In theory, every American is required to contribute to Medicare. In practice, @ProPublica says, billionaires including Steve Cohen, owner of the New York Mets, and hedge-fund manager Bill Ackman, are paying diddly-squat. Here’s how they do it.

https://www.propublica.org/article/medicare-tax-loophole-steve-cohen

#USPolitics #DonaldTrump #USConstitution #USCongress #News #Newstodon #NewstodonFriday #FollowFriday

Canada’s next federal election must take place on or before Oct. 25, 2025. @thetyee looks at foreign influence on Canadian politics, in particular, from Russia, and the role of people like Tenet Media influencer Lauren Southern.

https://thetyee.ca/News/2024/12/12/Russian-Political-Influence-Campaign-Canada/

#SocialMedia #Politics #Canada #CanadianPolitics #Newstodon #NewstodonFriday #FollowFriday

Africa is making a name for itself on the netball court, with three countries (South Africa, Uganda and Malawi) in the world top 10. For @thecontinent, Karien Jonckheere writes about how they might climb even higher.

https://continent.substack.com/p/up-and-up-and-soon-the-top

#Netball #Sports #Africa #Sport #Uganda #Malawi #SouthAfrica #Newstodon #NewstodonFriday #FollowFriday

Most of us are basically non-functional after a period of insomnia, but some folks are perfectly fine consistently getting four hours’ sleep a night. @KnowableMag looks into the genetic wiring of these lucky people, and what it can tell us about sleep itself.

https://knowablemagazine.org/content/article/mind/2024/genetics-of-people-who-need-little-sleep

#Sleep #Science #SleepScience #Dreaming #Newstodon #NewstodonFriday #FollowFriday

Unhoused people have some of the lowest turnout of all voters, yet there are often ballot measures that directly affect them. @bolts looks at a program in Los Angeles County that seeks to bring voting directly to service centers and shelters. The effort is working — almost 3,000 who might not otherwise have cast a ballot did so in the last general election.

https://boltsmag.org/los-angeles-county-flex-vote-centers-unhoused-voters/

#Homelessness #LosAngelesCounty #California #Voting #VotingRights #Newstodon #NewstodonFriday #FollowFriday

@Flipboard @KnowableMag

#ItMe

Fitbit says I've been averaging 5.5 hours of sleep per day for 5+ years. That it's even that high is due to long-sleep days due to illness, activity recovery (e.g. after multi-day music festivals) and the effects of beta blockers.

@ferricoxide @KnowableMag And you feel rested? We are very envious!

“I Am Ready, Warden” is streaming now on Paramount+. @TexasObserver talked to director Smriti Mundhra about the documentary, which chronicles the days leading up to the execution of John Henry Ramirez, and which they say is a must-watch for people on any side of the death-penalty debate.

https://www.texasobserver.org/death-penalty-john-ramirez-documentary/

#Movies #Film #Cinema #Television #Documentary #DeathPenalty #CapitalPunishment #Newstodon #NewstodonFriday #FollowFriday

Why did political pundits go doolally over Biden’s pardon of his son, Hunter, yet remain more-or-less schtum about his successor’s disregard for transition law, promises to pardon Jan. 6 insurrectionists, many pardons of allies, friends and supporters, and all the rest of it? “If ever there was a time for the corporate press to reorder its priorities, it is now," writes Allison Hantschel for @damemagazine.

https://www.damemagazine.com/2024/12/10/corporate-media-is-obeying-in-advance/

#Trump #Media #Journalism #TrumpAdministration #Newstodon #NewstodonFriday #FollowFriday

Last of all, we love a story that combines gaming and Microsoft’s Office suite. To wit, this little gem from @Gizmodo that our @CultureDesk shared about Michael Jarman, who last week won the Microsoft Excel World Championship, competing with 11 over finalists in a simulated game of World of Warcraft via spreadsheet. Congrats, Michael!

https://gizmodo.com/canadian-man-crowned-as-king-of-spreadsheets-at-the-2024-microsoft-excel-world-championship-2000537901

#Gaming #Games #VideoGames #Excel #Microsoft #Newstodon #NewstodonFriday #FollowFriday

@Flipboard @damemagazine what palooka wrote this?