You should read this for 1/25/2022:
Books, Libraries, Writing, and Language
Elizabeth Bonesteel: 
Who Sets The Agenda?
All 850 Books Texas Lawmaker Matt Krause Wants To Ban: An Analysis
letter to the Texas Education Agency asking if any of the schools in the state have the books listed on a 16 page spreadsheet, as well as how much in funds schools had spent on these books.
These books are theoretically related to House Bill 3979, a so-called anti-CRT bill that bans teaching any materials that could mean “an individual should feel discomfort, guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress on account of the individual’s race or sex.” Of course, the bill — which is an overreach that has confused school districts about how to follow it — doesn’t actually mention books in school libraries. It’s about curriculum. Nonetheless, with the increase of book bans and challenges recently, Krause appears to want to preemptively remove any books that could be challenged for causing “discomfort.”
Climate Change | Climate Repair
Saving the manatees — rescue by rescue, rehab by rehab
Last year alone, 1,110 manatees died — about 15 percent of the total population in a state where they are beloved. Most perished from starvation because the sea grass beds on which they feed have been destroyed by pollutants and toxic algae blooms worsened by climate change.
Coronavirus | COVID-19
Stop Wearing Cloth Masks Experts say that your old cloth masks simply aren’t enough to fight Omicron.
12 Signs You Have a Fake N95, KN95, or KF94 Mask
Where to Buy N95s, KN95s, and Surgical-Style Masks in 2022
12 Signs You Have a Fake N95, KN95, or KF94 Mask
4 Free COVID tests from the U.S. governmentAs you may have heard, the Federal Government is offering each home in the United States four (4) free at-home Covid-19 test kits. 4 kits per houshold.
Wirecutter: How to Reuse N95, KN95, and Other Disposable Masks
You can re-wear a mask after you have stored it in a paper bag for a few days, according to the CDC and multiple experts we’ve interviewed for our respirator guide. The agency provides a simple strategy for healthcare workers that involves rotating used masks in brown paper bags, a variation of which was employed during the N95 shortage in the early days of the pandemic. The coronavirus has an expected survival time of about 72 hours, so waiting for, say, five to seven days should be enough time for it to be inactivated.
Stressed hospitals are asking workers with covid to return — even if they may be infectious
The Bradenton, Fla. nurse was stunned — and worried she could still be contagious seven days into her breakthrough covid-19 infection. When an employee health representative said she could come back anyway, citing updated federal health guidance, Cordero said she refused. She viewed it as too risky.
Education
Students, seeing lax coronavirus protocols, walk out and call in sick to protest in-person classes
In cities across the country, student-led movements are emerging and gaining steam, with teens demanding better safety protections inside schools and, in some cases, pushing for a return to remote classes.
Nearly two years since the coronavirus hit, the adults — parents, teachers, administrators, politicians — have spent a lot of time and energy fighting over what schooling in a pandemic should look like. Now, for the first time in large numbers, students are rising up and demanding that they get a say, too — in places like New York City, suburban New Jersey, outside Washington and California.
Opinion: Take it from a high schooler who’s actually learned about CRT: Adults need to chill out
Twitter thread: Dr. J. Michael Butler @dr_mbutlerTHREAD: What the War Against CRT in Florida is really about:
Food and Drink
7 skillet chicken recipes that are heavy on flavor and light on cleanup
Politics and Society
H/T Take Note Podcast How to Practice I wanted to get rid of my possessions, because possessions stood between me and death.
Science and Nature
Now, biologists from the Maine Department of Marine Resources and the federal government’s Northeast Fisheries Science Center are eyeing a more specific culprit: longfin squid. Their research suggests that the shrimp-eating squid, normally clustered south of Georges Bank, swarmed into the gulf as water temperatures spiked in 2012.
Referral link: Curiosity Stream delivers shows across the full spectrum of the non-fiction genre to demystify science, nature, history, technology, society, lifestyle and more. $19.99/year for thousands of films (or $2.99/month).
Technology
Missouri Likely to Prosecute Reporter for Viewing Web Page Source
H/T : Norton “Antivirus” now sneakily installs cryptomining software on your computer, and then SKIMS A COMMISSION.
SetApp: A Suite of macOS Apps for a Single Price Affiliate link for a great collection of ver 200 apps for macOS and iOS for a flat subscription fee.
Women’s Work
Low-wage workers prop up the nursing home industry. They’re quitting in droves.
rustration is surging among the low-wage workers who make up the backbone of the nursing home industry, as tens of thousands of their colleagues call out sick with covid-19, inflaming shortages that already were at crisis levels. Hailed as “heroes” during the early months of the pandemic, these workers, most of whom are women and people of color, say they’re facing untenable levels of pressure.
Government support has failed to end the crisis, advocates say, allowing care for the elderly and the infirm to worsen, forcing facilities to limit admission or close entirely and clogging up hospital beds. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the nursing home industry has lost more than 420,000 jobs since the start of the pandemic, reducing its workforce to the size it was 15 years ago.
Pay It Forward and Make It Better
H/T Less Harper: Another Potential Journaling Hiccup: The Perfect Time and Place
I don’t like to throw water onto people’s hopes and dreams, but there is that realist in me that has to point out that maybe the dreams aren’t just what is necessary, and that there is something better than deferred dreams. I feel compelled to encourage people to start their art life now, and live in the present moment.
Something Wonderful
H/T: Morning Brew newsletter Morning Brew Referral link .Build a Snowflake
Buy me a Coffee! If you find this site interesting, and would like to see more, buy me a coffee. While I may actually buy coffee, I’ll probably buy books to review.
