It's 19 weeks into the year and America has already seen 198 mass shootings. "This is planned violence. There is, in every one of these cases, always a trail of ... behavioral warning signs."

A fringe conspiracy theory, fostered online, is refashioned by the G.O.P. (NY Times free story) Replacement theory, espoused by the suspect in the Buffalo massacre, has been embraced by some right-wing politicians and commentators.

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Potentially alive 830-million-year-old organisms found trapped in ancient rock. What could go wrong?

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Americans can expect to pay a lot more for medical care in retirement. No kidding. A 65-year-old couple retiring this year can expect to spend an average of $315,000 in health-care and medical expenses in their retirement, according to a new estimate by Fidelity Investments. That's 5% higher than last year's estimate.

And what do they get for it? One in four Medicare patients harmed in hospitals, nearly half preventable. Among the roughly 1 million Medicare patients who were discharged from hospitals in October 2018, a total of 258,323 experienced an adverse or temporary harm event during their stay. And 12% experienced events that led to longer stays, lifesaving interventions, permanent harm, or death. "This projects to 121,089 Medicare patients having experienced at least one adverse event during the 1-month study period," the report stated.

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Whiny space tourists say they were too busy on the space station. They wanted to look out the window.

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The other scary thing about Alito's draft ruling on abortion... The dissents Alito stakes his argument on don't have to do with only abortion. They suggest threats to other constitutional rights, such as contraception access or LGBTQ protections. (Washington Post free article.)

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"I cannot survive on $260 a week": US retail and fast-food workers strike. Workers who bore the brunt of the Covid pandemic at billion-dollar companies such as Dollar General, McDonald's and Wendy's are leading a surge in action.

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Pennsylvania US Senate candidate Fetterman suffers stroke but says he's 'well on my way to a full recovery'. Don't bet against anybody who looks like Thanos. Election Day is tomorrow. Don't miss it.

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Yale research identifies causes of cancer. TL;DR: Essentially, being a living being on Earth.

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Confirmed: Disney Officially Replaces Johnny Depp as Jack Sparrow. Though the Mouse House still uses Johnny Depp's likeness for new Jack Sparrow merchandise, as well as features the man in their famous Pirates of the Caribbean attractions at Disney Parks, Disney has officially dumped Depp forever.

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Pizza has a delivery problem. The difficulty finding and keeping employees has hampered businesses across multiple sectors, but the restaurant industry has been hit particularly hard, leading to shorter operating hours and longer wait times for customers.

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The strange post-Trump politics of the Pennsylvania republican primaries. A few theories for why the former President's endorsement of Mehmet Oz failed to clear the field.

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Before Russia's invasion of the Ukraine, only 20% of Finland's citizens were in favor of joining NATO. Now it's 75%.

And in response...

Russian state TV suggests deploying nuclear weapons against Finland, Sweden. "Their official reason [to join NATO] is fear. But they'll have more fear in NATO. When NATO bases appear in Sweden and Finland, Russia will have no choice but to neutralize the imbalance and new threat by deploying tactical nuclear weapons," presenter Dmitry Kiselyov reportedly said on the channel.

Remember the old truism that the United States was never involved in conflicts with countries that had McDonald's franchises? McDonald's to leave Russia for good after 30 years.

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Aging, and the chronic diseases that come with it, is considered just an inevitable part of life. But what if it wasn't? What if aging itself was a disease- a disease that can be treated? Many scientists are doing just that, and the results are nothing short of shocking. Just how close are we to a cure for aging?

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Tweets, observations, and diversions:

Things you discover looking up other things: Back when rat infestations were commonplace, people found that rats loved chewing on paper. In an effort to save your notes while also offering a bit of papery delicacy to disease-carrying rodents, companies added wide margins to all four sides of notebook paper.

Some clickbait just doesn't work. "Unsettling Don Knotts secrets you never knew." Don't think so.

Trump supporters are white people for whom being born white in America wasn't enough of an advantage.
-Middle Age Riot

Questions for the people who are scared of becoming a minority: Why is that? Are minorities treated differently?
-Padma Lakshmi

You don't really think the party that yawned while its public health policies killed over 1,000,000 Americans with COVID is ever going to care if its ahistorical Second Amendment fetish kills thousands of Americans with gun violence, do you?
-Mrs. Betty Bowers

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Categories: Abortion, Aging (Ageing), Cancer, Disney, Elections, Finland, Joe Scott, John Fetterman, Johnny Depp, Mass shootings, McDonald's, Medicare, Medicine, Mehmet Oz, NATO, Pirates of the Carribean, Pizza, Replacement Theory, Republicans, Retirement, Russia, Science, Space, Supreme Court, Sweden, Ukraine, Unions

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Groundbreaking Discovery: First ever image of the Milky Way’s Supermassive black hole. The image is a long-anticipated look at the massive object that sits at the very centre of our galaxy. Here's an explanatory video.

