The past week’s NASDAQ chart (at right) really says it all.
Fools — and their money — soon go separate ways — as BillyTheKid has long warned.
Yep. This is how a meme stock… dies.
Hilarious.
Onward.
नमस्ते
Bill And Paul Are 100% Right About This — But Damn Them, For “Not Seeing This Is What They Voted For.”
Yes, yes, Bill Otis. Pardoning CZ surely smells like Trump financing terrorists — and taking an open, and notorious… bribe. From a partner in his still-emerging family crypto- empire. Damnation.
But these dipsh!ts voted for exactly this. They absolutely well knew that this was the essence — of his immutable nature. A… criminal nature. A career criminal’s… mind.
This is what Tangerine 1.0 looked like, quite clearly — as well.
Even so, it is nice that these doofuses now recognize they screwed their own patriotic principles with their 2016, and 2020 and 2024 votes:
…As the National Review put it, the President’s pardon last week of Changpeng Zhao, a Chinese-born crypto currency billionaire and founder of a crypto exchange called Binance, “is stunning in its shamelessness, recklessness, and moral inversion.”
Binance is under U.S. government monitoring because of its criminal violations of federal money-laundering laws. In 2023, Binance’s founder and now Trump business partner, Zhao, pleaded guilty to a felony money-laundering charge that put him in prison for four months. Zhao is just one of, as NR put it, “the darkly intriguing figures circling in and around the Trump family crypto venture.”
The pardon arrived (again as NR notes)(emphasis added):
…following months of efforts by Zhao to boost the Trump family’s own crypto company.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that Trump had “exercised his constitutional authority by issuing a pardon for Mr. Zhao, who was prosecuted by the Biden Administration in their war on cryptocurrency.” She added: “The Biden Administration’s war on crypto is over.”
Yes, the pardon is within Trump’s authority, but to say one has the authority to do X is hardly to say that one should do X or is even vaguely justified in doing it, all of which depends on the merits of the particular case; and even if on the merits X should be done, that decision — if normal ethics count at all — should be made by someone without a colorable financial interest in the outcome.
Is there any adult who doesn’t know this?
The prosecutors who brought the charges and negotiated the plea deal would argue that they weren’t fighting a war on crypto, they were fighting a war on fraud and a company that…embraced a wildly lucrative role conducting financial transactions among criminals, terrorist groups, and hostile states.
This is what Binance was up to, among other things — a list so astonishing it makes you wonder how Zhao got away with just a four month sentence:
As a [money services business], Binance was required to report suspicious transactions to FinCEN through suspicious activity reports (SARs). FinCEN’s investigation revealed that Binance’s former Chief Compliance Officer told personnel that the CEO’s policy was to not report such activity, and Binance never filed a single SAR with FinCEN. Binance willfully failed to report well over 100,000 suspicious transactions that it processed as a result of its deficient controls, including transactions involving terrorist organizations, ransomware, child sexual exploitation material, frauds, and scams.
I know next to nothing about crypto currency, and it’s been years since I was in the US Attorney’s Office. Still, even back in my day, it was well known the crypto currency was the chosen means of exchange of swindlers of every sort….
Hmmm. Are you two — or five, including the Powerline boys — any less culpable, than Trump himself personally, is — simply because after you’ve all gotten what you voted for… only now, do you denounce his lawless nature?
I. Think. Not.
Out.
New UK Public Health Awareness Campaign — Urging Sexually Active UK / European Gay Men To Consider Mpox Vaccination…
This is good advice. See below.
Here’s the latest — from the BBC:
…UK health officials are encouraging gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men to make sure they are vaccinated against mpox, as a strain called ‘clade Ib’ shows early signs of local spread in some European countries.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) says it is aware of small numbers of cases of this strain of mpox… in Spain, Italy, Portugal and the Netherlands, as well as the US.
Mpox is usually a mild infection but it can be severe and getting vaccinated is the best protection, the UKHSA says.
Charities also urged vaccination before travelling to Winter Pride events in Europe this autumn….
Be careful out there. Onward.
