Random News: September 23, 2025

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 September 23, 2025, and it’s a Tuesday. There’s something in the air. Maybe it’s the change of season; maybe it’s the feeling that people in the USA and around the world are about to stop accepting fascist bullshit. Either way, we have a lot to talk about.

• I’ve been meaning to call your attention to a very important upcoming day of action, with thousands of events already scheduled.
• On Saturday October 18, please make plans to join us for a “No Kings” protest. They’re happening in all 50 states.
• As you likely recall, a few months back, millions of everyday Americans from every walk of life peacefully took to the streets and declared with one voice: No Kings.
• Donnie Dump got very upset. That was supposed to be the day of his special birthday parade, and it got overshadowed by a huge portion of the country tell him to fuck all the way off.
• As you know, Dump is now doubling down — sending militarized agents into our communities, silencing voters, and handing billionaires giveaways while families struggle.
• Even if you’ve never in your life been active in political dissent, the time is now. If you want to tell your kids and your grandkids that you stood up to a fascist dictator, the time is now.
• If you keep sitting on the sidelines, you will NOT have a choice in the future. This isn’t just politics. It’s democracy versus dictatorship. And together, we’re choosing democracy.
• I’m putting a link in the comments for information and locations. 
• Let’s do the news.
• Guess who’s back? Why, it’s Jimmy Kimmel. Tonight.
• ABC will reinstate Jimmy Kimmel’s late night show in the wake of criticism over his comments about the assassination of Charlie Kirk.
• “We have spent the last days having thoughtful conversations with Jimmy, and after those conversations, we reached the decision to return the show on Tuesday,” said the network.
• If you go back and look for yourself, Kimmel never once said anything negative or insensitive about Kirk after his murder. He was suspended by ABC (which is owned by Disney) after Kimmel said that “many in MAGA land are working very hard to capitalize on the murder of Charlie Kirk” and that “the MAGA gang” was “desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them.”
• Those statements may very well prove to be 100% correct. There’s been no evidence offered thus far of a connection between assassin Tyler Robinson and left-wing politics.
• This could be a turning point where Dumples the Fascist Clown realizes that his power is far more curtailed than he assumed.
• And Kimmel’s suspension came at a time when Dump has pursued threats, lawsuits, and federal government pressure to try to exert more control over the media industry.
• One thing that may have swayed ABC/Disney toward the correct side of this shit…
• Yesterday, over 400 artists — actors, filmmakers, musicians, and more — signed and sent an open letter in response to ABC’s suspension of Kimmel’s show.
• They wrote, “This is a dark moment for freedom of speech in our nation. This is unconstitutional and un-American. The government is threatening private companies and individuals that the President disagrees with. We can’t let this threat to our freedom of speech go unanswered.” 
• Who’s on the list? I mean, who isn’t. I think MAGA should boycott any movie or TV show featuring any of these people. Oh wait… that would leave them with literally nothing to watch.
• I mean… Ben Affleck, Jennifer Aniston, Kevin Bacon, Bryan Cranston, Robert DeNiro, Selena Gomez, Tom Hanks, Michael Keaton, Harvey Keitel, Pedro Pascal, Natalie Portman, Olivia Rodrigo, Ben Stiller and Meryl Streep all added their name, along with hundreds more.
• As a performing artist and someone who cares about the USA, I also added my name. Maybe I got Kimmel reinstated!
• Probably not, but I did help in my own small way. You’re welcome.
• Of note: while “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” returns tonight, not every broadcaster is on board with him being back on the air.
• There’s far too much detail to explain here, but each broadcast network is made up of local affiliates, which is turn are often owned by media conglomerates.
• One of them — the large and conservative Sinclair Broadcast Group — confirmed that its affiliate stations, which include almost 40 affiliates across the U.S., would not be showing Kimmel's return, and would instead "replace it with news programming.”
• Ah well. The people in those locations will miss a helluva show; rumor has it that Kimmel’s first guest for his return is California Governor Gavin Newsom.
• Hee hee.
• Let’s move on.
• As we expected, yesterday Dumples the Dictator Clown signed an order designating the anti-fascism movement as a domestic terrorist organization, and directing federal agencies to take action against it.
