New psychoactive substances make Erowid drug information essential
Written by Anthony Varriano
The recreational drug scene has changed immensely in the last decade, with hundreds of new psychoactive substances (NPS) being introduced in the last 10 years. They’re commonly known as “designer drugs” and some can be herbal substances referred to as “legal highs.” A lot of these substances are legal because they’re just being discovered and researched, and it takes time to pass legislation outlawing them.
Dahlia Wachs, MD, FAAFP, of The Dr. Dahlia Show, says people are gravitating to harder drugs that are more likely to be cut with new psychoactive substances because tolerances have increased so much.
“What’s happening is drugs aren’t strong enough anymore … people are trying to gravitate to heavier and heavier things to get high,” she said. "That’s why heroin is so crazy right now.”
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) issues a quarterly report identifying drugs that are emerging threats to public health and safety, but drug dealers are having no problem finding a market for these new drugs because drug users often don’t know they’re consuming them.
A new study by New York University shows an increase in the use of new psychoactive substances. Over a quarter of 80 hair samples provided by people frequenting New York City music festivals and nightclubs tested positive for new psychoactive substances. The most common substance was butylone, and other new drugs detected were methylone and methoxetamine.
The drug most commonly mixed with new psychoactive substances is ecstasy, or MDMA. Since being marketed as Molly, the use of ecstasy has exploded at music festivals and nightclubs, but MDMA users are rarely getting MDMA. A similar NYU study showed 40 percent of music festival and nightclub goers tested positive for “bath salts” despite reporting no intentional use.
Wachs said drug education at an early age is one way to assure children are aware of new psychoactive substances’ effects. She recommended showing images of people under the influence of “bath salts” so children would be less likely to consume a drug that could have easily been cut with new psychoactive substances. She also thought children should know that people who die from drug use aren’t always drug users.
“We’ve got to start in grade school and high school … There has to be some really good campaigning that somebody could put something in your drink … like you never take a drink from someone,” she said. “You buy your own drink. I have two teenagers, and I tell them to never take a drink from anyone.”
Regardless of legality, these substances will continue to be created and consumed, which makes the work of Erowid even more important. The Erowid database provides information on psychoactive substances from alcohol to tobacco and even Bufo toads. That’s right, psychoactive toad venom. The point of the website is to provide information so drug users can consume drugs safely, and with the rise in NPS creation and consumption, drug users knowing what they’re potentially putting in their bodies is more valuable than ever.
Erowid provides information that helps drug users identify drugs and avoid an overdose, including what not to mix and a proper dosage given your size and sex. It gives you a rundown of what you can expect from your trip, when it will kick in, when it will be most intense and when it will likely end. The legality of the drug is broken down by individual countries, and there’s chemical information for you drug geeks out there. You can even get a “Drug Geek” t-shirt for donating $45 to fund the purchase of their new, private server, which protects you, the user.
Whether you are a drug user or not, the availability of this information is healthy and essential. Drug users won’t be stopped, so at least allow them to be informed.
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Trump’s new climate policy won’t bring back coal jobs
Written by Anthony Varriano
Despite a new study in Scientific Reports that shows climate change to amplify droughts and floods by disrupting jet streams, President Donald Trump signed executive orders to undo Barack Obama’s Clean Power Plan.
So while the Trump administration couldn’t repeal and replace Obamacare, it can repeal and replace Obama’s climate legacy. But Bloomberg reports that the executive orders are unlikely to bring back mining jobs because demand for coal has fallen due to stiff competition from cheaper natural gas and a boom in wind and solar power.
A report from the Environmental Defense Fund states the wind and solar energy industries have been adding jobs 12 times as fast as the rest of the economy, and the fastest growing job over the next decade will likely be wind turbine technician, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Another recent study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences states that deaths related to extreme heat are expected to keep rising, especially in the world’s largest cities, and the United States will not be immune.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator Scott Pruitt has incorrectly argued that carbon dioxide emissions are not the primary contributor to climate change and repeatedly called the 2015 Paris Agreement “a bad deal.”
Nations supporting the Paris Agreement, including the United States, agreed to limit the warming of the planet to 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit above pre-industrial levels. Despite the executive orders reversing America’s course to limit carbon dioxide emissions from coal-burning power plants, Pruitt said the EPA will continue working to provide Americans with clean air and water.
Even Fox News jumped on the bash Pruitt bandwagon on climate change, with Fox News Sunday host Chris Wallace citing American Lung Association information that half of Americans breathe unhealthy air everyday. He then asked Pruitt how he and the EPA expect to keep that number from rising now that carbon dioxide emissions from coal-burning power plants will increase. Pruitt instead focused on how America’s air quality is better than it has been in the past, which of course means we can risk dirtying it further.
A letter signed by 447 former EPA employees urged Congress to reject Trump’s nomination of Pruitt to run the agency. Pruitt is also one of many Republicans who originally filed a lawsuit against the EPA arguing that the EPA exceeded its legal authority in imposing carbon emission curbs on coal-burning power plants. He is no longer a plaintiff in the lawsuit.
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The “Gaming Disorder” Dilemma: Game Violence, Obsession and Addiction
Written by Jon Cazares
The controversial and often ridiculous “gaming leads to violence” argument rears it’s ugly head once again. Multiple sources report that the World Health Organization proposed a revision to their International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) to classify gaming behaviors as a mental disorder, labeling it a “disorder due to addictive behaviors,” and later a “hazardous gaming” section. Responding to the classification, dozens of game savvy scholars paused their Xbox One to immediately pen an open letter to the W.H.O., which saves me the trouble of doing so.
The authors of said letter have more expertise than me, ranging from the obvious “video games, internet and social media” to broad categories like “children’s rights in a digital age” to the slightly obscure “epidemiology of healthy and unhealthy use of new media” and more. Their letter, "Gaming Disorder in ICD-11: Letter of concern" states, “Concerns about problematic gaming behaviors deserve our full attention. Some gamers do experience serious problems as a consequence of the time spent playing video games. However, we claim that it is far from clear that these problems can or should be attributed to a new disorder, and the empirical basis for such a proposal suffers from several fundamental issues.”
Included within the letter are their main concerns:
“The empirical basis for a Gaming Disorder proposal, such as in the new ICD-11, suffers from fundamental issues. Our main concerns are the low quality of the research base, the fact that the current operationalization leans too heavily on substance use and gambling criteria, and the lack of consensus on symptomatology and assessment of problematic gaming. The act of formalizing this disorder, even as a proposal, has negative medical, scientific, public-health, societal, and human rights fallout that should be considered. Of particular concern are moral panics around the harm of video gaming. They might result in premature application of diagnosis in the medical community and the treatment of abundant false-positive cases, especially for children and adolescents…”
But, wait, kids are impressionable and stuff. Shouldn’t we protect them from all forms of possible harm including addictive gaming behavior and/or video game violence?
Well, the CD-11 proposal doesn’t discuss violence, but yes, inevitably a conversation about video games eventually leads to a discussion about the violence within video games. A typical argument of, “this video game will turn your sweet, perfect child who never does anything wrong (ever!) into a chaotic evil homicidal lunatic!” is nothing new, sadly .
Back in the early 1990s, the hardest game to find (ever!) was Night Trap, an interactive movie/video game developed for the Sega/Mega-CD and released in late 1992. The game is 90+ minutes of full motion video sequences. The player switches the point of view between various hidden cameras monitoring the interior of a house and then can activate traps to capture intruding vampire creatures (called Augers) in hopes to prevent the house women (one of which is played by Dana Plato of Diff'rent Strokes) from having their blood drained.
The game was instantly notorious for “adult themes,” a violent, blood-draining “mechanic,” and a controversial “nightgown scene,” which led to the game being pulled from the market. Today this game would be considered laughably tame.
This all came to a head in 1993 with the Senate Committee Hearings on Violence in Video Games. I don’t know if Night Trap was solely responsible for the hearings, but I’m certain it was a factor, as the committee often mentions the game citing it as "shameful," "ultra-violent," "sick," "disgusting," and claims it encourages an "effort to trap and kill women.”
Wait. What? An “effort to trap and kill women?” Huh?
The documentary Dangerous Games, included in the PC version of Night Trap, allows producers and cast members to defend the plot and clear up that fact the gameplay is designed to, obviously, prevent the harm of the women in the house. In addition, “the blood draining device is intended to look very unrealistic to therefore mitigate the violence.” Despite scenes in which the girls are grabbed or pulled by enemies, “no nudity or extreme acts of violence were ever filmed or incorporated into the game.” As is usually the case, no one on the committee had ever played Night Trap and the whole hearing views on YouTube like a posturing mess of out-of-touch, old, white men.
Night Trap is not the only game that has been under fire over the years. Controversy follows video games like bees to honey. Games such as Doom (violence), Mortal Kombat (violence), The Grand Theft Auto Series (adult themes, trigger warnings, violence, violence against women), hell, even Leisure Suit Larry was controversial (obscenities and mature themes) in it’s time, the list goes on and on. Some games clearly deserve the controversy more than others.
Wait. Stop. Did you just softball the misogyny of Grand Theft Auto and compare it to the almost non-controversy of Leisure Suit Larry?
Kind of. The crux of the issues with the W.H.O. classification of “Gaming Behavior” doesn’t revolve around violence, but since the two are often intermingled I wanted to bring it up but don’t want to go too far down that rabbit hole.
I will say that, of all the games I am aware, GTA is the most problematic, as it’s a game that, arguably, glorifies violence against women up to and including sexual assault and murder. Much has been written about the moral bankruptcy of the game. I’ll let an excellent article in polygon continue the GTA discussion but then I have to move on: Regarding GTA 5 - It’s Misogyny Can No Longer Be Ignored.
Back to the matter at hand, the W.H.O. and “Gaming Addiction”
The focus of the W.H.O. classification is clearly on the words “obsession” and “addiction,” linking both to symptoms of mental disorders. Which, to be honest, does seem a bit fair.
The most famous case of obsessive gaming is the 1991 “EverQuest suicide” of Shawn Woolley, a Wisconsin kid that struggled with learning disabilities and emotional problems. When he was twenty one years old he found a new job and moved into a new apartment. Less than a year later, while he sat at his computer desk, he shot himself. The online game, EverQuest, was on the monitor in front of him.
His mother, Elizabeth, has since blamed EverQuest for significantly contributing to Shawn’s suicide. She told multiple sources that Shawn, “...in mid 1991...stopped working, stopped cleaning his apartment and stopped seeing his family. He wouldn’t let anyone come in and all he did was sit at home and play EverQuest. That was the beginning of the end.” Her view of online games is that they are designed to include addictive qualities that are unhealthy to the gamer.
After Shawn’s death Liz created the website On-Line Gamers Anonymous or the OLG-Anon. Elizabeth founded the site in 1992 in order to, “...share our experience, strengths and hope to help each other recover and heal from problems caused by excessive game playing, whether it be computer, video, console, or on-line.” OLG-Anon continues to operate today.
Shawn’s story is tragic, but I suspect you are thinking exactly what I am thinking. Elizabeth describes Shawn as someone who struggled with, “learning disabilities and emotional problems.” I’m inclined to believe, “emotional problems” more so than obsessive online gaming, were the root of Shawn’s sad end. That being said, I 100-percent agree that too much gaming can be unhealthy. Of course, I believe that too much of any one thing can be bad for you. Even drinking too much water can be unhealthy!
I’ve seen obsession similar to Shawn’s. A former roommate spent anywhere from eight to 10 to maybe 16 hours a day playing World of Warcraft online. He would pause for sleep, restroom breaks and meals (which he would eat in front of his computer). He would not clean his room, the interior of his car was a disaster, he would not do dishes, and he certainly couldn’t be bothered to remove empty bottles, cans or pizza boxes from on or around his computer desk.
