with Michael Keaton), composed by Danny Elfman.

sycasey's avatar

The whole Elfman/Burton run from Pee-Wee to Batman, great musical scores.

SGBear's avatar

Financial impact of CV19

SGBear's avatar

Well, fuck.

One of my tenants defaulted on me this morning. I guess I'm working to pay for this person's housing now.

Cugel's avatar

How so? Bounced check?

SGBear's avatar

Only paid a nominal amount.

Apparently she was scared to go into work because of Covid19, used up all her PTO and has effectively been terminated for not going to work/working from home. She says she has a doctor's note (not sure what I'm supposed to do with that) and she's applying for unemployment.

Cugel's avatar

Yikes! (not my experience)

FiatSlug's avatar

That's significant.

SGBear's avatar

Whole liquid milk prices down about one third, but not enough marginal demand so diaries are now starting to dump fresh milk down the drain

DC Trojan's avatar

gosh, if only there was a national entity that could take it off their hands and possibly even redistribute it

atoms's avatar

@Maybe we can start a consortium of states@

SGBear's avatar

Corn prices approach 10 year lows as slowing gasoline demand cuts ethanol production

heyalumnigo's avatar

I'm a little surprised gas prices haven't gone up after Trump got the Saudis and Russia to agree to cut production. At least the Concord Costco price for regular has gone down from 2.39 to 2.29. I went out and filled up because I thought for sure the prices would go up.

SGBear's avatar

I think US integrated oil companies are taking a temporary cut in refining margins in favor of higher volume sales. PAD inventories (see Cushing below) are filled to the brim, which means that they want to avoid taking any more build in inventory because of expensive marginal cost-of-carry. Spring is also typically the slow-season for refineries as they take them offline for maintenance ahead of the summer driving season. Prices should rise later this month.

https://www.investing.com/economic-calendar/eia-weekly-cushing-oil-inventories-1657

AndyPanda's avatar

Travel is so down locally that there is still a glut.

heyalumnigo's avatar

That's true as well.

Ruey Yen's avatar

My sister has been getting McD as delivery even before the pandemic out of both out of nostalgia and as her hangover meal of choice. Somewhat related, I opted to go get McD for her on my last visit...and that was when the McD server asked everyone whether they believed in the "rumor" that Kobe Bryant has passed away in a helicopter crash.

atoms's avatar

TST: My cousin has flown multiple times (for work) with the helicopter pilot who was at the controls for Kobe's crash. Said he was a really nice guy 😕

Cugel's avatar

Steak-umm

✔

@steak_umm

friendly reminder in times of uncertainty and misinformation: anecdotes are not data. (good) data is carefully measured and collected information based on a range of subject-dependent factors, including, but not limited to, controlled variables, meta-analysis, and randomization

56.7K

7:02 PM - Apr 6, 2020

SGBear's avatar

Today in Covid-19

heyalumnigo's avatar

LA is requiring everyone going out to wear masks. I guess there will be a lot of people out with bandanas and stuff. Not sure where people can buy masks.

TheBuckeyeBear's avatar

https://twitter.com/Aaron_TheThomas/status/1246493711032356866?s=20

@Aaron_TheThomas: I don’t feel safe wearing a handkerchief or something else that isn’t CLEARLY a protective mask covering my face to the store because I am a Black man living in this world. I want to stay alive but I also want to stay alive.

goldenone's avatar

I was lucky enough to get an N95. Now I read that the virus can live on the outside of the mask for 7 days. Welp.

TheScientist019's avatar

If you are concerned that your mask has been contaminated, there are reports that you can heat-sterilize it using your oven. Note that there are risks here. You can potentially contaminate your oven if you don't sterilize properly. I don't know the material of the mask, but heat could potentially damage it.

https://www.lansingstatejournal.com/story/news/2020/04/03/msu-michigan-state-university-baking-masks-covid-19/5117840002/

I imagine you could also sterilize it with a wipe, but I don't know for sure.

heyalumnigo's avatar

I wonder if spraying with a low bleach/water solution and letting it dry would work. I've read that a 5-10% bleach solution sprayed on door knobs and light switches and letting it dry could help.

TheScientist019's avatar

Don't do 5%. 10% final concentration of bleach for at least 10 minutes is the lab-safe standard.

But it's easier on the material of the masks to not totally wet it with a bleach solution, so proper disinfection with a wipe sounds preferable to me.

heyalumnigo's avatar

To make my own wipes I've been doing a 10% solution and wetting paper towels in a ziploc. I leave a few of those in the car. If I don't have regular anti-bacterial wipes, could I use these? I don't have any of the real N95 masks so I'm asking for others that might.

atoms's avatar

Wash your hands after you take it off?

heyalumnigo's avatar

The thing I was reading for people that use masks is that if the virus is on the outside, and you don't wash between uses (for non-disposable), you could potentially reuse and put it on inside out. I've read you should wash your hands before and after putting it on/taking it off.

atoms's avatar

Wait, huh?? If the virus is on the outside of the mask, and you put it on inside-out, then you're putting the virus right next to your nose and mouth, aren't you?

