Fauci's spanking Rogan this week, and it's okay with me.

Here's a good essay about Covid.

This tweet describes a new way to detest the Ivy League.

Column: British PM's squeeze pulling levers.

Twitter/Guardian: The strictures and traditions which have defended academe are collapsing!

Vitriol alert (it began in February and it's partly about how childless singles are treated as disposable by the tax system, however poor they might be - or course, this is likely to be true no matter WHICH party is in charge, as they admit, multiple times):

http://www.refugees.bratfree.com/read.php?2,439760

Cambion: "Poverty can be even more devastating to people without kids because nobody gives a ---- if a single person and their cat or an unchilded couple starve and have to live in their car because they can't afford rent."

Techie: "Currently, a single CF person making $75000 per year is paying $9562 in federal taxes per year. If we add Social Security (7.65%) and average state tax of 2.63%, they are paying $15,300 per year. Breeders are basically getting a check for 15 grand.

"I don't think there is a way to vote 'bad' candidates out. Unless flat tax was the law of the land, this is never going to get any better for CF people. I don't care if it was Trump or if it was Warren or Bernie: sticking it to CF is how it is done around here."

bell_flower: "If you want to be really resentful, just wait until you are retired. Slog through the workforce for 40 years and save money, even though as a single or CF person, you are paying the highest tax rate possible. No tax breaks for you. Nevertheless, every year that a 401(k) was available to me, I put the maximum in that, and I put additional money into other investments too, which I could do BECAUSE YOU KNOW WHY. And I also lived a pretty simple life and avoided debt. I actually did not own a house until I was in my late 30's. I kept cars for a long time, did not take fancy vacations, never blew money on salon services, didn't eat out much."

JoJo: "I wouldn't have such a problem with food stamps if it was restricted to nutritious food only. I'll never understand why you can buy soda with food stamps, but not a rotisserie chicken. If I ran the program, you wouldn't be able to buy candy, soda, chips or baked goods with the money, just fresh fruits and vegetables, dairy products, eggs, cheap cuts of meat (no steak and lobster!) and frozen or canned goods."

Yurble (in March): "Once living conditions become good enough without having children, more and more people are one and done or none. The governments can throw money at them to try to encourage it (as in much of Europe and east Asia) but people aren't buying. They can see that the drudgery isn't compensated for with the sums that are being offered. Even when the tax burden is worse, kids still aren't worth it for many.

"It seems the best way to encourage breeding is to keep the population in desperate circumstances, and then give them tiny benefits for reproduction. Limiting access to contraception, sex ed, and abortion also helps.

"Countries should use the opportunity covid has created to restructure their economies so that they aren't predicated on endless growth, because even if the breeding approach worked in the past, it is not what will help in the future. With the increase of drones, it's not even as if they are required to be cannon fodder."

bell_flower: "I’m not familiar with all of the CARES act, but here’s an interesting factoid that I accidentally discovered: The CARES act waived the RMD last year and there was NO PENALTY for not taking an RMD in 2020 due to COVID. So that means people that do not need the money could just leave it in. Odd isn't it?"

Some people used their COVID lockdown time wisely. Others used it to finish 2 years of college and 2 years of high school in the same year.

Twitter video to remind us who's who and what's what.

Subtext: BRAINS

Biden, never a bright light, is addled in the eye and foaming at the mouth.