One More Thing to Try in the Covid Wars

While some on Fox News of late are encouraging people to get vaccinated, others continue to hammer home false narratives and bogus conspiracy theories to discourage vaccinations. Where are our mass tort lawyers? They haven't shied from bringing dozens of lawsuits as a result of one condo building collapsing in the state that now has the greatest Covid infection rise. What about a class action on behalf of families who lost a loved one because they refused to get vaccinated as a result of believing what they were told on Fox News? Tucker Carlson has refused to disclose whether or not he has been vaccinated. You can bet he has, which should not play well for him with the jury when they hear what he had to say on the air and in his deposition and at his trial.

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The Time for Dilly-Dallying With Covid-19 Is Over

[Prefatory Note: The intro combined with the text of proposal 1 made it into a letter absent the uninhabited language point that was inspired by a loyal reader. The text of proposal 2 did not]

Persuasion, logic, reasoning, common sense, cash incentives, pleading have all failed to get the vaccination rate up high enough. Whether that is because too many people are too ignorant or because of the Republican and Fox News efforts does not matter. We are running out of time. Hence, two proposals:

Proposal No. 1: Using the "we are at war with the virus" metaphor, which is quite an accurate one, it is time for Congress to declare war against the virus, conscript everyone who is not vaccinated into the army to fight the war, and just as all conscripts get vaccinated for all kinds of things, vaccinate all conscripts for Covid-19, and then give them an honorable discharge. Access to VA care and GI bill educational benefits for these wartime "veterans" would be a nice additional touch. For any conscripts or current soldiers unwilling to be vaccinated, DOD should deploy them to an uninhabited island that has a miserable climate.

Proposal No. 2: There is a simple (albeit not easy) way to allow those who want to exercise their "freedom not to be vaccinated" while protecting those who want to exercise their "right not to be infected by stupid people": Divide the country in half (the Mason-Dixon line would be a fine demarcation), and those who don't want to be vaccinated must stay in their half and those who are vaccinated must stay in their half. In essence, it would be saying: While ending slavery was a necessary and good thing to do, we made a mistake a couple of centuries ago to keep the Union together ... we were then, are now, and likely always will be, two different countries. So, let's just get over it and accept it because it is what it is.

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Be on the Alert for Whole Foods' Quirks

Sometimes Whole Foods' pricing is outrageously high, sometimes it is actually a bargain, and sometimes it is simply bizarre. For an example of the bizarre, here is from one page of Whole Foods' online. The two ciabatta breads are priced the same, but note that one is 50% more bread than the other. I'll leave it to you to figure out which is the better deal:

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Grown Up Getaways

Many people are emerging from the pandemic lockdowns by doing family trips and get togethers. This article from the WSJ describes some adult-only places that many might prefer and they should not be shunned because everyone deserves to indulge themselves:

Auberge Resorts: Southern France wine country.

Canaves Oia Resorts: Santorini

Green O: Montana

Post Ranch Inn: Big Sur

Ilsan Pietro: Positano [Note: I was there in 1971 and it is spectacular. One word of caution: If you're traveling with another couple, be sure to agree that, if the toilet in their suite blows up, and the hotel is full, their having to go to another hotel does mean you have to go with them]

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Before the Crazies Showed Up: The Good Old Days Really Were the Good Old Days

Text of Letter Sent to NYT and AR: "It is tragic and depressing how the [insert the appellation of your choice] have promoted the "freedom to go unmasked and unvaccinated." Although it's not much consolation, we can be grateful they hadn't emerged from wherever they came from and unleashed their venom when the issues of mandatory seat-belts and mandatory smoking-bans were being addressed, and the vaccines that eradicated polio and other diseases were being dispensed. There is some truth to the notion that those were the good old days."

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Thinking About Holding or Attending a Large Event, Think Again: Do I Hear Wedding Bells?

As this bulletin from the CDC sets out: "In July 2021, following multiple large public events in a Barnstable County, Massachusetts, town, 469 COVID-19 cases were identified among Massachusetts residents who had traveled to the town during July 3–17; 346 (74%) occurred in fully vaccinated persons. Testing identified the Delta variant in 90% of specimens from 133 patients. Cycle threshold values were similar among specimens from patients who were fully vaccinated and those who were not." Do you think this has implications for what De Blasio is pushing in NYC to fill Central Park and other venues in other boroughs? Do you think NYC's governments can continue claiming it has moral superiority to those in Florida, Texas, and elsewhere through the South?

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Two Airline Things

1. Given that most airlines do not give refunds for canceled flights, but will restore frequent flier miles, if you are doing a trip where you book one leg with cash and the other with frequent flier miles, the safer way to do it is to book the outgoing flight with cash and the return flight with frequent flier miles. No explanation would seem necessary, but it goes like this: Your more likely to have to change your return flight than your outgoing flight. Nor is there any reasonable excuse for the idiot who didn't follow this precept.

2. With air travel picking up much faster than airlines had predicted, they are changing their flight schedules with much frequency. If you still harbor the illusion that airlines are like your friend, get a dog. Many of these schedule changes are done to cancel out flights where people booked well ahead to take advantage of low fares being offered a while back, so that they then have to re-book at higher fares. Is this reasonable or fair or justified? Of course not. But we've learned that fighting city hall is a lot easier than fighting the airlines--although we do know people who have actually gotten refunds. You're better off just doing a private jet time-share leasing thing.

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Party Girl (1995 Movie on Kanopy (and on IMDb TV))

Party Girl stars you Parker Posey, who turns in a stellar performance (a la Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's). It's the story of a NYC hard-partier who gets bailed out of jail by her librarian Godmother and ends up working in the library, which I'm guessing becomes a life-changing event as she gets exposed to various philosophical stuff. I bailed because it's the kind of arty, grainy movie that's over my head but beloved at Sundance. 

IMDb Link to Party Girl

Booster Covid Shots for People Over 60

As this article explains, Israel is now doing booster (3rd) Pfizer Covid shots for anyone over 60 who is 5 months past their second vaccination. 

PS: Further to the post yesterday re disappointment with the FDA and CDC, maybe the best course in terms of following the science would be to let the FDA and CDC deal with other stuff, and just follow what Israel does when it comes to Covid19.

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The Phone Call (2013 Academy Award Winner for Best Short Film, on Kanopy)

If you were lucky enough to have been a Peace Corps Volunteer in 1968, you would have found in the book locker they gave (along with 209 other books, Miss Lonely Hearts by Nathaniel West, which is rightly considered along with Catch 22 one of the 20th Century American literature classics. It's not available anymore, but The Phone Call is on Kanopy, a free streaming service for anyone with a library card. If I say anything about its plot it would be a spoiler, so I'll say just four things: It's not light and funny but it's message--properly understood--is not a downer, it's not for everyone, it runs only 20 minutes, and it's extremely well done, well written, well acted, and powerful--so that its Oscar for Best Short Film and many other awards are well deserved. 

IMDb Link to The Phone Call 

Link to Sign Up to Kanopy 

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How to Choose Which Team Sports Should Be in the Olympics

With the exception of soccer because it's so great and the World Cup is just every four years, the only team sports that should be permitted in the Olympics are those in which there is otherwise no "world championship type" competition or otherwise is not really a team sport. With these criteria, it becomes obvious why golf and tennis should not be in the Olympics but it's okay that basketball and softball are. 

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Request to the Administration, State Governments, CDC, FDA, and the Media: Try Something Different

1. After watching a year of what appeared to be a corrupted CDC and FDA, one would have hoped that the sweeping out of an insane president (one who suggested injecting detergent to counter Covid while his supposed advisor Dr. Birx just sat by and fidgeted a little) would have ushered in a renewed faith in the science and in government. But the so-called decision by the FDA (which still has no director) on the Alzheimer drug and the self-contradictory jibberish coming out of the CDC makes reliance on those institutions a bit difficult.

2. Wait, it gets even worse. The CDC has no idea and does not even collect the data necessary to determine the infection rate of vaccinated people. If this were difficult data to collect, that would be one thing. But, all it takes is to add one question to the paperwork people getting tested have to fill out, namely, "Have you been vaccinated?"

