Sunday, August 28, 2022

Trump Inquiry Fueled in Part by Concern Over Intelligence Sources - The New York Times

Gee, I wonder why they saw a spike in informants being captured or killed?  

Surely it has nothing to do with the $2 Billion that Jared received from Saudi Arabia…  ðŸ™„

From the article:
Last year, a top-secret memo sent to every C.I.A. station around the world warned about troubling numbers of informants being captured or killed, a stark reminder of how important human source networks are to the basic functions of the spy agency.

Thursday, August 11, 2022

Subpoena Preceded Search Warrant in Push to Retrieve Material From Trump

Donald had MONTHS to return the boxes of documents. They asked nicely, via subpoena. He ignored the request. Some things don't just go away when you ignore them. 

From the article:

Trump received a subpoena this spring in search of documents that federal investigators believed he had failed to turn over earlier in the year, when he returned boxes of material he had improperly taken with him upon moving out of the White House, three people familiar with the matter said.


Sunday, August 7, 2022

best of craigslist: 1999 Toyota Corolla - Fine AF

You want a car that gets the job done? You want a car that's hassle free? You want a car that literally no one will ever compliment you on? Well look no further. 

The 1999 Toyota Corolla. 

Let's talk about features. 
Bluetooth: nope
Sunroof: nope
Fancy wheels: nope
Rear view camera: nope...but it's got a transparent rear window and you have a fucking neck that can turn. 

Big Pharma costs are NOT driven by Research. They spend more on Sales & Marketing than Research.

New Study: In the Midst of COVID-19 Crisis, 7 out of 10 Big… - AHIP
New Study: In the Midst of COVID-19 Crisis, 7 out of 10 Big Pharma Companies Spent More on Sales and Marketing than R&D

Everyone should be able to get the medications they need at a price they can afford. But drug prices are still out of control, driven by high launch prices and price hikes that Big Pharma alone control. And a new analysis from AHIP shows that in most cases, more of the dollars spent by drug manufacturers go toward selling and marketing costs than toward research and development (R&D) for new treatments, cures, or expanded indications and uses of existing drugs.

The AHIP analysis examined the 10 largest pharmaceutical companies by revenue in 2020. Using pharmaceutical companies' own annual reports and other financial filings, AHIP compared spending on research and development with a combination of selling, general, and administrative costs. In the analysis, selling and marketing costs constituted the bulk of spending for selling, general, and administrative costs.

Of the 10 drug manufacturers examined, 7 of them spent more on selling and marketing expenses than they did on research and development. For this group of 10 companies alone, selling and marketing expenses exceeded R&D spending by $36 billion, or 37%. Moreover, this use of dollars occurred during a year dedicated to the development of new treatments and vaccines to overcome the COVID-19 crisis.

Of particular note:

  • Abbvie, which manufactures branded drugs like Humira®, spent $11 billion on sales and marketing in 2020, compared with $8 billion on R&D.
  • Bayer, which manufactures branded drugs like Xarelto® (codeveloped with Johnson & Johnson) and Eylea®, spent $18 billion on sales and marketing, compared to $8 billion on R&D.
  • Johnson & Johnson, which manufactures branded drugs like Xarelto® (codeveloped with Bayer) and Stelara®, spent $22 billion on sales and marketing, compared to $12 billion on research and development.

Drug manufacturers offer many important medicines that people need and deserve, but patients and our health care system should not be priced gouged for them. Big Pharma's practices clearly show that their growth strategy is based on selling a greater volume of drugs to patients – not on creating groundbreaking new therapies and delivering more value to patients. We do not have to choose between innovation and the affordability of prescription drugs. With thoughtful solutions that encourage private-market competition and end pharma's gaming of the system, we can have both.

https://www.ahip.org/news/articles/new-study-in-the-midst-of-covid-19-crisis-7-out-of-10-big-pharma-companies-spent-more-on-sales-and-marketing-than-r-d


Saturday, August 6, 2022

Trump's Save America PAC paid $60K to Melania Trump's fashion designer

Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha!!!!!!!!!!!!

Suckers!!

The fund affiliated with former President Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election paid $60,000 to a fashion designer known for styling Melania Trump's wardrobe when the couple was in the White House.

The Save America political action committee distributed the money to Hervé Pierre Braillard in four paymentsstarting April 7 and going through June 24, according to records filed with the Federal Elections Commission.


https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2022/08/05/save-america-melania-trump-designer/10130359002/

Thursday, August 4, 2022

Upset over LGBTQ books, a Michigan town defunds its library in tax vote | Bridge Michigan

Voters in Jamestown Township, a politically conservative community in Ottawa County, rejected renewal Tuesday of a millage that would support the Patmos Library. That vote guts the library's operating budget in 2023 — 84 percent of the library's $245,000 budget comes from property taxes collected through a millage.

Without a millage, the library is likely to run out of money sometime late next year, said Larry Walton, library board president.

https://www.bridgemi.com/michigan-government/upset-over-lgbtq-books-michigan-town-defunds-its-library-tax-vote