We are just a group of retired spooks that discuss things that you’ll not find anywhere else. It makes us unique. Take a look around. Learn a thing or two.
One day everything is fine. I shut off my computer, and go to sleep.
Next morning I wake up, grab a cup of coffee and sit at my computer, and it is “locked”. And, you know, I didn’t lock it.
Computers have different modes aside from “on” and “off”.
…
There’s “suspend“.
There’s “sleep“.
Somehow, my computer went into “Rip Van Wrinkle” mode.
…
No matter what I would do, It just wouldn’t wake up.
Speech!
Stressed me out to no end.
So…
I used another computer to download the latest version of Lunix Mint. It’s called “Virginia”. And then booted up with that ISO.
Works great.
But, when installing, I lost all of my files, and other stuff.
It took me the next two days to recover all my passwords and links and stuff. But somehow, I did manage, and now I am back up and running. Though…
I lost all my gaming history… back to the beginning for me. Ugh.
I lost all my pending articles, not yet uploaded. Oh well.
I lost all my family videos and such… Sigh.
But the bulk of my system is saved and secure.
The reason… Well let me tell you…
…
Firstly, I have backups on all meetings. If my computer goes down, I have my Chief Engineer and we use his systems, and phones. So I do not rely on one meeting operating system.
Secondly, I connect my phone to my computer browser. If my computer goes down, I can sync with my phone and vice versa.
And, most importantly, thirdly… I wrote all my passwords and criticals in a book. If my electronics are locked, stolen, compromised, or whatever, I still can access the internet data.
Phew!
For once, the thing that everyone made fun of me for doing, worked out and saved me in the end!
1. Eat the frog and start with the things that are most important.
“Crush” time is from 9 to 10 a.m.
We finish our trickiest assignments during this period and avoid bothering one other with inquiries. First thing in the morning, you should probably finish the task that you are most afraid of.
2. Make plans for tonight and tomorrow.
Making a brief list of easy tasks to complete at night will enable you to get started quickly in the morning and create a constructive momentum that will last the remainder of the day.
3. Enumerate your day’s “crucial results.”
Make a spreadsheet with your top three priorities listed for each day. This will assist you in organizing your days and ensuring that you stay focused on the most crucial things each day.
4. Modify your inner monologue.
Your drive and energy levels can be greatly enhanced by making a small change in viewpoint. Say “These are the two things I need to focus on today” rather than “I have too much to do today!”
5. Complete administrative activities during downtime.
standing in line for example at the bank, the grocery store, the elevator, etc. Bring along a book you’ve been wanting to read, some emails to get through, or some status updates to catch up on. Alternatively, just wander your thoughts and take in your surroundings.
6. 70% of the wealth is generated online, so you should too start an online business. Here join this challenge to learn how to start an online business
7. Make time for “me” at the beginning of the day:
Sort through and prioritize the accumulation of accumulated emails and social media posts from the previous night. Eliminate prompt comments and
recommendations so that others can get to work on their duties. Plan out the larger jobs. And remove the informational or unimportant content.
9. Get rid of private distractions:
Workplace productivity can also be severely hindered by personal diversions. You would quickly lose focus and waste hours doing nothing if you allowed personal distractions to interfere with your work.
10. Take a bigger stance:
Around 3 p.m., do you start to feel a bit sleepy? Get up!
China will peak after it is 5–6 times the U.S. real GDP size of the U.S. which I suspect will be around 2075–2100 period. Why do I say 5–6 times that of the U.S. China will in real terms match China i.e. 4X USA economy around 2050–2075 period because China has 4 TIMES the population of the US.
But China won’t stop there because Chinese are generally smarter recieved better education, willing to work harder, are more industrious and learn more than US citizens hence it will not stop growing till it hit 5–6 times the US size at the minimum. So stop hallucinating China wants to catch up to the U.S. it wants to lapped the U.S. many folds.
Chinese political system is more sustainable and its infrastructure is presently miles ahead of the U.S. now. And while the Chinese are focus the U.S. will always be embroiled in conflicts after conflicts till it implodes in a mess of debts and deficits wasting resources that it barely has. I ammmetely pointing out facts that scare the shit out of you guys especially US lackeys or U.S. dogs and slaves or simply ignorant and naive brain dead Americans here in QUORA. You hate me for saying this and will prefer to be in denial. But lying to yourself is what you did for the longest time.
Interviewer : You have 10 minutes to impress me. Go.
Me: If I do that, if I dazzle you within ten minutes, would I get this job?
Interviewer : Young man, I must warn you, I’m extremely hard to impress. But if you’re able to pull that off, I shall hire you on the spot.
Me: You see, that’s the problem. I’ve been working in this field for a long time. I’ve done a lot of projects with a lot of programmers. Most of these guys started out as mere acquaintances. I had no idea how good or bad at coding they were. It was only after working with them for a while that I got to know their true calibre. And one strange pattern I noticed was that the guys who I didn’t think much of in the first meeting, later proved to be some of the best collaborators. While the ones who completely floored me with their dazzling first impressions, later turned out to be complete assholes and a total pain in the ass to work with. Right now, I could throw in a bunch of complex projects I’ve done in the past, or I could tell you about the research I’ve been doing, or competitions I’ve won. Any of those would be sufficient to impress you. And as you promised, you would give me this job. But if you do that — give me this job going by whether I’m able to impress you within the first ten minutes or not, then I’m not so sure I’d still want it.
Your workers expect 5 times Chinese workers salary and 10 times more benefits and your rental and utilities are 5 times more expensive in the U.S. than in China. Hence a dollar in the U.S. buys you a big mac and the same dollar translated into RMB allows you to get 3 similar Big Macs. That is why your nominal GDP means shit! Everything that you pay 3 bucks in New York you pay merely a buck in Shanghai! Simply speaking your purchasing parity is a mere pittance of China.
So who do you blame? Your big mouth. You told the world you have a great Union who protects your workers income! Great your worker get paid more but your product can’t sell ! Without sales you cannot pay your staff all together.
Eggs with Peppers and Sausage
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Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients
1 large onion, sliced
1 pound Italian sweet peppers or banana peppers, seeded and cut into strips
I worked in a doctor’s office, internal medicine so they did gynecological exams among other things. We used metal speculums and after each patient, the speculums would be dropped into a solution to soak. Near the end of the day, they’d all be put in the autoclave machine to sterilize them. One Friday, the nurse forgot. The speculums remained in the soaking solution all weekend and you’d think maybe it wouldn’t be that big of a deal but BOY OH BOY let me tell you….when I got to work Monday morning I saw the exterior doors were open with box fans in them, trying to help remove the most hideous and sickening odor you could imagine. It was like somebody had taken a dead body, stuffed it with expired tuna, and hid it behind the magazine rack. How ANY patients consented to be treated in there that day, I do not know.
In the summer of 2015, my two sisters and I set out on a backpacking journey across Europe. We were all quite athletic: I was devoted to the gym and cycling, Mary worked hard as a waitress, and Joanne excelled in high school sports.
Despite only having basic German skills, I was somewhat fluent, thanks to my mother’s influence. Along the way, we encountered many German tourists, providing ample opportunities for interesting eavesdropping.
One particularly memorable moment took place during our first visit to a topless beach. While relaxing in our bikinis, my sisters Mary and Joanne decided to go for a swim. Nearby, two German men, whom I’ll refer to as Hans and Klaus, began discussing us.
Hans: Look at those girls. They’re cute, but…
Klaus: …they have big muscles.
Hans: Yes, they would be very pretty if it weren’t for the muscles. What’s the deal, I wonder?
Klaus: They’re American. Americans like girls with muscles.
Hans: What makes you think they’re American?
Klaus: They’re covering their breasts.
I stayed silent, but when it was my turn to enter the water, I couldn’t resist a playful gesture. I waited for them to look, then flexed my muscles, Popeye-style, and gave them a wink.
When I was in graduate school working on my doctorate, I had a “friend” who was as cheap and as greedy as a person could be. She was one of those people who always begged for a bite, a piece, or a sip. Even if I had eaten half of my food, played around in it with my fork, or sat talking over it, she would tell the server clearing the table to leave my plate so she could eat the rest. She did this in an Indian restaurant once, and the server literally blanched and looked at me incredulously. I just shrugged as this woman proceeded to scarf down my half-eaten cucumber salad. Any time I didn’t eat everything on my plate, she’d ask if she could have it. Well, the last time we ever went out to eat was when we went to a Chinese restaurant and she decided that she wasn’t really “in the mood” for the teriyaki beef dish she had ordered and was really hankering for the shrimp fried rice I had ordered that came on a large platter with a serving spoon. Her eyes got really wide when our server brought out our food, and she saw all of that rice. She never offered to pay for half my meal even though she readily helped herself. Because I was taught that it is rude and petty to deny someone food who asks, I silently watched her heap her plate with fried rice and eat it. When the check came, she paid for her untouched meal and asked the server to wrap it up so that she could take it home and eat it at another time. There were other incidents. There was the time she went into an ice cream shop to get us ice cream while I waited outside with my dog who could not go in for obvious reasons. Moments later she came running back out with only her cone because my cone cost 30 cents more than I had given her. But eating half of my dinner and never offering to pay was the last straw and the last time I ever went anywhere with this woman.
Russia is one of the most resource rich land masses in the planet
They have enough oil based on current reserves and current increase in consumption to last for 63.6 years
They have enough Gas based on current reserves and current increase in consumption to last for 118 years
They have enough of the Top 6 Industrial Raw Materials in Ore Form to last for 70.1 years
They have enough Fertile Wheat production to feed 15.6% of the World’s Population outside their own country
They have access to nearly 137 Million Metric Tonnes of Seafood which is enough to feed and export for the next 56 years.
And that’s not counting unexplored reserves
If they peg the Ruble to the value of Oil, Gas Gold and Wheat and price the same independently – their GDP would be close to $ 4.73 Billion nominal
Next the Russian Army
Russia has :-
548,000 Professional Soldiers
784,000 Active Personnel serving on Contracts
1.903 Million Reservists between 18–44 years old
The Russians are among the toughest hardest soldiers in the planet and among the most patriotic
Any other Nation in 1942 would have broken to the Nazis but the Russians died and died and died, hated Stalin but for Mother Russia, they found and kept dying
The Brits broke under far less stringent conditions in Singapore in 1942
Their Production Capacity is very high
Only Next to China who is an Ally
Today Russia can outproduce the ENTIRE NATO at 3:1 to 7:1 for Artillery Ammunition, Tanks, BMPs, Armored Vehicles, Drones etc
Except Fighter Aircraft
Economically Russia is one of the MOST UNDERUTILIZED NATIONS on earth
First the Tsars
Next the Early Commies Lenin and that Moron Trotsky
Then Brezhnev
Then Gorbachev
Then Yeltsin
For 150–200 years, barring a brief period when Josef Stalin and Nikita Khrushchev where in charge (1929–1966) , Russia was always suffering under Moron Leaders or Oligarchs or Indifferent people
The Russian people may love Russia but they rarely respected their Leaders
Very few people Earned the Respect of the Russian People
Stalin for one
After Stalin, only Putin has managed to earn the same level of respect
Yet Russias development has been uneven, slow because of these reasons
Plus the fact that Russia has a mere 150 Million people and couldn’t attract migrants due to harsh communism for almost a century and due to the freezing weather
So I can say Russia can NEVER be defeated in Battle and War
I can say Russia can always ensure its Economy doesn’t collapse
Russia can always survive due to so many Natural Resources
However because Russia has only 150 Million people, it cannot be the most powerful country of all time
Because Russia only grew and surged for 54 years in the last 200 years, Russia isn’t the most powerful country of all time
Still thinking it’s a Gas Station is why 450,000 People are dead and Europe is in bankrupt chaos
When I was a paramedic I was called to a home for an unresponsive person.
As we made our way into the house a woman greeted us and she was extremely upset. She hurried us into the kitchen where we found her husband on the floor. He was in full cardiac arrest.
As we started to attempt resuscitation, we went through our normal steps. My partner would place an advanced airway while I readied the cardiac monitor and defibrillator. There would need to be an IV and medications given and we would have to breathe for him. Of course we were doing all this while maintaining CPR.
As we moved him to the cot and prepared to move to the ambulance and go to the hospital, I noticed more details about the room we were in.
It was Valentine’s Day. This husband had gotten up early and lovingly prepared breakfast for his wife. He had a vase full of roses on the kitchen table and a card with her name written on the envelope. The food was still warm on their plates. It was untouched. Everything was perfect, except this kind and considerate man was dead. Sadly, his lack of response to our efforts to restart his heart told me he was very likely to remain that way.
I’ve had to relive this particular scenario dozens of times on birthdays, Christmas and pretty much any other holiday. I have performed CPR in restaurants and at birthday parties. I guess what all this taught me about life is that, more often than not, it ends right in the middle of your plans. Large plans, life plans or, sometimes, breakfast plans.
In the annals of Western New York history, one particular individual found themselves on the receiving end of a cautionary tale during the winter of 1987. The National Weather Service had issued a dire prediction: a major storm was poised to sweep over Lake Ontario in the early hours of the morning, heralding an onslaught of snowfall that threatened to disrupt the region’s daily routines.
For those acquainted with the capricious nature of Lake Effect snow, the forecast served as a somber warning. Yet, as dawn approached, the storm’s arrival remained a matter of speculation. In Western New York, where the resilience of residents was matched only by the reluctance of employers to cancel a day’s work, the impending snowfall was met with a mixture of apprehension and resignation.
In this climate of uncertainty, our protagonist made a fateful decision. Rising at the early hour of 5:30 or 6:00, they peered outside to find a light dusting of snow. Without a second thought, they returned to the warmth of their bed, lulled into a false sense of security by the meager accumulation outside their window.
Meanwhile, the rest of the region braced themselves for the impending storm, diligently monitoring their radios and televisions for updates on the weather front. As the morning progressed, it became increasingly apparent that the storm had veered off course, sparing much of the area from its wrath.
Yet, despite the absence of significant snowfall, our protagonist found themselves facing the consequences of their premature retreat to bed. Upon arriving at work, they were met with skepticism from their employer, who, in a display of fairness, sought confirmation of the purported inclement weather.
Contacting local authorities for verification, the boss received confirmation that no road closures or emergencies had been reported due to the light dusting of snow. Faced with the ultimatum of providing evidence of a two-foot snowdrift at their doorstep or collecting their paycheck and departing, our protagonist wisely chose the latter.
In the end, the moral of the story was clear: in the unpredictable realm of Western New York weather, it pays to stay vigilant, lest one find themselves left out in the cold.
My brother passed away unexpectedly in April of this year. He was 9 years younger than me, and we were extremely close. We grew up in an extremely dysfunctional family, and were always there for each other in ways that the rest of our family was not. In a lot of ways, especially when he was little, I was as much a mom figure to him as his big sister, our relationship was one of the greatest sources of comfort and joy in both our lives. l was, and still am, devastated by the loss of him in my life.
I work in the town where he lived a few days each week, and had my own room in the house where he lived with his husband, “J”, who is like another brother to me. My brother loved vintage fashion, and was always bringing home his latest “amazing finds” from local thrift stores. He definitely had hoarding tendencies. His plan was to resell most of what he bought at the flea market for a profit in the summer, which never happened.
In the immediate weeks after his death, J and I started sorting through his things, including the bags and bags and bags and racks and racks and racks of thrift store “scores” that were all over the house, often mixed with his personal clothing. We kept some, and gave away or donated the rest. We always made sure to check any pockets; since he often stashed money and other valuables in random places, which he sometimes forgot about.
I was going through the pockets of a heavy pea coat, which neither of us had ever seen him wear, and felt what I thought might be a credit card. I pulled it out, and saw that it was actually a card key from a hotel that the previous owner presumably had forgotten. I turned it over, and was stunned. What are the odds of finding a random hotel key card in the pocket of a random thrift store coat, less than 2 weeks after my brother died, printed with an image of puffy clouds in a blue sky, and a single sentence that read “It’s time to let me go”. There have been other inexplicable moments in the weeks and months since he passed, that I believe are signs from him, to reassure and comfort us that in some way, he’s still with us. I am so grateful for those moments.
Walking away from marriage, children, and other stuff we’re supposed to have
Everyone – including me – thought that this was a ridiculous excuse. A girl showed up late, out of breath and red in the face. She was the kind of student who was usually very conscientious, so I expected a common and reasonable explanation like car trouble. Instead she stood right inside the door, panting, and explained that a snake had been holding her hostage.
I knew that this fifteen year-old girl was responsible for getting herself up and getting ready for school because her single mom worked the early morning shift at the hospital, so I was already inclined to go easy on her. That snake story just didn’t sound right, so I asked her to explain.
The girl lived in a small apartment on the first floor, and it was a small town so I knew that these apartments only had one entry. She had woken up and gotten ready as usual, but when she opened the door, she found a big rattlesnake sunning itself on the mat. She had called several people until her uncle finally answered and came over to kill the snake – with a pistol! He did manage to kill the snake, but he also brought all the neighbors outside. The girl and her uncle had to wait until everyone had finished telling him off for being stupid enough to fire a gun right in front of their homes before he could drive her to school.
I accepted her excuse but I remained skeptical until I got off work that afternoon and stopped at the store, where everyone was talking about the moron who shot a snake in the town’s one and only apartment complex. I still suspected that she could have just walked around the snake or something, but two years later a watermoccasin decided to take me hostage. I mentally apologized to my former student, because there was no way in hell that I was gonna just step around that thing.
The question is do you need his recommendation? The urge to tell him to get lost is strong but if you do you could wind up screwing yourself later on. After all, if somebody calls up for a reference and they ask him… it’s not going to be good.
So you ask yourself would it benefit you to be polite or not?
Let me tell you a story of when I was younger. It was my first real IT job for the summer. Small company needed to upgrade everything and needed a jack of all trades type to do it and I got it. So I spent months crawling under desks, running cable, setting up the servers and backups and during all this the owner’s girlfriend would be looking over my shoulder and asking what I was doing. I’d show her because why not? She was nice. A bit of a ditz but she had… assets if you get me.
So the end of the project comes. I’ve done all the testing, present him with the documentation and ask what’s next. He says nothing because his girlfriend was taking over and she could do my job. I laughed, he was serious. Gave me my severance and I was out the door.
About a month or two later I get a call from him and he’s frantic. Seems they had a problem, they lost all their data and when they went to restore from backup found out his girlfriend wasn’t doing the backups like she said she would do. He promised me the world at this point, back pay, bonuses and all that. I told him to go screw himself as he got what he deserved. I think he went out of business in a month or so later. I didn’t need him. I was in school and that was just a way to make some money while gaining experience. But you might need him later.
So I’d ask yourself if it’s worth it to tell him to get lost or whether it’s in your best interest to at least not be as dismissive. Don’t just give it to him but make him understand you’re doing this for the good of the company, not him. And you could just as easily have told him to get lost.
I was born with fatal Asthma. My lungs have collapsed three times, and every year I’d spend approximately 3–4 weeks in the ICU under an oxygen tent. When I was big enough, I got to use the regular mask and/or tubes in my nose. I’d have severe asthma attacks every night, but it was just my way of life (I still played sports, etc.).
I got to know who some of the regular nurses were- especially because, though they’d let my parents stay after visiting hours, I’d get really sad when they had to leave. The nurses were always so great about making me comfortable. This was in the 1980’s. I’ll never forget the head nurse, Norma. She always made me feel less alone.
In those days, there were TV’s in the room- attached to a big arm on the wall, but you had to order it- and a cable guy would come in and set it up. You had to pay per day. My parents always got it for me.
I always knew how hard nurses worked and I never understood how come they had to be there for so long. At night, when the ward was dark- I’d leave my TV on so the nurses could watch “Dallas”. I’d make it so the face of the TV pointed toward the hall. It’s not like they could sit there for the hour, chillin’ in my room. But I liked to keep a chair by my bed for them. I’d fall asleep, and in the morning the TV was off. I guess I didn’t “catch” a nurse- it’s more like I encouraged them. I was just little. I always knew how much they wanted me to get better, and I always knew they really liked Dallas.
Norma never watched it, but she never seemed to be mad about it.
1. Waiting for someone to save them. You can’t wait for some hero to come and snatch you from the claws of life’s difficulties. You can seek advice and get support from those closest to you, but even they can’t bear the weight of being your hero because the only one who is capable of fulfilling that role is none other than yourself.
2. Victim mentality. You will never be able to change your life for the better if you believe that everyone and everything is out there to sabotage you. It will only make you feel more powerless and helpless, robbing you of willpower and motivation to change anything.
3. Extreme poverty. With extreme poverty, there comes extreme desperation, which often pushes people into doing things they’d have never imagined they were capable of.
4. Constantly lying to themselves. When you can’t be honest with yourself, you are unable to face all the fears, weaknesses, and problems holding you back. And the more lies you tell yourself, the tighter their grip will get on you until your life is left in shambles.
5. Being in a toxic relationship with a master manipulator/narcissist. Not only will they destroy your self-esteem and your sense of self, but they’ll try to make you stay with them and even guilt-trip you into it when you say you want to leave them.
6. Having enemies disguised as friends. A friend is supposed to have your back, not stab you in it, which is exactly what these people do. They try to discourage you from pursuing your goals because they don’t want to see you succeed, they always find a way to criticize you under the guise of “friendly feedback” and are never there to support you when you need them.
7. Growing up in a dysfunctional family. If one or both of your parents were abusive, toxic, etc., you will start noticing the consequences of it after stepping into adulthood. Once you do, you’ll have to unlearn some things you subconsciously picked up during childhood and completely destroy the rest. Otherwise, you’ll risk repeating the vicious cycle by turning into your parent(s) or living with the damaging consequences for the rest of your life.
Paluski (Polish Potato Fingers)
Do these bring back memories. Paluski! We always had them with homemade kapusta and kielbasi. I make these all of the time. My family loves them with a nice mushroom gravy. They taste delicious fried in some bacon fat with onions and crisp bacon. I sometimes cut them up into small pieces and add them to my homemade chicken soup. I have even gone so far as to fry them up and serve them with sunny side eggs, scrambled and poached.
2024 02 21 08 a28
Ingredients
4 cups all-purpose flour + extra if needed to make a pliable dough
4 cups mashed potatoes, cold
1 tablespoon salt
4 eggs
Instructions
Cook potatoes and drain well. Press through a ricer and place in a large bowl. Cool.
Combine flour and salt in a large bowl, mixing well. Make a well in the center of flour and add eggs, one at a time, mixing well until all the eggs are mixed well.
Add the riced potatoes and mix until all ingredients are blended real well. If necessary add some water to make the dough pliable if too stiff, this will depend on how much flour you add. (I have found that 4 cups will make a very wet dough, so I add 1/4 cups of flour at a time until the dough feels just right. This is done by feel. Do not make the dough too stiff.
Roll out dough in portions at a time onto floured surface, rolling out into a long log about 1-inch thick.
Cut logs into 3/4-inch pieces, rolling slightly to even out.
Drop into rolling salted boiling water and cook until paluski float to the top, allowing them to simmer a few minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and place in a large bowl.
Have some melted butter ready to drizzle over the paluski to coat them.
You can sauté some onions in butter and toss in with them.
Notes
Either way you doctor them up, they taste wonderful.
Woman says she’s breaking up with boyfriend over this…
I bought the security guard company I worked for when the owner decided to retire and move to Las Vegas. He wanted 3 months billing for the whole tamale; office equipment, gear, patrol car, and clients. He was billing around $237,000 annually so the asking price was just over $59,000.
I got a business loan for $30,000 and agreed to pay him $1,700 a month over 18 months for the balance owed. The extra money was for interest.
A couple of years later he showed up in my office. The $30K was gone and the monthly payments had ended, and he needed money. So he asked me for a job selling for my company.
I’d quadrupled his annual billing — from $237K to $980K — so I told him I’d pay him a $1,500 monthly draw against commission.
After 6 months he’d sold 3 patrol accounts, for a grand total of $1,100 a month, so I cut my losses and let him go.
While at university my roommate and I lived a couple blocks in from the beach. He walked up to the beach to check the surf late one evening. A cop pulled up along side him and said “Hey, are you [my name]?” My roommate said “no” and the cop drove away without another word.
A few days later at about 8:00 PM I left our apartment and started to drive to our university. My small truck had an automatic transmission and the parking break was broken. So I kept a large rock by my feet that I would wedge behind a tire when I parked. As I drove away from our apartment a cop pulled me over. I asked what the problem was and he didn’t answer. He shined his flashlight inside my truck. He saw the rock and asked in a very serious tone why it was there. I explained. He then told me to get out of the car. I complied. He didn’t go inside, but looked inside the door. He saw my backpack on the passenger seat. He said he wanted to search it and asked if I had a problem with that. Knowing I had done nothing wrong, I was getting annoyed. There was nothing but textbooks and notebooks in my backpack, but I didn’t like his attitude. And I was upset about the cops asking my roommate if he was me for some reason a few nights earlier. So I said I did have a problem with it and I would not be allowing him to search it. He said he had the right to search for probable cause. I asked what he was defining as probable cause. He replied that the rock on my floor was a weapon. I told him I thought that was a pretty weak position after the explanation I gave him and I objected to his search. He said if he called a judge he could provide me a warrant to fully legalize any search he wished to perform. I then told him I would wait calmly while he radioed the station (before mobile phones), they called a judge, and a search warrant was issued. I also asked how he thought a judge would react to being annoyed at home to get a warrant to search a [local university] student’s backpack after being pulled over for not committing any traffic violations. He looked at me, said “you better pray I never catch you doing anything wrong” and turned away. He got in his cruiser and drove off. It was all very strange, but I never had another incident after that.
I came from a very ordinary background, and I have advised countless people who are very wealthy and grew up poor or middle-class.
Even if we look at larger studies, we find that most of the richest people in the world came from working and middle-class backgrounds.
Only in some places where inherited wealth dominated, like some parts of Europe, is it 50%-50%.
If you mean is it possible to get rich, or wealthy, on a middle-class income, then the simple answer is yes.
This man was a UPS driver for years. He made a maximum of $14,000-$15,000 a year:
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Theodore Johnson died with $70million after a friend told him about investing, which is why he got into it.
Yes, you read that right. $70million. Now sure, when he started investing, 14k-15k a year was worth 50k-75k in today’s money.
Yet it still wasn’t a huge salary. So, how did he manage it? Well, he invested very smart, long-term.
He wanted to make a difference when he died, so he gave it to charity.
He isn’t alone. This man was a janitor called Ronald Read who accumulated $8million:
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This lady was a secretary and accumulated $9m:
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You might think these are one-offs. However, stats show that 14% of the world’s millionaires are teachers, and about 50% are middle-income professionals.
The reason is simple. Income doesn’t always rise exponentially with time. Wealth can.
What is more, there are always investment opportunities out there, as I mentioned on a recent CNBC interview:
As a final comment, I will speak about risk, as it is the most misunderstood subject.
Do you assume that you are playing it safe with money in the bank?
You are fooling yourself 👉🏼 and here is exactly why:
1. If you save money in the bank you’re buying into the sure risk of inflation.
2. If you only rely on your savings for retirement, you’re risking everything on the assumption that things will go to plan.
But life doesn’t always go to plan. Some sort of risk is inevitable, it’s everywhere.
It is far better to:
Put your eggs in numerous baskets and not just the bank or property
Pick the risks you will take. It gives you more control.
Take action, rather than setting New Year’s resolutions to save/invest more money + lose weight and forget about it!
When a tattoo is removed, the ink particles are eventually broken down and excreted through the urine.
Our own immune system, meant to protect us, can kill us faster than the fastest-killing virus, Ebola (4 days)
Your brain can play tricks on you, making you feel referred pain from your organs in unexpected places! For example, a painful pancreas can present as pain in your flank or back; a heart attack can feel like jaw or shoulder pain; a kidney stone can feel like testicle pain;
The cause of period cramps is the uterus suffocating itself. During a period, the uterus contracts to shed its lining, and sometimes the contractions are so strong that they squeeze the blood vessels, cutting off the supply of oxygen and causing pain.
The front of your tongue has a mind of its own and is always on the move, secretly exploring your mouth. Dentists are well aware of this behavior during impression taking, when the tongue can be seen chasing the dental tool or licking their fingers around the mouth.
Your eyes are “immune privileged,” meaning the rest of the body’s immune system has no knowledge of their existence. If this immune system were to suddenly become aware of the eyes, it may treat them as a threat and try to neutralize them, potentially leading to blindness.
Through various work events, I’ve met the late Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip, Prince William, Prince Edward, Sophie (Countess of Wessex), Princess Anne, James (Viscount Severn), and Lady Amelia Windsor. Though James was only a toddler at the time. Regardless, none of them ever treated me with anything but respect and cordiality (when time allowed more than a passing handshake). And I’m about as lowborn as it gets. The bastard scion of an unwed mother, who was herself the daughter of a gangland enforcer and the 2nd cousin of the man who *ahem* allegedly disposed of the evidence of murders conducted by one of the UK’s most notorious gangs. My more distant ancestors on my mother’s side were Irish loyalists, and on my father’s side were Welsh coal miners. Sailors, miners, and criminals were what went into making me. And yet still, never have I ever been treated poorly by any member of the Royal Family I’ve ever had any interaction with.
As to loyalty… Dolce et decorum est pro patria mori. I’m from a family with a long military tradition. Loyalty to my nation and sovereign go without question. It’s Parliament, not the Royals, who inevitably fuck over me and mine. I’ve no reason to be disloyal. Furthermore, Queen Elizabeth is one of the most dedicated monarchs we’ve ever had. She gave her all to her country and her people. It is only proper that loyalty and service be returned.
The U.S. Has Made Taiwan a Trigger for War. Can China Disarm It?
Taiwan is a useful pawn in the U.S. strategy of confronting China as a “great power competitor”, Finian Cunningham writes.
Ever since China’s civil war ended in 1949 with victory for the Communist side, the island of Taiwan off China’s southern coast has been a U.S. pawn as a haven for anti-Communist forces. The United States has sponsored the Taiwanese separatists first under the dictatorship of Chiang Kai-shek and up to the present administration in Taipei. Ironically, Washington portrays Taiwan as “democratic and free”.
Washington’s support for Taiwan waned in 1979 when the U.S. endeavored to normalize relations with Beijing under the so-called One China Policy which defines Taiwan as under the sovereign control of the People’s Republic of China. The U.S. position conforms to the international norm of recognizing China as one sovereign nation in which Taiwan is but an island province.
The U.S.’s so-called normalization of relations with China was not genuine. It was a geopolitical move to wedge relations between Beijing and Moscow. Now that China and Russia have reestablished strategic connections under Presidents Xi and Putin, the U.S. has reverted to overt hostility towards China and its policy of using Taiwan as a cat’s paw to destabilize the mainland.
After the Obama administration embarked on its Pivot for Asia strategy in 2011, Washington earnestly reinstated relations with Taiwan in such a way as to deliberately provoke Beijing and undermine its sovereignty.
Tensions over Taiwan have become increasingly fraught as the United States steps up military supplies to the island territory. The weapons systems have become increasingly offensive in their capability of attacking China’s mainland. This development not only undermines China’s sovereign authority. It also poses an overt national security threat to Beijing. Taiwan is a mere 130 kilometers (80 miles) from the Chinese mainland across a narrow sea called Taiwan Strait.
This places China in an acute dilemma. Should it take preemptive military action or wait it out until politics takes its course?
A recent election in Taiwan was won by a pro-independence party. But there was a greater combined vote for parties that want more friendly relations with mainland China. That strongly suggests that Taiwanese people are against a military confrontation and are amenable to political reconciliation as proposed by Beijing. Perhaps over time, the Taiwanese population may develop a decisive majority that desires peaceful reunification.
The problem is the United States has control of the initiative to inflame tensions with China. In that case, Beijing might eventually be drawn into a military confrontation despite its aspirations.
The Return of Great Power Competition
Since the supposed end of the Cold War in 1991 following the collapse of the Soviet Union, for most of the ensuing three-decade period, the United States declared its main national security concerns to revolve around international terrorism. In recent years, however, the U.S. has relegated the perceived threat of terrorism and officially prioritized its strategic concerns about “great power competition”.
Russia and China have been labeled the top geopolitical rivals for U.S. global power. In this way, there has been a return in Washington to the Cold War geopolitics and rhetoric that dominated international relations during the five decades after World War Two. While Moscow and Beijing have both repudiated adversarial relations and have repeatedly urged peaceful coexistence in a multipolar world, the United States has relentlessly sought to depict the so-called “global rules-based order” as being threatened by Russia and China.
The current U.S. administration under President Joe Biden has contrived to portray international relations as an existential contest between “Western democracy versus autocracies”. This zero-sum terminology is typical of Cold War ideology which aims to polarize international relations into geopolitical camps of “us and them”. Such polarization is an essential function of U.S. and Western power politics and the promotion of U.S. hegemonic ambitions.
By dividing the world into “blocs”, the resulting conflictual relations and tensions are amenable to American militarism. In other words, cooperative peaceful international relations as advocated by Russia and China in their multipolar visions are anathema to the pursuit of U.S. hegemony based on unilateral domination.
China is Enemy No. 1 for the United States
Several U.S. strategic planning documents indicate explicitly the emphasis on “great power competition”. The 2022 National Security Strategy defines the U.S.’s priority concerns. The document states:
“We are now in the early years of a decisive decade for America and the world. The terms of geopolitical competition between the major powers will be set… the post-Cold War era is definitively over, and a competition is underway between the major powers to shape what comes next.”
The strategic outlook clearly determines China as the bigger threat to U.S. power. The document states:
“Russia and the PRC [People’s Republic of China] pose different challenges. Russia poses an immediate threat to the free and open international system, recklessly flouting the basic laws of the international order today, as its brutal war of aggression against Ukraine has shown. The PRC, by contrast, is the only competitor with both the intent to reshape the international order and, increasingly, the economic, diplomatic, military, and technological power to advance that objective.”
Another major U.S. planning document, the 2022 National Defense Strategy, also defined China as the “pacing challenge” to American global power. It was stated that China is “the only competitor to the United States with the intent and increasing capability to reshape the international order.”
The term “pacing challenge” is a euphemism for Enemy Number One. The prioritizing of China over Russia as the designated top threat to U.S. national security was reiterated in the National Defense Authorization Acts in 2023 and 2024. The NDAAs govern annual U.S. military spending of over $850 billion – about four times the military budget of China and more than eight times that of Russia.
The war in Ukraine which erupted in February 2022, has certainly accentuated tensions and hostilities between the United States and Russia. This may give the impression that Russia is deemed by Washington as a greater threat than China. Nevertheless, despite the heated rhetoric and war in Ukraine, the strategic outlook according to the U.S.’s own planners is that China is perceived as the long-term principal adversary.
Even Russian President Vladimir Putin in a recent interview with American journalist Tucker Carlson acknowledged that China was seen in Washington as a bigger threat than Russia. “The West is afraid of a strong China more than it fears a strong Russia,” said Putin.
U.S. is Planning on War with China
The United Air Force announced on February 12, 2024, a major overhaul and expansion of force structure in the Asia-Pacific. Its commanders specifically cited China as the motivating threat and reason for renewed military build-up for “high-end conflict”. When the civilian head of the U.S. Air Force, Frank Kendall, was appointed to the post in 2022, he told the U.S. Congress that his three priorities were: “China, China, and China.”
Several senior American commanders have publicly warned that the U.S. could be at war with China in the next five years. And they mention Taiwan as the flashpoint.
This war planning accounts for an overall U.S. military build-up in Asia-Pacific involving air, navy, and land weapons. Washington has been expanding military bases and missile systems in Australia, Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Guam, and most provocatively on China’s territory of Taiwan.
On January 16, 2024, it was reported by Taiwanese news media that the island territory was building two new missile bases on its east coast facing the Taiwan Strait and China’s mainland. The new construction stemmed from the expected arrival of more U.S. anti-ship missiles. The reports also indicated that five more bases were under planning.
These developments point to long-term planning by the United States for a military confrontation with China in the coming years.
Taiwan is the Primary Cat’s Paw for U.S. Hostility
Following elections in Taiwan on January 13, 2024, U.S. President Joe Biden stated that the U.S. did not support “independence” for the island territory.
Biden was thus publicly affirming Washington’s adherence to the One China Policy (OCP).
However, Biden’s public position on Taiwan and China can be better understood as part of the United States’ other policy of “strategic ambiguity”. Officially, Washington claims to recognize China as the sole sovereign power concerning Taiwan. Whereas in practice, U.S. actions point to another, treacherous agenda.
When Chinese President Xi Jinping met Biden in November 2023 at the APEC summit in San Francisco, the American side reiterated its obligations under the One China Policy. At that summit, President Xi called on the United States to stop arming Taiwan. He said Taiwan was the “most dangerous” issue and warned that China would use force if the matter is not resolved diplomatically for reunification.
Under Biden and his predecessor, Republican President Donald Trump, the United States has ramped up weapons supplies to Taiwan.
Provocatively, it seems, the U.S. has chosen to ignore President Xi’s admonitions about desisting from arming Taiwan.
The reported expansion of missile bases and supply of U.S. missiles to Taiwan indicates that Washington has set a course for antagonizing China by undermining its sovereignty over Taiwan.
On February 8, 2024, it was reported for the first time by U.S. and Taiwanese media that American special forces were being permanently stationed in Taiwan and the neighboring Kinmen islands near the Chinese mainland. This development is a major violation of the One China Policy by the United States. It puts into perspective the purported pledges made by Biden in person to Xi during the APEC summit.
Furthermore, the purpose of the U.S. forces in Taiwan has offensive connotations. The American personnel are reportedly engaged in training Taiwanese military units for conflict and monitoring China’s mainland forces.
It should be noted that these U.S. military developments in Taiwan followed a high-level meeting between America’s National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi which took place on January 26 in Thailand. Earlier that month, Chinese and U.S. officials also held “high-level discussions” at the Pentagon after a two-year suspension. The series of talks was reported in Western media as an effort by the American side to reduce tensions and improve communications.
Again, rather than such contacts being a genuine effort at improving relations, they seem to be more illustration of the U.S. policy of “strategic ambiguity”. More accurately, that policy should be called “strategic duplicity”.
It seems plausible that Washington is trying to mislead China over what its real intentions are regarding Taiwan and the wider issue of strategic confrontation. The Biden administration may state adherence to the One China Policy and call for better military-to-military communications to avoid conflict.
Yet, in practice, the United States is pushing ahead to supply Taiwan with more missiles. This unprecedented build-up of offensive U.S. capability is replicated in other territories across the Asia-Pacific.
The election in January of Lai Ching-te as the Taiwanese president provides Washington with a strident “pro-American” voice in Taipei for the next four years. Lai has previously called for Taiwan’s independence from China. Indeed, during the election campaign, Lai said there was no need to make such a declaration because Taiwan was “already independent”. Beijing has repeatedly declared its desire and sovereign right for full reunification of the island territory with the Chinese mainland. However, President Xi has warned that if Taiwan were to formally announce independence, China reserves the right to use military force to assert its legal sovereign control over the territory.
Taiwan is a useful pawn in the U.S. strategy of confronting China as a “great power competitor”.
By giving tacit support to pro-independence politicians in Taiwan, Washington is inciting separatist sentiments. Supplying the territory with U.S. weapons and military personnel also foments Taiwanese notions that Washington is a military patron who will come to Taiwan’s defense if a conflict were to erupt with mainland China.
Significantly, the incoming Taiwanese president is the third administration of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). The DPP first came to power in 2016 under President Tsai Ing-wen. She was re-elected in 2020. Her vice president Lai Ching-te is taking over in May when he is inaugurated as president. The DPP has inflamed pro-independence politics over the past eight years with the full encouragement of Washington under both the current Biden administration and his predecessor Donald Trump. This political saber-rattling will likely continue over the next four years of Lai’s presidency.
It is also significant that the last eight years have seen a build-up of missiles in Taiwan’s arsenal. Before 2016, the island’s military capabilities were limited. Under the DPP, and with supplies from the U.S., Taiwan’s forces have acquired ballistic missile capabilities, especially anti-ship missiles. The target range of these weapons is short-range up to 500 kilometers which could reach China’s southern coastal provinces.
What needs to be monitored is the supply of longer-range U.S. missiles which would indicate greater strategic ambitions in a conflict with China. The American-sponsored militarization of Taiwan is correlated with the incitement of separatist politics on the island, which in turn foments tensions with Beijing.
On February 13, the U.S. Senate approved a $95 billion military aid package for foreign allies, including $60 bn for Ukraine, $14 bn for Israel and $8 bn for Asia-Pacific. The latter portion will allocate nearly $5 bn to Taiwan. The Asia-Pacific funding will cover the U.S. build-up of missiles in the region.
This is another indicator of U.S. hostile intentions towards China. It belies the seeming diplomatic engagement and renewed military-to-military communication exchange. The litmus test for rhetoric concerning the One China Policy is the facts on the ground of military offensive capability toward China.
The facts testify that Taiwan is being honed as a cat’s paw to antagonize and provoke China.
The Ukraine-Russia Analogy
There is a vivid analogy with how the U.S. has cynically used Ukraine as a provocation toward Russia. Ukraine has deep cultural ties with Russia and a long history of disputed territorial control. Over the past decade, the United States has ramped up military support for Ukraine and incited animosity with Russia. The tensions erupted in February 2022 with Russia ordering a military invasion of Ukraine to halt mounting provocations. A two-year war ensued and is continuing. It is the biggest war in Europe since the Second World War. An estimated 500,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed. The conflict has had a devastating impact on Europe’s economy. It brings nuclear powers perilously close to catastrophic all-out war.
China’s former ambassador to the United States, Cui Tankai, recently stated that China would not be drawn into a military trap in Taiwan. The seasoned diplomat alluded to the U.S.-instigated scenario of Ukraine and Russia. On the matter of increasing American arms supplies to Taiwan, Cui was quoted as saying: “Someone may be preparing a proxy war but we will not fall into that trap. We don’t want to see a situation where Chinese are killing Chinese.”
Such aspirations are laudable. Nonetheless, such a view is a hostage to fortune. The Chinese authorities may not want a war over Taiwan and may try their utmost to avoid a war. Beijing’s aspiration for peaceful reunification with Taiwan is no doubt genuine.
Still, unfortunately, the United States has the sinister power to turn Taiwan into a trigger. Washington is ramping up offensive military capability and fomenting incendiary pro-independence politics. Beijing does not control that hostile process. There may come a point when Taiwan becomes what Ukraine is to Russia – a site of proxy war by the United States.
In that case, there is a stern prognosis: China should act militarily sooner rather than later to assert its control over Taiwan. A war seems inevitable given the U.S.’s reckless and incorrigible provocations. The belligerence in Washington is constant regardless of who sits in the White House. The U.S. presidential election in November this year will make no difference to the strategic course. The longer China leaves its response, the bigger will be the military confrontation as a result of the increasing U.S.-supplied offensive capability of Taiwan.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview on February 14, 2024, that a major regret he has about the current two-year-old war in Ukraine is that Russia did not act sooner to intervene against U.S.-led provocations. Putin ordered Russian military intervention in Ukraine on February 24, 2022, to defend the ethnic Russian population of former east Ukraine and to preempt the growing threat from NATO to Russia’s national security.
This author wrote an article 10 years ago regarding sinister developments under the NATO-backed regime in Kiev which came to power in February 2014 in a CIA-backed coup d’état. The article made the argument that Putin should have sent troops into Ukraine in mid-2014 to preempt what was a looming U.S.-led proxy war. Subsequent events in Ukraine – the horrendous scale of death and destruction – and Putin’s own recent admission of regret would suggest the author’s prognosis in 2014 was correct.
On the matter of Taiwan, there is a real risk of China repeating Russia’s problematic delay in acting decisively. By not acting decisively to preempt, China’s President Xi Jinping might also share the same regret about Taiwan as Putin does over Ukraine.
When I was about 20 years old and at that time I lived with my parents. They had a plastering company in after being rewired. One was an elderly man, due to retire the next year. The other was younger, tall, quite good looking, but there was something about him I couldn’t fathom. Every time he came into the room, the hairs on the back of my neck prickled, and the dog would whimper and go into the other room. I’d catch him watching me as I went about my business. I was crocheting to pass the time while they were there and he kept asking me about it and coming over to see how it was going. He’d put his hand on my shoulder as he leaned over to look. It freaked me out.
My parents went to walk the dog and left me to hold the fort. The older man randomly started talking about personalities and first impressions of people. He kept looking from his colleague and back at me. He said do you find you get a gut feeling when you don’t like somebody? I said that yes, I do. He still kept looking at his colleague, then he said that when we have a gut feeling it’s important to act on it, and that 9 times out of 10 it’s correct, even if the person seems to be okay. He looked at me, raised his eyebrows, smiled slightly, nodded slowly, and carried on with his work.
I swear to this day that he was warning me not to trust his work colleague.
Personally, I wish America well, because it is vital to the global economy.
But I choose to make a stand when it comes to war in East Asia, which America is hell-bent on provoking for selfish national interest—preserving American primacy.
I cannot, and will not accept that, and my efforts here on Quora is a mere token, informing and explaining developments to fellow East Asians.
For example, how the demonization and dehumanization of mainland China will inevitably lead to the victimization of Chinese diaspora, repeating the age-old pogroms and witch hunts suffered by Chinese diaspora over the last 4-500 years.
For example, how a weaponized dollar will bring ruinous harm to the financial health of East Asia, and options being developed against the certainty.
For example, the many hotspots around the region through which conflict with China may arise.
For example, the multi-dimensional economic war being waged on the mainland economy, and its fallout, rules-based order be damned.
America is not my home. I maintain an interest because what happens stateside directly affects my family’s future.
A strong, well-run America is good for the world. Unfortunately, both conditions are ebbing today.
And that spells danger for the rest of humanity.
I am merely curating and explaining developments, as America loses its primacy.
It is up to American society to recognize, accept and change course.
This “sitrep” was compiled and written at the tail end of March, 2024. It contains active elements of the global Geo-Political situation focusing on the “primary core participants” as defined by the United States Department of State. I will intentionally leave out details on the “minor” participants, that while important, is not necessary in this overview.
The world is undergoing a massive shift in global [1] Leadership, [2] Finance, [3] Society, [4] Culture, [5] Military influences, [6] Technology, and [7] Planetary Management.
What was once the realm of the “rules based order” led by the United States (the United States makes the rules that others follow), and obeyed “in lockstep” by it’s captive proxy nations, has been eclipsed by a multi-polar world, led by the Russian / China leadership alliance.
The overriding plan
The United States, embroiled into Thucydides Trap (whether you don’t want to believe it or not, it is painfully clear and obvious that the United States “Leadership” is completely ensnared in this situation.) has worked out a long-duration plan to maintain and regain its hegemony.
The key to this is the suppression, followed by the break up of Russia, followed by a pivot to China.
The Timetable for initiation of hostilities
The Break up of Russia into an easily digestible entity was planned to occur in 2022. The war to start the collapse of Russia, however, got off to a bad start, and Russia has been thwarting all of the NATO efforts to manage that collapse.
However, the time-table has not changed. And as of this date a major push to destroy Russia once and for all is planned to occur in Spring / Summer 2024 this year. Leading participants to this fiasco; the United States, the UK, Germany, and France… with participative elements out of NATO to include Finland, Poland, and Sweden are expecting a NATO win by Fall of 2024.
A “buffer” period, or up to two years is planned to coincide with the planned destruction of China. This is planned for the tail end of 2026 and the Summer of 2027.
The Major Participants
For RUSSIA, the nations of NATO will attack on the chosen battlefields of Ukraine. Eventually weakening Russia to a point where “death blows” can be administered by aircraft and missile attacks.
The NATO troops are expected to consist of large quantities of Germans, Polish, Romanian, and French forces for the main thrust. With Northern contingent consisting of Swedish and Finnish forces that will deploy and assault from the North.
For CHINA, A “island chain” of American proxy nations have formed a QUAD of aggressor nations that is designed to instigate the precipitate motions that will force the Chinese entry into the upcoming Global catastrophe.
The primary antagonizing nation is earmarked as the Philippines, with major support from QUAD nations South Korea, Japan, (and to a lesser extent) taking a backseat, the resupply center of Australia.
It is expected that simultaneous “hot spots” will erupt that will trigger Chinese participation. Perhaps Taiwan declaring independence, with the Untied States, and proxy “toadies” nodding vigorously in agreement. Followed, or led, by disruptive assaults by the Philippines in the South China Sea.
The Timetable for war duration – Russia
What is going on right now in Ukraine is not a war. It is a military action, but not a full fledged war. Yet.
But once the full NATO assault begins in the Spring of 2024, a total war event scenario will begin. The United States, and NATO plans for a quick assault, and a rapid ending of the war.
Reports as ludicrous as the collapse of Russia by mid-November 2024 is being bantered about by the collective idiots in Brussels. Smarter heads prevail, and they anticipate a delay that could last until 2026 depending on a number of unknown factors.
But the plan is one of total victory by NATO over Russia and a “color revolution” internal to Russia that would dispose President Putin and replace him with a pro-American stooge.
Maybe an actor like Zelensky (Ukraine), a ideological imbecile like Javier Milei, (Argentina), a “stooge in debt” like Ferdinand “Bongbong” Romualdez Marcos Jr.( The Philippines), or an easy to control puppet like Yoon Suk Yeol (South Korea).
My understanding is that the replacement Russian “president” and his cabinet has already been selected, and the principals have already been contacted.
The Timetable for war duration – China
The ideal timeline for the “pivot to Asia” is once Russian territory is secure, and a proxy government is in charge. Due to the events of the last two years, this date has been pushed back from 2025 to 2027. But owing to the timer / stopwatch on the abilities of the West, the expiration date for action against China occurs in 2028. So the window for action is narrow, and there is an urgency to accelerate things aggressively.
While there will be a continuation of provocations in both the South China Sea, and in Taiwan, actual “False Flag” justification, and assaults against China is unlikely to occur before 2026. Thus, the window of 2026 to 2027 will be a VERY dangerous time, provided of course, if the West (The United States) is successful in taking over Russia through military victory.
Assumptions
The Pentagon along with a significant number of interested parties have made some baseline assumptions regarding both Russia and China. These assumptions color the battle and strategic policies that will govern this upcoming period of time.
Russia is “a paper tiger” and will not use nuclear weapons.
Russia is not as strong or militarily capable as it seems.
Russia, in regards to Ukraine, has been lucky so far.
The entire world is already against Russia, and the United States is leading the world against a renegade nation.
As far as China is concerned…
China is also a “paper tiger” and will not use nuclear weapons.
China has some basic technology, but it’s military is raw recruit, conscripts, with basic understandings and operates in crude military tactics.
China’s navy is expected to be “light weight”, and nothing to take too seriously.
China will fold once the oceans around China is controlled by the QUAD forces.
End Game
It is absolutely and positively understood that neither China, or Russia would dare attack the United States. As neither nations have the logistical ability to invade or assault America, the survival of the United States is understood as certainty.
So with both Russia and China devastated by massive conventional wars, and the United States left pristine and intact, the United States will rise from the ashes of a global war stronger, and better than ever before. Though looting the resources of both China and Russia, the Untied States can be rejuvenated, and the entire globe will listen to the undisputed leader of the planet; The United States.
Final Comments and thoughts
I personally believe that all the assumptions are wrong. That the timetable is off base, and a kilter, and the “leadership” of the West needs to stop taking so many drugs. We do not know what the future holds, but if this plan proceeds… one thing is certain, those planners in the West will not be happy when things go “tits up”.
Forgotten Chicken
Forgotten Chicken is a great fast and easy recipe! I have made this with chicken tenders, and it’s great. This is also known as “No Peek Chicken.”
forgotten chicken
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups white rice, uncooked
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of celery soup
1 soup can water
Chicken breasts or thighs
1 envelope dry onion soup mix
Instructions
Mix rice, soups and water.
Pour into a greased 9 x 13 inch baking dish.
Lay chicken on top of rice mixture.
Sprinkle chicken evenly with onion soup mix.
Cover tightly and bake for 1 1/2 hours at 350 degrees F.
Shaming
I’ve been at my job for two years and have never called in sick. However, I’ve been vomiting and really unwell so want to call in sick tomorrow but my boss won’t allow it, saying it’s because we are short-staffed – is this allowed?
My boss refused to let me call in sick because I was throwing up. She said that would leave night staff short staffed. I said “no problem”.
I went to work as required. Within 5 minutes of arriving, I was using the wastebasket at the desk to throw up in. Boss insisted I would be fine and refused to let me leave
10 minutes later I was still throwing up. Finally the house supervisor came thru the station and saw me sick as can be. She asked why I was even there. I explained my boss refused to accept my call in.
Supervisor called boss to the nursing station. Supervisor reamed boss a new one and asked her “why would you have a nurse report to work in the ICU when she can’t even leave the trash can”. “Do you even understand ICU patients are in rough enough shape without a nurse throwing up on them”
Boss had to work my shift with calling someone in early for day shift.
No one questioned me calling off the next night too.
What are some daily things that we are unaware of?
Here are some common things we are usually unaware of the purpose of:
Stickers on fruit: The stickers mark the country and producer of the fruit, but it’s the numbers that are the important aspect. If there are 4 digits and the first number is 4, then it means the fruit is sprayed with pesticides. If there are 5 digits and the first number is 9, then the fruit has grown organically, and if there are 5 digits with the first number being 8, then the fruit has been genetically modified.
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Doughnut hole: In the past, it was difficult to get the edges and the middle of the pie equally baked. So they came up with the ingenious idea of using this shape to ensure equal baking on all sides.
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The original reason for sunglasses: today it’s obviously to protect us from the sun’s rays. But the original purpose was to protect Arctic people from the dazzling rays of snow. And in 12th century China, they became particularly widespread among judges in order to hide their true feelings from witnesses.
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Margins on paper: the original purpose was not for extra notes on the side. In the past mice and rats often gnawed on the paper, so in order for them not eat away the information, people started to leave spaces on the sides.
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Holes in padlocks: People usually buy a new lock when their old one doesn’t work due to rain. However, the purpose of the hole is to put in oil – once done, the lock should be able to open with no difficulty.
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Gran Torino , Clint Eastwood – Favourite scene
If you’ve worked in law enforcement, how often have you come across criminals like the Vince Vega character played by John Travolta in “Pulp Fiction,” who actually have intellectual interests outside of their life of crime?
Vince wasn’t an intellectual heavyweight. He was a deeply flawed asshat with an outsized ego and limited self restraint.
Remember the scene with The Wolf? The Wolf was there to save Vince’s idiotic neck, and yet our boy just couldn’t stand that someone else walked in and smoothly took control. When returning home with the wife of his boss, Vince was clearly working his way up to making a pass at Mia in spite of trying to talk himself out of it. If Mia hadn’t OD’d Vince would’ve discovered that his disposal wouldn’t even merit a pine box.
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Obviously my experience isn’t from the perspective of “law enforcement”, but from being locked up with, then living and working with other felons.
Those living a “life of crime” are different from you and your neighbors only because one aspect of their life is something illegal that they got caught doing. That doesn’t mean that they live and breathe crime 24/7.
These people are fully formed and complex individuals, just like you. In many cases, you would find that the “life of crime” really boils down to just one dumb act, not a daily ritual.
The only exception to this would be the addicts I’ve met, particularly the meth users. They might start off as “unique snowflakes” but something about that drug leeches personality from them like bathwater leeches the salts from your skin. Given enough time they become shriveled husks of former humans — having more in common with one another than with anyone else.
Playing around with text-to-picture
Default masterpiece best quality coloring book line art The Ha 3
The Sopranos – Getting everything ready for the Executive game
How does China’s emphasis on manufacturing prompt concerns about overcapacity?
This is what western economists say about the Chinese economy.
But the Chinese government and its economists don’t think that way because they look at potential market size first. In China, the leading importers and processors of minerals and raw materials are state-owned companies whose annual profits are capped at 3–5 percent annually. This means that raw material costs are lower. Chinese manufacturers are increasingly using robotics and automation so that manufacturing costs are lower. Then the Chinese yuan is kept lower against leading currencies to encourage exports.
Put it all together, and it looks to Europeans and Americans like China has impossibly low costs and is making it impossible for other competitors to compete. The problem is that China is different from Europe and the U.S. and its economy is designed to encourage manufacturing and exports.
The Chinese goal is to capture as much market as possible, and then to push costs down further through cost and efficiency improvements. This is different from western companies which start with lower prices to grab market share, but then gradually raise prices through predatory pricing.
How do Japanese see the US in 2024?
Some truths
Investing in a woman you’re not married to is a waste of energy and money.
If you find someone smarter than you, work with them, don’t compete.
Life is all about being intentional and proactive in our choices . The cure for a man’s depression ?? Focus on your purpose and stay busy.
The person who carefully designs their daily routine goes further than the person that negotiates with themselves everyday.
Stop complaining at every slight inconvenience. Do what has to be done . Be happy regardless.
Have you ever seen someone call the cops and it backfired on them?
My now ex wife wanted me out of the house and her life after I caught her red handed having an affair.
My relief called in sick so I had to pull a double shift, I got home and went right to bed, only to be woke up by her whaling away on me with a shoe. I picked her up and carried her out into the living room and gently tossed her on the couch, locked the bedroom door and went back to sleep.
It wasn’t long and there was a knock on the door, it was a couple cops, she had called them to report I was abusing her. They said I would have to accompany them to the station, then I looked up at them, there whole attitude shifted.
They handcuffed her and put her in the back of the squad car, one of the cops told me I should clean myself up, apparently she’d nailed me with a shoe and I had blood running down my face.
I went to sleep, she went to jail, couldn’t have worked out any better.
How many cars have you owned and what were your favourites?
My first car was an old beater VW Karman Ghia . It was a tank, with the engine over the rear wheels it would go through snow, that bigger vehicles couldn’t handle. It was low to the ground, one day the neighbors pigs got out, and they had a huge boar, that blocked the road. He came over and leaned against my side window, and completely blocked the view.
It didn’t have a gas gauge, instead it had a reserve fuel tank, and when you ran out, you switched over, and drove to the nearest gas station.
It wouldn’t go the highway speed limit, maybe 63 mph with the pedal to the metal.
My second car was 1974 Plymouth Duster with imitation alligator skin roof, and a sun roof. It was an OK car.
My next car was a 1976 Chrysler Cordoba with real Corinthian leather seats ( best spoken in a Ricardo Montalaban accent) it had a high performance 400 cubic inch V8 with a 4 Bbl. Jet black with every option known to mankind. Sun roof, air conditioning, power everything. Pure white on white interior, to contrast to the black paint. I have a lot of fond memories of this car.
My next car was a 1969 buick skylark convertible. My plan had been to restore it, and always have a good car to drive. I spent thousands on it, and couldn’t keep up with repairs.
My next car was a 4 wheel drive AMC Eagle. It had air suspension, so it hugged the road, but if you went off road you pushed a button and the sur shocks filled and raised the car, to get more clearance. Best fishing vehicle I ever had.
The I had a 1989 Dodge D100 that was a rebadged Mitsubishi. It had a 4 cylinder that couldn’t get out of its own way, But it was solid steel, I was rear ended and it cost $200 to paint my bumper, but the brand new Previa that hit me was totalled. I wasT boned in an intersection and I I didn’t get a scratch, but it was $5000 to fix the other vehicle. It was a 4×4 with a half inch steel skid plate under the entire vehicle. It never had a problem until my power steering hose, and brake line started leaking. I couldn’t get parts, so I got rid of it.
I bought a 1997 Cadillac Catera , awesome looking car, and the day the warranty ran out, it started costing me money. Thousands.
I bought a 1999 Jaguar XKR convertible, with one year left on the warranty. It was the best looking car I owned, I had people hop out of their vehicle at a traffic light and ride with me until the next light. It was a great car.
I bought a 2004 Nissan frontier 4×4, which I drove in the winter, and the Jag in the summer. The Nissan was just OK, nothing special.
I replaced the Nissan with another 2013 Nissan frontier 4×4, which was significantly better than the first Nissan, but still not a memorable vehicle.
I got rid of the jag in 2021.
Hassayampa Casserole
This casserole is an original and was named after the Hassayampa River that flows in Wickenburg, Arizona.
casserole recipe 9
Ingredients
1 large onion, chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
3 teaspoons chili powder
3 teaspoons cumin
1 (8 ounce) can enchilada sauce
1 pound fresh tomatoes, diced
10 ounces frozen corn, thawed
1 cup sliced black olives
3 large green chiles, chopped
1 pound shrimp or imitation crabmeat
12 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
12 corn tortillas
Instructions
Sauté onion in oil and add cinnamon, chili powder and cumin.
Stir in enchilada sauce and diced tomatoes. Set aside 1 cup sauce.
Add to remaining sauce the corn, olives, green chiles, shrimp or crabmeat and 1 cup cheese.
In a 3 quart shallow casserole dish, cover bottom with some of the tortillas.
Spread 1/3 of shrimp/crabmeat mixture over tortillas; repeat with 2 more layers.
Top with remaining tortillas, sauce and cheese.
Bake at 325 degrees F for 40 minutes.
The Sopranos – Albert Barese
What is a historical fact that would sadden most people if they found out?
As a kid I was fascinated by the figure of Che Guevara, who looked cool, died relatively young and fought for a better world.
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Later in life, I read his biography by Jean Cormier, a French journalist/movie director who was a close friend of Che.
It tells the story of his childhood, his medical studies, his trip through South America on a motorbike, how he joined Fidel Castro’s revolution and how they disembarked in Cuba to start a guerrilla war against the Batista regime.
Both had their own regiment in the Sierra Maestra mountains, from where they would launch attacks against government forces. In Che’s regiment there was a little puppy that everybody loved, the mascot of the camp.
One day, Che and a group of soldiers left the camp to ambush a government caravan. But the little puppy had followed them and started barking. They had to shut the dog up or else they would be discovered by the government soldiers. So Che and his men formed a circle around the puppy while one of them strangled it.
I couldn’t put this image out of my mind of these heavily armed guerrilleros standing in a circle to strangle a puppy. They say innocence is the first casualty in any war.
Best Sopranos Scene – “We’re with the Vipers” -All Right Now
I received my ancestry DNA results and I am 0% Italian, however my maternal grandmother is 100% Italian. How is this possible?
Has your grandmother actually had her DNA tested and analyzed?
What I have found in 25 plus years of doing genealogy, and even MORE so since DNA testing came along……people get very invested in family stories and myths. They can build their whole sense of self around them. Then DNA and family history research comes along and blows big holes in their set ideas. Things aren’t what they seem.
There were some doozies told in my family. Some by accident – sort of multigenerational “broken telephones” where things had grains of truth but went sideways in the retelling. Some were deliberate, because it made for a better story. Tales of glory beat tales of misery. Some were told to hide things family members were ashamed of (we had more than our share of those).
DNA can also yank the rug from under you since who you think is your ancestor isn’t always. I have a 78-year-old friend who always believed her father was an Italian fellow who her mother sued for child support in the early 1940’s. Turns out she’s 50% Ashkenazi Jewish without a hint of Italian – and she’s found her biological father’s family, all of whom are at a loss to tell her what the heck happened (to say they were shocked would be an understatement, lol).
Your grandmother may have been born in Italy and raised speaking Italian, but her family could have been ethnically from elsewhere. Nationality should not be confused with ethnicity.
Japan is Changing, and it’s SCARY.
What is one moment in your life you thought could only happen in a movie?
So I have been dating this guy from eight years now. He is my family friend. My first crush,then my first love, my first boyfriend and my first everything. Me and his sister are best friends.
Even though our families knew each other for so long, my family never knew that we were dating, because we Never used to talk infront of them.We(me and him) always used to discuss about how we should convince my parents, how we should ask them and blah blah. I used to get very nervous thinking about my parents reaction. But I was confident that I will convince them and I always knew that he was the one that I want to spend my entire life with.
So one day i went out and came to home , and saw all my family sitting together and discussing seriously, they became silent after seeing me , and my brother asked me to sit beside him and asked me that, they are thinking to get me married. My heart was stumped, millions of thoughts rushed in my head and i was so shocked that i I couldn’t think of one word to say, then he mentioned about the guy that they were considering for me.
Well to my surprise he was none other than my love, the one who makes me feel butterflies even after 8years of togetherness, who just makes me happy by his mere presence. I was so happy that I wanted to jump and dance around. But I couldn’t I simply blushed and said “YES” to my parents. They still didn’t know that we are in love.
We are going to get married soon, preparations are started, IAM on the cloud nine since then. We are going to tell them about us on our wedding day.
I always thought things like this happens only in films and fairy tales. May be every love story is a fairy tale.
Real truth
Do Western countries want South Asia and Southeast Asia to have continuous conflicts? If yes, then what will be the policies of these nations?
They do dont they?
They don’t tend to leave any country alone do they?
They always make decisions based on the people of every country in the world
They must always decide who is free and who isn’t
Any Government that toes their line is ‘Good’ and any Government that doesn’t is ‘Had
They decide human rights violations
If Israel bombs and kills 32,000 Civilians and starves an entire population to death for a single terrorist incident – that’s KOSHER
If Russia invades Ukraine to come to the assistance of 2 Million to 3 Million people who live in Donbass and have been shelled regularly and lost 14,000 lives over 8 years, chronicled in the UN – that’s horrible and thats interfering in the sovereignty of a nation
If Russia arrests 439 people for Social Media posts that’s a huge civil rights violation
If UK arrests 3237 people for Social Media Posts including 900 people just for posting the N word – that’s perfectly acceptable
They have combined killed and liquidated through their decisions – almost 30 Million people in the last 300 years belonging to different countries including :-
Inquisitions
Literally NUKING a nation
Holocaust of 6 Million Jews
Starving a million Indians without a shred of remorse
Enslaving 3.5 Million people and treating them like Cattle and breeding them like Cattle and Dogs
Colonizing and cold bloodedly robbing, slaughtering and displacing 2 Million or more Native Americans , Maoris, Aborigines and stealing their land brazenly
Stealing Texas openly from Mexico and now hunting down the same mexicans as Illegals
Invaded a Nation, killed a known 93,000 people of that nation and displaced and impoverished an estimated 330,000 people literally lying that they had nuclear weapons
Bombed and killed and stole the Oilfields of a Nation merely because their Leader didn’t toe the American line (Syria)
Funded Color Revolutions, Coup de Ats and Uprisings against legitimate Governments by their Agencies
These aren’t conspiracy theories are they?
Every one of these incidents have been firmly listed and verified and is now regarded as history
Yet they always seem to turn the tables
Saddam was a Villian though they invaded Iraq for no reason and destroyed him
Yet Zelensky is a Hero
Gadaffi was a Villian
Mao was a Villian
Putin is a villian
Xi is a Villian
Yet not one of these people have conducted a war of aggression in their lives before 2022
Why?
That’s the key question
I believe the answer lies in an Ideology that is deeply ingrained into their blood for centuries
We are the Good Guys
We are the Angels to help these Backward People develop themselves and save them from themselves and their cruel leaders
Sometimes even if people die, we have to look at the long term and be harsh
Like Gates who openly supports an organization that wants 870 Million People dead because they eat up precious food
Now these Nations, it depends on the people of these nations
China and Russia and Iran and a few other nations have obviously woken up and now see these people for what they are
Putins 87% win is an indication
That people braved a rumoured terror attack and shelling and bombing and yet voted in larger numbers is the best middle finger possible
Niger is another example
The Middle East is slowly realizing things aren’t so rosy now
Others are TOO SCARED
India for instance is too frightened of the West because India is too weak to resist sanctions plus India cannot trust China Iran and Russia fully
Not when 40% of it’s exports are destined for US and EU and most of these export orders are non crucial and can be seriously affected
Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia are also too frightened of the West. They gave been dependent too long on the West and they don’t want to leave their comfort zone.
Some are TOO SUBSERVIENT
Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Philippines are simply too enmeshed into the Western system to come out of it
However luckily the hypocrisy of the West is slowly coming out piece by piece
That too despite the fact that they control the media in every way possible.
It was a flared top hat and it was the coolest thing. It fit me perfectly. I mean it. It was a genuine antique… beaver fur. Awesome. Black, and awesome. Maybe something like this. Only black, not a faded black. And not so high. Maybe about 80% of that height.
It was AWESOME!
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It fit me well.
I was at a bargain basement store in Attleboro, Massachusetts and found it at the far end of a rack of brick a brack.
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I really don’t know what happened to that hat, but I sure miss it.
I used to wear it all the time, and man oh, man did I get a lot of thumbs up and smiles as I walked on the sidewalks of Boston.
Apple is not really the issue. The U.S. government and politicians are the trouble maker that caused Apple’s demise. And your media is the one that caused your U.S. businesses to suffer.
Apple is a smart company under Steve Jobs. It has a great strategy. They made good products and they made smart decision to make their products in China. That derived benefit from the best of both western and eastern world. They made a killing in China’s humongous market China and the Chinese people help make a good product that sell at a price affordable yet Apple still made boat loads of money.
All is well until the U.S. politicians thought
foolishly it could contain and control China through decoupling, de-risking, friends shoring and instead it is the U.S. companies that is slowly decoupling from the world! Never mind China! China is Apples biggest market even including the U.S. market!
If you take US out, China itself is a bigger market then the next 10 biggest market combined. So when the U.S. start the trade war and make Apple friend shoring its product quality is hit hard and trust by its customers suffer. Next by its knee capping action on Huawei they retaliated. And today Huawei are bringing out products that beat Apple in specifications and features yet it is cheaper.
The unfair actions that the U.S. did on China, turn off Chinese world wide. Most choose Huawei to hit back at the U.S. The rest is history. Everything the U.S. throw at China, China will reciprocate fairly and appropriately. I hope the U.S. will learned a lesson. But it is full of itself. So the U.S. will choose implosion. If you are smart hold your government responsible.
Stop asking about Chinese government, Chinese are the fairest nation. They were happy to share its market and enjoy win win. But since the U.S. choose win lose, let’s see who loses!
My father was the foreman in a shop that sold tombstones, mausoleums, vaults, and the like. One day during tobacco-selling season, when farmers were flush with cash, a couple came by the shop to buy a family monument. My father showed them various stones on display. They selected a very fine granite monument. He looked up the price. They paid him in cash. That night, when he got home, he told my mother that he and I needed to make a trip, so we wouldn’t be having dinner. We drove the company truck many miles up into the mountains, into a county where strangers were definitely not welcome — it was moonshine territory. We stopped at various grocery stores, asking directions, to find the family that had bought the monument. At one store, he bought some saltine crackers, pork and beans, and some Vienna sausage. That was our dinner. When we finally found the family, he said, “I made a mistake. I looked at the wrong monument in the catalog. I overcharged you.” He handed them a stack of bills. As I recall (some 60-odd years later), $60. On the way home, I asked him why he had spent upwards of three hours driving around looking for those people. After all, I said, they didn’t know they’d been overcharged. Although he had superb grammar, he phrased his answer in an odd way: He said, “Son, a man has to do what’s right.” To this day I remember, and try to follow, his advice: “Do what’s right.”
Donald Trump wins the US Election and secures a second term. Joe Biden loses and will be stepping down in January 2025.
Trump is angry and unhinged, out for revenge after his loss in 2020 and the many betrayals he suffered.
In office he begins to become authoritarian and anti Trump protests turn violent. They clash with Trumps supporters. Eventually the country begins to pull itself apart and Trump brings in military help to secure peace. Factions of the military refuse to use force on US civilians. Others taking orders from pro Trump generals are willing to. The US enters a civil war where the pro Trump supporters are backed by elements of the military loyal to Trump. Other elements back the pro democracy anti Trump civilians.
The other way it could happen, with similar results is Trump loses in November 2024. He calls the election rigged like in 2020. Only this time he manages to get some states to declare him winner even though he lost there. Suddenly the election itself feels pointless. Democracy had collapsed as Trump could be claiming the white house through a corrupt electoral college and supreme Court. Biden sticks to the white house but the public are split. Half believe the Trump lies and the other half are loyal to Biden the genuine winner. Clashes again erupt and civil war breaks out as things escalate.
Now in either case, US allies will be terrified and scrambling amongst themselves to see what can be done. The EU is even worried about the upcoming US election. The USA is no longer seen as stable democracy and guaranteed partner.
The US entering a civil war tanks the global economy. Overnight the US economic system fails. Wall Street goes into self destruct mode.
The US Dollar collapses.
Companies in the US start to fail. Companies with a big presence overseas like Apple, Coca Cola, Ford, Pfizer, Google etc would all enter self preservation mode. They’d begin to move all crucial operations to their outposts and regional headquarters in Europe, South America, Japan etc. The USA no longer a stable market to operate in. They’d be hoping this is temporary but it will depend on the wars outcome.
The collapse of the US economy and the massive depression the world enters after this, sees huge unemployment across the world and increasing anger at the US from the public in Europe, Japan and Canada etc.
As people in US allied nations begin to feel extreme economic fallout, think the great depression of 1929 to 1934, but worse maybe, social unrest spreads globally.
In parts Africa and less developed parts of the world, aid is cut off. Food and economic assistance donated from rich countries stops. Famines could break out in the most fragile places in the world as the rich nations try to deal with their own issues.
The Euro will emerge as the new reserve currency of the world. Its already secondary reserve.
But the crisis will see economies on Europe and everywhere fragile for years. Massive unemployment and protests. Peoole struggling to stay afloat. People who were middle class suddenly working class. The working class now some falling into total poverty. Even millionaires would see their fortunes massively shrink.
Banks would fail. There’s no way to protect them all. That’s going to eat into people’s savings globally. Currencies like bitcoin and other crypto will become increasingly popular as the Euro and Yen, the two remaining “semi stable” currencies won’t be trusted fully.
The US would expect aid from its allies. But aid would be limited. Its highly unlikely the EU, UK, Canada, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Mexico etc will risk going full on war mode to support who they see as the true government of the USA as the US is a nuclear armed state and there would be extreme worry that hostile movies against the non democratic government could lead to attacks on allies by the illegitimate government who will be in control of some regions of the nation and thus some of the military.
Ultimately, the world would sit back and hold its breath waiting to see what happens with deep fear. But it will be accepted the era of the US as global Superpower is over.
So we come to the next issue. Amongst the economic chaos on social unrest, a power vacuum exists. Who’s in charge now the US is too busy fighting itself? The EU and UK would step up fast as the new centre of the developed and democratic world with their allies in Australia and Japan etc backing them. Europe would be forced to act as the light of democracy and freedom.
China and Russia won’t be having any of that. With the US distracted and Europe weakened, they will go on power hungry mode. Russia would see a weak Europe with no US to back it. Whilst Russia is also weakened, the government will be less worried about its people than Europe. Russia will make big moves to grab land. Its probable they’d use their military and even their weapons of mass destruction no longer fearing a US response, to annex former soviet nations like Kazakhstan, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Ukraine and Belarus etc. They may even try grab EU territory in the Baltics but I doubt they’d try take all 3 EU nations as they know a weak EU is still a nuclear armed entity.
China would do the same. Its going to take advantage of the situation to grab Taiwan, a bunch of small Japanese islands of tactical importance. Probably will make moves into other parts of South East Asia too.
Chaos would reign for years. New Empires and regional wars emerging. Increased isolation too as nations work on self preservation and improving their own standing in the world.
A decade on, the world will have recovered at least partially. The world economy will have adapted to a world where the US no longer exists as one single country or economy or as one country with a much smaller economy.
The western world would unite together to try make up for the loss of the USA as it fears an emboldened Russia and China more than ever.
I’d imagine the EU, UK, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Canada etc would all try form a new version of NATO, one thats global and more armed than before probably. A military and economic alliance to prevent China in particular establishing itself as undisputed world power.
Russia would see its global importance grow again. With Europe fearing it will take more lands in far Eastern Europe or Asia. China would be the largest single economy and the largest military in the world. But the United democratic western nations will be banded together to rival it.
The world would enter a cold war. The western nations vs China which will probably ally with Russia.
The US will emerge as either authoritarian or democratic. Time would tell. Perhaps even as 2 or 3 smaller nations with differing poltical systems. But it would remain a nuclear armed nation/nations so chances are both sides of this new cold war would try get this new version of the USA to back them. But it will be economically weak for a while to come.
Countries in South America would grow more important also. Brazil and Mexico would become regional powers in the Western Hemisphere.
Overall you’d end up with a radically changed global economic system. A weaker US in whatever form it takes. A multi polar world with 3 or 4 superpowers trying to gain the upperhand leading to a new cold war. Instead of communism vs capitalism this one will be democracy vs authoritarianism.
Years ago, my soon to be ex husband and I were in the last and final attempt of trying to come to a guardianship agreement over our 3 small children before it went to supreme court. (a place I DID NOT want to go).
So there in the room, was the judge, his secretary, my ex and I.
Almost every question the judge asked my ex was answered with a lie. I never said anything, but the tears wouldn’t stop welling in my eyes. All I could think was, “why can’t this man for once, just set his anger and stupid pride aside, and just agree to the wishes of what our children want?”
The judge finally looked at me and said, “What are your desires for how this should be settled?”
My response: “I just want what’s best for our kids. I believe it should be up to them if they want to visit him or not… I don’t believe they should be forced.”
Judge: “You are very quiet and I detect no animosity from you, I want to ask you why there has been a communication breakdown between you and your husband.”
Me: “Because when I try to talk to him, he just yells.”
“THAT IS A LIE !!!” My ex yells at the TOP of his lungs..
The judge ruled “Visitation to be granted as per the children’s wishes.”
Marriage IS NOT An Option In THE WEST Get Your Passport
I had a nice truck stolen in 85. Needed brakes in the worst way. The transmission was slipping a little. It got stolen Christmas Eve. On Valentine’s Day the wife and I went out to eat for dinner. As we waited for the valet on the way out my truck pulls up. I told my wife to wait for our car as I got in my truck.
A woman had gotten in on the passenger side as I slid in on the drivers side. I was already calling the police. The woman became quite flustered. I told the police where I was and that I was driving to them. We got there in a minute. I had shushed the woman many times.
We get to the station, I tell the police woman what was going on. She asked who the woman was. I told her the woman was my witness that I had not shot the man who had stolen my truck. I also told her that the woman was probably these thieves wife or girlfriend. She asked the woman what the man’s name was who had stolen the truck. The woman said that her boyfriend and his brother had stolen the truck. The police woman then did a quick search for drugs in the truck, wrote a quick report, gave me an amended case number, and let me go about my way. While she was doing that one of the other officers put my ignition switch back into the column.
The girlfriend wasn’t charged with anything. Enough evidence was found in the truck to convict the boyfriend and the brother of the lady. There were no drugs found in the car. However under the seat or several nice pistols and a short shotgun. I had the police check them for theft and was allowed to keep all of them. The funny thing is was that the brakes have been fixed and the transmission had been serviced. I put another 200,000 miles on that truck over the next 10 years.
Andrew Tate Explains Why Men Should NEVER Get Married
I was an “executive-level” individual contributor at a Fortune 50 company, working in the IT field. My job required me to be accessible 24 hours a day, and to have conference calls with extended team members spread all over the world on a regular basis. Many days, I would be on a conference call at 4 AM with someone on the far side of the globe, spend a full day at work, and then be on yet another international call at 9 PM. This was an almost-daily occurrence. I was required to be on all these calls, and could not possibly take them all in my office, so my manager (and our VP) went through a laborious “exception” process to get the company to reimburse me for my cell phone usage, so I could make those calls from wherever I was at the time. My cell phone bill at the time averaged about $100 a month.
This went very well for 2–3 years, and then a new CFO arrived. She saw my expense sheet, and called me to determine why I was charging the company for my personal cell phone. I explained the rationale, and the exception process used to obtain approval through our VP. She did not like this at all, and said so in our conversation. So about a month later, a new T&E policy addendum came out: Effective immediately, company reimbursement for cell phones was to be prorated based on the percentage of the expense that was business-related (versus personal). A spreadsheet was provided, and anyone seeking reimbursement for business use of their personal cell phone was now required to complete and submit the spreadsheet with each month’s reimbursement form.
Completing this spreadsheet required us to go through the monthly phone bill, enter the total number of calls and total minutes for those calls. We then had to transcribe the data for each and every business call, documenting who was called (or who called you) and the business reason for the call. The spreadsheet then totalled up the number of minutes for each business call, divided that by the total minutes used that month. That ratio was used to determine the “business-to-personal” ratio, which determined our percentage of reimbursement. When I talked to the CFO about this form, she actually admitted that her purpose in creating it was to make the process so odious that employees would prefer to bypass reimbursement, rather than spending the time and effort to seek reimbursement.
That just didn’t sit right with me, so as a matter of principle, I would dutifully complete the form each month, spending the 2–3 hours required to transcribe the data from paper to spreadsheet to document that my cell phone usage was 98% business. Every month. Without fail. The average “savings” to the company for the 2–3 hours I spent completing the reimbursement form was under $2. Up to that point in time, there were only 15–16 people who were approved for cell phone reimbursement. All of us stood our ground, based on principle, and continued to file for reimbursement.
The average company savings from this new policy: Well under $50 per month – world wide. Of course, those 15–16 people collectively lost about one week of productivity in time wasted completing the new forms. The CFO, of course, saw it as a “2% reduction in cell phone expenses” and loudly proclaimed the program a cost-reduction success. But not so fast…
The first “unintended consequence” of the new policy was a wave of increased cell phone expense reimbursement, as EVERY SINGLE EMPLOYEE who had a cell phone began submitting for reimbursement of their prorated business use. Apparently, thousands of employees had been using their cell phones for business use for years with no avenue for reimbursement… But the new T&E policy had purposely dropped the “exception approval” requirement in an effort to “regain control over expenses…”
At first, the CFO was shocked and chagrined at the huge increase in cell phone expense, but a company survey (coincidentally conducted shortly after the new policy took effect) showed this new policy was a major morale booster, since it allowed workers to have better “work / life balance” than before. Once the survey results were in, the CFO claimed that had been her “secondary” motivation for the new policy, and declared “victory” yet again.
The funny thing is that her bragging about the success of this “morale boosting initiative” was to create even more awareness of the reimbursement program, which in turn led to the second unintended consequence: Very quickly, the employees began using their cell phones almost exclusively, rather than the “land lines” installed at their desks. These were intelligent people, and they quickly realized that having more business calls meant larger reimbursements, so they began using their cell phones as much as possible to drive up the business use percentage… It became common for an employee to use their cell phone to call a co-worker’s cell phone – even when both were sitting at their desks right next to their office phone. Doing so meant that their “Business-to-Personal” ratio was higher, and they would receive larger reimbursements at the end of the month.
There were nearly 10,000 white-collar workers affected by this policy, and almost all of them had a cell phone by this time. Anyone who did not have a cell phone soon obtained one, because the company was basically paying for it, and they didn’t want to be the only “non-cool” person on their team… Over a six-month period after the new policy went into effect, corporate reimbursement for personal cell phone use increased from around $1,500 per month (pre-CFO) to well over $1 million/month.
Add to that the productivity hit from those same 10,000 employees spending 2–3 hours each month completing the stupid spreadsheet (on company time, of course) instead of doing their real jobs. With a stated corporate average salary of $107,000 per year for those white-collar employees, that new T&E policy cost the company at least $1.3 million a year in reduced productivity.
So because the CFO didn’t like the fact that a few key employees were “getting over” on the system, and with a claimed justification of potentially saving the company $18,000/year, a new policy was implemented that directly cost the company at least $12 million/year, and negatively impacted productivity to the tune of another $1.3 million/year.
10 (17 x 12-inch) single phyllo dough sheets, thawed
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, melted
Instructions
Cook spinach according to directions; drain well, pressing out excess liquid. In saucepan, cook onion and garlic in 3 tablespoons butter or margarine until tender. Stir in flour, tarragon and pepper. Add milk all at once. Cook and stir until mixture is thickened. Stir half of mixture into eggs; return egg mixture into remaining sauce. Add cheeses and spinach; set aside.
Unroll phyllo dough; cover with dampened towel. Remove 1 sheet of dough; brush lightly with some of the 1/2 cup melted butter. Fold the sheet in thirds lengthwise; brush top with butter. Place one end of the folded sheet in center of a 12- or 14-inch pizza pan, extending it over the side of the pan. Repeat buttering of remaining phyllo dough, arranging strips spoke fashion evenly around pan. (The ends of sheets will overlap in center and be approximately 3 inches apart at outer ends.) Spread spinach mixture in an 8-inch circle in center of pastry. Starting with the last sheet of dough placed in pan, lift end of leaf up and bring toward center of filling. Holding end with both hands, twist ends several times; coil and tuck end under to from a rosette. Lay rosette over filling, leaving a 3-inch circle in center (center should be visible). Repeat with remaining in reverse order they were placed. Drizzle remaining butter over all.
Bake at 375 degrees F for 35 to 40 minutes or until golden.
Samsung lost Chinese market share because they were shitty cunts.. In 2016 when the Samsung Note 7 burst into flames? Samsung offered refunds/replacements to EVERYBODY excluding China.
They made a video apology in English to Americans and also other languages to other users.
But sent a 200 word message to Chinese users eventually offering replacements.
Chinese people thought why should we buy stuff from a company that clearly hates us?
So Chinese people decided to buy other options and Samsung’s market in China collapsed never to recover again especially as non Samsung products (washing machines, televisions, cameras, vacuum cleaners etc) were available often for less money.
So likely Apple will not face the market collapse Samsung did but they’re losing market share because they’re not really adding anything new.
Apple are essentially doing this
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This is from the Simpsons where Malibu Stacy gets a new hat and makes fans of the doll ignore the other doll completely.
Okay, so they want us to believe that the U.S. economy grew at a very brisk pace during the fourth quarter of 2023 even though mass layoffs are happening all over America, sales of previously owned homes are at the lowest level in 28 years, homelessness is rising at the fastest pace ever recorded, and survey after survey is showing that most Americans are just barely scraping by from month to month. Needless to say, something does not add up. The American people are deeply frustrated with how the economy is performing, but the government keeps giving us numbers that indicate that everything is just great. On Thursday, we were told that the U.S. economy grew at a 3.3 percent annualized rate during the fourth quarter of 2023…
The economy grew at a much more rapid pace than expected while inflation eased in the final three months of 2023, as the U.S. easily skirted a recession that many forecasters had thought was inevitable, the Commerce Department reported Thursday.
Gross domestic product, a measure of all the goods and services produced, increased at a 3.3% annualized rate in the fourth quarter of 2023, according to data adjusted seasonally and for inflation.
That compared with the Wall Street consensus estimate for a gain of 2% in the final three months of the year.
If that number actually reflected reality, it would be very good news.
But how is it possible that layoffs were up 98 percent in 2023 while the U.S. economy was supposedly “growing” all year long?
To me, it appears that something fishy is going on.
And that is precisely what we see when we take a deeper look at the numbers. According to Zero Hedge, “GDP-boosting gimmicks” are being employed to make things look better than they actually are…
Turning to the all important consumption, we can’t help but smile when noticing that the BEA is again resorting to such favorite GDP-boosting gimmicks of the old Obama administration as spending on healthcare and… RVs! The two contributed to roughly half the growth in consumer spending in the fourth quarter.
Other numbers that don’t come from the Biden administration tell a much different story.
For example, the Chicago Fed’s National Activity Index was negative in December, and it has been negative for 8 of the past 12 months…
Against expectations of a small rise from 0.03 to 0.06, The Chicago Fed’s National Activity Index (which draws on 85 economic indicators) tumbled to -0.15 in December. 2023 ends with 8 of the 12 months in negative territory…
So how in the world can the economy be “growing” if national economic activity was in negative territory for two-thirds of last year?
It doesn’t make any sense at all.
And if the outlook for the future is positive, why are so many mass layoffs happening?
Business Insider had already conducted one round of mass layoffs, but they just decided that another round has become necessary…
In the latest wave of layoffs to hit the digital media biz, Business Insider said it will cut 8% of its staff in a restructuring aimed at positioning the company for growth.
Business Insider CEO Barbara Peng announced the job cuts in a memo to staffers Thursday. “We have already begun to refocus teams and invest in areas that drive outsize value for our core audience. Unfortunately, this also means we need to scale back in some areas of our organization,” she wrote.
Back when it first started, Business Insider was actually quite good.
But those days are long gone.
Microsoft is another big name that is putting large numbers of workers on the chopping block…
Microsoft will lay off 1,900 employees at Activision Blizzard and Xbox, the latest tech company to announce cuts so far in 2024.
The layoffs represent about an 8% cut of its video gaming staff of 22,000 workers and come months after Microsoft acquired Activision in a blockbuster deal. The $69 billion transaction in October represented one of the largest tech deals in history as Microsoft took over the studios behind bestselling games like Call of Duty, Diablo and Overwatch for its Xbox console.
IBM also said it will also cut a percentage of positions in the low single digits in 2024.
The planned job cuts follow similar announcements in January by major tech companies, including Alphabet’s Google and Amazon.com.
Chief financial officer James Kavanaugh said IBM will likely spend the same amount on restructuring as it did in 2023 – US$400 million – when it reduced its workforce by about 3,900 jobs.
Day after day, I share examples of very large companies that are conducting mass layoffs.
Why would they be doing this if tremendous prosperity is ahead of us?
It wouldn’t make any sense at all.
Of course the truth is that an economic downturn has already begun and it is going to get even deeper in 2024.
Those on the bottom of the economic food chain are being hit the hardest. Earlier today, I was saddened to read about homeless people in California that are being evicted from caves that they had dug into the banks of a river…
Rough sleepers in California were found living inside furnished caves dug into the banks of a river 20 feet below street level.
The groups were removed from the eight caves – along the Tuolumne River in Modesto – over the weekend, and they were emptied of belongings, furniture and 7,600 lbs of rubbish, filling two trucks and a trailer.
Some of the caves were decorated with murals, had broken floor tiles and one even had a makeshift fireplace with a chimney.
There are countless others just like them all over the country.
The Wall Street Journal has reported that homelessness was rising at the fastest pace ever recorded in 2023.
But don’t worry about any of that.
According to Joe Biden and his minions, the U.S. economy is growing steadily and everything is just great.
You believe them, don’t you?
Men Caused One Of The Largest Bridal Companies To Go Bankrupt… It’s OVER!
Yeah, for some reason I terribly overslept and was three hours late to work.
I felt quite bad about the whole thing. This was before mobile emails were a thing and I called in saying that I would be late. So, I walked into the office around 12 PM hoping to avoid colleagues seeing me that late. The first people I saw were the CEO and a bunch of other senior guys, all gathered around my cubicle.
“Ok, this is my last day in this job,” I thought.
However, the CEO looked at me, relieved, and said “Good morning. Good to see you were late.” Quite an unusual greeting.
Only then did I realize what had happened. The hinges holding a huge office air conditioner above my cubicle had failed, and it had gone down right into my seat. The monitor was smashed in two parts, there was a huge bend in the tower case, and the indestructible Cherry keyboard had a few keys missing and a dent in the middle of the metal pad.
The air conditioner had fallen at around 11 am, and I came to the office at 12 pm.
I worked at a company that had a very public but unofficial policy of firing people if they started talking to recruiters or interviewing and they found out. They were a nice company, employee loan, good benefits, even a private pension plan.
I had already been recruited (using my personal email, of course) to take a job out of state. The company I was going to was moving me, paying off my employee loan, signing bonus, the whole red carpet thing.
I asked my boss at this nice company when she would have time to meet privately, she said 11, I usually got to work about 6, and arrived to find an email from a recruiter I’d never heard of before at my corporate address with a low ball job offer. I just laughed and deleted it.
About 9am, my boss, my boss’s boss and the head of HR came in carrying boxes. My boss said “it’s not working out, we’re letting you go.”. I played dumb, go where… she tried a few more “soft phrases” so I said after 3 years and 5 days, it’s suddenly not working out? you’re going to have to use the “F” word. The HR lady sensed something was up, but didn’t have time to stop my boss. My boss said, “we’re firing you, we don’t have to explain why.”
I said thank you and while she stood there looking puzzled, I said “I don’t know who that recruiter was, but by firing me instead of letting me quit, I get one month of severance for each year I worked here, plus all my vacation, plus your policy is to give me two weeks vacation to “go on” immediately, so I have 4.75 months of pay, plus, since I worked for more than 3 years, I vest into the pension program at that level. Really I owe whoever sent that email….
At that point my boss turned to HR lady and said wait, what? Hr lady waved her to silence and Said, you’d have to pay off your employee loan in full within three days…
I said, right. Picked up a cashier’s check off my desk and handed it to her. (It was to the penny) my boss’s boss finally spoke up and said wait, you already had a job? I said I’ve told you before, this policy is dumb. If I was a recruiter and I wanted to place one of your people, I’d send them an offer, wait, call them up and talk about a new job, now that they are unemployed. I’ll probably get a call this afternoon. (I did) Anyway, because you fired me. I get the money! I had in a CD to pay off the loan (I called it a lock pick for golden handcuffs) that check is from my new employer, 4 months 5 weeks of pay, and a sign on bonus (1 month), along with a moving bonus. I just put 6 months of pay in the bank, thanks guys, best firing ever!
Then a swept the stuff off my desk into one box, pointed to the stacks of stuff with post-its for other employees, showed all my drawers were empty and asked to be escorted to my car. My boss was still trying to figure out what happened while HR escorted me out, then I followed her to the main building, signed my exit paperwork, she took my badge and I was home by 10 to start packing.
It was awesome!
The Problem Ain’t The Cost Of Money – It’s The Cost Of Stuff!
New Year’s Eve, 1999 – a special time for Jo and me. We took our motor home to Key West, Florida. We celebrated the magic moment, the turn of a century, in front of (famous Ernest Hemingway hangout) Sloppy Joe’s Bar.
As the conch shell slid down the pipe, people yelled, “10-9-8-7″…until the clock struck midnight. Happy New Year! I kissed my bride and we headed back to the bus (hoping Y2k didn’t fry our computer).
The intimacy of a motor home provides a great opportunity for lots of conversation. 2000 was a personal milestone, I turned 60. Jo and I spent a lot of time reflecting; wondering what the future would bring.
I predicted we would recall the last decade as “The good old days.” Little did I know how right that would turn out to be.
What was so good about them?
Interest rates stabilized from the double-digit Volcker years. After a short 1990 recession, business was booming, moving quickly into the internet era.
While Clinton pushed through the largest tax increase in history, House Speaker Gingrich kept his campaign promise, holding the line on government spending; creating the last budget surplus we will likely ever see.
2024 01 26 11 36s
On January 1, 1990, the Fed funds rate was 8.25%, dropping to a low of 3% in 1992 and hovering in the mid-5% range for most of the decade.
With Volcker bringing inflation under control, interest rates stabilized and mortgages were affordable. CD and bond interest rates were above inflation.
Interest rates were not an impediment or incentive to doing business.
I was managing the money for both sets of parents. We invested in safe, secure investments. Their interest income, coupled with social security allowed them to live comfortably, without worry. Times were good.
What the heck happened?
A year later, 9/11 occurred, followed by huge government deficits, spending hundreds of billions for the never-ending “War on Terror.”
While Clinton took credit for boom times and balancing the budget, the effects of certain policy decisions were not yet evident.
Clinton prided himself on increasing homeownership for the poor and minorities. Banks were required to make loans to buyers with poor credit history – or they risked losing their charters. The banks complied, while screaming to the government they would fail if the process continued. Instead of tightening loan standards, government agencies, Fannie Mae and Freddy Mac were authorized to buy these risky loans from banks.
Banks no longer worried about the creditworthiness of the borrower. They added outlandish origination fees to the mortgage, while passing the default risk to the government (US taxpayer). Billions flowed into the housing sector.
Clinton pushed the 1999 repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act, allowing banks to merge with brokerage firms. In a few short years, five banks controlled almost half the nation’s wealth.
These new casino banks jumped in, writing thousands of risky mortgages to all comers, many in excess of the value of the underlying property. They packaged these high-risk loans into fee-based products and peddled them to unsuspecting investors.
The movie The Big Short details how the rating agencies gave these mortgage packages improper ratings, creating an illusion of creditworthiness and safety.
The casino banks got bigger and gambled with trillions in derivatives.
“Derivatives are financial contracts, set between two or more parties, that derive their value from an underlying asset, group of assets, or benchmark. A derivative can trade on an exchange or over-the-counter. Prices for derivatives derive from fluctuations in the underlying asset.”
The repeal of Glass-Steagall’s created this monster. Famed (Big Short) investor Michael Burry warned Wall Street about the toxic loans, predicting a real estate crash. No one listened, they mocked him. The crash came, the casino banks (deemed, “too big to fail”) were bailed out with trillions of taxpayer dollars. The Fed flooded the banking system with credit and dropped interest rates to historic lows, well below the true inflation rate.
Their in-house trading (gambling with our money) continues. If they lose, taxpayers will cover their losses.
“Three Wall Street Mega Banks Hold $157.3 Trillion in Derivatives – That’s $56.7 Trillion More than the Entire World’s GDP Last Year”
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Consumers, industry and governments binged on “free money;” borrowing and spending like there was no tomorrow! Experts warned inflation would follow; most were surprised it took so long.
