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Budi
Budi's Journal
Budi's Journal
December 22, 2020
How it came to be written.
The unexpected impact on a generation of 1970.
https://www.npr.org/2020/12/22/948655542/successful-sentimental-and-satirized-love-story-celebrates-50th-anniversary
Successful, Sentimental And Satirized, 'Love Story' Celebrates 50th Anniversary
December 22, 2020
Fifty years ago, a simple but tragic love story became a global sensation that stunned the entertainment industry.
Love Story, the romantic tearjerker starring Ryan O'Neal and Ali MacGraw, broke box office records and the book it was based on was a bestseller that was translated into more than 30 languages.
"What can you say about a 25-year-old girl who dies?" So begins the novel and screenplay, both written by Erich Segal.
In December, 1970, in the midst of the Vietnam War and the continuing fight for Civil Rights — along came an "unabashedly sentimental" story "about the power of love," says Segal's daughter, writer Francesca Segal. It was "genuine and earnest and I think it just struck a chord," she says. The 50th anniversary edition of the novel Love Story includes an introduction by Francesca.
Erich Segal was 30 years old and a professor at Yale when he wrote the 131-page Love Story. The idea came when he learned that one of his former students was just 25 when he lost his wife to cancer.
Oliver Barrett IV, played by Ryan O'Neal in the movie, is a sensitive, rich kid and a Harvard hockey player. The inspiration for Oliver has been the source of intrigue and even controversy. Segal said Oliver was partly modeled after Al Gore, but mostly after Tommy Lee Jones (who also has a part in the movie).
SNIP
They were gorgeous to look at as they frolic in the snow, argue, fall deeply in love and marry, despite the disapproval of Oliver's father. Just as they start a new life together, Jenny learns she has a fatal blood disease and dies. (Only in the book is the disease identified as leukemia.)
"It was cliché, but it worked," says Ali MacGraw. "And everybody was completely flabbergasted when it had the reception that it had, which was right away," she remembers.
MORE....
**********
Well written tribute to the author & the story he wrote.
A Worthy Read....
"Love Story" 50 yrs. " Where do I begin, To tell the story of how great a love can be"...
The story.How it came to be written.
The unexpected impact on a generation of 1970.
https://www.npr.org/2020/12/22/948655542/successful-sentimental-and-satirized-love-story-celebrates-50th-anniversary
Successful, Sentimental And Satirized, 'Love Story' Celebrates 50th Anniversary
December 22, 2020
Fifty years ago, a simple but tragic love story became a global sensation that stunned the entertainment industry.
Love Story, the romantic tearjerker starring Ryan O'Neal and Ali MacGraw, broke box office records and the book it was based on was a bestseller that was translated into more than 30 languages.
"What can you say about a 25-year-old girl who dies?" So begins the novel and screenplay, both written by Erich Segal.
In December, 1970, in the midst of the Vietnam War and the continuing fight for Civil Rights — along came an "unabashedly sentimental" story "about the power of love," says Segal's daughter, writer Francesca Segal. It was "genuine and earnest and I think it just struck a chord," she says. The 50th anniversary edition of the novel Love Story includes an introduction by Francesca.
Erich Segal was 30 years old and a professor at Yale when he wrote the 131-page Love Story. The idea came when he learned that one of his former students was just 25 when he lost his wife to cancer.
Oliver Barrett IV, played by Ryan O'Neal in the movie, is a sensitive, rich kid and a Harvard hockey player. The inspiration for Oliver has been the source of intrigue and even controversy. Segal said Oliver was partly modeled after Al Gore, but mostly after Tommy Lee Jones (who also has a part in the movie).
SNIP
They were gorgeous to look at as they frolic in the snow, argue, fall deeply in love and marry, despite the disapproval of Oliver's father. Just as they start a new life together, Jenny learns she has a fatal blood disease and dies. (Only in the book is the disease identified as leukemia.)
"It was cliché, but it worked," says Ali MacGraw. "And everybody was completely flabbergasted when it had the reception that it had, which was right away," she remembers.
MORE....
**********
Well written tribute to the author & the story he wrote.
A Worthy Read....
December 22, 2020
Not just six hundred dollars: The emergency COVID bill contains hundreds of billions in aid to individuals
Monday, December 21, 2020
Yes, a one-time $600 payment is inadequate. Yes, extending the eviction moratorium for only a month is anxiety-inducing. Yes, having no direct assistance to state, cities, and Native American tribal governments is a broken promise.
