Behind Tianjin Blast, High Price of Lax Rules - The New York Times

Behind Tianjin Blast, High Price of Lax Rules - The New York Times:



In interviews with more than a dozen of Rui Hai’s former clients and associates — and unusually critical reports in China’s state-controlled news media — a picture has emerged of a company that exploited weak governance in one of the party’s showcase economic districts and used political connections to shield its operations from scrutiny.



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At War in the Garden of Eden | The New Republic

At War in the Garden of Eden | The New Republic:

Brothers,

We forgive you for your foul deeds. You have robbed our convent. Do you not know that we are virgins? We have no one to support us with money. You even put the refrigerator at the door to steal it at night. [You stole] the blankets, mattresses, gas canisters, and even our clothes. How can you say that you love God while you steal the livelihood of the poor? God does not have mercy on robbers. Unlawful deeds bring calamities upon their doers.

Your mother,

The Nun

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Just a Phase | Jamie Denbo

Just a Phase | Jamie Denbo: "
But the schools all made us feel like he was a true danger to himself and society and that it was all our fault. They never once reminded me that biters are common. That kids grow at different rates. That I was not actually a terrible mother.
I STILL panic when a phone number comes up that I don't recognize. My heart ALWAYS initially drops. Because I assume that it is a parent/teacher/administrator whose number I don't have calling to tell me that my son has committed some unacceptable act of one kind of another. I have a mild form of PTSD. "



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That 'Useless' Liberal Arts Degree Has Become Tech's Hottest Ticket - Forbes

That 'Useless' Liberal Arts Degree Has Become Tech's Hottest Ticket - Forbes: " Throughout the major U.S. tech hubs, whether Silicon Valley or Seattle, Boston or Austin, Tex., software companies are discovering that liberal arts thinking makes them stronger.  Engineers may still command the biggest salaries, but at disruptive juggernauts such as Facebook and Uber, the war for talent has moved to nontechnical jobs, particularly sales and marketing. The more that audacious coders dream of changing the world, the more they need to fill their companies with social alchemists who can connect with customers–and make progress seem pleasant."



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How (and Why) SpaceX Will Colonize Mars - Page 5 of 5 - Wait But Why | Page 5

How (and Why) SpaceX Will Colonize Mars - Page 5 of 5 - Wait But Why | Page 5: "The Solar System could become one vast world for humans. Maybe Jupiter’s moon Europa becomes known as the Solar System’s tech hub, while Saturn’s Titan becomes the place you have to move if you really want to be in the entertainment industry. Maybe some people will spend their whole lives on one heavenly body, while others will be avid travelers and brag that they’ve set foot on 12. Maybe the Solar System’s Grand Congress will make “Earth history” a required class in school, and students all over will grow up yearning to one day visit what they’ll refer to as the Cradle of Civilization, to see its huge animals, famous cities, and ancient ruins.

"



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How Tesla Will Change The World - Wait But Why

How Tesla Will Change The World - Wait But Why: "Fire joules were hard to harness, but if you sent them into water, they’d get the water molecules to increasingly freak out and bounce around until finally those molecules would fully panic and start flying off the surface, evaporating upwards with the force of the raging fire below. You’d have successfully converted the thermal energy joules of the fire—which we didn’t know how to directly harness—into a powerful jet of steam we could control.

"



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18F — Announcing the Agile BPA awards: A conversation about the process

18F — Announcing the Agile BPA awards: A conversation about the process: "Over the last few months, the demand for 18F to build products for agencies has been explosive. To meet this demand, we realized that we needed help from outside vendors who work the way we do — using techniques like agile development cycles and user-centered design processes. We’ve also identified the need for a contract vehicle through which agencies can gain access to a pool of vendors that work in this way as well."



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A Short Lesson in Perspective

A Short Lesson in Perspective:

The Overnight Test only works if you can afford to wait overnight. To sleep on it. Time moved on, and during the nineties technology overran, and transformed the creative industry like it did most others. Exciting new tools. Endless new possibilities. Pressing new deadlines. With the new digital tools at our disposal we could romp over the creative landscape at full tilt. Have an idea, execute it and deliver it in a matter of a few short hours. Or at least a long night. At first it was a great luxury. We could cover so much more ground. Explore all the angles. And having exhausted all the available possibilities, craft a solution we could have complete faith in.

Or as the bean counters upstairs quickly realized, we could just do three times as many jobs in the same amount of time, and make them three times as much money. For the same reason that Jumbo Jets don’t have the grand pianos and palm-court cocktail bars we were originally promised in the brochures, the accountants naturally won the day.

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A Short Lesson in Perspective

A Short Lesson in Perspective:

The Overnight Test only works if you can afford to wait overnight. To sleep on it. Time moved on, and during the nineties technology overran, and transformed the creative industry like it did most others. Exciting new tools. Endless new possibilities. Pressing new deadlines. With the new digital tools at our disposal we could romp over the creative landscape at full tilt. Have an idea, execute it and deliver it in a matter of a few short hours. Or at least a long night. At first it was a great luxury. We could cover so much more ground. Explore all the angles. And having exhausted all the available possibilities, craft a solution we could have complete faith in.

Or as the bean counters upstairs quickly realized, we could just do three times as many jobs in the same amount of time, and make them three times as much money. For the same reason that Jumbo Jets don’t have the grand pianos and palm-court cocktail bars we were originally promised in the brochures, the accountants naturally won the day.

