READER BOOK RECOMMENDATION: The Desert War: The classic trilogy on the North Africa campaign 1940-43.

SHOCKER: E. Jean Carroll’s lawyer leaves law firm following workplace misconduct allegations. “Roberta Kaplan, a prominent lawyer best known for ending the ban on gay marriage and her advocacy work for sexual assault victims, is leaving the law firm she formed in 2017. Kaplan’s exit from Kaplan Hecker & Fink comes following reports to the New York Times from those who worked with her that she mistreated lawyers and cultivated an unprofessional office culture. She allegedly insulted employees, made inappropriate comments about their looks, and threatened their careers.”

OPEN THREAD: Make it yours.

MY LATEST SUBSTACK ESSAY: The Supreme Court, Chevron, and the Political Class’s Worst Nightmare: Accountability.

As always, if you like these essays, please take out a paid subscription.

THE NEW SPACE RACE: Chinese rocket static-fire test results in unintended launch and huge explosion.

If you’re not blowing things up now and then, you’re not making progress.

MICROBIOME NEWS: Parkinson’s Link to Gut Bacteria Suggests Unexpected, Simple Treatment.

MORE ON FITNESS: Eric Cowperthwaite: The Technical Stuff Behind Hard To Kill.

“FAR RIGHT.” French Far Right Scores Big in a First Round of Voting, Polling Suggests: A surprise decision by President Emmanuel Macron to hold a snap election appears to have backfired badly, giving the National Rally a decisive victory, early returns showed.

If they’re that popular, how “far right” can they be?

HAHAHA: ChatGPT Now Has PhD-Level Intelligence, and the Poor Personal Choices to Prove It. “GPT-5 is unlikely to destabilize the job market, as it is overqualified for most positions while at the same time lacking any marketable skills. Its main option is adjunct work, but here its chances of taking over jobs are also doubtful; GPT-5 Plus will cost around twenty dollars a month, whereas most human adjuncts work for nothing.”

Plus: “Although GPT-5 is more intelligent than ever, it also has debilitating imposter syndrome. So, if it appears to be in the process of overthrowing the human race, simply tell it, ‘Hey, did you hear that Google Gemini got tenure?’ It will then lose its confidence and retreat to binge Nutella and cry.”

READER FAVORITE: COOFANDY Men’s 2 Pack Gym Workout Shorts 7 Inch Quick Dry. #CommissionEarned

SKYNET SMILES: Swiss Startup Connects 16 Human Mini-Brains to Create Low Energy ‘Biocomputer.’

NOT MY FIRST CHOICE, BUT IT WORKS: Running The Defensive Lever-Action Rifle.

WELL, THIS IS THE 21ST CENTURY, YOU KNOW: Gene therapy halts progression of rare genetic condition in young boy.

THE NEW SPACE RACE: NASA Defines Lunar Cargo Mobility Needs as Part of Larger Moon, Mars Plans.

THE NEW SPACE RACE: Starliner undergoing thruster testing before indefinite return flight.

EVERYTHING IS GOING . . . SWIMMINGLY: French Olympics Alert: Seine ‘Too Dirty to Swim In.’

TO BE FAIR, NORM ORNSTEIN HAS BEEN A JOKE FOR DECADES:

Staged a coup!
Insurrection!
Threat to democracy!

Totally ineffective. Makes you seem like a nutball. https://t.co/ZAy5TNIsoh

— DonSurber.substack.com (@donsurber) June 30, 2024

STAY TUNED: Is It Over? Joe Biden to Have Family Meeting Sunday About the Future of His Campaign.

UPDATE: Doesn’t everyone bring along Annie Leibowitz when making a momentous decision about both your future and the country in general?

.@jeffzeleny reports this AM that the Biden family meeting was pre-planned and that it includes a photo shoot with Annie Leibowitz.

— Alex Thompson (@AlexThomp) June 30, 2024

READER FAVORITE: Lies I Taught in Medical School: How Conventional Medicine Is Making You Sicker and What You Can Do to Save Your Own Life. #CommissionEarned

THE NEW SPACE RACE:

Wow. This is apparently what was supposed to be a STATIC FIRE TEST today of a Tianlong-3 first stage by China's Space Pioneer. That's catastrophic, not static. Firm was targeting an orbital launch in the coming months. https://t.co/BY9MgJeE7A pic.twitter.com/L6ronwLW1N

— Andrew Jones (@AJ_FI) June 30, 2024

More: Chinese rocket static-fire test results in unintended launch and huge explosion. “Space Pioneer was conducting its test as a buildup to an orbital launch of the Tianlong-3, which is benchmarked against the SpaceX Falcon 9, in the coming months.”

CHANGE: One of oldest women’s studies departments in U.S. on chopping block. “Wichita State University is closing its women’s studies department, one of the oldest in the country, due to continuously low student interest.”

MAKE THEM PAY: Jewish students sue UCLA, claim school allowed anti-Israel protesters to block them from campus: ‘The University of California, Los Angeles, once considered among the most prestigious public institutions in the world, has deteriorated into a hotbed of antisemitism,’ the lawsuit alleges.

NEWS FROM GAVIN NEWSOM’S STATE: Street takeover with more than 50 cars in downtown LA leaves some in flames.

IT’S OUT IN THE OPEN: White House Report Card: No more hiding #Joementia.

ERIC COWPERTHWAITE: A Genuine Constitutional Crisis: The President is clearly not capable of exercising his Constitutional powers and authority.

They all knew, and they all lied.

MSNBC on Bidən's cognitive abilities:

"Bidən is far beyond cogent. He is better than he has EVER been intellectually, analytically. He is the best ever."

This was just 3 months ago. pic.twitter.com/UdvqyvF1Sv

— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) June 28, 2024