August 14, 2021

Climate change CODE RED, "Man bites gold medal."

I’m looking at my list of things to write about this week. It’s a long one. This might take a minute. Get a cuppa, make yourself comfy.

Perfunctory convivialities first

Picture this: You check your email. You read this newsletter. And you. love. it.

Now picture this: You don’t get this newsletter. You sink into depression. Your life goes into a tailspin. Your dog runs away. You start listening to Blake Shelton songs.

Which one do you want? Choose wisely.

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Climate Change CODE RED

The intergovernmental panel on climate change (IPCC) released their report on climate change on Monday. CODE RED alert. Even if we reduced worldwide net emissions to zero by 2050, we’re looking at a 1.5C rise in temperatures across the planet. This implies a rise of 2 meters in sea levels. It’s not too late. It’s never too late to do the right thing but this report is the starkest description of the climate emergency. It is the most direct call to action we’ve received on the existential crisis of our time. Climate change must be front and center of every political agenda in every country in the world.

Here’s a good read on this (wait. don’t read it yet. Finish the Vaccine first)

The era of 'rapid' climate change has begun

Inflation peaks, but paranoid bullshit is still in first leg

If you’re pissed about climate skeptics, wait till you hear about the vaccine skeptics. Inflation may have peaked in America (as a report this week suggested) but paranoid bullshit is still in its first leg. Dangerous mutations of paranoid delusion are rapidly spreading across America. At this rate, scientists say, we will all become Republicans by Christmas. By the way, CDC telling us back in May that we could stop masking indoors was the dumbest thing they’ve done during this entire ordeal.

On Cuomo Sapiens

Here’s my advice to anyone accused by not one, two or three but eleven women of sexual harassment: Resign. Like immediately. Even if you’re Italian. Andrew Cuomo resigned reluctantly this week blaming tougher standards of personal conduct than he is used to. Epictetus, a Greek Stoic, said, “You’re hurt the moment you believe yourself to be.” This is how sexual harassment works. What matters is what the aggrieved party believes. The subtext in Cuomo’s resignation speech was staggeringly blind and arrogant. “I saved all of yall’s butts during Covid and ergo I figured there was no way you’d kick me out. In my defense, I am Italian.”

Lindsey Boylan, a staffer, started it all with a tweet last December. I admire her courage. It must not have been easy to take on a powerful dynasty like the New York Cuomos. Here’s the silver lining: The system works. Even a guy as powerful as Cuomo was forced out. That is awe inspiring.

Progressives vs Moderate Democrats vs Republicans

The Senate, this week, passed a bipartisan trillion dollar infrastructure bill. It’s got money in there for all sorts of things. Roads, bridges, airports. I’m hoping they’ve put aside some money to revamp HBO Max’s app, which is easily the most horrific thing ever designed in the history of humankind. There is more drama yet to come. At the moment, there appears to be a bigger divide between progressive and moderate Democrats than between moderate Democrats and Republicans. How Biden, Schumer and Pelosi cross the chasm remains to be seen.

Of what use is a passport?

The United Nations Declaration of Human Rights says plainly: "Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country." Yet, Australia, which has long seen itself as a fair-dinkum society, has abandoned its citizens during a once-in-a-generation global crisis. Many Australians are asking: of what value is a passport if you can't use it to get home in an emergency? They have reason to ask. The Australian government’s border policies have ranged from severe to extremely harsh all through the Covid crisis. Back in May, Canberra said that any Australian who had been in India would risk a 5-year jail term if they attempted to return to their homeland. More recently, they doubled down by saying that any expats who enter Australia will need to apply for permission to leave. The Australian government has enforced the most stringent curbs on movement of any democratic country in the world. 54 Australians abroad have died of Covid while waiting for permission to return home. To my surprise, I discovered that Australia does NOT have a bill of rights, unlike most liberal democracies. While some human rights are embedded constitutionally, they are limited in scope. What responsibility does Australia have to its citizens then, I wonder. Strange business.

Silver angst

A recent study showed that Olympic silver medalists on average live significantly shorter lives than gold and bronze medalists. Gold is not too surprising, but bronze? The reason is well understood by experts: Happier people live longer. Silver medal is interpreted as “I lost the gold,” whereas a bronze is interpreted as, “At least I won a medal.” I suspect this psychology is at work beyond Olympians and applies to comparatively normal folks like you and me, and maybe to even nations and societies. It could explain what’s going on in America. America’s perceived decline since the end of the Cold War may have taken a toll on our psyches. We have been defending a lead that looks like it’s slipping (although it really is not). We are now playing the game of not losing. Nearly everyone in America is better off than the rest of the world. Yet, it seems like the lead has reduced. It feels a lot like a silver medal these days. Could this explain Trump and Trumpism? I don’t know but it seems plausible.

Mayor bites gold medal

Dog bites man was never news. Even man-bites-dog isn’t news anymore. How about “man bites gold medal?” Biting your own Olympic gold medal is one thing. A Japanese mayor learned that you don’t bite someone else’s. Miu Goto, on the Japanese national softball team, visited Mayor Takahashi Kawamura for what she believed to be a routine ceremony to celebrate an Olympic gold. Goto showed her medal to the mayor, who asked her to put it around his neck, and then began to inexplicably chomp on it. If that wasn’t enough, the legend was heard asking Goto, "Are you prohibited from having romantic relationships?" He has subsequently apologized by saying that he played badminton in high school and has long had an “intense longing for a gold medal.” He added that he didn’t bite the medal very hard. Kawamura has been uninvited from the Paralympic Games and from any societal gatherings in general.

Link: https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/14412468

Stat of the week

The US government’s census report came out this week. Highlights: Rural population declined and urban centers grew since 2010. 65% of the population growth since 2010 happened in counties Joe Biden won in 2020, which bodes well for the Democrats. America is now 58% white, down from 67% in 2010.

Here’s an eye popping stat: 47% of all American children are non-white today.

ps: MAGA people gonna be mad.

Quote of the week

“The defect of equality is that we only desire it with our superiors."

~ Henry François Becque, a French dramatist.

Stay safe. Have a great week ahead. Happy Independence Day, India!

Before you go, here’s your weekly Booster.

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