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Links 3/29/2025

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What were we all doing here? My 600-mile trip to hear an organ play a D natural Spectator (Anthony L)

New species revealed after 25 years of study on ‘inside out’ fossil — and named after discoverer’s mum ScienceDaily (Kevin W)

The Limits of Rights Baffler. (Anthony L). A delicious trashing: “Roth’s book is, plainly, very bad….”

#COVID-19/Pandemics

The CDC Buried a Measles Forecast That Stressed the Need for Vaccinations ProPublica (Kevin W)

Climate/Environment

The Huge Jury Verdict Against Greenpeace Is Really An Attack on the Entire Climate Movement. It Will Backfire Steve Donzinger (Chuck L)

Malnutrition Not Due to Cash Poverty Alone Jomo

China?

Trump’s tariffs won’t save Musk from China’s BYD Asia Times

Japan unveils first plan to evacuate 100,000 civilians from islands near Taiwan in event of conflict Guardian

Myanmar

Myanmar earthquake death toll jumps to 1,000 with over 2,300 injured Anadolu Agency. Thanks for the expressions of concern, but Thailand was not meaningfully affected. The Bangkok building under construction that fell down looks to have been due to, erm, substandard practices. I have yet to see reports of structural damage to other buildings, which you’d expect to see otherwise. Recall that Bangkok is on clay and also slowly sinking. Some readers have contacts in cities and towns much closer to Myanmar and they report no meaningful impact because those municipalities are built on granite or other solid rock. That does not prove there were no damaged buildings closer to Myanmar but does suggest the harm was pretty limited.

Myanmar rebels disrupt China rare earth trade, sparking regional scramble Reuters. Wonder if the earthquake changes this equation, as in no humanitarian assistance if the rebels don’t reverse course.

The Antipodes

Federal MP Andrew Gee blames staff impersonating a voter for ‘dirty tactics’ Facebook gaffe ABC Australia (Anthony L)

Africa

South Sudan opposition says vice president’s arrest ends peace deal Aljazeera

US Wants to Create a Fake State for New Military Base Active Measures

O Canada

Canada PM Mark Carney says old relationship with US ‘is over’ BBC

European Disunion

Europe Needs a Complete Strategic Reboot Foreign Policy (Colonel Smithers)

Europe races to secure critical minerals as global supply tensions mount Independent

‘If VW disappears, people won’t stay in the town anymore’ – fears over Trump’s car tariffs Sky

Sweden Is Rearming For War With Russia Forbes

Israel v. The Resistance

Anti-Hamas Gaza demonstrations reflect desperation as Israel strangles and bombards the Strip Mondoweiss

Israeli airstrikes hit Beirut suburbs after unclaimed rocket attacks Arab News

US moves more stealth bombers to Indian Ocean base in striking distance of Iran, Yemen Times of Israel

New Not-So-Cold War

Ukraine: Fighting to the Conclusion Big Serge

SITREP 3/28/25: Putin Vows to ‘Finish Off’ Ukraine? Simpilcius

Underground: Ten NATO officers were liquidated in a restaurant in Dnepropetrovsk Vzglyad via machine translation. Micael T: “Maybe this will get the message through to the war lusting EU-tards? The Western officers and soldiers are very much touchable.”

Even if the war ended tomorrow, Ukraine could end up broke by 2026 Ian Proud, Responsible Statecraft. Only arguably accurate, since Ukraine is broke now and paying its bills thanks only to foreign handouts.

Of course, before getting to this, which = Ukraine being literally strip mined, and not rebuilt ex what is narrowly useful for that: Trump’s Rewritten ‘Deal’ With Ukraine Is Imposed Indentured Servitude Moon of Alabama. BTW, indentured servitude is not the right comparison. Indentured servitude was time limited. This is slavery.

The open dispute between the EU and the US over Ukrainian natural resources begins Anti-Spiegel via machine translation. Micael T: “You will need wheelbarrows of popcorn for this show-down.” Moi: Perhaps not. The Trump Administration has gone quiet. No evidence of even try to arm-twist or alternatively, vent at the Europeans, no new meetings with Russia set. Will the US go into Emily Litella “Never mind” mode and use the Ukraine refusal to sign the draconian “minerals” deal as the pretext to walk away.

The Arctic: Territory of Dialogue international forum President of Russia. Important

India Turns Away Russian Oil Tanker As Sanctions Evolve OilPrice

Syraqistan

Syrians left in the dark as the interim government struggles to restore electricity Independent

Disintegration of Syria Would Only Benefit Israel – Iranian Foreign Minister Defend Democracy

Imperial Collapse Watch

Political Pressure — Why The Intelligence Community Fails to Accurately Assess Combat Losses and Military Capability Larry Johnson

Trump 2.0

Two law firms targeted by Trump sue over executive orders that sought to punish them Associated Press

Judges block Trump orders targeting two law firms as Skadden cuts deal Reuters. The white shoe firms fold.

Judge orders Trump administration to keep Signal records amid Yemen attack chat controversy CNN (Kevin W)

Convicted of bilking investors, Nikola founder and Trump donor gets a presidential pardon Associated Press

* * *

Usha Vance’s Greenland Trip Somehow Gets More Embarrassing for Trump New Republic (Kevin W)

Tourists are cancelling trips to the US – here’s how this could affect its economy The Conversation (Kevin W). A colleague even rerouted a flight back to this hemisphere after a long holiday, expensively, to avoid going through LAX.

DOGE

DOGE Plans to Rebuild SSA Code Base in Months, Risking Benefits and System Collapse Wired. Lambert points out it this long merely to write the test protocol. This looks intended to destroy Social Security.

FWIW, I called Monday (2 days earlier), pretty much first thing in the SSA day, was told the hold would be 20 mins. I did not do the callback (I have found airlines call back at best 50% of the time when you accept that option, so I use the speakerphone and stay on hold). It was 40 minutes. The press has said that staff cuts were starting after the end of the month. I asked the rep point blank and she said they had been told nothing of the kind. Admittedly the SSA is closing some rural offices as of then. So the result below may be the result of call volume due to all the scary news, and not yet staff cuts.

Preliminary Injunction Granted in Case Against Illegal CFPB Shutdown Public Citizen

The Department of Government Inefficiency Musk Watch

DOGE Will Likely Fail to Reform the Deep State Finn Andressen (Micael T). Assumes this was an aim, against any evidence I have yet to see.

Immigration

DOJ asks Supreme Court to intervene in deportation flights case The Hill. Presumptuous. Odds greatly favor the Supremes telling the DOJ to go through the normal process like everyone else.

Trump takes aim at foreign-born college students, with 300 visas revoked NBC

Venezuelans deported to mega-prison ‘trapped in black hole’ BBC

What the New JFK Documents Reveal Thomas Neuburger

Our No Longer Free Press

Meta Complies with Foreign Demand for Journalist’s Info Reclaim the Net

UK Tries to Silence American Online Platforms Reclaim the Net

Banned Books Analysis of Censorship on Amazon.com CitizenLab (Paul R)

Bloomberg’s Pathetic Swipe at Substack Matt Taibbi

Global ad spending expectations sink on trade war uncertainty: WARC Marketing Dive. This will hit publisher revenues and thus staffing.

Mr. Market is Moody

The Synthetic Lender of Last Resort Matt Levine, Bloomberg (Micael T)

How Trump’s reckless policies could trigger a financial crisis South China Morning Post

Donald Trump’s tariffs throw car industry into turmoil Financial Times

Antitrust

How the American Medical Association Screws Doctors Matt Stoller

The Bezzle

Elon Musk says he sold X to his AI company CNN (Kevin W)

Meghan Markle’s Netflix show angered critics. This columnist says she knows why NPR. Tom D: “NPR says it’s racist, sexist and classist not to genuflect before one’s betters.” Moi: Markle’s spin is not working any more. She needs to take lessons from Zelensky as to how to keep an act well beyond its sell-by date going.

Antidote du jour:

And a bonus:

A second bonus (Chuck L):

See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.

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188 comments

  1. The Rev Kev

    ‘Noor Al 📈
    @NoorAlTrades
    Is this real? I can’t believe it.
    These are forward flight bookings from Canada to the US.
    This might be the single craziest thing I’ve ever seen.’

    If that looks bad, imagine how many of the remaining bookings were due to necessary business trips or family reunions at weddings and the like which could not be avoided. In a little over two months Trump has managed to take Canadian-US relations back to how they were in 1812 which is something. How he thinks that Canadians will simply agree to become Americans I do not know but when you see the world in terms of real estate deals and resources, I guess things like history and culture are not relevant for him. The question remains whether Canadian-US relations will ever get back on track after Trump departs the scene.

    Reply ↓
              1. You're soaking in it!

                I do sometimes think of this Administration as the evil twin Camelot. they should all grow those Star Trek beards.

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      2. Unironic Pangloss

        since yoy kinda sound serious….no.

        King Charles cannot sell what he doean’t own. “Terra Nullius” and all that.

        Charles could sell a big chunk of Cornwall as an American Gibraltor, lol. I kinda would love that…passport-free access to the southwest of England.

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        1. Unironic Pangloss

          errata. i looked it up… rest easy anglophiles, a Sovereign can’t sell off the Duchy of Cornwall. The king/queen owns it but it is held in trust, so it’s not like selling an antique desk

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      3. Terry Flynn

        No. Not if he wants his head to remain attached to his body anyway.

        Crown protectorates give the monarch more leeway but the same outcomes would likely apply.

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        1. Revenant

          There is a reverse precedent. Great Britain forced Newfoundland and Labrador into Canada after WW2 because it was cheaper than being directly responsible for them. What is made can be unmade….

