Friends and readers:
I can't quite turn loose of ShrinkRap, but I also do not want to feel the daily commitment to posting something on a regular basis. I don't know how to make this work for anyone who wants to read the blog, but for the time being I will post something intermittently -- on no schedule -- as I feel moved to write about something.
So feel free to check whenever you like, and I'll feel free to post whenever I like.
This may not work; the only alternative for me at this point is to just shut it down completely -- which I'm not quite ready to do. It's hard to give up a 12 year habit.
Ralph
Tuesday, March 5, 2019
Friday, February 15, 2019
ShrinkRap absence due to computer hacking
Apologies to regular readers of ShrinkRap for my unannounced, sudden disappearance more than a week ago. Believe me, it was not voluntary.
I suddenly found myself in the middle of a computer hacking and an attempted scam to get my ID information. Immediately shutting down everything, changing passwords, bank account, credit cards and then having to do dozens of things to compensate for that -- plus taking my computer in to have it "scrubbed" of viruses and malware and a new operating system installed -- has been worry-inducing and time-consuming.
Now that I've got the problems solved, I'm going to take some time to reconsider --again -- whether I want to keep writing this blog. The blog had nothing to do with the hacking. I can assure you that there's no way your own computers or phones could be contaminated simply by clicking on to read the blog. It was my personal computer that was hacked, not the blog service.
When you read ShrinkRap, you're not connected to my computer at all. You read the blog from the Google service where I post the blog for people to read.
So if you want to check back, say around the first of March, I'll try to make a decision and post it. Even now, however, I cannot stop myself from commenting on the latest Trumpism, so below is a quick comment.
Ralph
I suddenly found myself in the middle of a computer hacking and an attempted scam to get my ID information. Immediately shutting down everything, changing passwords, bank account, credit cards and then having to do dozens of things to compensate for that -- plus taking my computer in to have it "scrubbed" of viruses and malware and a new operating system installed -- has been worry-inducing and time-consuming.
Now that I've got the problems solved, I'm going to take some time to reconsider --again -- whether I want to keep writing this blog. The blog had nothing to do with the hacking. I can assure you that there's no way your own computers or phones could be contaminated simply by clicking on to read the blog. It was my personal computer that was hacked, not the blog service.
When you read ShrinkRap, you're not connected to my computer at all. You read the blog from the Google service where I post the blog for people to read.
So if you want to check back, say around the first of March, I'll try to make a decision and post it. Even now, however, I cannot stop myself from commenting on the latest Trumpism, so below is a quick comment.
Ralph
Trump is his own worst enemy
Consider Donald Trump's current predicament.
He lost out badly in what was supposed to be a negotiating with House Democrats over money for his wall vs another government shutdown, for which he would have again been held responsible. He wound up signing an appropriations bill -- without the money for a wall that he could have gotten months ago, if he had accepted a compromise deal back then.
In the end, his final ask was for $5.6 billion; the final bill, which he has signed, gives him $1.375 billion -- less than 1/4 -- and it specifies none is to be used to build a concrete wall. It's for border security and specifies various , non-wall expenditures.
It's a major defeat for Trump. He tried to save face by then saying that he would declare a national emergency, which would allow him to use other money already appropriated for other things.
But now he's undercut himself even on that. Nevermind that there is no demonstrable emergency, given that the number of illegal border crossings is at a four decade low. How can you call that an emergency? -- even stipulating that the courts tend to defer to presidents when it comes to claims of emergency.
So what does Trump do with that? He states on Friday that he "didn't need to declare a national emergency" for the wall but merely wanted to speed up the process to please his base. The ACLU, the California AG, and Congressional Democrats are all going to fight this in court; and everyone is predicting that the opening line of argument will be: "I didn't need to declare a national emergency. . . "
He sure knows how to build a case that will stand up in court, doesn't he? We don't need to worry any longer about this. Trump never expected to win this case; he's just playing politics with his loyal, but dwindling, base.
Ralph
He lost out badly in what was supposed to be a negotiating with House Democrats over money for his wall vs another government shutdown, for which he would have again been held responsible. He wound up signing an appropriations bill -- without the money for a wall that he could have gotten months ago, if he had accepted a compromise deal back then.
In the end, his final ask was for $5.6 billion; the final bill, which he has signed, gives him $1.375 billion -- less than 1/4 -- and it specifies none is to be used to build a concrete wall. It's for border security and specifies various , non-wall expenditures.
It's a major defeat for Trump. He tried to save face by then saying that he would declare a national emergency, which would allow him to use other money already appropriated for other things.
