Rep. Louis Gohmert (R-TX) is among those who made a culture war of coronavirus on Capitol Hill, forcing other lawmakers and staff in congress to deal with him unmasked. Today he was diagnosed with Covid..

Rep. Louie Gohmert -- a Texas Republican who has been walking around the Capitol without a mask -- has tested positive for the coronavirus, according to multiple sources.

Gohmert was scheduled to fly to Texas on Wednesday morning with President Donald Trump and tested positive in a pre-screen at the White House. The eighth-term Republican told CNN last month that he was not wearing a mask because he was being tested regularly for the coronavirus.

He says he'll now wear a mask, but he's been infecting his colleagues and everyone around him for days. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/29/another-anti-mask-republican.html

 Every company needs to have a firm grasp on their bottom line. But while every company used to have their official ledger books or one of those old-school physical world accountings of a company’s every asset and expenditure, many firms don’t work that way anymore. Oh, they all still balance their “books” (if they want to survive, that is), but many of those full accountancies are now solely housed on the web.

With a one-year subscription to QuickBooks Essential Plan, you’ll not only be able to turn your business into a paperless environment, but you’ll also get all the tools needed to make all of your business financials accessible 24/7/365 from anywhere.

For the past three decades, QuickBooks has been the gold standard for small business accounting -- and now, this package will help any company, especially those who do plenty of invoicing, get all their business affairs in perfect order, all online.

QuickBooks allows you and up to two others full access to everything, including all the features and streamlined processes to help turn your organization into a machine of efficiency without dominating your time.

With QuickBooks, you can track income and expenses, send invoices, accept payments, send estimates, organize receipts, manage bills and perform all the tasks it takes for a full up-to-the-minute understanding of your company’s fiscal health.

In addition to features like the ability to fire off multiple payments to multiple vendors all at once or creating your own digital checks, QuickBooks is also full of reporting modes so you can get a look at every aspect of your company’s performance. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/for-small-businesses-quickboo.html

For all its downsides, you have to admit all this extra time spent at home has to have boosted your creativity. More time to sit and think means more time to develop new original ideas. Trust us, you wouldn’t be the first to find that a global emergency has fueled the need to start a great new creative project.

A book. You need to write a book. However, just the thought of taking on a project like that is enough to make you break out in hives. First, the process of bringing your thoughts and concepts together into an actual written manuscript is daunting, to say the least. Then once it’s finished...well, then what?

It’s no cause for alarm. In fact, the training in a package like The Creative Writing eBook Self-Publishing Bundle can efficiently lead you by the hand through the entire book writing process, from ideation and writing to publication to bringing that work to the public.

This collection features 10 courses that should help you get a strong idea of some of the most popular and profitable routes for authoring your own eBook.

If your work is non-fiction, you’ve got plenty of work to do before you even write word no. 1. In Novel Writing 101, students examine the essential phases of writing a novel, from research through starting your draft to the ongoing editing and polishing phases.  The Scrivener Simplified course can help with that, showing how one published author creates a path for you to follow to use the popular writing software to gather notes, outline, write, rewrite and edit your work. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/are-you-ready-to-write-and-pub.html

US government officials told the Associated Press today that three different English-language websites are spreading disinformation about the novel coronavirus directly from Russia.

Is one of them white house dot gov?

No names given yet.

WASHINGTON (AP) — US government officials tell AP that Russia is using 3 English-language websites to spread coronavirus disinformation.

 Zeke Miller (@ZekeJMiller) July 28, 2020

Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/russia-is-using-3-english-lang.html

The document says “Defendant Shall Not Attend Protests.”

In Portland, getting out of jail now means relinquishing constitutionally protected rights.

“This is what it looks like when you're released from jail on federal charges...on the condition that you stop showing up to protest,” writes Dara Lind at ProPublica.

A dozen protesters facing federal charges are barred from going to “public gatherings” as a condition of release from jail — a tactic one expert describes in Dara's reporting as “sort of hilariously unconstitutional.”

This is what it looks like when you're released from jail on federal charges...on the condition that you stop showing up to protests. https://t.co/PZ1d4pr7x5 pic.twitter.com/6oi4LggnLD

 Dara Lind (@DLind) July 28, 2020

Alternatively: This is what it looks like when the magistrate judge _handwrites an addition to your conditions of release_ so that you can't attend protests. pic.twitter.com/tEyi1HLcVi

 Dara Lind (@DLind) July 28, 2020

Excerpt:

Federal authorities are using a new tactic in their battle against protesters in Portland, Oregon: arrest them on offenses as minor as “failing to obey” an order to get off a sidewalk on federal property — and then tell them they can’t protest anymore as a condition for release from jail.