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          1. Don

            Good grief! Do some research— the King did not force N&L to join Canada, Newfoundland held a hard-fought referendum in which in N&L (narrowly) voted to join Canada. (This was before Newfoundland discovered oil, and there was less than overwhelming support for the union with struggling N&L in Canada.) Newfoundland’s leader was Joey Smallwood, and it was well past the war, in 1956, I believe. (I was 9-years old.)

            (Addressing these lazy misconceptions is turning into a full-time job.)

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      4. Don

        No, Canada is a fully independent nation, and the King of England has no say in what Canada is or — as any vaguely educated person would know.

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        1. ambrit

          “— as any vaguely educated person would know.”
          As opposed to credentialled persons.
          Very interesting when the terms of employment delineate the boundaries of ones’ knowledge base. It sounds very Post-Enlightenment to me.

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          1. Don

            I am not entirely sure what your point is, but I don’t conflate educated with credentialed. Many of the best educated and smartest people I know are not one bit credentialed. I subsequently obtained some post secondary credentials, but dropped out of school at 16 and drove a tractor-trailer well into my 20s, and throughout those years regarded myself as reasonably well-educated. I thought that this site was universally favoured by smart, well-informed people, whether they drove a truck or or had an MBA. I remain convinced that most of them are, but recently there have been comments about Canada that reveal the hubris and ignorance that many of us associate with the USA.

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            1. ambrit

              Fear not. I did half college and became a construction worker back when you could barely get by on that pitiable wage.
              I was making a similar point. Credentials, except perhaps in some “hard” science fields, have become basically a class marker. I too know very intelligent people who get by quite well without “benefit of ‘proper’ schooling.”
              This site is, if anything, a great Agora of the World.
              As for the deviant Canada comments, well, we here are as prone to gaslighting and ‘official’ misinforming as anyone. Consider it as a barometer of the trends in opinion in America as a whole.
              We make mistakes, I certainly do. The best information on any subject is to be gleaned from the comments of those intimately associated with the subject at hand. Without irony I say, let you all with knowledge inform and enlighten the rest of us. The Fakes will bluster and threaten while the Pure will reflect and then reply.
              Stay safe!

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        2. Hickory

          If the king of another country is the commander in chief of your country’s armed forces, has to sign off on any bill before it becomes law, and can dissolve your parliament at will, you have a government that pretends https://learn.parl.ca/understanding-comprendre/en/canada-system-of-government/canadas-constitutional-monarchy/ to be independent. If you don’t believe the monarch would ever act on these abilities, look up what happened in 1975 in Australia. This is just one of many examples https://1disease-1cure.com/ where a ruling class pretends that people are free and self-governing when they actually are not. In nations that maintain a baseline of respect between everyone, with no ruler/ruling class imposing laws on the rest, they’re able to avoid this sort of deceitful leadership.

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          1. Don

            The king of another country (shall we agree that you refer to England?) can do none of those things and has none of those authorities. Canada is a fully independent parliamentary democracy, with some purely ceremonial (we appoint the “Crown’s” representatives), admittedly goofy vestiges of the British parliamentary system, retained largely because we wish to distinguish ourselves from our predatory and unpredictable neighbour to the south, and of course because the anglo majority just can’t resist the opportunity to mess with the francophone minority and remind them that they lost the war. Americans are far more obsessed by the British Monarchy than Canadians. Regarding a ruling class, I have no delusions that we do not have one, just as the USA does: A relentlessly neoliberal capitalist ruling class also holds sway here. I might argue that our system is less of a cluster-f#*%, than some others, and that most people that live here have a clearer understanding of the world outside of our borders than, say, Americans, but that is another issue.

            What you should be concerning yourself with, rather than the quirks of our “democracy” are the quirks of your own, and that the vast majority of Canadians now not only profoundly dislike Trump, but the USA as a whole, and that this will not change for decades.

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          2. dt1964

            Don is correct. But please read this whole post to understand. The Crown does have the authority to dissolve parliament. However, this is done through the Governor General who representing the Crown is the Head of State. The prime minister is not head of state, but rather head of government. Governor Generals are put forward by government recommendation and are accepted by the Crown. In the 21st century, it would be highly unlikely that the Crown would not accept whoever was put forward for Governor General. At times, the Governor General does have real power. Sometimes it can be abdicated unfortunately. Former prime minister Stephen Harper was facing a no confidence vote in Parliament. He went to then Governor General, Michaelle Jean, asking her to prorogue Parliament to avoid the no confidence vote and save his government. In those circumstances, she should have refused. But she didn’t. At the time it was suggested that Mr Harper had threatened to sue her for some other reasons to get her consent. This was an embarrassment to Canadian Constitutional order.
            But another example, former British Columbia Premiere Christy Clark on not winning a majority and facing two opposition parties that together were willing to form a coalition to form a government went to the Crown’s Provincial representative, the Lieutenant Governor to ask for new elections. In this case, the Crown’s representative refused the request, allowing the two opposition parties to form government. This is how it is suppose to work. The will of the voters prevailed in this case. A very proud moment for Canadian parliamentarian tradition.
            As for Hickory’s comment, what I remember from memory is that Australia was facing a ‘hung’ parliament at the time and no party or coalition of parties could form government. The only way to resolve the situation was for the ‘hung’ parliament to ask the Crown through the Australian Governor General to dissolve Parliament to permit new elections. This is what occurred.

            For those American readers, the American President is both Head of Government and Head of State which was somewhat analogous to the role of the British Crown in the 18th century.
            And more than likely sounding snarky, for those American exceptionalists out there, if your bally hooed constitution is so great, why is it that ABSOLUTELY NO OTHER COUNTRY ON EARTH when adopting a democratic form of government emulates the US? That’s right. A parliamentarian form of government is adopted instead.

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            1. bwilli123

              Further detail on the Labor Party PM Whitlam’s Constitutional crisis. It was from memory due to the government’s inabilty to pass a supply bill, stalled in the Senate by the Opposition (who had a senate majority) The Opposition wanted a dissolution of both houses of parliament for an election they believed they could win.
              PM Whitlam had reason to believe that the senate majority on the issue was not likely to hold for much longer and that the bills would be passed. Whitlam was also confidently led to believe that the Governor General (whom he appointed) would follow convention, and at least provide warning were he were going to dismiss him
              Whitlam proposed the minimum necessary to break the deadlock, a half senate election, to maintain pressure on the potential Senate defectors in the Liberal Party who were unhappy with Opposition Leader Fraser’s aggressive tactics.
              However upon receiving advice from a former Liberal Party Attorney General (and then Chief Justice of Australia) and a secret approval from then Prince Charles, the Governor General decided to sack Whitlam without warning at a meeting Whitlam requested to resolve the issue. The GG had Fraser waiting in a side room, and appointed him as PM (on the understanding that an immediate double dissolution election would be called) Which Fraser did immediately.
              The PM and Labor Party were completely taken by surprise and could not vote their majority in the Lower House to establish if the newly appointed PM had a vote of confidence from the House (he wouldn’t have)
              It was a pre-emptive decision by the Governor General (in conspiracy with others) taken before the usual democratic options had run their course.

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              1. Terry Flynn

                Indeed. Whilst some subtleties are debatable it is understandable that some Aussies say this was a coup in all but name. Ditch the Monarch as head of state.

                Am half Brit half Aussie and whilst agnostic about the UK side, I really don’t think other countries should have our monarch as their head of state.

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              2. Anonymous 2

                Among those reportedly involved in the behind the scenes action in 1975 was one Rupert Murdoch. Are we surprised?

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      5. danpaco

        Probably not.
        However, the Governor General, the Kings representative in Canada is the head of the armed forces.
        If the US were to invade the GG could theoretically order the armed forces to stand down.

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        1. Don

          Sorry, but don’t count on it. “Theoretically” is carrying a big load: Canada appoints the Crown’s representatives and their positions are purely ceremonial — I, and the majority of Canadians regard these traditions as ridiculous, but of insufficient importance to get our knickers in a twist over.

          “If the US were to invade…”, believe me, the armed forces would not wait on authorization, nor would the citizenry: the last time the US invaded, citizen’s militias, aided by a paltry 600 British troops, repelled the invaders, marched to Washington, burned the White House to the ground and marched back to Canada (The one you have now is a replacement).

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          1. Danpaco

            Of course theoretically is doing all the work. I was under the impression that this was a speculative thread.
            This Torontonian will sleep well tonight knowing that the bastions will be manned when the hoards come over the border.

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            2. Procopius

              I’m sorry, I think I’m not supposed to do this but you’ve violated one of my pet peeves.

              CORRECT: The horde of Mongol warriors found a huge hoard of gold.

              I make typos, too, but I’ve always been good at spelling.

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          2. dt1964

            Don, see my post above. There are times when the Crown’s representative does have real power, and it important for our system of government to function. But yes, these instances are far more the exception than the rule.

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            1. Don

              I understand that, but it is irrelevant. Just as Great Britain is a democracy, not withstanding the theoretical role of the monarchy, Canada is even more so a democracy independent of the Monarchy, due to the fact that, unlike in Britain, the representatives of the Monarchy are appointed by the elected government, unlike the King/Queen in Britain, who they are (theoretically) stuck with. By the way, the federal parliament was also just recently prorogued by the Governor General at the “request” of the current Liberal government. (Each Province also has a Lieutenant Governor, an appointed representative of the Crown with a similar ceremonial role.)

