Culture

Finnish independence day ritual - the shaking of hands.

It starts on December 2nd and goes until December 8th. If you know someone who's grieving, now is a good time to check in on them. Even if it feels awkward, it's generally appreciated, though everyone is different.

ID: what is intersex?

Learn about why bats matter:

An open access online course about the ways Canada dispossesses Indigenous people of the land -- and the strategies communities are using to get it back.

The Assembly of Collectives of Zapatista Autonomous Governments (ACEGAZ), the Zapatista communities and the EZLN call on all people, groups, collectives, organizations, movements and indigenous peoples who have signed the so-called Declaration for Life, to the…

Regardless of whether they are ‘self made’ or ‘second gen’, the ultra-rich have unique psychological profiles amongst the general populace. In my experience, both categories of billionaire are dominated by interminable existential crises — although each displays nuance when it comes to confrontation. The ‘self made’ have a tendency towards aggressive megalomania, while ‘second gens’ demur in favour of nihilistic hedonism.

archive.is link

As horrific details about Oct. 7 spread last year, higher-ups at media companies debated whether they should join the chorus of corporations releasing statements condemning the attack.

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I spend a lot of time listening to young and adult men in workplaces, schools, online and beyond. Among the questions I often ask is what gives them purpose. The young men who can’t answer seem to be the most lost, spending too much time online, often sunk in despair or filling their hours with looksmaxxing (the online and influenced-fueled trend of maximizing physique and looks), porn or another pursuit that fills their time but not their soul.

A judge will decide the fate of Ha’Kamwe’ as the Hualapai Nation fights the drilling in court.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Bra_Day

Zanjani’s YouTube channel launched in 2016. Since then, a vibrant network of soothsayers, psychics, numerologists, and palm readers has developed on the platform, with several commanding millions of views and hundreds of thousands of subscribers. These include Samiah Khan, the field’s Lahore-based grand doyenne; Sadia Arshad, who doubles as a hypnotherapist; and Humayun Mehboob, based in Karachi, whose videos often forewarn viewers of coming conflict. In the Muslim-majority nation, the rise of the YouTube astrologers has caused consternation among Islamic scholars and clerics who call the practice heterodox or even a form of shirk, or idolatry, in which predictions about the future are seen as claims to God’s omniscience. Astrologers, meanwhile, have used their growing visibility to reframe the narrative. Zanjani argues that astrology is not a break from Islamic tradition but an essential part of it. Far from claiming omniscience, he contends, astrologers are following God’s will by helping people who are struggling.

When providers and researchers are able-bodied while patients are disabled, the chasm in lived experience, motivation and immersion in every last nuance of a condition can often be vast. In medicine, the traditional model for researching disabilities repeats itself again and again: nondisabled researchers conduct their studies ‘on’ disabled people as their subjects. While there may be nothing inherently wrong with this mode of scholarship, it carries limitations that should be acknowledged. The fact is: patients can have different priorities from clinicians. They can see things that clinicians may not recognise because they accrue vital first-person knowledge that comes from living with disability or illness. And they are most certainly stakeholders in the research outcome of their own disease.

https://www.who.int/campaigns/world-mental-health-day/2024

The Association for Pet Obesity Prevention has a pet obesity survey that you can fill out about your pets:

Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace (née Byron; 10 December 1815 – 27 November 1852), also known as Ada Lovelace, was an English mathematician and writer chiefly known for her work on Charles Babbage's proposed mechanical general-purpose computer, the Analytical Engine. She was the first to recognise that the machine had applications beyond pure calculation.

Restoring Promise is a national initiative led by the Vera Institute of Justice, a New York-based nonprofit that partners with states on criminal justice reform programs. The first unit launched in Connecticut, a blue state, in 2017 — a moment when public officials across the left and right were talking about making prisons more rehabilitative. Soon after, Vera received applications for the program from several red states, including South Carolina.

First celebrated in the U.S. on May 1, 1929, and then moved to October 7th. It invites "all agencies and organizations interested in child welfare to unite on Child Health Day in observing exercises that will make the people of the United States aware of the fundamental necessity of a year-round program to protect and develop the health of the children of the United States."

The Nez Perce Tribe has lived on the Columbia River Plateau in the Pacific Northwest for more than 11,500 years, including the area where Kendrick is located. The northern edge of its reservation, while only a small fraction of the tribe’s historical territory, is less than 10 miles (16 kilometers) from the Veterans of Foreign Wars hall where the forum was held.

https://wrongfulconvictionday.org/

But this is only part of the story, and it gets awkwardness wrong in important ways. Yes, awkwardness is caused by a failure to conform to existing social norms. But this failure isn’t individual and, rather than think in terms of awkward people, we ought to think in terms of awkward situations. And yes, awkwardness can be painful, and unpleasant. But it’s not embarrassing, and it’s nothing to be ashamed of. Contrary to popular belief, our awkward moments aren’t cringeworthy. Rather than cringing inwardly about them, we ought to examine them more closely. Because once we realise the true nature of awkwardness, we can stop seeing it as an individual failure and start seeing it as an opportunity for social change. In short: we should take awkwardness less personally, and more seriously.

