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Longest Totality — For About A Century — Coming Up On August 2, 2027… Over The Ruins At Luxor, Egypt. Who’s Up For A… [Long] Road Trip?!

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We last saw a stunning-totality in the Shawnee National Forest wilderness of north-western Kentucky, in August of 2017. That was under three minutes, but it was spectacular. Other commitments kept us away from the Sea of Cortez, in April of 2024… but we WILL make the sojourn, to Egypt (that nation has been on the bucket-list, anyway — for decades!) — and spend perhaps four weeks, all in (before and after the eclipse), there.

We likely won’t be alive (even with personalized gene therapy — heh!) for the 2114 one (which will be longer by only about eight seconds)… thus this is our “best” shot. Heh. Here’s a bit, from Astronomy magazine’s tour solicitation:

…With available spots left to travel to Egypt and witness the grand spectacle of a total solar eclipse filling up fast, I was happy to learn that Astronomy magazine’s tour provider, Eclipse Traveler, has added another trip. This one, called 2027 Luxor, is a 5-day/4-night adventure beginning July 30 and ending August 3, 2027.

August 2, of course, is the significant date in this span. That’s when the group will witness 6 minutes 22 seconds of totality from just outside Luxor. That duration of totality is the longest anyone will witness until June 3, 2114, when the Moon will cover the Sun for 6 minutes 32 seconds. You probably don’t want to wait for that one….

Now you know. I will likely arrange to be in Egypt by mid-July 2027… see the sites, and travel a bit first, then at Luxor for the totality — and onward, down the Nile… into Africa’s Blue Nile territories through the end of August that year. Sweet — bucket list item — checked!

नमस्ते

For The First Time, A “Hybrid” Mpox Strain Is Seen, In England: Likely Due To A Recent Travel Excursion, Into Asia…

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Of course, because the new strain contains elements of both the more serious Clade 1b, and the more benign Clade 2… there is no telling where it goes from here — or whether this strain is susceptible to / vanquished by… the existing vaccine stock.

There is no approved vaccine, as this is a wholly new strain. [It would be fair to infer that the existing vaccines should be at least reasonably effective against the new hybrid, based on bio-science — but the data on that will only come with a rigorous clinical trial, in the future.]

And so, time will tell, but the afflicted individual is in isolation, and the overall risk to the British public is exceedingly low at this point. Here’s the Beeb, on the latest:

…The virus is a mix of two major types of the mpox virus, and was found in someone who recently returned from travelling in Asia.

Officials say they are still assessing the significance of the new strain….

The new virus strain contains elements of two mpox strains, called clade Ib and clade IIb. It currently has no name.

UK health officials recently encouraged gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men to make sure they were vaccinated against mpox.

That call came as a strain called ‘clade Ib’ showed early signs of local spread in some European countries.

‘Clade IIb’ is linked to a global outbreak of mpox in 2022 which affected many countries worldwide….

Now you know. Do be careful out there, especially if you are prone to intimacy with multiple partners, and in… London. Something new [on the longest-duration eclipse of the coming century], shortly. May end up being a destination vacation — for August 2027 — in Luxor, Egypt. Excellent — smile.

नमस्ते

A Massive Win, For Indiana Public Schools — In The Face Of Malign Actors Like Mrs. Linda McMahon, And Tangerine 2.0… STEM Upped!

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This is excellent, even if it suggests that the federal Department of Education [under Tangerine 2.0, and Mrs. Linda McMahon] is not just failing in its mission — but is actively hurting America’s future competitiveness… by gutting public school educational content, in the hard sciences (in favor of… theocracy, and right wing / ahistorical gibberish).

I want to stay on the positive — for Indiana’s public school kids — they are now far more likely to enter the workforce with skills that pharma-, and tech- and yes, even AI- businesses will be willing to pay handsomely for. That is my abiding hope — and I hope others in industry, in California, New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, Illinois and Colorado will likewise answer this challenging call:

…The Indiana Department of Education recently announced a public-private investment with Lilly Endowment Inc. to help strengthen the state’s educational opportunities as well as pathways for Indiana students.

According to a news release from the Indiana Department of Education, the $75 million investment, including $40 million from the Lilly Endowment Inc. and $35 million in state funding, is “one of the most significant public-private education commitments in state history.” The investment is aimed at helping:

➣ Accelerate literacy

➣ Expand high-quality summer learning

➣ Strengthen STEM pathways

➣ Modernize and expand career advising

➣ Sustain critical digital learning tools for Hoosier students….

