Eustress:
It suggests that some stress might be beneficial. This idea actually dates back to the 1970s, when endocrinologist Hans Selye introduced the term “eustress” – or “good” stress, which leads to healthy, positive outcomes. While eustress and its opposite distress activate the same core physiological pathways, Selye argued that “eustress causes much less damage”. [“Why the right kind of stress is crucial for your health and happiness,” Helen Thomson, NewScientist (25 April 2026; paywall)]
This should not be surprising, at least for long-time readers:
Last week’s fact-free diatribe from Rep. Harriet Hageman, R-Wyo., about the KKK supposedly being a leftist organization is a prime example. As I recently wrote, Republicans have used the Justice Department’s dubious indictment of the anti-racist Southern Poverty Law Center to falsely portray racist extremism, which the SPLC tracks and investigates, as either nonexistent or a liberal contrivance. This tactic mirrors rhetoric deployed by conservatives who sought to deny the threat of the KKK during its rise, or even its mere existence.[Ja’han Jones, MS-NOW]
The Republican Party has become populated by people who lean further and further right, and they do realize that organizations such as the ultra-conservative KKK, defender and devotee of the status quo of black servitude, have an undesirable reputation that will repel the critical independent voters.
What to do?
Blame the Democrats, and further left, for the invention of these classic ultra-conservative organizations.
Of course, when the Republican Party members sympathetic to these causes are caught mouthing the sentiments, they run the risk of being accused of being, well, Democrats. Sad for them.
But personally the day cannot be far off when the prosperity churches accuse Democrats and the left of using the Southern Baptist Convention as proxies for their devious plans.
Ahem.
President Trump was known for keeping his employees stirred up during his time in the private sector, with a few exceptions, so I suppose it’s not entirely surprising that another chunk is falling off the airplane administration in that he’s losing, or getting rid of, his Food and Drugs Administration Commissioner:
Marty Makary resigned as commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday, stepping aside amid a swirl of reports that his tenure was coming to an end over internal policy disagreements. …
CBS News and other outlets had reported in recent days that President Trump had signed off on a plan to fire him. Makary didn’t appear Monday in the Oval Office alongside the president and other top public health officials for an event on maternal health.
The thing about firing and reassigning and all that crap is that along with new responsibilities comes training and/or learning on the job, which takes time and money, both of which can be in short supply, especially given Trump’s tendency to spend on ego-gratification.
And then there’s this appalling little report from MS NOW:
A little more than an hour later, Trump posted what appears to be Makary’s resignation text to the president on his Truth Social account.
“It’s been the honor of a lifetime to serve as your FDA Commissioner,” the note said. “I am forever grateful.”
Ugh. Either the guy has no balls or it’s all a hoax.
Peurile:
ADJECTIVE
- of or relating to a child or to childhood.
Synonyms:
juvenile, youthful- childishly foolish; immature or trivial.
a puerile piece of writing. [Dictionary.com]
Yes, I did know the meaning; however, it’s an unusual word, and younger readers might be unfamiliar with it. Noted in “Trump’s U.N. ambassador says Iran ‘ceasefire’ is whatever Trump says it is,” Ja’han Jones, MS NOW:
Trump’s characterization of the so-called ceasefire with Iran is a prime example. Despite his suggestion Monday that it is “on life support,” it doesn’t seem to exist in the first place except in the president’s mind. Start with the fact that Trump has resisted calling the Iran war a “war” for what appear to be procedural reasons. The United States and Iran exchanged fire on Thursday, which apparently didn’t count. And similarly, Trump called U.S. strikes on Iran on Friday a “love tap,” suggesting he’s both hopelessly puerile for a man in his 80s and wary of the repercussions that may come with admitting the ceasefire has not ceased any of the firing.
The alleged assassination attempt on President Trump’s life at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner seems to be growing legs, and not the good sort of legs:
Source: WaPo
The breakdown:
To lighten your day.
