Thursday at 09:28 AM3 days ABC NewsSupreme Court limits Voting Rights Act in historic decisionThe Supreme Court on Wednesday, in a 6-3 decision, limited the use of the landmark Voting Rights Act.Some more from ABC. The things I hope happen to these (in)justices post-2028...in Minecraft, of course. Edited Thursday at 09:30 AM3 days by Bartimaeus Quote Against stupidity we have no defense. Neither protests nor force can touch it. Reasoning is of no use. Facts that contradict personal prejudices can simply be disbelieved - indeed, the fool can counter by criticizing them, and if they are undeniable, they can just be pushed aside as trivial exceptions. So the fool, as distinct from the scoundrel, is completely self-satisfied. In fact, they can easily become dangerous, as it does not take much to make them aggressive. For that reason, greater caution is called for than with a malicious one. Never again will we try to persuade the stupid person with reasons, for it is senseless and dangerous.
Thursday at 02:25 PM3 days Author 4 hours ago, Bartimaeus said:ABC NewsSupreme Court limits Voting Rights Act in historic decisionThe Supreme Court on Wednesday, in a 6-3 decision, limited the use of the landmark Voting Rights Act.Some more from ABC. The things I hope happen to these (in)justices post-2028...in Minecraft, of course.In an ideal world with no racism, I think the decision makes a certain logical sense. Unfortunately, this isn't an ideal world. I'm not quite sure how they can address the issue other than through a constitutional amendment. Maybe require the district apportionment to somehow be based on ranges of median income? But I'm not sure that would survive a constitutional challenge. "It has just been discovered that research causes cancer in rats."
Thursday at 03:44 PM3 days oil at 120 nowno amount of market manipulation can change the physical reality
Thursday at 08:14 PM2 days 'The market' is dumb as rocks since Trump hasn't exactly been subtle about his manipulation. But yeah, now it's more likely to be the emergency stocks that were released running down fully and some of the Gulf sites approaching their theoretical storage limits (after which they have to stop pumping oil, and the restart process is s l o w) which are realities that Trump can't rhetoricise around. We'll know Trump is actually serious when he stops trying to send people Iran won't talk to as negotiators.
Friday at 03:04 PM2 days Author Redacted's grand Iran strategy is just to keep lying.Live updates: Trump administration says war in Iran has been ‘terminated’ before 60-day deadlineGee, I guess we "won" then. 🤨 Strait of Hormuz: Daily throughput is currently 5% of average. Good look with that "victory". "It has just been discovered that research causes cancer in rats."
Friday at 03:26 PM2 days 21 minutes ago, rjshae said:Redacted's grand Iran strategy is just to keep lying.Live updates: Trump administration says war in Iran has been ‘terminated’ before 60-day deadlineGee, I guess we "won" then. 🤨Strait of Hormuz: Daily throughput is currently 5% of average. Good look with that "victory".I don't imagine any news ships will arrive any time soon, so average doesn't really mean anything before we have a peace deal. The stragglers left inside the gulf won't make much of a a difference.
Yesterday at 06:48 AM1 day 15 hours ago, rjshae said:Redacted's grand Iran strategy is just to keep lying.Live updates: Trump administration says war in Iran has been ‘terminated’ before 60-day deadlineGee, I guess we "won" then. 🤨Strait of Hormuz: Daily throughput is currently 5% of average. Good look with that "victory".But this is because any conflict longer than 60 days needs Congressional Approval and its unlikely he would have got that from Congress and then if he had got approval it makes this already unpopular war with US citizens more visible and trenchant So its not about " winning ", its the legal justification to continue. It makes sense considering how confusing, unachievable and nebulous the military objectives wereBut the US blockade will continue and so will the Iran blockade. And the US blockade is the main strategy now to get Iran to agree to terms"Under the War Powers Resolution, the law that sought to constrain a president’s military powers, President Donald Trump had until Friday to seek congressional authorization or cease fighting. The law also allows an administration to extend that deadline by 30 days.Democrats have pushed the administration for formal approval of the Iran war, and the 60-day mark would likely have been a turning point for a swath of Republican lawmakers who backed temporary action against Tehran but insisted on congressional input for something longer.