I think fame is much more correlated with vulgar self-promotion than any of us would like to think.

Congratulations!

I had gone to a doctor for a breathing issue that, if it was asthma, it was very very mild. It went away, so it was probably something else.

But, ever after, ASTHMA! PRE-EXISTING CONDITION!

I think he's talking about that excellent insurance that the insurance companies have always offered. You know, the kind with pre-existing conditions?

He seems to be the go-to guy for a lot of tv reporters.

Yeah, as I was thinking about this, I remembered a very long list of symptoms, disorders, and diseases with boxes to check. The "bargain" was PRE-EXISTING CONDITION!

LOL. I have no idea what people mean by "spoilers." I value surprises less, I guess. So thanks for doing that, since it seems to be a big deal for others.

Building a DNA (RNA?) sequence from a message from space and then infecting rats with it seems inadvisable.

People who post long threads: Don't.

That said, I've become more conscious lately of the usefulness of making clear who or what I'm talking about in every post of a thread. It usually doesn't take a lot of characters, mostly replacing pronouns with nouns.

One year older, and deeper in debt

The magazine Foreign Affairs frequently allows statements along the lines of "The Trump administration should adjust its policy to favor..." as if the responsible adults of previous administrations were still in place.

The word "love" always seems to figure in the praise, including from men. Not just the fearless leader, but the figure of love, although they hardly ever say why.

One could make something about Donald Trump's insecurities out of that.

California AG Rob Bonta: