How Trump could steal midterms; A.I. destroying higher ed; America right now: "absurdity, cruelty and violence."
It's National Pastry Day!
(from The Late Show with Stephen Colbert)
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Congress to withhold Pentagon travel funds until it sees boat strike videos.
The simple, legal way Trump could steal the midterms. A little-known section of the Constitution may hold the key to overturning Democratic wins in 2026. (The Dems used it in ‘84.)
Trump responds to “traitor” Marjorie Taylor Greene after “60 Minutes” interview.
AI is destroying the university and learning itself. Students use AI to write papers, professors use AI to grade them, degrees become meaningless, and tech companies make fortunes. Welcome to the death of higher education.
Voters’ minds are hard to change. AI chatbots are surprisingly good at it. New research suggests AI chatbots can shift people’s political views more effectively than campaign ads on TV.
Supreme Court appears set to back Trump’s power to fire independent board members.
ICE has arrested nearly 75,000 people with no criminal records. The figures don’t include arrests made by Border Patrol, which has launched aggressive immigration operations in several cities in recent months.
Judge orders the release of an immigrant with ties to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
Fired FBI agents file lawsuit against FBI director Kash Patel and DOJ, alleging unlawful retaliation.
Bombed Chernobyl shelter no longer blocks radiation and needs major repair – IAEA. Drone attack that Ukraine blamed on Russia blew a hole in thr painstakingly erected €1.5bn shield meant to allow for final clean-up of the1986 meltdown site.
Warner Bros fight heats up with $108 billion hostile bid from Paramount.
Star Wars original 1977 theatrical cut returns Feb. 19, 2027.
‘Thought she would not get caught’: Florida woman tried to hide plastic-wrapped Xanax pills in her ‘body cavities’ after DUI arrest with toddler in car, sheriff’s office says.
Late Night:
Why is there a Late Night section? Because late night comedians, unfettered by institutional journalistic and corporate inhibitions, often provide observations and analysis that are more thorough and comprehensive than network or cable news. And the humor helps.
FIFA gives Trump a gold pacifier and looming war on Venezuela gives Jon Iraq déjà vu | The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (Video)
Jordan Klepper got pepper sprayed by ICE at a naked protest for new ‘Daily Show’ special: ‘This is what America feels like right now — absurdity, cruelty and violence.’
Trump can’t tell Kimmel from Colbert | FIFA Peace Prize | Is there anything MAGA won’t tolerate?-Stephen Colbert (Video)
J.D. Vance Presents “The Dreidel Song”-Stephen Colbert (Video)
Trump attacks “horrible” Jimmy Kimmel, gets embarrassing fake award and Jimmy announces show renewal-Jimmy Kimmel (Video)
Trump gets “Peace Prize” from FIFA, says U.S. football should be renamed: A Closer Look-Seth Meyers (Video)
History highlight:
1968 – Douglas Engelbart gave what became known as “The Mother of All Demos“, publicly debuting the computer mouse, hypertext, and the bit-mapped graphical user interface using the oN-Line System (NLS). (Video)
Bookmark KGB Report Notes and check periodically for cartoons, memes, news, commentary and other stuff that didn’t fit or broke between e-mail newsletter issues. It’s also a great place to comment and chat.
Keep scrolling down. 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.
Quote of the Day:
Life was simple before World War II. After that, we had systems.
--Admiral Grace Murray Hopper (Wikipedia link)
(More Grace Hopper quotes from the KGB Quotations Database)
Today’s holidays:
Christmas Card Day, International Anti-Corruption Day, International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide and of the Prevention of this Crime, International Day of Veterinary Medicine, National Llama Day, National Opal Apples Day, National Pastry Day, Weary Willie Day, World SIUGR Awareness Day, and World Techno Day.,
Astronomy Picture of the Day from NASA.
On This Day:
2017 – “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” premiered in Los Angeles. (Video)
2016 – World Anti-Doping Agency accused Russia of widespread cheating at Olympics.
2008 – Governor of Illinois Rod Blagojevich was arrested by federal officials for crimes including attempting to sell the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by President-elect Barack Obama.
2005 – The film “Brokeback Mountain” was released in the U.S. (Video)
2002 – The film “Star Trek: Nemesis“ premiered in Los Angeles. (Video)
1997 – The 18th James Bond film, “Tomorrow Never Dies,” premiered in London. (Video)
1996 – Gwen Jacob was acquitted of committing an indecent act, giving women the right to be topless in Ontario, Canada.
1992 – American troops landed in Somalia for Operation Restore Hope.
1992 – Separation of Charles and Diana announced.
1987 – Israeli–Palestinian conflict: The First Intifada begins in the Gaza Strip and West Bank.
