Random News: June 16, 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 June 16, 2022, and it’s a Thursday. Here comes whatever I’m about to write…

• Today’s January 6 Select Committee hearing will focus on Trump’s efforts to pressure Mike Pence into illegally overturning the election of Joe Biden.
• One important point of the Jan 6 hearings is that there is still today an ongoing threat to democracy by people pushing the Big Lie.
• The good news is that most of those people, from elected officials to your crazy high school buddy to your QAnon aunt, are quite public about this. Rooting them out isn’t going to be a problem. We already know who they are because they tell us who they are.
• One name you have yet to see come up in my posts is that of Ginni Thomas, wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. The Jan 6 Committee has an extensive list of emails between her and Trump lawyer John Eastman, as well as with Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows and Arizona election officials, all of which pressuring them to illegally overturn the election.
• If these allegations prove accurate, Clarence Thomas must recuse himself from any SCOTUS case that relates to the attempt to subvert the election.
• A reminder to you that 140 police officers were assaulted during the coup attempt. Do not call yourself a supporter of law enforcement ever again if you don’t condemn the Jan 6 insurrection. Do not call yourself a good American either.
• One thing you’ll note throughout the Jan 6 hearings: Trump had no factual basis for what he was doing, and he was completely aware that it was both wrong and illegal.
• People who purposefully break the law are criminals, and our societal rules say that criminals must be punished. You can’t be “tough on crime” and easy on Trump. He’s got to answer for this.
• Enough on that for the moment.
• Revlon just filed for bankruptcy. Yes, the 90-year-old cosmetics company. Apparently they’ve had their asses kicked in recent years by celebrity cosmetic brands like Kylie Jenner’s Kylie Cosmetics and Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty. Also, they got nailed by supply chain issues.
• Bankruptcy doesn’t mean a company is going away. it just means they don’t have to pay their bills.
• In the midst of all this shit, the Supreme Court decision on overturning Roe v Wade is likely imminent. All I’m going to say is wait and see what happens this summer.
• A whole lot of people (that don’t include me) are excited about a new Beyoncé album that’s coming next month.
• From the sports desk: the Colorado Avalanche beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-3 in overtime in game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals last night. Tonight is game 6 of the NBA Finals; the Dubs can win it with a victory in Boston. Otherwise, game 7 is Sunday.
• A shrink-wrapped VHS copy of ‘Back to the Future’ was sold for $75,000 by a Dallas-based auction house. Think about all the shit you’ve thrown away that could now make you wealthy just for hoarding trash.
• Today in history… Spain declares war in Great Britain (1779). The Ford Motor Company is incorporated (1903). A company called Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company is founded in New York, and they later change their name to IBM (1911). Valentina Tereshkova becomes the first woman in space (1963). 15,000 students peacefully march in Soweto, South Africa and police open fire on the crowd for no reason (1976).
• June 16 is the birthday of economist Adam Smith (1723), actor Stan Laurel (1890), actor Jack Albertson (1907), songwriter Lamont Dozier (1941), guy who drove O.J. Al Cowlings (1947), boxer Roberto Durán (1951), singer Gino Vanelli (1952), soccer guy Jürgen Klopp (1967), golfer Phil Mickelson (1970), and one of the best rappers in history Tupac Shakur (1971).

I’ll be doing a recap of the Jan 6 hearing tomorrow, but why not watch for yourself today? Meanwhile, stay cool if you’re in a heat wave, and stay cool if people piss you off, and stay cool and be a stylish motherfucker in your own special way.

Random News: June 15, 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 June 15, 2022, and it’s a Wednesday. Just random things ahead…

• I’m not going to shame Lauren Boebert (R-CO) about the news coming out about her allegedly having been a paid sex worker, or that she’s had multiple abortions as is her right (and the right of every American woman). However, if true, the blatant hypocrisy in her political messaging cannot be forgiven. Even if they could, her role in the January 6 coup attempt needs to be the focus.
• I’ll say it again: if the people responsible for the defeated coup attempt on January 6, 2021 are not held liable for their actions, it will happen over and over until one day we won’t have a country anymore. This is the most perilous event for the USA since the Civil War.

