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The New York Times lists Emmy winners. The AP has an overview story here.

New York Times: “Hvaldimir, a beluga whale who had captured the public’s imagination since 2019 after he was spotted wearing a harness seemingly designed for a camera, was found dead on Saturday in Norway, according to a nonprofit that worked to protect the whale.... [Hvaldimir] was wearing a harness that identified it as “equipment” from St. Petersburg. There also appeared to be a camera mount. Some wondered if the whale was on a Russian reconnaissance mission. Russia has never claimed ownership of the whale. If Hvaldimir was a spy, he was an exceptionally friendly one. The whale showed signs of domestication, and was comfortable around people. He remained in busier waters than are typical for belugas....” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Oh, Lord, do not let Bobby Kennedy, Jr., near that carcass. ~~~

     ~~~ AP Update: “There’s no evidence that a well-known beluga whale that lived off Norway’s coast and whose harness ignited speculation it was a Russian spy was shot to death last month as claimed by animal rights groups, Norwegian police said Monday.... Police said that the Norwegian Veterinary Institute conducted a preliminary autopsy on the animal, which was become known as 'Hvaldimir,' combining the Norwegian word for whale — hval — and the first name of Russian President Vladimir Putin. 'There are no findings from the autopsy that indicate that Hvaldimir has been shot,' police said in a statement.”

New York Times: Botswana's “President Mokgweetsi Masisi grinned as he lifted the diamond, a 2,492-carat stone that is the biggest diamond unearthed in more than a century and the second-largest ever found, according to the Vancouver-based mining operator Lucara, which owns the mine where it was found. This exceptional discovery could bring back the luster of the natural diamond mining industry, mining companies and experts say. The diamond was discovered in the same relatively small mine in northeastern Botswana that has produced several of the largest such stones in living memory. Such gemstones typically surface as a result of volcanic activity.... The diamond will likely sell in the range of tens of millions of dollars....”

