Spartacus101
Spartacus101's Journal'Giant snake' being used to catch plastic in the Pacific Ocean
Source: BBC News
There's a massive project attempting to get rid of plastic rubbish from the middle of the Pacific Ocean.
We all know plastic can be a problem when it's thrown away because it doesn't break down or rot like natural materials do, including food or wood.
Often it can end up in our seas.
This is why a 600 metre long tube is being taken out to part of the Pacific Ocean known as the Great Garbage Patch.
The patch has been given this name because the water's currents there mean lots of plastic rubbish has gathered together.
Read more: https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/45458114
Amidst the madness and daily "Trump of Doom", I thought some positive news was in order...
Also, I love the Pacific Ocean...nice to see someone actually DOING something about a environmental problem instead of just howling about it, or uttering, "More studies are needed!".
Good on these people!
Eleanor Roosevelt Labor Day Quotes
I have always felt that it was important that everyone who was a worker join a labor organization.
IBEW Strike, 1941
I believe you should tell the story of injustices, of inequalities, of bad conditions, so that the people as a whole in this country really face the problems that people who are pushed to the point of striking know all about, but others know practically nothing about.
CIO Convention, 1943
The unionization of domestic workers will be salutary for both the employer and the employee.
"My Day," 1946
More at: https://www2.gwu.edu/~erpapers/workers/articles/quotes.cfm
...wise up, hang together, or hang separately....
Microsoft Bug Testers Unionized. Then They Were Dismissed
Source: Bloomberg Businessweek
Silicon Valley’s contract labor has become a hot political topic, as a slew of potential Democratic presidential candidates sponsor legislation that could force companies to negotiate with more workers they claim not to employ. In California, Uber, Lyft, TaskRabbit, and a half-dozen other companies are lobbying to defang a court ruling that could make it difficult to avoid reclassifying such workers as employees. And in Washington, the Republican-dominated National Labor Relations Board has made moves to undo an Obama-era precedent that could make big employers legally liable for contract workers even if they have only indirect control over them.
The GOP takeover in Washington is one reason the Temporary Workers of America, a union of bug testers for Microsoft Corp., gave up on what had been, for people in the software world, an almost unheard of unionization victory, says the group’s founder, Philippe Boucher. The 38-person union successfully organized in 2014, winning the right to negotiate with temp agency Lionbridge Technologies Inc., which provides marketing, testing, and language services. Within a few years, however, Lionbridge had eliminated all their jobs, and the workers say a union-busting complaint they filed in December 2016 with the NLRB against Microsoft dragged on too long. They agreed to settle this spring to get financial relief.
Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-08-23/microsoft-bug-testers-unionized-then-they-were-dismissed?utm_content=business&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=socialflow-organic&cmpid=socialflow-twitter-business&utm_medium=social
Lionbridge has been on a lot of contract worker's no-no lists for quite some time...sad to see MSFT collaberating with them in Union-Busting...Oh, Mr. Gates....
"Philanthropist, n: A rich old man with a bad conscience." -Ambrose Bierce
California's strict net neutrality bill is close to final passage
Source: Ars Technica
A California state net neutrality bill described as the strongest in the country was approved by a key legislative committee yesterday and is close to final passage.
The bill was approved 9-3 by the state Assembly's Communications and Conveyance Committee, and is "head[ing] to the Assembly floor for a vote next week," bill author Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) announced yesterday. All nine yes votes came from Democrats while the three no votes were made by Republicans.
FURTHER READING
Net neutrality makes comeback in California; lawmakers agree to strict rules
"Today's committee action sending SB 822 to the floor is a big step forward, but we continue to face a huge fight, as the big telecom and cable companies will stop at nothing to kill the bill," Wiener said. "Yet, we have momentum and the support of a broad and diverse coalition that understands the importance of a free and open internet for everyone. I look forward to working with our supporters and everyday Californians to get this vital piece of legislation to the governor's desk."
The bill was already approved by the State Senate in May.
Read more: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2018/08/californias-strict-net-neutrality-bill-is-close-to-final-passage/
You think the throttling of a Northern Calif. fire department's Internet service during the biggest fire in Calif. history, and the subsequent howls from constituents had anything to do with resurrecting this bill, which was stuck in committee for MONTHS?
Nah....
As they say in Hawai'i,
GEEVE 'EM!" (Go get 'em!)
Californians, PICK UP THE PHONE!
