ANSWERING THE IMPORTANT QUESTIONS: Why do we put seatbacks up for landing? An aviation expert explains. Two inches might not seem like a big deal, but there’s a good reason for it.

I KNOW SOMEONE WHO’S BEEN “MICRODOSING” TO LOSE A COUPLE OF POUNDS A MONTH WITH NO SIDE EFFECTS: If GLP-1 Drugs Are Good For Everything, Should We All Be on Them? “Studies show that the obesity and diabetes medication also reduces heart attacks, cancer risk, migraines, and memory loss. How is that even possible? And at what point should we all be on it? . . . When I initially read this study in January, it seemed too good to be true. Miracle drugs don’t exist. Perhaps, I thought, there were nuances that I’d missed. So I called up a co-author of the study, the Washington University physician-scientist Ziyad Al-Aly. On my podcast Plain English, Al-Aly told me that GLP-1 drug use really was associated with improvements across every biological system they studied.”

That said, the steady flood of good news leaves me a bit suspicious that it’s a PR push where we aren’t getting the downside.

CDR SALAMANDER: What Does the Expected New CNO Think?

MY CONGRESSMAN EXPLAINS THINGS:

Why can’t we fix some problems in DC? Because too many folks are getting rich off of it that’s why.

— Tim Burchett (@timburchett) July 25, 2025

JAMES PETHOKOUKIS: America has a bright future. Let’s talk about what could prevent it from happening: Solar storms, supervolcanoes, and asteroids — among other things.

Like a Democrat-controlled government?

CULTURE OF CORRUPTION: U. Kansas staff required to remove gender pronouns from emails.

PROF. JACOBSON’S REALLY BUILT SOMETHING HERE: EPP complaints prompt federal probes into ‘Dreamer’ scholarships. “The Equal Protection Project (EPP) has filed two civil rights complaints against the University of Michigan and the University of Miami over scholarships for illegal immigrants. The Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights first announced investigations into the two schools the same day as the complaint was made, according to letters published by EPP.”

“MASSIVE RESISTANCE” 2.0:

UPDATE: A witness to the undercover meeting captured on video at Florida Tech, showing President John Nicklow stating he would “fight back” against Governor Desantis' DEI restrictions, has come forward publicly, directly corroborating our reporting.

The witness, tenured… https://t.co/XtybVvJN9D

— James O'Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) July 25, 2025

CHANGE: Pew: Men 18-29 the Most Republican Demographic in the Country. “As I wrote yesterday, the prevailing attitude among elite women is that men suck. And, unsurprisingly, a political party dedicated to crushing men doesn’t appeal to them in the least. . . . It’s not hard to see why young men are fleeing the Democrats. The Democrats hate their guts, and the feeling is becoming mutual.”

CHANGE: Vance Predicts United States Will See ‘Net Negative Immigration’ This Year: The vice president also criticized companies for laying off American workers while recruiting immigrants.

COLLUSION: Left-Wing Hewlett Foundation Bankrolled Gavin Newsom’s Trip to China, Records Show.

MAKE THEM PAY:

EXCLUSIVE: Marathon Petroleum, the nation's largest oil refiner, adopted explicit racial quotas as part of its DEI program, demanding that managers select "at least 30% women and 30% BIPOC" for all "external hires." This is a violation of the Civil Rights Act. pic.twitter.com/oPkuqUzOY3

— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) July 24, 2025

Through the nose.

ANALYSIS: TRUE. Conservatives Must Do More Than Take Office, They Must Take Power.

START YOUR ENGINES: Matt Taibbi: Fact-Checking Glenn Kessler.

OPEN THREAD: Make me proud.

THE NEW SPACE RACE: Why America needs to invest in Vandenberg’s launch cadence.

MY LATEST SUBSTACK ESSAY: The Elvis Problem: Defining religion under the First Amendment.

And if you like these essays, please sign up for a subscription — preferably paid! — my family will thank you, and I will thank you.

THE BBC’S “CHILD PRESENTERS” SEEM TO BE A SHADY LOT: BBC ‘Child Presenter’ Recruiting Children to Escort Trans Adults Into Bathrooms.

GOOD: This Common Blood Pressure Drug Extends Lifespan, Slows Aging in Animals.

JOHN HINDERAKER: The Manchurian Candidate. “One of the debates now raging over the Obama administration’s falsification of intelligence relates to Vladimir Putin’s motive in trying to impact our 2016 presidential election. Barack Obama and John Brennan pushed the idea that Putin wanted Donald Trump to win the election, while the intelligence professionals saw little or no evidence of that preference, and believed that Putin was just trying to sow discord. But my question is: since when do we care about Russia’s preferences in our elections? For what it is worth, I think it is highly unlikely that Russia’s leaders have ever, in the post-war era, wanted a Republican to be elected president. We know for sure that in 2008, Russia backed Barack Obama. I wrote about it at the time.”

SCIENCE: Do Dogs Know Who’s Good or Bad? The Surprising Truth.. “Despite our strong belief in dogs’ ability to sense good from bad in people, new research shows they may not actually judge human character—at least not in the way we think.”

PROGRAM: After people stop taking GLP-1s, the effects also end, study finds.

REVIEW: Daniel Defense MK18 – A Ten Thousand Round Review.

CREATING SAFE HABITS: The rules of gun safety are in effect all the time, not just at the range.

AFTER HUBRIS COMES NEMESIS: Aw, When Academia Runs Right Into the FO Part of FA.