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Celerity
Celerity's Journal
Celerity's Journal
September 17, 2023
https://www.thedailybeast.com/olivia-rodrigos-guts-is-a-brilliant-study-of-child-stardom
“Who would have thought that a girl like me would double as a superstar?” That question, once posed by a barely teenaged Miley Cyrus, has resonated with young people more in the last 25 years than ever before, thanks to the teen starlet boom of the late ’90s, the Disney tween machine of the mid-aughts, and the seemingly endless child and teen influencer waves. The allure of child stardom has particularly been sold to girls, who are inundated with teen idol after teen idol—those paragons of glamor and femininity who use their coolness to sell everything from lunch boxes to lip kits.
History has shown that the reality of becoming famous as a young woman is often far from the ideal of having the “best of both worlds,” as Cyrus once put it. But the emotional reality of that experience is generally not heard by the public until the star in question is well into adulthood. Enter Olivia Rodrigo, who has recently demonstrated her commitment to being an on-the-ground anthropologist of child-to-adult stardom with a three-song story about fame told across her new sophomore album, GUTS.
On GUTS, wedged between bedroom pop ballads and angsty rock anthems (and satisfyingly placed at the beginning, the midpoint, and the end of the album) is a three-act ode to the complex trajectory of the teen starlet. “All-American Bitch” (track 1), “Making the Bed” (track 6), and “Teenage Dream” (track 12, the finale) chart Rodrigo’s own teen idol journey: The first expresses an enraged self-awareness of her role in celebrity culture, the second is a resigned reflection on what she’s sacrificed for her music and for fame, and the third culminates in her fear of what lies beyond the teen idol wheelhouse.
Up first, “All-American Bitch” starts off sweet before spinning into a cyclone of angst, as Rodrigo sardonically assures all of her young adult (and former young adult) fans that yes, she does belong to us, and yes, we can see ourselves in her, and no, don’t worry about projecting onto her, because she really does understand us. She’s the everygirl; light and soft and powerful, depending on what we need her to be. A crucial element of celebrity culture is the ability for the masses to see themselves in the rich, talented, and famous; an aspirational simulation of the American Dream. And for young women, the desire to feel seen is that much greater in a world that constantly demands you to clearly label yourself for the ease of others, and to pick a side between madonna or whore.
snip
Olivia Rodrigo's New Album Is a Brilliant Study of Child Stardom
On “GUTS,” wedged between bedroom pop ballads and angsty rock anthems, is a sharp three-act ode to Rodrigo’s teen idol journey.https://www.thedailybeast.com/olivia-rodrigos-guts-is-a-brilliant-study-of-child-stardom
“Who would have thought that a girl like me would double as a superstar?” That question, once posed by a barely teenaged Miley Cyrus, has resonated with young people more in the last 25 years than ever before, thanks to the teen starlet boom of the late ’90s, the Disney tween machine of the mid-aughts, and the seemingly endless child and teen influencer waves. The allure of child stardom has particularly been sold to girls, who are inundated with teen idol after teen idol—those paragons of glamor and femininity who use their coolness to sell everything from lunch boxes to lip kits.
History has shown that the reality of becoming famous as a young woman is often far from the ideal of having the “best of both worlds,” as Cyrus once put it. But the emotional reality of that experience is generally not heard by the public until the star in question is well into adulthood. Enter Olivia Rodrigo, who has recently demonstrated her commitment to being an on-the-ground anthropologist of child-to-adult stardom with a three-song story about fame told across her new sophomore album, GUTS.
On GUTS, wedged between bedroom pop ballads and angsty rock anthems (and satisfyingly placed at the beginning, the midpoint, and the end of the album) is a three-act ode to the complex trajectory of the teen starlet. “All-American Bitch” (track 1), “Making the Bed” (track 6), and “Teenage Dream” (track 12, the finale) chart Rodrigo’s own teen idol journey: The first expresses an enraged self-awareness of her role in celebrity culture, the second is a resigned reflection on what she’s sacrificed for her music and for fame, and the third culminates in her fear of what lies beyond the teen idol wheelhouse.