But now he's undercut himself even on that. Nevermind that there is no demonstrable emergency, given that the number of illegal border crossings is at a four decade low. How can you call that an emergency? -- even stipulating that the courts tend to defer to presidents when it comes to claims of emergency.
So what does Trump do with that? He states on Friday that he "didn't need to declare a national emergency" for the wall but merely wanted to speed up the process to please his base. The ACLU, the California AG, and Congressional Democrats are all going to fight this in court; and everyone is predicting that the opening line of argument will be: "I didn't need to declare a national emergency. . . "
He sure knows how to build a case that will stand up in court, doesn't he? We don't need to worry any longer about this. Trump never expected to win this case; he's just playing politics with his loyal, but dwindling, base.
Ralph
Wednesday, February 6, 2019
Trump re-election under water by 19%
This was written prior to Trump's State of the Union Speech on Tuesday night. I'll comment later on that speech and on Stacie Abrams' Democratic response.
=========
Of course it's way too early to talk about poll standings for the 2020 presidential election. I'm paying no attention to the current standings of the large number of Democrats declared to be running, or talking about running. The biggest factor, at this point, is mostly name recognition and overall favorable impression; but with no comparison with the large number that one may know nothing about yet.
But there is one measure that has some validity at this point -- how people feel about giving President Trump another term.
In a Monmouth University Poll conducted by telephone in late January with 735 registered voters, they found that 37% said Trump should be re-elected, while 58% would like someone new. That's an under water difference of 19 points, with a +/- 3.6% margin of error.
Among Republicans, 79% wanted him re-elected, while 94% of Democrats prefer someone else. Independent voters by 55% want a change, while 39% support Trump. When broken down into subgroups, the margin of error rises to about 5.5%.
But the overall 37-58% split is nearly identical to a similar poll taken last November.
Trump doesn't seem to realize that he cannot win without expanding his base of support; his political appeals seem primarily intended to excite the base that already supports him.
Time and again, we hear from insiders that, once Trump fixates on a particular belief, it is almost impossible to get him to change, no matter what facts or arguments are put before him.
Here's a suggestion. Don't waste the effort then. Let him go on in his delusions of glory. This is a man who just last week proclaimed that he has accomplished more in his two years as president than almost any other president -- maybe, even, he said, the most of all.
Ralph
Monday, February 4, 2019
Those damned, annoying robocalls
Bloomberg BusinessWeek reports that in 2018 there was an almost 50% increase in the number of automatic phone calls -- pushing products, scams, political messages, contribution appeals, as well as apparently legitimate business offers.
Don't be fooled by those calls that claim to be the IRS or the FBI, claiming that you have failed to [whatever] and that legal action will be taken if you don't call immediately. These agencies do not make such calls; it's a scam of identity theft trying to get you to reveal your social security number, thinking you're talking to a government agent.
The report claims that U.S. phone-owners get more than 26 billion robocalls per year, up from half that number a year earlier.
Personally, I sometimes get eight or ten in one day. So I've adopted the policy of not answering my phone unless I recognize the number or name in my Caller-ID. I figure if it is a legitimate call from someone who knows me, they will leave a message -- and I can immediately return it.
So, if you have a defensible reason for calling me, leave a message. If I'm there listening, I'll pick up; if not, I'll call back as soon as I hear the message.
Ralph
Sunday, February 3, 2019
Football, concussions, and brain damage.
SuperBowl Day here in Atlanta. I've never been a big fan of the game except for the fun of being part of the student crowd at my college's games back in the 1950's -- and even then it was more the trappings than the game-on-the-field itself.
With the recent increasing medical concern over brain damage in players, I've joined the ranks of "conscientious objector" to the sport. So today, I'd like to share some data from recent studies in an article by Brian Resnick from Vox.com: "What a Lifetime of Playing Football Can Do to the Human Brain."
I want to emphasize the point that this is about a condition, chronic traumatic encephalopathy [CTE], that is different from a severe, acute brain injury like you might get in an automobile accident. This is an accumulation of effects from repeated, milder injuries. You can't assume that, if the person doesn't lose consciousness, there is no effect on the brain. Here are excerpts from the Resnick article:
"Doctors have learned a tremendous amount about concussions and chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, a degenerative brain condition believed to be caused by repeated hits to the head, since the first former NFL player was diagnosed with CTE in the early 2000s. Concern around the issue has only grown now that more than 100 former NFL players have received a postmortem diagnosis of CTE, and new research is finding that youth football may be a risk factor for CTE down the line. . . .
"Here’s what you need to know.
