NATIONAL REDHEAD DAY UPDATES

Yay, Gingers!

-The 2024 Presidential election is exactly one year from today, and while a preponderance of overall national polls still favor President Biden, a new poll of 3600 voters published in the New York Times has triggered the latest PHA-REEEEEEEK-OUT of Democratic voters, as it shows Ex-President Trump XCI is leading in five of six 'swing' states that Biden won in 2020 (NV, GA, PA, AZ and MI, with Biden winning in WI). Democratic analysts pin the blame on Biden's age (which is large, in case you hadn't heard), a clear lack of credit for a number of economic accomplishments, and anger and upset at the White House reaction to events in the Middle East. Of note: the lack of coverage of consistent Trump public statements that may reflect some cognitive issues in his case and the lack of reaction to the docket of criminal court cases, many of which will begin to be tried as Election Day gets closer, which could dip Trump's numbers among the ever-critical 'swing' voters.

-Speaking of Trump, he appeared at a conference in FL yesteday in which, amid celebrating UltraMAGA legislators who have been imposing draconian abortion bans nationally and acknowledging Speaker kingmaker Rep. Matt Gaetz (Hey GiRl, FL, man), Trump continued to display everything his followers apparently adore: again calling Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban the Prime Minister of Turkey, again complaining about the scourge of windmills (claiming that somehow the sound of windmills is the reason whales are beaching themselves), again admitting that he fired FBI Director James Comey for not being sufficiently loyal to Trump, again calling criminal rioters currently serving time for their role in the January 6 insurrection "political prisoners" (Trump could have pardoned them on the way out the door after his 2020 loss and did not), again claimed he won the 2020 elction "by a LAHT!" (uh, no), and claimed he was a better President than Biden because he is a better golfer than Biden and Biden is not golfing as much as President as Trump has (well, Trump has Biden there, I gotta admit).

-In Israel, diplomatic pressure is reportedly continuing to be placed on Benjamin Netanyahu to try to get humanitarian aid to injured Palestinians in Gaza City - pressure that continues to be resisted by Netanyahu, who is also reportedly the object of protests by Israelis demanding accountability and possible resignation for his failure to prepare for the HAMAS attacks last month. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken continues to attempt to balance the desire to rid Palestine of HAMAS while preserving some hope of a 'two-state' solution, though that appears to be a far-distant dream at this point.

-Amid reports that Ukrainian military officials are frustrated with what they see as a stalemate with the Russian military primarily due to Vladimir Putin's total ease with sending tens of thousands of Russian soldiers into the front with little care for casualties (estimated by Kyiv to now be over 300,000 Russian troops killed) and the support Putin has with the UltraMAGA Republicans to slow or stop American military aid, a defiant Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy pushed back on the frustration in an appearance on MEET THE PRESS today, insisting to new host Kristin Todd Welker that Ukraine "(was) not ready to give our freedom to this fucking terrorist Putin." Most of Congress does want military aid to continue to Ukraine despite the UltraMAGA opposition and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Jay-EE-zuz!). Stay tuned.

-SLAVA UKRAINI!

-On the labor front, SAG-Aftra negotiators are looking over what Hollywood producers labelled its "last, best, and final" offer to end their 115-day strike. The offer came amid two weeks of mostly quiet negotiations and a 4-6 week window in which production of new television series may be ready to staff up and be cast (as writers ended their strike and have been working for over a month now). A new royalty structure to take streaming rights into account and artificial intelligence limits and rights are at the heart of the negotiations, the largest-profile walkout still taking place in what has been an active and generally pro-union burst of organizing and labor activism.

-In closing today, even though by all appearances it is a relic of a long-ago-gone agrarian need for workers, it's still nice to get an extra hour's sleep, so management sincerely hopes you got a good night's rest as the week - which includes a number of interesting/important state elections (OH, VA) and ongoing Trump trial action (Trump and Ivanka testifying in NY, continued delay shenanigans being pulled by FL Judge Aileen "ofTrump" Cannon, gag orders being issued and suspended left and right) - gets into gear ...

-On this day in 1605, an attempt to bomb British Parliament was foiled - an occasion celebrated among anarchists and anti-imperialists around the world as Guy Fawkes Day. On this date in 1872, Susan B. Anthony was arrested for casting a ballot in that year's Presidential election. On this date in 1895, the first gas-powered car was patented. On this date in 1979, Iranian Ayatollah Khomeini labelled the United States "the Great Satan." On this date in 1994, George Foreman became the oldest heavyweight boxing champion in history (45). And on this date in 2013, India launched its first interplanetary spacecraft, a probe to Mars.

-Happy Birthday to Eugene V. Debs, Ida Tarbell, Natalie Schafer, Roy Rogers, John McGiver, Vivian Leigh, Elke Sommer, Art Garfunkel, Sam Shepard, Gram Parsons, Peter Noone, Bernard-Henri Levy, Bill Walton, Kris Jenner, Robert Patrick, Bryan Adams, Tilda Swinton, Andrea McArdle, Tatum O'Neal, Sam Rockwell, Tamzin Owthwaite, Corin Nemec, Jonny Greenwood, Johnny Damon, Ryan Adams, and Odell Beckham Jr.

-Rest in Peace/Rest in Power to George M. Cohan, Art Tatum, Mack Sennett, Ward Bond, Al Capp, Barry Sadler, Vladimir Horowitz, Fred MacMurray, Bobby Hatfield, Link Wray, John Fowles, Jill Clayburgh, and Aaron Carter.

-Rock and roll pioneer and woman abuser Ike Turner entered Earth on this date. You decide if he gets a Happy Birthday or if he Feeds the Worms.

-The Number One Nonfiction Book in America ... in 2023, THE WOMAN IN ME by Britney Spears ... in 2013, KILLING JESUS by Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard ... in 2003, DUDE, WHERE'S MY COUNTRY? by Michael Moore ... in 1993, PRIVATE PARTS by Howard Stern ... in 1983, MOTHERHOOD: THE SECOND OLDEST PROFESSION by Erma Bombeck ... and in 1973, HOW TO BE YOUR OWN BEST FRIEND by Mildred Newman and Bernard Berkowitz with Jean Owen.