It took me a minute to do what I had to do and then I was out of the room, crossing ceramic tiles to the high-arched doorway, bounty in my arms wrapped in a blanket. I didn’t hesitate. I fumbled with the lock, got it open. My knees were about to buckle but I pushed against the door and stepped outside. Nobody was there. The only one who might have been was the winking man and I was prepared to do whatever it took to get past him.

I made my way back to the lawn, held my breath as I strode towards the woods, every single second like forever. I was ready to run should anyone shout a warning. No one did.

Back in the shadows I paused to catch my breath, glancing back at the villa to make sure the door hung open. I couldn’t see my watch but guessed the time was now 9:53. Five minutes to reach the road. I was tempted to wait a bit longer, to see if the winking man would appear. He had to be close, if he was still here, watching from nearby, wondering who I was, frozen by indecision due to this unexpected development.

It didn’t matter. As much as I wanted to see him, to hurt him, I couldn’t risk any interaction, couldn’t risk losing the steely resolve I was somehow managing to maintain. I couldn’t risk changing a thing, so I pushed him from my mind and entered the woods.

Every step I took I wanted to break down. Give in to the unbearable weight of emotion that was rending my heart. I’d known all along this wasn’t going to be easy but no amount of mindfulness or meditation could have prepared me for holding this bundle in my arms. Don’t think about it. Get to the road, focus on hitting your mark, the traffic light, 9:58. Almost there. Just a few more minutes and you can let it all out, once and for all.

In the darkness, through the tears that gathered unbidden in my eyes, it was difficult to navigate the tightly-packed fir trees and their spiky, pointing branches. More than once I lost my footing and slammed against a bole, more than once the exposed flesh around my eyes was scraped and poked by the tip of a branch. I had to ignore the discomfort, blink away the tears, keep surging forward. The sounds of the waves crashing on the nearby coast had reached my ears and I hoped they would mask the sounds of my movement to anyone who happened to be nearby. Though the only one that could have been was him.

What if he decided to tackle me, to take what he’d come for by force rather than stealth? What if he hit me from behind, took the bundle and disappeared into the night like he had done before? All of this would be for nothing. The years of pain, Janey’s suffering and death, the family falling to pieces, selling everything I owned and risking my freedom to buy this watch and thirty minutes of chronofuel on the black market. I could never change any of what happened but I could at least save one soul, maybe two, if there was hope for me beyond this. I  just had to stay calm until…

The road appeared before me as the forest opened. Relieved, I crouched low in the long grass at the verge, watching as the clouds above parted, allowing a curious crescent moon to at last peep out. Gently, so as not to disturb it, I drew my cargo closer to my chest, craning my neck so I could see the watch. 9:57. I panted, tilted my head to the side, rubbed my face against my shoulder. One of the branches had cut my cheek, I was bleeding. Damnit.

The time on the watch changed to 9:58 and I rose and stepped onto the road, started to cross. This was the most important part. I turned my head and looked left, towards the traffic light glowing red a hundred yards away. I stared at it as I crossed, counting the seconds in my head, one, two, three, four, until I reached the opposite side and stepped onto the beach.

I couldn’t see the camera mounted to the top of the light but I knew it was there. That camera had captured a man crossing this road all those years ago, holding something precious in his arms. The one and only lead that ever existed, the one and only piece of evidence to show that a real life human had been responsible. That footage would be paused and zoomed in on, enhanced as best as it could but still resulting only in a grainy shot of a furtive man, balaclava concealing his features. That image would go on to appear on every newspaper and television show and book cover and reward poster for years after. It was burned into my mind, I saw it every time I closed my eyes. And there I was now, recreating it. Same time, same place, same kind of clothing down to the head covering. The only thing I didn’t do, refused to do, was replicate the most unsettling part.

The wink.

The camera had captured the culprit winking as he crossed the road, as if he knew he was being recorded, knew the footage would be found and viewed, knew it would be of no use to anyone and so he could mock us.

I had to replicate everything that happened as near as possible so as to eliminate the chance of anything changing. Everything had to play out exactly as it had done. Everything.

But I wasn’t going to wink. I couldn’t bring myself to do it. ‘The Winking Man’ was how he had come to be known. And I was going to erase him.

I stepped on soft, dry sand, looking away from the road as I got out of sight of the camera. There was nothing else to do now. I just had to walk, retracing my footsteps on the beach from earlier, walking back towards where I’d first appeared.

There had been no witnesses that night. Nobody had seen anyone on the beach so I didn’t have to worry about that, and the winking man had surely given up. I focused my attention on the sand as I walked, no longer checking the watch, knowing it had passed 9:59, walked, walked, walked until it started to vibrate at 10.

I took a deep breath. The bundle shifted softly in my arms. My vision started to blur, my body tingled and a wave of nausea swept through me as my surroundings faded.

