Category: Uncategorized

Will Tangerine “Pick Cotton”?! [For Veep?] I Sure Hope So!

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This is just… so precious!

Bill Otis likes Tom Cotton as a Tangerine running mate, for all the reasons (ironically) I do. [It is perfect, in its symmetry, indeed.]

Because he is a harder far right / anti-freedom choice, even more so, than Trump, every bit as racist as Trump and because… he narrows, rather than broadens, the ticket’s appeal, nation-wide. [Recall also that the video-tape of Cotton raising a power-fist, at the Capitol steps, on the morning of 01.06.21 will be run non-stop / 24 / 7 / 365 in Biden campaign ads, from now to November, then — what an “only the finest people” guy!]

I love it! A guaranteed… loss, in November. [Of course, picking Cotton over say Rudy Giuliani avoids having a second felon on the ticket, whilst ticking all the same racism and isolationist boxes — so I suppose it is a marginal improvement from Rudy to Tom.]

But unless Tangerine finds a Black man (and he’s too afraid of Tim Scott, BTW!) willing to hold his nose, and join him, or a woman (preferably of color)… his base is just too narrow to stand a chance in the general.

And we know he cannot stand strong women — or even a strong second. So… I love Bill’s analysis (but for all the “wrong” reasons!) — it gets me the win, for Democrats, in November!

Thanks, man!

In Which Hinderaker Rejects All The More Likely Explanations… For The One That Conforms To His… Biases.

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I feel this is largely a waste of time and pixels — as it is just so… obvious.

But tonight John would seriously tell us — with whatever he regards as his “straight face” these days — that it is DEI that has ruined UCLA’s Med School rankings, in his view. From Fifth — to 18th, or some such.

Yet for this outlandish claim, John — and the Free Beacon he quotes, offer no evidence.

Just some grumblings from Whyte male med students who feel some of their cohort seem clueless. [Not one of them presented failing grade data by race or gender. Why? Because the data itself (if gathered) would make out a claim against UCLA — for discriminatory conduct. And even if the Beacon has seen some data (and it offered… none, for their actual claims), there is zero proof of causation, obviously. This is the oldest racists’ trope there is.]

Not one of them says these under-achieving ones are DEI adds. Not one.

Hinderaker, and the Free Beacon simply assume it. And then libel one third of the class, thereby.

And in any event — is anyone surprised that a few mediocre dead-end whyte med students whine… about… essentially… everything?

No surprise, at all.

Onward, and out.

Crewed Starliner Launch Just Pushed Back, Again — At Least Another Week…

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As ever — we will only get one shot to get a crewed launch… right. So, indeed — we ought to take our time. There is no rush here. No space race left to win. [We won it — we’ve had a helicopter flying missions, on Mars, and we’ve been mining there, for eight years, on and off.] Here’s the latest, from NASA’s blog:

…The teams are now working toward a launch opportunity at 12:25 p.m. ET on Saturday, June 1, with additional opportunities on Sunday, June 2, Wednesday, June 5, and Thursday, June 6.

Work continues to assess Starliner performance and redundancy following the discovery of a small helium leak in the spacecraft’s service module. As part of this work, and unrelated to the current leak which remains stable, teams are in the process of completing a follow-on propulsion system assessment to understand potential helium system impacts on some Starliner return scenarios.

NASA also will conduct a Delta-Agency Flight Test Readiness Review to discuss the work that was performed since the last CFT launch attempt on May 6, and to evaluate issue closure and flight rationale ahead of the next attempt, as part of NASA’s process for assessing readiness. The date of the upcoming Flight Test Readiness Review is under consideration and will be announced once selected….

Now you know — out into the sunshine, now… smile.

नमस्ते

Ken Frazier And Ken Chenault, On Air — At Fast Company…

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I will offer no introduction — you may pick up on the flow, simply from the context of the remarks. [I will beg forgiveness for not creating a new graphic that “Expressly” (see what I did, there?) includes Mr. Chenault — but they are both living their best lives in retirement, now — whine aiding many a worthy cause.]