Every cell you’d go to, someone would be begging you for toilet paper or for water. These are “wet cells” with a sink and toilet, but the person inside can’t flush the toilet or open the faucet to get drinking water themselves; someone outside the cell has to press a button to do it. So as a fellow incarcerated person, who’d been in similar cells myself at previous facilities, I’d usually spend the next two hours walking back and forth filling up people’s cups from the mop sink, because it’s midday and there hasn’t been officer around since 5 pm yesterday.

The name of the third-highest summit east of the Mississippi River has been restored to its original name. The U.S. Board on Geographic Names (BGN) approved an application on Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024 that restores the name of Clingman’s Dome, in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP), to its original Cherokee name, Kuwohi (mulberry place).

The theme this year is "Translation, an art worth protecting"

The interrobang in the title is in honor of the day and also shows both my surprise and approval that the day exists.

Your privacy is important. Protect yourself from Google with the FreeTube app.

Guess I'll learn Swedish

On September 18, 2008, National HIV/AIDS and Aging Awareness Day was launched by The AIDS Institute in an effort to raise awareness due to the alarming increase in the number of HIV diagnoses among older adults and individuals over 50 living and aging with HIV.

To honor the timeless principles enshrined in our Constitution, the Congress has, by joint resolution of February 29, 1952 (36 U.S.C. 106), designated September 17 as “Constitution Day and Citizenship Day” and authorized the President to issue a proclamation calling on United States officials to display the flag of the United States on all Government buildings on that day. By joint resolution of August 2, 1956 (36 U.S.C. 108), the Congress further requested that the President proclaim the week beginning September 17 and ending September 23 of each year as “Constitution Week.” NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 17, 2024, as Constitution Day and Citizenship Day, and September 17 through September 23 as Constitution Week. On this day and during this week, we celebrate our Constitution and the rights of citizenship that we enjoy together as the proud people of this Nation.

An African Union ruling finds that parts of a Congo national park should be returned to the Batwa people, who were evicted decades ago. Advocates say the ruling must be implemented and that the Batwa will need support to protect the park’s rare gorillas and other wildlife.

Another independence day, this time from Spain

'Reservation Dogs' star sends powerful message about Indigenous women on Emmys red carpet

Very long but also very interesting. Amazing how they're able to "open" and read carbonized scrolls.

Celebrates his birthday on September 13, 1916

While in recent years many European businesses have taken steps to alter their previously racist product designs, some games, especially board games like the popular Finnish Afrikan tähti (Star of Africa; Kuvataide, 1951), resist this trend. This raises two questions: First, what are the emotional mechanics which allow openly racist games like Afrikan tähti to remain unchanged and celebrated as ‘classics’ today? Secondly, what can our predominantly white board and role-playing game communities do to let go of emotional attachments to white supremacist games and become invested in a more respectful and welcoming games culture?

On this day in 1968, they decided they didn't like those weird tealovers anymore. Shown using their older name of Swaziland in this meme:

archive.is link

Archived version

https://www.un.org/en/observances/charity-day

Jazmin Jones knows what she did. "If you're online, there's this idea of trolling," Jones, the director behind Seeking Mavis Beacon, said during a recent panel for her new documentary. "For this project, some things we're taking incredibly seriously ... and other things we're trolling. We're trolling this idea of a detective because we're also, like,ACAB." Her trolling, though, was for a good reason. Jones and fellow filmmaker Olivia Mckayla Ross did it in hopes of finding the woman behind Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing. The popular teaching tool was released in 1987 by The Software Toolworks, a video game and software company based in California that produced educational chess, reading, and math games. Mavis, essentially the "mascot" of the game, is a Black woman donned in professional clothes and a slicked-back bun. Though Mavis Beacon was not an actual person, Jones and Ross say that she is one of the first examples of Black representation they witnessed in tech. Seeking Mavis Beacon, which opened in New York City on August 30 and is rolling out to other cities in September, is their attempt to uncover the story behind the face, which appeared on the tool's packaging and later as part of its interface.

https://www.batimes.com.ar/news/opinion-and-analysis/bhavna-sharma-diversity-makes-us-stronger.phtml

Everyone should take a moment and celebrate the Treaty between the United States of America and New Zealand on the Delimitation of the Maritime Boundary between Tokelau and the United States of America, which came into effect on this day in 1983.

Happy Tibetan Democracy Day

Happy Labor Day!

Almost 40,000 people died alone in their homes in Japan during the first half of 2024, a report by the country’s police shows.

The 404 Media team wrote about what they learned in their first year of 404 Media, and it’s full of hope.

An instant classic, Daniel Lavery’s How to win the battle against objects shares an extremely healthy strategy based on blaming an inanimate appliance and a person (who isn’t yourself) for anything inconvenient that happens to you. My partner and I have been practicing hard and I’m sorry to say they’re naturally gifted (and I’m naturally infuriated).

This is a surprisingly interesting thinkpiece for its length that ultimately arrives at no conclusion, but it's an important discussion to be having while we still can.

But the thing that excites me most about taking public transit is watching the people who come in at every stop. It is exciting to recognize the middle schooler with the headphones, the young mother with the infant in a stroller, and the construction workers with their hard hats tucked under their arms. They are my neighbors. On public transportation, I am reminded that they are the people I am called to love.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The latest search for the remains of 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre victims has ended with three more sets containing gunshot wounds, investigators said.