Matt O'Brien: "The United States might be the next Argentina" (Washington Post)
Argentina is a reminder of one of the most forgotten caveats in history. Class struggle, Marx said, would either end "in a revolutionary reconstitution of society at large" or "in the common ruin of the contending classes." We might want to put a little more emphasis on that second part.
David Bruce: Wise Up! Christmas (Athens News)
Ralph Nader's father, Nathra, ran a restaurant. His one day off a year was supposed to be Christmas, but each Christmas he went to his restaurant around 11 a.m. and spent approximately three hours serving lunch to elderly people who no longer had families and who ate lunch at the restaurant every day.
Dhruv Khullar: How Social Isolation Is Killing Us (NY Times)
For me, the sadness of his death was surpassed only by the sadness of his solitude. I wondered whether his isolation was a driving force of his premature death, not just an unhappy circumstance.
John Cheese: 5 Reasons Money Can Buy Happiness (Cracked)
One of the ways rich people make poor people feel better about being poor is to bombard us with songs and movies reminding us that, at the end of the day, money isn't what's really important. These stories seem to feature people who have homes and cars and food, for whom all that extra overtime at work is all about getting a second summer home in the Hamptons. "Dammit, honey, your children are more important than those material things!" OK, how many of you reading this have that problem?
The Lincoln Memorial is pictured on the back of a $5 bill. When the Lincoln Memorial was constructed the names of 48 states were engraved on it. How many state names can be seen on the Lincoln Memorial pictured on the back of a $5 bill?
Festivus is both a parody and a secular holiday celebrated on December 23 that serves as an alternative to participating in the pressures and commercialism of the Christmas season. It has been described as "the perfect secular theme for an all-inclusive December gathering".
Originally a family tradition of scriptwriter Dan O'Keefe, who worked on the American sitcom Seinfeld, Festivus entered popular culture after it was made the focus of the 1997 episode "The Strike". The non-commercial holiday's celebration, as it was shown on Seinfeld, occurs on December 23 and includes a Festivus dinner, an unadorned aluminum Festivus pole, practices such as the "Airing of Grievances" and "Feats of Strength", and the labeling of easily explainable events as "Festivus miracles".
The episode refers to it as "a Festivus for the rest of us", referencing its non-commercial aspect. It has also been described both as a "parody holiday festival" and as a form of playful consumer resistance.
Source
Randall was first and correct with:
December 23rd - it's a Festivus MIRACLE!
Alan J wrote:
December 23rd.
Deborah replied:
Festivus is celebrated today, December 23.
I was never much of a "Seinfeld" fan (my kids love it) so all this is new to me.
In other news, rain! Lots of it. And maybe a dusting of snow (!) on Christmas Eve.
Jim from CA, retired to ID, said:
Festivus is both a parody and a secular holiday celebrated on December 23 that serves as an alternative to participating in the pressures and commercialism of the Christmas season
Patriot Act NSA Spying Unconstitutional Section 215 National Security Letters Must End
My name is Marc Perkel and I have decided to announce that I will not comply with the so called "Patriot Act" laws requiring me to disclose information about my customers. If I receive a national security letter I will immediately photograph it, post it online everywhere I can, and then make a video of me burning it. I will then await my arrest. If you want to put me in jail then come get me mother fucker.
AMC offers the movie 'Home Alone 2: Lost In NY', followed by the movie 'The Outlaw Josey Wales'.
BBC -
[6:00AM] DOCTOR WHO: THE CHRISTMAS INVASION
[7:00AM] DOCTOR WHO: THE DAY OF THE DOCTOR
[8:00AM] DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 8 - EPISODE 6-The Caretaker
[9:00AM] DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 8 - EPISODE 7-Kill the Moon
[10:00AM] DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 8 - EPISODE 8-Mummy on the Orient Express
[11:00AM] DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 8 - EPISODE 9-Flatline
[12:00PM] DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 8 - EPISODE 10-In the Forest of the Night
[1:00PM] DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 8 - EPISODE 11-Dark Water
[2:00PM] DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 8 - EPISODE 12-Death in Heaven
[3:00PM] DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 9 - EPISODE 1-The Magician's Apprentice-Part 1.
