Notices by James Gleick (jamesgleick@zirk.us), page 3

May 27 — The social-media account of Donald Trump today posted, in place of a Memorial Day message, an angry stream-of-consciousness rant, apparently by the former president himself, directing invective against “Human Scum” and the judges handling his various federal and state trials. He referred to the United States as “our Once Great Country,” to the CNN journalist Anderson Cooper as “Alison Cooper,” and to the judges as “Wacko” and “Trump Hating.” (1/2)

It’s hard to convey how impossible these numbers are for a publicly traded company. Alarm bells should be ringing at the SEC.

Imagine if you were running a lemonade stand, and you sold 77 cents worth of lemonade—and to generate that 77 cents in revenue, you spent $327. https://mastodon.social/@sjvn/112479834471695251

If only OpenAI were some kind of outlier. It’s the same all over: the tech giants take it for granted that what’s yours is theirs. Props to Scarlett Johansson for pushing back.

https://boingboing.net/2024/05/20/scarlett-johansson-denied-openai-the-right-to-use-her-voice-for-chatgpt-they-used-it-anyway.html

Don’t blame me, blame my wife.
—Sam Alito

James Fallows, who should know, explains why debates are WORSE than useless.

There’s one more reason this year. By sharing a stage, Biden will normalize the idea that it’s all right for Trump to be a free man, as opposed to an incarcerated criminal.

https://fallows.substack.com/i/143279747/a-no-debates

Another crime committed in plain sight. It will never be prosecuted:

In contemptuous violation of his gag order, Trump coordinated with a team of “surrogates” (his own word)—including the House Speaker and and US Senator—to attack witnesses, the judge’s family, and the jury.

If the bribe you’re soliciting is $1,000 in a paper bag, the FBI will arrest you. If it’s $1 billion in dark money, does that make it legal?

https://wapo.st/3UBf4Fy

Bravo @ProPublica for this well deserved Pulitzer Prize, exposing the bribery and corruption that continues to destroy the legitimacy of the Supreme Court.

Congress? Your turn. https://newsie.social/@ProPublica/112395995734056656

Because who among us doesn’t get mixed up about whether or not we met Kim Jong-un?

If you’re frustrated about what the online world has become, and you remember “the good old days” with nostalgia (rightly or wrongly), and you despair about our collective ability to find a way forward, this by @molly0xfff offers an important perspective. With reason for hope. She has become an essential voice, along with @pluralistic and Jaron Lanier.

https://www.citationneeded.news/we-can-have-a-different-web/

On the subject of Trump’s dementia, the press remains tongue-tied. Fortunately, Doonesbury’s veteran psychologist is here to help. He brings receipts.

https://www.gocomics.com/doonesbury/2024/04/28

How bad is the Supreme Court now? It’s this bad:

“It’s a rogue court, a thoroughly corrupt one, one that is so far gone in its corruption that it feels free even from the practical obligation to clothe its corruption for the sake of appearances.”

(Josh Marshall, gift link.)

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/peering-into-the-corrupt-courts-pretensions-and-corruption/sharetoken/mODEiFEfA3a3

#SCOTUS

Here’s how an experienced reporter can provide added value: recalling a quintessential Trump lie from seven years ago.

I wonder if the jury will learn about it.

—be saved by the intellectually corrupt Supreme Court justices that he had himself appointed?

#SCOTUS (2/2)

In your worst nightmare, did you consider the possibility that Trump would at the last minute:

—toss out the laughable argument that it didn’t matter what crimes he had committed, it didn’t matter whether or not he was guilty, because he had been president, and presidents are allowed to break the law—they’re “immune”;

—and then, after all the lower courts had swiftly and irrefutably explained how absurd that was, (1/2)

A modest proposal: indict the Unindicted Co-Conspirator.
https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/elections/2024/04/24/arizona-fake-electors-indictments/73184206007/

Every day before Trump’s trial gets under way pool photographers have a quick opportunity. Trump puts on a carefully arranged face, trying to look stern and fierce. The photographs are not spontaneous or natural, and the captions should explain that.

Here is a natural, unstaged shot, for contrast (credit Spencer Platt/Getty Images):

“Issue more common stock” = Soak the rubes one more time on the way to the inevitable bankruptcy.

The #SEC should not allow this.

https://www.cnbc.com/2024/04/15/trump-media-shares-plunge-after-company-files-to-issue-additional-djt-stock.html

#TruthSocial

“Ethics crisis” is not wrong. But a clearer way to say what’s engulfing the Supreme Court is “bribery scandal.”

https://wapo.st/3TWDXLD

Imagine a faraway nation with periodic elections and two political parties. One party wants to be able to harass and intimidate election officials. The other party thinks that should be a crime.

Knowing nothing else, which party do you support? https://mastodon.social/@GottaLaff/112248069889558860