Children under 18 would be shielded from personalized social media algorithms between 9 p.m. and 8 a.m. under legislation approved Wednesday in the state House of Representatives. read more
An overwhelming majority of Canadians believe the country's relationship with the US has permanently changed, as President Donald Trump's tariffs and sovereignty threats spark widespread fury in the northern nation. read more
In the last year of Joe Biden's presidency, some members of his Cabinet lacked confidence the president could be relied on to respond to a crisis in the middle of the night, CNN's Jake Tapper and Axios' Alex Thompson write in their new book, "Original Sin." CNN on Wednesday first reported that revelation from the book, which also describes how Biden's inner circle shielded him from several Cabinet members "for months" at a time in 2023 and 2024.
fcil ter respeito por aqueles que pensam de forma parecida com a nossa, mas preciso aprender que o fundamento da democracia o respeito por quem pensa diferente. --- Jos Mujica "Estou morrendo", diz Mujica ao anunciar que no tratar mais o cncer. Exame, 9 jan. 2025.
As Jeanine Pirro prepares to become U.S. attorney in D.C., Trump loyalist Ed Martin is taking over the Justice Department's effort to investigate Trump's investigators.
More about Moody ...
Moody's Ratings
en.wikipedia.org
... Role in capital markets
Together, Moody's, S&P and Fitch are sometimes referred to as the Big Three credit rating agencies. While credit rating agencies are sometimes viewed as interchangeable, Moody's, S&P and Fitch have different methodologies.[7]
All three operate worldwide, maintaining offices on six continents, and rating tens of trillions of dollars in securities. However, only Moody's Corporation is a free-standing company.[8] ...
@#12 ... KY is getting hammered pretty good right now. ...
Back in the early 1970's I was living in the good state of Kentucky.
One day at work, the power was fluctuating. So I and a few co-workers went outside to see what was going on.
We looked to the north and saw an eerie green-tinged sky. I had never seen that color in the sky previously. When I asked about it, a co-worker, who grew up in the area said, ~that's bad.~
Later that evening I saw on the local news ...
1974 Super Outbreak
en.wikipedia.org
... The 1974 Super Outbreak was one of the most intense tornado outbreaks on record, occurring on April 3-4, 1974, across much of the United States. It was one of the deadliest tornado outbreaks in U.S history. It was also the most violent tornado outbreak ever recorded, with 30 violent (F4 or F5 rated) tornadoes confirmed.
From April 3"4, there were 148 tornadoes confirmed in 13 U.S. states and the Canadian province of Ontario.[nb 1] In the United States, the tornadoes struck Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, and New York. The outbreak caused roughly $600 million USD (equivalent to $3.83 billion in 2024) in damage.[4]
The outbreak extensively damaged approximately 900 sq mi (2,331 km2) along a total combined path length of 2,600 mi (4,184 km).[3][5] At one point, as many as 15 separate tornadoes were occurring simultaneously.[3][6] ...
@#4 ... Bottomless pit of absurdity. ...
There appears to be a difference between fmr Pres Biden's apparent mental deterioration and Pres trump's apparent, I'll be kind, insatiably.
For example ...
Exclusive: Prosecutor's audio shows Biden's memory lapses
www.axios.com
Yet, Pres Trump is on the media day-in and day-out saying stupid stuff (e.g., stealth jets are ugly?)
For me, there seems to be a similarity here.
Another view ...
US Completely Loses Perfect Credit Rating for First Time in Over a Century
www.newsweek.com
... Moody's Ratings downgraded the U.S. government's credit rating on Friday, citing repeated failures by successive administrations to control the country's growing debt.
The agency lowered the rating from its highest grade, Aaa, to Aa1, noting that while the U.S. still benefits from key strengths"such as a dynamic economy and the global dominance of the U.S. dollar"its fiscal outlook has significantly deteriorated.
Newsweek has reached out to the U.S. Treasury Department via email on Friday afternoon for comment.
Why It Matters
The shift means the United States no longer enjoys a fully stable top-tier rating from any major agency for the first time in more than 100 years. Moody's becomes the third and final major credit agency to reduce its assessment of the federal government's creditworthiness. Standard & Poor's made its first-ever downgrade in 2011, and Fitch Ratings followed in 2023. ...
