Thursday, January 25, 2024

Swamped by e-mail and Ben Sira

My e-mail is out of control. I'm not asking for solutions. This is a rant, not a cry for help. I think I get 50-75 a day, and I've scrupulously unsubscribed to those which sneak in because mailing lists are sold. However, even the ones I've asked for and read, or save, send other suggestions and offers and I can't always tell from the subject line whether it's important. Then add the medical portals for the 2 of us which send all manner of "stuff" including alerts about appointments and requests to sign in remotely. There are specialists not connected to our regular physician, they send notices too. I can give many other examples--charities, church groups, clubs, condo association, credit card, groups of friends that do "reply all", spam, and so on, and on. Sometimes I miss a personal e-mail letter which I love because it gets lost in the crowd.

Recently my book club read "Sisters of Sinai" which I liked so I bought a used copy (so I could check the bibliography) because I was interested in Ben Sira (Sirach, Ecclesiasticus). The Scottish twin sisters finding a scrap of Ben Sira manuscript in Hebrew in Egypt in 1896 was one of the most important Biblical discoveries in recent time, right up there with the Dead Sea Scrolls. After checking the internet, I signed up for something called Academia which is open access for academic papers so a reader can browse and download. There are many others that aggregate publications like SSRN which I've used, and even Ohio State has one called Knowledge Bank. On my first try, I found over 124,000 papers written about Ben Sira. Now I'm getting inquiries from this service about updating to premium and have I considered reading paper xyz. I also bought a few other books through ABE, and I get not only notices about where they are in transit, but wouldn't I like to try this or that book. So you see, it's my own fault.

Wednesday, January 24, 2024

A beautiful duck

 We have a page a day calendar of birds on our kitchen table. Today I said, Mandarin Duck, that's the most beautiful bird I've ever seen. So I looked it up in birdsfact.com and it said, "It is the most beautiful duck in the world in comparison to other species of ducks." https://birdsfact.com/mandarin-duck/

A Mandarin Duck Somehow Found Its Way To Central Park (thethings.com)

8 Fascinating Facts about Mandarin Ducks- The Symbolic Ducks in Korean Weddings | Nature World News



Tuesday, January 23, 2024

Inflation 1973-2023 in my recipe box

Today I was looking through my recipe box (sort of a historical archive now since I rarely bake) for something cobbler like/lite and found a recipe for cheesecake that serves 12 by my cousin Judy who lives in Winnebago, IL and grew up in Byron. It was dated August, 1973, so I have no idea why we were exchanging recipes. Our big family reunion was 20 years later and for that she contributed some from her mother, Aunt Gladys (d. 1976). Anyway, I'm not going to make a cheesecake, but on the back of the card I noted the prices. Things have changed a bit in 50 years. Pie filling (for topping) .59; Dream Whip .26; graham crackers .23; cream cheese .55. It seems I didn't count the sugar, eggs, and butter because I probably had that on hand (called homemaker math). It's in my handwriting, so I probably copied it to fit in this tiny box for 3 x 5 cards.

Some on FB are old enough to remember the nightmare of stagflation of the 1970s--high inflation, high unemployment, and low growth. In 1973 the average rate of inflation for food prices was over 13%. In August 1973 when I noted the prices, the food inflation rate was 18.2%! That may be why I noted the costs on the card. Compare that to 2023 food prices which was 5.8% for the year. The killer rate we all remember (and blame Biden for) was about 10% for 2022. I blame this primarily on the lockdown which really messed up all levels of the economy as well as health.