After reaching double digits, heading toward Zimbabwe-type inflation, the Federal Reserve finally had little choice but to raise rates – not wanting citizens to storm the palace.
The current Federal Funds rate is 5.5%. Many cheap loans are now coming due and must be paid off or rolled over at a much higher rate.
Prices have exploded!
The Wall Street Journal recently reported the average monthly mortgage payment has soared to $3,322 from $1,787 since 2021. Why?
Interest rates were kept artificially low, mortgage rates have risen since the Fed brought interest rates back to pre-2008 normal.
“Homeownership has become a pipe dream for more Americans, even those who could afford to buy just a few years ago.
Many would-be buyers were already feeling stretched thin by home prices that shot quickly higher in the pandemic, but at least mortgage rates were low. Now that they are high, many people are just giving up.
…. Typically, high mortgage rates slow down home sales, and home prices should soften as a result. Not this time. Home sales are certainly falling, but prices are still rising—there just aren’t enough homes to go around. The national median existing-home price rose to about $392,000 in October, the highest ever for that month in data that goes back to 1999.
…. Buyers get a lot less home for their dollar. Before the Fed started raising rates, a person with a monthly housing budget of $2,000 could have bought a home valued at more than $400,000. Today, that same buyer would need to find a home valued at $295,000 or less.”
“Everyday Americans understand inflation perfectly. …. Inflation is one of the biggest concerns of those who live in the real world.
…. Here’s the reality and here’s the political narrative: Reality is that prices have been going up at the fastest rate in 40 years and they are still going up.
Inflation (on an annualized basis) was 9.1% in June 2022, 4.9% in April 2023, 3.7% in September 2023 and 3.1% in November 2023.
It’s true that the rate of inflation is coming down, but prices are still going up. They’re going up at a slower rate but they’re still going up.
…. The average price of a pound of ground beef in the U.S. was $5.11 in September 2023. In October 2023 the price of a pound of ground beef was $5.23. That’s a 2.3% increase on a month-over-month basis, which annualizes to over 25%.
That’s the kind of inflation that real Americans confront every day.
…. It is possible to use propaganda to lie to the American people; it can work in the short run. But inflation is not one of those areas where propaganda works. The American people know what things cost, they know prices are going up, and no amount of lies can change that.”
“Inflation is eroding workers’ gains. Three in 5 workers (60 percent) say their incomes haven’t kept pace with inflation over the past 12 months, up from 55 percent last year. For those who did receive a pay bump of some form, more than half (53 percent) said their incomes haven’t kept pace with inflation, up slightly from 50 percent last year.”
“Inflation makes the extension of socialism possible by providing the financial chaos in which it flourishes.”— Henry Hazlitt
Mark Hamrick, Bankrate Senior Economic Analyst adds:
“While inflation has come down, broadly speaking, prices have not. There is a…virtual sticker shock that continues to weigh on the minds and pocketbooks of consumers.”
“For the average working man, almost everything went up in price – except the real value of his major asset: his time. So, he had to spend more time to get the basics in life. Before the money switcheroo, he had to labor for about 4 years to buy a house, for example. Today, it will cost him more than 8 years of labor.”
The casino banks are screaming, profits are down, the Fed has to pivot and drop interest rates. Baloney! When Volcker pivoted, interest rates were double-digits and he pivoted back down to “normal.” Today’s rates are at historical “normal” – what worked for decades.
Lending cheap money to high credit risks (government included) creates the illusion of prosperity while creating terrible, inevitable inflationary consequences.
The cost of money ain’t the problem, it is the cost of stuff.
Leave rates alone, don’t make things worse. Volcker got us through a recession – things will work out once the excess debt is out of the system.
As always, politicians scream, “vote for me, I’ll fix the problem!” Ain’t gonna happen, no matter who wins the election. Without massive spending cuts and sanity in Washington, nothing will change. It’s no wonder many of us are holding on to our gold wishing for, “the good old days.”
17 Minutes Of Modern Women Having MELTDOWN Over Passport Bros
I didn’t see either of these personally, but I heard about them.
Number one: A US soldier on an exercise at Canadian Forces Base Gagetown – crew member on a tank – found a training anti-tank mine during a break in the exercise. These things are explosives; they are designed to go off when a tank runs over them. They won’t damage the tank, but they do pack a punch; they’re designed to be heard, and felt, by the crew inside a tank that is running. They are magnetically activated, meaning that they have to come into contact with a metal surface before they can explode. His buddies knew that; he didn’t, apparently.
They were sitting around in the middle of a tank training ground for a while, and he got bored. He started trying to get the mine to “go off”. Apparently, he started by picking it up and throwing it at the ground. Bupkis. Then he started hitting it with a rock. Same non-result.
Eventually, getting frustrated, he picked it up and threw it at the side of the tank. As his startled buddies dove for cover, the thing blew up in his face, causing critical injuries. He was rushed to the Base Hospital, where doctors managed to save his life, but IIRC he ended up a quadruple amputee. Since the military deemed it a “self-inflicted injury”, he was offered a choice – court-martial, or immediate discharge with loss of all benefits.
His excuse was apparently that he “didn’t think it was that powerful”. Because he’d only ever heard them from inside a running tank, he thought it would be like a firecracker or something.
Number two: A pilot in the Canadian Air Force was given command of a Lockheed Hercules transport aircraft – the youngest pilot ever to be given such a command. On his first flight as PIC, he was to fly from Trenton, a major air force base near Lake Ontario, to USAFB Thule, a large US Air Force base in Greenland, and then on to Canadian Forces Station Alert, a remote facility in the very high Canadian arctic, 500 miles from the North Pole. Alert has no maintenance facilities – just a runway made of packed snow and a weather station. USAFB Thule, otoh, has a full maintenance facility with a large, heated hangar.
Just after takeoff from Thule, he had multiple bird strikes – more than a dozen birds impacted the airframe, IIRC. He could have declared an emergency and returned to land at the well-equipped airport below him; instead, after a cursory in-flight check, he decided that the aircraft was still flyable and continued on to his destination on Ellesmere Island.
After he landed, the ground crew inspected the Herc and quickly realized that it was no longer safe to fly. The Canadian air force had to fly up another Herc, with a full maintenance crew, who then had to spend two days working on the plane, outdoors in sub-zero temperatures, to bring it to a point where it could be safely flown back to Thule, where the same maintenance crew that would have worked on it if he’d landed there in the first place did a complete overhaul – inside a heated, well-lit hangar.
Not surprisingly, Captain Hotshot became the youngest pilot in the Canadian Air Force to be stripped of his position of aircraft commander.
Most Americans Are Literally Living On The Edge Of Disaster
There is a tremendous disconnect between the economic numbers that the government is giving us and what most Americans are personally experiencing on a daily basis. The government says that inflation is low, but the cost of living just continues to spiral out of control. The government says that unemployment is low, but Challenger, Gray & Christmas says that the number of layoffs in the U.S. was up 98 percent last year. The government says that the economic outlook for 2024 is positive, but companies all over America are acting as if extremely hard times are ahead. So who are we supposed to believe?
Personally, I trust numbers that come from private sources far more than numbers that come from government sources.
For example, a survey that was just conducted by Bankrate discovered that 56 percent of all U.S. adults do not have enough money to handle an unexpected expense of $1,000…
A majority of Americans say a $1,000 emergency expense would be too great of a hit to their savings and that they could not afford it, according to new data released Wednesday.
Bankrate’s latest survey results found 56% of U.S. adults lack the emergency funds to handle a $1,000 unexpected expense and one-third (35%) said they would have to borrow the money somehow to pay for it.
More than half the country is literally living on the edge of financial disaster.
That is crazy.
Another survey has found that much of the nation barely keeps any money in their bank accounts…
Nearly half of Americans have $500 or less in their savings accounts, an amount that leaves them vulnerable to unexpected expenses, according to a GOBankingRates survey of 1,063 U.S. adults conducted in November 2023.
About 29% of respondents have between $501 and $5,000 in their savings accounts, while the remaining 21% of Americans have $5,001 or more.
Few hold much cash in their checking accounts as well. Of those surveyed, 60% report having $500 or less in their checking accounts, while only about 12% have $2,001 or more.
Most Americans would be financially wiped out by just one major accident or emergency.
The vast majority of us are just barely scraping by from month to month, and the rapidly rising cost of living is making that increasingly difficult to do.
One woman recently found a Taco Bell receipt from 12 years ago, and she discovered that prices are now approximately three times higher than they were back then…
A TikTok video by a user who found an old Taco Bell receipt has gone viral – as Americans realize prices are now almost three times higher.
The old receipt showed that – 12 years ago – Americans could buy TWO of the chain’s beefy five-layer burritos for $2.59 including taxes.
Today, those same burritos cost about $3.69 for just ONE. That doesn’t include tax, which can vary across the US. So too can the base price.
The government continues to insist that inflation is “low”, but everyone knows that is a big fat lie.
Insurance rates have been spiking at a particularly alarming rate. One man in Las Vegas was horrified when his auto insurance bill shot up by 72 percent in just eight months even though he had no accidents and no tickets…
They say ‘What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas’ – but the eye-watering auto insurance bill city resident Simon Edwards recently received is just one example of the staggering rises in premiums consumers are facing all across the US.
The 2012 Mazda 5 owner was shocked to find his monthly bill from Geico had rocketed up from $130 last April to $223 now – a rise of 72 percent in just eight months.
‘I’ve been in no accidents, no tickets, been with Geico for many years,’ a perplexed Edwards told the Wall Street Journal.
Another man recently posted a video on TikTok in which he ranted about how the cost of literally everything is absolutely soaring…
Four years ago my rent was $1,200 a month at a luxury apartment complex”
“It is NOW $2,100, not even including utilities”
“3 years ago my electric bill was averaging $45 now it’s averaging $125…”
“I went to the grocery store yesterday and got 3 bags of chips, some ground turkey and some vegetables and it was $67 DOLLARS?!”
U.S. consumers are being squeezed like never before, and as a result debt levels have been rising to unprecedented levels.
For example, unpaid residential utility debt in the U.S. rose to a new all-time record of 20.3 billion dollars last year…
Bloomberg cites a new report from the National Energy Assistance Directors Association that reveals US household utility debt hit a record as an alarming number of Americans can no longer afford heating and cooling their homes.
NEADA said one out of every six ratepayers is behind on energy bills, adding residential utility debt hit a new record last year of $20.3 billion.
Please don’t let anyone tell you that the U.S. economy is in good shape.
Most Americans are really hurting in this economic environment, and conditions continue to get even worse.
As I discussed yesterday, large companies all over America are feverishly laying off workers. In fact, earlier today we learned that even eBay is now laying people off…
Online retailer eBay Inc. will cut about 1,000 jobs, or an estimated 9% of its full-time workforce, saying its number of employees and costs have exceeded how much the business is growing in a slowing economy. It marks the latest layoffs in the tech industry.
CEO Jamie Iannone said in a message to employees on Tuesday that the company also will reduce how many “contracts we have within our alternate workforce over the coming months.”
The worse economic conditions become, the more crime we are going to see.
At this point, looting has already become a way of life in some areas of the country.
In Washington D.C., a CVS store is permanently shutting down because dozens of teens would literally loot the store multiple times per day…
A Washington D.C. CVS store is shutting its doors after being repeatedly ransacked by thieves, the chain has confirmed.
The pharmacy, located in the Columbia Heights neighborhood, went viral last October when videos emerged of it totally stripped of all its products after being targeted by a teen gang.
Staff claim more than 45 schoolkids would go into the store and steal chips and drinks in the morning, after their classes and late at night. It will close on February 29, according to WTTG-TV.
If this is what is happening now, what will we see once economic conditions get extremely bad in this country?
After reading these comments, I would like to share a story with you. My ex-husband is disabled. He suffers from traumatic brain injury and struggles daily. He has seizures, he passes out, he has very little memory, diabetes from cancer removal, and takes several medications daily among other challenges. He needs someone to assist him with daily activities. He lived with his parents. His mother passed away and about a year later, his father sold the house and most of everything that was in it. The house sold in 10 days and they were given 2 weeks to vacate. His father had living arrangements planned for himself before the house sold. He told my ex that he had 2 weeks to vacate, left some moving boxes at the house and took off. I went over and helped pack and move things into storage and my ex became homeless on the final moving day. His father said he didn’t have the money to help him and he changed his phone number. The first month, my ex would call me telling me things that would happen and honestly, I didn’t believe him. How could being homeless be that damn hard? He would find what he thought was a safe place to sleep, in an area that we both are very familiar with and know a lot of people. People that we have personally helped. Well, when you become homeless, you learn who your friends are. Everyone scattered. People that we opened our home to when they needed a helping hand were no longer around. I was the only one he had left. The first month of him being homeless was a nightmare. When the sun goes down, bad things happen when you fall asleep. Because of the medication my ex takes, he will fall into a deep sleep and not much wakes him up until he’s ready to wake up. He had his belongings stolen 4 times in a month. He would wake up and his stuff would be gone. He went through about 8 cell phones, numerous phone chargers, all stolen. His wallet was stolen right from the start so he had no ID. Without ID he couldn’t get assistance or even a hotel room. DMV wanted ridiculous paperwork to replace his ID plus $800 for an incident from years past. It took weeks, but we got it straightened out and his ID was replaced. Two days later, he fell asleep and his wallet stolen again. Once again, no ID. We were continuously replacing his bags for carrying things and replacing his things. His medication was stolen. He had to go 3 weeks without it because they don’t just replace stolen medication. He was missing his very important doctor appointments because he couldn’t keep track of things. He woke up in the hospital twice, not sure how he got there, or why he was there. He voluntarily went to the hospital one night because he was dizzy, his blood sugar was high and he was fading in and out of reality. The hospital asked him how much drugs he took. He remembers hearing them say he’s ODing. They did a drug test that came back clean. The security guard at the hospital took him by the arm and pushed him out the front door telling him not to come back. He went back in to ask where he was because he didn’t know, also because he didn’t have his shoes. Security pushed him out the front door told him don’t fucking come back through the door. My daughter is a nurse at that hospital. When I asked her why they treated him that way she said homeless people come in there continuously pretending to be sick just for a place to sleep. They kick them out all the time. Meanwhile, my ex was laying on the sidewalk on the side of the hospital. Another homeless man gave him some water and walked him to another hospital down the street. They said he probably would not have made it through the night. He spent 3 days there then back out on the street with no medication.
A fact that most aren’t aware of, when you’re homeless, you have to keep moving. My ex stays clean. By clean I mean his physical appearance. He doesn’t look homeless other than the bags he carries. At first he was able to slip into a casino, (we live in Las Vegas) to charge his cell phone. Even though he doesn’t look homeless, it doesn’t take long before you become a familiar face in the area and they don’t want you around. They are very quick to call the police. Who in turn trespass you from the property, or haul you in. So you have to keep moving. Where you’re moving to? Who knows, just keep moving. That results in raw feet, worn out shoes and using energy that you just can’t afford to waste.
Summertime in Vegas is brutal. It reaches 120° and when your outside, there’s no relief anywhere. The heat also causes my ex to pass out. He can’t be in the heat for too long. The only relief is going inside a store and pretending to shop. Like I said, you become a familiar face after a while and all eyes are on you. In order for him to go inside out of the heat he would have to purchase something. Believe it or not, this can become expensive. When you can’t cook and your only means for a meal is to purchase from fast food or wherever, it gets expensive. So most of his income goes to replacing things that were stolen, getting what he needs to survive on the streets, and food. A couple times, when his wallet was stolen, his money card was in his wallet. He had to steal food from the store to eat. Sometimes he can get shelter for a night if the hotels have a special and he has an ID. But money goes fast when you’re out there.
How do I know all this? I spent 4 days out there with him. He came to my house every few days to shower, wash his clothes and eat a hot meal, but my situation didn’t allow him to stay with me. I helped him as much as I could. When he came over one day, telling me all the bad luck he was having, I decided to go with him and see what’s going on. I truly thought he was getting mixed up with the wrong people and creating his problems. What I experienced while I was out there was absolutely terrible. People were so mean. We didn’t beg or ask for anything. We just kept moving, with no destination. The looks, the comments, the behavior of one human to another made me look at the world in a different way, and it’s not good. I actually came out of that experience being ashamed of the human race. I’m embarrassed for us. I’m not proud of my community and I honestly feel more compassion for our homeless community. Imagine this. You have to go to the bathroom and it could take you all day to find a public restroom to use. Because they don’t let homeless people use the bathroom. Whether you purchase something or not. Imagine it’s so hot outside, like 120°, and you barely make it into a sandwich shop and ask them for a cup of water because you’re passing out from the heat. They tell you “no, get outta here” and you pass out in the parking lot. Instead of calling an ambulance, they leave you laying there on a blacktop that is hot enough to fry an egg. People passing by don’t want to get involved so they turn their head. They couldn’t spare a cup of tap water to help another person that was obviously having a medical episode. We walked by a lady one day and she actually stopped, looked at me and said “ you’re a disgrace. You should walk in the alley and not out here.” As much as I wanted to teach her a lesson, I wasn’t going to jail, so we kept walking. From a distance she yelled “you’re dirting up the streets!” I was appalled by the dirty, disgusting looks that people gave. Just by assuming our situation, because remember, I wasn’t actually homeless.
This is also what I learned. Being homeless is very lonely. You can’t befriend other homeless people because those are the ones that take your stuff. There’s nobody to talk too. My ex started talking to himself, out loud. He would randomly say things as if he was talking to someone. Sometimes it’s not money they need. Sometimes it’s not food. There are many ways you can help homeless people. One of the most important, at least it was for me, is to acknowledge them. Don’t walk by like they aren’t there. Smile and say hi. Treat them like they matter. Sometimes that’s all they need to get them through the next few hours. It does give them some inner strength to keep pushing forward. If you pass by and say “how ya doing?” Stop for a second and listen to the answer. You don’t have to spend all day with them. A little 2 sentence conversation holds a lot of weight. They have nobody to talk to and it’s lonely. One of the best conversations I have ever had was with a homeless man. He became a good friend and we spent a lot of time together. He was very intelligent and fascinating. I could have missed out on that and it would have been my loss. Sometimes homeless people just want someone to say hi and treat them like they are people. They are all out there for different reasons. Some beyond their control.
MUST WATCH! Feminism and the Disposable Male | This blew my mind
I’m from Russia and I’ve been to the US three times in my teenage years for several months each time. I’ve always ate intuitively, I guess. I never restricted myself or counted calories. Both at home and in the US. I’m not prone to binge eating or eating a lot of junk food, I like fruits and vegetables more than sweets and most of the time if I buy junk food it just ends up on a shelf until someone else eats it. And my weight does not really fluctuate at all. I think I have the same physique and weight since I was 14.
So when I came to the USA, I ate the same way as I always do. Actually I ate even more vegetables, fruit and berries because there were very convenient packages at Costco. I just munched on broccoli for several months there I think haha. But! Despite me not really changing anything in what I eat (or eating even more fresh produce) I gained several kilos each time I was in the US and lost them back quickly after returning.
This is me right before my last trip in 2019:
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This is me on the last day:
image 192
I think you can clearly see that my cheeks grew a lot and my face is more round haha.
I also noticed that food (especially fresh produce) looks much prettier in the US than here. Strawberries were huge and shiny, we only get those here in the off season in expensive stores and not many people actually buy it. We mostly buy seasonal fruits. Berries are mostly for summertime while in winter we buy pomegranates, clementines and oranges. Bread in the US stays “fresh” and soft for several months, while here we buy bread several times a week because it’s freshly baked and goes stale quickly. A lot of food in the US is preprepared (shredded cheese etc which we don’t really have in Russia. If you want shredded cheese you do it yourself haha. And it’s also really hard to find the same cheeses. The colors are not even close). I think there are so much more additives to the food in the US to make it more pleasant looking even though it makes the food much less healthy.
The U.S. grew by 2.4% but its Inflation rate is 3.4% hence once again the American standard of real living shrank by -1.0% in 2023.
Let’s compare that with China that grew by 5.2% but its inflation is 0.2% in 2023. Hence the Chinese population enjoy a positive 5.0% net real growth!
But if you read the western media it is as though it is China that needs to get worried! And what is worst is their brain dead mentality believes in the shit that U.S. media threw out daily.
China is 6% better off than the U.S. in 2023! And you ain’t seen nothing yet! If you Americans and U.S. lackeys out there grow som brain cells, grow very very worried about the U.S. that has not grow its real standard of living since the day of Beetles and Marilyn Monroe 64 full years ago! Your grand parents have better lives than you!
Each person’s place of birth, family background, and level of education are different, so it is difficult to give a definitive answer.
However, some general situations can be mentioned.
The most impoverished areas in China are still concentrated in rural areas in the central and western parts of the country.
Due to China’s unique household registration and land systems, the country has the highest rate of home ownership in the world.
As a result, homelessness is virtually non-existent.
Even the poorest peasants own their land and homes.
Internet, tap water, electricity, and roads have been extended to all rural areas of China.
There are no villages without roads and electricity,Internet, although there may be exceptions.
A photo widely circulated on the Internet shows a village in Zhaojue County, Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province. Located at altitudes ranging from 628 to 2300 meters, with a relative altitude difference of 1672 meters, the village has a population of 1758 people.
image 188image 187image 31image 190
Faced with difficulties in road construction, the government proposed to relocate them to a flat area, offering free housing and policy-based housing subsidies.
However, the villagers strongly resisted, as the benefits offered by the government did not meet their expectations.
The impasse lasted until 2016, when Chinese vloggers discovered the situation and uploaded the videos online.
This sparked outrage among the public, who couldn’t believe that such poverty existed in China.
They condemned the government’s incompetence.
Feeling the pressure, the Zhaojue county government responded positively, compromising with the villagers by improving welfare standards before finally relocating them from the cliffs.
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In terms of medical insurance, China’s system is divided into urban and rural components.
Taking myself as an example, although I own a house in the city, my household registration remains in the rural area because I am reluctant to give up my ancestral home and land.
As a result, I have two health insurance policies – a rural one that costs about $50 a year, and an urban one that costs considerably more and is deducted monthly from my salary at a rate proportional to my income.
While this may seem like a loss, the higher deductions result in a higher retirement pension.
According to China’s administrative divisions, villages are the lowest level.
In theory, rural health insurance is not compulsory.
In reality, however, coverage is tied to the performance of government officials.
Government officials often resort to extremist claims that if you don’t buy $50 worth of health insurance, you’ll lose hundreds or even thousands of dollars in agricultural subsidies.
In fact, government officials do not have the ability orrights to cancel agricultural subsidies to farmers.
This is because the money is transferred directly from the central government’s coffers to the farmers’ bank cards.
Township government officials cannot interfere with central decision-making and the banking system.
Only a verbal threat.
Therefore, although the process of selling health insurance to farmers is sometimes not very gentle, the results are still good, and health insurance basically covers everyone.
Some people even have more than one medical insurance.
Reimbursement rates for medical expenses vary – 90% in township hospitals, 80% at the county level, 70% at the city level, and a basic 60% in provincial capital hospitals.
For serious illnesses, individuals often have to seek treatment in large cities such as Beijing, Shanghai or Guangzhou, where reimbursement rates are even lower, especially for imported and expensive drugs.
The only good thing is that China’s medical system does not have complicated appointments and does not require excessive waiting.
Finally, there is the pressure of marriage.
If a young man who grew up in the countryside has parents with a low retirement income and his own income is not high, it will be difficult for him to find a wife, especially if the woman’s income is above average.
Unless he is exceptionally handsome or has a degree from one of China’s top universities, the challenges increase.
This contributes to the gradual decline of China’s population.
On some Chinese video platforms, many single men promote Indian marriage ideals, but Chinese women often mock them, questioning their confidence despite their seeming ordinariness.
ps1:
Many people lack a clear understanding of China’s land system and social structure.
On Quora, many comments seem unreasonably contentious.
I don’t know whether this is due to arrogance and prejudice or deliberate misinformation.
Although my English is limited, I’ll do my best to explain.
In rural areas, land is collectively owned by village-level administrative units, similar to rural cooperatives.
As long as your household registration is in the village, your land is permanent, with no time limits or land taxes.
Your children can inherit it without paying inheritance taxes.
The only drawback is that farmland cannot be bought or sold.
tradable land is residential land, but it’s limited to mutual transfers between village members.
Urban land is owned by the government.
If you buy villas, apartments, factories, or commercial land in the city, the legal term of use is either 40 or 70 years.
However, these are essentially “fiction” legal concepts to avoid conflict with the concept of state ownership of land.
If there were a real problem with time limits, China wouldn’t have a real estate industry, and people wouldn’t be stupid enough to buy houses.
Many multinational corporations, including McDonald’s, KFC, Metro, and Costco, own substantial amounts of land and property in China.
You can question the character of capitalists, but you can’t question their intelligence.
For ordinary residents, you can own property for life without paying a single cent in taxes.
If taxes were imposed, many people would become homeless.
That’s why many wealthy Chinese own many properties, because there are almost no holding costs.
ps2:
The inclusiveness of the Chinese government is beyond the imagination of many people who only believe what the Western media says.
Again, with a population of 1.4 billion and less than 4% having a bachelor’s degree, this means that there are many individuals among us who are not robots and can be easily angered.
If the government does not meet their demands, impulsive actions may occur.
The government is not stupid; it will not easily provoke the people.
On June 10, 2022, in the early morning, a girl was harassed and beaten by several men in a barbecue restaurant in Tangshan while she was having a late-night snack.
This incident sparked anger and panic throughout society, something that should not have happened in the eyes of the Chinese.
It was widely believed to be the incompetence of the Tangshan city police.
In reality, the Chinese can be perfectionists.
They won’t tolerate any instances of social violence, especially against innocent women.
Hebei Province reacted quickly and made adjustments to the entire public security system in Tangshan.
Many leaders in the police department were fired, and some even went to jail.
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As for the men who assaulted the woman, the court handed down the harshest punishment, and they eventually repented in prison.
CCTV, China’s largest official television station, also conducted a special interview with the criminal.
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ps3:
As for “Indian marriage ideals,” perhaps my expression is not very accurate.
This is a Chinese man who is worried about finding a mate.
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This is the woman they met in reality.
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This is their fantasy woman, using Indian women as a reference.
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Many people may have seen too many Indian movies and think that Indian women are always gentle and kind.
The most important thing is that the men do not have to give any bride price to the women.
Well, that is India’s most successful cultural export to China.
Near the beginning of covid, I received a speeding ticket for going quite a bit over the speed limit. In fact, it was so much over the limit that when I received the citation in the mail, it indicated that I had to go to court in person. I couldn’t just pay a fine. I showed up on the indicated court date, but the courthouse was closed due to covid. I eventually received a notice in the mail indicating a new court date, but when I showed up it was still closed for covid (needless to say it was frustrating). A few months after that, I received a notice giving me a date to attend court virtually over zoom.
When I logged in, I noticed that there were about 50 other people also logged in. So I made myself comfortable and waited. The defendents with a lawyer present were called first. Every lawyer would say good morning to the judge and then, in some cryptic legalese I can’t remember, asked the judge to review the relevant dates for the case. The case would list them out in order and then give the running total number of days and then dismiss the case because it has been over a year. This happened at least 4 or 5 times.
After all the lawyers had finished, the judge started calling the rest of us. Person after person went up, was reprimanded by the judge, and given a fine. Eventually my name was called and so I repeated exactly what I had heard the lawyers say. The judge stared at me for about 45 seconds. Then he read the dates and dismissed my case. I thanked him and he told me that I better start slowing down when I drive because if he sees me again, he’ll remember me.
I’d like to think that everyone after me was smart enough to realize they also could have their cases dismissed. I was curious, but not that curious, so I took my win and logged off zoom.
I do think it’s ridiculous that men in China are expected to have a successful and lucrative career, a house, and a car, as well as pay a large bride price to the girl’s family. Those are pretty tall orders. No wonder so many men in China are unmarried. But most women in China have their own careers (and don’t want to leave them to be housewives) and choose to continue working after marriage or decide to not marry at all.
Some of them do have Princess Syndrome and expect men to meet their materialistic demands. I do not understand the lust for luxury bags and clothes and the like. Why? To fit into society? To ascend to a Phoenix nest? To look good on Instagram or the Chinese equivalent? All of it is fleeting, unimportant, shallow and it won’t last. None of that matters.
But those women in China are not the majority. In 1.4 billion people there are bound to be materialistic gold diggers, but not everyone is. And people like that can be found in every society, not just China. Many women in China are hard working and dedicated to their careers. The ones who do stay home to raise children are dedicated to their families. I don’t see a stay-at-home wife or mother as a woman who is materialistic because her husband is the provider of their family.
I would say you’ve taken a stereotype and painted all Chinese women with a broad brush. Instead look at women as individuals capable of being their own person. You may meet some materialistic women but it’s more likely you will meet kind, hardworking women devoted to their families. Of the Chinese women in my acquaintance I can say none of them fit the materialistic stereotype.
Tell them…
Greek Homestyle Chicken
This is a common meal in Greece and it smells delicious while it is cooking.
greek chicken 1100px 3
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Juice of 2 lemons
4 or 5 potatoes, peeled and sliced french-fry style
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 to 1 cup water
One head garlic, the cloves peeled but whole
Oregano, salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Place chicken in a shallow baking tray. Arrange potatoes around chicken pieces. Scatter whole peeled cloves of garlic around chicken and potatoes.
Mix together lemon juice and olive oil, and pour evenly over chicken and potatoes. Add water until potatoes are just about covered. Add salt, pepper to taste. Cover chicken and potatoes with generous amounts of oregano.
Bake at 350 degrees F, until tops of chicken are reddish brown.
Turn chicken, stir potatoes, and sprinkle on more oregano. If potatoes aren’t at least half-covered with liquid, add water.
Return to oven for about 15 to 20 minutes. Chicken is done when both sides a lightly browned and potatoes are soft when touched with a fork.
Pretty cool really. At 74, I can look back on a life full of adventure and fun. Some hard work too. A lot of things you can’t do anymore (playground equipment now deemed too dangerous for kids), places that aren’t there anymore (amusement parks like Pacific Ocean Park in Santa Monica and the Pike in Long Beach). As kids, we walked to school, typically a mile each way- today moms chauffeur their kids to school, adding to morning and afternoon traffic jams. When I was a kid, we were allowed more freedom and had more responsibility.
As a teenager, friends and I would take spring breaks to the Colorado River, cruise up and down the river in my fishing boat, stop on the other bank of the river for a party at night, bats flying overhead on the river. Or Palm Springs, where parties were held out in the desert, and had fun visiting the Indian reservation and desert oasis. Travel to Mexico, and watch a real Mexican fiesta in a small town plaza. Ride motorcycles all over the place on camping trips. Learn to fly an airplane, and fly one to Catalina island with my girlfriend at the time, my buddy flying his own airplane in formation with me. Renting a 4 seat Cessna 172 from John Wayne airport, fuel included, was only $11 per hour! Dinner at Don the Beachcomber, 94th Aero Squadron, Proud Bird, Bobby McGees etc., places that don’t exist anymore.
My working life was mostly fun- working got easier as I moved up to jobs I liked. For the last 20 years I had a job designing traffic camera installations for the City, something I really liked doing.
I find that there are new things that challenge me in retirement. I discovered 3D design and 3D printing, and Arduino programming. I have created a lot of unique projects, and like showcasing them on Instructables. Plus, lots of bicycle riding and walking in our mild Southern California climate.
Why Marriage Is NOT WORTH Pursuing In Western Society
I heard this story from a fellow cab driver (back when I was driving cabs).
He was doing the night shift when he got a call to a specific address. The job details specified a non-LPG vehicle (ie, one without an extra tank in the boot) because they were moving from one place to another and needed to put the last of the luggage in there.
So while he was on the way there, he called the cops.
He showed up at the address, popped the boot, and helped the passengers load some gear in there; a sound system, sundry electronics and so forth. Then he closed the boot.
They’re anxious to get moving, but he took his time. Just as he was getting in, the cops showed up. The passengers tried to play it cool, but the driver pointed at them and said, “They just robbed this place.”
The cops grabbed one, but the other two made a run through the yard and went over the back fence. One came back straight away, but the other had trouble climbing back over, mainly because he had an Alsatian hanging off his leg.
Once the cops had all three in custody, he popped the boot again and showed them the stolen goods.
One of the passengers started swearing, then asked, “How did you know we were robbing the place?”
The driver looked him in the eye. “Because that’s my sound system. I live there.”
Time is running out. Lately, I have been hearing from so many people that believe that 2024 will be the year when our society goes over the edge. Our financial system is teetering on the brink of disaster, crime is absolutely exploding all over the country, homelessness is rising at the fastest pace ever recorded, food banks are facing unprecedented demand for their services, and I believe that 2024 will be the most chaotic election year in the entire history of our nation. And of course all of this is happening in the context of a global environment in which war, pestilences, economic problems, famine and natural disasters are all on the rise. A “perfect storm” is raging all around us, and millions upon millions of Americans have become deeply concerned about what our immediate future will look like.
So where will you be when things finally hit the fan?
During the past several years, we have seen a mass exodus of conservatives from blue states. For example, Fox News is reporting that 65 percent of those that have recently moved to the state of Idaho are Republicans, and only 12 percent are Democrats…
Data published by the Idaho Secretary of State’s office shows that out of the nearly 119,000 people who recently moved to the state, 65% registered as Republicans, compared to just 12% registering as Democrats.
The data, which was reviewed by Fox News Digital, show that out of the roughly 20,000 Americans who moved from Washington state to Idaho, 62% registered as Republicans, compared to 12% as Democrats, 24% as unaffiliated and 2% as “other.” The percentage of registered Republicans originally from Washington who recently moved to Idaho is actually higher than the state’s overall percentage of registered Republicans, which sits at about 58%.
Out of the nearly 40,000 people who left California for Idaho, a whopping 75% registered as Republicans, the data reviewed by Fox News Digital show. Only 10% of the California pool registered as Democrats, 14% as unaffiliated and 2% as “other.”
Wow.
Real estate agents in Idaho are urging potential clients to “escape liberal hell” and to get to the state “before the coming collapse”…
The Seattle Times noted that real estate ads advise residents in states such as Washington to “escape liberal hell” and move to Idaho.
“Time is not on your side, flee the city NOW before the coming collapse!” another ad for a house listing in Idaho states, the outlet reported.
Perhaps you are thinking that you should move to Idaho too.
Unfortunately, for many Americans it is already too late, because property values in some areas of the state have more than tripled.
Of course property values have also skyrocketed in desirable areas in many other red states as well.
Meanwhile, mortgage rates have also soared, and as a result home payments have risen to absolutely absurd levels during the Biden administration…
WSJ analysis of the housing market:
Average monthly new home payment when Biden took office: $1,787
Average monthly new home payment today: $3,322
You can still try to relocate.
But it will cost you much more than it would have a few years ago.
Renting is also an option, but we have just been through a period of time when rental prices have also jumped substantially…
After suffering through a three-year period when rents jumped by 30% or more in many U.S. cities, renters are now starting to enjoy small breaks like this.
Ultimately, if you were planning to relocate, you should have already done it by now.
But the good news is that conditions are still at least somewhat relatively stable as we approach the end of 2023.
So if you want to get out of Dodge, you can still do it.
In fact, for many of you this may be your last chance.
But don’t wait too long, because the clock is ticking.
At this point, most Americans can feel that something has gone horribly wrong. The warning signs are all around us, and conditions are getting worse with each passing day.
Even Warren Buffett can sense that a really big shift is coming. During the first three quarters of this year he sold off a whopping “$28.7 billion of stock”…
Warren Buffett’s firm Berkshire Hathaway sold $28.7 billion of stock in the first three quarters of 2023 in a move that some economists have interpreted as ringing alarm bells for the American economy.
According to the company’s earnings, the Nebraska-based firm of the legendary investor and billionaire, known as the Oracle of Omaha, sold a net $10.4 billion of stock in the first quarter of the year. In the second quarter, it sold close to $13 billion of shares and bought less than $5 billion. In the third quarter, it sold about $5.3 billion worth of stocks.
As Buffett is considered one of the greatest investors of all time, as well as one of America’s richest men, his moves are closely observed and analyzed.
He didn’t make so much money by being stupid.
Buffett may not fully understand all of the specifics, but he realizes that something is up.
As our society crumbles, most of the population is not going to be able to handle it.
For the third consecutive year, many psychologists across the country say they are seeing patients struggle with worsening symptoms, many of them needing longer treatment times.
Those are among the findings of an annual survey by the American Psychological Association, released this week. The APA first launched this survey in 2020 to gauge the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on practicing psychologists.
A majority of psychologists reported that more people are seeking mental health care this year, adding to already long waitlists. Over half (56%) said they had no openings for new patients. Among those who keep waitlists, average wait times were three months or longer and nearly 40% said that their waitlist had grown in the past year.
Doing stand up comedy. I do it as an amateur for fun.
What I thought it was before I did it: You walk up, tell jokes for 10 minutes, then collect your free beer or $20.
What it actually is: You write 30 pages of jokes then meet with two other writers, who are also writing jokes (but different from yours). You’re all brutally honest with each other. You cut and trim. Some things don’t work. They point out logical inconsistencies. You end up with two pages.
Back to the drawing board. Repeat this process. Eventually you have 5 pages that will get you through a ten minute set. But, uh oh, one of your topical jokes appears in the media. More than one person can think of the same joke. “I had this joke first,” you think. But that doesn’t matter. You replace.
You rehearse and rehearse and rehearse so you don’t forget. You decide on a persona. You make sure your jokes match that persona. The persona needs to be enough of you to be honest or the audience won’t like it, but it should be an exaggerated version of you.
Then, you sit in a shabby green room in a bar that’s probably not in the best part of town. You get a knot in your stomach. You listen to the comedians who go before you.
You can always tell the comedians in a comedy club. They’re the ones who say “that’s a good joke” instead of laughing.
Finally, it’s your turn. You have two or three jokes to win the audience over. If they don’t like you from the start, it’s almost impossible to get them back.
Wait, what’s that? People are actually laughing! This is amazing. Why are they laughing at these lame jokes that I’ve told myself more than 100 times before performing them?
The Management came with high hopes of building a gigantic supply chain to rival Chinas by 2026
And went home with their TAIL BETWEEN THEIR LEGS and determined never to even look at India on a Map again
They were used to Chinese workers who were ready to slog 9+2 hours a day for 6 days a week and deliver 63 Units a day at peak productivity
They came because they were promised the world
First, the workers cried about wages
They agreed initially and then cried. That’s because the Agent was collecting 20% a month from their wages directly. So out of ₹14000/-, the workers saw a cut of ₹ 3000/- into the pocket of the Agent
Wistron raised the wages to ₹17000/- to keep them happy
Next, they did a surprising amount of overtime
The Average worker in China billed 12 hours a week for overtime
Here the Average worker was billing 30 hours a week overtime
Yet Productivity was less than half of China
Soon they found, everyone was deliberately working slow during normal hours to justify overtime
Workers due to be paid ₹17000/- a month plus maybe ₹6000/- for overtime at most were now paid ₹ 15,000/- for overtime and ₹32,000 a month
YET PRODUCTIVITY WAS 27
Wistron ordered that the Overtime pay be held back until a proper investigation was made
Workers felt outraged
They didn’t seem to care that their productivity was low
They seemed to think they were slogging hard and demanded money from the evil capitalist
So they attacked the plant, broke a lot of equipment AND THE COPS/AUTHORITIES SEEMED TO HOLD WISTRON GUILTY OF CHEATING
Wistron literally crawled before the Chinese on their knees to take them back but China gave a grin and said “Sorry. We have our own OEMs”
This is one Story of Indian HARD WORK
Same story in every single case
Lazy Indian makes promises he can’t keep. Demands money anyway. Accuses foreigner of Racism and Imperialism when he withholds payment
Files cheating case against his reps in India, forcing them to flee
Always the same story
Yes Sir!!!! We can definitely deliver by 31st December
Then slowly the excuses
Sir,many of my workers fell Ill due to the Pandemic
Sir, Machine broke down
Sir, Workers are asking for some wages. Can you release 10% more payment
Then when the Client gets angry, the belligerence
Sir, we have worked so hard. We haven’t gone home for weeks because of you. Please pay the balance
You are a racist. I will file cheating case against your manager in India and against your office.
The Poor Manager and staff in India get caught and are forced to pay hush money to the cops and end up becoming pawns
Eventually the Client disgusted cuts his losses and closes the office and says “Gutter Country”
My Client had an email from a Belgian importer literally saying
Thanks for your Interest however WE DO NOT DO BUSINESS WITH INDIANS
Others have similar lines
We don’t do business with Indians unless the entire payment can be made on COD basis
(COD = Cash on Delivery)
Foreign entities would love to come to India but India is so dirty, so corrupt and so abase without proper ethics or work culture that they don’t want to take a chance.
They would pay higher prices and go to Vietnam or Mexico or of course China if China would still have them. China is now focusing on their own brands and is not ready to entertain foreign brands too much.
In the IT Industry, things were once different but now slowly that Industry is heading the same way
Luckily the Dollar Rupee continuous depreciation helps because a $ 100 raise a day per asset today is ₹60,000/- a week in India
Enough to grovel, sit and stay
Hire 4 Unemployed Assets for ₹30 K a month and quote an extra $ 100 a week and pocket ₹ 120K a month
India is seriously a very bad place for hard work and ethics
Neither for smart work
There are exceptions of course
You have good hard workers with ethics in Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad in IT and Software and other key areas yet the new generation are becoming worse and worse .
My Son Was A Disrespectful Jerk Until I Switched Tactics, Treated Him Like A Man…And He Became One
Today is a video that discusses the importance of instilling fear in others. Please watch it. Cobra’s need to hiss.
…
The United States is leading the West into a great collapse, and the longer that it is delayed, the more horrific the fall will be. Mark my words.
…
My mother was living with her “husband” after she divorced my father. This man and her did not ever get formally married as both were Catholic. However, they did everything else together. In sin, I suppose.
He was reasonably wealthy. He owned a coal company. And I got along reasonably well with him.
He had something like 18 sons. No daughters. And his boys were loose cannons, but a lot of fun. Oh well. LOL.
Anyways, as time went forward, he got older and older… more and more frail. And in the Manor where my mother and him lived, he has one of those staircase elevators installed. It was kindly neat and all that, but as soon as he passed on, my mother insisted that it be removed immediately. She didn’t want that thing in her house at all.
Fifteen years later, she too was old and feeble, and I was there taking care of her. It got to the point that she no longer could walk up the stairs by herself. SO she slept downstairs in a bedroom that we built just for that purpose.
The bedroom was really nice, by the way, with a bathroom, and an attached study. Mom picked out a massive desk for the office, but to everyone’s dismay discovered that it wouldn’t fit in the office. Oh well. We then parked the credenza outside.
She only got to use the bedroom for a few months before she passed on. Maybe ten tops. But that is good enough for me.
When you die, you leave behind the things that you no longer need.
To prevent a competitor from duplicating your technology / products.
By invalidating patents, then ALL patents become worthless paper. This is simply because any nation still using them restricts it’s own industry. To ignore patents by one is to ignore patents by all. To remain competitive, once the patent protection fails, all patent protection fails. It’s a global “domino effect”.
There will be a serious of STRONG and DANGEROUS consequences of this action.
Initially, the weaker industry (nation / product / technology) will start to copy the previously protected items.
This in turn, will provide an outward appearance of “catching up” to the dominant (nation / product / industry).
But, this will be short-lived. Innovation, especially in the contemporaneous fields (that are at battle) require manpower, innovative talent, and massive capital investment. The industry that presently maintains this lead will continue to maintain this lead, while the nation / industry falling behind will require massive changes and investment just to “tread water”.
This is [1] an obvious desperate move, [2] constructed by the ignorant, that will have [3] a long-term negative impact on the industries of the West. Particularly the United States.
…
Consider India.
India invalidated protections on American patents. This resulted in the export of “dirt cheap” medicine and pharmaceuticals. In the USA, a single pill of Viagra costs $20. (Of course, you can shop around, but that is the baseline price.) But you can buy them on-line, out of India for $1 each. Seeing that it costs $0.00000009 for each pill, the profit is still enormous for Indian companies, and American companies lost market share.
Consider China.
All those fancy-pantsy gizmos and gadgets in the latest American weapons systems, electronics, and medicines are now “up for grabs”. China will own EVERYTHING. Americans will still pay premium prices, and the protectionism measures will be “ramped up”, but China really will OWN EVERYTHING.
From Viagra to Oreos. From McDonald’s to Starlink. From Harley-Davidson to Heinz ketchup. This legislation by “Congress” pretty much is the DEATH BLOW to United States product dominance.
Last Word
To those of you who do not work in any tech industry, some words need to be said.
A patent is NOT a set of instructions on how to use technology. It is a description of the invention. It can include it’s basic properties and premises that it works upon, but patents will not provide enough information to duplicate that technology.
The United States can, at will, invalidate any patents it wants. But that does not give it that technology. It just allows it to copy the technology IF IT HAS THE MEANS to do so. If it has the manufacturing technology, the design technology, and a thorough understanding of the underlying principles.
For all you ‘Merica types out there is internet land, I’d advise you all to stop and think.
China is a beautiful woman. A 10 in any man’s book.
A patent is like a photograph of that woman.
But claiming that ownership of that photo is the same as being married to the chick is silly.
Come back down to earth, and realize that you just cannot reconstitute a technology from the words on a patent. All you can do is pin up that picture up on the wall for everyone to look at.
My mom, dad, and Grandpa were the ones who were proud of me for sticking up for my sister.
So a little back story, my sister has Scoliosis and she had a bully in fourth grade who kept physically assaulting with her. She kept telling the teachers and even the principal but they never did shit about it, and she told us every time this guy would attack her.
So one day, I actually witnessed one of his attacks on her so I went up to him, pinning him to a wall and punched him the face a few times and told him, if he ever messed with my sister, I will give him a beating of a lifetime. Dude ran to the bus after I letted him go.
So I rode the bus home, and warned my mom she was going to get a call from the school about me taking matters into my own hands after witnessing this guy hurt my sister. She was shocked that I did that. But she said she would support me.
Guess what, first period, I get called to the Principle’s office by the school announcer, I just decided to go and face judgment day, my home room teacher and my counselor were there as well, along with the kid I punched a few times. I rolled my eyes at the kid, as I sit down.
So what happened next, I get confronted by three people at once, they were firing shots at me while I just sat there looking at the kid who I beat up. Soon enough, my mom was called in to meet with them that day, while I was in ISS. But she didn’t arrive till 7th Period with my grandpa, my dad who was a police officer, and my sister’s note book of all the dates this kid bullied her and when she did tell a teacher and the principal at which time.
I remember seeing the color being wiped away when she saw my dad in his uniform, but they frought hard in support of my actions. But at the end, we had to threatened the school with a lawsuit. But that was two weeks later. I was punished with OSS for two to three weeks.
So when it was over, My mom took me to the mall and got me Dairy Queen and a sword from Isle of Misfits, got a few lego figures and a Lego set. My mom did tell me to next time, prep before taking action. And try not to do that again unless I have to, but she was proud of me. Along with my dad and my Grandpa.
Anyway my OSS was lifted after the lawsuit was threatened and the bully of my sister was punished OSS for the time I was in OSS. My Teacher, Principle, and Counselor apologized to me but I just told the Principle to next time, to do her job, and I told my teacher and counselor that it’s going to take some time for me to forgive them.
All was well, the bully never messed with my sister and was even moved out of the classroom she and him were in. People in her grade knew not to bully her otherwise if Teachers or Principles don’t do anything, her big brother will do something about it.
Beggar’s Chicken (China)
Beggars Chicken
Ingredients
1 (3 pound) broiler-fryer chicken
6 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 1/2 tablespoons dry sherry
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon five-spice powder
1 (1-inch square) piece fresh ginger root, pared and cut into thin slices
4 cups all-purpose flour
3 cups salt
1 1/2 cups water
Instructions
Remove giblets from chicken and reserve for another use. Rinse chicken and pat dry with paper toweling. Place chicken on large piece of greased extra-wide, heavy duty aluminum foil. Rub or brush 2 1/2 tablespoons of the soy sauce completely over chicken. Rub or brush the oil completely over chicken. Pull skin at neck end under chicken and secure with small skewer. Tuck wing tips under thicken.
Combine remaining 4 tablespoons soy sauce, the sherry, sugar, five-spice powder, onions and ginger. Pour mixture into cavity of chicken, holding tail end of chicken up slightly so liquid does not run out of cavity. Secure tail end of chicken with small skewers. Wrap foil around chicken, sealing securely.
Combine flour and salt in bowl. Gradually mix in enough water to make a firm dough. Roll out dough on lightly floured surface until about 1/4-inch thick (dough must be large enough to completely cover chicken.
Place foil-wrapped chicken onto center of dough. Fold dough over chicken, pressing edges and ends together to seal completely. Place chicken in well greased 13 x 9-inch baking pan.
Bake chicken in preheated 450 degrees F oven 1 hour.
Reduce heat to 300 degrees F. Bake 2 1/2 hours longer.
Remove chicken from oven. Using mallet or hammer, break pastry. Remove chicken from pastry and place on serving plate. Carefully remove foil and skewers.
It’ll be extremely rare to see a scam in Japan as a tourist in Japan, except in one location: Kabukicho, Shinjuku, Tokyo.
Some scams exist for many Japanese people, like the Ore-ore scam
targeting the elderly, but many you won’t experience. (I’ve dropped my wallet in the middel of the street in Tokyo before, and had it returned with all my money inside of it.
Essentialy, the scam is that some cute girl or a muscular foriegner who speaks English tries to entice you into a bar, and get you drinking. If you’re alone and looking for company, you could get a drink (if you hadn’t checked the prices), and then when you get the bill, instead of something like $20 you were expecting to pay, you “ordered” the $2000 drink according to them.
Because you don’t speak Japanese and are intoxicated, if the police get involved you’ll most likely be blamed for not paying up.
They’ll take you to the ATM with a kind, muscular “escort” to help lift the burden of money off of you, and you’ll probably regret your existence while doing so.
Biggest thing is make sure you see a menu, and don’t go in because of a cute girl or because of some random promoter who speaks English.
I really enjoy going to Rocky Bar Mother and Bar Psy are really great to go to there, with drinks and awesome music if you like it. I take my friends there on occasion, so it’s something I’d highly recommend.
Always getup when you’re sitting and someone come to greet you.
Always comment on good things don’t keep in heart.
If the phone is on the speaker inform.
Chat to anyone who is sitting alone at a party or in a group.
don’t have the impulse to sit near look-alike you. If everyone fulfils this, people who represent any minority will end up sitting alone.
If feasible, avoid the plan to go outdoor if you have a runny nose.
Do not swipe left or right if individual shows you a photo on their phone.
Wave your hand rather than calling his or her name if someone is far or on phone or earphones plugged in.
Offer a glass of water to the delivery man.
People know the worth. If successful wear shirt of 300 it seems 3000 and if unsuccessful wear 3000 it seems 300. Don’t show off.
When anyone gets shouted at don’t look at them. It’s more awkward.
Always open the door for the person coming behind you. Doesn’t matter if it is a guy or a girl.
Stop being late, it’s irritating.
When someone starts talking about their conditions, don’t start talking about yours.
Never ask a shy person what’s wrong or ask them ‘why aren’t you talking more?’ It only makes them feel more awkward.
When visiting someone’s house, carry something.
When you open a gift, just say thank you. Don’t say, “It’s too expensive!”
Being vegetarian or non-vegetarian is a choice. Don’t ask anyone why it’s so.
Do not sympathize with anyone in public. This will embarrass a person more than be laughing at.
Don’t expect others to understand how hard you are working and living. Everyone doing.
If you like working with smart people, be prepared to be used by them too. As well as Worshipped and learn from them too. Your attitude.
Don’t make suggestions; But when it comes to house, car, marriage don’t give advice. Because these are very important things & if something goes wrong you’ll be blamed or they may stop talking to you.
Greeting Etiquette = The 6S- Stand, See, Smile, State, Say, Shake
Don’t look at your phone when others are talking to you.
It happened during our campus placements. Company had shortlisted 20 students for interview round and intended to take only 2.
I had cleared first 2 interviews and was being interviewed with regional head of the company..
Interviewer: ” So tell me.. What will you do if any better company with same profile but better package offers you the job?”
Me: “Sir I will take that job.”
Interviewer: ” This means you are not loyal to us. Even if I offer you the job there is no guarantee that you will join our company. So why should I offer you one?”
Me: “Sir if you are talking about being loyal, so let me ask you, if you find another candidate better than me then you will offer him the job. Isn’t it. So going by your logic company is not loyal to me. But let me tell you it isn’t about being loyal. Everyone wants best for himself. You want best people to work for you and I want to work for the best. Don’t you believe you are best in the industry??”
I had a charismatic boss who managed by walking around trying to intimidate employees. He didn’t bother me because my job was essential and I got along well with the conservative types and the weirdos.
We used a lot of darkroom equipment and chemicals. Because the chemicals contained silver, they were expensive, and this boss was cheap.
I found out by accident that he instructed accounts payable not to pay the suppliers. We were supposed to find new suppliers. And then when they were not paid, move to new suppliers.
I did not like this.
This plan made me crabby.
So, I called a couple of the suppliers from home to tell them the plan. They called other suppliers, competitors, and everyone else. That’s all I did. I called two suppliers.
Suddenly no supplier would fill our orders unless they were paid in advance. I told the boss that we had to pay up front. He waved this problem away, as he often did. I wrote him a note. Left it on his desk. He didn’t read it.
We ran out of supplies. The darkroom work and all typesetting stopped. All three art departments stopped, apart from planning.
The boss had a meltdown when he discovered all those employees were unable to finish work. He called a supplier from my phone. The supplier required payment for all previous invoices, so the boss called another supplier. He got the same message. And again.
Just then, the 80-year-old office manager arrived. She took the phone out of his hand and told him to leave the building and stop annoying people. He left. She continued the conversation to say that she would courier a cheque over immediately and when it cleared, we would appreciate the supplies.
As she was leaving, I heard her say that the she was going to kill that man before she retired.
She was unsuccessful.
He lives.
Lost In Space | 1920 Universe
This 1920 universe is AI generated madness. Well worth the time to visit.
I was assistant manager of a fabric store. Some days I would open the store and other days I would close. One morning I woke up with the flu. I felt horrible, as you can imagine. I was supposed to close that day, so I called very early and told the manager I couldn’t come in, hoping to give them the whole work day to find someone to close.
The manager said she was just about to call me to open because the other asst mgr had forgotten she had to take her kid to the dentist or something. I said, definitely not because I have the flu and can barely get out of bed. The manager said she REALLY needed me to come in. I explained I had a fever and was dizzy but she said I didn’t have a choice, they needed me to come in. I was like, seriously? I can’t believe you want me to come and work with the public when I’ve got the flu. She wouldn’t budge, so I got dressed and went to work.
One of the things I had to do was open the safe and count all the money to make sure the total matched the night before, and bring the cash drawers out to the registers. Any time I wasn’t in the office, it was policy to lock the safe, even if I was only going to be gone for a minute, and even though the store was closed and doors locked. I counted the drawers but I was having trouble counting the rest of the money because I couldn’t concentrate, I was so dizzy. I kept losing track and having to start over.
Finally, since it was getting close to opening the store, I decided to take the drawers out to the registers and then come back and try to count the cash. I closed the safe and carried out the drawers, just as a regional manager came through the door. She went straight to the office. When I came into the office, the safe was standing open. I was shocked because I knew I had closed it. The regional manager asked me why the safe was open, when I knew it was the policy to lock it when I left the office.
I said I was certain I had closed it. She said, yes, it was closed but not locked. I tried to explain I wasn’t even supposed to be there because I was sick, but she interrupted me and said they were going to have to let me go. I was stunned, as I was one of the most knowledgeable employees in the store and had never missed a day of work. I was standing there swaying and trying not to pass out, and wondering how I was going to support my kids now.
The RM told one of the other employees to call someone to replace me so the store wouldn’t be short-handed. I grabbed my stuff and headed for the door. The RM said, “Where do you think you’re going? You have to stay until someone comes to take your shift. If we can’t find anyone, you’ll finish the day.”
I looked at her with an incredulous expression. “Are you kidding me?? I’ve just been fired for dragging my sick ass out of bed to cover for someone who can’t be bothered to keep track of their appointments. I’m going home and going to bed!” Then I walked out.
This happened during college. I was down with viral fever and had to take a break for three days. My best friend, a girl, was in constant touch via phone and she sounded dull. When asked what the problem was, she said it was nothing and I thought she worried about my health. Day 4, I return to college and I learn that a guy from a different department was teasing her (in an abusive way) and was stalking her everyday. And she, being a very reserved and not so brave, did not even tell it outside. I went and punched the mofo right on his face and broke a couple of teeth. His friends came for his help and started attacking me and my friends came in from nowhere.
Once this gang war was done, I and that guy were taken along with our friends to the principal’s office and he started hurling scoldings one after the other. I was a bright student and was always in the good books of every professor and thus it came as a shock to everyone.
They called all of our parents and my dad came. Even my friend was taken into account here and her mom was called to the college (She didn’t have a dad). Everybody – My head of the department, my principal started scolding me and gave my dad a transfer certificate to fill up for me to take me out from the current college and put me somewhere else. They also told me I had spoilt my career now due to this and for also having a relationship (typical Indian brains ya know, roam around with a girl and she is your girlfriend). My dad remained calm and filled up the form and asked if there are any more procedures to be done. The principal and HOD were stunned (they were apparently just trying to scare us) and asked him if he wasn’t worried about my future. I still remember what he said “If I was him, I would have done the same, what he did was right. No one should stand by when a woman is being harassed. I want my son to be on the front lines to stand up for any sort of injustice. I know the girl for the past 14 years and she and my son have been friends since then”.
Everyone got a month’s suspension and the opposite team got two months suspension, except for that guy who harassed her, he voluntarily got a transfer to some other college. I came out of college as a guy with triple placement and being the highest paid recruit of that year.
When driving back home in the car, dad leans in and asks “You love her or what?”
Me : *Facepalm* Typical Indian parents.
P.S : But dad was the best and he was right, This happened 4 years back and am now engaged to that friend of mine 😉
Doctor Who | 1920 Universe | COLORIZED
Priceless . . . US Navy Refusing to Deploy Brand New Littoral Combat Ships to Middle East; Houthi Anti-Ship Missile concern!
The US Navy says it doesn’t have enough warships to launch Operation Prosperity Guardian against the Houthis in Yemen.
According to John Conrad (maritime journalist), the US built 24 littoral combat ships for coastal warfare, but the US is now refusing to deploy them.
Houthi anti-ship ballistic missiles and drones “cause US concern.”
HAL TURNER EDITORIAL OPINION
According to Wikipedia, these Littoral COmbat ships cost between Four-Hundred Twenty million and four-hundred eighty million dollars, each.
We built at least 24 of them.
Do the math: 24 x $420,000,000= $10.08 BILLION . . . . and now the Navy that bought them – for coastal warfare – isn’t sending them into battle over fear of anti-ship missiles????? WTF?????
So did we simply throw that money in the garbage? We have ships we can’t use . . . so what do we do with them now?
You know, you can’t make this stuff up. The level of stupidity is amazing.
Maybe, though, it’s not stupidity; maybe it’s corruption? Whose beak got wet from that $10.08 Billion? Whose palms got greased?
And nobody looked or asked about it because the ships were, in fact, built.
Except now, we’re afraid to put them into battle, and guys like me are starting to ask why we even built them, and why can’t a “modern” warship defend itself from anti-ship missiles?”
The Fantasy Of Missile Defense In Ukraine
In October 2022 I mocked western media propaganda that was depicting Russia as unable to sustain the war:
Back in March I had warned that Lies Do Not Win Wars. Here is another practical example.
After allegedly having ‘run out of missiles’ and, more importantly, patience, the leadership of the Russian Federation decided to de-electrify Ukrainian cities with a ‘barrage of missile strikes’.
But first came the propaganda blubber: …
There followed 25 headlines by western media which claimed that Russia was running out of missiles.
More recently we see frequent claims by the Ukrainian government that it shot down 43 of the 32 drones Russia launched that day as well as 5 out of 3 supersonic missiles.
Laughable nonsense.
But slowly, slowly the Ukrainians and media have turned to describing stuff more near to, but not yet, reality:
Russia has launched about 7,400 missiles and 3,700 Shahed attack drones at targets in Ukraine during its 22-month-old invasion, Kyiv said on Thursday, illustrating the vast scale of Moscow’s aerial assaults.
Ukrainian air defences were able to shoot down 1,600 of the missiles and 2,900 of the drones, air force spokesperson Yuriy Ihnat said in televised comments. “We are faced with an enormous aggressor, and we are fighting back,” he said.
Shooting down drones, which are relatively slow and fly low, is not so difficult or expensive. One often only needs to have some machine guns in place on the path along which a drone is flying.
Shooting down missiles is something entirely different. Due to their flightpath and speed one needs expensive missile defense systems. The anti-missile missiles these systems fire come at a high price. One Patriot missile comes at about $2,000,000, more for newer ones. Routinely two are fired against any potential target.
If the Ukraine has really shot down 1,600 missiles, which I very much doubt, one can easily calculate the enormous costs of such an endeavor
There are reasons why Patriot missiles are only produced in the hundreds per year, not in the thousands.
No country in the world can sustain such an onslaught without running out of defenses or going bankrupt.
Several months ago a U.S. delivered Patriot system in Kiev came under attack. Set to automatic mode it fired (video) 32 missiles for no observable hits on the imaginary targets. Scott Ritter has said that the U.S. Marines are not allowed to use the automatic mode of their Patriot systems because that is known to fail. But the Ukrainians were not trained to fully handle the manual mode.
And now they are telling us that they shot down 1,600 missiles?
How probable is that?
Posted by b on December 22, 2023 at 12:53 UTC | Permalink
A few days earlier, I had ordered food from an online ordering service. The time must have been around 9:30 PM. Approximate delivery time given was 10:00 PM.
I was not famished literally and didn’t realize the order was delayed until I got a call from the ordering service’s customer care. It must have been around 10:15 PM.
Customer Care Agent: Hello, am I talking to Mr. Yatin?
Me : Yes.
CCA: I am talking from S****y. This is regarding your order sir. The delivery guy informed me that the order cannot be delivered as it is in very bad condition.
Me: Bad condition? As in?
CCA: The delivery person’s bike slipped actually. He says the order is not in a deliverable condition. Do you wish to talk to the delivery guy?
Me: Sure, connect us.
So now Me, CC agent and the delivery boy we now on conference.
After I was put in conference, I could only hear strange shouting sounds on the other side.
The shouting was like, “You idiot piece of s##t! Can you be any more careless? Do you think the material is free?…. Blah, blah, blah….”
Finally the delivery guy spoke.
Delivery guy (Shouting sounds still in background): Sorry sir, the delivery packaging is damaged, and I cannot deliver it.
CCA: Yatin sir, do you want a reorder or a refund? As you can see there is some damage to your order.
By this time I realised that the shouting sounds were in the background of the delivery boy.
The shouting continued, “It’s because of you careless guys that our reputation is spoilt. Careless fellow! Now if reorder is asked from us who will borne the loss?!! I will not give reorder!”
I understood that delivery boy had gone back to restaurant, and had to hear all this because my order was damaged.
I was not having it. I asked the delivery boy something which no one gave a f**k about.
“Bhaiya (brother), are you hurt after the accident? Do you required first aid? Keep the order aside and get first aid if required.”
The guy in a crying tone said he is okay and is sorry for messing up my order.
I asked him to handover his phone to that dumb restaurant owner. And I gave him a piece of my mind. I told him that delivery boys are human beings. They are not robots. Accidents can happen. No need to shout on anyone. It’s not only about your food that represents you, it’s you. I think so you should worry less about your ratings and more about your behaviour ratings. Try to have some general courtesy and not get blinded by professionalism.
He defended himself saying he did not mean any disrespect to me personally. I told him that I will not give any rating as I did not get any food. But whoever he is disrespecting, is a ‘person’ after all and mistakes do happen. He apologized for his behavior.
I still asked the delivery guy if he was fine, he said yes and thanked me. I asked him to be careful in the future and not rush so much as it will be fatal to his life.
The customer care refunded me and that’s all.
Numbers and stars can blind the best of us, is what I realized from this.
Not me, my younger brother Kenneth (by ten years).
I was 21, he was 11. It was a Friday, I was off and took him to the lake. We planned to spend the day there, but about 12:30 we’d skipped breakfast so we went to this burger place to get some lunch. Ordered some burgers. They had one pool table there; Kenneth was watching four college kids play, back then it was 25c to play and they were playing for a dollar a game. Challenger pays for the game.
He said, “Gimme a buck and a quarter.”
All right, sure. I have an idea what’s coming. He walks over, and says he wants to play, he’s got his money. The guy who had won the last game is saying he doesn’t want to take a kid’s money, so I said, “It’s my money, don’t worry about it, just let him have a game.”
Okay. Four guys about 20, shaking their heads and grinning. Kenneth breaks hard, and sinks a ball. Runs four more after that, then barely missed a bank shot. Grins are gone.
The other guy takes his shot, misses, and Kenneth runs the rest of the table. It was hilarious, now all of those guys are drinking beer and laughing every time he sinks a tough shot, “no fucking way!” and “Jeezus Christ!”
He picked up the two bucks, said, “Thanks, dude,” then put a dollar back down. “Anybody want to play?”
They all did. One after another, they all lost a couple of bucks, along with the waiter, and two more guys who came in. We were there for hours, until it was too late to go back to the lake. He made about twenty bucks. Funniest buck and a quarter I ever spent. Kid had been shooting pool in our garage since he was four and standing on a box.
A man dies and goes to hell. Once there, he finds that there is a different hell for each country, so he tries to seek out the least painful one.
At the door to German Hell, he is told: “First they put you in an electric chair for an hour. Then they lay you on a bed of nails for another hour. Then the German devil comes in and whips you for the rest of the day.”
He does not like the sound of that, so he checks out American Hell, Russian Hell and many more. They are all similarly gruesome. However, at Nigerian Hell a long line of people is waiting to get in. Amazed, he asks, “What do they do here?”
He is told: “First they put you in an electric chair for an hour. Then they lay you on a bed of nails for another hour. Then the Nigerian devil comes in and whips you for the rest of the day.”
“But that’s the same as the others,” says the man. “Why are so many people waiting to get in?”
“Because of the power cuts, the electric chair does not work. The nails were paid for but never supplied, so the bed is comfortable. And the Nigerian devil used to be a civil servant, so he comes in, signs his time sheet and goes back home for private business.” Tolu Ogunlesi
The Khachaturyan case:
This is a disturbing incident of three teenage sisters stabbing their own father to death, while he was dozing in his armchair at the family home in northern Moscow.
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(Image Source: Getty Images)
The sisters attacked him with a knife, hammer and pepper spray, inflicting fatal wounds to his head, neck, and chest. He had 30 knife wounds in his body when he was found. The girls then called the police and were arrested at the scene.
Why did the sisters kill their own father? What was the motive?
It was during the evening of 27 July 2018, Mikhail Khachaturyan, 57, called Krestina, Angelina and Maria, (aged 19, 18, and 17 respectively), one by one to his room. He scolded them for not cleaning the flat properly and sprayed pepper gas in their faces. The sisters plotted against the father after this incident took place.
The investigation soon uncovered an extensive history of violence in the family. Khachaturyan had regularly beaten his daughters over three years, torturing them, keeping them as prisoners and sexually abusing them. They reported the attack to police and admitted carrying it out, saying they believed their lives were at risk if they did not take action.
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(Image Source: Social media; EAST2WEST NEWS)
The case quickly became sensational news in Russia. Human rights activists argued that the sisters were not criminals but victims, as they had no means of getting help and protection from their abusive father. However, there are no laws protecting victims of domestic violence in Russia.
Under legal changes introduced in 2017, a first-time offender who beats a family member, but not badly enough to put them in hospital, will face only a fine or up to two weeks in custody. Police in Russia usually treats domestic abuse as a “family issue”, providing little or no help at all.
The sisters’ mother, who had also suffered beatings and abuse from Khachaturyan in the past, had approached the police years before. So did the family’s neighbors, who were highly afraid of him. But there is no evidence that the police acted on any of these appeals for help. According to psychiatric assessments, the girls lived in isolation and had been suffering from post-traumatic stress (PTSD).
During the investigation, the sisters were all charged with premeditated murder. Angelina and Krestina face up to 20 years in prison. Maria, a child at the time, could be imprisoned for up to 10 years.
The decision to bring murder charges has been met with protests. In Moscow, hundreds of people gathered outside the headquarters of the Investigative Committee law enforcement agency. Activists were continuing to picket their offices almost daily. Demonstrations have also taken place at Russian embassies or consulates around the world, and Russian cultural figures have spoken out in defense of the sisters.
The high-profile case has divided Russian society into those who say that Krestina, Angelina and Maria Khachaturyan acted in self-defense and those who view them as murderers. Independent polling said that 41% of Russian respondents support the Khachaturyan sisters, while 29% don’t support them.
What do you feel about this disturbing incident? Do you see them as murderers? Or do you feel they acted in self-defense?
It wasn’t me that “picked a fight with the wrong person” but certainly one that I witnessed first hand.
So my wife, my friend Barry and his wife left a theatre heading for a bar, with the 2 ladies were walking maybe 20-30 metres in front chatting away – as women tend to do 😛
Next thing, they stop short next to an alleyway behind the theatre and my wife shouts out “f**k off a—hole” and starts to back off.
Barry and I arrive on scene and we see 3 guys – knives pulled waving them around.
Being “Mr Laid Back”, Barry asks “so whats going on here guys?” to which a—hole#1 responds politely “This is our robbery buddy so f**k off or we do you as well”.
Barry shrugs his shoulders, does a half turn as if to walk away then the rest was like the scene from Jason Bourne (movie 1) in the US Embassy scene……blur, blur, arms, hands, legs, blur blur and done, literally 5 seconds and 3 knife-wielding scumbags lying on the floor with broken wrists, unconscious and bloody (or all three).
What I didn’t say was Barry looked and dressed like a city gent, weighed about 120kgs and stood just under 2m tall. He was also previously an unarmed combat instructor for the police, an expert in Ju-Jitsu, Karate and Krav-Maga and worked “in the field” for the security services.
they certainly picked a fight with the wrong person……..
A good friend to have on or by your side at any time, and unfortunately now, sorely missed.
<RIP big man>
No right answer
20 Unspoken Rules For Men:
1. Never shake a hand sitting down.
2. Protect who is behind you, and respect who is beside you.
3. Never insult the cooking when you are the guest.
4. Never eat the last piece of something you didn’t buy.
5. Never make the first offer in a negotiation.
6. Don’t take credit for work you didn’t do.
7. Take blame, and give credit when due.
8. If you are not invited, don’t ask to go.
9. Always aim for the head.
10. Don’t beg for a relationship.
11. Dress well no matter what the occasion.
12. Always carry cash.
13. Listen, nod, and most of all make eye contact.
14. Show restraint in expressing anger, no matter what. Being angry is a waste of energy.
15. Weather it is dinner, drinks, or both, avoid placing your phone on the dinner table.
16. Never pose with alcohol.
17. Proper grammar will get you far in life. Leave the foul language for the less educated.
18. Ask more than you answer.
19. You can tell a great deal about a person by their handshake, so make your strong and firm.
20. Speak honestly. Say what you mean and mean what you say.
…
Chris Williamson: Why Men & Women Are Giving Up On Love
Well, I still get a bit nauseated thinking of this…I once saw a woman who reported “itchiness” in her groin. Expecting some type of rash, I had her undress and lay back on table. I inspected her groin only to find her entire pubic hair area filled with crawling small bugs! Pubic lice! I was careful not let my disgust show but got a treatment creme and smeared a LOT of it on the entire area. I prescribed a similar medication and simply assured her that the infestation and itchiness would get better after a while. She seemed grateful. My nurse and I then promptly sealed off that exam room and had it thoroughly cleaned. Despite that I felt “itchy” the rest of the day and gave myself a thorough shower when I got home. Despite feeling “disgusted”, one has to be professional. Sometimes harder than others!
I sure have known someone who seemingly disappeared from the face of the earth. But I’m not looking for them anymore.
It’s my brother who disappeared. He was on vacation with his wife and my parents, when he decided to take a short solo hike. Our folks and his wife decided to sit in the shade and wait for him to return. He said he would be back within an hour. But he never returned.
They were in Mesa Verde National Park. The path he went down is called the Spruce Treehouse Path, and it was steep and paved and busy, as people flocked down to see the Spruce Treehouse, an abandoned dwelling in excellent condition. My brother was fascinated with the dwellings and wanted to see one up close and personal. The rest of the group settled on the porch of one of the museums in the park. None of the three were in good enough shape to make it down the steep path and then climb back up again. His wife offered him a bottle of water, but he declined, saying he’d only be gone for a short while. He started to walk off and then his wife called out to him, he turned around, and she snapped the last picture that she would ever take of Mitchell Dale Stehling.
And that was it. The last time anyone in my family saw my brother alive. After two hours had passed, my mother became alarmed, she just knew something was wrong, so they raised the alarm and a short search by rangers was conducted. He couldn’t have gotten very far, in such a short period of time, the rangers told the three. And nobody ever stays lost for long. Either they are found, or they manage to make it back on their own. But Dale wasn’t found that night, nor the next day when the search went into full force. The mountain came alive with people. Search and rescue people came and went searching for him on foot. There were people on horseback, on ATV’s, in helicopters all scouring the mountain side for my lost brother. In addition, a FLIR equipped jet buzzed around the mountain with its heat seeking device looking for Dale.
The massive search effort lasted about a week. The head ranger had my folks put up in one of the cabins in the park, and brought them food, and drink, an no good news at all. There was no sign of Dale, not even an indication that he had even been in the park. In the meantime, my poor dad got sick as a dog and had to see a doctor there. The search was scaled back after a week, and my mother and father drove home alone in their motorhome, while Dale’s wife drove home to Texas with her children, who had driven to Colorado the moment they learned their dad was missing. My mother’s description of how she felt driving down out of the mountains and headed toward home, leaving my brother behind somewhere in the wilderness, just simply broke my heart.
I didn’t learn that Dale was missing until two days after he was gone. I don’t know why nobody thought to call me, but I don’t hold it against anyone, because I can only imagine the chaos and emotional turmoil each person went through in the first days when my brother went missing. I wanted to fly out and help with the search, but my folks asked me to please stay in Texas and guard the home front. Offers of help of all kinds began flooding in, and our church took up a special donation to help offset some of the cost of travel and lodging and being unable to work for a week or so. So I stayed home and worried and cried, and took phone call after phone call from people wondering about Dale.
The night my parents came home, we all gathered at their house. We all hugged and cried and expressed our disbelief that something like this could happen in our family. We wondered aloud how and why Dale had managed to get off trail and get lost. We wondered if he was attacked by someone or something. We all feared the worst. For about two weeks I held out hope that Dale was alive, but then that hope faded slowly away, and I came to realize that he was likely deceased. Yet we didn’t know for sure where he was or what had happened to him. Did he just decide to walk away from his family who all loved him dearly? Did he commit suicide out there some how? Were drugs involved? Did he fall off a cliff, or suffer a heart attack or get bitten by a snake? The questions kept coming with no answers in sight.
The years dragged on. I can tell you that I learned all about grief during those years. Dale and I had been very close, visiting or calling one another nearly every day. We shared our deepest secrets with one another, and he and I just became closer when our brother was diagnosed with schizophrenia and left the family fold. It was just him and me then, and you couldn’t get us apart no matter how hard you tried. I was simply and plainly, devastated by the loss of my dearest friend and brother. I wish I had a penny for every tear I have shed since Dale went missing. For years If I wrote about Dale, the ending was always the same. We didn’t know what happened to him, and we didn’t really expect him to be found as one year rolled around to the next. We were left hanging for many years.
Now there is a different ending when I write about Dale. And that is because of one off-trail hiker in the park. People are not allowed to deviate from the paths that run through the park. But this guy did, and he stumbled upon the skeletal remains of my brother over seven and a half years from the day he went missing. He left a note for the rangers, wanting to remain anonymous for obvious reasons. In the note he said he had found a human body, and had looked through the clothing and found ID. He named the person according to the ID found on him, and gave a good indication of where it was located. He also noted that he had already contacted the media, so the rangers needed to act quickly and go and retrieve that body. And that is exactly what they did.
The rangers and coroner hiked for well over four and a half miles into the wilderness, where they finally found my brother’s remains. They found his skeleton completely intact with the skull still on the neck and clothing still on the bones, shoes still on the feet. His cigarettes and lighter were still in his pocket as well as his wallet which contained his ID, driver’s license and credit cards. He was in a sitting position, with his legs straight out in front of him, leaning against “a lone tree in the bottom of a canyon” in an area that had been thoroughly searched when he first went missing.
Dale’s bones and clothing were examined by a forensic anthropologist. This person said that there were no indications of animal attack before or after his death. The clothing was completely intact and not ripped or torn anywhere. All the bones were accounted for, except the vertebrae which had been removed from his back a bunch of years before he went missing. His spine was fused during a back surgery. The coroner named the date of death as June 9, 2013, the very day he went missing.
Dale’s bones were returned to his widow. She had them cremated so that his ashes could be buried where he always said he wanted to be his eternal resting place. Which was under a big live oak tree on his property. There were visitation and funeral services for my brother, and a private burial after.
I have written about his funeral and burial before, so I won’t get overly emotional and write it all again. Suffice it to say, it was unique. I attended both, driving my parents to all of it. We attended the burial, and I watched as my brothers ashes were sprinkled into a hole in the ground at the base of a tree. My emotions were all over the place that day. I was so glad that the story had an ending, although not a happy one. It was good to know that his remains were back in Texas, and in the place where he always said he wanted to be buried. But the services made if feel like we had lost him all over again, and I cried for days and days.
I would give anything I owned to be able to wash this horrible event from our lives and to have my baby brother back. But God had other ideas, and I know where Dale resides right now. I can’t have my brother back, but I know I will see him again when we are reunited in heaven some day in God’s time. I have come to be able to cope with his death because I realize that this is but a short separation, really. We won’t be apart for all of eternity. Nope, because one day God will take me home too, and that is when I think life really begins. I imagine sharing heaven with my favorite person in the world. We will jump and shout and sing in the angel’s choir, together again for all eternity.
And that, I believe, is one heck of an ending to this story.
Star Trek as a SOVIET Sci-Fi movie directed by Andrei Tarkovski (ai generated)
I was 16, and at my grandfather’s life celebration. He’d passed 2 weeks before. That’s my dad and the daughter of a close friend.
I was trying to come to terms with a sexual assault that had occurred nearly a year before. My relationship with my dad had deteriorated to the point where we were hardly speaking, even though we were living in the same house. My dad is a good person, but he’s very broken and endured horrific abuse as a child and teenager. He’s also mentally ill, and at the time he was suicidal and angry. I’d also just lost my Poppy.
I was also suicidal and angry. My parents’ marriage was in tatters, I was in such emotional pain from the assault, and had just started college. I was working two jobs and paying my own way. My mother and I were constantly fighting. I’d just been diagnosed with an autoimmune disease and the treatment and recovery was wreaking havoc on my body and emotions. I wanted it all to stop. I was going to drive my car into a tree. I went out driving one night and sped up, and right before I swerved to hit the tree, I remembered my little sister and brother. And my dog, Woof. My sister was only 11, how awful for her would it be if I died? My brother was 14, it would have completely destroyed his life if I left. Woof wouldn’t understand what had happened to me, he’d just think I left him. I pulled over and broke down and cried. I drove home and told my mom I needed help.
I broke down crying on the kitchen floor and told her that if I didn’t get help, I was going to kill myself. She helped me make a therapy appointment for the next week, and I’ve been working hard ever since.
That was one of the lowest points of my life. There have been points just as low in recent years, but I made a promise to myself that I wouldn’t leave my family. If I can’t stay alive for myself, I have to for them.
After nearly 4 years of therapy, medication, a clinical depression and panic disorder diagnosis, a short stint in the psych ward when I had a panic attack so bad my then-boyfriend thought I was having a heart attack, and removing myself from my home situation, I’m proud to say that I’m getting better. I’m still not quite on the level of being okay, I still have my bad days and moments where I just want it to stop, but I try to no longer entertain those thoughts. I’m still working too much and not sleeping enough, but I’m also still in college and one step closer to achieving my goals. And I’m still here.
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I made it to 20, and for the first time in a long time, I feel anxious but a bit more prepared for what’s coming next.
EDIT: August 29th, 2023 – roughly 4 years from my OP
This answer has started getting a lot of new comments in the last few weeks, so I thought I just come back to say: I’m still here! I am 24 years old now and STILL ALIVE! The last 4 years have been wonderful, and horrific at times. I have new medical diagnoses, and a much better relationship with my parents. They’ve both grown a lot in the last few years, as have I, and I am lucky to have a much better relationship with both of them.
Thank you everyone for continuing to comment, and boost me, and being there. I come back to this post often to read the wonderful things you all have written whenever I need a boost, or a reminder that I do have a purpose and place here. To anyone who’s been in a place like this before, please know that it does get better. All of the things that I’ve experienced were more than worth it. Because I stayed, I got to watch my little brother graduate from college. Because I stayed I got to watch my little sister graduate high school and go off to college. Because I stayed, I met some of the most wonderful people. You have so much left to experience, so much left to do, and so many people to love, and be loved by. It sounds cliche but I promise, it does get better.
Why PsycHacks REFUSES To Date AMERICAN Women!
A little boy goes to his dad and asks, “What is politics?”
Dad says, “Well son, let me try to explain it this way: I earn the money in this family, so let’s call me the capitalist. Your mom says what we spend the money on, we’ll call her the government. Both of us are here to take care of your needs, so we’ll call you the people. Our nanny is representative of the working class. And your baby brother, we’ll call him the future. Now, think about that and see if that makes sense.”
So the little boy goes off to bed thinking about what dad had said.
Later that night, he hears his baby brother crying, so he gets up to check on him. He finds that the baby has severely soiled his diaper. So the little boy goes to his parents’ room and finds his mother sound asleep and his father missing. Not wanting to wake her, he goes to the nanny’s room, but there he sees the father in bed with the nanny and he can’t get their attention. He gives up and goes back to bed. The next morning, the little boy says to his father, “Dad, I think I understand the concept of politics now.”
The father says, “Good, then tell me in your own words what you think politics is all about.”
The little boy replies, “Well, capitalists are screwing the working class while the government is sound asleep. Meanwhile the people are being ignored and the future is in deep shit.”
It’s real. I have never spoken about it before this, but here I go. First year of engineering college was very difficult for me specially knowing the fact that I suffer from ADHD, thus I became an easy target for the seniors of our college. I remember telling a room full of seniors that I will complain about them and within first month it was known that no body from the second year is allowed to talk to me. Things became real one night when this one senior of mine slapped me 20 times in a room full of 20 people who did not even protest or say a thing. Then he used his slippers. Oh, what a night that was. And those two minutes when he was slapping me were the worst.
Then he told me that I won’t be allowed to enter any committee of the college and he would ensure that my life would be hell in college.
After this happened, I still had the guts to take the morning 9am bus and face him where the entire hostel was there. I never spoke to him or any of the seniors from our hostel again. I made some real friends after that incident who were in the room but did not say a thing because of fear. They came to me later to support me.
A similar incident happened six months later but this time all my friends were there to support me and nobody could touch me. Thank you, all of you.
A year later I was the President of Technical Club of our annual fest, Chairperson of Association of Computing Machinery at our college and held a lot of positions at other clubs.
Later when I got into Directi (highest paid internship and PPO from college) and then Flat[dot]to, Flatchat and Unacademy – I realized one real thing. Living your life and doing great is the best revenge.
Those seniors still like every Facebook post of mine these days 🙂
Maybe initially I was working so hard to prove something to them but eventually I realised, they are not worth it.
Do it for yourself, for your parents, for your brother, for your friends. The people who love you and whom you love.
It has to do with beauty standards. Sichuanese women aren’t objectively prettier than anyone else, they just fit many Chinese beauty standards better on average – beauty standards are highly variable from place to place and have changed a lot throughout history. Sichuanese women often have characteristics like thin pointed noses, heart shaped faces, larger breasts, lighter skin (Sichuan is located in the Sichuan basin so it’s really foggy), larger eyes, and double eyelids which fit modern Chinese beauty standards.
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The traditional Chinese beauty standards preferred smaller eyes, monolids, smaller breasts, rounder faces, and flatter small noses. The only constant beauty standard is the strong preference for light skin. So this means Sichuanese women being considered attractive is a modern stereotype and you can’t find any historical sources treating them as prettier than women from other regions of China.
Sichuanese women are usually short and a low height for women was the historical beauty standard since it made women seem “fragile” compared to men (we are talking about a very patriarchal society, after all). In modern China, people seem to be a little mixed on this. Taller women are generally preferred and considered more “beautiful” but shorter women (as long as they are not too short) may be considered “cute” by some. For men, they have to be tall because short men are not considered attractive in general. (Are shorter men liked more than tall men anywhere in the world? Sorry, short kings 🙁)
Different generations
“When I was 17 …”
When I was 17 I decided I wanted to reach out to my biological mother through the adoption agency. I heard nothing back initially and when the agency advised me to focus on my leaving cert, I did and I continued on with my life.
Then, 5 years later, out of the blue a letter arrived. This letter would change my life.
I can only assume my mom was upset at the thought of me reconnecting with my biological mother, i dunno maybe she thought I’d leave home and be somebody elses son but no matter what was about to unfold with my biological mother my mom is, and will always be my mom. I feel very lucky to have been chosen by her, that’s sort of how i always felt, like i had been chosen to be their son.
After weeks of letters back and forth the day arrived. The first time i met my biological mother it was only for about 10 minutes in an room at the agency. I was actually ok but Anna (my biological mother) was a nervous wreck. For 22 years she carried this secret with her that no one knew about, not even her close family.
I have my own little guy now and I can’t begin to imagine how hard it must have been for my biological mother to give me up, I mean, I can barely cope with being away from him when I go to work and that’s just for 8 hours. I don’t know what it must have been like for 22 years.
I’m happy to say she is now a part of our lives, I even gained two brothers, another sister and grandparents as a result.
I sometimes wonder what if I hadn’t reached out. That letter that changed my life in such a positive way would still be sitting, unopened, unanswered, in a filing cabinet.
I once cared for a middle-aged patient who presented to emergency with a dildo-related very embarrassing situation.
He purchased the toy for one of his sexcapades.
Curiosity hit. And he shoved the damn thing in his pooper, high-high up!
“Me first” attitude didn’t do him much good.
Funny feelings subsided fairly quickly and the horror struck when he couldn’t get it out.
His drainage was jammed, the toy was slipping further up and after about 24 hours of wishfully waiting for it to naturally pass, it hurt bad enough to seek medical help.
The official party line, that he vehemently iterated, was I just fell onto it, how else do you think it got up there!
Needless to say, emergency surgery was necessary and he landed in the ICU with sepsis related post-op complications. It took him loooong before being able to use the toilet normally!
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** NOT the patient’s X-ray, but it looked similar**
Though I have seen some really absurd stuff in the ER, including a gun-shot to the penis, this surely wins the now-that-was-stupid award..
Russian “Special Flight Squadron” Lands in DC – Ukraine War to End; Russia lays out terms of surrender
Russian officials arrived in Washington, DC Thursday morning to discuss the terms of Ukraine’s SURRENDER.
This is the aircraft that brought the Russian Delegation to Washington, DC:
Special Flight Squadron
The “Special Flight Squadron moves Kremlin officials traveling on important matters.
TERMS
The terms given to Washington, DC for Ukraine are:
Complete Ukraine surrender.
Complete surrender of all military equipment.
Russian territory will range from Karkhov to Odessa, and gives Russia complete control of Black Sea coast.
Western Ukraine cannot join NATO, or have __any__ military aid.
Russia does not care who controls western Ukraine, and have openly offered it to Poland.
Put bluntly, the Ukraine war is over and Ukraine lost. Completely.
They can no longer defend themselves in any meaningful way. If hostilities are not halted, Ukraine will simply be slaughtered and, believe it or not, Russia does NOT want to do that.
Notice this information isn’t anywhere on the mass-media news?
Notice the Washington Post STOPPED PRINTING it’s “Ukraine War Update Section?”
No reporting that Ukraine has lost – – – and not a word about Russia’s victory.
THIS personifies what the so-called “main stream” media has become: A mouthpiece for government.
The mass-media acts as a stenographer for what government wants you to know. They report “the narrative” as opposed to the “news.”
EDITRORIAL OPINION
Russia won against billions of dollars of the best equipment and NATO-trained troops, it got exactly the farmland it wanted. It lost about 30k troops and killed 300K+ Ukrainian soldiers plus NATO “advisors.”
Russia’s Military industrial capacity has tripled. NATO’s reserve equipment and arms is non existent now.
The 20 percent of Ukraine they conquered are Russian and Russian speaking; so not only do those people NOT hate Russia, they support them!
Energy prices have tripled in Europe and as things stand now, Europe is on the verge of a economic collapse.
NATO and the US have been proven to be a “paper tiger.”
So many people in the West, in its media, and in its governments thought that Ukraine was one counter-offensive away from victory. It was all lies. Deliberate lies.
One wonders how all those folks are going to deal with Ukraine’s defeat.
It was in 1987, a widow of a railway employee who died accidentally, who was barely of 33-34 years approached me to open an account. She was not even able to sign her name. Those were manual banking days. I got her account opening form except signature(which she could not sign) and advised her to learn the signature by her next visit, then only I would open her account. In a sheet of paper I wrote her name “Girija” in hindi and asked her to learn to write her name. I opened her account at my risk and confidence on that poor lady. I didn’t know why my inner sense told me to do so.
She came within two days promptly learnt to sign, so relieving my tension for pending account opening form. She got some fixed deposits from her husband’s settlement funds.
Some days after she, looked terrified, came with an old person. It seemed as if she was trying to convey me some message. I got the chance and learnt that the person accompanied was her father in law(FIL) and he had snatched all her gold and silver jewellery and threatened her to get his name in fixed deposits or else she alongwith her children would be thrown to streets.
She had two young kids of 7(boy) and 11(girl) and she being illiterate, no other source of incime other than her husband’s pension and those deposits. How could have I saved her from her FIL.
I asked them to get seated and silently approached branch manager and asked him to get them inside and tackle him by opening FDs in both names but tactfully favouring FIL & Girija “ payable to latter or survivor”. The cunning chap was satisfied by getting his name in the first place while we were satisfied to get a poor lady saved from clutches of a butcher.
She remained obliged to me always and after about one year she was before me for a withdrawal of Rs.50000/— .to my utter surprise, for the purpose of engagement of her daughter. Sparing my busy time, I tried to convince her whether she wanted to repeat her past. Her daughter wanted to learn further and family wanted to marry her. May God don’t do that, if something happens in her daughter’s life also, she would as be worse as her own, so give her some education at least matric, make her self dependent and then think of marriage.
Believe it or not, a lady who was under veils, in the guardianship of eagle-eyed FIL, stood against all the family members to stop her daughter’s engagement with an oath to educate her daughter so that she might not see her reflection again in her daughter.
I thanked God to give her so much courage to face the old custom of child marriage when she fought against all odds to save her daughter. She was all in tears and thankfulness for me when she reached the branch for redepositing the withdrawn money.
Even after my retirement, I still remember that lady, her innocence but boldness when the question of safety of her daughter, in all, God enabled me to save a girl child.
Unfortunately for these nine passengers, this flight was no flick.
United 811, 24 Feb 1989, is a tragic case of explosive decompression. The skill of the pilot, David Cronin, age 59, prevented a far greater disaster. Captain Cronin was on his second to last flight before mandatory retirement at age 60. He had flown 28,000 hours, 1,700 in the Boeing 747, which was the aircraft on this flight.
United 811 was climbing out from Honolulu on its way to Auckland, New Zealand, carrying 3 flight crew, 15 flight attendants and 337 passengers. The crew were maneuvering around thunderstorms, passing through 22,000′, when there was a loud bang and the aircraft shuddered violently. Cronin called for an emergency descent and the First Officer—who was flying that leg— started to lower the landing gear which is standard procedure in such a descent. Cronin waved him off the gear, saying they’d never get back to Honolulu. By that action alone, he saved the aircraft and all still in it.
They declared an emergency and Honolulu Center began moving traffic out of 811’s way, vectoring them to the longest runway at Honolulu International, some 60 miles away.
Cronin sent the Flight Engineer down to assess damage on the main deck. The FE reported that a large portion of the right fuselage had blown off. The downing of Pan Am 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland two months earlier was fresh in the crew’s minds. They believed this was the work of a bomb.
It was not. As the pressure differential grew acute at 22,000′, the forward cargo door had blown off, slamming into the fuselage, buckling and bursting it. Nine passengers, eight still belted in their seats, were blown out ++, one of them into the number three engine. The others were hurled against the right wing’s leading edge. Death for these unfortunates would have been instantaneous.
Response to Commenters: We have no way of knowing how much life was left to these poor people once blown from the aircraft. I decided to be merciful. You can be sure that the families would argue a lot of painful life was left in the litigation against United, Boeing and P&W.
In any case, the bodies of those that fell to the ocean surface were never recovered. One flight attendant was nearly blown out, but clung to a seat leg until passengers and crew pulled her to safety. She was, nevertheless, severely injured.
What followed was brilliant flying by Cronin, drawing on his 28,000 hours of flight experience. Engines three and four were vibrating heavily, showing fire and he ordered them shut down. The 747 was now flying on only two engines, both on the left wing, making it difficult for Cronin to hold heading and altitude. He ordered the FE to dump fuel since the plane—with a full load for the 16 hour flight to New Zealand—was far over its maximum landing weight.
For that reason, Cronin flew a shallow final approach hoping the landing gear would not collapse upon touch down. He did not have benefit of leading edge slats since those on the right wing would not extend. The damaged flaps would only go to 15 degrees. He waited until the last moment to lower the gear with all its drag.
Landing hot at 200 knots (normal landing 100 – 120 knots) he braked, applying full thrust reverse on engines 1 and 2, and did not overrun the runway. The cabins were evacuated in a remarkable 45 seconds, tho every flight attendant sustained some injury, the worst being a broken shoulder.
About 18 months after the accident, the U.S. Navy recovered the cargo door from an ocean depth of 14,000′—a remarkable feat in itself! With this critical piece of evidence in hand, the NTSB concluded that faulty handling by the Honolulu ground crew was to blame for the door’s failure.
However, the Campbell family of Wellington, New Zealand, having lost their son, Lee, was not satisfied. They undertook their own investigation. They found that design of the locking mechanism on the door was, in fact, the culprit. The FAA accepted this and recommended 747 cargo doors** changed from outward-opening doors, to a so-called “plug” door, the kind you and I see as we enter the cabin of an airliner. The kind that can’t blow open in flight….##
Incompetent cargo door design seems to have been something of an Achilles heel in the construction of wide body airliners, excepting the Lockheed L-1011 Tristar. Only after several instances of explosive decompression in DC-10s, killing nearly 1,000 people, did the FAA get off its ass and press its buddy Douglas to effect necessary changes. Some of the good ‘ol boys at FAA should have done time for their disgraceful, indeed criminal, lax supervision.
And for me, it’s sad that a sterling pilot like David Cronin could not continue to fly while he was fully healthy. For without his skill, it is unlikely that United 811 would have made it back to Honolulu.
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** Krishna Kumar Subramanian refined my answer re the FAA Airworthiness Directive on cargo doors. Apparently, cargo doors on the new 747–8 are the same doors—modified per the Campbell’s findings— as on the United 811’s B-747–122 some 27 years ago.
## Benjamin H. points out that a “fail-safe” plug door would require more cargo space in the cargo hold. This explains why airlines, for economic reasons, would want to stay w/non-plug type door. Thank you, Benjamin.
++ Thanks to Ned Abbey for informing the author that “blown out” is the correct term here, not “sucked out” as I originally termed this ghastly event.
They… don’t? What? Good meat doesn’t need help from sauces. And Texas is known, well known, for not adding sauce.
This is Texas brisket, before the smoker.
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What you see there is kosher salt and ground black pepper (14 gauge, to be specific). That’s it. The end. Then 12–15 hours on the smoker over post oak at 180F–210F and it’s ready to eat.
This is Texas brisket as it’s served.
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Note the distinct lack of sauces anywhere near it. Putting sauce on that is sacrilegious. Stay away from my barbecue with your sauces; if you don’t like the taste of smoked meat and you feel like you need to cover it up with sauce, eat something else.
However, when I smoke a pork shoulder to make tacos, I do add a little additional seasoning.
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This stuff is magic, and really brings out something special in a pork butt. It’s cheap, at the local grocery store, and is an excellent blend. Served just so.