[4:00PM] DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 9 - EPISODE 2-The Witch's Familiar-Part 2.
[5:00PM] DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 9 - EPISODE 3-Under The Lake-Part 1.
[6:00PM] DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 9 - EPISODE 4-Before The Flood-Part 2.
[7:00PM] DOCTOR WHO: THE DOCTOR, THE WIDOW AND THE WARDROBE - SEASON 6 - EPISODE 1-Part 1.
[8:20PM] DOCTOR WHO: LAST CHRISTMAS
[9:40PM] DOCTOR WHO: THE HUSBANDS OF RIVER SONG
[11:00PM] DOCTOR WHO: THE POWER OF THE DALEKS (COLOR) - SEASON 1 - EPISODE 6
[11:35PM] DOCTOR WHO: LAST CHRISTMAS
[1:00AM] DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 9 - EPISODE 1-The Magician's Apprentice-Part 1.
[2:00AM] DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 9 - EPISODE 2-The Witch's Familiar-Part 2.
[3:00AM] DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 9 - EPISODE 3-Under The Lake-Part 1.
[4:00AM] DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 9 - EPISODE 4-Before The Flood-Part 2.
[5:00AM] DOCTOR WHO: THE CHRISTMAS INVASION (ALL TIMES EST)
Bravo has the movie 'My Cousin Vinny', followed by the movie 'The School Of Rock'.
Comedy Central has the movie 'Bruce Almighty', followed by the movie 'Meet The Fockers', and 'Kevin Hart: Laugh At My Pain'.
FX has the movie 'The Santa Clause 2', followed by the movie 'The Santa Clause 2', again.
History has 2 hours of old 'Pawn Stars', followed by a FRESH'Pawn Stars', and another 2 hours of old 'Pawn Stars'.
IFC -
[6:00AM] BEVERLY HILLS COP III
[8:15AM] LETHAL WEAPON 4
[11:00AM] LETHAL WEAPON
[1:30PM] LETHAL WEAPON 2
[4:00PM] LETHAL WEAPON 3
[6:45PM] LETHAL WEAPON 4
[9:30PM] DIE HARD
[12:30AM] DIE HARD 2
[3:15AM] DIE HARD WITH A VENGEANCE (ALL TIMES EST)
Sundance -
[6:00AM] The Andy Griffith Show-A Date for Gomer
[6:35AM] The Andy Griffith Show-The Sermon for Today
[7:10AM] The Andy Griffith Show-The Manhunt
[7:45AM] The Andy Griffith Show-The Pickle Story
[8:20AM] The Andy Griffith Show-Opie the Birdman
[8:55AM] The Andy Griffith Show-Citizen's Arrest
[9:30AM] The Andy Griffith Show-Otis the Deputy
[10:05AM] The Andy Griffith Show-Opie's Charity
[10:40AM] The Andy Griffith Show-Christmas Story
[11:15AM] The Andy Griffith Show-The Haunted House
[11:50AM] The Andy Griffith Show-Barney's Sidecar
[12:25PM] The Andy Griffith Show-Three Wishes for Opie
[1:00PM] The Andy Griffith Show-Opie and the Bully
[1:35PM] The Andy Griffith Show-Barney and the Choir
[2:10PM] The Andy Griffith Show-The New Housekeeper
[2:45PM] The Andy Griffith Show-Ernest T. Bass Joins the Army
[3:20PM] The Andy Griffith Show-Christmas Story
[3:55PM] The Andy Griffith Show-The Education of Ernest T. Bass
[4:30PM] The Andy Griffith Show-My Fair Ernest T. Bass
[5:05PM] The Andy Griffith Show-Fun Girls
[5:40PM] The Andy Griffith Show-Briscoe Declares for Aunt Bee
[6:15PM] The Andy Griffith Show-A Date for Gomer
[6:50PM] The Andy Griffith Show-The Sermon for Today
[7:25PM] The Andy Griffith Show-Christmas Story
[8:00PM] The Andy Griffith Show-The Manhunt
[8:35PM] The Andy Griffith Show-The Pickle Story
[9:10PM] The Andy Griffith Show-Opie the Birdman
[9:45PM] The Andy Griffith Show-Citizen's Arrest
[10:20PM] The Andy Griffith Show-Otis the Deputy
[10:55PM] The Andy Griffith Show-Opie's Charity