• So to be clear, if you’re against fascism, you’re now a terrorist in the eyes of the U.S. government, according to Dump.
• Dump’s order accuses Antifa of organizing political violence — including riots, attacks on law enforcement, and doxing — with the goal of overthrowing the US government.
• It bears repeating here that “Antifa” is a concept or a philosophy… not an organization.
• Antifa lacks centralized structure or defined leadership, and it would be a violation of the First Amendment to prosecute all those who subscribed to anti-fascist ideology.
• And while it is illegal to provide “material support” to groups designated by the government as foreign terrorist organizations, there is not an analogous law for domestic groups.
• Nevertheless, the Fat Orange Idiot has now directed all relevant federal agencies to “investigate, disrupt, and dismantle” any illegal operations associated with Antifa or those supporting it, including through criminal prosecution.
• Just FYI: the government could label literally anyone as “Antifa.” You, me, your kids, your friends. Anyone who expresses opposition to Dump’s self-serving, anti-Constitutional, anti-American bullshit.
• Of note: unlike militant far-right groups like the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, Antifa has never had a leader, nor is there a hierarchy or a command structure.
• There’s no headquarters. There’s no newsletter. No web site. No uniform. No parade. No logos or other insignias.
• Antifa’s lack of a national structure would make it hard for the administration to go after leaders or funding sources as they claim to be doing.
• Side note: the term “antifa” has roots in anti-fascist movements that opposed Italian dictator Benito Mussolini during World War II and that opposed White supremacist or skinhead groups throughout Europe during the Cold War.
• Overlooked in this ridiculous trampling of the First Amendment: Dump also suggested that people from the activist group Code Pink should be charged with crimes.
• Code Pink: Women for Peace is a pacifist, anti-war organization registered in the United States as a non-profit organization. 
• They recently embarrassed Dump by protesting at a restaurant.
• Moving on.
• Yesterday, the Supreme Court said it will decide whether Dump can fire members of the Federal Trade Commission without cause, weakening protections enacted by Congress that aim to insulate independent agencies from political pressure.
• They also say that they will also allow Dump to fire Rebecca Kelly Slaughter from her position at the FTC while it considers the case.
• As has been the case of nearly all of these horrid decisions, the vote was 6-3 with Justices Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor, and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissenting from the radicalized far-right majority.
• A lower court had found that Dump's attempt to fire Slaughter violated a 1914 law that limits the grounds for removing an FTC commissioner to instances of inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office, and ordered her to be reinstated.
• But Dump know he can just take every case straight to the Supreme Court, who will do whatever he wants for reasons that remain murky.
• Let’s move on.
• It’s looking more and more like the world will recognize the steroid of Palestine.
• Yesterday, U.N. secretary-general Antonio Guterres spoke at a gathering of world leaders aimed at reviving efforts to create a Palestinian state alongside Israel. 
• He said that Palestinian statehood “is a right, not a reward.” I agree.
• Also yesterday, France recognized Palestinian statehood at the start of the high-profile meeting. More nations are expected to follow, in defiance of Israel and the United States.
• French President Emmanuel Macron’s announcement in the U.N. General Assembly hall received loud applause from the more than 140 leaders in attendance.
• If Israel hadn’t gone so overboard in its attempts to commit genocide against the people of Palestine and instead had stuck to its mission of rooting out Hamas terrorists, we’d never be having this conversation.
• By the way, L'shanah tovah. Rosh Hashanah began last night. It’s the Jewish New Year, a two-day observance that marks the start of a 10-day period of self-reflection and repentance leading up to Yom Kippur.
• Moving on.
• I’m not going to talk about Dump’s completely insane press event where he claimed that Tylenol causes autism.
• First, I hope that Kenvue, the manufacturer of the medication branded Tylenol, sues Dump for billions.
• Second, the reason Dump keeps saying “Tylenol” is that he is unable to pronounce the name of the drug that’s in it, acetaminophen (known in other parts of the world as paracetamol). 
• Third, here is your stable genius piece of shit asshole president talking about vaccines yesterday…
• Dump: “You can't fit all that liquid in a single baby, there's no way.”