1979 – The eradication of the smallpox virus was certified, making smallpox the first of only two diseases that have been driven to extinction (with rinderpest in 2011 being the other).
1971 – Paris peace talks break down.
1968 – Douglas Engelbart gave what became known as “The Mother of All Demos“, publicly debuting the computer mouse, hypertext, and the bit-mapped graphical user interface using the oN-Line System (NLS). (Video)
1965 – Kecksburg UFO incident: A fireball was seen from Michigan to Pennsylvania; with witnesses reporting something crashing in the woods near Pittsburgh.
1965 – “A Charlie Brown Christmas“ was first broadcast on CBS. (Videos)
1960 – The first episode of Coronation Street, the world’s longest-running television soap opera, was broadcast in the United Kingdom.
1958 – John Birch Society founded.
1946 – The subsequent Nuremberg trials began with the Doctors’ Trial, prosecuting physicians and officers alleged to be involved in Nazi human experimentation and mass murder under the guise of euthanasia.
1869 – The Knights of Labor, America’s first national labor union, was founded.
1868 – The first traffic lights were installed, outside the Palace of Westminster in London. Resembling railway signals, they used semaphore arms and were illuminated at night by red and green gas lamps.
1854 – “The Charge of the Light Brigade” by Alfred Lord Tennyson was published.
1851 – The first YMCA in North America was established in Montreal.
1835 – Texas Revolution: The Texian Army captured San Antonio following the Siege of Béxar.
(For comprehensive lists of the day’s historical events, check here, here, and here.)
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Some Birthdays:
1980 – Simon Helberg, American actor, comedian, and musician
1973 – Stacey Abrams, American politician and activist
1966 – Kirsten Gillibrand, American lawyer and politician
1962 – Felicity Huffman, American actress and producer
1957 – Donny Osmond, American singer-songwriter, dancer, and actor (Video)
1953 – John Malkovich, American actor and producer
1952 – Michael Dorn, American actor and voice artist
1945 – Michael Nouri, American actor
1944 – Neil Innes, English singer-songwriter (died 2019)
1942 – Joe McGinniss, American journalist and author (died 2014)
1942 – Dick Butkus, American football player, sportscaster, and actor (died 2023)
1941 – Beau Bridges, American actor, director, and producer
1934 – Judi Dench, English actress
1933 – Morton Downey Jr., American actor and talk show host (died 2001)
1933 – Ashleigh Brilliant, English-American author and illustrator (died 2025)
1930 – Buck Henry, American actor, director, and screenwriter (died 2020)
1929 – John Cassavetes, American actor, director, and screenwriter (died 1989)
1928 – Dick Van Patten, American actor (died 2015)
1922 – Redd Foxx, American actor (died 1991)
1916 – Kirk Douglas, American actor, singer, and producer (died 2020)
1912 – Tip O’Neill, American lawyer and politician, 55th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (died 1994)
1911 – Broderick Crawford, American actor (died 1986)
1909 – Douglas Fairbanks Jr., American captain, actor, and producer (died 2000)
1906 – Grace Hopper, American admiral and computer scientist, designed COBOL (died 1992)
1905 – Dalton Trumbo, American author, screenwriter, and blacklistee (died 1976)
1902 – Margaret Hamilton, American schoolteacher, actress and voice artist (died 1985)
1898 – Emmett Kelly, American clown and actor (died 1979)
1897 – Hermione Gingold, English actress and singer (died 1987)
1886 – Clarence Birdseye, American businessman, founded Birds Eye (died 1956)
1883 – Joseph Pilates, German-American fitness expert, developed Pilates (died 1967)
1608 – John Milton, English poet and philosopher (died 1674)
(A more complete list of today’s birthdays.)
Some Deaths:
2024 – Nikki Giovanni, American poet, writer and activist (born 1943)
2014 – Mary Ann Mobley, American model and actress, Miss America 1959 (born 1937)
2013 – Eleanor Parker, American actress (born 1922)
2009 – Gene Barry, American actor (born 1919)
2003 – Paul Simon, American soldier, journalist, and politician (born 1928)
1998 – Archie Moore, American boxer and actor (born 1913)
1995 – Douglas “Wrong Way” Corrigan, American pilot (born 1907)
1992 – Vincent Gardenia, American actor (born 1922)
1982 – Leon Jaworski, American lawyer and politician (born 1905)
1979 – Fulton J. Sheen, American archbishop (born 1895)
1975 – William A. Wellman, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1896)
1972 – Louella Parsons, American writer and columnist (born 1881)
1964 – Edith Sitwell, English poet and critic (born 1887)
(A more complete list of today’s deaths.)
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