[11:30PM] The Andy Griffith Show-Christmas Story
[12:05AM] The Andy Griffith Show-The Haunted House
[12:40AM] The Andy Griffith Show-Barney's Sidecar
[1:15AM] The Andy Griffith Show-Three Wishes for Opie
[1:50AM] The Andy Griffith Show-Opie and the Bully
[2:25AM] The Andy Griffith Show-Barney and the Choir
[3:00AM] The Andy Griffith Show-The New Housekeeper
[3:36AM] The Andy Griffith Show-Ernest T. Bass Joins the Army
[4:12AM] The Andy Griffith Show-The Education of Ernest T. Bass
[4:48AM] The Andy Griffith Show-My Fair Ernest T. Bass
[5:24AM] The Andy Griffith Show-Fun Girls (ALL TIMES EST)
SyFy has the movie 'Indiana Jones & The Temple Of Doom', followed by the movie 'Indiana Jones & The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull'.
A dancer performs on a tree in temperatures below minus 37 degrees Celsius (minus 34.6 degrees Fahrenheit) in Mohe, Heilongjiang province, China on Dec. 23, 2016.
Neuroscientists at the University of Southern California led a study that found people are less likely to change their minds on political issues than on apolitical ones when presented with contradictory data.
The reason? Like religious beliefs, political opinions are intimately linked to how someone sees his or her own character and sense of community in a way that apolitical opinions simply are not, according to the researchers.
Their new study, published Friday in the journal Scientific Reports, found that people are more apt to reject evidence that challenges their opinions on subjects like immigration and gay marriage than evidence that challenges their opinions on topics like Thomas Edison or heart disease.
"If a belief becomes incorporated into our personal or social identity, then it's much harder to change. We wanted to see what's going on in the brain when people resist belief change," lead author Jonas Kaplan said in an interview with Yahoo News. "You sort of become committed to this version of yourself that has a set of beliefs around certain topics."
Kaplan, a psychology professor at USC's Brain and Creativity Institute, said part of the reason he and the study's co-authors - BCI research scientist Sarah Gimbel and neuroscientist/philosopher Sam Harris - were interested in this topic is because it seems very important for humans to change their minds when they encounter new evidence.
Young Chinese ice skaters wearing Santa Claus costumes perform at a Christmas event "The Song of Joy on Ice" on a ice skating rink at a shopping mall in Beijing, Friday, Dec. 23, 2016. Although Christmas is not traditionally celebrated in China, shopping malls welcome the festival with organizing activities to attract shoppers as a chance to boost year end sales.
Photo by Andy Won
Activist group Sea Shepherd's fast new patrol vessel Ocean Warrior Friday intercepted a Japanese harpoon ship "hiding behind an iceberg" in thick fog as its annual high-seas battle against whaling kicked off.
Two vessels from the environmental organisation left Australia on December 5 bound for the freezing Southern Ocean in the Antarctic for its 11th campaign to disrupt the Japanese hunt.
It said Ocean Warrior, built with financial support from the Dutch, British and Swedish lotteries, had already found one of the harpoon ships which meant the rest of the fleet would be near by.