FiatSlug's avatar

Exactly my thought. If you can't wash an N95 mask with warm soapy water, then throw it out. It does no good to anyone after it's been used once if it has coronavirus embedded on the outside, ready to do its insidious nasty spread.

SGBear's avatar

One of my wife's direct reports now has apparent CV19. However, no tests available, so she doesn't know for sure. She was really careful, but 6 days ago... some jerk at the carwash was coughing everywhere and joking how it was CV19. So my current tally is that I personally know of 10 people with presumptive CV19, two who got tested and 8 who were told not to come to the hospital and no tests available.

I believe that any leveling out of speed of infection is because testing volume is growing arithmetically, but infection growth is geometric.

Scootie's avatar

This is so interesting. I know zero.

DC Trojan's avatar

same. One of our neighbors briefly had to quarantine (White House employee who might have been exposed was in the maternity ward where she works) but other than that, nothing.

Terence's avatar

I know two - but neither in China. One in Portland and one in Swizterland - they both had serious, but not serious enough for hospital, cases.

Fire Starkey's avatar

the father of one of my direct reports just got hospitalized with it in NJ. 3 other family members tested positive as well. She is in Florida and is a total wreck (for this and because she has 2 kids under 7 on steroids for allergies and is by herself...while trying to home school them and work for me at the same time).

SGBear's avatar

Wuhan relaxes lock-down. Get ready for Wave #2

https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/52211757

Terence's avatar

My friend got to leave for two hours on Tuesday - and she spent her time going to get Starbucks take-away. I wonder if she's coming back to Shanghai soon.

dcblue's avatar

It seemed like a higher percentage of people out this morning was wearing some kind of face covering. Some just put it on as I ran past. Stopped at the CVS down the street and I was the only person in the store other than the cashier. Now that the cherry blossoms are done the streets in the area are open again.

SGBear's avatar

Was the last wedding reception you attended fun?

SGBear's avatar

"Good talk, Russ."

heyalumnigo's avatar

Yes it was fun. Was in Beaumont, Tx.

Terence's avatar

Two sentences that do not go together.

heyalumnigo's avatar

The reception and day before dinner were really good. Groom is white and she is. Vietnamese. She grew up there so it was her family. Food was incredible. We did a tour of the oil museum that went over the history and that was really interesting.

Terence's avatar

White guy/Chinese wife wedding in Chengdu about a year ago. Only knew the groom + my friends who were part of the wedding party; was seated with the groom's family to help interpret both Chinese customs and Chinese speeches. Glad I flew out for the wedding, but I wouldn't exactly call it fun. Bachelor party and the Sunday dumpling lunch the day after were a lot more fun.

Class of 87's avatar

My niece got married on April 1st at the Brazil bldg in Tilden. Really fun, the newlyweds walked down the aisle to Rick Astley

TheBuckeyeBear's avatar

As in 1 week ago? How was that allowed?

DC Trojan's avatar

sort of. It was for a young woman my wife worked with at summer camp - I didn't know a huge proportion of the guests but enough to be social, have a few beers, shake my shimmy - not much more you can ask for, really.

TheBuckeyeBear's avatar

I think the last wedding reception I attended was in September in Hawaii, which unfortunately was also part of the last not-great family trip, so I didn't have the best time at the wedding.

The best wedding experience (where I knew a lot of people) was for my grad school labmate. It was just full of love from everyone who was there for the couple, and I had a great time dancing with my friends.

The best wedding experience (where I didn't know a lot of people) was for one of my camp friends. I'd only met a couple of his high school friends (and once, like 15 years ago), but they welcomed me into their group for the night, so it was a fun wedding experience. Bonus wtf moment: when the priest talked about how one of the readings was "erotic" during the ceremony.

sycasey's avatar

Lots of fun! It was at the Terrace Room in Oakland.

Cugel's avatar

Yes, very much so, it was my son's

SGBear's avatar

OUR CRUMBLING DEMOCRACY

DC Trojan's avatar

He must be counting tug jobs during executive time

rocksanddirt's avatar

well....he could be correct that she's hired that many people for that job. since i assume she's not doing it any longer.

heyalumnigo's avatar

but did he say he fully supports Biden? because I think he'll have to to get his base to vote for Biden. How many Bernie supporters will vote for Biden? I can't imagine they'd vote for trump so I guess they'll either not vote or vote 3rd party.

heyalumnigo's avatar

unless Bernie screws everything up and runs as an independent.

sycasey's avatar

There is really nothing in his history to suggest that he would. Despite some of his revolutionary public talk, he always gets on board to help Democrats move the ball forward.

