Stupidest and smelliest states; Amazon's amputating lawn chairs; wifi routers know who you are; the usual Trump abominations
It's National Hazelnut Cake Day!
KGB Report is assembled by an aging human and contains no intentional A.I. generated material.
(Most) everything you need to know for today:
June 1 is the 152nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 213 days remain until the end of the year. As of this writing, 963 days remain in Trump’s term of office.
Knee-deep in the hoopla:
These are the states where you’re stupidest and smelliest, according to ChatGPT. The AI model considered Massachusetts the smartest state. Louisiana was the smelliest. Ohio was the ugliest. North Dakota had the least sexy people. (HuffPost)
Trump’s 250th celebration is a fiasco. Trump’s drive to transform July 4, 2026, into a colossal national Day of Trump instead has triggered a rebellious update of the “Spirit of ’76.” (The Atlantic gift article)
Humiliating detail about Trump’s birthday UFC fight exposed. Donald Trump has to pay people to hang out with him on his birthday. (The New Republic)
Trump proposes ‘wild’ rally instead of concerts after artists back out of concert series, decries judge’s ruling on Kennedy Center and praises progress on reflecting pool in unhinged posting spree. (The Guardian)
What’s actually wrong with the reflecting pool, and why President Trump’s repairs have not addressed a major underlying problem.
(New York Times gift article)
Trump suffers two huge court losses in one day as his legal nemesis hails ‘landmark day’. His name ordered off the Kennedy Center, and judge reopens the IRS case that resulted in his $1.8 billion slush fund settlement. (Raw Story)
Trump responds to NYT article, says it’s ‘very good’ administration lost 10,000 lawyers since the end of 2024. “The people that are leaving are Radical Left Deep State Lunatics, who are destroying our Country, and Weaponizing Government,” Trump posted. (The Hill)
GOP strategist gives Trump ominous 30-day warning. Republican strategist Brad Todd has warned that Donald Trump has 30 days to get his act together or risk losing control of the GOP completely.
Bill Gates spent years crafting his image. Now it’s cracking. The billionaire philanthropist was once ranked the world’s most admired man—but the revelations of his Jeffrey Epstein ties are eroding efforts to burnish his reputation. (Wall Street Journal gift article)
Random standard wi-fi routers can scan your body to identify exactly who you are, alarming new research finds. If you were paranoid about digital tracking before, you might want to think twice about clicking this link. (Futurism)
Lounge chair sold on Amazon recalled after person’s finger amputated. The chair was found to pose a hazard if a customer’s finger is placed in a pinch point while adjusting it, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced.
United Airlines flight to Spain pulls U-turn, apparently over Bluetooth device name. TLDR": Teenager named his Bluetooth speaker “BOMB.” (NPR)
How Alabama deals with homeless people: give them 20 bucks and drop them off in Florida.
Late Night:
The Daily Show- Keeping up with the Worst Wing: DJ Marco Rubio, RFK Jr. vs. Teen Sperm and more. (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:
1980 – Cable News Network (CNN) began broadcasting. (Video)
Quote of the Day:
I must go down to the sea again, to the lonely sea and the sky; and all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by.
--John Masefield (Wikipedia link)
(More John Masefield quotes from the KGB Quotations Database)
Today’s holidays:
Dare Day, Dinosaur Day, Don’t Give Up The Ship Day, Flip a Coin Day, Global Day of Parents, International Children’s Day, National Go Barefoot Day, National Hazelnut Cake Day, National Heimlich Maneuver Day, National Nail Polish Day, National Olive Day, National Pen Pal Day, National “Thank God It’s Monday” Day, New Year’s Resolution Recommitment Day, Oscar The Grouch Day, Say Something Nice Day, Stand For Children Day, Wear a Dress Day, World Hypopara Awareness Day, World Milk Day, World Narcissistic Abuse Awareness Day, World Outlander Day, World Reef Day, and Worldwide LAM Awareness Day.
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On This Day:
2011 – A rare tornado outbreak occurred in New England; a strong EF3 tornado struck Springfield, Massachusetts, killing four people.
2009 – General Motors filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. It was the fourth largest United States bankruptcy in history.
2008 – A fire on the back lot of Universal Studios destroyed the attraction King Kong Encounter and a large archive of master tapes for music and film, the full extent of which was not revealed until 2019.
2004 – Oklahoma City bombing co-conspirator Terry Nichols was sentenced to 161 consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole.
2001 – Nepalese royal massacre: Crown Prince Dipendra of Nepal shot and killed several members of his family including his father and mother.
1990 – Cold War: George H. W. Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev signed a treaty to end chemical weapon production.
