We respond…
That putz John thinks asking that people tell the truth is… socialism.
He thinks lying about vaccine science is a good thing.
He thinks Tangerine 2.0 lying about the cause of the LA fires is a good thing.
And he thinks lies labeling domestic (former US Army) terrorists as foreign born… to stoke xenophobia — is a good thing.
The senile, bitter old coot Hinderaker was never moral… but now he’s an… anarchist for MAGA.
Damn.
To be fair, it will reach orbit using a Musk / SpaceX rocket. [There. I said it.]
But from there on, it will be Firefly and NASA — to attempt the first commercial robotic lunar launch (a mission that a Japanese firm failed to complete without a hard landing, in April of 2023).
Here’s the latest — good luck, to them all!
…Carrying NASA science and technology to the Moon as part of the agency’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and Artemis campaign, Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost Mission 1 is targeting launch Wednesday, Jan. 15.
The mission will lift off on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida….
After the launch, Firefly’s Blue Ghost lander will spend approximately 45 days in transit to the Moon before landing on the lunar surface in early March. The lander will carry 10 NASA science investigations to further our understanding of the Moon’s environment and help prepare for future human missions to the lunar surface, as part of the agency’s Moon to Mars exploration approach….
Now you know. Onward, into the chilly sunshine, with Rudy in contempt in DC — his second in a week’s time. Hilarious!
नमस्ते
Most of America knows that being a felon is… a bad thing.
But not John. To him, he burps and calls these “process” crimes. Honestly, I don’t even know what he means by that because murder is a process too.
But to be sure, John just nakedly reaffirmed that the Republican Party has become the party of crooks. We all knew it, but watching John celebrate it is the proverbial horse of another color.
Tangerine 2.0’s time — like yours, John — will very soon be… at an end.
Out.
Candidly, I had some pretty credible inside scoop (in legal circles) that this executive order might be issued tonight. And it has been so issued.
Mr. Biden has extended by 18 months a clearly lawful relief provision, for people here in the US without papers, primarily from certain Latin American countries… each of whom await their already docketed hearings (since it is likely Tangerine 2.0 will now try to “slow walk” ALL “credible fear” hearings).
As my legacy graphic indicates, back when JUSTICE Jackson was… JUDGE Jackson, she was instrumental in protecting these human rights. To be certain, this is an excellent move, but there is more Mr. Biden might do, to protect human rights. More on that next week — here’s the latest, on a snowy Friday night:
…President Joe Biden’s administration on Friday renewed deportation relief that currently covers 900,000 immigrants from Venezuela, El Salvador, Ukraine and Sudan, a move that would delay any attempts by President-elect Donald Trump to sunset those protections.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) extended enrollment in the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program for those nations, giving those immigrants a deportation reprieve and access to work permits for an additional 18 months.
The Biden administration’s moves on Friday stopped short of more sweeping demands by activists and some Democrats to grant TPS to more recently arrived immigrants and those from other nations.
Todd Schulte, president of advocacy group FWD.us, said the extensions would allow hundreds of thousands of people to continue “contributing to their communities, supporting their families, and strengthening the economy” but also urged Biden to expand TPS to Nicaragua and other nations….
Well played, Mr. Biden. This will undoubtedly also benefit the children of these undocumented people I mentioned this morning — so it is a “two fer” here. We will blunt most of Tangerine 2.0’s cruelty — just as we did against 1.0 — sand into his gears, in the federal courts. Onward… may go catch a high-octane regional public high school B-ball game tonight (to celebrate this win), and yes — brave the snows. Heh.
नमस्ते
We’ve now covered Ebola outbreaks for 12 years. We started because Merck and NewLink ultimately made what was then the only FDA-approved Ebola vaccine.
But it led to our coverage of all sorts of potential pandemic viral agents, and their vaccines and emerging monoclonal therapeutics. Today, we note an encouraging milestone: Sierra Leone, that saw nearly 10,000 deaths from Ebola in 2014-15, has announced a preventative vaccine program — available to all potential front line health workers, and to cab drivers who might unwittingly transport a person hosting the virus (even without symptoms), in the future.
This prophylactic program will deploy the well understood and safe Merck vaccine — and I note it (as fluffy Friday snows fall here — and in Music City), to remind Mr. Kennedy that in the scientifically-literate world (i.e., Africa), vaccines are well-known to save millions of lives.
So this is a wonderful morning, 20,000 doses strong — even as Trump gets sentenced; Rudy sees contempt in DC and at least half of that Jack Smith report will be released, over the demagogue Aileen Cannon’s specious Florida objection (given the denial of Trump 2.0 last night). Progress — indeed. Here’s the latest:
…Sierra Leone is embarking on a nationwide campaign with the rVSV-ZEBOV vaccine, trademarked as Ervebo [a Merck property].
The campaign will target 20,000 frontline workers in 16 districts. These include healthcare workers, traditional healers, community health and social workers, laboratory personnel, motorcycle taxi drivers and security forces. Anybody who will be involved in any response to future outbreaks….
The Ervebo® vaccine, developed by Merck, is a single-dose vaccine. It works by using a modified virus to produce antibodies against Ebola, equipping the immune system to recognise and neutralise the virus upon exposure. Clinical trials have shown its efficacy exceeds 95% in preventing infection from the Zaire Ebola virus strain, the deadliest variant….
Now you know — onward to enjoying a high-science snow day, here and there — in fact, across much of the nation, even as we keep the people of LA in our meditations. Be excellent to one another — scientific sanity will make… a comeback.
नमस्ते
Welp. The simplest answer here is that he’s (again!) been caught in lies — or at least, extreme exaggerations.
