#northern exposure poll

[episodeoftv]

Prelims, Vote 8 of 8

The top 5 finales will move on to be included in the main bracket

Propaganda is under the cut, may include spoilers

Brooklyn Nine-Nine - 8.09 / 8.10 The Last Day

It just... season 8 had been so bad as a whole, it attempted to touch on the blm movement and did it in an okay at best way and in the wake of it all, i think a lot of people just weren't here for cop shows. The finale tried to bring the magic back with one last heist and it did pull out all the stops but I don't know, it just left me feeling really cold. And the ending being that even though the main character wasn't a cop anymore, that he would return to the station every year for the heist... it just never escapes the cop narrative even after he's left.

Chén Qíng Lìng/The Untamed - Episode 50

I nominate this final on grounds of CCP information control, censorship and homophobia. They were so scared of the power of wangxian that they ended up banning ao3 in china and in the show they have to inexplicably have them part ways just to hammer home the no-homo. Plus the show is just kind of objectively bad.... but it rewires your brain all the same

Community - 6.13 Emotional Consequences of Broadcast Television

ok i haven’t watched it in a while but it wasn’t the episode’s fault this show had been going downhill for a while. The finale put it out of its misery mostly.

Kyle XY - 3.10 Bringing Down the House

The writers knew they were getting canceled and chose to raise more questions than answers and set up cliffhangers, rather than have a satisfying end. I'm sure it was a last ditch effort to save the show, but it didn't work and now it's just a bad finale.

Northern Exposure - 6.22 Let's Dance / 6.23 Tranquility Base

No propaganda submitted

Ozark - 4.14 A Hard Way to Go

No propaganda submitted

Soul Eater - 1.51 The Word Is Bravery!

ugh god it just gave up on any attempt at character development or the ending of the story in any meaningful way. instead of a complex universe journey exploring her bond with soul, and death the kid becoming the new god of death, maka just...wins the day by 'being brave', extremely underwhelming and borderline nonsensical

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - 7.25 / 7.26 What You Leave Behind

Man so okay like it’s not the worst worst one out there but man they really just fuckikg did that. Found family all went and spread themselves across the quadrant with the head of the show the leader, Captain Benjamin Sisko who really just wanted to live on Bajor, got turned into an incorporeal being who could no longer live a linear life while his wife and unborn child had to go on without him. They didn’t even have him saying goodbye to his actual son. His literal son did not get a goodbye, they only gave that to Kasidy, and no hate to Kasidy, she’s my girl, but she’s only been there for three year while his actual son Jake sisko was still basically a kid. He was like 19, 20 and no goodbye fork his dad he’s lost time and time again. Some characters got a satisfying ending but then Julian Bashir is left to stay on deep space nine supposedly still in love with Ezri Dax and together (but let’s be honest, it was a terrible forced decision. They made no sense, and had no chemistry) and still stuck without moving forward or changing. Like what a cop out. Not to mention the terrible cgi fire caves where literally gods got thrown into a fire pit and that was the big climax

[haveyouseenthisseries-poll]

[haveyouheardofthisshow]

[thebestestwinner]

See pinned post for the full bracket!

[vintagetvstars]

Alexander Siddig Vs. John Corbett

Propaganda

Alexander Siddig - (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) - The very first actor I ever had a crush on.

John Corbett - (Northern Exposure, Sex and the City) - He has such a great voice, too! So relaxing!!

- No Negative Propaganda Please -

Master Poll List | How to submit propaganda | What is vintage? (FAQ)

Additional propaganda below the cut

Alexander Siddig:

"At my first meeting with Garak I became visibly flustered. That was entirely my choice. It wasn’t written into the script. So I set off in that direction right from the get-go. And Andy (Andrew Robinson) obviously loved it, and that character became a series-long character because of that first scene. It’s an innocuous little scene on one of the little replimats on the station, and it only lasted like five seconds but it packed a punch because of the visible, kind of a charged, discomfort. That really made it. [...] I subconsciously keep that door open with just about every character that I play, and I always keep it as ambiguous as possible. One of my first roles was in [the TV movie] A Dangerous Man: Lawrence After Arabia with Ralph Fiennes and I played Feisal and again, not in the script, but that was charged with homoerotica and implied homosexuality. I’d just come fresh off that project. And I’ve done it numerous times since, characters that are written straight I just make sure are not quite straight. That’s just one of my things, probably because I’m not quite straight myself and that’s probably perfect." - Alexander Siddig in a recent interview with comicsbeat.com

John Corbett:

[messybusiness]

i was tagged by @alaynestone to make a poll of 5 of my all time favorite characters and then tag 5 people to do the same.

[mariacallous]

IVALO, FINLAND—Only 20 miles of forest separate the Lapland Border Guard base in the Finnish town of Ivalo from Russia. From here, well above the Arctic Circle, the Border Guards monitor the activities of their not-so-friendly neighbor. And now, after Finland joined NATO in April last year and Helsinki and Washington decided to further strengthen their cooperation by signing a defense cooperation agreement in mid-December, the United States is officially authorized to position troops and equipment at the base.

The United States has similar agreements facilitating military collaboration with the other NATO members bordering mainland Russia: Norway, Estonia, and Latvia. These agreements also specify which of the hosting country’s bases can be used by U.S. forces. After Finland and the United States signed the agreement, Ivalo became the closest base to mainland Russia immediately accessible to U.S. troops.

“It is premature to assess what will possibly be invested in Ivalo, and the criteria are not public,” says Ville Ahtiainen, the deputy commander of the Lapland Border Guard, “but the overall result will be good, and it will deepen the cooperation between our countries.”

NATO’s new 830-mile-long border in Finland draws the alliance’s attention much more to the north, says Kristine Berzina, the managing director of the Geostrategy North program at the German Marshall Fund think tank. The area, she says, has “not received much consideration in the past, especially from a land forces domain.”

