Follow Your Arrow

The culture wars dividing Americans have long been represented partly as a case of country vs. city. Small town values vs. big city life. That is an over-simplification, of course, but most stories are simplifications.

We tell stories to ourselves all the time about the city-country conflict, but the ones I prefer are about mutual respect and tolerance, even in some cases new levels of understanding.

So naturally I like the story of country singer Kacey Musgraves, who grew up in a small town in Texas before migrating to Nashville in pursuit of her dreams.

Once in Music City, she met members of the LGBTQ community, which in her own telling broadened her awareness of the human experience.

In response, she wrote a song called “Follow Your Arrow” (lyrics below), which was initially banned from country stations and made her an outcast of sorts within the music industry.

But the song caught on, became a hit, and now is a personal anthem at her sold-out shows all over the country.

So this is the kind of story I like. Of course, for every story of tolerance and acceptance there is one of intolerance and discrimination.

But if we as a society are going to move forward we have to celebrate the former and reject the latter.

HEADLINES:

• Questions over Karoline Leavitt’s replacement as she steps down as White House press secretary (Guardian)

• How the Polls Got it So Wrong in Wisconsin (NYT)

• Rubio, Bessent took decoy Air Force One, Hegseth flew on secret flight with Trump (CBS)

• The Flawed Logic of Trump’s Airplane Escape (Atlantic)

• Trump officials say Strait of Hormuz stats are wrong as data casts doubt on US being in ‘total control’ (Yahoo)

• Houthi attack kills six in Red Sea; Trump slams Iran as hopes for Hormuz Strait deal dim (CNBC)

• Iran says no progress on reviving interim peace deal with US (Reuters)

• America’s hidden national security vulnerability (The Hill)

• Pirro, in rare move, convenes special grand jury in Washington (WP)

• Trump administration set to spend at least $900 million on White House construction (Reuters)

• Lawsuit seeks to ban Trump Media from charging for early access to president's posts on US policy (AP)

• In Ohio, Haitians’ American dream shatters as ICE prepares to deport them (Guardian)

• Birthright Citizen Marco Rubio Announces ‘Birth Tourism’ Crackdown (Newsweek)

• I Was Dick Cheney’s Cardiologist. Trump Has Not Looked Well, and We Should Know Why. (NYT)

• Oracle has drawn up plans for a new round of layoffs this month, sources say (BI)

• Meta, 29 states head to court in biggest test yet of youth social media litigation (Reuters)

• Forbes Fired Top Editor After Discovering He Received Secret $6 Million Payment (NYT)

• AI was supposed to destroy jobs. Where’s the carnage? (Guardian)

• AI chatbots are offering financial advice. Should you trust them? (NPR)

• Melania Trump Discovered To Be Russian Listening Device (Onion)

• LYRICS: “Follow Your Arrow” by Kacey Musgraves

  If you save yourself for marriage, you’re a bore
  You don’t save yourself for marriage, you’re a horrible person
  If you won’t have a drink, then you’re a prude
  But they’ll call you a drunk as soon as you down the first one

  If you can’t lose the weight, then you’re just fat
  But if you lose too much, then you’re on crack
  You’re damned if you do, and you’re damned if you don’t
  So you might as well just do whatever you want

  So, make lots of noise (hey)
  Kiss lots of boys (yup)
  Or kiss lots of girls, if that’s something you’re into
  When the straight and narrow gets a little too straight
  Roll up a joint, or don’t
  Just follow your arrow wherever it points, yeah
  Follow your arrow wherever it points

  If you don’t go to church, you’ll go to Hell
  If you’re the first one on the front row, you’re self-righteous son of a-
  Can’t win for losin’, you’ll just disappoint ‘em
  Just ‘cause you can’t beat ‘em, don’t mean you should join ‘em

  So, make lots of noise (hey)
  Kiss lots of boys (yup)
  Or kiss lots of girls, if that’s something you’re into
  When the straight and narrow gets a little too straight
  Roll up a joint, or don’t
  Just follow your arrow wherever it points, yeah
  Follow your arrow wherever it points

  Say what you think (say what you think)
  Love who you love (love who you love)

  
  ‘Cause you just get so many trips ‘round the sun
  Yeah, you only, only live once

  So make lots of noise (hey)
  Kiss lots of boys (yup)
  Or kiss lots of girls, if that’s what you’re into
  When the straight and narrow gets a little too straight
  Roll up a joint, I would
  And follow your arrow wherever it points, yeah

  Follow your arrow wherever it points

 

What's Ahead

Last night was the last big primary night before the midterms, and the results included a victory for the center-left Democrat over the Democratic Socialist candidate in the Wisconsin governor’s race.

In addition, a progressive won the Democratic race for the Senate in Minnesota, and Lindsay Graham’s sister will face a run-off election in two weeks for the Republican Senate race in South Carolina.