"1) Concussions are incredibly commonplace in professional football . . . . [W]hen a person hits their head hard, the brain can bounce around and twist in the skull. It’s this rapid motion of the brain inside the skull that creates the traumatic brain injury known as a concussion. . . .
"2) Chronic traumatic encephalopathy is a degenerative brain disease caused by repetitive hits
CTE is not about single concussions. It’s the result of repeated concussions . . . even head impacts that are not quite as severe . . . can result in lasting structural changes in the brain. . . .
"Specifically, brains with CTE accumulate a protein called tau (which is believed to be dislodged from brain fibers during an injury). Tau clumps together in the tissues of the brain, interrupting critical information flow. . . .
"3) There’s a range of CTE symptoms, from forgetfulness to violent behavior
The symptoms of CTE creep slowly, taking 8 to 10 years to manifest after initial repeated brain traumas, and can grow worse over decades. . . .
"4) CTE can only be conclusively diagnosed in autopsy (though progress is being made in diagnosing via MRI). So it’s hard to say how many current and former football players have the condition. What we do know is . . . enough to be alarming.
"In 2017, JAMA [Journal of the American Medical Association] published a major and disturbing finding. Researchers had collected the autopsied brains of 202 former football players who had donated their brains to science, or had them donated via their next of kin. The players included those who had played in the NFL, but also those who only played through college, and a few who had only played in high school.
"Of the 202 brains, 177, or nearly 90 percent, were diagnosed with CTE. And there was a pattern: Those who had played football longer were more likely to have worse brain damage. . . . The more trauma over a longer period, the worse the symptoms.
"This is not to say that 99 percent of NFL players will develop CTE (the brains were donated and are not a representative sample). [I would add that it's likely that those with recognized symptoms would be more likely to be in the study, either from their own permission or that of their family. -RR] But it does show that football players are, indeed, at risk. . . .
"5) Even high school and college-level play poses a risk. One of the biggest consequences of the concussion research is that fewer young people are participating in the sport. . . . Celebrities like former President Barack Obama have said they wouldn’t let their sons play football. . . .
"The number of high school students playing football dropped by 20,000 between 2016 and 2017, continuing a downward trend. In 2008, 1.11 million high school students played football. Now, it’s 1.039 million. That said, football is still the most popular sport for high school males. . . .
"A 2015 study found that former NFL players who began football before age 12 fared worse on cognitive assessments than those who started later in their teens. And this held true even controlling for number of years played. . . .
"More recently, a study on the brains of deceased football players also found a link between early play and CTE. Athletes who began playing tackle football before age 12 developed the cognitive and behavior symptoms of CTE 13 years earlier on average than those who started playing later in their teenage years. . . .
"There are many uncertainties left in the research. A study of 3,000-plus Wisconsin men who had played high school football in the 1950s found no elevated rates of cognitive impairment. This shows not everyone who plays football as a teen suffers consequences, and researchers still need to better understand how much exposure to football tackles is too much.
"6) The NFL has made the game somewhat safer. But it’s still dangerous. It’s unclear how many former NFL players have CTE. . . . And these days, the league is donating millions to concussion-related research. . . .
"[T]he NFL has banned helmet-to-helmet hits, made kickoff plays slightly safer, and limited the amount of contact allowed in practices. It’s also looking into artificial playing surfaces to soften the blow of impacts. . . .
"But even with better helmets, football might not ever be a perfectly safe sport for brain health. As long as football is a sport where human-to-human collisions are fundamental to play, it’s going to be a dangerous game.
And then there's boxing, which may be as bad for brains. Touch football, anyone?
With the recent increasing medical concern over brain damage in players, I've joined the ranks of "conscientious objector" to the sport. So today, I'd like to share some data from recent studies in an article by Brian Resnick from Vox.com: "What a Lifetime of Playing Football Can Do to the Human Brain."
I want to emphasize the point that this is about a condition, chronic traumatic encephalopathy [CTE], that is different from a severe, acute brain injury like you might get in an automobile accident. This is an accumulation of effects from repeated, milder injuries. You can't assume that, if the person doesn't lose consciousness, there is no effect on the brain. Here are excerpts from the Resnick article:
* * * * *
"Six things to know about the NFL, concussions, and brain damage. Football isn’t just a contact sport — it’s a dangerous game of massive bodies colliding into one another. . . [that] can do extraordinary damage to brains and bodies . . . . "Doctors have learned a tremendous amount about concussions and chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, a degenerative brain condition believed to be caused by repeated hits to the head, since the first former NFL player was diagnosed with CTE in the early 2000s. Concern around the issue has only grown now that more than 100 former NFL players have received a postmortem diagnosis of CTE, and new research is finding that youth football may be a risk factor for CTE down the line. . . .