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    2. CanCyn

      Border tales from Ontario:
      1. Have a friend who has a sister in Las Vegas and Mom who lives in Windsor ON (closest Canadian city to Detroit). Friend picked up sister at Detroit airport the other day. She said the border felt like business as usual. Note that there are many Canadians and USians who live and work on opposite sides of that border. So Rev K is likely right that obligatory relationships are not affected – yet.
      2. I live in Eastern ON, nearest border town is Watertown NY. In comparison to the Windsor Detroit border this crossing is much more touristy. Friends applied for Nexus cards (passport upgrade that facilitates quick customs processing) before Trump’s tariff nonsense started. One of the steps in the process is an interview with Customs in the US. They were mistakenly given an appointment in Ontario. They arrived on time at a deserted Canadian customs office near the border, only to be told they were supposed to be in Vermont, 4 hours away. The Canadian officer called the US office that was equally deserted and they did the whole thing by phone – IOW, they are not busy.
      3. Friends of a friend went on their usual semi-annual US day trip to Watertown recently. When they went in to a restaurant for lunch, after they were seated, the manager came over and asked them if the car in the parking lot with the Ontario license plate was theirs. When they answered yes, he told them they were not welcome and asked them to leave.
      Further notes and thoughts:
      IDK if the US/CAN relationship can be fixed in future but it is pretty bad, if not from a business perspective yet, then certainly from a tourism perspective right now.
      Both sides are booing national anthems at NHL games.
      We have a friend in the sports clothing/trophy embroidery and engraving business. Someone asked him to make hats that say: Canada is not for sale! He made extra and they sold right away, he keeps making more and they keep selling out.
      I know several people who are changing travel plans to avoid the US – including one that was for a month-long meditation retreat that has been planned for a couple of years. .
      I am close to needing a new car and even though the Canada and US auto industries are inextricably linked, I have my eye on something from Japan or Korea (made in those countries) and will console myself knowing that at least I’m giving a local dealership some business.
      COVID has kept me from travel and the US and now the actions of Trump and Musk will keep me out of the US and focusing more on local than ever before.
      I remind myself that less than half the US population voted in the election and further, that barely half of them voted for Trump, but still, it rankles

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        1. CanCyn

          It is a weird one. Not surprisingly they just left without asking any questions. Hard to say what the guy was thinking. There is a joint US-Canada tourism organization in the area – 1000 Islands. They are working together to try to keep the tourism flowing. Maybe someone should visit that restaurant!

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          1. Camacho

            The other day, some Fox guy* said that Americans are friends with Japanese even after nuking them. I guess Canadians are in store for some tough love.

            *I forgot his name but he has a recognizable face, and luscious hair on top of his empty skull.

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      2. jhallc

        I’d be curious if the condo market in FL will see an increase in inventory for sale due to snowbirds leaving. I would expect the tourist industry to be impacted to some degree. When I was in Cuba 10 years ago I ran into a lot of Canadiens vacationing there and it might benefit them. Unintended consequences from all this will be interesting to see.

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      3. marieann

        I live in Windsor, we are all into the Buy Canadian and many stores are bringing in brand names we haven’t seen before as the try and source from Canada. Most of my friends are forgoing trips to the US.
        As you say the border is still busy as many folk here work in the US….I did as well, my first nursing job was in the US as there were no jobs in Canada.
        I am a cross border family, I have more family in the US than in Canada.We are Scottish emigrants so most of the family went to the US we came to Canada…..I doubt we will be visiting them anytime soon and vice versa. The stories of folk being detained, while rare, are still scary.

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        1. Ann

          Yes, my husband has cancelled his annual trip from B.C. to Oregon to award his late mother’s bursary to two students, the “Scholarship for Women in Microbiology”. He always visits his brother when he is there as his brother is old and not in great health, having had surgery lately. And I won’t set foot in the U.S. ever again. I couldn’t go anyway because I am too ill to travel farther than the grocery store.

          My daughter lives in Seattle and isn’t calling me anymore since I dared to criticize her employer…..Boeing.

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            1. Ann

              She has become quite the little corporate lackey. She’ll wake up the day they yeet her out the window. She has always bragged about not being in a union, even though her husband is in one, as he works on the floor, actually assembling airplanes.

              I don’t know how many times in the last decade I’ve told her in no uncertain terms that she better get her ass back home to Canada where she was born before things get even worse down there. But they pay her so much, she says. Can’t tune down the lifestyle, I guess.

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              1. dt1964

                Money can talk, but is it worth it?
                I have a house just across the border from BC in Blaine. It’s a beautiful heritage house dating from 1899 which by west coast standards is absolutely ancient. But for the first time ever, I am questioning whether I want to keep it.
                Hopefully, your daughter will eventually come to her senses.
                My very best wishes

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                1. Terry Flynn

                  IIRC Canada technically controls a big portion of the power grid of the Midwest…… unwise to piss them off.

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          3. steppenwolf fetchit

            If she lives in Seattle she may be working in the legacy remainders of Good Boeing and may not really understand the depth of the badness of the new Bad Boeing everywhere else.

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      4. ChrisRUEcon

        > 3. Friends of a friend went on their usual semi-annual US day trip to Watertown recently. When they went in to a restaurant for lunch, after they were seated, the manager came over and asked them if the car in the parking lot with the Ontario license plate was theirs. When they answered yes, he told them they were not welcome and asked them to leave.

        What. The. Actual. FamilyBlog.

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          1. Rabid groundhog

            For those who have forgotten, the border was closed during the covid for months and months, so most places of business that needed Canadians to survive are long gone.
            Still incredibly dumb, in a poor town still struggling after 50 years of de-industrialization.

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            1. CanCyn

              I haven’t forgotten and yes COVID did decimate many Watertown businesses. All the more reason for that resto to welcome paying customers regardless of origin.

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      6. eg

        My group of friends (they are in Toronto; I am not) are all adamant about shunning US products and currently cancelling all plans to travel there (outside of strict familial obligations). I haven’t crossed the border myself (I only live about 45 minutes away by car) since 2019 and have no plans to return anytime soon.

        I take pains, however, to remind my friends that the vast majority of Americans (as per my direct lived experience) are generous and friendly people — I do not hold them responsible for their vile ruling oligarchy.

        Reply ↓
    3. JEHR

      Well, I don’t think I will ever think of the United States as I used to. It will take a long time to forget being treated as a second-class country that cannot manage its own affairs. The efforts to destroy our economy is not easy to forgive or forget either.

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    5. steppenwolf fetchit

      Canadians would want to see an effective and successful deMAGAnazification campaign totally cleaning up and disinfecting American society and culture of all things ‘Trumpy’ before re-assessing their current newly-decided-on direction. And all things ‘Musky’ too. At a minimum.

      And even if that were achieved, the relationship will not get back on its prior track. Never. Ever.
      Canadian comments and responses that I read here and there indicate that Canadians basically consider this even a combination of Pearl Harbor and the Khomeiniform students taking the American embassy staff hostage in Tehran. That’s just my feeling, though.

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    6. Ginger Goodwin

      I am surprised that at this moment in time with US enabling the genocide in Gaza, creating the conditions for the Ukraine/Russian war, bombing civilians in Yemen, Trump’s electoral and subsequent “regal” rule, tariffs and tariff wars, etc. etc.. and as a Canadian it must be acknowledged – Canada’s role in much of what the US government is doing internationally – that little is being discussed along the lines of: “What am I driving at? At this idea: that no one colonizes innocently, that no one colonizes with impunity either; that a nation which colonizes, that a civilization which justifies colonization — and therefore force — is already a sick civilization, a civilization that is morally diseased, that irresistibly, progressing from one consequence to another, one repudiation to another, calls for its Hitler, I mean its punishment.” Aimé Césaire.

      We have lived in neo-colonial times since 1945 and the US and G7 are now being punished as feral animals turn on each other.

      Ginger Goodwin

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      1. user1234

        You are surprised with US doing same ol’ stuff it has been doing since forever. I would be surprised if they were to stop doing it, even for a brief moment in time. Scorpion on a frog came to mind.

        Reply ↓
  2. DJG, Reality Czar

    Mahbubani: Europe Needs a Complete Strategic Reboot.

    I suspect I know why Colonel Smithers sent this article along. First, it presents the only way out. Second, the author published it in Foreign Policy to get the attention of U.S. goodthinkers.

    One problem from my standpoint: Mahbubani is defining Europe as U.K., Germany, France, and their satellites of the Netherlands and Sweden. I can assure Mahbubani that here in the depth of the PIIGS, Mahbubani’s way out — compromise with Russia and China — is revealing itself more and more to the populace as the only course of action left available. It is a question of when, not if.

    Giorgia Meloni is dancing on the head of a pin, and she has demurred as to Italians sending troops to Ukraine. Some of her dilemma is that the Italians are still holding to Article 11 of the Italian Constitution, which doesn’t allow Italy to pursue foreign wars. Antonio Tajani, of Forza Italia, the fief of Berluscones and the alta borghesia lombarda, has said no Italians in Ukraine. If one wants to see Italians in the street, and a fully blossoming governmental crisis, it would be from following the demented plans of Macron and Starmer.

    [Further, the Italian public is not anti-Russian, so portraying Russians as orcs has been a hard sell. The fact that the Popester hasn’t come off as anti-Russian and recently evaded the Grim Reaper only adds to the difficulties of demonizing Russians. And just about everyone here knows that the sanctions have backfired.]

    Meanwhile, ultra-hawk (and vigliacca) within the Partito Democratico, Pina Picierno, one of the fourteen vice-presidents of the EuroParliament, has been exposed as meeting with the Israel Defense and Security Forum.

    This is from the wholesome and tasty ISDF’s own web site: “We are a group of over 35,000 reserve officers and operatives from all branches of the Israeli security forces dedicated to guiding the narrative of Israel’s national security needs and ensuring that Israel’s security in the homeland of the Jewish people is never taken for granted.”

    Security reboot with defenestrations? Evviva.

