Linkee-poo dragged by the force of some other tide

"House lawmakers voted to impeach President Trump on Wednesday in only the third such rebuke in American history." Now comes the hard work. "The nation endured its hottest-ever day on Tuesday, but that record was smashed again on Wednesday - which saw an average maximum of 41.9C (107.4F)." Fine. We're all fine here, how about you? Note the temperature map has been recalibrated after they had to introduce new colors last year to show the extent of the heat wave. "Koyawena is one of 25 artists from more than a dozen Southwestern tribes taking part in the art exhibit 'The Force Is With Our People.' The pieces reflect Star Wars themes, such as endurance and rebellion, that have resonated powerfully with the franchise's devotees for decades. As it turns out though, Star Wars also speaks strongly to the historical experiences of many in the Southwest's Indigenous communities." The Throughline podcast with, "A record number of Americans have died from opioid overdoses in recent years. But how did we get here? And is this the first time Americans have faced this crisis? The short answer: no. Three stories of opioids that have plagued Americans for more than 150 years." Not discussed, our current drug laws, including the 4 tiered-schedule of drugs, came about because of opium (morphine and heroin) use in patent medicine in the early 20th century. The story is snake-oil did nothing for you. On the contrary. It got you high. "The Centers for Disease Control is investigating a multi-state outbreak of a drug-resistant infection that they believe is linked to contact with pet store puppies." "Your phone's blue light might not be disrupting your sleep pattern after all, or at least not as much as night mode does. That's the word from University of Manchester scientists, who said Monday that looking at cooler-colored lights in the evening and warmer colors in the daytime 'may be more beneficial to our health.' The body clock uses the dim and blue appearance of twilight to determine when to sleep, they say." What all these "studies" (which aren't really studies, but computer scientists missing that the "scientist" in their graduate degree doesn't mean what they think it means) miss is that there are many more qualities to light than just color (or temperature as we say in the biz). (Grokked from Chuck Wendig) "Chili peppers aren’t for the faint of heart, but maybe they should be. Scientists in Italy say the spice slashes the mortality rate from heart attack and cerebrovascular disease (which restricts blood flow to the brain and includes strokes and aneurysms)." Capsaicin is both a vaso-dilator as well as a blood "thinner", although the article doesn't point this out. "The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit does not want to strike down the entire Affordable Care Act less than a year before the election. But it may still invalidate the whole law—from Medicaid expansion to tax credits to protections for preexisting conditions—if given the right opportunity down the road." I'll note there still is no conservative plan to replace Obamacare except, "what we had before." Which was why we have Obamacare. "President Donald Trump on Wednesday night again addressed the plumbing issues of Americans, telling a crowd at a Michigan rally that 'women tell me' about how they have to repeatedly run their dishwashers." The president is rolling back those terrible regulations that reduced fresh water and electrical use. Because people are running their dishwashers "12 times" and flushing the toilet "8 times." And apparently only women use dishwashers. "Wakanda's free trade agreement with the United States wasn't forever… Until Wednesday afternoon, the fictional country from the popular 2018 Marvel superhero movie 'Black Panther' was listed as a free trade agreement partner of the United States on the Agricultural Tariff Tracker maintained by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service." Supposedly it was "test" data that was inadvertently left up. Uh huh.