This despite Russia’s powerful forces nearby, which include its crown jewels: the Northern Fleet and its nuclear submarines, held in and around the Russian port of Murmansk. The strategic harbor is so close that road signs point to it in Ivalo’s icy streets.

While Finland is counterbalancing Moscow’s superiority in the high north, the enhanced military presence comes with a trade-off. As Berzina notes, the new border also “increases exposure to Russian threats.” After the signing of the December agreement, Moscow declared that it “would take the necessary measures to counter the aggressive decisions of Finland and its NATO allies,” and it has many tools at its disposal. Whether it is weaponized migration, covert operations against infrastructure, or airspace violations, these hybrid attacks are now not only Finland’s problems, but also NATO’s.

In joining NATO, Finland abandoned the policy of military neutrality it had maintained since shortly after World War II. Despite being a NATO partner since 1994, the Nordic country had never been able to count on the protection of allies. Consequently, for decades it took care of its own defense, developing impressive military capabilities and a society trained to fight. According to military experts and security officials, Finland’s presence in NATO brings to the club a sort of Arctic Sparta, a highly trained force that will move the alliance’s center of gravity to the north. (The missing brick in the anti-Russian northern wall is Sweden, which is expected to join the alliance soon, once Hungary gives the green light.)

“Our biggest asset is the concept of total defense that we have developed in all these years,” says Ville Sipilainen, a special advisor to the Finnish defense minister, who closely followed the cooperation agreement’s negotiations. “As a small country, we had to use the entire society for defense. We have very developed infantry, artillery, and of course, the expertise in Arctic warfare.”

On Feb. 11, Finland will go to the polls to elect its new president. The two candidates, Alexander Stubb and Pekka Haavisto, share a decisive anti-Russian position, and no major changes in foreign policy are expected after the vote.

In Ivalo, dozens of young conscripts (usually between 19 and 21) have just arrived and shaved their heads to start military service. They can be seen marching around the base and learning the basic concepts of discipline in the first days. Finland is one of the few EU countries where military service is mandatory, and with 285,000 soldiers ready to be armed, it has one of the largest wartime infantries in NATO. (Around 900,000 people out of a total population of 5.5 million have had military training.)

The Border Guard in Ivalo trains the conscripts especially in reconnaissance along the frontier, where the atmosphere has recently been tense. Last fall, about 1,300 asylum-seekers from countries such as Somalia, Syria, Yemen, Kenya, Morocco, and Pakistan started showing up at Finland’s border crossing points, including the one close to Ivalo. Helsinki has accused Moscow of transporting the migrants to the border and pushing them to seek refuge on the other side, posing “a serious threat to Finland’s national security and public order.” At the end of November, the government closed the entire border, which will remain shut at least until April 14. Also last year, Helsinki started building a 124-mile fence along its eastern frontier.

Weaponized migration is not the only hybrid attack Moscow has been accused of recently. In October, a pipeline connecting Finland and Estonia was severely damaged by what Finnish investigators think was the anchor of a Chinese cargo ship. Rumors of Russian involvement have inflamed the debate in the media since. In the last weeks, GPS disturbances have also affected Finland and the Baltic region, and many Finns suspect that Russia is the source.

During the migrant crisis, the Border Guard received the support of one of, if not the, most skilled Arctic formations in the world: the Finnish Jaeger Brigade. Located in Sodankyla, 100 miles south of Ivalo, it owes its name to a unit of Finnish nationalists created in Germany during World War I, when the grand duchy of Finland was still part of the Russian Empire. For Finland’s NATO allies, the Jaegers and the winter combat course that they organize have become the go-to guys when it comes to Arctic warfare, and Western countries—including the United States—have been sending their troops there to train for years. Since Finland’s accession to NATO, those requests have increased.

The Arctic section leader of the brigade, Maj. Mikael Aikio, 39, has been an instructor at the winter combat course since it was created 10 years ago. Originally from the region, he is a quarter Sámi—an Indigenous people of northern Norway, Sweden, Finland, and northwestern Russia. He recently helped design the country-cross skis used by the Finnish Army. This year, he’s teaching 14 Finns and 15 foreign soldiers from the United States, United Kingdom, Estonia, France, and Belgium. “One of the strengths of the Finnish army is that there is a lot of initiative even at low levels,” he says in his office in the Arctic section of the base. “Squads and platoons can make decisions themselves and do things independently. That’s the culture.”

But to make good decisions autonomously, you need skills. While preparing for a day with his students, he puts some newspaper in his boots to absorb moisture. “The devil is in the details,” Aikio says while remembering a training day spent with temperatures that reached 38 degrees Fahrenheit (39 Celsius) below zero.

The brigade’s barracks are scattered across the snow-covered spruce of the Finnish taiga. In mid-January, daylight is less than three hours, but the 29 winter combat course trainees can take advantage of the high latitudes’ long twilights. One of them, Staff Sgt. Cameron Daniels, 29, arrived in Sodankyla at the beginning of January from Fort Drum, New York, where he serves in the 10th Mountain Division. The Finns equipped him with many layers beneath a surprisingly light jacket, three different kinds of gloves, and rubber boots made by a Nokia spinoff company, with a means to attach the skis. “They have excellent gear and great skills I’ll bring back home,” Daniels says, packing his bag. “Their camouflage is great.”

Daniels’s division was founded during World War II, after the U.S. Army observed, impressed, the Finnish feats against the Soviet Union. After signing the nonaggression pact with Germany in 1939, the Soviet Union had launched an offensive against Finland to increase the buffer territory around Leningrad in case of a future attack from Berlin. Then, as in today’s Ukraine, Moscow justified the invasion of the old imperial province by pretending to come to the aid of a minority in Finnish territory. Then, as today, the operation didn’t go as expected. The Red Army suffered huge losses against the Finnish troops, which were much more prepared to fight in the harsh winter conditions. The Finns were particularly effective in small units, and they had some good snipers in their ranks. The most famous of them, Simo Hayha, earned the nickname “White Death” after at least 505 confirmed kills, making him widely considered to be the deadliest marksman ever.

