Skunks in Milford

You know, I really liked Massachusetts. I used to live in Milford, Massachusetts. It was really great.

Beautiful, pleasant. A really nice place, and I often miss what it was like.

You know… there is one thing about Milford…

Skunks.

Lots and lots of skunks. LOL.

That and foxes. Who would thunk it?

…

Oh, they would really leave you alone. But, you know, you don’t want to get them upset.

Ha!

They would just meander about. Clueless, without a care in the world. Funny.

Skunks in Milford.

Meandering about. Not a care in the world.

Cute.

Puts a smile on my face.

Today…

Is it really worth it to live to over 80 years?

When he was 87 and slipping into dementia, I asked my father exactly this on one of his “good days.” He smiled and said that it had been worth it, even when he became the last of his siblings alive and started to lose his ability to remember names, first, and other things later.

He became a very gentle person to be around (he had been an angry and argumentative Democrat for most of his life) and enjoyed his children, grandchildren, and even their pets. We got along better than we ever had. I remember taking him to the Fourth of July parade and whispering the names of people who came up to greet him. Once he knew their names, he could have a great conversation. Then I brought him back to a school reunion and that was wonderful. He needed no introductions as everyone wore a name tag.

Having watched my father in those years, I hope that I may live long enough to navigate old age just the way he did despite his obvious infirmities.

What situation made you wish you never reported it?

I’ve worked with the company I’m presently employed with for not quite 12 years. Up until a year ago, we were a small personable, easy going, family owned company of about 250 drivers. If you were around for any length of time, everyone in the office and shop knew you, and vice versa. That was up until about a year ago when the owner of the company retired and threw us under the bus by selling us out to a larger company and everything changed.

It’s common practice for just about any trucking company to require any damage to their equipment be reported and documented. With my company, if the damage was minimal, the report would still go in the driver’s jacket, but no further. It would stay in-house instead of being reported to a national data base.

I’ve always been the type to man-up in situations such as this. I was raised that way, and it was the right thing to do. Even leaving small damage unreported could result in the next driver having to have it repaired and possibly being late for a delivery.

So, after pulling out of a customer’s driveway and cutting it too tighly, I felt something go bump in the night. Upon further inspection, it appears I clipped one of those large landscaping rocks placed to prevent idiot drivers like me from cutting corners too tightly, and running over their curbs. When I stopped for the day and was doing my mandatory post-trip inspection, I came upon this,

Thinking it was no biggie, and my company would normally think likewise, and wanting to do the right thing, I called it it. What happened next was nothing short of a shit storm. The new people acted like I ran over a carload of nuns. Initial phone call to my parent company, followed by a call to the new company’s safety department, followed by a call-back the next day from same, followed by submitting pictures and a full accident report, followed by a call-back from the new company to review of same, followed by a never-heard-of-before-review from Greg in our safety department.

When I related the story to the former head of our . safety department, her reaction was, “It was just a fuckin’ rim!”, as she shook her head.

Trust me, if it ever happens again, I won’t think twice about going palms up with a “Dunno nuthin’ ‘bout it. When I dropped it off, it was fine “, should anyone inquire.

Something to accept

What has been the most life changing health issue you’ve experienced? Did it change your life for the better or worse?

I was driving down the freeway and all of a sudden I couldn’t see the cars ahead of me. It was if someone had pulled a shade down in front of my line of vision. I could see all around the shade, but not right in front. Although it was only for a few moments, the terror I felt was devasting.

I was a 21-year old college student, a senior at academically prestigious school, getting good grades, working part time, and enjoying a fun social life.

So, what was the matter? Where did the intense headaches come from? Why did I frequently wake up in the middle of the night, jumping out of bed and running to the bathroom, to vomit repeatedly? Why did I feel that I was about to fall down whenever the sidewalk was a little uneven?

Then there were those crazy nightmares I was having.…. I dreamed one night that I was driving on the freeway. The car next to me pulled up right beside me. The driver pulled a gun out. He shot me in the head. My head exploded. Everything became dark. I woke up in a terrified sweat. What on earth was wrong with my head that I would have such a dream?

In spite of everything, I was doing okay and maintaining my studies. But finally it became too much for me to handle. Especially the shade covering my eyes on the freeway.

I saw several doctors. They said I was fine.

I went to a psychologist. I figured that since the doctors said I was fine, it must be all in my mind. The psychologist listened to my symptoms. He said that I didn’t need to see a psychologist. Instead, I needed to see a neurologist and he urged me to see one right away.

I took his advice and went to a neurologist. The neurologist admitted me to a hospital. Still no answers. Many tests were done, but it was during the days before C-T scans or MRI’s were used, so it was hard to figure this out. Finally a diagnosis was made: brain tumor.

Surgery was scheduled. They operated for 10 hours, and were able to remove half of the tumor. The surgeon told me the tumor was the size of a large orange and that if I hadn’t been diagnosed when I was, I would have had 6 months left to live. It was just taking over my whole brain and growing so fast.

I was in intensive care for 2 weeks. I can’t remember too much about that time. It seemed like a dream, for just a few hours.

Then, more surgery. And then some more.

I lost the ability to walk. I couldn’t see very well. I lost hearing. I was fed intravenously. Because I had stroke-like symptoms, one side of my body became weak and uncoordinated. I no longer could hold a pen and write.

I had physical therapy and occupational therapy to regain some of the skills that I had lost.

I finally left the hospital and went home to live with my parents. The tumor was not all gone, but I needed a break. I needed time to get stronger before the next onslaught of surgery.

While I was home, I had physical and occupational therapy at a nearby hospital. I still couldn’t walk or write, but I was beginning to feel better. In physical therapy I worked on learning to walk with a walker and then eventually on my own. In occupational therapy I worked on strengthening my very weak hand. I did many activities with my hands, including making some beautiful crafts. Occupational therapy was so much fun! I loved therapy.

I went back to the hospital and had the last surgery. Finally the tumor was gone. After some more time had passed I felt that maybe it was time to return to school.

Living on my own again was not easy. I still couldn’t walk or write well. But I persevered. Sometimes I fell down. I used a tape recorder during lectures since I couldn’t write fast enough to take notes, and my professors gave me extra time to write exams. With the support of my family and professors, I did well and succeeded.

As graduation approached, a brilliant idea occurred to me. I remembered the great time I had in occupational therapy, and how I had been helped so much. Maybe I too could become an occupational therapist. I thought of how wonderful it would be to spend my life helping others just like I had been helped. I decided that yes, I would try, and so I applied to a master’s degree program in occupational therapy.

There were many more applicants than spots available, but much to my delight I was accepted into the program!

The program was so difficult and very competitive. But I worked hard and after two years became an occupational therapist.

That was 40 years ago, and I am still going strong. I have worked with literally thousands of patients during my career, from little 1-pound premature babies all the way up to 103 year-old patients in nursing homes, and everything in-between. I have loved every minute of it.

Occupational therapy is a flexible career with an abundance of interesting and meaningful jobs available. During my career, I traveled the world, met and married my husband, gave birth to and raised two beautiful children, and enjoyed my life!

I turned what could have been a terrible, frightening experience into something really wonderful.

Swapping phones

How does a rescuer deal with a person who has been cut in half by a truck and obviously will not survive, but is still alive?

Not a truck. A railroad train.

The kid had attempted to jump on a boxcar from a bridge.

He dropped instead between the cars and rolled onto a rail.

A wheel cut him in half at the belly, but at the same time sealed the wound.

He was fully conscious, and asked a rescue worker if he would be “OK.”

The first responder said, “Sure, son, you’ll be fine.”

Then his two halves unsealed, and his guts poured forth. He died.

Where?

In Cumberland, Maryland. Here:

Right behind my house, years ago.

What’s something you can’t believe you had to explain to another adult?

My sister-in-law once called me to borrow my fax machine. This was in the days before most people had computers and internet. She had a very important document that had to be faxed to a company showing proof of payment.

I took my fax machine to her house that night, hooked it up, walked her through the simple instructions and left.

She called me at work the next day in a panic. She said she had tried to send her document several times and it would not go. This was important, and she needed it sent right away. I was getting off early that day so I agreed to go by her house and help her with it.

When I arrived I checked the machine and connections and everything seemed fine. I told her to send it again so I could see what was going on. She did everything correctly and at the tone hit Send. The fax machine pulled the paper through and indicated a successful receipt at the other end. My sister-in-law grabbed the paper as it came back out of the machine and said, “See. It doesn’t go, it just spits it back out.” My jaw hit the floor. It turns out she thought the actual paper was being sent over the phone lines.

After I explained the concept to her, I let her know that this story would be told at every family get together for the rest of my life. It is now firmly a part of the family lore and enjoyed by each successive generation.

My sister-in-law fortunately took it in stride. She declared it her worst blonde moment and laughs as hard as anyone when the story is retold.

P.S. My sister-in-law did call the company still to confirm receipt. They told her they had four copies and that was absolutely sufficient.

Have you ever accidentally found out that you were about to be fired?

Close? I accidentally found out I was going to be demoted which lead to me quitting.

In my 20s I worked at one of those places that made huge cookies, I was specifically hired by the manager to be the assistant manager, she’d worked with me as a key holder at another place so she knew I would be good at it. A few months after I was hired the owner sold the business.

One day I was hanging out with the Manager L when she got a call from one of the kids at cookie shop. “Hey L, the owner is in here with some chick he says is the new Manager, what’s going on?”

Too bad L had no answers for her, we had no damned idea what was happening. She and I jumped in the car and headed to the cookie shop to talk, in person, to the owner.

Sure enough, he was demoting L into Assistant and me into just a regular employee. Neither of us had done anything wrong, the new owner just planned to make this new lady a manager. He told us a bunch of BS saying she had experience bla bla… but we found out later she was actually just his girlfriend. We told him how messed up that was, and that both of us would quit if he planned to do this. He was unrepentant, even gaving us the whole “I’m sorry you feel you need an apology” line.

She and I looked at each other, got up and walked away.

Apparently he truly didn’t understand what had just happened because when he saw the kid who called us changing the schedule he was confused. When he was told by her we had just quit, he was completely stunned and didn’t understand why we would have done that. Dude, we literally told you to your face that’s what we’d do if you demoted us for no reason other than to put someone else in as manager, WTF did you think would happen?

Turns out the girlfriend was horrible as a manager, and the owner ended up folding in a few months. Funny how that happens when you take actions that force the people with a clue out, and put someone clueless in just because you are dating them. The two of us were the ones who knew how to run the store, knew how to run the fundraising side, which is where most of the money was made. He screwed himself by being an idiot.

Cajun Butt

Yield: about 8 to 10 servings

Ingredients

1 (6 pound) boneless pork butt
15 to 20 garlic slivers
3 tablespoons red pepper flakes (or less)
4 tablespoons yellow mustard
3 tablespoons Tony Chachere’s Original Seasoning
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

Cut 15 to 20 slits 1 inch deep on external surface of pork butt. Press one garlic sliver into each slit with thumb, to bottom of slit. On top of each garlic sliver, insert 1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes in the slit. Pinch slit closed.
In a bowl, mix mustard, Cajun seasoning, brown sugar and black pepper. Mix well and apply to pork butt. Lightly dust with a coating of red pepper flakes.
Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
Smoke-cook using apple and hickory chips on a covered barbecue pit off the heat for 1 hour per pound or until the internal temperature reaches 190 degrees F.

What is the strangest way you have seen someone repair a broken object?

I drove around a 1988 Toyota Corolla when I was 16 years old.

It looked like this, only a lot more beat up and ugly:

The car had a habit of making strange noises, but there was one noise in particular that I just couldn’t deal with anymore.

I drove it over to my dad’s house to see if he could tell what the problem was.

Dad: “Oh that’s just your heat shield.”

Me: “My what?”

Dad: “It’s basically just there to keep stuff from catching on fire when you park somewhere.”

Me: “That sounds kind of important. Is it something that can be fixed?”

Dad: “Hmmm… Probably.”

My dad grabbed a stick from the yard, shoved it somewhere on the heat shield, and the noise magically stopped.

I thought that stick would eventually catch on fire, but it never did and the noise never came back.

There are some benefits to having a redneck dad.

What is one of the most effective improvised weapons made by soldiers in the field?

Perhaps one of the most effective improvised weapons was the Rhino tank. An ordinary tank – usually a Sherman but with improvised steel teeth welded to the front.

In 1944 just after D-Day the Americans, Canadians and British troops were getting held up in the ‘bocage’ countryside of Normandy. Bocage consisted of high hedgerows built on thick banks of earth. This environment proved ideal for German ambushes, providing plenty of defensive cover. It also meant that the Germans could pick off tanks because they would be funnelled down the lanes, or forced through the narrow gaps in the bocage hedgerows. The Germans knew exactly where the tanks would come through and could lay anti tank mines, or train their guns on that exact spot. If the tanks tried to avoid the gaps and instead drive over the top of bocage embankment, it was so steep that it would expose the thin underside armour. Allied tanks were getting wiped out. Until this man, Sergeant Curtis G. Culin had an idea.

When one of his fellow soldiers joked and said they needed a big set of teeth to bite their way through, Culin didn’t laugh but took the idea seriously. He welded some of the steel that the Germans had used as tank traps to the front of his tank, like this.

The teeth allowed the Sherman to burst straight through the hedgerow, surprise and then destroy any Germans waiting in ambush on the other side.

When General Omar Bradley saw what Culin had done and saw how his tank was able to smash its way though the bocage hedgerows, the General ordered that as many tanks as possible be fitted with this improvised weapon. The Normandy beaches had been filled with landing spikes which were conveniently just the right shape and type of steel to make the ‘teeth’.

This simple but effective innovation enabled the Americans to swiftly move on and cut off the Cotentin Peninsula and then move south and meet up with the British and Canadians cutting off the Germans in the Falaise Pocket.

What problems did you encounter when buying a house in an “as-is” condition?

I bought the house we are in now exactly 10 years ago in “as is” condition. In fact this was the entire listing:

“Seller and agents make no representations and warranties. Sold as is.”

The house is in a fairly upscale suburb, and was about 15 years old at the time. There was plenty of cosmetic damage — water damage on the hardwood floors, a filthy kitchen, holes in some drywall, a half-full leaky pool clogged with algae. Plus the interior and exterior were just sad looking, with ugly brown paint and outdated stained oak stairs.

But the funny thing was that no matter how carefully I looked, I could not see any actual serious problems. In fact, it was a bank repossession, and I eventually figured out that since it looked so bad they just assumed there were real problems, and they listed it the way they did to avoid any liability. Over 100 people looked at the house, and we were the only ones who put in an offer, and we got it way (way!) under the asking price, which is rare in Toronto.

I was planning on doing a full renovation anyhow, so I didn’t care about the drywall and flooring. The entire kitchen went in the dumpster. And for $600 we repaired the pool, and it worked perfectly.

I’ve been here for 10 years now and we have not had a single serious problem with the house.

I am sitting outside Quoraing this morning and I took this picture 60 seconds ago:

From the Agreement of Purchase and Sale:

What are the most mind-blowing tricks used during any war?

When you can’t destroy a target by dropping bombs vertically, you can drop them horizontally. That’s what the 617 Royal Air Force Squadron did in May 1943.

The squadron carried out Operation Chastise, designed to destroy German dams and hydroelectric power stations. Reconnaissance and simulated bombing runs revealed that bombs dropped vertically on top of dams were not effective. So instead, the RAF used an experimental bouncing bomb, designed by Sir Barnes Wallis, that was dropped at low altitude onto the surface of the reservoir and skipped along the water horizontally until it hit the face of the dam.

The strategy proved effective. “The Möhne and Edersee Dams were breached…Two hydroelectric power stations were destroyed and several more were damaged. Factories and mines were also either damaged or destroyed.”

Lancaster bomber dropping bouncing bomb during the Operation Chastise raids on Germany’s Ruhr Valley.

The operation was later the subject of the movie Dambusters, released in 1955.

West will choke on Putin’s terms for Ukraine

Discussion on the Ukraine surrender terms.

Who was the most delusional person you’ve ever met? Why were they so delusional?

I remember seeing a girl, her parents were millionaires due to a massive inheritance.

She would try and talk about her “Working class background” how the struggle was real.

One day she was telling me how her parents only bought her a brand new mini when she passed her test and how that went to show how much her family had struggled. One of her school friends got a brand new Range Rover.

I listened to that thinking “My Mum couldn’t have afforded a driving lesson let alone a car”

Have you ever felt disgusted by the actions of a family member?

My sister’s daughter and her husband were about to lose their house in Texas because neither of them had jobs, they had one very young daughter and were expecting another baby. My 80 year old mother couldn’t stand to watch this happen. So, she took out an equity loan on her house and lent them $100,000. They were supposed to make the equity payments for my mom, and at first they did and were supposed to pay the whole loan back when they sold their house.

A few months later, they sold their house but told my mother they needed her money as a down payment on their new house in california. So, they kept the money, and continued making the monthly payments until they had a big fight and split up. Suddenly, no one wanted to make the payments on my mother’s equity loan so my mother had to. If she couldn’t keep up on them, she would have lost her house.

She is now 85 years old, completely disabled, living on a tiny pension, and trying to pay off this loan. Since my niece split with her husband, they did not make payments on their house either. So, it went into foreclosure, and Mom cannot even put a lien on it to get her money back.

Needless to say, I am truly disgusted by my niece’s behavior as well as her husband’s. I have now sent my mother money; my sister has sent her money, and another one of my nieces has sent money. The only people in the family who do not seem to feel terrible about this are the two people who should.

How did one small decision change your life?

When i decided not to break up with my boyfriend at that moment.

I had just joined post graduation course and found this guy who was extremely caring about me. Within a month, he proposed me. I was confused however i said yes.

We use to talk, study and laugh together. However even after six months, i was not sure about our relationship.

AND Here comes the blow. He was back to his hometown. He was ill since a week. Meanwhile, i had a introspection round with my roommates. I found i was still unsure about our relationship. So i decided, on the next call, i will tell him that this is not the right time to fall in love etc., we should be friends only.

He called me around 8 PM. I was full prepared to say him a No. As soon as i picked the phone, he was crying on the other side. He was suffering from a fatal disease, Meningitis. I could not gather courage to leave him at this crucial moment. I just said, “I am with you today and always. No matter what happens.”

He was not in position to join college. His parents was insisting him to leave the college and repeat next time. He refused and joined the college next month. He had not recovered fully. In fact, he lost his hearing power around 40%. When he came back, he told me – how my words motivated him to join the college again. I took care of him. I used to call him reminding his medicines, diets etc. Meanwhile, i actually fell for him and then never told about that breakup thought.

Today, i am happily married with him.

P.S. I do not want my husband to know about my breakup thought even today. He is on quora. So i am writing anonymously.

What did you notice during an interview that made you not want the job?

I visited a radio station for an interview, at the station manager’s request. At the time I was somewhat “known” as a pleasing radio “personality” and therefore many stations wanted to talk to me.

Part of the interview process includes a station tour where the owner or manager shows off their office, production facilities, etc.

But at this particular station, I noticed all the shelved albums (well over a thousand) were locked in place by a steel bar which prevented their removal from the shelf, unless the bar was unlocked.

But who the Hell would steal the records? During business hours, when the station was open, advertisers or promoters might come in, but they were always accompanied by station staff, so visitors couldn’t steal an album (or even a 45). So, when the doors were locked after 5 PM, who did that leave as a potential thief?

Answer: the DJ who was on air, and the news guy or gal. Sometimes, the sales manager might come in.

So, the owner of the station was paranoid about theft from his or her own people! I had worked at a number of stations, and had never seen a lockdown of the music library. It had to mean that employees and top management were not happy with each other, and I was NOT going to work in that kind of environment.

Thus, I stopped in my tracks and said, “Thanks for the tour, but I don’t think this will work for me.” And I was out the door before anyone could say, “Huh?”

What’s the pettiest thing you’ve done to get back at a nuisance neighbor?

Years ago, I lived in an apartment in a two-family building. Upstairs and downstairs.

The landlord had rented the downstairs to a woman and her three teenage kids. They were obnoxious, had fights constantly, played music so loud it literally shook the walls, and despite multiple complaints by other neighbors to the landlord and the police (because yes it was that bad), nothing was done.

While technically, landlords are supposed to do snow clearing after a snow fall, getting some landlords to do so in a timely manner is more effort than digging out the snow yourself. This was one such landlord.

That winter we had a bad snow storm, a few feet of snow.

The downstairs neighbor knocked on my door to ask when I, the older woman with no kids, would be shoveling out the apartments and driveway, all of it, by myself.

I told her I wouldn’t, but we could split the cost to have someone come over and do it since the landlord was extra full of excuses as to why it would take days to get to the property and do so.

She laughed and said she wasn’t paying. She then told me I was welcome to hire her 3 kids to dig out the entire property. Her kids were a big part of the problem as to why the cops were coming over constantly, and so no. I’d previously had problems with her children opening my mail and putting it back in my mail box or opening deliveries of mine. There was no way I’d pay them.

Oh hell no, first you expect someone older than you to do the work for free, then expect that I will pay your kids, who are apparently perfectly able to do so, to dig YOU out? Fuck that.

A friend’s husband was offering to dig people out for a reasonable rate. I contacted him and hired him. When he got there, I explained the neighbor issue and what I wanted and was willing to pay for. He was only to clear out MY half of the driveway/garage/sidewalk. Her sides were still untouched, because no one(Me) would pay her kids to do it.

He went the extra mile, splitting the snow between the yard, and her side, of everything. AKA her side ended up with more snow that needed to be cleared.

This level of petty

Picture from Google.

She complained to the landlord that:

1. I refused to shovel her side of the property for her and her family (I was not obligated to do ANY property maintenance at all)

2. I had refused to hire her kids to do it

3. I had hired someone and refused to pay him to clear her side.

Now this was a kinda shitty landlord, but still… I was amused that the landlord contacted me about it and agreed to reduce my rent the amount I paid to have MY side cleared, as well as tell me about the downstairs neighbor’s complaints about me.

Until I moved out, whenever there was snowfall, you would see a similar clearing pattern on the property. SO much so the other neighbors joked about it, and refused to hire her kids to clear their properties as well.

EDIT: Apparently there are a large number of people who feel the need to comment about how she could just use my side of the stairs as if I lack a functioning brain. Seriously, the level of condescending ‘splaining in the comments is a sad statement on so many here. Thanks all you Captain Obvious’.

Of course she could, as could the postal worker who had to use them to deliver mail(Something not one of those commenting about her using the stairs seemed to consider).

Her being able to use them or not wasn’t the point. So many of you making the same comment as if the more of you who say it, the more I will regret it, or as if I didn’t realize that years ago when I did it is mind-boggling.

For those clueless ones that feel the need to comment the obvious, you all missed the obvious point that it wasn’t about her use of the stairs, but the refusal to clear her side on her command.

What’s something your husband did to you that you will never forget?

My partner (not my husband). My mother had been really sick from cancer for 18 months, we were told that she was unlikely to make it past the weekend. With that being said I was completely distraught… my partner of 9 years said pack your stuff and leave first thing in the morning (400km drive). He woke me up at 430 am, had already packed the car and fueled it up for me. Had a travel mug of coffee ready and said call me when you get there. I left 5am Friday morning.

mum passed 8am Saturday morning (the next day). I called my partner and told him, he said I’ll move heaven and hell to get there as soon as I can. I said, don’t worry, there is nothing you can do, just be here in time for mums funeral (the upcoming Friday).

in the mean time, it was my birthday 4 days after mum had passed. My family tried to make it as special as it could be. But, it was quite a somber occasion. At 8pm, there were headlights at the top of the drive way (rural property). I know the sound of his car. I’m like it’s *partners name.

he had worked 12 hour shift (construction) then drove 400km to be with me in my darkest time to help me feel better on my birthday. In the days after mums passing I had not been able to sleep, or cry or anything but just barely function. I slept solidly that night.

I know most would say that or like to think their spouse would do the same. But, that level of love and support got me through my darkest days. Love this man so very much.

The USA is so filthy rich to fund $100+B to Ukraine and $14B to Israel to support their wars but they can’t agree in Congress to avert a government shutdown this Friday, lifeline extended since 30 Sep. Where is the America First mindset?

Unfortunately, this is the point. The U.S. is not filty rich but filty poor.

All those money for Ukraine and Israel we got by using the printing press. We’re now $33 trillion in debt.

We can’t pay for basic utilities to keep our house in order but we believe we’re still able to live the high life of showing off to the rest of the world how powerful we are.

Strange things caught on camera

How did Genghis Khan treat his soldiers?

Genghis Khan, the legendary Mongol conqueror, had a unique approach when it came to treating his soldiers. Known for his strategic brilliance and military prowess, Khan understood the importance of a strong and loyal army in his quest to build the largest empire in history. So how did he treat his soldiers?

First and foremost, Genghis Khan believed in meritocracy. He valued skill, loyalty, and bravery above all else. Regardless of their background or social status, anyone who demonstrated these qualities had the opportunity to rise through the ranks of his army. This approach fostered a sense of unity and purpose among his soldiers, as they knew that their achievements would be rewarded.

Khan was also an astute observer of human nature. He recognized that soldiers needed to be motivated and inspired to fight with unwavering dedication. To achieve this, he led by example. Genghis Khan was renowned for his courage on the battlefield, often placing himself at the forefront of his troops during crucial engagements. This not only boosted morale but also instilled a sense of camaraderie and trust among his soldiers.

In addition to leading from the front, Khan took great care of his troops’ physical well-being. He ensured that his soldiers were adequately fed, equipped, and cared for. The Mongol army was known for its skilled horsemen, and Khan prioritized the breeding and training of horses to provide his soldiers with superior mounts. This gave them a significant advantage in maneuverability and speed during battles.

Furthermore, Genghis Khan implemented a system of rewards and recognition for valorous acts. Soldiers who displayed exceptional bravery or achieved notable successes on the battlefield were given honors, titles, and even land. This not only motivated his soldiers to excel but also created a sense of pride and camaraderie within the ranks.

However, Khan was also a strict disciplinarian. He demanded discipline and obedience from his soldiers, as he believed that a well-disciplined army was crucial for maintaining order and achieving victory. Disobedience or betrayal was met with severe consequences, ensuring that his troops remained loyal and committed to the cause.

Woman EXPOSES The INEVITABLE Problem With Dating Modern Women | TRAINED/GROOMED To Be Masculine

What is the most ridiculous way you have seen someone make a lot of money?

I was in talks to design a business plan for one of those “Become a Millionaire” guys – aka a “Life Coach”.

As we moved along in talks I immediately got the heeby jeebies from the guy.

He was in his late 50’s and only seemed to brag about things he did in high school and his early 20’s. When I would ask about subsequent years, just to understand his career narrative, he would get thin on details and then squirm and change the subject.

So then I watched a few of his media interviews where his go-to story was about this incredible and vivid vision that came upon him when he was a child. A vision that he would someday become rich.

To his credit, it indeed came true. He was a wealthy man.

But it became true because he inherited his dad’s company when his dad passed away unexpectedly. He then immediately sold the company and spent the next 30 years doing a whole lot of nothing.

So now he is one of those people going around telling everyone he knows “that ONE special secret to getting rich”. He released his first book on becoming wealthy, which a bunch of unfortunate suckers bought.

And, no, I won’t tell you the title because he will sue the hell out of me.

But I’ll give you the cliff notes version, “Get rich by having a rich dad.”

Unfortunately, there are a lot of people out there that are like him.

Preying on people’s hopes and dreams in search of a dollar.

Can the United States build a new carrier group every five years for the next fifty years?

The American industrial system does not have such production capacity.

American shipyards do not have such production capacity: There is only a dry dock suitable for manufacturing aircraft carriers, and aircraft carriers waiting for repair are still queuing;
The steel mills in the United States do not have such production capacity: The last scandal involving the use of low-quality steel made in Kobe, Japan, by US nuclear submarines has not yet passed. This batch of nuclear submarines with quality issues cannot dive at all, and diving into deep water will explode due to increased pressure. American warships are even unable to withstand the impact of fishing vessels, which fully proves the quality issues of the steel used in their shipbuilding.
There are not enough skilled workers in the United States

20 And Back – The Super Soldiers Defending the Kuiper Belt

Another fun video.

Is it a crime to say in China, “Xi Jinping is destroying China. He must be kicked out! He is a dictator!”? In the West, saying such things about one’s president is perfectly normal.

Joe Biden is taking the World to the brink of World War III

What can the American people do about it?

SQUAT

…

Until 19/1/2025 at least, there is nothing any American citizen can do about it except watch the World plunge into war under the watch of a senile idiot who needs Diapers

So what is the use of saying

Biden is destroying USA and he must be kicked out

It’s just empty gas isn’t it. It’s just 10 words at the end of the day. Biden laughs and keeps doing whatever he likes for four years, unchecked

…

Same with every Democracy in the Planet

At the end of the day – WHAT IS THE END RESULT OF ABUSING OR CRITICISING THE LEADER?

Nothing

Either the Media suppresses it or people shrug and brazenly keep doing what they are doing

…

Take India

We have had Protests on every decision that has ruined the country

Demonetization, CAA, NCR etc

They matter Squat

Once in, Modi is in power for minimum 5 years and he can’t be shaken by the common man

…

France?

Same story

All those Protests and Screams and Shrieks about Pension reforms and Macron did exactly what he wanted

He is in charge till 2027

…

Same with South Korea , exports plunge to historic lows and people scream and protest but does it matter? Nopes

Taiwan?

Japan?

Germany?

So many protests begging to end the war and Germany openly and brazenly calls for Escalation

So what is the use of this damn free speech? You can say the words but they are worthless in every possible way

Now China

Yes

Maybe in China, saying these 10 words could be counter productive

However the people’s voice in China is heard much better than in any democracy

Lockdowns were ended post protests
Rural Banking Reforms were initiated after Protests
Crackdowns on Real Estate Financing was initiated after Protests
1.03 Crore Jobs have been added due to vigorous Weibo Netizen criticism
Tagging Schoolkids Or regulating online gaming has been deferred due to Weibo online protests

Plus the Biggest Biggest Thing…

Recently on the XI Jingping app, they asked if Chinas History for 6–9 Classes be modified and whether Chapters on the Boxer Rebellion and the Opium Wars had to be reduced

The Question was asked of Students who had already passed out their 9th Grade and above

79% Students said NO.

DON’T CHANGE HISTORY

They didn’t.

…

In India, US, and all those wonderful democracies – they don’t ask the kids do they????

So on one hand you have Western Democracies and their lapdogs where you can say what ever you want but can do zilch

Or China where your criticism must be tempered but as citizens you can achieve much greater control on Governance

The Chinese say WE LIKE OUR MODEL BETTER

I kinda agree with them

So you keep your Senile Alzheimer’s Ridden President and your ‘Freedom and Democracy’ and let the Chinese have their own version

Perceptions on making money

What would you consider a legitimate Italian cuisine that the US actually gets right?

I think you might want to edit the question to ask which item from Italian cuisine does the US actually get right.

Italian American cuisine is a cuisine in its own right. Millions of Italians immigrated to America and they adapted their traditional dishes to use American ingredients. Some of the ingredients they used at home were unavailable or too expensive in America, so changes were made. Successive generations didn’t know there was a difference between what they were eating and what was being cooked in the old country. They just accepted the food their families prepared as being Italian cuisine, which at heart, it is.

There’s a lot of water between America’s East Coast, the epicenter of Italian American cuisine, and the old boot herself. It’s that distance that led the creation of Italian American classics. If I had to point at one item the made the leap unmolested though, I’d name Sfogliatelle.

Sfogliatelle are a flaky pastry that originated in Campania. They’re made by rolling out dough, brushing it with lard or oil, rolling it up, cutting it into portions, shaping the pastry, filling it and baking. Sfogliatelle can be baked unfilled or filled with sweetened ricotta, almond paste or candied citrus zest. They’re simple to make and don’t call for any exotic ingredients. It’s the thin flakey layers that make sfogliatelle unique.

Ricotta filled:

If you’ve never tried these pastries, seek them out. They’re amazing and their recipe has not been molested by time or distance.

The 80/20 rule

Why is a partner at a Chinese semiconductor investment fund calling the U.S. ban on certain chip exports to China “great news”?

It’s simple

Today YMTC makes products that are maybe 75% as good as NVDIA

Other Chinese Entities make products that are around 60% of the quality of products of entities like Samsung & SK Hynix

Spending $ 100 on NVDIA chips means $ 88 goes to US or Taiwan or other such companies

Spending $ 100 on YMTC chips means $ 61 comes to Mainland China

That’s 5 times more money than otherwise

And these Companies, they won’t use this extra revenue and put in a Swiss Bank account somewhere

They will use this money to invest into more researchers, more hours and match the same quality of the superior western brands

Today there is a vast stockpile in China to handle maybe 30 months of inventory

That gives a transition gap of approximately 2 1/2 years or until 2027 January

This is a big boost to the Chinese local entities because you can’t rely on Government largesse for ever

What robbed you of your childhood, and how?

Life robbed me of my childhood. My parents had to quit school after grade 9 to help support their families. They vowed that my brother and I would not be barred from finishing school and going to University.

But we were poor, so they had no way to pay for it. So they propped me early. I knew by grade six that if I wanted to go to university, I would have to pay for it myself.

So in grade 8, I started mowing lawns and shoveling snow.

In grade 9 I got a part time job and worked 20 hours a week, in grade 10 ,30 hours, and grades 11 and 12 it was 40 hours. I graduated first in my class. I lived in a 10×14 ft room, with a roommate and the bathroom, was down the hall. I worked in the dorm cafeteria. When summer came I got a camp job, where I worked 360–380 hours a month, and they also paid room and board.

This was the way I graduated from university debt free.

So, as soon as I turned 13, I stopped having a childhood, and had an adulthood instead. So much for life being easy for baby boomers.

I’d do it all over again in a heart beat. Its what it took to break the cycle of poverty.

What is your most embarrassing restaurant experience?

I was bar tending during a lunch shift at a horseshoe shaped bar in the middle of a restaurant.

The bartender who closed the bar the previous night did not shut off the hose inside the bar.

Unbeknown to me, the nozzle had fallen off the hook and was resting right under the service bar, where I was making drinks.

About 30 minutes into the lunch rush I had a full bar and a miles worth of service bar drinks to make.

All I remember is hearing yelling and commotion coming from my right, yet continue slave away as I had a million and one things to do.

Finally, hearing a “WHAT THE F*#K IS WRONG WITH YOU?!” towards my direction I turned to see the hose dousing half the restaurant in water.

I had been stepping on the nozzle for at least 30-45 seconds.

The entire left side of the restaurant, it’s customers, the food, everything was drenched in water.

Everyone who had food, had it ruined, men in business suits… soaked.

Water was literally dripping off the ceiling.

Looking back it was kind of awesome to see around 100 people all giving you the rageface all at the same time.

What is something that people were better at 100 years ago?

Because I am 71, I knew people who were in their prime of life a hundred years ago (1918) and there were definitely things that they did easily and routinely that are rarely done today:

Baking bread and caramel rolls. My grandmother learned it from her mother but did not pass it on to her daughters, probably because sliced store bread had essentially taken over.
Writing cursive and writing letters. I have saved some of my grandfather’s letters. For a person with an eighth grade education, he wrote simply but beautifully.
Sewing and mending. My grandmother was not wealthy, but she was capable of producing wonderful pajamas for all of her grandchildren on her trusty Singer. My generation has lost the ability to create heirlooms.
Gardening and canning the things they grew. In an era when you were not going to see fresh fruit or vegetables in stores after growing season, people developed great preservation skills. Things like pickles, berries, tomatoes were canned as were peaches and plums when in season. I do not remember kale or zucchini, however, and that was also a blessing.
Memory work. I grew up with great uncles and aunts (all born about 1900) who had memorized massive amounts of poetry and famous speeches as well as scripture. Rote learning was fairly normal in their education, so they did group memorization. We loved to hear their recitations.

I miss those folks. They just slipped away one at a time between the seventies and today.

What was the bravest thing you ever did in a job interview?

This wasn’t me, this was my wife. She is a lawyer and was interviewing for a job managing the sale of properties. She was interviewing at a firm that specialised in really expensive and tricky sales and when she turned up to the interview she was told by the recruiter that the partners had told the last two people who were interviewed to leave midway through so they were quite abrupt!

She went to the interview, which went quite well, and they asked her to prepare an answer to a legal sale question. When she looked at it, she knew she had no hope: it was madly complicated and about a type of property sale that is known to be horrendous to do. She thought about trying to brazen it off and decided to be honest and say she had no idea.

It turned out the partners knew from looking at her CV she would have no idea about how to do it; it was something so complex the partner himself had had to do it himself. What they were trying to do was see how she reacted to something she didn’t know. The last two people interviewed had tried to make something up and so failed the test.

They offered her the job on the spot!

Have you, while repairing a computer, ever found anything that made your jaw drop?

I was nowhere qualified as a computer tech but one time a friend of mine brought over a a desktop machine and keyboard and asked me to see if I could get it running as it wouldn’t boot up. Every time you’d plug in the power cord to the wall socket a strange odor would start permiating from the cover. I figured something was wrong with the power supply, which if push came to shove I could’ve probably went to an electronics supply store and bought another one and installed it. I was adept at soldering and replacing some common components at the time, which is why my friend thought that I could fix it.

Anyhoo, I removed the screws holding the cover to the unit, lifted the cover off and got the most absolute shock of my life!! Hundreds of live cockroaches start running out all over everywhere not to mention many more that were obviously dead inside that cover!

I came unglued along with a major panic attack! I’d never, ever had to deal with roaches after I became an adult. I despised them because while growing up my family and I always had a major problem with roaches and they were always into everything and would drop from the ceiling when you went into a room after turning on lights, etc etc etc.

I spent 2 hours stomping on and smashing roaches trying to prevent them from getting into places in my apartment where I couldn’t reach and in the long run wasn’t successful. Ended up moving out to get away from them making sure in the process that I didn’t inadvertently take any with me.

I was not happy with my friend. It caused a major, almost homicidal argument with him and it would be several years before we spoke again. The creepiness and ick factor of watching those roaches pile out of that machine that day still haunts me to this day.

Huawei refused to disclose its foundry information, sending the Biden team into madness.

Mama! Huawei is not giving me his data!

What is the saddest truth about smart people?

Let’s talk about smart children. Particularly smart children in the United States. Particularly those in grades K-8 at a public school.

A lot of you reading this are, yourself, a product of the American public school system. Think back to your K-8 years. Do you remember people whose only job was to deal with the students with behavior problems? Were there “special education” teachers who had special classrooms with aides and all kinds of equipment for just a handful of students? Do you remember being bored a lot in school, because your teacher didn’t have the time to challenge you, because they were so busy re-teaching things to the students who didn’t get it the first time? Do you remember a handful of students who seemed to set the pace for the whole class, and that pace was much, much too slow for you? Do you remember a handful of students whose attitudes and behavior set the tone for the whole class? And was that a negative tone that left your teacher spending most of their time dealing with that small handful of students?

That was my experience, at least. In grades 4–8, I was one of about 20 students in a special gifted program in my school. But that gifted “program” was just two teachers who were given a spare classroom in five schools in the district, and they went to a different school every day of the week, and pulled out the gifted students from their classes for an hour, to play logic games with them.

One hour per week. That’s what we got.

Meanwhile, the students on the other end of the spectrum had resources thrown at them, including permanent classrooms with full-time teachers for students whose only “special need” was that they didn’t give a damn about learning.

I remember one incident in particular, when I realized just how much time my teachers wasted trying to get one particular student under control. His name was Anthony. One day, in seventh grade, we were learning about feudal Japan by playing a game where we were all on teams, given items to trade, and could use money we made to hire soldiers, and then there was a huge map of Japan on the wall, separated into regions, with the number of regions under each team’s control represented by different colored push pins.

My team started in Osaka. To this day, I know exactly where Osaka is because of this game back in 1992. I remember that we were the blue team, our main thing to trade was fish, and we began with five pushpin armies.

Also Judith was in my group, which made it even that much more enjoyable for me. She was forced to interact with me for a few minutes each day because of this.

It was a computer-less strategy game. I loved it. The game was supposed to last for a few weeks.

It lasted two days. On the third day, Anthony vandalized the giant game board, and some of his friends laughed. And that was it. The teacher was tired of putting in so much effort for something that students like Anthony just kept ruining. We did the rest of the unit, and every unit afterwards for the rest of the year, through textbook reading and worksheets.

But, as I thought about it, I realized that Anthony had been that way since he was first in my class in second grade. He was always out of control. He always set the pace and the tone for the class. In middle school, he got kicked out of class a lot, which just wasted a lot of time because he rarely went willingly and they had to call and wait for security. But he was always back in the class the next day. He just needed to “chill out.”

That was actually the name of the kick-out room for students like him: the “chill out room.”

I just Googled him and found a story that he was sentenced to six years in prison in 2004 for “domestic battery, drug possession, and forgery.”

Yep. All of that extra time, effort, and money the public school spent on him… how’d that work out?

That would be fine, if the public schools spent the same amount of time, effort, and money on the upper end of the spectrum.

My point is this: What’s the saddest truth about smart people? Public schools just aren’t equipped to deal with your special needs, because they’re too busy dealing with the special needs of students on the other end of the spectrum. The very people who have the most potential to give the most back to society are the same ones who school prioritizes the least.

Imagine a school system where every dollar spent on students on the lower end of the special needs spectrum had to be matched by a dollar for students on the higher end of the spectrum.

Imagine if, just like schools have resources in place for when the teachers need to kick out the Anthonys of the world, those same schools had resources for teachers to send out the students who were too smart for that day’s lesson.

“Timmy, you can read this and learn it on your own in five minutes, but I’m going to be teaching it to the rest of the class for the next hour. You can go to the gifted resource room and work with the teacher there on more advanced stuff.”

Imagine if, just as schools pay extra attention to students with special needs due to federal laws and fears of getting sued, schools did the same for students on the high end of the spectrum. Imagine if parents could threaten a lawsuit because the school wasn’t meeting the needs of their child… the legally-mandated requirement that the school challenge them on their academic level and not let their classmates hold them back.

Imagine how high your hot air balloon could be now, if not for the classroom sandbags that weighed you down when you were in school.

Instead of “No Child Left Behind,” it should be “No Child Forced To Wait.”

Gavin Newsom goes to China, one-ups Biden and meets Xi Jinping

“As a Californian, I can tell you that not only is Newsom not acceptable to the rest of America, California is not acceptable to the rest of America”.

How likely is China going to sell $810 billion worth of U.S. securities? What will happen in the global credit markets if China starts to dump U.S. dollars?

It is likely that China will sell virtually all of its remaining U.S. Treasuries.

It is useful to look at Russia’s experience in this regard. Russia sold virtually all of its Treasuries in 2018, fairly quickly. At that time, Russia encouraged the world to dump U.S. Treasury bonds. Thus, it is possible for a country to officially not hold Treasuries.

After 2018, Russia continued to hold some foreign currency reserves in U S. dollars. When the Ukraine War started in 2022, the United States and its allies froze hundreds of billions of dollars held by Russia.

As a result, the world has been forced to look elsewhere to store its savings. Both China and Russia are storing much of their wealth in physical gold. Other countries are doing the same. The planet is also increasingly doing business in currencies other than the dollar.

As a result of these trends, China will increasingly no longer need U.S. Treasuries to do business. In October 2023, China bought its first oil for Chinese Yuan. If this continues, China will get its oil for free, by printing Yuan. America will be forced to trade hard goods for oil in the future.

America’s leaders were very short-sighted to weaponize the dollar. A global reserve currency requires trust. The United States had a money-making machine, and voluntarily gave it up.

FLASH TRAFFIC ADDED – TURKISH NAVY DEPLOYING 100 SHIPS AGAINST ISRAEL –~FIFTY (50) U.S. Military Transport Planes in 24 Hours to Middle East

World Hal Turner

FLASH TRAFFIC ADDED – SEE 12:27 PM EDT UPDATE BELOW —— From Friday-into-Saturday, the United States sent no fewer than fifty (50) military transport planes loaded with troops to the Middle East. In addition, the list below shows “unprecedented” naval deployments. Today, Iran said they WILL NOT abide U.S. warnings to stay out of the Israel-Hamas conflict.

We begin with Naval Deployments into the Middle East showing 11 Countries in Support of Israel:

All of the above, along with Submarines and other support ships show an utterly massive naval deployment. I am told this present deployment is larger than the ones done prior to the US war(s) against Saddam Hussein in Iraq in 1991 and again later.

In addition to all the above vessels, another Aircraft Carrier, the HMS Queen Elizabeth II, transited the Strait of Gibraltar yesterday morning around 11:00 AM, enroute to the eastern Mediterranean:

In addition to THAT additional aircraft carrier, the Navy of Italy is also now deploying vessels:

AIR

In the 24 hours period from Friday into Saturday, the United States flew 49+ military transport aircraft from the US to the Middle East, carrying TROOPS!

https://halturnerradioshow.com/images/2023/10/28/US-Military-transport-Flights-Fri-into-Sat.jpg

On top of those troop transport flights, a Significant number of C-17A Globemaster lll and C-5M Super Galaxy Transport Aircraft from the U.S. Air Force’s Air Mobility Command have been arriving in the Middle East.

The flight info above DOES NOT even cover the regular commercial airline flights the US has chartered to exclusively move troops!

Yesterday, Saturday 28 October 2023, Germany put 1,000 soldiers on alert for deployment to the Middle East in case of emergency The German Army keeps 1,000 troops on alert for possible deployment to the Middle East in case of emergency, given the prevailing tension in the region as a result of the war between Hamas and Israel.

This flight from Fort Sill, OK has my attention at the moment. Fort Sill is home to a THAAD battery and this flight appears to be headed overseas. There are no helpful ACARS for this flight, but this is possibly a THAAD battery flight enroute to Saudi Arabia:

https://halturnerradioshow.com/images/2023/10/28/THAAD-flight-to-Saudi-Arabia.jpg

At about 1:47 AM eastern US Time Sunday, which was about 11:00 AM in Tehran, Iran, the President of Iran said Tehran will not follow US warnings against interfering in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. According to the Press service of the President of Iran: “Israel has crossed red lines, forcing everyone to take action.”

The President made it a point to also say “the presence of U.S warships in the region will make no difference to Tehran’s decision.”

Hal Turner Analysis

Based solely upon the movement of ships, troops, and planes, it is obvious to me the United States is going to war. A big war.

Trouble is the federal government under the Biden Regime has intentionally left the US southern border with Mexico, virtually open. Literally millions of illegal aliens have been entering the country via Mexico since Biden took office.

It is my opinion that many – but not all – of these illegal aliens are a “5th Column” sent here by adversaries to be “sleeper cells.” I believe that when war erupts in the Middle East, that WE HERE IN THE USA will also be attacked by these sleeper cells.

YOU must be ready with emergency food, water, medicine, a generator to make electric in case the grid is taken down. Have CASH MONEY in your possession incase cyber attacks take out the financial networks, making credit, debit, and SNAP/EBT useless. After all, almost no one takes checks anymore. So folks with cash will eat. Those without cash will go hungry.

The utterly massive movement of troops and weapons indicates to me that hostilities are imminent. Which could — and I emphasize “could” (not necessarily “will”) — trigger sleeper cell attacks here in America.

If you wait until trouble starts, then YOU and every other person who failed to plan, will all be rushing to stores at the same time trying to get food and supplies. In short order, store shelves will be empty and those of you who took no action, will find yourself standing in an empty store.

Don’t be like “the masses who are asses” that wait until the last minute to get supplies. Do it right now. Today.

And gas-up your cars, trucks, and spare gas cans for your generator.

Lastly, have COMMUNICATIONS GEAR – a CB or a HAM (Shortwave) radio — so if things go wild weasel, and communications like phone, fax, email, cellular/Internet all go down, at least YOU will be able to communicate locally (CB) and hear international news on shortwave (HAM).

Of course, some of you will say that this story and its advice is sort of like “Chicken Little, the sky is falling.” To those who would scoff I merely point out that, this morning, a U.S. E-6 Nuclear Command Post is now flying over the US East Coast:

The E-6B Mercury is a communications relay and strategic airborne command post aircraft. It provides survivable, reliable, and endurable airborne Nuclear Command, Control, and Communications (NC3) for the president, secretary of defense and U.S. Strategic Command.

So it isn’t just ME telling you to take steps to prepare, it’s the US Military, too. Take the hint!

(PERSONAL: Sorry my coverage today begins at this late hour of 11:00 AM EDT. I slept-in this morning. Didn’t wake up until 9:25 AM. I was literally exhausted.)

********** FLASH ***********

UPDATE 12:27 PM EDT —

The Turkish Navy is, right now, transiting ONE-HUNDRED Naval Warships through the Bosporus Strait from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean Sea.

It is BELIEVED Turkey plans to engage Israel over its ongoing military action in Gaza. War may break out between Turkey and Israel within Hours! ! ! !

What was a big mistake in WW2?

This is the Lorenz cipher.

Unlike its better known relative, the Enigma machine which was infamously deciphered by code-breakers at Bletchley Park throughout the war, the Lorenz cipher posed a much greater challenge. Utilising 12 wheels to scramble up the message being sent as opposed to the 3 or 4 rotors found in the Enigma machine, the Lorenz cipher was incredibly secure. As a result, unlike the Enigma that was used by the German standard armed forces, the Lorenz cipher was used only by high command with messages coming from Hitler himself. As a result, to crack the Lorenz cipher (or Tunny as it was code named by the British) would have the potential to change the course of the war.

Not much headway had been made in breaking the Lorenz cipher through the war until a German operator made a catastrophic mistake on 30 August 1941. When a German receiving operator did not receive a message correctly, he asked the transmitter to resend the information and despite clear protocol against it, the two operators resent the message without changing their key settings (the settings that determine how the text is scrambled up). However since the message in question was 4000 characters long, the lazy German operator abbreviated several words, thus changing the length of the message. Since their key settings were both the same, the two messages had the same scrambling pattern of characters. Thus by comparing the locations where the message text changed, details of the way the rotors worked could be determined.

These two messages were intercepted by the British who soon realised the importance of what they had discovered. This task of cracking Tunny was given to W T (Bill) Tutte who began to find repetitions in the cipher which allowed him to reverse engineer the Lorenz machine’s logical structure in what would be later described as “one of the greatest intellectual feats of World War II”. In order to support the painstaking decryption of German messages, the British Colossus was built in 1943 by Tommy Flowers, the first ever modern computer.

The Colossus Machine

The impact of the decryption of Tunny was enormous. It gave the British intimate details of Hitler’s most secret communications which was most notably vital in D Day where the Allies were able to deceive the Germans that they were going to attack at Calais as opposed to Normandy and at the Battle of Kursk in 1943, Germany’s last ditch attempt to reverse their fortunes on the Eastern Front and one of the largest battles in history. Involving 3 million men, without foreknowledge of German planning provided by the British, the Soviets would have been badly prepared defensively and could have lost this crucial battle and as a result, the war would’ve been prolonged. In fact, historians estimate that the breaking of the Lorenz cipher shortened the war by two years and thus saved millions of lives all due to the careless mistake of two lazy German operators.

However this pivotal event is not well known due to the Official Secrets Act keeping the nature of the code breakers working to break the Lorenz cipher secret until 1974 and some former staff even today still refuse to break their vow of secrecy, preferring to take their knowledge to the grave.

W T (Bill) Tutte, the man responsible for cracking the Lorenz Cipher

Cajun Pot Roast

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

1 (3 pound) beef sirloin or chuck roast
2 large garlic cloves, cut into 1/4 to 1/2 inch pieces
3 cayenne chiles, or jalapeno chiles, cut into 1/4 to 1/2 inch pieces
Salt and pepper to taste
1 large onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 large garlic clove, minced
1 (4 ounce) can whole or sliced mushrooms
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
Creole seasoning to taste

Instructions

Cut 1/2 to 3/4 inch slits into beef. Stuff one piece of garlic and one piece of chile into each slit. Season the roast with salt and pepper.
Heat a large nonstick pan over medium heat. Add beef and brown well on all sides.
Add onion, bell pepper and minced garlic land sauté until tender.
Add water to pan to cover the beef.
Stir in the mushrooms and Worcestershire sauce and season with Creole seasoning.
Simmer, covered, for 3 to 4 hours or until tender, adding more water if needed to keep liquid level halfway up the beef.

Notes

You may stir 1 tablespoon flour mixed with 1 cup cold water into liquid near end of cooking for a thicker gravy.

Who did you experience that is so cheap they are disgusting?

I broke off a 10 year off and on relationship over a single piece of gum.

He and I weren’t on great terms for a long while. It was mostly out of his cheapness. He wouldn’t take me out to eat-we ate at his place. That wouldn’t have been bad except that he bought cheap items and used foods that had expired. I told him I wasn’t eating his cooking anymore, thank you. We watched TV but only shows he liked-he didn’t want to waste his time on my shows. I could watch them at my place.

Things were coming to a head and I knew the next fight we had would be the last. It was November when he called me and asked me to come over and fix his computer. I wasn’t in the best of moods-I finally had a free afternoon with the kids out with their father and I had things to do. Ok, I decided I would go over and see if I could do something to help. I got there and he already told me I had just an hour to get things right. Perfect start-no thanks for coming over, great to see you, etc.

He offered me a piece of gum. I haven’t chewed gum in years because it sticks to my dental work, and he knew it. Why was he offering me gum-was my breath stinky? After I thought about it for a moment, I took a piece. I didn’t even get it open when he started to yell at me-why is everything in your life a big decision? Don’t waste my gum-either take it or don’t! I paid money for that!

I immediately put the gum back on the table. He flips out again-you touched it not you don’t want it! What’s the matter with you? With me? I don’t chew gum, not in years! You knew that! I thought you were hinting my breath stunk so I took a piece of gum. Now you don’t want me to take the gum! Why don’t you make up YOUR mind?

He immediately moved my tech bag away from his computer and began to work on his computer. Don’t you want me to do that? No. You asked me to cone down here to help you, now you don’t want me to help you? Silence. Are we really going to have a fight about a piece of gum after I wasted my time and gas to come here? Silence.

I sat on the couch for a few minutes. I could have just stormed out the door. I wanted to compose myself and make it clear what would happen. I told him that I have spent 10 years doing for him, taking care of him when he was sick, lent him things like my cell phone and my car, then paid the repairs when he broke them and he never paid me back. I have put up with all this, and if we didn’t resolve what was really going on, I was leaving and not coming back. All I got was silence. Are we really going to break up over a damned piece of gum? Silence.

I picked up my things and I left. I never went back. I blocked his number from my cell phone. I had a feeling I knew what happened because he did it to me before. He used to get moody around Thanksgiving time and lots of times we broke up so he could avoid my birthday in December and Christmas/Chanukah/Valentines Day. He used to call around March to renew our friendship but his birthday was in April and he really wanted a present. I just had enough of his childishness, his cheapness and his abusive control. It was just one fight too many and I was done.

He did email me the following April-after I sent nothing for his birthday. I emailed him back that I told him that after our last fight, I was done and I wanted nothing more to do with him. He replied that he forgot what we fought about, and I told him that it was over a piece of gum. Then I blocked his email.

He called from another phone the following September, demanding I stop being stupid and get back together. What a lovely invitation, no woman can resist that, I answered. Then he threatened me. I told him to come over and try to f*** me up. I had an old lead pipe my father had and it had his name on it. I told him I’ll invite my neighbors to watch me smear him all over the street. My temper broke and I told him about the horrible things he did to me over the years. He finally said “I guess you’re mad at me, huh?” I hung up and blocked his new number too.

He attempted to contact me a few times through his friends but I told them I would go to the police and file harassment charges. He finally moved out of New York City-he attempted to contact me from his mother’s home in Tennessee. I blocked that too. He’s been blocked in every social media site so I don’t have to deal with him.

He had 10 years to grow up and apologize. The words aren’t in his vocabulary. I know the piece of gum wasn’t the reason our relationship ended-it was years of my giving and him taking and never appreciating what he got. But that stupid piece of gum was the catalyst. To this day, when I see a pack of Wrigley’s gum, I still smirk with amused disgust.

What did you say at a job interview that automatically landed you the job?

“I don’t know”

I interviewed for a support engineering role, the interviewer asked me how a fluorescent light fitting worked. I explained what I knew about the ballast, starter and gas tube etc. He delved deeper and I drew a rudimentary circuit diagram. When he asked exactly how the starter worked I was stumped, so I said “I don’t know”.

He told me that he must’ve had 2 dozen other applicants attempt to convince him how it all worked, but being able to admit I didn’t know something landed me the job. I learnt how knowing one’s limitations is so important.

Resistance hits back against US bases in Syria, multiple casualties reported

Despite increased attacks on US occupation bases, Joe Biden has reportedly turned down more ‘aggressive bombing options’ in Syria out of fear that a wider conflict may erupt

NOV 13, 2023

(Photo credit: AFP via Getty Images)

Several missile and drone strikes targeted US occupation bases in Syria on 13 November in response to the latest round of US airstrikes on alleged Iranian targets in the country.

Fifteen missiles targeted the US base in the Conoco gas field, sources told Al-Mayadeen, adding that US helicopters began making flights ten minutes after the strike.

“The Conoco base was targeted with advanced Grad missiles, which led to the death of four US soldiers,” Al-Mayadeen’s correspondent reported.

Field sources told Al-Mayadeen that the attacks were carried out by the “Popular Resistance” in Syria.

In a second response to US airstrikes, three drones struck the Al-Shaddadi military base in Hasakah, northeastern Syria.

The US Green Village base at the Al-Omar oilfield northeastern Syria, was also hit with a drone. The Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed responsibility for the attack.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq is a coalition of Iraqi resistance factions formed last month in solidarity with the Palestinian resistance in Gaza.

The coalition was formed to confront US forces in Iraq and Syria as part of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood and in rejection of US support for Israel in the war, and has been targeting US bases on a regular basis.

Hours before Monday’s attacks, US warplanes carried out several airstrikes in eastern Syria.

Washington claimed the attacks targeted facilities used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

According to Al-Mayadeen’s correspondent, the US airstrikes “targeted a house in the town of Al-Mayadeen, which led to the death of a citizen and the injury of another.”

US jets have struck Syria several times over the past month in retaliation to the unprecedented surge in resistance attacks against US military bases in Iraq and Syria. Washington has labeled the attacks as “self-defense.”

According to the New York Times (NYT), US President Joe Biden “has rejected more aggressive bombing options proposed by the Pentagon out of fear of provoking a wider conflict with Iran.”

The newspaper also cites Republicans in Congress as saying that Washington’s strikes on Syria “only invite more frequent and more dangerous attacks against US troops in the region.”

There have been at least 48 resistance attacks against US forces in Iraq and Syria since 17 October, the Pentagon said on Saturday.

“At least 56 U.S. service members had been injured. Roughly half of those suffered traumatic brain injuries, and two had to be flown to Landstuhl military hospital in Germany for treatment,” the NYT adds.

Who is the rudest celebrity you have met, and who would be the nicest?

There doesn’t seem to be many who are rude. My story is about a beautiful and kind woman.

Many years ago I was in O’Hara airport getting ready to fly home from Navy boot camp. As I waited, I saw what looked like a Hollywood photo shoot going on. I walked over with my nearly bald head and baggy Navy uniform and talked to an absolutely beautiful woman, dressed like an Elf. She was friendly and asked where I was from and what my home was like. We talked for about 10 minutes. As I needed to catch my plane, I thanked her for taking the time to speak with me. I asked her what her name was. It was Ann-Margaret. Surprise! I’ve had a soft spot for her since our meeting.

What shortcuts in life are never worth taking?

Suicide.

There have been a lot of memes lately, discussing this subject:

It’s viewed as a sort of work-around to all of life’s problems:

These’s memes are funny and all (sometimes), but they also have some truth.

A good portion of depressed people definitely view suicide as a way out and they genuinely think it’s the only way.

But it’s not.

Sunday, Nov 18 is my late-uncle’s birthday.

No one ever talks about him in my family. And of the few times he’s brought up, is always in relation to his suicide or mental illness.

He lived a pretty amazing life, but the memory of his suicide looms over the conversations around him.

It’s not like we never talk about him, or that suicide is strictly the only thing that we remember about him. There’s just no solace to the memory of his passing, suicide is something that is preventable, it didn’t have to be this way.

And, unfortunately, it’s the same with my idol, Chester Bennington.

In every Linkin Park YouTube music video, all the comments are the same. They’re ALL about his depression or his death.

No one talks about his life, how he made it big after a period of being homeless. How Linkin Park immediately knew who their lead singer was after his audition; how Chester would always do screaming vocal warmups, which could be heard several changing rooms away, before each of his live performances.

No one talks about that anymore.

If I’d killed myself on year ago, all I’d be remembered as was “that quiet kid who killed himself.”

You have a lot to be remembered for.

Stan Lee, who passed away on Nov 12, 2018, is positively cherished by fans.

So much material was circulated recently about his life and work.

There was a meme about how he drew the Peter Parker meets MJ comic strip based on the time he first saw his future wife. There were memes of his cameos in Marvel movies, memes of Infinity war, Spider-man memes….

It was awesome.

And nobody was particularly sad, rather they celebrated everything he did in his 95 year life on Earth.

You have a lot to live for.

And a lot to be remembered by.

And even if things don’t get better quickly.

Don’t tarnish that with suicide.

It’s not worth it.

You are worth it.

You are worth a good life and the world deserves your proud legacy.

What’s your impression about your experience in China? How about the Chinese?

During my very first visit to China, there were a couple of things that took me by surprise:

Massive malls absolutely everywhere
I’ve heard that Chinese food is so much better in China than what you get in other countries, but that’s is a massive understatement. There is so much diversity in food options, all of it is amazingly delicious and very reasonably priced. I could not get enough of it, and I can’t wait for my next visit so I can stuff my face with all that deliciousness again!
I didn’t expect to have that much trouble finding restaurants or shops that accept foreign bank cards. Some locations only allow Alipay. Also, apps like Didi are not available to foreigners as you need a Chinese number to sign up, and hailing a taxi is not always easy.
I saw very few tags or graffiti on buildings in big Chinese cities. Those are a major issue in pretty much every European city, as even historical buildings get smeared in tags, so this was a welcome surprise.
Excellent public transportation – so cheap and easy to use!
All the people I’ve met were absolutely lovely and extremely helpful. Also, there are so many older people in the parks, exercising or dancing, which is refreshing to see.
There is never any paper in bathrooms, so you have to carry a roll with you
The only thing that slightly threw me off during my very first visit was that people in China often take pictures of foreigners without asking. I’m very visibly a foreigner, so I always get quite a bit of attention when I’m travelling in Asia. I’m used to that, and I never decline a picture with some curious locals, as I find it a sweet experience. However, in China, while many approached and asked for a photo, there were many more who just tried to ‘’sneakily’’ take it, which made me feel a little bit uncomfortable at times.
As a tiny woman travelling alone I felt quite safe, even at night in less populated areas.

Children who have had to clean out your parents’ house after they passed, did you find anything that completely changed how you viewed them?

My wife and kids lived upstairs in my parent’s house. My Dad passed before my Mom. When she passed, as the only child, I had to sort out her bills, insurance, etc. My Mom was a school teacher for many years and received SS and a pension. At her time of retiring, she did not make as much as teachers do today. A few days after her funeral, I was sitting at her desk going through her checkbook to see what was paid and so forth. When I looked at the deposits, I started to see bill after bill after bill being paid, leaving her with very little left over. I am still saddened to this day, many years later, that I never knew the depth of how bad things really were. We could have contributed more to the household, but she hid most of this from us, trying to spare us any hardship. This is the single biggest regret I have in her passing, knowing I could have eased her burden, as she was the most loving mother one could ask for. She worked her whole life to teach children and raise me, who deserved so much more in her retirement. I am shedding tears as I write this, and hope that others can take more of an active role in their parents lives (when allowed) while they are still with us.

When did you think, “this can only be a fake”?

While employed as a pizza delivery rider, after the lifting of the COVID lock-down, our company decided to pull a fast one.

A memo from the head office was circulated among all restaurant staff at all branches. It basically said that the company was so concerned about our welfare in these trying times that they were willing to keep a percentage of our weekly salary for us as a form of savings. The memo also mentioned that if we agreed to this ‘Pizza Savings’ (my term, not theirs) that we will be getting 0% interest.

My delivery co-worker and I had a field day with that memo. We read it several times in disbelief and laughed. The owners could not be serious.

It was obvious they wanted to get a loan/invest in something. It was as if they told themselves instead of taking a 16% interest loan from the bank why not simply take it from their uneducated restaurant workers, all they needed was our signatures.

I went around some of the co-workers joking about it. Most of us laughed it off but two of them couldn’t understand what was so funny.

‘But we’re getting 0% interest!’ an older woman working the grill said.

She seemed to have the idea that this was a good thing. Apparently she had had so many loans in the past that to her the word interest = bad.

I explained to her it was a savings and not a loan. That with savings you want the highest interest you could get and the exact opposite when it comes to a loan.

‘But isn’t it good to have a savings?’ one of the teenaged girls working the pizza table said.

I explained to her it is a good thing but it makes no sense to save your money with someone giving you 0%. I tried explaining how banks work, about buying shares etc and getting the best rates for your money. Both women looked at me in silence.

In the end they both decided to ‘try it out.’

I didn’t know what shocked me more. The fact that the restaurant attempted that stunt or the fact that it actually worked on two employees.

Before leaving after being fired, what’s the most that one can sabotage the office without getting caught?

Controller got fired for all the right reasons. On his way out, and before his access was deleted, he programmed a very, very offensive message on the Windows start menu for the entire company-something along the lines of “fxxx you, (name of the CFO)”. Now I’ll admit the guy had it coming, but will also say that the CFO was the biggest a-hole I’ve ever met. Anyway, it took the IT guys weeks before they were able to fix it (always wondered why it took sooooo loooong).

What is the worst medical misdiagnosis you have ever had or personally known someone to have had?

As a 45 year old, I started feeling very tired. I fell asleep in the bathroom at work one day. Went home and thought I was coming down with a cold. Never actually got cold symptoms, but could barely move my body. It felt like all of my extremities were filled with lead. Then I started getting dizzy. Then I started to vomit. I went to an urgent care center and told them all of the above symptoms and how now I’m vomiting and peeing every 5 minutes. I even told them I was vomiting black stuff which they informed me was blood. I was told I just had a stomach virus like people get on cruise ships. I said I have never been on a cruise ship in my life. I was sent home with antinausea meds. I had lost about 15 lbs in 3 days. That night and next day still vomiting and now breathing in short gasps. Now my body is shivering uncontrollably and I can barely move and still vomiting blood. My kids found me on the kitchen floor and took me to the ER. I was rushed back and found out I was in diabetic ketoacidosis. My body was shutting down. I was about a day away from death. My blood sugar was 854. I was diagnosed as a type 1 diabetic.

While hospitalized, I received a survey from the urgent care center asking how my experience was. I’ll told them that I almost died thanks to them, but other than that it was great.

What’s a hilarious story that has happened to you?

Years back when Subway still gave you tickets to collect for free subs, my kids’ mother and I were going to have dinner and movie night with my brother and his wife. Subway was the night’s choice. Well, it is Friday evening and the video store is packed. So we’re standing in line waiting to check out our movies, and she is going through these Subway tickets. She asks me,

“I don’t supposed you’ll eat a 6 inch?”

To which I responded, in a building with over 150 people in it, without even missing a beat,

“No, if I don’t get 12 inches, I’m just not satisfied.”

Children were laughing at me. Had it not been so hilarious, I would be mortified of that story getting out.

Very Unlikely

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/R3eXHD3c4EI?feature=share

Bubble Gas Tank

When I was in college, I went to visit my father in Erie, Pennsylvania. I rode my motorcycle to visit him, and parked it outside. I didn’t get along with his wife (my step-mother) and went inside.

On that day, my step-mother was visited by her older brother. He brought his two sons. They were slightly younger that myself, being in High School.

Now, while I was inside with my father, those two kids poured bubble liquid into my motorcycle gas tank. Laughed about it. And of course, the action truly busted up my motorcycle.

…

Sigh.

Anyways… the entire family claimed that “I deserved it” as I didn’t have a lock on my gas tank. Not even remotely true, but I had to grit and take it.

Went without a motorcycle for about a month, while my bike was fixed.

It sucked, but those little snits were able to get away with it.

I swallowed and took it.

…

Sometimes due to situations, you take the hits.

You walk away.

It does not mean that you are weak. It’s just a pothole that you must endure. You learn from it.

I did.

…

Todays…

What are some of the ugly truths about divorce?

My future ex-wife didn’t like Navy life. She met a fellow at work who was a year or two younger, was decent looking, had a new Corvette and a line of shit as long as your arm. She asked me to move out while she “got her head screwed on straight”. A week later, she filed for divorce, and moved in with Mr. Wonderful. “We don’t have anything in common, and you don’t have anything I want”, she said. (Oh, OK). In California it takes 6 months for a no-fault divorce, but both parties must have a financial settlement on the table in order to proceed to “final”. She dragged her heels all the way, saying “no, no, no” to every settlement I put forward, but finally we hammered it out after 8+ months. About 4 months later, she called. “Let’s be friends. We have so much in common.” (Mr. Wonderful wasn’t so wonderful any longer).

I said, “We tried that for 10 years. I didn’t like the way things worked out”.

Strange “Coincidence?” Hong Kong Flu Re-Emerges from 1968 — in far eastern Russia

World Hal Turner 07 November 2023

The first case of Hong Kong Flu since the 1968-69 “pandemic” has emerged in the Sakhalin Region of far eastern Russia.

1968 flu pandemic, also called Hong Kong flu pandemic of 1968 or Hong Kong flu of 1968, global outbreak of influenza that originated in China in July 1968 and lasted until 1969–70.

The outbreak was the third influenza pandemic to occur in the 20th century; it followed the 1957 flu pandemic and the influenza pandemic of 1918–19. The 1968 flu pandemic resulted in an estimated one million to four million deaths, far fewer than the 1918–19 pandemic, which caused between 25 million and 50 million deaths.

The 1968 pandemic was initiated by the emergence of a virus known as influenza A subtype H3N2. It is suspected that this virus evolved from the strain of influenza that caused the 1957 pandemic.

Although the 1968 flu outbreak was associated with comparatively few deaths worldwide, the virus was highly contagious, a factor that facilitated its rapid global dissemination. Indeed, within two weeks of its emergence in July in Hong Kong, some 500,000 cases of illness had been reported, and the virus proceeded to spread swiftly throughout Southeast Asia.

Within several months it had reached the Panama Canal Zone and the United States, where it had been taken overseas by soldiers returning to California from Vietnam.

By the end of December the virus had spread throughout the United States and had reached the United Kingdom and countries in western Europe.

Australia, Japan, and multiple countries in Africa, eastern Europe, and Central and South America were also affected. The pandemic occurred in two waves, and in most places the second wave caused a greater number of deaths than the first wave.

The 1968 flu pandemic caused illness of varying degrees of severity in different populations. For example, whereas illness was diffuse and affected only small numbers of people in Japan, it was widespread and deadly in the United States.

Infection caused upper respiratory symptoms typical of influenza and produced symptoms of chills, fever, and muscle pain and weakness. These symptoms usually persisted for between four and six days.

The highest levels of mortality were associated with the most susceptible groups, namely infants and the elderly. Although a vaccine was developed against the virus, it became available only after the pandemic had peaked in many countries.

The H3N2 virus that caused the 1968 pandemic is still in circulation today and is considered to be a strain of seasonal influenza. In the 1990s a closely related H3N2 virus was isolated from pigs. Scientists suspect that the human H3N2 virus jumped to pigs; infected animals may show symptoms of swine flu.

Russia now reports The first case of Hong Kong flu was recorded in the Sakhalin region, according to the website of the regional Rospotrebnadzor

According to the department, the virus is characterized by rapid and sharp development of infection, which lasts a long time and often requires symptomatic treatment. The infection affects the mucous membrane of the nasal cavity and oropharynx, causing inflammatory processes.‌‌

What is the best case of “You just picked a fight with the wrong person” that you’ve witnessed?

Yes. I know a guy who is an accountant. Imagine the geekiest-looking accountant that you have ever seen in your life. Coke bottle glasses, nerdy clothing, white as a sheet. He and his wife were walking down a street in Hollywood, just two nerds out for a stroll. Perfect targets for any street hoodlum. Sure enough some two-bit street thug stepped out in front of the two with a cocky self-assured grin and a knife in his hand, and he ordered them to give him all their money.

Quick as a flash, the accountant grabbed the guy’s wrist which held the knife, gave it a turn, and literally flipped the guy over, breaking his arm in the process. While the guy lay there screaming , the accountant looked down and asked the guy if he wanted some more. The guy just kept screaming, so the accountant let him go and walked on with his wife.

Okay. The backstory on this accountant was that he grew up on a Midwestern pig farm with five older brothers. From the time he was 8 years old he had to carry 50 lb buckets of feed every morning before school. After school he had to work the farm until it was time to go in, do his homework and go to bed. His older brothers were mean. When they weren’t fighting with each other, or getting beaten up by their dad, they were picking on this guy. As a result of his upbringing this guy developed skeletal muscle strength which is hardly ever seen these days. Not only that, he learned to fight guys that were just as tough as he was and who were all bigger.

I have seen this guy working on his own house knocking down walls with a sledgehammer held in one hand. I’ve even seen him lift the front of one car off the bumper of another during a minor fender-bender. To say this guy was strong was an understatement.

He managed to conduct his life in a very civilized manner. He was a great musician and a very talented writer as well, but I have seen more than one guy step out of line around him, and watch The Farm Boy come out. When that happened it usually didn’t take more than a look for everyone to start behaving better.

Men’s most powerful tool

Damn!

What did a family member say or do that you don’t talk to them anymore?

I was 18 and my girlfriend had committed suicide. I went to my dad and told him what happened. At this point my stepmother and I were at odds, always fighting and never getting along. This had been going on for years. My dad knew this and told her to lay off. The moment my dad left for work, she comes in my room and says that I deserved what happened and that it was my fault she killed herself. I was shocked. I packed my bags and left the same day. I had had enough. I called my dad and told him what happened and that I was leaving.

I haven’t spoken to her since and I don’t want to.

Boudin

Boudin is one of the most famous Cajun recipes. This excellent version has no liver. This is a great dish to make and it freezes well. Many people cut the casing off the boudin before eating it. This dish is a good one to learn because once you have mastered its preparation you can use almost anything in the place of the pork. Some of the most popular are chicken, shrimp, crabmeat and crayfish. Bread is a traditional but not as good replacement for the rice.

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

2 pounds lean pork, minced
2 onions, chopped
1/2 bunch green onions, chopped
1 green or red bell pepper
1/2 bunch parsley, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon salt, or to taste
1 teaspoon cayenne, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon ground white pepper
2 bay leaves
2 cups water (approximately)
3 cups rice, cooked
20 inch long sausage casings

Instructions

Put pork into a pot along with the onions, bell pepper, parsley, garlic and seasonings. Add just enough water to meet the level of the ingredients. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes.
Transfer to a large bowl and stir in the cooked rice. Adjust seasonings if necessary.
Tie the 4 sausage casings at one end and stuff them with the mixture. Twist each 20-inch length into three equal lengths. Tie open end.
The boudin can be cooked covered in a little water, grilled or pan fried in a little butter.
Cut the sausages and serve 2 to each person.

What do you do if the boss tells you, “Don’t come to me with problems, come with solutions”? Is it time to start looking for a new job?

Yes, and no.

I had a manager who said exactly this this to me. He dismissed all my solutions out of hand, as they might cost money. This was a guy who a. stuck me in an office where I couldn’t work, as it wasn’t safe for me to be alone in a building with mental health clients, without an emergency alarm. He refused to install an alarm and so I had to go to work every day for a year with no work to do. Less than a week’s salary would have paid for an alarm. B. He rented and paid for the complete outfitting of an office for the family therapists, with a cctv and so on, despite them telling him it wasn’t suitable. The office reminded unused, the equipment was stolen and replaced TWICE, and they never moved in, in the end -as it just wasn’t suitable.

Come to me with solutions, was complete and utter bullshit from beginning to end.

The only reason I stayed, was it was a permanent and pensionable job, and I was a skint single parent.

We were overjoyed when he retired. I was still so angry with him years later as he’d made my life a misery for so long that I couldn’t attend his funeral. And if you’re Irish, you’ll realise what a big huge bloody deal that is.

What is the most clever life hack you’ve learned?

Golden spending rule: If you can’t afford two of it, you can’t afford it.
When you’re thinking about buying something you don’t necessarily need, imagine the item in one hand and the cash in the other. Which one would you take?
If you have trouble choosing, flip a coin. While you’re waiting to get the result, your mind automatically starts to wish for what it wants. Then you can choose easily.
Honey does not go bad; if it has gone solid it has just crystallized and can become liquid again with just a little heat.
If you put something down temporarily, say out loud “I’ve put the screwdriver by the microwave” or whatever.
Read the three and four star reviews for the most reliable information on Amazon items.
When moving house, always set up your bedroom/ make the bed first so when you’re exhausted and just had enough you can fall into bed. Nothing worse than being exhausted and having to make the bed before getting into it
If there’s a jar or container you can’t open, run the lid under hot water for about 30sec. Dry it so you can get a good grip, then open. It really works.
Secretaries, tech support, and janitors are the true power in an office. Make friends with them and you’ll be able to get anything you need!
When a friend is upset, ask him one simple question before saying anything else: “Do you want to talk about it or do you want to distract from it? ”
It is important to know when to stop arguing with people, and simply let them be wrong.
If someone offers you something you want, take it. Don’t decline every kind of offer out of politeness.

Bingo truths

The male and female struggle in the United States (West) is REAL.

When was a time someone tried to contradict you about an area in which you are an expert?

Many years ago I was visiting one particular North Sea Oil Production Platform as a consultant employed by a specialist contractor. On arrival onboard the platform all the people from the helicopter, who were not regular crew, were directed to heli administration and informed we could not leave without watching a safety briefing video. Some six or seven of us settled down while the helicopter clerk loaded the video player and pressed play.

I was hot and tiered from the early check-in and the long flight. I dozed off after about ten minutes watching the video. I must have been asleep for about five minutes before the clerk noticed. He practically slapped me awake and proceeded to scream in my face. He accused me of being stupid and having a death wish, which was justified, but then began to scream insults and to question my parentage which was far too much.

When he eventually asked if I considered it beneath my dignity to absorb information designed to save my life and did I regard myself above listening to the video that I lost my temper. I stood up without saying a word and marched to the front of the room. I stood next to the video screen and quietly asked him to look at the screen himself.

I will never forget the expression on that man’s face as it dawned on him that it was me appearing on the screen giving the safety briefing. He looked from my face on the video screen to my face standing next to the screen and back to the video just as if he was watching a tennis match. He turned bright red and stuttered an apology.

When I sat down to watch the rest of the briefing he sat at the rear of the room and chewed his finger nails worrying if his job was safe. When the video finished and everyone else had left the room I let him know that he had been correct in chastising me but to tone down his language if anything similar happened in the future.

The War Is Lost – Zelenski Will Leave – The White House Has Failed

What a difference a year makes …

bigger – bigger

Time’s big new story is quite revealing:

‘Nobody Believes in Our Victory Like I Do.’ Inside Volodymyr Zelensky’s Struggle to Keep Ukraine in the Fight – Time – Oct. 30, 2023

That offensive has proceeded at an excruciating pace and with enormous losses, making it ever more difficult for Zelensky to convince partners that victory is around the corner. With the outbreak of war in Israel, even keeping the world’s attention on Ukraine has become a major challenge.

Quoting a soldier on the front of the counter-offensive, the Economist agrees:

“Left Handed”, an infantryman fighting at the front between Robotyne and Verbove, says Ukrainian losses have increased to alarming levels, in part due to the work of drones. The plains of Zaporizhia have turned their back on life, he says. “It’s hellish. Corpses, the smell of corpses, death, blood and fear. Not a whiff of life, just the stench of death.” Those in units such as his own had more chance of dying than surviving. “Seventy-thirty. Some don’t even see their first battle.”

Still, Zelenski is urging them on:

But his convictions haven’t changed. Despite the recent setbacks on the battlefield, he does not intend to give up fighting or to sue for any kind of peace.

On the contrary, his belief in Ukraine’s ultimate victory over Russia has hardened into a form that worries some of his advisers. It is immovable, verging on the messianic. “He deludes himself,” one of his closest aides tells me in frustration. “We’re out of options. We’re not winning. But try telling him that.”

Zelensky’s stubbornness, some of his aides say, has hurt their team’s efforts to come up with a new strategy, a new message. As they have debated the future of the war, one issue has remained taboo: the possibility of negotiating a peace deal with the Russians. Judging by recent surveys, most Ukrainians would reject such a move, especially if it entailed the loss of any occupied territory.

The war is lost. They know it. But they are unwilling to give up.

Zelenski’s people put the blame everywhere but on the those who have caused the mess. It was the ‘victory’ messaging by Zelenski and his crew that has led the public into utter complacency.

As Strana headlines (machine translation):

Ukraine is losing the war with the Russian Federation due to the inadequate perception of the situation by society — commander of the Armed Forces of Ukraine – Strana.news – Oct. 30, 2023

Strategically, Ukraine is losing the war because of the inadequate perception of the situation by society.

This opinion was expressed by the commander of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Dmitry Kukharchuk in an interview with Channel Five.

He claims that at the beginning of the war, all Ukrainians were ready to defend the country, there were many volunteers. But after the withdrawal of Russian troops from Kiev, the situation changed.

“Immediately after that, I noticed that there were theses in the media that we are fighting with homeless people, that the Russian army does not know how to fight, that in principle victory will be in a week or two, a maximum of a month. That first in the spring, then in the summer, then in the autumn, then in the winter, without specifying which winter, we will go to the Crimea. That the victory is basically victorious. So people were put in a warm bathroom. We have broken down the vision of reality. But it didn’t happen in Russia. They began to realize that the war was not going to be easy for them. They realized that they would have to fight for a long time, ” Kukharchuk believes.

He also says that the Russians are “getting stronger” every day, and if Ukraine really fought the “degenerates”, it would have defeated them long ago.

“That’s why we’re losing. They have these processes going on, and their public readiness is much higher than that of our society. And when they talk about a nuclear bomb, a war of all against all, for some reason it seems to me that they are ready for these processes, ” the battalion commander added.

Napoleon, Hitler and several other folks who had sought war with Russia, had to learn to never underestimate the depth of its resources. Now NATO, the U.S. and its European proxies, are learning that lesson.

Zelenski still hasn’t. He won’t concede:

The cold will also make military advances more difficult, locking down the front lines at least until the spring. But Zelensky has refused to accept that. “Freezing the war, to me, means losing it,” he says. Before the winter sets in, his aides warned me to expect major changes in their military strategy and a major shake-up in the President’s team. At least one minister would need to be fired, along with a senior general in charge of the counteroffensive, they said, to ensure accountability for Ukraine’s slow progress at the front. “We’re not moving forward,” says one of Zelensky’s close aides. Some front-line commanders, he continues, have begun refusing orders to advance, even when they came directly from the office of the President. “They just want to sit in the trenches and hold the line,” he says. “But we can’t win a war that way.”

When I raised these claims with a senior military officer, he said that some commanders have little choice in second-guessing orders from the top. At one point in early October, he said, the political leadership in Kyiv demanded an operation to “retake” the city of Horlivka, a strategic outpost in eastern Ukraine that the Russians have held and fiercely defended for nearly a decade. The answer came back in the form of a question: With what? “They don’t have the men or the weapons,” says the officer. “Where are the weapons? Where is the artillery? Where are the new recruits?”

In some branches of the military, the shortage of personnel has become even more dire than the deficit in arms and ammunition. One of Zelensky’s close aides tells me that even if the U.S. and its allies come through with all the weapons they have pledged, “we don’t have the men to use them.”

Since the start of the invasion, Ukraine has refused to release official counts of dead and wounded. But according to U.S. and European estimates, the toll has long surpassed 100,000 on each side of the war. It has eroded the ranks of Ukraine’s armed forces so badly that draft offices have been forced to call up ever older personnel, raising the average age of a soldier in Ukraine to around 43 years. “They’re grown men now, and they aren’t that healthy to begin with,” says the close aide to Zelensky. “This is Ukraine. Not Scandinavia.”

The Ukraine’s old problems, foremost corruption, persist:

Amid all the pressure to root out corruption, I assumed, perhaps naively, that officials in Ukraine would think twice before taking a bribe or pocketing state funds. But when I made this point to a top presidential adviser in early October, he asked me to turn off my audio recorder so he could speak more freely. “Simon, you’re mistaken,” he says. “People are stealing like there’s no tomorrow.”

Knowing that the ship is sinking, this its probably what I would do too. Bring anything available onto my personal life raft and prepare for cutting its lines to the mother ship.

The Time piece is a signal. It announces the end of Zelenski’s regime. I am sure that the National Security Council, as well as the State Department, is feverishly looking for an alternative – and for a face saving way to install it.

Someone seems to protect and promote Alexey Arestovich for exactly that purpose (machine translation):

After leaving the Presidential Office with a scandal in January 2023, Arestovich, although he began to criticize the actions of the authorities, nevertheless did it carefully until recently.

But right now, he’s just slamming the ruling team.

Arestovich focuses on two things: the military decisions of the country’s leadership and its domestic policy.
…
The second version: Arestovich enlisted the support of Americans who want to see more political diversity in Ukraine and are not interested in Zelensky’s monopolization of power.

In favor of this version, they also use the fact mentioned above that the tightening of the rhetoric of the ex-adviser to the president’s Office began after his trip to the United States. Also in this regard, they recall his interview with Gordon in early October, where he says that if the West decides to end the war without reaching the borders of 1991 and Zelensky resists this, then the president of Ukraine will be “changed” in the elections.
…
“It is possible that Arestovich is supported by a certain part of the Western elites, who care about the breadth of opinions in Ukraine. They say that the country can speak not only with Zelensky’s voice, but there are also different critical opinions, ” political analyst Ruslan Bortnik comments to Strana.

In its grand strategy the White House had sought to pivot to Asia. But the U.S. is – first in Ukraine, in a completely unnecessary conflict the U.S. itself has caused, and, with Gaza in flames, again in the Middle East.

In a recent talk in Australia John Mearsheimer takes a deep dive into this dilemma (video). He doesn’t foresee a good outcome.

Posted by b on October 31, 2023 at 8:12 UTC | Permalink

I’m exercising my Rights

What event was the equivalent of a bomb being dropped on your relationship?

I was hesitant to write this as it is somewhat personal but it might be therapeutic, I’ve already shared so much and I suppose I can without naming anyone:

I went on my partner’s laptop and stumbled across a strange message on her Facebook browser that made me scrunch my eyes —strange.

It was pictures of my partner with another family I didn’t know.

She was holding a guy’s toddler, standing (closely) next to him, and his parents behind them, and she had no wedding ring. Behind them was the Disney Castle.

The direct message was from a woman (his sister) that said “___ told me not to post these on Facebook because things were complicated.”

That was the moment—my eyes widened and I realized something was amiss. “… things were complicated?!?!?”

I couldn’t take my eyes off the picture. That part fucked me up.

Many of you are in relationships. Just imagine the person you love, that you might be sitting next to right now, suddenly appearing in a picture at a theme park (like the above) with another family, “with” someone else. Nobody in that picture you recognize. And everyone appearing to be very familiar with each other.

It would mind fuck you pretty hard, too.

And the more I dug into it, the worse it got.

It was a full-blown affair.

It caused an avalanche on the relationship.

You feel this rush of fury at having been lied to. You are disgusted with the person. You suddenly see all the pieces to the puzzle coming together in your mind, the nights “out with the girls” and “crashing at a friend’s house,” and all the strange subtle behaviors you’d been blind to.

“How could I have not known?”

After discovering the cheating, the sequence of events probably mirrored the same pattern others have experienced.

You confront the person.

They deny, deny, deny.

Finally, they fess up after you wave the obvious evidence in their face.

Then there is this rush of apologies, they are so sorry, they never meant to hurt you, they really want to be with you, the other person isn’t the one, please forgive them, pleasepleaseplease.

As she says this, more evidence and damage seems to rain down behind her. It gets worse with each apology.

From there, it gets ugly fast. The fan is set to max speed. And shit is thrown upwards.

It’s a terrible situation. Because here you have this person that you deeply love. That you have a lot of history with. That you have a shared identity with. And come to truly think of as an ally; a better half.

But now – you have to face a dark, undeniable reality that cannot be ignored, that things aren’t what they once were, and this person isn’t the person you thought they were.

It is the deep, painful cut of betrayal that takes years to heal.

Everything that came before this event gets called into question.

“Were they lying then?”

“What else were they lying about?”

“How did it start?”

“Does this person really love me like they said they did? Then how could they do all of this?”

…

In my case, things couldn’t be reconciled. It went far beyond the realm of repair.

It was a terrible, messy breakup but ultimately it was the right thing. Even though I’ve now come to fully forgive this person, she isn’t someone I could ever trust or be with again.

It sucks, though.

You never think you will be “that person” who gets had in some relationship, who gets run around on and completely duped.

It’s a terrible, hurtful experience and I hope none of you go through it.

What was the funniest thing that happened to you in college?

I had an exam on English when I was in college, around 19 years old. The night before I had helped my sister prepare for her in-class essay with the same teacher in English. My sister had problems with the course, and I excelled so my teacher suggested I help her.

Anyways, in the middle of my exam my teacher walks up, and without thinking, says “Thank you for last night” and walks away. Everybody in the class looked up at me. It was the middle of an exam, so I couldn’t explain so I just sort of turned around to my friends, gave them the look – look and went back to the test.

Authority and Leadership

As a part of the judicial system, what is the hardest you have ever laughed in court?

I was in traffic court as a witness in another matter. The judge was hearing a case where a 14 year old was driving a motorcycle without a license because he was too young. He was accompanied by his mother. She was small but loud, and the 14 year old was big (looked 18). Throughout the morning she had been nagging him about one thing or another—wasting my time, lazy good for nothing, etc. The young boy was quiet and appeared contrite.

When their time came, the mom again reminded the boy to be quiet and not say a word.

The clerk read the case. The judge looked at her notes and pronounced judgment. “Case dismissed with 60 days suspended sentence on the condition that the defendant does not ride the motorcycle until he turns 16 and gets a license.” This was the least the judge could do.

The mother erupted with anger. “60 days suspended sentence. Are you crazy. He has to go to school. He has to do chores.” Clearly, she did not understand what suspended sentence meant.

The judge then stated. “Are you finished? I could make it contingent on selling the motorcycle.”

Mom: “That’s crazy. You’re nuts.”

The judge: “Suspended sentence contingent on selling the motorcycle and you (indicating to the mom) get to spend the night in jail for contempt of court.”

The boy, who hadn’t said a word all morning. “Thank you, your honor.”

The entire court erupted in laughter.

The level of disappointment

Were you ever treated poorly when you wanted to purchase an expensive item until they found out you were rich?

Not treated poorly but rather taught not too.

As a teen way back in 1979 I went to work for Neumann Marcus in Dallas. It was still owned by the Marcus family and known worldwide for its service and exclusivity.

our trainer stressed treating everyone, no matter how they looked or were dressed, with the same respectful diligent service. He gave the following example of his personal experience, I don’t know if it was true but it makes the point.

It was a rainy day in downtown Dallas and the store was not busy. He was working in epicure, I don’t know about now but back then they had the most amazing food and specialty kitchen wares. A man in shorts, a wrinkly shirt, baseball hat and unshaven wanders in. His thought was “looked what came in to avoid the rain”.

The man was looking at a very expensive grill and asking questions. He politely answered them but eventually wanted to get rid of him. He asked the man if he had a Neimans card. He said no so he suggested he go over to the Credit dept and they could give him on on the spot.

The man left. When he returned he said “I’d like 2 of these. One sent to my house in LA, one to my house in Malibu.” My trainer was pleasantly surprised. Surprise turned to shock and embarrassment when the man handed him his new Neimans card and he saw the name. “Of course Mr. Sinatra. I will take care of everything.”

Winners and Losers

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/UMjYwXFBd80?feature=share

What are the cleverest scams you have come across?

The phone rings. My elderly uncle picks up. A young woman is on the line.

“Grandpa?” asks the young woman.

Being a grandfather of 20 children, Uncle answers, “Yes,” then he thinks of who the caller may be.

“Is this Beth?” he asks.

The young woman quickly admits that she is Beth, and then she starts crying,

“I am in Florida with my friends. We get in trouble and I am in jail. Can you send me money for bail?”

My uncle is alarmed. Why is Beth in Florida? What has she done? Before he can ask her a question, the young woman says, “Please don’t tell my parents. They will kill me.” She cries even harder now.

My aunt enters the room to find her husband frantically scrambling for his credit card. She gets suspicious and asks him what is going on.

“Beth is in jail in Florida. We need to send her money,” he explains to her.

