Drudge Retort: Dbt2's blog

NASA Crew Emerges after 378 Days: Planning for Mars

Dbt2 — Sun, 01 Nov 2026 21:43:28 -0500

Nov 1 (Reuters) -- The four members of a crew who took part in a simulated mission to Mars have emerged after 378 days in isolation at the US space agency's Johnson Space Center in Houston, an endeavor designed to help prepare for a possible future excursion by NASA astronauts to Earth's planetary neighbor. "It's been a hell of a year -- analog astronauts living in captivity of our own free will," Ellen Ellis, the medical officer on the Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog, or CHAPEA, mission, said in remarks at Johnson Space Center after emerging with her three crewmates on Saturday.

Data Show the U.S. Economy Is Doing Well

Dbt2 — Thu, 29 Oct 2026 19:24:52 -0400

NPR Business: The U.S. economy grew faster in the summer compared to the spring, driven by consumer spending as well as investments in AI. Gross domestic product, which broadly measures economic activity, grew at an annual rate of 3.4% July through September, according to a report from the Commerce Department released Thursday. The previous quarter GDP grew at a 2.2% annual pace. A big driver for GDP growth in the third quarter was the strong investments from AI companies, which continue to build out data centers and spend big money in developing the technology. Meanwhile, consumer spending was another of the big drivers of GDP growth, led in part by higher-income Americans who are better able to withstand stubbornly high inflation.

Today in TN: Men Fined $86K for Illegal Hunting Operation

Dbt2 — Thu, 29 Oct 2026 19:21:45 -0400

JACKSON, Tenn. -- A federal judge has ordered Austin Elrod, 30, of Somerville, Tennessee, to surrender his hunting license for 5 years and to pay a total of $60,000 for an illegal deer hunting operation, according to West Tennessee U.S. District Attorney, D. Michael Dunavant. An investigation by several law enforcement agencies revealed that Elrod was guiding white-tailed deer hunts in the Fayette County area without the required guiding license. The guided hunts were advertised on Facebook and resulted in the illegal harvesting of seven deer throughout the 2021 and 2022 hunting seasons. Elrod's clients included out-of-state hunters from Georgia. One of these hunters was Thomas Boswell, 39, of Barnesville, Georgia. Boswell participated in the guided hunts without a Tennessee hunting license and was responsible for the illegal harvesting of five of the deer. The harvested deer would then be transported to Georgia.

Pentagon: Newly Fired General Leaked Info to Media

Dbt2 — Thu, 29 Oct 2026 19:18:28 -0400

WASHINGTON -- The Pentagon has accused a newly ousted three-star general of leaking sensitive information to the media just hours after officials confirmed his removal from a top military planning post. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth fired Army Lt. Gen. Brett Sylvia as head of strategy, plans and policy for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a defense official said late Wednesday. Typically, the general in the position and their staff are responsible for generating and coordinating military plans for both the chairman of the Joint Chiefs and the president.

After Anti-Arab Remarks, RFK Jr. Pimps Faith-Based Recovery

Dbt2 — Thu, 29 Oct 2026 16:33:20 -0400

Kennedy declined to comment on his remarks questioning Arab contributions to science that drew condemnation as racist and Islamophobic

Crucifix Falls on Priest During Livestream Mass

Dbt2 — Mon, 19 Oct 2026 15:33:40 -0400

A Catholic priest died after a large crucifix fell on top of him while he was leading a mass in Ecuador that was being livestreamed at the time.

Friday Somewhere: Music: Chaos or Not

Dbt2 — Fri, 16 Oct 2026 14:06:04 -0400

Music at link is Anthony Braxton, "To Composer John Cage."

Canada Today: National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

Dbt2 — Wed, 30 Sep 2026 07:19:43 -0400

September 30 marks National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day: Every Child Matters Orange Shirt Day. Every Child Matters began in Williams Lake, British Columbia, on September 30, 2013. Established to honour Residential School Survivors, their families, and those who never returned home, it serves as a powerful reminder of the lasting impacts of the Residential School system. What began as a grassroots initiative has since evolved into a nationally recognized movement, with individuals, organizations, and communities across Canada participating in acts of remembrance, reflection, and reconciliation each year.

