Rash Behavior

A reader asked a question about how to deal with heat rashes.

Now, a simple rash caused by friction and moisture is pretty easy to deal with. Clean the area thoroughly with soap and water or other cleanser, scrubbing off any easily removed dead skin in the process. Then disinfect the irritated and surrounding areas with a topical sanitizer like rubbing alcohol, witch hazel etc... (Some prefer non astringent sanitizers, personally I think they work better). Dry fully, and then dust with calamine powder, monkeybutt powder, extra strength gold bond etc...

Do not use cornstarch or other organic material containing carbohydrates (and if you wear makeup, either don't wear makeup on the irritated area, or use a mineral powder based makeup). Cornstarch is sometimes recommended for babies, as being gentle on the skin, and because some babies are irritated by talcum powder. However, cornstarch can actually feed infectious fungi and bacteria living on the skin (particularly candidensis), and make any existing infection worse, or even jumpsart an infection that wouldn't otherwise have taken hold.

Also, avoid anything which will tend to clog the pores (which means only applying powders when you are thoroughly dry, and only a light dusting. Don't use pore clogging creams or deodorants, like glide on sticks or gels. Alumina based sprays and alum crystals are fine so long as they are used lightly. They shrink the pores, but don't actually clog them so long as you wash them off every 8 to 16 hours). Clogged pores combined with bacteria or fungi, can turn a simple rash into a sebacious pustule, cyst, boil, or carbuncle.

If the irritation is really bad, but not blistered, oozing, cracking, or bleeding, you may want to use a topical antiinflammatory like cortisone cream.

BUT...

Its very easy for a simple "heat rash" to turn into a bacterial or fungal skin infection... Or it may have been a bacterial or fungal rash in the first place.

This is especially true if you do a lot of hot and heavy work or exercise, live in a tropical climate, use communal pools, gym, or shower facilities, swim or spend  a lot of time in the water, or have pets or contact with livestock.

If you are obese, diabetic, have liver or kidney problems, or are immunocompromised, its both far easier to get such an infection and far more dangerous to you when you do.

With all that in mind, here's some tips from a pro at dealing with this sort of stuff (military service in hot and humid climates, living in florida, Arizona, Georgia, Texas etc... Dealing with animals, and having been a competitive athlete; I've een a hell of a lot of it. Now that I'm a fat man, and immunocompromised to boot, they are something I personally deal with at least a few times a year); on how to avoid, and how to treat, most common mild infectious skin issues.

The first thing is the basic rash advice above. Keep things clean and dry, and help them to stay that way with judicious use of powders, and wearing clothing that allows airflow made from fabrics that breathe and wont hold moisture against the skin. Bathe frequently but not so frequently you dry your skin out and strip protective oils. When you do get damp, don't then put that skin through a lot of friction, and dry it off as quickly and completely as possible.

If you see a rash coming on, or have an active rash or mild infection that doesn't appear to be serious, isn't spreading, and isn't having systemic effects inflammation in other areas, fever etc...) here's how you slow it down, reduce its impact, and treat it.

You can get prescription creams and foams etc... That will help clear things up, but you can make some for yourself that will generally be just as effective... And a lot cheaper.

First, get a big squeeze bottle from your local Walmart or analog, in the hair and beauty products section. Then get yourself three different kinds of anti dandruff shampoo in the smaller non family size bottles.

Nizoral has ketoconazole, which will help with some kinds of skin fungus and bacteria (its an anti fungal specifically but also has antibacterial and antiinflammatory properties). Denorex has both fairly strong concentrations of salicylic acid, and menthol, both of which can help with skin inflammation and are antimicrobial. Finally, head and shoulders uses selenium (usually selenium sulfide, but there are other formulations out there), which can be effective against both some fungal, and some bacterial vectors.

Feel free to buy the generics, or other brands, just make sure you get the strongest concentrations of each ketoconazole, salicylic acid, and selenium. You can also get anti-acne body washes that have high concentrations of salicylic acid, which can work.

Dump the entire bottle of Nizoral (it only comes in small bottles) into the big squeeze bottle. Then fill the rest half and half with the other two, and shake to mix thoroughly.

Shower twice a day, and after any workout, other heavy exertion, or swimming; using the mix as a body wash.

Using your hands only, thoroughly wash and scrub the inflamed areas, as well as other susceptible areas (skin folds and creases, underarms, crotch, behind the ears, around the mouth, your face, your scalp etc...), keeping the wash lather on your skin in those areas for at least two minutes.

To avoid transferring bacteria or fungi between areas, save any inflamed or infected areas for last; and wash your hands thoroughly after cleaning the inflamed area, including getting under your nails.

The very last thing before leaving the shower, clean your feet, top and soles, and between the toes, very thoroughly, using the wash.

Step out only onto a cleaned and sanitized tile floor, or a clean and dry towel NOT onto a bath mat. Use shower shoes or flip flops which you can sanitize if you need to.

Dry off thoroughly and vigorously, in order to help get rid of any dead skin which may increase the risk of irritation and infection. Avoid drying off any already inflamed areas until the end (again, to avoid spreading infection).

When you're FULLY dry, use the gold bond on the irritated areas, and any of the susceptible areas that may stay moist or get chafed.

If you have an active minor infection or any raised or rough inflammation, use  an antimicrobial treatment (if surface/subsurface fungal or bacterial infection) such as ketoconazole cream (which can be effective for both fungi and some skin infection bacteria). If you are certain it is just skin irritation and not infected, a steroidal topical antiinflammatory cream like cortisone can help reduce irritation and itching.

If you have a bacterial or fungal infection, using a steroid cream alone may make it worse.