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Remembering George Carlin

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This is the safest place to live in the US as the climate changes (TL;DR: Vermont)

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Young Americans say abortion access matters for future moves. The majority of young people surveyed in a poll responded that abortion access is at least "somewhat important" in determining where they'll live in the future.

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You just can't win. Study finds cleaner air leads to more Atlantic hurricanes. A 50% decrease in pollution particles and droplets in Europe and the U.S. is linked to a 33% increase in Atlantic storm formation in the past couple decades, while the opposite is happening in the Pacific with more pollution and fewer typhoons, according to the study published in Wednesday's Science Advances.

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US overdose deaths hit record 107,000 last year, CDC says. The provisional 2021 total translates to roughly one U.S. overdose death every five minutes. It marked a 15% increase from the previous record, set the year before.

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The confirmation of a third Democrat to the Federal Trade Commission could pose trouble for Amazon and Elon Musk.

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Russia is resorting to putting computer chips from dishwashers and refrigerators in tanks due to US sanctions, official says.

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Things you should know: Why modern sandwich bread is different from "real" bread.

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Tweets, observations, and diversions:

Starbucks raised prices after reporting a 31% increase in profits. Same with Tyson, who posted $1 billion in profits last quarter — a 48% increase from the first quarter of 2021. Get the picture?
-Robert Reich

When Richard Nixon Wanted to be a Rapper. Yes, that Richard Nixon.

So the same people killing us by denying the fact that masks & vaccines work are ALSO the experts on when human life begins?
-Jon Cooper

KGB is taking the day off tomorrow. The report will return on Monday.

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Categories: Abortion, amazon.com, Black Holes, Climate change, Elon Musk, FTC, George Carlin, Opioids, Sagittarius A*, Ukraine, Weather

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This just in: You thought joy was within reach, but you were wrong.
(New Yorker)

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ICE 'now operates as a domestic surveillance agency,' think tank says. Although it's supposed to be restricted by surveillance rules at local, state and federal levels, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has built up a mass surveillance system that includes details on almost all US residents, according to a report from a major think tank.

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More people watched replays of the Kentucky Derby than watched it live. NBC said some 36 million people watched the exciting finish of horseracing's premier event on NBC Sports' social media accounts, including 11.6 million on TikTok, the most ever achieved for a network sports presentation. That doesn't account for non-NBC outlets, for which there was no estimate available.

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Congress targets loud commercials on streaming services The update would extend the current law governing broadcast, cable, and satellite to streaming services, as well as beef up the Federal Communications Committee's ability to go after violations and mandate a study of the effectiveness of the law to date.

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GOP goes after Mickey Mouse: Josh Hawley targets Disney with bill to reverse its copyright protections. Disney's copyright on Steamboat Willie, the first appearance of Mickey Mouse, is set to expire next year. Although there has been some speculation that the company would seek a further extension, they were likely would face opposition to such a move even before the latest GOP efforts to target the company in the culture wars.

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The bottom line:

• The Turnaway Study followed groups of women who wanted abortions for five years. Two-thirds of the group that was unable to get abortions were living in poverty within six months, compared to 45% of the group that was able to receive the procedure.
• In 1970, prior to Roe v. Wade, women's labor force participation rate was about 43%. Scholars argue that abortion access was an important factor in raising that rate to 57.4% by 2019.
• A 2020 paper published by the National Bureau of Economic Research found that being denied abortion access causes bankruptcies and evictions experienced by women to rise by 81%, and increases the amount of debt women hold that is 30+ days past due by 78%.

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Pilot down, passenger takes over with 'no idea how to fly', lands safely with help from air traffic controller. Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Rick Breitenfeldt confirmed that the pilot and passenger were the only two people aboard. The agency is investigating, he said in an email. There was no immediate word on the condition of the pilot, and authorities didn’t release their identities.

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Something useful: Twelve principles for finding things you've lost. (I would have posted this sooner, but I couldn't locate the link.)

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Tweets, observations, and diversions:

The strange afterlife of George Carlin Nearly 14 years after his death, his provocative humor has been embraced by people across the political spectrum. What happens when comedy outlasts the era it was made for?