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On white corn tortillas with onion, cilantro, lime, and some salsa verde if you want. But it doesn’t need it. Good meat speaks for itself, it doesn’t need help.
I don’t know where you’re getting your information, but it couldn’t be more wrong.
My mom had a muscle spasm in her shoulder. They hurt, I know. She went to the doctor and was prescribed muscle relaxers.
The following Sunday, her shoulder was hurting again, and she was out of the muscle relaxers, so she decided to go to the ER. My dad and I told her to take some Tylenol and call her doctor in the morning, but that wasn’t good enough.
My dad drove her to the ER, dropped her off at the door and went to park the car. He walked in and she was nowhere to be seen.
She didn’t tell the triage nurse “I have a muscle spasm in my shoulder”. Oh, no. She told the triage nurse that her arm hurts and it hurt to breathe. They immediately took her back and hooked her up to an EKG, started an IV, drew blood for testing, etc.
She KNEW it was a muscle spasm, not a heart attack, but went along with a bunch of unnecessary tests and time wasting for the staff, all because she wanted attention.
In 2007 – Four thieves broke into a House in Hosur. They were from Rajasthan or North India and they had deadly weapons like the Aruva or Long as it is popularly known in the courts.
The Owner and his son – woke up and fought the thieves and they ran away but one guy was hit on his head with a tyre iron (Used to change lorry or tractor tyres) and he went a few feet away and collapsed near a drain.
There were 12 witnesses to the entire scene. The victim had a rambo knife and a bihar knife in his lungi as he lay there collapsed and unconscious.
Police arrived forty five minutes later – took the statements – took the victim to the hospital where he was pronounced DOA.
The Police booked a Murder (302) and 201 case against the Owner and his son.
The Magistrate Court refused to dismiss the case on grounds of Self Defense claiming that a Rambo Knife and Bihar Knife did not indicate self defense.
The Sessions court refused to dismiss the case
The High Court – thrice refused to dismiss the case
The Accused served 17 months in Prison until they got bail from the High Court.
Eventually in 2015 – The Accused were sentenced to Life Imprisonment
Finally in 2018 January – the High Court stayed the decision and acquitted them by observing that – (a) The Victim did not have any relation with them (b) The Victim did not have any work in that locality at that time – Of course this was all nonsense.
The main reason was because The Karnataka Police arrested the other thieves in 2016 and during their interrogation observed and found their statements where they confessed to a robbery in Hosur where their partner was killed.
On January 2018 – the Two were released from Prison. Not because of the courts and not because of the Exemplary Law enforcement but because some Decent cop at the Karnataka Police side was able to help them out and a very good and decent Chennai Lawyer was able to connect the issues.
So as you can see – A Father and Son defend their property from Thieves and murderers- they serve collectively 4 Years and 5 Months in prison
Do you know the first thing the Father said when he was released?
“Next time – i will bury the body and if the police come – we will hack the cops and bury their bodies as well”
A Law abiding man – was so angry – i am sure he would have slaughtered an entire police station and all the judges in tamilnadu.
They filed a civil suit which is still pending and is likely to be pending upto 2035.
Conclusion –
India is worse than any other country except maybe Uganda or Rwanda. The Law means nothing and the Laws in CRPC or IPC mean Zilch.
The Magistrates and Judges are among the most fifth rate in the planet. They rule like Panchayats.
Unless you are linked to the Big 4 – (a) Minister (b) MP/MLA (c) IAS (d) Big Businessmen or VIPS – You are unlikely to get any justice and no matter what – even if you use Deadly Force to protect yourself from Bin Laden – you will face murder charges and even be convicted of murdering Bin Laden.
Get the hell out if possible. If not – just mind your business and pray to all the gods not to put you in a situation which involves requiring using Deadly Force for Self Defence
I was 15 years old. I was staying with my aunt yet again as my mother decided she needed another break from me and went on another bender.
My aunt was more of a mom to me. As a result I was very close to her family and called her mom Grandma and her sister Aunt. Anyway Grandma was living with my Aunt. She had dementia and was having a particularly bad day. My aunt asked me to pick up my 10 year cousin from school which was only a block away. I did this often as my aunt tried to shield my cousin from her mothers episodes. She gave me some cash to stop at the small ice cream place near her school to keep her away longer.
I got to my cousins school expecting to see her on the playground where all the kids played while waiting to get picked up. She wasn’t there but I wasn’t worried as I knew she sometimes helped the teacher clean up the classroom after school. I went to her classroom and she wasn’t there either! No one was.
Starting to get worried I started roaming the hallways peeking in the classrooms looking for her. She was nowhere to be found!
I ran to the principals office freaked out by then and told the secretary I couldn’t find her! The secretary immediately made an announcement over the PA system telling my cousin to come to the office. 10 minutes passed. She never came.
We went to the teachers lounge and got the teachers to help look for her. I’ve never been so scared! My aunt trusted me with her daughter and I didn’t know how to call her and tell her she was gone.
30 minutes later we heard a shout. One of the teachers had found her. She was in the library reading. She had gone to check out a book when school had let out without telling anyone and the librarian had locked her in.
I hugged her hard and told her to always tell someone where she was going. It was for her safety. She started crying and apologizing over and over. I told her it was okay. Her principal gave her the same lecture and we left.
My aunt hadn’t called yet to say it was safe to come home so we went for ice cream and then to the local park. An hour later my aunt called and told us to come on home. Grandma finally went to sleep.
After my cousin went to bed that night I told my aunt what had happened. At first she seemed upset but then said they were lucky to have me there. I was shocked. I didn’t receive compliments very often. She gave me a hug told me I was a good person and a great sister to my cousin.
My cousin always made sure she was on the playground after school after that.
Appreciate NOW
Only in China
The sheer logistics of trying to feed a nation of 1.4 billion people are insane. Take this building right here — it’s a pig farm. A 26-story pig farm named Ezhou farm. It’s one of the biggest ‘only in China’ moments for me.
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Basically, China has been having some pretty major geopolitical tensions with many of its neighbors lately, and there have been a lot of issues with the ongoing trade war with America. So China wants to be less dependent on imports of vital things such as food.
As a result, it has started building absolutely MASSIVE pig farms on an industrial scale unseen anywhere in human history. It’s pretty crazy. Also, I gotta say, pretty impressive.
So yeah, 26-story pig farms are a strange phenomenon I’ve not seen anywhere else. Anyone who’s ever enjoyed Chinese cuisine knows it cannot survive without pork. So if ever war breaks out and trade routes are blocked, China is ensuring it’ll never run out of pork chops.
Some sources claim that Red Army soldiers impregnated about 200,000 of the about 2,000,000 German women its soldiers raped during their advance into Germany in 1945. Quite a few German women were murdered during the mass rapes and looting or committed suicide afterwards, so the numbers could be off by several thousand.
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Senior Red Army officers attempted to crack down on ill-disciplined Soviet soldiers and numerous enlisted men and some officers were either shot or sent to serve in penal units for lacking discipline on and off the battlefield. Discipline tended to be mostly excellent in Red Army Guards divisions and mechanized and tank corps. Red Army infantry units that had to use ill-trained and often ill-disciplined conscripts, often soldiers who had witnessed German atrocities in the Soviet Union, probably committed the preponderance of the rapes on German soil. The dead German women in the photo posted below probably committed suicide with cyanide capsules. It is unclear if they were raped beforehand or simply feared the Soviet soldiers so much that they took their own lives to avoid mass rape and murder.
If they say Nigerians are among the happiest people on earth I don’t think we will argue. An average Nigerian mentality is just cruise. People that make fun of their own Misery’s. Humor is a gift you get for being a Nigerian, slightly higher than the line for insanity. I won’t be wrong if I say it’s our coping mechanism. Fun is a way we know how to keep on pushing and a way to look beyond our imperfect country. With how our country is if we don’t laugh at life we will go mad.
Who turns a protest into a party? Nigerians
Who replys with ffb on their president’s post on Twitter? Nigerians
Who creates happiness out of nothing? Nigerians
Who turns every situation into a comedy? Nigerians.
Nigerians use banter and humor to hide how fucked we all are in this country.
Nigerians are warm, friendly, kind, fun, witty and merry. Despite all the troubles , all our pains. We are sensitive to all the Issues we have and our heart silently scream in pain. Yet we still force a smile and make jokes out of everything.
If only we have good leaders, Nigeria would have become the best place on earth
Waiting to Be Put to Sleep, She Sat Crying Silently in Her Cage At the Shelter
I was arrested when I was 17 and was released from prison when I was 46. So I spent well over half my life in prison.. When I was sentenced I remember being shocked. I didn’t cry like you see some of these teenagers do when sentenced. My dad had taught me that whether I did something bad or good to own it. But yet my whole family and some friends were in tears. I spent my first 5 years at MSP and really there I was just trying to survive.. But even though I didn’t like being in prison I became used to prison life. When They transferred me I was happy. For one I was leaving that place Second a different prison would be a change of scenery. I also spent the whole time on the transfer bus looking out the window. Seeing farms made me a little homesick
So I spent from 1993- 99 at Farmington Correctional Center. There were others that I knew from MSP there already Time passed pretty quick there. It wasn’t as violent even though you could not let your guard down. Anyway one day, some friends came to see me . One of my female friends told me. “You are different . Your eyes used to be full of life and you were always smiling as a teen-ager” I told her that I still smiled. “She said it wasn’t the same.
Anyway by now I had settled down into prison life .Every time I got a parole hearing I hoped for the best but expected the worst.. You laugh and joke with people in prison that you have become cool with. Not because prison is funny, but it helps keep your sanity. You miss out on birthdays weddings and holidays. You know this as each happened but push it to the back of your mind. . Oh you may say something to a friend like “ Guess what? My Brother is getting married” He will probably say something nice and then you dont speak about it much .And the days, weeks, months and years pass. On my 36th birthday my celly and best friend in prison made a meal to “celebrate” and I reflected on the fact that I had been in prison half my life. I have tried to convey how it feels but the only way you will know for sure how it feels is if you experience it. I pray that never happens .
A jobless man applied for the position of ‘office boy’ at a very big company.
The employer interviewed him, then a test: clean the floor.
“You are hired.” – the employer said. ”Give me your email address, and I’ll send you the application to fill, as well as when you will start.”
The man replied, “I don’t have a computer, neither an email.”
“I’m sorry,” said the employer, “if you don’t have an email that means you do not exist. And who doesn’t exist, cannot have the job.”
The man left with no hope. He didn’t know what to do, with only $10 USD in his pocket.
He then decided to go to the supermarket, bought a 10kg tomato crate, then sold the tomatoes door to door. In less than two hours, he succeeded and doubled his capital.
He repeated the operation 3 times and returned home with $60 USD. The man realized that he could survive by this way, and started to go everyday earlier, and returned late. Thus, his money doubled or tripled everyday. Shortly later, he bought a cart, then a truck, and then he had his own fleet of delivery vehicles.
Five years later, the man’s company was one of the biggest food retailers. He started to plan his family’s future, and decided to have a life insurance.
He called an insurance broker and chose a protection plan. When the conversation was concluded, the broker asked him his email. The man replied: “I don’t have an email.”
The broker replied curiously, “You don’t have an email, and yet have succeeded to build an empire. Do you imagine what you could have been if you had an email?”
The man paused for a while, and replied: “An office boy!”
I went to one of the few remaining Burger Kings in the City of Toronto this month. It’s in the Woodbine Centre in Rexdale. It’s a mall that’s clearly on its last legs as it has not one, but two liquidation outlets, although I’m astounded that the Hudson’s Bay Company (which just closed a flagship store at Yonge & Bloor) is still operating there. It appears the mall area is being completely redeveloped because it was obvious several of the stores there were at the end of their lease term from all the clearance signs.
I had not eaten at a BK in about two years. The last time I went there was when things started to open post-pandemic and I ate at the one on Yonge Street. I don’t eat at BK often because they’re inconvenient. They used to have a location across the street from where I worked, but when that complex was redeveloped they lost their lease and didn’t move back into the new food court. There’s an A&W there now. Similarly, BK closed down when the Royal Bank Plaza redeveloped its food court too.
I think my Whopper Combo set me back about $14 (Cdn.). That’s pricey – more than A&W’s Mama Combo.
So, BK is inconvenient (in bad locations) and no longer a really good value for money. A lot of fast food places are finding the same problem now – they’re in places no-one goes anymore, or they’re really old (the one on Yonge Street dates back to the 1980s). Here in Canada, they’re facing massive competition from A&W which has outlets everywhere, sometimes only a few blocks apart. You can get a sandwich and drink from Timmies for about $11. Five Guys serves better burgers (more expensive though) and they’re actually a little more convenient for me.
For example. there’s a BK at Eglinton Square, which I visit from time to time. I never eat there. I often forget it’s there. There’s a food court inside Eglinton Square but the BK is a stand-alone about 100m from the mall entrance. It’s also just across the street from an A&W, and just down the street from a joint Wendy’s/Timmies.
Again, Whoppers are lovely, but they’re certainly not anything I’m going to pay a massive premium for. I talk about going to Niagara Falls a lot and BK has a massive presence there in wonderful locations – Clifton Hill and the Fallsview Casino. However, they charge another 50% on top of normal prices (there is one on Lundy’s Lane that charges regular prices). BK also used to have locations in Cineplex theatres and had the same pricing strategy. There are three Timmies in locations in Niagara Falls similar to BK’s, but they charge regular prices.
Before I came to Thailand, I worked in Corporate America.
Her name was Laurie, and she was a really hardworking, patient receptionist, a young, very attractive woman of 21 who was going to night classes to further her education. Few knew that.
She was first contact for phone calls, visitors, deliveries and dealt with the everchanging schedules for five VPs and their unit managers.
She also had to contend with men hitting on her, both staff and visitors. She was good at it and could usually send them on their way with no hard feelings.
Except VP3. He never stopped pestering her. He had gone through a bitter divorce in which he had to give his ex almost half of the wealth and his children for marathon cheating.
Laurie looked like a younger version of his ex.
The humiliating event was orchestrated by VP3. He had a very powerful client that paid the company millions. The client called, Laurie informed him that VP3 was in a meeting and would return his call within the hour. She hand delivered the message to VP3.
But he didn’t make the call. He accused her of not telling him and blackmailed his secretary into backing him up. He didn’t do this quietly: he called HR and the other VPs to the open conference room and berated her in front of them.
Laurie attempted to defend herself, but VP3 was relentless and knew the company wouldn’t dare take her word over his. When he couldn’t force her to publicly admit wrongdoing, nor would she grovel, he loudly fired her with no severence pay.
But Laurie was no fool. She had kept copious records about work and VP3’s harassment. She had many friends in the office who would testify on her behalf.
Within a month, she had filed a suit against the company and VP3. The company offered a hefty sum to make it all go away.
But karma wasn’t finished.
Fast forward about six years. That really important client filed suit against VP3 and the company for mismanagement.
I enjoy imagining the reaction when the company lawyers informed VP3 et al that Laurie was one of several attorneys opposing them and had depositioned numerous previous and current employees. The court threw out the ‘conflict of interest’ motion.
I heard that the company and VP3 had to pay a stunning amount.
One never knows who that ‘lowly’ employee may be one day!
I was the weird kid. Throughout elementary and middle school my mother kept my hair as short as a boy’s and dressed me in my brother’s hand me downs, even though I had an older sister as well. My early struggles with depression made schoolwork difficult, and I landed myself a spot in special ed. I was teased and bullied mercilessly.
One day, around the 3rd or 4th grade, I was getting dressed for school and couldn’t find one of my sneakers. I searched frantically, knowing the sort of trouble I’d be in, but I couldn’t find it anywhere. My mother was livid. She was not about to reward my irresponsibility, she screeched, with a day off from school! Her solution? I was dropped off wearing bedroom slippers.
Big, fluffy, orange and black bobbly-headed Garfield slippers with ping-pong ball googly eyes.
The other kids descended on the feast like vultures.
“Look at Baby Bacon!” (Rhymes with Meghann)
“Hey Bacon! You must really love Garfield!”
“Bacon and Garfield, sitting in a tree…”
The teacher at last called my mother to come pick me up, insisting I was being disruptive. My mother completely lost it. After a spanking I spent the afternoon confined to my room, with instructions to find the shoe before I came out for any reason whatsoever— bathroom, water and dinner included. I panicked and dismantled everything, from my bed to my closet to my bookshelf. Finally I found the shoe amidst a jumbled herd of discarded My Little Ponies in the rubbermaid bin where my mother collected my old toys for goodwill. She must have accidentally gathered it up while cleaning.
But the next day, my mom came to town (divorced parents) and I felt obligated to host a second “Thanksgiving.” I say “obligated” because (a) I can’t cook and (b) I suck at hosting. But it just didn’t seem right for her to travel so far and not enjoy a home-cooked meal with her family on Thanksgiving weekend.
So I invited my mom and stepdad, aunt and uncle, and my brother/sister-in-law/kids that we had just seen the day prior. I didn’t have the skills to make a Thanksgiving dinner, so I announced a chili night…the one delicious thing I CAN make.
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And I’ve gotta tell you…it wasn’t that great. 🤷🏻♀️
I nearly ruined the entire double batch of chili when I forgot to turn down the temperature and left it to boil for 15+ minutes.
I made cornbread, put it in the microwave to stay warm, and then forgot to bring it out until after everyone was done with their chili.
I bought disposable bowls in an attempt to simplify cleanup…then watched the chili grease seep through the bowls.
I busted out a small fire pit for the kids to roast marshmallows, then struggled to actually START a fire in it. Three people later, we had a “meh” flame.
And at the end of my mediocre night of hosting, my 8-year-old daughter told me, “I wish I could rewind this day and do it ALL OVER AGAIN! It was the most fun EVER!!”
It turns out that while I was burning chili and forgetting cornbread, she was making silly “music videos” with her cousins with a karaoke microphone, an old iPod touch, and one cousin flickering the lights on and off for “effects.”
While my bowls were failing at the ONE JOB they had, my family was BSing each other over board games.
And while our fire was holding on for dear life, the kids (and a few adults!) gathered around it, debating the perfect amount of toasting and stuffing oversized marshmallows into their mouths.
Friend, don’t wait until you’re ready and able to host an elaborate gathering to invite people over. Don’t wait until your house is clean…or you tidy up your yard. My yard is 20% grass, 70% weeds, and 10% dirt right now…and the kids still found a million ways to play there.
Your family doesn’t need a spotless house. Your friends and neighbors don’t need an Instagram-worthy dinner and sides display.
They need to talk with you, to laugh with you, to tear up pieces of cardboard to start a tiny backyard fire with you.
Just make what you can, be who you are, and open your door. Because you need those things too.
I’ve been married nearly 18 years. I am very happy to be walking through life with my spouse. But there are some brutal truths.
You don’t magically change, and neither do they, into a different person simply because you get married. You don’t change your mind about major issues – one of the saddest ends to a marriage was seeing 2 friends who loved each other divorce acrimoniously because he hadn’t believed her when she said she didn’t want children.
It is not “happily ever after.” Life throws up bad stuff and stressful stuff. Sometimes your spouse can support and comfort you, but sometimes they don’t have the right skills or emotional bandwidth. They are also humans and dealing with their own crap. I tell my spouse whether I need a hug and a “there, there,” practical advice or to be left alone for a few hours to read or watch something escapist. Because me reacting badly when he offers help triggers his snarkiness which really doesn’t help!
It’s likely that you will be attracted to other people. That crazy infatuation period has a chemical shelf life in your brain, so if you let it pass without taking actions that impact the marriage (assuming it’s a marriage you want to stay in), it’s all good. If you do cheat, you should do so knowing that there is a strong chance you will get caught and it’s going to be very painful for your spouse and is very likely to end your marriage.
You need to let some stuff ride. I have a couple of absolutes that are marriage enders, so does he. Everything else is a negotiation, and sometimes it’s just letting go of something that you’d never do if you lived alone. Like how clean/tidy the place is, for example.
If you were unhappy and discontented before marriage, getting married doesn’t fix that. Active additions to sex, gambling, spending, drugs, alcohol, work, food, etc. don’t magically stop because someone gets married. If someone isn’t doing and continuing the work to not fall into these behaviours, you have something to be very worried about. If I start using again, I can’t imagine my marriage surviving and I’d put my spouse through hell before it ended.
The other brutal truth is that a good marriage will eventually end with one of you dead. Selfishly, I’m hoping I’m the one who goes first so that I don’t have to deal with the grief I’m going to feel if I lose my best friend, my love, and the person who can make me laugh like a four-year-old!
Retrofuturistic Voyages: Star Trek in the Roaring Twenties
my husband and I just won a civil case against a building contractor that flooded our property while building other houses in our neighborhood. But the story gets better. Because this started at the beginning of Covid (April 2020) I was home all the time. He drained a swamp to build a house and sent the pond through a culvert into our easement that emptied into our backyard. Destroyed the culvert, never repaired it, built a house next to the easement (on the other side), ran over destroyed easement with large bucket caterpillar, then threatened to kick my husbands ass when we confronted him. He tried to mansplain water flow to me, as well. Well, with all my free time, I was able to watch what was happening, so if he violated code I would call the city. Sounds petty, but hey, I had a flooded backyard, and a guy who screamed “asshole” at me every time I walked my dogs.
then one day his survey guy shows up. On my property. I told them and him to get the fuck off my land. Survey next door all you want, but get your feet off my property. They told me no, they own my land. I laughed and laughed, and then told them that’s not how property ownership works. And that by state law they had to 1) give me notice of intent to survey and 2) give me 24 hours. the surveyors told me they did not. Then THEY called the police on me. For some dumb reason, the cop told them (the contractors) to put a Protection From Harassment on me. So they did. It was granted. Ooooo, the lies they told in that! Things like I threatened to shoot them in front of the cops, I put grease on their work vehicles (wtf) and I stole things from the construction site. All types of crazy shit. Okay. I’m still at home and I’ve got a phone with a camera and now one of the best lawyers in the state. I took thousands of pictures of my property, their property (from a distance, lol) everything that negates what they said in the their PFH.
we just went to court several months ago, he hasn’t shown up for the last several hearings and we won. I won $30,000 in defamation for him lying on the PFH and my husband won $20,000 because he was mentioned in it. The total amount included repairs to property and lawyer fees.
PS- when we went to court for the PFH we subpoenaed the cop who told them to place it and the chief of police. It was suddenly dismissed by their side. But the city wanted to charge me for the officers time, and have the court sanction me. We fought it and won, obvi. But the best thing about that part was the city lawyers were scared of my lawyer that at their firm it went from a low lawyer to his boss then finally to a managing partner in a matter of days once they realized who my lawyer was because my lawyer told me he knew him. That law firm wasn’t leaving anything to chance and still lost.
I laugh about this once a week. The loser contractor now lives in a trailer his dad owns, is divorced from his wife (business partner) and all three owe us close to $100 k.
if he had stopped the flooding and apologized, this would never have come to this.
As someone who studies and talks about the holocaust, I often get a question- “why didn’t the Jews fight back”.
The answer is sad. For those that were murdered in the gas chambers they didn’t think they were about to die. They thought they were being showered before registration into the camp. By the time they realized what was happening, they were in a dark room quickly filling with Cyanide gas.
But- the Jews that knew very often fought back.
Operation Reinhard was a 2-year long effort to kill every Jew the Germans could find. In 4 extermination camps, almost 2 million people would be gassed and killed from late 1941 – late 1943. In 2 of these camps though, there were revolts, and thanks to these revolts- there were survivors.
I am going to focus on Sobibor because I think it is very interesting and even badass.
image 415
Sobibor was an extermination camp where 250,000 had been murdered. As 1943 was coming to a close the camp prisoners noticed that prisoners from Belzec (another extermination camp) had been sent to Sobibor and murdered after they dismantled and shut down their own camp.
The prisoners knew they would soon be killed when Sobibor was shut down so they came up with a brilliant plan.
Out of this, a resistance group was formed. They brainstormed ideas but soon got very lucky when a number of Soviet POWs arrived at the camp as more laborers, among them Alexander ‘Sasha’ Pechersky.
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Sasha impressed everyone. During one of his first work details, he was placed outside the camp to cut down trees. When the SS guard started whipping Jewish laborers for cutting too slowly Sasha protested.
The SS guard, amused by this, challenged Sasha to a challenge. If Sasha could cut down a tree in 5 minutes he would win a pack of smokes. If not, he would get 25 lashes. Sasha agreed and 4.5 minutes later the tree was cut down. When the SS guard offered smokes Sasha said “thanks but I don’t smoke. The SS guard then returned with bread and butter and Sasha said “no thank you, the rations I receive satisfy me fully”.
This act of defiance became a rallying cry in the camp. Pretty soon Sasha was one of the leaders of the resistance.
After a plan to tunnel out of the camp failed, they settled on an all-out revolt.
What took place is brilliant.
On October 14th 1943 the time was now. The camps commander, who was gifted at rooting out conspiracies, had left the camp with his aides. This was the time for the prisoners to strike.
They would designate combat teams in every barracks. These combat teams were the strongest men armed with crude weapons.
The prisoners then lured the SS guards to various locations. They would say “hey we have some new coats confiscated, come pick one out” and stuff like that. SS guards were lured to tailor shops, storerooms, shoe shining places, and other buildings where combat teams lie in wait.
First the camp commander SS Untersturmfuher Johann Niemann had his head split in by an axe. Then, every 6 minutes for the next hour an SS Officer was killed.
No alarm was sounded so far- things were going well. There was a problem though. Karl Frenzel, the most feared of the SS, had been late to his appointment and was thus still alive. Additionally, many killings had been far too public.
At this point, Sasha was sure the plot would soon be discovered as bodies were located.
Sasha then gave a speech to the assembled prisoners.
Our day has come. Most of the Germans are dead. Let’s die with honor. Remember, if anyone survives, he must tell the world what has happened here!
The prisoners charged- using the pistols and rifles they had stolen. All-out chaos broke out as the prisoners got to the gate and nearby fences and clamored over.
image 413
The remaining SS Guards realize what is happening and open fire. Combat breaks out between the guards and prisoners. Hundreds of prisoners are slaughtered but many guards are gunned down from prisoners returning fire.
A few hundred get over the fence and head for the forest. Landmines kill many as others are gunned down.
In total, 150 are killed in the breakout, well over 100 were killed by mines in the forest, and a further 107 are hunted down and killed in the following days.
208 escaped with their lives though, and 58 would survive until the end of the war to testify what happened at Sobibor.
Sasha would steward a group of 50 Jews through the forest before abandoning them and making his way to the Red Army. He would survive the war and die in 1990 at the age of 80.
These 58 survivors would be the only people to survive Sobibor.
Treblinka had a similar revolt/escape where prisoners looted the armory, used grenades to destroy the camp, and made a dash for the gate. Here too almost everyone was killed but 70 managed to survive.
1.8 million Jews were sent to Treblinka, Belzec, and Sobibor. Of those 1.8 million, only 178 survived. 50 escaped Belzec during its operation, 58 escaped Sobibor during the uprising, and 70 escape Treblinka during their uprising.
This means these camps killed 99.992% of those sent there. Truly horrific.
The way it ALL ENDS: the five endgames that all women face
The West is in really BIG trouble.
Will Biden Start World War III?
“So in war, the way is to avoid what is strong and strike at what is weak.”
― Sun Tzu, The Art of War
I’m sure I could lead off this piece with a dozen quotes from various luminary thinkers through the ages about the wisdom of striking your enemies at moments of great weakness, confusion, or disarray. But I won’t, because I think the concept is sort of obvious, even to those who are not great thinkers.
Boxers and fighters know it.
Corporate raiders know it.
Lawyers and politicians know it, too.
You could even say capitalizing on vulnerability is in the collective DNA of nature.
Whenever possible, predators tend to seek prey of the old, sick, weak, and stupid variety — rather than specimens in the prime of life, at the peak of their strength and courage.
Point being, the U.S. is increasingly showing weakness, division, confusion, and vulnerability to the world. And no, this did not start all of a sudden with Joe Biden’s election. I would argue that it’s been escalating under the last few administrations, to one degree or another. But to my eyes, it’s increasing exponentially under the “leadership” of America’s first invertebrate president…
And I think this could tempt our enemies and adversaries — China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, ISIS, whomever — to test us (and our allies) more and more over the course of Biden’s tenure, on multiple fronts, including militarily.
This is not hard to imagine when you zoom out and look at things from 30,000 feet
Aside from the questionable condition and readiness of certain parts of America’s military, or some of our more anemic foreign policy moves of the recent past…
I’m just as concerned with how a number of other things we’re doing (or allowing to be done) domestically could invite increasing challenges from abroad, or perhaps even violent attack one day. I’m talking about things like:
LAX BORDER SECURITY — Between all the mixed messaging, catch-and-release policies, surreptitious transportation of illegals into the interior (many of them infected with SARS-CoV-2, mind you), and the cessation of border-wall construction, the U.S. has seen an absolute explosion of illegal immigration since Biden’s election.
Case in point: May’s total of over 180,000 apprehensions hadn’t been seen in a single month since April of 2000, the year that set the current annual record for illegal immigrants (1.68 million). So far in 2021, we’re on pace to see as many as 1.86 million illegals on the year, a new record. And an increasing number of them are coming in from places other than central America, including Haiti and Africa.
REJECTION OF POLICE — Reversing a 40-year trend that saw spending for law enforcement more than triple, at least 20 major U.S. cities have now reduced or re-directed funds away from their police forces. Some of them have pledged to cut cop funding by as much as 50%. All told, more than $840 million has evaporated from police coffers in the last year and a half or so.
This had contributed to an unprecedented wave of retirement among cops, creating record vacancies on police forces across the nation. Baltimore alone needs at least 259 more officers on the street, and is begging Washington for federal agents to help with enforcement. The Philadelphia force has 268 vacancies, and is expecting more in the near future. There are many other American PD’s in similarly dire straits, too.
ACCEPTANCE OF CRIME — From abiding lawless “autonomous zones” to giving rioters free rein to destroy property and granting criminals tacit permission to swipe merchandise off store shelves without penalty, the force of law in America is being eroded by the day.
Yet even as crime increases, many kinds of criminal prosecutions are declining across the country. In fact, a movement is afoot in multiple U.S. cities to stop trying entire classes of criminality. Baltimore, as just one example, is no longer prosecuting low-level drug possession, prostitution, or traffic misdemeanors.
And did you see what happened in St. Louis recently? A judge was compelled to let an accused murderer go free because the prosecution failed to show up for trial. The same week, two other murder cases were also dismissed because of unprepared or absent prosecutors. Disgraceful.
PUNISHING U.S. INDUSTRIES — Biden nixed the Keystone XL Pipeline, which would’ve been a tremendous boon for American energy independence, but removed long-standing U.S. sanctions on the Russian Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which increases Europe’s energy dependence and undermines our credibility in the region. Biden has made moves against the domestic coal and oil industries as well…
He’s also aggressively pushing mass-adoption of electric vehicles (EVs), despite America’s overall reluctance to fully embrace them, and the fact that China leads the global EV battery market. The precarious domestic steel and aluminum industries are vulnerable, too, as Biden weighs lifting the Trump-era tariffs that helped bring them back from the brink.
TOLERATING SOFT AGGRESSION — Biden’s response to repeated Russia-based hacking has been notably impotent. Instead of an iron-fisted ultimatum (or an actual counter-hack), he presented Putin with a list of 16 domestic infrastructure targets declared “off limits” to attack. The implication being that everything else is fair game.
The coronavirus pandemic could quite rightly be classified as an act of foreign aggression, too. Mounting evidence suggests that it was developed in a Chinese lab, and whether its release was accidental or intentional, China clearly encouraged its spread around the world, effectively weaponizing it.
Then there’s the PRC’s repeated threatening actions against Hong Kong and Taiwan (and in the South China Sea), Russian actions against Ukraine, North Korean missile tests, etc. All this tallies up to an awful lot of soft aggression against the U.S. and its allies, most of it unanswered in any meaningful way.
All of these things, and more (like declining standards for U.S. troops) project an image of decreasing strength
They suggest an inability to secure and lead our own nation (much less the world) competently, and an unwillingness to do the hard, but necessary thing. This softer image does not make us safer, it makes us more vulnerable.
I don’t see any of it getting better under the increasingly feeble-minded and tone-deaf Joe Biden, either — a man with a lifelong reputation for poll-watching, China-favoring, family-first, flip-flopping “leadership.” This is not just my opinion. You can look this stuff up. Shanghai Joe’s been among China’s top advocates in Washington for nearly his entire tenure in U.S. government. He’s also on record being on both sides of about just every major issue…
And don’t get me started on his family’s cozy and colorful (main color: dollar green) relationship with China and other powerful foreign entities. My read on this is that Biden can be bought, one way or another — and that he has been, many times over.
Bottom line: In my view, the policies of President Biden and his party are waving red flags in front of some very powerful bulls. And if China, Russia, or anyone else has a mind to attack us, I think they’d be very tempted to do it under his watch.
My great hope (yours, too, I’m betting) is that we get through Biden’s tenure without full-on war — and back to a more independent, self-sufficient America with some steel in its spine, both domestically and globally.
But the way things are going, the hope of such a thing may be all we end up having.
I was at a grocery store checkout once, and I saw these three college kids having a field day with a poor clerk who was trying to bag up their groceries. The whole thing, apparently, started when he dropped a bottle of wine they were buying. He apologized, cleaned up the mess, and rushed back to get them another bottle.
While he was gone, they started talking about what a “complete idiot” he was. They proceeded to make fun of the way he looked, the way he was dressed, his weight, his glasses, you name it. When the poor guy got back, they didn’t let up. They started insulting him right to his face, calling him a whole litany of terrible things until they had him on the verge of tears. The kid was only about 16; he was terribly overweight, and I could see how he was probably an easy target for any bully. I was bagging up my own stuff, but I was completely mesmerized by this entire exchange. Suddenly, the kid must have said something because one of the guys reached out and popped him across the face. It wasn’t a punch or a hard slap, just some wussy little pop meant to humiliate him. To my amazement, the kid didn’t walk away. He just stood there red faced with tears welling up in his eyes. The dude reached out and popped him again and, for some reason, this was the funniest thing that these guys had ever seen in their lives. They were laughing like there was no tomorrow.
I kept looking around for a manager, thinking someone needed to say something, but I finally realized that no one was going to. Then it hit me: Why couldn’t I say something? I reached out and grabbed the kid, and pulled him out of the way. I stepped up to the guy, pulled a 20 dollar bill out of my wallet, and told him that I would give it to him if he would hit me like that. He stared at me for a second like I had lost my mind before asking what my problem was. “You’re my damn problem,” I responded. “Hit me in the face like that; I dare you.” Well, there were three of these guys, but they didn’t look like they had ever been in a fight in their entire lives. I am a little over six feet tall, and I weigh around 225. I don’t consider myself to be a tough guy but, needless to say, they didn’t want any part of me. Instead, they simply started gathering their things and headed for the door. I pulled the kid out from behind me, and ordered them to apologize. They laughed at me, and hurried for the parking lot. Well, I was a lot angrier that day than I thought.
I followed them out of the store all the way to their car doing my best to start a fight. They got very quiet, and not one of them had anything to say. Instead, they just kept their heads down, and refused to make eye contact.
I let them leave, and then pulled the kid aside and told him to never let anyone push him around like that. In the future, he needed to, at least, walk away and find a manager. At this point, the kid just broke down in tears and sobbed on my shoulder. It turned out that his dad had died only a year earlier, and he and his mom were all alone in the world. At that point, I really wished I had put one of those bastards in the hospital. Instead, I gave the kid my card, and told him to call if there was ever anything I could do for him. I never saw or heard from him again.
We asked our adult son to live with us however long he could stomach it. He had just had a disastrous brief marriage and a divorce, was quite broke from the wedding rings, the wedding itself, buying a condo for he and his wife, etc. He had also bought himself a used Audi which self-destructed and led him back to driving a 20 year old Honda, worth only a few hundred dollars.
With the new marriage, he had started a new job where there was a potential for future growth. The learning curve was tough. He was working 10 hour days and then studying to learn the job more thoroughly until midnight, rinse and repeat. In addition he was emotionally almost catatonic from his grief over the breakup.
He is living with us now. It has been about two years so far. I think he will be here until January when he plans to get an MBA from one of the top schools to further his career. No wife, no kids, no girlfriend, no debts, now is the time if he is going to do it.
My son is an easy keeper. He is a complete neat freak, always leaving the room looking better after he leaves it than what it was when he entered it. Same with the kitchen. He will walk in to make his lunch and when he leaves the kitchen is spotless. And he is quiet as a mouse.
So, I am not sure this arrangement would work out for every adult child, but in our circumstances it does. We respect him as an adult and he respects us. And we are happy to help him get back on his feet financially and build up his savings.
I was a corporal, not a private. I was sent to Fleet Hospital 5 for a gallbladder removal. They took out my appendix, by mistake. As I lay in my bed, belly full of stitches, my Sergeant Major came to visit, and shared that he would be back the next day because Norman Schwarzkopf was visiting. He was touring medical facilities before the war kicked off.
The hospital gave us magazines to read- people would send them via the any servicemen mail program. I had a Time magazine that asked an important question. Why was nearly the whole Marine Corps in theatre before the army deployed a far smaller amount of servicemen.
The next day I get my painkillers and they put me on my ass. In hindsight, the Navy may have upped my dose so I wouldn’t complain to anyone about how they screwed up my surgery.
So there I am, flying on pain killers, when the General walks in with his entourage. My SgtMaj was there, bringing up the rear. Schwarzkopf approaches my bed, and I am in and out of consciousness. They really shot me up with painkillers, bad. He looks at me and says “What’s a Marine doing in a bed that could be used for one of my soldiers?” I looked him right in the eye, pointed at the Time magazine on my tray table and answered “What soldiers?”
From the look on his face, my SgtMaj May have literally shit himself. The color definitely drained from his face.
The exact opposite happened with Gen. Schwarzkopf. He turned red. I mean really RED. Then, something amazing happened. He cracked a smile. Then, he cracked a joke. For the life of me, I don’t remember what he said, but I was cracking up, and crying from the huge surgical wound. Schwarzkopf noticed his jokes were causing me major discomfort- so he doubled down and told more jokes.
In retrospect, my badassery was chemically induced, but it showed off a side of a 4 Star general, most corporals don’t get to see. My abdomen still twinges when I hear the name Schwarzkopf, and I hope he is still laughing about my interaction with him, wherever he is.
Nicknamed Genie, she was abused for the entirety of her life. From birth until the age of 13, she spent her entire life in a room.
Susan grew up with an extremely abusive father who would beat her if she ever let out a sound. She was beyond neglected. Left in her room to rot. It’s amazing she somehow survived. Her parents had three other children, two of whom had died. The detective at the scene described her room as so:
“Genie ‘slept in a crib formed with chicken wire attached with a latch,’ he said. ‘It was a cage for the child. The window was covered with aluminum foil to reflect out the sunlight. The room was as dark as a coal mine at midnight.’”
One baby died because the father could no longer tolerate the crying child so he wrapped her up, put her in a drawer, and left her to die.
As a result, Susan never learned many of the basic physical, mental, and social abilities we have. She could barely walk, she didn’t know where to pee and poo. She was never taught language. She couldn’t speak or understand language when social workers found her.
Then she became the psychology obsession of the world. While yes, they helped her to a certain extent, in my eyes, she was seen more as a experimental specimen and not a fragile, vulnerable human child.
The rest of her life, she lived in multiple foster homes. In those homes, she was again abused and neglected.
Today, she’s in an adult care facility.
I tear up whenever I think of her story. People can be so, so awful.
Don’t say “anyone.” Otherwise, everyone’s going to be waiting for others.
Sound decisive. Be punctual. People respect you for it.
Greet: hello/mornings/evenings/night (with a big smile)
Don’t complain either about your colleague or senior with anyone- puts you in bad light.
till 28–30 focus on learning and gaining skills
Stop getting away from responsibilities, or, like, how will I do it? It sounds great when you willingly do things. Do more than is expected. And sometimes take credit as well.
Always talk about your abilities with respect. If you share your weaknesses, they will find it hard to remember your pluses.
Take ownership of your mistakes. When you realize you erred, it’s natural to panic. Instead of reacting instantly, stop and take a deep breath (or several times). Then, begin brainstorming possible solutions.
Learn to accept constructive criticism.
Treat others as you would like to be treated.
Always get out of your comfort zone. Ex: Don’t ask for permission, beg for forgiveness. Get coffee with a new person once a week.
Be hygienic. Always smell nice. Always have neat hair and/or clean nails.
Understand what others want or the office politics, and don’t react to everything that people talk about. act wisely. Mind your own business, but keep your ears open.
Talk less and listen more. Always let your seniors believe that they are in power.
Always report about your task and targets via mail, never believe in anything that has been communicated verbally, and ask for mail all the time as it becomes part of your proof.
never discuss problems discuss solutions.
If you’re the second last person to leave the office, please check with the other employee to see if he/she needs any sort of help.
Have self-pride. Wherever your name is attached, it should be perfect work done with effort. If you do good work, more work will come in.
आप अपने आज का पहला दिन या पहला साल किसी दूसरे के 10 साल के Effort के साथ Compare नहीं कर सकते।
Have a great team and trust them. Discuss and ask, and together, brainstorming brings new ideas to the table.
Always have a sense of ownership if nobody takes responsibility you have to. 99% of people are replaceable and 1% are irreplaceable, and all organizations depend on that. Be that 1% that never gets replaced. (Either reach or make your personality so good that it attracts. Ex: If you see a flower pot fallen on the stairs and ignored, you should take ownership and put it back. This is the attitude that we need.
Sir, Mam, Sorry, GM etc. are just the words which you should use. if you’re not feeling like using then too. It all shows manners and respect towards the person which increase your’s too.
Explain in detail and give pointers.
Never ever compete with a guy who works 24/7. There will always be somebody who knows/works better than you. Work efficiently as much as required for the day. That’s enough. Have work life balance.
Never be close friends with your colleagues unless you know them since your college days. Most of them are friends with you because they need you.
Never be loyal to the employer. You are just another employee to them.
Have every word/promise written in mail . Anybody can turn their back at you.
Never show your anger to anybody in office.
play the game. Play politics
never tell people whom you hate or find annoying.
make friends with secretaries and PAs.
Never lose an opportunity when a senior leader asks you for inputs- that’s the time for you to create visibility.
Never discuss problems, only discuss solutions. You will begin to stand out earlier on.
When you join a company, work really hard in the first 6-8 months & win the trust of your seniors. Once the confidence is developed, no one can ever doubt or complain about your performance & thats going to give you a good stay in that company.
I can’t reveal my name, because this about my father’s sister .
My aunt was married and had an average married life with little but not very upsetting ups and downs. They’re blessed with a boy and girl. My uncle, her husband loved them more than anything. They were the apple of his eyes.
Once they deciced to get a gold necklace for the baby girl and he hunted down every jewellery shop in the town to find the perfect necklace for his girl. But he found none of the necklace worthy enough of his daughter and had a custom made for her. This is just an example how much he loved his daughter.
Over the years when the children were about 7–8 years old, they had a petty fight and my grandmother added fuel to the fire. My aunt totally under the influence of my grandmother divorced my uncle and left taking their children along with her.
She fed the children with all the lies about their father. And like we all know how a child’s mind is like a clean slate and she wrote gibberish on it, about their father. They eventually hated him.
Now after 26 years, I once saw my uncle’s profile on Facebook, I saw he shared childhood pictures of my cousins. I saw him mourning his departure from his own children, children he loved so dearly. He contacted my cousins many a times even though he was restricted to do so by the court, and my cousins shooed him away.
He was broken beyond repair. He married again to have children but wasn’t blessed. My aunt tool everything he had but what devasted him the most was separation from his children.
I think that’s the worst thing a woman can do to a man, separating him from his children and making them hate him.
Edit 1: He was restricted by the court to meet his own children because my aunt asked for the custody of the children and demanded no alimony and child care from my uncle. Initially he had a permit and he met his daughter during her school hours to which my aunt claimed that he tried to kidnap his own daughter. After that he was restricted to meet his children. The children now hate their father like anything, though I never quite understood what did he do wrong. He wasn’t alcoholic, nor a womanizer, loved his wife and children a lot, even helped my aunt in household chores. I wish I could do something but I really have no say in their lives.
Enzo Ferrari, the founder of Ferrari company died in 1988 on the 14th August. About 2 months later on 5th October 1988, Ozil was born. He is arsenal footballer. They have unbelievable resemblance
A falling baby saved twice by the same man
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In the 1930s in Detroit Joseph Figlock saved a baby who fell from from a window. A year later Joseph was passing when the same baby fell , he caught her again.
Twin brothers,killed on the same road,two hours apart.
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In 2002,Seventy-year-old twin brothers were killed by accidents on the same road in Northern Finland.The first one was hit by a lorry while riding his bicycle ,he died 1.5km from the spot his brother was killed
The woman who couldn’t sink.
Violet Jessup.
She was named Miss Unsinkable. The stewardess and nurse was on the HMS Olympic when it struck the HMS Hawke, she was also on HMHS Britannic when it sank. She was also on the RMS Titanic when it sank after hitting an iceberg.
Over the course of a few months someone was leaving hateful notes on my front door and yanking the silk flowers off the wreath hanging on my front door. By the end of this story the wreath is bare.
Overall I’m a nice person and usually get along very well with my neighbors, so I was very puzzled regarding what this was all about.
I reported the matter to property management then the police became involved.
In the end it was discovered that a neighbor living 10′ across the hall was very angry with me. She was receiving phone calls, probably telemarketers, companies selling auto warranties, etc. BUT SHE THOUGHT I WAS PRANK CALLING HER! I never figured out why she thought it was me!
Fortunately, I was able to let her daughter know. Her daughter reimbursed me for the wreath and not long after she was moved to assisted living. Whew! That was a mess.
Burmese Curried Pork (Weta Hin)
Burmese Curried Pork Weta Hin
Ingredients
1 (2 pound) boneless pork shoulder
1 large onion, finely chopped
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tablespoon finely chopped gingerroot
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 (16 ounce) can whole tomatoes, drained
1 stalk fresh lemon grass, finely chopped
1 tablespoon fish sauce
Hot cooked rice
Instructions
Trim fat from pork; cut pork into 2-inch cubes.
Place onion, garlic, gingerroot, turmeric and red pepper in blender container. Cover and blend on medium-high speed, stopping blender frequently to scrape sides, until smooth, about 1 minute.
Heat oils in Dutch oven over medium heat until hot. Gradually and carefully pour vegetable mixture into oil. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer, stirring, occasionally, 15 minutes.
Add pork, tomatoes, lemon grass and fish sauce; break up tomatoes with fork. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer until pork is tender, about 1 1/2 hours.
Serve over rice. Garnish with snipped fresh cilantro if desired.
I worked for a company where one of the married supervisors started going for lunch with one of his pretty young workers. The lunches got longer and longer, and then he had to start working late to get all of his work done.
Then he had to rent an apartment close to work, so he wouldn’t have to drive all the way home after working late.
Eventually his worker got pregnant and he had to make a choice. He got divorced and married his mistress.
When she announced at work that she was pregnant and getting married to her already married boss, it was quite a scandal.
His new bride had to quit work for maternity leave. She insisted that he have no female workers on his crew, and that he not work over time, she phoned during every lunch and he had to answer. This was before cell phones.
If I didn’t know better, I would have thought she was suspicious of her new husband.
He got promoted into a marketing position, and wasn’t in the office very much. For some reason his wife made him find an office job and I lost track of him for twenty years.
He started work at the same company I worked for, and I asked how his second wife was doing. ( She had been my coworker) and he said that he was on wife number 3.
It wasn’t as big of a surprise as you would think.
FEAR is the basis of RESPECT: people must hear you hiss
When I lived in Tangxia; Danguan there was this twice-a-year event that is worthy of reporting. You see, I lived in a little city part of a bigger city next to Shenzhen. It is a small manufacturing city located North of Shenzhen in the Pearl River Delta. And being a manufacturing city, dating back many centuries, there were a lot of old buildings and old roads, and old sewer lines.
Well, twice a year, the local government would “fog” the underground sewers. This was a release of insecticide in a mist fog that would be sprayed by huge trucks all over town. The idea was to kill off the insects and rodents, and the city had been doing this for centuries.
But…
Let me tell you all that when that happened, a virtual carpet of huge (mouse-sized) cockroaches swarmed out of the sewers and carpeted everything. Some flew, many just climbed all over, including on shoes and trousers and woman’s legs. It was darn crazy!
If you saw it, you would not believe it. Not a scrap of concrete could be seen; three layer deep of swarming cockroaches everywhere. Wholly shit!
Last time it happened, my wife was so freaked out that I had to carry her two blocks back to our apartment. She was hysterical and had goosebumps all over her arms and legs. Jeeze! So imagine the scene, they were crawling, racking, flying, swarming, on everything. On our feet, the trees, the sidewalks, the store windows, the cars. They were buzzing, hopping and leaping, and my wife was in goosebumps and hysterical.
An experience that I do not want to relive ever again. Let me tell you what!
I was about 13 and was asked by a family friend to help her step daughter out by babysitting her 3 kids while she worked at a pizza parlor in town. It would be from the time I got out of school till 10pm, but Summer vacation would start in a couple weeks so I figured I could manage it.
I agreed to try it and see how it went. The day I was to start, I rode my bike to the house. I could smell some horrible smell from the yard. Went to the door and it was wide open. I yelled “hello??” and 3 of the cutest kids I’d ever seen came running! They were full of questions. I asked where their Mom was and the eldest said she was already at work. I was surprised, but I figured something had changed with our plans and she had to go in early.
I walked into the living room and the air was thick with stench. It was a combination of animal waste, rotten garbage and food. The living room had a couch, a chair and was literally 3 feet deep in clothes, garbage bags and dirty diapers. I was a kid and wasnt sure where to start, but i found a roll of garbage bags and we began. I say we because those babies were such a help!
The oldest was Michael and he proudly told me he was 5 and would be staring Kindergarten the following year. He was short and stocky with a mop of curly blonde hair. What I first noticed was his serious expression. He had an excellent vocabulary and was a chatter box. Next was a little girl named Jessica. She was 3 and absolutely beautiful. She was quiet but didnt miss anything. She was petite and had hair to her waist that was full of tangles. The baby girl was Grace and she was 2. She was very frail looking, although she turned out to be anything but frail. She was in just a diaper which was soaked, so I asked Michael to show me where the diapers were. We all headed into the girls room. It was filthy. I find a clean washcloth and get Grace cleaned up. She smiled the whole time. They were all hungry, so we head to the kitchen. I found a can of soup and some stale crackers, which they devoured. While they ate, i started on the kitchen. The sinks and counters were i overflowing with dishes. I turn the faucet handle and no hot water! So i start heating water after digging to uncover the stove. Theyve devoured the soup and want more. There was nothing more, so i grab my backpack and find a yougurt to split, some cookies and an apple which was all split between the 3 of them. I noticed there was no bickering. These 3 were accustomed to looking out for each other.
We started with the garbage and those kids really worked hard…..even the baby! We started by getting the garbage bagged up, and I started laundry. We worked for hours, and those kids didnt want to stop! They wanted a clean house. We got the living room mucked out, we found clean sheets and got beds made. The kitchen had a good start. I went in and cleaned the bathroom while they found jammies. I looked up from scrubbing and those faces were beaming. Got Grace in the tub and started detangling Jess’s hair. I know it had to hurt……but she never made a peep. Grace was clean and ready to get out. Water change and Jessicas turn. When she was clean, we changed water and gave Michael his privacy. I took the girls and checked the magical backpack. I found some nice lotion and they smelled lovely! They both had beautiful hair and kept touching it. Michael gets out and wants some lotion too. We decided to move Michaels bed in with his sisters (his “bedroom” was tiny, i think it was a.closet) We found some books and read. They were all asleep in minutes. As I detangled myself feom the sleeping babies, Michael asked if I was going to come back. I gave him a hug and said Id see him tomorrow. He grinned and it made my day. I waited for Mom to get home. It was almost 11 PM by the time she got home and I could tell she had been drinking. She introduced herself and looked around the room. She was shocked. She asked who had cleaned and i told her we all did. I see a car pulling up and its my Dad coming to see why Im so late. She says she had a meeting and was kept late. He ssaid”Look, we need her done at 10. Not 1001! If you cant be home at 10, she cant do this “ He loaded my bike up. He asked how it went. I didn’t want to tell him how dirty it was because I was afraid he would say I couldnt go back, and I had promised Michael.
And so it went. Every day, the kids and I would clean up a bit more. The cleaner the house got, the more time we had to walk to the park or go to the community pool. We had a great time and those 3 kids were all amazing.
I babysat the kids all that summer and into the start of school. It was just too much and I had to quit after Christmas vacation. I still watched them occasionally and we always had so much fun. This was in the early 70s. I still see the 3 kids who are adults now with families of their own. Michael went on to become an executive chef and works at a very trendy restaurant in the San Francisco area. He has a couple of kiddos and a lovely wife. Jess is an RN and works in the Lake Tahoe area. Shes a single mom of 2 boys and Grace is still local and keeps me in the loop with updates. She married a local guy and they have a daughter. She teaches at the local elementary school.
Its weird because it was such a short period of time, but it left us all with a bonding of the heart. Their Mom passed away last year and I went to her services and got to see all the kids (lol at KIDS!!) They introduced me as the best babysitter ever.
Filthiest house produced some wonderful humans. I was happy to be a small part of that. Sorry this was so long. Was a lovely trip down memory lane. Thanks for reading.
When my husband caught me cheating on him. There are no excuses, it was an incredibly stupid, selfish, and insane thing to do to someone who didn’t deserve it. The person I cheated on my husband with wasn’t worth it, that’s for sure.
After telling most of my friends and family what I did, my husband packed his bags and left. I spent a week on my couch contemplating suicide and hitting absolute rock bottom. My friends all took his side, understandably. Almost everyone I loved turned away. I fell physically sick with some sort of insane flue—the worst I’ve ever had in my life, probably from the stress.
I could’ve turned to the guy and tried to start fresh. New life, new boyfriend, new friends… Get that divorce and start over. Instead, I realized that what I had was worth fighting for, even if it took years to get it back. I ended the affair with that guy.
I wrote to each friend and family member who knew about this that I was going to do whatever it took to build my life back. I wrote to my husband. I begged him to come back. By some miracle… he did. We went to counselling, I went to therapy. I opened my life to my husband: no more privacy. He had access to everything, which I was completely fine with.
It took a long time, but eventually my friends came back. My husband’s trust slowly began to rebuild. Years and years later, our marriage is strong-full of incredible love, respect, and trust. I look back at what I did in complete disgust. I live everyday with that heartbreak, wishing I’d never put such an amazing person through that. Although that time was dark, it was the push I needed to wake up and stop living like a selfish idiot.
I wouldn’t trade the life I have now for the world. It took incredible pain and humiliation to get here, but it’s what led to my amazing life now. For those going through a dark time, take it day by day… one step at a time. I never thought I’d ever get here, but with hard work and patience, it will get better.
Not sure of the exact date, but it would have been mid to late ’80s in Bristol city centre.
Late one evening I was in a crew of 6 in a transit van when we saw a knackered looking Fiat 127 (they were never brilliant when new, let alone one that was 15 years old!). Half of the lights were out, smoke from the exhaust (and lots of noise).
Pulled the car over, and found it contained 2 adults and 3 children (all under 6 or 7 at a guess). Occupants were of obvious Asian descent (not unusual for that area of Bristol), so I started to ask the usual questions whilst a colleague looked over the car (which was found to have 3 bald tyres, no window wipers and a lot of rusty holes in the bodywork).
The driver and adult passenger were almost in tears, and trying to speak in English, which wasn’t that great. I established that they were Mauritian, and had only arrived in the UK that day. Once I spoke to them in French they looked relieved (my French isn’t brilliant, but was better than their English). He produced a Mauritian Driving Licence, and when asked for insurance and registration for the car (which they had purchased upon arrival at the airport), they produced a hand-written receipt showing that they had paid £1000.00 cash for the car! (it was worth about 20 quid scrap value, and certainly shouldn’t have been on a road). Even worse, he proudly produced another hand-written “Insurance Certificate” for which he had paid the car seller another £300.
They had come here to attend a family funeral, and had been royally ripped off by some scumbag near Heathrow as they needed to get down to Bristol as soon as possible.
Obviously, we couldn’t let them continue driving as it was unlikely to get them very far anyway, and was a liability to everyone else on the road.
I had no intention of getting my pen anywhere near to an official ‘ticket’, and explained the game to my Sergeant – who fully agreed with me.
All the time, the family were getting more and more upset as they started to realise the situation they were in and the trouble they thought they were in.
We took them back to our station (and a colleague drove their car), fed and watered them, spoke to relatives by telephone, and sorted out as much as we could at that time.
They were taken to a hotel for the night and agreed to surrender the car for destruction.
As the story spread throughout the night (between other colleagues, paramedics, fire-fighters, hospital staff and taxi drivers…. that was the way things were in the City at that time) offers of help came in.
By the time we went off duty at 0700 hours, the hotel bill had been waived, a taxi was ready to take them down to Exeter (their intended destination), and a collection had raised just under a grand in cash. Toys had been donated for the children, and small ‘gifts’ for the adults.
By the time they arrived in Exeter, the local police had found and purchased a small run-around car which wasn’t great, but had a few months of MOT and tax left on it, and was roadworthy… enough for their use whilst they were in the country.
We got a lovely letter from them once they were back in Mauritius, thanking us for the help we gave (and arranged) – but we only did what we could to help someone who needed it, and had been badly treated by opportunistic scum.
Edit:-
Thanks for the gramatical corrections – I try my best, but often fail!
I’ve never had a higher-rated answer on Quora, or received so many comments – Thank you, everybody.
It is not often that I bother to answer many questions, being a ‘reserved’ British ex-cop many situations just don’t seem worthy of reply, or have already got a few good answers.
I fully appreciate that probably 95% of the questions (and thus, answers) are posted from the USA, and whilst i find them interesting to read, are often so alien to a British way of thinking that I see no advantage in adding to them.
Anyone who reads my other (very few!) answers on Quora will see that I have some views and oppinions on some things – mainly to counter the critics and troll posters when it gets a bit ‘personal’, or to defend those who I feel need it.
I have no desire to be a “super user” on here, despair at many of the “questions” asked, but still feel that (every so often) even the British have something useful to add to this world.
I have to tell this story. I started writing song when l was about 15 years old. One of my biggest influences was Harry Chapin. I live in Los Angeles, and Harry played at the Greek Theatre every year. I went to see him four or five years in a row after getting my drivers license.
Harry played about 300 concerts a year. He gave about half the money he made to world hunger. After the concert, he sat and sold and signed T shirts for the cause and would stay until every person who wanted to buy a T-shirt was able to . His Security guys, always moved people quickly through, because they knew Harry would talk to everyone. After the first concert l stood in line to get a signed T-shirt, and when it was my turn l told him l was a songwriter. He smiled and said, “ Really ? I wish you the best of luck”. The following year l went to where he was signing T shirts, and to my surprise , he saw me and asked, “ How’s the songwriting going?” While he was signing T-shirts, I stood to the side and talked to him about songwriting. His security tried to make me leave, but he said, “. Leave the kid alone. He’s not hurting anyone.”
l did this every year, and the last time l saw him, l was 20 years old and had got my first job playing songs at a Shaky’s Pizza place. I told Harry that and that l played Taxi, but that there was a part l couldn’t figure out. He turned to one of his security guys, and said, “ Go get me one of the guitars out of the truck “. Pretty much all the people who were buying T shirts were done . The security guy said, “ Harry! It’s midnight man. We got to get out of here!” Harry said, “ Just do it.”
The irritated security guy did it and Harry showed me how to play the part. One thing l forgot to mention, was that l had brought me mom with me to see him. She was so happy for me and told that story to people that story unt the day she died. Harry Chapin was a very special man.
Galatoire’s Trout Meuniere Amandine
2023 12 04 17 16
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
4 (6 to 8 ounce) trout fillets
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 cup milk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
Oil
1 cup butter
1 cup sliced almonds
Juice of 1 lemon
1/2 tablespoon chopped parsley
Instructions
Sprinkle fillets with salt and pepper, dip into milk and roll in flour.
Fry in 3/4 inch of hot oil in a shallow skillet until golden on both sides.
Remove and keep warm.
In a separate pan, melt and whip butter until brown and frothy.
Add sliced almonds and lemon juice.
Place each fillet on a heated plate and pour sauce over it.
China has a system of Governance that is radically different to that in Western Countries
Thus it is imperative, if the West has to keep it’s “We are the guardians of democracy” model, they have to portray China as evil and the system as collapsing
Otherwise won’t the people ask how if the Chinese system is so bad, is the nation prospering so much?
My granddaughter and I were at a Denny’s. We ordered and ate lunch. The waitress came back and picked up the bill that she had left on the table. So we finished and waited for her to bring it back finally called to her as she went past.
We ask for the bill to be brought back and she said no it was paid for.
An elderly man sitting at the counter had paid for our lunch. When I asked her why she said he is a regular customer and told me that he always smiles at people and you and your little granddaughter were the only ones that ever smiled back at him.
My wife had a 6 month affair, when I found out I left her.
A number of people assumed I was the one who cheated on her. That bothered me. I corrected them.
Worse were all the people who assumed I must have done something wrong to deserve it and that I was still the bad guy. People told me I must have not paid enough attention to her, I must have some how drove her to it, etc. Some people refuse to believe that I somehow didn’t do something wrong to cause her to cheat.
All I can say is this – I loved her and treated her like a queen. When I’ve asked her why she did it, the response from her has always been that I was a terrific husband, that she loved me, and that she regrets it. The guy was nearly 20 years younger than her (he in his early 20s, she nearly 40), he was attractive and charming and started flirting with her and she found him irresistible.
So, that’s a double standard that I’ve lived through and find unfair; if I had cheated I would’ve been labelled a creep/jerk, when she has an affair I’m still somehow a jerks who is to blame??!
Back in 1997 in Canmore, Alberta, Sir Anthony Hopkins and Alec Baldwin were in town filming The Edge. Mr. Baldwin decided one evening he wanted to eat at our local Chinese eatery.
I was an Eco-Tourism operator and frequented the establishment quite often. They had an orange chicken that I went bonkers for.
It was peak dining hour and the place was experiencing a 45-minute waiting period to get a table.
In strolls, cocky Baldwin and he demands a seat “NOW!”
The owner was this 5 ft tall fiesty Chinese woman and when she told Mr. Baldwin that he’d have to wait about 45 minutes he pulled the old, Do you know who I am?”
Man, if you could have seen this lady go into action it was an Academy Award for putting an arrogant prick into his place.
She yelled at him with her Mandarin accent, “I don’t care who you are, you get out of my restaurant and don’t come back!”
image 19
The rumours of his arrogance have always swirled in the tabloids and I got a front-row seat to see it in action.
And the winner is for putting the Douche BgAlec Baldwin in his place… The Owner of the Famous Chinese Restaurant, in Canmore Alberta.
I need do this anonymously, because it’s a sensitive subject.
I’m a father of two wonderful children, and my oldest, my son, has special needs. Due to his premature birth (roughly 30 weeks), he developed a condition called Periventricular Leukomalacia, or PVL for short.
PVL is essentially an under development, often by necrosis, of white brain matter near the ventricles of the brain. Read up on it a bit on wikipedia for more info if you interested: Periventricular leukomalacia – Wikipedia
We discovered this was case shortly after his first birthday, when doctors started noticing some developmental delays and some muscle stiffness on his left side. Some evaluations and scans, and it was confirmed what he has, and that it also the cause of his cerebal palsy. It was quite a shock.
Anyways, we start doing therapies and early intervention and it’s such a wonder watching him overcome it all in small steps, in his own way. You feel blessed at times to see his hard work pay off, to truly value life and love and family.
So what do I want to get off my chest?
It’s all bullshit. You know those parents who “wouldn’t have their child any other way because it taught us so much about ourselves and….” well fuck that.
I absolutely hate it. Hate. With a capital H.
I have other parents talk to me and they word things like “well, he’ll get past all this and so forth…”. Ummmm, no dumbass. His condition is chronic – forever. We can adapt to it, and work really hard and he’ll cope and be better off for it.
But while Johnny Awesome-Dad and Super Son are learning how to play catch, I’m helping my son learn how to alternate feet when climbing stairs, how to be aware of his raised arm at the elbow and to lower and swing while he walks, while that guy got to teach his son how to swing for the fences.
His mannerisms are collectively a huge brain capillary-exploding annoyance. From the non-sensical sounds that he repeats 100 times to the way he is so damn slow at e v e r y t h i n g.
Yeh, I hate being a special needs parent. On top of being one, I also have to be his political advocate, constantly representing other parents to our federal and state politicians to ensure kids like him get proper educations.
I really really hate all of it. I only love him – I just wish I could heal him. That’s probably the worst. Of all the things I can do and fix, I can’t make him better.
Fuck me.
(January 9th, 2019)
Edit: Wow, a lot of upvotes. Most I have ever received by far, my next closest has about 115.
Ok, to a few comments: Thank you for the kind words from most people, the support, sympathy, and empathy. I truly did not write this to receive that as I quite literally was getting something off my chest.
To those who think less of my answer, even angry at me for being so: Your opinion is valued and appreciated. My response to it though is simply a shrug and a “It is what it is.” I know my son didn’t choose to be this way, but understand I am not choosing to feel this way either.
I wish I was a better person in this regard but I’m not. However remember this: I don’t let him see it. Fuck, I don’t even mention it anymore to family because they’ll either blanket me with guilt statements and be angry at me (Fuck You btw) or keep telling me lies like “It’ll all be fine” (no it won’t) or “He’ll be fine” (no, you obviously don’t understand it at all).
How do I cope?
Weed. Makes me feel better.
Heavy bag – I punch the crap outta it. Actually split the first one and I’m on my second. Looking to buy a speed bag.
Bottle it up and get back to my life.
And lastly yes I have considered leaving because he deserves a better Dad. The problem with that is it would take a lot of time for my wife to find another person who wants to take this on. Secondly my other child would suffer the loss of Dad when they did nothing, or have anything, wrong. It wouldn’t be fair and life is unfair enough as it is – I don’t want to add to it.
Don’t be indecisive. Ain’t nobody gonna follow someone who can’t make up their damn mind.
Don’t be a two-faced snake. People can smell that crap from a mile away.
Don’t be a damn pushover. You gotta have a backbone if you want to make it in this world.
Don’t be lazy. If you’re the one in charge, you gotta put in the work.
Don’t be a know-it-all. You ain’t that smart, trust me.
Don’t be too proud to ask for help. We all need it sometimes.
Level 5 – Impossible
House of Blues Bayou Voodoo Smothered Chicken
2023 12 03 15 32
Yield: 4 servings; 1 pound Roux
Ingredients
Brown Roux
10 ounces all-purpose flour
1 cup vegetable oil
Chicken
1 pound butter, melted
2 pounds chopped onion
1 pound chopped celery
1 pound chopped red bell pepper
1 pound chopped green bell pepper
1 pound sliced mushrooms
2 ounces minced garlic
2 1/2 ounces all-purpose flour
4 cups red wine (chef suggests Burgundy wine)
2 quarts dark beer
2 quarts water
2 tablespoons beef base
4 tablespoons chicken base
1 tablespoon liquid smoke
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons Tabasco sauce
1 cup Louisiana Seasoning
Instructions
Brown Roux
Place oil in a heavy stock pot and heat until it smokes. Slowly whisk in flour, 2 cups at a time, mixing well. Cook in oven at 350 degrees F for about 2 hours, stirring every 15 minutes. Roux is done when chocolate brown color is achieved. Allow to cool.
Chicken
In a large skillet or sauté pan, add butter.
Put onion, celery, red bell pepper, green bell pepper and mushrooms into the pan and sauté.
Add garlic and sauté for 1 minute.
Add flour and stir; cook for 1 minute.
Add red wine and reduce until thick.
Add dark beer, water, beef base, chicken base and bring to a boil.
Add liquid smoke, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco sauce and Louisiana seasoning.
Whip some roux into the sauce. Bring to a boil then remove from heat.
Put some pre-made rice on a plate, put cooked chicken breast on top of rice and ladle voodoo sauce over the chicken and rice.
Ages ago in the late ’70s I worked in an engineering department for a huge manufacturing company – one of the big three in Detroit. A co-worker had about 30 years with the company and a ton of vacation time. He and his wife had a daughter late in life. She was about 8 at the time and daddy took vacation days every Friday and Monday during her summer vacation.
Big boss comes in one Thursday afternoon looking for the doting dad. We say he’s off until Tuesday, and reminded him of daddy’s schedule.
Keep in mind that all vacation had to be submitted and approved, by boss man, in January.
But in this moment he can’t have what he wants when he wants it.
Boss man hits the ceiling. We can’t have that. Everyone has to take vacation in full week increments.
The guy had a pretty specialized skill set, and no one else was really up to speed in his area of expertise. We could fill in in a pinch. Daddy could complete final draft when he got back on Tuesday.
the following summer, I had transferred to another department, but that department struggled when dad took his six-plus weeks of vacation consecutively!
it was a whole lot easier to cover his job for four days than six weeks.
It resulting in us trying for 6 months after ending the affair. To her cheating on me with another man to eventually leave me at the end of the 6 months. Tit for tat I guess. Lots of shame and heartbreak on my end but those are the consequences. Mostly life lessons though. Divorce was the anwser and we will both be happier in the long run.
Many years ago a young woman called me up one evening to ask some questions about insurance regarding the car accident that had happened between her car and mine that afternoon. Slight problem, I hadn’t been in a car accident. She had my name and license plate from the police report so I went out and checked the number of the license plate on the back of my car, and it wasn’t the same number. After a little more discussion I got my auto registration and that did match the number on the report – the license plates on the front and back of my car weren’t the same! After thinking about it I realized what must have happened: I had returned from a business trip a couple days earlier and while my car was parked at the airport parking garage someone had swapped the license plate on the back of my car with a different one and then put my license plate on the car that got in an accident (it was almost the same make and model as my car – they must have been casing the airport). Not surprisingly this turned into quite a mess to untangle, requiring multiple calls to insurance as well as a visit by the police officer to verify my car had not in fact been in an accident. The weird part that still bothers me to this day – the woman driving the car who’d gotten in an accident had the same last name as me. My last name isn’t an unusual one, but it’s not extremely common either. She told the police she was my niece (not likely – I’m white and she was black). How did that happen?
Have you noticed big brands dropping A, B & O from their signs and logos?
image 10
Most people who noticed the same, thought that it could be some malfunction but the real reason for the missing A, B, and O’s is something more serious and amazing.
image 9
NHS Blood and Transplant organization, along with PR agency Engine Group has launched the ‘Missing Type’ campaign. It has undertaken this campaign to make people aware the benefits of blood donation and its importance of saving lives.
image 8
Big brands and companies likeTesco, Mirror, McDonalds, Starbucks and Hardrock Cafe have agreed to be the part of the campaign to make people aware of blood donation.
As a part of this campaign, NHS has asked big brands to omit the letters that signify blood types from their logos and signs viz, blood types A, B, and O.
I watched a 90 lb female put a 235 lb guy in the hospital. This was a fight between 2 neighbors in my neighborhood. This guy harassed her for weeks then for some reason he decided to walk up to her front porch and knock on her door. I was sitting on my front porch when it happened. I was thinking this is not going to be good, and had my cell phone within reach.
She open her door and in a clear loud voice, she requested he get off her property. He said, what are you going to do about it. She said, I’ll call the police. He laughed at her and reached for the screen door. Before I could move she kicked him in the head twice, swept his legs out from under him, and he was down and bleeding.
I started to call the police, but again before I could dial the number a patrol car pulled up and the officer put the guy in handcuffs. I just sat there, drank my coffee and waited for him to come over and ask what I saw. I told him and signed the bottom of the form.
As he walked away he said you know the woman? I replied yes, she’s a former Marine. He chuckled and said. I guess the guy didn’t know that, and I laughed.
When I had an Amish girl come live in with me during the week to help take care of my three-year-old daughter and my brand new twin boys.My husband was in Vietnam.
The first night that I went out to play cards with friends I came home at 10:00 p.m. everybody was sitting in the dark. It was pitch Black and it had not occurred to me that she would not be allowed to turn on the lights or use the electric stove to heat formula.
From them and I would make sure everything was turned on before I left. I only played cards twice a month but they were never left in the dark again. I would heat formula and put it in the thermos bottle but I also showed her how to fill up pan with hot water from the tap to sit the bottles in.
EDIT due to the amount of people that think it was horrible to leave my newborn twins and 3-year-old daughter with a stranger I need to explain the Amish girl lived with me. I would take her home on Saturday morning and go pick her up on Monday morning. I even knew her family. She had helped raise 9 younger brothers and sisters.
When I was in high school I would get terrible menstrual cramps. I would leave school and go to the cab stand down the block. The dispatcher was a man that I’ll call Joe. He was blind.
I would walk in on a wooden floor and Joe would say hi Linda you need to go home? I would take a taxi and come in after school the next day to pay for it. This was in a small town about 15,000.
I grew up, graduated high school, moved away, got married and got pregnant. My husband was going to Vietnam and I went back home to stay with my parents. This was about 6 years after I had left home.
I stopped at a bakery before I went to my parents house. I took one step on a cement floor and a man standing at the counter buying some donuts said “Hey Linda when did you get home?”
I never understood how Joe recognized my one step on the cement floor and I was very pregnant. You would think the sound would be different but he recognized that one step immediately.
A guy I went on a first date with (set up by a friend) told me how his ex wife was having a breakdown and had messaged him that day, to say that she couldn’t cope and was going to call social services and have their two children placed in care. Shocked, I looked at him and said “Couldn’t you take them for a couple of weeks and give her a break?” I kid you not, his genuine, honest response was “Not a chance, I have them every other weekend, that’s enough for me!”. I don’t think I hid my horror very well. Ugly, ugly man. My own son was 3 years old and the time, and if he wouldn’t step up for his own kids, he was going nowhere near mine!
It takes about 66 days for an average individual to make something a daily habit.
Eye pupil dilates to 45% when an individual looks at somebody they love.
Food prepared by someone else tastes much better than your own preparation, even when you use the same recipe.
Hearing a single negative thing could damage at least five positive memories.
Studies have shown that consuming food without preservatives will increase I.Q by up to 14%.
Men aren’t more entertaining than women: they only make more jokes, they don’t care whether others like their humor or not.
Shy people tell others very little about themselves, but they do it in quite a manner that makes other individuals believe they know them better than they actually think they do.
People in blue rooms are also much more productive.
Being alone is harder for your health than you really believe.
Any relationship born between 16 and 28 years of age is more likely to be robust and long-lasting.
If we have a plan B, our plan A is less likely to succeed.
Being happy around people makes you happier.
Convincing yourself that you slept well tricks your brain into believing you did.
The sort of music you listen to influences the way you view the world.
A hug longer than twenty seconds will produce hormones into your body that makes you trust the individual who is hugging yo
Not so much amazing, as being extremely useful to me. I was on a European Standards Committee for several years. Members came from many European countries and it was customary to conduct all meetings in English.
Often the French and German delegates would speak to each other in the meeting in French or German to try and exclude the UK delegate from what they were plotting. This was on the basis that they assumed that the British could not speak other languages. It was advantageous to me for them not to know that I understood at least the gist of what they were saying.
However, when meeting in Dusseldorf the German delegated took us all out for dinner after the meeting. This was in a very German restaurant and the waitress approached me asking, in German, what I would like to eat. Not thinking, I blew my cover by replying in German.
The German delegate’s jaw dropped and said “you speak German!”. Trying to save myself I admitted that I could speak enough basic german to get by, but I couldn’t resist adding “ but my understanding is better”.
The Swedish delegate sitting next to me actually laughed and gave me a pat on the back.
A 26 yrs old with a decent job(in Indian Silicon Valley), beautiful girlfriend, about to be promoted, in short, enjoying my life.
But now,
A road accident(to save a little girl), which confined me to home for 4–5 months, had a kneefracture, operated, implanted with a metal plate inside(permanently).
Promotion aborted(as i m on Medical Leave for quite a longer period).
Cheated by my girlfriend when we were planning to get married, our parents accepted us.
My situation after surgery,
image 18
I was full of life. Travelling, working out in gym used to make me feel energized, lively, confident. But my eyes in the above picture are full of unnecessary thoughts, wandering with all the lively moments I had before.
Permanent Implant,
image 17
I was planning to call my parents to bangalore so that i can arrange some vacation for them and let them know about me and my girlfriend. But this was not the way i wanted them to come.
Even after accepted by my parents, she cheated on me. This was the time when i needed her the most. I know that,
“We should Forgive people in our life, even those who are not sorry for their actions. Holding on to anger only hurts us, not them.”
Also after one-by-one misfortunes, my self-confidence is f**ked like a Gangbang. So i’m not in a place to keep grudges with her and trying to move on, to forgive her and forget her.
Now they want me to settle downin an arranged marriage with a girl of their choice. And neither I am in position to ask for getting married with a girl of my choice nor in a position of getting married with any girl due to hindrances in my promotion, beautifully f**ked self-confidence.
I’m just trying to recover as soon as possible from the physical and emotional injury so that i can go back to my self made track of life.
Go ask Russians, nearly all western countries did the same as you mentioned to Russia, including the so called “nuclear option”: kicked Russia out of SWIFT, did Russian economy collapse?
Oh, maybe you don’t know the real world, just living in the “information cocoons”, you’re fed with selected information, which made you believe China is easy to win, like our beloved president 45 said, trade war is easy to win.
This is his easy to win:
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Now, it is America who’s relying on China, not China relying on America. Say you to buy a Toyota and wait for over a month, sometimes you need to pay extra money, and its price is rising year after year, while in China, Toyota is to buy at will and drive away upon you paid, and its price is lower and lower. For example, RAV 4 in America starts from $29K, while in China, it starts from RMB 175,800, which is about $24.5K.
The problem is not China, it hides in America, destory China can’t solve your own problem.
The big heads are more informed and clever than you average Americans do. They know they can’t win, sanctions, trade wars, are just to slow down China’s pace, not to stop it.
Years ago, I was involved with a lawsuit against a tech company. Kind of “class action,” which meant a lot of people were there.
I noticed two levels of dress: casual and super-expensive suits.
As the process unfolded, I realized that those two levels of dress represented three levels of wealth.
The expensive suits were all worn by guys (and, yes, sorry, this was long ago, and everyone was a guy) who had high-paying jobs. Most would regard them as well off. They drove new, leased BMWs, etc. They were supercilious toward everyone because THEY were the only ones wearing expensive suits, shoes, and Rolexes.
The casual dressers represented two economic levels:
Those who could not afford expensive suits or Rolexes.
Those who had so much money they didn’t need to impress anyone.
At one point during the proceeding, I ended up in a room with four suits while I was dressed in jeans and wore a lightweight “Members Only” jacket. (You can tell this was long ago, right? Remember when those were cool?)
At first, they spoke only among themselves, treating the “obviously” poor guy like I couldn’t possibly matter. I let them go for a few minutes and then interrupted them for an important message on life. I told them how their expensive suits put them at a disadvantage because the only thing obvious in the room was that none of them were in the top tier financially.
They included me from then on.
To answer the question: The truly rich wear whatever they want. Only those who are still struggling to become truly rich are slaves to the “badges of honor” that they THINK demonstrate they are rich.
I was at a Home Depot and saw this lady trying to lift a 90lb bag of cement from a flat cart into the trunk of her car. I said let me help you with that and grabbed the bag and put it in her trunk. She said I don’t need your damn help. I said sorry and grabbed the bag and put it back on the cart. As I was pulling out of the parking lot I saw that she had dropped the bag and it broke open all over the parking lot. I honked and waved.
During the Vietnam war President Lyndon Johnson and Robert McNamara came up with “Project 100,000,” and the idea was to kill two birds with one stone by drafting men who were developmentally disabled or just too stupide to be left into the army. It was to provide more men for the war effort and give the less fortunate a chance at being productive members of society.
image 4
There’s typically an IQ minimum of 80 points to serve in the US military, but the rule was loosened, and they started allowing in men with mental disabilities. These men became known a “McNamara’s Morons” and died at 5 times the rate of other Americans in the war.
You had men turning up to basic training that couldn’t even tie their own shoes and couldn’t even understand the basics like dressing the bed. Some of these soldiers didn’t even understand why they were utterly exhausted at the end of a run when they were full of energy at the start of the run.
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When in combat training, none of the men could pass their physical training because they couldn’t grasp the idea of throwing a heavy training grenade in a high arc to reach the target that was 90 feet away.
A lot of the men were protected from battle and kept safe by sergeants who took pity on them, but a lot were sent into dangerous battles on the front line. Not only were some of these men a danger to themselves they also put their fellow soldiers in harms way by not being able to grasp the seriousness of what they were involved in.
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For example, in one platoon a dozen men were injured when a live grenade was tossed at them by another soldier as a prank. The soldier in question didn’t have the brain function to understand how dangerous a grenade was.
The word McNamara Moron’s was a derogatory term used by many of the sergeants to describe many of the men that fell under their care. Although the experiment was a disaster, not all of the men drafted under this new legislation failed to learn and grasp the fundamentals of combat. Many went on to have distinguished careers, and many were awarded the “Medal of Honour.”
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The story of Forrest Gump was inspired by McNamara’s soldiers and the bravery some of these men showed when faced with impossible odds.
A quiet little boy was putting up with the abuse of a foot taller, loud mouthed girl. The girl was berating him for being a Nerd.
The teacher heard what the girl was saying to the boy, and admonished her, “Karen! You should be nice to Billy! He is a straight A student, and someday he just might be your Boss.”
Billy looked at the teacher and quipped, “But I don’t want to be a Pimp!”
When I had just turned 18, my mother came into my room with a birthday balloon. It was one of the nice fancy balloons. She was really happy to give it to me.
But I, being the selfish spoiled teenager reacted in anger.
“What! Is this it? I don’t get a cake or presents?!?!”
I will never forget the look of hurt and pain on my mother’s face. She turned around with tears in her eyes and quietly took the balloon from my room.
I knew instantly that I hurt her. I tried to run after her and apologize but the damage was already done.
I know she forgave me right away and gave me the balloon. But, you see, we were a low income family and balloons were rarely given. It was a gift I should have been proud of, but I turned it into something painful.
I learned a valuable lesson that day. You can’t take back words spoken in anger.
I will be 40 this year and my mother has been gone for 16 years and I can still see that look on her face as clear as if it had been yesterday.
I miss her.
I just do
Make America Go Away
The United States is like an abusive, narcissistic uncle that just knows that you will always need him; he is the indispensable uncle that just requires that you accept his authority by saying “uncle” otherwise he will sadly have to increase the level of abuse until you either “get the message” or die from the abuse. The vast majority of the world’s population understands this, whether it be the Latin Americans cheated out of democracy again and again, the Africans who had their post-independence dreams destroyed, the Middle Eastern modernizing and secular states that were eradicated, the Vietnamese that died in their millions to rid themselves of US occupation, the people of Gaza being murdered by US bombs and shells, or the Chinese, Russians and Iranians who face the wrath of the US for not understanding their place. The last thing they want is for the US to be “great” again, and they certainly do not see it as indispensable or a shining city on a hill, as the US political elite claim again and again in the form of religious-style mantras.
US politicians, policy makers and even international relations scholars accept this abusive, narcissistic narrative as they waffle on about a “Liberal International Order” where the US acts as the mafia-boss who makes the rules while not being subject to them, and bloviate about the decrepit “shining city” that must deliver its “gift” of liberal democratic capitalism to the world’s unwashed. Just as they did to the Amerindians in their three century war of extermination, ethnic cleansing and land theft, as they established the “new Jerusalem” of ethnic supremacy; personified by the racist bigot President Wilson who spun a good yarn about “freedom” while bringing the very opposite to not only many foreigners but also the US population. It was he who placed the velvet glove of sweet words about “Western culture” over the hard, racist fist.
So yes, the vast majority of humanity just want the US to go away and leave them to manage their own affairs. The problem with abusive narcissists is that they can turn into “family destroyers”, wiping out the rest of the family because they just know that the family (i.e. humanity) cannot survive without them. If they are to go away, then so must humanity. When those wanting a faster rate of change complain about the careful and patient diplomacy and actions of Russia, Iran and China, they must remember the dangerous lunatic that those nations are dealing with; one that can make humanity disappear with it if it so decides, in a global murder suicide. Anyone looking at the current psychopathic thrashings of the Israeli state must hold no flights of fancy about a US where a quarter of the population still believe in a heretical bible Armageddon fantasy, and its elite are wedded to their global dominance. Such lunatics have to be carefully managed and slowly subdued in order to reduce the possibilities of self-destructive and psychopathic rage-induced paroxysms.
Please Make America Go Away, as peacefully as possible.
The CORE FANTASY that drives women to ORGASM and WHY
I needed a “C” to pass my college communications course.
If I didn’t get a “C,” I would fail to meet my college major requirements setting me back an entire semester.
Here’s the problem: The semester was over, and I had a D+.
My only hope was to email the teacher asking for a bump in my grade.
I wrote an email to her explaining how my past school performance warranted a higher grade and that not passing me would only hurt an ambitious student.
When I hit send, I realized I made a HUGE mistake.
I addressed her using another teacher’s name.
I tried to calm down, but then I remembered we’d spent half the semester covering email etiquette.
Shoot!
What did I do?
Two days later, she emails back.
First, she addresses the glaring mistake then says she bumped my grade up to a “C” to never have me as a student again.
I went out for drinks that night.
This is by far the best mistake I’ve ever made.
US is Militarizing Itself to Death, While China Emphasizes Cooperation.
When I was in high school our physics teacher gave us a challenge that involved making a paper air plane of any shape. The only objective was to get it to fly as far as possible. I had some paper air plane making skills so I made the best plane I could and it flew pretty far.
image 6
One guy made the greatest, yet simplest paper airplane of all time. He stood there at the starting line with a regular piece of paper. Some classmates scratched their head while silently chuckling to themselves. Moments later he took the flat piece of paper, crumpled it up, and threw it down the hall way.
He beat the class with ease.
image 5
Some of the students got mad and said that he cheated.
The physics teacher said, “How so? I said it could be any shape. A paper ball is indeed a shape.”
He won the contest with flying colors.
“Talent hits a target no one else can hit; Genius hits a target no one else can see.”
When I graduated from nursing school 10 years ago, I was flush with cash for the first time in my life. Within the span of a month, I went from having an after tax income of $600/month to an after-tax income of $1200 every 2 weeks.
I felt rich. I was 21 years old. I didn’t want to just save. I would invest.
I read a couple of books, opened a brokerage account, and proceeded to buy and sell stocks and call options. I made a lot of money quickly.
I concluded that I was going to be a stock market genius.
So, when I started losing money, I of course knew that it was a temporary setback. So I played, er, invested some more, and some more, and some more.
After a while, I had to admit to myself that I had a problem. I stopped after a couple of years. I had maybe lost $30K by then.
I repeated the same experiment at the tail end of med school. I decided to borrow an extra $20K and invest. This time, I was going to be disciplined. I was going to focus on buying call options on companies that were going to spin-off part of their assets into standalone companies. The idea was that the market was mispricing the combined companies and that the sum of the parts would be greater than the whole, after a spinoff. It was not an entirely crazy idea. I’d made money that way before.
Anyway, my roommate started making a ton of money in penny stocks of companies involved in the marijuana business. I was jealous of how quickly he was making money. I joined in. I lost another $10–15K. I pulled out. He continued playing. He made money for a while. Eventually, he lost more than he had made.
I wouldn’t be surprised if I’d lost about $50K in the stock market over the past decade. That has been my worst financial decision. I see it as tuition money that I paid in order to learn that I am emphatically not a stock market genius.
I’m a physician. My mistakes are going to be relatively costless to me. Please don’t try this at home.
The U.S. has 2 choices. And Americans need to wake up to this reality to face the new world. China will always be independent from the U.S. in technology. In many cases it will from now onwards be ahead and with far better technologicallyDon’t than the US and the west. It is happy to share its benefits but it will never allow the U.S. and the West to ever threatened them again. Ever. Never Ever.
Don’t blame China. China were happy to play second fiddle till the despicable US foolishly thought that it can easily contain and control China in Chip technology for a generation. It took less than 3 years for China to catch up. It won’t look back. Now all the trillion of dollars shit it cost to do this shit will ll be wasted. If the U.S. never learnt then they can always lose more trillions. China don’t mind.
What does it mean for the U.S. government? It needs to know that the US has 2 choices. Either it work and I am cooperate with China and profit from China’s humongous market and manufacturing prowess or it loses it all including the access to the global south market representing som 120–150 nations around the world. The U.S. needs to make this decision. Americans need to learn humility and accept that it no longer can dictate to the world.
China will design its own chips, it will manufacture its own chips and it will sell to whoever wants to buy it and use it. It will do so at a faster rate and take less time, and make it a a lower cost and make it cheaper than the US and the west. That is what China always do and and the Chip Ban, the GPS threat and the ISS ban will simply motivate China to dominate all technology. Thanks USA
What do you like to ban, sanction, blockade from now onwards? I think China should stop the U.S. from using paper to clean their backside since China invented paper. Let the use their hands.
I worked at Apple in the 80’s and think the movie grossly underplays how much of an asshole he was.
I’ve worked with many billionaires in my career, and Jobs was the biggest asshole I ever met.
He would destroy people just for the fun of it. He would make it personal.
There were a few who managed to survive and even thrive, like Andy Hertzfeld.
Even on the original Mac team, there was a small number that Steve treated with respect, and the rest he treated like shit. It’s one reason the Mac team fell apart after the Mac shipped. Steve glorified about 10 of them; they were on the cover of Business Week IIRC. The rest he made clear were shit. They had worked their asses off and built a magical product, but Steve didn’t recognize them. So the glorified rock stars got big heads, and the others were deeply slighted. So the team fell apart.
It’s also true that at NeXT and then his return to Apple, Steve grew up and learned to treat people better. Steve v2 wasn’t exactly Mother Theresa, but he learned a lot of lessons and was much improved.
Yes, I still shiver 10 years later. My husband and I were thinking of buying a lot in a new intentional community in Belize (think semi-rainforest, not beach). We stayed at the guest house for several days to tour and explore the area. Activities included canoeing on the beautiful river, hiking, learning about the local culture, etc… Now, recall there’s a river, hence big rocky, sandy, soil-y hills that sloped down to it. Also, no paved roads yet. One day we decided to do a driving tour in our all-wheel drive rental (as opposed to a 4WD we had reserved). You can guess where this is going. We came to the top of a steep incline, and to continue, there was no choice but to proceed down the other side. Approximately 10 feet to our right was a cliff that dropped steeply into a gorge and the river. (I was driving because my husband isn’t crazy about manual transmissions.) Then, the brakes failed. As we gained speed, rocks began to bump us closer to the edge. Honestly, we were thinking that was it- the end of the road for us. But in a moment of something- not brilliance for sure- maybe instinct, I threw the car into first gear. It slowed, then came to rest about 4 feet from the edge. Finally I screamed, just to release the tension. Somehow I didn’t leave a puddle in my seat.
If that wasn’t enough, seconds after we got out of the car, we heard the screams of several women who were crashing through the dense forest to our left. When the three women reached us, they were completely out of breath but managed to yell, “Wild pigs! Wild pigs!”. Just as all of us squeezed into the car for (protection, not escape!), we heard the pigs retreating and running back where they came from.
“Snake” or sometimes “snakes”, Snakeye bombs. Mk-80 Series bombs of various weights fitted with a high-drag devise to provide rapid deceleration upon release.
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The special fins were held tight to the bomb casing until release, at which time they popped open to insure maximum horizontal separation between bomb and aircraft at detonation. Without the high-drag unit added, bombs could strike the ground and detonate under the aircraft. In some cases the explosion would bring down the delivering aircraft. At one time, this was called a “Low Blow”. Snakeyes were generally dropped at low to very low altitudes to enhance accuracy. Mk-80 series bombs without the decelerating tail unit were generally described as “Slicks”.
When I was 15 years old I made a decision that to this day still baffles me. I spent the weekend with my good buddy putting a hot motor into his car. We finished the work on Sunday afternoon and my friend told me he would come by my house and get me later so we could go celebrate the car and new motor.
When he got to my parents house that evening I walked out to the driveway and made that fateful decision by telling my buddy that I had “homework” to do and wouldn’t be going with him.
Later that night my friend and two others hit a tree going about a hundred miles an hour. It killed my friend and the other guy in the front seat and put the backseat passenger in the hospital for a month.
To this day I have no idea why I didn’t go with them. I really didn’t have any homework. It just came into my head that day and I said it and that was it.
I would have been the guy in the front passenger seat that night.
When I had a daycare I had a four year old who went through a terrible phase of pulling hair. He didn’t just yank; he’d get his fingers tangled in there and twist and pull with his entire body. It was extremely painful. He once got hold of my hair and pulled some out.
I tried everything to stop him. I watched him like a hawk. I stopped him when he got that look and lunged for someone’s hair. His mom acknowledged the problem she was having with him at home with his two older sisters. She tried everything; we both did, but nothing stopped him.
One day he got hold of this cute little two year old’s hair. She was screaming in pain as I tried to detach his fingers. And I finally had had it. I grabbed his hair and pulled just as hard as I could.
He let go immediately and started crying. And he never pulled hair again.
His mom thought he had finally grown out of his phase. I never told her what I did. I didn’t abuse the kids I watched; never spanked them or yelled at them. I still feel guilty for what I did. He probably would have stopped on his own.
My sister. It was the day of my mother’s funeral after a very fast illness and sudden, unexpected death. My husband had run an errand for Dad. He was gone about an hour. During that hour, one sister (older, middle one of three) cornered me as I sat at the dining table. She spent most of that time telling me what a horrible person I was, listing every perceived mistake I had ever made in my life, all the times I had disrespected her, etc. When my husband came home he found me sobbing, curled into a fetal ball behind the guest bed.
That afternoon and for the rest of that weekend I would not be in the same room with her. I spent my time composing a long email listing every claim she had thrown at me and why each was wrong (or blown out of proportion). It was all I could emotionally manage.
She never even acknowledged the email, let alone apologize for being such a bully. I waited two weeks and sent another email, asking if she got the first one. She acknowledged that she did. That’s all. Just a “yes I got it.”
I have not spoken to her since. And because my other older (oldest) sister just stood there, I have barely spoken to her. Their emails are automatically filtered to trash. They don’t even know my phone number in Spain, where I now live. I no longer have any sibling photos on the “photo wall” in the hallway. I consider myself an only child. I will not return to the US for either of their funerals when the time comes. They are not welcome to visit me in Spain and I don’t even want them notified when I die.
My daughter is a single mom, and once a week I help her out. I pick up her kids, aged 8 and 7, from school and watch them until their mother comes home around 8 PM.
The older one is a lot like me. Introverted, shy, a bookworm who goes through a couple of books a week. I never have a bit of problem with him. We understand each other. We’ll watch TV or play a game of chess together.
The younger one is the social butterfly of the family. She goes outside and plays with the other kids in her neighborhood.
She’s also stubborn to a fault. Just like her mother at that age.
And one evening about a week ago she started getting defiant. Refused to do anything I asked. I was losing patience.
Just then her mother came home and things escalated. I watched the two most stubborn human beings I’d ever met lock horns for about half an hour. I’d seen this behavior before — we got it from her mother, my daughter, when she was that age.
“Dad, I am so sorry for all the trouble I put you and mom through when I was her age,” she told me.
I laughed. “It’s OK. You grew up to be a pretty good kid and I’m sure she will too.”
But she was right. Everything she had put us through when she was young and stubborn was now coming back on her.
Thanks for the a2a. I have Chinese friends living all over the world. Some of them without fail ask me nearly every day if I have eaten yet. I have never thought it was anything other than kindness.
You see, I am from the Deep South in America. We Southern women show love and hospitality through our cooking. When I visit family, we’re having a meal and I have brought a dish. Or if they visit me, I’m feeding them and they probably brought something. I know my mother loves me because every time I visit, she makes tea exactly the way I like it. My brother knows I care because I make his favorite foods or desserts. My father is proud when I compliment his ability to grill a steak, and my sister requests my old-fashioned strawberry cake for her birthday. My daughter, she wants to make birthday cakes for everyone—whether it’s their birthday or not!
Food is a language, and that language expresses love, hospitality, kindness, care, and friendship. I believe Chinese people (as well as other cultures) understand this. I have always taken my Chinese friends encouragement to eat dinner or breakfast as a sign of their care for me, and I express the same care toward them. If they ever came to visit me, I wouldn’t let them leave my home without feeding them first. They don’t have to be fluent in English and I do not have to speak perfect Mandarin when it comes to sharing a meal together.