My aunt rolls her eyes and grabs the phone from him,

“This is grandma. We are not sending money. Please rot in jail. Bye.”

The cleverness is not the scam itself, but the ability of the scammer to improvise. They prey on vulnerable elderly and toy with the few items they cherish in their twilight years – family, health, and savings. I have a feeling the caller could have swayed the conversation in whatever way was most effective once she identified my uncle as an easy target.

Boudin Blanc with Muenster Cheese

Yield: 24 servings

Ingredients

3 pounds boneless pork butt, cut in 1/4 inch dice
1 pound mixed boneless chicken, cut into 1/4 inch dice
1 pound pork fat back, cut into 1/4 inch dice
2 eggs
1 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons ground ginger
2 teaspoons ground cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 pound Wisconsin muenster cheese, cut into 1/4 inch dice
Kosher salt to taste

Instructions

Grind meats and fat through meat grinder using plate with small (1/8 inch) openings.
Place ground mixture in large bowl of standing mixer and add all ingredients except cheese and salt. Mix with paddle attachment. Fold cheese into the farce.
Case sausages in pork hank, twisting to form 4-ounce links.
Dry for 1 hour in walk-in cooler.
To poach, bring 4 to 5 gallons of water to a boil. When boiling, turn off heat.
Add sausage and cover with lid. Let stand for 10 to 15 minutes or until sausages reach interior temperature of 145 degrees F.
Cool sausages on sheet pan lined with kitchen towels.
Store in refrigerator up to 5 days.

Notes

To reheat: Grill, broil or bake sausage until hot. The sausages can be made into patties and sautéed until cooked through.

The chef serves sausage with Spaghetti Squash “Choucroute” and whole grain mustard.

The MOCKERY of the Western Male…

Cultural Programming at it’s worst.

Stalking for a bloody nose

When I lived in Milford, Massachusetts I worked at an appliance company as a Chief Project Manager in the R&D group. During that time, early on in the company, I was living with a model named CJ. She was extraordinarily beautiful, but a royal pain in the ass. Ugh! That’s a story for another time, I’ll tell you what.

Anyways, there was one of the guys in my company, way a youngish (in his late 20’s) man who worked in Marketing. I got along fine with him.

But my girlfriend, CJ (the chick that I was living with) told me that she had a “bad feeling about him”. But I shrugged it off.

About a month later, I noticed that he was driving around and waiting outside my apartment. I wondered why, but couldn’t figure out what was going on.

Later on, after that, CJ told me that he was following her.

…

Two weeks later, he came to work completely beaten up, and his face was a real mess. He worked for a day or two, and then quit. I never found out what happened to him, but I figure that he messed with the “wrong people”. Not me. But perhaps someone else…

What do you know.

…

Today…

What was the most legendary “I quit!” that you know about or witnessed?

I was asked, as a consultant, to handle a very delicate matter. It appears that the company president’s teenage daughter had taken a liking to one of the system assembly people who was building rack servers. He told her that he was busy and she was not authorized to be in the department. She complained to daddy, and the employee was subject to a screaming match in front of his co-workers and told by his boss that he needed to apologize by the close of business when the executive and his daughter left. And that some token of his contrition might be a nice gesture.

Near the end of the day, the technician located the daughter, said he was sorry, and gave her a handmade electronic sculpture as a token of his contrition. He then wrote a resignation note and left it with H.R.

I was called to resolve the issue and get the employee back to work because they had a backlog that was building on the workbenches. I could not find any reason why someone else could not build-out the server blades and none of the employee’s co-workers volunteered any information. That is, until I learned that he had fashioned the sculpture out of the all of the motherboard chips on hand.

There was no attempt to gain restitution for the ruined chips and the employee was paid in full — including two weeks severance. I later heard that the president reimbursed the company for the entire amount. I pocketed my fee — which only added insult to injury.

I Live Better in The Philippines Than I Did in The U.S For Cheaper – My Story

“It was reassuring to hear of JJ’s positive experience in BCG, and of his low monthly budget. I’ve been thinking a lot about my future retirement and moving somewhere that will provide a better quality of life for my budget. I’ll try to spend time in several countries, before picking a place to settle down. Thanks for another great video, Evan.”

Texas Iced Tea

Ingredients

6 tea bags or 2 large tea bags
Water
1 cup granulated sugar (optional)

Instructions

Heat 1 quart to boiling 1 quart water in saucepan.
Remove from heat; add tea bags, cover and let steep for 30 minutes.
Pour into 1 a gallon pitcher.
Add sugar, if using, then fill pitcher with cold water.
To make sun tea, fill a 1 gallon glass jar with cool water.
Add 6 tea bags and place in direct sunlight.
Leave in sunlight until desired color (strength) is obtained (reddish brown) – about 2 to 3 hours. Do not leave in the sun too long (over 4 hours) as mixture may become bitter.

What is the best revenge you ever had on your bully?

A very stupid woman in my social group was my bully. She hated me and did & said what she could to trash me.I was involved with someone that she had a crush on. She did everything she could to break us up, including making up stories about me sleeping around with other guys (I wasn’t), stealing $$$ from him (I earned 3x what he did), badmouthing him, etc. It did cause some tension in my relationship.

However, she thought it was funny and sent screenshots of what she had said & done to a friend of mine. She didn’t know he was an old friend of many years. He sent me copies which I gave my guy. He blocked her on the spot and cut off all contact with her.

At the time she was living with a guy in public housing and collecting disability. Again, Ms. Stupid sent to our mutual friend comments like she was only living with him so he would pay her bills. That she really didn’t have a disability but she had a corrupt Dr who would fill out “appropriate l” paperwork for a fee. And that she had a job off the books and making very good $$$.

He sent me everything. I filed a complaint on the doctor with the state medical board. I forwarded her comments to the Housing Authority and federal offices. But the best was, being crafty, I created a mini-book that listed all of her comments from her lies about me to using the boyfriend as a paycheck. I wrapped it up nicely and sent it to him at his place of employment. (I did put a note on it saying to open in private…he didn’t need to be embarrassed in front of co-workers)

So long story short, she lost her apartment but gained a new one at the local jail. She lost her boyfriend but gained a new corrections officer. She lost her social circle but gained new cellmates. She lost her lucrative income but got a job at the prison making cents on the hour.

Have IDF soldiers ever used Krav Maga in real life?

On March 7th, 2002, Gabi Altaraz, owner of the Cafe Caffit was walking around his crowded restaurant, full of families and young couples, full of the sounds of children. He noticed a young man sitting alone at the table. The man seemed nervous, agitated and odd.

Despite the day being quite chilly in the tail end of the Israeli winter, the strange man was sweating profusely.

Gabi walked over and asked to take the order, figuring the man was just a bit distracted by work.

The man seemed annoyed by the question. “Just water,” he snapped, clearly bothered. He then asked who Gabi was, giving him the most chilling smile that looked murderous.

As Gabi listened, he noticed a very large backpack by the man’s feet.

Gabi didn’t change his expression, but said he’d get it. Instead, he went and got twenty three year old Shlomi Harel, one of the waiters. “I think we have a problem,” he said.

Now, with spiked hair, tattoos and a pierced eyebrow. Shlomi may have looked like some bored college student currently fetching drinks and food, but he was also a recently released elite commando.

Shlomi walked up to the table and asked in Arabic for the man’s ID card (which all Israeli residents must carry) The man produced a blue one, indicating he was an Israeli citizen. However, Shlomi had already noticed the bag.

More importantly, he noticed the wire which protruded from it, and which ran through the man’s jacket and through the man’s right sleeve to a detonator in his hands.

The cafe was full, 50 innocent civilians, women and children and elderly, all of whom were defenseless. In seconds, they would be a red mist unless he was willing to risk his life.

With a fearlessness bordering on superhuman, Shlomi pounced on the terrorist and threw him out of the restaurant.

Once outside, before the terrorist knew what hit him, Shlomi had already jerked out the wire, separating the bomb from the detonator, as he was trained. He then ripped off the pack, threw aside and slammed the terrorist to the floor to restrain him.

As he wrestled the terrorist to a safe distance, he also yelled to clear the streets, take cover and call the bomb squad, while using the skills of Krav Maga to make sure the would-be murderer didn’t go anywhere until the authorities could take him away.

Shlomi’s excellent training, heroism and sacrifice prevented a massacre. 10 kilograms of explosives and shrapnel was packed inside the backpack, enough to kill all 50 people and wound and blind and maim and mangle 50 more.

If a soldier has to resort to Krav Maga, the goat droppings have really hit the fan. Ideally, you never want to be in a position where you need to be that close to the enemy, but there have been situations where it was required.

Remember, Krav Maga isn’t just about a form of self defense so you can go home at night safely.

In the army, it’s about making arrests. (And his knee isn’t on the detainee’s neck but shoulders, as can be clearly seen by anyone with training)

It’s about disarming suspects.

It’s about self defense for situations like knife attacks.

And as the story makes clear, it has other uses.

So yes, soldiers use it. Otherwise, why would they teach it?

And yes, the stuff related to arresting and neutralizing terrorists. Not the stuff I do.

No Status

Have you ever experienced something you can’t explain?

Me and a buddy were at his house watching TV and some person on the screen was eating a strawberry. I don’t really care for them, but it looked good and I asked if, by chance, he had any strawberries in the house. He almost laughed at me, we were two 20-year old’s with a higher chance of beer or mac & cheese or Fruit Loops than strawberries. About twenty minutes later, there’s a knock at the door and he goes to answer it. He yells out to me to come see something. His mom is standing at the door with one of those low-cut boxes with a bunch of strawberries. he said, “Tell Jeffy what you said!” She looks a little strange and says, “I was driving home and there was a guy selling strawberries out of the back of his truck and I thought, “I bet David and his friends would like some strawberries…” My buddy says, “Well, you blew it. We all have one wish and you wasted yours on strawberries.”

A year ago, I did a test for Mensa, also known as “The High IQ Society.” I was given an IQ of 162. Does this mean I’m special?

Yes, but…

As an example, there was a woman who worked for me at one point. She used to always brag that she has a 174 IQ. Everyone was tired of it and it really kept her from forming good relationships at work (the “I am better than you” complex). One day, I was just not wanting to put up with it so I said “wow, your IQ is higher than Albert Einstein!” When she agreed, I responded “he invented the theory of relativity, what have you done?” She never mentioned her IQ after that. You see, IQ matters less than what you do with what you have.

P.S. I am a member of Mensa, too, and realize that it is just the measure of potential, not an accomplishment.

Edit: thanks for everyone who up-voted my response. I think this is my highest. I went to my first Annual Gathering (AG) this year and it just reinforced my belief. It isn’t what you have, but what you do with it. Many wonderful people, but just like the rest of society in so many ways.

How is she surprised he responded like this? She deserves everything she gets

Lordy! This is everything that wrong with the United States today.

Who is the most evil person you have ever met?

Have you ever been accused of something very wrong ,and been totally innocent.

I have this mentally I’ll neighbor a block down the street ,he will say just about anything with no remorse whatsoever, he is so envious of me, from what other people have told me that it’s almost some type of fixation.I warned my new girlfriend about him and to keep her distance from him, quite frankly I don’t trust him at all.One day I see she was at the bottom of the driveway picking up the mail as usual only potty mouth is blabbering to her about something, he was out walking his dog. When she parks her car and heads for the house she usually stops to see what I’m doing. Today she goes straight up and into the house, I knew that idot had said something to upset her, unfortunately for me I was in the middle of spraying and couldn’t drop what I was doing.I head into the house an hour later and she seems very tense, but when I mentioned what did the ding dong down the load have to say, she said ahhh nothing really.

A couple hours later when we met at the doorway between the master bedroom and the bathroom, she actually ducted away from me. Now I knew something was wrong and I had to get to the bottom of it, but when I asked what was bothering her every time she had the same response, ahhh nothing really.

Finally I had enough, I said I want to know what is going on ,and we’re not closing our eyes until you tell me. Then she says, whatcha going to do hit me.I was totally floored, I have never in my life struck a woman and told this to her. She says that the guy down the street told her, he used to hear my ex wife screaming and that I had been arrested for abuse a couple of times.I started to chuckle a little and she says this is very serious ,and that if I layed a hand on her she’s going straight to the cops.

I pointed to a couple of shotguns leaning in the corner by my dresser. See those, well if I had any sort of domestic violence charges brought against me , there wouldn’t be any fire arms allowed in the house. She says you have several guns, that’s against, the law then. I warned you about listening to that asshole some time ago didn’t I ,she couldn’t believe someone would make up a story like this. So let’s just look up my criminal record and see how bad I am, in Wisconsin you can go to the clerk of courts on line and check out anyone’s history. Look here there nothing, nothing at all, squeaky clean. She seemed a little shocked. Now I said let’s check out your new friend, Oh Look two convictions for domestic abuse, spent two weeks in jail twice for failing to pay child support and a felony conviction for distribution of cocaine.Maybe now you will take what he says with a grain of salt. She still looked a little puzzled, but gradually got back to normal. One of these days he’s going to say something about the wrong guy and find himself in big trouble. I fail to see what he hopes to gain, except cause me grief. Maybe someone else has a clue, I just totally avoid him and have for several years now.

What is the origin of the expression “ducks in a row”?

The expression, “get your ducks in a row,” means to get prepared to do something. But where did this expression come from?

Many years ago, an old-time JPL engineer explained to me the origin of this expression. Sadly, I don’t remember who it was. There are a number of people I regarded highly who might have been the source of this. I certainly believed them because it made so much sense.

Consider an old drafting tool used to hold splines to make curves. It is called a drafting duck, also known as a lofting duck.

What the heck is a drafting duck, you might ask?

Before we get to that, let’s talking about lofting.

Back in the days of building large wooden sailing ships, they used to create full size drawings of the ship. The only place big enough for such a drawing was in loft above the shipbuilding building. The loft had a lot of space without posts in the way. Creating such drawing became known as lofting.

If you’ve ever done any computer-aided drafting, then you will have come across splines. These are smooth curves passing through a series of dots.

But how did they do that in the days before computers? Well, they used splines! A spine was a long flexible piece of wood that was held down on the drawing to make a curve passing through the points on the drawing.

or the very long splines they used in lofting, they had a bunch of weighted objects to hold the spline in place so they could run their pencil along it to make the smoothly curved line.

Lofting Ducks. The little bent nose sticking out was poked into the top of the spline to hold it in place. The body of these ducks was something like steel so they would be weighty and able to hold the spline in place.

So, before they could draw the line along the spline, they had to …

get their ducks in a row.

And that’s where the expression came from. At least according to the ancient engineer I knew a couple of decades ago.

Being in the friend zone

I promised my son a PS5 if he got straight A’s and he did, but I don’t want to give him a ps5. What should I do?

Huh. Tell me about it.

I promised the Screamy Blonde Thing £200 if she passed all her GCSEs except RE, which we don’t care about.

Yeah, my money’s safe because I’ve seen that kid’s Eng Lit essays. I’ve just spent two years shouting and cajoling just to get her Eng Lang up to scratch and the chances of her passing Eng Lit is the same as that of Kylie Minogue dragging me into Meadowhall Travel Lodge and giving me a damn good seeing-to.

Is what I thought.

Do you know what she bloody well did? Passed the bloody lot except RE. I swear she did it on purpose just to annoy me. Sigh. Bye-bye £200. I knew I shouldn’t have spent a week going through Romeo and bloody Juliet with her, still less another one going through The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mister Hyde. Because of this, she now has a morning off from her computerses things at the Tech whilst the dim kids retake their Maths and English GCSEs. That kid has always been as jammy as a Co-Op doughnut, I tell you.

Anyway, the point. Stump up. You promised it, you bloody well deliver or you’ll be persona non grata in kidworld and they’ll never trust anything you say again for the rest of your life.

Back to the subject of the SBT, she’s spending her morning lying in bed playing with her Nintendo.

Or so she thinks.

I’m about to break the news that nobody could be arsed to do last night’s teapots and there’s a sinkful, and guess who’s drying? BWUHAHAHA! It’s not that I’m evil, it’s just……no it is. I’m evil. But not evil enough to renege on my promise for hard work. Get your wallet out.

What are your thoughts on China’s military growth? Do you think they will ever catch up to America? Or are there some aspects where we still hold an advantage?

In terms of absolute military power, they will never catch up with the USA. They simply do not have any intention to do this.

I think that Americans simply do not comprehend this. They live in a country that is accustomed to wars, The USA destroys countries and kills people in wars continuously. Afghanistan; Iraq; Syria; Bosnia; Somalia; Vietnam; Libya; Grenada etc etc. This has gone on for so long that Americans think it’s normal – as normal and ordinary and unremarkable as their regular school shootings.

China isn’t interested. They just want to build highways, sea ports, airports, railways etc; link up the world and do more trade and business.

Men Made a List of Women to NEVER DATE!

What has your toddler said that left you completely dumbfounded?

“I know who’s wetting the grass mummy!” My three year old daughter one day stated proudly.

We were eating breakfast at the time and my husband and I both looked at each other dumbfounded. She continued beaming at us. Clearly very proud of herself.

“Honey what do you mean?” My husband asked her trying to make sense of it.

“You know daddy…” She said shaking her head as if it what she was talking about was common knowledge. I was struggling to keep a straight face. “Explain it to daddy,” I said to her.

“Ok mummy.”

“Well,” she said. “In the mornings the grass is wet right?”

“Right, yes it’s a dew.”

“No…” She corrects him. “It’s a man dressed in black.”

“Are you sure honey?” My husband asks her.

“Yes I saw him last night…”

At first we were dumbfounded, then we were very worried. Turns out she had seen someone. The next night I stayed in my daughters room and someone actually tried to break in. Luckily some fly spray in the eyes and a quick call to the police soon put him out of action… Though my daughter said “mummy don’t do that to the grass wetter”

Turns out he was a child abuser, not the grass wetter. Luckily he won’t be doing that ever again now. And my daughter still can’t get over the fact that I sprayed him in the eyes with fly spray…

What did she say to me afterwards? “Who will wet the grass now mummy?”

And the next morning. “They found a new person, I haven’t seen him yet but the grass has been wetted again.”

Kids. They are so innocent and at times hilarious 🙂

What “unwritten rules of being a man” don’t you follow?

I was taking an advertising class. An ad agency executive was doing a guest lecture.

The theme of the class was, “Knowing your customer.” Learning about each demographic.

We had a small class of about 15 people.

He was seated off to the side of the class. He was having each of us individually go stand in front of the class for 2–3 minutes for a conversation.

From there, he’d have a friendly conversation with them, asking them questions about them and their life.

So my turn comes. I go to stand up in front of the class.

He looks me over and asks, “What’s your favorite sport to watch?”

My reply, “Well. I don’t really watch many sports hmmmm….”

He immediately changes to, “What’s your dream car?”

My reply, “Well, I am not really into cars either.”

“Fishing? Hunting?”

I defeatedly say, “Well….no…not so much.”

Apparently I didn’t check the box of following at least one major sport or being into fishing or hunting.

I was married at the time. He sees my wedding ring, and says,

“How’d you propose to your wife?”

I thought, “Oh man…really?…..guess we are out of man questions…”

And I painfully relayed a story of how I proposed.

And of course all the girls in the class all went “awwwwwwww”.

I felt like I’d suddenly grown a vagina.

But oh well. This is me. I’m not a typical dude. No apologies.

High Alert! China’s New EMP Weapon Is Going To Change The Industry Forever

What are some awesome psychological facts you know?

The happier you are the less sleep you require to function in every day life. Sadness increases the urge to sleep more.
Dreams reveal feelings that we’ve hidden or repressed because dreams, are a reflection of our unconscious mind, our emotional truth.
The unhappiest people in the world are the ones who care what everyone thinks about them.
By thinking one positive thought every morning, you can psychologically trick your brain into being a happier person.
Walking increases brain activity.
Intelligent people are more likely to avoid conflict, which explains why some people notice everything but choose to say nothing.

What do you do if you are homeless and alone?

I’m technically homeless for the second time in my life. Finances were at a real strain earlier in the year but I held on until my son went off to college. At 68, my career in print media ground to a halt and with an exploding real estate market where I saw my rent quadruple in a matter of months. My life was unsustainable.

Car payments, car insurance, prescription medicines and food, I’ll admit, I was drowning. When my son left I no longer had a reason to maintain a household or a car. I stopped fighting the inevitable. My social security payment was all I had. I sold my possessions and booked a one-way ticket to the far east. I can live on the pittance provided me for my years of work as an American. I just can’t live in America.

Since I left the states, I’ve lived in Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Nepal. Next week I’m heading to India for a month before returning and spending Christmas and New Years in Vietnam. I live in decent three star hotels typically with free breakfast.

My social life had already slowed considerably as I got old.

I stopped drinking nearly three years ago so I no longer have that monkey on my back. But life, in general is good. It’s adventurous. And I no longer have the burdens that come with life in the US. My son is happy and thriving. My older daughter and her family are doing very well. I’m a phone call away from them and we talk frequently. The difference is I’m alive and living with few worries.

Would you be nervous if FBI agents knocked on your door and asked to talk to you? Would you let them in?

My son had an FBI agent come to his apartment. He sold noncommercial DVDs on his web page of 80’s cartoons. Someone had bragged about not caring about copyright and given the FBI his name in order to get him in trouble.

When asked, he said, “Yes, I sell those DVDs on my web page. Oh, do you want copies of where I have the rights? What’s your fax number?”

And nobody ever bothered him again.

Powerful Truth!

What is the most inappropriate thing that you have ever witnessed at a funeral?

Many years ago my first wife’s father was died. He was married at the time. He also had a girlfriend. When my mother-in-law, my now ex-wife, her grandmother and I arrived at the funeral we were expecting, of course, to sit on the front row. It is typical for the spouse to sit there. Unfortunately, the girlfriend with her children showed up prior to the wife and had seated herself and her kids on the front row. The wife, who had more restraint than I would have, decided not to make a scene and sat behind the girlfriend and her kids. If my memory serves me correctly, she did fire the girlfriend, who worked at the store now solely owned by my mother-in-law.

I get that the girlfriend was also grieving. After all, her sugar daddy was now gone. If she had had more manners and civility at the funeral, she would probably have been given time to find a new job (my MIL was a nice person), but since the gf intentionally embarrassed the wife in public, she didn’t deserve to be treated nicely.

How do cancer patients know the end is near?

My father was the epitome of impeccable health well into his older years, the strongest, healthiest person I knew. Walking 25,000 steps per day, always energetic, near perfect vision, mentally sharp (he had a PhD in mathematics), my father had every quality in his 70s that I wish I had in my 50s! Best of all, he was a very humble man and wonderfully loving father.

My dad was a renowned scientist at Oak Ridge National Laboratory where he studied nucleology. Unfortunately, he and many of his fellow scientists developed sarcoma later in life, a rare form of cancer. Some of his cohorts had already died in their 30s and 40s. My father didn’t acquire sarcoma until the age of 73, striking with little warning and spreading quickly throughout his entire body. It remains unknown whether or not the fate of these scientists was connected to the decades of nuclear research projects they performed.

My father awoke in the middle of the night in pain, was driven to the hospital by my mother, and by the time he arrived 15 minutes later he had no feeling below his rib cage. A tumor had grown along the spine and rapidly shut off the nerves, blocking any feeling all the way to the tip of his toes. After some tests, the doctors gave him three to six months to live. He lasted three months.

The question

To answer your question, how did he know the end was near? After three months of being bedridden and paralyzed, with his spirits high and his faith strong, he was lying awake around 4:00 a.m. when he suddenly struggled to breathe. He summoned my mother who was asleep in the same room. He knew it was the end.

The finale

My parents had been together for 55 years, meeting when they were teens. My mother held his hand, and he whispered, “Will you be okay without me?” to which my mother replied, “I’ll be fine.” And within seconds after those words, he was gone. I was on a plane flying to come see him when he passed, so I didn’t make it in time to say goodbye. But we had spent plenty of time together, especially in the final months, so I was at total peace. The world lost one of the greatest mathematicians of the 20th century that day. But I lost the greatest father.

What is the dirtiest fine print you’ve seen in a contract?

A co-worker and I were given new employee contracts to sign and we saw that if we were to leave the company we could not work as software developers for three years. We refused to sign, so the company controller came to us and asked why.

After we explained why we wouldn’t sign, he said, “Oh, that’s not what that means. What it means is that you won’t start a new, competing contract firm and steal away employees.” So I told him to change the contract language to state exactly what he’d told me. He just kept saying, “But you know what it means!”

I finally told him that until the contract says what it really means, I wouldn’t sign it. He said he’d have it corrected, but we never received a corrected copy, so we never signed a new contract.

His explanation made more sense than the contract’s language, but I wasn’t going to sign away my right to work on blind faith.

A husband

“This man worked a 13-hour day in 90-degree weather and walked through the door and said, ‘I’m home. What can I do to help you?’

Yet, these are words I hear from him often.

He is not a ‘unicorn.’ Men like these exist.

The kind who wash the dishes after you cook. Who do the yard work because they know you hate it. Who work 60+ hour work weeks and still come home and play with their kids, give their wife a kiss, and ask, ‘What can I do to help?’

Who gets up some nights to change the baby’s diaper while you get ready for a night feeding. Who gives the kids baths and puts them down for bed. Who spends his weekends with his family. Who cracks a cold one once the kids are down, and plays Farkle and Rummy with his wife.

Leader of the home, equal partner with his wife, provider, protector, and hands-on father. I’m so glad I married this man, and that he also acknowledges my hard work at home with two kids, nursing, cooking, and cleaning.

We take care of each other. It’s 50/50, and we are raising our boys to be men, just like their fathers.

I see so many women cry and complain their partner doesn’t help with the kids, bills, housework, give them any attention, etc.

My heart breaks when I hear, ‘Oh, that’s men,’ or ‘I just deal with it and suffer.’

Ladies, that isn’t a man. Make him do better or find better! If you have a good one who treats you like a queen, then treat him like the king he is.

Marriage is a partnership, not a dictatorship. My husband and I both take care of each other and are very happy.

Many blessings and happiness to all you kings and queens.”

Shared with permission via Jessica Maddux

Cajun Orange Mopped Chops

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

1/2 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons orange marmalade
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
2 tablespoons chopped green onions with tops
4 boneless loin pork chops

Instructions

Combine first five ingredients and pour over pork chops in shallow glass dish. Marinate for 10 or 15 minutes while heating grill or broiler to high.
Reduce heat to medium. Place marinated pork chops on grill or under broiler for 7 to 10 minutes per side, brushing marinade on chops as they are turned. Be careful not to overcook.
Serve with rice or potatoes and a vegetable or salad.

Something Very Βizarre Is Starting To Ηappen At Walmart.. (This Seems Unbelievable!)

Entering the reconstruction period

Well, this is the first post for my new series: “Correcting Society Ills“.

This new series, as I have mentioned previously, is concerned with RECONSTRUCTION of the West.

As I have already mentioned, the threat of Global War has passed the DANGER ZONE. That was in 2020 through 2022. What we are experiencing now is a “lesser” state of war. Oh, sure, nuclear weapon threats are being bantered about, and provocations are seemingly everywhere at a global level, but the unseen global counter-threats are not being made public and they will quench any aggressive moves against the great Asian powers.

So, global change resembles this dynamic…

Change; old to new.
Threat of war… either occurs or fizzles out with a *pop*.
I claim that it fizzled out.
What is left is a ruined Western society.
And a need for RECONSTRUCTION.

So we are going to discuss that reconstruction and what needs to occur.

Mind you, actual war can still occur, it’s just that it becomes less and less probable as time progresses forward.

In our reconstruction discussions and talks we will cover all sorts of issues and maladies that the West are suffering through. From fat-generating use of polyunsaturated oils in Western foods, to the destruction of family culture, and the strange ideas of modern Western youth.

You will find all sorts of videos and discussions on related topics herein. It’s part of a phase in our society, and the world must go through this to get to the other side; one of an overall better quality of life.

I hope that you enjoy this new chapter in MM…

Do you think you are a selfish person overall?

My friend’s two-year-old son developed a fever. He started shaking and vomiting. They rushed him to the hospital.

That first sleepless night spent watching the doctors scramble to administer medicine and draw blood for lab tests became two. And then five.

And then twenty.

Something was wrong with the boy, but no one could figure it out. Meanwhile, his medical bills were piling up.

Costa Rica offers free public healthcare. But if you want immediate help, you need to go private.

After many months of sickening worry, the boy got better.

But my friend had already taken predatory loans at 20% interest. And to keep up with the payments, he had to sell his phone, and then his car.

The lenders would show up at his house unannounced, threaten him, and yell profanities.

His life had become unbearable.

When I found out I was furious and sad. “Why didn’t you tell me earlier?!”

“I was ashamed,” he replied.

I couldn’t stand his suffering. I felt it burning inside of me. His misery had become mine.

I had to do something about it.

So I lent him money. He paid up and closed a few of the accounts. Got his first full night’s sleep in a year.

I realized something startling about helping others along the way—

It’s the most selfish act in the world.

But it’s the only kind of selfishness that makes sense.

10 Unwritten Rules you should live your life according to them

You just have to play the role of a fool to fool the fool who thinks they are fooling you.
Things end, people change, and life goes on.
Sometimes your problem is that you think everything is embarrassing.
No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.
Your soulmate is money. Stop forcing relationships.
An over-thinker must date a great communicator.
First, know your worth. Second, control your emotions. Third, never settle for less than you deserve.
You are the reflection of your partner. Choose wisely.
Life gets better when you see people for who they are, not who you want them to be.
Sometimes the disrespect is all the closure you need.

Texas T-Bones

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

2 (1 1/2 pound) beef T-bone steaks, 1 1/2 inches thick
1 clove garlic, cut in half
2 teaspoons black peppercorns, crushed
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon lime juice
Salt and pepper to taste, if desired

Instructions

Trim fat on beef steaks to 1/4 inch thickness.
Rub beef with garlic.
Press pepper into beef.
Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Mix butter, mustard, Worcestershire sauce and lime juice; reserve.
Heat coals or gas grill.
Cover and grill beef 4 to 5 inches from medium heat 16 to 18 minutes for medium doneness, turning halfway through grilling.
Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Place beef on warm platter; remove bone.
Cut beef at slanted angle into thin slices.
Serve with butter mixture.

What religion do the Chinese outside mainland China practice the most?

I can’t answer for near overseas Chinese (that is Chinese in Asia). I can write about my UK experiences.

It was Christianity and FG being a very distant second.

Christianity preyed on recent immigrant types and how they were often alone and isolated having migrated. I had numerous xian types try convert me constantly mistaking me for a migrant.

Same shit when my mother got cancer, some how the jesus types found out and went to find her to try convert her.

I told them to fuck off.

Mother told them to fuck off.

$240 Billion Lithography Machine Order Canceled,China Achieves Full Technological Autonomy!

SMIC, a prominent chip manufacturing company, operates in various areas such as chip design, manufacturing, packaging, and sales. The quality and efficiency of chip production heavily rely on the technological level and precision of the lithography machines, a crucial equipment in chip manufacturing.

However, due to escalating global trade tensions and US export control policies on Chinese high-tech companies like SMIC, the company has been unable to purchase advanced lithography machines and other equipment from the United States. This has prompted SMIC to cancel a $24 billion lithography machine order with the US company ASML, attracting significant attention and raising concerns about alternative markets for chip sales.

The cancellation of the lithography machine order by SMIC is influenced by both the global trade environment and domestic policies. As one of the largest chip manufacturers globally, SMIC’s decision has implications for the global chip industry. The uncertain global trade environment has disrupted the chip supply chain, while the Chinese government’s support for the chip industry has limited its domestic development.

The event’s impact on the global chip industry is two-fold. On one hand, competition in the global chip market will intensify, requiring major chip companies to enhance their technological capabilities and supply chain management. On the other hand, SMIC’s actions may inspire imitation by other countries, further intensifying global chip market competition.

Analyzing the impact of this event reveals that SMIC’s cancellation affects not only the global chip industry but also the US technology sector. Intel, one of the major US tech giants, has highlighted the significant impact on the global chip supply chain, prompting questions about the effectiveness of the Biden administration’s policies for the US industry.

Addressing this challenge requires several approaches. Firstly, China should strengthen international cooperation to collectively navigate the uncertainties in the global trade environment. Secondly, domestic policies should be enhanced to support and promote the development of the chip industry within China. Lastly, SMIC should focus on capacity building, continuously improving technological capabilities, and enhancing supply chain management.

https://youtu.be/6Wh_YDUaOXg

What is Rule 1 of success?

I want you to go online right now and type in the name of some of your heroes or the successful people you look up to.

Find their Biographies.

Then go look at their “Early Life” section and find the answer to this question:

“When did they start?”

Very often you’ll find sentences like: “… started at the age of 26, and got his first big achievement of … at the age of 43…”

To most of us that seems like just another random fact, but look at what that really means.

It means that that person worked on their craft for 17 years before making it.

Do you really think that in that time they never failed? Do you really think they never cried or were doubtful of what they were doing?

Do you really think that those 17 years just went by like that?

What made them keep going for so long?

Most of us look at the successful few and say they got a lucky break or assume they reached their success immediately.

Actors, Athletes, Writers, Authors, and Entrepreneurs encounter failure after failure.

They loose, fall, and crash but they still stand up.

Success is not about winning but about being willing to lose once more than everybody else.

When everyone has gone home, you kept working.

When all you encountered was failure, you kept trying.

When none of the habits took, you kept starting.

When no one believed anymore, you kept trusting.

And when everyone quit, you kept going.

Do that and it will leave you as the last person standing in the ring.

For the #1 Rule of Success is to get up once more often than you fall.

Do you think China’s large consumption of the NBA influences how the league responds to calls to ban the use of shoes and other apparel made by forced labor in China?

China doesn’t use forced labour to make shoes and apparel. It is another political bit of nonsense that the US government made up.

The US government even claimed that China uses forced labour to pluck cotton, just like how the USA enslaved black people to pick cotton in the past. Goodness gracious, what nonsense, who even uses human beings to pluck cotton nowadays. That’s the old primitive way of the USA. Most of the cotton in China is machine-picked and high-speed packed.

So, This is Happening in West Maui, It’s changes EVERYTHING for Oprah & the Rock

The way these people have been treated is beyond disgusting. Greene lies through his teeth. Banks should freeze their mortgages for at least a minimum of three years to allow the people to get back on their feet.

Is there a military branch that will allow me to start as an E4 because I already have a 4 year degree?

Funny story. In 1986, I went through basic at Fort Cambell, Kentucky. I had a two-year degree, and so I entered as an E3. A couple of weeks into the training, the 1stSgt called me into his office. He’s reviewing my record and commenting that he thinks my records are wrong. Because of my two-year degree, he thinks I should have entered as an E4.

He looks at me and asks, “When you enlisted, did they promise you E4?” I quickly answered, “Yes, 1stSgt.” He quickly responds, “I knew it! I will have you promoted to E4, but it will take a week or two. I said, “Thank you 1stSGT!” and was dismissed.

A couple of weeks later, the C.O. of the training company stopped me on the way back from evening chow and said, “I wanted you to know that your next LES will reflect that you were promoted to E4. I cannot have you pinned while you are in basic, nor can you wear the rank because you would be the same rank as some of the soldiers assigned to the company, but, you have been promoted to E4.” I said, “thank you sir,” saluted and went on my way.

As soon as I graduated, I upgraded all my rank insignia to SP4. I get to Aberdeen Proving Grounds for schooling, and as I check-in, the soldier behind the counter asks, “Are you promotable?” I did not know what that meant, but I said, yes. Because I identified as E4 promotable, I was assigned to the barracks with all the other E4s and NCOs going through the same school for retraining. No drill sergeants for me!

What is the best case of “You just picked a fight with the wrong person” that you’ve witnessed?

My Mum was a very formidable Italian lady (all five feet three inches of her!) and took very little nonsense from anybody!! When my sister was 15 and I was 9 my sister went out for the night with a young guy who was 18 (Mum didn’t know this or it would not have been allowed) She was told to be back by 10.00 pm, no later! Midnight approached and my parents were not happy (this was in the days before Mobile Phones) They finally turned up and my Dad went out to remonstrate with the young man whilst my Mum exploded at my sister who was well aware what kind of trouble she was in. Dad came back in with a cut lip where the young Guy had punched him!! Mum grabbed one of my Dad’s hobnail boots went outside and proceeded to bash the young guy around the head and shoulders, loudly cursing him in Italian! The guy screamed at my Mum that he would get the Police on her, she shouted back ‘Do it! my daughter’s 15!! I’ll have you in prison! and every syllable corresponded with another blow to his head and face! After about 10 minutes of the the guy ran away screaming in fear. The next day, right outside our house, the pavement was covered with bloodstains!

New IRS $600 Tax Rule For 2023 (Venmo & Cash App & PayPal)

Americans screwed over YET AGAIN. Good thing, everything is in my Chinese family, not me personally. $20,000 threshold to $600. No fucking way!

Do you actually have to get a driver’s license to drive your privately owned automobile? I have seen some say that a driver’s license is for commercial drivers. Is this true?

You need a drivers license in order to drive your privately owned automobile on public roads. If you drive on your own private property, or someone else’s private property with their permission? No.

The whackos who told you that a driver’s license is for commercial drivers belong to a weird fringe conspiracy cult called “Sovereign Citizens.” To give you an idea how dumb these loonies are, they’re the ones that Flat Earthers point to and say “god, those people will believe anything.”

Sovereign Citizens have all kinds of bizarre beliefs that basically focus on the notion “you do not have to obey any law you do not consent to.” They believe they do not have to obey any law enforcement officers except county sheriffs, they do not have to pay taxes, and that (yes, I’m serious) the Federal government sells each American citizen at birth, and so a “birth certificate” is actually a record of sale to a foreign government.

As you might imagine, these dingbats get arrested rather frequently. When they do, they generally go into court shaking their fists and screaming that the government has no jurisdiction over them and no right to put them on trial, which…goes about as well as you might imagine.

What are the biggest culture shocks people face when coming to Germany?

People and people, but this will put Americans into a coma:

Older people going naked in city center parks. (I am not going to post pictures, because if I do I will get blocked by Quora moderators who obviously are not German and have never been to Germany).

16 year olds drinking beer or wine.

Kids riding alone on buses and trains.

Autobahn on a Friday.

Some people will behave like concentration camp guards but when you forget your credit card they will send it to you in the mail.

How has the US reacted to China’s rise and what are the consequences of its attempts to curb China’s development?

The U.S. thinks that it is exceptional and that the U.S. must always lord over the world. There lies the problem it is certainly not exceptionally strong or good. It may be seen as exceptionally cruel and evil to the developing nations of the world.

China’s phenomenal growth and rise in a way, together with the phenomenal rise of the non western world has resulted in the ending of a Western centric or U.S. dominated world that is in fact a virtual colonisation post colonialism for 300 odd years.

In effect the poor and underdeveloped countries were forced or connived into the so call rules based international order but in effect it is a set of rules to preserve the wealth of the west and continue the looting and theft of resources of the poor to enriched the west. From 1946-at least 2000. You can call this virtual colonialism.

China together with BRICS effectively put and end or at least the beginning of the end of this virtual colonialism order. That upset the U.S. to no end. That is easy to understand. If the biggest mafia in town lost its ability to steal, to or loot at will it may burnt down some buildings and businesses and probably go on a shooting spree. So you can expect war mongering and doing some shit.

But it does not matter what or how U.S. rave and rant. Asia alone represents 60% of the worlds GDP and U.S. is now a mere shadow of itself since 1945 where its economy alone represented 52% of the world’s economy. Today in 2023 China’s growth alone is 36.4% and the entire G7 including the U.S. together adds up to a mere 25.6%! The Ukraine war and the U.S. sanctions and pure robbery of Russia’s reserves will lead to the end of U.S. dollar hegemony and so will western financial institutions.

To me the more the U.S. try to curb China the faster China will eclipse the U.S. There is nothing the U.S. that can do that don’t make the status worst for the U.S. Today it tries to stop the export of Chips to China. It won’t work. It actually means it actually heighten. It’s inflation and suffer crippling shortages. You see China itself now represent 30% of world demand and another 30% of worlds manufacturing. This ban in effect, deprives the U.S. companies of doing business to 50–60% of the world’s demand.

This act will means bankrupting US and its allies chip makers. China will face some challenges. But in a short 5 years 90% of its chips requirements will be Chinese made and in a decade China will totally handle its own demand and it will totally kill off the U.S. chips. Like everything China will make it faster, better and cheaper.

ANGRY Young Man DIES; Meets ANCIENT Soul Family He Has Known for LIFETIMES!

Very down to earth awesome gentleman.

In combat situations and under special circumstances, can leaders in different branches command soldiers that are not in their branch, like a Marine Sergeant giving orders to an Army Infantryman?

Still shot of a Blackwater contractor during the Battle of Najaf in April of 2004

Service members of different stripes in a circumstantial combat situation can certainly order each other around if it’s in a joint environment, but in the most recent conflicts, now private military contractors may just be giving the orders too.

During the Battle of Najaf in the early days of the Iraq War, Iraqi insurgents from the Mahdi Army began to surround a Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) Building within the city of Najaf. Within the confines of the CPA compound, the personnel consisted of CPA employees, Spanish/El Salvadoran soldiers, a detachment of US Marines, and an eight man team of Blackwater contractors.

The situation was deteriorating with insurgents having grabbed an unfortunate El Salvadoran soldier, shoving a grenade into his mouth then pulling the pin in full view of the CPA compound. This was on top of the firefights were breaking out between those in the CPA compound and insurgents who were now attempting storm the compound with the mob that had just killed the soldier.

While this was all occurring, a Blackwater contractor called for help to his higher up’s in Baghdad who had been monitoring the situation. The Blackwater contractors in Baghdad then made an ultimate judgment call to intervene with the CPA compound battle when it became apparent that the US military itself will not provide any sort of assistance in the confusion.

Three Little Bird helicopters were then loaded up with six Blackwater contractors coupled with one Little Bird filled with boxes of ammunition and equipment due to the CPA contractors notifying that they were now dangerously low on ammunition.

The contractors then flew to the CPA compound, unloaded the ammunition and additional support, then evacuated a wounded Marine who had been shot during the battle.

With the additional support of the contractors and ammunition, the combined force of Blackwater contractors, Marines, Coalition troops managed to keep the insurgents from reaching the CPA compound. CPA employees would reload empty magazines then run it up to the men who were fighting off the insurgents, keeping everyone busy.

The Blackwater contractors would find themselves dictating where the Marines and other troops to head to during the battle, which would later draw controversy from critics who claimed that now mercenaries were giving orders to military troops.

Eventually, the siege of the CPA compound would subside after almost two days of battle which could be viewed on many videos via Youtube.

Infamous video of Blackwater contractor Travis Haley during the Battle of Najaf. Critics would later use this video to denote how he had no qualms killing random people with a second nature attitude when he was literally going after insurgents attempting to assault the compound.

The Battle of Najaf would serve as an example of how private military contractors mixed with troops in circumstances that called them to fight side by side.

This does not look like it would end anytime soon with the Russo-Ukraine conflict where Russian private military contractors from the Wagner Group and Russian troops are fighting alongside each other in the conflict.

SCOTT RITTER, ANDREI MARTYANOV, AND GARLAND NIXON JOIN ON NATO, UKRAINE’S TIME RUNS OUT

In this special roundtable, Scott Ritter Andrei Martyanov and Garland Nixon join the program to discuss the ongoing developments of the Ukraine proxy war, what it tells us about Russia, and the growth of the multipolar world in the context of history.

Great crew. Great discussion.

Why do Westerners like you defend China online?

I’m going to try to provide an answer with a slightly different perspective.

First off, I’m an Australian Chinese (in that order), born and educated in Singapore. My family is Peranakan or Straits-born meaning that we were the products of intermarriage between the Chinese and locals in what was then British Malaya.

So I grew up speaking English and Malay and a smattering of dialects. As I was educated in English mission schools, I did not learn Mandarin.

As far as I can remember, I was taught to hate Chinese and Communists. Pretty much everything I read about Communists described them as a threat peace-loving people everywhere. And China was communist.

I think I was 17 when I first read Dick Wilson’s A Quarter of Mankind. This was followed by Emmanuel Hsu’s The Rise of Modern China. In those pages I glimpsed a very different China. So I started reading Chinese history, from the Qin dynasty, and continued my inquiry at university.

Most of my working life was spent as a journalist, a sub-editor to be specific, and much of my work involved, among other things, fact checking.

Nixon’s ping-pong diplomacy opened up a new era of ties with China and Singapore was quick to get in on the act (read quick to realise the profits that could be made trading with China. That is the subject of a whole different set of questions and answers). Trading with the enemy? No, it cannot be. But it was.

The opening up of relations with China also led to a relaxation of travel restrictions on travel to the Middle Kingdom. Up till then, I had visited Hong Kong and could only imagine life across the border. I also visited Taiwan and imagined China to be everything the opposite of Taiwan.

Fast-forward many years when I moved to Australia and started travelling to China (Shenzhen, Chengdu, Guangdong, and Shanghai).

I saw modern cities, efficient public transport, rampant capitalism, and I felt completely safe even in quiet streets in the wee hours of the morning.

Many of the Chinese I met were as friendly as people in other places that I have travelled. Often friendlier. Especially to an ethnic Chinese who did not speak the language (I started learning conversational Mandarin at 54 and can now read a write a little).

To the core of the question: Much of the information about China that’s peddled about is false. Many people have very wrong impressions and ideas about the PRC. And most of the people who hold these ideas will never go to China to see and verify for themselves if what is reported is anywhere near the truth.

So I, and many others, try to provide a balance by correcting the grosser erros of belief held by many as a result of, well, propaganda.

A footnote: In my youth I wanted to move to the West (America, UK, the Scandinavian countries, … thataway). If I were young again, I would go east. To China.

Netherlands Reconsiders Huawei After 5G Successes

“If US is not learning from China, it is more important that China learns from US. China should never forget who forsaken her in its hours of need. To be kind to enemy is to be cruel to oneself .”

https://youtu.be/pt9mnzwUj4I

People say you should get an attorney if you win the lottery, but why? Say I win the Mega Millions, and I sign the back of the ticket, photograph it, and show up at the lottery office bright and early the next day. What bad things would happen to me?

The reason you want a lawyer is to protect you.

I won a scratch ticket for $100,000 one hundred thousand. the accoutant handled the taxes.

After claiming my prize we had 2 weeks where different reporters were looking for pictures and wanting to do an interview with the store that sold the winning ticket. churches and charities knocking on the door looking for a slice.

3 people i went to grade school with came knocking I had not seen them in 10 years. Family calling wanting to get a share or asking for a loan they cant afford to repay.

people were confused when I told them I spent it all.

I divided it up 3 ways and gave equal amounts to my 3 kids for thier college funds. I

f I ever hit another winning ticket I am getting a lawyer to deal with the bullcrap and I am gonna move to Alaska to a remote cabin in the middle of nowheresville with no phone or roads.

What are the myths that need to be busted about China?

The number one myth?

That you can hope to understand China using the English medium.

I am confident I am in the top 1 percentile when it comes to Chinese proficiency in the pool of English speakers beyond the mainland.

I won’t be surprised if I am in the top 0.1 percentile either.

But if I were honest, I will admit as an east Asian that I find it difficult to keep up with the mainland, even though I possess skills and networks to access media and contacts within greater China.

No, it’s not just about the language struggle, which exists even for someone like me with more than a decade’s worth of formal education in the Chinese language.

It is about developing a contextual understanding for mainland frames of reference and how the mainlander thinks.

That is mostly absent in this medium, even among the rare pool of articles grounded in facts. Most are written by east Asians, not westerners.

My advice? Don’t waste time on the China expert who doesn’t speak Chinese. Even foreigners who do are often wrong or misguided, because that is what it takes to pass through the stringent msm filter these days.

When have you fired someone on the spot?

Yes and within the first HOUR of employment!!…

The new employee was just starting, his first day, first morning on the job…

Every morning employees would gather all of their supplies, tools, etc. and load their vans to be ready for the day’s work.

All new employees are to ride with a senior person to gain knowledge and get the hang of things. This was our busiest season and the day was FULL of jobs that needed to be done – all previously scheduled and set in time slots.

This employee was in the process of helping load the van when he came to me and said:

“I need to go to an appointment today; I need the (driver) to drop me off and then pick me up, or wait for me to get done.”

Me: “I am sorry, we are too busy to be able to do all of that on work time. If it is important why don’t you just take the day off, go to your appointment and come back tomorrow ready to go?”

Employee: “Are you F@*king kidding me? What kind of place is this that you don’t care about your employees!!”

Me: “Ummmm, I said you can have the day off, it’s your first day here and I still said go ahead and take the day and come back tomorrow ready to go, I am not sure I understand?”

Employee: “This is BullS@@t, I can’t believe you won’t take care of your employees and have him drive me to my appointment across town and wait for me, you’re F@*ing ridiculous.”

Me: “Um, I am trying to be reasonable here and work with you. How about you can take your own car and follow behind him and when you need to go you can just cut out and go to your appointment. We don’t have the time to do that for you. ”

Employee: “This is ridiculous, I can’t believe you treat your employees this way, you are being so unfair, this is Bull S#@t, F@*!ng ridiculous!”

Me: “Actually, why don’t you go ahead and go home and not come back at all. Thank you for your time.”

Employee then was shocked that I fired him and could not believe or understand why I was letting him go.

This was truly shocking to me. Fired him on the spot within ONE hour of being employed.

“Ukrainian soldiers are being DRUGGED and forced to fight” Ex-CIA Larry Johnson

We now have reports that captured Ukrainian soldiers are turning up drugged out of their minds on some kind of inhibition blocker. Reports say these soldiers are going on withdrawals after being captured. Ex-CIA analyst Larry Johnson joins us to discuss.

What is the current relationship between China and the United States? How did this come to be, and what are the implications for the rest of the world?

The relationship with China from the U.S. perspective as always needs to be one of subservience and submissive to the U.S. That has been the default mode of what US expect it to be since 1945. Let’s call a spade a spade. The U.S. cannot deal with a nation that can and will say no to the U.S.

But if I should be completely honest to the US I will recommend to them to move on and keep your winnings. China with 1.4 billion highly discipline, extremely hard working people who are driven and industrious, today equipped with the state of art infrastructure and leading in 37/44 key and strategic technology cannot be push aside without untold damages to the U.S. itself.

But the U.S. political system, one based totally on popularity contest means that it cannot be pragmatic and realistic. It has to drain tremendous resources to try to keep its hegemonic place, even if it means bankrupting the U.S. that is precisely what the U.S is doing today.

For China is is so simple. Let the US have a long and strong rope to hang itself slowly to death. Lure the U.S. to fight China in a way that drains away the U.S. resources, influence and turned away its allies one by one. It does that be staying the moral high ground. It is the U.S. that is desperate so while the U.S. goes low, China stays high. It is winning without a fight. Remember Mohamad Ali “Rope a dope” the big George Foreman drains all its energy and knock him out in 15 rounds.

China is doing the “rope a dope” while the U.S. is ranting and panting away. Trump thought it wins popularity by starting the trade war with China. China pretends to avoid war but knows so well that it will hurt and harm the U.S. several folds of what it hurts China. Do you notice Biden wants to end the tariff and China says. Not so fast Amigo!

The implications to US allies are particularly bad and the more of a U.S. lackey the worst it gets. Asia is doing just fine and dandy.

How did it come to be? Well China grew astronomically strong economically, politically and even militarily and the U.S. is in denial and Americans are ignorant and naive about China till it is way past too late. The U.S. is in a quick sand. The more it struggles. The faster it sinks.

Since you asked about implications, The US pay the highest price for doing shit on China. The world is moving on faster than the U.S. realised. The U.S. dollar hegemony is all but gone. The U.S. and western order may appeal to a handful of its close allies. No different from a pack of street hoodlums hanging on to its biggest bully as beneficiaries.

US debts will reach 100 trillion in a decade, US deficits cannot go down. It cannot make anything at less than twice it cost worldwide. US standard of living has stagnated back 60 years to the 1960s. And the poor U.S. growing while it’s middle class is collapsing.

Meanwhile for China, you ain’t seen nothing yet! Once it made T-shirts and Toys. Today it makes your computers and smartphones. Soon it makes your EVs and AI and Jet planes. It middle class is now at 700 million will grow to 1 billion people within a generation. 4–6 times the size of the U.S. middle income.

Harvard Economist Reveals Shocking SECRET About China In 2023

Dr. Keyu Jin is one of the most outstanding China insiders. She is a professor at the London School of Economics and has an incredible knowledge of how the US and China both work. In today’s video I share with you her insights into China innovation and how China really works.

16 People Describe What A Dead Body Smell Like

1. “Understand that a pound or two of rotten meat only gives you a faint whiff of the smell of a full-grown corpse. The power of the smell is incredible. Personally, I’m not sure it’s describable. You want to gag when you’re fifty feet away. It can take years for the smell to leave a house. It just lingers in the background. Cars are totalled by the insurance company for the odor. And the guy driving the wrecker can’t drive fast enough to get away from the smell.

It gets on your skin and clothes. (People use bio-suits for body removal for a reason.) Maggots abound, fluids abound, and I’ve never read a good description of the experience. No matter how well you write, it will be but a pale imitation of the experience.”

2. “Buy a Boston Butt pork roast and let it rot. Pigs and humans are apparently similar, meat-wise. It actually turns like a sea blue-green color. (It smells like farts and then gets worse.)”

3. “A dead body, specifically a human corpse has a rank and pungent smell mixed with a tinge of sickening sweetness. Imagine a rotting piece of meat with a couple drops of cheap perfume and you’re halfway to understanding what a human corpse smells like.”

4. “It varies from person to person and how long they have been decomposing.

You get a very sharp, foul smell similar to horrible cheese mixed with the same smell you get from a full trash can in the sun.

If the body decompressed and they had a full bladder, you’ll also smell body fluids, so stale urine and straight fecal matter. For those who don’t know, toilet poop smells bad, but shit that is airborne, not water logged or anything is straight horrific on its own.

If you have flying insect and larva development increase smell this far times two. If it’s hot outside times three and if it’s cold out and the heat in the house is cranked it’s times five at minimum for the dry heat.

The worse part is the materials they died on. Wood mixed with death has a woody slime smell mixed with the death ratio above, carpet has a wet padding smell (like cat wizz) plus death and it’ll it’s on furniture it’s really fun as it usually leaks through to the carpet and wood subfloor.

If you’re smelling these things outside a house, you don’t want to be near it when they go in. Cleaning and deodorizing that is pretty rough.”

“I have assisted in an autopsy on a body several days old, and even though it was in a huge chilling compartment, the smell was in the whole complex. It smells like there are a million dead and rotting rats around you.”

5. “Rotten eggs, feces, and a used toilet left out for a month x 1000. It is unholy.

The smell gets into your throat and you can taste it. You will literally run to find some clean air. Even then, it lingers and you can’t quite get the smell away. Even though you can no longer physically smell it, you remember it and it takes quite a while to get over it.”

6. “A dead body to me smells like a cross between rotting meat and very dirty kitty litter box. Very distinct smell that you won’t forget.”

7. “You ever have like a dead mouse or something hiding somewhere and you just smell something awful? It’s pretty much that. The best I can sum it up to is like shit mixed with meat…in a weird way

8. “In my experience, any formerly living creature, whether human or non-human, has that same powerful, pungent, disgusting odor that I can only describe as a garbage can left to ferment in high heat for an extended period of time. It does vary some between species, though.

A couple of other answers written in this feed point to some things that are accurate. First, two chemicals, Putrescine and Cadaverine, are both found in decomposing tissue. Both are diamenes and they are produced as a result of amino acids (most notably Lysine) breaking down. They each gave their own characteristic odor which by themselves are bad enough. When they are combined due to the simultaneous presence, they are indescribable.

Second, pigs are indeed closest to humans in terms of the odor they give off when decomposing. Any animal with a musk gland (skunks, badgers, and muskrats are some examples. I’m sure there are many others as well) are also pretty stinky when they break down. All produce these same two chemicals because when you think about it, any creature that breathes in Oxygen and releases Carbon Dioxide is going to have a similar metabolic makeup that, when stopped is going to respond in a similar manner.”

9. “Once, I took a trip. When I returned, there was a terrible odor in my den. I know the odor of dead animals on the road or in the forests. Mom puts out poison for mice, so I have smelled them under things in her home. There was a rotten odor like this in my den, so I looked under everything, but I found nothing. The next day, I saw some cops and medics at the next apartment. I learned that my neighbor had died and decomposed for days before anyone found him. The odor is sickening. It’s hard to describe fully.”

10. “It depends how long it’s been dead but if you have ever smelled rotten meat it’s similar to that. some words commonly used to describe it would probably be rancid, foul, putrid, the smell of decay, etc. If it’s decomposed down to the skeleton there probably won’t be any smell anymore since the flesh, muscle, and organs are the ones that create the most smell and decay quickly.”

11. “I recently in countered a dead body that had been rotting in a van near my home for 5-7 days. At first, I though it was Korean people making kimchi, but after seeing the body removal with my own eyes I know that the smell was not of pickled vegetables. I work for a plumbing company so I’m always finding myself walking in raw sewage in basements. And I have to say the smell is similar to sewage or waste. Its nauseating and quite foul. Authorities have removed the body, but the area still smells of fragrant corpse. To be honest, I don’t know why you’d ever wonder about this. But yes indeed, it’s very disgusting. As a female I always find myself running out of breath when I’m dealing with sewage, but a body is about 10 times worse.”

Now, death depends on the environment in my opinion. I’ve smelt a few bodies in morgues and things like that, they just smell of death, it’s indescribable really, but you remember that smell. It’s a cold smell, a heavy smell (this is the best way I can describe it).

Rotting corpses of course just smell like any other rotting mammals, next time you spot some road-kill, stop and give it a sniff, pretty much what a rotting human corpse smells like.”

12. “I was a volunteer firefighter and police had to enter the residence before any of us could. The SCBA is automatic. So I quickly put it on a cop to enter the residence of a woman who neighbors haven’t seen in weeks. Those SCBAs block toxins and the cop ran out of the house drowning on his vomit. He claims he smelled her through the mask….That’s how bad a dead person smells. We eat everything. Those toxins in our bodies is what makes us stink so bad when we die. And to make it worse, when I got home I snorted soap while in the shower. A few hours later I began smelling the stench of her again. The bacteria is said to cling to your nostril hair and remultiplies later until it’s gone. I can’t tell you what it smells like. You’ll know it when you do.”

13. “Not very pleasant. It is a very strong, stomach turning, smell. It does in a way smell like rotten eggs, but it is much more intense. That is the best I can describe the smell, but I heard from someone else on how to make a small replica of it. Take a bag of soy beans, saturate them in water,let them stand a few days in heat above 70F while keeping them moist,crush some of the mixture.In a few days you will smell what decaying flesh/protein smells like.”

14. “My brother-in-law died in his appt. & was there 5 days before being found. When my wife & I went for the funeral (just a picture of him, no body) we went to help clean his place. I can’t describe the smell nor will I ever forget it. It permeated all soft things so badly they had to be throw out, we managed to keep a couple tables only. Even the TV stunk after airing out for week.

15. “Take some meat and leave it in a bag outside for about 3 days in the middle of summer. Then open the bag and mix in some Mexican food diarrhea. Add a good helping of the strongest catfish stink bait you can find. Mix well. This is the best that Death will ever smell.”

16. “Living in an apartment building and the guy next door fell in his bathtub (apparently). We didn’t see him often, so it wasn’t anything weird to not see him but his audio books were put on his doorknob and stayed for a couple days (he was blind, they delivered books to him to listen to).

Started smelling really weird, and since my son was just a baby at that time we’d initially thought somehow we hadn’t put a diaper in the garbage and it had ended up somewhere and was stinking up the place, searched high and low but couldn’t find it. The landlady knocked on his door (all our doors, handing out notices) and we mentioned we hadn’t seen him in a bit…half an hour later she was letting the police into his place.

I can’t imagine the smell in the same room though, it was bad enough being in the next apartment!”

What is the current relationship between the United States and China? Does China still need the United States for its economy?

No China don’t need the U.S. to survived or even to be a moderate growth economy in 2023. I will argue that containment, decoupling or de-risking of China which to me and most in the world means the same thing, is counter beneficial to the U.S. and good for China in the long term. The U.S. meanwhile loses the worlds. Biggest market or equivalent to the 2nd to the 10th biggest market for the U.S. put together.

There lies the enormity of the U.S. problem. Without China, the U.S. will suffer between 25–50% inflation which will highly impoverish American’s on the one hand with its U.S. brands becoming unsaleable and losing market share by half at least. All these while losing a humongous market.

By right the U.S. ought to not even dare to utter those threatening words but U.S. politicians lose too much to go soft after their media demonised China for a century. Sure China could be richer with the U.S. being rational. But China don’t take threats by the U.S lightly. The US political system is essentially a popularity contest and even if is suicidal the politicians compete to be a bigger China hawk while its own people suffer.

The trouble with threat is once you utter the word on banning China, sanctioning China, decoupling from China, containing China or even de-risking from China. China won’t hold back to defend itself. And China will make sure it will never depend on the U.S. and the west. That means China will totally do its own thing from now onwards.

That is very bad news for the U.S. as China do everything better, faster and cheaper than anyone on earth by a long shot. And the Huawei Mate 60 pro proved beyond doubt that there is nothing it cannot do! The U.S. should really think many times over before it challenge China for American sake. But the trade war and the chip ban proved to me and the world beyond doubt that the U.S. government don’t care about its own people and it’s own economy.

What are your general advices/tips for a college graduate (fresher) stepping into the corporate world?

Same advise I gave my son :-

Don’t follow any instruction related to investing money or sanctioning a loan or allocating money UNLESS YOU HAVE A WRITTEN INSTRUCTION from your superior/cby email or whatsApp or paper letter
Never start smoking due to peer pressure or tension. Use bubble gum instead
First Beer with first month paycheck. First hard liquor after six months of paychecks at least.
Don’t express any political opinion or make any comment apart from work and movies and games and sports
Don’t ever go over your superiors head unless he is on leave or unreachable or is a total dumbo
When a woman wants to come to your office to talk to you, keep your door open or ask a friendly female colleague to sit in the office during the meeting under the pretext of taking notes
Never meet any Vendor or Supplier outside work or at your home. Always meet in office and keep your door open during the meeting and ask a colleague in to pretend to take notes
Never accept any gifts from Vendors or Suppliers whose value exceeds ₹2000/— unless everyone else is accepting the gifts and it’s been approved by your superiors
Never ever accept a meeting in a Hotel room with a potential client or customer. Always MEET IN THE LOBBY OR COFFEE SHOP where you have CCTV cameras
You may be finding yourself forced to spend a lot of money by being in the company of your superiors and indulge in pubs, golfing and high class call girls. Resist. Make excuses and resist until they get the message
No more than 120 ml of Scotch / Rum with 180 ml Club Soda Or Tonic Water Or 3 Tequila Shots at any office party , in fact my son makes the excuse that his liver is weak and avoids any drink entirely
Save around 45% of your paycheck if possible. At least 30%
Don’t ever eat Chickpeas, Beans, Cauliflowers, Kadalai, Sundal for breakfast. If you fart, you become a joke and it’s tough to recover your reputation
Never assume your female colleague who laughs and talks to you likes you romantically. Always ASK if in doubt. Simply ask “Are we friends or could this turn into something more”. Don’t presume.

She Is Against Mandatory Paternity Tests At Birth

This is trending in the United States. Jeeze!

“That woman who said requiring DNA testing would open up a can of worms scared the daylight out of me. Is she suggesting that a whole host of men are providing for children that aren’t theirs and letting this be known would blow up lots of families? What on earth have you women been up to?”

Graham Perry on China and US

Graham Perry is a UK-based China observer, and wrote a good piece on China/US relations which is worth reading at length:

On the surface things look good in the US; unemployment is low; their economy is growing at 2.4% and inflation is falling. And yet consumer confidence, according to Irwin Stelzer in the Sunday Times, is at its lowest in four months. And Prof Percy Allen – in Pearls and Irritations – concludes that American society is more divided than it has been since its Civil War of the 1860s. “According to a Pew Research poll

about six in ten Republicans and more than half of Democrats have a very unfavourable view of the other party. Thirty years ago, fewer than a quarter in both parties rated the other party badly.”

A recent CNN poll showed almost 70% of Republicans do not accept the electoral legitimacy of the Biden administration. And almost 60% of voters lack confidence that elections in the US today reflect the will of the people.

Other polls by States United Action and Chicago University’s CPOST Research Centre found that over half US voters think elections won’t solve America’s most fundamental political and social problems, and almost half consider political elites, both Democrats and Republicans, are the most immoral and corrupt people in America. The US is fast becoming a dysfunctional nation – and that was before yesterday’s sacking of Speaker McCarthy.

But when it comes to China, Americans unite and rally around the flag. Hatred of China is the one single issue that brings America together.President Biden’s #1 worry

is that China will become the wealthiest and most powerful country in the world. Biden has promised to stop that. He has referred to China as “bad people” who when they have problems do “bad things” The demonisation of China has clearly worked. The 2023 survey by the Pew Research Center found that 83% of Americans hold negative views of China. The share who says China is an “enemy” is now 38%. An IPSOS poll

found one-third of Americans view China as an imminent threat and two in five Americans think that war with China is likely in the next five years.

The US under Bush and Obama held to the view that China’s economic growth and increased prosperity would bring a relaxation of political rhetoric as the number of Chinese middle class citizens increased. Expanding economic rights would lead inevitably to increased political rights and the downgrading of the role of China’s Communist Party. China would become “compliant reasonable and accommodating”. It has not happened. Billionaires may flourish in China (800+ in number) but the Party remains at the apex of power. China has not changed.

Trump heralded a new and antagonistic approach to China when he started a trade war by unilaterally imposing high tariffs on Chinese goods coming into the US. And when that did not work, he resorted to allegations of genocide against the Uighurs in Xinjiang province to try to demonise China in the eyes of the world. But it, too, has not worked. China remains China and continues to be welcomed by the rest of the world in part because of its Belt and Road Initiative – as historian Professor Francis Fukiyama has said “China has lent more than $1 trillion to more than 100 countries through the Initiative, dwarfing Western spending in the developing world and stoking US anxieties about the spread of Beijing’s power and influence”.

Trump’s successor, President Biden increased economic sanctions on China and announced that “he would not allow China’s economy to overtake America’s” even though, as Prof Allen notes, most economists think that this is inevitable given China’s huge population and income gap.

The flashpoint is Taiwan for two reasons. First, China’s long-standing policy to reunify China with Taiwan and, second, as explained in yesterday’s Post #473, the US is worried sick that a confrontation with China could seriously jeopardise the US economy by impeding, even stopping, the export from Taiwan to the US of essential semi-conductors. Within the US hierarchy – the White House, Capitol Hill, the Pentagon and the Joint Chiefs of Staff – there are those who want to give China “a bloody nose” and fundamentally derail China’s economic growth by military action – the Hawks – before China is way ahead and out of sight. “Act Today Because Tomorrow Is Too Late” is their cry.

There are also Doves who fear hostilities and prefer an uneasy but non-confrontational approach to China. For the Doves, second place to China is preferrable to war with China It is not clear who will win but certainly if the Hawks prevail over the Doves the world will be set on a most dangerous path.

Oliver Anthony- Rich Men North of Richmond (Remix Mashup ft Dax & Jo Tyler)

Another great mashup remix.

What is the lamest “benefit” you’ve been offered by an employer?

At Papa John’s Pizza I was getting fed up that they weren’t hiring the sufficient amount of staff to properly run the store. Along with doing bike deliveries I also cashed, took phone calls, entered orders, swept, mopped and emptied garbage. They kept a skeleton staff of 3 workers per shift and whenever they had to pay overtime they grumbled and wanted explanations as to why.

Frustrated and fatigued I applied for Dominos Pizza delivery. This is how snippets of the conversation went during the interview.

Interview Lady: We pay the highest hourly rate of all pizza restaurants. $21 per hour.

Me: Papa John’s paid $20 an hour. This is just a dollar more.

Lady: Yes! The highest rate for delivery riders in the country!

Lady: When you come to the restaurant you’ll be happy to see that you’ll be getting so much deliveries. Endless deliveries!

Me: How much do I get paid per delivery?

Lady: $7 per delivery!

Me: That’s the lowest delivery payment of all the pizza restaurants.

Lady: Yes but you’ll be doing so many deliveries, getting so much tips that it wouldn’t matter.

(I later found out that Dominos charged customers $20 for delivery, the highest delivery charge of all fast food restaurants in the country. They paid the driver $7 out of the $20 charge and the restaurant pocketed the remaining $13 for themselves.)

Me: What are the closing hours?

Lady: 10:30pm.

Me: You mean like only on Fridays and Saturdays?

Lady: No everyday.

Me: Thats a bit late and taxis round here stop working around 8pm. Any transport provided for me to get home?

Lady: No.

Me: Will I be able to use the Domino’s motorcycle to get home? (I was allowed this benefit in a previous restaurant I worked that had this same issue)

Lady: No.

Me: Can I leave earlier then?

Lady: Of course. Due to your transport situation we’ll allow you to leave 10 minutes earlier!

Lady: We are a very flexible organization.

Me: How so? (inwardly groaning, expecting more bullshit)

Lady: We give you the choice to work either as contracted or non-contracted.

Me: What does that mean?

Lady: Contracted means that you work somewhat as a permanent staff. You can work all the overtime hours you want. However overtime would be paid at the usual rate of $21 an hour. No time and a half. The same applies for public holidays.

Non contracted is like temporary staff. We pay the usual time and a half for overtime but as you are non contracted you don’t get overtime hours as we send you home after you’ve made your 40hrs a week. We don’t allow you to work on holidays so you basically get your flat salary every week whereas with a contract you are allowed more hours.

Me: More hours at the same rate?

Lady: Yes.

Me: Wouldn’t that be a lose-lose situation?

Lady: No. It’s a win-win!

Me: Am I entitled to a free meal?

Lady: No.

Me: And the uniform?

Lady: We are the only pizza restaurant that provides free uniforms for staff?

Me: How many uniforms?

Lady: Two free Dominos shirts and a cap. We are having them laundered after being returned by a delivery driver who recently left.

Me: You’re giving me a guy’s used clothes?

No: No. She only used them for two days. They’re practically new.

Me: You’re giving used female clothing?

Lady: It’s a free uniform!

Suffice to say I instantly and humbly returned to Papa John’s and their skeleton staff.

Mystery Cambodia

A nice fun video that takes you to another world. LOL.

It will probably upset some folks, but too bad. This is real life. This guy interviews some prostitutes in Cambodia. If you don’t want the experience then you can pass on this video. It’s ok.

How can we become a winner at everything in life?

Originally Answered: How can we become a Winner at everything in Life?

What made Muhammed Ali the best Boxer in the world?
What made Michael Phelps go above and beyond every time he swam?
How come Gandhi made so much more of an impact than anybody else?

None of them were exceptional people since birth.

Sure, there is the claim that Michael Phelps, for example, has double the lung-capacity of most humans, which has been disproven.

And while he does have some physical advantages, like longer arms and shorter legs, while being tall, so does everybody else he is competing against!

What made the difference in their ability was not their born talents but rather the way they approached what they did.

They were willing to work harder and produce more than anyone else was willing to.

They are willing to do whatever it takes, go the extra mile and do more than those around them, which is what eventually gets them to succeed.

I remember reading an article back when Michael Phelps was just getting traction, that talked about how ridiculous his training regiment is and how it was way too intense.

At the time many doctors and health experts argued about his routine.

Today, I cannot find any article even mentioning that he was doing too much anymore.

After about 2 days of looking for that article I gave up.

All articles about him only praise his efforts and his routine; obviously because it worked.

He revolutionized the field.

The same can be said about Mahatma Gandhi, who did something no one else dared to do to make a statement that inspired millions.

And the effort that Muhammad Ali made can be clearly seen by one of his quotes:

I don’t count my sit-ups. I only start counting when it starts hurting. That is when I start counting, because then it really counts.

That’s what makes you A CHAMPION. — Muhammad Ali

Each of them made their entire day about training, sacrificing a lot of their day so they could focus on just that one thing.

And then we wonder why we cannot succeed.

The big question you need to ask yourself is: Are you doing enough?

Are the results showing up in the way you want to? Are you succeeding or do you need to do more?

Now, I cannot give you the exact stats of the men named above, as every page I visited had different numbers they boasted about, most of them disclaiming each other.

So I will instead share my own story and numbers to make this point.

Now I am by no means even close to as great as the men above, but I hope the point still comes across.

I started out as a Writer with a WordPress Blog.

At the beginning, it was just to practice my consistency and I wrote about 300 posts in my first year, yielding a total of 20 followers.

This was very little and so I switched to a site called Quora. In my first 6 months there I wrote about 1,000 posts, averaging 3 a day, before I wrote one answer that went viral.

This was back in 2016. Since then I have averaged about 3 posts a day consistently over the years.

I have been published on The Huffington Post, Time, and many more sites, have over 75,000 followers, 60M content views and get over 1M views a month still, and none of it because I was a good writer!

My very first post that I wrote was a page long block of text that was essentially a Writer’s Nightmare.

The only thing that pushed me through was that no one else wrote that much.

Many people wrote one post a day, if that, some even less.

And let me tell you this, after 18 Months of writing every day, the one viral post did not feel like a stroke of luck anymore, it felt deserved.

The point I want to make here is it is not about where you start or what prerequisites you have.

Winning is not about being better than everybody else.

Winning is about being the last person running in a race where everyone else gave up.

If you want to win you have to break through the noise by either doing more than others are willing to or doing it longer than they want to.

I have seen so many amazing writers leave Quora to never write again because they just did not break through the noise.

Mahatma Gandhi just did not eat, Michael Phelps only swam a lot, and Muhammad Ali trained a bit.

We have all done these things before, they are nothing special when you look at them like that. It’s not like they invented something none of us could ever dream of or did something that was so unbelievable it looked like Magic.

What made them special was the fact that they kept pushing and kept going with it when many people around them gave up or would have given up!

So let me ask you this then: Are you doing anything that stands out?

When you are working out do you do more and take shorter breaks than anyone else? When you are with your partner do you give them more attention and love than they can handle? When you are working at your job, do you work 10x more than any of your colleagues?

Are you doing anything that stands out?

You cannot expect yourself to win by just doing what everyone else is doing.

Sorry, but you are just not that special!

You have to become special by doing something extraordinary, and I mean that in the most literal sense possible:

Extra-Ordinary!

That means you do not overexert yourself.

Don’t expect to be able to train 6–8 hours a day, 7 days a week after having done no training at all.

Take it one step at a time but work yourself up and stay committed to it.

If you have the time and energy, then you can push further faster; it will get easier.

The 3 posts I wrote took anywhere from 3–6 hours a day at first. Now I can often write better posts in 15 minutes.

It does get easier.

Pick something, anything in your life that you wish to win at, and commit yourself to more of that.

Even if it is just an hour a day, if you do it long enough you will become absolutely amazing at it.

Push your limits day by day, even one more minute each day gets you 6 hours more in just one year.

“Let me tell you something you already know.

The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows.

It’s a very mean and nasty place and I don’t care how tough you are it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life.

But it ain’t about how hard ya hit.

It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward.

That’s how winning is done!” — Sylvester Stallone, Rocky Balboa

Breaking US Sanctions: How Huawei Changed US-China Tech War

Carl Zha talks to tech expert TP Huang about how latest Huawei breakthrough in advanced chip design and manufacturing is a game changer in the US waged tech war and economic war against China. Why ultimately US sanctions on China will fail. The rest of this interview is on my Patreon site

Of those who join the U.S. military, how many end up in unglamorous jobs like driving a supply truck or handling paperwork in an office?

During WW2 there was a company that always submitted excellent paper work, head Quarters noticed this and moved their clerk typist to Headquarters, Battalion noticed him and moved him up to their office, he continued to be so dependable the higher ups wanted him, so eventually he ended up in Eisenhower’s front office.

One day, A hard nosed colonel came in to the office and demanded to see Ike, now. The clerk typist asked him, what does this pertain to? The Colonel started getting loud, said he didn’t need to explain anything to a clerk typist.

Ike came out to see the commotion, the colonel again was indignant.

Ike looked around the waiting room, saw another colonel sitting there, took an eagle pin off that colonel’s collar, and pinned it on the collar of the clerk, and said “ Now tell the colonel what you want”, and returned into his office.

The clerk was a colonel for the duration of his enlistment.

What did you learn in the military that has been useful for your civilian life?

During basic training, I did a lot of cleaning.

On a daily basis, my team and I would clean toilets, floors, rooms, the kitchen, our rifles, the floor around the barracks, our vests, our magazines and even the dog who lived in the barracks. I hated it.

I truly did not understand why I was spending months of paratrooper training time to clean up places that were spotless, instead of shooting and learning to fight.

And then I experienced my first operation.

My team and I were sent with four vehicles to meet up with a field intelligence unit, and prepare for the operation.

I remember meeting the field intelligence guys. It was the first time in my service meeting men, on duty, serving in a different unit than mine.

Their gear was obviously ill maintained, their vehicles were disgusting and dusty, and I could see the soot on the barrels of their rifles who have obviously not been cleaned in weeks. I wanted to tell their commander he was doing a shit job at maintaining his team’s gear.

And then it struck me.

All that cleaning during training has turned me into a neat freak.

Everything, even now in my apartment, needs to be perfectly placed, spotless and maintained. There are no excuses, and there should be none. An organized living is the basis for an organized life.

The lesson I took from all this epiphany?

There is shit in life you will not want to do, and you might even hate doing it, but truly successful people do the things they do not want to do, as best as they can, because eventually it will pay off in the long run.

China-Japan-South Korea Upcoming Summit: What’s Behind this Surprising Diplomatic Shift??

In a surprising turn of events, China has recently announced its willingness to hold a summit with Japan and South Korea leaders. This unexpected move begs the question: what has prompted this significant change? Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, Wang Wenbin, revealed that the three countries have reached an agreement to convene a meeting of their foreign ministers “in the next few months,” with the intention of facilitating a gathering of leaders as soon as possible. Undoubtedly, this initiative is driven by the collective interests of the three parties involved.

This development comes on the heels of China’s denouncement, in late August, of the statement released at the conclusion of the Camp David summit. The gathering, which brought together the leaders of the US, Japan, and South Korea, raised concerns about transforming the Asia-Pacific region into a geopolitical battleground. However, China’s willingness to engage in dialogue with its neighboring nations demonstrates an intriguing diplomatic shift. Be sure to subscribe to my channel for regular updates on global affairs & geopolitical shifts. Don’t miss out on my in-depth analysis of significant events shaping the world today!

The US is digging for a deeper hole.

As Washington reportedly plans to update its export curbs against China in October, an analysis report by a Dutch media posits that the previous export curbs imposed a year ago exposed the Biden Administration seem to have no clear idea of their objectives.

According to Dutch media Bits&Chips, the semiconductor restrictions against China are likely a product of the US struggle between hawks and doves concerning the China issue, leading to loopholes and a lack of clear goals.

To consider the interests of US-based semiconductor equipment and material suppliers, the US government allows the delivery of equipment that may be used to make advanced chips, highlighting the incompleteness and inconsistency of the curbs.

The US Bureau of Industry and Security set a threshold that requires exporters to get a license before shipping to China for equipment that can make logic chips with FinFET or GAAFET architecture of 16/14nm or below. However, the current export controls are insufficient if US export controls aim to deny China’s production capabilities of 14nm and below.

For example, ASML’s NXT:1980Di, capable of making 7nm chips using multiple patterning, is not subject to the current curbs . Suppliers, such as Applied Materials, Lam Research, and KLA, continue to deliver advanced products to China.

On the other hand, the US may not achieve its intended results if it aims to prevent China’s progress in the semiconductor industry, as demonstrated by Huawei’s Mate 60 Pro, which highlights the fact that China can make advanced chips without advanced equipment.

As Reuters reported that the US is reportedly expected to unveil an update for the export controls in the coming days, it may be challenging for related suppliers to adapt to tighter controls if the US tries to close the loopholes.

Huawei has obtained crucial patents on 6G technology, which may allow the Chinese company to thrive in the 6G era, according to Simon Chen, chairman of Adata Technology.

When did you realize small things matter?

7:02 am:

The shop’s doors just opened for the day.

A green Toyota Celica drove into the customers’ parking space and a man alighted and walked into the store.

He was a first-time caller.

He was supporting his trousers with his hands.

‘Please I just need a belt. My belt snapped in the car, and I live far away from here. I am late for work and I don’t have money on me now. Can you trust me, I will bring the money at the close of work today’.

O My God!

First business of the day!

A man I never knew?

And here in this country, Nigeria?

‘Give him, he looks genuine. Could as well happen to you!’, one side of the brain was preaching.

‘Don’t!! Could be one of them. You’ll lose if you do!!’, the other side was screaming and countering.

‘Why can’t we live in a world where we can trust people and help them without fear?’, I was trying to make sense of this mental back-and-forth.

I gave him a very good quality belt, made the necessary perforations and he thanked me profusely and left.

5:06 pm:

The green Toyota Celica pulled up.

It was him.

To make good his promise.

Why isn’t life just this good!

Today, many years after that day, he no longer works around the area or passes through the route daily, but for such a small thing, he is one of my most valuable customers and has repaid the trust many, many times over.

Texas Jambalaya

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup diced onion
1/4 cup diced green bell pepper
1/2 cup diced celery
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped garlic
1 cup converted rice, uncooked
4 ounces smoked sausage, cut into 1/4 inch slices
4 ounces ham, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 cans Ro*Tel diced tomatoes and green chiles
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1 bay leaf
2 cans Ranch Style Texas beans, undrained

Instructions

In a 5 quart saucepot over medium-high heat, heat oil.
Add onion, green pepper and celery; cook until onions are translucent.
Add garlic, cook 1 minute longer.
Add rice, sausage and ham. Cook 2 to 3 minutes to coat rice with oil, stirring frequently.
Add next 4 ingredients and heat to boiling.
Cover and steam 20 to 25 minutes or until all liquid is absorbed.
Remove bay leaf, stir in beans and serve.

The Exhausted and Unable to Survive, the Cat was Thrown Out on the Grass to Die

Bless you for saving this baby from death…

Why did Chariots lose their popularity on the battlefield?

On the 1st of October, 331 B.C.E., the Persian king Darius III finally had that Macedonian pest Alexander the Great right where he wanted him – on a big flat plain where Darius could make full use of his cavalry and 2–1 numerical advantage against the Greek upstart.

The location was Gaugamela in what’s now northern Iraq. For the past three years Alexander had been making Darius’s life a living hell but it was payback time.

At the head of Darius’s forces were 200 heavy chariots. The plan was, as usual, to unleash these monsters running at full speed into the Greek infantry lines. The weather was good, the field was dry – perfect conditions for slaughtering the Greeks and sending them all the way back to the Aegean.

Things…. didn’t work out. As with any battle that took place 3,300 years ago there were different stories about what happened. The only things we know for sure are:

Alexander’s forces killed or captured most of the Persian army at a loss of no more than 1,500 troops; and
The chariots turned out to be entirely useless.

Alexander knew the problem posed by the chariots and was ready for them. He drilled his men to fall back into pockets that would allow the chariot to penetrate the line, only to be met by infantrymen with their spears jammed into the ground pointing directly at the pocket.

What would happen is the horses, running at full speed, would run into the pocket but, facing the spears, would stop suddenly. The charioteers would find themselves surrounded on three sides and no way forward, and horses and chariots don’t reverse easily. As you can see, the chariots mostly went through the gap in the Macedonian line, only to find Alexander leading a cavalry charge back at the gap that wiped them out entirely.

The tactic remained a military favourite against horse soldiers for most of the next 1,800 years.

When the tactic was revived in the 15th century, it similarly made knights on horseback pretty much obsolete.

After Gaugumela, Alexander’s tactics were similarly widely adopted and the use of chariots started to tail off as they became ineffective and easy to lose.

Rich Men North Of Richmond, but it’s a Rap Type Beat

Made a beat to the song everyones talking about rn – Rich Men North Of Richmond by Oliver Anthony. Had a lot of fun with this one, went from idea to finished product in a day. The song isn’t set to a bpm so forgive me for parts that are off time, it was tough putting it all in time. Also shoutout to @TimGuitarLessons I used his audio in some parts.

Why do Westerners like you defend China online?

As you get older, you realize that people who lie constantly have some kind of mental problem. It might be a habit; a neurosis, or a DMS-4 illness. But they are not “right in the head”. Something (not saying what it is) is wrong.

Fully functioning adults do not need to lie. They say things as they are. If they don;t want to answer a question, they say so. They have self-confidence, pride and a sense of self-worth.

…

When I first came to China I started to compare my life as an American, to that of China.

And, as such, I quickly realized that SOMETHING was seriously, very seriously wrong with the United States.

The best way for me to describe this is to imagine that you are married to a mentally ill person. (I was, by the way. My first wife was schizo-effective; which had the worst qualities of bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia). Then you get divorced, and meet up with a healthy person.

It was like that.

…

I am in China. It is a healthy nation. It is calm and peaceful. The leadership works towards allowing people freedom and happiness, and it shows.

When I was in the United States, however, everything was a struggle. One problem after the other. And today, it’s only getting worse.

…

Why do I defend China?

Because a mentally ill nation is attacking it using every single DSM-4 technique in the book.

Has a patient ever been forgotten in an exam room?

My girlfriend was to remove the patient’s prostate through a so-called radical prostatectomy. It was Wednesday morning, a couple of weeks ago.

And Wednesdays can be tough.

A typical Wednesday typically includes brutally waking up very early, getting ready, driving to the hospital, and starting the first scheduled surgery at 8AM sharp. Usually a number of operations are planned, depending on the time they take, and urgency.

The afternoon typically consists of a large number of consultations.

After consulting, she usually drives to her father’s house (which is pretty far away from the hospital), because our daughter will be there, but before leaving the hospital, she always visits the patients who had surgery in the morning to have a little chat about the operation, about how the patient is feeling, and about everyday stuff.

When she was back home, we fetched a drink and talked about our day (“what a day, what a day, what a day”), and watched some TV before dinner.

Suddenly she shouted:

“I forgot to see my patient !!”

The prostate man. In all the Wednesday hubbub, she had totally forgotten about the patient, and driven out of the hospital with other things on her mind. She immediately called the hospital and asked a nurse to tell the patient that she would visit him first thing next morning — promised !

The poor man had been a bit worried, thinking that something was wrong, that the cancer was worse than she had expected, and that this was the reason why she did not come.

But next morning, when the doctor was in the house again, he was a happy man. The operation went as planned, and the cancer would be gone now.

Thursdays are often much better than Wednesdays.

What is China’s response if Germany proceeds with banning Huawei and Chinese manufacturers from its 5G networks?

Germany is not the US.

Just because China puts up with US bullying doesn’t mean China has to put up with the same shit from a much weaker nation. In fact, Germany is seen kind of like a joke nowadays by the Chinese public, politically, due to it staying silent on NATO blowing up its Nord stream pipeline, and this public sentiment limits how much compromise the Chinese government can have with Germany. Instead of sitting idle and just take the unfair abuse on what’s now pride of Chinese companies for Huawei’s standing up to the US, China would more likely set Germany up as an example in the Chinese philosophy of “kill the chicken to scare the monkeys”.

I can see China starting by reacting proportionately with banning of Siemens from some operations inside China, as well as making life miserable for German cars, which are extremely dependant on China as their largest market worldwide and their factory as well since energy prices drove up costs in Europe, but China being China, it would reserve the stronger responses in hopes of descalation, and would only apply them if Germany escalates things further.

Things are going very, VERY, wrong; Netanyahu Tells Israelis to “Leave Egypt”

World Hal Turner

Things in the Hamas-Israel fight are going very much wrong for Israel. This afternoon, The US ordered the USS Gerald R. Ford Aircraft Carrier Strike Group to move into the eastern Mediterranean Sea to be closer to Israel. This signals ALL the players that the US is moving-in to get involved militarily. The Players are NOT backing away.

Hamas: Moving the American aircraft carrier does not scare us, and the American administration must realize the consequences of this step.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office calls on Israelis to leave Egypt ‘as soon as possible.’ This is a HUGE . . . no . . . . GIGANTIC . . . flashing RED sign.

Egypt was the first Arab nation to make peace with Israel, and depending upon what course Israel pursues in Gaza (i.e. possible Ground Invasion) that peace with Egypt may now be in very real jeopardy.

The Palestinian President Mohammed Abbas, who was safely away in Jordan, is now leaving Jordan and heading into Syria.

In earlier reporting, I mentioned Intelligence info that Palestinians in Israel got word to their allies elsewhere to be ready to turn up the heat on Europe if Israel engages in a ground war. Now, we see they also got word to their pals in New York City, where, this afternoon, supporters of the Palestinians and supporters of Israel faced each other in Times Square. Chanting . . . for now . . . .

American Middle Class Is the New Poor | Renters Are Out of Options

Working and homeless! The new slogan. It’s not always drug addiction that leads to this. We NEED to stop this stereotype. Cost of living, especially rent is far outpacing wages which are not even remotely keeping up.. For people with no roommates or family to move in with and not making more than 75K, it’s rough out there.

A painful passing

When I got out of Prison, I suddenly came down with two maladies. The first was Ball’s Palsy (where my face was paralyzed, and I couldn’t close my eyes), and the second hit me about two weeks later. I had terrible kidney stones. And man oh man was it painful.

Because I had no money, and was transitioning from prison, I went to the hospital emergency room and they gave me a number to call to get some medicine for the pain.

And when I called that number, the receptionist answered the phone and accused me of wanting drugs and said that I could come in, but they weren’t going to give me anything for the pain.

I endured that pain for a week before I passed the stone, and it was a mighty bad situation. The pain was HORRIBLE.

Never the less, the thing that I remember was not the pain; the stone; or the egress from prison. I remember that holier than thou bitch at the reception desk that was giving me a hard time.

For all you Karens out there, I have a message for you all.

FUCK

YOU.

…

Good, now that I got that off my chest, let’s do todays post…

What are a few bitter truths of life?

Robert Sandifer’s life began in two overlapping hells.

The first hell smoldered outside of his home, the streets of the South Side of Chicago, infamously dangerous, and marred by a blistering gun violence that persists to this day.

These streets are so dangerous that Google actively censors the imagery that populates on Google Streetview.

Robert Sandifer’s second hell raged in his own home.

He was born to a prostitute mother who had dozens of arrests, and who was addicted to cocaine before, during, and indefinitely after his birth.

Sandifer’s father was wholly absent, serving a long prison sentence for felonies related to brutal gun violence.

He received severe physical beatings that started long before he could speak, that left him with terrible bruises and bloody lesions.

At age 3, Child Protective Services opened an investigation after finding cigarette burns on his body, caused by his mother’s boyfriends.

CPS tried to save him. They moved him to his grandmother’s house, but that home was a 3rd hell, already overflowing with as many as 20 kids at a time, many of them from similar circumstances.

Sandifer quickly became a product of his environment, adopting a violent lifestyle, beating children mercilessly on the playground, stealing their money, and their food. He began burglarizing homes, breaking into cars.

He dropped out of school at age 8 and roamed unsupervised in the gun-born, blood-soaked streets of The South Side.

Sandifer was assimilated into a notorious gang, The Black Disciples, who embraced and celebrated his violence.

At age 10, he was arrested after being caught driving a hijacked car, not the first he’d stolen – nor the last.

After Sandifer’s arrest, his family requested that he be kept in juvenile detention for his own safety and for that of the public – but they were denied – Sandifer was too young for juvenile detention.

And thus – he was released to his Grandmother’s custody.

And into the arms of The Black Disciples.

On a fateful 28th day of August, his gang ordered him to take out a hit on a rival gang member.

Sandifer arrived at his target’s house, he positioned himself behind a parked car on the opposite side of the street.

And opened fire.

His bullets plunged into the crowd, hitting several bystanders, and ultimately killing the wrong person – a 14-year-old girl Shavon Dean.

3 days later, Robert Sandifer was taken under a bridge, told to get on his knees, and shot, execution-style in the back of the head by members of his own gang to silence him.

At the time of his death, he had committed 23 felonies and 5 misdemeanors.

At his funeral – the only picture his family owned of him was his mugshot.

He was 11-years-old.

The bitter truth of life: some kids never stand a chance. People really do not understand just how bad it gets.

Have you ever sabotaged food because someone was stealing it?

Yes I have. I was a single mom struggling to keep my head above water so I would take leftovers for my lunch. This one co-worker would help himself to my lunch, then tell me how delicious it was. I tried explaining my situation to him, but he still continued to eat my lunches. I even bought an insulated lunch box so I didn’t have to put my lunch in the employee refrigerator. He would steal my lunch while I was away from my desk. And still brag about it. Now this coworker was from a different department than I was and made almost twice as much as I did. One day I had enough. That night as I was preparing my lunch for the next day, I included a healthy dose of mineral oil. Mineral oil is edible, it has no taste or smell, but it is a very good laxative. It took the guy about a week to figure it out. He went to HR and tried to get me fired or at least pay his lost wages ( he had to leave work 2–3 hours early all week.) HR talked to me and when I told them my story and how long it had going on, they made him reimburse me for all my lunches he ate. They verified my story first, of course. Later an email went out to all employees that theft of any food would be grounds for termination.