“That deadline is not a suggestion; it is a requirement,” said Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, who voted Thursday in favor of a measure that would end military action in Iran since Congress hadn’t given its approval. She added that “further military action against Iran must have a clear mission, achievable goals, and a defined strategy for bringing the conflict to a close.”AP NewsTrump administration says its war in Iran has been 'termi...The Trump administration is arguing that the war in Iran has already ended because of the ceasefire that began in early April. "Abashed the devil stood and felt how awful goodness is and saw Virtue in her shape how lovely: and pined his loss” John Milton "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” - George Bernard Shaw "What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead" - Nelson Mandela
Yesterday at 07:10 AM1 day https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush/2026/04/30/new-unemployment-applications-plunge-to-lowest-level-since-1969/Some positive economic data for the US I doubt its going to change the general negative sentiment towards Trump but its still good news for the US on these economic metrics Unemployment benefit applications totaled 189,000 in the week ending April 25, the Labor Department reported, falling well below consensus analyst estimates of 214,000, according to FactSet.That’s the fewest jobless claims filed in a single week since 1969.Continuing jobless claims, or the number of Americans already receiving benefits, dropped to 1.79 million, the fewest since April 2024 and below economist projections of 1.83 million. "Abashed the devil stood and felt how awful goodness is and saw Virtue in her shape how lovely: and pined his loss” John Milton "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” - George Bernard Shaw "What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead" - Nelson Mandela
Yesterday at 09:51 AM1 day Author 2 hours ago, BruceVC said:But this is because any conflict longer than 60 days needs Congressional Approval and its unlikely he would have got that from Congress and then if he had got approval it makes this already unpopular war with US citizens more visible and trenchantWell my post was satirical, but yes. It's unclear how you can run a military blockage without maintaining a state of military conflict, in which case Redacted has exceeded his 60-day deadline. WIthout renewal of the war powers act, it's presumably an unconstitutional act. I wonder if the administration can be sued for unconstitutional behavior, and have the SCOTUS end the blockade? (Sheesh, my editor kept trying to change 'sued' to 'used'. 🤨) But I suppose such a lawsuit would be tossed because it's in the purvue of Congress. "It has just been discovered that research causes cancer in rats."
Yesterday at 10:05 AM1 day 9 minutes ago, rjshae said:Well my post was satirical, but yes. It's unclear how you can run a military blockage without maintaining a state of military conflict, in which case Redacted has exceeded his 60-day deadline. WIthout renewal of the war powers act, it's presumably an unconstitutional act. I wonder if the administration can be sued for unconstitutional behavior, and have the SCOTUS end the blockade? (Sheesh, my editor kept trying to change 'sued' to 'used'. 🤨) But I suppose such a lawsuit would be tossed because it's in the purvue of Congress.I hear you around the blockade but I dont think that is considered part of a military campaign requiring Congressional approvalThis is more about being actively engaged in fighting Iran through daily bombing campaigns like the US was doing So Hegseth and Trump are saying "there is a ceasefire, we not fighting anymore "But I think its legally confusing and unclear "Abashed the devil stood and felt how awful goodness is and saw Virtue in her shape how lovely: and pined his loss” John Milton "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” - George Bernard Shaw "What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead" - Nelson Mandela
Yesterday at 11:39 AM1 day 4 hours ago, BruceVC said:Unemployment benefit applications totaled 189,000 in the week ending April 25, the Labor Department reported, falling well below consensus analyst estimates of 214,000, according to FactSet.That’s the fewest jobless claims filed in a single week since 1969.Continuing jobless claims, or the number of Americans already receiving benefits, dropped to 1.79 million, the fewest since April 2024 and below economist projections of 1.83 million.Unemployment benefits are a little more nuanced than that. From Google (its a little out of date but):"Long-Term Unemployed Rise: By August 2025, the number of people unemployed for 27 weeks or longer—those most likely to exhaust state benefits—surged, with more than one in four (25.7%) unemployed Americans out of work for over half a year."So people will eventually drop off the books.