“After the collapse of the Soviet Union, there were hopes that Russia would move closer to Europe,” says Henrik Meinander, a history professor at the University of Helsinki. “Moreover, Finland joined the EU in 1995, and it was expected that a common European defense would be created. Nobody felt the urgency of a NATO membership.” A few steps from the campus, the statue of Tsar Alexander II dominates the capital’s main square. But Russian tourists, the most numerous in Finland before the Ukraine invasion, have almost disappeared. “If Russia had not attacked Ukraine, Finland would not have joined NATO,” Meinander says.

Finland doesn’t just bring massive infantry and ski troops to the table. The country boasts a stronger artillery than any in Western Europe, with about 1,500 weapons and substantial heavy ammunition production. In December, the Defense Ministry announced that it would more than double production to build up its own capabilities as well as to keep supplying Ukraine’s forces. Helsinki recently bought the David’s Sling high-altitude air defense system from Israel and 64 F-35s from the United States. The F-35s purchase brought the country’s expenditure on defense in 2023 above 2 percent of GDP, which is the theoretical minimum required for NATO countries but followed by only a third of the members.

Unlike Estonia or Latvia, Finland will be able to take care of its airspace by itself without the support of NATO allies. According to Sipilainen, the Ministry of Defense advisor, airspace violations from Russia were quite common before Finland joined NATO, but there have been none since then: “Clearly, there is respect for NATO airspace.”

On the other side of the border, Finland’s old enemy is struggling to maintain a solid conventional ground force. The Russian counterparts of the Jaeger Brigade, the 80th Motorized Rifle Brigade and the 200th Motorized Rifle Brigade, have suffered hefty casualties in Ukraine.

“There is not much left,” says Col. Kimmo Kinnunen, the commander of the Jaeger Brigade. “But they have a lot of other capabilities,” pointing to air and naval forces as well as the nuclear submarines based near Murmansk.

In Ivalo, the passage to Murmansk is now closed. Along the border, the situation is quiet, but the Border Guard are tight-lipped about the confrontation with Russia. “We don’t know what will happen, but I hope it will be back to normal,” says a conscript. His superior is in the room, and they exchange glances to be sure he is using appropriate words.

Cpl. Topi Kinnunen, in his early 20s, has just finished his first mandatory six months of service and has now decided to start another six months to train and lead the newcomers. “I chose to come here because it is a tough place, but rewarding,” he says while the recruits come to grips with the Finnish-made RK 62 rifles, designed on the model of the Soviet Kalashnikovs.

Over the past decades, Finland has produced enough to arm its entire reserve. Soon, the armory in Ivalo could also open its doors to weapons from the Pentagon.

[tanoraqui]

[BuzzFeed]’s Top 5 Maglor Fëanorion Songs and, as always, heroes and villains of river city?

Heroes and Villains...: [sobs] I'll get back to it some day, I swear!!

Honor Guard: Origins — Iron Thorn

The office of Caldane Caineron, President and CEO of Caineron Inustries, was about what Brier might’ve expected, if she’d bothered to spend time imagining it. The desk was edged in gilt, awards and news clippings from Caineron’s superhero days decorated the walls, and an indiscreet gold bust graced one corner.

(this one would then be Caineron offering Brier a job, while unwantedly and unwarrentedly hitting on her, and Brier being like, "Fascinating how you wouldn't shell out worker's comp for my lab accident and you gave me about 2 cents when my mother died on your superhero team, and now that my discoveries might be useful or interesting you come crawling back with...3 pennies and name exposure? Wow. FUCK you. I might join the Honor Guard out of SPITE. [leaves])

-

[BuzzFeed]’s Top 5 Maglor Fëanorion Songs would probably be one for Stray Scraps of Melody, or maybe stand on its own? It's basically what it sounds like on the tin. Premise: Fourth Age Valinorian BuzzFeed did a poll on top songs by Maglor son of Fëanor, now sometimes called Gildil, and now provides the results with quotes on each from the composer and other musical experts (or friends and family who butted their heads in on the interview.)

5. [I haven't decided if this is some sort of pre-Darkening operetta or "so many people wrote in different Songs of Warding and Warning that we've decided to credit him with the genre Northern Beleriandic Warding Songs"]

4. Noldolantë, Extended Edition - the FULL story, from Finwë to the fading Third Age (but mostly the disasters of the First); composed over nearly 6,500 years of depressed wandering on mortal shores, which is also sung of toward the end. Takes at least a week to sing in full with no breaks. Evokes tears at least once in even the hardest hearts.

3. Noldolantë, original version - Alqualondë: what happened, why, and what we're going to do about it (move forward and fight Morgoth, mostly). Full length takes a couple hours to sing. "Surprisingly factual and earnestly apologetic, for all its spin." –Eärwen Olwiel. "I still hum it sometimes. I hate how good at this he is." –Finrod.

2. The Song That Never Ends - composed pre-Darkening. "This is SECOND PLACE? I should've killed you when I had the chance." –Maedhros. "I genuinely regret this one." –Maglor. "I should've killed him when I had the chance. I had so many chances... I really thought about it, when I visited Celebrian when the twins had just discovered this monstrosity." –Galadriel. "Oh you think YOU had problems with twins and this 'song.'" –Maedhros. "What? We thought it was annoying, too!" –Amrod. "Not you. You never had genuine, justified reason to despise us." –Maedhros. "[innocent whistling while walking by]" –Elrond

1. Ardamirë (subtitle: It's Not Only Ours Anymore, Father) - elements composed and gathered over nearly 6,500 years of depressed wandering on mortal shores; arranged into a proper song a few decades after return to Valinor. Full length takes about four hours to sing. Reduces most listeners to mostly-joyful tears. "Good choice, people - this one is my favorite." –Maglor.  "...I'm thinking about it." –Fëanor.