Americans foolishly screamed and shout that they are the leader of the free world without ever questioning if it is even remotely true or not! Please don’t be angry or upset if I help you guys since I understand you can pretend to be free or even dare says you are ordained by god to spread democracy and freedom but you Americans are one of the least free country on earth.
Let me help you good American. So first I like to explain how unfree you guys are.
35% of you cannot get health care when you fall sick! The most basic of freedom is the freedom to see a doctor and get cure when you fall sick. At least 100 million Americans don’t have this basic of basics of freedom.
Next 1 million Americans are homeless and don’t have another basic of basics of freedom. The freedom to have a roof over their head.! They have to live in makeshift tents on the streets.
20% of Americans don’t have 500 dollars to their name and don’t know where their next meal is coming from! Surely everyone must have the freedom to have a hot meal to stay alive!
USA with about 4% of world population has 25% of the worlds prisoners population! Think about this my American friends, prisoners are certainly. Not free. Many of them coloured people thrown into jail for the slightest reason. How on earth can you keep a straight face to say U.S. is the leader of the free world. No one know!
In many cities in the U.S. one cannot go to certain parts of the inner city like the Queens in New York. As crimes are rampant. So normal innocent and good Americans like you have to avoid that part of America! Surely freedom means you can go to anywhere or any part of America.
Kids and parents suffers the mental turmoils daily for just going to school. Many got shot to death in schools, public places, cinemas and even in Capitol Hill! Is that freedom? Even your kids are not free to go to school without a random mass shooter lurking with military grade weapons to murder them! Is this freedom?
If you are not fortunate to have a white skin you could be necked to death in the bright daylight of even driving a good car may be be shot to death just for suspected of stealing the car! Everyday you live in fear of a white policeman! Is that freedom to live? Freedom to avoid death at the racist inclination of the white racist? Surely not.
Freedom means you can choose who you really want to be your leader. Only 30% choose Biden. Or 35% choose Trump! Why are they your president? Your system allowed 0.8% of the richest and most influential people to choose your candidates! Surely this is not political freedom. This is far from democracy. How on earth can you call yourself the “beacon of democracy” who in a sane mind can claim that?
Oh today you country stop the Americans from having access to best 5G technology, Smartphone, best EV’s, drones and others for some geopolitical nonsense! Is this freedom? Freedom to be deprived? Let me help you understand. You are deprived from buying a 10 thousand bucks EV that need to be charged once a week but you are not allowed to! You cannot buy your Tesla like for half the price! Just to support your too big to fail auto industry paying 100 million bonus doing shit for good Americans!
But to me EVs and Drones are just the top of the iceberg of your draconian and suicide policies that takes away the freedom of Americans like you. Think about Jullien Assange, Bradley Manning and Edward Snowden! Freedom? American is anything but free.
I wasn’t fired, I just quit a job with a window replacement contractor after finding full time premanant employment. I called to inform the man and give him two weeks notice. He cussed at me and slammed the phone down. I called him right back and asked him to send me payment for the previous weeks work and he ratteled on about how I installed those last windows wrong and that he would not be paying me what was owed and told me never to call again followed by a loud “click”. So, I tallied all my hours plus all the OT I’d worked but was never paid more than a flat hourly rate. I took this document to the owners of the business he had contracted with, explained the situation and said “I just want to give you the opportunity to resolve this before I take the matter to the labor department” (they had a local office). The owner said “Thank you” and said they’d take care of it. The man was in a back office supposedly waiting for a meet so I said “Great! We will just need to come to agreement on what he owes me” The man said “Nothing to worry about there, whatever you say”. I asked when I might expect payment from him and the man said, if this amount on your records is good, I’ll cut you a check right now and we’ll just deduct the funds from his contract payment. I never saw the man again but he was a hot head all the same and I could feel the burn of his rage as I drove away.
As for my ability to install windows… The man had previously took me aside, giving me a raise because, as he said “You’re the only one I have who can read a tape measure”.
About 5 or 6 months ago, my girlfriend and I threw a little get together at our place for friends from work. I cooked dinner for everyone, and we just sort of made it buffet style. The whole affair was great fun and will make for great memories. After everyone had left Emily and I decided that we’d at least get the major stuff picked up, (the dishes and glasses into the dishwasher and the leftovers put into the fridge). While Em was finishing up in the kitchen I began moving things around in the front room, and there I found a pair of thong panties next to the couch. I picked them up and walk into the kitchen with them hanging on my finger. Em stood there looking at them and doing her best not to laugh. Because they were pink, I knew it wasn’t something that fell from the laundry basket by mistake. Neither of us likes pink.
To this day nobody has come forward to ask about them.
Best video Ever
Men, Listen up. It doesn’t matter (to anyone) if you win or lose. What matters is how you take it.
Yes. It’s 1986, I’m 9 years old and I come downstairs to get ready for school. My dad is reading the paper and he says, “Hey Corey, what do you know about comets?”
I immediately spout off everything a space-addicted 9 year old kid can/should know about comets. My dad beams at me and tells me bedtime will be postponed.
Night falls and my dad comes home early. We get into his Ford Escort and drive to K-Bee toys where he buys me a pair of GI Joe binoculars just as it is closing.
I can still remember what they looked like in the packaging.
We drive to a subdivision that is under construction and park on a mound of dirt that is now someone’s home.
We both lay on the hood of that car and look at the stars. We talk about space. We talk about life. He tells me that the next time this comet passes by Earth he will be long gone, but he hopes I will watch it and remember what it is like to be a child staring at the night sky with his dad.
We never saw Halley’s comet that night. Our binoculars were too cheap, the light pollution was too strong, the comet was too far away. To be honest, I think I prefer it that way.
Because what I want to remember about that day has nothing at all to do with a comet.
There’s a great many things I wanted for my life. Some of them have come to pass, others never will. But above all I hope that, one day, I will sit on a mound of dirt as an old man. I will sit with the great love of my life and our children and our children’s children.
And we, all of us, will look at the stars. And maybe we’ll see a comet and maybe we won’t.
But we’ll look regardless and we will think of the ones we have loved.
Your U.S. workers demand 5 times Chinese workers income, and 10 times more benefits and are willing to world half as hard and are 75% as smart or well trained and your CEO expects and demand 100 times more income!
As such if you produce here Apple 15 must be marketed and sold USD5000 instead of less than USD1500! Ask your local customers, friends and colleagues will they buy Apple 15 or save USD4000 and buy a Chinese phone this is faster, better and cheaper.
You decide. Tim Cook knows the answer! China knows Tim Cook knows the Answer and the 7.999 billion people except you and your 6 racist friends need to ask!
I had a coworker who disliked me the moment she saw me. Idk why, but it seems to occur to me a lot, “hate at 1st sight”, lol! I am a very friendly person who has found that if I treat an unfriendly coworker respectfully and don’t react to their nastiness, they will eventually grow to like me.
Well, after nearly 2 years of her passive-aggressive behavior and snide remarks, I finally grew weary of her abuse. FYI she was almost my doppelgänger in every way. Nearly identical facial features, hair color, style, figure and dress size Misses 0. Acquaintances usually couldn’t tell us apart.
So, one day she came to work wearing a very cute summer dress. I complimented her on it.
She smirked and said, “Thank you! I’d tell you where I bought it, but there are no extra large sizes left.”
About a decade ago, I got an Interview for a network administrator position. The phone interview went really well. I had a panel interview with an HR rep, some VP, and the manager I would have reported to. It goes great, and I get a conditional offer later that same day. They even offered me more than I asked for, though I suspect the recruiting agency may have padded my range to get a bigger commission (and I loved them for it). I sign the background check paperwork.
Two days later, I get a call from the recruiter saying that the offer was rescinded and that the recruiting agency can’t work with me any more. Ok, that’s really weird. My credit score is shot due to having been unemployed for a bit with bills piling up, but that’s not usually the kind of thing that gets a recruiting agency to drop you. I ask for details, but the recruiter will only say that I will receive communication by mail.
A couple weeks later, after I had finally accepted a lower-paying offer elsewhere, a letter comes in the mail with a copy of my background check. I read over it and see convictions for armed robbery, attempted murder, aggravated assault, and a bunch of other stuff I don’t remember … except remembering I’ve never been arrested or charged for anything like that, let alone convicted. Well, I look at the paperwork l, and what do you know. The first and last name are correct, but the middle name and date of birth are wrong. It’s almost as if they Googled my first and last name and just read the results of whoever popped up first.
I kind of wish they had done a bit more reading, because it would have been hard for him to attend interviews seeing as he was literally in prison while I was in their office.
I did point out the error to the recruiting agency … and never heard back.
Originally Answered: What is the best case of “you just picked a fight with the wrong person” that you’ve witnessed?
A woman called my newsroom crying. Nobody wanted to deal with her. So they sent her to me. She was crying and hard to understand, but the basic story went this way…
She had bought a used car. She needed it badly to get to the THREE jobs she held to support her children by herself. No husband. Less than two weeks after buying the car, it broke down. She called the dealer who had told her it had a 30-day warranty.
He told her he couldn’t help. But, she told him, you said it had a 30 day warranty. His response — too bad. When she complained, he told her — “lady, you’re dealing with the big boys now.”
She was crying as she told me this. I was — to put it mildly — angry. My response to her — let me call you back.
I called him. I explained the problem and when I did not get what I considered a good response, I “explained” things to him:
He needed to respond appropriately to her and solve the problem.
If he did not respond appropriately, I would have my entire investigative news team look into his operation.
He did not like that.
Cautionary note here: My response – YOU picked the wrong person to fight with, and no, NOW, you’re playing with the Big Boys, expletives to follow…
He took back her car. Gave her a slightly newer model without any problems. She called crying and thanked me. I may have cried a bit too.
PS – I didn’t do the story about him. I wonder if I should have?
Operation Bodenplatte, also known as the “New Year’s Offensive” or “Unternehmen Bodenplatte”, was a large-scale aerial offensive launched by the German Luftwaffe against Allied airfields in Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg on 1 January 1945, during the Battle of the Bulge. The operation was intended to cripple Allied airpower and support the German ground forces in the Ardennes region.
Despite achieving some initial surprise and causing some damage to Allied aircraft, Operation Bodenplatte was ultimately a failure. The Luftwaffe suffered heavy losses, losing over 250 aircraft compared to Allied losses of around 130. The operation also failed to achieve its main objective of crippling Allied airpower, as the Allies were able to quickly recover from the attacks.
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There were several reasons for the failure of Operation Bodenplatte:
Poor planning and coordination: The operation was poorly planned and coordinated, with many of the Luftwaffe units involved not receiving their orders until the day of the attack. This led to confusion and delays, and the attacks were not as coordinated as they could have been.
Allied air superiority: The Allies had achieved air superiority over the skies of Western Europe by the end of 1944, and the Luftwaffe was no match for the combined strength of the Royal Air Force and the United States Army Air Forces.
Adverse weather conditions: The weather on the day of the attack was poor, with low clouds and fog, which made it difficult for the Luftwaffe bombers to find their targets and for the Luftwaffe fighters to intercept Allied aircraft.
Allied intelligence: The Allies had broken the German codes and were aware of the planned attack. This allowed them to take evasive action and scramble their fighters to intercept the Luftwaffe bombers.
As a result of its failure, Operation Bodenplatte marked the beginning of the end of the Luftwaffe as an effective fighting force. The operation resulted in the loss of irreplaceable experienced pilots and aircraft, and the Luftwaffe was never able to regain its strength.
A top bunk is not “disrespectful”…. It is its own special fucking misery in a world of miseries…
Having to sleep in the top rack forces the occupant into constantly climbing over and disturbing the occupant of the lower bunk, denies the top bunk the use of “Privacy Curtains”, is fully exposed to the ventilation system which will always be too hot or too cold, is fully exposed to the lights, which can often be on 24 hours a day, prevents easy access to possessions stored under the bottom bunk, it forces the top bunk occupant into waking up the lower bunk every time he has to use the toilet or sink, and cuts down on the number of places the top bunk occupant can sit, since sitting on someones bunk without their permission is an act of disrespect…
I have seen more SERIOUS fights between cellies over “bunk territory” than any other issue… I’m talking about fights when one or both combattants require hospitalisation and a trip to The Hole…
My wife and I were out to eat with some friends. We were having a good time and enjoying ourselves when all of a sudden this horrific smell wafted towards us. The unmistakable smell of baby shit.
Eww, but whatever. Babies shit. It happens.
However, what happened next left us speechless and without appetite. The man with the baby was at a large round table with several other people. When they smelled it too, there was the standard, “Ooops, someone made a poopy” comments towards the baby.
The man picked the baby up, pushed some plates and glasses out of the way, and proceeded to open the offending diaper right there in the middle of the dining room. The smell was bad to begin with, but once he opened that thing up, it was nauseatingly bad. We had just received our meals, but there was no way we were eating anymore.
People around the restaurant were staring at the table, but no one at that table seemed to think anything of it. They were going about their conversations as though there wasn’t a shit-covered child on the table. One of the tables next to us went up to the bar to complain; the bartender said “That’s Jane’s family, she’s the manager. I’ll go get her.”
Jane came out of the back with an irritated look on her face. When the customer complained, she loudly said, “Oh, it’s not that bad. He’ll be done in a minute.” and walked over to the infant and made baby noises at it while the dad finished changing the diaper.
We and a few other tables all got up and headed for the door. “Hey, you didn’t pay!” was shouted after us. One of our companions turned and said to the manager, “You call the cops, I’ll call the health department. I’m sure they’d love to hear about this.” and we left.
I used to really like that restaurant, now I can’t even drive past it without gagging a little.
Seriously, how can people be so fucking disgusting?
Originally Answered: Have you ever stood up to a bully at the workplace and they back off?
Yes indeed. Two years ago, we had a hurricane. I had no food, no lights , no power. The next morning, I still went to work.
My manager raised his voice and was abusive. He wanted to push his work on to me, but I had no power, and didn’t see the email the night before. I spoke up to him and said he was totally unrealistic. He was stunned, like no one had ever spoken back to him.
The manager told the director, and the director texted me two hours later, getting harsh, saying “I know you have power supply issues, but the three of us need to meet“.
Ten minutes later, I sent a letter to HR complaining of harassment and abusive speech. I copied the email to an executive three levels above my director. The executive texted me back and said to keep him informed.
HR saw the executive’s email response, and the HR director called me within 40 mins of getting the email. I told her I wanted a management change. She switched me to a new set of directors an hour later. The new directors are professional and wonderful to work for.
The main point: Bully bosses don’t back down right away on their own. You must save yourself by contacting a boss two levels above your boss. Two levels, not one level. Use email letters to complain. Letters put everyone on notice, and they’re like a hand grenade.
When I was about 17 years old, my dad walked in on me and my then-boyfriend having sex.
The house I lived in at the time was located directly across from my high school. I was enrolled in a lot of sports, as was my boyfriend. Our practices often didn’t start until a half an hour or so after school ended, so most days we had a little bit of time to, um, kill. This particular day, I thought my dad would be at work. We raced to my house, went to my bedroom, and went at it. A few minutes later, without warning, my dad did the thing he always did – knock, then immediately open the door. Seriously? What was the point of knocking? I’ll never understand.
So there I was. His precious baby, naked with a boy. I did the only thing I could think of, which was to do a little *roll* off the bed, and then a second *roll* to hide myself underneath my bed. Leaving my bare-bummed boyfriend to the nightmare above me.
The only words my dad said was, “get dressed.”
I did not go to practice that day. Instead, I had to have dinner with my dad, alone. I couldn’t even look him in the eye. I was mortified.
We tried to have small talk???? “How was your day?” “Fine, yours?”
Two guys, college-age were yapping and I heard them say, it would be nice if the old f***er would let us go before him.
I looked up ahead of me in line and there were two young women, and then a man and wife and I didn’t see the advantage of them wanting to let these guys go before them, and they didn’t look all that old, then I realized that they were talking about me.
So I reached in my basket and took a shirt I was buying and pulled the tag off it, so when it was my turn and I didn’t let the sh**heads but in line, I left the shirt for last after taking my time unloading all the merchandise and striking up a nice conversation with the checker that always stalls a little and then she got to the shirt.
By this time the guys were really pissed. She said sir, your shirt doesn’t have a tag, let me call someone and get a price for you. I looked back with a grin. and said, you just got old f**kered.
I got married in 2008, my sister in 2009. My wedding was lovely and small but I felt like it meant a lot. My sister got married a year later. My Aunts bestowed upon her a family necklace (something borrowed and old) that was blue, and a simple flower bracelet for her something new.
They had done none of that for me.
I cried for 3 days. Like my marriage didn’t matter at all.
I was nearly killed in a multi-vehicular accident when I was 25. The first police officer on the scene pronounced me dead, but, luckily for me, there was a nurse on hand to confirm that, while I was gravely injured and in shock (which means that you don’t have a pulse in your arms and legs because your blood pressure is so low), I was actually alive.
By the time the ambulance got there, I was conscious and screaming from the pain of my injuries. I had broken both my legs, my pelvis and three vertebrae (they were not displaced), but the source of my agony was a dislocated knee joint. My knee-cap was 6 to 8 inches north of where it should be and my upper and lower leg bones over-lapped by 3 or 4 inches.
It hurt. A LOT.
So, they cut me out of my car and got me into the ambulance and rushed me to the hospital. I was in bad enough shape that they called ahead so an Orthopedist was waiting for me. Unfortunately for me, he was a newly minted doctor fresh out of his residency.
When he came into the exam room he:
did not ask my name
did not introduce himself
did not examine me
did not look at my chart
did not attempt to take the pulse in the ankle of the mangled leg
What he DID do was say, “Oh, that leg has to come off.” Those were literally the first words out of his mouth.
Now, my sister is a nurse and my mother wanted me to be a doctor, so I knew that he should have at least looked at my chart and attempted an exam. I was so angry at his utter lack of bedside manner that my immediate response was, “If I lose my leg, you’ll lose your license.”
Honestly, I don’t know who was more surprised, him or me. Admittedly I was having a REALLY bad day, but normally I would never say anything like that to anyone.
Now, what I didn’t know at the time was that in 95% of the cases where a person has a dislocated knee joint the way I did, the femoral artery that supplies blood to the lower leg is crushed beyond repair. But I was extraordinarily flexible, and luckily, my femoral artery was NOT damaged.
So after a short but pointed argument and a bit of malpractice (on the doctor’s part), my injury was reduced and I got to keep my leg below the knee. It has taken a lot of surgery to fix the damage and more than a decade of physical therapy to relearn how to walk but I can walk and 99% of people won’t notice my limp.
So that is how a split-second decision changed my life. If I had let the doctor amputate, no one would have known that my artery hadn’t been crushed and I’d have a prosthesis and be buying my shoes one at a time. I thank goodness every day that I said what I did to that insufferable jerk.
Women and their tests…
Heaven on Seven Chicken Voodoo Rigatoni
spicy rigatoni 3
Yield: 8 to 10 servings
Ingredients
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 tablespoons plus 1/4 teaspoon Angel Dust Cajun Seasoning
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup diced yellow onion
1/2 cup diced red onion
1/3 cup thinly sliced green onion, white and green parts
2 tablespoons Roasted Garlic Puree
1/3 cup diced celery
1/2 cup seeded, diced green bell pepper
1/2 cup seeded, diced red bell pepper
1/2 cup seeded, yellow bell pepper
1/3 cup seeded, diced poblano chile
1/4 cup seeded, diced cubanella pepper
1/4 cup seeded, diced banana pepper
1 tablespoon seeded, minced Fresno chile
1 1/2 teaspoons seeded, minced habanero chile
1 teaspoon seeded, minced jalapeno
1/2 teaspoon minced serrano chile
1/2 teaspoon seeded, minced fingerhot chile
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon Hungarian paprika
1/4 teaspoon Spanish paprika
1/4 teaspoon chile powder
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup peeled and diced ripe banana
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 cup water
3/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk
3/4 cup pineapple juice
1/2 cup mango juice
1/2 cup papaya juice
1/3 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1 tablespoon Key lime or regular lime juice
1 tablespoon Hot as a Mutha hot pepper sauce or habanero sauce
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and cut into pieces
2 pounds dried rigatoni pasta, cooked according to package directions
Instructions
Season the chicken with 2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning.
In a 5 quart Dutch oven, preferably enameled cast iron, heat the oil over high heat. When oil is hot but not smoking add the chicken and brown for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
Stir in the yellow, red and green onions and the garlic puree cook for 2 minutes.
Add the celery, peppers, and chiles cook until vegetables are soft, about 10 minutes.
Add honey, sugars, paprikas, chile powder, allspice, coriander, turmeric, salt, black and white peppers, red pepper flakes, remaining 1/4 teaspoon Cajun seasoning, and stir for 2 to 3 minutes to coat meat and vegetables with the seasonings.
Mix in the banana, tomato sauce, water, coconut milk, juices and hot pepper sauce. Bring to a boil reduce the heat to medium low and simmer uncovered for 1 hour.
When ready to serve, stir in the butter until well blended and toss with rigatoni in a large bowl.
Attribution
Posted by Recipethyme at Recipe Goldmine 8/18/2001 5:26 pm.
Source: Chef Jimmy Bannos – Heaven on Seven Restaurant, Chicago
While we usually call it the “sixth sense”, the military term for this phenomenon is “premonition and intuition”.
Soldiers who fought for a long time on the battlefield have often developed sharper senses. Their bodies and minds are adapting to a survival situation:
After you have been away from any artificial light sources for a while, your night vision will improve. Being constantly exposed to enemy fire, your ability to see and recognize objects at a long distance increases.
You will be able to fine tune your hearing so that you’ll will be more perceptible to all “man made” sounds, for example tank engines or sounds of movement in the underbrush.
There are even soldiers who are capable to smell human feces from long distances away.
And some soldiers go even further: they develop an elevated state of mind, where their subconsciousness is able to connect the tiniest sensory inputs with the soldier’s vast experience. This way, soldiers can “foresee” future events on the battlefield, can “sniff out” ambushes and “know” where the enemy has put the mines.
This is not a new phenomenon, though there are many accounts from WWII and the Vietnam war where soldiers acquired extraordinary perception skills. Unfortunately, the military often dismissed them as “spooky stories”.
I was able to acquire a limited set of “extrasensory perception” skills myself. Interestingly, while I was fighting in the Bosnian war, I wasn’t really able to develop above average senses. As the war went on, I became better in anticipating enemy positions, or mined areas, but this was purely because of my ever growing experience and improved knowledge of our enemy’s tactics. When you’ve seen the enemy attacking a couple of times, always in the same way, it’s really not too difficult to figure out what their next steps will be.
During the war in Kosovo, however, I went one step further. I think this has a lot to do with the fact that we were nonstop in combat. There were no clear front lines (like in Bosnia) and everyday was a fight for survival that demanded from us to be 100% alert and sharp.
I remember one particular day: it was the third day of a massive enemy attack and I was manning a position together with a comrade. We were expecting that the enemy’s main assault would happen just in front of our position. We were in a small house and the moment I entered the building I felt that something was wrong. I couldn’t put my finger on it, though, but an inner voice told me: “this place is no good!”
We waited, but nothing happened. The fighting had started on our right flank, but in front of us, everything was still calm. All of a sudden, I told my buddy: “Let’s go somewhere else!” He trusted my word and didn’t argue with me and so we moved to another house that was a couple of hundred meters up the road.
On our way, we passed two of our comrades who were waiting in another position. I took a short look at their spot and told them to move fifty meters up the road to another place. I didn’t know why I said it, but they obeyed my order and moved immediately.
My new position was in a big three story house, only hundred meters to their right side, and so I was able to keep an eye on them. After an hour, the enemy attacked us with tanks. I shot twice with an RPG, but the enemy was still advancing. Our house had a very safe place in the basement and more and more soldiers came from other places to find refuge there.
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Our last position, the “big house”, seen from enemy side. Picture taken after the war.
Outside the house, bullets and shells were flying from every direction. Suddenly my alarms went off again. I stood up and said: “Let’s go! Now or never!” and we all exited through a small window at the back of the house.
When I got outside the house, the air was red from the dust of the houses’ red bricks. Trees were hit by artillery shells and one fell just one meter in front of my feet. I waved and screamed at the two comrades that I had left nearby and told them to join us. Somehow we all made it to a safe place.
What I found out later was that an artillery shell had hit the exact place where I had my first position, just minutes after we decided to leave the place. The shell went straight through the roof and would have killed us immediately.
The two soldiers that I had asked to change their position came to thank me. They told me that only one minute after they were in their new position, an artillery shell had hit the old one.
And the last man who had left the big house from the small window told us that the moment he was leaving the building, a tank round had hit the room in the basement where we had stayed the whole time.
Of course we had a lot of luck that day, but there was more to it. After having spent a long time in combat, I was able to trust my instincts, my gut feeling, although it didn’t make any logical sense. From a military point of view, the positions that we had been using that day were carefully chosen and the best possible choices. Still, some inner voice told me to abandon them.
There were more occasions where my extrasensory perception skills (or those of my comrades) were either saving our lives or made us better soldiers. Especially during night combat, we often “knew” where each of our soldiers was positioned and what they were doing, without being able to see them. We were able to move without wasting time figuring out where everyone was left and we could shoot without hitting one of our own people. This made us better and more lethal soldiers.
Yield: about 8 to 10 gallons of gumbo. Can cut recipe in half to reduce.
Ingredients
2 cups vegetable oil
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups diced onions
2 cups diced celery
2 cups diced bell pepper
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 cups chopped green onions
3 gallons water
1 pound fresh or frozen okra
1 (28 ounce) can Ro*Tel diced tomatoes or 2 (10 ounce) cans
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon black pepper
2 ounces crab boil
8 dashes Tabasco sauce
8 dashes Louisiana hot sauce
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 ounce Paul Prudhomme’s Seafood Magic seasonings
1 ounce Cajun seasoning
1 ounce dried basil
1 ounce dried thyme
3 pounds peeled and deveined shrimp (70 to 90 count)
1 pound claw crab meat
2 whole crabs, cleaned and halved
1 pint fresh oysters
1 ounce file or to taste
Instructions
First, you make a roux. In a large, heavy stock pot on medium heat, add 2 cups vegetable oil and bring to temperature.
Add flour gradually. It will sizzle when it is at the right temperature. Using a whisk, stir roux constantly. Stir until it reaches a peanut butter color. When it reaches the desired color, add the onions, celery, bell pepper, garlic and 1 cup of green onions (in that order) until all ingredients are cooked down or caramelized.
Add water, okra, Ro*Tel tomatoes, seasonings and bring to boil. After it reaches boiling, reduce heat to low and let simmer for at least an hour.
Add seafood and continue to cook on medium heat for about 15 to 20 minutes.
Taste for seasoning and texture.
Add file to thicken.
Stir in the remaining green onions and simmer for a few more minutes.
It was older than I was. The biggest issue was, the floor pans were pretty rusted out (and the Flintstones jokes that came with it). I could see the road flow by if I looked down under my feet and pedals. Water would splashed up when it rained.
So I try to fix it. Some rolled stainless steel wouldn’t stay down right. Riveting just made more holes. And I gave it a break. Later that afternoon, I noticed my mom’s cookie sheet. It was almost the exact right size! And it wouldn’t roll up. A few clips with tin snips, and some epoxy, I had the floor of my car (on my side) waterproof!
Later that week, my mom wanted to make cookies. I, of course, had no idea where her cookie sheet was.
I think the worst part was me “helping” her look for 5 or 8 minutes.
A few summers ago, and 20 or so years later, I finally came clean about it. Time heals all wounds, and she wasn’t too upset.
I was quite a lonely boy, and longed for a relationship. On holiday, I met a girl who seemed interested in me, and we had fun: we walked, climbed, sailed together and did a lot of talking. At the end of the holiday, we exchanged addresses and corresponded for a year or so. I kept ALL her letters.
One day, she wrote to tell me about her new boyfriend. He was wonderful (apparently.) Being rather immature, I felt betrayed. I had no reason to feel this way, we were only friends and I should have felt glad for her, but hey. Teenage angst.
I took all her letters, threw them into my metal litter bin, and set fire to them.
IN MY BEDROOM.
I had the window open, and there was no-one else in the house, so that was cool. I remember the IMMENSE satisfaction watching those letters burn.
When the bin cooled, I decided to bury the ashes, and with them my heart. I lifted the bin – and there was a perfect bottom-of-the-bin shaped hole in the polyester carpet.
My father was fairly physical in terms of punishment, so my heart did not just sink: it scuttled itself. I knew that Armageddon would ensue were this to be discovered.
In panic, I looked around and realised that my room was a perfect oblong. The bin-shaped burn was in the left corner, my bed in the opposing right corner.
I have (up to this day!) never worked so hard or fast in my life. I removed the furniture from my room, managed to lift the carpet, desperately salvaging the carpet tacks, turned the carpet around, nailed it back down and replaced the furniture, with the bed covering the offending burn.
My parents wondered why I suddenly announced my decision to assist with the housework by taking responsibility for all upstairs vacuuming and cleaning. They were surprised but pleased: I was desperate to keep my crime concealed.
I am now 59. My father has passed away, but my mother still lives in the family home. And the burn is still under my old bed. 45 years later, my crime remains hidden.
1. Pretty people are automatically more acceptable by people. Average looking people have to do something above average to get accepted and ugly people have to do something extraordinary!
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It is because the human mind appreciates physical beauty and repels ugliness because of immaturity of mind. But in the end what matters is inner beauty or ugliness and that wiseness comes with experience and time.
2. Leaving your girlfriend/boyfriend seems much tougher than leaving your friends.
image 23
It is because romantic relations induces strong pheromones secretions in your body that cause you to develop strong bonding feeling with your partner. It is not the case you have with friends and hence breaking a strong bond seems tougher.
3. People who get goosebumps frequently while listening to music have a special connection with it. These people listen to music very frequently and their work capacities and capabilities are partly dependent on it. If they are barred from listening to music for 1 month, their productivity will fall.
image 22
It is because the hormone adrenaline increases in their body while listening to the music and that causes more activation, more awakening and better functioning of their body. Plus, it keeps the mind calm.
4. The more attention you give to a person, the more attitude he/she will show you and the less crap he/she will give about you.
image 21
It is because as the humans get more attention, their minds tend to think that they are very important and good looking and the person who is giving them attention needs their company desperately and is not equal to them at all.
5. Money instils confidence and happiness in majority of people. It increases their desire to work.
image 20
It is because anything (money) that is able to complete every single desire of people is very much acceptable to them as human desire are insatiable.
In 5th grade I had a 1st year teacher, Ms. Craig, who was amazing and one of the reasons I went into education, but I digress. One day we were studying the United States and where all of the states were. I noticed that she had switched Missouri and Minnesota. I remember thinking – that is not right. you see my dad is from Minnesota and my family lived there for a short spell when I was 4. I decided, to ask her if that is really where Minnesota located. I will never forget her reply – You know Denise, I am not totally confident that it is let’s check. So in front of the entire class, she lifted the map she had written on to look at the map that contained all of the States written on it. Well, look at that Denise is correct, I made a mistake and mixed up two states!
Miss Jana Craig if you are out there and can read this, you made a very strong impression on a 5th grader in the very first class you taught. You were the BEST teacher ever! Thank you for making me love school.
The most important required secondary power is to be born in an upper class family. Most of those high IQ people who succeed, have born with silver spoon on hand.
The reason is trivial. Nobody makes it alone nor in a vacuum. To be successful, you need to get socialized with right people, to know the right people, to be encouraged, to have social support, you name it. The less you have those, the less likely you are to succeed.
Then there is the thrice-goddamned communication range. If you are a high-IQ person in a middle class environment, you are likely to be branded as a weird kid, a nerd, a geek, an egghead and bullied and ostracized. You learn very quickly to hide your intelligence to stay below the radar lest you are torn into pieces. And God help you if you are born in a working class family – you will be stampled as a weirdo, a misfit, an outcast, and eaten alive.
For a middle class and working class high IQ individuals, the best hopes are military and STEM branches. Military because militaries are meritocracies, and high IQ is an asset once you are past buck sergeant or lieutenant. STEM branches, because they are difficult and require brainpower, and you are likely to get networked with similar-minded youngsters.
Forget the rags-to-riches fairy tales. They are just that – fairy tales invented to deceive the gullible and to make the proles to blame themselves for their failures.
“Open marriage” appears to be an (American) acceptable way to turn a marriage into a fuck-fest. Sheech! I’m way too old for this bullshit.
I mention further down that there are races in China, where “open relationships” are the norm. But in the West, it turns out that an “Open Relationship” is but a code phrase to allow the female in a relationship to have multiple sexual partners, while the male sits at home watching the kids, the pets, and earns money.
Nine times out of ten, he never has an “outside relationship” even though officially he can.
…
The videos about “open relationships” are interesting and disturbing at the same time.
Sigh.
I find them very disturbing. After all, a “marriage” (prior to it being twisted into something different) meant a single monogamous family with shared emotions, shared sex, and shared responsibilities.
A core family unit.
Now, in the USA it is a freeway toward complete social discord and a breakdown at all levels of society.
Anyways…
As I get older my body changes.
I get shorter. No shit. My height gets smaller and smaller over time. Though, I will admit that my feet seem to get larger as a consequence of that.
Shorter in height, but bigger feet.
Not only that, but my hands seem to get slightly bigger, and my fingers are getting longer.
Big hands. Long fingers. Big feet.
Lordy!
…
Ugh. Why don’t women find big hands and long fingers attractive?
And a bald head… and a bot belly?
Not all of us can look like Adonis, don’t you know?
…
Balding, and fighting against a pot belly. Oh, the pain of aging!
But at least I have big hands and long fingers. LOL!
…
I don’t think that these body changes are attractive, but it is the price you pay to live to an old age. Perhaps, when I break 90, I’ll be a squat short man with big, big hand and feet and a bald head. Yucky!
Looking a little like Yoda.
I’d get a nice haircut, and some nice outfits if it mattered. But in my case, those are low on the priority scale right now. Smile.
Just smile. Accept yourself as it is, and as you change.
Americans foolishly screamed and shout that they are the leader of the free world without ever questioning if it is even remotely true or not! Please don’t be angry or upset if I help you guys since I understand you can pretend to be free or even dare says you are ordained by god to spread democracy and freedom but you Americans are one of the least free country on earth.
Let me help you good American. So first I like to explain how unfree you guys are.
35% of you cannot get health care when you fall sick! The most basic of freedom is the freedom to see a doctor and get cure when you fall sick. At least 100 million Americans don’t have this basic of basics of freedom.
Next 1 million Americans are homeless and don’t have another basic of basics of freedom. The freedom to have a roof over their head.! They have to live in makeshift tents on the streets.
20% of Americans don’t have 500 dollars to their name and don’t know where their next meal is coming from! Surely everyone must have the freedom to have a hot meal to stay alive!
USA with about 4% of world population has 25% of the worlds prisoners population! Think about this my American friends, prisoners are certainly. Not free. Many of them coloured people thrown into jail for the slightest reason. How on earth can you keep a straight face to say U.S. is the leader of the free world. No one know!
In many cities in the U.S. one cannot go to certain parts of the inner city like the Queens in New York. As crimes are rampant. So normal innocent and good Americans like you have to avoid that part of America! Surely freedom means you can go to anywhere or any part of America.
Kids and parents suffers the mental turmoils daily for just going to school. Many got shot to death in schools, public places, cinemas and even in Capitol Hill! Is that freedom? Even your kids are not free to go to school without a random mass shooter lurking with military grade weapons to murder them! Is this freedom?
If you are not fortunate to have a white skin you could be necked to death in the bright daylight of even driving a good car may be be shot to death just for suspected of stealing the car! Everyday you live in fear of a white policeman! Is that freedom to live? Freedom to avoid death at the racist inclination of the white racist? Surely not.
Freedom means you can choose who you really want to be your leader. Only 30% choose Biden. Or 35% choose Trump! Why are they your president? Your system allowed 0.8% of the richest and most influential people to choose your candidates! Surely this U.S. not freedom. This is far from democracy. How on earth can you call yourself the “beacon of democracy” who in a sane mind can claim that?
Oh today you country stop the Americans from having access to best 5G technology, Smartphone, best EV’s, drones and others for some geopolitical nonsense! Is this freedom? Freedom to be deprived? Let me help you understand. You can buy a 10 thousand EV. And need to be charged once a week but you are not allowed to! You can but your Tesla like for half the price but you are not allowed.
But to me EVs and Drones are just the top of the iceberg of your draconian policies that takes away the freedom of Americans like you. Think about Jullien Assange, Bradley Manning and Edward Snowden! Freedom?
According to a scientific research paper by the mainland military, the People’s Liberation Army has established the world’s first “Close Air Combat Command Force” (Near Air Command) equipped with professional hypersonic weapons and directly taking orders from the highest level of the People’s Liberation Army. It is responsible for executing “precise and ruthless operations” during wartime. ” attack mission. In addition, solar-powered drones and spy balloons are also possible intelligence-gathering devices.
Note: this answer only applies to the American Mafia as the Italian Mafias have repeatedly killed public officials of all persuasions and badges.
Because killing cops, judges or any form of law and order official invites heat and exposure.
A ‘secret society’
Despite the movies, the books, the podcasts, youtube channels and press stories, at its core, La Cosa Nostra (LCN) is supposed to be a secret society. A money-making secret society.
It is meant to operate in the shadows, a ‘brotherhood’ using codes of silence and modes of discretion to conduct legal and illegal activities that bring it great wealth.
It seeks to evade law and order and allow its members to not only profit from illicit means, but, more importantly, enjoy the fruits of their dishonest labour.
A whole load of pain
Law enforcement communities are also brotherhoods (and now sisterhoods too). Kill one of their own, and they want revenge. They go ‘all in’ to catch and make an example of the ‘cop killer’.
Killing law and order officials has even proven to be ‘game changer’ for some organized crime groups. For example:
In 1985, the Guadalajara drug cartel kidnapped, tortured and murdered US DEA agent Kiki Camarena. The DEA was enraged and flooded Mexico and the border regions; playing a major role in breaking said cartel apart (clearly others appeared to replace it)
In 1992, the Sicilian Mafia killed Judges Falcone and Borsellino in two separate car bombs. These attacks created a ‘sea change’ in the political and societal will to go after the Mafia, with the late ’90s being an era of significant prosecutorial success against the Sicilians
In short, killing a cop or any other law enforcement official places a target on your head – and indeed that of your organisation. The resulting attention inhibits your ability to earn, to operate, and even places your freedom or life at risk … far better to just not do it and keep on living your illicit life.
Forbidden Archaeology, Human Origins, and UFOs… Michael Cremo
Just once, but that was enough for the rest of my life.
It was 1993 or 94. Things started off just fine. He smiled at me from the window seat as I took my place on the flight from Philadelphia to Frankfurt, Germany.
Our ages must have been close. We shot the shit about sports and music and all those other harmless topics popular with early-30-something unmarried males.
He was impressed that Lufthansa (long ago) served him Johnny Walker red in his whiskey cola. He sure did like those whiskey colas…
Everything was amiable until just after the after-dinner drinks trolley finished serving.
He commented that he hated queers and he was pretty sure the male server was one.
I stared him in the eyes and said calmly and slowly, “nearly half of my best friends are gay … I think you need to rethink your attitude, the world is changing.”
Never have I seen someone transform so quickly from Dr. Jekyll to Mr. Hyde. “You’re an effin’ homo lover! … I ain’t sittin’ next to no effin’ homo! Eff! Disgusting I even talked to you…”
Standing up he yelled at the stewardess, “This guy is queer. I don’t sit next to queers.”
The looks on the faces of the other passengers ranged from amused, to angry, to sympathetic. Most just pretended not to notice.
I got up and went to the back of the plane and waited for the crew to sort things out. They reseated me about 15 minutes later in a business class seat.
I have no idea what happened to him, but I think we can be sure he didn’t get any more whiskey colas…
Business class served Johnny Walker black.
The Male Loneliness Epidemic – Is It Women’s Fault?
This is a MUST watch.
Western society is DOOMED.
The Eviction Notice Is Being Written, and Will Come in Four Languages
The Eviction Notice is being written. And it will come in four languages. Russian. Farsi. Mandarin. And last but not least, English.
A much-cherished pleasure of professional writing is to always be enriched by informed readers. This “eviction” insight – worth a thousand geopolitical treatises – was offered by one of my sharpest readers commenting on a column.
Concisely, what we have here expresses a deeply felt consensus across the spectrum not only in West Asia but also in most latitudes across the Global South/Global Majority.
The Unthinkable, in the form of a genocide conducted live, in real time on every smartphone in the third decade of the millennium – which I called the Raging Twenties in a previous book – has acted like a particle accelerator, concentrating hearts and minds.
Those that chose to set West Asia on fire are already confronting nasty blowback. And that goes way beyond diplomacy exercised by Global South leaders.
For the first time in ages, via President Xi Jinping, China has been more than explicit geopolitically (a true Sovereign cannot hedge when it comes to genocide). China’s unmistaken position on Palestine goes way beyond the geoeconomics routine of promoting BRI’s trade and transportation corridors.
All that while President Putin defined sending humanitarian aid to Gaza as a “sacred duty”, which in Russian code includes, crucially, the military spectrum.
For all the maneuvering and occasional posturing, for all practical purposes everyone knows the current UN arrangement is rotten beyond repair, totally impotent when it comes to imposing meaningful peace negotiations, sanctions or investigations of serial war crimes.
The new UN in the making is BRICS 11 – actually BRICS 10, considering new Trojan Horse Argentina in practice may be relegated to a marginal role, assuming it joins on January 1st, 2024.
BRICS 10, led by Russia-China, both regulated by a strong moral compass, keep their ear on the ground and listen to the Arab street and the lands of Islam. Especially their people, much more than their elites. This will be an essential element in 2024 during the Russian presidency of BRICS.
Even with no check out, you will have to leave
The current order of business in the New Great Game is to organize the expulsion of the Hegemon from West Asia – as much a technical challenge as a civilizational challenge.
As it stands, the Washington-Tel Aviv continuum are already prisoners of their own device. This ain’t no Hotel California; you may not check out any time you like, but you will be forced to leave.
That may happen in a relatively gentle manner – think Kabul as a Saigon remix – or if push comes to shove may involve a naval Apocalypse Now, complete with expensive iron bathtubs turned into sub-ocean coral reefs and the demise of CENTCOM and its AFRICOM projection.
The crucial vector all along is how Iran – and Russia – have played, year after year, with infinite patience, the master strategy devised by Gen. Soleimani, whose assassination actually started the Raging Twenties.
A de-weaponized Hegemon cannot defeat the “new axis of evil”, Russia-Iran-China, not only in West Asia but also anywhere in Eurasia, Asia-Pacific, and pan-Africa. Direct participation/normalization of the genocide only worked to accelerate the progressive, inevitable exclusion of the Hegemon from most of the Global South.
All that while Russia meticulously crafts the integration of the Black Sea, the Caspian Sea, the Baltic Sea (Finnish hysteria notwithstanding), the Arctic and the Northwestern Pacific Sea and China turbo-charges the integration of the South China Sea.
Xi and Putin are gifted players of chess and go – and profit from stellar advisers of the caliber of Patrushev and Wang Yi. China playing geopolitical go is an exercise in non-confrontation: all you need to do is to block your opponent’s ability to move.
Chess and go, in a diplomatic tandem, represent a game where you don’t interrupt your opponent when it is repeatedly shooting itself on the knees. As an extra bonus, you get your opponent antagonizing over 90% of the world’s population.
All that will lead to the Hegemon’s economy eventually collapsing. And then it can be beaten by default.
Western “values” buried under the rubble
As Russia, especially via Lavrov’s efforts, offers the Global South/Global Majority a civilizational project, focused on mutually respectful multipolarity, China via Xi Jinping offers the notion of “community with a shared future” and a set of initiatives, discussed in lengthy detail at the Belt & Road Initiative (BRI) Forum in Beijing in October, where Russia, not by accident, was the guest of honor.
A group of Chinese scholars concisely frame the approach as China “creating/facilitating global nodes for relating/communicating and platforms for concrete collaboration/practical exchanges. The participants remains Sovereign, contribute to the common endeavor (or simply specific projects) and receive benefits making them willing to keep on.”
It’s as if Beijing was acting as a sort of shining star and guiding light.
In sharp contrast, what remains of Western civilization – certainly with not much to do with Montaigne,
Pico della Mirandola or Schopenhauer – increasingly plunges into a self-constructed Heart of Darkness (without Conrad’s literary greatness), confronting the true, irredeemably horrifying face of conformist, subservient individualism.
Welcome to the New Medievalism, precipitated by the “kill apps” of Western racism, as argued in a brilliant book, Chinese Cosmopolitanism, by scholar Shuchen Xiang, professor of Philosophy at Xidan University.
The “kill apps” of Western racism, writes Prof. Xiang, are fear of change; the ontology of bivalent dualism; the invention of the ‘barbarian’ as the racial Other; the metaphysics of colonialism; and the insatiable nature of this racist psychology. All these “apps” are now exploding, in real time, in West Asia. The key consequence is that the Western “values” construct has already perished, buried under the Gaza rubble.
Now to a ray of light: a case can be made – and we’ll be back to it – that orthodox Christianity, moderate Islam and several strands of Taoism/Confucianism may embrace the future as the three main civilizations of a cleansed Mankind.
Yes, they do. Forget the so-called “combat footage” you see on TV or YouTube.
It’s important to spot your enemies before they see you. This will give you a big advantage over them because you can better fight them or you can use this info to plan your next moves:
You already have a good hunch where your enemy is located before any fighting starts. Where and when you move will depend on the (often assumed) location of your enemy.
While you are moving, you are always on the lookout. It is usually the side that spots the enemy first that will have the upper hand in a firefight.
It’s one of the most important qualities in an infantry squad leader to have “a good eye”, meaning to anticipate the enemy’s whereabouts and to spot the exact location of enemy forces, especially under fire. You want to know from where you get shot at!
Sometimes, you will see the enemy, but they are still out of range of your weapons. You may want to relate their location to combat support troops that will then execute an artillery attack or an airstrike.
If you have no artillery or air support, as is often the case for guerrillas or special forces, you can approach the enemy until they come into range of your weapons or you set up an ambush.
In combat, you have to see your enemies to be able to kill them. Shooting around without anything in your sights is a waste of ammunition.
image 155
On the lookout: A Kosovo Liberation Army soldier observing enemy territory
There are exceptions:
Suppressive or covering fire where you shoot to hinder the enemy from exposing themselves to your fire keeps them out of sight. Still, even when shooting covering fire, you usually have a very good idea where your enemy is located.
In a combat situation, targets often disappear quickly after the first shots are fired. Your enemy will take cover. It’s not a mistake to send a few bursts of automatic fire to the place where you saw your enemy drop down, but after that, it’s time for indirect fire options, like hand grenades or Multiple Grenade Launchers (MGL). You won’t see your enemy, but as you use fragmentation weapons, there is a good chance to cause some damage as long as your grenades hit close enough.
It’s not always necessary (and possible) to see the enemy, but:
The sooner and the more precise you are able to pinpoint the enemy’s location, the better.
One word about “firefights” we see on TV: Most of the shootings on those clips is simply a waste of ammunition.
On the other hand, you won’t have a GoPro or any other camera switched on for twenty-four hours a day. When you spot the enemy (or they spot you), you’ll first shoot them (or jump for cover) before you start thinking about filming. As visible targets disappear quickly in the first moments of a firefight, the chances of getting an enemy live on camera are very slim.
Television crews rarely film on locations where the real action happens, but are often sent to less active parts of the frontline. The mere presence of a TV camera often prompts soldiers to start shooting. This is why our news shows are full of soldiers firing away at an empty landscape.
I was headed in for a job interview several years back. As I’m walking in, two other men are approaching the door from different angles. One of them speeds up to cut off the other and get in the door first, and the other walks in, shaking his head in disbelief. As I walk in behind them, the first guy runs to the elevator and presses the button, not holding the elevator for the other guy and me. Again, the second guy just shakes his head and we wait for the next elevator. I say “Can you believe some people?” And we both chuckle a little bit.
As it turns out, we are headed to the same floor, so we get off the elevator together. As we walk into an office, there is guy #1 Mr Impatient, standing at the desk tapping his foot as the receptionist is finishing up a phone call. The receptionist asks him “can I help you?” And he says “I’m here to see Mr Smith for an interview at 3:30.” (it’s currently 2:50).
I think to myself “Great, this guy is interviewing for the same position I am and he will act like the sweetest guy during the interview.” I lean over and tell the receptionist “I am Mr Smith’s 3 o’clock interview.” Mr Impatient GLARES at me.
The other guy I walked in with (the one Mr Impatient cut off) then says “Hey gentlemen, I’m Mr Smith.” And turns to Mr Impatient and says “you don’t need to wait around. I’ve already determined you are not a good fit for our company. “
I don’t know if you’d count this as a “benefit,” but my first job was at Wendy’s, when I was 16 in 1994. When they hired me, the manager said “minimum wage is $4.25, but we like to start people at $4.26 to give you a little extra and show we care.” He was dead serious, no irony. That has occupied part of my brain for 30 years now.
I knew something strange was going on when a candidate with X-men hair was elected president.
Buenos Aires has always had one of the world’s highest number of psychoanalysts. Now the psychological issues have made their way out of the bedroom into national politics.
Cheesecake Factory Louisiana Chicken Pasta
deliciousv
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients
Cajun Sauce
1 tablespoon butter
1 small yellow bell pepper, chopped
1 small red bell pepper, chopped
3/4 small red onion, chopped
3 whole garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 1/4 pints whipping cream
1 cup low-salt chicken broth
4 tablespoons fresh basil, thinly sliced
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Chicken
6 skinless boneless chicken breast halves
3/4 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
Pasta
1 package bow-tie pasta
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
salt and pepper
Instructions
Cajun Sauce
Melt butter in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add yellow and red bell peppers, mushrooms and onion to same skillet and saute until crisp-tender, about 4 minutes.
Add minced garlic and crushed red pepper to skillet and sauté 2 or 3 minutes.
Add whipping cream and chicken stock. Simmer until sauce reheats and thickens slightly, about 5 minutes.
Add basil and 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese to sauce, stirring to incorporate. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low, simmer. Sauce will reduce and thicken.
Chicken
Wash and drain chicken breasts. Pound until very thin, as thin or thinner then 1/4-inch thick (the thinner the chicken breasts the better).
Mix breadcrumbs, flour, and Parmesan cheese together. Place milk in dish for dipping.
Dip chicken into breadcrumb mixture and then into milk and then back into breadcrumbs.
Heat oil in skillet and fry at medium high temperature until golden, crisp, and cooked through. Add more oil as needed. Remove and drain chicken. Keep warm.
Pasta
Meanwhile, cook bow-tie pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to bite. Drain and return to pot. Add sauce and toss to coat.
Place pasta with sauce on plate, and top with chicken breast.
Hello Allen, thank you for the question. Honestly, there were quite a few times I had the hell scared out of me. I’ve written at length about a few of them. I will provide a rerun of one of them now.
I was a in an FCI, a medium high prison with walls about 20’ high and rolls of razor wire 3 rolls deep at the base of the walls. There had been a lot of tension on the yard for weeks.
One morning as I was preparing for a Saturday, I noticed a group of 5–6 guys walk up to a bunk in a cell down a way. There seemed to be a bit of chatter and movement, sort of the thing a group might do if your team won a game. Talking, a bit of laughter, movement.
I walked by and went to breakfast, saw a couple guys I knew and we took a walk and discussed some important topic like that night’s dinner. A couple hours later I went back to my cell.
There were a couple CO’s and another guy in the cell where the group had been. They were standing over the bunk of the inmate.
there was something sticking out of his chest and the blood trails were in several areas.
It turned out this guy owed something to someone and wasn’t paying so the crew was sent to make an example.
The story was the weapon was a pencil, there were 9 wounds and the vic was rushed to medical and when he healed a bit was sent to a different prison.
The near murder right there was horrifying enough but the way the guys carried out the hit was nearly professional. It just seemed like a bunch of guys hanging out. All the while covering the scuffle, takedown and gigging.
In a flash you understand that if you cross an uncrossable line, even by mistake, it easily could be over before you realized what was happening.
It was a long time before I was comfortable in my cell, alone during open times or movements. Walking in a hall and coming across 4–5 guys of another race, you couldn’t show fear, but more than once I walked by waiting for a shank!
There is always a stress when you are inside. It is exponential when a high level yard is on edge.
On a summer’s day, as my wife Dorothy and I sat down to dinner, we thought we heard the sound of water being hosed onto a car. The front entrance was secured only by a screen door and we could readily hear neighborhood sounds.
Then Cocoa, our Seal Point Siamese, asked to be let in. When I opened the door, she fell over. And that noise was louder. I looked out; no car, no one hosing anything. And the noise was right below me, just off the porch. I looked down. A huge, very pissed off rattlesnake!
I called to Ralph, who had just stepped out of his kitchen, next door. “Rattlesnake!” I yelled. “Bring a rake!”
He did. And as Ralph pinned the snake with the rake, I tossed a large stone onto it, killing the serpent.
My wife took Cocoa to the vet, and while she was gone I decided to skin the snake, eviscerate it, and pan fry it. Rattlesnake meat was tasty, I heard, and the beast was as easily gutted as a bass.
But what do I do with the head? The fangs, the venom sacs?
Toilet.
I was unprepared for the surviving impulses of the snakes nervous system. Beheaded (and betailed, for the rattles) and completely stripped of the hide, I had in hand what appeared to be a section of a thick light grey garden hose, split down the middle. And when I ran this corpse under cold water, the spinal cord delivered one last discharge, causing the thing to writhe in my hands. It was alive! I threw the twisting monster into the freezer and slammed the door.
Dorothy and Cocoa came into the kitchen; the cat was recovering but Dorothy said I looked like I had just seen a ghost.
I explained. After a few minutes, I took the frozen snake from the freezer and let it thaw as I prepared a frying pan with melted butter and some salt and pepper. I cut the snake into sections as one might cut a sausage, and added the sections to the gently crackling pan.
In 5 minutes, the flesh had turned white and flaky. I removed all, divided onto 2 plates, and Dorothy and I sat down to eat.
And we tried. We chewed and chewed and chewed and chewed. But the meat had turned into some kind of weird plastic strands that refused to be swallowed.
I took all and tossed into a pressure cooker with some white wine, set all to max pressure and gave it a full 30 minutes. After decanting the vessel, there appeared the most perfect, delicate flakes, like carefully separated crab meat.
And we chewed and chewed and chewed and chewed. Next stop; snake to trash, hot dogs to grill.
I had this experience once. There was a Shawarma/Pizza place on the same block as a place I had newly moved into. So I (single mom) went in with my young kids to order a pizza.
They didn’t have a menu, the ’employees’ were a bunch of guys in expensive tracksuits, jewelry, and all looked like buff gym rats, with the perfectly lined up and gel thick hair – they looked initially very confused that I was actually ordering food there, and there was a bunch of arguing in (I think) Arabic. They insisted that I order a pizza there, it would just be a bit of a wait. One guy left, and came back with a bag of groceries. It took over an hour. I offered a few times to go elsewhere “You’re busy, so sorry..” but they insisted I wait. I chatted with the guy who was at the front counter a bit- he was pleasant enough, but it seemed like he was deciding whether or not my entering of the restaurant was going to be a problem for them. While my kids and I waited on the pizza, a few times some tracksuit guys came in, went to the back, then left with stuffed brown paper bags. His whole demeanor changed when I mentioned that my kids and I had left an abusive situation, and that’s why we’d moved into the area. He wanted to see a picture of my ex, and insisted I show the other tracksuit guys too.
The pizza was ok I guess, a little undercooked. I don’t think the pizza oven had ever been used before- I could see the pizza oven from the front counter, and they had a huddle around it to figure out how it turned on.
The guy at the front didn’t know how to work the register, so he told me it was on the house.
Before I left, the front counter guy told me I was part of the neighborhood now, and to let him know if anyone bothered me or my kids, and he’d “take care of it”.
Anytime I walked past that store after that I was greeted warmly by the tracksuit guys, and they always asked if anyone was “giving me trouble”. Never tried to order food there ever again though!
He surprised me. We were in our early 30’s and newly married. My husband said “ oh my , the freezer defrosted you better go look to see what can be saved”. I went to the kitchen and opened the freezer. Inside was a little box that said “ ice”. He had bought me a pair of diamond earrings. They weren’t the biggest and most expensive but they were beautiful. we are still married and I have worn them for the last 41 years.
I worked late one day so I talked to my boss and we agreed that I would come in late the following day. I had a funny feeling about this, as if she might try something. Thus, even though she agreed I should come in at 8:30 the next morning, I arrived on time and sat in the parking lot. She called me at 8:15 and asked me where I was. I reminded her that we agreed I could come in at 8:30, “but,” I said, “I’m parked right outside the office. Do you want me to come in earlier than we discussed yesterday?” She said no. That was in May.
In June, I got called in to her office and she wrote me up for being late that day a month prior as well as walking in 2 minutes late one morning. The write up skipped the initial verbal warning and first write up and stated it was a final warning.I was on notice that I could be fired for anything at any time.
One day in September she called me into her office and fired me for excessive tardiness. I filed for unemployment and won. The Judge laughed at her and told her “This lady was late by 2 minutes and you found that soooo agregious that you fired her for it, yet you waited 3 months to do it? You’re gonna pay on this one.” I ended up with 4k in back payments.
Several months ago I went to a hospital fearing that I was having a heart attack. I wasn’t, as it turned out, but I was admitted for what was really wrong: pneumonia.
I was in the hospital three days before being discharged, and during that time I questioned every single medication they brought for me. An antibiotic IV about to be hooked up? I’d ask the nurse to confirm what specific one it was. A couple of pills they want me to take? “Which pill is which specific medication?”
I did this partly to be sure they weren’t giving me a wrong medication, and also to be aware of every medication they actually administered and could thus bill me for. Good thing, too.
When I was discharged they gave me a stack of paperwork. Some it was warnings about what I should or shouldn’t do going forward; some outlined the tests they had conducted and the results of them; and one page was supposed to be a pair of new medications one of the doctors had told me he was prescribing for me to fill after discharge. That page was missing, so I had to wait a few more hours while they got hold of that doctor and got him to enter the order.
Turns out one of the drugs he prescribed was atorvastatin for the high cholesterol that came up on one of the tests. The thing is, I am allergic to all statins, a fact that was all over the medical records they got from my primary care doctor, and which I had told them on at least three occasions as well when they asked me to confirm any and all allergies. Obviously I didn’t fill that prescription.
Then I got the bill, charging me $1145 for atorvastatin administered during my inpatient stay.
Now I of course knew full well they had never given me that drug, not only because I had been checking all the meds they did give me, but because I never had the severe reaction to it that would have resulted if they had. So I called their billing department, explained the matter, and requested they amend the bill. They refused.
I called my doctor, and she suggested I write the request out and send it to them via certified mail. That would have been a pain in my ass, as my big truck would not fit in the parking lot of the kinds of places one can do that, and I was over 1000 miles from home.
So I instead called hospital administration and told them I wanted to report a dangerous medication error by that doctor. That got their attention.
I again related the whole matter, which they verified from the notes right there in my records as I went along through the narrative. They clearly saw the multiple notes about the allergy, they clearly saw that no such medication was administered during my stay, and they clearly saw that the doctor had only prescribed it hours after I had been discharged.
They apologized profusely and promised that they would attend to the matter using the legally prescribed procedures, which they did not explain. I pleasantly accepted their apology, then asked if that process would include striking this billing item for administering that drug they had just admitted I never received.
They refused again.
I said that was fine, then asked how I should go about reporting them for malpractice for administering a drug my chart clearly said I was allergic to? Response: but we didn’t administer that drug!
My reply, as long as they insisted on billing me for it, I could only assume that meant they really had administered it. So it could only be one of two things: malpractice for giving me the drug, or fraud for charging me for it after not giving me the drug. I said I would leave it for them to sort out while I called my insurance company and briefed them on the matter… which I then did.
Two weeks later a new billing statement arrived with not only that charge removed, but charges for two tests they had charged me for but apparently not actually done. I called the insurance company again, and they informed me that those tests had been ordered but never actually done, and they themselves had been the ones to uncover that after my earlier call to them. They had requested an audit of my treatment, which had then exposed the other errors.
The most absurd thing to my mind was their insistence on billing me for a drug after they knew that doing so was documented evidence of malpractice.
30 years ago a mate and I were heading off to the range to hit some golf balls.
It was his idea and he wanted to drive. I was saved by one thing and that was he didn’t have his wallet, so he went upstairs to get it and while he did that I thought I would take a quick look in the glove compartment in case it was in there.
It wasn’t but I found an exploding golf ball, still in it’s box, so I quickly swapped it with a real golf ball leaving the box exactly where I found it.
On the range we are smacking golf balls to oblivion trying to hit it further than the other can. After about 5 minutes my mate says, “Would you mind if we swap sides?”
Funny thing is, that was exactly what I was going to say in order to make him hit the exploding ball. Exploding golf balls don’t look or feel real so teeing it up for the victim is the only way for it to work.
So I said, “Sure. Just let me hit this one.” which I did and then while he watched it I quickly teed up the exploding one, which was loose in my pocket.
We then swapped sides where he then challenged me to a longest hit competition with our next shots. Of course I agreed and smacked mine as hard as I could and looked straight at him not where the ball went.
He was expecting my ball to explode but it didn’t and he looked quite confused about it. Then he had his turn. The whole thing just turned to dust in an instant. One huge dust cloud!
He spun around and looked guiltily at the range office like he had done something wrong and would get in trouble. If he was confused with my shot he was now flabbergasted with his own. His facial expression was priceless.
I’m laughing my head off as I can tell he can’t work out how any of this has happened. He told me later that in that moment he could not understand how it went wrong. He couldn’t figure out how the golf ball he took out the box and teed up for me got to the other tee.
I think there is nothing more satisfying in life than getting someone with their own practical joke.
My Wife Asked For An Open Marriage So I Hooked Up That Night And Dumped Her The Next Day
Stopped caring or giving a Fck about people who doesn’t care for me.
Their benifit, opinions and even existence. Caring is mutual, if you can’t. Sorry. I won’t take a minute to forget you. My family and people who love me is everything for me.
Stopped taking stress and overthinking.
Because which I can control, I can control. What I can’t. I can’t. Me taking unnecessary stress not gonna give me control on things I can’t.
Stopped crying.
Most importantly, doesn’t gonna change the situation. If something happened, it happened. Crying will not change reality. Move on. Think calmly and search for a solution.
Stopped giving Explanation.
If you are asking proper explanation and proofs every time ( once or twice is okay ), he doesn’t believes you and he won’t, no matter how many times you prove yourself. Just don’t waste your time.
Stopped seeking for outer beauty.
When it comes to relationship, I am so deeply wounded by people who looked attractive only from outside, my preference changed. I now seeks for behavior and personality more than skin colour aur figure. But yeah, they matter too but isn’t a vital deal-breaker. But, if I get it, I won’t mind.
Stopped seeking for people’s company.
I don’t know, the day I took drop, my outside life is cut short, and all I have is my books, and my computer screen, and a small cozy bedroom-cum-studyroom.Now, it’s more than half a year, and now I prefer not to interact with outside world and stay in my cave.I can stay like that, alone whole day, even I want to live like this in hostel in single room.
Stopped being in people’s life, where no body want me too.
“When to leave” is most important thing. Not everyone who care for you really care for you, maybe one is just intrested in you, but when they lose interest, they won’t. It’s better to leave these people’s life, before they kick you out.If you feel things aren’t same like it was before, but you aren’t the reason, don’t stay there to heal, it will just reduce your self respect. Just leave it. Hurting yourself is better than hurting your self esteem.
Stopped reducing my respect for someone’s ego satisfaction.
You first feel that it’s just small stuff, it doesn’t matter. Let’s do this or that, to cheer up. Naah, my self respect isn’t worthed to become someone’s entertainment.You will ignore once or twice, but then it will become a habit, and will end when you completely become someone’s hand puppet.
I stopped keeping expectations.
Expectations are the reason of being hurt. Just remove expectations, you will be satisfied and happy.If you keep absolutely no expectations from people, even their most basic gesture will make you happy, because it was more than what you expected and you will feel blessed.
As a youngster of 17, I worked for what was then (1965) known as the Maryland Department of Game and Inland Fish. (Today, the Department Natural Resources — DNR). My job was taking the census of the fish in Deep Creek Lake, located in Garrett County, the westernmost in Maryland, below Pittsburgh PA.
No, I did not knock on the surface of the water and then interview fish who answered the knock.
But what I DID do was interview anglers, fishing from docks or boats, asking them to pull up their stringers and show me their catch. And I asked what fish they had returned to the water and if those fish were dead or alive when returned. All of this went onto a data sheet. The data sheet itself was organized sectionally as to areas on the Lake, designated by name (such as Harvey’s Peninsula) and by a mark on a map.
Thus on any given day I would follow what appeared to be a a random walk from place to place, chatting up the fishermen, taking notes. I was the ideal employee because I lived on the lake during the summer and I knew every little inlet, peninsula, and tributary.
Now here are the parts that made the job especially interesting, occasionally hilarious, and sometimes mildly dangerous.
Illegal Anglers: The ones without a fishing license. My john-boat had state of Maryland Decals just aft of the bow, port and starboard, so as to identify me as “official.” And some of those who saw me approach assumed I was with “enforcement,” which I was NOT. Thus I heard all kinds of stories, ranging from the license being accidentally dropped overboard, to “I was just practicing fishing, I’ll buy the license tomorrow.” Some people actually untethered their stringer, to let the catch swim away. And one guy threw all his tackle overboard. Then there were those who had fish that measured less than legal for keeping; so full of apologies were they. I did my best to assure that I was with the State Biologist, NOT the enforcement division.
But one good thing…I learned where all the best fishing was and yes, I sure DID drop my line or trawl those areas.
Babe Watch: The Deep Creek Lake State Park has a sandy beach area.
When my lunch break had me near the park, I would beach the boat and sit on the grass munching my sandwich. And if I was lucky, I would make the acquaintance of some lovely lasses who might be receptive to a return visit from me when I was “off the clock.”
The Big Kill: In addition to the data I collected, the State biologist would stretch a net across an isolated inlet, and poison the water from the net to the shoreline. Hundreds; no THOUSANDS of fish floated to the surface, belly up. And some were trophy size walleye, pike and large mouth. I was in heaven. I was going to scarf up a basket or two, and have the ultimate fish-fry.
But no, said the biologist. Those fish would kill you.
Damn.
(You might wonder why all the fish outside the net weren’t killed. Some were. But the target inlet was NOT fed by a creek, so the water was fairly still —no current. Plus, the poison was short-acting.)
The Thermocline: There comes a point at which the water at the top half of the lake exchanges place with the water in the bottom half. Or, at least the temperature gradient does a flip-flop. I’m not sure why that mattered, but it was my job to transport the guy with the sample container to an area over the deepest place in the lake, where he would toss a brass container overboard, then jerk a cable to open the cylinder and let the bottom water flood the vessel. When he pulled on the cable again, that trapped the water inside, and he pulled the sample up to the boat.
There, we had various Erlenmeyer flasks arrayed in a wooden rack, into which flasks he drained enough bottom water to reach an index line on the flask. Then, he dropped in some power and watched the color. When he smiled, I knew it was time to take him and his chemistry set back to the dock.
Personal Use? You bet! The State’s boat had only an 18 HP outboard motor, so I wasn’t pulling any skiers. But yeah, when off duty I could use it as my personal ride, or to go fishing.
He was a teacher and in his school the principal made the rule that all teachers must have their lesson plans for each week on the principal’s desk by 8am Monday morning, and he’d read them, sign them and have them back to the teachers by the time school started at 9am. This was. of course, a hassle for teachers and my friend worked out that there was no way that the principal could read every lesson plan in that time, let alone understand them. So he decided to run a horticulture unit with his class of about 9 year old children, the project being to plant trees up the middle of the school assembly hall. Now obviously this was a ridiculous project and was never going to happen, but the plans came back each week duly signed by the principal.
The teacher taught and had the children research what sort of trees would be suitable, measuring temperatures, light, heights and widths of trees, and researching the best species, all of which was clearly documented in the lesson plans and came back duly signed and approved by the principal. Finally the day came when the locations for the trees were to be marked on the hall floor in preparation for cutting the holes, importing the soil and planting the trees. The teacher carefully chose a day when he knew the school inspectors would be arriving. Sure enough, the inspectors had a meeting with the principal after morning assembly and part way through this meeting, as specified in the signed lesson plan, the teacher politely knocked on the principal’s door and asked where did he want them?
“Where do I want what?” the principal asked.
“The trees in the assembly hall,” replied the teacher.
“Trees? In the assembly hall? What do you mean?”
“Well,” replied the teacher, waving the sheaf of lesson plans, all carefully signed by the principal, “As you know, I have been running a unit on horticulture in preparation for planting trees up the middle of the assembly hall, and today’s the day we mark out where to put them. So we need you to show us where you want them, as I specified in the lesson plans which you read and signed.” He waved the sheaf of plans once again.
Needless to say, no trees were ever planted up the middle of the hall, and the principal never again wanted lesson plans submitted for approval.
A few months ago, I noticed that my daughter smiled to herself a lot. I decided to “confront” her: “You have a crush. Haven’t you?”. She blushed and exclaimed: “How do you know that?!?!”. I played my cool poker face 😎 “Been there, done that. Tell me!”. Then she told me about the boy.
A couple days later, she asked me: “I noticed that during lunchtime, he finishes his lunch real fast then goes to the library to play chess. Should I go talk to him? I play chess too!”
I told her: “Why the rush? I think, you might want to practice playing chess a little bit better first, then ask him to play a match with you. You might win, or at the very least, not lose badly. And I tell you a secret: you can learn a lot about a person when they lose a game!”
For about 2 weeks, she played chess with me every evening.
One day, she came home and told me: “I un-crushed him. We played 2 games today. He won the first, I won the 2nd. But when he lost, he curse and stomped out. Not cool!”
That was the moment I felt like a warm hug. The feeling of being able to share with my daughter her stories, her feelings always warms me up.
My Fiancée Asked For An Open Relationship 3 MONTHS Before Our Wedding So I Kicked Her A** Out!
When I was being recruited by Nike in 1997 I was a little concerned about cultural issues, especially institutional sexism — I had heard that the place was something of a boys’ club.
I couldn’t travel for a few weeks so I was having a series of conversations with the general counsel in advance. We were arranging the logistics for my interview day. I’d basically see a different interviewer each hour from 9 am till 6 pm, including lunch with him and my predecessor in the job.
As we were discussing the plans I asked him if he could please include a woman who had been with the company for a long time.
I held my breath briefly for his reaction. Some male executives would have been offended. But he exclaimed, “What a good idea! I should have thought of it!” and immediately agreed to make it happen.
He was good for his word — my first interview that day was with Nike’s corporate treasurer, who was at least a 20 year veteran of the Swoosh.
I think it’s reasonable to state openly that you are eager to get a sense of the company culture, and ask the interviewer how they would describe it.
The Chinese YiChe race
China is home to many races, while Han is dominant, the other races are very interesting. This is a very interesting race. They have “open marriages”, wear miniskirts, and have a graduated system of Bride Prices.
Many, many years ago I received a letter in the post. It was a recorded delivery and I had to sign for it to confirm delivery. I was intrigued and opened it immediately. It was a summons to appear in our local small claims court. I was being sued for £6,000. There were no details about the charges or any explanation of what the case was about other than the name and address of the complainant. I was mystified as I didn’t recognise the name. Lets call him Mr Smith.
In the three weeks before the stated date I convinced myself that one of my sons was playing an involved joke on me. I quizzed them all mercilessly but nobody would admit to knowing anything about it. As the date drew closer I determined to go to court just to find out which of my boys was the perpetrator of this rather involved joke.
Court day arrived and I went into the court building and presented my summons to an attendant, still expecting to be told it was a forgery. I was wrong. I was politely directed to a small waiting room and told my case would be called in 10 minutes. I was stunned.
When I was escorted into the courtroom the Sheriff (a lay judge in Scotland) asked me if I had a legal representative. I explained how I thought that the summons was a joke and I had no lawyer. He said that I could ask for a deferment to get legal advice if I choose but he didn’t think that was necessary. I sat down still stunned and confused but by now rather scared.
The Sheriff now asked the other side to outline their case. I listened in stunned amazement as the story unfolded.
Apparently some 6 months previously I had sold Mr Smith a tenpin bowling ball and drilled the ball to suit his hand. I had explained to him the need to keep the ball clean of lane oil on a regular basis. Mr Smith had taken me at my word and had left his bowling ball soaking in a bathtub of hot soapy water overnight. Feeling that the finger and thumb holes were wet when he fished the ball out of the bath in the morning he had decided to dry out the ball. Fifteen or twenty minutes in the microwave should dry it out nicely.
Some time later the ball had exploded. The force of the explosion was enough to destroy the microwave and send the door of the microwave flying upward with enough energy to punch through the ceiling and the floor of the room above his kitchen. Unfortunately the room above his kitchen was his neighbours bathroom. The microwave door not only punched through the floor but punched through the actual bath. Really unfortunately the poor woman was taking a bath at the time.
She was suing Mr Smith for the damage to her bathroom from the flying microwave door as well as the water damage to her carpets from the bath full of water. She wasn’t suing for the shock of a microwave door suddenly puncturing her bath although it must have been a terrific shock.
Mr Smith was suing me for the same amount on the basis that I had sold him a bowling ball without specifically telling him not to put it in the microwave.
By this stage several people in the gallery were laughing and the sheriff was definitely smiling. I was still worried but feeling considerably less scared. We all sat politely until Mr Smith’s lawyer had finished. The Sheriff then drew himself very straight and without a trace of a smile said that he was here to apply the law of the land and not to educate idiots. Case dismissed.
It’s early morning, the sun is just barely visible in the edges of the sky.
The date is August 5th, 2001 and Richard Ankrom and several friends are preparing to commit a crime that is several years in the making.
Twenty years prior, Ankrom was driving north on the 110 freeway. He got ready to merge onto Interstate 5 North, another freeway but missed the exit.
A few years later, he officially moved to LA and found himself driving on the same stretch of road as before.
He glanced up at the sign and realized the I-5 exit wasn’t marked at all.
That was why he had missed the turn ages ago.
And on that day, he swore to himself he would never let another person suffer the same fate.
He began studying freeway signs, their exact color, size and make up. He balanced on the edges of bridges to get precise measurements.
He copied the existing signs to a T, even consulting the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices to make sure he got the width and height perfect. He even sprayed the sign to make it look more worn down.
From there, he disguised himself, cutting his hair and buying a hard hat and vest.
And on August 5th, 2001 he positioned his ladder and climbed thirty feet to reach the sign.
He and his friends rushed away, afraid of getting caught in the act.
Nine months later, one of his friends confessed, leaking the crime to a local newspaper.
However, instead of being taken down, it passed inspection and remained there for another 8 years and even then, they put up a new sign in its place.
I was 12 years old, and back then thought you teased girls you liked. I was infatuated with a girl in my neighborhood and would tease her on the school bus.
One day I meant to say “I’ve seen better, but I haven’t seen worse!”
It came out as “I’ve seen worse, but I haven’t seen better!”
I said this in front of all the kids on the bus. I stammered a minute, not believing what came out of my mouth! I never would have had the confidence to say something like that! She immediately smiled and hugged me. Suddenly I had my first girlfriend. I just went with it.
I had suspected my wife was cheating, so put a tracker in her car. When she claimed she was going to a friend’s house to watch his dog, I watched on the tracker monitor as she in fact drove in the exact opposite direction to a hotel to meet one of what I would later find out were several lovers. So, I grabbed her spare keys, took a Lyft to the hotel she was actually at, got in her car and drove it to the friend’s house she was supposed to be at, then took a Lyft home. When she called the next day, claiming her car was stolen, I asked her to use the friend’s Ring camera to see the culprit. Cornered, she confessed, and found her own way home, then shortly thereafter, her own home.
You’ve all seen this formation right? It’s rather famous.
Well, would you be surprised to find out it was not that commonly used? We have some records of it from Dio and a few other historians but it was not that common.
Typically this formation would be used during a siege where the infantry needed to close in on some high walls under missile fire. Otherwise, it was never really used that often.
The problem is that this formation makes units less maneuverable and less flexible and it makes hand-to-hand combat almost impossible. So in every battle, the Romans would just be in normal lines ready to fight.
2: The Romans had poor cavalry
Now the Romans truly did not produce great cavalry from their own ranks. However, the Romans most certainly used talent wherever they found it.
When they conquered a people that were great on horseback they would employ them as Auxiliaries to assist the legions.
This means the Romans had
Numidian Cavalry (ranked among the best on earth at the time)
Macedonian Cavalry
Gallic Cavalry
These were without a doubt the best horsemen on planet earth and they all fought for the Romans.
In fact, during the late Imperial period, the Roman military became very calvary-centric and did end up boasting some of the best trained and equipped cavalry on earth.
One thing to remember is that cavalry at this time was not all that great. Stirrups were not yet invented and this meant that cavalry were basically expensive scouts minus a few exceptions. Infantry won wars in the ancient world far more often than cavalry.
3: The Romans were brutal conquerers
Now the Romans could be brutal and there were many times where they were brutal. However, in terms of being conquered, you could do worse than Rome.
If you snuggled up the Romans as an ally and played the role of submissive ally Rome would defend you to the death and be extremely hands-off. You’d keep your rulers and laws and merely pay a small tax to Rome. You also got the benefit of protection from the legions which meant total safety for centuries.
Rome viewed every relationship (diplomatic or otherwise) as having the dominant patron and the submissive client. The role of the patron was to support, elevate, and protect while the role of the client was to submit, admire, and support. If a tribe submitted itself as the client, Rome was often a great patron.
The Romans were also extremely tolerant of others. There was some racism and xenophobia as there is in all peoples but Rome accepted all religions and cultures as valuable. The Romans often adopted cultural elements or even gods from conquered peoples.
Now if you betrayed the Romans or worse yet attack them, they could be extremely brutal. Any slight paid to Rome would be returned ten-fold.
Being conquered by Rome was not the worse fate in the world, but being an enemy to Rome was certainly a death sentence.
Copeland’s of New Orleans Stuffed Strawberry French Toast
strawberry
Ingredients
1 cup milk
3 cups heavy cream, divided
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 French baguette, sliced diagonally
1 cup strawberries, freshly cut
Powdered sugar for dusting
1/2 pound cream cheese
Instructions
Combine milk, eggs, vanilla extract, sugar and 2 cups heavy cream; mix well, then set aside.
Whip remaining 1 cup heavy cream until peaks form. Beat in cream cheese until smooth.
Heat skillet over medium-high heat; add butter.
Dip bread slices into batter, making sure to leave them long enough to absorb some of the batter without making them soggy. Place bread in skillet; brown on both sides.
Remove bread from skillet and place on a plate.
Scoop cream cheese mixture on top of each piece.
Top with another piece of toast to form a sandwich.
Top with fresh strawberries, dust with powdered sugar, and serve immediately.
For context: I’m 37. Married since 2017. One kid. Flat broke. Heavily indebted. Diagnosed with an incurable autoimmune disorder in 2016. Recently embarked upon a spiritually rewarding career as a helicopter pilot.
(Neither this nor what follows is an indictment of capitalism or Western society, as I hope you know. I’m flat broke because I have a toddler and am starting over from scratch career-wise, and I’m indebted because I borrowed heavily in order to attend flight school. It was my choices that got me here, nothing else.)
At this point in life, what excites me the most is:
1. Affording steak.
My wife and I usually have anywhere from $20 to $150 between paydays. My wife just got a job at a daycare center, so that’ll take some of the pressure off. But our debt is such that every spare penny should be spent paying it down. Frivolities like steak, good booze, fancy dinners out, and even trips to the zoo and aquarium with our daughter have gone out the window. My folks had to float us $1100 for snow tires earlier this month, and I’m having a hard time dealing with the shame of it. What excites me the most right now is making enough money to pay down debt and still have enough disposable income left over to treat myself and my family.
2. Supporting my girls on a single income.
In a year’s time, if I play my cards right, I could be the assistant chief flight instructor at my flight school. Or I’ll move on to a job in the helicopter tour or utility industries. Either way, I’ll be getting a fat raise. This has amazing ramifications for my little family. It could mean that my wife and I will be able to pay off a significant chunk of our debts, and we’ll have more disposable income. Far from merely being able to afford steak, I might be able to buy itregularly—and grill it on a grill I could then afford to purchase, while drinking beer I could afford to homebrew. It might also mean that my wife and I could afford to have a second child, accrue some savings and an emergency fund, and even scrape together a down payment for a goddamn house. (I’ve never bought or owned a home in my life, and I’m tired of renting.) But whatever the consequences of my pay raise, I’ll just be happy and proud to be providing for my family at long last. And not dependent on my folks.
3. Enjoying a proper autumn.
November up here in the Northland has been unseasonably warm, the locals tell me. Normally there’s a few inches of snow on the ground by now, and the temperature is below freezing every day. It was 50 degrees Fahrenheit yesterday. The leaves have already fallen, but the abundant sunlight and mild temperatures are making me feel like we’re getting an actual autumn instead of leaping straight from summer to winter. And I’ve been taking full advantage of it. I hiked to the top of Ely’s Peak in my shirtsleeves last Wednesday, and today I took my daughter to Hawk Ridge and Hartley Park.
4. Getting checked out in a turbine helicopter.
Speaking of shame, I have over 500 hours in rotorcraft and all of them are in Robinsons. Not that there’s anything wrong with Robinsons, but you can think of them as the tricycles of the helicopter world. Some people ride them for fun, and very few for work, but they mostly use them for training. Getting checked out in a different helicopter, especially a turbine-powered one, would be like learning to ride a motorcycle by comparison. I’d feel like a real helicopter pilot then. My school just happens to have an old Bell 206B that it uses to provide turbine transition training to students. I missed my chance to get checked out in it this fall—too low on the seniority list—but I’ll almost certainly get into it next summer. I’m stoked.
5. My daughter’s 2nd birthday.
I can scarcely believe that my girl is almost 18 months old, let alone that she’ll be two in June. Being able to say “she’s two” instead of “she’s XX months” excites me for some odd reason.
6. Reading, as usual.
Having a kid and becoming a flight instructor put a major crimp in my reading schedule. I’m currently 13 books behind, according to the tracker I use on Goodreads. Granted, I picked some doozies to read this year. It’s been a long, hard slog, reading Lewis and Clark’s journals and The Brothers Karamazov simultaneously. But I’m almost done, and I have a couple of new books waiting in the wings—a much-anticipated travelogue by Anton Chekhov (Sakhalin Island), and a horror novel by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child (The Relic), which I’d intended to read in October. That, and the rest of the books on my reading list (sketched out until the year 2031), have me excited. As they always do.
7. Making soup every weekend.
Classic dad move, right? I enjoy soups and stews immensely. And winter, of course, is soup season. To take full advantage of it, I made out a list of soups that I want to make this season and have been checking them off one by one, starting the weekend of my birthday in late September. I’ve done beef stew, French onion soup, pumpkin soup, fish-head soup, and chicken stew with dumplings. Tonight it’s beer cheese soup. I am super pumped.
8. Date night with the wife.
Due to various factors—lack of funds, a dearth of trustworthy babysitters, scheduling issues, the realities of having children, and general stress levels—my wife and I haven’t been dating each other like we should. In fact, we’ve gone on exactly three dates this year: in January, June, and October respectively. We’re trying to fix that. I’m securing a sitter for the night of Friday the 24th. My wife and I have plans to slip across the river into Wisconsin for burgers and brews at a much-beloved taphouse. I am beyond excited about this. It’ll be nice to sit across a table from my spouse, sip local brews, and discuss something other than poop and money.
Once upon a time I put in average speed cameras on a section of the A31 in UK. They were dropping the speed limit from 60 mph to 50 mph on this stretch. For those that don’t know these monitor your speed over a set distance and if you are 10% + 3 miles per hour over the speed limit you will get a fine, (or occasionally offered a Driver Awareness Course, based on the speed and if you have done one in the last 3 months).
Anyway, cameras go in, we do the testing phase and final commissioning.
2 weeks after they are commissioned, I went to a meeting to close the final account for putting these in, drove passed them on the way home at 62 mph, (as I had always done), and forgot they were now live and got a £60 fine and 3 points on my licence. All from safety cameras that I put in.
Four thousand and seven years ago, my father, who was a great man, one of the greatest men in history, he was born in Germany; he went into the real estate business. You have to be really, really smart to get into the real estate business. I inherited his smarts, and I got into the real estate business too. I have the best real estate. Everyone loves my real estate. But now we are engaged in a great civil war. The greatest civil war. Why are we engaged in it? Because my predecessor, President Bookananin, was a bad deal maker. If I had been President then, we wouldn’t have had a war because I would have made a deal, the best deal. I am the best deal maker ever. It’s true. If I had been President, I’d have made such a good deal that the North would be happy, the South would have been happy, the slaves would have been very happy; they would have been the happiest slaves you have ever seen. Just smiling and singing and picking cotton. Such happy slaves. But now we are here to bury the dead. But what we say here cannot honor them. Because they don’t deserve to be honored! I like soldiers who are so good that they don’t get shot. What good is a dead soldier? Dead soldiers can’t soldier any more because they are dead. All soldiers who die are just losers. If I had been a soldier, I would have survived, I guarantee it. Now let’s go play some golf!
I arrived for an interview and was asked to wait a few minutes as the interviewer was held up. A few minutes later he came out, apologised said he’d been called to an urgent problem. He explained that some of the stuff I’d be working on would highly commercially sensitive and while he finished up could I read through the pre-interview contract and sign it.
I read through it and though I’m no lawyer it read like they could sue for everything I owned from my house down to my underwear if I so much as said I’d been within a mile of the building. The I interviewer came back a few minutes later and asked if I was happy and had signed the paperwork.
I replied that I hadn’t signed coz it looked a bit iffy on the conditions and he replied
‘congratulations, you’re the first person out of 8 people who passed the first stage test’.
Apparently everyone else had skimmed through and signed and not bothered really looking at what they were signing off on.
For the same reason it takes three minutes to trace a phone call, firewalls have a progress bar on them, and all handguns regardless of caliber and design always make the same sound (unless they’re silenced, in which case they go “thwip thwip”):
Because Hollywood isn’t real.
In the real world, a phone call can be traced the instant the phone rings; you don’t even need to pick it up. In the real world, firewalls either block some bit of traffic or they don’t. In the real world, different firearms all make different sounds, and they’re heckin’ loud, even if “silenced.” Like loud enough you won’t be exchanging witty quips with anyone during a shootout.
And in the real world, antipersonnel mines detonate instantly, except some old bouncing mines that detonate about a second after they’re activated.
I woke up one morning after having a bizarre nightmare. I dreamt that called my boss and told him my youngest son was going to die. My son was only 10 days old at the time. A perfectly healthy beautiful little baby boy. When I woke up I felt nauseous from the dream and experienced the worst anxiety I have ever had. I knew intuitively that something was wrong with my son. He didn’t show any rare signs or specific symptoms, the only thing that was odd was that he slept a bit heavier than usual that night. I couldn’t ignore my anxiety and checked his temperature and was shocked when it showed 35,1 degrees Celsius. I immediately took him to the ER and soon found out that an entero virus (a normal winter season virus that gives you a cold) had affected his heart and the room was soon filled with doctors and me and my husband were asked to leave. 12 hours later the doctors informed us that the virus had caused our healthy baby a serious heart failure (dilated cardiomyopathy and myocarditis ) and that he probably wouldn’t make it. They called a priest and the rest is black for me. Our baby was put into coma in a respirator and was going to be put on an ECMO machine. We were transferred to the ICU for infants. After 2 months at the ICU he suddenly improved. The doctors told us that almost no children survive this virus on the heart – because there are no obvious clear signs so the parents don’t understand that something is wrong. They also said that what he survived is in theory impossible to survive (considering how ill he was). They asked me what caused us to seek help and I told them about my dream. I will never forget the doctors answer “there are somethings between heaven and earth that medicine can’t explain – your boy is a living miracle”.
He turns 5 next year and has almost recovered 100% from the heart failure expect for 1/8 of his heart that is permanently damaged.
They are not trying. They are. You are out of business due to you guys looking down and under estimating China. And all the shit about intellectual property theft and copying while in truth China overtook the U.S. and the world in EV technology. Global warming is caused by the U.S. and the west China resolved it.
Yes you guys are caught off guard but it is your fault. Today there are still many especially white Caucasian westerners who thinks the Chinese as no technology, no can only do T-Shirts and Cheap plastic toys. To me it is racism and served you guys right. China will out compete you in every sector including jet planes, rockets, quantum computers and AI.
Even this question is a racist and underestimating China nonsense. Even the great Tesla used Chinese engines and batteries. China makes 9/10 EVs on earth. And they are catching up! What a foolish statement.
When i was about 9 years old we lived acoss the street from a little store that had a paper machine out front. My mother would send me over with a quarter each morning and 3 on sundays to get a newspaper. One day an old timer was walking up and said, watch this. He put 4 pennies in the machine and much to my surprise, it opened right up just as if he had put a quarter in it and sure enough on Sunday, 12 pennies did the same thing. Not sure if the machines worked by weight or what, but this went on for a few years until we eventually just got it delivered. This was a time when 20 cent would buy 4 fireballs or lots of other smaller candies. I truly believe karma caught up with me as i had more than my fair share of cavities growing up.
My sister died 5 weeks ago. We’ve just got back from her funeral in the UK. She’d been in poor health for several years so it was no great shock, but sad as she was only 69. This (slightly edited tale) was read out by the celebrant plus several of her other exploits over the years. She was a force of nature. Don’t rest in peace Lynn, create all the mayhem you did when you were here.
My sister is extremely feisty. She was in hospital giving birth to her first child, who was a large baby and my sister is tiny, she weighed about 35kg. Anyway she needed an episiotomy for her son to be born. Anyway after the birth the midwife said the cut was so long it would need stitching. The doctor came in, agreed and gave her a local anesthetic into the area. Then he disappeared for 3 hours, by which time the pain relief had totally worn off and he began to stitch. When she cried out in pain he told her not to be such a baby and to quit whining.
He had a tray of instruments by the bed so she picked up a scalpel and rammed it into the back of his hand. While he was screaming she told him not to be such a baby and quit whining. They administered more local to finish her procedure, and found another doctor.
When I was in high school in New York, rumor was that my friend’s tough looking father was in the Mafia. One day, he hired a bunch of his son’s friends to attend an auction in the Bronx. He gave us an address and told us to be there at 8am.
The auction, selling off the assets of a bankrupt business, was going to begin an hour later. By the time the real bidders arrived, they were denied entrance by a bribed fire marshal because the room was already filled to its legal capacity by dozens of hired bodies like myself.
Clueless, we sat there and watched as my friend’s father and his buddies won every lot without competition.
A man and his wife are awakened at 3 o’clock in the morning by a loud pounding on the door.
The man gets up and goes to the door where a drunken stranger, standing in the pouring rain, is asking for a push.
“Not a chance” says the husband, “it is 3 o’clock in the morning!”
He slams the door and returns to bed.
“Who was that?” asked his wife.
“Just some drunk guy asking for a push,” he answers.
“Did you help him?” she asks.
“No, I did not, it is 3 o’clock in the morning and it is pouring rain out there!”
“Well, you have a short memory,” says his wife. “Don’t you remember about three months ago when our car broke down and those two guys helped us? I think you should help him, and you should be ashamed of yourself !”
The man does as he is told, gets dressed, and goes out into the pounding rain.
He calls out into the dark, “Hello, are you still there?”
“Yes” comes back the answer.
“Do you still need a push?” calls out the husband.
My daughter had married a guy I really liked. One fall we were discussing hunting and he mentioned an unusual shotgun he learned to hunt with. He really liked it, but had never seen another like it. It was a bolt action 20-gauge shotgun.
As he described the finger grooves in the plastic trigger guard, I realized he was describing a Mossberg Model 185K. I collected Mossberg firearms and had a decent specimen sitting unused in the back of my safe.
Over the next couple of months I refurbished the gun, rubbed the stock down with tung oil and restored as much of its 1950 beauty as I could. Having found a box for it, I took it by on Christmas day.
When he unwrapped it, his mouth fell open. Literally.
“Oh migod. THAT’S THE ONE! That is EXACTLY the gun I grew up with! How did you find this???”
My 6′7″ son-in-law picked me up and hugged me – with tears in his eyes.
Yes, China and India have border disputes, and border conflicts broke out in the 1960s and 1970s. There have also been conflicts in the Galwan region in the past few years.
But the relationship between China and India is not as bad as Western media renders it, nor is it as terrible as some Indian media render it.
2023 11 25 10 11
If we look at a world map, especially one with altitude. It can be seen that China and India are separated by the Himalayas. Although the two countries are neighboring countries, they are naturally separated.
Therefore, in the past thousands of years, the two countries developed independently without interfering with each other, and even little trade was carried out. The current China and India were only established after World War II. The contradiction between them originated from the division of territories by the British colonists, rather than the natural contradiction between the two nations. In the words of the Chinese, China and India “have no historical debt.” After all, the Chinese view history in terms of 100 years as the smallest unit.
If you ask a Chinese: Who do you think China’s enemy is?
The vast majority of Chinese people will answer: Japan. Maybe someone mentioned the United States, and maybe South Korea.
, some may even say Russia. But I have hardly ever heard the Chinese label India as their enemy. Even if I emphasize that “China and India had a war,” they will still think: “India is not an enemy” and regard the Sino-Indian conflict as “a quarrel between neighbors.”
In the eyes of Chinese people, couples also quarrel, let alone two neighboring countries. As long as the scope of cooperation is far greater than the scope of differences, then both parties are partners.
Of course, the results of this survey in India may be completely different, mainly due to the influence of Western and Indian media. After all, the media is very good at seizing on a certain local hot spot and then telling the audience that this is all.
The point I’m trying to make, though, is this. The two sides are not really hostile. The similarities between China and India outweigh the differences. They are all developing countries with huge populations and face problems such as poverty alleviation, public education and environmental pollution. Both countries are developing rapidly and are gradually coming into conflict with developed countries. The two sides have consistent interests on many issues, especially international trade, carbon emissions, human rights and other issues, and they jointly resist the squeeze of developed countries. On the issues of the Russia-Ukraine war and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, China and India basically have the same attitude.
China and India do not have much competition in business. China is developing high-end manufacturing and competing with developed countries. India is developing mid- to low-end manufacturing industries and can take over the production capacity transferred from China. India is a major agricultural exporter, while China is a major agricultural importer. There is a lot of room for cooperation between the two parties.
When the Sino-Indian border conflict occurred, there were already serious deaths of soldiers. No shots were fired. This shows that the agreement between the two sides outweighs the differences. The border dispute is not the mainstay of Sino-Indian relations. This point has a clear consensus among the elites of both sides. So the soldiers were severely restricted. The foundation of the relationship between the two countries will not change because of the advocacy of the Western media. There will be no war as the West expects.
After all, neither Chinese leaders nor Indian leaders are fools.
The Chinese build so much that they are used to such collapses and have extremely specialized rescue teams
Like in the Turkey earthquake recently
Their ability to use small drones to slip through the small holes, use positioning of living objects under vast structures and their ability to vertically drill and horizontally drill makes them the world’s best experts in rescue operations
image 158
This team rescued 319 people given up for dead in Turkey
image 157
They were HEROES
The victims were given up for dead
image 156
Plus the Chinese Tunnel building through Mountains makes Indian tunnels look like School Project work
This Tunnel in India is a straight cut
Chinese Guoliang Tunnel is at a 36 degree upward incline through mountain surface. They are masters at tunneling
image 13
The Chinese teams drilled 368 meters deep vertically against an EXPLODED SHAFT in a gold mine with fissure methane gas and still rescued 11 workers from certain death in 11 days
That was an explosion plus collapse plus methane pockets not just a collapse like in UK
Compared to that, this rescue is horizontal and can be done in their sleep
So why aren’t we calling the Chinese?
Simple
Ego and nothing else
Calling the Chinese would be a blow to our ego and would cause our politicians to lose face
I was patient for a few days but now it appears the NDRF team are morons and the Aussie in charge is a bigger moron
The Auger has been damaged four times now
The men have been stuck for 15 days with no hope as yet
Time to pick up the phone and call Beijing for help and rescue these men and send them home
Enough of this worthless ego
Enough of the learning curve
It’s clear the team members are dunderheads because the augers have been broken four times in four days
Today it was so likely that the men would be out and yet again the Auger broke
Last night my kids flooded the whole living room with slimy water.
“BEEEEEEEEN!” my wife hollered. “COME SEE THIS!”
I knew this was trouble because my wife is one of those people who never raise their voice.
When I stepped onto the scene, I saw my three kids plus a friend of my oldest son’s all belly-sliding from wall to wall with nothing on but underwear.
The sight was so perplexing, surreal, and unexpected, that I couldn’t help but laugh my ass off.