Is a California poppy extract-related product legal to sell in China?

Illegal, in China, selling drugs is illegal, exceeding 1 kg will be sentenced to death.If you know Chinese, you should know that.

In June 2021, 215.37 kg of drugs were hidden in 67,000 tons of soybeans exported by the America to Qingdao port, China, and were intercepted by Qingdao Customs. Relevant personnel have been punished.

I hope you can understand Chinese hatred of drugs. Qingdao is an eastern port city, and it is obligatory to prevent drugs.

In 2017, Mianyang city Sichuan Province, southwest of China, a thief broke into a house to steal.When he find drugs on the ground,he gave up the plan and report to the police, confessed his crimes and discoveries, and helped the police officers catch a large drug-making-trafficking gang.

Yes, even thieves also despise drug dealers,they also join Antidrug.

Lone Star Bacon and Cheddar Fries

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

1 pound (3/8 inch) regular cut fries with skin on
2 ounce shredded Cheddar cheese
2 strips cooked diced bacon
3 ounces sour cream
Finely chopped green onions, for garnish
Jalapeno peppers, for garnish

Instructions

Deep-fry regular cut fries (350 to 360 degrees F) for 3 to 3 1/2 minutes or until golden brown and crisp.
In fry serving basket, arrange hot fries.
Top with cheese and bacon.
Garnish with sour cream and green onions.
If desired, garnish with jalapenos.
Serve immediately.

What are some small things that matter a lot?

It was a hot summer afternoon in the month of May.

I was riding on my bike to home. A man who may be in his early 50s asked me for a lift. He was sweating profusely and needed to reach home. As his house was on the way I was going in, I gave him a lift.

He explained to me that, his sugar levels are dropping and need to reach home fast. I dropped him off at his home and he thanked me whole heartedly. I got back home and forgot about it.

After a month, a small hotel was opened nearby. I went there to try it out. I was checking out the menu and someone tapped on my shoulder from behind. He was the same man whom I gave lift earlier.

He asked me if I had recognized him. I said no. He explained that I gave him lift a month ago. Then, I recollected him. He asked me, what would I like to eat. I was surprised.

He giggled and said that, he is the owner of that hotel and as a token of gratitude I can have anything for free. I politely refused it but he was stubborn in his offer. So, I gave in.He asked the chef to make the best of the dish I ordered and was given for free.

That day, I realized, the good you do however small, goes far.

Any small help you do to people will for ever be engraved in their minds forever and it comes back to you in the ways you can never imagine.

So, don’t stop doing good and spreading smiles!

Why don’t more people move to Wyoming?

This map of Wyoming offers one of the reasons:

The areas shaded in green are owned by the federal government. Although Wyoming is large, the federal government owns about 47% of the land. So, some of the most beautiful parts of Wyoming are not places to which people are moving because there is very little private land for them to buy and live on.

But the problem is even deeper than that. These federal lands contain timber, pasture, and minerals which are leased or sold to those industries, but those leases and timber sales are prone to fluctuate with political fads for or against use of federal timber, minerals, and grazing. Even aside from that, the bureaucracies in authority over these lands do not take responsibility for maintaining the jobs in these industries. Since they have often not worked in the private sector, they either do not understand or do not care how delays and unpredictability in their decisions kill private-sector jobs.

Another reason for the low population in Wyoming is the 75,000-person tipping point in urban population. There is a pattern in the United States: cities tend to grow faster once they have reached a population between about 50,000 and 100,000. At this population, there is enough demand for specialized services in medicine, law, finance, engineering, management, entertainment, air transport, and other professions to support higher-paying jobs in these industries. There is also enough population to entice specialized types of businesses to locate there. Some of these are businesses that hum along below the surface of your local economy, but are important in helping other businesses thrive: machining, transportation, calibration, training and testing. Some of these businesses are retailers and national food chains that make a place more inviting to new residents. No Wyoming city has broken through this tipping point, although Cheyenne may be doing so now.

A third factor: By geographical accident, Wyoming’s neighboring states tended to have urban clusters near their borders with Wyoming which hindered any Wyoming city from reaching this population tipping point. Specialized, high-paying jobs and businesses are less likely in an area within 150 or so miles of existing firms. Denver and Salt Lake City are large cities with trade areas which include much of Wyoming. But the smaller cities of Rapid City, SD, Billings, MT, and Idaho Falls, ID also have large parts of their trade areas within Wyoming. Have a look at the map of United States trade areas and influential cities. All of Wyoming is depicted as being within an out-of-state city’s trade area. The map has flaws. Certainly Casper, Wyoming should qualify as having a trade area if Butte, Bozeman, and Helena, Montana and Alliance and Valentine Nebraska do, but the map nevertheless makes a valid point about Wyoming’s lack of urban areas with trade areas.

In the long run, Wyoming will be one of the nation’s faster-growing states and will develop larger urban areas. It contains major freight rail lines and major interstate highways. It has cheap electricity, low taxes, and lots of money in the bank from all the mineral wealth. It has major electricity transit lines and energy pipelines. Culturally, it has a good work ethic and an openness to newcomers. It has enough water resources to accommodate lots of population growth.

Which incident did you consider to be an absurd hoax but later found out to be crazily true?

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.

WARNING something BIG is happening in Ukraine, Putin stays quiet

Something big is about to happen in Ukraine. Is Putin about to launch a pre-winter offensive now that Ukraine has exhausted all of its resources? Logistical signs are showing newly built railway tracks and large troop movements on the Russian side. Also multiple reports over the past 48 hours show an increased number of young Ukrainian men racing to get the hell out of Ukraine.

How has living in China changed you?

it’s aged me!

I was in my mid-20’s when I came, and after 30+ years here I’m already 57. If I stay here a few more years I’ll be 60. No one cares!

I don’t know which changes are due to maturing and which are due to living in China, but I can say how I’m generally different than Americans who haven’t lived in China.

I’m less emotionally invested in news reports, especially about politics. If you’ve lived in a place or have a job that’s occasionally the focus of the international media (as China manufacturing has been) then the discrepancy between what’s reported and what you know is obvious. It makes you skeptical at first, then cynical. Apathy soon follows.
I don’t take it for granted that multi-party democracy is superior to one-party rule. I tend to look at the results not the process.
I accept rapid, sweeping, head-spinning change as the norm. instantly accepted and accommodated.
- Yesterday we used paper currency to purchase things. Today we use cash cards. Tomorrow we’ll buy everything with our phones…. oh wait… we’re using the phones now, today, not tomorrow. OK, ok. I got it. Yesterday we used cash cards, today we use phones, tomorrow well use something else.
  
  I don’t remember when I stopped carrying cash and then stopped using my cash card. But that’s where I am now. That’s where everyone is—even beggars on the street accept mobile payments.
- Got a meeting in the next city… ? Better schedule 1/2 a day to get there. Then, all of the sudden, you realize you’re always arriving early to meetings. Everything started moving faster like this. Now that half a day gets you from Shanghai to Beijing by train. And if you start in the morning in Shenzhen, you can have an authentic Hunan lunch in Hunan, and be back in Shenzhen for an authentic Cantonese dinner.
I’m more appreciative of people in general, Chinese or expat. I don’t love everyone, but I value my relationships and feel grateful for the respect and assistance I’ve been given. I often feel like the big bang has distributed the universe’s molecules with my wellbeing in mind.

Koreans React To ‘Mr. Rogers’ For The First Time

Why are many Indian Ph.D. graduates from top institutes now choosing China for their postdocs? How is the life of an Indian post-doc in China? Do the Indian postdocs settle in China?

Money!!!

Chinese programs in Universities today get more funding than even USA, as US focuses on Private Funding

In 2022, US Universities spend $ 208 Billion in University Research against $ 346 Billion by China

You write a good paper for your PHD in Biotechnology, you could get offered an Research Associate position for 25000 RMB a month that’s around ₹ 34 LPA plus housing against a mere ₹7.6 LPA in India

That’s equivalent to $ 83,666 a year in US that’s higher than the US median of $ 64,712 for a Research Associate in PPP terms

China pays highest in PPP terms for most research today barring Norway and Switzerland and Taiwan

Life of an Indian Post Doc in China

My son is one

He is doing research for a Private Company on a 5 year grant (2023–2028)

Here are his observations:-

Knowing Rudimentary Mandarin is very important. The Lab assistants, the research students do their best in mandarin. The english is pretty accented. Luckily most Universities offer you Mandarin elementary classes for free if you are doing research there.
Softwares and Settings are programmed to Mandarin. You have to set it to English. Then print in English and Mandarin.
Money is pretty good. Housing is pretty good.
You will have two security reviews by the Government.
If you do research funded by the Government Or research classfied as National Research , you get a ID that gives you some powers. You get clout with cops. Now technically these IDs are only for National projects but like India, my sons director has managed to wrangle these IDs for these guys as well.
Very easy to get a Chinese girlfriend if you are unmarried. Unlike Singapore where girls are steady since secondary school. My son has 3 Assistant Researchers from Vietnam, Indonesia and Kerala. All have Girlfriends in less than a year.
Research is very well funded. You want to buy a $ 300,000 machine, you get approval in a matter of 2–3 days

It’s damn good

Settling down in China ?

Not encouraged

Finish your grant, extend your grant, live for 15–20 years in China and then go home or to Singapore

Meanwhile train as many Chinese as possible

Most people who settle down in China are married to Chinese Mainlanders and have kids and full families

They become Chinese themselves, speak like mainlanders, act like mainlanders

They are eligible for Citizenship of China

Are Indian Postdocs selecting China?

Yes

China beat Japan to the fourth position in 2023

It’s US, Germany, UK and China at fourth position beating Japan which was at fourth place until 2023, France is sixth, Middle East & Africa is seventh (no idea how), Singapore is Eighth and Canada is ninth

However in absolute numbers only 8.63% Postdocs go to China with almost 39.44% going to US and 71% going to US, UK and Germany

However this is a huge increase because in 2006 only 0.51% Postdocs sought careers in China meaning a Eighteen fold increase in a mere 17 years

Men DESTROYED Modern Women’s Beauty Standard

Rating women’s attractiveness is dramatically affected by make-up. I’ve seen them transform from as much as 2’s to 9-10’s. Truly amazing results.

https://youtu.be/pf3qHed8TtA

How has living in China changed you?

A few years back I had to change my careers. At that time I took a big change and moved halfway across the world to China.

I lived there for 3 1/2 years. I was there for 3 years in NE China in a small rural area. Then about 4 years later I move back but to the big city of Shanghai(but only for about 1/2 a year).

That’s the background story now to your question.

My first 3 years in China was very humbling. I was in a rural area still governed by old rules and ideas. I met a friend who lived in South China in a big city and she told me that I experience things that she never experienced while there. Each person’s experiences are so different. In the rural areas you live like the Chinese, but in a big city, you live like a foreigner in China.

When I say humbling it’s because I learned to live on very little. I spent $200 a month for food, shopping and traveling. When I went back to China in a big city you definitely can’t live on that. I learned to appreciate what I had and how to make do with what I had.

I discovered that my own culture lack respect for elders. That we are far behind when it comes to public transport. (China is far ahead of us). I gained a love for food, Chinese eat all the time (but are skinny). They eat tons of vegetables and meat as well…but it’s fresh produce…which my own country lacks…we eat way too much processed food. Of course, I learned how to use a squatty potty.

Now, when I went back to China 4 years later…so much has changed. They are so advanced when it comes to technology. While China was a humbling place for me for my first 3 years. It was not so the second time around…why? The simple answer is that times have changed. Don’t get me wrong I loved Shanghai and appreciated it, but I learned that sometimes you can’t go back…memories are better left in your mind.

China will always be a part of me. It has changed me so much more than I can ever put into words. But for me, “humble” is what learned from all my experiences in China.

No Handyman Jobs! People are BROKE!

I guess I was spoiled with the abundance of jobs these past few years. Well, I guess that has come to an end…

https://youtu.be/eJTOxnL_nBw

If a drone is flying on my property and I have already notified that I do not want it to be flying on it, can I destroy it without legal repercussion?

Ok, so here’s my experience.

A few years ago, a kid in our neighborhood got a drone for Christmas. He started flying it around people’s houses. The first time. I was sitting on my deck and it flew to the edge of the deck. I waved and it flew away. The next day, the same thing. After a few days, the kid got bolder. He started to fly it right over the deck. There was also one time that I was doing dishes in the kitchen it was hovering right outside the kitchen window, watching me.

This went on for about a month. I would see it right outside my windows or around my yard. I knew it was just a kid but it was getting kind of creepy. I wasn’t sure if I could be heard on it but I tried telling the drone that the fun was over and please don’t come back. Guess what? It came back the next day again. I didn’t know who the drone belonged to so I called the PD and they really didn’t know what to tell me. At this point, drones were just becoming popular and there wasn’t really any protocol. I asked around the neighborhood and no one seemed to know where it was coming from. I tried to follow it but it was faster than me and was piloted over houses and through other yards that I couldn’t go through.

Another month passes and now this kid is just taunting me. I tried throwing things at it, putting up a sign asking them not to fly it near my house anymore, my then-husband actually had it in his hand at one point but those things are pretty strong and he wasn’t able to keep a hold of it. We would flip it off when we saw it or curse at it, anything we could think of. I even fired a few warning shots with a BB gun. Nothing worked.

Finally, we were just done. The last day I ever saw it, I was again sitting on my deck and I hear the familiar drone sound. I tried to ignore it, hoping it would go away. I could hear it getting closer to me but I just kept my head down, pretending to read my book. The living room window was open so without looking up I yelled “It’s back again!!”. My then-husband walked out onto the deck and the drone moved towards him. He pulled out his pistol and pointed at the drone. No shots fired, it wasn’t even loaded and the drone high-tailed it out of there. Within 15 minutes, a very angry father and 2 police cruisers were in my driveway. The father wanted us arrested for threatening his kid. We explained what had been going on and the cops had several reports over the last few months from me as well (including pictures of the drone in various places around my house, date and time-stamped). Basically, nothing happened. The gun was registered to a licensed gun owner, no property was damaged, and the documentation from the police department showed that this kid was a nuisance. The cops went and had a talk with the kid. I found out later that other neighbors had the same issue with the drone so the cops had not only our complaints but many others. I don’t know what happened to the kid but I do know I never saw that drone again.

***EDIT***

A lot of people are commenting about the police not doing their job and yes it does seem that way. However, we have to remember that this was the first year that drones became really popular and it was the IT thing to have. People were having a lot of fun with their drones but there weren’t any clear laws that the police could follow. Also, you couldn’t trace them so you had a basic idea of the surrounding area where the drone was coming from but unless you actually saw where it went “home” to, there was nothing you could do so I believe that the police did the best they knew how at the time.

I don’t even blame the parents that much because the kid was like 13 or 14 years old. When I figured out who the drone belonged to, I knew exactly who this kid was, and quite honestly, he was an entitled little sh**. His parents were actually pretty nice people who tried their best but had very little control over their kids. The father showed up with the police because the kid made the father believe that a gun was pulled on him while cutting through our yard. That was not the case and when given all the facts, the father was still upset but it didn’t have a whole lot to say anymore.

And before you come for me, yes, most times kids are a product of their environment but sometimes the parents are doing everything right and the kid will still be a jerk. My kids are 21 and 17 and I have been involved in many of their activities over the years and have seen it all.

The Real China Shocked This British Man

Whenever I hear the China collapse theory, I always ask the person if s/he wants to take a bet, just provide a time frame when you think China will collapse and I bet you two whiskey that it won’t. I had been winning so many whiskey in the last 15 years, but none of those losers pay up.

Do the majority of people in China wish to remain communists, or if they had a choice, would they want democracy?

Seriously, do you really think the people in China really care whether China is a Communist or a Democracy if all there is to it is just some meaningless labeling.

Is like categorizing races by color, when you call it white I saw pink, when you call it yellow I saw light beige, when you call it black I say are you color blind, do you know what black looks like?

Chinese people in general are very much pragmatic, results orientated and doesn’t give much crap to whose camp they are in as long as they prosper and live a better live then the past. Also, Chinese history and philosophy never taught them life is simply black and white we know it has at least if not fifty shades of grey in between.

Furthermore, if one look at the Tai Chi symbols we see the black and white are not shown as antagonistic to each other, whilst they may be opposite to each other in direction but they intertwined in a circle with the opposite instead of a straight line in between a square. It also house a fraction of the opposite too, all for the purpose of equilibrium and in layman term it is call Win-Win or Harmony.

Life cannot always be a equal sum game, it has many elements and each play an important role, if one element does not survive well or is missing rest assure others will also get affected adversely by it. In science term, it is what we call a Eco System.

Balance reduce conflict, hegemony are always short lived and unintelligent, longer it stretches it more violent is the snaps when it breaks.

So is it really true that there are no democracy in a Communist system and when a country is not run by Communist does that mean they have no tyrant, no dictator, no ruthless regime, no poverty, no corruption and their people live a much better happy life?

Whats’s the big fucking deal about democracy if the leader doesn’t really practices it. “For the People, To the People, By the People” my arse when I see what’s going on in their land of Oligarchs Plutocracy.

What are some things you genuinely like about living in China that back home still needs to catch up to?

That is a great question indeed.

Safety – yesterday, today and tomorrow.
At first, right after moving to China I was truly amazed that there are so many chairs for valets randomly placed on the sidewalks. In Russia these chairs will end up at someone’s country house.
Small businesses
In Russia shops, restaurants, coffee-shops etc. belong to the large chains, you cannot find a small bar with homemade food for example. And places like that are my favorite in Beijing.
Infrastructure – in Russia you hardly can:
– get anywhere by subway and pay under 10 kuai for it,
– get anything delivered to your house,
– pay for the stuff via wechat,
– get foot massage in the middle of the night,
– pay for electricity and water using your own terminal, etc. etc.
Variety of entertainment choices
The only places that are really good for eventful life would be Moscow and Saint-Petersburg, other cities cannot be ever compared to Beijing: lots of events, activities and parties. Russia does need to get on this level.
Taobao
This is the most genius thing ever – I am a big Taobao fan and would love if a platform like that will be developed in Russia someday.

China moves into position to support Syria

So happy to see China & Syria are working together! Stronger united against the Empire!

School Bus Driver Rant

As a school bus driver, I would like to explain something.

My job is to transport your child from point A to point B safely, on time and ready to learn.

That is all.

What do I mean when I say safely? Let me explain. Safely means I pre-trip my bus daily to ensure it is running properly and that it hasn’t been tampered with. Safely means my eyes are constantly scanning all 7 mirrors, blind spots, and the road in front of me.

I’m NOT a babysitter.

I’m NOT a mediator.

I’m a BUS DRIVER.

I would absolutely love to be able to watch and hear each and every little thing that goes on in the 40 feet of school bus behind me, but while I’m watching Johnny jump across the seat, I just missed a car pull out in front of me. And oops, while I’m yelling at Susie to keep her hands to herself, the light changed and now I’m slamming the brakes to stop in time at the intersection. And what’s that? Now Joey has a nose bleed? And now someone dumped all of Katie’s stuff out of her bookbag, and “bus driver, Bobby is flicking me”, and “bus driver, Lily said she doesn’t like me anymore”, and what’s that? While I’m looking in the mirror behind me reprimanding your perfect children, a car just ran my reds and Sally almost got run over!

It’s Never Ending to us…

And that doesn’t even include the way the children speak to us. I’m pretty certain they don’t speak to other school faculty like that. And certainly don’t speak to their parents the way they speak to us.

So please, parents, tell me … where do you want me to look? Behind me? In front of me?

Would you prefer I pull over each and everytime someone yells “bus driver”? Because then YOU will complain that the bus is never on time, and trust me if I did pull over everytime, we wouldn’t even make it out of the school parking lot before I’d have to stop. Incase you didn’t know, your children are not perfect…no one is.

Would you rather I continue down the road watching what’s going on BEHIND me more than what’s going on with other vehicles on the road around me? Because I can assure you, if I’m not scanning every angle around the bus, there WILL be an accident, and then I will again be to blame, because I should’ve been paying attention to the road.

Now, on top of that, we see your children for less than 30 minutes a day, in most cases. Please teach your child to respect the bus driver, and to behave themselves when riding the bus…because we want to return them to you, SAFELY.

~ Unknown

Russian & American In China Are SHOCKED What They Experienced

What is the craziest request you have gotten when you were buying something (car, boat, bike, furniture, etc.) from someone who was so deeply attached to the item it felt like they were losing a part of their family?

Not crazy at all, just unusual and — under the circumstances — quite touching.

A 1969 Ford F250 was advertised for sale located in a town about 400 miles away. I called and spoke with the elderly original owner. He was not an enthusiastic seller and seemed to be throwing up obstacles to buying it. For one thing, he asked the questions, not me. The conversation went like this:

Me: Hello, I’m calling about the F250 for sale. Is it still available?

Him: Yes. What do you want with it?

Me: Uhhh, well, sir, I was thinking about buying it.

Him: Why?

Me (looks at phone with a WITW? expression): Because I need a truck.

Him: What do you need a truck for?

Me: To haul tools and material.

Him: That’s good. How old are you?

Me: (Young in spirit but wise beyond my years. More or less.)

Him: That’s good. How’s your driving record? Any accidents or tickets recently?

Me: No wrecks, no tickets.

Him: Will you put different wheels and paint and interior and engine in it?

Me: Gosh, no. I want it all original. Like it is now.

Him: Okay, you can come look at it. My address is…

I went all that way, looked, endured another vetting from him and was finally judged worthy of his treasured pickup that he could no longer drive because it had manual steering and he could no longer turn the steering wheel. As I drove away in the truck he’d named Whitey back in 1969, I glimpsed him in the rear view mirror crying unashamedly.

But wait, there’s more.

I drove directly to the other side of town and viewed a second 1969 Ford F250 for sale by its elderly original owner who also subjected me to a lengthy qualifying interrogation. Satisfied, he sold me the truck he’d named Rita in 1969 and helped me disconnect the driveshaft then attach a tow bar so I could pull her home with Whitey. After I had remote lights rigged up on his Rita, I got into Whitey and pulled away. In the rear view mirror I glimpsed Rita’s original owner crying unashamedly.

Nearly 10 years later Whitey and Rita are still exactly as they were the day I brought them to their new home. It was a good day, as have been all all the rest with them. As their original owners requested I have kept them exactly as they were: working trucks, now 50 years young, in original condition and carefully maintained. I even built them a canopy to protect them from the sun and inclement weather.

When you speak this way, your reality evolves…

Fair video. Fits in with my affirmation campaigns.

If the one child policy was such a disastrous idea, then why didn’t the Chinese experts object to it?

Was it a disastrous idea though? Who said?

Sure it wasn’t a comfortable idea for the people. I haven’t had children yet. But I do want to have two. One is scary in many way. What if something happens to him or her? What if he/she wants to join the military… and not come back?

But if I insist on having a second child, I would end up paying a fine. Then I would be liable to pay for the child education. The first child will get free ride from K-12 and university.

In fact, I can have as many children as I would like. I just have to afford raising them all with minimal government support.

Why the one child policy?

Look at China in the 60s – 80s

It was a simple life. Classism may have been at the lowest in Chinese history. To be a well respected person, you can be a teacher, a village chief, a policeman, a small government official, a factory manager, etc…

This simple peaceful life was made possible by the One child policy.

Do you know that unemployment was low? Job selection wasn’t great, but as long as you were willing to work, someone could find you a job.

Despite the scare of Western invasion and atomic bombs, it was a relatively safe society. Petty crimes were plentiful, from pickpocketing, theft, to scam artists. But it was unlikely your house would be broken in at gun point.

All these wouldn’t be possible if the population was left to balloon unchecked. Far more crime, homeless, desperate people out for blood, and money.

If I went back in time to 1970s…

Knowing the future is a hell of an advantage. I would start trading goods, then collaborated with the government’s economic expansion programs.

Humble start, this was how many Chinese entrepreneurs in the 70s and 80s had their start.

Moving up, buying a truck. One man transportation company in the 90s.

Eventually able to have enough money to open a factory. TV production company in the 80s.

Not really a photo of China, but of 1980 computer stores in the US. My computer store would look like this.

I would get into computers as early as 1975. This was around the time Bill Gates and Steve Jobs founded their companies.

I would even go to India in 1974 to meet the penniless backpacker Steve Jobs and offered him his first initial investment before he even knew he was to found Apple. He would be indebted to me for life.

Two prospects regarding to One Child policy:

One Child Policy: Boosted economy. I could be rich, easily affording 4–5 children if I wanted to.
Booming population: China would still be a shithole like any of the third world country China’s BRI is helping now. Raising one child and keeping my family fed would be very hard.

I actually knew people in China who had more than one children after 1980. They were not jailed or anything. Their neighbors and friends were supportive of their decisions.

Putin at Valdai, civilizational world order is here to stay

“I thought Putin was exceptionally clear, rational, even handed, well spoken, honest, and painfully accurate about everything he said. He has my vote for US president.”

Have you ever judged someone and realized you were wrong?

Oh my, yes!

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.

And, I even learned from misjudging you.

How did Huawei replace over 13,000 components in its range of products with local substitutes in response to US trade sanctions?

In a short sentence, the completeness of the supply chain.

In brief exposition, this is the bitter fruit of embargo.

No, I’m not referring to Donald the Orange’s tariffs and dismantling of Huawei.

I’m talking about the 30-year EMBARGO that the US enforced on China after the breakout of the Korean War, along with the withdrawal of Soviet tech support as relations cooled heading into the 60s.

In fact, the Cultural Revolution’s deurbanization was a direct policy response to having the economic rug pulled under by foreign forces.

China learned a very important lesson: Any weakness in a supply chain can and will be exploited.

The Chinese prioritized the control of key enabling heavy industries, beginning with steel manufacture, before using policy tools to encourage the organic growth of eco-systems downstream.

The Chinese were not happy with assembling a shoe from components. Rather they focused on being able to make every component, down to the dye and synthetic materials suitable for footwear.

This process was repeated up the tech ladder, and by the 2010s, the Chinese had the most complete supply chain in the world, encompassing all categories of the UN industrial sector classification. China remains the only country to maintain this milestone.

China’s strength is hardware, and the world’s greatest concentration of hardware engineering talent—whether it is chips, IC, antennas, speakers, motors—are found on the mainland, and overwhelmingly Chinese.

These are world class talent who’ve delivered on big projects, and thoroughly up-to-date with their field of expertise. I daresay set them loose on any problem and they will find solutions, because the intensity and breath which they attack problems is unrivaled. The Chinese have the scale to apply multiprong strategies in parallel*, while the competition iterate sequentially. This is the famed China speed, and China has made up plenty of ground in recent decades expertly harnessing economies of scale.

America uses its heft to force compliance, through the threat of market access withdrawal. But the Chinese market is already bigger than the US, especially hardware components, just because China is the world’s factory. Huawei is able to find enough domestic partners who don’t mind losing the US market, because there are enough customers within China. Besides, this is a matter of survival for entire industries, and it is imperative to break the tech embargo.

Huawei’s telecoms gear isn’t like cellphones, because they are tethered to the mains. Power efficiency isn’t a make or break consideration, and there is no need for the latest and greatest off the cutting edge node, chip-wise.

This makes domestic substitution a breeze compared to say, the Kirin SOC, because hacks are always available, especially under the umbrella of Huawei’s immense patent portfolio.

In the final analysis, I’d say it boils down to the quality and quantity of talent, and it shows in the remarkable speed of the turnaround.

欺负华为没人？

门儿都没有。

Heinz Guderian noted in his diary that he had observed snow for the first time in the campaign in the Soviet Union.

The original plan for Operation Barbarossa was extremely sketchy for such a massive operation. One of the odder aspects of planning was that the endpoints for the invasion were never set forth, and became vaguer and more nebulous the further along planning got.

The first battle plans, prepared for the OKW by General Erich Marcks in mid-1940, actually did set forth a terminal line of the invasion. Marcks proposed the “A-A line” as the operational objective. This was to run from the northern city of Arkhangelsk on the Arctic Sea through Gorky and Rostov to the port city of Astrakhan at the mouth of the Volga on the Caspian Sea. This assumed that the European portion of Russia and its satellites was the only part of the country of any interest and importance. There, the German Army could stop and set up a defensive line beyond which whatever was left of the Soviet Union could be allowed to wither away, as it would pose no threat.

After the Marcks Plan (as it came to be called), though, the idea of any kind of ultimate objective for the Wehrmacht disappeared. The debate instead degenerated into one of whether or not it was even important to get to Moscow, let alone reach any points further east. The prevailing theory – primarily Hitler’s – was that the entire Soviet Union would capitulate after a few decisive border battles destroyed the Red Army, failing that Hitler issued a directive to pursue the Soviets.

As of 6th October 1941, there has been no “pursuit” in the Soviet Union or at least none that has lasted very long. Every step has been contested, every river has been defended, every city has been fought over and sometimes even been boobytrapped after the Red Army has left. The defense has been uncoordinated and lacking in effectiveness on many occasions, but the Red Army has been fighting all the way. Now, the best campaigning months of 1941 are already gone and it is only going to get worse before it gets better again. Given all that, the astounding underestimation of the effectiveness of Red Army opposition during the planning stage of Operation Barbarossa has not really hampered German operations yet, it just has required adjustments to compensate for a slower rate of advance than anticipated. The tanks still run, the trucks still carry supplies, the horses are still fed from grain in the fields.

However, everything is about to change forever, and the men on the front line see why after dark as the snow begins to fall around them. The lack of effective antifreeze for trucks or tanks, the lack of chains for wheeled vehicles, the absence of winter clothing which was considered superfluous in June – all of a sudden these omissions loom large.

Late Night Flight

While drinking, a Pilot bet he could land outside the bar, 2 hours later he touched down in central New York in a stolen aircraft. Years later he repeated the stunt because someone wouldn’t believe him.

In September 1956 after drinking heavily at a bar in New York City, Thomas Fitzpatrick made an intoxicated barroom bet that he could travel from New Jersey to New York City in 15 minutes.

At 3 a.m. he stole a single-engine plane from the Teterboro and flew without any lights or radio before landing on St. Nicholas Avenue near 191st Street in front of the bar where the bet was made.

The New York Times called it a “fine landing” and a “feat of aeronautics”. For his illegal flight, he was fined $100 after the plane’s owner refused to press charges.

In October 1958 just before 1 a.m., Fitzpatrick again stole another plane from the same airfield and landed on Amsterdam and 187th after another bar patron disbelieved his first feat.

For his second stolen flight, judge John A. Mullen sentenced him to six months in prison. When asked why did had undertaken the 2nd flight Fitzpatrick told the police “he had pulled off the second flight after a bar patron refused to believe he had done the first one”

Fitzpatrick was a Marine during the Korean War and received a Purple Heart. He has three sons and was married to his wife, Helen, for 51 years working as a steamfitter. He died in 2009 at the age of 79.

Fitzpatrick has a mixed drink named after him for his feat called the “Late Night Flight”

Oh SH*T, The Collapse Has REALLY Begun

The threat of a US recession is escalating fast as corporate bankruptcies and debt defaults pile up. As the Federal Reserve continues to hike interest rates, small businesses are starting to collapse and close down. There’s going to be a tipping point where job losses will accelerate and consumer spending will crash.

What is the best case of, “You just tried to scam the wrong person,” that you’ve witnessed?

I got the “You owe money to the IRS and are going to jail” phone call. I knew it was a scam because not only does the IRS not call you, but I could hear multiple voices in the background…classic boiler room. Duh! So I decided to play along. I let the guy go into his spiel and about halfway through I started crying. When I say crying, I mean REALLY wailing, gasping for breath, totally panicked! The guy has to stop talking in order to calm me down as I’m really losing it. As soon as he calms me down, off he goes again, telling me if I don’t pay, I’ll go to jail. Well, I just lose it again…crying, wailing, the whole nine yards.

Again, he tries to calm me down. Finally, with hitching sobs, I calm down enough to ask him how much I owe the IRS. When he tells me it’s $24,000, well, you know, I just lost it again. Crying. Wailing. Sobbing. What am I going to do?? OMG, I’m going to lose my house! I won’t be able to feed my kids! I’ll have to give away my dogs! Oh, noooooo! Noooooo! He calms me down (again) with the suggestion that he might be able to reduce what I owe to just $12,000. Which, of course, just sets me off again. Where, oh where am I going to get that kind of money?? I’m going to lose everything! Death! Doom! Destruction!

Finally, for the last time, he manages to calm me down enough to where I can ask him one final question…before I gave him my credit card number, would it be okay if I ask my husband first? After all, he IS a tax attorney. Dead silence for the space of about five seconds, then he let loose a torrent of profanity such as I’ve never heard before (and I’ve heard a lot) while I’m laughing my ass off. He then warns me that, “I’ll be sorry” to which I reply, “Not as sorry as you, you thieving, scum-sucking piece of humanity!” He hung up on me then, and surprisingly enough, I’ve never gotten another IRS phone call again.

It was the highlight of my week!

What are the biggest culture shocks people face when coming to Germany?

I’ve been in Berlin for about two months now.

Here’s my longish list:

I started learning German before coming here. People said I was wasting my time, that everybody here speaks English. That’s not true. Many Germans don’t speak English. Also, a number of people (usually officials or clerks) were upset that I don’t speak their language yet, as if my not having learned the language yet in the span of two months is some grave offense.
Maybe it’s only this year but the summer isn’t really summer. There are hot and cold days. Sunny and overcast days. Clear and rainy days. A day can start sunny and end in rain. You can walk out in your shorts and have to wear pants and a light jacket by the end of the day. Also, the days are unbelievably long. The sun rises before 5 AM and sets at around 10 PM.
WWII and the Holocaust. I am of Jewish descent. Many of my ancestors were taken to Auschwitz and other camps to be exterminated. I remember the first time I saw a stolperstein or “stumbling stone” in Berlin (these are brass plates inscribed with the names of Jews and information about the dates of their deportation and extermination, inlaid in the pavement outside their last place of residence) I froze. My heart sank, and a deep sadness welled from within me.
Ethnic Diversity here is wonderful. There seem to be people from all over the world, all co-existing. Yes, there have been some glitches, but seeing this melting pot of diversity brings hope to the heart. Plus, you can have authentic food from almost anywhere—from Mexican to Vietnamese to Turkish to Lebanese to Korean, etc., etc.
Many, many people are tattooed, so much so that un-tattooed individuals seem rarer than tattooed ones. And so much so that I sometimes wonder if even the businessmen and women, under those fine tailored suits, are hiding some large and colorful dragon or tiger adorning their skins.
I assumed Berlin would be cleaner. Before I came I had a vision of Germany as a glinting-clean place. And although it’s not filthy, there’s some waste strewn about in parks and on the streets—empty beer bottles and food leftovers and dirty plastic packaging, etc.
And speaking of beer bottles, people drink alcohol. A lot of it. I see many people walking around with some kind of drink in their hands, or people sitting outside bars or even in parks with an unbelievable amount of empty bottles by their side. Or in supermarkets, walking out with cartfuls of booze.
Maybe I notice it more because I’ve never lived in a place with so many churches, but there are so many of them here. Imposing ones with rising spires and crimson bricks and huge bells resonating blocks and blocks away. Having grown up in Israel, I find it hard to imagine how the visions of a carpenter in the Middle-East, over centuries and millennia, transmogrified into these massive, gothic places of worship in a completely different culture and milieu.
The other day we went to a pleasant park and there were a bunch of kids playing in the nude, splashing each other with water and running around in the sand giggling. My son took off his clothes and joined them, and I thought, how wonderful that no one is embarrassed seeing naked kids playing around, that they are granted this easy, unconscious freedom that in many other parts of the would would have been considered inappropriate.
Sex seems to be less of a big deal here. I’ve seen a number of adverts in the street depicting some form of sex in illustrations. In the US, there would have been a lecherous quality to it, some kind of cleavage or exposed thighs, something to suggest and tease and taunt. But here there is something unassuming about its depiction—a couple or even a threesome lying in bed covered in blankets, a cartoon of a man with his loins covered by a popping champagne bottle and a smiling woman by his side. Unassertive—as if this, too, is a natural part of life and there’s no need to make a fuss about it.
Organic food is available in most supermarkets and is not necessarily exorbitantly priced. In fact, almost every little place that serves food will have some kind of organic lemonade or soft drink.
Although I am not vegetarian, when I came here I imagined würste (sausages) everywhere, and a dearth of other, non-pork based offering. But, in fact, it is very easy to get vegetarian food here. From vegetarian gemüse kebap (Turkish food—vegetables in bread) to vegetarian asian dishes, to tofu, grain- or legume-based meat substitutes in supermarkets, it is not only possible to be vegetarian here, but even easy.
The streets and the curb are wide and spacious, oftentimes cobbled and shaded by evenly-distanced stately trees. Having grown up in Israel and lived in India, this was novel for me—this European expansiveness.
Some people can be incredibly proper and strict here. I’ve been scolded for standing out in the street when the bus came, and then for standing in the wrong place inside the bus as I was paying. In some places and settings people are expected to behave in a certain ways, and are frowned upon if they are not.
The bicycle is a serious mode of transportation with its own lanes and a substantial number of riders.
Drivers are not as courteous as in other places—in less trafficked streets with no stoplight, and unlike the US, cars will mostly not stop when they see a pedestrian, and one has to wait for an opportunity to cross.
Things are well made. The walls of the apartment I’m staying in are almost as thick as my outstretched arm. The woodwork is precise and sturdy. Some of the buildings around look like they’ve been in existence for centuries, and that they will last for many centuries more. There is an assuring sturdiness in the material existence here—like things are dependable and robust. Also, it is not difficult to find objects that are Made in Germany or Europe—be it knives or rucksacks or wallets, etc.—that look like they will last for a lifetime. I like that.
Almost all shops are closed on Sundays.
Parcels are left with neighbors. If you’re not in and you have a package, it will be left with one of your neighbors, who will then, perhaps later in the day, come knocking on your door and claim the package with a slip.
People have been incredibly helpful. When I arrived, a neighbor helped carry our luggage from the street. Another neighbor helps me whenever I need something in German translated. I’ve had people in the street, after asking for directions, pull out their phones, search for the place, and give me clear instructions. Of course, as with everywhere else, there are also unfriendly people, but the friendly and helpful ones have left a greater impression on me.

Boeing is Panicking! Brunei and China Order 30 Aircraft | Boeing Completely Loses The Chinese Market

In May 2017, China successfully conducted the historic first test flight of the C919 aircraft, which marked the complete break of Boeing and Airbus’ half-century monopoly on large commercial aircraft. Soon after, China’s C919 aircraft attracted cooperation intentions from many countries.

Up to now, China’s orders for C919 aircraft have exceeded an astonishing 1,061 aircraft, but I think this is just the beginning of the emergence of China’s C919 aircraft. At this year’s 20th China-ASEAN Expo, China’s C919 aircraft once again became the focus of attention.

Among them, Brunei spent US$2 billion to purchase 30 large passenger aircraft from China, including the much-anticipated C919 aircraft. As more and more countries purchase China’s C919 aircraft, Boeing in the United States begins to panic and even begs to regain the Chinese market.

https://youtu.be/7kIH65mOefQ

What’s the most useless map ever made?

One day at the end of the School year, my teacher was throwing out some old junk. One of which was this old globe that was so inaccurate, I’m surprised it wasn’t thrown away as soon it came off the assembly line.

Some Countries don’t exist at the same time.

As far as I know, Tibet did not exist at the same time with a unified Independent India, Southeast Asia with a unified Vietnam, and what’s that little country north of Mongolia?

Oh that’s right, It’s Tannu Tuva! You know the country that was annexed into the USSR during the middle of WW2. Because the Partition of India took place after the World War ended (1947). The inconsistency with time are the least of this Globe’s problems.

Making major countries the same shade of blue as the OCEAN!

As you saw above, China is the same color of the Ocean, but that’s not the only one.

The color they chose for Turkey just makes it look like the Black Sea is part of the Mediterranean if you’re not looking close enough.

Same goes with the Great Lakes area.

Since the State of Michigan is sandwiched between massive lakes, it should be a different color to make it stand out more. Well the designer didn’t think so, because instead of the Great Lakes, it’s just ONE Great Lake.

Plus New York makes lake Ontario and Erie look like an extension of the Atlantic. So does Quebec.

But this doesn’t go with what makes the map the most useless.

They got the freaking hemispheres on wrong!!!!

I’m pretty sure Australia is not directly south of Ethiopia!

South America is just floating in the middle of the Ocean.

Though Southern Africa actually fits well with the Northern Hemisphere part of South America.

This Globe has to be the most Useless reference of the World ever!

Have you ever let your dog loose on someone who was on your property and refused to leave? Is it legal to do so?

I got Montana at a church fundraising garage sale for $1.15. She was a Rottweiler/GSD mix and the owners were selling the puppies for $3. After three hours of wheedling my mother, and scrounging as much change as I could from the car, I paid for her quite proudly. She’d been the runt of the litter, and all her litter mates had long been snatched up. I brought her home, and made a bed for her in the bottom drawer of my dresser. Took her to the vet the next day to get her all of her shots. Did basic obedience training with her and all the requisite fun things a teenage girl could do with a dog.

Flash forward three years and I’m off at school across the state, and she’s at home with my mother, grandmother and younger brother. Due to her general quirkiness, she never barked or growled unless she felt that her family was in danger. She was quite content to roam the backyard, playing chase along the fence lines with the dogs that neighbored on either side. About three am my mom hears the neighbor’s golden retriever barking up a storm, then hears the fence rattle. Thinking it was a raccoon or opossum, she laid back down. Then Montana is growling right under her window. That’s when she hears a lot of cussing, more growling and then a whimper and the fence on the other side rattle. Now there’s even more cussing and growling as the other set of neighbor’s black malamute is in on whatever is happening now. Mom grabs a flashlight and the cordless phone, calls 911 and rushes out to find out what’s happening. That’s when she sees a man vaulting the far side of the fence in the neighbors yard, only to be confronted by a massive Great Dane. Montana comes slinking to her, whimpering with cuts running down both her flanks. Grabbing her leash, she takes my dog out to greet the police, explaining what happened. Apparently they caught up with the guy a few blocks away, having been bitten by about four different dogs. Mom took my brave girl to the vet immediately. The cuts were superficial and shallow, needing nothing more than some cleaning. She had a chemical burn on her backside because he’d sprayed her with either mace or pepper spray. Montana was handsomely rewarded with a steak for doing her job protecting the family, and no one ever set foot in our backyard without permission again.

Do the majority of people in China wish to remain communists, or if they had a choice, would they want democracy?

Not the slightest chance of that

There is anger against the CPC by some people, especially in the big cities however none of these people want democracy or voting

They simply want more capitalist reforms by the CPC

The Majority are very satisfied and happy with the CPC

Especially the younger generation

They regard US democracy as a JOKE

They are so proud of their country and it’s growth and the CPC that they only want reforms, reforms and more reforms

Here are the main suggestions

The Average Age of a Party Member is 49 and they want it to reduce to 40
The Average Age of a Politburo member is 56. They want it to reduce it to 50.
70 Investments were banned by the CPC between 2017–2023. They want these investments regulated.
They want flexible and productive work hours to enhance maximum output instead of the rigid slogging workstyle of the older generation

They have contempt for the USA

Especially the 17–30 year olds born post 1993

Chinas future

They are brilliant, they have the midset to be the BEST in the world

The Older generation in their forties and fifties, born between 1973–1983 are more of the WHY IS THE US SO UNFAIR rather than any contempt for the US

They have a lot of relatives in US and the West who migrated from 1965–1990

They have contempt for the Russians and Russian Technology

They are also a bit colonial and sub consciously believe they are not in the same league as the West deep down

They MAY have no problem if China becomes a democracy but they wouldn’t want it as a choice

The even older generation in their 60s and 70s, born between 1945–1965 are steeped in Patriotic Ideology. They remember the old days and the way the CPC took China to the top

It’s for their sake that China still has the name Communist when it’s anything but communist

They would abhor any democracy

Xi has created a very nationalistic patriotic generation of Youngsters brimming with confidence

The CPC needs to make some changes though in the next 10 years to ensure the Youngsters connect to the party and that wave of nationalism is retained at it’s same fervour

But Democracy? Especially Western Style?

Good God No!!!!!

Could China force all countries to use their yuan instead of American dollars for trading internationally if they took over from America economically and militarily?

No to both questions,

Economically,

Countries opt for local currencies in bilateral trade due to several reasons that align with their own interests:

The high interest in the US dollar has driven up the cost of purchasing US dollars.
Foreign exchange transaction fees associated with using US banks are expensive (3%), and the SWIFT system not only takes several days to settle transactions but is also subject to US monitoring for unilateral sanctions, even when the transactions involve purely business matters.
A surplus of expensive US dollars is circulating in the global economy, with many countries selling them back to the Federal Reserve Bank where billions are used to fund the record national debt and crowding out private investment by keeping the interest high.
There is a concern that the US dollar could face a collapse if the Federal Reserve Bank ceases its policy of increasing interest rates, as this could exacerbate inflationary pressures and erode the currency’s value.

Military,

In contrast to historical colonial powers and the dominant influence of the United States, China lacks the ambition of global control through culture/racial superiority, military endeavors, and covert activities. Instead, China offers an alternative vision to the world by fostering connections among people through infrastructure development and trade.

The Real Reasons I Left United States (and won’t go back)

I really enjoyed this video.

Real Talk about why I don’t like living in the United States anymore and why I can’t see myself ever returning. I had invested a lot of time and money to research and travel the world to find where I best fit in, which culture I feel more comfortable in. After almost 6 years of continues life abroad, I really can’t see myself ever going back.

What are some strange things that only happen 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.

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.

[1] 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.

Who are the most professional and skilled foreign soldiers you have served with?

Let’s start with the worst:

Unfortunately, some stereotypes might be true. When I served in the German army we trained for a week with Italy’s famous “Folgore” parachute unit. Although they were considered elite in Italy, they really sucked.

When we went with them to the shooting range my job was to count the targets they were hitting, which weren’t many. With one guy it took me a while to figure out that he was missing his target by at least 5 meters- at a 150 meters shooting distance.

These guys failed at everything they did, except for one thing: The last night of their stay we went to a bar with them and after a few German beers they started singing Italian songs. Very well and beautiful and not like our “barbaric” German singing.

I also trained a lot with French units. Most of them were really decent fellows, but their officers were completely useless. They were unable to motivate their soldiers and always seemed to be screaming at them. As a result the French troops we trained with didn’t perform as well as they could have.

Although I trained with British troops on several occasions, they didn’t leave an impression with me. Neither good nor bad. Later on my German army unit got their a** kicked by a British Special Air Service unit during an exercise in Denmark. I didn’t participate in this exercise and therefore these SAS guys are not in my ranking.

In Bosnia I fought for the Croats. They were all decent soldiers and what is very important, they were eager to learn. The Croatian army during the war lacked material and sometimes professionalism, but they more than compensated these flaws with outstanding bravery and high motivation. Especially their leadership was exemplary.

Later I fought in Kosovo with the Kosovo Liberation Army. I trained the unit that I fought with, so of course, they did ok. What I often saw in battle was that with the right guidance one could really make a difference. Sometimes we had soldiers from other units under our command and although we first thought that they were completely useless, watching our guys fight it out, these soldiers started to give their best.

I trained twice with US Army units and both times it was a pleasure. First time with a battalion of the 82nd Airborne in Italy and later I had the privilege to attend the German commando course with a US Army Special Forces unit. While the Airborne soldiers, although very good soldiers, were not really a match to our German “Fallschirmjäger” platoon, the US Army Special Forces (SF) were amazing.

They somehow weren’t that good at achieving many tasks during our training inside the barracks and were also not the fastest team on the obstacle course, but as soon as they were in the forest they showed admirable infantry skills, very good adaptation to the terrain, speed and stealth.

These SF would make the first place on my ranking if it wasn’t for a couple of Dutch LRRP’s (Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol) soldiers who also attended the same German commando course. They were good at everything and in the end had the highest score from all attendees.

They were also very modest, quiet and polite, almost shy, and these are qualities one doesn’t find very often with elite soldiers. Therefore I rank them first.

If a drone is flying on my property and I have already notified that I do not want it to be flying on it, can I destroy it without legal repercussion?

I will answer with my experience in this. There was a drone that would come over my house three times a day and roughly the same time each day. I put out a sign said please stop recording my house and yard for a couple of days but it kept coming. Thay is when I noticed a police car parked in the lot behind my house while the drone was there. So each time I’d check and see on my camera if the cop car was there and every time the drone came around sure enough. So new sign unless you have a warrent stop filming my house and yard. At this time I checked with courts for any investigation warrents for me and my property and none. So I then went out and threw rocks towards the drone each time it would take off. But still coming back. So I set the trap. I sat out front and waited for this thing to come flying over my back yard with a rather large rock. I nailed it the first try. It broke and landed in the back yard. It took three days for the cops to get a court order to come and retrieve it. Seems in the attempt to get me into trouble they had to show the footage of the drone and the warning to stop recording was enough to exonerated me for damage to the drone. They have not been back since.

Man Didn’t Want This Cat. Now They’re Inseparable Swimming Buddies

At first this man didn’t want a cat, but his swimming buddy Frosty changed everything. It took time for them to develop the bond, but when they did, a cat dad was born. Soon, Stefan discovered Frosty’s affinity for swimming, He was super curious about water and started jumping to the shower, and then the bath and finally the swimming pool.

https://youtu.be/-wSl9unZ7wE

What’s something commonly eaten in America that British people find strange or disgusting? I’m looking for foods that are viewed as normal in America that British people can’t understand.

So what the bloody hell is this?!

Biscuits and gravy is a popular breakfast dish in the United States, especially in the South.

No.

No.

NO!

I don’t care that you have your own version of English – that is an abomination.

That quite clearly consists of a scone:

With some kind of weird elephant ejaculate on top.

So not only is the name utterly wrong to British ears (if you ask someone here if they wanted “biscuits and gravy” here you will either a) end up in a mental institute, or b) be hounded out of town like a demon), but:

The actual thing doesn’t look much better.

I mean seriously guys – that stuff looks pretty damn unappetising, and that’s a “glamour shot” taken from some recipe website!

So America – let’s recap:

You’ve taken a food item traditionally eaten in the UK with cream and jam – and decided it would be better with some weirdass sausage-jizz-sauce.
You gave it a name which makes it sound bloody awful to British people

In case you haven’t gathered – this is not a popular food item in the U.K.

And we would rather it stayed that way – it looks ghastly.

EDIT:

From some of the very angry comments, it seems like some of you Americans just can’t seem to take a light-hearted ribbing, or a smidge of sarcasm. The whole point of the question is that us Brits don’t understand why you like it.

And for crying out loud:

yes, I know you call biscuits “cookies”. That’s part of the bloody joke.
Yes I have tried it. Calling me ignorant isn’t going to help.
Yes some British stuff is weird too. But we’re not talking about us – the question is about America.

Some people are treating this answer like I did a big squishy turd on your beloved flag.

It must be that sarcasm is hidden away in the ‘u’ in humour….

Which countries have the most brutal and horrific history?

This answer isn’t really about saying what one single country has done the worst, but I do want to share below on the cruelty of humankind that many people don’t know about.

Graphic content below but I want to make this known because so many people around the world have heard of Hitler, Nazis, concentration camps but they have not heard of the Asian holocaust that took place around the same period. In western schools, history classes do not teach people about this part of the world.

This is regarding what the Japanese did during their occupation of China and Korea and the war crimes they committed to the surrounding Asian countries, including some Pacific Islands they invaded: Mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Myanmar, East Timor, New Guinea, Indonesia, Guam, Nauru, Wake Island, Attu and Kiska Islands, and Kiribati.

They even had some prisoners of war from the west such as America, any forces against them at the time etc.

Hundreds of thousands of women from my country in Korea were forcefully abducted (called comfort women) during the Japanese occupation in WWII. They endured torture beyond imagination if they did not sexually submit to these vile men and were forced to have sex with 60–100 men every single day. Their innards rotted because of the STD’s and they were destroyed, unable to have children even after they were rescued. They have still not been compensated for the war crimes that they endured and majority have died.

Pregnant mothers were cut open and rape victims were sodomized with bamboo sticks and bayonets until they died in agony.

On top of this they literally tore the unborn from women’s wombs and speared them alive with bayonets in front of them. They’d crush the infant’s skull against concrete floors. They would actually do this for fun.

They tied sons and daughters up and tore them apart, spearing them and forced their own parents to watch.

They raped and pillaged women of all ages, even toddlers to old women in the most vile, disgusting way imaginable. They would often disembowel them while in the process, leaving them to die in agony.

They conducted unspeakable evil torture and experiments on LIVE prisoners from these countries even children and infants in UNIT 731. Torture methods such as vivisecting pregnant women without any anesthesia, centrifuging and killing people in pressurized chambers, and slowly burning and freezing people alive. They artificially created what is similar to the ‘bubonic plague’ to see the effects on the prisoners. They were forced into X-rays until they perished and hung people by their thumbs or tongues etc. These torture tactics were deliberately planned to see death happen SLOWLY, not fast as the scientists wanted to observe the resilience of the human body.

Unbelievably Inhumane Japanese Torture Methods Used During World War II

(image deleted – too unsettling)

Bodies of slayed, raped, mutilated women in China.

(image deleted – too unsettling)

Carcasses of babies and children piled up

Despite this, Japan still presently denies what has happened and even believes that it is a rumour. The young people as shown in this video are absolutely clueless on the whole tragedy, or are so far removed in cognitive dissonance and lack of care it is astounding. There is even a middle aged woman in the video who even says “Well I’m not sure if it’s a rumour or not…” which is an absolute lunacy and an embarrassment of the failure of the country in not properly educating their citizens of what truly happened. One young girl even says “Well, I wonder when they will ever get over it…” How are people supposed to get over it when there are still thousands of victims still alive who didn’t receive any form of compensation for what they have been through??!

Their government still warps their history books and deliberately tries to hide the evidence of what truly happened. There are active groups within Japan who refuse to accept what happened and truly believe that it is just a ‘rumour’ to make Japan look bad.

Below is a real life account by a South Korean comfort woman on the horrors she went through. It is heartbreaking to watch but quite educational. She sadly passed away early January of this year, fighting until her last breath but still never receiving any compensation or apology from the Japanese. They don’t even recognize that she went through this or who she is.

(Video no longer available on YT)

What Japan did wasn’t just an invasion or occupation, it was a literal carnage, hell on earth genocide. They didn’t have to go this far as majority of the Koreans and the people they invaded were helpless farmers, uneducated servants, and innocent people who were not trained in war at all. They did this because they did not see these people as human, and their goal wasn’t simply to occupy, but to desecrate the spirit from within. They knew when you destroy someone’s spirit from inside out, the enemy will bend the knee and yield to the point where they do not have the soul to fight back. On top of this, it was just pure, raw sadistic savagery because all of these helpless people surrendered and begged for mercy yet they were still tortured for absolutely no reason.

(Video no longer available on YT)

Presently Japan is one of the most wealthiest and prosperous Asian countries in the world yet they cannot even fully take responsibility for their own committed atrocities. It shows the savage barbarism that still resides in some of these people and makes one question just how this is even acceptable. Instead they choose to warp their own history books, flat out deny it existed and have refused to offer sincere, acceptable compensation/apology for the people who are still alive. They are waiting until every last victim is dead so they no longer have to worry about it. They are not truly ashamed of this past, they just see it as an eyesore they want to bury. Keep in mind Japan has very strong political parties that strives to ensure this shameful past does not reach the masses to retain their false honour. Still to this day, they praise their war criminals in shrines.

From the invasion of China in 1937 to the end of World War II, the Japanese military regime murdered near 3,000,000 to over 10,000,000 people, most probably almost 6,000,000 Chinese, Indonesians, Koreans, Filipinos, and Indochinese, among others, including Western prisoners of war. This is more than the estimated Jewish victims of the Holocaust.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe controversially claimed that “there was no evidence to prove” that the women had been coerced into sex.

“The government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is engaged in an all-out effort to portray the historical record as a tissue of liesdesigned to discredit the nation,” wrote Mindy Kotler, director of Asia Policy Point, in 2014.

“Mr. Abe’s administration DENIES that imperial Japan ran a system of human trafficking and coerced prostitution, implying that comfort women were simply camp-following prostitutes,” Kotler continued. “The official narrative in Japan is fast becoming detached from reality, as it seeks to cast the Japanese people — rather than the comfort women of the Asia-Pacific theater — as the victims of this story.”

Japan’s Textbooks Reflect Revised History

Japanese Broadcast Official: We Didn’t Commit War Crimes, the U.S. Just Made That Up

Why is it so hard for Japan to say sorry?

China criticises Japan after Shinzo Abe honours war criminals as martyrs

Letter threatening to hunt Koreans sent to South Korean embassy in Japan: media

The Harrowing Story Of Filipina Women Enslaved In Japan’s Wartime Rape Camps

Edit: Since I’m getting quite a lot of people who clearly don’t seem to understand and may not have read or researched in depth in this matter. They are saying that ‘Japan does not need to offer apology or compensation for what people of their past did etc’

It’s more complicated than that.

Please read the links again. Even if they can’t take full responsibility for their past, they SHOULD take responsibility for the future by not warping textbooks and giving power to political parties who enforces the dangerous fallacy of denying any of this ever happened or triviliazing everything that has happened. They should make sure to teach the correct history not just for educational purposes but to ensure their citizens fully know and accept their own history and in hopes that it never happens again. This is also to help not silence the voices of the people who did suffer in the past and to not spit into their graves and ruin their legacy by spreading false lies.

Also the comfort women and people who were forcefully taken into labour camps as prisoners, many are still alive who didn’t actually get any compensation or even sheer RECOGNITION. They suffered their entire lives without anyone hearing what they have to say with nothing from Japan. This isn’t just about wanting Japan to go up to a stadium and saying ‘I am sorry’ and stepping down. Words are meaningless and worthless when not backed up by actions.

They are hypocrites by warping textbooks and also praising their own war criminals. Imagine what the world would say if Germany praises Nazis and gave strong political power that has the power to make Germans never even hearing of the Nazis or even contemplate if it was just a rumour or not. Think about how insane that would be.

So why do they need to apologise? Because unlike Germany what they are doing is absolutely deplorable and morally bankrupt by continuing to CONTRIBUTE to the legacy of the abomination Japan was in the past. You don’t see Germany do the same about the Nazis and for good reason. It means Japan hasn’t learned and is not truly remorseful. By Japan I am talking of the FACES of Japan which are the politicians who represent that country. The rest of the Japanese experience their trickle down effect so while it’s not saying it’s their fault, they end up indirectly contributing to supporting these vile politicians. So yes the people who represent JAPAN who hold the power of influence does need to sincerely apologise and stop contributing to what they are presently doing.

As I am getting tired of having to repeat the same information again and again, any comments that say things along the lines of ‘Japan does not need to apologise’ or those questioning or defending the existence of any of these crimes, their war criminals will be either ignored, deleted or blocked. It is extremely disrespectful to the victims and deplorable. The links are already here clear as day for reading and one can also do the research themselves. Also for anyone who brings up another atrocity and pitting them against each other, STOP. This post isn’t about pitting one atrocity against another, it is disgusting to even keep doing that and seriously lacks any insight into the original point of my post.

Otherwise thank you for reading and have a nice day.

TLDR: Japan did some truly horrific shit that many people including the present day Japanese citizens are unaware of. What they did is abysmal carnage from the Antichrist itself.

Also, piece of shit apologies that require uttering words and throwing money at victims isn’t a true apology when they are still in 2019 warping textbooks and none of their youths know anything about their crimes.

Why do you think Germany forces every citizen to learn about their nazi history and Japan doesn’t ? It is to deliberately ignore and not acknowledge their past due to their pride and selfishness. I’d equate this to even pathological narcissism and psychopathy due to how far they have gone in managing stomping this knowledge out of their own present day citizens.

Edit 2: As I am still getting very disrespectful, deranged comments on here pitting atrocities against each other, saying that I am spreading lies and others spewing ignorant hatred against Koreans, here’s my final message.

Instead of blaming others, look at what Japanese Nationals do. Stop diverting the attention away by blaming the mistakes of other countries yet not acknowledging the corruption of the Japanese government

Japan’s leaders are still stubbornly refusing to admit their war crimes

What Japanese history lessons leave out

Japanese people often fail to understand why neighbouring countries harbour a grudge over events that happened in the 1930s and 40s. The reason, in many cases, is that they barely learned any 20th Century history. I myself only got a full picture when I left Japan and went to school in Australia

The Germans in contrast have personally done everything possible to make people aware of their Nazi past. Japan doesn’t scratch the surface of what it means to have true honour while Germans go to great lengths to do humanitarian work and to allow their citizens to understand the FULL facts. This is what true compensation and remorse actually is, not the dogshit excuse of what Japan does by also denying people, correct history. End of.

We must remember Nazi crimes, says Merkel

Westoids get rid of this sick mentality

Disappointed that china isn’t collapsing and Chinese people are not starving with 50 cent hoes selling their body to you?

A channel which is ironically named “Economics Explained” is possibly the worst when it comes to it. Western propganda is not just limited to mainstream media, but to nutwits like these.

Imagine if a Chinese made a video “sorry to disappoint America/India isn’t collapsing ..yet”. What wud their reactions be.

In all honesty, the best channel for economics is Xiao Lin, light years better than these sick bas***ds.

Meanwhile Indian videos on China’s economy are even more hating than that of westoids.

Like seriously westoids, get a forking life other than hating a new country every decade. Last decade was Russia, last to last was Iraq. You guys got no job other than invading countries and telling “we love the people hate the government” then getting sad why that country hasn’t collapsed yet?

Original San Antonio Chili

Ingredients

2 pounds beef shoulder, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 pound pork shoulder, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1/4 cup suet
1/4 cup pork fat
3 medium-size onions, chopped
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 quart water
4 ancho chiles
1 serrano chile
6 dried red chiles
1 tablespoon comino seeds, freshly ground
2 tablespoons Mexican oregano
Salt to taste

Instructions

Place lightly floured beef and pork cubes in with suet and pork fat in heavy chili pot and cook quickly, stirring often.
Add onions and garlic and cook until they are tender and limp.
Add water to mixture and simmer slowly while preparing chiles.
Remove stems and seeds from chiles and chop very finely.
Grind chiles in molcajete and add oregano with salt to mixture. Simmer for another 2 hours.
Remove suet casing and skim off some fat.

Notes

Never cook frijoles with chiles and meat. Serve as a separate dish.

What is the toughest difficulty you have ever faced in life?

The pain was beyond anything imaginable.

Chiang Mai Thailand 2013. I had a rare form of Tuberculosis cysts lodged in my spinal cord and on my right kidney. The doctors didn’t know how I contracted this deadly bacteria. I was too ashamed to tell them it was from drug abuse and the unhygienic practices that came with it.

It felt like a hot knife piercing my back continuously for months as I lay immobilized on the bed of my apartment. I could not hold down food and went from 220 lbs to 163 lbs. There was no sleep, only my body eventually shutting down from the pain.

My mother was an LPN and flew in to take care of me because I could not afford a hospital. My poor mother, I screamed at her to take my life. I switched from fentanyl to methadone to morphine, but none of them worked – they only made the pain worse because my feeble body could not process the drugs. It was gasoline on the fire raging inside me.

Once a week or so, my mother would help me to sit up, place a back brace on me, and help me move six feet to the bathroom so I could attempt a bowel movement and a brief shower. Every inch of every movement was excruciating pain; I had no more tears; it was hollow bellowing, and even cursing was painful. And then back to bed. That simple exercise would be an hour of horrific suffering.

After three months of strong antibiotics, I could finally eat and hold it down. With a back brace and cane, I could stand and walk briefly. The photo above was from this time, taken with my beautiful mother. You can see the back brace under my shirt and the cane I used to walk.

This life I have today is beyond anything imaginable

I never thought it possible. I thought I was doomed to the bondage of self, and the slavery of active addiction.

Now, I live a lifestyle of sober recovery – drug and alcohol-free at 56. I train daily in the gym, go for power walks and jogs in nature, and have a purposeful, meaningful life.

I Just Got an Email That Left me SPEECHLESS. WE’RE AT DEFCON 2

This is really good, from a prepper. DEFCON 2. Holy Shit!

What are things about corporate life no one tells you about?

Your appraisal is dependent on last 2 months efforts and not 12 months
You ask for a raise, and your boss thinks you’re looking for a job change
You complain about administrative issues and your manager thinks you’re trying to be a rebel
Don’t share secrets with your colleagues, they might be sharing your secrets with colleagues or managers
Your office friend is not your real friend and they won’t swear by your death bed
If you die tomorrow, there is a replacement within a week
Your efficiency is decided by number of hours you clock in vs number of productive efforts you place in
A junior person can outsmart a senior person but he will still be called junior
Your mistakes will always be discussed during appraisals
Your best performance will be discussed when you want to quit
If you finish your work on time and leave early, this is getting noted in the system as you don’t have enough work. [Your efficiency is not counted 90% of the time.]
Hiring is done based on communication skills and not on management, writing, negotiation, programming, analysis, attitude and mindset
Your CTC, Variable, Bonus and Take home salary are different components (understand the difference)
Utilize your earned and casual leaves when you get time
Find your interests and do some certification courses from LinkedIn, Coursera, edX etc
Documentation is king
Lazy ones are the smartest but are difficult to manage
Love your job and be committed to the work. Period.
Your salary will increase by 1.5x, 2x or 3x only when you switch companies
At age 20–30 skill set is primary and salary is secondary.
If you find a mentor in your current company, listen to him/her and always consult when you get stuck
Be open to change and learn how to become smarter
Try to be 1% better than yesterday
Kill the boredom, go for a walk when you don’t have anything to do at office or talk to your colleagues and find out how they do what they do
Be happy and learn the financial management, this will help you stay afloat after 10–15 years

Chen Si.

He works at a logistics agency in Nanjing, China. He also spends his free time saving other people’s lives.

Let me tell you his story.

In 2003, a very close relative of Chen’s committed suicide after watching his sons argue over who would take care of him. The incident was deeply traumatizing. Having to lose someone he held so dear to his heart just because his sons didn’t seem to show enough respect and compassion for him. Chen also read in the local newspaper that the Nanjing-Yangtze River Bridge was a major suicide hotspot — in fact, by 2006, about 2,000 people were estimated to have killed themselves by jumping off the bridge since the year it was constructed (1968). He then became greatly determined to devote the rest of his life saving those of others trapped in hopelessness by foiling suicide attempts.

In response, Chen began to patrol the Nanjing-Yangtze bridge either on his motorbike or on foot, continuously on the lookout for people willing to jump from it.

He has been there almost every day, even on holidays and weekends, regardless of the weather.

He has kept a lookout for signs of depression, for example, in the way some of them walk, which Chen describes as “passive with no spirit or direction”.

Chen also keeps a diary documenting the people he has encountered and the reasons why they wanted to kill themselves.

Some had been greatly shamed for not being successful enough in school.
Some had broken up with their boyfriend or girlfriend.
Some had wasted away their money on needless things.
There was also, for example, a migrant worker who was drowning in debt because he couldn’t pay off the $15,000 bill for his daughter’s leukemia treatments.

Chen also gives out suicide prevention pamphlets to potential jumpers, detailing emergency contacts.

And not only does he simply pull people off the bridge. In fact, he has spent 10,000 yuan ($1,457 in dollars) renting a two-room house not far from the site, which he calls “a station for the soul to rest in”.

He sits with people and lets them share all their suffering in their stories, which in a way ignites friendship, trust, and newfound confidence. Chen also occasionally brings victims back to the bridge as volunteers, helping others see a way forward in life.

Throughout his time engaging in this, Chen has stopped over 300 people from ending their lives. That is an example of being a hero without having to fight. An example of generosity and compassion at work without the necessity for bloodshed. Sometimes the best heroes simply dedicate themselves to lending a hand to people who feel like they’ve got nothing left for them. Chen Si isn’t called the “Angel of Nanjing” for nothing.

“Not all heroes wear capes”, they say. That is most definitely true.

Footnotes

[1] Chen Si – Wikipedia

What are some of the oldest contracts still in place that include some regular payments, like a lease that requires the user or tenant to pay something?

Every October since 1211 the City of London has paid rent to the Crown for two pieces of land even though nobody knows their exact locations.

The Ceremony of Quit Rents is the oldest legal ceremony in England apart for the Coronation of the Monarch. It takes place between St Michael’s Day (October 11th) and St Martin’s Day (November 11th) every year in the Royal Courts of Justice in London where the City pays the King’s Remembrancer.

The King’s Remembrancer is the oldest judicial position in England and was created in 1164 by Henry II to keep track of what was owed to the crown.

For the first piece of land, called The Moors, the City pays two knives, one blunt and one sharp.

The Remembrancer’s duty is to test the knives. The billhook is tested on a hazel tally and should make a mark representing the payment. The sharp axe then splits the tally in two, one for each party as a receipt. The Remembrancer then calls “Good service”.

This is called a split tally where in order to record debts a stick was marked with a number of notches and then split lengthwise. This way the two halves both record the same notches and each party to the transaction received one half of the marked stick as proof.

The second quit rent is for the use of the forge in Tweezer’s Alley, somewhere near The Strand. It is believed that the first tenant, Walter Le Brun, was a blacksmith who had set up his business near the tilting ground of the Knights Templar sometime around 1235.

The rent for this land is sixty-one nails and six horse-shoes. The horseshoes used are believed to date back to 1361 and are probably the oldest horseshoes still in existence. After the payment is received, the shoes and nails are then loaned back to the City of London for the next year.

When presented with the horseshoes and nails, the Remembrancer calls “Good number”.

There are also other quit or peppercorn rents. In Medieval times when a piece of property was deeded over as a reward for service a nominal rent was often charged as a reminder that the tenant didn’t own the property outright. A single peppercorn (or a single rose i.e. rose rents) was among the most popular forms of this style of rent but there were various other interesting forms of payment, such as a frog, a roast pork dinner, the donation of a petticoat to a poor woman, or even a raw calves head and a pair of gloves.

What do you dislike most about the U.S.?

Hi.
I am an Australian who is married to an American and, due to the nature of my work, lived ALL OVER the US over a decade.

Half my family are American and many of my closest friends.
In short, I’m very fond of the United States and support my nation’s close affiliation with them.

So please forgive me if I’m blunt.
This is NOT an American bash, it’s an honest expression of the one thing that [SOME] Americans do that never fails to trigger me.

“We saved your asses in World War Two”.

Americans often tell us bluntly, over and over how they “saved our arses” in both World Wars.

I assure you, EVERY SINGLE Brit, Aussie, Kiwi or Canadian reading along can hear those words spoken in an American accent as they read them.

That’s how often we hear it.
Almost weekly.
Certainly once a month.

Wars that we ourselves stepped up and fought in the protection of others.
Wars that wouldn’t even have affected us directly.
Wars we fought for YEARS before the United States.

Australia, Canada, India and New Zealand particularly could have turned their backs on Western Europe.

Britain herself could have closed her borders and looked the other way.
Hitler had no designs on the UK – He admired them.
All they had to do was stand back and allow the holocaust to happen.

But of course they couldn’t because fighting Nazi Germany was the right thing to do.

We didn’t make Britain wait 3.2 and 2.3 years to enter either great war.
We were there from day one.

We didn’t charge Britain for our goods or help.
We didn’t keep a tally and make them pay it back for seventy years.
We didn’t insist they realign their trade preferences to favour our markets setting their still very young colonies prematurely adrift or cost them their empire, wealth, dignity or preeminence as a world power.

We didn’t use Britain’s plight as a springboard for our own wealth and dominance or spend the following century diluting their culture with Pan Americanism and shallow consumerism.

CANZUK didn’t ask for anything.
We just went because we’re family and that’s what family does and despite what some of you are going to assert in the comments, yes, America, though you are the black sheep you are also family.

Speaking for Australia, from a population of six million (2/3 of which were women, children, the elderly and infirm), a full one million Australian men served in the military during the Second World war.

Let that sink in.

We had, from our far-flung nation gathered together the fourth-largest air force in the world and the fifth largest navy and lost so many men in every theater of both World Wars that we had a noticeable lack of them right into the 1980s.
Indeed, by the time American boots had touched the ground in North Africa and Europe, CANZUK had already sacrificed literally millions of men.

It’s SO, rude.
I’m not even sure you understand just how disrespectful it is and how much damage it does [at street level] to our relationships with the US.
Honestly – it’s there in the pit of all our stomachs whenever we even engage with an American.

I will leave you with this quote from the memoirs of one of your own.
American journalist Ernie Pyle who was killed in action by the Japanese in April 1945.

His account of D-day and the liberation of Paris.

“One cannot help but be moved by the colossus of our invasion. It was a bold and mighty thing. One of the epics of all history. I hope that we can rejoice in victory but humbly. The dead men would not want us to gloat.”

Peace.

Do people realise that China is an authoritarian country?

Probably. So?

I don’t live in China. But I do live in another country that is often said to be authoritarian (Singapore). And what else can we say about Singapore?

It’s ranked in the world’s top five richest countries (by GDP per capita). It’s ranked among the world’s top five least corrupt countries. Its public transport system is often ranked as the world’s best. It’s also ranked as the world’s no. 6 most peaceful country. It has one of the world’s highest average life expectancies. It’s ranked No. 1 for infrastructure. Singapore is ranked the 2nd safest city in the world. Singapore students are the world’s best in science, math and literacy. Its economy is ranked the 4th most competitive in the world. Singapore has the lowest infant mortality rate in the world. Homelessness is very rare here. Singapore’s rate of death by drug overdose is 81 times lower than in the US. There hasn’t been one gun homicide in the past 17 years.

Etc etc etc. I could go on and on. Basically Singapore is a very successful country across a wide range of different indicators and criteria. Makes you wonder, doesn’t it – what exactly is so bad about authoritarianism.

Yeah, yeah, you can’t smoke pot; you’ll be caned if you are a rapist, and you have no right to utter hate speech to bully anybody. Sounds quite good to me.

Which is the best thing to import?

Cigarettes 😀

You do the maths. I used to be able to buy them at HKIA for $90HKD a carton. The airport staff said you have to pay duty if you take more than 2 cartons. I said yes and filled my suitcase.

I’d take them to the UK and sell them for £35–40 a carton. I’d sell them to somebody who looked like he’d stab you in the face. First time I met him he wanted to rob me, but realised I could supply him regularly. Anyway he’d sell them for £50–60 a carton (it’s about £50 for 100 a carton is 200).

The trick was to land late at night, if you did this the customs agents were usually not too attentive and wanted to go home.

Same thing with France, I’d go for a razz now and again and come back with a car filled with cigarettes.

It was easy money and made me my seed money to get my business off the ground.

What are some sad truths about life?

Chris Langan was born with a freakishly potent brain, having arguably the highest IQ of any living person.

Langan began speaking at six months old and went on to skip several grades. He had an adult vocabulary by age 10. He breezed through college-level tests as an adolescent. He took his SAT several years early and got a perfect score in half the allotted time and took a nap.

Today, he is a rancher. He never finished college. Most of his adult years were spent as a bouncer at a bar, and in manual labor jobs.

It all stemmed from his rough childhood. He grew up in a poor family. His mother married multiple times before he turned 12. One stepfather committed suicide. Another was psychopathic and abusive.

His stark upbringing created behavioral problems and a persisting contempt for authority. Combine this with inadequate mentorship, resources, and an absent professional network and he never weaponized his extremely rare gift.

The sad truth is that there are many like Langan, who are like the gifted child working on a 3rd world farm, born into poverty and dealt a common, cruel blow to the chance of success.

TikTok on the cost of living | RANT ON INFLATION | EVERYONE IS BROKE AND TIRED

“Hi guys, just to clarify I do not own any of these videos I just thought it would be interesting to see how people are dealing with the cost of living, sending prayers and well wishes to you ”

Gaza nightmare

Some disturbing stuff going down right now. The idiots in Washington DC are Hell-bent on war, and all of us are feeling like we are trapped in some kind of cage lashed to the back of a speeding car driven by a madman.

The West has gone completely koo-koo.

No shit.

In case you all haven’t noticed, I am not “reporting” or commenting on the insanity of the Middle East. It’s all a cluster fuck that I want no part of.

Today…

What is the smartest thing you have seen a lawyer do in court?

How about the Judge?

A long time ago, I owned one of the first Honda Accords. I had bought it new in 1977, and around 1984, the engine had a very bad oil burning problem. I was pulled over by a Metro Toronto Police constable, who gave me the choice of a ticket for “excessive smoking” or a visit to the Ontario Ministry of the Environment testing centre.

I chose the test, filled the engine with 50 w oil and while there was no smoke, the rest of the needles went fully to the right. Busted.

I was given a chance for a repeat, but knowing I would fail that one also, I put the car on the driveway, pulled the plates and used a borrowed vehicle. About a month after the missed test, a summons came in the mail to appear at the Provincial court one morning in the not too distant future.

I showed up early, and approached the clerk to find out where I should be and when. They never tell you that on the summons, just to appear. While talking the the clerk, a man walked up and was dealing with another of the clerks. I asked the clerk I was talking to “what the fine would be” if convicted. She didn’t know, and man beside me became interested in the matter. I had no idea who he was, but we kind of looked at the summons and neither of us could see anything about a fine. There was a little conversation; I assumed he was a lawyer, and we had a friendly chat. Court was starting shortly, and the fellow left, so I also went inside, told the bailiff I was there – important to do so, otherwise they might not call you for hours – and sat down.

At the stroke of 10:00 am, someone says “all rise” and in walks the Judge, the fellow I was talking to at the desk. Before the proceedings began, the Judge asked me if I had received an answer from the clerk. I told him that I had not, and then the proceedings began.

The Crown (prosecutor) presents the charge, an environmental offence, which he obviously felt was on par with burning down a forest or killing baby seals. Looking very smug, he sat down.

I am called forth, and I told the Judge that yes, the car had failed, but it was off the road and here are the license plates in my hand proving that it was no longer driving or polluting.

The Judge then asked the Crown what the minimum fine was for such an offence. The Crown responded that “the Ministry has a range up to $5000 for such an offence and the usual fine is this case would be $100.”

The Judge asked again about the minimum fine and the Crown repeated his same line. The Judge then asked “so there is no minimum fine?”

The Crown sheepishly answered “No sir” and the Judge turned to me and asked “the car is off the road?” and I responded affirmatively, at which point he said the charges were dropped as the intent of the law was to keep polluting vehicles off the road and obviously this had happened. Case dismissed!

I can’t say for sure, but there was a bit of smile from my new friend on the bench as I walked out of the court.

The smartest lawyer in the room was the Judge.

What are the best socializing tips that are not said but everyone should practice?

I couldn’t unsee it.

We’d just celebrated a diversity milestone as part of our quarterly meeting. It was one of those corporate cheerleading events where I stood in the back resisting the painful urge to roll my eyes.

“We are far more than a team of coworkers,” the CEO said, gesturing wide with his arms to the crowd, “We are a family.”

He was such a phony. The summit concluded and I went to the lunchroom. Right as I walked in, I stopped in the doorway and noticed something obvious that I hadn’t noticed before this diversity meeting.

All the white people were at their tables. All the black employees sat at another set of tables. Three Asian ladies sat at another. It was like we were living in the 1950s. And it wasn’t confined to this office. I still see this trend so often when I walk through malls, or along the sidewalk.

A similar phenomenon was observed on the set of Planet Of The Apes in 1968. The director noticed that during lunch, the people dressed as gorillas sat with other gorillas, chimps with chimps, and humans with humans. He described feeling a chill in the air and wondered if we were already in a dystopian sci-fi future. It even happened on the set of Babylon 5. People self-segregated according to their alien skin color.

This trend has long predated echo chambers, and it’s detrimental to your growth.

The closed network problem

The trend is called homophily, where we magnetize towards clusters of people similar to us. Race isn’t the only sorting mechanism. People sort by social class, age, political ideology, and even the type of music they listen to. And the unfortunate result is that we often live in a “closed network”. We sort ourselves into increasingly tight homogeneous groups.

A closed network forms in these four steps and I suspect you’ll be able to think of a few examples as you read this (I certainly did):

Putting all moral platitudes aside, social diversity has great predictive qualities for your career and life.

Count on one hand your closest friends. I’d bet that for many of you — they are pretty similar to you across a few demographic touchpoints. It’s no fault to you. This happens naturally, but you can disrupt this habit.

By mixing up your friend group, you are exposed to ideas different than your own and stretch your thinking. Your professional network also becomes much more potent, which is especially important: Within 10 years of graduation, a majority of people won’t work in the area they majored in.

Beware of gatekeeping your network

My ex’s family was deeply conservative — which is fine on its own. People are entitled to their beliefs. But this was often a barrier to who could spend time with them.

They were constantly sizing people up and figuring out their political opinions to determine if they were friend-material. Many people do this without realizing it. These parents were just explicit about it and they had a very small town syndrome (cliquey behavior, when you forget there is an entire world outside of your own).

This introduces the other pesky problem. It’s not all that easy to make friends — especially as we get older. So what next? There are a few solutions.

A route out of Cloneville

I moved 15 times before I turned 18. I lived in California, DC, Florida, Virginia Beach, North Carolina — and every new batch of people was so different than the next. I went to an all white, deeply conservative private school in 9th grade, a liberal high school in Coronado. I was one of the only white kids at an inner city middle school in DC. It wasn’t always easy.

Every summer, I waited for the talk. My mom or dad would come to my bedroom and tell me we were moving and how I was going to love this new school and place. Early on, I realized implicitly, “OK. I need to learn to make new friends.”

I was a new 5th grader at Linkhorn Elementary. We had a substitute teacher who happened to be gorgeous. She was passing out quiz papers. Before she passed out each quiz, she did that thing where she licked her finger to grip the paper.

After she handed me my quiz, I looked across the table at a classmate Joe and say, “Hey Joe! Pssst.”

He turned to me and I pretended to lick my finger and put it down to my thigh and made a hissing sound, like bacon hitting the frying pan. It was a corny joke — but it made Joe laugh and we were instantly friends. And from there, I learned that humor was one quick path to win anyone over.

Often, it’s less about how funny a joke is — and more about the energy it establishes. It signals, “I want to play.” Think about how a dog plants his chest down to the ground while keeping his hind legs standing to get another dog to play with him. This is the human equivalent.

It says, “I like you. Let’s have fun.”

“What if I’m not that funny?”

An even better solution that is painfully overlooked is to smile. Researchers have proven that smiles motivate people to interact with you. They are seen as a “prosocial invitation”. Stand upright and give them a quick, natural smile right when you spot them. It signals you are excited to see them.

After getting to know so many types of people, I’ve realized most people just want to be accepted as a complicated human being. And if you are just nice to them, and seem happy to see them and talk to them — you’ve nearly won the battle already.

When you go to your lunchroom, consider sitting with a new group of people. Don’t be afraid to talk to someone who looks different than you.

There’s a concept called contact hypothesis whereby tension between groups is reduced when they are brought together and interact. It promotes trust and reduces stereotyping. It reminds two different people that they’re both human beings. But the only way to make different types of friends is to actually spend time with people who are different from you.

One of my close friends couldn’t be more different from me. His political views and background are a full 180. But we are both fully candid about our opinions and thoughts, and know we can do so without fear of judgement or being disliked. Sure, he says crazy stuff sometimes but that’s fine. He’s still my friend. He’s taught me a few things about the world and changed a few of my opinions, and I’d like to think the reverse is true.

My hope, is that in a world that is so divided, more people from different walks of life can share the same path. They’d expand their own perspectives. They’d have more love and understanding, and more career opportunities.

And it would save us from being fenced in with our own. Closed networks beget closed minds.

Quite an intriguing visual.

Brazil was inches away from recognising Jerusalem as Israel’s capital not very long ago, mind you.
Surprising split in South America nonetheless, you’d imagine they’d have a uniform stance like they had for Ukraine.
A sea of yellow in Asia with only the usual suspects in blue but hey there’s someone new this time!
India’s position sits perfectly with our new found friends and within our domestic political landscape but ought to disappoint the fellow global southerners. But tbf, it is not to be construed as a paradigm shift in our policy, our Ministry of External Affairs clarified our two state stance on Palestine only yesterday, rather bad memories getting rekindled.
Nepal lost about a dozen citizens to Hamas’ attack. Poor folks go under the radar and didn’t even get sufficient coverage.
Irans sphere of influence, man, from Caspian Sea to Red Sea. Bush what have you done?
This is a map from TRT— Türkiye’s state run broadcaster. Interesting that they construe Erdogan’s position as call for de-escalation.
Sudan’s case is the perfect microcosm of the viability of normalisation deals that Israel is pursuing. You try so hard and get so far, and then a coup happens.
Morocco, UAE understandable, but Saudi and Pakistan? Who would have thought? Not me. Only 2% of Saudis are in favour of normalisation, I wonder if that matters at all. And 2% would be too high a number for Pakistanis.
Those who follow Bangladesh’s politics ought to find Bangladesh’s silence intriguing, if not outright discombobulating, especially with Hasina up for election soon and US breathing down her neck (yeah, not making this up, US is the biggest threat to Hasina’s re-election).
I don’t get Mexico’s neutrality, they don’t even recognise Palestine.
I don’t get New Zealand’s contrarian take either. What gives? I imagined if anyone from the West was going to have a contrarian take it would be Norway. The right is on the rise in Norway, left rules New Zealand, perhaps that explains?
Ghana coming all out to condemn Hamas? With a similar religious demography split like India, I wonder if there’s domestic political considerations involved.
Foreign policy really is domestic politics with its hat on.
Given that Indonesia’s support will be construed differently then Iran’s support, Venezuela joins the “axis of evil”. But in all fairness they joined the club previously after Ukraine invasion.
DPRK has been silent?
What explains the silence of that many African countries? None of our business paradigm?

Putin tells it like it is…

Fudge Cobbler

Yield: about 9 servings

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter
1 (1 ounce) square unsweetened baking chocolate
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs, beaten
Vanilla ice cream (garnish)

Instructions

Heat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease an 8 inch square baking dish.
Melt the chocolate and the butter in a saucepan over very low heat. Stir often. Remove from the heat.
Stir in the sugar, flour, vanilla extract and eggs.
Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish.
Bake for 20 to 22 minutes.
Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

What’s a rule your employer implemented that backfired terribly?

Everyone in the office was paid on an hourly basis and it was each person’s responsibility to keep track of how many hours they worked each day on a paper time sheet. At the end of each week each employee turned in their time sheet to their supervisor who would sign them and then give the to HR so everyone can get paid for the hours they worked. In practice, everyone showed up each day, did their work, wrote down”8 hours” on their time sheet and went home. Everyone was happy.

Then along came a new guy in management who stated that nobody was actually keeping track of their hours and just writing down what HR wanted to see. This meant that the company was losing money and productivity from people not working a full day but being paid for it. So he instituted a new digital time sheet system where each person had to log their times in and out on their computers and the system would track how many hours each of us worked.

What the company discovered was that everyone tended to come into work 10–15 minutes early, hardly ever took a full hour for lunch and often stayed 10–15 minutes late to get their work done. Thanks to the new time sheet system every employee was now getting paid for all that overtime they had been working but not tracking. This affected the company because it was added payroll expense that wasn’t budgeted. So management put out a new rule that nobody would be allowed to work any overtime without written permission from their supervisor and HR. So everyone was very diligent to log in and out exactly in time.

Except now productivity had fallen because nobody was working those extra minutes each day, which multiplied over all staff added up to an extra 60 hours per week of work. The company ended up needing to hire two more people to make up that productivity.

After Huawei released Kirin 9000S, Biden revised the bill: banning China from owning high-end chips.

So China cannot make their own, if they do, they will violate American law.

Malaysia’s switch to a dual 5G network will allow for more effective participation by China’s Huawei – PM Anwar

Malaysia Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said on Wednesday the country’s switch to a dual 5G network will allow for more effective participation by China’s Huawei Technologies Co Ltd.

Malaysia in May had said it would allow a second 5G network to operate from next year, following concerns over a monopoly held by a single state-run network.

The European Union and the U.S. had warned Malaysia of risks to national security and foreign investment amid efforts by Huawei to bid for a role in its telecoms infrastructure.

Anwar on Wednesday acknowledged concerns from some countries over the “security and capacity” of technology stemming from China, but said the decision to allow a second 5G network was made so that Malaysia could benefit from different technologies.

“We in Malaysia… and I believe rightly, decided that while we get the best from the West, we also should benefit the best from the East,” he told an event hosted by Huawei in Kuala Lumpur.

“After extensive discussion… we made the decision to allow for a dual network, and thus the decision for more effective participation by Huawei.”

Malaysia had in 2021 unveiled a plan for a state-owned agency, Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB), to own the full 5G spectrum, with various carriers using the infrastructure to provide mobile services, but the plan had come under industry criticism over pricing and competition.

State-run DNB partnered with Swedish telecoms giant Ericsson to roll out Malaysia’s 5G network. It is unclear how Malaysia’s plan for a second network would affect DNB’s agreement with Ericsson or other mobile operators.

WHAT THESE FILIPINAS CAN OFFER TO THEIR PASSPORT BROS!

Three chicks talking.

How do expats view other expats in China?

I really don’t like most western expats in China.

They are generally ignorant about China and Chinese, and conversations about China are very shallow and full of misconceptions. It is not worth my time to correct those misperceptions, and there is no reward for doing it.

Chinese are much fun and interesting, and even if they have silly ideas, they are often entertaining. Most importantly, they know the local restaurants and dishes, and can introduce me to some dish I have never had before. Unlike for most westerners, dining out is a social event, not just filling the tummy.

What was a gift that made you speechless?

I was age 14 in the early 1960s and living with a family who had one child around my age. On my 14th birthday, my mother said I needed to pay room and board. I decided to pay for a room in other homes where there was no violence. My rapidly increasing scoliosis was becoming a problem. I had three jobs to pay room and board — (1) feeding and washing people in a nursing home and doing laundry), (2) babysitting at the country club 1.5 miles away, and (3) stocking shelves in a dry goods store. I made $29.00 a week. My room and board was $28.00 a week. I went to high school about three days a week.

I was happy with this family. The father was Welsh and sang Welsh songs every Friday night as he walked home from the Legion. The mother was one of the cafeteria ladies at the high school. They were good to me.

Then one day, the father came home with an envelope and pulled out a Beatles ticket and handed it to his daughter.

And then he handed another ticket to me.

TO ME!

It cost $15.00. I told him it would take me years to pay him back. If I didn’t buy shampoo, pads, or deodorant, it would take me 15 months to repay him. The father disregarded this idea with a flick of his hand and a Welsh phrase I didn’t understand.

The father drove us the 80 miles to the venue, let us off and circled the building during the performance and was right there when it was finished. Not only that, but the man put up with us singing Beatles songs all the way home. We were not good singers.

Even now, decades later (and I am a retired person), whenever I do something nice for someone, I think, ‘this is for you, John Cooper, this one is for you.’

I carry such lightweight debts with me.

Pepe Escobar: China Has DEFEATED the Neocon Agenda as US War Fails Before It Starts

I don’t expect Xi or Putin to meet with Biden. He doesn’t make the decisions.

This is really, really, REALLY good.

Do you think Huawei can produce smartphones with advanced chips in large volume despite the US claims that Huawei may violate trade restrictions?

LOL, this is China.

If they know how to do something, they automatically know how to do it at scale.

This is a country that builds entire new cities at one go. They produce 600,000 engineers per year. They make four out of every five solar panels in the world. They can build a 57-storey skyscraper in 19 days, and as we saw during the covid-19 pandemic, a brand new hospital in 10 days. They are the world’s biggest factory.

If they know how to make one Huawei Mate 60, they already know how to make 100 million Huawei Mate 60s.

China does not know how to think SMALL. It is unnatural and weird for them to think on a small scale. China has cities with populations larger than countries such as Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, even Australia. Thinking big is China’s default mentality.

New round of US sanctions started against Huawei! U.S. tech war enters stage 2.0!

In this episode, we dive into the latest updates on the potential second round of sanctions by the United States on Huawei. Huawei, the Chinese tech giant, unveiled its new smartphone, the Mate 60 Pro, sparking intrigue amidst ongoing U.S.-China tech tensions.

These cutting-edge smartphones, powered by 7-nanometer chips from China’s SMIC, bring 5G connectivity to the forefront.

The implications of this move are significant, causing a reevaluation of the technology blockade against Huawei and even calls for a complete halt to technology exports. We also explore China’s efforts to boost its self-sufficiency in chip production and navigate U.S. export restrictions.

https://youtu.be/CI-ZOcv2CaI

What sort of sexism do most women face in the workplace?

I generally like my employer.

But the worst part of my job is that I occasionally have to be the “male voice”.

