Random News: October 31, 2022

DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.

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Ghoul morning (evil cackle, lightning flashes). It’s October 31, 2022, and it’s a Monday. It’s also Halloween, but life happens no matter what else is on the calendar, so here are some things…

• Quick election thought.
• One thing that none of the pollsters are really able to count is the Gen-Z youth vote.
• Trust me, those kids don’t pick up their phones or answer polls for shit. But damn, they are voting. 
• MSNBC reported yesterday that Wisconsin youth turnout is higher than in 2018 or even in 2020, a presidential voting year.
• Through Sunday, about 838,000 Georgians had cast early ballots, most of them in person at advance voting sites. That’s almost 60% higher than advance voting totals at this point in 2018, the last midterm election, per AP.
• Early voting and mail-in ballot totals in New Mexico show Democratic votes outpacing GOP and all other parties combined.
• While all the typical signs point to a Republican takeover of the House and a tight Senate race, the youth turnout, Black turnout, and overall female turnout might cause some very surprising results come November 8.
• A new CBS Poll shows that Democrats are likely to not only take the Senate but also keep the House by ONE seat – if young voters come out in droves to crush MAGA.
• VOTE. In 2016, over 40 million Democrats thought that their “just one vote” wouldn’t matter and didn’t bother voting, and we saw what happened.
• Yesterday’s runoff election in Brazil went to the good guy… barely. Former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva defeated far-right current President (and Trump buddy) Jair Bolsonaro by just over one percentage point.
• Bolsonaro is expected to contest this and all kinds of terrible shit with go down as a result (though he’s been silent thus far), but congrats to Lula and the people of Brazil nonetheless.
• And now, The Weather: “Wasn’t” by Dayydream
• The SCOTUS is at this moment hearing arguments that will allow them to kill affirmative action, the laws that allow more Black and Hispanic students to attend college.
• The legal challenges are aimed at UNC and Harvard.
• Affirmative action has been a target of white supremacist groups for decades. I find it likely that this conservative court will indeed overturn it and more universities will go back to being nearly exclusively white as a result.
• The new owner of Twitter will be forced to pay the three fired Twitter executives nearly $200 million for their early exits pursuant to their contracts.
• Way to “own the libs”, little buddy!
• Speaking of that shithole platform, unconfirmed news is coming out that they intend to charge verified users $20/month. Can you imaging paying a monthly fee for a little blue check mark? Fuck that shit all the way back from whence it came.
• From the Sports Desk… fuck my football team. Seriously. 0-4 on the road? Getting shut out in New Orleans? It’s pathetic.
• Also, fuck Kyrie Irving. “Did I do anything illegal? Did I hurt anybody? Did I harm anybody? Am I going out and saying that I hate one specific group of people?”
• Let’s see, Kyrie… no, yes, yes, and pretty much yes.
• The Sports Desk also notes that game 3 of the World Series is tonight. The Phillies and Astros are tied 1-1.
• Here’s a poll for ya: most popular Halloween candy based on head-to-head matchups (YouGov)...
• M&Ms (original) - 76.%
• Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup - 74.4%
• Kit Kat - 72.8%
• M&Ms (peanut) - 72.4%
• Butterfinger - 70.9%
• Snickers - 68.5%
• Twix - 68.5%
• Hershey’s Milk Chocolate - 67.2%
• Reese’s Pieces - 67.1%
• What am I doing for Halloween? I’m not doing shit, and it’s rather unlikely that a single costumed person will come to my door. But I will have candy available and I’ll gladly give it out to literally anyone.
• Today in history… Byzantine Empress Irene is deposed and banished to Lesbos (802). Nevada is admitted as the 36th U.S. state (1864). Dedication of the Lincoln Highway, the first automobile highway across United States (1913). Benito Mussolini is made Prime Minister of Italy (1922). After 14 years of work, Mount Rushmore is completed (1941). Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi is assassinated by two security guards (1984). Iraq announces it would no longer cooperate with United Nations weapons inspectors (1998). Soyuz TM-31 launches, carrying the first resident crew to the International Space Station (2000). A federal grand jury in Houston, Texas indicts former Enron chief financial officer Andrew Fastow on 78 counts of wire fraud, money laundering, conspiracy and obstruction of justice (2002). The global population of humans reaches seven billion (2011). 
• October 31 is the birthday of Portugal king Ferdinand I (1345), Portugal king Edward (1391), painter Johannes Vermeer (1632), physicist Laura Bassi (1711), Portugal king Luis I (1838), Girl Scout founder Juliette Gordon Low (1860), photographer Helmut Newton (1920), journalist Dan Rather (1931), actress Sally Kirkland (1941), actor David Ogden Stiers (1942), NFL player Brian Piccolo (1943), songwriter Russ Ballard (1945), actor John Candy (1950), journalist Jane Pauley (1950), bass player Bernard Edwards (1952), author Neal Stephenson (1959), director Peter Jackson (1961), drummer Larry Mullen, Jr. (1961), guitarist Johnny Marr (1963), rapper Ad-Rock (1966), rapper Vanilla Ice (1967), songwriter Adam Schlesinger (1967), and singer Willow Smith (2000).

I have a busy morning with an early meeting and a bunch of work to crank out. I’m also still fighting this wonky tooth, though it’s a good deal better than yesterday. I will keep on keeping on, as I do. Meanwhile, I hope you have a fun Halloween or that your kids do or that some kids do or something. Enjoy your day.

Random News: October 30, 2022

DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.

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Good (checks clock) morning. It’s October 30, 2022, and it’s a Sunday. I had a shitty tooth keep me up most of last night so I am not responsible for whatever my fingers are about to write while I watch them prance over my keyboard and try and drink coffee at the same time…

• I really try and avoid some of the shittiest news in these bullets, preferring to focus on things that you can actually affect.
• Whenever I hear about people dying en masse due to “stampede” or “crowd surge” via other humans, it’s awful because it’s always avoidable.
• Concerts, sporting events, religious gatherings, whatever… humans are always just a tiny step removed from our animal evolutionary forefathers. Huge crowds behave in ways that have no resemblance to the kindness and empathy we can exhibit as individuals or small groups.
• That being said, my condolences to the people of Seoul and those who were killed or injured in the Halloween event yesterday. The death toll is currently over 150.
• I also don’t want to dwell on the violent attack on Paul Pelosi. As you likely know by know, the assailant, a MAGA terrorist, was screaming, “Where’s Nancy?” as he committed the attempted murder.
• This was a targeted assassination attempt on the third-highest ranking member of the United States government. It’s a big fucking deal, and we’re not even close to understanding all the implications.
• The MAGA assailant had with him a bag with zip ties and duct tape.
• Meanwhile, Twitter’s new owner, a person so vile and hungry for attention that I’m about done mentioning his name, was spreading homophobic conspiracy theories about the event on his new platform.
• Kinda funny: what do you do about dangerous misinformation on Twitter now… report it to the person who’s spreading it?
• I’ll remain on that putrid platform minimally through the elections next week, and then see if it’s worthwhile staying after that.
• Speaking of something that actually matters… THE MIDTERM ELECTIONS that are in NINE DAYS…
• I’m not gonna tell you to vote. You either are or you aren’t at this point.
• Instead, I’ll just remind you that voting for Democrats, be they progressive or liberal or centrists, is what will allow you to keep your rights.
• And your Social Security and Medicare.
• And to continue to have free and fair elections.
• And to have the best quality of life moving forward, for yourself and subsequent generations.
• If you haven’t voted early, the elections are on Tuesday November 8. That’s it. After that day, if you don’t vote, you may not have the option to do so in the future.
• And now, The Weather: “Parkways” by Fred Thomas
• Along with the rest of the shitty news (sorry), drummer D. H. Peligro has passed away at age 63 via head trauma from a fall. He was a hugely talented and influential musician who is best known for his work with Dead Kennedys.
• He also spent a little while with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, doing some of the songwriting on ‘Mother’s Milk’ and being the guy who introduced teenager John Frusciante to the band.
• I feel obligated to post something positive… did some more work on my new song yesterday, and I don’t yet have a release date, or even a plan to finish it yet, but I can commit that it will be available for listening in some way before the end of they year.
• Or maybe next week. You never know.
• A little news out of Everett, WA. A federal judge has ruled in favor of a bikini barista stand, striking down the city’s dress code ordinance that required the workers to cover up.
• The U.S. District Court in Seattle found the city’s dress code violated the Equal Protection clauses of the U.S. and Washington state constitutions.
• “It is difficult to imagine how this Ordinance would be equally applied to men and women in practice,” said the judge, and I agree.
• Today in history… Guangzhou is sacked by Arab and Persian pirates (758). Simón Bolívar becomes President of the Third Republic of Venezuela (1817). Orson Welles broadcasts a radio adaptation of H. G. Wells's ‘The War of the Worlds’, causing a massive panic in some of the audience in the United States (1938). Jackie Robinson of the Kansas City Monarchs signs a contract for the Brooklyn Dodgers, breaking the baseball color line (1945). President Eisenhower approves the top-secret document NSC 162/2 concerning the maintenance of a strong nuclear deterrent force against the Soviet Union (1953). The Soviet Union detonates the Tsar Bomba, the most powerful explosive device ever detonated (1961). Quebec citizens narrowly vote (50.58% to 49.42%) in favor of remaining a province of Canada in their second referendum on national sovereignty (1995). 
• October 30 is the birthday of president John Adams (1735), poet Ezra Pound (1885), bodybuilder Charles Atlas (1893), actress Ruth Gordon (1896), journalist Fred W. Friendly (1915), musician Clifford Brown (1930), director Louis Malle (1932), NFL coach Dick Vermeil (1936), singer-songwriter Grace Slick (1939), actor Henry Winkler (1945), journalist Andrea Mitchell (1946), musician Timothy B. Schmit (1947), singer Gavin Rossdale (1965), umm… Ivanka Trump (1981), and NBA player Devin Booker (1996).

