#Industrial Welfare Commission

[if-you-fan-a-fire]

“SEGREGATION NEEDED IN ONTARIO JAILS, STATES MACAULAY,” Toronto Globe. October 23, 1930. Page 13.  ---- Speaks of First Offenders and Hardened Criminals Being Grouped ---- OUTLINES ONTARIO'S AIMS ---- What the Province of Ontario is doing in the way of discouraging crime and setting offenders on the way to the straight and narrow path, was outlined when Hon. Leopold Macaulay, Provincial Secretary, spoke to the Macdonald-Cartier Club in Hart House last night. "Whether you like it or not, the tendency of the age it toward State socialism," he said, pointing out that more and more the Government was looked to to take the place of the home, church and school, in taking care of the citizens, regulating their conduct and in solving the economic and social problems evolving from modern conditlons. 

Crime Prevention. The need in dealing with crime conditions, he said, was not so much to punish offenders but to improve the means of preventing crime. To this end, police, courts and penal institutions in the Province were working, he said. 

Basing his remarks on the report of the Ross Commission on Ontario Prison conditions, Mr. Macaulay spoke of the need of increased segregation in Ontario falls where first-offenders and hardened criminals, mental defectives and men perhaps innocent. though awaiting trial, are herded together. Another need of the jails was occupation for the inmates. 

Lauds Parole Boards. After speaking on the work in the reformatories, both at Guelph, where men appearing to be reformable are sent and taught trades, and at Burwash, where more callous offenders are sent for a regime of wood-chopping, Mr. Macaulay paid tribute to the work the Ontario Parole Boards were doing. 

Less than 5 per cent. of men granted parole at the end of a determinate sentence returned to Ontario institutions, he said. The system by which prisoners were allowed to take positions outside of institutions, under the care of the citizen who employed them and have their earnings sent to their dependants, also worked out well, he said. 

Lou Golden, President of the Macdonald-Cartier Club, was in the chair, and introduced the speaker.

#toronto #public address #extra mural employment #probation officer #parole system #penal reform #birth of the welfare state #crime control #ross commission #classification and segregation #utopia of classification #burwash industrial farm #guelph reformatory #great depression in canada #crime and punishment in canada #history of crime and punishment in canada #ontario prisons

[strangebiology]

The Science of Humane Slaughter

I asked an expert on humane livestock slaughter how we decided on certain methods of slaughter as more or less humane than others, from a scientific perspective.

He pointed me to this document (PDF) from the European Food Safety Authority called “WELFARE ASPECTS OF ANIMAL STUNNING AND KILLING METHODS:” Scientific Report of the Scientific Panel for Animal Health and Welfare on a request from the Commission related to welfare aspects of animal stunning and killing methods.

It's long, and old (from 2004) but it's a pretty useful document summarizing a lot of the science of why certain methods of killing may be more or less humane.

You can test a method, for example, by hooking an animal up to an EEG and monitoring its brainwaves after stunning it, or delivering a fatal blow (functionally killing it, but it won't always die instantly following a fatal injury, so you can still monitor it.)

Other ways of monitoring and measuring suffering include recording: how many times does an animal vocalize (moo, grunt etc) after being put in a chute? If it moves, does that matter, or is that a post-mortem or unconscious spasm? Does it immediately collapse, does it blink when you touch its eye (corneal reflex)? Is the animal permanently brain-damaged (which is a good thing when you want it to die fast!) or is it only a little knocked out and immobile, with the potential for recovery if you were to not bleed it out? (Which is bad in that circumstance!) A scientist can test that by testing a stunning method on a group of animals and then seeing if they recover. Those individual animals are likely not happy if they do return to consciousness with a hole in their heads, but such is science.

Anyway, while the testing might sound gruesome, I thought you'd like to know that slaughter regulations are pretty serious and well-studied. And those regulations seem pretty consistent among everywhere I've seen (EU, Norway specifically, the US.) With some minor differences here and there.

Perhaps we will discover better ways to slaughter meat animals in regard to their welfare, or perhaps we will find one day that our preferred method wasn't as good as we thought! There might also be people doing things in very bad, unintentionally cruel ways because of silly, disproven myths (but, if someone is legally selling meat, any US slaughterhouse is required to have a USDA rep see every death.)

I don't want to imply that every animal death goes perfectly well, or that it's even acceptable, or that the meat industry is perfect or good! But I do want to share that there is scientific precedent for why people kill livestock the ways they do, and you can read the studies in the aforementioned document. There are tons.

PS. If you have any interesting insights on the science of humane slaughter, I'd love to see them! Or, even, just tell me how it's done in your country, the role of the government, etc.

#animal death #humane slaughter

[camillasgirl]

King Charles III and Queen Camilla will undertake a State Visit to Kenya

The visit will take place from Tuesday 31st October to Friday 3rd November 2023, and will celebrate the warm relationship between the two countries and the strong and dynamic partnership they continue to forge.

The visit is at the invitation of President Ruto and comes as Kenya prepares to celebrate 60 years of independence. His Majesty’s first visit to a Commonwealth nation as King is therefore to the country in which Queen Elizabeth II’s reign began, having acceded to the throne in Kenya in February 1952.

The King and Queen will visit Nairobi City County, Mombasa County and surrounding areas. Their Majesties’ programme will reflect the ways in which Kenya and the United Kingdom are working together, notably to boost mutual prosperity, tackle climate change, promote youth opportunity and employment, advance sustainable development and create a more stable and secure region.

During the visit, Their Majesties will meet President Ruto and the First Lady as well as and other members of the Kenyan Government, UN staff, CEOs, faith leaders, young people, future leaders and Kenyan Marines training with UK Royal Marines. The King will also attend an event to celebrate the life and work of the Nobel Laureate the late Professor Wangari Maathai, together with Wangari’s daughter, Wanjira Mathai.

The King and Queen’s programme will celebrate the close links between the British and Kenyan people in areas such as the creative arts, technology, enterprise, education and innovation. The visit will also acknowledge the more painful aspects of the UK and Kenya’s shared history, including the Emergency (1952-1960). His Majesty will take time during the visit to deepen his understanding of the wrongs suffered in this period by the people of Kenya. Together, Their Majesties will tour a new museum dedicated to Kenya’s history and will lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior at Uhuru Gardens, as well as visiting the site of the declaration of Kenya’s independence in 1963.

The King and Queen’s programme also will include:

Their Majesties will be greeted in Nairobi with a ceremonial welcome at State House and will each attend bilateral meetings – The King with The President and The Queen with the First Lady, before The President hosts a State Banquet at State House.

His Majesty will visit the United Nations Office at Nairobi, to learn more about the work of UN Habitat and the UN Environment Programme. UNON is the only UN Headquarters in the Commonwealth.

