MORE DATA: Study sheds more light on rate of rare blood clots after Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine. “The findings show slightly increased rates of vein blood clots including clots in the veins of the brain, compared with expected rates in the general population. However, the researchers stress that the risk of such adverse events is considered low.”

MOLON LABE: Samantha Bee Wants to ‘Take Your Guns.’ “Bee’s upcoming show is just part of the comedy Left’s war on guns.”

I’m so old I remember when comedy was funny.

TRUNALIMUNUMAPRZURE! What’s up with Biden’s bizarre train story?

FACTS YOU LIKELY DON’T KNOW ABOUT JERUSALEM: It is holy to three faiths, but as Jeff Dunetz points out on The Lid, there is much more about the city that most people don’t know. For instance, Jerusalem has been conquered and reconquered but did you know this about one of those conquests?

“It is noteworthy that an earlier capture of Jerusalem by the Greek-Egyptian King Ptolemy, son of Lagus, provided an opportunity for the obscure Agatharchides of Cnidus (second century BCE) to remark about the fact that the people of Jerusalem, who inhabited the most strongly fortified of cities, lost their city because they would not defend it on the Sabbath,” Dunetz writes.

And why am I pointing this out? Because Sunday, May 9 is an important day in modern history:

“Sunday night, May 9th, 2021 begins the day-long Israeli holiday called Yom Yerushalayim, which celebrates the reunification of the holy city during the six-day war in 1967, It’s a day that should be celebrated by Muslims, Christians, and Jews as the city is holy to those faiths. And unlike before 1967, when the city was occupied by Jordan, under Israeli rule holy sites are open to all faiths.”

IF “CHINESE VIRUS” IS RACIST, WHY ISN’T “BRITISH VARIANT?” Israel study finds Pfizer vaccine 95% effective, even against ‘British’ variant.

SCIENCE, UNSETTLED: Dunbar’s number debunked: Research suggests you can have more than 150 friends.

SANDY’S WAR (FOR MEDIA ATTENTION) ROLLS ON: Move over Marine Corps, AOC’s pushing for 1.5M-strong ‘Climate Corps.’

The moral equivalent of war has been the organizing principle of the left since the start of the 20th century, trapping them in the moral equivalent of a quagmire, with no sign of an exit strategy in sight. In response, Tim Blair is succinct: If radical environmentalism is refighting WWII, “Fair enough. Nuking Hiroshima it is, then.”

WHITE HOUSE FLUFF CORPS: Psaki-Worshipping Media Openly Roots for White House Spox.

GIVEN THEIR PREDICTIONS’ TRACK RECORD SO FAR, I’M UNIMPRESSED: CDC predicts spring peak in COVID-19 cases before ‘sharp’ decline in July.

SORRY SHE GOT CAUGHT: Kristen Clarke Regrets Attacking Senators Crucial to Her Nomination.

DISPATCHES FROM THE INTERSECTION OF THE K-12 IMPLOSION AND THE 1619 PROJECT: Why Are We Teaching Kids That America Was Always Racist? “Whoever Controls The Past Controls The Future. Whoever Controls The Present Controls The Past.”

AT CAFE HAYEK, a roundup of Covid links.

FASTER, PLEASE: Why COVID-19 May Be the Last Pandemic. Medical breakthroughs mean we will never again suffer through diseases like the novel coronavirus—if politicians will get out of the way. New video from Reason TV:

Related: Costs of Mitigation Efforts Vastly Outweigh Benefits for 89% of Population, Health Researchers Conclude.

KRUISER: Kyrsten Sinema Has the Guts to Keep Annoying Her Fellow Democrats. “Since taking office, the running joke with conservatives here is that Sinema is a better Republican than Jeff Flake, the squish she replaced. Low bar, I know, but not too far off base.”

JUST THINK OF THE MEDIA AS DEMOCRATIC PARTY OPERATIVES WITH CHYRONS, AND IT ALL MAKES SENSE: CNN and MSNBC Mostly Ignore Bombshell Report on Cuomo Nursing Home Cover Up.

Which is why: Andrew Cuomo will get away with it all.

Evergreen:

BUTCHERS ENDORSE SAUSAGE FACTORY: 5 Former IRS Commissioners Endorse Biden’s Tax Plan.

NO. NEXT QUESTION? Will national service create unity?

RETURN TO NORMALCY: Paycheck Protection Program runs dry for most loan applicants.

KEVIN DOWNEY JR: A Deep Dive into Mass Shooting Data (Rachel Maddow Hardest Hit).

SPACE: Blue Origin isn’t pricing its first launch seat—it’s auctioning it.

On Wednesday, Blue Origin officially announced that its first crewed flight to space is targeted for July 20, suggesting that its extended period of test flights is finally coming to an end. Rather than simply placing a seat on sale, however, the company announced it will auction one off, with the proceeds going to the company’s charity.

New Shepard flights will take passengers above much of the atmosphere and into space, then allow them an extended period of apparent weightlessness as the capsule free-falls back to Earth. The capsule itself is relatively spacious and is equipped with large windows and cushy-looking seats, which are clearly meant to make flight a pleasant experience. The free fall is followed by a parachute-assisted landing, with the booster performing a powered landing separately.

If that sounds like a compelling experience to you, your first chance to get in on it is via an auction for a single seat on its first crewed flight. You can get the process started now by submitting a bid at the Blue Origin website. On May 19, the highest bids will be unsealed, and any further online bidding will have to exceed an existing bid. On June 12, the auction will wrap up with live online bidding.

Sounds lovely, but will there be in-flight WiFi?

I REMEMBER WHEN HIGHER EDUCATION WAS SUPPOSED TO FOSTER TOLERANCE AND CRITICAL THOUGHT: White students on spring break is ‘colonial violence,’ campus journalist says.

I FEEL INFRINGED EVERY TIME I’M LUCKY ENOUGH TO FIND 9MM AT SOME OUTRAGEOUS PRICE: In the Democrats’ New Crime-Ridden America, You Can Buy Guns But You Can’t Find Ammo.

HIGHER EDUCATION BUBBLE UPDATE, RACISM EDITION: Campus paper Editor in Chief ‘couldn’t walk past a white person without shaking.’ This is the statement of a bigot, or a mentally ill person. Or both. Or of someone who’s just putting on a performance, as is usually the case in the “literally shaking” genre. Pathetic.

PRIVACY: Signal’s smartass ad exposes Facebook’s creepy data collection.

The resulting adverts can be eerily intimate and potentially harmful. Just last week, researchers found that Facebook had allowed advertisers to target teenage children interested in smoking, gambling, and extreme weight loss.

Signal’s plan was to use Facebook’s own tools to highlight these practices.

“The ad would simply display some of the information collected about the viewer which the advertising platform uses,” Signal said in a blog post. “Facebook was not into that idea.”

According to Signal, Facebook promptly disabled the ad account. Facebook denied that the account has been shut down and dismissed the ads as a publicity stunt. But Signal has maintained the claim.

The company also shared examples of what Facebook ads would look like if they were open about the targeting.

While it isn’t true that Facebook can access your phone’s mic, the company’s data-Hoovering is so complete that the ads you see will make you swear that they did.

Anyway, much more at the link.