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Tuesday, January 31, 2023

J. Krishnamurti - How Does The Mind Become Quiet?

Eggs

 Yahoo News: Egg prices to remain high due to bird flu, economists say By Rick Kelley

5 UFO Encounters

Because who doesn't like at least a little bit, a good UFO story with video.

Ari Melber - Losing - See Trump Under Oath After Caving To New York A.G.

Exposed

 The Daily Beast: Trump in Even More Legal Hot Water After Lying to Judge - Trump’s lies were exposed after he was caught talking out of both sides of his mouth. By Jose Pagliery

Making Monsters

 Axios: Trump unveils sweeping attack on trans rights By Shawna Chen

A Daily Occurrence

 CBS News: U.S. Omaha police fatally shoot armed man in Target store with "people hiding"

The Lincoln Project - Last Week In The Republican Party - January 31, 2023

Lapdog

 Rolling Stone: Lindsey Graham Makes Desperate Case for Trump as 2024 Bid Sputters - The senator from South Carolina isn't letting anyone near his seat as the former president's most loyal lapdog By Ryan Bort

Reuters - Exxon Reaps Historic $56 Billion In Profit In 2022

CNS News - Excerpts Of Donald Trump's Deposition In New York Attorney General's Fraud Investigation

Talking Feds - Trump Pleads The Fifth In New Damaging Video

Andrea Mitchell - NY Prosecutors Escalate Probe Into Trump $130k Payment To Stormy Daniels

Ice

 NPR: An ice storm is unleashing treacherous conditions across parts of the Southern U.S. By Joe Hernandez

Apart

 Washington Post: Opinion - America is in a ‘Great Pulling Apart.’ Can we pull together? By Danielle Allen

Finally, there’s the challenge that social media has blasted one of the original pillars of our Constitution out from under us. Geographic dispersal of the citizenry was supposed to mean that people had to go through elected representatives to get their views into the public sphere.

Deal

 NY Times: Biden Demands Details on Budget Cuts From McCarthy - Ahead of a meeting at the White House on Wednesday, administration officials demanded that Republicans commit to avoiding a default on federal debt. By Jim Tankersley

Lawsuit

WUSA9: Trump served wrongful death lawsuit in connection to death of Capitol Police Officer - The suit was filed on January 6th this year by Officer Brian Sicknick's longtime girlfriend Sandra Garza. It seeks $10 million from Trump and two others.

Reuters - Protest In France Disrupts Power, Transport And Schools

Morning Joe - 'Looks Like They Are Moving Closer To Bringing Charges' - Reporter On Grand Jury

MSNBC - Santos Says He Will Recuse Himself From Sitting On Committees

Talking Feds - Special Grand Jury Assembled In Stormy Daniels Hush Money Case

Sham

Washington Post: Opinion - The House GOP’s sham hearings are fizzling before they even begin By Jennifer Rubin

Limit

 NY Times: In Debt Limit Fight, Republicans Won’t Say What Spending Cuts They Want - A renewed focus on fiscal restraint in the debt limit standoff with Democrats poses its own political risks. By Alan Rappeport

The Onion - Biden Secures Nation Extra Trash Can

 The Onion: Biden Secures Nation Extra Trash Can

Declaration

 Axios: Biden administration mulls public health emergency declaration on abortion By Oriana Gonzalez

Merton

"Do not be too quick to assume your enemy is a savage just because he is your enemy. Perhaps he is your enemy because he thinks you are a savage. Or perhaps he is afraid of you because he feels that you are afraid of him. And perhaps if he believed you are capable of loving him he would no longer be your enemy." - Thomas Merton, monk, writer 1915-1968

Have An Excellent Tuesday

My new solo piano track - 'Golden Eyes Waltz'

BBC News - Fears Of Further New Zealand Flood Damage As New Alerts Issued

Reuters - What To Expect When A Green Comet Visits Earth

Rachel Maddow - Trump Stormy Daniels Payment Case Resumes Beyond Reach Of Bill Barr's Obstacles

Ari Melber - Matt Gaetz Condemns Jan 6 Violence, Denies Trump W.H. Pardon Testimony

John Flannery - January 30, 2023

Glenn Kirschner - NY DA Alvin Bragg Opens A Grand Jury Probe And Again Begins Investigating The Crimes Of Donald Trump

Poll

 The Bulwark: Exclusive Bulwark Poll: Most Republicans Want to Move on from Trump - But more than a quarter of likely voters are ready to follow him to a third party bid. By Sarah Longwell

Dairy

 Guardian UK: US dairy policies drive small farms to ‘get big or get out’ as monopolies get rich - Exclusive: Misguided policies have hurt small-scale farms while enriching agribusinesses and corporate lobbyists, analysis shows By Nina Lakhani climate justice reporter

Tapes

 Guardian UK: Donald Trump sues Bob Woodward over The Trump Tapes for $50m - Former president claims Washington Post reporter ‘never got his permission to release these tapes’ By Martin Pengelly in New York

Michael Luttig

 Washington Post: A conservative judge helped stop Trump on Jan. 6. He wants to finish the job. Michael Luttig, one of the most celebrated legal minds of his generation, never ascended to the Supreme Court. But many think the retired jurist played a far more consequential role for the nation. Now he envisions ‘the beginning of the end of Donald Trump.’ By Manuel Roig-Franzia

“What Nixon did was just an ordinary crime,” Luttig says. “What Trump has done is quite arguably the worst crime against the United States that a president could commit.”

Pakistan

 Washington Post: Pakistan reels after bombing kills almost 100, fears more terrorism to come By Haq Nawaz Khan and Pamela Constable

It's Improving

 NY Times: Will Americans Even Notice an Improving Economy? By Paul Krugman

Imagine that your picture of the U.S. economy came entirely from headlines and cable news chyrons. Would you know that real gross domestic product has risen 6.7 percent under President Biden, that America gained 4.5 million jobs in 2022 and that inflation over the past six months, which was indeed very high last winter, was less than 2 percent at an annual rate?

