Extra, Extra
Punching Down: “Recently, NCAA President Charlie Baker testified that there are fewer than 10 transgender athletes out of 530,000 who participate in college athletics. But with his latest executive order, the commander in chief makes it clear he wants all six or eight of them under his Brioni heel.” Sally Jenkins in WaPo (Gift Article): Ban on trans athletes seeks to demonize, not protect.
+ Block or Charge: “A federal judge on Thursday temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s plan to push out federal workers by offering them financial incentives, the latest twist in a chaotic and distressing saga playing out for millions of government employees.” (It’s going to be a busy time for federal judges…)
+ The Artifice of the Deal: “The United States has suspended its threats against Canada and Mexico in return for border-enforcement measures that Canada and Mexico either were doing anyway or had done before without making much difference in the flow of drugs.” The Atlantic (Gift Article): How Trump Lost His Trade War. “Mexico and Canada have oriented their economies to the U.S. under first NAFTA and then USMCA. That probably will not alter even after Trump’s episode of blackmail. But other countries, farther away, may wonder whether there’s any point in signing deals with such a bad-faith partner as the United States has become.”
+ Now Ear This: “Our distant ancestors had several body parts that have become fairly useless over the course of evolution–our wisdom teeth, the tails that are present during the sixth week of gestation, and the auricular muscles in our ears. The auricular muscles helped change the shape of the shell–or pinna–of the ear and helped humans living millions of years ago listen closely. They are still used by roughly 10 to 20 percent of people with the fun ability to wiggle their ears.” Most humans haven’t moved these muscles in 25 million years. (OK, so something that’s been going on for 25 million years isn’t exactly breaking news. But it’s not Trump news, and that’s hard to find these days…)
+ Perez Dispenser: “Less than two weeks ago, the movie was flying high, with 13 Academy Award nods. Then came a social media scandal and a serious backlash.” The rise and fall of Emilia Pérez: how did it all go so wrong for the Oscar-nominated film and its star? (Everything is political.)
+ Zyn for the Win: Philip Morris’s stock touches record high as outlook tops Wall Street estimates. (What comes around stays around…)
+ Nothing to Sniff At: “If you want peace, you have to dismantle the business (of drug trafficking) … It could easily be dismantled if they legalize cocaine in the world. It would be sold like wine.” Colombian president says cocaine ‘no worse than whisky.’ (At this point, I could use a side order of both.)
