It's Raining Manosphere
Space Debris, Weekend Whats
I don’t want to be just one more news curator who drops into your inbox every day and announces that the sky is falling. Relax, only part of the sky is falling. It’s not a bird, nor a plane, nor Superman foiled by kryptonite (or a bad kryptocurrency investment). It’s space garbage that’s supposed to incinerate when reentering the Earth’s atmosphere, but sometimes doesn’t. So far, there’s not that much of a chance that one of these smoldering space chunks will land on you (though, I’m not sure whether that’s good news or bad news in 2026), but the risk will rise as the space race accelerates. Having a roof over one’s head will never be more important, preferably a blast-resistant steel-reinforced concrete roof coated with a few layers of military-grade polymer and polyurea spray. Just ask the Kenyans. “One December afternoon, the sky tore open and a fiery hunk of metal, wider than a school bus, came hurtling down. It was louder than a thunderclap when it plunged into a patch of farmland, startling everyone in the village of Mukuku, about three hours south of Nairobi, Kenya ... ‘This is an isolated event,’ the Kenya Space Agency said in early 2025. Not exactly. More space debris is raining down on Earth than ever before — one effect of the frenetic race among governments and companies like SpaceX to reign over the skies.” NYT (Gift Article): A Ton of Space Junk Tumbles Unpredictably to Earth Every Week. And who pays if you or your property gets hit? Well, the law isn’t quite ready for that. “The patchwork of regulation governing rocket launches and orbital junk is no match for the pace of space development. Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which has more than 10,000 satellites in orbit, has applied to launch a million more. Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin has similar ambitions and Chinese ‘megaconstellations’ are expected to have hundreds of thousands of satellites.” As Tevye reminds usin Fiddler on the Roof, “If you spit in the air, it lands in your face.” (I’d add that the fiddler should probably come down from the roof and maybe consider a basement concert series...)
+ If you’re thinking of moving off the planet to avoid the falling debris, you might want to consider this headline: Drifting SpaceX rocket heading for accidental collision with the moon.
2
Crossing the Rubicon
“An estimated 50,000 to 60,000 migrants entered a small Spanish territory alongside Morocco on Thursday and Friday, according to Spanish authorities. Although at least 48,300 had returned to Morocco by Friday afternoon, the mass crossing prompted an immediate backlash from far-right politicians in Europe that seemed poised to linger. Scenes of chaos in Ceuta (pronounced say-YOU-tah), the North African exclave that Spain has held for centuries, splashed across news networks and social media. Juan Jesús Vivas, the head of Ceuta’s government, said that nearly three dozen migrants had died in attempting the crossing and called the situation ‘absolutely unsustainable’ in a territory with about 83,000 residents.” This was a crazy scene with crazy photos and videos. And the political impact might be even crazier.
3
Prolonged Collection
“Almost every night in the White House, President Trump calls his fundraiser, Meredith O’Rourke, for an update. Trump asks O’Rourke which companies and donors have cut checks and which haven’t, and for how much. He often asks her to make much larger financial requests than she was planning—for some donors the ask is $5 million, for others it is $50 million ... In turn, Trump has called her the ‘princess of darkness’ because she is such a ‘killer’ with donors, according to people who have heard his comments.” WSJ (Gift Article): ‘The Boss Wants This Money’: Inside Trump’s Unprecedented Fundraising Operation.
+ And how are corporations reacting to this new form of purely transactional governance? They’re racing to take advantage of it. NYT (Gift Article): Companies Rush to Close Daring Deals Under Trump.
4
Weekend Whats
What to Watch: “Furious on Hulu follows an FBI agent, Alice Black (Emmy Rossum) on the hunt for a mysterious and calculating female serial killer. Both walk their paths toward justice, and as their lives start to intertwine, the line between right and wrong begins to blur.” (In a Dexter sort of way.)
+ What to Hear: Stephen Wilson Jr’s guitar playing and singing reached a new audience when his cover of Stand By Me went viral. Here he is describing and singing his own song, Gary, on the Howard Stern show. If you have Sirius, definitely listen to the whole interview. Here’s more of Wilson Jr Spotify.
+ What to Doc: On HBO Max, check out Live Aid: When Rock ‘n’ Roll Took On the World. It will remind you of the music and the moment, and of a time when political leaders around the world were pushed to do something good.
5
Extra, Extra
Unclosed Deal? Trump announced that under a Board of Peace deal, Hamas would completely disarm and Israel would pull out of Gaza. He might be a little ahead of the participants in the deal (I know, shocker). Trump’s Gaza Deal Sparks Questions on Whether Israel, Hamas Will Comply.
+ There’s Something Contrary About Larry: “His big bet on A.I. was built on an astronomical amount of debt in every imaginable form — bonds, letters of credit, asset-backed securities — available in seemingly unlimited quantities, because the more you spent building A.I. infrastructure, the more you would earn, or so the logic went. Computer theorists called it the scaling hypothesis. It held that advancements in A.I. were directly tied to the generation of unprecedented amounts of computing power to process unprecedented volumes of data ... But lately, some investors and analysts have started questioning the scaling hypothesis or at least asking if all this spending is sustainable.” NYT Mag (Gift Article) with a solid weekend read: Larry Ellison Bet It All on the A.I. Boom. Will He Be the Face of the A.I. Bubble?
+ Using Your Outside Voice: “Some Trump Administration officials now seem to recognize that the silencing of V.O.A. has left the country with a diminished capacity to push back against other countries’ disinformation efforts.” Yet again, the administration is learning it needs a lot of stuff it broke. But, whether we like it or not, there’s only one voice of America these days. Marc Fisher in The New Yorker: How Donald Trump Silenced the Voice of America.
+ Electoral Collage: One of the goals of all the 2020 election denial and invented threats to our voting systems is to weaken the faith Americans have in our elections. And it’s working. Two in three Americans are concerned about political leaders pressuring election officials to change election outcomes.
+ Gamble On: “New York sued Kalshi on Friday, alleging its prediction market is nothing more than illegal, unlicensed gambling.” New York is right, but the feds are doing everything they can to protect the prediction markets.
+ Deadly Climb: “Rescuers had said earlier on Friday that four bodies had been found and efforts were underway to retrieve them despite the harsh weather.” World-renowned climber Nirmal Purja among 11 struck by avalanche on Pakistan mountain.
+ Nomo Romo: CBS Sports has placed NFL analyst Tony Romo on leave following his arrest last week on suspicion of driving under the influence.
+ Protein Age Wasteland: You just KNEW this was coming. The protein craze may not be for everyone. “Excess protein might speed aging in sedentary people, a new review suggests.”
6
Bottom of the News
“A Montana man walked 10 miles to safety with a trekking pole speared through his torso after a fall during a hiking expedition on the state’s highest mountain ... One of his friends walked behind Cifaldi to make sure he was steady on the rugged terrain back down while the other walked ahead to warn oncoming hikers. ‘There’s families, and he … had us hike ahead and warn people so young kids didn’t have to see such a gnarly wound.’”
+ He Was Wearing a Spider-Man Suit. A Man in a Wheelchair Needed Help.
+ “Ryder somehow maintained his grip even as the waves tossed him and the boy around – and eventually a fellow lifeguard was able to join him and assist in bringing the child safely back to shore.” ‘I’m super proud of him’: father of teen lifeguard recounts dramatic ocean rescue.
+ Taylor Sheridan alert: Boy, 14, Rescues Drowning Man with Rodeo Lasso during family camping trip in Montana.
+ Matt Damon’s Biceps in That ‘Odyssey’ Fight Scene? They’re Hers.
Hi, I love your unique take on things, thanks for being out there.
P. S. About all this protein obsession? Grams of total "protein" are confusing as only TOTAL proteins (those that contain all essential amino acids) are immediately useful. Extra unused amino acids have to be eliminated via the kidneys, causing extra renal burden. As usual, human physiology is more complex than dietary hucksters would lead you to believe 🤷♀️
hey. two comments in a row. i'll stop for a bit now ;) i think you might want to research the science articles a bit before you post them to wit. here's openevidence the best medical ai on protein for elderly folks: For a healthy, active 71-year-old woman, the recommendation is **higher protein intake** — at least **1.0 to 1.2 g/kg body weight per day**, which is above the general adult RDA of 0.8 g/kg/day.[1][2][3]
Multiple expert groups support this higher target for older adults:
- **ESPEN** recommends at least 1.0–1.2 g/kg/day for healthy older people, with even higher intake (≥1.2 g/kg/day) for those who are physically active.[2][3]
- **PROT-AGE Study Group** similarly recommends 1.0–1.2 g/kg/day as a baseline for healthy older adults, and ≥1.2 g/kg/day for those who exercise regularly.[3]
- A 2025 NEJM review confirms broad agreement that older adults need **more protein than younger adults**, with at least 1.0 g/kg/day as the goal.[1]
The rationale is that older adults have a **higher anabolic threshold** — they need more protein per meal to stimulate muscle protein synthesis compared to younger adults.[4] Given that this patient walks four miles daily, she is actively stressing her musculoskeletal system, which further supports targeting the higher end of the range (1.2 g/kg/day).[3] Higher protein intake in older women has been associated with less appendicular lean mass loss and lower risk of mobility limitation.[5]
The one important caveat: protein restriction (below 0.8 g/kg/day) should be considered only in patients with **advanced CKD (stage 4–5, eGFR [1][3] Notably, evidence suggests that protein intake of 1.0–1.2 g/kg/day is not harmful to kidney function in older adults without advanced CKD.[6]
Would you like to explore whether adding resistance training to her walking routine would further optimize the benefits of higher protein intake for sarcopenia prevention?
