Random News: April 16, 2024

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.

---

Good morning. It’s April 16, 2024, and it’s a Tuesday. It’s nice and quiet shortly before 7AM, making it a good time to zip around the information superhighway and get information that may or may not be useful in some way to someone. Hop in; let’s go.

• Couple of notes from yesterday’s historic opening to Donnie Dump’s first criminal trial.
• Early in the day, Dump was read what is called a “Parker Warning,” which is a notification that if a defendant does something in his or her trial, additional charges can be levied.
• Judge Merchan said, “You have the right to be present during the trial and to assist your attorneys. Do you understand?” Dump said he did.
• Merchan then said, “If you disrupt the proceedings, you can be excluded from the courtroom and committed to jail based on your conduct and the trial will continue on in your absence. Do you understand?” Again, Dumpy acknowledged this.
• And finally, to make the point crystal clear, Merchan said, “If you do not show up there will be an arrest. Do you understand?” Dumpy said he did understand.
• There were some administrative statements made early on. One was to reiterate that there will not be any court in session on Wednesdays during this trial.
• Another was that there won't be trial proceedings on any day that conflicts with the religious observance of any juror, which means April 22-23 and April 29-30 for Passover.
• Judge Merchan also read a list of names to potential jurors that could figure into the case, though not all of them will be called to testify. The names included Dumpy himself as well as Stormy Daniels, Karen McDougal, Steve Bannon, Rudy Giuliani, Hope Hicks, Sharon Churcher, Dan Scavino, Keith Schiller, Donald Trump, Jr., Ivanka Trump, Melania Trump, John McEntee, Kellyanne Conway, Jared Kushner, and more.
• In other trial news from the first day…
• Remember how one of Dumpy’s childish insults to President Biden was “Sleepy Joe?”
• Well, we have a new one for Dumpy: Don Snoreleone.
• He fucking fell asleep during his trial. His head dropped down and his mouth went slack.
• I seem to recall that Hillary Clinton testified in the Benghazi hearing for 11 straight hours and was as sharp at the end of the day as she was at the start.
• Other tidbits…
• Judge Merchan set an April 23 hearing date over the prosecution's request that Dumpy be held in contempt for violating the gag order in the New York hush money case.
• Dump, who has no respect for laws and considers himself too important to obey them, has repeatedly taken to social media to attack people involved in the cases against him.
• I’ll remind you that if you or I did that, there would be a sheriff at our houses within minutes to arrest us for contempt of court.
• Even yesterday, Dumpy reshared a video criticizing Judge Juan Merchan's wife's purported work with New York Attorney General Letitia James.
• The realization of being a criminal defendant seems to be slowly sinking in for Dumpy. Criminal defendants don’t get to pick and choose their own schedules, and have to spend time in drab county courthouses.
• Suck it up, Don.
• Day two of the trial, with continued efforts toward jury selection, has already started today. Remember, it was planned that the jury selection process would take between one and two weeks, so everything is moving along at the predicted pace.
• Let’s move on from that for now. It’s going to be a lot of information forthcoming, and we’ll take it as it comes.
• Maniacal far-right Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas was a no-show at the court for oral arguments yesterday, with the court giving no reason for his absence.
• Chief Justice John Roberts acknowledged in court that Thomas “is not on the bench today” but would participate fully in the two cases being argued based on the briefs and transcripts. No further information on Thomas’s absence was provided.
• Typically when a justice is not present for oral arguments, the court will give a reason, including instances when there is a health issue.
• Huh.
• Anyway, the SCOTUS is hearing arguments today from a former Pennsylvania police officer who stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, in a case that could undermine federal charges against more than 350 rioters.
• They are looking at whether Dump and the rest of the January 6 insurrectionists are being correctly charged with violating a federal law enacted in 2002 that prohibits people from obstructing an official proceeding.
• The charge can add up to 20 years to a prison sentence.
• If the Supreme Court throws out that charge in this Fischer v. US case, it would be a travesty of justice. And of course, Dumpy would be ecstatic because he’d personally be facing less penalties.
• Staying tuned on that.
• Last night, House Speaker Mike Johnson finally unveiled an outline of his plan to address the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East.
• He plans to put four different bills on the floor, essentially decoupling aid for Israel from help for Ukraine. The right flank of his party — like Marjorie Taylor Green (R-GA) and others — is super mad and have threatened to oust him from the speakership if he moved forward with funding for Ukraine.
• Johnson will then advance separate votes for aid to Taiwan and a measure to satisfy Republican foreign policy demands, including the seizure of Russian assets and a bill to ban TikTok from the United States.
• Shrug.
• Let’s move on to that disaster of Dumpy’s media company.
• Trump Media & Technology Group tumbled 18% in Monday afternoon trading, a drop that follows last week's 21% plunge.
• The sharp drop in value comes after the company filed a document with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that opens the door for the future potential sale of millions of shares.
• The stock plunge has erased billions from Dump's net worth. The shares soared when they began trading on March 26, giving Trump's 57% ownership position a value of $6.25 billion. But now that stake is worth $2.1 billion, representing a paper loss of $4.15 billion.
• Hahahaha.
• Let’s move on.
• There are two special elections in Michigan today that may help Democratic lawmakers win back a majority in the deadlocked Michigan House and regain control of the state government.
• Democrat Mai Xiong is taking on Republican Ronald Singer in District 13, while Peter Herzberg, a Democrat, faces Republican Josh Powell in District 25.
• Both districts are located just outside Detroit and are heavily Democratic, with the previous Democratic incumbents each having won by over 25 percentage points in 2022.
• The state’s lower chamber has been tied 54-54 between Democratic and Republican lawmakers since November.
• Here’s hoping the best for them.
• Let’s continue moving on.
• Yesterday, pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked roadways in Illinois, California, New York, and the Pacific Northwest, temporarily shutting down travel into some of the nation's most heavily used airports, onto the Golden Gate and Brooklyn bridges and on a busy West Coast highway.