His Majesty will attend a technology showcase, meeting Kenyan entrepreneurs who are driving forward innovation in the country’s tech sector. Kenya has the third largest start up eco-system in Africa.

His Majesty will host a reception focussed on Kenya’s young people and future leaders across development, trade, media, the creative arts and environmental conservation.

Their Majesties will visit a Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemetery, joining British and Kenyan military personnel in an act of Remembrance, before hearing about the Commission’s recent work to ensure all those who supported Britain’s efforts in both World Wars are commemorated.

The King and Queen will visit Nairobi National Park to witness the vital conservation work being undertaken by the Kenya Wildlife Service, which is integral to Kenya’s thriving tourism industry.

Her Majesty, Patron of the equine welfare charity Brooke, will hear how the charity is working with the Kenya Society for the Protection and Care of Animals to rescue donkeys at risk and promote their welfare.

The King, as Captain General of the Royal Marines, and The Queen, will visit Mtongwe Naval Base in Mombasa. There, Their Majesties will witness Kenyan Marines, trained by the Royal Marines, demonstrating a covert beach landing, showing defence collaboration in action.

The Queen will meet survivors of sexual and gender-based violence, learning how they are supported and sharing her own insights from working in this area.

The King will meet faith leaders from Mombasa’s diverse community, hearing how they are working together to promote harmony amongst the city’s population.

#king charles iii #queen camilla

[mariacallous]

The Federal Communications Commission has voted—once again—to assert its power to oversee and regulate the activities of the broadband industry in the United States. In a 3-2 vote, the agency reinstated net neutrality rules that had been abandoned during the height of the Trump administration’s deregulatory blitz.

“Broadband is now an essential service,” FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel said Thursday in prepared remarks. “Essential services—the ones we count on in every aspect of modern life—have some basic oversight.”

The rules approved by the agency on Thursday will reclassify broadband services in the United States once more as “common carriers” under Title II of the Telecommunications Act, subjecting broadband to the same public-utilities-style scrutiny as telephone networks and cable TV.

That distinction means that the agency can prevent internet service providers from blocking or throttling legal content, or letting online services pay ISPs to prioritize their content with faster delivery speeds. But it’s difficult, particularly in an election year, to say whether net neutrality is here to stay or whether the FCC’s vote is just another inflection point in a regulatory forever-war.

“Net neutrality rules protect internet openness by prohibiting broadband providers from playing favorites with internet traffic,” Rosenworcel says. “We need broadband to reach 100 percent of us—and we need it fast, open, and fair.”

This reclassification was first attempted by the Obama administration following a lawsuit by Verizon in 2011; the ruling pointed to reclassification as a necessary hurdle in efforts to bring broadband under scope of the FCC’s oversight. The outcome of that case prompted the introduction of the Open Internet Order of 2015, which not only reclassified the industry in line with the court’s suggestion but imposed a slate of new rules with “net neutrality” serving as the FCC’s guiding philosophy.

Two years later, those rules were overturned by the Trump-appointed FCC chair at the time, Ajit Pai, a former Verizon lawyer. Back in the private sector now, Pai derided the FCC’s efforts this week as a “complete waste of time;” something, he said, “nobody actually cares about.”

The rules put forth under Rosenworcel are somewhat different than those previously introduced. Past FCC orders pursing net neutrality have been repeatedly challenged in court, giving the agency today a fair idea of which policies will be defensible in the onslaught of lawsuits definitely to come.

Though banning the creation of “pay-to-play internet fast lanes” remains a priority, the reasons for reclassifying broadband are not limited to warding off the industry’s well-documented predatory practices. The new order also gives the FCC the ability to more closely examine industry behavior; how, for instance, companies respond (or fail to) in the event of widespread network outages.

“Net neutrality” was not originally devised as a set of rules but rather as a principle by which regulators seek to strike a balance between the profit-motivated interests of megalithic broadband companies and the rights and welfare of consumers. It is often summed up simply as the practice of ensuring that “all internet, regardless of its source, must be treated the same.”

While the Trump FCC asserted that it had no authority to regulate ISPs, it paradoxically claimed—in a failed effort—the power to crack down on states working to create regulation for themselves. Still, in 2018 California successfully banned broadband companies from engaging in a host of anti-consumer activities, from digital redlining and data discrimination to zero-rating schemes, which enable ISPs to funnel consumers toward particular websites or services by exempting them from arbitrary data caps.

Net neutrality advocates typically credit laws like California’s with preventing “virtually lawless” service providers from going haywire over the past half-decade. Industry associations offer a counter-history: Net neutrality protections must have been pointless all along, since the sky didn’t fall once they disappeared.

State-level protections, however, haven’t prevented cable and satellite TV companies from pushing a menu of anti-consumer policies nationally. The industry has threatened to hike monthly subscription prices if ever prevented from charging early-termination fees to customers locked into yearlong contracts. It has opposed rules proposed by the Federal Trade Commission designed to “make it at least as easy to cancel a subscription as it was to start it.”

Rosenworcel and other net neutrality proponents point to the growing reliance on broadband as successive generations of Americans increasingly eschew forms of communication that traditionally fell under the FCC’s blanket. Broadband is undeniably a telecommunications service today—even more so now than when the FCC first sought to adopt net neutrality as its guiding principle.

“Today's action brings back moderate rules that have already passed court muster and are essential building blocks for a consumer-friendly and citizen-friendly internet,” says Michael Copps, a former FCC commissioner. “Our communications technologies are evolving so swiftly, affecting so many important aspects of our individual lives, that they must be available to all of us on a nondiscriminatory basis.”

Consumer reliance on digital platforms and tools for communication is only increasing: Teenagers today notoriously loathe—some say fear!—talking on the phone, while the landscape of communications dynamics shifted violently for US workers in the post-pandemic era. Nevertheless, Americans today have little agency on their own to combat predatory-pricing schemes and lopsided usage restrictions. Consumer advocates note that Americans cannot simply vote with their wallets while locked into receiving services from a de facto monopoly.

While having evolved far past its original conceit, net neutrality is at heart a policy of "non-discrimination," as Tim Wu explained in the 2002 white paper coining the phrase.

“The point of the neutrality principle is not to interfere with the administration of the internet-protocol side of a broadband carrier’s network,” wrote Wu, then an associate professor at the University of Virginia Law School. “It is, rather, to prevent discrimination in that administration.”