It was like the first time I ever got stoned as a teenager and every time a friend threw an M&M on me I giggled uncontrollably.
Every kid scooting across the gooey floor, his arms flailing, letting out screams of glee, had me laughing until my belly hurt.
They were like cute gremlins swimming through space.
Never mind that I was terrified of slipping because I just had my ACL operated on. Or that my youngest one started bawling after two of the others crashed into him at the same time. Or that my wife and I had to use all the towels in the house to soak up the gunky liquid later.
I hadn’t had such a good laugh in ages.
I’ve been punched in the balls. I’ve cleaned neon-yellow runny poo from across the floors of multiple rooms—why would you crawl across the whole house while pooing?! I’ve made elaborate date plans with my wife just for two of us to realize we fell asleep while reading to the kids.
And somewhere along the way, instead of getting angry every time, I discovered the humor in all of it.
Something of the maddening nature of having kids taught me to stop taking myself so seriously. Showed me that sometimes, life is so damn absurd that all you can do is laugh. That every single plan and intention can come boomeranging back to you and whack you in the face.
And before you feel the pain—or clean the slimy floor or the runny poo or make a new plan—you can take a moment, laugh it off, and then get to it.
I’m in Ghana and was invited to a Thanksgiving party, what the H3LL?
My neurologist asked me to wear an oximeter/heart rate monitor overnight. I told him it would be useless, as I was not sleeping much, but he had me do it. I got a call a few days later asking me how I coped on such little sleep. We never mentioned it again.
Then I got a bill for $14. For what?
I was being billed for the “use of the monitor.” Not by my neurologist’s office, by some 3rd party.
I called my neurologist’s office, they said that they don’t own the equipment, they rent it from the service that sends them the test results, which was not this company. They were like, fine, don’t pay, we don’t know who this company is. I called insurance – they said they had never heard of FBN Rental.
I called FlyByNight Rentals and told them to bill my insurance. They said they had. I said I had proof they never had. I told them I would not pay as they had no grounds to bill me.
I kept getting bills, which I ignored.
Finally I got a phone call from them. “You owe us $14.” “No. I don’t. Bill my insurance.” “We did.” No you didn’t. You’re a scam.” Rinse, repeat.
I had looked them up in the meantime. They apparently buy marketing lists of people who used pulse oximetry equipment and insert a minor charge. Something small and inconsequential that people will just pay to clear. But – and here is the key point – they don’t actually have any relationship to the test.
I kept getting calls threatening me with collections. Finally I picked one up. A lady confirmed that I was seconds away from going to collections. I had had it. I had already called and written to them to tell them to fuck off, multiple times.
I said, 1) that they were a scam, 2) I’d already reported them to my doctor, the insurance, the BBB and 3) if I ever heard from them again, they would hear from my lawyer with a bill for the time *I* had had to spend figuring out they were a scam and dealing with their bullshit.
I never heard from them again.
What a brilliantly awful idea. Make a teeny, inconsequential charge, something so small no one would care and collect on some or most of those charges. Multiply $14 by tens of thousands and presto, you have medical fraud that no one will ever notice.
A woman responds to “an open marriage”
A man suggests that instead of a open marriage, he gets a second wife.
Oh, sure it might still happen, but the world has successfully polarized. There are two halves, and there is an East that is growing and thriving, and a West that is dying.
The West still might cause problems, start wars, and all the rest, but the East is NOW, TODAY, far too big and far too formidable.
I anticipate some crazy shit once a new political change hits the USA, but the real truth is that they will have their hands tied, and their dicks lobbed off. If the neocons still maintain power, then a very short and brutal war may occur, but I am of an opinion that the worst is over…
…
For this reason, I am scrapping up my posts on the march towards war. We passed that point. So “New Beginnings” is coming to a draw; coming to a close.
A new daily will emerge…
“Correcting Society Ills“
In this new series, I will continue to include topical subjects. Some war. Some Geo-politics. A lot of social stuff, and fluff.
But the point is that the West still, seriously STILL has to undo the damage of the psychopathic idiots that ran the nation(s) into the ground.
The biggest issues have to do with the crazy progressive rules, and lifestyles that have really destroyed the fabric of society in the West.
So you will see videos and articles about the relationships of men, women and families and how they are coming to grips with the promiscuity, and LGBQ+ lifestyles.
The most obvious are the trends of…
Passport bros
Body Counts
Cheesecake factory girls
Progressive lifestyle
His and her careers
Collapse of society, and reconstruction
Of course… I will include REAL intel on Geo-Politics, as well as REAL intel on the “Prison Planet” and “Domain”. But all will continue to buried inside the massive deluge of “other stuff”. And you all KNOW WHY I do this, right?
Stand by…
Here is a definitive assessment of Obama by Norman Finkelstein, taken from an interview by Danny Haiphong: “Obama doesn’t say anything. He’s such a zero that he’s a minus one…. He does know the game (basketball). Once you get past the basketball court, you might as well talk to an avocado.” And it’s not even an insult.
-PM
Unlike a lot of the Internet Tough Guys and keyboard commandos chiming in on this question, this has actually happened to me, although it was during daylight hours.
I confronted an individual who was in the process of breaking into my apartment with a crowbar. He had just climbed thru the window when I aimed my shotgun at him and told him to freeze. He dropped the crowbar, dove out the window and ran like hell instead. I made a snap judgement not to shoot based on my gut reading of the circumstances. Had things gone down any differently, I would have had a big mess on my hands. Triple aught buckshot from 10 feet isn’t pretty.
I then called 911 and reported the incident. They took the crowbar and were able to lift the perp’s prints and arrest him… he was a frequent flier in the criminal justice system. The cops sounded like they had a pretty good idea of who he was just from my description. Anyway, he took a plea deal and I never had to go to court — either as a witness or to defend my actions.
In all, this was pretty much an ideal outcome for everyone. The situation was resolved without any shots fired, and justice was administered with due process. I was fully prepared to shoot, but am grateful I didn’t have to.
While my time in the military prepared me mentally and physically to take a life if necessary, doing so is something I would prefer to avoid. Dealing with the aftermath of a justified shooting, both legally and emotionally, would be a traumatic experience I would not wish on anyone.
In my opinion, self-restraint is the most important skill an armed citizen must nurture.
Stuffed Jalapenos Texas Style
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Ingredients
1/2 pound shredded jack cheese
1/2 pound shredded Cheddar cheese
1/2 pound hot sausage (such as Owens or Jimmy Dean)
1 1/2 cups Bisquick
1 egg, beaten
1 package Spicy Shake N Bake
20 to 30 jalapeno peppers (fresh or canned)
Instructions
If using canned jalapeno peppers, drain well. Slice the peppers in half lengthwise down one side only and scrape out the seeds.
Mix Bisquick, sausage and Cheddar in a large bowl, using your hands.
Put the beaten egg into a shallow bowl, the Shake N Bake into a shallow bowl, and a baking rack on a cookie sheet, both coated with cooking spray.
Stuff each pepper with shredded jack, then stick the halves back together, if separated.
Wrap a handful of the sausage mixture around the pepper in the shape of an elongated egg.
Dip into beaten egg and roll in Shake N Bake to coat evenly.
Place on baking rack.
When the peppers are all ready, bake at 350 degrees F for 25 minutes or until crisp.
I’ve worked with Chinese tech companies. Their engineers and scientists are devoted to their families, employers and country.
China has the capacity to leap frog the US in many different technologies. Take your pick, they are on it.
The Chinese government places a high value on a highly educated population. Engineering and scientific professionals are leading a revolution in advancing scientific innovation in China.
Their current leader, Xi, was a chemical engineer before becoming involved in his political career. In fact, many Chinese politicians are former engineers, refreshing thought isn’t it?
The motivations for innovation in the US and China are a key point in China leap frogging the US. Both countries reward success in innovation with financial incentives.
But, the Chinese have a greater sense of pride in their country and it’s future.
The US is presently extremely divided politically, current leadership is seeking short term monetary goals over the advancement of scientific innovation.
China may take the lead in further technological and scientific breakthroughs in this environment.
So some time back, I stopped at a highway side food joint to grab a bite before continuing on with the journey. After going through the menu, I decided to order a sandwich.
The order arrived within 5 minutes and I happily munched on it as I was hungry. Everything was fine until now. Now comes the shocker!
When the bill arrived, I observed that they had jacked up the prices to Rs 130/- whereas I clearly remembered seeing Rs. 100/- on the menu. I called the waiter and asked to him to get the menu card. The menu card clearly showed Rs 100/- printed against the item that I had ordered.
I immediately summoned the manager who gave this stupid reason for the discrepancy, “mam , this is an old menu. The rates have been revised since the implementation of GST”. I was like WTF. Why wasn’t I informed about this before. He then brought a new menu card which was hidden somewhere under the cashier’s table and handed it to me.
I had an argument with the manager and I refused to pay the revised fare. The manager relented in the end and took just Rs 100/- for the sandwich.
If not a scam, this can be termed as a very unethical way to squeeze money out of your customers. This particular junction had the advantage of being on a highway where people are in a hurry and will not bother to check the rates twice. Also, the food joints on a highway don’t need to build a loyal customer base as the visits are few and far between.
I have seen similar things happen to people before, even before the implementation of GST. They just show you a menu card and later on charge a higher fare saying that the rates have been recently revised and the new menu cards have not been printed yet. Now, I do make it a point to ask the waiter about the menu.
The Reason why Men are Walking Away from Dating (Ep. 252)
There is a major backlash from the LGBQ+ movement initiated by Obama in the West.
This question is clearly written by a Chinese hater who is totally indoctrinated and highly naive person who knows little truth and facts today.
I am sorry for you, the person who posed this question China has overtaken the U.S. in a host of measures today in 2023.
Let’s start with the most important one life expectancy. China overtook the U.S. life expectancy by 2021 and maintained it in 2022 at 77.8 versus the U.S. 77.0 years old.
Next the most important real purchasing power GDP taking cost of living into consideration China’s PPP overtook the U.S. in 2014 and over the last 8 years grew into an almost 50% lead over the U.S.
Another important area is growth. China alone is growing at 38.6% of entire worlds growth over the past decade. Meanwhile U.S. and all its G7 nations add up to only 25.6% growth of the world.
Next nations that has China as the biggest trading nations. Almost 170/195 nations has China as their leading trade partner, meanwhile the U.S. has less than 20/195 nations cite the U.S. as their biggest trading partner.
Another important facts is China has the lead in 37/44 key and strategic technology for today and tomorrow’s products while the U.S. leads in only 7/44. China is clearly today’s leading technology innovation leader in the world today. US is a distant second.
Next consumer power. China is by far the biggest consumer on planet earth. It’s middle income numbers is now 700 million and dwarfs the U.S. 3 times! Chinas market alone is 30% if the world market!
In military. China now has more men, tanks, boats and planes to combat the U.S. if need be. More importantly it just defends China whereas the U.S. needs to be offensive to many countries in the world. In high tech military China alone has a hypersonic missile technology that can hit the U.S. from anywhere at the speed if 10 times the speed of sound. It makes the dozen or so US aircraft carriers obsolete and sitting ducks.
I could go on another hundreds of points but this suffice. The U.S. is the leader only in name. Or at least by western media claims only.
A much better question will be, now that the U.S. has clearly become second fiddle to China, can it reclaim back its hegemony ever again? And the answer is it is impossible and the more it tries as it is doing now the faster China will grow against the U.S. Even India will overtake them by 2050 at the latest. The U.S. system and its philosophy will always deteriorate its economy. It simply needs to overstretch and over interfere resulting in ever growing. deficits and debts
Since it needs to watch its back perpetually it will always needs to overspend militarily and one can argue, the more it does the more enemies it has and the more it needs to defend itself. The U.S. is on a one way road into oblivion. In ten years US will have lost the dollar hegemony power and its has to worry if it can stay as it is now as a USA. Chances is before 2100 the United States will be a group of divided states.
It should be obvious to you that the US sanctions only accelerated China’s self-sufficiency in semiconductors. The US has totally failed by using sanctions instead of competing. The US technology strength is being weakened because of the hostile environment against the Chinese in the US and Chinese in the US are leaving to work in China.
The US couldn’t believe the results of Canada and Japan’s results of opening up the Mate 60 Pro chip to find zero US content so it too opened up the 9000s to find the same results so it remains mum.
The best the US can do is to claim it invented the transistor so obviously China copied.
My daughter and I once walked out of pet store carrying a very large dog’s tug of war rope. At that time we had a 115 lb lab / great Dane mix. We picked up the rope as soon as we walked into the store but then began browsing and were distracted by a litter of ferrets. We were playing with them and totally forgot that we had the rope. Walked out of the store, chatting and generally having a good time. Suddenly, there’s a voice behind us and a young man following us who said, “Excuse me, were you planning on paying for that rope?” My poor daughter was mortified! She was about 15 at the time and was so easily embarrassed that this just tipped her right over. She dropped the rope and darted across the hallway to lean up against one of the other storefronts. I think she was trying to pretend that she wasn’t with me! LOL I personally thought it was hilarious and picked up the rope, turned the young man and apologized, telling him how we had been distracted by the ferrets and I was so sorry that we had walked out with the rope without paying for it. he just laughed and said that he didn’t think we were trying to steal it as she was waving it around in the air as we were walking. I will never forget the horror on her face! I was happy to realize that I would never get a phone call about my daughter shoplifting.
This actually happened to me many years ago. I was a property manager of 80 units. My boss and I had a heated exchange and in haste he fired me on the spot. He asked me to stay until he could find a replacement. “Sorry Charlie!” I cleaned out my desk and handed him the keys, and I left the property of my own volition….
I was off-site the rest of the week. My now former boss was blowing up my phone. “Where are you?” then it was, “You are needed in the office?” I ignored his calls. He then messaged me on Facebook and said it was “with great urgency that we talk”. As it turned-out 2 members of the office staff (there were 3 all together) quit! The residents had started a petition to reinstate me – 60-plus signatures in all. He would not cave and subsequently received somewhere around 15 to 20- thirty day notices in effect terminating their leases. Additionally, some of the residents (refused to pay their rent. The community quickly became unstable and increasing hostile towards him. The morning shift manager at Tiger Mart next door to the complex – a tenant of mine, refused him service.….
He offered me my job back. I let him sweat for a day, then accepted and returned to my job. I was never so moved by an experience as I was at that job, not because my boss had given me my job back, but, rather, because the tenants did!
Ukraine: Financing The War About Hegemony
First some news bits about Ukraine. We will then come to the real issue the war is fought about.
In Kyiv, officials are at a loss as to what might happen next. Their staunchest military ally suddenly looks unreliable, despite assurances from President Biden and others the U.S. will remain steadfast until Ukraine’s invaders are defeated.
“We are freaking out. For us it is a disaster,” said Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, a senior Ukrainian MP who chairs the committee on the country’s integration with the European Union. … The Ukrainian government heavily relies on foreign financial and military aid to keep the economy running and expects to receive $42.8 billion from international donors in the coming year. A big chunk of that would come from the United States. … “Unfortunately, some [U.S.] lawmakers found it possible to seek trade offs while further aid to Ukraine is in the air,” Vladyslav Faraponov, head of the board of the Institute of American Studies, told POLITICO. “The key message that Kyiv needs to deliver is that we can win together and do it as soon as possible to save a lot of good men and women.”
So the real problem is that Kiev has no chance to win. See for example The Times which talked with (archived) Ukrainian mortar crews near Robotyne, where the Ukrainian counteroffensive is stuck:
The KAB [glide bombs], as well as mines, underground fortifications and a deluge of suicide drones, have pinned down Ukraine’s assault brigades. It is why last month’s penetration of Russian fortifications failed to lead to a full breakdown in their defences.
All over the Robotyne-Verbove line, Ukrainian forces are bogged down.
The U.S. public is no longer convinced that the gargantuan spending on Joe Biden’s private war makes any sense:
The two-day poll, which concluded on Oct. 4, revealed that only 41% of respondents agreed with the statement that Washington “should provide weapons to Ukraine,” while 35% disagreed, and the remainder were uncertain. … Support for U.S. weapon shipments is down from May, when a Reuters/Ipsos poll showed 46% of Americans backed sending arms, while 29% were opposed and the rest unsure.
A few more month and a majority will reject any new money or weapon shipment. But don’t fear. Congress critters will find ways to dump more money into a hole:
On Sunday, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said it would take about “$60 or $70 billion” to get Ukraine through 2024, not the $24 billion.
Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT), chair of the Senate Defense Appropriations Committee, said the package they’re considering would fund the war for 15 months, bringing it into 2025. The package would help the Biden administration’s plans to continue supporting an open-ended conflict.
David Ignatius, the CIA’s unofficial spokesperson at the Washington Post, reports of two opinions in Kiev:
The conflict is bleeding the country out. Ukrainians I spoke with during a four-day visit know they can’t keep fighting forever seeking what might be an unachievable victory. But they won’t stop, either. … Oleksiy Goncharenko, an opposition member from embattled Odessa on the Black Sea, presses members of the ruling party of President Volodymyr Zelensky. “I am very concerned,” he says. “Why? Take a look at the front. It doesn’t change. For a year it doesn’t change. But it was paid for by a huge amount of lives. … Ukraine can’t fight ‘as long as it takes.’ That will be a catastrophe.”
For Ukraine it already IS a catastrophe.
But if Ukraine seriously questions whether it can survive a fight that might take many years, then it needs to think about a way to freeze this conflict on its own terms — with a security guarantee from the United States as part of that deal.
The Ukraine can not freeze the conflict on its own terms. The U.S. can not give Ukraine any reasonable security guarantee.
A security guaranteed would leave the U.S. at the grace of lunatics in Kiev. They would be enabled to launch, at any time, a new conflict with Russia. A conflict the U.S., with nuclear weapons, would then be obliged to join. No Senate will ever approve such a treaty.
Ukraine won’t sue for peace. As many people have told me this week, it’s too personal. As a superpower, the United States can try to steer this conflict toward a settlement that protects Ukraine and doesn’t reward Russian aggression. But don’t ask Ukrainians to give up their cause. They won’t do it.
If the U.S. stops financing Ukraine its people will have no choice.
But the war is about more than Ukraine and the U.S. will finance it because its neoconservative leaders believe in its larger cause.
The war in Ukraine is a proxy-act for the U.S. in support of its quest for global hegemony.
For Russia, China, and much of the rest of the world, the war is thus about the elimination of that quest.
As President Putin explained in his recent Valdai speech in Sochi:
The Ukraine crisis is not a territorial conflict, and I want to make that clear. Russia is the world’s largest country in terms of land area, and we have no interest in conquering additional territory. We still have much to do to properly develop Siberia, Eastern Siberia, and the Russian Far East. This is not a territorial conflict and not an attempt to establish regional geopolitical balance. The issue is much broader and more fundamental and is about the principles underlying the new international order.
Lasting peace will only be possible when everyone feels safe and secure, understands that their opinions are respected, and that there is a balance in the world where no one can unilaterally force or compel others to live or behave as a hegemon pleases even when it contradicts the sovereignty, genuine interests, traditions, or customs of peoples and countries. In such an arrangement, the very concept of sovereignty is simply denied and, sorry, is thrown in the garbage.
That is why the war is going to be a long one.
Putin though has no doubt who will win:
Russia was, is and will be one of the foundations of this new world system, ready for constructive interaction with everyone who strives for peace and prosperity, but ready for tough opposition against those who profess the principles of dictatorship and violence. We believe that pragmatism and common sense will prevail, and a multipolar world will be established.
Will it? I certainly hope so but there is doubt that it will be during the next five or ten years.
Posted by b on October 6, 2023 at 14:46 UTC | Permalink
China’s ‘Long March 9’ Is About To TAKEOVER The Space Industry
My sister is 4 years older to me. I was 12 years old when I was in 7th grade. She & her classmates were 16. One of her classmates was very close to our school principal. So, she got the principal to allow her to teach my 7th grade class for 1 class period (45 minutes).
She knew my sister well. My sister was always at the top of her class. I had the reputation of being lazy and talkative and distracting myself & other students. Well, when I knew that my sister’s friend would be teaching my class, I decided to be a good boy and not give her a hard time.
I had an excellent memory, then. I remembered everything instantly when I paid attention. So, I put my head on my desk, closed my eyes, and paid attention to everything she said. I was in the very front of the class. So, she could see me the whole time that she was taking/teaching.
My plan to please her backfired! She angrily called on me, by name, and asked me why I was sleeping in class. I was shocked! I told her that I wasn’t sleeping but that it helped me to pay attention when I closed my eyes. This was true. The whole class knew it.
But she didn’t believe me. She asked me what I remembered & understood of the last 20 minutes of her lecture. I recited every main point, in order. Then, I explained what each point meant. Now, she was in shock 😆
I put my head on my desk and closed my eyes again. She didn’t call on me again. But she changed her attitude toward me, pretty much forever, after that day. She is currently the principal of that school.
What China’s rare earths should be controlled by the West?
Recently, European Commission President Ursula Gertrud von der Leyen made a statement suggesting that Western countries should control China’s rare earth resources.
This statement was interpreted as an attempt to strip China of its control and operation over rare earths and other precious minerals.
The remark immediately sparked vigorous discussions online.
Experts believe that addressing the global rare earth issue requires collective efforts and collaboration among all parties for mutual development.
Von der Leyen’s statement reflects the European Union’s dependence on and concerns about China’s rare earths. Rare earths are critical raw materials for the high-tech industry and play a vital role in economic and social development.
While countries like Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina have the largest reserves of lithium, China possesses abundant reserves of rare earths and advanced extraction technology with improved environmental costs.
Statements like “We restrict Russian energy prices” and “We want to control China’s rare earth resources” reflect a historical legacy of domination and would be better off directly stating “robbery.” In the past, advanced technologies were predominantly controlled by the West and gradually shifted into China’s hands. It is not that the West no longer desires control, but rather they are no longer capable of exerting it.
When it comes to China’s energy and mineral resources, slogans are ineffective. Control can only be achieved through actual capability.
At one point in my life I was a flight paramedic in New Mexico. The owner of the flight service had decided he was going to sell the company, so he hired a consultant to make his company more attractive for selling at a better price.
This was a disaster.
The consultant immediately began “inspecting” each flight base, and insulted every employee therein, implying we weren’t working hard enough. (The medical teams could be required to work 48 hours without a break; our working conditions were covered under an 1886 Interstate Commerce Act – yup, Pullman Porters. The pilots couldn’t work more than 12 hours, covered under FAA regulations.). I would occasionally get off shift and walk zig-zag to my car, my ears had such bad disequilibrium and I was so sleep-deprived.
But wait, it gets worse. This wolf-in-sheeps- clothing started calling pilots before they were about to begin flying technically difficult missions, pressuring them and distracting them. Essentially starting fights via phone call. You can imagine what this did to institutional attitude of “safety first”: Four months later, a company plane crashed in the Lincoln National Forest outside Ruidoso, NM with all souls on board lost: The pilot, the medic, the nurse (whom I had trained); the patient and the patient’s mommy. The medic’s death orphaned three little girls: Their daddy had taken off a long time ago.
But wait, it’s worse: Four months later, the company has a *second* fatal crash, a helicopter in El Paso. My husband was supposed to have been on that shift as medic. The FAA pulled the company’s ticket to fly, and the company was sold for a tenth of it’s former worth.
The consultant? He had been hired by at least one other, larger air medical company for these “services”. Wherever he went, fatal crashes occurred.
Yeah, evil.
Fred Rogers Interview on David Letterman | Irish Girl Reaction
Fred Rogers, affectionately known by children across America as Mr. Rogers was previously unknown to me until I watched him for the first time on this channel. In Ireland, we grew up without this gem. Frederick McFeely Rogers, known as Fred Rogers , was an American television host , puppeteer , Presbyterian minister , and educator . He was the creator of the children’s show Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood , which ran for three decades on PBS public television . Mr. Rogers did not do a lot of interviews, but on this occasion he made an exception for David Letterman.
The Late Show with David Letterman was an American late -night talk show created and hosted by David Letterman and broadcast on CBS . The show aired for 22 years and was produced by Worldwide Pants Incorporated , the production company managed by Letterman, and by CBS Television Studios . Among America’s Top Late Shows, this show ranks second in cumulative average viewers per time and third in average episodes per time.
Russian President Confirms “Burevestnik” Cruise Missile Success
Russian President Vladimir Putin has confirmed the successful testing of the Burevestnik” cruise missile in the Arctic. This new missile has a nuclear-powered engine, giving it unlimited range around the world, while carrying a nuclear bomb.
Once the missile is launched, it will continue to travel, even orbiting the earth, until such time as the Russian military instructs it to hit a particular target. Thus, there is NO DEFENSE from this weapon.
According to Vladimir Putin and the Russian Ministry of Defense, the missile’s dimensions are comparable to those of the Kh-101 cruise missile and it is equipped with a small-sized nuclear power unit. The claimed operational range is orders of magnitude greater than that of Kh-101. As shown in an official presentation, the missile starts from an inclined launcher using a detachable rocket booster.
Pavel Ivanov from VPK-news states that the cruise missile is one and a half to two times the size of the Kh-101, the wings of the Burevestnik are rooted “on top of the fuselage, rather than below it like on the Kh-101”, and also notes that there are “characteristic protrusions where air is most likely heated by the nuclear reactor”. According to Ivanov, the mass of the Burevestnik is “several times to order of magnitude” greater than that of the Kh-101, which eliminates Tu-160 and Tu-95 as potential carriers of the missile.
According to Nezavisimaya Gazeta, Burevestnik is a nuclear thermal rocket with a solid-fueled booster engine. The length of the missile is 12 m (39 ft) at launch and 9 m (30 ft) in flight. The nose has the shape of an “ellipse 1 m (3.3 ft) × 1.5 m (4.9 ft) in size”.
Military expert Anton Lavrov in the Izvestia article suggested that the design of the Burevestnik uses a ramjet engine, which, unlike the more traditional propulsion systems for nuclear weapons, will have radioactive exhaust throughout its entire operation.
Stratfor, an American geopolitical intelligence platform, assumes that Burevestnik utilizes a turbojet engine and a liquid-fueled booster.
According to James Hockenhull, the UK’s Chief of Defense Intelligence (CDI), the Burevestnik is a “sub-sonic nuclear-powered cruise missile system which has global reach and would allow attack from unexpected directions”. Per Hockenhull, the missile would have “a near indefinite loiter time”.
Here’s what you don’t know: You don’t make money in gold mining by panning. The reason you pan is to find a stream with enough gold in it to justify setting up your sluice box. So…if you want to haul a sluice to Alaska you could – if you were once again really lucky – pay for your trip.
Just so you know: very few of the people who participated in either the Alaska Gold Rush or the California Gold Rush made any money. John Nordstrom, who participated in the Alaska Gold Rush, needed two years to earn $13,000 – which, of course, was a hell of a lot of money in 1899, when he came back to Seattle. (You’re thinking that name sounds familiar. You would be quite correct. Mr. Nordstrom pooled the money he made with that a Seattle shoemaker named Carl Wallin made up there and opened a shoe store they called Wallin & Nordstrom at Fourth and Pike in Seattle. From there the mighty Nordstrom department store empire was born.) The guy who made the most money from the Alaska Gold Rush was Clinton Filson, who stayed in Seattle and sold equipment to the participants heading for Alaska. His business is still in operation, selling clothing to hunters and loggers.
My father went with my mother and bought a high-end vacuum cleaner at a store they had frequented for over 30 years. It is important to note this store had a customer promise “satisfaction guaranteed, or money refunded.”
When they got home with the vacuum, my father uncrated it and put it together. The next day, my mother went to use it and it did not turn on. She checked the cord, the electrical outlet (with another item, which worked). She unplugged it and left it for my father to examine when he got home. He could not get it to turn on either.
Two days later I went with him to the store (I was about 8 years old at the time). He brought it back to the sales desk where it was purchased (back then they did not have customer return desks at this store) and stated the problem. The salesperson would not give him a refund or an exchange (my father wanted an exchange). The salesperson went into a long speech about it was on the manufacturer, that they had never had one returned with a problem before, and asked if my father sure it was not something he had done, etc. etc. (I can’t remember all of what he said, but he did go on a long time about it).
My father patiently waited until the salesperson had finished their spiel, and asked does the “satisfaction guaranteed, or money refunded” – while pointing at the sign that stated this above his head – no longer apply?
The salesperson then went into his previously stated issues again, without answering my father’s question about the guarantee.
My father then asked again – so you are refusing to exchange or provide me a refund? The salesperson said yes.
My father then showed the salesperson his store credit card, and sated he had been a customer for over 30 years. My father then stated that he has spent tens of thousand of dollars in the store.
My father then stated again that he would like to exchange the vacuum. The salesperson still said no.
My father then took a pair of scissors that were on the counter and cut his store credit card into pieces onto the counter.
Right at that moment a manager was walking by, noticed what was going on, and asked my father what the problem was.
My father never raises his voice, he is the calmest person I know – but I could tell he was very frustrated and disappointed. There was an angry strain in his voice, which shocked me to hear. He told the manager he was refused an exchange or refund by the salesperson for this vacuum (he held it up), which he bought a few days ago, but it did not work. He also informed him about his customer history at the store. The manager dismissed the salesperson curtly and told my father the problem would be corrected.
My father was not having it. He told the manager it was too late; that he had been disrespected as a long-time customer, the store did not uphold its guarantee, and that he had already cut up his store credit card. He told the manager to keep the vacuum and that he would never step inside that store again.
Then he turned and we left.
I asked my father on the way home why he left the vacuum. He said that it did not work – so why take it home. I said that must have cost him a lot of money. He said the money was irrelevant and that it was not that much. I then asked why he would not take the managers offer to help. My father then explained that he and my mother bought most of what we have in the house from that store. He said that the main reason they always shopped there was because of the good service and the guarantee – although this was the first time he had to use the guarantee.
He said he liked the store – but he was disappointed with how poorly they handled the situation – especially as it was his first complaint. He said as a long-time customer, if this was how they dealt with problems – he would never shop there again. And he never did.
He sat me down later that day and explained that salespeople will most often be very nice when you are buying something, but the true test of a store’s integrity (I had to look the word up later), is when you have a problem. He said if I ever have a problem with obtaining good service due to a faulty product – it is best to never shop there again, as it shows they do not care about you as a customer.
Edit: My fault and apologies, but I did not want to make this a long rambling story. Nonetheless, many people have commented that the fault of one salesperson should not condemn the store. While I can understand that viewpoint, there were two people involved, one was the salesperson and the other his supervisor. They were both there together and the supervisor did not correct the salesperson. Yes, the event did catch the eye of the manager and he said he would correct the situation – but the damage was done.
Likewise, I find it interesting the way some people get very heated over this story and criticize my father’s behavior. Some answers are judgmental, rude and insulting. Yet, these people fail to recognize that people are individuals and may and can behave differently then they would. Everyone has their own opinion, which is as it should be, but I find it weird that they believe everyone should behave as they do or the other person is wrong. Whether poor service in a store or restaurant, it is everyone’s choice to never go back to that establishment – not anyone else’s. Accept that fact instead of becoming judgmental. Sometimes, a person’s trust gets broken beyond repair.
Thanks.
Zelensky, EU; desperate and frightened during Granada summit
I had a tenant who was a carpenter by trade. He built a nice built-in entertainment center in my living room. Shortly after moving in he was doing a kitchen remodel for someone and brought home the nice, oak cabinets they were foolishly replacing. He installed them in my house free of charge. I essentially got a free kitchen remodel out of it. I did him the solid of buying him upgraded appliances for the kitchen after that.
He did this on a couple other occasions too where he’d come across something of value from a job site and bring it back and install it at my property, greatly upgrading the house. He installed new light features, stair rails, closet shelves. He also built me nice shelves in the garage. He never asked me for any compensation either. I would have loved to credit him or something but back then I was new and in the red with the mortgage on the house and what I charged for rent so I couldn’t afford to offer him much. He didn’t care, he said “way I see it I live here and it’s making for a nicer home for me.”
Whenever something would break or need repair, he’d just fix it himself. Not a single maintenance call was needed in the four and half years he lived there. Unfortunately the guy had a checkered past and a few run-ins with the law. He went to jail (relatively short stints) a few times while there and I’d cut him some slack getting caught up when he’d get out, never trying to evict or remove him. Unfortunately he got himself in too deep finally and got locked up with a ten year sentence. Sadly that was the end of him, but no joke he probably added $100K of value to my property from what he did there.
Sometimes you decide it’s better to die than live in a certain way
That’s when things become dangerous
At this stage you decide, since you have decided to die already, you will take down as many people as you want
Women, Children, Old Women, Old Men, Generals, Wives of Generals, Grandkids of Generals, Ordinary Civilians – you just don’t care anymore
That’s how Taliban fought
That’s how the legendary Viet Minh fought
The Mighty US Army could frontally kill many Vietnamese but a video of a single US Marine with his belly ripped open and being fed his own intestines would give the Viet Minh a larger win especially as journalists in their own country called these marines murderers
Ready to die but kill as many as possible before doing so
It’s why peace is never easy in the middle East
Most people aren’t ready to die
It’s unlikely that Taiwanese would be ready to die. They are too practical.
Ukranians and Russians are less practical but still would probably surrender if the going is too tough
It’s the Palestinians , because of the Fundamental Islamic belief in Jannat, who are ready to die provided they kill
If Israel do brutally crush Gaza , these Palestinians may die, in fact they WILL DIE
Yet their death will anger the Muslims in all of the Middle East and those living in Israel
One day a Israeli Generals 18 year old son, walking to a movie with his girlfriend will be stabbed to death by an angry arab boy, in revenge for his fathers actions in Gaza
Another day, in a Salon, two ordinary women coming for a hairdo would be blown up by another 15 year old girl with a rough IED into pieces
Israelis can never be at peace. Never happily take a meal. Never enjoy life without always fearing some attack somewhere
So they will leave Israel and take citizenships in US and Europe
Plus every Islamic Nation will condemn Israel for destroying Gaza and any hope of peace with Israel will be thrown out of the window
Thus the Palestinians with their death would deliver a huge win for their cause against Israel than keep living without power, concrete in blown out buildings
So my guess is Palestinians know they can’t win a conventional war against Israel
Yet they also know that if Israel invades Gaza and kills them all and takes over, then Israels biggest nightmares will start and so will Americas
There are 52 Million Muslims in these Countries and assuming even 1% decide to take revenge for Gaza, that’s 520,000 furious Muslims ready to die but take down as many as possible from WITHIN ISRAEL, US and Europe
So my guess is Israel may finally invade Gaza and they may win the battle but with their sacrifice Palestinians will win the war
Unless Israel is smart, decides not to escalate and do their usual bombing to atom routine for 3–4 days and then once Hamas calls a ceasefire , go back to status quo
Or
NEGOTIATE A PEACE
That would be the best way to keep up survival
Man Goes VIRAL After Refusing To Pay For Woman’s Dinner
In 2002 I moved to Canada with my heavily pregnant wife and 3-year-old daughter, looking for a new life and yeah, maybe a better standard of living. I’d been working in various Tech Support roles in London, earning a little over £50k a year, so we were doing pretty well for ourselves. I’d been in contact with agencies in Toronto and they’d said I’d have no problems finding work and with my experience, etc., I should expect $80k+, so not quite the same, but close enough to make it work.
But things didn’t quite work out as we planned… Without a degree, my experience was irrelevant. I hadn’t needed a degree to fix computers in the UK, but it turns out that in Canada, I did. So all those $80k a year jobs vanished from view, and I ended up at a temp agency earning minimum wage ($6.85 an hour) moving things around a factory. My wife got part-time night-shift work to boost the family income to the point we didn’t starve and between us we were able to provide 24-hour child care to our young children.
After 8 years I’d had enough, and we came home. I do miss Canada massively, but TBH we’re doing better here now than we were doing there.
So why the personal pre-amble? My opinion on the standard of living in Canada is heavily coloured by my experiences – and struggling every day to pay rent and feed my family doing lower-paid temp work certainly makes my experiences different from someone else who went straight into a good job from day one. So now you know why.
I‘ll focus on the big, important concerns – let’s start with housing.
Houses are generally bigger than in the UK, but a lot of that is because many houses in Ontario have basements, and that’s true across a lot of North America. I converted mine into an extra bedroom, a workshop for me and a large playroom for the kids. But rents are also a little more in comparable areas – a family home in Toronto will cost about the same to rent as one on the outskirts of London, but elsewhere, you’ll probably pay more in Canada. So bigger houses, but they cost a little more.
image 6
Here’s the house we finally managed to buy. $150k in 2005. Big enough for a family of 4 and detached as you can see, which is nice, but not really “better” than the same money would have got you in a comparable British city. Middlesbrough, perhaps?
Bills. Phone bills are cheaper, cable costs about the same, hydro (electric & water) is a little more than the UK – but that’s probably due to the cost of running the AC for 4+ months of the year. DIY tends to be cheaper in Canada – Home Depot definitely beats B&Q, so keeping your house running is cheaper if you’re a bit handy.
Cars are obviously larger on average, but that certainly doesn’t make them better. Sure there are lots of pickup trucks around, but mostly in Canada it’s cars, mini-vans and modern cross-over style SUVs. New cars are cheaper than the UK, and quite a bit cheaper, but used cars are not. In the UK, you can spend £500 a get a decent runner with a long MOT that might last a few years. No chance of that in Canada. Remember that Top Gear episode where they tried to buy cheap cars in Florida for under $1,000? Yeah, that’s real. Anything even driveable decent is $2,000 + taxes (don’t get me started on that!) and when every penny counts, it’s quite an eye-opener. Ever heard of an Eagle Vista Wagon? Nope. Neither had I, but that’s what I drove for two years because it’s all I could afford.
image 5
Here she is – what a beauty!
Car running costs seem cheap because gas is cheap, but car insurance is not. Oh, so not! Even after several years of driving experience in Canada, insurance cost several times what I paid in the UK. Doing the maths, driving in Canada only gets cheaper than the UK, once you start doing more than 12,000 miles a year. That’s when the cheaper cost of gas drops the cost per mile below UK levels.
Food is not really cheaper than the UK, even if you shop at Walmart all the time. Yeah, portions are larger, everything has more sugar in it, and quality is objectively poorer – although I’m not sure how that affects the standard of living – but your overall food budget will be about the same. Take-out is marginally cheaper I guess, but restaurants are probably a little dearer when you factor in the almost mandatory tipping.
Appliances are about the same. You do get a bigger fridge for your buck, but then your bottles of juice and bags of milk take up more space, so it evens out. Computers, TVs, all that stuff, about the same cost.
But all this is just financial stuff. Basically I’m saying that overall, things probably cost the same. So I’d say it’s pretty even so far.
What really matters in standard of living are the non-materialistic things…
Holidays. Brits get 20 days minimum, but in Canada, I got 10 days a year, and only managed to get up to 15 days after 4 years’ service. Might be different for higher-paying white-collar jobs, but down at the low end of the employment market, it’s a big difference. That’s a big ol’ win for the UK.
Countryside/open spaces. Canadians seem to think that 12:00 is a good time to hit the beach, which meant we had three hours pretty much to ourselves on our trips to the beach, and that’s bloody wonderful I can tell you. Then the natives turn up with trucks full of meat for their big BBQ and we head off into the woods. Big forests, open spaces, and a lot of them can be quite quiet. It’s different, it’s wonderful, but is it better? Spend a morning hiking to the top of Snowdon, or take an Autumn drive around Scotland. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and the UK is just as beautiful to my eye as Canada – a little smaller and more crowded, but just as lovely.
TL;DR – it all comes down to money. If you were to get a similarly paid job in Canada, would you notice a difference? Probably not. In some areas, yes, but in others definitely not. All depends on what’s important to you.
But if, like me, you slipped down the ladder a few rungs, then you’d definitely notice a drop in your standard of living.
Thanks for reading this far 🙂
Edit #1: This was my first ever answer on Quora and I’m blown away by the response. 5k likes in 24 hours is amazing. I never expected that. Thanks to you all.
And just to clear up a couple things I noticed in the comments – I wasn’t on minimum wage for 8 years! I ended up with a not horrible $50k working in the auto industry and we did OK for a while… until 2008 of course. That kick-started the spiral that led me back to Blighty. Cheers all.
Edit #2: Not even two weeks in and over 8k likes. Amazing! Thank you all so much for your likes and comments. If I’d have known this answer would be so well received, I would have spent more than 10 minutes on it, and maybe explained a little more.
On the subject of “checking before I moved”, well… I did. I contacted several agencies in Toronto, sent them my CVs, had productive chats on the phones, all over the course of several months starting before I even booked our flights. They all said the same thing: “Yeah, there’s loads of jobs, with your experience you’ll do fine.” I believed them…
I went to visit my first choice agency – the conversation went something like this:
Her: “Ah yes, come in Mr. Hall. Let’s have a look at you resumé. Yes… yes… all looks good… yes… oh, you don’t mention your degree.”
Me: “Um… I don’t have one. I mean, I went to University, but I didn’t actually graduate.”
Her: “Oh. Oh dear… And why was that?”
My internal monologue: “Because I decided to be rock star instead, OK? And how did that work out, Stevie? Shut-up – she’s looking at me funny because I’m mumbling to myself!”
Me: “Uh… personal tragedy, um thing, you know… Is that going to be problem?”
30 minutes later I’m standing on a cold Toronto sidewalk crying into a box of Timbits and wondering if I should have accepted that $8 an hour job at a cat-food factory she finally offered me after I begged…
You realize that by sanctioning Chinese companies in the tech space, you are telling them to develop their own technologies, standards and supply chains which eventually become completely independent from western companies, regulations and sanctions, don’t you?
I live in Hong Kong, have lived in China, have been to Xinjiang. And it drives me nuts when I read something about China that is simply not true.
Should I just let it slide when people say that I had been oppressed in China and just didn’t realize it all that time, the whole 12 years? That there is no freedom in Hong Kong anymore and permission is required from the CCP to even take a pee? That Uighurs in Xinjiang have vanished by the millions, their organs harvested, and kept in pods as human batteries to generate power after the collapse of the 3 gorges dam?
Ok, got a bit carried away but you get the idea. There’s a lot of misinformation out there. Some of it is just ignorance. But there’s also a lot of malicious propaganda from instigators with a certain agenda.
I do let certain things slide, have to pick your battles. Sometimes I joke about it and hopefully some people will see the absurdity in some of these narratives.
But yeah, without these narratives I probably wouldn’t even be writing on Quora and would be wasting my time on something else instead.
Money Makes Money – You must re-invest what you have earned if you want to make more.
Wealth Does Not Come From Your Job – It is the best way to make capital at first. But true wealth comes from the passive income you make.
It Takes More Money Than You Think – Millionaires do not lead the lifestyle that they are imagined to. Most people would need ~ $20 Million to lead a lifestyle close to what they imagine.
It Takes Time – Get-rich-quick schemes do not work. If you want to be rich you must invest your money and be patient.
Some Debts Are Good – Leveraging a debt can be of huge benefit if used right.
Rich People Do Not Look Rich – Most of them are comfortable being who they are. They do not need clothes to show off.
It’s Not What Ultimately Matters – Sure, money makes things easier… to a point. After that its about what you do not what’s in your bank account.
Most Wealthy People Do Not Have Much Cash – Their bank accounts are often rather small. It’s their assets that make them reach the high net worth they have.
Where You Are Does Not Define Your Actions – The wealthy can still make money on vacation. Their actions are not bound by their situation or location but by their standards to themselves.
Money Is Always A Means To An End – The question is, do you know your end? What will you actually use the money for? Why acquire so much?
I went into work one morning and I tried to log into my computer but couldn’t. I called the help desk and was told that all my credentials were disabled by my manager, but I still had access to the HR website. I immediately went onto the site and filed for a LOA to take care of some health issues I had been putting off and leave the office.
On the drive home my manager calls and wants me in his office for a meeting. I told my manager that I am in LOA and would be out for 6 months. This gave me time to get my health fixed, stay on the insurance, collect short term disability, and look for a new job.
Georgia Guidestones Darkest Secrets Revealed | Destroyed by a villain or a hero?
On July 6, 2022, a bomb detonated on a 5-acre plot of farmland in Elberton, Georgia. The explosion destroyed a large monument that had stood on the property for over 40 years. Known as “The Georgia Guidestones”, it was four monolithic slabs of granite, weighing over 230,000 pounds, that contained a set of rules for a more peaceful and orderly society. The identity of the builder was a mystery for 40 years, but today I’ll tell you who he was.
But why did he want to keep his identity a secret?
Probably for the same reason the Georgia Guidestones were destroyed. Because, according to the Guidestones, the way to a perfect society is through a one-world government, genetic and racial purity, and massive global depopulation. In other words: A New World Order.
Many years ago (40+) I worked for a grocery store, Fry’s Food Stores, relatively large chain on the west coast. I started off cleaning floors, with another guy about my age (16 or 17 yrs old).
These were the days when stores were not open 24 hours a day, so stocking and subsequent cleaning was a little different than today. Carts with products we wheeled to the head of each isle, and the stockers would work on one end of the store, towards the other end. When they were done with an isle, we would break the boxes down, put them onto the carts, then push the carts back to the shipping and receiving area. Once we got a few isle cleared, we would start to clean and/or strip & wax. I believe this one day it was cleaning only, so it goes fast.
Nearing the end of our shift, we were done with the store and had some time to burn, so we started moving the carts around and running the floor machine up in down the areas in shipping & receiving area. One of the “older” stockers from the produce department was getting ready to clock in. He looked at us and said “What are you cleaning this area for, it just going to get dirty again”.
My colleague, never skipping a beat said “Why do you wipe your ass after taking a shit, it just going to get dirty again”. Priceless!! The stocker stood there a minute, shook his head and walked off……
The Satellite War: If I Compare Both, CHINA is The Winner
It’s not about the “trade war”, it’s about the technological blockage war, so the answer is “negative”.
Back to what the question may attempt to address, and in any case war is war, the launch of the Huawei Mate 60 Pro is another indicator that the US cannot win that “technological blockage war”. Not even that ‘China’ need to pump money into Huawei to achieve that in the process.
Back to the fundamentals, China has the human capital and money resources to face the ‘US challenge’, and in history, China had achieve ‘break through’s’ time and time again from atomic and nuclear power, satellite and ICM technologies, GPS and space … etc. So, there’s plenty of example in history to ‘demonstrate’/’illustrate’ that ability.
So, it’s only another example.
There are more to that. Have you wondered why ‘Huawei’ had pick this timing? Why provoke the US? It’s not just a ‘sales drive’ since even without such high profile, Huawei can still mostly achieve its sales target as it still has many fans in China. That’s something to think about.
I got hired by a chip manufacturer and the HR lady was bragging up the stock options that the company offers:
HR Lady: “Noone else offers these.”
Me: “What’s the purchase price?”
HR: “29.95″
Me: “Huh. What’s the split price?”
HR: “30.00″
Me: “So when would I ever exercise that option?”
HR: “Any time you want.”
Me: “You’re not understanding. The purchase price is a nickel under the split.”
HR: “But then you have 2.”
Me: “Yes. But 99% of the time I can go buy it on the open market for under the option price. There’s a very narrow window where you can actually exercise this option before the split.”
HR: “But then you have 2.”
Me: “Yes, I realize that. Let me explain this another way…”
Don’t remember what I said after that, but the response was “But then you have 2.”
I gave up after a while, disappointed.
After about a month on the job I was outside on a break and fire trucks and ambulances started rolling into the parking lot. All of the emergency response staff were wearing gas masks. After a while the stretchers started coming out. 14 of my coworkers were taken to the hospital via ambulance.
By this point I was already at the evacuation point watching from there. I kept looking around and waiting for the people to start coming out, but they never did. I finally went to the security officer at the front desk who confirmed that there was no evacuation. So I decided to go home “sick”.
The next day our morning meeting was fun. The boss confirmed there was a hydrogen bromide leak. I asked him why there was no evacuation and he said that “all evacuations needed to be approved by the VP of Production.”
Well la-ti-dah! What about us poor schleps on the graveyard shift? We’re supposed to just sit there patiently breathing poisonous gas while someone calls the VP of Production out of bed to get his almighty approval?
I went on a soap box tirade directed at the company and quit right there.
I wish this was an isolated incident but I have numerous past employer stories involving massive safety violations, unfair treatment of employees, and even outright wage theft. Unfortunately this sort of exploitation is common for blue collar workers, and it hasn’t gotten any better over the years.
My Social Security Nightmare/ What I learned in Manila Embassy
Steve seemed such a surley man. Unsuprisingly older than me by a couple decades since this was my first professional job as a newly minted college graduate, he seemed to growl at me whenever I saw him.
With the confidence only available with youth, I judged him.
I judged him mean, old, and a bit scary.
Imagine my horror when after about a year on this entry level job when I was reassigned to work for Steve. Of course, the reality was that I knew nothing about him.
What happened over the course of the next year was one of those special times of life that changes who you are forever. I learned that while I knew nothing about him, he knew quite a bit about me. Turns out that this wasn’t some corporately bland reassignment, but, rather, he asked to take me on as a project.
As I got to know Steve, it turned out that the gravelly voice, which I can still hear in my imagination as I write, was just his voice. And the surley demeanor I had judged so harshly was a product of a direct and unassuming style this loquatious post-adolescent did not yet grok.
One teaching moment in particular is one I’ll never forget. I carry this lesson with me every day.
You see, I’d made a mistake. Not a huge one, but a clear screw-up. I had a plan for spin control. I was confident in the plan. The lies were off-white lies at best.
But Steve believed in me enough to ask questions gently. And after he had twisted me into a logical knot, he said, and I’ll never forget his words, “Tony, you can do better than this.” He proceeded to teach me the value of not spinning and just dealing with my own limitations as a human. He showed me the real value of honesty: building trust.
And, Steve was right. I came clean and it was all ok. And, a few months later when I made a yet bigger mistake, that was ok too.
I got to know Steve better over the next couple of years. I learned that we shared some basic interests and religious faith, but he was not the type to over-share or brag. Sadly, when I had this incredible access to him, I never fully understood Steve.
But, I understood far better when he died.
Just a couple years after this priceless mentoring, Steve was stricken with brain cancer. He was far younger than I am right now, so even in death he taught me to value every day.
But this wasn’t the last lesson he had to teach. Not hardly.
I was invited by his widow to his funeral. I had known of his faith, but not quite the extent to which he walked the walk. I’ve omitted a great deal of detail, but Steve had not had an easy life. In my mind, he was doing all he could to just survive and raise his own family. I assumed his faith was like my own: sincere, yet mostly a coping mechanism.
In the shadow of his recent death, some mutual acquaintances filled in some details. There was far more to the man than even I suspected. My admiration was already deep. My tears were quite real.
Steve had been an elder at a prominent church for many years. The details of his service to others would make this long answer far too long. The debts others expressed dwarfed my own sense of gratitude.
But, the funeral blew me away.
You see, it was a large church. Very large. That day, it was filled to the rafters. I have never been to anything like it since. The love expressed for Steve that day over powers me even as I write this.
And there, in that pew, I knew i wanted to be like Steve.
Not for glory or acclaim—not at all. Just to have left this place a better place than I had found it. And, as I traverse my new career in coaching, I am still chasing his example.
Thank you, Steve, for teaching me how to be real. I’ll never forget you. I’ll never achieve what you did, but I am so much happier for trying.
Janet Yellen wrote that if China could commit to investing in US Treasury Bonds until 2026 and take a $ 1.1 Trillion Position by 2026, Inflation in US could be reduced to 3% within 6 months
In 2009, the Chinese agreed to such a request from USA
This time they told Yellen to go f*** herself
Yet that alone shows the power of a Nation like China
That a mere $ 270 Billion purchase of bonds could bring down US Inflation by 3% indicates a level of strength very few nations could possess
Yellen counted very heavily on the Chinese agreeing to her request and was very angry when she came back home
Putin visited Xi before his SMO began
Every Industry in Russia or most industries continued to operate despite a 72% fall in Supplies from Western Vendors
The Reason : CHINA
Investments by Western Countries replaced by China
Western Brands replaced by Chinese Brands
A Yuan Buttress helping Russia steer through foreign trade from April 2022 to December 2022
One Nation capable of standing against US and EU combined and preventing Russia from going under for those crucial 10–12 months before Russia found it’s feet
Thus China is VERY STRONG ECONOMICALLY
Apart from Paper Propaganda and a few articles on how China is collapsing, China is easily among the strongest economies in the world and among the more resilient economies
Militarily?
Only time will tell
Let’s wait and watch
MY HEART…First Reaction – Oliver Anthony – I Want To Go Home & Doggon It!
I moved to Long Beach this summer. The homeless crisis is heartbreaking. I have seen and spoken to many since I have been here and the mental health issue is so apparent. This is all around us, but we are more worried about spending billions on witch-hunts and funding things that are none of our business.
I’ve always loved the story of a man named Henry Sy. Born in Xiamen, China, Sy was poor as dirt. His father, his mother, his siblings, all of them could barely survive the next day. So his father took a gamble and moved the family to the Philippines. It was the 1930s, and Henry had to make ends meet in a strange country where he did not speak the language.
For the first years of his young working life, little Henry worked as a shoeshiner, polishing the boots of “his betters” until they shone brightly. The money he made with this, he saved up. Whenever he tried to get customers in front of Mercury’s Drugstore, however, the owner would shoo him away. Undeterred, Henry would find another spot, and continue his work.
As the years went on, Henry kept working hard, living frugally. He saved up his money, and invested it wisely, step by step growing his fortune along the way. Soon, he owned a store, next, a chain of stores, and eventually, he owned an entire mall. In the end, his chain of malls would dominate the entire Philippines. Henry Sy became the countries richest citizen, by far…
…and in none of these stores, there would ever be a Mercury Drugstore. Watson’s, sure, other pharmacies were allowed. But not Mercury. Because they didn’t let little Henry shine shoes in front of them when he was a wee lad.
The US sent spy planes and satellites to watch the publicly announced test.
In November of 2020, US Admiral Phillip Davidson, Commander of Indo-Pacific Command verified that China hit a moving ship in the SCS with a DF-21 and a DF-26 hypersonic missile.
Notice that the US Pentagon is no longer claiming that the Chinese have to slow down the missile. The Chinese figured out how to see through the plasma sheath with radar and IR for terminal guidance.
This is something new. The US military calls these new class of missiles, ASBMs (anti-ship ballistic missiles).
However, the name is somewhat of a misnomer. They’re quasi ballistic missiles. They don’t follow an exact ballistic path that is easily calculated and susceptible to interception.
This type of missiles can see. So they can evade incoming anti-missiles fired from US ships or bases.
So yes. They’re a real threat to US ships, not just carriers.
The DF-21 has a cruise speed of mach 6. Then speeds up to mach 10 for terminal phase. At 100 miles away, the DF-21 will hit a ship in 47 seconds. That isn’t a lot of time for the radar operator to talk to the captain then order an intercept. In fact, that isn’t any time at all since once the order is given, it takes time for the operator to actually launch the missile. Then it takes time for the missile cover to open, for the data to download to the missile, for the missile to light it’s rocket engine, and for the missile to get up to speed.
A DF-21 will hit with the explosive power of around 1.4 tons of TNT or 2,800 pounds of explosive equivalent.
A DF-26 will hit with the explosive power equivalent of 24,000 pounds of TNT.
You decide what happens when that much explosives goes off inside a ship. Bear in mind that a normal anti-ship missile has a warhead of 600 pounds. You can find the ships with holes in them. Then figure out what happens when you increase that to 2,800 pounds or 24,000 pounds. Yes. the DF-26 hits with the equivalent of a MOAB.
The real question isn’t is it a threat. The question is will there be a ship left after it hits. And in the report to Congress last year, The USAF/MIT study said that this is a game changer. Without a proper defense, if a ship gets hit, it will be sunk.
This would serve more as distraction to the West than Russia
The West bankrolled $ 140.81 Billion to Ukraine in the last 19 months plus trained 70,000 Ukrainian Soldiers plus combined gave Ukraine :-
1.03 Million Rounds of 155 mm Artillery Shells
17,000 UAVs Military Grade
1100 Infantry Fighting Vehicles
760 Tanks (Including 453 T 72, 124 Leopard 1, 92 French Tanks & Swedish Stridsvagn 122, 48 Abrams & 14 Challengers)
3.53 Million Rounds of Small Arms Ammunition
688 Missiles with upto 300 Km Range plus Air Defence
60 Himars Launchers
91 Air Defense System including 8 Patriot Complexes, 12 Iris Complexes and 50+ S 300 systems in former communist countries
Look at this list of equipment
It’s virtually an ENTIRE ARMY
Four Fronts – Kremeyvka Salient, Orekhovo Front, Bakhmut & Kremenneyva
After 125 Days
Territory Gain :- 188 Sq Kilometers
Loss of Territory (Kupiansk) : 507 Sq Kilometers
Net Gain Loss :- (-) 319 Sq Kms
The Ukrainians haven’t still managed to cross the grey zone
They have to reach 3 defensive fortified lines plus one fortified line to reach the Sea of Azov Or Melitopol
They haven’t managed a clear 10 Kilometer forward gain in positions and need 526 Kilometers to reach their objective
In ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY FIVE DAYS!!!!
Meanwhile their losses :-
90,000 Killed or horribly wounded enough to miss action for minimum 6 months
290 Tanks destroyed
700,000 Rounds Ammunition spent at 6000 Rounds a day
650 Infantry Vehicles
39 Himars Launchers
91 Missiles (Range upto 300 Kms)
360+ Air Defence Missiles
73 Assault Boats
4500+ UAVs
Easily between 35% to 45% of their entire equipment and at least a fourth of their BEST FIGHTING MEN
For 188 Sq Kms gains and not one concise territory to consolidate positions
You think I am quoting from TASS Or Sputnik right?
Nopes
CNN, Politico, Reuters, Washington Post & Institute for War
Meanwhile the Russian Economy?
From a 15% contraction expected in 2022, now it’s growing by 2.3% even by IMF predictions
Strong and Resilient as ever
Happily now selling Oil at $ 91/ Barrel against a $ 60 Price Cap laughing loudly
So it is the West who need an off ramp and a distraction badly indeed
Girls, Bars and Love in Phnom Penh
It’s a view about what is going on in the rest of the world while YOU were sitting away in your nice sterile cubicle, attending Diversity meetings, and grabbing a number #3 burger during lunch. The rest of the world is far more interesting and colorful out there. Savor it.
This is a “monger” video about this asshole going to Cambodia for prostitutes. He just went to Cambodia and filmed the night life. Very colorful.
Ugh!
Not badmouthing the girls. Not badmouthing the guys.
Just making a statement on lifestyle.
Do not be offended by some of the things you see here. The point that I am trying to make is that YOU can decide your lifestyle. If sitting in a grey cube, staring at a flickering monitor, and living for the weekend appeals to you… embrace it. But the rest of the world thinks that lifestyle SUCKS. I did that for far too long. BIG FUCKING MISTAKE.
Am I interested in visiting Cambodia. Yeah, sure.
But not for the chicks. I really want to check out the culture. Especially the spicy beef on those long French rolls that you get at the street pavilions.
You know, I have been interested in Cambodia and Laos ever since I was in 5th grade and Nixon went and bombed them to shit. Then, later on, I had some interns that came from Cambodia. I’d like to meet up with them and tour their little family factory and warehouse. Maybe have some “cooperation” together.
NATO wasn’t formed to counteract the Soviet Union.
NATO is an expansion of the Western Union (Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, and Britain) and the WU was a military and ECONOMIC alliance.
When NATON was created in 1949, it’s goals were to prevent a resurgence of Germany and to improve economic ties between countries.
Don’t forget about the Berlin Blockade of 1948. This PROVED the Soviets were not up for a military confrontation.
Article 2
The Parties will contribute toward the further development of peaceful and friendly international relations by strengthening their free institutions, by bringing about a better understanding of the principles upon which these institutions are founded, and by promoting conditions of stability and well-being. They will seek to eliminate conflict in their international economic policies and will encourage economic collaboration between any or all of them.
Back in 1949, the economic aspect was far more important than the military one.
As Europe began to move towards an integrated economic policy and later towards a union, the economic policies of NATO were largely forgotten … BUT THEY STILL EXIST.
Russia is right when they talk about the tandem EU/NATO. The European institution, economically and politically, were all created under a NATO umbrella … there was nothing else back in 1949.
So when the Soviet Union fell, the EU didn’t even exist. There was a large economic forum in place in Europe, but a lot of political decisions were taken at NATO level. European economies depended to a large extend on NATO’s integrated policies: economically, militarily, and politically.
NATO was the perfect platform for international cooperation before the EU came into being.
Once you realize NATO is also an economic alliance it becomes pretty clear why it couldn’t be disbanded. And it also becomes clear why expansion was profitable for all involved. NATO didn’t expand because “countries feared Russia” (look at the timeline, relations were good UNTIL NATO expanded), NATO expanded for economic reasons.
The EU is relatively transparent, NATO is nor. NATO invested 150 billion Euro in Eastern European infrastructure. NATO always upgrades your infrastructure when you become a member (that’s how Greece and Turkey were bribed back in 1952).
In return, NATO countries, mainly European ones, got to invest massively in Eastern Europe. Much lower wages resulted in huge profit margins.
Just look at how many “German” cars are produced in Hungary and Poland. All that was a direct result of NATO expansion. The average monthly income in Germany is 4,200 Euro a month, in Poland 1,400 and in Hungary 1,300.
Cheap labour results in huge profit margins which in turn regenerates more tax revenue. Those 150 billion paid themselves back with interest. But the main requirement was a good infrastructure.
History makes a lot more sense when you look at it from an economic point of view.
He’s not “bashing” America. He’s simply exposing the truth about America. There is nothing he has said about America that is incorrect. I can repeat some of the talking points and see if you can refute any of them:
Unsustainable $33 trillion national debt.
Crumbling infrastructure.
Unaffordable health care for millions of Americans.
Rampant homelessness — approaching one million Americans.
Declining public education.
Declining life expectancy.
Growing poverty.
Mass incarceration — highest number and highest per capita rate in the world.
Rampant gun violence — on average, one mass shooting every day of the year!
Fentanyl epidemic.
Over one million Americans died from Covid needlessly.
It’s America that is bashing China with all kinds of propaganda lies such as Uyghur genocide, Uyghur forced labor, Chinese aggression, spreading authoritarianism, etc.
UPDATE:
After 8 hours, this answer has received a whole bunch of stupid comments and NOBODY has even tried to refute any of the points in my answer. This alone tells you something.
I’ve disabled comments to prevent any more stupid comments. If you can’t say anything intelligent, then don’t say anything at all.
In 1972 my Dad let me tag along to “Wild Bill’s” Dodge in order to buy a new emerald green Dodge Coronet. Wild Bill was a local tv commercial superstar! II remember the transaction to this day. The cigar smoking salesman wanted $3440 for the car, but my Dad was firm at $3400. The salesman then said only the owner could approve that low a deal, so he would have to call him at home!
Out came the phone book, because the salesman had never called him at home before, and the salesman made a big production out of reading off the number and dialing it. “Yes Bill, he says, they won’t do $3440, I told them it’s crazy but he wants $3400 even.”
At that moment I see someone exit the break room and recognize Wild Bill sitting there having a cup of coffee. I whisper to my Dad, that Wild Bill is not at home talking to this salesman, he’s 50 feet away drinking coffee. My Dad smiles and says to me “let them do their thing”
$3400 later we had the car, plaid fabric seats and all!
Why the West is Afraid of China
Thank you for bringing the one and only Carl Zha to your show. He is a great analyst and has a good sense of humor.
In the mid-2000s, I was a civilian contractor working for The Pentagon Channel, originally part of the Office of the Secretary of Defense. I created TPC’s first podcasts.
The podcasting operation grew to more than 20 different regular podcasts — audio and video — and had about 19 million downloads over its seven-year run. I personally produced nine of the shows.
We also uploaded the videos to YouTube.
One morning, I went in extra early to upload a new episode … only to see a warning from CYBERCOM that YouTube was blocked for our office. A lot was hanging on this particular upload, and my boss was able to track down someone I could talk to at CYBERCOM.
I called the Air Force Master Sergeant listed on the Post-It Note he gave me. Got him on the line and explained my problem.
The Master Sergeant was a condescending male appendage.
He angrily told me there was an unusually high number of computers spending a lot of time during business hours accessing YouTube. We broadcast 24 hours a day, and business hours were when we were uploading video.
He lectured me on how NO military office needed access to YouTube nd that he’d personally shut down our access in accordance with regulations. I tried to explain that uploading video to YouTube was critical to our office’s mission.
He was about to lecture me some more … but I had another call. I knew exactly who it was.
I put the Sergeant on hold … which he huffed at.
The incoming call was from a speaker phone. Another civilian I knew at the Pentagon asked why the video wasn’t uploaded, and I explained the situation. A second voice came on the phone.
“Terry, this is Captain Kirby. Can you give me that sergeant’s name and number?” he asked with frightening calm.
I did.
“Tell him to stand by for a phone call,” Captain Kirby said and hung up.
I pick up the line with the irate Master Sergeant who’s already wound up to tear into me and cut him off.
“Stand by your phone for an incoming call,” I said. I didn’t witness what was said or who said it. But I knew it would be glorious.
Then-Captain John Kirby would retire as a two-star admiral in a few more years. He’d go on to become the official Pentagon Spokesman, later the State Department’s Spokesman, and is currently the Biden Administration’s National Security Spokesman. You see him delivering live press briefings on national security issues at the White House.
But on that particular morning, Captain John Kirby was the long-time Public Affairs Officer for Admiral Mike Mullen, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff … the most senior officer in the U.S. military.
The video that I was blocked from uploading? The premier episode of the Chairman’s Podcast — a more-or-less weekly podcast in which ADM Mullen was interviewed on top policy issues affecting the military and the troops across all branches of the services.
Chairman Mullen was incredibly media savvy and was extremely keen on creating this podcast.
I suspect Captain Kirby called the sergeant … but he may have just let the admiral know what was going on, and the Chairman picked up the phone himself. Either way, I knew the sergeant was about to get a Mark II bunghole installed via phone lines.
I spent a couple of minutes refreshing the YouTube page before we suddenly had full access restored.
And I began uploading the Chairman’s Podcast.
That’s when my phone rang again.
It was a very contrite Master Sergeant, I suppose he was still a Master Sergeant, I didn’t ask. Anyway, he went into a very long, detailed apology about blocking our access and for his tone of voice toward me.
I never had another problem in the two years we produced the show.
Before the CIA spies were exposed in China
China has been publicly announcing the arrests of several spies working for the CIA, an unconventional move for a country not best known for message clarity.
“Drug Panic,” “God’s Scalpel,” “Old Classmates in Washington,” “CIA Spy School,” “Sexy Spies,” “Target – Beijing Olympics,” and “Double Agent,” these gripping chapters of the spy novel Fatal Weakness, upon its first release in 2004, led many spy fiction enthusiasts to believe that its author, Yang Hengjun, a former employee at China’s Foreign Ministry, was next in line to become one of China’s bestselling writers in this genre. His fans were awed by his vivid description and attention to detail at portraying the life of a double agent. They later discovered that all it took was for Yang to report on his own life, as Fatal Weakness fits better in the category of autobiography than novel.
For the past two months, China has been publicly announcing the arrests of several spies working for the CIA, an unconventional move for a country not best known for message clarity. Previously, China’s state media would only go so far as saying that a person is harming national security and therefore warrants an arrest. What prompted the sudden change of tone? Most importantly, wouldn’t openly revealing that even government officials lack faith in the country hurt the government’s reputation even more, further fueling the already rampant suspicion around its former Foreign Minister Qin Gang’s removal?
To answer these questions, it would be necessary to examine all the “accidents” that have killed Chinese scientists in the past five years, as this provides insight into the urgency Beijing faces to take a more assertive position. Whether these incidents were truly unfortunate accidents or the successful operations of secret agents is up to you to decide.
On July 1, 2023, Feng Yanghe, the brain behind the AI software used in China’s military simulations, died in a car accident in Beijing at the age of 38.
On June 22, 2023, China’s leading botanist Zhang Dabing passed away at the age of 56 from a car accident. He was a prominent scientist in China’s hybrid rice field and transgenic biosafety monitoring field.
On September 21, 2022, genius rocket engineer Li Yuchong died in the United States at the age of 30, a week after he announced his decision to forgo offers from the US and return to China.
On June 14, 2019, Ning Bin, one of the driving forces behind China’s digital signaling systems across the railway, died at the age of 60 from a car accident. He was working on a control system for a super high-speed train running at 1,000 km/h.
On December 1, 2018, renowned quantum physicist Zhang Shoucheng died in the US at the age of 55, purportedly from depression, three days after his team announced a breakthrough in 5G chips. His discovery of “angel particles” in 2017, particles that are both matter and anti-matter, ended one of the most intensive searches in fundamental physics. Before his death, it was widely speculated he would be the next recipient of the Nobel Prize. His scientific life was put to an abrupt end on the same day Meng Wanzhou was detained in Canada. Meng is the senior executive of Huawei, the company Zhang and his team had collaborated with since 2009.
A month later, Chen Shuming, head of the R&D team for chips of advanced weapons, died in a car accident on December 31, 2018.
The list goes on and on, with examples found in all areas involving leading science and technology. Beijing has never confirmed nor denied people’s suspicions that these were premeditated assassination attempts coordinated by a network of spies that have infiltrated key positions in the Chinese government. However, as the list grows longer, the silence becomes increasingly unbearable to many.
Remarks by CIA Director William Joseph Burns that the agency has “made progress” in rebuilding its spy networks in China served as both verification of people’s suspicions and validation of Beijing’s perceived incompetence. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that if Beijing prolongs this silence, we will witness its reputation being slowly shredded to pieces. In an apparent effort of self-consolation, Chinese netizens even pushed a story online about the Macao Garrison Special Operations Company being awarded a first-class collective merit citation in 2014 for defeating an alleged CIA assassination attempt on Snowden when he was transiting through Hong Kong en route to Russia. To their disappointment, the narrative was later denied by Macao authorities. It is conceivable that the recent string of reports on spy arrests is the long-awaited response to an anxious populace that has borne witness to some not-so-clandestine espionage activities.
For more reporting on spies arrested in China, please check out our newsletter series here:
The U.S. leads in certain technologies at best. China leads in 37 out of 44 most strategic and key technologies for today and tomorrow’s technology frontier according to a neocon funded research project in Australia call ASPI or Australian Strategic Policy Institute. If that is the case. The U.S. leads only in 7 out of these 44 technologies.
The U.S. no longer leads the world for at least a decade now! China has 3 more unmatchable advantages. One it has 1.4 billion highly competitive population who are very intelligent, very hardworking, extremely disciplined and both industrious and driven people.
Two, Chinese political system of socialism with Chinese characteristics is extremely effective and efficient. It evades costly and hurtful perpetual politicking and it allows meritocratic policies by attracting the most capable and qualified leader. As compared with the U.S. clearly popularity contest among popular but unqualified leader.
Three, China focuses fully and comprehensively on growing the real living standards of it’s citizens and does not get distracted by the U.S. forever war investment and focus of interference throughout the globe. China’s military strategy only focus on defending their home land and hitting the enemy lands if it is hit at home. It needs to spend a third of the U.S. to match their huge and damaging military spending!
China is highly sustainable, the U.S. is simply not. In fact the more the U.S. wants to stop China the faster the U.S. will go broke and implode.
Horseshoe Sandwich with Idaho® Fingerling Fries
The Horseshoe is a regional specialty in the Springfield, Illinois area. It is an open-faced sandwich on toasted bread that can utilize a variety of meats, topped with French fries and a creamy cheese sauce.
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Yield: 4 sandwiches
Ingredients
Sandwich
4 toasted slices Texas toast
6 Idaho® Russian Banana Fingerling potatoes, sliced into fries
2 teaspoons olive oil
Freshly ground Italian seasoning blend
4 grilled hamburger patties, sprinkled with steak seasoning and seasoning salt before cooking
1 medium onion, sliced
1 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 red or green bell pepper, cut into large chunks
2 tablespoons butter
Cheese Sauce
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1 cup milk
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions
Lay out potato slices onto cookie sheet lined with foil.
Drizzle olive oil over potatoes and use brush to evenly coat them.
Grind Italian seasoning over potatoes until there is a nice, even dusting of seasoning.
Place in oven heated to 425 degrees F. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes or until fries are cooked throughout and lightly brown.
Place onion, mushroom and pepper in foil. Place butter on top and sprinkle with freshly ground Italian seasoning. Tent foil and close. Place in oven. (They should be softened by the time the fries finish cooking.)
While the fries and vegetables bake, start on cheese sauce by melting butter in a small saucepan. Once melted, add flour and stir to make a roux.
Add milk and basil and stir constantly until it starts to bubble. Continue stirring for two to three more minutes until it begins to thicken.
Add shredded cheese gradually, stirring constantly as it melts.
Lay out toasted bread on plates, topped with hamburger patty. Spoon vegetables on top of burger, followed by a layer of fries. Top with cheese sauce.
Notes
Grilled vegetables, such as green peppers and onions, are also common on a Horseshoe sandwich. Alternate meat suggestions include smoked ham, pulled pork and grilled chicken breast.
China’s $100 Billion Move That Left Australia STUNNED!
In a surprising turn of events, China has unveiled a staggering $100 billion project that could send shockwaves through its trade relationship with Australia. Today, we’re breaking down the intricacies of this development and exploring its potential global implications.
The implications of China’s new mega project are vast, with potential ripple effects touching every corner of the global iron ore industry. Join us as we unravel the layers of this complex narrative and project its potential future impacts on Australia, China, and the broader international community.
People on the internet think I am a blind supporter of China. Some even think I am paid by Chinese propaganda department to write pro-China answers! (Hell! It would be great to get paid for narrating facts, but sigh … so far, no payment. Not even a job offer :p).
For reasons unknown (and probably very biased) stating plain and simple historical and current facts offends a lot of people. Comparing the actions of countries offends people.
Here are a few examples.
Example 1. Hong Kong Riots
Last year (in 2020) Quora was overflowing with certain people expressing their support for Hong Kong rioters, claiming they are fighting for “freedom” and that secession is a right of people.
I wrote a couple of answers stating the plain fact that at least Indians should stop expressing their “deep concerns” for Hong Kong rioters, considering how India is handling the freedom movement in Jammu and Kashmir: no internet connectivity (since more than 8 months now) for the region, curfew almost daily, and lots of reports of rapes committed by the military. A lot of people were “offended” because of my comparison.
I also compared Hong Kong rioters with American civil war. The northern states of USA refused to let the southern states break free of the union. If “freedom” is the right of people, northern states should have allowed the southern states to break free.
Similarly, UK should have allowed Ireland to be free.
Somehow, when India, USA and UK does it, it’s all justified and acceptable. But when China does it (and on top of that, China didn’t even use lethal force against those rioters), suddenly China is at fault! I don’t understand the logic here.
Example 2. China’s Island Building In SCS
I wrote that every nation has a right to defend itself and no nation has a (moral) right to display aggression and policing at other nation’s borders. This too, offended a lot of people. People mentioned “freedom of navigation” and whatnot. I pointed out that USA has not ratified UNCLOS and therefore has no right to implement it on others.
There was a long debate about how USA and western powers have “freedom” to roam in their warships close to Chinese shores, but China has no right to install weapon systems on islands in South China Sea.
Some US guy went on a long argument with me in that answer, claiming that although USA has not signed UNCLOS, it still has the right to implement it on others. The most remarkable thing is that he claimed he was not even being biased and was completely transparent and morally fair in his claim!
Example 3. China – Australia Trade Dispute
I wrote that a customer is not and should not be forced to purchase from any seller, therefore China is not forced to purchase ore and food products from Australia, considering that Australian government went on a smear campaign against China (proposing to find Covid-19 origin only in China) and banning Huwawei.
Some people got offended, and claimed that China should be forced to buy from Australia, but Australia is “free” to not buy from China. Some people also claimed that China is “weaponizing trade” and that they must be “put to their place”.
All I can say about it is that their logic is incomprehensible for me.
Example 4. China – US Trade War
I wrote in an answer that if US is so concerned about trade deficit, they have all the right to stop buying from China and shift their imports to some other country. Similarly, China has the right to stop buying from USA and start buying food products from South America.
Similarly, I wrote that both countries have the right to place as many tariffs as they want, on their imports. Both are free in what they do within their borders.
This offended a lot of people. They claimed that it is China’s “legal responsibility” to avoid placing tariffs on US goods but USA is “free” to place as many tariffs as they want on Chinese goods.
Example 5. Chinese Loans And Investments In Africa
Someone asked if Chinese loans and investments in Africa were attempts by China to colonize Africa. I posted some pictures of African colonialism and showed what colonialism really looks like.
Some guys started arguing in the comments that China is “exploiting” Africa with their loans and whatnot. I simply stated that nobody is forcing African countries to get loans from China. They are free to get loans from IMF and World Bank if they want. If they are getting loans from China, they know the conditions. They are written clearly in front of them. If African countries and China, both agree on the terms and conditions, why is someone else trying to run around amok with arms flailing and crying foul?
They claimed that Africans are “simple minded” (yes, they were indeed simple minded, or else they would not have been enslaved by the western powers for centuries) and do not “see through” the traps. I asked if their countries have better loan offers for African countries, they should present the offers. Somehow that further offended them and they quit in rage, claiming I work for China’s propaganda department.
So. That’s my story of being “pro China”.
US House Resolution #145 Is Retaliation Against South Africa For Hosting BRICS Summit
When I tell you I’m upset or worried, I don’t need you to fix it. I just need you to listen and let me know that my feelings are valid.
Periods are more than just blood and cramps. They can affect my whole body and mind, and PMS is a real thing.
If you want me to wear makeup, don’t expect me to be ready in five minutes. It takes time.
Just because I’m nice to you doesn’t mean I like you romantically. And just because we talk sometimes doesn’t mean I’m “leading you on.” I can have friends who are guys without wanting to date them.
When we talk about the issues that women face, it doesn’t mean that we don’t think men have issues too. It just means that we want to talk about our own experiences from our own perspective.
Yes women might are attracted to chiseled jawlines six-foot-tall men, etc. But that’s not the “ideal dream guy.” Just because women find you good looking, doesn’t mean every woman around will want to date you. We have other things in our priority list (Girls in their early teens might be an exception, but that’s about it).
It’s scary when you run up to us or try to get our attention out of nowhere. We’re in fight-or-flight mode the second we know a stranger is paying attention to us.
Don’t try to be a smartass all the time. It’s not attractive. And please don’t flex in front of us. We don’t care.
It’s not “manly” to raise your voice.
Scents are meant to be discovered, not announced. Take it easy with the body spray.
Honking at us doesn’t work. Please stop.
The best thing you can do for a girl on her period is buy her chocolate, (maybe) some wine, and her specific brand of tampons.
Acting all sad because we’re not replying and literally begging for it is not adorable. You’re chat was probably archived the second you started begging for our attention.
Just because we ask for your help to get something done doesn’t mean we couldn’t do it all by ourselves.
Chinese J-20 fighter production now at over a 100 per year?
“Japan and Korea won’t join the fight against China”
Many years ago, I desired my concealed handgun license in Texas. To acquire it back then, you had to complete a class (6–8 hours) and demonstrate the ability to safely handle a firearm and shoot with an acceptable level of control. This required a shooting test at a range… firing maybe 50 rounds in front of an instructor (10 rounds of 5 shots each) and getting above some very low percentage of hits on a target that is just 10 yards away. Really… it was a “Can you hit the broadside of a barn?” kind of test.
We wrap up the classroom work and go together (class had 20 or so students) to the range that has 5 lanes. The guy who is assigned the lane next to mine (he’s on the far right of the 5 lanes) is easily over 80 years old and apparently carries a revolver, but wanted to take the test with a semi-automatic pistol (it gives you more options), so he rented a small caliber pistol from the range for the test. He can barely load the weapon and is limp-wristing his shots, so it jams repeatedly. The first time it jams, he pivots around to show me, pointing the barrel straight at my face. I dropped to the ground and he tracks me with the gun to the floor until he realizes that he’s doing something wrong, then freezes. The weapon is still pointed at 2–3 other students in other lanes. One lady in lane 1 or 2 screamed. I came around behind him, grabbed his shoulders so that the weapon was pointed back down range and had him put it on the bench (then turned it to point downrange when he placed it pointing back at the students in the other lanes). I waved for the instructor and he came over… his only concern was clearing the weapon and RELOADING it for the old guy. I looked at him and he gave me a “give the old guy a chance” look. On the next round the old guy’s gun jammed again and he waived it at me again, asking for help. I again ducked, got behind him and took the weapon from him this time. I cleared it, sat it down and walked out of the range. I told the instructor “That’s twice I’ve had a loaded weapon pointed at my face. I’m not going back in there until he is disarmed. That guy is going to kill someone and it’s NOT going to be me.” Several of the people in the first few lanes followed me out. Amazingly, the instructor went down to the old guy, reloaded his weapon and had him finish the test (and PASSED him)
I’m not sure who was scarier… the old guy taking the test or the instructor who certified him to carry a concealed weapon for another 4 years without basic safety knowledge or having enough wits not to point a loaded weapon at other people MULTIPLE times on accident.
Technically I was “laid off,” not fired, after 31 years at the company. I was only working part time (10 hours/week), and was planning to retire fully in a year or two. Instead, I got laid off. They paid me almost a full year’s salary and gave me over a year of medical and other benefits. I collected unemployment for the next year and because of a legal action for deceiving customers by my state against the bank that held my mortgage, they had to write off my mortgage payment each month that I was unemployed.
So when I was told I was laid off, and the salary/benefits package I would receive, I immediately bought a bottle of wine, gave it to the head of HR, thanked him profusely, and left. That year was far and away the best one (financially) that I ever had. And to top it off, I had gotten divorced a year earlier. With all my free time and lack of financial concerns, I had time to date. I met a wonderful woman, and we have been together almost thirteen years now.
In 2016, an elderly Lady in Brooklyn New York took hoarding to the extreme when the remains of her son were found amongst the rubbish that filled her home.
Rita Wolfensohn was legally blind and lived with the corpse of her son for twenty years, believing he was missing. The son’s body was discovered when a relative went to the house to collect clothes for the woman while she was at the hospital.
In one of the bedrooms, she found a Skeleton with its jeans, socks and a shirt still on. The room and the rest of the house smelt like rotten food, so any smell of a decaying body would have blended with the already rancid smell.
Police believe the son died of natural causes, and it was possible Rita believed that her son had left and never came back. I don’t understand how someone can live this way, but I don’t like to judge either because depression plays a big part in hoarding cases.
China’s supply chain has developed 7nm process chips, which can produce 95% of the world’s chips!
When I was a teenager I would explore all the abandoned homes in my tiny small town. I grew up in Western Pennsylvania; coal and steel was our life, but during this time, the factories were all closing. So the homes would be abandoned. And we would explore them.
One of my friends, not me, was rummaging around in one of the old bedrooms and found an interesting object in an ancient shoebox tucked in the end of top shelf of a closet.
It was a handbook.
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He found an operation manual for a biplane! It was a World War I era instruction manual for a Curtiss JN-4. And it was cool as Hell. I loved the illustrations, and the classic format in this small leather-bound book. Totally awesome.
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I have no idea what happened to this little jewel of a book, and sometimes I muse what happened to it.
I will never know, but if you see me sitting quietly watching the rain fall down, thoughts of this little book is but one of my many many meandering thoughts.
So after researching, apparently the longest anyone ever stayed awake was this dude named Randy Gardner who did it for a science fair project back in 1963.
He lasted 11 days and 25 minutes without sleep, which is insane. He set a world record, but they don’t do that anymore cuz it’s too dangerous.
We all know that sleep is super important for your body and your brain. It helps you heal, grow, learn and stay sane.
When you don’t sleep, you mess up all kinds of stuff in your body, like your hormones, your metabolism, your mood and your stress levels.
You see, you start feeling the effects of sleep deprivation pretty fast. After just 24 hours, you’re like drunk or high.
You can’t think straight, you can’t remember stuff, you can’t see or hear well, you get cranky and you might even start to hallucinate.
It gets worse the longer you stay awake. After 36 hours, you lose your motivation, your reasoning skills and your attention span.
You might also start to have microsleeps, which are like mini naps that happen without you knowing. You just zone out for a few seconds and then snap back to reality. Imagine this happening while driving.
After 48 hours, you’re in trouble. You might start to have delusions, paranoia and psychosis. You might see or hear things that aren’t there, or believe things that aren’t true. You might also get really emotional or aggressive.
After 72 hours, you’re basically a zombie. You can barely function at all. You might not even be able to stay awake if you wanted to. Your immune system is shot, your blood pressure is high and your risk of getting sick or having an accident is through the roof.
So yeah, don’t try this. It’s not worth it. Sleep is awesome and you need it to live a healthy and happy life.
The average adult needs about 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night, but it varies from person to person. Find out what works for you and stick to it.
Texas Fajitas
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Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients
Fajitas
2 (1 1/4 pound) skirt steaks, trimmed of membrane and fat
16 to 20 flour tortillas, warmed
Marinade
1 cup bottled herb and garlic or Italian salad dressing
12 ounces beer
1 large onion, minced
Juice of 3 or 4 limes
3 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons minced, fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons lemon pepper
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon cayenne
1 bay leaf
Accompaniments
Mild or medium salsa
Guacamole
Instructions
Place the meat in a Pyrex dish.
Combine all the marinade ingredients in a bowl, mixing well and then pour over the steaks.
Refrigerate the meat for 6 to 24 hours, turning occasionally.
Remove the meat from the refrigerator and drain off the marinade.
Bring the steaks to room temperature.
On an outdoor grill, grill meat to medium-rare.
Cut the steaks diagonally through the grain, into finger length strips.
Serve meat on a platter with tortillas and serving bowls of salsa and guacamole.
One of my first “real” jobs as a young man was working in a distribution center for a pharmaceutical company. I loaded and unloaded trucks, unloaded box cars and pulled orders, and I found the work to be enjoyable. I was the youngest employee in the place and the older women in the office would dote on me, which I also enjoyed immensely.
The general manager was a former college jock and I became friends with him and would play volleyball, basketball, and softball with him and his friends. After a softball game one summer I overheard him talking to one of his friends and he mentioned that the company we worked for was in trouble. He told his friend that he was afraid the DC where we worked was going to be shut down, and he didn’t want to move to North Carolina, where the company was headquartered.
I didn’t really think about it until I started noticing that the shipments we received weren’t as large, or coming as frequently, as they had in the past. A warehouse than had once overflowed with stock was starting to look barren. That’s when I recalled what the GM hold told his friend and I decided to start looking for another job.
I found a job working in a DC for a wholesaler and gave notice, but the GM tried to talk me into staying. He said I had a future with the company but I still decided to leave. Six months later the distribution center closed and the entire warehouse crew was let go. Some of those guys were in their 60s, so their only option was to take early retirement. I felt bad about not letting them know what was coming, but what if I’d been wrong? I was lucky to get out when I did.
Deserve the world
Tech hegemony name of NSA’s game — Zhang Zhouxiang
Had the Ministry of National Security not mentioned it on its official WeChat account, it would have been hard to imagine that the US National Security Agency, a key department of the US government, had invaded the server of China’s Huawei headquarters in 2009 and was monitoring it ever since.
This was at a time when the US had not even triggered trade frictions with China and “partnership” was the key word defining their bilateral relationship. That was also the time when the US was keeping a tab on allies and imagined enemies alike, such as by bugging the then German leader’s phone, as Edward Snowden revealed.
All these incidents once again prove that even when the US smiles at you, you cannot take it at face value. The US can use one hand for a handshake and the other to point a gun at the person it is shaking hands with.
It’s ironic that despite spying on the Huawei server for 14 years, the US still could not find any evidence of Huawei having “stolen” technologies from it. That is the biggest evidence that the NSA is not at all concerned about the United States’ national security, but about the US’ technological hegemony. Anything called “national security” for the US is based on the insecurity of others.
With this mentality, the US cannot become a worthy leader of the world. It can only arouse the whole world’s suspicion with its actions, as everyone knows that the US gained its current superpower status by cheating, stealing, hacking and blackmailing.
And such conspiracies won’t persist for long because the rest of the world cannot be overshadowed by the US forever. That Huawei has released its new smartphone model Mate 60 Pro, despite the sanctions, proves that the US’ blockade and surveillance don’t work.
It is time the US woke up from its own dreams.
China’s LASER Tech Achieves Yet Another MASSIVE Breakthrough
In a groundbreaking announcement, Chinese military scientists have unveiled a remarkable leap forward in laser weapon technology. The researchers claim to have developed an ingenious cooling system that eliminates a long-standing obstacle – the buildup of excess heat during the operation of high-energy lasers. This achievement, which could redefine the face of modern warfare, promises to enable these laser-based weapons to fire with unprecedented longevity and precision. Today’s episode will cover another breakthrough in China’s laser technology.
Wasting an entire tech budget on peripherals, with no computers to attach them to.
Several years ago, I worked at a school where the majority of teachers and the principal still used overhead projectors. I bought my own projector and used my own Macbook instead. When the principal saw what I was doing, she put me in charge of setting up Smartboards for every classroom.
Apparently, the year before I got there, the principal (an older woman) went to an education convention and got swindled into spending thousands of dollars on new Smartboards. Someone must have had a display where they showed all of the great things you can do with a Smartboard, so she used the school’s technology budget to buy one for each classroom.
They’d been delivered over the summer, before I was hired, and they were still boxed in the storage room when I got there.
Except she didn’t buy the computers or projectors to go along with them.
A Smartboard by itself is useless. It’s basically a large track pad. It requires a computer and a projector to work. The Smartboard is the cheapest part of the equation.
I got one up and running in my room, since I had my own laptop and projector. She was so excited that she had the janitor unbox and hang several others in other classrooms over a weekend, before I explained to her that they only worked when connected to a computer and a projector.
When I came to work on Monday, half of the classrooms looked like this:
They had nice, new Smartboards hanging there, completely useless.
Then I gave her an estimate for cheap laptops and projectors to get the other Smartboards up and running like the one in my room was.
She got mad at me. It’s the first time a principal ever actually raised their voice to me. She insisted that I could make the Smartboards work without buying extra parts, because the guy who sold her the Smartboards didn’t say anything about needing a computer or projector to go with them.
I think she was mad that she’d been ripped off. She spent literally the school’s entire tech budget on those Smartboards.
She raised her voice to me a few more times throughout the year, for leaving to get coffee on my lunch break (I’m an adult and I can do that), not keeping the students busy every possible second (I don’t believe in busy work), and not using the Smartboard in my room enough (It was a bigger pain to use it than it was worth). Basically, she micro-managed and treated me like a student, not a teacher. I left there after just one year. She ended up being forced into retirement after that year too. I suppose a lot of people complained about the way she treated the teachers, and pissing away the school’s money on pointless tech was the last straw.
Whatever your opinion may be about this man, Dan Bilzerian, he said something very true in an interview, and I would like many people to reflect on it.
In the Joe Rogan Podcast (the most famous and most listened-to podcast in the world), Rogan asked him the same question:
Joe: Hey Dan, for the people who are listening to us, and most of them won’t even make a quarter of the money you’ve made, do you think money brings happiness?
Dan Bilzerian: Money, Joe, brings satisfaction. Money can undoubtedly give you a lot of satisfaction, but never complete happiness.
When I go to a fancy restaurant, when I drive a brand new car, when I party at the best clubs, for me, that’s already normal.
But the day I can’t afford to eat at a restaurant of the same quality, or drive the latest car, or go partying, how do you think I’ll feel?
In my case, I raised the ‘satisfaction bar’ so high that I have to maintain this lifestyle forever because if I don’t, I get depressed.
Happiness, even if it sounds cliché, cheesy, or however you want to call it, comes from within, from your person. It doesn’t come from material things. Material things give you ‘satisfaction,’ but they will never give you happiness.
There’s always someone who says something like:
‘Money doesn’t bring happiness, but I’d rather cry in a Lamborghini.’
Now, let me ask:
Wouldn’t you rather smile from ear to ear in a Kia?
Regards.
If I Compare Both – CHINA is The Winner
China’s space program and Elon Musk’s SpaceX represent two major players in the rapidly evolving field of space exploration. In recent years, both entities have made significant strides in rocket development, pushing the boundaries of what is possible in terms of space travel. From the famed Falcon series to the proud and furious Long March family, both players have redefined space sector on their own terms.
The Russian military has launched small attacks along the whole frontline. A major effort is made near Andivka which yesterday was bombed to smithereens:
The headline reads “RF Army has delivered a blow of previously unseen might against the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU)”. What they are describing is an aerial bombing of Avdeevka, the heavily fortified Ukrainian town 14 kilometers away from Donetsk city, which is an urban center of more than a million inhabitants and capital of the Donbas oblast (region) of the same name. Donetsk city has been struck by missiles and artillery shells launched from Avdeevka on a daily basis from the time before the Special Military Operation, and with ever greater intensity during the SMO. Video images of destroyed homes and apartment buildings have appeared on Russian evening news together casualty figures and the testimony of victims.
The attack on Avdeevka came early in the morning when the Ukrainians were attempting to carry out a rotation of their troops. Eyewitnesses said that “the earth shook” in the whole area as a result of the bombing. … The bombing of Avdeevka today, like the reported destruction of a major Ukrainian command post by 1.5 ton bombs a couple of days ago, would suggest the “softening up” phase before a major ground offensive.
That something important was coming up could be seen it the recent Daily Reports by the Russian Ministry of Defense.
The ones put out on the 8th, 9th and 10th of October showed relatively few Ukrainian casualties (655, 630, 580) and a reduced counter artillery campaign with only 6, 7 and 8 Ukrainian guns hit on those days. It was a sign that something was coming up.
Today’s report, which includes the numbers from yesterday’s campaign against Andivka and other places show high Ukrainian casualty numbers (895) and hits on some 24 Ukrainian artillery systems.
The Ukrainians seem to fight almost exclusively on foot. Losses of armored fighting vehicles have become rare. Today’s report reports hits on only 7 armored combat systems (including tanks) but also hits on 35 transport vehicles, i.e trucks and pick-ups.
Yesterday’s evening summary by Strana.news described the bad state most of Ukraine’s brigades are in (machine translation):
Reports of the beginning of massive attacks by the Russian army coincided with the appearance of an increasing amount of information about significant problems with the offensive potential of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
As we have already written, ex-adviser to the President’s Office Alexey Arestovich called on the Ukrainian command to go on the defensive and abandon the offensive, which, in his opinion, is hopeless with the current balance of forces.
Also in social networks, a video from a Ukrainian military man was distributed, who talks about problems in the “Guards Offensive” brigades due to heavy losses and poor organization.
“I communicate with different military personnel from different branches of the armed forces and, in principle, I understand that cp@ka is everywhere. But I did not expect that in the rampant “Offensive Guard” we will meet with those mistakes that even the most meaty brigades no longer make,” says a National Guard soldier in Tiktok.
Then he describes various problems in specific teams. Let’s list the main ones:
Platoon commanders in critical areas, including on the Zaporozhye front, are appointed junior lieutenants without military experience and knowledge.
Many fighters have not received sufficient training;
Coordination at the company and battalion level is almost nonexistent. Maximum-squads and platoons;
Huge losses – “three companies enter, only a few go back”;
“One village took an infantry company in a short period of time. 120 plus or minus people,” says the military man.
The Russian Federation has many times more forces and resources – “no matter how strong you are, you will be stupidly beaten by the crowd”;
In some cases, the assault fighters go on foot – 7 km in equipment for 35 kg.
Other reports have confirmed that the Ukrainian military has long lost its middle officer and NCO corps. Smart kids fresh from senior high school are leading platoons of men mostly in 30s or 40s and 50s. Brigade commanders give direct orders down to platoons because the staff of battalions and companies in between is no longer there.
The Ukraine lacks artillery. The Russian counter battery fire has become more and more intense.
The advantage the HIMARS systems with their 70 kilometer reach had given Ukraine is also gone. The U.S. delivered HIMARS systems, which previously had been positioned safely out of reach of Russian counter-battery fire, are now easy to reach targets.
Russia’s new versions of the Lancet kamikaze drone have destroyed Ukrainian fighter planes on the ground some 90 kilometer behind the frontline.
Smaller Russian First Person View (FPV) suicide drones now come with thermal night vision.
It is pretty much over for the Ukrainian military. The only sensible action it can now take is to shorten the frontline and to retreat behind some natural defense barrier like the Dnieper river.
However, Zelensky still talks of victory and is unlikely to order such a move.