California Mandates Safeguards Against 3D-Printed Guns

Dbt2 — Tue, 29 Sep 2026 11:32:15 -0400

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law The Firearm Printing Prevention Act (AB 2047). This groundbreaking legislation will help stop the next generation of ghost guns before they are made by requiring consumer 3D printers sold in California to incorporate technology that identifies and blocks attempts to print firearms and illegal firearm parts.

Dearborn Defends: Accusations of Favoring Muslim holidays

Dbt2 — Sat, 19 Sep 2026 21:29:38 -0400

DEARBORN, Mich. (AP) -- The city of Dearborn responded Saturday to a lawsuit accusing it of celebrating Muslim holidays and ignoring religious holidays of other faiths by blaming attacks against it on its diversity and "welcoming nature." A statement from the Detroit suburb issued by a spokesperson came in response to a lawsuit on Thursday that accused the city and its mayor of spending thousands of dollars to celebrate Muslim holidays while ignoring Christian and Jewish holidays. The lawsuit in federal court revived complaints about city government that arose a year ago after the Dearborn mayor, Abdullah Hammoud, told Ted Barham, a local pastor, that he was not welcome in the city and he would stage a parade when he left. The lawsuit by Margot Cleveland, a journalist for The Federalist, accused the city and its mayor, a Democrat, of favoring the Muslim faith over other religious beliefs in a city with a population of over 100,000 people that is majority Arab American.

Mass Murder on Manhattan: Bloody Legacy of Dutch Settlers

Dbt2 — Sat, 19 Sep 2026 01:07:05 -0400

Settler colonialism is not a story of friendly relations throughout. The confrontation with an unfamiliar other creates wariness and suspicion and often leads to violent outbursts in which non-combatants become innocent victims. The story of Manhattan in the seventeenth century was no exception, as the bloody conflict between Dutch settlers and Native Americans in 1643 shows. On the evening of 25 February 1643, soldiers and settlers of the colony of New Netherland massacred a large number of Native American men, women, and children belonging to Munsee nations on and around Manhattan. The victims were surprised in their sleep. They had assumed they were safe because they had recently sought shelter near New Amsterdam from Indigenous enemies. Dutch sources indicate that at least eighty and perhaps up to one hundred and twenty Munsees were murdered.

Alvarado, Peru 1969: Master Will No Longer Feed Off Poverty

Dbt2 — Fri, 18 Sep 2026 21:45:14 -0400

Here is the translated transcript of the defining, concluding portion of General Juan Velasco Alvarado's historic address delivered on June 24, 1969, which announced the Agrarian Reform Law and fundamentally shifted the social structure of Peru:

Pentagon Staffers use Unflattering Nickname for Pete Hegseth's Wife

Dbt2 — Fri, 18 Sep 2026 20:32:22 -0400

Unnamed sources told The Daily Mail that she has a hand in managing the defense secretary's activities and public image.

Author Won't Read Aloud 1st Chapter of Climate Change Novel

Dbt2 — Fri, 18 Sep 2026 08:54:07 -0400

NEW YORK (AP) -- Kim Stanley Robinson, author of one of the most famous novels on climate change, says he has done more than 600 speaking events since "The Ministry for the Future" was published in 2020 -- but he won't read the first chapter out loud. In those opening pages, a prolonged heat wave grips a large swath of northern India. Told from the perspective of an aid worker named Frank, the book starts with a breakdown of the electrical grid, generators that run out of fuel and high temperatures combined with high humidity that lead to death everywhere. Unable to get relief, people die on rooftops, on the streets and in a lake. In the end, the heat kills 20 million people. "I just have this instinctive sense, no, this is too harsh," said Robinson during an interview with The Associated Press last month. "This is too ... I'm not willing to read this one aloud."

Washington Weighs Repealing Climate Rule Covering 1.38 Billion Tons of CO2

Dbt2 — Mon, 14 Sep 2026 12:31:36 -0400

A methodical dismantling of the regulatory framework: The rule in question, known as the Carbon Pollution Standards, was finalized in April 2024 under the Biden administration. It required existing coal plants and new high-utilization gas plants to adopt carbon capture and storage technologies.