War

 NY Times: Russia-Ukraine War - Russia and Ukraine Locked in ‘Very Tough’ Battle for Bakhmut

The Market On Tuesday

 Good morning. At 6:50 a.m. ET DOW futures are -145, S&P futures are -17.25, and NASDAQ futures are -72. The market is poised to open significantly lower.

CNN: French workers bring Paris to a standstill in second mass strike over pension reforms By Pierre Bairin and Hanna Ziady

Monday, January 30, 2023

Trusting

 Yahoo News: Trump makes shocking comments about trusting Putin over US ‘intelligence lowlifes’ By John Bowden

'In The Evening, The Sun Is Going Down'

Lightnin' Hopkins

Beware


 

Georgia

 Washington Post via MSN: The crimes Trump could be charged with in Fulton County, Georgia Story By Aaron Blake

Solicitation to commit election fraud

This involves inducing someone else to commit a crime involving an election. There are both felony and misdemeanor versions, depending upon whether the underlying crime is a felony or misdemeanor.

BBC News - The Joy And The Trauma Of Carrying A Celebrity's Baby

Reuters - Ukraine's Zelenskiy Calls For Russia Olympic Ban

MSNBC - 'Atrocity, Worse Than Trump’ - George Santos Hammered For Mounting Lies By Stephen A. Smith

Between Two Ferns With Zach Galifianakis - Keanu Reeves

Cause

Quanta Magazine: The Cause of Depression Is Probably Not What You Think - Depression has often been blamed on low levels of serotonin in the brain. That answer is insufficient, but alternatives are coming into view and changing our understanding of the disease. By Joanna Thompson

Stormy

NPR:  Manhattan DA presenting evidence in Trump-Stormy Daniels investigation to grand jury By Andrea Bernstein

Details

 Washington Post: Opinion - Awful new details about the Durham probe demand a serious response By Greg Sargent

...the (Senate) Judiciary Committee is in a position to investigate the Barr-Durham escapades.

Sen. Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.), the Judiciary Committee chair, is signaling such an intent.

Complicit

 NY Times: You Don’t Have to Be Complicit in Our Culture of Destruction By David Marchese

In Potawatomi ways of thinking, we uphold humility. Edbesendowen is the word that we give for it: somebody who doesn’t think of himself or herself as more important than others. What that means is that everybody is as important as you are, and what that creates is this sense of vitality and community and family.

BBC News - German Stag-Calling Contest Takes Place In Dortmund

Reuters - Pope Francis To Visit Two Fragile African Nations

Morning Joe - Far-right Spreads Misinformation About Paul Pelosi Attack

Morning Joe - Most Say House GOP Has The Wrong Priorities - Polling

Pakistan

 Washington Post: Blast rips through police mosque in northwest Pakistan, killing at least 44 By Haq Nawaz Khan

Case

 Fascinating, this article comes out on the heals of a CNN clip on why Trump was not indicted for Stormy Daniels. Who do we believe. The proof is in the pudding, either Trump is indicted or not.

 NY Times: Manhattan Prosecutors Will Begin Presenting Trump Case to Grand Jury The Manhattan district attorney’s decision represents a dramatic escalation of the inquiry, and sets the case on a path toward criminal charges against the former president. By William K. Rashbaum, Ben Protess and Jonah E. Bromwich

A conviction is not a sure thing, in part because a case could hinge on showing that Mr. Trump and his company falsified records to hide the payout from voters days before the 2016 election, a low-level felony charge that would be based on a largely untested legal theory.

The Onion - Drop Box Outside National Archives Allows Ex-Presidents To Anonymously Return Classified Documents

 The Onion: Drop Box Outside National Archives Allows Ex-Presidents To Anonymously Return Classified Documents

Food

 Axios: Food inflation slowed down last month — but the relief may not last By Kavya Beheraj and Alex Fitzpatrick

CNN - Book Reveals Why Trump Wasn't Charged For Stormy Daniels Hush Money Payments

Differently

 DW: Could Adolf Hitler's seizure of power have been prevented? By Julia Hitz and Stuart Braun  - Adolf Hitler's rise to Reich Chancellor on January 30, 1933 changed world history, yet a new Berlin exhibition imagines how things might have turned out differently.

Online

 Huffington Post: Inside The Online Community Where Home-Schoolers Learn How To Turn Their Kids Into ‘Wonderful Nazis’ - A Telegram group called Dissident Homeschool has been a resource for neo-Nazis who want to teach their kids hate at home. Now its administrators have been unmasked. By Christopher Mathias

Have An Excellent Monday

'Woop Baby' - Letherette

BBC News - Toxic Slimming Pill Drug DNP To Be Declared Poison In The UK

Reuters - New Zealand Counts The Costs Of Deadly Floods

MSNBC - The GOP's Embrace Of Marjorie Taylor Greene

John Flannery - January 29, 2023

Glenn Kirschner - Donald Trump Goes Out For Ice Cream While The Folks He Told To Attack The US Capitol Go To Prison

Free Speech Indeed

 The Bulwark: Dark and Nasty Republicans Propose Drag Brunch (and Maybe Gay Pride) Bans in Several States - The free speech party strikes again. By Tim Miller

Photography

 Guardian UK: The best original photographs from the Observer - Original Observer Photography - Food, protests and thousands of Barbies – the best original photographs from the Observer commissioned in January 2023 By Josy Forsdike

Fascists

 Guardian UK: Far-right project that pushed election lies expands mission as Trump ramps up 2024 campaign By Peter Stone in Washington

War

 Washington Post: Along front-line river, this deadly road shows toll of Russia’s war By Siobhán O'Grady and Anastacia Galouchka

The (Dnieper) river limits territorial advances, permitting — for now at least — only destruction from a distance.