Fire dept. rejects Verizon's "customer support mistake" excuse for throttling
Source: Ars Technica
A fire department whose data was throttled by Verizon Wireless while it was fighting California's largest-ever wildfire has rejected Verizon's claim that the throttling was just a customer service error and "has nothing to do with net neutrality." The throttling "has everything to do with net neutrality," a Santa Clara County official said.
Verizon yesterday acknowledged that it shouldn't have continued throttling Santa Clara County Fire Department's "unlimited" data service while the department was battling the Mendocino Complex Fire. Verizon said the department had chosen an unlimited data plan that gets throttled to speeds of 200kbps or 600kbps after using 25GB a month but that Verizon failed to follow its policy of "remov[ing] data speed restrictions when contacted in emergency situations."
"This was a customer support mistake" and not a net neutrality issue, Verizon said.
Read more: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2018/08/fire-dept-rejects-verizons-customer-support-mistake-excuse-for-throttling/
Customer Support Mistake? How many lives a homes were lost in that conflagration?
One commentator on the Ars said,
"....maybe emergency services should be exempt from throttling and bandwidth caps. Or, failing that, maybe municipalities that service Verizon stores and offices and such can invoke a cap on Verizon. "Dear Verizon, you have exceeded your monthly sewage capacity and are therefore restricted to 20% of your available flushes. You may contact one of our customer service representatives to arrange for additional flushes for a fee of $75 per flush. Thank you for choosing us for all your waste-disposal needs."
And I couldn't have said it any better.
Verizon throttled fire department's "unlimited" data during Calif. wildfire
Source: ArsTechnica
Verizon Wireless' throttling of a fire department that uses its data services has been submitted as evidence in a lawsuit that seeks to reinstate federal net neutrality rules.
"County Fire has experienced throttling by its ISP, Verizon," Santa Clara County Fire Chief Anthony Bowden wrote in a declaration. "This throttling has had a significant impact on our ability to provide emergency services. Verizon imposed these limitations despite being informed that throttling was actively impeding County Fire's ability to provide crisis-response and essential emergency services."
Bowden's declaration was submitted in an addendum to a brief filed by 22 state attorneys general, the District of Columbia, Santa Clara County, Santa Clara County Central Fire Protection District, and the California Public Utilities Commission. The government agencies are seeking to overturn the recent repeal of net neutrality rules in a lawsuit they filed against the Federal Communications Commission in the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit."
Read more: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2018/08/verizon-throttled-fire-departments-unlimited-data-during-calif-wildfire/
Well, looks like the loss of Net Neutrality may have cost some lives and money. I wonder if 22 AG's filing could be the start of some criminal and civil lawsuits, like "Wrongful Death", "Criminal Profiteering during an Emergency," etc etc. Not up on my Torts and Criminal Law, but...in any case, this is very bad.
BS in the BLS Statistics
Every time I hear how well the economy is doing, and the media mindlessly regurgitating the BLS U3 UI stats, I have to resist the urge to find the nearest air sickness bag or nearby substitute.
Anyone that tells you we're at full employment (U3 stats) should be asked:
1. What KIND of jobs are those?
2. How many lousy minimum wage, no-benefits part-time jobs do you have to hold to keep a $1800 1BR apartment over your head in a lousy neighborhood in SoCal? Answer: It can't be done with less than two.
3. How old do you have to be before they "put the position on hold" after interviewing you? (A: 40.)
4. Do you know what the BLS U6 figure is, how it's derived, what the parameters are...you know, the stat any Administration wants to hide. (Hint: It's a lot more than 4%!) https://www.macrotrends.net/1377/u6-unemployment-rate Yes, it's getting better, but things never really recovered fully for everyone since the last crash. And even the U6 was lower in October 2000!
One writer had an interesting slant on this a while ago: https://tinyurl.com/zmdnxlq
"Facts. Facts, facts, facts. Forget what the propaganda tells you, forget what the BLS cherry-picked stats and the politicians tell you, forget what the stars foretell, forget what your brother in law Billy-Bob says. Again and again, What are the facts?" (paraphrasing Robert Heinlein)
"There are three categories of lies; lies, damned lies, and statistics." - Mark Twain
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Gender: Do not displayHome country: USA
Current location: SoCal Concrete Jungle
Member since: Mon Jul 30, 2018, 01:11 AM
Number of posts: 93