• Surveillance footage shows a tour led by Barry Loudermilk (R-GA) had people photographing and taking video of areas not typically of interest to tourists: hallways, staircases and security checkpoints. Some of the same people on that “tour” were seen participating in the coup.
• Not much news to discuss from yesterday’s primaries. I think it’s still a situation where you have normal Republicans versus Trump/MAGA Republicans, and some districts are won and others lost by either side.
• It’s been said there’s an “enthusiasm gap” for the Democrats, and that’s probably not wrong. Perhaps a better way to approach it is that there are so many vital issues in limbo right now, from forced birth through mass shootings through that fucking coup where we nearly lost the whole country, that people’s short attention spans are strained.
• Come November, we’d better have some great candidates with cohesive messaging.
• One topic I didn’t mention above is rearing its ugly head right now via the heat wave gripping much of the USA: climate change. Every summer for the rest of your life will get hotter and hotter. Bigger and more devastating storms will happen very year. It’s probably too late for us to undo the man-made aspects (though we could slow down the inevitable).
• Human colostomy bag Mitch McConnell has stated he’ll vote for the upcoming bipartisan gun control bill, which is good news. He’s officially the 11th GOP member to support it, along with every Democrat. That would ensure passage by the Senate when the bill arrives.
• Happy the Elephant has been the subject of a court case. The Bronx Zoo was sued for her release, stating that she is a person who is illegally imprisoned. The court determined in a 5-2 vote that Happy is not a person, and I agree. No elephant could be as shitty as a human being. 
• Microsoft has retired Internet Explorer after 26 years. I think it’s been maybe 20 years since I used that browser, but I know some people who were still hanging onto it for some reason. 
• The most popular desktop browsers in 2022 by percentage of users are Google Chrome (77.03%), Safari (8.87%), Mozilla Firefox (7.69%), and Microsoft Edge (5.83%). On mobile platforms, it’s Chrome (59.15%), Safari (32.94%), and Samsung Internet (4.74%).
• Scientists in China say they have detected what could be the trace of a signal from one or more advanced alien civilizations. The odds of us being alone in our galaxy, much less our entire vast universe, are infinitesimally small.
• Today in history… Assyrians record a solar eclipse that helps us determine the age of Mesopotamian history (763 BC). King John of England approves the Magna Carta, a document that set the pathway toward legal freedoms still in use today (1215). Margaret Jones becomes the first of many women hanged for witchcraft in Massachusetts (1648). Charles Goodyear gets a patent for vulcanization to strengthen rubber (1844). Bessie Coleman becomes the first Black person to get a pilot’s license (1921). Charles Manson goes on trial for the Sharon Tate murders (1970).
• June 15 is the birthday of Mona Lisa model Lisa del Giocondo (1479), Russian politician Yuri Andropov (1914), pianist Erroll Garner (1921), politician Mario Cuomo (1932), singer-songwriter Waylon Jennings (1937), singer-songwriter Harry Nilsson (1941), football coach Mike Holmgren (1948), actress Courteney Cox (1964), rapper/actor Ice Cube (1969), baseball player Tim Lincecum (1984), and NFL player Cooper Kupp (1993).

I guess that’s all. It’s never enough. We live in an age where you can easily access so much information that most people don’t bother accessing any at all. I get it; it’s overwhelming. That’s one of the reasons I do this silly list every day. Be well.

