Link round-up for 8 May 2022

Various interesting stuff I ran across on the net over the last week.

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Who the heck designed this stairway?

Evoke humor with Greek mythology.

Seems to me he may want more than just a cuddle (NSFW).

Toys help build life skills.

Even fortune tellers get distracted.

Religion should never be taken too seriously.

Not big on home defense, this guy.

Humans eat more bananas than monkeys.

Finally, an Olympic event I might succeed in.

Florida's alligators are a ubiquitous pain in the ass.

The fall of Roe will benefit one industry.

This martial arts demonstration encountered a slight problem (found via Hackwhackers).

Maybe a horse ambulance isn't such a good idea.

Cats are not suited to certain jobs.

I fully understand the look on his face.

This person is sensibly unimpressed with mysterious portents.

It's what religion fears the most.

Government communications my ass, this is an alien spaceship.

Rising sea levels?  Bah.  In India, the land rises too.

Skip this Easter event.

Esme's Cloud delves into British slang.

A quick video illustrates how vaccines work.

Workers deal with a toxic spill just outside the city.

"In my house there is a metal door with a hole in it."

Cast yourself.

Watch a stunning wire sculpture take shape.

These things exist.

For allergy season, get rid of the pollen (this is in Spain).

Important reminder for parents here (found via Yellowdog Granny).

There is only one place that won't kill you.

This must have been an exciting flight.

The problem with religion is when you insist that others endorse your delusions.

I'm surprised these two didn't just shoot each other.

The evolution of black rats in Europe tracks variation in the dominant force in their environment -- human civilization.

He has two mommies.

This person exists -- has he been to your kid's school?

Apparently this is what a "Christian men's conference" looks like (found via Hackwhackers).

They're average senators.

Join the non-conformists!

And now, a message from your cryptocurrency dealer.

Shower Cap blog reviews yet another crazy week.

No rhyme, no meter, no meaning -- it's no wonder "literary poetry" is unreadable.

Blogger Carol Seidl remembers her mother's memorial service.

You can help Ukraine via these verified charities.

Don't believe everything you read on the internet.

Books are our weapons in the war of ideas.

The Satanic Temple continues to play the Satan role of adversary to unjust religious power.

Everybody knows what a woman is when it really matters.

Running is good for you.

Artists pwn Putin.

Always look for alternatives to Amazon.

The powers that be do everything they can to make life more difficult for poor people.

Never use any social media that can be traced to your real name -- it can lead to harassment in the workplace.

An abused minor fights back.

A cure for cancer would just be an insult.

Anti-Semitic bullying drove a Jewish student to suicide while school authorities did nothing.

Turnabout is fair.

Doctors are not God.

Our country is a battlefield on which two very different armies face each other.

"Don't force your religion, your pathological need for control, your deep, dark insecurities on me or any other sentient being."

Fuck the ACLU.

The Catholic hierarchy is desperately trying to squirm out of paying damages to molested kids.

Texas and Louisiana Republicans are doubling down on teh crayzee.

The struggle against the destructive FOSTA law continues (found via The Honest Courtesan).

We're way past the point of needing tougher taxes on such obscene accumulations of wealth.

Democrats have taken action to protect abortion, at the state level.

"The red pen of justice" pwns a terminal narcissist.

Youth gangs are beating and terrorizing citizens in Boston, and stupid local laws prevent the police from doing anything about it.

A teacher's job is much harder than it looks.

Matt Gaetz thinks some women are too educated.

Abigail Shrier's truth-telling makes her an object of hate -- and hope.

Here is what has been accomplished since Biden took office.

For blogger Burr Deming, the logic of the leaked anti-Roe ruling hits too close to home.

55% of Americans now support expanding the Supreme Court, only 36% oppose it.  This is no longer a radical idea.

To destroy rights, destroy language.  Orwell warned us about this.

Even in a car crash, class matters.

Attacking abortion rights goes together with attacking democracy.

Americans strongly support sanctions on Russia and aid to Ukraine, but oppose direct US involvement in the war.

Trump reportedly wanted to fire missiles at Mexico.

Gender ideology hurts gender-non-conforming people.

A company is selling smartphone location-tracking data on people who visit abortion clinics.  Carrying a smartphone is madness.

This guy doesn't take shit from Amazon.

Fundie control freaks are now tracking women's menstrual cycles and plotting to punish anyone who helps them cross state lines, all in order to obstruct abortion.  This is North-Korea-level totalitarianism mixed with gross, weird fetishism.

Chloe Maxmin has ideas for how Democrats can win back rural voters.

Men who claim to be women commit sex crimes at a higher rate than men in general.

Being able to travel for an abortion is not "privilege".

Why is our system like this?

God's justice:  rapists go to Heaven, the victim goes to Hell.

Is it time for a new political party?

A Democrat won 52%-to-40% in a deep-red Michigan district because the Republican was a crazed anti-feminist and anti-Semite (though the headline is misleading).  Extremism loses elections.

List of abortion resources here, tips on avoiding criminal charges for abortion pills here.

Top Republicans seriously considered using the 25th Amendment to remove Trump after the January 6 insurrection.

Even with the end of Roe, Democrats can still drive women voters away if they bullshit enough.

Sometimes women are quicker than men to realize when society is turning dangerous.

Amazon will no longer give workers paid leave if they get covid.  They'll get only five days of unpaid leave.

Texas is paying a price for Abbott's border-trade-blocking stunt.

Wake people up to reality, one conversation at a time.

Crytocurrency bros are trying to influence politics.  So far it seems to be mostly Republicans that are falling for it.

Valerie Tarico's post on fighting for abortion rights inspired this discussion at Nan's Notebook.

Uber effectively admits that it can only succeed by abusing workers.  Uber and Lyft company policy bans drivers from carrying guns, making them sitting ducks for carjackers.

"Gender-affirming" surgery and treatments in early puberty almost always result in life-long sexual dysfunction.

This man spent thirty-two years in prison because he had the same name as a murder suspect.

Bruce Gerencser reacts to the leaked abortion ruling.

A billionaire is flagrantly circumventing campaign-finance laws.  We should have no hesitation about circumventing anti-abortion laws or censorship any way we can.

Here's what life is like for women prison inmates when men are kept at the same prison (must-read if you're on the fence about this issue).

Violence against police is on the rise in France.

A European boycott of Russian oil is difficult but doable.  (No, they can't just export the same amounts to China and India.  The necessary pipelines and other infrastructure aren't in place and would take years to build.)

Makariv is liberated, but the trauma and devastation remain.

Three weeks in, Russia's Donbas offensive is bogged down.

The number of deaths of high Russian officers in Ukraine is a sign of extraordinary incompetence.  South Ossetian troops sent to help Russia report a war effort in shambles.  The war has substantially weakened Russia.

"For years we have heard that the Russians play chess while the Americans play checkers. But now we see that the Russians have been playing Russian roulette."

It takes guts to protest the war in Russia.

China's economy is in far worse shape than most Westerners realize.  Those who choose to remain dependent on it deserve what will happen to them as a result.

More links at Miss Cellania.

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My own posts this week: China's grim march into disaster, the likely demise of Roe v Wade, an image round-up, and The Lone Animator's appreciation of HP Lovecraft.

[Image at top made by Far Corner Café]