Don’t mess with Doctor Blight.

Cryptocurrency, Investing, Money, Economy, and Debt:

The Sunshine State Also Rises

Continental America’s southernmost state was once a peripheral destination for a few tourists and sun-seekers. Today it is crucial to the country’s future. Whereas America’s population growth has slowed sharply, Florida’s has boomed. Between 2010 and 2020 the state’s population grew by 15%, twice the national rate. Florida has overtaken New York as America’s third-most-populous state (after California and Texas).
Some 22m people now call it home, and another 7m people are expected to do so by 2040. From 1940 to 2020, Florida’s population increased 11-fold. It leads the country in domestic migration and, six years ago, overtook California to become the top destination for foreigners moving to America.

Um, no thank you. Florida is my idea of Hell on Earth. Hot and humid. Low and flat amid rising ocean levels. Hurricanes, lots of them. Florida Man. Endemic political corruption that could make Illinois or Louisiana look jealous. People need to read Carl Hiaasen.

Celsius announces only transfers from accredited US-based investors will be able to earn rewards

California Pushing for 4-Day Workweek

California is trying to become the first state in the nation to make a four-day workweek a state law.
The state introduced a bill that would make the official workweek 32 hours and no longer 40 hours for companies with 500 employees or more, giving higher raises and time-and-a-half pay to any worker who surpasses that cutoff.

Coronavirus News, Analysis, and Opinion:

Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak fined over lockdown parties

A modern city starves

Politics:

The January 6 Committee Prepares to Go Public

(Representative Elaine) Luria predicted the hearings will change minds when the public is presented with the scheme “in its entirety, and understood how much of a concerted, deliberate effort there was and how many people at high levels of government were involved in trying to implement a plot that was going to change the outcome of the election.” She thought that if the committee laid out what it found, “it will have a very far reach,” like what happened during the congressional hearings into Watergate.

I Commanded U.S. Army Europe. Here’s What I Saw in the Russian and Ukrainian Armies.

Prosecutors Have More Time Than Trump Thinks

The Manhattan District Attorney’s investigation into former President Donald Trump seems doomed, but a little-known New York law is buying time for prosecutors to build a better case against him and convince the hesitant new DA to act—or wait until he’s replaced.
Law enforcement in New York has five years from the date of an alleged crime to officially file charges for most felonies, but under New York law § 30.10(4)(a)(i), that clock stops for up to five more years when a defendant is outside the state. That 10-year grace period means Trump’s time in the White House and his post-presidential political exile at the Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida may be gifting prosecutors much-needed extra time.

QAnon Candidates On the Ballot in 26 States

Dozens of politicians running for state or federal office are aligning themselves with the right-wing, conspiracy-rich, sometimes-violent movement known as QAnon. They’re drawing tens of millions of dollars in donations as the movement’s popularity stays strong among voters.
And despite the movement’s penchant for lies and violence, key Republicans — from influential megadonors to prominent elected officials — are welcoming the QAnon movement into the party.

Republicans Double-Down on Anti-Immigrant Rhetoric

Putin Begins ‘Stalinist’ Purge of Intelligence Agents

A ‘Stalinist’ mass purge of Russian secret intelligence is under way after more than 100 agents were removed from their jobs and the head of the department responsible for Ukraine was sent to prison.
All of those ousted were employees of the Fifth Service, a division set up in 1998, when Putin was director of the FSB to carry out operations in the countries of the former Soviet Union with the aim of keeping them within Russia’s orbit.

Washington Post Columnist Arrested in Moscow

Russian authorities on Monday arrested Vladimir Kara-Murza — a prominent Kremlin critic and politician who has written columns for The Washington Post protesting Russia’s war in Ukraine and violations of human rights.
Kara-Murza was arrested outside his home in Moscow, the same day CNN aired an interview in which he predicted that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine would lead to the downfall of President Vladimir Putin’s government.

House Republicans Kill Bill to Honor Black Judge

A bill to name a federal courthouse in Tallahassee after Justice Joseph W. Hatchett, the first Black man to serve on the Florida Supreme Court — sponsored by the state’s two Republican senators and backed unanimously by its 27 House members — was set to pass the House last month and become law with broad bipartisan support.
But in a last-minute flurry, Republicans abruptly pulled their backing with no explanation and ultimately killed the measure, leaving its fate unclear, many of its champions livid and some of its newfound opponents professing ignorance about what had happened.

Pennsylvania GOP Will Nominate a Crackpot for Governor

Pennsylvania Republicans will nominate a 2020 election conspiracist for governor in the May 17 primary. How can I be sure of that? Because they’re all election conspiracists. The only thing differentiating them is how far down the rabbit hole they go. And, there’s an excellent chance the nuttiest bunny of them all, Doug Mastriano, is going to win the primary.
Which means that Republicans might get a crackpot governing this swing state in 2024. What could possibly go wrong?

The GOP’s New Moral Panic and Incitement

Serendipity:

How Japan Built Cities Where You Could Send Your Toddler On An Errand

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