Rick Thurman

In 1960, a quiet woman at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration was handed a routine file. It was for a drug already sold in nearly 50 countries—a sedative called thalidomide, widely marketed as safe for pregnant women. Most people would have signed off. Frances Oldham Kelsey didn’t. New to the FDA, she noticed something others had overlooked—or ignored. The data was thin. Reports of nerve damage were buried. The safety claims felt… too clean. While the pharmaceutical company pushed aggressively for approval, sending repeated requests and mounting pressure, Kelsey held her ground. She asked for more studies. Then more. And more. Behind the scenes, the pressure wasn’t subtle. Drug companies expected quick approvals. Delays meant lost profit. For a young female reviewer in a male-dominated system, saying “no” wasn’t just professional resistance—it was personal risk. She was challenging an industry that wasn’t used to being challenged, especially not by a woman. Then the truth surfaced. Across Europe, thousands of babies were being born with devastating deformities—missing limbs, malformed organs—traced back to thalidomide taken during pregnancy. It became one of the worst medical disasters of the 20th century. Because Kelsey refused to approve it, the United States was largely spared. Her skepticism saved countless lives. In 1962, she was awarded the President’s Award for Distinguished Federal Civilian Service by John F. Kennedy—one of the highest honors a civilian could receive. But her impact didn’t stop there. Her stand forced sweeping changes in drug regulation, leading to stricter testing requirements and proof of efficacy before approval. The system became safer because she refused to bend. She didn’t shout. She didn’t grandstand. She simply refused to compromise when it mattered most. And that’s what made her dangerous—in the best possible way. © Women In World History #archaeohistories

Always something… We better wake up to what’s happening online. The right isn’t just posting anymore; they’re scaling influence with AI. 📌 AI-generated pro-Trump “influencers” are surging on social media and are starting to shape what people see and believe. That’s the new game. AI personas that sound human, post like humans, and build followings.

Wealth inequality in the US has never been wider: The real wealth of the top 0.001% of US households has grown +3,500% since 1976. At the same time, inflation-adjusted wealth of the top 0.01% and 0.1% has surged +2,200% and +1,200%, respectively. By comparison, the average household has seen just a +200% increase. As a result, there are now ~430,000 households worth $30 million or more, with ~74,000 worth over $100 million. Meanwhile, ~72% of wealth for the top 0.1% is concentrated in corporate equities, mutual funds, and private businesses. To put this into perspective, the bottom 50% of US households had more debt than assets for nearly 2 decades, with their average wealth turning positive after the 2020 pandemic, following stimulus checks and growing home values. Asset owners are the only winners.

Israel created the largest group of child amputees in modern history and now blocks prostheses. The cruelty is always the point.

Turns out, the Russian hoax was actually a thing, and it is far worse than anything MAGA was trying to hide. Explain to me how Trump is not owned lock, stock, and barrel by Putin and how you all voted to sell out the country to a broke-down gas station dictator.

Texas just dropped a bomb: it is forecasting a staggering 367GW of demand by 2032, a 430% increase - and 2.3 times larger than the peak demand of the entire country of Japan We are witnessing the birth of some of the world’s first truly AI-driven, 24/7 clean energy powerhouses The math is simple: >228GW of data center demand >410GW of large load already in the queue >Texas is #1 in Wind, #1 in Solar, and now #1 in Battery Storage growth in the US You think we're building 300GW of gas? Think again. Texas has the land, the sun, and the deregulated guts to build renewables at this scale The fossil age didn't end for lack of oil; it’s ending because renewables are the only tech that can scale 430% in a decade Welcome to the future. It’s electric. rtoinsider.com/130364-ercot-p…

My guess on the big, medium-term take-aways from the Iran war 1. Iran has learned that it can close & charge Hormuz at will 2. China has learned that the US is overstretched 3. Europe has learned NATO is a dead letter until the GOP de-trumpizes, which is at least a decade away

Good morning! Here are the key updates at this hour: 1️⃣ Drones struck the Atlant Aero plant in Taganrog, Russia, where drones and their components are produced. UAVs also targeted the port in Yeysk. 2️⃣ Lithuania and Latvia refused to allow the plane of Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico to pass through their airspace on his way to Moscow for the May 9 celebrations. 3️⃣ Iran does not trust Israel or the United States and is ready to resume hostilities at any moment, Parliament Speaker Ghalibaf said. 4️⃣ Israel released a Russian grain vessel despite Ukraine’s demand for its arrest.