Random News: June 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 June 14, 2022, and it’s a Tuesday. Various things…

• Yesterday’s House Select Committee session on the January 6 coup was focused on the damning evidence that the former President was (and remains) aware that there was no voter fraud in the election, and yet used his loss to bilk hundreds of millions of dollars from his own supporters.
• Many of the witnesses that corroborated the accusation that Trump knew that his election fraud claims had no merit were from his own circle.
• Monday’s testimony against Trump came from former Attorney General William Barr, former acting Deputy Attorney General Richard Donoghue, former campaign manager Bill Stepien, former senior campaign adviser Jason Miller, Trump’s daughter Ivanka and her husband Jared Kushner, Trump White House lawyer Eric Herschmann, and Trump campaign lawyer Alex Cannon.
• The next session from the Committee will be in regard to evidence of Trump’s “broader planning for Jan. 6”. It was scheduled for Wednesday but has been postponed, which tells me that there’s probably something coming worth waiting for. 
• Mick Jagger has COVID. He’s in remarkably great shape for being 78, but he did have heart surgery to replace a valve in 2019.
• Our heroes and icons may be immortal from a standpoint of their position in history, but the bodies that contain them have a finite end date. Hope Mick stays around for awhile.
• Speaking of ancient things, we may have found our earliest ancestor yet. Palaeospondylus gunni was a toothless eel-like creature about 2.4 inches long, and lived in the middle Devonian epoch, around 400 million years ago.
• I sometimes relate to being a toothless eel.
• I hope, for your sake, that none of you invested in any kind of cryptocurrency. They are falling hard.
• From the sports desk… The GS Warriors won a tough-fought game 5 against the Celtics and lead the series 3-2. Game 6 is Thursday night in Boston. In the golf world, things are absolutely fucked with two competing tours - the PGA and LIV - now in opposition.
• Whatever. Fuck golf.
• There’s a bright full supermoon going on right now. They call it the Strawberry Moon. It doesn’t look like a strawberry. It got its name from appearing during strawberry harvest season.
• Today is International Bath Day. No offense, but baths are disgusting. Someone once referred to them as “sitting in a tepid pool of my own filth”. I’m a shower guy.
• Other mostly-ridiculous celebrations on June 14 include Flag Day, Call Your Doctor Day, Family History Day, Magic Circles Day (what?), National Bourbon Day, National Strawberry Shortcake Day, Own Your Share of America Day, Pause for the Pledge Day, Pop Goes the Weasel Day, Ryan Moran Day, World Blood Donor Day and World Pet Memorial Day.
• Today in history… 12,000 Royalist forces are beaten by 15,000 Parliamentarian troops in the English Civil War (1645). Settlers in Sonoma, CA rebel against Mexico and declare California a republic in the Bear Flag Revolt (1846). Hawaii becomes a US territory (1900). The House passes the Marihuana Tax Act (1937). The first monorail system in the Western Hemisphere opens at Disneyland (1959). Riots happen in Vancouver after the Rangers beat the Canucks in the Stanley Cup (1994).
• June 14 is the birthday of author and activist Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811), psychiatrist Alois Alzheimer (1864), singer Burl Ives (1909), guerrilla leader Che Guevara (1928), sax player Junior Walker (1931), amazingly old current politician Steny Hoyer (1939), keyboardist Rod Argent (1945), guy who tried to destroy America Donald Trump (1946), drummer Alan White (1949), bass player Marcus Miller (1959), singer Boy George (1961), and tennis player Steffi Graf (1969).

I suppose that’s all for now. I’m going to do Tuesday things. That includes work, grocery shopping, and work. Try and do good things today. Something small is fine.

