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Links 2/6/2025

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An elusive California mammal has just been photographed alive for the first time SFGATE. The Spined Democrat?

Delta and Japan Airlines planes collide at Seattle Airport Daily Mail. ‘Tis a mystery!

The birth of naturalism Aeon

The Collapse of Ego Depletion Speak Now, Regret Later

Infrastructure Laundering: Blending in with the Cloud Krebs on Security

Climate

The climate crisis is set to erase $1.47 trillion in US home values. Here are 5 areas predicted to get hit hard. Business Insider

Carbon Dioxide Has Driven Drastic Changes In Earth’s Global Temperature Over The Past 485 Million years Astrobiology

Water

Report Reveals World’s Fourth Largest Lake Now a Deadly Desert Science Alert

Syndemics

Preprint: Active Surveillance of Companion Animals During The SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic Reveals > 25% Infected Avian Flu Diary

Deadly version of H5N1 bird flu spills over into Nevada dairy cattle LA Times. Meanwhile in NY:

And:

* * *

Nasal COVID-19 vaccine based on WashU technology to enter U.S. clinical trials (press release) Washington University in St. Louis

China?

Year of the Snake comes with a bite for Chinese consumers facing an economic slowdown NBC. Commentary:

China reopens antitrust probe into Google, Nvidia, and Intel may be next Tom’s Hardware

China launches WTO dispute over Trump tariffs South China Morning Post

India

The Big Ideas That Narendra Modi is Fully Committed to as India’s Leader The Wire. Gentlemen, I as leader will use power like a drum and leadership like a violin.

Africa

Africa’s expanding rail links benefit Chinese contractors and mineral needs South China Morning Post

Syraqistan

Malaysia says forced resettlement of Palestinians would be ethnic cleansing Al Jazeera

Saudi Arabia denies Trump’s claim, says no normalization with Israel without Palestinian state Anadolu Agency

* * *

US officials now say Trump only wants to displace Palestinians from Gaza temporarily AP

Mulvaney says Trump’s Gaza Strip proposal ‘wasn’t him’ The Hill

Trump’s real-estate instincts clash with his America First worldview BBC

Towards a Trump Tower in Gaza? Al Jazeera

What Trump Really Wants in Gaza Foreign Policy. Commentary:

* * *

Report: Netanyahu gifted Trump a golden pager; US president: ‘That was a great operation’ Jerusalem Post. Classy!

* * *

Trump calls for ‘nuclear peace agreement’ with Iran rather than blowing country ‘to smithereens’ FOX

* * *

In Damascus, café Rawda is a ‘lounge’ for exiled opponents and artists returning to Syria Le Monde. Commentary:

European Disunion

Why is Poland going nuts for 19th century artist Józef Chełmoński? EuroNewss

Hungary claims Ukraine spent “substantial funds” to discredit PM Orbán Ukrainska Pravda

New Not-So-Cold War

Most of USAID aid goes to Ukraine BNE Intellinews

Russia rejects Ukraine’s sovereignty and insists on further annexation – ISW Ukrainska Pravda

Kremlin confirms contact with Trump’s team, saying it has become more frequent Ukrainska Pravda

North Korean soldiers in Russia: Were they ever there? Responsible Statecraft

Bringing Out the Dead Scott Ritter Extra

South of the Border

How Trump could pave the way for China in Latin America LA Times

Ecuador to close its borders over the weekend Anadolu Agency

Feral Hog Watch

Wild hogs: why a gang of rogue pigs is causing chaos in Norfolk Guardian

Trump Administration

USAID and the Media in a ‘Time of Monsters’ Columbia Journalism Review

The 24-Hour Reality Check: Musk’s Impossible Power Grab And America’s Crisis TechDirt. Well worth a read.