• Reporter: [nods]
• Dump: “The number of liquid.”
• Reporter: [nods]
• Dump: “It's just too big a number of liquid for baby.”
• So that’s who we have advising you on your health.
• Let’s move on.
• Speaking of babies, Arizona is about to put baby in a corner… and that baby is Speaker Mike Johnson.
• There’s a special election today in southwest Arizona where we expect Adelita Grijalva to win and become the 218th and clinching supporter of a bipartisan effort to force public disclosure of federal investigative files related to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
• Johnson has been trying desperately to avoid having the Congress weigh in officially on the matter that Dumpy still calls a “Democrat hoax.” Now Johnson will have no choice in the matter.
• Grijalva — who is heavily favored to succeed her late father, Raúl Grijalva, in a district Dump lost by 22 points — said she will be pleased to force the issue. She would be eligible to sign immediately after she is sworn in, likely early next month.
• Let’s fucking go. Release the Epstein files.
• In other news… 
• Might wanna hold off on shrimp for awhile.
• AquaStar is recalling more than 85,000 bags of shrimp due to insanitary conditions where the products may have been contaminated with cesium-137, a radioactive element.
• Yes. We’re doing the radioactive shrimp again.
• In an alert posted Sunday, the FDA said the recall included approximately 49,920 bags of "Kroger Raw Colossal EZ Peel Shrimp," approximately 18,000 bags of "Kroger Mercado Cooked Medium Peeled Tail-Off Shrimp,” and approximately 17,264 bags of AquaStar Raw Peeled Tail-on Shrimp Skewers.
• That’s a lot of fucking shrimp.
• The items were sold between June 12 and September 17, 2025, at several retail locations including Kroger, Ralphs, Fred Meyer, Fry's, King Soopers, and more across 31 states, including: Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Nevada, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee. Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, West Virginia, and Wyoming.
• I mean, you’re probably fine. While the shrimp could be contaminated with the cesium-137 isotope, the FDA said that no products as of yet have tested positive for it.
• Still, maybe… eat something else for awhile. I like shrimp too, I should add. Just not enough to be setting off Geiger counters.
• Let’s move on.
• I probably shouldn’t mention this next news item. It’s been difficult to verify, but I have seen evidence that gives me enough of a comfort level to include it.
• Grindr is the world's largest social networking app for gay, bi, trans, and queer people. Specifically, it’s the gay equivalent of Tinder. It’s a dating app for people who want immediate sexual encounters.
• Per a report in Pride Magazine, on this past Sunday September 21 in Glendale, AZ, there were over 168 reports of Grindr outages that evening, ramping up to over 200 by yesterday morning. This usually only happens when their system is overwhelmed with users.
• The baseline number of outages? Just two. So that’s an amazingly massive increase in traffic.
• I’m not in any way saying that the huge increase in Grindr traffic and the resulting toll on their server load was in any way related to any other event that may have been happening that same day in that same place.
• But it is notable that people from across the country — politicians, religious leaders, right-wing podcasters and influencers — had flown into the city for an event that day.
• The overload on the popular app for gay sex encounters is probably just a huge coincidence. These things happen.
• And now, The Weather: “Townies” by Wednesday
• Let’s do a chart.
• We’re heading back to late September 1962 for this one. I will be born in six years and nine months. Where am I?
• Hate to put it this way, but if you were into these songs when they were fresh, you’re probably dead by now. I mean, not necessarily, of course.
• But say you were 23 that year, which means you were born in 1939, so you’re now 86. And if you’re still alive and well, and enjoyed these songs, hats off to you.
• 1. Sherry (The 4 Seasons). 2. Ramblin' Rose (Nat King Cole). 3. Sheila (Tommy Roe). 4. Green Onions (Booker T. & The MG’s). 5. Teen Age Idol (Rick Nelson). 6. Let's Dance (Chris Montez). 7. You Belong To Me (The Duprees). 8. Patches (Dickey Lee). 9. You Beat Me To The Punch (Mary Wells). 10. She's Not You (Elvis Presley With The Jordanaires). 11. The Loco-Motion (Little Eva). 12. Alley Cat (Bent Fabric and His Piano). 13. Monster Mash (Bobby "Boris" Pickett And The Crypt-Kickers). 14. Rinky Dink (Baby Cortez). 15. If I Had A Hammer (The Hammer Song) (Peter, Paul & Mary). 16. Venus In Blue Jeans (Jimmy Clanton). 17. Beechwood 4-5789 (The Marvelettes). 18. Send Me The Pillow You Dream On (Johnny Tillotson). 19. Rain Rain Go Away (Bobby Vinton). 20. Silver Threads And Golden Needles (The Springfields).