Random News: June 13, 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 June 13, 2022, and it’s a Monday. Random whatever coming at ya…

• Today is the second session of the January 6 Committee hearings. It’s actually just about to start right this moment, at 7AM PDT. It’s being broadcast and streamed on most news sources. You can go to YouTube and search “Jan 6” and one of the live feeds will pop right up.
• Yesterday, the committee announced that they already have enough evidence to give to the justice department to indict Trump for illegal efforts to overturn the election.
• I’m not making any predictions. Not good, not bad, not anything.
• Today’s Committee session will be focused on Trump’s false claims that led to the January 6 coup attempt.
• Jennifer Hudson is now an EGOT. For those unfamiliar with the term, it’s a rare title for someone who has won Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony awards. Only 17 people in history are in this group. Hudson won her Tony as a producer, but that’s not uncommon… only four EGOT recipients got all four of their awards as performers: Helen Hayes, Rita Moreno, John Gielgud, and Audrey Hepburn.
• Pixar’s ‘Lightyear’ is the latest film to be banned in Saudi Arabia over a same-gender kiss scene. Other recent movies that won’t be shown in the region for LGBT content include 'Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,' 'West Side Story' and ‘Eternals'.
• I’m glad we live in a country where most people can handle seeing expressions of love regardless of gender.
• Most people. Not all people. We’re far from perfect.
• I never play the lottery; my math skills are too good for me to throw money away. Still, someone wins (even if the odds are much lower than being struck by lightning). Jeffrey Chandler, a retired firefighter in Maryland, was going to visit his grandkids and decided to pick up doughnuts for them on the way. He spontaneously bought some lotto tickets while he was there, and ended up with a dozen doughnuts and $96,879.


• Sperm counts in Western men have dropped by more than half over the last 40 years, and the cause may be a cocktail of common chemicals found in items including milk cartons, canned tuna, receipts, acetaminophen, and fossil fuels. Much of the damage occurs during pregnancy when these chemicals disrupt hormone production, and then continued exposure makes it worse.
• Combined with cultural and societal changes in how many children people choose to have, more than half the world’s population now live in regions where the birth rate is lower than what is needed to replace the population.
• Hmm. Trying to decide if I like or dislike this.

• From the sports desk, the NHL Stanley Cup Finals are here. The Colorado Avalanche will host the Tamp Bay Lightning for game 1 on Wednesday night. Meanwhile game 5 of the NBA Finals are tonight in San Francisco; the series is tied 2-2.
• Today in history… The Edict of Milan grants religious freedom throughout the Roman Empire, which is funny because then and now, that term almost always applies only to Christians (313). Martin Luther gets married against the celibacy rule for priests in the Catholic Church, and starts a whole new religion as a result (1525). Rhode Island becomes the first colony to ban import of slaves (1774). A fire burns down Vancouver, BC (1886). The Supreme Court rules that police must inform suspects of their rights before questioning them in Miranda v. Arizona (1966). Michael Jackson is acquitted in his child molestation trial (2005).
• June 13 is the birthday of physics great James Clerk Maxwell (1831), actor Basil Rathbone (1892), funny guy Paul Lynde (1926), sculptor Christo (1935), actor Malcolm McDowell (1943), guitarist Howard Leese (1951), actress Ally Sheedy (1962), musician Rivers Cuomo (1970), and actor Chris Evans (1981).

I know most of you are doing things like me, which is working on a Monday. Still, try and catch a recap of today’s Jan 6 Committee hearings if you can. Either way, I’ll recap what I know tomorrow. Onward and upward.

Random News: June 12, 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 June 12, 2022, and it’s a Sunday. Some various things that randomly entered my mind…