Posted by b on October 11, 2023 at 15:00 UTC | Permalink
On May 7th, 2013, Clevelander Charles Ramsey sat down in his living room, and was about to eat a Big Mac when he heard screaming coming from outside…
He opened his front door, and realized that it must have been coming from his next door neighbor’s house, so he walked over. But instead of his neighbor, Ariel, he saw a woman in the doorway clutching a child. She said that they needed to get out of the house, but that the door was secured and they were trapped. Although hesitant to break his neighbor’s front door, Ramsey agreed, and together they kicked out the bottom panel. The woman and her daughter crawled through…
But that was just the beginning! The lady said that she had been trapped in the house for years and that there were other women still inside! She ran to a nearby house and called 911 while Ramsey did the same on his cell phone. Within minutes, police and press had swarmed the street. What was going on?
The woman’s name was Amanda Berry. She had been kidnapped by the owner of the house and kept inside for 10 years, where she and two other women, Michelle Knight and Gina DeJesus, were kept in dismal conditions and sexually abused. They were all rescued and reunited with their families after a decade. The kidnapper, Ariel Castro, was arrested minutes later at a nearby McDonald’s. The whole city of Cleveland, Ohio, was overjoyed to learn that the missing women had been found alive after so long, and the rescue made headlines across the world!!
Ramsey gave an iconic interview with a local news station, just minutes after the news broke, and it quickly went viral.
“I knew something was wrong when a little pretty white girl ran into a black man’s arms. Dead Giveaway. Something is wrong here.” – Charles Ramsey
His candid demeanor during such a stressful episode caught people’s attention. The Gregory Brothers recorded a song by remixing his statement. Mike Epps parodied his reaction. Drew Carrey, a fellow Clevelander, personally met with him. He was skyrocketing to fame but his big break came on Snoop Dogg’s show talk show.
Snoop Dogg received an audio recording of Ramsey’s 911 call. In it, the dispatcher asked for Ramsey’s phone number and Ramsey gave it, but whoever provided the audio did not mute or obscure it to protect Ramsey’s identity. Snoop and his guest decided to call the number themselves to congratulate him, and Ramsey picked up. But they also broadcast the number to the entire world!
Ramsey received an unbelievable amount of support and praise. From across the world many sent their thanks and Ramsey was absolutely overwhelmed by the attention. As more evidence came to light, Ramsey also had some choice words for Castro and described in graphic detail how he would exact revenge on him. Talks of a reward for Ramsey abounded. He even received several marriage proposals. When a news reporter asked how Ramsey felt about all the congratulatory phone calls and texts he was getting, he replied that he now wished he had paid for an unlimited phone plan, as he had exceeded his allotted data. He eventually solved this by throwing his phone into the Cuyahoga river.
McDonald’s — whom Ramsey had referenced in his viral interview and where Castro had been arrested — gave Ramsey tons of $50 Mcdonald’s gift cards. Ramsey gave them out to children and the homeless, and when McDonald’s heard about this, they stopped giving him gift cards.
Ramsey appeared on Anderson Cooper, wrote a memoir, and since then has sought to avoid the spotlight. He met with Amanda Berry in 2019 on the sixth anniversary of the rescue, and claims that he and Michelle Knight, now known as Lily Rose Lee, sometimes see each other when out walking because they live nearby.
As I was sitting on the beach with my friend Courtney, she turned to me and said, “You know, I really love Landon. I’m going to marry him. But, if he were to leave me, I would be okay.” They had been dating for four years and her boyfriend was asking her dad that summer if he could have her hand in marriage. They were very happy and comfortable together.
It was a stark contrast to my old roommate. In the four years I had known her, she had been single less than two weeks. Every time she became single, it had not been her choice. After each breakup, she had immediately gotten a new man within days. Eventually she settled with a guy who emotionally abused her. She had eventually caught him cheating more than three times and broken up with him, but her fear of being alone had driven her back into his arms after ten days. She married that guy.
Both of these girls are wonderful people who I enjoy hanging out with. But, they have one stark difference. Courtney is comfortable being alone. My old roommate is not.
Courtney dated her share of frogs but was always able to leave if things got bad. She liked being single and was comfortable with herself. So, she found a man perfect for her who added something amazing to her life. She settled for nothing less.
My old roommate stayed in abusive relationship after abusive relationship. Being single scared her, so she’d rather stay with someone who treated her badly than face the world alone. She will depend on someone else for her happiness for the rest of her life and they will consistently fail to provide it.
Being single taught me that you’re not ready to be in a relationship unless you’re truly happy and comfortable being single. If you don’t, you make yourself very vulnerable to abuse and a life of heartache.
Learn to be alone and to depend on yourself. Don’t date anyone before you date yourself. It is the most important basis of a healthy relationship.
Filipino Girls Get BRUTALLY HONEST
As the Philippines welcomes foreign tourists back for the first time since 2020, countless interested bachelors are arriving at the shores of Davao City specifically to find a Pinay to share their life with. Known around the world as amazing women, Filipinas entice foreigners to travel halfway across the globe just to guaranty a match through face to face interactions. As more men dream of romantic connections with Filipino women, solo travel to the magic city of Davao becomes a bucket list item for countless guys.
Davao City plays host to a couple dozen foreigners several times each year who arrive to meet Pinays in one on one introductions or during group speed dating events arranged by local matchmakers. Because dating in Davao remains a foreign affair for Philippine women seeking love beyond borders, foreign guys also interested in meeting Filipino girls are once again solo traveling to this magic city to try and guaranty a match among some of the most stunning ladies in the entire world.
Know to be ultra family oriented in nature, most Filipinas are seeking traditional family life with a good man who seeks the same. While many Western men begin to adopt alternative philosophies towards domestic dating like MGTOW or Red Pill, many are simply seeking a traditional wife or what they call a tradwife within these Red Pill or MGTOW circles. While most Filipino women fit what men use to describe their tradwife, it must be recognized that Pinays are also industrious and independent completely out of necessity in the Philippines.
Most Filipinas find the domestic dating scene in Davao City to be lacking, which leads many towards furthering their educations and/or careers to make a life for themselves. Because most Pinays will want to create a family of their own, dating beyond borders to establish a WMAF ( Western Male Asian Female) relationship becomes a focus for many who are seeking such a life. WMAF relationships in the Philippines have become quite common in cities like Davao where dating often feels like a foreign affair because of the expat population and constant foreign tourists who frequent the region.
While Filipino women dream of lasting connections with foreign men, the ability to guaranty a match in the Philippines via solo travel rather than making a Filipina dating app your cupid has become the go to method for guys wanting the same type of lasting relationships.
There are advantages to dating Filipinas in cities like Davao, where an overwhelming number of Asian women are wholly open to the idea of WMAF ( Western Male Asian Female) relationships. While most marriage minded Filipino men are already starting families by their early twenties, the vast majority of bachelors are single by choice. Because countless Pinays still seek to create a family of their own, dating beyond borders with visiting foreigners becomes the most practical way to achieve the dream of loving connections that can create such dynamics.
WMAF relationships are quite common in cities throughout the Philippines like Cebu, Davao or Manila. Because the majority of Filipino women are fluent English speakers, men who share this language are able to communicate well, which expedites the courtship process for many WMAF couples. As men venture into the Philippines specifically in search of the Filipina pea to their pod, cold approach in the street scenes of Davao can seem appealing, but the most serious Filipino women often find such interactions with strangers to be unappealing.
Sure, Filipinas may say hello to you in the street scenes of Davao if you initiate this interaction, but in the less savory parts of the city, these interactions rarely signal a woman interested in starting a lifelong loving relationship. In the interest of being able to guaranty a match during solo travel to Davao City, more men that ever are partnering with local matchmaking agencies to meet serious Pinays to achieve their dream of lasting connections with Asian women. Matchmakers in the Philippines commonly organize private speed dating events for Filipinas and visiting foreign men who have a stated purpose of finding lifelong love as the key motivation for attending these events.
During speed dating events in Davao, men meet over 100 single Pinays in a matter of hours, with only a couple dozen guys in attendance. The odds of meeting 100+ Filipinas in 4 hours via cold approach becomes less likely, especially when factoring in the pre-qualification process administered by matchmaking agencies like A Foreign Affair. Because more men than ever seek to guaranty a match with Filipinas, dating agencies play a crucial role in creating lasting connections via one on one introduction or the world famous speed dating events held in Cebu and Davao.
The longest recorded continuous firing of a weapon took place in 1963, when a group of British Army armorers decided to put the venerable Vickers machine gun to its most extreme test ever attempted. Having a stockpile of around 5 million obsolete .303 British rounds, they took turns continuously firing a single freshly-rebuilt Vickers for an entire week.
The men took 30-minute shifts operating the gun, with others shoveling the spent brass and bringing more ammo and cooling water, pausing only to reload and change worn-out barrels. Amazingly, in a week of non-stop firing, the gun never malfunctioned a single time, and a follow-up inspection found it to be within design specs in every parameter.
This hardly came as a surprise, as Vickers MG was already legendary for its reliability, having been continuously fired for over 24 hours on multiple instances during WWI. In one recorded instance in 1916, a British machine gun company of ten guns expended a million rounds over the course of 12 hours to suppress a German position, at the end using their own urine to cool the barrels after all available water was expended.
What to expect from Iran’s membership in BRICS
Friday, 25 August 2023 11:24 AM [ Last Update: Saturday, 02 September 2023 6:26 AM ]
Iran’s membership in the BRICS group of emerging economies is a significant national, regional and international development, which is important both to Tehran and BRICS members, including China and Russia.
In recent years, there has been a lot of focus on Iran’s membership in global political and economic organizations, institutions and groups in order to spur economic growth and provide a ballast in the face of geopolitical and structural changes.
BRICS has gained a special place in Iran’s foreign policy due to its increasing importance in the international political economy and geopolitical developments.
The Islamic Republic has good political relations with all five main members of the BRICS group consisting of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
Tehran is motivated by the international prestige, the geopolitical and geoeconomic linkage with the emerging world powers, and the regional and international status which joining BRICS can potentially bring in.
New economic partners are about to come out of the woodwork after membership in BRICS and access to new financial resources, technological findings, knowledge-based production methods in agriculture, food security and trade could enable Iran to better deal with the hobbling impact of sanctions.
BRICS is developing internal institutions for integration and increasing effective economic power in order to support development programs of its members and strengthen their regional and international position.
The establishment of financial institutions independent from Western institutions can be considered the most important success of BRICS in promoting convergence and its most important advantage in the new global economic structure.
Two financial institutions within BRICS are the pillars of the group’s power, which also offer opportunities for Iran.
The New Development Bank of BRICS is the most important economic pillar of BRICS, created with the aim of forging convergence among the members in the world economy.
The bank was established in 2014 with the initial authorized capital of $100 billion to finance infrastructure projects in BRICS countries and other emerging markets. It is headquartered in Shanghai, China.
According to the agreement, the bank “shall support public or private projects through loans, guarantees, equity participation and other financial instruments”.
Another key institution established with the aim of strengthening financial convergence among the members is the BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA).
It is a framework for the provision of support through liquidity and precautionary instruments in response to actual or potential short-term balance of payments pressures.
Although US financial sanctions make it difficult for Iran to access the resources of these two institutions, BRICS has adopted various methods under its de-dollarization scheme to provide loans and services to members, which can reduce the impact of the sanctions.
The New Development Bank uses methods such as providing loans in the national currency of BRICS powers, cryptocurrency and currency swaps.
Bear in mind that Iran’s integration into the BRICS economic framework is fraught with challenges as regards alignment with the economic policies, regulatory mechanisms and commercial laws and regulations of the main and new members.
Ensuring the coordination and synching of the domestic bureaucracy with BRICS institutions in areas such as customs, tariffs and investment regulations requires time and complex expert reviews.
Nevertheless, the geoeconomic benefits of the membership are so many that any misgivings are roundly misplaced.
As a full member, Iran would have closer economic relations with other member countries, which can gradually lead to increased business and investment opportunities.
This cooperation can include various sectors including energy, production, agriculture and technology and provide access to new markets and potential sources of foreign direct investment.
Joining BRICS would also give Iran the opportunity to diversify its economic partners beyond the current circle.
The BRICS countries have an overall population of more than 3 billion people, which potentially provides a vast consumer market for Iranian goods and services. This diversity would reduce Iran’s dependence on a limited set of business partners and increase its economic resilience.
Membership in BRICS also increases Iran’s regional influence and geopolitical position.
It enables the country to interact with emerging economies and have a say in shaping global economic and political affairs. In addition, Iran can actively participate in regional projects and contribute to the development of convergence in the region.
By becoming a member of BRICS, Iran would access the financial resources of the BRICS Development Bank (NDB) and the Contingent Reserve Arrangements (CRA) to fund the development of infrastructure, energy projects and other potential priority sectors.
This can help to solve part of Iran’s development needs and spur long-term economic growth, even though access to the resources of these institutions under sanctions would be difficult.
Iran is a large producer of oil and gas and its membership in BRICS can strengthen closer cooperation on energy security initiatives.
BRICS countries, especially China and Russia, have significant energy needs. They can potentially cooperate with Iran on energy exploration, production and infrastructure development. This cooperation would improve Iran’s energy sector and provide ways to diversify exports.
Meanwhile, BRICS countries stand out for their advances in technology and innovation in the developing world.
Iran’s membership in BRICS can facilitate the exchange of knowledge, carrying out joint research projects and technology transfer, which could enable the country to increase its technological capabilities and competitiveness in different sectors.
This can help Iran’s economic modernization and reduce technological gaps with other countries.
Iran is facing the most draconian US sanctions, which has limited the country’s access to global markets and financial systems. Joining BRICS can potentially give Iran more leverage in international negotiations and potentially reduce the effects of some sanctions.
Moreover, the collective power and influence of the BRICS countries may provide a platform to defend Iran’s economic interests and reduce trade restrictions.
BRICS countries have forged increasing cooperation on agriculture and food security. Iran, with its diverse agricultural sector, can benefit from the best methods and joint initiatives through knowledge exchange with the aim of increasing agricultural productivity, production and distribution of foodstuff.
This cooperation can help Iran’s food security goals and strengthen its agricultural sector.
Finally, Iran’s membership in BRICS can activate the Russia-Iran-India corridor, facilitating exchanges among the member countries, and provide access to Eurasian resources along the Belt and Road Initiative stretching from China to Russia up to Central Asia and beyond.
In 29 Days The Internet Will Change FOREVER
Through increased legislation such as the Online Safety Bill and Google’s own repression of new emerging competitors, independent media and free speech has a fight on its hands.
“Can I trust you?” she asked me quietly as we walked in the school grounds.
She didn’t even wait for me to reply.
“My father was diagnosed with cancer. Two years ago. Of the prostate. He was under treatment since then, but these days, he’s been getting worse. And we don’t even have that much money, we’re a simple family.”
Sarah was the ‘weird girl’ in the class. Or that’s how the others saw her.
She was always energetic. So much that you’d think she was high on caffeine every day. She had a prominent personality, something so sun-bright that you couldn’t help but notice. And being talkative and making loud, obnoxiously lame jokes were a fundamental part of her.
Sarah was just so full of life. The fullest you can be. The fullest I’ve ever seen someone.
I think that’s what began, slowly but surely, irritating others in a way.
She would laugh at her own awkward jokes and people would roll their eyes. She’s so random and so extra, they’d say.
She became the class clown.
One day, during the sports class, the conversation written above took place.
And I couldn’t help but silently wonder: how/why was she so buoyant and full of life all the time?
A second later, the tone of her voice shifted.
“You wanna know why I’m so cheerful all the time?”
It’s like she read my mind, I swear. I looked her in the eye, then quickly looked away.
But what she said left me open-mouthed because it was completely different than what I expected.
“You know, I believe that you have to create what you want for yourself. As I see it, everyone has to create their own happiness. There is no other way out. I have so many things to be sad about. But that is exactly what I won’t be. I just work like that,” she shrugged.
And suddenly, just like that, I saw her in a whole new light. And I’m not even exaggerating. It was literally like depicted in the movies.
In fact, I felt guilty, on behalf of my class, that we’d been so utterly stupid.
Not to be dramatic or anything, but Sarah taught me things that I have not learned from anyone else.
I’m not gonna lie and say that since that moment, I’ve been the happiest person alive. I haven’t. It’s a slow process. But I see myself getting there very soon.
Sarah reminded me that one has to create their own happiness. You can’t rely on life or its circumstances to do that for you. She was a living example of the quote: “When life knocks you down, smile and stand up taller than ever before.”
China learnt that thinking that it should share a loaf of bread with the west is unnecessary and unappreciated. Well perhaps the west is not matured enough. So why not have the entire loaf of bread themselves.
So why not just produce the very best in everything for China and 7.5 billion earthlings and let the west decide if it wants to be up to date and advance. Or suffer a triple digit inflation and stay backwards.
Like what they say one don’t know how fortunate they are till they lost it for good. It’s a shame. For the U.S. China is willing to be a good partner to help bring about a better world but the U.S. chose its own demise.
The U.S. behaviour befits the 247 years old hoodlum mafia that they are and China need to let the U.S. grow out of puberty. Sure China prefers to work with the west and the U.S. and it will do better with them. But without some say 50–70% of worlds 30% of the market it will still do rather well.
US may need to make a million adjustments just to stay afloat. But heck. That U.S. their problem. It is their choice. They can de-risk on each other for all we care. Essentially the U.S. has decoupled with the world.
My former supervisor came to my wedding and told guests that she felt terrible, but when I got home from my honeymoon, she was going to have to fire me.
I was working at a staffing agency, and my supervisor Snowflake (for her appearance and mental condition) came to my wedding as my guest and the date of my fiance’s friend.
During the reception, she told multiple people that as much as she looooved me, she was going to have to fire me when I got back from our honeymoon. We were gone for a week, and knowing what we would be facing when we got back, her date called my husband and told him the bad news.
Talk about landing the balloon with a crash! At least I could walk into the office the next day armed and forewarned. They transferred me to another department, she was reprimanded, and within months was transferred to another office. I will never trust people like that again, and I feel for anyone who had to be involved with her in the future.
THE DURAN AND BRIAN BERLETIC ON UKRAINE’S DEFEAT SENDS NATO INTO PANIC
I will answer from my personal experience. I do trauma anesthesia and every now and then I will get someone in who has survived a shoot out with the police. I usually talk to the police during the case since they are waiting to hear if the prisoner will survive or not so they can file the paperwork. The truth is they miss more.
Last one was a murder suspect who they rolled up on as he was exiting his car. He pulled out a gun and they unloaded on him. The police expended more than 350 rounds. He was hit 3 times. One hit on the hand which took off 2 fingers, one hit in the meat of the thigh and the one that took him down was a hit directly between the eyes. But he was a lucky SOB. The police were shooting 9 mm. The shot that hit him between the eyes bounced off his skull, traveled under the scalp and exited near the rear of his head. That one knocked him out and probably saved his life.
Shootouts are a very stressful situation. The target is hiding behind obstructions. He is shooting back at you. And the distances are more likely to be 25 to 50 feet. The adrenalin is running high. Even in a perfectly comfortable range with a paper target it is almost impossible to put in precision shots at 50 feet with a hand gun. That is a pretty typical outcome in that type of shooting.
The scary part of all that is that there are 340 plus bullets traveling down range which can strike anywhere.
Unless one is blind, deaf or dumb you can conclude otherwise. Of course BBC, CNN, Fox & Sky News sing a tune that US are popular are needed or or respected. But it is no different from Nazi propaganda selling the Aryan nation and the Nazi’s view on Jews!
But let us stick to the facts. Zero nation in Latin America and Caribbean supported the U.S.stance on Russia! And that is the U.S. closest neighbours.
Take the Beijing Olympics boycott. In 2020. After a year of shuttling around the world. Convincing nations to boycott China and billions invested to demonised China. Only 5 nations agreed to withdraw uninvited officials from the games! Just 40 years ago the U.S. wanted to do likewise in the Moscow Olympics and 65 nations joined them!
US influence? It us a thing of the past. Good riddance Uncle Sam.
Originally Answered: What have you assumed was exaggerated until you experienced it yourself?
Expensive paper towels.
What the hell, Bounty? You think you’re worth twice as much as my grocery store-brand paper towels?
Oh, you’ve got “super-absorbent pockets” that can soak up that entire sippy cup’s worth of juice and then still have room for the drips the other leading paper towel left behind?
Riiiiiiight.
The “quicker, thicker picker-upper”?
Screw your fancy camera tricks and stupid, gimmicky pockets! I’m not going to fall for your crafty advertising and excessive -er-ending tagline!
Oh, what a fool I was.
Enter: the Infant.
Through drips and spills and mud and snot, the infant could take out an entire store-brand roll in a single afternoon. My discount paper towels may as well have been tissue paper against the sticky onslaught of a lunchtime feeding. Spit and mucus passed right through those weak sheets, so much so that I would have been better off just wiping my daughter’s mouth with my own hand.
Oh, “just double them over,” you say?
Ha! The acrobatic, one-handed tear needed to secure a double sheet (while holding a leaking child) would simply rip a corner sliver from those generic towels, leaving the bulk of the sheet flapping wildly off the roll and onto the floor.
In a delirious panic, I’d resort to mummifying the child and letting the mess soak through, sheet after sheet, until she was just dry enough to slip a new shirt on.
There had to be a better way…
I finally caved and bought a roll of the more expensive Bounty brand—they were on sale. I figured maybe I could stick my daughter into one of the “super-absorbent pockets” and just let her eat from there like a quilted, drooling baby kangaroo.
Dear sweet sanitary Jesus.
Those paper towels are amazing.
Yes, they can soak up the sippy cup juice, and the snot, and the milk, and the spaghetti sauce, and the toilet water on the floor, and—why is there toilet water on the floor?!—and the strange brown mess that probably isn’t that, but you’re not going to get close enough to smell it.
All of it.
And double sheets? Ha! Only if you want to clean out a frying pan right off the stove because those babies can insulate like a fiend when you need to wipe hot grease out of a pan.
Bounty paper towels are freaking magical. I buy them all the time now—though I still wait for sales. They are worth every penny, and they are every bit as amazing as the attractive hand models on the commercials imply they are.
On December 9, 1914, Thomas Edison faced probably the biggest test of his life when a huge fire destroyed his lab in New Jersey.
The fire destroyed more than half of the buildings in the laboratory complex, including many original records, prototypes, and valuable research work.
The damage was estimated to be around $7 million dollars at the time, which is equivalent to over $180 million today.
Insurance only covered $2.3 million.
How would you react if your entire life’s work went up in flames at 67 years of age?
History tells that on the night of the fire, as Edison calmly watched his life’s work go up in flames, he told his son Charles, “There is a great value in disaster. All our mistakes are burned up. Thank God we can start anew.”
Edison wasted no time in rebuilding. In just a few weeks after the fire, parts of the lab were operational again. Within about a year, most of the facilities were fully reconstructed.
To answer your question, what is the best way to deal with failure at everything in life?
We should learn from Edison…
Accept that failure and setbacks are just part of life’s journey.
Be persistent, don’t ever give up. If we ever stop trying, that’s when we let real failure take over our lives.
As Edison put it, “We’ve just got rid of a lot of rubbish. Although I am over 67 years old, I’ll start all over again tomorrow.”
Life will always throw challenges our way. But like Edison, we can choose to get back up and start building again.
“Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.” – Thomas Edison
When you are feeling unproductive, don’t allow yourself to do anything. This means no entertainment devices, no books, nothing. It is very boring. But if you make this rule and allow yourself only to do only one thing, you will find yourself walking the plank and doing that very task.
It feels like putting yourself in time out. But you’ll find your task beats the despair of boredom.
Meditation is also extremely effective if you can’t get focused. When I’m most distracted, I close my eyes and focus on not allowing in any thoughts. It is in those moments that mental silence is most difficult. My head is full of chaotic energy and thoughts that gust and jerk around inside of me. But in the end, I feel still and focused. I am prepared to work. Start with 5–10 minutes. A little bit goes a long way.
Shoplifting was a regular occurrence at the auto parts store where I worked. Headlights were the most common thing people stole. At least once per day we’d find an empty package for a headlight on the shelf.
That’s how a lot of people shoplift, by the way… Just open the package and take the product. Chances are, if there is some anti-theft tag on it, the tag is in the package, not on the product itself.
Also, the fancy retail word for product loss through shoplifting and internal stealing is “shrink.” Now you know. My store had a pretty high “shrink” rate, because the neighborhood around the store wasn’t all that great. The last time I visited that store, about five years after I quit working there, they’d finally wised up and put most of the products behind glass displays, so you had to ask a worker to get them for you.
We’d catch shoplifters sometimes. They’d usually get loud and try and cause a scene, but then leave. None of them ever got physical. They also frequently worked in pairs… one person distracting the counter guy, while the other walked around the store and cut things out of their packaging and put them in his pockets. I got good at spotting that scam eventually, and would stare at the guy walking the aisles until he got the hint that I was on to him, and they’d leave.
But my best story was the Great Heist of 2008. That’s what I called it when I was telling my coworkers about it after it happened.
I was the opening manager that day. It was six in the morning and there were just two of us there. That was the minimum number of people we had to have working in order to be open. The first few hours every day were always uneventful, especially during the week.
This particular day, a guy came into the store and said he needed antifreeze for his car. We looked up the type he needed. He said he needed four gallons. I showed him where they were on the shelf, and he immediately complained about the price. The type his car needed was expensive… like $20 a bottle, if I remember correctly. He left the store without them.
But he didn’t go far… just to his car. He drove up next to the door, left his car running, ran inside, grabbed four gallons, dashed out the door without paying, and sped off, tires squealing and everything.
Except he grabbed the wrong thing. He stole four gallons of washer fluid:
Not even the good washer fluid either. The cheap stuff that we gave away for free sometimes. It was like $1.25 per bottle, max. This guy made off with $5 worth of, basically, tap water with a little alcohol in it.
I didn’t even fill out a report. To be honest, I felt kind of bad for the guy. I hope he didn’t put it in his radiator. That would be two boneheaded mistakes in a single day.
Unbreakable Friendship
U.N. approves invasion of Haiti, US forces already there
Redacted has confirmed that the U.S. has special forces inside of Haiti as the U.N. is set to approve an invasion. The United Nations will vote today on the United States’ request to invade Haiti with Kenyan troops. The U.S. says that a military invasion is necessary to “conduct joint security support operations as it works to counter gangs and improve security conditions in Haiti.” The force will help secure “critical infrastructure sites and transit locations such as the airport, ports, and key intersections.” The people of Haiti have been pushing back against this rhetoric and begging the United States to stay out of their politics. Redacted correspondent Dan Cohen brings us the story.
There are currently two Foxconn situations regarding India. One is iPhone production and one is a project to build semiconductors.
iPhone production in India is below the output volume and quality demanded by Apple. This year’s production in India will sold only in India and maybe in some other Asian countries. Foxconn will seek to improve the production in future. For now China will remain the primary production location.
Foxconn has broken off a JV with Vedanta on a project to build semiconductor chips in India. Foxconn decided end plans after delays by the Indian government to approve incentives for the project.
Foxconn has operated in India before and left after a few years. It knows the business situation there. It likely is aware of other prospective projects that were to receive government incentives by India that led to years of foot dragging, and decided there are other opportunities. Meanwhile India will look to attract others interested in the project.
It’s the first time this year that you are going on an actual holiday.
You booked the ticket months in advance, and have been preparing for this trip for weeks.
Today is finally the day on which you leave.
You arrive at the airport earlier than you need to, get your luggage checked in and are in front of the gate, ready to go, 2 hours in advance, when you hear this over the announcement:
“Flight 206 to Honolulu has been cancelled. We apologize for the inconvenience. Have a nice day.”
Your heart sinks into your chest.
That was your flight.
You lean back in the chair you were sitting in, stare up at the ceiling and take a deep breath.
Then you pull out your cell phone, grab your carry-on and start walking.
On your way to the information desk you check various’ other flights, check hotels in the area, and when you get to the information desk you ask about alternative, last-minute routes.
Within 20 minutes you have an alternative booked, have gotten your ticket refunded, and are ready to go.
This is the difference between those that will reach success and those that won’t.
The key indicator of those that will be successful later is that they do not let their situation stop them.
They find a way, are solution oriented, and will act a hundred times more often than they will complain.
Stop complaining about your situation and stop focusing on the problem. And look at what you can do now instead.
WW2 From the German Perspective (Full Documentary) | Animated History
Texas Ranch-Style Taco Salad
Cool Ranch Taco Salad
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients
1 head lettuce
1 onion
1 (16 ounce) can Ranch-style beans
1 package Fritos Corn Chips
2 avocados (ripe but not too soft)
2 tomatoes
1 pound Cheddar cheese, grated
1 bottle Catalina dressing
1 pound ground beef or turkey
2 tablespoons lime or lemon juice
Instructions
Sauté ground beef; drain well and set aside to cool.
Tear lettuce into pieces.
Dice tomatoes and onion.
Grate cheese.
Drain beans.
Break corn chips into smaller pieces.
Chop avocado and sprinkle with lemon juice, lightly tossing to coat.
Ability-track students into separate classrooms, starting at around fifth grade.
The frustration for teachers usually isn’t from an underperforming student alone; it’s from underperforming students in the same class, at the same time, as average and over-performing students.
Underperforming (the more PC term is “struggling”) students often take longer than average to learn the same concepts as their peers, and/or require different teaching methods. All of that is fine and easy for a teacher to do, if students like that were all in the same classroom at the same time, with no classmates who were too different from them, learning-style wise.
I have the same issue with my English classes every year. I always begin each year with three days’ worth of lessons on proper comma usage when writing, because so many students struggle with that. About 25% of the students understand how to use commas after the first day of lessons. Another 50% of them understand the concept well enough by the end of the third day.
But about 15% of students need longer than three days to get the concept, and 10% of them will never get it, no matter how long I spend on it. So, what’s a teacher to do? Bore the smart kids? Frustrate the struggling students by leaving them in the dust? Or aim for the middle and hope for the best?
Of course, is all of the smart kids were in one class, all of the average students in another, and all of the strugglers in another, I could spend as much time as I wanted on each concept, without worrying about boring anyone or leaving anyone in the dust. And I could use lesson plans tailored specifically to each group’s learning style.
The classes wouldn’t even have to have even numbers. I can easily teach 50 students at a time, if they’re the “average” students, while teaching smaller classes of advanced and struggling students.
There are a lot of reasons why separating students by ability isn’t popular these days. I’m not saying that they’re good reasons, or that I agree with them. I’m just saying that there are reasons that exist.
Still, it would help de-frustrate teachers to have fewer mixed-ability classes, and more mono-ability ones.
That was me. I worked for a biotech firm that was cutting costs. I was a corporate recruiter. People were being laid off. My only HR colleague left because he had to do all the firing as the big boss didn’t want to do the dirty work, he was also never in the office. That left me having to fire the employees which I hated doing but there was no one else to do it.
I had to fire the finance manager, it was year-end and we had to do merit raises and bonuses. The payroll manager didn’t know to calculate the merit increases based on the allocated budget and bonuses. The company was going to ask Ernst & Young to calculate this but the CEO rejected this as the cost was enormous. The CFO didn’t know how to calculate this so he asked me to calculate this.
this task can be done manually but it would have taken weeks as there were over 200 employees. I downloaded ADP salary data and created an Excel template using formulas to allow scenario analysis as there were lots of changes. (fighting between managers on merit and bonuses) This took a whole week but I completed it on time to pay the employees.
It was yearend and I had to fire most of the salespeople, the new sales manager cleaned house. After I fired the last person my boss called me in to fire me. He said sorry we have to cut costs, you’re a great recruiter but we won’t be hiring anyone next year.
Well, this was the first time in my life to get fired. I was very upset but luckily I found a good job in 2 weeks and I was working. A month later I get a call. They had lost key employees in the IT department and had struggled to find anyone. They wanted me to help. I had started a side business – a staffing agency so I said I will work on commission which they agreed. In 45 days I completed 2 searches and billed my former employer 45K. This took about 40 hours of my time. The fee is 20% of the annual base salary. I made more money that year than any other year.
They wanted to hire me back but I was upset that they fired me in the first place so I did not go back.
At the end of the year, they called me to ask me how to use the spreadsheet that I created. No one could figure out the formulas to change the parameters.
I said no, why don’t you call Ernst & Young?
An unfiltered conversation on why I live in china now, what china is like for indians, college, etc
“Thank you for sharing your insights. I agree with you, China is much safer for walkability and touring. I stayed 1 year in China and nobody ever gave me any problems and everyone was so hospitable and friendly. India tends to be more lawless in many ways compared to China. I still love India though! Jai Hind”
When I was working as an engineer during the 1990’s I spent most of my time living in mobile homes. These flimsy boxes were perfect for my lifestyle of hustle and layoff, and move to another city.
But, gosh, the mobile home complexes that we found ourselves in, were inhabited with some very ill-mannered people.
One time, when I lived in “West Elizabeth, PA” we had a mobile home at the edge of the mobile home community, and there at 9am every weekend, this little 13 year old boy would go around and around and around my home on his dirt bike. Only around my home. No other homes. Just mine.
Those things were noisy, and I couldn’t figure out why he chose my home to endlessly circle.
One day, I met his mother.
She said, “Oh, I thought no one lived there. Do you have a problem with him riding around your home?”
Well yeah.
DUH!
We had a few words and he stopped. But not until I was really upset and angry over the non-stop noise and the endless feeling of living in the God-damn middle of a freeway.
So many people are inconsiderate.
Partly because they are rude, and partly because they are stupid. Though drugs might play a role…
Couple of years back, I was having a conversation with an Indian origin entrepreneur in Silicon Valley who is making quite lot of innovative products. It is an early stage company. So, my conversation was about the possibility of starting his firm’s manufacturing units in India. He said something insightful
“I change my product designs quite often. And I would need rapid prototyping abilities to execute my business effectively as it is an evolving field. I make a circuit design, upload the specs to a firm in Shenzen, pay the money. Within four days the prototype is at my place in Palo Alto. All processes can be done online. Imagine doing this in India. Unless you are a Samsung or LG which has a massive team to handle all these customs, import export stuff with tons of paperwork, you will end up spending ages to do this in India. Shenzen is a one-stop ecosystem for anything electronic in the world. The supply chains and distribution mechanisms are super efficient. I don’t think India will ever reach there”
After this conversation, I’ve had multiple conversations with small and large players. Small players lament about the customs, import – export processes in India. Large firms crib about the absence of supply chain base of input for manufacturing. Our metrics of measuring ease of business is horribly skewed towards the efficiencies of business for a large player like Apple or Samsung or say a Honda. We don’t focus on making things easy for small firms like the one which I mentioned . Unless we crack that part, we’ll never be able to build a true ecosystem like Shenzen thats attractive for the large corporations
Steak in a Bag
steak in a bag
Ingredients
1 cup egg bread crumbs
1 (2 to 3 pound) top sirloin steak, cut 2 1/2 inches thick
4 tablespoons butter, softened
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 garlic clove, crushed
2 teaspoons seasoned salt
2 1/2 teaspoons seasoned pepper
1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
Instructions
Prepare egg bread crumbs; set aside. Remove excess fat from steak.
In a small bowl, mix butter, oil, garlic, seasoned salt and seasoned pepper until blended. Spread on all sides of steak.
Mix bread crumbs and cheese. Press into butter mixture on steak, coating steak well.
Place steak in brown grocery bag. Fold end over and secure with paper clips. At this point steak may be refrigerated several hours.
Before cooking, bring steak to room temperature.
Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Place bag on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes. For medium rare steak, increase oven temperature to 425 degrees F and bake 15 minutes longer, a total of 45 minutes. For medium-well steak, reduce heat from 425 degrees F to 375 degrees F and bake 5 minutes longer before removing from oven, a total of 50 minutes.
Remove steak from bag. Let stand for 5 minutes before carving into thin slices.
NIGER COUP: JUBILATION IN NIGER AS 400 FRENCH SOLDIERS LEFT NIGER IN PEACE THIS WEEK. NOT BY WAR.
I worked in Veterinary medicine for more than 36 years and we always dealt with some real doozies!
We had a lady come in with a chow for regular vaccines and after she signed in, she sat on the bench waiting to be seen. One of my techs walked over to her with a clipboard and pen in her hands to get some information. While she stood there speaking with the woman, her dog came over (he had been straining at the leash trying to get out the door) and with no warning (not even a growl) grabbed hold of her hand with his teeth and began to try and rip her arm off! He shook his head, bit harder and dragged her to the floor!
Instead of trying to get the dog off of her, the woman began screaming at us for abusing her dog as we tried to break the dog free of my tech’s hand and 3 of us were bit trying to get her loose!!
Instead of an apology for owning an aggressive dog and not restraining it when she came in, the woman screamed at us that ‘”You people had no right to attack my dog like that and it’s your own fault for walking up to my dog!”.
My tech ended up with 4 broken bones in her hand and a massive infection that put her in the hospital for 4 days, and in the end, the woman actually had the nerve to file a lawsuit claiming animal abuse against our hospital. She wanted more than $25,000 in emotional distress!
We shut the hospital down on the day of the trial (there was NO WAY we were going to settle) and every staff member who had been involved was there to testify.
In the end, the woman was forced to pay all court costs and lawyer fees, the cost of the medical treatment for every person who was injured, the cost of shutting down the hospital to come to court and was given a fine by Animal Control for having an aggressive dog. She was also told that should the dog ever bite someone again, not only would the dog be put down, but she could be arrested and jailed for having a known aggressive animal in her home and not properly containing it.
I Live Better In Thailand Than I Did In The U.S. – Here’s How Much It Costs | Relocated
To those who say he’s spending too much — not all digital nomads are poor. This guy’s a high earner, and by spending a few thousand he’s living a lifestyle that would typically be accessible to only multi-millionaires in the US or Europe.
A day after reports claimed that Germany was considering a ban on parts made by Chinese manufacturers Huawei and ZTE in its 5G networks, Beijing has responded. The Chinese embassy in Berlin said the country will not stand by idly if the German government goes ahead with the proposal.
“If the German government really decides to move in this direction without proving that Chinese products pose a security threat to Germany, we will not stand by idly,” the embassy was quoted as saying.
“Should Germany unjustifiably exclude Chinese companies, this would not only be a violation of the principle of fair competition but would also harm Chinese companies and Germany itself,” it added.
What has Germany proposed?
Germany’s interior ministry has chalked up a proposal under which the said Chinese companies will be eliminated from the country’s “core network” as part of a “de-risking” strategy. The ministry is expected to submit its proposal to the cabinet next week.
Apart from issuing a full ban on the new parts made by Chinese companies, the German government will also extend the ban on those parts that have already been installed. It wants to start by phasing out parts made by Huawei and ZTE in Germany’s “access and transport network”.
My doctor noticed that I had lost weight. “Are you on a diet?” No. “Having any eating issues? “ Sometimes meat doesn’t go down. “We’d better look.” This was April-may, 2014. Gastroenterologist did an Endoscopy. No warning, “You have Esophagael Cancer, you have an Oncology appointment tomorrow.” Chemo and radiation started almost immediately. They told me not to look on the internet at the statistics, so I did. 95% don’t make it 5 years. The stories were pretty grim. I sold my milling machine, lathe, TIG welder and a couple of old Honda mini bikes, if I was going tits up, I didn’t need some scammers trying to rip off my wife when I was dead and gone. Chemo and radiation were pretty straight forward and I didn’t really have any issues, I continued to work while I was getting treated. CT Scans, PET Scans, Xrays, things improved inside. August 18, 2014, 6am, I went into surgery for a gastroesophagectomy, removal of most of my esophagus and part of my stomach. Up to this point, I had lost 70 lbs in about 5 months. The surgery was really rough, and I couldn’t eat for 3 days after I woke up, then it was cottage cheese and tomato soup for about 2 weeks. I was in the hospital for 15 days, 7 in ICU. I’ve had eating issues since then (coming on 4 years), and it was 3 years before I could eat a steak. I’m back up to about 190 lbs (from 158 at the low), it takes me about 3 hours to eat a meal, but my boss and the people at work, work with me, I’m usually eating all the time. But I can only eat about 1/4 or 1/3 of the amount of food I used to eat, and very little meat, food hangs up. I’m also susceptible to aspirating (inhaling) food into my lungs, which makes me really susceptible to bacterial pnuemonia, which I’ve had at least 1 each year since surgery. All CTScans and PETScans have been negative, my doc says, “Next time if (when) the scan is clear, we’ll call it done.”
But I ain’t dead.
Life has changed considerably. I very seldom eat in restaurants any more. Sometimes I have to eat standing up, something inside seems to get pinched off when I sit down and eat. I don’t sleep as well as I used to. My doctor seems to feel I’m one of the 5% that makes it (she said the actual number is about 15% now, the first numbers I read were old stats). As far as attitude goes, I don’t worry about things any more. I just roll with it and try to enjoy myself. I’ve gotten another lathe and welder, looking for a milling machine, hopefully I’ll be making parts for a good long time.
Chinese Tech Firm’s Groundbreaking Achievement 5nm Chips Made Without Lithography Machines
I recently was released from an Alabama prison. I spent two years in prison. I was sent there when I was 17, I am 19 now. The Alabama prisons are a horrible place. I was a sheltered child growing up. When I was 17 my father forced me to steal from some people because we didn’t have any money. I did not want to do it, my father forced me to. I begged and pleaded with him. I used to love to play video games. I haven’t now played games in years, since I was probably 15. That part inside of me sort of died. I was and am still tall and kind of thin.
The first place I went, was one of the worst places, the juvenile wedge in the Mobile metro jail. A wedge holds eight cells, and is supposed to only hold 2 juveniles per cell/per two bunks. But there were sometimes up to 4 people per cell, forcing kids to sleep on the mats on floor and right near the toilet. The 16 and 17 year olds in Alabama jails are horrible and the most violent of all inmates. I can look back and understand the readers thoughts, they probably are curious to know how age 15-17 year olds could be so violent. But, Alabama, if you have actually visited, is a very rough place, especially the projects. I was in this jail with the teens who were the ones that committed the worst crimes, 1st degree robberies, murders, arson, theft, rape and molestation.
I was the only white boy. They always attempted to steal from me and rob me, and literally terrorize me, throwing piss on me, or spitting in my drinking cup. They let the inmates fill up the other inmates drinking cups. The first week there, I bought a $20 phone card, and when I came back to my cell the black kids were waiting for me in there, predators. They had put a towel over the cell’s only light, to darken the cell, so the guards couldn’t see what was about to happen. And they surrounded me once I had walked back into the cell. I told them I would not give them the phone card, I actually intimidated them. I was grabbed from behind, and put into a choke hold, then I blacked out. I woke up from underneath the steel metal desk with blood dripping down the side of my face. The phone card was gone.
After that, I spent an entire year in a cell by myself, because I had to be separated from them. Throughout that amount of time, I saw over one hundred fights, and was sleep deprived quite a lot. The juveniles would scream and yell and cuss each other out ALL the time. They were animals. They would talk about the most hateful, vile things, and how ‘gangster’ they were, drug dealing, robbing and killing. It was utterly saddening. Especially at night, they would beat on the metal over and over and over, and rap, all of them together. (In no way am I racist. Nor prejudice towards a certain taste of music, I like rap myself sometimes.)
During the time I was in jail, I heard news about my father. Months later, a Correctional Officer actually was the one to give me news that my father had been arrested himself. He had stolen from more people, the same exact way he had made me do it. And was in jail. he would finally pay for what he had done to me. But, there are no laws protecting kids from what their parents force them to do, sadly, Quite a horrible thing for the legal system to do to kids.
The juvenile wedge was located right next to the suicide wedge. The loudest wedge in the entire 2000+ jail. That is where they put the drunks, the crazy psychopaths who had just murdered their whole family, and even more nutjobs. One man gouged his father’s eyes out with a spoon.(I can reference that, as well.) They would beat constantly and scream and moan all night long. I remember specifically the one’s who would never stop beating on the clear plexiglass walls of the suicide cells. They were in there naked, (all of them). At one time I saw my own father in there, after he had gotten jumped in another wedge and his nose broken and both eyes completely blackened. They put him in their for “protection”. I remember hearing the guards running in there and beating the hell out of those people, and hearing the inmates scream. I was right next to those cells. I lost lots of sleep over the constant noise, BANG BANG BANG. BANGING over and over and over, for hours, all night. It was just like a lunatic asylum.
I did read a lot of the christian bible, when I actually believed in that kind of stuff. And other books as well, It was my only solace then. And learning, I yearned to read and learn. I was constantly a target with the black people, because I was a white boy.
I was deeply miserable, and so I got the doctors to finally give me sleep medicine after many months, “Remerons”, which made me feel like I was slow when I took them, but sleepy. They took a very long time to wear off. I started to slide them in the inside of my mouth when the nurse would give them to me, and I would spit them out when I got back to my cell, And hide them in a hole in my inch thick mat. I had no pillow, just a wool blanket. Before I went to prison and was waiting in limbo in jail, I thought there was a chance that I might be sent to prison. So over a long amount of time, I started to collect those sleeping pills just in case. So I could protect myself, if I was given a long amount of time in prison or whatever.
Things got more miserable, I stopped a young black kid from committing suicide in my cell at one point. I turned 18 in jail. After that, I mixed in with the adults. I finally received my time, It was two more years… and I would be going to prison. I couldn’t do it anymore. I was utterly miserable and sad, And I lost the will to want to be alive. I wanted peace, just once in my life. If you call death peace. One night I took all the remerons I had collected, I first waited for my cellmates to begin playing cards, and then I took around 100 of them, and heated up some hot water, and crushed up some of the pills and swallowed them all down.
It was the worst, bitter disgusting taste. I still have a hard time swallowing pills if I ever have to chew them. I wrote a note telling my mother I loved her and wished I could hug her. No one knows the truth or what really happened. No one cares to know. I hadn’t seen her in 8 years. I got up on my top bunk and rolled over on my side on my mat. And laid there. I prayed to God, asking to be with him, I commend to you my spirit “Lord”. I was completely terrified of going to hell, but I still did it, I was in so much misery. 30 minutes later my body was almost paralyzed. And my body was pulsing and throbbing. I began to feel very sick. I tried as hard as I could to hold my stomach in. But I had to get up and go to the toilet to vomit, and my whole body was almost paralyzed, I could not jump off my rack. I couldn’t move. And then I blacked out, into nothingness. Silence. Blackness. There was no bright light.
Over the course of that period, while I was in jail, I had many inmates/criminals try to hurt me.
Later, I woke up in a hospital handcuffed to a stretcher, I was on life support. My cellmates had gotten scared and told the guards, once they had seen me black out. I obviously did not want my cellmates to know what I had done. But I was forced to throw up, and black out.
After my ill recovery, I was thrown into the suicide wedge, right where I remembered all those people.
I soon was shackled and shipped to prison, where there was no A/C at all, there is none in the Alabama prisons. Prison is even worse. You are forced to work all day. And the temperatures inside the dorms get to 100+ degrees. Everyday, all day long, during the hot long Alabama summers. Misery. I remember pools of sweat collecting on my mat, while I tried to lay down. I would have to strip to my underwear to stay cooler. The black men would look at me, and some would masturbate at me, while I would sleep, or do it right in front of me. They call it “gunning you down”. It was a fact that the African american men were specifically like this. A lot of the time when I would try to take a quick shower, they would all watch me, to see when I would go in. And then go in the shower with me and watch me, and ‘gun me down’, while I bathed myself quickly. Quite a dehumanizing thing to have done to you. I wish I could’ve knocked one of the those motherf*ckers heads off. But I knew I had parole coming up, And I might make it, If I never get into any fights, or disciplinaries. Which was even worse. Because, I needed to stand up for myself. It was so crowded in prison, there was no privacy. Nowhere. Showers were completely wide open, toilets were in rows of 30 lined up. No stalls, Those did not exist.
I tried dearly to avoid the showers, and the sick people. I saw a lot of sick stuff in there. The white gay boys were the ones that almost always were on the “receiving” end of the action. Homemade hypodermic needles, and one of the main drugs, called Suboxones, they were these thin sublingual films from a pharmacy that were smuggled in, they are a narcotic analgesic and they dissolve fast. The drug addicts broke up and disolved the film in a spoon and either snorted or injected it. I did none of that. I had never done drugs before.
I was in prison for a long time. After two years of being in there, and finally making parole, I was released and transferred to another state. I was granted immediate release from parole at least three months before, but it took them a very long time to “find” the paperwork. They would not have done it or found it, if a trustee inmate had not given me a special phone number for the parole boards office, that was not “public”, and I got my family to call up there over 50 times over a course of months.
I realized my weaknesses while in prison, my puniness as well. A lot of me died slowly inside, I do not think about girls as much. I was a young kid, I had only ever had one girlfriend in 8th grade. I had to drop out of school after that.
When I was in prison I longed to just touch a girl’s hand, just to have someone love me as friend. I yearned for a companion, I was so lonely. Words could never express. My heart felt like it was literally dying. I also missed listening to music so much, I loved music a lot. I don’t feel things anymore as much, I tried to feel love and compassion, but my heart has died slowly. I still do love people, I have tried to keep that alive, I really try my best. And I love to give people gifts with the money I have now.
Things don’t mean as much at all to me anymore. I am somewhat of a stronger guy now, I fear nothing. I also lift weights and exercise everyday, that is one thing I will always do. I am still trying to find what I am going to do with my life and career. And find meaning in life. I do enjoy computers a lot, evidently. If I had to go through those two years again, I don’t believe I could do it all over again.
Huawei breakthrough is more than the 7nm as widely perceived in the media since the annocement of Huawei mate 60 series.
Huawei had invented and patented a 3D Finfet transistor that enable it to be fabricated using a tweaked or modified DUV machine with mass production. The 7nm Kirin 9000s chip with 3D Finfet transistors consume less power and can achieved equivalent performance of 3nm chip. It can easily be refined and improved with 5 nm or 3nm designs which l believe will be used in Kirin 9100 chips and achieve better performance.
Hisilicon had utilized the Chips and design Kirin 9000, Kirin 9000s Soc using it’s Taishan architectures and system.
The Kirin 9000 series are 8–12 Taishan core CPU working together with GPU and Huawei Balong Modern. They are comparable to Qualcom snapdragon 8-2 chip set and Apple M16 and M17 chip set.
Beside the Kirin Soc the Huawei mate 60 series also used in house indigenous technologies like Ximage, Nearlink and Satellite connectivity technology.
Ximage is Huawei photo taking and processing technology, one of the best in the world.
Huawei breakthrough is far from just handphone technology, Huawei will be the top platforms for AllAI and All Cloud and All IoT. It will be the smart system inventors that empower human leveraging on technology to improve life and productivity.
This is Miss Nigeria Nyekachi Douglas in the Miss World beauty pageant. You must be thinking that she is so happy because she won. No, she didn’t win the Miss World title but rather her friend Miss Jamaica Toni-Ann Singh won Miss World title.
She is being praised for her heartwarming reaction despite losing Miss World After miss Jamaica, Toni-Ann Singh was named miss world, Douglas jumped up and down and did a happy dance as she congratulated and hugged her friend .
Be happy for other people, regardless of what it is for. It will cost you nothing.
I am blown away with her reaction. And she won my heart.
We should learn from her and be happy in the happiness of others.
I’ve dealt with this. For YEARS. My salvation came one day when I was particularly under the gun to get a few real priority tasks around the house and yard done. I was about to leave town and this particular afternoon was my last chance to get things straight before leaving. When said relative showed up, unannounced as per the usual, I said “Great! You’re here” and immediately handed them a lawn bag, went out the door, then hollered back at them to hurry up!
I worked them into the ground…..and kept pressure on with family gossip about THEM as well as promised I’d never turn down their help again….. how I couldn’t wait to get back to town and have them help with winterizing, cleaning gutters, etc.
They never popped in again. That was 17 years ago.
Las Vegas teen expected ‘slap on the wrist’ for hitting, killing cyclist: ‘I’ll be out in 30 days
The teenager who police say intentionally struck and killed a retired police chief in Las Vegas said he would get a “slap on the wrist” after he was taken into custody, the 8 New Now Investigators have learned.
China to build up Huge IC chip factory using a particle accelerator!
Scientists said this unprecedented technology can overstep US sanctions and make China a new leader in semiconductor chip industry
Plans are now in progress to construct a huge particle accelerator to help researchers put into practice the cutting-edge technology
China is exploring new avenues to bypass restrictions on lithography machines, which are used in the production of microchips. Using particle accelerators to create a novel laser source, researchers are laying the foundation for the future of semiconductor fabrication.
China to use EUV in making it’s own IC fab facilities
China is exploring the use of a new extreme ultraviolet (EUV) light source in making its own lithography facility but technology experts said such an ambitious goal may take many years to achieve.
Over the past few days articles and videos have gone viral on the Internet in China claiming that Tsinghua University has made breakthroughs in steady-state microbunching (SSMB) technology, which can create an EUV light source with a power several times higher than that of ASML’s EUV lithography.
They say the future launch of a SSMB accelerator, nicknamed “lithographic cannon ,” will help China bypass the export controls of the United States and the Netherlands.
These came after Huawei Technologies on August 29 commenced the sale of its flagship smartphone Mate60 Pro, which used a 7 nanometer chip produced with Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC) N+2 processing technology and ASML deep ultraviolet (DUV) lithography.
“We understand that it’s difficult to have more breakthroughs in chip-processing if we follow the current technological path,” a Chongqing-based writer saysin an article published by the Huxiao Business Review on September 16. “It will be more feasible to walk on a new path.”
He says Tsinghua’s suggestion to use the SSMB technology in lithography can help China break the technological blockage of ASML.
He adds that what Tsinghua proposes is not a lithography machine but a huge factory that involves a lot of land and workers – resources that China does not lack.
China beats US in top global scientific ‘hot papers’ — those that receive instant recognition — ranking
with the number of papers published and cited in the world’s most influential journals, a new report has found.
China also ranked first on the international papers citation chart in six major disciplines
– agricultural sciences, chemistry, computer science, engineering, materials science and mathematics. The top spot in mathematics was a new achievement compared with the previous year.
According to the Statistical Data of Chinese S&T Papers released on Wednesday by the Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (ISTIC), Chinese researchers
published 1,929 “hot papers” – papers that receive significant numbers of citations soon after publication, usually in a rapidly evolving field such as molecular biology and materials science – accounting for 46 percent of the global total by July.
My live-in nanny Jennifer moved from Oregon to Yuma, Arizona to attend college and take advantage being near her fiancé, Ryan, stationed at the Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS). Jennifer was energetic and very Mormon, interviewed quite well and had impeccable references. If you are thinking this is all going to turn out bad; you would be 100% wrong. Jennifer was a dream nanny, excellent student, exceptional teacher, my confidant, unapologetically pretty, my foster children loved her and her voice… she could sing like an angel. Jennifer and I are still in touch on social media.
Jennifer moved in with me the fall of 1995 to begin as a nanny. She was so looking forward to caring for Brittney, attending a new semester at Arizona Western College (AWC) and finally spending some time with her fiancé. There was a two-day registration window for her to sign up in January 1996 for the spring semester classes.
On the first day at registration, when she was signing up for a choir class, the teacher informed Jennifer about a music scholarship that would cover all her expenses. Jennifer would have to audition for the scholarship. As I said, Jennifer had the voice of an angel and she easily passed the vocal audition for the scholarship. The kicker; the music scholarship was reserved for Arizona residents (2 years or more) or family members of military personnel only; so, she didn’t qualify. Worse yet, the deadline for qualifying for the scholarship and class registration was the very next day.
Jennifer has never been the type of person to sulk or quit; she was undaunted. She certainly couldn’t qualify for the Arizona resident part; she’d only lived in Arizona for six months. She told her counselor, “If I need to be a military family member, then I will be a military family member by tomorrow.” Jennifer called her fiancé Ryan, told him about the scholarship and announced that they were getting married NOW so she could qualify for the scholarship.
When I came home that day, Jennifer explained about the scholarship and she would need a few hours off to get married. I was absolutely impressed by her resourcefulness. Not once did she address this as a problem; and, she actually reveled in the opportunity the challenge represented.
Ryan, who was still working on converting to Mormonism, was fully on-board with the wedding plan. He and Jennifer could have that big religious wedding for their families later. They just wouldn’t tell them they had gotten married already. Since Ryan was in the Marines, he needed approval from his commanding officer first. Ryan managed to get it done right away and meet Jennifer at Yuma County Clerk’s Office to get their marriage license.
Thank goodness Arizona does not require blood tests; Jennifer is needle-phobic and jokes that a blood test might have been a deal-breaker. Jennifer couldn’t have picked a more perfect town for a quickie marriage. Yuma has quite the reputation for many movie stars flying in from California for a quick marriage; including, Loretta Young, Claudette Colbert, Alice Fay, Mary Astor, Jean Harlow, John Barrymore, Errol Flynn and even cowboy Tom Mix… and more.
The only wedding officiant they could find on such short notice was a judge at City Hall. His docket was full but Jennifer and Ryan somehow convinced that judge to perform the marriage ceremony at 9am the next morning; scholarship and college registration deadline day. I was impressed how quickly Jennifer got it all arranged in a single day. When Jennifer wants to get something done; there is no stopping her.
With no advanced planning for her wedding, Jennifer certainly hadn’t planned for a wedding dress. Ryan could get away with wearing his Marine Corps dress uniform. Jennifer began to go through her everyday-go-to-school outfits and she modeled in front of me, “Do you think this looks wedding-enough?” No matter how resourceful Jennifer had already been; she really had nothing that looked anything like a wedding dress. In my mind; a woman needs a wedding dress on her wedding day. So, I told her I’d buy her a dress as a wedding present. Although it was already late in the day, we immediately went shopping. We stopped near one wedding shop and she motioned for me to keep driving. She insisted, “This is a small event, no need for expensive.” Jennifer got so lucky; she ended up finding the cutest little white lacy wedding dress on a JC Penny’s discount rack for under $40.00. We couldn’t believe it; it was like it was waiting for her and it couldn’t have been more perfect.
On the morning of the 2nd day of college registration, at 9am, she and Ryan stood before the judge at Yuma City Hall and got married. One of Ryan’s friends and I were the witnesses. We took Polaroid insta-print pictures of the ceremony and also a posed-picture with the judge. They had no real wedding rings, but did exchange a couple of Cracker-Jack rings at the ceremony. Ah, such a tribute to young love at its finest.
Now most bright-eyed wedding couples would have a big celebration and then head out for an exciting honeymoon. Well, that’s what’s very different about Ryan and Jennifer. Ryan immediately reported back to duty at the MCAS. Jennifer, still wearing her wedding dress, with a copy of a marriage license in one hand, marriage certificate in the other and backup pictures of the marriage ceremony, drove with all her determination out to AWC to capture her scholarship.
Jennifer’s first stop at the college was the music teacher where she got her scholarship stamped qualified and approved; Victory! Then she stood in line at the registration office, still wearing her wedding dress, and finished registering for her college classes; Victory!
Whenever I hear the expression, “failure is not an option,” it always reminds me of Jennifer. You gotta love Jennifer.
Oh SH*T, NATO just crossed the line and Putin knows it
The year is 1974 and I am the junk dealer’s daughter. My brother has become a teenager; my parents spend half their time watching my father slowly die and striving to save him; the rest struggling to survive.
Our TV is off limits, the days are long — especially for an introverted kid, but I am not alone, for the bookmobile comes every other Thursday at 3 pm.
Three years before my mom had walked me down the street and signed me up for the reading program. Read ten books and get a sticker. Get the stickers and you get a prize.
I had rapidly progressed from the small child’s, to the preteen books and last year the bookmobile lady had sent home a permission slip to allow me to read the adult books. This year she scours the county for good books for me.
Smiling, she hands me a stack of ten books, “there are some new westerns and a couple of scifi as well, if you want them.”
My book a day limit met I struggle home with my treasures. Another two weeks of adventures and stories. I don’t feel as alone and my belly doesn’t rumble as much when I’m reading.
Carefully I open the first page . . . the bookmobile lady has saved me once again.
The year is 1994 and now I have a family to support. Going back to college was a good decision. My hard work and bright mind has been recognized and I have risen from student worker to classified staff.
Painfully shy I stay to myself but then another worker stops by and tells me as a union member I should be attending union meetings.
“I just want to fit in,” I think. “I’ll slip into the back and hopefully no one will take much notice of me.”
“Hey Nancy? Is that you Nancy?”
The bookmobile lady is there, older now but just as nice.
“Sit by me and my friends. Hey everyone this is Nancy. When she was little she used to come down with a wagon full of books to exchange when I ran the bookmobile. She read a book a day. Isn’t that cool?”
One of my guy friends was sucker-punched in the face by a girl outside a club.
We both had left the club with a couple friends, and somehow the girl’s bf was talking shit to us because of some misunderstanding. She couldn’t handle getting shit talked back to her by my guy friend, which he was pretty good at.
Even though he wasn’t directly talking to her, she violently hits him. She was bigger than him, but still hit like a bitch. After she hit him she was still in his face, pulling him around with his t-shirt, yelling her voice out, assaulting with all sorts of shit and going completely ballistic on him.
He grabbed her arms to stop her from punching him, and violently swung her away, causing her to crash on the ground head-first.
That was our opening to escape, and him and I started walking away with our friends. But the security guard briskly chases after him, even though the guard wasn’t outside in time to see what had actually happened. Put his hand on his shoulder and told him to get down on the ground as he shrugged off and said don’t touch me. He later called the cops on him.
They arrested him for assaulting the security. A guy recording everything got arrested for obstruction of justice or something. They put him in an individual cell so they couldn’t talk. Never got his info. He went through an extremely long court battle. The woman who started it was never even mentioned, and he had to do some time in jail for aggravated assault.
It’s absolute bullshit that men are instantly vilified and crucified for assaulting a woman under the right circumstances. I’m sure you can see how differently this story would’ve played out had the roles been reversed.
Oliver Anthony – I Want To Go Home REACTION *TEARS*
People are tired. They are fed up. They want CHANGE.
This is a serious figure; it’s a serious number. It bodes a very bleak fate for Americans, and for any nation that holds on to American stocks, treasuries, and assets.
I suppose I can confuse the reader with bafflegab. Speak thoughtfully and with authority using obscure and technical terms, and repeat the American government narrative that all is well.
But it is NOT well.
The United States has yet again had it’s credit rating downgraded to AA+.
And it sounds “great”, but the naming convention is a distraction. The term “AA+” actually means “Significant credit risk, and looming possibility of default”.
If you all were smart, you would be “bailing” out from the United States as fast as you can get your passport stamped.
…
Go to someplace better.
Like Bangladesh, or Laos, or Bolivia.
Somewhere that will accept you and enable you to live peacefully and calmly, with a roof over your head, has decent medical care, and healthy and cheap food. Oh, and one where criminals and the police won’t shoot at you.
I’d normally advise careful consideration be taken, but given the total collapse of American society, basically ANYWHERE on the face of the planet is an improvement over the United States today.
…
There are few options remaining for the United States movement to stop the rapidly approaching “train wreck”…
Raise taxes on Americans to around 80% of income.
Lift all tariffs, so that there would be some slowing of the rate of inflation.
Re-compensate Russia and re-approach with them to get the fuel / gas prices down.
Not much can be done…
Start charging Americans for the right to breathe air.
Sell off (wholesale) United States assets, property, gold, and land.
A massive war of distraction; perhaps a global thermonuclear war with both Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea simultaneously.
Like I said, all the viable options “on the table” will have catastrophic results.
…
All of this is far too gloomy.
It’s time that I set myself to the other side of the table, and have a shot of whiskey with you. Look into your eyes, and hold your hands. It’s time for straight talk.
American society HAS collapsed.
Like a headless chicken, it is still running around the barnyard, but it is accomplishing nothing.
The “government” is non-functional.
The American citizens are riding in the car, drunk on media lies, and the driver is driving the vehicle right over the cliff.
Freefall will be surreal.
And when you all hit the bottom, it will be really ugly.
And it would be the most stupid thing for our politicians to do because there’s a world of difference between what we have in China than what the Chinese have here.
How U.S. companies do business: It’s hard to accurately quantify how much business assets they have in China. However, considering that between 1982 and 2021, US direct investments abroad grew from $580 billion to more than $6.4 trillion dollars, it would not be too farfetched to assume that they have at least $2 trillion invested in China. China is their supply chain as well as their major market.
How Chinese compaies do business: They stay home to manufacture and profit on their trade with the world. China does have investments in the U.S. but they’re simply “investments” and not core to their operating businesses; they don’t have major companies operating out of the U.S. whose core business is in the U.S. It wiould be hard put to assume that China’s investment is more than $1 trillion in the U.S.
So who would hurt more if these two countries start freezing each other’s assets?
How about China starting off by just freezing Tesla’s and GM’s Chinese assets? Tesla’s mega factories are worth billions but the loss of sales revenue would be exponentially larger.
And how much would Chinese companies lose if the U.S. froze their investments in farmland in the Mid West?
Russia has Officially Deployed the RS-28 Sarmat ICBM
Russia has introduced a formidable weapon that has raised concerns among its rivals. Moscow has officially deployed the RS-28 Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile, or ICBM known as “Satan II,” for active military use.
This announcement was confirmed by Yuri Borisov, the head of Russia’s space agency Roscosmos, as reported by the Russian state news agency Tass.
According to experts, the RS-28 Sarmat missile has the capability to travel over both the North and South Poles and deliver a warhead weighing up to 10 tonnes to any location on Earth.
This development has amplified concerns about Russia’s nuclear capabilities, particularly in the context of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
Steak San Marco
2023 10 09 14 42
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
Ingredients
1 (2 pound) chuck steak, cut into serving pieces
1 teaspoon Mexican oregano
Pepper, to taste
2 tablespoon wine vinegar
1 envelope onion soup mix
1 (16 ounce) can peeled tomatoes
Garlic salt, to taste
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Instructions
Arrange meat in a large skillet, cover with onion soup mix and tomatoes.
Sprinkle with oregano, garlic salt, pepper, oil and vinegar.
Simmer covered for 1 1/2 hours or until meat is tender.
I’ve learned this over 17 years with my wife. I’ve learned to pretend to have opinions about decisions we need to make, even when I’ll be perfectly happy with any of the options, because it annoys her when I don’t care one way or the other.
From little things, like what we should have for dinner, to big things, like what we should name our children, the truth is I was perfectly happy with all of our choices. It wasn’t that I didn’t care, but rather that I saw the positive aspects in all of the possible decisions, and she did seem to care a lot, so I just let her make the decision.
I guess that drives women crazy: being with someone that’s just going to agree with their decisions 99% of the time, because that someone doesn’t really have an opinion.
So I’ve learned to fake it a lot. My wife knows I’m faking it, but she recognizes it as an improvement from the way I used to be.
Her: What should we have for dinner tonight?
Old Matt: Whatever you want. It’s all good to me.
New Matt: Let’s go with Mexican food tonight. Enchiladas? Yes. That’s what I want.
In reality, Old Matt and New Matt both had the same opinion, but New Matt has learned to just pick something and pretend he has a preference for it, to make his wife happy.
Vocal Coach reacts Dio – Last In The Line / Holy Diver Live 1986
A tiny man with the voice and charisma of a giant. Dio was truly one of a kind.
In my experience, the “freedoms” that they lack are access to Western (social) media (correction to remove freedoms that they actually have). What they get that westerners don’t, in exchange, is a very safe and modern country.
Safe: In ten years here, I have yet to witness violent crimes. My mother isn’t scared to walk alone at night, and there are no shady people lurking in public places.
Modern: the infrastructure is top notch, 5G is ubiquitous, cheap and really fast (I pay about 50 dollars a year for 40 Gb a month of data on my mobile and crazy download speeds). Cash is a thing of the past, everything related to money is digitized. With the sale app you can unlock a dockless bike (less than 2 rmb per ride), ride a bus, pay utility bills, book tickets, order food… even doing taxes is an easy app.
Many Americans like to quote Benjamin Franklin “Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety”.
But actually, that’s the foundation of society.
Besides, if I compare with France, my home country, Chinese people are more free on their daily life. In France, there are norms and rules about everything, usually in the best interests of corporations. You can’t play music in public places, you need to pay royalties, you can’t change a lightbulb in your office because you need a certification for low level electric work and work in high places… things like street food or street vendors couldn’t exist. In France, you are free* (so long as you abide the 300000 rules). Rules prevent many things “for your own good” but really for big companies. I come from the countryside and many people had to stop butchering ducks at home like they had for generations because they need an official slaughterhouse, which is expensive to build at home. It’s not really that butchering at home is unsanitary, it’s that big slaughterhouse need their money.
In China, you enjoy actual freedom: you are free to sell street food, free to eat it even if it’s not always sanitary, and to go to the toilet because of that, etc. The government usually doesn’t care about people’s lives unless it’s very political. One perfect example is the one child policy. When I was a teacher in college, in a time when the policy was still effective, many students actually had siblings, especially in Guangdong. The government was very strict about that with officials, who were supposed to show a good example, but a lot more lenient with regular people, especially in the country.
So in short, Chinese people in general have a very free daily life, and enjoy a very safe, modern and cheap country. If they have to sacrifice Western media for that, it’s a fair price (besides, there are VPN to get around that limit and that’s another rule the government is lenient about). I enjoy Chinese freedom more than I enjoyed the French one!
The US is saying that Huawei cannot make smartphones with advanced chip technology in large-scale production. This comment comes amid rising worries about Huawei’s return and harming iPhone sales in China.
U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said on Tuesday that the U.S. has found no evidence to prove that Huawei can manufacture seven-nanometer chips at scale. Her response draws the attention many of people in the global smartphone industry as everyone is surprised by the return of Huawei’s mysterious chip.
Last month, Huawei unveiled its latest Huawei Mate 60 series in China. The company has not organized any launch event or mega show to introduce this smartphone. Instead, it was sold directly via online and offline sales channels. Aside from its alluring design and camera features, the phone also packs a new Kirin chipset – the Kirin 9000s.
An evaluation from TechInsight shows that the chip is processed with advanced 7nm technology made by China’s SMIC. In some benchmark tests, the chip posts even higher marks than the 5nm Kirin 9000, which is very surprising.
Why all the Ruckus?
In 2019, the US Commerce Department sanctioned Huawei from buying US-made technologies. Therefore, the company can’t purchase or produce new chipsets for smartphones and any of its tech products.
In the early days of sanctions, Huawei stockpiled the chip from various sources. However, the situation became worse as the chip stock declined.
Thereafter, it had to rely on Qualcomm to provide 4G Snapdragon chips for its smartphones. For the past two years, Huawei has been launching phones based on Qualcomm chipsets.
Within the fourth year of sanctions, on August 29, 2023, the Huawei Mate 60 Pro came into play. However, the company does not even mention this chip in promos. But it carries a new Kirin chip, which became a topic of wide discussion.
The return of Kirin also reached the White House and it was previously confirmed that the US is searching for more ‘information’ about the return of the Kirin chip. It seems the US has finally come to the conclusion that Huawei can’t produce advanced chip smartphones and that might be it for the investigations, probably.
Fat TikTok Influencer just said the UNTHINKABLE, wants you to pay for it
The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), China’s ambitious plan to connect Asia, Europe and Africa through a network of infrastructure projects, has been met with skepticism and criticism by some Western countries. They accuse China of using the BRI as a tool to trap developing countries into debt and expand its influence and interests. However, this accusation is based on a false premise and a misunderstanding of the BRI’s nature and purpose. In this essay, I will argue that the BRI is not a debt trap, but a platform for win-win cooperation that benefits both China and its partners.
First of all, the BRI is not motivated by China’s selfish agenda or geopolitical ambition, but by its vision to promote the development of participating countries through enhancing connectivity. The BRI is a public good that China offers to the world, and a platform for international cooperation that is open, transparent and inclusive. The BRI follows the principles of extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits, and respects the sovereignty, independence and diversity of each country.
Secondly, the BRI is not a debt trap, but a debt relief for many developing countries that face financing gaps and infrastructure deficits. The BRI could reduce the costs of trade and increase global real income by 2030. The BRI also helps create jobs, improve living standards and foster social development in participating countries. Moreover, China has always been a responsible lender and borrower, and has taken concrete measures to prevent and resolve debt risks. For example, China has signed debt service suspension agreements with 23 African countries under the G20 framework, and has provided debt relief or cancellation to 16 African countries. China has also established mechanisms for debt sustainability analysis, project evaluation and risk management with relevant international organizations and multilateral development banks.
Thirdly, the BRI is not a zero-sum game, but a positive-sum game that creates opportunities for cooperation and mutual benefit for all parties involved. The BRI is not exclusive or competitive, but complementary and synergistic with other regional and global initiatives. The BRI welcomes the participation of third parties, including developed countries and international organizations, to jointly contribute to global development and governance. The BRI also promotes dialogue and exchange among different civilizations and cultures, and fosters mutual understanding and trust among peoples.
In conclusion, the accusation that China’s BRI is a debt trap is based on a false premise and a misunderstanding. The BRI is not a debt trap, but a platform for win-win cooperation that benefits both China and its partners. The BRI is not motivated by China’s selfish agenda or geopolitical ambition, but by its vision to promote the development of participating countries through enhancing connectivity.
The BRI is not a zero-sum game, but a positive-sum game that creates opportunities for cooperation and mutual benefit for all parties involved. Therefore, instead of viewing the BRI with suspicion or hostility, it is more constructive and rational to view it with openness and confidence, and to join hands with China to build a community of shared future for mankind.
The Rise and Fall of America’s Middle Class
America is bleeding out. Slowly, steadily. And it’s a self-inflicted wound. When NAFTA was signed, it set in motion decades of decline that have crippled American industry, gutted American towns, and robbed American citizens of their birthright – the simple dignity of providing for themselves and their families. But there’s a road back. Starting with denim blue jeans.
In 2019 exactly ONE MONTH before CNY and the launch of the COVID-19 bioweapon I received a call.
A Irish “company” wanted to interview me for a COO position.
They would pay me 500,000 yuan per month!
They were “supposedly” a billion dollar company and were interested in me.
So, of course, I had a zoom meeting with the HR manager.
…
But, there wasn’t an HR.
Instead it was a contractor who interviewed me for the CEO directly.
The CEO was “too busy” to chat with me himself.
Don’t you know…
…
As it was explained to me, the company was located in Shenzhen, made consumer products, billions of dollars in revenue, and wanted some basic questions about me, how I worked, and what I was doing.
They wanted to know my background…
RED FLAGS GALORE
There are no consumer appliance companies with billions of dollar revenue in my particular specialty area. I worked at the largest int he world. Multi-million dollar companies, sure. Billions. Nope.
I did a check on the company. Doesn’t exist in Ireland, and nothing inside of SZ or China.
They had a slick webpage. Lots of computer renderings of a office building… that did not exist. A leader profile of a bunch of guys in their 30’s. No one over 40.
No one could tell me what specific type of product that they dealt with.
No return or follow up calls. E-mail address were dead ends.
After the interview…. nothing.
No follow back, no rejection, no next steps. Etc.
I had three interns try to dig up information on the company. All failed. The company simply did not exist in any form, not even under a trade name.
…
The “Five Eyes” conducted an interview of myself prior to the release of the Covid-19 bioweapon. They must have done it exactly one week prior to the release.
They just wanted to know where I was, and what I was doing…
…figured that I was inert, and nothing of concern…
…and ignored me and let me be.
…
Life is funny, don’t you know. Especially if you are ME.
The U.S. don’t need any bad mouthing at all. It stands out clearly and vividly as a very barbaric nation that bullies most nations in planet earth. Everyone on earth knows there are only 3 types of allies the U.S. has. The US slave vassal states that has no choice of their own, their fellow despicable former colonial masters that needs to keep its loot sand plunder and perpetuate their crimes and small and weak nations that like to poke Russia in the eyes and then hide under the U.S. skirt.
These facts are so obviously clear to the entire world even though the U.S. has the best propaganda machine that has a full time job of demonising nations the refused to be submissive and subservient to them. This the U.S. has carried out for a full century. Hence there are some portion of west that buys into these like gospel truths.
China don’t need to do a thing to influence their people. Firstly the Chinese are highly influenced by Confucianism whose ethics and mantra include thinking for itself and seeking out the ultimate truths. The Chinese media has very few opinions. It doesn’t make judgements. They News are short precise to the point on facts, truth, accuracy and with proofs and evidence. Sort of it Chinese people refused to believed.
Western media ignores facts and propel set narratives that demonise China. As a default mode. It is opinionated and opinion filled. Chinese people don’t buy any of these shit. In fact almost no one buys any of these shit apart from some portion of the U.S. cronies. These represent no more than 5% of the world’s population and a mere dozen nations or so mainly Caucasians and Anglo Saxons.
I sincerely feels it don’t helped the U.S. and in fact hurt the U.S. image as most societies in the world don’t take kindly to lies innuendos and misinformation. It showed the weakness of the U.S. At best some nations fear the U.S. but almost no nation respects the U.S. I am here in QUORA to provide as much obvious truths mainly to them for their own good.
You Won’t Believe what Anthony Blinken Said !!
Anthony Blinken recently delivered a speech at John Hopkins University on the emerging new world order. I was astounded at some of the things he said. Here i give my thoughts and opinions
You know what’s a really big question that a lot of people are asking these days? It’s whether China’s economy has reached its peak or not. Whether China has run out of steam or still has some gas left in the tank. Whether China is facing a hard landing or a soft landing. Whether China is doomed to stagnate or destined to thrive.
Well, let me tell you something. That question is based on a false premise. A false premise that assumes that China’s economy is somehow close to its limit or its ceiling. A false premise that ignores the facts and the evidence that show otherwise. A false premise that overlooks the potential and the opportunities that lie ahead for China.
Because the truth is, China’s economy still has a lot of room to grow. A lot of room to grow and a lot of potential to unleash. And there are three main reasons why.
The first reason is that China has a massive and dynamic domestic market. A domestic market that consists of 1.4 billion people, which is the largest population in the world. A domestic market that boasts a fast-growing middle class, which is projected to reach 780 million by 2025. A domestic market that is becoming more diverse and sophisticated, as consumers demand higher quality products and services, and more personalized and customized experiences.
This means that China has a huge consumer base that can drive domestic demand and consumption, as well as innovation and entrepreneurship. This means that China has a huge market for new business models and sectors to emerge and flourish, such as e-commerce, digital entertainment, health care, education, green technology, and so on.
The second reason is that China has a strong investment in infrastructure, technology, and human capital. An investment that builds and upgrades its physical infrastructure, such as roads, railways, airports, ports, power grids, and so on. An investment that develops and enhances its technological capabilities, especially in areas such as artificial intelligence, biotechnology, quantum computing, 5G, and so on. An investment that improves and expands its human capital, by providing access to education, health care, social security, and so on.
This means that China improves the connectivity and efficiency of its economy, as well as the living standards of its people. This means that China increases the productivity and competitiveness of its economy, as well as the innovation potential of its society. This means that China boosts the skills and well-being of its workforce, as well as the social stability and cohesion of its nation.
The third reason is that China has an active participation in global trade and cooperation. A participation that makes it the world’s largest trader of goods and services, accounting for about 13% of global trade in 2020. A participation that makes it a major source and destination of foreign direct investment (FDI), attracting $163 billion of FDI inflows in 2020, and investing $133 billion of FDI outflows in 2020. A participation that makes it a key player in regional and multilateral economic initiatives, such as the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI), and so on.
This means that China can access new markets and resources, share its development experience and best practices, and contribute to global economic growth and stability. This means that China can benefit from trade liberalization, infrastructure connectivity, policy coordination, and mutual benefit among participating countries and regions. This means that China can pursue win-win cooperation and multilateralism with its partners around the world.
Now, this is not to say that China’s economy does not face any challenges or risks. It does. It faces challenges such as slowing down of population growth and aging of society; rising environmental costs and pressures; increasing income inequality and social discontent; intensifying trade frictions and geopolitical tensions; and so on.
But these challenges are not insurmountable. They are not impossible to overcome. They require China to adopt appropriate policies and strategies to address them effectively and proactively. Policies and strategies such as accelerating economic restructuring and transformation; promoting green development and ecological civilization; enhancing social justice and welfare; pursuing win-win cooperation and multilateralism; and so on.
These policies and strategies can help China overcome its difficulties and achieve high-quality development. Development that is balanced and comprehensive. Development that can benefit itself and the world.
So, to answer your question: No, China’s economy has not peaked or is close to peaking. Yes, China’s economy still has room to grow or potential to unleash.
And if you want to learn more about this topic or ask me any follow-up questions or comments, please feel free to do so on Quora.
My sister’s friend interned for a company over the summer.
Being a poor college student, she could not afford to rent furniture for the three months she spent living in the town of her internship.
She had just a blanket, a pillow, and a suitcase of clothes in her flat. She also had a plate, a glass, a mug, a pan, and a cookie sheet.
It was shocking to walk into her apartment, as a well-paid engineering intern, to see absolutely nothing but a blanket and a pillow in her apartment. It was empty.
One day, she invited the neighbor kid over to make some cookies. He was about ten years old.
He came into her apartment and made cookies with her and left back home after their stomachs were full.
The very next day, my sister’s friend heard a knock on the door. She opened to see her neighbor kid and his dad standing in front of her with an armchair. The kid had told his dad that her apartment did not have single thing in it.
They said, embarrassedly, “We’d like to donate this armchair to you.”
They carried it in, and set it down in her room as the sole piece of furniture in her entire apartment, and never spoke of it again.
She said she never appreciated an armchair more than that summer.
Spam came out in 1937, a product of Hormel Foods .The name Spam is said to have derived from Spiced Ham but that is not proven yet. It is made mostly with with pork shoulder, a cut not so much used at the time; a cheap cut of meat. Made of pork and ham, salt, sugar, potato starch water and good old sodium nitrate which I’m sure will be banned from foods in the future. The meat is ground up and the mixture is put into cans, vacuum sealed and cooked inside the can. After cooling, the cans are ready for sale. It is claimed by Hormel that 13 cans of SPAM are sold every second. I am one of those buyers.
It was invented because they were looking for a way that meat could be preserved not having to be refrigerated but kept on a shelf in the home. It could be eaten right from the can, baked or fried and was an inexpensive meal especially toward the end of the depression.
Later 100 million pounds of the stuff was consumed by Allied soldiers during WWII. Nikita Khrushchev stated that SPAM saved the Russian Army during the war. SPAM was sent to Great Britain from the US through the Land Lease plan and was used by many house wives the same as every where else. With the British and Canadian Armies it was tins of corn beef that they survived on. Spam was also eagerly devoured by the US military during the Korean and Vietnam Wars. Along with C rations of course.
I love both canned corned beef (from Brazil) and Spam and have tins of the stuff in the pantry. When I feel like some Spam, I will place one in the fridge for awhile, take it out then open the tin. I will either make a sandwich out of it or cut chunks and put them on a plate then slather relish and mustard over the Spam and gulp it down.
Same with the corned beef. I either make a sandwich or again, cut chunks and put them on a plate and with a fork, dip the meat pieces in mustard and again, gulp them down along with a pickle and slice of bread. Delicious.
The ten-year-old Belt and Road Initiative is not a concrete-pouring binge, at least not anymore. China is encouraging private enterprises to take a more active role and participate in projects labeled as “small and beautiful.” Some attribute the shift to China’s economic headwind and take it as a sign that the BRI is losing steam. This argument lacks a basic understanding of the rationale behind the China-proposed development initiative. The shift indicates the BRI has run its natural course and entered a new phase.
To expound it, one must go back to the central question: why did China put forward the BRI in the first place? Some clichés include: it is a geopolitical strategy designed to expand China’s sphere of influence; it is an ambition to counter the U.S-led global order; it is a series of investment projects to transfer domestic overcapacity and import raw materials; it is a charity program attached with political strings.
None of these arguments is close to the real picture. In essence, the BRI aims to bring the global value chains to the digital era. It is a globalization proposal that seems ahead of its time. Consider the following scenarios: a New York City resident and a villager from a remote town on the African continent browse the same TikTok videos on their cellphones (yes, both of them own more than one cellphone). A Chinese car buyer can purchase the latest Tesla model entirely built in China and cheaper than American consumers. A young person can get a postgraduate diploma from a UK university via remote study and be employed by the local branch of a UK-headquartered multinational without the necessity to set foot on British soil. Globalization in the digital era is disrupting the hierarchy of traditional value chains and blurring the boundaries of producers and consumers. In a word, this round of globalization is reshaping how factors of production are being distributed and utilized.
All this means the efforts to vitalize the newfound or hidden factors of production will be generously rewarded. It is common sense that most of these factors can only be found in developing economies. The promoters of the BRI are aware that the approach toward shared prosperity is to vitalize these factors of production and put them in the right places with a set of catalysts, such as transport and information connectivity, better education, poverty reduction, and empowerment of digital literacy.
From the perspective of China, the sustainability of its economic prosperity lies in how long and to what extent its economy will intertwine with the global value chains. As an economy at the middle end of these chains, it will take long and arduous efforts to climb up the established ladder. At the same time, it is inevitable to move away from merely being the world factory. All this has left China with little choice but to explore new foreign partners through new non-disruptive arrangements to the existing system, from which it has benefited a lot since reform and opening up, particularly since its accession into the World Trade Organization in 2001. More importantly, these new arrangements must also bear enough potential to create new opportunities for the new partners. It does not work if these projects only benefit China. This is the primary rationale of the Belt and Road Initiative.
Research shows that the private sector has proved to be more effective in creating and fine-tuning value chains compared with their government-led counterparts. Private companies, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises, are the eventual driving force in this cause. In the beginning phase of the BRI, large and state-owned contractors took the lead in building basic infrastructure. Those projects helped to nurture political goodwill and energize local business partners. Thanks to them, private Chinese companies now feel more comfortable doing business in BRI countries.
Now, a paradigm shift is taking place. The private sector is catching up quickly and encouraged to play a more prominent role. An increasing number of big projects have adopted the Build-Operate-Transfer models, which emphasize the participation of local partners and the sustainability of the projects. More market players now prefer indirect investment, which has also proved more efficient and sustainable in maintaining the value chains. Besides, the Chinese government encourages projects labeled as “small and beautiful,” which refers to the smaller projects directly connected with improving local livelihoods. New investment favorites include businesses in sectors such as new energy, healthcare, mobile communication, and e-commerce.
The Belt and Road Initiative is entering a new phase, an intentional adjustment in line with its original missions, and it will provide more benefits to the private sector and local participants.
China SHOCKED US Yet Again With $3 Billion 6th Generation Fighter Jet
In the ever-evolving realm of aerial warfare, the stage is currently commanded by the formidable 5th gen stealth fighters like the mighty dragon Chengdu-J20 or the famed F-35 raptor. Eyes now remain fixed upon the emergence of 6th generation stealth fighters. Today’s episode will uncover China’s upcoming 6th generation stealth fighter jet that has shocked the entire world.
When the recession hit in 2007–2009, the owner of the company I worked for made a grand speech about how tight things were and how he was doing his best to keep from laying anyone off, so everyone needed to work really hard and go the extra mile. This was one of those “be happy you have a job” speeches that meant raises and bonuses were going to be absolute shit, which might be justifiable if the company were in dire straits, but we weren’t. The recession went on and we kept growing, but management was all doom and gloom. At some point after the recession was over, somebody that had access to the CFO’s bonus spreadsheet printed it out and accidentally left it on the printer. Another employee found it and brought me a copy. The owner gave himself a $22M bonus that first year of the recession and the next few years were similar. I knew at that point they couldn’t be trusted.
. Industry observers cited by the publication believe that the contract maker of chips anticipates stricter sanctions from the U.S. and is stockpiling the materials it needs. There could be other reasons, too.
The buzz in the industry suggests that SMIC has recently approached its partners in Taiwan, placing substantial orders equivalent to around two years’ worth of materials supply. Some believe that this move is to ensure a steady supply for its 7nm chip production, hinting at the company’s forward-thinking approach.
The larger question revolves around SMIC’s motivations for such significant stockpiling. Some think it could be a proactive measure against potential new restrictions from the U.S. Others feel it could be an effort to raise their inventory, anticipating a surge in client requirements.
Huawei has high hopes for its Mate 60-series smartphones and expects to ship as many as 20 million units this year if supply remains intact. But these smartphones will keep shipping next year, and their sales will only increase. Furthermore, the company will likely introduce other smartphones based on its chips, significantly increasing its requirements for SoCs. As a result, it makes sense for SMIC to increase procurement of raw materials pure enough for its 7nm production.
SMIC and other Chinese chipmakers are not novices when it comes to stockpiling. In anticipation of U.S. sanctions and restrictions, they have imported virtually all chip-making equipment from Europe, Japan, and the U.S. they could lay their hands on in recent months.
The BEST Retirement Advice EVER From Retirees + MORE FUN!
Things to know before retirement, top tips to plan your time to retire, things you must know before retirement. These ideas come from people who have actually done it. It’s what they recommend along with the ideas you need to know in your early retirement years. If you’re thinking about retiring soon, then you’re in for a real treat! In this video, we’ve gathered some of the best advice from retirees about their personal retirement. Aside from giving you some great advice, this video is also packed with helpful retirement stories and tips. If you’re ready to retire soon, then this is the video for you!
People on the internet think I am a blind supporter of China. Some even think I am paid by Chinese propaganda department to write pro-China answers! (Hell! It would be great to get paid for narrating facts, but sigh … so far, no payment. Not even a job offer :p).
For reasons unknown (and probably very biased) stating plain and simple historical and current facts offends a lot of people. Comparing the actions of countries offends people.
Here are a few examples.
Example 1. Hong Kong Riots
Last year (in 2020) Quora was overflowing with certain people expressing their support for Hong Kong rioters, claiming they are fighting for “freedom” and that secession is a right of people.
I wrote a couple of answers stating the plain fact that at least Indians should stop expressing their “deep concerns” for Hong Kong rioters, considering how India is handling the freedom movement in Jammu and Kashmir: no internet connectivity (since more than 8 months now) for the region, curfew almost daily, and lots of reports of rapes committed by the military. A lot of people were “offended” because of my comparison.
I also compared Hong Kong rioters with American civil war. The northern states of USA refused to let the southern states break free of the union. If “freedom” is the right of people, northern states should have allowed the southern states to break free.
Similarly, UK should have allowed Ireland to be free.
Somehow, when India, USA and UK does it, it’s all justified and acceptable. But when China does it (and on top of that, China didn’t even use lethal force against those rioters), suddenly China is at fault! I don’t understand the logic here.
Example 2. China’s Island Building In SCS
I wrote that every nation has a right to defend itself and no nation has a (moral) right to display aggression and policing at other nation’s borders. This too, offended a lot of people. People mentioned “freedom of navigation” and whatnot. I pointed out that USA has not ratified UNCLOS and therefore has no right to implement it on others.
There was a long debate about how USA and western powers have “freedom” to roam in their warships close to Chinese shores, but China has no right to install weapon systems on islands in South China Sea.
Some US guy went on a long argument with me in that answer, claiming that although USA has not signed UNCLOS, it still has the right to implement it on others. The most remarkable thing is that he claimed he was not even being biased and was completely transparent and morally fair in his claim!
Example 3. China – Australia Trade Dispute
I wrote that a customer is not and should not be forced to purchase from any seller, therefore China is not forced to purchase ore and food products from Australia, considering that Australian government went on a smear campaign against China (proposing to find Covid-19 origin only in China) and banning Huwawei.
Some people got offended, and claimed that China should be forced to buy from Australia, but Australia is “free” to not buy from China. Some people also claimed that China is “weaponizing trade” and that they must be “put to their place”.
All I can say about it is that their logic is incomprehensible for me.
Example 4. China – US Trade War
I wrote in an answer that if US is so concerned about trade deficit, they have all the right to stop buying from China and shift their imports to some other country. Similarly, China has the right to stop buying from USA and start buying food products from South America.
Similarly, I wrote that both countries have the right to place as many tariffs as they want, on their imports. Both are free in what they do within their borders.
This offended a lot of people. They claimed that it is China’s “legal responsibility” to avoid placing tariffs on US goods but USA is “free” to place as many tariffs as they want on Chinese goods.
Example 5. Chinese Loans And Investments In Africa
Someone asked if Chinese loans and investments in Africa were attempts by China to colonize Africa. I posted some pictures of African colonialism and showed what colonialism really looks like.
Some guys started arguing in the comments that China is “exploiting” Africa with their loans and whatnot. I simply stated that nobody is forcing African countries to get loans from China. They are free to get loans from IMF and World Bank if they want. If they are getting loans from China, they know the conditions. They are written clearly in front of them. If African countries and China, both agree on the terms and conditions, why is someone else trying to run around amok with arms flailing and crying foul?
They claimed that Africans are “simple minded” (yes, they were indeed simple minded, or else they would not have been enslaved by the western powers for centuries) and do not “see through” the traps. I asked if their countries have better loan offers for African countries, they should present the offers. Somehow that further offended them and they quit in rage, claiming I work for China’s propaganda department.
In 2017, China created a new instrument called Debt backed Govt Guarantee to their Private Players and Corporates and SOEs to allow them to borrow money from US Banks and EU Banks
I wondered back then why would they need to do that? Why would they gurantee the debt of their companies and what were they using to guarantee this debt?
Turns out they are guaranteeing these Debts using US Treasury Bonds and US Corporate Bonds.
Long story short, a huge chunk of US Treasuries are pledged by China against massive borrowings from European or American Banks
So if US defaults on its Debt to China
China laughs and defaults on its huge bank debts from US and Europe guaranteed against US Treasuries and Corporate Bonds
So either US redeems these bonds fully or Banks in US and EU collapse and a bailout could cost 3.5 times more or around 2.1 Trillion Dollars
More printing money, more debt, more. Inflation and a certain guarantee that nobody will buy US bonds anymore
China maybe loses 15% or around $ 120–130 Billion
So China would not be too unhappy if US tried such a move. It would be another nail in the US coffin
FIRST TIME REACTION TO AC/DC – WHOLE LOTTA ROSIE | SPEECHLESS…
Huawei’s mobile devices consumer division was kneecapped and decapitated through sanction, suffering a 90% drop in shipped volume in the last 4 years.
That’s a 100–200b dollar swing in revenue, just for handsets. To put that in perspective, that’s equal to 1–2 Boeings at its 2018 peak.
The US was trying to kill Huawei, and bury the telecoms business by bleeding revenue off its high margin consumer division.
That’s way grander than “stop Huawei from doing research innovation”.
Huawei is still under sanction, and Bloomberg’s recent name and shame of Taiwanese companies helping Huawei/SMIC with foundry infrastructure is a thinly veiled attempt at threatening companies not to deal with Huawei, even though the contracts they have entered into do not fall under current sanction.
Gina is free to suggest sanction escalation and fix Huawei like America did to Russia and Russian oligarchs, but Beijing will retaliate this time. And there is ~1 trillion in annual S&P 500 revenue generated from the mainland to aim for. The Chinese don’t have a significant presence stateside.
Personally, I think the ship on Huawei has already sailed. I won’t be surprised if Huawei breaks 100m phones shipped annually in the next 18–24 months. I also won’t be surprised if Huawei introduces new WIFI and telecoms standards in the next 5 years that end up being adopted in Apple phones. Neither Apple nor Google are capable of driving hardware standards revolution.
I can’t think of any easy-to-implement/low cost cards that the Department of Commerce can still deal when it comes to Huawei.
Do you even know that there is no such thing as “50 cents”party? This is a western media concoction and western media made up slur.
You are right China do not care about polishing their opinion for few reasons. One, if you understand the Chinese people, the Confucianism characteristics in them do not wish to listen to or read chest beating about themselves. In fact the Chinese psyche prefers people to underestimating them. Hence they prefer to hide their strength.
Two, Chinese government do not need to be popular at all. There political system is not a popularity contest like the west. They last thing they would do it’s to pay for compliments. They don’t need it. They don’t want to. And Chinese people are highly intelligent. They know the Chinese people cannot be easily fool.
Chinese people are highly pragmatic and very honest about themselves about where they really are. Hence China calls 1850–1950 as the “century of humiliation” because that is what it is. They don’t sugar coat.
Now let me explain the many positive writings in the social media about China and the Chinese people. I am very qualified to explain this not only because I am of Chinese origin but because I am guilty of writing positively about China.
So why do I do it?
I do it to counter the barrage of Anti China and Chinese haters writings by the westerners in the social media. Worst many who wrote these garbage are naively and ignorantly made to hate the Chinese people due primarily to the U.S. and western media and their government. I actually and honestly feel very sorry for them.
I am a 66 years old Singaporean living in Malaysia who is sadly fully English educated. At my ripe old age, I thought I want to do my part to balance the view about China and the Chinese people. And since I write in English. It can reach to the westerners particularly the Anglo Saxon group. My target is to talk to those who hate China and or the Chinese people. You can call this voluntary global social service.
I have never received a cent from China and Chinese authorities or from anyone ever! But there must be at least 10 thousands disgruntled western Caucasians who accuse me of being paid by CCP or that I am working for China. How I wish these 10 thousand haters give me a million each to shut up! Hahaha. I guarantee you I will. And I will glorify the West everyday for the rest of my life!
I am joking. My mind is not for sale!