Click on photo to enlarge.

~~~ Guardian: "On a distant reef 16,000km from Paris, surfer Gabriel Medina has given Olympic viewers one of the most memorable images of the Games yet, with an airborne celebration so well poised it looked too good to be true. The Brazilian took off a thundering wave at Teahupo’o in Tahiti on Monday, emerging from a barrelling section before soaring into the air and appearing to settle on a Pacific cloud, pointing to the sky with biblical serenity, his movements mirrored precisely by his surfboard. The shot was taken by Agence France-Presse photographer Jérôme Brouillet, who said “the conditions were perfect, the waves were taller than we expected”. He took the photo while aboard a boat nearby, capturing the surreal image with such accuracy that at first some suspected Photoshop or AI." 

Washington Post: “'Mary Cassatt at Work' is a large and mostly satisfying exhibition devoted to the career of the great American artist beloved for her sensitive and often sentimental views of family life. The 'at work' in the title of the Philadelphia Museum of Art show references the curators’ interest in Cassatt’s pioneering effort to establish herself as a professional artist within a male-dominated field. Throughout the show, which includes some 130 paintings, pastels, prints and drawings, the wall text and the art on view stresses Cassatt’s fixation on art as a career rather than a pastime.... Mary Cassatt at Work is on view at the Philadelphia Museum of Art through Sept. 8. philamuseum.org”

New York Times: “Bob Newhart, who died on Thursday at the age of 94, has been such a beloved giant of popular culture for so long that it’s easy to forget how unlikely it was that he became one of the founding fathers of stand-up comedy. Before basically inventing the hit stand-up special, with the 1960 Grammy-winning album 'The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart' — that doesn’t even count his pay-per-view event broadcast on Canadian television that some cite as the first filmed special — he was a soft-spoken accountant who had never done a set in a nightclub. That he made a classic with so little preparation is one of the great miracles in the history of comedy.... Bob Newhart holds up. In fact, it’s hard to think of a stand-up from that era who is a better argument against the commonplace idea that comedy does not age well.”

Washington Post: “An early Titian masterpiece — once looted by Napolean’s troops and a part of royal collections for centuries — caused a stir when it was stolen from the home of a British marquess in 1995. Seven years later, it was found inside an unassuming white and blue plastic bag at a bus stop in southwest London by an art detective, and returned. This week, the oil painting 'The Rest on the Flight into Egypt' sold for more than $22 million at Christie’s. It was a record for the Renaissance artist, whom museums describe as the greatest painter of 16th-century Venice. Ahead of the sale in April, the auction house billed it as 'the most important work by Titian to come to the auction market in more than a generation.'”

Washington Post: The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C., which houses the world's largest collection of Shakespeare material, has undergone a major renovation. "The change to the building is pervasive, both subtle and transformational."

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Jan022022

January 3, 2022

Meryl Kornfield of the Washington Post:"President Biden assured Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday that the United States 'will respond decisively' if Russia invades the Eastern European nation, according to the White House. Days after a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Biden spoke with Zelensky and reaffirmed previous commitments to aid Ukraine amid Russia's military buildup on Ukraine's border that has prompted fears of an invasion, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement after the two leaders spoke by phone. The leaders 'expressed support' for upcoming diplomatic talks, she said, that will commence in the wake of Putin telling Biden that any economic sanctions imposed in response to military action by the Kremlin could result in 'a complete rupture of relations.'"

Jeff Stein of the Washington Post: "The White House on Monday announced it will devote $1 billion to aiding independent meat and poultry producers, aiming to undercut the four powerful meat producers the Biden administration has alleged are responsible for surging consumer prices. Facing immense political pressure over inflation, the White House has responded in recent weeks by criticizing large corporations and arguing that breaking up monopolies will foster competition and drive down prices. In November, President Biden asked the Federal Trade Commission to look into whether oil and gas companies were improperly pushing up energy prices. The stakes are particularly high in the beef industry, where prices in November rose by a staggering 21 percent relative to last year, according to federal data. Food prices have also increased more broadly -- by a significant 6.4 percent -- with the index for meat, poultry, fish and eggs jumping 13 percent." Cheney looks at what's been done to improve the preparedness level -- and what has not. ~~~

     ~~~ Update: President Biden will meet virtually with small meat producers at 1:30 pm ET today; live here.

Kyle Cheney of Politico: "... the political blight that contributed to the [January 6] attack has only worsened, inside and outside the Capitol. So while leaders feel readier today than they did on Jan. 5, no one is rushing to declare the threat has passed.... Capitol Police officers remain overtaxed and exhausted, logging crushing amounts of overtime as they grapple with a depleted force. Threats against members of Congress are still spiking.... Many of those who fled from or responded to the violence are indelibly scarred.

David Siders of Politico: "Donald Trump has already telegraphed the remarks he plans to give at Mar-a-Lago on Thursday, the anniversary of the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol. If he follows the script laid out in his announcement of the news conference, he will commit a whitewashing of the day, repeating the lie that the 2020 election was rigged and defending his part in fomenting the insurrection -- all while a solemn prayer service is held at the Capitol, in a vivid split-screen moment.... One year after the riot at the Capitol, nearly three-quarters of Republicans still believe Trump's baseless claim that Joe Biden won the presidency due to voter fraud, according to a Monmouth University poll.... And according to a Quinnipiac University survey, nearly 8 in 10 Republicans want Trump to run for president again in 2024." (Also linked yesterday.)

Christina Zhao of NBC News: "The House panel investigating the Jan. 6 riot has testimony that ... Donald Trump's daughter Ivanka Trump asked him to intervene as his supporters ransacked the U.S. Capitol, Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., said Sunday. 'The committee has firsthand testimony now that he was sitting in the dining room next to the Oval Office watching the attack on television.... The briefing room at the White House is just a mere few steps from the Oval Office,' Cheney, the vice chair of the committee, said on ABC News' 'This Week.' She said that at any moment, Trump could have walked to the briefing room and appeared on television. 'We know, as he was sitting there in the dining room next to the Oval Office, members of his staff were pleading with him to go on television, to tell people to stop. We know Leader McCarthy was pleading with him to do that,' she said, referring to House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. 'We know members of his family, we know his daughter -- we have firsthand testimony that his daughter Ivanka went in at least twice to ask him to please stop this violence,' she said." ~~~

~~~ David Cohen of Politico: “Rep. Liz Cheney said Sunday she fears that if ... Donald Trump were to become president again, it could be a lethal blow to American democracy. 'He crossed lines no American president has ever crossed before,' the Wyoming Republican told host George Stephanopoulos on ABC's 'This Week,' days before the anniversary of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot." (Also linked yesterday.)