Alrighty. Enough news and shit. I am riding the happy high of 600mg of ibuprofen, and about a liter of delicious coffee. I’m going to do things now. Enjoy your day.

Random News: October 29, 2022

DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.

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Good morning. It’s October 29, 2022, and it’s a Saturday. I’m a random guy in a blue bathrobe, so let’s talk newsy things…

• Republicans were sharing laughs and jokes yesterday about Paul Pelosi, an 82-year-old man who was attacked in his home by a hammer-wielding assailant.
• This was a popular one on Twitter with the MAGA crowd: “Sending Prayers for Paul Pelosi, 2nd time he’s been publicly hammered this year!”

• Mr. Pelosi required surgery to repair his fractured skull and defensive injuries to his arm and hands. It appears he will survive.
• The assailant, 42-year-old David DePape, is a Trump supporter who had a Facebook full of anti-liberal and antisemitic memes and conspiracy theories about Covid, the 2020 election, and the January 6 attack.
• We all know people like that. I certainly do. Any one of them could be the next MAGA terrorist or assassin. A person who would hammer a senior citizen to death in their own home over political differences.
• Please vote for people who condemn violence as a means to political goals.
• Yesterday, the Department of Homeland Security, FBI, US Capitol Police and National Counterterrorism Center sent a bulletin to state and local election officials.
• They warned that domestic violent extremists pose a heightened threat to the 2022 midterm elections, and that perceptions of election fraud will likely result in heightened threats of violence.
• Not surprising in this hideous timeline, but a note to stay safe to my many friends who are poll workers and election officials.
• More than 19,495,000 early votes have now been cast. KEEP IT UP.
• And now, The Weather: “Billy” by Horsegirl
• From the Sports Desk… PHILLIES! The Sports Desk was chilling last night and every so often was pulling up the score of Game 1 of the 2022 World Series. First time I looked, Astros were up 2-0. Then 5-0. I decided seeing Houston win was just going to piss me off so I ignored the game at that point.
• A good while later, I was like, “Oh, how’d that game come out?” and turned it on just in time to see J. T. Realmuto blast a 10th inning homer to bring the score to 6-5 Phillies, and then bit my nails for another half inning until the win was done. Nice!
• A funny aside about the Musk Man’s purchase of Twitter, which was a done deal as of yesterday.
• Early yesterday, Elon tweeted, “the bird is freed.”
• And Thierry Breton, the EU's commissioner for the internal market, responded: "In Europe, the bird will fly by our rules.”
• It’s gonna be fun. Muskrat is already facing a potential financial disaster with this acquisition. He will have to balance the requirements of the advertisers, Internet regulations in places like Europe and California, and the possibility of alienating the largest portion of Twitter’s user base so they don’t abandon the platform and make it immediately valueless.
• There’s a great article in The Verge titled ‘Welcome to hell, Elon’ that goes into great detail about the disastrous, unwindable war that Musk has chosen by purchasing the platform. This was a great section…
• “Twitter, the company, makes very little interesting technology; the tech stack is not the valuable asset. The asset is the user base: hopelessly addicted politicians, reporters, celebrities, and other people who should know better but keep posting anyway. You! You, Elon Musk, are addicted to Twitter. You’re the asset. You just bought yourself for $44 billion dollars.”
• Today in history… First trial for witchcraft in Paris leading to the death of three people (1390). Sir Walter Raleigh is beheaded for allegedly conspiring against James I of England (1618). Mount Hood (Oregon) is named after Samuel Hood by Lt. William E. Broughton (1792). Eighteen countries meet in Geneva and agree to form the International Red Cross (1863). Second trial of Sacco and Vanzetti in Boston, MA (1921). The New York Stock Exchange crashes in what will be called the Crash of '29 or "Black Tuesday", beginning the Great Depression (1929). The first-ever computer-to-computer link is established on ARPANET, the precursor to the Internet (1969). Space Shuttle Discovery blasts off on STS-95 with 77-year-old John Glenn on board, making him the oldest person to go into space at that time (1998). Delta Air Lines merges with Northwest Airlines, creating the world's largest airline and reducing the number of US legacy carriers to five (2008). Hurricane Sandy hits the east coast of the United States, killing 148 directly and 138 indirectly, while leaving nearly $70 billion in damages and causing major power outages (2012). 
• October 29 is the birthday of author Jean Giraudoux (1882), Nazi piece of shit Joseph Goebbels (1897), writer Dominick Dunne (1925), animator Ralph Bakshi (1938), painter Bob Ross (1942), producer Don Simpson (1943), actor Richard Dreyfuss (1947), singer Kevin DuBrow (1955), actor Dan Castellaneta (1957), actress Joely Fisher (1967), actress Wynona Ryder (1971), actress Gabrielle Union (1972), swimmer Amanda Beard (1981), and singer Tove Lo (1987).

Well, I guess I’ll take a shower and do things. I can do things in a bathrobe and often do, but certain aspects of life require me to be clothed. I would have done well in ancient Greece, wandering about in my toga all day. But then, it’s almost November and I don’t like cold breezes blowing up my skirt. In any case, make a plan to vote a week from Tuesday (if you haven’t done so already), and enjoy your day.

Random News: October 28, 2022

DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.