Elon Musk will now ‘plug in’ to also commandeer US air traffic control system, says Transportation Secretary The Independent. Commentary:

Elon Musk’s Enemy, USAID, Was Investigating Starlink’s Contracts in Ukraine Gizmodo

Can Elon Musk shut down a federal agency? Yes, if presidential rule replaces constitutional governance LA Times

Justice Dept. official accuses FBI chief of ‘insubordination,’ tamps down talk of revenge on agents AP

* * *

‘Things Are Going to Get Intense:’ How a Musk Ally Plans to Push AI on the Government 404 Media

Trump OPM buyout offers leave federal workers with risky decisions The Hill. Commentary:

Trump’s birthright citizenship order is put on hold by a second federal judge AP

Trump budget bill could see ‘roughly’ $1 trillion in baseline spending cuts, top Republican says FOX

Legislators push to move crypto laws within Trump’s first 100 days Axios

Police State Watch

Officer-Involved: The Media Language of Police Killings The Quarterly Journal of Economics. From the Abstract: “We first document that the media use semantic structures—such as passive voice, nominalizations, and intransitive verbs—that obscure responsibility more often in cases of police killings than in cases of civilian killings…. [O]ur results suggest that narratives crafted by police departments are a more likely driver of media obfuscation.”

The Final Frontier

The Cislunar Competition Lawfare

Missing link still needed to save Mars Sample Return Space News

Healthcare

UnitedHealth Hires Defamation Firm Over Social Media Posts Bloomberg Law

Your Doctor Is Like Shakespeare (And That’s A Problem) 3 Quarks Daily

Zeitgeist Watch

Runaway teen hides in makeshift toilet paper fort in the middle of Walmart for days unnoticed Daily Mail

Avoiding Outrage Fatigue while Staying Informed Scientific American

Antidote du jour (Raf24~commonswiki):

See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.

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About Lambert Strether

Readers, I have had a correspondent characterize my views as realistic cynical. Let me briefly explain them. I believe in universal programs that provide concrete material benefits, especially to the working class. Medicare for All is the prime example, but tuition-free college and a Post Office Bank also fall under this heading. So do a Jobs Guarantee and a Debt Jubilee. Clearly, neither liberal Democrats nor conservative Republicans can deliver on such programs, because the two are different flavors of neoliberalism (“Because markets”). I don’t much care about the “ism” that delivers the benefits, although whichever one does have to put common humanity first, as opposed to markets. Could be a second FDR saving capitalism, democratic socialism leashing and collaring it, or communism razing it. I don’t much care, as long as the benefits are delivered. To me, the key issue — and this is why Medicare for All is always first with me — is the tens of thousands of excess “deaths from despair,” as described by the Case-Deaton study, and other recent studies. That enormous body count makes Medicare for All, at the very least, a moral and strategic imperative. And that level of suffering and organic damage makes the concerns of identity politics — even the worthy fight to help the refugees Bush, Obama, and Clinton’s wars created — bright shiny objects by comparison. Hence my frustration with the news flow — currently in my view the swirling intersection of two, separate Shock Doctrine campaigns, one by the Administration, and the other by out-of-power liberals and their allies in the State and in the press — a news flow that constantly forces me to focus on matters that I regard as of secondary importance to the excess deaths. What kind of political economy is it that halts or even reverses the increases in life expectancy that civilized societies have achieved? I am also very hopeful that the continuing destruction of both party establishments will open the space for voices supporting programs similar to those I have listed; let’s call such voices “the left.” Volatility creates opportunity, especially if the Democrat establishment, which puts markets first and opposes all such programs, isn’t allowed to get back into the saddle. Eyes on the prize! I love the tactical level, and secretly love even the horse race, since I’ve been blogging about it daily for fourteen years, but everything I write has this perspective at the back of it.

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82 comments

  1. The Rev Kev

    “Report: Netanyahu gifted Trump a golden pager; US president: ‘That was a great operation’”

    Meanwhile, elsewhere-

    ‘Norman, how’s it going? I got you a pager”
    Zionist agitators harassed Jewish-American political scientist and author Norman Finkelstein on February 3, placing a pager in his jacket — a reference to Israel’s pager attack in 2024’

    https://x.com/trtworld/status/1887135338100920688?mx=2

    Reply ↓
      2. ambrit

        Hmmm…. Number of the Blast anyone? I understand that there is not a 666 Area Code, but this pager might be the exception.

        Reply ↓
    2. Zagonostra

      In September, thousands of pagers used by Hezbollah operatives across Lebanon suddenly exploded, killing and injuring dozens. A day later, hundreds of walkie-talkies also blew up, killing and injuring scores m

      Would that also include innocent bystanders, children, and women? Used by “Hezbollah,” how about regular non-combatants, doctors, nurses, etc…? Just collateral damage conducted by a demonic/damaged government and funded by you and me.