Donie O'Sullivan of CNN: "Twitter has permanently suspended Georgia GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's Twitter account @mtgreenee, the company confirmed to CNN Sunday morning..., 'for repeated violations of our COVID-19 misinformation policy.'Greene most frequently tweeted from the handle @mtgreenee. She still has access to and can tweet from her official congressional account @RepMTG." MB: Greene released a statement re: the ban, in which she said, "Communist Democrats can't stop the truth." O'Sullivan has her full statement. The New York Times' story is here. (Also linked yesterday.)

Bob Brigham of the Raw Story: "To shed light on Trump's battle of the National Archives records, The Daily Beast's Jose Pagliery interviewed Don W. Wilson and John W. Carlin, who both served as the U.S. archivist. 'Given how frantic they are... there are things in those records that are going to make real trouble. I'm talking about prison time,' Carlin said. 'It reinforces the fact that they know they're in real trouble if these things are released -- particularly if they're released soon.'... Read the full report [firewalled]."

AP: "The late Sen. Harry Reid, the Nevada Democrat who served as majority leader during a 30-year career in the Senate, will lie in state in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda next week. The leaders of Congress, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, said in a statement Sunday night that ceremonies honoring Reid at the Capitol will take place on Jan. 12." The Washington Post's report is here.

The Pandemic, Ctd.

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Monday are here. The Washington Post's live Covid-19 updates for Monday are here.

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Sunday are here. (Also linked yesterday.)

Barbara Starr of CNN: "Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has tested positive for Covid-19 and is exhibiting 'mild' symptoms, according to a statement from him released by the Defense Department on Sunday. 'I have informed my leadership team of my positive test result, as well as the President. My staff has begun contact tracing and testing of all those with whom I have come into contact over the last week,' Austin said."

Beyond the Beltway

California. Eduardo Medina of the New York Times: "About eight and a half million gallons of untreated sewage have spilled into a flood-control waterway in Los Angeles County since Thursday afternoon, prompting at least five beaches to close, an official with the Los Angeles County Sanitation Districts said.... The spill began after a concrete pipe 48 inches in diameter in Carson, Calif., collapsed. The sewage leaked out of a manhole on 212th Street on Thursday evening and much of Friday.... From there, the waste traveled through storm drain pipes and toward the Dominguez Channel, a flood-control waterway that runs more than 15 miles from Hawthorne, Calif., and discharges into Los Angeles Harbor. Water from the channel eventually flows to the Pacific Ocean. Officials are investigating what caused the pipe, which wa built in the 1960s, to collapse."(Also linked yesterday.)

Way Beyond

Sudan. Max Bearak & Miriam Berger of the Washington Post: "Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok resigned in a televised statement Sunday, ending a short-lived political agreement with the country's military, which had temporarily deposed him in an October coup before allowing him to return to power. Hamdok's resignation follows weeks of wrangling between civilian and military leaders over the formation of a new government, but their differences proved insurmountable. Meanwhile, a massive protest movement has repeatedly filled the streets of Sudan's capital, Khartoum, denouncing both the military and Hamdok, whom they saw as compromised for his cooperation with the forces that sought to sideline him." An AP story is here.

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Reader Comments (5)

Slipped up. Today is Monday not Sunday but ....this sermon was behind the curtain, in the wings. waiting to be called onto the stage of the local newspaper.

Seems apropos here this AM tho' so am debuting it on RC earlier than I had planned to launch it in the direction of the local public.

"In 2022 we can expect the Republican Magic Show to again feature its inflation sleight-of-hand.

Since inflation neared seven percent in 2021, its highest rate since 1982, we’re already hearing more inflation patter from the political party given to deception and distraction. As always, when a Democrat occupies the White House, inflation hysteria returns to the Republican Magic Show's center stage.