### References
1. Malnutrition in Older Adults. Cruz-Jentoft AJ, Volkert D. The New England Journal of Medicine. 2025;392(22):2244-2255. doi:10.1056/NEJMra2412275.
2. Protein Intake and Exercise for Optimal Muscle Function With Aging: Recommendations From the ESPEN Expert Group. Deutz NE, Bauer JM, Barazzoni R, et al. Clinical Nutrition (Edinburgh, Scotland). 2014;33(6):929-36. doi:10.1016/j.clnu.2014.04.007.
3. Evidence-Based Recommendations for Optimal Dietary Protein Intake in Older People: A Position Paper From the PROT-AGE Study Group. Bauer J, Biolo G, Cederholm T, et al. Journal of the American Medical Directors Association. 2013;14(8):542-59. doi:10.1016/j.jamda.2013.05.021.
4. Malnutrition in Older Adults. Dent E, Wright ORL, Woo J, Hoogendijk EO. Lancet (London, England). 2023;401(10380):951-966. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(22)02612-5.
5. Sex-and Race-Specific Associations of Protein Intake With Change in Muscle Mass and Physical Function in Older Adults: The Health, Aging, and Body Composition (Health ABC) Study. Elstgeest LEM, Schaap LA, Heymans MW, et al. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2020;112(1):84-95. doi:10.1093/ajcn/nqaa099.
6. Skeletal Muscle-Cardiac Muscle Aging: Shared Mechanisms and Multimodal Interventions. Kalra K, Berchie P, Singh S, et al. JACC. Advances. 2025;4(12 Pt 1):102347. doi:10.1016/j.jacadv.2025.102347.This is a thoughtful article, but it actually **reinforces rather than contradicts** the recommendation for this specific patient. The key distinction the article itself makes is between **sedentary individuals and active ones** — and a 71-year-old woman walking four miles daily is clearly in the active category.
Several points worth highlighting:
**The article agrees with higher protein for this patient.** The researchers quoted explicitly carve out exceptions for "the elderly" and exercising individuals. Lamming himself notes that "most of these really rigorous studies showing benefits of high protein diets are done in the context of exercise," and this patient exercises regularly. The closing expert quote states: "Exercising a lot could justify eating protein at existing American levels."
**The low-protein findings are preliminary and not applicable here.** The human study cited involved 22 lean men in their 20s over just five weeks — a population with fundamentally different metabolic needs than a 71-year-old woman at risk for sarcopenia. The article acknowledges that "no long-term studies of low-protein diets in humans exist yet" and that the researchers "do not recommend a low-protein diet for... the elderly."
**The mechanistic concern is about unused amino acids.** As the article explains, without exercise, extra amino acids "accelerate cell turnover" and cellular damage. This patient walks four miles daily, meaning she is actively utilizing dietary protein for muscle maintenance and repair — precisely the scenario where higher intake is beneficial.
The robust evidence from ESPEN, PROT-AGE, and recent NEJM reviews supporting **1.0–1.2 g/kg/day for healthy, active older adults** remains the appropriate guidance here.[1][2][3] The article's core message — that sedentary people may not benefit from high protein — is a reasonable hypothesis under investigation, but it does not apply to this patient's clinical scenario.
Would you like to explore the role of FGF21 and protein restriction in metabolic aging, and whether any of that emerging research has implications for active older adults?
### References
1. Malnutrition in Older Adults. Cruz-Jentoft AJ, Volkert D. The New England Journal of Medicine. 2025;392(22):2244-2255. doi:10.1056/NEJMra2412275.
2. Protein Intake and Exercise for Optimal Muscle Function With Aging: Recommendations From the ESPEN Expert Group. Deutz NE, Bauer JM, Barazzoni R, et al. Clinical Nutrition (Edinburgh, Scotland). 2014;33(6):929-36. doi:10.1016/j.clnu.2014.04.007.
3. Evidence-Based Recommendations for Optimal Dietary Protein Intake in Older People: A Position Paper From the PROT-AGE Study Group. Bauer J, Biolo G, Cederholm T, et al. Journal of the American Medical Directors Association. 2013;14(8):542-59. doi:10.1016/j.jamda.2013.05.021.