3. It also gets worse for the FDA. One of the supposed objections to getting vaccinated is the lack of full FDA approval for the vaccines, even though the difference between EUA and full approval is pretty thin at this point. The drug companies have been presenting rolling data for months now in an effort to get full FDA approval. But there's no sign of any movement by the FDA. 

4. As Albert Einstein said, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. While finally there is a small push to mandate vaccinations, that is the first new thing tried to get the vaccination rate from below 50% where it is to where it needs to be to achieve herd immunity. With all due respect to Dr. Fauci and all the experts paraded daily onto mainstream media to promote vaccinations, and bless their hearts, it is insane at this point to think they are effective salespersons on the matter or that convincing with supposed scientific logic is the way to go. We have proposed direct economic incentives through lotteries coupled with direct payments for people to get vaccinated. Another way to go would be tax holidays for anyone hereon out who gets vaccinated or to give a tax holiday or cash payment to everyone vaccinated once herd immunity is reached. Another way to go is economic disincentives for companies and sports teams and sports and entertainment venues that do not require vaccinations for people entering their places. And a good one brainstorming session could produce a 100 great ideas. That said, there is no question that the people and politicians that are flying in the face of science when it comes to vaccinations and mitigation (masking) are either stupid or evil or both. But calling them that might not be the best way to persuade and to get to herd immunity.   

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The Grifters (1990 Movie on HBO and HBO Max and on Prime (Not Free))

Starring Angelica Huston, Annette Bening, and John Cusack, this is the story of three grifters ... a small time conman, his estranged mother, and his girlfriend. It is dark (as if Martin Scorsese's involvement was not a tip off). Worse, it's boring, and so it might be possible to get beyond the first half hour, but that was beyond my ability. While it cannot be said that Annette Bening did not do a first-rate acting job, it's not a role she should be playing. 

IMDb Link to The Grifters

How to Stick It to McCarthy, McConnell, and the Republicans

Just the excerpts of the officers' testimony at today's January 6 Select Committee hearing are beyond description in terms of their power. The best complement to that testimony were the comments of the two Republican members of the committee. It will never happen because it seems impossible for any politician to cede his or her right to pontificate once a camera starts rolling, but this Committee would have far more impact, and perhaps even real impact, if it left the questioning to capable staff counsel for the Democrats and to Representatives Cheney and Kinzinger for the Republicans. Then, all the live TV coverage and all the media recap coverage would focus on what McCarthy, McConnell, and the other snakes who call themselves Republicans want to focus on least: The truth and Republicans on the side of the truth.

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The Fed Might Be Correct About Inflation Being Transitory

This article from the WSJ explains that one of the most important signals of future inflation has begun to ease in the past month, a development that should reassure the Federal Reserve in its prediction that the recent inflation surge will prove largely temporary. That signal is so-called inflation expectations: what businesses, consumers, workers and investors expect inflation to be over the next one to 10 years. Because such expectations can be self-fulfilling, economists consider them key to where inflation is going. Putting aside the implication for the stock and bond markets, it might suggest that there might be savings on purchases that can be deferred.

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New Improved Eargos

I don't mean to sound like an Eargo salesperson nor do I get any compensation for endorsing them. But I am an Eargo user and love them and recommend them highly, as does my swimming buddy, Rowdy Gaines. Eargo now has an improved product (the Eargo 5) that looks to be fantastic, as you can read about it on the Eargo website. As always, they are essentially invisible (being in the ear) and re-chargeable so no battery replacements need be bought, and now are controllable with an app. 

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Some Notes on the Olympics

1. If you're not following the Olympics closely, it is meet to note they are taking place in Japan which is hours ahead of us because of Japan's being on the other side of the world. As a result, if you care about watching events without knowing how they came out, be careful what you look at on the internets. For example, if you dutifully set your DVR to record the U.S./Australia women's soccer match beginning at 7 am, but looked at your online version of WAPO earlier that morning, you would have seen the result which then spoiled your plans for the morning and put you in a surly mood.

2. If you are scratching your head as to what many of the events even are, and how it is now that 13 year-olds can become Olympic champions, you are not alone. That the Olympics are now the culmination of a life-long dream (which spanned from age 7 through 13) takes a bit getting used to or provides a good reason just to tune out the Olympics.

3. Further to that thought, one must wonder why, if the IOC is going to keep adding sports (including sports such as tennis and golf for which the Olympics are not needed), why not add sports for seniors, who likely could be a major television demographic. Such sports could include shuffleboard and darts and miniature golf and bocce ball and mahjong and bridge.

4. If you watched softball, you will notice there are two bases at first base. The rule is that on close plays the fielder uses the inside base and the runner the outside base. This is a good innovation because it reduces the likelihood of injury. There is no a priori reason the two-first-base thing should not be adopted in other versions of baseball.

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Jury Duty Age Limits in Arizona State and Federal Courts

In Arizona state courts, you can be excused from jury duty upon written request if you are over 75; in federal court, you can be excused from jury duty if you are over 70. There also are ways upon reaching those milestones to request in writing to be removed from the jury rolls. In all events, please remember, it is a civic duty and, indeed an honor, to serve on a jury. 

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Re-Brand the Vaccine

[Prefatory Note: I can feel the pushback on this. That said, as the oath I took said, "first, do no harm," and this will do no harm. And if it can help, so much the better. Here then, the text of a letter to the AR and NYT]

While the pockets of resistance are not limited to Trump supporters, they represent a huge percentage of those unwilling to get vaccinated. Given that, in the interest of upping the vaccination rate which looks to be crucial to avoid the calamity that otherwise might happen, President Biden could show true leadership by playing to Trump's vanity and his followers allegiance to him. Simply put, Biden should do a prime time talk from the Oval Office at which he says: "We need to thank President Trump for his Warp Speed program that delivered the vaccine that could save so many lives and restore this country, and so I am naming the vaccines, 'The Trump Vaccines,' and I ask President Trump to encourage everyone, just as President Trump and Melania did, to get his, The Trump vaccine." 

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Ford vs. Ferrari (2019 Movie on HBO and HBO Max and Prime (Not Free)

You don't have to like cars or car racing to enjoy Ford vs. Ferrari. You just have to like a good story well told on the big screen, with first-rate performances turned in by Matt Damon, Christian Bales, Jon Bernthal, and Caitriona Balfe, which isn't easy when you're playing larger-than-life characters. It's a true story and it captures the corporate ethos of the time. And, if nothing else, it has a line worth remembering: "As my daddy taught me, if you love what you do, you never have to work a day in your life." 

IMDb Link to Ford vs. Ferrari

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Hypothetical Query

On Saturday night at his speech in Phoenix, we heard Trump explain that the hesitancy to get vaccinated in the main is the result of people not trusting Biden. Assume that is correct and further assume that, if Trump actually had won the election, Trump would have taken the stance that his base and everyone else should be vaccinated, and the result would have been that they did get vaccinated and herd immunity would have been reached months ago, the Delta variant would not have taken hold as it did, masks would not be needed, and the economy would be totally re-opened and soaring like a rocket ship. If you knew that would be what would follow from the election, would you have voted for Trump? 

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The White Lotus: Episode 3 (HBO and HBO Max)

For the reasons stated on the post discussing the second episode, I'm not watching this series any longer, and hence did not watch the third episode. From what I've been told, not only has the writing, acting, and everything else not improved, and if you started disliking all the characters before your ardor has only increased, it's now verging on the pornographic and not any kind of the good pornographic at that.  

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Another Reason to Shun Toyota

As this article from the NYT explains, Toyota, one of the world’s largest automakers, has quietly become the industry’s strongest voice opposing an all-out transition to electric vehicles — which proponents say is critical to fighting climate change.

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Simone Biles

If you watch nothing else in the Olympics, and I'm not sure there's that much worthy of watching, watch Simone Biles. Even when she's off, she's unbelievable. There truly is something special about athletes (or anyone) that transforms their sport (or whatever it is they do) to a place where it's never been before. And Simone Biles clearly has done that. But remember, to Seinfeld's disappointment, it's just gymnastics.

