Monthly Archives: June 2022

Ms. Marvel will get the momentum going on more shows directed at families and heres how.

Marvel Studios programs on Disney Plus have been a hit since the very first one (WandaVision). While a debate can be made that the formulas are the same, the shows are all different in their own ways. Each of them have a different theme around them.

One thing the previous shows definitely have in common is their rating. All of them have been rated TV-14. Ms. Marvel, however,appears to be the exception to the rule, as itsrated PG. This writer expects more shows with this TV rating going forward and Ms. Marvel will be the reason why.

There are a lot of comic book projects for people to watch. Most of them are content for teenagers and adults. Other than animated series, there arent a lot of options for programs the entire family can watch. Heck, there are even some cartoons in the superhero genre that arent appropriate for kids. Invincible and The Boys Presents: Diabolical are two examples of this. Ms. Marvelmay be in its infancy but viewers can tell this will remain a show the whole family can watch together. It also provesthat family programs is a genre that Marvel Studios should go after next.

Ms. Marvel opens with Kamala Khan being a young adult. Shes uploading a fun video to YouTube. Soon after that, we see Kamala with the rest of her family, allowing the show to explore the different dynamics in the family As the episode continued, it explored elements such as her religion, bullying she faced in school, her own personal insecurities, and her journey to learning about herself.

None of these are unfamiliar topics in the comic book genre. However, Ms. Marvel did it without cursing, extreme violence, or any kind of graphic content. This is a great example of how to make a show family friendly without making it cheesy.

There are multiple Marvel Comics characters that could follow Ms. Marvel in being a family-friendly MCU project. First, we have the Fantastic Four. The fact that theyre called Marvel First Family helps the cause, but theres more than that. Each of them have personalities that work in a family setting. Johnny Storms playboy lifestyle may have to be toned down, but it wouldnt hurt the characters. That would be the only thing that would have to change. Even their villains are family friendly.

Squirrel Girl is another one. Shes picked up a lot of momentum over the last decade. Not only is she among the most innocent characters in Marvel, she has a long list of people shes defeated. Wolverine, Deadpool, M.O.D.O.K., and Thanos were all beaten by the Unbeatable Squirrel Girl. Shes a young girl that families would adore. Shes sweet, friendly, and kicks all sorts of butt. The right actress would make this show an instant hit.

DF-00144 Lana Condor is Jubilation Lee / Jubilee in X-MEN: APOCALYPSE. Photo Credit: Alan Markfield.

Theres also the X-Men. Sure, some of them arent all ages approved. Certainly, a Wolverine show should be TV-14 at the very least. But hes not the only X-Man available. More than half of them could and should be all-age characters.

Jubilee is the first mutant that came to mind. Her powers are bright and not too violent. Storm as a young woman could work as well; watching her become the goddess that she is in the comics is a story that could span over multiple seasons. Other characters like Nightcrawler and Colossus are gentle souls who can defend themselves when needed, making them perfect candidates for stories that could teach lessons about strength and when to use it. Something that even adults could learn.

Lets not forget the younger X-Men teams. The New Mutants team could be the first team to lead the way. The younger generation like Rockslide, Sooraya Qadir , Anole, Mercury, and the rest of their class hit on different demographics. People can learn more about acceptance and understanding about everything from race, different religions, LGBGTQ+, and more.

As shown, there are a lot of Marvel Comics characters that could star in family-centred live-action shows. Ms. Marvel is just the first of many. When other shows like Ms. Marvel start to pop up, remember you heard it here first.

What do you think, readers? Is Ms. Marvel the future of shows on Disney Plus? Let us know in the comments below.

View post:

Ms. Marvel is the future of Marvels Disney Plus shows - Bam! Smack! Pow!

Nearly 40% of law enforcement agencies across the country failed to report their 2021 crime data to the FBI. That includes cities like New York and LA. And another 20% reported incomplete data, including the city of Chicago. That's all according to information provided to Axios local from a partnership with the Marshall Project.

Guests: Axios' Dave Lawler, Monica Eng and Jessica Pandey.

Credits: Axios Today is produced by Niala Boodhoo, Sara Kehaulani Goo, Alexandra Botti, Nuria Marquez Martinez, Lydia McMullen-Laird and Alex Sugiura. Music is composed by Evan Viola. You can reach us at [emailprotected]. You can text questions, comments and story ideas to Niala as a text or voice memo to 202-918-4893.

Go Deeper:

NIALA: Good morning! Welcome to Axios Today! Its Wednesday, June 15th. Im Niala Boodhoo. Heres what were watching today: why we dont know how bad crime in the U.S. really is. Plus, the value of encouraging our kids to debate. But first: President Bidens balancing act with Saudi Arabia is todays One Big Thing.

NIALA: The White House announced yesterday that President Biden will visit Saudi Arabia in July, where he is expected to meet with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The White House wants to address sky high oil prices, but also faces pressure to hold Saui Arabia accountable on human rights. Here to explain whats behind all of this is Axios world editor Dave Lawler. Hey Dave.

DAVE LAWLER: Hi, Niala

NIALA: Dave first, we heard different things yesterday from the US and Saudi Arabia about the purpose of the trip and who's meeting who?

DAVE: Yeah, so it was really interesting. I was on this briefing call that the White House did, to lay out the stops on the trip. And they said, he'll meet with his Saudi hosts and then asked who that was, he said King Salman the crown Prince's father and then eventually he said, and he'll probably see the crown prince. When the Saudis put out their own announcement, they said explicitly that Biden and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman would be meeting. And this was obviously the big question mark that was hanging out there ahead of this trip. Because Biden said on the campaign trail that he was ready to make Saudi Arabia a pariah over the murder of Jamal Khashoggi and their human rights abuses. Now, as you said, oil prices are sky high, they have business that they wanna do with the Saudis and Biden is at this point willing to have a meeting with the crown prince, despite the criticism that they know is coming over this.