It’s still a bit early for polls, but super-pollster Nate Silver is out with a detailed projection for the midterm elections now less than three months away.

Democrats seem poised to win the House by a handy margin and control of the Senate is up for grabs and could go either way.

What Silver and other pollsters can’t predict is how Trump will react to GOP losses in November. We already know he’ll see the results were “rigged,” because that is his claim with any loss.

But what, if anything, will he do about it?

We all saw what happened on Jan. 6th, 2021, when Trump incited a mob of his supporters to attack the Capitol, threatening to kill Congressional leaders as well as Vice-President Mike Pence.

Democracy in America survived, but just barely. On Tuesday, Trump left the door open to calling a national security emergency over the elections, so the threat very much remains. 

HEADLINES:

• Everything is breaking Democrats’ way. Is it enough to win the Senate? (Silver Bulletin)

• Takeaways from Tuesday’s primaries (AP)

• Center-Left Candidate Defeats Democratic Socialist in Wisconsin’s Governor Primary (NYT)

• Why Trump’s secret Air Force One switcheroo is problematic (CNN)

• How Iran Adapted Its Attacks as U.S. War Munitions Dwindled (NYT)

• Trump refuses to back down as Supreme Court blocks major policies (WP)

• Colombia earthquake rescuers race to find survivors in rubble (CBS)

• Former US Marine Robert Gilman released from detention in Russia (CNN)

• David Ellison Has Gamed Out His California Exit (Puck)

• In rural Texas, data center opposition is scrambling conservative tradition (WP)

• Trump Stokes Islamophobia by Calling Democratic Candidates ‘Jihadists’ (NYT)

• The World Health Organization defended the science-based process used to determine childhood immunisation schedules after Trump signed an executive order aimed at reducing the number of recommended childhood vaccinations in the United States. (Reuters)

• 2.4 million Afghan girls shut out of secondary school 5 years after Taliban takeover, UN says (AP)

• Journalism and Paywalls (NYT)

• Fishermen find ancient Roman shipwreck off coast of Sicily (CNN)

• Johannesburg’s water crisis angers voters, drives rich off-grid (Reuters)

• Mount Toba eruption doesn’t seem like it could nearly kill our species (ArsTechnica)

• Dogs can tell when you’re happy, sad or frustrated, a new study found. (WP)

• Waymo Is Growing Faster Than Ever. So Are Its Glitches. (NYT)

• OpenAI’s Only Ethicist Reportedly Left Last Month. She Wasn’t Replaced (Gizmodo)

• Mark Zuckerberg’s latest manifesto promises to save America with AI (WP)

• Sanders Calls on A.I. Companies to Pause Development to ‘Avoid Disaster’ (NYT)

• Spiteful AIPAC Spends $30 Million On Loud Bird Perched Outside Abdul El-Sayed’s Window (Onion)

Tuesday Mix

HEADLINES:

• Trump hid in catering truck in secret plane swap over Iran threat, reports say (BBC)

• Trump boarded secret Turkey flight via catering truck due to Iran threat, reports say (Reuters)

• Trump executive order would split up MMR vaccine (Axios)

• RFK Jr. is targeting a decades-old loophole allowing chemicals in food supply (WP)

• Earthquake Hits Colombia Days After New President Takes Reins (WSJ)

• Race to find Colombia earthquake survivors with help yet to reach epicenter (CNN)

• Trump demands compensation for US from Iran (The Hill)

• Iran changed the rules in Hormuz. The Gulf is changing the rules for Iran (Al Jazeera)

• The Delusions of John Roberts (New Yorker)

• Trump drags former FBI director James Comey into Reflecting Pool debacle (Independent)

• Hegseth pushes for Pentagon funding during renaming of military base after Lindsey Graham (CNN)

• Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) didn’t rule out running for president or Senate when asked about both prospects in an ABC News interview on Sunday. “I haven’t ruled out the possibility. And I’m very humbled to the tremendous amount of support out there,” said Ocasio-Cortez regarding a potential presidential run. (HuffPost)

• The Comforting Resurgence of ‘Grandma Hobbies’ (NYT)

• Wildfires burn across western US and Canada as residents are evacuated (AP)

• Photos: European Rivers Fall to Record Lows (Atlantic)

• Lake Mead, the Nation’s Largest Reservoir, Is Smaller Than Ever (NYT)

• US court rules Meta, other tech companies must face thousands of lawsuits over social media addiction (Reuters)

• Zuckerberg manifesto pushes an open-source approach on AI as Meta releases its latest model (AP)

• How to Disable the AI Features in Gmail and Google Docs (Wired)

• The Ball in OpenAI’s court (BI)

• They said they would build AI safely. Then it went rogue. (WP)

• Dept. Of Interior Grills Up Nation’s Remaining Endangered Species (Onion)

