Afternoon Tea 12.1.2020 - Almighty Push

Four weeks until the end of the longest year in history.

December 01, 2020

China published a doctored photo of an Australian soldier, Germany mass arrests & bans a Neo-Nazi group, an anti-gay Hungarian MP self-defenestrated, and NYC landlords are sweeping small businesses who can’t make rent away, and states that suck at handling ‘rona are spreading it to states near them. It’s Tuesday, December 1st 2020, and this is the Tea.

China rejects Australian PM's call to apologise for 'repugnant' tweet (The Guardian) A tweet from a spokesperson from the Chinese Foreign Ministry falsely portrayed an Australian soldier cutting the throat of what looked like an Afghani civilian/child. This has gone over about as well as you can imagine.

Germany bans far-right, pro-Nazi group; Police raid homes (Associated Press) 11 members of a far-right group calling themselves Wolfsbrigade 44 were stormed. Largely to confiscate neo-nazi propaganda bladed weapons and a crossbow. This quote from the piece stuck out to me: “There isn’t any room in the military for enemies of the constitution,” Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said in a statement.

An anti-gay Hungarian politician has resigned after being caught by the police fleeing a 25-man orgy through a window (Business Insider) Sip this article slowly. Like a fine wine you waited all year to open. From the Politico article BI is quoting:

A senior MEP from Hungary’s ruling Fidesz party admitted Tuesday that he took part in a “lockdown party” — described by local media as “an orgy” — that was broken up by Brussels police. József Szájer said in a statement that he was “present” at the “private party” — at which, according to the Belgian press, police found 25 naked men, including an MEP and a number of diplomats.

According to a press release from the public prosecutor’s office, “A passer-by reported to the police that he had seen a man fleeing along the gutter; he was able to identify the man. The man’s hands were bloody. It is possible that he may have been injured while fleeing. Narcotics were found in his backpack. The man was unable to produce any identity documents. He was escorted to his place of residence, where he identified himself as S. J. (1961) by means of a diplomatic passport.”

NYC Landlords Suing Pandemic-Slammed Small Businesses by the Hundreds for Missed Rent (TheCity) It’s not just apartment renters who need help. Small businesses across the country are getting slammed and in NYC where the commercial rents can vary from shocking to hysterical, the next few months are quite bleak.

Trump Lawyer: Former DHS Senior Official Should Be Executed (The Bulwark) Whoever had “Trump lawyer calls for former Trump Cybersecurity Chief to be ‘drawn & quartered. Taken out at dawn and shot.’ on a Newsmax call.” on your 2020 Bingo Card, come up and get your prize. If you have also been paying attention to Trump’s efforts to get the death penalty by firing squad, that last bit is less funny.

States With Few Coronavirus Restrictions Are Spreading the Virus Beyond Their Borders (ProPublica) The week after there are major gun shows in Nevada, gun crime spikes in California. In the same way, states that pretend the ‘rona isn’t real aren’t just shooting themselves in the foot, they’re making it harder for states around them who have tried to play by the rules.

Is America Trapped in a Caste System? (The New Republic) Gaiutra Bahadur’s review of “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents” by Isabel Wilkerson, is more insightful than the book. To understand America’s privilege and systemic racism, a caste model might be extremely helpful to Western scholars. Evaluating India, Nazi Germany, and Antebellum South, we find a lot of things that rhyme.

QAnon is indestructible (UnHerd) Fantastic piece reminding us that QAnon will not be going away any time soon. It’s a supremely resilient doomsday prophecy, and will continue to morph into whatever its exploiters want it to be.

Cameroon’s Government Is Deceiving the West While Diverting Foreign Aid (Foreign Policy) Hopefully Biden & the Adults can actually evaluate the developing nations that are getting in billions in foreign aid. To make sure it’s aiding those with the least, not enriching those with the most.

Umbrella Academy Star Elliot Page Comes Out As Transgender (Screenrant) Respect people’s gender identity, honor its expression. Recognize the struggles of those in transition. Love everyone.

I was today years old when I learned that John Henry was 1. a real person & former Union soldier, 2. a convict lent out to a railroad, 3. worked possibly alongside or in competition with steel engines. I had no idea a Tall Tale, up there with the Blue Ox and Instacart v0.1 for Apples, was based on a person who fought for our nation.

China orders live streamers and gift-givers to register with real names (South China Morning Post) Passed under the pretext of preventing influence funneling and money laundering, it’s also about to get harder to hide your income as a streamer in China.

Small Business of the Tea: In the spirit of the season, I’ll be signal boosting a friend’s small business, craft store, or side-hustle every day until Santa arrives. To stress, none of these placements are compensated, this was not requested by them, and in some cases they won’t know before it goes live.

If I spent the rest of my life studying storyboarding, cinematography, comedic timing, and the craft of filmmaking, I would never be as good as Mike James Levy was, by the time he finished high school. He’s streaming, reviewing movies, TVs, generally providing the most slickly edited and polished meta-commentary on many things geek.

If this is your thing, check him out and put bread in his jar. One more thing! He’s also masterful when given the opportunity to do still photography as well.

Song of the Tea: This ended up being my alarm for a couple of years after I was introduced to it by the star of stage & screen recommended above (Mike, not Elliot). It starts quite softly, with a single string & flute. Two minutes later, if you’ve not shut it off, there’s a full drumline and string posse to shake you out of bed.

Feel in moments. Think in days. Hope in seasons. Plan in years.

Yours,T