NIALA: Right and so this was a brutal assassination of a Washington Post columnist. What has been the Biden administration's response to criticism that this all seems to have gone out of the window, because of high oil prices?

DAVE: Yeah. So if we back up to the beginning of the administration, they did put out this document, basically blaming the crown prince, uh, saying he's responsible for what happened, to Jamal Khashoggi. So that criticism came early on, but there was also at the same time a recognition on the White House side that they were gonna have to, you know, interact with the Saudis. And so it was, how do you manage that? How do you both interact with the Saudis on things like Iran, which was one of the pressing issues, but also, you know, keep your distance from the crown prince himself. Now they've decided, I guess, that that's untenable and that Biden will be meeting with the crown prince. What they say is, we've reset this relationship, but we don't wanna rupture this relationship. Basically, there are US interests that are tied up in the relationship with Saudi Arabia and we don't want to undermine our own interests by isolating the crown prince. Obviously when the two shake hands, if there's a photographer in the room, that's a picture they don't want going around the world, but it's a decision that they've decided it's worth it to have this meeting.

NIALA: President Biden also plans to visit the occupie d West Bank during this trip and meet with Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas. What are we expecting to see out that meeting?

DAVE: So this could actually be a pretty tense meeting. Biden also promised during the campaign to reopen the US consulate in Jerusalem that was the primary, you know, point at which diplomacy with the Palestinians took place. They have not done that mainly because of political pressure from the Israeli side. The Palestinians think that basically the Biden administration has bent over backwards to accommodate Israel, has not taken their needs into account as much as they would like. The White House has been conducting some diplomacy with the Palestinians ahead of the visit to try to reduce some of those concerns and to try to facilitate a more friendly meeting with Abbas. But the atmosphere is not particularly warm, heading into that meeting.

DAVE : Axios world editor, Dave Lawler. Thanks Dave.

DAVE: Thanks Niala.

NIALA In a moment, missing U.S. crime data makes it hard to fact-check politicians.

NIALA: Welcome back to Axios Today! Im Niala Boodhoo. Nearly 40% of law enforcement agencies across the country failed to report their 2021 crime data to the FBI. That includes cities like New York and LA. And another 20% reported incomplete data, including the city of Chicago. That's all according to information provided to Axios local from a partnership with the nonprofit, the Marshall Project and Axios Chicago reporter Monica Eng is here with more information. Hey Monica.

MONICA ENG: Hey Niala.

NIALA: So let's talk about Chicago. Chicago reported just half of its crime data from 2021. Why?

MONICA: Well, it was about seven months. Yeah, about half. And they said that they were, you know, transitioning to this new system. And by the time they got up and running with the new system, they only had seven months left to report. Why they didn't go back and report the other five months, they didn't tell us.

NIALA: Why did the switch happen to begin with?

MONICA: Well, the FBI wanted to move to a reporting system that gathered more specific information on each incident. And what we found by reporting this out in so many different areas where Axios local reporters are working, is that every different law enforcement agency, whether it's state or local or county, has sort of a different way of reporting these things.

NIALA: Is that the same explanation other cities have also given for why this data is so incomplete last year?

MONICA: Yeah, we're hearing a variety of reasons, but most of them have to do with the transition. Some in Peoria, for instance, in Illinois said that just last week, they finally got certified to start uploading because they had coding issues with their vendor. And you're hearing this across the state that it was this technical issue or this department not transferring it to this department. But others say, you know, guys, you had several years to make this change. Why were you just doing it at the last minute?

NIALA: Where else are we seeing gaps in other cities then? We mentioned New York, LA, Chicago. You mentioned Peoria. Is this happening all over the country?

MONICA: Yeah. I mean, our Philadelphia colleagues, um, said that they were told that, the Philly police department was unable to collect their data until the new reporting system went live in April. And De Moines, they said they moved to a new records management system that wasn't compatible with the Iowa system. When you look at the map that we have on axios.com, you see that some of the biggest problems are in Illinois, Florida, California, and then the area around Philadelphia and New York.

NIALA: This seems particularly problematic because crime is top of mind for many voters this year. We just saw this, for example, last week in the California primary, do we know as this becomes such a political talking point, if people are talking about the correct information?

MONICA: Well, I mean, without at least 40% of the department's reporting, you know, there is a big gap and that makes it harder to make claims. It makes it harder to analyze crime trends and it makes it harder to fact check claims that politicians are making about cities.

NIALA: Monica Eng is an Axios local reporter in Chicago. Thanks, Monica.

MONICA: Thank you.

NIALA: One last thing for you to think about today: Most parents want their kids to stop arguing. But it turns out, we might want to encourage them to do it more - when done systematically and respectfully, it can help develop leadership skills Oprah Winfrey, multiple U.S. presidents and four Supreme Court justices were all high school debaters. I asked Axios Erica Pandey about her reporting on how debate skills help us become better at disagreeing in a divided time.

ERICA PANDEY: So it turns out some of the most influential people we know, like Bruce Springsteen, like Ketanji Brown Jackson, like Indra Nooyi, were all high school debaters. And the reason high school debate is one of the most effective ways to prepare for leadership and influencing society is because you learn these critical skills. And that's what Bo Seo, who's a former Harvard debate coach, was writing about in his new book Good Arguments. We're all pretty terrible at disagreeing with one another doing so respectful. But debaters learn core tenants of arguments and breakdown, arguments into the physics of what's going on. Like what's the point? Why is it true? Who cares? And when you break it down to this, it becomes easier to be clear, to be persuasive and to see the other side. Thats Axios business reporter Erica Pandey.

NIALA: Thats all weve got for you today! Text me your feedback and story ideas: Im at (202) 918-4893. Im Niala Boodhoo - thanks for listening - stay safe and well see you back here tomorrow morning.