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Good morning. It’s October 28, 2022, and if you can believe it, it’s a Friday once again! Here are some various Friday thoughts of the Friday variety…

• Shell has reported profits of $9.5B for Q3 2022 compared to $4.1B for Q3 2021. They more than DOUBLED their profits. Not their revenue. Their PROFITS.
• Every single Republican voted against a bill to crack down on gas price gouging.
• The high prices you’re paying across the board aren’t from inflation. They aren’t from labor shortages. They are 100% from corporate greed.
• Meet Albuquerque Head. Yes, that’s his name.
• He pulled former Washington, DC, Metropolitan Police officer Michael Fanone into the crowd of violent rioters on January 6, 2021, yelling “I got one!”.
• Fanone was choked, beaten, and tased by the crowd of MAGA terrorists, and suffered a heart attack in the process.
• Head was sentenced Thursday to 90 months (aka seven years, six months) behind bars. 
• I hope his time in there is as bad as it gets.
• The election is in 11 days. I can’t possibly emphasize enough how important it is.
• If Republicans win both the House and Senate, nothing beyond Biden’s veto is stopping them from making abortion illegal nationwide. From making women be forced to have the government involved in their reproductive decision. From canceling Social Security and Medicare. From nullifying same-sex marriages. From enacting draconian laws aimed to harm gay and trans people. From making contraception illegal even for married couples. From ending support to US allies like Ukraine.
• All votes matter in all states at all levels.
• That being said, if you live in a state where things could easily go either way, I implore you to vote, for yourself and for future generations.
• For House, Senate, and Governor races, the most crucial and unpredictable of these states: Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, and Pennsylvania. Others include Kansas, New Hampshire, Ohio, Wisconsin, and North Carolina.
• I’m actually going to note some states that could surprise people in both good and bad ways where voting is equally essential: Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, and Utah.
• I am actually hopeful… much more than I thought I would be last spring when the pundits were saying it was a foregone confusion that the GOP would easily take all of the above.
• No longer.
• Vote however you can, wherever you are.
• Thank you.
• As of yesterday afternoon, more than 15,568,000 early votes have now been cast. That’s very, very good. Let’s keep it rolling.
• Paul Pelosi, the 82-year-old husband of House speaker Nancy Pelosi, was violently attacked in a home invasion crime last night. He was assaulted with a hammer.
• Amazing, that tough old guy is expected to make a full recovery. The assailant is in custody. I’m very interested to find out who he is and what his motives were.
• Huge rise in respiratory virus illnesses in school kids recently. Big surge in highly-contagious RSV, earlier-than-usual seasonal flu, and a lot of common colds hitting schools across the country.
• And yeah, COVID-19 is still mutating and there’s an expected surge of that as well as we get into the colder months.
• I’m getting the newer bivalent vaccine very soon. I’m not fucking with that shit. I never got it, and hopefully I never will.
• And now, The Weather: “Grand Canyon” by The Ophelias
• Elongated Muskrat now officially owns Twitter. He immediately fired CEO Parag Agrawal, CFO Ned Segal, and Vijaya Gadde, head of legal policy, trust, and safety, the woman who made the call to suspend Donald Trump permanently.
• He very well may reinstate Trump, possibly by the time you’ve read this bullet.
• I really, truly don’t care one bit.
• According to Bloomberg, my state of California is poised to overtake Germany as the world’s 4th largest economy.
• To be clear, that means that competing against the GDP of all other countries in the world, the rank will now be in the following order: United States (including CA), China, Japan, California (on its own), Germany, India, UK, France, Brazil, Italy, and Canada.
• Assisting this is California’s current fastest-growing business, renewable energy.
• The House Ways and Means Committee will receive Trump’s IRS tax returns in one week after a federal appeals court declined Trump’s request to hold up the release yesterday.
• Ha ha.
• He’s almost certainly going to appeal to his pals on the Supreme Court.
• Today in history… Beijing is officially designated the capital of the Ming dynasty when the Forbidden City is completed (1420). Christopher Columbus lands in Cuba on his first voyage to the New World, surmising that it is Japan (1492). Ferdinand Magellan reaches the Pacific Ocean (1520). The Massachusetts Bay Colony votes to establish a theological college, which would later become Harvard University (1636). Jonathan Swift’s novel 'Gulliver's Travels’ is published (1726). US president Grover Cleveland dedicates the Statue of Liberty (1886). The U.S. Congress passes the Volstead Act over President Woodrow Wilson's veto, paving the way for Prohibition to begin the following January (1919). Italian fascists led by Benito Mussolini march on Rome and take over the Italian government (1922). The Cuban Missile Crisis ends and Premier Nikita Khrushchev orders the removal of Soviet missiles from Cuba (1962). US President Barack Obama signs the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act (2009). 
• October 28 is the birthday of philosopher Erasmus (1466), businessman Eliphalet Remington (1793), costume designer Edith Head (1897), author Evelyn Waugh (1903), biologist Jonas Salk (1914), actor Jack Soo (1917), businessman Bowie Kuhn (1926), musician Graham Bond (1937), NBA player/coach Lenny Wilkins (1937), guitarist Hank Marvin (1941), actor Dennie Franz (1944), athlete Caitlyn Jenner (1949), actress Annie Potts (1952), businessman/philanthropist Bill Gates (1955), drummer Stephen Morris (1957), actress Jami Gertz (1965), NFL player Steve Atwater (1966), TV host Andy Richter (1966), musician Ben Harper (1969), musician Brad Paisley (1972), and singer/rapper Frank Ocean (1987). 

Okay, so, I’m going to try and stay positive today. Fridays are rough, work-wise, and I’ve found I’ve started to develop a bit of Friday Fear, a mild kind of anxiety that comes from anticipating some metaphorical bomb of work projects that get dropped on me. But whatever happens today happens, and I’ll deal with it accordingly. All in all, I am so extraordinarily lucky and have a great life. I know that. Enjoy your day.

Random News: October 27, 2022

DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.

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Good morning. It’s October 27, 2022, and it’s a Thursday for some reason. Here are things that seem to be happening, although one never knows…

• Today is the 300th day of 2022. I’m not sure that matters, yet here we are.
• Yesterday, former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows was ordered by a judge to testify before a special grand jury that's investigating whether then-President Donald Trump and his allies illegally tried to influence Georgia's 2020 election.
• Tomorrow is the expected date for Elon Musk to finalize his purchase of Twitter for $44 billion.
• That doesn’t bother me. If something I enjoy begins to suck, I have no qualms about leaving it behind. But if Musk can run Twitter in a way that doesn’t indicate that he’s a giant piece of shit, I’ll be glad to stay.
• A second woman is claiming that she got pregnant by former NFL player and current GA Senate candidate Herschel Walker and then had an abortion.
• She also says that he drove her to an abortion clinic to have an abortion after she became pregnant during their relationship.
• Part of Walker’s political platform is banning abortions nationwide without exceptions.
• To be clear, this is separate from the other woman who claims Walker pressured her to have an abortion and paid for it.
• Please vote for incumbent Senator Raphael Warnock instead of this hypocrite and blatant liar. Thank you.
• And now, The Weather: “Do Nothing About It” by Julia Shapiro
• Darrell Brooks was found guilty of six counts of first-degree intentional homicide for driving his SUV into a crowd of Christmas parade attendees in Waukesha, WI last fall.
• He faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison for the convictions. Good. Fuck that guy.
• From the Sports Desk… the World Series starts tomorrow. Weird stat: this will be the first World Series since 1950 with no Black players expected to play.
• World Series stat #2: while the Houston Astros are favored to win, surveys say that a huge percentage of the country is pulling for the Philadelphia Phillies, mostly because the Astros were caught cheating a few years back and very little punishment was handed to them.
• This country doesn’t respect cheaters. Go Phillies.
• As I mentioned in a post yesterday, Ye — the guy who I went many years without mentioning but keep doing so now for some reason — showed up at the Skechers HQ yesterday right up the street from me in Manhattan Beach, CA.
• He had no appointment and brought a film crew with him.
• He was escorted out. Skechers was founded by and is still run by the Greenberg family, who are Jewish and stated, “Skechers is not considering and has no intention of working with West. We condemn his recent divisive remarks and do not tolerate antisemitism or any other form of hate speech. The Company would like to again stress that West showed up unannounced and uninvited to Skechers corporate offices.”
• Part of me feels badly for this guy who admittedly suffers from mental health challenges. It would be good if someone could help him, but I find that possibility very unlikely.
• Today in history… Æthelstan, the first king of all England, dies and is succeeded by his half-brother, Edmund I (939). Founding of the city of Amsterdam (1275). Philadelphia is founded in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (1682). United States annexes the former Spanish colony of West Florida (1810). The first underground New York City Subway line opens, later designated as the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line (1904). Mrs Wallis Simpson obtains her divorce, which would eventually allow her to marry King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom (1936). NASA tests the first Saturn I rocket in Mission Saturn-Apollo 1 (1961). By refusing to agree to the firing of a nuclear torpedo at a US warship, Vasily Arkhipov averts nuclear war (1962). The Democratic Republic of the Congo is renamed Zaire (1971). United States Navy radioman Allen R. Schindler, Jr. is murdered by shipmate Terry M. Helvey for being gay (1992). 
• October 27 is the birthday of writer Mary Sidney (1561), composer Niccolò Paganini (1782), businessman Isaac Singer (1811), president Theodore Roosevelt (1858), poet Dylan Thomas (1914), actress Nanette Fabray (1920), artist Roy Lichtenstein (1923), Watergate lawyer H. R. Haldeman (1926), poet Sylvia Plath (1932), musician Floyd Kramer (1933), actor John Cleese (1939), mob boss John Gotti (1940), race car driver Dick Trickle (1941), actress Carrie Snodgress (1945), bass player Garry Tallent (1949), guitarist K. K. Downing (1951), actor Roberto Benigni (1952), actor Robert Picardo (1953), singer Simon Le Bon (1958), and NBA player Lonzo Ball (1997).

