Employment Links: Attorney General Garland Delivers Remarks at the National Association of Attorneys General
"We have also brought civil enforcement actions to protect competition in a wide range of industries. For example, over the summer we blocked an attempted merger of two of the three biggest insurance brokers in the world – brokers that many American companies depend upon to craft and administer health and retirement benefits. In September, we joined together with Attorneys General from across the country to challenge an unprecedented maneuver that would have further consolidated the domestic airline industry, in which four companies control over 80% of the market...And just last month, we challenged an attempt by the world’s largest book publisher to acquire one of its biggest rivals and obtain unprecedented control in an already-concentrated industry.
Health, Fitness and Style: Julia Sneden Wrote: Relationships: The Tale of a Hairdo
Julia Sneden wrote: "I was reared in a household that included both my grandmothers and a great aunt. Their mantra, designed to counter possible vanity, was: “If it’s clean, shiny, and combed, your hair will do.” My hair was usually clean, thanks to the swimming pool, and like most towheads, it shone in the sun “with more than oriental splendor,” like the Parsee’s helmet (per Rudyard Kipling)...Tidy was another matter. My skimpy braids never met a ribbon I couldn't lose. Hair spray helps to deal with its resistance to discipline, and while it has grown longer by fall, it is no help at all in terms of warmth, since by then I have started my annual reverse-season shedding."
Health, Fitness and Style: GAO* Report, Cybersecurity: National Institutes of Health Needs to Take Further Actions to Resolve Control Deficiencies and Improve Its Program
The National Institutes of Health's duties include researching infectious diseases and administering over $30 billion a year in research grants. NIH uses IT systems containing sensitive data to carry out its mission. This GAO report is a public version of our June 2021 report on NIH cybersecurity. The agency has taken actions intended to safeguard the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of its systems. However, we found many weaknesses related to identifying risks, protecting systems, and more. We have made 219 recommendations for improvements. NIH has partially implemented more than half and fully implemented about a third of them.
Book Reviews: Jo Freeman Reviews: Gendered Citizenship: The Original Conflict Over the Equal Rights Amendment, 1920 – 1963
Jo Freeman Reviews: “All citizens are created equal but some or more equal than others” is the message of this book. Women are not the only unequal citizens in this country, but they are the most numerous. The Equal Rights Amendment was an attempt to bring real equality to women’s legal status after the 19th Amendment gave women the right, but not always the reality, to the franchise. Focusing on the first 40 years of the struggle for the ERA, DeWolf divides proponents and opponents into emancipationists and protectionists... Although this book is on the ERA, it does go into other laws that affected women, especially their employment opportunities. Read it as a general review of public policy on women, especially at the federal level. Then imagine how different things would have been if the ERA had been ratified several decades ago."
Health, Fitness and Style: Stanford Medicine: COVID-19 Vaccine Effective in People Wth Cancer
The Moderna and Pfizer BioNTech vaccines prevented COVID-19 infection in cancer patients, particularly in those whose treatment concluded more than six months before vaccination, say researchers at Stanford, Harvard and the VA. The mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines are effective at preventing infection in most cancer patients, according to a nationwide study of veterans diagnosed with cancer in the past decade. But the researchers found that some vaccinated patients, including those who had received therapies that suppressed their immune systems within the six months before vaccination, were less protected than their peers from COVID-19 infection for the duration of the study.
Culture Watch: The Stanford Center on Longevity: The New Map of Life
"In the United States, as many as half of today’s 5-year-olds can expect to live to the age of 100, and this once unattainable milestone may become the norm for newborns by 2050. Yet, the social institutions, norms and policies that await these future centenarians evolved when lives were only half as long and need updating. In 2018, The Stanford Center on Longevity launched an initiative called The New Map of Life, believing that one of the most profound transformations of the human experience calls for equally momentous and creative changes in the ways we lead these 100-year lives, at every stage."
Money and Computing: Federal Reserve Governor Michelle W. Bowman: Integrating Indigenous Voices into Economic Inclusion; No Great Nation Can Prosper When Its People Are Left Behind
"The negative effects of past policies and a lack of economic opportunity have impacted Indigenous people for generations. I would like to acknowledge this history, but also to acknowledge that no great nation can prosper when its people are left behind. The Federal Reserve, with all of the powerful tools at its disposal, can't fully succeed unless Native people, and others that have existed on the margins of the economy, have the opportunity to become full participants. The discussions today, including those regarding access to credit for Indigenous communities, can advance this goal."
Health, Fitness and Style: Statement by President Joe Biden on the Omicron COVID-19 Variant today, Friday 26, 2021
"This morning I was briefed by my chief medical advisor, Dr. Tony Fauci, and the members of our COVID response team, about the Omicron variant, which is spreading through Southern Africa. As a precautionary measure until we have more information, I am ordering additional air travel restrictions from South Africa and seven other countries. These new restrictions will take effect on November 29. As we move forward, we will continue to be guided by what the science and my medical team advises." " — the best way to strengthen your protection is to get a booster shot, as soon as you are eligible." "Second, for those not yet fully vaccinated: get vaccinated today. This includes both children and adults. America is leading the world in vaccinating children ages 5-11, and has been vaccinating teens for many months now – but we need more Americans in all age groups to get this life-saving protection. If you have not gotten vaccinated, or have not taken your children to get vaccinated, now is the time."






