#COVID-19 hotline

[carlocarrasco]

COVID-19 Crisis: DOH Secretary says bivalent vaccines are effective against Omicron FE.1

As the issuance of bivalent vaccines for COVID-19 is going on nationwide, Department of Health (DOH) Secretary Ted Herbosa announced that the said vaccines are effective against the newest Omicron subvariant FE.1, according to a GMA Network news report. To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the GMA news article. Some parts in boldface… Bivalent COVID-19 vaccines remain…

[cozybearz]

I’ve been wanting to make this post for a bit. My friends have been dealing with housing insecurity and difficulty covering living expenses for them and their two dogs for a few months now, they are both immunocompromised, at high risk for Covid, and under a lot of stress daily. If you can donate to them either directly and/or through their fundraiser, and also share this post, it would be so greatly appreciated

heres the fundraiser link, and direct donations are also super helpful and needed

Cashapp: $LelandChazen

Venmo: artbydykes

(description from their fundraiser page explaining their situation below)

“Hi everyone! I’m Leland. My wife’s name is Eve and we have two sweet dogs named Rickie and Ralphy. We live in a travel trailer near Astoria, Oregon.

Eve and I are both immunocompromised and high risk for contracting Covid-19. This would likely prove fatal for me and cause Eve to have long lasting health effects.

Unfortunately, I lost my job working for Trans Lifeline as a Crisis Hotline Operator in December 2023. It was a remote job that I loved very much. The organization furloughed and fired direct service workers rather than the folks that are making six figures (who have let the organization down greatly.)

Hotline Operators are peer support workers who take calls from Trans folks in crisis—some are suicidal or are in the act of committing suicide. It’s a very hard job. Unfortunately, we are the most underpaid staff within the organization. It is nearly impossible to have a savings account when you’re trying to make sure your bills are paid and you have food on the table.

By firing the most important, yet vulnerable staff, Trans Lifeline knew they were putting Trans employees in dire situations.

I have to work remotely to keep myself safe. Since I was fired in December, I have been applying to jobs daily. It is incredibly hard to find remote work.

Since losing my job, Eve and I lost our housing, forcing us to live in a travel trailer which has been a very difficult situation. We have had flooding leading us to be without running water and a working toilet. On top of that, the trailer was incredibly moldy, which was a blow to both of our immune systems.

We cannot afford basic necessities, our vital medical prescriptions, doctors appointments, dog food, gas and masks.

We are now two months behind on our car payment and a month behind on our trailer payment.

To make matters worse, a few days ago our tire flew off of our truck. Luckily, we were unharmed, but we are without a safe, working vehicle that we rely on, as we live in the woods. Nothing is within walking distance.

The stress this has caused is severe. It has exacerbated my chronic illness symptoms and my mental health is suffering.

We are at risk of having both our car and home repossessed.

I am still waiting on unemployment. However, $1000/month does not cover our expenses. It doesn’t come close.

Please help us stay afloat for the next few months, as I desperately try to find a new job.

❤️,

Leland and Eve”

[darkmaga-retard]

By Alex Wu

In recent months, local health authorities have conducted emergency infection disease response drills across China.

On Aug. 15, Dingxi, Gansu Province; a district in Yancheng, Jiangsu Province; and Lingchuan County, Shanxi Province carried out emergency drills for the outbreak of “pneumonia of unknown cause,” according to an official notice.

A staff member of the Gansu provincial government’s health hotline told the media on Aug. 15 that the national-level authorities had ordered officials in 10 provinces to conduct emergent infectious disease drills by the end of August.

The ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) first used the term “pneumonia of unknown cause” in 2003 to describe the SARS outbreak in China before it was officially named; it was also used when COVID-19 first broke out in Wuhan, Hubei Province, in late 2019.

Drills have been conducted since June in more than a dozen provinces and regions, including the nation’s capital, Beijing, according to notices issued by local health departments and Chinese media reports. This is the first official annual infectious disease emergency drill since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Notices across China state that the responses are based on the “Notice from the National Disease Prevention and Control Bureau on Preparing for Emergency Drills for Infectious Diseases in 2024” issued in April, following the ”2024 National Infectious Disease Emergency Response Conference” held in Chengdu, Sichuan, on April 17.

[the-eternal-quest-for-balance]

And on the flip side, if you're NOT vaccinated at all, even once, they are THRILLED to have you donate. The Red Cross knows and is trying to be extra careful about tainting the blood supply.