      Reply ↓
    3. Tom Doak

      Only Trump could receive a golden pager from Bibi and not consider the possibility of a veiled threat.

      Well, maybe Biden. Or maybe Harris.

      Reply ↓
      1. Jackiebass63

        If I am correct ,presidents don’t get to keep gifts given while in office. I don’t remember what happens to them.

        Reply ↓
          1. t

            There’s a review, possibly has to be paid for and there may be tax implications. It’s one of the minor business functions of the White House like reviewing requests for a letter and photo from the President to thank the Ladies Thursday Chess Club of Altoona, PA, for beautifying a local park.

            Reply ↓
        2. Neutrino

          Smithsonian exhibits, or storage? Tourists should steer clear of either location.

          Reply ↓
    1. GramSci

      «Ultimately, the cislunar calculus fundamentally changes if—probably when—large numbers of humans are born, live, raise families, and die on the Moon and in other parts of the solar system, like Mars. Many of us foresee that future.»

      Stars in their eyes.

      Reply ↓
  3. GM

    Chinese cars at smartphone prices: Revolutionizing the budget car market

    That’s not a good thing, for sustainability reasons.

    Reply ↓
  4. Zagonostra

    >The Collapse of Ego Depletion Speak Now, Regret Later

    I had to confront an uncomfortable truth: the foundation of our celebrated paper was crumbling. Ego depletion—the once-famous idea that self-control relies on a finite resource that can be depleted through use—wasn’t real

    I’m not sure the article ever defines “Ego.” Maybe I missed it, or it’s in one of the footnotes, I’ll have to reread more carefully.

    I recently downloaded a free PDF of Max Stirner The Ego And Its Own but lost interest about a third of the way through. I don’t even know if the word “Ego” obscures more than it reveals. Freud mixed with Marxism, via Frankfurt School, made for some very exciting reading in early college days, it seemed to explain what was happening out there, with what was happening inside here. Turns out, much of everything I thought provided answers when young I’m rejecting/revising/revisiting as I get older, much like the history of WWI & WWII and U.S.’s role in it.

    Reply ↓
    1. Lieaibolmmai

      Ego in this case is defined by a “self” or “I” and is in contact with the external world through perception. Having a strong ego makes you more objective. The less ego the more subjective the world appears, which would be in line with many eastern religions (ie Daoism; “Am I a butterfly dreaming I am a person?”). Drugs that weaken the ego (like LSD) tend to make everything very very subjective.

      Serotonin seems to link somehow to the ego and this conclusion comes from the fact that ego dissolution drugs activate a specific serotonin receptor, HTR2A.

      I do not see the benefit of having a strong ego, nor the benefit of having a no ego. A healthy life lives somewhere in between the two.

      As far as the theory of the ego depletion, it seems to have not made sense from the start. Because if you have no ego, then who is it that wants the cookie? In fact, I would say the lack of will power is from a strong sense of self, or too much ego. Sort of like how Elon and Trump cannot control themselves right now.

      Reply ↓
  6. Zagonostra

    Djole 🇷🇸
    @onlydjole

    In China, the prices of new cars have reached incredibly low values, which are comparable to the prices of modern smartphones. Chinese automakers have managed to offer vehicles at prices ranging from just $610 to $1,714, making them the most affordable models in the world.

    I was on RedNote last night looking at the other end of the spectrum, upscale vehicles, and RV’s, the later which I wouldn’t mind living in. The technological advanced offering of a whole spectrum of Chinese vehicles is mind bending. It feels like I’m living in the stone age here, in the U.S.

    Reply ↓
    1. Tom Doak

      They look like golf carts.

      Here in America, you can buy a brand new golf cart for about $7000 – or up to $18,000 for the Rodney Dangerfield models.

      Prices before import duties, of course.

      Reply ↓
    2. timbers

      Stone age indeed here in USA the exceptionally indispensable numero uno best of everything nation of all time. Seeing and reading that link made me need the last link regarding outrage fatigue.

      Reply ↓
    3. PlutoniumKun

      The vehicles in that tweet are not cars, they are quadricycles – the tweeter clearly doesn’t know (or care about) the difference. These are (depending on local regulations) ‘sub’ cars which are usually banned from expressways and have speed limiters of around 30mph. They’ve been around European and Asian cities for decades – arguably, the Heinkel Bubblecar was the first, back in the 1950s’. Mainstream quadricycles in Europe, such as the Citroen Ami and Renault Duo, cost well under 10,000 euro. In India there are equivalents (ICE, not BEVs yet) costing 3-5,000 dollars, some of which are road legal (in India, anyway).