You will be shocked to learn said roommate was notoriously underemployed and pretty damn dateless for the three (or four?) years he was glued to WoW. But then he got over it. So while I agree gaming can be unhealthy, I have yet to read one legitimate study to convince me that even the unhealthiest of gaming choices is a gateway to violence or violent behaviors.
As for “gaming behavior as a mental disorder?” Well, I don’t know. My gut instinct is, “Gaming can’t be classified as a mental disorder ... because that would be silly.” On the other hand, there are some really silly mental disorders already out there: triskaidekaphobia, explosive head syndrome, the Jumping Frenchmen (of Maine) syndrome. If gaming can become SO obsessive and SO addictive … then maybe it deserves a place in the mental disorder hall of fame along with those listed greats.
But probably not. Referring back to the open letter:
“The healthy majority of gamers will be affected by stigma and perhaps even changes in policy. We expect that inclusion of gaming disorder in ICD-11 will cause significant stigma to the millions of children and adolescents who play video games as part of a normal, healthy life … In brief, including this diagnosis in ICD-11 will cause significantly more harm than good. Given the immaturity of the existing evidence base, it will negatively impact the lives of millions of healthy video gamers while being unlikely to provide valid identification of true problem cases.”
There is a mountain of anecdotal evidence to suggest gaming can be unhealthy. There is an equally colossal volume of peer reviewed actual evidence to suggest gaming has a host of positive benefits (especially for kids) including (but not limited to): helping them learn to follow directions … engaging in problem-solving to find solutions …. learning strategy and anticipation, understanding management of resources, reading, multitasking and quick thinking. The lists just go on and on.
I’m not going to link every study I’ve read because, trust me, they are real easy to find on your own. And the reason they are real easy to find is because there is a crushing amount of studies suggesting there are many healthy, and some unhealthy, things about gaming (SPOILER ALERT: But the healthy benefits seem to far outweigh the potential unhealthy aspects). So, don’t take my word for it. Get to that Googling.
Now, if you’ll excuse me I have to Rage Quit Darkest Dungeon before I can move onto XCOM2. Then I will finally have time for that glorious month long Mass Effect: Andromeda binge!
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Made in America: All the food you need is made right here in the USA
Written by Anthony Varriano
Editor’s Note: This is a series of stories investigating products made in America by Americans for Americans.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly said he wants to bring back production jobs that have fled America’s borders so corporations can save money using cheaper labor overseas. Sure it would be nice to have a few more production jobs available to Americans, but frankly, everything Americans need is made right here in the USA. It’s what Americans want that’s made elsewhere.
Think about what you need. You need food, water and shelter. That’s it. You don’t need a smartphone or a computer or television, but you want them. You want the things produced overseas by children working for peanuts, like Nikes and iPhones, but you wouldn’t pay the price it would require for those products to be made in America. Imagine a pair of shoes costing as much as an iPhone, or an iPhone costing as much as a used car. It’s just not realistic. (The new iPhone retails for $250 less than what I paid for my 2004 Ford Taurus, upon which I’ve put more than 20,000 miles.)
There are plenty of things still made in America, though, and just like your local economy, buying American assures that your money stays in America. For instance, visiting a local brewery and having your growler filled is not only more environmentally friendly than buying a six-pack of bottles or a 12-pack of cans. It’s more economically friendly because that money goes to the brewer who does business in your state and not Missouri if you’re into Budweiser, Colorado if you’re into Coors, and South Africa if you’re into Miller. Americans can take the same local approach to purchasing everything they need by following this American-made guide.
Let’s start with food since we can’t live without it. While there are fewer Americans working in agriculture than ever before, the USA is producing more food than ever before. According to Netstate.com, California produces almost all of the country's almonds, apricots, dates, figs, kiwi fruit, nectarines, olives, pistachios, prunes, and walnuts. It leads in the production of avocados, grapes, lemons, melons, peaches, plums, and strawberries. Only Florida produces more oranges. The most important vegetables grown in the state are lettuce and tomatoes, and again, California leads the country in production of each. Broccoli and carrots rank second followed by asparagus, cauliflower, celery, garlic, mushrooms, onions, and peppers. Only Texas grows more cotton than California, which you’d find in just about everything you wear, but we’ll get to shelter and clothing later.
So there’s plenty of fruits and vegetables grown right here in the USA. Hell, you can see the fields of wheat in Montana, corn in Minnesota, and dairy cows in Wisconsin. And if you want meat, America’s got the best beef in the world. There’s no shortage of chickens, pigs, or fish either. The problem is how Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) has been mostly gutted by Congress. While venison was added to the list of products requiring COOL in January 2017, beef and pork were both removed in February 2016. COOL requirements for muscle cut and ground chicken, lamb, and goat, wild and farm-raised fish and shellfish, fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables, peanuts, pecans, macadamia nuts and ginseng remain in effect.
The easiest way to avoid buying un-American food is to grow it yourself, of course. Raising a cow, pig or chicken might not be feasible for some, and most people living in metropolitan areas don’t have a yard yet alone a garden. There is a lot of indoor farming you can do with an LED bulb, though.
Another work-around is frequenting local, farmers’ markets. Most city websites have a schedule of farmers’ markets. If you don’t have a computer or smartphone visit your public library, buy a newspaper or listen to local radio.
Now that you know how to find food made right here in the USA, stay tuned to discover how you can build your entire home and clothe your entire body with American-made products.
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NHL owners continue to fail fans, players and the game of hockey
Written by Anthony VarrianoThe National Hockey League (NHL) owners have decided not to send the best hockey players in the world to South Korea for the 2018 Olympics because they’re “unhappy with the league shutting down for weeks to take part in the Olympic tournament every four years,” according to ESPN senior writer Scott Burnside. The owners were seeking more money to justify stopping the season and sending the best hockey players in the world to the Olympics.
The decision makes the 2018 Olympic hockey tournament an amateur tournament, which will still be well-viewed but won’t come close to the potential ratings that would have resulted if the best hockey players in the world actually participated. Do you remember watching the Olympic basketball tournament before the Dream Team? Could you imagine going back to playing the Olympic basketball tournament with amateurs? That is what the NHL owners have done.