Both President-elect Biden and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi made it clear that the compromise emergency COVID package Congress is getting ready to pass (Is Now Passed) cannot be viewed as completed work but only as a down payment.
Be that as it may, the paltry nature of a $600 survival direct payment has taken over the coverage of the coronavirus relief package at the expense of the very real individual benefits that Democrats were able to negotiate in the package, and it should not be.
Here is what you get, in addition to the one-time $600 payment, depending on your situation.
If you are unemployed, not only have your unemployment benefits been extended until March, you will also get a $300/week enhancement to unemployment benefits for 11 weeks. That is $1,300 a month on top of your standard unemployment benefit. That comes in at a total of $166 billion.
If you work for small businesses, you might be able to receive your full paycheck even if the business cannot
MORE...
If you rent or pay a mortgage, you cannot be evicted for nonpayment. The eviction moratorium set to expire at the end of this month has been extended to January 31. If you are having a hard time affording rent, a $25 billion fund has been secured to help you pay rent.
If you are food insecure, Democrats have secured a $13 billion increase in SNAP funding.
If you have a child in school or are in school yourself, you may be interested to know that $82 billion is being set aside to help schools and colleges reopen safely.
If you are worried about hospital bills, this bill ends surprise medical billing, requiring that get a "true and honest cost estimate" 3 days before any scheduled procedure and that billing disputes would be subject to arbitration.
If you take public transit, your local transit agency can get part of the $14 billion set aside to keep the buses, light rails, and commuter trains running.
If you are having trouble affording Broadband internet so you can work or attend school from home, this bill creates a $7 billion fund to help you pay for it.
If you drive, there is $10 billion to maintain highways.
And if you are planning on getting the coronavirus vaccine at some point? There is $68 billion in this package for vaccine distribution and $20 billion to make sure no one has to pay a penny to receive it.
Last but not least, let's be crystal clear that there would be no relief bill at all - that means zero direct payment, no extended unemployment, no paychecks if your employer is a small business affected by the pandemic, no eviction moratorium, no SNAP expansion, at all, had the Democratic leadership not lined up behind a bipartisan, bicameral group of legislators (including Republicans willing to buck their party leadership) who stepped forward to break a logjam that lasted the full human gestation period. Republicans were so ready to leave town with nothing ...
Would more be better? Of course. As Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi have made clear, once Biden and Vice President-elect Harris have been sworn in, they and Congressional Democrats will push for more relief and stimulus.
We will need that, and it will completely change the dynamic in Congress if Jon Osoff and Rev. Rafael Warnock were to replace Trumpian hacks David Purdue and Kelly Loeffler in the Senate. ..
MORE....
Thank you Democrats.
"The emergency COVID bill contains hundreds of billions in aid to individuals"
https://www.reclaimthefight.com/2020/12/not-just-six-hundred-dollars-emergency.html?m=1Not just six hundred dollars: The emergency COVID bill contains hundreds of billions in aid to individuals
Monday, December 21, 2020
Yes, a one-time $600 payment is inadequate. Yes, extending the eviction moratorium for only a month is anxiety-inducing. Yes, having no direct assistance to state, cities, and Native American tribal governments is a broken promise.
Both President-elect Biden and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi made it clear that the compromise emergency COVID package Congress is getting ready to pass (Is Now Passed) cannot be viewed as completed work but only as a down payment.
Be that as it may, the paltry nature of a $600 survival direct payment has taken over the coverage of the coronavirus relief package at the expense of the very real individual benefits that Democrats were able to negotiate in the package, and it should not be.
Here is what you get, in addition to the one-time $600 payment, depending on your situation.
If you are unemployed, not only have your unemployment benefits been extended until March, you will also get a $300/week enhancement to unemployment benefits for 11 weeks. That is $1,300 a month on top of your standard unemployment benefit. That comes in at a total of $166 billion.
If you work for small businesses, you might be able to receive your full paycheck even if the business cannot
MORE...
If you rent or pay a mortgage, you cannot be evicted for nonpayment. The eviction moratorium set to expire at the end of this month has been extended to January 31. If you are having a hard time affording rent, a $25 billion fund has been secured to help you pay rent.
If you are food insecure, Democrats have secured a $13 billion increase in SNAP funding.
