Random News: October 14, 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 14, 2022, and if you can believe it, it’s a Friday once again! Here is a batch of information that may be of varying levels of interest…

• God, where to start?
• Ummmm.
• Okay, let’s go with the January 6 Committee. I’m not going to recap the whole thing for you. You can find plenty of it on all online news site. The highlights… 
• The committee voted unanimously to subpoena Trump for documents and testimony. He says he’ll testify, but only if he can do it live. Get your popcorn. Side note: he’ll never testify once he realizes he’s responsible for what he says under oath.
• They clearly demonstrated that Trump knew he had lost the election, acknowledged that fact to people directly, and yet still went forward with trying to overturn the results.
• The hearing also featured new records obtained from the Secret Service, and new deposition footage from former Trump Cabinet members, showing how FPOTUS still remains a danger to democracy heading into the 2024 election.
• One of the most amazing parts was the previously unseen footage of congressional leaders like Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer taking action behind the scenes.
• Enough on that for now. But wait…
• The Supreme Court has rejected FPOTUS's request to intervene in the criminal investigation regarding his theft of documents that were stored at Mar-a-Lago.
• Trump had addressed his case directly to Justice Clarence Thomas. It was summarily and unanimously rejected with no justices dissenting.
• Ha ha. But wait…
• You know how the NYAG is investigating the Trump Organization for fraud in a $250 million civil suit? 
• I am not making this up: he thought he could wriggle out of it by transferring the company’s assets to a new company that he registered in Delaware as (drum roll)… Trump Organization II.
• Letitia James is already shutting it down, after she stops laughing.
• Let’s talk about the death penalty.
• As you’re probably aware by now, Nikolas Cruz, the man who pleaded guilty to the shooting murder of 17 students and teachers (and injury of dozens more) in Parkland, FL, was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
• The only other option in his sentencing was death.
• Most countries around the world have abolished capital punishment, aka the death penalty. However, about 60% of the world’s population still live in a place where it is permitted… mostly because the #1 country for state-based executions by far is China.
• Here’s a list from 2020 in order of countries and the number of people executed by the state that year: China (1000+), Iran (314+), Egypt (83), Saudi Arabia (65), Syria (24+), Somalia (21+), Iraq (17+), Yemen (14+), United States (11), and South Sudan (9+).
• How do I feel about the death penalty? Conflicted, just like most of you.
• If my child was killed, would I feel the need for revenge? Yes, of course.
• Has every single person who has been executed for an alleged crime been guilty of said crime? Most likely not, and there’s an old saying that I’m generally onboard with: I’d rather see 99 criminals walk free than see one innocent person murdered by the state for something he or she did not do.
• And now, The Weather: “Sapphire” by Space Equator.
• You know how Florida governor Ron DeSantis lured 50 legal asylum-seeking immigrants onto a plane and dropped them off in Massachusetts with no food or housing just to “own the libs”?
• A Texas sheriff has certified that the migrants are, as a result, the victims of a crime, which qualifies them all for a special visa that they would not have otherwise been eligible for.
• Some piece of shit teenager killed five and injured two more during a shooting rampage along a nature trail in Raleigh, NC yesterday. Of course, being a white kid, he was taken into custody and will receive a fair trial (though he was severely injured via unknown circumstances).
• See, white guys who commit mass murder are crazy, but black men are thugs.
• Today in history… The Norman conquest of England begins with the Battle of Hastings (1066). Robert the Bruce of Scotland defeats King Edward II of England, forcing Edward to accept Scotland's independence (1322). The First Continental Congress denounces the British Parliament's Intolerable Acts and demands British concessions (1774). George Eastman receives a U.S. Government patent on his new paper-strip photographic film (1884). The Chicago Cubs defeat the Detroit Tigers, 2–0, clinching the 1908 World Series; this would be their last until winning the 2016 World Series (1908). Theodore Roosevelt is shot and wounded but still delivers his scheduled speech (1912). Prisoners at Sobibor extermination camp covertly assassinate most of the on-duty SS officers and then stage a mass breakout (1943). Chuck Yeager becomes the first person to exceed the speed of sound (1947). Martin Luther King Jr. receives the Nobel Peace Prize for combating racial inequality through nonviolence (1964). The first live television broadcast by American astronauts in orbit is performed by the Apollo 7 crew (1968). Jim Hines becomes the first man ever to break the so-called "ten-second barrier" in the 100-meter sprint with a time of 9.95 seconds (1968). The first National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights draws approximately 100,000 people (1979). U.S. President Ronald Reagan proclaims a War on Drugs (1982). Eric Rudolph is charged with six bombings, including the 1996 Centennial Olympic Park bombing in Atlanta, Georgia (1998). The Steve Bartman Incident takes place at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois (2003). Felix Baumgartner successfully jumps to Earth from a balloon in the stratosphere (2012).
• October 14 is the birthday of businessman William Penn (1644), UK prime minister George Grenville (1712), US president Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890), actress Lillian Gish (1893), poet E. E. Cummings (1894), basketball coach John Wooden (1910), Surgeon General C. Everett Koop (1916), actor Roger Moore (1927), White House lawyer John Dean (1938), fashion designer Ralph Lauren (1939), actor Harry Anderson (1952), musician Thomas Dolby (1958), police brutality victim George Floyd (1973), singer Usher (1978), and NFL player Jared Goff (1994).

Well, as I’ve mentioned previously, Fridays are often not my favorite day work-wise, with a lot of projects dumped on me at the last minute. I’m going to try and be productive without feeling like the world will fall apart if I don’t jump through every hoop. One of the nice things about getting older is the improved ability to say, “Nope, not gonna do that.” Enjoy your day.