SecondJon @SecondJon@social.cleverlibre.org

'Remarkable' decline in fertility rates

Half of the world's countries now have too few babies being born to maintain their populations.

https://www.bbc.com/news/health-46118103

We have a very strong stakeholder who ends up creating chaos and those on her team can't contain it, so it just spreads. Here's some examples of the problems I've just inherited :

1. Our PM is now the biggest risk to following any kind of decent project management process because she can't get herself to push back against such a strong persona, so the developers are interrupted every day BY THE PM to rearrange priorities to place new work that is bypassing the standard prioritization process, and delay work the greater business needs done for a major project.

2. While we can't get budget to grow our development team, that stakeholder has somehow got budget to hire consultants as a shadow development team to bypass the greater prioritization process with other stakeholders, despite agreeing not to do this a day earlier. She expects them to do unchecked work in our system, which would destabilize the system for all.

3. Meanwhile that stakeholder has only not controlled all work priorities for 1 two week sprint. The other major business units have been waiting for 18 months while we worked on her big project, so they're all trying to knock down the proverbial door to get their work prioritized.

4. The developers lose time due to all of these, and I'm now going to lose all development time to go try to manage this chaos.

Here's what I think so far:

If we had real project management this wouldn't be an issue. I've been down this road before. If we follow, STRICTLY follow, a framework (like agile scrum) then everyone has clear expectations, we stop slowing down development with interruptions of new priorities and trying to secretly prep work for a shadow developement team.

All development happens the same way, following this process, so if they can find additional temporary (contracted) resources, then they just add to our bandwidth and we get more done FROM THE SAME prioritized backlog.

Politics matters. But you know what matters more? Pretty much everything else in your life. (Ben Shapiro, not exact quote.)

Yet I do enjoy discussing politics here and enjoy understanding where others of different views are coming from.

A lot of the more important things (like info about my kids) are things I wouldn't publish about publicly like I will a discussion about politics.

I'm not actually obsessed with politics, but it is most of what I've tooted. I'm trying to consider those things of more importance that can be tootable.

Here Are the Trailblazing Republican Women Who Made History on Tuesday Night

Republican women made history during the 2018 midterm elections.

(I don't watch the news, but had only heard the diversity and glass ceiling breaking championed on the left.)

https://ijr.com/trailblazing-republican-women-history-tuesday/

Mob at Tucker Carlson's home: Antifa mob gathered at his home where his wife was alone, chant that he must leave town, smash down the door of their home, threaten a bomb.

Clearly the hate is on the right.

(and can I remove the photo auto added to my toots when I share via mastalab?)

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/11/08/mob-tucker-carlsons-home-antifa-break-door-chant-fox-host/1927868002/

Just checked headlines on mastodon, saw that sessions stepped down. First impression:

Democrats who demanded Sessions never be made attorney general now aghast that he isn't anymore and declare that he should have been attorney general for ever.

Martin Luther King Jr. Niece, Dr. Alveda King Urges Americans to Vote Pro-Life

Alveda King, the niece of slain civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr., released a handful of election videos today that each contain her message to Ameri

https://www.lifenews.com/2018/11/05/martin-luther-king-jr-niece-alveda-king-urges-americans-to-vote-pro-life/

Human-like dummy with Marsha Blackburn's name found hanging from a tree

Residents of a Tennessee town are furious after a dummy with Rep. Marsha Blackburn’s name was found hanging from a tree. The controversial figure wearing a dunce cap and a sign with an “X” over the name “Marsha” was found hanging from a tree in Shelbyville, WZTV-FOX 17 reported. “It was very disturbing to see a human-like object …

https://www.bizpacreview.com/2018/11/05/human-like-dummy-with-marsha-blackburns-name-found-hanging-from-a-tree-690810

#uspol

Funny that headlines are declaring tomorrow judgment day for Trump. Presidents (nearly?) always lose legislative seats in the midterm. If Trump loses seats, that's normal, not Judgment Day on Trump. If he loses significantly more or less than the historical pattern, I suspect we'll be seeing the result of reaction to how the media has handled this president differently despite record setting good economic news and no new international conflicts, etc.

Overall though, wouldn't the best measure be to compare tomorrow's results with Obama's historic loss with his first midterm?

#uspol

Obama Volunteer Arrested For Vandalizing NYC Synagogue With Anti-Semitic Statements, Police Say

The New York City Police Department arrested a Democratic activist on Friday night for allegedly vandalizing a synagogue in New York City with vile anti-Semitic messages.

https://www.dailywire.com/news/37946/obama-volunteer-arrested-vandalizing-nyc-synagogue-ryan-saavedra

Presidential Proclamation on National Adoption Month, 2018 | The White House

During National Adoption Month, we recognize the immeasurable love and support that adoptive parents and families provide to hundreds of thousands of children each year.  We celebrate the life-changing act of adoption, bring attention to the millions of Americans who are eager to adopt, and express our gratitude to the families who have welcomed children into …

https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/presidential-proclamation-national-adoption-month-2018/

Someone HANGED an effigy of a Republican from a tree – with ‘STOP the HATE’ sign!

The winner of the political demonstration most lacking in self-awareness is this effigy of a Republican hung from a tree in Tennessee with the sign, “stop the hate.”

https://therightscoop.com/someone-hanged-an-effigy-of-a-republican-from-a-tree-with-stop-the-hate-sign/