If you have a child in school or are in school yourself, you may be interested to know that $82 billion is being set aside to help schools and colleges reopen safely.
If you are worried about hospital bills, this bill ends surprise medical billing, requiring that get a "true and honest cost estimate" 3 days before any scheduled procedure and that billing disputes would be subject to arbitration.
If you take public transit, your local transit agency can get part of the $14 billion set aside to keep the buses, light rails, and commuter trains running.
If you are having trouble affording Broadband internet so you can work or attend school from home, this bill creates a $7 billion fund to help you pay for it.
If you drive, there is $10 billion to maintain highways.
And if you are planning on getting the coronavirus vaccine at some point? There is $68 billion in this package for vaccine distribution and $20 billion to make sure no one has to pay a penny to receive it.
Last but not least, let's be crystal clear that there would be no relief bill at all - that means zero direct payment, no extended unemployment, no paychecks if your employer is a small business affected by the pandemic, no eviction moratorium, no SNAP expansion, at all, had the Democratic leadership not lined up behind a bipartisan, bicameral group of legislators (including Republicans willing to buck their party leadership) who stepped forward to break a logjam that lasted the full human gestation period. Republicans were so ready to leave town with nothing ...
Would more be better? Of course. As Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi have made clear, once Biden and Vice President-elect Harris have been sworn in, they and Congressional Democrats will push for more relief and stimulus.
We will need that, and it will completely change the dynamic in Congress if Jon Osoff and Rev. Rafael Warnock were to replace Trumpian hacks David Purdue and Kelly Loeffler in the Senate. ..
MORE....
Thank you Democrats.
December 20, 2020
(There are some useful links at the site for more info on this)
Frontier was charging $10 a month for absolutely nothing
Last year, Congress passed a law that should have fixed this ridiculous loophole as of June 20th, 2020 — and though the FCC managed to extend the deadline six months by spinning up some bullshit about how cable companies didn’t have the resources to stop charging you money, the law should take full effect tomorrow.
Do note that the actual text of the law still allows some BS to occur. If your ISP sends you a router, you’ll need to return it to avoid charges.
“WHETHER YOU USE IT OR NOT”
Frontier in particular has been notorious for charging customers $10 a month for their equipment “whether you use it or not” — the company’s words, not mine — but Frontier is clearly aware it won’t be able to do that anymore. Starting this month, the company’s equipment page has changed to remove the part where it talks about the mandatory fee. Here’s an archived copy of the site from last month if you want to compare.
If you can purchase your own cable modem, I suggest you do. Modems will generally pay for themselves in less than a year, and the all-in-one router boxes that ISPs typically provide typically offer worse Wi-Fi coverage than you could easily add to a house yourself, particularly now that mesh Wi-Fi systems are better, cheaper, and easier to use than ever before.
Starting Sunday, cable companies can no longer 'rent' you the router you already own
https://www.theverge.com/platform/amp/2020/12/19/22191096/internet-modem-router-rental-fee-fix-television-viewer-protection-act-tvpa(There are some useful links at the site for more info on this)
Frontier was charging $10 a month for absolutely nothing
Last year, Congress passed a law that should have fixed this ridiculous loophole as of June 20th, 2020 — and though the FCC managed to extend the deadline six months by spinning up some bullshit about how cable companies didn’t have the resources to stop charging you money, the law should take full effect tomorrow.
Do note that the actual text of the law still allows some BS to occur. If your ISP sends you a router, you’ll need to return it to avoid charges.
“WHETHER YOU USE IT OR NOT”
Frontier in particular has been notorious for charging customers $10 a month for their equipment “whether you use it or not” — the company’s words, not mine — but Frontier is clearly aware it won’t be able to do that anymore. Starting this month, the company’s equipment page has changed to remove the part where it talks about the mandatory fee. Here’s an archived copy of the site from last month if you want to compare.
If you can purchase your own cable modem, I suggest you do. Modems will generally pay for themselves in less than a year, and the all-in-one router boxes that ISPs typically provide typically offer worse Wi-Fi coverage than you could easily add to a house yourself, particularly now that mesh Wi-Fi systems are better, cheaper, and easier to use than ever before.
December 20, 2020
Excellent read. Explains how the actual process happens when selecting committee members.
It is far more intricate than people realize & this lays out the process.
It is more of an education into what actually goes on behind the headlines, and WHO voted as they did in this particular case..