Well, I have a day packed with meetings, which sucks. Here’s what some folks outside the business world don’t understand: the meetings themselves are usually fine. But they can be a huge time drain. I have tangible things to do for my clients, and when you have 3-4 hours of a day committed to discussing things, you still have to actually do the things, minus the time you spent in meetings. At least that’s how it is for me. But whatever… I’m used to this shit. I am heading into my 30th year in my career, so I do get it by now. I really do. Enjoy your day.

Random News: October 26, 2022

DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.

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Good morning. It’s October 26, 2022, and it’s a Wednesday. Some stuff that I may have noticed at some point…

• Pennsylvania Senate candidates John Fetterman and Mehmet the Puppy Slayer Oz of New Jersey debated last night. Here are a couple of quotes.
• “I believe abortion rights is a universal right for all women in America.” - John Fetterman
• “The abortion decision should be left up to the states.” - Dr. Oz
• Welp, there you go. Give Fetterman your vote, Pennsylvanians.
• Yes, Fetterman is still recovering from a stroke. But Oz said that abortion should be a decision between “women, doctors, and local political leaders”. Do you want your wife or daughter to be legally forced to consult with your local politicians about her sex life? No? Then vote for Fetterman, Pennsylvanians.
• There was a 5.1 quake near San Jose yesterday, which is definitely a good-sized shake. That will, as I say, get your ass out of your seat.
• Did I feel it? No. I live over 350 miles south of there. It’s about the distance from DC to Boston. California is large.
• I sometimes feel terrible because there are so many shootings, I purposefully don’t mention them all as to not make this Random News list a giant downer all the time.
• But yeah, there was a high school in St. Louis that got shot up on Monday. The guy killed a student and a teacher and wounded seven more before law enforcement took him out.
• He had an AR-15-style rifle and more than 600 rounds of ammunition. The killer was 19 and left a note that said he had no friends, no family, no girlfriend, and a life of isolation.
• I find nothing unusual about that being the sorry mental state of a young man. But combined with the ease of access to high-powered weapons with high-capacity ammunition magazines, shootings will continue to haunt schools until real change happens in reasonable gun control measures.
• A Russian court has rejected American athlete Britney Griner’s appeal over her nine-year prison sentence. I hope there’s some way for that woman to not rot in a Russian jail for much longer, but it’s looking pretty grim.
• Six cases of voter intimidation in Maricopa County, AZ have been referred to the DOJ. 
• What these complete assholes are doing is reprehensible. Dudes wearing camo are loitering near voting drop boxes, filming and photographing voters as they returned their ballots, including their cars’ license plates.
• “The Justice Department has an obligation to guarantee a free and fair vote by everyone who’s qualified to vote and will not permit voters to be intimidated.” - AG Merrick Garland
• A Florida judge ordered Ron DeSantis to turn over records connected to the cruel migrants flights from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard.
• He said that DeSantis’ office is not following the state’s public records laws by withholding the info and ordered it within the next 20 days (which still puts it past the election date in 13 days). He could have required the records in 48 hours.
• And now, The Weather: “Ovule” by Björk
• Couple of polls. I include these for ONLY one reason: so you understand how close some of these races might be, and so you don’t buy into the bullshit that a Dem candidate in a supposed red state can’t win.
• Texas Governor: Greg Abbott (R-inc) 46% (+4), Beto O'Rourke (D) 42% (Univision)
• Nevada Senate: Cortez Masto (D-inc) 44% (+2), Laxalt (R) 42% (Univision)
• Nevada Governor: Sisolak (D-inc) 43% (+2), Lombardo (R) 41% (Univision)
• North Carolina Senate: Ted Budd (R) 44%, Cheri Beasley (D) 44% (Marist)
• Arizona Governor: Kari Lake (R) 47% (+3), Katie Hobbs (D) 44% (Data Orbital)
• Ohio Senate: Vance (R) 48% (+4), Ryan (D) 44% (Cygnal)
• Georgia Senate: Warnock (D-inc) 49% (+2), Walker (R) 47% (ECU)
• Pennsylvania Senate: Fetterman (D) 51% (+2), Oz (R) 49% (YouGov)
• Wisconsin Senate: Ron Johnson (R-inc) 50% (+1), Mandela Barnes (D) 49% (CNN)
• Wisconsin Governor: Tony Evers (D-inc) 50% (+2), Tim Michels (R) 48% (CNN)
• New Mexico Governor: Mark Ronchetti (R) 47% (+1), Michelle Lujan Grisham (D-Inc) 46% (Trafalgar)
• You matter, and your vote matters. Your vote has every bit as much weight as the wealthiest, most powerful people in the country. Use it.
• Today in history… The First Continental Congress adjourns in Philadelphia (1774). Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday participate in the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona (1881). The first electric generator at Hoover Dam goes into full operation (1936). The Battle of Leyte Gulf in WWII ends with an overwhelming American victory (1944). Pan American Airways makes the first commercial flight of the Boeing 707 from New York City to Paris (1958). The Australian government returns ownership of Uluru to the local Pitjantjatjara Aboriginals (1985). The United States passes the USA PATRIOT Act into law (2001). 
• October 26 is the birthday of composer Hans Buchner (1483), composer Domenico Scarlatti (1685), businessman C. W. Post (1854), businessman Benjamin Guggenheim (1865), philanthropist/MoMA founder Abby Aldrich Rockefeller (1874), politician François Mitterrand (1916), actor Bob Hoskins (1942), politician Hillary Clinton (1947), bass legend Bootsy Collins (1951), producer David Was (1952), musician Keith Strickland (1953), actress Rita Wilson (1956), actor Dylan McDermott (1961), actor Cary Elwes (1962), singer-songwriter Natalie Merchant (1963), and actor/producer Seth MacFarlane (1973).

As is often the case in any election season, things will get progressively more and more insane between now and November 8. Ignore the waves of bullshit, and vote with your conscience. I’ve already voted and I’m super glad it’s done and out of the way. Today, I’m going to do my job and… I honestly think that’s it. Later on, I may try and mess around with some vocals for the song I did last weekend. We’ll see. Enjoy your day!

Random News: October 25, 2022

DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.