➣ Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Landscape Analysis

These specific funds will help support the implementation of a statewide STEM Landscape Analysis. This is aimed at assessing current assets and gaps in STEM education in Indiana, identify best practices for STEM education and developing recommendations on how STEM education can improve….

Summer Learning Labs Expansion

This portion of the investment will help strengthen and scale the Summer Learning Labs network, including regional coordination, professional development and data collection systems….

While it is rather sad… that Corporate America will now have to be spend foundation money, just to bring Indiana public school kids up to basic national literacy standards, I am enthused that Lilly knows Trump’s picked WWF-wife / “mis-education secretary” is herself clearly-STEM illiterate — and therefor private industry nationwide will have to answer the call — to create / educate its own workforces, ready to earn — in the future. [Second graphic is from Trump 1.0’s backwards efforts, to push theocracy in Indy back in 2018.]

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They Say Satire Is Often The Most Effective Form Of Political Criticism… And Courtesy Our Erstwhile Anon. Commenters — Here’s The Proof!

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Our sincere and deeply heart-felt thanks go out to our Anon. commenters, for this.

Click the video below — it is sublime satire, of RFK, Jr.

And old RFK, Jr. should take note: he’s an anti-science idiot whose “policies” will doubtless result in excess deaths and disabilities, among children — here, in the most prosperous economy on Earth. Disgusting. Do see this, and if you are able, support the Marsh Family Songs/singers — please. That’s a paypal link — or you may use Patreon — for ongoing support & bonuses: / marshfamilysongs:

…[From the Marsh family singers:] This may not be one of Paul Simon’s most successful songs, but it was a fun vibe to work up at the start of a new school year – getting instruments out for the first time since a summer holiday. The original was the second single from the album “Paul Simon” (released 1972) and the inscrutable story in the lyrics is set in the Queens neighbourhood where he grew up. By coincidence, it was apparently performed with Stephen Colbert in 2015 on The Late Show – the programme that this week tore into Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s record and showed some of his fiery testimony in the Senate, an episode which also made it into European news coverage (story here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c….

Needless to say, the world is watching with alarm the compromising of America’s public health systems, including the dismantling of the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) – which has now lost its chief medical officer, director of immunisation, and director of emerging diseases (among many others) – while misinformation spreads, rates of vaccine uptake plummet, new outbreaks of measles kill again, and some states gallop headlong towards removing mandates that had the overwhelming backing of the scientific and medical communities….

Onward, resolutely.

नमस्ते

In Which Hinderaker Would Substitute His (Suspect) Judgment, For That Of British Courts Of Law… Yawn.

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Well… overnight, Hinderaker decides he should tell British authorities what sorts of protests are allowable in that nation — and what sorts… are not.

Uh-huh.

This is a weird, but tiny, impotent echo — of Tangerine’s comments last week: Trump said that Europe risks losing what it means to be “European” (by which he means… whyte), if it continues to allow immigration in the numbers it has over the past decade. [He called it “civilizational erasure“. Implicit in this comment is the notion that only whyte people are truly “civilized“, and if more brown, yellow and black people take up residence in a nation (than whyte) — the civilization… ends. That sure sounds like a tiny mustachioed guy, from the early 1930s. One the world united to defeat — and forced into a suicide — in a bunker under the Reich Chancellery building, in Berlin. Ick.]

It may be one thing for the US president to scold his European allies, on internal matters — ones that do not affect the US. [That too is odious, though, in truth.]

It is entirely another for a demented old coot in the USA to pop off about what is free expression in the UK. John does not seem to understand that the law of protest differs from our set of precepts, in several important ways, in the UK. It is not his place to tell the Brits how to do things.

To be clear, I do not much care for this protest, but the crown jewels were not stolen, nor damaged in any way.

The case housing them was splatterd with food — to make the point that many many Britons are going hungry — while the Royals hold vast banquets, dripping in jewelry.

But no permanent harm was done.

John wishes to substitute his vindictiveness, for the even handed, tolerant justice of the British court system. Good luck with that, you delusional old fart.

What a tiny handed miscreant he is. Out.

Jonny Kim Returns To Earth Monday Morning… End, Of His ISS Mission.

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We won’t likely watch, but you may catch the return on NASA+ or YouTube.