One of my female colleagues will refer a call to me to tell a caller about some iron clad policy we have that we can never, ever overlook.

I am on the same pay level as all of them. I am not the manager. I often work in a different department. I am, however, the only one of this fairly large group of people that is male.

I tell them the iron clad policy. They shut up. End of story.

Part of the problem is that the engineering profession is still about 80% male, and so is the applicant base. They are not used to being told “no” by someone who isn’t male. It’s not like it’s just immigrants either.

Here’s the irony. The second highest ranking staff member, and the person two steps above me, is a woman. She’s had to put up with it too.

But I will tell you about my ex-colleague, boss and PEO president. She left her position as my boss to take on a five year position at the university she was hired by to get female enrollment in the engineering program up to 40%. It took her one year and she shot past the 40% goal to boot. Then she went to another university and did the same thing.

China’s LATEST Hypersonic Drone Can Destroy US F35 Stealth Fighter in Seconds

China’s hypersonic program has emerged as one of the biggest and heavily advanced sectors of the nation. In this remarkable sector, the PLA boasts having a drone in its arsenal which is capable of reaching hypersonic speeds and destroying world renowned stealth fighters that have dominated the aerial warfare sector for years. Today’s episode is covering China’s hypersonic drone and how it can be used to destroy US Stealth fighters.

Why is Quora full of Westerners who praise China?

Many of the westerners have been to China, like it, and see a lot of criticism of China in the western media which is based on planted information and is basically untrue, in order to drive western public opinion against China.

These westerners try to compensate for this distorted view by praising China. Their intention is to restore balance in how China is viewed.

Unfortunately, the western view of China has become so distorted that it is impossible to have a balanced view of China: either it is completely bad, or it is good.

A balanced view of China would say that there are many good things about China, and there are some bad things as well.

China is just like the US: it is just another country and society, each facing its own set of challenges.

What is the most satisfying thing you have done to someone who blocked your driveway?

I live in Northern Maine. My property borders a state park/forest. The state forest has a parking lot you need to pay to park in the lot although the park/forest is free to enter. Alot of people will park along the main road and walk into the park. my property is on a side road that is beside the park the park entrance is 2 mile up the main road from my road.

Some park/forest visitors have taken to pulling down my road and parking on my property and hiking across my property to enter the park. they block driveways and the road with poor parking abilities. Some pull into driveways.

My property is a farm I have many driveways used by tractors and equipment to enter the feilds for feeding livestock and tending crops. All driveways are gated (keep livestock in feilds and out of crops)

One group of annoying tourists pulled up in 3 vehicles (2 rvs and a 12–15 passenger van) All had New York plates. they pulled in blocking the access to the feilds and began hiking across my feilds. I caught up to them and informed them that they would be towed if they did not move the vehicles. The leader of the group told me to f-off while giving a one finger salute. I watched as they walked away across the feild. once they entered the park/forest I went to my equipment barn got my large green and yellow tractor hooked up a slurry spreader tank and drove over to the slurry bin and filled the tank. ( Slurry is cow manure that is mixed with water to make it able to spray) I adjusted the spray bar and drove over near the area and sprayed liquified manure (did not spay any on the vehicles) just near the road along the fence a nice heavy thick layer then sprayed more along the area they entered the forest. Since it was 85 degrees outside the smell would bake in the sun to keep it fresh I placed a water tank and sprayer/ sprinkler nearby and set the timers to run for 5 minutes every hour. After 4 hours I called and had the vehicles towed.

They returned and found me spraying slurry in my feilds as they walked across the feilds the slurry is sticking to the shoes (most wearing sandles or flip flops – Nothing like the feeling of liquid poop between the toes) They find the vehicles gone and ask me where they are. I tell them where the inpound lot is and inform them that as they exit onto the main road they should stop and read the large SIGN that says private road. I called the police who informed them that they could walk to impound as it was 20–30 minute walk down the road.

I would imagine that they found out that the oder of sun baked slurry permeates into things. (they left the widows open on the vehicles) and with what was on the shoes it must have been an interesting ride back to New York.

Josep Borell, EU foreign policy chief, accuses China of treating Europe as a US puppet. How can this perception on the part of the Chinese be changed?

The problem with the EU is Josep the Chief Diplomat’s words do not represent the cohesive attitude, or indeed, policy decisions of the EU towards China. EU member states hold even more divergent and polarizing attitudes.

The fact of the matter is, the G7 does not have a China seat, but the EU gets its own seat, on top of individual EU members. The currencies of these nations power the global financial market, while the yuan issued by the world’s No. 2 economy is an afterthought in BIS reports.

Senior figures in the EU have repeatedly made rude and damaging attacks on China and Chinese interests, including the core issue of Greater China sovereignty. Entities and individuals have been sanctioned, just like their American counterparts, whose actions they mirrored.

Nord Stream is a key European infrastructure that cost billions to build. After it was bombed, the lack of condemnation for an act of war is curious, to say the least. Government findings were blocked from release, while there remains a shocking lack of blowback and demand for accountability in the press.

The EU-CHINA CAI, which is tilted in Europe’s favor, is also dead in the water, after 10 years of painstaking negotiation securing an agreement in principle. EU leaders are complaining about lack of market access in China, when it is self-inflicted.

There is also the issue of the EC, with Ursula completely at odds with Josep’s conciliatory, if shaky, diplomacy. She was given the cold shoulder on a recent visit to Beijing as Emmanuel’s invited partner. The message was clear. She wasn’t the guest invited by the Chinese state.

Who represents the EU? Who has the authoritative voice that can be trusted? How has the EU demonstrated long-term policy independence from the US?

Wang Yi, and before him, Yang Jiechi, have had regular hours-long closed door conversations with Jake, the National Security Advisor. Jake is 46, and not even elected, but he has access to top Chinese leadership that the EU can only dream of, because he is the personal envoy of Joe.

Do we really have to spell out who calls the shots in NATO, which is tied at the umbilical with the EU power structure?

As the Cantonese say, 画公仔唔使画出肠。

Israel Conflict Just Became Scarier And Weird!

Yes. Too odd. For certain.

How does culture influence human behavior?

During a 10-hour flight, she was heading from Seoul, Korea, to San Francisco, USA. This mother distributed more than 200 passengers on the plane a plastic bag for each one. The bag contains candy, chewing gum and earplugs as a kind of advance apology for using them in the event that her 4-month-old baby screamed during the flight.

The bag also contained a message containing (hello, I am Jan Woo. I am 4 months old and today I’m traveling America with my mom and grandmother for my aunt’s outfit. I’m a little nervous and scared. This is my first flight in my life. It’s normal for me to cry or cause some disturbance. I’ll try to stay calm, but I can’t promise you. Please use it if my voice gets too loud.. Enjoy your trip. Thank you)

A culture of respecting the freedom of others…

Is China still a communist country? Can we say that the rivalry between the US and China is the ideology conflict?

Not at all.

Communism and Marxism is hardly an issue to the U.S. with Vietnam that the U.S. is courting shamelessly and Saudi Arabia a Islamic Monarchy hardly liberal democracy but does it bother Uncle Sam for the last half a century?

For me it is as simple as China cannot be made submissive and subservient to the U.S. that is all to it. And worst China is simply a lot lot more efficient and effective than the U.S. can ever be! In fact China has a better human rights record than the U.S. anyway! That perturb the US to no end.

But what is worst for the U.S. Is 150–175 nations out of the world’s 195 nation prefers Chinese and China way and none in the global south wants anything to do with Uncle Sam. They find them obnoxious and despicable. To me this is not due to China at all but due to the shit U.S. did to the world since 1945.

I know Americans who are mostly highly naive and hugely made ignorant to think the U.S. media or government is well liked by the world. But in truth it couldn’t be further than the truth!

Abusing nations has consequences, bullying nations turned them off, arbitrary sanctions puts nations off, they will hedge, they will stop letting you fxxk them! It does not matter what your media lies and your propaganda says. The world is no fool!

Just figure this. US the biggest murdering nation telling China in Alaska about human rights! Is totally laughable and utterly ridiculous! Chinese officials told Blinken save the advise for your dogs and slave vassal nations!

The “American Dream” is actual Slavery (It’s all a Lie)

Harsh truth about the United States. Soak it in.

What’s the dumbest thing your boss has gotten mad at you for?

I was an admin assistant at a department at my local university. I was just about to clock off and make my way home in a wild windstorm that eventually knocked down 20,000 trees across the city when for some reason I decided to check one of the grad student offices and discovered that the skylight had blown off, exposing multiple desks and computers, some of them running data, to the elements. I called the relevant campus department and was told that restoring electricity and clearing roads and whatnot took priority, and they likely wouldn’t get to replacing the skylight (which I’d located, but lacked the strength and roof access to lug it up myself) until the next day at the earliest. So I cracked open the earthquake kit and rigged, using tarps and duct tape, a patch, then moved, ever so carefully so as not to accidentally disconnect the computers, all six desks away from the skylight shaft, in case my patch failed.

This all took about four hours past my usual knock-off time. Everyone was really glad I’d taken the time and initiative to do it, but my supervisor refused even to consider giving me time off in lieu for those four hours because she hadn’t pre-approved them, never mind that, in those pre-cell days, I’d had no way of reaching her. So I appealed to the department head, who overrode her. She was livid, and thereafter made my life so miserable that I leapt at the first decent opportunity to leave.

If universal healthcare is actually cheaper than our current system and covers everybody. Why not just do it?

I’m a retired US citizen who moved to Uruguay in 2015 after spending my entire working career in “Corporate America”.

It’s entertaining to read discussions about the possibility of implementing Universal Healthcare in the United States.

It will NEVER happen. It’s 1000% impossible. The reason? Health insurance companies.

The concept of Universal Healthcare does not involve insurance companies. There is no need for a bloated middleman.

There are 563,366 Health & Medical Insurance Employees in the US, costing approximately $50 billion annually.

These companies would have to be closed, freeing up all this cash for actual medical care, instead of bloat.

The main problems with the US Healthcare system are listed below. None of these problems exist with Universal Healthcare.

Greedy Health insurance companies run by highly-paid executives.
High-paid pharmaceutical & insurance company lobbyists.
Greedy congressmen who take millions of dollars in bribes annually.
Expensive TV commercials pushing expensive drugs.
Doctors who earn outrageous salaries to pay for outrageously expensive college educations with insane education loans.
Outrageous malpractice lawsuit settlements, requiring doctors to carry outrageous liability insurance.
People with no medical knowledge make decisions about whether a patient can have a medical procedure, overruling the attending physician.

Now, with the outsourcing of call centers, people with no medical knowledge in Jamaica, India, and Pakistan make those decisions.

Here are some typical costs in Uruguay:

Office visit: US $8.00
ER visit: US $ 10.00
House call: US $12.00.
Electrolyte blood analysis: US $7.11.
Cerebral CT Scan: US $23.29

If you call an ambulance, it arrives with a full-fledged MD, not an EMT.

Before I turned 70 years of age, I paid around US $55 per month for health coverage.

Now I pay around US $70 per month. For that, I get totally free hospital stays and all costs are free, including hospital stay, surgery, medications, doctor care, and nursing care. When you check out, regardless of what was done or how long you were hospitalized, you pay nothing.

The monthly cost for my cancer medication is around US $2.50. The same medication in the US is around $500.00.

Here are the main reasons everything is so cheap:

No claims to file

No EOB

No Deductible

No Out-of-Pocket

No Coinsurance

No Allowed amount

No Benefit period

No Preauthorization

Sincerely, A Tax Payer

“It sucks being poor…”

Can China manufacture semiconductor chips and create a rival to Intel, Apple, TSMC, and NVIDIA?

It’s been proven China can with Huawei’s Mate 60 Pro.

Chinese companies can rival the giant U.S. tech companies like Intel, Apple and Nvidia but what takes time is building up the ecosystem to make this possible. Thousands of companies make up the support system that manufactures and supports the tools and machines for the manufacturing processes of semiconductors.

The most critical of these companies are in the design (specifically EDA tools) and packaging (chiplets) processes, as well as the lithography machines for the making of the chip itself. There are now Chinese companies with the leading edge (or close to) technologies to rival industry leaders.

Just as critical is the consolidating of resources and capabilities to have the companies to ensure adequate supply of legacy chips. These are actually the more important players because they make up 90% of demand.

U.S. sanctions have forced China to come up with its own self-siufficient semiconductor indiustry.

If the average Chinese person supports 1 party rule and the average American supports democracy, how can we determine who is correct?

Chinese don’t necessarily support single party rule; they support a strong central government to maintain order.

Whether it is single party or not is secondary.

In today’s China, it is led by a single party, but it is much more than any western political party because it has 100M members who meet monthly to discuss local, provincial and central government issues, and how to solve them.

Do the Republican and Democratic parties ask their members to meet monthly to discuss how to solve social issues? I think not.

My point is not that one system is better than another, but they are very different, and talking about the ruling party in China being the same as the political parties in the US is silly and ridiculous, because China developed according to its historical conditions, and the US developed according to its historical conditions.

As Everyone’s Lοοking At Ιsrael, Something Τruly Unbelievable Has Begun Ιn America

Very interesting.

He’s saying that (it’s official) World War III is on-line.

https://youtu.be/DA3aRJrAyOo

Why is it NOT a good idea for an American White woman to marry a Middle Eastern Muslim man?

I did it. I regretted it.

People are imbued with cultural and religious ideas they don’t even recognize and simply take for granted.

I, an American, was imbued with the idea “I am my husband’s equal. In marriage we will have the same freedoms and similar expectations of each other. I would never shout at him for wearing shorts, so of course he will not do that to me. I don’t consider cooking his job, so I am sure he won’t consider it my job. I would always discuss a big purchase with him – and naturally he will give me the same respect.”

That sense of equality and “Don’t treat your spouse in a way you don’t want to be treated yourself” was my cultural norm.

I found that my husband had absolutely no cultural or religious norm of equality. He absolutely was willing to treat me in ways he would hate to be treated himself. He did not think a woman deserved what a man deserves.

He found it absolutely normal to expect control over me, and be resentful thst I didn’t make his life as comfortable as he believed a man’s life should be. He was constantly looking at the very unequal marriages of his (Muslim Arab) friends and resenting me for not being a submissive woman who cooked and cleaned and expected nothing but money from him.

My husband and I are in the same profession. I worked longer hours than him. I was also the one who was sometimes pregnant or recovering from childbirth.

But he could not appreciate me. He had a cultural and religious idea in his head : a man should come home from work and be catered to. Clean house, good food, obedient wife who wears certain clothes and lets her husband forbid her from certain activities or friends that do not please him. The man should be comfortable, should be served, should have things his way. (It is similar to the relationship between a dog owner and his dog. They love each other – but the owner does not think the dog should share in decisions or come and go as it pleases. A dog is expected to be happy being owned and trained and played with.)

My husband started off claiming he would love me forever.

It did not last.

But his cultural ideas of what a man is owed and how a wife must serve — those ideas will last in him forever.

What is wrong with American politicians’ fascination with Huawei?

Let’s answer this question using 5 Low IQ positions that the US politicians are taking –

Low IQ action 1 – Raimondo threatens Huawei before her China trip. She is simply arrogant and lacks intelligence. Who in the right mind threatens someone’s kid before visiting their home?

Low IQ action 2 – It is simply embarrassing to see a country using full state resources to bring down a private company. You brought an army to a fist fight and didn’t knock your much smaller opponent out!

Low IQ action 3 – The Western chips companies are making large profits selling products to China. And you stopped the sales and force your biggest customer to make their own?

Low IQ action 4 – You give billions of dollars of subsidies to your own chip companies to build factories. But you stop the demand from your top customer. So where are US companies gonna sell their excess chips to?

Low IQ action 5 – You take away Huawei’s access to Google and they went to develop their own operating system to threaten Google’s and Microsoft’s future dominance. You like shooting your own foot?

Irish Girl Watches MISTER ROGERS For The First Time

Oh nostalgia tv, except I don’t know who Mister Rogers is. I’ve always heard the name Mister Rogers as a reference in American tv and films but this Irish Girl had no idea who that was. Join me on a very emotional journey as I watch Fred Rogers first through last tv appearance, see him sing “I like you just as you are” and “ it’s a wonderful day in the neighbourhood” Mister Rogers Neighbourhood. Couldn’t we all do with some nice insight from a Fred Rogers right now.

What was your experience like when you realized that life outside of the United States was better than inside it?

I was in the US Army stationed in Germany for 3 and half years… Just turned 18. During this time I never took leave and went back. Travelled all over Europe! In Germany, I drunk my first beer, had my first kiss, and my first Girlfriend, was amazed by the people, the culture, the infrastructure, the cuisine, almost everything. I even took German courses and was proficient at least with speaking German. Anyway the day came, when i was being discharged ( I never really liked the army, andjoined for the Gi Bill) Back in the rural midwest, working at Walmart while going to community collage, I realized how much I missed Germany, the lifestyle, the urban vibe and so many things ( missed having a GF too, in the US I wasnt rich enough or cool enough to date anyone, in Germany this was never a thing at all, about money and all that. I decided if I was going to have a dull dead end life with no future, why not go back to Germany? At least have an adventure of some kind, i could always come back to the US.. 7 months after I ETSed ( left the army) I got a passport, got a cheap one way ticket and reconnected with some German civilians I knew.. I ended up staying in germany, has been 30 plus years now. I remember when the plane landed and I was disembarking, and set foot on the ground, I felt like,, this is it..the place you are meant to be.

Will the US dollar lose its global power in the next 5 years?

Yes it absolutely will.

I takes longer than that but slowly and surely it will.there is not even a speck of doubt. Tell me which nation wants to save in U.S. dollar reserve if can be confiscated away from you at the whims or fancies of the U.S? Do you want to keep your savings in a bank using a currency that the US can take it all away anytime it wants?

No one do, no want does, no one will ever want to. The fact that the US and the west can even phantom that by stealing gold from Venezuela and US dollar reserves from Russia is an acceptable behaviour tell how little the west thinks of the rest of the world.

Every nation on earth, even the US allies are figuring how to hedge against the US dollar. Direct Currency swap arrangement is very popular and it must have have grown several fold in the last year alone! Some agree on a basket of currencies, Others revert back to barter.

JEFFREY SACHS ON A HISTORIC DEBT

Israel Attacks Damascus Airport as IRAN Foreign Minister Plane Coming-in; Plane Forced to Divert

World Hal Turner 12 October 2023

The Israeli Air Force fired missiles at Damascus Airport and Aleppo Airport this morning, just before a plane carrying the Iran Foreign Minister was approaching Damascus for an official state visit. The Iran Minister’s plane was forced to divert from the area to avoid conflict.

Attacking Syria was an illegal act of aggression by Israel. Conducting that attack while a Diplomat was approaching for a state visit is arguably an Act of War.

Damascus Airport is now damaged and closed. Aleppo Airport is also reported to be damaged and closed.

The Iran Foreign Minister plane appears to be returning to Iran.

Syrian Defense Ministry: “At approximately 1:50 pm this afternoon, the Israeli enemy simultaneously carried out an air aggression with bursts of missiles, targeting the international airports of Aleppo and Damascus, which led to damage to the airports’ landing strips and them being out of service.

This aggression is a desperate attempt by the criminal Israeli enemy to divert attention from the crimes it is committing in Gaza, and the great losses it is suffering at the hands of the Palestinian resistance.”

( HT Remark: Nothing like escalating the already bad situation with Gaza into an international incident with a foreign Diplomat. Unschooled, these Israelis. Totally devoid of class.)

How does the cost of Whoosh, Indonesia’s first high-speed railway, compare to other high-speed railway projects around the world?

According to our Singapore media reports, the cost of the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail is approximately US$7.3 billion. We tentatively believe that this number is real.

So this figure exceeds the budget given by China when bidding for the project eight years ago by US$1.2 billion. The project completion time was delayed by 4 years than originally planned.

This doesn’t seem like a good number.

But compared to current plans in other countries around the world to build high-speed rail, these are two very good figures.

1. Cost per kilometer

Even calculated based on all costs after overruns (including land costs), the cost per kilometer of Indonesia’s high-speed rail is only US$58 million. The high-speed rail in the United Kingdom is US$300 million per kilometer, and the high-speed rail in California is US$200 million per kilometer.

India’s high-speed rail was originally planned to cost US$35 million per kilometer. However, it has not actually been completed yet. Only ten kilometers have been built. The cost has been doubled and the final cost cannot be estimated. Due to serious delays in construction, some experts predict that there is a high probability that the cost per kilometer will exceed US$80 million when completed.

2. Time spent

The Indian high-speed railway started construction one year earlier than the Indonesian high-speed railway and is scheduled to open in 2023. According to media reports some time ago, only 10 kilometers have been built so far.
The completion date has been changed to 2028, but many experts believe that the actual completion time may be after 2032.

The first phase of the British high-speed railway is planned to build 160 kilometers. Construction will start in 2020 and is scheduled to be completed in 2029. It has now been changed to 2033. The real completion date cannot be determined.

Therefore, although the Indonesian high-speed railway experienced a 16% cost overrun and a 4-year construction delay.
But this is mainly due to the virus problem over the past 3 years.

Judging from similar large-scale projects around the world, Indonesians have reached the top level in terms of project time and budget control.

I believe that for many years to come, no country will be able to surpass Indonesia’s level.

This is due to the efficient work of the Indonesian government, the unity and support of the Indonesian people, and the technology and efficiency of the Chinese. Their achievements deserve congratulations.

Star Trek – Fire On the Forcefield

America Can’t Stop China’s Rise — Foreign Policy

There’s little doubt that the American government has decided to slow China’s economic rise, most notably in the fields of technological development. To be sure, the Biden administration denies that these are its goals. Janet Yellen said on April 20, “China’s economic growth need not be incompatible with U.S. economic leadership. The United States remains the most dynamic and prosperous economy in the world. We have no reason to fear healthy economic competition with any country.” And Jake Sullivan said on April 27, “Our export controls will remain narrowly focused on technology that could tilt the military balance. We are simply ensuring that U.S. and allied technology is not used against us.”

Yet, in its deeds, the Biden administration has shown that its vision extends beyond those modest goals. It has not reversed the trade tariffs Donald Trump imposed in 2018 on China, even though presidential candidate Joe Biden criticized them in July 2019, saying: “President Trump may think he’s being tough on China. All that he’s delivered as a consequence of that is American farmers, manufacturers and consumers losing and paying more.” Instead, the Biden administration has tried to increase the pressure on China by banning the export of chips, semiconductor equipment, and selected software. It has also persuaded its allies, like the Netherlands and Japan, to follow suit. More recently, on Aug. 9, the Biden administration issued an executive order prohibiting American investments in China involving “sensitive technologies and products in the semiconductors and microelectronics, quantum information technologies, and artificial intelligence sectors” which “pose a particularly acute national security threat because of their potential to significantly advance the military, intelligence, surveillance, or cyber-enabled capabilities” of China.

All these actions confirm that the American government is trying to stop China’s growth. Yet, the big question is whether America can succeed in this campaign—and the answer is probably not. Fortunately, it is not too late for the United States to reorient its China policy toward an approach that would better serve Americans—and the rest of the world.

America’s decision to slow China’s technological development is akin to the folly revealed by the old cliché: closing the barn door after the horse has bolted. Modern China has shown many times that China’s technological development can’t be halted.

Since the creation of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, several efforts have been made to limit China’s access to or stop its development in various critical technologies, including nuclear weapons, space, satellite communication, GPS, semiconductors, supercomputers, and artificial intelligence. The United States has also tried to curb China’s market dominance in 5G, commercial drones, and electric vehicles (EVs). Throughout history, unilateral or extraterritorial enforcement efforts to curtail China’s technological rise have failed and, in the current context, are creating irreparable damage to long-standing U.S. geopolitical partnerships. In 1993 the Clinton administration tried to restrict China’s access to satellite technology. Today, China has some 540 satellites in space and is launching a competitor to Starlink.

The same principle played out with GPS. When America restricted China’s access to its geospatial data system in 1999, China simply built its own parallel BeiDou Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) system in one of the first waves of major technological decoupling. In some measures, BeiDou is today better than GPS. It is the largest GNSS in the world, with 45 satellites to GPS’s 31, and is thus able to provide more signals in most global capitals. It is supported by 120 ground stations, resulting in greater accuracy, and has more advanced signal features, such as two-way messaging. Other nations have also previously tried and failed to block China’s technical rise. In the 1950s and 1960s, when the USSR withheld nuclear weapons technology from China, China launched its own “Manhattan Project” in the early 1960s and succeeded in testing its first nuclear weapon by 1964. Russian nuclear leverage over China ended that day.

Many of the measures taken by the Biden administration against China were also executed without factoring in China’s capacity to retaliate. While China does not physically construct many truly irreplaceable components of the American technology stack, they are keenly aware of the importance of their raw materials inputs (rare earths) and demand (revenue generation) in fueling the American innovation ecosystem and are now using them as leverage. In the current tit-for-tat dynamic, China will start squeezing these two critical ends of the value chain in response to American technology and capital export restrictions. China’s July ban of the gallium and germanium exports was merely an opening shot across the bow to remind America (and its aligned allies) of China’s dominance in the rare earths and critical metals space. The country has a near monopoly in the processing of magnesium, bismuth, tungsten, graphite, silicon, vanadium, fluorspar, tellurium, indium, antimony, barite, zinc, and tin. China also dominates in midstream processing for materials essential to most of America’s current and future technology aspirations such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, and copper, which are critical for the rapidly developing EV industry globally.

While America and other neutral countries have mineral reserves of many of these materials, it would be naïve to believe that one can simply flip a switch on mining and production. It will take at least three to five years just to build the requisite extraction and processing infrastructure. This is to say nothing for recruiting and training skilled labor, or receiving requisite operational and environmental permits for such activities. Both could prove impossible. The processing of rare earths is a highly toxic and environmentally destructive endeavor. It’s unlikely such approvals will be granted. If Arizona is struggling to find qualified workers for its TSMC fabrication facility, and to address domestic union opposition to importing foreign skilled labor, it’s unlikely that America can develop similar capabilities for material processing. Along the way, China gets to play kingmaker in how it doles out access to its processed materials, likely restricting supply to American technology and defense giants. The failure to factor in China’s retaliatory capacities indicates that the United States doesn’t have a well-thought-out and comprehensive approach to dealing with China.

American measures to deprive China access to the most advanced chips could even damage America’s large chip-making companies more than it hurts China. China is the largest consumer of semiconductors in the world. Over the past ten years, China has been importing massive amounts of chips from American companies. According to the US Chamber of Commerce, China-based firms imported $70.5 billion worth of semiconductors from American firms in 2019, representing approximately 37 percent of these companies’ global sales. Some American companies, like Qorvo, Texas Instruments, and Broadcom, derive about half of their revenues from China. 60 percent of Qualcomm’s revenues, a quarter of Intel’s revenues, and a fifth of Nvidia’s sales are from the Chinese market. It’s no wonder that the CEOs of these three companies recently went to Washington to warn that U.S. industry leadership could be harmed by the export controls. American firms will also be hurt by retaliatory actions from China, such as China’s May ban on chips from US-based Micron Technology. China accounts for over 25 percent of Micron’s sales.

The massive revenue surpluses generated by these sales to China were ploughed into R&D efforts which, in turn, kept American chip companies ahead of the game. The Chamber of Commerce estimates that if the United States were to ban semiconductor sales to China completely, U.S. companies would lose $83 billion in annual revenues and would have to cut 124,000 jobs. They would also have to cut their annual R&D budgets by at least $12 billion, and their capital spending by $13 billion. This would make it even more difficult for them to remain competitive on the global scale in the long run. American semiconductor firms are painfully aware that U.S. actions against China in the chips arena will harm their interests more than Chinese interests. The U.S. Semiconductor Industry Association released a statement on July 17, saying that Washington’s repeated steps “to impose overly broad, ambiguous, and at times unilateral restrictions risk diminishing the U.S. semiconductor industry’s competitiveness, disrupting supply chains, causing significant market uncertainty, and prompting continued escalatory retaliation by China,” and called on the Biden administration not to implement further restrictions without more extensive engagement with semiconductor industry representatives and experts.

The Chips Act cannot subsidize the American semiconductor industry indefinitely, and there is no other global demand base to replace China. Other chip producing nations will inevitably break ranks and sell to China (as they have historically) and the American actions will be for naught. And, in banning the export of chips and other core inputs to China, America handed China its war plan years ahead of the battle. China is being goaded into building self-sufficiency far earlier than they would have otherwise. Prior to the ZTE and Huawei components bans, China was content to continue purchasing American chips and focusing on the front-end hardware. Peter Wennink, the CEO of ASML, stated that China is already leading in key applications and demand for semiconductors. Wennink wrote, “The roll-out of the telecommunication infrastructure, battery technology, that’s the sweet spot of mid-critical and mature semiconductors, and that’s where China without any exception is leading.”

Germany Just Warned Europe On “China’s Counterstrike Move” | Silent EV War Explodes

Simple, like the UK with Brexit, Germany should leave the EU. This will solve the problem, as Germany will then be able to distance itself from investigations implemented by the EU parliament.

What is the most dangerous thing you have done and why?

I used to be a Tower Climber.

Installing antennas and transmission lines on cellular towers.. Day in and day out we would climb 150, 200, 300feet and stay up there literally all day – often 10–12 hours.

Those heights were the norm, but I also did 400ft a couple of times, and then 500ft once.

And I did it because I needed a job and this paid really well. Plus I was a brand new divorcee and just starting over, so at the time working this tough, dangerous job with other guys was a very good thing for me. I made close friends, we partied and had fun, we laughed a lot, and it was just what the doctor ordered.

The end of Evergrande.

Bloomberg News has reported that billionaire founder and chairman Hui Ka Yan was taken away by police earlier this month and put under so-called residential surveillance , a type of police action that falls short of formal detention or arrest.

The surveillance doesn’t necessarily mean that Hui will be charged with a crime, and the exact circumstances of his situation remain unclear. But it’s not looking good: Evergrande has halted trading and confirmed in a Hong Kong stock exchange filing that authorities have told the company that Hui has been subjected to “mandatory measures,” due to “suspicion of illegal crimes.

The latest twist in an ongoing saga for the world’s most indebted developer has left creditors confused and concerned about what’s to become of their investments. The fate of the developer’s restructuring plans are now at risk, and the chances of a full-on liquidation have increased.

There’s a long list of victims: the hundreds of thousands of homeowners who bought into some 706 residential projects that are still being built; people who bought into Evergrande’s wealth management products, worth 40 billion yuan ($5.5 billion) a few years ago; global investors who collectively own at least $30 billion of offshore debt; suppliers and banks who are among those owed some 2.39 trillion yuan in liabilities. The company is facing more than 2,000 lawsuits, too.

I remember a time when Evergrande was still able to overcome its detractors. When a shortsellertargeted it for alleged financial mismanagement back in 2012, a Hong Kong tribunal provided vindication by saying the report was misleading and false.

But so much has changed since then: Evergrande has become a harbinger of the nation’s real estate meltdown. Its fate seemed to be sealed back in 2020, when a liquidity scare fueled by its massive debt load triggered aggressive regulatory tightening. Compounded by pandemic-related woes, the company defaulted the following year.

What happens after Evergrande? As we know, this property crisis is far from over. China’s property developers face a liquidity shortfall worth some 19 trillion yuan, or 15% of GDP, that could morph into a solvency crunch by year-end, Bloomberg analysts estimate.

Property downturns are always painful. In China, that’s especially the case because of the outsized role that the sector plays in the economy: As much as 70% of household wealthis tied to the industry.

The government has responded by relaxing property buying rules, since it doesn’t want the current distress among developers to trigger financial contagion — nor does it want to see social unrest.

Dragging out the Evergrande saga, though, has wreaked havoc among homebuyers, construction workers, suppliers and investors. And as the government has shown no intention of bailing out developers, the only certainty we’re left with is the idea that this pain is far from finished.

Asian point of view

Have you ever tried to fire someone and it backfired?

This happened to my ex.

My ex was the CFO of one of the largest private construction companies in the world. His main role was to make sure the company stayed profitable. Simple really.

The owners’ son, who recently graduated from college and was having trouble finding gainful employment, (seems nobody would hire him to get stoned) was parachuted into my ex’s job. My ex was quickly let go.

He didn’t mind too much. Even though a little disappointed, he still was paid out fairly and started his own firm with the severance money.

A tender came up for a new skyscraper in London. My ex’s former company put in its bid and came in ahead of everyone else by millions. Turned out months into construction that the new CFO had forgotten to add the cost of electrical wiring into the cost of construction. A mistake that sent his family bankrupt.

Luckily there was one new firm with the creditor’s backing, experience and ability to jump in immediately. My ex hired a lot of the now redundant employees and bought a large chunk of his old company’s heavy equipment at a huge discount in a mortgagee sale.

The lesson here is to never kill the golden goose!

Elderly shelter cat had weeks to live. So this woman adopted him.

This woman is a saint! What she does for these cats is beyond compassion!

Capitalist and socialist modernisation

The Sixteenth Forum of the World Association for Political Economy (WAPE) took place from 25 to 27 September 2023 in Fuzhou, China, co-organised by Fujian Normal University. The theme of the forum was Chinese modernisaton and the prospects of world modernisation. Although unable to attend in person, Friends of Socialist China co-editor Carlos Martinez was invited to submit a video presentation.

Carlos’s presentation, entitled Capitalist and socialist modernisation, takes up a number of questions: What is modernisation? Is modernisation desirable? How has modernisation been achieved in the West? What is China’s modernisation plan? What are the unique characteristics of Chinese modernisation? How does socialist modernisation differ from capitalist modernisation? What effect does China’s modernisation on the global journey towards development and socialism?

The video and the text of Carlos’s presentation are available below.

What is modernisation, and is it necessary?

Modernisation is a somewhat nebulous concept. It means different things to different societies at different times. By definition, its parameters are constantly changing.

In the broadest sense, it means adapting to the latest, most advanced ideas and techniques for meeting humanity’s material and cultural needs.

In sociology, there is more or less an equals sign between modernisation and industrialisation, and is generally held to begin with Britain’s Industrial Revolution. We can think of it essentially as the transition from ‘developing country’ status to ‘developed country’ status; from a predominantly rural society to a predominantly urban society; from a technologically backward society to a technologically advanced society.

Is this desirable? Beauty is of course in the eye of the beholder, but most people consider modernisation to be desirable, because it enables higher living standards for the masses of the people.

With modernised industry, production techniques, communication methods, transport systems, energy systems and healthcare strategies, there exists the possibility of providing a healthy, meaningful and dignified life to all, such that each individual has reliable access to a healthy diet, to decent housing, to clothing, to education, to healthcare, to a vibrant cultural, social and intellectual life, and to fulfilling work. In short, modernisation makes it possible to attend to people’s basic human rights.

The fruits of modernisation have thus far been divided extremely unequally: the process of industrialisation in North America, Europe and Japan has created previously unimaginable wealth for a few, but this has been accompanied by desperate poverty and alienation for significant numbers. However, modernisation creates a material basis for common prosperity, far beyond what a pre-modern economy can offer.

Specifically in the case of China, the government has set a goal of “basically realising socialist modernisation by 2035”, and has defined some parameters for this:

Reaching a per-capita GDP on a par with that of the mid-level developed countries such as Spain or the Czech Republic
Joining the ranks of the world’s most innovative countries in the realm of science and technology
Becoming a global leader in education, public health, culture and sport
Substantially growing the middle-income group as a proportion of the population
Guaranteeing equitable access to basic public services
Ensuring modern standards of living in rural areas
Steadily lowering greenhouse gas emissions and protecting biodiversity, so as to restore a healthy balance between humans and the natural environment

If achieved, these aims will constitute a significant – indeed world-historic – improvement in the living standards of the Chinese people, and will blaze a trail for other developing countries.

How did the West modernise?

But is China doing anything new? After all, it won’t be the first country to achieve modernisation.

In mainstream modernisation theory in the West, the dominant narrative is that the countries of Western Europe, North America and Japan achieved their advances via a combination of good governance, liberal democracy, free-market economics, scientific genius, geographical serendipity and a dash of entrepreneurial spirit.

Historical investigation reveals a considerably different story.

The most important precursors of the West’s modernisation are colonialism, slavery and genocide. The conquest of the Americas, the settlement of Australia, the transatlantic slave trade, the colonisation of India, the rape of Africa, the Opium Wars, the theft of Hong Kong, and more. The profits of colonialism and the slave trade were essential for propelling the West’s industrialisation, as was so eloquently uncovered in Eric Williams’ classic 1944 work, Capitalism and Slavery.

As Karl Marx famously wrote in Volume 1 of Capital: “The discovery of gold and silver in America, the enslavement and entombment in mines of the aboriginal population, the beginning of the conquest and looting of the East Indies, the turning of Africa into a warren for the commercial hunting of black-skins, signalled the rosy dawn of the era of capitalist production.”

Such is the ugly truth of European modernisation. And the story is not so different in the United States. Many of the so-called founding fathers of that country were slave-owners, and they established a slave-owners’ society. They went to war against the indigenous peoples and against Mexico in order to expand their territory.

In the 20th century, having established their domination over the Americas, they constructed a neocolonial global system that is still in place to a significant degree, imposing American hegemony on the world.

A network of 800 foreign military bases. NATO. An enormous nuclear arsenal. Genocidal wars waged on Korea, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya. Systems of economic coercion and unilateral sanctions.

Proxy wars, coups, regime change projects, destabilisation.

This is the global system of violence that has facilitated and accompanied North American modernisation.

Japan’s rapid rise was facilitated first by its brutal expansionist project in East Asia, particularly Korea and China, and then through adaptation to and integration with the US-led imperialist system, the much-vaunted ‘rules-based international order’.

South Korea, Singapore and Taiwan Province constitute the small handful of non-imperialist territories that have been able to achieve modernisation, but these are special cases. Their shared proximity to China and the DPRK is no coincidence; they have been inducted into the imperialist club by the US, to play a dual role as regional policemen and living advertisements for capitalism on the frontline of its confrontation with socialism. Both roles rely on at least a certain degree of prosperity for a section of the population.

There is no shortage of countries of the Global South which have attempted to apply the “liberal democracy plus free market capitalism” formula, but none have been successful in modernising. Indeed the West’s prescriptions for (and interference in) developing countries have largely led to chaos and disaster.

The contrast between the West’s success in modernising and the Global South’s failure has fed into a largely unspoken but widespread and pernicious racism: an assumption that white people are somehow inherently more advanced than everyone else.

This supremacism is allowed to fester, because in addition to dividing working class and oppressed communities, it provides convenient cover for the reality that capitalist modernisation is built on the foundations of colonialism, imperialism and hegemonism.

As Kwame Nkrumah commented, “in the era of neocolonialism, under-development is still attributed not to exploitation but to inferiority, and racial undertones remain closely interwoven with the class struggle.”

How is China modernising?

China’s journey towards modernisation starts in 1949 with the founding of the People’s Republic, the early construction of socialist industry, land reform and the extirpation of feudalism and the landowning class, and the provision of at least basic levels of education and healthcare services to the whole population.

In 1963, Premier Zhou Enlai, supported by Liu Shaoqi, Deng Xiaoping and Chen Yun, first raised the question of the Four Modernisations: of agriculture, industry, national defence, and science and technology. Despite a complex political environment this goal was revived in the early 1970s, and, with the launch of reform and opening up in 1978, China accelerated its pursuit of those goals, and ushered in an era of rapid development of the productive forces and improvement in the people’s living standards.

China’s journey of modernisation has evolved again in recent years with the pursuit of the second centenary goal: of building a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious and beautiful by 2049.

China is on a fast track to becoming an advanced, developed country, and this process stands in stark contrast to the West’s modernisation process:

First, China’s modernisation is built on the efforts of the Chinese people rather than on war, colonialism and slavery.

Second, its fruits are to be shared by everybody, not dominated by the wealthy. As General Secretary Xi Jinping said in his work report to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, China’s modernisation is “the modernisation of common prosperity for all.”

Even today, not everyone in the West is able to enjoy the fruits of modernisation. Consider for example the US, where tens of millions lack access to healthcare; where over half a million people are homeless; where life expectancy for African Americans is six years less than for their white counterparts; where – according to the US Department of Education – over half of adults read below a sixth-grade level.

Third, China’s modernisation is becoming a green modernisation, fuelled by clean energy, careful not to destroy the planet that sustains us. Again quoting Xi Jinping’s work report, “it is the modernisation of harmony between humanity and nature.”

Capitalist modernisation has had a disastrous impact on the environment. With 4 percent of the global population, the US alone is responsible for 25 percent of historic greenhouse gas emissions. The simple fact is that humanity literally cannot afford for China’s modernisation to follow this pattern.

Socialist modernisation will become the ‘new normal’

The West’s modernisation path is not open to the countries of the Global South, and it wouldn’t be desirable even if it were. Today, the road of capitalist modernisation is closed, so how is China able to modernise?

China does not have an empire, formal or informal, but it does have a particular advantage of being a socialist state, a “people’s democratic dictatorship based on the alliance of workers and peasants”, to use Mao Zedong’s expression. Such a state can use its power to direct economic activity towards the goals of the social classes it represents.

Thus the specificities of China’s modernisation – the commitment to common prosperity, to ending poverty and underdevelopment, to preventing climate collapse and to peaceful development – are a function of China’s political system, its revolutionary history, and the leadership of the CPC.

At a meeting of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2016, Xi Jinping made this point very succinctly: “Our greatest strength lies in our socialist system, which enables us to pool resources in a major mission. This is the key to our success.”

Or as Deng Xiaoping famously commented in 1984: “the superiority of the socialist system is demonstrated, in the final analysis, by faster and greater development of the productive forces than under the capitalist system.”

In a world still largely dominated by capitalism – and an intellectual world still dominated by bourgeois ideology – it’s easy to forget this system’s fundamental and irreconcilable contradictions, which Marx identified with such clarity and profundity 150 years ago; contradictions which lead inexorably to inefficiency, stagnation and crisis. A political economy directed at the production of exchange values rather than use values can never result in common prosperity.

In China, the capitalist class is not the ruling class and is therefore not able to direct the country’s resources according to its own prerogatives. At the top level, resources are allocated by the state, in accordance with long-term planning carried out by, and in the interests of, the people.

This is what is enabling a new type of modernisation, which is blazing a trail for socialist and developing countries the world over.

The fruits of this process are being shared with the world, via mechanisms such as the Belt and Road Initiative and the Global Development Initiative, which are creating a path for the countries of the Global South to break out of underdevelopment, even where they lack China’s resources and political advantages.

As such, China’s evolving modernisation has great historic significance, and offers valuable lessons for the world. It is an embodiment of historical materialism in the current era: capitalism has long since exhausted its ability to fundamentally drive human progress, and therefore the future lies with socialism.

What were the most ‘badass’ moments of history?

Galvarino was a legendary warrior of the Mapuche people who rebelled against the Spanish Conquers who had invaded their land.

The Mapuche people were natives of the Araucana region of Chile who fought against the Spanish conquest of South America. The Arauco War was the bloodiest and longest-running battle in the history of the New World.

In what became known as the Battle of Lagunillias, Galvarino led his people in a fight against the Spanish invaders who were trying to force them into servitude.

During the battle, Galvarino and his men were captured by the Spanish. As punishment for defying the Spanish, Galvarino had both his hands amputated at the wrists and sent him home as a message to the other Mapuche tribes.

He returned home defeated and severely wounded. He showed the war council his wounds and begged them to let him lead an army against their oppressors. For his bravery, he was named commander of a squadron of men in a fight against Governor Mendoza.

With long Sharp knives fastened to his mutilated stumps, he led his army into battle against Governor Mendoza and his men. The Brutal battle lasted for an hour, with Galvarino striking and killing Mendoza’s number two in command with his modified stumps.

Although Galvarino and his men fought a brave battle, they were soon overwhelmed and captured. All the remaining captured warriors including Galvarino, were executed on the orders of Governor Mendoza.

Has Huawei successfully challenged the dominance of American tech giants and truly democratized the tech industry?

Huawei has established the third truly COMMERCIAL Asian Tech Ecosystem from China and the eighth in Asia after Toyota, Nikon, Canon ,Samsung , BYD, Trina and Xinyi

The Huawei Ecosystem now has

The Chip
The OS
The 5G Modem
The GPU
The Networks

Yet Huawei Ecosystem is fragile because SMIC the manufacturer of the 7 nm Node depends on Advanced DUV equipment from ASML

Now SMIC has stockpiled massive orders from ASML and that will keep SMIC going till maybe 2026

However that’s still dependence, a lot of dependence on the West

So i would say HUAWEI has made a start

Meanwhile people forget the REAL WINNERS of the three companies that have established it’s own dominant ecosystem on which the West is entirely dependent on :-

BYD

BYD has:-

The Chip – The Mature 28nm Chip that only China can today manufacture cost effectively and in huge volumes
The Software
The Satellite Navigation System
The Battery
The Dynamic Unit

It’s completely and entirely Independent from Western Technology

Trina and Xinyi who have :-

The Intelligent Chip
The Micrograde Wafer Panel (That to this day no nation can produce except France but at 87% higher cost)
The Carbide micro layering etching equipment (Chinas equivalent of the EUV Lithography Machine)
The Silicon extraction process into Mono, Poly Crystalline Silicon with infusions

Yes Huawei deserves all the admiration for its clawback and fighting

Yet BYD, Trina and Xinyi actually get Proprietary License Fees from the West which is unique for a Nation that to thia day didn’t kowtow to the West unlike Japan, Israel and South Korea

Huawei to win, needs SMIC to become another BYD or Xinyi or Trina

If SMIC can achieve that, then China truly begins the challenge to the established Semiconductor industry

Lego just hit a climate BRICK wall

Lego says that it cannot make bricks from recycled material. They tried and they simply cannot do it without increasing carbon emissions. That’s a refreshing admission. Most companies take on “green initiatives” anyway, even if they prove to make the problem worse. In a similar vein, the CEO of Lufthansa admitted that“going green” would require the airline to use up HALF of Germany’s electricity. So not green at all then. Meanwhile, Ford says that it will pause construction of a $3.5 billion plant to build EV batteries in Michigan. They aren’t saying why. It just goes to show: It ain’t easy being green.

Is the Belt and Road Initiative losing steam?

You’ve probably heard of China’s ambitious plan to connect the world with its Belt and Road Initiative, or BRI for short. It’s a massive project that involves building roads, railways, ports, pipelines, and other infrastructure across Asia, Africa, Europe, and beyond. China says it’s a win-win situation for everyone, a way to boost trade, development, and cooperation among more than 140 countries that have signed up for it.

But not everyone is buying it. Some critics in the West say that the BRI is a trap, a scheme, or a tool for China to expand its power and influence at the expense of other countries. They say that the BRI is saddling poor countries with unsustainable debt, damaging the environment and human rights, and undermining the international order. They also say that the BRI is losing steam due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the backlash from some host countries, and the changing global dynamics.

So what’s the real story? Well, if you listen to what China has to say on its official websites, you’ll get a very different picture. According to them, the BRI is not losing steam at all. In fact, it’s gaining momentum and achieving positive results in various aspects.

First of all, they say that the BRI has shown strong resilience and vitality amid the COVID-19 pandemic. China has actively cooperated with other BRI partners to fight against the virus, provide medical supplies and vaccines, share prevention and treatment experiences, and support economic recovery. The BRI has also contributed to the global efforts to build a community of health for all.

Secondly, they say that the BRI has promoted high-quality development and green cooperation. China has adhered to the principles of extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits, and has followed the international rules and standards in implementing BRI projects. China has also attached great importance to environmental protection, social responsibility, and debt sustainability, and has encouraged green investment and financing under the BRI framework.

Thirdly, they say that the BRI has enhanced mutual trust and friendship among different countries and peoples. The BRI has fostered dialogue and exchange among different civilizations, cultures, and religions, and has supported education, culture, tourism, sports, media, and other fields of people-to-people cooperation. The BRI has also created opportunities for poverty alleviation, job creation, livelihood improvement, and social development for millions of people in the participating countries.

So there you have it. The BRI is not losing steam but rather advancing steadily and fruitfully. The BRI is not a solo show by China but a chorus by all participants. The BRI is not a challenge or threat to anyone but a benefit and opportunity for everyone. The BRI is not a zero-sum game but a win-win cooperation for common development. That’s what China wants you to believe. And if you don’t believe it, well, too bad for you. Because China is not going to stop or change its course anytime soon. It’s going to keep pushing forward with its vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind.

Why Australia’s Housing Crisis Is a Warning for the World

My goodness!

What is something that needs to be said that nobody wants to hear?

Trump supporters have a point.

They weren’t misled by Russian trolls. They weren’t ignorant. They weren’t racist or sexist or xenophobic or homophobic. They were mad… they felt left behind and ignored by the media and the federal government… and they had a point.

They were left behind, and ignored.

For many of them, the America their parents and grandparents grew up in was a lot better. And no, that’s not because other groups were oppressed. It was because the economy was better for working-class people back then.

If your grandparents raised a large family on a single income, while the media and politicians cared about what your grandparents cared about, and now, 50 years later, you and your wife can’t get by on your dual incomes, and the media and politicians spend more time talking about transgender bathroom usage than the fact that families like yours are falling further behind each year… then yes, you have a point, and Make America Great Again makes sense.

Blueberry Grunt

Ingredients

4 cups fresh blueberries
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup water
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons grated orange peel
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup milk

Instructions

In a skillet, combine blueberries, sugar and water; bring to a boil. Simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes.
In a bowl, combine the next 6 ingredients; stir in milk just until moistened (dough will be stiff).
Drop by tablespoonsful over blueberries.
Cover and cook for 10 to 15 minutes or until dumplings are puffed and test done.
Serve warm.

Should secondary sanctions be imposed on China and Russia for their complicity with genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes in Myanmar?

All terrorism in the world is linked to the United States! It is no longer a secret that the United States Government supports terrorism in South-East Asia!

US-backed Terrorism Targets Vietnam & Myanmar in Wider War on China

Two terrorist attacks this month (June 2023) in Southeast Asia have been carried out by groups backed by the United States government and its allies for decades;
This includes a singer murdered in Myanmar and a series of armed attacks carried out on police stations in Vietnam killing 9 including several civilians;
British state media, the BBC, and US government-funded media platform Radio Free Asia have attempted to spin and even justify this terrorism as part of a much wider pattern promoting and defending terrorism as a means to counter China’s rise and punish nations working closely with China;
The opposition in Myanmar has openly been backed by the US and UK for decades – fighting to reinstall Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy back into power;
In Vietnam, the ethnic Montagnards had fought alongside US invaders in the Vietnam War, and since then have worked closely with the US through the National Endowment for Democracy toward separatism;
Much of this context is omitted from Western state-media accounts of the terrorism;
Both Myanmar and Vietnam’s current governments have close relations with China. Vietnam, while depicted in the Western media as “anti-China,” has worked with China to build infrastructure within its borders and access Chinese rail projects to bring their products all the way to Europe;

Why Companies That Go Woke Go Broke

I saw the title and I instantly clicked to watch, really wanted to see a documentary about all these companies that went woke, then broke!

What is the most amazing thing you overheard because people didn’t think you understood their language?

Well one fairly amazing thing happened in Penang. I (white Australian) was speaking to my friend (Asian Australian) in English.

An American tourist interrupted us and asked “excuse me, do you speak English?” We were both quite shocked and I said “a little.” I don’t know if she really couldn’t understand Australian English and didn’t realise what language I was speaking.

She said “Can you direct me to XYZ hotel?”

Now ordinarily two Aussies, neither of whom have ever been to Malaysia and speak no Malay wouldn’t be the best choice. But I pointed to the building we were standing in front of and said “walk about 10 yards that way.”

She was WAY out of her depth and her next international holiday should probably be to Hawaii.

However, I did the opposite in Austria. I speak no German, but if I look at a menu and plan out my sentence I can pretend to. So I asked in perfect German “Could I please have 2 hot chocolates; one with whipped cream and one with rum thanks.” She answered with something as simple as “that will be 8 euros” and I looked at her blankly and said in English “I’m sorry, I don’t speak German.” She laughed and did the transaction in English. She said I fooled her.

Pretty much the same thing in Poland, back in the days before Schengen membership. Apparently I needed a visa. So they berated me in Polish for a while, and I said I didn’t speak Polish. They went to the lingua franca of Eastern Europe and said “something something Russky.” I replied with what I’m told is an excellent accent “nye poni mayu po Russkiy.”

Here’s a guy in Lithuania, driving an Estonian-registered car, saying in perfect Russian in response to a question IN Russian “I don’t understand Russian.” I’m sure they weren’t thrilled and may not have believed me but I looked blankly at the rest of their diatribe. So eventually they wrote down my name, pointed me to Vilnius and said “visa.”’

Why is Urumqi, Xinjiang cleaner, safer, civilized, and developed than New Delhi?

Almost every Chinese City beats Indian Cities hollow in terms of Cleanliness, Safety and Development

There are Primarily three reasons for this :-

A. One Party Meritocracy & Funds

In China, fund allocation for Cities and their overall Urban development is based on the Urban Development Index (UDI) plus between 15% upto 46% of the revenue generated by a City is used by the Local Government of that Province and the Administration of that City to develop the place

There is no political rivalries or party based discrimination between Fund Allocation and Revenue sharing

It’s all about How much the City develops and how well maintained the City is

In India, funding is a nightmare because the State themselves have no claim over the money they generate as revenue. Everything is handed over to the Centre which then decides how much each State should get and then the State decides how much each City should get

China has 20 times the provincial autonomy than an Indian State

B. Continuous Development to prevent overcrowding

India keeps on dumping on the same city again and again for year after year. Thus every such city attracts migrants like flies and that leads to overcrowding of the worst order

China keeps developing and expanding new Cities regularly

Chengdu, Chongqing etc were small towns a decade or so ago that are now bustling cities, brimming with Prosperity

Urumqi was once a town , now it’s classified as a Tier 3 City

Thus if you notice Shanghai and Beijing both lost 4% and 5.6% of the population due to migration between 2013–2023 whereas Bangalore, Mumbai, Delhi and Hyderabad netted between 7.6% and 12% SURPLUS population by migration between 2008–2023

C. Chinas Housing Policy

Everyone living with a proper Job in a City in China MUST have housing

This is a law from the time of Chairman Mao and when it’s a Chairman Mao law, it’s enforcement is very strict

Public Housing is thus available for every single resident of the city including the poorest of them

Only Shanghai and Beijing has slums today , which existed before the 1998 law and thus can’t be torn down

If you have a legitimate job in CQ City, you get a Public Apartment of 39–52 Square Meters with indoor plumbing, heating, air conditioning and gas and electricity and drinking water for a mere 78 RMB / month

Of course many Chinese become prosperous enough to rent much nicer places and sub lease their public homes for which they pay rent of 78 RMB/ month for 400–500 RMB / month

During Covid 19, many such people were discovered and fined very heavily (30, 000 RMB plus 60 months rent or 100 Days in Prison)

A Fourth reason is the fact that Migration into Cities is heavily controlled

You just can’t come to a City that easily without housing or a job unless you are a tourist there

In India it’s the opposite

You can flood into cities and sleep on the roads and everywhere else and even defecate

It’s like a Zoo

So it’s the Chinese System

They may have their flaws but by God they have excellent City maintenance and keep themselves very clean

Their Air Quality improvement in a mere decade is something every nation takes notes on

Primarily another reason is the Chinese are proud of their country and love their country

Not the bogus love that Indians show which translates into defending India for all it’s weaknesses, glorifying mediocrities as superheroes, forcing people to stand up for the National Anthem etcetera

The genuine love that ensures they actively take pride in their development and their cities

When stray cats see this man, they compete with each other to get a place on his lap.

This is fun.

MM hospital run

Well, I am in the hospital. In-patient.

I had a “blood pressure” event that scared the living shit out of myself and caused me to rush to the emergency room.

The night before, we had drank three bottles of Merlot wine. Now, Merlot is a very hard wine, not so much in alcohol, but it is a heavy wine, and the next morning, I felt “very off”. That feeling of being “off” persisted well into the afternoon.

By 3:30 in the afternoon, I made up some of my herbal tea. Which consisted of “yin Yang Hua herbs (“Horny goat weed”) and GuoGe grapes. You just keep on adding hot water to the mix. And I drank about six bottles of the tea. Perhaps six or seven bottles. Maybe three liters total. It made me feel better.

It always does.

Anyways, I started to chew on some of the leaves and swallowed some of the GuoGe berries. And about a half of an hour later, I started to feel really “off”

My body felt really “wrong”.

So I went and checked my blood pressure. It is normally at 121.

I read 142. High.

High.

So I calmed down. Waited 15 minutes.

Measured it again.

158. Uh oh!

Gulp.

It was rising rapidly. Too rapidly. Too fast.

So I waited twenty minutes, and checked again.

175.

Sheeeeet!

I told ms. mm, “we need to go to the hospital now”. She started to protest, “but I have xxxxx”. I said “I don’t care.” And grabbed my keys. And the mrs and kid followed behind.

Luckily the hospital was down the street and we parked in front of the emergency room, as it was around 5 o’clock Sunday night.

I got in. They measured my vitals.

Blood Pressure = 214
Body temperature = 39.5 C

Both too high. I was admitted, and checked in. The staff took care of me.

…

Anyways, things are under control now, but I have to stay in the hospital for a while as they watch me.

My temperature is back to normal, and my BP is going down. The doctors tell me that I worry too much, high BP will not kill me. And they put me in the old people wing of the hospital due to my age.

LOL.

They nurses look at me… and then to my wife…, and four-year old and go “really?”

I don’t look like the rest of the folk in this area. And frankly, they are scaring me. Old 90 year old men on death-beds, and 80-year olds with health issues.

But I’ll get out once things stabilize.

My heart checks out fine. CT scan of my skull is fine too, though the doctor wanted to know what those seven black beads were. LOL! He chuckled at my answer, and I joked about it too.

Anyways…

Don’t fuck around with your health!

Anyways, the doctor says that my worrying about my situation only made things worse. All I was doing was drinking red wine, and taking Chinese herbal teas and that there was nothing that I should worry about.

Nothing. Normal behaviors.

Blurred vision, however. Dizziness, however… yeah… go straight to the hospital, but aside from that. Dontworryaboutit.

I’ll give you all updates as time moves on, but I have a lot of things on my plate that this particular moment in time, and I have to jiggle my medical emergency with all sorts of other personal, professional concerns. So I’m at max right now.

…

Today…

Attractiveness as rated by different sexes

How and where was Huawei able to manufacture the 7nm chip that powers the Mate 60 series? It is the subject of intense speculation within the US government. Why does the US focus on it? Will it reignite the ongoing US-China tech cold war?

Huawei did a miracle, defy traditional convention and believe, it had done the impossible. It was beyond US and DOC imagination, it is still a mystery to them, they have yet to figure out how Huawei did it.

The US banned Huawei access to EDA design tool, practically cut Huawei or Hisilcon from designing the chip although Hisilcon was able to design chip of 3nm using US EDA design tool before the ban.

Therefore Huawei and Hisilcon need to come out with their own EDA tool which they did successfully in unprecedented record time.

With its own EDA tool Hisilcon can proceed to design 7nm chip that SMIC can fabricate.

The other breakthrough was the fabrication of 7nm chips with DUV machines which according to industry is not possible, DUV standard limit is to produce chip up to 14 or 10 nm. 7nm chip require EUV machine, China or SMIC was banned from getting EUV machine.

BUT SMIC with corporation from Huawei did successfully produce 7nm chips by using available DUV machines which they call them N+2 chip. It was reported Huawei seconded more than 300 engineers or scientists to jointly resolve the bottleneck of using existing DUV machines to produce the require N+2 chips, an unbelievable breakthrough.

Another mystery is how can SMIC mass produce N+2 chips, initially, market was under impression, Huawei Mate 60 pro will be limited in supply, but Huawei surprised the markets by introducing 3 more models and look like the 7nm chip had achieved mass production able to meet sale volumn requirement.

The US and allies are panic now, Qualcom sale of chips to China contribute more than 60% of their sales, may risk losing the markets, ASML is panic too, China and Huawei are likely to breakthrough on EUV machine soon. US EDA suppliers risk losing Chinese markets permanently, the biggest risk is China may soon flood the markets with competitive chips killing US and allies chip industries.

The US and allies need to worry beyond just Mate 60 pro.

周杰倫 Jay Chou【Mine Mine】Official MV

What do you make of the comment by Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat that “the most important bilateral relations in the world is that between the US and China”?

Of course.

The U.S. will lose considerable ground and opportunity if it continue behaving like it is doing now.

What you need is a leader like Newsom the California governor. He sets aside biases and US media narratives to visit China and sees for himself what opportunities the U.S. is missing by having senile leaders like Trump and Biden.

The U.S. can only stay strong if it takes its head out of the sand. China is not just a big market it is humongous and growing rapidly. China alone is worth more than your next 5 biggest market. These nonsense of decoupling or de risking is having the opposite effect. You are not cutting China out. The U.S. is being decoupled from the world instead.

I suspect that Americans will throw out all China and Chinese haters out of your government soon. That is the first right step for the U.S.

GLICHERY – SEA OF PROBLEMS (PHONK)

Creole Flank Steak with Sautéed Vegetables and Cheese Grits

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

Flank Steak

1 beef flank steak (about 1 to 1 1/2 pounds)
1/2 cup red wine
2 tablespoons lime juice
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon Creole seasoning
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper

Okra and Carrots Sauté

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1/2 cup carrots, chopped
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 cup tomatoes, chopped
16 ounces okra, cut into 1 inch pieces

Creole Grits

1 1/2 cups water
2 cups milk
1 tablespoon Creole seasoning
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup quick-cooking grits
1 tablespoon butter
1 cup jalapeño jack cheese, shredded

Instructions

Flank Steak

Combine red wine, lime juice, garlic, Creole seasoning, crushed red pepper, salt and pepper in a food-safe plastic bag. Add steak, close bag securely. Marinate in refrigerator for 6 hours to overnight.
Remove steak from marinade; discard marinade. Place steak on grid over medium, ash-covered coals. Grill, covered, 11 to 16 minutes (over medium heat on preheated gas grill, 16 to 21 minutes) for medium rare (145 degrees F) to medium (160 degrees F) doneness, turning occasionally. Allow to rest.

Okra and Carrots Sauté

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the onions, carrots, cumin, coriander and chili powder. Sauté for 3 to 5 minutes or until the onions are transparent. Add the tomatoes and cook for 1 to 2 minutes.
Add the okra and simmer for 8 to 10 minutes or until the okra is cooked through.

Creole Grits

In a Dutch oven combine water, milk, Creole seasoning and salt. Bring to a boil.
Slowly add grits to hot liquid stirring constantly. Reduce heat to low and cover, stirring occasionally, about 5 to 7 minutes.
Remove from heat, stir in butter in cheese until melted.
Slice grilled steak against the grain. Serve with vegetables and grits.

Nutrition

Per serving: 569.53 Calories; 256.68 Calories from fat; 28.6g Total Fat (13.2g Saturated Fat; 0.1g Trans Fat; 1.1g Polyunsaturated Fat; 8.6g Monounsaturated Fat;) 97.9mg Cholesterol; 1192mg Sodium; 45g Total Carbohydrate; 5.3g Dietary Fiber; 38.5g Protein; 4.3mg Iron; 964mg Potassium; 9.9mg Niacin; 0.7mg Vitamin B6; 3.6mcg Vitamin B12; 6.6mg Zinc; 35.5mcg Selenium; 129.3mg Choline

This recipe is an excellent source of Protein, Iron, Potassium, Niacin, Vitamin B6, Vitamin B12, Zinc, Selenium, Choline; and a good source of Dietary Fiber.

Why do many people live beyond their means/income?

Because the goalposts have been moved.

50 years ago, it was perfectly reasonable to have a huge house, 3 kids, a car, and go on holidays at least once per year. On a single income.

Today, working 2 jobs, living in a small room, having no kids, taking the bus, never going on holidays, but sometimes getting a latte or an avocado toast… is considered to be an extravagant lifestyle, filled with needless luxuries.

Give it another couple of decades, and random stuff like getting 8 hours of sleep will be declared to be some kind of reckless indulgence, irresponsible behavior that youngsters should avoid if they ever want to be able to afford housing.

Husband Shocks Mrs By Laying Down The Law About The Marriage, Lack Of Bedroom Fun, Etc (She Obeys)

In today’s video, I go over an email sent from a subscriber who shares his story of how his once great marriage went down the tubes after unfortunate life events caused him to stop being the masculine leader he once was.

Finally after gaining back some of his manhood, he confronts his wife about her years of bad treatment of him and makes it clear that there are going to be some immediate changes or it’s over!

This is a great story about how men need to always remain in their masculine (even when things are difficult) as well as be the leader or things will quickly go to hell in a handbasket in their relationships.

What was the best April Fool’s prank played on you/you played on someone else?

Sixteen years ago, I got a job assignment 100 miles away for one year. My newly married daughter and son in law (Andy) moved into my house and I got an apartment in the new city. I came home most weekends. Before I left, I asked Andy if he wanted to keep cable for the year and pay for it. He said no and I cancelled it. Interestingly my bill with Comcast reflected the cancellation but the house still had service.

A few months go by and now it is April 1. I call Andy and leave a voicemail. I say that the Michigan State Police contacted me. They are investigating a three state cable theft ring. They claim my home is stealing cable, there is an illegal, third party bridge device affixed to home and the device has Andy’s fingerprints on it. I am in the clear because I have not been living there. This is all fiction.

Next, Andy is out and goes to my ex wife’s house where he and my daughter had been living previous to my house. A younger daughter answers the door and tells Andy that a police officer came to the house asking for him. She gives him a name and phone number the imaginary cop left. Andy is confused and then listens to my voicemail. Now he is freaked out. He calls the number and it rings to the desk of the woman who works next to me. She sees the incoming number and answers “Kent County Jail”. Andy identifies himself and tells her a bit of the story. She says she will transfer the call to the detective.

The call rings to my desk and I answer Hi Andy. April Fools.

I never left his side

What are some reasons the Cold War started?

Everyone keeps saying “1945” but the genesis of the distrust between the Soviet Union and the United States goes back way before that, and it’s impossible to understand why the two sides got engaged in proxy wars and a disastrously expensive arms buildup without going back to the Russian October Revolution in 1917.

It’s 1917 and the Russian Empire is on the ropes due to some spectacularly bad military and civilian leadership that saw Tsar Nicholas actually trying to lead troops in the field. His government completely collapsed that spring.

However, the provisional government, led by a faction called the Mensheviks (“Minority”) made one critical error. They were dependent on Great Britain, France and the United States to prop up their finances on the condition that Russia continue their war effort. The Mensheviks were no better at trying to fight the Germans, Austrians and Turks as the Imperial forces were and Germany decided to try to destabilize the new government by allowing passage to a Communist who went by the pseudonym of “Lenin” who was living in Geneva at the time who knew an opportunity when he saw it.

Lenin managed to get the support of worker’s unions, known by the Russian name “Soviet”, and the armed forces and took power in Moscow. He then consolidated power and ordered his foreign minister to end the war with the enemy powers as soon as possible no matter what it cost them. Russia conceded massive amounts of land and Lenin planned for what he knew was coming next – a civil war with the various factions that remained in Russian territory and breakaway states.

Naturally, the Western Powers were appalled, not only by the fact they now had to fight the Germans and Austrians alone (the war dragged on for another year) but that Lenin was making good on his promises to destroy the aristocracy and redistribute land and factories to the new “Soviets”.

The Russian Civil War, which lasted from 1917 to 1923 was an absolute mess with dozens of factions getting involved in addition to the primary fight between the Bolshevik “Red Army” and the “White Movement”, a loose coalition of anti-communist forces. Into this mess jumped in Great Britain, France and the United States, who sent personnel and support to the White faction.

So, after half-a-million people were killed and another 2.5 million people were wounded, the Reds were clearly on top and ready to rebuild the country. Unfortunately, the currency was worthless and the economy (once the world’s 4th largest) was in the toilet. What made it worse was that the economy was still largely agricultural at this point, and the Soviet Union still had to feed itself.

And absolutely no-one was willing to help them. Despite the Soviet Union being the de facto government of most of the old Empire (the Baltic States and some other areas remained independent) it would be another ten years before the western governments would recognize the new government, at which point the Soviet Union still struggled to recover its economy while it made great strides in industrialization. Sure, the west would buy Catherine the Great’s diamonds, but money was scarce.

In 1924 the secretary of the party, who had by manipulating meeting attendance and taking control of the bureaucracy rose to the head of the government, was clearly in charge with his rivals fleeing the country (to no avail, he had them hunted down). Joe Steel, or in Russian, “Josef Stalin”, had been a Georgian seminary student (he was very bright) and former bank robber (to finance communist party operations) but despite his accomplishments still spoke Russian like a Georgian and had a massive inferiority complex, a suspicious streak a mile wide, and was absolutely ruthless. When he died thirty years later, his servants were too afraid to check to see if he was actually dead.

But the western powers, this time including the newly restored Nazi Germany, were still hell bent on anti-Bolshevik rhetoric. The Nazis were hardly alone in this – the U.S., France and Great Britain were also hostile to communists during this period.

And it’s in 1939 when Stalin makes one of the greatest blunders in world history – he trusts Hitler. As his foreign minister later said, Stalin trusted no-one, except the world’s greatest liar. At first, it seemed to be a good idea as Russia seized the eastern half of Poland. However, just two years later, the Germans were on the move and invaded the Soviet Union. The irony is that Great Britain had excellent intelligence and was able to pin down the date of the invasion. They weren’t stupid and passed the information onto Russia. However, Stalin thought it was a ruse to get them to attack Germany. The Tsar’s attack on Germany in 1914 was what led to the war with Germany and he didn’t think it was a good idea to repeat history.

Nevertheless, their common enemy pushed Great Britain and the Soviet Union together as the British provided what they could to the Russians. When America entered the war later that year they got in on the game too and the three sides realized they had to work together to destroy Nazi Germany.

But throughout this period the three sides still had a lot of distrust of each other, and there were even cases where the United States and Great Britain were at odds.

Percentages agreement – Wikipedia

Russian and Great Britain’s plan to carve up Europe after the war. The U.S. wasn’t in on it.

But distrust over each other’s post war motives continued. By the time Truman told Stalin about the atomic bomb, Stalin knew about the project and even before that, had known about the potential (Russian scientists had independently hit on the idea). Moreover, during the period from 1941–1944 and D-Day, the Russians were carrying the bulk of the fight against the Germans and suffering terribly for it while the British and Americans were safely making plans in England. Stalin persistently pressed the matter about when the western powers would open a second front, and by the time they did so in June 1944 it was clear the Germans weren’t going to win the war anyway. American involvement didn’t win the war, but it certainly shortened it.

Things didn’t get better after Germany’s defeat. Russia turned its attention to Japan and Japan, in another great historical miscalculation, figured they could avoid an occupation by using the Russians as intermediaries with the Americans. Instead, the Russians moved their forces east and invaded Manchuria the same day the first atomic bomb fell.

The importance of this delay cannot be overstated as it allowed Russia to occupy Manchuria and the northern half of the Korean peninsula, both of which were under Japanese occupation. Meanwhile the Americans grabbed the southern part of Korea and Japanese occupied Taiwan. Russia’s occupation allowed safe haven for the Chinese and Korean communist parties.

Still, the Russians, Americans, British and French still worked together to get things done, but by 1949 it was clear that the relationship was severely strained. One of the big issues was the flight of European capital to the United States after the war. This was clearly against the laws of the countries where the capital flight had taken place, but instead of repatriating the capital to their original countries, the American government decided to provide replacement capital (commonly called The Marshall Plan). Stalin outright refused to participate in the plan and again blamed capitalists for the now near total lack of usable money in his sphere of influence.

The western powers managed to keep the Russians from extending their influence into Austria or Greece, but it was clear Stalin had a great plan to prevent western friendly governments from getting influence in the regions he occupied. The first was his refusal to clear Warsaw of German troops as the Polish government-in-exile in London planned to return. This gave him the opportunity to set up a new Polish provisional government. East Germany’s new leaders were found by using the easiest denazification tactic after the war – finding German communists who had been forced into exile or concentration camps.

After the Soviet attempt to blockade the western powers zone in Berlin in 1948, everyone quickly got used to the new world order with NATO in the east with the remaining democracies and the Warsaw Pact consisting of communist puppet governments in Russian occupied territory. A couple of places like Yugoslavia and Albania were both communist and mostly independent of Russia, but it was a delicate balancing act.

At the same time, it was clear the Republic of China was in serious problems and the Kuomintang fled to American controlled Taiwan as the Chinese Communist Party managed to do what the Republic of China never did – consolidate the country’s military forces into a single unit and take control over all the countryside. The Soviet Union immediately recognized the new communist government of China, but the western powers instead continued to back the Kuomintang despite the fact they no longer controlled any of the mainland.

So in the end all of this really goes back to that time in 1918 when the western powers refused to accept communism despite its immediate popularity in the new Soviet Union, and gave birth to a paranoid sociopath who could neither trust nor be trusted. The two sides continued to be suspicious of each other for the next forty-five years as both spread misinformation about the other in order to justify their tactics.

Do not be fooled

What is the strangest thing you’ve seen someone return to a store?

Someone attempted to return a steel entry door to the store I worked at. I refused the return.

“You have to take this door back! I know the returns policy here!”

“No, I do not. We only accept returns of unused items.”

“And how do you know it isn’t unused?”

“Okay…
It’s painted green on one side.
It’s painted white on the other.
The tape from where someone hung a picture on it is still there.
The jamb on one side is nine years older than the jamb on the other, and it’s busted out where the lock bores are.
The jamb side of the hinges is a different color than the lock side.
It’s warped.
The brickmould around the outside is three different colors. (There are three pieces of brickmould on a door.)
There’s a big dent in the area of the lockset where someone kicked it in.
Which says to me that someone came in, bought a new door to replace this one, removed the parts from the new door that he needed, reassembled the rest of the parts into a facsimile of a door, then sent you down here with it to try to return it. And, as I said, I’m not going to accept the return.”

Naturally, he demanded to speak to a manager…who took one look at the door, asked the guy “you’re kidding, right?” and walked away.

On edit: Here’s one that was actually justified. In North Carolina, you can buy bales of pine needles. The product is called Pine Straw, and people use it in landscaping. A woman brought back a bale of it – something that NEVER happened.

“Reason for return?”
“There’s a live rattlesnake in it.”

We called Animal Control. They sent a truck over to pick up the bale. Before hauling the snake off, they told her that next time she gets a free rattlesnake with her pine straw, she needs to call Animal Control and not try to haul it back to the store. They returned two hours later; they hauled the snake twenty miles out in the woods and turned it loose.

Second edit: A customer I knew pretty well and got along with (he was a contractor) brought in a wooden gable vent. A very, very used wooden gable vent…the house it was in was probably 50 years old. So I got called to Returns. “No. Definitely used, and we don’t sell these anyway. The cobwebs on this thing probably weigh more than it does.”

“But I bought it here fifteen years ago!”

“Sir, I can guarantee you didn’t buy this here fifteen years ago.”

“How can you guarantee that?”

“The store is only eleven years old.”

He was just fucking around; he wanted to see if I’d throw it away for him because it wouldn’t fit in the dumpster he rented. That, I would do.

Two options

I just got fired. Now my former boss (the one who let me go) is asking me where some important documents are. How should I respond?

I went through this myself and I was the biggest idiot in the world for thinking that maybe, just maybe, if I’m nice and give the info my “dear friend” would change his mind. HAH!! The fucker had his errand boy bother me for days about all the shit that they never fixed or gave me the correct info to fix it properly and they they denied the fact that I worked 7 days a week and only paid me for one week instead of the 2 it should of been. His piss poor excuse was that his girlfriend the office manager said I wasn’t owed it. I wonder how she would of felt if I told her about the offer of an apartment and $3k a month to be his girlfriend and how much he hated being with her and was disgusted at the thought of having sex with her. DO NOT DO IT! If you are offered payment to do it and you need the money, tell them the money has to be in your account before you tell them anything, otherwise let them look for it themselves. Basically, fuck them, they fired you and now are proving they need you. It’s bullshit!

What is the worst case of a spoiled person you have ever seen?

In 9th grade, during PE class we were just sort of milling around waiting for class to start. The guys were all standing around discussing chores.

Our PE teacher was a southern blue collar kind of guy. He worked as a fixer upper worker on the weekends too, repairing homes, bathrooms, kitchens etc. This is a guy who probably earned every penny he ever spent.

And here he was stuck in a room with a bunch of spoiled rich kids.

He jokingly said something to the effect of, “Man, you guys are all spoiled. I bet your parents pay you to do chores.”

And all the guys start nodding yes. “Oh yeah, my mom gives me $20 to mow the lawn.”

Another says, “I get $5 to clean my room.”

The teacher had poorly concealed disgust on his face.

For the record, I didn’t get paid for chores. Again, I’m from a military family. Being paid for chores is preposterous.

I cleaned my room or else.

Why did China’s Vice Foreign Minister Xie Feng say that the US wants to establish China as an ‘imaginary enemy’ to divert attention from domestic problems and suppress China?

Of course.

It is cheap political propaganda that gain popularity but in reality costly to the U.S. government and the Americans livelihood.

To me and indeed the world. The U.S. is a broken nation that has tremendous internal issues to the point of being unsustainable and imploding politically and socially. There is far too many unworkable issues facing the U.S. such as racialism, poverty, homelessness, disparity of income, high inflation, bankrupt cities, random street shooting and unworkable. Health care policies.

Most U.S. politicians simply ignore those unsolvable issues and distract the attention of frustrated citizens by ignoring those problems through creating imaginary adversaries like China, Iran or Russia. Their media are used to demonise these nations instead of facing its own domestic issues.

What is the last thing you want your pilot to say?

“Ladies and gentlemen, we have a problem with our wings,” announced the pilot.

True story. This happened to me last week.

The plane was making its final approach to Houston Intercontinental Airport. Suddenly there were three consecutive “ding-dong” sounds in the main cabin.

I saw both air hostesses run from the back of the plane to the front and grab the phone. They talked for a few seconds to the pilot, then the pilot came on with an announcement.

“We have broken off our approach. We have a problem with our wings. The leading edge slats won’t come down. We have declared an emergency and we will be landing shortly,” he said.

“Fire trucks will be waiting for us on the runway. It’s probably going to be a hard landing because we can’t slow the plane down as we normally would. We’ll see you on the ground.”

That was it.

Immediately the air hostesses started preparing everyone for the emergency. Uncertainty filled the cabin. Everyone of us felt vulnerable and scared.

I reflected on how fragile we are. There we were, trapped inside a metal tube flying at a high speed, … nothing to be done, simply pray and trust that everything would be okay.

The wind shook the plane from one side to the other. I could sense how the pilot was trying to find the optimal speed to land, not too fast, yet enough to fight the winds.

I could finally see the runway through my window. We all braced for the impact and as soon as we touched the ground, the pilot hit hard on the brakes.

The captain did an amazing job. We cheered and clapped for his fantastic landing.

Fire trucks followed us to the gate.

It was not fun. That leading edge slat on the front of the wing is responsible for the addition of a few more grey hairs to my head.

My first — and hopefully my last — emergency landing!

Making a sandwich is a problem

Is it a crime to say in China, “Xi Jinping is destroying China. He must be kicked out! He is a dictator!”? In the West, saying such things about one’s president is perfectly normal.

Nobody cares about you.

You need to prove your idea carefully and defend your opinion facing a tsunami of debates, otherwise, no one believes in you, or they just took you as a psycho. Persuading Chinese people is a hard task, America tried every means to turn Chinese people to think so in past 30 years, but worked badly. And thanks to Western anti-China propaganda, Chinese people are well trained in confronting such speeches.
China has a lot of CCP-haters, Western-lickers, retro-nationalist (hate their own nationality and hoped to be colonized by the West again), they spoke much more hilarious speeches than you.
Again, if someone making speech only providing his own opinion but lacking details, usually means the speaker is less educated or lack independent rational thinking.

Why I choose to raise my child in CHINA and not the WEST

I found a practically new Porsche 911 that was declared a total loss by an insurance company because water came up to the floor. A third party says it’s in perfect condition and wants to sell it. Should I buy it?

Oh. Oh dear god.

Any car that’s been written off for water damage is a car you want to stay as far away from as possible. Insurance companies know what they’re doing, and there’s a reason they declare water-damaged cars total losses even when the car looks and acts fine.

Look, Porches are expensive, temperamental, finicky beasts at the best of times, with perfect care and proper maintenance. A water-damaged car that insurance has declared a total loss? Jesus.

No. The third party is lying to you. It is not in perfect condition. Dear God no. If you buy it, you are not purchasing a car. You are purchasing a world of hurt. You are purchasing pain everlasting. You are purchasing a demon of the night, a thing that will present you with repair bills you never knew could be so high and so frequent at such totally unexpected times. Every seal, every moving part, every bit of metal on that car is suspect, and it will fail in interesting ways you wouldn’t think possible.

“Perfect condition” my left testicle. Right now, as I type this, corrosion is at work in every tiny nook and cranny of that car, eating away at its heart. As the seller hopes you’re too technically naive to realize. Don’t think of it as a car, think of it as an opportunity to saddle yourself with an expensive albatross that will be a source of the most magnificent pain for years to come.

Snowgraff – 10 Mentions Parallèles feat. José (Clip Officiel)

Israel Minister Amihai Eliyahu: Dropping a Nuke on Gaza is “An Option.”

World Hal Turner

Israel’s Minister Amihai Eliyahu says that dropping a nuclear weapon on the Gaza Strip is “an option.” Given the volume of explosives already dropped on Gaza, it exceeds the explosive power of Hiroshima.

Asked in a radio interview about a hypothetical nuclear option, Eliyahu replied: “That’s one way.” His remark made headlines in Arab media and scandalised mainstream Israeli broadcasters.

Neither Eliyahu or his party leader are in the streamlined ministerial forum (War Cabinet) running the Gaza war. Neither would they have inside knowledge of Israel’s nuclear capabilities – which it does not publicly acknowledge – or the power to activate them.

“Eliyahu’s statements are not based in reality. Israel and the IDF (military) are operating in accordance with the highest standards of international law to avoid harming innocents. We will continue to do so until our victory,” Netanyahu’s office said.

Eliyahu also voiced his objection to allowing any humanitarian aid into Gaza, adding that “there is no such thing as uninvolved civilians in Gaza” and that Palestinians “can go to Ireland or deserts.”

Hal Turner Editorial Opinion

I am almost apoplectic at this remark by Minister Eliyahu.

It is unclear to me which is worse: His remark, or the reality that his country has dropped more conventional explosives on Gaza than the explosive power of the Hiroshima nuclear bomb; and Israel still isn’t winning.

Can any of us imagine a military that is so ineffective, they would have to resort to using a nuclear bomb against an “enemy” that has NO ARMY?

How pathetic must the Israel Defense Force actually be that someone would even consider using a nuclear weapon?

One wonders if Minister Eliyahu has even considered what the rest of the world might do if Israel actually did something like that? Would the rest of the world allow even ONE Zionist – including Christian Zionists – to continue living anywhere on this planet if they did something like that?

How could the world ever trust any such person to remain breathing if they chose to use a nuclear bomb against an enemy that has NO ARMY?

I think this remark by Minister Eliyahu shows a gigantic, deep-seated, severe, mental sickness. Win at all costs, no matter what.

The remark strikes me as what we get when we bring up entire generations of people with “Participation Trophies” so they “all win.”

In real life, in sports, in business, in relationships, someone wins and someone loses. It is the reality of human existence.

But those who were brought up with Participation Trophies, have never had to learn to lose. They never learn to deal with it.

And it now appears to me, this is the result: A man who is so bent over possibly losing, he is willing to use nuclear bombs against an enemy that has no army, in order to satiate his need to “win.”

This remark indicates to me, that this particular Minister (and maybe a whole slew more) is a danger to himself and to other people.

How many more such people with such maniacal ideas are elsewhere in Governments around the world?

Maybe it’s time to find out – before such a maniacal idea spreads.

It’s a different race completely

Have you ever gotten roadside help from somebody unexpected?

Quite the opposite. One of the right side 110psi tires on my 24 foot living-quarters horse trailer blew out spectacularly on the interstate in Wyoming. It caused quite a bit of damage to the trailer. My horses were fine, though. I was alone, but prepared for that eventuality. On the side of the freeway, I set about getting it changed. I noticed a car pull over in front of me as if to help. A young man got out of the back seat, took one look at me standing there holding my four-way lug wrench, immediately turned around and got back in the car and left! What was he expecting? I was 57 years old at the time with silver hair, but not ugly or scary. I can’t imagine why someone pulling over to help would change their mind upon seeing me. Maybe I looked capable? I did get the tire changed, but getting the extremely heavy spare on was very difficult. I was very dirty (I ended up sitting on my butt on the roadside straddling the wheel, and lifting the spare up with the help of my knees) and bug-bit when I was done, and I’m still mystified as to what changed the young man’s mind.

Why Men Age Like FINE WINE in the Dating Market | Why Women Like to Date Older Men

The reasons why men age like fine wine and most women prefer to date men that are older, is because women look for a “standard”. In addition to qualities, that most men, simply do not have in their early twenties. Which makes it very ironic that women complain about this fact, since it’s women themselves, who are choosing these standards and men. Most skills that women love in a long term partner are skills and traits that only come with age and experience.

What was the most scariest experience you’ve had at work?

Hello, I trust that you will truly understand the whole means the this event had upon me. I was working in neibourhood office with about a dozen others, a mother came in carrying her child, who alleged had stopped breathing. Everyone stood back aghast…. Not knowing what do, several people just ran out. I had to push through the melee of useless people who were happy just to stare.. Moribid fasination! I managed to take the child from the mother and began breathing and heart compression treatment. I was very briefly trained in first aid, but only to a small degree. While I was with the child, someone called for an ambulance, which eventually arrived. They took the child from who by now was partly recovered. I heard theat very soon the child had recovered completely. All this action caused a great deal of mental worry to me and disrupted me a huge amount. Am I now over the trauma? I very much doubt it. My the lord never sho you the back of his hand.

What are some paradoxes in life?

The more you seek approval from others, the less you will get it.
You can only be brave when you are afraid.
If you aren’t happy now, you won’t be happy after you achieve your goals.
We aren’t wired to be happy and fulfilled, but to be miserable and safe.
Without failures, there can be no consistent success.
Wisdom is realizing that you know so little.
The more available you are to people, the less they will respect you.
Nobody will love you if you don’t love yourself.
A king and a slave have the same duties i.e. to serve others.
If you find yourself in toxic relationships over and over again, then it’s your fault — you teach people how to treat you.
Whatever you think is stopping you from living the life you want is not stopping you, but only you.

Triangle method

What is your craziest TSA experience?

I was on my way to Iraq. I was on a plane chartered by the Marine Corps for this, there were about 400 Marines on the flight, in uniform, with our weapons stowed under our seats. I was stationed in California, and we left from March Air Force Base out there. The first stop was in Baltimore, at the international airport there, and this is where my story occurs.

In Baltimore, we were let out of the terminal to go make phone calls and smoke cigarettes and whatever else. I called my girlfriend from a payphone, I smoked some cigarettes, and eventually it came time to get back on the plane. Now, I had put my rifle cleaning kit into my cargo pocket, without the slightest idea that this would cause any problem whatsoever. Inside my cleaning kit was this”carbon pick”.

I’d estimate that the steel rod at the end is about half an inch long by maybe a millimeter in diameter. As I emptied my pockets to go through the checkpoint, this carbon pick came to the attention of the TSA mouthbreather working there. He had decided that this steel rod, significantly smaller than a toothpick, was a deadly weapon (or something) and that I would not be permitted to take it into the terminal and on my flight. Now, mind you, I was in uniform. Flying with a military ID. With approximately 400 other guys dressed exactly like me. I told him that I clearly was flying on official military duty, and that I wasn’t wearing desert camouflage for fashion sense, and that it wasn’t a coincidence that there were all these other guys wearing the exact same outfit who were with me. He didn’t seem to comprehend this. I told him that, speaking of weapons, I had an M16A4, a select fire rifle, under the seat on my flight, a bayonet with a 7″ blade in my carry on, and everyone else on my flight was similarly equipped – except for those with grenade launchers and machine guns. He looked at me stupidly. Eventually I said something to the effect of: “you know those guys, those terrorists, that you’re trying to keep from getting on airplanes? Well me and all those other guys dressed like me are going over to Iraq to kill them. And to do that properly, I need my fucking rifle cleaning gear”. He grudgingly handed my carbon pick back and let me through. He took my cigarette lighter – I’m still convinced, 12 years later, that he did so simply to score some small, petty victory. I didn’t care, I’d left my crucial Zippo on the plane anticipating TSA stupidity.

This is your tax dollars at work, America. Outfuckinstanding.

Anima Libera 0.8X (国会鼓DJ抖音版 2023) Remix Tiktok

Why don’t China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea have emotional intelligence and no global media? Why they don’t use datas against the USA? Everyone thinks the USA is right always.

You think that everyone thinks the U.S. is right. That is a highly flawed notion. You media gives you the impression and your politicians fooled you into thinking that way.

The truth is to tally the opposite. Very few people on earth have trust and faith in the U.S. Global media reached out to mainly to the western world. This group sound a lot but they are a small minority. In population it adds up to 13% of the world. In nation count it is at most 12–15 out of the world’s 195 nations.

I live in South East Asia. Almost everyone I meet are disgusted with American lies and western media. No one believes it. It is biased it is opinionated, it spews falsehoods and fabrications. For me I feel pitiful for the western Ignorant and highly naive lot. Please tell yourself 90% of everything written in CNN, Fox, BBC are inaccurate and lies.

I cannot speak for other nations but Chinese media focus less on opinion but you are given facts and proofs. Chinese media trust that armed with facts one can make up their own mind.

Creole Hot Dogs and Rice

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

3/4 onion, diced
1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning
2 slices bacon, diced
3 hot dogs, sliced
2 cups cooked rice
1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes (seasoned or not)
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro or basil, chopped

Instructions

Cook bacon until crisp and remove from pan to paper towels to drain.
Sauté onion in bacon drippings for 4 to 5 minutes or until onion is softened.
Stir in seasoning and sliced hot dogs and cook for 2 minutes.
Add rice, bacon and tomatoes and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until heated through.
Remove from heat. Stir in chopped cilantro or basil.

Would you be willing to adapt if European style socialism was implemented across the board in the U.S. or would you have to leave the country?

If the U.S. treated its citizens like Europe does, I might actually come home.

Leaving Media, PA for Frankfurt, Germany in 1990, I have to admit, it was hard to adjust.

When I went to the supermarket there were only ten or twelve types of soda. The bread was heavy with brown stuff and seeds. Some stores didn’t even bother to take the goods out of the carton boxes. The cashiers didn’t treat me like a king and the stores closed at 6.30 p.m. during the week and at 2.30 on Saturdays. The service was so lazy they refused to work on Sundays and everything was closed.

What a nightmare!

I went from the land of 24/7 plenty to a socialist desert.

Get this, on Sundays people walked everywhere. Gas was so expensive, that few could afford to cruise about the countryside just for fun. People took public transportation because they couldn’t afford a car or the place to park it.

Then there were the taxes. When you are young, single and making tons of money they rob you. In some countries such people are taxed at more than 40%.

Healthy I had to pay the highest premium for mandatory health insurance, and some chain-smoking unemployed father of five paid much less.

There is no better way to say it, I was furious.

I was used to a different sort of social justice.

Then something really terrible happened.

Summer came and I had to take vacation. I learned that I had five weeks with full pay. Crazy isn’t it?

How can any economy function when everybody spends so much time on vacation?

It gets even worse. Everybody gets a minimum of 20 paid vacation days! EVERYBODY! Yes, even the dishwasher, the hotel page, the taxi driver and the cleaner get paid vacation. And for a small deduction from their salary, they get unlimited health care too. And if they have smart kids, they get to go to the best schools for free.

It was then I started to understand why eating out was more expensive too.

Feeling sorry for myself I asked “Why did I go to college and study so hard if even the cleaner has the same rights to vacation, health care and education as me?”

Slowly, the answer dawned in my thick skull.

Everybody else does have the same rights as me.

Everybody has the right to health, enough to eat and a warm place to sleep…even those who don’t work. It occurred to me that that may be why the incarceration rate is so much lower in Europe.

Everybody who works hard, no matter how much they earn, has the right to paid vacation.

I woke up and smelled the roses.

I liked vacation. And I was much more productive and happy when I returned to work

I saw the clean streets, the modern buses and metros, the airports crowded with regular people returning from sunny beaches.

I learned to look forward to Sunday grill parties when nobody had to work.

I became tired of traffic jams and trying to find a parking spot for my car and read a book while on the train or the bus.

I fell from a fence and had to go to the hospital. They treated me like a king and there was no bill.

I met a girl who became my wife. We moved to France and raised four children. That was almost 20 years ago.