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Golf Commentary

For those who had the misfortune of watching the LPGA's Evian Championship, which made one appreciate even more the The Open Championship performance of Collin Morikawa, there was something to learn. The commentators here, and they are not alone in this, kept yapping about having to have "great imagination" especially around the greens to be able to pull off extremely difficult shots, especially ones that have been left short-sided. Bosh! Here's the real point, applicable both to golf and to life: Imagination is relatively easy (that is, many can see the shot to play) ... it's the execution that is really hard (that is, few can pull it off). This is a lesson that was learned early on by a decent but not great amateur whose imagination (even as a junior junior) could match the best of them but whose execution fell a wee bit short (he also had trouble with distance or, more properly said, lack of distance).

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ISPs Can Be the Last to Know About an Outage

Cox had an outage that started late Saturday afternoon, but did not see it because not many people had phoned in to report an internet outage and schedule service. By early Sunday morning, Cox still had not seen it, but finally did mid-morning. So, if you get a DNS Server error message upon hitting the Troubleshooter when you've lost internet service, it's likely an ISP issue and not a problem with your modem as the ISP tech will try to tell you. Still, please phone in and schedule service, which you can always cancel, because, as it turns out, the triggering of an ISP detecting an outage is a higher than usual schedulings of service calls. Yes, it's a terrible system, which, as noted in an earlier post, we tried to bring to Cox's attention. But, it is what it is.

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Backup Modem

Usually when the modem cannot connect to the internet, it is an ISP outage. Sometimes, the modem has gone bad. For most users' internet plans (which are under 400 Mbps and usually are under 150 Mbps), an excellent name brand (e.g., Netgear) can be gotten (the same day as ordered) from Amazon for under $50. It might not be a bad idea to have one on hand which will avoid waiting for (and possibly paying the cost of) an ISP tech to come out and look at your system. Remember, if your internet goes down, you can tether your computer to your phone so that's good, but you won't be able to stream stuff unless you tether your computer (which is another advantage to have a laptop) to your television which is not difficult but which is a pain.

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Phoenix Weather

Many loyal and not-so-loyal readers from places other than Phoenix seem unduly obsessed with Phoenix weather and temperatures. Haven't heard from them in the past couple of days. So, in the event they haven't heard, here's the deal: Yesterday the high was in the 70s and today it likely will be in the low 80s so the A/C has been turned off and the doors and windows have remained open, and it's rained canines and felines so the sprinklers have been set to skip cycles and the forest fires have been doused. 

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Dyson Airwrap

One thing you can say about Dyson products without fear of contradiction is they are set at price points that leads to head scratching. Most people are aware of that in view of their vacuums. The Dyson Airwrap is its latest entry. If for any reason you are dissatisfied with your $30 hair-styler, for $350-$550 you can step up to the Dyson offerings. Should you hesitate because of the price, just say to yourself, "I'm worth it." Should you hesitate because it seems ridiculous, just say to yourself, "I've got better things to do with my money." In all events, as you can see in the photo, it's a honkin piece of machinery.

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Whole Foods Delivery

While you might be shopping yourself again instead of having groceries delivered, you might consider at least on occasion having Whole Foods deliver your food. There is no delivery charge and there appear to be plenty of time slots available (e.g., if you placed an order yesterday at 6:30 am, it would be delivered by 8 am). Here, though, is the real reason: You will be helping the delivery person through your tip to them who needs the income and has less business now then they did just a few months ago.

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Bandits (2001 on HBO and Amazon Prime)

Bandits is a bad remake of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. A very bad remake. The characters are not nearly as likeable, the dialogue isn't close, and it's filled with annoyances. The one thing that does rivet you is how great an actress Cate Blanchette is and what a great performance she turned in on Mare of Easttown, because you keep looking and saying this is not the same person. But then Bruce Willis and Billy Bob Thornton aren't Paul Newman and Robert Redford, and the writers are not the same quality writers, and whoever the third guy is in Bandits makes no sense and really is annoying for no purpose, and has no counterpart in the Butch Cassidy movie. As for bank robbery movies, Bandits does not come close to Quick Change either, which really is a gem of a movie, and is available on Amazon Prime.

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Tip re Laundry Detergent: Reduce the Amount You Use

Just as shampoo makers tell you to wash, rinse, and wash and rinse again so that you'll buy shampoo more often, laundry detergent makers lie about how much laundry detergent to use. As this article from the Wirecutter explains, to effectively clean your clothes, you need to use only 2 tablespoons per load at most—and that’s for big loads weighing 12 pounds or more, and 1 tablespoon is enough to thoroughly clean an average load, which usually weighs around 8 pounds. 

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Peacock: The Future of Television

While I have very little interest in the Olympics, I was curious to see how it is covered by Peacock, the NBC streaming service (which is at no additional cost (I would have said "free" but there's a loyal reader who would object to using the term "free" when it would be more accurate to say the cost is "bundled") through Cox and other cable providers). All I can say is WOW!!!! You can watch any event that's been played or is being played live, plus watch countless interviews, plus specials, plus movies and documentaries about the Olympics, and much more. The menu is simply amazing. In essence, once the ability to deliver content is unfettered from the straight-jacket of one channel/one thing, a whole new experience is opened. If your TV is too old to have the Peacock App itself, it's available through your Amazon Firestick or Roku device.

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Phoenix Handyperson Service: Phil's Home Maintenance

I had the greatest handyperson in the world, but when he turned out to be a total right-wing Trumper anti-vaccine anti-vaxxer nut job, I refused to deal with him any longer. I then found a guy who was good for a while but became a bit erratic (to put it mildly) and kept failing to show up (for any of 4 promised appointments over 3 months) and so I stopped dealing with him (and I was shocked at how shocked he was that I was not pleased with his failure to show up and his apparent ignorance of the fact that "99% of life is showing up"). I have now turned to a professional home maintenance firm that was recommended in the highest terms by my realtor of 40 years. They cater both to realtors (for getting homes ready to sell or for doing post-inspection fix-ups) and individuals. They are exceedingly professional (among other things, they show up on the promised day and time). Their charges are reasonable. Here is their contact info:

Phil's Home Maintenance: Link to Their Website

Phone: (623) 979-5995

Email: phils5995@gmail.com

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Good vs. Bad Inflation

Most of the discussion on inflation has centered on whether or not it is transitory. Digging down a level, as this article by Greg Ip in the WSJ explains, perhaps a more informative way to look at the issue is to understand the difference between good inflation and bad inflation.

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NBA Trivia: Further Proof That Many Have No Idea What They Are Doing

Submitted by a loyal reader, note this: 14 players were drafted ahead of Giannis Antetokounmpo (MVP and deservedly so of the NBA Finals, turning in unbelievable performances) in the 2013 NBA draft. I was not one of them. Two are no longer in the league, only one is still with the team that drafted him, and only one has ever played in an NBA All-Star game.

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USPS Electronic Signature

We have long recommended USPS's Informed Delivery Service so you can see what mail is supposed to be delivered. By way of illustration, we know someone who was enrolled in this service who could see that a jury summons was in the mail but never got delivered. Given that knowledge, he was able to enroll as a juror and avoid being hauled off to the Big House for failing to show up. 

There are other services available once you sign up for the USPS Informed Delivery. One is notice of packages being delivered or delivered. Another, is to enroll your signature electronically so that you need not be home to receive packages requiring a signature. All the services can be seen on the Settings page of the USPS Informed Delivery Website.

  

Who Said Judges Don't Have Morbid Senses of Humor

From some news source (highlighting added):

As the remaining rubble from the collapse of a 12-story oceanfront condominium was cleared away Wednesday, a Florida judge said victims and families who suffered losses will get a minimum of $150 million in compensation initially. That sum includes about $50 million in insurance on the Champlain Towers South building and at least $100 million in proceeds from the sale of the Surfside property where the structure once stood, Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Michael Hanzman said at a hearing. “The court's concern has always been the victims here," the judge said, adding that the group includes visitors and renters, not just condo owners. “Their rights will be protected.” The $150 million does not count any proceeds from the numerous lawsuits already filed since the June 24 collapse, which killed at least 97 people. Those lawsuits are being consolidated into a single class action that would cover all victims and family members if they choose, the judge said. “I have no doubt, no stone will be left unturned,” Hanzman said of the lawsuits."