Up first, “All-American Bitch” starts off sweet before spinning into a cyclone of angst, as Rodrigo sardonically assures all of her young adult (and former young adult) fans that yes, she does belong to us, and yes, we can see ourselves in her, and no, don’t worry about projecting onto her, because she really does understand us. She’s the everygirl; light and soft and powerful, depending on what we need her to be. A crucial element of celebrity culture is the ability for the masses to see themselves in the rich, talented, and famous; an aspirational simulation of the American Dream. And for young women, the desire to feel seen is that much greater in a world that constantly demands you to clearly label yourself for the ease of others, and to pick a side between madonna or whore.
snip
September 16, 2023
https://twitter.com/laurenboebert/status/1284205235737628672
The Tao of Gropebert
I’m a Christian. So they may try to drive me to my knees, but that’s where I’m the strongest.https://twitter.com/laurenboebert/status/1284205235737628672
snapshot
September 16, 2023
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2023/09/eric-adams-migrant-crisis-mayor-new-york-republican-flamethrower-for-2024.html
In 2022, New York City’s Democratic mayor Eric Adams wanted to talk about crime. To anyone who would listen, he repeated again and again that crime in the city was rampant, unchecked, out of control. “I have never in my professional career—I have never witnessed crime at this level,” he said last year, echoing his campaign trail refrain that crime had reverted to 1990s levels. “We”—he said on the stump, implying the Democrat-controlled local government, “are waving a big white flag of surrender.”
That rhetoric may have helped Adams win a crowded, low-turnout Democratic mayoral primary in 2021, but there were problems. For one thing, his hyperbole was plainly counterfactual. As the writer Ross Barkan pointed out in New York magazine, crime was up slightly over 2019 levels, sure, but homicides were down 75 percent since the early ’90s. Adams, his mind made up that “crime” was politically expedient for him, continued braying about it through the 2022 midterm election cycle. Who it was actually expedient for was New York Republicans, who were borderline giddy about the mayor’s gambit. Borrowing from his unequivocally false pronouncements about crime being rampant and uncontained, they campaigned hard on that same talking point and crushed New York congressional Democrats in November’s election, putting up the GOP’s best statewide overperformance in the country. Eric Adams drew up the blueprint for Republicans, and they followed it to a tiny but meaningful House majority.
Since then, Adams has been undone, in part, by his own tactic. The problem with creating the impression of a nonexistent problem is that it becomes impossible to solve that problem, and Adams’ favorability, for that and a whole host of other reasons, has plummeted. No longer as eager to talk about crime, he has settled on a new boogeyman as the 2024 election cycle heats up: the migrant crisis. “This issue will destroy New York City. Destroy New York City,” he said of the famed city of immigrants in public comments made last week. “They’re destroying us … the city we knew, we’re about to lose.” The comments were headline-grabbing for how blunt they were—and for the fact that that sentiment was coming from an elected Democrat—but Adams has in fact been preaching this exact message to anyone who would listen since at least April.
https://twitter.com/nycphotog/status/1699607841483465122
For years, Republicans have been desperately trying to sell the American public on a migrant crisis. In 2018, they spent the last days before the November midterms prophesying an incoming migrant wave, and expected it to save their House majority (it profoundly did not). Since 2022, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis have gone to extreme lengths to bus migrants from their home states to the bluer locales of New York, Los Angeles, and Massachusetts, hoping that those kind of stunts—which may yet yield criminal charges—would make the issue a permanent fixture in the news.
snip
Eric Adams Is Handing Republicans a Flamethrower for 2024. Again.
The problem with creating the impression of a nonexistent problem is that it becomes impossible to solve.https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2023/09/eric-adams-migrant-crisis-mayor-new-york-republican-flamethrower-for-2024.html
In 2022, New York City’s Democratic mayor Eric Adams wanted to talk about crime. To anyone who would listen, he repeated again and again that crime in the city was rampant, unchecked, out of control. “I have never in my professional career—I have never witnessed crime at this level,” he said last year, echoing his campaign trail refrain that crime had reverted to 1990s levels. “We”—he said on the stump, implying the Democrat-controlled local government, “are waving a big white flag of surrender.”