I still pay the highest rate for health care, but it’s not much more than I paid 30 years ago as a single. The deduction for our four children makes our income tax rate very low. If they want, all the children can go to university without breaking the family finances.

To conclude, everything I paid into the system as a young man is being returned to me in spades.

When the children are grown and my taxes rise, I will pay them without anger (I won’t lie and say happily).

Europe is taking care of me, my family, my friends, my co-workers and my neighbours.

It is not a utopia. It can do many things better.

But America can do better too. A good start would be to recognize that caring for fellow humanity is not a dirty word that ends like Venezuela.

I love America dearly, but Europe treats its normal people (that would be me) better and I will stay here until that changes.

That’s Right

Pago Pago Shirts

When I lived in Pago Pago I bought a local Tee Shirt.

I thought the polynesian pattern was interesting. So I bought it and wore it to work.

Imagine my surprise when every local polynesian uniformly told me that the image was evil and hateful. Whoa! I was not expecting that.

I was the outsider wearing a “Fuck You” tee shirt. Who’d know?

I was totally surprised.

I wore it once.

Threw it away.

Maybe like this clueless gent…

Life is silly some times, eh?

…

Today…

What was a red flag that made you stop talking to a person immediately?

I travel full-time via my FJ Cruiser and my RV. A year or two ago, I met a guy who turned out to be a federal agent. No, I was not being investigated, at least not for business/national security reasons.

Before finalizing our first date, he casually mentioned that he had run the front plate on my FJ Cruiser, which absolutely horrified me. This isn’t some random guy using Google. This is a federal agent!

It was also the way he said it. As if it was the most normal thing in the world to invade someone’s (especially a woman traveling solo!) privacy in that way.

After he told me he ran my plates, I just stopped responding. I mean, next thing I know, he could be checking my IP address or something and figuring out where I was camping alone that night.

It was creepy.

So a week goes by and he blasts me for ghosting him. I respond, “Are you seriously asking me why? Dude, you RAN MY PLATES!”

Instead of apologizing or acknowledging that that was kinda creepy, he proceeded to tell me that I was “asking for it” by sharing a picture of my rig. He told me the fact that I had a custom plate intrigued him, so it was 100% my fault for dangling the carrot (a custom plate) in front of his face.

I blocked him after that. As far as I know, I’m not currently being stalked by any federal agents. But who really knows? The feds are pretty crafty.

Swiss Bliss

old fashioned swiss steak 3056883 Final 5ba96bcc46e0fb002534cbd6

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

1 tablespoon butter
1 (2 pound) chuck roast, cut 1 inch thick
1 envelope onion soup mix
1 (4 ounce) can mushrooms, drained
1/2 medium green bell pepper, sliced
1 (20 ounce) can tomatoes, drained and chopped, reserving juice
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon A-1 steak sauce
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon parsley flakes

Instructions

Coat center of large sheet of heavy foil with butter and place into a 13 x 9 inch dish.
Place meat across foil, overlapping each piece slightly.
Sprinkle with soup mix, mushrooms, green pepper slices and tomatoes.
Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.
Mix tomato juice, steak sauce and cornstarch.
Add enough water to make 2 cups liquid.
Pour over meat mixture and sprinkle with parsley flakes.
Cover with foil and bake at 375 degrees F for 2 hours.

World in chaos w/ Jeffrey Sachs (Live)

Always a great discussion!

What is the most outrageous thing you’ve heard said to or seen written to a judge?

I had a black client who had been arrested in his house and white cops slammed his head into a dresser drawer just for fun, as witnessed by several officers in the house. As the dresser was pushed against a casement window on the front of the house, slamming his head into the dresser “blew” the window into the front yard with a shotgun-like explosion, witnessed by all the neighbors watching the police action from across the street. The black jailer saw the bruise on the client’s forehead when taking the mugshot.

On the motion to dismiss for unreasonable police violence, all the cops lied and denied slamming the client’s head against the dresser. The judge and prosecutor acted as if the cops were not lying and the window blew itself into the yard.

It was late afternoon and the only civilians in the courtroom was a fifth-grade civics class of 20 kids aged 10–11 years and their teacher. The judge had a reputation as a racist and a hard-ass.

I turned during argument on the (hopeless) motion to the kids and asked the courtroom rhetorically: “Why in the world would police officers take the witness stand, swear on the Bible to tell the truth, and then lie?” Then I said, “Well, it makes winning their case a lot easier, and no one in authority stops them, and the officers know this.”

So I was accusing the judge of “letting” the officers lie to win the motion. That is, the judge OFTEN knows officers are lying and so does the prosecutor, but they don’t stop it. The officers know this, so they lie. Not all and not always, but in cases like this, they all lied together.

The judge got really pissed and started haranguing me, so I stoked his anger higher. The prosecutor could see how bad all this was starting to look to the appellate judges in any appeal and hung his head in defeat. My client walked out of the courtroom with a very sweet deal from the prosecutor to cut his losses.

TikTok on the cost of living | RANT ON INFLATION | EVERYONE IS BROKE AND TIRED

Hi guys, just to clarify I do not own any of these videos I just thought it would be interesting to see how people are dealing with the cost of living, sending prayers and well wishes to you.

What common food, was prepared in a way that knocked your socks off? How was it prepared? What made it one of the best things you ever ate?

The Chicago dog:

When I was a kid, hot dogs were lame flavorless picnic fodder that got a squirt of mustard and ketchup and onions if you were daring, nothing more.

One summer a diner opened near me that specialized in char broiled burgers and Chicago dogs. I’d never heard of a Chicago dog before, so naturally I had to try one. Man, what a life changing experience.

It was a snappy Sabrett dog topped with mustard, sweet neon green pickle relish, diced onions, spicy sport peppers, tomato slices and a wedge of dill pickle. Every bite was overflowing with crunchy, spicy, sweet, sour, salty and savory goodness. In my 15 years of life it was literally one of the best things I had ever eaten. I still love them today.

More than just a poem, the Chicago dog contains a lesson: ketchup doesn’t belong on a hot dog.

It was brought to my attention that a true Chicago dog is made from Vienna Beef brand hot dogs and always includes celery salt. I’m down with both of those, so that’s what a true Chicago dog should be made with.

If the United States freezes China’s assets, how do you think China will react?

Tit for tat

There are many American assets in China, estimated to be worth 2.2 trillion.

The US companies that own these assets are not going to be happy with the US government if China were to freeze these assets.

Do you think that the US companies owners and employees will vote for Biden next year if China freezes their assets in response to the US freezing Chinese assets?

The old trick is repeated! Biden attempts to arrest Huawei executives with criminal charges!

Jesus! These idiots cannot stop!

Lavrov claimed at the UN General Assembly that Russia was misled by NATO at the end of the Cold War when it gave guarantees that it would not expand eastward. What was the situation back then that would have caused NATO to make such guarantees?

Thought & Ideology

The US foreign policy from 1948 to 1991 was centred around INTERNATIONAL LAW

Diplomats, Army, Businessmen, Politicians worked as per INTERNATIONAL LAW and relied on their entire foreign policy from a derived paper from 1955 called ‘Peace during the Cold War’, penned right after the Korean War

It taught a formula for maintaining peace and coexistence of different nations with different ideologies

The core objectives of this ideology was :-

Strive for Peace always
No War Or conflict with Nuclear Nations
Preserving Human Spirits & Freedom
Ensuring Capitalism and Free Trade flow between allies
Economic Cooperation
Preserve and not endanger the Security of the United States and it’s allies

Diplomats like McNamara, Kissinger, Baker etc were steeped in this doctrine and founded this doctrine

Kennedy, Nixon, Bush Sr and Reagan followed this core ideology

It was a healthy doctrine

Barring a 7 year aberration with the Vietnam War (1968–1975).

Thus James Baker easily promised not to expand eastwards

He wanted a peaceful handshake with the Russians

Post 1991, a new paper was published which reflected a NEW IDEOLOGY infecting the Americans

A POST COLD WAR ORDER

That was it’s early name

INTERNATIONAL LAW quickly changed into what we know today as the INTERNATIONAL RULES BASED ORDER

The core of objectives of this ideology were :-

The US has to lead the world into a permanent peace after the Cold War
The US must stop the rise of any nation that could lead the world into another cold war
The US must bring peace to Europe, the Middle East and Asia even at the cost of strategies that could heavily curtail freedom of thought and independence in those nations
The US must always maintain a lead in arms and troops and military power for the betterment of the whole world
Russia for its own people’s sake needed to be broken down further and controlled by the Rules based order to prevent it slipping back into anarchy and chaos
The Middle East and Europe had to be controlled by the USA for their own security and security of energy in the world

This slowly became the leading ideology in USA with all diplomats born in 1966 or later (who are 57 years old or younger today) being steeped in this ideology and thought

This was also called

WDC as coined by Madeleine Albright – WEAKEN, DEMOCRATIZE, CONTROL

Many Politicians, then in their 40s and early 50s endorsed this philosophy openly including Mitch McConnell, Joe Biden, Hilary Clinton, Bill Clinton, Al Gore etc

The US Ideology back then never considered Africa or China as serious

This was the birth of the NEOCON ideology

Bush Sr, Rice, Albright, Kagan, Nuland, Blinken, Jake Sullivan, Ned Price, John Kirby, John Kerry, Mitt Romney, Joe Biden have all been steeped with this Neocon Ideology or International Rules Based Order Ideology

A Core part of this ideology is to bring peace to Europe by controlling Europe & to break down and weaken Russia

To do this NATO had to keep expanding

A Dramatic turnaround from the Old Ideology of INTERNATIONAL LAW

Today this is the leading ideology but since this ideology doesn’t mention China or Africa or India or how to handle a tougher Putin, the Americans are clueless on how to continue

Unless a new ideology for peaceful coexistence again develops , endorsed by 40–45 year old politicians and diplomats born on or after 1998 or Political Science Students born on or after 2006

The US will slowly sink due to this Neocon policy

Note most of the political ideologues of these thoughts are 65–70 years old at the very least

The Ideology changed, thus NATO kept expanding

That’s the Ideology that drives the US today

Others who are steeped in this Ideology include :- Boris Johnson, Keir Starmer, Kishida and our favorite JUSTIN TRUDEAU

As a dying person, what is your advice to the living?

I can give you a first hand answer here.

In 2009 I was diagnosed with glioblastoma, a grade 4 brain cancer, after surgery the oncologist came back with the sad news that the statistics look quite ugly, he gave me treatments for 9 months, and 6 months to one year to live.

I was engaged preparing to marry in few months. We broke up, I didn’t see why I would leave a widow behind and break her heart.

I had no desire to pursue anything further in life…

It was a time of complete shutdown.

I wanted to quit my job, however my managers managed to convince me to stay with a relaxed schedule…

They started to teach me statistics again.

An average of 1 year, means some people die in 3 years, while others die in 6 months, and that I should have the positivity to assume I’m on the long term survival side.

By continuing to go to work, I kept myself busy, not thinking too much about my cancer.. I travelled , did some of the stuff I always wanted to do, visited places I always wanted to go.

I started to revisit my friends, hang out with those I really liked, got rid of those who made me feel sad, or felt pity. There are those who just don’t know what to tell you, then it gets awkward…

It is not something you want to talk about with everyone. You want to feel good, and not be down all the time.

I started to be more of a minimalist.. I had no desire in all the nice stuff I had always dreamt of, as My life seemed to come to a stop

However over time.. I started to realize that I’m happier .. I had special concerns for my parents, I started spending more time with my parents. With my family They are the joy of my life.. Too sad I never realized that earlier

8 years later I’m still around, although the cancer hit back several times, and my left side is now paralyzed, I’m still active going to work, participating in charities, trying to keep myself busy and active.

I was 32 when I was diagnosed, now hitting the 40’s I feel more mature, I’m guessing age is an important factor in how we take such news.

After all life goes on, and it is how you take the news that makes all the difference..

Keep busy, don’t let your mind wander too much.. No one knows when you are going to die..

There’s a shock at the beginning, try to pass it, embrace the news and you will feel the tranquility after a while..

My key messages would be:

no one knows when you are going to die, all doctors have are statistics.
Happiness is in the small and little things.. Time with family, reading a good book, listening to nice music, enjoying a movie.. Spending time on the beach, watching a sunset, nature, forest , a bird…
Through charity work I started to appreciate what I have, there are sooo many underprivileged people who would dream of what we take as granted, running water, electricity, food,medicine, family.
Each night I count at least 10 things I’m grateful for in my life.
I also started to keep a journal of the things that make me really happy and doing more of that.

Lavrov: “If the West want war, they can have it. If you insist, let’s decide it on the battlefield.”

God bless Russia and Mr Putin and mr lavrov… The Russians have the balls to tell the truth.. unlike the English and the yanks.

What exactly is a midlife crisis? And how common are they?

Originally Answered: What exactly is a midlife crisis? And how common are they ?

I can only speak from my experience, but here’s a personal account of my own midlife crisis. I was about 34 and I had a strong and relentless urge to pursue an unrealized goal that had been bothering me for quite a while, in fact, over 10 years.

Long ago, I had wanted to pursue nursing school, and due to circumstances such as an abusive ex-husband who prevented me from studies, I was not able to do so. When I finally escaped that decade-long relationship, it took a while for me to get back on my feet as I had to start from scratch to build my finances, portfolio, and confidence up. Time passes, I remarry and have a child and although things are great with my career and family, the thought of nursing kept nagging me at the back of my mind. I got increasingly upset at myself that I had let so many years pass and wondered when would be the time for me to do what I originally wanted to do.

So in my mid-thirties I made the decision to apply to nursing school, quickly took all the prerequisites and I got in a few months later, even though it was extremely competitive. I had to scale back on my other jobs and my schedule became MUCH more complicated. My social life definitely dwindled to nothing! Most people would ask, why are you going back to school? Don’t you like being a photographer and music teacher? Yes, yes I completely love my jobs. But I also want to be a nurse, and I will forever think “what if” if I do not pursue this.

Nursing school is demanding, and there is so much material to know that is compressed in such a short time frame. A typical day would be: wake up at 530am for hospital shift from 7am–3pm, study/edit until family arrives home, feed/play/bathe toddler and put toddler to bed, study/edit until midnight. Rinse and repeat. There were times I felt overwhelmed and perhaps I bit off more than I could chew. The amount of textbooks and notes I have from my studies, stacked on top of each other towers over me! However, I feel the most alive when I am caring for patients, and when they thank me heartily for the care I’ve given to them, my heart swells and that is the best feeling in the world. Therefore, my midlife crisis was a catalyst for me to take a leap and reach for my goal of becoming a nurse.

What does it feel like to become poor after being wealthy?

I can tell the experience of a friend. who married a woman who was multi-millionaire since birth. Saying that they were rich is an understatement. They only flew first or business class, he got a new Porsche or Mercedes every single year and they always lived in the best areas in Manhattan,

I remember when he and his wife moved to New York they hired an interior designer from Milan to do the decoration. They spent around a million dollars only with the renovation and furniture for the apartment.

They had it all, and not even in my dreams I would imagine that one day they would lose it all.

However, like many other stories, they didn’t lose it overnight, but little by little.

I never imagined they would lose all their money because apart of being filthy rich, they were really lucky.

My friend’s wife grew up being a millionaire. Annual trips to Aspen with her family, then summer in Europe and everything we imagine rich people do. I was lucky to enjoy some of these perks when I was invited to one of their vacation homes.

They had a lot of money but they didn’t work. After all, they never needed to do it. She received a monthly allowance from her family that I believe was around 700K to 1M per year so they would probably not bother to work 9 to 6 to make $100K more.

They lived this life for around 10 years. Then, they had some disagreement with their family and they stopped receiving the allowance. They lived by their savings for around 3 years. During those years they lived a very good life, but not so lavish as before. After 3 years, when they were about to start selling everything so they could have some money, her uncle died. He didn’t have any kids so she received a good sum of money that was sufficient for around 3 more years.

When their bank accounts were about to run dry again her mother passed away and she inherited, along with her brothers, around 4M each.

For most people, it would be sufficient for a lifetime, but they made very bad investments along with some poor decisions and I don’t know how, but they ended up losing everything in around 3 more years.

After losing all their money they started living with the money of a trust her parents left to her, Something around 5K per month. But they are on their 50s, they never worked and have no professional skills and they have to pay rent (as they don’t have a home), pay all their bills and above all, health insurance with that amount.

I saw them around 6 months ago and they were miserable. My friend developed a neurological disease due to the stress he endured in the last years. His wife was making all decisions as he wasn’t able to do it anymore. Unfortunately, he is so sick that he couldn’t work even if he wanted to.

I was really sad it happened to them because they were really nice people, It’s easy to judge them for never bothered to have a job or be wiser with their money, however, she was born in a different universe for most of us. What we see as a lavish lifestyle she sees as a regular day since birth.

I asked them if they needed anything and obviously what they need is their old lifestyle back. They moved to a modest apartment in a different state.

She told me that the biggest issue is that they don’t know how to live like that. She can’t imagine what’s like to do their own grocery shopping, and worst than that, go to Walmart with a shopping list. She said that if she spent a little more on things she like she might not have money for the supermarket next week.

I would not dare to say that this experience was humbling to them because they were always nice people, the difference is that they were nice people with lots of money. The only positive thing I believe this experience brought to them is that they are no longer superficial. They used to see everything like poverty, sorrow, and problems from a different perspective, and I used to see them through a mask that looked like they were using all the time

Now, for the first time, I was able to see who they really are. What are their emotions, their fears, their desires, and their regrets… For the first time in their lives they desire things, they no longer pull their credit card and immediately satisfy their desires and in that sense, they look like real people for me.

Every time I visited them over the years I always invited them for lunch, breakfast or coffee and even though I’m not wealthy I always offered to pay, and 6 months ago, when I saw them for the last time, I invited them to have a coffee at Starbucks and that was the first time in more than 15 years that they said thank you after I offered to pay for our breakfast.

It felt different. They don’t need to thank me for anything because during their life, just by inviting me to stay with them, they offered me much more than anything I’ve ever offered to them, but for the first time in their lives, they are learning to value every small good thing that life gives to them.

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UPDATE
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Thank you all for the upvotes and feedbacks to this story. In fact, I had two stories about the theme but Quora doesn’t allow to publish two answers for the same question, so, for those who are interested I’ll post the second story here.

In 2007 I was hired by a medium size tech company. The company had around 150 employees and they were growing fast. When I was hired they told me they would be moving to better offices in two months and they really did it. The new office was really impressive. Huge, very modern to the point it made the cover of a magazine.

My boss and her husband were the owners of the company. They were simply amazing. She was sweet, very polite and it was a pleasure to work for them. They were also very rich. In fact, she was so down to earth that it took me two months to realize that she was one of the owners of the company. It happened one day that we had a meeting with a client and she told me if I was OK to be squeezed on the back seat of her car, as another person was coming with us. I Imagined that she had one of those very small cars, but she showed up on a brand new convertible Porsche .

Little by little, we became acquainted. They invited me to have dinner one night and I was impressed by how rich they really were, They lived on a mansion, the land was so big that they had a tennis court, swimming pool and a stable with 5 horses on their land. He also was a motor enthusiast and had 9 cars. They owned a farm and a beach house in another city, even though we lived in one of the most beautiful beach cities in the world.

They made money fast because I was hired in 2007 and the company was founded in 2002 and it looked like they had a good lifestyle for some years.

They were amazing people, very humble, very calm and you would never say they had so much money just by talking to them.

I left the company by the end of 2007 because I received an offer to work in another place. I talked to them before accepting the offer, I explained my reasons and they were really supportive and told me that if I changed my mind the doors would be open.

By the end of 2008, a former colleague contacted me asking for a reference as he was leaving the company. I asked why he was leaving the company and the told me that the company had gone into receivership. Basically, they were impacted by the GFC.

They were so rich that I imagined that although the company had bankrupted they probably had a lot of savings.

I never heard from them again until 2017.

I had a health issue and I needed to see a specialist. When I got to the doctor, I was talking to the receptionist when I saw a sign with her name over her desk. (Let’s say Jennifer Parker – I’ll omit her real name). So I said to her. Hey Jennifer, what a coincidence, I had a boss with exactly the same name.

Then she told me that she was not Jennifer, that Jennifer was the other receptionist, that she worked Monday and Tuesday and Jenniffer Wednesday to Friday. I saw the doctor and two weeks later I came back for my return and when I arrived who I see working as a receptionist there? My former boss.

When she saw me she recognized me and told me that the other receptionist told what happened and when she saw my name she connected the dots.

She told me what happened to the company, basically was a problem with the contracts they made and as they weren’t able to get a new loan from the bank they could no longer keep the company and pay their debts. With that, they lost everything, not only the company but literally everything.

Their kids moved from private to public schools, they had all their cars, properties and assets confiscated and ended moving to a small apartment near the city. Her husband was able to get a new job (at nearly 60 years of age) and she had to go back to work to complement their income.

It was a huge surprise for me because you always expect that these things will happen to bad people, but never to nice people like them. They were honest, decent, hardworking, family oriented, and everybody in the office liked them.

Coincidentally I bumped into them again 3 months later in the mall. What surprised me the most is that they were able to go from a very rich to a very modest lifestyle without changing who they were. We sit together to have lunch in the food court and they were living like that was the life they always had. They were exactly the same people I met 10 years before, they were happy, making jokes with their kids (that were teenagers by then) and even when she told me what happened she didn’t do it with sadness.

I don’t know how they managed everything so well. Going through an experience like that could be very damaging, but it looks like they had a way to cope with everything.

It taught me a lesson that money can’t be trusted, life can be full of unexpected events with many things out of our control.

Spock – McCoy banter and friendship

Starlink lost over 200 satellites in two months

Pay attention to this bit of news. -MM

…

Starlink, a satellite constellation operated by aerospace company SpaceX, lost 212 satellites in the period spanning July 18th and September 18th, data compiled by satellitemap.space shows.

Data shows the number of burned-up satellites steadily increasing over the past three years, but a significant spike can be observed starting the month of July.

It’s unclear whether these satellites were scheduled to de-orbit or whether the burn-ups were a result of a failure. Cybernews has reached out to SpaceX for comment but has not received a response.

Some experts questioned the accuracy of numbers posted on the tracker website, saying they appeared to be unusually high. According to satellitemap.space, its data is based on public tracking information published on space-track and elsewhere.

Starlink satellites are designed to burn up in the Earth’s atmosphere at the end of their life cycle, which is approximately five years.

SpaceX started launching Starlink satellites in 2019. Over 5,000 have been sent into Earth’s lower orbit since then. Of those, about 4,500 are believed to be active.

Satellites can also be vulnerable to electromagnetic storms, with strong solar flares recorded this summer as the sun enters a period of heightened activity.

Destructive solar events have affected Starlink before. In February last year, SpaceX said it lost 40 new satellites shortly after launch because of an electromagnetic storm. When accounting for the rocket launch, it potentially cost the company about $100 million in damages.

Steak with Gorgonzola Thyme Crust

Yield: 2 servings

Ingredients

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
2 (6 ounce) beef tenderloin or small rib eye steaks, cut 3/4 inch thick
1 large or 2 small cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried
1/2 cup (2 ounces) crumbled Wisconsin Gorgonzola cheese

Instructions

Heat broiler.
Spoon Worcestershire sauce over both sides of steaks; let stand for 5 minutes.
Sprinkle garlic and pepper over steaks. Place steaks on rack of broiler pan.
Broil 3 to 4 inches from heat source for 3 to 4 minutes per side for medium rare steak.
Remove pan from broiler. Sprinkle thyme, then cheese over steaks.
Return to oven and broil for 2 minutes or until cheese is golden brown.

China is Sending Armored Vehicles To Mali Africa ! U.S PANIC

Nations like Mali have been overlooked in international forums, but as China’s prominence rises, Mali has found a key ally. This video explores China’s involvement in Mali’s development and security, delving into the intricate dynamics of China’s relationship with Africa and its potential implications for the global stage.

What was the most expensive thing you ever got for free, because someone made a mistake and didn’t charge you?

Back in 1983, I needed an upscale cocktail dress for a cosmetic industry function. I found a delightful $1200 silk dress marked down 50% to $600. It has a tiny rip by the zipper that I could repair but it was still way over my budget. (I was a very junior marketing person at the time, so not earning great.)

I asked the sales clerk if they do better on the price due to the rip and she agreed to take another 50% off bringing it to $300. She retickets it over the original ticket and the 1st sale ticket. Still more than I could truly afford but I decided to buy it anyway.

I go to the cashier to pay and she asked me if it came off the 50% sale rack. When I said it was, she says it is 50% off and rings $150 into the register, instead of the $300, even though it had multiple sales tickets on it. Lucky me, I’m thinking.

But before I can pay, she notices the small rip and says she will deduct an extra $50 which now brings it to $100. I happily paid and left the store ASAP, just in case. Lol

And I received many compliments for my dress at the event.

If someone knocked on your door, with tears in their eyes, saying they haven’t eaten for days and beg you to give them food, would you?

Walking into a McDonald’s one morning a young couple pretty dirty living rough approached me. The young man probably mid twenties asked if I could buy his girlfriend a egg McMuffin because they only had a handful of change not enough for the sandwich. So I asked them to come to the counter with me and asked them what on the board they would eat. The young man’s eyes went wide. Told me they had not eaten in three days. I said you can have whatever you like. The both asked for the big breakfast and a juice and a milk. I told them maybe they should order the sandwich she wanted as well. they were extremely happy they thanked me. They went and sat outside ate their meals cleaned up and moved on. Maybe they don’t even remember the event in their lives. But I was satisfied that I and spent my money wisely and am still left with a good memory of a McDonald’s breakfast when I was heading to get a seniors coffee.

BEDAZZLED Clip – “Famous Writer” (2000) Brendan Fraser

PLOT: Desperate to gain the affection of a beautiful co-worker, Elliot (Brendan Fraser) strikes a deal with the Devil (Elizabeth Hurley) — a drop dead gorgeous woman with a wicked sense of humor. In exchange for Elliot’s soul, she will grant him 7 wishes. But with each wish, he gets more than he asked for.

A tusk-less mastodon

When I was a young boy, my father would semi-frequently take us all to local museums. I really appreciated that. It was, and still is, some of my most favorite memories.

On one such visit my father bought me a small bronze mastodon. It was magnificent, but tiny and I loved it a lot.

I loved it because of the great long tusks. It looked so cool, and I loved to hold it in my hand. It was one of my favorite nick-nacks, and I set it proudly on my brick-a-brack shelf in my bedroom.

One day, I came home from school and discovered that my little treasure was tusk-less.

You see, my father was afraid that I might hurt myself with the tusks, so he sawed them off.

I don’t know where he got that “hair up his ass” about me hurting myself. After all, he got me a cub-scout pocket knife two years earlier. What’s this shit about pointy tusks?

Anyways, someone influenced him. Bastard.

…

My little story for today. Take what you will from it. Be careful of the poison that seeps into the ears of others. Who knows what damage it would do…

Today…

Western powers are falling behind in technology, held back by systemic rot

The West’s terminal technology problem

Alex Krainer

Sep 24, 2023

Western powers are falling behind in the development of new technologies, particularly in the military domain. This is partly caused by the perverse system of incentives that suffocates research and development work, but also by a system of education that’s producing less and less technical, scientific and engineering talent. From the strategic point of view, this is a critical problem, as I elaborated in an earlier Substack, “Of Empires and Technology.”

Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato Pie

Bacon Tomato Pie with Gluten Free Option

Ingredients

12 slices bacon, fried crisp and crumbled
1 cup shredded cheese
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup mayonnaise
Chopped onion to taste
4 eggs
1 cup Bisquick
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Butter a 9-inch pie pan.
Layer bacon crumbs on bottom and cheese on top.
Beat remaining ingredients until smooth. Pour over top.
Bake at 400 degrees F for 30 to 35 minutes.
Cool for 5 minutes.
Garnish with mayonnaise, lettuce, tomato and bacon.

Did Israel commit a war crime by turning off its supply of electricity and water to Gaza?

Yes

Absolutely

Article 33 of the Geneva Convention says so

Cutting of living essentials to Civilians is a violation of Article 33

However there are ways to spin this and claim this is NOT a collective punishment but a strategy for war

Israel may say, we are targeting the HAMAS but they hide among civilians and thus we have no choice

Israel may say “The 1949 Amendment was inserted when the world didn’t know about Terrorism of this type”

Israel may point out to the British inplementing the same violations in Belfast from 1963 to 1984 (Northern Ireland) or Malaya in 1955

They may point out US Violations in Vietnam between 1968–1972

So sadly today, the winners dictate the laws and their interpretation

At the 8th Eastern Economic Forum held earlier this month in Vladivostok, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin spoke about the development of a new generation of weapons: “If one looks into the security sphere, new physical principles weapons will ensure the security of any country in the near historic perspective. We understand this very well and are working on it.”

The kinds of weapons Putin was referring to include particle beams, laser, ultrasonic, radio-frequency and electromagnetic systems. That sounds quite futuristic – was Putin telling tall tales? When he announced that Russia had developed a variety of undetectable hypersonic weapons back in 2018, many in the West thought that he was bluffing and we heard much mocking and crowing: “the West outspends Russia 10 to 1, the Russians can’t possibly bla, bla, bla…” And like the Chinese, the Russians are inferior and incapable of innovating, they can’t think strategically, etc.

Fast forward to today: the Russian forces have successfully deployed hypersonic Kinzhal and Zircon missiles in Ukraine, delivering pinpoint strikes on Ukrainian infrastructure and military facilities, the crowing and the gloating about all the ways in which the Russians are inferior to us westerners has died down a bit. Still, we can’t just admit that Russian weapons systems are superior to the western arsenal, so the western press, relying on Ukrainian sources, claimed that Ukraine’s air defenses manage to intercept and shoot down Russian hypersonic missiles.

That would actually quite spectacular since NATO officials themselves have corroborated what Putin had said: that the missiles are undetectable and were not picked up by western radar systems. Either the Ukrainians have managed to develop targeting solutions very fast, using binoculars, or they’re lying. Whatever the case, Putin’s latest announcement did not trigger much mocking and crowing this time around. In fact, some western analysts now concede that Russia’s military technology has eclipsed that of the west.

The significance of hypersonic weapons

But how can this even be possible if for decades now, western “defense” spending outstripped that of Russia by a factor of 10 or even more? In a recent article titled, “Hypersonic Missiles Are Game-Changers, and America Doesn’t Have Them,” the Wall Street Journal explored why the US and the West have fallen behind.

“For more than 60 years,” says WSJ, “the U.S. has invested billions of dollars in dozens of programs to develop its own version of the [hypersonic weapons] technology. Those efforts have either ended in failure or have been cancelled before having a chance to succeed. … This situation is raising alarms.”

Last March I explained why hypersonics are a radical game-changer in my Substack article titled, “Why hypersonic weapons change everything“. Indeed, hypersonic systems are regarded as so critical that in 2021, US National Defense Authorization Act explicitly made the development of these systems a priority in US defense spending.

Meanwhile, Wall Street Journal didn’t provide any convincing explanation for why western powers are falling behind in development of new technologies. It also didn’t explore the fact that they even fall behind in production and maintenance of legacy systems. As NATO’s Admiral Robert Bauer lamented this week,

“Today the chiefs of defense expressed their concern that across the alliance, production capacity is lagging behind. Delivery times are moving to the right [they’re getting longer] and prices for equipment and ammunition are shooting up. Right now we are paying more and more for exactly the same, and that means that we cannot make sure that the increased defense spending actually leads to more security.”

Bauer’s statement is a clear admission that defense spending does not translate into better defense. He also said that, “Our liberal economies are not apt at creating the prioritization that is so desperately needed right now.”

The problem with incentives

There is a great deal to ponder in all this, but it is perhaps Admiral Bauer’s last statement that provides the most food for thought. Western powers do spend massively on the military, but most of that money is squandered, lubricating the wheels of corruption in the Military Industrial Complex (MIC). Spending the money (i.e. allocating it to defense contractors), is much more important than actually developing new systems and the upkeep of legacy systems.

In the United States, the MIC consists of publicly traded corporations whose market value is determined by how profitable they are. Today, about half of the Defense Department’s (DOD) $850+ billion budget is spent with the DOD’s top five “prime contractors” who, after decades of consolidation have all but eliminated all competition (in the 1990s the DOD had more than 50 such “prime contractors”).

Given that research and development (R&D) is a cost which cuts into profitability of these very powerful contractors, they’re incentivized to reduce it as much as possible to maximize the profiteering. The more profits, the higher the stock price and the higher the executives’ bonuses. On the other hand, cutting the R&D and skimping on the essential work of technology development means that a lot of real talent and promising projects get axed even as massive pork-barrel programs like Lockheed Martin’s F35 Joint Strike Fighter drain trillions of taxpayer funds. The F35 is now more than 15 years behind schedule and for its $1.7 trillion in expenditure, the program has delivered no meaningful military advantage.

Meanwhile, the lobbying arm of the MIC makes sure that such spending remains protected behind the flag and a veil of patriotism. Military generals who go along are rewarded and those who challenge the system get sidelined. That is how our wonderful “democratic system” sources top talent and delivers bestest solutions. The problem is that the top talent it draws are MBAs, lawyers and lobbyists, not scientists, engineers and systems developers. The actual military capabilities of the United States only receive lip service necessary to keep the American public distracted and unable to identify the root of the problem which is corroding the competitiveness of American industries in a very real way.

Losing talent

However, there may be deeper problems blunting the West’s technology edge, including education and cultivation of skills that are required for the challenge. Today, fewer than 20% of Americans choose STEM degrees in universities (STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) as more and more talent gravitates toward law and business degrees or humanities like gender studies.

According to the UNESCO, in countries like Tunisia and Malaysia as many as 37.9% and 43.5% of students (respectively), choose STEM degrees. In Germany, UAE, Belarus and India about 35% of students choose STEM degrees. While it’s true that western nations can overcome the shortage of human potential by attracting foreign talent, more and more nations today offer great career opportunities and compelling work to young professionals, so western nations face tougher competition for talent.

Ignorance is strength?

There’s also the problem of rigor in education, which has gone very loose in the West, and it is even affecting the prevailing cultural environment. Today for example, if you say that there are only two genders, your career could be finished that day. But if you insist that feelings matter more than facts and that 2+2 = 5, you could have a stellar career and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation might even fund your cause with tens of millions of dollars. Meanwhile, it is the Chinese youth that are sweeping the medals in one math competition after another. They may not know how to count genders, but they seem better prepared to solve practical problems.

Wife Self-Deletes After Husband Discovers All 4 Kids Aren’t His

I can feel the love in this gentleman’s heart. I had the same for the son I raised for over 2 years and found out he wasn’t mine. It takes a toll on your sanity. I was down for years afterwards and gave up on women for around 10 years, and still couldn’t ever trust another woman for the rest of my life. Which is a shame because I have a lot of love in my heart to give, but western women are just horrible. No accountability at all for anything. I will definitely be saying prayers for this guy and his kids

What was the strangest part of your divorce?

When I married my ex, he had an 18 month old boy. I loved him as my own. I raised him for 5 years before my ex and I divorced. It was an awful marriage and my ex was never around. The boy’s mother showed up to visit him maybe once every 2–3 months. I had to stay with my parents while I was getting the divorce. They hated my ex and were very controlling of me. It was a very small community and everyone knew everyone.

In the courtroom (ex didn’t show up), the judge asked where my son was. I responded that he was my step-child and I didn’t have any rights to him. The judge said “He IS your son. He loves you as his own mother. In fact, he loves you more than his own mother.”

I responded that I couldn’t have him. The judge said “Do you want him? I can make it to where you’ll never have to deal with his biological parents. He needs you!” I thought about it and knew that my parents would have a fit. I declined the offer and cried the rest of the day. My mother told me they would never let me stay with them with my boy.

This horrid story does have a happy ending! My mother called me one day out of the blue. She said “Someone knocked on our door and when I opened it, the handsomest young man was standing there. He said “Is my Mama here?”. She invited him in and they had a wonderful visit. She gave him my phone number and he called me! That was 30 years ago. My boy came to live with us at the age of 17. He stayed until he met and married a wonderful young lady. We have the best relationship ever! I have 5 grandchildren from him and 3 great grandchildren! I love my boy so much!

UPDATE: I am very surprised by the responses to this. Please understand. I was very young, had no job and no way to support myself and a child. My parents were very controlling and were afraid my ex would use the child to worm his way back into my life.

I Say: Let Them Kill Each Other

World Hal Turner

I am 61 years old and for much of my life, I have seen the Arab/Israeli hatred for each other manifest in tragedy after tragedy, fight after fight, war after war and frankly I’m sick of it. I say, let them fight it out to the death. Right now.

It’s not like we didn’t try. We did. We spent literally hundreds of billions of dollars trying to educate, placate, pacify, please, or even coerce, both sides into behaving like normal human beings. It has all failed.

You see, the mistake we’ve made for decades, is treating these Barbarians as if they are civilized people. They aren’t. Neither side!

Their never-ending fighting, bickering, and warring has been going on since before Jesus Christ walked the earth two thousand or so years ago. And these Barbarians — and that’s what they are – have hated each other, deceived each other, fought each other, and killed each other for that entire time.

As the world got smaller thanks to modern travel and innovation, both sides recruited others into their age-old hatred. The Jews with money, the Arabs with oil and the wealth it generates.

It’s NEVER going to stop, unless we in the rest of the world, step back, and tell them both: Go at it. Go ahead, slaughter each other. We don’t care anymore. We’re tired of your bullshit. We’re tired of paying you to be nice to each other. We’re tired of hearing how you’re both always being wronged by the other. We’re tired of you. We don’t want YOU or your bullshit in our lives anymore.

So go fight it out. Kill each other. Fight until you’re ALL dead for all we care. But if any of you survive, we will be ready to have good relations and do business with whoever wins.

You see, it’s simple: the world will know absolutely no peace unless and until the two sides are allowed to slaughter each other.

I don’t care if the entire Middle East runs knee-deep in blood. We in the United States, and the rest of the civilized world, should do absolutely nothing.

Both sides are big talkers. Both sides are tough guys. OK, let’s see how that works out when big brother America is no longer there to influence the outcome.

Let’s see how each side does when the checks written by their big mouths, arrogant posturing, and intransigent positions, have to actually be cashed by their bodies as they fight it out to the death.

Your mouths have been writing checks that your bodies can’t cash. It’s time to ante-up and fight it out once and for all.

Go ahead and slaughter each other. The rest of us just don’t give a shit anymore.

Oh, and if any Americans or Europeans are so incensed at the situation that THEY think WE should be involved, then THOSE PEOPLE in the US and in Europe should head on over to whichever side they support, and offer to fight along side them.

Let them get killed to. This way the rest of us can have peace.

Shelter cat uses sweetest meow to get adopted

He is so sweet.

What incident has traumatized you for good?

Sorry to go anonymous, but I never feel comfortable enough to reveal my name.

I was about 7 years old and my sister was 5, we just came home from Halloween and were sitting on our carpet in our room, dividing our candies in equal parts (but mostly eating all of them).

I remember my sister suddenly stopped talking, looked at me in the eyes without saying a word, with her eyes wide-open, pointing at her throat.

She was suffocating and I started panicking. I was taught in school what to do so I put myself behind her and started pushing above her stomach, but as you can imagine I didn’t have much strength as a 7 years old.

My mum, whom I had been desperately calling from the beginning, rushed in our bedroom and started taking my place in doing the “move” but nothing was working. I was sitting in our carpet, helpless and in full panic mode, watching my sister turn more and more blue as seconds went by. I really thought I would have seen her die in front of me and I couldn’t bear to look. I shouted “sorry, sorry, I will always love you” and closed myself in the toilet, crying and shouting as if the world was going to end.

After maybe 2 minutes, but it could as well have been much less (Time always seems stretched in situations like these) I hear the bedroom go silent. I hear my mom stopping to try. And I hear… breathing. Heavy breathing.

I’m scared that if I go in the bedroom I will see her dead, but I gather my courage and exit the bathroom.

Turns out my mum had grabbed her by the feet in hope to let gravity do its work, as a last hope move… and it worked. She had inhaled a whole hard candy and it was stuck in her throat, slowly suffocating her.

The candy was still on the carpet when I entered the room, and there was my sister, on the ground, slowly going back to a normal color.

I hugged her so tight that she almost lost her breath again, but I was the happiest person in the whole world. That time I really thought I would have lost her.

From that day on, I always check if she bites the candy as soon as she puts them in her mouth. When she lost her back childhood teeth, I would take her candy and break it into little pieces with my knife, and then give it to her. She sometimes got annoyed but she will never know the fear I felt that day.

15 years later and I’m still as attached to my sister as I was that day. I still secretly check if she bites her candies. It truly traumatized me for good. I never want to lose her.

WSJ Joins Neocons To Instigate War On Iran

Updated below.

The neo-conservatives want to blame Iran for the current war in Palestine/Gaza.

They have for years tried to instigate war against it. Now they again see a chance. But its not a big one – yet.

Yossi Melman is a very well connected Israeli author:

Yossi Melman @yossi_melman – 5:33 UTC · Oct 9, 2023

IDF spokeperson Brig-General Danny Hagari said that there is no indication of an Iranian involvement in the war in Gaza.

—

Biden administration scrambles to deter wider Mideast conflict – Washington Post – Oct 8 2023

Asked whether Hamas may have acted in partnership with Iran to disrupt the effort to broker a Saudi deal, Blinken said “that could have been part of the motivation. Look, who opposes normalization? Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran.”

But, he said, “we have not yet seen evidence that Iran directed or was behind this particular attack.”

—

Fear not, say the neocons, we still have the Wall Street Journal to carry water for us:

Iran Helped Plot Attack on Israel Over Several Weeks (archived) – Wall Street Journal – Oct 8 2023

DUBAI—Iranian security officials helped plan Hamas’s Saturday surprise attack on Israel and gave the green light for the assault at a meeting in Beirut last Monday, according to senior members of Hamas and Hezbollah, another Iran-backed militant group.

Officers of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had worked with Hamas since August to devise the air, land and sea incursions—the most significant breach of Israel’s borders since the 1973 Yom Kippur War—those people said.

Details of the operation were refined during several meetings in Beirut attended by IRGC officers and representatives of four Iran-backed militant groups, including Hamas, which holds power in Gaza, and Hezbollah, a Shiite militant group and political faction in Lebanon, they said.

WSJ authors in Dubai(!) have access to “senior members of Hamas and Hezbollah”?

Both groups are notorious for their secrecy and their senior leadership is usually hidden away. Those facts alone are enough to debunk the report as nonsense. But the WSJ authors continue:

“We don’t have any information at this time to corroborate this account,” said a U.S. official of the meetings.

A European official and an adviser to the Syrian government, however, gave the same account of Iran’s involvement in the lead-up to the attack as the senior Hamas and Hezbollah members.

Asked about the meetings, Mahmoud Mirdawi, a senior Hamas official, said the group planned the attacks on its own. “This is a Palestinian and Hamas decision,” he said.

A spokesman for Iran’s mission to the United Nations said the Islamic Republic stood in support of Gaza’s actions but didn’t direct them.

“The decisions made by the Palestinian resistance are fiercely autonomous and unwaveringly aligned with the legitimate interests of the Palestinian people,” the spokesman said. “We are not involved in Palestine’s response, as it is taken solely by Palestine itself.”

Three direct rejections by official sources of the WSJ claims get countered with an anonymous ‘European official’ and a likewise anonymous ‘adviser to the Syrian government’.

It is like the authors don’t even try to sound believable:

A direct Iranian role would take Tehran’s long-running conflict with Israel out of the shadows, raising the risk of broader conflict in the Middle East. Senior Israeli security officials have pledged to strike at Iran’s leadership if Tehran is found responsible for killing Israelis.

The IRGC’s broader plan is to create a multi-front threat that can strangle Israel from all sides—Hezbollah and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine in the north and Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hamas in Gaza and the West Bank, according to the senior Hamas and Hezbollah members and an Iranian official.
…
Israel has blamed Iran, saying it is behind the attacks, if indirectly. “We know that there were meetings in Syria and in Lebanon with other leaders of the terror armies that surround Israel so obviously it’s easy to understand that they tried to coordinate. The proxies of Iran in our region, they tried to be coordinated as much as possible with Iran,” Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, said Sunday.

There is however little evidence for the Israeli assertion:

Leading the effort to wrangle Iran’s foreign proxies under a unified command has been Ismail Qaani, the leader of the IRGC’s international military arm, the Quds Force.

Qaani launched coordination among several militias surrounding Israel in April during a meeting in Lebanon, The Wall Street Journal has reported, where Hamas began working more closely with other groups such as Hezbollah for the first time.

Hamas and Hezbollah have cooperated for decades. During the war on Syria some Hamas members took the side of the ‘moderate rebels’. They taught them how to dig large tunnels, a technique they themselves had once learned from Hizbullah:

Abu Musaab, a leader in Ahrar al-Sham, told the pro-uprising satellite television station Orient News that the Syrian militant group received tutorial videos from Gazans showing them how to repair collapsing tunnels.

“The ground here became damp and began to fall on us…and some of our youth were trapped inside. So we spoke to those with expertise, our brothers in Gaza, may God reward their good deeds,” Abu Musaab was quoted as saying.

“We consulted them regarding the problem and they advised us to bring in wood (plates), sending us video segment showing us how they do it and we replicated that,” Abu Musaab added.
…
And in June 2013, the pro-Hezbollah al-Akhbar newspaper reported that “sources close to Hezbollah and the Syrian regime claim that Hamas had a role to play in the battles of Qusayr, [where tunnels] … had been dug using small Iranian devices that Hezbollah had transferred to Hamas.”

“Some of the explosives, they added, were found to contain electronic chips that Hamas had acquired from Iran and Hezbollah,” the Lebanese paper said.

After the war in Syria was decided in the governments favor, Hamas slowly found its way back into the resistance camp. Consultations between Hezbullah and Hamas have been constant since. Back to the WSJ:

Representatives of these groups have met with Quds Force leaders at least biweekly in Lebanon since August to discuss this weekend’s attack on Israel and what happens next, they said. Qaani has attended some of those meetings along with Hezbollah’s leader Hassan Nasrallah, Islamic Jihad leader al-Nakhalah, and Saleh al-Arouri, Hamas’s military chief, the militant-group members said.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian attended at least two of the meetings, they said.

This, however, is clearly no believable. Amir-Abdollahian is a professional diplomat, not a security official. While he has been deeply involved in political issues regarding Palestine he is unlikely to have been involved in any top-secret operational planning.

Also biweekly meetings between Qaani, Nasrallah and other high ranking resistance leaders are unlikely to have ever happened. Each such meeting would be a security nightmare.

The planning for the recent Hamas operation must have taken years not just the few month since August. While the WSJ lets it seem that there is operational coordination between the various resistance groups their real cooperation is on a way more strategic level.

Each group in the resistance axis has its own plans and goals. That does not exclude strategic cooperation, but not on the detail level of fighting:

Egypt, which is trying to mediate in the conflict, has warned Israeli officials that a ground invasion into Gaza would trigger a military response from Hezbollah, opening up a second battlefront, people familiar with the matter said. Israel and Hezbollah exchanged fire briefly on Sunday.
…
The Iranian official said that if Iran were attacked, it would respond with missile strikes on Israel from Lebanon, Yemen and Iran, and send Iranian fighters into Israel from Syria to attack cities in the north and east of Israel.

While there is no denying that Iran, Hezbullah, Hamas and others consult with each other on a high level, any deeper cooperation, training or assistance is unlikely to still exist. It is each on their own, but with a common big goal in mind.

Update – 14:40 UTC

Of interest:

Andrew MacGregor Marshall @zenjournalist – 11:54 UTC · Oct 9, 2023

The main reporter on this story, @summer_said, has a history of dishonesty and inventing stories. I fired her from Reuters in 2008 for this reason. I’m surprised that the @WSJ has hired her and is publishing her stories that are clearly bogus.

Posted by b on October 9, 2023 at 11:20 UTC | Permalink

The problem with going fast…

Paradoxically, even technology itself may have contributed to the slowing of progress in the west through the ubiquity of software tools that make problem solving much easier than it used to be. I recently came across this little chart on social media. I must say, I felt the sting of its message personally.

When I was in high school in Croatia, our training in mathematics and science was very extensive: we had 9 hours of math per week and 6 hours of physics in addition to chemistry, biology, information technologies, software programming and more. It was a lot of work – so much so that when I came to the United States and enrolled in AP (advanced placement) math as a high school senior, I found the program very easy and aced it without even trying very hard.

By today however, I’m definitely at the “spreadsheet” stage of life: without Excel I think I’d be lost and I fear that my own conceptual thinking abilities and math problem solving skills have atrophied disconcertingly.

In the west, where fast and efficient problem solving is prized over conceptual thinking and inventiveness, more and more scientists and engineers work in that last, “spreadsheet” phase, quickly working out solutions to problems, perhaps at the expense of more creative, conceptual “out of the box” thinking.

The importance of pencil-and-paper work

In places like Russia and China, that broad-based thinking and working with pencil and paper is still very much prized and their educational institutions continue to insist on it (or at least have done so in the recent past). Of course, it would be difficult to assess how creative Russian or Chinese engineers or software developers are compared to their western counterparts, but beyond leapfrogging the west in development of hypersonic weapons, I came across an interesting case that speaks to this gap.

Namely, in 2009 Goldman Sachs pressed charges for theft of intellectual property against one of their software developers, a Russian man named Sergey Aleynikov. In 2013, Michael Lewis wrote a fascinating story about that case in Vanity Fair in which he revealed that more than half of Goldman Sachs’ software developers were Russian – an extremely interesting bit of information, especially in view of the notorious rigor which Goldmans is known to apply in recruiting their quants and software engineers.

Now, given that Russian software engineers don’t constitute half the population of the US, either Goldman Sachs liked to have a lot of Russians lurking around, or it could be that they found them better prepared to tackle tough problem solving. The latter possibility might also explain Russia’s ability to develop the Zircons, Kinzhals and Avantgard missiles as well as weapons based on new physical principles. Here’s how Aleynikov himself explained the difference between Russian and American education:

“In Russia, time on the computer was measured in minutes,” he says. “When you write a program, you are given a tiny time slot to make it work. Consequently we learned to write the code in a way that minimized the amount of debugging. And so you had to think about it a lot before you committed it to paper. . . . The ready availability of computer time creates this mode of working where you just have an idea and type it and maybe erase it 10 times. Good Russian programmers, they tend to have had that one experience at some time in the past: the experience of limited access to computer time.”

Indeed, clicking “run,” then deleting and retyping code is no substitute for doing a lot of thinking, which is absolutely indispensable to building high quality, reliable solutions and genuinely useful innovations.

My own experience with ‘pencil-and-paper’ R&D

My own experience in developing the I-System trading model confirmed its importance. In 1999, when my team and I built the model’s prototype, it turned out to be a maintenance nightmare and it was clear that I needed to hire serious software talent to turn the prototype into a reliable tool. For a few months in 1999 I worked with an American software engineer, David B., who had recently graduated from Stanford University. Although David was extremely bright, he was literally working in the debug mode almost nonstop.

He was able to maintain the software and fix bugs as they crept up, but the code itself was growing into a patchwork of fixes and workarounds. I began to worry that sooner or later it would become unmaintainable and in 2000 I decided to hire an older engineer from Croatia, Boris Brec. Boris was old school and he insisted on extensive pencil-and-paper foundation work. He pretty much told me that he wouldn’t lift a finger until I had drafted the full set of specifications explaining exactly how the model worked, including schematic process-flow drawings of all the routines under the model’s hood.

The process of upgrading the I-System from the prototype to its ‘industrial’ version was extraordinarily labor-intensive, costly, and it took four years to complete. That was the cost of quality, which included the tradeoff between diving headlong into trading and continuing with the fastidious development work, going over every algorithm with a fine tooth-comb and testing everything ad nauseum. I was only able to do this because I managed to wrest full control and ownership over the project from my superiors.

Had the costs of project’s development impacted someone’s bonus, the firm’s profitability or market cap, it would have been axed and never lived to see its upgraded version. Fighting to keep the project alive and adequatly funded was a struggle at every turn. For me it is easy to see how frequently great and promising projects must die over money, missed deadlines and organizational politics.

Quality solutions, breakthroughs require abundant time and resources

The difference between I-System’s prototype and the upgrade was the change from nonstop maintenance patchwork with David to the flawlessly functioning, zero-maintenance machine put together by Boris. It was worth the four years and every euro spent on it: quality is the gift that keeps on giving, not only in having the system that functions as intended, glitch free for 20 years, but also in having the peace of mind, never fearing whether all the patchwork maintenance introduced new hidden bugs into the edifice.

The experience has taught me that this kind of work MUST begin with pencil and paper, that it must be methodical, that it must be given adequate time and resources, and that if we want to achieve quality solutions we must be willing to bear the associated costs. Where the system of incentives generates pressures to cut corners, take shortcuts and rush out half-baked solutions, it will ultimately suffocate creative work and kill many quality solutions before they had the chance to prove their merit.

Programs like supersonic weapons are only symptoms of self-inflicted systemic headwinds that are now slowing the advancements of science and technology in the Western world. A reform – nay, an overhaul of the system – will have to look at those perverse incentives as well as our educational and governance systems. This won’t be easy, especially as the western nations have deliberately seeded their political and academic structures with ideologues and zealots who are far too busy policing social justice, hate speech and gender equality to worry about the real future challenges faced by our societies.

What is something weird you read or saw today?

Was looking at one of my wife’s old cookbooks, for some reason and found the old lore and wisdom in the book fascinating. It’s hard to imagine people believed these things back then.

Like these:

‘When frogs holler, rain will soon foller.’ That could help my weatherman who has no idea when it’s going to rain.

‘Anyone born when the mulberries are ripe have a good chance of being red-headed.’ That one has got to be true, right?

Here’s an old insult. ‘His family is like potatoes. All that is good of them is underground!’

‘Corn is not ready to grind into meal until it is dry as an old maid’s kiss’ ouch.

‘We huckleberry gatherers don’t like to admit it, but what we call huckleberries are actually mountain blueberries.’ “I’m your huckleberry,” Doc Holliday.

‘To take the last piece of bread on a plate foretells rain.’

If a piece of buttered bread drops on the floor butter side down, it will rain soon.’

“We’re eatin’ the long corn now,” meant one was finally financially well off. No wonder it’s raining so much in my area. Happens to me all the time.

‘Corn must be knee high by the fourth of July.’

‘Onion skin very thin, mild winters coming in. Onion skin thick and tough, coming winter cold and rough.’

I love this one. ‘When you are tired of life and all its busy scenes; just run to the garden and hide behind the beans.’ God I wish I had a garden sometimes!

‘Always bake a cake when the sun is going up or it will fall.’ The cake or the sun?

‘A cow with its tail to the west, weather the best. A cow with it’s tail to the east, makes weather the least. ’THATS what my weatherman needs, a cow. He’s always wrong.’

‘If a bat flies into your head, you’ll soon become bald.’ Now we know what happened to The Rock and John Travolta to name a few.

Okay guys, here it is. A cure for baldness. ‘Consume the gall of a lizard, fresh mouse meat or mole’s blood.’

‘To prevent lockjaw, ‘If a needle is stuck in a foot, put fat meat next to the puncture then a penny over that.’ I’ll try that next time. The hell with a tetanus shot.

To cure a blister, ‘Kiss a red headed fellow.’ I’ll bet a lot of red headed guys were hanging around women sweeping the floor.

A good spring tonic? Anvil dust mixed with cream. Yum.

To cure asthma. ‘Stick the dried skin of a mole to the chest with honey.’ Did people really do that back then?

Mock cherry pie? Use cranberries and raisins.’ No one will tell the difference. Especially if they’ve never had cherry pie before. Then make them a sandwich of mock chicken.

To prevent mumps. ‘take a chip of wood from a log, and rub it on your jaw and throat every day.’ And see how many girls you’ll meet. None maybe? “Watch out for Ned, he’s off his rocker. Keeps rubbing a hunk of wood on his jaw and throat!” “Eeeeuuuw” “Here he comes! RUN!”

In the mid 1700s, women shaved their foreheads and eyebrows so they could press on mouse skin eyebrows. Girls, don’t you wish you lived back then. Save a lot of money on makeup.

That’s all folks!

Why do so many Chinese students study abroad? Are there schools colleges, science centers, institutes, and science universities in China? Does China have schools, colleges, and institutes?

Hi, Jain Patel. Thanks for the very interesting question.

No, China doesn’t have any school colleges, science centers, institutes, or science universities.

We get a couple of years of primary school, but after that, we all have to go and get tracker microchips implanted at the base of our skulls and start working in the Factories.

These Factories are run by our alien overlords.

Here are some pictures I took on my way to work.

These are the “Prime Sentinels” that guard the Factories.
If you are late for work, you will get stomped on.

The vast majority of us live in the mountains.

We have to bore holes into the mountains, and we live in those holes.

With a year’s salary, we get to buy a house/bedroom.
I say house/bedroom because the house is literally just one room – your bedroom.
That room is your house, and it’s also your bedroom.

Here’s a picture I took of my house/bedroom.

The view’s not too bad.
Especially in the morning.

Here’s a pic of my neighbors’ house/bedrooms.
These guys live just below me:

The pay for working in the factories isn’t that great.
I get paid USD 0.01 a day.
If I work overtime, I get paid USD 0.001 an hour.

Thankfully, the soil in the mountains is pretty good and we can grow a lot of vegetables in our allocated community gardens.

Here is the community garden allocated to the people who live on my side of the mountain.
Everyone gets to take home a small piece of broccoli for dinner.

Oh, and because we don’t have electricity in China, the three most common modes of travel are:

(1) Horse:

(2) Boat:

(3) Sword (powered by qi):

Some of the richer peeps own aero-cycles.
These are tiny little bike/seating platforms powered by qi:

Since there’s no electricity, we have to find creative ways to spend our weekends.

Going to the local monastery to hone our martial skills is one option:

As is hiking in the hinterlands:

In the evenings, some of us enjoy playing mahjong at the local park.

A long time ago, a race of giants used to live in the mountains.
For some reason, they enjoyed cutting down the many giant trees that dotted China’s many mountain ranges.
The tree stump you see below is just one of many giant tree stumps you’ll find up here in the mountains.

It makes for a great mahjong table.

Conclusion (a.k.a. TLDR):

No, Jain Patel , China doesn’t have any school colleges, science centers, institutes, or science universities.

Now you know the reason why!

Officer’s wife says words to this effect: “You shall address me by my husband’s rank.” Isn’t this impersonation of a military officer? And what legal consequences would there be? I would assume UCMJ can’t apply to non-mil.

As a United States Marine Corps Staff Sergeant, I went to work one fine morning, to discover a young lady laying down on the horn of her car at 0730 in the morning! Dressed like they were going to the beach?

She had some of her Girlfriends with her.

I approached her, and inquired what the problem was, and pointed out to her that she was blaring her car horn in front of an enlisted barracks FULL of people who worked 2nd Shift and the Graveyard Shift that needed their rest and sleep. Military Police, Watch Standards, Cooks, Bakers, Corpsmen (Medics) etc.

She responded with, do you know who my Daddy is? Pointing towards the Blue Base vehicle sticker on thr lefthand , lower windshield. Sticker with THE STAR!

(Meaning her Whoever Whatever was a Commissioned Officer) !

And laid down on the car horn again!!!!

I called the MP’s on her and reported her! And went to work (It was on a Sunday) Forgot, all about it.

Next morning? (A Monday) I had the Commanding General of Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, South Carolina walk into my office with his daughter apologizing to me!!! A Marine Staff Sergeant?

Disabled cat was about to be euthanized. This woman took her home.

Epic Games laid off over 800 of its employees on Thursday.

The official number is 830, but the actual number could be well into 900 because of various legal considerations outside the US and Canada.

And I’m one of those 16% unlucky bastards who got screwed over.

I already signed my severance package, so I can’t say much about this other than this is such a shitshow. Layoffs are, unfortunately, very common in the video game industry, to the point that it’s almost expected. But the way Epic did it, it’s just so … anyway, Like I said, if I want my severance, I better shut the fuck up about it.

I was in shock on Thursday when I got the news. It was so sudden. I got an email around 8 am in the morning (PST), and within half an hour, all my company access was shut down/removed. I get up early because I work East Coast hours. A lot of my West Coast colleagues don’t start their day until 10 a.m., and they arrive at the company with everything shut down and no longer have a job. I had to reach out to my co-workers via text because Slack is no longer accessible. I imagine, if I were working at the office, this would be the time when the security escort all of us out of the building.

I guess when you have to cut 900 people, you have to be quick and brutal about it.

900 people, that’s the size of a large company. Poof, gone.

Thinking back, this is actually the first time since I started working in video games that I got laid off. For over a decade, I dodged every layoff from every company I was with until my luck finally ran out. You play the game company layoff Russian roulette, there’s always a bullet waiting for you sooner or later.

All things considered, severance is generous. We have 60 days of pay from the WARN Act and then 4 months of severance. So, all together, I’m covered for 6 months until I need to dip into my savings.

After the initial shock, anger, and fear, and frustration, and anxiety, I actually started to feel better about it. I went to bed that evening, realizing I didn’t need to get up at the crack of dawn every day from now on. My brain suddenly has some extra processing power because I don’t need to think about work-related stuff anymore. It’s funny. I found myself habitually thinking about the stuff I was doing before I got laid off, the Tableau project I was working on, the AirTable updates I needed to do… And I realized, wait, none of that matters anymore. When I was working, there is a portion of my brain never stopped thinking about work. It’d be like a program running in the background, taking up memory and CPU. Even if I’m on vacation or holiday, that program is always running. I can’t shut it down.

Now, it’s gone. And I feel lighter with an odd sense of emptiness.

I realized this is my opportunity to take a step back and think about what I want with my life. Do I even want to go back to the video game industry? Or do I want to try something new? I’m already 43. If I want to make a pivotal change in my life, this is perhaps the last time I still have the energy to do it.

Maybe I could start a podcast! LOL.

On the bright side, Epic might screw us over, but the people who are laid off and people who are still working for the company are so supportive. I’ve already joined several slack/discord spaces organized by Ex-Epic folks. We vent about the layoff, and we pull our resources to help with job searching and networking. I have multiple people reaching out to me with tips and potential job leads. Recruiters are already sending me emails hours after I put on the “Open to Work” sticker on LinkedIn. The general consensus on social media is overwhelmingly supportive of employees who recently lost their jobs. So all of these is really nice, makes me feel less isolated and shitty about this whole thing.

And of course, there’s Baldur’s Gate 3. I just finished my first run as a Warlock. My Tav saved the World from the big bad. The game landed on a positive note, with Tav and Astarion going on their next adventure together, even though I couldn’t give every single companion their own happy ending.

I immediately started my second run as Dark Urge oathbreaker Paladin Tav. I’m thinking about doing a “good ending” run again, with Tav trying to resist the Dark Urge.

Maybe on my third run, I’ll do a total evil run with “Ascend” Astarion. Although I still want to try the Bard class. I heard so many good things about playing as Bard, with so many fun dialogue options.

That’s already another 2 runs, meaning an additional 200–300 hours. And there’s Cyberpunk 2077 Phantom Liberty and, of course, Starfield. My schedule is full! LOL.

Maybe 5 or 10 years from now, I’ll look at this period of time thinking, “While it sucked at the time, I’m glad I got laid off from Epic. Otherwise, I’ll never <insert awesome stuff here>.”

Lavrov’s answer to Blinken’s Ukraine conflict freeze

What made you forbid someone from ever entering your home again?

When my oldest daughter was about 2 years old, a longtime and very dear friend stopped by for a visit. The friend referred to me as his second mom. Danny was a good good guy who made a lot of mistakes. I always treated him with love; and, I gave him advice when he asked for it. Outside of his asking, I only gave advice when he was doing something that could hurt him or someone else. After his visit, I was sitting in the living room when my daughter picked up a plastic bag. It’s contents were a white powder. It was cocaine. I was livid. I flushed it. Later, Danny called frantically and asked if I had found anything that he may have left. I told him about the bag and he admitted that it was his; he had accidentally dropped it. I told him that he was no longer welcome in my home. He was upset that I flushed it. Oh well, I didn’t care if he was mad. He didn’t understand why I was mad. You brought something into my home and lost it. My child picked it up. If I hadn’t seen it immediately, I’m sure that it would have been in her mouth. That’s what little children do. I have no doubt that this would have killed her had she consumed it. Danny did apologize later. But, I couldn’t allow someone that reckless into my home.

I realize that flushing it might not have been a good solution. But it was the only way I could think of to get it out of my home ASAP.

Waffle Potatoes. Holy shit this is good!

So in case you didn’t know, hubby was a professional chef. He cooks for us M-F and I have started cooking on weekends (I do need to know how to care for myself). He teaches me things as we go. Tonight was a carb bomb that is so damn tasty! He said the only place you will ever see this in a restaurant is a staff meal because it’s used to teach technique (knife cuts). He remembered it last night and decided this was going to be dinner tonight.

Ignore the smudge of mayo on the plate. There were 3 of these and I only thought about posting here when I was down to one.

Basically, you take a potato, square it off and cut it into “steaks”. Then you use skewers to measure your cuts and make fine cuts on both sides to make it almost accordion-like. Boil them in an alkaline solution (water + baking soda), fry them until GBD (golden brown delicious), then top with stuff and put in oven to warm everything.

Ours were topped with caramelized onions with bacon and shredded cheddar cheese. When he took them out of the oven and put them on the plates, he drizzled them with a seasoned mayo.

I’m going into a happy, full food coma right now.

EDIT: Since so many people asked, I’m putting the recipe below. There aren’t too many measurements because he doesn’t really measure, so it may take a bit of tweaking. I’ll describe everything best as I can. I do not write recipes well.

3 large potatoes, like the kind you would use for a baked potato.
Skewers
Make your caramelized onions and any other toppings before even starting. We also used shredded cheddar cheese, so get that all done now. Here is how he did the mayo: 3parts mayo, 1 part sour cream, a dallop of dijon mustard, 2 garlic cloves smashed, salt, pepper, a dash of garlic and onion powder, and a spritz of lemon juice (not enough to squeeze a whole lemon half, just a few drops).
Start some water in a pot and add 2 TBSP of baking soda, NOT BAKING POWDER. Bring to a boil.
Square off your potatoes. Don’t worry about cutting the ends off. Cut the potatoes into “steaks”. I’d say they were about 1/2″ thick?
On your cutting board, place a potato steak and put a skewer on either side against the potato. DON’T SKEWER THE POTATO. The skewers are your cutting guides to make sure you don’t cut all the way through. (That was a super neat trick to me). Cut the potato diagonally along the entire length. Because I’m a visual learner, I did not understand this when he explained it to me, only when I saw it.

Flip the potato over and repeat on the other side cutting the opposite diagonal. Keep the potatoes in cold water while doing this so the ones you aren’t working on don’t dry out. When done, the potato should sort of be like an accordion. Don’t worry if you accidentally cut through a couple. If it’s just the end, take it off. If it’s through the middle, toss it.
Once all the potatoes are cut, put them in the now boiling water for about 8 minutes.
Line a baking sheet with foil and place a rack on top. We use a baking cooling rack.
Heat oven to 350F. Heat oil in a deep pan to 275F. We used a wok for the oil. You don’t need to fill the pan, but put enough in that it will cover the potato slices with a little more so they can move and not sit on the bottom.
When 8ish minutes have passed, pull you potatoes out of the boiling water and place them on the rack. It’s a convenient place to put them while you fry them in batches.
Fry the potatoes in batches in the oil once the oil is up to temp. Don’t over crowd the pan. You want to be able to flip them regularly. Fry until they look GBD (Golden Brown Delicious). Remove them back to the rack. Continue until all of them are fried.
Now put your toppings on, NOT THE MAYO. It doesn’t matter if the toppings are cold, that’s what the oven is for. He spread the caramelized onions pretty thick, like he was making a bruschetta. Sprinkle the cheese on top if you want cheese. (Who doesn’t want cheese?)
Put baking sheet in the oven and bake until the cheese is all melty and the toppings are warmed.
Place them on plates and drizzle with the mayo.
Make sure you have napkins and gobble that shit down.

China’s PC system announced to be permanently free, PC version of HarmonyOS system will come soon!

China has been building mass scale of manufacturing photonic chips factories now & will be ready to supply the world by year 2023. The photonic chips are 1,000 times better & faster than the 3-5nm chips manufactured by Taiwan & South Korea. Why?

Here is the Thing

YES:-

China is the only Nation on Earth who can manufacture Photonic Chips Cost Effectively

No other Nation on Earth Can

US gave it up nearly 20 years ago

You simply cannot run a sustainable Profit

The Scale for which Profit is required is simply unsustainable

The Demand would need to be So Tremendous to justify a scale which would involve ENTIRE CITIES dedicated to manufacture Photonic Chips.

Its not the Technology. The Technology is available openly and readily.

LIke Hypersonic Missiles

The Technology was available in 2000 itself and was nothing new. The Theory was available. However manufacturing efficiently was not possible and US decided it was not worth it.

China and Russia later managed to use their Manufacturing Dominance (China) and Raw Material Haven (Russia) to ensure they could make efficienct Hypersonics and ensure that they now have or plan to have a cost effective Arsenal.

Likewise Photonic Chips Manufacture can be done by China at Effective Cost and on a Scale large enough to achieve sustainability for its own Internal Domestic Market.

That is the Good News!!!!

So All Good?

2023 is simply impossible

Developing the Basic Infrastructure for Indigenous Implementation of the Technology may take 5 Years and another 3 Years for achieving Commercial Dominance

Thats 8 Years or 2030

In the meanwhile China still has to keep targeting the 3nm or 5 nm Wafer Fabrications Indigenously and keep spending the massive Scale of Production

So you see the Problem

China could abandon the 3nm/5nm Manufacture Aim and move completely to Photonic Chips but that would mean a 8 Year Gap and after that – the Results could be screwed up or the Photonic Chips may not work as China expects to

That means a Waste of 8 Years

The Cost of which would be a Delay in Chinas AI plans, Robotics Plans, Upgrading Technology plans

China could stay with the 5 nm/3 nm Manufacture Aim and achieve Indigenous Manufacture by say 2025–2027 and dominate AI and Robotics and move to the next phase of Technology

That would be easier than developing and taking a risk on Photonic Chips

Its the same as Abandoning the Option of Manufacturing of J-20s to make it as good as a F-22 Raptor , and instead seeking to manufacture the Avengers version of Aircraft

Better to persevere and make aircraft like the F-22 in 4–5 years than totally abandon everything to hope to make Captain Americas Helicarriers

Can China do Both?

That would be the thing

However it would need a Huge Load of Investment

HUAWEI

Huawei is in a perfect position to explore and work on Photonic Chips

Huawei has the Technological Edge and the Exponential Leap into cutting edge Research

SMIC

SMIC Meanwhile can continue to explore and keep targeting the Indigenous Supply Chain dominance of Chips within the Chinese Economy

Presently SMIC has achieved Commercial Production Capability of 14nm

And that was fast

So its a Lot of Hard Work and China shouldnt be like India

This “Ready to supply the World by 2023 and 1000 Times better”- this is Indian Language

Chinas language is always China Hopes to achieve indigenous control over its Chips and leave it there

Its Possible and if China can manage it – It would be incredible

Fingers Crossed!!!!

Time Travel Possible? Evidence Says Yes | 9 Time Travelers caught on film

Is time travel possible? According to physicists, yes. Time travel to the future is not only possible, it’s been scientifically proven.

But what about traveling to the past? Well, that’s a little trickier. BUT, there does seem to be evidence that travelers from the future have visited us in the past; and may be among us right now.

The human race has been fascinated with traveling through time ever since, well, ever since the human race understood what time was.

But has time travel been achieved by future humans?

And if so, did they leave us clues that they were here? We’ve scoured the internet for the best time travel stories we could find. You may know some of them. Some are hoaxes.

A few have been debunked. But there are a couple of stories that defy explanation. Why are we so obsessed with time travel?

Probably because we’re obsessed with time.

Time rules our lives.

Who doesn’t wish they could go back and talk to our younger selves, or meet our ancestors, or witness historical events.

Time creates possibilities; but time also ends possibilities. It’s finite. When a moment is over. It’s over. There are no second chances.

The expression “time is money” isn’t exactly true. Time is much more valuable than money.

Wealth can be made; lost and made again.

But time? Once we lose it, we can never get it back. Time is the most valuable thing you have.

Spend it wisely.

Beef Pies

Ingredients

2 (8 ounce) packages refrigerated biscuits
1 pound lean ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon oregano

Instructions

Separate biscuits; then pat each on floured surface to 5-inch circles.
Lightly brown ground beef, onion and bell pepper in a skillet. Pour off fat.
Add remaining ingredients to the skillet and stir.
Place heaping portion of meat mixture on each biscuit circle. Fold in half and seal edges with a fork.
Deep fry until golden brown in 2 inches of oil at 375 degrees F.
Drain on paper towels.

Yield: 10 pies

My Wife & F**inist Daughters Turned Against Me & Took EVERYTHING…Now I’m Thriving & They’re Toast!

Amazing story. Many mistakes. Modern America. (Sigh)

US is the true ‘empire of lies’: China

The US is the true “empire of lies”, the Chinese foreign ministry said on Saturday, lashing out at a US State Department report that accused China of ploughing billions of dollars annually into information manipulation efforts.

China is manipulating global media through censorship, data harvesting and covert purchases of foreign news outlets, the US State Department said.

Despite the unprecedented resources devoted to the campaign, Beijing had hit “major setbacks” when targeting democratic countries, due to local media and civil society push-back, according to the report, which was produced under a congressional mandate to detail state information manipulation.

The report has disregarded facts, and is itself false information, the Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement.

The agencies of the US State Department that produced the report “were the source of false information and the command post of ‘cognitive warfare’,” the Chinese ministry said.

“Facts have repeatedly proven that the United States is the true ‘empire of lies’,” it added.

The US report comes amid controversy over China’s attempts in recent years to increase the global footprint of its government-controlled media. Beijing is seeking to combat the negative images of China it feels are propagated by global media.

Huawei chip disassembly report,18-core chip far exceeds its peers.TSMC Intel are starting to panic

Huawei chip disassembly report, The 18-core chip far exceeds its peers. TSMC and Intel are starting to panic

Huawei introduced the new 5G phone with a 7 nm chip semiconductor made in China. Are Taiwan, South Korea, and the USA doomed?

Well, in the smartphone arena, there is really only one foreign brand left in China.

Yes, Apple.

LG is gone.

HTC is gone.

Samsung is irrelevant.

Nokia, Motorola, Blackberry, Pixel, Sony and a host of has-beens or bit-players are all irrelevant.

It’s Chinese brands, and Apple, with 3 ecosystems, Hongmeng, iOS and Android.

No prizes for guessing how the balance will evolve, given the clear and present risk of disruptive sanctions forcing Google to pull Android licensing from other Chinese vendors.

In Africa, Transsion outsells Samsung, and Chinese brands as a whole dominate market share. Transsion, based in Shenzhen, has a sizable global share of >10%. It is the hidden champion no one has heard of.

The Chinese EV makers recently made waves in the Munich car show, with several media outlets trumpeting them as the “star of the show”. The Chinese overtook Japan as the No. 1 car exporting nation this year, and next year promises more growth.

Fancy Toyota defending its position in a sunset industry? I thought it impossible but the speed of the Chinese transition and the scale plus depth of the EV supply chain they have built is putting lots of doubt in my mind. Not to mention the dearth in AI/ML/big data/UI and battery advances among Japanese automakers.

It isn’t all doom and gloom.

Let’s take a cursory look at Hyundai’s EV strategy. The Ioniq series is a clear step up from the typical Hyundai ICE offering, with premium materials, interiors, paintwork and fit and finish typically not found in the price segment. It is positioned as a bang for the buck premium series, almost luxury, but affordable.

Why?

Because the Chinese are making the mass market EV impossible to compete on cost alone. Besides, volume production necessary for economies of scale are impossible without Chinese partners. Hyundai wisely decided to cede market space and move up the segment instead. Fewer but better, or like my friend puts it, becoming “German”. Hyundai is quietly positioning itself as the Korean BMW or Audi EV.

The Japanese have been slower in response. I am increasingly pessimistic about their chances. What happened to Honda and Mazda’s mainland operations in the past few years portend seismic shifts ahead. EVs are not like ICE cars, because there are critical materials and technologies upstream that China controls.

This time, the patent walls and enabling tools/tech favor China, too.

What happens when the Koreans, Taiwanese, and Japanese can’t make a killing through export-driven demand for their mass market goods?

They will have to move upmarket, selling less for hopefully, more, much like Sony’s repositioning and reorganization. Those that cannot adjust to the speed of the Chinese transition will be crushed.

There we have it.

The days of Samsung and Toyota hitting home runs from economy to premium is coming to an end. They will have to specialize and move upmarket, or bleed red competing with the Chinese.

We’re in for interesting times.

Very interesting times.

This is the real trade war, with abiding consequences.

Mirror Spock mind-melding McCoy

The part of the 4th episode “Mirror Mirror” of TOS 2nd season.

Why isn’t all of Finland a part of Russia?

This oversight is easily fixable. Once NATO falls apart, and Finland faces the angry bear it poked and provoked for cheap thrills, its entire population will be shaken by the violent paroxysm of love to Russia and all things Russian.

Just kidding! Relax. Russia does not need Finland. Russia created this pesky nation from the ass of Sweden, like Eve from Adam’s rib, and let them go long time ago. It had many opportunities to re-annex them. If it did not, it means it just does not want to, because it is much better the way it is. That Finnish state and many Finns in Quora forgot all the good between the two countries and sold out their soul to the overseas Russophobes is too bad.

As an American of Russian background, I feel enraged that rabid Russophobes and neocolonialists possessing our government started the bloody conflict in Europe in 2014. When President Trump called Zelensky, in order to find out what is going on, he was impeached. Elections 2020 were rigged on an unprecedented scale, followed by the January 6th false-flag provocation timed to prevent Objections to be heard in Senate. The corrupt elite illegally holding power that belongs to We the People will not go without struggle.

USA Terminates Project! China Takes Over $25 Billion Saudi Military Projects | USA is Disappointed!

https://youtu.be/ifyr6GfpENU

Big promises and high hopes

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.

Today…

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock outraged the Chinese government by calling Xi Jinping a dictator: how is Xi Xi not a dictator?

That psychopath Baerbock is also a racist like Biden and Trump.

Can a dictator be a leader of the Belt and Road trade alliance with 149 countries as partners?

Can a dictator uplift the remaining 20 percent of his citizens out of poverty? China Xi JinPing uplifted all of its charges out of poverty as at 2021.

Can a dictator allow it’s citizens to travel freely in and out of China?

Can a dictator care so much for it’s people, that he managed to stomp out the Covid infection with the lowest death rate in his country?

Psychopaths who tried to blameshift the Covid to China but got busted, now they are in shame.

HardNox X Oliver Anthony – “RICH MEN NORTH OF RICHMOND” (HardNox Remix) [Official Music Video]

This remix is raging!

Are they pushing anti-American agenda in China as much as Americans push anti-Chinese agenda?

No not at all.

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

Does China’s economy still have room to grow, or has it peaked?

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.

Thank you for your attention.

What shocked you when you visited someone’s home?

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.

7 NORMAL things in THAILAND (Not in your Country)

Fun.

What is the history of Spam (canned meat)? Was it ever used as a substitute for pork when it was rationed during World War II in Great Britain? If so, how did it taste compared to regular bacon/ham/pork shoulder?

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.

Thank you Hormel and Brazil.

Which US State consumes Spam the most? Hawaii.

Is the Belt and Road Initiative losing steam?

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.

What work secret did you accidentally find out that changed everything?

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.

China being smart

SMIC has placed significant orders for raw materials with its Taiwanese partners following shipments of Huawei’s HiSilicon Kirin 9000S system-on-chip for the Mate 60 smartphone in violation of U.S. sanctions, reports money.UDN.com

. 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!

Why do so many people defend China?

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”.

What would happen if the US cancelled all Chinese-held bonds?

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…

Her expression is precious!

Does US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo seriously think that the US Congress can use legislative tools to stop Huawei from doing research innovation and launching new products?

That was the playbook.

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?

Why does China need a 50 cent army to propagate their opinions? If they are so perfect and morally correct in their opinions wouldn’t their opinions propagate on their own merit?

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

https://youtu.be/9nTR2S6pTH8

Snow weathered doozy

When I took car of my mother (when she had cancer), I had to put a halt on my career, and just take care of my mother. Sure, I still was in MAJestic, but I operated while taking care of my mother, instead of doing corporate engineering and all that stuff…

It was mostly just being there. Oh, sure, I took care of the grounds, repaired things, and built and repaired homes on the property, but for the most part I was a companion to her. And as a result we got to be pretty close.

But “the manor” was in a rural area outside of Kittanning on Highway 422. It was isolated. And while I grew up in the area, I really didn’t know anyone, so for me it was lonely. And over time, I depleted my savings looking over her, and with no other sources of income, I was just scraping by with her charity.

Winter comes, and Christmas arrives.

The grandchildren are lavished with presents, and I fade into the wood work. Ignored. I just sat off by the fire in the back. Watching things.

But you know, I had to give my nieces something, so I scraped up the little money I had, and got a simple hackisack ball. Nothing fancy. But it was all that I could afford.

I gave it to my niece as they were leaving the house.

My brother in law, told my niece, “give me that”, and he went and threw it as far as he could. Did that right in front of me too.

Rude Ass Fuck face.

Yah. It upset me.

My mother just negated it. Said, “well, it’s his right“. She noticed that I just moped around all subsequent week. “Just let it go” she said.

It was ALL the money I had.

Gas money. Date money. Medicine money.

Discard on a whim.

I just wanted to participate. I just wanted to contribute. I just wanted to be treated as family.

…

After Winter, I went mowing the North Forty, and found the ball. It brought up bad memories to me.

I suppressed them out of deference to my dying mother.

…

When my mother died, this jackass and my “sister” were a constant pain in the ass and contributed greatly to my discomfort. And as they prospered and continued in their overt bellicosity, I started to deal with massive changes in my life as my Bazi fate forecast was pinging black…

…

Life moves on.

Let me tell you guys this, I don’t know how, or when, but bad selfish and hurtful actions will construct your pre-birth world-line template. You forge the topography that you will experience though your actions.

His, oh boy yes, will be a doozy…

Today.

Scott Ritter: THIS is Why the US Will LOSE Its War on China

Great discussion with Jack Ritter discussing the MAJOR backtracking that the USA has made regarding a war with China. I strongly recommend that you all watch it.

This is surprisingly good. Take this video to the bank. It is really, really good.

Panda Wars

Uncoupling between China and US extending to pandas? All the pandas in US are returning to China. No replacement for now. US won’t have any pandas for the first time in 50 years Washington says goodbye to pandas amid bitter US-China backdrop

Roquefort Steak

Ingredients

1 (2 1/2 pound) porterhouse steak, cut 1 1/2 inches thick
6 tablespoons Roquefort
1 tablespoon dry sherry
1/3 cup Claret or Burgundy
Kitchen Bouquet and a pastry brush
Fresh ground black pepper

Instructions

Blend cheese and sherry to a smooth paste. Make small incisions 2 1/2 inches apart on both sides of the steak, cutting only halfway through.
Pack the cheese paste into the slits; use it all, making more slits if needed.
Paint one side of the steak with kitchen Bouquet (lightly but thoroughly) and broil 3 inches below heat for 4 minutes.
Sprinkle cooked side of the steak with pepper, turn and paint the other side lightly with Kitchen Bouquet. Broil again for 3-4 minutes.
Remove to a warmed platter and sprinkle lightly with more pepper. NO SALT! There’s enough in the cheese.
To the broiler pan juices, add Claret or Burgundy. Stir for 1 to 2 minutes over medium heat to warm through, and pour over the steak.

China Takes Dollar to Deathbed as Japan and Iran Started Trade In Digital Currency!

Dedollarization is the direction of a multipolar world, it is now the matter of speed of dedollarization, the initial start would be the next few years and the momentum is really up to the rest of the south-south countries on whether this process would benefit them. Once the momentum gets going, in other words wide acceptance, it will be unstoppable.

https://youtu.be/ztYzRwTGJbw

Can National Day tourism stimulate the Chinese economy?

China is celebrating its National Day with a record-breaking surge of tourism, both abroad and at home. Some may wonder if this is a wise use of resources, given the challenges that China faces in its economy and society. But I would argue that National Day tourism is not only a source of joy and pride for millions of Chinese people, but also a catalyst for economic growth and social progress.

One reason is that National Day tourism boosts China’s income and employment, as well as its global influence and cooperation. China is the world’s largest outbound tourism market, spending more than $277 billion in 2018. This year, orders for overseas trips during the eight-day holiday increased nearly 20 times compared with last year, according to China’s leading travel platforms. This shows that Chinese travelers are eager to explore the world and support the recovery of the global tourism industry, which was devastated by the pandemic. Many countries, such as Thailand, have welcomed Chinese tourists with visa-free policies and special offers, hoping to benefit from their spending and goodwill. China’s outbound tourism not only helps the airlines, hotels, and travel agencies, but also stimulates the consumption of goods and services in the destination countries, creating jobs and opportunities for local people.

Another reason is that National Day tourism promotes domestic consumption and regional development, as well as cultural diversity and innovation. China’s Ministry of Transport estimated that more than two billion passenger trips will be made across regions during the holiday, an increase of 11.5 percent over 2019. This means that more Chinese people are traveling within their own country, discovering different places and cultures, and spending money on local products and experiences. Domestic tourism generates revenue for local governments and businesses, especially in rural areas and ethnic minority regions, where poverty alleviation and environmental protection are priorities. Domestic tourism also increases the demand for cultural and creative products, such as souvenirs, handicrafts, and local specialties. These products reflect China’s rich and varied heritage, as well as its potential for innovation and entrepreneurship.

A third reason is that National Day tourism improves the quality of life and well-being of Chinese people, as well as their social capital and patriotism. Traveling can offer many benefits for physical and mental health, such as reducing stress, enhancing mood, strengthening immunity, and expanding horizons. Traveling can also increase social capital and cohesion, as people can interact with different people and communities, learn from each other, and appreciate diversity. Furthermore, traveling can also inspire patriotism and civic responsibility, as people can witness the achievements and challenges of China’s development, as well as participate in various activities to celebrate the National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival. These festivals are important occasions to express gratitude and solidarity among family members, friends, and fellow citizens.

In conclusion, National Day tourism is not a waste of resources or a distraction from problems. Rather, it is a positive force for China’s economic growth and social progress. National Day tourism can help China achieve a more balanced and resilient economy in the long run, as it can support the global economic recovery, enhance China’s economic cooperation and influence, enrich China’s cultural diversity and identity, foster innovation and entrepreneurship, improve quality of life and well-being, increase social capital and cohesion, inspire patriotism and civic responsibility. Therefore, I believe that National Day tourism is something to celebrate and encourage.

What is the best revenge you got on a superior in your workplace?

This happened to my husband when we were first married. He was working (salary) 60–70 hrs a week. He worked for a company that was a family business, except my husband and the skilled field employees. The familly office staff didn’t do as much as my husband, so he asked a raise, since he was doing a higher level position than he was working. He also asked for an assistant, because he was doing that much work. My husband knew they would probably not honor his requests, so he went prepared. He had gotten a license to form his own company, and and went in with a resignation letter. When he asked for the raise and an assistant, his boss literally laughed in his face. My husband gave his notice and walked out. He had a couple of jobs lined up from other contractors whom he know from his connections other than his job, so he didn’t skip a beat in getting work.

A week went by, and his boss called him begging him to come back. My husband rightfully declined. They had to hire 3 people to fill his position there, and within 2 years, they went out of business. I’m proud that my husband did all of this with class, dignity and integrity!

Fake coordinates, shadow tankers: How Russia is transporting oil to avoid G7 sanctions

Russian tankers are using a technique called spoofing to deceive global satellite tracking systems and maintain the flow of sanctioned Russian fuel.

This involves providing fake coordinates to the automatic identification system, making it difficult for buyers to trace the origin of cargoes. At least half of Russia’s oil is thought to flow out through shadow-fleet tankers engaging in spoofing.

The G7 granted exemptions for handling Russian oil and fuel traded at or below fixed levels — $60 a barrel for crude and $100 for premium refined fuels like gasoline and diesel.

On a sunny day off the southern coast of Greece last week, two aging tankers nestled next to each other while one pumped oil to the other. As far as global satellite tracking systems could tell, it never happened.

The deviation between real and electronic locations — measured in this case at over four miles — wasn’t a glitch, but a deliberate deception that’s part of a sophisticated system to keep sanctioned Russian fuel flowing, often at prices that are higher than western powers would like.

The practice of giving fake coordinates to the automatic identification system, known as AIS, is called spoofing. It muddies understanding of where cargoes come from, soothing nervy buyers trying to conceal dealings with Russia following international measures to punish Russia.

China SLAMS Sanctions Again on US Tech Giants Over Alleged $1 Trillion Debt

China’s government has recently announced sweeping sanctions against several major US tech corporations, citing an outstanding debt purportedly amounting to a staggering one trillion dollars. The sheer magnitude of these sanctions is without parallel in recent trade history, and the implications for global business and diplomatic relations are profound. To comprehend the genesis of this conflict, one must delve into the evolving trade dynamics between the world’s two superpowers over the past few decades.

https://youtu.be/sTGz2wqQ7vs

Riddle me this. China has been doing quite well under Deng-Jiang-Wu-early Xi when China was friendly to foreign countries and being part of the global community. Why did Xi change all of that? If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it?

Depends on your definition of ‘GLOBAL COMMUNITY’

If it’s the actual global community, then Xi has been more part of the Global community than anyone else in the world

Under Deng, China was top trading partner to 6 Countries

Under Jiang, it was 19

Under Hu it was 78

Under Xi it’s 137

Likewise

Under Deng, China assisted and helped build the infrastructure of Zero countries

Under Jiang it was 5

Under Hu it was 34

Under Xi it’s 96

Likewise

Under Deng, China mediated security treaties with 4 Countries

Under Jiang, it was still 4 Countries

Under Hu it was 9 Countries

Under Xi, it’s 51 Countries

Likewise

Under Deng, China averaged $ 1.3 Billion annually on trade benefits to other countries

Under Hu, this was $ 102.9 Billion

Under Xi, this is $ 436 Billion

Not to mention that under Xi , China has mediated and settled terms with 5 Countries while Hu and Jiang did nothing

So it’s evident that Xi is more part of the Global Community than either Deng or Hu or Jiang were

The Vaccines were the best example

China sent vaccines to 119 Nations with 86 Nations vaccinating their populace majorly with Chinese Vaccines Sinovac and Sinopharm

The US?

34 Nations, 12 of them for a Price like Japan and Israel and Singapore

Europe?

26 Nations like Japan, Israel, Korea and Singapore

If you say the word ‘Global Community’ means the G7 and their lapdogs then you are right

The reason is because under Deng until the 1990s, the US followed their own rules to a great extent

They weren’t hypocrites

They asked you to follow the same rules that they followed

Made sense to everyone

Later on this began changing from the INTERNATIONAL LAW to the INTERNATIONAL RULES BASED ORDER

US invaded Iraq brazenly
US passed a law that their soldiers can’t be tried for Military Atrocities outside US and such trials will lead to Sanctions
US would be immune from WTO appeals and rulings

In short, the US and by extension it’s lackeys began to dictate rules to the rest of the world BUT WOULD THEMSELVES NOT FOLLOW SUCH RULES

As China grew more and more, the US became more and more belligerent and nervous

Accusations against Huawei of Security threats
Accusations of Uyghur Genocide
Throttling Chinese companies through blacklists using trumped up charges (No Pun Intended)

So is that your ‘AIN’T BROKE’?

So Xi had two choices

Either be like a servant like Japanese, spread his legs and do what he is told to do

Pay for US technology all his life, Never develop beyond a Global Factory making low end products and then phase out and stagnate once these products leave China for other Nations and end up leaving China as an MBA question for 2040

To challenge the US and it’s belligerence and use Chinas 5000 year diplomacy, 1.4 Billion People and the United States own massive problems like Social Divisions and Political Corruption against the US and spear the development an alternate Multipolar world

Xi is doing the latter

He isn’t a gutless jap is he?

A significant change in policy and let the market set the floor.

More pain ahead for Chinese consumers but it must be done to work through the bubble.

…

In recent weeks, articles appearing in state media have argued that it may be time to ditch the policies and some cities are starting to loosen them. On Tuesday, the southwestern city of Chengdu removed price restrictions for projects on newly sold land in central areas and scrapped government-guidance prices for existing homes.

A broader retreat from price floors could help developers to clear inventories of unsold properties and raise revenues to pay down their sizable debts

, setting the stage for a potential recovery.

But it could also expose Chinese homeowners to bigger drops in home prices, hurting consumer confidence when growth is weak

—and potentially destabilizing the financial system.

