WORLD WHALE DAY UPDATES
So Go Hug A Blowhole!
-As the first anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine by Russia approaches this week, an American official openly called out “crimes against humanity” perpetrated by Russian forces. The comments were made yesterday by VP Harris at a conference in Munich, and they represent the second time the White House called out such atrocities and the need to hold any and all Russian officials to account for said behavior. The fighting continues in the east with some question about whether a long-rumored Russian offensive has begun, though Ukraine is preparing for an onslaught at the end of the week from Russian forces. It is also believed Ukraine continues to plot a counteroffensive in Crimea, which could launch sometime in the spring.
-Slava Ukraini!
-Ex-President Trump has announced he will visit East Palestine, OH, amid the ongoing literal fallout from a train derailment that led OH Gov. Mike DeWine to call for a burn-off of toxic chemicals that are feared to be despoiling the entire area. Right-wing media has seized on this accident attempting to blame the White House and the EPA for allowing the wreck to occur and for a slow response by federal agencies to rectify the situation. Democrats counter that Republicans control every part of OH politics from the State House and legislature to the county East Palestine lies in and the company who owns the tanks that wrecked, as well as whether DeWine called in the EPA quickly enough (as is the rule) – and also point to a relaxation of freight rail regulations involving both the transport of toxic chemicals by train and waiving more stringent braking systems on trains that Trump made in 2018 when he was President as possible reasons for the disaster. It is not yet known exactly when Trump will make that trip.
-In response to withering criticism from everyone from President Biden to Senate Minority Leader McConnell, Sen. Rick Scott (SkeletoR, FL) formally announced that his proposal to force yearly budgetary reviews of all Federally-funded plans will not include Social Security or Medicare anymore. Scott’s plan would have placed those two taxpayer-funded retirement and medical plans under yearly review and potential termination, which would have ruined their ability to make long-term financial plans to keep them solvent. Biden used support of the plan, touted by Scott, Ted Cruz (R-Cancun) and Rand Paul (R-Aquabuddah) as well as the UltraMAGA GOP House Caucus, to galvanize support for the plans, which Republicans have historically loathed and hoped to cut since the inception of Social Security in the 1930s. (And Scott’s ideas still have sway in the GOP, as former Vice President Pence announced support for a yearly review of the two plans just this week).
-Another Republican trying to stay on the pro-Social Security kick: Ex-President Trump, although in his case he is using it for further attacks against his former political ward turned mortal enemy, presumed 2024 GOP front runner Gov. Ron DeSantis (FL, man). Trump posted on his failing Truth Social site that DeSantis – whom he alternates with the oh-so-clever nicknames “Ron DeSanctimonious” and “Meatball Ron” – wants to cut the two programs, as well as what will be a common attack of DeSantis loving COVID masking regulations before being against them and getting support from the “Club for NO Growth” and “the Lincoln Pervert Project.” Just another Saturday night for Trump.
-Meanwhile, on the other failing social media site, Twitter users are now rolling their eyes at another move by its owner, billionaire weirdo Elon Musk, that will charge users who wish to use two-factor authentication of their accounts (that is, typing a randomly generated code on a third-party app on a phone or tablet before accessing the account) to protect them. The move is seen as yet another capricious attempt by Musk to try to recoup what is now seen as an overpriced $44 billion purchase and a site that continues to become harder to use and infested with users fond of using racist, sexist, and violent rhetoric on their posting.
-Alternative Twitterish sites continue to rise, as Mastodon and Post . news has now been joined by Spoutible, a new Twitter-like platform created by Christopher Bouzy, an African-American programmer whose amateur predictions of 2022 turned out to be far more accurate than more well-known sites such as 538.com and The New York Times. This writer has an account on all three of the alterna-Twitter sites @jafedorko, should you wish to follow and join the fun!
-On this date in 1878, Thomas Edison received a patent for his invention of the phonograph. On this date in 1942, Franklin Roosevelt signed an executive order that led to the internment of Japanese American citizens during World War II. On this date in 1945, allied forces invaded Iwo Jima. On this date in 1963, THE FEMININE MYSTIQUE was first published. And on this date in 1968, MISTER ROGERS’ NEIGHBORHOOD made its national television debut.
-Happy Birthday to Nicolaus Copernicus, Merle Oberon, Eddie Arcaro, Carson McCullers, Lee Marvin, Smokey Robinson, Lou Christie, Karen Silkwood, Tony Iommi, Amy Tan, Jeff Daniels, Dave Wakeling, Peter Holsapple, Falco, Roger Goodell, Seal, Justine Bateman, Benicio Del Toro, Nikola Jokic, and Millie Bobby Brown.
-Rest in Peace/Rest in Power to Bon Scott, Adolfo Celi, Charlie Finley, Grandpa Jones, Johnny Paycheck, Umberto Eco, Harper Lee, and Karl Lagerfeld.
-Feed the Worms: Deng Xiaoping, who ordered the massacre of pro-democracy protestors in Tiananmen Square and then suppressed its bloody aftermath to his country to promote “economic development,” died on this date.