नमस्ते
Added Indication Won, At FDA — Merck’s Winrevair® (Sotatercept) — For Treatment Of More Adults Living With Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension
This is a welcome FDA approved label expansion. [And it is an enhanced return on investment, from the Acceleron acquisition of about four years ago — which had already proved out to be a wildly profitable M&A deal.]
It all means Merck will be added to formularies, on newer codes — for added classes of COPD and PAH WHO Group 1 pulmonary hypertension patients, including critical cases. That’s good news for the affected patients — and for Rahway. Here’s that bit, from Yahoo! News:
…[Merck] announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved an update to the U.S. product label based on the Phase 3 ZENITH trial for WINREVAIR® (sotatercept-csrk) for injection, 45mg, 60mg. WINREVAIR, an activin signaling inhibitor, is now FDA-approved for the treatment of adults with pulmonary
arterial hypertension (PAH, WHO Group 1 pulmonary hypertension) to improve exercise capacity and WHO functional class (FC), and reduce the risk of clinical worsening events, including hospitalization for PAH, lung transplantation and death.
WINREVAIR was initially approved based on the pivotal STELLAR study in March 2024.
Today’s approval expanded the indication of WINREVAIR to include components of the clinical worsening events: hospitalization for PAH, lung transplantation and death….
Now you know — a smallish power alley item to start our sunny Fall Monday — but keep a good thought for the people of Jamaica, now facing the wrath of… Melissa (Cat. 5). Yikes.
नमस्ते
Whom Does The Dolt Hinderaker Imagine Might Control… The White House, And Both Chambers Of The Congress? Whom?!
This is just so, so precious.
John tonight has read that LAX was closed for part of the day — enduring a ground stop — due to TRUMP failing to pay the salaries of the Air Traffic Controllers — and consequently, not enough of these “forced labor” professionals were willing to show up for an undesireable Sunday shift, entirely pro bono.
Hilarious — John seems unaware that it was HIS PARTY that engineered, and then effectively voted FOR a shutdown. One ordered by Trump himself. The GOP needs at least seven Democrats — i.e., needs to offer at least a few compromises… in order to end the shut-down.
But make no mistake: this is Trump’s shutdown. He could tell the GOP in Congress to return to work — and order that they add a provision that continues funding for Obamacare through year end 2027… and the shut-down could be over tonight.
But he will not meet with, or compromise with… any Democratic delegation.
So — in a very real sense — this is Hinderaker’s OWN shutdown.
And all of a sudden — realizing he may not be able to fly the friendly skies as freely… he lashes out to blame everyone — but himself.
He continually voted for these MAGA clowns.
Own it — you shriveled up, old pussy, you.
Own it.
No Surprise. Noemites Stone-Walling — Again, In Long-Running Ms. L. Class Action In LA: About Info On “Missing Undocumented Children”. Children?!? Damn.
It does not take a law degree (or even any trade school / law enforcement course-work) to know, as a self-evident truth — that kidnapping, and then hiding children, keeping them away from loving parents or other guardians (regardless of papers)… IS WRONG.
But in two class action cases: one in San Diego (Flores — ever since 1985) and one in LA (Ms. L. — since 2018)… this is what both senior- and low level- federal law officers / employees are doing. In our names.
They are taking children — and keeping them away from their families of origin (in direct violation of numerous federal statutes and appellate court orders — from the Ninth Circuit). And they are refusing to even provide information on the whereabouts of these… yes, I’ll say it: kidnapped kids. [When you take any child inside the US, by unlawful means… that is kidnapping, in the US — and class counsel is allowed to meet with, and represent them. But the able class counsel must first *find* them, in the byzanntine federal detention systems.] Dammit — here’s the latest:
…Plaintiffs respectfully request a Court order for Defendants to provide necessary information as to detained Class Members and qualifying additional family members.