Trust me, it is a worthy five minute read, if this picques your curiousity — over at Fast Company:

…Ken Chenault (Former Chairman of American Express): I think it’s very dangerous that people are saying, “We need to get rid of DEI.” But they’re not frankly also saying, “But let me be clear, here’s our commitment to diversity.” And I think there are forces who are against giving people opportunity. And I think companies do need to assert that they have a commitment to giving all types of people an opportunity.

Ken Frazier (Former Chairman of Merck & Co.): I think the challenge in this country is that some people are arguing that expanding opportunity for people is inconsistent with merit. And I think that’s untrue. So the question is: How do companies take advantage of the best talent that is available in an increasingly diverse society? And how do we expand opportunity for people who have been historically marginalized without discriminating against people who haven’t been marginalized? I don’t think those two things are at all inconsistent.

Ken Frazier, you have a legal background, right? Businesses are also grappling with increasing legal risks about affirmative action in addressing historically marginalized communities. Is that a dramatic change? Are the legal risks things that business people are using as an excuse not to do things they want to do?

Ken Frazier: I think it’s a change in atmosphere for business. The Supreme Court’s opinion has become a catalyst for some of the groups that are totally opposed to diversity, equity, and inclusion….

[* * *snip* * *]

Ken Frazier: I heard someone say, “If you’ve read 10 books about the origin of today’s situation in Palestine, all that qualifies you to do is to read another 20 books.” So, a lot of the people who are taking strong positions, including I think some of our younger people, haven’t read the first book, let alone the first 10 books.

And I think this chapter gives the colleges an opportunity to rethink their social contract with society. At every stage, universities have to ask, “Are we forming young people to be constructive leaders in society?” I think if you look at the campuses now, university leaders are probably questioning whether they are. Common ground will never be reached unless we go to higher ground and talk about the principles that unite us.

Ken Chenault: I had this term that I used at American Express: I wanted people to engage in “constructive confrontation.” Do it respectfully. We need to debate and argue, certainly on our college campuses. That’s part of what you have to learn. But you have to understand the other person’s perspective.

Ken Frazier: We live in turbulent times. One of the keys is for leaders to spend time reflecting, not to instantaneously react to what’s going on around them, to listen to others, to prompt others, to give you feedback that can help you decide what the right course is. Implicit in that is being the kind of leader whose people actually trust you enough to tell you what they really think and helping you to see the big picture.

So I do think there’s a lesson, not just for college students, not just for university leaders, but for all leaders—and that is: Whenever you’re facing these turbulent, challenging times, it’s important to do some reflection before deciding what you’re going to say or do….

Onward… smiling, just the same.

नमस्ते

The Federal Border Patrol Has Answered The Nonsense Questions Of The Fifth Circuit — In Muscular Fashion… Today.

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Well… last week, we said that this was a… loony, “off the reservation” sort of request — for additional post-argument briefs, by the en banc Fifth Circuit. And that… it indeed, is.

So tonight, the US attorneys have obliged, and made plain this afternoon. . . just how loony the Fifth has become. Do read all ten pages, but here is a bit:

…[E]even if the federal courts were sometimes required to accept a State’s determination regarding the existence of an invasion, the district court could nonetheless adjudicate the United States’ claim in this case without needing to address any issue that is plausibly reserved to the State’s sole discretion. Finally, “[i]n a hypothetical case, if an action [were] brought against the President… for exercising the constitutional war power,” the President would have justiciability defenses that are not available to a Governor in an action, like this one, brought by the United States….

[E]very court to have considered whether a substantial influx of irregular migration qualifies as an invasion for constitutional purposes [has decided against such nonsense]. Those courts considered the issue in suits brought by States or officials of political subdivisions contending that the federal government’s alleged failure to adequately curtail unlawful migration violated the United States’ obligation under Article IV of the Constitution to “protect” the States “against Invasion.” U.S. Const. art. IV, sec. 4.