    PS: There are commenters from other PIIGS here who can tell us just how likely it is that Spain, Greece, or Eire will be to send troops to Ukraine.

    Reply ↓
    1. Colonel Smithers

      Thank you.

      Another reason for my sharing is that KM is rarely on western airwaves or in print now. He was a regular on CNN’s Fareed Zakaria show during the financial crisis, but showed up and contradicted the likes of Martin Wolf, Christina Freeland and Tom Friedmann. It’s quite staggering how ill informed much of western leadership is.

      It was good to see the lady from the 5 Star Movement highlight the plight of Gaza.

      Reply ↓
      1. Ignacio

        The article is indeed fine, or at least, a realistic one with regards to FP choices by the “Europeans”. I don’t know if there is any meaningful realistic political option shaping in Europe but it is nice to see for once a voice with a few sensible things to say. To tell the truth I believe that belligerents Macron and Starmer are mostly positioning themselves to see if they can gain some popularity at least among their peer PMC types. The brave gorillas will step back when the elephant makes the slightest move in their direction. The main problem is that all these… erm… idiots are stuck in a Neoliberal stance which is well behind its expiration date. If i ever read again any phrase containing “competitiveness” in EU documents i will do something horrible i swear! ;)

        Reply ↓
  3. griffen

    Blech, glad my breakfast plans are still in my head ….reading up on yet another entry on Netflix from either of Prince Harry or from Meghan Markle… \sarc

    back in the day Motley Crue had a fun take on a break up song..”Don’t go away mad, girl just go away…”. Poor little princess of Sussex.

    Reply ↓
    1. The Rev Kev

      That article had the following section-

      ‘The real reason is I’m going to say racism and jealousy that is couched in racism and a little classism and just, you know, basically being mad that people have things that we might want that we don’t have. And then racism.’

      That columnist is seeing what she wants to see. But what most people see with Merkle is a hustler that is lazy to boot. It’s not racism here. It’s just that nobody cares about her any more. More people would be willing to watch a show about Obama giving tips on homemaking and entertaining celebrity guests in one of his mansions than her.

      Reply ↓
      1. JohnA

        Meghan M looks Mediterranean in complexion to me, never understood the racism claims. However, what she looks and acts like is a chancer who came to Britain to hook up with some idle rich guy and ended up with the idlest and richest guy possible who was available, and not bright enough to see her for the grifter she is. I wish the pair of them no ill, purely to fade into obscurity.

        Reply ↓
        1. ChiGal

          you are forgetting the one-drop rule, which for the Royals who eschew commoners (to ill effect), is frosting on the cake.

          Reply ↓
          1. hk

            Countries with aristocrats cared less about race than about class–all peasants were the same, no matter the color (with only slight exaggeration) if you will. There were some things that Alexandre Dumas, the elder, said to that effect that I cannot remember exactly (Dumas was darker complexioned than Markle, but he was also a grandson of a marquis (and his Haitian slave mistress)).

            Reply ↓
            1. Polar Socialist

              I’ve seen it claimed that when king James I heard in 1614 about the marriage between John Rolfe and an Indian princess Matoaka (also know as Pocahontas) he was perturbed, since this commoner had not asked his sovereign’s permission to marry into royalty.

              Reply ↓
    2. Bugs

      I had to look at the language and positioning rather than the content there because I have fond memories of when NPR meant something much less silly and more of a real reflection of the local community and then some low key reporting of the news. About 30-40 years ago it was compelling listening, especially in the Midwest and Western US. Now I won’t even give a damn if the Dogebags shut it down while in its present throes of wokeish death.

      Reply ↓
  4. Steve H.

    > These are forward flight bookings from Canada to the US.

    Can confirm. Janet’s step-mom took a fall, hit her head, and being in her 90’s is not recovering well. Janet’s sister found her love in Canada, and even with dual citizenship is afraid to cross the border. Step-mom is beloved, this hurts.

    Reply ↓
  5. griffen

    Greenland issues the classic “closing time” last call to JD Vance and his detail / attachment visiting a US base up in the colder climate…That was an incredibly short trip.

    “Closing time, one last call for alcohol,
    So finish your whiskey your beer,
    Closing time, you don’t have to go home
    But you can’t stay here..”

    Reply ↓
    1. mrsyk

      As my old friend Ronald, long time barkeep at the local pub used to yell at us, Drink up! This ain’t no hotel!”

      Reply ↓
    3. Michael Fiorillo

      Or, as we used to say when I tended bar in the Pleistocene: “We appreciate your patronage. F^#* you very much.”

      Reply ↓
  6. timbers

    Anti-Hamas Gaza demonstrations reflect desperation as Israel strangles and bombards the Strip Mondoweiss

    After 2 to 3 successful ceasefires (Gaza, 2 in Ukraine), isn’t Trump overdue for an Obama-like Nobel Peace prize….? Or does only wokeness stand in the way?

    Reply ↓
    1. vao

      Upon perusing the section “Israel v. The Resistance” it occurred to me that the closest comparable situations in modern times to what Israel has been doing to Gaza and its inhabitants since October 2023 are what the Japanese did to Nanjing in 1937-1938, and what the Germans did to Warsaw in 1944 (not forgetting the smaller 1943 prelude).

      The large-scale wanton destruction, with a city largely razed to the ground. The contemptuous, cynical disregard for formal and customary laws of war. The willful slaughter of civilian populations. The relish at inflicting torture and other cruel and degrading treatments to prisoners. The systematic destruction of cultural artifacts. The looting of victims’ property. The haughty confidence in the superiority of one’s “race”. The outraged expostulations at any suggestion that what is being done is unjustified, uncivilized, and criminal.

      Kill all, burn all, loot all.

      What was again that aphorism about forgetting history and repeating it?

      Reply ↓
        1. vao

          Those persecutions ceased 3 generations ago.

          Besides, if I am not mistaken, the majority of the Israeli population is made of Mizrahis (i.e. Arab Jews), Falashas (i.e. Ethiopian Jews), and descendents of all those zionists who had emigrated before WWII, and even before Hitler. Those Israelis and their forebears were not subject to the genocidal persecutions inflicted by Europeans till 1945. The forebears of the large community of former-USSR Jews likewise had been at least in part protected from the German onslaught.

          I rather tend to assume there was a deliberate ideological shaping of the mentalities in Israel — with traits very similar to the racist colonial worldview of such modern industrial states as Germany (Drang nach Osten, Lebensraum), and Japan (empire under the “coprosperity sphere”).

          Reply ↓
        2. nycTerrierist

          “Beware that, when fighting monsters, you yourself do not become a monster… for when you gaze long into the abyss. The abyss gazes also into you.”

          thus wrote Nietzsche

          Reply ↓
        3. timbers

          In which case you might argue in some respect, that The Third Reich won the war because it exterminated the soul of Jewish essence in Israel.

          Reply ↓
          1. clarky90

            Re; “What the New JFK Documents Reveal”… by Thomas Neuburger

            It was just them goofy old CIA spooks ………..!

            Thanks Tom

            Reply ↓
      2. John k

        ‘Kill all’ etc etc is described/advocated in the Old Testament. They’re simply repeating what they did do back then.
        Imo many of the seculars that couldn’t stomach this have left, most the ones remaining seem to me to be pretty much agreement with what’s going on.

        Reply ↓
        1. Pat Morrison

          > ‘Kill all’ etc etc is described/advocated in the Old Testament.

          It’s not that simple at all. As a case study, the Gibeonites tricked their way into a deal with Joshua’s invasion force (Joshua 9) that G*d held them to, then, and later (2 Samuel 21). The stories and principles laid out for them generally call for respect for life, including that of the stranger.

          Reply ↓
  7. Carla

    Guess there’s no “Class Welfare” section of Links today because it’s ALL Class Welfare. Relieved to hear you and your area did not suffer from the earthquake, Yves.

    Reply ↓
  8. The Rev Kev

    “US Wants to Create a Fake State for New Military Base”

    ‘The US offered to recognize the breakaway state of Somaliland in exchange for a new military base on Yemen’s doorstep.’

    Not the first time that the US has done it. The US took a chunk of Columbia and created the country of Panama so that they would have control of the Panama canal-

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hay%E2%80%93Bunau-Varilla_Treaty

    That article mentions a secret meeting in a suite in the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in New York but what was not mentioned was how they worked out what the new Country of Panama would look like, its laws and even got into the design of its flag.

    Reply ↓
    2. Aurelien

      The video is basically speculation, and not very informed speculation at that.
      Somaliland is considerably better organised than Somalia (not difficult I agree) and essentially consists of tribes that became terminally disenchanted with Mogadishu, and went their own way. As state they are probably more functional than many in the region but the politics of recognising breakaway regions are so complicated (not least because of Ukraine) that although most countries quietly have representation there and occasional visits, recognition is seen as a step too far because of the precedent it would set.
      Oh, and the US already has a base in the region, opposite Yemen, right next door to Somaliland. It’s called Djibouti, and is a modern functioning state.

      Reply ↓
  9. Steve H.

    > The Arctic: Territory of Dialogue international forum President of Russia. Important
    >> The Arctic Zone accounts for over a quarter of the Russian Federation’s territory.

    I was mostly wrong about details of RUS v UKR, but I stand by two points: It’s an existential exercise for Russia, and they can double-down on climate change. Please see:

    Tipping risk of the Atlantic Ocean’s overturning circulation, AMOC. Keynote by Prof. Rahmstorf

    :: AMOC down at least 15%. Global South cooked. Northern Europe: winds are driven by these temperature gradients, so this looks like a crazy stormy climate to me, with absolutely unprecedented weather extremes all across Europe.