That rhetoric may have helped Adams win a crowded, low-turnout Democratic mayoral primary in 2021, but there were problems. For one thing, his hyperbole was plainly counterfactual. As the writer Ross Barkan pointed out in New York magazine, crime was up slightly over 2019 levels, sure, but homicides were down 75 percent since the early ’90s. Adams, his mind made up that “crime” was politically expedient for him, continued braying about it through the 2022 midterm election cycle. Who it was actually expedient for was New York Republicans, who were borderline giddy about the mayor’s gambit. Borrowing from his unequivocally false pronouncements about crime being rampant and uncontained, they campaigned hard on that same talking point and crushed New York congressional Democrats in November’s election, putting up the GOP’s best statewide overperformance in the country. Eric Adams drew up the blueprint for Republicans, and they followed it to a tiny but meaningful House majority.
Since then, Adams has been undone, in part, by his own tactic. The problem with creating the impression of a nonexistent problem is that it becomes impossible to solve that problem, and Adams’ favorability, for that and a whole host of other reasons, has plummeted. No longer as eager to talk about crime, he has settled on a new boogeyman as the 2024 election cycle heats up: the migrant crisis. “This issue will destroy New York City. Destroy New York City,” he said of the famed city of immigrants in public comments made last week. “They’re destroying us … the city we knew, we’re about to lose.” The comments were headline-grabbing for how blunt they were—and for the fact that that sentiment was coming from an elected Democrat—but Adams has in fact been preaching this exact message to anyone who would listen since at least April.
https://twitter.com/nycphotog/status/1699607841483465122
For years, Republicans have been desperately trying to sell the American public on a migrant crisis. In 2018, they spent the last days before the November midterms prophesying an incoming migrant wave, and expected it to save their House majority (it profoundly did not). Since 2022, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis have gone to extreme lengths to bus migrants from their home states to the bluer locales of New York, Los Angeles, and Massachusetts, hoping that those kind of stunts—which may yet yield criminal charges—would make the issue a permanent fixture in the news.
snip
September 15, 2023
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2023/09/republicans-are-putting-democracy-on-life-support
snip
podcast links
https://open.spotify.com/episode/2ESZv3oHIn9yRQtXKuOaKm?si=IkHOX3MjQL63oS5cJm3j5g
https://megaphone.link/CNE9630169421
Brian Stelter: Republicans Are Putting Democracy on Life Support
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2023/09/republicans-are-putting-democracy-on-life-support
snip
podcast links
https://open.spotify.com/episode/2ESZv3oHIn9yRQtXKuOaKm?si=IkHOX3MjQL63oS5cJm3j5g
https://megaphone.link/CNE9630169421
September 15, 2023
This writer recounts the unexpected ways she had to support her husband as he dealt with a family tragedy.
https://www.shondaland.com/live/family/a44892737/in-grief-and-despair-i-had-to-rescue-our-familys-dog/
Despite the bottle of champagne I drank before walking down the aisle, I know that my wedding vows contained the phrase “till death do us part.” With the adoring eyes of my loved ones fixated on me and my flowing white gown, I didn’t bother to delve into the fine print. Sure, my own death or my partner’s would be an end to the marital contract, but nowhere did it mention how our relationship might be tested by other deaths before that. What happened to us would bring new meaning to the “worse” in “for better and for worse.”
My husband and I had flown to New York from our home in Scotland just after Easter in 2022. Our plane touched U.S. soil almost exactly 48 hours after we learned that my brother-in-law, Andres, a gregarious chef with a beautiful smile, had, at 27, died unexpectedly in his sleep. Ironically, we had been waiting for a call announcing another death any day — my husband’s father, king of the barbecue who was never without a cold G&T in his hand, had recently been moved to hospice care after a battle with an aggressive, fast-moving cancer. I described this situation as being tied to a track and watching as a freight train crawled toward you to run you over, only for a piano to be dropped on your head. It’s not the perfect analogy, but it did the job in my exhausted state.
Everything felt awful, and my husband was shattered. Since we started dating in 2004 at the tender age of 22, we had done almost everything together. But now he was on a journey that I couldn’t follow. The shock had gripped him fiercely; there were moments of levity when he would forget what had happened, only to be plunged back into deep grief. His sadness — the hitch in his voice when he spoke, the shuddering in his chest, the heaving of his sobs — couldn’t be fixed or solved, at least not by me.
