Hot and hotter

Dear readers, I made 3 separate posts yesterday, all on July 1, due to our very hot steamy weather, something obviously out of my control. Sorry about that. I wasn't able to combine everything together in just one post, as the blog dieties were simply not cooperating. Never mind the details. High tempertures are predicted to continue, so we'll just have to see what happens from now on. 

Today (Thu): 99°F. Sunny, very hot, and humid .

Tomorrow (Fri): 100°F. Mostly sunny and hot .================================================================

Wash. Post, Trump’s wealth grew on a scale without modern presidential precedent

President Trump’s income has increased in office on a scale not seen by any past president — not even Trump.

His annual income is now said to be $2.2 billlion. How can he even spend that much, especially when all of his family's living and travel expenses are being completely covered? 

            Trump now even proposes putting his own image on a new $250 bill. 

Soaring revenue at Mar-a-Lago shows how Trump’s business interests and politics intersect

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Meanwhile, Trump has job to do as president, a job where he is still doing his level best to make life even harder for so many people. Although he is the most powerful person on the planet, not all his many orders and wishes are being carrited out exactly according to his specifications. He is a nitpicker quick to lay blame on others and take all the credit for himself. He boldly places himself among our country's greatest presidents, saying, “With the exception of the late, great Abraham Lincoln, I can be more presidential than any president that’s ever held this office.” But he's had to give up his dream of having his visage carved on Mount Rushmore because there really isn't any more room. 

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US Postal Service cannot carry out Trump order on mail ballot delivery, judge rules

A federal judge has blocked the U.S. Postal Service from following President Donald Trump’s mail ballot executive order, which would have put new limits on vote-by-mail eligibility.

Judges strike down Trump administration student loan forgiveness overhaul

Trump is losing some battles that he certainly had expected to win. He is not a big fan of "separation of powers." He believes a president is like a king, possessing powers above and beyond, and always having the final say, especially when he himself is the president and obviously knows what is best, at least best for himself.

The Hill, ‘Birth tourism,’ though rare, prompts talk of barring pregnant women from entering US  https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/5951451-trump-birthright-citizenship-outcry/ Would female visitors have to undergo a pregnancy test? Of course, some like Melania, come here just to actually get pregnant. She even picked the guy she wanted to be the father of her child. Apparently it wasn't very hard to get his cooperation and now, more than 20 years later, she is still here. 

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Catholic church

One breakaway Catholic group is the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX). On July 2, 2026, the Vatican excommunicated the group's members and priests after they defied Pope Leo XIV and consecrated four new bishops without papal consent. The SSPX rejects modern church reforms .

Wash. Post, ICE’s arrest of nun heading to church fuels bipartisan backlash

After Democratic and Republican lawmakers intervened, Sister Leticia “Letty” Ugboaja was released hours after her arrest in South Texas. 

Why was she arrested? Because someone decided she didn't belong?

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Wash. Post, They built the world’s most powerful AI. They’re facing a mystery they can’t explain.

Anthropic, Google and Meta have hired computer scientists, neuroscientists and philosophers to study what some in the industry think may become a moral crisis.

Fox, Florida toddler dies after father realizes child was left in SUV during daycare pickup

Plantation police are investigating the hot car death of a 23-month-old boy. 

These hot car deaths happen every summer but with only the father, never the mother, as the forgetful parent. Whatever is of such great concern to Dad that he cannot even remember such a simple thing? Mom has a great personal investment in her child, whom she would never leave to die in a hot vehicle. A simple remedy, whenever a distracted Dad is tasked with dropping off the child, is for Mom to contact him later to make sure the child was not carelessly left behind in the hot car. Or better yet, have Mom drop off the child herself as she would certainly never forget to do so. And passers-by should not hesitate to break a window if they notice a child languishing alone in a hot car.

NY Times,  Immigrant Arrests Surge to 10,000 in 5 Days as ICE Clamps Down

ICE has doubled its daily arrest numbers without the fanfare of last year’s large urban operations, sowing fear in immigrant communities. 

If we didin't need these folks, they wouldn't be coming here. But no practical way has ever been developed anywhere to screen newcomers.

‘Tip of the iceberg’: nearly 500,000 New Yorkers lose health insurance due to Trump cuts

How Congress became an afterthought in the war with Iran

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Google is being asked: Why do Cubans go to Guyana?

Guyanam is a fast-growing English-speaking petrostate, ripe with construction plans but short on workers. So the companies building roads, bridges, and other infrastructure there are turning to Cuban migrants as a new source of labor. Guyana is a nearby Caribbean country and no visa is needed by Cubans seeking to enter.

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Let's close here with images from ancient Egypt.

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