¶This giant salamander lived in the broad freshwater lakes and marshes that covered parts of Kyushu several million years ago. As an adult, it may have reached approximately 1.1 meters in length.

¶This length seemed impressive for a salamander, prehistoric or not, until I realized the Japanese giant salamander(Andrias japonicus) is alive and well in Japan and can grow up to to 1.5 meters in length. These modern day giants are fully aquatic and endemic to present-day Japan. Five feet long!

¶What lead to the extinction of the newly identified prehistoric giant salamander? The linked article headlines a climate change theory (“Climate Change and Extinction”), noting that “[c]ooling temperatures, along with major changes in local habitats, may have contributed to [its] disappearance.” (emphasis added). The underlying paper cautions that the cause is still unclear, explaining:

¶[I]t remains unclear whether such sea-level changes directly affected the Ajimu region. Regardless, the loss of freshwater habitats—whether due to climate cooling, local tectonic uplift, or any marine incursion—could have been a key factor in the disappearance of the new genus.

¶Infantino said it had become clear the project had “created divisions” that are “no longer in the interest” of its original objective.

¶The Swiss official added: “As a result, this proposal will not proceed.”

¶I didn’t need another reason to pay more attention to soccer after the fantastic World Cup, but now I’ve got one. The drama of this week has seemingly come to a sudden end as Infantino killed his proposal to sell off a portion of FIFA. Ostensibly, the reason for opposing the proposal is that investment isn’t needed. FIFA, it seems, has plenty of cash. I have to believe, though, that an underlying reason is a collective raising of the fist against the Trump connection to the investment fund.

¶European soccer governing body UEFA appears to have been the force behind the sacking of the proposal, saying “no UEFA national teams will participate in any FIFA competition for so long as these proposals remain alive, unless this proposal has been abandoned in its entirety and binding assurances have been given that FIFA will never again open its governance or competitions to private ownership.”

¶I’m definitely loving soccer right now.

¶Trump Media & Technology Group is now shopping to traders and investors a premium version of Truth Social delivering early access to the feeds of high-profile users, including the president.

¶Starting Saturday, for a fee of up to $100,000 a month, trading firms can access “Truth API” to get a glimpse of the president’s often market-moving announcements about economic policy and global affairs before the rest of the world.

¶Just a few days ago, I thought the now-failed Kushner family FIFA investment fund best illustrated the boundless nature of Trump’s grift.

¶What a difference a few days can make!

¶The Kushner FIFA fund seems to pale in comparison to the blatant nature of this cash grab. Starting today, you can apparently pay Trump’s company to get early access to his social posts, which means you could have been one of the first to see today’s rant about Janine Pirro dropping charges against David Hearn for lack of evidence.

¶Big deal?

¶It’s a huge deal because the fee will also provide early access to the market moving content frequently posted by Trump.

¶This is embarrassingly insane.