• Yesterday, 31 members of a neo-Nazi group called Patriot Front wedged themselves into a U-Haul like white supremacist clowns, and all dressed in the same cute little Nazi costumes and face coverings so they wouldn’t be identified while beating on LGBT people. They were on their way to go fuck up a Pride event in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. A tipster allowed police to pull them over and put an end to their shenanigans.
• Here are all of their names. They come from 11 different states; maybe make sure one of these piece of shit doesn’t live near you or work with you: Kerry Lamont Arnold, Jared Michael Boyce, Nathan David Brenner, Colton Michael Brown, Josiah Daniel Buster, Devin Wayne Center, Dylan Carter Corio, Winston North Durham, Joseph Garret Garland, Branden Mitchel Haney, Richard Jacob Jessop, James Michael Johnson, James Julius Johnson, Connor Patrick Moran, Kieran Padraig Morris, Lawrence Alexander Norman, Justin Michael Oleary, Cameron Kathan Pruitt, Forrest Clark Rankin, Thomas Ryan Rousseau, Conor James Ryan, Spencer Thomas Simpson, Derek Joseph Smith, Alexander Nicholai Sisenstein, Dakota Ray Tabler, Steven Derrick Tucker, Wesley Evan Van Horn, Mitchell Frederick Wagner, Nathaniel Taylor Whitfield, Robert Benjamin Whitted, and Graham Jones Whitsom.
• BREAKING: Oooh, I get a breaking news item. Special. “Bipartisan group of senators announce agreement on gun control”. This is a “step in the right direction” headline, but anything is better than nothing. Her’s the deal… they have an agreement that includes the support of ten GOP Senators on legislation for "needed mental health resources, improves school safety and support for students, and helps ensure dangerous criminals and those who are adjudicated as mentally ill can't purchase weapons,” per their statement a few minutes ago.
• If you’re interested, the Senators who put this together are Cornyn (R-TX), Tillis (R-NC), Burr (R-NC), Blunt (R-MO), Cassidy (R-LA), Collins (R-ME), Graham (R-SC), Portman (R-OH), Romney (R-UT), Toomey (R-PA), Sinema (D-AZ), Kelly (D-AZ), Murphy (D-CT), Blumenthal (D-CT), Booker (D-NJ), Coons (D-DE), Heinrich (D-NM), Manchin (D-WV), Stabenow (D-MI), and King (I-ME).
• A lot more is needed. Before you get mad at it being not nearly enough, this is, again, better than nothing, and should be celebrated by anyone who agrees that gun control is crucial in the USA.
• China is warning the USA about defending Taiwan. That situation is something you should all keep an eye on. If it goes south, it will affect you in ways you can’t even imagine right now.
• Russia is continuing its invasion of Ukraine.
• COVID continues on the rise in many places.
• Sigh.
• I’m having a giant cup of Peet’s Major Dickason’s Blend. It’s kind of the classic go-to Peet’s coffee. Funny story: Key Dickason, who helped Alfred Peet create the blend in 1969, wasn’t a major. He was a retired lieutenant, but Peet thought the coffee was so good, he gave him a promotion.
• The House Select Committee hearings for the January 6 coup continues tomorrow. That news about multiple members of Congress asked for pardons — a legal admission of guilt — will be huge moving forward. Stay tuned.
• Please be prepared however you can for the upcoming heat wave this week that’s already been nailing the west. Due to global climate change, this is going to continue to happen each summer for the remainder of our lives. Parts of Texas and Oklahoma “feel like” 115 today. 
• Sigh.
• A Google engineer was placed on leave after publicly stating his belief that their AI called LaMDA is conscious and has gained sentience. 
• We’re fucked.
• Today in history… Thomas Willett is appointed the first mayor of New York City (1665). The first bicycle is driven by Karl von Drais (1817). The Baseball Hall of Fame opens (1939). ‘Cleopatra’ is released in theaters (1963). NAACP secretary Medger Evers is murdered by the KKK (1963). Reagan challenges Gorbachev to “tear down this wall” (1987). All analog TV stations switch to digital transmission (2009). Some asshole with semi-automatic weapons killed 49 people and injured another 58 at Pulse nightclub in Orlando (2016).
• June 12 is the birthday of Chinese emperor Gao Zong (1107), wealthy guy David Rockefeller (1915), US President George H. W. Bush (1924), actor Jim Nabors (1930), sportscaster Marv Albert (1941), piano genius Chick Corea (1941), funny-looking but underrated drummer Bun E. Carlos (1950), singer Brad Delp (1951), actor Jason Mewes (1974), and NBA player Jrue Holiday (1990).

