WTF-Beta

Hope our Canadian WTFers (@dolmansaxlil and @kluurs ) are having a great day!!

Pavement buckling here from the heat. This one isn't too far from us. There were a couple of other incidents, one on an expressway and one in a suburb to the northwest of us.

His entire presidency is a huge branding and money-making exercise. Anyone who thinks he gives a damn about the country is deluding themselves.

Guess it's not just happening at Ford.

https://www.cnbc.com/2026/07/01/employers-who-laid-off-workers-for-ai-are-reversing-their-decisions.html

They are determined.

After losing the birthright citizenship case at the Supreme Court, President Trump's aides and MAGA allies quickly pivoted to a new plan: blocking pregnant foreign women from entering the United States.

Why it matters: The proposal would open a new immigration battle over pregnancy, travel and citizenship, shifting the conversation from challenging the rights of children born in the U.S. to restricting who can enter the country.

https://www.axios.com/2026/07/01/trump-birth-tourism-crackdown-citizenship

New disease threats follow Trump administration's health program cuts

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/disease-threats-trump-administration-health-program-cuts/

Tourism transformed Mawlynnong's fortunes. But after decades of welcoming visitors, residents decided one day a week should belong to themselves.

https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20260625-why-asias-cleanest-village-bans-tourists-on-sundays?at_bbc_team=studios%3Fat_medium%3Demails&at_objective=awareness

What Split-Brain Patients Reveal About Consciousness

Their lives and symptoms offer a rare window into how the brain binds experience into a single mind.

https://thereader.mitpress.mit.edu/what-split-brain-patients-reveal-about-consciousness/

The eaglets have fledged. Or in one case, fludged. It's an accidental/unintentional fledge. Both babies seem to be doing fine.

On Sunday, Sandy fell out of the nest in an accidental fledge. She appeared to be startled by Luna as he attempted to jump over her. Sandy then lost her footing, falling out of the nest in an accidental fledge, or a "fludge."

Friends of Big Bear Valley said that Sandy appeared to be on another branch below on Sunday, getting her bearings out of the camera's view. Her mother, Jackie, was there right away to keep an eye on Sandy and has been through this with other eaglets in the past.

In an update on Monday, conservationists with the nonprofit said they heard some distant vocals between Jackie and what they believe is Sandy. Then, in a later update, Friends of Big Bear Valley posted a video showing that Sandy was spotted not too far from Luna, midway up in a tree. They said she was moving around and looking good.

https://abc7.com/post/jackie-shadows-eaglet-luna-takes-first-flight-1-day-sandy-fell-big-bear-bald-eagle-nest/19415819/

We in the US have joined the Europeans in their heat misery. Today it was 94 degrees (temp), 74 degrees (dew point), and 105 (heat index).

All those numbers add up to: Miserable.

Two more days of this. Then it cools off a bit but stays humid.

I'm ready for October.

pendulum

money

Inside the Food Truck Mafia Wreaking Havoc Around the National Mall

Turf wars. Food and fire hazards. $15 ice-cream cones. How an organized network of unlicensed food trucks took over America's Front Lawn.

https://washingtonian.com/2026/06/29/dc-food-truck-mafia-national-mall/

forth

Supreme Court strikes down Trump’s order ending birthright citizenship

https://www.scotusblog.com/2026/06/supreme-court-strikes-down-trumps-order-ending-birthright-citizenship/

When the ability to smell goes away

Disturbances in this critical sense are often linked to problems with brain health, researchers are learning

https://knowablemagazine.org/content/article/health-disease/2026/what-happens-brain-lose-sense-of-smell?ff_exp_var=sep%3Futm_source%3Djoin1440

Roll

tart

Inside the Ludicrous, Deadly Serious Plan to Take Over Greenland
“We want Greenland,” Trump said. Four men sprang into action to make fantasy a reality.

From Atlantic:

https://archive.is/1oRqb

@Bernard Your garden looks lovely! I've never seen a clematis like the first one you posted a photo of. Even the stems look like they are red. Do you know the cultivar name?