There are tradeoffs... They suppress inflammation and itching which reduces the risk of skin cracking, minor abrasions etc... thus reducing the likelihood of infection; but if there is already an infectious bacteria or fungal spore in the irritated area, a steroid may reduce your natural ability to resist infection).  The act of applying the cream may also possibly spread the infection wider... so be careful. If you suspect bacterial or fungal infection, only use a steroid in concert with an antifungal or antibacterial (or preferably one that has both properties such as ketoconazole or miconazole).

Finally, spray or wipe down your bathtub or shower, the bathroom floor, and if you used any, your footwear; with either a bleach solution or ammonia (or other strong sanitizing agent), and clean your towels with a strong sanitizing agent (do not use them more than once without sanitizing them).

Also, wash your linens and your clothes, particularly undergarments, socks, and swimsuits; with either chlorine bleach, an oxygen bleach (like oxy clean or color safe bleach), or other strong sanitizing agent.

Many shoes and socks say they are antibacterial, antifungal, or otherwise antimicrobial... Don't believe it.

Always wear socks with any footwear that can't be sanitized and which holds moisture against the feet.

If you wear sandals, surf shoes, crocs etc... Make sure you sanitize them before you put them on after showering, and either in the morning or before bed... Or both. Spray or wipe them with dilute bleach or an oxygen bleach solution, ammonia solution, or some other strong sanitizing agent (Lysol works for example). Make sure you wipe them off well before putting your bare feet into them however, to avoid potential contact dermatitis.

If you wear socks, dust them with a sanitizing foot powder or a strong mentholated drying powder like gold bond. Do the same with the inside of your shoes if they enclose the foot fully, or they have a fabric or leather inner lining.

You're going to want to do all this even if its "just a simple rash", because often " just a simple rash" isn't, and because even if it is just a simple rash this routine will help prevent it from becoming something much worse.

Now... Here's the kicker... If its just friction irritation, inflamed moist skin, or contact dermatitis, you can stop this routine the day after the irritation subsides. If however it's a bacterial infection you need to continue for a week after the irritation clears, and if its a fungal infection, or the irritation reappears within 7 days, you need to continue the regimen for FOUR FULL WEEKS after the apparent infection or inflammation subsides. Fungal infectious vectors are extremely persistent and can survive for a long time on towels, clothing, tiles, in tubs and showers etc..

In general, to help avoid such infections, you should clean and sanitize your bathing areas (wherever wet skin may touch a surface basically) at least once a week if not more frequently

Oh and if you have a persistent rash or any kind of skin infection, even with sanitizing, anyone who shares bathing facilities with you should wash with the mix, cleaning the susceptible areas at least once a day, and take particular care to avoid infecting their feet (for example, they may want to use shower shoes as well).

If your rash doesn't respond to this regimen at all within a few days, shows bullseye or expanding ring presentation, becomes seriously inflamed or discolored; bruising or subcutaneous bleeding or blood vessel discoloration or ruptures appear; the rash spreads over a large area or breaks out in widely separated unrelated areas of the body; it exhibits blistering, cracking, bleeding, or suppurating; or you experience any systemic symptoms such as diffuse pain or inflammation, inflammation or discoloration of mucous membranes or nail beds; joint pain, fever, or any respiratory or neurological symptoms; seek medical treatment IMMEDIATELY.

Brown Colored Sugar Syrup

I currently live in Florida, which is deep in the "sweet tea" zone (which, near as I can tell begins somewhere in Maryland, extending south to Florida, and west to Texas).

My friend Bobby for example (a native Floridian... one of the only 35%), is utterly firm in his conviction that tea has not been properly sweetened until a spoon can stand up in it unaided.

Now, I should be clear, a bit of sugar and a bit of lemon in my tea (whether iced or hot) is quite fine... but sweet tea?

When I want to drink brown colored simple syrup, I order a whiskey sour thank you very much.

In support of my position on this matter, I quote the great Eric Arthur Blair:

"Lastly, tea — unless one is drinking it in the Russian style — should be drunk without sugar. I know very well that I am in a minority here. But still, how can you call yourself a true tea-lover if you destroy the flavour of your tea by putting sugar in it? It would be equally reasonable to put in pepper or salt. Tea is meant to be bitter, just as beer is meant to be bitter. If you sweeten it, you are no longer tasting the tea, you are merely tasting the sugar; you could make a very similar drink by dissolving sugar in plain hot water. 

Some people would answer that they don’t like tea in itself, that they only drink it in order to be warmed and stimulated, and they need sugar to take the taste away. To those misguided people I would say: Try drinking tea without sugar for, say, a fortnight and it is very unlikely that you will ever want to ruin your tea by sweetening it again."

The Real Victim

Stop calling people who commit suicides "Victims of suicide", They are not.

You cannot be a victim of your own conscious choices and actions. That's not victimization, that's consequence.

Victimization is an unearned and unjustified harm imposed on you.

Victims of the disease of depression and anxiety? Ok...

Victims of a society that has no idea how to deal with mental illness, and actively worsens it? Ok...

Victims of a "mental health system" that often seems like nothing more than a funding mechanism for a series of uncontrolled trial and error experiments? Ok...

But those who chose to kill themselves are not "victims of suicide".

The victims of suicide, are those of us who are left behind to suffer the loss.

Wrong Problem, Wrong Solution

Everyone saying "take the military weapons away from the cops" is missing the point... and the problem.

It's not the weapons... it's the training, and the philosophy.

It's the training and philosophy that says that "officer safety" is more important than civil rights, or the rule of law.

It's the militaristic attitude and training, that fundamentally confuse the police mission, protecting the public; with the military mission of attacking and defending against "the enemy"; explicitly separating the police from the public.

This has the effect of making the public, the enemy.

Bring me a Sandwich

Y'all who have always lived north of Delaware and east of Pittsburgh just can't understand...

Generally speaking, baked goods SUCK in the rest of the country (with the possible exception of San Francisco).

Pizza, bread, donuts, pastry... they are all just... anywhere from "not good" to "absolutely fucking horrible".