    There aren’t many winners, even relatively. The Arctic tree-line is about 50’F average, and can absorb 8’F (RCP 8.5 scenario) to a temperate average in a way that lower latitudes cannot. That goes to the existential part.

    >> On a separate note, I would like to ask the Government to extend the programme of renovating military settlements

    See Michael Klare, All Hell Breaking Loose: The Pentagon’s Perspective on Climate Change, for the view from this side of that pond.

    Reply ↓
    1. mrsyk

      Good morning. I have to push back a bit on “doubling down”. Arboreal forests burn with enthusiasm. General agricultural will be difficult to impossible at scale. Every human being able to migrate north will attempt to do so.

      Reply ↓
      1. Randall Flagg

        Though Canada may impose extremely strict border controls to keep those US migrants out, and maybe double for Trump supporters…
        Sarcasm off. Or maybe not.

        Reply ↓
        1. i just don't like the gravy

          Canada does not have the industrial nor military capacity to enforce that when the time comes. They will be ground to dust just like Russia is doing to Ukraine.

          Reply ↓
          1. urdsama

            When the time comes is doing a lot of heavy lifting, as it assumes the US won’t be radically changed itself in the coming years.

            Reply ↓
          2. Ann

            Insurgencies are very ugly.

            https://thetyee.ca/Analysis/2025/02/13/Do-Not-Test-Us-Trump/

            “If Trump ever decides to use military force to annex Canada, the result would not be determined by a conventional military confrontation between the Canadian and American armies. Rather, a military invasion of Canada would trigger a decades-long violent resistance, which would ultimately destroy the United States.

            But in this nightmare scenario, could Canadians successfully resist an American invasion? Absolutely. I know this because I have studied insurgencies around the world for more than two decades, and I have spent time with ordinary people who have fought against powerful invading armies…..”

            Reply ↓
            1. dt1964

              Thank you Ann. I heartily agree with this Tyee article. Especially, the end result also being the destruction of the US itself.

              Interesting that the talk of an imminent civil war in the US has disappeared as a talking point since the election of DJT. But I have no doubt the polarization remains very much present.

              It wouldn’t take that much for the US to implode. Personally, I think it is a natural progression and consequence of the contradictions found in the American Republic’s founding ideology.

              I’ve been unusually verbose today – but then there’s been a lot to comment on.

              Reply ↓
  10. Mikel

    The open dispute between the EU and the US over Ukrainian natural resources begins – Anti-Spiegel via machine translation

    And there have been various suspicions and reports that Britain made a deal for Ukraine’s resources.
    It’s more than a hot mess.

    Reply ↓
      1. The Rev Kev

        Sort of how many loans for the Ukraine have been made using Russia’s seized $300 billion as collateral. Read recently that all that money was long ago converted into cash so is that $300 billion even there any more or as Alex Christoforou has suggested, it is all a bunch of IOUs now.

        Reply ↓
        1. Polar Socialist

          I recall someone (from Euroclear?) saying recently that the money couldn’t be returned to Russia if peace broke out right now, as the interest from it has been used as collateral for the loans to Ukraine…

          Reply ↓
          1. The Rev Kev

            Sounds logical if crazy. They are determined to never give that money back which means that EU and RF relations will never be good. And that is not the only money that has been stolen from Russia as you have to factor in things like confiscations of industrial infrastructure, buildings property, etc. Unfortunately for the EU the Iron Bank, errr, Russia will have its dues.

            Reply ↓
  12. The Rev Kev

    “Federal MP Andrew Gee blames staff impersonating a voter for ‘dirty tactics’ Facebook gaffe”

    That’s the difference between Oz and some really big nations. Here this polly gave the job to some guy on his staff to do and the guy stuffed it up. But in big nations you would have actual firms who will do this sort of job for a fee but with no clear connections with those politicians so there is deniability. Who knows? Maybe some of those firms will now employ AIs to do the same sort of stuff by making up accounts and making the appropriate comments online to make a politician look good or alternatively, make a politician look bad. Oh brave new world…

    Reply ↓
  13. griffen

    Climate and environment, coincidence this taking place approximately 6 months after Hurricane Helene ripped it’s way up from the Gulf into Florida and inland into Georgia and the Carolinas. Western NC and the upstate region here in South Carolina are now being inflicted by wildfires burning in separate but geographically adjacent regions. Not really being contained as yet but rain may be coming shortly overnight into Monday. Has been incredibly dry past few weeks.

    And as to the Table Rock State Park fires…for shame on any hikers whether old or young.

    https://www.nbcnews.com/weather/wildfires/wildfires-continue-rage-carolinas-rcna198328

    Reply ↓
  14. OIFVet

    Re Sweden is rearming for war with Russia.

    Funnily enough, Sweden’s last war war was 300 years ago with Russia in Ukraine. Didn’t go very well, either. Recently I re-read Le Guin’ ‘The Dispossessed’ and have been thinking about how time does indeed appear to be both linear and circular.

    Reply ↓
    1. Polar Socialist

      There’s used to be a long running joke in Finland that Sweden is always willing to fight Russia to the last Finn… it unfortunately misses the brutal reality that during the war you mentioned, Peter’s army did lay waste in Western Finland specifically to create a “buffer zone” incapable of supporting any Swedish army which might threaten Peter’s brand new capital.

      On a lighter note, the is some anecdotal evidence now that at least some Finns are coming out of “the Black Sleep of Kali Ma” and are starting to realize that joining the NATO may have been the stupidest move since, well, ever.

      Reply ↓
      2. OIFVet

        In recent years, self-respectable russophobes in Bulgaria have decided that they will thank only Finland and Ukraine for the Russo-Turkish war for Bulgarian liberation of 1877-78. Which of course makes sense in that Finns and Ukrainians served in the imperial army, but it always cracks me up when I bring it up with Finns and they have literally no idea what the heck I’m talking about 😄

        Reply ↓
          1. OIFVet

            Of course, Ukrainian meant the region, not nationality. Also of course, it’s not like people like that care for anything other than how that can be used for propaganda. It’s notable that this BS predates the current war.

            Reply ↓
        2. Polar Socialist

          As it happens, this Finn served part of his conscription* next to a memorial of the Battle of Gorni Dubnik, and watched the Bulgarian ambassador lay a wreath on it on the Bulgarian independence day. As they have done every year since there has been a Bulgarian ambassador in Helsinki.

          * in a military unit that continue the traditions of 3rd Finnish Guards’ Rifle Battalion of 1877, so we did “our” wreath laying ceremony of the memorial day of the battle.

          Reply ↓
          1. OIFVet

            A key battle. My great great great grandfather was part of the Opalchenie and at some point probably crossed paths with the Finns.

            Reply ↓
    2. The Rev Kev

      If I were the Russians I would tell Sweden to knock themselves out. Build up a huge military force that will never be used as they strip funds from pensions, education, infrastructure to pay for it all. Devote more and more funds to the military industrial complex, much of which would be in other countries. Bring back full national service to make young people spend a coupla years of their lives waiting for the bear to cross the border as they scan it with binoculars. Maybe after a coupla years of this more and more people will realize that when they were neutral that they had the best of all worlds and maybe, just maybe, they will move back to that policy. But with more and more NATO bases being set up there, I would doubt it.

      Reply ↓
      1. JohnA

        Certain Swedish politicians have been copying the Nancy Pelosi playbook, buying shares in Swedish defence industry companies while simultaneously voting to increase military spending. Ka-ching, as the saying goes.

        Reply ↓
    3. vao

      Wasn’t the last war between Sweden and Russia slightly more than 200 years ago — leading to the final loss of what is nowadays Finland?

      Reply ↓
      2. OIFVet

        Right, about 235 years ago. But the battle of Poltava is where Sweden truly lost its Great Power status. It’s also where the Cossack hetmanate was subdued and pledged allegience to the czars.

        Pushkin immortalized it quite vividly, unfortunately the one decent place for Pushkin translations into English, Pushkiniana.org, appears to have been shut down.

        Reply ↓
        1. vao

          All right, I opened the relevant Wikipedia page and checked.

          After the Great Northern War 1700-1721, which saw the famous Swedish defeat at Poltava, there was another war in 1741-1743 (the Swedes lost, again), another in 1788-1790 (inconclusive, but with a favourable outcome for Sweden), and the one I was thinking about, in 1808-1809 — 216 years ago — the so-called Finnish war, which Russia won (thus gobbling Finland).

          Reply ↓
          1. Polar Socialist

            The Finnish War is sort of an oddity, since it was fought solely because Napoleon wanted Alexander to pressure Sweden to join the Continental Blockade against Great Britain. It really had nothing to do with Finland, and neither Russia or Sweden wanted to fight it.

            Moreover, Alexander did not think of conquering Finland, and even less of annexing it, at the beginning of the war. His somewhat Anglophilic court actually though it demeaning for Russia to do Frances bidding.

            When the invasion proceeded as well as it did, with very little resistance and actually many Finns expressing willingness not to fight for Sweden ever again, he sort of annexed Finland by accident – and his court though he had gone absolutely bonkers. What good was Finland to Russia anyway?

            Meanwhile, as the Swedish historian Peter Englund says, Swedes almost overnight changed from “Sweden is inviolable” to “what Finland? Never heard of the place”, and promptly forced their king to abdicate and elected a French general Bernadotte as the new king. Who, during Napoleon’s invasion of Russia, turned out to be smart enough to remain neutral and actually become Alexander’s favorite for French crown after Napoleon was defeated.

            Reply ↓
            1. hk

              I tgought the Swedes invited Bernardotte because they wanted revenge and thought that would help them be on good aide of Napoleon, notwithstanding the weird relationship that led to the war woth Russia? I always thought Bernardotte saw things more clearly than the native born Swedes….

