Miscellaneous And Off Topic Subjects

[Dr. Strangelove]

Be aware that if you see any "doctor" on tv from the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, that sounds like an ordinary professional organization, but they are actually a group of religious, rightwing hacks. They are a small group, with only a few thousand members. They're like the doctors cigarette companies used to hire for commercials to speak about how cigarettes are actually good for you. They've pushed that vaccines cause autism, that abortions cause breast cancer, and that being gay will shorten your lifespan by 20 years.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Associ...s_and_Surgeons

[THE_WIZARD_]

Yeah, me too. While I was reminiscing about times when I'd take my GF to Big Boy on Southfield at 13 mile, I remembered what a big deal those places were and apparently still are.

Absolutely loved their burgers. If I were to get one these days, I'd still find them pretty tasty. I got this from the Wiki web site for Big Boy:

Big Boy.JPG
Note the three layers of "Big Boy sauce." My Mom used to try to foist off on me this Roquefort cheese dressing from scratch my Dad loved. I'd insist on the Thousand Island she'd make from mayo, ketchup and pickle relish. Swear her dressing teased exactly like Big Boy sauce!

So JB likes "big boy sauce"?

:::slowly backs out of room:::

[Dr. Strangelove]

Trump is threatening to withhold all funding for the state of Michigan (yeah sure, whatever) because they have "illegally" sent absentee ballots to all registered voters. Because VOTER FRAUD

One, Michigan didn't send absentee ballots. They sent absentee ballot applications.

Two, Other states, including Georgia, did the EXACT SAME FUCKING THING. Your own RNC Chairwoman just said on Monday that she didn't have a problem with applications being sent out.

Three, turn off the fucking tv and go do some actual work for a change.

[THE_WIZARD_]

Ummm...ok.

[Dr. Strangelove]

Dow Chemical implements flood plan. They have an enormous facility in Midland right alongside the river.

https://www.mlive.com/news/saginaw-bay-city/2020/05/dow-implements-flood-preparedness-plan-after-2-midland-area-dams-fail.html

[Jeff Buchanan]

The beginning of a pattern?

Yeah, I think this is troubling. It fits the age old dictum, "figures lie and liars figure."

Of note, and the NPR story on the "fired" FL COVID Dash Board gal mentions it, is that I think there is more to the story about her conduct that prompted her termination than she might have led reporters to believe when she went public with her story to the press. So, I'm kind-of dismissing the implications, at least for FL.

That still leaves me in doubt about all COVID data, how it is presented and how state and local officials use it to make public health decisions including those involving re-opening strategies.

A local opinion piece showed up today in my S. FL news feed for Broward Co. The main point of it was that one of the members of the 9 member BOC for the county was appointed by the BOC to be the senior member; in that capacity, she signed an emergency order on March 16th that gave her a list of emergency powers upon the execution of them she is unaccountable to the BOC or the mayor. She's the one making the closing and re-opening decisions. The opinion piece goes on to note that such decisions are being made in secret with no public review or knowledge of what basis and data these decisions are being made. This isn't good for public confidence in whatever re-opening policies emerge from such boards.

This opinion piece goes right to the point of my letter to the Miami Herald which complained about the uselessness of reporting new case numbers and deaths instead of more appropriate rate measures. Rate measures are much better indicators of COVID progress and can better inform public officials developing reopening strategies, I wrote. But we don't know what data the decision makers are using that is affecting our lives and the livelihoods of business owners. Not good.

In the big scheme of things and given the politicization of shuttering and re-opening, we should expect that politicians are going to fuck with the data (easy to do) to make whatever they want to do look good. There's something to polishing the apple so to speak very much like FDR and his people polished the apple of the shit-storm that was America's early losses in the Pacific to the Japanese during WW II. It happens. Is it right?

Clearly, Americans don't trust their governments - at all. I think the value of the press in uncovering potential skulduggery has limits and this may be one of those times, like it was during WW II, polishing the apple may be a better course of action than constantly creating doubt about government's activities. At the same time, government officials have an absolute requirement to act in the best interests of those that voted them into office. A balance would be nice and right now, my view is that the press does a bit too much beating up public officials even though, I'll admit, its a fine line. Instead of antagonizing the press that will typically prompt, often baseless, attacks in retaliation, this leading to interminable feuds, a little honey in the form of openness might work better.