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Good morning. It’s October 25, 2022, and it’s a Tuesday. Big ol’ list of various things coming at ya…

• The 2022 national election is in two weeks from today, on November 8. However, if you’re like me and millions of other Americans, you may have already voted.
• According to the U.S. Elections Project, more than 8,018,000 early votes have already been cast as of yesterday.
• And that doesn’t count the states that just opened early voting, which includes Texas.
• Let’s talk about social security and Medicare. Maybe your parents are on it. Maybe — like some 90% of people — you won’t have a savings that allows for a comfortable retirement by the time you’re 70.
• We told you that Republicans would repeal Roe v Wade and take away women’s reproductive rights. You said we were being alarmists and it would never happen.
• It happened.
• So when I tell you RIGHT NOW that Republicans are going to take away social security and Medicare, and that your parents will need to move in with you to survive, and that you will be left with nothing after working for 50 years, maybe believe me.
• Vote.
• Yesterday, Attorney General Merrick Garland, along with a cavalcade of federal law enforcement heads, announced charges against 13 Chinese citizens, including five alleged spies, in three separate cases.
• Two were charged for trying to steal info regarding the federal criminal investigation of telecom device maker Huawei. Seven were charged with trying to forcibly repatriate a Chinese national living in US, and four were charged for trying to recruit agents in US.
• The Huawei fools tried to bribe a law enforcement agent for confidential info. That person turned out to be a double agent. Ha ha.
• As mentioned previously, Lindsay Graham begged SCOTUS justice Clarence Thomas to not have to testify in the Fulton County, GA case about FPOTUS’s illegal interference in the 2020 presidential race.
• Thomas allowed a stay motion for little Lindsay. However, he will refer it to the full Court to decide. A stay pending the Court's decision is not unusual.
• But you have to wonder what information Lindsay has that is so damaging to Trump that he’s going this far to not testify under oath.
• This morning, Adidas cut ties with Kanye West over his antisemitic remarks. They will "end production of Yeezy branded products and stop all payments to Ye and his companies."
• Kanye West has also been dropped by CAA, the Creative Artists Agency, the largest and best-known artist representation firm in the world, for his open and blatant antisemitic statements.
• We do not accept or condone people in this country who single out groups of people to encourage hate, be they Blacks, Jews, gays, women, Asians, Muslims, disabled, transgendered, or any other group that faces constant discrimination and violence for no reason other than being themselves.
• Even when these actions aren’t criminal, we can collectively respond with our wallets… by not buying Ye’s music, concert tickets, merchandise, or products from companies that endorse him.
• As long as I’m talking about Ye — something I’ve managed not to do for the past 53 years until very recently — I will mention his conversation with rapper Charlemagne the God.
• He called Charlemagne last fall, quite upset, and screamed, "My wife is out here fucking a white boy with a 10-inch penis, and you won’t help me? My wife is out here fucking a white boy with a 10-inch penis, and you telling me that’s your friend but you’re supposed to be culture?”
• Pete Davidson has a 10” dick? That seems… excessive.
• And now, The Weather: “Iron Lung” by King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard
• RIP to Leslie Jordan. This LGBTQ icon was an actor, writer and singer who was best known for his roles in “Will & Grace,” “American Horror Story”, and on Instagram.
• Florida had its one and only gubernatorial debate yesterday with Dem challenger Charlie Crist versus Republican incumbent Ron DeSantis. It was described as “feisty”.
• The big takeaway is that DeSantis would not commit to serving a full second term if reelected, pretty much verifying that he’s planning on a 2024 presidential run.
• Against Trump, and probably Pence and maybe Liz Cheney. Get yer popcorn ready for those primaries, heh heh.
• Today in history… Execution of Saints Crispin and Crispinian, the patron saints of leather workers, curriers, and shoemakers (285). Henry V of England, with his lightly armoured infantry and archers, defeats the heavily armoured French cavalry in the Battle of Agincourt (1415). King George III succeeds to the British throne on the death of his grandfather George II (1760). The Battle of Balaclava takes place during the Crimean War (1854). Benjamin O. Davis Sr. is named the first African American general in the United States Army (1940). Adlai Stevenson shows the United Nations Security Council reconnaissance photographs of Soviet ballistic missiles in Cuba (1962). Microsoft releases Windows XP (2001).
• October 25 is the birthday of astronomer Heinrich Schwabe (1789), composer Georges Bizet (1838), businessman John Francis Dodge (1864), artist Pablo Picasso (1881), aviator/explorer Richard E. Byrd (1888), antisemitic piece of shit Charles Coughlin (1891), comedian Minnie Pearl (1912), drummer Earl Palmer (1924), actress Marion Ross (1928), basketball coach Bob Knight (1940), singer Helen Reddy (1941), singer Jon Anderson (1944), political consultant James Carville (1944), guitarist Glenn Tipton (1947), NFL player John Matuszak (1950), musician Richard Lloyd (1951), voice actress Nancy Cartwright (1957), drummer Chad Smith (1961), comedian/host Samantha Bee (1969), musician Ed Robertson (1970), actor Craig Robinson (1971), singer Bat for Lashes (1979), singer Katy Perry (1984), and singer Ciara (1985). 

Well, my day started by pouring a fresh cup of hot coffee and only then finding out there was not a drop of milk-like products in my home, which then caused me to storm out the door and to the grocery store in a big huff. And, ya know, some people have no coffee, or money for milk, or a store available to get it if they do, so I’m going to not be a spoiled fucking baby and let that ruin my day. Instead, I’ll encourage people to vote, and I’ll work, and provide for my family, like an actual adult human would do. Enjoy your day.

Random News: October 24, 2022

DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.

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Good morning. It’s October 24, 2022, and it’s a Monday. Here are some things that I’ve seen…