      These vehicles are almost entirely driven not by technology, but by regulation. The Japanese Kei cars (extremely compact, but expressway legal) were the result of specific regulations in Japan around parking and taxation (specifically, you didn’t need to own a parking space to be able to tax one). The Quadricycles in Europe came about due to a 1992 EU Directive setting out a number of sub-car categories – intended for mopeds, but someone worked out they could apply to four wheel vehicles too and so a whole new category and industry was formed.

      I would guess that the absence of these vehicles in the US owe more to regulation and consumer preference than any particular failure of the car manufacturers or anyone else.

      One reason mainstream car manufacturers have resisted EV’s is that they realised that they opened the door to a whole range of new vehicles filling potential gaps between a bicycle and a car. It is of course, idiotic that people feel they need 3 tons of steel and the horsepower of a Roman legion to haul someones ass to the local store to buy some milk.

      In my neck of the woods, the problem is that the exponential rise in power and reduction in cost of batteries is flooding us with very powerful ‘vehicles’ which are neither really bikes or cars (or motorbikes), and the are proving a huge hazard on roads and cyclepaths. There are ‘bikes’ now, with pedals that are largely ornamental, but with EV drivetrains that can easily match a mid range motorbike in speed and acceleration – but they are allowed on cyclepaths and even sometimes footpaths by default. This is increasingly applying to 3 and 4 wheel vehicles (even UPS now uses quads for urban deliveries).

      The problem is now that there is something of a ‘dance’ going on between manufacturers and regulators, neither wanting to make a move that could complicate things. But there is an urgent need to formalise the status of the new range of vehicles coming on the market. In China, the regulations are purposely looser, which certainly drives innovation, but can make navigating city roads to be, shall we say, an interesting experience at times.

      Reply ↓
      1. GramSci

        «It is of course, idiotic that people feel they need 3 tons of steel and the horsepower of a Roman legion to haul someones ass to the local store to buy some milk.»

        I continue to contend that most USians live in a continual state of fear. This is especially obvious when they get on the road.

        Reply ↓
      2. Carolinian

        Thanks for the informative comment. We have a bit of an electric bike craze here with the often portly riders pretending to pedal as they speed down paved walking trails that are supposed to be “no motorized vehicles.”

        And in my upper middle class neighborhood there is a vogue for the golf cart form of mini vehicle although they mostly seem to sit in driveways as a symbol of affluence rather than practicality. Personally I find them obnoxious in an old neighborhood with lots of sidewalks but they are legal on streets with a 25mph limit.

        When not in their carts my neighbors drive two ton SUVs so no practicality there either. If the Trump admin already seems full of goofy ideas–including that cow pie he stepped in Tuesday–consider his constituents. Some Americans are very poor. Other Americans are very spoiled.

        Reply ↓
      3. Colonel Smithers

        Thank you and well said, PK.

        In bank lobbying, we call it an “elaborate dance”. It’s exactly how you describe.

        This said, one day a dozen years ago, European regulators invited finance, not just banking, lobbyists to Paris for a discussion. Securitisation, if memory serves. It was a Friday. France was hosting Ireland at rugby the next day.

        A discussion supposed to last a few hours, with a pause for lunch, terminated swiftly with an early and liquid lunch. Most attendees brought their significant others and made a long week-end of it on expenses. On Monday, colleagues were told that the regulators were in no mood to listen. Not much of a dance between us that day.

        Reply ↓
  7. Wukchumni

    Runaway teen hides in makeshift toilet paper fort in the middle of Walmart for days unnoticed Daily Mail
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    I grew up in the golden age of fort building and boy how we’ve regressed from sturdy fortifications constructed out of lumber, tar paper, shingles and floor to ceiling carpeting, to a friggin’ Charmin Igloo.

    Reply ↓
    1. Emma

      At the current rate that President Trusk (or Mump?) is upsetting the apple cart, obviously the only safe investments for the future are toilet paper and canned tuna. That kid is just on the bleeding edge.