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Spirit warned investors that merging with Jetblue would be illegal

++++

Jetblue is trying to buy Spirit Airlines. It’s a terrible idea. Consolidation in the US aviation industry has resulted in higher fares, less reliable planes, spiraling junk-fees, and brutal conditions for flight- and ground-crews. The four remaining US major airlines, who gobbled their rivals, are three times more profitable than their European counterparts:

https://www.economist.com/leaders/2017/04/22/a-lack-of-competition-explains-the-flaws-in-american-aviation

If you’d like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here’s a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/03/12/they-put-it-in-writing/#that-was-then

That’s great news if you’re an airline shareholder. It’s terrible news if you’re hunting for your lost bags, or if you’re a flight attendant or pilot being squeezed, or if you’re being hit for billions in covid bailouts — or if you’re one of one million Americans who were stranded during Christmas week by the failure of Southwest Airlines’ IT systems, which use duct-tape and wishful thinking to hold together the IT systems of all the airlines SWA bought:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/01/16/for-petes-sake/#unfair-and-deceptive

The collapse of competition in the US airline industry is the result of a deliberate policy, the “consumer welfare” theory of antitrust, which says that monopolies are “efficient” and good for the public. It’s a theory that took root under Reagan, and was reaffirmed and expanded by every president, R or D, since.

Until now. For the first time in two generations, the Biden administration has taken up the neglected, noble art of trustbusting, blocking mergers and promising to break up the mergers we’ve already seen, through enforcers like Jonathan Kanter at the DoJ Antitrust Division and Lina Khan at the FTC:

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2021/08/party-its-1979-og-antitrust-back-baby

Which is bad news for the proposed Jetblue/Spirit merger. Last week, the DoJ filed suit to block the merger, joined by the AGs from NY, MA and DC.

https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.mad.254267/gov.uscourts.mad.254267.1.0.pdf

Notably, Pete Buttigieg — who has been historically shy of using his prodigious powers as the boss of a large agency — will also block the merger:

https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/usdot-statement-justice-departments-lawsuit-block-proposed-jetblue-spirit-merger

Spirit’s shares are in the toilet. Writing in his BIG newsletter, Matt Stoller explains why shareholders are bolting for the doors: the case against the Jetblue/Spirit merger is incredibly strong. A slam-dunk, even:

https://mattstoller.substack.com/p/an-end-to-airline-consolidation

Spirit, after all, is America’s most famous budget airline. That means that it attracts fliers by undercutting the Big Four. That puts downward pressure on the Big Four, who are faced with the choice of taking lower profits to retain fliers’ business, or losing all the profit when those fliers take Spirit. Remove Spirit from play and that downward pressure on fares disappears. You don’t need newfangled “neo-Brandeisian” antitrust to see why this is bad — even under “consumer welfare” antitrust, anything that will obviously make prices go up is prohibited (indeed, this is the only thing consumer welfare antitrust cares about).

How do we know that a Jetblue/Spirit merger is a price-increasing, illegal antitrust violation? Spirit says so.

[Image ID: A slide prepared for Spirit Airlines’ board, titled ‘Shareholders should think about the conversation with regulators,’ and laying out the case that a Jetblue/Spirit merger is illegal.]

This is truly delicious! You see, last year, there was a bidding war for Spirit and Jetblue was the outside bidder. Spirit’s board wanted to convince their shareholders to reject Jetblue’s bid, so they commissioned some aviation economists to do a study on the matter, which Spirit then circulated to its investors.

That report is unequivocal: it estimates that a Jetblue/Spirit merger will be a disaster. Spirit’s participation in a route lowers fares by 17%. When Spirit stops competing on a route, fares go up by 30%. Spirit CEO Ted Christie called the proposed merger “unlawful” and “unethical”:

https://simpleflying.com/spirit-ceo-shareholder-rejection-jetblue-cynical-disruptive-offer/

Spirit is a major competitor to Jetblue. As Stoller notes, they compete on hundreds of routes, and are adding more all the time. Jetblue clearly understands that removing Spirit as a competitor would let it raise fares. As one Jetblue manager — quoted by the DoJ — explained: “I don’t think we should be selling the [Spirit] fare if [Spirit] is not serving the market.” Jetblue’s internal memos on the merger include an executive stating that the merger will allow the airline to realize “efficiencies” by reducing service and increasing fares. This isn’t the kind of “efficiency” we want.

Stoller notes that even with this damning evidence, there are still some spoilers. Florida governor Ron DeSantis has cut a deal to back the merger, even though Florida stands to suffer the most of any state from this merger due to the number of Spirit flights taking off from its airports. And, Stoller notes, the judge presiding over the case is an 82 year old Reagan appointee — a ideology-addled dotard named William Young.

But, Stoller notes, with Buttigieg and the DOT on the case, it’s hard to see how this merger can go through — the DOT has very broad powers to block mergers that reduce routes and don’t have to meet the same evidentiary standards as the DoJ would in court.

Stoller thinks Buttigieg has had a “moment of truth” — that outside pressure from activists and critics convinced the secretary that his future political fortunes would be better served, on balance, by boldly using his powers (and pleasing the public), rather than sitting on his hands (and pleasing future industry donors):

https://mattstoller.substack.com/p/pete-buttigiegs-moment-of-truth

If that’s so, it’s welcome news. While I would prefer that our political leaders acted boldly in the public interest out of a sense of duty, I will happily settle for bold action motivated by fear of the voters’ wrath.

[Image ID: A crashed WWI biplane, redecorated in Spirit airlines livery. The scene is decorated with text-snippets cut out of a Spirit Airlines internal investor presentation slide advising that merging with Jetblue is ill-advised and possibly illegal.]

#pluralistic #matt stoller #spirit airlines #jetblue #aviation #monopoly #mergers #petard #antitrust #southwest #swords

[blackbackedjackal]

thank you for answering my question with thought and respect. viewing it within the lens as it being a way to circumvent environmental damage from over hunting is something i also considered, but forgot to mention in my original message. for me the biggest issue i have is that it seems impossible to have animals in a fur farm (and this goes for pet foxes too) to be able to fully engage in natural behaviors, no matter how good the welfare is, otherwise the farms wouldn’t be able to meet the demands of their buyers/afford to keep operating, but that’s just all commercialized animal agriculture, i suppose (not to mention all the issues with the welfare of the people working in these institutions). i really appreciate you taking the time to reply, as in the past i’ve had kind of turned into the other person assuming i believe in peta-level bullshit before the conversation even begun. you do a lot of great stuff here and i hope you have a good day. <3

No problem! It's a very complex and heavy topic and my opinions on it have shifted over the years and still change the more I learn about it. Nothing is really set in stone for me other than the 'we've been farming foxes for fur for over 100 years now and though the industry has improved there's still more that should be done for the benefit of the animals and people involved' (which yeah just applies to animal agriculture in general).

There are some studies on what the appropriate cage sizes and need for enrichment with fur farmed foxes (pretty sure is-the-fox-video-cute has them on their blog) but I will say that after all this time they're just kinda built different than wild red foxes and may not require the same kinds of stimulation or have those same needs. They're not domesticated but they have been altered by generations of selective breeding. Selective breeding has altered their behaviors, so it's possible they don't have the exact same needs as wild reds. That's not to say that the current ways they're raised is fine across the board. There's always room for improvement. Just from the information I've seen the foxes on farms that meet proper welfare standards have been in good health (again the quality of their fur literally depends on it).

