A Wrinkle in Time

Largely overlooked and ignored during the frenetic run-up to the election was an expose' in the Guardian titled Revealed: the US government-funded ‘private social network’ attacking pesticide critics.

I bookmarked this piece when it appeared in late September because I knew it might well prove relevant later on, and sure enough that time has arrived. Allow me to explain.

Donald Trump’s decision to nominate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., as his health czar is justifiably controversial for many reasons, principally because RFK Jr. has espoused numerous crackpot conspiracy theories and may prove particularly dangerous if he imposes his anti-vaccination views on the agencies trying to protect the pubic health.

But RFK Jr. is on much more solid ground when it comes to his concerns about pesticide residues in the food supply. Ironically, if his nomination is rejected by the Senate, it will most likely be due not to his nutcase conspiracy theories but to the well-financed agrochemical lobby, which brings us right back to that piece in the Guardian.

The article reveals the existence of a private portal used by the industry and its allies in government to maintain detailed profiles of anyone they deem anti-pesticide, including:

• “(A) wide range of personal information about hundreds of individuals from around the world deemed a threat to industry interests, including the US food writers Michael Pollan and Mark Bittman, the Indian environmentalist Vandana Shiva and the Nigerian activist Nnimmo Bassey. Many profiles include personal details such as the names of family members, phone numbers, home addresses and even house values.”

• “The profiling is part of an effort – that was financed, in part, by US taxpayer dollars – to downplay pesticide dangers, discredit opponents and undermine international policymaking, according to court records, emails and other documents obtained by the non-profit newsroom Lighthouse Reports.”

• “More than 30 current government officials are on the membership list, most of whom are from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).”

• “Mounting scientific evidence has linked some pesticides to a host of health risks, including leukemia, Parkinson’s, and cancers of the bladder, colon, bone marrow, lung, blood cells and pancreas, as well as reproductive problems, learning disorders and problems of the immune system. The concerns about various documented health impacts have led multiple countries to ban or otherwise restrict several types of pesticides.”

If he is confirmed over industry objections by the Senate, Kennedy could potentially do some good in the area of regulating pesticides. At this point, that would represent a small glimmer of light in the very dark scenario of what’s to come during Trump’s time in power.

And don’t get me wrong. I think Kennedy’s nomination is a disaster, one of many in Trump’s incoming cabinet. But there could be some silver linings, and I’m looking for them.

There is much, much more in the excellent Guardian article for anyone who wishes to become better informed on the issue of pesticide regulation. Also, long leading the field in honest, accurate information about agrochemicals is the non-profit Pesticide Action Network.

(Note: My apologies to novelist Madeleine L'Engle for appropriating the title, A Wrinkle in Time, from her excellent young adult science fantasy novel. Imitation is, after all, a sincere form of flattery.)

HEADLINES:

• South Korea president declares emergency martial law (CNN)

• White House defends pardon of Hunter Biden amid backlash (BBC)

• Biden’s Pardon of Hunter Further Undermines His Legacy (New Yorker)

• Pursuing justice or getting even? (Politico)

• Tensions Rise Among Russia’s Elite as Economic Growth Slows (NYT)

• 40 Years Later: Demand Justice for Bhopal (PAN)

• Pete Hegseth’s Secret History (New Yorker)

• Amid worry about Trump, calls for career Justice Department staff to stay (WP)

• Long a ‘Crown Jewel’ of Government, N.I.H. Is Now a Target (NYT)

• H5N1 Bird Flu Concerns Grow. Are COVID-19 Mistakes Being Repeated? (Forbes)

• Trump said he intends to nominate Charles Kushner, his son-in-law Jared Kushner’s billionaire father, to be the next U.S. ambassador to France. [HuffPost]

• Lake-effect snows continue to bury Northeast after Thanksgiving weekend (WP)

• Israel Builds Bases in Central Gaza, a Sign It May Be There to Stay (NYT)

• Elton John says he has lost his eyesight (CNN)

• Space traffic is crowding Earth's orbit. (Reuters)

• World Labs’ AI can generate interactive 3D scenes from a single photo (TechCrunch)

• AI Reveals Stunning Secrets Hidden in the Sun’s Atmosphere (SciTechDaily)

• This manga publisher is using Anthropic’s AI to translate Japanese comics into English (Technology Review)

• Ads might be coming to ChatGPT — despite Sam Altman not being a fan (TechCrunch)

• Study: Overuse Of Hair Detangler Giving Rise To Product-Resistant Supertangles (The Onion)

LYRICS (Excerpt)

“Love’s the Only House” by Martina McBride

'Cause the pain's gotta go somewhere
Yeah, the pain's gotta go some place
So come on down to my house
Don't you know that

Love's the only house big enough for all the pain in the world
Love's the only house big enough for all the pain

(Songwriters: Buzz Cason / Thomas Stevenson Douglas) 

Winter Nights

(‘Sunset’ by Daisy)

The image above was painted by my ten-year=old granddaughter after I mentioned to her that the sunsets these winter nights are so dramatic and wide in the southwestern sky that it would be difficult to capture them. 

She is not one to back down from a challenge.

As for the political situation, a piece in the Guardian this morning captures how 50 percent of the electorate are feeling: ‘People feel drained’: anti-Trump Americans face temptation to tune out.

This too will pass. There are those among us who are not the types to back down from a challenge.

And the top link below describes the coming challenge succinctly: An authoritarian state.