Originally posted here:

Axios Today podcast: Why we don't know how bad crime in the US really is - Axios

Understanding what social media platforms your customers are spending all of their time on is ideal but nearly impossible. Users typically have multiple accounts that they access throughout the day, leaving various touch points as they go. Snapchat, in particular, is a popular platform, with an average of 332 million engaged users logging on and spending over 30 minutes watching videos, snapping photos, and trying on filters every day. Dive into essential Snapchat business tips and more below, and decide for yourself if Snapchat is right for you.

Impactful Audience Tools

A common misconception is that Snapchat is most heavily used by a younger audience, deterring those businesses who may want to reach people 18 or older with ads. In reality, Snapchat users range from 13 to 35 years old and beyond, reaching an impressive 75% of millennials and Gen Z. Not only does Snapchat reach a broader audience, but it also reaches a more engaged audience. This is largely due to the fact that ads are full-screen and immersive, capturing every inch of attention, unlike some platforms.

Lets dive into the different ways you can better understand and reach potential customers who are ready to connect with you. In Snapchat Ads Manager, Audience Insights are available to better understand your audience so you can create relevant content and find potential audiences that you may not have considered before. Location, demographics, interests, and device insights are all available to advertisers.

In addition to Audience Insights, you can utilize data thats unique to your business, product, or service to create Custom Audiences. These Custom Audiences can be built by uploading customer lists within the Snapchat Ads Manager. Uses of Custom Audiences include, but are not limited to:

Immersive Experiences and Ad Formats

Since Snapchat ads are full-screen experiences, advertisers have an opportunity to capture a users full attention as they interact with the platform naturally. During that moment where a users attention is captured, the right ad has the potential to inspire action and drive results that other ad formats cannot.

Snapchat is budget-friendly, allowing for businesses of all sizes to advertise. Not only can you start with a budget that works for you, but Snapchat also offers free, in-platform creative support through Snap Publisher. The Snap Publisher tool allows you to create inspiring videos via a range of features, including:

Snapchat offers a range of ad formats, including:

Plans for the Future

Snapchat has been known to stay ahead of trends and frequently introduces new user experiences that are exclusive to Snapchat. During this years Snap Partner Summit, Snapchat introduced plans for the future with a large focus on augmented reality. Augmented reality (AR) is not new to Snapchat, with an average of six billion AR lenses being used per day. During the Snap Partner Summit, it was announced that more advancements to AR tools would be top of mind for the platform.

Our investments in augmented reality represent our ongoing efforts to build technology that serves humanity, and that feels intuitive and familiar to use.

Some of the announcements regarding advancements in AR tools that might catch your attention include:

AR Creation Suite

The launch of the Augmented Reality 3D Asset Manager makes it much easier for partner brands to manage 3D models for any product in a catalog. This also allows brands to create Shopping Lens in a few seconds without any extra costs.

AR Image Processing now allows brands to leverage existing content originally produced for a website and convert them to AR-ready assets for Snapchat AR try-on Lens experiences.

Available today in beta for select partners, apparel, eyewear, and footwear brands can build virtual try-on experiences using AR-ready assets with AR Shopping Templates. This is fast and free for brands to import their assets and create Lenses in minutes.

Dress Up

Try on clothing from the comfort of home with Dress Up. Found in Lens Explorer, Snapchatters can browse and discover new looks and products from brands while having the ability to share looks and save favorites to easily find your favorite looks again.

Pixy

And last but not least, we were introduced to Pixy, the flying camera that requires no controllers as it automatically captures photos and videos in the sky above you. Another bonus? Pixy knows exactly where to return, softly in the palm of your hand. Be sure to watch the official announcement for Pixy here!

So, if you arent already taking advantage of Snapchats robust feature offering and unique audience, now might be a perfect time. You can begin expanding your efforts and reaching new customers on Snapchat today no matter what size brand you are!

Go here to see the original:

If You Haven't Considered Snapchat Yet, Here's Why You Should - JumpFly PPC Advertising News

Screenshot: Deep Silver / Volition / Kotaku

Yesterday, as part of Summer Game Fest, Volition released a new free-to-download demo for the upcoming Saints Row reboot out later this year. However, this isnt a demo of the games open-world or its vehicular combat. No, this is just the character creator. But thankfully, its a fantastic character creator with a vast array of clothing and customization options and a long list of sliders and features you can use in creating your own unique crime boss. And as a result, in less than 48 hours people have already created some wonderfully accurate, silly, and terrifying bosses using the new free tool.

Saints Row Boss Factory is the perfectly named character creator demo that was released yesterday for free on PlayStation, Xbox, and PC via the Epic Games Store. In Boss Factory, you are able to create the boss of your dreams (or nightmares) using a huge list of sliders and options, including the ability to tweak and modify everything from face symmetry to body weight to how modest you want your boss to be with regard to underwear and nudity.

Theres no actual game to use them in yet, but for now, Im having plenty of fun looking at all the characters people are creating and uploading to be shared in Boss Factory. Any of these will be playable in the full game out this August, too. Keep that in mind as we look at some of my favorites.

Read the rest here:

The Best (And Weirdest) Creations People Have Made Using Saints Row Boss Factory - Kotaku

Daniella Modus-Cutter is a full-time carer, mother and grassroots campaigner, maintaining a list of schools in the UK reporting COVID infections. She is Clinically Extremely Vulnerable and has been shielding since the start of the pandemic. She was interviewed for the Global Workers Inquest by Julie Hyland.

JH: You opened your Twitter account in March 2020 at the very start of the pandemic in the UK. What made you decide to do this so quickly? What were your concerns and how did you understand the dangers?

I opened my Twitter account as my eldest son said he thought Id like it and it would help making friends whilst shielding at the start of the pandemic. When I opened my account, I wanted to get information about COVID.