Spudger:
A spudger (also known as a spludger or non-marring nylon black stick tool) is a tool used to separate pressure-fit plastic components without causing damage during separation. It has a wide flat-head screwdriver-like end that extends as a wedge, for easy insertion into narrow slots. [Wikipedia]
Man, how did I get to be mumblety-mumblety years old without ever hearing about spudgers!?! Oh, yeah, I’m a software guy. Noted in “Nintendo Wii DVD Drive Replacement,” David Hodson, IFIXIT:
Use a metal spudger to remove the white plastic screw covers stuck to the lower case near the front of the Wii.
And, yes, for the record I failed to repair the Wii, it flashes and dies when hitting the On button, and managed to screw the wrong screws into one place, they won’t come out, so I can’t try to fix whatever mistake it was I made.
Rep Tom Emmer (R-MN) has had a rough time with President Trump, especially when it comes to the race for Speaker of the House. Emmer was the official nominee of the Republicans for the position for a couple of hours, and then Trump brought the hammer down and, before Emmer even ascended to the chair, he was booted out.
Rather than taking revenge, he appears to be striving for our much-sought after nomination:
Emmer: "Donald Trump has never been stronger. He's become more than Donald Trump. He is an icon of the ages. When he speaks, people listen."
Emmer: “Donald Trump has never been stronger. He’s become more than Donald Trump. He is an icon of the ages. When he speaks, people listen.”
An icon of the ages? Crazy. Perhaps known as the worst President of the United States, but that’s really a statement for historians fifty years from now.
Or is he setting Trump up for a revenge shot, metaphorical of course, heard ’round the world? I dunno about that. I remember when he was running for Minnesota governor and was uttering balderdash about restaurant servers making plenty of money. He’s not too bright.
Carceral:
“pertaining to prisons or a prison,” 1570s, from Latin carceralis, from carcer “prison, jail; starting place in a race course, enclosed space,” from Proto-Italic *kar-kr(o)-, which is of uncertain origin (see incarceration). [etymonline]
Hmmmmm. Proto-Italic? Haven’t run across that one before. Noted in “My politically homeless views,” Matthew Yglesias, Slow Boring:
What’s worse, this cruelty is somewhat arbitrary because part of the badness of being in prison is that you’re subject to the capricious will of the guards and (even worse) of your fellow inmates. This overall results in a bad situation where de facto punishment is being meted out to offenders in part by the state but also in part by other incarcerated people in a way that empowers prison gangs and undermines the purposes of the carceral system.
Many Americans have an innate sense of fairness, and are often repulsed when politicians attempt to manipulate the system in a manner that might be considered improper. When I saw this in WaPo,
Supreme Court clears path for Louisiana to redraw map in redistricting fight
with this content
… I had to wonder how many moderate Republicans and independents will, in reaction to naked Republican power-hoarding, withdraw their support from extremist candidates and either not participate, or protest-vote for independents or even Democrats. This may stir up non-participating voters as well, as neighbors and family add this element to their attempts to bring those non-participants out to vote.
Backfire? Maybe, maybe not. It’s a difficult consequence to predict, and perhaps obviated by the gerrymandering that stirs it up.
Some Democrats are dissatisfied with Senator Schumer’s (D-NY) party leadership, according to this MS NOW report:
Schumer first recruited [former Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown] to run for the Senate two decades ago, and the former senator remains the party’s strongest prospect in a state where Democrats have long struggled. His nomination reflects Schumer’s calculated strategy of backing candidates with proven crossover appeal, such as former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper.
But that cautious formula has sparked blowback from progressives who argue that Schumer has misread the political moment.
Schumer “has an idea of what voters want that’s stuck in 1996,” Amanda Litman, co-founder of the progressive group Run For Something, told NOTUS, adding that he is “deeply removed from the anger that people feel.”
It’s an aphorism that the power-hungry blow up things in order to get the attention that’ll let them scale the heights, and accusing your party leadership of being ineffective is certainly one way to boom things.
