"OptumRx, the group’s pharmacy benefit manager, along with its two main peers, Express Scripts and CVS Caremark Rx, have pocketed an extra $7.3 billion over cost thanks to price gouging, according to the findings of a report by the Federal Trade Commission."
Lina Khan really is That Girl.
I wrote about Neil Gaiman, and the women accusing him of sexual coercion, assault and abuse. www.vulture.com/article/neil...
Screenshot of Hollywood Reporter interview: “I don’t want to sell this. To who? No one should own this. The fact that I have to do this with my team is not OK. Part of this is out of spite. I’m angry that I’m here having to do this, and the government hasn’t spent the money to do this themselves,” Mills says. “So, no, it’s not for sale. No, I’m not open to change all of a sudden, and I just don’t give a shit.”
Today’s glimmer of hope brought to you by the creator of Watch Duty, LA’s nonprofit fire map that’s been such a lifeline for so many. More of this, please! www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/dig...
Wait to get the money back, which I will only get back if UPS agrees they made a mistake. That’s money I planned on using for more supplies. Maybe big companies can afford to do this all the time, but small sellers see the impact on their daily ability to operate and budget. I call BS on this. 3/3
My packages after shipment. I have to dispute the adjustment every time. And they always cave and return the additional money charged, but I can only get it back as a shipping credit. This time, the amount wasn’t a couple dollars. It was $30+ adjustment for a painting I shipped. So, I have to 2/3
I’m a small hobby seller of vintage items and I’m currently ticked off with UPS as a shipper. I use exact dimensions and weight on my packages and if they are very large items, I get them verified when I drop them off to be shipped. But UPS frequently makes a shipping charge “adjustment” to 🧵
Gift link to this long article about California home insurance.
Again: it's only in politics that climate change is considered a "debate." Where people actually have to deal with its effects, such as in the insurance industry, it's simply a fact. It'll be bad; what's unknown is just how bad.
The number of books banned is at the school district level. For example, if a book were to be banned in Chicago that would count as one book, even though there are many Chicago school libraries and classrooms that would not have the book. Does not include books banned by public libraries.
The number of #books banned at the school district level. via NYT & Pen America📚
FEMA has issued a guide on how to apply for federal aid if you've been impacted by the wildfires.
Aid may include money for food, water, baby formula, breastfeeding supplies, medication, or even with basic home repairs and personal property losses. www.huffpost.com/entry/southe...
We’ve had 7 cats over the years, and 5 were April birthdays. One we’ll never know, and the other was late September. They always seem to cluster.
The tl;dr here is, "if you want to help after a disaster, send money, not stuff."
That assertion is wrong. The city was in the process of negotiating a new contract with the fire department at the time the budget was being crafted, so additional funding for the department was set aside in a separate fund until that deal was finalized in November. In fact, the city’s fire budget increased more than $50 million year-over-year compared to the last budget cycle, according to Blumenfield’s office, although overall concerns about the department’s staffing level have persisted for a number of years.
I don't know if the LA fire department is properly funded or not but the claim that the city cut its budget last year — which is circulating widely on the right — is false.
As Politico notes, the budget actually INCREASED by $50 million. A portion of the funding was approved in a separate bill.
A street is orange from flames and you can see the high winds in the palm trees. Sparks fly down the street
A fire truck is engulfed in parks and flames are seen on the hill. The entire photo is red and orange from the fire
A fireman with a hose runs across the front of a house in flames in the background
The inside of a house is a ball of flames. The only visible thing inside is a burning Christmas tree
These extraordinary photos of the LA fires have been shared widely on social media, often without crediting the photographer.
These are all the work of Ethan Swope, an LA-based photojournalist working for AP.
You can follow his remarkable reporting here👇
www.instagram.com/ethanswopeph...
Not lost on me that it's nonprofit tech, app.watchduty.org, showing up & actually working in the midst of the LA fires (donate to them!)
Meanwhile platforms fail to surface key news, vital info is paywalled...
As I've been saying, we need a new tech paradigm, yesterday!
Municipal water supplies can only supply so much water to pressure at the hydrants. If you are drawing on multiple hydrants in an area, you can hit a point where there is no water pressure, then no supply. As extensive as the fire was and with multiple pumpers it’s no wonder.
"Our analysis of the EPA’s own data showed that in every census block in the U.S., the risk of getting cancer from a lifetime of exposure to formaldehyde in outdoor air is higher than the goal the agency has set for air pollutants." @propublica.org
Back around 2016, one of our orange boy neighborhood ferals who haunted our backyard thought he could take on an injured yearling bear. Wilbur, as we called him, stood his ground and watched and growled at the bear until the town cops and animal control ran it off.
Yay!! Looking forward to the series completion when it happens. I’ve enjoyed the first books so much.
I’d love a year in Ireland, Scotland, Wales, England and Brittany to explore all the history. Closely followed by just a year in Europe to cram in every historical location and great restaurant I can fit.
