Extra, Extra

Islands in the Stream: “Melissa made landfall Tuesday in Jamaica as a catastrophic Category 5 storm with top winds of 185 mph, one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes on record, before moving onto Cuba. But even countries outside the direct path of the massive storm, like Haiti and the Dominican Republic, felt its devastating impact.” The strongest storm ever to hit Jamaica is moving onto to other places, with deadly results. Here’s the latest from AP, BBC, and NBC. And here are some photos from Jamaica.

+ Volunteer Jerker: Considering all the science-related cuts and the government shutdown, how is the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration keeping tabs on Melissa? Answer: Volunteers. Volunteers Step In to Help Understaffed NOAA Track Hurricane Melissa. Meanwhile, the government shutdown could cost U.S. economy up to $14 billion.

+ Arc de Triumph the Comic Insult Dog: Trump fires federal arts board in charge of reviewing White House ballroom and ‘Arc de Trump.’ (The arc of history is bends toward just plain ugly.)

+ This Might Be of Interest: “The Federal Reserve on Wednesday approved its second straight interest rate cut, a widely expected move that came despite little recent visibility on the economy due to the government shutdown.”

+ Grok of Shit: “Grokipedia is the brainchild of Elon Musk and his startup xAI, and the billionaire is promoting it as a supposedly less woke and less biased version of Wikipedia. Musk’s goal? ‘The truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.'” Grokipedia is racist, transphobic, and loves Elon Musk.

+ Virtual and Valor: “A new kind of star is being created in South Korea, the cradle of global K-pop sensations such as BTS and Blackpink. Virtual idols — once niche subcultures of chronically online teenagers and twentysomethings steeped in anime and video games — are surging into the mainstream.” The metaverse is rewriting the rules of who can be a K-pop star. (Or put another way: I’ve been doing pilates three times a week for nothing.)

+ We’re Gonna Need a Bigger Backend: “‘I cannot be flawless and perfect like an AI model that is created to be [that way],’ says performer Victoria Peaks.” OpenAI’s embrace of ‘erotica’ is causing ripples in the p-rn world. (And you think we need a lot of data centers now?)

+ In Other News… Sometimes headlines that would have shocked us in other eras just seem ho hum in 2025. Examples: Japan to Send Troops to Help Stop Bear Attacks. And… Monkeys escape from overturned truck on Mississippi highway.