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Post by mhbruin on Aug 3, 2023 8:14:42 GMT -8
Did you hear about the man who jumped off a bridge in Paris? He was in Seine.
Mini-Previous Guy Didn't Watch the Apprentice. You Don't Follow "You're Fired" with "You're Hired".
After a massive downsizing of Ron DeSantis’ 2024 Republican presidential campaign, three of the operation’s now-former aides have been hired by his taxpayer-funded governor’s office.
“The Florida governor is leaning on his taxpayer-funded office to keep select aides in his orbit as the campaign goes through a cash shortfall that led it to dump one-third of its staff in July,” Axios reports.
But He Did Learn to Let Someone Else Pay For Everything.
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 3, 2023 8:17:09 GMT -8
There's Some Very Young, Legal Californication
In California, the age of consent when it comes to sexual relations is 18 -- but that only applies if the people involved are not married, The Los Angeles Times reported.
According to activists, that distinction creates a loophole where marriage can be used to justify statutory rape.
There is no minimum age requirement to get married in California. But if minors want to wed, they must seek approval from a parent or guardian first.
While some might assume that opposition to child marriage might be headed by conservative groups, it's actually progressives, including the politically influential ACLU and Planned Parenthood, who have enabled the practice, arguing that a complete ban on child marriage could be a slippery slope towards violating people's constitutional rights or reproductive choices, the Times reported.
Democratic state Sen. Jerry Hill told the Times that when he attempted to ban the practice in 2017, he ran into opposition from Planned Parenthood and other influential groups.
“I was amazed and appalled and frankly ashamed of California, that we had not done anything about this,” he said.
While child marriage remains legal in most of the U.S., states like Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York have moved to ban it. Now, a new measure to ban the practice until 18 without exceptions will be introduced in the California state legislature next spring.
“The US considers marriage under the age of 18 in foreign counties to be a human rights abuse,” Assemblymember Cottie Petrie Norris (D-Irvine) said. “The reality is this is happening in the dark corners. It is absolutely shocking and it’s horrifying.”
According to data reviewed by the Times, there have been 48 marriages involving minors in California since 2019 -- and those are only the ones that have been reported.
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 3, 2023 8:18:56 GMT -8
I've Been Wondering About This Too. How Does PG Prove He Believed He Won Without Testifying?
Two key defense points Donald Trump and his lawyers have been floating before and since he was indicted on Wednesday for his actions related to attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election may never see the light of day in court unless he is willing to take the stand -- an act that could blow up in his face.
That is the opinion of attorney Philip Rotner in a column for the Bulwark who claimed that, in order for a jury to understand how the former president made the decisions that he did with regard to trying to overturn the will of the voters, they will need to hear from him which could present a host of problems.
While Trump and his supporters have attempted to make the case that his talk about a stolen election is protected by the First Amendment and therefore should never have been charged by special counsel Jack Smith -- a position former FBI official Chuck Rosenberg called "garbage" -- Rotner wrote that he would need to convince a jury about something only he would know and that will be impossible without his testimony.
"Trump’s two stock legal defenses—that he sincerely believed he had won the 2020 election and that he relied on the advice of counsel in his post-election activities—will be very much in play," he wrote, before outlining the problems with this defense, starting "with the factual problem of Trump proving at trial that he really, most sincerely believed that he won the election. How is he going to do this? Is he going to testify? And what about the fact that virtually every senior member of his own administration—the vice president, the senior leaders of DOJ, the director of national intelligence, officials from the Department of Homeland Security, and senior staff members, not to mention state legislatures and officials, and dozens of state and federal courts—told him otherwise?"
Rotner identified similar problems with Trump claiming that he was simply following the advice of his attorneys.
"How is Trump to convince a jury that he relied on such legal advice?" he asked rhetorically. "If Trump doesn’t testify—which seems near-certain—who will supply the evidence of this? The attorneys on whom he might claim to have relied—Rudy Giuliani, John Eastman, Jenna Ellis, Sidney Powell—are unlikely to testify because they are either named or unnamed co-conspirators with potential criminal liability of their own. If any of them do testify, they risk being exposed as liars and frauds who can be torn to shreds on the witness stand."