New York Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist said it was “disappointing news” on Twitter, and the NHL Players’ Association called the decision “shortsighted.” It certainly doesn’t allow for growth of the NHL’s fanbase, as the Olympics would have put NHL players on a bigger stage in front of a larger audience.
NHL owners have repeatedly failed fans, with a lockout occurring in 2012 that made me lose interest in the league just as I was growing to love hockey. I didn’t watch a single regular season game that year after falling in love with the Stanley Cup Playoffs the previous season. I did watch the playoffs, though, because, well, playoffs.
The NHL players were entitled to 57 percent of the league’s revenue prior to the collective bargaining agreement reached to end the 2012 lockout. Now they receive just 50 percent of all revenue, which was called a “grand-slam home run” for the owners by one player agent. The owners have again cut into the players’ marketability and potential earning power through global endorsement deals. More importantly, NHL fans don’t get to see the USA and Canada do proper battle on ice. Instead the American and Canadian kids will take the Olympic torch, which isn’t all bad. But the 2018 Olympic gold medals for hockey won’t go to the best team in the world.
While I feel the NHL owners have failed their fans with this decision and are missing an opportunity to grow the game of hockey, I’m not going to stop watching NHL games, but I probably won’t watch the Olympic hockey tournament now. Will you?
Editor's Note: An update follows.
While NHL players like Alex Ovechkin and Evgeny Kuznetsov are determined to participate in the 2018 Olympics in South Korea, their NHL team's owner might suffer big consequences for allowing them to do so. Washington Capitals owner Ted Leonsis could be subject to a fine and loss of draft picks if he allows players to compete in the Olympics, according to the NHL constitution. Basically, whatever NHL commissioner Gary Bettman says goes, and instead of the owners getting a little dough for stalling the season for the greatest sporting event in the world, they'll be spending dough to accommodate their players' wishes.
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Common pain relievers linked to cardiac arrest; naproxen appears the safest
Written by Dr. Daliah Wachs
Another study has found NSAIDS, commonly purchased over the counter, to increase risk of cardiac arrest.
Non-steroidal, anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) include ibuprofen and diclofenac. These medications are seen in products under the brand name Motrin and Voltaren, respectively. This class of medications is one of the most popular as they help consumers treat a variety of ailments including helping to relieve pain, inflammation and lower fever. Moreover they are inexpensive and many do not require a prescription at the lower doses.
However, their chronic use has been linked to serious medical complications such as ulcers, kidney failure and cardiac issues. This week, a study published in the March issue of European Heart Journal – Cardiovascular Pharmacotherapy found NSAID use (specifically Ibuprofen and diclofenac) to increase the chance of cardiac arrest.
The researchers from the Copenhagen University Hospital Gentofte in Denmark reviewed close to 30,000 cases of people who suffered cardiac arrest out of the hospital during the years 2001 and 2010 and found NSAID use. Diclofenac, specifically, carried a 50 percent increased risk of cardiac arrest.
COX-2 selective inhibitors, such as Celebrex and Naproxen (Aleve) were NOT associated with increased risk in this particular study.
According to the study author, Professor Gunnar H. Gislason, professor of cardiology, “the findings are a stark reminder that NSAIDs are not harmless. “Diclofenac and ibuprofen, both commonly used drugs, were associated with significantly increased risk of cardiac arrest. NSAIDs should be used with caution and for a valid indication. They should probably be avoided in patients with cardiovascular disease or many cardiovascular risk factors.”
He continued by saying, “Naproxen is probably the safest NSAID and we can take up to 500 mg a day. Diclofenac is the riskiest NSAID and should be avoided by patients with cardiovascular disease and the general population. Safer drugs are available that have similar painkilling effects so there is no reason to use diclofenac.” He suggested no more than 1,200 mg of ibuprofen per day.
How much safer is Naproxen?
This is not the first study that has demonstrated Naproxen to have lower cardiovascular risk. In fact the FDA was asked to remove the warning from its label, yet its panel voted to keep the NSAID related cardiovascular risk warning, with committee member, Donald Miller, chair of the pharmacy practice department at North Dakota State University in Fargo, saying “there is certainly a lot of evidence that naproxen is safer than other [NSAIDs] in terms of causing heart attack and stroke, but being safer doesn’t mean it is perfectly safe. I think that is the big issue.”
NSAID use has risen exponentially as more people are living longer and feeling the effects of aging in their joints and back. Moreover, narcotics are becoming less accessible and providers are offering these non-addictive substitutes instead; however, because these are non-narcotic, and many are available over the counter, those who self-medicate may inadvertently take too much since “it wouldn’t be over the counter if it wasn’t safe."
Why would NSAIDS cause cardiac arrest?
One theory is the medication may cause suppression of prostacyclin, a cardioprotective lipid (prostaglandin), that inhibits platelet activation and vasoldilation (relaxation of the blood vessels). NSAIDS have also been known to raise blood pressure, possibly by this inhibition of vasodialation. This type of stress on a heart, especially if its vulnerable to abnormal heart rhythms or heart disease, can cause cardiac arrest.
But we don’t want to be fearful that taking anti-inflammatories will stop our hearts. Being proactive with our heart health is paramount, and this study reminds us to use caution with over the counter medications.
Preventing Heart Disease
Firstly, we must know our risk factors. These include:
- Family history of heart disease
- Personal history of heart disease
- High Blood Pressure
- High Cholesterol
- Diabetes
- Smoking
- Obesity
- Inactivity
- Males over 40
- Females who are post menopausal
- High stress
- and even short stature has been cited as a potential risk factor.
As you can see, many of us can be at risk for heart disease. Therefore, we should be evaluated with an EKG, echocardiogram and any other exams our medical provider and/or cardiologist deem necessary.
