Oppo is torn. Literally, torn.

The further adventures of Ethel and Myrtle (thanks to Gene)!

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“Boys — Our fighter’s stuck. Could you be a dear and get us unstuck?”

Gavin Newsom Reflects On California’s Covid Approach: “We Would’ve Done Everything Differently
deadline | 09/10/2023 | Denise Petski

Hindsight is 20/20. California Governor Gavin Newsom, who took considerable heat from constituents and a recall attempt over the state’s tough Covid-19 restrictions and vaccine rollout, acknowledges the criticism was valid.

In a taped interview which aired on Sunday’s NBC news magazine Meet The Press, Newsom said given what he knows now, “I think we would’ve done everything differently.”

Later in the interview Newsom responded to criticism of his state’s decisions saying: “All of it’s legitimate in terms of reflection.”

“I think all of us in terms of our collective wisdom, we’ve evolved,” Newsom added. “We didn’t know what we didn’t know. We’re experts in hindsight. We’re all geniuses now.”

Details, please. What specifically would you have done differently? What wisdom has evolved?

Say, for instance, sending police to arrest unmasked surfers off a beach. Or going to a restaurant unmasked while everyone else was forbidden to. What mistakes were made?

Google Is Laying Off Hundreds in Its Recruitment Division
Channel 3000 News/CNN | September 13, 2023 | CNN Staff

Google confirmed it will lay off hundreds of staff members who helped recruit and hire employees, as Silicon Valley continues its cost-cutting efforts.

The latest cuts come after Google parent Alphabet in January eliminated 12,000 jobs, or about 6% of its workforce, across the company as it grappled with economic uncertainty that hit the company’s bottom line last year, especially its core advertising business.

During Google’s July earnings call, CEO Sundar Pichai said the company was continuing to slow its “expense growth and pace of hiring.”

“We continue to invest in top engineering and technical talent while also meaningfully slowing the pace of our overall hiring,” Google spokesperson Courtenay Mencini said in a statement Wednesday, adding that the workload for recruiters has declined as hiring slows. “To ensure we operate efficiently, we’ve made the hard decision to reduce the size of our recruiting team.”

The layoffs were earlier reported by Semafor and CNBC.

The cuts will affect a few hundred members of Google’s recruiting organization globally; most of the team will remain and continue hiring for critical roles such as top engineering talent, according to Google. The company did not specify the exact number of layoffs in the department.

Google also said the recruiting cuts are not part of any wider layoffs, and that affected employees will be supported with severance offers and other benefits.

Some Google recruiters for the company’s cloud, user experience, software engineering and other teams posted on LinkedIn, noting they had been affected by the layoffs.

“My heart is heavy for everyone that was impacted alongside me, and I know better days are ahead for all of us as much as today doesn’t feel like it,” one affected Google recruiter wrote.

In response to my fantasy about Mika contemplating my … male attributes,

… which I’m sure she does, constantly, . . .

Kinda Sorta Bob B-Like Bot suggested “Shoulda saved this one for Fantasy Fiction Friday…“

Which he invented out of thin air, and which I have now done.

She love me longtime.

Here is Fantasy Fiction Friday:

Interns

Mind you, these are under probation , . . they haven’t secured a place on the IMAO roster yet . . .

and . .

Walrus is a very discriminating judge. Almost none of these will make it to the finals.

… and one for DamnCat:

When even MSN ceases to be your cheerleader . . .

Ford’s EV Plan in Trouble
MSN | 09/13/2023 | Douglas A. McIntyre

Ford was supposed to be able to build 600,000 electric vehicles (EVs) this year. Then, it wasn’t. The date was pushed back to the end of 2024. Now, Ford may be unable to sell all those EVs, even if it hits that production number. Too few people want an F-150 Lightning, Ford’s electric flagship. According to Bloomberg, Ford has raised production of the hybrid F-150, a watered-down version that helps save gasoline and the environment. Jim Farley, [ a watered down version of a ] Ford CEO, says he is surprised by the demand for the hybrid version. He failed to mention that it is a sunsetting of his plan for Ford’s future and aspirations.

The hybrid F-150 is cheaper than the Lightning. Apparently, pickup drivers did not warm to its high price. The hybrid engine is ancient compared to EV engines. Cleverly, Ford did not say the lack of demand for the Lightning may be permanent.

Notwithstanding . . . congratulations. Very few have made it this far.