"The crews of the Ocean Warrior and the Steve Irwin have been battling through thick fog and ice to protect the whales in the Australian whale sanctuary," said Ocean Warrior captain Adam Meyerson, referring to the sanctuary around Australia's Antarctic territory.
"Finding one of the hunter killer ships hiding behind an iceberg in a thick fog means that the rest of the fleet is nearby."
Hillary Clinton received nearly 2.9 million more votes than President-elect Donald Trump (R-Pendejo), giving her the largest popular vote margin of any losing presidential candidate.
Certified results in all 50 states and the District of Columbia show Clinton winning nearly 65,844,610 million votes - 48 percent __ to Trump's 62,979,636 million votes __ 46 percent - according to an analysis by The Associated Press.
Clinton is the fifth presidential candidate in American history to win the popular vote and lose the Electoral College. Democrat Al Gore, the only other presidential candidate this century to come up short in the Electoral College but claim a popular vote victory, received 540,000 more votes than President George W. Bush.
The vote total discrepancy between Democratic nominee Clinton and Trump has fueled arguments by some Democrats that the election process is undemocratic and an intense lobbying push to convince electors to cast their votes against Trump.
France on Thursday inaugurated the world's first "solar highway", a road paved with solar panels providing enough energy to power the street lights of the small Normandy town of Tourouvre.
The one-kilometre (half-mile) "Wattway" covered with 2,800 square metres (30,000 square feet) of resin-coated solar panels was hooked up to the local power grid as Environment Minister Segolene Royal looked on.
The minister announced a four-year "plan for the national deployment of solar highways" with initial projects in western Brittany and southern Marseille.
An average of 2,000 cars use the road in Tourouvre each day, testing the resistance of the panels for the project carried out by French civil engineering firm Colas, a subsidiary of construction giant Bouygues.
The idea, which is also under exploration in Germany, the Netherlands and the United States, is that roadways are occupied by cars only around 20 percent of the time, providing vast expanses of surface to soak up the sun's rays.
Less than a month from taking office, President-elect Donald Trump (R-Grifter) has yet to hold the traditional news conference that most incoming presidents have held within days of their victory.
As of Thursday, it had been 147 days since Trump held his last formal news conference as a candidate.
Trump, whose refusal to do news conference has been criticized by journalism groups and media watchdogs, has instead tried to convey his message directly to the American public, bypassing the media with pronouncements at his boisterous rallies and, of course, distributing his thoughts 140 characters at a time on his famed Twitter account.
He was slated to hold a press conference on December 15 to discuss his plan to leave his sprawling business empire as he takes office but that event was postponed. Aides have said it will be rescheduled for January but no date has yet been set.
But while his lack of press interaction is a worry to some, many Trump supporters cheered the celebrity businessman's battles with what they felt were biased reporters. Trump made his antagonistic relationship with the media a centerpiece of his campaign, inciting his rally crowds to boo the press, singling out individual reporters with derogatory names like "sleazebag" and using Twitter to attack coverage he didn't like.
People are silhouetted as they walk through a light installation titled "Universal Journey" comprising of 824,961 light bulbs at the Universal Studios Singapore on Friday, Dec. 23, 2016, as part of celebrations in the lead up to Christmas in Singapore.
Photo by Wong Maye-E
Carl Paladino, the former co-chair of President-elect Donald Trump's New York campaign and the Republican nominee for governor of New York in 2010, told a Buffalo arts publication that his wishes for 2017 included President Barack Obama dying of mad cow disease and his wife, first lady Michelle Obama, "return to being a male."
The Buffalo developer and member of ths local school board made the statements to Artvoice when asked what he wished to see happen in 2017.
"Obama catches mad cow disease after being caught having relations with a Herford," he said. "He dies before his trial and is buried in a cow pasture next to Valerie Jarrett, who died weeks prior, after being convicted of sedition and treason, when a Jihady cell mate mistook her for being a nice person and decapitated her."
Paladino then moved on to his racially charged comment about Michelle.