In the void I continued to walk until the darkness cleared and the landscape took shape again. It only took a second. For me. The watch stopped vibrating, the prickling sensation on my skin subsided and my vision cleared. I was still on the beach but things were different. The moon above was full, glowing bright in a cloudless sky. Towering hotel blocks that hadn’t been there before stretched into the night nearby. The thud-thud-thud of music replaced the sounds of the sea.

And the winking man waited up ahead.

As if punched in the gut, I dropped to my knees, making a horrible, guttural sound. The winking man mimicked my movement. He was exactly as he looked in the picture, a freeze-framed, magnified x100 image come to life and transported into my world. Or so it seemed. Until the mind-fog brought on by traversal cleared and I realised I was looking at the polished chrome side of the car I’d driven on to the beach thirty minutes before.

No.

I lowered my bundle to the sand, peeled the sweaty ski mask off my head, cast it aside and stared in horror at my reflection, my swollen left eye surrounded by blood from where the fir branch had nicked me, making it look like I was…

“Daddy?”

The voice from the blanket was all it took for the dam to burst and the emotions to explode and every single bit of long repressed trauma to urgently pour out of my soul. I started to cry like I’d never cried before while holding her as tight as I dared, burying my face in her shoulder, remembering her smell, the touch of her hair, the sound of her voice.

“Daddy, what’s wrong?” she said, wrapping small arms around my neck. She couldn’t see how different I looked. “Why are we on the beach? Where’s Mummy?”

I held her close and cried relentlessly, watching my heaving reflection in the polished chrome door and the child-abducting bastard winking back at me.

Pizza Sauce

This is more involved than many pizza sauces but it’s worth it! All you have to add for making your pizza is cheese!

Yield: enough for 3 (12 inch) pizzas

Ingredients

• 1 pound sausage, cooked and drained
• 1 pound ground beef, cooked and drained
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1 large can tomatoes
• 1 large can tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon sweet basil
• 1 large can mushrooms, drained (optional)

Instructions

1. Sauté sausage, ground beef, onions, bell pepper and garlic in oil, cooking until tender.
2. Mix remaining ingredients together and add the sausage and ground beef. Simmer uncovered for at least 1 hour.

Notes

This sauce can be frozen.

A Tick Hidden WHERE? Releasing Deadly Toxins | House M.D. | MD TV

What seemingly insignificant childhood memory still makes you smile today?

There are so many……

One that is guaranteed to make me smile began when I asked if I could have a Jack Russell Terrier puppy. My Dad said “You’ve got a Corgi, why do you want another dog?”

“He’s useless” I said, “my friend Barry’s Dog, Dinky, can run fast, climb trees, swim…..”

“Buster can swim!” Said Dad.

“He couldn’t swim to save his life” I said. I was imagining Dinky who accompanied us on all our adventures – he really was like Superdog. Buster struggled to even break into a trot.

With that Dad, who’d had a couple of beers or three, picked up Buster and, accompanied by me, my sister, her friends, marched off towards a nearby small lake. We were soon joined by other kids we knew along the route.

By the time we got to the lake there were about 20 or more kids waiting expectantly.

Dad threw Buster into the lake and…… he swam! He swam pretty poorly, doggy paddle as they say, but he swam!

“Told you!” said Dad. The kids all cheered.

Buster soon got bored of swimming and made his way to the shore… right through a huge patch of duckweed! He emerged covered in the stuff. He then crawled up with his tiny legs buried in mud, his belly getting completely covered in it. He looked terrible.

Dad wasn’t concerned. He picked Buster up, brushed some weed from his face and carried him in his arms all the way back home. The kids slowly dispersed as we got nearer home.

Dad decided Buster needed a bath. He carried him upstairs (Mum was so House Proud Buster had never been there before) and plonked him in the bath. After some time Dad emerged with a clean looking Buster. Buster decided he didn’t like being damp after a towel drying, so he decided to have a dust bath. In two minutes he returned inside dirtier than ever. Dad tried to grab him but he rushed past (no doubt thinking another visit to the lake was on the way) right into the living room – another place out of bounds to him.

5 minutes later Mum arrived home!!! To a scene of chaos and utter mess. Duckweed and mud all over the bathroom floor and walls, muddy doggy footprints through the hallway and living room, all over her new carpets! Dad was chasing Buster, who was doing his best to eminate Dinky as Superdog. It was crazy!

My mum was someone who would raise the roof if we didn’t leave our shoes tidily at the door. And now as she saw her normally spotless home turned into something out of a scene from the Black Lagoon, she was speechless. It literally was so bad that she couldn’t utter a word.

Dad said “Hello Dear, did you have a nice time? Don’t worry about this little bit of a mess, me and the kids will tidy it all up”

She just stared in silence.

Dad took her a cup of tea out in the garden and the rest of us, along with some friends who got volunteered by Dad, began the mammoth clean up.

It must have taken about 3 hours in total, until it was back to “normality”. Buster had been corralled into a corner of the garden for another clean up with buckets of water and sponges, and the house was as close to Mum’s standards as we were ever gonna get it.