The only baked goods the rest of the country seem to get right are cookies, cakes, and pies... and even then most places fuck those up too, at best reaching mediocrity (the midwest and northwest generally do decent pies).

Sometimes they're fucking horrible, sometimes they're just mediocre, sometimes they are really CLOSE to being good... but those are worse than the horrible ones because they're close enough to make you remember what the good stuff is like.

The first thing I do when I get off a plane or drive into the area, is get a pizza. Usually on the ride from the airport. My next meal is almost always a sub... usually a steak and cheese. Then I get good "bad chinese" food (meaning americanized chinese food, which is actually good in the northeast, and pretty horrible everywhere else).

In most of the country, they actually think Subway, blimpies, quiznos, and jimmy johns, are actual subs.

Don't even get me started on donuts... Outside of the northeast and Ohio (I don't know why, but Ohio seems to have good donuts), it seems like only Austin, Chicago, Portland, LA, and San Francisco, actually have good donuts.

Bagels... forget it...

So even getting a sandwich on what by northeastern standards is mediocre bread, is 1000% better than the shit you have to get used to having.

I think he works for Apple

Ok... so, finally, after 30 someodd years of graphical interface design, sometime in the late 2000s and into the early 2010s we came up with an interface aesthetic where interface representations of things actually looked like things... kinda 3-Dish, but not goofy, or cartoonish, or "jewel-like", with realistic color and shading.

This was a GOOD thing.

Everything was clearly differentiated and visually distinct from every other thing, and could be easily found within ones visual field, whether on a large computer screen, or a small phone screen.

All of a sudden, in 2010 or so, this started changing for the worse.

What asshole suddenly decided that the new modern cool clean thing for interfaces was to undo ALL of that 30 years of progress, and make everything flat, 2d, and composed of meaningless geometric shapes, in bright primary colors, spread across a featureless background of bright primary colors; with no visual indication of, or connection to, that things name or function?

That asshole is fucking up the world, and he should be killed, immediately, and in a painful and public way; pour encourager les autres.

I think he works for Apple.

Yes... it's the owner not the dog... BUT...

This, is a Cane Corso:

Cane Corsos are some of the biggest, strongest, and by their very genetic nature, most territorial and protective dogs. They are bred to hunt large game, and to catch and herd straying swine and cattle.

Like other large "catch dogs", they can literally catch a large livestock animal, and either kill them, or hold them on the ground waiting for their handler to come and retrieve the caught prey.

This, is a Presa Canario:

Presa Canarios are a very different breed in many ways, but they descend from the same basic genetic foundation (molosser) and are also large catch dogs. They have the same size, strength, and drives as the Cane Corso. They are big, strong, highly territorial, and highly protective.

How big is "big"? 

Those chains and big heavy collars aren't for show. Males of either breed can easily exceed 150lbs, and standing on their hind legs can easily look a 6'2" man like myself directly in the eyes.

Corsos and Presas can be great dogs. Loyal, affectionate, loving, fun...

...For the right people, in the right environment...

A few days ago, a couple of Cane Corsos killed a jogger in Michigan. It came out that those same dogs had attacked other people in the neighborhood over the course of two years, but nothing had been done.

A few years ago, actor Ving Rhames had a pair of Presa Canarios, that killed his gardener.

This Michigan incident is the latest in a long series of reports from the last few years where Cane Corsos, or Presa Canarios have killed pedestrians, joggers, yard or service workers etc...

No, it's not the dogs fault. Yes, it is their owners fault.

But... not for the reasons some "dog people" like to champion.

Yes, there is no such thing as inherently bad or dangerous dog, or an inherently bad or dangerous breed...

...except that isn't ENTIRELY true.

As is usually the case, the truth is more complicated.

All dogs, no matter the breed, are potentially dangerous, because they are DOGS. YOU may consider them a member of your family, but they are not children, they are DOGS.

They are little... or not so little... balls of muscle and instincts with teeth and claws; and under the right... or wrong... circumstances, they can be dangerous.

Of course, abuse or ill treatment can make any dog MORE dangerous...

...but it doesn't take abuse to make a dog dangerous. It just takes the wrong situation, or the wrong environment, or the wrong owner who doesn't know how to handle their dog.

Some breeds of dogs need special handling or they will be dangerous, simply because of their natures. Their size, their strength, their basic breed characteristics, and their instincts.

Big, strong, territorial dogs with high prey drive or high protective drive, ARE dangerous; if not kept in the right environments, and trained, socialized, and exercised and handled properly; by the right sort of people who can properly manage these types of dogs.

Cane Corsos and Presa Canarios are working dogs. They NEED to work. They need to work off their energy, and they NEED to follow their "mission" instinct.

In military parlance, they are extremely motivated and mission oriented, and their mission is to PROTECT THE HERD AND THE FIELDS AND THE PACK AT ALL COSTS.

They're very good at it. It's what they're bred for.

They are NOT dogs that you can have in a busy urban or suburban area. They'll be miserable, and they'll make you miserable. They'll literally be driven crazy by the constant influx of strangers and "threats".

Dogs like this need room to run. More importantly, they need defensive depth. They need a big buffer zone for "their" territory. They need room to back off if they feel threatened.

If they don't have room, unless they are properly trained and handled, and their handler is present and managing the situation properly; in close quarters they WILL feel threatened, and they WILL get aggressively protective.

These are SERIOUS working dogs.

However, for a certain class of asshole, they have become "fashionable" over the past few years, because they're so big, so strong, and so "dangerous". Rottweilers and "pit bulls" are becoming more common, and certain types of assholes just want to have the biggest, baddest dog on the block.

Another type of asshole doesn't recognize that dogs are actually animals, rather than just furry people. Or that the dog that is so cuddly and great with them, is an entirely different beast when it comes to strangers and their "mission" or their territory.

Dogs are NOT fashion accessories. Nor are they furry children. They are living beings, with their own needs and drives, not simply extensions or projections of their owners.

