Author: condor

An INANIMATE Clump Of Cells, Unable To Survive In Any Current Form… Is Not, And Cannot Be… Deemed A Full “Human”, Alabama. Period.

~ condor ~ 2 Comments

I am confident that this result will not stand.

Even so, it is frightening how little the GOP Justices of the Alabama Supreme Court understand about human biology and development. Updated — the University hospital at Birmingham has announced that it is “pausing” all IVF procedures in light of the below. So this is no longer a “theoretical” problem, Alabama. Damnation.

End, updated portion.

I do not think many Americans would concur that a FROZEN clump of perhaps 500 cells… is a human, with all the rights of a human — and should the IVF fail, the doctors (and “parents”) might be charged with a “homicide”.

That is lunacy, Alabama. Here’s the bit of it:

…“This ruling is stating that a fertilized egg, which is a clump of cells, is now a person. It really puts into question, the practice of IVF,” Barbara Collura, CEO of RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association, told The Associated Press Tuesday.


The group called the decision a “terrifying development for the 1-in-6 people impacted by infertility” who need in-vitro fertilization….

This will ultimately reach the Supremes. It will be overturned — and elected state level judges should leave science… to the scientists.

One may be compensated, where — as here — the embryos were negligently destroyed by a lab — without having to decide that the clump of cells was a fully formed human being. In sum, this decision violates the rule of parsimony. Onward.

नमस्ते

USDC Judge Ezra In West Texas Will Hold An In Person Hearing At 9 AM Thursday…

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This would suggest that the able Judge is displeased with the efforts Texas is making to comply with his exquisitely clear — and now affirmed at the US Supreme Court — prior court orders, granting the CBP and DHS the right (but not the obligation) to remove the floating barriers, and send Gov. Abbott the bills — all at Texas’s sole expense.

There may be fireworks, so I’ll see if I can secure a dial in for the hearing.

Will let you all know — if I’m able to prevail upon Judge Ezra’s docket clerk, tomorrow — or at least before the hearing on Thursday.

Onward.

Rigby McGuire — Busts Hinderaker Out…

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And now…

With no ado whatsoever — take it away, Rigby!

“…John’s post today, remarking on Prince William’s call for a cease-fire, puts John’s inherent racism front and center. “I suppose I am in the minority in disagreeing with the statement that too many have been killed,” he writes, adding: “if the reference is to Gazans.” Yikes!

To avoid any confusion, he elaborates on this point: “There are no innocent civilians in Gaza. Further, civilian casualties are the inevitable consequence of starting a war. Gazans elected Hamas to rule over them.”
Well, the last election in Gaza was held 18 years ago, before the MAJORITY of Gazans were even born, but let’s not let facts get in the way of a good racist diatribe.
There’s no getting around it: John wants a genocide in Gaza. He might as well title his post “The Final Solution….”

To which I will only add — it has ever been… thus — with Hinderaker.

He’s a racists’ racist.

Damn. Thanks man.

Well — quite a bit of “power alley” news, on the day. Grin. Sanofi / Antitrust Edition…

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We should mention that the German Merck (no relation) had divested its Consumer Health businesses some five years ago, and the US Merck as packaged up its Women’s Health biz, into a rebranded and updated Organon — soon set to spin off.

So — not surprising, as Consumer Health business lines tend to be more mature, and lower margin than the core drug businesses that spawn them.

But the new wrinkle here may be (as was true during the Obama years) renewed vigor in ferretting out anticompetitive deals, at the Antitrust Division (and in the EU, to be candid). We shall see, but here is the latest, per Bloomberg, then:

…Some of the world’s largest buyout firms, including Advent International and Blackstone Inc., are circling the consumer health division of French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi ahead of a potential separation of the business, according to people familiar with the matter.

The business is also drawing early interest from Bain Capital, CVC Capital Partners, EQT AB and KKR & Co., the people said, asking not to be identified as the matter is private. The unit could be valued at about $20 billion in any deal, they said….

So there you have it — we suspect, in any event, that the ~$35 billion Capital One / Discover deal will see some retooling, in various local markets — including required divestitures and spin-offs. And whenever Bain surfaces, expect mischief (in the potential Sanofi deals). Onward.

नमस्ते

Trivia: It Seems Some Opioid Bankruptcy Papers Have Been MIS-Filed — In Norfolk Virginia Federal Court, In The Glenmark/Merck Zetia® Antitrust Settlement

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Normally I wouldn’t mention this at all.

But since we indicated last December that the Zetia® antitrust class action had settled, and only a few insurers / drug compounder individual suits remained, and were remanded, to their home district courts… we had stopped watching this boxcar litigation.

But apparently, the USDC Judge in Norfolk has spindled what looks like a February 12, 2024 bankruptcy court notice, from one of the smaller “mini-Sackler” type-entities — one still fighting its way out, to minimize its payments in the opioid cases here in the states.