I did what I could. I took care of the morbid practicalities that surrounded us with one death to contend with and a second imminent. And because we are a Latino family, I socialized. My mother-in-law’s core group of ladies had descended on the Long Island house earlier that day bearing empanadas and rosaries, like a Venezuelan Sex and the City. I assessed each of them in turn: Consuelo, who had driven up from Dallas, was clearly the Samantha, sloshing around a glass of white wine as she regaled us with an anecdote about lying to her daughter’s college admissions officer about an allergy to secure a better dorm. Carla was the Miranda — professional, dryly hilarious — while my mother-in-law, put-together and demure, was the Charlotte.
snip
In Grief and Despair, I Had to Rescue Our Family's Dog
This writer recounts the unexpected ways she had to support her husband as he dealt with a family tragedy.
https://www.shondaland.com/live/family/a44892737/in-grief-and-despair-i-had-to-rescue-our-familys-dog/
Despite the bottle of champagne I drank before walking down the aisle, I know that my wedding vows contained the phrase “till death do us part.” With the adoring eyes of my loved ones fixated on me and my flowing white gown, I didn’t bother to delve into the fine print. Sure, my own death or my partner’s would be an end to the marital contract, but nowhere did it mention how our relationship might be tested by other deaths before that. What happened to us would bring new meaning to the “worse” in “for better and for worse.”
My husband and I had flown to New York from our home in Scotland just after Easter in 2022. Our plane touched U.S. soil almost exactly 48 hours after we learned that my brother-in-law, Andres, a gregarious chef with a beautiful smile, had, at 27, died unexpectedly in his sleep. Ironically, we had been waiting for a call announcing another death any day — my husband’s father, king of the barbecue who was never without a cold G&T in his hand, had recently been moved to hospice care after a battle with an aggressive, fast-moving cancer. I described this situation as being tied to a track and watching as a freight train crawled toward you to run you over, only for a piano to be dropped on your head. It’s not the perfect analogy, but it did the job in my exhausted state.
Everything felt awful, and my husband was shattered. Since we started dating in 2004 at the tender age of 22, we had done almost everything together. But now he was on a journey that I couldn’t follow. The shock had gripped him fiercely; there were moments of levity when he would forget what had happened, only to be plunged back into deep grief. His sadness — the hitch in his voice when he spoke, the shuddering in his chest, the heaving of his sobs — couldn’t be fixed or solved, at least not by me.
I did what I could. I took care of the morbid practicalities that surrounded us with one death to contend with and a second imminent. And because we are a Latino family, I socialized. My mother-in-law’s core group of ladies had descended on the Long Island house earlier that day bearing empanadas and rosaries, like a Venezuelan Sex and the City. I assessed each of them in turn: Consuelo, who had driven up from Dallas, was clearly the Samantha, sloshing around a glass of white wine as she regaled us with an anecdote about lying to her daughter’s college admissions officer about an allergy to secure a better dorm. Carla was the Miranda — professional, dryly hilarious — while my mother-in-law, put-together and demure, was the Charlotte.
snip
September 15, 2023
https://prospect.org/blogs-and-newsletters/tap/2023-09-15-how-do-you-spell-relief/
This week, an advisory panel of the FDA unanimously concluded that a widely used nasal decongestant is ineffective and basically worthless. The ingredient, phenylephrine, is found in numerous over-the-counter remedies—including Mucinex, NyQuil, and Theraflu—in all, in some 250 different products worth $1.8 billion in sales last year. Decongestants in general are not very good. There is a well-known rebound effect. You get some relief for a while but then are more congested than ever.
As it happens, there is a near-miraculous generic cold medicine, ambroxol, that is available over the counter all over the world, but not in the United States. I stumbled on this medication last year when I was in France and had a bad cold. I went to the local pharmacy and asked if they carried something like Mucinex or Robitussin. “We have something much better,” the pharmacist said. As I wrote last December in the Prospect, ambroxol works on an entirely different biochemical principle, to thin sputum and facilitate productive coughing, and also operates as a pain reliever and gentle decongestant with no rebound effect. My wife and I experienced it as a miracle drug for coughs and colds. A box cost eight euros.
Why is ambroxol not available in the U.S.? A comprehensive review published by NIH in 2020 found it safe and effective. But no drugmaker has ever sought FDA approval, a time-consuming process requiring three stages of clinical trials. Why not? Because drugmakers could not make enough money with a generic to justify the expense. It’s obviously crazy to require this laborious review process for a generic that has been widely used in Europe since 1978, but this is how our system works. Here is where President Biden could come to the rescue of cold-sufferers. He could direct the FDA to fast-track the approval of ambroxol for sale in the U.S.