Legal experts describe the move as a blatant violation of the constitutional right to free assembly, but at least 12 protesters arrested in recent weeks have been specifically barred from attending protests or demonstrations as they await trials on federal misdemeanor charges.

“Defendant may not attend any other protests, rallies, assemblies or public gathering in the state of Oregon,” states one “Order Setting Conditions of Release” for an accused protester, alongside other conditions such as appearing for court dates.

Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/protesters-released-from-jail.html

WATCH: During Bill Barr's hearing on Capitol Hill today, Rep. Pramila Jayapal tore him a new one.

“When White men with swastikas storm a government building with guns, there is no need for the president to activate you, because they're getting the president's personal agenda done.”

Watch.

From PBS NewsHour:

Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., asked Attorney General William Barr about what she characterized as the unequal treatment of protesters against the excessive use of force by police versus "right-wing extremists threatening to lynch a governor."

"Apparently the president believes you can be activated to implement the president's agenda and dominate American people exercising First Amendment rights if they are protesting against him. But let's look at how you respond when the protesters are supporters of the president," she said.

“Are you aware that these [stay-at-home] protesters called for the [Michigan] governor to be lynched, shot and beheaded?” Jayapal asked.

Saying he did not know about the Michigan protests, Barr added that "there are a lot of protests around the United States."

Jayapal questioned Barr during a committee hearing examining whether the attorney general has inappropriately politicized the Justice Department. Democrats launched the investigation earlier this year over Barr’s handling of the case against Roger Stone, a close ally of President Donald Trump, whose 40-month prison sentence was commuted by the president this month. Democrats have since expanded their probe to several subsequent episodes in which they believe Barr is working for Trump’s own benefit.

Rep. Pramila Jayapal eviscerated Barr for his unequal response to BLM vs Michigan protesters:

"When White men with swastikas storm a government building with guns, there is no need for the president to activate you, because they're getting the president's personal agenda done."

Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/watch-rep-pramila-jayapal-evi.html

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/blind-woman-demonstrates-how-s.html

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/the-windows-smashing-umbrell.html

I'd totally go.

Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic unveiled a new cabin design today, and streamed the launch event live.

Watch the replay here, and sign up for a trip if you've got plenty of cash and don't mind waiting.

Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/watch-virgin-galactic-spacesh.html

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/bill-barr-i-dont-pay-atte.html

The November election is 95 days away, as of today.

Democratic presidential candidate and former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden was asked by a reporter today if he still plans to announce his Vice President pick early next month.

Replied Biden, “I'm going to have a choice in the first week in August. And I promise, I'll let you know when I do.”

That's next week.

So, we'll know who else is on the Democratic ticket with Biden next week.

Joe Biden, asked if he still plans to announce his VP pick early next month: "I'm going to have a choice in the first week in August. And I promise, I'll let you know when I do."

 Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) July 28, 2020

Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/joe-biden-im-going-to-have.html

Back in the old days of the 20th century, practicality was the biggest reason most people wore a watch. If you didn’t have a clock face right on your wrist, how else would you know the time?

Of course, in the age of smartphones and even smartwatches, the time is available virtually everywhere at any time at a glance. So watchmakers today have steered sharply into the other reason people have always worn watches -- because they look cool as hell.

Fashion-forward watches are the mission statement for Zinvo, a luxury watch producer dedicated to crafting striking design pieces that instantly catch the eye. And each member of the Zinvo Blade collection reaches that lofty goal in true attention-grabbing style.

Zinvo Blade watches feature their distinctive dial design that incorporates a spinning titanium disk that replaces the traditional second hand. It actually looks like a working turbine engine -- or quite possibly, like a sci-fi time-travel device. Either way, it’s bound to attract stares.

Despite their hard eye for fashion, Zinvo doesn’t scrimp on function either. Constructed with a 44mm gunmetal stainless steel case, resilient scratch proof sapphire crystal, water resistance to 330 feet and a genuine leather strap, the Blade watches are built to last.