This (his third ride in space) has been a wild one, largely due to chaos, on the ground in DC. You see — for a portion of his stint, Tangerine 2.0 had suspended Kim’s pay — as “non-essential” (during the longest shutdown in US history). What kind of a rat-bastard treats a US astronaut in space that way?! Anyhoo — here is the “coming home” schedule, and the transition news:

…NASA astronaut Jonny Kim, accompanied by Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky, is preparing to depart the International Space Station aboard the Soyuz MS-27 spacecraft and return to Earth.

Kim, Ryzhikov, and Zubritsky will undock from the station’s Prichal module at 8:41 p.m. EST on Monday, Dec. 8, headed for a parachute-assisted landing at 12:04 a.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 9 (10:04 a.m. local time in Kazakhstan), on the steppe of Kazakhstan, southeast of the city of Dzhezkazgan.

Watch NASA’s live coverage of the crew’s return on NASA+, Amazon Prime, and the agency’s YouTube channel. Learn how to stream NASA content through a variety of online platforms, including social media….

NASA Flight Engineer Chris Williams, who arrived at the station with Flight Engineers Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev on Nov. 27, has stepped into his new role as a first-time station astronaut and assisted Kim inside the Quest airlock on Friday installing lights, cameras, and straps on a pair of spacesuit helmets. Williams then wore electrodes around his eyes as computerized medical gear operated by NASA Flight Engineer Zena Cardman sent light signals to test his retinal response in microgravity….

Now you know. Onward, grinning.

नमस्ते

So — (Once Again!) No Music City Hearings — Next Week. Oh Well… At Some Point, He Must Be Set Free…

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Late on Thursday night, the able USDC Judge cancelled the “mini-trial” set for Monday morning.

I now do know exactly why USDC Judge Waverly Crenshaw (quite correctly) did this, but given the irrelevant, and highly prejudicial nature of the latest “trial by ambush” government supposed proffers [paid recidivist “informants” — to purportedly testify about uncharged, undocumented and irrelevant matters]… I suspect it will be resceduled for the latter part of January 2026 — after all the motions in limine are sorted out.

In any event, I’ll be staying in the ice-box next week — and likely shoveling again, by Sunday night or Monday. Heh. Here’s that latest full-text order:

…ORDER as to Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia:

The evidentiary hearing scheduled on December 8 and 9, 2025 is CANCELLED pending further order of the Court.

Signed by District Judge Waverly D. Crenshaw, Jr on 12/4/2025….

We are, however, approaching the point where… the quantum of evidence of vindictive and selective prosecution (against the Noemites) is so overwhelmingly-weighty, that Judge Crenshaw could dismiss the case, on the papers alone — and set Mr. Abrego Garcia free — without any other conditions of release. Indeed, the Noemites have tried to mislead the court in Maryland, falsely suggesting that very peaceful, prosperous Costa Rica would not easily accept any formal “asylees’” application from Mr. Abrego and his immediate family.

That nation has now averred in writing that it will. [And the asylees are willing to go live there, at least until Trump leaves office.] So much for my warmer weather getaway — and watching of “The Nutcracker” (off ice), this year. The “on ice” version is a matinee on the thirteenth, up here. Grin.

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Y A W N. As We Said Before — Halozyme’s Claim Is Largely Obviated — By An Alteogen License US Merck Bought And Paid For [Power-Alley Stuff].

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As we said in March 2025, this isn’t going to be any big deal for US Merck.

And the ruling seems… a little “home-court” protective, of Halozyme. [Note all the trademark naming rights spats still dotting the globe — between US Merck and German Merck (no relation).]

So it seems a German patent court has issued an injunction, in Germany only, for formulations of pembrolizumab that “read on” Halozyme tech. What MSM stories fail to mention was that Merck has already licensed an Alteogen-invented, separate human hyaluronidase variant, one not mentioned in any of the Halozyme patents, either as a claim, or as known prior art.

So this is very likely to amount to almost no damages, payable to Halozyme. Here’s the rather breathless MSM version, though — and a bit:

…A court in Munich has granted a preliminary injunction to Halozyme that prevents Merck from distributing the subcutaneous version of its cancer treatment Keytruda (pembrolizumab) in Germany.

Halozyme previously filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Merck arguing that the SC version violates patents related to its MDASE drug delivery system….