When the U.S. ran short of infant formula in 2022 due to the misfeasance of a highly concentrated and profit-gouging industry, Biden ordered agencies to cut red tape and increase imports of formula from several countries, and we relied on their regulators to certify that these products were safe. In fact, we already rely on EU agencies to certify that exported foods in general are safe and without toxic residues. European regulators are trusted with many other reciprocal delegations of regulatory authority, such as pollution standards in cars. The European Medicines Agency, the counterpart of the FDA, has an excellent record. Under a new fast-track process, it would take just a few days for the FDA to review EMA records on the history of ambroxol in Europe to confirm that it has been safe and effective for decades.
snip
After an FDA finding that a popular decongestant is worthless, Biden could direct that agency to
fast-track approval of a miracle drug for colds used all over the world.https://prospect.org/blogs-and-newsletters/tap/2023-09-15-how-do-you-spell-relief/
This week, an advisory panel of the FDA unanimously concluded that a widely used nasal decongestant is ineffective and basically worthless. The ingredient, phenylephrine, is found in numerous over-the-counter remedies—including Mucinex, NyQuil, and Theraflu—in all, in some 250 different products worth $1.8 billion in sales last year. Decongestants in general are not very good. There is a well-known rebound effect. You get some relief for a while but then are more congested than ever.
As it happens, there is a near-miraculous generic cold medicine, ambroxol, that is available over the counter all over the world, but not in the United States. I stumbled on this medication last year when I was in France and had a bad cold. I went to the local pharmacy and asked if they carried something like Mucinex or Robitussin. “We have something much better,” the pharmacist said. As I wrote last December in the Prospect, ambroxol works on an entirely different biochemical principle, to thin sputum and facilitate productive coughing, and also operates as a pain reliever and gentle decongestant with no rebound effect. My wife and I experienced it as a miracle drug for coughs and colds. A box cost eight euros.
Why is ambroxol not available in the U.S.? A comprehensive review published by NIH in 2020 found it safe and effective. But no drugmaker has ever sought FDA approval, a time-consuming process requiring three stages of clinical trials. Why not? Because drugmakers could not make enough money with a generic to justify the expense. It’s obviously crazy to require this laborious review process for a generic that has been widely used in Europe since 1978, but this is how our system works. Here is where President Biden could come to the rescue of cold-sufferers. He could direct the FDA to fast-track the approval of ambroxol for sale in the U.S.
When the U.S. ran short of infant formula in 2022 due to the misfeasance of a highly concentrated and profit-gouging industry, Biden ordered agencies to cut red tape and increase imports of formula from several countries, and we relied on their regulators to certify that these products were safe. In fact, we already rely on EU agencies to certify that exported foods in general are safe and without toxic residues. European regulators are trusted with many other reciprocal delegations of regulatory authority, such as pollution standards in cars. The European Medicines Agency, the counterpart of the FDA, has an excellent record. Under a new fast-track process, it would take just a few days for the FDA to review EMA records on the history of ambroxol in Europe to confirm that it has been safe and effective for decades.
snip
September 15, 2023
https://www.azfamily.com/2023/09/15/death-infant-prompts-recall-water-beads-toy-sold-target/ (video at the link)
PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) — A popular children’s toy has been recalled following the death of an infant. According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, a 10-month-old in Wisconsin died in July after swallowing beads from the Chuckle & Roar Ultimate Water Beads Activity Kit. And in 2022, a nine-month-old needed surgery after a water bead caused an intestinal obstruction. More than 50,000 of the recalled water bead kits were sold at Target from March to November 2022 for $15.
Dr. Rahul Chawla, a pediatric critical care physician with Banner Children’s, says water beads can cause devastating injuries and death. “These are made of polymers. These are actually things that were actually designed for agriculture so they could hold onto water in dry environments and soil for farming techniques. So this tiny small bead, it might be the size of a pea, it can actually expand sometimes to the size of a tennis ball,” he said. “If it’s stuck in the top of your throat and blocks off your airway, unless you can get a definitive airway in, it’s like drowning on land. Four minutes without oxygen, you have brain damage. If it gets all the way in and gets ingested and gets stuck somewhere in your GI tract, we might have to go in and do an exploratory surgery to look and then pull it out.”