In every case, the court of appeals held that the claim presented a political question that could not furnish a basis for granting the State relief. See California v. United States, 104 F.3d 1086, 1090-91 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 522 U.S. 806 (1997); New Jersey v. United States, 91 F.3d 463, 469-70 (3d Cir. 1996); Padavan v. United States, 82 F.3d 23, 28 (2d Cir. 1996); Chiles v. United States, 69 F.3d 1094, 1097 (11th Cir. 1995); cf. Texas v. United States, 106 F.3d 661, 667 (5th Cir. 1997) (finding that Texas “suggests no manageable standards by which a court could decide the type and degree of immigration law enforcement that would suffice to comply with [the] strictures” of the Constitution)….

The district court in this case relied upon those decisions, and Texas agrees with them. ROA.997; Texas Panel Br. at 34.

It follows that just as Texas could not rely on an asserted “invasion” to obtain affirmative relief against the federal government, it cannot rely on an asserted “invasion” as either a reason to read the Rivers and Harbors Act to permit its conduct or as an (unasserted) affirmative defense against the United States’ claims of statutory violations in this case. As the district court observed, Texas seeks to avoid that conclusion by focusing its argument not on Article IV, but on the “invasion” exception to the State War Clause. But “all Texas’s new argument does is to ask the Court to take the additional step — beyond the non-justiciable question of whether the federal government has failed to protect Texas from invasion — of sanctioning Texas’s assertion of plenary power to declare and respond” to whatever it regards as an invasion, ROA.998 (emphases added), and permitting it to defy federal law….

Texas has not identified a single case in which a federal court has held that a federal constitutional question presents a political question that is reserved to a state governor, much less that the governor may order state officials to violate federal law on that basis. Whatever else the political question doctrine covers, it is not a doctrine that requires the federal judiciary to turn a blind eye to state actions that the federal legislature (through the Rivers and Harbors Act) and the federal executive (through this enforcement action) have determined are improper….

Damnation.

Now you know — and with that, the loony Fifth Cir. should be… embarrassed into simply dismissing Texas’s appeal, forthwith.

नमस्ते

A Subsidiary Of German Merck (Legacy Sigma Aldrich) Now Called Millipore Has Seen The First Ever “Declination Letter” — From The US DoJ. Cooperation Is Clearly Key, Folks.

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The company has specifically been reassured — in writing — by the DoJ, that it will see no future prosecutions, on these facts, given how swiftly and completely the company cooperated, once it saw clear evidence of felonies by certain of its employees.

This is a reward for having an effective compliance program, and essentially immediately turning over evidence of lawlessness, to the feds. It turns out that a single MilliporeSigma salesperson was using his position of trust to divert fraudulently purchased MilliporeSigma chemical products (some useful in the making of deadly narcotics) to others inside and outside the US, who in turn made false statements to agencies of the U.S. Government (claiming the sales were to university labs) but then aided in the export of the same chemical products to China state actors, in violation of US arms/export control laws.

I am highlighting it, as these investigations (where a chemical or life science company DOES NOT quickly cooperate, or worse, has inadequate compliance programs) tend to drag on for years, and the company never really gets a definitive “you’re in the clear” letter — so the reputational black eye can linger into… a decade. [I know from first hand VA debarment investigations of decades past… just how costly this can be, to selling momentum, globally.] So do take heed, one and all:

…We have decided to decline prosecution of this matter based on an assessment of the factors set forth in the NSD Enforcement Policy for Business Organizations and the Principles of Federal Prosecution of Business Organizations, Justice Manual § 9-28.300, including: (1) MilliporeSigma’s timely and voluntary self-disclosure of the misconduct, just a week after retaining outside counsel to conduct an internal investigation and before obtaining a complete understanding of the nature and full extent of the misconduct; (2) MilliporeSigma’s exceptional and proactive cooperation, including by disclosing all known relevant facts about the misconduct and the individuals involved and identifying evidence establishing probable cause to search for evidence of the crimes in locations not under MilliporeSigma’s control, along with its agreement to continue to cooperate with any ongoing government investigations and any resulting prosecutions; (3) the nature and seriousness of the offense, including that the chemical compounds exported to China through the scheme did not present a significant threat to national security in the quantities and concentrations sold and, in most instances, did not require a license for export; (4) MilliporeSigma’s timely and appropriate remediation, including terminating the salesperson who engaged in the scheme and improving its internal controls and compliance program; and (5) the fact that, although MilliporeSigma obtained some revenue from sales to the conspirators, MilliporeSigma was victimized by the conspirators’ scheme to fraudulently obtain significantly discounted products and free overnight shipping, which fraud was, under all of the circumstances, the most serious readily provable offense committed by the conspirators.