But is it justified? Senator Schumer, in alliance with Speaker Pelosi (D-CA), beat the crap out of President Trump in his first term; since then, Speaker Pelosi resigned as Speaker, and has announced her retirement from the House at the end of this term. Part of her power came from being Speaker, so if the Democrats can continue a well-documented rally of special elections into the November general election, Schumer should be able to ally himself with presumed Speaker Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY). Such an alliance, as natural as it sounds, can be unusual, as Senators often see themselves as apart from their brethren in the House. Some Founding Fathers even based the governmental structure they developed on that prediction.
But Schumer may have limitations:
The limits of Schumer’s approach were on display last week in Maine. Gov. Janet Mills, whom Schumer recruited to challenge Sen. Susan Collins, dropped out of the primary after failing to keep pace with the fundraising of populist newcomer Graham Platner. It was a stinging defeat for the Democratic establishment, which had hoped Mills’ executive experience would neutralize Platner’s grassroots momentum.
The question is whether this is an unbreachable wall, or a mistake suggesting a problem in his judgment that can be corrected. The latter is one of the features of being an adult.
On the other side of the equation are the progressives yammering for power, as embodied by Litman, from the above quote. Long-time readers are well-aware that I view the strategy of transgender advocates to advance their cause to be profoundly flawed, contributing to the Republican victory of 2024, and creating a group of independents who view the Democrats and the left with deep, if not always perceptive, skepticism. Since then, it’s not been clear to me that progressives recognized and corrected their mistake; nor do Democrats, although Governor Newsom (D-CA) and Rep Moulton (D-MA) have made noises that at least indicate some awareness of this sinkhole of a blunder.
Add to that a progressive inclination towards being a purist, much like the far-right, and I have doubts about the judgment of progressives. I could be wrong, sure, but that’s how I’m reading this today.
The sand is about a foot deep and conceals many creatures that want to nip at your heels. Run.
Republican U.S. Senate candidate Royce White is subject to a no-contact order after a Minnesota judge ruled there was credible evidence of threats of harm toward his ex-wife and one of two children they have together.
In court filings, White is accused of making numerous threats and being both physically and verbally abusive toward his former partner and their teenaged son. He refutes the allegations and is appealing judicial findings in the case, telling MPR News on Thursday the order is a “substantial miscarriage of justice” and “excessively punitive.” [MPR News]
It being Minnesota, Mr. White (R), no relation, had little chance of beating either Lt Governor Flanagan (D) or Rep Craig (D), who I perceive to be the leading Democratic candidates, assuming he’d won his primary – and that’s no sure thing. Now his chances are even less. Primaries are Aug 11. Minnesota GOP Chairman Alex Plechash might be well-advised to focus on the gubernatorial race, which features Minnesota House Speaker Lisa DeMuth (R) and may be winnable due to Governor Walz’s (D) ill-handling of the fraud in food assistance, and ignore the Senate race, which lacks distinguished names on the GOP side.
There’s also a bad look for MPR News here. Refutes is emphatically not the right word, since no evidence is offered, nor court order cited; denies, or a synonym, is the appropriate word. Hire back your copy-editors, management, they make you look smart!
The pastor of the largest United Methodist Church in the U.S. launched a campaign Thursday for the Democratic nomination for a U.S. Senate seat in Kansas, upending the race in a normally Republican state as the GOP’s small majority seems less secure than it was a year ago.
The Rev. Adam Hamilton enters the race as a potentially formidable candidate, though it appears likely that at least a few of the eight other, lesser-known Democrats who previously launched campaigns would remain in the Aug. 4 primary. The winner will face incumbent Republican Roger Marshall, who aligned himself closely with President Donald Trump in his first run for the Senate in 2020. [AP]
Rev Hamilton has no experience with electoral office, but he does have this:
Hamilton, 61, has a national following among mainline Protestants, and he’s built his Church of the Resurrection over the past 35 years in the Kansas City area with about 22,000 members — giving him a base from which to tap volunteers and donors.
