Pluralistic: 08 Apr 2020

Today's links

Solnit on the revelations of crisis: Pandemic speeds up processes that were too slow to notice.
Nurse suspended for distributing crowdfunded PPE: Shame on Newark Beth Israel Medical Center.
Cleveland Plain Dealer executed by union-busting owners: Firing health reporters during a pandemic.
Monster-themed covid pinup PSAs: By Alejandra Oviedo.
The Onion on Wisconsin's election: We need strategic Onion reserves for all our calamities.
NSO Group says Facebook tried to buy its malware: NSO is worse than Facebook, but it's a close-run thing.
How to pay for covid: Unearthing Keynes's "How to Pay for the War."
Smart lock hemorrhages user data: And it broadcasts its unlock code over Bluetooth.
TSA wanted to inspect 16 year old trans girl's genitals: Jon Corbett is on the case.
Roger Fuckebythenavele vs Bannatyne Manuscript: Black Plague-era f-bomb eclipsed by 14th century frottage artist.
Rube Goldberg feeding device: Now that's physical comedy.
Public domain Zoom backgrounds: Fantastic backdrops for an absurd moment.
This day in history: 2010, 2019
Colophon: Recent publications, upcoming appearances, current writing projects, current reading

100 Ideas for Dungeon Masters: Based on the Pathfinder Bestiary, readily adaptable for other systems.
Attack Surface author's note: My latest podcast is the afterword from the third Little Brother book.
Trump admits voter suppression: Proving intent was never easier.
Reality endorses Sanders: Pandemics have an obvious leftist bias.
Amazon fires walkout organizer: Low waged workers, doing the most important work in America, exposed to lethal risk.
Monopolists stole your respirator: Dying a gasping death is pareto-optimal.
Corporate welfare vs food stamps: A billion here, a billion there, pretty soon it adds up to real money.
How viruses experience social distancing: XKCD mixes atavistic satisfaction with science communications.
Scarfolk pandemics: This isn't the worst timeline after all.
This day in history: 2005, 2019
Colophon: Recent publications, upcoming appearances, current writing projects, current reading

Lax antitrust killed ventilator stockpiles : The USG procured <$3k ventilators from a startup, so an incumbent bought them and shuttered them.
Koch network demands an end to lockdown: While sending its staff home for their safety.
Private equity firms scooping up pandemic bargains: It's not the wound that gets ya, it's the opportunistic parasitic infections.
Digital rights are human rights: Why broadband should be a public utility.
ACLU vanquishes the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act: Terms of Service violations are not felonies.
Munching Squares and Munching Tunes: The music and visuals of slow-decay phosphors.
This day in history: 2010, 2015, 2019
Colophon: Recent publications, upcoming appearances, current writing projects, current reading

EFF's videoconferencing backgrounds: With a deep cut from the NSA's secret listening post.
The ideology of economics: Economics doesn't have "laws" it has "policies."
LoC plugs Little Brother: Open access FTW.
Canada nationalizes covid patents: An Act respecting certain measures in response to COVID-19.
Exponential Threat: Trump threatened to sue media outlets that aired this spot.
Sanders on GOP stimulus cruelty: "Millions for plutes, but not one cent for workers."
Record wind-power growth: Covid stimulus could start a Green New Deal.
Social distancing and other diseases: Do we trust IoT thermometer companies, though?
Badger Masks: UW Madison's open facemask design.
This day in history: 2005, 2010, 2015, 2019
Colophon: Recent publications, upcoming appearances, current writing projects, current reading