Reduce your risk by doing the following:
- Maintain a normal blood pressure
- Maintain normal blood sugar
- Maintain normal cholesterol and lipid levels
- Reduce stress
- Maintain a balanced diet, rich in potassium-rich foods such as fruits and vegetables
- Quit smoking
- Stay active
- Maintain a healthy weight.
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Daliah Wachs, MD, FAAFP is a Board Certified Family Physician. The Dr. Daliah Show , is nationally syndicated M-F from 11:00am-2:00pm and Saturday from Noon-1:00pm (Central) at GCN.
ByungHo Park earns Twins DH job, gets demoted because, well, pitching
Written by Anthony VarrianoDespite being the Minnesota Twins best hitter, and one of the best in all of baseball during Spring Training, ByungHo Park will not be on the field with the Twins at Target Field on Opening Day. Park, who hit .353 with six home runs and 13 RBI in Spring Training, was optioned to AAA Rochester.
Park didn’t do himself any favors in his first season in America. After dominating the hitter-friendly Korean Baseball Organization, Park hit just .191 with 12 home runs and struck out 80 times in 244 plate appearances (a .275 on-base percentage) last season. But Park sustained a wrist injury on May 13, 2016, that clearly affected him at the plate. He was hitting .245/.324/.582 before the injury and over the next 33 games posted a slash line of .145/.233/.265.
In the offseason Park was placed on waivers by the Twins, which allowed the team to put reliever Matt Belisle on the 40-man roster. Belisle had an uncharacteristically good 2016. His career WHIP (walks and hits per inning pitched) is 1.357, and it was 1.087 last year. The last and only time his WHIP was that low was seven years ago. Belisle’s 2016 FIP (fielding independent pitching) was nearly a run lower than his career FIP.
So now that Park is not on the 40-man roster, the Twins had a convenient way of demoting him despite winning the designated hitter gig over the injured Kennys Vargas. Switch-hitting outfielder Robbie Grossman will be the Opening Day DH because Twins president of baseball operations Derek Falvey basically said the team can’t trust its pitching staff. Rookie Adalberto Mejia is the Twins fifth starter, and both Phil Hughes and Hector Santiago might not be ready for long starts, as Santiago’s spring program was affected by competing in the World Baseball Classic. Hughes is recovering from thoracic outlet surgery.
Twins manager Paul Molitor said Park did everything he was expected during the spring, and even gave him a few extra words of encouragement on his way out the door. Imagine your boss is looking to promote either you or a fellow employee, and while you outperform your fellow employee in a different area of expertise, your boss awards the promotion to your fellow employee -- patting you on the back and saying, “You exceeded our expectations, but we’re going in a different direction because the rest of our staff sucks.”
Granted, Park’s stay at AAA shouldn’t be a long one, but he’ll have to be added to the 40-man roster, which means someone will have to be removed from the 40-man roster. Given Buddy Boshers terrible spring and age (29 in May), he could be a waiver candidate that allows Park onto the 40-man roster.
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DIY: Never buy a new smartphone again with iFixit
Written by Anthony Varriano
Doesn’t it always seem like your smartphone battery starts dying when you’re due for an upgrade? Same with your car, right? Once the warranty is up something goes wrong. Well, fear not. There’s a way to make your smartphone last longer than you will. A little website called iFixit.com that started as a mine for DIY tech tutorials has grown into the DIY tech preservation tool and parts shop. It’s the first shopping experience that’s nearly brought me tears of joy.
I’ve long been a user of iFixit but seldom had reason to pay them. All I needed was information. I once revived a long dead Apple iBook and managed to do some of my favorite writing on it thanks to the tutorials at iFixit. I used iFixit again to repair my dad’s theater projector. It just needed a good cleaning, and iFixit told me exactly what I needed to remove and in what order to thoroughly clean it.
Now iFixit is not only supplying DIY tech tutorials online but the tools necessary to preserve your technology. I have an Apple iPhone 6 and just blew off Verizon after a dozen years as a customer. I got a month’s worth of Straight Talk and figured I’d deal with it on a month-to-month basis for the first time. Verizon did its best to retain my loyalty by lowering my bill to $55 per month for 5 GB of 4G LTE data and unlimited talk and text. Straight Talk is $45 per month for 5 GB of 4G LTE data and includes unlimited talk, text, and data, albeit at slower speeds after 5 GB. Straight Talk also doesn’t allow tethering, which means you can’t get on the web with your laptop using your phone as a wifi hotspot. I did that a lot with Verizon, and apparently it does a number on your battery’s life. Now there’s no reason to worry.
I simply started by checking prices for iPhone 6 batteries on Ebay. Everything was under $10, so I was immediately excited. But then I Googled “does iFixit have tutorials for replacing an iPhone 6 battery,” and then I was nearly moved to tears and raised a fist in the air – just like the iFixit logo, minus the wrench.
It was the most beautiful catalog photo and product I had ever seen. Sears has nothing on iFixit. And the transaction was most enjoyable because the order form uses Doc Brown’s address in Back to the Future as an example. The only thing that could have been better about the transaction is if the billing address example was Marty McFly’s address in Hill Valley.
This little box with the big fist is delivered to your door and includes everything you need to replace your iPhone battery for $45 after shipping. You might remember I told you the cost of a replacement iPhone 6 battery was under $10, but the tools necessary to replace the battery are invaluable and most certainly worth $35. Then, when your battery goes bad again in two years, you can replace it for less than $10 rather than spend $750 for the trendiest phone that’s exactly like the last one, and the one before that.
iFixit is changing the game with this product offering. I suggest you take advantage of it. You can find parts, tools and tutorials for Android devices, Apple computers, iPads, iPods, Amazon Kindle, GoPro cameras and game consoles. Don’t let a corporation control your pocketbook. In fact, grab the nearest tool and put a fist in the air to let them know your dollars will be awarded to those who allow DIYers like us to take advantage of our willingness to do the work. Take back your right to repair.
Editor's Note: This article has not been sponsored by iFixit. An update follows.