Pattern

 Washington Post: Opinion - The economy keeps defying media expectations. It’s part of a pattern. By Jennifer Rubin

(Biden said) “I’m not sure the news could have been any better — economic growth is up stronger than experts expected, 2.9 percent...I don’t think it’s unfair to say that this is all evidence that [the] Biden economic plan is actually working.”

Blame

 NY Times: Donald Trump Isn’t the Only One to Blame for the Capitol Riot. I’d Know. By James Sasso - Mr. Sasso served as senior investigative counsel for the Jan. 6 committee and worked on drafting its final report.

Like any good liar, Mr. Trump succeeded by building his lies off a truth; people no longer trust the federal government because they see its corroded institutions as corrupted for the few against the many.

Garbage

 NY Times: Matt Gaetz, Political Arsonist, Has New Powers. What Will He Do With Them? “I am not some ‘Lord of the Flies’ nihilist,” said the far-right congressman and chief tormentor of Speaker Kevin McCarthy. By Robert Draper

The Market On Monday

 Good morning at 6:50 a.m. ET DOW futures are -254, S&P futures are -41.5, and NASDAQ futures are -170.25. The market is poised to open significantly lower.

CNN: Norway discovers huge trove of metals, minerals and rare earths on its seabed By Reuters and Laura Paddison

Gnossiennes - No. 2

The music of Erik Satie

Test

 MSNBC: Trump's 2024 MAGA litmus test - This time, cruelty is no longer enough. By Charlie Sykes, MSNBC Opinion Columnist

Friday, January 27, 2023

Weekend!

 Have an excellent weekend and see you bright and early Monday morning.

Unbearable

 NY Times: Live Updates: Memphis Releases Video of Officers Beating Tyre Nichols - Five police officers from a special street crimes unit were fired and charged with murder after the fatal attack. Officials and the Nichols family have called for peaceful protest.

Santos

 Mother Jones: We Tried to Call the Top Donors to George Santos’ 2020 Campaign. Many Don’t Seem To Exist - The list of matters to investigate keeps growing. By Noah Lanard and David Corn

John Flannery - January 27, 2023

NBA Legends Explain Why Michael Jordan Was Better Than Everybody

Between Two Ferns With Zach Galifianakis - Charlize Theron

Washington Post - Tyre Nichols's Mother Calls For Peaceful Protests

The Mary Trump Show - The 3 Stooges In The House Of Horrors

Ari Melber - After Hannity Confession In Billion Dollar Lies Case - Fox Eyes DeSantis Over Trump

Ari Melber - Trump And Barr Lose As ‘Deep State’ Bomb Goes Off - Failed DOJ Plot Revealed In Exposé

Palestinian Gunman

 NPR: At least 7 people killed in a Jerusalem synagogue shooting By Daniel Estrin

DeSantis

Washington Post: Opinion - New fears about Ron DeSantis’s book crackdowns show his odious game By Greg Sargent

Profile

 NY Times: We Profiled the ‘Signs of Crisis’ in 50 Years of Mass Shootings. This Is What We Found. By Jillian Peterson and James Densley

He was very angry about having to pay child support.

Four killed in Rothschild, Wis., on March 22, 2017

Reuters - A Russian Cemetery Shows Wagner's Army Of Convicts

Taking Feds - Appalling Misconduct In Durham Investigation Exposed

The Lincoln Project - RNC Chaos

Morning Joe - Richard Haass On The Importance Of Putting Country Before Party

Evolution

 Washington Post: See the evolution of lies in George Santos’s campaign biography By Azi Paybarah, Luis Melgar and Tyler Remmel

What Could Possibly Go Wrong

Yahoo News: Wisconsin Supreme Court Candidate Is Trying to Open a Gun Range That Serves Alcohol By Susan Rinkunas

Rural

 NY Times: Can Anything Be Done to Assuage Rural Rage? By Paul Krugman

...depend on two things: whether it’s possible to improve rural lives and restore rural communities, and whether the voters in these communities will give politicians credit for any improvements that do take place.

The Onion - U.S. Officials Announce Plans To Continue Pretending Brutal State-Sponsored Violence Not Supposed To Happen

The Onion: U.S. Officials Announce Plans To Continue Pretending Brutal State-Sponsored Violence Not Supposed To Happen

Zients

 Axios: Biden confirms Jeff Zients will be chief of staff By Erin Doherty

Home

 Maine Public: This Maine home can stay 70 degrees without a furnace, even when it's freezing outside By Keith Shortall

Have An Excellent Friday

My brand new piano track, 'Golden Eyes Waltz'

BBC News - Israel Says It Has Carried Out Air Strikes On Palestinian Militants In Gaza

Reuters - Princess Eugenie Speaks On Environment And Climate Change

Alex Wagner - Andrew Weissmann - 'Beyond Shocking' - Report Exposes Corruption Of Durham Probe As Political Weapon For Trump

Alex Wagner - Report Exposes Durham As Tool Of Barr's Political Weaponization Of DOJ

Glenn Kirschner - The Ugly Truth Exposed About The Durham/Barr Investigation Of Those Who Investigated Trump-Russia

Knots

 The Bulwark: Biden Critics Lie Themselves into Knots Defending Pence - Hypocrisy and distortion in Republicans’ attempts to find critical differences between the two classified documents cases. By William Saletan

Renters

Guardian UK: US renters worry about living with gas stoves amid new air pollution concerns - Lack of choice over appliances is acutely felt in low-income housing as new research reveals extent of indoor air pollution By Aliya Uteuova

Of Course

 Guardian UK: Revealed: Trump secretly donated $1m to discredited Arizona election ‘audit’ By Brendan Fischer and Ed Pilkington

War

 Washington Post: Ukraine faces logistics hurdles ahead of tank deliveries By Loveday Morris, Emily Rauhala, Dan Lamothe and David L. Stern

But the broader package pieced together this week by the United States and other European nations includes a hodgepodge of tank models, each with different delivery times and unique logistical hurdles.

