Malaria cases in Florida, Texas: https://apnews.com/article/malaria-florida-texas-cdc-mosquitoes-a7ea0cbe37bc8df093ce35e836cd717e . These are the first US cases spread by mosquitoes in 20 years. Too bad these two states don’t have governors who consider governing a priority.
Brain freeze explained: https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/why-do-we-get-brain-freeze-experts-explain-140023184.html . Yes, we have all the latest health news today. And now, yawning …
Yawning fights sleepiness: https://www.prevention.com/health/a44189173/why-do-i-yawn/ . Yawning also involves social cues. And yawning occurs in a wide variety of animals, including fish.
WSJ: Deadly fungi may outrun treatment options: https://www.wsj.com/articles/fungi-drugs-doctors-research-104b50a6 . Conventional wisdom has been that fungi are less able to mutate than bacteria. Apparently that is no longer the accepted science.
More on weight loss pills: https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/effective-pills-weight-loss-oral-version-ozempic-are-horizon-rcna90981 . Good and bad news for WSJ here. The Journal covered this topic 2 days ago, so the Journal scooped its competitors here. The bad news? This is the first time this has occurred on this website, which has over 27,000 links to online articles over the past 3+ years. The Journal regularly reports news a day or more after other outlets, which is not great if you’re trying to stay informed. WSJ: More: https://www.wsj.com/articles/pill-for-obesity-has-wall-street-salivating-da541db .
The pickleball menace: https://www.benzinga.com/news/23/06/33016725/bill-gates-favorite-sport-pickleball-could-cost-americans-up-to-500m-in-injuries-ubs-reports . The article indicates that the sport could add up to $500 million in healthcare claims this year. Quite the pickle …
WSJ: Fauci to join Georgetown faculty: https://www.wsj.com/articles/anthony-fauci-to-join-georgetown-university-faculty-7a98fd98 . Will he have a security detail? Fauci is 82 years old.
WSJ: UnitedHealth acquires Amedisys: https://www.wsj.com/articles/amedisys-agrees-to-unitedhealth-takeover-scraps-option-care-merger-35e02853 .
Interest rates are continuing upward: https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/bond-king-jeffrey-gundlach-rings-the-alarm-on-us-debt-and-warns-higher-interest-rates-are-making-it-more-of-a-burden/ar-AA1d2w6g?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=12d2bf52b968460abc8c0c8989f29cf2&ei=13 . If the market will soon experience a capacity problem, then rates will go up, period. Specifically, the bonds will sell at a lower price, which translates to a higher interest rate.
The coming commercial real estate crash: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/morgan-stanley-says-commercial-real-202952701.html .
WSJ: More trouble in the FTX bankruptcy: https://www.wsj.com/articles/senior-attorney-helped-ftx-founder-misuse-customer-funds-report-says-7180ae25 .
KPMG cutting 5% of US workforce: https://seekingalpha.com/news/3982862-kpmg-said-to-cut-5-of-us-workforce-in-second-round-of-layoffs . This works out to just under 2,000 jobs lost.
WSJ: Pay satisfaction isn’t just about the amount: https://www.wsj.com/articles/being-happy-with-your-paycheck-isnt-just-about-how-big-it-is-c8fea377 . Hahahahaha. Sorry, WSJ, everyone knows size matters.
WSJ: Guyana is the new global oil player: https://www.wsj.com/articles/opec-woos-guyana-the-tiny-nation-that-sits-atop-massive-oil-field-19031324 .
Pelosi advocates Supreme Court term limits: https://www.aol.com/no-accountability-nancy-pelosi-calls-200330694.html . I am unable to understand why the Supreme Court has not adopted the Judicial Code of Conduct. Quite obviously, the justices lack accountability for their personal behavior. As we have discussed before, that is a different issue than independence of the judiciary.
Meanwhile, the House GOP continues its long-running event, the White Trash Bowl: https://thehill.com/homenews/house/4067001-greene-says-its-unfortunate-boebert-leaked-house-floor-spat-to-press/ . Governance is no longer even a consideration among these nuts.
