When Humans Move, Alien Life?
Should I stay or should I go? It’s a question made famous by The Clash, but it’s also a question that is a key driver of politics across the globe. While the Clash’s question was focused on interpersonal relationships, the question facing millions of humans at any given moment is focused on broader issues such as climate, war, health, wealth, and political unrest. “The human species is on the move. Last year there were more people living outside of their birth countries than at any other time in modern history, according to the United Nations. It’s a sea change that will reshape politics, economics and civil societies for generations. It’s no coincidence that 2024 was also a year of defeat for incumbent political parties, as leader after leader was voted out of power in democracies at the center of the human storm.” The NYT (Gift Article) with a very interesting look at the data that underpins so many national and international stories. To Understand Global Migration, You Have to See It First. “Rapid shifts in migration are nearly always driven by an enormous shock, such as war, political upheaval, natural disaster or economic collapse. There is reason to believe such shocks will become more frequent as the world faces more geopolitical instability and ever-increasing climate risk.”
+ While the world’s populations are on the move, in America, things are historically stagnant. I touched on this back in February: The U-Haul of Mirrors. “Don’t move! Stay right where you are! That’s easy advice for me to take. I move so rarely from the couch indentation where I write NextDraft that my kids occasionally place a finger under my nose to see if I’m still breathing. But these days, more and more Americans are not moving; at least not from their communities. A country that was once defined by how often people moved has changed dramatically in recent decades—and the trend has left other core characteristics like entrepreneurship, innovation, growth, and social equality stuck in the mud.”
A Shot in the Arm
In Hamilton, Lin-Manuel Miranda famously sang, “I’m not throwin’ away my shot.” Well, he may be rethinking that commitment. Injectable drugs like Mounjaro and Ozempic have already dramatically changed the shape of things in the health industry, the food economy, and about half the bodies in Hollywood. But because these drugs require a weekly shot, there’s always been somewhat of a cap on their usage. That cap could be blown off soon. Daily Pill May Work as Well as Ozempic for Weight Loss and Blood Sugar. “In a way, the very existence of orforglipron is a triumph of modern chemistry. The injectable GLP-1 drugs are peptides — small fragments of proteins. (GLP stands for glucagon-like peptide.) Peptides are digested by the stomach … The solution was to find a small molecule — thousandths of the size of a peptide — that sinks into a tiny pocket in the protein that is the target for GLP-1s. When it sinks into the pocket, the protein changes shape just as it does when a GLP-1 binds to the whole protein. Finding that small molecule, Dr. Skovronsky said, was ‘the holy grail.'”
Protest Tube
In the Killers song, the band asks, “Are we human, or are we dancer?” The question is pretty timely given that it was inspired by “Hunter S. Thompson, who stated that America was ‘raising a generation of dancers, afraid to take one step out of line.'” But these days, there’s often an even more pressing question. Are you human or are you a bot? And the answer to that question can be connected back to getting people to keep in line. Wired: This ‘College Protester’ Isn’t Real. It’s an AI-Powered Undercover Bot for Cops. “American police departments near the United States-Mexico border are paying hundreds of thousands of dollars for an unproven and secretive technology that uses AI-generated online personas designed to interact with and collect intelligence on ‘college protesters,’ ‘radicalized’ political activists, and suspected drug and human traffickers.”
+ Meanwhile, “community colleges have been dealing with an unprecedented phenomenon: fake students bent on stealing financial aid funds.” As ‘Bot’ Students Continue to Flood In, Community Colleges Struggle to Respond. “The bots’ goal is to bilk state and federal financial aid money by enrolling in classes, and remaining enrolled in them, long enough for aid disbursements to go out.”