Santos

 Washington Post: Opinion - George Santos is a fraud. Expel him from the House. By Eugene Robinson

North Carolina

 NY Times: Anti-Gay? Anti-Science? Antisemitic? Run for Governor of North Carolina! By Frank Bruni

The likeliest Republican nominee, Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson...He’d be the state’s first Black governor...and he’s extremism incarnate: gun-loving, gay-hating and primed for conspiracy theories, with a garnish of antisemitism to round out the plate.

Colorado River

 NY Times: As the Colorado River Shrinks, Washington Prepares to Spread the Pain - The seven states that rely on the river for water are not expected to reach a deal on cuts. It appears the Biden administration will have to impose reductions. By Christopher Flavelle

The Market On Friday

 Good morning. At 7:05 a.m. ET DOW futures are -21, S&P futures are -9.75, and NASDAQ futures are -55.25. The market is poised to open moderately lower.

CNN: Chevron earnings soar to a record By Chris Isidore

Thursday, January 26, 2023

Back


 

SUV

 Guardian UK: Pepper spray for the school run? The weaponised SUV set to terrify America’s streets - The extreme features of the Rezvani Vengeance – including electrified door handles and blinding strobe lights – are wholly in tune with lethal trends in the US market By Oliver Wainwright



The Borowitz Report - Giuliani Praises George Santos - 'The G.O.P. Must Pass The Torch To A New Generation Of Liars'

 New Yorker: Giuliani Praises George Santos: “The G.O.P. Must Pass the Torch to a New Generation of Liars” By Andy Borowitz

'Down By The River' 1970

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young

indeed

 National Review: Trump Has Completely Lost His Grip on Reality By Charles C. W. Cooke - The former president’s deterioration is on full display in the Truth Social asylum he built for himself.

Reuters - The 'Oldest' Mummy Yet May Have Been Uncovered

Chris Hayes - Covid Conspiracist Marjorie Taylor Greene Tapped To Investigate Pandemic

Andrea Mitchell - Dmitri Alperovitch - Russia ‘Effectively Getting Around The Sanctions That Have Been Put In Place’

Ari Melber - See GOP Demolished With Debt Facts - Trump And Bush Drove The Trillion Dollar Deficits

Police

 NPR: 5 Memphis ex-police are charged with murder and jailed over the death of Tyre Nichols By Franklin Jonathan and Russell Lewis

Got That Right

 Washington Post: Biden hails economic progress, warns of chaos if GOP policies prevail

The Deep Corruption Within The Trump Administration

 NY Times: Barr Pressed Durham to Find Flaws in the Russia Investigation. It Didn’t Go Well. The review by John Durham at one point veered into a criminal investigation related to Donald Trump himself, even as it failed to find wrongdoing in the origins of the Russia inquiry. By Charlie Savage, Adam Goldman and Katie Benner

Mr. Barr and Mr. Durham never disclosed that their inquiry expanded in the fall of 2019, based on a tip from Italian officials, to include a criminal investigation into suspicious financial dealings related to Mr. Trump. The specifics of the tip and how they handled the investigation remain unclear, but Mr. Durham brought no charges over it.

'Distant Echo'

Have A Cigar is pianist/composer Marc Vliegen

Reuters - U.S. Economy Posts Strong Growth In Fourth Quarter

Morning Joe - George Conway - Trump Rejoining Facebook, Instagram Won’t Work Out Well

Morning Joe - Congress At Stalemate On Debt Ceiling Legislation

Garland

 Washington Post: Opinion - Garland’s special counsels: The mistake keeps getting worse By Jennifer Rubin

Rushdie - Victory City

 NY Times: Salman Rushdie Has a New Book, and a Message: ‘Words Are the Only Victors’ - Nearly six months after he was brutally attacked, Rushdie is recovering and releasing a new novel, with the literary world rallying to his side. By Alexandra Alter and Elizabeth A. Harris

The Onion - Man Buys Slice Of Honey-Roasted Ham For Attractive Woman At Other End Of Deli Counter

 The Onion: Man Buys Slice Of Honey-Roasted Ham For Attractive Woman At Other End Of Deli Counter

Good

 Axios: FBI shuts down servers, website tied to notorious ransomware gang By Sam Sabin

Write

 Yours truly has been writing a series of short stories.

Get Pocket: How to Write (Almost) Anything, From a Great Joke to a Killer Cover Letter - Whether you’re just looking to punch up your tweets or have ambitions to write the Great American Novel, we’ve got you covered. By Alex Dalenberg

2.1%

 Washington Post: U.S. economy grew 2.1 percent in 2022, but recession fears linger - GDP report shows six months of solid growth, including 2.9 percent expansion in the most recent quarter, though many economists say a slowdown may be near By Abha Bhattarai

Have An Excellent Thursday

 Artwork By Mildred Anne Butler 1858 - 1941





BBC News - Ukraine Welcomes Western Tanks As Russian Missile Strikes Continue

Reuters - India Celebrates Republic Day

Lawrence O'Donnell - Sen. Tester - 'Over My Dead Body' Will Republicans Pass 30% Sales Tax Bill

Stephanie Ruhle - Ex-Proud Boy Testifies Against Group’s Leaders

Glenn Kirschner - Demands For DOJ And Senate Judiciary Investigation Of New Misconduct Allegations About Brett Kavanaugh

John Flannery - January 25, 2023

Senate

 The Bulwark: The Democrats’ Senate Map of Doom Twenty-three Democratic Senate seats are up in 2024. By Amanda Carpenter

Sea Otters

 Guardian UK: Cute, furry and key to the ecosystem: can sea otters save the US west coast? Campaign seeks to restore seas otters to northern California and Oregon: ‘They are really important to coastal ecosystems’ By Dani Anguiano in Los Angeles

Reckless

 Facebook gives Trump a second chance and Trump hasn't changed in the least little bit, in fact he's worse than ever.