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 3, 2023 8:20:09 GMT -8
North Korea and East Germany Killed People for Trying to Leave. We Kill People For Trying to Enter
The Mexican government said Wednesday that a dead body had been found caught in the controversial floating barriers installed by Texas authorities to stop migrants crossing into the United States.
US authorities informed Mexico that "they found the body of a lifeless person stuck in the southern part of the buoys" on the Rio Grande river, the Mexican foreign ministry said in a statement.
The cause of death and nationality of the victim were unknown, it added.
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 3, 2023 8:21:09 GMT -8
Are You Tired of All This Winning?
Hiring in the US private sector decelerated in July but was nearly twice as high as analysts expected according to payroll firm ADP on Wednesday, signaling strength in the jobs market.
The US labor market has proven resilient even as the central bank hiked interest rates rapidly since March 2022 to cool demand -- with higher lending costs making it pricier to borrow funds for activities like business expansion.
Job gains came in at 324,000 last month according to ADP, down from a revised 455,000 figure in June and well above analysts' consensus estimate of 185,000 on Briefing.com.
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 3, 2023 8:23:56 GMT -8
Welcome to the Church of PalinThe Fake Church Behind Sarah Palin’s Crusade Against VotingFormer Alaska governor and Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin has found a new cause—changing the election law she blames for her 2022 congressional campaign loss. But new details about the fringe conservative group behind that crusade suggest that this battle might very likely meet the same fate. That group, “Alaskans for Honest Elections,” is dedicated to overturning the practice of ranked-choice voting (RCV). But state filings and a recent campaign finance complaint suggest the ballot committee, which features Palin as its national spokesperson, has generated a blizzard of potential violations, including attempts to skirt disclosure laws, obscure its finances, manufacture tax breaks for contributors, and line the pockets of its own officials. The Alaska lawyer behind that complaint, Scott Kendall of Cashion Gilmore, told The Daily Beast that the bewildering layers of grift are “almost intoxicating.” “You turn over one rock and there’s more; turn over another and there’s more there too,” Kendall said. “With the kind of simple-mindedness involved here, as an attorney it’s almost intoxicating.” While the train of shady wheeling and dealing isn’t exactly new or even all that uncommon in the world of political dark money, in this case, it’s been enabled by a curious mechanism: the creation of a new “church” to fund the whole operation—the absurdly named “Ranked Choice Education Association,” which Kendall makes no bones about describing as “completely fake.” The man behind these groups is right-wing megachurch minister Dr. Art Mathias, who among other things has openly practiced LGBTQ “conversion therapy” and has claimed that COVID vaccines cause “spontaneous abortions” in 80 percent of pregnant women. Mathias has so far sent at least $90,000 in personal contributions to the ballot committee through the RCEA.
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 3, 2023 8:25:18 GMT -8
Gov DeathSentence Promises More Death
Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis, two weeks into the reboot of his ten-week-old presidential campaign, pledged to New Hampshire voters this week he will root out the “deep state” from the federal government, and “start slitting throats on Day One.”
Governor DeSantis “appeared bent on demonstrating that no candidate talks tougher. He promised that, under his presidency, Mexican drug cartels would be ‘shot stone cold dead,’ and vowed that when it comes to federal bureaucrats, ‘we are going to start slitting throats on Day One.'”
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 3, 2023 8:27:23 GMT -8
The Latest Celebrity Craze: Owning an English Soccer Team
Legendary NFL quarterback Tom Brady is trading one football for another, taking on a new role with a struggling soccer team that will see the former New England star head to England's second city.
Birmingham City Football Club announced early Thursday that Brady, 46, would be joining the club as a minority owner and adviser.