And you too! It's nice to have a conversation about it without people just automatically labeling you as some like, ARA nut or undercover fur commission agent lmao. There's nothing wrong with questioning the current standards and wanting the animals to have better qualities of care. I think the history of fur farming and the color genetics of foxes are really interesting and we've thankfully got a lot of documentation about them. It's a unique opportunity to see how selective breeding and animal agriculture effects these animals in real-time and have the ability to improve it.

#ask

[saber-monet]

To Manifest more money, get more specific.

Here are a FEW( there’s nearly infinite ways, don’t close yourself off!) ways one can receive money

Treat it like Pokémon and collect them all lol

1. Salary/wages: Regular income earned from employment self/employment.

2. Investment returns: Profits gained from investments such as stocks, bonds, or real estate.

3. Inheritance: Money or assets received from a relative or benefactor.

4. Grants: Funds awarded by organizations or institutions for specific purposes, such as research or education.

5. Loan repayment: Money received when someone pays back a loan that was previously provided.

6. Dividends: Payments made to shareholders from the profits of a corporation.

7. Royalties: Payments received by creators for the use of their intellectual property, such as books, music, or inventions.

8. Tips: Additional money given as appreciation for services rendered, typically in industries like hospitality or personal services.

9. Rebates: Refunds or discounts given after a purchase, often as an incentive or promotion.

10. Alimony/child support: Regular payments made to a former spouse or partner for financial support.

11. Found money: Money discovered unexpectedly, such as in lost or forgotten accounts, or on the ground.

12. Lottery winnings: Prizes won through games of chance like lotteries or scratch-off tickets.

13. Refunds: Money returned to a consumer after returning a product or canceling a service.

14. Sponsorship: Funds provided by companies or individuals to support a person or organization in exchange for advertising or promotion.

15. Crowdfunding: Money raised from a large number of people, typically through online platforms, to support a project, cause, or individual.

16. Cashback rewards: Money returned to a consumer as a percentage of their purchases, often offered by credit card companies or retailers.

17. Scholarships: Funds awarded to students to help cover the costs of education, typically based on academic achievement, financial need, or other criteria.

18. Patronage: Financial support given by individuals or organizations to artists, writers, or other creatives to fund their work or projects.

19. Rental income: Money earned from leasing or renting out property or assets, such as real estate, vehicles, or equipment.

20. Contest winnings: Prizes awarded for winning competitions or contests, which may include cash or other rewards.

21. Side hustle earnings: Additional income earned from part-time or freelance work outside of one's primary job.

22. Government benefits: Financial assistance provided by the government to eligible individuals or families, such as unemployment benefits, social security, or welfare.

23. Referral bonuses: Money received for referring new customers or clients to a business or service.

24. Stock options: Compensation provided to employees in the form of company stock, often as part of their overall compensation package.

25. Affiliate marketing commissions: Money earned through promoting and selling products or services for companies as an affiliate marketer.

26. Consulting fees: Payments received for providing expert advice or services to clients or businesses.

27. Trust distributions: Money distributed to beneficiaries from a trust fund, typically according to the terms outlined in the trust agreement.

28. Liquidation proceeds: Money received from selling off assets, such as stocks, bonds, or property.

29. Cash gifts: Money given by friends, family, or acquaintances as a gesture of goodwill, celebration, or support.

30. Insurance payouts: Money received from insurance companies to cover losses, damages, or expenses incurred due to accidents, disasters, or other covered events.

Focus on the ones that fits your self concept the best, for the best results. 

#manifesting #scripting #self concept #money manifesting

[thepastisalreadywritten]

Iceland cancels commercial whaling this season on animal welfare grounds, hailed as ‘a major milestone in compassionate whale conservation’ by HSI / Europe

Minister Svavarsdóttir ends decades of senseless whale killing and begins a new chapter in Iceland’s relationship with whales

Humane Society International / Europe

20 June 2023

BRUSSELS ― As news breaks that Iceland has cancelled this season’s commercial whaling on animal welfare grounds, global animal protection charity Humane Society International says it is thrilled and relieved at the announcement that will spare hundreds of whales from agonising deaths.

It urges the Icelandic government to make it a permanent ban.

Food, Agriculture and Fisheries Minister Svandís Svavarsdóttir announced that Iceland’s whaling vessels will not kill any whales this season due to the conclusion that “the fishing method used when hunting large whales does not comply with the law on animal welfare.”

The suspension lasts until August 31st, which effectively cancels this season’s whale killing.

The minister’s statement continues:

“It is necessary to postpone the start of the whaling season so that there is room to investigate whether it is possible to ensure that the hunting is carried out in accordance with the provisions of the Animal Welfare Act.”

Ruud Tombrock, HSI / Europe’s executive director, said:

“This is a major milestone in compassionate whale conservation.

Humane Society International is thrilled at this news and praises Minister Svavarsdóttir for ending the senseless whale killing, which will spare hundreds of minke and imperilled fin whales from agonising and protracted deaths.

There is no humane way to kill a whale at sea and so we urge the minister to make this a permanent ban.

Whales already face so many serious threats in the oceans from pollution, climate change, entanglement in fish nets and ship strikes, that ending cruel commercial whaling is the only ethical conclusion.”

The announcement follows the Minister’s op-ed last year in which she said she saw little reason to permit whaling after 2023.

Publication last month of an independent report by the Icelandic Food and Veterinary Authority ― commissioned by the Minister ― revealed some whales killed in Icelandic hunts had taken up to two hours to die, with 41% of whales suffering immensely before dying for an average of 11.5 minutes.

Kitty Block, CEO of Humane Society International, said:

“For those of us who have been campaigning for many years to end commercial whaling, to see the day that Iceland decides to stop killing whales and retire its harpoons for good, is truly historic.

Economic factors have certainly played a significant role in the demise of this cruel industry - with little demand for whale meat at home and exports to the Japanese market dwindling - but it is the overriding moral argument against whaling that has sealed its fate.

Harpooning these magnificent giants not only causes unjustifiable suffering to those whales who are killed but also unimaginable distress to the rest of their pod who witness their family members being chased and slaughtered.

Iceland is already one of the best places in the world to go whale watching, and the country stands to attract even more ecotourists now that it has abandoned whaling forever.

The world now looks at Japan and Norway as the only two countries in the world to still mercilessly kill whales for profit.”

FAST FACTS:

The International Whaling Commission agreed to enact a global moratorium on all commercial whaling in 1986.

Iceland left the IWC in 1992 but returned in 2002 with an exception to the moratorium, despite objections from multiple nations. 

Since re-joining the IWC, Iceland had killed more than 1,500 whales, including fin whales.

Iceland suspended hunting fin whales in 2016 due to a declining market for whale meat in Japan.