BOTH Democrats AND Progressives did what the process asked of them
"The establishment" didn't deny AOC a prized committee seat. PROGRESSIVES did.
https://www.reclaimthefight.com/2020/12/progressives-deny-aoc-energycommerce-seat.html?m=1#.X9425_NL3JU.twitterExcellent read. Explains how the actual process happens when selecting committee members.
It is far more intricate than people realize & this lays out the process.
It is more of an education into what actually goes on behind the headlines, and WHO voted as they did in this particular case..
BOTH Democrats AND Progressives did what the process asked of them
December 20, 2020
This round today was like the passing of the torch.
Totally enjoyed the day.
Tiger & Charlie Woods shoot 10-under 62 Round 1 PNC Championship
This round today was like the passing of the torch.
Totally enjoyed the day.
December 20, 2020
He married Kellyann Conway's cousin, Giovanna Coia in September 2019
https://twitter.com/ericgarland/status/1340318685257412609
https://twitter.com/ericgarland/status/1340320131147329536
https://twitter.com/TheRickyDavila/status/1340154321468461063
"So yes, the fact that Mike Pence’s nephew John Pence was on the board of a shell company that Jared Kushner created to secretly pay the trump crime family means that Mike Pence knew and knows about every crime committed these 4 years as he was involved in all of them."
Mike Pence's nephew John Pence was on the board of Jared's shell company. He married Kellyann C's...
Mike Pence’s nephew John Pence was an officer on the board of Jared's shell company.He married Kellyann Conway's cousin, Giovanna Coia in September 2019
https://twitter.com/ericgarland/status/1340318685257412609
https://twitter.com/ericgarland/status/1340320131147329536
https://twitter.com/TheRickyDavila/status/1340154321468461063
"So yes, the fact that Mike Pence’s nephew John Pence was on the board of a shell company that Jared Kushner created to secretly pay the trump crime family means that Mike Pence knew and knows about every crime committed these 4 years as he was involved in all of them."
December 20, 2020
🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄
"When one door closes another door opens. When one door closes another door opens. When one door cl"
🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄
December 19, 2020
Replying to
@tomwatson
"I look forward to an 17 year old white girl with a bullhorn rambling about pipe lines and Native water rights at a Sunrise protest in front of Deb's house two days into the Biden Presidency."🙄
Me too!
Hmmmm.. that statement's a bit hazy unless the only thing they really ever see is old white guys, cuz Biden's group is nothing as they describe. NOTHING!
Not sure what they're looking at. Maybe they confused it with Trump's enviro grouo..
What a weird statement.
Looking for the old white guys in Biden's line-up here & am just not seeing it..
"New Mexico Rep. Deb Haaland would be the first Native American to lead the Interior Department, which has wielded influence over the nation’s tribes for generations. Former two-term Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm is in line to be energy secretary."
"North Carolina official Michael Regan, if confirmed by the Senate, would be the first African American man to run the Environmental Protection Agency. Regan, the state environmental head since 2017, has made a name for himself by pursuing cleanups of industrial toxins and helping the low-income and minority communities significantly affected by pollution."
"Biden’s nominee to oversee the Council on Environmental Quality is Brenda Mallory. The office oversees environmental reviews for virtually all major infrastructure projects and advises the president on major environmental issues. If confirmed, she would be the first African American to hold the position since it was created more than half a century ago."
"Two other members of the team also being introduced Saturday do not need Senate confirmation. They are Gina McCarthy, to serve as national climate adviser, and Ali Zaidi, to serve as her deputy"
From:
https://triblive.com/news/world/biden-environmental-team-heavy-on-experience-diversity/
Biden environmental team heavy on experience, diversity
Sunrise Movement gaffe / "Biden's enviro team "an older, whiter, male-er group in general"
https://twitter.com/tomwatson/status/1340407476341137413Replying to
@tomwatson
"I look forward to an 17 year old white girl with a bullhorn rambling about pipe lines and Native water rights at a Sunrise protest in front of Deb's house two days into the Biden Presidency."🙄
Me too!
Hmmmm.. that statement's a bit hazy unless the only thing they really ever see is old white guys, cuz Biden's group is nothing as they describe. NOTHING!
Not sure what they're looking at. Maybe they confused it with Trump's enviro grouo..
What a weird statement.
Looking for the old white guys in Biden's line-up here & am just not seeing it..