These self winding timepieces are designed to gain power from the natural movements of the wrist, making winding unnecessary. The mechanical movement core of the Blade is so reliable, it will even continue running and keeping perfect time for up to 42 hours when it's left stationary. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/these-blade-collection-watches.html

Researchers compared the sprays of droplets we spew out of our mouths when wearing a one-layered cloth mask, two-layered cloth mask, surgical mask, and no mask at all -- while talking, coughing, and sneezing.

Mashable sums up the findings succinctly:

The study's big takeaways are:

• When talking, wearing even a single-layer mask significantly limits the exhalation of droplets.

• For coughing and sneezing, a double-layer mask is much more effective than a single-layer mask.

• Generally, the more layers a mask has the better. The researchers suggest "at least three layers" and found surgical masks performed best in this study — though not everyone has access to these masks.

For more details read the published results in Thorax. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/video-compares-droplet-sprays.html

Marooned in Florida in 1528, four Spanish colonists made an extraordinary journey across the unexplored continent. Their experiences changed their conception of the New World and its people. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe the remarkable odyssey of 'Alvar N'u~nez Cabeza de Vaca and his reformed perspective on the Spanish conquest.

We'll also copy the Mona Lisa and puzzle over a deficient pinball machine.

Show notes

Please support us on Patreon! Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/in-the-1500s-four-spanish-col.html

Lasts week, we lost iconic avant-garde fashion designer, Kansai Yamamoto. Yamamoto is best known for this long-term collaboration with David Bowie, especially the costumes for the Martian rocker's Ziggy Stardust tour.

On the Fashion United website, there's a piece about the 2018 Brooklyn Museum evening with Yamamoto, done in support of the David Bowie Is exhibit.

Here, Yamamoto describes his collaboration with Bowie:

“Unlike me, Bowie was quiet, shy, but on stage he flips a switch and becomes David Bowie,” says Yamamoto. “Me, I’m always that way.” But they shared a love of what the designer calls “radical appearance,” and when asked what they learned from each other, he replies that through Bowie he developed his understanding of Western dress while he helped Bowie interpret Eastern clothing. He agrees that he sees a direct line between what he created in the 70s for Bowie and the current conversation on gender and dress. “I approached Bowie’s clothes as if I was designing for a female,” he admits. “Notice there is no zipper in front.” But he feels proud seeing how the younger generation attending the “David Bowie Is” exhibit can express themselves when compared to the societal restrictions he encountered in Japan 50 years ago, as a self-taught, broke, designer launching his career at the age of 21. A photographer had snapped a picture of him walking along London’s Kings Road and it was featured on the cover of Life magazine. “I felt every day I was the model in a fashion show and everyone around me were members of the audience,” he says.

Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/the-late-fashion-designer-kan.html

Georgia Senator David Perdue claims his attack ad, in which the nose of Democratic Challenger John Ossoff is enlarged, was simply a graphic design error.

Ossoff said the ad employed “the oldest, most obvious, least original anti-Semitic trope in history.”

Senator David Perdue just ran an attack ad that artificially enlarged the nose of his Jewish opponent, Jon @Ossoff.

The ad claims that “Democrats are trying to buy Georgia.”

This is blatant antisemitism. It’s not an accident. It’s their platform.@Perduesenate, apologize now. pic.twitter.com/h0sOpllgHe

 Bend the Arc: Jewish Action (@jewishaction) July 28, 2020

From Huffington Post:

Perdue’s campaign claimed that “in the graphic design process handled by an outside vendor, the photo was resized and a filter was applied, which appears to have caused an unintentional error that distorted the image.”

“Obviously, this was accidental, but to ensure there is absolutely no confusion, we have immediately removed the image from Facebook,” a spokesperson said in a statement sent to multiple media outlets. Perdue himself hadn’t seen the ad before it was released, they said.

“Anybody who implies that this was anything other than an inadvertent error is intentionally misrepresenting Senator Perdue’s strong and consistent record of standing firmly against anti-Semitism and all forms of hate,” they added.

Ossoff wasn’t buying the explanation, however.

“Senator, literally no one believes your excuses,” he tweeted Monday.

Image: Senator David Perdue. A filter was applied, which appears to have caused an unintentional error that distorted the image. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/senator-david-perdue-enlarged.html

Last year, Leonardo was on offer. Today, it's Raphael, his dead glass eyes staring bleakly from his rotting latex form. The bidding estimate starts at $3,000.