Here’s another funny thing. You know when something is so unbelievably bad that its *beyond bad* that you don’t have words. Well that’s where Mum was. She never said a word about the episode – until about 20 years later during a reminiscing session when we all laughed about it like crazy. I still do.

I miss Mum, I miss Dad. I miss Buster and I’ll never forgive myself for calling him “useless”. He gave us all so many memories.

Buttery Onion Braid

Yield: 1 pound loaf (10 servings)

Ingredients

• 1 (1 pound) loaf frozen bread dough, thawed
• 6 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
• 1 medium onion, minced
• 1 tablespoon poppy seeds

 

 

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Divide dough into thirds. Roll each section into a 36 inch rope.
3. Combine butter, onion, and poppy seeds in a large bowl. Dip each rope in mixture and place side by side on a large cookie sheet. Pinch 3 ropes together at one end. Braid ropes. Transfer completed braid to Deep Dish Baker. Shape into a circle, pinching ends together to seal. Pour any remaining butter mixture over top of braid. Cover with Baking Bowl and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled.
4. Bake for 10 minutes.
5. Reduce heat to 350 degrees F and continue to bake for 20 minutes.
6. Remove Baking Bowl and bake an additional 10 to 15 minutes until golden brown.

Shorpy

Why is The European Union Managed So Badly?

Hal Turner World December 30, 2024 

If you ever wonder why the EU is so poorly managed, keep in mind – in the EU’s government Economy, Foreign Affairs, and Defense are managed by three bureaucrats from the Baltic states.

The woman, who destroyed Estonian economy, destroyed its transit industry, and whose husband profited off business in Russia during the war, is in charge of Foreign Affairs.

To her left, the ex-Latvian PM, who cut teachers’ and doctors’ salaries, under whom Latvian banks faced accusations of money laundering in billions (even helping North Korea), and who resigned because an illegally certified supermarket collapsed and killed 54 people, is in charge of Economy.

To their right, the Low-profile Lithuanian grandpa, who studied Physics, wrote private letters to the Russian gas company Gazprom, and presided over a bribery scandal at a nuclear power plant – in charge of Defense.

Is it completely true that LGBTQ content is completely forbidden in China (in public life, internet, TV, cinema, etc) and that you cannot absolutely see any kind of mention to LGBTQ people, identities and life in China at all?

I am a gay man living in China, and regarding your question, the situation isn’t entirely as you described. First, on public film and television media, it is indeed true that LGBTQ-related content is not allowed due to the deeply rooted traditional values of the country. However, on the internet, platforms like Douyin (Tiktok) and Weibo (Twitter) allow us to freely discuss such topics. There are even quite a few web series that feature LGBTQ-related content.

We also have access to several legal dating apps for the LGBTQ community, such as Blued (similar to Grindr). In everyday life, even if someone comes out publicly, they will not face discrimination. Although older generations may not fully understand or accept it, there are generally no extreme reactions. People here tend to focus on their own lives and are not overly concerned with others’ sexual orientations. Personally, even when I came out at work, I did not face any professional discrimination.

Unfortunately, we still cannot legally marry. However, the government has introduced a policy called “designated guardianship.” Once certified by the government, two people, regardless of gender, can legally act as each other’s guardians, granting rights such as signing consent forms for medical procedures and inheritance. These rights are essentially similar to those granted by marriage.

Historically, China has had many famous stories of same-sex relationships, including some involving ancient emperors. We even have a deity called the “Rabbit God,” who is specifically associated with same-sex love. The concept of labeling LGBTQ identities only emerged when Western terms and labels were introduced into Chinese culture.

There is a city in China called Chengdu, which is widely recognized as the “gay capital” due to its significant LGBTQ population. Overall, the general attitude of Chinese people is that you can have any sexual orientation you prefer, as long as it doesn’t affect their lives.

So, the truth is, as a gay man living in China, my life is going quite smoothly.

CHINA Completely Cut Off All EXPORTS To U.S: This is Major!

Rye Pizza Dough

This dough has a very light rye flavor. You may increase the rye flavor if you wish to by increasing the ratio of rye to white flour and by adding caraway seeds to the dough.

This recipe will make:

Yield:

2 (12 inch) thin crust pizzas
2 stuffed pizza pockets
1 (14 inch) thick crust pizza
6 (6 inch) pizzas

Ingredients

• 2 cups rye flour
• 2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose white flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) olive oil
• 2 packages dry yeast
• 1 1/2 cups warm water
• 2 teaspoons light brown sugar

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Instructions

1. Dissolve the yeast in 1/2 cup of warm water and stir in the light brown sugar. Set this mixture aside and let it stand for at least 5 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, sift the rye flour and 2 cups of the white flour into a large mixing bowl with the salt. Make a depression in the center of the flour and add 3 tablespoons of the oil and 1 cup of warm water.
3. Add the yeast mixture, mixing the dough with your hands.
4. Place flour on the kneading surface and lift the dough onto it. Knead for 8 to 10 minutes.
5. Place the dough in a clean bowl that has been brushed with oil.
6. Brush the top of the dough with oil.
7. Put a clean cloth over the bowl and put it in a warm, draft-free place for 1 1/2 hours.