We have further determined that MilliporeSigma did not unlawfully obtain any gains from the offenses for which it is potentially liable, and thus MilliporeSigma is not required to pay any disgorgement, forfeiture, or restitution under the NSD Enforcement Policy for Business Organizations.

Under this letter agreement, MilliporeSigma agrees to continue to fully cooperate with our ongoing investigation, including by continuing to disclose relevant information and by making available for interviews and testimony those officers, employees, or agents who have relevant information, as determined in our sole discretion, and by consenting to our public disclosure of the facts and circumstances of this matter and MilliporeSigma’s cooperation….

So, this is a truly novel — and positive — development. Now you know — onward, still grinning. [Of course, individual employees or others still found culpable may be prosecuted, but the company itself cannot be.] Be excellent to one another.

नमस्ते

ESA’s Euclid Will Reveal First Full Color Photo Albums, Of Deep Cosmos Tomorrow…

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In honor of the big reveal show scheduled for midday on the Continent tomorrow (about 7 am in Chicago), we’ve adapted a NASA image — one that stitches together an older Hubble shot in visible light, with Euclid — and more recently, the JWST (outside the spectrum visible to the human eye, but then adapted into colors we can perceive).

Enjoy — but here is the latest from the ESA team:

…The broadcast will showcase five new mesmerising portraits of our Universe. Several experts will guide us through the images and tell us about the science hidden within.

The same day, the data of Euclid’s Early Release Observations will be made public, accompanied by ten forthcoming science papers. They come less than a year after the space telescope’s launch, and roughly six months after it returned its first full-colour images of the cosmos….

Now you know. Onward, grinning — out into the Spring air, with a mountain bike ride by the lake… warming to past 75 degrees, in the sunshine now. Will catch Was & his Detroit band — at the late show tonight, at Space — this is the second stop on his tour (opened in Minneapolis, last night).

नमस्ते

We Need Better (Wider) Clinical Follow-Up Data, On What The Longer Term Effects Are — From Losing 15% Of Body Weight In About A Year — Then Gaining 2/3rds Of That Back In Another Year.

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We had previously mentioned that the longer term effects of these newer weight loss drugs are still not well understood.

This is particularly true of the “off-cycle” effects. With the injections running over $1,500 per month in many locales, we are now seeing many formerly obese patients decide to not keep spending that money… and, unsurprisingly, the weight doesn’t stay off. And the health risks which accompany the increasing weight… look to be as bad or worse than what the patients saw, before beginning therapy.

Yes, these are clearly multi-billion dollar franchises, but the BBC’s data-digging would suggest that the collateral health risks may have been magnified, once the injections are discontinued, over a year’s time. Most of all, we need the results from the read out of the larger studies now underway, but this is an emerging cautionary tale (even if on less than fully powered data):

…In one trial, around 800 people received weekly semaglutide injections accompanied by dietary adjustments, a prescribed exercise regime and psychological counselling, all of which helped them to lose nearly 11% of their starting weight over four months. But when a third of the participants were subsequently switched to a placebo injection for another year, they regained 7% of the lost weight.

The same trend was seen after the 2021 trial, known as Step 1. After 68 weeks of semaglutide injections, the average patient lost more than 15% of their body weight, but within 12 months of treatment ending, patients regained two thirds of their prior weight loss on average. This was associated with a similar level of reversion to the patients’ original baselines in some markers of their cardiometabolic health – a category which includes conditions such as diabetes and heart attacks.

Both Rubino and other experts around the world have seen similar patterns when administering GLP-1 drugs in their clinics. “There will be a small proportion of people, 10% maximum, that are able to maintain [all] the weight they’ve lost,” says Alex Miras, a clinical professor of medicine at Ulster University….