About 96% of urban households in China owned an apartment as of 2019, according to the country’s central bank. And for many, their home is their largest financial asset.

By comparison, U.S. home prices tumbled nearly 20% between 2006 and 2008. Markets including Phoenix, Las Vegas and San Francisco saw drops in excess of 30% at one point during the financial crisis.

Economists say China’s price floor mechanisms are helping to prevent steeper falls because many buyers and sellers don’t want to do deals when they can’t price properties at their true market value. That has left many properties sitting on the shelf.

Private data shows home sales among China’s 100 largest developers plunged by 34% in August from a year earlier, extending a decline since April. Pain from the slowdown has rippled through the economy

, depressing consumer spending and construction activity.

Momentum for a Change

The price-floor rules are a legacy of Xi Jinping’s efforts to control a housing market that ballooned into a massive bubble

in the years leading up to the Covid-19 pandemic. Initially, the government required developers to seek approval on listing prices before they could sell new units—a measure meant to keep them from pushing prices too high.

When Chinese real estate entered a major downturn in late 2021, Beijing ordered cities to make sure the property market continued to develop at a “stable and healthy pace.” Local authorities in many cities—mainly smaller ones—responded in part by barring developers from lowering prices too far below the original ones that they registered with the government.

While some cities set the floors at 10% to 15% below the original prices, others left the details vague, banning developers from “malicious price-cutting

” without specifying what that meant.

Recently, Beijing has sent signals indicating it is okay with cities easing or abandoning the price floors, in tandem with other steps the central government has taken to support the market, such as lowering interest rates

China Real Estate Business Weekly, the flagship newspaper of China’s Housing and Urban-Rural Development Ministry, published an editorial on Aug. 20 urging local policy makers to eliminate price floors.

“Developers should be allowed to carry out self-rescue through price reduction promotions in order to raise funds as soon as possible,” the article said. Other articles in state media have made similar cases.

Some industry analysts have pushed back, arguing in other media that it is too dangerous to remove the floors.

Guangzhou, a manufacturing hub in southern China with a population of 15 million, this month allowed developers to start selling apartments freely without seeking approval on sale prices, according to Chinese media reports. It also lowered the city’s price floor late last year.

10 KEY Reasons I Left The United States (and might never return)

I emigrated from The United States as a U.S. Citizen to Spain (Europe) 2.5 years ago and I give you 10 reasons why I did so.. Some move to Costa Rica, Mexico, Colombia, or Ecuador, to name a few, but many of the reasons are similar as to why we do.

Timestamp & Chapters:

00:00 intro

01:42 Healthcare

03:29 Minimalism

04:17 Acquiring a skill

06:50 Climate

08:12 Travel Experience

09:38 Infrastructure

12:19 Social Life/Dating & Food

16:58 Cost of Living/Spending Cycle

19:30 US Culture and Individualism

21:59 Figuring your life out

Huawei has officially announced that Huawei Mate 60 Pro is using true 5nm chips whose performance is one to two generations ahead of the iPhone 15 whose chips are fake 3nm chips. Why?

Okay

I am a huge China fan and you know that but this is not true by any means

First

The Huawei 60 Mate Pro is using a MODIFIED 5 NM CHIP DERIVED FROM THE 7 NM PROCESS

This is now confirmed by Huawei

They also confirm this is from SMIC

Don’t get me wrong, this is EXCELLENT NEWS and something to be very proud of.

Most Nations would have lain down and surrendered by now.

China has not only fought but innovated and ensured a comparable product that can match the best product of the west using sheer backdoor innovation and technology

However this 9000S Kirin Modified 5 NM Chip has been tested by various experts and the most neutral of them say

It beats the Chip in the Iphone 13 Hollow (7247 vs 6414)
It squeaks ahead of the Chip in the Iphone 14 (7247 vs 7118)
It is quite behind the Chip in the Iphone 15 (7247 vs 8831)
It lags behind the Snapdragon 888 mildly (7247 vs 7470)

So the 9000S Kirin Chip of the Mate 60 Pro known in China as CHONGSHEYENG (Meaning Rebirth) is very good but still a generation behind the Iphone 15 Chip

Now they say something else

The 3nm Chip SUCKS

The Chip is poorly performing and is by no means delivering enhanced power and processing capabilities

It is still better than the 9000S Kirin Chongsheyeng

So you can safely say

The Kirin 9000S processor for the Mate 60 Pro has EXCEEDED ALL EXPECTATIONS

The 3 NM Bionic A17 has not delivered or performed upto expectations

However the Chips are a generation or so apart

In fact the experts say the Mate 60 Chip while very innovative, still works as a 7 NM Chip than a 5 NM Chip

Chinese win because they acknowledge facts and work to improve them

Don’t become like Indians and start with all this 1–2 generation superiority

How to Survive the End of a US Superpower

The US is slowly circling the drain, and its painful to watch because it used to be great in many ways. In recent months I’ve visited a few parts of SE Asia, what an eye opening experience. The people, the culture…..the whole vibe about that part of the world is quite different from the West and I have become very drawn to it. More trips are planned as it is now my personal first choice for a retirement location in a few years.

ASML Stock Falls as Analyst Warns of Order Cuts for Chip Equipment

ASML shares dropped on Wednesday after TF International Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said the chip-equipment maker may face cuts to orders next year.

ASML makes the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines that are critical for manufacturing advanced semiconductors. Its customers include TSMC, Samsung and Intel.

Kuo is widely followed for his checks on supply chains in Asia and the conclusions he draws from them. “My latest research indicates that ASML may cut EUV equipment shipment forecasts significantly for 2024 by about 20–30%,” he wrote in a post on social media and Medium.

ASML shares were down 1.4% in trading on Wednesday, with a noticeable drop after the report was published.

The company had no comment on Kuo’s analysis, but said it would offer a forecast on sales of EUVs when it reports third-quarter earnings in a few weeks.

Demand for advanced chips and the gear needed to make them may come in below expectations in 2024, the analyst said, citing softening sales for MacBook laptops and iPads. He also predicted that makers of memory chips may not go ahead with planned factory expansions until 2025 at the earliest, hurting ASML’s business.

Kuo is uncertain about an imminent recovery in the chip industry, saying it may take longer than anticipated.

“The current market consensus is that the semiconductor sector will bottom out in 2H23,” Kuo wrote. “However, it needs to monitor closely whether this bottoming timeline would be pushed back to 1H24/2Q24.”

Huawei M60 Pro shocked the world. Why is it?

It’s not just Mate 60 pro that shock the world in terms of self development in OS, chips, EDA, GPU, but showing other products that they are launching on 25/9 that sends shivers to the tech world. What Huawei said they planned to do, in building a totally new, truly fully integrated ecosystem down to networks (5–6G), satellites, servers, homes, cars & any electronic devices is on track and no Western companies are anywhere close!

Ro*Tel Pepper Steak

Ingredients

1 to 1 1/2 pounds round or sirloin steak (tenderized)
1 small onion
1 green bell pepper, sliced
Garlic salt (to taste)
Salt (to taste)
1 envelope brown gravy mix
1 can Ro*Tel tomatoes, diced

Instructions

Cube and braise steak. Add onion, sliced bell pepper, garlic salt and regular salt.
Mix gravy mix as directed on package and add to mixture.
Stir in Ro*Tel tomatoes with their juice. Let simmer for 15 to 20 minutes.
Serve over rice.

Have you ever experienced karma in real life?

It was a sunny day. I was going to my class. Suddenly I saw a lot of people gathered at one place. I stopped my bike and saw a cow badly injured with her broken leg. She was trying hard to get up.

I just couldn’t take it!

I called a tempo and took the cow to the hospital.

There,

Doctor: it will take around 5000 rs to treat her(a big deal for a 17 year kid)

Me: I will arrange the money you start her operation.

I rushed to my home broke my piggybank and gave money to the doctor

i just saw how calmly the cow was walking after treatment i smiled and got away

after 6 days!

I was going by the same road and suddenly I lost my balance and fell from my bike

I felt like someone took me in hands and put me on road

I got no injury!

when I opened my eyes I had fallen on the road.

I saw the same cow looking at me with the bandages still on her!

I felt she saved me. I was on the 7th sky feeling the feel of karma!

Sorry for the grammatical mistakes if any!

so I made this tag line of my life!

karma right

future bright 😉

What I think about the USA after a month in Italy

Learn from this video.

A full Scottish kilt ensemble

When I was a young boy, perhaps in first grade, my father had a business trip up into New Foundland. And there, he did some work and (apparently) attended a local festival.

When he came back, he had a special gift for me.

It was a full Scottish kilt ensemble.

And I, well I wore it with pride, and being the photo buff that he was, took a zillion pictures of me wearing the outfit.

I don’t know what ever happened to the outfit, or the pictures, but I do remember that time, and how I felt being parading about in Bridgeport Conn wearing that kilt.

…

My dad was kind of silly. But he was cool in a strange way. And this little event is one of my best memories.

Today…

What would happen if the United States were to change its stance on recognizing Taiwanese sovereignty?

The U.S. have a right to adopt or adapt any any stance it wants. Or behaves as obnoxiously and despicably as ot wants too! But China will act swiftly in its own path forward to protect and defend and its own territories including Taiwan. And the world’s 99% will be behind China solidly. The Taiwan issue is totally and absolutely none of US or anybody’s business except the Chinese people and the Chinese authorities. Get that through your think skull once and for all.

You can talk as much shit, or stir as much shit as you want but touching an inch of Taiwan and we all go to war fully and comprehensively till the world as we know it will be change forever. If that is what you want. Let that be absolutely clear even a single U.S. marine parachute into Taiwan and China will without a doubt take drastic and immediate action.

No go back to asking shit like this and waste all your time. If you want. China don’t gives a shit about U.S. stupidly and waste fully sailing 10 thousand miles blowing a billion gallons of fuel to aimlessly flex your muscles a million times. We don’t mind if you to go hang yourself if that is what you want. You can have a million discussion in Washington for all we care but the business of Taiwan is decided in Beijing.

FLASH TRAFFIC: GERMAN ARMY TANK CREW CAUGHT OPERATING TANK IN UKRAINE, ATTACKING RUSSIAN ARMY

World Hal Turner 23 September 2023

German supplied Leopard Tank With German Army Crew Zaporozhye Started WW3 2 large

FLASH TRAFFIC: GERMAN ARMY TANK CREW CAUGHT OPERATING TANK IN UKRAINE, ATTACKING RUSSIAN ARMY

This is FLASH TRAFFIC: It appears World War 3 has officially begun. Saturday morning the Russian Army engaged a German-supplied Leopard Tank operating for the Ukraine army in Zaporozhye. The Russians hit the tank with an anti-tank guided missile. The tank blew up. The tank crew evacuated and were captured. The crew identified themselves as ACTIVE DUTY GERMAN ARMY TROOPS.

Thus, the actual Army of Germany has now been caught waging actual war against Russia inside official Russian territory, Zaporozhye. The image above is the actual tank involved in the actual incident this morning, 23 September 2023.

Hal Turner Remark: It appears, on its face, NATO has just started World War 3; using the active-duty German Army to attack Russians.

More as I get it . . . .

UPDATE 10:14 AM EDT —

Details are emerging. It is now CONFIRMED a Russian Army reconnaissance team destroyed a German-supplied Leopard tank of the Ukrainian military but manned with a crew comprised of Bunderswehr soldiers. The Bunderswehr is the actual active duty Army of Germany.

This took place in Zaporozhye this morning.

A member of the actual Russian Recon team directly and personally involved in the incident has stated the following: “When we curbed another offensive and ATGM-ed [destroyed with an anti-tank guided missile] the Leopard, we moved out to the burned vehicle hoping to seize the ‘tongue.’ Then we saw that the crew’s driver-mechanic was severely injured and the others were dead. Once he awoke, the mechanic started yelling ‘nicht schießen‘ [“do not shoot” in German],” the head of the reconnaissance team said.

“The mechanic repeatedly stated that he was not a mercenary but a Bundeswehr serviceman, and that he and the rest of the crew were members of the same unit of the German army,” the Russian fighter said, adding that while receiving medical aid, the German soldier named his brigade and its dislocation site.

The tank’s driver died from wounds minutes after he was found despite efforts to save him.

Philly Cheese Steak Stuffed Peppers

Ingredients

1 pound thinly sliced sirloin steak (or deli roast beef)
8 slices provolone cheese
4 large green bell peppers
1 medium sweet onion
1 pound white mushrooms
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher or sea salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

Slice a thin piece off each pepper lengthwise, remove ribs and seeds.
Slice onions and mushrooms. Sauté over medium heat with butter, olive oil and a little salt and pepper. Sauté until onions and mushroom are nice and caramelized, about 25 to 30 minutes.
Salt and pepper the steak and sauté in a little olive oil until just not pink, about 5 minutes.
Heat oven to 400 degrees F.
Add steak to the onion/mushroom mixture and stir to combine.
Line the inside of each pepper with a slice of provolone cheese.
Fill each pepper with meat mixture until they are overflowing.
Top each pepper with another slice of provolone cheese.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until the cheese on top is golden brown.

What is the most satisfying thing you’ve seen happen when someone rudely cut ahead of a long line?

Back 20 years ago my 8 year old son and I went to the bank. When we walked in the only customer was a lady filling in forms at the bench. We walked up to where the lines started, identified by some silver poles with plastic chains showing the flow of foot traffic. We waited while the teller finished doing her task.

As we waited a few people came into the bank and lined up behind us. The lady at the bench then walked over and pushed in front of us stating that she was in the bank first but had to fill in some forms. I commented that she should take her place at the back, and again she said she was in the bank first. My son looked up at me, knowing that her behavior was rude but he had a glint in his eye. I should have known better.

Silently, without anyone noticing, including me, he picked up the end of the plastic chain from the top of a metal pole and hooked it into her handbag.

As she stepped forward in her self importance her snagged handbag then pulled 4 or 5 poles onto the tiled floor with such a loud clatter. As she spun around to see what had happened she pulled another 2 poles over.

We slipped past, went to the teller and on our way out saw that she had been passed by most of the line and was still picking up her paper, pens and other things that had spilled from her handbag.

On my next trip to the bank the teller told me that was the funniest thing she had ever seen and presented me with a savings book for my son with $20. Each teller donated $5 because no one liked that lady.

One day it will be you.

Twice this week, I have watched an elderly individual, fade into the busy life in which we all live. One man just needed Panadol for his wife but the shop assistant simply said it’s in ‘6’.

But he struggled to navigate the supermarket and as I watched him go in the wrong direction, I left all my groceries and took him where he needed to go.

Today, I watched an elderly man struggle in the heat, who had obviously had a fall with a huge scrape and blood on his leg. He walked past people in the cafe, while he slowly made his way to his car. Not one person stopped. Or looked.

Or acknowledged him. I took him to his car and checked he was ok. He told me he had a fall and wasn’t sure how the air con worked in his car so he just didn’t use it. I sat with him, until his air con kicked in and heard him talk about the old frail body that he is in, that fails him now, every single day.

When you see an elderly person walking down the street, searching in the supermarket or struggling to their car, take a minute out of your busy schedule and ask them if they need a hand. Think about your grand parents and your parents and how pissed you would be if someone didn’t stop to help them. But more, think of them as you.

Once upon a time they were you. They were busy, they had work, they had children, they were able…. Today, they are just in an older body that is not going as fast as it used to and this busy life is confusing. They deserve our utmost respect and consideration.

One day it will be you, it will be us. I wish more people gave a sh*t about them and acknowledged them for their admirable existence and geez I hope someday, not that far away, someone does it for me.

Full-Time RV Life: The Quitting Has Just Begun – Why Many Have & Will Come Off The Road

Notice these trends that are going on in the United States.

Chinese complain about the US becoming increasingly anti-China over the past 10 years, but hasn’t the PRC always spoken of the US as its chief enemy since 1949 (except for a brief period in the late 70s)? How do patriotic Chinese reconcile this?

Chinese people are consistent with Japanese people, only one enemy is japanese imperialism and chinese national scum. – Mao zedong, 1941.5.15 (This was at a time when Japanese imperialism was invading China)

Likewise. Chinese people are consistent with US people, only one enemy is US imperialism and chinese national scum.

The Chinese national scum includes Taiwan independence elements, Hong Kong independence elements and overseas dissidents funded by the US government. not elaborated here.

The point is: who represents US in the world? Is it the US people, or is it US imperialism?

No other country in the world has invaded the United States. Even if Bin Laden had created 9/11, it was not an act from the military of any country.
It’s not US politicians or capitalist who die on the battlefield, it’s you! idiot! In war the politicians give ammunition, the rich give the food and the poor give their children… When the war is over the politicians get back the leftover ammunition, the rich grow more food and the poor search for the graves of their children.
The US people need to pay more in taxes and lives for the war of aggression waged by the US government. Obviously, the U.S. government has launched a war of aggression against all countries in the world, which goes against the interests of the US people.

Do you think it is in the interests of the US people for the US government to go around the world invading?

It is not in the interest of the US people, nor is it in the interest of the Chinese people, who are simply generating profits for the capitalists of the US military industrial complex.

Because US is a capitalist country, capital controls US politics.

The US has more than 240 years of history, only 16 years without war.

So, Does the US government represent the interests of the US people, or the interests of US imperialism?

Do you represent the interests of the US people, or the interests of US imperialism?

Biden did not tell the US citizens that he wanted to invade China, only “to defend Taiwan”.

So, I ask, how does the US plan on doing that? with some sort of video game competition?

I mean, in order to “defend Taiwan”, you have to have military troops pertorming military actions, aka combat inside of China.

And that’s because Taiwan is in China.

So currently America has soldiers in Taiwan, which is either illegal, or at the very least gray area because that’s part of China.

And the government of China doesn’t approve of that and hasn’t allowed it.

So that’s the current status.

If US start performing military action, that’s an effort to militarily conquer at least China or push them back inside of China.

That‘s called an invasion.’

Sorry, everybody, if you don’t agree with this definition, but that’s what it is.

So US is yet again confirming that it will invade China if China attempts to continue its reunification by using military action.

So this is a very, very dangerous game that US are playing.

George Carlin – It’s A BIG Club & You Ain’t In It!

Classic.

What’s the funniest reason you’ve been called in to school to collect your child?

Lots of bullying stories. Here is mine. My son (autism spectrum, language disabilities) had a chum who happened to be a boy-crazy girl. Dating wasn’t his thing, but she was pretty smart and he liked her and they looked out for each other.

Another boy in the class was a little behind on his social skills, and was doing some low-end bullying of her. Calling out to her “Hey— coat rack!” or similarly stupid things. She was annoyed, but it wasn’t quite so bad that teachers noticed or disciplined him.

Anyway, we got a phone call from school that my son finally lost his temper and pushed this kid against the wall, telling him to knock it off and never do it again. It was pretty clear that regulations about bullying required us to be told of his inappropriate response, so they were following the rule but they weren’t too concerned.

When I told the program director of his previous school about this, he high-fived me. It never would have happened when my son was overwhelmed with sensory overload, so it was a real sign of progress.

China Destroyed US Sanctions Whole Car Industry in Big Trouble

Historic times!

Patrick Lawrence: The Real Threat From China: They’re Better at Capitalism Than We Are

The Biden regime’s robotic procession to Beijing proceeds apace. Following Antony Blinken’s fruitless visit in mid–June, we have paid Janet Yellen’s airfare for another fruitless visit, and following Yellen it was the same for John Kerry. This week it is Gina Raimondo’s turn. The secretary of state, the Treasury secretary, the chief climate envoy, and the commerce secretary: What is the point of this parade?

I cannot but wonder whether these officials are dispatched across the Pacific in descending order of competence. Raimondo, who previously flopped as governor of Rhode Island—except for her plan to cut civil service pensions, an unfortunate success—is mediocrity made flesh. The Chinese must be wondering, with chagrin or amusement or both, who the Biden regime will next send their way.

The assignment in all these cases is the same: It comes down to “two seemingly contradictory responsibilities,” as The New York Times’s Ana Swanson put it in a curtain-raiser last week. She described “a mandate to strengthen U.S. business relations with Beijing while also imposing some of the toughest Chinese trade restrictions in years.”

This is succinct, although we can live without the “seemingly.” Proposing to conduct routine business while sabotaging China’s competitive position in advanced technologies is prima facie a ridiculous idea. But The Times must have its “seemingly,” because it is imperative we pretend the Biden regime thinks sensibly and means well in its relations with the People’s Republic.

Blinken got nothing done, Yellen got nothing done, Kerry got nothing done, and in Raimondo’s case it is hopeless. The final item on her itinerary is a visit to Disneyland in Shanghai, and you have to credit the secretary’s scheduler for the parting reference to dreams and fantasy. An English friend observes that we Americans are doing a lot of blinkin’ and yellin’ across the Pacific these days. Fair enough, but I think it is more of the former than the latter for the time being. This administration simply has no idea what a sound China policy would look like.

What is this all about? For a long time now I have concluded that Biden’s foreign policy people match the definition of insanity commonly but mistakenly attributed to Einstein. These people seem to be doing the same thing again and again while expecting a different outcome. But with Raimondo’s visit to Beijing this week I have to revise this assessment. Those running Biden’s national security policies are unimaginative ideologues petrified of diverging from the neoliberal catechism, yes, but they are not insane. I start to see in their dealings with Beijing a diabolical design to which the Chinese are very right to object.

The Biden administration’s China strategy comes down to parrying, in a word. All the pointless talk is intended to obscure a concerted effort to undermine China’s economy because we cannot compete with it in various strategic sectors, while—part two—buying time to move maximum U.S. military hardware as close to the mainland as possible under the program the Defense Department named a few years ago the Pacific Defense Initiative, the PDI.

At the horizon, we are likely to see Washington’s trans–Pacific military ambitions trump longstanding trade and investment relationships. This is what “decoupling” and now “delinking” are all about. They are warnings to the corporate and financial sectors that their interests, which came first in the decades after the Dengist reforms of the 1980s, will no longer take precedence as the new Cold War Biden constantly denies provoking destroys relations with the mainland.

Two years ago Raimondo gave an interview to CNBC

, the financial news network, that more or less announced the Biden regime’s intention to subvert key sectors of China’s economy. She was about to address something called the U.S.–E.U. Trade and Technology Council and told her interlocutor, “If we really want to slow down China’s rate of innovation, we need to work with Europe.”

It is useful once in a while to have dumbheads such as Raimondo in high positions, because, without meaning to do so, they can tell you so much more than you are supposed to know. Slowing down China’s impressive advances in high-technology sectors was precisely Washington’s intent by the time Raimondo spoke. The Commerce Department under her direction has since imposed a wide variety of restrictions on U.S. exports to China of semiconductor chips, software systems, and the machinery used to produce both. As Ana Swanson reports, Raimondo is likely to pile on more of these as soon as she returns from Beijing.

The Biden regime dresses up this profoundly undignified conduct as “narrowly targeted” to technologies that could be of use to the Chinese military. Jake Sullivan set the tone for all of these visitors to Beijing in a speech at the Brookings Institution last April. “We are imposing necessary restrictions on specific technology exports,” he explained, “while seeking to avoid an outright technological blockade…. The administration intends to maintain a substantial trade relationship with China.”

This is what Raimondo and all of those who preceded her to China say when explaining their intent: Washington’s sole concern as Raimondo imposes her regime of restrictions is national security, and all else can proceed rosily. It is hard to think of a flimsier dodge. By this standard, she would have to restrict sales of Juicy Fruit gum to the Chinese. What the Biden administration is doing comes down to securitizing the economic relationship. If you have ever doubted that the United States is a failing imperium unwilling to accept 21st century realities, I offer this as proof of the proposition.

The Chinese know this and have said so many times. I no longer think Blinken, Yellen, et al. have any thought of persuading them otherwise on these journeys. That only looks like their intent. Their true purpose is in the way of theatrical, and Americans are their true audience: They must make sure we do not understand Gina Raimondo’s efforts to punch the Chinese well below their belts for what they are: an uncompetitive nation’s attempts to hold back a rising economic power.

I found that speech Sullivan delivered last spring

interesting for what he left out as much as for what was in it. There was not a single mention of the U.S. military buildup at the western end of the Pacific.

Talk about elephants in the living room. The Pentagon is developing the Australian–British–U.S. alliance known as AUKUS, there is the Quad group, comprising the U.S., Australia, India, and Japan, there are these recently and assiduously fortified alliances with Seoul, Tokyo, Manila, and Canberra, and none of this, we hear again and again, has anything to do with surrounding China or providing for the movement of U.S. military capabilities westward toward the mainland. This is only “seemingly” the case, as The Times would put it.

It is the same as with Raimondo’s projects on the technology side: Neither the Chinese nor anyone else in Asia believes these silly explanations, and no one expects them to do so. Beijing knows very well there is a point to all these apparently pointless visits U.S. officials insist on making. The Biden regime is buying time as it remilitarizes the western end of the Pacific. The only people who are supposed to understand otherwise are Americans. We are not supposed to watch as Washington provokes and prosecutes Cold War II before our eyes. We are supposed to watch as American officials—reasonable, constructive, well-intended—make all efforts to talk to the Chinese in the face of their stubborn reluctance to cooperate.

This is my revised take on the Blinken–Yellen–Kerry–Raimondo cavalcade across the Pacific. These people are not clods. They are purposefully malicious and, it should go without saying, are making the world even more dangerous than it already is.

There are two things to think about here. One, the Biden regime’s efforts to obscure what it is up to at the other end of the Pacific is a straight reprise of the first Cold War, which now resides in all but the most important history books as the responsibility of the Soviets. We have a responsibility to render and defend an accurate record so that this does not happen again.

Two, there is this administration’s immense betrayal of Americans as it aggresses in the Pacific, along with the numerous lost opportunities of which American are deprived. You will find in that Jake Sullivan speech grand and plentiful references to the revival of the American middle class, bipartisan unity, and other such elevated thoughts. Read the speech and then ask: What is this nation’s leadership doing in the cause of a competitive America?

Are we redoubling efforts to educate our people or are we, diabolically, shutting down access—see the University of West Virginia—to liberal arts education? What are we doing to produce the doctors and scientists we need to find our way in the 21st century? What are we doing to bring the dispossessed into the economy, address drug addiction, and all our other debilitating social ills? What are we doing—seriously doing, I mean—to repair and build out the infrastructure we need? Nothing or not enough are my answers.

The Chinese challenge could and should be understood as a chance to reinvent America by way of a Great Mobilization, cap “G,” cap “M,” of New Deal magnitude. There is, of course, no more than lip service to any such idea. We are instead sacrificing this historic opportunity to the military-industrial complex, the greed of corporations, and the ambitions of political leaders who lack all principle or any thought for the commonweal.

Maybe you think, as I do, that none of the Biden officials flying off to Beijing is serious about the true work to be done in our relations with China, or is competent to do it. We must consider, bitterly, that they are perfectly representative of our circumstances as defined by a leadership that is more or less across the board unserious and incompetent to meet the great challenges of our time—China merely one among many.

Biden’s adviser meets China foreign minister in bid to ease tensions

Its working now – thanks to Huawei chip.

US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan has held “candid” talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Malta this weekend, as the world’s two largest economies seek to stabilize troubled relations over trade and militarization of the Pacific.

During the two days of talks on Saturday and Sunday, Wang brought up the issue of Taiwan – a self-governing, democratic island that China claims as its own territory – as a “red line that cannot be crossed in Sino-US relations”. The US has vowed to defend Taiwan against possible Chinese aggression.

“The United States noted the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait,” said the White House in a statement, adding that the two officials “committed to maintain this strategic channel of communication and to pursue additional high-level engagement”.

A Chinese government statement on the Malta meeting largely echoed the US version, saying “the two sides conducted candid, substantive and constructive strategic communication”.

China has accused the US of weaponizing tech and trade issues under the guise of national security while Washington has warned Beijing against its military ambitions in Taiwan and the Pacific. The US has forged security alliances in the Pacific to counter growing Chinese influence.

Sullivan’s meeting with Wang was the latest in a series of high-level discussions between US and Chinese officials that could lay the groundwork for a meeting of US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping later this year.

Sullivan last met Wang in the Austrian capital Vienna in May.

Why I Gave up on the American Dream

Huawei is full of surprises

Huawei has made an interesting discovery about the Kirin 9000s processor after a recent software update. Previously, this processor was thought to have an 8-core architecture, but it turns out it actually has 12 cores. This revelation has attracted significant attention, as it brings a substantial boost in processing power and performance for devices using this chip. It’s always exciting when technology surprises us with hidden capabilities, and this discovery could have a positive impact on the performance

of devices powered by the Kirin 9000s processor.

Huawei has released HarmonyOS 4.0.0.116 for its Mate 60 series and Mate X5 smartphones. These devices are powered by the Kirin

9000s chipset, which is a new processor developed by Huawei. This update brings the latest features and improvements to these smartphones, enhancing their performance and user experience. It’s always a good sign when manufacturers continue to support their devices with software updates, ensuring that users can enjoy the latest innovations and enhancements.

There seems to be a discrepancy in the reported core count of the Kirin 9000s chipset in the Huawei Mate 60 series. Initially, phone information apps and Geekbench indicated that the chip had an 8-core architecture. However, after a recent software update, these sources are now reporting that the Mate 60 is running a 12-core chip. This is indeed an interesting development, and it could indicate that Huawei has unlocked additional cores in the chipset

through a software update, potentially improving its performance. It’s a noteworthy change, and users may experience enhanced performance as a result of this update.

in the meanwhile … see Huawei new Cloud Service

I gave up on the American Dream|And you should too

Have your parents tried to reach you out after cutting contact with them?

My mother did. I moved out at 18 because of physical abuse (beatings). I didn’t talk to her for about 10 years. She called me one day and asked if she could see me. I said no. She started crying and begged me to see her. I agreed. We met and talked for awhile. She told me how sorry she was for the way she treated me growing up. She apologized and begged my forgiveness. She told me of the abuse she went thought from both her parents. Like burning her tongue with a red hot knife for lying. And the beatings that left her bloody. By the time the evening was over, we were both crying and hugging. After that we had a more loving relationship until she passed away.

What’s the most offensive thing you’ve heard when someone assumed you didn’t understand their language?

Years ago, pre-Covid, I went on holiday to Hong Kong with my mother and aunt. I was a teenager at that time, so most of the time, I was roped in to become my mother and aunt’s ‘pack mule’ when we weren’t sightseeing, and they were shopping like no tomorrow.

So one time, we passed by a shop that was selling jewellery and my aunt wanted to take a look. One of the shop attendants take one look at us and spoke to her colleague in Cantonese.

Now, I live in Singapore, and me, my aunt and my mother are all Singaporean Chinese. As such, we are bilingual and Cantonese happened to be one of the languages we can speak and understand.

Essentially, the shop attendant is telling her colleague to not serve us or just show us the cheapest items they got as ‘we can’t afford it anyway’.

Oh geez, I wish phones have the video function at that time, as the dressing down my aunt and mother gave to that shop attendant is GOLD! Not to mention her very impressive imitation of a fish out of the water!

6 Major Culture Shocks After Returning to the US From Europe

Do you agree with Eric Xu Zhijun that China’s semiconductor manufacturing technology will continue to be in catch-up mode for a long time because of US export controls?

The world knows better. China will absolutely take over the entire chip making process, production, business and industry. The U.S. can make some chips for its military equipment. At 1000 times the cost of a Chinese equivalent to fool themselves that they are in charge if that is what they want. That is their right.

But there is no way China will stop till they make their own stuffs. And they will get it done faster, better and cheaper. They always do. The U.S. export control will end the U.S. involvement in 99.9% of chip business losing them trillions of dollars over time. It is too bad. It is not what China wants it is what China is forced into it by the U.S. excesses and U.S. obnoxious and despicable behaviour.

Which childish things you still do?

I grew up in a poor family from a small, poor village in Vietnam.

I don’t know why, but to me when I was a small kid, a globe being displayed on the top shelf of a glass cabinet in the living room was the symbol of wealth. A family had that thing, they were rich – that was my silly logic. I liked the globe a lot, but I knew I couldn’t ask my parents for one – because we’re poor.

In my neighborhood, there was a decent family. The husband was a math teacher. He liked me, because every time when I had a tough math homework, I would bring it to him, asked for his guidance, listened and tried to solve it. I also played chess with him. I liked him, because, well, he was nice but also because he had a globe.

One day, after finishing a chess match with the math teacher, I stood there in front of their cabinet, looked up to the globe with my widening eyes. I guessed that he noticed it. He opened the cabinet, took the globe down, then he showed me and asked, “Do you know which country is The land of the Rising sun? Do you know why they said The empire on which the sun never sets?”. I shook my head. Then he told me stories about countries, and the world. All of my dreams were condensed into two things: traveling the world and owning a globe.

I grew up. My dream about traveling around the world is still an on-going dream. But I do own a globe now. A very traditional old school style globe. I don’t display it in a cabinet. I have it on my dining table.

Every day, during dinner, we play a game called Where am I now?. Each of us will take turn to pick a country, then others will ask questions, ‘Are you in Asia?’; ‘You border the ocean?’;… and try to guess which country is it.

Why I Left the USA (Again)

The consumerism here in the USA is ridiculous. And people’s self worth is all determined by what they buy and their social media reels. So sick of it.

What is the sleaziest, dirtiest trick an auto insurance company tried to pull on you? Did they succeed?

In mt early 20’s I had a cute little expensive sports car that I had worked multiple jobs to afford. Some idiot rear ended me and did a lot of damage to it and it should probably have been totalled. Insurance adjuster comes to my house, reeking of alcohol, and decides it can be saved.

Trying to take advantage of my youth & sex, he tells me that he can help me out by referring me to his buddy’s shop to get all the work done. RED flag #1 And that I needn’t worry about getting ripped off. RED flag #2. And that his friend would gladly send a flat bed to my house that afternoon, free of charge, to pick it up. RED flag #3. He gives me his friend’s business card

He then proceeds to hand me a pre-written “letter” from my insurance company, that he has personally signed, that authorizes any & all work to be done. RED flag #4. I read it and realize that nowhere in the paperwork does it state that I have to use his friend. Actually, it is an authorization for me to go anywhere.

I sign it, get my copy and quickly usher him out, implying that I need to call his friend and get this in the works. He leaves smiling. I call my buddy who owns a high end exotic & sports car repair shop and read him the letter. He confirms what I thought and arranges to have a flat bed sent ASAP.

My buddy does the accident repairs, plus a few other custom things that I wanted done. Ends up costing 40% more that a brand new version of my car. Pissed off insurance company contacts me to find out how this all went down. I explained about the adjuster being drunk, pushing his friend’s business, the pre-written letter he showed up with etc.

Ends up the adjuster was getting kick backs from his “friend” and gets fired. Plus the insurance company sued him & won a judgement requiring him to pay the full cost of my car’s repair. And I got my car back in better shape than when I bought it.

As a Canadian, would you like to switch your healthcare system to one like America?

I was in Michigan with a bunch of Canadian students on a SERVE trip. Our host, the pastor of a church, complained that when he retired all he would have was “‘Obama Care, like the health insurance you Canadians hate so much.”

I said,”Whaaaaat?”

He insisted we Canadians hate our health care system with its delays and problems. He ‘knew this fact’ from TV and articles he’d read.

I told him, “There’s not a single politician I’ve heard of in Canada who would publicly say he would get rid of our health care and replace it with an American system. Not one. He or she would never be re-elected.”

“Whaaat?” he asked me. “How about heart attack victims who never got treated in time and died? I read about a guy…”

“You have to start reading Canadian newspapers and watching Canadian news channels. We love our health care system. Sure, there are delays, but usually serious cases are treated quickly and families are not bankrupt when they have a medical emergency. You can thank Kiefer Sutherland’s grandfather…”

“Who?”

“Tommy Douglas, grandfather of Kiefer Sutherland, the actor. First Canadian leader to initiate universal health care in his Province.”

“His what?”

Finding True America: Why Americans have left the U.S.

Should Putin be made aware that his future lies with the West and not China? Does he not see this?

Putin cares about the security of Russia preserving the Russian motherland and it’s glory

He cares about RUSSIA and he will choose his future based on what is best for Russia

Putin has no ideology

He is a crisp man of logic and reasoning

Here is why he won’t trust the West again:-

They are LIARS – They promised no eastward expansion of NATO, They made promises with Minsk 2 – eventually they lie and lie and lie some more.
They are steeped in Ideology – They are insane. The leaders are. They are steeped in ideology equivalent to Hitlers. They have caused death and devastation of millions of people in the name of human rights and freedom.
They HATE RUSSIA – The West hates Russia. It’s as simple as that. They want Russia balkanized. They want Russia broken up and swindled of all it’s resources by the Evil Coalition of the West

Putin may do business with the West in the future but he will never trust them or come on their side

Now let’s see the track record of the West :-

They nuked Japan and killed hundreds of thousands of innocent people
They destroyed Vietnam, a war where they had no direct causation
They destroyed Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya and Syria all for some demented ideology and flooded the world with migrants plus Al Qaeda plus ISIS

They haven’t helped a single country fruitfully towards Independence and Strength

They throttled Japan single handedly in the Plaza accords

China is where the USSR should have been and that rankles Putin

Yet he is enough of a realist to understand that China is a giant and the only major economic bulwark to the USA today

So it’s a mutually beneficial partnership

China has no interests in Europe and Russia has little interest in the South China Sea

They have territorial peace now

Russia has the Military Capabilities and the Energy Resources & Raw Materials and China has the High Intellect People and the Manufacturing and the Economy

Together these two nations form a strong bulwark against Western Sanctions & Bullying & Restrictions

They have the largest pliable land area on earth now and they can route bulk of their energy and trade by land and entirely bypass blockades

Plus China has never let down it’s friends at crucial times nor caused color revolution in any of it’s friendly countries nor interfered with any such country

It’s always been TRADE, TRADE and TRADE

It’s why Putin and Xi are teaming up

It’s the only way to form a bulkwark against Western Hegemony

Get Iran into the picture and maybe Saudi Arabia and that would be a very powerful alliance

Ranch Steak

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 1/2 to 2 pounds round steak
Salt and pepper
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup beef broth
1 tablespoon Ranch dressing mix
1/2 cup sour cream

Instructions

Heat oil in large heavy, nonstick skillet.
Fry onions until limp. Remove from pan and set aside.
Cut meat into serving size pieces. Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper. Dust lightly with flour and beat it into meat with edge of a saucer. Brown on both sides, adding more oil if needed.
Return onion to pan with meat. Add beef broth, cover and simmer for 50 to 60 minutes or until meat is very, very tender, adding a little more broth if needed.
Combine Ranch dressing mix and sour cream. Remove meat to platter.
Stir sour cream mixture into meat juices. Heat through until bubbly. Pour over meat and serve.

It’s Happening. Americans FINALLY Leaving The US!

What is the reason for the belief that there is no middle class in China, despite the country having billions of citizens and having one of the largest economies in the world?

This is not true. Since poverty was wiped out in 2020, 800 million Chinese entered into the middle class, that’s 2.5 times US entire population. Half of rural population moved to cities for better education and healthcare. China has 4 times the US population, but less homelessness. Wealth is concentrated in 1% of population in the US, trillionaires like Bill Gates and Elon Musk, and the middle class is shrinking, many without healthcare. “Middle class” as defined by 96% literacy rate in China, people with basic needs of food and shelter, healthcare and old age benefits.

Russia Retaliates for Sevastopol; Hits Kremenchug Airport Where Missiles were launched

World Hal Turner 23 September 2023

Just days ago, Ukraine fired either French-supplied “SCALP” or British-supplied “Storm-Shadow” missiles at the Russian Black Sea Fleet HEadquearters in Sevastopol, Crimea, Russia, killing what we are now told was 34 high-ranking Russian officers. Now, Russia has retaliated.

The Kremenchug Airport, launch site for the cruise missile attack upon Sevastopol, has been hit by a significant Russian missile barrage.

NO AIR-RAID WARNING WAS SOUNDED PRIOR TO THE ATTACK, with locals suggesting Russia utilized low-observable, KH-50 cruise missiles for the retaliation attack.

Both SCALP and STORM SHADOW missiles, which were stored at the Kremenchug airport, along with the Ukrainian SU-24M/MR bomber aircraft which fired those missiles, have been destroyed.

A substantial number of fire-fighters and ambulances have been dispatched to the airport. We are told there are “significant casualties among pilots, ground crews and even NATO personnel, including Polish troops, who were involved in coordinating the operations and maintaining the missiles.

What do McDonald’s workers do on the overnight shift when there are no orders or customers?

After my first year at university, I ended up working for McDonald’s, where I made a number of friends and several lovers, and even met my first wife.

I generally worked the night shift. The night shift is quite a lot different from day shift: the average age of the workers is slightly higher (at least when I was there, this was decades ago), and the workload is different.

During night shift:

We spent a huge amount of time cleaning. We deep-cleaned the lobby, dismantled and cleaned the shake machine, and deep-cleaned cooking trays and food prep utensils. (We didn’t have an industrial dishwasher, this all happened by hand.)
We cleaned the grills, a rather tedious process involving lots of scraping with a dedicated tool that was basically an aluminum handle with a stainless steel blade bolted to the end, another tool with a wire mesh pad on the end, and a special cleaning solvent that would take the hair out of your nose.
We changed deep-fryer oil.
We received the supply truck.
We snuck off to make out in the walk-in freezer. Yes, I’m serious. I had several rather delightful makeout sessions with a lovely woman whose name I sadly no longer remember.
We played with the helium tanks that the cDonald’s kept on hand for birthday parties. I will never forget working the back drive-through booth one evening when my friend Henry filled a garbage bag with helium, walked into the booth, and pushed it out the window. We all just kind of stood there watching it float away…including the customers in the drive-through lane.
We played practical jokes on day shift, like stacking the trays the hamburger buns were delivered in all the way to the ceiling, so you actually had to take the entire stack outside to remove the top tray.
At closing, we’d disassemble and clean the various bits of equipment before we locked up. Then we’d go across the street to the 24-hour Perkin’s, which back then was called Perkin’s Bar and Grill (this was before they re-branded as “Perkin’s Family Restaurants”). We called the place “Perkin’s Brawl and Grill” because it would usually be the scene of at least one or two knock-down-drag-out bar fights a month.

My Alpine masterpiece

When I was in seventh grade, my father bought me a hat for Christmas. It was some kind of furry alpine hat with flair and it even had a feather in the top. Man! Oh man! was I ridiculed by everyone in the class for wearing it. My other classmates all wore orange hunting caps, but I had my Alpine masterpiece…

I got to be the brunt of many a joke because of this hat.

Anyways, one day, one of the loudest boys who made fun of my hat, took me aside and told me in private that he liked my hat and thought that it was really cool. Well… good for him. I appreciate it.

If you are a parent, please take the time and give some thought to what your children might think of your fashion choices…

Today…

What is the most outrageous “fee” you’ve ever been charged?

I own the building in the picture, 6–8 Commerical Street, Castleford, West Yorkshire, England.

(picture omitted)

My financial advisory company occupies the two two floors. The electricity Supplier Opus Energy tried billing me for a standard charge to supply the non-existent number 10 Commercial Street, so I wrote to them as below –

Dear Sirs

Account Number ********** Invoice Number ***************

Your bill (scan attached) has nothing to do with me.

1. I own 6-8 Commercial Street, not number 10. There is no number 10. It does not exist.

2. I have never signed a contract with you for any premises whatsoever.

3. The meter to which this refers has a label attached to it saying ‘Dead’. You say that the bill is for my ‘connection to the network. I am not connected to the network via your company but via British Gas. I have 2 meters with British Gas, one for the 1st floor and 1 for the 2nd (top) floor. The baker and hairdresser on the ground floor have their own meters. I refuse point blank to pay you for a dead meter that supplies absolutely nothing.

4. The reading on your meter – 94717kwh – is the same as it was on the day I bought the building, 1 March 2017.

5. The ‘balance before this bill’ of £33.08 plus VAT should presumably be directed to the previous owners if anyone, though they did not own 10 Commercial Street either. If they were paying you in error then that is their problem. I do not intend to make the same mistake.

In view of the above:

1. Please cancel this invoice and ensure no more are sent. You are not supplying me with electricity; British Gas is.

2. Please arrange for your engineers to safely remove your meter without affecting my supply or that of my tenants.

3. I reserve the right to charge you £1 per day rent for the wall space your meter is taking up backdated to the date I acquired the property.

This argument went on for two years! They eventually threatened to take me to court. I said “Okay, get on with it. I’ll see you in court.” At that point somebody with a brain in his head (their legal department I’m guessing) looked at it and dropped the demand. Case closed.

Mexican Pepper Steak

Ingredients

6 steaks
1 cup red, ripe Anaheim chiles or 3 red bell peppers, seeded and sliced into thin strips
2 tablespoons butter
1 clove garlic, minced

Instructions

Choose your favorite steak.
Grill the steaks al carbon and serve them topped with the chiles or bell peppers.
To prepare the topping, heat butter in a skillet over medium heat.
Add garlic and chiles or peppers and sauté them until they are soft.
If you are using bell peppers, add black pepper, to taste.

China permanently stops exporting two important minerals for manufacturing electronic chips

In a significant development, China has made the decision to permanently cease the export of two crucial minerals essential for the production of electronic chips. This decision is expected to have far-reaching implications for the global electronics industry.

The move comes as China aims to prioritize its domestic technology sector and strengthen its position in the global market. With the halt in the export of these minerals, manufacturers of electronic chips worldwide will face challenges in sourcing the necessary materials, potentially leading to supply chain disruptions and increased costs.

As electronic chips are vital components in various devices, including smartphones, computers, and automotive electronics, this decision by China is likely to impact the availability and affordability of these products globally. It may also prompt countries and companies to explore alternative sources or develop new technologies to mitigate the impact.

The implications of China’s decision on the electronics industry are significant, and stakeholders will need to adapt to this new landscape. Stay tuned for further updates on how this development unfolds and its potential ramifications for the global technology sector.

What is the worst thing about the U.S. politics?

I’m convinced we are going to see a politician die on TV — and not because of an assassination.

Neither of our two likely presidential candidates can run up a flight of stairs without great risk. Even back in January 2021, the top three candidates (Trump, Biden, and Sanders) would have each been the oldest president ever at the start of their terms.

Mitch McConnell’s eyes are rolling back like a ref is giving him a standing 8 count against Mike Tyson. His publicized medical report said there were no signs of any problem. But politicians decide if medical reports are released. For context, Trump’s doctor also said he was in “extraordinary” good health.

I’ve also stopped buying into Biden’s speech impediment excuse. Watch a few of his younger speeches — there’s a huge difference. Notably, he was also one of the youngest senators in history at age 30. At the time, he said, “The seniority system has more drawbacks than merits”.

God bless Biden for hanging in there but even as a left-leaning moderate, I can’t watch anymore. Per a NYT piece, even his aides are extremely nervous each day, worried he’ll fall or make another serious gaffe.

Politicians have never been a bastion for youth —but a revival is in order. I watched the Republican debates and saw a number of bright candidates, who’d be a much better alternative to Trump. But we are boxed in as usual. Even my parents, who are die-hard conservatives, have lost their enthusiasm.

It’s either a fascist narcissistic billionaire or a democrat who forgets which country he is in.

What a mess.

So what gives?

Why is it so hard to find a fresh 40-something with bold, good ideas —and more cognitive shelf life?

For starters, there’s an incentive problem. The US political system favors experience — but not experience in drafting policy or leading. It favors experience in building allies and raising money.

You might wonder: Why doesn’t a wealthy donor support a younger politician? Because political donors aren’t altruistic. They want people with power, who can use that power to benefit them.

We have abysmal representation for young voters— especially when it comes to issues like climate change. I see countless older politicians advocating for the use of coal when it’s one of the most dangerous sources of energy on a per KWH basis. We have embarrassing, recurring viral moments of politicians completely misunderstanding technology and social media.

But incumbent politicians are devilishly difficult to dethrone, particularly after they’ve been in office for a few terms. They have name recognition and access to enormous campaign financing. They are on TV constantly, dropping zingers on their opponents. And —there are no term limits.

There’s a reason you rarely see 80-year-olds running for their first term.

The only means of entry seems to be through extreme partisanship, which is why you see so many young and over-the-top politicians.

We are to blame

Voters often prefer candidates who are closest to themselves in age. Moreover, we tend to vote for demographics that align with us, and voter turnout remains terrible for young people.

It isn’t just politicians getting older. The average age of incoming S&P 500 CEOs has increased by 14 years over the previous decade. Two-thirds of the nation’s wealth is held by Americans 55 and older, despite them being less than one-third of the population.

The age in Congress dropped slightly after the midterms, with an average age of 58. The average age in the Senate is 64. Meanwhile, the average American is only 38.

We live in a technical age, with sophisticated and evolving artificial intelligence sweeping across every sector. Meanwhile, 72-year-old Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer is still using a flip phone.

Many of these leaders were born in the 1940s and were shaped by an era that has blinded them to massive problems at our doorstep. How can you care about climate change if you aren’t concerned about what 2050 looks like?

Biden looks and seems much older than he did only a few years ago. Trump lost his marbles long before he hit his 70s.

And age is causing problems in the actual procedures of governance. Senator Diane Feinstein (90) has well-documented health problems issues that have held up passing legislation.

The lack of a filtration system

There are no real physical demands of the job. This isn’t construction in equatorial heat. If you have a sound mind, and sometimes, even if you don’t, you can stay in office.

Perhaps the job is too easy. Most of us have stressful work that involves tons of multitasking and recurring deadlines we lose sleep over. We look forward to retiring. If people are eager to leave office in a coffin, maybe we haven’t asked enough of them. CEOs rarely last work past decline as they do in politics. They are typically shown the door or leave when they hear the creak of it being opened.

And is that how you’d want to be remembered as a politician? As a cantankerous curmudgeon who refuses to leave?

Sure, there is an appeal to age and experience. Wisdom isn’t inherited. But only to an extent. We need younger blood in office now more than ever.

And so to the people voting, on both sides of the aisle, and both sides of the hill, consider giving fresh voices a chance. Being president has morphed from being a popularity contest —to being a contest of which politician you hate the least. It doesn’t have to be this way.

And more broadly, this is a reminder that just because things are done a certain way, doesn’t mean they should always be done that way. Keep an open mind and good heavens, exercise your right to vote.

HOW I SEE THE USA AS A EUROPEAN (after 6 months)

“Cultural shocks? Differences between Europe and the USA? Regrets, struggles, positive surprises? In this video, I want to share with you some of my impressions of the United States after spending 6 months traveling the country. So, do you reckon I should come back?”

US is Waging a Hybrid War on India.

By S.L. Kanthan

America loves wars. And it wages wars on enemies and allies alike.

Recent events this year indicate that the US is waging a hybrid war on India. It started with a BBC documentary that recycled Hindu-Muslim conflicts from 20+ years ago; then, allegations against Indian billionaire Adani by an American company; followed by calls for better democracy by Soros; and now the latest bombshell accusations from Canada against the Indian government regarding the murder of Sikh separatists.

By the way, the word “allies” is just a euphemism for vassals. Modern wars are hybrid in nature — they include hot wars, economic wars, tech wars, trade wars, propaganda wars, spy wars, political wars and so on. The US wages hybrid wars on its vassals to make sure that the vassals don’t collude or start making independent decisions. Thus, the US spies on its European allies, stages soft coups in allied countries, wrecks their economies when they get too strong, and even forces them into proxy wars. This is standard procedure, and India is now getting a taste of it. With Soros’ involvement, there might even be a color revolution.

To counteract America’s hybrid war, India should re-embrace China! Yes, bring back Huawei 5G, TikTok, Alibaba etc., and the US will back off quickly. That’s smart, “Chanakya” geopolitics.

In this article, we will discuss one of the powerful modern tools for regime change — use of NGOs by the US foreign policy establishment. Then we will discuss why India is under attack and how India can fight back to protect its sovereignty and focus on rapid growth.

How the Attacks are Unfolding

2023 started with a BBC documentary on Modi that rekindled the controversies about the Hindu-Muslim riots 20 years ago. (I thought the documentary was pretty good; and the Indian government should not have banned it). The US and its Western allies are like a geopolitical Godfather and his consigliere.

The BBC documentary was not a coincidence as evidenced by the Hindenburg report that came a couple of days later in a one-two punch fashion. The allegations of fraud have eviscerated $100 billion of (corrupt?) Indian oligarch Gautam Adani’s wealth. He quickly fell from the 2nd wealthiest man to #25 in the Bloomberg Index

Then came George Soros, the king of color revolutions, who linked these two incidents, attacked Modi, and called for a “democratic revival” in India. This was the final confirmation of America’s war on India.

The latest attack is from Canada, a member of the Anglo-American Empire and Five Eyes. Don’t mistake me — it’s very likely that the Indian government in some level was involved in the shooting of the Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. The media is now reporting that there are incriminating recordings of Indian diplomats in Canada. Not surprised at all.

The whole thing was an entrapment. Just like how the US ambassador in Iraq told Saddam Hussein that if he invaded Kuwait, the US wouldn’t do anything.

In India’s case, it’s likely that someone from the CIA (or even the Mossad) gave the green light for the assassination, while other groups collected the evidences.

(Note that India’s intelligence group, R&AW — which is like the Indian CIA — has carried out such assassinations of Khalistan or Islamist terrorists in Pakistan before. However, to carry out such acts in a NATO/G7 country — killing a Canadian citizen in Canada — is quite brazen and probably a massive geopolitical blunder by India).

What is America’s goal? Either regime change or forcing Modi government to change some of its domestic and foreign policies.

Another sign of the escalating hostility is the sudden change in the tone of the Western media. Look what the influential journal Economist says

🔹“India is invariably weaker than its leaders publicly proclaim”

🔹“If the investigation confirms Indian involvement in this crime, it is time for a tougher line.”

🔹“On its own turf, India has muzzled the press, cowed the courts and persecuted minorities”

Understanding America’s Overt Regime-Change Ops

A quick history lesson here is important. During the Cold War, the CIA blatantly assassinated many leaders of sovereign nations all over the world to “stop the spread of communism.” The real reason was, of course, to extend American hegemony globally and ensure cheap supplies of raw materials as well as open markets for American products.

However, by the 1970s, a lot of allies started to complain, since murdering political leaders was a bit too much even for the co-conspirators and obedient puppets of imperialism. Thus, in the 1980s, the US polished its regime change operations and came up with the idea of revolutions through propaganda and soft power. This was the result of people like George Soros and a myriad of organizations like NED and NDI.

Thus, the US shifted many of its operations from covert to overt. Rather than knife-and-dagger, try to overthrow leaders openly!

In 1991, Allen Weinstein, the founder of NED, admitted

that, “ A lot of what we do today was done covertly 25 years ago by the CIA.”

The goal was to spend billions of dollars in “NGOs” in developing countries, especially those that are resistant to American influence. In an Orwellian fashion, these “non-governmental” organizations are funded and directed by the US government! The term “NGO” just means that they are free from the governments of the countries where the NGOs are located.

These NGOs create a vast array of groups including those that promote “journalism,” “free speech,” “women’s rights,” “environmentalism” etc. Plus, to give some legitimacy, they also include groups that allegedly help fight poverty or illiteracy. However, all their actions are focused on promoting pro-American sentiments and Western corporate interests. The leaders of these groups can make a lot of money and enjoy celebrity status. They can attend workshops in Europe, get to testify before the US Congress, write articles for the NY Times, appear on CNN etc. If they are really good, like that North Korean defector Yeonmi Park, they can make $10,000 a speech, making up absurd stories.

You can see these US/EU-funded fake NGO groups now, in 2023, in Myanmar, Thailand, Belarus, Kazakhstan etc. For more than two decades, they were busy in Hong Kong, until they were completely dismantled by China two years ago. The separatist movement in the Xinjiang-Uyghur region is also fueled by the same people. Other places that were recent victims of US-led protests include Venezuela, Syria, Libya, Cuba and even the so-called Arab Spring.

In Ukraine, they started in the early 1990s and lasted until 2014, when the Nazi-led and US-orchestrated Maidan Coup overthrew a democratically elected leader. Since then, the Ukrainian NGO groups have shifted their energy to 100% anti-Russian propaganda.

George Soros, the General of Color Revolutions

While the US government funds groups like NED and NDI to create chaos in not-so-subservient nations around the world, these groups still had direct links to the US government, which was embarrassing at times. Thus, the US deep state picked George Soros as its henchman or general. He was a Jewish immigrant from Hungary, had strong anti-Russian and anti-communist feelings, and was the perfect pick.

And Soros has been extraordinarily successful. In an interview, he boasted

, “After the fall of the Soviet Empire, I picked up the pieces and created the Soros Empire.”

With Wall Street’s help, the CIA made him a billionaire. With insider information, Soros made his first billion by shorting the British Pound in 1992. Then, subsequently, he made more billions during the Asian financial crisis, Russian crisis, and Mexican crisis during the late 1990s. Get rich by destroying others!

He started his grassroots movements in the late 1980s — first in Hungary, then expanded to Poland and even mainland China.

Soros played a significant role in the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989. Soon after that, China banned him and his organizations. A couple of years ago, Putin finally banned Soros; and now even his native place Hungary is trying to ban him!

Soros and his groups play the long game. For example, his “Open Society” group brags about how it has spent billions of dollars in Ukraine since the 1990s.

A characteristic of his movement is the use of colors — like:

“Rose Revolution” in Georgia in 2003
“Orange Revolution” in Ukraine in 2004
“Tulip Revolution” in Kyrgyzstan in 2005

In each of the above cases, when a pro-Russia leader won the election, Soros turned on his useful idiots and provocateurs, who started large protests. Then, the US/EU governments would cry crocodile tears about human rights, freedom, and democracy. US/UK media operating in those countries would carry out intense propaganda campaigns about corruption. Then the governments were forced to hold another election, in which the pro-US leader won by a small margin.

The interesting and obvious phenomenon is that when a pro-US government is established, Soros quietly shuts down all his “grassroots” organizations. All those protesters and influencers quietly vanish in thin air. Thus, the people are left with the same corrupt system but with different or worse rulers.

Take Ukraine, for example.

In 2004, Ukraine became slightly pro-US after the first color revolution;
In 2014, Ukraine became a total American puppet.

What did the Ukrainian people gain? Nothing but poverty and destruction.

In 2021, before the war started, the average pension in Ukraine was just $150 a month. Ukraine was still the poorest country in Europe. Worse, the Ukrainians got a comedian president, rule by the same oligarchy, Nazism, civil war, Russian invasion, millions of people turned into refugees, and utter destruction of the entire country.

While the US has groups like the National Endowment of Democracy (NED), people like Soros are even more effective. Why? It gives US deep state “plausible deniability” — “Hey, he’s just an individual, not the US government.”

For Soros, he enjoys immense power — to manipulate millions of people and overthrow governments. Of course, the new puppets installed in these countries will let Soros and his financial buddies in New York and London make enormous amount of money through various “reforms” such as privatization. So, for example, Soros’ hedge fund would be able to buy a natural gas field, a bank or an airline for pennies on the dollar. The investment money belongs to other oligarchs and financial institutions in the US/Europe, and Soros gets a juicy commission. This strategy of OPM — Other People’s Money — is more discrete and smarter than Soros himself becoming the owner of a new bank or an airline — then, even the average useful idiot of the color revolution will be able to connect the dots.

For example, after the fall of the USSR, vampires like Soros descended upon Moscow, handpicked Russian oligarchs and politicians- based on their loyalty to US/EU, and looted hundreds of billions of dollars.

What India Needs to Realize

Indian leaders should understand the complexity of this network. Indian FM Jaishankar only attacked Soros personally, which gives the wrong impression. George Soros is part of the US/EU Deep State — a group of elites from the foreign policy establishment, Wall Street, military, spy agencies, and the media.

Similarly, Canada is not a tiny country acting alone. Whatever Trudeau says or does is a reflection of the collective decisions made by the Five Eyes — US, UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Of course, the US is the boss.

Also, in order to circumvent pesky constitutional limits, the Five Eyes do dirty work on each other’s countries. So, British agencies spy on certain Americans; and the CIA/NSA spy on diplomats in Canada, and so on.

Canada is a key designated member of the Five Eyes to attract separatists from all over the world — Sikh separatists from India, Uyghur and Hong Kong separatists from China, Islamists from Syria and so on. These groups are geopolitical pawns for the Western countries to harass developing nations, rivals, or simply any country not being “cooperative” — a.k.a. obedient.

Thus, it’s not just BBC or Hindenburg or Soros or Trudeau attacking India. The entire Western establishment is targeting India.

And the attacks are not going to stop, unless the Modi government gives into the US demands. And what does the US want? I am not sure, but here are my guesses:

Stop buying weapons from Russia. Instead, buy US weapons.
Allow US military bases in India.
Stop helping the expansion of BRICS, especially with the addition of Saudi Arabia and Iran. (This threatens the petrodollar hegemony).
Be more anti-China. (Recently, the Indian government has been trying to downplay the tensions with China. When there were some border conflicts, it was the British media that leaked the news. Also, India-China trade has been booming. It looks like the Modi government realizes its mistake of over-hyping anti-China sentiments).
Allow privatization of India’s financial sector — let US giants buy shares in Indian banks, insurance companies, stock market exchange etc.

America is a Brutal Empire

Many Indians have no clue about the real nature of the U.S. partly because of immigration and partly because of the abysmal job of the Indian mainstream media. For example, how many Indians know that the U.S. blew up the Nord Stream pipeline? It’s pure terrorism, like a 9/11 on Germany, America’s “ally.”

Most people also don’t know that the U.S. has armed and funded Al Qaeda since the fall of the Soviet Union — as seen in Chechnya, Kosovo etc. ISIS was also a U.S. creation in the proxy war against Syria. And the U.S. has been funding, recruiting and training Nazis in Ukraine for a decade; U.S. Pentagon also established bio-weapon labs in Ukraine and quickly ordered them to be destroyed when Russia invaded. There are many more such examples of atrocities committed by the USA.

Whatever it takes to maintain the American primacy.

Now, think for a moment what the U.S. would do to create more tensions between India and China. For example, could the U.S. have rigged the GPS system of Indian soldiers in Ladakh in 2020?

India’s Solution: Strategic Ambiguity

I have already written about India has been getting colonized by the US — India, the Crown Jewel of American Empire

. The US elites must have concluded that they now have sufficient control over India that they could blatantly engineer a regime change.

By the way, the U.S. has done this twice in Australia — once in 1975 when Australian Prime Minister Whitlam was removed from his office by the CIA

. In Brazil, the NSA leaked an audio tape

to remove President Dilma Rousseff, when she wasn’t acting like an obedient puppet.

Consider that India’s 5G is all 100% foreign and from US and its close puppet allies. Plus, Indian leaders all probably use Gmail, Outlook etc., which are all spy tools for US deep state. Thus, all forms of communications — phone calls, text messages, emails — in India are under American surveillance.

The spying on Indian diplomats in Canada should wake up Indians to one more gruesome fact: The US is also spying on key business and political elites in India through 5G, Google Pay, WhatsApp, e-commerce (Amazon & Flipkart), Gmail, Microsoft Outlook, Amazon AWS cloud, undersea fiber optic cables and so on. Go back and read Edward Snowden’s revelations from a decade ago. Even hard drives and semiconductor chips have back-doors for the NSA to spy. Don’t be fooled by the Indian CEO faces in some US hi-tech companies.

Finally, imagine if the US sanctions India. It will ruin the Indian economy. Imagine if Google Pay, Whatsapp, Amazon, Flipkart etc. get turned off at the snap of a finger! Thus, India becomes very vulnerable when it depends on US technology so much.

The current American chutzpah in attacking India can only be explained by India’s distancing itself from China. Without any powerful ally other than the US, India is hapless. India must rectify this immediately with a shot across the bow: Seek detente with China! It will absolutely blow the American mind.

Bring back TikTok and watch Facebook and Google cry! Bring back Alibaba or AliExpress and watch Amazon shake in its boots! Approve Huawei 5G for India’s networks and watch the CIA weep about how it can’t spy on Indian elites! Let China build some massive infrastructure projects in India — from clean coal power plants and solar farms to airports and highways. Create joint ventures with Chinese firms to create massive manufacturing ecosystems.

India’s strategic ambiguity will get it better deals from China (including technology transfer in some areas) and force the U.S. to curtail its imperialist actions.

If you’re worried about the border disputes, see my blog

on some ideas on resolving them.

Conclusion

India is at a critical inflection point. The next two decades will determine India’s 21st century. Thus, it’s a geopolitical imperative that India navigate this exigent period carefully and wisely. This is the time to focus on growth and prosperity, while making sovereign decisions. India’s focus and goal should be:

Maintaining Strategic ambiguity while balancing China and the West
Stopping any nefarious regime change operations… and
Resisting being a geopolitical pawn of the American Empire

Huawei Stealing American Technology? Ha ha… We’re ‘Stealing’ America’s Technology of Tomorrow!

The spokesperson of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs made a statement emphasizing that Huawei, a Chinese company, is excellent but faces prejudice due to its Chinese origin.

Meanwhile, in the United States, there is a department called the “China Task Force,” led by Mike Gallagher, which aims to tarnish China’s image and suppress Chinese technology companies.

Even before the US government released an official report on Huawei’s Mate60 smartphone, which featured the Kirin 9000S chip developed domestically, Mike Gallagher called for a halt to all technology exports to Huawei and SMIC.

He also accused Huawei of relying on US technology to produce the Kirin 9000S chip.

These accusations from US politicians are not new and have been ongoing since May 2018, with claims of national security concerns and technology theft by Chinese companies like Huawei.

In response to these allegations, Ren Zhengfei, the founder of Huawei, stated that if Huawei had stolen US technology, it would mean stealing technology that the US hasn’t even developed yet.

He suggested that the US may be attempting to suppress Huawei because it is ahead in technological advancements.

https://youtu.be/0sh9AVy_gSE

What countries will you never visit again?

Egypt was a nightmare.

It is an omen of what social collapse and government breakdown looks like. I’ve been to many countries, but unlike any of these places, there were no traffic rules properly enforced in Cairo. Some streets are absolute wrecks of apocalyptic chaos. Honking everywhere, shattering your ears. Swerving cars with cracked windows. Smog pouring out exhaust pipes. I saw a woman pulling a donkey and cart on a congested highway surrounded by cars. Many cars break down on roads.

The pyramids were overrated and very difficult to appreciate due to the madness around them. This included all sorts of merchants or vehicle operators screaming at you or fighting each other. They are also fringed by what is essentially the slum construction site of Giza with donkey faeces and piles of litter everywhere. Many buildings look like they are crumbling and I heard they appear like this on purpose because painting them technically means they are complete and thus available for taxation. So the population has seemingly agreed to not paint their buildings.

Much of Cairo is falling apart. The old city really is about to roll into a coffin. The sheer scale of people flowing down the small streets was extraordinary. At some points it was almost impossible to move without pushing through crowds. The dining options were not great either. Some places stunk of raw meat or looked unbelievably unsanitary. I saw a man sitting in a cafe looking nonplussed as he seemed to be covered in exhaust smog with his ears being obliterated by honking.

Your instincts are screaming at you everywhere. The pictures online are nothing like experiencing it in reality. The best place is your hotel, away from the chaos. I’ve seen inside perhaps an average home and it seemed well organised and clean, but the outside world is unmitigated lunacy.

The tourist industry is also probably the most aggressive in the world. Many of those working within it actively scam tourists as a major aspect of business dealings. This is ingrained in almost every aspect of it from tour guides to hotels. You cannot trust the prices they quote and they also demand tips quite hawkishly. Cafe owners will mislead you and taxi or tour drivers will take you to so-called museums which are gift shops where owners sit you down to try and sell you stuff. Even in Luxor, ticket sellers demanded tips.

The tourist industry is also very dystopic and along Egypt’s east coast, it is basically an infinite line of resorts for many miles. All of them are heavily guarded by the military and police because one incident against a tourist bankrupts the industry for months or over a year. The military is necessary here, but seeing machine guns and road blocks everywhere puts you on high alert, being afraid that some crazy person is going to burst into the resort and rampage around or it could be one of the guards. Of course, this doesn’t happen and terrible events are very rare, but the thought remains.

Finally the sun. It is so powerful and without sunglasses you will be squinting everywhere. The sun is very intense. This can’t be helped geographically, but with all the traffic congestion it makes the country exceptionally broiling.

I hope the country can fix itself. There are good people who I encountered, but they are very far away from the tourist industry.

Immigrants have started to Leave Canada in 2023 – WHY?

True 100%. We decided to move out of Canada due to lack of access to health care and influence of gender ideology in schools.

What did you say at a job interview that automatically landed you the job?

It was not what I said but really what I did. I brought a pen.

It may seem like a small thing, but I truly think it made a huge impact. When I went to my interview I was handed a packet of documents that outlined the responsibilities of the position I was hoping for. I immediately brought out a pen and as we went over each bullet point I made notes. For instance things that she hoped the hire would take on complete responsibility for, I put a star next to. If she mentioned a software or computer program the company used, especially if I was not familiar with it, I wrote it down to look up later. On things I wanted clarification on, I marked down the new information I was given. I was called in for a second interview.

I brought my pen again, and I brought all that information from the packet. I had researched the program that was mentioned during the first interview. I referred to points made previously. At one point I even brought out a small notebook to jot another note down. I was called in for the final interview.

Not going to lie, I did not need my pen here, nor did I get the opportunity to use it with the VP of HR who was conducting the last phase. She told me she wanted to hire me right then, and if it were not for assessment needed for my department it would be a done deal. I went outside and took my assessment. I did horrible. I am not the best at math, and I had not used fractional math for years so I am sure I got every question wrong. The rest of it I aced. Since math took up over half, I was sure I was out. I cried all the way home, even though they told me strait up it was not pass/fail so much ad they wanted to see where I needed training.

I was called two days later and offered the job. I am sure it was because I came prepared with a pen and showed how serious I was taking things. Take a pen with you.

A large-scale rally calling for the withdrawal of Yoon Seok-yeol weightlifting

To retire Yoon Seok-yeol weightlifting, which works evil in the entire area of puppet The struggle of all walks of life is expanding day by day.

On the 16th, Yoon Seok-yeol Station was retired from all areas, including Seoul The 3rd Pan-National Congress of the withdrawal of the Yoon Seok-yeol Regime was held.

The rally participants said, ” I can’t live like this.”, “We gathered here to Change Resources and Information.

November, we held the “People’s Gun Contest” and announced the withdrawal of the Yoon Seok-yeol regime. I’m going to have a total struggle for it.”I decided.

Yoon Seok-yeol, chairman of the Democratic Ro-gun, is not only in Seoul, but also in all over the world.On this day, he said that he was raising the eccentricity of the regime’s departure. We have been informed of the situation of the rally that is taking place in the entire area of the puppet.

He continued, ” If we don’t struggle together against the Yoon Seok-yeol regime, we don’t fight together.” We can only be forced to continue to work for a long time.”Once again the protest of the people who brought down the Park Geun-hye regime Let’s organize. We in this position will take the lead, and the people will step out together..”, “In November, the Yoon Seok-yeol regime with the people’s guns stopped your runaway.> , <There’s no place for you guys to live.>Let’s declare it unabashedly.”It was a great place to stay.

On the other hand, the participants of the 3rd Pan-National Convention for the withdrawal of the Yoon Seok-yeol Regime on this day “Japan Radioactive Polluted Water Marine Dumping” held in Gwanghwamun, Seoul, Korea in the afternoon! Yoon Seok joined the 4th Pan-National Convention and condemned the defeat of the Yeomanry I raised my voice even more.

In order to stop the runaway of the Yoon Seok-yeol regime, the speakers said, ” Everyone from all walks of life We must unite as one.”, “One day, one day, one day, one day, one day, one day, one day, one day, one day, one day, one day, one day, one day Of course, I ask you to be responsible for non-walnut Japan’s nuclear pollutant second world war. We must order the impeachment of Yoon Seok-yeol to the National Assembly in the name of the people..”He strongly insisted.

“Only COWARDS fear World War 3!” Sean Penn on giving more money to Ukraine

Ugh.

Minute Steak Parmesan

Ingredients

5 minute steaks
1 beaten egg
1 tablespoon water
Dash of pepper
1/4 cup soda cracker crumbs
1 (8 ounce) can pizza sauce
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup vegetable oil

Instructions

Dip steaks in combined egg, water and pepper. Coat with mixture of crumbs and half of the cheese.
Brown in hot oil; drain on absorbent paper.
Arrange in baking dish; cover with pizza sauce, and top with remaining cheese.
Bake at 325 degrees F for about 20 minutes.

What is the most amazing thing you overheard because people didn’t think you understood their language?

I owned a carpet cleaning company

We worked for a LOT of apartments. A lease renewal clean was done by the apartment complex once a year for the tenants lease renewal. The apartment community paid for the clean so it was free for the resident and we did not move furniture as part of the deal.

Clean an apartment for a Spanish couple. SHE complained (in Spanish) the entire time that I was doing a horrible job and I needed to move everything. Me, the VERY white Gringo-American just kept cleaning and asking the husband, in English, if everything was alright. HE explained, in English it was fine and kept telling his wife, in Spanish, that it was fine amd to stop complaining. SlThis went on for the entire clean.

Getting done, packed up and heading out, I looked at him and in English asked if they needed anything more. Nope was his reply.

I turned to her amd in SPANISH said, “Thank you for the job, please open your windows a crack to help the carpets dry. It should take about 2–3 hours. Have a good day.”

Her mouth fell and she said NOTHING.

I walked away satisfied.

I invited my husband’s family for Thanksgiving. No one ate my meal and it was really embarrassing. I later found out that my mother-in-law cooked a large meal and fed everyone before they arrived to my house. Should I say something? What should I do next year?

My mother in law did something similar to me. She was a terrible cook and her two grown daughters asked if they could all come to our house for Mother’s Day one year. I knocked myself out fixing dinner for 14 people but ordered 2 pecan pies and a cake from an expensive bakery since I didn’t have time to make desserts too.

Everyone arrived and complimented the table but my sister-in-law pulled me aside and told me their mother had insisted on taking them to a buffet at a restaurant an hour before the time I had set for our dinner.

Only my husband and our kids ate. Everyone else pushed the food around embarrassedly. I was furious and finally couldn’t hold back. I looked at my mother in law and said I wished she hadn’t taken them out to eat when she knew I was cooking for them.

Instead of apologizing she giggled and said “My bad.” I’ve never forgotten that smug look on that witch’s face.

The next time anyone asked me to cook for a holiday I politely said no, we were having a small feast with just the four of us and I stuck with it.

People who pull that kind of stunt are emotionally stunted and don’t deserve anything from us except contempt.

USA on the Brink of Chaos: How Americans Are Living the End of the American Dream

In case you were unaware about how things are going in the United States today.

The in-laws

There was a 1979 movie starring Peter Falk titled “The In-laws”, and for some strange reason I just remembered this movie. I tried to download the torrent, but it is taking forever. It is just a goofy and funny comedy, but for some reason… it came to mind.

It is available free on the Internet DB. HERE.

And still, I have downloaded the torrent from this site...

Three Cheers For the Guacamole Act of 1917!!!

The premise of this film is really simple: if two families are about to enjoy the union of their children in a marriage, is it not likely that the in-laws involved can come to depend and help each other out in times of need? Most of us would probably say no, or want to know the extent of the help. However, when Vincent J. Ricardo (Peter Falk) asks Dr. Sheldon Kornpett (Alan Arkin) to assist him in retrieving something from a safe in Ricardo’s office, Kornpett is willing (if somewhat suspiciously) to do it.

The reason that Kornpett is suspicious is he is not quite certain what to make of Ricardo. They only met at Kornpett’s house the night before, for a dinner party introducing the families of the bride (Kornpett’s) and groom (Ricardo’s) to each other. Ricardo acted…well oddly. He told tales of his business travels in Central America, including how in one country babies are being carried off by huge bats that are protected by the Guacamole Act of 1917. Kornpett hears this with a blank face, although his eyes do bug out a little in disbelief. Later, when Ricardo gets testy with his son over a comment about the former not being home enough, Kornpett can’t believe the near rage that Ricardo demonstrates at the table. So his suspicions about his future in-law seem well based.

Shortly, after being chased and nearly killed by two men who are after the items that Kornpett picked up, the suspicions seem confirmed. Ricardo explains to him, over pea soup in a restaurant, that he actually is not a successful salesman but a C.I.A. operative (a photo in Ricardo’s office confirms this: it is of President Kennedy, and the autograph refers to the Bay of Pigs Invasion). He is in the middle of a critically important mission in Latin America dealing with international finance and a conspiracy against the richest nations. Kornpett hears him out, and is upset to hear that there is more material that Ricardo hid in Kornpett’s home the night before. He wants no part of it, and leaves to go home – only to find the police there. He flees, and does evade capture – at the cost of having his car repainted in a way he never would have wanted it to look.

Soon Kornpett is forced to join forces with Ricardo, and enters the deadly serious but (here) quite farcical world of international espionage and intrigue. At the end of the road is the ringleader of the conspiracy, General Garcia (Richard Libertini) who has a special little friend that makes Al Pacino’s little friend in SCARFACE lethal but sensible in comparison.

THE IN-LAWS is funny. Arkin with his tight-ass repressive personality works well against the free-wheeling, anything goes Falk. Libertini appears only in the films last twenty minutes, but he does equally nicely as the ultimate in screw-ball dictators. Well supported by a cast including Nancy Dussault, Arlene Golonka, Penny Peyser, Michael Lembeck, and Ed Begley Jr. the film is just a laugh fest until the happy ending. As mentioned elsewhere in these comments Arkin and Falk should have made several films together. They have only done one other movie together since THE IN-LAWS. Pity.

What’s the coldest thing a doctor has ever said to you?

‘If you lose this baby, you could always have another one’. The comment above was made by the doctor who my husband and I had a consultation with. I was roughly 10 weeks pregnant with our first child. I was in my mid 30’s while hubby was in his early 40’s.

An elderly man in his fifties, he barely looked at us, ignored me, said hello to my husband, looked at my file fleetingly, a file with tests and scans which showed I had fibroids, looked directly at my husband and said to him, ‘She will be fine’. I was furious that this man was clearly sexist, ignoring me as if I was invisible. I responded by asking what that meant, what was the cause of the bleeding as he had not told us at this point about the fibroids. ‘You do not need to bother about it. That is why we are here’. This statement was addressed again to my husband who he was still looking at while still ignoring my presence.

At this point, something in me snapped and I snapped at him, ‘Look at me and tell me what is causing this bleeding. It is my body and I need the details’. He then slowly turned to look at me as if seeing me for the first time and emotionlessly said, ‘you have fibroids. They are not massive and do not pose a danger to your baby’. ‘But I am bleeding. Is that not dangerous? ‘ I worriedly asked.

That was when he looked at the file and without lifting his head, retorted ,Not really. However, if you lose this baby, you could always have another one ’. I almost cussed the insensitive idiot out but my husband who knew I was fuming at this point, got up and ushered me out of the office while the doctor was still talking about ante natal visits at their hospital. We had heard enough. I went on to another hospital where I met the amazing doctor who delivered my daughter without complications and went on to have a son after that.

She is now a healthy, happy 10 year old who is pure joy and always a little mama to her 7 year old brother.

London Broil

London Broil is a favorite recipe from the Iowa Beef Industry Council.

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

1 (1 1/4 to 1 3/4 pound) beef flank steak
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Instructions

Combine vegetable oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper for marinade.
Place steak in plastic bag and pour marinade over it.
Close bag securely and refrigerate 4 to 6 hours or overnight, turning occasionally.
Pour off and reserve marinade.
Place steak on grill and broil at moderate temperature for 5 minutes.
Turn, brush with marinade and broil 5 minutes or to desired doneness (rare or medium).
To carve, slice diagonally across grain in thin strips.

10 STOIC LESSONS TO HANDLE DISRESEPECT (MUST WATCH) | STOICISM

Learn something important.

ASML

Here is the reason why ASML CEO said a few years ago that if ASML gave China the blueprint for the EUV machine China would not be able to make it.

This is because all of the core technologies is NOT owned by ASML. ASML is the system integrator that was allowed by the US government to participate in the US government project to create an EUV light source.

This project pulled together many US national labs including Lawrence Livermore Labs, Sandia Nation Lab, Brookhaven National Lab, Lawrence Berkely National Lab, IBM, Intel, AMD, etc. And it took over 10 years to create this laser light source.

This was considered a national security project so Japanese companies like Nikon and Canon were not allowed to join.

The difficulty of this light source and the engineering problems that had to be overcome was as difficult as the first atomic bomb.

So I have to admit that I was wrong in my speculation about using a Rube Goldberg device to generate EUV. They didn’t have a choice. This was the best possible source at the time. It took literally the US, Germany, and some other nation’s best experts to create this light source.

The other parts are relatively easy in comparison.

The problem is that China has also created this light source and using another method so it isn’t so Rube Goldberg machine. Not that it was simple to make. But it is more reliable and you don’t have to worry about residue removal that will mess up your mirrors and the inside of the your machine which has to remain at clean room levels.

Is China creating fear in many Americans because China’s success challenges the American belief that democracy is necessary for a successful market-driven economy and intellectual freedom is necessary for technological innovation?

This is a very good question indeed.

Thank you for asking.

The Answer is yes. Yes indeed the U.S. and the west has been propagating that only western liberal democracy works. Nothing else. Either be a liberal democracy or die says the US. That is of course simply not true at all. And the real truth is simply that the West wanted to install liberal democracy so that the west can easily manipulate it and install a government that surrender its sovereignty to the west in order to manipulate and steal it’s resources to enrich the former colonials.

Now that China proved beyond reasonable doubts and against all odds that it could grow phenomenally and economically dwarfed every other nation, this fear and worry the U.S. mightily. Failure to contain China means failure to perpetuate this lie!

This is indeed worrisome for the west since they the west in general has essentially collapsed in a huge pile of debts. And law and order disintegrates through the western world. With high inflation and a looming recession with countless millions of homeless people living in the streets while their government finance and orchestrate wars. Based on printing money without basis and rampant money creation.

China U.S. out innovating the U.S., it U.S. out thinking the U.S., out growing the U.S. and out influencing the U.S. growing even its military and wealth and out manipulating the U.S. government everywhere on earth. The U.S. wants to stop the truth from being revealed to the world.

It’s Not Just You: American Jobs Didn’t Used To Be This Terrible

My Dad’s Union IBEW is the reason we went from lower middle class to solid middle class in 10 years. Unions are one of the most important checks for capitalism.

Why are Chinese people so satisfied with their government?

Easy – shit gets done.

Government promise something. Give it a few years and it happens.

Some bigger projects like Mao wanting to borrow some water from the south took a bit longer.

OTOH governments like the UK one I lived under… they promise shit, then they say haha you sucker you actually believed me? Fuck you!

Gordon Brown’s QC literally said that election pledges and promises were not subject to legitimate expectation.

Here? Here in Hong Kong? The government construction projects shaved 20 minutes off my commute.

25 years ago they shaved an hour off the commute for the villagers by widening the dirt track that lead to my village and paving it. Then offering a bus franchise nearby so it was connected with the world.

We literally see things happen.

What is something weird that you enjoy doing?

I observed something while traveling.

Most people my age would either be listening to music, watching some TV show/movie in their smartphones/tablets. A very few would be reading a newspaper or book.

I was one of them. I always had music on. I can’t read/watch anything because of motion sickness while traveling on road.

The older generation- they do nothing. They don’t use phones, they don’t talk, don’t read, nothing. They just sit and look around.

I wanted to try this and coincidentally my earphones broke down.

Now it has been over six months. I travel in the metro for 3 hours everyday and do nothing, just look around. This has helped me so much. I observe people, their behaviours. I look around to see what’s actually happening.

It may sound weird but there’s something weirdly enjoyable about it. It feels like living life the old school way. This has helped me reduce the screen time as well.

I have even started recognising the regular commuters. I am sure they don’t recognise me.

Unbreakable (2000) | First Time Watching | Movie Reaction | Asia and BJ

Still one of the top 10 best comic films of all time. Its really the first one that showed what the comic genre could do when taken seriously.

This is one of my top, and most favorite movies. It is so meaningful to me. Seriously people. I can relate to this movie. So very much!

What did someone do that made you think they were really smart?

When my daughter was about 9 or 10 years old, whenever she got a scolding from my wife, I would annoy her by doing a chicken dance and do so in a way that ONLY she sees it.

“Mommy! Dad is making fun of me!” she would always complain.

When my wife turned around, I would stop and act normal and go on with my stuff. This went on for a while till it became a game of HER trying to catch me in the act and prove it to her mother.

She would learn to very quickly take out her mobile phone and try to snap a picture of me doing it. I would tease her by dancing until the moment the phone was almost pointing towards me, then I would stop and behave normally.

“I will get you someday,” she said.

“No, you won’t! I am too fast for you,” I replied.

On a particular day, I again did the ridiculous chicken dance, she was rolling her eyes and her hands move slowly towards her phone. I continued dancing and mentally calculating how fast she could key in the pass-code and turn on the camera mode.

Something didn’t feel right, her action was slower than usual, by the time she pointed the camera at me, I had stopped. But she started laughing loudly.

“Guess what daddy? THIS isn’t my phone. I switched the phone cover with mum. MY PHONE is behind you, just above the cupboard, ON VIDEO TAKING MODE.”

Ouch! A full two minutes of myself being ridiculous caught on video!

NOT genius smart, NOT intellectual smart, perhaps a little STREET SMART!

That was my last chicken dance.

How is the Chinese government treating MPOX?

The gay and bisexual men are not as common in China as they are in the West. It is difficult for MPOX to become an epidemic in China.

From June 2 to June 30, 2023, 106 new confirmed cases of monkeypox were reported in mainland China (excluding Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan), including 48 cases reported in Guangdong Province, 45 cases reported in Beijing City, 8 cases reported in Jiangsu Province, 2 cases reported in Hubei Province, 2 cases reported in Shandong Province, and 1 case reported in Zhejiang Province. There were no severe cases or deaths.

The epidemic presents the following characteristics:

One is that the vast majority of cases are mainly transmitted through male homosexual sexual contact.
Secondly, the risk of transmission through other forms of contact is low, and the vast majority of close contacts, except for sexual contact, have not experienced infection.
The third is that most cases were found during medical treatment, while a few cases were found through follow-up screening of close contacts.
The fourth is that the vast majority of cases have typical clinical manifestations, mainly symptoms such as fever, herpes, and lymph node enlargement, with no severe or fatal cases.

An American Reacts to Why America Sucks at Everything – THIS ONE HURT

This is very good. Really.

It is a MUCH watch. This is the real truth about the United States.

“I’m so glad you made this video because my conservative mom watched it and now she’s starting to wake up. I got screwed over by the “in network out of network” bullshit recently. My employer changed our healthcare coverage, and I had to find a new neurologist and start the “prior authorization “ process for a particular drug that I take all over again”

Is this the end of Xi Jinping, now that he has lost FACE over Qin Gang?

The sheer power of Xi Jingping is the fact that QG has been buried away and cut off in a matter of seconds and China and it’s foreign affairs moves without a single blip

Thats power

Had Xi been weak, a rival faction would have lobbied immediately within the CPC but the fact that China has simply chosen to forget QG and not talk about him shows the power of Xi Jingping

China and CPC knows that today in the hostile atmosphere with the West — Only XJP is the right man to lead China

Hu JINTAO would have kowtowed in seconds
Li Keiqang would have kowtowed in maybe a month
Bo Xilai would have kowtowed in nanoseconds

Xis power is at its peak now

Had QG defected to US and been declared a mole for CIA then yes , Xi would have been finished politically

Yet QG is in China and safe and under the Partys safe hands 😁

So NOT A CHANCE

Have you ever had a premonition that saved your life?

My father-in-law did. He was moving some tools around in his garage and suddenly had a strong urge to move one of the cars, a Subaru, out into the driveway. He tried to ignore this feeling, because the car was not in his way and it seemed like a needless waste of time. But he couldn’t shake it, so he went and got his car keys and backed the car out of the garage.

Just as he had done so and was getting out of the car, a speeding Tesla flashed past him a couple of feet away and crashed into the open garage, then burst into flames. If he’d stayed in the garage working, he would most likely have been killed.

The resulting fire destroyed the entire garage and his other car. It was 9 months before he and his wife were able to move back into the house. But he was alive, and they still had their Subaru. There was no good explanation for the “little voice in his head” that told him he needed to get himself and his car out of the garage.

By the way, the Tesla driver, who was pulled out of the burning car by a neighbor, was uninjured but was convicted of DUI and had to pay restitution and perform community service.

He was suffering from pancreatic cancer at the time, but from that moment his desire to oversee the restoration of the house gave him a new determination in life. It was a very busy and stressful time, during which he and his wife lived in rental housing. At last they were able to move back into the house which had been perfectly restored to its original state, including a new garage of course, new roof, new heating & a/c, new paint and flooring, and every item inside the house had been removed, professionally cleaned, and replaced. It was beautiful. However, his condition declined rapidly after that and he passed away in August 2018, not quite a year after the fire.

The US Plan to KILL Second Citizenship

“As a Venezuelan born in the 90s (post oil-golden era for that country), I know first hand what he means when he says it’s important to have options. I saw how my mother and her siblings were unable to get their second citizenship by descent from Trinidad and Tobago, once things got terribly bad in my country. My grandparents had both US residency and Caribbean citizenship, but because things were going so well in Venezuela in the 50s, 60s, 70s, and 80s, they didn’t work on securing and passing along those other options; and their children never thought things would get this bad. It only took less than 30 years to see things turn around for the worst.”

America isn’t an ordinary country, it’s an idea, it’s the very embodiment of democracy, freedom and hope for the whole world, and now China threatens American democracy and freedom for all mankind. How will humanity unite to defeat Chinese autocracy?

For many years now, the USA has been classified as a “flawed democracy”. Events such as the Capitol Hill riots – intended to disrupt the inauguration of your elected President – did not help. A significant proportion of Americans themselves believed that the last election was rigged and “stolen” from them. So how can the USA be said to be the “very embodiment of democracy”? This strikes me as an extremely grandiose and indefensible claim.

As for freedom, the USA comprises 5% of the world population but holds about 20% of the world’s prisoners. With so many Americans literally locked up behind bars, how can the USA claim to be a “free” country? Furthermore your 13th amendment legalises the enslavement of prisoners – and the USA heavily exploits these slaves/prisoners in ways that your own civil liberty lawyers have described as an abuse of fundamental human rights. (Eg US prisoners can be forced into hazardous jobs – such as fighting wildfires – for as little as zero to fifty cents per hour of work). Errrr, seriously, you think that the US is the embodiment of freedom?

What hope does the USA bring to the world? In the past 40 years, the USA has dropped more bombs, fired more missiles and killed more people in other countries, than any other country in the world. In the past 40 years, the USA has killed people in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen, Libya, Grenada, Bosnia, Somalia and Uganda. Because of US sanctions, the world was afraid to send even vaccines, masks and ventilators to Iran during the covid–19 pandemic. This is how the US brings death and destruction to the world.

Please stop watching your Hollywood movies where the USA is always the one to save the world from invasions by aliens from outer space. Open your eyes and look at the real world. At least look at your own country. Your people are dying from drug overdose at the highest rate in the world. Your people are getting shot to death at the highest rate among all developed countries. Your policemen are shooting citizens for minor offences. Your cities are littered with homeless people living in tents. Your national literacy rate is collapsing together with your average life expectancy. Medical bills are the biggest cause of personal bankruptcies in the USA; your infrastructure is crumbling and aged water pipes are leaking lead into the drinking water for your public schools. To lead your country, you are choosing between a criminal octagenarian and a senile otagenarian. Your income inequality is vast, with the top 1% controlling more wealth than the middle 60% – let’s not even discuss the sufferrings of your bottom 20%.

The US is the embodiment of … HOPE, you say?! Hopelessness is more like it. The USA is no example for the world – unless we are talking of negative examples.

What’s a rule your employer implemented that backfired terribly?

Not so much a rule.

I used to work for a major mail order company; as tech staff I could be sent out anywhere in the country, for which the company would pre-pay for accommodation and pay 40 pence per mile for fuel costs (which was tight-arsed of them, as other companies paid 65ppm).

They also supposedly insured us for using our private cars this way.

People who regularly went out for long trips had a company card to pay for hotels with.

One day they decide they are cutting the fuel payment to 25ppm, and back-dating it SIX months, and also cancelling the company cards – people would have to pay with their own money and claim it back.

This latter move caught a few out who were already out on trips – one guy was unable to pay his bill at a London conference centre, and the staff there were threatening to call the Police.

We also discovered at the same time, that the company HADN’T been paying for the extra car insurance policy, so we were all using our cars effectively with no insurance.

Next day, everyone parked 1/2 mile away and walked into work. “Sorry, can’t go on that job, no car” was the story from every member of the technical staff.

Every senior manager was made to turn over his company car for us to drive around. Even the CEO’s chauffeured Bentley was pressed into service, but it still wasn’t enough; by the end of the first week the taxi bill was running into the high hundreds, and everyone was refusing overnight jobs on the basis they couldn’t afford to pay for the hotel.