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Sticking It to J. Alfred Proofrock: How I Dare to Eat a Peach

Last year I publicly declared my love for nectarines over peaches, causing a little stone fruit drama. But I have a giant box of Georgia peaches I ordered online to see if there really was something I was missing. I am pleased to report that while my mind remains unchanged on the superiority of nectarines, peaches are still close behind. 

I realized there is a much better way to cut a peach.

I had been cutting peaches along the crack — that line that runs from the stem to the point. But, there is a much better way: You should be cutting them along the equator. Just cut around the fat middle and twist the top off; another easy turn. Cut the second part and, with a little pressure, the pit will just pop out like magic. 

I love when a super-simple trick turns out to really work, and it will serve me well as I work my way through this pile of peaches and await the greatest weeks of the year: nectarine season. 

How to Handle Cox (and Perhaps Other ISP) Outages

When you lose internet connection, it can be a problem with your equipment or with your ISP's equipment. If you get a DNS error message (upon clicking on the Windows 10 internet trouble shooter), it's likely an ISP issue. The problem is that often the first tier ISP techs and the ISP itself are unaware of the outage, and they will put you through a bunch of trouble-shooting stuff for no reason (and it's stuff you can do yourself). I spoke to a supervisor at length after the 3rd Cox outage of the day, pleading that Cox improve its system for identifying outages. She said calling doesn't trigger anything re Cox knowing about the outage. Instead, the only thing that actually triggers reports to the engineering team(s) to look for an outage is scheduling a service call. I give up.

All that said, don't forget you can tether your computer to your phone which will give you internet connection until the outage is fixed. Just plug your phone with a USB cable into your computer, and change your Connections setting so that Tethering is On (and you likely have to turn off your wifi connection). This really works quite well, and your phone actually charges while you are tethered.

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New Costco Senior Hours

While any given Costco outlet might be different (and, given that their individual websites don't say, you might phone your outlet to check), most of them will be having early senior hours of 9 am-10 am on Tuesdays and Thursdays starting this coming week. In addition to safety issues, shopping during those hours makes the Costco experience much easier to take. 

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The Best NBA Moment

In a piece entitled the best NBA moment you may not have seen, here is how it is described by the author: "It was Giannis’s night. It was Giannis’s show. It was Giannis’s NBA Finals. But late Tuesday night, someone managed to steal the show from Giannis for just a few seconds. In a time when class and grace is at an all-time low in society, Suns coach Monty Williams showed what kind of person he is by going into the Bucks’ locker room to congratulate Milwaukee on winning the NBA title. With his arm around Giannis, Williams said, 'I just wanted to come and congratulate you guys as a man and a coach because you guys deserve it. I'm thankful for the experience. You guys made me a better coach and you made us a better team. Congratulations.' I can’t remember ever seeing a losing coach go into the winning team’s locker room to offer a heartfelt congratulations. What makes Williams’s gesture even more remarkable is that just a few minutes before addressing the Bucks, he became emotional during his postgame press conference."

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Why the Republicans and Fox News Are Beginning to Push for Vaccinations

Although they don't hesitate to sandwich their recommendations for vaccinations with off-the-wall "what about" talking points, there are some cracks in the Republican and Fox News and other right wingers' antitheses to vaccinations, some are admitting to getting vaccinated, and some are even pushing their viewership and constituencies to get vaccinated. One must wonder why the sudden shift. Here are two possible reasons:

1. They decided to do the right thing. Is this possible? History says it is not. The short answer is: Oh please!

2. They are afraid Darwin is right and that the Delta and future variants are going to disproportionately kill off their viewership and constituencies with three results: Fox will lose viewership and advertising revenue; the so-called Republican party will lose members and voters; and suburban voters in 2022 will blame the anti-vaxxers for the health and economic woes they have sowed.  Other than likely never hearing of Darwin or knowing what he wrote or ever conceding that science might be right, this would appear to be the more likely reason.

[EOP]

MLB Head Scratcher: Numbers on Manager Uniforms

There are good reasons MLB players have numbers on their uniforms. But there does not appear any reason that the managers do. In the good old days, some managers (e.g., Connie Mack in the best MLB city--Philadelphia) did not even wear uniforms. And in other sports, managers do not wear uniforms. Just as many ball boys and girls where BB or BG on their uniforms, it would make more sense if managers wore an M on their uniforms.

[EOP]

Changing Your IP Address

Routinely changing your external, or public IP address, can help you improve your overall security and browsing privacy. There are other reasons, too. If you've just installed a new home router, you may need to reconfigure your network with a quick IP change. One common problem among home routers is that they sometimes give devices the wrong IP address, so changing your IP manually can solve those glitches.  Fortunately, changing your IP address is legal and easy. This cnet article sets out the various ways to do so.

[EOP]

Tips re Getting Better Suggestions From Netflix

Netflix uses secret codes to make suggestions for what you might like to watch. This cnet article explains how Netflix does what it does with these secret codes and how you can tweak the system to get better suggestions.

[EOP]

Boys With Toys

If ever there were a rationale for a billionaires' tax, it's the time, energy, and resources that a Bezos and a Branson spend on their little rockets. Absent such a tax, a fitting punishment would be to make them watch October Sky which is a terrific movie with Jake Gyllenhaal and is available on Prime so Bezos wouldn't have to pay to see it. Alternatively, lock them in a room and make them listen to this classic by Tom Lehrer. In short, given their obvious talents, brains, and accomplishments on earth, it would be refreshing if their energies were spent on trying to keep our planet inhabitable instead of playing around trying to escape it. 

PS: Shortly after this actually posted on the blog, Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D., Oreg.) announced he's working on a plan for a new tax targeting space tourism.The Securing Protections Against Carbon Emissions (SPACE) Tax Act would create new excise taxes on commercial space flights with human passengers for non-research purposes. “Space exploration isn’t a tax-free holiday for the wealthy. Just as normal Americans pay taxes when they buy airline tickets, billionaires who fly into space to produce nothing of scientific value should do the same, and then some,” said Blumenauer in a statement. “I’m not opposed to this type of space innovation. However, things that are done purely for tourism or entertainment, and that don't have a scientific purpose, should in turn support the public good.” Blumenauer noted he's worried about the environmental impact of launching humans into space for tourism or entertainment purposes.  

[EOP]

The White Lotus (HBO and HBO Max)

The first episode of this mini-series was not good. The second episode makes clear this is one of the worst mini-series ever done. The writing is terrible, the acting is terrible, the characters are overdone, the stories are boring, the people are worse than boring, and there's nothing redeeming about it. If they tried to sell it as a Lifetime movie, the Lifetime channel would not buy it. 

[EOP] 

Kudos to a Responsible Restaurant

 Oven & Vine is a Phoenix restaurant. It has just announced that, to dine in its restaurant, one must show proof of vaccination. It's like a breath of fresh air and sanity. It would be nice if it could go viral. I've just sent them a laudatory email and encourage you to do so. Please support them. Thanks.

Link to Oven & Vine Website 

Salad Prep and Tossing Tip

If you make a salad by first putting in the greens and then adding the other stuff (e.g., celery, carrots, English cucumbers, avocado, artichoke hearts, etc.) and then tossing, the other stuff tends to head for the bottom. Here's how to avoid that (as illustrated below): Put the greens into the salad bowl (Pic 1), and then chop up the other stuff and mix it together in a separate bowl (Pic 2), and then add it to the salad (Pic 3). If you want to pre-dress the salad, then pre-dress the greens separately from the pre-dressing the other stuff, and then add the pre-dressed other stuff to the pre-dressed greens.

Greens in a Bowl

Chopped Other Stuff in a Bowl

Finished Salad

[EOP] 

Service to Clean Your Blue Barrels (in Phoenix)

Many people seem to not care that their blue (recycling) barrels are not as clean inside and out as they can be. Others seem to care but find cleaning them to be a little more challenging than they had thought. There's now a service (actually there are several) that will do it for you with power and pressure washing on a one-time basis or on a schedule such as every 2 or 3 months. The cleaning is thorough, eco-friendly, and professional. It's akin to detailing your car.