"New Mexico Rep. Deb Haaland would be the first Native American to lead the Interior Department, which has wielded influence over the nation’s tribes for generations. Former two-term Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm is in line to be energy secretary."
"North Carolina official Michael Regan, if confirmed by the Senate, would be the first African American man to run the Environmental Protection Agency. Regan, the state environmental head since 2017, has made a name for himself by pursuing cleanups of industrial toxins and helping the low-income and minority communities significantly affected by pollution."
"Biden’s nominee to oversee the Council on Environmental Quality is Brenda Mallory. The office oversees environmental reviews for virtually all major infrastructure projects and advises the president on major environmental issues. If confirmed, she would be the first African American to hold the position since it was created more than half a century ago."
"Two other members of the team also being introduced Saturday do not need Senate confirmation. They are Gina McCarthy, to serve as national climate adviser, and Ali Zaidi, to serve as her deputy"
From:
https://triblive.com/news/world/biden-environmental-team-heavy-on-experience-diversity/
Biden environmental team heavy on experience, diversity
December 19, 2020
Earlier this month, Ingrid Sanchez tried to rustle up votes here for the ruling Socialist Party in Petare, Venezuela's largest barrio. As parliamentary elections got underway on December 6, she hired motorcycles and jeeps to ferry poor but faithful voters up steep hills to the polling station.
Sanchez has no money to spare — a former teacher, she lives on a state pension worth just one and a half dollars per month.
It was the Socialist Party — the late Hugo Chavez's party — that gave Ingrid cash to pay for the vehicles. But they weren't Venezuelan bolivars — they were US dollars. And as she counted it,
SNIP
Sanchez, 57 years old, is a faithful member of the Socialist Party and believes fiercely in the vision of late president Hugo Chavez, who prophesied a Marxist utopia where the state would look after the needs of the people, raise the quality of life, erase inequality and limit private enterprise to a minor role in the economy. "One never loses hope, and that is a project that I still believe in," she said.
But Venezuela today hardly resembles the one pictured by Chavez. Hunger is rampant, inequality dizzying, and public hospitals stand derelict as the country deals with the coronavirus pandemic.
The US dollar is increasingly taking precedence over the bolivar, and while the Venezuelan minimum wage is the lowest in the region, the country's stock market is booming.
Chavez's successor, current President Nicolas Maduro, recently inaugurated an ultra-luxury hotel where rooms are the equivalent of $300 per night.
All of which raises a question that Sanchez has clearly been wrestling with: Is socialism still alive in Venezuela? "I don't know, we are doing things upside down," she says.
Venezuela is quietly quitting socialism
https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2020/12/18/americas/venezuela-death-of-socialism-intl/index.htmlEarlier this month, Ingrid Sanchez tried to rustle up votes here for the ruling Socialist Party in Petare, Venezuela's largest barrio. As parliamentary elections got underway on December 6, she hired motorcycles and jeeps to ferry poor but faithful voters up steep hills to the polling station.
Sanchez has no money to spare — a former teacher, she lives on a state pension worth just one and a half dollars per month.
It was the Socialist Party — the late Hugo Chavez's party — that gave Ingrid cash to pay for the vehicles. But they weren't Venezuelan bolivars — they were US dollars. And as she counted it,
SNIP
Sanchez, 57 years old, is a faithful member of the Socialist Party and believes fiercely in the vision of late president Hugo Chavez, who prophesied a Marxist utopia where the state would look after the needs of the people, raise the quality of life, erase inequality and limit private enterprise to a minor role in the economy. "One never loses hope, and that is a project that I still believe in," she said.
But Venezuela today hardly resembles the one pictured by Chavez. Hunger is rampant, inequality dizzying, and public hospitals stand derelict as the country deals with the coronavirus pandemic.
The US dollar is increasingly taking precedence over the bolivar, and while the Venezuelan minimum wage is the lowest in the region, the country's stock market is booming.
Chavez's successor, current President Nicolas Maduro, recently inaugurated an ultra-luxury hotel where rooms are the equivalent of $300 per night.
All of which raises a question that Sanchez has clearly been wrestling with: Is socialism still alive in Venezuela? "I don't know, we are doing things upside down," she says.
December 19, 2020
Stunning sight off the Oregon Coast
Wish we had more info.
Maybe they're returning from the past to save us!
https://twitter.com/artnmusic4life/status/1339996765790085120
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