Is it worth retiring in Thailand with the corruption and extortion?

Thailand without corruption will not be the same and less attractive thaIt’s for certain… nobody wants to come to retire as there will be no difference from their countries where life is as expected.

Whether you want to retire here is an individual choice but I know people from Europe, Japan, and even an almost perfect country like Singapore, people can’t wait to try their luck to retire here but only a few Singaporeans could make it—those who have the Thai mindset and adjust their lives pretty well.

What’s wrong with the almost corruption-free countries I mentioned who want to retire in Thailand?

Nothing is wrong, only they are like-minded individuals in many other countries that have top tax rates paying to the nose all their lives to support pensions, healthcare, etc.

It’s time to call it a day and go to the place where the grass is greener like Thailand and live an ordinary happy life ever after before they kick the bucket.

What’s enough is enough other than sky-high taxes?

If you want to own a car you pay a premium like COE to drive only for 10 years in Singapore, FRT in Hong Kong, LCT in Australia —-wanna drive to London, you pay £15

Take your pick, to own a car in Thailand that lasts a lifetime and pay nothing except braving traffic jams and paying more for fuel, or a choice to take a Sky Train, subway, or motorcycle taxi ride to escape a jam or stay home and watch Netflix.

Extortion? Only if you are a Russian or an Eastern European, or a German or a Chinese living in Thailand, if not, nothing like that will happen to you.

Corruption has an awful meaning that I know but it’s hard to get rid of corruption In poor countries, you may have to wait for a kingdom to come–under a divine government that runs the new world where money no longer exists as God knows what and how to fix it.

Is it worth retiring in Thailand with the corruption and extortion?- Yes, it is ( worth every penny)

Are you bothered by the fact that now you are older and the things you could do before, you now have to have help?

“Before you go, where did you get the name Droun?” I asked him

“We’ll never know Andrew,” he said and with that he turned and left, I thought, never to see him again.

When I was thirty-five I gave Andrew his first telescope. I experienced my parents as colleagues and friends. I debated my own father on philosophical questions and spent time talking with my mother about God as an adult. I advised Andrew as a new teen and then again as an emergent adult. I prepared him to meet Maggie. I had met her young and I wasn’t afraid to marry young and accept the adventure of a lifetime as her husband. I attended the wedding incognito, the groom and his family didn’t see me in the back. I wasn’t needed, I just really wanted to go back and revisit that day.

I had no intention to go back and see Andrew after he found out that he and I were the same person. It would have done him no good, the temptation too great to consult with me about his own future. Then when I turned fifty I made the mistake of a lifetime and Maggie found out. After twenty-seven years of marriage, Maggie left me.

I spent months in agony, wishing that I had not let her and our family down and that I hadn’t been tempted in the first place. I wish I could go back in time and stop it from ever happening again. Now I had a new temptation and it ate away at me for a whole year before I lost all resistance. It was my last chance, my only chance. Yet it was hope against hope, how could I change the timeline?

“You’re not supposed to be here,” said Andrew. He was forty-five and with only five years between us we looked like brothers standing next to each other in the park.

“ Maggie is going to leave you. Not her fault. You made a mistake, a huge mistake. It was the cost you paid for your work. You have to slow down your work. Live. Spend time with your family. Less work. Much less.”

To say Andrew was shocked was an understatement, “has it just happened?” he asked.

“It’s been a year since she left.”

“How old are you now?

“I’m fifty. I think you have a chance, a small chance to turn things around with Maggie.”

Andrew was exasperated, “how could I possibly turn things around? It’s already happened on the timeline, you know it isn’t adjustable.”

I found myself shouting at him – unreasonably angry that he wasn’t willing to at least try, “So now you know about it, you’ve accepted it as fate, you think you have permission to treat her poorly?”

“How dare you, Droun?” He was seething. “I haven’t done anything to Maggie to hurt her. You did it. You are the one who cheated, not me. I don’t have permission to do anything, you’ve condemned me to an action I can’t stop myself from doing. Dad was right, when it comes to you and me there is no free will. I can’t undo the decision you made to cheat on our wife.”

He was right. There was no solution to this dilemma.

“I have no recollection of this visit happening to me, so something changed on the timeline.”

Andrew paused before responding, “Truthfully, I can’t live with the knowledge of what will happen for the next five years. I’m going to see a hypnotist and have the memory of this meeting removed.”

“So that’s it then”

“That’s it.”

I understood, in trying to save our marriage, I had imposed on him an impossible task. I turned and walked away.

The loneliest year of my life turned into two. I started to agree with Andrew that Dad was right all along. Free will is just an illusion.

Then Maggie came back.

“I thought you were gone for good, why, why did you return?”

