“Right next to the Hillary autobiographies.”
Mattel unveils Maya Angelou Barbie doll
CNN Via WCVB | January 15, 2021
Coming soon: Walt Whitman as G.I. Joe.
Do you have something you’d like to share? A link? A joke? Some words of wisdom? A topic to discuss? It’s our nightly Open Thread, and you have the floor.
“Terror Bird” Arrived in North America Before Land Bridge, Study Finds
Phys.org / January 23, 2007
Be afraid. Be very, very . . . Oh, wait, never mind:
A University of Florida-led study has determined that Titanis walleri, a prehistoric 7-foot-tall flightless “terror bird,” arrived in North America from South America long before a land bridge connected the two continents.
The terror bird was carnivorous, weighed about 330 pounds, had powerful feet and a head larger than a man’s.
And was purportedly looking for Colonelius Sandersii.
Somewhat a metaphor for the Harris/Biden administration:
Sapporo Decides To Sell New Beer With English Mistake on Label
Japan Today | 1/16/21 | Oona McGeeIt was a sad day for beer lovers across Japan on Jan 8, when Sapporo Breweries put the lid on an exclusive new brew release just four days before it was due to go on sale.
According to the company, the new beer, called Kaitakushi Beer Tailored,
Not Kaishakunin?
used the same traditional manufacturing methods as Japan’s first beer factory, Kaitakushi Brewery, founded in Sapporo, Hokkaido, in 1897, and was set to be sold exclusively at FamilyMart convenience stores around the country on Jan 12.
However, the beer’s release was pulled from sale before even making it to stores, and the problem wasn’t connected to the beer itself but the cans they were packaged in, as they were found to contain a spelling mistake on the label.
The cans had “Lagar” instead of “Lager” printed on them.
Sapporo decided this was an error that warranted cancellation of the new release, issuing a statement of apology that read: “Due to incorrect spelling found in a section of the Kaitakushi Beer Tailored product design, we have decided to discontinue sales. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience to customers.”
However, customers were quick to let the company know on social media that they didn’t care about the spelling error – they just wanted to taste the beer they’d been waiting so long for. Others expressed concerns about unnecessary wastage, wondering what would happen to the product, given that it was likely to be canned and ready to go out to stores by the time the mistake was discovered.
As it turns out, Sapporo and Family Mart were carefully listening to their customers, as the companies sent out the following statement . . .
“We announced on Jan 8 that we would cancel sales due to a spelling error in a part of the design on this product.
However, following the announcement, people voiced concerns about what would happen to the product and a large number of people expressed their desire for it to go on sale.
Therefore, after careful consideration by both companies [Sapporo and FamilyMart] we took the opinions of our customers seriously and decided to revoke the decision to cancel sales.”
I guess it’ll be kind of a corrector’s edition.
Straight Line of the Day: Mexico’s president compared social media censorship to the Spanish Inquisition. Another apt comparison: …
Who’d have thought that Mexico’s leader would sound more American than America’s leaders?
Mexican President Compares Social Media Censorship to Spanish Inquisition, Calls for Global Action
CBN | Jan. 15, 2021 | AP“I can tell you that at the first G20 meeting we have, I am going to make a proposal on this issue,” López Obrador said. “Yes, social media should not be used to incite violence and all that, but this cannot be used as a pretext to suspend freedom of expression.”
“How can a company act as if it was all powerful, omnipotent, as a sort of Spanish Inquisition on what is expressed?” he asked.
Foreign Relations Secretary Marcelo Ebrard said Mexico is starting to build an international campaign around the issue.
“Given that Mexico, through our president, has spoken out, we immediately made contact with others who think the same,” Ebrard said, noting they had heard from officials in France, Germany, the European Union, Africa, Latin America and Southeast Asia.
Notice a country that’s not on the list?