Unless he has a poor local reputation, I expect he’ll win the primary. If he can also win the support of Kansas Democrats, he’ll have a shot against Senator Marshall (R), who will bear the burden of being an avid Trump supporter. Kansas has had a Democratic governor for a while, and that may give an added boost to the Democrats, assuming Gov Kelly (D) doesn’t commit an unforced error. The combination of a Democratic governor (her On The Issues summation is unavailable, but captions as Moderate Liberal) and a cleric who seems unlikely to be a lefty extremist may play very well against Senator Marshall (R), rated as a Hard-Core Conservative, if Kansas voters disapprove of the circus playing out in our Nation’s capital.
Looking at FiftyPlusOne, I see a poll by Tavern Research, an unfamiliar pollster, so their result showing Rev Hamilton leading Senator Marshall is untrustworthy at present. It does suggest Rev Hamilton at least has a chance.
… Michigan Senate hopeful Mallory McMorrow pivoted to social media to remind voters of her defiance, noting she was “the only candidate in this race” who said she would not support Schumer as Democratic leader. The Michigan state senator is currently locked in a brutal three-way primary against former health official Abdul El-Sayed and the Schumer-backed Rep. Haley Stevens. [MS NOW]
I have to wonder how many voters pay attention to party leaders, although I suppose President Trump is a larger than life leader for a lot of voters. The problem for politicians, and folks in many others walks of life, is that their circle includes many that are just like them. Soon enough, something that is significant to them and their group, but insignificant to others, leaks out because they forget they’re not necessarily talking to their group. Social media being what it is, and the fact that it’s quoted, suggests this wasn’t a private communication, but of a public character. So this announcement may have little impact.
In other news, former Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) has endorsed Rep Stevens.
Recall that Emerson College, on the last report, had Stevens down by 9 points. Will this continue? The Michigan primary is 4 Aug.
Primaries are 19 May. Barr should win his primary. In the Democratic primary, Charles Booker was last reported to have a lead, but polls are scarce.
THE MERE SUGGESTION that Democrats could win the Mississippi Senate race this cycle can produce dismissive eyerolls. (Trust me, I’ve seen it often enough from my editor.)
But as I’ve been talking with party officials and operatives over the past few months, no race is as regularly mentioned, or elicits as much excitement, as this one. They argue that circumstances are converging to flip a state that Donald Trump won by a 23-point margin: There is a charismatic Democrat [Scott Colom] at the top of the ticket, the state’s large black population is being mobilized, and there is a generationally weak Republican incumbent. As longtime Democratic strategist James Carville, who lives part-time along Mississippi’s Gulf Coast, put it to me: “It would take a unique set of circumstances, but we just might be operating under a unique set of circumstances.”
Uh huh. My last known relative living in Mississippi died almost a decade ago, and I’ve not visited since I was a kid, so I’m not really qualified to judge the atmosphere down there. Show me a respectable poll. And keep that mad humidity OFF of me.
A DREADED WORD
There’s a word, lethal to majority political parties, that’ll cause their balloons to deflate with a hideous racket. It’s being noised about by a traditional American corporation:
Whirlpool has a word for what’s happening to its business. Two, actually, and both of them are “recession.”
On the company’s first-quarter earnings call Wednesday, CEO Marc Bitzer and North America president Juan Carlos Puente both reached for the same term to describe what the war in Iran has done to U.S. appliance demand. Industry shipments fell 7.4% in the first quarter, with March alone plunging 10%. “This level of industry decline is similar to what we have observed during the global financial crisis and even higher than during other recessionary periods,” Bitzer told analysts.