Plaintiffs have repeatedly asked Defendants in recent weeks for information about seven class members or qualifying additional family members (“QAFMs”) that are in immigration detention:
➣ E.A.P.P., 1 a QAFM with valid parole;
➣ M.I.L., a class member separated child with valid parole;
➣ A.G.L.D., a class member separated child with a parole-in-place application pending;
➣ A.R.A., a QAFM with a parole-in-place application pending;
➣ Y.R.B.I., a QAFM with valid parole;
➣ E.L.T., a class member separated child; and
➣ F.A.M.C., a class member separated child with a re-parole application pending. . . .
Plaintiffs have also learned from advocates that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) has instructed a family of class members and QAFMS to buy plane tickets and self-deport. This family includes:
➣ Y.M.M.C., a class member separated child with valid parole;
➣ F.I.C.C, a QAFM with valid parole;
➣ A.E.M.C., a 16-year old QAFM;
➣ M.L.M.C., a 10-year old QAFM; and
➣ L.Y.M.C., a United States citizen child. [What the actual HELL?!?!?]
Plaintiffs’ counsel has repeatedly asked Defendants to confirm whether ICE officers have instructed this family to self-deport and have asked that ICE cease issuing such instructions. Defendants have not provided any substantive response….
Again, in the 2016 national election cycle, HRC (clearly!) was not wrong — to call these people — almost to a person — “deplorables”. They prove it accurate — day by awful day. Onward resolutely, just the same.
But who on Earth thinks this is worthwhile — as public policy / field of employment? The politco / true beleivers are beyond redemption — but… at BP, and ICE, and DHS… there are lower level line workers. I get that these line level workers need paychecks (likely to support their own families) — but at what cost to their sense of humanity — of self-worth?
Damn. RE-think your lives — get another job (ANY other job!)… detaining tons of “missing children” — and then actively obscuring their whereabouts… That is… yup… deplorable. Out.
नमस्ते
CVS Applies Its System-Wide Pricing Clout / Muscle — To Try To Drop Gilead’s Yeztugo® (Lenacapavir) US List Prices… Is That… Cricket?
While it is true that the new bio-therapy can be sourced in parts of the still-developing world for $40/year while it lists for $28,000/year in the US… that doesn’t really tell the whole story.
Gilead has authorized generic companies (primarily out of India — think Dr. Reddy’s, here), by license, to manufacture it — and sell it — but at an overall loss per patient — for Gilead. It is simply not true that the new HIV med called Yeztugo® (lenacapavir) can be made today for under $40 per year of dosing. [Not for many years, yet — into teh future, perhaps a decade on — until all the cap ex to build out the plants has been recovered.]
Thus in some ways, the CVS CMO’s position (and rhetoric) is… dishonest. She clearly knows what it takes to bring a new class of therapy on this scale (in a high burden disease) to market. And she well knows that it is humanitarian instincts that lead to developing world loss-leader pricing of $40 a year (which is still out of reach for much of those local populations) — and that the involved companies are taking a real loss on it, to help humanitarian efforts in Africa, parts of India, Southeast Asia and Central and South America — among other geographies.
And so, CVS as an entity is presently resisting pressure — from AIDS patient activist groups, here in the US, to like-wise help absorb / cover some of the financial losses — and list Gilead’s Yeztugo at well-under the $28,000 retail quoted price. She may genuinely believe — as many do — that $28,000 is too much (allows for too rapid a recovery of invested cap ex at Gilead), but this sort of passing the buck… is essentially a form of unseemly attempted profiteering — inside CVS. Blame-shifting helps… no one, least of all the patients in need of these therapies. And yes, there are now several alternatives on market in the US — but mostly, this is proof of our broken, fragmented non-system for health care delivery in the US.
In any event, here’s the latest:
…CVS Health has not added Yeztugo to its list of recommended PrEP therapies, but the company will cover alternatives, according to Gourdine.
“In increasingly crowded therapy classes of highly effective options, a generics-first policy remains the best approach for affordability and, by extension, health outcomes,” Guardine wrote. “We will continue to urge Gilead to lower the U.S. price for Yeztugo.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in September issued guidelines allowing twice-a-year injections for Yeztugo, and found near 100 percent effectiveness in trials for patients remaining HIV negative. Gilead has touted the drug as a major medical advance….