HEADLINES:

• A Constitutional Crisis Greater Than Watergate — Trump’s nomination of Kash Patel threatens to turn the FBI into an instrument of personal presidential power. (Atlantic)

• Patel has publicly mused about targeting journalists, government officials (WP)

• Syrian rebels push towards Hama as government forces launch counterattacks (Al Jazeera)

• Rebels Seize Control Over Most of Syria’s Largest City (NYT)

• Biden Pardons Son (WP)

• Trump threat of 100% tariffs against Brics nations raises trade war fears (Guardian)

• What Trudeau told Trump at Mar-a-Lago (Politico)

• Trump selects Lebanese billionaire Massad Boulos as Middle East adviser (Financial Times)

• Russia’s plunging currency spells trouble for its war effort (Economist)

• Study shows mountain lions are changing to adapt to human recreation (WP)

• Michigan Stuns Ohio State—and a Flag-Planting Fracas Follows (WSJ)

• The earliest known ‘country’ recording has been found. The singer? A Black man. (WP)

• Scientist Explains How Climate Crisis Would Be Averted If Greta Thunberg Just Tried A Little Harder (The Onion)

Another Domino Falls

I would never think of defending the legacy of J. Edgar Hoover, who did more than his share of evil while building the FBI into the federal government’s top law-enforcement agency. But I did gain a new appreciation for the nuances of his half-century in power from the Pulitzer-Prize- winning biography by Beverly Gage titled G-Man: J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the American Century.

And with that deeper understanding, I’m quite sure that Hoover would be turning over in his grave at the news of Trump’s decision to appoint the right-wing zealot Kash Patel as the next director of the FBI.

Hoover was a bizarre, tortured figure to be sure — closeted, paranoid, racist and sexist — but also fiercely protective of the independence of “his” bureau from political interference by the many Presidents who came and went during his 48 years at the helm of the agency whose headquarters building bears his name.

Meanwhile, Trump wants Patel in place to pursue his political enemies, which is precisely the type of thing Hoover, despite his many flaws, did not want the bureau to do. And to a great extent, while he was around he succeeded in avoiding the bureau from being used as a political hit team.

Hoover held the line against all kinds of powerful Presidents — Roosevelt, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, etc., — but he never encountered the likes of Trump, with his insatiable thirst for retribution against his perceived political enemies.

And as for Patel, his right-wing extremism would have upset Hoover as much as the left-wing variety he more publicly railed against. Either extreme, Hoover knew, threatened not only his beloved bureau’s integrity but the future of our democracy.

One thing Hoover and Patel have in common is a willingness to trample all over the civil rights of people like you and me. Hold on to your privacy — this is bound to get ugly.

HEADLINES:

• Stopping the Press (New Yorker)

• Syrian rebels sweep into Aleppo after lightning assault (Financial Times)

• Syrian rebels reach the heart of Aleppo (Reuters)

• Setbacks for Russia, Iran and Hezbollah Turn Into a Catastrophe for Syria’s Assad (WSJ)

• Great Lakes Storm Dumps 2 Feet of Snow on Northeast and Midwest, With More to Come (NYT)

• Trump praises "very productive" Mar-a-Lago meeting with Trudeau (BBC)

• The Big Question: who will be hurt the most by Trump’s tariffs? (Financial Times)

• Trump’s former FDA commissioner warns RFK Jr. could ‘cost lives’ (WP)

• Journalists flock to Bluesky as X becomes increasingly 'toxic' (NBC)

• Googling Is for Old People. That’s a Problem for Google. (WSJ)

• How will Australia enforce its social media ban for teenagers? (WP)

• Zelenskyy says NATO guarantees could end ‘hot phase’ of Ukraine war (Politico)

• Zelensky’s latest Ukraine-Russia war plan is a ‘major concession’ to Putin, says former UK ambassador (Independent)

• How Kristi Noem, Trump’s homeland security pick, became an immigration ‘zealot’ (WP)

• 2 Big Social Security Changes Are Coming in 2025. Here's What to Expect. (Motley Fool)

• Michigan stuns No. 2 Ohio State 13-10 before a massive postgame brawl at midfield (Yahoo)

• How ChatGPT changed the future (Axios)

• Robots can learn new actions faster thanks to AI techniques (Economist)

• OpenAI targets 1bn users in next phase of growth (Financial Times)

• Target Now Offering Snipers To Take Out Other Shoppers For Black Friday (The Onion)

LYRICS

“Not Dark Yet” by Bob Dylan

… Shadows are fallin' and I've been here all day
It's too hot to sleep and time is runnin' away
Feel like my soul has turned into steel
I've still got the scars that the sun didn't heal

… There's not even room enough to be anywhere
It's not dark yet, but it's gettin' there

… Well, my sense of humanity has gone down the drain
Behind every beautiful thing, there's been some kind of pain
She wrote me a letter, and she wrote it so kind
She put down in writin' what was in her mind

… I just don't see why I should even care
It's not dark yet, but it's gettin' there

… Well, I've been to London and I been to gay Paris
I've followed the river and I got to the sea
I've been down on the bottom of the world full of lies
I ain't lookin' for nothin' in anyone's eyes

… Sometimes my burden is more than I can bear
It's not dark yet, but it's gettin' there

… I was born here, and I'll die here against my will
I know it looks like I'm movin', but I'm standin' still
Every nerve in my body is so naked and numb
I can't even remember what it was I came here to get away from

… Don't even hear the murmur of a prayer

It's not dark yet, but it's gettin' there