MY THOUGHTS About News and Stuff. Previously posted on my Facebook Page.

Time: “Why Brittney Griner Will Stand for the National Anthem.” She has to. Her transgression, “tiny” infraction yet carelessly clueless while a political firestorm brews between Russia and the U.S., pressured Washington to trade a feared arms dealer for her freedom. Meanwhile, her cause-oriented pursuit stays. A hallmark of American democracy. But this time, she has to stand for the anthem. The flag is America’s spirit but not necessarily its current government. 🇺🇸👩‍🦰🇺🇸

New York Times: “Naked Stand-Up Comedy: Everything You Imagine, but Oh So Much More.” And adds: “Do you wear shoes onstage? What’s it like to bomb while nude? And, ahem, where do you keep your notes? But the shows often sell out.” There’s also a Naked Poetry Reading. Naked Bike Ride. Naked Gardening. Naked and Afraid. Whatever those nekkidness seem to profess, symbolize, or subliminally suggest? It’s all bare bodies to me. And that’s all I see and (perhaps) enjoy. 😏😞😟

Smithsonian: “Glasgow Subway Ad Censored for Featuring Michelangelo’s ‘David’.” And adds: “Citing modesty concerns, an ad firm rejected a poster depicting the Renaissance sculpture.” Stuff. Stuff that many anchor their angst. The beholder doesn't always agree with Art. Art pleases but art also offends. Example, erotica films by Catherine Breillat. Songs with “explicit lyrics” advisory. Movies are rated R, Triple X, Unrated etc. So we can’t say “No, not PG for this classic art?” 🙂🙃😉

New York Times: “A University Fired 2 Employees for Including Their Pronouns in Emails.” And adds: “The firings set off a debate at Houghton University, a small Christian institution in western New York, which said its decision was not based only on the pronoun listings.” Might as well invent a new language. And those who prefer English as is, use them. Done. Almost certain that a few years from now the battle for legality in U.S. states would be: Pronouns. 😏😒😞

New York Times: “White House and G.O.P. Strike Debt Limit Deal to Avert Default.” / Time: “Biden and GOP Reach Debt-Ceiling Deal. Now Congress Must Approve It.” The bipartisan deal would raise the debt limit for two years while cutting and capping some government spending. Not yet there though. The President and Speaker Kevin McCarthy will still have to sell it to lawmakers. By then, billion$ worth of F-16s have already been shipped to Kyiv. Or am I just being clueless? 💰💸💰

New York Times: “A Loud G.O.P. Minority Pledges to Make Trouble on Ukraine Military Aid.” I concur with these “loud” GOPs. Yet confounding. Despite lessons of past “proxy wars,” there’s still widespread support among Americans, 65 percent says Gallup, for aiding and arming Ukraine. Pew reveals the same: Some 51 percent believe the U.S. is giving the right amount or "not enough" support to Ukraine. $113 billion Congress approved and $70 billion already given? Not enough? ☮️☮️☮️

Smithsonian: “See the House Engineers Built From Dirty Diapers.” And adds: “Using concrete and mortar made with shredded diapers could address issues like plastic waste and sand shortages, per a new study.” Recycling was cool until it evolved into a huge money industry. The global waste and recycling services market had a total size of $60.41 billion last year; profit is exponentially rising. We even pay to recycle. Remedy: Less manufacturing stuff. Or reuse as is. 👶🧰👶

Time: “How Extreme Heat Impacts Your Mental Health.” Of course, heat does rile people. I was born into and grew up amidst scorching summer heat. Average heat this year in the Philippines is 36.2 36.2 degrees Celsius (or 97.16 degrees fahrenheit). Other cities went 40+ temp. In 2006, and it was October even, the record temperature was 41.5 °C (or 106.7 here in the U.S.) Filipinos get used to it though. Fun amidst typhoon floods, fun amidst heatwaves. 🩻☀️🩻

New York Times: “For These Veterans, ‘Free’ Health Care Is a 5-Hour Flight Away.” And adds: “Citizens of three Pacific Island nations, eligible to serve in the U.S. military, find it hard to make use of the health benefits they have earned.” At home in America, it’s no different. While only 1.7 percent of veterans were excluded from VA health care in the World War II era, today 6.5 percent are denied care. Washington Post: “They turned their mental and physical well-being over to their country, and the federal government turned its back on them.” 

       A Lockheed Martin F-16 Block fighter plane is worth $64 million to $124 million. Other F-16s cost $12 million to $35 million. A bestfriend’s boyfriend, who served two military tours of duty in Afghanistan, died two days ago. Unable to obtain proper health care from the government. Yet F-16s are bound to Ukraine meant to destroy more, kill more–and prolong a war that should be dealt with via diplomatic means towards negotiated peace. Broken soldiers who survive a war should be compensated not just with a salute of respect on memorial days but free health care, across the board. ☮️☮️☮️

New York Times: “Microsoft Says New A.I. Shows Signs of Human Reasoning.” And adds: “Microsoft claims A.I. shows the ability to understand the way people do. Critics say those scientists are kidding themselves.” Years ago, I read Daphne du Maurier’s “The Breakthrough” (written 1966), which touches on humanity’s tangled relationship with technology, in which we want to both create and be part of “the machine.” Now a “reality” or Big Tech has gone insane? 

       Also:In his 1909 short story “The Machine Stops,” E. M. Forster predicts the internet, and its dominance over us. Alvin Toffler’s “Future Shock” (1970) is an understatement. 👥🤖👥