Monday, January 22, 2024

The Mentor magazine

It was snowing in Columbus, OH, on January 19.  I'm recovering from back strain and much improved, so was tackling the laundry. My adult ADHD kicked in and I noticed something on a top shelf peeking out, calling to me while the washer filled. Debating whether to stress my back, I reached for it and found a May 1929 "The Mentor" magazine.
"The Mentor magazine was published from 1913 to about 1931 by The Mentor Association. The Association was founded by William David Moffat in 1912 and included experts in various fields. Each issue was devoted to a single subject augmented by fine photogravures (photogravures are prints produced in such a way as to mimic the richness and subtle range of tone found in photographs). . . http://archives.dyclibrary.net/?p=206
I've searched this computer for the data base of my grandparents' library, but I can't find it.  I created and printed it back in the 90s, but my back will not allow bending, stretching and lifting. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have picked this up anywhere unless I recognized it. Both my maternal grandparents attended college in the 1890s and although they subscribed to many practical and farming magazines, this looks like it would have appealed to their interests.  This issue concerns wild animals (birds, bears, elephants) and travels, particularly the American west.  Also articles about animal artists. Robert L. Dickey, Grace Mott Johnson, Louis Jonas

I particularly enjoy the advertisements in old magazines. There's a full-page ad for Woman's Home Companion (Springfield Ohio) which promised serialized books for only $1.00 a year. Last year (1928?) the subscriber could have enjoyed The Story of Religion, What is Wrong with Marriage, Mareea-Maria,  The Foolish Virgin, The Quart Eye, Mamba's Daughters, Troupers of the Gold Coast or the rise of Lotta Crabtree, Keeping off the Shelf, and The Father. Of course, on the back, there is a full color ad for Camel cigarettes, "a Miss is as good as a mile" with an attractive young woman offering cigarettes to a handsome man.



Over reach of regulatory agencies--the deep state

NPR--liberal:  "The U.S. Supreme Court wrestled Wednesday with the implications of overturning a nearly 40-year-old precedent that could weaken the way the federal government regulates, well, everything.

A system in place for decades has governed how judges review curbs on air and water pollution, gun safety measures and workplace protections. But conservative legal foundations and business groups have urged the court to scrap that system, arguing it hands too much power to federal agencies at the expense of Congress and the judiciary.

Several of the court's conservative justices expressed deep skepticism of the current framework. But all three left-leaning justices offered support for keeping the system in place. And Justice Amy Coney Barrett, a Trump appointee, raised concerns about "inviting a flood of litigation" if they reversed course."

Supreme Court hears arguments in a case that could weaken federal rulemaking : NPR

Daily Signal--conservative: "The U.S. Supreme Court took up two cases Wednesday regarding the regulatory authority of the federal government as fishermen argue that government agencies are exceeding their authority by imposing costly mandates.

In Loper Bright Enterprises vs. Raimondo and Relentless Inc. vs. Department of Commerce, fishermen are challenging administrative law, dubbed “Chevron deference,” that asserts that when a federal statute is ambiguous about specific regulations, courts should defer to the implementing agency’s interpretation of the law.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration implemented a rule in 2020 forcing fishing companies (such as Relentless Inc.) to pay for federal observers to monitor the fishermen at sea on their own fishing boats—even though Congress did not give the agency authority to do so."

https://www.dailysignal.com/2024/01/17/supreme-court-hears-fishermens-challenges-to-costly-regulatory-authority-of-feds/?

NJB opinion:  Both Democrats and Republicans lean heavily on long-time bureaucrats to carry out their agendas, however Democrats also have the power of academe in their corner. Few conservatives can even get hired at major, powerful universities, let along make it through P & T. That limits their ability to get past the gatekeepers at the journals and print media. So we have the revolving door of CDC, FAA, EPA, FTC, FCC, FDA CFPB, etc. plus all the "tools" and "acts" and lobbyists and union leaders who control these groups. The liberal media are screaming that the SCOTUS could "gut" or "strangle" these agencies. Without ever mentioning the constitution. Or what's happening to us, the citizen/voter.

A friend says we need to pray about the SCOTUS decision: I'm all for prayer; Paul tells us to pray without ceasing. But it also wouldn't hurt Christians to be informed. What if each young mothers Bible Study group chose to look at just ONE agency/act /regulation that the federal, state and county governments are doing about foster care, trafficking of children, Head Start, safety of playgrounds, SNAP, school nutrition, and so forth. There are probably thousands. Sometimes church involvement is limited to applying for grants which in turn puts the government in the middle of the church via its budget.