      Reply ↓
    2. ChrisFromGA

      We used to build snow forts in the backyard, February was a good month, particularly if the snow pack was measured in feet.

      Jumping from the balcony into a a six-foot snow drift was another way to amuse ourselves during a dreary upstate NY winter.

      Reply ↓
      1. Wukchumni

        We had nothing but airdrifts to work with growing up in the SoCal tundra, our favorite was jumping from the 2nd story of some house being built (where we would later appropriate fort accoutrements) onto a 6 foot high sandpile.

        Most of us survive childhood, so we were pretty fearless.

        Reply ↓
        1. mrsyk

          Ah, I’m beginning to understand why the evolution of skateboarding took place in SoCal.
          Confession, I still jump off the roof if there’s enough snow.

          Reply ↓
        2. The Rev Kev

          I think that the rule was so long as you had no broken bones or gushing blood and were back before nightfall, then all was good.

          Reply ↓
                1. Wukchumni

                  When it got dark was high time for pranks, and we thought up some really good ones, my favorite being the toilet paper rope…

                  Ok Wuk, what in the tarnation could that mean?

                  You roll out enough TP to cross the street and then twirl it so to resemble a rope, and then when a car approaches, have 3 people on either side of the street lift said rope and stop a car in its tracks.

                  Sometimes the drivers would get angry and deliberately run through your ‘rope’ which left ample opportunity to TP a house or at least get started, followed by a barrage of eggs.

                  Reply ↓
                    1. Wukchumni

                      We once TP’d a house 3 weekends in a row. The adults there were super creepy…

                      The 1st week was a breeze, they never knew what hit them, while the 2nd weekend was more fraught with terror of being caught, but we pulled it off.

                      That 3rd weekend was scary as they had to be onto us, but we prevailed.

        3. jhallc

          In the 60’s we used to jump off the top of a 30′ pile of sand sitting on the docks of the Niagara River. It was dumped by a dredge (“the Sandsucker”) which pulled it from the bottom of the river where it emptied into Lake Ontario. I try not to think of the heavy metals and dioxins that were likely there.

          Reply ↓
      2. mrsyk

        It’s snowing buckets here right now. I’ll be building a cat fort later today if it keeps up. Turrets and tunnels, gotta maintain my yelp review.

        Reply ↓
  8. Zagonostra

    >Most of USAID aid goes to Ukraine BNE Intellinews

    The number represents more than 60% of all US foreign aid listed on the website. The agency pays out only economic aid, with military aid being handled by the Department of State and the Department of Defence.

    Twitter/X clips of Ben Stiller, Angelina Jolie, Sean Pen, were making the rounds yesterday stating these celebrates made millions for their endorsement of Zelensky. Much back and forth denying and “debunking” these stories this morning so I’m not sure of the veracity on any side. What is not in dispute is that “USAID” had been used for nefarious purposes and that it’s apparent dismantling may be a shell game repurposing money for other ends.

    Reply ↓
    1. MicaT

      It’s certainly a bad situation , however there has been lots of work and it is starting to refill and is making noticeable improvements.

      It’s going to take a long time if it ever gets back to some semblance of normal.

      But I’ll take any good news I can get.

      Many links on line about what’s happening

      Reply ↓
      1. alfred venison

        they brought the Thames back from near death.
        they brought one (or two) of the Great Lakes back from near death.
        Maybe . . .

        Reply ↓
  13. JohnA

    Re Your Doctor Is Like Shakespeare

    This guy simply does not understand theatre at all.
    “Branagh — despite my love of Thor — is not on Shakespeare’s level. Not even close.”
    Er, Branagh is a brilliant actor and director. Not a writer. Shakespeare was a jobbing actor but a brilliant writer. Comparing apples and oranges.

    “if you can instantly distribute Shakespeare to the phone in everyone’s pocket, why would anyone go to the theater?”
    Because seeing theatre live is very different to seeing a recording of a production.
    I love theatre and have also seen a few streaming service productions of plays in the cinema and on TV. The latter are not even close to seeing a performance live in the theatre. Every seat offers a different perspective, every performance differs, even of a longstanding production. No two Hamlets are the same, and the same actor never plays Hamlet exactly the same from night to night. Theatre is 3D, cinema is 2D. I can vividly recall various performances of brilliant actors I have seen live. Streaming services not so much. Maybe because they are repeatable.