• I support peaceful protest, and have done it on a number of occasions myself.
• But I’m not sure this is helping their cause. I am sure that people who are impacted — those trying to get to work, or catch a flight, for example — are likely angered at their actions and even less likely to support their goals.
• Among other things, the protesters have called for an immediate cease-fire in the war between Israel and Hamas. I can’t say they’re actually helping the situation, and perhaps the opposite.

• Sigh.
• In related news, the University of Southern California has canceled a planned commencement speech by its valedictorian, citing security concerns due to tensions over “the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.”
• Asna Tabassum said she was told yesterday that she would no longer be able to give a speech at graduation on May 10.
• At least two pro-Israel and Jewish groups complained to USC about the choice, pointing to Tabassum’s social media activity. 
• Her Instagram account links to a slideshow that calls for “one palestinian state,” which it says “would mean palestinian liberation, and the complete abolishment of the state of Israel.”
• Sigh.
• And now, The Weather: “Nurture” by youbet
• From the Sports Desk… Caitlin Clark, unsurprisingly, was selected No. 1 overall by the Indiana Fever in the 2024 WNBA draft last night.
• Showing the drastic difference between pay in women’s professional sports versus men’s, Clark’s four-year rookie contract has her earning about $80,000 a year.
• If she was a man in the NBA, the minimum salary for players signing contracts in the 2023-2024 season amounted to over $1.1 million.
• Today in history… Masada, a Jewish fortress, falls to the Romans after several months of siege, ending the First Jewish–Roman War (73). In Dodge City, Kansas, Bat Masterson fights his last gun battle (1881). The oldest existing indoor ice hockey arena still used for the sport in the 21st century, Boston Arena, opens for the first time (1910). Mohandas Gandhi organizes a day of "prayer and fasting" in response to the killing of Indian protesters in the Jallianwala Bagh massacre by the British colonial troops (1919). Albert Hofmann accidentally discovers the hallucinogenic effects of the research drug LSD (1943). Bernard Baruch first applies the term "Cold War" to describe the relationship between the United States and the Soviet Union (1947). The New York Times and the New Yorker win the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for breaking news of the Harvey Weinstein sexual abuse scandal (2018).
• April 16 is the birthday of actor/director Charlie Chaplin (1889), madam Polly Adler (1900), actor/comedian Spike Milligan (1918), actor Peter Ustinov (1921), composer Henry Mancini (1924), NFL player Night Train Lane (1928), flute player Herbie Mann (1930), music manager/film producer Robert Stigwood (1934), singer Dusty Springfield (1939), NBA player Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1947), singer-songwriter Gerry Rafferty (1947), NFL coach Bill Belichick (1952), voice actor Billy West (1952), actress Ellen Barkin (1954), keyboardist T Lavitz (1956), actor Jon Cryer (1965), actor Martin Lawrence (1965), singer-songwriter/actress Selena (1971), actress Claire Foy (1984), NBA player Luol Deng (1985), and actress Sadie Sink (2002).

As usual, there’s always more news, but never more time. Also, a little later after I get some real work accomplished, I’ll write up a recap of my fun show last night in Second Life. Enjoy your day.