Now I know what they do at faculty meetings on the humanities/social sciences side of campus » « They never learn

Infinite Thread XXXIX

It’s almost spring-like outside — the skies are clear, we’ve got cool breezes on a comfortable day, the plants are coming back… I know it can’t last but I’ll make the most of it. I’ve opened windows to let birdsong in and to drive the cat crazy.

Let the pleasant conversations flow!

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Now I know what they do at faculty meetings on the humanities/social sciences side of campus » « They never learn

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  2. Reginald Selkirk says

    Sen. Rand Paul’s son confronted Rep. Mike Lawler in drunken, antisemitic rant

    Republican Rep. Mike Lawler of New York said he was approached at a bar by GOP Sen. Rand Paul’s “inebriated” son, who made antisemitic comments toward him.

    Lawler said he was at the Tune Inn in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday night having dinner with a friend and a reporter for the news outlet NOTUS, who first reported the interaction, when he was approached by William Paul.

    “Paul decided to interject into the conversation and start accosting me about if Thomas Massie loses, it’s because of my people,” Lawler recounted Wednesday, referring to a Kentucky Republican who is in a tight primary against a Trump-backed challenger. Rand Paul and his son are also from Kentucky.

    Lawler said he asked Paul, “Who is ‘my people’?”

    “And he yelled out, ‘Jews,'” Lawler told reporters. “And I asked him, ‘You think I’m Jewish?’ And he said, ‘Yes.'”

    Lawler said he told Paul he was not Jewish and that Paul responded, “Oh, I’m sorry to accuse you of that.”

    The congressman said Paul then went on a “10-minute diatribe about Israel, about Jews, about [Jewish GOP megadonor] Paul Singer and accusing Jews of being responsible for so many things, playing right into the typical antisemitic tropes that so many people rely on.” Paul also said he “hates Jews, hates gays and doesn’t care if they die,” according to Lawler…

  3. says

    SHANGHAI (The Borowitz Report)—Donald J. Trump accomplished what he called “the main goal” of his trip to China on Thursday by inspecting the printing plant where his $60 Trump Bibles are printed.

    Accompanied by Chinese President Xi Jinping, Trump said he wanted “to be sure that the Chinese printed the lyrics to ‘God Bless the USA’ right, because those are Jesus’s most important words.”

    President Xi praised his American counterpart, telling him, “You have created more Chinese jobs than I have.”

    Trump cancelled plans to visit the factory that manufactures gold Trump Mobile phones after learning that it did not exist.

    https://www.borowitzreport.com/p/trump-tours-chinese-factory-that

    Satire

  4. says

    For the convenience of readers, here are a few links back to the previous set of 500 comments on The Infinite Thread.

    https://proxy.freethought.online/pharyngula/2026/03/30/infinite-thread-xxxix/comment-page-3/#comment-2300668
    Chevron Seeks Huge Tax Break to Build a Power Plant for a Texas Data Center

    https://proxy.freethought.online/pharyngula/2026/03/30/infinite-thread-xxxix/comment-page-3/#comment-2300666
    Wes Streeting has resigned his position as Health Secretary.
    Through the withdrawal of puberty blockers for trans youth, which has left vulnerable young people feeling that being dead would be preferrable to being alive, Streeting has been responsible for the deaths of several children and the maiming, by forcing their bodies to go unwanted, irreversible yet preventable damage, of many others.

    https://proxy.freethought.online/pharyngula/2026/03/30/infinite-thread-xxxix/comment-page-3/#comment-2300665
    Surprise! Trump’s ‘diplomatic’ China visit is just another grift.

    https://proxy.freethought.online/pharyngula/2026/03/30/infinite-thread-xxxix/comment-page-3/#comment-2300651
    Congresswoman Accuses 10-Year-Old Of Being Indoctrinated By Propaganda After He Sends Her A Letter About The Benefits Of EVs For A Class Assignment

    https://proxy.freethought.online/pharyngula/2026/03/30/infinite-thread-xxxix/comment-page-3/#comment-2300635
    Silicon carbide (SiC) dust is one of the most important ingredients in cosmic dust

  5. Reginald Selkirk says

    Judge probes whether Musk settlement with Trump admin is tainted by corruption

    A federal judge reportedly said she will not rubber-stamp a settlement between Elon Musk and the Securities and Exchange Commission, saying the deal raises red flags and needs scrutiny over whether Musk is getting special treatment from the Trump administration.