I’ll Be Right Here
David Bowie suggested, “There’s a starman waiting in the sky. He’d like to come and meet us. But he thinks he’d blow our minds.” I’m guessing that the news cycle of 2025 has dampened the starman’s enthusiasm for a visit. (Seriously, is there any chance our minds would be nearly as blown as his?) It turns out we may find him before he visits us. “An ocean world that’s teeming with microbes — and who knows what other kinds of life — is currently the best explanation for some chemical signatures that the James Webb Space Telescope has spotted in the atmosphere of a distant planet.” NPR: Are there signs of life on alien planet K2-18b, or is it just a lot of hot air? “‘I think this is one of those situations where extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence,’ says Laura Kreidberg, an astronomer at the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Germany who was not part of the research team. ‘I’m not sure we’re at the extraordinary evidence level yet.'” (I don’t know about you, but I’ve heard enough to send Gayle King and Katy Perry to take a look.)
Extra, Extra
I’m the Taxman: As part of the war on Harvard and higher ed, Trump may be preparing to use the IRS as a weapon. IRS Making Plans To Revoke Harvard’s Tax-Exempt Status. This would be outlandish, but sadly, it could be part of a broader effort to remove non-profit status from orgs that oppose the administration’s messaging or goals. From PBS (one of the orgs already in the financial crosshairs): What to know about the House bill that could punish nonprofits over alleged ‘terrorist’ ties.
+ Fed Ex? “In a social media post, Trump complained that Powell is ‘always TOO LATE AND WRONG,’ and he insisted the Fed chairman’s ‘termination cannot come fast enough!'” Fed Chair Jerome Powell broke the cardinal rule. He told the truth. WSJ (Gift Article): Trump Has for Months Privately Discussed Firing Fed Chair Powell.
+ King of the Hill: Weaponizing the IRS. Further destabilizing the international economy and risking America’s role in the world. Welcome to the new normal. “As the second Trump administration careens from one failure to another, as unhappiness with the president rises, as events and reality refuse to bend to his will, he will become darker and crueler and more unstable. His advisers, all of whom are afraid to stand up to him, will enable him. And the MAGA movement, more cult-like than ever, more walled off from reality than ever, will stay with him until the end.” Peter Wehner in The Atlantic (Gift Article): America’s Mad King.
+ Birthrights and Wrongs: Supreme Court will review Trump’s attempt to ban birthright citizenship. The case may be more about executive power than the core issue. “Based on the ask from Trump’s lawyers, the argument is expected to focus on the scope of the nationwide orders blocking Trump’s policy and whether individual states have legal grounds or standing to bring the challenge — rather than a direct review of the constitutionality of the administration’s proposal.”
+ FSU Shooting: At least six people were wounded in a mass shooting today at Florida State University in Tallahassee. The shooter has been aprehended. Here’s the latest from CNN.
+ It Ads Up: “The judge ruled that Google monopolized the market for two of three sets of products. It was the second time in a year that a U.S. court found it had acted illegally to remain dominant.” Google Is a Monopolist in Online Advertising Tech, Judge Says.
+ Bathroom Breakage: “To minimize disruptions for visitors, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum has ordered park service staff to keep open as many amenities as possible, in some cases requiring scientists, park rangers and supervisors to help clean toilets.” Budget cuts and bathrooms: An ongoing struggle at US national parks.
+ Tunnel Vision: “The extravagant car cave has become the talk of the town, reigniting debate over whether a municipality famous for its black-tie opera festival has one rule for the rich and another for the rest.” WSJ (Gift Article): Porsche Heir’s Plan to Build a Private Tunnel Has His Alpine Neighbors Fuming.
Bottom of the News
NYT (Gift Article): Hundreds of Giant Rodents ‘Conquered’ This Town. Now What? “Luciano Sampietro lifted a three-foot aluminum pipe to his lips and blew, sending a blow dart laced with sedatives, muscle relaxers and painkillers toward the world’s largest rodent.” (I wonder if he’s got a few extra darts to blow my way…)
+ A Sloth got pioneering surgery to cure toothache. (Still waiting for a comment from the sloth. He’s been slow to respond.)
