HIGHER EDUCATION WAS SUPPOSED TO PRODUCE CRITICAL THINKING: 70 Percent of College Students Say Speech Can Be as Damaging as Physical Violence.
Archive for 2024
August 2, 2024
EVEN MORE GOOD NEWS: Israel says it has confirmed that chief of Hamas’ military wing was killed in a July strike in Gaza. “There was no immediate comment on the Israeli claim by Hamas, which had previously said Deif survived the strike in Gaza. A member of Hamas’ political bureau, Izzat al-Risheq, said in a statement Thursday that confirming or denying his death is the responsibility of the group’s military wing, known as the Qassam Brigades, which so far has been silent.”
Previously: Now We Know Exactly How Israel Assassinated Hamas Chief, and I’m Laughing Inappropriately
THEY’LL TRY TO HOLD EVERYTHING TOGETHER FOR THE NEXT FEW MONTHS, THOUGH: #Bidenomics Update: Ew. “Whatever wages workers are being paid are nowhere near what they need to keep up with the Biden-Harris inflation cycle, no matter how productive they are or what raises they’ve gotten. Or how often they’re told they should be grateful because things are really, really good.”
Anybody who's been trying to look for a new job has been saying this for the past year.
— Contra Declinationem (@contradecline) August 1, 2024
KRUISER’S MORNING BRIEFING: I Identify as Disgusted With the Olympics Women’s Boxing Mess. “Even though I’m a huge boxing fan, I’ve always found the idea of women’s boxing to be a little weird. I’m more of a lingerie pillow fight fan (Make America Great Again) myself. Still, I’m old-school enough to believe that only women should compete in women’s boxing.”
WOEING: NASA says it is “evaluating all options” for the safe return of Starliner crew.
For a long time, it seemed almost certain that the astronauts would return to Earth inside Starliner. However, there has been a lot of recent activity at NASA, Boeing, and SpaceX that suggests that Wilmore and Williams could come home aboard a Crew Dragon spacecraft rather than Starliner. Due to the critical importance of this mission, Ars is sharing what we know as of Thursday afternoon.
One informed source said it was greater than a 50-50 chance that the crew would come back on Dragon. Another source said it was significantly more likely than not they would. To be clear, NASA has not made a final decision. This probably will not happen until at least next week. It is likely that Jim Free, NASA’s associate administrator, will make the call.
Asked if it was now more likely than not that Starliner’s crew would return on Dragon, NASA spokesperson Josh Finch told Ars on Thursday evening, ” NASA is evaluating all options for the return of agency astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams from the International Space Station as safely as possible. No decisions have been made and the agency will continue to provide updates on its planning.”
Not exactly a vote of confidence for Starliner.
UPDATE.
I missed this tidbit earlier: “NASA issued a $266,678 task award to SpaceX on July 14 for a ‘special study for emergency response.’ NASA said this study was not directly related to Starliner’s problems, but two sources told Ars it really was. Although the study entailed work on flying more than four crew members home on Crew Dragon—a scenario related to Frank Rubio and the Soyuz MS-22 leaks—it also allowed SpaceX to study flying Dragon home with six passengers, a regular crew complement in addition to Wilmore and Williams.”
DANICA PATRICK: “I don’t care who you sleep with. Whatever. But the media has spent eight years telling us Trump allegedly sleeping with Stormy Daniels is a monstrously important aspect of his character and fitness for office. How can they ignore Kamala banging Willie Brown, the married mayor?”
HEADLINE OF THE DAY: Kamala’s Ride on the Bright Yellow Economic Short Bus.
OUCH:
Americans Thankful That Socialists Rigging Elections Only Happens In Venezuela https://t.co/tDUia38O9i
— The Babylon Bee (@TheBabylonBee) July 29, 2024
THE NEW SPACE RACE: The private space station era is dawning.
“At long last we are entering a new chapter in our exploration of space, that of private space stations in different orbits, with different objectives,” said Jeffrey Manber, President, International and Space Stations for Voyager Space.
The group’s Starlab Space LLC is a global joint venture between Voyager Space, Airbus, Mitsubishi Corporation, and MDA Space. It’s a “no assembly required” venture to be hurled into orbit via a SpaceX Starship.
Manber told Space.com that the motivating factor for Starlab is the end of the International Space Station (ISS), due to be de-orbited in 2030.
“The ISS has already been in orbit for over two decades, well past its expected life-time,” Manber said. “As wonderful an orbiting station as it has been, it is well past its prime and like an old house, in increasing need of repairs.”
That dawn of private station stations has been bolstered by NASA and the U.S. Congress, said Manber, creating a pathway to assure a robust and cost-efficient space program in low-Earth orbit.
Things really get exciting when you factor Starship into the mix. It promises to drastically reduce launch costs, allows for much larger-diameter structures, and as a result, reduced-cost designs for space station modules.
COMPARE AND CONTRAST:
This man went to a Kamala event wearing a Trump shirt, and a Trump event wearing a Kamala shirt. The difference in how he was treated was stunning.https://t.co/d9BRw4wC29
— Not the Bee (@Not_the_Bee) July 30, 2024
LIMITED TIME DEAL: JBL Tune 230NC TWS – True Wireless In-Ear Headphones. #CommissionEarned
ATTEND A SAME-SEX WEDDING? That’s a huge issue for millions of evangelical Americans and one that can fuel division in the closest of families. The Colson Center’s latest addition to the “What Would You Say?” video series on HillFaith offers three solid reasons why the answer is no.
SINCERITY IS KEY — IF YOU CAN FAKE THAT, YOU’VE GOT IT MADE:
Hillary Clinton Meets With Kamala To Help Her Improve Her Black Accent https://t.co/p4HWW5f1SE
— The Babylon Bee (@TheBabylonBee) August 1, 2024
UNEXPECTEDLY: Hillary Clinton-run group helps fund Just Stop Oil and Extinction Rebellion.
Hillary funds those dedicated to spewing venom, destroying priceless artwork, and making everyone’s life absolutely miserable.
PRIORITIES:
US Mariners: the Houthis are attacking us!
Train engineers: the hours are brutal and tracks are in bad condition
Tuckers: I can’t even park my truck to rest
Car drivers: the traffic is insane
Pilots: is my boeing plane even safe?
Pete: https://t.co/At1hCxGbTg
— John Ʌ Konrad V (@johnkonrad) August 1, 2024
BETWEEN THE FED AND A HARD PLACE: Guess Who Is Going to Steal the Election (or Tank the Economy!) This Time.
BEHOLD, MY SHOCKED FACE! A declassified FBI document confirms longstanding suspicions of the agency’s active involvement with Patriot Front for years.
And by “involved with” they mean “they made it up out of whole cloth.”
KANSAS WANTS TO BECOME COLORADO: Kansas stops enforcing a law against impersonating election officials.
THEY LEARN NOTHING AND THEY FORGET NOTHING: Lessons Not Learned.
BUTTIEGIEG IS ANOTHER WORD FOR “MISPLACED PRIORITIES”: Valor Ignored: Pete Buttigieg’s Shameful Neglect of US Sailors Under Fire.
PALESTINE IS WHAT PALESTINIANS HAVE MADE IT. I CAN’T THINK OF A WORSE INDICTMENT: Free Palestine? I went to see ‘Palestine’… and almost didn’t make it out alive.
THE MORE MONEY YOU SPEND ON HOMELESSNESS, THE MORE OF IT YOU BUY: “That’s the equivalent of spending… $1,137,256 per person to exit homelessness.”
THE OLYMPICS ARE A COLD-WAR THING THAT HAS PASSED: Is this the Olympic spirit?