It took a MONTH for the suits to cave, and god only knows how much it cost them, in money, customer relations, and the lost goodwill of the tech staff.

Why the American Dream is a Myth

“It’s expensive to be poor” Just…. damn man!

Mediterranean Steak and Pasta
with Tomato-Olive Sauce

Whole-wheat pasta is served with beef Sirloin Tip Center Steaks and a tomato and olive sauce. This one will please the adults and the kids in your family.

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

8 ounces uncooked whole grain fettuccine
4 beef Sirloin Tip Center Steaks, cut 3/4 inch thick (about 4 ounces each)
1 (26 ounce) jar pasta sauce with olives*
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves, crushed
1/4 cup finely shredded Italian cheese blend or mozzarella cheese
2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley leaves

Instructions

Cook fettuccine according to package directions; drain and keep warm.
Heat large nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot. Place beef steaks in skillet; cook for 11 to 13 minutes for medium rare (145 degrees F) doneness, turning occasionally. (Do not overcook.) Remove from skillet; keep warm.
Combine pasta sauce and oregano in same skillet; heat until hot. Return steaks to skillet; turn to coat with sauce.
Place steaks on fettuccine; spoon sauce over all.
Sprinkle steaks with cheese, allowing cheese to melt. Sprinkle with parsley.

Notes

* You may substitute 1 (26 ounce) jar pasta sauce with olives for 1 (26 ounce) pasta sauce plus 1/4 cup chopped olives.

US loses first round in attempts to curb China’s tech progress; change of course a better option

US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said she was “upset” when China’s Huawei Technologies released a new phone with an advanced chip during her visit to the country last month but noted that the US has no evidence China can make these components “at scale,” Bloomberg reported. She also said the US is trying to use every single tool at its disposal to deny the Chinese the ability to advance their technology in ways that can hurt the US.

Raimondo’s words are nothing new, but saying that China’s technological advancement “can hurt the US” is a stupid and ridiculous line of thinking. Many American elites refuse to accept that the Chinese have broken through the technological blockade. Radical lawmakers are calling for efforts to strangle Huawei and SMIC, which is not only hegemonic but also an evil way of thinking.

Whether it is ASML, the Dutch manufacturer of lithography machines, or the American chip giants, they do not believe that decoupling can stop China’s progress in semiconductor technology. They believe that China can find alternative methods and its own technological path. However, a large number of American elites are non-technical and refuse to face reality, blindly believing that Huawei’s breakthrough is because the US export controls on technology to China are “still too loose.”

It should be said that Huawei’s breakthrough has to a certain extent undermined the credibility of the US’ technological blockade against China and shattered the collective confidence of the West in this regard. Washington’s current investigation into the origin of Huawei’s chips and attempts to tighten the noose on the blockade against China will only isolate itself.

Because Washington clearly lost the first round, it has to bet even bigger and risk losing the Chinese market for many Western semiconductor companies. Imagine the result of continuing technological restrictions if Huawei makes further breakthroughs – can ASML’s lithography machines still enjoy their current glory? Where will the US-controlled chip production factories find their next market? Just look at the panic faced by Japanese and German automotive giants today in the face of the rise of Chinese electric vehicles. If the current semiconductor leaders are cut off from the Chinese market, who can guarantee that their future situation will be better?

Huawei’s Kirin 9000s is a breakthrough that it was forced to make by the US sanctions. If the US exerts even greater pressure, it will turn this breakthrough into a systemic breach, promoting a highly integrated and strong production chain in the Chinese semiconductor industry. Chips produced in China will also be much cheaper than those produced in the US.

If the US semiconductor industry loses the Chinese market, it will not be as lucky as Google and Facebook. The latter have software advantages that some Chinese internet companies do not have, including the application ecosystem they established by being the first movers. However, semiconductors are hardware, and when Chinese companies like Huawei can provide a cheaper alternative, the situation will be completely different.

A crucial crossroads has been reached. If the US forces China to achieve complete independence in the semiconductor industry, it will have no further cards to play in blocking China’s progress. Moreover, the technological landscape of the world will undergo a rewrite. China now possesses the capital, and we will continue to progress no matter what. It is now the US’ turn to make a choice: continue gambling or change course and resume cooperation?

Expat’s THAI WIFE disappears and so did his fortune $$. Then it got WORSE!

Gosh! This is horrible! You all must be careful.

Head Shakers

One of the “head shakers” about China is the ever-present music of Kenny G on elevators, in supermarkets, in malls, and in restaurants. I do like slow easy jazz, and back in the 1980’s. But I, like most Americans, have moved WAYYYY past all that.

We moved past mullets. We moved past Miami Vice. We moved on from large curly hair, and pastels. We moved on from Windows DOS.

But, you know, China never experienced those things, and have no idea how out of date all this is. And us expats, really, have no heart to admonish our friends in China to stop being so retro. We, well, we just let it all ride.

Just like no one ever says “What’s uppppppppppp!” any longer.

Or, “Where’s the beef?”

Or, Max Headroom.

Todays…

At what point should America issue an arrest warrant for China’s Xi Jinping à la Manuel Noriega?

First it's the unchecked flooding of Chinese Fentanyl into America. Next, mercenary bounties get placed on British residents.

First of all, Fentanyl is used for treating severe pain especially for cancer patients and is deem a medicine product which many countries import mainly from China. Likewise it is your own country laws and regulations to prevent abuse instead of blaming China or Mexico or another other countries. If illegal Fentanyl managed to slip into your country, blame your border guards and custom officer for not doing the job or your judges for not imposing severe penalties.

Just like a simple soap for washing and bathing and you decided to abuse it by eating them as food and then you blame China other then yourself.

I suggest in that case better that your country be pure communist like Mao time where China totally shut off from the world where no exports and no imports can take place.

Would that scenerio be a better option for your country . That covers all your citizens from visiting any countries so that they will not be arrested or detained or even your organs been harvested for scientific research.

The moral of my answer is don’t blame others, other than yourself if you decided your own will to do stupid things.

Why are the people of the PRC hypocrites that they say they don’t want their nuclear arsenal to be increased and yet they increased from 300 to 400 nuclear arsenal?

Here’s the fun thing.

We don’t actually need them. This is from the US military college. A war with China will wipe 3600 US soldiers out or 50,000 a week. That means ONE brigade a day.

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Kiwifruit Teriyaki

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

4 kiwifruit
1/4 cup dry white wine
Soy sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon vegetable oil (optional)
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger root or 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 1/2 to 2 pound (1 inch thick) boneless round steak

Instructions

Pare and puree 2 kiwifruit. Combine with wine, soy sauce, garlic, ginger and oil in large baking dish.
Add steak and marinate for 1/2 hour. Marinating for more than 1 hour may over-tenderize it.
Remove steak from marinade, and broil to desired degree of doneness.
Slice steak and arrange on serving platter.
Pare and slice remaining kiwi; garnish platter with slices.

Have you ever refused an inheritance? Why?

Yes. My brother died last September without signing his will (they had it filled out but he didn’t sign it).

I have helped his widow out with cleaning the house.

Because he was intestate, I’m technically entitled to 25% of his inheritance under my state law as our parents are dead, but he was married (75/25 split by law).

He literally told me he wanted everything to go to his wife, who I would consider my sister now.

I’m not screwing a 60 year old lady out of her house.

Yeah, as a working class guy, I could REALLY use 100k+ dollars if I fought it, but I will absolutely NOT destroy his dream of his wife having a nice little home.

Them home cooked meals, talk and sharing memories a couple times every few months are worth more to me than money.

Maybe I’m an idiot, but I love him and her too much to go by “the law”.

Signing that form for her lawyer was about the easiest moral choice I’ve ever had to take.

CN bans ASML products,Lays off 86 million employees; Photolithography machine turned into scrap metal

For china to make a competitive smartphone to Apple with old generation technology is truly remarkable, I know why U.S and Europe is scared of china…they are simply better in technology.

Is democracy inevitable in the long term? Will countries like China and Russia ever become democracies?

Depends on your definition of Democracy

Let’s start with Russia

Russia IS a democracy. Merely because they keep electing Putin and the UR Party all the time or because the election rules favor the ruling party doesn’t disturb the definition

Ultimately Putin IS elected by the people of Russia

The Government under Putin has helped Russia rise from a torn apart and destroyed country in 1991 to a very strong, united force in 2023

So the People are happy and the People vote for the Government and President

That’s Democracy to me

If the US don’t like it, they can go f*** themselves

Next China

Chinese society is 5000 years old

The Chinese mindset is entirely based on the premise that EVERY CHINESE has a role to play in Society and if every Chinese plays their role properly, China will flourish

Under the Emperors, this role was defined by birth and family

Under today’s CPC, this role is defined by ABILITY, ABILITY and more ABILITY

That very mindset is completely against Democracy which claims everyone from a Pauper to a Beggar to a Technology Geek to a Clerk to a Oil Baron have the same rights in choosing a Government

The result is before you

India and China became Independent in 1947 and 1949 – at the same time virtually

Yet China is advanced in EVERY SINGLE FACET over India

China stands before the US as such a feared opponent that the US spends every waking moment on trying to countering China with propaganda and lies and failing

Proof that the CPC did more for China than any Democracy in the history of the modern world

Why would they need this US loser version of democracy

The Chinese version of Governance:-

The Worthy keep voting in the Grassroots
The Unworthy do what they are told to do
Only Ability and Merit matters
One Party, different opinions
Gays, Transgenders put in their proper place which is a ‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell environment’

That alone is enough for China to grow

They don’t need the horrors of becoming a Cesspit democracy

Oh SH*T, What Russia and China are doing will change everything, and the west wants WAR

What Russia, China and North Korea are doing will change everything. The massive economic expansion is pushing the West to do some very desperate things. This week Russia and North Korea signed remarkable new trade agreements. It came on the same week as China and Russia launched a new cross border energy hub. Do you see what’s happening?

URGENT: RUSSIA HALTS ALL EXPORT OF GASOLINE AND DIESEL FUEL

World Hal Turner

This morning, Thursday, September 21, Russia announced they are “temporarily” halting the export of all Gasoline and Diesel Fuel.

Russia is the world’s single biggest seaborne exporter of diesel-type fuel.

Their decision will have an immediate impact on fuel costs and availability. Expect skyrocketing prices, especially for Diesel, and subsequent skyrocketing prices on EVERY product that moves by truck.

It is not known at this hour, exactly how long this “temporary” halt will last.

Confession of the Day

There’s always someone who ended up in a worse situation with a bigger loss. Every time I hear those stories, it makes me feel a little better that it “could have been worse.” Hope this helps someone realize how bad it can get before you ultimately end in the same place, with the same loss, and the same need for help. It’s also therapeutic to write it down, I’ve found.

In 2012 I had $20k to my name. Turned that into $100k in 5 years buying American Airlines and chip stocks. Took most of the $100k and bought a house to run as an Airbnb. Made about $100k off that in 2 years and sold it when they banned airbnbs. Bought my own house and sold it a year later for another $100k profit. Invested that $300k in the market around the Covid drop and ended 2020 with about $600k. Then I started with options. The ability to make huge gains so quickly was so intoxicating and addictive. $20k in a day. $50k. $100k. I was crushing it and starting to dream of my new rich life. I broke the $1mil threshold and ended the day with $1.1m.

The next day the market sucked and I knew it. But I had such an itch I made a play anyway. I was down $250k by noon because I broke all my own rules just to avoid “taking a loss.” I finally accepted the loss but tried to chase it by jumping to the other side. That cost me an additional $100k loss. Within 2 days I made it back to within spitting distance of being a millionaire once again, but spoiler alert, I’d never see that number again.

Down $200k, another $300k. I finally had to go to my dad for a bailout. He refueled me and I lost it all again within a month. Another bailout, another loss. I was so depressed and suicidal at this point. It was like a bad dream that I couldn’t wake up from. I will forgo buying a drink with a meal because I don’t want to spend the extra $3 but I had no problem loosing $600k in a single day if it meant I could get the dopamine rush.

Then comes the shame of having to admit what happened. The relapses. The broken future. The never ending despair.

I made right moves far more times than wrong but my losses were always much larger than my gains because I couldn’t accept a loss and didn’t want to further risk a gain. In the end, the money didn’t actually mean anything and it was never about the money (not really anyway) it was always about the high of submitting the order and watching the dollars come or go.

In the end, if it wasn’t for anti depressants and my daughter, I wouldn’t be here today. Looking back it’s impossible to imagine how something could have completely high jacked my brain in such a way but it really did.

There is recovery. There is help. It does work. I only wish it didn’t take losing $2mil before I realized it and finally sought help and treatment.

Don’t make my mistake if waiting and find help now. Also, give the “unhappy millionaire” episode of Happiness Lab podcast a listen, changed my life.

Giving up the American Dream is hard.

giving up the American Dream is Hard. I made a few videos: why I gave up the American Dream, the real cost of the American dream and how to ditch the American Dream. Folks have resonated with it, hated it and everything in between.

But let’s be honest, it’s hard to give up the American dream, especially as a Black woman.

Hustle Culture is not for Black women, but the pursuit of the American dream is tied directly to it.

Let’s talk about grieving the American Dream. content included: giving up the American Dream, I gave up the American Dream, Giving up the American Dream is hard, Hustle Culture is not for Black women, Healing for Black women, I gave up Black excellence, hustle culture is toxic, the real price of the American Dream, Black Women deserve good things, Black woman wage gap, I gave up the American Dream, why I gave up on the American Dream, grieving the American Dream, Black women and the American Dream,

What has been your most stunning find at a thrift shop?

I work as a manager in a Charity Shop/thrift Store and I look having a good search through donations for that special item!

One day, I had some items donated and a handbag. In that handbag in a secret pocket was a Genuine Cartier watch.

I was in absolute awe and was so excited!! Thing is, I wasn’t 100% sure I wanted to sell it without the donors consent. (I knew it was genuine as it’s myself who deals with all the name branded luxury items)

I chased the lady through town and told her what I’d found. She broke down in tears telling me they were her late mums things and the watch was lost for many years. Her mum had dementia and her father was only just starting to clear through her things.

So anyway, she asked me to stay with her whilst she rang her father to tell him the news (he also cried which started me off crying!)

After the ordeal of the day I genuinely felt pretty chuffed with myself. I could’ve easily sold it online for a 3figure sum – but something just didn’t feel right.

A few days later that same gentleman came in and thanked me personally. He told me he’d brought it his wife for an anniversary present. I asked how it came to being in an everyday handbag and he explained that she went to get it cleaned (it was boxed) but her dementia was in it’s early stages and was eventually forgotten about. The kind gentleman had a funeral collection in the Charities name and even made a £200 donation to me personally, which I put to the charity.

So yea, that’s my amazing find

Oprah has no idea there’s a Cost of Living Crisis

Why everything feels so expensive right now.

“The basic price of commodities has tripled in my experience from 2019. The same 1 bedroom apartment I rented in Dallas for 700 dollars in 2017 is 1400 dollars in 2023. The house that would cost 180k in suburban DFW just 5 years ago costs 400k. The cost of home and car insurance is over the roof. All this in Dallas which is still very cheap compared to many other big cities in the USA.”

Beijing says it uncovered US National Security Agency operatives behind cyberattack on Chinese university

Article HERE
Second Date’ software used in Northwestern Polytechnical University attack is potent cyber espionage tool developed by US agency, says state media
After global tracing, Chinese team reportedly found ‘thousands of network devices’ across the country still infected by the spyware and its derivatives

China says it has identified US National Security Agency operatives while investigating a recent cyberattack on Northwestern Polytechnical University, as its top spying and anti-espionage agency vowed on Thursday to root out all “digital spies”.
The revelation came just three days after Beijing revealed more details about John Shing-wan Leung, a Hong Kong permanent resident and US citizen the Chinese Ministry of State Security said posed as a philanthropist while snooping for information. He was jailed for life for espionage in May, two years after his arrest in China.

State-run CCTV said on Thursday that China’s National Computer Virus Emergency Response Centre, with help from Chinese antivirus company 360 Total Security, had discovered the identity of the National Security Agency (NSA) operative or operatives – the broadcaster did not specify how many or name them – after it extracted “multiple samples” of a spyware called “Second Date”.

It said the spyware was used in the cyberattack on Northwestern Polytechnical University in Shaanxi province.

‘Stop stealing’: China condemns US over Trojan horse cyberattacks on state-funded university
The report said technical analysis showed that Second Date was a cyber-espionage weapon developed by the NSA to sniff out and hijack network traffic and insert malicious codes.

Quoting senior engineer at the National Computer Virus Emergency Response Centre Du Zhenhua, it said software was a potent cyberespionage tool that enabled attackers to take control of target network devices and the data traffic flowing through them, and use them as a “forward base” for the next stage of attacks. It could run on various operating systems and was compatible with multiple architectures.

Du was quoted as saying the spyware was usually used in conjunction with various network device vulnerability attack tools from the NSA’s Office of Tailored Access Operations (TAO). The TAO, now renamed Computer Network Operations, is a cyberwarfare intelligence-gathering unit.

China’s foreign ministry says the international community should be highly vigilant about CIA activities as a new report alleges a years-long global cyberattack campaign. Photo: AFP
The report said that after global tracing, the Chinese team found “thousands of network devices” across the country were still infected by the spyware and its derivatives. It said they also found springboard servers remotely controlled by the NSA in Germany, Japan, South Korea, India and Taiwan.

Those pesky Chinese…!

INDY

Posted by: Dr. George W Oprisko | Sep 20 2023 20:39 utc | 31

Back in China | Our First Impressions…

Can you describe the creepiest person you have ever met?

I had an abusive boyfriend. He was great at first, of course. As soon as he was confident of me, he stalked me, tried to run me off the road many times, pointed a gun at my head a few times, cut my phone lines, beat me, fired a gun into my floor pretending to commit suicide (he would never have done that, he only wanted to scare me), destroyed my things, and more. He was military (so was I) and I had no protection. I was able to get him out of my apartment with the help of his best friend and because he was put in a mental hospital for a few weeks. But I never got a break until I was discharged (honorably), moved across the country to a large city, and changed my name. An ex-husband kindly let me take his name, a common one. The abuser knew my friends and family. A false friend who secretly hated me (I didn’t know) kept telling him how to find me and encouraged others to do the same. People thought it was romantic that he carried such a torch for me. I thought he would appear at my door any day and kill me. He stalked me for 13 more years until I persuaded his commanding office to make him stop. I can’t imagine after all those years that this worked, but it did. Perhaps it was because he didn’t deny what he did and the commanding officer threatened his career and his pension. I never heard from him again. In those 13 years, things had changed somewhat.

I went to law school and made it my mission for many years to protect other women who were treated this badly and sometimes worse by abusers. I got them protection orders and divorces. I got their abusers out of their homes and sometimes in jail. It was very satisfying work. I’m retired now and happy to be so. I feel I did my bit.

Dedollarization Accelerating Within BRICS, Across Globe

It will be amazing if BRICS can come up with some gold-backed trading currency. The dedollarization is happening fast. Over the last 20 years, you see the share of global payments in the dollar has gone down at a steady rate.

This is getting even faster now. At the same time, to “truly dedollarize,” several aspects should be taken into account, he added.

“The harder part” in efforts to replace the dollar lies in the reserve aspect of the currency, the Netley Group president noted. For instance, the United States’ big advantage at the moment is the breadth of its bond market, Goddard explained. “One of the ways, I think, BRICS could develop something to compete with that would be the technology to actually link the BRICS bond markets,” the entrepreneur added.

Combining these two things — a stable trade currency and a strong joint bond market — could create the potential to eventually displace the dollar, Goddard also stated. This process could be even sped up with the enlargement of BRICS, increasing the depth of these economic ties, he concluded.

Why did Israel allow a terrorist and thuggish nation like China to take over the Haifa port?

I live in Haifa, Israel, the location of that port.

A few decades ago we decided to build tunnels to connect the north, the south, and the middle of Haifa. We hired a Chinese company from Shanghai with experience in tunnel building to do the work. It was a massive project and took a few years, during which the Chinese workers lived here. The Chinese company did an excellent job. These tunnels have reduced traffic congestion in Haifa.

The Chinese company we chose to run the new Haifa port has a lot of experience in that kind of work.

In both cases, we chose based on objective criteria, not on politics.

Btw, many Chinese students study at the Technion here, and Chinese tourists visit.

European Union’s decision to launch an anti-subsidy probe into Chinese electric vehicles, will it make the Chinese EV industry become another Huawei?

The Claim is :-

China offers subsidies to their EVs in battery making and other areas, heavy subsidies in taxes and waivers to ensure that EVs are produced at a final cost that is 20% cheaper

This makes Chinese EVs deliver lower cost at better quality than many European EVs

Second complaint is that most of the world pays a premium for Chinese EV batteries but BYD and other players pay 45% lower costs for the same battery due to the fact that the batteries are made in China

This is alleged as unfair competition

They want either the batteries at lower costs or a 20% mark up on Chinese EVs that eliminates the subsidy effect

It’s Classic Protectionism 101

Soviet Style rather than Adam Smith

China didn’t do this

When Volkswagens and Citroens and Mercedes Benz and Toyota and Mitsubishi dominated the vehicle markets of China a decade or so ago:-

China didn’t impose extra tariffs on them nor make it unfair for them to import custom made parts by imposing 60–260% tariffs

China told BYD and SAIC and Great Wall to either make similar quality cars or go out of business because the customer needs the best

Thus these companies formed partnerships and purchased technology and leased technology and made a living with limited market share

Yet this competition helped them prepare a lead in EVs and dominate today

However the West isn’t prepared to do the same thing and ask Renault and Chevy and Volkswagen to COMPETE or go out of business

They want to protect their companies

Like US , Germany, France

They talked of free trade when their products were much superior and Asian nations imposed protectionism

Today when they are being left behind, they scream and yell and whine about tariffs and duties

China has many weapons here

China sells 61.5% of the EV Batteries in the world and 86% of EV Batteries today are made by Chinese players with only Tesla having it’s own supply chain and making it’s own battery for it’s own cars

If you want EVs – you need the Chinese Battery, Electric System and Motors and Chargers

The Chinese make the world’s best and most cost efficient products

Even Tesla battery technology is inferior to CATL and it’s latest batteries

It’s only in Autonomous driving that Tesla has an edge

So frankly China for the next 15 years at least can simply ban the export of batteries or impose a 80% tariff on EV exports and ensure European and US EVs simply can’t compete with ICEs

It throttles the EU green initiative

China loses the EU market but critically ensures Russia & Saudi gains a major leverage as EU and US become more dependent on Oil

That is one card

The Bigger card is

China can play it’s own protectionism

China has a huge market for European Cars with Eight Brands having their largest market in China

That’s 157,000 Jobs

China could simply ban the imports tomorrow and that would finish these companies revenue and share wise

Like the Iphone

Intel & Qualcomm openly said if China forced them to choose between the Chinese market and the Commerce Department restrictions, they would have to choose China for the sake of their US stockholders

If China banned Qualcomm entirely today and said “Okay. We will live with inferior phones but you B******* won’t sell or get a fifty cent piece from us”

Qualcomm would be brutally mauled

The Entire smartphone industry will be brutally mauled

The Entire Semiconductor industry will be brutally mauled

The Chinese are VERY PATIENT PEOPLE and they will play their cards very slowly

They thrive on competing

If China simply decides to close its markets to Foreigners except it’s Russian and Global South friends who will sell it all the Energy and Food it wants

Then most of the Tech firms will be brutally mauled

It was predicted that if Apple was banned entirely from China – $ 1.02 Trillion of it’s market share would never come back

The Total hit on the entire industry could touch $ 7–12 Trillion

Who will take up the slack?

India is expected to touch 40% of Chinas present market in 17–21 years (2040–2044)

Nobody else can take up even 3% of this slack

So China has a lot of Brahmastras to use

There will be no more Huaweis

Huawei was a blow

Nobody expected the West to be so brutally lawless and act like a mafia state , like a land with zero laws

Today China is ready

Every US attack has a party from China including the biggest Brahmastra

CUT OFF ACCESS TO PHARMA APIs & Cut off all components needed for Medical Equipment
Devalue US Debt by suddenly pegging an exchange rate of 2 Yuan to 1 USD. China will lose 17 Trillion Yuan and after the peg is removed the rate could reach 10–11 but US will lose 160 Trillion Yuan ($ 25 Trillion) , 8 times worse than the 2008 Crisis

APPLE Shocked! Huawei’s Secret Weapons: NearLink Explained

Amazing technology. Zero coverage in Western “news”.

Chinese wisdom: Wang Yi urges nations to help avert cold war

INTRODUCTION

Human behavior falls into durable patterns of action and reaction/response. Taking China-U.S. bilateral relations as an illustration, one almost always finds that China is forever responding, and that the United States is non-stop plotting, agitating and acting in annoying or irritating ways, resulting in China’s patterned response of rebuttal.

For example, in picking a fight with China, the United States will accuse China of “spying” and/or soliciting a prominent politician to accuse and confront China on “ideological” grounds, making it difficult for China to defend.

How do you defend an ideological choice?

As ideology is value-laden, it was adopted to change a sick Chinese society for the better, by bringing in fresh or foreign ideas that are believed to work.

For China, socialism with Chinese characteristics is designed to address its chronic social inequality and alleviate abject poverty. China’s adoption of a socialist ideology is observably bearing fruitful results, lifting millions of its people out of poverty, and building railways in foreign countries.

But, for the U.S. hardcore irrational antagonists such as Mike Pompeo, China is “on the wrong side of history”. What else then can these self-styled enemies of China do but to use and recycle the “spying” game of accusations, hoping to see their cooked-up situation comes to fruition.

In the following article taken from an English-language newspaper dated Thursday, July 30, 2020, the incidents that happened at the beginning of the Trump era were nearly the same as that is happening in the United Kingdom, which has officially announced that a parliamentary researcher has been lately accused of “spying” for the CCP.

For fear of missing its juicy details, let us go over this article.

Entered Wang Yi Who Called on All Countries to Resist “Unreasonable Acts” and to Help Prevent…

FM Wang Yi called on all countries to “resist” the United States’ “blatant and unreasonable acts”, and to help prevent the world’s two greatest powers from descending into what he called a new cold war.

In a phone call with his French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian on Tuesday, Wang said China would take “firm and rational responses” amid the intensifying rivalry with the US, but also stressed that Beijing would strive to maintain stable relations with Washington.

It was the fourth time in less than a fortnight that Wang, who is also a state councilor, has named the US in conversations with foreign official, following calls with his Russian, Vietnamese and German counterparts.

Before that, veiled attacks against Washington might have been made in talks with foreign governments without naming it.

The change in rhetoric and the increased frequency of verbal aggression by both sides has meant a rapid deterioration of China-US relations, and an imperative for Beijing to ensure other nations do not side with Washington.

“Tolerating a bully [such as Pompeo] will not keep you safe. It will only let the bully get bolder and act worse. All countries should act to resist any unilateral or hegemonic act and safeguard world peace and development.” Wang was quoted as saying in a Chinese foreign ministry statement.

Wang said the current decline in China-US relations was caused by a certain political faction in the US, driven by the need to lift campaign prospects and maintain unipolar hegemony.

During the phone call to Le Drian, Wang called for “vigilance against US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s recent remarks instigating renewed ideological confrontation and leading the world to a new cold war”.

In a speech last week, Pompeo called for China’s own citizens to join an international effort to “change the behavior” of the ruling Communist Party.

“We believe that all countries will make the right and wise decisions, instead of being held hostage by a small number of American politicians,” Wang said.

“All countries will make concerted efforts to prevent the world from being dragged into a new cold war of conflict and confrontation,” he said.

But Wong said the interests of the two countries were deeply integrated – and that Beijing stood “ready to maintain the stability of China-US relations through equal communication and exchanges with the US side”.

“We will never allow a few anti-China elements to overturn decades of successful exchanges and cooperation between China and the U.S., nor will we allow ideological prejudice to undermine the future development of China-US relations.”

Ties between the world’s most powerful nations have plunged to the lowest point in decades as they clash over trade, technology and geopolitical clout.

In their latest brawl last week, the US ordered the closure of the Chinese consulate in Houston –over spying claims. China retaliated – by ordering the US mission in Chengdu to shut down.

The foreign ministry rolled out a 10-point rebuttal yesterday against American accusations over the closure of the Houston consulate, denying that it was a hub for China’s spying efforts or that it was used as a base for its “fox hunt” operations to induce the return of Chinese fugitives. (Source: SCMP)

CONCLUSION

Readers may find it amazing after reading the above newspaper article on U.S. accusation of Chinese spying, and China’s retaliatory response. Amazed because the narrative over alleged Chinese spying is the same, except this time it is the UK that is the accuser. This pattern persists, and tensions go up.

The ultimate reality, though, is that “U.S. trade is still chained to sources in China.” Research demonstrates the difficulty of severing the countries’ economic ties. According to NYT.

In the end, it is U.S. pragmatism and Chinese rationality that prevails, settling the “spy” squabbling.

Ties may temporarily go sour; bilateral efforts will be made, and trade activities between the U.S. and China will resume. Wang Yi’s rationality is right and wise.

The latest visits by high-profile U.S. secretaries starting with Anthony Blinken, Janet Yellen and Gina Raimondi wrapped up the futile spying game – testifying to the law that damaging business ties lead to revenue loss.

Will the US actions against China over chips really set the Chinese tech sector back 100 years?

Only 100 years?! You bet, will be at least 1,000 years, or maybe, better back to the Stone Age!

And then, you might find one day, your country would have to import chips from China, and the products you use would be embedded with Chinese chips. LOL

The whole Western world, especially the nuclear powers, even later the Soviet Union, had blocked nuclear technology from entering into China back in the 1950s and 1960s. Then what?

The first Chinese nuclear test was conducted at Lop Nur on October 16, 1964. Then in less than 32 months, China detonated its first hydrogen bomb on June 14, 1967. Now, China’s nuclear arsenal is the world’s third largest, and China has, more importantly, also developed its nuclear technology for peaceful use, boasting the second largest number of nuclear power units in operation or under construction in the world.

China was officially barred from visiting the International Space Station (ISS) by the United States in 2011. Then what?

China is nearing its completion of the construction of its own space station -Tiangong, with many visits there already done by Chinese astronauts, three of them are right now flying over us in the station. With the ISS retiring sometime in 2030, China’s Tiangong will be the only space station in the world.

China has been under the tough blockade of Western military techonologies, especially high-end, advanced ones. Then what?

China has successfully tested several times of its hypersonic missiles, among the first nations who have achieved success in this most advanced weapon development.

Also, China has finished its third air-craft carrier, with a fully indigenous design, featuring a CATOBAR system and electromagnetic catapults, one of the most advanced in the world.

And China has its J-20, a twinjet all-weather stealth fighter aircraft with precision strike capability. The Y-20, a large military transport aircraft, the first cargo aircraft to use 3D printing technology to speed up its development and to lower its manufacturing cost.

Similar cases also include the tunnel boring machines, giant cranes, giant excavators, deep-sea drilling machines……You name it. Then what?

China has self developed all of them, not only meeting its own market needs, but also exporting them at a much more affordable price than their Western competitors. What’s more ironic is, some of them have been exported even to those countries who had previously blocked their techonologies into China!

So, in the short term, yes, China is sufferting from the heavy blow from the US, but in the long run, the US and its allies would not only lose the lion’s share of chip market here in China, but will have also to face a strong competitor in semi-conductors, or chips, or something alternative which have similar functions, in the not-too-far-away future, maybe in their own market, and also in the global market.

But during the process, the US would have dried up its influence as a banner-holder of liberal market economy, its credibility as the rule-setter who betrays its own rules, its reliability to its allies since all of them would have to suffer along with the US, and hence, its soft power in leading the world.

Nothing much to gain, but a lot to lose, yet, the US is determined to ride on the self-devastating road. The faster it runs, the quicker the fall of its hegemony.

Japanese-Style Sirloin

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

1 pound Certified Angus Beef ® boneless sirloin steak, cut into 1/4 inch strips
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons sake or dry sherry
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
8 scallions, cut diagonally into 1 1/2 inch pieces
1 large red bell pepper, chopped
8 ounces Napa cabbage, chopped
4 ounces bean sprouts
1 cup cooked short grain rice
1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds

Instructions

Combine soy sauce, sugar and sake in a small bowl. Set aside.
Heat wok or electric frying pan to medium heat.
Heat oil, add steak strips and stir until beef is browned (about 3-5 minutes).
Push beef to one side. On the other side, add scallions and peppers and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes.
Add cabbage and sprouts, combining all ingredients in the pan. Stir-fry about 1 minute.
Sprinkle soy mixture over meat and vegetables. Cook for 1 minute.
Serve over warm rice and garnish with sesame seeds.

Why People are Leaving Canada, Top 5 Reasons Why People Leave

I left Canada about 1.5 years ago to travel the world and here are some of the top reasons why I left. I give a lot of my own personal anecdotes as someone who has lived in canada for over 20 years. This video represents my personal opinion about living in canada and why I prefer to live in Asia or other countries.

The main reasons. why people are leaving

1. High living costs creates a low standard of living, especially in Vancouver and Toronto.

2. Lack of infrustructure for transportation which means you need to have a car in order to get around

3. Brain drain and lack of opportunities because most talent go to the states

4. Lack of medical healthcare because most people can’t find a family doctor or are finding it difficult to find one

5. Not much social life /activities for young people, most stores close at 6pm

https://youtu.be/2vXjQHNfiW8

China, the next war

On China, the US is again lying itself into the next war. The US says “The [Defense] Department remains committed to abiding by the well-established one China policy of the United States” and “this Administration opposes any unilateral changes to the status quo from either side of the Strait. We have not supported Taiwan independence, we do not support it now.”

But actually the US is supporting the Taiwan independence from China, while Taiwan is calling its independent government the “Republic of China” which is a violation of the “one China” claim. The US also admits that the principle reason for this attention to China’s internal matters is to sustain the anti-China barriers in the off-shore China region: “Taiwan is located at a critical node within the First Island Chain in the Indo-Pacific region.” More detailed information on the coming anti-China next war is recent testimony in the House Armed Services Committee here and here.

Posted by: Don Bacon | Sep 20 2023 15:14 utc | 7

Is India acting as a spoiler in the BRICS on behalf of the West?

A spoiler must possess some power to manipulate but this India clearly does not have.

India can do nothing within BRICS with China around (that’s why they didn’t even dare to join RCEP). Modi was left sitting in the corner of their meeting hall.and as quiet as a church mouse during the last BRICS summit because he had no allies to support him on anything. BRICS proceeded accordingly to invite those countries that Xi had pursued.

An interesting thing happened between then and the Modi show at the G20 with new BRICS members Saudi Arabia and the UAE getting into the act. And of course Xi completely abstaining from even attending. Expectations are of course that the G7 countries, headed by Biden, would be there to cheerlead to elevate Modi’s ego as their way of wooing him to their side.

As the saying goes, give the guy enough rope and he’ll be sure to do it to himself!

And true to form, Modi came out with a true masterpiece that had behind him the G7 countries – U.S., E.U., Germany, France and Italy – applauding him on. and the Western MSM hyping up Modi as the new major player to contest China’s BRI plans. This is the G7’s main challenge to China and to be implemented unti its GPII initiative!!

But this plan could not have been possible without the push of Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Of course, Saudi Arabia and the UAE have grand plans for themselves – mostly to transition and establish their economy as a major global force after their days of oil dominance is over.

But look at the curious first part of the IMEC journey that has the starting route going through the UAE and Saudi Arabia, which essentially is an alternative route to bypass the Suez Canal.

And then of all places, this very expensive trans-Arabian rail line ends up in Isreal!!!!!

Now, who are the Arabs in their right mind would set up the crown jewel of their economic infrastructure to land in the hands of their arch nemesis to be held hostage anyttime any conflict should arise?

So, you have Modi hoisting himself as a challenger to Xi’s BRI.and also coincidentally, there will be after this G20 a third BRI Meeting in Beijing in October 2023!

The big question is: What are Saudi Arablia and the UAE’s real plans? Are they with the IMEC or are they part of the BRI still and be officially inducted as new BRICS member in 2024?

Have you ever tried to eat at a restaurant, which happened to be a mafia front, but you didn’t know it was a mafia front, and everyone inside just stared at you when you walked in, because nobody actually eats there?

A friend of mine told the story of going to visit his childhood home in Brooklyn. He had hired a car for the day to go all around the old neighborhood so he wouldn’t have to rely on taxis. On the way to visit his mother’s grave at the cemetery, he spotted a flower shop and thought it might be nice to bring flowers.

He went inside, and found a couple of men playing cards, They didn’t seem to notice him. He cleared his throat to get their attention.

“A customer!” one declared, as if in shock.

My friend said he had grown up in the neighborhood, and he chatted with the proprietor a bit about how things have changed over the years.

“Why don’t you sit down and have an espresso with us?” he asked.

“I can’t, I have a driver outside!”

“Well, invite him in, too!”

After he politely refused, they made a beautiful bouquet for him, fairly quickly. He was impressed with the work.

“How much do I owe you?” he asked.

The florist looked hurt. “It’s for your mother! How could I possibly charge you?”

After a little back and forth, it was clear that they weren’t going to accept payment. He thanked them for their generosity and left.

It dawned on him that this place probably wasn’t a flower shop. But they did make him a nice arrangement.

Something TERRIBLE Just Happened in Maui, Oprah & The Rock

James sues Hawaii for First Amendment violations over ban on public photography in Lahaina “This isn’t merely about the freedom to take photos; it’s about the freedom of the press and the right to hold our leaders accontable.

What are your thoughts on China surpassing the USA

Well, China has surpassed the United States in so many ways, that this question is a tad out of date. China is quite a formidable and powerful force right now. Depending on the measurements used, you can easily map out the dates when the mantel of power was transferred.

Economic = around 2013.
Military = around 1950.
Educational = around 1995.
Social = around 2005.
Manufacturing = around 1990.
Technological = in process.

So what are my thoughts about this?

I really don’t think that China is trying to surpass anyone. And certainly isn’t trying to better the USA. I just think that China is doing what it needs to do to serve it’s people. It’s 1.4 billion people, don’t you know. And they need to be satiated, satisfied, and happy.

China is doing that.

All these sanctions, political posturing, and the general madness out the United States (and it actually is a DSM-4 state of crazy-town) is only accelerating and necessitating China to become absolutely independent of the leashes and chains that the United States controls.

Soon, and I do mean SOON, whatever vestiges of American “greatness” will be eclipsed by a rather harsh reality.

Oh, and it PAINS me to speak of it.

But today, the United States is a lie, on top of a lie, that is covered up by lies, and the only good thing about it is that the lies are so obvious that everyone KNOWS that the lies are simply BULLSHIT.

Today, the USA is a third-rated, banana-republic, ruled by psychopathic morons.

And when history books are written about this has-been nation, it will refer to it as a over-glorified “strip mall” masquerading as transsexual brothel built upon an open sewer.

This is common knowledge in “fly over country”.

Those “Rich Men North of Richmond” really gutted the country, and are now stealing everything they can lay their hands on as they flee the cesspool that they created.

When did China surpass the United States?

Oh, sometime back in 1776. It’s been downhill ever since.

Neocons turn on Joe Biden

Calling Biden a president is like calling Harris a vice president.

Headlights flashing

In the ADC is a prison called The East Arkansas Regional Unit. Known as “Brickies” because that is the town that it is next. It is an old cotton plantation that has been turned into a hard labor prison. And that is where I was first sent to when I was “retired“.

There, I noticed many, many “gang bangers” from West Memphis, which was only a spit away from the prison. And these urban youth were quite a lively bunch. They were really rambunctious, but kept in line by the older men.

Anyways, there were many wanna-be rappers that were serving time there. And yuppur, this is one of the albums that was produced by some felons from that facility… now out free.

I know these folk. Shared coffee with ’em.

HEADLIGHTS FLASHES – HXVRMXN

Small world, eh?

They would stand by the windows and just rap on the windows for hours while composing their lyrics. And with the proper connections can produce works like this.

Todays…

How did Americans get so fat?

I lived in Japan for two years, and lost a ton of weight. I drank a lot of alcohol, ate whatever food was convenient, and never consciously exercised. I lived upstairs from a Genkizushi sushi shop, and across the street from Chuuka Ton-Ton with excellent ramen and surprisingly large Jumbo Bikkuri Gyoza. I had a car, but walked and took public transportation because it was more convenient. After two years of Japanese life, my BMI was 19, just on the underweight side of healthy.

I now live in an American suburb. I track my diet and exercise on apps. I have a home gym with weights, a Peloton exercise bike, and VR boxing subscriptions. I have another gym at work. My BMI is 29, overweight bordering on obese.

I’ve thought about the reasons for this. Why did I get thin without trying in Japan, then get fat while trying to stay thin in the USA? If you were trying to design the perfect obesogenic society to make people fat, you would do two things:

Subsidize low-nutrient foods with a lot of calories, like corn syrup.
Use fear, zoning restrictions and tax laws to keep people away from sidewalks, parks, and “the gym of life.”

America does both of these things.

Due to the peculiar way Americans select presidents, Iowa has outsized political influence. Iowa also grows a lot of corn, so it’s not surprising that American agricultural policy favors corn.

Modern varieties of corn, and especially those varieties processed into corn syrup, have calories but not much else.

Our bodies didn’t evolve to directly sense the taste of nutrients, but they did involve to sense some tastes and aromas that are often seen alongside nutrients, sensations that are a reasonable heuristic for nutrition in wild and natural foods.

If your body tells you to eat until it senses that you have tasted enough, and you eat bland foods like corn, you’ll consume a lot of calories and still be hungry. If your tongue tells you to eat until it has tasted enough, you can consume a lot of calories of corn syrup.

On the other hand, traditional Japanese restaurants serve small amounts of carbs (rice or noodles) intensely flavored with small amounts of high quality protein and fat (fish in sushi or pork slices in ramen).

Japanese cuisine is quality over quantity, while common American food is the opposite. It’s easier to stop eating after a few bites of intensely flavored carb/fat/protein medley than a few bites of bland fat-free sweetened engineered food.

At the same time that Americans consume more calories than Japanese people, Americans move around less. American zoning laws encourage large residential areas with no commercial areas nearby.

Where there are commercial areas, there are huge parking lots which are unpleasant to walk through. Parking spaces occupy the area that a sensible construction would use for walking paths. Japan is the opposite. There are plenty of walking paths and pedestrian-only areas.

Mixed zoning with stores on the first floor and residential units above are common, and possible without requirements for a parking space per bedroom or restaurant table. Parking and highway tolls in Japan are expensive, so people are encouraged to walk and take public transportation.

Finally, American media encourages people to be afraid. Afraid of kids getting abducted while walking to school, so they are driven instead. Afraid of the neighbors calling the police because your kids are outside, so kids play inside instead. Afraid of crime on public transportation, so everyone drives instead.

Afraid of ticks and mosquitoes and sunburns and nature so everyone stays inside and watches screens instead. Japan has giant swallow hornets (so called because the hornets are as large as a small bird like a swallow) that kill dozens of hikers a year, but nobody stays out of the mountains because of them.

It’s possible to live a healthy lifestyle in America if you constantly invest time and effort, eat unlike most Americans and live unlike most Americans.

It’s easy to live a healthy lifestyle in Japan by just being lazy, eating common restaurant food and taking the easiest path from home to work to shopping. Being unhealthy in Japan requires as much extra work as being healthy in America.

Gorgonzola-Topped Tenderloin Steaks

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

4 (4 to 6 ounce) beef tenderloin steaks, cut 1 inch thick
1 large clove garlic, crushed
1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper
1/2 cup ready-to-serve beef broth
1/4 cup dry red wine
1/4 cup crumbled Gorgonzola or other blue-veined cheese

Instructions

Heat large nonstick skillet 5 minutes over medium heat until hot.
Combine garlic and pepper. Press evenly into both side of each beef steak.
Place steaks in skillet. Cook for 10 to 13 minutes for medium-rare to medium doneness; turn occasionally. Remove from skillet; keep warm.
In the same skillet, add broth and wine; increase heat to medium-high. Cook and stir for 1 to 2 minutes, or until sauce is reduced by half.
Spoon sauce over steaks; sprinkle with cheese.

How I see the US after living in Europe for 2 Years

Brutal honesty.

The Nevada Triangle | 2,000 Planes Mysteriously Crashed & Missing Near Area 51

Most of us have heard of the Bermuda Triangle, where planes and ships have mysteriously gone missing in the Atlantic Ocean for decades.

Did you know there is a similar place in Nevada?

The Nevada Triangle. In a region of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in Nevada and California, 2,000 planes have been lost in the last 60 years.

In this remotely populated area of more than 25,000 miles of mountain desert, many of the crash sites have never been found.

The Nevada Triangle is typically defined as spanning from Las Vegas, Nevada in the southeast to Fresno, California in the west, and to Reno, Nevada at the top.

Within this wilderness is the mysterious, top-secret Area 51.

Along with the dozens of conspiracy theories which include UFOs and paranormal activity that surrounds the air force base, similar theories have long been considered regarding the Nevada Triangle.

One plane to go missing was that of a record-setting aviator, sailor, and adventurer named Steve Fossett on September 3, 2007.

Fossett, flying a single-engine plane over Nevada’s Great Basin Desert, took off and never returned.

After hunting for a month for the plane, the search was called off and on February 15, 2008, Fossett was declared dead.

Later that year on September 29th, Fossett’s identification cards were discovered in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California by a hiker.

Throughout the years, many of the missing planes were flown by experienced pilots and have disappeared under mysterious circumstances: and their wreckage never found.

The biggest mystery is: nobody really talks about it.

Children who have had to clean out your parents’ house after they passed, did you find anything that completely changed how you viewed them?

My father was born in 1929. When he was living he kept an old trunk with trays that came out of it. In it he had saved crafts that we made, old report cards and a host of other things related to all of his nine children. The most curious to my family were little notebooks. They were too small to be journals. My father told me that since he was about 17 he kept a log of where he was and what he did weekly. I asked him why were these dates important.

My father was a young Black male who was tall for his age, traveling alone, beginning at age 13; traveled up and down the eastern coastal states. He said, just in case he got picked up for just being Black, he would have a record of where he had been and what he had done going back for months. During his travels he worked at a general store, he picked oranges, pears, apples and grapes as a migrant worker, he rode horses and herded cattle on a dairy farm in Connecticut. On all those travels he kept these logs to protect himself. That’s also when he told me that there were people in the world who thought “we” all looked alike and his notes were to show proof that we don’t.

In loving memory of Clifton W. McKnight, Sr.

City Walk. Downtown Vancouver BC, Canada. July 2023

My boss is always taking part of my food in a common fridge. I told him I didn’t like that and now I buy my food to avoid it. Am I a skinflint?

I had a similar problem. I bought one of those tiny cube refrigerators for a dorm and had it delivered to the office on a Saturday when I knew no one else would be in the office. It fit nicely under my desk and I put a large empty box in front of it to hide it, jic.. I then used that for my lunch and it paid for itself fairly fast since I didn’t have to run out and buy a replacement lunch any more.

However, since we were not allowed to eat at our desks, I made a pretense of getting my lunch out of the communal fridge. Drove my boss nuts since he could never find my lunch and he couldn’t say or ask about it without giving himself away. Lol

When I left that company, I sold it to a co-worker that would occasionally find her lunch missing.

The LAST HOURS of El Cholo’s LIFE after BETRAYING the CJNG

On March 18, 2021, some pedestrians who were walking calmly through a public square in the municipality of Tlaquepaque, came across a truly sinister scene. A lifeless body was sitting on a bench, wrapped in black garbage bags, but the worst thing was that he had a n4rco-message drawn with a knife on his torso. The authorities were notified immediately and, although the corpse was in a state that prevented it from being recognized, the forensic reports would conclude that it was indeed the body of one of the most wanted criminaIs in Mexico, Carlos Enrique Sánchez, better known as the Cholo.

https://youtu.be/oW7T2IP49d0

What was the most satisfying display of instant karma you have ever seen?

He was the head janitor at my school, a teddy bear of a man, under 5 feet tall with the sweetest little smile and laugh. He had worked at the school since he was a teen and was due to retire.

Da Tuk (not his real name) was gentle, kind and generous, a soft touch for a sob story. He and his family had just enough but always ended with too little because of his ‘kindness.’

A relative had begged him for a large sum, almost all that Da Tuk and his wife had saved for a deposit on a home. He signed over a land deed to Da Tuk and then disappeared into the gambling dens of Klong Tuey.

When Da Tuk took his family to see the land, they found a hilly, barren, nowhere-near-anywhere, unsellable plot. Da Tuk was inconsolable, realizing that he had been duped and had lost almost everything.

Fortunately, the chairman of the school found a way to help the family to buy a small house and deal with the costs of their children’s educations. They never really recovered from the loss.

As the school grew, so did Da Tuk’s staff, to the point where he was overwhelmed. An ‘assistant’ was hired but was, in fact, in charge. However, he always treated Da Tuk as the boss and saw to it that others did as well.

For Da Tuk’s retirement day, the Board had arranged for a huge luncheon, and we were all seated, waiting for Da Tuk.

When he arrived, he looked stunned, which surprised us because everyone had been talking about the party and teasing him for over a month.

Then an equally stunned member of the Board made a shocking announcement.

Da Tuk had just been paid forty million baht (approximately two million U.S. dollars) for that ‘worthless’ land because it was adjacent to the planned eastern seaboard industrial estate.

A New American and U.K. Perspective after living in China

In this China vlog, I am out in Beijing City exploring the city and as always, seeking to understand China and the relationship with the West. My opinions and thoughts have changed.

Federal Reserve losing $758 Million PER DAY- Now in the Hole for $100 Billion

Nation Hal Turner

The Federal Reserve Bank is losing $758 Million PER DAY paying Interest to commercial banks on Reverse Repos and Interest on Reserves. Those losses just reached $100 Billion — with a “B.”

Before all of these wild financial games began, the Federal Reserve would send its profits to the US Treasury each year; it was usually a few Billion Dollars each year.

Now, the Federal Reserve has massive paper losses on their Bond portfolio and masses daily losses on the money it has to pay to commercial banks to keep the system from falling apart.

Federal Reserve Chairman Powell and company have managed to lose a whopping $100 Billion . . . and YOU are paying for it.

It is difficult to overstate the level of sheEr incompetence needed to have a money printer . . . and still lose money.

Next stop: -$200 Billion.

Woman Over 30 Realizes The Wall Is Unforgiving #19 – When Women Regret Feminism

When Women Regret Feminism is a thought-provoking video that explores the struggles women over 30 face when they haven’t found a husband and feel cheated by what feminism tells them.

Through real-life stories shared on TikTok, the video examines the complex issues surrounding marriage, motherhood, and career choices.

It looks at the ways in which women are redefining their roles and expectations for themselves and for the future. This video is a must-watch for anyone interested in gender roles, societal expectations, and the impact of the feminist movement on women’s lives.

With its honest and open dialogue, When Women Regret Feminism provides an insightful look into the lives of women and the challenges they face in today’s world.

https://youtu.be/s6b_fjfYPac

AI boom sparks silicon photonics applications

As widely known, Si photonics technology has undergone over 20 years of development. It primarily leverages mature CMOS (complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor) processes to integrate key active and passive optical components, such as waveguides, modulators, gratings, couplers and even photodetectors, onto silicon substrates for processing optical signals. The only component that cannot be integrated directly onto such substrates is semiconductor laser, as it involves a different material system and can be addressed only through packaging methods. In the silicon photonics platform, a silicon substrate is responsible for converting optical signals into electrical signals, serving as the receiving end.

On the other hand, the transmitting end involves converting electrical signals into optical signals through lasers. Basically, utilizing mature semiconductor manufacturing processes boasts advantages in terms of miniaturization, integration, production yield and cost; and employing optical signals also offers advantages such as high bandwidth, low latency, and low power consumption when compared to electrical signals.

Since the introduction of optical fiber communication in the 1980s, it has played a crucial role in signal transmission. In its early days, when human data usage was relatively low, optical communication was mainly used for long-distance transmission, such as undersea cables and metropolitan networks. As data usage has increased, optical communication has also entered the realm of regional networks. With the recent rise of generative AI, the most substantial data generation and transmission occur between AI servers. This is because any large-scale model contains billions of parameters, and the computational power required for each training session is immense, all having to rely on parallel processing and data exchange between chips.

Thanks to semiconductor manufacturing technology advancements, it now takes only 1-2 nanoseconds to process or compute a single instruction. However, the increase in data transmission speed has never been able to keep up with the growth in computing power. Light traveling within an optical fiber incurs a delay of approximately five nanoseconds per meter. Consequently, AI servers often have to wait for data to be transmitted, leading to periods of inactivity; but if electrical signals were used, instead of optical signals, for transmission, the waiting time would be even longer. In this regard, the solution is, of course, to bring the devices responsible for converting optical signals closer to the CPU/GPU/ASIC chips to reduce signal latency, ideally avoiding the use of circuit boards in between. This is where co-package optics (CPO), including silicon photonics substrates, comes into play.

Currently, CPO is primarily being deployed inside switches. It involves stacking Si photonics substrates with ICs for processing electrical signals, which are then connected to optical fibers and put in close proximity to various IC processors, representing the closest and lowest-latency solution available.

In the mid-2000s, IBM, in its annual Technology Outlook, particularly highlighted optical interconnect as a key focus for future technology. At that time, no people could foresee the rapid development of AI computing, nor did they have a clear picture of semiconductor technology progressing to levels below 3nm. However, it’s clear that human reliance on data transmission would keep increasing, with Si photonics technology to play a role in optical interconnect.

At the time when optical interconnect was introduced, it was unclear whether they would be used for connecting signals between chips (chip-to-chip), between boards (board-to-board), or between racks of servers (rack-to-rack). Today, optical interconnect technology is widely adopted for signal connections between server racks and even between layers within a rack (unit-to-unit).

Meanwhile, signal connections between chips have been addressed by TSMC’s advanced packaging technologies like 3DIC, CoWoS (chip-on-wafer-on-substrate), chiplet integration, and fabric. These technologies utilize electrical signal exchanges to meet the interconnect needs between chips.

The next big challenge will likely be signal connections between boards. Currently, the primary approach still relies on electrical signal connections, and the adoption of optical interconnects for this purpose is something to be seen.

The combination of CPO with Si photonics technology provides the optimal solution to enhance data transmission speeds in the AI era, representing a significant change for the industry ecosystem.

The traditional ecosystem featuring the use of pluggable optical modules is not simply fading away. At the 2023 Optical Fiber Communication Conference and Exhibition (OFC), linear-drive pluggable optics (LPO) garnered significant attention and is considered a major counterattack by traditional players.

The linear-drive concept involves removing the re-timer/DSP (digital signal processing) functions from pluggable optical modules and shifting the signal processing burden to ASICs (application-specific ICs), thus reducing signal latency and power consumption within the modules. Consequently, it allows the industry to advance product development by 1-2 generations without causing significant changes to the entire industry ecosystem.

This is similar to using immersion DUV (deep ultraviolet) lithography equipment to achieve several generations of progress in semiconductor fabrication processes without altering the DUV exposure ecosystem until EUV (extreme ultraviolet) lithography machines become available to take over the exposure process.

The generational shift in Si photonics CPO will eventually come, but if LPO gains traction, it may delay this transition. In fact, the linear-drive concept can also be applied to CPO, offering even better performance in terms of signal latency and power consumption.

Beverly Hills is a GHOST TOWN, California’s Wealthiest City in COLLAPSE

Huawei’s chip breakthrough poses new threat to Apple in China — and questions for Washington

Apple is facing a number of issues in China, with geopolitical risks mounting and the economy still not firing as many would have hoped.

But the biggest challenge of all, according to analysts, could be a resurgent Huawei after a purported major semiconductor breakthrough that flew in the face of U.S. sanctions.

The latest chip, made by China’s biggest semiconductor manufacturer SMIC has sparked concern in Washington and raised questions about how it was possible, without the company being able to access critical technologies.

But there is also scrutiny on whether the process being used to make these new chips is efficient enough on a large scale to sustain a Huawei comeback.

What’s the big deal about Huawei’s new chip?

Alongside Apple and Samsung, Huawei is one of only a few companies that has designed its own smartphone processor. This was done through the Chinese firm’s HiSilicon division.

The chip however was manufactured by TSMC.

U.S. export restrictions, which effectively barred Huawei from using American technology anywhere along the chipmaking process, meant the Chinese company could no longer source its chips from TSMC.

There is no Chinese company that can do what TSMC does. That’s why shockwaves were sent through the political and tech world when Huawei quietly released the Mate 60 Pro in China this month, with analysis showing a chip inside made by SMIC.

Along with Huawei, SMIC is on a U.S. trade blacklist called the Entity List. Companies on this list are restricted from buying American technology. Meanwhile, SMIC’s technology is seen as generations behinds the likes of TSMC.

So how could this have been done with the huge amount of sanctions on both Huawei and SMIC?

What we know about Huawei’s chip

Huawei’s smartphone chip is called the Kirin 9000S, which combines the processor and components for what appears to be 5G connectivity. 5G refers to next-generation mobile internet that promises super-fast speeds. Huawei has not confirmed the phone is 5G capable, but reviews have shown the device is capable of hitting download speeds associated with 5G.

The semiconductor has been manufactured using a 7 nanometer process by SMIC, China’s biggest contract chipmaker, according to an analysis of the Mate 60 Pro by software company TechInsights.

The nanometer figure refers to the size of each individual transistor on a chip. The smaller the transistor, the more of them can be packed onto a single semiconductor. Typically, a reduction in nanometer size can yield more powerful and efficient chips.

The 7nm process is seen as highly-advanced in the world of semiconductors, even though it is not the latest technology.

For years, SMIC struggled to make 7nm chips. That’s in part because it couldn’t get its hands on a very expensive piece of kit called an extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machine. These are made by Dutch firm ASML, but the company has been restricted by its government from sending these machines to China.

In a blogpost this month, Dan Hutcheson, vice chair of TechInsights, said the 7nm chip “demonstrates the technical progress China’s semiconductor industry has been able to make without EUV lithography tools.”

What will the U.S. do next?

There will be pressure on the U.S. to reconsider its export controls strategy, which was based on the assumption that controls would prevent Chinese companies from producing advanced-edge chips, while the business-as-usual approach would continue at the trailing-edge nodes. It is increasingly becoming clear that this distinction doesn’t work in reality. Washington may look at other areas of the chip design and manufacturing process to enact further restrictions.

Apple’s China headwinds grow with Huawei chip

As geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and China continue to bubble under the surface, it is perhaps a potential Huawei resurgence that poses the biggest threat to Apple.

“It’s expected that Huawei will pose a bigger challenge to Apple in China than the geopolitical issue,” Will Wong, a senior research manager at IDC, told CNBC.

“This is because Huawei not only has the same premium brand image as Apple but also is a national pride in China.”

Apple is seen as a high-end smartphone maker and Huawei had directly competed with the U.S. firm in China for years. But Huawei’s sales fell off a cliff when it couldn’t equip its smartphones with 5G technology and the latest chips.

Any kind of resurgence in this area, as appears to be the case with the Mate 60 Pro, could make Huawei’s new phones an attractive option again for Chinese buyers.

“The biggest threat from Huawei is its continuous development in technology, not only in chips but also in new form factors like foldables,” Wong added.

What’s Like Living in China? – Can’t Believe This Is The Same Place …(Chengdu)

Another opinion on China.

Can you describe the creepiest person you have ever met?

Hands down, a woman in her 30’s that I met while staying in a homeless shelter. In my town, the Shelter also serves as a type of half-way house for women just getting out of jail or rehab.

I was “just homeless”, she was on the tail end of a 5 yr prison sentence after she sold her 3 yr old daughter to a sex trafficker to settle a drug debt. The state was in the process of helping her get her daughter back while she finished up her re-entry programs.

She constantly spoke of how beautiful her now 8 yr old was, and what a “fine specimen” she was coming to be. She was quite proud her daughter was “blooming”, and frequently sent her makeup, rather inappropriate clothing and articles from magazines about weight management, beauty techniques, etc. It was infuriating & disgusting. When I addressed the counselors with my concerns, I was told there were “conditions for her release, that hinged on her getting some parental rights in return”.

I left the facility before she did; but I pray all the time that her little girl is safe, sound and being treated well.

What Happened to the Middle-Class Prosperity of the 1950s?

This is very good.

What was the cleverest thing you said to someone walking away?

I lived in an apartment building. The upstairs neighbor seemed to think he was back in the dorm: parties all night, every night… people tromping around… music blasting with the bass turned all the way UP.

I tried a white-noise app. I got earplugs. I tried playing music next to the bed. My work was suffering.

Then I addressed him directly: I would go upstairs and politely ask him to please be a little quieter. No dice. I moved through the let-my-frustration-show stage… the angry stage… the I’ll-call-the-authorities stage…

When I couldn’t take the experiment in sleep deprivation any longer, I contacted our local city council to find out my options. Turns out there are regulations having to do with “health”: exceptionally loud noise is on a list of “stressors.”

They sent him a warning letter, saying if there were more complaints they might go so far as to serve eviction.

The following weekend a man turned up at my door. He was well-dressed, polite – older gent. He said he was Upstairs Neighbor’s father and could he talk to me?

Well, hey, I like to think I’m a reasonable person. “Sure, c’mon in…”

He pulled out the letter the Health Department had sent the UN and started waving it about, accusing me of intolerance, trying to cause problems for his son, on and on. He told me I should move out – “Nothing wrong with people having company and enjoying music. I’ve been in his apartment and the music is never loud.” As if the kid would give the old man full blast and prove I had cause for complaint.

I was taken aback, as much as anything because it never occurred to me a 30-year-old would have to send “Daddums” to confront a neighbor. Father wanted me to withdraw the complaint. I refused. He ranted some more, then got up to leave, crabbing the whole way about “How do you have the nerve” and so on. I saw him to the door, and as he stepped into the hallway he turned and said bitterly, “I am so disappointed.” “I understand, sir. If I had children who behaved as your son has, I’d be disappointed too.”

He was at a loss for words. It was so gratifying. 😉

Hal Turner Editorial Opinion

When a country’s Central Bank starts literally LOSING money each and every day . . . countries around the world will start to notice really fast. Especially when there is no sign at all that these losses will stop.

So how long do YOU think countries around the world will continue to accept “Federal Reserve Notes” (i.e. the cash in your wallet) as payment for goods and services, from an entity which is literally Bankrupt?

Sooner or later, those countries around the world will no longer want the paper with pretty pictures on it, masquerading as “money.”

I have no idea WHEN that refusal will start, but given what’s now taking place at the US central bank, I suspect it will not be long.

Now, that paper with pretty pictures on it will still be accepted as “money” here in the US, but . . . . we don’t manufacture very much of anything in this nation anymore. We import most of the things we consume because the Brainiacs of corporate America decided it would be better to outsource manufacturing to other countries.

Those corporate Brainiac Titans never stopped to consider the effect on the nation as a whole, they were only interested in how much extra money they could put in THEIR pockets by outsourcing manufacturing overseas.

So now, the Brainiacs are wealthier, and the country – and its currency – is going down the tubes.

So when you see those corporate Titans, and admire how much wealth they have, remember, they wrecked the entire country to get it.

Turns out, they weren’t nearly as smart as they thought they were; they were just greedy, dumb, fucks.

In case you’re not certain about whom I am speaking, it’s all those “FREE TRADE” dingbats.

So head back into search engines like Google, and start looking up “Free Trade” and watch whose names come up. Then you’ll know who needs straightening out on a personal level.

I just got a communication from someone WAAAAAAAAAY up in the financial sector. He told me this situation is causing almost panic in a LOT of financial firms. He then told me, verbatim, the following: “The parasites are looting the place on their way out the door. They know the jig is up.”

Golden Gate Swiss Steak

Ingredients

1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper
1 (1 1/2 pound) round steak, 1 inch thick
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 large tomatoes, peeled and chopped
3 large carrots, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar

Instructions

Combine flour, mustard, salt and pepper. Dredge the meat with this mixture, then work the flour into the meat with a meat pounder.
Cut steak into 4 individual portions.
In a heavy skillet or Dutch oven, heat oil and brown meat on both sides.
Combine tomatoes, carrots, Worcestershire sauce and brown sugar; pour over meat.
Cover and either bake in a preheated 350 degrees F oven or simmer on top of stove for approximately 1 1/2 hours or until meat is tender.

Germany Loses Its Auto Industry To China | China’s Take Over Shakes The Entire Europe Market

Extract of horny 16 year olds

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…
The woman lost in organismic pleasure
Periods of bliss

Like this tune…

30:20 Giuseppe Ottaviani & Lucid Blue – I Believe

…

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?

… 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

World Hal Turner

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”

Everyone is raging about Washington DC.

Why is America losing the tech war with China?

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!

Have you ever been judged by someone solely based on the clothes you were wearing?

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

Are Europeans shocked when they first come to the United States?

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.

What should we children do with a 91-year-old mother who needs care but refuses to move in with us, let anyone live with her and will not consider nursing home or assisted living?

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!

What is the funniest loophole you have ever seen?

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

What children’s toys have been repurposed for something very un-childlike?

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.

New Zealand’s Capital City Is OVER

What’s the craziest thing you found in the middle of nowhere?

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.

What was the most satisfying lie you caught someone in?

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.

And that is what life is all about…

高速道路に捨てられた子猫、不器用な女性が持ち帰る | とても幸せでした

https://youtu.be/WynzVlff9iQ

How much will Apple, Qualcomm, and other U.S. tech companies have to lower their costs in order to compete with Chinese tech companies?

Lowering costs?

That’s not the US Style isn’t it?

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?

8 Forgotten Restaurant Chains We Need Back!

If the US dumps chips in the Chinese market at very low prices, how will the Chinese government react?

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

Fun and interesting video.

https://youtu.be/uXv6qrcGGhw

Have you ever witnessed an objection at a wedding?

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.

What is the most British thing ever?

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

A calm voice of reality.

What did you find out about your teacher that shocked you?

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.

What was the strangest thing you found cleaning out your parents’ house after they died?

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

What’s something a doctor did to you that you won’t ever forget?

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

https://youtu.be/Apmq2Ktyd1I

What did you find out about your teacher that shocked you?

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.

I was at McDonald’s and I noticed that customers were choosing to wait in line to order with the cashier, instead of using the available kiosks. Why do you think that is?

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

The world is populated by idiots.

EU may become as hooked on China batteries as it was on Russian energy

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.

INDY

Posted by: Dr. George W Oprisko | Sep 20 2023 20:28 utc | 29

Expats Share Their American Trauma After Living Abroad

Americans has PTSD.

Why is China a threat to the United States?

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.

Record Treasury Dump

If ASML cannot sell to China, how did they sell a huge order in September?

It’s very complicated

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

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”.

What is the smallest thing a person ever did for you that impacted your life?

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

Bitten by rattlesnake

When I was taking care of my mother in Pennsylvania (she had cancer, and was living alone) I was responsible for the house care taking. This was a “manor”; a massive old house on 11 acres of land.

I did a lot of work on the property; renovating buildings, fixing things, and what-not.

One day, I went about the property and painted fresh white paint on all the water taps that littered the yard.

As I was painting, I heard something that sounded like a shaking rattle and then suddenly there was a blur in front of my eyes, and then nothing.

…

Sigh.

…

I hopped back on the tractor and rode to the manor, parked it in the “carriage house” workshop and started to notice that my arm seemed to be sore. I felt a little dizzy and so turned in early.

The next way I woke up with “cotton mouth”, and my arm was all yellow and swollen up and puffy. It was one big lump of piss-colored balloon / eggplant / muscle. I looked in the mirror and I looked like shit.

When looking at my arm, I saw two tiny puncture holes. That to this day I still have.

And that is my story of what it is like getting bit by a rattlesnake.

…

Todays…

What happened to all of the soldiers who were sent to fight in Vietnam, but didn’t make it there?

One of my favorite Vietnam veteran stories the likes of which never get told. I had a buddy in college post army who was a “Vietnam Vet”. Why the quotation marks? He gets to Nam and settles in at repl. During the first formation an NCO asks if anybody there has experience as a bartender. Having grown up in his father’s bar in Rochester, NY he raises his hand. After checking him out to their satisfaction he packs his shit and is flown to Guam to run the officer’s club bar for the length of his tour. His total time in Nam was about 36 hours!!!

After watching the American playbook in Ukraine, it is so obvious to China what the US will do in the Asia-Pacific. How has China’s thinking changed with regards to Taiwan?

U.S., Japanese and South Korean fleets scurried away during military exercises last month. Do they want to repeat?

Why don’t they stay? It turns out that they were afraid that the PLA would take over their nest!

If it were an actual battle, Apra Naval Base and Andersen Air Force Base would have been reduced to ruins long ago. The United States Indo-Pacific Command is in danger.

Taiwan is Chinese territory, Taiwan is in China.

The Yankee fleet only dared to circle around, but did not dare to enter the area near Taiwan.

Transport ships, transport planes, the PLA lets them in, they can come in. If they are not allowed in, they can only fire with their mouths on the other side of the network.

Nice Picture

Herbed Steak

Herbed Steak is excellent served with hot buttered noodles with dill.

Ingredients

1 pound round steak
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
3/4 cup water
1 tablespoon herb seasoning

Instructions

Cut steak into serving-size pieces.
Combine flour and seasoned salt.
Pound into steak. Brown meat on both sides in hot oil in heavy skillet.
Add remaining ingredients. Cover; simmer 45 minutes, or bake at 350 degrees F for 1 hour.

The Sopranos – Tribute music video

Lonely Road – Everlast

“Today while at the gas station I overheard a lady in her late 20’s telling 2 other men to leave her alone

so I decided to walk over to them and I asked her ” how was the meeting today darlin? ” she looked at me and said ” it was good, I’ll tell you more about it when we get home in a few “. I replied with ” wonderful I’ll pick up your favorite for dinner”.

The two guys left in a hurry and she told me ” you have no idea how much that meant to me …. thank you.” I said “you’re very welcome ma’am …. you can never be too careful. “

I made sure the guys left before I walked back to my car and as I was walking back all I could do was think ” I hope a man does that for my future daughter one day”.”

~ Cody Bret

Confession of the Day

$300k in debt (no mortgage). $297,677.49 to be exact.

$215k law school debt, $40k graduate school debt, $25k credit cards, $11k car loan, and a personal loan.

After 5 years of deep denial- I think I’ve finally accepted how badly we fucked up. I feel like I’ve gone through the stages of grief multiple times this year.

We paid for very expensive degrees that didn’t need to be. We racked up a shit ton of credit card debt by spending money like entitled a**holes and not using a budget. I wish I could go back in time, slap 23 year old me (and my husband) and ask, repeatedly- what the hell are you doing??

We would go out to bars and dinners every weekend with friends. insert Discover card. We would regularly order takeout. insert Amex card. We went on yearly vacations. insert Jet Blue card. We financed furniture???? Not to mention we walked right into the “prestige” private school bullshit.

We ate that shit up. And for what? To impress people? To prove that we’re worth something? All the above? It’s so normalized to be in debt as a millennial.

Everyone had credit cards, everyone was going out, everyone had student loans. We were super normal! You’re only young once- amiright?!

I found Dave last year, when I was hitting rock bottom. My debit card was getting declined at the gas station and the grocery store regularly.

After listening to The Ramsey Show for a couple weeks, I realized how screwed we were. I remember the first time he talked about the borrower being a slave to the lender.

That’s exactly how I felt. I couldn’t breathe. I had a mental breakdown. I haven’t really been able to relax since. My husband and I spent all last year fighting about money and almost got divorced.

We’re on BS2 right now. We should bring in around $170k this year before side gigs. We have paid off $12k since June. We started FPU last week. We’re throwing everything at the debt. I’m working my ass off. Husband is working 65+ hrs a week and donating plasma.

We dropped more than half of our “friends.” It’s a humbling experience to say the least. My mother in law makes us dinners a couple days a week to help out.

Family and friends ask why we’re not having kids or buying a house yet. The whole situation is embarrassing, but we deserve it.

I don’t blame anyone but myself. I’m not expecting anyone to “forgive” or payoff our dumpster fire. We were extremely stupid and entitled, but we need to get out of this ourselves. I just need prayers that we can make it out of this. We will. Hopefully better than who we were before.

Just trying to “embrace the suck” and keep up the motivation.

Europe-US tech war breaks out! 17 European countries boycott the US!

https://youtu.be/78bH7wbM-kc

What was the most brutal military tactic in history?

I’m serious when I say this is actually one of the cruelest things you can do in a battle because it exploits human’s basic survival instinct.

Leave your enemy a way to escape.

Human beings aren’t so different from the many types of creatures that roam the planet, One of the universal traits shared by so many species is this. Fight or flight or freeze.

In a situation that presents danger, living creatures will perform one of these actions. Fight, meaning we leap into action and confrontation. Flight, meaning we try to remove ourselves from the danger. Freeze, where we are facing an unfamiliar situation and do nothing.

As the last several thousand years of recorded history has shown, humans have yet to grow beyond these basic instincts. It’s a part of who we are.

The brilliance comes in exploiting this mindset in a military situation. Consider a classic military tactic. Encirclement.

The idea of encirclement is simple. Use your forces to surround an enemy and isolate them. Cut off their means of supplying themselves with material and reinforcement. Strangle them as you make sure that you don’t run low on supplies. It’s classic thinking for military warfare, especially in regards to sieges.

But I want you to think of that in terms of what I just told you. “Fight, flight or freeze”.

If you take away an enemy’s ability to retreat, you are actually giving them a subtle advantage.

This might be hard to understand for people who don’t expect to face life or death situations. Facing a scenario where you have a high chance of dying without chance of survival is less stressful than a situation where you might survive. Why is this? Because it’s less complicated.

if you make your enemy think they can’t escape, you remove the “flight” option. And you have increased the chances of them choosing “Fight”.

I’ll use a real world example to explain this better. Pirates.

Now back in the days when piracy was men in giant wooden ships sailing through the Caribbean, there were several unspoken rules of piracy. One of the most important of which was FLAGS. A lot of successful pirates had their own heraldry, much like Noble Houses of Europe.

Pirates would hide their flags from plain sight. They would only unfurl their banners when stalking targeted ships. They would suddenly spring the flag from cover, displaying to their prey their intent to rob and plunder.

Now if you were some poor merchant ship who was suddenly ambushed on the high seas, your greatest fear was seeing THIS flag.

If you saw a RED Pirate flag unfurled that meant you were in serious trouble. Pirates who used red flags intended no mercy for their prey and were going to kill and do unspeakable things to whomever they captured, even if they surrendered and begged for their lives. Red flag pirates were torturous, murdering bastards who would probably laugh as they set you on fire or tossed you into the sea with weights tied to your ankles.

What you wanted to see was a white pirate flag.

Pirate flags that had white (or lacked red generally) were from pirate crews who were more reasonable. Generally if you surrendered to these pirates (either immediately or after a short battle), the worse they would do is steal your valuables, most of your food and maybe abduct some of your crew. After that they’d let you go peacefully. They would usually kill you only if you fought to try to stop them. If you happened to be belligerent and refused to give them your supplies, they would probably torture you or threaten to torture you.

Defeating your opponent isn’t just skill at arms. There’s a mental component to combat and sometimes you can defeat an opponent before you even cross swords.

If you are a pirate with a red flag, here is what your opponent is going to be thinking.

“Okay that pirate ship is coming for me. If I surrender or do nothing, they are definitely going to kill me. If I fight back, they MIGHT kill me. But if I fight back, maybe I’ll kill them before they kill me. I might even be able to win and go home. I think I’m going to fight back.”

If you are a pirate with a non-red flag, here is what your opponent will be thinking.

“Okay that pirate ship is coming for me. If I surrender or do nothing they are probably going to let me go free if I let them steal everything. If I fight back I might be able to win. If I fight back though, I could lose, be captured and then tortured to death in front of friends. Combat is unpredictable, I could be killed fighting before the battle is over. If I die I won’t be able to go home, get a drink, make love to a woman and live a peaceful life. I think I’ll take my chances with surrendering.”

Contrary to what you may think, it is a poor sign of a warrior to seek battle over capitulation. Fighting is unpredictable. On the high seas, pirates defined success by captured treasures, not the number of people they killed. Sailors knew this. This is why when pirate offered fair terms their enemies surrendered almost immediately.

If you back a man into a corner, he will fight to survive. If you back a man into a corner and give him a way to escape unharmed, there’s a good chance that man will take the escape route.

This is why professional armies don’t massacre their prisoners. It’s why armies take prisoners in the first place. If you have an enemy surrounded, that enemy faces a choice. Fight and likely die or surrender and likely live. It’s much harder to have a man fight knowing he can surrender than fight until he stops breathing.

Facing death when it’s the only option is easy. Facing death when you want to survive is hard.

Now here comes the brutal part.

As your enemy runs through that corridor of escape you strike HARD. Your enemy thinks they are safe. That they still have a clear path to run away. Then you attack them at their most unsuspecting. Take advantage of their weakness.

This is a tactic that is used in battles of annihilation. Where the objective is to annihilate enemy spirit, not just manpower. There are countless examples of this used in history. But there is one example that chills my very soul when I think back on it.

Napoleon’s Folly

It was the year 1812. Napoleon had just realized he couldn’t conquer Russia. Napoleon’s campaign to dominate the largest European kingdom had ground to a halt. He could win on the battlefield, but an extended conflict would ultimately accomplish nothing. The Russians refused to surrender, even when their own capital had been seized and the Tsar had fled. Facing an impossible situation, Napoleon ordered a withdrawal.

Now the Russians could have counterattacked, encircled Napoleon and tried to capture him with their superior numbers and knowledge of the land. What they did was worse. They let the French walk back the way they came.

The French army marched back through lands they had already conquered. These areas had been picked clean of food. In their places was less than nothing. Napoleon’s grand army, the largest on Earth at that time, was cut off from supplies. This was literally as the Russian winter was beginning.

But they could still escape. The Russians were only behind them. So they started walking back.

Yellow line represents French invasion into Russia. Black line indicates retreat. The thickness of the line represents amount of men.

All the while, the Russians bled them with raids. Mounted horsemen, Irregular militias. Pin prick attacks from a thousand directions. But never a concentrated military attack. The Russians kept bleeding the French. Bit by bit by bit.

The French couldn’t turn around and retaliate. The invasion had failed and now all they wanted to do was go home. They thought they would be safe if they just kept walking west. And they kept getting more and more hungry. The weather became worse and worse.

This is when the Grand Army began to break down. Deserters abandoned the army in droves. Their equipment was insufficient for fighting in winter and broke down in unrelenting cold. And the Russians kept circling their flanks. Never surrounding them. Never stopping them from retreating.

So the French kept walking west. There was still a chance they probably thought. If they endured a few more days, a few more hundred miles, they could make it. They kept weakening themselves. Structure and order were undone as desperation infected the French ranks. They lost whatever advantage they may have had fighting the Russians directly and weakness began to suffocate them. Hunger, disease and deprivation on a massive scale.

The retreat from Russia lasted from October to December of 1812. By the time the Grand Army had entered friendly territory, they had been reduced to barely 20,000 emaciated survivors.

And that’s how you destroy an army of 700,000 men. You give them hope of escape.

The Nurse

“Today I woke up feeling like I had a hangover. I’m starting my 4 day break from the ICU, after working 6 of the last 8 days. I drug myself down the stairs and starting cleaning house as I normally do on my days off. I glanced at myself in the mirror at the bottom of my stair case. Horror. My face blatantly shows the pure exhaustion that I feel, and my hair looks a complete mess. “Thank god I’m off work today and my patients won’t have to see this worn out version of myself” is my first thought.

People who aren’t nurses always tell me, “You only work three days a week? Wow! That must be great. I wish I had your schedule!”..Only three days a week? ONLY!? I wake up at 4:30AM, shake off my fatigue, drive an hour to work, and then begin my scheduled 12 hour shift. 12 often turns into 13 hours or even more depending on the patient load and if I were able to keep up with my charting. When I’m done and finally clock out, I drive home arriving around 8PM, where I strip out of my scrubs and collapse onto the couch where I snuggle my cats and tell my husband about my day until I pass out from exhaustion. I slip upstairs to bed, to the disbelief of my husband that I could possibly be so tired, and I set my alarm and prepare for my next shift.

ONLY 36 hours a week. But does anyone who’s not a nurse know what those 36 hours consist of? Juggling all my nursing tasks for each individual patient while also trying to communicate with the doctors, pharmacists, respiratory therapists, PT, OT, social work, our aides, the patients themselves, and their families?! Yes, that’s right, I communicate with all of these people on a daily basis. I am personal coordinator for my patients. I am their voice, their advocate. I must be aware of my patients needs at all times. Room 101 is going up stairs to cath lab at 0900. 102 wants their pain medicine at 0915. 103 needs to be turned at 0930. Got it. My mental check list is a never ending dynamic that I must prioritize and rearrange constantly.

My job is scary. Always thinking, always analyzing, ALWAYS aware of my actions. I could cause a patient to lose their life if I am not critically thinking about everything that I do and every medication that I give. Is this dosage appropriate, does this patient need this medication? It is all my responsibility to keep the patient safe.

Even when I am doing everything that I can it isn’t always enough. I’ve had family members displeased that I took a little longer to answer a call light. I’m sorry that I couldn’t get you a coke right away, I was busy titrating a lifesaving medication in the room right next to yours. I have been asked by a family member if I were qualified to even be a nurse, surely I was too young for that. I have been told that I am too weak to help lift a patient when in reality I can lift more weight that I weigh. Nursing is hard. I take all these comments and offer a kind response to remain professional even though it can make me feel really small at times. Not feeling appreciated is hard when all I am trying to do is help.

I have been there when a patient said their lasts words before being intubated and never being able to come off of the vent. I have been there as a patient has taken their last breaths on the earth. I have been there when a patient has decided that their body can no longer fight, and they would like to receive comfort care. I have provided comfort care as family members are silent, with tears streaming down their faces, as I turn the lifeless body of their once resilient family member. I have been there when a doctor has told a healthy, active patient in front of their spouse that they have stage 4 cancer, and will not survive. I have stood and held my tears to remain strong for family members who have had their hearts shattered by the news that their loved ones will not be coming home again. I have sobbed on my way home from work because my heart is shattered too. I am so sorry that you have to go through these things. I am so sorry that your loved one has cancer. I am so sorry that myself and the doctors couldn’t get your loved one to wake back up after being sedated on the ventilator. Nursing is hard. I am human. I care about my patients. How could I not? My heart breaks along with my patients and their family members. Then I go home and try to pretend that I have not been broken during my shift. I don’t want to burden my husband with my sadness, and I need to pull it together so I can go back to work in the morning and do it again.

So how do I do it? How do all nurses do it? How do we manage ONLY 36 hours a week? Because nursing is beautiful. I have been there as a scared patient on a ventilator has woken up so I held her hand and told her that everything would be okay. She could not speak as she had a lifesaving breathing tube down her throat. Somehow she managed to grasp a pen with her weak hands and wrote “I love you guys.” My heart exploded with joy. I have provided comfort to someone when they were far from comfortable. I have been there when a patient has come off of a ventilator after being on it for a week, and watched as they cried and said they were so happy to be alive. I helped bring that person relief. I have bought lip gloss for an elderly patient whose son forgot to bring in her lipstick. The smile on her done up face was priceless as she put on the lip gloss to complete her look. I have made a patient genuinely happy even though she is sick and in the critical care unit. I have been there providing comfort care to a dying loved one and family members have hugged me and thanked me for being the angel that their family member needs. Nursing is beautiful. Life is beautiful. I watch lives change, I watched lives end, and I watch lives get a second chance because of the care and medicine that I have provided.

Nursing is hard. Nursing is stressful. Nursing is exhausting. It drains me both physically and mentally. I come home tired, sweaty, and defeated. Not all days are good days. Nursing is not all sunshine and rainbows. But nursing is my life. I dedicate my life to saving the lives of others. Those break through moments when a patient miraculously recovers, when a patient holds your hand and tells you how thankful that they are for you, and the moments when myself and a patient can share in a good laugh. The feeling of pride I feel when my patient came in on a ventilator but walks out at discharge, makes it all worth it. All the wonderful, precious moments are why I love nursing. The great moments are what get myself and my coworkers through the long, difficult 12 hour shifts. Thank god for fantastic coworkers. My coworkers are like my family. I know that they understand the mental turmoil that I go through after a hard day. Only nurses understand truly what nurses go through.

So the next time that you want to tell a nurse that it must be great to work ONLY 36 hours a week, please be mindful of what those 36 hours are like. Give a nurse a hug today, and be thankful that we continue to do what we do, and don’t judge us when we drink a little extra wine. If it were easy, everyone would do it.

Sincerely,

the exhausted,

but still smiling ICU nurse.”

“Men Deserve To Be Lonely!” Responding To Backlash Over ‘The Male Loneliness Epidemic’

“Shoe, I don’t think you’ll ever know how much these videos mean, but thank you. It’s absolutely heart-warming to realise that not everyone in this world is crazy and I don’t have to feel so isolated, that not everything has to be a war, that I could go outside and not be scared to socialise based on things of which I have no control. Thank you.”

Confession of the Day

We got married almost 3 years ago. She started having an affair with her coworker 1 year ago. I got to know that because I saw his car outside my house one day. I had my suspicions. I hired a PI and gathered evidence that she was having an affair with him. I was angry.

Then I got a call from the coworker’s wife that she came to know about the affair. She only had texts they used to send but I have all the receipts of their hangouts. Together we decided to confront them. We used to meet up a lot. She told me she had suspected his affair since her pregnancy. They have 3 children together. One day we had an idea that we should sleep with each other as revenge.

We did and not going to lie it felt good. We have been meeting and having sex for a while. She is an amazing woman. I would say she is better at some things in bed than my wife. Mostly, I am very angry towards my wife. Because in some of her texts with her affair partner she and AP made fun of AP’s wife. Saying things like she has gained weight, her vagina was destroyed and other disgusting stuff. I cannot believe that she would say something like this while being a woman. She even made fun of my fertility issues saying that I am not a man because the chances of me having kids is very low.

I do not feel bad about my affair. I like the sex life I had with AP’s wife way more than my wife. She hardly ever gives me oral but expects me to give her one. At least AP’s wife was more enthusiastic about it and it was the best oral I ever had. AP’s wife wants to tell his husband.

I guess we are both tired about carrying out the revenge affair. We both got carried away. We were both so driven by the revenge that we got addicted to it.

I will confront my wife soon. I already have the divorce papers ready. Since we do not have a joint account or marital assets it will be easy for us.

AP’s wife might have some problems because they have kids but she has the power to take him to cleaners. I know I sound like an awful person. But I am already checked out of my marriage.

What are some common misconceptions about happiness?

Last weekend, my boyfriend asked me to make some creme brulee, so I did. After dinner, I served the dessert.

My boyfriend then pulled out from his pocket a small spoon with an owl on it and handed it to me. I love owls very much (I have a lot of owl things around the house). He told me this is the designated spoon for creme brulee – just for me.

I was happy. And he, after finishing the creme brulee, also was happy.

I find that a lot of people, myself a few years ago included, tend to think and look for big things to be happy in life, like a big house, a fancy car, a steady career,… But then, I learned that, it doesn’t take much for you to be happy.

Life is a difficult journey, lots of things we have to deal with every day. But if you try to collect small and small pieces of happiness along the way, you will be much happier.

Couple finds cats in new home. Guess how they responded.

What did you do when you saw someone stealing while on the job?

I laughed and laughed. He was a maintenance guy at Nabisco back when Nabisco had a Houston facility and he decides to steal a big bench grinder. It maybe weighed a hundred pounds and would have cost around eighty or ninety dollars. Anyway, he couldn’t get it past the guard house so he decided to back his truck up to the building and drop the bench grinder into the bed of the truck from the top of the second floor roof, that would be about a thirty foot fall. Now just doing this in my head and playing fast and loose with the numbers I’m figuring that the bench grinder is going to exert somewhere around ten thousand pounds of impact force when it meets the bed of that truck, and I stood back and smiled.

The grinder hit just in front of the third member and went through the bed of that truck like a cannon shot. It was fabulous!

Man Dies Car Accident; Learned The Truth About The Matrix (NDE)

What screams “I’m educated, but not very bright”?

While living in Atlanta, I met a guy who told me he wanted to move to New Zealand. I was a little surprised. At the time, it wasn’t a country you heard Americans talk about often, at least not in Georgia.

He was a culinary arts graduate though, and in my country (Jamaica) they tend to be pretty cultured people. Partially because of the classes but also because it attracts a lot of upper-middle class students (not sure why!). So I figured this guy likely just knew something I didn’t.

“Why do you want to move to New Zealand?” I asked.

“Because they speak English!” he answered. “I don’t want to have to learn another language.”

I puzzled over this in silence for a moment and then I asked. “Ok, but that’s an interesting choice just for English. I mean, why not Britain?”

“Well, I don’t know what language the British speak,” he responded.

I thought he was joking so I burst out laughing, but I soon realized he wasn’t joining in. “Wait….are you serious??”

“Yes, it’s not like I’ve ever googled that or anything.”

“England is part of Britain…” I hinted, still wondering if maybe he was just toying with me.

Nope. He started to get angry. “I don’t know what language they speak either.”

I was flabbergasted. “DUDE…what language do you think THE ENGLISH speak??”

“I just told you I don’t know,” he started to say, until it dawned on him. He stared at me in awkward silence for a moment and then he got up and left, lol.

He never spoke to me again. 😂

I don’t remember his name or even how we met, but every so often, I think about him and wonder if he’s gotten any smarter with time.

Can you tell me about a time that you sued someone in civil court and won?

While living in a housing community, one morning I returned to where I left my car the previous night, it was gone. Wondering why someone would steal such a crappy car, I called the local police. I wanted a police officer to come out and take a report. Instead, the officer asked me over the phone where the car was removed(address), and license plate number. While we were talking on the phone, other community tenants were wandering the parking lot looking for their car too. The officer informs me that my car was at a local low yard and had been impounded with twelve other cars. It seems the community had issued new parking permits yet failed to notify ALL the tenants.

With a ride from a friend, off I go to the impound lot. When I arrive, I’m welcome by many young retired gang bangers covered with jail and prison colored tattoos. They hold my car hostage, demanding over two hundred dollars I didn’t have to lose. After I pay the ransom, I lean over the counter getting as close to the cashiers face as I can. I tell him I will be suing their company, and it will cost them far more than I’m paying. He responded, laughing, “I hear that threat a dozen times a day”. I respond, “get a good look at my face so you’ll remember me later as the one person who actually did sue you!”

Due to rampant predatory towing, in 2004, California signed into law a detailed code and section listing nearly 12 specific criteria that a towing company must preform prior to impounding a car. No towing companies ever satisfy these requirement. That same law listing the requirement also lists the penalties for towing company and possibly security staff non-compliance. I’m my case, it was four times the extortionist tow charge that they charged.

Off to court I go, filed and waited several months for scheduled court date. When our court date arrives, the company didn’t bother to appear. I was awarded everything I asked for, plus interest.

Off again I go to the tow yard with copy of court order demanding payment, they told me to “pound sand!” The next day the towing company attempted to appeal the order not knowing that you cannot appeal an order issued on a case in which you failed to appear.

Now the fun starts. Off to the Sheriffs Department with my court order to request a till tap levy. Due to the sheer volume of deadbeats in Orange County, this task takes another nine months to arrive. After nearly a year since my car was stolen and held for ransom, the Sheriffs department forcibly collected over a thousand dollars in restitution, penalty, and interest, from a very angry business owner. When it was all over and I’d received my money, I went back to the towing yard and thanked them for stealing my car.

How do I deal with a neighbor who insists on telling his kids to play in my yard? They’re always climbing my tree and messing up my yard while his yard is immaculate. What should I do or say?

I am Answering the question. I am not the one who asked it. I said how I handled it. To the one who asked it.

I am single. No girlfriend or wife to keep me company. I bought a house in a really nice neighborhood. After settling in one weekend I decided to go for a swim in my pool. Lo and behold, there were kids already in there. I thought, am I in the wrong house? I pinched myself. Nope I am in my home. So I sat outside to watch the kids to make sure they stay safe while swimming. After a couple hours they got out and left, saying hi as they left. Just as they were leaving. I told the kids that I really do not want anyone in my pool except me or my family, because of liability issues. Plus I am afraid the kids will urinate in the pool. (I did not tell them that.) So I told them my pool is off limits. They looked at me as if to say “Whatever “. Then they left.

It was OK for a couple days. Then one Saturday I heard the sound of someone in my pool. So outside I sit and watch the neighborhood kids. Like I said before I am single. With no companion. I had always wanted a dog. I thought not only would I have a life companion, I would also have a way to guard my home. So one day I brought my friend home. I installed a dog door and got him a huge comfy dog bed. Now since my dog has access to the back yard I posted warning signs by the gate to state “Guard dog on premises. Do not enter.” Did not think too much about it. Now since I got a friend I wanted to be active with him. We go on walks, go to the park to let him stretch his legs and run, as well as mine.

