Craigie's News Network

Account operated by Journalist Susan McDaniels. [email protected] via email or Hangouts.

[craigiechronicle]

Follow this link NOW to solve the mystery.

The mystery is over. You don’t want to miss this, sleuths. 

[craigiechronicle]

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Loud noise warning at timestamp 1:13.

[craigiechronicle]

We spoke to Coverlline Cosmetics brand ambassador Cloud about the evolving Coverlline case. What we found was confusing. The rough cut is being edited and a preview will be posted shortly.

[southeastasianists]

The digital turn in Southeast Asian theatre: new routes through a global pandemic - New Mandala

"We had people who’d never seen theater before experience it for the first time using Zoom.”

In late July, sitting in my sister-in-law’s home in St. Louis, Missouri, I waited in the “lobby” area of Cloud Theatre for Zoom Parah to begin. Itself a creation born of the pandemic, Cloud Theatre is an online platform which strives to offer a seamless digital theatre experience to global audiences. Their “lobby” is a simple but smart artificial space: a live chat box, available to attendees as they login for a show, is positioned next to the image of a theatre stage, framed by red curtains. The waiting room attempts to replicate the experience of audience members mingling and chatting before a performance begins. Joining others in this virtual space, I was excited to see another Malaysian, also based in the United States, mention that they were from Petaling Jaya—my hometown. I excitedly typed back, “I’m from PJ, too!” The spark of recognition flashing across the chat box was akin to overhearing a conversation between strangers, and interjecting to share a mutual connection. Months into social distancing protocols, the Cloud Theatre lobby reminded me that there was something inherently sociable about joining hundreds of people from around the world to watch this production together—albeit, online.

“We had people who’d never seen theatre before experience it for the first time using Zoom.” Malaysian theatre director, actor and writer Jo Kukathas stressed this point repeatedly when discussing Zoom Parah, the online adaptation of the critically acclaimed play, Parah. This digital theatre performance, and the new viewing experiences it made possible, is just one of many examples of innovative work being produced by Southeast Asian directors, producers, and actors since the pandemic. In the early days and weeks of Covid-19, theatre makers from this region—like so many others around the world—watched in despair as stages went dark and theatres shut their doors. Despite the dire conditions, they rallied—with little to no funding and even less governmental support—to reimagine theatre in the time of COVID. They created innovative forms of theatre designed for Zoom, streamed recordings of award-winning plays that had not previously been available online, and held numerous talk-back sessions to reflect on the creative process. The digital turn in Southeast Asian theatre has provided unprecedented access to experimental and critically acclaimed work from the region. These productions have connected audiences and diasporic communities around the world, focusing often on urgent questions of race, identity, and belonging. These developments offer models not only for the professional theatre world, but also for teachers and students of the performing arts who are navigating online education.

In their articles for Offstage and The Business Times, Akanksha Raja and Helmi Yusof discuss half a dozen new Singaporean and Southeast Asian theatre projects which have embraced the digital turn. These include: Murder at Mandai Camp and The Future Stage from Sight Lines Entertainment; Long Distance Affair from Juggerknot Theatre and PopUP Theatrics; Fat Kids Are Harder to Kidnap from How Drama; and Who’s There? from The Transit Ensemble and New Ohio Theatre. While these are just a few of the productions that have emerged since the pandemic began, they are impressive in scale, quantity, and range of forms. These performances have taken advantage of every feature offered by Zoom, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp and other social media platforms. They’ve incorporated chat boxes, polls, and even collaborative detective work on the part of the audience. In addition to Zoom Parah (by Instant Café Theatre), I’ve had the opportunity to watch Who’s There?, as well as a recording of WILD RICE theatre’s celebrated play, Merdeka, written by Singaporean playwrights Alfian Sa’at and Neo Hai Bin. Of these three, Zoom Parah and Who’s There? illuminate the technological and socio-political interventions of Southeast Asian digital theatre, as well as the ways in which COVID-19 has redefined performance and spectatorship.