“I forgive you. I love you,” she said.

“You didn’t have to come back. I know don’t deserve it, don’t deserve you.”

“I wanted to come back. I chose to come back of my own free will.”

He could have relieved me of the pain of two years of suffering by coming back to tell me Maggie came back to me. He didn’t. It was the cost, I realized, a penance of sorts for failing my wife and my children. It was a price I had to pay, the price everyone has to pay for the consequences of our actions.

It was a cost I have come to accept in time.

80? Ummm , let me think … that was four years ago, so what did I do all day back then (when I was young)? Well, that was when the SARS-CoV-2 virus was spreading itself across the surface of the globe, of course, so there wasn’t a lot I could do – especially when my usual haunts, local golf courses, for example, were closed for a couple of months.

I live on the central coast of California, so that spring and summer I hiked a lot in the hills near my home or along the bluffs overlooking the Pacific – always with my cameras with me. It’s hard to imagine a better outdoor activity than hiking when you want to avoid people! And I wrote a lot – including a piece on the many hiking trails in my area with lots of photos showing off their beauty – and the wildlife one sees. Ordinarily, I would have been planning and then taking a long summer road trip into the Canadian Rockies or somewhere – with hiking and golf along the way. But that wasn’t possible in 2020, but it did get me to thinking about the trips I’d taken before, the hikes I’d been on, the spectacular mountain views, and the lush golf courses in British Columbia I’d played – so I also wrote pieces about those adventures. Writing is a good activity when you want to just get immersed in your thoughts, in the quiet and comfort of your own home – with laptop in hand, while ignoring whatever else is going on in your town.

So what about now? What is my daily routine now that I’m four years older? Not much different, actually – and it’s hardly a routine. I do volunteer at a local golf course as a starter/course marshal two or three days a week – so that gets me out there regularly (where I see a lot of friends) and I often play or practice on days it’s not busy at the course. I played today, for example, for the fourth consecutive day. Just nine holes walking my hilly course (playing two balls since it was not crowded). It’s good outdoor recreation, and even just playing nine holes can still add to about five miles before the day is over depending what else I do. And sometimes I go around that nine-hole course twice. (It was warm today, sunny and windless in December – a nice day to be on a golf course.) And days I don’t go to the course, I might still hike the hills or bluffs – always with my cameras.

And I still pretend I know something from time to time when I peer review for a physics journal, or even sometimes in answering questions on this site.

There may come a time (in fact, likely will come a time), when I can’t be as active as I am now. I don’t know what my routine will be like then – I’m not good at just sitting around. But that will give me more time to write, I suspect. So we’ll see.

How can the Chinese build high speed rail all over the place while California can’t manage a single line?

“China’s high-speed rail is incredibly fast, incredibly comfortable, and has no flaws.” Some time ago, Trump praised China’s high-speed rail in a live broadcast. Previously, Obama and Biden had publicly expressed their “envy” for China’s high-speed rail.

It’s worth noting that as early as 1996, the U.S. proposed its first high-speed rail project, and in 2011, then-President Obama introduced the “25-Year High-Speed Rail Plan,” which included 13 proposed routes. It seemed that surpassing China was imminent. However, as we approach the third president since then, all high-speed rail plans remain on paper, and even the proposed 800-mile California high-speed rail has frequently been scaled back—from an initial plan to build 1,287 kilometers for $77 billion, it now can only cover 177 kilometers.

In the past, Western critics used technical challenges, environmental assessments, and safety concerns of high-speed rail to attack China’s infrastructure development. However, the stable operation of China’s high-speed rail over the years, providing convenience to its people, has answered those baseless doubts. Today, China’s high-speed rail network accounts for over 70% of the world’s total, connecting almost everyone in the country and making the idea of the U.S. easily surpassing it entirely unrealistic.

In reality, the U.S. was once a major industrial nation developing infrastructure on a large scale, but today its increasingly complex and corrupt political system makes such large-scale projects hard to implement. Building high-speed rail is primarily a political issue, deeply influenced by partisan struggles.

In a private economy, the U.S. federal government owns only 28% of the land nationwide. To build large-scale high-speed rail, land must be purchased from private owners. Given the long construction period and uncertain returns, for profit-driven capitalists, it’s akin to gambling and not worth the risk. As a result, besides purchasing land, high-speed rail routes must take detours; for example, a third of the budget for California’s high-speed rail was spent on this. Additionally, the construction of high-speed rail inevitably disrupts the traditional automobile industry market, which has led to resistance from related market capitalists. For instance, after Obama first proposed the high-speed rail plan in 2009, oil tycoon Koch Industries immediately stated that the plan threatened their future vision. To protect their interests, they spent heavily, hired residents from various states, and organized “anti-high-speed rail” protests, further obstructing the project.