Now you know — and I’ll leave for another day… a discussion of the possibility — of an antitrust complaint — (by Gilead) about a powerful distributor (CVS) trying to control retail prices, at a manufacturer (also, Gilead). Smile. Now… onward, grinning, with my eldest flying back in, from Istanbul, tomorrow. Woot!
नमस्ते
Trumpy (Still) Has A Mad-On, Re Canada. Y A W N.
So, even though the Ontario Premier / honcho (and conservative — somewhat in the style of Trump), one Mr. Doug Ford — has agreed to suspend the running of the TRUTHFUL Reagan TV ad — in order to ease tensions and improve Canada’s trade negotiation position. . .
Tangerine 2.0 — this afternoon — announced a new 10% tariff on specified Canadian goods. As ever, we will have to wait and see if he actually tries to enforce such a tariff — because approximately 80% of all the tariffs he has announced have never gone into effect. His brand is simply… trade chaos.
Here is the latest — out of Detroit:
…President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he plans to hike tariffs on imports of Canadian goods by an extra 10% because of an anti-tariff television ad aired by the province of Ontario.
The ad used the words of former President Ronald Reagan to criticize U.S. tariffs, angering Trump who said he would end trade talks with Canada. Ontario’s Premier Doug Ford said he would pull the ad after the weekend, and it ran Friday night during the first game of the World Series….
Trump is a sad… small clown, on a very big stage. There really is no other way to see this. As a reminder, heres the truthful ad:
Once again, Trump is trying to suppress free expression — solely because it expresses a truth he doesn’t like. Buckle up, buttercup.
Out.
नमस्ते
We Rarely Note FDA Product Recalls, But This Is A High Impact Generic — Millions Of Americans Take It, Daily — For High Cholesterol. So Do Check Your Vials.
We return to a minor power alley item, on this sunny Fall Saturday morning, here:
Please check with all your senior / known high cholesterol relatives who might be on statins… and screen the bottles in the home — if they are taking the cheaper generics, of any brand. Better always, to be safe here, now — than… sorry, later, right? Right.
Here is one of dozens of stories on the recall, this morning (but very few are printing the specific lots involved):
…[Hundreds of] thousands of bottles of a popular and widely used cholesterol drug are being voluntarily recalled for “failed dissolution specifications,” which suggests the drugs did not properly dissolve at a standard rate and could lead to a reduction in the drug’s effectiveness.
According to an enforcement report from the Food and Drug Administration, 141,984 bottles of Atorvastatin Calcium Tablet — a generic for Lipitor — which were manufactured by Alkem Laboratories, were recalled by distributor Ascend Laboratories on Sept. 19.
On Oct 10, the recall was classified as a “Class II,” which means the product “may cause temporary or medically reversible adverse health consequences….”
If you are on any generic version of Pfizer’s Lipitor® (or any statin — if you are uncertain), do check your lot numbers — against this grid in the image at upper right.
Namaste — and onward, smiling — still never taking any prescription medicine of any kind. [And, knock on wood — I will never need to. Exercise, and lucky genetics — life-long. My primary care guy says I’m the only patient (at my age) he sees who is on zero meds, of any kind. Hilarious!]
नमस्ते
No, Paul — The Phrase You Were Looking For Is Not “A Scandal” — It Is “Dozens of NEW Felonies”…
Mirengoff is fearful of offending the Manchurian Cantaloupe.
We all know this.
But self-paying a $230 million “settlement“, without ever even filing a lawsuit — from the federal taxpayers’ coffers, to himself personally… is not a (potential) “scandal“.
It would be about 75 new felonies.
Do at least try to keep up, Paul.
But we both do agree that Tangerine 2.0’s decorating / remodeling tastes run toward the nouveau riche / cliché of gaudiness, without any lasting allure: “…Frankly, I think all the gold leaf at the White House makes it look less American and more like a French whore house….”
Yup — agree 💯. So there’s that.
Out.
Powerline Lies... 