Russian situation devolving into confusion and farce: https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-war-shoigu-video-wagner-rebellion-0e79a2383f586c82e44861917927d920 . Putin says he allowed the mutiny to proceed to avoid bloodshed: https://www.aol.com/news/russias-putin-says-let-mutiny-193017636.html . Fact check: The Wagner “mutineers” shot down 6 Russian helicopters, killing 15. Wagner took control of Rostov-on-Don, a major port city of over 1 million population, that is the HQ of Russia’s Southern Military Command. Wagner troops advanced over 500 miles toward Moscow, stopping within 125 miles of the capital, with little resistance.
There is no evidence that Wagner units have disbanded. Prigozhin says his men will not join the Russian army. Putin’s televised speeches to the Russian people have made him appear weak. Right now, Putin’s claims appear counterfactual. WSJ: More: https://www.wsj.com/articles/whats-happening-with-wagner-in-russia-d6f6ce7a . And the Russians are as confused as we are: https://www.wsj.com/articles/russian-media-appear-as-perplexed-as-everyone-else-over-wagner-mutiny-7f166363 . Still more: https://www.wsj.com/articles/questions-swirl-on-russia-truce-as-putin-prigozhin-stay-silent-b8a44500 .
As readers know, I listen to old CDs each evening as I write. Tonight’s first up was Sting & the Police, on random play. The first song? “(I Hope the) Russians (Love Their Children Too)”.
WSJ: Ukraine makes small territorial gains during Russian disorganization: https://www.wsj.com/articles/ukraine-gains-territory-as-russia-grapples-with-wagners-aborted-mutiny-67f67b19 . Meanwhile, the West boosts support for Ukraine: https://www.wsj.com/articles/after-russia-turmoil-eu-and-nato-boost-support-to-ukraine-68432c53 .
WSJ: India’s advance accelerated by the West: https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-u-s-and-modi-rewire-indian-defense-and-tech-dfabec47 . Meanwhile, the White House condemns harassment of a WSJ reporter over her questions to Modi: https://www.wsj.com/articles/white-house-condemns-harassment-of-wsj-reporter-for-questioning-modi-about-rights-e2bd2fcc . It is disappointing that Democrats stand up for the rights of the right, but the favor is rarely returned. That’s just bad for American democracy.
Louisiana racial gerrymander tossed: https://www.usnews.com/news/top-news/articles/2023-06-26/u-s-supreme-court-tosses-race-based-dispute-over-louisiana-electoral-map . To explain this ruling, yes, the Supreme Court sent this back to the Fifth Circuit. However, given the Supreme Court’s ruling in the companion Alabama case, they have essentially instructed the Fifth Circuit to follow that case and reject the Louisiana gerrymander. That likely means that there will be another majority black district in Louisiana, giving the Democrats another seat in the House. As the Supremes specifically instructed the Fifth Circuit to resolve this before the 2024 Congressional election, the Democrats should get that seat to start 2025. WSJ: More: https://www.wsj.com/articles/supreme-court-rejects-louisianas-defense-of-gerrymandered-congressional-map-5ba1064d .
Supreme Court affirmative action decision nears: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/supreme-court/colleges-anxiously-await-landmark-affirmative-action-decision-supreme-rcna90835 . It is quite likely this Supreme Court will strike down affirmative action. The problem is, we have a diverse society, and colleges understand their responsibility to maintain a diverse campus population. So there will be an ongoing battle here between the Supreme Court and … well, what’s right. Not a good look. WSJ: More: https://www.wsj.com/articles/justices-who-benefited-from-affirmative-action-may-decide-its-fate-b681c29b . Conservatives need to remember that when Justice Scalia said, “I’m not a nut”, he was referring to Clarence Thomas.
OJ judge denies request to seal witness list: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/judge-trump-docs-case-denies-special-counsels-request-witnesses-rcna91271 . Good grief! The obvious reason for this request was to prevent witness intimidation and other threats. The special counsel didn’t write it out to enhance that protection. The judge’s bias and lack of competence appear to be showing again. At least she granted the request for a pre-trial hearing on the classified documents. Jack Smith will have this opportunity to educate her on July 14 – apparently a rather tall task.
Orange Julius’ legal troubles increase: https://www.salon.com/2023/06/26/illegal-caught-diverting-campaign-donations-as-legal-bills-pile-up/ . I realize the description just given applies to pretty much every interaction OJ has with the legal system, but this is a new area of illegal behavior. Obviously, it’s a violation of campaign finance law to divert political contributions to personal use. As Mr. Noti notes, funds can be used to cover legal expenses arising out of candidate or officeholder activity. However, next to nothing involved in the indictments against OJ fit this description. For example, OJ refused to return classified documents (which are federal property), after he left office and before he was a candidate. In legal terms, screwed.