[oliviajames1122]

Covid app sends record number of pings

The NHS Covid app has sent a record number of contact-tracing alerts, informing people of their exposure to someone who has tested positive for the virus.

A total of 698,646 "pings" were sent to people in England and Wales between 16 December and 22 December.

That is nearly 8,000 more than the previous record of 690,711 sent during a seven-day period in July.

Data for the Christmas period is not yet available.

People "pinged" by the app with a "close contact" alert are advised to take daily Covid tests - or self-isolate if they are unvaccinated and over 18 - in order to reduce the likelihood of Covid transmission, but there is no legal requirement for them to do so.

During the summer, the app caused concern when large numbers of workers in various industries received pings, leaving them temporarily unable to do their jobs while they isolated many business listings.

A poll conducted at the time suggested a third of 18-34-year-olds had deleted the app, with another third planning to do so.

On Twitter, some users have recently complained of receiving an alert more than a week after exposure to someone with Covid, reducing the usefulness of the service.

The UK Health Security Agency has not responded to a BBC request for comment on this point.

But a spokesperson said: "The NHS Covid-19 app has prevented thousands of cases and is a vital tool to help protect against the spread of Covid-19 by alerting people when they may have been in contact with a confirmed case."

"The app is an essential part of the pandemic response... we encourage everyone to continue using it as another tool to help keep us all safe."

Spike in cases

The NHS app also allows people to report the results of a Covid test business listings.

Reports of positive test results also reached a new high - 243,406 across England and Wales during the same seven-day period ending on 22 December.

Not everyone who receives a positive result uses the app or will necessarily upload their result.

Official data shows that record numbers of positive cases have been recorded across the UK during recent days, with 189,213 added on 30 December alone free business listings.

Separate contact-tracing apps are used in Scotland and Northern Ireland. The Scotland data also suggests a record number of contact notifications were sent via the Protect Scotland app during the period.

The BBC has also contacted the Department of Health in Northern Ireland for comment.

[squarxism]

My name is Baraa Al-Shorfa, I am 15 years old. We are a family of 6, my mother, father and 4 children, my youngest brother is 8 years old, since October 7, 2023, we have been suffering from a brutal war that has destroyed our dreams and hopes, and has gone beyond the limits of human comprehension. During this brutal war, we have endured hardships that mountains cannot bear. We suffer from severe water shortages, and we often walk about a kilometer to get one gallon of water, which is equivalent to about 16 liters, barely enough for five family members. We also suffer from severe food and nutrition shortages due to the blockade imposed on northern Gaza for 10 months, which prevents the entry of basic materials such as meat, vegetables and fruits. This situation has forced us to eat animal feed such as barley, which has caused us to lose weight, suffer from multiple diseases, and greatly weaken our immune systems. As a result of the war, our home and agricultural land that provided us with our daily sustenance were completely destroyed and bulldozed. We also suffered from repeated displacement, moving from one place to another and from one area to another due to the horrific and brutal bombing. We also suffer from fear and terror due to the heavy bombing, fire belts and explosives, the sound of tanks was very terrifying. In addition, we were deprived of education and the opportunity to build a future. My younger brothers suffer from skin diseases, but the hospitals, which are the lifeline for every patient and needy, were also destroyed. We face a shortage of medicines and vaccines while diseases are increasing and spreading among us, with no solution in sight as there are no hospitals or medical supplies available here in Gaza. We live in constant fear for my younger brothers because they have not received their general vaccinations, especially after the spread of polio due to the lack of cleaning supplies and the massive accumulation of waste in the streets. I also should have been vaccinated against Tetanus and Typhoid fever, but I did not receive them due to the lack of vaccinations, and sewage water flooded the streets, posing a serious threat to our children. We suffered from jaundice, where we struggled for about two weeks with fatigue, dizziness and other symptoms. It is a deadly disease, my brothers' little bodies became full of red pimples and as I mentioned before there is no treatment available due to the destruction of hospitals and health centers.

We also suffer from the absence of cooking gas, which forces us to use wood and plastic to light fires, which can lead to poisoning. We have been without electricity since October 7th, spending days in the dark, causing immense fear for my little brothers. This has also made it very difficult to charge our phones and night light batteries. We had to travel kilometers from our home to find places with electricity, which costs us a lot to charge our phones and batteries.

Moreover, we have not had a steady income since the beginning of the war.

This is our goal to achieve with your help.

I appeal to you to help my family so that we can live a better life.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/uybndx-alhrob-mn-alhrb?utm_campaign=٨p_nacp+share-sheet&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=customer

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/0/d/e/2PACX-1vTKQYInYewFiGUX4afdHK-rANJDT4dgOC4IV6elKYNvYI2HvOTf_6IsTqt5m2KXcr_pGxcqR8AvsAJi/pubhtml#

VETTED BY BUTTERFLY 🦋NU 911

Please DONATE!!!

(poll for exposure!!!! please donate!)

[purpleplaid17]

Jess Watches // Mon 15 Jan // Day 115 Synopses & Favourite Scenes & Poll

Moving (with friend) Ep 3 1+1

The closer Bongseok grows to Huisoo, the more risk of exposure he draws.

He tried so hard not to float, bless him. But every time she touched him he couldn't help but be happy. He's made a friend! A kind, nice, and pretty friend. And him choosing the bogof food because he knows she doesn't have a lot of money and her buying plasters for his elbow with the leftover :')

The Resident (with mum) 2x23 The Unbefriended (Season Finale)

With Conrad's help, Nic tracks down Kyle and pleads for him to reconsider donating a kidney to Jessie. Meanwhile, Mina voices her concern to Austin when Shira is assigned to Micah's surgery and Devon fights for the care of a patient whom the doctors suspect is uninsured.