[whatthehelloh]

Trump

This is an edited thread that @JohnFugelsang posted on Twitter

“Here's a thread for anyone who's been conned into believing Donald Trump cares about the US military or our troops.”

Faked a disability 5 times to avoid a war he didn't oppose

So 5 non-rich guys went to Vietnam in his place

Tried to kick homeless vets off 5th Ave

Stole from vets via his fraud online U

Lied about donating $1 million to veterans' nonprofits

Said he'd make troops commit war crimes

Pardoned a guy who committed war crimes

Falsely claimed he signed Vets' Choice into law

Insulted POWs

Insulted Gold Star Families 

Fined for misusing funds from 2016 Vets fundraiser

Called Generals "dopes & babies"

Falsely accused US service members of stealing funds for Iraqi reconstruction

Deployed 5,600 soldiers to the border in a midterm election stunt 

Personally insulted Generals Allen, Mattis, Kelly, Powell, McChrystal; Purple Heart recipients Mueller & Vindman, & Admiral McRaven

Lied about donating $6 million to veteran’s groups in 2016

Sided with Putin against all branches of military intelligence 

Blew off Veterans Day cemetery ceremony in France because it was raining.

What he said to Myeshia Johnson, widow of ambushed Sgt. La David Johnson. Not gonna repeat it.

He wants to cut SNAP. Do you understand how much that hurts military families & vets?

His budget seeks to cut Medicaid. Do you understand how much this hurts military families & vets?

Froze pay for all Fed agencies via Executive Order

Fed workforce is 31% veteran, approx. 623k vets

Undid regulations on predatory lenders who target military members 

He tried to destroy the Post Office, which employs thousands of veterans

Declared a fake national emergency to divert billions from the Pentagon to fund a wall he lied that Mexico would pay for

Downplayed & trivialized troops w/traumatic brain injuries in Jan 2020 

Insulted troops with PTSD

Used the national guard to tear gas US protestors so he could be photographed w/an upside down bible

Forced West Point cadets to travel back for graduation during a plague, endangering their health and the health of their families, for a photo-op 

Said 26,000 military sexual assaults were to be 'expected' because America lets women serve

Announced that transgender troops could no longer serve, via a tweet, without informing the Pentagon.

Invited the Taliban to Camp David on the anniversary of 9/11 

Claimed, stupidly, that his military budget made up for his lack of military experience

Told wife #2 he'd disown their daughter if she entered the service

Remember his fake veteran’s hotline?'

Here's What Happens if You Call the Veterans Hotline Donald Trump Set Up in 2015 | Blaze Media

TheBlaze decided to investigate.

Lied to US troops in Iraq that he'd given them their 1st pay raise in over a decade

Trump Institute fired a vet for 'absences' after he was deployed to Afghanistan

Claimed if an armored Humvee was hit by an IED, soldiers "go for a little ride upward & they come down." 

Blamed military leaders for the deadly failed Yemen mission he approved

He can't stop defending the Confederacy

Said his expensive prep school gave him “more training militarily than a lot of the guys that go into the military.” 

Attacked Navy Captain Crozier, who sounded COVID alarm for his sick sailors

Used military against peaceful protests by citizens of color

Had government give hydroxychloroquine to 1300 vets w/COVID-19 despite evidence it was dangerous

Didn't know what happened at Pearl Harbor 

Pulled out of Syria with no notice, abandoning US allies

Russia then posted footage of Syrian base, built by US, that they now own

Exploited 4 murdered Americans in #Benghazi for crass political purposes, after his own party had cleared the Obama WH in multiple investigations 

He kept trying to destroy NATO

Because of his government shutdown, members of US military worked without pay for the 1st time ever

No Other President Would Have Survived Defrauding Veterans’ Charities

No Other President Would Have Survived Defrauding Veterans' Charities | Washington Monthly

One of the many perversities of the Trump era is the low bar to which presidential accountability has now become set.  We are currently watching unfold the saga of presidential bribery and extortion o…

Said in 2018 that he was too busy to visit the troops: "I don’t think it’s overly necessary"

Ordered Navy to Strip Medals from Prosecutors in Eddie Gallagher's War Crimes Trial, even though Gallagher was extremely guilty.

Trump Orders Navy to Strip Medals From Prosecutors in War Crimes Trial (Published 2019)

President Trump lashed out at military lawyers who tried the case of Edward Gallagher, a Navy SEAL who was acquitted of killing a captured teenage Islamic State fighter.