Meanwhile, the GOP continues to struggle with digesting the truth: https://www.mediaite.com/tv/ari-fleischer-tells-hannity-that-trump-went-too-far-after-fox-airs-audio-of-ex-president-showing-off-highly-confidential-docs/ . OJ “went too far”? Wow, Ari, way to stand up … for what, exactly? This is an exceedingly serious crime, and the facts make it obvious how brazen OJ’s behavior was. The GOP can’t handle the truth …
WSJ: We’re concerned about the negativity in the GOP race: https://www.wsj.com/articles/desantis-trump-2024-republican-campaign-ad-spending-92cd2fd3 . Apparently, the author just fell off the turnip truck …
OJ lawyer John Eastman faces disbarment: https://www.rawstory.com/john-eastman-ghost-hunter/ .As the article details, Eastman didn’t know his star witness was a ghost hunter with a variety of other issues …
OJ threatens to not show for first GOP debate August 23: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2023/06/26/donald-trump-threatens-2024-gop-debate-fox-news/70358319007/ . This designed to do what? Force Fox to give him more air time? Sadly, as OJ leads the field, this is something like the Tiger Woods era in golf. When Tiger played, it more than doubled viewership. The same will be true if OJ does show up, and that may not be in his self-interest.
Meanwhile, DeMentis, failed Mickey Mouse warrior, now wants to go to war with Mexico: https://www.mediaite.com/politics/desantis-promises-mass-deportations-threatens-military-action-while-knocking-trump-as-soft-on-immigration-we-would-be-much-more-assertive/ . So how would we stop precursor chemicals from entering Mexico other than boarding and searching every ship attempting to enter a Mexican port? How is the US military going to control the Mexican cartels? Is DeMentis expecting Mexico to cheer us on as we abuse their national sovereignty? This guy is dumber than a board and unfit to hold any office, including Governor of Florida.
Another DeMentis stunt, equally stupid: https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/desantis-asks-judge-dismiss-disney-lawsuit-claims-immunity/story?id=100394511 . Disney claims the actions the state took against them are retaliatory and unconstitutional. The DeMentis argument says the state can take unconstitutional and retaliatory actions at will, and the parties harmed have no remedy. Did this guy ever attend class in law school? This is about what you’d expect from an authoritarian and anti-democratic boob.
But wait, little Ronnie gets far worse: Deadly force at the border: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/ron-desantis-calls-for-deadly-force-against-suspected-drug-traffickers/ar-AA1d4i2F?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=0fd61b1508144c2f8cbcbb097abac7fc&ei=19 . The words “suspected” and “deadly force” don’t belong in the same sentence. I would have thought everyone knew that, certainly those with a high school education. But little Ronnie is just full of bad surprises. WSJ: More: https://www.wsj.com/articles/ron-desantis-asks-judge-to-toss-disneys-lawsuit-a6485ff9 .
What is wrong with Florida? Racist shooter won’t be charged with murder: https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2023/06/26/florida-lorincz-owens-shooting-charges-manslaughter/5921687816916/ . Al Sharpton is correct that this is an obvious hate crime and the Feds should prosecute her on that basis. Meanwhile, Florida looks more and more like Mississippi every day.
Beach deaths in Panama City, Florida: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2023/06/26/three-tourists-die-panama-city-beach-swimming-deaths/70357619007/ . This is so tragic and unnecessary. If you don’t know what a double red flag warning is, you should not be swimming in the ocean.
State of Idaho will seek death penalty against University of Idaho murderer: https://abcnews.go.com/US/university-idaho-murders-state-seeks-death-penalty-bryan-kohberger/story?id=100392305 . So it isn’t a surprise that Idaho wants to fry this guy. That’s what they do up there. The state motto is “Famous Potatoes” …
Princess Diana’s black sheep sweater goes to auction: https://people.com/princess-diana-original-sheep-sweater-auction-rare-sale-7552336 . I’ll predict that this sweater goes for more than the auction estimate of $50,000 to $80,000. This seems like the type of item a Las Vegas museum would love to own, and Di fans certainly remember this sweater.