Most people are simply not mentally and emotionally prepared to, or even physically able to, properly handle Cane Corsos and Presa Canarios (or for that matter most other large dogs); nor do most people have the proper environment to keep them.

I have been handling and training large dogs since I was a child, and I'm a VERY large, strong, and dominant man..  I've also made a habit of rehabilitating troubled and abused large breed dogs, particularly rottweilers and other molosser variants. My family and I love "politically incorrect" dogs, and have had great experiences with our wonderful rescued dogs, that others had considered "dangerous" or "unstable" because of prior abuse.

Even given all that however, unless I raised them myself, or knew the person who raised them, I would not accept a Presa or a Corso into my pack. Not a chance in hell in fact.

Even if I'd raised one from a pup, if I didn't have a big, FULLY FENCED and secure property, with neighbors who also knew how to handle and deal with big, protective dogs, I wouldn't even consider having a Corso or a Presa.

 For people who like and want "big dogs", and can deal with a confident, physical, and protective dog, I'm always a fan of rotties.

Jayne, my rott/amstaff male, is 130lbs of muscle, teeth, and love. He's the worlds largest lap dog when I let him get away with it.

We like to joke that he might be "dangerous" or "aggressive" if he weren't too busy looking for comfort and cuddles, and too lazy to chase after trouble.

My other rott mix is a 65lb rott/redbone coonhound bitch, and her coonhound side sometimes causes her to follow her nose into trouble, but she's still a total affection slut.

No matter what though, you still need to be prepared and able to handle large dogs.

What do I mean when I say "prepared and able to handle large dogs" ?

Well, let me use myself as an example. Yes, I'm a big strong man, but that's not the most important thing. The most important things are emotional and mental preparedness.

You MUST be the alpha, and you must be prepared to do what is necessary to deal with your dog.

I can make Jayne cower and roll with a strong look... and he loves and respects me, and I love and respect him, enough that I rarely have to.

When he does get upset, or over excited, I can usually calm him down with a word or a touch, or at worst a strong tone of command and a physical reminder.

USUALLY... but not always...

Jayne is well trained, and well socialized, with an even... in fact a laid back and lazy... demeanor and temperament; but like all dogs, he can get excited, or anxious, or agitated. Very rarely, again like any other dog, he can get excited or agitated enough that he can be difficult to handle.

If he gets so excited or scared that his instincts overwhelm his pack conditioning, I'm big enough, strong enough, and mean enough to back him down, and hold him down if necessary.

And he knows it...

If as an absolute last resort he is driven mad by something, and I am unable to back him down, calm him down, get him back under control or otherwise safely restrain or isolate him from those he could harm... I am prepared to kill him.

And he knows it...

It may sound silly to you, but anyone who works with dogs will understand this... A properly socialized dog knows when you are bigger and stronger and meaner than he is... he especially knows whether you're willing to kill him if you have to. That's how their world works.

Understand, I have raised Jayne from first separation, and love this dog as a member of my own family... but I also recognize a dog is a dog, not a child; and 130lbs of out of control and maddened muscle and teeth is a danger that must be brought under control or stopped, by whatever means necessary.

When you own big dogs... that's what you MUST understand, and be prepared for. If you are not, you have NO DAMN BUSINESS owning a big dog.

Luc, Lucy, and the Meaning of Life.

Just watched Scarlet Johansson in Luc Bessons "Lucy".

Yeah...

Lots of fan service certainly.

VERY VERY VERY DUMB...

Also, in many ways it goes far beyond "homage" and into "total blowjob" territory for Yuen Woo-Ping, John Woo, and Park Chan-Wook... and to Hong Kong and Korean (and of course being a Luc Besson film, french and italian) cinema in general... To the point of some shot for shot "homages", and very explicit callbacks and stunt casting.

Frankly, that was part of the fan service.

I didn't like ScarJo's performance choices and/or Bessons choices in directing her performance... but that was a matter of personal preference and taste. I don't think it was actually a bad performance, I think she was executing what she and Besson wanted... I just didn't care for those choices.

It was REALLY short. It also made very extensive use of stock footage; to the point that I think without it, the whole film minus credits (it's listed as 90 minutes with credits. We timed the actual film content as 83 minutes from opening shot to closing shot) would have been under 60 minutes.

Fun. Not good. Not so horrible as to wrap around and be great.

If you're a film geek... particularly if you love hong kong and korean action movies it's a good "bad movie night" movie

Mr. Watson... Go the hell away, I don't need you now

I really hate talking on the phone... Always have really, but more and more so as I get older.

I have to talk on the phone for hours and hours as part of my job; it's the absolute last thing I want to do when I'm not working

Even if I love you and you're a great friend and we haven't talked in a while... I still hate talking on the phone, and unless there's something specific to talk about, if you call me, I'm likely to say ten words (four of which are likely to be SSDD) and then beg off.

I make an exception for my less technical relatives, with whom I generally can't communicate via email, IM, or Facebook; and with whom I will have long phone conversations a few times a year... But that's pretty much it.

There are times when I simply cannot stand to talk with ANYONE on the phone, or even via instant message... sometimes for a few days at a time. My head just feels like exploding even thinking about picking up the phone.

When I am feeling like that, I will simply not answer the phone or IM for anything other than emergencies or critical work calls. I cancel my con calls, I don't even listen to voicemail never mind respond (oh and DON'T leave me voicemail unless its an emergency and its the only way you know how to contact me. IM, email, or TXT me... I LOATHE voicemail no matter what mood I'm in).

If I am in one of those moods... I am not avoiding you, I just REALLY DO NOT WANT TO TALK ON THE PHONE... Just EMAIL me. I can respond to you properly when I have time and when my head feels better.

Believe me... Its not you I hate.... Its the gods be damned telephone.

