Why do we have to change our clocks twice a year? In Latin America, even in Argentina and Chile at some distance from the equator, we never did. Why not just stay with the same clock all year round?
The Week, The
Senate just voted to abolish Standard Time and make Daylight Saving Time
permanent
Now can the House please follow suit?
The day before the clock changeover, our spring weather suddenly turned to snow showers, dusting flowers just poking up. And what about the cherry blossoms? The festival starts here on March 20. Fortunately, the weather had warmed up by today, St. Patrick’s Day, March 17.
The DC Government Has Over 500 Job Vacancies | DCist
https://dcist.com/story/22/03/10/dc-government-job-vacancies/
If you’ve been job hunting for a full or part-time position, vacancies do exist here locally and all around the country.
As for myself, I’ve decided now I’ve worked long enough. So I’m not returning to my part-time job as a Spanish interpreter, left in early 2020 just before my last volunteer trip to Honduras in Feb./March of that year. I no longer care to use public transportation to get to local interpretation assignments nor does online translation appeal to me, so I’ve finally called it quits on working altogether.
Although I’m now officially retired, family and friends still keep me busy and personally connected. As per my occupational therapist friends, I find myself never getting bored, always being engaged in (subjectively) purposeful activity.
Meanwhile, my advanced age must be an open secret, as I keep getting offers to buy my house in the mail, also sometimes via calls on my unlisted phone number promising “all cash.” I suspect I’m not alone in being bombarded with such unsolicited offers. No thanks, my house is not for sale. If I sold my home, then where would I live? If housing is in such demand, I’d be out of luck myself finding another abode in this very historic and convenient neighborhood where I’ve lived now for more than half a century.
It’s
happened again, a 3-year-old boy finds a gun in the car, pulls the trigger, and
kills his mother.
Here’s an interesting twist on assisted reproduction:
Atlanta Black Star, ‘I Want a Black Child’: Black Sperm and Egg Donors Shortage Creates Stumbling Block for Black Women Already Facing Infertility Disparity
The
Conversation, Sperm from older rats passes on fewer active genes to offspring
because of epigenetic changes
Whether these changes result in more health problems in offspring and whether the findings might apply to children of older human fathers remains to be seen, but still needs to be investigated, since the average age of American fathers is increasing (and of mothers, as well).
The pandemic continues, though at a slower pace right now. Are we even paying attention?
Ft. Worth
Star-Telegram, Deltacron COVID: What is this new variant, and should we be
worried?
MarketWatch, China battles multiple COVID outbreaks, driven by stealth omicron
Yahoo
Entertainment, Jussie Smollett begins serving 150-day jail sentence
After being
given a short jail term, Smollett repeatedly told the court not only that he is
innocent, but that he is not suicidal. That’s a red flag, showing that suicide
is definitely on his mind, so he needs to be watched very carefully while in
custody. His convoluted plot to boost his sagging popularity failed
spectacularly.
Daily News, Jussie
Smollett put in psych ward after being deemed a self-harm risk, his brother
says
The brother
disputes that Jussie would harm himself, but I’d already deemed him at risk, writing
the item above before learning of the jail’s precautions. Jail staff don’t dare
take chances with a high-profile prisoner like Jussie Smollett.
Now after just 6 days in custody, Smollett is out on a technicality. His career will not recover, but like Bill Cosby, he may now be able to live outside of prison. Those with sufficient resources to hire lawyers can sometimes escape the consequences of their actions.
Business Insider, Trump: 'In the history of our country, nothing like me has ever happened'
Too true, but fortunately, he is an outlier; Donald Trump is right about that. His star does seem to be fading now, though not totally sputtered out as yet. It could still revive, as the hard core remains ever faithful, making it hard for other Republicans to challenge him. Trump has been busy collecting campaign contributions illegally without not declaring his candidacy, just teasing a 2024 run. Will he give the money back if he doesn’t run? Don’t bet on it.
Mr. Trump has just said again that he had a great victory in the 2020 election, even “beyond anybody’s wildest expectation.” Since he was sitting president at the time, how could that election possibly have been “stolen”? Has a US presidential election ever been stolen and, if so, when and exactly how? Sounds like wishful thinking, as he really wishes he could be universally popular. Trump also recently touted his own “high aptitude for music.” Who knew? Vladimir Putin must have something on The Donald since Trump has been so hesitant to criticize him.
While the US
is trying to work out the delicate reestablishment of the nuclear
deal with Iran, which Trump had so impulsively and thoughtlessly
pulled out of, the war in Ukraine is now proving to be a distraction and
complication in remedying his mistake.
Saudi Arabia carried out 81 executions on March 12, a record number. The US dares not condemn the
kingdom too harshly right now in the wake of the boycott of Russian oil. The US
is also cozying up again to Venezuela for the same reason.
While public
attention has been turning elsewhere, Covid is still with us. The war in Ukraine
may trigger an even further spread.
Miami
Herald, College athlete dies after long battle with COVID in Arkansas.