Hunting resumed for the 2018 season when 146 fin whales were killed, including a pregnant female and a rare fin-blue hybrid whale, plus six minke whales.

A single minke whale was killed from 2019-2021, and 148 fin whales in 2022.

Fin whales are classified by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature as globally vulnerable to extinction despite decades of recovery since the commercial whaling moratorium.

🤍🐳🤍

#International Whaling Commission #International Union for the Conservation of Nature #Humane Society International #Iceland #commercial whaling ban #animal welfare concerns #global animal protection #global animal protection charity #whales #Svandís Svavarsdóttir #animal welfare law #Animal Welfare Act #Ruud Tombrock #Icelandic Food and Veterinary Authority #Kitty Block

[attackfish]

In the spirit of the season, and in the spirit of trying to break some massive writer's block with actual stakes, I am running another charity fanfic sale. If you have ever wanted to commission me for a fanfic, here is your chance. Same rules apply as last time, a dollar donation to the chosen charity nets you the right to prompt me to write you one hundred words. If I refuse your prompt, we work together to find something we are both happy with. The minimum donation is one dollar, but there is no maximum, and you can split your words between any amount of prompts in increments of a hundred. For example, if you donate ten dollars, you can prompt me one fic for a thousand words, or two fics of three hundred and seven hundred words, or any other combination for a total of a thousand words. Work on your fic begins when you PM me a screenshot of your donation receipt with identifiable information blurred out, and your prompts.

I am asking for donations to the Lakota law project, to help fund their efforts to maintain tribal soverignty, and fight the overturning of the Indian Child Welfare Act (IWCA):

I am also happy to take a signature to their petition to President Biden for the full weight of presidential support in the supreme court fight to keep the IWCA in place, as a two dollar donation:

The ICWA is under threat right now from an oil industry law firm and several US states, in a cynical atrempt to weaken tribal soverignty, to open Tribal land up to exploitation, something they are willing to walk over the rights and happiness of Native children to get. I hope you take the time to sign the petition and consider making a donation.

#posts i created #avatar the last airbender

[todaysdocument]

The 4 major patterns of discrimination identified in "Civil Rights of Puerto Ricans in the United States", 6/10/1947: 

Housing discrimination, discrimination by police and teachers, and military segregation.

File Unit: "Puerto Ricans in the United States, Civil Rights of"-Memo to the Pres. Comm on Civil Rights Prep. by M.D. Stewart and Herbert Kaufman, 1946 - 1947

Series: Staff Memoranda, Witnesses Statements to the Committee and Other Committee Documents Files, 1946 - 1947

Record Group 220: Records of Temporary Committees, Commissions, and Boards, 1893 - 2008

Transcription:

[partial round stamp] RECORDS SERVICE / U.S. GOVERNMENT [end stamp]

June 10, 1947

MEMORANDUM

TO: Members of the President's Committee on Civil Rights

FROM: Robert K. Carr, Executive Secretary

SUBJECT: "Civil Rights of Puerto Ricans in the United States" prepared by Milton D. Stewart and Herbert Kaufman

[round stamp] HARRY S. TRUMAN LIBRARY / NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS SERVICE / U.S. GOVERNMENT [end stamp]

PUERTO RICANS IN THE UNITED STATES

I

Patterns of prejudice and discrimination against Puerto Ricans in the United States have not yet crystallized. Nevertheless, there are clear indications of trouble to come. Current trends are menacing in terms of our past experience. For this reason, any action taken with respect to civil rights will be of special significance for the Puerto Ricans because it may have important preventative as well as curative effects.

The United States acquired Puerto Rico in 1898. By 1940, approximately 150,000 Puerto Ricans had immigrated to this country. Since the outbreak of World War II and the increase in economic opportunity, the rate of immigration has increased tremendously. Some sources contend that the number is still below 200,000, but social and welfare workers have advanced estimates as high as 350,000. Exact data are lacking because the Puerto Ricans were granted United States citizenship under the Organic Act of 1917; since they have free access to and from all parts of the country, and since they do not fall within the jurisdiction of any single Federal agency, no official tabulations have been made. However, the Puerto Rican Office of Information estimates that the net influx is about 2,500 a month, with 6,500 returning to the island for every 9,000 who arrive.

At present, they come to the United States primarily for economic reasons. Puerto Rico is overcrowded and not well enough developed industrially to support its population. At the same time, continental United States is in a period of prosperity. Transportation, both by air and by ship, is relatively inexpensive. Under these conditions, it is not surprising that Puerto Ricans are making their way to the mainland in ever-increasing numbers.

They settle almost exclusively in New York City; large colonies have appeared in East Harlem, the lower Bronx and near the Brooklyn Navy Yard. The people in these communities retain the Puerto Rican culture pattern to a large extent, especially in language, recreation, diet and social organization.

Most of the Puerto Ricans come here voluntarily and independently. A very small number came in under contract for domestic service.

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[round stamp] HARRY S TRUMAN LIBRARY / NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS SERVICE / U.S. GOVERNMENT [end stamp]

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Charges of "slave labor" have been made, but they were discredited after an insular official investigated the situation and concluded that no civil rights were being violated by the contracts. However, the United States Department of Labor, which must approve all such contracts, is not enthusiastically supporting the contract device, so it is doubtful that it will become a major vehicle for the importation of labor.

II

The economic status of the Puerto Rican in the United States is affected by three major factors:

First, the overtaxed school system of Puerto Rico has been unable to supply many of them with even a rudimentary education. Today, with the highest school registration in history, it is estimated that only 53% of the children of school age actually attend.

Second, English is the official language of the schools, although most of the children speak only Spanish. This, some authorities maintain, operates to make people "illiterate in two languages". Few of those who come to the United States can get along in English.

[round stamp] HARRY S TRUMAN LIBRARY / NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS SERVICE / U.S. GOVERNMENT [end stamp]

Third, since Puerto Rico is under-industrialized, the people have no opportunity to develop the skills required by industry here.

For these reasons, Puerto Ricans have been employed mainly in unskilled jobs. They work in restaurants as waiters, busboys, and dishwashers. They supply most of the manual labor in laundries. They clean the ships that stop in the Port. They serve as domestics.

There is no evidence of any deliberate discrimination to restrict Puerto Rican to this kind of work, nor of wages having been scaled against them. No complaints have been lodged by Puerto Ricans with the State Commission Against Discrimination. There is no civil rights problem in employment now.

But stereotypes regarding the capacities of Puerto Ricans are developing. They are associated with manual labor. They come from an area which has a lower standard of living. Should an economic crisis develop, competition for unskilled labor jobs may increase. The Puerto Ricans may be induced to work for lower wages than native workers in the struggle to hold the only type of job for which they have qualified heretofore. In such a situation, not only with the rights of the Puerto Rican be endangered but an environment will have been fostered in which group tensions will reach a perilous stage. No need for special action to protect civil rights of Puerto Ricans is indicated, but any general recommendations designed to protect all minority groups will do a good deal to prevent a potential sore spot from festering.