Welfare Towns and Equilibrium Traps

Alright, here's where I start to sound like a liberal to those who don't know any better...

Many people seem to believe, that the majority of "welfare recipients", and the recipients of the majority of "welfare dollars" in this country are minorities; particularly blacks and hispanics, and most particularly urban blacks and hispanics living in slums, ghettos, "the barrio", "the hood" etc...

In fact, nothing could be further from the truth.

It's certainly understandable why this misperception exists, because for the most part, it's the image the media, and politicians, present to us. It's just not true.

This is not to say that there aren't a large number of blacks and hispanics receiving some type of "welfare" in this county, or even that in many areas they do so in disproportionate numbers to their local populations. It just needs to be pointed out, that the common perception of "the welfare people" and "the welfare areas" as urban, and black is not only false, it's actually the complete opposite of the truth.

While this stereotype is generally true in large urban areas outside of the southwestern border states (California, Arizona, New mexico, and Texas, where the majority of urban recipients of state aid are hispanic); overall, even in heavily urbanized states, the very large majority (in most states without a "top 20" city it's generally somewhere between 60% and 80%) of those receiving AFDC, subsidized housing, food stamps, and medicaid (the most significant "welfare" programs); are white non-hispanic, and live in rural or semi-rural, suburban, or small metropolitan semi-urban areas.

It can be hard to generalize of course, because these things vary year to year, and state to state; and of course there are variations in how the states collect and report data; but some demographic factors are very clear, and any error or variability is damped out over time and in the aggregate, so a clear historical baseline and trend can be established.

Blacks and city dewellers simply are not the major "beneficiaries" of "welfare" programs in this coiuntry.

In fact, if you want to know what the "typical welfare town" looks like, it's not urban or black at all. It's very white, and very "middle america".

Likely It's a midwestern or southern, large town or small city; though these towns can be found in just about every state from Connecticut to California, and at most any size population, from a few thousand up to 200,000 or so.

Generally, it will have a very small "metropolitan area" around it, with a significant semi-rural or rural population around that, using the town for shopping and services.

It will generally have either a single major employer or majority single industry employment (often a legacy manufacturing industry, agribusiness, or a military base), along with the businesses that service and support those employed by that employer/industry.

Generally, that single company or industry will have closed down entirely, be subject to severe boom and bust cycles, or have just generally hit bad times and have significantly contracted.

Even if the towns revenue base was healthy and diversified, or their major employers are doing OK, often they are still in trouble because things have changed around them which have just made them economically stagnant or non-viable. In those cases, very often they were a thriving town or city before the interstate highway system expanded, and the rail network contracted; but now they are off the main transport routes, and they cost too much, or are too inconvenient, for infrastructure and logistics dependent employers, to economically operate.

Sometimes, they are farm towns, or often former farm towns. Over the past 80 years, our nations farm productivity has soared, but farm labor has crashed. Before the depression, at least 10% of our population directly farmed or ranched the land to produce foodstuffs or textiles. Now, it's less than 1%. That's great for the cost of food, and in general keeping inflation down... but what are all those people who used to be farmers doing now? Meanwhile, the populations of farming areas have grown at a rate similar to that of the rest of semi-rural america. Only there's no decent employment opportunities to support this growth.

Often, they are a distant satellite of a medium or large sized college town, state capital, military base town, or similar polity; close enough that the larger city pulls away business and talent, but not close enough for workers to economically commute, or for the smaller city to share in the largers suburban prosperity.

... and generally, outside of a few southeastern states, and the border states; these towns have largely majority white populations, with largely white populations of "welfare" recipients.

These are the places that the permanent or semi-permanent, intergenerational, white underclass in America live.

Those stuck in that underclass are most likely high school dropouts (about 50%), or GED recipients (about 25%. Only about 25% actually graduate high school). They have almost always become parents before the age of 24 (about 60%) if not actually while in high school (about 40% of those).

If we're just looking at women it's more like 80% have had children under the age of 24, 60% of those while still in high school, and 80% of them dropped out and did not later obtain a GD (at least not before the age of 24).

Even if they had any postsecondary education, or a trade outside the industry which has left the town non-viable (and Devry, other trade schools and for profit colleges and the like, recruit heavily in these populations), theres little or no nearby employment base for them to gain better employment.

They are likely (more than 50% overall, with more than 60% or males and more than 40% of females) to have multiple minor convictions for possession or intoxication, simple assault, driving with suspended license and insurance; or other relatively minor crimes, that while not felonies, do make getting better than low end employment difficult.

Very few are active habitual hard drug users, though intermittent methamphetamine and marijuana use are common (again, over 50%), and intermittent misuse of prescription drugs is becoming common.

Oh and while they may not generally be regular users, they are however statistically by far the most likely group of people to become serious abusers of methamphetamine.

Minor and intermittent alcohol abuse is common, but true alcoholism is relatively rare.

Most of them DO smoke though... in fact, they're the only group of white people in this country among whom more than 40% still smoke (about 40% of women and 60% of men).

They also tend to have poor diets, which in addition to making them more likely to be obese (more than 60%), when combined with their other risk factors is likely to make them far less healthy overall.This reduces both their testable intelligence scores (such as they are... rant for another time), and their expected lifespan by between 5% and 15%.

That's the white underclass in America today... and the "welfare" recipients alone make up something like 15-20% of the population, never mind the "working poor" who earn enough to be means tested out of "welfare" programs.

All told, white, black, hispanic, and everyone else, this institutionalized underclass is something like 25% to 35% of our population, depending how you count it, and whose numbers you believe. Most of them don't live in the inner cities, or the "hood"...

They live in... Jacksonville Illinois.... or Kearny Arizona... or Waycross Georgia.

... and whether they are recipients of state "aid" or not, they are in what is known as an equilibrium trap.

If things were any worse, people would just leave. Go to another place with better education and employment prospects.

If things were any better, people could get ahead, and the local economy could grow.