 Guardian UK: ‘Reckless’: Fury among rights groups as Facebook lifts Trump ban - Civil rights groups voice anger at ‘unethical’ decision, while others say the public has an interest in hearing directly from candidates for political office By Samantha Lock

DeSantis

 DeSantis is the new Lester Maddox.

 Washington Post: Backlash grows against DeSantis decision to block AP African American studies class By Lori Rozsa

His legal team noted that a federal judge found a 2010 law in Arizona that banned a Mexican American studies program from Tucson schools unconstitutional and officials “motivated by racial animus.”

Feud

 Washington Post: Biden to blast House GOP over economic agenda amid debt ceiling feud - The White House maintains it will not negotiate with the new GOP majority over its refusal to raise the debt ceiling By Tony Romm

R.N.C.

 In a way this is a meaningless article. What is of interest is that Trump does not have 100% support. In my opinion he is the presumptive nominee for the GOP for 2024.

 NY Times: An R.N.C. Remade by Trump Backs Away From His 2024 Campaign - Interviews with more than a third of the Republican National Committee’s members point to a desire for an alternative presidential nominee to emerge from a competitive primary. By Reid J. Epstein and Lisa Lerer

“This isn’t 2016,” said Mac Brown, the chairman of the Republican Party of Kentucky. “People have moved on.”

GDP

 NY Times: G.D.P. ReportThe U.S. Economy Is Set for Solid Growth

Forecasters predict that a rise in fourth-quarter gross domestic product will exceed the pace seen before the pandemic, as a strong job market and cooling inflation allowed Americans to keep spending.

The Market On Thursday

 Good morning. At 7:00 a.m. ET DOW futures are -23, S&P futures are +6.75, and NASDAQ futures are +68. The market is poised to open mixed. 

CNN: Stocks mixed ahead of America's economic report card By Paul R. La Monica

Wednesday, January 25, 2023

Pope

 AP News: The AP Interview: Pope says homosexuality not a crime By Nicle Winfield

Tracker

 Washington Post: For one Proud Boys tracker, trial offers long-awaited accountability - For years, Megan Squire warned about the Proud Boys’ mobilization to violence. Now, she’s watching them stand trial over the U.S. Capitol attack. By Hannah Allam

'Horizon'

The music of Czarina Frost - on Spotify

BBC News - How Important Is Germany’s Decision To Send Tanks To Ukraine?

Reuters - Strikes Ground All Flights At Berlin Airport

Andrea Mitchell - House ‘Becoming Like A Theater Full Of Actors In The Circus’ - Rep. Spartz

Talking Feds - Insurrectionists Brought To Justice For January 6th Crimes

Time

 NPR: To reignite the joy of childhood, learn to live on 'toddler time' By Rhitu Chatterjee

Plan

Washington Post: Opinion - Democrats have a two-part plan to use the debt ceiling against Republicans By Jennifer Rubin

Part 1: Lay out the simple argument that Republicans are recklessly inviting an economic meltdown even by talking about a possible default.
Part 2: Force House Republicans to put forward a plan on the table and watch as they struggle with the fallout.

U.K.

 NY Times: In U.K. Cost-of-Living Crisis, Some Workers Struggle to Feed Children - As inflation hits the pockets of families who already had little to spare, food banks say they are getting much busier and seeing more people with jobs. By Emma Bubola

BBC News - Woman Conceived By Rape Hopes Her Law Change To Be Classed As A Victim Helps Others

Reuters - Severe Cold Snap Sweeps Across Asia

Brian Tyler Cohen - Fulton County DA Issues Trump's Nightmare Statement

Joy Reid - Glenn Kirschner - I Believe Donald Trump Must Be Indicted To Save Our Democracy

Plan

 Washington Post: Opinion - Biden’s devious plan to break the MAGA fever just might work By Greg Sargent

Rural

NY Times: The Resentment Fueling the Republican Party Is Not Coming From the Suburbs By Thomas B. Edsall - Mr. Edsall contributes a weekly column from Washington, D.C., on politics, demographics and inequality.

In terms of major factors driving the urban-rural split, our analysis shows that rural Republican areas are becoming more Republican predominantly due to voters in these places switching their partisanship to Republican. This is in contrast to urban areas becoming increasingly more Democratic largely due to the high levels of Democratic partisanship in these areas among new voters entering the electorate. These new voters include young voters registering once they become eligible and other new voters registering for the first time.

The Onion - ‘No Way To Prevent This,’ Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens

 The Onion: ‘No Way To Prevent This,’ Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens

War

 Axios: Germany to send Leopard battle tanks to Ukraine By Laurin-Whitney Gottbrath

Gut

 New Atlas: Buddhist monk microbiome study reveals impact of meditation on gut bacteria By Rich Haridy

'Toscana'

The music of Kirsten Agresta Copely and Jürg Kindle - on Spotify

Ants

 Washington Post: An ant’s sense of smell is so strong, it can sniff out cancer - A study published this week points to the potential of someday using sharp-nosed animals to detect tumors quickly and cheaply By Dino Grandoni

Have An Excellent Wednesday

 Artwork By Jo Stephen, contemporary UK photographer, ecologist and artist 




BBC News - Chris Hipkins Sworn In As New Zealand Prime Minister

Reuters - New Push For U.S. Assault Weapons Ban After Shootings

Ari Melber - 'Disgusting, Like A Dog' - See The Unbelievable Trump-MSNBC Segment - Comedian Matt Friend

Ari Melber - ‘We did this’ - Smoking Gun Busts MAGA Militia Leader At Trial - Melber Breaks Down Sedition Case

Glenn Kirschner - Georgia DA Willis States That Charging Decisions Are 'Imminent' For 'Defendants' For Election Crimes

Young

 The Bulwark: Why is the Right Losing the Young? What Andrew Sullivan gets right...and absurdly wrong. By Charlie Sykes

Gates

 Guardian UK: ‘No chance’ of global heating below 1.5C but nuclear tech ‘promising’ in climate crisis, Bill Gates says Billionaire and founder of Microsoft tells Sydney audience it is ‘great to have Australia on board on climate’ By Peter Hannam

Secret

 Guardian UK: Two more papers found in Trump’s storage last year were marked secret - Since the papers were handed over swiftly, the justice department is not expected to include them as part of its wider inquiry By Hugo Lowell in Washington

Putin

 Washington Post: Opinion - Are we seeing the beginning of the end of Putinism? By Michael McFaul

The only reasonable conclusion: Putin understands that Russia is losing in Ukraine.