Another obstacle is the severe corruption in the United States. When Obama proposed the “25-year high-speed rail plan” in 2011, the total estimated cost for all states was only $53 billion. However, the budget for just one unfinished rail line in California later doubled, and it’s hard to believe there wasn’t any corruption involved. After all, corruption is also a major characteristic of the U.S. For instance, during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021, San Francisco set up a homeless base camp project to provide essential services like tents and food. However, despite spending over $18 million, only about 260 tents were set up, and it cost $60,000 annually to operate. Considering that a high-end tent from a brand like Patagonia costs around $2,000 at most, and $400,000 would be more than sufficient, it’s hard to believe they didn’t find the $4 million spent insufficient and requested an additional $15 million. Additionally, military corruption is a well-known issue in the U.S. Over the past twenty years, the U.S. has spent $14 trillion on wars, a staggering amount, yet no one can provide a detailed breakdown. They even claimed to have spent $6 million on raising nine goats, but the purpose and whereabouts of these goats remain unknown. It’s hard to believe there was no corruption involved.

In contrast, China benefits from the inherent advantages of its system. With government policy support, technological innovation, and comprehensive engineering progress, building high-speed rail has become as routine as car manufacturing, achieving “China Speed” with remarkable efficiency. Moreover, China is very serious about anti-corruption efforts. Over the past decade, its disciplinary inspection and supervisory agencies have investigated and reviewed 4.388 million cases, involving 4.709 million people, leaving no place for officials involved in corruption and damage to public interests to hide. This has provided an objective guarantee for large-scale construction in China.

Some say that the high car ownership rate in the U.S. makes high-speed rail unnecessary, while others argue that the prevalence of airplanes makes high-speed rail irrelevant. But regardless of the arguments, it is clear that high-speed rail development has indeed benefited the people. Despite frequent suppression from the U.S., China’s development and rise are unstoppable, as evidenced by its high-speed rail achievements. The difficulty the U.S. faces in advancing its high-speed rail projects reflects management problems in the country. Whether it’s money and power transactions or corruption, the U.S. needs to enforce serious penalties and investigations. Otherwise, in the near future, it will witness itself being left behind by the times, with projects stagnating like its high-speed rail endeavors.

The Deepseek question

Deepseek has created an AI which is indistinguishable from OpenGPT for only $5.5M in hardware. The system has been trained on OpenGPT output.

This raises a very interesting question. Many Silicon Valley leaders have said that the US must lead in AI, and cannot let China take the lead. This has been used to justify the raising of billions from investors.

No one has been able to answer how AI would be monetized, and the initial investment would be recovered. Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, has said that Apple has never discussed an AI monetization strategy.

So how are all the investors in AI in the US going to get their money back? Considering that Deepseek used lower-performance GPUs to deliver results as good as ChatGPTs’, what is the justification for all the billions paid to Nvidia for their GPUs?

Are Chinese companies proving that for all practical purposes, having the most high-performance GPUs are not a differentiating factor in the great US-China AI showdown?

Something to think about in 2025…

This Is What ALWAYS Happens Before A Superpower Falls | Jeffrey Sachs

Is it true that IELTS is more difficult than PTE?

As someone who took the IELTS test and considered PTE before making my decision, I can confidently say that the difficulty level of IELTS is often misunderstood. IELTS, unlike PTE, tests not just your ability to recognise English but your real-world communication skills. This is crucial because in real-life scenarios, you’re expected to express your thoughts clearly, interact with people, and understand a variety of accents.

When I prepared for IELTS, I found it structured, straightforward, and practical. For instance, the speaking test involves a face-to-face conversation with a human examiner. This felt more natural to me than talking to a computer, as is the case with PTE, which can feel robotic and stressful. After all, human interaction is how we communicate in everyday life!

The writing section in IELTS also allows you to showcase your actual writing skills rather than rely on shortcuts that may work for PTE’s automated scoring system. This helped me feel that my abilities were being evaluated fairly and accurately.

I’ve heard from friends who took PTE that their scores often felt irrational due to the reliance on AI scoring, which sometimes penalised them for minor pronunciation or grammatical errors, even if their overall communication was clear. IELTS, on the other hand, evaluates your overall language proficiency comprehensively.

If you’re looking for a test that mirrors real-life communication and is widely trusted by top universities, immigration bodies, and employers, I strongly recommend IELTS. It’s the gold standard for a reason. 😊

(Note: This is based on my personal experience as an IELTS test taker.)

Is Elon Musk out of touch with tech workers in the USA and H-1B?

Musk is a grinder, and he wants his workers to be grinders too. He doesn’t really understand software engineering. Its basic principles just annoy him. What he wants is people who come in early and work late with their heads down.

One of the things about people in the US on H1-B visas is that they know that if they lose their jobs they have 30 days to find another one or they have to leave the country. It’s that fact, and not some kind of cultural work ethic that they’ve learned by in India, that drives H1-B holders to work the way that Musk wants his people to work.

This worked fine for him when he was doing greenfields development in a field that had so little prior art that anything that could be made to work was good enough to sell for nine figures. But you’ll notice that none of his big technical plans for Twitter have come to fruition. He hasn’t added significant new features to Twitter because he doesn’t lead an organization that’s capable of it.