Why are there many people like me? My guess is that we are here because we are forced into this by the lies, innuendos, fabrications, half truths, the lies, the misinformation, the demonisations about China and the Chinese people. Yes we stood up. And I am here in QUORA to call out racist, xenophobic, white supremacist, China and Chinese haters. I don’t hate them, nor do I want them hurt. I guaranteed you I don’t have a single hate bone inside me. But I want the truth out to you.
Yes particularly you!
I think there are many who speak well about Chinese because there are at least 7.5 billion who thinks well about China and the Chinese out of the world’s 8 billion population! If you think otherwise it is due to your western media reporting as though the world is thinking lie the very small proportion of mainly white, conservative, less read and less travelled older westerners is the world! It is not.
These 7.5 billion have been quiet until your media and you went over board. Hence this nonsense about 50 cents army! It a figment of your imagination.
China Did This After US Blacklisted Three Chinese Companies
The United States is a country defined by extreme violence, where people are threatened by both violent crime and violent law enforcement, and their safety is far from being guaranteed. Prisons are overcrowded and have become a modern slavery establishment where forced labor and sexual exploitation are commonplace
One of the MANY kinds of music that I enjoy is “Trance”. This is a kind of melodic continuous beat, many times with a female vocalist signing her heart out.
I was listening to some Trance on you-tube, and thought about it… you know… the pace and the beat of the music lends itself well to porn. No shit!
So, on a lark, I went to one of the porn sites; xHampster, and spent a minute or two watching the video while the you-tube Trance music played. Sure as shit, I kid you not, the music and the melody absolutely matched the actions of the porn actors and actresses. LOL.
Both the men and the woman busy in frenzied (erp) activity…
I think that this is more than just a casual observation. It’s a reflection of the ties to emotional and mental biological attachments relative to our drives.
Sex is but one of our many, many drives.
…
How does the music you listen to reflect your interests and desires?
I mean if Trance can equate to porn, then what does Country & Western music equate to? What does Classic Rock equate to?
Carry on my wayward son
Stairway to Heaven
Back in Black
Black Magic Woman
It seems to me that David Lee Roth is always singing about prostitutes, and Van Halen roars out about cars…
Ah.
…but what about polkas?
2023 09 28 10 45
… Vodka drunk aunties, with roses clenched in their teeth, and little kids running all over the stage, eh?
…
Music reflects our inner desires, and under certain conditions, they can enhance or suppress them.
Jazz.
Pop.
Banjo…
…
Todays…
NATO Planning for 3.5 MILLION to Serve if War With Russia Starts
In the event of a direct war with Russia, the NATO military bloc will utilize the 300 thousand troops already on the Border with Russia, in the first month. “NATO will then “attract” up to 3.5 million troops” according to Admiral Rob Bauer, the head of the military committee of the North Atlantic Alliance, .
Where do they think they’re going to get those 3.5 Million troops? Why, YOU – and your children — of course! Ready to go fight and die for the armpit of eastern Europe, Ukraine?
Admiral Bauer noted that NATO’s new regional defense plans involve further reinforcement on the borders with Russia in case of a possible confrontation.
“If they attack, we must be ready. So we need more militaries at a high level of readiness, and that’s not something that can be done overnight. They will need training, weapons, ammunition, everything else. Therefore, we are talking about 300 thousand military personnel at a high level of readiness. In total, NATO countries, together with Finland and Sweden, have 3.5 million troops,” said Bauer.
Rattling sabers will not help. Sooner or later Russia will complete its plans for its new Northern Military District, and NATO knows about this.
NATO, the clown force defeated by horseback riders from Afghani caves.
Beef and Mushrooms
Wild Mushroom and Beef Stew Recipe 5 of 10
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/4 pounds sirloin steak, cut into 1 inch pieces
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 (10 ounce) package sliced mushrooms
1 (16 ounce) package frozen pearl onions
2 cups red wine
1 (10.75 ounce) can Campbell’s Golden Mushroom soup
1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped (optional)
Instructions
Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat.
Season steak with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and cook until browned, about 5 minutes.
Transfer steak to a bowl and set aside.
Add mushrooms and onions to the pan and cook until liquid has evaporated.
Add the wine and simmer until reduced by half, 5 to 6 minutes.
Stir in soup and 1/4 cup water and bring to a boil.
Add steak and its juices from the bowl and simmer, 2 minutes.
Divide into individual bowls and sprinkle with the parsley, if using.
Trump Latinos – Rich Men North Of Richmond “Official Video”
America does not believe in fair competition, Tonya Harding is its role model.
What has the US done while China is improving?
…
NOTHING.
Just a whole lot of talk, blustering and promises…
China released new photolithography factory plan, U.S. restrictions will no longer be in effect.
Oh man this is a very wonderful news, hope it can be made soon and can’t wait to see US semiconductor companies close their doors one by one as no other market can absorb their products … I would say well done USA for digging your own grave yard, very well planned!
My first “real” marketing job, back in the 80’s, was working in the fragrance division of a world renowned fashion designer. 2x a year, I was given $2,000-$3,000 to go shopping at Bloomingdales buying up the competition’s newest products.
I learned that if I dressed down, jeans & tees, I could freely shop the dept without sales pressure. I could easily make a list of what I needed to buy Basically, I was ignored and when I tried to get help, I was ignored even more by the seasoned sales people. They would rather talk to each other than help me.
Eventually, a new or young sales clerk would take pity on me & ask if they could help me. I would hand them my list and watch the delight spread over their face as they mentally calculated their sizeable commission, especially as I pulled out the cash.
And it was super fun watching the scowls on those that wouldn’t help me, when they saw the size of my purchase. And yes, as I walked out, I said to each one of them “ you had your chance.” Lol
There were only two things that shocked me when I came to the US.
The complete lack of maintenance for the infrastructure. I thought Americans loved to drive? So why not spend some money on maintenance. I’ve seen more potholes in 6 days in the Usa, than in my entire life in the Netherlands
The way police officers and other other uniformed people behaved. It already started on the airport at border security, all of the guys in uniform acted like they were the most important person in the world and we were just measly worms. Come on, I know you have a job to do, but why can’t you just try to be pollite? If Dutch police officers would behave like that, they would be considered unfit for the job.
You could try doing what my neighbor did 50 years ago. His mother was a stubborn woman from the old country. She won’t consider going to a nursing home having any help in her place etc. she fired several people as soon as they started. So he hired another person and they concocted this plan. He told his mother that this person wanted to rent a room from her and she would pay her every week. But that she was a bit hard up and couldn’t afford the full cost of the rent so in order to get a lower rent she was going to help around the house and other things that might need to be done. So every week the son gave the Aide an extra $50 and the Aide handed the mother the $50 and she gave it to her son to put in the bank. So the Aide started helping around the house and then slowly started with personal care. Pretty soon she was taking full care of the mother and the mother thought she was great and offered a bigger reduction in her “rent” and she told her son that she had a nice tenant who helped her “a little” and it was so much better than having an Aide messing around in her house plus she was earning an extra $50 a week!
When I was in school, they held a robotics competition.
It was pretty simple, conceptually. You had to make a firefighting robot. It would have to navigate a maze, find a candle and put it out (fully automated, no remote control). I can’t remember the exact size but I think the robot had to be smaller than 1 foot in length, width, and height.
Scoring was as follows. You start with your time (how long it takes to search every room and put out the candle), and get deductions (bonus points) if your robot:
Put out the candle with anything other than a fan (water, for instance)
Searched every room, didn’t just stop at the one with the candle
Could separate into parts to search rooms in parallel
Was very efficient algorithmically (there were a few benchmarks for this)
Most entries looked like what you would expect, a bunch of sub-systems. Each one with a specific purpose. A Robot.
I entered a block of dry ice. It held a simple metal device attached to it.
It basically just had a spring-powered hammer to shatter it into little pieces when the start timer went (so that it would evaporate faster)
In seconds the entire maze was filled with a white fog and the candle was definitely out. I had the fastest time by a landslide even before you counted my deductions:
Didn’t use a fan? Check
Search every room? Check.
Separate into parts to put out fires in parallel? Check
I think I could’ve been the only person in history to ever win a robotics competition without writing a single line of code or soldering a single wire.
But alas, the judges disqualified me by unanimous vote.
Aztec Death Whistle | The Scariest Sound You’ve Ever Heard
During the Iraq war, soldiers frequently used Silly String to help detect booby traps.
Specifically:
If you were entering a house, a perimeter, any at-risk area, you would stand near the areas, and spray Silly String around the room.
Wherever the string caught, seeming to hang in the air—was often a tripwire, that was designed to set off a bomb killing all in the immediate vicinity. (Source: Silly String Has a Real Purpose: Exposing Trip Wires. Ferro, Shaunacy)
Because Silly String is so light, it doesn’t set the wire off. And—you can get Silly String that glows in the dark and is bright. So it has become a popular request from soldiers in the field.
A woman in New Jersey, whose son was serving, even created a charity and collected 80,000 cans of the stuff to ship over to them.
My parents used to fuss at me so bad about my adventures, mainly because I would bring junk home from the multiple dumpster areas. One in particular was located in the middle of nowhere, which is now a very nice neighborhood. Before this area boomed into what it is now, this particular set of dumpsters was literally rich people stuff from the surrounding lake homes. If Dad told me to take off the trash, I drove the extra few miles down the small road to go to these. Anyways, one day I hit mega jackpot!
Since these were so remote, nobody ever really used them and they were not picked through. I can tell you we had pickers in the others, because one day I threw a bag in and the dumpster said “hey watch it!”. That was quite the surprise. On this day the stars aligned for me though. As I was emptying Dad’s old truck, my eyes happened to see what I couldn’t believe….a nearly new VCR. Back then dad said he wouldn’t buy one they were just too expensive. This was back in the late 80s when VCRs were literally thousands of dollars, and this one was top of the line too! Somebody must have gotten angry at it, as I could tell it had been bashed. It was lying in a pile of stuff, deep down inside. So I pull the trusty truck up to the door where I could crawl inside. Low and behold it gets even better! Under it was a fairly new Sears stereo system…..like WHAT!!!! This was thousands of dollars of stuff here, and me being 17 I was just overcome with emotion. The cabinet was smashed as someone had just tossed it all in. I didn’t care I was in heaven. I retrieved my prizes and headed home. I was beside myself. When I pulled up to the house, I was so excited I could barely speak. Dad was skeptical. I admit the stuff had been scratched and damaged, but it was complete!
I understand why someone threw it out. The VCR ate tapes more than it played them. At 17 though, my skills as a repair person were developing. What happened was the rubber was not staying on the wheel that drove the tape, it was slipping. Gluing the rubber to the wheel solved the problem. The stereo was way more complicated to fix. It only had one side that was working, the left channel. The right was dead. It took me some time to figure it all out, but with help from the neighbor down the street (who had a Commodore 64 controlling his whole house) we were able to get it repaired. It was a burned up circuit on the board. I held on to that stereo and VCR for years, until it became totally obsolete and I finally placed it for recycling. My roommate for college was utterly shocked with the electronics I had. He couldn’t figure out how someone who barely worked could afford such high end stuff. He was even more miffed when I said I literally got it for free. I was always scared he was going to steal it too.
I ran a company for years and I told my employees that I expected them at work every day unless they were truly sick or had something that had to me taken care of.
I paid well and took good care of my people. One day, a guy named Tommy called in sick. Later in the day, I had to go look at a job on a part of town I’d never been in. As I drove, there was a group of guys in a yard drinking beer. Tommy was there with them. I waved as I drove by, and the look on his face was priceless.
I had a car phone which was rare back then. Tommy called after a bit and I told him his check would be ready on Friday.
Later, his wife called and asked me to give him one more chance that this was the best job he’d ever had and that their family was more secure than they’d ever been.
I let him come to a staff meeting and stand up and tell everyone what he’d done. I passed out slips of paper to everyone and let them vote. Stay or fired. They wrote, folded the papers and put them in a hat as it went around.
Most voted to let him stay. I did and he was a great employee from then on. I think it made a strong impression on all of the crews and I’m glad I gave him another chance. If his wife had not called, he would never have gotten the second chance.
Shopping at One of the Last Open Kmart’s Before it Closes Forever! Westwood NJ
Signs of America.
When my mother started to suffer from dementia.
I was in that position. It’s not an uncommon position to be in.
My mother was living alone and had early dementia. While not 91, she needed help and someone to talk with. And she was slowly losing it. She was in her late 70’s and had cancer. She lived in a big “Manor” house about an hours drive out of Pittsburgh, PA.
My sister lived the next town over and didn’t want to have anything to do with her. Instead, she wanted to put her in a care-home for aged people, and then take over her estate. Which was really selfish, and rude, but her husband was / is a self-centered bastard, so what can you expect.
My other sister lived a five hour drive away, and while she wanted to do something, it really wasn’t possible. She had her own business, and was busy. She could visit maybe once a month, but that was it.
My younger brother lived in Colorado, had his own business and couldn’t do anything.
And I, well, I was living in Boston, MA at the time. I was working as the VP of an International automotive electronics company, and I (as the oldest) was faced with the task on what to to. My brother and older sister discussed the matter with me and none of us wanted to put here in a “home”. So it was really up to me.
I quit my job.
Packed up all my belongings, and moved into the “Carriage House” (a caretaker building) on the property. Technically, I didn’t live in the house, but I was with her every day. We shared meals together. I took care of the property, and drove her to her medical appointments and kept an eye on her.
I did this for three years.
Then on Easter day, she got really tired. She couldn’t eat dinner with all of us. Instead she just sat in the kitchen, unable to move. We ate, and talked and then we carefully helped her to the couch in the TV room.
We put on a rental movie, and watched it together. She closed her eyes and went to sleep. Everyone else left, and that night, I sat beside her writing e-mails to my girlfriend in China.
She never woke up.
And I, well, I sat beside her all night, and into the next afternoon. Hospice came. We moved her into a bed in the TV room. She laid there.
And I sat beside her.
I was there beside her as she passed on.
…
You can either be a man and take responsibility for your family, or not. I took responsibility, and those three years with my mother were very special to me. Treasures. Really.
After she passed on, a new chapter opened up in my life.
When has a Company in US ever lowered its retail costs to compete fairly?
The Answer is NEVER
At least not since the 1970s
Japanese cars and steel threatened to swamp out the US overpriced cars in the 1980s
You had the PLAZA ACCORDS to destroy the Japanese export market for two decades
Tik Tok has a huge market in US and threatens every Big Tech Giant and their applications
It became a National security threat
…
Huawei became a major competition for Apple globally and looked poised with their innovation to eclipse Apple by 2025
It became a National Security Threat and was hit with every commercial sanction in the book
…
Chinese Electric vehicles threaten to dominate the world market by 2025
Bang!!!! European Parliament decides to look into anti dumping and raise tariffs. After all, it became a National Security Threat.
The fact is these guys haven’t properly competed with any rival for more than five decades
I mean the West of course
They have a four way formula to keep skirting around competition:-
Powerful Brand Image and Billions of Dollars in advertising and marketing
Powerful Lobby Groups in US and powerful political forces to throttle any competition outside the Western Bloc plus Japan using the ‘National Security Threat’
Political manouvering to use Tariffs, Sanctions and vague Export controls to throttle foreign competition
Outright buying up of opposition through voluntary or involuntary acquisitions
In short ‘BULLYBOY TACTICS’
India does the exact same thing, so do most democracies these days
Dr Singh wanted multiple entities to set up mobile services in India to develop fair competition and lowering the prices
33 to be exact
Instead we set up mock bribery charges and wiped out the entire plan and established a Cartel
So the US and it’s lackeys will never play fair economics
They will talk about it of course until kingdom come
Tomorrow if China decides to ban Iphones for 50 people, they will shriek and scream about ‘Laissez Faire’ and ‘Free market’
Yet these demented fools will never see that they are doing worse. They have been brainwashed into believing they are the good guys.
The only way to defeat them is the Chinese way which involves simply innovating, lowering costs and establishing markets wherever possible in the Global South especially BRI countries where Chinas influence exceeds the West and their influence
And slowly keep your cards close to your chest and use some of the same protection tactics that the West adopts and cut off their products from your market threatening a SCORCHED EARTH POLICY.
Or have you forgotten what and how the United States treated Huawei?
My wife works for a big logistics company in China. When the US sanctions hit, DHL withheld some Huawei equipments in their European warehouses for American investigation. This totally set Huawei off and prompted the company to look for domestic alternatives. My wife says their service is worse and more expensive than DHL, in fact totally incomparable in Europe, but after the episode Huawei was just never going to trust DHL again. Thanks to the money Huawei keep throwing their way these past few years, they’ve been able to grow and expand in Europe, becoming more respectable. At this very monent she’s on a business trip in Europe to open a new office for their newly acquired Dutch subsidiary and the inauguration of a new cargo airline.
This is just one very narrow and personal peek into the consequences of the trade war, but I think it’s a window into other areas like chips as well.
American chips were good and cheap and flooded the Chinese market before the tech war, in fact they still do, so Chinese domestic chip makers just couldn’t grow. In 1997 Chinese ministry of education downright cut the semiconductor major in universities, probably believing such majors to be unnecessary since cheap American chips are readily available and Chinese companies just weren’t making them so graduates couldn’t find jobs.
The chip war has changed that. Now semiconductor is the hottest major in China and new Chinese engineers are filling up new Chinese chip start ups. If the US drops the sanctions and flood the Chinese market again now, it will still have tarnished its reputation as a reliable supplier, and we have an entire nation, if not more, wary of the potential of American political untrustworthiness disrupting supply lines. Just like Huawei refuses to use DHL despite its service being better and cheaper, allowing for my wife’s company to grow and maybe one day take on DHL, some Chinese companies will just not trust American chips again, despite them being cheap or not, leaving room for domestic chip business to grow.
Cambodian Girl Surprises Me With Kindness in Phnom Penh
As an attorney, I had someone served with an involuntary bankruptcy at his wedding.
He had refused to pay both child and spousal support for years. He worked for his daddy and claimed he wasn’t making any money. Almost everything he owned was in someone else’s name, except for the house.
He drove expensive cars, had a boat, a couple of quads and dressed in very upscale clothing.
He would eat at the finest restaurants and travel all over the world.
Yet his ex-wife could hardly put food on the table for herself and her children, who were his children also.
I filed an involuntary bankruptcy against him to get the equity in the house to pay for the support.
He kept dodging my process server. His car would be at his work, but they would claim he was not there. Same at home, his car would be there, but his girlfriend would claim he was not home.
I spent about six months trying to get him served, when his children (the ones he refused to support) got an invitation to his wedding.
I had my process server dress as a delivery lady, with a big gift-wrapped box. Someone at the door said they would take the gift, but the process server told them that the gift was so special, it had to be delivered to the man personally.
He came to the door, the process server opened the box and, “Mr. So-and-so, you have been served.” He blew a cork and started screaming at the process server using every cuss word you could imagine.
I found out later that he was served just as the wedding was about to start.
During one of the court proceedings, he told the judge that I ruined his wedding and his honeymoon, to which I replied that was OK because he had ruined his children’s lives.
Daddy came up with the money for the back support and my attorney fees. I also got a lien on the house for all future support payments. I then dismissed the bankruptcy.
I really dislike anyone who will not support their own children, especially when they have the ability to do so.
I consider this to be one of my finest cases.
Shanghai Has Changed Forever Since The Lockdown
A dated video. But gives you an idea bout the feeling at that time.
I arrived at a very old and very prestigious school for a job interview as a teacher. The first thing I thought upon arrival was “Oh my God! This place is way outside my comfort zone.” It looked just so venerable and posh. Much of the building was Tudor (1547ish) and extensively re-modelled in Victorian gothic. It was imposing and intimidating as a potential workplace.
But then I walked into the school office and Reception and there on the Reception desk was a letter “In-Tray” with a huge ginger Tom Cat curled up alseep in it. I thought that “only in a very old, very British, very eccentric school that was very sure of itself would a cat be sleeping in the Reception Desk in-tray.”
The cat was called Henry and he had the run of the whole school and everyone loved him.
Anyway, I got the job and was ringing round various companies to acquire new equipment for my Technology lab. One company I wished to use had no supply contract with the school and so I was asked by their representative on the phone to set up a credit account. The conversation went like this:
“We will need some business credentials for your company in order to set up the credit account”
“Yes of course; what do you need to know?”
“Firstly, how long has your business be operating?”
“Four hundred and seventy-five years”
“Ah. I don’t think there will be any problem setting you up with a credit account”.
The De-Civilization of America | Victor Davis Hanson
When I was in 3rd grade, there was a class bully by the name of Chris. My cousin Ryan was also in the class, and we were buddies. One day Chris decided to pick on my cousin. Incensed, I punched Chris in the face and knocked him clean out of his chair.
Horrified by what I had done, I quickly turned to see if the teacher had seen. She hadn’t. She had her back to the class writing on the chalk board and had missed the whole thing. I was so relieved. I attended a private school that employed corporal punishment and I was so sure I was going to get paddled.
I found out years later from my parents that she had actually seen the whole thing and had quickly turned to the board to hide her huge smile. She had been aching to punch Chris herself for months.
Chris never bothered me or my cousin again.
Constitution 101 | Lecture 1
Learn the meaning of the Constitution and the principles of American government in this new version of Hillsdale’s most popular course. Visit hillsdale.edu/con101 to begin your course today.
Two things – not necessarily strange, just quirky. My father died quite unexpectedly of an aneurysm over a decade ago. He had a terrific sense of humor, and an awful gold and tan plaid sports jacket from the 70s. My mom had begged him to get rid of it for years, but no. He even wore it to my best friend’s wedding, insisting she’d find it funny. She did. When I got to it in the closet, I wasn’t sure I could give it away, but I checked the pockets anyway. Each pocket held 13 crisp $100 bills – $3900 total.
The other item was inside a puzzle box I had given him many years prior. It was the kind where you had to tap on one section, twist another, etc. in a specific order to get it open. I heard something inside when I shook it. Took me almost an hour to get it open to find his neatly written recipe for barbecue sauce.
Gosh, I miss him!
9 Things Your Cat Does for You Without You Knowing
I am disabled and I see a psychiatrist, as required by disability.
My doctor was the only one in town who accepted medicare/medicaid. He accepted me as his patient when I went for my first appointment. We got on well right away. Over the years, he has helped me along my journey to better mental health. I have had to change medications quite a few times. Sometimes they stopped working. Sometimes the side effects were too bad, or they didn’t help at all. Each time, he listened to me describe my thoughts on the medications. He worked with me and offered different solutions in order to find the best fit for me. I sincerely like and respect my psychiatrist.
I had an appointment one afternoon, and at the end of our session, he told me that he wasn’t going to be accepting medicare/medicaid patients any more. My heart sank, because this meant either forking over cash, or driving to another town to see a psychiatrist.
Then he told me that he had decided to keep a handful of his medicare/medicaid patients and see them pro-bono. He said that I was one of those patients.
So now I have a doctor who sees me regularly, fills out paper work to the satisfaction of disability people, and prescribes my medications and monitors how they are working for me. And he does it without charging me a dime.
My income is small. This is an enormous benefit to me. I can’t thank him enough. I’m proud to know a charitable person who silently helps people with no expectation of gaining anything from it. If my situation changes, I will be glad to start paying him to see me, even if it hurts my pocketbook.
1980s Things That Are Not Socially Acceptable Today
My 8th grade PE teacher was tall, black, muscular, and pretty terrifying. His wife came by class one day; she was white, plump, mid height, and sweet. I’d never seen a mixed race couple before and was a little shocked. (It wasn’t that I didn’t like the idea; I had zero exposure to mixed race anything in a nearly all white neighborhood.) What was more shocking was she took none of his shit. He barked at her like he barked at us and she told him to settle down. She instantly became my hero. They loved each other a lot, that was obvious. I never thought twice about mixed race couples again.
Yep. Our local McDonalds recently completed their renovation, which includes the new kiosks. I walked in and noticed the kiosks, but went straight to the cash register.
The manager asked me to please use the kiosk. I said no thank you. She said, we’re trying to get all of our customers to use them. Again, I said no thanks. She got really huffy and stopped what she was doing at the french fry station and turned to me and said, why won’t you use them?
I said, “I didn’t come here this morning to do your job. You want me to take an order, then pay me.” That stopped her. She came and took my order.
While she was taking my order I explained, “To use your kiosk, I have to make multiple selections, and each one requires that I choose between many options. I don’t want to do that. I just want a breakfast sandwich and a coffee. I can tell you that in one simple sentence. I don’t have to pick through multiple screens of options of things I don’t want.”
That’s why you won’t ever see me at the kiosk.
“We Can’t Be Afraid Of Nuclear War!” Says Sean Penn
EU could become as dependent on China for lithium-ion batteries and fuel cells by 2030 as it was on Russia for energy before the Ukrosia war unless it takes strong measures.
Worried by China’s growing global assertiveness and economic weight, the leaders will discuss the European Commission’s proposals to reduce the risk of Europe being too dependent on China and the need diversify towards Africa and Latin America.
While the EU has a strong position in the intermediate and assembly phases of making electrolysers, with a more than 50% global market share, it relies heavily on China for fuel cells and lithium-ion batteries crucial for electric vehicles.
According to the European Commission, in 2021, the year before Ukrosia war, the EU took more than 40% of its total gas consumption, 27% of oil imports and 46% of coal imports from Russia.
Ending most energy purchases from Russia caused an energy price shock in the EU and a surge in consumer inflation, forcing the European Central Bank to sharply raise interest rates in a move that has curbed economic growth.
Lithium-ion batteries and fuel cells were not the only area of EU vulnerability.
A similar scenario could unfold in the digital-tech space. Forecasts suggest that the demand for digital devices such as sensors, drones, data servers, storage equipment and data transmission networks will rise sharply in this decade.
The EU has a relatively strong position in the latter, but it shows significant weaknesses in the other areas.
By 2030, this foreign dependency could seriously hinder the productivity gains that the European industry and service sector urgently require and could impede the modernization of agriculture systems essential to addressing climate change.
China Ignores the US & Deepens its Ties with Russia!
China Creates world’s most powerful RADAR Chip
Article HERE Amid US tech sanctions, Chinese scientists say they made the world’s most powerful radar chip
New semiconductor performs at orders of magnitude higher than similar power-amplifying chips in most existing radar systems, says Chinese team
It uses gallium nitride despite export bans by the US government blocking high powered gallium-based semiconductors to China
A research team with a major Chinese defence company says it has built a radar chip with a record power output using semiconductor technology that is the subject of strict US sanctions. The finger-sized chip can generate radar signals with peak power reaching 2.4 kilowatts. It is one or two orders of magnitude higher than the performance of similar power-amplifying chips in most existing radar systems.
This after China banns the export of Gallium to NATO countries.
American foreign policy is based around “security”. But our notion of “security” does not distinguish between a possible threat and an actual threat. If it could possibly be a threat, then we treat it as if it’s threatening us right now. We dominate the North American continent; that’s not secure enough, so we establish military bases in Europe; that’s not secure enough, so more bases in Asia; that’s not secure enough, so take over space. In fifty years, we’ll probably be trying to colonize Mars to forestall the “threat” of somebody else getting to it first (that’s a little joke). To get an idea of how American foreign policy works, imagine a psychopathic Uncle Sam, staring at some small country with creepy twitching eyes, and saying, “You’re threatening me” while reaching for a knife.
There is a thing called nuclear primacy. Suppose that you can attack another country with nuclear weapons and destroy the whole country without the possibility of retaliation. The United States can do this to any nation on the planet, except for Russia. If Russia’s arsenal degrades to the point where it can no longer retaliate, then the United States has nuclear primacy, meaning the ability to destroy anyone without consequence. Total impunity.
There is another thing called full spectrum dominance, which is similar to nuclear primacy, except for every single dimension of warfare, not just nuclear weapons. Domination of land, air, sea, cyber warfare, everything. The United States has this over most other countries. There are a few exceptions, though. China is one. The stated intention of American military policy is to achieve full spectrum dominance over any possible opponent. Total control.
When Washington describes China as a threat, they mean that China may one day be a country that the United States can’t dominate completely with zero consequences. The chances of this are quite small and remote, but higher than zero. That makes China a “threat”, in the way that Washington uses the word. So we have to remove the “threat” by ham-stringing China, preferably by partitioning them.
Which brings me to my next point: divide-and-rule is a strategy as old as empire. Western countries excel at it. The idea is to take someone else’s country and break it apart into many smaller countries. We call this “partitioning”. Partitioning weakens your enemy by destroying their unity. But partition is a nasty, aggressive word, and Washington likes to frame all of its actions as just and defensive. So instead of partitioning, we say we’re “decolonizing” other countries. We don’t want to dominate Russia and China by partitioning them. No, see, they’re the evil imperialists, so we’re going to decolonize them, tee-hee! We’re the good guys!
This last requires a lot of propaganda to frame our enemies as “colonizers”. So we take lands that have been Chinese for centuries and claim that the Chinese are evil colonizers for having those lands. Of course, we’re also evil colonizers, but that’s okay because I started with a land acknowledgment. This is also why you hear Western intellectuals say things like, “China has never been truly unified” and “There is no continuous Chinese civilization”. This is manufacturing a justification for partitioning China a few decades down the line. Or perhaps sooner than that…
What I fear is that American hubris will suck us into a Thucydides trap. What if we decide that it’s intolerable for us not to control the world? What if we decide that World War Three is a better option? Because those are the only two options Washington sees as viable: total domination, or apocalypse.
Don’t get me wrong, by the way. I love my country. But the America I love is 4th of July parades, cookouts, and deer jerky. The America that glasses a small Middle Eastern country so some guy at Raytheon can get a new yacht — that America I don’t love.
It seems the Dutch Government has forbidden ASML to sell EUVs to SMIC from 1/9/23
Yet orders placed until 23:59 on 31/8/23 can be shipped and fulfilled.
So technically ASML can ship orders to SMIC upto the time the last order placed on 31/8/23 is fulfilled
That’s for 21 EUV Machines & 1850 DUV Machines
In September, ASML has delivered 4 EUV Machines & 390 DUV Machines
Meanwhile there is another legal complication
SMIC has now introduced a Distributor company who can buy EUVs from ASML and simply sell them to SMIC for a 10% commission (10% is just an example)
Now the Dutch order said only SMIC was forbidden from receiving ASML EUVs so ASML has also accepted 8 more orders for EUVs from this distributor
Technically Dutch Govt cannot specifically forbid ASML from selling to China as a whole as that is a major WTO violation
So they can only blacklist importers
So China can keep bringing up new distributors and placing orders and ASML is happy because TSMC has cancelled 24 Machines recently and i am sure China offered full price for the machines
Ultimately MONEY TALKS
Once again the US is furious but again it’s all about the legalese now
SMIC is forbidden so an agency buys and sells to SMIC
The Dutch look the other way of course
ASML is delighted because they sell more machines
My guess is this new agency will be blacklisted soon and they will incorporate more laws to prevent such measures
Yet that gets China another 8 machines plus a further 24 machines which I bet China will place as they are already in process
This means SMIC technically can make 7 nm and 5 nm Chips in decent quantities at least till 2026/2027
By then they should crack some breakthrough
So China has gained TIME and the Dutch have put business ahead of stupidity
Just like NVDIA and Intel just sold products to China which were slightly off the specs in huge numbers
Economics is ultimately invincible
Reality
Beef Medallions with Cognac Sauce
Beef Medallions wCognac Sauce
Yield: 2 servings
Ingredients
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) unsalted butter
1/4 cup chopped shallots
1 teaspoon (packed) brown sugar
1 cup canned low-salt chicken broth
1/2 cup canned beef broth
1/2 cup Cognac or brandy
1/4 cup whipping cream
2 (4 to 5 ounce) beef tenderloin steaks (each about 1 inch thick)
Fresh Chives
Instructions
Melt 1 tablespoon butter in heavy medium saucepan over medium heat.
Add shallots and sauté until tender, about 4 minutes.
Add brown sugar; stir 1 minute.
Add chicken broth, beef broth and Cognac. Simmer until sauce is reduced to 1/2 cup, about 20 minutes.
Add cream. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; chill.)
Sprinkle steaks with salt and pepper.
Melt 1 tablespoon butter in heavy medium skillet over medium-high heat.
Add steaks; cook to desired doneness, about 4 minutes per side for rare.
Transfer steaks to plates.
Add sauce to skillet; bring to boil, scraping up any browned bits.
Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Slice steaks; fan slices on plates.
Top with sauce and garnish with chives.
Notes
Serve Cabernet Sauvignon with the steaks.
The cost of living in Chiang Mai, Thailand 2023. Retire in Thailand affordably – live in Chiang Mai!
The rest of the world is a great IMPROVEMENT over that of the “good ol’ USA”.
When my daughters were babies/toddlers, I/we used to have to walk to the supermarket and back to get our groceries for the week. Most of the time, this went alright. It was a bit of a juggling act and it always stressed me out on the way home, but it was also nice to get out with them without my then husband.
Anyhow, one day we’re really struggling to get home. My oldest didn’t want to walk and I couldn’t carry them both and the bags etc, so we’re doing everything the hardest way possible. The only way possible. Then a lady, a bit older than myself, stopped me and told me to ‘wait right there please”. I was completely confused, but thought maybe she was going to get her car or something? Who knew. I was exhausted, my kids were too, so we waited and I thought I was an idiot for waiting.
Then she came back, with a double stroller. Not some glamorous kind, nothing with all the bells and whistles and not brand new, but one that I could use as a buggy or as a stoller. I could put one of my kids in it and still have room behind them for bags, or put both kids in.. or neither kid and lay the front seat down. Anyways, it was perfect for us and I could’ve cried and kissed that lady. She kept saying she didn’t need it anymore and it wasn’t a big deal, but it was a huge deal for us. I offered to pay her or do something, but she wouldn’t hear of it. I’ll never forget her generosity or how much she helped us.
RUSSIAN SUPERMARKET TOUR! 🇷🇺 0,2$ BREAD and 0,2$ POTATO
For a while, right before I was “recovered” by MAJ at China Lake Naval Weapons Systems, I found myself in California and making ends meet. I knew that I had to be in California, but where? And how to contact my “up-line handlers”?
I hadn’t a clue.
So I parked myself in various cities, and waited for their actions.
Right before they “found me”, I was working as a breakfast cook at a restaurant called “Louse’s place” in the beautiful town of San Louis Obispo. This town, a college town, was nestled in a nice area, surrounded by mountains, and built upon a network of streams. It was, at that time, quite lovely.
2023 09 26 11 42
I wore a short sleeved shirt, a white apron, and a chef’s hat, and performed my cooking rituals in front of the customers. Basic stuff, really. Bacon and eggs, gourmet omelettes, and specialty sandwiches.
I lived off the small salary, and the tips that I would get.
SAM 2073
I worked a 5am to 3 pm shift. And it wasn’t bad at all. I got a free lunch, and could take home leftover “blue plate specials”. And I did just that, as I would walk the distance to our broken down van, that was parked at the edge of a obscure parking lot until we could get enough money to get an apartment and leave.
We would eat the food in the front seat. And just pretty much lived a transit lifestyle.
img 8469 79312
This was in the 1980’s. I can only imagine how bad it must be today. Back then, We were a rare sight. Today, we would be just a ripple in a massive wave of homeless. Gosh! Can you even imagine?
…
I have a lot of compassion of others (homeless in California) who suffer through this plight. It’s difficult, and hard. Housing, utilities and expenses are outrageous, and they do not have to be that way, it is just the super greedy that this created this impossible situation.
If you ever get a moment, give some food to the homeless. Maybe they will accept, maybe not. But show some compassion.
North Korea will participate in a number of Far Eastern Projects and establish a Russia DPRK Labor Commission to engage upto 200,000 workers who will live in Far East for 10 years and could be Prospective migrants
DPRK and Russia will jointly modernize the Air Force of North Korea, Drones in North Korea and Air Defence of North Korea
DPRK and Russia will sign a Trade Pact
Putin has committed around 1 Trillion Rubles investment in North Korea
China will play a key role but China will remain hidden behind the scenes because it’s not a Sanctioned state like DPRK and Russia
They can’t sign an official agreement due to existing UN sanctions that Russia can’t break or violate
Yet they can unofficially make a no limits friendship which they just did
In exchange
DPRK promises assistance to Russia against ROK (South Korea) and Japan as a strong piece on the Chessboard
A Nuclear power with 50 Nukes minimum is a strong powerful deterrent
That the governments of Saudi Arabia, Russia, Venezuela have ordered their government officials to stop using Apple iPhones and switch to Mate 60 Pro for security reasons.
Chicken Fried Steak with Mashed Potatoes and White Gravy
2023 09 25 11 49
Ingredients
6 cube steaks
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon pepper
1 tablespoon chicken bouillon
1 tablespoon chili powder
3 tablespoons seasoned salt
3/4 tablespoon celery salt
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon oregano
4 to 5 eggs
Instructions
Add the seasonings to the flour. Stir it all together.
Crack the eggs in a separate dish and mix them together.
Lay the steak in the flour and then dip it into the egg. Place it back in the flour.
Repeat with the rest of the steaks.
Lay the steak in hot oil. Let it cook for a couple of minutes at 350 degrees F.
Repeat with the rest of the steaks.
Plate the steak and serve with garlic mashed potatoes and gravy.
If I were a superhero, I want my superpower to be “involuntary empathy.” I have the power to make people feel what others are feeling. The process is simple: I mark a person as a “target,” and choose a “recipient,” and link them together. The selection can not be random. The recipient’s action must directly impact the target; otherwise, the connection will not work. Both the target and recipient maintain their independent thought and free will. They can go about doing their own thing. However, the recipient will experience the target’s emotions that directly result from the recipient’s action (and nothing else). The recipient can go kill the target if they are willing to experience death. On top of the obvious murder change, the recipient will suffer a mental breakdown and never recover. And if a person has multiple victims, the effect will compound.
For example, if a man abuses his wife, he will experience the physical pain, fear, desperation, anxiety, and shame… that directly result from his abuse. But he doesn’t get to experience the love and joy his wife felt when she was with her family or playing with her children.
I want to be able to walk up to a youth pastor who abuses children and make him experience the anguish, desperation, sense of isolation, shame, guilt, and self-loathing his victims felt while they were being molested. I want him to feel the pain that drove these poor kids to self-harm or even commit suicide. I want to make murderers feel the pain of the families of the victims. I want to make the billionaires feel the pain of their workers.
I want those pearl-clutching “concerned moms” to feel the fear and anxiety and isolation of trans kids who just want to use the fucking bathroom.
I want the shitty parents to feel the pain of the children they abuse.
I want the racists to feel the fear and anger of minority people they bully and harass. I want the KKK members to feel the pain of their victims. I want them to feel every single minute when the victims are beaten and tortured.
I want this pain and suffering to stay with these people for the rest of their lives. And the only way they can reduce their suffering is through genuine remorse and making actual amends.
I want Jeff Bezos to feel the exhaustion of his delivery guys and distribution center workers, the discomfort that they had to hold their bladder, the shame of having to pee in a bottle, the fear of being sick and missing work, the anxiety of doing full-time work and not making a living wage. I want him to feel it every day, every night, every minute of his life on his fucking 500 million dollar yacht. He won’t be able to enjoy any luxuries in life until he changes his company policy.
Of course, the recipient would experience positive feelings from the target as well if that’s the direct result of their actions. So if Jeff Bezos decided to pay his workers fair wages, give them sick leave, and some bonus, he would experience immense joy no 500 million dollar yachts would bring. If the billionaires want to experience incredible joy, they can donate to disaster relief and build schools for underprivileged children. I would be happy to connect them to the children they helped. I mean, actually helped, instead of using their charity organization as a tax haven.
I feel that I could actually make the world a better place if I had this power.
Even MOBILE HOMES Are No Longer AFFORDABLE
Today I am finally showing you around a mobile home park here in California. However, there is a caveat…Its quite expensive to own a mobile home here. However, I was able to speak with one of the residents and get you the details on what its like to live and own in a mobile home park.
I had ridden motorcycles, ATVs, dirt bikes, etc on & off since I was 5. I met a guy on line who was a biker and agreed to meet for a ride & lunch. At the time, I didn’t have a bike so I was to be his backseat “princess”.
Before the ride, I questioned him a lot about riding, how long he had been riding, where all he had ridden to, what bikes he had owned, etc to make sure he was legit. I’m not putting my life at risk with a poser. He came off as legit.
We meet, start the ride and I realize that I was in trouble….he was dangerous with his riding skills. Tailgating, splitting lanes when there was no need to, cursing out car drivers, braking too late, taking curves too fast…. basically he was dangerous. I admit to being scared shitless. He refused to stop to let me get off his bike until we got to the restaurant.
Inside the restaurant, I went from being an emotional wreck to being all out “Irish-Redhead” pissed but presented a calm and exterior. After ordering, I excused myself to go to the ladies room. While in there I called for an Uber to pick me up in 1/2 hour. I rejoined him, ate my meal, including a stiff drink to calm the nerves and thanked him. Then I just went outside and got in my Uber to go home. Be damned if I was getting back on the lunatic’s bike. And of course, I blocked him.
Huawei was once the world’s top smartphone vendor, shipping over 200m phones in 2018.
Last year, under a de-facto embargo by the US, it shipped 28m, an eight-, almost nine-fold decrease from its peak.
The volume has been cannibalized by Apple, Samsung, and other Chinese brands.
Apple, in particular, now sell more iPhones in Greater China than stateside, all thanks to Huawei’s demise.
That’s “national security” and “clean networks” for all you Apple fans.
How bad were the curbs applied on Huawei? Phone assemblers froze assembly lines overnight and refused to fulfill their contractual obligations, components on order were canceled, Google withdrew Android licensing and design license agreements were ripped up.
Huawei had no OS, a completely disrupted hardware supply chain, a deficient set of highly specialized software design tools and its CFO under house arrest in Canada.
It would not have surprised anyone had Huawei announced its withdrawal from the consumer device space.
Amazingly, Huawei the 5G telecoms champion sold off Honor, its sub-brand, and issued 4G phones under the Huawei brand, weathering a gut-wrenching revenue drop off a cliff. It conducted an internal review of the entire supply chain, from its core telecoms equipment business to consumer devices, and began the painful and expensive task of de-Americanization. Any component that had even the hint of American IP was marked for domestic substitution. The process was completed for its telecoms equipment earlier, but the device side lacked two pieces—a capable GPU for AI-assisted gestures, payments and the camera, and a 5G modem, which was protected behind Qualcomm’s giant patent wall.
Huawei found hacks around EDA restrictions, and designed its own GPU. It also introduced novel transistor geometries to boost the performance of 7nm to the 5nm node. It rapidly upgraded its inhouse Hongmeng OS to 4.0, turning it into a polished platform with large language AI and IOT capability baked in. Its software ecosystem is coming along nicely, and the platform is well beyond the market share needed to ensure survival.
To add icing on the cake, the flagship Huawei phone of 2023 can make satellite calls, showcasing its space comms tech maturity and the bandwidth/coverage of the Chinese commercial satellite network.
In field tests conducted by a Hong Kong user, the Mate 60 Pro matched the iPhone 14’s 5G network speed, demonstrating Huawei’s 5G modem was a match for Qualcomm’s implementation. Not a bad milestone for a first effort, eh?
Huawei had no need for GPS, Qualcomm’s 5G, LG’s OLED, Samsung’s storage, Micron’s memory, or even upstream chip design tools that were vulnerable to US sanction. In fact, even if we took the best in class features from Apple, Google and Samsung and put them into a hypothetical hybrid champion, the Mate 60 Pro can still stand shoulder to shoulder, because it has a couple of industry-first or performance leading features. It is truly worthy of a 2023 flagship designation, earned fair and square.
Huawei did all these in less than 4 years, a remarkable turnaround despite becoming a corporation targeted for destruction by the US government, probably a historic first.
Huawei is finding its mojo again on way firmer footing, and it will sell every Mate 60 pro the production lines can churn out this year.
The NEW American Dream: GETTING OUT!
We grew up during the 1970s and 80s in the Midwest back when the American Dream was still the goal and attainable for most people in the middle class. If you worked hard for a loyal employer (they were still loyal back then) or at your own business, you could expect to have a shot at freedom, prosperity, a house, a car, a better life for your kids, etc. Sadly, that is no longer the case for several reasons we discuss in this video. Now, the NEW American Dream is about something most people never thought they would do: Leaving the United States.
(a) If you can produce your own food and supply your own food
(b) If you have a Product that has tremendous Global Demand and its deficit would lead to significant losses
(c) You are a net exporter
Then You are immune from Most Sanctions on a Long term basis.
Its why Iran and Iraq have also survived Sanctions.
They have OIL.
Thats Why Afghanistan is likely to be roasted under Sanctions. Because they dont have the above merits.
How Will The Biden Administration Cope With Its Loss In Ukraine?
While this piece will touch on the war in Ukraine it is more about the U.S., and the Biden administration, and how they will cope with their defeat in their war on Russia. Please keep that in mind when commentating.
Washington’s moment of recognizing the defeat in Ukraine, and its consequences, has yet to arrive.
In his latest piece (archived) Seymour Hersh reports on the state of the war and of significant differences of opinion between the U.S. intelligence services:
There are significant elements in the American intelligence community, relying on field reports and technical intelligence, who believe that the demoralized Ukraine army has given up on the possibility of overcoming the heavily mined three-tier Russian defense lines and taking the war to Crimea and the four oblasts seized and annexed by Russia. The reality is that Volodymyr Zelensky’s battered army no longer has any chance of a victory.
The war continues, I have been told by an official with access to current intelligence, because Zelensky insists that it must. There is no discussion in his headquarters or in the Biden White House of a ceasefire and no interest in talks that could lead to an end to the slaughter. “It’s all lies,” the official said, speaking of the Ukrainian claims of incremental progress in the offensive that has suffered staggering losses, while gaining ground in a few scattered areas that the Ukrainian military measures in meters per week. … The American intelligence official I spoke with spent the early years of his career working against Soviet aggression and spying has respect for Putin’s intellect but contempt for his decision to go to war with Ukraine and to initiate the death and destruction that war brings. But, as he told me, “The war is over. Russia has won. There is no Ukrainian offensive anymore, but the White House and the American media have to keep the lie going.
“The truth is if the Ukrainian army is ordered to continue the offensive, the army would mutiny. The soldiers aren’t willing to die any more, but this doesn’t fit the B.S. that is being authored by the Biden White House.”
The differences between the current CIA and the more neoconned Defense Intelligence Agency extend to their view on China:
A byproduct of the Biden administration’s neocon hostility to Russia and China—exemplified by the remarks of Secretary of State Tony Blinken, who has repeatedly stated that he will not currently countenance a ceasefire in Ukraine—has been a significant split in the intelligence community. One casualty are the secret National Intelligence Estimates that have delineated the parameters of American foreign policy for decades. Some key offices in the CIA have refused, in many cases, to participate in the NIE process because of profound political disagreement with the administration’s aggressive foreign policy. One recent failure involved a planned NIE that dealt with the outcome of a Chinese attack on Taiwan.
I have reported for many weeks on the longstanding disagreement between the CIA and other elements of the intelligence community on the prognosis of the current war in the Ukraine. CIA analysts have consistently been far more skeptical than their counterparts at the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) on the prospect for a Ukraine success. The American media has ignored the dispute, but the London-headquartered Economist, whose well-informed reporters do not get bylines, has not. …
The DIA is still saying that the Ukrainian army has a chance, a small one though, to break through the Russian lines. The White House still seems to believe in that. The CIA knows that the Ukraine is done.
Alastair Crooke, in a talk (vid) with Judge Napolitano, says that the moment of truth will only arrive in November.
But what will happen when everyone recognizes and acknowledges, if silently, that the war on Russia has failed?
Ukraine, today, has suffered huge losses of even greater (proportional) magnitude [than the German Wehrmacht in the Battle of Kursk], without achieving any significant territorial gains, unable even to reach the first layer of the Surovikin Line. That will clear the road to the Dnieper and beyond for the 600,000 strong Russian army equipped with weaponry the equal of what the West has given Ukraine. Hence, Moscow is poised to exploit its decisive advantage to the point where it can dictate terms to Kiev, Washington, Brussels et al.
The Biden administration has made no plans for such an eventuality, nor have its obedient European governments. Their divorce from reality will make this state of affairs all the more stunning — and galling. Bereft of ideas, they will flounder. How they will react is unknowable. We can say with certainty one thing: the collective West, and especially the U.S., will have suffered a grave defeat. Coping with that truth will become the main order of business.
Here is a menu of options for handling it:
Redefine what is meant by defeat, victory, failure, success, loss, gain. There is a new narrative that is scripted to stress these talking points: … … This narrative already has been given an airing in speeches by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Acting Deputy Secretary of State Victoria Nuland. Its target audience is the American public; nobody outside the Collective West buys it, though — whether Washington has registered that fact of diplomatic life or not.
Retroactively Scale Back the Goals & Stakes … Cultivate Amnesia … Next: China …
It is likely that the administration will use all four options to make the pain and memory of defeat go away. Declare victory over Russia because Russia was stopped at the border with Poland. Then forget about all the details and consequences and move towards war on China.
That could end catastrophically.
The focal shift from Russia in Europe to China in Asia is less a mechanism for coping with defeat than the pathological reaction of a country that, feeling a gnawing sense of diminishing prowess, can manage to do nothing more than try one final fling at proving to itself that it still has the right stuff — since living without that exalted sense of self is intolerable. … The U.S. was fortunate, in the case of Vietnam, that the United States’ dominant position in the world outside of the Soviet Bloc and the PRC allowed it to maintain respect, status and influence.
Things have now changed, though. The U.S. relative strength in all domains is weaker, strong centrifugal forces around the globe are producing a dispersion of power, will and outlook among other states. The BRICs phenomenon is the concrete embodiment of that reality.
Hence, the prerogatives of the United States are narrowing, its ability to shape the global system in conformity with its ideas and interests are under mounting challenge, and premiums are being placed on diplomacy of an order that seems beyond its present aptitudes.
The U.S. is confounded.
Major offices in the CIA, according to Hersh, have recognized the danger of such plans. It may well be the reason why the CIA’s informal spokesmen, David Ignatius, and others wrote that Biden should step down.
If he doesn’t the neoconservatives around him will have a great incentive to move on China as fast as possible. As Biden will have difficulties in winning next year’s election he needs some objective that can unify the country. A war that he can claim the U.S. will win is one. Some hostile naval exchanges with China will follow.
(Please don’t use the comments of this thread for details from the war in Ukraine. The current thread for such is here.)
Posted by b on September 21, 2023 at 17:05 UTC | Permalink
Dangerous
On topic we are at a dangerous inflection point. Ironically it is the potential of war with China that is preventing WW3 from starting, in my view. Maerica doesn’t know how to accept loss and animals are at their most dangerous when cornered.
Posted by: Doctor Eleven | Sep 21 2023 18:22 utc | 29
China’s foreign policy towards the U.S. is very simple indeed Allow the U.S. to commit suicide and give them a long rope to hang themselves since they choose ignorance, naïveté and hubris over knowing the real China.
This policy is highly effective cost almost nothing and hurt the U.S. beyond recognition. And it is the US doing to themselves. Take the Chinese response to US thinking they could knee cap China on supposed technological superiority on semi conductor. Over China.
China don’t wish to start a fight now wants to hurt snd harmed China but the US insisted. Hence China chose the precise response that will totally destroy the U.S. that cost China nothing and cost trillions upon trillions of losses in the U.S. chips industry.
But this is not the first time nor will it be the last. The last nation to threaten is one that helped you enjoyed a 30 years inflation free economy. But the U.S. started a trade war against China for no reason except it is popular for politicians. Today the U.S. is paying for a high inflation and looming recession.
Their policy as usual is sustainable, practical and pragmatic while the U.S. policy towards China hurts and harm the U.S. to no end. It is neither sustainable nor effective against China.
China Slams And Issues A Massive Warning To Europe | Sparks Tensions Over EV Exports
“Just like their master, the E.U. resorts to tariffs to try to slow down the growth of Chinese EV’s in its market. In other words, when they can’t compete, they employ dirty tricks to get what they want. How can the E.U. go about the accusation of government subsidies when the same eletrict car costs nearly twice the one in the Chinese domestic market? The madness is beyond belief.”
China can make life really bad for European car manufacturers if it wanted to.
Stanley Praimnath, was working on the 81st floor of the South Tower of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.
He was a vice president at Fuji Bank, a prestigious Japanese financial institution. He had a nice office with a view of the Statue of Liberty and the Hudson River.
He had a good life, a loving family, and a strong Christian faith.
But everything changed in an instant when he saw a plane flying straight toward his building.
He later recalled:
Depiction of the plane.
“I saw this giant airplane coming towards me eye level, eye contact. I’m looking at the cockpit of the plane and I see the red markings on it and I realize it’s an American Airlines plane.” He instinctively ducked under his desk and prayed: “Lord, I can’t do this! You take over!”
The plane crashed into the building between floors 77 and 85, just above Stanley’s office.
The impact was so powerful that it tore a hole in the wall behind him and sucked out everything in his office except his desk, which shielded him from the flames and debris. He was trapped in a small space with no way out.
Meanwhile, on the same floor, another man was looking for survivors. His name was Brian Clark,
a Canadian executive at Euro Brokers, another financial firm.
He had escaped from his office on the 84th floor, which was at the top of the impact zone, and was heading down Stairway A, the only one that wasn’t destroyed by the plane.
On his way down, he heard a faint voice crying for help from behind a wall of rubble.
He followed the sound and found Stanley’s hand waving through a hole. He shone his flashlight and saw Stanley’s eyes staring back at him.
He grabbed his hand and pulled him over the wall.
Stanley was overjoyed to see Brian. He kissed him and said:
“I’m Stanley! We’ll be brothers for life!” Brian agreed and said: “Let’s go home.”
The two men made their way down the stairs, dodging smoke and debris along the way. They reached the ground floor at 9:55 am, just five minutes before the South Tower collapsed.
They ran out of the building and hugged each other in relief. They had just become two of only four survivors from above the south tower impact zone.
Stanley later said that he owed his life to God and Brian. He said: “God sent an angel to save me.” Brian said:
“I don’t know why I survived when so many others didn’t. I guess God had other plans for me.”
After 9/11, Stanley became a Pentecostal pastor and a popular inspirational speaker with religious groups and churches. He also remained close friends with Brian, who he calls his brother for life.
In short answer, Cambodia used to be a prosperous country. After the end of the Indochina War (1945–1954), under the leadership of King Norodom Sihanouk (1922–2012), the economy of Cambodia rapidly went up for the next twenty years, with remarkable achievements. In 1960, the GPD per capita of Cambodia was US$ 111,34 and it was even higher than both North and South Vietnam at that time (with US$ 51 and US$ 105, respectively).
During the 1960s, while Vietnam was stuck into a devastated war, the economy of Cambodia continued to develop rapidly. The capital of Phnom Penh was among the “pearls” of the oriental, where notable figures of the world such as French President Charles De Gaulle (1890–1970) and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis (1929–1994) had their visits.
However…
The fate of Cambodia was sealed on 18 March 1970, after the coup d’état against King Norodom Sihanouk, which was sponsored by the United States. Since then, Cambodia was stuck into a bloody civil war during the next five years (1970–1975), with hundred thousand deaths.
Unluckily, the end of the Cambodian Civil War in 1975 did not mark the beginning of the new peaceful era for Cambodian nation. On the contrary, it subsequently marked the beginning of the Maoist genocidal regime of Khmer Rouge, as one of the most brutal dictatorships in 20th century. “Comrade Pol Pot”, the supreme leader of Cambodia at that time once said:
“In the concrete revolutionary struggle of our country, we creatively and successfully applied Mao Tse-tung Thought.”
(Peking Review (北京周報), Vol. 20, No. 41, 07 October 1977, p. 25)
With Chinese Maoism in his mind together with strong military supports from People’s Republic of China, in just four years Pol Pot rapidly transformed his country into a massive “killing field”, where 2.0 to 3.0 millions of “counter-revolutionaries” or 1/3 of Cambodian population were exterminated! Historically, it was called the “Cambodian Genocide”, in which the whole country of Cambodia was returned to the “Year Zero” (Année Zéro). From a prosperous country during the 1960s, Cambodia became a constant famine-stricken and also one of the poorest countries in the world under the rule of Khmer Rouge regime.
The whole economic structure of Cambodia was totally bankrupt to the root when Pol Pot decided not to use the paper money anymore! The city of Phnom Penh subsequently became a “ghost city”. There were no more French-style coffee shops, no more luxury cars, no more beautiful lights of neon at night, but only the so-called “people’s communes” located around the country, where people were forced to work until their last breath. These below pictures were about the city of Phnom Penh under the rule of Khmer Rouge.
The “Cambodian Genocide” was finally ended on January 1979, when the Cambodian national uprising together with the Vietnamese offensive finally overthrown the rule of Pol Pot and his henchmen. During the next twenty years (1979–1999), together with the Vietnamese military assistance, the new government of Cambodia under the leadership of Hun Sen continued the fight against the remaining Khmer Rouge guerrillas until the death of Pol Pot in 1998 and the total disband of the Khmer Rouge faction in 1999.
Since 1993, Norodom Sihanouk officially returned as a King of Cambodia. Meanwhile, all of the former leaders of Khmer Rouge regime were charged with their crimes against the humanity.
Nowadays, although Cambodia is not a rich country, but the revival process is going on, the whole country of Cambodia is again going up rapidly from zero and obtains average GDP growth about 7.5% annually.
How to LEAVE AMERICA FOR GOOD and escape the rat race in the United States
If you’re thinking that America sucks and is going to hell recently, you’re not alone and lots of people are wondering how to set up an escape plan and get out of the USA permanently before it falls apart.
Or, you might simply be thinking that it would be better to live in another country, regardless of how well the United States is doing, because you’re trying to escape the rat race that we’ve built.
Whatever your motivations for wanting to leave the USA and travel the world full-time, this video will breakdown how to make money while traveling, different jobs available to foreigners, how to work online, how to find jobs in a foreign country, a few countries that I think are good first-time tryouts for anyone who is considering living the digital nomad life full-time, and much more.
“Digital Nomad” is a very highly hyped occupation, but in actuality, it doesn’t really work out that great.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has already answered this question.
Taiwan is part of China.
Since 1956, Mao Zedong proposed the “third cooperation between the KMT and the CPC” to complete the mission of peacefully reunifying Taiwan, and proposed the policy of “One Program, Four projects”, the predecessor of “One Country, Two Systems”.
It is the hypocritical Yanks who have been blocking China’s efforts to unify Taiwan.
The United States has always been the main culprit in dividing China. Without the overt and covert support of Washington, the DPP would not be able to gain power in Taiwan.
We record everything the United States has done to China.
When service economies slow down; they resort to financialization.
This means that they create cash flow by creating debt instead of producing anything.
This is what has happened to the US economy. Most Americans are deeply in debt, and spend a significant portion of their monthly income paying interest on their debt.
It is NOT productivity.
Debt is a necessary part of life, but it should only be spent as an investment for future productivity, not for paying off daily expenses.
Frugal Living Is The Only Way To SURVIVE The Cost of Living Crisis
Here’s a fun fact, once you become a grannie in China, you get to wear a grannie “uniform”. These grannies all wear outlandish crazy floral patterned tops. And it seems to be the unofficial “uniform” of the grannie sect inside of China.
2023 09 19 17 52
I don’t know quite how it works, but seriously… all the grannies wear these God-awful floral tops; the busier, and more abrasive the better.
Don’t you know.
…
Let me tell you all the sad tale of my mistakes in cooking hamburgers.
Grilled Hamburgers 2
You see, as a teenager, my father was trying to lose weight, and at that time he believed that all the fat in hamburgers must be removed for it to be “healthy”. And so, whenever he cooked hamburgers, he would squeeze all the delicious juices out of the burger. Whether on the grill or in the pan. And the result would be a dry burger.
I didn’t know any better. Being all of 12 or 13 at the time, and so I thought that this was the way that you cook hamburgers. You squeeze all the fat out.
Stupid silly me.
No wonder no one wanted me to cook the hamburgers at family get-togethers. I made dry and tasteless hamburgers.
I feel so bad about it, and I wince when I remember that particular memory.
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Today, I leave all the precious juices inside the burger. Let it cook just that way. Don’t ever…ever…EVER squeeze out the juices! The juices are what you want in a fine greasy delicious burger.
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Go get yourself a nice burger. Make sure that it is tasty and delicious and do not skimp on the sides. Have a great meal and a great day!
Being disabled and looking like I do there are two things I always get to overhear. Going through TSA my name comes up red flagged. Meaning check him completely.
A customs agent told me “it’s due to your Military career and past knowledge.”
What the hell does that mean? I’m in a wheelchair and have metal in my leg, shoulder, and back. I am a wand beep show. All hands pat downs in a wheelchair. You need two hips to stand, so I can’t stand. Any chance I am taking over the plane? Gunpowder tests on hands AND ARMS. OK so the Navy/CIA service made me an enemy of the state or something?
I think it is BS and it’s profiling but my wife said “no it’s not.”
Then you have people whispering when we get on first. “Bet they fake it to board first…”
I tore into a woman I heard say that. I yelled so loud the airport got quiet. Does it look like I’m faking it? I tried to get out of wheelchair and fell. Hurt. But I felt better with that. Maybe she’ll get it some day.
My wife wasn’t happy about my antics but I’m so tired of it. And she knows. On the plane though I overheard a mom telling their kid there is no difference between disabled people and us. Except a part of their body just doesn’t work like ours. She had me in tears. The best explanation of a disabled person I have ever heard explained. And plainly so a child could understand it. The kid kept asking me if I needed any help?
Thats mainly because The Ruble is not a very Publicly Traded Currency & Russia is a Net Exporter
Putin did three strategic things:-
Firstly , he rose the interest rates to 20% Short term. That helped when a huge amount of rubles entered into the Banking system, reducing the Supply and subsequently making the Ruble more valuable.
Secondly, he had a rule where all Companies in Russia had to ensure 80% of all Foreign Payments were mandatorily in Russian Rubles. As a result – Companies within Russia had to buy Rubles from Russian Central Bank and this helped the Ruble gain traction and demand.
Thirdly, he announced that he would only take paymets for Gas in Rubles. Now while G7 governments keep talking nonsense as Politicians do, the Businessmen – ie:- The Refineries, The Gas Distributors etc had to assume the worst case scenario and be prepared and so they collectively purchased roughly 160 Billion Rubles over 4 days (Around Euro 1.53 Billion). If they really have to pay for Gas in Rubles – they will need around 1.5 Trillion Rubles but still…this Ruble purchase also took the Ruble rate up.
In this way – the Ruble strengthened from 141 Rubles to a Dollar on 7th March 2022 to 93 Rubles to a Dollar on 28th March 2022.
Meanwhile – Why exactly did the Ruble crash in value???
Its not traded on any Exchange right? No Major Country carries Ruble reserves? Its not as if Rubles are sold in US or EU and they dumped the Rubles right?
I believe this was because the West dumped their entire stock of Rubles
Prior to 24th February – You had 900 Billion Rubles or around US$ 13 Billion with Foreign Countries in the form of Securities or actual Ruble Deposits.
My guess is – the West dumped this entire $ 13 Billion or 900 Billion of Rubles with the intention of causing a major crash in the Ruble and create an economic turmoil in Russia.
My guess was – Crash the value of the Ruble, Make Necessary Imports very expensive , mainly Drugs and Pharma and bring Putin to his knees.
Sadly someone spoilt the party:-
China has the largest Ruble Reserves outside of Russia ($ 55.1 Billion or around 1.5% of its foreign reserves). The West had hoped China would be panic driven to sell their Rubles as well which could have crashed the Ruble even further.
Luckily China didn’t fall for the trap and instead kept their Rubles and even rose the price band between the Yuan and Ruble by 10% instead of 5% to prevent panic sales of Rubles.
No Wonder the West is SO ANGRY WITH CHINA
Its why i always say – A NON CONVERTIBLE CURRENCY is the Greatest Asset for a NET EXPORTER
And another thing
900 Billion Ruble dumping – caused a 13 day turmoil for the Ruble
IMAGINE IF CHINA DUMPS $ 1.273 TRILLION OF US DOLLAR DEBT !!!!!!
I was flying home to Mom’s funeral. Had our 13 month old son with me. A young soldier took the aisle seat. We exchanged pleasantries and then I busied myself keeping N. occupied. Mealtime came and I noticed the young man talking to the flight attendant. Turns out he had told her to hold his meal and he offered to hold N. while I ate and then happily ate his own. When we landed he helped me with my carry-on luggage and wished me luck with the next leg of my trip. I’ve never forgotten that young soldier.
If someone is trying to make you decide in a hurry, they are probably giving you a bad deal. Walk away.
Sometimes pretending that you are naive gets you more information.
Pretending is helpful many times.
If you want to avoid office politics, say good things about coworkers behind their backs.
Physical contact makes you more likely to say yes to a request.
If you want to make someone feel uncomfortable, look at their forehead when you’re talking to them.
When a group of people laugh, they tend to look at the person they like the most.
Nervousness and excitement have the same body reaction, so if you’re nervous for a speech, instead convince yourself you’re excited. Its proven to give better speeches, too.
Ask for something that seems small, but is related, to what you really want. Then, once they’ve agreed to the small thing, just work up with slightly larger requests until you achieve your goals.
I can reverse that. My father recounted the story of a massive brick chimney on the OSU campus. They wanted it down, so put it out for bids. The bids came in the thousands of dollars (a lot of money in the ‘50s), except one. An old guy with a beat-up pickup came by and bid $50. He chiseled out a number of the bricks, replacing them with wood blocks. When he’d replaced enough of them, he threw gasoline on it, lit it, and retreated. When the thing came down, he hauled away all of the brick (what he really wanted).
One of the great media injustices took place in 1994 — and it began a pattern of malignment that escalates to this day.
The case was Liebeck v. McDonald’s. It’s one of the most widely recognized and highly misunderstood lawsuits in history. Most people know it as, “The greedy lady who spilled coffee on herself and wanted an easy payday.”
It’s also the precursor to social media harassment campaigns — including a list of targets I hesitate to even mention — because I know people buy into the nonsense.
Here’s what really happened.
The lead-up to the legal showdown
Stella Liebeck did indeed order coffee and spill it on herself. After pulling through the drive-through, she put the coffee between her legs, and the lid popped off. The coffee then spilled on her inner thighs and crotch region.
What people often miss is that the coffee didn’t burn her — it completely scorched her body.
McDonald’s was keeping the coffee far, far hotter than it needed to be, at temperatures that cause third-degree burns in an instant. Remember: Heat damage is also a proxy of exposure of duration — and there was little time to react (which was exacerbated by her old age).
Liebeck spent more than a week in the hospital battling life-threatening infections.
The media also conveniently ignore that there were more than 700 hot coffee complaints and lawsuits filed against McDonald’s in the lead-up to this case. More than $500,000 in payouts had been given to burn victims.
But when the casual consumer scanned headlines and saw, “Woman Wins Millions After Mistakenly Spilling Coffee On Herself”, it turned McDonald’s into a martyr for lazy, greedy consumers — and the customer into an avatar of laziness and opportunism.
It became so easy to conclude the woman was a fool for not knowing coffee was hot, and that she should have been more careful and taken responsibility for her mistakes.
She’s lucky there was no Twitter back then.
The court case was a hot mess too
During my MBA program, we studied this case in corporate law class. I remember being so surprised at the number of contradictions to public perception within it.
First, Liebeck never sued for millions.
She asked for $20,000 just to cover her medical expenses (the costs her insurance didn’t cover). For six months, McDonald’s refused and instead offered her $800. Eventually, she hired a lawyer. His eyes went wide as he saw the facts of the case. That’s when their claim went way up.
The jury was initially skeptical of Liebeck. They thought she was just another ambulance chaser.
And then they saw the actual images of the burns
Liebeck had permanent damage to her private areas. The images are hard to look at and I can’t even describe them without getting very graphic.
Doctors performed several skin grafts. Liebeck’s physician testified in front of the jury that her burns were one of the worst he’d ever seen, as bad as people who’d been on fire.
Conversely, McDonald’s defense lawyers were flamboyant and pompous. In one of the all-time great legal screw-ups, they responded to the fact that 700+ people had been burned by saying it was “little more than a rounding error”. Regardless of the company’s customer volume, it reflected a callous disregard for the harm they had — and were — causing.
After the jury saw McDonald’s track record of burns, the arrogance of their lawyers, and their refusal to accept any blame, the tide turned.
Even worse, Liebeck’s attorney cross-examined McDonald’s quality control manager and squeezed three painful confessions out of him:
That their coffee was not served at a temperature safe for consumption.
That consumers were not adequately warned of the burn risk.
He also buried his foot in his mouth by saying he had more important matters to attend to than the burn injuries. He said they didn’t constitute a change in policy.
Between these missteps and the facts of the case, the jury awarded Liebeck $640,000. However, the judge added punitive damages totaling $2.7 million, equal to two days of Mcdonald’s coffee sales.
Punitive damages are a judge’s way of saying, “You messed this up so bad that I’m going to add extra damages just to send a stronger message to everyone watching this.”
The aftermath
Sadly, Liebeck never got the millions.
She instead settled out of court for a half-million dollars. She spent the remaining 12 years of her life in poor health while her settlement only covered her medical care and a live-in nurse.
She was never some dumb, greedy, careless woman who didn’t know that coffee was hot. The public’s misconception was a major disservice to someone who genuinely suffered.
This should have been a PR nightmare for McDonald’s. Between the 700+ incidents and the pattern of lava-hot coffee, it was just a matter of time before this happened.
McDonald’s was big enough to take the hit and was blessed with a rare media hall pass. Conservative political talk shows needed an anti-business case study to spin for election season.
The public drew quick conclusions about this woman before even knowing the facts of the case. It highlights a continuing clouding of the truth — often about things that don’t even affect your personal life — yet damage someone else’s.
In recent years, I’ve seen rampant campaigns to target and harass people on social media — Twitter especially — by people who don’t actually know what happened in some person’s divorce. I see Medal of Honor winners being targeted because of bogus campaigns about what happened on a mission — by people who have probably never been in combat.
Taking sides is fun. It’s in our nature to enjoy combative feuds and pick a team. Just remember that we aren’t usually working with hard evidence or perfect information.
It’s so easy to let your own experiences inform your opinion more than the facts.
In short: stay empathetic. Know that even if someone made a mistake — you could easily have been them, looking out from their eyes, seeing all the people holding torches and shouting your name.
The first and only brand new car that I ever bought. About a month later I was driving down the highway doing about 60 mph and the engine shut down without warning. I managed to coast onto the shoulder and it would not start. I waited about 20 minutes and it fired right up! I took the car back to the dealership and they could not find any issues to get the problem to happen again. I picked the car up and while driving home the engine shut down again. S.O.A.B! So I had the car towed back to the dealership and they kept it for 2 days and still couldn’t find the problem. I went home and the next day it happened again. Shut down – wait 20 minutes – then start right up again. This went on for about a week and I was about to contact the dealer again to get this covered under the lemon law.
Then a friend suggested that I replace the magnetic pickup. This is a sensor in the distributor that detects the rotation of the distributor shaft. If is faulty it can trick the computer into thinking there’s an engine failure and shutoff the engine.
I bought the part, took off the distributor cap, pulled the magnetic pickup and there is was. Sticking on-end to the magnet was the tiniest sliver of metal no more than 1/16″ long! Probably left over from when the block was machined. I wiped the sliver off with my finger and put the original part back in and never had the problem again.
Intel, Nvidia, and Qualcomm DISAGREE With Biden’s Export Control
From a pro-USA source…
In a complex tug-of-war between national security and economic interests, the United States is facing a conundrum in its semiconductor strategy. Discover why the CEOs of major American chip giants, Intel, Nvidia, and Qualcomm, are urging the Biden administration to rethink its stringent export controls on computer chips to China. These restrictions were initially imposed to curb China’s military modernization efforts, but their unintended consequences are starting to surface.
Ukraine SitRep: Western Military Commentators Finally Accept The Obvious
The Kuebler-Ross model of grief describes the human coping mechanism to deal with extremely difficult situations. It has five phases:
denial – “No, not me, it cannot be true”
anger – “Why me?”
bargaining – attempting to postpone death with “good behaviour”
depression – when reacting to their illness, and preparing for their death
acceptance – “The final rest before the long journey”
With regard to the Ukrainian counter-offensive the last phase of the grief model has now been reached.
While not all politician are yet there, the military and intelligence specialists, who are part of the western propaganda squads, have made their conclusions. From their mouth the truth is dripping to the media. While the headlines below may not express it, the content of those pieces, especially in the first four, is finally admitting the obvious. It didn’t work and the counter-offensive is done:
Nothing of the above is new to Moon of Alabama readers. I may have helped to spare you the grief by not clinging to a the narrative but to the reality of the battlefield:
This outcome of the counteroffensive against the hardened Russian defense lines was predictable (May 11!):
In military books this is know as ‘echeloned defense’ with three lines of well prepared positions ten kilometer apart from each other. Each line consists of tank obstacles, mine belts, prepared anti-tank positions to monitor and counter potential breach attempts and well prepared artillery support from behind the next defense line.
To crack such a nut without air support and without significant artillery advantage is nearly impossible.
But the Ukrainians did even worse than I had thought. The delaying action by the Russian army stopped them before they even reached the first defense line.
What may come next was predicted here on June 5, the day the counter-offensive was launched:
I strongly suspect that the Russian military will let the Ukrainian attacks run their course to then launch its own larger scale attacks against weakened Ukrainian defenses.
But to this day and while taking heavy losses the Ukrainian army is still running head first into a wall of Russian fire and concrete barriers. It may well keep going for another few weeks until the rain seasons sets in. That will lessen the chance of a renewed Russian attack. I have no idea yet of what might come instead of one.
To cope with the situation and bad news the U.S. will now send in a new wonder-weapon, the ATAMCS missiles with a range of up to 300 kilometer (190 miles). They come in several variants but the U.S. army will only be willing to hand over its older ones and only a few. The missiles are GPS guided which is unlikely to work well as Russia has sufficient electronic warfare assets that will disturb those signals. Some of these missiles will just divert from their target. Some will be shot down by air defenses. Some will come through. The 230 kilogram warhead can create quite a mess if it hits a large headquarter.
But keep in mind that the Russian forces are now regularly using FAB 500 glide bombs that come with nearly 500 kilogram of explosives. The bigger FAB 1500 have been tested too and are ready to be deployed. The new ATAMCS missiles will thereby not change the balance of force.
Former ambassador MK Bhadrakumar is sensing some diplomatic noise that might point to upcoming talks.
Talks may well follow but I would not expect any agreement. The Russian side will hold up its demands and the U.S. will still be unwilling to fulfill them. Not even a ceasefire will result from them.
Posted by b on September 9, 2023 at 14:44 UTC | Permalink
The road not taken: Dilemma in filling application forms for universities in China
Dean of the School of Journalism and Information Communication at Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST) delivered a speech to the freshmen of the journalism major at the opening ceremony, in which he mentioned Zhang Xuefeng, a teacher who has recently become a hit on the Internet.
After this year’s college entrance examination, Zhang, like many other teachers in high schools and colleges, provided candidates with suggestions on live broadcasting. But what made him stand out is that his suggestions to each candidate are very customized, with a very sharp and extremely realistic tongue.
According to Zhang, one shouldn’t even think about finding a job at a big Internet company without a Diploma from Project 211 (a Chinese project of developing comprehensive universities and colleges, which, to some extent, symbolizes the quality of the universities and students).
“I’m going to beat my son’s arse off if he wants to study journalism (in China),” he also said.
As an online tutor who focuses on practical benefits, Zhang cares nothing less than helping students find satisfying jobs and living a stable life. His words, however, are very harsh in the ears of many who have already stepped into the university or even the society, because he talks down their past choices and future paths to nothing, and also reveals the cruel reality.
In the dean’s speech, he said in response to Zhang’s view, “Going to university is not only about finding jobs. If it is that way, in today’s highly informationized society, even without going to university people can still achieve this goal.”
Many people working on journalism refuted Zhang’s views before, thinking that he was too one-sided and shallow, and maliciously smeared the journalism major. At the same time, there are students of this major who agree with his views, and more are the parents of the candidates who regard his words as the Bible.
As we can see, the biggest conflict that lies in front of the young generation is the conflict between a sure future and dream chasing.
In East Asian countries, especially in China, voluntary application after the college entrance examination is regarded as an extremely important step in determining the direction of life, and everyone is afraid that their future will collapse if any mistake occurs.
Students face not only the choice between majors, but also the dilemma of huge income differences, overflow in the talent market, and, probably, the only child supporting the whole family under the influence of the abolished one-child policy.
From this point of view, Zhang is just starting from an ordinary student who has studied hard for many years, hoping to live a better life in line with his efforts. Scholars, nevertheless, talk the talk from the academic angle, which includes idealistic elements. In their eyes, Zhang is no more than a “cynic”. Life also has many turning points in store for you, all of which depend on both how hard you work and how lucky you are.
Though experienced, Zhang can never ensure a student’s whole future life with his words. The final decision is still in their own hands.
As far as I can see, the trial and error cost lies not only in whether you are in a well-established family, but also in how much you’d like to sacrifice the time, the pressure, and the fierce competition……every least expected incident may run over you and crush you down.
It’s still ruthless to talk about dreams without mentioning their cost. However, a person who is willing to go through mature deliberation and take advice prudently, always deserves good results.
Freezing Stray Cat Banged On The Door With His Paw, Begging For Help
One evening a woman from Quebec City heard someone scratching at her front door. It turned out to be a cat, probably quite elderly, and it should be noted that the weather outside was already very cold. The woman did not think long and let the traveling cat into her house.
Hi, John McEnany. Thanks for your interesting question!
I’m going to be tackling your question in three parts.
Part One:
Your question, as at September 10, 2023, at approximately 1308 hours (GMT +8), is:
“Do they sell cats on wet markets in China?”
English might not be your first language, so you might have gotten your prepositions mixed up.
“On” – we use this preposition when something (or someone) is touching the surface of something. For example: “Danny is dancing on the roof!” or “Milli has a tattoo of a spider on her right arm.”
“In” – we use this preposition when something (or someone) is located inside of a defined space. It could be a flat space, like in a yard, or a three-dimensional space, like in a building or plane. For example, “Brett is studying in the library.” or “Can you put the potato in my bag, please?”
The question should really read:
“Do they sell cats inwet markets in China?”
Part Two:
Now, to your question.
I’ve been to more than a few wet markets in China (and the rest of East and Southeast Asia), but as of today, there hasn’t been a wet market that sells cats.
If you’re looking to buy a cat in China, I would suggest going to a large pet store.
The larger pet stores tend to have cats for sale. The smaller pet stores may only sell pet food and accessories.
OR, you could go to a reputable cat breeder.
If you’re one of those who are into “pure breeds”, a cat breeder might be your best bet. But the prices can be astronomical.
For example, my cat-owning friend tells me that a Maine Coon can easily cost you 20,000 yuan (approximately $ 2700, USD).
However, as someone who used to be the owner of three dogs (no, not all three at the same time), I would suggest that instead of buying a cat, you might want to go down to a local animal rescue and shelter to adopt a cat instead.
Unfortunately, stray cats are still a common sight in many cities in China.
But there are many animal rescue and shelter groups trying to change that.
Last year, one of this groups opened “Cat Island” in Shanghai.
This “Cat Island” is actually an artificial island with an area of about 800 square meters, located in Laogang town, Shanghai. According to the group, they intend to accommodate 200 to 300 stray cats in the future.
The public can visit “Cat Island” to learn about how to control the stray cat and dog population as well as how to feed and take care of cats and dogs in general.
You can also apply to “Cat Island” to adopt one of their stray cats. From what I’ve gleaned on Chinese social media, many cats that were initially sent to the island have already been adopted.
If you live in Shanghai, you can try adopting from “Cat Island”. I’m sure they’d love to hear from you!
I’ve not come across a wet market selling cats yet.
Like I said above, if you’re looking for a cat, it’s best if you go down to a local animal rescue & shelter and see about adopting a stray cat.
I have come across stray cats that are loitering around wet markets, yes.
But, no, you won’t find wet markets selling them.
Wet markets tend to sell meat, seafood, produce, etc.
They’re like supermarkets or grocery stores, but prices tend to be cheaper and many people believe that wet market stuff is fresher than what you would find in a supermarket/grocery store.
Conclusion (a.k.a. TLDR)
So, just a quick recap:
If you want to buy a cat, you can do so at a large pet store or look for a breeder. However, I would suggest going down to your local animal rescue & shelter operation to adopt a stray cat instead – unfortunately, there are still a lot of stray cats in China and they all need warm homes and caring, loving fur-parents.
Wet markets might not be able to satisfy your need for a cat, but they do sell stuff like vegetables, fruits, meats, seafood, and other food products, so if you’re looking for produce and stuff that’s cheaper than those sold at supermarkets and groceries, wet markets might be the place where you can get some really good deals.
China SHOCKED Whole Industry: The New Twin-Tailed Scorpion Is Launched
Wow, china’s unmanned two-tailed “Scorpion” drone has been launched with a capability of carrying many missiles. This UAV is a remarkable technology as the 3-engines drone is completely autonomous that can fly non stop for 35 hours using precision navigation system. It’s high aspect ratio and two vertical stabilizers guarantee its long range capability and excellent stability.
Researchers at the Zhejiang University in China have devised a new method that allows for easier and cost-effective production of gallium oxide, an alternative to silicon for semiconductors. The discovery assumes importance amidst the ban on gallium export to China.
Silicon may be a significant component powering semiconductor-based applications. Still, the industry has evolved to use compounds such as gallium arsenide and indium phosphide in production processes over the years. Gallium oxide is the newest entrant in the arena.
What is gallium oxide?
Gallium oxide is a fourth-generation ultra-wide band gap semiconductor that can withstand a strong electric field and consumes little power. A band gap is the amount of energy needed to free electrons inside a semiconductor material, and an ultra-wide band gap allows the material to be used for high-voltage applications.
Among other ultra-wide band gap materials, such as gallium nitride and silicon carbide, gallium oxide has many advantages. However, its production is much more challenging.
Gallium oxide is the only material that can form single crystals at atmospheric pressure after solidification from a melt. This can drastically reduce fabrication costs, but the process needs large amounts of iridium to make a crucible for the melt.
A four-inch crucible requires about 11 pounds (five kg) of iridium; since the price of iridium is three times that of gold, this increases production costs. It also raises concerns about intellectual property in China since Japan and the US have used the method.
Chinese innovation amidst US ban
Last year, researchers at the State Key Laboratory of Silicon Materials at Zhejiang University made two-inch gallium oxide wafers. This year, they have improved their approach and made four-inch wafers.
Their improved approach involved a casting method that uses up to 80 percent less iridium. This will help reduce production costs and make the process shorter and more manageable for mass production.
The team has spun off a company that holds the patents for these improved methods and is currently working on using a temperature gradient to increase the size of the crystals produced.
Due to their low energy consumption, gallium oxide semiconductors are ideal for use in communications, aerospace, radar, and electrified transportation like cars and trains.
Last year, the US Commerce Department imposed an export ban on gallium oxide to China, citing concerns about national security since they can also be used for military purposes. The ban aimed to prevent China from gaining experience in next-generation semiconductors, where gallium oxide alone is expected to be a $1.5 billion opportunity by the end of the decade.
Not only has China overcome the aims of the ban but, in a tit-for-tat response, imposed a ban on the export of gallium and germanium from August 1 this year.
Inside Michael Imperioli’s History-Filled New York Home | Open Door | Architectural Digest
Competition is always a challenge, right? More than competition, Huawei is a Cinderella story. Remember, it was ranked #1 before Donald Trump torpedoed it.
Now, let’s use a little logic. If Huawei is able to manufacture enough chips to supply the global market, how long do you think it will take Huawei to rocket back to #1? It will have a reputation as the best smartphone on the planet, bar none. It will also have a reputation as the comeback kid.
Do you suppose some people might buy one just to spite Donald Trump or America? That’s precisely why I bought mine.
The Western media never stopped crowing about Huawei’s dependence on Google. In fact, more intelligent people might buy a Huawei phone to escape Google. That was part of my motivation. Unfortunately, my phone runs on Google’s Android program. No problem, I’m going to upgrade to a new Huawei, now that it’s running on Harmony OS.
The iPhone may remain #1 in the U.S., but I predict it will fall to 2nd place (or worse) just about everywhere else.
One thing helping the iPhone is the Apple ecosystem. If you own a Mac, as I do, an iPhone might seem a logical peripheral. Unfortunately, the U.S. tech sector is rotten to the core. I like Apple far more than Microsoft, but I still don’t completely trust it. It also seems like it has become just a little buggier in recent years.
My dream is to someday migrate to a Chinese system, leaving all that U.S. crapware behind once and for all. Unfortunately, I use Adobe software extensively, and I don’t know how long it will be before Adobe software will be compatible with Harmony OS or some other Chinese operating system. However, it wouldn’t surprise me if it happens in the next few years.
Oops, I almost forgot to mention 5G and 6G. China is clearly in the lead here. I don’t know how much that will affect the average person, but it’s certainly a good selling point.
After being wowed by Apple for two decades, I never thought I’d abandon ship, but the Chinese can outperform and undersell Apple at the same time. As a U.S. citizen who’s getting tired of being screwed by the tech sector and my own government, I appreciate bargains, don’t you?
The One and Only Authentic Southern Strawberry Shortcake
2bc25d0a77890f191bb96e28e3ebec5d
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 large egg, beaten
2/3 cup Half-and-Half
Butter for spreading
4 cups fresh, ripe strawberries, rinsed, hulled, sliced in half, and sugared, to taste
1 cup heavy cream, whipped to stiff peaks
Instructions
Heat the oven to 450 degrees F.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt and mix well. Add the butter and using a pastry cutter or two knives, cut the butter into the mixture until crumbly.
In a small bowl, combine the egg and Half-and-Half and mix until well blended. Then add the flour mixture and stir until the mixture is thoroughly moist. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead very briefly. With your hands, pat out the dough to about a 1/2 inch thickness, then, using a floured 3 inch biscuit cutter, cut out six biscuits.
Place the biscuits on an ungreased baking sheet and bake on the upper rack of the oven until slightly brown on top, about 10 minutes.
While they’re still hot, split open the biscuits, spread lightly with butter, and arrange close together on a plate. Spoon berries and cream onto the biscuits and serve while still warm.
HE EXPOSES THE SYSTEM! FIRST TIME REACTING TO ANTHONY OLIVER (Rapper Reacts Series)
For the scene depicting the atomic detonation during the famous Trinity test in the New Mexico desert in July 1945, Christopher Nolan and his creative team did not rely on CGI. Instead, they recreated a real explosion using gasoline, propane, magnesium, and aluminum powder to enhance the blinding light and initial flash of the explosion.
The explosion was filmed at 48 frames per second using 65mm IMAX cameras and Panavision Panaflex System 65 Studio cameras. Additional detailed shots were captured using 35mm cameras at 50 FPS. All elements were shot in a way that made them appear much larger than they were and then composited together in post-production to create ‘a colossal event made up of many small pieces.’ The final product was assembled by overlaying 100 shots and over 400 practical elements, all crafted by a team of more than 150 artists.
This is one of the reasons why I absolutely admire Nolan and his films
Africa SHOCKS the world: EXPOSING France Oppression in Africa!
One of the elements of life is to get bad news, suffer though crimes, or be misunderstood. Many times people will place blame on you, and expect you to apologize for your evil. Then they will punish you in all sorts of ways relative to their degree of power and authority.
Once you start your affirmation campaigns, you start to realize (often after years) that what you experience (good and bad) are but manifestations. These manifestations (often parts of larger constructions) that present (relative) bad or uncomfortable to you as part of moving forward to achieve your goals.
You are stuck in traffic, and you miss your plane. (Bad + Bad) You miss an important meeting. (Bad) Where decisions that affect you are made without your consent. (Bad) But when you start working you notice that your life takes a dramatic change in the direction your have been affirming. (Very Good).
Certainly there are other influences (such as fate) that will either enhance or hinder your manifestations, but no matter what remember…
…what ever you experience is part of the system that supports the manifestation of your reality.
So “Bad” just seems that way. In reality, it is a “shedding of old skin” to start a new direction, lifestyle and beginning.
Ha ha. Yep. It was a real Pretty Woman moment too!
I had started with this really wealthy client and they expected me to dress the part when dealing with their customers.
So I was given a $2k clothing allowance and went out shopping. I went to a Neiman Marcus store and went to the high end section. I was ignored. Then I was told they didn’t have anything that would look good on me. (I’m a size 6 for crying out loud…) I wasn’t dressed to the 9’s —I was in my usual nice jeans, nice shirt and boots.
So I ended up in a White House, Black Market store. The ladies were awesome. I told them what I had just been through and the manager was totally horrified at my treatment. She told me not to worry and to literally ‘get ready to have some fun!’
They kept bringing me shirts and skirts and pants and dresses, all while telling me what looked good and what didn’t. And not everything that was on clearance was what looked horrible on me. It was actually a mix between the clearance and regular clothing.
By the time I was done, I had gotten $5k of clothing for about $1700. A great day!
Depending on the degree of the decoupling, it would suffer a slowdown, but the Chinese government is preparing for that scenario by expanding trade ties with other developing economies.
Formed about 450 million years ago, it’s found under a good portion of Manhattan, but is not common in the rest of the New York metro area. It’s thick and hard, which means it has an incredible bearing capacity. Stick a massive skyscraper on top of it and it won’t move a millimeter in geologic time. Putting a skyscraper on it is like putting an ant on a horse. It hasn’t been subject to any tectonic forces in hundreds of millions of years – it essentially rides on top of a stable part of the North American plate.
Unfortunately, it is deep, deep beneath the surface sometimes. In Greenwich Village, it’s about 260 feet below the surface, so it’s not practical to dig down that far to lay a foundation. However, in many parts of Manhattan, it’s less than 20 feet below the surface – trivially easy to dig that deep and put the foundation on top of it.
I had a ‘hometown’ bank (The walk-in, mail in, drive -in, FLY-IN- bank had its own landing strip behind the property) ; I used it for almost 30 years. Everyone knew you, your family and even the pets names.
The founder/owner retired and sold out to Wells Fargo.
Gone were the friendly faces and wide open spaces.
No one knew my name. Partitions went up to block off the ‘important’ offices, the break room was closed to customers, where we used to sit and nibble homemade tea cookies while sipping free Dr. Pepper and coffee, conducting business there instead of an office. (I once bought a car for my son as I was leaving to work a disaster. My loan officer told me ‘When you’re back in town come by and sign the papers. Tell _____to drive careful’.)
I won’t say I hated Wells Fargo. I like the word DETEST. Maybe LOATHE. I remember being charged $5.00 (in the 90’s) to talk to an actual person instead of their ‘robot’.
The straw that broke the camels back occurred when one of my sons graduated high school with a 4.0, 4 year average. That netted him $5,000. I went to get the cash, fifty $100.00 bills. The teller asked why I wanted it. I told her it wasn’t any of her concern and asked for the money a second time. She went to get her manager. Same question. Same reply. He said he would have to make a phone call. I stopped him and asked him to give me all my money from my 2 accounts. He tried to talk me out of it. I suggested maybe it was time to call the police to help get my money.
I closed the accounts. The manager put the cash in a locked bank envelope. I drove a half mile to the newest bank in town, one founded by the employees of my old bank (who were all fired – every one of them). I opened the door and immediately heard, ‘ Ron, What took you so long?’
I was home. The bank offered me those tea cookies. And an iced cold Dr. Pepper.
I will never use Wells Fargo bank again.
Xi Jinping avoids Biden meeting. BRICS more important than G20
Xi Jinping avoids Biden meeting. BRICS more important than G20 The Duran: Episode 1688.
It hurts me to say and then write: Next few centuries or more belong to China. That is the way China and the Chinese wrote their fate.
For nearly fifty years, I worked with Canadians, Overseas, and Mainland Chinese at different levels.
(I have been in Canada for close to fifty years) and besides visiting several other countries, living next to the USA. I believe I can say a few words on this topic.
I was born/grew up in Punjab/India; therefore, I knew India from birth and then went to India at frequent time gaps.
Once reasonably recently, before COVID, I went there to get my ancestral house repaired, and one severe issue was the property. I was there for an extended period. And this trip was immediately after visiting China.
I confirmed in my mind:
Productivity/Super Safety/Shallow crime society/State of the art infrastructure/one of the best mass transportation safe and reasonably priced reliable/almost wiped out hunger/very high literacy rate and going up consistently/relatively very low corruption/drug-free society/heightened civic sense/now controlled in check population growth/for women participation in the workforce/women are very respected and cared and safe/the Chinese Government is made of very devoted and qualified people/Chinese Government does not leave anyone behind/law enforcement agencies are deemed to be friends not corrupted overweight harassers/very frugal and high saving society/
Chinese people are one of the most hardworking races on the earth.
Now I know it hurts: The hard reality is that Indian efficiency/productivity was about thirty percent of the Chinese efficiency/productivity.
India is one of the most corrupt countries. China may not be washed in holy water, but it is relatively clean from this evil.
India has a useless/failed/borrowed system from the former rulers. There is NO WORKING DEMOCRACY IN THE WORLD. It is wishful thinking, which is why The West is sinking with crime/clogged courts/lawless lands/ and the Sun is setting faster than you think.
India still has 200 million people who do not have three meals a day. China has almost wiped out the hunger.
India is a land with corrupt style regimes, super clogged courts, zero justice, appeals appeals appeals, and more appeals and no justice.
Go to YOUTUBE/Google/and read about the Ajmer Sex Scandal, the Nirbhay Case(Seven-year delay in delivering justice)/Kids killing their parents for money/spouses hiring hit people to get rid of the spouse/and similar gut-wrenching a piece of daily news.
India is no match and never will be in INFRA-STRUCTURE with China; please visit China as I did and open your eyes.
Women can walk alone in the middle of the night in Shanghai/Beijing. Try to do something stupid, and you will find out. Just compare this thing with India.
Chinese people are highly disciplined, have great civic sense, and are true Karam Yogi/Yoginis(Good deed philosophy and working diligently).
Chinese universities are far ahead of India: Look at the world list of top universities and find where India stands, including IIT and IIM.
My kids went to school/university with Chinese kids. They will eat the competition alive(which means no match for their hard work; it was great for us because our kids were now equally successful as their completion or even more).
A Chinese woman is a killer(In a good sense); I have seen her multitasking and giving a new horizon to the MOST hardworking human in the modern world.
She has NOT only claimed half of the sky her fair share but also took half the burden of hard work.
In my view, at present times, Chinese/Japanese/Singaporean women are the luckiest of women to gain their proper place in society and job opportunities.
India is the crime capital of the world, where even the MUG in the toilet of the rail compartment is chained to the wall because people steal. Try these things in China and find out the consequences.
China is almost free from drugs now compared to India.
This is a myth that Chinese people are NOT happy: That is utter nonsense. Most of the Chinese people I met in China/Canada and during the travel in Asia, except in HK/Taiwan, are very satisfied and know the future is bright for them.
China is light years ahead of India in literacy rate.
China’s mass-scale public transportation is becoming a world model.
China has now controlled population growth, but India is still going strong.
China has no caste system, and India is still pickling in the caste system.
The best is to go to China and come back and measure: China has surpassed some of the past highest standards set by Japan/Europe/North America.
China’s growth and being the ULTIMATE superpower is a reality, and in the next few centuries, China will be the ULTIMATE power.
Here is the conclusion:
“India is inferior to China in every way.”
My observations/conclusions/: India will NEVER MATCH or EVEN COME CLOSER TO CHINA: India has a failed governing system, And it is ONLY big ra ra in the eyes of the West to counterbalance Chinese Might. The West is a setting sun: It is over for them. And so-called “Democracy” failed miserably.
And
India has lost direction: Nudity/Vulgarity/skyrocketing drug/alcohol/consumption/shallow productivity/zero civic sense/corruption top to bottom/uncontrolled population growth/mafia style regimes/deplorable work ethics/wrong and massive use of modern gadgets/inferior infrastructure/massive hunger/slavery/caste system/low literacy rate/destitute personal safety/assets/and women in specific. Trolls will be significant nails in the coffin in starting the next war with neighboring countries. This list is a never-ending list.
In a country where people do not hesitate to script fixtures such as an inexpensive MUG to clean the user after defecating, What do you expect more?
China has a free battlefield to walk to the crown, and no one can stop her. She is already the real Queen or Chairperson of the board.
Learn to work with her: No use in fighting this might. For over 70 years, she worked extremely hard to clean the house behind closed doors.
I hope it helps.
I JUST CRIED!! OLIVER ANTHONY – RICH MEN NORTH OF RICHMOND
2023 08 20 17 12
Boogie Woogie Beef
OvbIP
Ingredients
1 (10 3/4 ounce) can cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup red wine
1 envelope Lipton beefy onion soup mix
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
2 pounds stew beef
8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced
8 ounces baby carrots
Instructions
Mix cream of mushroom soup, wine, beefy onion soup mix and dried thyme in slow cooker.