Monday Mix

HEADLINES:

• How Roy Cohn Made Donald Trump (New Yorker)

• 7.4-Magnitude Earthquake Shakes Colombia (NYT)

• At least 13 killed in Ukrainian drone strike deep into Russia (BBC)

• Iran says Oman deal is in ‘final stages’ but US must act to open Hormuz (Reuters)

• Rather than capitulating to the US, Iran toughens its demands over the vital Strait of Hormuz (CNN)

• Oil Prices Climb and Stocks Dip on Stalemate in Iran War (NYT)

• Netanyahu rejects US-led 15-point Gaza peace plan in rare public break with Trump (Guardian)

• The U.S. Is Burning Through Weapons in Iran. Russia and China Are Taking Note. (NYT)

• Pentagon asks defense companies to ramp up production as stockpiles run low during Iran war (CNN)

• Blanche’s confirmation fight was tough. Being Trump’s AG may be tougher. (WP)

• Trump's immigration crackdown looms over Minnesota's bruising Senate primary (AP)

• ‘Voters are fed up’: Michigan primary forces Democratic party to accept leftwing shift (Guardian)

• El-Sayed spoke with Obama as Michigan Democrats look to unite after a bitter Senate primary (AP)

• How Jeffrey Epstein’s island became a nightmare for influencers (BI)

• Iran war renews concerns about the lasting toll of traumatic brain injuries to US troops (AP)

• Crews battle wildfires in western U.S. and Canada (NPR)

• King’s Cross in London has become a hub for AI startups (UANews)

• Universities are fighting AI cheating. But there’s a deeper problem. (WP)

• Antichrist Rolls Eyes Throughout  Peter Thiel Lecture (Onion)

The Presidential Finger

(From last year.)

Volodymyr Zelenskyy, himself a former entertainer, has finally figured out Trump’s schtick.

I recently labeled Trump “America’s Hitler,” but I didn’t mean it to be taken literally. It’s a metaphor.

After all, Hitler wasn’t addicted to social media and didn’t have to deal with it. Trump is and does.

Trump as dictator is in many ways a laughable concept, although it’s not a funny one. His main accomplishment prior to his election was as a reality TV star — one who hired or fired people, seemingly on whim.

That role has translated perfectly to his governing style, which is primarily by whim. Or for that matter, U.S. foreign policy under Trump. It can change with the click of a finger.

But the presidency isn’t a TV show, no matter how much Trump tries to treat it as such.

And this is where this piece is going to take a weird turn. Take Marry Me, the 2022 film featuring an aging pop superstar, Jennifer Lopez, impulsively marrying a schlumpy math teacher, Owen Wilson, as a gimmick all on social media.

The film is not the first to explore the space between what’s real or not regarding love or fake marriages, but it does a good job at showing how under the right circumstances, a gimmick can over time become real in the age of social media, where everything in our lives seems like it can change with the click of a finger.

And that is my issue with Trump’s regime. It seems like a gimmick, a joke, but it’s not funny, and I am deeply afraid that it is becoming all too real. He may or may not be America’s Hitler, metaphorically speaking, but he’s most definitely some sort of a B-movie version, streaming on a platform near you.

HEADLINES:

• In Confirming Blanche, Senators Endorse a Justice Dept. Under Trump’s Sway (NYT)

• Trump’s top general is ‘looking for an off-ramp’ from Iran war as US military options remain limited, sources say (CNN)

• Netanyahu Rejects Trump’s Plan to Disarm Hamas (NYT)

• Iran says deal on Strait of Hormuz is close but is not enough to open the waterway (Reuters)

• What Mitch McConnell Did (Atlantic)

• The Government Shouldn’t Pick Winners and Losers in Media (Bulwark)

• ‘Communist losers’ and ‘Socialists’ (Reuters)

• The cost of waiting on the biggest merger in Hollywood history (NBC)

• Hunter Biden says Joe Biden’s cancer has spread further and is ‘very painful’ (CNBC)

• Europe’s conflict over migration (Reuters)

• U.S. Squeezes Cuba Even as It Searches for a New Regime Leader (NYT)

• Why MAGA Is So Obsessed With Fauci (Atlantic)

• How could New Mexico’s $567 million ruling change Meta? (Reuters)

• What’s the next big thing in social media? Meet 22 top VCs placing bets. (BI)

• How Elon Musk Is Re-Engineering the World (Reveal)

• Ring Launches Streaming  Service (Onion)

 

Saturday Mix

HEADLINES:

• Appeals court rules Trump can’t build White House ballroom without congressional approval (AP)

• Another court blocks White House ballroom work, teeing up a Supreme Court review (NPR)

• Trump again tries to restrict birthright citizenship after Supreme Court ruling (AP)

• Blanche Is Confirmed as Attorney General After Overcoming G.O.P. Concerns (NYT)