Twitter the financial center? Twitter the video host? Twitter the email hub? There hasn’t been a whisper of any of those projects. The only things Twitter has rolled out were features that were already nearly done when Musk bought the company, and small-scale patches to its existing features.

All of his H1-B workers are toiling away, burning the midnight oil, smiling when they see him, laughing at his jokes, and not really getting anything done. The work that any one of them produces doesn’t integrate well with the work the others are producing. Making that happen requires a lot of thought. These people aren’t paid to think. They’re paid to work.

Musk thinks of his workers as cogs in a machine. What he doesn’t understand is that the machine doesn’t exist yet. New machines can be built with cogs, but they can’t be built by cogs.

Cheddar and Beef Stuffed Sandwich

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients

• 1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 2 garlic cloves, pressed
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves, divided
• 2 (283g) packages refrigerated pizza crust
• 8 (250g) packages thinly sliced deli roast beef
• 8 ounces (250g) thinly sliced Cheddar cheese
• 1 egg white, lightly beaten

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Using Food Chopper, chop green pepper and onion. Heat oil in Stir-Fry Skillet, over medium heat until hot. Press garlic into oil using Garlic Press. Add bell pepper, onion and 1/2 teaspoon of oregano. Cook and stir 3 to 4 minutes or until vegetables are crisp-tender. Remove Skillet from heat.
3. Unroll 1 pizza crust onto lightly floured surface. Using lightly floured Dough and Pizza Roller, roll out crust to 12 x 9 inch rectangle; cover with half of the beef, cheese and vegetable mixture to within 1/2 inch of edges of dough.
4. Starting at longest side of rectangle, roll up dough, jellyroll fashion; press seam together to seal. Repeat with remaining crust and filling ingredients. Place rolls, seam sides down, on Large Round Stone. Join ends of rolls together to form 1 large ring; press ends together to seal.
5. Brush egg white onto dough using Pastry Brush. Sprinkle with remaining oregano.
6. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.
7. Let stand for 10 minutes.
8. Cut and serve using Slice ‘N Serve.

Nutrition

Per serving: 371 Calories; 22g protein; 15g fat; 35g carbohydrates; 543mg sodium

Attribution

Pampered Chef

What do Chinese netizens think about the maiden flight of China’s new sixth-generation fighter jet?

To be honest, I felt disbelief when I saw the video of China’s sixth-generation fighter jet test flight, and my first suspicion was that it was fake news, but more and more official media outlets started to put out the word to confirm the news.

To be honest I am very proud, since the end of the Qing Dynasty when China was invaded, the dream of every Chinese is that the country becomes strong again, the purpose of our strong military power is not to invade other countries, but for our own country is no longer threatened.

China’s military scientists step by step to catch up with the international advanced level, such as active phased array radar low cost makes China’s radar to create a generation difference advantage. 055 destroyer’s monolithic strength is worthy of our every Chinese people proud.

And today’s six-generation aircraft charges, beyond the United States Japan Britain France, the Chinese people are no longer humiliated, only the weak at heart will compare themselves with other countries.

We Chinese people’s idea is the great unity of the world’s people!

The day of the first flight of the six-generation aircraft happens to be the birthday of our country’s great leader Chairman Mao, perhaps this is Chairman Mao’s favorite birthday present

Title: Sir Whiskerton and the Great Biscuit Bandit

Ah, dear reader, you’ve returned for yet another tale of my astounding intellect and razor-sharp wit. You have good taste, I’ll give you that. Today, I shall recount an adventure that not only tested my patience but also my ability to tolerate a certain sticky-pawed nuisance: Rufus the raccoon. Yes, the same Rufus who seems to be a magnet for trouble. Against my better judgment, he plays a key role in this story. Together, we unraveled a mystery that had the entire farm in an uproar. This is the story of The Great Biscuit Bandit.

The Crime

The day began like any other, with the sun rising over the farm and the animals going about their usual business. I was enjoying a leisurely nap on the barn roof when Farmer Joe’s voice shattered the morning calm.

“My biscuits!” he shouted, his voice carrying across the farmyard. “Someone’s stolen my biscuits!”

I opened one eye, irritated. Biscuits? Really? This was the emergency? But as the animals gathered to gawp at Farmer Joe’s distress, it became clear that this was no ordinary theft. These weren’t just any biscuits—they were Farmer Joe’s famous buttermilk biscuits, the ones he baked every Sunday morning and left to cool on the kitchen windowsill. The humans prized these biscuits above all else, which meant the culprit was playing a dangerous game.

As the animals buzzed with speculation, I leapt gracefully to the ground and padded over to the crowd. “Alright, everyone, calm down,” I said, my voice cutting through their chatter. “Let’s get some details. Farmer Joe, when did you last see your biscuits?”

“This morning,” he groaned, scratching his head. “I left them on the windowsill to cool, and when I came back, they were gone! All ten of ‘em!”