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 3, 2023 8:30:13 GMT -8
Damn It! He Figured Out That We Are All Worshipping MolechHave you worshipped the dark lord Molech today? No? Then you simply aren't doing your part to protect abortion rights! Think we're insane? Think we're kidding? Then you, friend, have not yet heard the good word dispensed by the GOP's brand-new nominee for a pivotal special election for the New Hampshire state House. Say hello to pastor Jim Guzofski, and please enjoy his 2021 Halloween sermon: No, it's a shade of witchcraft! Is probably what you're seeing. And you don't want to be bold enough to stand up and speak out against it. See, witchcraft is the religion of the fallen humanity. It's rooted in murder. Why do you think they fight so hard to keep abortion? I mean, to a lunatic frenzy! Because they know blood sacrifices to their god Molech. Or Was I Worshipping This?
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 3, 2023 8:35:20 GMT -8
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 3, 2023 8:37:02 GMT -8
South America's Long Hot Winter
The world climate is spiraling out of control. Iran shut down for two days this week, and Beijing recorded its most intense rainfall in over 140 years. Japan shattered heat records for the day. Sea ice in Antarctica remains at a record low. In the Southwest United States, a wave of dangerous heat has failed to break for weeks.
But it is South America where meteorologists have shifted their focus: “Some places have even reached all-time maximums — surpassing summer temperatures, even though it is winter.” The temperatures are higher than in Europe, where they will experience record cold.
The sea temperature in the ocean near Peru, Ecuador, and Columbia is almost 34 degrees above normal, primarily due to El Niño Costero in Peru, where heavy rainfall and flooding occur. There is an overpopulation of mosquitos which spread disease. Crops are damaged, as well as infrastructure.
In Southern South America, temperatures have been above normal for weeks in Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay, and other locations. But it is winter in South America, and August there is comparable to the Northern Hemisphere month of February. Temperatures have soared over 100 degrees in many areas, but primarily in the seven nations that contain the Andes Mountains.
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 3, 2023 8:39:45 GMT -8
Well, Knock Me Over With a Feather
Agroup of Indigenous Aztec dancers has filed a claim against a U.S. federal agency for confiscating hundreds of traditional Indigenous feathers as the group was crossing the U.S.-Mexico border.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents seized more than 1,500 feathers typically worn during performances and for cultural and religious practices in March at the San Ysidro Port of Entry in San Diego, according to Ruby Marek, one of the Aztec dancers involved.
“Some of the things the community enjoys are our feathers and traditional wear,” Marek told Noticias Telemundo Los Angeles. “It’s a way for us to build recognition that we’re proud and that this is a land of immigrants, but they want to clip our wings.”
Marek claimed that the members of the group were treated like criminals in their encounter with officials. Marek's family and Danza Azteca Tenochtitlán said in a claim filed against the U.S. Department of Interior that the incident was a violation of their constitutional right to practice religion. They are seeking $1 million in compensation per person and for their feathers to be returned.
Danza Azteca Tenochtitlán, a Los Angeles-based group of Aztec dancers, is made up mostly of Marek's family and her kids. Marek picked up her brother-in-law, who lives in Mexico, from the Tijuana airport and headed back to Los Angeles. They were invited to perform at the annual Mexica New Year celebration where Aztec dancers from across the nation gather in San Jose, California, Marek told The Los Angeles Times.
The family was given documents after the incident that stated the feathers were from “parrots, pheasants, ducks, doves, macaws, ravens, turkeys, emus and hawks,” according to the Los Angeles Times.
The Migratory Bird Treaty Act protects wild birds and their killing by collectors and the commercial trade in their feathers. A permit must be obtained to be in possession of feathers with exemptions for Native Americans, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service website.
According to the agency, possessing the feathers violates laws that protect endangered birds. Marek told The Los Angeles Times she was unaware of the provisions and believed that because the feathers the family was carrying with them — most from non-exotic or endangered animals — they would be fine to cross legally.
Marek told Noticias Telemundo Los Angeles that the feathers had been passed down from older generations and collected from birds that were already deceased or had molted.