My iPhone 6 battery replacement kit arrived in a reasonably-sized box with all the necessary tools to complete the battery replacement, but some scary information was also included. A card inside the box said my state (Minnesota) is considering "Right to Repair" legislation. I was scared because at first I figured corporate lobbyists had convinced crooked politicians to make sure we can't repair our devices. Then I wondered why we as consumers would need to pass legislation to protect our right to repair. We paid for the product. What we do with it after paying for it is our prerogative and ours alone. But, of course, corporations would love to force us consumers to buy one of their new devices every two years or so. I can understand a corporation voiding a warranty for opening a device. Apple is famous for this. There was a warning on my old Mac Pro about opening the case. I proceeded to open it anyways and add a 1 TB hard drive.
"STAND UP FOR YOUR RIGHT TO REPAIR," the card reads, asking me to visit repair.org/stand-up. Doing so disturbed me further, as eight states were listed as considering Right to Repair legislation, which again, I feel should be unnecessary. Nebraska, New York, Minnesota, Kansas, Massachusetts, Wyoming, Illinois and Tennessee were all listed as considering Right to Repair legislation. Some Right to Repair legislation has already passed in Massachusetts, and some legislation has had strong opposition from corporate lobbyists in New York. I urge you to visit this site regularly to easily tell your state's representatives why you support the right to repair your own stuff.
Now, back to the task at hand, which is replacing my iPhone 6 battery. I had to let my battery's charge get below 25 percent in order to start working on it because a fully charged battery is more likely to catch fire when punctured. The folks at iFixit made this very clear, and since there was no tutorial included in the box and I only had access to the iFixit website through my iPhone, I took screenshots of each step of the iPhone 6 battery replacement tutorial and uploaded them to my offline laptop.
Once the battery's charge was below 25 percent, I removed the two screws at the bottom of the iPhone near the Lightning power input. In no time at all I had access to the guts of my iPhone, and with the removal of just a few screws, which I was sure to keep in separate plastic bags labeled with their correct location. The whole task would have taken less than an hour if not for one of the adhesive strips under the battery ripping. I had to buy a $10 hair dryer at Walmart and heat the back side of the iPhone directly under the battery because I didn't have an iFixit iOpener. It worked wonderfully, and the battery gave way after just a few seconds of heating.
The hardest part was applying the new adhesive strips to the knew battery, but I managed to install the replacement battery with no trouble. I followed iFixit's instructions to calibrate my new battery by using it to lower its charge below 30 percent. I then plugged my iPhone in and let it charge uninterrupted until it was fully charged. Then I did a little research into how to preserve the life of my new battery.
Business Insider provided a great guide for battery preservation, revealing that leaving your battery plugged in after it's fully charged is really bad for your battery. I and most of you probably charge your battery at night and unplug it in the morning. Don't.
The story also warns of letting your battery's charge get too low because charging from 0 percent to 100 percent puts a lot of stress on the battery. In fact, you should never charge your phone's battery to 100 percent, with the initial charge being the exception.
The revelation that rocked my world the most was that it's not bad for your phone's battery to receive partial charges throughout the day. I was under the impression that lithium-ion batteries had a lifespan consisting of a certain number of charges. That is not the case. It's actually recommended that "charging your phone when it loses 10 percent of its charge would be the best-case scenario," according to Battery University.
Editor's Note: If you purchase something at iFixit.com and enter the coupon code GOGONZOFIX you'll receive $5 off your order. This discount is brought to you by Go Gonzo Journal.
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Take these steps to protect your internet privacy from spying ISPs
Written by Anthony Varriano
Congress has sent President Donald Trump legislation ending internet privacy protections. When Trump signs the bill, internet providers will be able to monitor their customers’ personal and financial information to sell highly targeted advertising.
The online advertising market is worth $83 billion according to emarketer.com, surpassing the television advertising market for the first time last year, so there is plenty of reason internet service providers (ISPs) want to sell your web history. But you need not worry. There are ways to retain your online privacy.
I have recently purchased what’s called a virtual private network service (VPN), which establishes a secure connection with an endpoint somewhere else on the internet so your ISP won’t know what you’re doing. If your internet privacy is worth $3 per month, I’d highly recommend purchasing a VPN service. Here are some VPN options compared on CNET. You can even make anonymous payments with Bitcoin or Skrill if you’re nervous about paying for the service with your debit or credit card.
If you’re not willing to pay for online privacy, it’s suggested you log out of any search engine before searching, because once you log on to Google or Yahoo or Bing, a profile is created to store your web history so they can sell it to advertisers.
SaferVPN.com also suggests you use your browser’s privacy mode available through your browser’s settings. This restricts your browser from saving your web history in its cache while disabling tracking cookies.
If you’re still nervous about using search engines, use DuckDuckGo.com. It doesn’t store your personal information. And don’t forget to surf the web securely. If a website has an https version of itself, use it. Just type https:// in front of the domain name instead of http://.
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Despite a 3-2 overtime loss to the Detroit Red Wings, the Minnesota Wild clinched its fifth consecutive playoff appearance on Sunday thanks to a loss by the Los Angeles Kings. The Wild have been falling like a hockey player in figure skates, losing nine of their last 11 games and allowing the Blackhawks to run away with the top seed in the Western Conference.
Minnesota has been a wildly different team since the acquisitions of giant center Martin Hanzal and right-handed forward Ryan White from Arizona. Wild general manager Chuck Fletcher added Hanzal and White to get physical with the likes of Jonathan Toews, Ryan Getzlaf, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin in the playoffs, but a scoring slump has the Wild reeling. Since the trade the Wild have managed to win just five of 17 games.
While Hanzal has scored twice in his last 14 games, and White has put up a goose egg in the last 12, they aren’t the only ones struggling. In fact, it’s hard to find someone who isn’t. Chris Stewart has just two goals in his last 27 games. Charlie Coyle has four goals in his last 38 games. Erik Haula has just one goal in 19 games, Jared Spurgeon has scored twice in 23 games, and Jason Pominville also has just two goals in 21 games.