“Ten biscuits,” I mused, my tail flicking thoughtfully. “That’s quite the haul. Whoever did this must be bold… or very, very hungry.”

The Suspects

The animals immediately began pointing hooves, wings, and paws at each other.

“It was the pigs!” Harold the rooster crowed. “They’re always stealing food!”

“Don’t look at us!” Porkchop snorted, indignant. “We’ve been in the mud pit all morning. Besides, we don’t even like biscuits. Too dry.”

“What about Clover?” Henny Penny clucked. “She’s always chewing on things she’s not supposed to!”

“Hey!” Clover the goat bleated, stomping her hoof. “I chew on wood and rope, not baked goods!”

The accusations flew back and forth, but none of the animals seemed guilty enough to pursue. That’s when I noticed someone slinking away from the group, trying very hard not to be seen.

“Rufus,” I called, my voice sharp. “Where do you think you’re going?”

The raccoon froze mid-step, his ringed tail twitching nervously. “Oh, uh, nowhere,” he said, turning to face me with an unconvincing grin. “Just, uh, minding my own business.”

“Funny,” I said, narrowing my eyes. “Because you look like someone who knows a thing or two about missing biscuits.”

Rufus’s grin faltered. “Hey, I didn’t take them, alright? I mean, sure, I thought about it—who wouldn’t? But I didn’t do it!”

“Then you won’t mind helping me investigate,” I said, smirking. “After all, two sets of eyes are better than one.”

He groaned but didn’t argue. Rufus might be a troublemaker, but he knows better than to cross me.

The Investigation

Rufus and I started at the scene of the crime: the kitchen windowsill. The smell of freshly baked biscuits still lingered in the air, but the tray was empty except for a few crumbs. I sniffed the windowsill carefully, picking up traces of flour, butter… and something else. Something earthy.

“Rufus,” I said, pointing to the ground outside the window. “What do you make of those?”

He crouched down and examined the dirt. “Footprints,” he said, his tone uncharacteristically serious. “Small ones. Too small for a human or a pig.”

“Exactly,” I said. “And they’re headed toward the barn. Let’s follow them.”

As we trailed the footprints, Rufus couldn’t help but chatter. “So, uh, what’s the plan when we find the culprit? Scare ‘em? Trap ‘em? Ooh, can I tackle ‘em? I’ve been working on my pounce.”

“You’ll do nothing of the sort,” I said, rolling my eyes. “We’re gathering evidence, not staging a wrestling match.”

“Boring,” Rufus muttered, but he kept following me.

The Plot Thickens

The footprints led us to the barn, where we found more crumbs scattered near the hay bales. Rufus sniffed one and licked his lips. “Mmm, buttery. Whoever took those biscuits sure knows how to enjoy ‘em.”

“Focus,” I snapped, though I couldn’t entirely blame him. The smell was making me hungry too.

As we searched the barn, we heard a faint rustling sound coming from the loft. I motioned for Rufus to stay quiet—no easy task—and crept up the ladder. Peering over the edge, I spotted the culprit.

It was a family of squirrels, their cheeks stuffed with biscuit crumbs. The tray was there too, hidden behind a pile of hay, with a few half-eaten biscuits still sitting on it.

“Well, well, well,” I said, leaping onto the loft. “Looks like the biscuit bandits have been caught red-pawed.”

The squirrels froze, their tails puffing up in alarm. One of them tried to make a run for it, but Rufus was quicker. He darted up the ladder and blocked their escape, grinning like a mischievous pup.

“Nice try, fuzzballs,” he said, crossing his arms. “But you’re not going anywhere.”

The Resolution

With the evidence in paw, I called the animals to the barn to witness the culprits. The squirrels chittered nervously as I explained how they had stolen the biscuits and hidden them in the loft.

“I suppose they couldn’t resist the smell,” I said. “But stealing from Farmer Joe is a serious offense.”

“What do we do with them?” Henny Penny asked, her feathers ruffled.

“We’ll let Farmer Joe handle it,” I said. “But first, Rufus, help me return the tray.”

Rufus groaned but complied, carrying the sticky tray back to the kitchen window. Farmer Joe spotted it later and muttered something about “pesky critters,” but he seemed pleased to get it back.

As for the squirrels, they were banished from the barn but allowed to stay in the nearby woods—on the condition that they leave the farm’s food alone.

The Aftermath

Later that evening, Rufus and I sat on the barn roof, watching the sun set over the fields.

“You know,” he said, licking his paw, “we make a pretty good team.”

“Don’t let it go to your head,” I replied, though I couldn’t entirely disagree. Rufus might be a nuisance, but he’d proven himself useful today.

And the moral of the story? Even the shadiest characters can surprise you when given a chance. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have biscuits of my own to dream about.

The End.

Bill Holter: Mysterious 2025 Deagel Population COLLAPSE Forecast (prepare for war)

Fear. Fear. Fear.