So, we urge you: do stay tuned here — and, we may begin to see a more cautious approach in prescribing them, to any patient who is not already living in the top one tenth of one percentile, as to personal income, and/or liquid net worth.

We will keep an eye on the emerging studies, for the readership. Onward.

नमस्ते

We’ve Mentioned This Before, But It Is Drawing Nearer — As A Technologically-Viable Way To Visit A Habitable Exo-Planet / World, Later This Century…

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Most significantly, we might well be able to see images, and likely petabytes of chemical, infrared and other data, from the exo-planet world called Proxima b. It orbits our closest neighbor star, Proxima Centari. And it is likely in the zone where liquid water may persist on the planet surface.

So — the idea is that we use a powerful laser (still in development) built in space, to “push” thousands of one centimeter craft-sails, out of our local system… eventually reaching near relativistic speeds. . . and arriving at the eight light year off Proxima system in about 20 years of one way travel time. From there, the thousands work together, to collect data and imagery, and beam it all back via a “concerto-like” joint effort — in short, but very powerful laser bursts — each aimed back at Earth.

From there, we “catch” these light transmissions, on a space based telescope, not unlike the JWST, decode them — and find out whether life might exist on Proxima b. Here is the latest paper in an astrobiology journal, popularizing this long in development notion — and a bit:

…Tiny gram-scale interstellar probes pushed by laser light are likely to be the only technology capable of reaching another star this century. We presuppose availability by mid-century of a laser beamer powerful enough (~100-GW) to boost a few grams to relativistic speed, laser-sails robust enough to survive launch, and terrestrial light buckets (~1-sq.km) big enough to catch our optical signals. Then our proposed representative mission, around the third quarter of this century, is to fly by our nearest neighbor, the potentially habitable world Proxima b, with a large autonomous swarm of 1000s of tiny probes.

A swarm whose members are in known spatial positions relative to each other, having state-of-the-art micro-miniaturized clocks to keep synchrony, can utilize its entire population to communicate with Earth, periodically building up a single short but extremely bright contemporaneous laser pulse from all of them. Operational coherence means each probe sends the same data but adjusts its emission time according to its relative position, such that all pulses arrive simultaneously at the receiving arrays on Earth. This effectively multiplies the power from any one probe by the number N of probes in the swarm, providing orders of magnitude greater data return.

A swarm would tolerate significant attrition en route, mitigating the risk of “putting all your eggs in one basket,” and enabling close observation of Proxima b from multiple vantage points….

Onward — grinning… “make no small plans“, indeed.

नमस्ते

Q1 GAAP SEC Results: Trump’s Media Only Had Sales Of Around $770,000 — And LOST… $327 MILLION!!! Insane!

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Look. We all have long-known… he’s a pure grifter. But this is… just… insane.

He likely has fewer than 100,000 regular users on the platform [to put that in perspective, X-itter likely has over 360 million regular users]; and the Devin Nunes led company almost certainly has fewer than 90,000 true retail stockholders… and it is losing about a third of a billion dollars every quarter now. Maybe a lil’ less — but the object lesson is… that the company WILL NOT disclose its industry-standard metrics on engagement, as it might “distract” (from the grift underway). More likely, they are so anemic as to suggest the ship is sinking — and sinking, fast. [Sounds a lot like the dodge on his 1040, doesn’t it?]

In any event, here’s that quote from page 21 of the just filed SEC filed 10-Q:

…At this juncture in its development, TMTG believes that adhering to traditional key performance indicators, such as signups, average revenue per user, ad impressions and pricing, or active user accounts including monthly and daily active users, could potentially divert its focus from strategic evaluation with respect to the progress and growth of its business.

TMTG believes that focusing on these KPIs might not align with the best interests of TMTG or its stockholders, as it could lead to short-term decision-making at the expense of long-term innovation and value creation….

Got that? Devin Nunes and Fail-Son and Tangerine… are each more focused on the “long term prospects”… for continuing the… grift.

Charming. This is a stock worth… about $1 per share, now — not $48.

नमस्ते