III

There are four areas in which a familiar discriminatory pattern has already made itself evident.

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In housing, the Puerto Rican has been confronted by the same barriers that obstruct the Negro. When he looks for an apartment, the doors in white neighborhoods are often closed to him or the rents are raised. This factor, in conjunction with the low economic status of the Puerto Rican and the natural desire of recent immigrants to stay together, accounts for the substandard conditions which prevail in these communities. Ancient buildings, overcrowding, poor ventilation and inadequate sanitary facilities are common. Disease rates and crime are consequently high.

There are some indications, not very easily substantiated, of discriminatory police administration in Puerto Rican districts. Complaints of arbitrary arrest have been reported to the Office of Puerto Rican Information. Many of these apparently arise from the inability of the people to make themselves understood in English. However, a good part of this problem is rooted in the failure of New York police to understand Latin American culture, and many ordinary meetings and discussions seem to be regarded as near-riots by officers who are unfamiliar with the group. A startling example of this misapprehension followed the Scottoriggio murder, when all social gatherings of the Puerto Ricans in East Harlem, a common type of recreation in Puerto Rico and virtually the only kind the Puerto Rican in New York can afford, were forbidden by the Police Department and a number of them actually raided. Here, misunderstanding produced a violation of civil rights; the implications for the future are threatening.

In education, the Spanish-speaking Puerto Rican children have posed a serious problem for the authorities. Generally speaking, the children have been treated with courtesy and sympathy and have received special assistance in overcoming their language handicap. However, some teachers have privately manifested hostility toward their Puerto Rican pupils and have even referred to them in derogatory or abusive terms. It is difficult to see how they can keep from reflecting their attitudes in the classroom.

Finally, the armed forces, in applying their policy of segregation on the basis of color, imposed on the Puerto Ricans a pattern foreign to them. Reports from one source illustrate vividly the nature of this type of discrimination. During the war, in Puerto Rico, newly inducted recruits were lined up. An officer then walked along the ranks and, on  the basis of a cursory personal inspection, arbitrarily assigned some men to white units, others to segregated Negro units.

In all four areas, the indicators have swung over to the danger zone. The issues are not peculiar to the Puerto Ricans, however, and can be handled by action directed at protecting all minority groups. Such action would prevent the Puerto Rican situation from growing more troublesome.

[round stamp] HARRY S TRUMAN LIBRARY / NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS SERVICE / U.S. GOVERNMENT [end stamp]

IV

Socially and politically, the Puerto Ricans in the United States have not met with any widespread violations of their civil rights. They

[page 4]

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are admitted to places of public accommodation and recreation, they vote when they qualify on the same basis as other citizens, their civil and legal rights have not yet been widely violated. But unhealthy signs are developing in employment, in housing, in police administration, in education, and in the armed forces. The influx which gave rise to the symptoms is likely to continue, for the insular administration is anxious to relieve the critical economic conditions on the island by moving as many people as possible to continental United States. Furthermore, it is hoped that the Puerto Ricans will seek employment opportunities outside of the crowded New York slums; the problems may well become rational. The need for action is clear, though there is no special area in which the Puerto Ricans are distinct from any other minority group. If civil rights in general are maintained, social conflicts which are now only in the making may be resolved.

[round stamp] HARRY S TRUMAN LIBRARY / NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS SERVICE / U.S. GOVERNMENT [end stamp]

SOURCES

Interview with Mr. Leonard Sussman, Puerto Rican Office of Information, New York City

Interview with Mr. Donald J. O'Connor, Office of Puerto Rico, Washington, D.C.

McWilliams, Carey, Brothers Under the Skin, 1943, pp. 204-17.

Chenault, Lawrence R., The Puerto Rican Migrant in New York City, 1938.

#archivesgov #June 10 #1947 #1940s #postwar #Puerto Rico #New York City #Hispanic history #Latino history #Latinx history #West Side Story

[if-you-fan-a-fire]

“Unemployment Insurance Details Outlined by Speaker At Meeting of Kiwanis Club,” Kingston Whig-Standard. March 31, 1942. Page 2. ---- Barton G. Sullivan, Toronto regional director of the Unemployment Insurance Commission of Canada, outlined details of the unemployment insurance scheme in an address at the weekly luncheon meeting of the Kiwanis Club in the Hotel La Salle, yesterday. 

He stated that of 2,250,000 persons in Canada now enrolled for benefits. 1,000,000 were located in Ontario which means about 40 per cent of contributions towards unemployment insurance are being made by employers and employees registered in this province. 

The present registration of man and woman power would be the most complete catalogue on the subject ever assembled and the employment offices which are part of the scheme will be the equal of any in the world. 

He said unemployment insurance is no experiment in advanced social legislation but has been in force in Britain for over 30 years is on the statute books of every state in the United Slates and in force in many European and South American countries. Canada, he stated, had ample time to consider it. The Dominion act is based largely on that of Great Britain's. 

Single Purpose “The Unemployment Insurance Act is not meant to cover anything except unemployment," he continued, “and one of the qualifications is the necessity of registering at one of the 100 or so offices across Canada. 

“Benefits come not as charity but as a right and something to which every worker has paid into and is entitled to." 

He dealt at some length with the laws governing the legislation and the scales of employer-employee-Government contributions. The Government assumes the entire cost of administration and all funds accrue to the benefit of employees. he said.

In the case of strikes, members of a striking union are not eligible for benefits, though workers put out of work as a result of another union striking would stand a good chance of receiving insurance. 

Mr. Barton said if an employee was not out of work for five years he could conceivably draw a whole year’s benefits. 

An employer cannot appeal the decision of an insurance officer regarding admissibility of a claim he stated but a worker can appeal a denied claim in two informal courts without cost. 

New Members The speaker was introduced by Elmer Cogswell and thanked by Morley Parrott. Maxwell Strange introduced three new club members, Seldom Newman, William Noonan, and Dr. Harry Cooke. A. J. Wakeling welcomed the three and R. H. Chambers, president, presented them with Kiwanis badges. 

Sheldon Cohen, secretary of the local corps (Kiwanis) of the Air Cadet League of Canada, reported on the inspection visit made by RCAF officers from Toronto to the corps last week. He said they had praised “the highly efficient manner” in which the corps was organized and paid tribute to Air Cadet Flying Officer Wakeling for his work.

#kingston ontario #kiwanis club #unemployment insurance #unemployment insurance commission of canada #unemployment #unemployed #industrial relations #birth of the welfare state #birth of the technocratic state #strike #strikebreakers #working class struggle #canada during world war 2 #employment office #air cadets #royal canaidian air force

[rajveerchahaleducation]

Why Australian universities are banning Indian students.