Why was that a cliffhanger? Sorry to Kyle, because he finally came through, but I only really care about Jessie. Which means she's probably the one who coded :'( And Micah being a bit of a player was unexpected, but if it means Mina can move on, potentially with AJ, then I'm all for it. She does indeed deserve better.

Frasier (with mum) 5x17 The Perfect Guy

When a good-looking doctor joins the radio station as the host of a new medical show, Frasier can't believe he is as perfect as he seems and refuses to rest until he discovers the man's flaw.

Roz only being able to blush and giggle in front of a handsome man would be me if I met her. And I too share Daphne's outrage at the price of imported biscuits. Us northern lasses need our daily bikkie. It is an essential part of our diet and overall well being.

Eureka (rw) 2x08 E=MC…?

When Allison puts a newly hired, but criminal, genius in Jack's care he's less than pleased, but then an accident in a lab causes most of GD to lose their smarts, and he may be the only one with the solution.

Zane, you cheeky bastard, I didn't remember you showing up just yet! His banter with Jo is already getting rather hot and with all the lingerie and ass staring too. And this after he had been flirting with Allison. I don't blame him for shooting his shot with them. He has impeccable taste. The are both incredibly smart, beautiful, badass women.

[newstfionline]

Friday, July 28, 2023

Hot streets (WSJ) Streets in the Southwest are so hot that they’re causing serious burns. The region’s burn centers report a rise in injuries to people who touch hot door handles, walk barefoot or fall on scorching pavement—even briefly. Pavement burns often result in worse injuries than exposure to flames, boiling water or chemicals. They are riskiest to those who can’t get up immediately such as elderly people who might faint from dehydration and patients with conditions that cause loss of feeling in their feet. Doctors advise staying indoors on hot days, but if you have to go out, wear shoes, socks and a hat; drink plenty of water; and let people know where you will be.

Depression and anxiety drive increase in UK people too ill to work (Reuters) Depression and anxiety have been the biggest driver of the increase in Britons who say they are too ill to work, closely followed by a category which includes long-term COVID-19 symptoms, official figures showed on Wednesday. Britain has been slower to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic than any other major economy apart from Germany, partly because the number of people who are able to work remains below its pre-pandemic level. Poor health is now the major factor behind this. Compared with before the pandemic, an extra 412,000 people aged 16 to 64 said they are unable to work because of long-term sickness in the three months to the end of May, a 20% rise. Most of the more than 2.5 million working-age people who are long-term sick report multiple health conditions. The commonest category of ill health is ‘depression, bad nerves, anxiety’. The number of people who are long-term sick with these conditions is up by 386,000 from 2019 at 1.351 million, the ONS said—a 40% increase.

Mediterranean heatwaves and fires (Reuters) The Mediterranean is continuing to grapple with massive heat waves that have caused dozens of deaths, sparked multiple wildfires, and forced thousands of people to evacuate as temperatures continue to break 100 degrees Fahrenheit. In Algeria, at least 34 people have died as a result of fires sparked by the heat, while Greek authorities were forced to evacuate over 20,000 people on the island of Rhodes thanks to wildfires. On the Italian island of Sicily, over a thousand more people were evacuated in the face of wildfires this week while storms in the country’s north destroyed towns and killed a pair of people. Temperatures in Sicily reached 47.4 Celsius (117.3 Fahrenheit) on Monday, close to the European record high of 48.8 degrees Celsius recorded during heat waves in 2021.

Rise of Far Right Leaves Germany’s Conservatives at a Crossroads (NYT) Mario Voigt, a leader of Germany’s mainstream conservative party, has watched with concern the slow but steady string of victories notched by the far-right Alternative for Germany, known as the AfD. The party has gained at least four points in polls since May, rising to 20 percent support and overtaking the country’s governing center-left Social Democrats to become Germany’s second-strongest party. The AfD is now nipping at the heels of Mr. Voigt’s own Christian Democratic Union, the party of former Chancellor Angela Merkel, which remains the country’s most popular but now sits in opposition. The ascent of the AfD, a party widely viewed as a threat to Germany’s democratic fabric, has posed a crisis for the country’s entire political establishment, but an especially acute one for the Christian Democrats, who are struggling openly with how to deal with the challenge. Should they pivot further right themselves and risk their centrist identity? Should they continue to try to isolate the AfD? Or should they break longstanding norms and work with the AfD instead? Those questions have bedeviled not only the Christian Democrats in Germany but also other mainstream conservative parties around Europe as nationalist and hard-right parties have made strides.

With Wagner in Belarus, tension grows on northern Ukraine border (Washington Post) Fears have grown along Ukraine’s northern border about the potential for new military attacks since Yevgeniy Prigozhin’s Wagner mercenaries relocated to Belarus after last month’s short-lived mutiny against Moscow’s military leadership, with Ukraine—and even Poland—tightening security and stepping up defenses. Belarus served as a staging ground when Russian President Vladimir Putin launched his wide-scale invasion in February 2022, including a failed assault on Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital. Defeated Russian units then retreated back across the Belarusian border. Putin’s decision to allow Prigozhin and his fighters to escape punishment for the rebellion by relocating to Belarus prompted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to direct the military and national security forces to beef up defenses in the north. Heavily mined border areas have been seeded with more explosives. Ukrainian forces also blew up portions of a highway running from Kyiv to Belarus. But all of this activity has heightened unease among residents along the border, where anxiety was already growing after a decision by Putin earlier this year to station nuclear weapons on Belarusian territory.