    Reply ↓
    1. ex-PFC Chuck

      I second your remarks about the incomparable nature of live theater. Two nights ago we saw a preview performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Guthrie. It was very well done and well received by the audience. Anyone who’s going to be in the MSP area sometime during the next six or so weeks should check it out.

      Reply ↓
  14. re silc

    Most of USAID aid goes to Ukraine BNE Intellinews

    Bad info. Israel and Egypt in top 3 too for USAID cash flow payments

    Reply ↓
  15. DJG, Reality Czar

    There is an old Soviet joke:
    What’s the difference between the East and the West?
    In the East, they tell you to shut up. In the West, they say, Keep talking.

    Mike Brock is persuasive, in the TechDirt article, Twenty-Four Hour Reality Check.

    This is the core: “These aren’t obscure regulations—they’re fundamental safeguards designed to maintain the separation between public authority and private interest that democratic governance requires. Just as there are twenty-four hours in a day, these laws mean what they say: You cannot simultaneously serve as a federal official and maintain control over companies directly affected by your official actions.”

    Yet like so many USonians these days, he is afflicted with logorrhea. He can’t help himself. Psychobabble and pseudopsychoanalysis are required.

    And then there is the Yellow Peril: “Musk’s troubling connections to China add yet another layer of concern to an already alarming situation. His consistent praise of the Chinese Communist Party, including writing an op-ed in a party mouthpiece celebrating their anniversary, stands in stark contrast to his criticisms of other countries and leaders. This discrepancy becomes even more troubling when we consider China’s status as America’s primary geopolitical adversary.”

    Primary geopolitical adversary? So I’m supposed to trade Elon Musk for Commies at the Gate fantasies?

    I’m reminded of way back when, the days of Watergate, when Sam Ervin would protest that he was just an old country lawyer. Brock should stick to the law, and he should stick to the idea that the law should now be applied by the (remarkably politicized and partisan) U.S. federal courts. Let justice reign even if the heavens should fall.

    If Musk is breaking six or eight laws, convict him and imprison him.

    But unlike the days of yore, when Nixon knew that he wasn’t quite above the law, today’s elites firmly believe that the law exists only to oppress the 90 percent.

    So they are afraid that the law be applied against anyone in the elite.

    Convicting Musk means convicting Trump of something with teeth and a prison sentence. Convicting Musk and Trump means convicting Hillary Clinton of any number of things (Libya looms large in Italy these days as the torture chamber of Africa and continuing scandal). And then Nancy Pelosi and the endless insider trading.

    Yes, get out Mr. Guillotine’s clever meat-slicer. And apply it.

    But don’t maunder on about the Commie Peril. Keep that goodthink to yourself.

    Reply ↓
  16. pjay

    – ‘In Damascus, café Rawda is a ‘lounge’ for exiled opponents and artists returning to Syria’ – Le Monde

    As I read this headline my brain kept translating “cafe Rawda” as “Hotel Rwanda.” This was before I even consciously realized the deeper link between the two. Though I can’t be sure since I didn’t get past the paywall, I’m guessing that the Le Monde article is written to convey certain sad truths about Syria to an educated, sympathetic, and “humanitarian” audience. These “truths” will be factual at a certain level. But they will manipulate the emotions and interests of this readership to keep them ignorant about other truths at a higher level. This was the function of ‘Hotel Rwanda,’ after all. Those who read beyond the paywall can correct me if I’m wrong.

    Reply ↓
  17. Wukchumni

    The climate crisis is set to erase $1.47 trillion in US home values. Here are 5 areas predicted to get hit hard. Business Insider
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    Couldn’t get past the great paywall, but they had Kern County as 1 of the 5 areas predicted to get hit hard, and when you say Kern County, you’re really saying Bakersfield-and it isn’t as if there is a lot there, there.

    Bakersfield exists so that Fresno wouldn’t get an inferiority complex, or was it the other way around?

    Reply ↓
    1. jefemt

      I was amazed Florida missed the top five. And then, of course, I started to wonder about the source, the data, the ‘information age’.