Indian students form a significant part of the international student community in Australia. However, recent concerns have emerged about Indian students being banned from Australian universities due to the misuse of student visas and other regulatory violations. In this blog post, we will discuss the issues that have led to these bans, the impact on the international education industry, and propose solutions to address the problem and create a better educational experience for Indian students in Australia.

The Issue: Misuse of Student Visas and Regulatory Violations

Indian students, along with students from Nepal and other countries, have been found to exploit loopholes in the visa system, abandoning their courses at established universities to enroll in cheaper private colleges. This undermines the student visa granted based on their initial enrollment and affects the reputation of both the students and the recruiting universities.

Another concern is the role of offshore and onshore education agents who manipulate the system to maximize their profits at the expense of students' education and welfare. They encourage students to switch to low-cost private institutions that pay higher commissions, even when no new visa assistance is required.

Impact on the International Education Industry

The exploitation of loopholes in the student visa system by Indian students has led to Australian universities banning them. This not only tarnishes the image of Indian students but also has serious consequences for the international education industry in Australia. The trust between universities and students is compromised, and the integrity of the student visa system is threatened.

Proposed Solutions

Strengthen the monitoring and enforcement of visa regulations: The Australian government should collaborate with universities to monitor student visa compliance closely and enforce strict penalties for those violating the rules.

Enhance pre-departure orientation and support programs: Before leaving for Australia, Indian students should be provided with comprehensive pre-departure orientation and support to understand the rules and regulations, academic expectations, and their rights and responsibilities as international students.

Strengthen partnerships between Indian and Australian institutions: Encourage more partnerships between Indian and Australian institutions to facilitate better understanding and collaboration, promoting student exchange programs, joint research, and academic cooperation.

Improve the regulation of education agents: Establish a strict regulatory framework for both offshore and onshore education agents, ensuring transparency and accountability in their practices.

Provide better support and resources for Indian students: Australian universities should offer tailored support services for Indian students, including academic support, cultural adjustment assistance, and career guidance.

#australia #study visa australia #updates #announcement #new rules

[beardedmrbean]

The value of Finland's imports from Russia was 257 million euros in September. Compared to September of last year, imports have shrunk by 66 percent, according to preliminary data from Finnish Customs.

Helsingin Sanomat writes (siirryt toiseen palveluun)that there are now more than 80 percent fewer Finnish companies importing goods from Russia than there were a year ago. 

The EU has already imposed eight rounds of trade sanctions on Russia, and the European Commission is currently preparing a ninth package.

However, a large number of products remain outside the sanctions. For example, uranium is not on the sanctions list, and in Finland's Fortum energy company still uses Russian uranium as fuel for nuclear power plants.

Customs estimated in October that around 90 Finnish companies still import products from Russia.

So what else is still being imported from Russia to Finland?

Looking at the most recent preliminary statistics on foreign trade by Finnish Customs, Helsingin Sanomat writes that the list is still a long one, even though the volume of imports has decreased.

In terms of value in September, nickel and nickel goods, especially for use in the battery industry, topped the list. Refined oil in various forms was the second most imported by value. 

Sami Rakshit, the director of the Customs' board's Enforcement Department, pointed out to the paper that in the big picture, the volume of imports of nickel and petroleum products is quite small compared to normal years.

Rakshit also told Helsingin Sanomat that the import of consumer goods from Russia is now completely marginal.

However, he noted that consumers may still come across products of Russian origin. One example he gave was car tyres.

"Rubber and tyres came under embargo already at the beginning of the year, but that does not rule out the possibility that tyres produced in Russia are still on sale somewhere. It depends on how long stocks have lasted," said Rakshit.

Police ready for demonstrations

The Swedish-language daily Hufvudstadsbladet reports (siirryt toiseen palveluun) that Helsinki police are preparing for demonstrations on Independence Day, Tuesday 6 December.

Several demonstrations are expected in the capital and reinforcements are being brought in from some other police departments. 

For operational reasons, the head of the Helsinki police department's response and surveillance unit, Jarmo Heinonen, declined to say how many officers will be deployed or on standby but did note that Independence Day is one of the biggest annual events for the police.

Notifications of planned demonstration can be submitted as late as 24 hours in advance, so the situation can be quite fluid.

Both nationalist, right-wing demonstrations and counter-demonstrations are expected. Heinonen says that police aim at preventing any clashes between the groups.

University students will also be holding their traditional torchlight procession. 

Most marches and demonstrations are scheduled for similar times and traffic in the centre of the city will be affected.

Hufvudstadsbladet notes that Independence Day has become increasingly established as a day for demonstrations, and since the end of the Covid-19 pandemic, various organisers have again become more active.

Fall in births

Tampere's Aamulehti carries a STT Finnish News Agency report (siirryt toiseen palveluun)that a researcher at Statistics Finland says the national birth rate may fall to an all-time low this year.

The latest figures from the Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) show Finland's birth increasing increased by more than six percent in 2021, continuing an upswing seen in 2020. 

This year, however, preliminary data gathered by Statistics Finland indicates a drop in the birth rate. This data shows that between January and October of this year, more than nine percent fewer children were born in Finland than in the same period of last year.

According to Markus Rapo, a demographer at Statistics Finland, the birth rate this year may hit a record low since the start of record keeping.

Rapo says that the 12-month total fertility rate in October in Finland was 1.34. The figure refers to the average number of children that women give birth to during their lifetimes.

So far, the lowest annual fertility rate in Finland was 1.35, registered in 2019. 

Slippery and more slippery

Ilta-Sanomat points out that a forecast (siirryt toiseen palveluun) of temperatures rising above the freezing point in southern parts of the country is likely to mean that snow and ice will start to melt, making roads and streets especially slippery.

Meanwhile, more snowfall is expected to move in from the southwest overnight.

The paper tells readers that the Finnish Meteorological Institute's traffic weather service is warning of potentially hazardous driving conditions starting Tuesday evening in Uusimaa and Kymenlaakso. During the night, the fresh snowfall will push deeper inland, affecting driving conditions in Päijät-Häme, South Karelia and South Savo as well.

This probably means that southern Finland will continue to enjoy a white winter. Of course, says Ilta-Sanomat, it may be slushy and slippery at times, so pedestrians are also warned to watch their step. 

#nunyas news #updates from up north

[greatamericansatan]

I Am Pro AI Art, Fuck All Y’all

I don’t think I’d care about this much if it wasn’t for the fact my boyfriend, who has had difficulty feeling artistically liberated due to depression, is excited about art for the first time in ages specifically because of AI.  And if not for the fact he is bothered by the haters.

1)  Look at the numbers.  A huge chunk of the people using AI art tools are professional artists, who see it, correctly, as a tool - one which is no threat to their job.

2)  Nobody who is looking to use AI art instead of paying you was EVER going to pay you, except as a “client from hell“ shitbird.  Anybody who wants something specific and is willing to pay for an artist will STILL pay for an artist.  You are losing fucking nothing.