It gets worse. Jonas Brodin hasn’t scored in 32 games. Miko Koivu has just two goals in 24 games. Nino Niederreiter has scored once in 21 games. Ryan Suter has one goal in his last 29 games. Zach Parise has two goals in his last 13 games.
The only player that seems to be contributing consistently wasn’t even on the roster last year. Fletcher’s big, free agent acquisition, Eric Staal, has carried the team with 10 goals in March and has improved his +/- from -3 last year to +11 this season. But with everyone missing the net, that weight has gotten too heavy for Staal to carry. When you need an unassisted goal from a guy who hasn’t scored since 2015, things aren’t going well.
With six regular season games remaining and a seven-point lead over the Predators in the Central Division, the Wild are likely to host Nashville in the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, which might be better than if they’d won the Central Division. The St. Louis Blues have been on a familiar hot streak, winning 10 of their last 12 games under former Wild head coach Mike Yeo.
Given the deadline deal for Hanzal and White, another first-round exit in the playoffs will surely seal Fletcher’s fate. And while Bruce Boudreau has been historically mediocre in the playoffs (41-39, 1-7 in game sevens), his job should be secure. After all, it’s not his fault he’s had to rebuild a team that was never broken. He wasn’t even in the room when the trade was made.
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More...
While basketball players rest, hockey players bleed
Written by Anthony VarrianoTwins announce new student pass for 2017 season using MLB.com's Ballpark app
Written by Press ReleaseThe Minnesota Twins announced today details for their newly released mobile-based Student Pass program for the upcoming season, exclusively available using MLB.com's Ballpark app.
The Twins Student Pass will allow students to receive $5 Ballpark Access (no seating) tickets for all Wednesday home games, with tickets delivered directly to their mobile device. In addition, students can receive a free ride pass from Metro Transit, available at twinsbaseball.com/student.
"We're pleased to offer students this great program, which is conveniently available through their mobile device," said Mike Clough, Twins senior vice president of ticket sales and service. "This is a great opportunity for students to enjoy Twins baseball in a fun and affordable way."
To sign up, students can visit twinsbaseball.com/student or text STUDENT to 51655. From there, they will receive a text message the day the offer becomes available. They will then click on the link to redeem the offer.
To receive the tickets, participants will need the MLB.com Ballpark app, which is available via the Apple App Store and on Google Play. In addition to their Student Day tickets, other purchased tickets, as well as the ticket barcode will be available through the app leaving no need to print tickets.
Twins Student Day is presented by Rasmussen College.
The MLB.com Ballpark app is your mobile companion when visiting Target Field. The official MLB ballpark application perfectly complements and personalizes your trip to Target Field with digital ticketing, mobile check-in, social media, offers, rewards and exclusive content. Target Field also offers seat and experience upgrade components. Check in automatically with iBeacon technology at Target Field for exclusive Twins offers and in-game features.
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Brexit begins, Scots move forward with second independence campaign
Written by Jon CazaresFor better or worse, Britain's exit from the European Union (EU) begins. In the morning of March 29th, 2017, the British representative to the EU handed in the UK’s separation papers to the President of the European Council in Brussels. You see, the institutions of the EU are headquartered in Brussels, a city now famous for three things: Belgian Beer, Mr. JCVD himself (the “Muscles from Brussels”) and the labyrinthine bureaucracy of the EU.
Once such point of bureaucracy is Article 50 from the 2009 Lisbon Treaty which lays the groundwork for any EU member to, “withdraw from the Union in accordance with its own constitutional requirements … shall negotiate and conclude an agreement with that State, setting out the arrangements for its withdrawal, taking account of the framework for its future relationship with the Union.”
Until now, no state within the EU has invoked Article 50. Greece debated the idea as recent recessions, three recent public healthcare meltdowns and bailouts that seem to have done Greece more bad than good. It seems reasonable the Greeks would want change, but they never actually invoked Article 50. (New York Times coverage Explaining Greece’s Debt Crisis).
As for Brexit, England and Wales, they voted “yes.” Northern Ireland and Scotland voted “no:” Why not let England and Wales leave the EU and the other two countries remain? That seems fair. Not that fairness has much to do with the complex international treaties that govern the EU but, whatever. So, here we are, and now the United Kingdom has two years to negotiate its exit.
How Did Brexit Happen (and is Batman solving the problem)?
Through a series of unfortunate events, Brexit, it seems, plays out like a missing bizarro chapter of “Pride and Prejudice.” The “missing” chapter has everything: imperialism, a rise in populism, institutionalized racism, mismanagement of immigration, welfare provisions and labor restrictions that keep immigrants out of the workforce and in poverty, ever changing demographics and yes, pride and prejudice. I have no doubt each of these and more played significant roles in the EU exit.
I also have no doubt that the immediate impact of the withdrawal will be felt first and foremost by the poor and the disenfranchised. A Scotsman recently turned me onto the plight of the Roma when he said, “... Roma families here rely on EU funding to assist their children getting proper support and education, as we are culturally so prone to isolating and pushing out Roma people they are often forced into poverty”. Precursory interneting shows me the Roma are a group of people so marginalized and maligned I am reminded of the sad history between the United States and the Native Americans.
So then, who actually benefits from Brexit? Well, if Brexit were a crime, Batman would be able to solve it by asking his two crime-solving questions:
1) Who benefits from the crime?
2) Where does the money go?
Fair enough, Batman. Who does benefit? Where does the money go? Abandoning the EU ends free trade between the UK and all other other members of the union. Do the words “abandon free trade” sound like they will lead you to the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow? I’m pretty sure it’s easier to move money and products around Europe with, you know, free trade. In fact, it seems to be the only thing economists actually agree on. Will the UK benefit by abandoning open borders? Will it be more secure from terrorism? No. Terrorism is way more of a law enforcement issue than a border issue. Also, I’m no Batman, but I suspect an influx of immigrants fuels an economy and helps pay for public services.
