Odds and Ends — 10 May 2025

@preparedwombat 78

21 days ago

oddsandends

Cryptocurrency, Investing, Money, Economy, Business, AI, and Debt:

Robert Kiyosaki says ditch ‘fake money’ for Bitcoin, gold, and silver

Dogecoin Jumps 27% as Bitcoin Inches Closer to Record Price

Coronavirus and Public Health:

New evidence shows long COVID’s toll on health across all U.S. states

Measles Roars Back in the U.S.

The measles outbreak has surpassed 1,000 cases, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed Friday, a grim milestone that has only been achieved twice in the last 30 years.

https://twitter.com/CBoTheEggman/status/1920667312094364101

https://twitter.com/nickmmark/status/1920836493054025862

Politics:

Judge Pauses Trump’s Plans for Mass Layoffs

A federal judge on Friday called for a two-week pause in the Trump administration’s mass layoff plans, barring two dozen agencies from moving forward with the largest phase of the president’s downsizing efforts, which the judge said was illegal without Congress’s authorization.

Fight Over ‘Green New Scam’ Complicates Trump’s Plans

Republicans are split sharply over whether and how to repeal hundreds of billions of dollars in clean-energy tax breaks that Democrats created, marking one of the knottiest unresolved fights over what to put in President Trump’s tax and spending agenda.
Public and private estimates suggest the IRA’s tax breaks will far exceed the initial estimate of $271 billion over a decade. That indicates the credits’ popularity—and the opportunity to curtail them. The more IRA incentives that Republicans repeal, the more money they generate to pay for extending Trump’s expiring tax cuts and implementing his other priorities.
But pulling the plug is proving difficult. The breaks generate jobs and investment, particularly in rural Republican regions where it is easier to locate wind turbines, solar farms and factories. Republicans are sensitive to the argument that businesses shouldn’t be punished for making investments based on existing law.

https://twitter.com/RonFilipkowski/status/1920893327316005336

Mexico sues Google over 'Gulf of America' name change

Exasperated by the turmoil that has dogged Pete Hegseth’s office in recent weeks, the White House will block the US defense secretary’s choice of chief of staff and select a candidate of its own.
Hegseth had suggested giving the chief of staff position to Marine Col Ricky Buria after the first person in the role, Joe Kasper, left last month in the wake of a contentious leak investigation that brought the ouster of three other senior aides.
But the White House has made clear to Hegseth that Buria will not be elevated to become his most senior aide at the Pentagon, casting Buria as a liability on account of his limited experience as a junior military assistant and his recurring role in internal office drama.

———— Mors Imperii ————

https://twitter.com/ArtCandee/status/1920877373601280253

Trump Has Had Just 12 ‘Daily’ Intelligence Briefings

Since President Donald Trump was sworn into office in January, he has sat for just 12 presentations from intelligence officials of the President’s Daily Brief.

https://twitter.com/jemelehill/status/1920933612037210402

How in the hell does he get away with this?

“I think we essentially have become a kleptocracy that would make Putin blush. I mean, keep in mind that in the first three months, the Trump family has become $3 billion wealthier, so that’s a billion dollars a month.”

https://twitter.com/RonFilipkowski/status/1920994901438628328

Radar Screens Went Dark at Newark Airport

Radar screens at Newark Liberty International Airport went black early Friday morning, raising more air traffic safety concerns at one of the region’s busiest hubs.

https://twitter.com/bryanbehar/status/1920964041230458991