As it is, conditions are just in that "dead spot" on the curve, where they are both "good enough" or even "tolerable enough", that most people willing to live under them long term, AND where there there is little opportunity for anyone to significantly improve their life, without both a major expenditure of effort and resources, and significant risk of failure (actually, the near certainty of failure several times, before success is achieved).

The risk outweighs the potential reward for most, and most of the rest get beaten down by the multiple failures it generally takes before one can succeed.

Equilibrium traps are considered one of the worst steadystate socioeconomic problems for good reason.

That one particular issue: the fact that failure (even repeated failure) is a part of the process of success; is often the hardest obstacle to overcome.

 Even those who are motivated to improve their lot, and willing to put in the effort, and take the risk; generally have neither the resources to keep trying in the face of failure; nor the education, motivation, acculturation, and support network to help them do so... even if only to help them understand that failure is part of the process, and that it is possible to succeed.

So, you get an institutionalized underclass of the barely employed or unemployed, under-educated, disincentivized, and demoralized people, maybe just maybe just getting by, maybe just surviving...

Maybe not really living... maybe just... existing.

Of course, even when our government is not actually directly creating this equilibrium trap (and very often, they are), they encourage, support, and reinforce it. The government gives just enough "aid" to make things tolerable, but not enough to really make it better; not enough resources, or options, or freedom to let someone help themselves effectively; and they take EVERYTHING AWAY if you try to make it better for yourself.

It would be a case of perverse incentive, if it weren't for the fact that the system is clearly functioning as designerd. It's purpose is not to lift people up, or help them lift themselves... but to keep them under control.

A Technological Life, or something like it

I have just been wasted the last few days.

I got sick last Thursday and was in bed all day, Then I thought I was better enough to go to a 4th of july BBQ and made myself worse. Because I'm an idiot, and do this almost every time I'm sick.

Then Monday, I have no idea what happened, I don't recall doing anything stupid to it other than... growing old I guess... but for some reason my lower back just locked up.

Rather painful that. Could barely move. I tried to get out of my truck and pump some diesel, and I literally couldn't manage it.

Two hours of little Korean lady sadists (yes, it took two of them. The first one could only last about 45 minutes before she was worn out) beating, elbowing, kneeing, and walking on my back (accompanied by repeated exclamations in mixed Korean and English to the effect of "Jesus christ... too much muscle... all too tense... all tied in knots") later, and I could almost sorta kinda walk upright again.

Almost...

The next morning however I was completely locked up again, and I've pretty much been locked up in bed, or on the couch, ever since.

Yay, pain.

Being sick, makes you dumb. Having back pain, very much makes you dumb. Which kinda leads to to the next thing...

My macbook pro is out for warranty service with Apple right now, so I'm on my windows laptop.

As it happens, I also just changed phones.

We switched from Verizon to T-Mobile a few months ago, but were using our old verizon phones (they're unlocked multiband global 4g phones) with t-mobile SIMs (yes, this works, you just have to know how to reprogram the phone to work on the new network, and it has to be fully unlocked).

A few weeks into this, my Galaxy S4 decided to stop working on T-Mobiles network, so I had to replace it.

After researching and comparing the current smartphone landscape, I ended up picking up a google Nexus 5. It's alright, but I don't really like it. I tend to work my devices hard, and the Nexus just didn't quite keep up with what I wanted it to do.

Mels phone was also unreliable, and since I have been preparing to start a new contract which will have me travelling a lot, we needed to get her a reliable replacement.

Or rather I got a replacement. Since I didn't care for the Nexus 5 but Mel likes it, she got the Nexus, and I grabbed a Galaxy S5 (which I'm quite happy with, as I expected I would be. I loved my S4, and the S5 is a straightforward upgrade to it).

Both my windows laptop, and my new phone, are wonderful, current, high performing examples of their type... However, neither of them had my full and current working setup or documents on them. The setups that typically take me a few weeks or more of tinkering and tweaking to get right, when I switch devices.

I am one of those folks who depends on their digital exobrains to run their lives; because, so to speak, I've got too many active tracks going, and I LOSE track of the ones not currently active.

I had forgotten to configure two pieces of software, and two accounts, on my windows laptop and new phone. A combination of just too many little things to remember, and the fact that I've been braindead the last week between being sick, and having really bad back pain.

This not having my digital exobrains properly updated and configured caused me to miss several messages, emails, and two con calls over the past few days.

Nothing that's going to kill me or anything, just one of those irritations of modern life.

Dain Bramaged

I've had something like 60 job screening or interview phone calls, several in person interviews, and now several offers, in the last few weeks. 

I've got several long term background contracts and slow burn projects going on as well. Some stuff which should be really interesting over time. 

My ISC(2) course description (warning, PDF link) for the security congress is up finally, and they've asked me to redevelop and become a trainer for two more courses.

Oh and there's the office cleanout, the garage organization, the woodworking and shelving projects to support those... 

Basically, I've been running at 100mph since we got here, May 11th...

Damn, was that 5 weeks ago?

All work and no play makes Chris a DAMNED TIRED BOY...

I'm gonna go fall over now for like... the rest of the week. I may have to travel next week, and I need the brain rest. 

Say good night Gracie... Good night Gracie. 

"Uh... dude... look at your tire"

So, heading out the door to do some errands Saturday and look what we see...

Well... That's not good...


Let's get a better look...

Yeah... that's pretty bad actually...

Quote from the tire guy "Good thing you guys buy heavy duty commercial truck tires... I've never seen a sidewall fail that bad and hold together. If that was a normal consumer light truck tire it would have exploded. It was a time bomb".

Yeah...

Obviously, we had to grab two new tires on Saturday (the other two were replaced a few months back). Heavy duty commercial truck tires again, because yeah. They're not cheap, but they're worth it.

We were planning on replacing them this week anyway... we just moved our timeline up a few days.