‘Special beyond measure’
Apparently,
he was unvaccinated. Some 65% of the US population are now fully vaccinated (2
shots), but that’s not enough.
AP, China
tightens controls as more virus cases reported
China, where
it all started, is having Covid outbreaks again. The virus could also come
roaring back. More contagious variants seem to be emerging.
Wash. Post, Mississippi lawmakers just killed a bill that would expand postpartum care If Mississippi lawmakers really want to help the unborn, they also need to offer more help to the already born. Yet, they recently defeated such efforts.
Afghanistan is all but forgotten now, although we haven’t yet finished resettling Afghan refugees here in the US. That was last year’s international crisis. Before that, it was Ethiopia/Eritrea. Ukrainian refugees have not yet gotten the green light to come to the US, though Europe has opened its doors.
Daily
Mail,
Ukrainian refugees are being turned AWAY at the southern border because
Biden has carried on Trump's Title 42 policy expelling immigrants because of
COVID restrictions, lawyers reveal
The Biden administration needs to remedy this without further delay! Little Guatemala is already taking in Ukrainian refugees, but, of course, here in the US, if we open the door even a crack, a flood will rush in.
Biden administration looking for ways to help Ukrainian refugees join family members in the US https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/17/politics/ukrainian-refugees-biden-administration/index.html
Vladimir Putin is being accused of “war crimes” in Ukraine, but isn’t launching a war in itself a crime? It should be. Putin seems bent on restoring the old Soviet empire.From Amnesty International USA: Our Crisis Evidence Lab and the crisis researchers we’ve deployed have been collecting evidence and verifying attacks on civilians in real time. We are now urging the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to investigate a recent Russian air strike that killed 47 civilians in the city of Chernihiv as a war crime.
Reuters, Russia
says nearly half its reserves are frozen, counts on ties with China
The US and
European allies have taken an unconventional approach to waging war on Russia,
not through the use of physical weapons but mostly through economic sanctions
that impact ordinary Russian citizens in the pocketbook.
Ukraine’s President
Volodymyr Zelensky now seems to be losing his appetite for having his
country join the European Union or NATO. It might be better to wait until after
Putin dies, assuming that another autocrat doesn’t succeed him. Putin has made
his point and maybe a simple promise not to formally join Europe, at least in
the near future, will be enough to allow Putin to save face and pull his forces
out of Ukraine without grabbing more territory. His forces have not enjoyed an
easy victory and the sanctions on Russia are beginning to bite. Some young
Russian conscripts probably wonder why they are even there, attacking neighbors
who look a lot like themselves. The idea that Ukrainians are dangerous Nazis is
not very credible. This is not 1939. Of course, if Ukraine were already an EU or
NATO member, it would have had more protection against the current onslaught. Fortunately,
China has not entered this fray wholeheartedly, but now the West owes something
to China. International relations are challenging! But so is everyday life.
Wash. Post, With food supply at risk, Ukrainians recall Stalin’s famine, which killed 4 million of them
Jose Andres
of the World Central Kitchen has feeding
operations going in Ukraine and its border areas. Food is so basic to survival.
Wash. Post, Harvard
teens made a website matching Ukrainian refugees with people offering places to
stay
Some 4,000 potential hosts responded.
Business
Insider, American journalist killed in Ukraine 'paid his life' for
covering war, Kyiv police chief says
His name was Brent Renaud.
Wash. Post, Despite risks and official warnings, U.S. veterans join Ukrainian war effort
MarketWatch, Ukraine says fourth Russian general has been killed in combat
AP,
Pentagon rejects NATO nations providing jets to Ukraine
The Pentagon ...slammed the door on any plans to provide MiG fighter
jets to Ukraine, even through a second country, calling it a “high-risk”
venture that would not significantly change the effectiveness of the Ukrainian
Air Force.
The nuclear threat and Putin’s erratic and obsessive actions make the odds
of getting into a hot war too risky. Hard as it is to stand by for now, Biden
is correct in not taking that chance despite Russian atrocities in Ukraine.
AP, Warsaw
overwhelmed as it becomes key refugee destination
As of March 11, more than 1.4 million Ukrainian refugees had arrived in
Poland, most of them in Warsaw. By now, some 2 million are there. Some are also
ending up in Hungary, the home country of a former housemate. It cannot be good
for Covid control to have so many people on the move and sheltering in crowded
conditions.
Lately, Ukrainian zoos have come to mind, hardly a priority during wartime or other human hardships. But I cannot forget visiting a very derelict Havana zoo during the 1990s “special period” as the only paying customer. The weary zoo keeper working there alone confessed that many animals had been euthanized because it was just impossible to feed them. Only a few still remained. I wonder what’s happened now in Ukrainian zoos?
The CDC
has issued a statement that unaccompanied noncitizen children will not be
expelled from the United States under its orders. https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2022/s0311-title-42-termination.html
This announcement
will incentivize parents and caregivers of small children living in Latin
America and around the world to again start dropping their kids alone over the border
wall. The mystique of an abundant and carefree life in the USA is so strong
that they would risk their children’s lives. Are we who are already living here
experiencing such a vaunted fairytale existence?