• From the Sports Desk… last night’s MNF game was a bit if a shocker. The Ravens had been a comfortable favorite to beat the Lions. Instead, it was a hard-fought game that went tit-for-tat through most of the fourth quart until Detroit prevailed 38-30.
• Through Week 3, there remain six teams who are undefeated: Chargers, 49ers, Colts, Eagles, Bills, and Buccaneers.
• And six teams who remain winless: Jets, Dolphins, Saints, Texans, Titans, and Giants.
• In other Sports Desk news, congrats to that weird motherfucker Aaron Rodgers.
• On Sunday, he passed Brett Favre to move into fourth place on the NFL’s all-time list of touchdowns thrown. If you’re interested, here’s the whole top 10.
• 1. Tom Brady (649). 2. Drew Brees (571). 3. Peyton Manning (539). 4. Aaron Rodgers (510). 5. Brett Favre (508). 6. Philip Rivers (421). 7. Dan Marino (420). 8. Ben Roethlisberger (418). 9. Matthew Stafford (382). 10. Matt Ryan (381).
• Today in history… Drusilla, the sister of Caligula with whom the emperor is said to have had an incestuous relationship, is deified (38). The Mongols beat the Ming dynasty at the Battle of Kherlen (1409). King Philip II of Spain orders a halt to colonizing efforts in Florida (1561). The first commencement exercises occur at Harvard College (1642). John Paul Jones, naval commander of the USS Bonhomme Richard, wins the Battle of Flamborough Head (1779). Lewis and Clark return to St. Louis after exploring the Pacific Northwest of the United States (1806). The Knickerbockers Baseball Club, the first baseball team to play under the modern rules, is founded in New York (1845). Astronomers Urbain Le Verrier, John Couch Adams and Johann Gottfried Galle collaborate on the discovery of Neptune (1846). Nintendo is founded to produce and market the playing card game Hanafuda (1889). Norway and Sweden peacefully dissolve the union between the two countries (1905). Roland Garros of France becomes the first to fly in an airplane across the Mediterranean (1913). The Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts opens in New York City (1962). The first public version of the web browser Mozilla Firefox ("Phoenix 0.1") is released (2002). A grand jury in Kentucky declines to indict three police officers for the shooting death of Breonna Taylor in a drug raid gone wrong, leading to nationwide protests in the U.S. (2020).
• September 23 is the birthday of Roman emperor Augustus (63 BC), Mongolian emperor Kublai Khan (1215), violinist/composer Giovanni Maria Bononcini (1642), journalist/activist Victoria Woodhull (1838), engineer/businessman Robert Bosch (1861), activist Mary Church Terrell (1863), musicologist John Lomax (1867), actor Walter Pidgeon (1897), actor Mickey Rooney (1920), saxophonist/composer John Coltrane (1926), singer-songwriter/pianist Ray Charles (1930), singer-songwriter/guitarist Roy Buchanan (1939), singer-songwriter Julio Iglesias (1943), NFL coach Marty Schottenheimer (1943), singer-songwriter/guitarist Bruce Springsteen (1949), actress Rosalind Chao (1957), singer-songwriter/guitarist Ani DiFranco (1970), press secretary/dancer Sean Spicer (1971), actor Karl Pilkington (1972), actor Anthony Mackie (1978), and MLB player Matt Kemp (1984).

We’re still in this zone where so much shit is going on, I have no possible way of even mentioning it all, much less giving in due coverage. Don’t sleep on any of this. Stay awake, and stay ready. And remember: cornered animals are dangerous, and as things continue, Dump will take more and more outrageous and illegal actions. Expect that. Be prepared. Enjoy your day.