Update from the Heartland
No.1225
30.6.25 – 6.7.25
Blog version: http://heartlandupdate.blogspot.com/
To all,
The follow-up news items:
-- As predicted by numerous sources [1220], Paramount Global, the corporate parent of CBS, has reportedly settled the lawsuit filed by [the person who shall no longer be named; AKA no name]. Paramount will pay [no name] US$16M to settle the suit—Trump v. CBS [Case 2:24-cv-00236-Z (2024)] [1214]. Paramount Global co-CEO George Cheeks informed shareholders that there was a motivation to settle the lawsuit, even though CBS had long argued that the litigation was meritless. In this instance, I do believe we can connect the dots. Paramount’s merger with Skydance Productions has been under scrutiny by the Department of Justice and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for more than a year. The subtle part of the governmental review is [no name] does not have to say a word about the merger review. The threat is implied. This is extortion by the president of the United States of America. This is the president we have today. I suppose we can chalk this episode to corporate priorities outweighing journalistic principles, which does not reflect well on the independence of the Press.
-- At the behest of [no name], Congress jumped through hoops and contorted themselves to pass H.R.1 - One Big Beautiful Bill Act [1219]. The House passed the bill on 22.May.2025 [House: 215-214-1-2(3)]. The Senate contemplated the legislation, made numerous amendments, and passed a modified bill [Senate: 50-50-0-0-(0) with Vice President Vance casting the tie breaking vote to approve the bill]. After significant arm-twisting and primary threats, the House affirmed the Senate version [House: 218-214-0-0(3)]. The president signed the bill into law on 4.July.2025. I cannot see any effect on us. However, this bill will have a profound effect on those citizens who most need our help. The cynicism and mercilessness of this law are incalculable. Let us not forget this for next year’s mid-term elections. Every citizen has a duty to vote.
The next of the end-of-session Supreme Court cases in my review list was an immigration deportation procedural case—Riley v. Bondi [606 U. S. ____ (2025)]. I read the whole ruling, but I will not waste your time going through the minutiae of the convoluted immigration deportation appeal procedures. Let it suffice to say, the majority narrowed the available appeal process for noncitizens facing deportation. They remanded the case to the Fourth Circuit for further proceedings, so the case is not yet closed, but it seems Pierre Riley is headed back to his native Jamaica, and he is claiming he is faced with certain death upon his arrival.
Comments and contributions from Update no.1224:
Comment to the Blog:
“One place I’d exclude government is in medical decisions. Also, the notion that transgender issues aren’t sex issues doesn’t follow in logic.
“We have a Constitutional mechanism for firing that errant employee.
“We don’t have a Federal government ‘with heart and concern for disadvantaged citizens’ right now. It’s up to engaged citizens to change that.
“I’m permanently tired due to my medical conditions. I find patience with myself and I spend money to avoid work.
“My explanation for the regression in rocket science is that it has devolved into an ego trip for the very wealthy. The likes of Elon Musk don’t really understand engineering, but they do understand milking the government.
“I largely agree with the commenter on Israel and Iran. I’ll add that religion excuses many horrors. Your response relies too much on public statements. Remember ‘lock her up!’?”
My response to the Blog:
Oh my, YES! Medical treatment decisions are private, arguably the most private. Unfortunately, the strict constructionists like Thomas & Alito point to the fact that the U.S. Constitution mentions not one word about privacy and private. They do not recognize the concept. Thus, we see them dictating acceptable medical treatments. It is outrageous. Also, indeed, the convoluted reasoning that gender dysphoria does not involve sex simply to justify using rational-basis rather than intermediate scrutiny is equally outrageous. But, these are the times in which we live.
Yes, we do, but that mechanism does not work when the accused threatens those in his party that might convict him. The Founders/Framers tried very hard to check absolute power, but despite their best efforts, they were not perfect. We can hope for a better tomorrow, but I suspect we will not see that better tomorrow as long as the orange one remains in control.
Spot on!
Ah, yes, the challenges of aging.
Thank you for your opinion. I do not share your perspective. Yes, SpaceX is taking a different approach to development than NASA. The engineering achievements of SpaceX are indisputable from my perspective. Although there have been dramatic and demonstrable failures, there have also been extraordinary accomplishments. I remain confident the SpaceX engineers will solve the current problems.
OK. That’s fair. Noted!
My very best wishes to all. Take care of yourselves and each other.
Cheers,
Cap :-)
4 comments:
Good morning, Cap,
Paramount Global paid off the Felon, but didn’t make any admission of wrongdoing.
The One Big Ugly Bill is the law. The effect on “us” depends on who you count as “us”. Lower-income people including my family will pay more in taxes. Almost all services to society as a whole have been cut by this or prior actions, including the National Weather Service, NOAA, and FEMA. Medicare and Medicaid, both of which I receive, will be decimated. And I claim kinship to all humans; the ICE budget has been multiplied by 20. The concentration camps will cause major harm. The immigration case will aggravate that, and the deportation of US citizens threatens all of us.
Elon Muskrat is threatening to create a new political party. His odds would typically be better than most due to the effect of big money on ballot access. His cognitive skills are higher than most. He also has stolen most government data, presumably including the Epstein files. However, his personal image (“brand”) is in the toilet, and his sanity and drug issues will probably bring him down.
Have a nice Monday,
Calvin
Good morning to you, Calvin,
It is far worse than a simple pay off. [No name] criminally extorted US$16M from Paramount Global under the cover of his presidential executive authority. His suit was meritless and simply an ego-trip. Paramount had very few options. They traded CBS’s intellectual independence for the financial gain of their merger with Skydance Productions.
I thought my use of the plural pronoun ‘us’ was self-evident. Apparently not. So, for clarification, my use of ‘us’ was personal, not general. I recognize quite well that the “One, Big, Ugly” law will have dramatic impact on those least able to deal with the consequences. The law is tragic in epic proportions and will likely become the banner example of the inhumanity of the former Republican Party, and now the Bully-In-Chief Party (BICP). Yes, indeed, the deportation (or even de-naturalization) of U.S. citizens threatens us all. We must vote.
AG Bondi caved to the Felon-in-Chief by closing the Epstein case and file. Thank you for your observations regarding Musk. We shall see.
Have a great day. Take care and enjoy.
Cheers,
Cap
Happy Tuesday, Cap,
I agree that the Paramount suit and settlement were morally/ethically heinous. I wanted to point out that not admitting wrongdoing gives CBS some legal freedom.
It’s part of my moral values that my “us” in a political or social context usually includes the general public. I’m specific when I mean more limited groups.
There’s a question whether free and fair elections will happen. That’s one of my complaints about the DNC Democrats. They’re complacent.
Epstein is dead, but the outcomes of his actions live on.
Enjoy your day,
Calvin
Hi again, Cap,
“The election system” needs some clarity. I trust most poll workers and local officials, but they don’t make the larger decisions. Our State Secretary of State and legislature do, and they’ve made it harder to vote this year. Gerrymandering continues unabated, despite being overturned by the State Supreme Court several times. And the Federal government has authority it can wield. “Free and fair” elections are not to be counted on.
Have fun, take care,
Calvin
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