Ayman al Zawahiri, goodbye, asshole.
"Other high-profile airstrikes in the past had inadvertently killed innocent civilians. In this case, the U.S. carefully chose to use a type of Hellfire missile that greatly minimized the chance of other casualties. Although U.S. officials have not publicly confirmed which variant of the Hellfire was used, experts and others familiar with counterterrorism operations said a likely option was the highly secretive Hellfire R9X — know by various nicknames, including the 'knife bomb' or the 'flying Ginsu.'"
"American horror novelist Stephen King is taking on a new monster: corporate consolidation… The author was the star witness in an anti-trust trial to block the two biggest US publishers' $2.2bn merger… The US Department of Justice called on King to testify about how the proposed tie-up of Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster could affect authors."
"New research shows that rainwater in most locations on Earth contains levels of chemicals that "greatly exceed" safety levels… These synthetic substances called PFAS are used in non-stick pans, fire-fighting foam and water-repellent clothes… Dubbed 'forever chemicals', they persist for years in the environment… Such is their prevalence now that scientists say there is no safe space on Earth to avoid them."
"Tiger Woods turned down an offer that Greg Norman says was 'somewhere in that neighborhood' of $700 million to $800 million to take part in the Saudi-funded LIV Golf series." At least Tiger knows it's blood money.
"The world is now enduring greater stress than any time in recent decades, according to U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres. And while humanity has so far avoided "the suicidal mistake of nuclear conflict," he said, tensions are hitting new highs at a time when many lessons of the past seem forgotten… 'Today, humanity is just one misunderstanding, one miscalculation away from nuclear annihilation,' the world's top diplomat said at a U.N. conference on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons in New York City." And our leaders are really rusty at brinksmanship.
"The father of a 6-year-old boy killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting testified Tuesday that conspiracy theorist Alex Jones made his life a 'living hell' by pushing claims that the murders were a hoax involving actors aimed at increasing gun control."
"House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., landed in Taiwan late Tuesday evening local time, and she is expected to meet members of Taiwan's legislature and President Tsai Ing-wen on Wednesday, according to a source familiar with planning for her visit."
"Meanwhile, in Michigan, one of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump was ousted, while the matchup was set for what will be one of the key gubernatorial races this fall. And in Missouri, the political comeback of a former governor was shut down… In Arizona, local elections officials were still counting votes, but some of the slate of statewide candidates who were endorsed by former President Donald Trump and promoted his lies about election fraud won their Republican primaries, CNN projects."
"Voters in Kansas rejected a proposed state constitutional amendment Tuesday that would have said there was no right to an abortion in the state, according to The Associated Press." And they did is with a double-digit margin.
"Mark Finchem, a prominent 2020 election denier and an Arizona state legislator, has won the Republican secretary of state primary, NBC News projects."
"Rep. Peter Meijer of Michigan, one of 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach former President Donald Trump last year, has lost to a fervent election denier running with Trump's support, CNN projected early Wednesday."
"Tucked inside the sprawling Senate compromise bill for climate change and health care is an effort, years in the making, to close what Democrats say is a loophole that benefits a handful of the richest Americans: the carried interest tax… But it has long been controversial because this kind of income is currently taxed at a much lower rate than the salary most Americans earn from ordinary jobs." Unfortunately it doesn't eliminate the loophole, but extends the time necessary to hold the money from 3 to 5 years to qualify for only 20% capital gains tax. Note, when you make that much money, banks are positively tripping over themselves to loan you money based on that capital.
"The U.S. Senate, in a bipartisan 86-11 vote, approved a measure to provide health care and benefits for millions of veterans injured by exposure to toxins, from Agent Orange in Vietnam to burn pits in Iraq and Afghanistan." In case you think outrage has a place in politics, here's an example where the GOP looked at the blowback and changed course.
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