    As we reported last week, the Trump administration agreed to let Musk pay a $1.5 million fine to settle a lawsuit that originally sought at least $150 million. In 2022, before buying Twitter outright, Musk purchased a 9 percent stake in the social network and failed to disclose it within 10 days as required under US law. The SEC lawsuit filed during the Biden administration said the late disclosure allowed Musk to keep buying shares at artificially low prices and underpay shareholders by at least $150 million.

    Under the settlement with the SEC, a trust in Musk’s name would pay a $1.5 million civil penalty to the government and not admit that Musk committed any violation. The deal requires court approval, and Judge Sparkle Sooknanan expressed skepticism at a hearing yesterday in US District Court for the District of Columbia…

  6. says

    Trump’s DOJ files suit against the DC Bar, tries to protect key lawyer in 2020 plot

    Those looking for accountability for those who plotted against the 2020 presidential election have limited options. Donald Trump’s Justice Department, for example, certainly won’t punish lawyers who tried to overturn the will of the voters, and congressional Republicans won’t take an interest in holding them responsible, either.

    But bar associations are another matter entirely. In fact, Jeffrey Clark, a key figure in Trump’s 2020 crusade to remain in the White House, is facing possible disbarment in the nation’s capital as a result of an investigation from the District of Columbia Bar.

    […] Trump’s DOJ this week filed a lawsuit against the D.C. Bar — not because it did something wrong, but because of its efforts to discipline Trump administration lawyers, including Clark. The New York Times reported:

    The lawsuit defends Jeffrey Clark, a government lawyer in the first Trump administration who sought to undo the results of the 2020 presidential race, and Ed Martin, a current senior Justice Department official. The suit was filed by Todd Blanche, the acting attorney general, and Stanley E. Woodward Jr., the No. 3 official at the Justice Department.

    In accompanying statements, Mr. Blanche accused the D.C. Bar of acting as a “blatantly partisan arm of leftist causes.”

    The same lawsuit goes so far as to say lawyers who work for the administration should necessarily be considered above scrutiny by legal ethics officials.

    In case that weren’t quite enough, Benjamin Weiss at CourtHouse News noticed the same lawsuit against the D.C. Bar references the Supreme Court’s ruling that extended immunity to presidential “official acts,” suggesting Blanche and his team believe lawyers in Trump’s employ are also protected from punishments.

    […] the fact that Blanche is pursuing such a case at all is a timely reminder that this guy really wants to be nominated for attorney general. [I snipped details regarding Blanche’s other unsubtle moves.]

    [Trump] did say earlier this week, “We have a man who’s doing a great job, I’ll tell you. I knew it because he kept me out of jail for years. Acting Attorney General, Todd Blanche, he kept me out of jail.”

  8. says

    The list of problems at Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s department could fill a lengthy book, but his personnel problems are among the most endemic.

    During his yearlong tenure leading the Food and Drug Administration, Marty Makary managed to bother various constituencies, including pharmaceutical companies and anti-abortion activists, but it was fruit-flavored vapes that apparently sealed his fate.

    Tobacco industry executives and lobbyists leaned on Donald Trump and his team to expand access to the flavored vaping products to consumers 21 and older, a move that Makary had been slow to approve. By some accounts, the president, convinced that young MAGA voters care about the issue, ended up personally “upbraiding” the FDA commissioner on the matter.

    The agency ultimately did what the White House wanted and authorized the fruit-flavored vapes, soon after Trump’s intervention, but the damage to Makary’s role at the FDA proved too much. He and the administration parted ways days later.