Sunday, January 21, 2024

The goal of modern day "Progressives"

For Christopher Dawson, author of Religion and the Rise of Western Culture, “The importance of these [Middle ages] centuries. . .is not to be found in the external order they created or attempted to create, but in the internal change they brought about in the soul of Western man – a change which can never be entirely undone except by the total negation or destruction of Western man himself.”

Indeed, the total negation of traditional Western man is the goal of modern-day “progressives” who in their Nietzschean Will to Power, seek the destruction of Christianity, family, and gender through various ideologies and in illusory calls for “social justice.” Dawson incisively describes how, even in our day, revolutionary and scientific ideologies are influenced, often indirectly and unconsciously, by the spirit of Western religion.

We in the West have become detached from our religious culture and our Western moral tradition. Dawson once observed, “It is religious impulse which supplies the cohesive force which unifies a society and culture. . . .A society which has lost its religion becomes sooner or later a society which has lost its culture.”


Publisher's blurb:  "With the magisterial sweep of Toynbee, to whom he is often compared, Dawson tells here the tale of medieval Christendom. From the brave travels of sixth-century Irish monks to the grand synthesis of Thomas Aquinas in the thirteenth century, Dawson brilliantly shows how vast spiritual movements arose from tiny origins and changed the face of medieval Europe from one century to the next. The legacy of those years of ferment remains with us in the great cathedrals, Gregorian chant, and the works of Giotto and Dante. Even more, though, for Dawson these centuries charged the soul of the West with a spiritual concern -- a concern that he insists can never be entirely undone except by the total negation or destruction of Western man himself.

Saturday, January 20, 2024

New York's immigration crisis

On January 8, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported that 378,504 people have arrived in Egypt since the war in Sudan began in April 2023. Some are legal, but most illegal, and all need humanitarian aid. Now compare that to New York City, which has received about 100,000 illegal immigrants through the U.S. Southern border. We have a functioning government both in New York and in Washington DC. We have the "brightest and best" elites a blue state can offer, with many well-heeled New Yorkers and local churches contributing food, and others complaining and whining that southern governors have caused the problem. It's Congress' responsibility to set immigration law. But the President needs to see that our borders are not overrun with an invasion.

Thursday, January 18, 2024

Beth Moore doesn't like President Trump or the people who support him

I think our women's group (WOW) at UALC has shown every Beth Moore video available. I wouldn't say she can't speak against Trump--it's in the First Amendment. Even Christians have that right, although to hear the Democrats, you wouldn't think so. She's actually speaking out about Trump supporters. Most of whom are Christians--white, black, brown and Asian.
 
So, she says he's a bully. Shocking, Name me a president, king, monarch, tribal leader, premier, governor, senator, school principal, union leader who isn't at some time during their career as a leader had to be decisive, blunt, argumentative, aggressive, etc. True, he doesn't talk like a lady, "Maybe I'm wrong, but. . ." (I hate it when women start a sentence with that.) Ms. Flotus Obama is back in the spotlight as a possible candidate and she expresses fear; VP Harris is stumping for Biden and she says she's scared to death. Boy, that should really build up the lady parts.
 
But Moore needs to remember who supported the unborn when in office, not by sending a sub, but by showing up. Who said America is Great? Moore needs to recall under which president minorities made REAL financial and career progress, not with CRT and appointments to DEI but with actual gains and real jobs; which president did the most for Israel; Moore needs to comfort a mother or wife who has lost their children or husband in wars and think about Trump's position. Do you think Putin would have attacked Ukraine if Trump had a 2nd term? Did Trump fund the Taliban or Iran?
 
Moore has experienced a lot of lies told by the "other" side and the "good old boys" in Evangelicalism. Now she should recall from whom she gets her information--the mainstream media, the non-profits who are profiting from the border crisis, the DNC, the View, the Obiden puppeteers.
 