Link to CanCleanPros Website

  

Washing Machine Replacement Part Tip

If you have a front-loading washing machine, it will have a drawer for the detergent and other additives, and the drawer has a handle in front of it. This is a part that merits buying a back-up for as soon as you get the washing machine. Otherwise, while it's just a piece of plastic, if you need to replace it 5 years later it will cost you $65 and if you need to replace it 12 years later it will cost you $145 and it's not a part that's easy to find.

[EOP]

 

Tesla Releases Full Self-Driving Subscription

If you have hesitated for any reason to get a Tesla, there's no reason to wait any longer. As this article explains, Tesla has finally released the long-awaited subscription option for their Full Self-Driving feature. Here are the details: Customers who are interested in subscribing can do so in the Tesla mobile app and they will be billed through their Tesla account. Tesla will allow subscribers to cancel at any time. After cancellation, Full Self-Driving features will remain active until the end of the current billing period. Until now, Tesla has only offered access to the Full Self-Driving feature set as a purchase rather than a subscription. The price has risen over time and currently costs $10,000. At $199 per month, customers who decide to purchase in full would come out ahead after four years and two months.

[EOP]

Why Sports Are So Beloved

Sports are beloved for two reasons: (i) It is impossible to know what actually is going to happen in any event ... surprises and upsets and quirks of fate are rife (as Al Michaels put it, "Do you believe in miracles?"); and (ii) flawless performances are turned in that are mesmerizing and inspiring because true excellence is so rare and such a joy to watch (as Collin Morikawa showed in his final round of The Open).

[EOP]  

BBQ Cover Tips

Generic bbq covers range in price on The Amazon from about $16 to $40. The more expensive ones do not seem any sturdier or longer-lasting than the less expensive ones. The one feature that's really nice to have are handles which make the cover easier to remove (in one swoop) and allow it to be hung up on a nail that you might have conveniently placed near the bbq. Two basic sizes for dual platform bbq's are the 54" and the 58". Generally speaking, the 58" will be less likely to tear where the bbq top has pointy edges.

[EOP] 

Why the Phoenix Fans Count to 10 When Giannis Goes to the Free Throw Line

Because they are Cyber Ninjas doing the audit to prove that Trump won the election and have been challenged to put to rest the scurrilous charge that they cannot count to ten.

[EOP] 

Update on Companies Contributing to Republicans Who Voted Not to Certify the Election

After the January 6 insurrection, it was revealed that many corporations, including Toyota, which led some people to refuse to buy another Toyota, were contributing to Republicans who voted not to certify Biden's election. In response, many of those corporations claimed to see the light and announced they would not be making such contributions. Well, shiver my timbers, time goes by, memories fade, and as this WSJ article reports,  Toyota and many many other corporations are back supporting those Republicans. All you can say is: time goes by so slowly and time can mean so much.

[EOP]

Books on Trump: A Tale of Silence and Grifting

This article by Hayes Brown captures why there is, and understandably so, such little genuine interest in the latest books about Trump: As Brown puts it, they are "great gossip but publishing too late to help." There's no crime in these authors making money, but there's a real crime in their sources remaining silent when if they had told what they knew on a timely basis--all of which they knew before the second impeachment trial--maybe they could have done some good. Of course, John Bolton's remaining silent during the first impeachment trial in favor of holding what he knew for his book entitles him to HOS (Hall of Shame) status, only outdone by Bob Woodward's remaining silent in favor of holding what he knew for his book as hundreds of thousands people died. Maybe Bolton's agreeing to testify would not have changed the impeachment result and maybe Woodward's warning us that the president knew about the seriousness of Covid-19 (and said so on tape) would have been doomed to fall on deaf ears in favor of Trump's undoubtedly lying (e.g., "what you think you heard me say on tape was fake news"). But that's not a reason to opt for money over doing the right thing where doing the right thing just might have mattered. The bottom-line is this: When it comes to condemning Trump for his greed over doing the right thing, let's remember he is not alone.

[EOP] 

PS re TSA Precheck

Contrary to what the TSA website says, they no longer send out confirming emails or TSA cards. In essence, it's like the Frank & Albert's at the Biltmore menu: It's no longer operative ... they don't have mussels ever. 

[EOP] 

Camera Work at The Open

I didn't need the barrage of complaints from loyal readers to realize the camera work at The Open aka The Open Championship and sometimes improperly referred to as The British Open is horrendous. Whether it's because the technical camera crew doesn't know what a golf ball looks like or how to move a camera or to track a flying object no one knows. Rest assured, I have brought the matter to the attention of The Golf Channel, NBC, and the Royal & Ancient, and they not only were very pleased to receive my feedback, but they assured me they will both look into the matter and refer it to the proper department.  In that way, the camera work at the Royal St. Georges Golf Club, the course known for having more elephants buried on it than any other rota course, will not be starting a camera tradition like none other, and so that this year's championship and its crowning of the champion golfer of the year will be one for the ages.

PS: All that said, while there are a few names on the first page of the leaderboard still to be expunged, this is shaping up to be a titanic struggle of great players--which some might say, will produce a win for the ages.

[EOP]

Emergency Use Authorization vs. Full FDA Approval

This article sets out the difference, or more importantly the lack thereof, between Emergency Use Authorization versus Full FDA Approval. Unlike Full FDA Approval, EUA cannot by necessity assess the long-term affects Full FDA Approval can, i.e., EUA is given before long term effects might set in. That the Covid vaccines have only EUA seems to be the reason cited for even supposed health professionals refusing to get vaccinated, as the comments in this article submitted by a loyal reader (and highly trained and accomplished health care professional) illustrate. As this loyal reader explained: "What they want is 100% certainty that the vaccines will not cause future adverse effects. I want 100% certainty that whenever I drive my car I won’t be involved in an automobile accident. Until you provide that certain proof, the next time I go to Costco to pick up Kirkland Ice Cream bars, I will walk the 5 miles in 112 degree heat and back again just so I won’t be involved in an auto accident." 

[EOP]

Tip re TSA Precheck

[Prefatory Note: It sometimes is thought that a mess up being noted here as a warning to others is my mess up. Sometimes that is a correct conclusion. In this instance, it would both wrong and wrong-headed to so conclude]

The name you use to apply for TSA Precheck needs to correspond to your name as it appears when you enter your TSA Precheck number on your profile on airline websites. So, if you use your passport for ID to get your TSA Precheck number, but your passport name is different than the name you use on airline websites (e.g., you use your full middle name on your passport but not on the airline websites), you will not get TSA Precheck status when your ticket issues. And to correct the matter is a major headache if even possible. 

[EOP]

Sunscreen Recall

Many people use sunscreen to prevent skin cancer. As it turns out, the ingredients in Johnson & Johnson's Neutrogena and Aveena sunscreens themselves can cause cancer and have been recalled. This WAPO article has the details.

[EOP]

Simple iPhone Maintenance

Weekly maintenance on your smart device will keep it running faster and smoother. We have in earlier posts set out how to do so for Android devices. Here are some simple things cnet recommends to do maintenance-wise for iPhones: 

Clearing an iPhone's Cache

Clearing Other iPhone Storage

Freedom in America: The Right to Harm Others

If the consequences of being unvaccinated and not wearing masks were simply that those persons got sick or really sick with long-term maladies or died, they certainly should be entitled to their declared freedom not to be vaccinated and not to wear masks. But when the consequences are that they are infecting other people (including especially immune-compromised people and children under 12 who cannot be vaccinated) and imposing costs on the medical system (and exposing those who are then called on to treat them), their declared "freedom" is just a fancy term for their right to inflict harm on innocent people and to impose enormous burdens on society as a whole. If ever there were an appropriate time for a plaintiffs class action (comprised of all those who are disqualified from being vaccinated) against a class action defendants (comprised of all those who are eligible to be vaccinated but have refused), this is that time. Put another way, it would be salutary if the mass tort lawyers who have no hesitancy to immediately bring a lawsuit when a building collapses or a plane crashes actually brought such a suit that could have a real benefit. Of course, if we lived in a sane country (one without Republicans), it would be salutary to have a law making it criminal to engage in conduct that causes unnecessary risk of harm to others (such as failing to get vaccinated or wear a mask) or to fail to engage in conduct that would prevent harming others (such as getting vaccinated and wearing a mask).