In addition to the virtual lobby and chat function, Zoom Parah employed live English translation in a separate text box, making the production accessible to those not fluent in Malay. Who’s There? like Zoom Parah, also made the most of the chat function, along with approximately a dozen polls which punctuated the performance. Each poll gauged audience reactions to the complex issues the play addressed and reflected the responses back to the viewers. This feature required audience members to pause, reflect on a particular scene and its context, and assess the perspectives through which they were viewing the performance. In effect, the polls created a dynamic feedback loop between the cast, crew, and viewers, offering an alternative to the in-person audience response that is so crucial to live performances. Augmenting their efforts to keep audience members plugged in, the play experimented with layering lighting, sound, and mixed media to produce different visual and sound effects within the Zoom frame.

Keep reading

[craigiechronicle]

UPDATE:

2 of 3 people hospitalized after the release of a truckload of pigs into the streets of Craigie earlier this month have been released from hospital.

Authorities are still searching for the perpetrator.

[craigiechronicle]

Coverlline: “Looks Like The Real You” Is Cruel

by Susan McDaniels

Coverlline’s concealer isn’t just for acne and dark circles anymore. The cosmetic conglomerate has been caught in a cover-up scandal as newly leaked emails confirm the company has been using animals in their product development.

The correspondence details various animal testing procedures in use at Coverlline Cosmetics, including skin and eye corrosivity tests, oral force-feeding, dermal penetration, and the Draize test to determine lethal dose. Animals who suffer permanent damage from these tests are euthanized.

The emails contain documentation which details Coverlline’s use of oleic acid, cochineal dye, guanine, gelatin, and estrogen, in their makeup and skin care products. Deep in the chain, almost as an afterthought, the conversation becomes casually graphic. There is an explicit mention of new overfeeding and strangulation techniques used to acquire canine lard, while preserving as much of the coat as possible. The dog fat and hair are then used to create Coverlline’s fibrous mascara.

Coverlline, a “clean brand,” has previously denied all accusations of animal testing, and peddled products with the “Cruelty Free” and “Vegan” labels. Those labels are unregulated. There is no national or international oversight to back them up. Companies such as Coverlline are able to use marketing techniques to purposely mislead their customers into buying products, and no super national body will swoop into inform the people. That task lies with the media, and with concerned citizens themselves.

The Coverlline Cosmetics case remains ongoing.

[craigiechronicle]

OPINION: This is in poor taste. Posting trivial drama like this when there has been a death in the community? 

Everyone has their own narrative. Please take caution and gather your news from multiple trusted sources.

[craigiechronicle]

Beef Thief on the Loose After Stealing $15K in Meat from a Georgia Steakhouse

The alleged suspect interviewed for a job at the restaurant before successfully breaking into the meat freezer... twice.

[craigiechronicle]

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[craigiechronicle]

ADDENDUM: For those unable to donate in Robin’s memory, the deceased’s family and friends have offered the alternative of new and upgrading subscriptions to JustynTym on Twitch.

[craigiechronicle]

The latest Tweets from NDPD (@NDPD18). Police force for Nickel Dime County 🚔 Direct Message this account with any tips on active cases

It is a complete failure of the Nickel Dime Police Department that they are closing the Trent Robin case days after his death, setting a deadline of 9:20pm tonight to receive tips as to the identity of the murderer and their motive. Moreover, it is deeply concerning that they are only accepting tips through Twitter. People of Craigie, if you have any information as to the murderer and motive on this case, you can send it to 

[email protected] or to this Tumblr page (which accepts anonymous responses)

and I will ensure those in power hear it. Fight against the system which is designed to silence you.

[craigiechronicle]

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[tradingguideforex]

WHAT ARE THE COMMON PAYPAL SCAMS, AND HOW DO YOU AVOID THEM?

Offers that sound too good to be true probably are.

Many are cautious if a stranger approaches the street and offers a deal that’s just too good to be true. But we tend to be much less cautious online, thus endangering our safety. PayPal scams are as common as they come. However, there are a few simple rules as to spotting and avoiding the same. Feel safer than ever before – with PayPal!

Advance fee fraud

When you get an offer for free money, there’s most likely a catch. Generally, fraudsters will ask you to send some smaller amount (for taxes, legal documents, etc.) before sending you the millions you’re promised.

How to avoid PayPal scams:

Do not wire money to a total stranger.

Overpayment scam

· A customer remits a PayPal payment that exceeds the order’s purchase price, then asks you to wire them the difference.

· They may tell you that they overpaid you by mistake, the extra money is for the shipping costs, they are presenting you with a bonus for your excellent service. Or, it could simply be that the money is for the stress they’ve caused you.

· They may even request you to wire the shipping fees to their shipper.