              Reply ↓
              1. Polar Socialist

                Oh, there certainly were revanchist circles in Stockholm, but even they had to soon admit that Finns were actually happy with Russian rule (also many Swedish nobility had huge estates in Finland and did not want them to be ravaged, again) and at the same time the Russophilic circles pointed out that if Napoleon could not solve the Spanish issue before fighting Russia, Russia would certainly win*.

                So when Alexander promised Bernadotte Sweden would get Norway if they joined Russia and United Kingdom to fight Napoleon, or eternal war with Russia if he wanted Finland, the choice was easy for an experienced marshal.

                * given that Swedish had tried the “retreat system” earlier in 1808-8 against the Russian and Portuguese used it against the French, even the initial “success” of Napoleon’s invasion seems to not have fooled the contemporaries keenly following the war in Sweden and Finland. European elites back then obviously were better at estimating outcomes of military campaigns than they are today.

                Reply ↓
            2. Trees&Trunks

              Russia built up Finland after centuries of Swedish abuse. Autonomy, an economy, their own currency, improvement in postal service. All forgotten when they joined the Nazis attacking Soviet and the same thing after the WWII the contemporary seinähullu war lusting. It seems as if the Finns can’t handle the class travel. When things go too well they start to bite the hand that feed them.

              https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Postage_stamps_and_postal_history_of_Finland

              Reply ↓
              1. Polar Socialist

                Roughly correct, except Sweden did not abuse Finland as if Finland was a colony. The current understanding is that it was only in the later half of 17th century that anybody in Finland really started to pay attention to what happened in Sweden. Before that, yes, Finland was part of Swedish realm, but the government was so underdeveloped that the rule was mostly local everywhere in Sweden. The abuse was a class thing, not ethnicity or geographic thing.

                It was only Gustav Adolf that started to organize the government in order to be able to fight all the wars he was planning. It was only his successors that were able to build a rather efficient machinery allowing Sweden to punch way above it’s weight – partly because they started from scratch.

                Also, the Finno-Russian relations in the late 19th – early 20th century are much more complex than you depict. It has much to do with Russia not trusting the “Germanic” tendencies of the (Swedish speaking) ruling classes in Finland and the Finns being high on their own propaganda after the civil war and especially the “tribal brotherhood” thinking of the new (Finnish speaking) middle class – ironically created by, as you point out, Russian national policies to “de-Germanize” Finland – that resulted in a lot of harm for Karelians and Ingrians, too.

                Reply ↓
  15. OIFVet

    Re Tourists are cancelling trips to the US – here’s how this could affect its economy.

    The social media accounts of the US Embassy in Sofia have gone into overdrive issuing daily warnings about the dire consequences of lying on visa applications and overstaying one’s visa. The tone and frequencyof the postings have been very off-putting, to say the least. Even US-friendly locals have been turned-off and are now canceling both business and pleasure trips to the US.

    I wonder whether the commentariat in other parts of the world have noticed similar social media activity by the embassies?

    It’s certainly very

    Reply ↓
    1. Carolinian

      Moar National Park campsites and parking spaces for USians? That’s assuming the campgrounds and parks stay open of course.

      Disney may have a sad–a truly tragic consequence.

      Reply ↓
      1. OIFVet

        You underestimate the potential long term impact of reduced ties with Europe and elsewhere. I would rather US soft power and economic ties were not put at risk. You know me well enough to know I am no fan of what preceded Trump II, but Trump II appears to be even worse for the things that we should hold dear as Americans.

        Reply ↓
        1. Carolinian

          Just jesting. I do wonder if Europe might be better off with less US influence whatever the consequence for we hegemonians. After all with less US meddling a million dead Ukrainian soldiers would still be alive and German industry still humming along on Russian fuel.

          To be sure the French film industry would have to figure out if it’s still about anything, absent our example.

          Reply ↓
          1. OIFVet

            Well, mingling with another on a human level is certainly to be preferred to shutting the door. It’s incredible how ugly the rhetoric has gotten here against Americans – all Americans “are stupid, hateful and uneducated rednecks.” What that says about the people who say and believe these generalizations is oblivious. So yeah, whatever the hegemonic meddling (enabled by our Eurocrat non-entities), we must maintain and expand contact as people’s at all costs, ’cause such hatred and ignorance won’t lead us any place good…

            Reply ↓
            1. Carolinian

              I get what you are saying and I’ve even talked to a few Europeans touring the West. However I don’t think they are here for cultural exchange and most probably think–for better or for worse–that they know all about us from our movies and TV. It has become a small world but still somewhat provincial on a RL level. That goes especially for my fellow Americans who generally couldn’t find Ukraine or Bulgaria on a map. Some of that Euro snobbery is justified.

              On the subject of cultural exchange i got this book from our library and thought it was excellent–may be of interest.

              https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Town:_Two_Years_on_the_Yangtze

              It’s about a Peace Corps English teacher and his experiences in China in the late 90s. Hessler then wrote for The New Yorker and other outlets.

              And BTW upstate SC has always been more cosmopolitan than one might think since we host BMW’s only US assembly plant. The Germans seem to like us just fine and I’ve also seen people in East European costumes wandering around Lidl more so than the Aldi. I suspect they are Ukrainian refugees.

              Reply ↓
  16. Es s Ce Tera

    re: Tourists are cancelling trips to the US – here’s how this could affect its economy The Conversation (Kevin W).

    Employers across corporate Canada and most banks also issued travel cautions/advisories. At my own work employees were scrapping or debating planned conferences even before the advisories. And not even in protest but rather in solidarity and support of colleagues at risk.

    I think there is a whole world which Trump and anti-DEI folks don’t know exists.

    Reply ↓
      1. Es s Ce Tera

        Nor did anyone say it was, but it will impact tourism nevertheless.

        When my friends and colleagues in my highly diversified workplace, who come from many languages, cultures, religions, ages, orientations and backgrounds, express discomfort and safety concerns around traveling in the US, their peers are sympathetic. Indeed, exposure to and working alongside people of different cultures, languages, religions will have that effect.

        And with conversations happening in the workplace, and HR departments and the governments issuing travel advisories, and the same conversations happening around dinner tables and family gatherings, is anyone planning a trip to Disney? It would be weird to take that trip right now. Even weirder to come back to your workplace peers and tell them all about it, as if nothing was happening.

        Reply ↓
  17. The Rev Kev

    “The Arctic: Territory of Dialogue international forum”

    I was reading through this article and it mentions all these ambitious projects that the Russian Federation are doing whether it be with transport, energy, the military, cargo traffic, opening the Arctic, etc. and I have seen Putin do this a coupla times over the past few days. Point is, when was the last time you heard the US government do this sort of stuff in the way of bold initiatives in infrastructure. And no, half a trillion dollars for the AI Stargate program does not cut it. Can you imagine an American government that did think like this? Then it would really be Making America Great Again and not the present flim-flam version.

    Reply ↓
    1. vao

      The USA is struggling mightily to design and build its own Arctic-capable icebreakers — the last ones were produced 50 years ago, and in 50 years the know-how has been entirely lost: there is nobody experienced in doing the job; there is nobody who ever did the job, even just once; there is not even anybody who just saw how the job is done.

      That kind of technological oblivion has been spreading in other fields as well, so I am not holding my breath waiting for the USA to launch and implement an arctic version of the Road and Belt initiative.

      Reply ↓
        1. vao

          Well, there are some ominous signs:

          “Bollinger began work on test modules, termed prototype fabrication assessment units (PFAUs), to familiarize workers with the welding technique used for the vessel’s high-strength steel alloy called EQ47.

          Originally the Coast Guard had planned to complete all eight PFAUs prior to beginning construction, but as of Spring 2024 work had only begun on three test modules. Several units remain unfinished or only planned.”

          So they start building before knowing how to build?

          But there is more:

          “Against a government agency’s recommendations construction will proceed without having a finalized design.”

          So they start building before knowing what to build?

          “The Coast Guards hopes that the overall Polar Security Cutter program will result in several vessels. Current planning is for at least three heavy icebreakers, though only the first has thus far been funded. […]

          To ensure year-round presence in the Arctic and to meet its expanding responsibilities Coast Guard leadership has repeatedly stated it would require a mix of six heavy and four medium vessels, a tall order for U.S.-based shipyards.”

          So they start building without having the necessary capacity and funding for a whole programme?

          All right — it is even worse than just not having the personnel with the required know-how.

          Reply ↓
          1. cfraenkel

            a tall order for U.S.-based shipyards.
            Where have I heard that before. Maybe in articles bemoaning lack of sea-lift, support vessels, destroyers, and attack subs?
            Where does the coast guard stand in that line?

            Reply ↓
            1. Ann

              Seaspan Contracted to Build Made-in-Canada Icebreakers – March 7, 2025

              https://www.seaspan.com/press-release/seaspan-to-build-made-in-canada-heavy-polar-icebreaker/

              IACS Polar Class 2 (PC2) Heavy Icebreaker
              More than 40MW of installed power
              Ice-classed azimuthing propulsion system
              Complex, multi-role mission capability
              Scientific Laboratories
              Moon Pool (to allow for safe deployment of equipment from within the ship)
              Helicopter flight deck and Hangar
              Vehicle Garage and future Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS) capability

              Not nuclear powered, however. Construction begins this April. It is “one of up to 21 icebreaking vessels overall that Seaspan is constructing” Seaspan is in Vancouver.

              “Seaspan is the only Canadian shipyard with the expertise, facilities, and domestic supply-chain to build polar icebreakers in Canada.”