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Why Procrastinators Procrastinate - Wait But Why

Why Procrastinators Procrastinate - Wait But Why: "And with the monkey in charge, the procrastinator finds himself spending a lot of time in a place called the Dark Playground.*
The Dark Playground is a place every procrastinator knows well. It’s a place where leisure activities happen at times when leisure activities are not supposed to be happening. The fun you have in the Dark Playground isn’t actually fun because it’s completely unearned and the air is filled with guilt, anxiety, self-hatred, and dread.



Sometimes the Rational Decision-Maker puts his foot down and refuses to let you waste time doing normal leisure things, and since the Instant Gratification Monkey sure as hell isn’t gonna let you work, you find yourself in a bizarre purgatory of weird activities where everyone loses.**"



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Killings of Journalists Bring Gun Violence to Dark New Level - The New York Times

Killings of Journalists Bring Gun Violence to Dark New Level - The New York Times: "The questioning that follows the shootings that routinely scar, yet only occasionally shock, a nation grown hard to them include the question of motive: Why would he do such a terrible thing? In so many cases, and certainly in this premeditated massacre, the answer seems to be that, amid a mass of unfathomable grievances, the power to be seen killing innocents with one of the guns so easily obtained around the country proves irresistible as the ultimate outlet for an individual’s frustration and rage. In this case, the outlet provided by social media appears to have whetted his murderous appetites.

"



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Virginia Shooting Gone Viral, in a Well-Planned Rollout on Social Media - The New York Times

Virginia Shooting Gone Viral, in a Well-Planned Rollout on Social Media - The New York Times: "But these questions didn’t really slow anything down, a testament to the power of these networks to tap into each of our subconscious, automatic desires to witness and to share. The videos got out widely, forging a new path for nihilists to gain a moment in the media spotlight: an example that, given its success at garnering wide publicity, will most likely be followed by others."



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Falcon109 comments on In Space Everyone Can Hear You Poop | Video

Falcon109 comments on In Space Everyone Can Hear You Poop | Video: "Obviously, "Everyone Poops", so naturally many people are interested in how astronauts in space handle this kind of natural bodily function. It really is quite interesting, because although many consider it a less than appealing topic, it is a very necessary one to study and understand, particularly when talking about long duration space missions.
"



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It Was Easier to Give in Than Keep Running | i believe you | it's not your fault

It Was Easier to Give in Than Keep Running | i believe you | it's not your fault: "I think back to how easy it was for me, in first grade, to feel fearless and strong in my conviction to stomp on John’s glasses. I felt right in reacting how I did, because John’s behavior was wrong. But his was an elementary learning of the wide boundaries his gender would go on to afford him. For me, it would never again be so easy.

"



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Millennials working in government are at their lowest levels in five years, new report finds - The Washington Post

Millennials working in government are at their lowest levels in five years, new report finds - The Washington Post: "The study found that once they land a job in government, many employees believe their career development is shifted to a slow track, with minimal recognition from their bosses, shrinking opportunities for training and few assignments that really harness their talent.

"



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round and round the trigger warning maypole | Fredrik deBoer

round and round the trigger warning maypole | Fredrik deBoer: "This strikes me as a classic example of a common progressive category error: this terrible injustice exists (and it does), so therefore you have to get on board with this heavy-handed policy that cannot possibly actually reduce that injustice."



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Why the Rich Love Burning Man | Jacobin

Why the Rich Love Burning Man | Jacobin: "It is a society that we find ourselves moving closer towards the other 358 (non–Burning Man) days of the year: with a decaying social welfare state, more and more public amenities exist only as the result of the hyper-wealthy donating them. But when the commons are donated by the wealthy, rather than guaranteed by membership in society, the democratic component of civic society is vastly diminished and placed in the hands of the elite few who gained their wealth by using their influence to cut taxes and gut the social welfare state in the first place.

"



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College student would be sole voter in CID sales tax decision - Columbia Daily Tribune | Columbia Missouri: Local News

College student would be sole voter in CID sales tax decision - Columbia Daily Tribune | Columbia Missouri: Local News: "A mistake by representatives of the Business Loop 70 Community Improvement District means a sales tax increase the district needs to thrive will require approval by a single University of Missouri student.

"



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Police report unconfirmed, but concerning suicides among those outed Ashley Madison users.

Police report unconfirmed, but concerning suicides among those outed Ashley Madison users.: "There were bound to be consequences after hackers posted two extensive Ashley Madison data dumps last week. Canadian police said on Monday that they have confirmed reports of extortion in which criminals threatened to expose someone whose name is on the user list if they didn’t pay to keep it quiet. Authorities have reported two alleged suicides among Ashley Madison users, though they have not confirmed whether they are connected to the data breach.

"



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Email from a Married, Female Ashley Madison User

Email from a Married, Female Ashley Madison User: "Mine is a loveless, sexless, parenting marriage. I will care for my husband if his cancer spreads, we manage good will for the sake of the children, but we cannot talk about my emotional or sexual needs without him fixating on his death and crying.



I went on AM out of loneliness and despair, and found friendship, both male and female, with others trapped in terrible marriages trying to do right by their children.

My experiences have led me to soften my views of marriage as my own marriage is a deeply humbling, painful longterm commitment."



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