      Reply ↓
  18. CA

    Notice that manufacturing productivity has been decreasing since the beginning of 2011 through the close of 2024. That is 14 years of decreasing manufacturing productivity. There has been no near comparable period in American history since 1905:

    https://fred.stlouisfed.org/graph/?g=m2mx

    January 30, 2018

    Manufacturing Productivity, * 1988-2024

    * Output per hour of all persons

    (Percent change)

    Reply ↓
  19. GramSci

    Re: North Koreans in Ukraine

    «If they really weren’t [there], then the whole affair was a sleight of hand to justify … the escalatory risk of granting permission to Ukraine to fire U.S. supplied long-range missiles deeper into Russian territory.»

    I’ll repeat my contention that the plan was to establish a funding/weapons pipeline to Ukraine through South Korea, a pipeline that Trump could be persuaded to maintain. Yoon’s impeachment screwed that plan.

    Reply ↓
    1. The Rev Kev

      What you say seems logical and might imply that Yoon trying to seize dictatorial power may have been part of this plan so that any local dissent could be suppressed. The guys at The Duran have the same theory too about Biden trying to establish a weapons ratline between South Korea and the Ukraine which they featured in a recent video. But it looks like Yoon has been left holding the bag who can hardly admit why he was doing all this. Certainly Trump is not going to save him.

      Reply ↓
      1. CA

        “What you say seems logical and might imply that Yoon trying to seize dictatorial power may have been part of this plan so that any local dissent could be suppressed…”

        The astonishing point is that the Biden administration was evidently trying to take control of Korean governmental policy, and Yoon had decided accordingly to betray the Korean Constitution either to serve the Biden administration or as an excuse for a dictatorship.

        Reply ↓
      2. GramSci

        Someone here, possibly the Duran, cited Philip Goldberg, current U S ambassador to South Korea, expelled U S ambassador to Bolivia as the factotum.

        Wikipedia: «From June 2009 until June 2010, he [Goldberg] was the coordinator for the implementation of UNSC Resolution 1874 (Sanctions) on North Korea.»

        But the U S Dept of State does not want for factota.

        Reply ↓
  20. Mark Gisleson

    NPR’s David Folkenflik has written a fairly long piece about Brendan Carr and 60 Minutes that somehow manages to equate editing an interview with editing a news story. And does so with as few words as possible, moving on as quickly as dignity permits.

    This soft-spoken screed should be cited when they explain why NPR has to be shut down. Everything about it is calculated to distract you from the core issues involved: “hey, just us, your locally subscribed to CIA-funded national news service whispering in your ear but don’t worry, we’re being objective.”

    Reply ↓
  21. GramSci

    Re: Justice Dept official accuses FBI

    «There’s also been no evidence any FBI agents or lawyers who investigated or prosecuted the cases did anything wrong.»

    That’s a bald assertion from the AP.

    Reply ↓
  22. The Rev Kev

    “US officials now say Trump only wants to displace Palestinians from Gaza temporarily”

    Trump might have spouted this Zionist wet dream of having the US ethnically cleanse Gaza on behalf of Israel but gosh darn it, reality keeps on getting in the way. When Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth realized that this plan mean that US troops would be battling Hamas in the streets of Gaza, he started backing away real fast saying that the US is a long way off deploying US troops there. And when MAGA woke up to the fact that the US would be on the hook for tens if not hundreds of billions of dollars of clearing and construction costs, Trump himself was forced to back away from that idea and saying that of course the regional powers like Saudi Arabia would be funding it because all those Arab nations just love throwing money at Israel. Then Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt had to state that Trump really did not men that the Palestinians were going to be ejected for good because they are getting so much heat for that idea. Finally Jordan and Egypt have said now way are they going to accept up to two million people as they will be in their countries forever and at that it would destabilize their regimes and topple them. God, Trump can be so stupid at times.

    Reply ↓
    1. JohnA

      Israel is now demanding that countries that support a Palestinian state ‘must’ accept Palestinians expelled from Gaza. ‘chutzpah’ could only have come from the Hebrew language. One can only hope that one day, that good old German word Schadenfreude will be applicable to such Israelis.

      Reply ↓
        1. Emma

          The Palestinians could be housed in homes vacated by Israelis who fled the country and the border with Lebanon. In fact, if the Palestinians live there, that would ensure that Hezbollah would refrain from hitting those areas.

          Or just set up “gated communities” for Jewish Israelis in certain parts of LA (I heard some open spaces just opened up in the Pacific Palisades, Brooklyn, and Florida and then move the displaced Palestinians into their “abandoned property”. Like what the Allies did to German populations to house Jewish survivors after WWII.