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 3, 2023 8:41:40 GMT -8
Keep Your Hands Off My BallotArizona Republicans wanted to hand-count ballots. Then they saw the price tag — and the errors.An Arizona county has decided not to hand-count its ballots in next year’s presidential race, after discovering that it would cost more than a million dollars and leave it with inaccurate results. The all-Republican Board of Supervisors in Mohave County voted 3-2 against forgoing ballot counting machines in favor of hand-counting in 2024, after months of debate, questions on the legality, and a three-day test run. “I’m willing to have further conversations about this, but the first thing that we have to do in Mohave County in good conscious is to balance the budget. You can’t talk about any other spending when you have 18 — 20 million dollar deficit,” said Supervisor Travis Lingenfelter, a Republican, before voting against a proposal to hand count all the ballots in 2024. “That’s irresponsible.” Some conservatives, including allies of former President Donald Trump, have pushed hand-counting ballots as a way to ensure the accuracy of election results. But Mohave County's experience punctures that talking point, showing that hand-counting is typically expensive, inaccurate and impractical. In short, hand-counting ballots isn’t as easy as it sounds. Mohave County, home to an estimated 220,000 people in the northwestern corner of Arizona, is one of a handful of U.S. counties that has considered hand-counting ballots, thanks in part to election conspiracy theories that have driven distrust in ballot tabulators. After the 2020 election, the Arizona state Senate authorized a controversial hand-count audit of two races. The audit took months and cost millions, and — by its leadership’s own account in text messages obtained by The Arizona Republic — failed to result in an accurate count. But that hasn’t quelled interest in Arizona. Earlier this year, the Republican-controlled state legislature passed a measure authorizing hand counts, which was vetoed by Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs.
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 3, 2023 8:47:04 GMT -8
What If I Don't Want to Know Where the Economy is Headed?If you want to know where the economy is headed, don't watch the Fed. Track this interest rate instead. Anything above 4% is bad.When the Federal Reserve raises interest rates, that's not actually the thing that causes borrowing costs to rise for most people. The yield on the 10-year Treasury bond is the one to watch closely. That controls the cost of money for many consumers, and other important things that flow from that long-term rate. This week, the yield jumped back over 4% and even topped 4.1% for a while. That's the highest level since late 2022. Sometimes, when the Fed raises rates investors think it has the economy under control and inflation won't be much higher in the future. When that happens, the yield on the 10-year Treasury bond declines. (Even though the Fed raised rates, borrowing costs in the real world actually fell). However, ....How the Federal Funds Rate Affects 10 Year Treasury Bond YieldsAbstract Macroeconomic theory tells us that long-term interest rates tend to move in the same direction with short-term interest rates. So, we would expect the yield on a long-term asset like the10-year Treasury bond to move up when a short-term rate like the federal funds rate moves up. However, a cursory reading of financial news sources since the FOMC began its rate hike policy, through January 2005, show that the yield on the 10-year has actually fallen. This study will develop a predictive model to describe this direct influence and conclude that the federal funds rate directly influences the 10-year Treasury bond yield. This study will not try to predict what factors could be holding the yields down in any quantifiable way. The 10-year Treasury bond yield is a benchmark rate, important to bond investors looking for future indicators of inflation, and to areas such as housing and other loans; a predictive model will allow investors to more adequately gauge investment risk and loan officers to judge what interest rates to charge.
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 3, 2023 8:49:02 GMT -8
Irish Eyes Are Smiling. So Are the Tax Collectors. Are They on Drugs?Big Pharma rakes in $215 billion a year in America — yet pays almost no taxesThere's a mystery lurking in America's national medicine cabinet. Americans pay the highest prices in the world for lifesaving medicines — roughly triple what people in the world's other big economies pay for the same name-brand, on-patent drugs. The cost of producing a medicine generally doesn't vary much — so it stands to reason that the US's big pharmaceutical companies should therefore earn far more in the US than they earn elsewhere. Simple math. But take a look at the corporate disclosures of America's largest pharmaceutical companies, and a puzzling hole opens. The six major US pharmaceutical firms that provide fairly detailed data reported making $215 billion worth of sales in the US for 2022. Given America's systematically higher prices, their sales abroad were logically more modest — totaling $170 billion. Despite this discrepancy, the companies reported earning very, very little in profits — in some cases, absolutely nothing — in the US. Of their $100 billion combined profit, the companies said $90 billion was made abroad, while a paltry $10 billion came from their US operations. That comes out to a profit margin of 5% in the US and a margin of over 50% abroad. What's going on?
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