• Apparently AG Merrick Garland, DAG Lisa Monaco, FBI Director Christopher Wray and NatSec AAG Matthew Olsen will host a press conference at 1:30pm ET discussing alleged criminal activity by a nation-state actor in the US.
• Wow. Well, I’ll be watching.
• It’s rather chilly this morning in many places across the USA. Last week we had one of those weird mini heat waves in LA, with temps shooting into the 90s. This morning it was 55 and I’m in a flannel and jeans, the shorts having been retired for awhile.
• It’s looking like Britain’s former finance minister Rishi Sunak has emerged as the front-runner to be the country’s next prime minister… their third in seven weeks.
• I don’t really have an opinion on this because it’s not my country. I do know Sunak is part of the same Conservative party as the past few PMs, and that he’s extraordinarily wealthy.
• Shrug.
• Back in the USA, troubling news has come out regarding the effect of the pandemic on learning.
• Among standard tests for 4th and 8th graders, math scores plummeted in every single state. Readings scores dipped as well. The last time the test was given was 2019, for obvious reasons.
• Los Angeles can claim one of the few bright spots in the results. The nation’s second-largest school district saw eighth-grade reading scores increase by 9 points, the only significant uptick in any district in the country.
• Senator Lindsay Graham is still desperately trying to get out of testifying in the Fulton County, GA election case. He’s now appealed to the Supreme Court after exhausting every other court on the way.
• You have to wonder what could be so horrible that the FPOTUS knows about Graham that is stopping him from legally testifying in the case, which is about FPOTUS’s illegal interference in the 2020 presidential race.
• What the former guy doing today? Who gives a shit?
• But if you’re interested, the Trump Org’s criminal defense activity of the day is in New York, where his company is on trial for allegedly helping some top executives avoid income taxes on the compensation they got in addition to their salaries, like rent-free apartments and luxury cars.
• Jury selection starts today. The star witness for the prosecution is expected to be Allen Weisselberg, one of Trump’s most trusted senior executives.
• Because the criminal trial involves charges against the corporate entity, not any individuals, the Trumps won’t be held personally liable if a jury returns a guilty verdict.
• This is a separate trial from the civil case for fraud being handled by NYAG Letitia James. 
• And now, The Weather: “Fast N All” by Enumclaw
• From the Sports Desk… congrats to the Philadelphia Phillies and the Houston Astros. They are heading to the World Series, which starts on Friday October 28.
• The Sports Desk is still pretty unforgiving about the Astros having been caught cheating to win the World Series a few years back, with little repercussions. Go Phillies!
• The Sports Desk also wants to mention that seven weeks into the season, the leaders in the NFL are not always those who were predicted before the season started. The Jets at 5-2? The Eagles at 6-0? The Giants at 6-1?
• And while they’re not on top of the NFL, the Seattle Seahawks were predicted to be one of the worst teams in football, and instead are currently leading the NFC West over teams like the Rams, Niners, and Cardinals.
• Couple of polls. Again, polls are often wrong and skewed by the types of questions. Polls don’t mean shit; votes do.
• Ohio Senate: Vance (R) 46% (+1), Ryan (D) 45% (Marist)
• Michigan Governor: Whitmer (D-inc) 48%, Dixon (R) 48% (Trafalgar)
• Texas Governor: Greg Abbott (R-inc) 48% (+3), Beto O'Rourke (D) 45% (Beacon)
• Nevada Senate: Adam Laxalt (R) 48% (+2), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-inc) 46% (Insider)
• Nevada Governor: Joe Lombardo (R) 49% (+6), Steve Sisolak (D-inc) 43% (Insider)
• Georgia Senate: Warnock (D-inc) 48% (+1), Walker (R) 47% (Data Progress)
• North Carolina Senate: Ted Budd (R) 49% (+5), Cheri Beasley (D) 44% (Wick)
• Arizona Senate: Mark Kelly (D-inc) 49% (+3), Blake Masters (R) 46% (Wick)
• Arizona Governor: Katie Hobbs (D) 48% (+1), Kari Lake (R) 47% (Wick)
• Please vote. The current and future United States thanks you.
• Today in history… William Lassell discovers the moons Umbriel and Ariel orbiting Uranus (1851). Sheffield F.C., the world's oldest association football club still in operation, is founded in England (1857). U.S. Government announces plans to buy Danish West Indies for $7 million (1900). Harry Houdini's last performance takes place at the Garrick Theatre in Detroit (1926). "Black Thursday" on the New York Stock Exchange (1929). The George Washington Bridge opens to public traffic over the Hudson River (1931). A camera on board the V-2 No. 13 rocket takes the first photograph of earth from outer space (1946). President Eisenhower pledges United States support to South Vietnam (1954). In Iceland, 90% of women take part in a national strike, refusing to work in protest of gender inequality (1975). The Toronto Blue Jays become the first Major League Baseball team based outside the United States to win the World Series (1992). "Bloody Friday" saw many of the world's stock exchanges experience the worst declines in their history (2008). 
• October 24 is the birthday of author/activist Sarah Josepha Hale (1788), NFL player Y. A. Tittle (1926), singer The Big Bopper (1930), bass player Bill Wyman (1936), actor F. Murray Abraham (1939), singer-songwriter Laura Viers (1973), singer/rapper Monica (1980), model Tila Tequila (1981), and YouTube PewDiePie (1989).

Alrighty, well… yup, gonna launch this Monday with some exercise and then some work and then who the hell even knows? Anything can and will happen. I’m gonna do what I do, and so will you. Enjoy your day.

Random News: October 23, 2022

DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.

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Good morning. It’s October 23, 2022, and it’s a Sunday. Sipping my coffee, wearing my robe, here’s a few things from around the globe…

• I recorded a little demo yesterday. Just a basic song idea. Guitar, bass, and drums. No lyrics or melody or anything else just yet.
• If I don’t do some more work on it today, despite my best intentions, it will end up in a folder with 173,000 other partially-finished songs.
• I’ve spoken to enough musicians to know my creative process is pretty typical. Most of my original music compositions result from me having a guitar in my hands (or, more rarely, a keyboard in front of me) and letting my hands do what they want.
• My worst songs are the ones where I think too much.
• This is all in regard to writing music, by the way, which is never difficult for me. Lyrics, conversely, are a huge effort and are often the big roadblock. I write words for a living but 90% of my lyrics end up as crumpled balls of paper or a deleted and trash-emptied file.
• Xi Jinping has taken a third consecutive five-year term as the leader of the Chinese Communist Party, making him the most powerful Chinese leader since party founder Mao Zedong.
• Leaders with no constraints to their power have ben, in every single instance, bad for their country and bad for the world.
• Send your thoughts and prayers to the aging emo fans who flocked to Las Vegas for the “When We Were Young” festival that was scheduled to start yesterday, with throwback bands from the ‘00s like My Chemical Romance, Avril Lavigne and many more.
• High winds forced the cancelation of the event, leaving tens of thousands of black-haired tattooed people in too much eyeliner to mope sadly down the strip. The festival should go on today and next weekend as planned, weather permitting.
• And now, The Weather: “El Invento” by José González
• Adidas has a major PR problem going on as a result of their deep connection to avowed antisemite Kanye West.
• Ye has publicly dared them to drop him as an endorser, but losing their business relationship with him via their “Yeezy” branded shoes would be a big loss for them.
• Until they do, though, as far as I’m concerned, those three stripes might as well stand for three Ks, as in KKK.
• As you know, the national election in the USA is in just over two weeks.
• In addition to making abortion illegal nationwide, one thing the Republicans have stated is that they will halt every penny of support for Ukraine’s fight against Russia.
• Something I want to mention… you’ll never get everything you want out of an election. Terrible people will win; politicians that have no place being in office will be re-elected.
• What you need to do is do the things YOU can do, which is to vote and encourage others to do so, even if you think your candidate or ballot measure is too far down in the polls for it to matter.
• In the 1990 midterms, just two weeks before the election, all polls showed Democrat Ann Richards being thoroughly behind GOP candidate Clayton Williams in the Texas governor’s race.
• Richards won by less than three percentage points. If you show up and vote, you will win. It’s as simple as that. Vote in person, or by mail, or by ballot drop-off. No matter what you have to do, make your voice count.
• Perhaps most important, never, EVER assume your candidate is going to win and that they don’t need your vote to do so. Place like New York, Oregon, Nevada, and many others have incumbent candidates in very tight races. Get out and VOTE.
• Thank you.
• Today in history… James Ussher's proposed creation date of the world according to the Bible (4004 BC). The first National Women's Rights Convention begins in Worcester, MA (1850). Alberto Santos-Dumont flies an airplane in the first heavier-than-air flight in Europe (1906). Nazi Germany prohibits Jews from emigrating, including in its occupied territories (1941). Signing of the Paris Peace Accords which ends the Cambodian–Vietnamese War (1991). Yolanda Saldívar is found guilty of first-degree murder in the shooting death of popular Latin singer Selena (1995). Apple Computer releases the iPod (2001). 
• October 23 is the birthday of vice-resident Adlai Stevenson I (1835), Football player/coach John Heisman (1869), physicist Felix Bloch (1905), host Johnny Carson (1925), golfer Chi-Chi Rodriguez (1935), soccer legend Pelé (1940), author Michael Crichton (1942), director Ang Lee (1954), singer Dwight Yoakam (1956), director Sam Rainmi (1959), musician Weird Al Yankovic (1959), NFL player Doug Flutie (1962), bass player Robert Trujillo (1964), and actor Ryan Reynolds (1976). 

Okay, gonna try to keep writing my song and check out football games and do necessary shit. Enjoy your day.

Random News: October 22, 2022

DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.