War and marriage in Ukraine (NYT) Andrii Shapovalov, 51, and Tetiana Shapovalova, 50, had a fantastic life together. Up until last year, they were easing into a new stage of life together in Dnipro, a city in central Ukraine. But when the Russian Army crossed the border into Ukraine last February, it set into motion a sequence of events that their marriage wouldn’t survive. They separated that first day, as missiles slammed into Dnipro and shook their windows. Tetiana set off on a refugee odyssey while Andrii had to enlist. They would go on, like so many Ukrainian men and women, to experience the war very differently. Tetiana was thrust into a whole new world, discovering a new country, a new language and, in a shock to Andrii, a new boyfriend. Andrii found himself on the front lines counseling depressed soldiers and was effectively blocked by law from visiting his family. Both believe they would still be together if it hadn’t been for the war. Andrii and Tetiana are just one of the tens of thousands, maybe even hundreds of thousands, of couples splitting up as the country experiences, in the words of Anna Trofymenko, a Ukrainian psychotherapist, a “divorce epidemic.” It may be one of the war’s most far-reaching social consequences, potentially shaping dating patterns, family structure, the way a whole generation of Ukrainian children will be raised and the trajectory of the country’s population for years to come.

Flash Floods Hit Vulnerable Afghanistan (Foreign Policy) Flash flooding in the wake of heavy seasonal rains killed at least 31 people in Afghanistan last weekend, leaving 74 injured and at least 41 missing. The devastating floods damaged more than 600 homes and hundreds of acres of agricultural land. They were just the latest calamity to strike Afghanistan. Natural disasters affected thousands of people in Afghanistan last year, many of whom were already displaced by conflict or other climate effects. Afghanistan has high levels of poverty, which climate stress tends to compound. The sheer scale of its humanitarian crisis sets it apart from other countries in the region. As of March, nearly 20 million people in Afghanistan—half of the population—were acutely food insecure, including 6 million people “on the brink of famine-like conditions,” according to the United Nations. Adding to the country’s food insecurity is a locust crisis wreaking havoc on crops across eight provinces, which could ruin one-quarter of the year’s wheat harvest. Also, unlike their neighbors, Afghans have been ruled by a regime facing sanctions and lacking international recognition for nearly two years. Some aid agencies also stopped working in the country after the Taliban banned women from working with nongovernmental organizations last December.

The Korean DMZ, 70 Years After the Fighting Ended (NYT) Seen from the sky, the Demilitarized Zone, or DMZ, looks like a gigantic geographical wound across the Korean Peninsula, the continuous wire fences snaking up the hills and down the valleys from coast to coast. It was created 70 years ago on Thursday, when an armistice was signed by the American-led United Nations Command and the North Korean and Chinese militaries at the “truce village” of Panmunjom, putting an end to the fighting, but not the Korean War itself. Along this 155-mile stretch, soldiers stand ready to engage on either side. Families cope with decades of separation. Tourists come to witness living history. And dreams of reconciliation have slowly faded into the distance. Despite its name, the DMZ and its vicinity are armed to the teeth. An estimated two million land mines are strewn inside the 2.5-mile-wide zone. Its northern and southern perimeters are sealed by layers of razor-wire fences​ reinforced with booby traps or electronic sensors. Armed guards monitor the fences at every 100 to 200 yards. Every 10 yards along the South Korean fences​ are Claymore anti-personnel mines​. All roads leading out of the DMZ are guarded by anti-tank obstacles. Behind them, two million troops stand ready for battle.

Silkworm sashimi, cricket curry on menu as bugs make a comeback in Japan (Reuters) On a recent vacation in Tokyo, Takumi Yamamoto opted for a special lunch of cricket curry and silkworm sashimi, washed down with a water bug cider. The 26-year-old office worker, from the western prefecture of Hyogo, is one of scores of consumers across the world who have taken an interest in entomophagy, or eating insects, as bugs slowly become a more viable food source. Entomophagy started to be taken seriously globally after the United Nations deemed bugs a sustainable source of protein to feed a global population estimated to swell to 9.7 billion by 2050. While some consumers think eating insects is just gross, Japan has a rich culinary history of insects as food. Grasshoppers, silkworms, and wasps were traditionally eaten in land-locked regions where meat and fish are scarce, a practice that picked up amid food shortages during and after World War II, said Take-Noko manager Michiko Miura.

Russian fighter jet strikes an American drone over Syria in the sixth incident this month (AP) A Russian fighter jet fired flares and struck another U.S. drone over Syrian airspace on Wednesday, the White House said. It’s the sixth reported incident this month, and the second in the past 24 hours, in which the United States has said Russian warplanes have flown dangerously close to American manned and unmanned aircraft, putting crews and the planes at risk and raising questions as to what the U.S. may need to do in response. Two U.S. officials confirmed that the strike damaged the MQ-9 Reaper drone. Rear Adm. Oleg Gurinov, the head of the Russian military’s Reconciliation Center in Syria, said that the U.S. drone flew dangerously close to a pair of Russian warplanes in the skies over Syria early Wednesday. Gurinov said that onboard systems of the Russian Su-34 and Su-35 aircraft spotted the aircraft being targeted and triggered the automatic release of flares. “The United States are continuing to disinform the public about unlawful flights of its drones in the Syrian air space that have failed to undergo deconflicting procedure while accusing the Russian side of dangerous maneuvering,” Gurinov said.

Soldiers in Niger say president is ousted in coup (Washington Post) Soldiers in Niger announced Wednesday night that the West African nation’s president has been removed from power, hours after they barricaded President Mohamed Bazoum in the presidential palace. Bazoum did not comment following the announcement by soldiers, who said in a brief appearance on television that the country’s institutions were suspended and its borders closed. If successful, this would mark the latest in a string of coups in Africa in recent years, following those in Mali, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Chad and Sudan, and could lead to further uncertainty in a West African region already grappling with spiraling violence from Islamist insurgencies.