Y A W N. Now you know. And the hearing in Nashville has been scrubbed. Probably January 2026, now. Onward, grinning — I will head there, straight from… the cacti — of Verado, Arizona.

नमस्ते

Congress Hears Expert Testimony Suggesting That The SpaceX Moon Approach “Should Be Scrapped”.

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As a strong believer in rational evidence — especially when it comes to space science and engineering — I am very gratified that these concerns are now getting a much wider airing.

Afterall, we are all undoubtedly benefited — by critical testing of our dubious assumptions, in science.

And so, since this is all over five years behind schedule, once Tangerine 2.0 is gone, a more rational plan will come forward… perhaps not involving crews to Mars, at all. [Just as I’ve long suggested.] Here’s the latest, from Space.com:

…The former NASA administrator reiterated a previous recommendation he made to Congress, arguing that NASA’s Artemis 3 mission, currently planned for 2027, should be canceled — along with every other Artemis mission — so NASA and the U.S. government can rethink the whole plan for America’s return to the moon.

“We should start over, proceeding with all deliberate speed,” Griffin said. “We have lost a lot of me, and we may not be able to return to the moon before the Chinese execute their own first landing. Or we may; space is hard and despite the progress that China is making, mission success is guaranteed to no one. But though we may not win at this first step, we cannot cede the pursuit and leave the playing field to others….”

NASA and SpaceX’s current plan for Artemis 3 and other moon missions in the program relies on a complicated in-orbit refueling system. The current moon landing architecture requires a high number of SpaceX Starship launches in order to refuel the lander that would take NASA astronauts to the moon. The exact number still isn’t even known, though SpaceX estimates it could require 12 Starship launches to fully refuel the lander. The concept also remains unproven….

Furthermore, Griffin added, the length of time the lander would need to remain in orbit while the refueling flights launch and rendezvous with it would “almost guarantee” the propellant loaded into the lunar lander would boil off before the mission proceeds. “I do not see a way with the current technology we have to overcome those problems, and therefore we should not pursue that line of approach,” Griffin said….

There you have it. Please people: pay attention — and write your Congress-critters, about this.

Truly, let’s not waste high millions of dollars in taxpayer money, nor unduly risk precious NASA /crew personnel. We pretty well know this endeavor is as flawed — as Musk himself. Out.

नमस्ते

[U: Hinderaker Cannot Read Edition!] The Supremes Will Hold That The Plain English Reading Of “Born Here; Thus A Citizen Here” Is The Clearly Correct Reading. That Is All.

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Updated, Sunday evening December 7, 2025: True to form, John Hinderaker indicates that rudimentary English grammar is beyond his meager grasp. Again. End update.

Much is being made tonight by the MSM, of the Supremes deciding today to take the question on cert., before judgment. This is, in my view, all just so much… noise.

The Court took the question to end the wasteful posturing in various appellate courts — torturing the actual words, to try to force a Trumpian meaning from them. Essentially, holding that the words mean the opposite of what they’ve said — for nearly 200 years. [“We do not hide elephants… in mouse-holes….”]

I for one know (as does Paul Mirengoff) the Court won’t give in to this malign idiocy. This will break 7-2 [Alito & Thomas dissenting] against Tangerine 2.0. Here is why — exactly:

…The Fourteenth Amendment begins with a clear and solemn guarantee: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.” In 1898, this Court held that this provision means what it says, safeguarding U.S. citizenship at birth for all persons born in this country, with only a handful of exceptions not applicable here. United States v. Wong Kim Ark, 169 U.S. 649 (1898). In 1940 and again in 1952, Congress codified the language of the Citizenship Clause — incorporating the then-prevailing understanding of those words as construed by this Court’s decision in Wong Kim Ark.

Executive Order 14,160 purports to strip birthright citizenship from persons born in the United States to parents who lack permanent immigration status. The Order is squarely contrary to the constitutional text, this Court’s precedents, Congress’s dictates, longstanding Executive Branch practice, scholarly consensus, and well over a century of our nation’s everyday practice. Accordingly, the district court below, like every other court that has reached the merits questions, correctly held that the Order violates both the Fourteenth Amendment and, independently, 8 U.S.C. § 1401(a)….

As I’ve said on this topic, previously — I will readily admit to being… an optimist. But I am not a… wild-eyed one. The 14th Amendment means what it says.

Onward, with a chilly grin — out, to the trains. And… as ever, onward!

नमस्ते