CRANKY OLD FART’S BROWSER HISTORY #383  [archive] NOV. 17, 2023

UnitedHealth pushed employees to follow an algorithm to cut off Medicare patients’ rehab care
    If you have enormous imagination or you’re stoned, perhaps you can pretend UnitedHealth is the only insurance company doing this. Center for Constitutional Rights sues Biden for alleged ‘failure to prevent genocide’ in Gaza
    On first flash of this news, my reaction was that it’s stupid, and an irresponsible waste of funds, because as awful as the genocide in Gaza is, what the fuck has it to do with US Constitutional rights?
    On second mulling, I can see the logic. The Constitution says treaties have the force of law, and America’s signed on to the Geneva Conventions, which are treaties, so by that chain of logic Biden ought to oppose crimes against humanity, instead of endorsing them.
    Still, though — a judge can’t order the President to suddenly have a soul. 

Greenhouse gases soared to another record and there’s ‘no end in sight’ They did it; the jury didn’t care: Climate protesters acquitted of causing damage to HSBC London HQ
    This is the only good news of the week, but it’s pretty darn terrific.
    Said it before, and I’ll say it again: On the climate catastrophe, the time for polite protests and letters to the editor has passed. Direct action is the only strategy that remains.

Volkswagen demanded a $150 fee before using GPS to locate stolen vehicle with 2-year-old child inside America’s news deserts grow as newspaper closures accelerate  

Americans’ trust in scientists, positive views of science continue to decline
    Excerpt: Overall, 57% of Americans say science has had a mostly positive effect on society. This share is down 8 percentage points since November 2021 and down 16 points since before the start of the coronavirus outbreak. FBI raids home of prominent Bureau whistleblower 

The Guardian deletes Osama bin Laden’s ‘Letter to America’ because it went viral on TikTok ‘No one else is saving it’: the fight to protect a historic music collection 

Speaker of the House: Separation of church & state is “a misnomer”  Derek Chauvin makes another bid to overturn federal conviction in murder of George Floyd
    Excerpt: Chauvin, who is serving a 21-year sentence at a federal prison in Arizona, filed the request without a lawyer. He says Dr. William Schaetzel, of Topeka, Kansas, told him that he believes Floyd died not from asphyxia from Chauvin’s actions, but from complications of a rare tumor called a paraganglioma that can cause a fatal surge of adrenaline. The pathologist did not examine Floyd’s body but reviewed autopsy reports. 

Pelosi hammer attacker David DePape tearfully testifies he was radicalized by ‘Gamergate’
    If you’ve forgotten it in the endless maelstrom of daily bullshit, Gamergate was a mob of on-line misogynists who terrorized women with doxing, rape threats, and death threats, for being women.  Christian parenting expert recommends spanking toddlers so they act excited to see you 

House Speaker Mike Johnson is a board member of a Christian publishing house that called ‘monkeypox’ a penalty for being gay  Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley vows to abolish anonymous social media accounts: ‘It’s a national security threat’ 

How long does it take WalMart to earn an average employee’s annual salary? A little less than a second and a half. • Amusing, Interesting, Outrageous, or Profound
    AIOP is my Lemmy page, for anything that’s (in my opinion) amusing, interesting, outrageous, or profound. It’s mostly a rough draft of this page, but you’re invited to stop by.

♫♬  MUSIC  ♫ The Air That I Breathe — The Hollies Dazzling in the End — Murray Gold Hit Somebody! — Warren Zevon The Logical Song — Supertramp True Love — Pink with Lily Allen 

⚰️  OBITUARIES  ⚰️
Khalil Abu Yahia
climate change researcher Radcliffe Bailey
artist, Low-Lying Johnny Green
basketballer, New York Knicks Roger Kastel
artist, known for movie posters John Morris
rock promoter, Woodstock Music & Art Fair Terry Taylor
first female sports editor at Associated Press Wilhelm von Dachshund
good boy

11/17/2023    Cranky Old Fart is annoyed and complains and very occasionally
offers a kindness, along with anything off the internet that’s made me
smile or snarl. All opinions fresh from my ass. Top illustration by Jeff Meyer. Click any image to enlarge. Comments & conversations invited.