US police state; science cuts; RFK antics; keep your shoes on; Superman looks super
It's National No Bra Day!
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Knee Deep in the Hoopla
Texas inspectors approved Camp Mystic’s disaster plan two days before deadly flood, records show.
Jon Stewart on who Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill really helps — and hurts | The Daily Show (Video)
Global stock markets are calling Trump’s bluff on tariffs. The return of the ‘TACO’ trade.
The American police state is here. Trump created his own internal security apparatus: His goal is to have ICE supplant the FBI in national law enforcement.
‘It’s a nightmare.’ U.S. funding cuts threaten academic science jobs at all levels. “There is a lot of pressure to essentially leave the country or not pursue research,” one Ph.D. student says.
I.R.S. says churches can endorse candidates from the pulpit. In a court filing, the tax agency said a decades-old ban on campaigning by tax-exempt groups should not apply to houses of worship speaking to their own members.
Kennedy’s battle against food dyes hits a roadblock: M&M’s. The health secretary has used peer pressure to persuade food makers to nix synthetic dyes. The candy industry is holding out, arguing American consumers like bright sweets.
RFK Jr. promoted a food company he says will make Americans healthy. Their meals are ultraprocessed.
Musk risks it all with third party. Elon Musk’s push to create a third political party is putting his business empire at risk once again, raising questions about how his political ambitions align with the interests of his companies.
Impostor uses AI to impersonate Marco Rubio and contact foreign and US officials.
Travelers no longer have to remove their shoes during security screenings at US airports. …a pilot program showed the Transportation Security Administration had the equipment needed to keep airports and aircraft safe while allowing people to keep their shoes on.
The most corrupt corporation in the world is taking over our food supply. (Video)
US court strikes down ‘click-to-cancel’ rule designed to make unsubscribing easier. Rule would have kept businesses from forcing customers through lengthy chats or other barriers to cancellation.
The first reactions to James Gunn’s ‘Superman’ are mostly super. (Video)
Florida man allegedly fires flare gun at deputy, removes pants, throws money at him.
Quote of the Day:
If dogs talked, one of them would be president by now. Everybody likes dogs.
--Dean Koontz (Wikipedia link)
(More Dean Koontz quotes from the KGB Quotations Database)
Today’s holidays:
Call of the Horizon Day, Fashion Day, Martyrdom of the Báb, National Dimples Day, National Don't Put all your Eggs in One Omelet Day, National No Bra Day, and National Sugar Cookie Day.
Astronomy Picture of the Day from NASA.
On This Day:
2004 – The Senate Report on Iraqi WMD Intelligence was released by the United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, casting doubt on the rationale for the Iraq War.
1962 – Starfish Prime tested the effects of a nuclear test at orbital altitudes. (Video)
1962 – Bob Dylan recorded “Blowin’ In The Wind”. (Video)
1956 – Dick Clark's first appearance as host of American Bandstand. (Video)
1955 – Bill Haley & His Comets’ "Rock Around the Clock" topped the Billboard chart. It remains one of the top-selling singles ever. (Video)
1937 – The silent film archives of Fox Film Corporation were destroyed by the 1937 Fox vault fire. (Video)
1922 – Johnny Weissmuller swam the 100 meters freestyle in 58.6 seconds breaking the world swimming record and the 'minute barrier'.
1896 – William Jennings Bryan delivered his Cross of Gold speech advocating bimetallism at the 1896 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. (Video)
1893 – Daniel Hale Williams, American heart surgeon, performed the first successful open-heart surgery in United States without anesthesia. (Video)
1877 – The inaugural Wimbledon Championships began.
1868 – The 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified, guaranteeing African Americans full citizenship and all persons in the United States due process of law.
1850 – U.S. President Zachary Taylor died after eating raw fruit and iced milk; he is succeeded in office by Vice President Millard Fillmore.
1795 – Financier James Swan paid off the $2,024,899 US national debt that had been accrued during the American Revolution.
1776 – George Washington ordered the Declaration of Independence to be read out to members of the Continental Army in Manhattan, while thousands of British troops on Staten Island prepared for the Battle of Long Island.
1755 – The Braddock Expedition was soundly defeated by a smaller French and Native American force in its attempt to capture Fort Duquesne in what is now downtown Pittsburgh.
(For comprehensive lists of the day’s historical events, check here, here, and here.)
Some Birthdays:
1976 – Fred Savage, American actor, director, and producer
1971 – Marc Andreessen, American software developer, co-founded Netscape
1964 – Courtney Love, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actress
1957 – Kelly McGillis, American actress
1956 – Tom Hanks, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
1955 – Jimmy Smits, American actor and producer
1955 – Lindsey Graham, American lawyer and politician
1952 – John Tesh, American pianist, composer, and radio and television host
1951 – Chris Cooper, American actor
1947 – O. J. Simpson, American football player and actor (died 2024)
1945 – Dean Koontz, American author and screenwriter
1942 – Richard Roundtree, American actor (died 2023)
1938 – Brian Dennehy, American actor (died 2020)
1933 – Oliver Sacks, English-American neurologist, author, and academic (died 2015)
1932 – Donald Rumsfeld, American captain and politician, 13th United States Secretary of Defense (died 2021)
1929 – Lee Hazlewood, American singer-songwriter and producer (died 2007)
1928 – Vince Edwards, American actor, singer, and director (died 1996)
1927 – Ed Ames, American singer and actor (died 2023)
1901 – Barbara Cartland, English author (died 2000)
1819 – Elias Howe, American inventor, invented the sewing machine (died 1867)
(A more complete list of today’s birthdays.)
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