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Good morning. It’s October 22, 2022, and it’s a Saturday. I’m in a blue bathrobe that probably needs replacing eventually, but let’s chat anyway…

• About 6,000,000 ballots have already been cast in the 2022 Midterm Election.
• Note for context: Democrats in almost every state tend to vote earlier than Republicans, who seem to prefer waiting until election day.
• That having been said…
• In Arizona, ballots cast by Democrats make up 44% of the pre-election ballots cast, while ballots cast by Republicans make up 33%.
• Of the more than 420,000 ballots cast in Pennsylvania, 73% were cast by Democrats and 19% were cast by Republicans.
• Don’t take this to mean any indicator of the outcome of these elections. However, early voting numbers remain on par with the 2018 elections, which had the highest midterm turnout in recent history.
• And we called that election the “Blue Wave”.
• Important note: the majority of political sites and polls still show the GOP minimally taking over the House, and being competitive for the Senate as well. 
• VOTE. It matters a lot.
• The January 6 Committee has officially sent a subpoena to the FPOTUS. 
• The panel is ordering Trump turn over documents by November 4 and either appear in person or virtually for one or more days of deposition testimony beginning on or about November 14.
• I predict one of two things: Trump will not show up, saying his lawyers weren’t allowing it or saying that the Congress has no right to subpoena him (note: they do), or that Trump will show up and it will be a clown show the likes of which you can’t even imagine.
• So we have that to look forward to, or not.
• Human waxy buildup Steve Bannon has been sentenced to four months in prison and a fine for a piddly $6,500.
• Bannon won’t have to serve his sentence until the appeal of his conviction plays out, per his whiny request.
• Federal prosecutors had asked for six months and a $200,000 fine. He got off very easy for the crime of contempt of congress. His sentence was given by Judge Carl Nichols, a Trump appointee.
• Hey Oklahoma! As unlikely as it seems, you guys are showing a real chance at electing a Democrat governor in Joy Hofmeister.
• Never give up. Never surrender. Dem candidates are electable in red states IF YOU VOTE.
• And now, The Weather: “Maxine” by Mah Kee Oh
• Hey, this is nice…
• “I can say antisemitic things and Adidas can't drop me. Now what? Now what?” - Kanye West
• I’m gonna keep on wearing Nikes is what. My shoes don’t hate Jews.
• From the Sports Desk… huge trade in the NFL world with Christian McCaffrey, one of the only talented players previously remaining on the Carolina Panthers, now playing for the San Francisco 49ers.
• The Sports Desk also notes that the Astros lead the Yankees 2-0 in the ALCS, while the Phillies have a 2-1 lead over the Padres in the NLCS. Both series continue today.
• Joe Biden has cut the deficit by the largest amount in US history this year, $1.4 trillion. Thanks Joe!
• Matthew Bledsoe of Tennessee stormed the U.S. Capitol on January 6 2021 after climbing up a wall and entering the building through a door with a broken window as an alarm blared.
• In court, he claimed he was unaware that Congress was certifying the 2020 presidential election when he entered the building. 
• He was sentenced to four years in federal prison on Friday. Hopefully he’ll have some time to think and reflect on his actions.
• Today in history… Emperor Kanmu relocates the Japanese capital to Heian-kyō, now known as Kyoto (794). The Ming dynasty defeats the Dutch East India Company (1633). The College of New Jersey, later renamed Princeton University, receives its charter (1746). Sam Houston is inaugurated as the first President of the Republic of Texas (1836). The Metropolitan Opera House in New York City opens with a performance of Gounod's Faust (1883). FBI agents shoot and kill notorious bank robber Pretty Boy Floyd (1934). President Kennedy, after internal counsel from Dwight D. Eisenhower, announces that American reconnaissance planes have discovered Soviet nuclear weapons in Cuba, and that he has ordered a naval "quarantine" of the Communist nation (1962). Jean-Paul Sartre is awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, but turns down the honor (1964). Cyclist Lance Armstrong is formally stripped of his seven Tour de France titles after being charged for doping (2012).
• October 22 is the birthday of composer Franz Liszt (1811), actress Sarah Bernhardt (1844), painter/illusrtator N. C. Wyeth (1882), Curly Howard (1903), psychologist/author Timothy Leary (1920), actor Christopher Lloyd (1938), actress Annette Funicello (1942), guitarist Leslie West (1945), actor Jeff Goldblum (1952), actor Bob Odenkirk (1962), skater Brian Boitano (1963), basketball player Dražen Petrović (1964), singer Shaggy (1968), director Spike Jonze (1969), baseball legend Ichiro Suzuki (1973), and baseball player Robinson Canó (1982). 

Might work on some music today. I wrote a sick-ass riff last night, and if I get motivated, maybe I’ll record it. Maybe I’ll take a shower and get dressed and then see how I am. I never know how I’ll be. Usually good. Enjoy your day.

Random News: October 21, 2022

DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.

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Good morning. It’s October 21, 2022, and if you can believe it, it’s a Friday once again! Let’s take a stroll down the information superhighway and try not to get run over…

• Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett denied, without explanation, an emergency request to put on hold President Biden’s debt forgiveness plan.
• The emergency SCOTUS request was brought up by a Wisconsin taxpayers organization represented by a conservative legal group.
• Ha ha. Womp womp. 
• Speaking of the SCOTUS, there were two security incidents in one hour there on Wednesday.
• First, they found guns in the minivan of Tony Payne, 80, who was arrested and is now facing weapons charges. He was parked adjacent to the Court.
• A few minutes later, Melvin Marbrey, 73, told Supreme Court police he was at the Court to meet with Chief Justice John Roberts and "would not leave (until) he was allowed into the building."
• He was not, it turns out, allowed into the building.
• There is no indication of any connection between the men. Shrug.
• Also this week in our nation’s capital, congressional Republicans introduced a measure that would take Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law and make it national.
• It would prevent any acknowledgement of the existence of LGBTQIA+ people within any institutions for kids – schools, libraries, and so on – that receive public money.
• If that passed, I would make it my life’s goal to organize Pride events outside every elementary school in the country. Try me!
• My thoughts to the people of Seattle, who have been suffering literally the worst air quality in the world these past few days… worse than Beijing or Delhi.
• The combination of smoke from local fires and very unusually hot and dry weather left the city with AQI well over 300 in places… about 40 times higher than the guideline recommended by the WHO. Fucking awful.
• Poll workers and early voters have reported harassment in Arizona by self-appointed “election monitors” who are following voters, filming them, and accosting them at dropbox locations.
• A complaint has been filed with the Arizona secretary of state, who forwarded it to the US Department of Justice and the Arizona attorney general’s office for investigation.
• Assholes. Intimidating voters is an old school racism trick.
• I should be a poll-watcher watcher. And then some other person could watch me watching the poll watchers watching the voters.
• Let’s all watch each other.
• And now, The Weather: “Garden of Our Neighbor” by Goon
• Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) tried to block a subpoena from Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, claiming that a sitting senator is shielded from such investigations.
• Sorry, Lady G… a federal appeals court said Thursday that he must appear before a Georgia grand jury investigating possible attempts by the FPOTUS and his criminal team to disrupt the state’s 2020 presidential election.
• Awhile back, Kevin de León was considered a rising star in national politics. He ran an impressive campaign as a progressive candidate for Senator against Dianne Feinstein. He also ran for mayor of Los Angeles.
• And now, he was part of the racist conversation between LA city council members and has been asked/told to resign by everyone in every political direction, and he refuses to step down.
• Resign, Kevin. You’re now a detriment to the city and staying in place will be a terrible detriment to the citizens of your district. Put your ego aside and do the right thing, Pendejo.
• Today in history… Ferdinand Magellan discovers a strait now known as the Strait of Magellan (1520). In Boston Harbor, the 44-gun United States Navy frigate USS Constitution is launched (1797). The Medicine Lodge Treaty is signed by southern Great Plains Indian leaders (1867). Thomas Edison applies for a patent for his design for an incandescent light bulb (1879). President Warren G. Harding delivers the first speech by a sitting U.S. president against lynching in the Deep South (1921). The first edition of the Ernest Hemingway novel For Whom the Bell Tolls is published (1940). The city of Aachen falls to American forces after three weeks of fighting, the first German city to fall to the Allies in WWII (1944). In New York City, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum opens to the public (1959). The meter is defined as the distance light travels in a vacuum in 1/299,792,458 of a second (1983). Images of the dwarf planet Eris are taken and subsequently used in documenting its discovery (2005).
• October 21 is the birthday of poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772), chemist/dynamite inventor Alfred Nobel (1833), producer Owen Bradley (1915), musician Dizzy Gillespie (1917), MLN player/manager Whitey Ford (1928), author Ursula K. Le Guin (1929), musician Manfred Mann (1940), musician Steve Cropper (1941), musician Elvin Bishop (1942), judge Judy Sheindlin (1942), astronaut Ronald McNair (1950), musician Brent Mydland (1952), musician Charlotte Caffey (1953), actress Carrie Fisher (1956), musician Steve Lukather (1957), musician Nick Oliveri (1971), ummm… Kim Kardashian (1980), and MLB player Zack Greinke (1983).

