Musk revolting, parasitic worms, solar storms, Lawrence Welk's new toilet
It's National Cheese Day!
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Knee Deep in the Hoopla
I guess that golden key going away present from Trump just didn’t cut it: Musk rails against Trump tax bill, calling it ‘a disgusting abomination’ . (Gift article)
We are no longer a serious country… and the world is starting to notice. Paul Krugman observes, “If you’re trying to explain to people, be they voters or bond investors, that you aren’t really as bad or untrustworthy as you seem, you’re already in deep trouble. So when I saw Scott Bessent, the treasury secretary, declaring Sunday that ‘The United States of America is never going to default, that is never going to happen,’ my reaction was, ‘Uh-oh.’”
90% of southern California freshwater game fish carry parasitic worms, meaning 10% are ineligible to become the next Secretary of Health and Human Services. (via fark.com)
Okay, so FEMA boss Richardson’s saying he didn’t know there was a hurricane season was, supposedly, a joke. This isn’t: Federal Emergency Management Agency officials are scrapping its nearly-completed hurricane-response plan for this year and will return to the same guidance for hurricane response as last year. Which may be difficult, since FEMA has already eliminated key programs and sharply cut its workforce.
Sure sign of a imminent recession? Dollar General just posted a great quarter. That’s good news for the retailer, and for investors enjoying a 9% pop in the stock price. It just might not be good news for the broader economy.
America's most powerful banker reveals why he's warning the US to stockpile guns and ammunition. JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon says “We shouldn't be stockpiling bitcoins, we should be stockpiling gun, bullets, tanks, planes, drones, rare earths. We know what we need to do, it's not a mystery.”
Solar storms are taking down Elon Musk’s satellites. New research reveals that increased solar activity is shortening the lifespans of SpaceX’s Starlink satellites and causing them to return to Earth at faster speeds. This may raise the risk of satellite debris reaching the ground, challenging current assumptions about satellite reentry safety. Currently, there are more than 7,500 Starlink satellites in orbit, with SpaceX planning to increase that number to 42,000.
My granddaughter graduated from college last month, and discovered an unpleasant truth about the current job market: the unemployment rate for recent grads has jumped as companies try to replace entry-level workers with artificial intelligence. “…firms are making rapid progress toward automating entry-level work, and that A.I. companies are racing to build ‘virtual workers’ that can replace junior employees at a fraction of the cost.”
Lawrence Welk’s boyhood home now has flush toilets. And they say there’s no good news in the world today.
Shirt of the day (click on image)
KGB Quote of the Day:
When you're born in this world, you're given a ticket to the freak show. When you're born in America you're given a front row seat.
-George Carlin (Wikipedia link)
(More George Carlin quotes from the KGB Quotations Database)
Today’s holidays:
Audacity to Hope Day, Global Running Day, Hug your Cat Day, International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression, National Cheese Day, National Clean Beauty Day, National Cognac Day, National SAFE Day, National Tailors' Day, Old Maid's Day, and Shopping Cart Day.
On This Day:
1783 – The Montgolfier brothers publicly demonstrated their montgolfière (hot air balloon). (Video)
1876 – An express train called the Transcontinental Express arrived in San Francisco via the first transcontinental railroad only 83 hours and 39 minutes after leaving New York City. (Video)
1896 – Henry Ford completed the Ford Quadricycle, his first gasoline-powered automobile, and gave it a successful test run. (Video)
1912 – Massachusetts became the first state of the United States to set a minimum wage.
1919 – Women's rights: The U.S. Congress approved the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which guaranteed suffrage to women, and sent it to the U.S. states for ratification.
1942 – World War II: The Battle of Midway began. (Video)
1977 – JVC introduced its VHS system at the Consumer Electronics Show in Chicago. It would eventually prevail against Sony's rival Betamax system in a format war to become the predominant home video medium. (Video)
1982 – “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan” was released in 1,621 theaters in the United States. Its box office of $14,347,221 was at the time the largest opening weekend gross in history. (Video) (Video) (Video)
1984 – Columbia Records released Bruce Springsteen's seventh studio album, "Born in the USA", his biggest commercial success topped the charts in 11 countries and sold over 30 million copies worldwide. (Video)
1989 – The Tiananmen Square protests and massacre are suppressed in Beijing by the People's Liberation Army, with between 241 and 10,000 dead (an unofficial estimate). (Video)
(For comprehensive lists of the day’s historical events, check here, here, and here.)
Some Birthdays:
1907 – Rosalind Russell, American actress (d. 1976) (Video)
1924 – Dennis Weaver, American actor and director (d. 2006) (Video)
1928 – Ruth Westheimer, German-American sex therapist and author (d. 2024) (Video)
1936 – Bruce Dern, American actor
1937 – Freddy Fender, American singer and guitarist (d. 2006)
1937 - Gorilla Monsoon, American professional wrestler, play-by-play commentator, and booker (d. 1999)
1944 - Michelle Phillips, American singer, songwriter, actress, and former model
1961 – El DeBarge, American singer-songwriter and producer
1971 – Noah Wyle, American actor and producer
1975 – Russell Brand, English comedian and actor
1975 – Angelina Jolie, American actress, filmmaker, humanitarian, and activist
(Complete list of today’s birthdays.)
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