I’m having more coffee. I’m enjoying it. Warren Zevon once said, “Enjoy every sandwich.” It’s good advice. Enjoy the things you do, especially the small things.

Random News: June 11, 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 afternoon. It’s June 11, 2022, and it’s a Saturday (and my first day off work in like 73 years, or so it feels). Let’s see what’s up…

• Today has nationwide “March for Our Lives” rallies. I went to the first one in 2018, organized by survivors of the Parkland, FL school shooting massacre. I’d love to go today but my body is still recovering from last weekend’s work festivities. I support them in spirit, and right here and now while you’re reading this.
• Something to keep in mind: protests and rallies like these aren’t necessarily anti-gun, per se. They are anti-gun violence. The challenge, obviously, is knowing who is using guns for violent purposes versus otherwise.
• Gun law reforms have the intention of lessening the possibility that guns fall into the wrong hands, as well as limiting the amount of carnage that is possible with each act of violence.
• Nothing will completely prevent mass shootings in the USA, but there are steps that will make them less frequent and deadly as they are today. Any step in the right direction is better than assuming defeat and doing nothing.
• If you want to learn more and get involved, visit the sites for March for Our Lives or Everytown for Gun Safety.
• I’m still reeling from the information being put forth by the Select Committee on the January 6 coup. As we’re finding out, the events of January 6, 2021 is likely the most historical event of my lifetime. Bigger than 9/11, bigger than COVID. It’s far bigger than Watergate.
• We’ll continue to summarize those hearings as they progress. Session 2 is Monday.
• There’s a Strawberry Supermoon on Tuesday. I considered writing a baroque power pop song called “Strawberry Supermoon” for the occasion, but then I realized that sounded like the worst idea ever.
• If you don’t have plans for June 24-26, you can rent the Scooby-Doo Mystery Machine from Airbnb and presumably live in it and take bonghits and eat Scooby snacks. It will be parked near the beach in Southern California, and the listing goes live on June 16.
• From the sports desk… the Dubs and Celts are now tied 2-2, with game five scheduled for Monday in San Francisco. The New York Yankees are currently the best team in baseball, followed by the Mets, Dodgers, Astros and Padres.
• Today in history… Henry VII marries Catherine of Aragorn, his first of a whole bunch of wives (1509). James Cook runs aground on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef (1770). The Broad Street Riots in Boston pits Yankees versus Irish, in case you thought ethnic and racial tension was new here in the USA (1837). Frank Morris, John Anglin and Clarence Anglin become the only people to allegedly escape Alcatraz (1962). OK City bomber Timothy McVeigh is executed (2001).
• June 11 is the birthday of poet/playwright Ben Jonson (1572), Toyota founder Kiichiro Toyoda (1894), football coach Vince Lombardi (1913), actor and amazing person Gene Wilder (1933), drummer Frank Beard of ZZ Top (1949), quarterback Joe Montana (1956), idiot Mehmet Oz (1960), and actor Shia LaBeouf (1986).

I’d advise you to do cool things today, but I’m not going to do shit. This thing you just read might be the height of my productivity for the day. I may shower and dress myself eventually. I may not. Enjoy yourself.

Random News: June 10, 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 June 10, 2022, and if you can believe it, it’s a Friday once again! Here’s a bunch of stuff with some variety but not a lot…

