Afternoon Tea 11.17.2020 - 525,600 Minutes

Plague raves, bad behavior from Andy & Bill, yoga infested with QAnon, everything you need to know about the slow-moving not-coup, and COVID-19 is 1 year old! It’s Tuesday, November 17th 2020, and this is the Tea.

I Live in the Middle of Nowhere. I Still Got COVID. (Texas Monthly) & After Big Thanksgiving Dinners, Plan Small Christmas Funerals, Health Experts Warn (Mississippi Free Press) Happy Birthday COVID-19! The first case in China was documented this week in Wuhan. Stories linked are from Texas & Mississippi, two states that were suppoesed to learn from what NYC survived this Spring. Instead, here we are, isolating again, while the virus ravages their communities. Like we said.

After calling the presidential election, Fox cast doubt on the results and pushed conspiracy theories more than 250 times (Media Matters) & This is no conventional coup. Trump is paving the way for a 'virtual Confederacy' (The Guardian) & How to Refute Vote Fraud Claims Like Trump’s (Foreign Policy) Biden’s Victory Is No Balm for American Exceptionalism (Foreign Policy) Trump’s not-coup has the very real effect of pushing hundreds of thousands across the country to lose all faith in core American institutions. What if he just goes to a golf course over Thanksgiving or Christmas and never goes back to DC? Just “governs” (tweets) from the “Southern White House” (Mar-a-Lago) and “builds his 2024 campaign war chest” (continues to fleece his core supporters).

Biden Can Start To Heal America By Embracing Foreign Policy Restraint (American Conservative) Alternatively, Biden could build some real bipartisan support if he doesn’t absolutely fumble this faux withdrawal Trump is engaging in as a lame duck. Trump won by messaging to the left of Clinton on Foreign Policy for 18 months. A Biden presidency that honestly rethinks the Forever Wars could earn non-trivial amounts of Trump voter support.

Why a tax on home-working is a really bad idea (Julian Jessop) Deutsche Bank suggested that remote workers should be hit with an additional tax. Yes the bank that laundered the ever-living smack out of Donald Trump’s finances and is now looking for ways to offload his debt, opened its mouth.

Wrong Masks and ‘Missing’ Ventilators: NYC’s Billion-Dollar COVID Gear Bungle (TheCity) Cuomo Pushes to Weaken Ban on Toxic Foam Burning (New York Focus) Neither Mayor Bill or Governor Andy are your friends. I will say this until the day I die. If COVID-19 had happened during a functional presidency, Cuomo and de Blasio would go to jail for a very long time, given what they’ve done this year.

Chicago Public Library says eliminating fines has paid off (Chicago Sun Times) 7% more books were checked out after late fee/fine amnesty, with e-books up by 25%. Pay people’s book fees, get them more words to read for free.

Financing the American Home (Net Interest) I was today years old when I learned that other countries don’t use the 30 year fixed rate mortgage. Holy crap do we suck.

plague raves: what were they thinking (business techno) If you’re throwing commercial events at this point, I am going to assume two things about you. First, you’re under-paying/protecting your staff, so you’re a piece of shit. Second, you’re probably underestimating the risk to your attendees, so you’re a fluffy piece of shit quiche.

The Astrology Precariat, The Yoga Bourgeoisie and The Integralists: Spirituality as a Class Magnifier (Meta Moderna) & How QAnon infiltrated the yoga world (Insider) This is my favorite metaphor to explain how a lack of sophistication & privilege. As you get more wealth, your privilege allows you to access teachers who give you “what works” vs. the poor getting “what the person is selling.” And this is a perfect explanation for how QAnon was able to so perfectly infiltrate the evangelical, yoga, and Burning Man community.

Song of the Tea: Louis the Child is wonderful, and Self Care is needed right now.

The Mister Softee jingle whispers through the November chill…

Yours,T