"p.c. woke" fascism strikes again in the ridiculous states above Mexico and below Canada

 "p.c. woke" fascism strikes again in the Ridiculous States above Mexico and below Canada

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Risk Management

Iowa school district uses AI to find books to ban

August 16, 2023  REPRINTS

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President Obama awards Toni Morrison the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012 in a ceremony at the White House. An Iowa school district has banned Ms. Morrison's 1987 novel "Beloved," which won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. Ms. Morrison won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993./ Shutterstock

Watch out, Karen. AI is coming for your job.

A school district in Iowa has used artificial intelligence to ban books that contained sexual content, to comply with new state law that effectively calls on districts to remove controversial materials.

A bill signed into law in May, schools are prohibited from “instruction related to gender identity and sexual orientation in school districts, charter schools and innovation zone schools in kindergarten through grade six.” It requires that every book available to students be “age appropriate” and free of any “descriptions or visual depictions of a sex act.”

The move by Mason City Community School District to deploy AI to comply resulted in the removal of 19 books from the shelves of its libraries in grades 7-12, according to media reports.

The school district created a list of titles that have frequently been objected to or that have been called for removal in the past and ran the texts through ChatGPT, asking the AI chatbot, “Does (this book) contain a description or depiction of a sex act?” If ChatGPT answered “yes,” the book was removed from school libraries and stored in administrative offices for further review. 

Among the most popular casualties were “The Handmaid’s Tale” by Margaret Atwood, “Beloved” by Nobel Prize winner Toni Morrison and “The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini.

"p.c. woke" fascism strikes again in the ridiculous states above Mexico and below Canada

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whims of American tourists clashing with european culture

 https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/15/travel/americans-europe-heat-wave.html?campaign_id=51&emc=edit_mbe_20230816&instance_id=100152&nl=morning-briefing%3A-europe-edition&regi_id=212456837&segment_id=142133&te=1&user_id=551c37974dfebd5e2b0fa3e6a8733435

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/15/world/greece-beach-towel-protests.html?campaign_id=51&emc=edit_mbe_20230816&instance_id=100152&nl=morning-briefing%3A-europe-edition&regi_id=212456837&segment_id=142133&te=1&user_id=551c37974dfebd5e2b0fa3e6a8733435

Americans in Europe

They wear shorts and flip-flops. They would like ice cubes in their drinks. And they want to know why there’s no air-conditioning — and how to dry their clothes without a dryer.

With U.S. tourists returning in high numbers to Europe, some Americans are butting up against European etiquette and norms.

Savvy travelers seeking to blend in with the locals have increasingly turned to social media, particularly TikTok, for advice and commiseration. Much of the guidance will sound familiar to seasoned travelers — including one piece of standard advice for Americans: “Be less loud.”

Related: As sun loungers that rent for up to $130 pop up across Greece’s islands, local people have decided they won’t take it lying down.

OS AMERICANOS A QUERER SER PORCOS POR TODO O LADO

European sensibilities are clashing with the whims of American tourists August 16, 2023

Iced Coffee and Flip-Flops as Europe Broils? Not So Fast, Americans.

As large numbers of U.S. tourists visit Europe during a record hot summer, their efforts to stay cool are running up against cultural norms.

With this summer’s heat waves in Europe, Americans wearing shorts and ordering ice water may butt up against etiquette and norms in some areas. Credit...Thanassis Stavrakis/Associated Press

By Melina Delkic

Aug. 15, 2023

Sign up for the Where to Eat: New York City newsletter, for Times subscribers only.  Nikita Richardson's restaurant recommendations, from new places to beloved classics. Try it for 4 weeks.

On a scorching June day on the Amalfi Coast of Italy, Chloe Madison and her boyfriend, Colin Pinello, stopped to have lunch in Positano, a glamorous town overlooking the Mediterranean Sea.

With their refreshing caprese pasta plates and Aperol spritzes, they had one thought on their minds: ice water. But they knew that asking for it would be too American. While the Europeans around them seemed unfazed by the temperatures, she said, they felt parched.

Melina Delkic edits breaking news at The Times. More about Melina Delkic

A version of this article appears in print on Aug. 16, 2023, Section A, Page 6 of the New York edition with the headline: Flip-Flops? Iced Coffee? Europe Has Some Tips For American Visitors.. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe

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‘No Space for Us’: Greeks Fight Beach Takeover by Pricey Sun Chairs

As lounge chairs that rent for up to $130 pop up across the islands, local people have decided they won’t take it lying down.

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Parte superior do formulário

Parte inferior do formulário

Protesters demonstrating to “reclaim the beach” in July at Marcello and Krios beach on the island of Paros, Greece.Credit...Ronit Nesher/Reuters

By Niki Kitsantonis

Reporting from Paros, Greece

Aug. 15, 2023

It is peak tourist season in Greece, and on the pristine Monastiri beach on the northern tip of Paros island, a phalanx of lounge chairs with red umbrellas covers the sand. At 70 euros for a pair of front-row seats near the crystalline waters, less than half were taken on a recent day, as Greeks and tourists alike who did not want to pay instead sheltered from the sun under nearby trees.

“In some cases they covered 100 percent of the beach,” said Nicolas Stephanou, 70, a local resident. “We feel we’re being pushed off the island,” he added, explaining that people are made to feel unwelcome unless they use the services of the beach bars that own the chairs.

Subscribe to The Times to read as many articles as you like.

Niki Kitsantonis is a freelance correspondent for The Times based in Athens. She has been writing about Greece for 20 years, including more than a decade of coverage for The Times. More about Niki Kitsantonis

A version of this article appears in print on Aug. 16, 2023, Section A, Page 6 of the New York edition with the headline: As Rented Chairs Multiply, Greeks Fight for a Free Spot on the Sand. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe

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