          Reply ↓
  23. Wukchumni

    Who let the DOGE out?
    Who, who, who, who, who?
    Who let the DOGE out?
    Who, who, who, who, who?
    Who let the DOGE out?
    Who, who, who, who, who?
    Who let the DOGE out?

    Well, the GOP party was nice, the party was pumpin’
    Heya, yippie yi yo
    And everybody havin’ a ball
    Huh, huh, yippie yi yo
    I tell the fellas start the name callin’
    Yippie yi yo
    And the Greys respond to the call
    I heard the Donkey Show shout out

    Who let the DOGE out?
    Who, who, who, who, who?
    Who let the DOGE out?
    Who, who, who, who, who?
    Who let the DOGE out?
    Who, who, who, who, who?
    Who let the DOGE out?
    Who, who, who, who, who?

    I see de do dalliance people had a ball
    ‘Cause they really want to break swamp town
    Get back, Elon, back, Markko
    Get back with your 25 year old wunderkind

    Gonna tell myself, “hey, man no get angry”
    Heya, yippie yi yo
    To anybody callin’ them asinine
    Hey, yippie yi yo
    But they tell me, “hey, man, it’s part of the party”
    Yippie yi yo
    You put Trump in front and his Richie Rich man behind
    I heard the Donkey Show shout out

    Who let the DOGE out?
    Who, who, who, who, who?
    Who let the DOGE out?
    Who, who, who, who, who?
    Who let the DOGE out?
    Who, who, who, who, who?
    Who let the DOGE out?

    Baha Men – Who Let The Dogs Out (Original version) | Full HD | 1080p

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qkuu0Lwb5EM

    Reply ↓
  24. The Rev Kev

    “Trump calls for ‘nuclear peace agreement’ with Iran rather than blowing country ‘to smithereens'”

    Trump already had that with the nuclear peace deal back in 2016 but which he reneged on. Iran agreed to scale back their nuclear activities and in return they would be able to do business with the west, among others. But that was nearly a decade ago and a lot has changed since then. Trump could offer to do the same deal as it was written under Obama but there are two, no, three problems with that idea. First, Iran has zero trust in the US not to renege on that deal as soon as Iran’s nuclear activities had been curtailed. Second, they would have zero trust that Trump would not decide to put on other restrictions like Obama did after he signed that deal. Thirdly, the US would demand that more provisions be put into that treaty such as getting rid of much of their missile program which in fact the US already tried. Not optimistic here.

    Reply ↓
  25. Max Z

    > The 24-Hour Reality Check: Musk’s Impossible Power Grab And America’s Crisis TechDirt. Well worth a read.

    “The reality is brutally simple: What’s happening is illegal. ”

    Presidential pardon incoming in 3… 2… 1…

    Reply ↓
  26. The Rev Kev

    “China launches WTO dispute over Trump tariffs”

    China just dotting their i’s and crossing their t’s. They know going in that the WTO is hamstrung as the US has refused to let more judges be appointed. So no China launches WTO dispute over Trump tariffs is possible. Seems that a few cases went against the US causing outrage in Washington. But I think that China wants to be seen following all the international rules for form’s sake before launching their trade counter-attacks.

    Reply ↓
  27. Wukchumni

    Welcome on board Musk International Airlines, we know you had no choice in the matter as far as Elon et al being your new carrier of air traffic control, and now just sit back and enjoy the fright.

    Reply ↓
  28. The Rev Kev

    “Bringing Out the Dead”

    Prediction here. We will never learn how many soldiers died in the Ukraine. Yes, there are all sorts of tools and methodologies that would give us a fairly good idea but the west will never let that happen as they will try to hide the true cost of the war so that they do not look personally bad. So I guess that they will go with Zelensky’s figure of 43,000 soldiers killed in this war instead.

    Reply ↓
  29. Wukchumni

    The birth of naturalism Aeon
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~
    I guess i’m a naturist naturalist trying to blend in with the rest of Mother Natures clients who also wear the emperors new clothes.

    Wilderness is very much my bulwark of truth against the world of lies and mistruths and worse going on in so-called civilization.

    Everything is as it appears in the natural world, sure there’s deception going on all over the place-because everything is somebody else’s meal depending on your ranking in the food chain.

    Reply ↓

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