Puente, describing the segment’s results, said the North America business experienced “recession-level industry contractions, with discretionary demand down approximately 15%.” [Fortune via yahoo!finance]
This adds to the pressure on Republican politicians, on the ballot or not. This is especially so because, unlike many recessions that are difficult to trace, or are due to legislative actions best blamed on a small group of legislators, this one is due to the actions of the American President and his legislative allies who, being unprepared amateurs who thought the job of President and/or legislator will be easy, instead are discovering governance, unlike being critics as many were beforehand, is bloody hard.
Will the American electorate give them the benefit of the doubt and not punish the Republicans?
I doubt it. The current crop of critics, regardless of political position or lack thereof, has not failed to make its critiques of President Trump’s actions heard, whether it’s to call tariffs a domestic tax, predict mass layoffs of Federal workers will lead to government inefficiency, bombing Iran will run counter to the goals of the President, or any of a host of other actions. The Republicans have repeatedly backed him, too, and that makes them …
CULPABLE.
Yes, the Democrats do have a collection of problems. Much like the Republicans, they seem to have lost their guidebook to how democracies work, anointing Kamala Harris in, admittedly, a bad circumstance, lying vociferously concerning President Biden’s mental health (again, kudos to former Rep Dean Phillips (D-MN) for trying to get the word out), and using vicious bullying tactics when advocating for the transgender, rather than following American tradition by starting a debate on the subject.
But the Democrats also have a lot of competency when it comes to American governance, even if some of their policies are questionable. This makes them a logical, if distasteful, choice, and I think many Americans will make that choice.
I just recalled that I promised to give the name of the shop that built my new computer, who I managed to sweet talk into installing Fedora rather than Windows – your mileage may vary, it’s not an advertised service – and that name is … Computer Repair & Services, located in Stillwater, MN, and other locations in Wisconsin. While I can’t speak to longevity, so far Fedora’s run well, with just one hang involving BOINC, and they installed various packages for me.
My only complaint is that running public computing is problematic because doing so activates a loud fan, and I don’t have this box hiding in a server room, it’s sitting on a shelf next to me. I’ve been working with them on this question.
Relevantly, this mail came in a few minutes ago, from which I will clip:
We’re reaching out today to let you know that we’ll have a price increase on June 1st.
Our prices will increase 10-13% on products and services, and there will be a 3% credit card fee on every transaction moving forward. You might notice a difference the next time you do business with us, so we wanted to share the exact reasons why:
The expansion of AI data centers has spiked hardware and component costs by roughly 15% in many cases.Additionally, RAM prices have more than doubled, and computer prices have risen by 30% since 2025.
If you’re looking for a computer beyond standard configurations, or soon will be, and are price-sensitive, you might wish to reach out sooner rather than later.
I’ve noticed there’s not much news on Ukraine these days, what with our provincial concerns taking priority, and I’ve been neglecting my primary source of Ukraine news due to a burned out computer, work, surgeries, and Spring popping.
But not former Representative, column writer, and MS NOW television host Joe Scarborough (R-FL, but now an independent, I believe), he’s keeping up.
And in perhaps the most surreal twist of this still-unfolding historical drama, it was Zelenskyy on social media yesterday who assured the frightened Russian defense minister that Kyiv would not attack Moscow during its annual World War II victory parades held today and tomorrow in the Russian capital.
Zelenskyy does, in fact, have many cards left to play against Putin.
And recently, through true grit and technological superiority, Ukrainians have drawn an inside straight while Trump is left dealing with a strait of another kind — one keeping U.S. troops in Iran far longer than the commander in chief anticipated.
Putin and Trump thought they would easily prevail in quick wars against overmatched opponents. What they didn’t count on was a technological revolution in asymmetric warfare that has radically shifted power dynamics on the global stage — and left Putin’s dream of military success on the ash heap of history.
It’s all about evolutionary pressures, baby. Place a species or a society under harsh, existential pressure, and it’s evolve to survive that pressure, or die. Too much pressure and it dies; too little, and it survives with no changes. But in a specific range, enough change can occur, and the speed at which species can change sometimes surprises evolutionary biologists; societies can often change even faster.