• ‘Whiffs of frozen hell and donkeys flying’: Senators sidestep one shutdown fight and set up another (MS Now)

• Trump declines to back Thune for another term as Senate GOP leader (The Hill)

• Senate passes Russia sanctions bill that was long championed by Lindsey Graham (NPR)

• Why the U.S. labor market is hemorrhaging workers (NBC)

• Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan to sign joint defense deal. (Reuters)

• With support for Israel roiling U.S. politics, Israelis fear a permanent shift (WP)

• Iran says deal on Strait of Hormuz is close but will not open the waterway by itself (NBC)

• Trump says war ‘can’t go much longer’ – what’s the latest on talks? (Al Jazeera)

• A deal with Iran over the Strait of Hormuz may require a compromise from Trump (PBS)

• Spain hopes to transfer migrant minors to mainland within weeks (Reuters)

• Lake Mead hits record-low water level, a ‘grim’ milestone (USA Today)

• In a Hurricane-Season Twist, the West Coast May Be the One to Watch (NYT)

• Starbucks is ending GLP-1 coverage for weight loss as employer costs climb (BI)

• Gen Z Fell Out of Love With Work. I Don’t Blame Them. (NYT)

• Social isolation can inhibit your wellbeing and success. ‘You need to make time for people,’ says expert (CNBC)

• This A.I. Just Created Viruses Not Found in Nature (NYT)

• Everyone Needs To Calm   Down, Reports Man Who Accidentally Shot Someone (Onion)

 

The Case of the Blue Bunny

In one scene in the Korean TV series “Encounter,” Jin-hyuk solves a crisis in the hotel where he works by retrieving a little girl’s stuffed animal from mountains of dirty linens in the laundry room. 

That scene came to mind this week amidst the Max Miller/Blue Bunny scandal that is rocking Capitol Hill.

In case you’ve missed it, Republican Rep. Max Miller (Ohio) stands accused of withholding his young daughter’s favorite stuffed animal, a blue bunny, as part of a messy divorce from the girl’s mother. A growing chorus of Republicans are calling on Miller to drop out of his race for re-election due to sexual abuse allegations plus the bunny matter.

According to Mother Jones, Miller has a history of withholding the bunny, which, if true, is an incredibly cruel thing to do to a young child.

In an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper, Miller tried to avoid answering direct questions about his daughter. Tapper concluded the interview by asking if “anyone in your life is telling you that it really might be in the best interests for your daughter and for your own mental health to drop out?”

Miller answered, “My daughter is going to grow up one day, and she’s going to see all of this. And she’s not going to see that her father caved to political and social media pressures for something that he never did.”

As the New York Times has reported, “Miller is a former aide to President Trump, who has warned the congressman that the allegations were politically problematic but has stopped short of calling for him to abandon the race. During his CNN appearance, Mr. Miller compared his own defiance to that of the president, who refused to leave the 2016 presidential race after leaked audio surfaced in which he bragged about groping women.”

Is this the best Republicans can offer?

HEADLINES:

• Bunny Dolls and Disturbing Allegations: Max Miller’s Strange CNN Interview (NYT)

• Rep. Max Miller Has a History of Withholding His Daughter’s Blue Bunny (Mother Jones)

• The Coalitions That Propelled El-Sayed’s Michigan Victory (NYT)

• What a Contempt Vote for Fauci Would Mean for the Pardoned Doctor (WSJ)

• Hiring Slumps, a Worrying Sign for the Economy (NYT)

• FDA approves Moderna’s mRNA seasonal flu vaccine (ABC)

• Trump denies US weapons shortage and says information ‘leakers’ being ‘hunted down’ (BBC)

• An agreement on the Strait of Hormuz is taking shape – but not one Trump wants (CNN)

• A proposed Hormuz deal would give Iran control of inbound traffic, and Iran threatens to hit Gulf states if US launches new strikes. (Reuters)

• Pakistan Starts Sweeping New Crackdown on Journalists (NYT)

• Todd Blanche Sends Chilling Message to Every U.S. Attorney (TNR)

• Murkowski Says She Will Oppose Blanche’s Nomination for Attorney General (NYT)

• Trump’s immigration crackdown has detained dozens of military spouses and parents (AP)

• McConnell Announces Discharge From Rehabilitation Center (NYT)

• Most Americans view rising living costs as biggest barrier to a better life, survey finds (Guardian)

• Water Crisis Deepens on the Colorado River (WSJ)

• Someone Is Poisoning Trees Near Lake Tahoe (NYT)

• Hank Green found the AI problem that YouTube labels can’t catch (ArsTechnica)

• Ask your employees one question about AI. The silence will tell you everything (Fortune)

• Google Shakes Up A.I. Leadership (NYT)

• Poll: American Voters Say Greatest Concern Is Big Evil Chef Trying To Cook Them Into Stew (Onion)