• I really hope you watched the first session of public House Select Committee hearings for the January 6 insurrection last night.
• I really, really hope so.
• I mean, it was on every channel but one, for some reason.
• Let’s get this out of the way. The footage — some seen previously but a lot that was brand new to the public — was sickening. Combined with the testimony of Capitol police officer Caroline Edwards, it was almost too much to see, and I had to step away a couple of times.
• Liz Cheney was very clear and purposeful in her definition of the January 6 riot. She said it was a coup that was carefully orchestrated by Donald Trump himself.
• Perhaps the best Cheney quote, directed at her fellow Republicans who continue to support the former guy: "Tonight, I say this to my Republican colleagues who are defending the indefensible: There will come a day when Donald Trump is gone, but your dishonor will remain.”
• They are clearly talking about accountability for any and all people responsible for the attempted coup and the criminal conspiracy that led to it.
• Committee chair Bennie Thompson had the perfect tone to lead the proceedings. Calm and eloquent, he laid the foundations of all key points in a way that was understandable for anyone watching.
• We also saw damning statements against Trump and the Big Lie from everyone from former AG Bill Barr to many members of Trump’s cabinet to his own daughter Ivanka Trump.
• We also saw testimony statements from some of the people who’ve been charged via their actions at the insurrection. They all had a similar message: that they were there because Trump told them to be there.
• Trump also stated, when the rioters were calling for the VP to be hung, “Maybe our supporters have the right idea. Maybe Mike Pence deserves it.”
• We learned that a number of as-yet unnamed Republican Congressmen asked for preemptive pardons for their roles in the coup. I’m looking forward to learning who they are. 
• During the coup, text messages between Sean Hannity and Kayleigh McEnany talked about invoking the 25th Amendment against Donald Trump, which very much explains Fox’s refusal to air it.
• There will be somewhere around eight total public hearings.
• Next is Monday June 13, followed by Wednesday June 15.
• If EVER in your life you supported law enforcement, you should be rabidly seeking justice and retribution toward these insurrectionist pricks. You can’t support cops and their killers. It doesn’t work both ways.
• My only thing to add for the moment is that I’ve never seen anything as anti-American as the footage of these pieces of shit attempting to subvert the Constitution and take over the US government by force. Anyone you know who supports or condones them is nearly as big a piece of shit as they are.
• Call them any name they’d like… Proud Boys, Oath Keepers, MAGAs, QAnons. They’re all anti-American groups and should be treated as domestic terrorists.
• I think it really hit home how close we came to losing American democracy that day, possibly forever.
• Okay, that’s it on that for now.
• Inflation is undeniably awful. Rent, gas prices, and basic grocery bills are through the roof. There’s little that can be done about corporate greed, but the one thing that tends to slow down inflation is a drastic drop in consumer spending, which then creates its own economic problems. We’ve been through this before in the 1970s; it will eventually resolve, but it’s going to hurt a lot of people in the process.
• From the sports desk, my Las Vegas Raiders announced a new two-year deal with receiver Hunter Renfrow. I like that guy a lot. He’s no bigger than me; we weigh about the same and he’s actually a little shorter than me, and yet he is a feared and respected NFL player who comes through over and over for the team. Good for him.
• Today in history… 1854: The US Naval Academy graduates its first class of students. 1863: Mexico City is captured by French troops (I did not know that). 1940: Fascist Italy declares war on France and the UK (I did know that). 1944: 15-year-old Joe Nuxhall starts a game for the Cincinnati Reds. 1963: The Equal Pay Act is signed by John F. Kennedy, and is supposed to eliminate gender-based pay inequality (narrator’s voice: it didn’t).
• June 10 is the birthday of actress Hattie McDaniel (1895), blues musician Howlin’ Wolf (1910), actress Judy Garland (1922), author/illustrator Maurice Sendak (1928), bossa nova king João Gilberto (1931), musician Kim Deal (1961), and model/actress Elizabeth Hurley (1965).

I hope you all have a great day. Keep in mind: it’s hard to acknowledge painful events in life, like what happened on January 6. It’s human nature to want to forget. But this coup didn’t end on that day, and there are thousands of people who are poised and ready to ignore the rule of law and the will of the people, and to try to violently overthrow the country again. Finding accountability and punishing those involved last time is the first step to preventing the next one… which I promise, someone is planning right this moment. Stay awake and aware, and keep being the kind of person who makes life better for everyone else. I believe in you!