The United States is not under existential threat from Iran, and so the speed and clarity of evolutionary change doesn’t happen. Oh, it changes – lessons of static technology leading to disaster abound throughout history. Society, in its military and other sectors, can change. But the power structures of an unthreatened society tend to freeze societies in their successful forms, right up until they’re not successful anymore, and sometimes beyond.
Iran sees itself under existential threat, or more properly its government does, and it’s burdened with a self-perception of being a Great Power, and has been so burdened for centuries. Therefore, it’s been on the lookout for military advances which may not have been adopted, yet, by the United States.
And the Ukraine is also under existential threat of a very immediate sort, and, having been part of the Soviet Union, does not want to be part of Russia, as that result in disaster for the Ukrainian people. But Russia? Well, they seem to be driving themselves towards an existential crisis; such are the results of arrogant leaders, like President Putin.
When I came out of law school in 2006, DOJ's prestige was such that liberal and conservative graduates alike would have gladly stepped over their friends' dead bodies to get a position there.Trump has ruined it now to the point they're having to bribe new graduates to apply.
— Bradley P. Moss (@bradmossesq.bsky.social) 2026-05-05T16:10:13.469Z
When I came out of law school in 2006, DOJ’s prestige was such that liberal and conservative graduates alike would have gladly stepped over their friends’ dead bodies to get a position there.
Trump has ruined it now to the point they’re having to bribe new graduates to apply.
Another signal that the work resulting from Trump decrees is unjust.
But it’s also important to note that a good boss can overcome a poor work environment, and the lack of willing attorneys even in the face of signing bonuses suggests former AG Bondi and Acting AG Blanche do not measure up to even the low bar set by former AG William Barr or Jeff Sessions, much less former AG Garland.
In a word, Bondi and Blanche suck. Whatever their other skills might be, leadership is not one of them. Much like the President for whom they chose to work.
And that’s really on Trump.
The entrails continue to fall from the ceiling, although some might argue that’s the wrong location. However, another special election has the lefty political world chattering as Chedrick Greene (D-MI) won a special election to the Michigan Senate on Tuesday, 5 May, winning 22,403 votes to Jason Tunney’s (R-MI) 14,303 votes, or 60% to 38.3%, a 22.7 point margin. For comparison, in the 2022 election, Democrat Kristen McDonald Rivet had 53.4% to Annette Glenn’s (R-MI) 46.6%, or a 6.8 point margin.
But the real nattering is improvement over 2024, where Steve Benen notes:
In a district that Kamala Harris won by a single percentage point in 2024, Greene prevailed by 19 points.
It is nattering, as Trump is well-known to not have strong influence, or long coat-tails as it was once known, if he’s not personally on the ballot; this renders analysis using Greene’s opponent, Tunney, as a proxy for Trump, and Republicans in general, a dubious project.
However, it is also true that Trump won’t be on the ballot in November, and the leap from a near 7 point margin in 2022 to 22+ points has some significance, even if it is a special election. It indicates a lack of excitement on the part of Republican voters, although that may be more for Tunney than for the dreadful results and dishonest projects in which Republicans seem to be engaged.
In the end, what to make of it is up to where your thumb is on the scale.
Yes, it’s very silly. And NSFW.
Secretary of State has announced Operation Epic Fury is over.
• Status of war: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Operation Epic Fury — launched in February against Iran — has ended, and the US is focused on a new operation to guide ships through the Strait of Hormuz. President Donald Trump has not ruled out resuming a bombing campaign if necessary. [CNN]
Well, maybe. The Administration seems confused:
• Ceasefire ongoing: US military action during the ceasefire is a “defensive operation,” Rubio said. Earlier, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said “the ceasefire is not over,” and Trump also did not specify what would constitute a ceasefire violation.