Cugel's avatar

Not Going To Happen

atoms's avatar

I would be shocked and appalled if he did that. Plus, I think it'd be hard for him to get on the ballot in a lot of places; there are "sore loser" laws in a lot of states I think.

turkey's avatar

If Biden wins I don't expect him to run for re-election. It's more of a reset, get back to some basic competence in government and let the Democrats get someone new (also much younger) ready to go in 2024.

AndyPanda's avatar

Why do I sense a rerun of 4 years ago? At best.

Ruey Yen's avatar

One would think that Trump would lose some points for the mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemics, but yeah it will probably be another close election (with potentially much fewer, if any, in-persaon rallies due to social distance)

sycasey's avatar

Biden's personal polling has been better than Hillary's pretty much throughout and he crushed Bernie by much bigger margins. I'm not sure what evidence this sense would be based on.

AndyPanda's avatar

The only data was the sudden and dramatic jump from being distantly behind to insurmountable lead in a matter of a couple of days, which suggests there was more than meets the eye. People in mass don't change their mind that fast. Which makes me suspicious of whether it will translate outside the core of the party.

But the "sense" is more feeling than data. I've seen no evidence that I would trust that Biden will play well enough where it matters, with swing and right-leaning voters in battleground states. How Biden polls with pure blue democrats is of no relevance.

Further, I don't have any confidence that Biden, if he does win, can control and move things forward in a cohesive manner. I had more confidence in about half the candidates than Biden.

There was a common, and incorrect, assumption that Hillary was going to be successful that I never understood because it seemed equal parts hope that she would and assumption that she would. And a general sense of dismissal of Trump, and more importantly, Trump's supporters.

DC Trojan's avatar

I think it's going to depend on 1) can people get out the vote in swing states, and 2) can people vote in swing states. This is going to be a staggeringly dirty election, more so than usual I fear.

sycasey's avatar

Biden was never distantly behind.

atoms's avatar

Never nationally, only in the first 3 states (IA, NH, NV)

Cugel's avatar

"I've seen no evidence that I would trust that Biden will play well enough where it matters, with swing and right-leaning voters in battleground states." -

Then you're not looking very hard.

sycasey's avatar

Yeah, it's all out there. Biden has been leading most of these metrics for a while. (And to be fair, Sanders has also done pretty well here, albeit in different areas. But if you had to pick one candidate who does the best, it's Biden.)

atoms's avatar

Yeah, there's a ton of polling out there showing Biden performing well against Trump nationally and in battleground states. That's been core to his entire campaign argument. I think it's pretty thin evidence based largely on name ID and generic Obama approval rather than Biden-specific, but the evidence is there.

Fire Starkey's avatar

Biden is much much stronger with the African American community. That by itself could put him over the top in several battleground states.

Cugel's avatar

Hey, that's me! (at least according to that test last week)

TheBuckeyeBear's avatar

When I took that, my top match was 80% with some old guy from Mad Men, but I haven't watched Mad Men. This was my top 15:

1. Bert Cooper (Mad Men): 80%

2. Olenna Tyrell (Game of Thrones): 73%

3. Josh Lyman (The West Wing): 71%

4. Gandalf (Lord of the Rings): 70%

5. Dr. Ian Malcolm (Jurassic Park): 70%

6. John Hammond (Jurassic Park): 70%

7. Elizabeth Bennet (Pride and Prejudice): 69%

8. C. J. Cregg (The West Wing): 68%

9. Jadzia Dax (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine): 68%

10. Bernadette Rostenkowski (The Big Bang Theory): 68%

11. Leslie Knope (Park and Recreation): 68%

12. Robert Ford (Westworld): 68%

13. Goh Peik Lin (Crazy Rich Asians): 68%

14. Horace Slughorn (Harry Potter): 67%

15. Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham (Downton Abbey): 67%

sycasey's avatar

I have taken this test and got Walter White's son.

I do not accept this result.

User's avatar
Comment deleted
Apr 8, 2020
Comment deleted
heyalumnigo's avatar

because either "it's ours" (Don Jr), or they're all going to Mike Gula, the fundraiser that started a company selling Covid-19 stuff.

heyalumnigo's avatar

ahh...yes. @they all look alike@

SGBear's avatar

Latest GOP A-B testing: "This virus horrible impact in the US is the fault of... [spins wheel] Chy-nuh apologist World Health Organization"

https://www.foxnews.com/media/sen-graham-says-no-more-money-to-the-who-calls-them-chinese-apologists

TheBuckeyeBear's avatar

Huh. Now the director of the WHO is saying he's been the target of racist attacks from Taiwan.

