Steve Mays @smays@mastodon.technology

"That’s all viruses do. They have no motivations and no storyline, and they don’t notice if we’re bored or frustrated or angry. While those copies are being made, the imperfections of that process mean that mutations will constantly occur. Most of those will do nothing, but if one of them turns out to help make more copies, it’ll stick around. Meanwhile, mutations that interfere with copy-making will vanish quickly."

https://blogs.sciencemag.org/pipeline/archives/2020/08/10/stock-cults-and-the-coronavirus

Might be my imagination but it seems the creatures are coming closer. Less skittish.

Mother deer near the fence line and fawn in far left of photo.

We stared at each other for a long time.

“We might be coming to a time when nobody is secure. When nothing is secret. You sit up in your chair and behave yourself, or your little secret is on CNN."

— The Hanged Man’s Song (2003)

Rotary phone ringing for 12 hours.

https://youtu.be/2z8LGDzEX5k

Tried to think of a use case for this. I suppose if you were in some sort of war with the folks in the next apartment and wanted to take it to the next level.

“I’d be willing to bet that it’s the dumbest people among us who are least likely to vote too, and that’s fine with me. I don’t want anyone dumber than I am voting.”

– Andy Rooney (2004)

Like Escape from New York but going in the other direction.

https://www.businessinsider.com/new-york-city-establish-checkpoints-for-out-of-state-travelers-2020-8

"The launch of universal (public and free) education was a profound change in the way our society works, and it was a deliberate attempt to transform our culture. And it worked. We trained millions of factory workers."

-- ibid ( pg 41)

“Our world is filled with factories. Factories that make widgets and insurance and Web sites, factories that make movies and take care of sick people and answer the telephone. These factories need workers. If you learn how to be one of these workers, if you pay attention in school, follow instructions, show up on time, and try hard, we will take care of you. You won’t have to be brilliant or creative or take big risks. We will pay you a lot of money, give you health insurance, and offer you job security."

“Our economy has reached a logical conclusion. The race to make average stuff for average people in huge quantities is almost over. Improvements in price are now so small they’re hardly worth making." pg 123

-- ibid

“The essential thing measured by school is whether or not you are good at school."

-- Linchpin by Seth Godin (page 47)

"It doesn't surprise me that kids do well without school. School is largely a service for the parents. I remember as a kid being really pissed off that so much of my youth was wasted sitting in rooms with my hands foldeed, with my mind anywhere but in school, learning nothing and being bored out of my mind. I thought of school as very lazy, unimaginative, typical of adults. It wasn't really until grad school that school started working for me, on the terms I wanted it to."

-- Dave Winer

“We are an opportunity for the virus. If you go on building up the population, it’s almost inevitable that something is going to say, jeez, there’s a lot of stuff to eat there. Let’s go get it.”

— James Lovelock

I've been telling myself the pandemic would become real to people in the U.S. once X number of deaths were recorded. When the number is too high to be ignored. I'm wrong about that.

The number doesn't matter if you don't believe it. These are "fake deaths" in the minds of a whole bunch of people.

Covid won't be "real" until everyone knows someone (family or friend) brought down (death or serious illness) by the virus.

If that doesn't do it, I'm out of ideas.

"He was used to the disappearance of large parts of his life. Sometimes, he passed out at ten o'clock in the morning, and when he woke up, it was nine o'clock in the morning -- some other morning. At first, the time changes were disorienting, but over the course of a couple of years, he got used to it. He simply gave up on time -- now life was daytime and nighttime, strung along like beads on a string, and the minute, hour, and date were irrelevant."

-- Wicked Prey (John Sandford)

Hugs and kisses (virtual) for the CenturyLink tech that found and fixed the problem with our DSL. Be a while before I take even so-so internet access for granted.

"We live infinitesmally short lifespans on an insignificant speck of dust in space, with delusions of grandeur, when the best we can achieve, which is pretty good, is friendship, love and to a small extent, self-awareness. We're going to get smart now, and learn to be the humble mortals that we are. Or we're going to cease to exist. In other words, it's time for the human race to grow up."

-- Dave Winer

"A virus infects the human race. Everyone gets it but children don’t get sick or die. Adults die very quickly. ~100%. Adults must avoid children at all costs. Hilarity ensues as the kids figure it out and start making demands."

-- Dave Winer

“Seeing a screening of La Jetee, for the first time, in a film history course, in the early 70s, was an absolutely crucial factor in my starting to write fiction. About the same time, I heard a visiting lecturer, an anthropologist, use a term I was unfamiliar with: multinational corporations. She used it as the answer to: What would nonhuman aliens regard as Earth’s dominant life form?”

— William Gibson (on Twitter)

One local grocery (Kroger subsidiary) started "requiring" face masks for customers coming into the store (we order online and pickup outside).

I asked the employee who brought our order if enforcement had been a problem.

"Oh, we don't don't make customers wear a mask if they don't want to."

Turns out their mask policy is a sign on the door asking customers to wear masks. Zero enforcement.

I'm in mid-Missouri.

You can now find YouTube videos of people doing nothing for four, five and even eight hours at a time.

https://youtu.be/x8zFL-0rBAw