I already had big concerns but almost overnight I was shellshocked realising that I was very vulnerable to COVID. I never really thought of myself before as extremely vulnerable to an illness. Im physically disabled and yes it affects my daily life and is a struggle day to day, but I can adapt to my surroundings through help from family and a support worker.

I started campaigning with SafeEdForAll [Safe Education for All]. My name is on two open letters for mitigations in schools to the Education Secretary. I moved over to Fighting for Vulnerable Lives because I am Clinically Extremely Vulnerable (CEV) and I thought I could support parents better who were in the same place as me, in addition to pushing for mitigations in schools.

JH: You now have 10.7k followers because you have taken responsibility for compiling the rate of incidences in schools and amongst children especially. What have you uncovered?

I decided I would start to do weekly list of cases in schools as it was an ever-changing situation where at first schools told parents if there was a case in schools and which class etc. This soon changed and parents were worried as it went from whole school notifications to just class notifications.

So, I decided to put a daily message on Facebook and Twitter asking parents to contact me with cases in their schools as this will help vulnerable families to be aware when cases were in their childs school and act if they wanted to take their children out of school.

Loading Tweet ...

My school data compiling has been 10 percent of help from parents sending me letters; the other 90 percent has been through open research through school newsletters/ websites and Facebook and Twitter posts from school pages. Term time I could spend four to eight hours a day researching and supporting parents.

At times it has been really hard with uploading my data onto Twitter. At times people have trolled me and have been intimidating towards me for the data I have shared.

What the data clearly shows, and that is thanks to SafeEdForAll for putting the data on an animated map, is: you can see the delta wave start to spread across the country all through the summer term of 2021.The government and the authorities would have known this.

You can also find my work on Fighting for Vulnerable Lives and on my own Twitter page.

JH: Throughout the pandemic, the line has been that deaths are mainly due to pre-existing vulnerabilities, that People didnt die from COVID but with it. How do you see this claim?

The last few years have been an uphill struggle. Shielding has been very hardespecially in the winter when you cant access outdoors. My husband is Clinically Vulnerable. My son hasnt been to school since March 2020 because it is just not safe for him to attend. There are no mitigations, no masks, no testing, no HEPA filtration to stop transmission. He could bring COVID home to me. It could make him very ill, and it would make me extremely ill. Most probably I would lose my life.

It has been portrayed that it is just CEV people whose lives are at risk. This is not true. Four in ten people who have died have not been disabled or had any chronic illnesses. We are part of a capitalist system. If you dont contribute in monetary terms of labour the government doesnt think your life is worth saving.

The policies towards the pandemic have caused a horrendous loss of life. This is eugenics that the government are playing. Capitalism over life.

Disabled people have taken the heaviest toll. Through the pandemic they make up six in 10 COVID deaths. Many people would have lived to old age. They may have had asthma or diabetes which is treatable with medication, but the government decided to do away with mitigations that slow the spread of COVID.

I feel the government have washed their hands of protecting CV people who havebeen left with no health care through the fear of catching COVID.

The government have gone ahead and lifted mitigations in medical settings. I speak with many people like myself who are CEV. We do not feel safe to go to our medical appointments or even for the vaccine due to this for the chance of being infected prior to the vaccine having time to work, so we feel its safer just to stay home.

It shouldnt be this way as we have the right to healthcare without the prospect of getting infected and losing our lives. Many of us have sacrificed so much just to stay well and free from infection by basically effectively being prisoners in our homes. Our children have suffered the most through foregoing their education to keep them COVID free as they are vulnerable themselves or theres the danger of bringing COVID back home to a loved one.

We have to choose to suffer in silence and not have any health care for the fear of getting COVID and dying. And we dont have to die because many conditions are treatable, and you can live a long life.

CEV have a right to life just like anybody else. The right to treatment, the right to healthcare. And the right to be able to go out and not be prisoners in their own homes. All this could be remedied if the government put health first and their short sightedness is going to cause continuous health problems for people for decades to come, maybe for generations to come.

JH: Your work on schools has been unique and exemplary. You are the only person in the country to have compiled these records which has exposed the claims that schools are safe and that children are not affected. What have you learned doing this work?

The government made many mitigations political. Their political ideology against mask wearing, social distancing, HEPA filtration, or any preventative measures has caused irreparable harm across communities. The failure to mitigate against a novel airborne virus in schools has led to childrens deaths and irreparable harm to childrens health. It has left thousands of children orphans. No one talks about this and the mental anguish it is causing children.

Loading Tweet ...

The vaccine only strategy has failed. Theres nearly two million people with Long COVID. This will really affect the workforce for a very long time. The only solution is contact tracing, testing, putting ventilation systems into public spaces, isolation of contacts. Unless this happens, we will forever be in a vicious circle.

This is already affecting the labour market. Less people are workingpossibly due to Long COVID. The pandemic is raging on. Kids are going to schools with cold symptoms. CEV families have only got one optionto keep children home and forgo education until such a time that the government wakes up to the problem that it is creating. And this is the only way we can be protected.

Everyone screams human rights, but where are our human rights or our right to life? I see no human rights agency campaigning on our behalf about this, our right to healthcare and access to safe education for children who are themselves vulnerable or a family member. We just get threatened with prosecution or social services just because we want to keep our families safe from the Petri dish of the education system.

I have had no involvement from the trade unions. Absolutely none. They could have done this work on the situation in schools very easily by taking information from their members and they have the resources to do so. The teaching unions have worked hand in hand with the government all the way through. I do not know why members are still paying their fees as theyve done nothing to protect staff. As of December 2020, over 500 staff have died from COVID and 10s of thousands of education staff have Long COVID.

My attitude to the Labour Party is its not a party for workers anymore. Its now a Tory lite establishment. If this was a true workers party, there would be no way they would turn their back on teaching staff. The government and the Labour opposition had a perfect opportunity in the summer of May-September 2020, when a more effective lockdown was in place. They could have made sure proper ventilation was installed in schools as per Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) recommendation. Cases were low in September 2020 and test and trace was still in place along with mask wearing in schools. It would have stopped the need for lockdowns.