[EOP]

Washing Hands: A Pandemic Habit That's Good to Keep, Especially in Light of the Delta Variant

As this article from the NYT explains, as we get back into the world and the germs that inhabit it, we shouldn’t drop the hand-washing habits so many us adopted in the Covid era. On average, our hands come into contact with many hundreds of surfaces a day, exposing them to hundreds of thousands of microorganisms. Fortunately, most are innocuous. Still, and most pointedly, given that we touch our faces about 16 or more times an hour, without proper hand hygiene, we risk the chance of introducing a not-so-harmless infectious organism, including the Delta variant of the coronavirus, into our mouths, noses or eyes.

[EOP]

Why Not Invoke Child Endangerment Laws to Vaccinate Kids?

[Although the actual age varies by state, children cannot be vaccinated without their parents' permission. Just as parents'  religious and other unfounded objections to medical care may be overridden, why should they not be by the decreasing number of rational states and the federal government? The state laws vary from non-existent to relatively strict. Below is the federal provision and sanction]

The Federal Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) (42 U.S.C.A. § 5106g), as amended by the CAPTA Reauthorization Act of 2010, defines child abuse and neglect as, at minimum: "Any recent act or failure to act on the part of a parent or caretaker, which results in death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse or exploitation"; or "An act or failure to act which presents an imminent risk of serious harm." This definition of child abuse and neglect refers specifically to parents and other caregivers. A "child" under this definition generally means a person who is younger than age 18 or who is not an emancipated minor. Although CAPTA provides definitions for sexual abuse and the special cases of neglect related to withholding or failing to provide medically indicated treatment, it does not provide specific definitions for other types of maltreatment such as physical abuse, neglect, or emotional abuse. While Federal legislation sets minimum standards for States that accept CAPTA funding, each State provides its own definitions of maltreatment within civil and criminal statutes.

[EOP]

Love & Friendship (2016 Amazon Prime Original Movie)

The good news is that, unless you're a fan of Jane Austen stories about the English wealthy's obsession with who marries whom and stuff, Love & Friendship is over in less than 1.5 hours. The bad news is that is one of those stories that has scant relevance to today's world and, if anything, might explain why the British Empire did not survive as an empire. It's got your country estates and your city scenes and your costumes of the period and your Kate Beckinsdale. The men are portrayed in the main as idiots.

IMDb Link to Love & Friendship

Link to Apt Song re Empires

[EOP]

The White Lotus (Mini-Series on HBO and HBO Max)

This first episode of this series just aired which tells the stories of the guests at a very posh resort and spa. If you like actors playing caricatures more than characters, you might find this enjoyable. Or perhaps I'm just oblivious to subtlety and nuance when it comes to acting. I'll watch the second episode because at least things move along, and perhaps not liking any of the people on the screen is what this series and maybe art itself is all about. As a result of my most recent review, I no longer have any confidence in my conclusion as to whether anything is good or not. In short, this seems to be a weak effort but the word on the street is that it gets better. I'm not insisting anyone watch it or refrain from watching it.

[EOP] 

If You Have a Dog, Read This

The human diseases related to ticks that dogs get and bring into the home are no laughing matter, and on the rise. This cnet article  tells you what you need to know to stay safe.

[EOP]

Google Maps Settings

There are tons of Google Maps settings, including for example, setting Google Maps to play its audio through your car radio with a Bluetooth connection. Seriously, there are all kinds of features you can turn on or off. Indeed, there are too many to list here. This article had quite a few of them set out.

[EOP]

Getting the Unvaccinated Vaccinated: Carrots to the Rescue

We appear to be heading for the precipice where the trillions of dollars that have been shelved out to help renters, the unemployed, small businesses, and so on could go to waste if the Delta and other variants end up swamping the system and undoing all the progress that has been made. There is no reasonable dispute that it is time to have a new approach to getting enough of the unvaccinated vaccinated to achieve herd immunity. Trying to convince them or shame them or cajole them or appeal to their higher angels or reason just isn't working and likely will not work.

One obvious carrot, which has been promoted and seconded by loyal readers, is to enable (or better yet require where possible) entities (sports entertainment fora, churches, businesses, restaurants, lodgings, etc.) to allow access only to those who have been vaccinated.  A second obvious carrot, which also has found substantial support from loyal readers, is to pay the unvaccinated to get vaccinated. Further to an earlier post, here is a way to do so that would cost peanuts in the scheme of things, should insure that the trillions spent to date are not for naught, and combines direct payments with a lottery system:

1. Getting the first vaccine: $250 payment.

2. Getting the second vaccine: $250 payment and entry into the lottery.

3. Lottery Prizes as follows:

   Grand Prize: $10M

   10 Runner Up Prizes: $1M@

   20 Second Runner Up Prizes: $500K@

   30 Third Runner Up Prizes: $100K@

   40 Fourth Runner Up Prizes: $10K@

   100 Fifth Runner Up Prizes; $1K@

Trumpers Are Not Just People With Different Views

Here is what Trump said over the weekend about the people who stormed the Capitol on January 6: "They were peaceful people, these were great people ... the love in the air, I’ve never seen anything like it,” and "Democrats could be blamed for any violence." So, if you are ever tempted to consider a Trump supporter as just someone with a different view, and that all views and all people are entitled to be respected, take a deep breadth, lie down on the sofa, and remind yourself: These people are stupid, totally nuts, and, most importantly, when it comes to the survival of a constitutional democratic republic, very dangerous.

[EOP] 

Fixing HBO Max Buffering Issues (and Related General Tip re Fixing Balky Apps)

HBO Max seems to have more buffering (freezing) issues than other streaming apps. This article lists in easy to follow steps 16 things to try to fix the problem. By way of example, I was watching Identity Thief with Jason Bateman and Melissa McCarthy, and it kept freezing/buffering. The movie was so annoying and its premises so implausible that I was happy to just stop watching it, but being a lemonade out of lemons kind of person, this seemed an ideal movie to try one of the seemingly more complicated fixes, to wit: clear the cache, clear the data, uninstall the app, and reinstall the app on my Firestick. Following the Step 14 in the cited article, the whole process took under 5 minutes (3.5 of which were waiting for the download from Amazon and its install to finish). From what I can tell after watching for 10 more horrible minutes of the movie, no buffering/freezing. And despite the warning, none of your data is lost because it's actually stored in the cloud and not on your Firestick or other device.

Related Tip: When other apps on your phone or tablet get balky, especially streaming apps like your music app, clearing the cache and clearing the data often will fix the problems. While the settings to do so will vary by devices, generally all you need to do is click on Settings/Apps/[the app to fix]/Storage and then click on Clear Cache and then Clear Data. The data clearing will not clear things like your station list or contacts, but might delete some of your settings like to include the cc and bcc lines in Blue Mail, but you likely can restore them quickly and easily.

[EOP]

The Desideratum (or Lack Thereof) of Artificial Grass

I have been hounded by suggestions to install artificial grass, with many supposed reasons for doing so. This article from the NYT explains why I have been correct to ignore those suggestions, and I will continue to do so.

[EOP]

Peacock and the Olympics

Peacock (which is free for Cox and other cable provider subscribers) will be streaming stuff from and about the Olympics 24/7 when they start. Not saying to get Peacock or to watch it or the Olympics. Just saying.  

[EOP]

Pay People to Get Vaccinated

Text of Letter to NYT: "The vaccination rate in the U.S. seems to be running into a brick wall at some level below 60%. Unless that rate can be boosted by 15+ percentage points, real trouble could lie ahead both on the health front and the economic front. While in a small-minded sense it is unfair to pay people to get vaccinated, given the greater good, i.e., that everyone would benefit, if paying people is what it takes, pay them. Given the trillions the federal government has laid out in direct payments, a good deal of which went to people with no need, paying people to get vaccinated looks to be the payments that would get the best overall return for everyone. So, whether it's done by lottery or by direct payments, stop with thinking PSAs and pleas and reason and rationale will work: Pay people to do the right thing for themselves and for all of us. The cost of not doing so makes it a bargain." 