The enormity of the negotiation deal is way beyond the scope of one snotty American opinion. Obviously, some people will benefit, some people will not. Which people will fall into which category? And what will the ratio of benefited to not benefited be? Will Brexit do the most good for the most amount of people in the UK?
I guess we’re about to find out.
Weren’t You Going to Explain How Brexit Happened (and is there any way we can get a cameo from Captain America)?
Yes! To the best of my Googling skills, Brexit happened, well, the same way these things always seem to happen -- bumbling politicians! You see, as a last ditch effort to save his political ass, former Prime Minister David Cameron proposed an independence referendum to -- I don’t know appease the rising populist movement? Then, obviously, he turns right around and actively campaigns against it! Propose it. Campaign against it. Genius!
How hard did he campaign against it? Imagine Captain America punching a Nazi in the f**king face (because Cap hits hard)! That’s how hard Cameron campaigned against the yes vote to Brexit.
Only Cameron’s plan didn’t work out so well. As we all know, due to the rise in populism, the “yes” vote to Brexit won by a narrow margin and former Prime Minister Cameron stepped down. In 2016, Theresa May became head of Her Majesty’s Government. May, despite having also campaigned for a “stay in the EU vote,” is now tasked with overseeing Brexit. In fact, May publicly warned voters, Brexit would damage the economy, harm security, erode the kindness of dogs, cause the sky to turn a sickly pink-green color and altogether obliterate the taste of strawberries. (I might have made some of those examples up).
Weather Brexit will destabilize the EU or become disastrous to the UK economy remains to be seen. As usual, when any huge political change is announced, the day the “yes” vote passed, the UK stock market took a hit but slowly climbed back up in following months. I believe the pound is still a bit down in value versus both the U.S. dollar and the Euro, making travel to the UK a tad less expensive, but predictions of economic crisis, recession, a huge rise in unemployment and the “Tasteless Strawberry Apocalypse” have not proven accurate. Yet.
The UK now enters unknown territory and pundits on both sides of the political spectrum, and all over the world, have wildly opposing utopia/dystopia predictions. I suspect Brexit results will land somewhere within the usual parameters of, “the poor suffer, the middle class pays for it all” and the wealthy “get some more tax breaks.” Business as usual.
Prime Minister May was correct about one thing, though. May predicted that a yes vote to Brexit would piss off the Scots and that they would vote for another independence referendum. If you recall, way back in 2014 AD, the Scots voted on an independence referendum to break from the UK. At the time, the Queen, the fine folks of England and a whole bunch of wealthy, elite, old, white Scots told the world, “This is a terrible idea! We’re stronger together!” The independence vote failed.
Guess what? That next Scottish independence vote May feared? Well, as of Tuesday, March 28, 2017, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon (of Scotland) won a Parliamentary vote for a new referendum. In fact, First Minister Sturgeon promised “endless independence campaigns.”
We all know what that means. England was the driving force behind Brexit and now believes that sometimes you must dissolve a partnership in order to move forward, which is why they will be completely sympathetic and understanding about Scottish independence this time around. England will cast off thousands of years of English imperialism and will cooperate fully with the Scots independence. England will, in no way, spend massive political capital and crushing amounts of money on a propaganda, smear campaign against Scottish independence. Finally, England will totally give up their entitled ownership over all that Scottish oil in the North Sea.
I predict the new Scottish Independence Referendum will be a smooth-sailing, easy-peasy, lemon-squeezy walk in the park victory for the Scots. I mean, that’s all obvious to you too, right? Countries don’t control other countries just because of entitlement, imperialism and/or oil money!
We’re all on the same page here, right?
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The Twin Cities welcome Derek Falvey, the new chief baseball officer for the Minnesota Twins. Tyler Kepner of the New York Times profiles Falvey’s quick rise from scouting prospects in the Cape Cod League to running Minnesota’s baseball operations at the age of 34. Falvey, a former college pitcher who never hit 90 miles per hour with his fastball, is tasked with turning around a Twins pitching staff that has historically pitched to contact and was second to last in ERA during the 2016 season.
Falvey’s first move to help pitchers Ervin Santana, Phil Hughes, Kyle Gibson and Hector Santiago was to sign pitch-framing catcher Jason Castro to a three-year, $24.5 million dollar deal. Castro would rather you call what he does “receiving,” though, as reported by Parker Hageman of Twins Daily. He told Hageman that pitch-framing isn’t stealing strikes by tricking the plate umpire, but giving the umpire a clear view of the pitch and getting strikes called on pitches that are in the strike zone.
Castro’s former club, the Astros, have been one of the best in baseball at getting strikes called on pitches thrown in the strike zone. Fangraphs’ Travis Sawchik recently ranked the Twins catching corps 22nd in the league for 2017. They were ranked 25th last year with old-schooler Kurt Suzuki behind the plate. According to Baseball Reference, Suzuki was 18 runs below league average defensively over 1,200 innings while Castro was five runs above league average last season. Both players were slightly below average with the bat last year, but Castro has averaged a home run every 33 plate appearances the last four years while Suzuki averaged 80 plate appearances between dingers over the same span.
The Twins are also hoping Kyle Gibson’s mechanics adjustment keeps him healthy and effective this season. Twins beat reporter Rhett Bollinger reports that back issues forced Gibson to make a change in his delivery after posting an ERA of 5.07 last year. Gibson continued to impress in Spring Training by pitching six scoreless innings Sunday against a potent Red Sox lineup to lower his spring ERA to 1.59.
The Twins are also logging its players’ baseball-related activities for the first time in an effort to monitor fatigue and avoid injury, Mike Berardino of the Pioneer Press reports. Manager Paul Molitor says the team is “just trying to be a little smarter,” but executive director of the MLB players’ union Tony Clark said collecting such data could be dangerous given its value and how it could be used.
The Twins kick off the season on Monday, April 3rd, at 3 p.m. against the Kansas City Royals at Target Field. They will try to avoid repeating their nine-game losing streak to open last season that resulted in the organization’s worst finish since moving to Minnesota in 1961. As of this writing, Opening Day tickets have not sold out and are available here.
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