Miami
Herald, Not one Latin American nation is on Putin’s list of ‘unfriendly
countries.’ Isn’t that sad? | Opinion
The Guardian, Bolivian soldier who killed Che Guevara
dies at age 80
Mario Terán pulled the trigger to execute famed revolutionary
guerrilla: ‘It was the worst moment of my life.’
Che was more ideological and ruthless even than Fidel, also reportedly more charismatic, so some have speculated that Fidel sent him to Bolivia to get him out of the way. Some Cubans have told me that Fidel actually arranged for his murder, then eulogized roundly him after his death. His image still remains on a prominent building in Havana’s Plaza de la Revolución.
From CADAL, María Matienzo: «From the official discourse, there is a
tendency to justify the Russian invasion»
There is
a complicity between Cuba and Russia, and the same goes for Nicaragua and
Venezuela in Latin America. María Matienzo tells Jorge Elías in Cuarto de Hora
how the political propaganda of the Diaz Canel regime supplies the information
on the island. «The position has so far been to justify this invasion with the
supposed threat that Ukraine posed to Russia,» says Maria, among many other
things. From the repercussions that remain in force on the island since 11J*,
political propaganda, the criminalization of any action in favor of democracy,
hunger, forced disappearances, beatings and imprisonments for the simple fact
of thinking differently to government ineffectiveness. «There has been a lot of
terror and, as this is an island, there is nowhere to run,» she concludes.
(*July 11, when Cubans took to the streets all over the island)
The Barron's Daily A popular Cuban television presenter has said he left the
communist island nation and is heading for the United States, issuing a strong
rebuke of the government he previously defended. "My journey began like
that of thousands of other Cubans who in recent months... decided to leave to
escape from so much rotten shit, from lies and from hopelessness," Yuninho
Rodriguez said in a Facebook message posted on Thursday from Mexico. Rodriguez,
a young Afro-Cuban, used the stage name Junior Smith on Cuba's national news
program. He said in his post that he had been a true believer in the system of
the Americas' only one-party communist state, but became disillusioned because
of economic hardships and a government crackdown on protesters last summer.
Cuba is facing its worst economic crisis in 30 years, due in part to the drop
in tourism during the Covid-19 pandemic and the tightening of a US embargo,
which further exacerbated food and medicine shortages. Rodriguez also lamented
"social gaps, hunger and huge lines" for food.
Reuters, Cubans
protest at Havana embassy as Panama tightens visa requirements
NY Post, Border agents apprehend 123 migrants
after sailboat runs aground off Florida Keys [from Haiti]
AP, UK
court blocks gay marriage for Cayman Islands, Bermuda
Citing 'Hopelessness,' Popular Cuban TV Presenter Heads To US
By AFP - Agence France Press
Reuters, Guatemala receives first arrivals of Ukrainians fleeing conflict | https://www.reuters.com/world/guatemala-receives-first-arrivals-ukrainians-fleeing-conflict-2022-03-12/
That's
pretty amazing. What a culture shock for Ukrainians and vice versa. They’ll be
happy to get to a warm climate. The US has not yet stepped up to take in Ukrainian
refugees, but will have to be very careful about opening up the floodgates to
Ukrainians. If any are allowed in, many more will press to follow.
AP,
Vatican in 'pain' at Nicaragua expulsion of papal nuncio
AP, Opposition figures including Chamorro convicted in
Nicaragua
Washington
Post, Nicaraguan presidential candidate
Cristiana Chamorro convicted in crackdown on opposition
She
faces 13 years in prison.
AFP,
Honduras burns more than 8 tonnes of cocaine seized from cartels
A guy who probably helped make drug trafficking profitable was former Honduran
President Juan Orlando Hernandez, who is now to be extradited to the US
where his brother is already in prison on drug charges.
Honduras judge
approves extradition of ex-president
USA Today,
Researchers discover new species of rainbow-colored fairy fish in ocean
'twilight zone'
The fish has been discovered in the deep ocean off the Maldives.
My generous friend and neighbor tried out her gourmet cooking on me again. I am more than willing to give my feedback.
My older
daughter came across a photo of me with my son taken years ago.
//////////////////////////////////////[
[Wow! Lots
of ads this time! Have been seeing ads pop up for both hair curling and
straightening irons. It would seem that one tool could do both, but apparently not.
I’ve clicked
on some ads just to see what they are, which probably incentivizes them.].
¿Cuánto vale mi empresa ahora?
Estudio Jurídico
Pantalla Táctil Interactiva
Caligrafía inglesa
No pague más Cuentas de Luz
Máximo Ahorro
Otorgamos
asesoría técnica
Paradigmas perdidos
¿Nuevas oportunidades para la transformación?
Generador Solar
Portatil Híbrido
Fácil
de usar e instalar.
Tecnología y Servicios
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