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Monthly Archives: September 2022
Control of Religion in China through Digital Authoritarianism
Under Xi Jinping’s leadership, PRC officials continue to assert far-reaching control over China’s diverse religious communities. As more religious activity and resources move online, especially in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, PRC authorities have expanded use of digital tools to surveil and suppress online religious expression. Invasive surveillance technologies track and monitor religious groups and individual believers that authorities deem a threat. On March 1, 2022, new Measures for the Administration of Internet Religious Information Services went into effect, which require a government-issued permit to post religious content online and ban the online broadcasting of religious ceremonies, rites, and worship services, among a host of other restrictions infringing upon Chinese citizens’ freedom of religion or belief.
A hearing was held on Tuesday, September 13, 2022 at 10am. The hearing was not held in chambers due to the pandemic that the Chinese ultimatly caused.
This hearing will assess the shifting landscape for religious freedom in China and the PRC’s use of digital repression to bolster Chinese Communist Party control of religion. Witnesses will address the many ways that digital and biometric technologies targeting religious believers in China are applied more broadly for social control, and the potential for like-minded authoritarian states to adopt the PRC’s model of technology-enhanced religious repression.
Opening Statements
Senator Jeff Merkley, Chair
Representative James McGovern, Cochair
Witnesses
Panel 1
Nury Turkel, Chair, U.S. Commmission on International Religious Freedom
Panel 2
Karrie Koesel, Associate Professor, University of Notre Dame
Chris Meserole, Director of Research, Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technology Initiative, Brookings Institution
Emile Dirks, Postdoctoral Fellow, Citizen Lab
It’s love bug season again in Florida
Love bugs are returning to Florida. Here’s what you need to know.
The insect, formally known as Plecia nearctica, are small black flies with a red thorax, according to a report from the University of Florida. They are most often seen flying about connected to one another as they procreate.
Adult males typically live around two to three days, while females can live for as long as a week. Their larvae feed on decayed plants in moist and damp areas or pastures under cow manure, according to a UF report.
Most people generally know them for the inconvenient splatter they produce on the hoods and windshields of vehicles. The UF report says that some of the species are attracted to the heat created by exhaust fumes along Florida’s highways.
In addition to muddying motorists’ visibility, their acidic bodies are known for ruining car paint. Mainly if they’re left out in the sun, stuck to the vehicles, for hours, according to Caliber Car Wash. They also seem more attracted to lighter-colored spaces, especially if they’ve been freshly painted, according to the UF report.
In more extreme cases, the bugs can cause buildup in the grill of a car, causing it to overheat.
In the unfortunate event that one, or a thousand, of these delightful creatures cover your vehicle, it’s recommended to soak the area for five minutes and scrub within 15-20 minutes to enhance the chances of not ruining the vehicle’s paint job, the UF report says.
The insects normally have two mating seasons each year causing headaches for Florida’s motorists. The first runs from April-May and the second from August-September.
Continue readingStocks tumble in worst day since June 2020
US Stocks plummeted in their worst day since June 11, 2020 after key August inflation data ticked upward, surprising investors.
The market is worried that hotter-than-expected inflation will prompt the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates more aggressively, inflicting serious damage to the US economy in the process.
The Dow was down 1276 points, or 3.9%.
The S&P 500 fell 4.3%.
The Nasdaq Composite tumbled 5.2%.
New California law could raise fast-food workers’ minimum wage to $22 an hour
This week, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed an act into law that could raise the minimum wage for fast-food workers to over $20 an hour for the first time in American history.
On Sept. 5, AB 257, or the Fast Food Accountability and Standards Recovery Act, was signed into law by Newsom. The law, authored by Assemblymember Chris Holden, authorizes the creation of a Fast Food Council, which will be made up of 10 representatives from labor and management sectors and set minimum standards for workers in the industry.
According to an Aug. 5 statement by the governor’s office, members of the Fast Food Council will include fast-food workers and their advocates, franchisees, franchisors and representatives from the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development and the Department of Industrial Relations.
Further, the standards the council will address will include conditions related to health and safety, security in the workplace, the right to take time off from work for protected purposes, protection from discrimination and harassment, and worker wages.
Continue readingLau Chicken Wings
Chicken wings can be succulent, tender, crispy perfection. But if you have them often enough, you’re also guaranteed to come across dry, tough chicken jerky masquerading as wings. (Or worse, undercooked wings that make you take note of where the restroom is.)
Is there a way to guarantee success? Guarantee is too strong a word, but let’s say we have a few tricks to greatly, significantly, grandly increase your chances of success when frying chicken wings at home!
Help the wings cook evenly with a few smart incisions. Make two cuts across the flats, and jab twice into the thickest part of the drumettes. This will help the heat (and the flavor!) penetrate the wings better and reduce the chance of undercooking.
Dry chicken is a result of overcooking the chicken, so you need to keep an eye on your oil temperature. Don’t be afraid to adjust the heat if you need to help the oil get hotter or to cool it down.
Do an initial fry at 300°F to get the chicken wings cooked through, then take them out. Do a second fry at 350°F to get the crust nice and crispy. Done!
CLICK THE CONTINUE READING LINK FOR THE RECIPE
Continue readingUnconquered
The Flea Flicker
AP Poll – Week 2
Florida State hangs on for last-second, thrilling 24-23 win over LSU
In the days leading up to Florida State’s Sunday night showdown with LSU, Florida State football coach Mike Norvell said he was excited about the game because it would give him a chance to show off the guys he gets to coach.
And it took every second of the game, but the Seminoles found a way to pull out a 24-23 victory with a blocked extra point — their second blocked kick of the game — to improve to 2-0 on the season.
Redshirt freshman Shyheim Brown blocked the kick after LSU scored a touchdown on the final play of regulation.
“What a finish,” Norvell said, “We talked to our team all week that this game could come down to one play, to one opportunity. And, you know, as you watch throughout the course of the game, I thought our guys put on display an incredible heart. You know, the passion which they played with, just the effort, the physicality, I thought we dominated the game for the majority of it. Obviously, there at the end, you know, we had some things that happened that we just can’t have. But the one thing that happened on the last play is what we absolutely need.
“It’s determination. It’s heart. It’s a willingness that, even after a disappointing moment, our guys responded.”
After falling behind by a field goal on the game’s opening drive, FSU took its first lead on a 39-yard flea-flicker from Jordan Travis to Ontaria “Pokey” Wilson. The Seminoles had a chance to extend their lead just before halftime, but a fourth-down pass from Travis fell incomplete, and the lead stayed at 7-3 at halftime.
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