We have effectively been thrown under the bus by the government, the opposition parties and any organisation thats supposed to help disabled/ CEV families.

JH: The pandemic has been declared officially over. But your own work shows that the situation in schools is as bad as ever. Infections are going up and so are hospitalisations.

The school data I have logged is just the tip of the iceberg. Yet it shows that not having mitigations in schools caused disruption, more disruption than if the schools were properly mitigated for an airborne virus. Children are getting Long COVID, hepatitis. I fear for childrens lives and what the future legacy will be.

The reason Ive taken a pause from my data work is because it is extremely hard to find any information due to the stopping of free testing in schools.

I feel this is deliberateto enable the virus to run rampant through schools. Vulnerable families have been forgotten about. Out of sight, out of mind. People are getting on with their lives but frequently getting infected which is no life really because its doing untold damage to bodily organs.

And it doesnt work out like this as there is constant distribution to education through staff and children becoming sick. Some schools have had to close classes / year groups and even whole schools at times throughout the pandemic.

Children are not being protected in schools. No HEPA filtration, no masks, no testing, no contact tracing. Just because you wish something over, it doesnt mean it is. Its just hiding from the reality of what is really happening. Schools must be kept open at all costs because children are just an extension, just a cog in the capitalist wheel so parents can go to work.

I have been supporting parents and trying to get the information they need to deal with issues with schools and non-attendance. If I didnt know the information, I directed them to a campaign that could help in their situations.

Ive campaigned for safety mitigations in schools; masks, HEPA filtration units in classrooms, free testing and 10 days isolation for positive cases and remote learning for children with vulnerable families until its safe for them to be able attend.

Pretending COVID isnt a problem will cause a worse variant that completely evades the vaccine, which has started to happen. We will continue to see wave after wave of infection, disruption to education, children/staff/parents being hospitalised or worse losing their lives. Until COVID is taken seriously, we will see constant disruption to businesses, through staff illness and staff unable to work due to Long COVID. For a healthy economy you need a healthy workforce.

JH: What conclusions have you drawn and how do you see the solution?

The pandemic is part of a bigger problem. Having recklessly endangered so many lives through the policy of herd immunity, governments everywhere are deliberately trying to provoke a war with Russia.

I really dont understand peoples reasoning when it comes to the war with Ukraine. There are many people I know through my work on COVID that are aware of the harm the governments caused as regards the pandemic but seem to believe everything they are told about war.

They should understand that COVID and this war are connected. They are part of the problem which is capitalism. Ukraine isnt the democracy that the government is selling them: Ukraine banned the Russian language, opposition parties and media. A high percentage of Ukrainians are ethnic Russians. This war didnt start in February this year, it started eight years ago when the republics of the Donbas broke away from Ukraine to become independent as they didnt want to be governed by a US-backed right-wing government in 2014.

The sanctions in place do not hurt the leaders: its always the people of said country that suffer. And in this case the sanctions are also hurting the citizens in the countries that are imposing them.

The working class everywhere are suffering at the hands of their own governments in western countries, through inflation, higher energy and food prices.

What is needed is for the working class across the globe to come together and strike and protest for better pay and conditions, to stop the pandemic and end war. That is why I joined the Educators Rank-and-File Committee.

Read the original:

Herd immunity in education: I fear for children's lives and what the future legacy will be. - WSWS

She is known for keeping it real with her social media audience.

And now personal trainer turned author and entrepreneur Tiffiny Hall has shared an emotional video with her Instagram followers, in which she admits how hard it is to accept it will take time to get her body back after the recent birth of her second child.

Hall announced she and TV and radio funnyman Ed Kavalee welcomed daughter Vada on May 30, uploading a black and white photo to her Instagram account the following day.

READ MORE: WATCH: Mick Jagger's five-year-old son debuts his dance moves backstage at The Rolling Stones concert

"Arnold's little sister has arrived. Welcome Vada Kavalee30.5.2022," she captioned the post.

Since then, she has shared several photos with her Instagram followers, including one of her in her underwear while holding Vada in her arms.

"Home from hospital with Vada," she wrote on June 5. "Juggling post partum recovery, nurturing the sibling relationship so no one feels left out, sleep deprivation and feeding. Let the fourth trimester begin. The washing can wait! Any tips?" and the hashtag #bounceforward.

But it was a more emotional Hall who took to Instagram with a two-minute video she posted along with the comment, "Bouncing forward is important but no one said it would be easy."

READ MORE: See what happens when two mums try out the latest viral trend: 'Messy dinner' challenge

Sitting in the living room of her home, Hall started by thanking everyone who had left congratulations following Vada's birth before passing on a message to anyone who is pregnant or had just given birth.

"I just really wanted to say how important it is to bounce forward and that it's not easy ... to bounce forward and take the pressure off," she said.

"Even I am standing in the mirror, looking at my new body Vada's house my big bump, and it's really hard to accept that it's going to take time," she said, before dissolving into tears.

"You know, anyway, super emotional too," she continued.

"But, it is going to take time and healing takes time, and it depends what birth you had. For me, I've got a few stitches and stuff's going on, so it's all a bit painful, but she's absolutely beautiful and worth it."

Hall also said she was taking the opportunity to explain to her four-year-old that it took a bit of time for bodies to go back to normal.

"Arnie keeps asking why my tummy is so big. Bless him, no filter. He keep saying, 'Is there another baby in there Mum?'

"And it's hard to accept it but you have to take one day at a time.

"You have to be kind to yourself and you can't let those negative thoughts enter the brain because everything the mind says the body hears. You've really got to remember that.

"So I am sending love to everybody, especially those who have just had a baby, who are up late feeding, who are doing the brutal hours [that] newborn babies require."