This costume includes a zip-up green turtle bodysuit constructed of foam latex cast elements over a Spandex base affixed with dense-foam chest and shell elements, leather knee and elbow pads, and a leather sheath for Raphael's signature sai. The removable head features foam latex skin with cast resin teeth, urethane eyes, a red fabric eye mask, internal padding, and a zipper closure.

The costume is in fragile and fair to poor overall condition. It exhibits significant breakdown to its foam latex elements from age and may require restoration to preserve it from further deterioration.

As with Leonardo, I have created a nice video (embedded above) of this decaying latex fursuit accompanied by the TMNT theme tune, respectfully slowed in solemn remembrance.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle suit from 1993 movie hits the auction block

Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/rotting-raphael-costume-from-1.html

“Many powerful companies that drive environmental injustice are also backers of the same police departments that tyrannize the very communities these corporate actors pollute,” write the authors of a newly released investigation by the Public Accountability Initiative. The report is titled "Fossil Fuel Industry Pollutes Black & Brown Communities While Propping Up Racist Policing" and it's a damning indictment of corporate giants who protect their astronomical wealth by exploiting the vulnerable.

From the report:

Shell, one of the biggest fossil fuel companies in the world and a major global emitter of carbon pollution. It is building a huge ethane cracker plant near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania that some feel could start to turn Appalachia into the next “Cancer Alley” – the nickname for the New Orleans-to-Baton Rouge corridor of Louisiana refineries, where Shell is also a major polluter. Cancer Alley runs through several Black communities that face extremely high rates of pollution and cancer – largely believed to be caused by refining and petrochemical operations. Shell is a “Featured Partner” of the New Orleans Police & Justice Foundation and a sponsor of the Houston Police Department’s Mounted Patrol. Entergy is a publicly-traded, Fortune 500 company headquartered in Louisiana that also services parts of Arkansas, Mississippi, and Texas. Entergy is arguably the most powerful corporate force in Louisiana, with presences on prominent chambers, business associations, philanthropic organizations, and even charter school advocacy groups across the state. Entergy is a “Featured Partner” of the New Orleans Police and Justice Foundation with top billing on the foundation’s sponsors page. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/chevron-shell-wells-fargo-fu.html

More than 30 years ago, Mauro Morandi was attempting to sail from Italy to Polynesia when he ended up on Budelli, a small private island off Sardinia. Morandi, now 81, never left and eventually became the island's official caretaker. Above is a Great Big Story about Morandi from two years ago. Soon though, Morandi may get the boot. La Maddalena's National Park, owner of the island since 2015, plans to renovate Morandi's shack into an environmental observatory. From CNN:

"Our priority is to intervene against all illegal constructions inside the park, including Mauro's hut, a former World War II radio station which has undergone modifications which aren't in accordance with the rules. We need to set the example, protect our environment by first restoring this illegal structure ,and then move on with a new project which will likely be a scientific center for the spreading of environmental awareness," La Maddalena Park president Fabrizio Fonnesu tells CNN in Italian.[...]

"Nobody wants to chase him away, but what title does he have to stay since the island is no longer private?," says Fonnesu. "If in future there is the need to have a caretaker, we could reconsider his position, but when the works will start he must leave." [...]

Morandi, meanwhile, says that although the mere thought of leaving hurts him, he's more worried about the fate of the "pink atoll," so-called because of the rosy hue of its unique coral sand beach.

"Just the other day I chased away two tourists who were trespassing on the off-limits pink beach," he says.

Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/italian-island-hermit-may.html

While most businesses suffer through the pandemic, Wham-O is raking in the sales with Slip 'N Slide. Even three months ago, "the company enjoyed 10 consecutive days in late April where sales doubled each day," says TMZ. Now the water toy, which made its debut in 1961, is out of stock.

And it's not just Slip 'N Slide that is keeping Wham-O fat. Frisbee sales are up 500%, according to TMZ, and Boogie Boards are up 300%.

Wham-O's timeless toys, which also include Super Ball, the Hula hoop, and Hacky sack, are perfect for bored kids during long hot stay-at-home days, so it makes sense that they were first created by, well, "bored kids on a hot day." Here's the Slip N Slide origin story, posted by Andrea a few weeks ago. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/07/28/slip-n-slide-is-all-sold-out.html