Wisconsin

 NY Times: 2023’s Biggest, Most Unusual Race Centers on Abortion and Democracy - The election for a swing seat on Wisconsin’s Supreme Court has huge policy stakes for the battleground state. Cash is pouring in, and some of the candidates have shed any pretense of judicial neutrality.

The April race, for a seat on the state’s evenly divided Supreme Court, will determine the fate of abortion rights, gerrymandered legislative maps and the governor’s appointment powers — and perhaps even the state’s 2024 presidential election if the outcome is again contested.

War

 NY Times: Russia-Ukraine War - Germany Confirms It Will Send Leopard Tanks to Ukraine

Germany says it will send an initial shipment of 14 tanks to Ukraine.

Leopard 2 tanks could help Ukraine in a new Russian offensive.

The Market On Wednesday

 Good morning. At 7:30 a.m. ET DOW futures are -194, S&P futures are -33, and NASDAQ futures are -160.25. The market is poised to open significantly lower.

CNN: Justin Bieber just sold his entire music catalog. Here’s why companies are eager to strike these massive deals Oliver Darcy Analysis By Oliver Darcy

Tuesday, January 24, 2023

Grant

 One of the very few incidents where a presidents got into hot water with the law.

NY Times - "Ulysses S. Grant, while still president, was arrested for speeding in his horse-drawn carriage in Washington, D.C. He paid a $20 bond but never showed up to court."

USA


 

'Starlight'

Kyūka - on Spotify

Compare

Screenshot from an NPR article


 

 

Washington Post - How 3 Countries Responded To Mass Shootings

Reuters - What Is The 'Doomsday Clock'?

Ari Melber - Guilty - Trump Rioter Who Put Feet On Pelosi’s Desk Convicted On All Counts

Liberal Redneck - The State Of Conspiracy Theories

Compare

 NPR: How gun violence deaths in the U.S. compare with the rest of the world By Nurith Aizenman

DeSantis

 Washington Post: Opinion - A judge exposes DeSantis’s contempt for the First Amendment By Jennifer Rubin

War

 NY Times: Russia-Ukraine War U.S. Moves Closer to Sending Tanks to Ukraine; Germany Says It Will Decide Soon

LOL

 Please tell me I'm not the only person in America who does NOT have classified documents in their garage.

NBC News: Classified documents found at Pence's Indiana home - Pence's lawyer confirmed the discovery in letters obtained by NBC News.

Talking Feds - Federal Judge Calls Trump Mastermind Of Abuse In Devastating Sanctions Order

Morning Joe - Sen. Booker To GOP On Debt Limit - Govern Or Get Out Of The Way

Reuters - Life No Longer Rosy As Senegal's Pink Lake Turns Green

Morning Joe - Eugene Robinson - The DOJ Has To Go After Trump For What He Did

Oscar

 Washington Post: 2023 Oscar nominations: ‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’ dominates - ‘The Banshees of Inisherin’ and Germany’s ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’ closely followed. By Sonia Rao and Emily Yahr

California

 NY Times: California Mass Shootings‘Tragedy Upon Tragedy’: State Reels From Mounting Massacres in 3 Days

The Onion - It Kind Of Sweet CEO Thinks He Doing Good Job

 The Onion: It Kind Of Sweet CEO Thinks He Doing Good Job

Forward

 Axios: War in Ukraine pushes Doomsday Clock forward By Ivana Saric

Sign


 

'New Beginnings'

Pianist and composer Becky Ainge - on Spotify

Have An Excellent Tuesday

Artwork By Jim 




 

BBC News - Russian President Putin’s Kremlin Targets LGBT Community In New Crackdown

Reuters - Leopard Tank Maker Rheinmetall Expects Busy Year

Stephanie Ruhle - Former Top FBI Counterintelligence Agent Arrested

 There's a meme that is getting passed around today on Charles McConigal. He allegedly was the senior 2016 FBI investigator finding no link between Trump and Russia. With his arrest on laundering money for a Russian Oligarch, the implications are considerable.

Chris Hayes - New Details On McCarthy's 'Ironclad' Alliance With Marjorie Taylor Greene

Glenn Kirschner - More Oath Keepers And Other Trump Foot-Soldiers Convicted Of Seditious Conspiracy And Other 1/6 Crimes

War

 The Bulwark: As Germany Delays, Ukrainians Die - The cost of German dithering over delivery of tanks to Ukraine is measured in lives unnecessarily lost. By Eric Edelman and David J. Kramer

Wood

 Guardian UK: Wood banks emerge as vital source of heat while US gas bills still on the rise - Wood banks distribute firewood to people in need as the average US gas bill goes up by 28% this winter By Aliya Uteuova

Jeopardy

 Guardian UK: Trump and allies face legal jeopardy in Georgia over 2020 election interference - Judge considers releasing grand jury report as DA weighs pressing charges against former president and his ally Rudolph Giuliani By Chris McGreal

Answer

 Washington Post: Opinion - The only way to stop senseless mass shootings? You know the answer. By Eugene Robinson

According to the Switzerland-based Small Arms Survey, there are 393 million firearms in the United States, which has a population of roughly 334 million.