In another video she uploaded just today, Hall shows off her pregnant belly then turns away to the camera before turning back, this time with her baby in her arms.

She uploaded the video with the comment, "One week old postpartum with Vada," and the hashtags #BounceForward.

Many followers rushed to thank her for her honesty.

"Thank you so much for being so real," one wrote. "I remember the very day I had my first baby, I got up from the hospital bed to go to the bathroom and my mother-in-law asked me when the next baby was due. I was both shocked and devastated. It was less than eight hours after giving birth. It's so refreshing that you're normalising postpartum recovery for the mums of the future."

Prior to Vada's birth, Kavalee took to the airwaves of his radio show to call out the people who commented on his wife's changing body while she was pregnant, before she joined in, admitting she had been reduced to tears by the cruel jibes.

For a daily dose of 9Honey, subscribe to our newsletter here

What brand-new mums really want to be gifted

Go here to read the rest:

Tiffiny Hall reduced to tears over relatable postnatal body battle: 'It's going to take time' - 9Honey

Never doubt the power of a last minute equaliser. Brighton won only once in December but the month ended up feeling hugely successful thanks to three of the five matches featuring the late goals which became the Albions trademark in 2021-22.

That all three of those memorable conclusions to games came on the road was in keeping with what had happened over the previous two months.

Whereas the Albion were a joy to watch away from home, their form at the Amex had left a lot to be desired. That manifested itself in the controversial circumstances in which November had ended.

A 0-0 draw with The Leeds United had led to a small smattering of boos at the full time whistle. These made headlines and caused Graham Potter to offer a stinging rebuke, saying that he needed a Brighton history lesson to understand why fans were jeering his side who sat eighth in the Premier League table.

The answer to that was because Seagulls supporters were frustrated by the same old story playing out every week. Against the 1996 Coca Cola Cup runners up, that read 20 shots from the Albion, zero goals, one point.

Form was not the only stark contrast between watching Brighton home and away in the 2021-22 the support the team received differed greatly as well, something that was noticeable as December kicked off with a trip to West Ham.

Four days after the booing and the request for a history lesson, Potter and his players were given a heroes reception after drawing 1-1 at the London Stadium thanks to the first of those late levellers.

As Benjamin Franklin once said, nothing is certain in life except death, taxes and West Ham not beating Brighton. The Irons led for 84 minutes following Tomas Soucek heading home a Pablo Fornals corner after Robert Sanchez and Lewis Dunk got themselves into a bit of a state.

Brighton suffered from both fortune and misfortune from that point onwards. The Seagulls were lucky not to fall 2-0 behind midway through the second half.

Sanchez got in another mess from another West Ham corner, resulting in the Albion goalkeeper appealing to the referee for a foul when in reality he had simply missed his punch.

VAR took a look, which must have been to simply appease the goalkeeper and prove he was at fault. It was during this investigation that the ball was found to have brushed the ankle of Michail Antonio stood in an offside position on its way in and so the goal was disallowed.

A ridiculously harsh decision on West Ham but one that looked like having no bearing on that outcome once Brighton found themselves finishing the game with only 10 men.

Jeremy Sarmiento, Adam Webster and Adam Lallana all picked up injuries over the course of the match, with Lallanas coming after Potter had made all three of his substitutions.

Not many would have given the Albion hope of finding an equaliser whilst playing shorthanded. December though was a month when Brighton showed you could not write off the class of 2021-22 in any situation and they duly levelled the tie in the 89th minute through a piece of individual brilliance from Neal Maupay.

Tariq Lamptey hung a cross into the West Ham box which was behind Le Petite Shithouse Francais. Maupay though showed the sort of flexibility rarely seen outside of circus contortionism, bending his body into an unnatural shape to score a stunning bicycle kick past a flabbergasted Lukasz Fabianski.

The away end went wild as Maupay celebrated with the travelling support through a haze of blue smoke. The euphoria caused by Maupays moment of magic made West Ham 1-1 Brighton feel like a victory, to the point where nobody batted an eyelid that the Albion were now nine games without a victory.

That run was extended to 10 in the trip to Southampton. There was some sort of glitch in the matrix at St Marys as for the second time in 72 hours, Maupay scored a very, very late equaliser when Brighton were down to 10 men to rescue a 1-1 draw.

There were once more question marks over Sanchezs role in an opposition goal. His poor kick was returned forward by the head of James Ward-Prowse and Shane Duffy then expected his goalkeeper to come and intercept the danger.

Sanchez though was glued to his line and Duffys hesitation allowed Armando Broja to collect the ball, fool Duffy into sliding into a Portsmouth postcode and then beat Sanchez to make it 1-0.

Brighton looked both tired following their midweek exertions and lost without Dunk or Webster, both now injured and facing some time on the sidelines.

When Leandro Trossard was stretchered off after Potter had already introduced Aaron Connolly, Solly March and Jakub Moder, the Albion again found themselves trying to find a leveller with a man disadvantage.

The lengthy delay caused by Trossards nasty looking arm complaint led to 10 minutes of stoppage time. It was in the eighth of the 10 that Maupay struck, this time with a goal highlighting the footballing intelligence he rarely gets credited for.

Southampton goalkeeper Alex McCarthy was struggling with injury and so when Moder lined up a free kick on the edge of the Saints box, McCarthy summoned Ward-Prowse to stand on the line.

Maupay took full advantage of the situation, showing great awareness to move closer towards the Southampton goal, knowing that Ward-Prowse was so deep as to be playing him onside.

The extra yards Maupay gained had him perfectly positioned in the event of the ball ending up loose in the box which is exactly what happened when Moders strike cannoned off the wall and the Polish midfielder then sent the rebound back into the area.

With no Southampton player near him, Maupay simply took a touch and fired into the bottom corner. That was the WAB Brighton December Player of the Month award sewn up for Maupay with only two games played, his second accolade of 2021-22 after also winning the vote in September.