Shell announces plans to plant single tree for every irreversible planetary disaster it causes. (The Onion)

Musk sells Twitter after it fails to make him interesting. (New Yorker: Borowitz)

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Categories: Abortion, Andy Borowitz, Copyright, Disney, George Carlin, ICE, Josh Hawley, Kentucky Derby, Mickey Mouse

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Warhol's 'Marilyn,' at $195 million, shatters auction record for an American artist. Not bad for a kid from Pittsburgh's Oakland neighborhood. (NY Times free article)

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Elon Musk says he'll reverse Donald Trump's Twitter ban. Swell.

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The next book ban: States aim to limit titles students can search for. Republican lawmakers across the country are proposing legislation that would target online library databases and library management technology- tools built by a half-dozen large companies that catalogue millions of books, journals and articles that students peruse for assignments.

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Baby formula shortage worsens: About 40% of popular brands sold out across US. The ongoing infant formula shortage isn't over yet- and appears to be getting worse.

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Ukraine is rebuilding cities as fast as Russia destroyed them. (Washington Post free article).

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Earth given 50-50 chance of hitting key warming mark by 2026. The odds are inching up along with the thermometer. Last year, the same forecasters put the odds at closer to 40% and a decade ago it was only 10%.

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Oddly-related climate story: Bodies surfacing in Lake Mead recall mob's time in Las Vegas. "There's no telling what we'll find in Lake Mead," former Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman said Monday. "It's not a bad place to dump a body."

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The end of an era: Apple discontinues iPod touch, ending 20 year run of iconic 'iPod' brand. The number of devices made obsolete in my lifetime is into two figures and growing...

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Speaking of obsolete technology, on this date in 1975, Sony introduced the Betamax videocassette recorder.

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Donovan (Donovan Phillips Leitch ) is 76 today.

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Bono (Paul David Hewson) is 62 today.

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Microsoft to help cover workers' travel costs for abortions. The software maker will "support employees and their enrolled dependents in accessing critical health care- which already includes services like abortion and gender- affirming care- regardless of where they live across the U.S.," according to a statement Monday. "This support is being extended to include travel expense assistance for these and other medical services where access to care is limited in availability in an employee's home geographic region."

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Tweets and observations:

Last week, Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) said her confidence in the court had been "had been rocked" because justices lied during their confirmations about their intent to overturn Roe v. Wade. This week, she's voting to block Democrats' effort to codify Roe v. Wade.
-No Lie with Brian Tyler Cohen

Good morning to everyone who reported treason through proper channels and not book deals, @MarkTEsper
-Rachel Vindman!

Republicans want to keep women pregnant so their swollen feet hurt too much to stand in line for six hours and vote against them.
-Middle Age Riot

The President, whether Democrat or Republican, is not in charge of baby formula.
-Paula Poundstone

The people protesting outside the homes of the justices are just tourists engaging in legitimate political discourse.
-Covie_93

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Categories: Abortion, Andy Warhol, Apple, Betamax, Bono, Book bans, Climate change, Donald Trump, Donovan, Elon Musk, iPod, Lake Mead, Las Vegas, Marilyn Monroe, Microsoft, Republicans, Sony, Ukraine

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When I told my 95-year-old mother I planned to stop by on Mother's Day, she asked, "Are you doing it for me or are you doing it for yourself?"

This was at the end of a ten minute soliloquy- prompted by what she thought to be impudence on my part- in which she enumerated all the things she regretted doing in her life. I wasn't included by name, but an overly sensitive individual could have made that inference due to associations with certain other events and individuals she referenced.

It should have been obvious I wasn't planning to return to her house on Mother's Day because I enjoyed listening to her ramblings of what she perceived to be her past dystopian existence. I suspect my anticipated visit wouldn't be the highpoint of her day, either.

I'm going to see her on Mother's Day because that's what a son does. Especially when you're an only child. In this time of societal breakdown, it's important to uphold tradition. I respect the office, if you know what I mean.

Sunday is Mother's Day. Grandmothers are a subset of that cohort. I've done mother-related quotes in the past; this year, let's go with grandmas.

And don't forget to at least call Mom on Sunday. At best, she'll appreciate the sentiment. At worst, she'll realize everyone makes mistakes.