The 2021 inflation was real enough, but Republicans would have us mistake much of its cause. Look over here, they say. It’s government spending. Time to put on the spending brakes. President Biden’s Build Back Better Plan will only make bad things worse.

While predictions about BBB’s possible inflationary effects are mixed (budgetmodel.wharton.upenn.edu), Republicans continue to direct our attention away from one of inflation’s major causes.

Long before Covid’s material and supply chain interruptions and the predictable inflation that ensued as economies reopened, the growth of monopolies in the food and pharmaceutical sectors was already raising consumer prices.

A multitude of brand names gives the impression of a variety of food suppliers, but only a few corporations are behind all those names. Today three or four firms account for one third of typical grocery sales (theguardian.com), and only four corporations supply more than seventy percent of our beef (reuters.com). Such concentration has increased corporate profits, decreased farmers’ and growers’ earnings, and elevated what we pay for food (npr.org).

Over the last thirty years, drug manufacturers have followed the same monopolistic path to higher profits. “Between 2010 and 2015…. nearly one quarter of all generic drugs saw at least one price increase of 100 percent or more…some as much as at least 1,000 percent” (openmarketsinstitute.org).

Magicians employ attractive assistants for a reason. It’s easy to miss what the magician’s hands are doing, when everyone’s eyes are on Miss Direction."

January 3, 2022 | Unregistered CommenterKen Winkes

Have been wondering how many federal dollars are funding the unemployment programs in states granting benefits to the anti-vaxxers.

It’s more complicated than I thought.

For unemployment programs," states provide most of the funding and pay for the actual benefits provided to workers; the federal government pays only the administrative costs.” (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities)

So I guess some bean counters in Iowa, Florida, etc. are carefully refunding the administrative costs associated with paying benefits to the anti-vaxxers. Must have a special column or two in their spreadsheets, so they can refund that portion of expenses to you and me.

January 3, 2022 | Unregistered CommenterKen Winkes

Why I'm Making Jeff Bezos Richer

Yesterday I thought I might have Covid-19 as I had a few symptoms. I wanted to check my temperature, but it turns out I've misplaced my one and only thermometer. I made a search of all the quasi-sensible places I might have put it & the likely places I could have dropped it, & no luck.

Today my symptoms are a bit worse, so I decided I'd better buy a new thermometer. I didn't want to go into a store & breathe on people even super-masked-up, so I tried seeing what I could get at the local CVS & Walgreen's, both of which have pick-up windows. Nothing. I tried their online mail-order offerings, and though they all did have some digital thermometers, the most popular ones were sold out, and they all charged five or six bucks for delivery.

So, in desperation, I went to Amazon, where I do have Amazon Prime. The thermometer itself -- which looked the same as the ones at CVS, Walgreen's & Walmart -- was $4 cheaper than the cheapest one at the other stores, and I don't have to pay a delivery fee (because of Prime, which I use mostly for the streaming service).

Yes, I'm ashamed of helping out Jeff Bezos, but that SOB is helping me out, too (at least in the short run).

Oh, and the State of New Hampshire is sending me a couple of at-home Covid testing kits. They should arrive in a couple of weeks! Great.

BTW, I definitely don't feel too bad to work, but I feel slightly disoriented today (which I didn't yesterday). Not crazy-disoriented, but new-spectacles-prescription disoriented (and no, I don't have news glasses).

January 3, 2022 | Registered CommenterMarie Burns

@Marie: I know the feeling. Last Wednesday I had to lean on the
kitchen counters to maneuver around the kitchen. I stayed in my nest
and didn't even feel like reading, but by Friday felt well enough to
attend a brunch. Getting old isn't for sissies (said to me by a 103
year old former client." I had no fever, but the oxygen level was low
and pulse was way higher than it has ever been (oximeter readings,)

Here's a bit of old cowboy wisdom for all those red state trump
worshippers and anti-vaxers: When your horse dies, it's time to
get off. I know trump ain't dead yet, but it's still time to get off.

January 3, 2022 | Unregistered CommenterForrest Morris

So Trump and his two oldest kids get subpoenas from NY. Another ball to juggle. I can't ee those three cracking, but it's more pressure on their CFO.

January 3, 2022 | Unregistered CommenterBobby Lee
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