Yesterday at 12:33 PM1 day 5 hours ago, BruceVC said:https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush/2026/04/30/new-unemployment-applications-plunge-to-lowest-level-since-1969/Some positive economic data for the USI doubt its going to change the general negative sentiment towards Trump but its still good news for the US on these economic metricsUnemployment benefit applications totaled 189,000 in the week ending April 25, the Labor Department reported, falling well below consensus analyst estimates of 214,000, according to FactSet.That’s the fewest jobless claims filed in a single week since 1969.Continuing jobless claims, or the number of Americans already receiving benefits, dropped to 1.79 million, the fewest since April 2024 and below economist projections of 1.83 million.A funny thought... and yes, before anyone tries to explain the obvious errors in such thinking (it really just was a funny completely unscientific thought), that maybe less people apply for unemployment because they people that used to have those jobs left the country?(i.e. the US has a negative net migration number, more people trying to get out from the US than into the US)BrookingsMacroeconomic implications of immigration flows in 2025 a...Wendy Edelberg, Stan Veuger, and Tara Watson review immigration flow trends in 2025 and 2026, and analyze their macroeconomic implications. “He who joyfully marches to music in rank and file has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would surely suffice.” - Albert Einstein
Yesterday at 01:04 PM1 day 29 minutes ago, Gorth said:A funny thought... and yes, before anyone tries to explain the obvious errors in such thinking (it really just was a funny completely unscientific thought), that maybe less people apply for unemployment because they people that used to have those jobs left the country?(i.e. the US has a negative net migration number, more people trying to get out from the US than into the US)BrookingsMacroeconomic implications of immigration flows in 2025 a...Wendy Edelberg, Stan Veuger, and Tara Watson review immigration flow trends in 2025 and 2026, and analyze their macroeconomic implications.didn't last time this happen during great depression
Yesterday at 02:51 PM1 day Author 4 hours ago, BruceVC said:I hear you around the blockade but I dont think that is considered part of a military campaign requiring Congressional approvalThis is more about being actively engaged in fighting Iran through daily bombing campaigns like the US was doingSo Hegseth and Trump are saying "there is a ceasefire, we not fighting anymore "But I think its legally confusing and unclearPerhaps you believe this is the hand waving argument by the politicians, but a blockade is a war-like act by international law. Ergo, it must be authorized by Congress. "It has just been discovered that research causes cancer in rats."
Yesterday at 04:14 PM1 day AP NewsTrump says he'll place 25% tariff on autos from the EU, a...The head of the European Parliament trade committee calls President Donald Trump’s tariff hike on European Union automobiles “unacceptable.”Tantrum over Hormuz continues Why has elegance found so little following? Elegance has the disadvantage that hard work is needed to achieve it and a good education to appreciate it. - Edsger Wybe Dijkstra
20 hours ago20 hr 6 hours ago, rjshae said:Perhaps you believe this is the hand waving argument by the politicians, but a blockade is a war-like act by international law. Ergo, it must be authorized by Congress.Yes, a big B Blockade is literally an Act of War. That was why in the Cuban Missile Crisis it was never a formal Blockade; because that would mean the US and USSR were at war. You can legally sink ships trying to run the Blockade- indeed, in order for it to be a Blockade you have to try and stop them, by any means- and they can sink yours. Which would obviously have been a rather bad idea all around.Bit of a measure of how unpopular the war is that Trump doesn't want to risk taking it to Congress despite theoretically having a majority in both houses and a lot of Democrats who'd vote pro Israel for literally anything else.
11 hours ago11 hr 15 hours ago, rjshae said:Perhaps you believe this is the hand waving argument by the politicians, but a blockade is a war-like act by international law. Ergo, it must be authorized by Congress.But what about the current Cuban blockade, thats been ongoing for longer than 60 days There is Congressional concern about that but is that an act of war? "Abashed the devil stood and felt how awful goodness is and saw Virtue in her shape how lovely: and pined his loss” John Milton "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” - George Bernard Shaw "What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead" - Nelson Mandela
10 hours ago10 hr Legally the Cuban blockade is not a Blockade, which has a formal definition, it's an Embargo. The US pressures countries into 'voluntarily' not trading/ supplying oil etc rather than physically preventing them. Hence Russia sending two tankers through.As above, Cuba wasn't even formally Blockaded during the Missile Crisis
38 minutes ago38 min Author 10 hours ago, BruceVC said:But what about the current Cuban blockade, thats been ongoing for longer than 60 daysThere is Congressional concern about that but is that an act of war?The Russians shipped oil to Cuba without the intervention of the US military. Remember?Sanctioned Russian tanker docks in Cuba after US allows passage despite energy blockadeBut yes, it's borderline behavior that should be reviewed by Congress. My particular concern is the use of military strikes against unarmed fishing vessels, which seems a pretty clear-cut human rights violation if not a violation of international law. Yes, Congress should be concerned about that, but the Republicans are too cowed by this administration. "It has just been discovered that research causes cancer in rats."
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