• In the Strait of Hormuz: Iran launched a new system to govern maritime traffic through the critical waterway, according to state-run media. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps also issued a renewed warning to ships intending to transit the strait.
Wars typically cease when one side surrenders to the other, gets rubbed out, the attackers are driven off, or other similar resolution. That hasn’t really happened here, yet, has it? Especially in view of this:
• In the Strait of Hormuz: Iran launched a new system to govern maritime traffic through the critical waterway, according to state-run media. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps also issued a renewed warning to ships intending to transit the strait.
Uh huh. Sorting out who’s controlling the Strait of Hormuz will not constitute the end of the war.
My guess is that we’ll withdraw, with Trump tootling his cracked horn about how he won the war and who needs a conditional surrender, anyways, even if he did demand it at the start? Another loss for him, in reality, but a lot of people will tootle with him, because, hey, it’s the only way for them to retain their new-found status.
Meanwhile:
• Economic impact: Demand for oil is falling at the fastest rate seen outside the Covid pandemic, as businesses and consumers cut consumption. US gas prices have increased by 50% since the start of the war.
My Arts Editor was just remarking yesterday that it’d be awfully funny if Trump’s War put an existential hole in the side of Trump’s much-coddled fossil fuel industry supporters. The news has been reporting big jumps in electric vehicle (EV) purchases, although not big enough to really matter.
If I still had a connection to the conservative mailbag, I’d be expecting anti-EV missives to be arriving at any moment. Unfortunately, my connection seems to have passed away.
I just noticed a post on UMB referencing a picture didn’t actually show the picture, but on reload it did. Not much I can do about it, but reloading is easy.
I have absolutely no intention of trying to document an appreciable fraction of the amateur hour theatrics of the arrogant twerps currently in power, but an occasional, instructive example will help me blow off steam. Here’s The New York Times reporting on one instance:
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Wednesday defended his decisions to fire or sideline nearly 30 generals and admirals over the past year with little explanation by falsely comparing his record to that of President Barack Obama.
“I would also note that under Barack Obama, 197 general officers were removed,” Mr. Hegseth said in testimony before the House Armed Services Committee. “So this is not something specific to this administration.”
The number Mr. Hegseth gave has no basis in fact. It originated with an unsigned 2018 editorial in Investor’s Business Daily, which cites the right-wing news site “Breitbart.com’s Facebook page” as its source.
Mr. Hegseth’s actions to fire senior military leaders are without precedent in recent decades and have come with little explanation. On Wednesday, lawmakers pressed him to justify his decisions, including his move this month to remove Gen. Randy A. George, the Army chief of staff.
Seems slightly out of focus? Such is the world on some days.
Sourcing from editorials, signed or unsigned, is pure amateur hour; of course, it does provide cover for a SecDef whose actions, while his privilege, may have little defense among adults. They can be read as contemptuous of current command due to adherence to Geneva Convention rules, or sexism, or even racism.
Of course, the more institutional memory and good examples are eliminated, the less effective of a military. Any American, vet or not, should find the the erratic and undefended actions of Hegseth disturbing and worth questioning closely.
Indicia:
- a postal marking used rather than a stamp or a regular cancellation on each item in a large shipment of prepaid mail.
- Often
- a printed message or instruction, especially one stamped on a package.
an indicium of “bulk mail.”- an indication or token. [Dictionary.com]
Noted in “DOJ rushed indictment of SPLC, according to whistleblower reports,” Ken Dilanian, MS NOW:
Former federal fraud prosecutor Andrew Weissmann, an MS NOW contributor, said the case “bears none of the indicia” of normal Justice Department charging review and called the theory “exceedingly far-fetched.”
I understand it’s supposed to get warmer, nation-wide.
I wouldn’t normally continue to cover the acquisition of Paramount by SkyDance, but this is intriguing:
Paramount has filed a petition with the Federal Communications Commission asking the regulator to allow foreign investors to hold more than 25% of the company’s equity and/or voting interests following the completion of the merger and to allow certain foreign entities to hold more than 5% of equity and/or voting interests in Class B stock.