[EOP] 

The History of Legally Blonde

As this article from the NYT explains, it is fascinating how the script of Legally Blonde (the movie that brought together Paper Chase and Clueless) evolved from a more raunchier tale. To the writers' and the reporter's credit, it is noted at the outset that the first manuscript was submitted by Amanda Brown. And, yes, that is the same Amanda Brown whose father was Jack Brown. See short bio of Jack Brown.

[EOP] 

Finally, an Excellent TV With a Decent Size Screen at a Good Price: The Hisense

If the TV you are still watching is 85" or smaller, you don't have to wait any longer to get a screen with dazzling colors and brightness and that you can see without squinting its 100" or 120" screen. And here's the great news, this is not a TV that will cost you over $10,000 or even over $5,000 or even over $3,500. And it's available from The Amazon and other online retailers. This is a must buy especially if your family TV room isn't having the kind of fun it could be having as seen here watching a Hisense:

Link to Hisense Website  

Rule Changes Needed to Save Baseball

An occasional loyal reader sent in this article by George Will that sets out well the rule changes needed to save baseball from the increased speed of the pitches and the prevalence of the shift that have resulted in lower batting averages and fewer hits other than home runs and hence fewer plays. If this reader or Mr. Will had been watching PTI (which we strongly recommend taping every day), they would have known about these issues a couple of months ago. 

[EOP]

Cellphone Dust Covers for USB and Audio Jack

Particularly if you wireless charge your cellphone and use Bluetooth to connect for audio, you might spend a couple of dollars to get dust covers for those ports as shown here from The Amazon.

[EOP]

What to Do When Your Streaming Keeps Freezing

Some streaming services seem better than others, and some (e.g., HBO Max) seem to be plagued with problems. If the stream you're watching keeps freezing, here are some things to try:

1. Pause the streaming for 30-60 seconds, then continue its playing.

2. Stop the stream, exit the app, then re-load the app, and continue watching what you were watching.

3. Turn off the TV and turn it on again, re-load the app, and continue watching what you were watching.

4. Do a re-set of your TV (The Google will tell you how once you put in the search bar "reset [make/model]" (substitute the make and model of your TV and omit the quotation marks).

5. Re-set your TV's internet connection (after determining that you don't have too many devices connected to your router). If you have too many devices connected to your router, and you don't have a dual-band router, get a dual-band router (actually, almost all routers now are dual-band and are much improved in all ways than routers of just a couple of years ago).

6. Call the streaming service to complain and get further suggestions as to what to do, and perhaps even a courteous credit on your next bill.

7. Read a book.

[EOP]

The Secret to Being a Major Champion in Tennis or Golf

I don't know how many times I've been asked why I never won a major golf or tennis championship. I have been loathe to share the answer, but, if you've watched interviews of the various champions of the past several years, you could and should have guessed. The one thing all of them (other than Tiger Woods) had that I didn't was a "team." In the old days, the champion would first recognize and appropriately thank their family. Now, not so much. It's their team. So, if you have aspirations to be a major champion, the first thing to do: Get a team. And if you have aspirations for your child to be a major champion, the first thing to do: Get them a team.

[EOP]

Biden's Sweeping Executive Order and the Eargos

Biden issued a sweeping executive order that addressed everything from healthcare to internet services to big tech to labor to shipping and transportation to agriculture to banking and finance. One of the orders "calls for HHS to consider rules within 120 days to allow hearing aids to be sold over the counter." Maybe I'm missing something, but when I read this I said, "Hello ... have you not been listening? ... No prescription is needed to get hearing aids and one can even buy them online, including the Eargos which we have reviewed in the past and continue to recommend highly." They work well, they are free to try with no risk, their batteries charge in their case so there is no need to buy batteries, and they are in-the-ear (not over it) and hence are essentially invisible to the prying world.

Link to Eargo Website 

Biden and Prioritization

[Text of Letterto the NYT albeit edited]: "Biden can be seen as coming down on the correct side of issue after issue, from infrastructure, to vaccinations, to climate change, to family assistance, to non-compete clauses, to non-disclosure agreements, to voting rights, to student loan assistance, to American competitiveness, to combatting cyber and ransomware attacks, and his daily television appearances to promote one or another of these makes the right points. That said, just like a typical state of the union address that identifies a myriad of proposals but accomplishes none, unless Biden prioritizes the one or two most immediately important issues that he will press with uncompromising vigor, he runs the risk of accomplishing none. Perhaps it is open to debate what those two issues are, but it would seem reasonable to say that: (i) if the vaccination rate is not upped soon, the country could be turned upside down again; and (ii) without voting rights protected, whatever is done now (to protect the environment or combat global warming or promote the well-being of families and the economy) could come to a screeching halt in 2022 and be subject to reversal in 2024."

[EOP]

Shiva Baby PS

Here are the comments of two loyal readers who know film (not to mention literature) better than anyone and have impeccable taste (although they might favor the violent and noire genres a bit more than others do but that shortcoming is irrelevant to Shiva Baby which has no violence and no noire): "We really liked it. Like you said, great acting, dialogue, story and directing (the script and direction all by Emma Seligman). The film’s brevity made it even more powerful.  You never had time to catch your breath before you went into the next family/community maelstrom. Very effective. Can’t wait to see what Seligman does next."

PS: Besides being sure to watch the opening production credits, which are a hoot, be sure to watch the thank-you credits post-movie, which are also a hoot.

[EOP]   

Why Baseball Continues to Amaze

1. Max Scherzer is the best pitcher in baseball today and a definite first round hall of famer. Yet, just take a few seconds to see what happened to him.

2. Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Angels is considered by most (and by everyone knowledgeable) to be (with apologies to Tatis) the best player in baseball (and might be the second coming of Babe Ruth). He not only is an outstanding pitcher in the starting rotation, he's leading the majors in home runs with 32. Now, here's the thing: Ohtani says he doesn't take batting practice because there's no point looking at 50-60 mph pitches when one is going to be facing 90+ mph pitches, which is an excellent point, which raises the question as to why they don't use pitching machines for batting practice. The answer is, they do, but not where it's visible to the fans.

[EOP]

Shiva Baby (2020 on HBO Max)

If you grew up in a world where you knew what shiva was, you likely will enjoy revisiting the dialogue and zingers of that age. If you grew up in a world were you didn't know what shiva was, or you still don't, you likely will like the dialogue and zingers even more. Shiva Baby runs only 1h17m so, even if you don't like it, you won't have wasted much time. The acting is terrific. It's not a totally unusual gimmicky story, but it's not your usual gimmicky story either. I won't give away the ending because I haven't gotten that far yet and therefore can't. Be sure not to skip past the opening credits of the various production companies, which are weirder even than the Coen brothers' movie credits. 

IMDb Link to Shiva Baby

[EOP]

Too Bad the Xpeng P7 Isn't Available in US Yet

The Chinese company that builds the Xpeng EV went public this week on the NYSE, but you still can't buy its EVs in the U.S. yet. When we can, consumers undoubtedly will be the beneficiaries as the Xpeng P7 looks to be a formidable competitor to the Tesla Model 3 (the G3 might be a worthy competitor of the Tesla X and Y models but it looks ugly to us). The P7 is good looking (although we're not fund of the available colors) and appears to be more comfy than the Model 3, has somewhat longer range, and is priced a bit lower.

Link to Xpeng Website 

[EOP]

Bliss (2021 on Amazon Prime)

Bliss has wonderful leads (Owen Wilson and Selma Hayek) in a totally stupid movie. At least the first 40 minutes are totally stupid. Who knows after that. It's a mind-bending love story following Greg who, after recently being divorced and then fired, meets the mysterious Isabel, a woman living on the streets and convinced that the polluted, broken world around them is a computer simulation. And that's putting it mildly.