TheBuckeyeBear's avatar

I mean, the WHO *is* Chinese apologists, but it's not like the US took Taiwan's advice on COVID-19 either...

DC Trojan's avatar

it's funny how the US government gets mad about that sort of thing only when UN organizations are showing obeisance to the wrong superpower

SGBear's avatar

LA Times: Feds are confiscating medical supplies from hospitals without court orders

https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2020-04-07/hospitals-washington-seize-coronavirus-supplies

heyalumnigo's avatar

this is some bullshit right here. especially when there isn't transparency on where it's going.

FiatSlug's avatar

My deeply cynical side says that there's much more to the story and Trump is making profits from the seizures.

heyalumnigo's avatar

yeah I think so too. they're being redirected to Mike Gula's new company.

DC Trojan's avatar

in a better ordered society, people would go to jail for this. They'll probably end up getting ambassadorships instead.

SGBear's avatar

Second favorite

Ruey Yen's avatar

Second favorite

Pac-12 Bay Area school: Stanfurd

Pac-12 UC school: UCLA

heyalumnigo's avatar

not for me. if a place only has pepsi then I opt for water. The only Pepsi product I sometimes drink is Mountain Dew.

Scootie's avatar

Mint chip is my second favorite ice cream.

Apple is my second favorite pie.

Pepperoni is my second favorite pizza.

Paris is my second favorite city.

Cherry is my second favorite tree.

atoms's avatar

Is your favorite city London?

Scootie's avatar

No, San Francisco.

Cugel's avatar

SECOND FAVORITE BOND MOVIE: CASINO ROYAL

FiatSlug's avatar

Probably not the 1967 version.

Cugel's avatar

That's not canon.

Cugel's avatar

Second favorite Star Wars film: A New Hope; Second favorite Indiana Jones film: the first one.

heyalumnigo's avatar

2nd favorite Indiana Jones film: the first one? So I guess you like Temple of Doom the best?

For me most of the first movies in a series are the best. Except for Aliens, and that's probably because I saw Aliens first on opening night. Then my friends and I watched Alien the next day.

Cugel's avatar

Ha! No, Last Crusade, and I was going to list Galaxy Quest as my 2nd favorite Star Trek film, but it might actually be my favorite.

heyalumnigo's avatar

Galaxy Quest definitely is the best. I didn't ever like the original series movies. The reboot is much better.

DC Trojan's avatar

soccer team: Partick Thistle

city: Amsterdam

classic car: Alfa Romeo GTV6

atoms's avatar

Baseball team: Oakland Athletics

College team: Syracuse Orange

NFL team: Rams

Basketball team: Warriors

Class of 87's avatar

Baseball: A's

College Football: Michigan Wolverines

Color: pink

atoms's avatar

My second favorite color.... either gold or blue, possibly they're tied.

TheBuckeyeBear's avatar

Chicago used to be my second favorite Midwestern city, but then Columbus grew on me, so now my ranking goes:

1) Cleveland

2) Columbus

3) Chicago

TheBuckeyeBear's avatar

His love for Call Me Maybe

heyalumnigo's avatar

ahh.....I didn't realize that was in Call Me Maybe. Yes No 2 has a hatred for that song.

TheBuckeyeBear's avatar

https://californiahealthline.org/news/postcard-from-the-edge-l-a-street-vendors-who-cant-stop-working/

LOS ANGELES — One day last week, on a sunny, beautiful Los Angeles afternoon, 23-year-old Alex Salvador Morales set up shop on a sidewalk near downtown, selling freshly cut pineapple, mango and watermelon in quart-sized plastic cups for $5.

Before the pandemic, fruit stands like his dotted streets on days like this, one every few blocks on the busy stretches. With millions of people staying home amid the COVID-19 pandemic, however, business was so bad that many of Salvador Morales’ fellow fruit vendors hadn’t bothered to show up.

But Salvador Morales said he couldn’t afford to stop working because his family in Guatemala counts on him to send money back home. He also needs to pay his rent. It was due last Wednesday, and he didn’t have enough to pitch in his $500 for the apartment he shares with a roommate.

TheBuckeyeBear's avatar

Is anyone else having trouble posting comments today? I click post, the box comes up to subscribe (normal), I uncheck and try to post, and then it says SOMETHING WENT WRONG. I have to click a couple times for my comments to post, and at one point, I had to go back to writeforcalifornia.com and then click on the DBD (just refreshing the DBD was coming up blank)

heyalumnigo's avatar

nope. It's stayed logged in for me.

goldenone's avatar

Second Favorite: Chicken Spaghetti

heyalumnigo's avatar

cereal: Smart Start