Warning signs that a child may have ingested a water bead include coughing, gagging, drooling, trouble swallowing, problems with breathing, whistling noises while breathing, wheezing, vomiting and complaining of pain. “Most parents know when something isn’t right with their kid, and this is not something that can be blown off,” Dr. Chawla said. According to CPSC, consumers can contact Buffalo Games for a full refund and instructions on how to return the recalled toy in a prepaid mailing package. Consumers can also return the product to any Target store.
“Today’s recall is a flashing red light about the risks of water beads, and it should tell every parent, caregiver, and teacher out there to be very careful about these products. Get them out of sight and out of reach,” said William Wallace, the associate director of safety policy for Consumer Reports. “These water bead activity kits are being recalled primarily because they’re tied to an infant death. That’s our read of the situation. It sure looks like other water beads pose similar hazards, so we’re very concerned with any product that’s similar to these, and there seem to be a lot of them for sale.”
snip
Death of infant prompts recall of water beads toy sold at Target
https://www.azfamily.com/2023/09/15/death-infant-prompts-recall-water-beads-toy-sold-target/ (video at the link)
PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) — A popular children’s toy has been recalled following the death of an infant. According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, a 10-month-old in Wisconsin died in July after swallowing beads from the Chuckle & Roar Ultimate Water Beads Activity Kit. And in 2022, a nine-month-old needed surgery after a water bead caused an intestinal obstruction. More than 50,000 of the recalled water bead kits were sold at Target from March to November 2022 for $15.
Dr. Rahul Chawla, a pediatric critical care physician with Banner Children’s, says water beads can cause devastating injuries and death. “These are made of polymers. These are actually things that were actually designed for agriculture so they could hold onto water in dry environments and soil for farming techniques. So this tiny small bead, it might be the size of a pea, it can actually expand sometimes to the size of a tennis ball,” he said. “If it’s stuck in the top of your throat and blocks off your airway, unless you can get a definitive airway in, it’s like drowning on land. Four minutes without oxygen, you have brain damage. If it gets all the way in and gets ingested and gets stuck somewhere in your GI tract, we might have to go in and do an exploratory surgery to look and then pull it out.”
Warning signs that a child may have ingested a water bead include coughing, gagging, drooling, trouble swallowing, problems with breathing, whistling noises while breathing, wheezing, vomiting and complaining of pain. “Most parents know when something isn’t right with their kid, and this is not something that can be blown off,” Dr. Chawla said. According to CPSC, consumers can contact Buffalo Games for a full refund and instructions on how to return the recalled toy in a prepaid mailing package. Consumers can also return the product to any Target store.
“Today’s recall is a flashing red light about the risks of water beads, and it should tell every parent, caregiver, and teacher out there to be very careful about these products. Get them out of sight and out of reach,” said William Wallace, the associate director of safety policy for Consumer Reports. “These water bead activity kits are being recalled primarily because they’re tied to an infant death. That’s our read of the situation. It sure looks like other water beads pose similar hazards, so we’re very concerned with any product that’s similar to these, and there seem to be a lot of them for sale.”
snip
September 15, 2023
https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/health/diet-nutrition/a33606419/coconut-water-health-benefits/
Although coconut water has grown in popularity over the past few years, this beverage, dubbed "nature's sports drink," has been around for centuries. Packed with electrolytes and flavor, coconut water is the clear liquid found inside young coconuts and has a slew of health benefits. It differs from coconut milk, which has a creamy white hue and incorporates the actual coconut flesh. The refreshing beverage is great on its own or used in healthy smoothie recipes, and its known for its slightly sweet and nutty flavor. Here's everything you need to know about the drink, including nutrition facts, coconut water health benefits and potential side effects.
Coconut water fits into both low calorie and low sugar diets since it only has about 45 calories per cup and around 11 grams of sugar. Plus, it's naturally loaded with electrolytes including potassium, magnesium, phosphorus and more. Although nutrition facts can vary slightly based on where the coconut is sourced, as well as the maturity of the coconut, an average 8-ounce glass of coconut water has:
Calories: 45
Total Fat: 0g
Cholesterol: 0mg
Sodium: 25mg
Potassium: 470mg
Total Carbohydrate: 11g
Total Sugars: 11g
Protein: 0g
Calcium: 4% DV
Magnesium: 4% DV
Phosphorus: 2% DV
snip
8 Health Benefits of Coconut Water, According to Registered Dietitians
https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/health/diet-nutrition/a33606419/coconut-water-health-benefits/
Although coconut water has grown in popularity over the past few years, this beverage, dubbed "nature's sports drink," has been around for centuries. Packed with electrolytes and flavor, coconut water is the clear liquid found inside young coconuts and has a slew of health benefits. It differs from coconut milk, which has a creamy white hue and incorporates the actual coconut flesh. The refreshing beverage is great on its own or used in healthy smoothie recipes, and its known for its slightly sweet and nutty flavor. Here's everything you need to know about the drink, including nutrition facts, coconut water health benefits and potential side effects.