A tale of two cases: The attempt to vacate insurrectionists’ convictions, while going after a former CIA Director: When a president can make convictions disappear for his allies while leaning on prosecutors to go after his critics, the damage isn’t just theoretical, it’s already happening in front of our eyes. And once that line is crossed, it doesn’t easily uncross itself. It’s on all of us to see it clearly and refuse to look away. open.substack.com/pub/joycevance…

Coastal cities are replacing concrete seawalls with oyster reefs. The oysters are better at the job. Seawalls begin to degrade the minute they're installed. Waves chew them up, storms crack them, and they have to be repaired, replaced, and rebuilt forever. An oyster reef doesn't break down, it actually grows. The oysters stack, reproduce, and fuse into living rock that gets stronger every year. A mature reef can cut incoming wave height by up to 83%. It traps sediment, rebuilds the shoreline behind it, and shelters fish, crabs, and shrimp in the process. A hectare of oyster reef provides up to $85,000 a year in shoreline protection. Concrete costs over a million dollars a hectare to build and only gets weaker. Oysters were the answer the whole time.

NEW: Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Commander Major General Ahmad Vahidi and members of his inner circle have likely secured at least temporary control over not only Iran’s military response in this conflict but also Iran’s negotiating position and approach within the past 48 hours. The IRGC Navy attacked several commercial vessels on April 18 and declared that no vessel of “any type or nationality” is permitted passage through the strait, a reversal of Iranian Foreign Affairs Minister Abbas Araghchi’s announcement on April 17 that the strait was “completely open” to commercial traffic. IRGC-affiliated media also announced on April 18 that Iran has not agreed to participate in another round of negotiations with the United States due to “excessive” US demands. Other Key Takeaways: Vahidi and individuals close to him may have effectively controlled the negotiations process throughout the war, which is traditionally a role reserved for political leaders. Vahidi likely intended to impose IRGC oversight over the recent US-Iran talks in Islamabad. The IRGC continued to play an outsized role in Iran’s negotiations after the Islamabad talks. The IRGC’s consolidation of control over Iranian decision-making indicates that the Iranian political officials currently negotiating with the United States do not have the authority to independently determine Iran’s negotiating positions. The IRGC appears to have sidelined more pragmatic figures with whom the United States has negotiated. The IRGC attacked several commercial vessels and halted traffic in the Strait of Hormuz on April 18, likely in order to both gain leverage over the United States and consolidate the IRGC’s control over Iran’s negotiations policy as part of an internally-motivated maneuver. The IRGC likely aims to secure leverage over the United States by halting traffic and driving up shipping and oil prices to impose economic pressure on the United States. The IRGC’s actions are also likely intended to be an internal demonstration of power designed to exhibit the IRGC’s control within the regime, and in particular, its control over Iran’s negotiations policy. The US Navy’s blockade of Iranian ports remains in place as of April 18. US CENTCOM said that it forced two ships to turn around and return to Iran between April 17 and 18. The US Navy has forced 23 ships to turn back since the United States began the blockade. No Iranian vessels have attempted to approach or test the blockade line as of this writing.

All we get is debt disease and shit on.

Sweden’s king did not begin his visit in a palace. He began by honoring Ukraine’s fallen. ㅤ King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden began his visit to Ukraine by honoring our fallen warriors together with President Zelenskyy. For Ukraine, this matters deeply: these defenders fought not only against Russian aggression on our land, but to stop Russian killing and madness from spreading further into Europe. ㅤ The world should remember who stopped Russian violence from spreading across Europe. ㅤ

One of the most brutal scenes in human history has been exposed. An Israeli soldier filmed this clip while proudly boasting about the destruction of all the houses in Gaza. Among those houses was my home. A moment the world must never forget.

Walmart is officially going full force and is rolling out digital price tags in all 4,600 US stores, with digital screens replacing paper price tags by the end of 2026. Every shelf. Every store. All controlled remotely from one central system. This gives Walmart the ability to change the price of any product at any moment. Based on demand, time of day, inventory levels, or whatever algorithm they choose. And the moment Walmart moves, every major retailer in the country will follow. Once everything turns digital, it's game over.

China's electrification bet is paying off. Electricity now accounts for 30% of its energy consumption - 50% higher than US or Europe. With 1/3 of global renewable energy capacity installed, China is structurally more insulated from rising oil prices than most Western economies.

Jewish American surgeon Mark Perlmutter recounts how Israeli soldiers took two Palestinian children and buried them alive This is the most horrifying testimony yet.

You always have to pay attention to what is actually happening, not what Trump says is happening. Because Trump lies about everything. Too often media serves as Trump’s daily stenographer, passing along his propaganda verbatim.

UPDATE: The Trump administration is deporting "nonviolent medically impaired grandparents" to Laos over a 33-year-old drug conviction, a decision Judge Tana Lin says is "inhumane" and "cruel" — but says she is powerless to stop. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.usco…

JD Vance is right. More people need to know that the president is trying to take $10 billion in taxpayer money for himself.