Come on, Beth. Do your homework--you certainly asked us to do that for years! You've become rich and famous with those books. If DeSantis or Haley had won that Iowa Caucus, the people you are trusting to form your opinion would be claiming them to be racist, sexist, homophobes who don't believe in pronouns and the right to choose your sex. They would still be denouncing Christianity and the Constitution.

Wednesday, January 17, 2024

The "Defenders of Democracy" aka Democrats are at it again

They're at it again, and even more viciously. Those "defenders of Democracy" (what a joke) are trying to destroy the First Amendment, shutting down anyone who doesn't buy into the Democrat party definition. With the mainstream media, they call anyone with common sense and love of country "right wing," or "racist" or "homophobe." Don't let them scare you off. They are the bad guys.

Flying is safer than driving

"In 2020 alone, 30,250 people died while riding in passenger vehicles. Forty-five percent of these were in cars, 34% in light trucks, and 18% on motorcycles.
 
There were 614 serious injuries in the air from 2002 to 2020, an average of 32 per year. Comparatively, Americans suffered about 2.3 million injuries per year in passenger cars and trucks on highways."

https://usafacts.org/articles/is-flying-safer-than-driving/?

Per mile motorcycles are the most dangerous, however, in my opinion, no matter how you travel you are not safe with the latest DEI standards for employment --whether pilots, bus drivers, repairmen, or factory assembly workers. You don't want a diversity hire or union boss guiding your transportation. Merit and skill matter more than ethnic background.

In 2020 although there was a decrease in miles traveled due to the lockdown, there was an increase in pedestrian and bike related fatalities. Another problem our "health" experts didn't think about.

The big three for roadway fatalities:  Alcohol, speed and not wearing a seatbelt.

Tuesday, January 16, 2024

Low back strain

 From WebMD Low Back Strain Causes, Treatments, Exercises, Prevention (webmd.com)

So what is low back strain? A series of muscles and ligaments in your back hold the bones of your spinal column in place. You can strain these muscles by stretching them too far, causing tiny tears in the tissue. The muscles are then weakened, so they may not be able to hold the bones of your spinal column in place correctly. The spine becomes less stable, causing low back pain.

And because nerves stretch out from the spinal cord throughout the entire body, low back strain can cause pain in areas other than your back.

Low back strain can be caused by:

  • Extreme physical exertion.
  • Falling.
  • Bending or crouching repeatedly.
  • Lifting heavy objects if you are not in shape.

It can also be caused by emotional stress, improper posture, being overweight, out of shape, or sitting in the same position for long periods of time. Even a severe cough can result in low back strain.


Ten degrees and cold, but thankful

I keep a gratitude notebook, and despite all my blessings, sometimes I draw a blank. That's when I write down the truckers, miners, USPS, the grocery workers, the linemen, the snow removal employees, and all the other people who showed up when we were forced into a lockdown that didn't work.

And today I'm grateful that last night our son-in-law brought over his folding walker with wheels that he used during his hip surgery recovery. Yesterday about 6:30 a.m. I was sitting at the kitchen table writing in my gratitude journal and felt a familiar pain slowly move up my pelvis. Usually that happens if I've moved furniture, or sneezed or unloaded the dishwasher.  This may be the new "normal."  Back pain for no reason.  So, I'm learning to maneuver it, and have even found a cloth purse to attach to it to carry my cell phone, or even my breakfast in a plastic container.

For this type of back strain, it must be ice and not heat (causes swelling).  Sitting is worse than standing which is worse than lying down. I have a few things on the schedule this week.  A hair cut tomorrow and senior Bible study on Thursday to which I'm supposed to bring the snack. We now have more than 1/4 inch of snow, so that could cause additional problems. My plans for yesterday were to do a number of loads of laundry, so that's been put on hold too.

Monday, January 15, 2024

What is Woke?