"I'd like her to return to being a male and let loose in the outback of Zimbabwe where she lives comfortably in a cave with Maxie, the gorilla."
In the holiday spirit of telling it like it is, Microsoft finally admits what everyone has known all year: pushing Windows 10 upgrades on people, whether they wanted it or not, was a bad move that ruined a great software upgrade.
In the latest edition of "Windows Weekly," host Paul Thurrott asked Microsoft CMO Chris Capossela if there were any regrets from the past year. Capossela 'fessed up that Microsoft was "too aggressive" in pushing out the free Windows 10 upgrade. He said that "we know we want people to be running Windows 10 from a security perspective, but finding that right balance where you're not stepping over the line to being too aggressive is something we tried."
As it turns out, deceiving users into thinking they were dismissing the Windows 10 update when actually they're just pushing it to the back of the screen was too deceptive. Who'd have thought it?!
All joking aside, it's good of Microsoft to own up to its rather dramatic misstep. I'd agree with Capossela that the Windows 10 update procedure was a huge mistake by Microsoft. It managed to take something that should have been good - giving away a great software update to billions of users - and turn it into something bad. It takes real skill to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory like that.
An Indian farmer walks in his field enveloped by thick fog near Hisar, India, Friday, Dec. 23, 2016. In the winter months, northern India experiences fog enveloped mornings that reduce visibility severely, often leading to delays and cancellation of trains and flights.
Photo by Altaf Qadri
President-elect Donald Trump announced ExxonMobil chairman and chief executive officer Rex Tillerson as his nominee for secretary of state last week, casting aside several finalists, including former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton, for the top Cabinet post.
"Trump believes that those who aspire to the most visible spots in his administration should not just be able to do the job, but also look the part," the Post reported. "Several of Trump's associates said they thought that John R. Bolton's brush-like mustache was one of the factors that handicapped the bombastic former United Nations ambassador in the sweepstakes for secretary of state."
"He likes people who present themselves very well," Chris Ruddy, Trump's longtime associate, told the paper. "And he's very impressed when somebody has a background of being good on television because he thinks it's a very important medium for public policy."
That Trump would include appearance on his list of considerations for West Wing employment shouldn't come as a surprise. This is, after all, someone who rose to fame as a reality television star and, some would argue, ran his presidential campaign like one.
The Top 20 Global Concert Tours ranks artists by average box office gross per city and includes the average ticket price for shows Worldwide. The list is based on data provided to the trade publication Pollstar by concert promoters and venue managers.
1. Guns N' Roses; $5,258,305; $104.11.
2. Adele; $3,649,630; $109.07.
3. Justin Bieber; $2,376,511; $81.71.
4. Drake; $2,328,301; $112.64.
5. Red Hot Chili Peppers; $2,052,428; $82.01.
6. Kanye West; $1,836,417; $87.63.
7. Luke Bryan; $1,721,308; $70.43.
8. Marc Anthony; $1,670,772; $131.93.
9. Black Sabbath; $1,279,314; $66.52.
10. Maroon 5; $1,261,453; $93.98.
11. Jason Aldean; $1,072,244; $51.31.
12. Andre Rieu; $996,479; $105.69.
13. The Cure; $925,867; $62.24.
14. "Bad Boy Family Reunion Tour" / Puff Daddy; $920,868; $83.91.
15. Stevie Nicks; $862,373; $93.71.
16. Sia; $821,290; $78.98.
17. Dixie Chicks; $796,811; $71.71.
18. Nickelback; $773,372; $87.22.
19. Carrie Underwood; $703,262; $70.68.
20. Dolly Parton; $659,582; $78.21.
An adorable forest vole perches on a snowball to nibble the carrot nose of a miniature snowman, joined by another vole which clambered onto the snowman's head as temperatures plunged to minus 15 degrees Celsius in Voronezh, Russia on Dec. 23, 2016.
Photo by Vadim Trunov
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took the day off.
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