Now this. Read it to a #MAGA loved one

Putin is financing the murder of our troops and Trump couldn't stop siding with him.

Russia bought the murder of our soldiers.

Trump knew for months and chose to say and do NOTHING about it.

Russia Secretly Offered Afghan Militants Bounties to Kill U.S. Troops, Intelligence Says (Published 2020)

The Trump administration has been deliberating for months about what to do about a stunning intelligence assessment.

The Pentagon & cabinet presented him with many options:

a diplomatic complaint to Moscow

a demand that they stop offering bounties for murder of US troops stop

an escalating series of sanctions

Trump has refused to say or do anything. 

He knew that Putin, who owns his debt via Deutsche Bank, was paying Islamic militants for murdering US troops.

He gave a speech and did nothing. 

Well, that's not actually fair…

Trump did a few things after learning Putin was paying for dead US troops in Afghanistan.

He lobbied other countries for Russia to be let back into the G7.

He also talked to Putin on June 1.

Days later he signed off on a plan...

...to permanently withdraw up to 1/3 of the approx. 34k U.S. troops currently based in Germany.

Which is part of Putin's dream of dismantling NATO.

Trump never told Germany he was going to do this.

[reading-writing-revolution]

TW: long post about domestic violence copied over from a friend's post!!!

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, yet an unfortunate majority of the "awareness" you will see from agencies this month is strictly performative, as it never properly addresses the most pervasive barrier to freedom for survivors. Statistically, it takes 7 times before a DV survivor leaves for good. 7 times, not even considering modern aggravating factors pertaining to the covid-19 pandemic. The vast majority of my clients explain that the major factor that caused them to stay/go back is lack of resources. When we discuss DV this month (or any month), we HAVE to talk about how organizations designed to help victims consistently fall short, only to end up contributing to victimization.

In my office, it's not uncommon to hear stories about survivors getting stabbed or shot, strangled until unconsciousness, or beaten to the point of now having life-long disabilities. The Family Justice Center of Pinellas County alone has had several clients who experienced miscarriages due to severe domestic abuse. These stories are so normalized within the realm of Victim Advocacy that Advocates no longer experience shock at hearing them- it's just another day at the office for us. However, there is not much we can actually do to help these individuals due to the endless amount of red tape we must navigate just to provide even the most minimal services.

Domestic violence has become an industry, a cash cow, and a way for governmental entities to milk their hero complexes. Modern "awareness" is less about actually bringing attention to the horrors of DV and more of a pissing contest among DV Centers to show how funding is being utilized, because if funders feel that their money is not going to something "meaningful" they will snatch it away without a thought. The industrialization of domestic violence has led to a need for tangible results from DV Centers, or they risk being closed down. Several have already been closed down throughout Florida for this exact reason. My agency recently lost federal funding and now relies solely on funding from local donors.

To put things into perspective, I am expected to complete 50 hotline calls, 20 intakes, 40 individual counseling sessions per month, as well as produce other deliverables. Let me be extremely blunt, we are talking about placing quotas on matters of life and death. Funders care more about how many bodies walk through the door than they do about successfully providing services to those in need.

So, when you share posts about DV awareness this month or wear purple to show your support, please also speak out about the injustice occurring within DV organizations. Domestic violence is not a campaign tactic, and reducing it to such is an act of violence in itself.

[beardedmrbean]

A teenage Muslim convert who became radicalised online during lockdown was 24 hours away from carrying out a terrorist attack when he was arrested, police have revealed.

Matthew King, 19, carried out reconnaissance on a police station and an army barracks in east London and researched buying knives and a sword on the internet.

After covertly taking photographs of police officers standing outside a magistrates court, King posted a message on Snapchat which read: “Target acquired.”

Commander Dom Murphy from Scotland Yard’s SO15 counter terrorism command said he believed King had been as little as 24 hours away from launching a low sophistication terrorist attack when he was arrested on May 18 last year at his home in Wickford, Essex.

Earlier this year, King admitted one count of preparing a terrorist act and at a hearing at London’s Old Bailey on Friday was sentenced to life with a minimum term of six years.

King, who lived with his mother and two sisters, had a troubled childhood. He was expelled from school and referred to a special educational unit in Basildon.

He converted to Islam after spending hours online while isolated during the Covid lockdown.