Unmask

 Washington Post: Opinion 4 big ways Democrats can unmask MAGA extremism — and help the country By Greg Sargent

1. Use amendments to highlight GOP divisions

DeSantis

 NY Times: Ron DeSantis Likes His Culture Wars for a Reason By Jamelle Bouie

By leaning into high-profile battles as a culture warrior par excellence for the most reactionary segment of the American public...DeSantis has made himself the hero of conservative elites...

California

 NY Times: 7 Killed in Half Moon Bay as California Mourns Earlier Mass Shooting - The police arrested a 67-year-old suspect, who the county sheriff said was “fully cooperating.” By Holly Secon, John Yoon and Jin Yu Young

The Market On Tuesday

 Good morning. At 7:35 a.m. ET implied DOW futures are -104, implied S&P futures are -11.25, and implied NASDAQ futures are -48.25. The market is poised to open significantly lower.

CNN: Dozens of journalists were killed last year amid a ‘precipitous decline in press freedom,’ alarming new report finds Analysis By Oliver Darcy

'Spiegel Im Spiegel'

 The music of Arvo Pärt performed by Nadia Vasileva and Luke Faulkner

Monday, January 23, 2023

'Slippin' Into Darkness'

War

Decision

 CBS News: For first-term Georgia prosecutor Fani Willis, a historic decision looms in Trump election investigation By Chrissy Hallowell and Graham Kates

Climate

 Carbon Brief: State of the climate: How the world warmed in 2022

Greenhouse gases: Concentrations reached record levels for CO2, methane and nitrous oxide.

Last year was the warmest on record for the heat content of the world’s oceans.

Slightly

 Get Pocket: 100 Ways to Slightly Improve Your Life Without Really Trying - Whether it’s taking fruit to work (and to the bedroom!), being polite to rude strangers or taking up skinny-dipping, here’s a century of ways to make life better, with little effort involved.

37

 I posted that there were 36 mass shootings in 2023 in the USA up to January 23rd. I posted too soon. The  37th mass shooting has occurred.

 ABC30.com: Half Moon Bay shootings: 4 dead, 3 critically injured after incidents at 2 farms; suspect in custody Authorities say there are several people hurt after shooting at Mountain Mushroom Farm and Rice Trucking-Soil Farm in HMB.

Four

 NY Times: Four More Oath Keepers Members Convicted of Sedition in Second Trial - The four members of the far-right militia were found guilty of seditious conspiracy nearly two months after the group’s leader, Stewart Rhodes, was convicted of the same charge in a separate proceeding. By Zach Montague

36 In 23 Days

 Insider: There have already been at least 36 mass shootings in America so far in 2023. Here's the full list. By Grace Eliza Goodwin and Shayanne Gal

Reuters - Lab-Grown Meat Moves Closer To U.S. Restaurants

Washington Post - Want To Feel Happier? Here Are 3 Ways To Snack On Joy

MSNBC - Eleventh Victim Dies In Wake Of Monterey Park Shooting

Talking Feds - Trump Crimes Even More Apparent With Biden Cooperation

Alternatives

 NPR: Looking for Amazon alternatives for ethical shopping? Here are some ideas By Kaitlyn Radde

Plan

 Washington Post: Opinion - The GOP tax plan is to let the rich pay less and make you pay more By Jennifer Rubin

E.P.A.

 NY Times: Depleted Under Trump, a ‘Traumatized’ E.P.A. Struggles With Its Mission - Despite an injection of funding, the agency still has not recovered from an exodus of scientists and policy experts, both insiders and critics say. By Lisa Friedman

...the exodus of more than 1,200 scientists and policy experts during the Trump administration.

Flu

 Fortune: An ‘unprecedented pandemic of avian flu’ is wreaking havoc on the U.S. poultry industry. Humans may be at risk too, experts warn By Erin Prater

Four More


 

BBC News - Japan ‘On The Brink’ Over Falling Birth Rate Says PM

Reuters - FDA Clears Exoskeleton For Stroke Rehabilitation

Morning Joe - Sen. Warren - Republicans Are Threatening To Wreck Our Economy To Protect A Wealthy Handful

Morning Joe - Richard Haass On The Ten Habits Of Good Citizens

Core

 Washington Post: Earth’s inner core seems to be slowing its spin - This isn’t the beginning of the end times. Instead the findings stoke debate about how the core influences some of the most fundamental parts of our planet. By Carolyn Y. Johnson

Inflation

 NY Times: Inflation Is Cooling, Leaving America Asking: What Comes Next? After six months of declines, inflation seems to be turning a corner. But the road back to normal is an uncertain one. By Jeanna Smialek

The Onion - Alito, Thomas Share Laugh After Discovering They Both Leaked Dobbs Decision

 The Onion: Alito, Thomas Share Laugh After Discovering They Both Leaked Dobbs Decision

Know

 Axios: What we know about the Monterey Park mass shooting By Ivana Saric

Stefanik

 From June 2022

 Rolling Stone: Trump’s Favorite House Republican Is Married to the Gun Industry - Elise Stefanik’s husband is employed by a top firearms front group, in a setup an expert calls “legal but dubious” By Tim Dickinson

'The Forest Maiden'

Pianist Karen Biehl

Have An Excellent Monday

 Artwork By Adolph Gottlieb 1903 - 1974






BBC News - Israelis Stage Giant Protest Against Netanyahu Court Reform

Reuters - Germany Won't Stop Poland From Sending Tanks To Kyiv

MSNBC - Vice President Harris Speaks On 50th Anniversary Of Roe Versus Wade

Glenn Kirschner - The Dramatic Difference Between DOJ's Search Of Biden's Home And The Search Warrant For Trump's Home

John Flannery - January 22, 2023

Defund

 The Bulwark: How the Freedom Caucus Hopes to Defund the Police - The Holman Rule is a potent tool for targeting civil servants. By Don Beyer

Dolphins

 Guardian UK: Delight as dolphins spotted in New York’s Bronx River - Encouraging sign for river that suffered as dumping ground for waste from nearby factories By Oliver Milman

72

 Guardian UK: Monterey Park shooting suspect, 72, found dead of self-inflicted gunshot - Motive for attack remains unclear as police identify gunman who killed at least 10 people at LA-area dance studio By Lois Beckett in Los Angeles

Officials have identified the shooter as as Huu Can Tran, a 72-year-old Asian man.