Richard Hanania is an American writer and political science researcher. He has written for such publications as The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Atlantic, and Quillette. He is the author of ‘The Origins of Woke: Civil Rights Law, Corporate America, and the Triumph of Identity Politics’

Where Woke REALLY Comes From - Richard Hanania (youtube.com)

00:00 Introduction00:32 The Definition of Woke 04:33 Are Conspiring or Well-Meaning People at It’s Roots? 08:02 How is Wokeness Affecting Law in America? 11:20 The Impact of Social Media on the Woke Movement 17:12 How Can Legal Quotas Be Filled in Certain Sectors? 19:30 Does Disparity Equal Discrimination? 23:17 Can Reparation Ever Be Made for Historical Guilt? 27:45 Fixing the Civil Rights Laws 31:53 Why Haven't Past Republican Presidents Tackled These Issues? 35:52 Have We Reached Peak Woke? 41:49 Richard's Past Writings and Views 47:05 Is the Backlash Worse than the Woke People? 52:38 Richard's Take on the Palestinian/Israeli Conflict 1:00:12 What's the One Thing We're Not Talking About?

Sunday, January 14, 2024

Cairo Genizah and the Wisdom of Ben Sira

 The book of Ecclesiasiticus (church book) also called Sirach or Wisdom of Ben Sira is part of the Catholic, Orthodox, Syriac Peshitta, Coptic and African canons, the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church and the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church with 81 books.  It does not appear in the Protestant canon, having been removed during the Reformation.  Although I've enjoyed reading Sirach when it appears as part of the liturgy, I didn't know about its discovery in Hebrew in 1896 until our book club read Sisters of Sinai, How Two Lady Adventurers Discovered the Hidden Gospels by Janet Soskice (2009).

https://youtu.be/mSVPUU8unms?si=xgFChUUoM_UOb369   Sisters of Sinai - Janet Soskice on Scottish Twins Agnes Lewis & Margaret Gibson YouTube lecture

18 facts about the Cairo Genizah

"14. The Original Hebrew Ben Sirah Was Discovered There

"Ben Sira is part of what is known as the Apocrypha—works of Jewish wisdom that were not included in the 24 Books of the Hebrew Bible. In fact, it was when two sisters, Agnes Lewis and Margaret Gibson, found a piece of Hebrew Ben Sirah (which they could not identify) that scholars realized what a treasure the Geniza was. This work—quoted numerous times by the Sages—had only survived in Greek. Thanks to the Geniza (and the Dead Seas Scrolls), at least six sections of Ben Sira in Hebrew have been rediscovered."

The Cairo Genizah - Its History and Importance - Chabad.org

The Book of Sirach - Intro (youtube.com) Ben Sira

How the wisdom of Ben Sira has impacted the church (Sirach, Ecclesiasticus, Apocrypha) (youtube.com)

Ben Sira (also known as Sirach or Ecclesiasticus) is one of our most important sources of ancient Hebrew literature. It is also one of 7 books that belong to the Apocrypha/Deuterocanonical books of the Bible. This great source from second temple Judaism has played an important role to the Christianity since the early church. Our guest, Peter Beckman, is completing his PhD at Saint Paul University in Ottawa, Ontario and is a pastor at a Lutheran church. We discuss a number of topics * The placement (or lack thereof) of Ben Sira in the biblical canon * The different names for the book and what they show * The author of Ben Sira * The differences between the Hebrew and Greek versions * The purpose, style, and message of the book of Ben Sira * The unique prologue to the Greek version of Ben Sira * How Ben Sira navigates challenges that people of faith deal with today * How Ben Sira interprets Scripture * The “canon consciousness” of Ben Sira * We have a little debate about literacy and the target audience of Ben Sira * How has the book of Ben Sira been used in the church throughout history up to today in different denominations * How all wisdom should lead to worship and prayer

https://cudl.lib.cam.ac.uk/bibliographies/genizah/search?query=2665&queryType=TITLEID Palestinian Syriac texts : from palimpsest fragments in the Taylor-Schechter collection, Cambridge Digital Library


