The Skinny on Fat: “It might be the trickle that precedes a torrent—tirzepatide is just one in a class of new extremely effective weight loss drugs that threaten to upend the way we think about and treat obesity.” GQ: Is the World Ready for Extremely Effective Weight-Loss Drugs? (Ready? I literally have a trunkload of Cheddar and Sour Cream Ruffles for the day my doctor prescribes this stuff.)

+ Immigrant Wrong: “A Texas sheriff said Monday evening his agency will open an investigation into the transportation of 48 Venezuelan migrants from the state to Martha’s Vineyard.”

+ Annex Marks the Spot: “Almost seven months after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, four areas under Moscow’s control have announced plans for urgent so-called referendums on joining Russia.” (In other words, things are not going as planned.)

+ World Cup Half Empty: “Some house three or four workers in single beds, others five or six in bunks, but all those viewed by the Guardian were windowless, cramped and dirty. Towels draped between the upper and lower bunks provide what little privacy there is. Water bottles, cooking utensils and personal belongings are crammed under the beds. Clothes hang on lines strung across the walls. The camp is as squalid as any this journalist has seen in nine years of reporting from Qatar.” Workers at Qatar’s World Cup stadiums toil in debt and squalor.

+ Just Breathe: Considering a high blood pressure drug? You might want to try a breathing exercise device first. NPR: Daily ‘breath training’ can work as well as medicine to reduce high blood pressure. (I’d suggest this Bush song as background music…)
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+ King Pin: “Barr has realized that Trump, far from being the indispensable person for the realization of his vision of an autocratic president, has become perhaps the greatest obstacle to its achievement. In a party where Barr’s bizarre ideal of an unfettered president holds tremendous sway, Trump can’t win in the general election, and if nominated he would likely take the banner of autocracy down with him. Barr feels the need to remove Trump from serious consideration so that another standard-bearer for that cause can pick up where Trump left off.” The Atlantic: Why Bill Barr Turned on Trump.

+ Walk This Way: Check out the time Eli Manning went undercover as a College Football walk-on at Penn State. This is fun. It’s amazing that the Manning brothers are as successful on TV as they were on the football field.