Oh and this time we got the E rated load range. We tried last time but they were back ordered six weeks, so settled for the D rated. They DID last us 50,000+ miles of VERY hard use, from desert to mountains, to blizzard, to ice, and back again; at high speeds and heavy loads before they failed.

Stroms in Toyland

REALLY miss my V-strom...

I've GOT TO get back on a bike soon. It's early summer and I've ridden precisely ONCE since November, and that was for like 10 minutes.

Not sure I'd want to fly back to AZ, unload and prep ( it's a 1,000 with full hard bags) for a 2100 mile road trip, and then ride it from AZ to FL in the height of the summer rains on the Gulf Coast...

On the other hand... I AM sure I don't want to be without a Motorcycle much longer.

Perhaps one of these outstanding job prospects will resolve itself into an offer with relocation, or sufficiently decent offer, that I can just pay to have the trailer fixed and hauled out to me.

Perhaps even so good that even after digging out of our current hole I will have enough left over to acquire another low cost motorcycle.

One advantage to our current location... We are in heaven for purchasers of used second, toy, fun and recreation vehicles like motorcycles, boats, RV's etc...

When you say "full" and "busy"... what exactly do you mean by that?

So, it's another one of those 68 hours awake nights... unintentional for much of it... a combination of insomnia, and just working my ass off, round the clock, the last few days.

In the first 55 of those hours I had NINE different job interviews, or prospect calls, or negotiation sessions, plus a couple extended email exchanges... seemingly all of which are likely to result in final job offers (9, possibly 10 different jobs prospects working, all of them good, a few full time, a few contract).

Plus I'm working on an actual short term contract.

Plus we are working on shutting down a friends old business, so he can move on with his new business; which today involved me mostly carrying a 9 foot couch down 3 split flights of stairs (6 runs plus landings), literally carrying it on my back (which worked out very well, and was much faster and easier than we expected.

Plus working with my friend to try to get his NEW company to understand that they have a critical need for an enterprise, infrastructure, and security architect (or two of us, or possibly three), at least on a contract basis for a few months... and really, they do (to be fair, most organizations could stand with some work in those areas, particularly most startups)... In the process making HIS life easier, improving outcomes for him and his new company, AND giving me a solid source of ongoing revenue while we deal with other opportunities.

Plus cleaning, organizing, and building organizational systems and infrastructure (for example I'm fabricating a custom shelving system for the garage, making use of every inch of wall space for either shelves, a server rack, or workbenches) for the house, garage, lab, and other stuff we require to recondition the large amount of gear left over from the previous business, and ready it for sale, reclamation, recycling, or donation... as well as have an actually usable garage/shop, and some storage space available back in the house.

When I say the garage is full... I mean that it's total volume (it's a two plus sized garage), and entire floor space has been taken up from ground level to chest height... Mostly with servers, networking gear, and assorted other IT crap; some with tools... only a tiny bit with normal "garage stuff"....

... Of course, for geeks like us... this IS normal garage crap.

Plus... you know... rebuilding our life which kinda blew into little pieces a while back...

The one legged man won the ass kicking contest a while back, then hopped across the Boston marathon finish line in under 2:05, hopped across the continental united states, swum the pacific ocean, and is currently engaged in attempting to face kick every taekwondoin in Korea.

Re-writing history to fit his personal racial narrative preferences....

This is one of the stupidest and most offensive things I've read in some time... and I don't LIKE the "religious right".

"The REAL Origins of the Religious Right" 

"In fact, it wasn’t until 1979—a full six years after Roe—that evangelical leaders, at the behest of conservative activist Paul Weyrich, seized on abortion not for moral reasons, but as a rallying-cry to deny President Jimmy Carter a second term. Why? Because the anti-abortion crusade was more palatable than the religious right’s real motive: protecting segregated schools."

Uhh... no... not even close...

The ACTUAL "real" origins of the "religious right" go much farther back first of all.

It started with the "aftereffects" of the second great awakening, and the fundamentalist-modernist/reformist controversy and schism of the late 1890s through 1920s.

This was the separation of "mainline" protestantism, and evangelical/fundamental protestantism; as well as the marking of wholesale entry of organized fundamentalist church groups aggregating into larger political blocs and attempting to act on a regional and national basis.

It's got NOTHING to do with racism or race... Mostly in fact, the issues they advocated for, were economic and social justice issues.

Mainline protestantism mostly aligned strongly on the right economically but were socially moderate, and evangelical/fundamentalist protestantism mostly aligned strongly on the left economically (particularly with the rise of "farm progressives" and later the "new deal"), while being strongly socially conservative or reactionary.

What BEGAN to establish religious groups as right wing in the fundamentalist and evangelical branches, was in fact largely postwar anti-communism/anti-socialism.

From the 1920s, the evangelical churches that were active in issues of race, were strongly economically leftist and STAUNCH democrats.

It was the LATER response to changing social conditions and the rise of race based social change in the south that roused the more reactionary elements...

But that was NOT a factor of the "religious right"...

In fact that was STILL mostly among democrats and those who were moderate leftists economically, but "social conservatives" (who were not in fact conservatives, they were reactionaries).

It wasn't even until the 1980s that the majority of evangelicals identified at Republican or right wing, primarily transitioning with Carter and Reagan.

Through at least the early 80s, evangelicals and other fundamentalists were the strong core of southern, and midwestern democrats.

Ascribing the rise of the "religious right" to race is... ridiculous, short sighted, and bigoted.

...Though unsurprising...

Bergdahl... Policy Fail, Strategy Fail, Tactics Fail... PR win?

Ok... Something that some folks don't seem to understand... and thus do not understand why conservatives, and in particular why current and former servicemembers are extremely upset about... the Bergdahl issue (never mind how he got there in the first place).

Many seem to be mystified why conservatives, and in particular servicemembers, do not seem to be happy about "getting Bergdahl home at least", regardless of what they may think of Bergdahl personally.