"Welcome to www.bensira.org, the website devoted to the ancient and medieval Hebrew manuscripts of the book of Ben Sira. These documents, which are housed in Cambridge, Oxford, London, Paris, New York, Los Angeles, and Jerusalem, are here presented in a single platform, to allow the scholar and the interested layperson to view these precious texts. To learn more about the remarkable recovery of the once-lost Hebrew original of Ben Sira, and its presentation at our website, click on 'Introduction'. To proceed directly to the images of the disparate manuscripts, click on 'View the Manuscripts'. We invite you to explore, peruse the website, and learn more about the book of Ben Sira, its contents, and its textual history."  https://www.bensira.org/  The book of Ben Sira [website]

"The known and published textual witnesses of Ben Sira in Hebrew are as follows: the five manuscripts discovered in the Cairo Genizah, beginning in 1896; the Ben Sira Scroll from Masada, discovered in 1964; fragments of Ben Sira found in two caves at Qumran (cave 2 and cave 11); quotations from Ben Sira scattered throughout the talmudic and midrashic literature; and the ancient Greek and Syriac translations.

In 1982, another manuscript from the Cairo Genizah was discovered by the Hungarian scholar Alexander Scheiber in the Taylor-Schechter Genizah Collection (Additional Series) at Cambridge. Scheiber published the manuscript in a Hungarian journal that was not generally accessible to
the scholarly community.4 He identified the new manuscript as belonging to the same source as that of MS D from the Cairo Genizah. . . . Di Lella’s  conclusion is that this is a totally new Genizah manuscript of Ben Sira, which he designates MS F. (Linguistic Innovations in Ben Sira Manuscript F. by Haim Dihi, Hebrew in the Second Temple Period; The Hebrew of the Dead Sea Scrolls and of Other Contemporary Sources, 2013)  Linguistic Innovation in Ben Sira Manuscript F | HAIM DIHI - Academia.edu


Saturday, January 13, 2024

FBI Undercover assets or enemies

"A member of Congress investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, protest at the U.S. Capitol estimates the FBI had 200 undercover assets both inside and outside the building.

“We believe that there were easily 200 FBI undercover assets operating in the crowd, outside the Capitol, embedded into groups that entered the Capitol or provoked entry of the Capitol,” Rep. Clay Higgins, R-La., said. " (Daily Signal)

Let's assume they were working on intelligence, and intended to STOP a riot and protect the Capitol. They FAILED. So let's look at plan B. They infiltrated a small group to make it worse by inciting them to riot and encouraging them in order to make Trump supporters look bad. They succeeded.
 
So, let's look at other riots during the Trump administration, like George Floyd in 2020. Those riots were infiltrated by large numbers of undercover assets, because they have informants in every special interest group. Did the government operatives fail or succeed? In the process, many black neighborhoods were torched and black businesses destroyed. Many people were killed or injured in the riots. Insurance companies will be reluctant to serve those areas. People will move out. But it gained huge sympathy for black radicals and launched a sympathy vote and defund police campaign. The founders of BLM sucked in millions in donations. Success comes in many flavors.

Arrived and it's really cold today

Dreo Space Heaters for Inside, 2023 New Portable Electric Heater with Remote, 70® Oscillation, 1500W PTC Ceramic Fast Safety Heater with Thermostat, ECO Mode, 12H Timer, Heater for Office, Bedroom.

Bob's Man Cave is always cold, summer and winter. This might help.

Friday, January 12, 2024

A review of the lies and censorship of the last four years

It's hard to keep up. This past week there was news about Hunter Biden, but was it just in 2020 we learned about the laptop? How the information of his selling his father's influence when he was vp was withheld in a HUGE election fraud with the media lying to protect Biden. And the Twitter files and Matt Taibbi being so rudely treated by Democrats? For a quick review of the last four years and how badly Americans have been treated, watch https://www.judicialwatch.org/censored-and-controlled/ It exposes the bro-mance between Big Gov and Big Tech, Big Media, Big Pharma. There are 4 parts. A good review.