Another day in America… "Police are searching for five suspects after four people were shot at a San Antonio mall Wednesday night, officials said." "A Pennsylvania man accused in the recent vandalism of a Beverly Hills synagogue was arrested in Hawaii and is being charged being charged under a hate crime enhancement, police said Wednesday." Well, if you're going to be arrested, might as well make it Hawaii. "Congress is set to pass a $1.4 trillion spending package this week, which President Trump has said he'll sign. The legislation includes policy changes and funding increases that public health advocates are celebrating, as well as the permanent repeal of three key taxes that were designed to pay for Obamacare — a win for industry groups." There's a lot in this bill, and I'm sure there's a lot more that won't come out until after it's passed. How goes Brexit? "It means Johnson looks certain to finally pass a Brexit deal in Parliament on Friday after years of political deadlock, a huge symbolic moment that will ensure Britain leaves the European Union next month… So Brexit will be 'done,' right?… The most likely answer is no." Boris Johnson is promising to enact Brexit on Jan 31. This will likely be a hard Brexit. But Johnson is saying he'll have a comprehensive trade deal with the EU by Christmas 2020, which nobody thinks is actually likely. Deals like that take years. So unless he's planning on adopting a deal like the Nordic countries have, which is unlikely, he's not going to have anything. Not to mention, he needs to negotiate a trade deal with every other country the UK wants to do a lot of business with at the same time. All while dealing with Scotland which may break with the UK, defining the border in Northern Ireland, and passing all the legislation necessary once the EU regulations are no longer in effect. And finally, while Conservatives have the majority, not all conservatives agree about how Brexit should be implemented. "The people of Scotland have already rejected the U.K.'s political agenda, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon says – and now she wants them to vote in a public referendum on leaving the U.K. altogether. Sturgeon says she's sending Prime Minister Boris Johnson a letter formally requesting that Scotland be allowed to hold a vote on its future." Here we go. How go the Trade Wars? "The trade war between the US and China may never be settled, experts fear, even after the two sides agreed on an outline 'phase one' deal." Oh look, somebody has actually sobered up. "Also, there are more rounds of talks to go before an official signing of this phase one deal." There is no deal. On the Media podcast with the rise of nationalism in India… "As Indian historian Romila Thapar recently wrote in The New York Times, 'extreme nationalists require their own particular version of the past to legitimize their actions in the present.; Producer Asthaa Chaturvedi examines how Hindu nationalists are rewriting Indian history in the world’s largest democracy, with journalist Shoaib Daniyal, political scientist Christophe Jaffrelot, and sociology professor Nandini Sundar." The playbook is exactly the same everywhere (including the US). "Fox News host Tucker Carlson ripped into immigrants in the nation’s capital, accusing them without evidence of contaminating the Potomac River." Sad racist yells at clouds. "Last month, Okafor made history in the larger community: The attorney and small-business owner became the first immigrant and first person of color elected as a councilor in the small, overwhelmingly white city. Okafor's election is part of a growing wave of women of color who are running for political office, and winning."

"Republican Rep. Mark Meadows, one of President Donald Trump's most visible allies on Capitol Hill, is not seeking reelection in 2020, he announced in a statement Thursday." Someone's auditioning for their next role, which may not go to production. "Meadows' decision to step away from Congress makes him the 21st House Republican to announce they won't run for reelection in 2020."

"'The United States and Tennessee have always been, since the very founding of our nation, a shining beacon of freedom and opportunity for the persecuted and oppressed, and particularly those suffering religious persecution,' (Gov. Bill) Lee wrote. 'My commitment to these ideals is based on my faith, personally visiting refugee camps on multiple continents, and my years of experience ministering to refugees here in Tennessee.'… Lee’s consent is valid for only one year." And the state legislature disagrees.

"The extraordinary order, signed by Judge Rosemary Collyer, presiding judge of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, requires officials to submit an explanation in writing about how they're remediating the problems identified by the recent inspector general report about the Russia investigation." Somebody is in trouble.

"President Donald Trump attacked Democratic Rep. Debbie Dingell and her late husband, Rep. John Dingell, during a rally on Wednesday, implying the former congressman was 'looking up' from hell." The president is trash.

"Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) warned on Wednesday that if Rudy Giuliani, President Trump's personal lawyer, is going to publicly suggest a 'cover-up' involving the Bidens and Ukraine 'then I hope you know what you're talking about.'" Keep wishing, Lindsey.

"One of the things that has been lost in the smog of disinformation, misinformation, and lies throughout this impeachment process is that the president, Rudy Giuliani, and select members of the House and Senate are still peddling, as an affirmative defense to claims that the Trump tried to extort Ukraine into 2020 election interference, the idea that Ukraine—not Russia—meddled in the 2016 election, and that Joe and Hunter Biden have committed vast crimes of corruption… The former claim is a Russian hoax. The latter is a lie." One side of this doesn't accept the truth, because they can't.

"'First and foremost, U.S. military aid represents a physical manifestation of American support, which is essential,' (Lt. Gen. Ben) Hodges told NPR in an interview. 'No. 2, the actual capabilities have provided help: The Javelins provided a deterrent effect; the counterfire radar has helped save lives because of the early warning it provided.'"

"Russian President Vladimir Putin said in his annual news conference Thursday that US President Donald Trump's impeachment was based on 'made-up reasons,' and expressed doubts that Trump will be removed from power." Go home, Sergei, you're drunk. Again, for Putin this is win-win. If Trump is removed, the political upheaval will advance his cause. However he's not going to like the rebound if that happens. With the impeachment, however, Putin's window of opportunity has been cut in half.

"House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff accused Vice President Mike Pence of refusing to declassify information 'directly relevant' to the impeachment inquiry in order to conceal his role in the quid pro quo scheme for which President Trump is being impeached." Ask not for whom the bell tolls.