Maupay goaded the Saints fans, Duffy went berserk as limbs flew in the away end. Who cared that Brighton had just equalled an unwanted club record of 10 top flight games without a win in amongst all the delirium?

Spurs had been due to provide the third opposition of December a week later, only to be postponed due to a Covid outbreak amongst the Tottenham squad.

This was no bad thing from an Albion point of view, giving the Seagulls three more days to try and get players fit ahead of the Wednesday night visit of Wolves to the Amex.

Those plans were ruined when Brighton then had several players struck down with Covid. No worry, the Premier League would help the Albion out by postponing the fixture, right?

Wrong. Controversially, the game went ahead. It seemed that whilst every other Premier League club was granted time off in the 2021-22 season for Covid reasons, Brighton were not extended the same help even when infections were spiking in December.

Eluding to the selection problems facing Potter, the Albion social media team put out a mock starting XI graphic.

Michel Kuipers was in goal. A back four of Bruno, Guy Butters, Gordon Greer and Gully. Fatboy Slim, Media Intern, Andrew Crofts and Royal Blood made up the midfield. And up front Bobby Zamora and Glenn Murray.

By full time, Albion fans could only wish that Norman Cook and a bloke in a seven feet tall seagull costume had been on the pitch.

Circumstances might have been against Brighton, but that could not excuse how woeful they played in losing 1-0.

A piece of history was written in the process as the Albion recorded 11 top flight matches in succession without a victory.

Presumably, not the history lesson Potter had in mind when he made those ill-advised comments the previous month.

Wolves had not scored for seven hours before some typically suspect Albion defending from a corner gifted them the only goal of the game.

Yves Bissouma made a hash out of clearing the initial delivery into the box, succeeding only in looping it to Ruben Neves.

The Portuguese playmaker had a worrying amount of time and space to clip a ball back over an Albion defence who were all over the place.

Nobody in blue and white seemed to know whether they should be pushing up to catch Wolves offside or marking an Old Gold opponent.

In the end, they did neither and Neves return was clinically volleyed home by Romain Saiss as it finished Brighton 0-1 Wolves.

Covid not only impacted what happened on the pitch against Wolves, but also caused swathes of empty seats in the stands. The record books will forever show an attendance of 30,362 based on tickets sold rather than actually bodies through the turnstiles.

In reality, there were no more than 15,000 there. Brighton fans were not willing to risk catching Covid on December 15th with Christmas 10 days away, thus missing the big day in self isolation just to say I was at Wolves at home in the 2021-22 season.

This laid bare the detrimental impact of the Albions controversial ticket sharing scheme, whereby season ticket holders were not willing to pay 20 for the right to pass on their seat to a family member who also had to be a 25 MyAlbion+ member.

One sure-fire way of telling that the club know they have cocked up is when Paul Barber writes a 1500 word essay defending whatever the failing idea is, including barely-hidden contempt of any criticism of the Albion.

Trying to claim that everything was hunky dory with the season ticket sharing scheme despite the visual evidence of empty seats was a classic of the genre, made even better by saying any complaints were being done purely for Clickbait.

Not the greatest PR move Barber has ever made, especially when even fewer fans turned up to the Brentford game and supporters began uploading photos of empty seats to Twitter complete with the hashtag #Clickbait.

Those 12,000 or so hardy souls who made the journey to the Amex for that 8pm kick off on Boxing Day against the Bees were at least treated to a first victory since mid-September, as Brighton ran out 2-0 winners.

It was also the first time the Albion had won on December 26th since a 1-0 Championship success over Queens Park Rangers in 2005. Plenty of reasons to crack out the Baileys once everyone got home from the Amex at gone 11pm.

Both goals came inside the final 10 minutes of the first half. Enock Mwepu was the architect of the first, playing a brilliant ball over the top of the Bees defence.

Trossard timed his run to perfection and without breaking stride, volleyed the ball over the head of advancing Brentford goalkeeper Alvaro Fernandez and into the empty net.

Like London Buses, you wait over three months for a goal from open play at the Amex and then another comes along instantly.

Seven minutes later and Lallana linked up with Moder to feed Maupay 30 yards out. The Frenchman advanced a few steps before hitting a scrumptious curler into the top corner to leave Fernandez grasping at thin air.

Two extraordinary match winning saves up the other end in the second half from Sanchez helped secure a much-needed three points to significantly lift the mood around the Albion.

That was clear in the final game of December as Brighton went and played European Champions Chelsea off the park at Stamford Bridge with one of their best performances of the entire 2021-22 season.

Romelu Lukaku gave the Blues a first half lead with a controversial goal, scored after Lukaku had seemed to throw Maupay to the ground as both tussled to reach a Mason Mount corner.

Brighton were totally dominant after that, to the point where Chelsea fans decided to try and help their team waste time. This led to quite simply one of the greatest moments ever to take place at an Albion game in the clubs 121 year existence.

A ball was cleared into the front row, where a home supporter picked it up. Rather than hand it back, he decided to try and boot it towards the back of main stand.

We say try, because all he succeeded in doing was leathering the ball into his own friends face from point blank range, much to the delight of everyone in the away end.

Brighton fans had an even bigger reason to cheer when the game ticked into the first minute of stoppage time. The outstanding Marc Cucurella pushed forward and crossed into the box, where Danny Welbeck rose like the proverbial salmon to make it Chelsea 1-1 Brighton.

It was the first goal the Albion had ever scored at Stamford Bridge in an away game against Chelsea. That was a much better history lesson for Potter and Brighton to finish December on as their 2021-22 season began to get back on track.