Biden's lies about George Washington and Democracy

Joe Biden gave a speech at Valley Forge on January 5. It was embarrassing. He got so much wrong. Who writes his speeches? George Washington never used the word "democracy" at Valley Forge, but good old Joe used the word 29 times! He said it was the whole point of what Washington was fighting for. He said democracy is on the ballot in 2024. No! Democracy is for mobs, and the Founders didn't want that. They designed a Constitutional Republic.** Joe also again for the umpteenth time called a riot at the capitol an insurrection which might destroy the sacred cause for which Washington and his men fought for. He lied about their cause, but he's allowing mobs to roam our streets and demand death to Jews and has not said anything. While funding two wars, he's allowing an invasion at our southern border and is doing nothing to stop it. Both are far greater threats than anything that happened on January 6, 2021.

**A constitutional republic is a form of government in which the head of the state, as well as other officials, are elected by the country’s citizens to represent them. Those representatives must then follow the rules of that country’s constitution in governing their people. Like the U.S. government, a constitutional republic may consist of three branches – executive, judicial, and legislative – which divide the power of the government so that no one branch becomes too powerful.

An analysis of his campaign speech at Valley Forge can be found at thepublicsquare.com .


All reactions:1Sue

Thursday, January 11, 2024

Scams are every where

Caution. Don't fall for scams.

This morning I received via e-mail:
"Hello Customer,

Due to a pr󠆚󠆚obl󠆚󠆚em with your ca󠆚󠆚r󠆚󠆚d, we were unable to ch󠆚󠆚arg󠆚󠆚e your ac󠆚󠆚cou󠆚󠆚nt $1󠆚󠆚3.9󠆚󠆚9 and applicable ta󠆚󠆚xe󠆚󠆚s for your next 1 month of Am󠆚󠆚azo󠆚󠆚n Pr󠆚󠆚im󠆚󠆚e. Your m󠆚󠆚embe󠆚󠆚rshi󠆚󠆚p ben󠆚󠆚efit󠆚󠆚s are currently on h󠆚󠆚ol󠆚󠆚d. 
You may need to up󠆚󠆚dat󠆚󠆚e your p󠆚󠆚aym󠆚󠆚ent details though – Click the button below and follow the on-screen instructions"
This one was easy. I don't have Amazon Prime. But you might. Many scams are out there imitating real companies--using believable logos--we recently were caught by one pretending to be our cable provider. I get other e-mails and texts supposedly from UPS, or just a simple, "Hi, I haven't heard from you for a while," or "Did I miss your call" without any name. Don't give any recording or "person" (could be AI) any information like your SS or credit card number.
 
It's a mess to clean up, and they move faster than we can to correct it. There are bad people out there, and they aren't all in D.C.

Tuesday, January 09, 2024

Fourteen Trillion

$14 trillion. That's what Covid + lockdown cost us. "Workplace absences, and sales lost due to the cessation of brick-and-mortar retail shopping, air travel and public gatherings, contributed the most. At the height of the pandemic, in the second quarter of 2020, our survey indicates that international and domestic airline travel fell by nearly 60%, indoor dining by 65% and in-store shopping by 43%. . . . The toll we estimate that it took on the nation’s gross domestic product is twice the size of that of the Great Recession of 2007-2009. It’s 20 times greater than the economic costs of the 9/11 terrorist attacks and 40 times greater than the toll of any other disaster to befall the U.S. in the 21st century to date." 
COVID-19’s Total Cost to the U.S. Economy Will Reach $14 Trillion by End of 2023 – USC Schaeffer 

And how do you put a price tag on stealing our young people's youth and what they might have learned in school?The mental depression. The drug use. They were the least likely to get Covid yet they may have paid the biggest price.

So much of this was unnecessary. Too many ignorant people were given an enormous amount of power. What can we do to prevent it from happening again.