They are ascribing this to nothing but reflexive Obama hate... That we hate Obama so much, we'd rather a servicemember remain a prisoner of the Taliban than allow the administration a PR victory.

That's not it. At least not for those who actually understand what has gone on here.

The so called "prisoner exchange" of 5 Taliban terrorists for Bowe Bergdahl was in fact NOT a "prisoner exchange", it was in fact "negotiating with terrorists".

This is against U.S. law in most circumstances, however the president can issue a "finding" that says that doing so is in the national security interest of the united states, or that not doing to presents a clear and present danger to the national security interests of the united states. Such a finding would make the action legal (mostly, under most circumstances, with caveats etc... etc...).

It is not clear whether this was done or not... therefore it is not clear if the law has been broken or not.

What IS clear however, is that "Prisoner Exchange" with non-state actors is not prisoner exchange, it is bribing terrorists. It is DANEGELD, and once you have paid the danegeld, you never get rid of the Dane.

That is WHY we have a policy of not negotiating with terrorists.

Whether this is illegal or not, is irrelevant...

Whether Bergdahl is a hero, or a deserter, or something in between is irrelevant....

What IS relevant, is that the actions taken to "get him home" are guaranteed to harm the national security of the United States, and to put our people at greater risks.

These actions are GUARANTEED to increase the kidnapping, torture, and ransoming of our servicemembers, diplomatic corps, and citizens.

THAT is what so many of us are upset about.

Mostly Untrue.... How to Lie with Facts part whatever...

A couple months back I wrote a few posts in a row about how we are lied to using common misunderstandings about science, basic facts, statistics, percentages and the like...

Time to address another one...

So, popular facebook meme:

True or Not?

MOSTLY untrue...

The first part of it being mostly untrue, is that McDonalds has announced that it already does not use "mechanically separated and recovered beef slurry" in most of their patties in most of their locations; and that for those who do, they will cease doing so.

For the other part of it being mostly untrue... that's where we get into lying with science, and misapplication and overgeneralization etc...

Its a semantic issue, and a matter of lying using the facts without context.

Yes, every major food processors lower cost frozen beef patties are made at least in part, with mechanically separated and recovered beef (the same is true of chicken patties and nuggets).

First thing there is, mechanically separated beef IS "real" beef. It just looks gross and has no texture.

Now... Some of it, from some processors, is cleansed with ammonia, from others it isn't.

However, in either case, it is generally cleansed, neutralized, flushed and rinsed with either saline solution or pure distilled water, and only trace amounts of ammonia remain.

Also, this is a standard technique... in fact, sometimes an FDA MANDATED technique... for maintaining sanitation in all processed meats including ground beef and beef that has been broken down into primals and subprimals at a processing facility (i.e. anything smaller than a side of beef that gets shipped to your supermarket for their own butchers to break down... which means almost all beef sold in the U.S. today; generally referred to as "boxed beef").

In any case, what remains in the food product prior to shipment is so low as to require a lab to detect it... Lower than the levels likely to be present in your own kitchen.

Mechanically separated meat is indistinguishable in lab tests from other meat except in that when handled properly it actually has LESS chemical trace AND less pathogen trace, than most ground beef.

Further, it has been in used for over 100 years, and it does NOT cause cancer.

Nor does ammonia in the extremely tiny amounts remaining in any food product. If it did, we would all get cancer from the trace amounts of ammonia left in our kitchens from using windex.

So.. you can't say it's absolutely 100% false... and some of the bare facts are at least in part correct... But basically the graphic is a lie.

The meme itself by the way was created by an anti-meat raw food advocacy group, who run the website "rawforbeauty.com".

Let's all get screwed over JUST A LITTLE BIT LESS

This... in it's entirety. Not one single word said here is incorrect in any way.

This is not a left, right, or libertarian issue... it's an EVERYONE GETTING SCREWED MORE issue.

Let's all try to get screwed JUST A LITTLE BIT LESS people.

It's a Typical American Phenomenon...

Self identified "Conservatives", and particularly those who identify with the "tea party" (whatever that means at this point... not very much)...

...and who, again mostly are not in fact conservatives, mostly they are reactionary right wing populists...

...are up in arms... again... about the possibility that Republicans might actually work with Democrats on some nebulous form of "Immigration Reform".

Outside the Beltway: House Republicans To Move Forward On Immigration Reform This Summer?

So... To be clear...

U.S. Immigration laws, regulations, and policies are universally recognized by all parties, regardless of politics, in and out of the U.S.; as stupid, wrongheaded, ineffective, and in fact damaging to both the nation, and to those who seek to immigrate here.

We are very effective at keeping the people out who we actually want here.  We are absolutely ineffective at keeping out the people we want out.

There are many reasons for this, but they pretty much all come down to the laws, regulations, and processes being completely wrong and stupid...

... and EVERYONE KNOWS IT.

The current disagreement is in theory based on the idea that we should go about fixing these problems in a slightly different order, or with slightly different priorities.

From the politicians side of things (and yes, they are their own side here, and they're all on the same side... the one that obtains and retains greater power for them) the dispute is ACTUALLY about who gets to score what points, with what voting and donor blocs, and what media organizations.

From the PEOPLES standpoint, the dispute is ACTUALLY about the fact the "sides" don't trust each other not to use the issue to deliberately screw over the "other side"...

... and of course about ingroup identification and social signalling, because this is a "wedge issue".

And mostly, the people doing the "arguing", are the vocal morons who have no clue what is actually going on, or why, or even what the laws, regulations, and processes ARE... Never mind what they should be...

... or the people who are USING THOSE PEOPLE... to whatever their particular ends may be.

So really... it's a fairly typical "wedge issue" in American politics today, more about "identity" than about the actual issue.

See "entitlement reform"

See "Tax Reform"

See "Environmental Policy"