Links, Tuesday 20th December

The police are not the solution; the police are a big part of the problem

"Vulnerable individuals, including domestic abuse victims, alcohol and drug addicts, sex workers and arrested suspects were among those targeted by officers and staff,"

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Really important investigate reporting here: How Transnet suppliers were induced into giving kickbacks to Gupta-controlled companies.

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Lots of people will read this sort of thing and conclude "Oh, clearly there needs to be law enforcement against opioids". But please note that overdose deaths started to climb "After the government finally began to curb painkiller prescriptions, making it more difficult for addicts to find the pills and forcing up black market prices, Mexican drug cartels stepped in to flood the US with the real thing – heroin – in quantities not seen since the 1970s."

In fact, it's a pretty general rule that prohibition and a lack of legal options drives people towards more potent and more dangerous black market

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There's loads of political analysis and finger-pointing I could be doing, but right now I'm just filled with grief that we, the human race collectively, have done this :'( :'(

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I was worried about this!

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:'( :'( :'(

“The reports we had are of people being shot in the street trying to flee and shot in their homes,” Guardian

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Indeed

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Oh great, more bad news :'(

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Yep, so the data collected on schoolchildren by the Department for Education has been, and presumably will continue to be, systematically shared with the Home Office for purposes of immigration enforcement. Absolutely despicable, though hardly surprising in the current climate :/

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"All kidnapping insurance is either written or reinsured at Lloyd’s of London. Within the Lloyd’s market, there are about 20 firms (or “syndicates”) competing for business. They all conduct resolutions according to clear rules. The Lloyd’s Corp. can exclude any syndicate that deviates from the established protocol and imposes costs on others... The private governance regime for resolving criminal kidnappings generally delivers low and stable ransoms and predictable numbers of kidnappings. Most kidnappings can be resolved for thousands or tens of thousands of dollars. This makes profitable kidnapping insurance possible. When the protocol fails, insurers sustain losses and must innovate to regain control." Washington Post

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"One key to Kozak’s success in securing the release of so many prisoners were the late-night gatherings he hosted at his stylish home in the La Reina neighbourhood of Santiago. Night after night, Kozak invited senior members of the secret police, army generals and foreign diplomats to meet over whisky and cocktails. As the drinks flowed, he would get officials to sign expulsion orders for detainees. He would also use the parties to find out where certain prisoners were being held and which embassies were processing visas, which allowed him to begin negotiations for exit papers." Guardian

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"The difference between the Carbon Bubble deflating rapidly now and popping spectacularly in a decade or more could mean literally trillions more dollars in profits for the kind of people now helicoptering into Washington." Medium

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"Since 1950 life expectancy at birth has been growing at a remarkably steady rate of about 1.8 years per decade but that growth has only been bought by ever increasing number of researchers... Each clinical trial [for cancer] used to be associated with ~8 lives saved per 100,000 people but today a new clinical trial is associated with only ~1 life saved per 100,000." Marginal Revolution

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I was definitely told the tongue-rolling and eye colour stories in high school biology...

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Relying on tips to pay staff is not very good business (but can also be hard to change)

"With tipping, chaos is a consequence. Servers compete ruthlessly for Saturday night shifts, when tips run high, but many are no-shows for Monday lunch. An experienced line cook who carries $40,000 in debt from years of culinary school earns $12 an hour, while a new server can reap three times that much.

Tipping can also prompt servers to nudge customers into ordering more expensive food and wine. And, at its most malign, it encourages servers to accept harassment, whether verbal, sexual or professional."

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😂😂

"I might head down the orgy later, it depends if I can be bothered to get out of bed. There’s so much fun stuff happening this week with all the other cool people who are already on holiday, so I want to pace myself." Daily Mash

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Wow, thought it looked kind of interesting, but definitely NOT going to see this film now :( (Article contains SPOILERS)

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Yikes, this is horrible. As if South Africa's arbitrary, inhumane immigration system is somehow too *lenient*

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"To put our court order in perspective, a Danish man who spat on refugees passing below a motorway bridge received a fine of DKK 5,000 (£450). While it should be recognised that our legal system still finds it a criminal offence to abuse people in distress – hooray for small victories – it also shows that spitting on refugees is a milder offence than helping them [DKK 45,000 / £4,000]." Guardian