IMDb Link to Bliss 

[EOP]

Fortuitous Chance to Depose Trump Right Now on His Big Lies and Dangerous Talk

Trump has filed a federal lawsuit against Facebook and Twitter challenging their right to ban him. Putting aside the baselessness of the suit, if the defendants want to do something that could do some real good, they will seek to immediately depose Trump on his "views" on the "matters" that led to his banishment from social media. In essence, they can cover much of what the House Select Committee would want to cover if they ever got to depose him, which seems unlikely and at best perhaps years away given the objections and appeals Trump undoubtedly will press and pursue (see, e.g., the 2 years it took to get McGann under oath for a limited, sealed deposition as well as the time it took to get Trump's tax returns).

As to the merits of the suit, there are none. The complaint's main claim is that the defendants violated Trump's first amendment rights. Given that the defendants are private entities and not state actors, there is no colorable first amendment claim. The complaint's other claim rests on declaring unconstitutional Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act ("No provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider") and that's not going to happen. As such, the complaint will likely be determined on summary judgment so there is no risk, as might be suggested, in taking Trump's deposition sooner rather than later.

[EOP] 

Improving the Wimbledon Optics

The new grass at Wimbledon does wonders for the optics of most of the court. But the areas just outside the backlines, where the players serve from, and further back, remain an eyesore that gets increasingly bad as the tournament rolls on. Given that those areas are not in play as such in terms of where the ball bounces, using artificial grass is an obvious and proper answer. If the Brits refuse, there is no reason, given the technology available, that the TV shots should not just color them in (e.g., just like they create artificial daylight in a golf tournament that runs past sunset or like they add optical stuff to football fields).

[EOP] 

Cooling Towel PS

We have now put this cooling towel through the ringer and are thrilled to say it really works well. More important than buying one for yourself or a loved one, if you have a gardener, you should buy one for them and their crew. It's the least you can do given that global warming thing everyone is talking about. 

[EOP]

 

Smart Device Disconnects from Wifi for No Apparent Reason

[Prefatory Note: This post focuses on Galaxy S10 phones but the suggestions should apply to other phones although they might require different setting steps. More importantly, this post harkens back to the origins of this blog where the purpose was to archive tech stuff for ready reference by a couple of people. How far we've come. That said, this particular post likely has little interest for most or even all loyal readers, but it is an issue I've experienced and so I wanted to archive the solution]

If your internet via wifi disconnects without obvious reasons, there may be a number of possible reasons for it. Troubleshooting this issue requires numerous numbers of steps to do. Follow the steps below to fix the issue.

Restart the phone

If wifi has started acting up for no apparent reason, the first troubleshooting step that you want to do is to refresh the device. Many connectivity problems are temporary and often develops after when a device has run continuously for some time. Try to restart the device normally at first to see if that helps. If nothing changes, consider simulating the effects of a battery pull. Here’s how to do that:

1. Press and hold the Power + Volume Down buttons for approximately 10 seconds or until the device power cycles. Note: Allow several seconds for the Maintenance Boot Mode screen to appear.
2. From the Maintenance Boot Mode screen, select Normal Boot. Note: Utilize the volume buttons to cycle through the available options and the lower left button (below the volume buttons) to select. Also, allow up to 90 seconds for the reset to complete.

Forget wifi

Many cases of wifi problems are fixed by doing a simple step: disconnecting the connection. If you haven’t tried it yet, make sure to do it. Just tap on the wifi icon, disconnect your S10 from your wifi network, then reconnect after a few seconds. If this step won’t work, proceed to the next one.

Restart router and other networking equipment

If you’re having trouble with your home wifi only, it’s possible that your router and other other devices in the network may need refreshing. Try to do a sequential power cycle of all networking equipment and see what happens. This is often effective in fixing local bugs in a home network. Disconnect the router from the power outlet for at least 10 seconds before plugging it back in. If you have other networking equipment connecting to the router, make sure to unplug them from the power source for 10 seconds too. This will allow the devices to refresh their system.

Confirm wifi is working normally

Before doing any further troubleshooting on your Galaxy S10, it’s a good idea to confirm if the problem comes from the router itself. Are there other wireless device experiencing the same problem? If there are more devices with the same situation, it’s likely a router or Internet Service Provider (ISP) problem. Be sure to talk to your ISP to get support.

Reset network settings

If all other devices in your home network are not experiencing disconnections at all, then you need to focus your troubleshooting on your S10. There may be some network settings that must be reconfigured to fix it. To ensure that all network settings are configured correctly, you can reset the network settings of your S10. Here’s how:

1. From the Home screen, swipe up on an empty spot to open the Apps tray.
2. Tap General Management > Reset > Reset network settings.
3. Tap Reset settings.
4. If you have set up a PIN, enter it.
5. Tap Reset settings. Once complete a confirmation window will appear.

Toggle Airplane Mode on and off

Sometimes, turning Airplane Mode on and off can fix network issues. Make sure to toggle Airplane Mode on and off if nothing has worked so far.

Wipe cache partition

At times, problems may occur if the system cache is corrupted. Android uses a set of temporary files in order to load apps quickly. Updates or app installations may corrupt this cache, which can then lead to problems. To keep the system cache in good shape, try to clear the cache partition. Here’s how it’s done:

1. Turn off the device.
2. Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
3. When the Android logo displays, release all keys (‘Installing system update’ will show for about 30 – 60 seconds before showing the Android system recovery menu options).
4. Press the Volume down key to highlight “wipe cache partition.”
5. Press the Power key to select.
6. Press the Volume down key to highlight “yes” and press the Power key to select.
7. When the wipe cache partition is complete, “Reboot system now” is highlighted.
8. Press the Power key to restart the device.

Install updates

Installing updates is often regarded as less important than other troubleshooting steps in this case. The fact is, some issues are only fixable by changing some codes. This is true whether you have an app issue or software problem. Make sure to keep your apps and Android OS updated by installing updates for them regularly. If you have third party apps taken outside the Play Store, be sure to check with their developers if their product is compatible with the current software running on your S10. At times, there are incompatibility issues that can happen when Android receives an update and an app is not updated to work with it.

Check for bad apps

Another possible reason for your problem may be a bad app. We’re talking about possible third party app that you installed immediately before the problem started, or a poorly coded app that became problematic after an update. To check if one of the apps is to blame, boot the device to safe mode. In this mode, all third party apps will be suspended and won’t be running. If your S10 charges normally and fast on safe mode only, that means that you have a bad app problem.

To restart your device to safe mode:

1. Turn the device off.
2. Press and hold the Power key past the model name screen.
3. When “SAMSUNG” appears on the screen, release the Power key.
4. Immediately after releasing the Power key, press and hold the Volume down key.
5. Continue to hold the Volume down key until the device finishes restarting.
6. Safe mode will display in the bottom left corner of the screen.
7. Release the Volume down key when you see Safe Mode.

To identify which of your apps is the source of trouble, you must use elimination method. Here’s what you can do:

1. Boot to safe mode.
2. Check for the problem.
3. Once you’ve confirmed that a third party app is to blame, you can start uninstalling apps individually. We suggest that you begin with the most recent ones you added.
4. After you uninstall an app, restart the phone to normal mode and check for the problem.
5. If your S10 is still problematic, repeat steps 1-4.

Factory reset

Should none of the steps above help, you should not hesitate to wipe the phone with factory reset. Before you factory reset, make sure to create a backup of your personal data.

Learn how to factory reset your Galaxy S10 by following these steps:

1. Back up data on the internal memory. If you have signed into a Google account on the device, you have activated Anti-theft and will need your Google credentials to finish the Master reset.
2. Turn off the device.
3. Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
4. When the Android logo displays, release all keys (‘Installing system update’ will show for about 30 – 60 seconds before showing the Android system recovery menu options).
5. Press the Volume down key several times to highlight “wipe data / factory reset.
6. Press Power button to select.
7. Press the Volume down key until ‘Yes — delete all user data’ is highlighted.
8. Press Power button to select and start the master reset.
9. When the master reset is complete, “Reboot system now” is highlighted.
10. Press the Power key to restart the device. [EOP]