His mother said it initially helped him have some focus, but he quickly became more extreme in his views, questioning how his sisters dressed and calling them “slags”.

King soon became obsessed with Islamic State and began researching notorious terrorists including Mohammed Emwazi aka Jihadi John and Salman Abedi, the Manchester Arena suicide bomber.

In December 2021, King registered with an online knife supplier and made inquiries about purchasing a sword.

He also bought military-style equipment including special ops glasses, a balaclava and technical combat gloves.

In online conversations with a Muslim girlfriend, King discussed wanting to travel to Syria to become a martyr and spoke of how he dreamed of torturing and killing British and US soldiers.

‘Kill all non-Muslims’

He also changed his WhatsApp status to: “Kill all non-Muslims wherever you see them.”

King, who had been attending a mosque in Chelmsford, Essex, was asked to leave after posting messages on social media praising jihad.

His behaviour became so concerning that the police received numerous reports from members of the public including calls to the anti-terror hotline.

In April 2022, he carried out internet searches for Usman Khan and Karim Butt who were responsible for separate terror attacks in London in 2017.

At an Eid event in Southend he spoke about the importance of jihad and picked up a water pistol and squirted a community support officer.

With help from MI5, counter terror police mounted a covert surveillance operation on King and observed him carrying out hostile reconnaissance on police stations in Stratford, east London.

On May 17, King was spotted scoping out the 7th Battalion The Rifles barracks in West Ham and the following day, fearing he was just hours from launching an attack, counter-terror police raided his home and arrested him.

Commander Murphy praised the actions of those who had reported King and said lives had probably been saved.

He said: “I know public confidence is a real challenge for the Met at the moment but this is a story about people being saved from a terrorist attack by members of the public.

“If it had not been for the public reports our investigation would have been all the more challenging. It’s thanks to that support from the public that we were able to keep the public safe.”

When King was arrested he told officers: “I don’t believe in the UK law, the only law I believe in is the law of Allah.”

Mr Murphy said while he had pleaded guilty to the offences, King had shown no remorse since his arrest and had not changed his mindset.

Ends

[the-courage-to-heal]

Do you (or your followers) have any tips on escaping a financially abusive relationship? We are not married but living together and I do not have a steady job/my source of $ is 85% dependent on him currently. I have PTSD, anxiety, depression, and health issues including chronic fatigue syndrome. I can work but I am limited in what I can do and how much I can lift.

Financial abuse is incredibly, insidious and difficult to escape. I would recommend that you look into opening a PO Box, and then open a separate bank account. Have all mail regarding that bank account sent to your PO Box. Look into getting a job over the phone possibly with a temp agency; the COVID-19 pandemic has made opportunities to work from home more viable. Also save whatever you can from the allowance that you’re given, and put it away into your secret bank account. If you’re able to blame it on inflation, ask for a little more money than you really need for groceries etc. You can also put that aside. 

This article might also be helpful:

It hits on some important points such as,

• Gather and store important documents. If you are living with the abuser, store important documents somewhere safe outside the home, if at all possible, such as a safe deposit box or a friend or family’s home. These include birth certificates (yours and the children’s), marriage certificates (if applicable), social security cards, bank statements, and ownership documents of jointly owned property. Abusers frequently prevent a victim’s access to these after the victim leaves, so it’s important to do this as part of your preparation for leaving.

• Find at least one trustworthy ally who understands financial abuse to help you sort out your thoughts and make a plan of action. Many victims feel ashamed and isolated, and this, along with financial pressures, can contribute to staying stuck. Some places to find support include your friends and family (as long as you can be sure they will not talk to the abuser about what you share), a local organization helping victims and survivors of domestic violence, a counselor or therapist who understands domestic violence, or a hotline such as the National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233 (or TTY 1-800-787-3224).

• Research the programs and services in your area that help domestic violence victims. Knowing how to apply for public assistance or your options for temporary or longer-term housing will help you feel more confident that help will be available when you need it. Often programs and financial assistance sources have waiting periods and complex application requirements, so being armed with information can help you prepare ahead of time.

• Cancel joint bank and credit accounts by calling the issuer and asking to have your name removed. This won’t undo damage the abuser may have already done, but it will prevent new attempts to rack up debt in your name, take money from you, and damage your credit.

I hope this information helps a little bit and you’re able to construct a safe plan to escape! Please write back in if you need any more support or advice.