    As it turns out, however, he wasn’t the only one to exit as a result of the fight. The New York Times reported:

    The chief spokesman for Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. resigned on Wednesday in protest over the administration’s push to allow major tobacco companies to begin selling flavored vapes that appeal to children. His departure came one day after the head of the Food and Drug Administration quit for the same reason.

    In a letter to Mr. Trump, obtained by The New York Times, the spokesman, Rich Danker, did not blame the president. … But he warned that authorizing flavored e-cigarettes would draw more children into vaping and increase their risk for a number of health issues, from addiction to cancer. [True!]

    The Times’ report added that Danker is the second assistant secretary for public affairs to quit during Kennedy’s tenure: The first, Thomas Corry, resigned last year, in part to protest the secretary’s handling of a measles outbreak in Texas.

    […] other vacancies the department is dealing with right now.
    – FDA commissioner
    – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director
    – surgeon general
    – Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research director

    While we’re at it, the CDC’s principal deputy director also recently resigned, as did Kennedy’s choice to help lead the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.

    The list of problems at Kennedy’s HHS could fill a lengthy book, but his personnel problems are among the most endemic

  9. says

    Associated Press report, as summarized by Steve Benen:

    Louisiana Republicans are moving forward with a new congressional map that will eliminate one of the state’s two majority-Black districts. The next step is a vote in the state Senate, which could come as early as Thursday.

    New York Times report, as summarized by Steve Benen:

    Similarly, in South Carolina, Republican Gov. Henry McMaster is expected to call a legislative special session focused specifically on erasing the state’s only majority-Black district.

    Atlanta Journal constitution report, as summarized by Steve Benen:

    […] in Georgia, Republican Gov. Brian Kemp is also calling the state legislature back for a special session, also focused on redistricting, though unlike South Carolina and Louisiana, this plan would not take effect until after this year’s election cycle.

    New York Times:

    The biggest donor in the midterm elections is not Elon Musk, or George Soros, or any of the other billionaires who are often thought to wield the fattest wallets in politics. It is a venture capital firm: Andreessen Horowitz.

  10. says

    Even the Initially Hesitant Southern States Have Now Joined GOP Race to Eliminate Black Political Representation

    In the aftermath of the Supreme Court ruling earlier this month that struck down Louisiana’s second Black-majority congressional district in Louisiana v. Callais, red states across the South jumped at the new opportunity to gerrymander away the majority-minority districts in their states, in a blatant scramble to severely cut back Black electoral power. This week the Republican race to redistrict ahead of the midterms continues at a dizzying pace, with some states that initially appeared hesitant now jumping into the fray.

    Here’s the latest.

    In Alabama, the Supreme Court vacated a lower court’s decision this week that had, up until this point, blocked the state from using a 2023 map that had only one majority-Black district. The state’s current map has two majority-Black districts, which became a requirement when the lower court blocked the GOP-drawn 2023 map.

    The state can use the 2023 map for now, though there is ongoing litigation and it might be blocked again. Alabama Republican Gov. Kay Ivey is pushing ahead under the assumption that Alabama will be allowed to use it and called a special election for August 11, which will serve as a primary for the districts it redraws.

    Primaries are already scheduled for May 19, but Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen said that the regular May primaries will still take place, but votes in the four congressional districts impacted by the 2023 maps will be tossed and replaced with the votes from the additional special primary in August. [“Votes will be tossed.” Sheesh!]

    Meanwhile in South Carolina … Earlier this week, the state Senate rejected a new gerrymandered map proposal with five Republicans voting with state Dems to defy Trump’s calls for them to redistrict ahead of the midterms [good news]. The defiance was, for a moment, a brief brightspot in the distressing news cycle. South Carolina’s Republican Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey defended his vote against redistricting by saying that many in power have “lost their way.”

