The chattering class had a field day over the weekend pontificating on the presidential debate scheduled for Thursday, June 27, at 9pm ET on CNN. As usual when the Know-It-Alls get together, there was a lot of noise but little substance. I never expected there would be any debates between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, and I still have a thought that this event might be called off. If not, it should be quite a spectacle, more entertaining than reality TV.
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There is a cliche that says a picture is worth a thousand words. The picture above has generated millions of words, I’m sure. Some believe this photograph, known as “Earthrise,” is the most famous and influential photograph ever taken. It is certainly one of my favorites.
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Last week The New York Times published a photograph it had acquired that showed an upside-down American flag flying on the pole at the home of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito. This incident occurred in January 2021, just days after former President Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol. The flag is associated with Trump’s false claims of election fraud.
Alito says he had no involvement whatsoever in the flag flying. The flag, he said. was briefly placed by his wife, Martha-Ann Alito, in response to a neighbor’s use of objectionable and personally insulting language on yard signs. Alito also claimed he did not participate in the decision to display the flag. Sounds to me like Alito is throwing his wife under the bus.
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As of February 2023, the social video app TikTok said it had approximately 150 active monthly million users in the United States. This number is projected to increase by over five percent year-over-year, reaching 170 million users in 2024. Extremely popular with younger digital audiences, TikTok is one of the fastest-growing social media apps in the United States. The United States has the largest TikTok audience of any country. And that scares the hell out of many, including the members of Congress.
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Photo: Iranian missiles over Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, courtesy of Mehr News Service under a Creative Commons 4.0 license.
There was significant activity on the military front in the Mideast last week. The events changed the calculus for diplomacy in the region and could lead to new opportunities for peace, if the principals are willing to consider them.
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(Interactive Map © 2024 Institute for the Study of War and AEI’s Critical Threats Project)
There are 133 souls still being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza, more than 184 days since Hamas declared war by invading Israel. I thought it necessary to point out this simple fact because most of the rhetoric discussing the six-month anniversary of that barbaric attack takes little note, if any, of the people involved.
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Give us a break. My California friends have been teasing me over the northeast’s breathless reaction: “Breaking News: Earthquake Shakes New Jersey and Surrounding Areas.” The lede read:
New Jersey, April 5, 2024 — A 4.8 magnitude earthquake sent boredom tremors through the New York City area and parts of New Jersey this morning. The temblor struck at approximately 10:20 a.m. and was centered about 5 miles east of Lebanon, New Jersey.
MSN/USA Today
I felt it, but I wasn’t sure what it was until I saw the bulletins. I did feel a 4.0 aftershock about 6:00 p.m. The only other earthquake I’ve ever felt occurred when I was in Palm Springs.
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