1980 – Cable News Network (CNN) began broadcasting. (Video)
1974 – The Heimlich maneuver for rescuing choking victims was published in the journal Emergency Medicine.
1967 – Traditionally observed release date of the Beatles’ “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” album. (The album was actually released on May 26.) (Video)
1958 – Charles de Gaulle came out of retirement to lead France by decree for six months.
1950 – The Chinchaga fire ignited. By September, it would become the largest single fire on record in North America.
1950 – The Declaration of Conscience speech, by U.S. Senator from Maine, Margaret Chase Smith, was delivered in response to Joseph R. McCarthy‘s speech at Wheeling, West Virginia. (Video)
1943 – BOAC Flight 777 was shot down over the Bay of Biscay by German Junkers Ju 88s, killing British actor Leslie Howard and leading to speculation that it was actually an attempt to kill British Prime Minister Winston Churchill.
1941 – World War II: The Battle of Crete ended as Crete capitulates to Germany.
1916 – The United States Senate confirmed the appointment of Louis Brandeis to the United States Supreme Court, making him the first Jew to be an Associate Justice.
1890 – The United States Census Bureau began using Herman Hollerith‘s tabulating machine to count census returns.
1879 – Napoléon Eugène, the last dynastic Bonaparte, was killed in the Anglo-Zulu War.
1855 – The American journalist and mercenary William Walker conquered Nicaragua.
1812 – War of 1812: U.S. President James Madison asked Congress to declare war on the United Kingdom.
1779 – The court-martial of Benedict Arnold began.
1533 – Anne Boleyn was crowned Queen of England.
1495 – A monk, John Cor, distills the first known batch of Scotch whisky.
(For more comprehensive lists of the day’s historical events, check here, here, and here.)
Some Birthdays:
1996 – Tom Holland, English actor
1984 – Nikki Glaser, American comedian
1981 – Amy Schumer, American comedian and actress
1981 – Brandi Carlile, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1977 – Sarah Wayne Callies, American actress
1977 – Danielle Harris, American actress
1974 – Alanis Morissette, Canadian-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, and actress
1973 – Heidi Klum, German-American model, fashion designer, and producer
1973 – Adam Garcia, Australian actor
1969 – Teri Polo, American actress
1963 – David Rudman, American puppeteer (”Sesame Street”, “The Muppets”)
1961 – Mark Curry, American actor
1953 – David Berkowitz, American serial killer and arsonist
1950 – Michael McDowell, American author and screenwriter (died 1999)
1948 – Powers Boothe, American actor (died 2017)
1947 – Jonathan Pryce, Welsh actor and singer
1940 – Kip Thorne, American physicist, astronomer, and academic
1940 – René Auberjonois, American actor (died 2019)
1939 – Cleavon Little, American actor and comedian (died 1992) (Video)
1937 – Morgan Freeman, American actor and producer
1935 – Reverend Ike, American minister and television host (died 2009)
1934 – Pat Boone, American singer-songwriter and actor
1930 – Edward Woodward, English actor (died 2009)
1926 – Marilyn Monroe, American model and actress (died 1962)
1926 – Andy Griffith, American actor, singer, producer, and screenwriter (died 2012)
1924 – William Sloane Coffin, American minister and activist (died 2006)
1921 – Nelson Riddle, American composer and bandleader (died 1985)
1915 – John Randolph, American actor (died 2004)
1890 – Frank Morgan, American actor (died 1949)
1878 – John Masefield, English author and poet (died 1967)
1801 – Brigham Young, American religious leader, 2nd President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (died 1877)
(A more complete list of today’s birthdays.)
Some Deaths:
2014 – Ann B. Davis, American actress (born 1926)
2008 – Yves Saint Laurent, French fashion designer, founded Saint Laurent Paris (born 1936)
2001 – Hank Ketcham, American cartoonist, created Dennis the Menace (born 1920)
2000 – Tito Puente, American drummer, composer, and producer (born 1923)
1999 – Christopher Cockerell, English engineer, invented the hovercraft (born 1910)
1991 – David Ruffin, American singer-songwriter (born 1941)
1971 – Reinhold Niebuhr, American theologian and academic (born 1892)
1968 – Helen Keller, American author and activist (born 1880)
1962 – Adolf Eichmann, a German Nazi SS-Obersturmbannführer (born 1906)
1960 – Paula Hitler, German-Austrian sister of Adolf Hitler (born 1896)
1943 – Leslie Howard, English actor, director, and producer (born 1893)
1927 – Lizzie Borden, American accused murderer (born 1860)
1868 – James Buchanan, American lawyer and politician, 15th President of the United States (born 1791)
(A more complete list of today’s deaths.)
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As an Ohioan, I could care less about what ChatGPT says about my state!