Add meat, carrots, and mushrooms; and stir.
Cook on HIGH for 4 hours, then on LOW for 4 hours, or just cook on LOW for about 8 to 10 hours.
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Victoria Nuland’s visit in post-coup Niger has incensed Washington’s NATO ally France, according to a weekend report by French news outlet Le Figaro, quoting a source within the French Foreign Ministry.
The United States “did the exact opposite of what we thought they would do,” the French daily wrote, according to the diplomat’s remarks. “With allies like these, we do not need enemies,” it elaborated. Paris has been demanding the reinstatement of ousted President Mohamed Bazoum ever since a new military government emerged in wake of a coup in late July.
Moreover, the French government was prepared to militarily back West African nations to assist with Bazoum’s reinstatement, as it upheld the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in its move to deploy reserve forces after the coup.
By dispatching Nuland to Niger, the United States showed that it was prepared to talk with the coup leaders instead, Le Figaro complained. “For [French President] Emmanuel Macron, the credibility of France, particularly in terms of discourse on democracy, was at stake. For the Americans, even if they are also concerned about a rapid return to constitutional order, the priority is the stability of the region,” the paper’s source within the foreign ministry declared.
Americans merely hope to “to keep their bases” in the region above all else, the diplomat said, elaborating that Washington “will not hesitate” to drop a demand for what he termed as “constitutional legality” to attain that aim.
At the moment, Paris’ worry is that Washington could ink a deal with Niger’s military government without France’s participation.
The United States has a considerable ground presence in Niger, amounting to around 1,300 soldiers and almost rivaling that of France, which has about 1,500 servicemen in the country. Furthermore, American troops are separated between two bases, situated in the Nigerien capital of Niamey and the northern city of Agadez.
Agadez is supposedly of notable significance for the United States, as it is home to a landing strip for drones and functions as a surveillance hub for a large area encompassing the area between West Africa to Libya in the north.
The Le Figaro article continued that Paris is riled by the fact that, notwithstanding that both America and France have troops in Niger, the French presence is the only one that incites unhappiness among the locals. “The United States, like our other allies for that matter, has a habit of letting us take the hits,” the French diplomat complained to the paper.
The coup in Niger happened on July 26, when the presidential guard led by General Abdourahamane Tchiani detained Bazoum and his family, quoting a “deteriorating security situation and bad governance.” The move led to harsh criticism from global powers, while ECOWAS enforced stringent sanctions on Niger and gave an ultimatum to the coup leaders to free Bazoum or be prepared for military intervention.
On Monday, Niger’s military government agreed to hold talks with ECOWAS in an attempt to lower hostilities.
Last week, Nuland visited Niger and cautioned the new military government against having any deals with the Russian private military company Wagner, apart from encouraging them to reinstate the Washington-friendly status quo.
Earlier in August, Niger’s military leaders insisted that the French forces depart the country by early September. Based on media reports last week, the commander of the French forces in Niger told Niger’s military leadership’s chief of general staff about Paris’ plans to transfer “nearly 40 soldiers” who were originally located in Niger to Chad.
“The French forces, which are present in Niger, are there, just like others, at the request of the country’s legitimate authorities, on the basis of agreements signed with the legitimate authorities to help fight against terrorism. We have suspended our military cooperation, as well as civil interaction since the [military takeover],” the ministry replied in written form to the question of whether the French troops would back out from Niger.
“We only recognize the decisions of the legitimate Nigerien authorities.”
A total of 1,500 French soldiers are presently stationed in Niger, and 1,000 are now in Chad after they were forced to withdraw from Burkina Faso and Mali after coups in those countries.
Additionally, Paris did not disclose any details pertaining to the potential withdrawal of French troops from Niger to an airbase in Chad in the future.
French troops deployed in rebel-run Niger have been limited to a military base in the national capital of Niamey, according to Russian-based news outlet Sputnik on August 12.
The troops have not left the base or explored streets of the western African city for days, according to Sputnik’s correspondent. Rebel military convoys have been regularly going around the facility without incident.
Thousands of anti-French protestors gathered outside the base on Friday to demand that Niger’s former colonial master cease its military presence in the country.
An advisor to the ousted Nigerien president told Sputnik News that France had rejected the option of withdrawing troops from Niger after the military demands.
On August 9, Niger’s military leadership raised the threat level in the country before claiming that the actions of French troops led to an assault on the Nigerien national guard. The military also posited that a French warplane entered the African nation’s airspace.
“The National Council for the Safeguard of the Fatherland informs the local and international community about the events of extreme seriousness that are taking place in Niger, about the facts of the behavior of the French forces on our territory
.… Today, August 9, 2023 at 6.30 am [5:30 am GMT], the positions of the Niger National Guard … were attacked.… The actions of the French forces were condemned for unilaterally releasing detained terrorists,” Amadou Adramane, Niger’s military’s spokesman, proclaimed.
Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was “very concerned” about the living conditions and safety of detained Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum and his family and again urged for his immediate and unconditional release, a spokesperson declared in a statement.
The establishment starts to downplay what is going on…
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Oliver Anthony – Rich Men North Of Richmond (Reaction) WOW!
So some backstory.. My house was broken into in 2015. I was about 18–19 at the time and my dog attacked the perpetrators, and ended up taking a bullet for me in the process. At the time I did not own any firearms, at least not at my house. With that being said, she saved my life that night. The first shot was aimed at me, missing by mere inches. The other 2 were aimed at her, although only 1 hit her. Vet said it missed her heart by less than 2 inches, clean entry and exit wound. I ended up vacating the house after that, letting my pup (half GSD, half DSD, Sam) stay with my parents and moving to Jacksonville with my best friend.
When I came back into town, I didn’t have much to my name, forcing me to move back in with my parents, siblings, and my grandfather. My older brother had addiction problems and was on probation because he had gotten caught with a Xanax. His P.O would come to the house some nights to ensure he was following the straight and narrow, and that he was in by curfew. They were random visits with no notice.
One night, at about 9:00 pm or later, my grandfather was stepping out to smoke. Sam would often follow him out to do her business and patrol the yard looking for any threats. She had become very protective of the entire family, and she knows where our property line ends so we never leash her when going out. She never leaves the yard and a simple call or whistle brings her running back inside. It just so happens that this night my brothers P.O. was stopping by to check on him. Sam followed my grandfather out as the cop was rounding the corner, and without hesitation she attacked, grabbing his dominant arm preventing him from drawing his weapon.
I was still dealing with PTSD from nearly being killed, so my gun never left my side. I was licensed to carry, and it was never out of arms reach. Also, I know my dog. I know her sounds, her body language, everything. When I heard her from the living room, my first thought was “She’s in trouble and she needs my help”. I drew my weapon and out the door I went, brushing past my grandfather on the way. The floodlight had the entire situation lit up, so as soon as I exited I realized that she was attacking a county officer. I immediately lowered my weapon and recalled Sam. She let go and went straight inside as I holstered my pistol. The officer stood there looking at me in complete and utter shock, blood running down his arm. I apologized profusely as I tried to help him render aid to his injured arm. He calls for an ambulance, and within minutes there are 2 more units, an ambulance, and a fire truck blocking the road at our driveway.
By the end of it, he was also apologizing, saying that Sam was just doing her job. She was up to date on all of her immunizations, and does not have a history of violence. He chose not to take any legal action against us or our pup, and from that night on, he called when he pulled in the driveway before exiting his patrol vehicle. Sam is now very attached to my mother. Despite me now being moved out with a family of my own, I decided it was best for her to stay with my mother and father. I have included pictures of Sam for good measure. Best dog I’ve ever had. She is now living her days out in luxury, and never wants for anything.
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Heartbreaking Truth!!! Oliver Anthony – Rich Men North Of Richmond | REACTION *TEARS*
In 1972, the Army had learned serious lessons in Vietnam about how durable a helicopter had to be to survive in a combat environment. They needed an aircraft that would not be brought down by a small arms bullet in the right place.
To that end, the Army started the UTTAS (Utility Tactical Transport Aircraft System) program to develop the replacement for the Huey. All of the major helicopter manufacturers submitted preliminary designs that complied with the UTTAS specifications, including Bell. The Army selected the Sikorsky YUH-60 and the Boeing Vertol YUH-61 as competitors for the production contract. Once both companies had working de-bugged models flying, the Army conducted its own flyoff.
An incident during this flyoff influenced the final decision. One of the Army crews attempted to land one of the H-60s in what they thought was an open field, only to find out too late that it was a grove of pine tree saplings. The H-60 weed whacked the saplings around the aircraft, and the fuselage bent or broke those immediately underneath with little damage. The main rotor blades took a bit of a beating, though, and some thought Sikorsky was in trouble.
Company and Army personnel cleared their way to, and around the aircraft. They brought in the portable maintenance crane and a new set of main rotor blades and did a removal and replacement in situ. They then flew the aircraft out of there and back to the base.
In 1976 the Army selected the UH-60A as the winner of the UTTAS contract, and named it the Black Hawk.
Since then over 5000 H-60s have been produced over several models. The aircraft is a brick outhouse that, while not invulnerable, is extremely hard to bring down. It was my honor and privilege to work on all but the earliest ones as a Flight Mechanic, and, later, a Crew Chief, all in the Sikorsky Flight Hangar in Stratford.
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Top picture is a brand new UH-60M. The bottom picture is that of a Turkish Jandarma UH-60L that flew home after taking a hit from an RPG7. As you can see, the damage was extensive, but the airframe was strong enough to fly home, even with the tailcone to cabin bulkhead broken by the blast.
If I was a soldier on the ground needing extraction from a hot LZ, I would want Black Hawks to be coming for me.
SHOCKS the WEST! Europe in Panic as China Cancels $100 Billion Car Order from Germany.
Yes, my ex-wife took me to court for contempt 20 times. She won zero times. I filed once and won once.
My ex-wife filed for contempt for taking my sons to the doctor. They were having trouble hearing. My elder son was talking like a deaf person. I had sent her letters, faxes, and certified letters. She was acting as their pediatrician without keeping a medical record. One child had 19 scripts for antibiotics in the last year, the other 9. These were the only records I could get.
So I took them over the Easter week to an ENT. They were seen by an audiologist and the ENT. The older son was down 30 dB in hearing and the younger one was down 15 dB. There was chronic fluid in their ears. He prescribed medication and said the older son needed tubes/adenoids.
So I filled the script on my dime (the doctor did the entire eval professional courtesy). She called the ENT doctor and chewed him out. SHE WAS A PEDIATRICIAN! She filed contempt against me for taking my own kids (I had joint custody) to the doctor.
When the judge heard what this was about he asked “Did he have surgery done?” “No sir”, her attorney answered. “What did he do?” “He took them to the doctor and got medication.”
The judge looked at her and said “If these are the facts you need to drop this. If not you will pay his court costs, lawyer fees you and your attorney will be sanctioned.”
The ex demanded her attorney proceed. The judge did exactly what he said. In the future I could take them to any doctor, but just needed to notify her. She could no longer be their pediatrician.
Pretty good dressing-down of the ex who had filed the contempt.
ETA: The ex took them to three different ENT’s trying to get a different opinion. 4–0 my son got the surgery he needed and could hear. She would never admit she was wrong.
OLIVER ANTHONY “Rich Man North of Richmond” REACTION! First Time Hearing!
I’m not sure what sort of food falls under “poor person food”.
But I do know that my family wasn’t very well off when I was a kid. We weren’t exactly dirt poor – it was more like we were just struggling to get by.
I remember, early on, come meal time, we would use these carboard boxes as a makeshift dining table.
Eventually, one of my uncles – a carpenter by trade – built us this small but sturdy dining table, and the accompanying four stools.
It was a very small dining table, but given that we had all our meals there, it was a table that witnessed a lot of happy family time centered around food.
We ate mostly tofu and vegetables, with a bit of rice/noodles, a bit of egg, and bits of meat. Every now and again, we would have fish.
Sometimes we went to bed still feeling a little hungry, but we were definitely not starving.
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Then, HK and the Mainland’s economic fortunes and interdependency really started to pick up and my parents enjoyed a significant improvement in their job prospects and investments.
We made the transition to middle class, but we never stopped eating any of the food we were already used to eating.
We still ate the same vegetable, egg, and tofu dishes we had always eaten. No quantity drop there at all.
But there was a huge uptick in meat and seafood consumption. And baked products.
Now we could afford meat and seafood at every meal. And maybe once every week, or once every two weeks, we would go out for dinner at a nice restaurant. If I felt like it, I could eat an egg tart at 4pm.
Today, of course I’m a lot more well off than when I was a kid.
But I don’t feel like I’ve stopped eating any of the “poor person food” I used to eat as a kid – they remain everyday dishes for me.
The difference is now I have a lot more options when it comes to food choices.
I can eat meat and seafood at every meal. I can buy sourdough egg tarts from Bakehouse for my family and niece. I can enjoy dimsum every weekend if I were so inclined.
So, in the unlikely event that I become “mega rich”, I’ll probably just continue eating the same things I always have, just that maybe I can eat more of it – if I wanted to.
I’m not one for Michelin-starrred fine-dining restaurants. I’ve probably never been to one – I say probably here because I might have been to one without realizing it as some of my friends consider themselves foodies and like to drag me along to all these fine-dining food establishments.
Me? I’m more fascinated by what my parents, or my friends, or even myself, whip up at home. Because for me, home cooked food is where the magic is at.
That little wooden dining table, with its unique array of scratches and stains, is now long gone.
But the memories associated with it, of family meals filled with delicious food, contentment, and happiness – well, except for when my sister and I were literally fighting over who got to eat the fish eyes, which saw the unleashing of lightning fists and heaven-splitting kicks – are still here, cuddling each other affectionately in the amphitheater of my mind.
The Science of Ancient Acoustic Levitation | How The Pyramids Were Built?
LEVITATION. The ruins of several ancient civilizations – like the pyramids of Giza, Stonehenge in the UK, and many others – are monuments constructed of massive stones.
How the great pyramids of Egypt were built has been the subject of debate for a long time.
The fact is, no one really knows for certain exactly how some of these megaliths were constructed.
Some researchers think ancient cultures may have mastered levitation through sound which allowed them to easily manipulate massive objects.
Unfortunately, anyone suggesting the use of this kind of technology is attacked and labeled a “pseudoscientist”.
Abul Hasan Ali Al-Masudi is known as the Herodotus of the Arabs. Like everyone, he was awestruck by the pyramids.
He wrote a very intriguing passage about how the giant stone blocks were transported — through levitation.
The Great Pyramid of Giza does possess some extraordinary acoustic properties, and can dramatically amplify sounds at certain frequencies.
The Egyptians clearly knew a lot about sound science. Let’s explore the Coral Castle in Florida, built by Edward Leedskalnin, who cut, transported and sculpted over 1,000 tons of rock into a sprawling complex — alone, without heavy machinery.
We’ll visit The Temple of Jupiter at Baalbek in Lebanon which boasts the largest stones ever carved by human hands.
Nan Madol is an archaeological site in Micronesia.
It’s been called the Machu Picchu of the Pacific.
The engineering of Nan Madol is so complex, no one can figure out how it was built.
Let’s hear the story told by Dr. Jarl about Tibetan monks who lifted stones by chanting and playing instruments — which Jarl put on film.
There is science behind all these stories, yet “mainstream” academia dismisses each and every one as pseudoscience.
Why is it wrong to want to explore ancient knowledge that contradicts modern beliefs?
In a true post apocalyptic scenario, every kind of ammo that needs modern day machining will be way too valuable to be used for hunting or fighting. Modern ammo will be the new currency, more precious than gold and diamonds. Even percussion caps are way too valuable, in a society with no electricity it would be almost impossible to make them from scratch.
This pistol here is different. All you need is a good stack of flints and you are all set. Black powder CAN be made with primitive technology, basically from human urine (matured in a heap) and charcoal. You can load pretty much anything into the gun. Steel or lead balls, with a patch if the size is too small. Nails, even stones.
Erasing Android Code, Chinese Tech Giant Surging Where Apple and Google Wouldn’t Dare!
“When they cut off our food supply, won’t we be left helpless?” This was the shocking statement made by Ren Zhengfei when Huawei’s mobile phone business first entered the international market.
https://youtu.be/2NcZyqvYBk4
Russian Transport Jet Arrives in Mali; Wagner PMC Forces Deploying to Niger
A Russian plane has landed in Bamako airport, Mali carrying hundreds of Wagner Private Military Company (PMC) fighters it allegedly picked up from Syria. Wagner is on its way to Niger to protect that country from “outside forces.”
Wagner PMC has recruited thousands of veterans of the Syrian civil war, mostly men who fought on behalf of the Syrian government and defeated ISIS, Al-Qaeda and the FSA. These men have incredible combat experience against terrorists.
Syria is one of the first places where Wagner PMC proved its combat superiority to the whole world. Without their efforts, the Syrian president would’ve gotten the Gaddafi treatment from the west a long time ago. But he prevailed, thanks to RUSSIA and its elite fighting force, Wagner PMC.
Upon arriving Niger, Wagner reportedly told the new Niger administration never to worry about any foreign army on Niger soil and specifically assured the leadership that Wagner will take on the Americans head on, if they ever dare to get involved in the conflict with ECOWAS, or try to deploy their drones.
At the moment, there are about 5,000 RUSSIAN funded volunteer fighters in AFRICA: They are mainly active in Mali, Libya, Sudan, Central African Republic, Mozambique, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Wagner will undertake the protection of Niger’s presidential palace in its capital city of Niamey, and the main infrastructures of the country potentially threatened by the impending Nigerian-led military action.
With a personnel capacity of about 230,000 men, neighboring Nigeria is expected to contribute far more soldiers to the operation against Niger than any other country in the bloc. However the two countries with the strongest armies in AFRICA, Egypt and Algeria have warned against any military intervention in Niger, and vowed they’ll not stand idly and let that happen.
Reportedly, the morale of Niger’s military personnel is at an all time high right now, given that nearly the entire population of Niger are in support of the military and thousands have signed up to fight with the Russian volunteer force, Wagner, in defense of their homeland.
I was a beach boy. Forests, hiking, mountains and campfires were not my thing, but my parents (certainly with immense reservations from my mother) thought it would be good to expose us (3 girls and 2 boys aged 13-8) to the other side of nature.
My godfather worked for the US Forest Service and had access to a no-electric, outside-water-pump, outhouse-equipped, cabin deep the Maine woods. He and his wife had four intrepid sons aged 7 to 13 or so.
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So that’s how six young boys ended up trekking through the hot, sticky woods on a late July afternoon.
I was miserable. I hated washing in freezing water, smelling of smoke, sleeping on hard floors and eating beans and hot dogs.
Even worse I hated my trek mates. As is perfectly normal for that age, they spent all their efforts trying to out-curse and out-dare each other. I was a toothpick-thin, half-blind kid who read at least a book a day. This was not my scene.
Heading back to the cabin alone crossed my mind, but I was sure I would lose my way.
But fate and book-knowledge ended up leaving me no choice.
Dennis, the oldest, spotted a wasp’s nest hanging from a branch about 10 meters away. He announced a contest to see who could hit it with a rock.
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He picked one up and let it fly.
I didn’t wait to see if his aim was true. I flew like the wind. Running was about the only thing other than reading that I was good at.
The first rock missed, but the second hit home and the nest hit the ground. I was a good hundred meters away when the screaming started.
My brother escaped with six stings. Two of the others required a trip to the doctors and medication.
In 1971, Waco representative Tom Moore Jr passed a resolution honouring Albert Desalvo, also known as the Boston Strangler. It was to honour the serial killer for his dedication and devotion to population control.
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The resolution was unanimously passed by Congress, but the whole thing was an April’s fool’s joke. It was also Moore’s intent to show that resolutions were passed in Congress without anyone looking at them or researching the issue presented to Congress.
OLIVER ANTHONY | Rich Men North Of Richmond Reaction
The US, along with the UK, are what we call in China as “shit stirring stick”.
They stir the shit to disgust everyone around, therefore they don’t stir shit near them.
Of course, they call it as “off-shore balancing”.
Both of them are good at one thing: first creating problems, then jumping out to “solve” it.
After WWI, the US fully supported Nazi Germany, because:
it must ensure that Germany is able to pay the war reparations;
both the US and UK wanted to “balance” the European continent and were afraid of France being too outstanding.
And the result was the WWII.
Germany became super nationalist and racist, and France was much weaker than expected to stop Germany.
Essentially, they need people whom living away from them to constantly fight each other, so that they could stay out enjoying peace and intervine from time to time.
It also what the Belgians did in Rwanda. They created 2 ethnic groups based on wealth, and appointed the minority as the ruling class, so that once they left, the majority group would for sure want a revenge.
President Paul Kagame banned the 2 ethnic groups and made everyone just Rwandan, and the west is not happy about him.
Right now, the US is in deep shit.
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The interest rate of 10 year treasury is already 4.3%, which is already suppressing the real economy.
The US will also face very high interest expenditure in the next few years. In 2022, the interest expense was 718 billion USD, not very far from the military expense, and it will breakthrough 1 trillion soon.
Therefore, it needs other places in chaos, to squeeze more USD out and back to the US to support its treasury. After all, even with AA+ rating, the US and its treasury are still safe to invest, just don’t know for how long.
Immortal Joe only needs 500 billion USD more till 2024 election. Even if something bad happened after the election, it would either be the problem of another POTUS, or the voters could not do anything about it.
So what we can see is that the US has been stirring shit around the world, to cause more chaos.
Ukraine is a success, since Europe is already in technical recession due to high energy price and escaping capital.
However, China is not about to bite, nor DPP authority in Taiwan. Xi Jinping is not going to attack Taiwan this year, and Tsai Ing-wen is not Zelensky.
The US couldn’t possibily care more, but focuses on gaining money by selling outdated and futures weapons to Taiwan.
Veteran Reacts To Oliver Anthony – I Want To Go Home
What fascinates me the most is how he’s able to put so MUCH in so few words. It’s astounding to hear.
However if they keep denying China their most advanced chips or GPUs, it’s very likely that in the next 5–7 years they wil
China is on a surge when it comes to Robotics and AI
AI is used in Agriculture, Drones, Administration, System Operations etc
They have to keep evolving every day and for that THEY NEED ADVANCED CHIPS AND WILL PAY TOP DOLLAR FOR THE SAME
In 2010, you can see that China had a very small size of the pie.
US and EU were the largest markets for advanced technology with nearly 78% sales in these two entities
Take out China and nobody would care in the least
Today things are drastically different
China and HK combined account for almost 36% of the sales for Advanced Technology and Equipment
In fact China and HK have become a larger market for advanced technology than the entire EU combined
Take out China and that’s 33% market share gone and that’s a HUGE HIT
Chinas demand for advanced chips is INSATIABLE
They will do anything it takes to get chips performing to the same level of those advanced chips sold by Intel or Qualcomm or GPUs sold by NVDIA
Today China uses either
Inventory Chips which means chips and GPUs already purchased before restrictions enhancing their performance through ingenuity and skillMade to order GPUs designed exclusively to dodge US Sanctions which are maybe 90% as efficient as the sanctioned GPUs and use skill and ingenuity to enhance their efficiency to 98%Modified Chips that are less advanced chips that perform as advanced chips through technological skill which consume far more power and are less cost effective
China can keep growing it’s AI and Robotics and Advanced Computing for the next 10 years using the above three combinations
Yet by 2033, they have to crack the key to making domestic commercial effective chips and GPUs that are on par with Intel and Qualcomm
Going by the Mate 60, it’s clear they have a roadmap and are doing EXACTLY what they should be doing
The Mate 60 is the first completely domestic 5G phone made with Technology entirely from China including the breakthrough BAW 5G Filter designed and made wholly in China
That the Chip is made using Western DUV Equipment , is the only small detail that prevents it from being a 100% Indigenous Chinese Manufactured Phone
Even so, China today has made a phone with a level of performance similar to the Iphone 14 whilst almost completely under US Sanctions
That indicates that China will eventually make it’s own hub in advanced technology and scale it to a commercial level to make it cost effective as well
This means new players in the market who can outprice Intel and Qualcomm and NVDIA
This means losing 40% market share plus also losing more market share among other countries especially newly emerging nations like Saudi Arabia, India, Russia, Iran, Malaysia and Indonesia
In China, every land is owned by China. You have only the land usage rights. Even the farmers don’t own the land they use as they only have the tilling rights. If you don’t build any property on the land provided to you, it goes back to the government. Individuals can privately own residential houses and apartments on the land, although not the land on which the buildings are situated.
It helps in avoiding a separate class of people called as landlords. It helped China create infrastructure projects really fast.
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China started these reforms in the 1970s which not only made the country strong but the government as well.
China’s Response To Evergrande Is Angering The West
Evergrande has filed for bankruptcy but does this mean China’s economy is about to collapse? China always had a real estate problem and instead of stimulating, they are actually trying to ride the wave towards a stronger economy.
While this is bad for the global economy in the short term, it’s actually good for China long run.
One dish that probably every Chinese can cook is scrambled eggs with tomatoes, the de facto national homecooked dish.
There have been many times when I’ve been at home and just want a quick meal without spending a lot of time slaving over the stove.
When those times hit, one of my go-to’s is to prepare scrambled eggs with tomatoes – the very, very juicy & wet version – then just add some cooked noodles (whichever type I have lying around, really).
I’ll also blanch some greens and add them on top or as a side dish.
It’s very simple, unglamarous, and not sexy in the least, and probably a nightmare for people who MUST eat meat at every meal, but it’s cheap, easy to make, quick, and filling.
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HUGE SETBACK! China smashes USA and Mongolia’s 100,000 Tons of Rare Earth Cooperation
China and Russia can close their ports to Mongolia so that Mongolia cannot transport the rare earth to the usa. Secondly, China can restrict the export of knowledge and equipment for the refinement process of rare earth to Mongolia and the west. Thirdly Russia and China can restrict their air space for flights to and fro Mongolia in order to block any transportation of rare earth through the air.
The US plays the short game and looks for media impact and immediate results.
China is slower to act and does not show its hand until the right moment. China is playing the long game.
In history, when you have two powers of roughly equal strength confronting each other, the side which plays the long game wins.
Oliver Anthony – I Want To Go Home “Official Video” 2LM Reacts
As if “Rich Men North Of Richmond” didnt cut deep enough here’s another dagger to intake and im not going to spoil this reaction. Get in here, grab a tissue and enjoy!
Military takeover in Gabon brings fresh headaches for France in Africa
TEHRAN – In another blow to France this week, Gabon’s military overthrew the very wealthy President Ali Bongo soon after he was declared the winner in elections that had been roundly condemned as fraudulent.
Over the past three years, military officers have thrown the presidents of Burkina Faso, Mali, Guinea, Chad, more recently Niger, and now Gabon.
All six African states have one thing in common.
They are all former colonies of France and have seen a sharp rise in anti-French sentiment, with the former colonial power standing accused of using its military presence in the region, in particular the Sahel, to increase instability.
France is clearly seeing how its military presence in Africa is slowly diminishing.
This is while the local population in these countries that had or continue to have French military presence on their territory have been living in poverty, seeing no financial benefits of the natural resources on their land.
France’s strong ties with the former West African presidents also saw close economic ties to those natural resources.
In Mali, two coups took place, the first in August 2020 and the second nine months later; President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita was overthrown by the military who accused the president of the worsening security situation. Similar accusations were directed at France.
In September 2021, Guinea’s Special Forces overthrew President Alpha Conde.
In April 2021, Chad’s military took power after President Idriss Deby was killed on the battlefield while visiting troops fighting militants.
In January 2022, the military in Burkina Faso overthrew President Roch Kabore, accusing him and France of doing little to tackle the militancy.
In late July, the military in Niger overthrew President Mohamed Bazoum, accusing him of forging closer ties close with France as the security situation in the country deteriorated.
This week military officers in Gabon led by General Brice Nguema seized power. The officers have placed Bongo under house arrest and installed Nguema as head of state, ending the Bongo family’s 56-year grip on power.
The coup saw large crowds flooding the streets of the capital Libreville in support of the military’s move.
About a third of Gabon’s 2.3 million population are living under the poverty line.
In a televised address Nguema said that the military would proceed “quickly but surely” to return civilian rule, but that it would avoid elections that “repeat the same mistakes” by keeping the same individuals in power.
“Going as quickly as possible does not mean organizing ad hoc elections, where we will end up with the same errors,” he said.
Bongo was first elected in 2009, taking over from his late father, who came to power in 1967. Opponents say the ruling family did little to share Gabon’s oil and mining wealth.
For years, the Bongo family resided at a luxurious palace overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. According to a 2020 investigation by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), a global network of investigative journalists, the family owns expensive cars and properties in France and the United States, often paid for in cash.
Military leaders ordered the arrest of one of Bongo’s sons, Noureddin Bongo Valentin, and several members of Bongo’s cabinet on accusations ranging from embezzlement to narcotics trafficking.
State broadcaster Gabon 24 said on Thursday that duffel bags stuffed with cash wrapped in plastic had been confiscated from the homes of various officials. Footage from the broadcaster shows a raid on the house of a former cabinet director.
Standing next to Bongo Valentin, the new military ruler told the channel that the money was part of Bongo’s election fund. Money that the military rulers say was used in a corrupt election campaign.
The news emerging from the African country will be seen as yet another headache for France, on the backdrop of military coups in other regional countries where Paris had military ties signed by its former presidents.
France has hundreds of troops permanently stationed in Gabon, including at a military base in the capital, Libreville.
Paris also has a wide range of economic interests linked to Gabon’s mining and oil sectors.
Meanwhile, tensions are peaking in Niger amid mass weekend anti-French rallies as the strained relations mount between the country’s new military government and its former colonial power.
An organization set up after the coup named the Patriotic Front for Niger Sovereignty has led the public’s demands for military officers to take a hard line against France.
The protests, organized by the M62 grouping, have been taking place in central Niamey to demand the departure of the French contingent. “We don’t need these people (French troops) here, we’re ready to die to get them out,” one demonstrator said.
France has around 1,500 troops in Niger, many of them stationed at an airbase near the capital.
Niger’s pro-military civilian organizations had called for a massive march on Saturday on the French base, followed by a sit-in until the troops leave.
The new rulers have been engaged in a political battle with Paris, stripped France’s ambassador of diplomatic immunity and ordered police to expel him, according to a letter seen by news outlets.
Last Friday, authorities gave the French envoy, Sylvain Itte, 48 hours to leave Nigerian soil.
The envoy “no longer enjoys the privileges and immunities attached to his status as a member of the diplomatic personnel in the French embassy,” according to the letter sent to the French foreign ministry.
France refused the demand, saying the military rulers had no right to carry out such an order.
Relations with France spiraled downwards after the July coup as Paris continues to stand by the ousted president Mohamed Bazoum and refuses to recognize Niger’s new rulers.
French President Emmanuel Macron said on Friday that he spoke on a daily basis with his former ally, Bazoum.
“I speak every day to President Bazoum. We support him. We do not recognize those who carried out the putsch. The decisions we will take, whatever they may be, will be based upon exchanges with Bazoum,” said Macron.
Niger’s military government, which seized power on July 26, has accused Macron of using divisive rhetoric in his comments about Bazoum and of seeking to perpetrate France’s neo-colonial relationship with its former colony.
The new rulers accuse France of fueling instability on their territory. They also accuse France of using its purported military presence in Niger to battle militants as a pretext for tapping into the country’s uranium and oil reserves.
On August 3, Niger’s new rulers denounced military agreements signed between Bazoum and France.
French military spokesman Colonel Pierre Gaudilliere has warned that “the French military forces are ready to respond to any upturn in tension that could harm French diplomatic and military premises in Niger”.
Algeria, Niger’s influential northern neighbor, has held talks with West African leaders in a bid to avoid any military intervention in Niger and has proposed a six-month transition.
Amid threats of a military intervention in Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso have been quick to offer support, saying any operation would be deemed a “declaration of war” against them.
Recently, all three states have publicly condemned France for fuelling regional instability.
Burkina Faso has approved a draft law authorizing the dispatch of troops to Niger, according to a government statement in Ouagadougou.
Niger’s military government, which seized power on July 26, has accused Macron of using divisive rhetoric in his comments about Bazoum and of seeking to perpetrate France’s neo-colonial relationship with its former colony.
The new rulers accuse France of fueling instability on their territory. They also accuse France of using its purported military presence in Niger to battle militants as a pretext for tapping into the country’s uranium and oil reserves.
On August 3, Niger’s new rulers denounced military agreements signed between Bazoum and France.
French military spokesman Colonel Pierre Gaudilliere has warned that “the French military forces are ready to respond to any upturn in tension that could harm French diplomatic and military premises in Niger”.
Algeria, Niger’s influential northern neighbor, has held talks with West African leaders in a bid to avoid any military intervention in Niger and has proposed a six-month transition.
Amid threats of a military intervention in Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso have been quick to offer support, saying any operation would be deemed a “declaration of war” against them.
Recently, all three states have publicly condemned France for fuelling regional instability.
Burkina Faso has approved a draft law authorizing the dispatch of troops to Niger, according to a government statement in Ouagadougou.
Niger’s new leaders say they are seeking a three-year transition period to restore constitutional order.
Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, head of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), has suggested a nine-month transition back to democracy for Niger’s new rulers in the bloc’s first apparent timeline since the July coup.
It was the first time an ECOWAS official has publicly discussed a possible transition period for Niger’s military rulers.
However, France and the United States have demanded a swift return to Bazoum’s presidency.
Putin: “RUSSIA Is INVINCIBLE,” Niger STORMS French Military Base
I’ve read the history of France in Africa. You could not make up a horror movie more chilling than what they have done to those poor Africans. Even today, the hutzpah of them lecturing Africans and smugly telling them they would not exist but without France is an insult.
The big news is Huawei’s launch of the Mate 60 Pro phone at 6,999 yuan during US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo’s visit to China. Early reports suggest that this model has already sold out, which is a strong sign of support for Huawei after standing up against US sanctions for nearly five years.
The US Commerce Department placed a ban on Huawei supplies for everything in 2019 under the Trump administration, and this has continued under the Biden administration. The sale of 5G chips to Huawei were cut off under Biden. This means that Huawei’s launch of a high-end 5G phone while Secretary Raimondo is visiting China is a direct and very strong pushback to the US.
The question now is how did Huawei get the Kirin 5G chips which are made in China? There is a lot of debate and discussion, ranging from the US gave special permission, to it being a special secret Chinese project complete with a secret 5G chip production line. Obviously, this is not good news for TSMC, since TSMC makes the 5G chips for Qualcomm.
For the US, it means that the Commerce Department sanctions have not worked, and that the Chinese not only will not stop research and development as the US wants, but are going to move much more aggressively into multiple fields, and directly challenging the US and US brands. Signs are that the Chinese will do as they have in other industries: they will move so fast and iterate new products so quickly so that others will not be able to compete unless they move their research and production into China. Then the Chinese will drop prices of their products so that they pick up market share all over the world. Early signs of this are already showing: RISC-V architecture is becoming popular in China, and the Chinese companies have agreed to cross-license their designs, so that RISC-V will compete directly with Intel and ARM.
This poses a problem for Western decoupling: What will they do when China cuts back or completely cuts off rare earth sales to chip manufacturers outside China? And how will they protect their own products in their own markets when the Chinese products have more features and are cheaper? Western policymakers do not seem to have thought this through when they placed their sanctions on Huawei and other Chinese technology companies.
Lots of interesting discussion in Putonghua on the Matepro 60 launch and what it means in China.
Reaction – I Want To Go Home by Oliver Anthony
Be the Rufus!
“Just spent 2 hrs with a elderly man at Kroger. It started with me just smiling at him, making eye contact…. As I walked past him he looked like he needed something.
I went back and asked him if I could help him. Tears welled up in his eyes and he said, “I have colon cancer and I have had a really bad accident, if I get up out of this cart everyone will know…
What should I do?”.
The look of his dignity lost left me with a lump in my throat.
From that moment on, Kroger staff quickly fetched us wipes, undergarments and discreetly took him to their employer bathroom Area where he was given clothes.
He cried and apologized.
He said he had to hurry his wife was at home alone.
When we walked to the register we found his groceries all bagged and somehow paid for.
He cried harder.
He said he fought in Vietnam and Korean War and loved his country, but up until day he said he thought his country forgot about him.
We both cried and I shared with him my own struggles and fears… He gave me words of wisdom and encouraged me that maybe after all, humanity still does care about one another.”
About the image above: The Quora "profile" of a troll that attacked one of my posts.
Notice that he used a revolving profile set up back in 2013. Never used before. No activity at all.
He's a human. Not a bot, and spent a considerable amount of time attacking me personally, my comments, and China.
Ne is gone now.
If you post anything on Social Media, you must be serious about troll, and bot removal.
We are “in the change”.
It is HAPPENING.
Over the next few weeks I will include many reaction videos regarding the various songs by Oliver Anthony. I am placing them here because they are such a MAJOR catalyst to the change that is starting to ignite. Listen to what the people have to say.
He has a number of songs, but Americans have gotten a voice.
But…
It is going to get far, far, FAR worse economically for Americans in the upcoming years. You see, the world is dropping the USD, and with each drop, American USD inflation rises.
At some point it will go into hyper-inflation.
And REAL change is going to be forced upon the reluctant American government. Brace yourself, no matter where you live.
DC says its “little bads” , with a possibility of “middle bads”. But… it is going to be a bumpy ride. Strap yourselves in. You all will come out of the storm clouds intact, but everything will be changed.
Meanwhile, the USA government is going full-on clown show…
The USA government clamps down HARD on “independent reporting”
2023 08 24 09 57
Independent Women CRAWLS Back To Men For Help After Being Fooled Into Feminism
2023 08 19 16 45
Coca-Cola Glazed Kielbasa
Coca Cola Kielbasa
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1 red onion, thinly sliced
1 green bell pepper, thinly sliced
2 rosemary sprigs
1/3 cup honey
1 tablespoon yellow mustard seed
2 pounds Polish kielbasa sausage
1 (12 ounce) can Coca-Cola Classic
Rosemary sprigs for garnish
Instructions
In a 5 1/2 quart Dutch oven over medium-high heat, heat the oil until hot. Add the onions, green bell pepper and two rosemary sprigs. Lower the heat to medium and cook until the onions are nearly translucent, about 3-5 minutes.
Stir in honey, mustard seed, and sausage. Pour the Coca-Cola over the sausage and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook, uncovered, until the liquid is absorbed and glazes the sausage. This will take about 30 to 40 minutes. Stir frequently to prevent the sausage from sticking.
Remove the rosemary sprigs from the Dutch oven and transfer the sausage slices to serving platter. Garnish with fresh rosemary sprigs.
Notes
Variation: Substitute red wine or dark beer for the Coca-Cola Classic; chorizo or andouille sausage for the kielbasa.
I would like to answer for a friend who is not on Quora. She overheard a conversation, and solved a crime.
She found a lost wallet with a couple hundred dollars in cash, as well as credit cards and ID. She also found the owner’s address in a nearby town to mail the wallet back.
We worked together in a company that had a mailroom, so she packed up the wallet, with everything intact, and explained the situation to Sal the mailroom guy, asking him to send it out with the days mail.
A week later, my friend was sitting in the bleachers at her daughters baseball game in that same neighboring town. The woman behind her was telling a friend how she had lost her wallet, and this nice guy Sal had found it. Although the all money was gone, she was happy to pay him the $25 he asked as a finders fee.
Incensed, my friend spun around and asked- “Excuse me are you Mrs. X?”
When she said she was, my friend told her the real story. My friend found the wallet, and packed it with all the contents intact. Sal, the mailroom guy, opened the package, took the cash, then called the woman and asked for $25 to bring her the wallet.
What are the odds of a crime being discovered by eavesdropping?
The wallet owner didn’t want him to be fired, so Monday morning my friend called Sal into her office. She told him that he had until noon that day to come up with the stolen cash as well as his $25 “finders fee”. He did, and my friend returned it to the wallet owner.
My friend did inform Sal’s supervisor, so he could keep a closer eye on him, and sure enough, within a month he was caught doing something else shady and was fired.
Another good reason not to steal, you never know who is listening.
Does Australia Want To Be A U.S Pawn In Aggression Against China
Surprisingly, we don’t know exactly how they copulate. They do this in flight, at several hundred feet altitude. Scientists can’t exactly go up there in some sort of light aircraft, fly around looking for ants on the nuptial flight, say “Oh there’s one!,” and fly up close to film them. It
seems almost unimaginable to study much insect behavior in high-altitude flight.
All we know is that winged virgin females and drones (alates) take flight—easy to observe at an ant colony—and within a couple of hours, they fall to ground, easy to collect if you know where and how. A fire ant specialist who was on my doctoral committee collected just-mated queen fire ants from city parking lots on weekends when the stores were closed. Myrmecologists (ant scientists) can examine these females and find sperm in them, so they know they mated on the nuptial flight. After falling, the queens shed their wings, searchfor suitable ground, and the few successful ones excavate the first burrow to lay their first few eggs. The males that fall from the nuptial flight simply die.
But no one has ever observed the actual mating.
Song Starts Global Movement; People WORLDWIDE “Get” What The Man Sings About . . .
As you read this, today is Friday, August 18, 2023. Two nights ago, on my worldwide TALK Radio show, I played a new song by Oliver Anthony called “Rich Men North of Richmond” and reported to my global audience that this song has struck a chord with common, everyday, working people throughout America. The next day, the song topped Apple Music Charts for GLOBAL distribution.
I take no credit at all for the song reaching the top of the GLOBAL chart, but I certainly hope and pray that I helped.
This song speaks to the real life, everyday struggle that you, and me, and every other common, working-class person, lives. It speaks to the reason for such struggle: The rich men north of Richmond (Virginia) – that is to say, Washington, DC.
The song has real global appeal and a user on Twitter, now called “X,” edited together a video of Podcasters around the world, all listening to the song together, online. Some of them actually had tears in their eyes.
I think it’s because they finally came to realize, we are ALL hit by the situations created by these “Rich Men north of Richmond.” NONE of us is immune. It is a struggle for ALL of us common folk. THe song brings to the forefront the realization that ALL these troubles, all the strife, all the fighting, all the division – pitting groups against each other – is ALL being done by the “Rich men north of Richmond.”
Below is that video of the Podcasters worldwide, of all ages, races, shapes, and sizes, listening to the song. Watch the reactions. It is soooooooo powerful. In those reactions, there are real tears from folk who KNOW how hard it is nowadays just to live. In their faces there is almost relief that THEY are not alone in this struggle; the realization that all of us are being affected, badly. And moreover, we are ALL so very tired of this bullshit.
Pepe Escobar: BRICS Summit DESTROYS Neocons as New Currency and Expansion Top Agenda
Pepe Escobar gives his assessment of the BRICS Summit and the prospects of an alternative financial system and expanded membership coming out of the historic meeting beginning August 22nd in South Africa.
I woke up early(well, that’s not true, I didn’t really sleep at all… lets say I got up) and met my replacement at the office at 630 the next morning to update him on several projects that i was working on at the time, including a $12k grant for technology for the department.
After getting him up to speed, I packed all of my personal effects and left before anyone else showed up at 8am.
By 9am I was at the workforce center signing up for my unemployment. By 11am I had applied for my first job. By 1pm I had my last paycheck from the city. By 2pm I was on the road to my PREVIOUS employer’s office to work on some consultation work for them.
In four months I got the job I am in now.
And overall… I am happier here than I can imagine I would have ever been there.
I let that agency and the ill-advised city council to struggle with their issues as I made the place I am a great place to serve while ensuring good service to everyone.
U.K on the RUN : China Takes Over as U.K exit Zambia Mines!
This is a real thing going on right now.
South Korea To Run “NUCLEAR ATTACK” Evacuation Drill August 23
The entire country of South Korea will stage a NUCLEAR ATTACK EVACUATION DRILL on August 23. Fifty-one Million (51,000,000) citizens are REQUIRED to participate to practice evacuating to shelters or underground safe spaces during the 20-minute exercise.
The drill, scheduled for 2:00 PM on Wednesday, August 23, will see many drivers required to pull over to the side of roads and the exits to subway stations closed with commuters required to remain inside, a statement from the South Korean Interior Ministry said.
“We expect to strengthen the response capacity of the nation through a practical drill reflecting the aspects of provocations of North Korea,” Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said in a news release this week.
The release said the 20-minute drill is part of a larger exercise to test the South Korean government’s response to potential threats including “advanced nuclear missile threats, cyber attacks, drone terrors, etc.”
The prime minister also called on South Koreans to take the drills seriously, something that hasn’t always been the case.
The Interior Ministry said 17,000 shelters would be open nationwide, and locations are searchable in popular Korean online apps.
The South Korean prime minister said the civil defense drill would be held in conjunction with large-scale US-South Korea military exercises that have drawn sharp criticism from Pyongyang in the past.
It will also come less than a week after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol travels to the United States for a trilateral meeting with US President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, where “the continued threat posed by” North Korea will be on the agenda, according to a White House statement.
Hal Turner Opinion
HMMMMM. Having a nuclear evacuation “drill” of 51 Million people into 17,000 shelters at THE SAME TIME as a large-scale US-South Korea military “exercise???????????”
Gee, it occurs to me that maybe that military “exercise” isn’t an “exercise” at all. What if they first-strike North Korea?
With 51 Million South Koreans already inside Shelters, and US-South Korean Troops already on-station and fully armed – seems to me it would be a perfect opportunity for the US to first-strike North Korea.
What better conditions would exist than the ones described above?
Young Women Are Furious They Were Fooled Into Feminism
This is surprisingly good. Go traditional marriage. All will be good.
My first real job was working as a Marketing Assistant for a Fortune 500 corporation (that you all have at least one of their products in your house).
The holiday bonus for everyone below a Director was to be invited to the cafeteria, in groups, to hear the “company” choir sing 3 Xmas songs and to have 3 cookies. And then you were rushed back to your desk/office…
This is the reality…
Meanwhile, in Washington DC.
2023 08 20 10 33
Neither Biden Nor Trump Americans Will Choose This Pro China President in New Election
This could very well happen. But most of the viewers of the video have doubts. You can see their disbelief in the comment section.
Yes, and I think about it often. After Hurricane Ike in September 2008 in Texas, none of us in the neighborhood had electricity of course. Our electric pole near our house was pulled backwards and we were told that when the power company came to fix their issues and reconnect, that it would need to be standing upright. I asked my grown nephew and brother in law to help us pull it straight. We couldn’t while the wires were attached, so they said we had to cut them. Scary thought, but we didn’t have power right? The voltage tester said we didn’t also.
I got the cutters and my nephew reached up and cut through the thick wires. At that moment, my sister drove up and said “Hey, the power is back!” She lives across the street. We were stunned. Somehow my nephew was still standing. It turned out that our wire was disconnected from the pole at the street as well, but we didn’t know that. And what if it hadn’t been?
I have a good answer. I hope it is helpful to you. So, the question is, what’s the biggest oopsie-daisy as we age?
Sitting on the couch and consuming crappy food like it’s your full-time job! An inactive lifestyle might seem cozy, but it’s a shortcut to health troubles. As the years pile on, a couple of surprise health hiccups can make getting active even harder. Next thing you know, you’re at risk for slips, trips, and yikes – even broken bones. All this can fast-track us to losing our mojo and independence. So, trade that remote for some walking shoes, and let’s keep the fun in our golden years!
Oh, I have even a piece of better advice; walk every day and lift some weights! It is the key to having decent health while aging. It is no guarantee to increase your lifespan, but as I have experienced the journey, it will create a decent life quality as we get older.
Took our VW Rabbit to a VW dealer for warranty work, When picking up the car I was told that it wouldn’t start and that the fuel injectors were replaced ($400). I refused to pay as this work was not authorized. Dealership said they had a mechanics lien on the car and would not release it without payment. I said I had a spare key and would leave. The dealer called the police. When the cops arrived, I asked the dealer to give me the old parts. He said that the trash had already been picked up. I then asked the dealer to show me (and the police) where the new injectors were under the hood (they should be clean, right?) After a few minutes the dealer emerged from under the hood with a puzzled look on his face. I then told the Cops that the car had a carburetor and not fuel injectors. I went home. The VW dealer went out of business some time later. It pays to know a little bit about your car!
First Time Hearing Oliver Anthony – “Rich Men North of Richmond”
A friend of mine is an automotive engineer – I don’t mean a mechanic, I mean a straight up engineer who fabricates his own parts, designs suspension systems, builds vehicles that stretch their length using hydraulics, steer with all four wheels, can lift a container full of products, that sort of thing. Really smart dude. If I ever decide to build a replica of the Tumbler Batmobile from The Dark Knight, he’s the guy I would have do it.
So what does he do with this knowledge? He opened a shop and builds custom trucks and mods race cars for people.
It’s a good business. He enjoys it and pays his bills on time. But he will never be rich from it.
There are only so many hours in a day, and the market price of his final product has a ceiling. If you’re doing individual builds like that, your income is tied to the clock. He only makes money when he is doing something with his hands. If he’s sick or injured or takes a day off, he doesn’t get paid.
Now, he’s made some really cool stuff along the way – things that could be sold separately and installed by someone else. Some of the things he’s made for customers in the offroad and racing applications could easily be produced and sold to distributors and retailers in the aftermarket auto space, even the little things like joints and brackets. Any of you Jeep/Classic/Muscle/Corvette guys out there know how many parts and accessory catalogs you get in the mail. It’s a $41 billion industry.
But he hasn’t done it, because he doesn’t think at scale. He only thinks in terms of labor and hours, and doing the job the customer is paying him to do.
Even something simple like a roll cage, he’s building them by hand every time. Every time a customer wants a cage, he takes detailed measurements, cuts and bends the pieces, welds it all together, and sends them on their way. It takes hours and hours of labor. If he would write down the measurements and cut ten of each piece at the same time, he could build ten cages on the ground in about the same time it takes him to build one on the vehicle, then sell the other nine as a ready-to-install product through all of those catalogs and websites – who will then put it in front of millions of subscribers. He could be making ten times the revenue for the same amount of work – and even that would still be pretty small-time, but at least it would be a step toward mass production.
I’ve tried to steer him in that direction. And his response, every time, is “Yeah, I know, I’d like to get to that point eventually, but right now I’ve got 10 more customer projects I have to finish.” He’s been saying that for the lastfive years.
If you want to make millions of dollars, you have to think at scale and not be bound by the limitations of your time and labor. Your product has to be working for you, not you working for your product.
Oliver Anthony – I Want To Go Home| REACTION *TEARS*
Everyone feels this.
Microwave Pepperoni
2023 08 24 10 13
Makes 4 (8 ounce) rolls.
Ingredients
2 pounds ground beef
1 cup water
2 tablespoons meat cure
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons paprika
1 teaspoon oregano leaves, crushed
1 teaspoon onion salt
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 teaspoon fennel seed
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon Liquid Smoke
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
Combine all ingredients in large bowl; mix well. Divide mixture into 4 equal portions. Shape each portion into a roll, approximately 8 inches long and 2 inches in diameter. Wrap in plastic wrap; refrigerate 24 hours.
Remove plastic wrap. Place rolls on microwave roasting or bacon rack. Cover with wax paper. Microwave on 30 percent power for 1 hour, turning rolls over and rearranging every 15 minutes. If necessary, continue to cook until rolls have reached an internal temperature of 160 degrees F.
Drain on paper towels. Cool. Wrap lightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate up to two weeks; freeze for longer storage.
Use as you would regular pepperoni in your favorite Italian dishes and snacks.
Saudi Arabia Just BROKE The Dollar – Record Treasury Dump.
2023 08 24 09 50
Saudi Arabia has dumped their holdings of US treasuries to a 6-year low. Even as a global recession nears, Saudi Arabia is diversifying away from dollar assets into risky investments like stocks. This underscores a big economic and geopolitical shift away from Washington and the world reserve currency.
The latest blow to the United States actually comes from Saudi Arabia no they aren’t pricing oil in the Chinese Yuan or the real yet but they are dumping a ton of their U.S treasury Holdings and this is a big deal.
America is starting to lose control of the petrol dollar and this is confirmed with Saudi Arabia’s move away from U.S treasury Bonds in a big update Saudi power of U.S treasuries at six-year low in shift to risk the kingdom sold three billion dollars of U.S debt in June as they move towards riskier assets and here’s the crazy thing this has been happening for years right under our noses.
From 2016 to 2020 the Saudis were piling on U.S debt they were taking their oil revenues and buying treasury bonds until it picked out at 184 billion dollars but now they have reverse Direction they have sold 76 billion or 41% of their entire Holdings over the last three years that’s even more aggressive than China and it’s all about the timing this comes on the heels of a De-dollarization wave across the global South.
2023 08 24 09 51
Saudi Arabia is losing faith in U.S debt and this is bad for the United States both in the short term and the long term. America is already borrowing a ton of money today racking up an incredible amount of debt in Q3 alone America borrowed one trillion dollars and is facing a fiscal crisis where they have no choice but to keep issuing bonds.
Will Saudi Arabia keep dumping the U.S treasuries and more importantly will they be joining the bricks very soon? Things are getting really interesting as we move towards the BRICS Summit this week.
BRICS could shift the global power dynamics in their favor by controlling the majority of the world’s oil and gas trade. The bloc is keen on expansion by allowing Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates into the group. The inclusion of Saudi Arabia and the UAE into BRICS could have a paradigm shift in the oil economy, as it could force other countries to drift away from the USD. Therefore, the first step of the de-dollarization process could begin with oil and gas sales.
A handful of oil-producing Middle Eastern countries have expressed their interest in joining the bloc. Apart from Saudi Arabia and the UAE, Bahrain, Egypt, and Algeria are looking to join the BRICS. The five Arab nations represented 60% of the world’s oil reserves, and induction into BRICS could spell doom for the U.S. dollar.
If the BRICS alliance inducts all five oil-producing countries, it could control 90% of the world’s oil supply. This could lead to 90% of the oil and gas trade being settled in local currencies and not the USD. The international markets could subsequently shift away from the U.S. dollar and usher in a new era of global finance.
Accepting local currencies for oil and not the USD could fast-track the de-dollarization process. Countries in Asia, Africa, and South America are most likely to accept paying in native currencies rather than the USD. If BRICS controls crude oil, the U.S. economy could face hardships as the means to fund its deficit narrows. In conclusion, the upcoming BRICS summit holds the key to the U.S. dollar’s prospects.
Saudi Arabia is reportedly considering a large number of French-made Dassault Rafale fighter jets.
Such a purchase would be a break from Saudi Arabia’s long history of buying US and British jets.
This suggests Riyadh doesn’t think its traditional partners will be as reliable in the future.
Saudi Arabia has spent decades building an enormous air force composed exclusively of advanced US and British fighter jets. But Riyadh’s reported interest in potentially purchasing a large number of French jets may be a sign it doesn’t think its longtime patrons are as reliable as before.
In December, France’s La Tribune financial newspaper, citing unnamed sources, reported that Saudi Arabia was considering acquiring 100 to 200 Dassault Rafale fighters. The report came amid developments suggesting that the US and other nations might not provide military equipment to Riyadh in the future.
After Riyadh cut oil production in October, US lawmakers proposed legislation freezing all American arms sales to the kingdom, which could have grounded most of the Saudi air force and would further fray already strained US-Saudi relations.
In July, Germany announced it would not allow additional Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets to be delivered to Saudi Arabia. The Saudi air force has 72 Eurofighters, second only to the number of US-made F-15s it has.
Buying more Typhoons would be “the sensible move” since the Saudis have the infrastructure to train pilots and operate that jet, “but a German block prevents that,” said Sébastien Roblin, a widely published military-aviation journalist.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is “not currently inclined to throw Washington any free bones by ordering F-15EXs,” and despite an “about-face” by President Joe Biden, Roblin said, the Saudis know that future jet sales “could be disrupted by domestic political revulsion for Riyadh’s actions domestically or the war in Yemen.”
As bin Salman pursues a detente with his main rival, Iran, and improves relations with China, opposition to such sales may only increase.
Uncle shame got shunned this time!
She’s Right: The Male Loneliness Epidemic REACTION
This is a Patreon video that I am releasing to the general pubic and MM readership. I hope that it finds you well and that you all obtain some good information from it. This post will interrupt the normal flow of MM postings of latest (cough, cough) “news”.
This is my podcast on war! Particularly the Russian invasion of Ukraine and how it affects all of us strapped to the roller-coaster ride which it entails. It’s not really a streaming podcast as I had hoped, but rather a downloadable 6-minute movie. I explain it all in the video.
The Podcast
2022 03 14 09 5aaa0
You can watch the video HERE, or download the ZIP HERE and watch it later on.
I just read that wine is bad for you. It’s all over the Western “news” media. My guess is that soon there will be a temperance movement to rival the anti-smoking movement. For the “children” don’t you know.
It’s all so silly.
I really don’t think I want to live in a place that bans drinking wine.
Wine and cheese.
I mean, really! Wine is bad, but lard burgers deep fried are good. Sheech!
You know, the longer I stay outside the “West” the more insane it appears.
Dionysus cat agrees!
Dionysus cat.
…
It’s been accepted that the Western Bloc (in defiance of Donald Trump’s executive orders to the contrary) pretty much uses Tictok as an Application to make and share movies. It’s a division of the Chinese version known as Douxing. It is NOT the same thing.
In fact, most of the videos posted inside of China are banned by the non-Chinese versions.
Thus, because of that, the presentation of what China actually is; is withheld from the global readership. (It’s something that I do not fully understand why, but it offers strong hints of Geo-political manipulation for domestic consumption purposes on a regional basis.)
To get around this limitation, you must have a Chinese cellphone and install Douxing on it while you are in China.
Now, with that awkward introduction, let’s get to the meat of this article. Here is a South Korean group of video-blogers that take various Chinese Douxing videos and comment on them. I find that it is interesting, and amusing and telling on how the Korean society reacts to the Chinese society. Because, after all, they are both of the Han race.
Please enjoy this great peer into cross society insights.
2021 Overview
We start with this video.
At the end of 2021 were a bunch of videos that summarized the events of 2021. Some are actually quite good. Of course, most of the world outside of China has no idea what has been going on inside of China. Their government (especially if you are an America or Brit) won’t allow it. Here, the Koreans get to watch some of the videos and comment on them.
The Chinese honor, fund and keep the traditions and societies of all the minorities within China alive and prospering. Here is a selection of the various videos in this category.
The PRC officially recognizes 55 ethnic minority groups within China inaddition to the Han majority.
As of 2010, the combined population of officially-recognized minority groupscomprised 8.49% of the population of mainland China.
In addition to these officially-recognized ethnic minority groups, there are Chinese nationals who privately classify themselves as members of unrecognized ethnic groups, such as the very small Chinese Jewish, Tuvan, and Ili Turki communities, as well as the much larger Oirat and Japanese communities.
-Wikipedia
What’s not to love? This is the real deal, with many Shaolin monks participating. video 26MB
Han Clothing
Very popular. On display here for thoughts and comments. video 13MB
Han Cosplay
These are videos of people dressed in Han Clothing and meeting in cosplay events and fashion shows. video 14MB
Honoring the family
This is a big thing. Not only does China have a firm belief in the importance of the traditional family life and culture, but it funds videos that are sprinkled in with all the other videos to remind people of the importance of family and community. It’s sort of how the LGBT “news” and “issues” are all being driven in the United States today. It’s a very big part of what China is all about. When was the last time that you saw a video or a commercial stressing the importance of family, community and care for others in America? video 14MB
I love how this scene mesmerized the movie critics.
Honoring the Rufus firefighters
In praise of Rufus. You just don’t see this kind of stuff in the West. video 14MB
In another time
In another time. Sigh. It reminds us, through these videos, that while times, clothing and society has changed, we are still the same. We are still people who work, earn a living, have a family and participate within society. video 20MB
And of course, the Chinese promote the Uighur culture and Xinjiang. And oh baby! The USA hates that. Great video 17MB
One last thought…
Dionysus is strongly associated with the satyrs, centaurs and sileni. He is often shown riding a leopard, wearing a leopard skin, or in a chariot drawn by panthers and has been called the god of cats and savagery. He may be recognized by the thyrsus he carries.
-Dionysus - Crystalinks
Do you want more?
I have more posts like this in my China Music Index here…
This article reproduces a very interesting discussion by an expat living in China named Jason. He, like MM here, is married to a Chinese woman and has a young child. He lives in a fifth-tier city in the hinterland, sort of like MM does, and he relates his experiences on you-tube for the world to see.
As a result, he has come under attack by both the BBC and CNN with their famous “gray filter” making his videos of bright and shiny China look gray and dingy.
In this series of videos, he compares the top American subway system in the top American city (New York City) with that of his fifth-tier “backwards” Chinese smaller city located in the middle of nowhere. It’s a great series. Reproduced in full and all credit to him, his wife and his child for providing it to us to view.
Video 1
He starts off going through the local Chinese subway stations, and the subway trains. It’s very interesting. Video 125MB
Video 2
Now, Jason finishes up in the Chinese subways and starts filming the New York Subway system. Amazing. video 86MB
The Complaints
I have noticed (since I posted this on LinkedIN) that many people defend the squalor in New York City. They say things like “China’s subways are new, while that of New York are old”. They argue that the comparison just “isn’t fair”.
The idea and the implication are simple. The argument is that you just shouldn’t compare new and old. You have to use the same metric.
Well, the metric is the same.
It actually is.
They are both subways, and they are maintained and operated within their own individual cultures. What the difference is between the different societies and the different governments.
Society
China = Social, family and community oriented.
United States = Individual, selfish, self-centered.
Government
China = merit based, and policed against corruption.
United States = Rampant corruption at all levels, oligarchy run.
Now, as far as the argument goes that the New York Subway system is old, it is a lame excuse. Yeah.
Well, so are the subways in Moscow.
They are old too.
But they are not in the same kind of disrepair as what we see inside of America. It has to do with funding maintenance, and a society of people who care about their surroundings.
Here’s the old subway system in Moscow.
Moscow subway.
And here is the old subway in Tehran, Iran…
Iranian subway.
And so, let’s also look at the old subway in North Korea.
North Korea’s marble-clad subway isn’t the image that might first spring to mind when thinking about a commute in North Korea. Taking the trip on the subway in Pyongyang comes cheap, and a ticket can cost just 5 Won ($0.004 USD).
North Korea.
Why is the United States infrastructure so decrepit?
Why?
You ask, why?
(MM turns and spits on the ground.)
Because the wealthy oligarchy has hoarded all the money for themselves, and left nothing for the rest of us. Did you know that New York City is the home for most of the billionaires in the United States.
Yeah.
Money to burn.
Not for you.
Billionaire goes into space.
What can be done?
The primary difference between the United States and China can boil down to two factors.
The Society
The Government
I do not advocate changing one’s society. If anything, I advise in strengthening it along traditional values and belief systems. Not changing it, and certainly not through massive programs of social reengineering.
That only leaves the way the government operates.
So, it is obvious that the United States form of government must change, the funding priorities must change, the control of society must change, and the financial arrangements must change as well as the type and extent of corruption.
… If the United States is to catch up with the rest of the world, that is galloping ahead full speed.
All must change…
…if America and its people want to catch up with the rest of the world. And live life in calm peace, traditions, and participate in meaningful roles within society.
If not…
…well, expect more of the same, only much worse.
Do you want more?
I have more posts like this in my China Comparison index here…
I have gotten some positive feedback on them, and I appreciate it. I really do. I think that you can tell, at least, that what I experience doesn’t even remotely resemble the bullshit that pretends to be “news” out of the United States these days. China does not resemble anything like what is being “reported”.
The US government owns all the major media. Alt-left, alt-right, and mainstream. And they do not want anyone inside of China being made aware of the sheer bullshit that they are pumping out. They have blocked China from finding out what they are saying about it.
But that can be expected.
As the influence of the USA wanes, the people within the USA who promote hate, racism, and encourage world war III are going to find themselves on lists. Lists that they don’t want to be on, and which will get them into very, very “hot water” once they step foot outside of their protective enclaves.
But, you know, little-town local papers do have things to offer.
Like this, the Boston Globe. I like how it is laid out, and jeeze, $1 for 6 months is cheap. The only thing is that since I don’t live in Boston any longer, much of the “news” just doesn’t apply to me. Never the less, when I see it, I see hope.
I see hope.
Not everyone was bought out by the huge mega-companies, and dish out the processed swill out of Washington DC. There are people who report on local things, and local events, for local people.
Heck! If I were still in Boston, I would certainly contribute.
This vlog consists of a bunch of videos.
Some narrate while others don’t. What is special here is that (for all the videos on you-tube about China) note seem to tackle the kinds of “everyday life” that I want to provide here. For me, it’s nothing fancy. Yet when I show glimpses of my life to others outside of China, they seem to like it. Cool, I guess. So… this is just myself walking around the neighborhood; my house, and filming it while I discuss the world around me. I hope that you like it.
Keep in mind when you watch the videos, a comparison of your life, with what you are watching on my videos.
The videos
Video One. HERE. 94MB. Public internet is free in China. You can pay for great service at home, but all the public areas have free internet. This is because using the internet is considered a necessity inside of China. You need to for tracking, buying, registering and accessing. And inside China, it is against the law for anyone to profit off of people when they require access to fundamental services. This is a big change compared to the United States where there are a million tiny hands in your wallet and everyone makes a profit off of you.
Video Two. HERE. 319MB. Zhuhai is much larger than Seattle, WA USA, but far better managed. The role of a government is to provide services for it’s people, to protect them, and to allow them to live good, healthy and productive lives. it is not to treat them as sheep to be fleeced, debit slaves, serfs, or cannon fodder so that the oligarchy can profit off wars. For the last 30 years America has blown up thousands of mud huts, destroyed countless flocks of sheep and reduced hundreds of communities to rubble all in the name or personal greed. China didn’t. And what you see is China is what America should be, but isn’t.
Video Three. HERE. 95MB. This is another mall. This is on the center West side of Zhuhai, and you can see that it isn’t so different from American malls. Or at least what they used to be, back in the 1980’s. You can see American restaurants such as Pizza Hut, and Hagen Dias and watch the average people come and go. Do they look like they are “evil”? Do they look like they are starving from famine? Do they look they they are being oppressed while living in a police state by the evil CCP? Does anything resemble “poor and deteriorating” infrastructure? Is the area full of pollution, litter, and refuse? Are the people eating dogs and cats?
Video Four. HERE. 305MB. Here we talk about bicycles and the reality of owning a bicycle in an American city. Most Americans who have cars do not ride bicycles, they just hop in their car to go anywhere. Walking more than a block is a rarity. In fact most suburbs and communities have pretty much given up on sidewalks. So most are unaware of the reality of owning a bicycle inside the United States. The reality is that it will be stolen, or chopped up. The urban ethnic youth just loves to steal your seats and tires for the hell of it. It’s a fun pastime for them. (That’s what happens when strong parental leadership is missing from their lives.) We discuss life in China, and the love of walking and strolling because in China, the cities are designed for living. Not as a place that you look out the window of when you go from point A to point B.
Video Five. HERE. 34MB. A little park on the ocean. The entire coastline is a series of parks, walking and bike trails and rest areas. They are well maintained so that the citizenry can use them. This differs substantially from the United States where every beach has a for-profit parking lot where the local community can profit from. The role of the government is to provide an environment for the people to live and prosper in. Not one where the rich oligarchy can profit off the people and keep them living in fear so more money can be generated.
Video Six. HERE. 62MB. People contributing to the greater good. In America you will see a parking lot go up, and a park bulldozed. This happened all throughout the 1960’s and well into the 1980’s. And after a while the entire landscape was nothing but big large enormous empty asphalt spaces devoid of trees. Then when the business moved away, or when business died off, no one planted trees or grass. Instead they were permitted to collapse and fall into disuse. Not in China. This is because society matters. People matter.
I used to live in a small town in Massachusetts called Wrentham. For the longest time, both Wrentham and it’s neighboring town of Plainville resisted all changes and from the 1960’s up until the 1990’s no new business, or enterprises were permitted. This was true for the nearby community of Frankin as well. The entire area maintained it’s 1950’s charms.
Then the town elders decided to leave and move to Florida, and all of them left. And they all sold their property holdings to wealthy developers and within six months was all sorts of construction everywhere.
All of which held zero interest in the community, and all of which were money making, for profit enterprises run by their children.
You had the Wrenthan outlet mall, and the Wrentham water slide park, and a number of parking garages, and a few new strip malls, and after nine months the feel of the old Mayberry RFD community was displaced with semi-urban strip malls, and for profit venues.
Parking lots sprouted up. McDonald’s, KFC, Burger King, Pizza Hut, Panera Bread, Payless shoe store, and a Dunkin’ Donuts moved next to the old 1950’s style airstream diner, and the large oak trees were cut down to widen the road for heavier traffic flow.
When I left, right after 9-11, the local communities were outraged and all the growth was stopped. But what happened afterwards is unknown. Money could have changed hands, the the encroachment of modernity might have continued. I do not know.
That will never happen in China. China grows and builds and creates and makes, but the community and the society comes first. Not the profit can can be generated from it.
Video Seven. HERE. 30MB. One of my typical meals in China. You see, eating fish is very rare in the United States. When you do it is usually part of a sandwich, like a “fish fillet”, part of a chain like “Long John Silvers”, or deep fried like Southern Fried Catfish. Well, China cooks fish like they should be cooked, and while the bones need to be carefully removed by us Americans, the rest of the nation has no problem and eats the fish with glee and spits out the bones machine-gun style. Not only is the fish meal healthy and good for you, but it is so amazingly delicious.
Video Eight. HERE. 145MB. The beach in front of my house. I normally do not go to the beach, but it’s a pleasant place to be. Here you can see the guys roll up their tee-shirts to expose their bellies which is a very Chinese thing to do in hot climates. It’s called the “Beijing Bikini”. And it’s an on going joke.
You will also notice some little kids running around without clothes on or being partially dressed. It’s no big deal here. Kids are allowed to be kids. Unlike the United States where you could spend the rest of your life in prison as a sexual offender to being near them.
You will also notice that the access to the beach is free. You do not have to pay any fees or fines to go there. This is quite unlike many places in the United States today. This is a typical boardwalk and notice how it is protected with shady trees. Not left to bake in the sun because in America you need to pay for people to rake the leaves and it will cut into your profit margins.
Video Nine. HERE. 44MB. New construction everywhere. the Chinese have mastered the art of construction and people (!) they do not play. I have said this over and over and over again, but it is really true. And unless you are here and see it with your own two eyes, you will have zero comprehension of what you are dealing with, and that is most especially true if you get your Intel from FOX “news” or CNN.
Video Ten. HERE. 75MB. A toddler playground. I would guess that this playground is for children up to six years old, and requires supervision. You will note that there are many, many parents here. If anything happens, any one of them will come to the rescue. You will also notice that there are quite a selection of toddler appropriate play structures from mazes, to jungle gyms, to swing sets and rocking horses.
I am a big believer in age-appropriate playgrounds and outlets. You cannot have “one size fits all” and then make it so safe that only cripples on wheelchairs can use it safely. Play requires independence, safety with a level of risk. Sure, kids can fall, and things can go wrong, but in China all the toddler play areas come with a ton load of adult supervision, and no one is going to allow anything to happen if they can prevent it.
Video Eleven. HERE. 184MB. Wet Market. This is what a wet market is like. It looks a lot like a high-end American supermarket. And that’s because it is. The only difference is that fish are sold while alive. Thus the “wet” portion of the market. I ask, does Forbes, Rush Limbaugh, Hall Turner, or FOX “news” have any video of what a “Wet market” looks like. Nope. They just repeat the ugly narrative, and the ignorant believe it.
I know that I am a bit brash and “in your face” regarding this particular video, but I just read a fully bullshit article out of Forbes that angered me to no end. Still pushing the Wuhan “bat virus” hoax and the China dirty and filthy hoax. Jeeze!
Video Twelve. HERE. 75MB. Activity Center. This is a very common sight all over China. There are these little areas where you spend $5 USD for the kids to play safely. They can play with play-doh, splash in water, feed fish, slide and climb indoors, play dress-up, go to an activity table, play with toys, and paint, or build. The parents must be present, so it is not a Day-care. It’s something else entirely.
Video Thirteen HERE. 37MB. A Dim Sum restaurant. This is about as typical China as you can get, and these places are everywhere in the Southern crest of China. Everything is typical. From the tables and the table cloths to the tea, the types of people, the environment, the decorations and the food provided. This is China.
Video Fourteen HERE. 77MB. This is rush hour in front of a regional mall in a residential section. The sun is setting, the dusk is deepening, and the shade under the trees are lush, moist and green. It’s one of my favorite times of the day. This is when people go outside in China and gather together for meals, some companionship and just to socialize.
To Open the Files
Just unzip to whatever folder you want and then just play the first video, the other videos will play immediately afterwards (if you follow the default settings on your OS). Most videos are between one and a half to four minutes long. All told, it’s roughly 45 minutes in total.
Some key points
This is what China is like.
Is it dirty, smoggy, filthy? Do the people eat dogs and cats? Is the infrastructure failing, and flailing?
From Bing. “China City”.
Here’s a Bing search for “China Street”.
Is it a police state with constant “big brother” surveillance 24/7?
No it’s not.
From Bing “China people”.
What comes up when you do an image search for “China people” on Bing.
But it’s difficult to get the message through when the United States government owns 99.99% of all American media; mainstream, alt-Right and Alt-Left. NAd spend millions of dollars, with bot’s, AI, and armies of people to flood the internet with bad things to say about China.
They WANT to create the great lies of hate, and illusions of what China is.
From Bing. “China military”.
What Bing search engine comes up with when you do a search for “China military”.
Do you want more?
This article is going into a new sub-index that I am creating for it titled VLOG. You can access it here.
One thing is for certain it takes a different set of skills to do. And, maybe this methodology is better suited to me. I won’t have people complaining about spelling and grammar, or idiom mistakes so often.
This vlog consists of a bunch of videos. Some narrate while others don’t. What is special here is that (for all the videos on you-tube about China) note seem to tackle the kinds of “everyday life” that I want to provide here.
For me, it’s nothing fancy. Yet when I show glimpses of my life to others outside of China, they seem to like it. Cool, I guess. So… this is just myself walking around the neighborhood; my house, and filming it while I discuss the world around me. I hope that you like it.
Keep in mind when you watch the videos, a comparison of your life, with what you are watching on my videos.
The theme behind these videos are “Look at everyday life inside of China”
The videos
Video One. 92MB. Reuse of discarded lighters, and hand sanitizers at the Zhuhai airport. This is common throughout China, but not so common in the United States. My experience is that the lighters are discarded in the United States.
Video Two. 56MB. Vet’s office part I. Bringing my dog into the vet’s office. What it is like and what is a going on. You get a very good idea about animal care inside of China with this particular video.
Video Three. 55MB. Vet’s office part II. Showing some of the customers to the vet clinic, and the pets that they bring in. It’s a big change from the American / UK narrative that the Chinese only eat dogs and cats. Isn’t it, eh?
Video Four. 29MB. This is a local government Social Security office. It reminds me of the United States Post Office. But I will tell you that they were efficient. You use the QR to apply and submit documents via the app. Then you arrive for your appointment. Waiting time is under five minutes, as the AI bases wait times on an individual-by-individual basis.
Video Five. 55MB. Playing with 5G AI in the local mall. You just scan the QR code and then run the APP. Then what you film interacts with the various programs and have you interacting with things. In the one that we choose, we point and push and do imaginary things in the air, and the APP interprets it to be myself pushing jellyfish, moving bubbles, tickling whales and chasing dolphins about.
Video Six. 69MB. A ride in the taxi through Jida, showing all the construction everywhere, and what it is like here in Zhuhai. I am told that China is ugly, filth and run by evil chicom crooks. I am also told that I am “blind” to the “real” China. Kind of difficult to buy a coke when you are “blind”, don’t you know.
Video Seven. 91MB. This is my local medical clinic in my neighborhood. It is in the old section of town, and filmed on a busy Saturday. As you can see, the things are a bit more used, distressed and in use. There is nothing wrong with that. The clinic will be replaced in a year or two anyways.
Video Eight. 21MB. This is a semi-normal, semi-regular meal that the MM household tends to have on the weekends. This particular meal is at a Vietnamese restaurant that we are VIP members of. (VIP membership is a regular feature throughout China.) And this dish is curried Chicken with potatoes and hot peppers with a side of okra. Actually how it is cooked makes all the difference in the world. It goes great with beer in a glass filled with crushed ice, pineapple rice with squid and shrimp, and shrimp / coconut chips.
Video Nine. 79MB. Pre-Kindergarden. Here you can bring your 9 month old baby to three years to Pre-Kindergarden. The babies, toddlers and youth learn social skills, stories, language and communication skills as well as some basic math, and history through stories, songs, and dance. Since many of the children are not toilet trained, and many are still nursing, the parents must be present with the children.
Yes, I can add streaming video code instead. And I am researching it. The thing is that I do not want code that is connected to the American oligarchy in any way. And most available codes are.
Sure, you can host the video on your site, but the video will be directly tied to Google, which is then tied to the NSA, which is then under the control of the American Federal Government. So I am looking into this.
I'll keep you all posted on my successes or failures in this matter. Maybe I'll ask Jeff Brown for some pointers....
To Open the Files
Just unzip to whatever folder you want and then just play the first video, the other videos will play immediately afterwards (if you follow the default settings on your OS). Most videos are between one and a half to four minutes long. All told, it’s roughly 45 minutes in total.
Some key points
This is what China is like.
Is it dirty, smoggy, filthy? Do the people eat dogs and cats? Is the infrastructure failing, and flailing? Is it a police state with constant “big brother” surveillance 24/7?
No it’s not.
But it’s difficult to get the message through when the Untied States government owns 99.99% of all American media; mainstream, alt-Right and Alt-Left. And then makes i had for people inside of China to post videos on You-Tube or Facebook.
They WANT to create the great lies of hate.
Do you want more?
This article is going into a new sub-index that I am creating for it titled VLOG. You can access it here.
Here's my MM dirty little secret; I'm beginning to get a little touch of Carpal Tunnel in my wrists. So I really need to lay off the heavy typing aspects of MM. Sorry, but I am a human and my body is a human body with all sorts of physical limitations. Ugh!
One thing is for certain it takes a different set of skills to do. And, maybe this methodology is better suited to me. I won’t have people complaining about spelling and grammar, or idiom mistakes so often.
This vlog consists of a bunch of videos. Some narrate while others don’t. What is special here is that (for all the videos on you-tube about China) note seem to tackle the kinds of “everyday life” that I want to provide here.
For me, it’s nothing fancy. Yet when I show glimpses of my life to others outside of China, they seem to like it. Cool, I guess. So… this is just myself walking around the neighborhood; my house, and filming it while I discuss the world around me. I hope that you like it.
Keep in mind when you watch the videos, a comparison of your life, with what you are watching on my videos.
The theme behind these videos are “Look at everyday life inside of China part three”
Here I am providing some videos, narrated as is my want, and thrown at you all with wild abandon. Yee Haw!
Video One HERE. 282MB. The tax office, a Chinese bird, and a six lane intersection. This first video is a honker, and it is enormous. It might take some time to download. Sorry guys.
Video Two HERE. 55.4MB. A tale in the elevator. Not much of a tale, rather just what it is like when you are captive inside an elevator with commercials playing.
Video Three HERE. 34.3MB. At the Chinese version of Social Security. If it reminds you of the US Post office, yeah, well, it’s all pretty similar. Except that in China, they are for more compassionate and nicer than what I remember everyone back in the States to be.
Video Four HERE. 40.5MB. At the mall and experiencing 5G AI by QR code. Well, almost actually, the AI and all that fancy stuff happened after I filmed this segment. Because, after all, you need the cell phone to active the AI effects. And while they were impressive from a technical point of view… my hands moving jellyfishes and other fishes and bubbles about, I really just thought of it as a cute gimmick for kids.
Video Five HERE. 88MB. A ride in a taxi from the mall during rush hour. My daughter was playing with the kid’s version of Tictok and the noise in the background is one of her videos. Ai! Oh! LOL.
Yes, I can add streaming video code instead. And I am researching it. The thing is that I do not want code that is connected to the American oligarchy in any way. And most available codes are.
Sure, you can host the video on your site, but the video will be directly tied to Google, which is then tied to the NSA, which is then under the control of the American Federal Government. So I am looking into this.
I'll keep you all posted on my successes or failures in this matter. Maybe I'll ask Jeff Brown for some pointers....
And my point is…
This is my life. Please point out where I experience the same kind of narrative that the American (and UK) government says exists within China.
Just unzip to whatever folder you want and then just play the first video, the other videos will play immediately afterwards (if you follow the default settings on your OS). Most videos are between one and a half to four minutes long. All told, it’s roughly 45 minutes in total.
Do you want more?
This article is going into a new sub-index that I am creating for it titled VLOG. You can access it here.
One thing is for certain it takes a different set of skills to do. And, maybe this methodology is better suited to me. I won’t have people complaining about spelling and grammar, or idiom mistakes so often.
This vlog consists of a bunch of videos. Some narrate while others don’t. What is special here is that (for all the videos on you-tube about China) note seem to tackle the kinds of “everyday life” that I want to provide here.
For me, it’s nothing fancy. Yet when I show glimpses of my life to others outside of China, they seem to like it. Cool, I guess. So… this is just myself walking around the neighborhood; my house, and filming it while I discuss the world around me. I hope that you like it.
Keep in mind when you watch the videos, a comparison of your life, with what you are watching on my videos.
The theme behind these videos are “Look at everyday life inside of China part two”
The videos
Here I am providing some videos, narrated as is my want, and thrown at you all with wild abandon. Yee Haw!
Video one HERE. 77MB Futility, or a sense of belonging?
Video two HERE. 208MB. Banking and taxation within China.
Video three HERE. 163MB. Wasted away again in Lipton-baijiu-aville.
Yes, I can add streaming video code instead. And I am researching it. The thing is that I do not want code that is connected to the American oligarchy in any way. And most available codes are.
Sure, you can host the video on your site, but the video will be directly tied to Google, which is then tied to the NSA, which is then under the control of the American Federal Government. So I am looking into this.
I'll keep you all posted on my successes or failures in this matter. Maybe I'll ask Jeff Brown for some pointers....
To Open the Files
Just unzip to whatever folder you want and then just play the first video, the other videos will play immediately afterwards (if you follow the default settings on your OS). Most videos are between one and a half to four minutes long. All told, it’s roughly 45 minutes in total.
Some key points
This is what China is like.
Is it dirty, smoggy, filthy? Do the people eat dogs and cats? Is the infrastructure failing, and flailing? Is it a police state with constant “big brother” surveillance 24/7?
No it’s not.
But it’s difficult to get the message through when the Untied States government owns 99.99% of all American media; mainstream, alt-Right and Alt-Left. And then makes i had for people inside of China to post videos on You-Tube or Facebook.
They WANT to create the great lies of hate.
Hey! Here’s the latest “news” about China today. What issues are being promoted, and how are they being described?
One thing is for certain it takes a different set of skills to do. And, maybe this methodology is better suited to me. I won’t have people complaining about spelling and grammar, or idiom mistakes so often.
This vlog consists of a bunch of videos. Some narrate while others don’t. What is special here is that (for all the videos on you-tube about China) note seem to tackle the kinds of “everyday life” that I want to provide here.
For me, it’s nothing fancy. Yet when I show glimpses of my life to others outside of China, they seem to like it. Cool, I guess. So… this is just myself walking around the neighborhood; my house, and filming it while I discuss the world around me. I hope that you like it.
Keep in mind when you watch the videos, a comparison of your life, with what you are watching on my videos.
The theme behind these videos are “Look at everyday life inside of China”
The videos
Here I am providing some videos of riding on a public bus in China, A video showing just the insane level of construction everywhere that is all over China, and what it is like to take my little dog to the vet.
Video one HERE. 39MB. Taking public transportation to get around.
Video three HERE. 40MB. My dog visits the local vet for his shots.
Video four HERE. 72MB. A visit to the tiny Zhuhai airport.
Video five HERE. 107MB. A study of trash receptacles near my home.
Yes, I can add streaming video code instead. And I am researching it. The thing is that I do not want code that is connected to the American oligarchy in any way. And most available codes are.
Sure, you can host the video on your site, but the video will be directly tied to Google, which is then tied to the NSA, which is then under the control of the American Federal Government. So I am looking into this.
I'll keep you all posted on my successes or failures in this matter. Maybe I'll ask Jeff Brown for some pointers....
To Open the Files
Just unzip to whatever folder you want and then just play the first video, the other videos will play immediately afterwards (if you follow the default settings on your OS). Most videos are between one and a half to four minutes long. All told, it’s roughly 45 minutes in total.
Some key points
This is what China is like.
Is it dirty, smoggy, filthy? Do the people eat dogs and cats? Is the infrastructure failing, and flailing? Is it a police state with constant “big brother” surveillance 24/7?
No it’s not.
But it’s difficult to get the message through when the Untied States government owns 99.99% of all American media; mainstream, alt-Right and Alt-Left. And then makes i had for people inside of China to post videos on You-Tube or Facebook.
They WANT to create the great lies of hate.
Do you want more?
This article is going into a new sub-index that I am creating for it titled VLOG. You can access it here.
Well, this is my third try at making a Vblog. I do believe that it is a popular thing to do and I am told that I could open up an account on You-Tube and get a bunch of followers. Well, maybe. If I wanted that.
One thing is for certain it takes a different set of skills to do. And, maybe this methodology is better suited to me. I won’t have people complaining about spelling and grammar, or idiom mistakes so often.
Here’s the videos in more or less the same kind of format as my first Vlog. Except that the videos are longer, and thus are bigger. They take more time to download.
This vlog consists of one cluster of three videos.
For me, it’s nothing fancy. Yet when I show glimpses of my life to others outside of China, they seem to like it. Cool, I guess. So… this is just myself walking around the neighborhood; my house, and filming it while I discuss the world around me. I hope that you like it.
The theme behind this video (or collection of smaller videos) is “Look at how polluted China is and compare it to the BBC, and the Bloomberg articles.”
What am I talking about?
Well, it is so easy to find pictures about pollution in China. That’s all the western media seems to talk about.
Like this,
And this,
And this, Look at the bikes and clothing. This picture is at least twenty years old. But what it is doing in a 2020 article?
And this,
And this as well…
About the methodology that I use…
The videos themselves are but a collection of short movies, and they are all zipped up. You just unzip to a folder and then just play the movies. It’s not as convenient as You-tube, but I won’t end up getting shadow banned either.
Obviously, what I see, and what the “journalists” are reporting on differs substantially. Why? Is it because I am lying, or that I am viewing China through “Rose colored glasses”?
Idiom: rose-coloredglasses to see things as better than they really are to see only the positives in a situation (and therefore in a way that is unrealistic)
-Idiom: Rose-colored glasses
I really want you, the viewer, to “feel” what “my China” is like. It’s my reality. It’s my world. And, by extension, MM readers / followers’ world as well.
Yes, I can add streaming video code instead. And I am researching it. The thing is that I do not want code that is connected to the American oligarchy in any way. And most available codes are.
Sure, you can host the video on your site, but the video will be directly tied to Google, which is then tied to the NSA, which is then under the control of the American Federal Government. So I am looking into this.
I'll keep you all posted on my successes or failures in this matter. Maybe I'll ask Jeff Brown for some pointers....
To Open the Files
Just unzip to whatever folder you want and then just play the first video, the other videos will play immediately afterwards (if you follow the default settings on your OS). Most videos are between one and a half to four minutes long. All told, it’s roughly 45 minutes in total.
Some key points
The purpose of this vlog is to show how out of touch the Western media is with the day-to-day reality of those of us living within China. It is so absolutely crazy out-of-touch that there MUST be an agenda behind it. Certainly no “journalists” can end up being that absolutely incompetent.
And thus this incisive and detailed, and particularly important vlog.
I do hope that you enjoy it.
Ah.
Compare my reality with American reality
While I was filming these videos, this is the hysteria going on in America. Now compare reality against the perception of what is important via the “news”.
Well, this is my second try at making a Vblog. I do believe that it is a popular thing to do and I am told that I could open up an account on You-Tube and get a bunch of followers. Well, maybe. If I wanted that.
One thing is for certain it takes a different set of skills to do. And, maybe this methodology is better suited to me. I won’t have people complaining about spelling and grammar, or idiom mistakes so often.
Here’s the videos in more or less the same kind of format as my first Vlog.
Well, actually, it’s a string of around 12 or so, 2 to 5 minute long videos that I have zipped together in a folder. You just unpack and watch at your pleasure.
I took extra care for them not to be as long as the other videos so that they would be easier to watch.
For me, it’s nothing fancy. Yet when I show glimpses of my life to others outside of China, they seem to like it. Cool, I guess. So… this is just myself walking around the neighborhood; my house, and filming it while I discuss the world around me. I hope that you like it.
The theme behind this video (or collection of smaller videos) is “how China manages society, allocates resources, and works to improve the environment for it’s citizenry..
The videos themselves are but a collection of short movies, and they are all zipped up. You just unzip to a folder and then just play the movies. It’s not as convenient as You-tube, but I won’t end up getting shadow banned either.
This is all pretty much unlike the typical expat in China vblogs that visit this town, or that town and talk about what they observe. I do that as well, but overall, this effort is about me and where I live. The purpose of this particular segment is to concentrate on the idea that the role of the government, at all levels, is to improve the lives of the citizenry.
Something that has been missing in the American government for at least two centuries/
I do narrate, but … well, you watch.
I really want you, the viewer, to “feel” what “my China” is like. It’s my reality. It’s my world. And, by extension, MM readers / followers’ world as well.
Keep in mind this video by Bernie Sanders 30 years ago…
Thirty years ago, 90% of the Chinese people lived in absolute poverty. All they had was their skills and the ability to work hard. The government took time, planning and enormous investments to improve the lives of the citizenry.
Unlike the USA they did not decide to destroy the rest of the world. They used the money on their people. Not on the richest, and the desire to destroy everyone else. And you can see the results today.
Yes, I can add streaming video code instead. And I am researching it. The thing is that I do not want code that is connected to the American oligarchy in any way. And most available codes are.
Sure, you can host the video on your site, but the video will be directly tied to Google, which is then tied to the NSA, which is then under the control of the American Federal Government. So I am looking into this.
I'll keep you all posted on my successes or failures in this matter. Maybe I'll ask Jeff Brown for some pointers....
To Open the Files
Just unzip to whatever folder you want and then just play the first video, the other videos will play immediately afterwards (if you follow the default settings on your OS). Most videos are between one and a half to four minutes long. All told, it’s roughly 45 minutes in total.
Or around 12 minutes per VLOG group (1 through 4) for the bite-size MM version that I used to test on my computer.
I really hope that you are not too bored.
How the videos are set up
The first video starts off quiet and then I break out into my narrative. I really, and sincerely hope that you all can get the real “feel” for China like I have. And understand WHY I say that it reminds me so much about what the United States was like back in the late 1950’s, and early 1960’s.
Some key points
The purpose of this second Vlog is to underscore the role of government.
I look at China that has placed the fundamental and primary role of government to be to improves the lives of the citizenry at all levels.
This differs substantially from the role of the American government; which is to do the bidding of the wealthy oligarchy that put the “democratic” representatives into power within the government.
Each video takes one small item, often overlooked by other vloggers, and amplifies it upon this narrative. It’s not that they are wrong, but visiting a town or community for a week isn’t going to tell you or inform you the way that a long-term expat would.
And thus this incisive and detailed, and particularly important vlog.
I do hope that you enjoy it.
I love the steam locomotive in the background.
Ah.
You could reasonably argue that I miss the old culture, and the older styles of cars, clothing and other attributes of the past. you could say that I miss the prices and my now dead relatives. I suppose that many of those points are actually true. But with every good point, is an equally bad point.
And I suppose that people would argue that I am looking with fondness of the past. And it’s true, I am. But what I am describing is the “feeling” of that time. And I am comparing it to the “feeling” that I have now.
Today, here inside of China, no one is on the radio, or on the internet yelling at me to buy! Buy! Buy!. It’s only $98.98.
I am not hearing from radio, television or the internet about all sorts of emergency dangers and that the world is out of control.I don’t hear advertisements that ask if I am depressed, have marital or legal problems, or how great a pill will help me in my life.
Instead I hear that things are under control, and I see that with my very own two eyes. There’s a calmness in the air that I haven’t experienced since the 1960’s, and it is refreshing to experience it.
I hope that you too are able to experience it in my VLOG herein.
Compare my reality with American reality
While I was filming these videos, this is the hysteria going on in America. Now compare reality against the perception of what is important via the “news”.
Well, this is my first try at making a Vblog. I hear that it is a popular thing to do and I am told that I could open up an account on You-Tube and get a bunch of followers. Well, maybe. If I wanted that.
So I made a video.
It’s of my neighborhood.
Well, actually, it’s a string of around 12 or so, 2 to 5 minute long videos that I have zipped together in a folder. You just unpack and watch at your pleasure.
For me, it’s nothing fancy. Yet when I show glimpses of my life to others outside of China, they seem to like it. Cool, I guess. So… this is just myself walking around the neighborhood; my house, and filming it while I discuss the world around me. I hope that you like it.
The theme behind this video (or collection of smaller videos) is “the feeling in China is near identical to the feeling that I had while a small boy living in the USA in the 1960’s”.
The videos themselves are but a collection of short movies, and they are all zipped up. You just unzip to a folder and then just play the movies. It’s not as convenient as You-tube, but I won’t end up getting shadow banned either.
This is all pretty much unlike the typical expat in China vblogs that visit this town, or that town and talk about what they observe. I do that as well, but overall, this effort is about me and where I live. It’s purpose and intention is to get you, the viewer, a “feeling” of the environment as opposed to someone watching a narrated adventure.
I do narrate, but … well, you watch.
I really want you, the viewer, to “feel” what “my China” is like. It’s my reality. It’s my world. And, by extension, MM readers / followers’ world as well.
The entire video set can be downloaded HERE. But, it’s super large at 392 MB. And many computers cannot download it due to the cache memory size, or clutter in their browsers. Like your’s truly.
So… Here’s the MM version. For me, I need to download things in smaller mouth-fulls.
Or if you keep on getting errors, you can download the file in small batches and then go folder by folder.
Yes, I can add streaming video code instead. And I am researching it. The thing is that I do not want code that is connected to the American oligarchy in any way. And most available codes are.
Sure, you can host the video on your site, but the video will be directly tied to Google, which is then tied to the NSA, which is then under the control of the American Federal Government. So I am looking into this.
I'll keep you all posted on my successes or failures in this matter. Maybe I'll ask Jeff Brown for some pointers....
To Open the Files
Just unzip to whatever folder you want and then just play the first video, the other videos will play immediately afterwards (if you follow the default settings on your OS). Most videos are between one and a half to four minutes long. All told, it’s roughly 45 minutes in total.
Or around 12 minutes per VLOG group (1 through 4) for the bite-size MM version that I used to test on my computer.
I really hope that you are not too bored.
How the videos are set up
The first video starts off quiet and then I break out into my narrative. I really, and sincerely hope that you all can get the real “feel” for China like I have. And understand WHY I say that it reminds me so much about what the United States was like back in the late 1950’s, and early 1960’s.
Some key points
One of the things that I am trying to get across is that China reminds me of what America used to be. Whether it was the 1950’s, 60’s or 70’s. It clearly has something, a “feeling”, a pace of life, a way of living, a society that has long evaporated away in the United States.
I argue that what America is today is a direct reflection on it’s leadership. And the fact that the leaders are not smart, (are terribly corrupt and behave as psychopathic fiends with no shame or attempt to hide their behaviors) reinforces this point. For them, being surrounded by sycophants and other psychopaths they are unable to see what they have created or the world that they live in is not good. It is not healthy and it is most certainly, not normal.
A Metallicman 1960’s America.
Ah.
You could reasonably argue that I miss the old culture, and the older styles of cars, clothing and other attributes of the past. you could say that I miss the prices and my now dead relatives. I suppose that many of those points are actually true. But with every good point, is an equally bad point.
And I suppose that people would argue that I am looking with fondness of the past. And it’s true, I am. But what I am describing is the “feeling” of that time. And I am comparing it to the “feeling” that I have now.
Today, here inside of China, no one is on the radio, or on the internet yelling at me to buy! Buy! Buy!. It’s only $98.98.
I am not hearing from radio, television or the internet about all sorts of emergency dangers and that the world is out of control.I don’t hear advertisements that ask if I am depressed, have marital or legal problems, or how great a pill will help me in my life.
Instead I hear that things are under control, and I see that with my very own two eyes. There’s a calmness in the air that I haven’t experienced since the 1960’s, and it is refreshing to experience it.
I hope that you too are able to experience it in my VLOG herein.
A “real” car. From Shorpy.com.
Compare my reality with American reality
While I was filming these videos, this is the hysteria going on in America. Now compare reality against the perception of what is important via the “news”.