Okay, well… hey, it is Friday. I’ve had a pretty productive week. I’m hoping to not get blindsided by bullshit. You really can never tell how a day is going to go. Every person that ever had a really great day or a really bad day awoke that morning not knowing for sure what was in store for them. I’m going to go with positivity and trying to make the world a better place in which to live. I’ll also try not to be an asshole. I can do that. Enjoy your day.

Random News: October 20, 2022

DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.

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Good morning. It’s October 20, 2022, and it’s a Thursday for some reason. Here’s a potpourri of peculiar particulars…

• The Liz Truss era of the UK is over. The prime minister has resigned after 44 days in office, having lost the confidence of her party and her nation.
• Former White House director of communications Anthony Scaramucci, who lasted 11 days in his position, was happy to point out on Twitter this morning that Truss lasted 4.1 Scaramuccis.
• As I mentioned previously, a UK tabloid put up a livestream of a head of lettuce, asking people to bet whether the lettuce would outlast the tenure of the PM. The lettuce won, people.
• From a UK-based Twitter: “My son has lived through four chancellors, three home secretaries, two prime ministers and two monarchs. He's four months old.”
• Moving on.
• Here’s a message from our pal Bernie Sanders…
• “Inflation Rate… EU: 10.9%, Germany: 10.9%, UK: 10.1%, France: 9.4%, Spain: 9%, Italy: 8.6%, USA: 8.2%. No. Inflation is not going up in the U.S. because the working class got a $1,400 check 19 months ago. Multinational corporations are jacking up prices worldwide.”
• Fact check: true. If you want to protest against inflation, your vote isn’t where to do it. Just stop buying shit. Trust me, it’ll go down mighty quick.
• Much like Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren and others, I too have serious concerns about the upcoming proposed merger of the country’s two largest grocery entities, Kroger and Albertsons.
• Kroger currently owns nearly two-dozen chains, including Ralphs, Dillons, Food 4 Less, Fred Meyer, Mariano’s and QFC.
• Albertsons, meanwhile, owns 24 chains, such as Safeway, Vons, Jewel-Osco, Shaw’s and Acme.
• When one conglomerate owns everything, the one who loses is the consumer. That’s why we have antitrust laws in this country. If you’re going to keep doing the capitalism thing, at least make sure there’s competition.
• Yesterday, federal judge David O. Carter ordered the release of emails from Trump attorney John Eastman.
• “The emails show that President Trump knew that the specific numbers of voter fraud were wrong but continued to tout those numbers, both in court and to the public. The Court finds that these emails are sufficiently related to and in furtherance of a conspiracy to defraud the United States,” he wrote.
• CONSPIRACY TO DEFRAUD THE UNITED STATES.
• Also yesterday, E. Jean Carroll’s attorneys have asked for Trump's DNA after the FPOTUS denied under oath her accusation of rape.
• This guy is not a good guy.
• Also in the “not good guy” department…
• Meet Randy Kaufman. He’s the GOP candidate running for the governing board of the Maricopa County Community College District in Arizona. In a Facebook post a few months ago, Randy said that he wanted “our children protected from the progressive left.”
• But on October 4, he was caught watching porn and masturbating in his car near a preschool.
• The officer stated, “I immediately became alarmed as I saw [Kaufman] had his pants down mid-thigh and was exposed showing his fully erect nude penis.” The officer wrote that the car was parked “with a full view of the Wirtzels Preschool and Child Care Center.”
• So, once again, you can attach your vote and your values to the party who wants to protect women’s rights, save your Social Security and Medicare, slow down the scourge of climate change, and promote equality for all people regardless of race, sexual orientation, and economic status… or be part of the “masturbate in front of little kids” party.
• Your choice. Just make sure to vote. Thank you.
• And now, The Weather: “Dance Around the Truth” by Mind Shrine
• As long as we’re sort of on the topic of sexuality, let’s tak about Britney Spears.
• On Tuesday night, she posted a pic on Twitter of herself reclining nude on a bed, with the caption, “I have a premiere for a movie this week “THE LEGISLATIVE ACT OF MY PUSSY“ !!!!”
• First, nudity is allowed on Twitter.
• Second, the human body is not obscene.
• Third, of course people lost their shit with statements like, “I personally don't think a mother & wife should be posting stuff like this. I can no longer support. Unfollowed & blocked.”, and “I’m sad for your children and that you think you need this kind of attention.  That your husband is ok with it is shocking.”
• And much, much worse, as you’d expect.
• A big chunk of American and some other cultures are aghast at any sign of women’s sexuality, especially when they use it in their own empowering way and not showing themselves being subjugated by a man.
• Also, husbands don’t own their wives’ bodies and women (including moms) can do what they want. Jesus fucking Christ.
• Moving on.
• From the Sports Desk… the Astros took Game 1 against the Yankees in the ALCS, and the Phillies and Padres are tied up 1-1 in the NLCS.
• Also, tonight’s exciting Thursday Night NFL game has the Saints at the Cardinals. I’m filled with excitement! Narrator’s voice: he was not, it turns out, excited.
• MacKenzie Scott, the ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, made a donation of $84.5 million to the Girl Scouts of America.
• That’s a lot of fucking Thin Mints and Do-si-dos!
• Today in history… The United States Senate ratifies the Louisiana Purchase (1803). The Convention of 1818 is signed between the United States and the United Kingdom, which settles the Canada–United States border on the 49th parallel for most of its length (1818). The Soviet Red Army and Yugoslav Partisans liberate Belgrade in WWII (1944). The House Un-American Activities Committee begins its investigation into Communist infiltration of the Hollywood film industry, resulting in a blacklist that prevents some from working in the industry for years (1947). Richard Nixon fires U.S. Attorney General Elliot Richardson and Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus after they refuse to fire special prosecutor Archibald Cox. The Sydney Opera House is opened (1973). Lynyrd Skynyrd’s plane crashes in woodland Mississippi (1977). 
• October 20 is the birthday of polymath/architect Christopher Wren (1632), UK prime minister Henry John Temple (1784), poet Arthur Rimbaud (1854), composer Charles Ives (1874), actor Bela Lugosi (1882), musicologist Robert Craft (1923), psychologist Joyce Brothers (1927), MLB legend Mickey Mantle (1931), actor Jerry Orbach (1935), singer-songwriter Tom Petty (1950), MLB player Keoth Hernandez (1953), film composer Thomas Newman (1955), NFL player Dave Krieg (1958), actor Viggo Mortenson (1958), rapper Snoop Dogg (1971), senator Brian Schatz (1972), and actor John Krasinski (1979). 

Well, that’s a fuckton of shit, and frankly there’s a lot more I could talk about, but there’s always more stuff that happens than I have time to mention, or that you have the time or attention span to care about, so we’ll leave it at that. The sky was super pink as the sun rose today, and I’m going have a very Thursdayish Thursday. I think that’s good? Not sure. Don’t care. Enjoy your day.