ABC News

Supreme Court limits Voting Rights Act in historic decision

The 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 AM4 days by Bartimaeus

4 hours ago, Bartimaeus said:

ABC News

Supreme Court limits Voting Rights Act in historic decision

The 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.

oil at 120 now

no amount of market manipulation can change the physical reality

'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.

Redacted's grand Iran strategy is just to keep lying.

Live updates: Trump administration says war in Iran has been ‘terminated’ before 60-day deadline

Gee, I guess we "won" then. 🤨

Strait of Hormuz: Daily throughput is currently 5% of average. Good look with that "victory".

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 deadline

Gee, 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.

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 deadline

Gee, 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 were

But 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 News

Trump 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.

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.

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 trenchant

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.

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 approval

This 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

4 hours ago, BruceVC said:

1. 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.

2. That’s the fewest jobless claims filed in a single week since 1969.

3. 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.

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 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.

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)

Brookings

Macroeconomic 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.

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)

Brookings

Macroeconomic 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

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 approval

This 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

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.

AP News

Trump 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

usa and germany car industry can die together

how poetic

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.

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?

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

10 hours ago, BruceVC said:

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?

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 blockade

But 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.

https://www.axios.com/2026/05/03/trump-us-navy-iran-ships-strait-hormuz

The new Hormuz Strait initiative will not necessarily include U.S. Navy ships escorting commercial ships, according to two American officials.

• One of the officials said U.S. Navy ships will be "in the vicinity" in case they need to prevent Iran's military from attacking commercial ships moving through the strait.

• The officials said the U.S. navy is going to provide commercial ships with information on the best maritime lanes in the strait especially when it comes to using lanes that were not mined by the Iranian military.

Seems half assed.

Half assed is being generous. 'Concept of an ass' is probably fairer.

No US ships; because it's too dangerous for AEGIS destroyers and the like. It is, however, safe for slow bulk carriers, supertankers etc.

Hmm.

Seems unlikely insurance is going to want to bet on that arrangement.

I thought these memes and roasts were funny, but probably too politically biased to be considered just humour

6 hours ago, Malcador said:

https://www.axios.com/2026/05/03/trump-us-navy-iran-ships-strait-hormuz

The new Hormuz Strait initiative will not necessarily include U.S. Navy ships escorting commercial ships, according to two American officials.

• One of the officials said U.S. Navy ships will be "in the vicinity" in case they need to prevent Iran's military from attacking commercial ships moving through the strait.

• The officials said the U.S. navy is going to provide commercial ships with information on the best maritime lanes in the strait especially when it comes to using lanes that were not mined by the Iranian military.

Seems half assed.

None of this would be necessary if all of the traitors would have been send to jail after Jan 6.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has overall changed things within Russia for the worst, its not just the carnage and protracted outcome of the war or the economic reality because that takes years and isnt the same for everyone

Its the enforcement of authoritarianism to ensure Putin remains a leader for life, this is the worst long-term outcome for Russian citizens

This is realized in different ways and what is a real concern now is how Russia is going to be trying to control and restrict Internet access and create its own "Internet " where all access can be monitored and controlled . I dont think most of us realize how depressing this type of future must be


Hopefully the Russian state fails in its endeavors to achieve this


https://jamestown.org/russia-continues-creation-of-sovereign-national-internet/

• The Russian State is seeking to massively expand its ability to surveil and filter internet traffic by upgrading systems to deal with increasing traffic volumes and increasing fines for providers who do not fully comply.

• Russia is also pursuing further restrictions on virtual private networks (VPNs) by pressuring platforms to block those using them and requiring mobile operators to charge higher fees for those using more than 15 gigabytes of traffic from abroad.

• The Kremlin is aiming to restrict civilian use of digital encryption and create full-spectrum internet surveillance, which will likely expand further in the coming years.

" The Russian state is continuing its rapid creation of a sovereign national internet space. It has established new funding and initiatives to block civilian use of virtual private networks (VPNs), expand internet surveillance, and consolidate control over telecommunications providers. The Russian Ministry of Digital Technologies announced plans at the end of March to dramatically increase the computing power of the Technical Measures for Countering Threats (TSPU) system through 2030 by 250 percent, reaching 954 Terabit per second (Tb/s), with estimated costs of 15 billion rubles ($200 million ) (Kommersant, March 25). The new set of technologies is intended to fill gaps in the current monitoring system, which now covers nearly 100 percent of all traffic, from broadband providers to mobile providers to nodes connecting the Russian segment to the broader global internet (see EDM, November 25, 2024). This is an improvement over 2023, when only 80 percent of traffic was subject to the system’s filtering (Habr, October 27, 2025).