              Reply ↓
          2. albrt

            Somebody in the substack/twitter universe recently wrote a piece about U.S. military procurement. Wish I could find it – the basic concept was “the purpose of a thing is what it does.” The purpose of U.S. Wunderwaffen is to create the appearance that we are always on the cutting edge while in most cases failing to produce anything before getting cancelled. Procurement is done this way to cover up the fact that we have no mass industrial base to produce real world weapons in meaningful quantities.

            Reply ↓
            1. timo maas

              The basic idea of small number of super-duper weapons going against a mass of regular ones isn’t new, nor necessarily wrong. Still, in order for it to work, a large technological gap is needed (real and tangible, and not just a percieved one). A quote that sums up that nicely is: “Whatever happens, we have got The Maxim gun, and they have not.” A machine gun is a real wonderweapon, as long as it is faced with an enemy force armed with spears and swords.

              Besides their obvious profit and propaganda purposes, U.S. Wunderwaffen are also an attempt to recreate the good ol’ times of fighting “savage Indians” (that’s how you Make America Great Again). It doesn’t work as intended, because modern day barefoot enemies have hypersonic missiles in their caves.

              Reply ↓
  18. pjay

    – ‘What the New JFK Documents Reveal’ – Thomas Neuburger

    For those who are interested, this is an informative discussion by Jefferson Morley, a careful and well-respected journalist who wrote a very good book about James Jesus Angleton several years back. I was glad to see this posted by Neuburger, whom I’ve criticized for the the limitations of some of his critiques reflecting liberal/progressive orthodoxy. There is nothing that reflects liberal/progressive gatekeeping orthodoxy more than holding the “Chomskyan” view of the Kennedy assassination: that a “lone nut” did it (the liberal orthodoxy), but even if not it doesn’t matter anyway since Kennedy was just another servant of Empire like Ike or Johnson (the Chomskyan orthodoxy). So I take this as a good sign, though I’m sure the “nothingburger” assessment will dominate in the mainstream media.

    Reply ↓
    1. Screwball

      I’ve always been interested in this topic. I remember that day. It is etched in my mind as I was a second grader who couldn’t understand why this would happen. We were sent home from school. I was alone as my parents were at work. I sat and watched the TV in disbelief. Kind of traumatic for a 7 year old.

      Over the years I have read dozens of books, every article that come out, and now this new stuff. I also had an opportunity to visit Dealey Plaza. Spent an afternoon all over the grounds and book depository museum. I never believed the official story, and my trip to the plaza solidified that.

      The trouble with this new stuff, and like much of the old stuff, IMO – people are looking for a smoking gun type proof. If they don’t get that they dismiss everything and go back to the default narrative -Oswald acted alone. Many still believe that and I don’t think anything less that a smoking gun will change their minds. I get that too.

      But, at the end of the day, taking everything into account, the CIA and potentially rouge people in government (and mob) fingerprints are all over it. Our leaders were and are corrupt, nothing has changed in the last 60 years. Maybe only got worse.

      Why would anyone, at this point and time, not think they were nefarious enough to have people killed, even our own president? Do people worship our government to the point they think they can do no wrong? Of course, we see it every day from both red and blue tribes. I get that too, even though I don’t agree.

      IMO, and I think reality, given all the lies we have been fed over the last 60 years, we should believe the exact opposite of what they tell us and go from there. I don’t think this story is any different.

      Reply ↓
  19. Carolinian

    That’s a good Stoller on the AMA and billing codes. We are all waiting to see if RFK really does take on some of the more destructive aspects of our medical industrial complex. Another and far more consequential example of corrupt current practices would be Big Pharma TV ads. He is considering banning them.

    Reply ↓
    1. wl

      far more important would be to reform RVUs
      the current system means that specialists make huge $ while primary care relatively little.
      THis hurts us all.

      Reply ↓
  20. ChrisRUEcon

    #LongCovidAfter5thOrSixthInfection

    Horrible confirmation of everything “the choir” here has heard preached on many occasions. One of the things I stress to my own family (and friends, when I dare) is that COVID infects by setting up a factory in the nose, and so any non-pharmaceutical intervention to safeguard the nose – masking, nasal sprays – are really important. “COVID is mild” is more horrible because without these nasal interventions, the factory persists longer and does more damage to organs outside the lungs unabated. Once again suggesting that folks get some HOCL (hypochlorous solution), and a hand held nebulizer to disinfect their nasal, pharangyeal and pulmonary passages if feasible. Other solutions like diluted ethanol work as well.

    With both Biden and Trump asserting (foolishly) that the pandemic is “over”, I guess we can kiss development of a nasal vaccine good-bye. Time for that China road trip?

    Reply ↓
    1. Samuel Conner

      > I guess we can kiss development of a nasal vaccine good-bye.

      It seems unlikely that NIH will make investments of that kind within the next few years, but I would not assume that rest-of-world will be as unconcerned about population health.

      It will be interesting to see: if effective sterilizing mucosal immunity vaccines are developed, will they be permitted to be distributed in US? Perhaps US government would be reluctant to acknowledge the mistake of not leading in this area and would ignore the development.

      Perhaps the West is irrecoverably damaged, but the world is or is becoming multi-polar.

      Reply ↓
      1. ChrisRUEcon

        > It will be interesting to see: if effective sterilizing mucosal immunity vaccines are developed, will they be permitted to be distributed in US?

        Well …
        1. Why would they if “the pandemic is over”?
        2. And once that lie is planted Inception style, which Pharma company will want to spend money to develop? They’ve created the condition of most people thinking they don’t one. To your point, a walk back on “COVID is over” is effectively acknowledging a mistake.

        Anyone got recent data on vaccination rates? I got my Novovax booster late last year, and will go back again mid-year.

        I’ll see if I can ferret out some later tonight.

        Reply ↓
    1. hk

      One might say that “liberalism” wasn’t much of clothes to begin with. Only the “right thinking” people could see it, or so said the tailor.

      Reply ↓
  23. Tom Stone

    While I was cleaning my bathroom this morning I asked myself what Elon’s US Techno Utopia would look like?
    The Cybertruck!
    They are ugly, you can’t take one off road or tow with it, pieces fall off when you are driving to the grocery store and they catch fire for no apparent reason.

    Reply ↓
    1. steppenwolf fetchit

      Now, what if that Cybertruck were programmed to not let you open the door and get out until you put your credit card in the credit card reader to pay the “open the door” fee? That’s the kind of thing that Musk would like in his Techno Gulag.

      For example, what if “part of” Musk’s reason for migrating SSA over to his Artificial Intelligence program is to be able to route every payment through his AIX so as to charge a processing fee on every payment sent out? That would make him rich beyond the dreams of Tesla.

      “Government” is not fit for purpose in stopping Musk. Only a very fast-moving mob-movement of hundreds of thousands ready to use hyperkinetic methods on Musk and the DOGE personnel would prevent Musk’s plans for SSA. Not that I would ever suggest doing something so very illegal on these threads. Merely to note that there is nothing else that would work.

      Reply ↓
      1. timo maas

        New Cybertruck will come with open-the-door subscription. If you miss the payment, it will lock the doors and set itself on fire automatically, and stream it on the Internet as a reminder for others to pay the subscription.

        Reply ↓
    2. The Rev Kev

      I saw that Musk is selling Twitter to his AI division. Does that mean that Twitter posts will soon be infested with AI bots and the like?

      Reply ↓
      1. user1234

        Musk sold Twitter to himself, just like Gates donated money to charity owned by himself. Biden renting a house from Hunter sounds like peanuts compared to that. :)

        P.S. I thought that Twitter has always been filled with bots of all sorts. :)

        Reply ↓
  24. Tom Stone

    While I was cleaning my bathroom this morning I asked Myself what Elon’s US Techno Utopia would look like?
    The Cybertruck!
    Brutally ugly, you can’t take one off road or tow anything with it, pieces fall off while you are driving to the Grocery store and they catch fire for no apparent reason.

    Reply ↓
  25. LawnDart

    No China?

    HSF Airlines received the world’s first civil unmanned aircraft operation certificate and will carry out commercial manned services in Hefei Luogang Park

    IT House News on March 29th, according to the “ Hefei City People’s Government issued the ” Public Number, yesterday the Chinese Civil Aviation Administration issued the world’s first civil unmanned aircraft operation certificate (OC) for Hefeiheyi Airlines , Previously the company eVTOL Billion Airlines EH216-S Has obtained the world’s first “ three-certificate ”—— model certificate, production license, standard airworthiness certificate And completed a total of more than 60,000 safe flights.

    The IT House was informed that the corresponding civil unmanned aircraft operation certificate (OC) is mainly used to confirm the carrying of human aircraft, such as electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft (eVTOL), which meets safety standards and operational requirements. Enterprises holding corresponding certificates can conduct business operations in the approved area and provide paid manned operation services.

    https://www.ithome.com/0/841/724.htm

    Drone air-taxis are now open for business in China. I expect official announcements from the manufacturer, Ehang, and the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) come Monday.

    No pilot? No problem! EHang’s autonomous air taxis take off in Thailand

    https://www.theregister.com/2024/11/12/thailand_pilotless_air_taxi/

    In Thailand, Ehang has partnered with Charoen Pokphand Group Co., Ltd. (“C.P. Group”), aka “The King’s Corporation,” so they’ll be flying there commercially very soon (maybe some original on-the-ground reporting?).

    China is easily a decade ahead of the USA on this, if not more. USA’s response will be to throw money at snake-oil corporations (The Beezle shall be well-fed!) like Archer Aviation and Joby as China’s low-altitude economy gains speed.

    The utilization and management of low-altitude airspace, especially in congested coastal areas and hilly terrain, is nothing less than a revolution in transportation itself, soon to be measured in the billions if not trillions of dollars in economic activity and productivity gains.