Pence

 Washington Post: Opinion - Mike Pence sits alone in a corner of sadness By David Byler

According to the latest data from Civiqs, he’s the only potential GOP presidential candidate who is well-known but not well-liked.

Jacinda Arden

 Washington Post: Opinion - Distinguished pol of the week: Jacinda Ardern was the icon democracy needed By Jennifer Rubin

Extremists

 NY Times: How Kevin McCarthy Forged an Ironclad Bond With Marjorie Taylor Greene - The close alliance that has developed between the speaker and the hard-right Georgia Republican explains his rise, how he might govern and the heavy influence of the extremes on the new House G.O.P. majority. By Jonathan Swan and Catie Edmondson

“I will never leave that woman,” Mr. McCarthy, a California Republican, told the friend...

Shooting

 NY Times: Live Updates: Investigators Seek Motive in Deadly California Shooting - The shooting at a popular ballroom shocked a small community east of Los Angeles. Police praised a man as a hero for disarming the suspect at a second dance hall.

The dance hall is popular with older Chinese Americans and draws marquee teachers and high-level performers from around the world.

The Market On Monday

 Good morning. I will be using the implied opening numbers starting today. At 6:20 a.m. ET the implied DOW opening is -9.85, the implied S&P opening is -6.34, and the implied NASDAQ opening is -17.21. The  market is poised to open moderately lower.

CNN: Nearly 220 million people in Pakistan without power after countrywide outage By Sophia Saifi, Azaz Syed and Rhea Mogu

Balkan

 The picture tells the story.

Euronews: Big embarrassment': Balkan river becomes floating rubbish dump By Euronews

'L'amour'

Nolwenn Leroy

Walking

 Get Pocket: Benefits of Walking: Is Walking Every Day Really Enough Exercise? Walking may combat brain ageing and memory loss—but is it enough exercise to keep you fit? By Aiden Wynn

Quantum

Live Science: Do quantum universes really exist? By Paul Sutter - In some interpretations of quantum mechanics, such as the Many-Worlds interpretation or the Pilot Wave Theory, parallel universes may form every time a subatomic particle goes through any interaction.

Five Stretches

 Get Pocket: Five Stretches You Should Do Every Day Even if you never work out. By Rachel Feltman

Friday, January 20, 2023

Weekend!

 Have an excellent weekend and see you bright and early Monday morning.

Chris Hayes - What The George Santos Drag Queen Denial Reveals About The Republican Party

'Oop Ta Ti Ta'

Ari Melber - As GOP Flails Over MAGA Rebels, Dems Surge By Crushing Rigged Races

Life


 

Nicolle Wallace - Trump Fined Nearly $1 Million for ‘Revenge’ Lawsuit

Liberal Redneck - Gas And Government

Two


 

BBC News - Progress Made On Afghan Women’s Rights, Says UN

Washington Post - How Brown Noise Could Help People With ADHD

Morning Joe - Why The World Economy No Longer Needs Russia

Morning Joe - A Political Gift For The Biden White House?

Jumpin’ Jehoshaphat!

 NPR: Nearly 6-pound 'Toadzilla' found in Australia breaks the record for largest toad By Kaitlyn Radde

Not Exactly Our Best And Brightest

 Washington Post: Opinion - George Santos is exactly where he belongs By Dana Milbank

Also earning a slot on the committee: Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), a QAnon admirer who helped hatch the claim that Democrats would be arrested en masse after the 2020 election.

Crash

 NY Times: Tech Layoffs Shock Young Workers. The Older People? Not So Much. The industry’s recent job cuts have been an awakening for a generation of workers who have never experienced a cyclical crash. By Tripp Mickle - Tripp Mickle, who writes about Apple and the tech industry, reported this article from San Francisco.

Talk

 Raw Story: How to talk to someone about conspiracy theories in 5 simple steps — according to experts By The Conversation

'Field Of Thyme'

Alan Shoesmith - solo classical guitar

Morning Joe - Biden Is Underestimated By Friends, Political Enemies Alike

Morning Joe - Cincinnatti Mayor Says Democrats Are Getting Stuff Done While GOP In 'Chaos'

Downtown

 Washington Post: Opinion - Downtowns are lifeless. It’s a once-in-a-generation chance to revive them. By the Editorial Board

The nation is in the midst of one of the biggest workforce shifts in generations: Many now have experienced what it is like to work from home and have discovered they prefer it.

Down We Go

 NY Times: After Dobbs, Republicans Wrestle With What It Means to Be Anti-Abortion - Activists are pushing for tougher abortion restrictions, while politicians fear turning off swing voters who don’t support strict limits like a national ban. By Lisa Lerer and Katie Glueck

Help

 Axios: Mayors call for help with migrants and asylum seekers By Jennifer A. Kingson

Arrests

CNN: Three active-duty Marines arrested for participating in Jan. 6 US Capitol riot By Hannah Rabinowitz, Holmes Lybrand and Haley Britzky

Trend

Yahoo News: First Gen Z embraced going braless. Now, it's the 'no pants' trend. By Hannah Yasharoff

Enter The Deadliest Garden In The World

Garden

"The Poison Garden at the Alnwick Garden in Northumberland, England, is home to more than 100 toxic, intoxicating and narcotic plants. And it's open to public."



Have An Excellent Friday

Artwork By Le Corbusier 1887 - 1965