    But, as of Wednesday, redistricting is back on the table [bad news] after reports surfaced that the state’s GOP Gov. Henry McMaster is expected to call a special session on redistricting, leaving open the possibility for the state to approve a map that specifically targets Rep. Jim Clyburn’s (D-SC) district.

    Louisiana is also on track to approve a new gerrymandered map. The Louisiana Senate and Governmental Affairs Committee moved forward a proposal that would give Republicans a 5-1 advantage in the state. The proposal now heads to the state Senate floor for approval.

    Mississippi GOP Gov. Tate Reeves said this week that he is canceling a special session on judicial redistricting on May 20, but emphasized that the state would redraw congressional districts prior to the 2027 election.

    And, finally, in Georgia, GOP Gov. Brian Kemp announced a special session on redistricting for June 17, which will allow him to sign off on new gerrymandered maps for 2028 before he leaves office. Kemp always wanted to redraw maps for 2028, but he initially said the state would not redistrict ahead of the 2026 midterms. However, it appears someone may have convinced him of the riskiness of waiting with a gubernatorial race with no incumbent ahead of the state this fall.

    […] Trump Admin Expands its 2020 Redux Probe to Wisconsin [details of concerning the Wisconsin probe; the investigations in Fulton County, Georgia, Maricopa County, Arizona, and Wayne County, Michigan are available at the link. There’s also a note concerning the Trump administration’s directions to the FBI to seize voter data and voting records.]

  11. says

    Vance cuts off Medicaid funding to California families out of spite

    On Wednesday, the Trump administration announced that $1.3 billion in vital Medicaid funding would be deferred for six months for unspecified “fraud,” a significant financial punishment to the residents of a state that have voted overwhelmingly against President Donald Trump in every election he has run in.

    Vice President JD Vance made the announcement at a White House event, insinuating that money sent to the state has been used for people committing fraud who are “getting rich.” The decision came after Trump appointed Vance to lead an “anti-fraud” task force, which has been the administration’s cover for attacks on states led by Democrats.

    California officials immediately called out the partisan attack.

    “We hate fraud. But that’s NOT what this is,” Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office said in a post. “Vance and [Dr. Mehmet] Oz are attacking programs that keep seniors and people with disabilities OUT of nursing homes. Pretty sick.”

    Democratic Sen. Alex Padilla was even more blunt, writing, “The Trump Administration is attacking California over claims that they can’t back up. Let’s be real, this isn’t about fraud—it’s about punishing a state that didn’t vote for him. Political retribution plain and simple.”

    California Attorney General Rob Bonta said that “California appears to be targeted solely for political reasons.” Bonta said his team would be reviewing the action and that “we have not hesitated to challenge unlawful actions by the Trump Administration, and we will continue to act whenever Californians’ rights or access to critical services are threatened.”

    The accusation of fraud in California’s Medicaid program is a distinct echo of the debunked claims Trump made about the use of federal money in Minnesota. Trump, basing his claims on edited video from a racist YouTube content creator, used those claims as an excuse for his armed federal invasion of the state while making a series of racist comments about Somali immigrants. […]

    Yes, there is evidence of fraud in California. However, California is already addressing that problem, just as Minnesota was doing before Trump barged in with ICE thugs and made things much, much worse. Also, both Trump and Vance lied about the extent of fraud in Minnesota, about the Somali community, and about the effectiveness of Minnesota’s efforts to combat fraud. Trump and Vance are looking for excuses to withhold funds from Democratic-leaning states.

  12. says

    Supreme Court allows abortion pill to remain available by mail nationwide

    “The decision indefinitely blocks an appeals court ruling that would have restricted availability of the drug, especially in states with strict anti-abortion laws.”

    The Supreme Court on Thursday ensured that the abortion pill mifepristone can continue to be available by mail without an in-person appointment with a clinician.

    A ruling by the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on May 1 had imperiled widespread access to the pill. Now, the Supreme Court has granted emergency requests brought by drugmakers Danco Laboratories and GenBioPro seeking to block that ruling.

    The decision, a loss for the state of Louisiana, ensures there will not be any disruption to the availability of the drug as litigation continues. […]

    Two conservative members of the court, Justice Clarence Thomas and Justice Samuel Alito, dissented.

    […] The FDA is currently reviewing the safety protocols for mifepristone, meaning that availability by mail could still be overturned. Louisiana’s lawsuit “not only would disrupt FDA’s ongoing review, and usurp FDA’s scientific role, but would also threaten chaos,” the Justice Department told the appeals court. […]

    Good news for now … could still turn into bad news later.

  13. says

    MS NOW:

    Chinese leader Xi Jinping offered stark warnings about avoiding possible clashes between his nation and the U.S. on Thursday, and even cautioned visiting President Donald Trump that Washington’s handling of its relations with Taiwan could lead to ‘conflicts.’

    Meanwhile, Trump was basically obsequious. He repeatedly told Xi that he was “a great leader.” Trump’s body language was also subservient, with Trump almost bowing toward Xi as he leaned in to talk and to press Xi’s hands.

    Trump’s whole approach was more person-to person friendship and less serious than Xi. For example, Xi did not bring along an entourage of rich businessmen and family members. Trump did. Trump called Xi his friend [repeatedly and effusively]. Xi did not return the compliment.

    Video

    Trump want’s to come back to the USA with a claim that China will buy Boeing’s planes, American beef, and American soy beans. He wants deals that benefit Apple, etc.

    Trump looks weak.

  14. says

    Washington Post:

    The Trump administration planned to start work at the site of the president’s proposed triumphal arch by piggybacking on an existing, unrelated contract for engineering services at the White House grounds more than a mile away, emails obtained by The Washington Post show.

  15. says

    MS NOW:

    Miami residents sued President Donald Trump, Miami Dade College and Florida state officials on Wednesday, alleging that the decision to donate an iconic stretch of downtown Miami property for Trump’s future presidential library — which might also house a hotel — is unconstitutional.

  16. says

    ‘No idea it was coming’: Pentagon officials stunned by Hegseth decision on troops in Poland

    “It wasn’t clear why the Defense secretary issued the order not to send troops on a routine mission to a country the administration refers to as a’“model ally.’ ”

    Pete Hegseth’s last-minute decision to cancel the deployment of 4,000 troops to Poland caught Pentagon staff and European allies by surprise — the latest example of an abrupt personnel move from the Defense secretary that blindsided both sides of the Atlantic.

    It wasn’t clear exactly why Hegseth issued the order, according to three defense officials familiar with the matter. President Donald Trump has repeatedly expressed anger and frustration with European allies for their failure to help with the Iran war, although Trump has labeled Poland a “model ally” for its high defense spending.

    The decision was even more surprising because troops and equipment had already started to arrive in the country. It sent fresh waves of anxiety through European capitals and inside the Pentagon on Thursday about whether such moves could embolden Russia — and which ally might turn into the next target.

    “We had no idea this was coming,” said one of the U.S. officials, adding that European and American officials have spent the last 24 hours on the phone trying to understand the decision and figure out if more surprises are coming.

    […] The 4,000 Texas-based troops were preparing to leave on a long-planned nine month rotation to Poland that includes training with NATO allies when the order to halt came through. The cancellation of this routine mission is especially unusual given that American troops stationed on the continent are a key deterrent to Russia.

    […]

  17. says

    Streeting quits Starmer’s Cabinet as Burnham finds a way back — as it happened

    “The besieged British prime minister’s rivals spent the day clearing major hurdles to a run against him.”

    Keir Starmer’s potential rivals for the Labour leadership took leaps forward Thursday — but none yet has a clear path to oust the struggling prime minister.

    Health Secretary Wes Streeting resigned from Starmer’s government with a blast at the leadership “vacuum” from the current PM — yet he is keeping his powder dry on a direct leadership challenge to the embattled British prime minister amid speculation he does not yet have the backers required to launch.

    In a further twist Thursday, Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has now found a route back into parliament that would let him challenge Starmer: Makerfield MP Josh Simons is standing aside to trigger a by-election in his seat. Burnham will have to contest it — and could still be blocked from running by Labour higher-ups.

    And Angela Rayner, another potential leadership hopeful popular on the party’s left-win, announced that a probe into her tax affairs had concluded — removing a significant barrier for any run at the top job. […]

    More at the link.

  18. JM says

    AP News: Emails show FBI Director Kash Patel’s Hawaii trip included ‘VIP snorkel’ at a Pearl Harbor memorial

    When Kash Patel visited Hawaii last summer, the FBI took pains to note the director was not on vacation, highlighting his walking tour of the bureau’s Honolulu field office and meetings with local law enforcement.
    Left out of the FBI’s news releases was an exclusive excursion that Patel took days later when he participated in what government officials described as a “VIP snorkel” around the USS Arizona in an outing coordinated by the military. The sunken battleship entombs more than 900 sailors and Marines at Pearl Harbor.

    This is just so stupidly bizarre I had to check multiple times that it wasn’t The Onion. It’s blindly offensive on a vast scale, using a war memorial as an adventure vacation spot. The combination of stupidity, alcohol and obliviousness that could produce this is just nuts and certainly shouldn’t be allowed in a government official. It’s what you expect from a bad tasteless influencer that has been drinking during their glamorous vacation tour.

  19. Militant Agnostic says

    Lynna @16

    ‘No idea it was coming’: Pentagon officials stunned by Hegseth decision on troops in Poland

    I suspect the girl that took Hegseth’s GI Joe doll away from him when he was a child was of Polish descent.

  20. says

    Militant Agnostic @19, LOL

    In other humorous interpretations of the news:

    BEIJING (The Borowitz Report)—President Xi Jinping’s humiliation of Donald J. Trump peaked on Thursday when the Chinese leader used a joint appearance to read aloud from the Epstein Files.

    Standing at a podium barely three feet away from his American counterpart, a stony-faced Xi recited a series of damning allegations about Trump that the DOJ’s redaction team had somehow missed.

    While the assembled press listened with rapt attention, Trump appeared oblivious to Xi’s audacious effort to embarrass him.

    “He’s a true friend,” Trump later said of Xi. “He said my name many, many times.”

    https://www.borowitzreport.com/p/xi-humiliates-trump-by-reading-aloud

    Satire

  22. birgerjohansson says

    Lynna @ 17
    Streeting is very pro-Israeli, I hope the other one replaces Starmer.

  27. StevoR says

    Whilst here in Adelaide, SA, in our Parklands on unceded Kaurna land today :

    … eight people (peaceful protesters -ed) have been arrested at the North Adelaide Golf Course redevelopment site (Pirltawardli – Possum Park – Public Park land & indigenous Kaurna land – ed) this morning. Officers were called to the premises on War Memorial Drive, North Adelaide at about 6.45am to reports of trespassers (peaceful protesters – ed) on the site. (Where nearly 600 trees including ancient giants older than any human now alive and full of tree hollows providing vital shelter for naive fauna inluding endnageered species -ed.)

    SAPOL said four people allegedly found inside the site were arrested and charged with being unlawfully on premises.(Whicha r epublic klands scared o the Kaurna People and meant to open to everyone. -ed.)

    A 27-year-old woman who allegedly chained herself to the outside of the site was arrested and charged with obstructing a public place and resisting arrest. A further three women, including a 78-year-old woman with a walker, were arrested at about 9.30am after also allegedly entering the site.

    Source : https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-05-15/eight-arrested-north-adelaide-golf-course-police-say/106684474

  29. StevoR says

    @27. “premises” – Its our parklands! Public lands! For .. pities sake!

    Fix :

    “”…unlawfully on “premises.” (Which are public lands sacred to the Kaurna People and meant to open to everyone. -ed.)

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