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A grandmother will put a sweater on you when she is cold, feed you when she is hungry, and put you to bed when she is tired.
-Erma Bombeck

A home without a grandmother is like an egg without salt.
-Florence King

Grandchildren don't make a man feel old; it's the knowledge that he's married to a grandmother.
-G. Norman Collie

If nothing is going well, call your grandmother.
-Variously attributed

Just about the time a woman thinks her job is done, she becomes a grandmother.
-Edward H. Dreschnack

Let's bring back grandmothers! A real family consists of three generations. It's time Americans stopped worrying about interference and being a burden on the children and regrouped under one roof.
-Florence King

Grandmamma had been the last connection to our past. I had understood her as some referent moral authority to whom we paid no heed, but by whose judgments we measured our waywardness.
-E.L. Doctorow

My grandmother gave me five dollars and said, 'Don't tell your mother.' I told her, 'It's going to cost you more than that.'
-Steven Wright

My grandmother started walking five miles a day when she was sixty. She's ninety-seven now, and we don't know where the hell she is.
-Ellen DeGeneris

My grandmother was a very tough woman. She buried three husbands. Two of them were just napping.
-Rita Rudner

My grandmother was insane. She had pierced hearing aids.
-Steven Wright

To reform a man, you must begin with his grandmother.
-Victor Hugo

Grandmas are moms with lots of frosting.
-Variously attributed

Whoever said 'Grandmas are moms with lots of frosting' obviously never licked one.
-John Alejandro King (The Covert Comic)

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Remembering Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985):

On the evening of October 9, 1985, Welles recorded his final interview on the syndicated TV program The Merv Griffin Show, appearing with biographer Barbara Leaming. "Both Welles and Leaming talked of Welles's life, and the segment was a nostalgic interlude," wrote biographer Frank Brady. Welles returned to his house in Hollywood and worked into the early hours typing stage directions for the project he and Gary Graver were planning to shoot at UCLA the following day. Welles died sometime on the morning of October 10, following a heart attack.

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The Hot Topic:

"'The unborn" are a convenient group of people to advocate for. They never make demands of you; they are morally uncomplicated, unlike the incarcerated, addicted, or the chronically poor; they don't resent your condescension or complain that you are not politically correct; unlike widows, they don't ask you to question patriarchy; unlike orphans, they don't need money, education, or childcare; unlike aliens, they don't bring all that racial, cultural, and religious baggage that you dislike; they allow you to feel good about yourself without any work at creating or maintaining relationships; and when they are born, you can forget about them, because they cease to be unborn. It's almost as if, by being born, they have died to you. You can love the unborn and advocate for them without substantially challenging your own wealth, power, or privilege, without re- imagining social structures, apologizing, or making reparations to anyone. They are, in short, the perfect people to love if you want to claim you love Jesus but actually dislike people who breathe. Prisoners? Immigrants? The sick? The poor? Widows? Orphans? All the groups that are specifically mentioned in the Bible? They all get thrown under the bus for the unborn."'
-from a 2018 social media post by Dave Barnhart, a pastor at Saint Junia United Methodist Church in Birmingham, Alabama.

What are Alito's primary sources for suggesting the criminalization of women for terminating their pregnancies? One is a 1732 journal called Gentleman's Magazine. (via Slate)

The GOP doesn't want your 12 year old daughter to read "The Handmaid's Tale". But they are absolutely giddy at the thought of making her live it.
-@dan6654

For all those worried about "The Handmaid's Tale" coming true, there had to be a plague first that disrupted everything so... oh, shit.
-@iamisaided

In honor of Mother's Day, the Republican Party is trying to force more women to be mothers.
-@middleageriot

Don't like abortions?
Just ignore them like you do kids in foster care.
-@TrisResists

"Judges can't just wake up one day and say I have an agenda - I like guns, I hate guns, I like abortion, I hate abortion - and walk in like a royal queen and impose their will on the world. It's not the law of Amy. It's the law of the American people."
-Amy Coney Barrett, 10/13/20

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Categories: Abortion, Amy Coney Barrett, Dave Barnhart, Grandmothers, Mother's Day, Republicans, Roe v Wade, Supreme Court, The Handmaid's Tale

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As I've aged, I've come to feel that people are getting more stupid. Just watch the current crop of political advertising, and you'll understand what I mean. Some of these commercials are so stupid, you wonder at whom they're aimed. Dietrich Bonhoeffer offered a convincing explanation. The fact this is not a new phenomena is not comforting- especially since it has a disturbing record of success.

"If history repeats itself, and the unexpected always happens, how incapable must man be of learning from experience."
--George Bernard Shaw

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No conservative judicial nominee repeated Bork's mistake:

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"It reveals a rip in the culture of the Court that we've not seen."

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Why are gas prices so high? These obscure traders are partly to blame. "Nobody with power is looking at what they’re doing," but they're helping to drive soaring gas prices despite increased oil production.

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66 possibly ethical but probably illegal things.

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The perfect passive-agressive Mother's Day gift.

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May the Fourth be with you...

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Las Vegas outlaws grass.

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The Weird Al biopic teaser has dropped:

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Categories: Abortion, Dave Brubeck, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Drought, Ethics, Gas Prices, Las Vegas, Mother's Day, Star Wars, Stupidity, Supreme Court, Weird Al Yankovic

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