"Here’s what you need to know.
"1) Concussions are incredibly commonplace in professional football . . . . [W]hen a person hits their head hard, the brain can bounce around and twist in the skull. It’s this rapid motion of the brain inside the skull that creates the traumatic brain injury known as a concussion. . . .
"2) Chronic traumatic encephalopathy is a degenerative brain disease caused by repetitive hits
CTE is not about single concussions. It’s the result of repeated concussions . . . even head impacts that are not quite as severe . . . can result in lasting structural changes in the brain. . . .
"Specifically, brains with CTE accumulate a protein called tau (which is believed to be dislodged from brain fibers during an injury). Tau clumps together in the tissues of the brain, interrupting critical information flow. . . .
"3) There’s a range of CTE symptoms, from forgetfulness to violent behavior
The symptoms of CTE creep slowly, taking 8 to 10 years to manifest after initial repeated brain traumas, and can grow worse over decades. . . .
"4) CTE can only be conclusively diagnosed in autopsy (though progress is being made in diagnosing via MRI). So it’s hard to say how many current and former football players have the condition. What we do know is . . . enough to be alarming.
"In 2017, JAMA [Journal of the American Medical Association] published a major and disturbing finding. Researchers had collected the autopsied brains of 202 former football players who had donated their brains to science, or had them donated via their next of kin. The players included those who had played in the NFL, but also those who only played through college, and a few who had only played in high school.
"Of the 202 brains, 177, or nearly 90 percent, were diagnosed with CTE. And there was a pattern: Those who had played football longer were more likely to have worse brain damage. . . . The more trauma over a longer period, the worse the symptoms.
"This is not to say that 99 percent of NFL players will develop CTE (the brains were donated and are not a representative sample). [I would add that it's likely that those with recognized symptoms would be more likely to be in the study, either from their own permission or that of their family. -RR] But it does show that football players are, indeed, at risk. . . .
"5) Even high school and college-level play poses a risk. One of the biggest consequences of the concussion research is that fewer young people are participating in the sport. . . . Celebrities like former President Barack Obama have said they wouldn’t let their sons play football. . . .
"The number of high school students playing football dropped by 20,000 between 2016 and 2017, continuing a downward trend. In 2008, 1.11 million high school students played football. Now, it’s 1.039 million. That said, football is still the most popular sport for high school males. . . .
"A 2015 study found that former NFL players who began football before age 12 fared worse on cognitive assessments than those who started later in their teens. And this held true even controlling for number of years played. . . .
"More recently, a study on the brains of deceased football players also found a link between early play and CTE. Athletes who began playing tackle football before age 12 developed the cognitive and behavior symptoms of CTE 13 years earlier on average than those who started playing later in their teenage years. . . .
"There are many uncertainties left in the research. A study of 3,000-plus Wisconsin men who had played high school football in the 1950s found no elevated rates of cognitive impairment. This shows not everyone who plays football as a teen suffers consequences, and researchers still need to better understand how much exposure to football tackles is too much.
"6) The NFL has made the game somewhat safer. But it’s still dangerous. It’s unclear how many former NFL players have CTE. . . . And these days, the league is donating millions to concussion-related research. . . .
"[T]he NFL has banned helmet-to-helmet hits, made kickoff plays slightly safer, and limited the amount of contact allowed in practices. It’s also looking into artificial playing surfaces to soften the blow of impacts. . . .
"But even with better helmets, football might not ever be a perfectly safe sport for brain health. As long as football is a sport where human-to-human collisions are fundamental to play, it’s going to be a dangerous game.
* * * * *
Whenever high speed body blows involve suddenly changing the direction the head is moving, there is going to be brain trauma. It's not the blow itself as much as the "brain banging around in its bony box" that causes the trouble.
And then there's boxing, which may be as bad for brains. Touch football, anyone?
Ralph
Saturday, February 2, 2019
Short . . . but perfect.
President Donald Trump, sounding more unhinged each day, sent out this tweet, apparently trying to get his base to join him in demanding a Wall:
"Three separate caravans marching to our Border. The numbers are tremendous." @Foxandfriends.
To which Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) responded:
"These caravans, do you see them in the room with you right now?"
"Three separate caravans marching to our Border. The numbers are tremendous." @Foxandfriends.
To which Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) responded:
"These caravans, do you see them in the room with you right now?"
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
