James Clyburn: *‘defund the police’ slogan may have hurt Democrats at polls.*

I know he was right about the slogan "Burn, baby, burn!" I was repelled by that, and naturally so, because I could only interpret it as a call for wanton destruction. If it was intended to mean something else, I can't see it.

"Defund the police" (which I support) does not appear violent. However, it does lend itself to misinterpretation and Clyburn may be right that that was harmful.

Perhaps "Replace the police" would be a better slogan. I think it more clearly expresses the goal which is actually sought.

*'Many Workers Will Suffer': Days After Election, Trump Quietly Freezes Wages of [legal temporary immigrant] Farm Laborers.*

(satire) *Media Glad It Can Finally End Half-Assed Charade Of Trying To Understand American Populace.*

The companies that manufactured and sold aluminum-covered polyethylene insulation for buildings knew it was a fire hazard and covered it up.

I hope the exposure of this giant, deadly fraud changes the decisions to impose the cost of replacing that insulation on the people who bought the condos — because it rendered their homes unsalable as well as unsafe, and the cost of the repair will bankrupt them.

The article does not go into detail about the involvement regulators in the affair, but it is clear that (at least) they were not sufficiently firm. I have a hunch that the Tories cut the budget and regulation of building seemed like a spending item that the state could do without.

The manifesto, Privacy And Digital Rights For All, is pretty good. It would make a significant step forward, because it specifically calls for limiting the collection and transfer of data, not solely its use.

One weakness is that it calls for a "data protection" agency. The term "data protection" presumes that data gets collected and the goal is to prevent others — "the wrong people" — from getting access to it. That idea is inadequate because the business or agency which collected the data is probably also "the wrong people", which is why the goal needs to be preventing collection of the data.

Another weakness is that it does not mention the idea of requiring systems to permit anonymity — for instance, to require services (including ride-for-hire and recharging electric cars) and digitally-controlled appliances to allow anonymous use.