[splitting-infinities]

last year, i wrote 97,540 words of fanfiction and posted it all to AO3.

this year, I wrote 10,797 words and will post another 10,000 (maybe more) in early 2023. Is this a significant decrease? yes. but i think i am okay with that.

i did the best i could and am giving myself the grace not to feel bad about it. because this year was a lot.

this year, 4 of my friends got married. which is great! don’t get me wrong. it’s just also expensive. my rent increased 12%. insurance didn’t cover part of my surgery due to a clerical error (which i’m still fighting after 9 months of constant health insurance hotline hell). i also started a new and kind of expensive treatment for my chronic illness.

3 of my family members entered hospice. 2 of them subsequently passed away. A family friend passed away from covid-19, and another college friend passed a few weeks ago after a long illness.

this year has been full of loss and grief, and a bit stressful financially. the fact that i still found the will to write at all shocks me. i was so busy trying to make it through the showers and the funerals and the work and the medical bills. how did i find the time to accomplish all of that and write on top of all of it?

looking back, it would be easy to focus on the bad things that happened in 2022. to use them as an excuse for not measuring up to 2021 me. but i refuse to do that. i still created for fun! I still did something that made me happy! not at my historical pace, of course. but as welcome to night vale likes to say, past performance does not guarantee future results.

my results are different this year. but it's not about the comparison.

i made it through this year and my tiny flame of creativity didn't go out. to me, that is enough. i am enough.

[crankycrewblogs]

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Stand Up to Cancer Charity Livestream

On November 18, 2022 Ethan uploaded a video on multiple social media platforms, such as Twitter and his Instagram story, where he explains that he is doing a charity livestream on November 19, 2022 on his YouTube channel, CrankGameplays for Stand Up To Cancer.  In the short 50 second clip, he explains that at 10 am Pacific Standard Time that he will be doing a charity stream on his channel.  Ethan explained that he might be having a guest on the channel and they are going to be playing games for cancer.  It is unknown who the guest will be, some people are speculating it could be one of his close friends and popular fellow influencer, Markiplier.  It is unknown how long the stream will last for, but if it is anything like his past charity streams it would last for at least 5 to 6 hours, if not longer.  

Ethan has been a part of many charity livestreams out of his 10 years on YouTube and is no stranger to making large donations for cancer and other important charities.  When Ethan had first moved to Los Angeles from Maine back in 2016, he joined his friend, Markiplier, as well as other friends in his charity livestreams.  The first stream was on November 19, 2016 where Ethan, Mark, and their friend, Tyler raised money for Crisis Text Line, which is a universal crisis hotline such as depression, anxiety, or anything COVID based. This livestream was about 12 hours long and they had many activities to do throughout the stream to keep their viewers entertained.  One of these activities includes a game with their viewers called The Jackbox Party Pack 3, which is a game where audiences can participate in the game through their phone via the website jackbox.tv, and using the code given.  The game modes that are called Quiplash 2, Guesspionage, Fakin’ It, Tee K.O., and a personal favorite which is Trivia Murder Party, where players have to survive a serial killer’s trivia game show.  Only 8 players are able to join, but audiences are able to spectate by entering in the code as well.  Other activities they had to keep their viewers entertained and keep the donations rolling in was playing other video games such as Lego Lord of the Rings, and then another round of Jackbox.  Near the nine hour and ten minute mark of the stream, they did each others makeup and since there were three of them, the two that were applying the makeup did so at the same time, one person did one half and the other did the other side of the face. 

That was not the final stream that Ethan did with Mark, however, as he and their friend Tyler returned for quite a few of Mark’s other charity streams over the course of 2016-2018 before they slowed down and did a few other things on their own.  Make sure to tune into the charity stream on Ethan’s YouTube channel, CrankGameplays on November 19, 2022 to help Ethan raise money to help with Stand Up to Cancer!