Nigerian doctors walk off the job again. Overstretched and underpaid, many have left for overseas (AP) Resident doctors in Nigerian public hospitals on Wednesday launched their second strike this year to protest unpaid salaries and demand improvements in pay and working conditions. The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors declared a “total and indefinite strike” following unsuccessful attempts to engage with the government, the group’s president, Dr. Innocent Orji, said in a statement issued after the group met Tuesday night. Strikes by doctors in Nigeria are common, and the latest one could shut down some healthcare services in critical wards across under-staffed public hospitals in Africa’s most populous country. An average of 200 resident doctors in Nigeria have relocated abroad every month over the last two years, seeking better pay, Dr. Orji told The Associated Press. Their positions are left vacant, further worsening the relatively affordable healthcare services in public hospitals in the country of more than 210 million people. Salaries for resident doctors have not increased since 2009, Orji said, and the value of the local currency against the U.S. dollar has fallen by 480% since then.

The incredible shrinking workweek (WSJ) The longer people worked in new, more efficient ways, the less time they spent on the job, according to findings from a series of four-day-workweek trials conducted in the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and Ireland over the past 18 months. After six months, workers reported less burnout, improved health and more job satisfaction, and had cut their average work time by about four hours to 34 hours a week. Those who continued the schedule for 12 months reduced working times to about 33 hours a week, with better reported health and work-life balance, researchers say.

[sportsminorityreport]

Did the commissioner of the Pac-12 blow his chance to save his conference?

I was deeply disturbed by the news coming out of the West Coast news outlets.  

3 months ago, the plan for the PAC-12 was plainly apparent to everyone reading the news.   The Pac was going to hold off expansion and make a media deal trading off the media exposure of having all of their games on the cable networks, making the calculated decision to put some of their games on a niche/emerging platform, Amazon, and THEN to expand to 11 schools with San Diego State.

I said at the time that this was a MAJOR strategic mistake.  I advocated adding SDSU and trying to add Texas Tech, TCU, and Kansas (as the Big 12 Grant of Rights extension did not appear to have been completed).  The logic was that:

1) You add the 3rd and last FBS program in Southern California.

2) You add 3 schools in the central timezones.

3) You take over the Dallas Market from the Big 12.

4) You dramatically upgrade the Pac-12 in Basketball, the second revenue sport --- making it a relevant conference ---one worth watching --- for national basketball purists for the first time in almost a decade.

That would dramatically reduce the appeal of the Big 12 while forcing ESPN and Fox to take a much harder look at whether they could afford to be sealed out of the Western US and the #5 Dallas/Fort Worth media market.

With the Big Ten taking away most of the Northern Media markets from ESPN, the loss of the DFW market could have been the lynchpin to forcing ESPN and Fox to the negotiation table with the PAC.

But the Pac decided to negotiate with the assets they had on hand --- the 10 remaining PAC schools --- despite the fact that the PAC 12 with USC and UCLA had already  been pidgeonholed by the broadcast networks as strictly late night TV fare.

It seemed an odd move, but the media reports suggested the PAC commissioner had done his homework and the PAC schools might pull about $40 Million per school by going with Amazon. 

 As the PAC schools had been sold on projections of higher media payouts by their last commissioner, almost all PAC schools outspent the actual money that was coming over the length of the last TV deal, leaving their programs showing annual losses for several years.  It is VERY believable that the PAC schools were willing to write off some exposure to pull an extra $10 Million a year vs. what the Big 12 schools received.

In a few weeks, the negotiations would be done and the PAC would have again snubbed expansion.

Well...Here we are. 

 No TV deal.  

The talk now is that taking Amazon’s money might have the PAC schools getting paid LESS than the Big 12 schools.  

Now ASU fans are being polled and 72% are saying they should jump to the Big 12.  

And now the PAC is looking at SMU, a school with half the displayed fan base of TCU, as an expansion  partner for SDSU.

Let’s be clear, the PAC member school’s individual leadership may appear to be HORRIBLE at hiring commissioners, but they at least see things clearly when it comes to the PAC vs. the Big 12.  

The PAC is an association of research powerhouse universities, just ones presently quite mediocre at both revenue sports.  The Big 12 is about as far being a collection of research powerhouse Universities as you can get at the supposed power tier of the FBS ranks.  

If a PAC school joins the Big 12 they can forget about appearing to be power conference caliber.  

It is a fatal move.

Why do I say that?  Because realignment can be seen most clearly as power schools sucking up more and more TV money at the expense of their former peers.  Jumping to a less prestigious conference is conceding you are not a power conference peer --- that you don’t deserve to be there.

For Utah it would be the equivilent of rejoining the MWC.  For Arizona and Arizona State, it would be acknowledging the University of Houston as their academic peers, not Cal and Stanford.  For Colorado, it would be conceding a fall back into mediocracy as today’s Big 12 is academically a shadow of the one they left years ago.  (Unlike the Big 12, The PAC12-2 may no longer be a power conference - for now - but it still has the trappings of one.)

And for the west coast schools, it would mean becoming even more of a regional conference with horrid TV windows and crap dollars.  For Cal, Stanford, Washington, and Oregon, it would mean seeing conference attendance deadwood Washington State and Oregon State eating a bigger portion of the conference revenue and more --- having to add more than just SDSU.   It would likely mean having a 9 team conference with Fresno State and UNLV joining as more underperforming, low fan draw members.

This is nothing the PAC member schools want.  

Stanford, Oregon, and Washington want no part of UNLV or Fresno State.  Utah doesn’t want to slide back into little brother status under BYU in a MWC part II.  People in the know at ASU and UA know that they are Kansas State in the Big 12 conference at best.  Colorado’s leadership doesn’t want to be in a pop warner version of the old Big 12.

Again...the PAC is a collection of research powerhouses.  They are down today, but the worm could easily turn for them in the next media cycle if their gamble with Amazon works out.  The media money could be there in 5-6 years.  And if it is, no one in the PAC is taking a second look at the Big 12.

Their best chance is to stick together even if the media money is disappointing for another media cycle.  Hence the vote of confidence for the commissioner and the league itself.