He filed the sworn statement moments ago, as ordered and depicted in the graphic at right, before the able USDC Judge Howell in DC. In the two pager, he admits that he traveled for pleasure at Christmas, to see old friends and that he had no issues in attending the Manhattan proceedings we covered last week. So after a lot of burping and bleating, he’s withdrawn his request to appear by Zoom, tomorrow — on that contempt hearing. Here’s his rather lame sworn statement:
…Since December 9, 2024, I have traveled twice: once for a few days around Christmas to spend the holiday at the personal residence of close personal friends and once for a court conference in the Southern District of New York….
It currently appears that I will be required to appear in person for trial in the New York matter identified above starting on January 16, 2025. If it concludes before January 20th, I may travel to Washington, D.C. on the way home from Florida for the inauguration of President Trump, which will be a once-in-a-lifetime event….
The guy simply. cannot. read. any. room, any longer.
He’s done some truly terrible things (willfully telling and broadcasting lies), lies that injured innocent, honest, hard-working people — but he still thinks he should be given special “hall passes” — everywhere he goes. Disgusting. In DC — tomorrow, it will be a banger! Will he be detained overnight, for contempt? We shall see.
नमस्ते
We covered this in August of last year — during its training phase — here.
I love that Suni Williams (a very-willing!) “hostage” on the ISS (back story — on her extended stay at the station, here) — will pitch in to get the job done. Now it is go time — the live mission is about one week away. Here’s the latest from NASA and the ISS:
…NASA astronaut Nick Hague will install patches to the agency’s NICER (Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer) X-ray telescope on the International Space Station as part of a spacewalk scheduled for Jan. 16. Hague, along with astronaut Suni Williams, will also complete other tasks during the outing.
NICER will be the first NASA observatory repaired on-orbit since the last servicing mission for the Hubble Space Telescope in 2009.
Hague and other astronauts, including Don Pettit, who is also currently on the space station, rehearsed the NICER patch procedures in the NBL (Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory), a 6.2-million-gallon indoor pool at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, in 2024….
NASA astronauts Hague and Williams will replace a rate gyro assembly that helps provide orientation control for the station, install patches to cover damaged areas of light filters for an X-ray telescope called NICER (Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer), and replace a reflector device used for navigational data on one of the international docking adapters. Additionally, the pair will check access areas and connector tools that will be used for future maintenance work on the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer.
Hague will serve as spacewalk crew member 1 and will wear a suit with red stripes. Williams will serve as spacewalk crew member 2 and will wear an unmarked suit. This will be the fourth for Hague and the eighth for Williams. It will be the 273rd spacewalk in support of space station assembly, maintenance, and upgrades….
From its perch near the space station’s starboard solar array, NICER studies the X-ray sky, including erupting galaxies, black holes, superdense stellar remnants called neutron stars, and even comets in our solar system.
But in May 2023, NICER developed a “light leak.” Sunlight began entering the telescope through several small, damaged areas in the telescope’s thin thermal shields. During the station’s daytime, the light reaches the X-ray detectors, saturating sensors and interfering with NICER’s measurements of cosmic objects. The mission team altered their daytime observing strategy to mitigate the effect….
Now you know — onward, in an incredible moment to be alive and observing these wonders. And… Mr. and Mrs. Carter are reunited now. Smile.
नमस्ते
Oof. More disconcerting news, this time in China.
Here’s the latest, from Reuters overnight:
…China’s Centre for Disease Control and Prevention said it had found a cluster outbreak of the Ib subclade that started with the infection a foreigner who has a history of travel and residence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Four further cases have been found in people infected after close contact with the foreigner. The patients’ symptoms are mild and include skin rash and blisters….
Now you know. And… travel well Mr. Carter — but do travel light.
नमस्ते
Late this afternoon in DC, the able USDC Judge Beryl Howell issued a text-only order, showing vast skepticism about Rudy’s sudden, and utterly undocumented, “medical issues“. He is now in danger of going to jail for perjury, as well.
Wow. This is quite the stinger, just entered in DC:
…MINUTE ORDER (paperless), upon consideration of defendant’s [37] Motion to Appear Virtually (“Mot. to Appear”) for the scheduled contempt hearing on January 10, 2025, and to assess the seriousness and veracity of the medical conditions (i.e., “severe knee conditions,” a “lung condition… requir[ing] the use of an inhaler,” and a “heart condition”) and security concerns (i.e., “credible death threats”) that this motion, without support from any medical or other documentation, asserts / provides “good cause and compelling circumstances” to excuse his in-person attendance at the scheduled contempt hearing….
DIRECTING defendant to file by January 9, 2025, at 2:00 PM, a sworn declaration, under penalty of perjury, from Mr. Giuliani that, except for travel required for court proceedings, he has been unable to travel and has not traveled from his residence in Florida, see Mot. to Appear at 2, in the past 30 days and that he remains unable to and will not travel in the next 30 days (i.e., the period from December 9, 2024, to February 7, 2025), due to these same medical conditions and security concerns.
Signed by Judge Beryl A. Howell on January 8, 2025….
The hits just keep comin’ — when you decide to lie to federal court judges. Damn.
Meanwhile, back in Manhattan (hilariously, given his testimony on Monday!), Mr. Guiliani is to bring all the World Series rings to court next week, to be placed with the US Marshals, for safe-keeping. That order will likely be finalized tonight — or tomorrow.
Onward, grinning into a clear cold night — but no more snows. Out.
नमस्ते
This is silly.
Forty pages of… manifest silliness.
But here it is, for the record. Nothing stops his sentencing.
In fact, there is a very solidly-grounded argument that he cannot appeal the overall verdict, in his 34 state law felony convictions, until his sentence is pronounced, under NY state criminal procedural law. [That is, there is no “final order, of harm” (from which to appeal), until he knows whether the able judge sets the whole thing aside.]
But now you may read the nonsense for yourself. Onward.
नमस्ते
