Bye Ted; Kash's stash; SCOTUS "not political"; Edgy passwords; AI better than ER?
It's National Roast Leg of Lamb Day!
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The newsletter is published Monday through Thursday, holidays and medical procedures excepted.
—Kevin G. Barkes
(Most) everything you need to know for today:
May 7 is the 127th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 238 days remain until the end of the year. As of this writing, 988 days remain in Trump’s term of office.
Knee-deep in the hoopla:
CNN founder Ted Turner, a pioneer of cable TV news, dies at 87. The guy responsible for the mindless 24-hour news cycle… (CNN)
Kash Patel’s personalized bourbon stash. The FBI director has been leaving an unusual calling card. (The Atlantic gift article)
Chief Justice John Roberts says Supreme Court is not political. (But note the story is filed under the AP’s “Political” section.)
A journey through Trump’s bizarre statue garden of American heroes. Alex Trebek? (The New Republic)
RFK Jr withdraws proposal banning teens from tanning beds as skin experts warn of cancer risks. (The Independent)
Jet-fuel prices are spiking and Trump’s advisers are worried. President Trump’s advisers are increasingly worried that Republicans will pay a political price for the rising fuel costs, according to people familiar with the matter. (Wall Street Journal gift article)
‘Lying’ Donald Trump strikes again as he makes bold claim about health. (The Mirror US)
Google Chrome is downloading a 4gb AI model onto your device without consent, researcher warns. Maybe Google doesn’t ask permission because it knows what the answer would be. (Gizmodo)
Storing your passwords in Microsoft Edge? Don’t. Really. (Mashable)
In real-world test, an AI model did better than doctors at diagnosing patients. (NPR)
Late Night:
The Daily Show: Trump dumps toxic ballroom debris on golf course and DJ Marco Rubio loves 90s rap. (Video)
Jimmy Kimmel Live! Trump threatens Iran with intense bombing, bullies the FDA on vaping and Rubio to meet with the Pope (Video)
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert: Iran mocks America’s “wishlist” | Reflecting Lincoln | Vape candy for adults | A MAHA compromise (Video)
Cold open: Insane. Got No Brain. (Video)
Late Night with Seth Meyers: Trump violates Iran War deadline, claims “mini war” is over as US and Iran trade fire: A Closer Look (Video)
Keep scrolling… lots of interesting stuff in Quote of the Day, Holidays, On This Day, Birthdays, and Deaths. I can pretty much guarantee you’ll learn something new.
History highlight:
1824 – World premiere of Ludwig van Beethoven‘s Ninth Symphony in Vienna, Austria. The performance is conducted by Michael Umlauf under the composer’s supervision. (Video)
Quote of the Day:
Let no man boast himself that he has got through the perils of winter till at least the seventh of May.
-Anthony Trollope (Wikipedia link)
(More Anthony Trollope quotes from the KGB Quotations Database)
Today’s holidays:
Bladder Cancer Awareness Day, Cystinosis Awareness Day, International Day of Planetariums, Kids’ Athletics Day, Make-A-Book Day, National Barrier Awareness Day, National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day, National Cosmopolitan Day, National Day of Prayer, National Day of Reason, National Mural Day, National Packaging Design Day, National Roast Leg of Lamb Day, National Tourism Day, Paste Up Day, World AIDS Orphans Day, and World Password Day.
On This Day:
2004 – Marine biologist Richard Thompson coined the term “microplastics”.
2000 – Vladimir Putin was inaugurated as president of Russia.
1998 – Mercedes-Benz bought Chrysler for US$40 billion and formed DaimlerChrysler in the largest industrial merger in history.
1994 – Edvard Munch‘s painting The Scream was recovered undamaged after being stolen from the National Gallery of Norway in February.
1992 – Space Shuttle program: The Space Shuttle Endeavour is launched on its first mission, STS-49.
1984 – Vietnam veterans exposed to Agent Orange won $180 million settlement.
1960 – Leonid Brezhnev became leader of the USSR.
1954 – Indochina War: The Battle of Dien Bien Phu ended in a French defeat and a Viet Minh victory (the battle began on March 13).
1952 – The concept of the integrated circuit, the basis for all modern computers, was first published by Geoffrey Dummer.
1946 – Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering (later renamed Sony) was founded.
1945 – Germany surrendered unconditionally to the Allies at Reims.
1942 – World War II: During the Battle of the Coral Sea, United States Navy aircraft carrier aircraft attack and sink the Imperial Japanese Navy light aircraft carrier Shōhō; the battle marks the first time in naval history that two enemy fleets fight without visual contact between warring ships.
1915 – World War I: German submarine U-20 sank RMS Lusitania, killing 1,199 people, including 128 Americans. Public reaction to the sinking turns many former pro-Germans in the United States against the German Empire.
1846 – The Cambridge Chronicle, America’s oldest surviving weekly newspaper, was published for the first time in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
1840 – The Great Natchez Tornado struck Natchez, Mississippi killing 317 people. It is the second deadliest tornado in United States history.
1824 – World premiere of Ludwig van Beethoven‘s Ninth Symphony in Vienna, Austria. The performance is conducted by Michael Umlauf under the composer’s supervision. (Video)
1718 – The city of New Orleans was founded by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne, Sieur de Bienville.
(For more comprehensive lists of the day’s historical events, check here, here, and here.)
Some Birthdays:
1998 – MrBeast, American YouTuber
1992 – Alexander Ludwig, Canadian actor and musician
1987 – Aidy Bryant, American actress and comedian
1974 – Breckin Meyer, American actor, writer, and producer
1968 – Traci Lords, American actress and singer
1954 – Amy Heckerling, American director, producer, and screenwriter
1950 – Tim Russert, American television journalist and lawyer (died 2008)
1946 – Thelma Houston, American R&B/disco singer and actress
1939 – Johnny Maestro, American pop/doo-wop singer (died 2010)
1931 – Teresa Brewer, American singer (died 2007)
1923 – Anne Baxter, American actress (died 1985)
1922 – Darren McGavin, American actor and director (died 2006)
1919 – Eva Perón, Argentinian actress, 25th First Lady of Argentina (died 1952)
1917 – David Tomlinson, English actor (died 2000)
1911 – Ishirō Honda, Japanese director, producer, and screenwriter (died 1993)
1909 – Edwin H. Land, American scientist and inventor, co-founded the Polaroid Corporation (died 1991)
1901 – Gary Cooper, American actor (died 1961)
1892 – Archibald MacLeish, American poet, playwright, and lawyer (died 1982)
1885 – George “Gabby” Hayes, American actor (died 1969)
1840 – Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Russian composer and educator (died 1893)
1833 – Johannes Brahms, German pianist and composer (died 1897)
1812 – Robert Browning, English poet and playwright (died 1889)
1711 – David Hume, Scottish economist, historian, and philosopher (died 1776)
(A more complete list of today’s birthdays.)
Some Deaths:
2000 – Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., American captain, actor, and producer (born 1909)
1998 – Eddie Rabbitt, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1941)
1978 – Mort Weisinger, American journalist and author (born 1915)
1951 – Warner Baxter, American actor (born 1889)
1825 – Antonio Salieri, Italian composer and conductor (born 1750)
(A more complete list of today’s deaths.)
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