3)  The mere idea that art isn’t already devalued into the sewer, that art is a viable career, is personally offensive to me.  I’ve tried to connect the dots on commission, I’ve chased those abusive industry jobs.  It’s all bullshit.  There hasn’t been a reasonable way to make a living off art for decades now, save for a rare few people.

If you’re indie, you’re a street corner busker and practically a hobo.  If you live to be old, you will be living off welfare and totally broken.  If you’re not indie, if you got that dream job, you are nearly as exploited and abused as those actors on the casting room couch.

If you’re lucky enough neither of these describe you, you’re a fucking liar perpetuating harmful ideas to all the little babes out treating “artist“ as a dream job.  You are an exception, and so far from the rule you aren’t even living in the same world.

People are coming to you for what you can do, and AI cannot.  Again, you are losing nothing.

4)  Copyright protects nobody but the rich and it’s been this way forever.  Indie artist?  You can’t afford a lawyer, get real.  AI ART WILL REDUCE COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT.

Let me repeat that.  AI ART WILL REDUCE COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT.  If you don’t understand this, you do not understand what the technology is actually doing.

As it currently stands, indie artists can do absolutely nothing to protect themselves from thieves because we can’t afford lawyers.  If the infringer is a youtuber with a comments section, treat it as advertisement and drop a link to your art in that comment section.  Legal action?  It just isn’t for you.  It’s for The Man.

AI art is NOT photobashing and does not directly copy anybody’s work.  At most, its results have a level of similarity equivalent to somebody using aspects of an original work for reference, which is something that is not only legal, but something the vast majority of artists do at some point - if not all the fucken time.  And that’s fine!  That’s a tool.

If the hackjobs and MLMs and scammers and exploiters of the artistic industries use AI, they will spend less time directly stealing your art off of the internet.  Right now, that activity is rampant, but when those people catch on to using AI instead?

You will have your shit stolen less often.

5)  These AIs cannot be stealing your art because the dataset is literally too small to be holding your images inside it.  They’re a few gigs, the “every image on the internet” would be many terabytes.   They used art to teach a machine how to place lines, form, value, color, and at this point they are extremely far from perfect.

Aside from endlessly replicated images like the Mona Lisa or the Blue Boy or Pepe, you would find it all but impossible to actually reproduce your art from one.  Even with those, the “reproductions“ will have bizarre variations.

6)  It’s still ableist to oppose an art tool that allows disabled people to be artists.  When my boyfriend had his imagination broken by abuse sustained as a professional artist, he was less able to innovate in his creation for a few years afterward.  The chaos and foolery in AI art can inspire creativity and help heal from that kind of damage, or from the way depression fucks up your ability to create.

And some people who have a vision but have not been able to create due to lacking coordination, or a neurological disability, or whatever?  You can tell them they aren’t real artists, but that makes you the asshole.

7)  A lot of the people opposing AI art are ignorant non-artists who are just riding the terror train of chasing every panic that comes down the pipes.  Of the artists, it’s people who don’t understand what AI actually is doing, or people who are just being elitists.

Some of you just want to limit the number of people who can be artists, by erecting barriers, by excluding.  “You should have to suffer the practice that I did“ is not far from “student loans shouldn’t be forgiven because I had to pay them.“  Think about it.

8)  ART STYLES CANNOT BE COPYRIGHTED AND NEVER HAVE BEEN.  And never should be!  Artistic movements can’t even happen without people being allowed to draw inspiration from the work of others.  Think about it for two seconds, goofballs.

(The only two situations I can think of where somebody successfully took legal action were ones where a company came to an artist to negotiate, were declined, then went on to make a direct copy of their style.  This happened to Don Hertzfeldt with Pop-tarts, and more famously Tom Waits on a number of occasions.  IANAL, but AFAIK nobody has ever been able to make a case that a style rip caused them damages outside of that specific circumstance.)

Anyway, I’ll keep unfollowing catty art bitches and neo-luddites shitting on new tools that help people enjoy creativity.  Let the winnowing continue...

-

#ai art #from the desk of Great American Satan

[raducotarcea]

[thepastisalreadywritten]

This collection of impressive photos captures the street scenes and everyday life of Los Angeles in the 1930s.

Most of the pictures were taken by Ansel Adams who was commissioned to document the city’s industry as the country was shoring up its air power.

Many of his photographs focused on the lunchtime rituals of factory workers, along with everyday street scenes he encountered as he ambled about the rapidly developing region.

Adams visited a bowling alley, a forest of oil derricks, and a trailer park, one of many that popped up to meet a fierce demand among the workers for temporary housing.

But only a handful of Adams’ images were published by Fortune magazine.

Historian Carey McWilliams wrote that Los Angeles’s growth is “one continuous boom punctuated at intervals by major explosions.”

By 1920, southern California’s population had surpassed that of northern California, and in the next several years, Los Angeles experienced “the largest internal migration in the history of the American people.”

Hundreds of thousands of people arrived by automobile.

It was a frenzied period of wildcat oil drilling, intense business speculation, religious excitement, extensive suburban development, the birth of the aircraft and film industries, and civic corruption.

The charismatic Pentecostal minister Aimee Semple McPherson captivated audiences with her dramatic preaching.

Droves of starry-eyed young people arrived hoping to follow in the footsteps of such movie actors as Mary Pickford, “America’s Sweetheart,” and her daredevil husband, Douglas Fairbanks.

Los Angeles was very much a white-dominated town in the 1930s.

Housing and public facilities were segregated, and job discrimination was widespread.

The Great Depression caused high unemployment in the region and exhausted the resources of private and public assistance.

To slash welfare lists, public officials repatriated thousands of Mexicans—and their U.S-born children.

Amid this dire situation, Los Angeles built facilities for and hosted the 1932 Olympic Summer Games as planned.

The city’s remoteness from Europe and from much of the rest of the world contributed to reduced international participation.

Nevertheless, the Games were a great success and showcased Los Angeles to the world.

Meanwhile, the corruption in City Hall led to a recall movement against Mayor Frank L. Shaw and his close associates.

Police misconduct and the mayor’s mishandling of public funds forced Shaw from office and led to the election of reform mayor Fletcher Bowron in 1938.

Economic recovery was relatively swift in the late 1930s, owing to the prosperity of the film industry, the tapping of electrical energy from Hoover Dam, and the production of airplanes for Britain and France at the outset of World War II.

(Photo credit: Ansel Adams / Los Angeles Public Library, via The California Sun / Library of Congress / Wikimedia Commons / Flicr / Pinterest)

Updated on: January 13, 2023

#Los Angeles #1930s #20th century #vintage photos #Ansel Adams #Carey McWilliams #Fortune Magazine #1932 Olympic Summer Games