December2021 record: P5 W1 D3 L1 F5 A4Results: 1-1 v West Ham (A), 1-1 v Southampton (A), 0-1 v Wolves (H), 2-0 v Brentford (H), 1-1 v Chelsea (A)League position at the end of the month: 10thWeAreBrighton.com Player of the Month: Neal Maupay

Original post:

Brighton & Hove Albion 2021-22 Season Review: December - We Are Brighton

Whitearmor real name Ludwig Rosenberg has shaped the sound of an entire online generation. The 29-year-old is the producer behind Swedish collective Drain Gang, a group of friends consisting of artists Ecco2k, Thaiboy Digital and Bladee who formed in 2013, gaining prominence in the cloud-rap scene alongside friend and collaborator Yung Lean. As the groups master beatmaker, Rosenberg is responsible for their mercurial and terminally online sound, which has garnered a prolific reputation among countless baby-faced Soundcloud producers who aspire to follow in his footsteps.

Perhaps the most elusive member of the group, the Stockholm-based producer has managed to keep a mysterious online presence, despite the collectives deeply obsessive fanbase, which has spawned countless fan accounts, meme pages and a highly active subreddit. Im probably the least famous out of all of us, he says, with a grin. Hes notoriously silent on social media (I never understood Instagram) except to post the occasional Drain promo or reshare and rarely takes photographs with fans. This is one of the first interviews hes agreed to in the decade since the groups formation.

Im probably the one that says no to most things. Its not that I mind it, I just dont really enjoy it and fans know that. Our fans are very respectful in general, he tells me over Zoom. Hes calling in from Barcelona, where Drain Gang have just performed as part of a Year0001 showcase at the citys Razzmatazz. Camera on, a rarity among reclusive internet artists, he answers questions in a low Swedish drawl. Occasionally, hell break into a sly grin as if quietly amused, while at other times, exudes the quiet confidence of someone who (plainly) knows their shit.

Growing up at the height of the early internet, Rosenberg credits many of his early formative music experiences to MTV and the digital music revolution, spending hours trawling Napster, where he would spend hours downloading music with his dad, a computer enthusiast. I started listening to a lot of Bob Marley and rap music and Slipknot, he explains. The blogspot era was my biggest thing, where you could just pirate music. Music blogs that would just put up music; you would find one blog that was good and then youd find other blogs. Knowing the sources and knowing which blogs were similar. A lot of clicking; I like clicking stuff. He pauses. But now everything is being fed to you through the algorithm. Back then, you had to actively search for stuff. But the algorithm has made it even harder to find stuff on your own.

He began playing drums as a teenager, spending time in an indie-rock band before heading down the electronic noise and experimental route. In 2010, he began uploading mixtapes online and listening to a lot of Waka Flock and Atlanta rap, which he describes as his biggest music-related internet experiences. He elaborates, I feel like my perspective on music has always been honing in on specific parts of songs and then reimagining a lot of stuff. I focused on what I didnt like a lot a problem-based mindset.

I know what it feels like to make music with no response, with some response, and now with this much response. It all has its pros and cons, he says, reflecting on Drain Gangs cult following and their gradual rise to superstardom. I barely feel anything about it. Its not to sound arrogant but its a very uphill battle once you start. You still have to make new music even past that point; you still have to pretend that its just you and your music. I shut a lot of that stuff out to be able to focus and to have your own compass of whats good and what youre trying to express or not.

I know what it feels like to make music with no response, with some response, and now with this much response Whitearmor

When creating Ecco2k and Bladees 2022 album Crest, the group rented a cottage next to the cliff-bound beach from Ingmar Bergmans fantasy epic The Seventh Seal. The Crest album has a lot of inspiration in Abba and this Swedish movie with Bjrn (Ulvaeus) he makes a lot of the Astrid Lindgren movie soundtracks, he explains. The ambient textures can be heard on Music for Weddings: The Abyss, Rosenbergs solo project, which he describes as a breakup album. The Abyss is a mistranslation of L-bas, a novel by French writer Joris-Karl Huysmans It was originally called Music for Weddings, but I thought itd be nice to have the colon breaking it up in the middle, he says.

In the Abyss: Music for Weddings marks the first time Rosenberg has dropped a full-length solo release under his artist name, though he maintains its not all that different to other projects. I feel like Im still a producer, he asserts. If you release music thats just instrumental, you don't have to be really an artist in the same way. The 10-track record has quiet intensity, where stretched-out yet euphoric melodies are paired with sparkling synth pads to give off the sensation that youre drifting through air. Sonically, its very similar to Crest melodically, though a bit more stripped-down. Everything I want to say has always been in the melodies, he says. Making music is my outlet, so I feel blessed that you can just make a melody and thats it.

Its hard to pinpoint exactly what defines Drains extremely genre-fluid sound; the group has had many evolutions, with tracks traversing everything from digital trap, eurodance and glitchcore. Fuelled by a constant need to reinvent themselves, their most recent albums have taken a more innocent-sounding turn, where bubblegum pop melodies combine with existential-lite lyrics to give off a sense of youthful nihilism. Tracks like Girls Just Wanna Have Fun and a 2021 collab with Charli XCX on track Drama have propelled them into the mainstream, while Bladee and Ecco2ks campaign with Marc Jacobs cutesy offshoot y2k brand Heaven further adds to the cute lore surrounding the group.

Drainers (the name given to Drain Gang fans), too, champion this 00s aesthetic; a mix of mall goth and emo, with hints of Harajuku. But what does Rosenberg think? Im not an aesthetic person at all; I dont really care about clothes or visual stuff Im strictly melody, he responds, adding: The melodies can be cute though! The fans, he explains, have their own narrative thats separate from what the group actually puts into the world. The narrative is this: were just these guys making music and we exist in a world where there are all these people who have their own stuff going on. What people choose to do with our music, or whatever narrative they want to put out, is fine by me.

In the Abyss: Music for Weddings is out now

See original here:

Whitearmor: Everything Ive ever wanted to say has been in the melodies - Dazed