· This scammer may have paid with a bank account number, a stolen credit card, or a checking account.

· Just because a payment has been deposited into your account doesn’t mean you are the custodian. When the legitimate account holder reports unauthorised activity, the money may be withdrawn from your account.

· When that happens, you will forfeit the money you wired to the fraudster, shipping costs, the product you shipped, and your payment.

How to avoid this scam:

· Don’t wire money to someone you don’t know. A legitimate buyer won’t over-compensate you for an order.

· If a customer over-compensates you and asks you to wire them the difference, give a thought to rescinding the order—it’s very likely to be misleading.

· Don’t wire money to the sham shipping company—it’s part and parcel of their scam to get your money.

Prize winnings

Messages asking you to pay a small handling fee to accept some fabulous prizes are generally a scam. You remit the handling fee and get zilch in return.

How to avoid this scam:

Don’t send money to a total stranger. A legitimate prize won’t require you to make a payment to receive it.

High profit – no-risk investments

These types of investments are, as a rule, scams and include messages insisting that you “Act Now!” for a great deal.

How to avoid this scam:

Do not continue communicating with this person/company.

Fake charities

Scammers utilise disasters to trick kind-hearted people into donating to ersatz charities. This occurs when there is a refugee crisis, a terrorist attack, or a natural disaster (like an earthquake, flooding, or famine).

How to avoid this scam:

Do a detailed check on the background of any charity to make sure your donation reaches real victims.

When a charity does not have a website, be cautious.

Search online for advance fee fraud to learn more about common scams and how to avoid them. You can peruse the FBI’s material on common scams. But, most notably: be as cautious online as you would be in the real world.

Shipping Scams

Continue reading...

[craigiechronicle]

Animal shelter saved by anonymous donor

by Susan McDaniels

The Craigie Critters Animal Shelter has been saved from shut down, confirms Board President Marian Laing.

Laing says the shelter, which planned to shut its doors at the end of this quarter, received a substantial anonymous donation at the eleventh hour. The money is enough to keep the shelter operational for years to come, and then some.

“Nothing’s confirmed yet, but we’re discussing building a second space. It’s all very new and shocking to us, we’re very excited,” shares Laing. “We’re also hoping to update our facilities to care for more birds and reptiles.”

As it stands, Craigie Critters is one of only 3 shelters in the province with the capabilities to care for non-mammalian pets, and the only no-kill facility in the county which takes in aggressive cats and dogs. A shut down would have necessitated the shelter’s inhabitants be distributed to other facilities across the county. What happened to the animals next would have been entirely at the discretion of each new facility.

The scare has instilled Marian Laing and the Board with a renewed vigor. Along with talks of expansion, they have vowed to lobby Nickel Dime County for a spay and neuter law. Laing says it could be effective in reducing the stray animal population, and could allow Craigie Critters to devote more time and resources towards looking after those already in their care.

[garfield-comic]

Garfield - 2022-02-26

[craigiechronicle]

FROM THE ARCHIVES: Whiz Kid Wins Big

By Susan McDaniels

MARCH 2, 2014- Chelsea Smith stands surrounded by cameras. She shakes her high school principal's hand, accepts a large cheque from an admiring adult three times her age, then turns to beam at the onlookers.

Smith, 15, has just received $15 000 from Pals Who Program, a non-profit aimed at uplifting non-men in STEM. Smith plans to put the scholarship, designated to further her education in computer science or a related field, towards her Boston Robotics dreams.

She's well on her way to making those dreams a reality. Smith wowed her teachers and peers earlier this year by founding both the school's Mathletes, and the Robotics Club. She has been pre-emptively offered a paid position mentoring students and running those clubs when she graduates in three years' time.

"We'd be lost without Chelsea," says math teacher Adrienne South. "She taught my class while I was in the hospital last week. Even cleaned up my lesson plans for the rest of the month while she was at it. There's no one more deserving of the money."

The community agrees. After she is presented with her scholarship, Smith spends the afternoon listening to the testimonies of people and robots alike who have found their lives touched by her skill. With students like Chelsea Smith coding the way, the future looks bright for non-men in STEM.

If you missed the chance to celebrate Smith in person, Doolittle High School is accepting written congratulations on her behalf until the end of the month. Notes can be mailed or emailed to any Doolittle school address, and the recipient will share them with Smith personally.