Coconut water fits into both low calorie and low sugar diets since it only has about 45 calories per cup and around 11 grams of sugar. Plus, it's naturally loaded with electrolytes including potassium, magnesium, phosphorus and more. Although nutrition facts can vary slightly based on where the coconut is sourced, as well as the maturity of the coconut, an average 8-ounce glass of coconut water has:
Calories: 45
Total Fat: 0g
Cholesterol: 0mg
Sodium: 25mg
Potassium: 470mg
Total Carbohydrate: 11g
Total Sugars: 11g
Protein: 0g
Calcium: 4% DV
Magnesium: 4% DV
Phosphorus: 2% DV
snip
September 15, 2023
https://www.state.gov/commemorating-the-international-day-of-democracy-3/
On this International Day of Democracy, I emphasize again the commitment that the United States and our international partners have made to protect and promote democracy across the globe. As we approach the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights this December, we recommit ourselves to the values enshrined in the Declaration, which unconditionally elevates human rights for everyone, everywhere, and strengthens democracy and democratic institutions around the world.
As the world continues to modernize, we see governments abusing technological advancements to infringe on the democratic process and on the human rights of their constituents. As part of our work to counter this development, the United States, along with over 100 of our foreign partners, gathered at the second Summit for Democracy earlier this year and underscored our commitment to maximize the promise and benefits that technology can bring to advance democracy globally.
When governments misuse technology, whether by imposing Internet shutdowns, controlling Internet access or content, or resorting to online harassment to target and abuse people who hold dissenting beliefs, they restrict freedom of expression and impede the free and open exchange of ideas. The full enjoyment of freedom of expression online and offline is a cornerstone of democracy and is of critical importance to the advancement of democratic institutions, principles, and processes.
Democracy is more than a form of government; it sets the foundation for a society where everyone is free to be who they are, express what they think, and practice their beliefs. The United States is committed to upholding democratic values worldwide and strengthening democratic institutions as we work toward a world in which all people can fully and freely exercise their universal human rights.
Commemorating the International Day of Democracy - United States Department of State
https://www.state.gov/commemorating-the-international-day-of-democracy-3/
On this International Day of Democracy, I emphasize again the commitment that the United States and our international partners have made to protect and promote democracy across the globe. As we approach the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights this December, we recommit ourselves to the values enshrined in the Declaration, which unconditionally elevates human rights for everyone, everywhere, and strengthens democracy and democratic institutions around the world.
As the world continues to modernize, we see governments abusing technological advancements to infringe on the democratic process and on the human rights of their constituents. As part of our work to counter this development, the United States, along with over 100 of our foreign partners, gathered at the second Summit for Democracy earlier this year and underscored our commitment to maximize the promise and benefits that technology can bring to advance democracy globally.
When governments misuse technology, whether by imposing Internet shutdowns, controlling Internet access or content, or resorting to online harassment to target and abuse people who hold dissenting beliefs, they restrict freedom of expression and impede the free and open exchange of ideas. The full enjoyment of freedom of expression online and offline is a cornerstone of democracy and is of critical importance to the advancement of democratic institutions, principles, and processes.
Democracy is more than a form of government; it sets the foundation for a society where everyone is free to be who they are, express what they think, and practice their beliefs. The United States is committed to upholding democratic values worldwide and strengthening democratic institutions as we work toward a world in which all people can fully and freely exercise their universal human rights.