Honestly, I cannot imagine what sort of a set of facts, or set of prescription drugs, would have had to coalesce, to dump a now largely vanished, last gen, “expensive placebo” supposed cholesterol management drug franchise… into the Sackler matters, or what that would look like, but I will let wiser heads instruct me, if this is not just a clerk’s filing error.

Onward, grinning….

नमस्ते

In Which Scott Johnson Offers… Unblinking Idiocy, About The Border.

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It seems Scott is not aware that, for decades, people from most of Asia, including Chinese nationals have entered (and stayed in) the US (some with papers, but most not) via our largely non-existent border to the NORTH — with Canada. They drive in via Detroit or the top of NY land masses, or increasingly via Washington State.

But in his mind, a few showing up in Southern California is… cause for a four alarm fire brigade, and a demonizing of (of course!) the Democratic Administration. In point of fact, in a normal year, over 2.5 million Chinese people enter the US — and the bulk of those… have always come via… Canadian entry points.

The poor dear. He’s looking at the wrong border — and drawing entirely the wrong conclusions.

He can’t even keep his faux talking points sorted out long enough — to make a coherent paragraph. He also seems unaware that much of our chip industry here in the US relies on these Asian-country-of-origin work-forces, as I say, many without long term rights to be in the country. But there is no doubt that they contribute mightily to our economic well-being and pay their taxes, in full.

So sorry Paulie, your jingoism rings hollow here.

Onward, grinning.

[U] Astonishing! Mirengoff Is Arguing For A Second Trump Presidency, By Saying “It’s Okay, Boys — We Can Blunt His Judicial Retribution” Attempts?!

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Minor Update: Paul tells us the Federalist Society people have corrected him: they say didn’t give Tangerine any names. Sure. Leonard Leo did (it was Leonard Leo coordinating the Federalists’ efforts). Here’s Paul’s non-denial, in full:

“…NOTE: I have changed this post from the original version to reflect the fact that the Federalist Society itself did not make any recommendations for judges during the Trump administration (or at any other time)….”

This is silly churlishness… even by Paul’s standards. Trump has said publicly that he used the FEderalist list provided by Leo, the judge whisperer. Sheesh — end update.

These guys are so… sadly delusional.

They so deeply fear an equal and fair application of the US laws — to all of them, that even Mirengoff is now parroting the line that even if Tangerine ignores the Federalist Society, in choosing his judges, as he has said he will — should he win a second term… we shouldn’t worry, because we good GOPers can blunt his worst excesses.

The hilarious part of that is that he would rely on the Democrats in the Senate to block truly awful nominations.

So — he argues — elect Tangerine, but then be sure to keep a Democratic majority in the Senate, so none of us spineless GOPers will ever have to stand up to our racist MAGAt wing.

Got all that?! Damn, Paul…

That argument is… self-refuting.

Out.

The Integrated High School Made Famous In “Remember The Titans” May Continue Its “Holistic” Admissions Policies: Supremes

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Well… this deserves a special mention.

The first integrated public high school in Virginia to win a state football championship with kids of all colors playing all positions — and a model, at the time, for the nation, as to how it ought to be done, under Coach Boone — TJ High… has been given a green light to keep admitting diverse students into its highly acclaimed math and science curriculum, based on more than just raw test scores. It may keep using a holistic approach.

The Supremes, minus Alito, just said so.

In Alito’s warped view — test scores are all that matter.

I am gratified to see… he is a man… on an island, alone.

Onward, smiling — as this also likely spells the end for the reverse discrimination claims at the service academies.

Smoke that, Scott Johnson and John Hinderaker.

Merck Wins FDA Priority Review In Certain Uterine Cancers, For Keytruda®, Plus Chemo-… Good News.

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This is decidedly good news, but given that pembrolizumab already generates over $25 billion a year in revenue… in the near term, this coming approval will not materially boost that total — all by itself.

But this certainly continues the impressive winning streak — against a wide array of solid organ tumors / cancers, where Keytruda® is now greatly extending survival odds, and quality of life durations. Here’s the latest, from a Merck presser this morning:

…[Rahway] announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted for priority review a new supplemental Biologics License Application (sBLA) seeking approval for KEYTRUDA, Merck’s anti-PD-1 therapy, in combination with standard of care chemotherapy (carboplatin and paclitaxel), followed by KEYTRUDA as a single agent for the treatment of patients with primary advanced or recurrent endometrial carcinoma….

The FDA has set a Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA), or target action, date of June 21, 2024….

Onward, into the warm sunshine now — grinning. Be excellent to one another.

नमस्ते

John Hinderaker Thinks “Deep Fakes” Will Primarily Aid Liberal Causes?!

~ condor ~ 2 Comments

This is scarcely worth a moment’s typing, but John doesn’t think deep fakes can or will be used in the 2024 cycle to benefit MAGA causes (or even GOP ones, apparently).

The obvious idiocy of this view might only be logically explained by one possibility:

Hinderaker is convinced the MAGAts aren’t smart enough to master the tech.

He cannot even remotely believe they are too moral to… at least try.

But all that said, he’s likely right: they won’t muster any, because not much of anything they would come up with… will be plausible.

Hilarious.