The unimportant news thread

[Todd]

This man wants to prove the earth is flat.  This may cost him his life...

AFV fodder.

[bwv 1080]

This man wants to prove the earth is flat.  This may cost him his life...


https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2017/11/21/this-man-is-about-to-launch-himself-in-his-homemade-rocket-to-prove-the-earth-is-flat/?utm_term=.5a37b62bc835

When Approaching the ground at terminal velocity the earth is flat to a first order approximation

[Turner]

Go home and relax in stead ... 

https://twitter.com/russian_market/status/933592801371217920

[Todd]

The failing New York Times reports that the Pentagon has lied about civilian deaths in the War on Terror.  Maybe "lied" is too harsh.  Maybe the Pentagon only consciously misled people.  I, for one, am shocked by such revelations. 

From the article:

'The American-led military coalition has claimed, for instance, that the ratio of civilian deaths to airstrikes in the operation against the Islamic State in Iraq is one for every 157 strikes. The New York Times Sunday Magazine's account found a ratio of one civilian death for every five airstrikes — more than 31 times the Pentagon's claim. The true number, wrote the authors, Azmat Khan and Anand Gopal, "is at such a distance from official claims that, in terms of civilian deaths, this may be the least transparent war in recent American history."'

[Todd]

Pentagon likely to acknowledge 2,000 U.S. troops in Syria: U.S. officials

I mean, if the Pentagon lies about civilians killed in the War on Terror, it only makes sense that it would lie about troop levels in Syria.  It's not like it's a hot spot, or anything.  The Pentagon apparently also has to lie about troop levels in Iraq.  Better up its budget again next year.

[Jo498]

Did anyone ever seriously expect them NOT to lie about such things? O.k., I get why it is "unimportant news"...

[Todd]

Amazon, in Hunt for Lower Prices, Recruits Indian Merchants

Funny, this story didn't run in AmPo.

[Todd]

Belgian prince says proposed pay cut would breach his human rights.

IOW, white trash bitches about welfare cut.

[Florestan]

King Mihai (Michael) of Romania has died today, aged 96. As a great-great-grandson of Queen Victoria, through both of his parents, Michael was a third cousin of Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, King Harald V of Norway, King Juan Carlos I of Spain, King Carl XVI Gustav of Sweden and Queen Elizabeth II.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_I_of_Romania



October 25, 1921 - December 5, 2017

RIP.

[Todd]

Academics and Artists Weigh In on Controversial City Monuments

"The letter singles out the Christopher Columbus monument at Columbus circle, the statue of President Theodore Roosevelt outside of the American Museum of Natural History, the Dr. J. Marion Sims statue in Central Park, and two commemorative markers bearing the names of Philippe Pétain and Pierre Laval."

Columbus is old hat now, and frankly I'm surprised to learn that lefties have not expunged all record of his existence in NYC, while Sims was a bad dude, and who gives a rip about monuments to two Frenchies stateside, but TR?  In New York?

[Todd]

Russia election: Putin to run again for president


Somewhat surprising, really.  He's received a lot of bad press lately.  I just don't know if he can eke out a win.

[Brian]

This guy isn't going to win the Texas governor's race, but his campaign intro video might change political ads forever.

Or maybe I'm just hoping that that video will change political ads forever. Yeah, okay, I'm definitely just hoping that.

[Spineur]

Greece and Turkey trade accusations at the start of Erdogan visit

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-greece-turkey-erdogan/greece-and-turkey-trade-accusations-at-start-of-erdogan-visit-idUSKBN1E10S9

Where is the surprise

[bwv 1080]

The best human-trained chess program in the world was just beat by a neural network that trained itself for only a couple of hours.  Unlike older chess programs where humans gave it basic strategy, Deep Mind was just given the rules of the game and taught itself through repeated games:

https://www.theverge.com/2017/12/6/16741106/deepmind-ai-chess-alphazero-shogi-go

[Turner]

"Tough on crime" policy:
"Man jailed for 15 years for hate crimes after leaving bacon in mosque"

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/muslim-hate-crime-bacon-mosque-man-jailed-15-years-michael-wolfe-florida-a8098926.html

(admittedly there was a bit more vandalism too)

[Ken B]

"Tough on crime" policy:
"Man jailed for 15 years for hate crimes after leaving bacon in mosque"

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/muslim-hate-crime-bacon-mosque-man-jailed-15-years-michael-wolfe-florida-a8098926.html

(admittedly there was a bit more vandalism too)

Compare and contrast

https://abc10up.com/2017/06/28/prison-sentence-handed-man-kidnapped-woman/

[Karl Henning]

A $52.4 billion merger

[Ken B]

A $52.4 billion merger

Two words: Auntie. Trust.

[Florestan]

King Mihai I of Romania lying in state at the Royal Palace in Bucharest. I queued up for 9 (nine!) hours to pay him my homage.

[Turner]

Russia election: Putin to run again for president


Somewhat surprising, really.  He's received a lot of bad press lately.  I just don't know if he can eke out a win.

It has now been decided to hold those elections on the anniversary day of the Russian annexation of Crimea.