September 15, 2023
Liberty isn’t when every jerk gets to inconvenience everyone else.
https://prospect.org/world/2023-09-14-nordic-way-of-freedom/
I recently took a reporting trip to Finland (Want to see that reporting? Keep reading the Prospect!), where I rented a car. Driving to my hotel, I was shocked at the incredibly civilized road manners on Finnish highways, thanks in large part to the omnipresent speed cameras and tickets that are assessed as a percentage of one’s income—121,000 euros, in one recent case. To Americans, this might seem like a typical example of nanny-state overreach. For many drivers here, freedom is when you get to drive your giant, powerful, heavy car with total disregard for the law and the safety of other drivers—as I saw on the drive to Newark Airport to catch my flight, during which I was nearly run off the road by a bunch of hooligans swerving through traffic at a hundred miles an hour.
But in reality, the Finland experience reflects a deeper and more mature idea of freedom than the childish selfishness that passes for it in the U.S. Strict traffic rules are a burden, in the sense that one must obey or pay a hefty price. But they also enable a much freer driving experience. With lower speeds in the city, merging, navigating, and other normal driving activities are much more straightforward. Those slow speeds, plus other traffic controls, also make life much safer for pedestrians and cyclists, adding up to a traffic death rate more than two-thirds lower than that of the U.S. Yet the basic point of driving—to get to where you are going—is easier and safer in Finland than in America. You can still take your car just about anywhere, you just can’t do so in a way that infringes on the transportation rights of others.
This conception of freedom can be seen throughout Nordic society. One of the core objectives of the Nordic social democratic welfare state, for instance, is to spread income out over the working life. The average person hits their peak earning years when they are in their forties and fifties, thanks to accumulated raises, greater experience, and so on. But people also need income outside those years—when they are children, or retired and not working at all, or when they are in their twenties and thirties and taking on the extreme expenses of starting a family.
So if you are, say, a 50-year-old Finnish accountant making good money, you are taxed quite heavily to fund benefits for young families and pensioners. But when those parents are in their prime earning years and you’ve retired, they pay for your pension, as well as the families coming up behind them. In this sense, there are powerful and self-interested reasons to support the welfare state—it shifts income from when you need it least to when you need it most, expanding your freedom to start a family when it makes the most biological sense and to retire in relative comfort.
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The Nordic Way of Freedom
Liberty isn’t when every jerk gets to inconvenience everyone else.
https://prospect.org/world/2023-09-14-nordic-way-of-freedom/
I recently took a reporting trip to Finland (Want to see that reporting? Keep reading the Prospect!), where I rented a car. Driving to my hotel, I was shocked at the incredibly civilized road manners on Finnish highways, thanks in large part to the omnipresent speed cameras and tickets that are assessed as a percentage of one’s income—121,000 euros, in one recent case. To Americans, this might seem like a typical example of nanny-state overreach. For many drivers here, freedom is when you get to drive your giant, powerful, heavy car with total disregard for the law and the safety of other drivers—as I saw on the drive to Newark Airport to catch my flight, during which I was nearly run off the road by a bunch of hooligans swerving through traffic at a hundred miles an hour.
But in reality, the Finland experience reflects a deeper and more mature idea of freedom than the childish selfishness that passes for it in the U.S. Strict traffic rules are a burden, in the sense that one must obey or pay a hefty price. But they also enable a much freer driving experience. With lower speeds in the city, merging, navigating, and other normal driving activities are much more straightforward. Those slow speeds, plus other traffic controls, also make life much safer for pedestrians and cyclists, adding up to a traffic death rate more than two-thirds lower than that of the U.S. Yet the basic point of driving—to get to where you are going—is easier and safer in Finland than in America. You can still take your car just about anywhere, you just can’t do so in a way that infringes on the transportation rights of others.
This conception of freedom can be seen throughout Nordic society. One of the core objectives of the Nordic social democratic welfare state, for instance, is to spread income out over the working life. The average person hits their peak earning years when they are in their forties and fifties, thanks to accumulated raises, greater experience, and so on. But people also need income outside those years—when they are children, or retired and not working at all, or when they are in their twenties and thirties and taking on the extreme expenses of starting a family.
So if you are, say, a 50-year-old Finnish accountant making good money, you are taxed quite heavily to fund benefits for young families and pensioners. But when those parents are in their prime earning years and you’ve retired, they pay for your pension, as well as the families coming up behind them. In this sense, there are powerful and self-interested reasons to support the welfare state—it shifts income from when you need it least to when you need it most, expanding your freedom to start a family when it makes the most biological sense and to retire in relative comfort.
snip
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