Pocket scraps Sep 8 (ish)
What I found interesting this (travel) week
So much travel, but it’s been 2 days of kangaroos, penguins, kookaburras and amazement.
Why Giving Birth Is Safer in Britain Than in the U.S. — ProPublica
The key to this well-oiled machine is standardization. It used to be that every obstetrician in the U.K. had his or her own signature strategy to manage an emergency. In the U.S., that still sometimes happens. But these days, every British doctor, whether newly qualified or approaching retirement, is required to follow the same guidelines for many aspects of maternity care
The notion that every doctor is an individualist hero (male) gets in the way of effectiveness.
Read Why Giving Birth Is Safer in Britain Than in the U.S. — ProPublica
An Indian family’s encounter with caste and untouchability that no one should ignore even in 2017
At twenty-six, I came to America, where people know only skin color, not birth status. Some here love Indians and some hate them, but their feelings are not affected by caste. One time in a bar in Atlanta I told a guy I was untouchable, and he said, “Oh, but you’re so touchable.”
That was a funny excerpt with a creepyish pickup line, but her story sounds amazing
Read An Indian family’s encounter with caste and untouchability that no one should ignore even in 2017
The Future Of Work And The Social Welfare State’s Survival
Europe, like the United States, has seen dramatic changes in how people work. Compared to 15 years ago, many more people have part-time, temp or mini-jobs, or are self-employed.
Yep, some important things to consider in this article.
Read The Future Of Work And The Social Welfare State’s Survival
Amir Bajehkian: You’ve demonstrated your opposition to white supremacists. Now what?
Many times in progressive circles, you see the brown person who passionately showed up to a meet-up being left out. Yeah, I was that guy before. And no! You’re not bad people. You just forget. Remember, not all of the newcomers are persistent jerks like me.
Amir is a FB friend once removed, and this is a passionate article on the need to meet brown people where they are, and listen.
Read Amir Bajehkian: You’ve demonstrated your opposition to white supremacists. Now what?
Hookworm, a disease of extreme poverty, is thriving in the US south. Why?
Children playing feet away from open pools of raw sewage; drinking water pumped beside cracked pipes of untreated waste; human faeces flushed back into kitchen sinks and bathtubs whenever the rains come; people testing positive for hookworm, an intestinal parasite that thrives on extreme poverty.
Oh racism, oh terrible horrible racism.
Read Hookworm, a disease of extreme poverty, is thriving in the US south. Why?
Whoever killed Gauri Lankesh, it is clear that India continues to be deadly for journalists
The brazen killing of noted journalist Gauri Lankesh, by unidentified gunmen outside her house on Tuesday, has already drawn comparisons to the murder of scholar MM Kalburgi in a similar fashion two years prior. It has also inspired much speculation about who might be behind the murder of Lankesh, who famously spent much of her time writing against communalism and had even been convicted in a criminal defamation case filed by Bharatiya Janata Party leaders.
Read Whoever killed Gauri Lankesh, it is clear that India continues to be deadly for journalists
The Sucker, the Sucker!
An octopus’s neurons are dispersed throughout its body, and two-thirds of them are in its arms: each arm can act intelligently on its own, grasping, manipulating and hunting.
Oh, I did so enjoy reading this article, no further comment.
10+ Best Bird Photos Of 2017 Are Here, And They’re Truly Incredible
Since as long as there were people, our species gazed at birds, envying that freedom only the skies could provide. Now people have joined birds in the skies, but that didn’t stop us from admiring its original pioneers.
I left that schmaltzy intro in place for fun, the photos are incredible, especially coming off a day of birding yesterday where I failed rather miserably to take even one decent photo!
Read 10+ Best Bird Photos Of 2017 Are Here, And They’re Truly Incredible