In the filing, Paramount Global said that following the completion of the merger with Warner Bros. Discovery, which has been approved by the FCC and shareholders, the combined company would be 49.5% owned by foreign companies and that Middle Eastern investors would hold 38.5% of the company’s equity.
Those Middle Eastern investors include Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (15.1% equity stake), the United Arab Emirates’ sovereign wealth fund (12.8% equity) and the Qatar Investment Authority (10.6% equity). [tvtech]
Here’s what catches my attention, after admitting to no expertise in this industry, Federal laws and rules applicable, nor in the games the mega-rich play among themselves.
Senior White House officials have discussed internally their preference for Paramount Skydance to acquire Warner Bros Discovery in recent weeks, and one official has discussed potential programming changes at CNN with Larry Ellison, the largest shareholder of Paramount.The discussions, according to people familiar with the matter, come as Paramount portrays itself as the best bid for Warner Bros Discovery, after the company announced last month it was open to offers, because it would have an easier time getting through regulatory review.
Yeah, I’m not mega-rich, nor am I interested in being such; consequently, I really do not know the answer to the above. Watching this should prove enlightening. Or horrifying. Whichever.
You read something like this …
THE STATE DEPARTMENT IS CLOSE TO FINALIZING a radical redesign of the U.S. passport to include a picture of President Donald Trump, The Bulwark has learned from two sources with knowledge of the redesign, including one who shared images currently under consideration.
The redesign is ostensibly part of a larger celebration of the 250th anniversary of American independence. It comes as the Treasury Department prepares to produce coins featuring Trump’s image—both a controversial $1 coin in general circulation1 and an “as large as possible” commemorative gold coin—and as the National Park Service emblazons Trump’s face on its park passes. Both of those redesigns were justified as being part of the 250th anniversary celebration.
According to the images of the passport redesign provided to The Bulwark, the inside cover of the new State Department-issued document will feature a scowling Trump—taken from his second inaugural portrait—superimposed over the Declaration of Independence, as well as the president’s signature in gold. [The Bulwark]
… and I can’t help thinking it’s deeply reminiscent of Chad Bauman’s piece on then-candidate Trump’s behavior following the 2020 Election, which I’ve cited before:
The most virtuous and effective act in prosperity theology is positive confession, in which one claims and expresses gratitude to God for the health and wealth one expects to enjoy—even if it seems implausible one’s expectations will be realized. The most sinful act, accordingly, is sometimes called “negative confession”; that is, admitting failure, ill health, poverty, or disappointment. In prosperity theology, words matter; “Death and life are in the power of the tongue” (Proverbs 18:21). Those who lay claim to victory actualize it, while those who admit defeat find themselves hopelessly entrenched in it. [Religion Dispatches]
It’s very much a magical incantation, and so I read the passport story – Trump is trying to catch the divinities’ attention so he can sit at the head table.
Or maybe I’m wrong. I’ll defer to Bauman concerning the plausibility of his assertions, while noting that religious mania and pathological narcissism can be hard to distinguish based simply on analysis of outstanding symptoms.
A question that has come up in Congressional hearings on Trump nominees of late is, I swear, Are you a sock puppet of President Trump?
So odd.
But I think we know the answer for Acting AG Todd Blanche:
I knew the admin was scraping the bottom of the barrel for legal talent, but dear God. This reads like someone just transcribed Trump muttering incoherently and filed it in court.
— Julian Sanchez (@normative.bsky.social) 2026-04-28T12:59:25.020Z
He must have cut and paste a note he received from the President. I wonder if he understands he’s ruining the balance of his career?
But I am reminded of the rumors concerning former Secretary Noem, and her ambitions to move into the Oval Office. Could Blanche be having some spectacular dreams for his future?
My favorite so far.
And a reminder of what we’re not missing.