[AlabamAlum]

Oh, McDonald’s absolutely stole the idea for the Big Mac from Big Boy and Burger King stole their Big King from McDonald’s. Patenting a club bun with two patties and thousand island must not be a thing that the patent office goes for.

[iam416]

It'd be pretty damn hard to get a utility patent for a sandwich. Maybe a design patent, but those are of limited use. So, STFU.

[Jeff Buchanan]

......... here's another thought. Recall yesterday's Stat hit piece on Moderna's announcement of successful phase one trials of their mRNA vaccine. I thought the piece raised good points - not unexpectedly as I had already questioned Moderna's motives in making the previous days announcement. Then today, national headlines questioning the accuracy of data reporting.

Is this all cleverly disguised disinformation being manufactured by our adversaries to sew doubt?

I did some research on Stat. They're a Boston Globe owned on-line publication that is a subscription site. The appear to get their revenue from advertising. They have what looks to be a legitimate editorial board. But, one of the members is clearly Chinese and he is listed as the China Health Care writer.

Look, I could be going off the deep-end here and I rarely embrace conspiracy theories but, we know about the capacity and the extent of Chinese presence here in the US. Is it all benign? I'm beginning to think it isn't benign at all and it has become deeply entrenched in our research institutions and potentially in our print and social media.

[Dr. Strangelove]

Oh, McDonald’s absolutely stole the idea for the Big Mac from Big Boy and Burger King stole their Big King from McDonald’s. Patenting a club bun with two patties and thousand island must not be a thing that the patent office goes for.

When Dave Thomas was first starting up Wendy's he basically modeled the original menu off a mostly-forgotten chain called Kewpee Hamburgers. At its peak there were over 400 locations (right before WWII). Today there's only five, 3 in Lima, OH. The one in downtown Lima is an awesome little throwback. But basically both the square burgers and the Frosty were designed with what he ate as a kid at Kewpee in mind.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kewpee

[AlabamAlum]

I thought it might be, Talent. But there are some ridiculous patents out there...so it’s a bit confusing to patent laypeople on what constitutes a legit patent.

I remember reading that Apple had patented “rounded corners” on electronic devices (like a tablet or phone) which just sounds like it should have been thrown out on its head.

[AlabamAlum]

When Dave Thomas was first starting up Wendy's he basically modeled the original menu off a mostly-forgotten chain called Kewpee Hamburgers. At its peak there were over 400 locations (right before WWII). Today there's only five, 3 in Lima, OH. The one in downtown Lima is an awesome little throwback. But basically both the square burgers and the Frosty were designed with what he ate as a kid at Kewpee in mind.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kewpee

Yeah. Tons of stories like that. We mentioned White Castle and Krystal yesterday. The latter was a direct copy about 10 years later.

[Ghengis Jon]

Here's an effect of covid on the manufacturing industry that isn't getting much media coverage. My company is designated essential and exempt from the shutdown orders. One of our stocking and distribution plants has, since covid, a 70% weekly turnover rate (up from 1%) and a 22% absentee rate. We have product but can't ship the shit out.

People are scared. Partisan disinformation, echo chamber propaganda and the absence of common sense is keeping our perceptions murky. People base their actions on their perceptions and we are rapidly locking ourselves into a spiral.

[AlabamAlum]

In this economy, why the turnover and absenteeism, Jon? Looks like they would be thrilled to still have a job.

[Jeff Buchanan]

In this economy, why the turnover and absenteeism, Jon? Looks like they would be thrilled to still have a job.

Two things:

(1) People are scarred shitless over SARS-COV-2. The amount of disinformation out there on social media is staggering.

(2) The PPP, if it applies in Jon's circumstance, may be incentivizing workers to stay home and collect benefits rather than go to work. This especially applies to the $40K and under earning crowd. They can easily make more staying home than they can going to an assembly line, behind a fast ood counter, a bar or wating tables.