Jumping to the Big 12 for a few million bucks a year over the next 5 years is a truly ridiculous premise, but the longer this goes on, the more polls you will see of PAC schools’ fans panicking and wanting to get out. Colorado and ASU fans are apparently now both on a different page than their school leadership.  That is 2 of the 4 inland schools.

And as a realignment follower for 30 years, I can assure you this house of cards will fall soon if the PAC commissioner cannot either close a deal for more than the Bug 12 payouts or come up with a new more viable plan.  There is only so much of this that can happen before powerful donors start panicking and drag their schools into the abyss.

So...what should the PAC do?  Offer slots immediately to TCU, Texas Tech, and Kansas. Same thing they should have done 3 months ago.  Same thing I told their office reps 3 months ago.

Now the fact that it appears the PAC is openly looking at SMU as a candidate and their commissioner has apparently been out visiting SMU strongly suggests that the Big 12 has now renewed it’s Grant of Rights.

(Now if it hasn’t and those schools have been sitting there available this whole time, your next step would/should probably be to fire your commissioner for a lack of due dilligence and just promote his number 2.  Forget about exhaustive searches – you suck at them.  Hire someone who is cheap to fire and move on.)

If the Big 12 has renewed it, you look at your next options --- which all “suck” --- and you chose the best options.... Not the closest ones.

What would those be?

Well I am going to assume that the one hard never is that Stanford and Cal would not concede to add BYU.   It is a shame because even though they deserve banishment from PAC consideration for the LDS getting involved in that California gay marriage vote years ago, BYU would move the needle.  And BYU would likely jump at the offer if they could figure out a way out of the Big 12 GOR.  But the GORs are daunting so lets assume all Big 12 schools are off the table.

I think the PAC should do a very un-PAC-like thing.  The PAC has always been firm on every member getting an equal share. 

I think they should pay their new members a “new member” sized share for the length of the media deal.  Pay new full members a half share --- whatever that is --- ($15M per season?) until the PAC gets through this trying contract.

1)  Add San Diego State now.  They are an annual bowl team and an annual NCAA tourney team in a region of California with about 24M people that the PAC otherwise doesn’t have a presence in.  They bring enough value to be a positive in negotiations.

2) Add Gonzaga as an Olympic only member for the next 5 years to make your conference relevant in basketball again.  The Pac has kicked the tires on Gonzaga for several year. They need to just do it.  If a full PAC share is $30M, give Gonzaga $10 M per year --- the full normal 1/3 an Olympic-only member gets in a power conference..

3) Add UC-Davis as an Olympic-only member for this media cycle, with little disguising they will probably allowed to make the jump in football in the next media cycle.  Why Davis?  Because they are in the Sacramento DMA --- a top 30 DMA with no football.  And they are academic and research bluebloods. Davis can use their PAC money to play their football a few years in the MWC or even CUSA.  Adding Davis as an Olympic member gives you an optimal media position in inland California and makes adding Fresno State unnecessary.

4) Add SMU.  SMU isn’t without value, it is just CURRENTLY a far, far, far inferior move to adding TCU or Texas Tech.  SMU’s biggest problem is that they draw very few fans for football and that isn’t likely to change.  Now on the positive side they are in the DFW metroplex even if they are an after thought to the media. What is a positive is that SMU practically invented paying players.  Now that paying players is the rule of the land, SMU is likely to do a LOT better on the field. Keep in mind the metroplex is the state’s premiere talent hotbed in football and basketball. If SMU becomes a consistent top 25 team, I have to think they might pull maybe 28K a game…?  That still sucks and isn’t anywhere close to the 46K TCU pulls, but maybe that would be enough to make SMU truly media relevant in Dallas where I live. SMU is the best academic university based on academic ranking in the metroplex.

5) Add Rice.  Now I am sure many heads exploded with this one, but stay with me here. Rice is the best academic school in Texas and Houston is the second best recruiting market in Texas.  Houston is also a city with 3 FBS teams and the #10 DMA in the country.  Adding Rice technically raises Rice to a peer status with Houston again.  Now I think Rice should be STRONGLY encouraged to focus on basketball due to their tiny enrollment and become the Duke of this new PAC, but there are other options they could take. Mensa member and former UT and UH head coach Tom Herman would make a LOT of sense at Rice if they lose patience with coach Mike Bloomgren (who does seem to be making consistent incremental progress).   

6) Tulane. I know this makes a lot of people groan, but you aren’t looking at the big picture.  The Pac has died on the vine because college football has become a game of recruiting.  Adding Tulane gives the PAC access to arguably the best SEC recruiting ground. Tulane is additionally a very, VERY good AAU school. It is the best academic school in Lousiana.  Elevating Tulane is like the Rice move on steriods. Suddenly Tulane jumps way ahead of all of their competitors to a slot right behind LSU. They hurdle ULL, ULM, La Tech, Southern Miss…Tulane could actually be really good. And even if they aren’t, you have just opened Dallas, Houston, and the New Orleans/Jackson corridor --- Probably three of the best recruiting grounds in the county to Washington, Oregon, Colorado (cough - Deion Sanders - cough), Utah, and the Arizona schools.  And you have maintained your academic standards.

It will look ugly. 

The last three schools are likely to draw less than 30K a game. It will look like the disastrous “super WAC“ for a bit, but it is a solid long term move that will look a lot stronger when this media cycle is complete and the new schools have grown into solid PAC members.  And it has the chance to turn playoff bridesmaid schools Oregon, Washington, and Utah into legit playoff contenders.  That would be worth the price of admission.

[thebestestwinner]

See pinned post for the full bracket!

[vintagetvstars]

John Corbett Vs. Skeet Ulrich

Propaganda

John Corbett - (Northern Exposure, Sex and the City) - He has such a great voice, too! So relaxing!!

Skeet Ulrich - (Miracles) - No text propaganda

- No Negative Propaganda Please -

Master Poll List | How to submit propaganda | What is vintage? (FAQ)

Additional propaganda below the cut

John Corbett:

Skeet Ulrich: