Category: Uncategorized

Nearly 25 hours after its launch from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Dragon capsule and its crew of four–two Americans, a Russian and an Emirati–will dock with the International Space Station at a target time of 1:17 a.m. ET Monday.  The seven crew already aboard the ISS, including commander Nicole Aunapu Mann, the first Native American woman to fly to space, will return to Earth over the next month in two separate flights, while the new crew will begin a six-month mission on the ISS.

Citing a new state law that attempts to remove the criminal stigma attached to enjoying artistic expressions like rap songs, a California appeals court threw out the murder conviction of a man because prosecutors used a music video as evidence during the trial, ABC News reports.

The Riverside court ruled Travon Rashan Venable, Sr.’s conviction at trial for a 2004 drive-by shooting was invalid because prosecutors showed the jury a music video in which Venable appeared, but did not say anything, while a rapper described the shooting for which Venable was later convicted.  The court said that nothing in the video implied intimate knowledge of the shooting by anyone in the video, and that the rapper’s account was one someone heard.

The “Decriminalizing Artistic Expression Act” signed by Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom last September seeks to ensure “creative expression will not be used to introduce stereotypes or activate bias against the defendant, nor as character or propensity evidence.”  The court ruled that although the law was not in effect at the time of Venable’s original conviction, the evidence would not be admitted in an appeal, and it likely impacted the decision of the jury.  Because the case is still under appeal, the court ruled the new law applied and overturned the conviction, saying the admission of the video likely prejudiced the jury against Venable.

“The hills to die on of the Democrat [sic] Party today [rattle rattle rattle]…it’s, honestly, it’s demonic at this point, right?  Whether it’s the transgender issue, cutting parents out of their children’s lives, allowing a three-year-old to make decisions while they’re, permanently life-altering decisions when they couldn’t buy a pack of cigarettes for another fifteen years.  It’s absolute insanity.  That pendulum has swung so far, they’re saying the quiet parts out loud and the American people are seeing it.  It’s why I’m on, doing a podcast.  We have to get it out there because that’s being covered up by media, by Big Tech–“

See, libs!  It’s not just George Santos!  The House Ethics Committee announced it will continue an investigation into the gifts and services Democratic New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez received when she attended the 2021 Met Gala.

“As part of her attendance, Rep. Ocasio-Cortez was provided with a couture dress, handbag, shoes, and jewelry. She also received hair, makeup, transportation, and ready-room services. Riley Roberts (AOC’s partner) received a bowtie and shoes in advance of the event,” the 18-page report says, noting that AOC did not pay the costs of those services and goods, estimated to be in the thousands of dollars, until the Ethics Committee inquired with her office about what she received.

The committee notes Ocasio-Cortez may have violated  House Rule XXV, clause 5, which states “the term ‘gift’ means a gratuity, favor, discount, entertainment, hospitality, loan, forbearance, or other item having monetary value. The term includes gifts of services, training, transportation, lodging, and meals, whether provided in kind, by purchase of a ticket, payment in advance, or reimbursement after the expense has been incurred.”

Down goes Murdaugh pic.twitter.com/UR4140FuzE

— O.J. Simpson (@TheRealOJ32) March 3, 2023

Democratic California Senator Diane Feinstein, the oldest member of Congress, has been hospitalized in California for the treatment of shingles, ABC News reports.

“I was diagnosed over the February recess with a case of shingles. I have been hospitalized and am receiving treatment in San Francisco and expect to make a full recovery,” Feinstein said in a statement. “I hope to return to the Senate later this month.”  The 89-year-old has announced she will not seek reelection in 2024.

For the fourth time in recent weeks, anti-Semitic fliers were found around the football and track facilities of Northwood High School in Silver Spring, leading to the school district ending public access to the school grounds, the Washington Post reports.  The public will no longer be allowed on the school’s sports fields or tennis courts.

The incident in Montgomery County, one of the wealthiest counties in the nation, is the latest in the school system where “Jews not welcome” was spraypainted above a sign at another school.  Several schools have reported finding swastikas drawn on desks and in bathrooms.

In January, a group believed to call itself the “Goyim Defense League” left anti-Semitic fliers on front porches of some houses in Kensington.  The Anti-Defamation League says the “Goyim Defense League” is a group of loosely-affiliated individuals united only by their anti-Semitism and their desire to move out of their stepfathers’ basements.

We haven’t covered it lately, but did early on:  Alex Murdaugh has been found guilty of murdering his wife and son, CNN reports, in the latest “murder of the century” drama.

Far right Florida state Senator Jason Brodeur has introduced a bill to require bloggers who write about Govenor Ron DeSantis and other members of the Florida executive cabinet or legislature to register with the state and report their sources of income or face fines, WFLA reports.

In another hit to East Palestine, Ohio, the Environmental Protection Agency has ordered railroad company Norfolk Southern to test for dioxins at the site of the derailment that resulted in deadly chemicals being dumped by multiple railcars, the Washington Post reports.

Dioxins are toxic chemicals that result from burning plastics; many of the rail cars that burned after the derailment were filled with vinyl chloride, a key component of many plastics including PVC.  It can take years and vast amounts of money to remediate an area contaminated by dioxins.

“Over the last few weeks, I’ve sat with East Palestine residents and community leaders in their homes, businesses, churches, and schools. I’ve heard their fears and concerns directly, and I’ve pledged that these experiences would inform EPA’s ongoing response efforts,” EPA Administrator Michael Regan said, noting that dioxin contamination is a “low probability” at this point, but to allay community concerns, he is ordering the test.

This screencap from the CPAC conference depicts the personification of Republican positions on sexual harassment and abuse:  Matt Schlapp, überconservative leader of CPAC on the right, recently accused by a male Herschel Walker campaign staffer of groping the man without permission–we’ll leave Schlapp’s anti-LBGTQ policies and outward homophobia for psychologists to deconstruct–standing next to Jim Jordan, a Republican Party leader who ignored repeated reports and locker room whispers about a team medical professional molesting members of the wrestling team Jordan coached–just like he made excuses for Donald Trump’s misogyny.  There isn’t enough sanitizer in the world available after they shake hands.  (Oh, and yes, we’ll cop to flipping the photo to match the snappy headline.)

Presumptive Republican presidential candidate and nominal Florida Governor Ron DeSantis will abandon the state he’s set on destroying to wander to another GOP hellscape, and although he’s loudly demanded complete transparency from everyone from the President to Twitter to education companies, DeSantis doesn’t feel the need to practice what he preaches.  In typical hypocritical fashion, DeSantis’s speech to the Dallas County Republican Party for Saturday’s Reagan Day Dinner will not be open to the public or the media, according to the Dallas Morning News.

It’s at these closed-door events that Republicans tend to be their most corrupt and vile, and quite obviously.  During one such dinner in 2016 in Washington, DC, current House Speaker pro tem Kevin McCarthy declared, “There’s two people I think Putin pays: Rohrabacher and Trump.”  At a 2013 fundraiser, Mitt Romney was recorded extolling the false claim that “”dependent on the government” and “believe they are victims.”  (Romney later claimed innocence by asserting, “What I said is not what I believe,” in an early version of the GOP’s “truth is not truth” mantra.

“And I’m sick and tired of hearin’ about the family separation,” says Thomas Homan, who as acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director one of the architects of the Trump Administration family separation policy which has left hundreds of children in the United States after their parents were returned to their native countries.  “Y’know, I’m still bein’ sued over that so forgive me, I don’t give a shit. Right?  Bottom line is, we enforce the law.  American families, when I was a cop in New York and I arrest a father for domestic violence or someone for DUI, I separate that family.  When you violate the law with a child, you gonna be separated, but you’re right:  two hundred and fifty thousand have crossed this border since Joe Biden’s been president.  They chose to separate themselves.  And the children aren’t always children.”

Fact check:  252,000 unaccompanied minors have sought asylum at the Southern border in 2021 and 2022; these children were not separated from their parents by the government by definition of being “unaccompanied.”

The bipartisan House Ethics Committee announced an investigation into New York Republican Congressman George Santos on campaign finance violations and sexual misconduct with a job applicant charges, the Washington Post reports.  The committee voted unanimously to form an investigative subcommittee to look into the allegations.

Santos raised red flags by making numerous false claims about his education, work experience, family history, religious heritage and his sexuality that contradict public records or other statements.  He recently changed the way he classified major donations to his campaign which may indicate he violated election finance laws, and he allegedly made a number of disbursements from his campaign account to himself that fell just short of $200 reporting requirements.

A statement from the committee said it would investigate allegations that Santos “engaged in unlawful activity with respect to his 2022 congressional campaign; failed to properly disclose required information on statements filed with the House; violated federal conflict of interest laws in connection with his role in a firm providing fiduciary services; and/or engaged in sexual misconduct towards an individual seeking employment in his congressional office.”

The Justice Department issued an opinion Thursday that allows Capitol Police officers injured in the January 6th Republican-led domestic terrorist attack can sue former president Donald Trump for his encouragement of the crowd, including alleged incitement of violence, the Associated Press reports.

In a filing in federal appeals court, DOJ lawyers apparently argued that Trump was not acting as a government official during his speech and other actions prior to the attack on the Capitol by his supporters, who looked to install Trump to a second term in office despite Joe Biden winning both the popular vote and the Electoral College vote.

Let’s kick it off with these two peas in a male-on-male sexual assault pod. Live thread coming soon.

What makes Trump fanboys especially cunty is their insistence that entire world revolves around them and their grievances, like the whole global pandemic that killed millions was actually a plot with the singular goal of costing Trump the 2020 election, or Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was to distract from the “explosive” allegations that Hillary spied on Donald, or God knows how many similar examples their solipsistic shitbaggery. Greg Steube should go hang out on his roof again.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced Thursday she was targeted last month by a “heavily armed” anti-semitic MAGA terrorist who had threatened to kill Nessel and other Jewish officials in state government before the FBI arrested his white nationalist ass, NBC News reports.

“I’m heading back to Michigan now threatening to carry out the punishment of death to anyone that is jewish in the Michigan govt if they don’t leave, or confess, and now that kind of problem… Because I can Legally do that, right?” tweeted Jack Carpenter III in January. As Carpenter sent the tweet from Texas the threat became a federal crime and this indicted on February 18th.

Seven passengers were hospitalized in Virginia late Wednesday as a Lufthansa flight from Austin, Texas to Frankfurt was forced to make an emergency landing in Virginia after it was hit by lightning and dropped 1,000 feet in altitude amid severe weather over Tennessee, Fox News reports.

That’s some scary shit, right? Imagine being on a plane that gets blasted by a bolt of fucking lightning and then plummets 1,000 feet. That’s terrifying. Must be especially scary to anyone currently on a commercial aircraft, particularly one flying in turbulence and leeward of the same storm just over 10 hours after it nearly took down that Lufthansa flight. We sure feel sorry for the poor saps stuck in that situation, though we also secretly kind of laugh at their misfortune… lol.