Rates Spark: Treasuries out of favour
think.ing.com
... US Treasuries remain under pressure. It's not a "Sell America" thing, as no coincident dollar weakness. It's more based on the latest assessment of fundamentals. If this signals a broader trend of diversifying away from the US, even markets like Italy stand to benefit. The 10y Italy/Bund spread just marked its tightest levels since 2021.
US 10yr breaks above 4.5% again
Since the weekend agreement with China, we've turned bearish on Treasuries, as the recession risk has been downsized, and there's been a risk-on tone in the risk asset space. Also, we note that mutual funds had been setting short duration strategies over previous weeks, which had not shown up in prior yield movements. So an up-move in yields was overdue.
The fiscal story is something that continues to hang over the market, and the tax cutting ambitions are, if followed through on, seen as a Treasury market negative. That's been an ongoing thing churning in the background. Not new. But absolutely lined up as a negative. It's been quite a move. In the past five trading days the 10yr yield is up some 25bp.
No "Sell America" thing going on here. More a fair reflection of fundamentals. ...
@#18
Johnny Clegg
en.wikipedia.org
... Juluka
Juluka was an unusual musical partnership for the time in South Africa, with a white man (Clegg) and a black man (Mchunu) performing together.
The band, which grew to a six-member group (with three white musicians and three black musicians) by the time it released its first album Universal Men in 1979, faced harassment and censorship, with Clegg later remarking that it was "impossible" to perform in public in South Africa.[19]
The group tested the apartheid-era laws, touring and performing in private venues, including universities, churches, hostels, and even private homes in order to attract an audience, as national broadcasters would not play their music.[6] ...
Juluka - Scatterlings Of Africa (1982)
www.youtube.com
Scatterlings of Africa
en.wikipedia.org
... Background and composition
Juluka (meaning "sweat" in Zulu) was founded in 1969 by Johnny Clegg and Sipho Mchunu. They mixed Zulu music with influences from rock and Celtic music.[3] As a multiracial band in apartheid-era South Africa, Juluka frequently had trouble with the police, and their songs were banned by state-run radio stations, but their brand of Afro-pop nonetheless became popular.[3]
The song's lyrics have been described as "reflecting the myriad dislocations of South African society."[4] According to scholar Timothy Taylor, they describe the story of "the hungry, the searching, all trying to make a better South Africa".[5]
The song's chorus illustrated its themes, also present in other compositions by Clegg: "They are the scatterlings of Africa/Each uprooted one/On the road to Phelamanga/Where the world began/I love the scatterlings of Africa/Each and every one/In their hearts a burning hunger/Beneath the copper sun."[5][6] ...
Another view?...
Trump Goes on Weird Rant About Military Planes Not Being Pretty Enough
newrepublic.com
... Early Thursday morning, Donald Trump took aim at how ugly he thinks some military planes look.
Speaking in Doha, Qatar, the president went off on one of his signature tangents at a press conference, ranting about how much he doesn't like the way stealth aircraft look.
"I'm not a huge believer in stealth because stealth is, basically, a lot of it's the design and the shape," Trump said, turning to Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg, seated next to him. "I'm sure you maybe think, but also, if that's the case, they're gonna figure it out pretty fast, I think. So you're gonna design an ugly plane for stealth reasons, and then six months later, they're gonna figure out this and then you're stuck with a plane." ...
@#3 ... House Republicans are freaking out about their own budget bill. ...
When, and how long is the upcoming Memorial Day recess for Congress?
OK looks like May 25-29 is a "State work period" when Legislators return to their home districts and states to hold Town Meetings with their constituents. ( www.doi.gov )
@#3 ... I spend lots of time surveying the internet. ...
The Univ of Michigan Consumer Sentiment survey is done on a daily basis, with the results tallied and released every two or three weeks. ( www.sca.isr.umich.edu )
A couple interesting results noted, but was not mentioned in the article (I heard it from Consumers Director Joanne Hsu when she was interviewed on BloombergTV)...
1) Consumer Sentiment seemed to rise in the last couple days of the surveys after Pres trump retreated from his 145% China tariffs.
2) The latest results are starting to show Republicans expressing an increasing concern about the economy going forward. That was new since the prior survey.
And then there seems to be this ...
Have Trump and Netanyahu fallen out over Gaza?
www.dw.com