    Policy-makers in USA will certainly look at this with the glitter of gold in their eyes, but the fact is that they are too incompetent to bring any real competition to the game.

    Reply ↓
  26. Terry Flynn

    Whilst some questions asked here are truly moronic, I’m so glad that certain regulars continue to contribute. Makes me feel like maybe we “have a chance”.

    But things are really going downhill. Both in terms of certain postings on here and in terms of real life stuff. Those who read daily will know EXACTLY what I’m referring to.

    We are very much in the “bad timeline” and it’s worrying. I’d like help but it is not forthcoming.

    Reply ↓
  28. SZ

    RE: Somaliland: If the US actually recognizes this Kosovo 2.0 project, it’s locked in for direct participation in the Big Middle East War to come. I wonder if anyone at all benefits from Bab el-Mandeb becoming an active war zone.

    RE: Gaza protests: As far as I can see, overblown. These are the same people who have been protesting Hamas since 2007. These are “Islah Party” people, which are the wing of Fatah loyal to Mohammad Dahlan, the widely-despised UAE puppet who ran Fatah’s Gaza torture dungeons in the early 2000s. Not to mention that Israeli officials already gave the protests the kiss-of-death by endorsing them loudly. I don’t think many Gazans are under the illusion that Israel will cease its campaign if Hamas does what Israel wants immediately. Israel is trying to future-proof Gaza for good this time, and that means full ethnic cleansing. It’s yet to be seen if they succeed, given that no Arab regime would touch Gazan refugees with a 10-foot stick. The Jordanian monarchy almost collapsed in 1970 because of Palestinian refugees radicalized by the Naksa; it was only able to defeat them by literally bombing the refugee camps in Amman, Jerash, and Irbid. The results of this “success” still haunt Jordan half a century later. Not to mention that Gazans are fully aware of the quality of life that Palestinian refugees can realistically expect.

    RE: Ukraine minerals: Quite rude of Trump to announce the MIC’s plans for Ukraine this openly, innit? You don’t say that shit out loud.

    Reply ↓
    1. nyleta

      Notice that these Gaza protests only started after American PMC’s started work in the Gaza strip. Standard regime change operation. Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.

      Reply ↓
  29. ChrisPacific

    The Bangkok building under construction that fell down looks to have been due to, erm, substandard practices. I have yet to see reports of structural damage to other buildings, which you’d expect to see otherwise.

    No kidding. If a high rise is properly constructed according to code, it should take a truly titanic earthquake (9 or higher) for something like that to happen. The reason it happened in 9/11 was because of the very hot fires from the full tanks of aviation fuel, which weakened the support structure and triggered a cascading collapse. You wouldn’t expect anything like that in an earthquake, even a big one. The fittings are often less secure and can be damaged, and you can sometimes see problems with floor slabs moving (very dangerous and codes usually try to prevent this) but the central supporting structure ought to be near-impossible to budge.

    The media is starting to catch on to this and people have pointed out that the many other buildings in a state of construction were all fine (as you’d expect) so questions will be asked. Two high rise buildings in the Christchurch earthquake experienced this kind of collapse: the Pine Gould building and the CTV building. Both were found to be inadequately constructed, the former due to outdated building codes and the latter due to what Yves is delicately calling ‘substandard practices’. While many others eventually had to be condemned and demolished, they all stayed standing at the time and intact enough to preserve the lives of their occupants.

    Also note that Japan regularly experiences earthquakes of this magnitude and above and has many tall buildings.

    Reply ↓
    1. Acacia

      The reason it happened in 9/11 was because of the very hot fires from the full tanks of aviation fuel, which weakened the support structure and triggered a cascading collapse.

      You mean like the way WTC 7 collapsed at the speed of free fall?

      And no aviation fuel or airplane impact involved… funny that.

      Reply ↓
      2. ChrisPacific

        My intention wasn’t to offer a comprehensive theory of building collapse, just to contrast with a well-known example.

        Are you suggesting the collapse of WTC 7 invalidates my assertions about the possibility of building collapses in earthquakes? If so, how and why?

        Reply ↓
        1. jobs

          I don’t mean to speak for Acacia, but I simply pushed back against you repeating what I believe is a patently false claim about why the Twin Towers collapsed – a false claim with disastrous foreign policy consequences.

          Reply ↓
    2. jobs

      WTC-7 did not collapse because of office fires, which do not burn hot enough because of the nature of the materials that fuel them.
      NIST also only simulated collapse initiation, and to this day refuses to publish the simulation data because it “might jeopardize public safety”.

      From http://ine.uaf.edu/wtc7:
      “The principal conclusion of our study is that fire did not cause the collapse of WTC 7 on 9/11, contrary to the conclusions of NIST and private engineering firms that studied the collapse.
      The secondary conclusion of our study is that the collapse of WTC 7 was a global failure involving the near-simultaneous failure of every column in the building.”

      Reply ↓
      1. ChrisPacific

        I’d completely forgotten about WTC 7. I was talking about the twin towers. Did you miss the ‘aviation fuel’ part?

        Once again, what is the relevance of WTC 7 to building earthquake safety? I accept that buildings might collapse due to complications from being in close proximity to much larger buildings collapsing, and that could happen in an earthquake scenario as well, but it’s a secondary cause.

        Reply ↓
        1. jobs

          Why believe the official Twin Towers narrative if the WTC-7 narrative is suspect?

          The aviation fuel burning also does not explain the Twin Towers collapsing, even though I understand that is the official explanation you are repeating. As Yves pointed out, the fires burned for weeks afterwards which makes no sense if caused by jet fuel plus office furniture.

          9/11 is basically a bad example in this context imo.

          Reply ↓
  30. AG

    re: Taibbi and Rumeysa Ozturk case

    This is Taibbi asking for info by immigration lawyers who know the case of Rumeysa Ozturk and that legal area.
    With his usual appeal to respect detail over morales:
    Note to Readers
    An appeal to subscribers
    https://www.racket.news/p/note-to-readers-d27

    He is apparently driving to Louisiana to look into what happened himself.

    p.s. I am having problems with him not going further down into questioning status quo of legal definitions and laws as such. Just because certain laws have been changed it doesn´t make them “democratic”. The process of laws that are undermining civil rights is seldomly “democratic” in the literal sense of the word. However he appears to only report and judge based once this “legal” process is completed and the laws that are eroding the fabric of civil rights are in place.

    He does not question the state i.e. executive, judicial or legal bodies themselves. At what point I wonder would he agree that civil disobedience, civil (armed) resistance is necessary despite the process of laws still being formally constitutional?

    Reporters and journalists are NOT lawyers.

    As a layman I would argue that e.g. since 9/11 laws have become more restrictive and more friendly to the national security state and supportive of “elite rule”. So the standard of “law” has clearly moved to the right. A reporter merely reporting on the face of that as well does move to the right. But reporting is NOT merely confirming or affirming democratically/constitutionally flawless processes.

    It would be interesting to hear his views on this. I doubt we well get the chance. To doubt the state in its function as long as that is corresponding formally with democratic and due process would upset the entire concept at least of his Racket setup with ATW and the baseline of his journalism.

    Correct me if I am wrong.

    Reply ↓
  31. Balan Aroxdale

    US moves more stealth bombers to Indian Ocean base in striking distance of Iran, Yemen Times of Israel

    This Indian ocean base is actually farther from Yemen and Iran than many existing European and of course Middle Eastern US bases. The conclusion here is that the US and UK have not gotten permission from any other country (except Israel) to launch their air attacks on Yemen from a closer airport. No-one else wants to risk their shipping, and Israel is too hot for storing such valuable bombers.

    Reply ↓
    1. Yves Smith Post author

      The claim is that Diego Garcia is further from Iran than 2000km, the range of its longest range missiles….or known ones. They may have procured 5000km range missiles from Russia.

      So it’s not clear the issue was overflight or vulnerability.

      Reply ↓
  32. skippy

    Anyone notice the climate and via that the weather … here in QLD OZ is off the hook.

    The entire outback and central Qld is at historical records with more on the way …

    Meanwhile Capital and its political sock puppets bang on about ideological purity or if the unwashed just suffer at bit more utopia will bloom.

    Anyway savvy son dropped this on me -AU I am BEGGING you to Stop Caring DJ Peach Cobbler
    490K subscribers

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnFQd-8ULgM

    Then again I data dumped on him with all the books back in the day, all of it, and then we would discuss the pros/cons and relevance to history = T/F.

    Reply ↓
    1. Terry Flynn

      Yeah friend in QLD says weather is insane.

      If I ever have energy to return to Oz I’m wondering if southern part of WA might be “least weird” in terms of climate change. Though nowhere in this world seems unaffected to some extent.

      Reply ↓
  33. Terry Flynn

    Re D natural. I can’t access full article but I’ve always been fascinated by musical temperament. My “A level 17 year old maths project” was in hindsight quite wrong, thinking that equal temperament was what keyboard tuners strived for. Nope. Why? Upper harmonics. There are a couple of YouTubers who explain this well.

    The “example of perfect temperament making a piece sound so exquisite” is Nimrod from Elgar’s Enigma variations because those of us who can play stringed instruments without frets and without the need to play in tune with others play it in the natural key. They played it in the Albert Hall when QE2 died.

    J S Bach “merely” (ha) showed how equal temperament minimised errors. The average piano tuner STARTS with that but adjusts the middle 3 octaves to give fewer dud upper harmonics. Fascinating. Humans if not trying to match instruments sing natural temperament. Another example is the opening phase to Beethoven’s 6th (all strings). If you get the “wrong” key in your head it sounds dreadful. /snobby comment

    Reply ↓

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