[Written November 18, 2022]

[carlocarrasco]

COVID-19 Crisis: Guidelines for 2nd COVID-19 booster shots for Philippines general population approved

In the latest development regarding COVID-19 here in the Philippines, it was reported via the Philippine News Agency (PNA) that the guidelines regarding 2nd booster shots for members of the general population have been approved. Specifically, the Department of Health (DOH) referred to healthy adults at least 18-years-old can avail of the said booster shots and there are three specific COVID-19…

[thaoduoctanphathcm]

🍀🍀TRÀ TÚI LỌC XUYÊN TÂM LIÊN 👉 phòng tránh và hỗ trợ covid19

❤️Có tác dụng phòng vấn đề tai mũi họng ❤️Tăng cường sức khỏe cho sản phụ ❤️Tăng cường sức mạnh cho hệ miễn dịch ❤️Giúp tránh các bệnh ngoài da hiệu quả ❤️Giúp giảm đau họng nhanh chóng ❤️Giảm đờm ho lâu ngày không hết ❤️Phòng ngừa Covid19 hiệu quả

---------------------------------------------------- ❗Thông Tin Sản Phẩm ➡️Số lượng gói trà: 30 gói ➡️Hình thức đóng gói: đóng gói dạng túi ➡️Hạn sử dụng: được in trên bao bì ➡️Nguyên liệu: 100% thiên nhiên ---------------------------------------------------- 💥 4 LÝ DO BẠN PHẢI SỬ DỤNG NGAY TÚI LỌC TRÀ CỦA CHÚNG TÔI: 1. Gói siêu nhanh: chỉ 10s có 1 CỐC TRÀ 2. Tiện lợi, chi phí thấp: Dùng 1 lần xong bỏ đi luôn. 3. Túi chắc chắn, mắt mau lọc tốt, đảm bảo trà lọc không bị dính cặn,... 4. Có tác dụng tốt cho người dùng ---------------------------------------------------- ⚠️ THAPHACO CAM KẾT ⚠️ ⭕ Sản phẩm nguyên chất không pha tạp chất, chất hóa học ⭕ Mang đến chất lượng và đảm bảo sức khỏe cho khách hàng ⭕ Nhân viên tư vấn tận tình chu đáo ⭕ Đảm bảo sạch và làm bằng máy móc hiện đại ⭕ Sản phẩm 100% thiên nhiên -----------------------------------------------------

[darkmaga-retard]

Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris picked a running mate, Tim Walz, known for severe COVID-19 restrictions as Minnesota's governor, including a hotline on which residents could report each other for violating his stay-at-home executive order.

Walz's administration threatened the medical license of his 2022 Republican challenger, Scott Jensen, who won Minnesota's Family Physician of the Year award in 2016, for COVID wrongthink. Two of its five investigations were opened after Jensen entered the race.

But it's Walz's crusade for masking, which he called  "one of the last" COVID mandates he would lift in fall 2020 and was upheld as constitutional a year ago, that could make swing voters more wary of a Democratic ticket that, unlike the GOP ticket, might bring mandates back.

When Minnesota Republicans sued to block Walz's mask mandate at polling places ahead of the 2020 primary, Secretary of State Steve Simon told the Star Tribune that he would direct officials to record the names of voters who refused to accept masks "and let them know they will be reported to authorities" if they vote inside without a "health reason."

Germany is still using a similar tack to protect masking from scrutiny.

[what-yadoking-likes]

I have made a list of my favourite arts I made this year.

January: hamster painting. Made in protest at the Hong Kong government's decision to cull over 2200 hamsters in an attempt to contain a possible hamster-to-human transmission of covid-19.

February: a tiger to commemorate the Year of the Tiger. As one of my student's famously wrote about tigers, "Him head have wong" (the markings on a tiger's head, apparently, resemble the character 'wong', meaning 'king').

March: a portrait of Hong Kong Dog Rescue dog Miss Piggie, & a bisexual colour palette Guan Yin, inspired by the multicoloured Buddhist statues seen during a day trip to Peng Chau. Guanny has always been a role model to me of sorts. I miss my altar to her - all being well, she will be reunited with me in January 2023.

April: macaque portrait (based off a photo in mine & partner's SD card taken at Kam Shan country park, AKA Monkey Hill), & a psychedelic cat.

With the cat, I wanted to experiment with unusual colours for an everyday subject. I like how it turned out.

May & June: no art was made at this time that I want to share. May was also the month I got kicked out of Hong Kong. I have wanted to create something to capture what Hong Kong meant to me, but it is a huge undertaking & have not yet been able to come up with a concept that does it justice - perhaps I never will.

July: my portrait of Jacket from Hotline Miami. I raced through this game & its sequel as a means of dealing with my loneliness & frustrations at being kicked out of HK. It gave me a sense of control in my life when I felt very unsafe, unstable & depressed. I replaced one eye with a bird's foot trefoil flower, which represents revenge, in the opposite eye to where Beard's glasses break in the art for Hotline Miami 2.

August: didn't make anything I liked. This month I moved out of my sister's place & into my own flat where my partner (who had also left HK) & I were reunited.

September: cat gazing at the moon, & an Autumnal vibes painting. I was exploring my witchy spooky side upon returning to England, because I realised that I had nothing to gain from continuing to not explore that side of myself. I also realised Autumn was approaching & I was excited af about seeing the leaves change colour for the 1st time in years.

October: portrait of a distinguished gentleman, & an Autumnal chalk pastels scene. Both of these were part of the projects for my art class - I would end up exhibiting both of these pieces in the end of semester exhibition held in the run-up to Xmas.

[darnellclayton]

😠😤😡

Seriously @elonmusk‽ Whether this happened due to ignorance, incompetence or cruelty, this @reuters story is going to turn the public against @Twitter. @988Lifeline must be upset! Update: This was due to incompetence & lack of communication! See update below.

Twitter Inc removed a feature in the past few days that promoted suicide prevention hotlines and other safety resources to users looking up certain content, according to two people familiar with the matter who said it was ordered by new owner Elon Musk.

The removal of the feature, known as #ThereIsHelp, has not been previously reported. It had shown at the top of specific searches contacts for support organizations in many countries related to mental health, HIV, vaccines, child sexual exploitation, COVID-19, gender-based violence, natural disasters and freedom of expression. (Reuters)

Yeah, this is going to motivate vindictive action against Twitter from two other fronts. The Federal Trade Commission & European Union 🇪🇺 Commission can not force Twitter to add this feature back, but I suspect they will show no mercy to Twitter come January of next year.

I would not be surprised if @apple & @google decided to turn their backs on Twitter too!

Also, if anyone needs help please contact the suicide prevention by clicking on the website below!

Update: This was done out of incompetence. 🤦🏾‍♂️

The least Twitter could have done is announce this change on Twitter! They must be short handed!

[techniktagebuch]

22.12.2022

Weitere Erfahrungen aus dem Testiversum

Ähnlich wie Alina Smithee müssen auch die Frau und ich uns dieser Tage in die Verwirrungen des Testiversums begeben. Das Testergebnis zu bekommen ist etwas einfacher, aber danach wird es etwas konfus.

Die Frau bekommt eine freundliche E-Mail, Absender „Corono Covid 19“ mit Infos zu den aktuellen Isolationsvorschriften und einem freundlichen Genesungswunsch.

Ich bekomme stattdessen eine SMS von „XY-Gesund“ (XY ist das Kürzel unseres Landkreises), in dem ich einen Link zu den Infos finde und einen Link zu einem Formular, in dem ich detailliert aufführen soll, wer ich bin, seit wann ich welche Symptome habe, wer mein Hausarzt ist und wie lange schon und wann ich beruflich mit welchen Menschen Kontakt habe.

Dieses Formular liegt auf irgendeinem Server, aus dessen URL man mit viel Phantasie die Abkürzung  für „kommunales Datenverarbeitungszentrum des Kreises XY“ ablesen kann. Aber da ich vermutlich mit meinem Drang, URLs zu prüfen, bevor ich persönliche Daten eingebe eher einsam bin, stört das vermutlich außer mir fast niemanden.

Dann rufe ich die TAN-Hotline der Corona-App an. Der Mann dort ist genervt und gelangweilt. Er fragt das Labor ab, aus dem mein Ergebnis kommt, das steht aber leider auf keinem meiner Zettel. Er stellt in Frage, dass ich einem echten PCR-Test habe machen lassen. Ich bestehe aber darauf, wir haben kurz unangenehmes Schweigen. Dann stellt er fest: Dann muss ich Ihnen deswegen jetzt die Datenschutzbestimmungen vorlesen und rattert geschätzt eine halbe DinA4-Seite Text herunter – mit einer Lesegeschwindigkeit, wie wenn man einen Podcast auf 1.5-Faches Tempo stellt. Aber ich bin einverstanden, denn meine Telefonnummer hat er ja eh.

„In 2 Sekunden rufe ich sie zurück“ verspricht er; es werden 5 Minuten, doch dann habe ich meine TAN.

In meiner Version der App kann ich noch den Zeitpunkt des Beginns der Symptome eingeben, denn – so verspricht die App – dann kann besser berechnet werden, wer alles gewarnt werden muss.

(Christian Fischer)