One morning I heard the doorbell and the dog barking to let me know someone is at the door. So I got up and went to the door. There were kids with towels standing at my door. I asked what they wanted. They told me they are afraid of my dog, and could I put him up so they could swim. I told them “I am sorry, but you are going to have to find another place to play.” I also told them every once in a while it would be OK, but only if they asked first and one of their parents was there to supervise them.” I never heard from them again. I am not saying you should do this, but that is how I solved my issue. Also I am glad I got a dog. He is my best friend and goes with me pretty much everywhere. Where you see me, you see Kronos.

9 SHOCKING Retirement Statistics…We’re In Trouble

What scares you most in life?

It started so innocently. I asked my son to get me something out of the refrigerator. I forgot the word “refrigerator”. I pointed to it and said get me something out of “that.”

I opened the mail once and I received a ticket for running a red light. A camera saw it and I could view what it saw. It was early in the morning and I never tried to stop when the light was red. I could have killed someone. No cars were coming. I don’t remember even being there. Twice I have pulled out of a parking lot and for some reason, I touched the gas pedal hard instead of the brake. I have taken two driving tests by the VA. I passed. I have to focus on every aspect of driving. My driving days are numbered.

My doctor has given me two tests for dementia. Part of a test involves her giving me five words like “apple” to remember. Minutes later, when I am asked to repeat the words, I remember maybe two. I’ve seen a specialist for a four hour session. Drawing a clock, etc. are part of the test.

I have minor to mild dementia. It’s hard to scare me but dementia sure does.

I write and forget grammar rules I’ve known for years.

Any disease is a label, it doesn’t define me. I get to choose what defines me. I was diagnosed with dementia three years ago and I’m fighting it like hell.

Never take for granted looking in a mirror and knowing who you are. Someday I fear I will have no clue who the hell the person is that’s looking back at me.

I plan to fight dementia as hard as I can. I hope it will be years before I slip into total darkness.

The Rise and Fall of the American Mall

What bad experience had you saying “I will never buy from that company or use their service ever again”?

U-Haul

(What I believe should happen to the company)

My wife was moving from Virginia to Ohio, had a U-Haul reservation, and showed up on Saturday morning to pick up her truck. There was no truck, they had rented it out to somebody else, who showed up earlier that Saturday without a reservation. When asked about why they had done that, they blamed us for not being there earlier, on an 8–12 pick up window, when we showed up at 9:00.

Within an hour, we had a Ryder truck. However, later that afternoon, when we were nearly done packing up her stuff, U-Haul called to say they had her truck ready. We said “no” in very definitive terms. Sure enough, two weeks later, when my wife got her credit card statement, U-Haul had charged her for the rental in spite of not having the truck. The customer service representative at U-Haul was inflexible on the charge, stating that they had a truck for her, and it was her fault that she didn’t pick it up.

Never again, they suck. If you rent with them, it will happen to you.

China proposes a new domestic EUV lithography machine plan: “super large lithography factory”!

Wow, China is very innovative by proposing to build EUV lithography as an infrastructure project to get the advantage of large scale production.

This is a great idea as chips will always be needed in the future and it’s applications will be in every product.

By consolidating all the chips manufacturers together one can reduce the price of chips significantly.

No other country will be able to compete as it will be integrated in the infrastructure project. China will be self sufficient all the way through the 21st century.

If your car is stolen, and then you just so happen to stumble across it parked in the street, are you legally allowed to steal it back then and there without calling the police or anything in the USA?

My friend had something like this happen, the rented garage where he worked on his race car was broken into and burgled. They didn’t take the car but took a set of wire wheels with Dunlop Race Tires (a special order option for wet conditions) on them, along with all his tools, etc. He filed a police report.

Well, a week later my friend is downtown and sees an MG B parked at the curb, with his tires and wheels on it. He knew they were his because he had marked them with chalk showing which locations on the car they were on.

He went to a payphone on the same block called the police, and went back to stand by the car.

A cop showed up within a few minutes. He explained to the police officer, and. They waited a while, but the owner didn’t come back.

The police took all the information off the car and called a tow truck.

They eventually tracked down the owner of the car, who was related to the people who rented him the garage. They searched his garage and found all my friend’s tools and other things that were stolen.

The guy was arrested, tried and sent to jail.

What’s the coolest death in history?

I’d vote it would be Ben L. Salomon who was an army Dentist during WWII. In June 1944 he volunteered to replace a wounded surgeon due to there not being much need for a dentist during combat when all hell broke lose.

The Japanese General Saito, after taking massive casualties and being pushed back so far, ordered his remaining 3000-5000 to advance to attack the American forces and die with honor. Outside the medical tent Captain Salomon saw a Japanese soldier bayonet some of the wounded soldiers. He grabbed a nearby rifle and killed the Japanese soldier and went back to tending the wounded inside the medical tent. At that point the defensive line collapsed, unbeknown to Salomon, and two more Japanese soldiers ran into the tent. Salomon clubbed both of them with the rifle, then shot one and bayoneted the other. Four more Japanese solder started crawling under tent. He shot one, bayoneted another one, knifed the third, and head-butted the fourth, allowing one of the wounded soldiers to shoot him. Realizing the dire situation, he ordered the medics to evacuate the wounded. Meanwhile he stayed to provide cover for the soldiers evacuating.

When the military retook the area 15 hours later they found Captain Salomon’s body slumped over a machine gun with 76 wounds from being shot and bayoneted (autopsy revealed 24 of them were inflicted before death), and the bodies of 98 Japanese soldiers piled in front of his position. Based on the blood trail of the wounded Captain, Salomon relocated the machine gun 4 times to maintain a clear field of fire due to the build up of piles of bodies.

Ben L. Salomon is pretty much the embodiment of “Going Out in a Blaze of Glory”

The Feline Couple Came to the Family’s Doorstep Every Day

Nice story.

My wife is a parasite and I feel stuck

My wife (37f) and I (38m) and I have been married for 11 years, together for a few years before that, and have known each-other for over 20 years. We met online when she was 16 and still in high school, and I was 17 and just starting college. For the sake of this rant we’ll call her Connie.

Connie and I lived several states away and, at first, there was some attraction on her part – but I just wanted to stay friends. Over several years we grew closer and decided to have a long distance relationship. I was always awkward with girls in high school and it continued into adulthood. With Connie things just felt natural. After a couple years, when we were talking about meeting in person, she destroyed me. She let me know that she had been having multiple other online relationships and one of these men came to meet her and she wanted to be with him.

Looking back, the smart thing to do would have been to end the story there. Nearly a year later she reached out to me, saying she was sorry and that she missed our friendship. I decided to give friendship another chance and, for a while, it worked. She had a couple other relationships. We’d talk and text regularly. But, over time, the old feelings came back. I admitted them to her and she said she felt the same.

We decided to give things another shot. Eventually she came to visit me and then we would alternate visits. We talked about her coming to live with me, and she did. She worked for a national chain store, so the plan was for her to simply transfer locations. She didn’t do that. Instead she quit. After a couple attempts at finding work, she asked if she could stay at home and take care of the house. Cook, clean, etc. I agreed, since we didn’t really have many expenses. She also refused to get her own bank account, instead using mine and calling everything ‘our’ money. Looking back, the red flags are so blatantly obvious – but I was young and in love.

She never cleaned and rarely cooked.

Instead we ordered out most of the time, wasting any money I had saved. We got several pets, at her insistence. She begged me for over a year to get her pregnant because she wanted a baby. I said I wanted to get married first, which is what ended up happening. When my daughter was an infant we bought a house in order to have more space. She also wanted to be nearer to one of her world of warcraft friends, who we’ll call Aaron.

It was because of Aaron I learned of her fixating behavior.

She will find a male friend online, become ‘besties’ with them, and then eventually find someone else. After Aaron it was Roy. Roy lived further away, but was in a bad relationship with his own wife (ironic) and suicidal. Connie begged me to let him come stay with us until he could get on his feet, admitting she’d already invited him. Defeated, I agreed since I didn’t want to make someone homeless.

He lived with us for a year before he was able to get a job. He is still living with us nearly 9 years later. And to be quite honest it’s because of him I haven’t gone completely insane yet. Connie still barely does any housework. Roy is the one who does the dishes, laundry, and yardwork. All of it.

He does not pay rent, but Connie has access to his bank account and regularly spends his money to the point of overdraft. In the interim years I’ve mostly separated my money from her. There is a bank account she does not have access to, with some savings and from which I pay our bills. If I didn’t do this, she would spend me to overdraft as well. Some of my paycheck goes into a shared account for her, which she regularly overdrafts. After Roy lived here for a while she found another man to be friends with and the cycle continued.

We have two children now, and she barely spends any time with them. Preferring instead to smoke weed (it’s legal here) and play video games for the entirety of the day. Sometimes she cooks, sometimes she’ll even straighten up a bit. However she has filled my house to the brim with clutter. Every room has boxes and boxes of useless shit. Some of it untouched.

I knew she had mental health issues when we were dating, but they have gotten worse and, with the use of tik-tok, she has weaponized them against me. Every time I criticize her for ordering stuff we don’t need (such as groceries that we already have, or junk we will never use) she defends herself by saying she has ADHD and it’s a symptom. She probably does have it, but she’s undiagnosed. She won’t go to a psychiatrist for it. Her medical doctor prescribed her antidepressants, which have helped, but not with everything. The thing is, I have plenty of friends with ADHD. They view it as a part of them which needs to be addressed and worked around/through. She sees it as an excuse to do whatever she wants without consequences.

Recently we went on vacation and she asked if her her latest friend, who is recently divorced and looking for jobs in our area, could stay at our house while we were away (though Roy would be there). I agreed, since it felt bad to make him spend several thousand dollars a week on a hotel room. He’s still here, and it’s been weeks. He’s done some Zoom interviews and occasionally does door dash to make extra cash, but he’s still here. We’ll call him Joe.

Connie and I have hit a breaking point and are talking about divorce. After a long conversation she’s admitted she sees nothing wrong with her behavior, and finds it aggravating that I try to ‘fix’ her. I realized then that there is nothing for me in this relationship anymore. She’s also admitted to having feelings for Joe, and he is in love with her.

The problem now is money. We have 60k left on our house and just bought a new car. She wants to keep the house and the car when we split. I’m fine with this because I would rather live somewhere that isn’t full of her garbage and I don’t drive. But she can’t pay for them, and no bank in their right mind would give her a loan to buy me out. Even if they did, she couldn’t pay it on her own (either Roy or Joe or both would be paying for it).

I want to be done with this relationship so badly, but I feel like I’m trapped here. My kids love their school and I don’t want to make them move. I’m more than happy to get my name off of the house and the car, get some money from the equity, and start over. It would be great to take my kids each weekend and actually DO things with them. But I don’t see a path to get there. I feel trapped in my own house, which is becoming increasingly full of my wife’s pets (both human and otherwise) and all of her garbage.

Even though I want out, I still love Connie (in a way) and don’t want to hurt or destroy her – even though it’s probably better than what she deserves. She first broached the topic of divorce, but now she gets sad regularly thinking about it – and is confused at why I am so often upset with her. All of the stress of having her, and Roy, and Joe, and two young children is eating away at me. And I feel ashamed of the divorce. Ashamed that I couldn’t fix her. Ashamed that I couldn’t put my foot down and say no. Ashamed that there are multiple people living in MY house that I don’t want here. I haven’t told my extended family or friends yet, though I am going out with a friend tomorrow and plan to tell him. And we haven’t told the kids either. It’s all eating me up inside, but just typing this out has helped. I hope it wasn’t too bad of a read. And I hope I can get through this situation sooner rather than later.

(Reddit)

I asked DIGITAL NOMADS how they MAKE MONEY in Bali

Nice Picture

The How And Why Of Heroin Addiction

Let me explain it to you, I’ve been an opiate addict for a long time and tried many drugs.

Drugs that are ‘uppers’ have the most ‘obvious’ euphoria.

For example if you take adderall/coke/meth/speed/MDMA you will get this shining bright euphoria, self confidence, energy, and other drug-specific feelings (for meth like you are king or for MDMA like you love everyone).

However, you owe these drugs back what they delivered to you.

After a meth binge, or lots of MDMA use, or staying up all night on coke you will feel like shit.

To an extent this aspect is similar to an alcoholic hangover.

On the other hand, for many people who experiment with heroin they are underwhelmed (not including IV usage, but most experimenters rarely ever IV first time).

They just feel good, chill, happy, but they feel like this spooky drug ‘heroin’ hasn’t delivered. They are just mellow.

Oh obviously it has all been a lie they will think.

Heroin isn’t spooky, it’s chill.

It’s not addictive like everyone else thinks. It doesn’t make you do stupid shit or stay up all day and hallucinate like amphetamines or coke. It doesn’t empty your serotonin like MDMA or give you a hangover like alcohol.

People tend to just think oh, what a nice drug.

So the next day they wake up and everything is normal. No headache or shitty feeling–just a slight afterglow of that nice feeling. Oh it was cheap as well! It only cost $10 for a whole night of being high! I thought people said heroin was expensive?

And then next weekend comes… There are all these drugs I could do but I liked heroin. It didn’t ‘fuck me up,’ I could still think clearly. No hangover. No feeling like shit later. I still was awake. It just made me happy and content with life. Oh and it’s only $10! Well, I should get some more for the whole weekend.

This is great!

I will use Heroin on the weekends now!

Now let’s say this person works and has responsibilities. He knows he can’t go into work drunk, or on MDMA, or high. So he doesn’t. It’s actually simple.

But heroin… Well the user might actually find they do better work on heroin.

Instead of being sad or grumpy or depressed with his job… he is just… happy. Mellow. Content. Everything is fine and the world is beautiful.

It’s raining, it’s dark, I woke up at 5:30AM, I’m commuting in traffic. I would have had a headache, I would have been miserable, I would have wondered how my life took me to this point.

This point I’m at right now. But no, no, everything is fine. Life is beautiful. The rain drops are just falling and in each one I see the reflection of every persons life around me. Humanity is beautiful. In this still frame shot of traffic on this crowded bus I just found love and peace. Heroin is a wonder drug. Heroin is better than everything else. Heroin makes me who I wish I was. Heroin makes life worth living. Heroin is better than everything else. Heroin builds up a tolerance fast. Heroin starts to cost more money. I need heroin to feel normal. I don’t love anymore. Now I’m sick. I can’t afford the heroin that I need. How did $10 used to get me high? Now I need $100. That guy that let me try a few lines the first time doesn’t actually deal. Oh I need to find a real dealer? This guy is a felon and carries a gun–he can sell me the drug that lets me find love in the world. No this isn’t working, I need to quit.

To answer your question, heroin feels nice.

That’s all, it just feels very nice. Y

ou can make the rest up for yourself. Attach your own half-truths to this drug that will show you the world and for a moment you will feel as clever as Faust.

Redfin Reports San Francisco Is About To Collapse

“I’m happy that we sold our house there a few years ago. I didn’t want to risk that for an AirBnB rental.”

Boxloads of New COVID-19″ Death Darts Arrive at US Military Bases Marked “2023-2024”

World Hal Turner

Box loads of Pfizer’s latest COVID-19 Death Dart, marked with its brand name COMINARTY” are arriving at US Military Bases. The boxes are labelled “2023-2024.” They’re planning another COVID outbreak to steal the Presidential Election (again) next year.

This has got to be one very smart virus; it seems to KNOW that it can only come out when a Presidential Election is coming, so they can demand mail-in paper ballots, and steal the election again; just like they did in 2020.

Except we’re not falling for this again. DO NOT COMPLY.

No more of their death dart, phony, “vaccines. No more masks. No more social distancing, and for damn sure, no more “lockdowns.”

That whole thing was total bullshit for a virus that is no worse than a nasty Flu.

They scammed us in 2020, don’t fall for it again.

This Is What Happens When Men Stop Simping…

Big, big, big changes in the West.

What is the saddest thing you have heard a child say?

“Don’t cry, ma. I know, and I am ready…”

These were words spoken by a 5-year old girl under my care when I worked in a Paediatric Oncology ward a few years ago.

She was a Beta Thalassemia Major patient. A real cutie, i can still remember her curly hair, friendly smiles and she was always very talkative on her good days. She had undergone two bone marrow transplants in the past, but came back with recurrent complications from the procedures.

We tried our best, but she was dying. And she knew it. We were on the verge of crying when we did our morning review that day, and heard her; comforting her parents. She then passed away peacefully in her sleep, after weeks of fighting.

(May you rest in peace, baby girl).

The “American Dream” is actual Slavery (It’s all a Lie)

Outstanding message! It’s such a materialistic world and we’ve been brainwashed to think the more possessions the better. It’s not true. Sad that it takes us all our lives to realize the lie.

The news is full of headlines about ‘China’s economic collapse’ — ignore them

Once again, the Western media Establishment, and sadly some on the left, are talking up an impending economic disaster in China, when the truth is quite the opposite, argues JOHN ROSS

IN THE last four years, covering the period of the Covid pandemic, China’s economy has grown two-and-a-half times as fast as the US, 15 times as fast as France, 23 times as fast as Japan, 45 times as fast as Germany, and 480 times as fast as Britain.

To add in smaller G7 countries, China has grown four times as fast as Canada, and 11 times as fast as Italy.

China’s outperformance of advanced capitalist countries is even greater in per capita terms — a still better measure of productivity changes and potential for increasing living standards.

China’s per capita GDP grew three times as fast as the US, five times as fast as Italy, 44 times as fast as Japan or France, and 260 times as fast as Britain — while per capita GDP fell in Germany and Canada.

China’s outperformance of developing capitalist countries shows the same pattern — China’s per capita 4.4 per cent GDP annual average growth compares to 2.6 per cent in India, 1.3 per cent in Brazil, or 0.9 per cent in South Africa.

What is important about such economic growth, of course, is not abstract statistics but its meaning for the real lives of ordinary people.

The International Labour Organisation data on real, inflation-adjusted, wages shows that up to the latest available data — for most countries to 2022, and for India to 2021 — China’s annual real wage growth was 4.7 per cent.

For Britain it was 0.1 per cent, for the US it was 0.3 per cent, in France it was minus 0.4 per cent, in Germany minus 0.7 per cent and in India minus 1.3 per cent.

Given this enormous economic outperformance by China of capitalist countries, any rational discussion that should be taking place in Western mainstream media about the international economic situation would be, “why is China’s economy hugely outperforming the US and the rest of the capitalist West?” and, “what lessons are to be learned from China’s socialist economy that is so outperforming the West?”

For the left, the issue that needs to be assessed and publicised is, “Why are real wages rising 18 times as fast in China as in the US, 44 times as fast as in Britain, while in France, Germany or India real wages are falling?”

Indeed, the present author would argue that much greater stress should be placed on the latter point. The international left has begun to absorb that China has lifted more than 850 million people out of World Bank-defined poverty in 40 years — by far the greatest poverty reduction achievement in human history.

But it has not yet internalised how rapidly not only the poorest but average living standards are rising in China — far faster than in any Western country.

But, of course, this real economic situation can’t be discussed in the mainstream media, because its conclusions would be too damaging for the capitalist West.

Instead, a type of mad discussion is unfolding, with US claims about China’s economy becoming increasingly bizarre — one might say deranged — as they get further and further out of touch with reality.

President Joe Biden, for example, recently made a speech claiming China’s economic growth rate is “around 2 per cent,” when it was 5.5 per cent in the first half of this year and, as already noted, China’s economy is growing two-and-a-half times as fast as the US.

Biden bizarrely claimed that in China “the number of people who are of retirement age is larger than the number of people of working age” — entirely false, and inaccurate by a figure of many hundreds of millions of people.

Discussion in the US financial media equally refuses to face real facts. Because I am an economist, every morning, after the overall news, I switch on Bloomberg TV to catch up on the latest economic data. Discussion there is like Alice Through the Looking Glass — the book the principle of which is that everything is reversed compared to the real world.

Apparently, according to Bloomberg’s analysis, China’s annual average of 4.5 per cent a year growth in the last four years is an economy in severe crisis, whereas the US’s 1.8 per cent is allegedly strong growth — not to speak of Britain’s 0.1 per cent. Similar rhetoric, out of all contact with factual reality, pervades the Financial Times, The Economist, or the Wall Street Journal.

The left is well used to such US political lying — the completely fake claim that North Vietnamese ships attacked US naval vessels on August 4 1964 in the Gulf of Tonkin, used to launch the Vietnam war, or the equally untrue claim that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction to justify the US invasion, were classic examples.

Today, the US systematically lies about the state of China and its own economy because it is crucial for US capitalism to prevent its own citizens, and close allies, from understanding the real economic trends.

It is further proof, if one were needed, of the truth that if the real world and a theory do not coincide only one of two things can be done. One is to abandon the theory, the other is to abandon the real world.

In this case, the theory is that the US, because it is capitalist, should outperform socialist China. The real world is actual economic performance — in which China continues to outperform the US and other capitalist countries by an enormous margin.

Unable to abandon its theory the US is therefore forced to abandon the real world — hence the demented denial of comparative economic performance noted at the beginning of this article.

While the left should expect lies from capitalism what is rather shameful is that some sections of the left repeat such nonsense — apparently believing that if they put in a few left phrases into an analysis taken from the Western press this constitutes “socialist” commentary.

For example, an article in the New Left Review’s Sidecar called China a “zombie economy.” Some “zombie” when China’s economy is growing anywhere between two-and-a-half times and 480 times as fast as any major capitalist economy.

The real data shows the reality is simple. China has far outgrown any Western capitalist economy for more than 40 years. It continues to do so.

The result in China is by far the world’s most rapid rise in living standards — not only for the poorest but for the whole average population. It is known as the practical advantage of socialism. It is fact. We know why the US has to make up big lies about it. There is no justification for sections of the left echoing them.

How has a mother-in-law offended you?

I’ve been married for 6 years together for 8. Every single year we celebrate both of my husband’s parents birthdays. And every single year they don’t even acknowledge mine or my daughters. We both reach have one daughter from a previous and no children together. My husband spends hundreds on each of their birthdays year after year with custom ordered cake from the fanciest bakery in the area and we don’t get so much as a card. His parents don’t dislike me they just wish he would’ve stayed in a relationship with his ex who he never married but shares one child with. They still hold hope they will get back together after all these years so they pretend we don’t exist. It makes me want to stop showing up on their birthdays but I don’t know how to do that without hurting my husband who has had several private conversations asking them to please atleast acknowledge my daughter on her birthday but to no avail.

Italian Beef Stir Fry

Few ingredients – fast and flavorful!

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

1 pound beef top tip steaks, cut 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 small zucchini, thinly sliced
1 cup cherry tomato halves
1/4 cup fat-free bottled Italian salad dressing
2 cups hot cooked spaghetti
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

Cut beef steaks crosswise into 1-inch wide strips. Cut each strip crosswise in half.
Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic and stir while cooking 1 minute.
Add half of the beef strips. Stir-fry 1 to 1 1/2 minutes or until no longer pink.
Remove with slotted spoon and keep warm.
Repeat with remaining beef strips.
Add zucchini to same skillet. Stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes or until tender-crisp.
Return beef to skillet with tomato halves and dressing. Heat through.
Salt and pepper to taste.
Serve beef mixture over hot pasta.
Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Attribution

From the kitchen of Martin James – Copenhagen, Denmark

Confession of the Day

My fiancé has a micropenis

Wow, it’s almost a relief just to write that down. IRL I have not told a single person- not anyone in my family not my bestie. I really have no one to vent to.

Obviously it’s not a deal breaker for me- I want to spend the rest of my life with him. He is an amazing man, treats me so well, highly intelligent. He is tall, very good looking and fit. He is basically the whole package and I’m so proud to be with him.

Now- his dick. He is 3 inches hard and very thin. Basically the size of my thumb. The one area in this world he is insecure about. It was definitely a shock for me at first. We do have sex often. Pretty much every day without fail. He has magical hands & tongue and he is a very enthusiastic lover-making sure I cum every time. He has a tremendous imagination. We do use toys, such as dildos, sleeves and straps ons from time to time. It’s good and all, but it’s just not the same.

Now here is the real get off my chest stuff. He would ask me if I ever miss a bigger dick. I don’t have it in my heart to tell him ABSOLUTELY YES. I was always a very sexual being and I was very orgasmic from PIV. I absolutely miss cumming from PIV. I absolutely crave that full filling that I don’t get now.

I wake up horny and just crave it.

It’s not a deal breaker because of the amazing man he is and my love for him. He is very much the greatest man I have ever met. I would never cheat- I’ve never cheated on anyone and I won’t start now. But I admit, my mind is dirty and can wonder. I would imagine fucking a big dick while I masturbate- and I would cry with guilt after I cum.

I feel so bad that the world is so unfair. I would read on Reddit about men being so sad and insecure over their average cocks. 5-6 inches and your insecure? Like STFU!!! Whoever, I’m part of the problem myself. I was the girl that previously bragged to her girlfriends about how well endowed my ex boyfriend was. It’s funny how the world works.

The world sucks. We suck.

What is the nicest thing you’ve ever done for a complete stranger and vice versa?

He was the tallest person I had ever seen, and he saved my brother.

It was the early 80’s, and that meant unsupervised play, staying out until you heard your Mom’s voice, or the street lamps coming on.

Our neighborhood, and everything in it, was our playground.

Including our car.

While I was busy building a ramp for my bike, my brother had climbed into our family car, and was doing his best Knight Rider impression.

That’s when I saw him.

A giant. I was stunned as he bolted through our yard. So stunned that I failed to notice our family car backing quickly out of our driveway, building up speed, and heading straight for our neighbors house.

I watched as The giant stepped in front of the car. It was like seeing Superman in real life.

The momentum of the car was slowed, but it didn’t stop, and he struggled to bring it to a stop.

The car, with my brother inside, was still rolling towards our neighbors house.

Then little by little, inch by inch, he stopped the car.

I watched in stunned silence.

He was our quiet neighbor. A single guy in a family neighborhood that kept to himself. His name was John, he was a giant, and the closest incarnation of Superman I’d ever seen.

Oprah DELETES Accounts, LOCKS Comment Section in Maui Fire BACKLASH

Oprah could’ve given $50 or $100 million and not even felt it…. Or she could’ve had cabins put onto her land, far away from her home and shown true charity towards the residents. Instead she showed her true colours and at the first hint of criticism she threw a tantrum, went on the attack and then stopped people from being able to give feedback.

Stressed out PP

When I lived in Shenzhen (ripe out of the ‘States) we had a little dog. We called him ShaoPi, or “PP” for short. He was a good little Bishion breed. He was a mini version, and so didn’t live as long as a normal breed would of.

Anyways, we also had his son; “Super”. Which was a mixed breed. Bishion and Bomei. And he was absolutely one heck of a handsome dog.

One thing, though. He hated my guts.

…

I mean it. He HATED me; with a searing level of disgust and malice. Including biting me, and forcing me to get rabies vaccinations. Ugh!

I was an “outsider” and he “owned” my wife and her ex-boyfriend. And to exert his displeasure on me, he would make messes all over the place, bark non-stop and generally did everything he could to try to chase me away.

Well, that was causing our PP to get super stressed out. And he was a good dog, always trying to straighten out this wayward son. But it was to no avail. Eventually, both dogs were super stressed out, and start a non-stop peeing contest in the house. I mean, they were urinating over everything.

Everything.

And so we would take PP out with us and we did out chores and made our rounds, and it helped some. But, you know, he was so stressed out that he still continued to pee everywhere and over everything.

We knew that there was a problem. But we didn’t know what to do.

…

Then one day, while riding on an elevator there was a really cute 20-something girl all “decked out” wearing nice clothes and makeup going out (probably) on a date. We were also going out. PP was at our feet, and we were making arrangements for an evening dinner.

She was checking out her phone while adjusting her makeup, and sure as shit…

…PP urinated all over her high heels, and her nylons and her dress.

…

She screamed out so loudly that PP jumped back as if electrified….

…

That week we found a home for “Super”, and that was another trial, I’ll tell you what. But the moral of this little story is when people, or loved ones are stressed out…

…do something about it, before things get out of hand!

Todays…

Shi Jiangiao

This is Shi Jiangiao, a Chinese assassin who lived during the Warlord Era (1916-1928) in China.

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Shi came from a family of humble beginnings as her grandfather was a simple farmer and tofu seller. However, that all changed when her father and uncle became decorated soldiers, rising through the ranks in the Chinese military. This helped raise the social status of her family.

In 1925, when Shi was only 19 years old, her father was leading a brigade of soldiers to capture Guzhen, Shandong, when he became surrounded by a warlord by the name of Sun Chuanfang. Sun decapitated her father and had his head mounted on a pike and put on display at a local train station.

Two years later, Sun was disposed of by the Kuomintang (aka Chinese Nationalist Party) who wanted to reunify China, which had become fragmented after the 1911 Revolution, which overthrew China’s last imperial dynasty, the Qing. Sun peacefully retired from his life as a warlord and founded a Buddhist society.

Meanwhile, Shi spent her 20s tracking down Sun who had disappeared without a trace. In 1935, ten years after her father’s death, Shi managed to track Sun down in Tianjin, a major port city close to Beijing. (If you recall, Tianjin was the city that had that major explosion in 2015.)

Shi entered the Buddhist temple and found Sun kneeling in front of the altar. She approached him from behind and shot him several times with a pistol. She did not attempt to flee the scene of the crime but began distributing pamphlets explaining her actions.

Her case drew significant coverage and reached the Nanjing Supreme Court. In the eyes of the law, she was guilty. However, Confucian morality stipulates that one must avenge their parents. Ultimately, the Nationalist government decided to pardon her on the grounds that the assassination was justified because it was an act of filial piety. It also helped her case that the man she had assassinated was guilty of trafficking opium, suppressing strikes by factory workers in Shanghai, and collaborating with the Japanese.

What did someone say to you that instantly made you realize their life was in danger?

While I was working as a Hospice Nurse one of my patients had a great grand daughter that visited often. One day she came in and could hardly walk.

She wouldn’t look at me.

…

I made an excuse to get close to her.

Her eye was almost closed shut and her face was black and blue.

…

I ask her who beat her but she was too scared to talk.

I didn’t wait.

I immediately called 911 just as her boyfriend came in and was going to pull her out of the room.

…

Security came and the boy tried to hit them.

It took 3 police and a taser to get him in their police car.

The poor girl had [1] broken ribs, [2] a ruptured spleen, [3] collapsed left lung and [4] she had a miscarriage the next day.

We made good friends regardless of the age difference and her family is so nice.

I thank God that I didn’t look away and could help her.

I had to be a witness at his trial and he got 40 years for attempted murder and spousal abuse.

Exposing Philippines!

Take a little vacation and look at how the “Global South” looks like. This is the Philippines.

Green Chile Steaks

Ingredients

1/2 pound lean ground beef
1/2 teaspoon Lawry’s Seasoned Salt
1/4 teaspoon Lawry’s Garlic Powder with Parsley
1 fresh green chile, seeded and minced*
3 tablespoons chopped scallion

Instructions

In medium bowl, thoroughly combine all ingredients.
Form into 2 oval steak patties or 4 hamburger patties.
Cook in skillet, broiler or on grill until done.

What accidentally rude things do Americans do while traveling even without realizing it?

Saying “Give me this/that” instead of asking for it.

I was once in a bar in Turkey, watching football (as in kicking a ball with the foot) with some other foreigners, German & Danish IIRC, drinking beer, & nibbling cacik & bread.

A group of American men walked in (I think from the nearby air base). They knew the barman’s name. They asked if the back room was free, & on being told yes, headed for it & commanded the barman to bring them beers – all done by shouting across the bar in English. He smiled to their faces & scowled at their backs. Then he noticed two of us looking at him & looked embarrassed.

A little while later we needed more beer, & it was my turn, so I went to the bar & asked (in Turkish – as we’d all done) for more beer e.g. “beş bira, lütfen”. He still seemed embarrassed, & said something like (IIRC) “You’re OK. You say lütfen” (Turkish for please). In his terms, the Americans were extremely rude. They probably had no idea. We, on the other hand, were at least trying to be polite. We knew how to ask for a beer (or a few), & how to say please & thank you, & understood that was customary.

I expect the Americans would have been very surprised to know that they were constantly being rude to locals.

They’re FINALLY Been Arrested in MAUI,The Rock & Oprah

Thank you for speaking on our Maui brothers and sisters. Thank you James Okeefe also. This is unacceptable as well as unbelievable!!

https://youtu.be/cXv1Cb93OGA

Confession of the Day

I started self directed investing in 2012 with $20k. My first big success was betting on American Airlines after they filed bankruptcy before the merger with US Airlines. It was a 5x return in less than two years. I took that money and bought a house to Airbnb and ended up with about $250k.

I reinvested into the market and made my way all the way up to about $600k during the Covid spurt. Then I began to fuck with options. The first few wins were big for me, $5k, $10k, $20k, etc. then I really started betting big and hit returns over $100k in a single day. I couldn’t stop. The dopamine rush was too good.

The ups were euphoric and the downs sent my mind and body into a total whirlwind of intense emotion. It was the sickest drug. I couldn’t get enough. Nothing else matter other than becoming as rich as possible. And then I finally crossed the $1m threshold…. For only one day.

The next day I the market looked like shit but I was so hard up for my next fix I played anyway. Down $100k – eh it’ll come back, I can’t lose. Down $200k – if Itake the hit now that means I’m a loser, no way. Down $250k – ok I was wrong, time to switch sides and redeem myself. Down $330k – fuck fuck fuck!!! Don’t worry, I’II get it back next week…. And I did. $980k. Nice, almost back to $1m.

And then down. And down. And down.

All of it. Gone. 9 years of building $20k into $1m. Because the high was never high enough and the low was never enough to stop me. I went through deep depression, lots of suicidal thoughts, and darkness I didn’t think I’d come out of. A year of therapy, books, podcasts, support, and I’m doing better. Relapsed once and lost another $90k in a single day, just because I couldn’t lose.

We’re a dopamine nation now. This forum says it all. Gambling at your fingertips and the ever looming reminder that some people actually win and get super rich. At least for a little while. But the highs are never high enough and it never ends. Check yourselves before it’s too late. Day trading can be a real gambling addiction and you really can lose it all no matter how good you are.

I hope this helps save even just one person.

Is there Any Hope for this Once Great City?

Who do you fear the most in your country?

As ridiculous as it sounds, roving bands of young fellas off the estates, typically aged between 10 and 16.

I know some Americans will probably read this and think I’m a right pussy for being scared of a load of kids, but you don’t know man! You weren’t there!

See, the thing is with these kids, be they scallies, chavs, neds, roadmen, townies or whatever you call them in your region, is that typically they appear in large groups, they have little to lose and so don’t care about doing the stupidest shit possible, and they are not afraid to hound you and make your life a misery if you challenge them.

Sure, one on one, I wouldn’t be particularly scared about a 14 year old scal (although they increasingly carry knives and machetes and shit), but the point is that you rarely do encounter them one on one.

And let’s say, there’s a load of them camped outside your nan’s house chucking stones at her windows and you think, “Fuck that, I’ll go chase them off,” what is likely to happen is that they’ll start posturing around you and throwing stones at your head or they might fuck off, but then they’ll find out where you live (if you live nearby) and they’ll start wrecking your house and you might even find your house firebombed. It might sound extreme, but it does happen.

The police are ineffective as they have no respect for the police and, anyway, they’re minors so cannot properly be held accountable unless they do something really bad. And anyway, being tough on crime only goes so far. A more holistic long-term approach to the issue is required, but sadly no government has the vision or appetite to really commit to such policies.

So, essentially, you are powerless to do anything meaningful against them because you will only exacerbate the situation. These kids have the capability to make your life hell. They can make going to the local shops a genuinely nerve-wracking experience, particularly for the elderly and those with disabilities. They can really ruin the atmosphere of otherwise solid working class communities.

And that’s the thing too, it is the working class communities where they live and hang out that suffer the real brunt of their aimless destructive behaviour. You can be somewhat insulated against them if you live away from them or even just on a road they don’t frequent, but if you are forced by circumstance to live where they congregate, then your life can be pretty miserable if you get on their bad side.

And yeah, I’m scared of them. I’m less scared of some actual high up gang leader than I am these kids because at least with the real gang members they’re not interested in you unless you give them a reason to be, whereas, like I said, these kids have nothing to lose and might target you simply because they can and they think it’s funny.

It’s the one thing I really don’t miss about living in more working class areas, which can otherwise be much more friendly and interesting places to live

US efforts to strangle China & reassert hegemony – Jeffrey Sachs, Alexander Mercouris & Glenn Diesen

“Emerging nations fight wars at their borders, declining nations fight wars far away.” ~Chris Hedges

What is the rudest thing anyone has ever done to you in your own house?

My mother-in-law was visiting us in Canada from her home in South Africa. There she had two house servants and a garden “boy” who did all the work. She sat smoking her cigarettes and “supervised”. Staying in my home where I had two children under age 6, a lot of my mornings were spent in child care, household chores, meal planning and all of the hundred other jobs of the Canadian housewife. One morning my mother-in-law sat at the kitchen table drinking coffee I had made and smoking her cigarette (which I had objected to from day one) and told me that I needed to change my routine to do my household chores after everyone had gone to bed so that her day was not “spoiled” by me having to do chores on “her” time.

What legitimate reasons does the US have for prioritizing military goals over economic ones in countering China’s influence in the developing world?

Let’s see

Is there the slighest chance that China will invade USA or any NATO country?

Absolutely not.

The US is impregnable with Canada and Mexico as buffers and the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans as it’s maritime buffers

There is a nuclear deterrent as well

So why else is US prioritizing it’s Military Goals

The Answer is IT HAS TO KEEP FEEDING IT’S MILITARY INDUSTRIES

Critical issues

The US has to keep paying money to keep it’s Defence Industries rich and profitable so that their shares are profitable and so that the Corrupt Senators, Congressmen and Lobbyists get rich

It’s a vicious cycle

Guess how many Senators have more than 30% of their investments in Defense Stocks?

61 – SIXTY ONE

35 Republicans and 26 Democrats

Guess how many Senators have more than 30% of their investments in Tech stocks?

67 – SIXTY SEVEN

38 Democrats and 28 Republicans and 1 Independent leaning to Democrat

Congressmen?

209 – 108 Democrats and 101 Republicans

Of these 51 have more than $ 5 Million worth of stocks

Lloyd Austin has earned $ 4.3 Million after leaving the Pentagon just by sitting on the boards of various Defense Contractors

He doesn’t have 50 grams of brains in that massive skull of his

So the Military Industry in US is like a shark that has to keep swimming

They always need an enemy to keep selling weapons to

They HATE PEACE because any peace means less potential to sell weapons

First it was the Cold War – Weapons sale

Next it was fighting Communism – Weapons Sale

Next it was fighting Saddam & Milosevic – Weapons Sale

Next it was fighting Terror – Weapons Sale

Now it’s fighting Russia and China – Weapons Sales

Tomorrow they may decide India is the enemy and wage a war on India and sell weapons or decide it’s Japan Or even Aliens

Their Military Goals have led to the worst disasters on earth

Vietnam
Cambodia
Laos
Afghanistan
Iraq
Libya
Syria
Ukraine
Taiwan (Next)

They have single handedly led to their deaths more men than Taliban, Al Qaeda, ISIS and Saddam Hussein and Gadaffi COMBINED

They have destroyed countries with their bombs and Agent Orange

Today their Target is China and Russia

They don’t have the balls for a direct fight because a MAD means the evil politicians will also die and they don’t want that

So these proxy wars will be their way of milking and flattening the military defense industries

Basically they are part of a corrupt hellhole with many idiots even today proudly saying how the US Dollar is backed by the US Army

They will be destroyed one day as history is proof of

One day they will collapse when their own people begin to rebel and fight this evil system

Until then these a**holes will keep harrassing everyone and lying to the whole world

I refer only to around 300,000 Evil Americans in US and another 2 Million more brainwashed evil corrupt minions

The other 336.7 Million Americans are very decent and nice people

Eliminate these 2.3 Million a**holes and the US will be back to the Pre Eisenhower era. A Nice Country with genuine morals

OH. MY. GOSH.🤯😟 MUST SEE: Can Americans answer ANYTHING correctly!?

I fully support the movement to require a civics test before voting or even just knowing the difference between a STATE and a COUNTRY would be a start.

Dog-fight between France & Germany. But drag China along. What is the dog-fight about?

Chinese electric cars surprised the world in the 2023 car exhibition.

France started the dog fight. It called for EU investigation if China has subsidized its electric car industry. EU chief took France’s case.

EU Commerce Chamber in China right away told EU that there is no electric car subsidy by Chinese government. What makes China successful in electric car is because China has lots of scientists who work hard to improve their car tech so as to compete in the world, said the Chamber.

German business-people also opposed the EU investigation. Saying it will force China’s to react & counter EU’s unreasonable action. It will harm German economy.

It is a dog fight between France & Germany.

France’s car sales in China accounts for less than 1%. Germany, more than 17%. No need to explain further, right?

France can afford to lose its <1% to weaken Germany’s >17%.

If Germany wants to, Germany can counter target France’s luxury products eg cosmetics & fashion that sell well in China.

Despite objection from German business people, German politicians agreed to EU investigation. … really, politicians do not care about the welfare of the country & its people. They only care about votes ie personal interest.

Has German government subsidized electric car industry? Many times. From internet.

What is more irony is that: when USA subsidized its electric cars under the disguise of Inflation Reduction Act, EU protested & warned USA that EU will also subsidize its electric car industry. Today Germany is subsiding its electric cars industry based on … false accusation as testified by EU Commerce Chamber.

Is it true that Chinese people seemed not to get offended and are too weak to fight back when abused racially because interracial fighting is something very shameful in their cultures?

Chinese do not like direct confrontation. Confrontation is seen as a sign of stupidity. Two thousand years ago, the founder of the Han dynasty summed it up: 吾寧鬥智不鬥力: I prefer to fight with my wits, not by power. From a very weak start, he thrashed 項羽 Hsiang/Xiang Yü, his main rival, whose army was much more powerful.

Fighting is for children and inferior people. Look at it this way: a four year old can strike out in anger, but is incapable of coming up with a better plan.

Chinese always prefer to use strategy rather than brute force. 難忍能忍大丈夫: a powerful cultural standard is that a real hero is someone who can say, “My head is bloody but unbowed.”

This is strength, not weakness, and does not mean that Chinese will not fight back. Look what happened to the mighty Japanese warlords when they attacked China. The Chinese in general avoided direct confrontation, drew the Japanese in, and overcame them. China has stood off some of the most powerful armies in the world. Even though the Mongols eventually conquered China, it took them decades and weakened them so much they were unable to conquer Viet Nam (of course there are other factors, such as VN fighting prowess, but this is an essential factor.) In China, the Mongols were close to their home but suffered great losses at Chinese hands. Compare that to the European powers, where the “flower of chivalry” was butchered in short order on their home territory by Mongols far, far from their home base.

I do not know how much the person asking the question knows about China, but I would guess that most people have heard of China’s long tradition of martial arts. Chinese will fight, but consider it uncivilized, immature, beneath an adult’s dignity.

We left America for Police putting guns to our heads. Part 1-2

This channel is to bring the awareness to the world of the beautiful continent of Africa. My intentions are to show the development, people, property and investment opportunities. All the adventures and opportunities that is for people to take advantage of. Also showing how America is not necessarily the perfect place for people to live.

ASMR: What it is, what it stands for and how it works

What is ASMR? How does ASMR work?

What does ASMR stand for?

Are you “ASMR sensitive”? Do you get ASMR tingles?

Is this the first time you’ve heard of ASMR which stands for “Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response”?

It might not mean what you think it means.

Millions of people experience ASMR “tingles” when exposed to certain stimuli.

Triggers like hair brushing, whispering, finger tapping, clicking, chewing and caring role-playing send shivers down some people’s spine.

These same ASMR triggers are actually “misophonic” triggers for others; meaning these sounds cause negative responses.

For example: nails on a chalkboard will drive some people nuts but others aren’t affected.

The Why Files answers these questions and raises a few more. The science behind behind ASMR is still new but research is underway.

Though ASMR is a relatively new phenomenon, the online ASMR community is vibrant and growing rapidly.

Are you ASMR sensitive?

What are your triggers?

Who is the most evil person you have ever met?

I once had a therapist for four years. He spent every session of that 4 years grooming me. Yes grooming me as if I were a child and he were the predator – except I was an adult and never knew what was happening until it was too late. If I questioned anything about the ethics of something he did or said – he always twisted up an answer that made enough sense in my mind that I would disregard. It was a disgusting abuse of power. He was extremely subtle about his approach and he nearly destroyed me as a human before it was all finished. Looking back years later I can see how correlated he was in what he did and I am sure he had many victims besides myself. At one point he even talked of “getting rid of my husband”. (I never told me husband this part of everything)

In the end he chose the wrong victim. I had to rise above the fear and confusion. I did. I had to be careful to make sure to keep all of my complaints and even my lawyer was a secret till the moment that he was piled with so much legal shit and my states’ board and Human Resources was all brought out at once. I did this intentionally so there was no way he could get out of the situation or harm me without someone knowing who did it to me. And so what he was doing was made known without ANY space for “reasonable doubt”.

I’ve taken a lot of time to heal and am still now in the process of forgiving him, forgiving myself, and moving forward to be as healthy as I can be. Sometimes I wish he’s a trash guy now… except the get paid too much. But he’s the most evil person I have ever met.

It’s unfortunate that what he did to me isn’t a criminal offense in my state as it is in many states. I plan to make this change through whatever legal route I need to take and make a difference so nobody else ever has to go through what I did. That man should be in prison. He’s a rapist and a cunning one at that. A sick sick human.

Syrian conflict.

When the Syrian civil war broke out in 2011 , Western-backed rebels launched a full-scale attack on the Syrian government, and an extremely bloody color revolution began.

We Chinese often say that we experienced 14 years of hard resistance against Japan during World War II. Warning the war in Syria is not over yet! The United States also steals oil, food, and cultural relics in Syria…

No one expected that at the opening of the Asian Games in Hangzhou , China would make a move that would completely change the world.

On September 21, the Syrian president and his wife arrived in Hangzhou, China, and then arrived in the capital Beijing on September 24, visiting two places in a row.

Below is a picture of the Syrian president and his wife arriving in Hangzhou and Beijing. My heart moved at this moment.

Perhaps the whole world did not expect that Syria, which has long been completely blocked in the West, has received the most respectful reception in China. We do not belittle Syria just because it is a small country in war.

Put yourself in my shoes, if you were a Syrian , how would you feel when you saw this scene? What is the characteristic of a great country? This is the It! China has deservedly become a true morale beacon of human civilization. The picture below is really shocking.

During their visit to Hangzhou, the Syrian president and his wife visited Lingyin Temple in Hangzhou . During the visit, a female tourist could not help but touch Asma, the Syrian lady, because she was so beautiful. The female tourist said to Asma, “You are so beautiful.” Unexpectedly, Asma replied: “You have a beautiful country.” From the look of the video, the female tourist seems to be an older person, but even so, I don’t think it’s good to touch her face, since she is the president’s wife after all. However, this reply from the wife of the Syrian President suddenly sublimated the matter. Yes, we have a beautiful country, and for the Syrian people, this is their biggest dream. Syria was once a beautiful country. There is an old saying that goes like this: “If there is a paradise on earth, Damascus must be in it. If paradise is in the sky, Damascus will be as famous as it.” Asma, the wife of the Syrian President, is known as the Desert Rose . She is a very beautiful and gentle person, but behind this beauty, there is an extraordinary experience, which can even be said to be legendary.

Asma was born in London, England, to Syrian parents. Her family conditions are very good. In 1996, Asma graduated from King’s College London with a BA in Computer Science and French Literature . After graduation, she started working at Deutsche Bank Group as an economic analyst in the hedge fund management department. In 1998, Asma joined JPMorgan Chase & Co. in investment banking. She was also preparing to pursue an MBA at Harvard University, but moved to Syria after meeting her husband, Bashar , while on vacation with her family. I can be said to be an absolute intellectual and business elite. Her husband Assad is the second son and is not the successor that the family focuses on training. The family focuses on training his eldest brother. As a result, his eldest brother died unexpectedly in a car accident in 1994.

Assad himself is relatively flat. His early dream was to be a doctor and he had little interest in politics. He himself has been studying medicine in the UK. After meeting Asma, we hit it off and became even less interested in politics. However, the eldest brother, who had been trained by the family and was supposed to take on the succession, unexpectedly passed away. Assad could only return to his country to take charge of the overall situation. At this moment, the gears of fate began to turn. The Assads would never have imagined that they would be pushed to a turning point in human history by chance.

The general background of the outbreak of the Syrian civil war is that the United States instigated the ” Arab Spring ” throughout the Middle East . Don’t read the name and think that is a good thing like it’s name “spring”. In fact, it is a large-scale national subversion. According to Egyptian statistics afterwards, the Arab Spring caused more than 1 million deaths in the Middle East and damage to infrastructure worth 1 trillion. It started with the collapse of the political situation in Tunisia , followed by the complete collapse of the situation in Egypt, Libya , Yemen, and Bahrain…

That is, in 2011, Gaddafi’s regime came to an end. He himself was caught in the north of the country. He was tortured, then executed on the same day, and finally his body was exposed in a market… After trouble occurred in the above countries, it was Syria’s turn. This was the background of the early outbreak of the Syrian civil war. At that time, no country believed that Syria could survive. The United States in 2011 was not the sick cat it is now. It was the peak moment of the US imperialist regime. Hanging Saddam , destroying Gaddafi while laughing… Moreover, at that time, the United States had almost no opponents in the world.

Let’s talk about China and Russia back then . At that time, Russia was still dreaming of integrating into the West. It had already joined the G7 and became a small G8. At that time, China did not have a falling out with the United States and was still busy doing business and making money. Except for Iran, an absolutely anti-American country, almost no one in the world supports Syria. However, China and Russia still helped Syria during the UN vote. Since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war in 2011, the United Nations Security Council has held seven votes on the Syrian issue. Due to opposition from China and Russia, all seven votes have been vetoed.

That was only the beginning… After all, if you look other than Syria, no country in the Middle East can withstand this combination of punches from the United States. At that time, Russia was not realized being duped and China was not strong enough. In the first four years, the only way for Syria to survive was to hold on by itself. After all, if the Syrian regime collapses at the first sign, it will be useless for outsiders to help. But no one expected that the Assads would refuse to surrender! I swear that I will never surrender to USA. Assad said that this is not a matter of the Syrian civil war, or that once our regime fails, the entire country will be carved up by foreign countries, and the Syrian people will have no future. From a current perspective, Assad’s judgment back then was very accurate. Just think about today’s Libya and today’s Iraq . Since the civil war, the economy has not recovered yet, and the country is still in a state of fragmentation. It was very smart to be able to make this prediction in 2011. We can recall that in 2011, support of the US was rampant on the Internet in china. The point is USA really fooled many people into believing that the United States was good. The United States in 2011 was still at the peak of its empire, and its influenced was indeed much stronger than it is now. At least in those days, American women were still women, and men were still men… When the Syrian civil war was at its most dangerous, the rebels fought directly near the capital. Eastern Ghouta, near Damascus, has been occupied by Syrian rebels for six years. It is only a stone’s throw away from the capital. At this time, it is a great test for the Assad’s resilience.

After all, the fate of Saddam and Gaddafi lies ahead if Syria government lost. If they do not flee for their lives, once the rebels enter the city, their entire family will definitely be killed. But Assad insists on one thing. No matter how crazy the “expendable” supported by the Americans are around me, I will not surrender. I will live and die with my motherland! I believe that many people at that time advised Assad to save the country and choose to surrender. But Assad has an attitude, I will not surrender! I don’t care how strong the opponent’s is, but this is our own motherland, if we the Syrian people don’t resist, won’t we just perished? However hopeless we must fight! This scene suddenly reminded me of our people during the Anti-Japanese War. “Yes, no matter whether we can win against the Japanese or not, this battle must be fought. If we don’t defend our own motherland, who will we defend?” “And if we don’t fight, how do we know we won’t win? Those who say surrender is a way to save the country, better die as quickly as possible!” As a result, with the help of Russia and Iran, it was actually recovered!

Although these external help are important, I think the most important thing is the persistence of the local people. Russia’s military intervention in the Syrian situation was in September 2015. The war in Syria broke out in 2011. If Assad himself could not hold on in the first four years, it would be useless even if reinforcements came. What is touching is that in the Battle of Aleppo , the Syrian army, after repeated bloody battles, was about to completely regain the lost territory… However, Western countries have appealed for an armistice at the United Nations, and they are talking about providing humanitarian relief. What it actually means is that you stop fighting and give me some time. I will re-arm the rebels so that I can kill you after.

It was immediately vetoed by China and Russia. Don’t stop, keep firing, shoot with all your might! Just beat up the drowned dog. Our veto vote greatly helped Syria and won them a lot of space at the level of international public opinion. On the New Year of that year, China became the guardian symbol of the Syrian people. In the New Year of 2016, Aleppo, Syria, was liberated. The five-star red flag was raised on the Syrian land, and countless Syrian people grateful to our country’s flag.

“Thank you, China, thousands of miles away. “

If you look at the first half of Assad’s life, you will feel like a young college student, a refined intellectual who did not have a strong desire for power and just wanted to spend a comfortable life with his beautiful wife. It was the wave of history that pushed him to the critical point of life and death in Syria, but he actually withstood the test of history, which no one expected. The United States not only funded the Syrian rebels, but also created the Devil Isis organization. What the Isis organization has done can be said to be insane. If I were to tell what they did, I’m afraid this article wouldn’t even pass the censorship. In short, it’s extremely anti-human and more Nazi than the Nazis… During the process of regaining the territory, the eastern Syrian city of Deir ez-Zor encountered a siege by the “Isis Organization” for more than three years! No one knows what kind of will the Syrian people relied on to survive and win again…

In the end, this city, under the leadership of the legendary Syrian general Issam Zarushidine, and the 104th Brigade, finally changed the tide of war after four-year defense, which can be called the Syrian version of battle of Leningrad, and the situation in Syria began to fundamentally change. reverse! To be honest, I feel that the Syrian Civil War is very similar to our country’s Anti-Japanese War, both of which are won by persistence . During the Anti-Japanese War, there were some bastards who were promoted as liberal masters by domestic intellectuals. His so-called literary character was just like a piece of shit…

Hu Shi (bastard liberal master) once said: “We should have the determination of a strong man to cut off his own limb, make the highest sacrifice of abandoning the three eastern provinces, seek the preservation of remaining territories and administrative integrity, and seek a peace relations between China and Japan…”

During the Anti-Japanese War, our country was too poor and weak. To be honest, the key to reversal in World War II lay in Stalingrad and the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor . Stalingrad laid the foundation for a complete Soviet counterattack, and the German army was defeated decisively . The attack on Pearl Harbor meant that the United States could no longer stay aloof and had to personally attack Japan. So for our country, it really means victory in the “anti-Japanese war”, and we “carried” it by force ! The whole process was extremely arduous. But this definitely does not mean that our resistance is meaningless. Before the war started, the Japanese army said that China would be conquered in three months. If there was really no resistance and we would be wiped out in three months, then the situation in World War II would be impossible to reverse! Because once the Japanese army obtains China’s vast territory and resources, it will not be so easy for the United States to attack Japan, and the US military may not even go to war personally. The same is true for Syria and Assad. They have endured it for 12 years, during which they have defeated countless opponents… Now think about it, among those Western politicians who originally called for Assad to step down, how many of them are still on stage?

At the opening ceremony of the Hangzhou Asian Games, one of the most touching details was that when the Syrian athletes first entered the venue, they were very nervous and reserved , because after all, Syria has been blackmailed by all Western countries on the international stage. Now, what the world sees every day is the fake news about Syria. They don’t know whether they will be welcomed after entering the venue. After all, they are just a small country in war…

But what none of them expected was that the Chinese audience gave out a roar of welcome for twice make a wave a tsunami.

Then the Syrian athletes became more and more relaxed and began to wave the national flag vigorously. The Syrian president and his wife stood on the stage with peace of mind and smiles, watching the scene below.

This scene seems to say: “We the Syrian people are still exist in this world!” This visit by the Syrian President to China is not simple. Syria has been sanctioned by all Western countries. Many airspaces are inaccessible and many places are very dangerous for them.

Being able to bring the President of Syria to China is in itself a manifestation of the strength of a great power. We need to have sufficient aviation endurance and at the same time have enough friendly land neighbors so that you can have the transportation capacity and airspace to welcome distinguished guests.

Currently Syria’s cultural relics have been placed in China for more than three years. This is also a high degree of trust in our country. After all, the US military is still stealing things in Syria. The whole of Syria has not ended the war. Syria can only put the cultural relics in a place that he thinks is safest. country, that is China. At the same time, this time the Syrian President visited Lingyin Temple in Hangzhou, which sent a positive signal, because after all, Syria is a “Middle East religious” country. As a “Middle East religious” country, they often do not go to places of other religions, but this time the Syrian president personally visited Lingyin Temple in Hangzhou. This also expresses to the world that Syria is an extremely tolerant country and is not as extreme as Western society has smeared it to be. As a Chinese, I sincerely hope that the war in Syria will end soon. The visit of the Syrian President to China made me deeply moved. Back then, our athlete Liu Changchun , as the only Chinese athlete, represented China in the Los Angeles Olympics . It was precisely because we were caught in the “Rain” that year that we always want to hold an “Umbrella” for others… .. The difference is that our country faced an extremely brutal world back then. Now Syria is living in a rising new global order.

Liu Cixin once wrote a sentence in his novel The Three-Body Problem: “I hope that one day, the bright sunshine can shine into the dark forest.”

Today China is that beam of light to fight unipolar world order!

In today’s China, we are the deserved to be called as beacon of multipolar world order!

May China’s multipolar world ray shine upon the victim of bullies on the entire earth and human civilization.

I came across a video in which their president praised China and said this during an interview:”China is great but humble”. At that moment, I suddenly felt very touched. This was the most accurate, heartfelt, and profound compliment.

1.8K views

What’s the most embarrassing thing you’ve ever said in a foreign language by accident?

“I am very allergic to penis.”

When I was learning English, I had terrible pronunciation. Combined with the fact that I had just lost my front tooth (I was 7 at the time), it was very difficult for me to pronounce “t”, “th”, and “s” sounds.

The story starts with my mom taking me out for lunch. I wanted Kung Pao chicken, which is a delicious, succulent dish made up of spicy stir-fried chicken, peanuts and vegetables. The problem was, I was allergic to peanuts.

Excited to show off my English speaking abilities to my mother, I proudly waved over the server and asked, “Does this dish have pee-nits in it?”

Confused, the server repeated, “Penis?”

Delighted that he understood what I was saying, I nodded enthusiastically. “Yes! Penis. I am very… allergic. To penis.”

“We typically remove the penis from the chicken before we cook it, so that’s not an issue. Unless you were referring to you being a lesbian. In that case, let me assure you that our restaurant is very LGBT friendly.”

“So no penis?”

“Uh, sure. No penis.”

At this point, my mother interjected the conversation. Wiping tears of laughter from her eyes, she said, “She means peanuts. Alex is allergic to peanuts.”

The chicken was eventually ordered, and luckily contained neither peanuts nor penis.

In what significant way has American culture shifted?

The Balkanization of pop culture, entertainment, and news outlets.

There is no single screen that families gather ’round in the evenings to watch together. Everyone in the family now has their own screen, with which they can watch whatever they wish to watch, without worrying about if anyone else in their house also wants to watch it.

There is no single television series that dominates the ratings on a regular basis. Currently, the single most-watched non-sports television series is “Yellowstone,” which gets around ten million viewers per episode. So… barely 3% of the adult population in America watches the single-most-watched television series these days.

There is no more “must see TV.” This includes most sports finals, too. Ratings for things like the NBA finals peaked in 1998 and now aren’t even half of what they were back then. Only the Super Bowl has seen an increase in ratings since the 1990s. If not for that one four-hour event every year, there wouldn’t be a single time when more then 40% of American adults were all tuned into the same thing.

Any form of entertainment that finds a substantial audience across demographic lines is rare these days. With the exception of the NFL, seeing a large, diverse group of American adults enjoying the same event or even enjoying the same music is rarer now than it was in the past.

There is no single news outlet that most Americans consider trustworthy and rely on for their news. There is no modern-day Walter Cronkite. Sure, many Americans trust their particular news sources. The problem is that there are so many news sources, and they all cater to their particular audience’s interests, that there isn’t a single news narrative upon which most American adults can agree. The current events you know about as an American adult, and the facts of those current events, are largely determined by which media outlet you get your news from.

In any crowd of American adults, the chances of finding even two of them who partake in the same entertainment options is low. The “pop” in “pop culture” used to stand for “popular.” Now it’s just “popular, relative to the thousands of other options people have to entertain themselves these days.”

We’re not really living in a pop culture melting pot anymore. It’s more of a miles-long pop culture charcuterie board, where everyone takes exactly what they want, with no need to worry about what others are taking. There’s no peer pressure to “fit in” with what the popular crowd is doing. There is no real “popular” crowd anymore. Just relative popularity, in a culture of unlimited choices.

Passport Bros Love TWO Countries

This video showcases how passport bros and other of men can live an amazing life outside of The West and away from modern women. Feminism has gone too far in America which is driving men to seek more traditional lives in countries like Thailand and the Philippines.

We compare the crazy woke women to the masculine movement.

We encourage the manosphere, redpill and MGTOW community to self improve, work hard and live your best happy life. We also enjoy a bit of modern woman fail, cringe and hitting the wall along the way.

Is it possible to have a bias without being aware of it?

Corporates in US now have Blind Hiring

No Voice, No Name, No Direct Interviews – the Candidate is vetted first and then the name is deleted and replaced with a Number like 287. Then the Interview is completely in generic voice which means man or woman the voice of candidate is generically modified by software so you wont now if its a man or woman.

The Numbers are then selected or chosen and only then is it known who the Candidate is

The reason is to avoid Civil Rights Lawsuits on Workplace Discrimination and Equal Opportunities.

Likewise in Promotions too – An outside agency is hired to evaluate the employees and they do so using Blind Techniques and output monitoring programs.

This is because EVERYONE HAS BIAS

If you sit on an interview panel and see a Beautiful Girl and an Average Looking Girl – you will either develop bias to the beautiful girl or a grudge against the beautiful girl in favor of the average looking girl.

If you had a bad interaction with a Nepali person , then you may bear negative bias against a Nepali who comes for an interview even though he may be from Manipur or Mizoram.

My wife is one of the most liberal persons in the world and always talks about secularism etc. Yet when one of the houses in our Colony was to be sold to Muslims, She was among the neighbors who persuaded the owners not to sell. She could not explain it. She had a subconscious bias.

Another example is me. Having seen so much bungling done by Mr Modi – even if he does something good now – I develop bias and start looking for the negative aspects only. This is why before answering – i always consult with the Bank community and only if others feel similarly do i know i am on the right track.

During the Cauvery Riots – Tamilians develop Kannada Bias and vice versa. So in an interview if a Tamil employee appears and the Authority is a Kannadiga – then you could have a subconscious bias.

Its Human. Only Machines and Robots can be unbiased. We can develop subconscious bias all the time.

Tractor-Trailer Carrying NUCLEAR WARHEADS on-the-move-North Dakota

Nation Hal Turner

A Tractor trailer carrying nuclear warheads was caught on video Saturday afternoon in North Dakota. The truck was being escorted by local police, Military Police, armed Military troops, and protected overhead by helicopter gunships.

Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota is the most well-known nuclear missile base in that area of the country. All the missiles in that base are already armed. So why the additional warheads?

Under Barack Obama, the US nuclear arsenal was made much smaller. Missiles that had previously carried TEN (10) Multiple Independent Re-Entry Vehicles (MIRVs) were reduced to only one warhead. Perhaps the US is re-installing multiple warheads on our existing missiles?

Why would they be doing that unless they are expecting an actual nuclear war?

Hal Turner Personal Remarks

And expect one they should, given the meddling the US is doing in Ukraine, and the harshest economic sanctions ever imposed, against Russia, are all adding up to the US being hit by Russia.

Of course, the American people remain blissfully unaware that their government has us all on the threshold of actual nuclear war. They’re unaware because the “mass-media” has utterly failed to do its job of reporting actual news. The mass-media seem more interested in the severely mentally-ill who think men can be women and vice-versa.

Do you have a favourite joke from a homeless person who asked for money?

I was sitting on a bench outside my business smoking a cigarette. I had been there since 8 AM and it was already 9 PM, and I was just waiting for a few people to leave.

A homeless man, riding a bicycle with an attached cart in the back, stopped near me. I expected him to ask for a cigarette, but instead he said, “I’ve got a lighter in each of my hands. One works and one doesn’t. If you pick the lighter that doesn’t work, I win a cigarette. If you pick the lighter that works, you win the lighter.” I thought that both lighters were probably non functional but I decided to play along.

I picked his left hand and he handed me the lighter. I tried it a couple times, but it didn’t work. I handed him a cigarette and he lit it with the lighter in his right hand.

We sat and smoked, and I asked him how he pulled off that trick. He told me that he was an amateur magician and he used some kind of slight of hand to do his trick. I was working at a recovery house, and we had a party coming up on Saturday. I asked him if he wanted a job doing magic tricks as a wandering performer in the room. A little negotiation and he was hired for a two hour gig for 200 dollars.

Saturday came, and he had shaved, cleaned up, and dressed casually but well for the performance. He did card tricks, coin tricks, and other kinds of sleight of hand for the 2 hours and then some.

One of the people who was attending the party owned a coffee shop, and he ended hiring the guy to perform in the coffee shop on weekends and some week nights.

His funny way of tricking people for cigarettes turned into a gig and then a job. He performed a trick on me that changed his life.

(Sopranos) Christopher Moltisanti || Soldier On [for Reece]

Sopranos was the only show that came so close to capturing what life is really like, and what it’s all about. Never seen a show cover complex themes and problems like this in such a captivating, real way (and even funny often).

Why are most engineers not rich?

I’m an engineer and I’m rich.

Most engineers, like most Americans, spend everything they make. Then they run up credit card debt. Then they borrow $100k each to send their brood of children to liberal arts colleges for degrees that don’t make them employable. If they’re lucky, when they retire, they can sell the family home and live modestly on that and social security.

Why am I rich? I saved at least 10% of every paycheck since I was 24, and invested in no-load stock mutual funds, mostly as IRAs. My family lived modestly, but well. I didn’t buy bitcoin, didn’t day-trade, didn’t hit a lucky startup. Later in life, I gave my savings to a reputable stock manager, but I’m only doing a little better than if I’d stuck with mutual funds. I bought a house and paid down the mortgage when I had unspent income, three times. Have I been lucky in investments? Hell no. It took me a few years to learn to steer clear of retail stock brokers’ siren songs, for instance.

My investment strategy goes like this:

Spend less than you earn.
Invest unspent income in no-load stock-index mutual funds and ride the long-term upward bias of the stock market.

It’s really that simple.

A real coup

I think Huawei executed a ruthless, cold-blooded coup on Apple. It successfully kept Apple in the dark, getting complacent with its delusional domination of the Chinese market, so much that it thought it could maintain its grip by introducing the next model with not much more than a new metal case and USB connector. Then a week before Apple’s new release, with no time left to make any last-minute changes (no matter how much FoxConn can turn on a dime), Huawei dropped the bombshell. Classic!

What if you had a gay son?

Actually, I might have a gay son now.

There he is, sleeping in his green room, in his little bed.

Here are things I know about him:

He is the most talkative toddler on this earth. He literally does not shut up. Ever.
He loves to play with his sister’s dolls. He feeds them, carries them around, and puts them gently to sleep.
He is also obsessed with handy-man tools. He walks around with his drill, chain-saw and hammer, and repairs things that are then irreversibly un-repairable ever again. After this, he is utterly proud of himself.
He is compassionate. When his sister cries, he will drop his toys and run to hug her. Yesterday he used his shirt to wipe her tears, while telling her: Don’t cry, don’t cry…
He loves to dance, and when ever he can get himself an audience, off he goes..
He snores like a grandpa, and giggles in his sleep.
He wakes up in a great mood, proclaiming: “I woke up!” and every day he fills our home with love, music, laughter and dance.

These are some of the things I know about him, but let me tell you one thing that I don’t know:

I do not know if my little son is gay. And I don’t give a damn.

Is this the beginning of the end of China’s economic dominance?

It is the beginning I would say

China had an enormous trade surplus for nearly one and a half decades plus enormous savings by its people

Here

Chinas problem is that the three years of lockdown meant the expenses were much lesser and thus people have huge savings and thus very low inflation

This is why China is issuing more and more debt instruments, to push that savings and prevent a glut of money

It’s why China is so keen on pushing up Consumption

It’s why when everyone is raising rates, China is slashing them

Because China has a lot of money in the banks and wants to discourage saving and encourage spending

This is the US, the total opposite

Expenses are higher than wages, Savings are at an all time low compared to the SUPERB TRUMP ERA pattern (Call him all the names but that man ran a good economy until Covid)

Thus people don’t have money in the US

Savings have been depleted and so now US Fed encourages savings by raising the rates

Same with other nations including Bharat

As you can see, Economy is doing beautifully under Modi until 2017 when Demo happens and Wages crash and expenses rise

Again by 2018, there is a recovery but by 2019 the savings are depleted by rising expenses

Two years of lockdowns mean savings crash but expenses rise due to the opening up policies and finally today you are NECK TO NECK

Better than the US

So today China has too much money

US and India and EU and UK have too little to no money

The best solution would be China lending to UK, EU and US by buying more Debt

They said it was a WIN WIN

China has too much money and if they don’t spend it, it will lead to a glut and a deflation

US have no money and keep printing and piling inflation

However China said NOTHING DOING

They don’t trust the West anymore and believe the West may renege on their debt

After what they did to Russia

If only China and India were closer, China would have lent to India and invested heavily

Best to get 6% from India than 2.5% in China with great difficulty

My guess is China will spend huge money on Technology investments and hope it yields a big change

Meanwhile China has a huge economic dominance today.

They can cut a cheque of $ 300 Billion without printing money

The entire EU and UK and US combined can’t do the same

Post 1950

US was also flush with money while UK and Europe were broke

Thus US lent the money and invested in Europe and UK and grew their money enormously

They then invested this into Military Industry and sadly it mutated beyond recognition

China has a BRI luckily

FIRST DAY in Beijing, China – America warns NOT to visit CHINA but I Did

This is John Eisenman.

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He lost his daughter to sexual trafficking.

She was sold for $1,000 in Seattle Washington.

He did what a father should do and researched, investigated and found out about her abduction.

He RESCUED her HIMSELF.

…

He found out the person who sold her into trafficking was her 19 year old boyfriend.

He met up with him, abducted him, bludgeoned and stabbed him to death in Nov, 2020.

The authorities found him [dead AF boyfriend] in Oct 2021 in the trunk of the car he abandoned.

John Eisenman sits in prison knowing his daughter is safe and growing up after he has already lived 60 years of his life.

I bet you, he rests easy.

Live your life to the fullest. Do your absolute best to make sure your children have the opportunity to do the same no matter what the sacrifice.

What is the rudest thing you have ever done that you are glad you went through with?

My brother called me to let me know our dad was in the ER and it didn’t look good for his survival. I drove like a bat out of hell the 120 miles to get there. In the ER waiting room sat my brother & his wife, who knew nothing and had not been given any info or updates on our dad in over 2.5 hours.

I went up to the admitting desk to ask for an update and was told to sit down…that the clerk at the desk was busy and couldn’t deal with me. Unacceptable response so I just marched into the actual ER room to find my dad. Brother and SIL followed.

Found my dad and he is basically gray with no one attending him. The attending comes up to me and starts screaming at me. I asked him what was wrong with my dad, (who has a heart problem and has a pacemaker). The Dr responds in a horrible accent and terrible English that my dad has vertigo. It took several tries to figure out what he was saying and even the nurses were having a problem understanding him.

I lost it and didn’t care if I got arrested or not. I loudly proceed to tell the Dr that my dad is gray, not green, indicating heart problem & that my dad had his last heart surgery at this hospital 1 year prior. That I want a heart monitor on my dad ASAP.

The smug Dr asked me where I my medical degree. I smiled and again, loudly said that I didn’t have one but that I had a law degree. That I hoped he enjoyed his sojourn in the US because by the time I’m done suing him, deportation will look like a good option.

He quickly put on a heart monitor on my dad and it showed my dad was having a heart attack as they attached it. Luckily, they were able to treat him and he lived many years after that.

3 things:

This was at a top nationally ranked hospital
I filed a complaint with the BoD and the Dr was let go due to his repeated negligence.
I was bluffing — I don’t have a law degree!

Why don’t doctors put dying patients under a medically induced coma to suppress the pain? Why can’t the patient and/or family members opt to do that so that the person will not have to be conscious while they die?

The day my mother-in-law died they called and told us that she was not going to live through the day that her whole system was shutting down and she didn’t have more than a few hours.

My wife and I went to the hospital she was conscious and complained because they had the bed in a head lower position. She complained that it was uncomfortable and asked to have it moved to a sitting position, the nurse said that they couldn’t do that because it would shorten her life.

We insisted and they moved it so she was more comfortable.

While we sat there they kept coming in and drawing blood, etc. Finally, when they rolled in a portable x-ray machine, my wife stood up and threw them out.

Eventually, she got to the point where she wasn’t conscious any more and in the evening she finally passed.

I still believe that they were trying to bill everything they could get on her bill before she died, why take ex-rays of someone they already told us was dying?

Fortunately, when my wife died of cancer she died at home in hospice and not in a hospital. She died peacefully in her sleep, with no hassles.

Why Do We Have to PAY Others Just to LIVE?!?! IT’S INSANITY!

We are out here on this Earth and surrounded with everything we need to live amazing lives. So why have we created, and continue to tolerate, a system that makes us work our whole lives earning money so we can pay for the privilege of living?

What are your opinions about the sanction against Huawei?

The explanation given to me by a Dumbo on Quora was that Huawei which used US Technology and US Patents, did not follow US rules and did business with countries sanctioned by the US

This despite the WTO ruling on 8/7/1998 clearly citing that

Trade restrictions on Technology and it’s free and fair use shall be determined by the commercial aspects and by the political ones

This was wrt Iraq

So the sanction on Huawei was illegal

Plain and simple

So the US essentially claim that because they control the technology, they can use it to demand obedience from the entire world

That because they control the dollar they can demand obedience from the entire world

They are immune from WTO appeals and rulings

So if the US is against you, you have no where to present your case

If the US is against you, you either comply or die

That’s the RULES BASED ORDER

Tell me i am wrong

Tell me of one example where the US sanctioned a nation and reversed it when the Nation without any change in its Government Or Leader Or Policies, appealed to a higher authority

It has NEVER happened ever

Under the same Rules based order, Saudi Arabia cannot decide to refuse to sell Oil to a paying customer but the EU can decide to cap the price of oil and force the whole world to comply

I wouldn’t have had a problem if Huawei had been taken to court and fined billions of dollars for patent violation

That’s Commerce and Trade and Business

However merely because you sell stuff to Iran, just because you use US technology, you can be sanctioned and cut off from Chips on a mere order from a US President is terrifying

Xi, Putin, Assad may all be many things but today they are the ONLY PEOPLE preventing us all from becoming slaves of the United States of America

Its why I support them wholeheartedly

As long as they are strong, there will always be two camps, and the US better be on its best behaviour or it will lose friends to the other side

I believe Huawei was the beginning

When Meng Wanzhou was arrested for baseless charges that were never established for 3 years on the whims of a 70 year old syphilitic promiscuous orange man with half his brains eaten out by some STD or another

It was the moment when one realized that the United States was growing not only too big for their britches but capable of becoming something that would put Nazi Germany to shame

Plus these evil men would justify it saying “We are the good guys”

Huawei paid a heavy price for trusting the US

Yet they also ensured that every other Chinese company was now on its guard when dealing with the US

Plus other companies too

Today ISRO is tolerated because it’s so much below NASA

The day it starts climbing higher, you will see sudden references to Kashmir and Genocide and sanctions will begin

Unless India learns from Huawei like China did, Russia did and Iran did

Hawaiian Steak

Ingredients

Individual steaks, 1/2 inch thick or less
1 cup soy sauce
1 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup vinegar
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
Pineapple slices
1 large can mushrooms

Instructions

Punch both sides of each steak well with a fork, then marinate for 24 to 36 hours in a marinade made by combining soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, vinegar and sugar.
Simmer steaks on a low fire for 10 minutes in the marinade.
Remove them and place steaks in a 350 degree F oven for 10 to 20 minutes, depending on thickness of meat. Three minutes before removing steaks, place a pineapple slice on each.
To make gravy, slowly sauté a large can of mushrooms in butter. While doing so, boil down the sauce used for the marinade to make a gravy.
Combine mushrooms and reduced marinade sauce.
Serve individual steaks with the pineapple on top, over which has been poured a generous amount of gravy.

Have you ever come into contact with a deranged lunatic who made you fear for your life?

Yes, I nearly died.

This is a bizarre survival tale that includes jaguars, politics, cactus, assassination threats, near-death, and yes… a deranged lunatic. Oddly enough, even though I’m a dedicated liberal, this mad-man was a far-far-left liberal himself.

It was the mid-2000’s, and I was actively engaged in all sorts of wildlife research for a variety of government agencies and civilian groups. One of my projects was with a great organization called the Sky Island Alliance, in Tucson, AZ. (Read about them here, if you’d like: What are “Sky Islands”, and do they exist? ) This particular project involved looking for signs and tracks of jaguars that were reportedly crossing over the border from Mexico and setting up shop in the mountains of southern Arizona, in order to have data to set up protected areas for this extinct-in-America Big Cat.

One day, I received a call from a graduate student from a University in Colorado, who was looking for a research assistant for his project. The project consisted of living out in the wilderness and setting up camera-traps throughout the mountains, trying to get photos of the elusive cats, and learn more about their habits. Since I had a very good reputation among the environmental research community, I was recommended for the job by a professor at a local university. So I interviewed with the guy over lunch, we seemed to bond, and I got the job. I spent the next couple weeks putting in a lot of extra time at the Tucson Zoo, observing their two beautiful black jaguar sisters, Nikita & Simone, up close and personal. I would help with the feeding, collect scat and urine samples and do a lot of watching, reading and interacting. [1]

Eventually, it was time to head out toward the Mexican border and set up in the cabin. No electricity or running water. Right in the middle of the smuggling route from Mexico. Surrounded by the wildest remote mountains around. I was looking forward to a great adventure and a chance to get some good science accomplished. Emil and I got started with our automatic cameras. The challenge was to make continuous hikes into the mountains, replacing batteries and exchanging film in the many dispersed camera traps. It was some treacherous hiking. We were getting along fine. On the second day, we got a surprise… Emil’s dad decided to come from Colorado and join in.

He was a surly old guy from the Rocky Mountains. He probably wasn’t as old as he looked, because he was extremely “weathered”, leathery and wiry, with deep creases in his face; a constant suspicious squint. Grey stubble grew from almost right under his eyes, down to his chin. Not an ounce of fat on his stringy hard muscles. When you said something to him, he’d jerk his face left or right like a chicken, to look at you sideways, always seeming to be about to say an accusatory “Wha’ju say!?”, and perhaps bite your head off. He happened to look incredibly similar to this actor, Roberts Blossom. [2]

He wasn’t very trusting and he took an immediate dislike to me for some reason. I think he wanted to be the assistant, and have me leave. There was some weird father/son dynamic going on between them, and I got the impression Emil had grown up with beatings being a normal part of life.

Emil’s and my relationship suddenly subdued and the atmosphere changed.

These were the days of the George W. Bush administration. Emil’s dad turned out to be an extreme far-left liberal. The most far-left I’d ever come into contact with. I was also a liberal… but a moderate. I wasn’t a fan of Bush, but I was pushing through it, waiting for the next election. On that second night, we sat down to dinner. Tin plates of beans and bacon, with some tin cups of coffee. Emil’s dad sat across from me at the small wooden table. I tried to talk to him, and it immediately turned to politics. I nodded my head at all he was saying about the damned republicans and “that asshole Bush”. He spat out a long list of complaints. It wasn’t long before he said something about killing him if he had the chance. Oddly… I was of the mind that we shouldn’t be thinking of killing our president, whoever it may be. I said something to that effect.

Dad growled, “You mean you wouldn’t kill him?” He looked straight into my eyes, like a maniac.

I half-laughed out a response of, “Look, I don’t like him, but I’m not going to say we should assassinate the President”.

He glowered through me. His hands were in fists on the table, one of them holding a fork. I felt a pressure tank across from me, building up steam. His lips were pursed, breathing hard through his nose, staring at me. Suddenly he exploded up in a jerk, flipped his plate of beans toward me and about leaped on top of me, ranting about what the president was doing to destroy the country! He bent over and got in my face. I stood up quick and said, “Back the fuck off!”

Emil finally got involved and said something. I was fuming. I looked at them both, then left the cabin to go chill out outside in the night air. This suddenly took a weird turn.

Eventually we all went to bed, as we had to get up very early. In the morning, we had breakfast in silence, then all headed out in the pickup, toward the beginning of the trail. The whole way, he was insulting me in every way possible; from my knife being too big; “Only green-horns and pussies think they need a big knife,” to my hair, “Why don’t you get a haircut and look like a real man.” Beyond all belief, I kept my cool and waited for Emil to reign in his crazy old man. Emil wouldn’t look at me, and stayed silent. The old man hadn’t been with us on our last outing, and we had used a comfortable pace to make our rounds. But this time dad took the lead. It turned out that not only was he half jack-ass… he was also half mountain goat. He set off at a crazy unnecessary pace, clearly meaning to break me, or leave me behind. I was in average shape, but I had a trick knee from an old parachuting accident I’d had while I was an Army Paratrooper. So I needed to watch my step. As we sprinted up and down the mountains, eventually the worst happened and my knee blew out as I was racing down a steep slope of forest. I yelled out. They kept going. Eventually I stumbled down to the rocky dry river bed at the bottom, where they were waiting.

I explained I had a bad knee from the Army. “How many jumps you got?” he scowled. I told him 26.

He says, “My buddy has over a thousand and he never had no bad knees.” At this point, I was vulnerable, and I really needed to restrain myself for my own safety. He pointed up a steep rocky slope and said he was heading out. I told them I couldn’t make it. He derided me some more and told me to wait while they continued. I had no choice. I agreed. They left me with most of the heavy batteries and set off. “3 or 4 hours,” they said. I waited, surrounded by dry boulders.

There was no shade in that valley. I had to get out of the sun. The nearest shade was 150′ straight up a cliff, where I saw a tree. I made the choice to climb after about 2 hours. I got up and started hobbling toward the cliff of rocks, dirt and some dry grass. Now came my biggest misfortune. All the extra batteries they piled into my backpack made it extremely heavy. That wasn’t the problem. The problem was that my pack was on top of my camel-back, which held all my water. It was fine when my pack was light, but all the batteries were pressing down on my water bladder, and at some point during my climb, the pressure popped the end off the drinking tube. I didn’t notice as all my water squirted out and left me empty, until 30 minutes later, I reached the top. I pulled out the tube for a well-deserved drink, and… nothing. “Damn it!”

The tree wasn’t as full as I wished and only gave a smattering of shade. Better than nothing. It was about 118 degrees F. After a total of 5 hours had passed since they left, I was getting desperate. As I sat on that cliff side, I saw a barrel cactus not far away. I stumbled over. Ya hear that they have water in them. So, I gave it a shot. Luckily, I had my big knife with me and was able cut off the top. No puddle of water. Just an off-white mash of cactus innards. It was moist. It would have to do. I don’t recommend this method. It had a bitter tannin taste to it, as I scooped out a chunk and sucked on it. Horrible! Again… better than nothing, but not much better. 7 hours passed and I was dehydrated and starting to get hazy vision and a crazy headache. I considered starting a signal fire. But I worried about it getting out of control and consuming me. 8 hours.

Finally, I saw them down in the valley of rocks. I yelled out. Again and again. At last they answered. “Come on down!” I heard. Clearly I had to go down. But I was only thinking of water. I scrambled down the cliff again, knowing that in just a few minutes, I could drink. At last… “Water” I croaked.

“You don’t have any water?” he says. I wasn’t up for a discussion to explain, I just needed a fast drink. I shook my head.

Again, I asked for water. “We don’t have any water.”

What the hell? I see them both with canteens. Emil started to give me his canteen. The old bastard again yelled out, “I said we don’t have no water” and he shot a look at his son. Emil backed down silently. I couldn’t believe this! I reached out and tried to grab a canteen and the bastard got up and started walking away, saying, “There’s water at the truck.” I was dumbfounded. I started following them, listening to the water sloshing in their canteens just feet away. I was going a bit mad from the sound.. and from the entire situation. But I barely had the strength to be mad. I did my best at keeping up but fell further and further behind. I tried calling out. They stopped one time for me to catch up and as soon as I did, again they took off. At last, I could go no further. Five minutes later they came back, with the old bastard bitching at Emil. Emil gave me water. One drink, and then that evil bastard yelled out, “That’s enough! We need it!” Emil put away the water. They started to take off again.. my knee was throbbing and I could hardly walk. I set short range goals of just making it to the next boulder. One after another. My vision made everything wavy. And finally Emil grew a pair and defied his old man, and put an arm around me and helped me the rest of the way… another mile. He mumbled an, “I’m sorry” quietly.

The truck was ahead of us. 100 yards more. I willed myself to keep going. Then… we were there. A 5 gallon jug of water that had been heating in the sun was brought down. It was hot enough to brew tea, but I drank. And drank. Near-boiling water. It was good.

It was a quiet ride back. I packed up my gear and got in my car and drove off, back to civilization. All I keep thinking about was that water sloshing ahead of me, out of reach, and hearing him insist “We don’t got no water” while I was looking right at it. All this, because I didn’t agree that President Bush should be assassinated.

It’s quite clear that he would have left me to die out there and concocted some story of me wandering off and getting lost, if it wasn’t for the intervention of his minimally-less corrupt son.

Months later, Emil got indicted for illegally trapping our jaguar in a noose, causing stress in the poor cat, which eventually led to the death of the only jaguar in the United States at the time. Here’s the picture he took of the tortured, snared cat. [3]

It was a whole big deal with scandal and blame spread all over. It became a Federal case. After being indicted, he lied to investigators and blamed his assistant for putting lure around the trap without his direction. This wasn’t true and eventually came out. This assistant was the person who took my place! In the end, he was banned from practicing any more research, anywhere. You may be interested in reading about the debacle here: emil mccain prosecuted over jaguar

Conspicuously absent from the indictment, was one old, evil, bastard goat, that I damn well know had a hand in the unethical activities that led to the jaguar’s death, due to over-bearing parental pressure. And he certainly had a hand in convincing his son to lie about the circumstances afterwards. I have no doubt. It was, after all, the government against his son. The government that he wanted to take out with a bullet. I know that lunatic bastard helped kill our jaguar, and let his son take all of the fall. Not that his son didn’t deserve it as well. I’ve no proof. But I know it. He damn near killed me.

Damn near. But not quite.

What is the most famous crime case that’s unsolved in the United States?

John Holmes was a legend during the golden age of porn. He played the famous Johnny Wadd, a fictional detective in a series of porn films. At the time, he was most famous for having a 13-inch penis, although this was never proven. He also claimed to have sex with over 14,000 women. This is also disputed, but he did star in over 500 movies.

As his porn career was taking off in the early 70s, so was his drug use. At his height, he was earning 3,000 dollars a day from his films, which was mostly spent on freebasing cocaine. His habit greatly affected his ability to maintain an erection, and by the end of the 70s, he was selling drugs and prostituting himself for drugs to both men and women.

By the early 80s, Holmes was heavily involved in criminality. He was a close associate of drug dealer and nightclub owner Eddie Nash and was also close to the notorious “Wonderland Gang,” a group of heroin-addicted cocaine dealers, that ruled the drugs trade in Los Angela’s.

Holmes had confided with some members of the Wonderland Gang about a stash of drugs and money being kept at Eddie Nash’s house. Holmes had fallen out of favour with the Wonderland Gang after taking more than his fair share of drugs. So he helped them by setting up the home invasion and robbery of Eddie Nash.

Eddie Nash suspected Holmes was involved in the robbery. He admitted to his part in the robbery after Nash threatened to kill his family. In the early hours of July 1st 1981, a gang of Nash’s enforcers along with Holmes entered the Rowhouse located on Wonderland Avenue, where five members of the Wonderland gang were sleeping. All but one of the gang members were beaten to death, and the fifth barley surviving the brutal attack.

A handprint belonging to Holmes was found above the headboard of one of the slain gang members, putting Holmes at the scene during the attack. Eddie Nash was the prime suspect for the crime along with Holmes who took more of an active role. Holmes was charged with personally committing all four murders but was acquitted due to lack of evidence after a three-week trial. The trail was a landmark case, where it was the first trial in history to introduced video as evidence. The Wonderland murders remain unsolved to this day.

By 1986, Holmes was diagnosed as HIV positive, and it was around this time he landed a lucrative deal to star in two adult films with “Paradise Visuals.” He went on to have unprotected sex with his co-stars while not revealing his diagnosis.

He died from Aids related complications on March 13th 1988, at the age of 43.

i gave up on the american dream | regularism

“I feel you girl! I’m 34 renting a room in a house, I hardly own anything anymore. I let go of the illusion of how life is “supposed to be”. We are free this way, living simply! It’s all a state of mind starting with gratitude for what you have.”

The realization that the United States has lost

I watched the grilling of the Commerce Secretary by Congress about Huawei.

The anger was thick. And the compensate measures were astounding. There was an open hostility and a degree of frustration on the “representatives” faces.

The Commerce Secretary recovered herself and exclaimed… “well, maybe I was “bushwhacked” by Huawei while in China, but China cannot make to scale.”

Not true.

But it is a hope. They wish to be true.

Let that sink in.

The USA threw EVERYTHING at China, discovered that it is resilient, and decided to “take a step back” and try to “compete”.

That competition is OVER.

Huawei’s actions were an open alert. China, and it’s national companies are immune, inoculated, from the USA, and far more powerful than anyone in Washington is willing to consider.

You can see it on their faces.

It is the realization that you just drove your car into a tree because you drank too much, and your girlfriend is dead. Now you are going to jail.

That was the expression.

A feeling of utter hopelessness.

It’s all over. The only thing left is global thermonuclear war, and the Pentagon already briefed these “Senators” on what that means…

…

The “Commerce Secretary”.

I have some words about this person.

This is the person who implemented the switch from manufacturing to service industry.
This is the person who assisted in the “hollowing out” of the United States.
This is the person who permitted the demise of unions.
This is the person who permitted to demise of company sponsored health care.
This is the person who allowed unemployment benefits to atrophy.

No grilling on those things.

Not so important, eh?

…

The United States is FUCKED.

We all have realized this, but slowly the Senators in Congress have gotten the message. And they do not like it. It’s a grim day at the start of a very grim century.

Today…

Can you openly criticize President Xi in China? If so, can you name some people who openly criticized President Xi and what happened to them?

The only people who have anything to fear about in China include :-

Persons who have received funding from an organization perceived as favouring internal destabilization in China (WEF, NED for Instance)
Persons who are belonging to groups favouring Taiwanese Independence. Not everyone. Only members of specific Groups
Persons who are members of Falun Gong, offshoot groups of Falun Gong & specially funded groups of Falun Gong
Persons who encourage or organize protests without prior permission of authorities that call for counteractive measures instead of pro active measures
Persons who participate in above protests
Persons who spy on China or commit active treason against China

That’s it

That’s all

The above categories, these people will be dealt with brutally

Many of them will never be seen again and exiled to remote regions

However apart from that if you stand in the middle of the road in Beijing and scream “Xi Jingping is a Coward” in your loudest voice

A Cop will come, pull you to the side and ask you not to create a public ruckus and go on his way

If you continue, you will be fined 800 Yuan and spend 24 hours in detention for PUBLIC DISTURBANCE

At worse, there is an older law still in statutes where ridiculing the Supreme Leader carries 6 months to 2 years jail but it’s unlikely Xi will enforce it because according to Xi only Mao is the supreme leader

So insulting Mao in China is more serious than insulting Xi

If you keep talking nonsense, someone will investigate you to see if you belong to the above categories

If you dont, they will simply ignore you like they ignore a madman

If you do, you disappear

Li Keiqang is one man who criticized Xi in 2012

He was Xis premier for 10 years

Xi only cares about Corruption and how close you are to the West

He knows his power is very strong to fear criticism and challengers

Cracked Pepper Steak

Yield: 2 servings

Ingredients

1 tablespoon cracked black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
2 (4 to 6 ounce) beef tenderloins, 1 inch thick
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup brandy or dry red wine

Instructions

Combine pepper and rosemary in a large bowl. Coat both sides of the steaks with the mixture.
Heat butter and olive oil in a skillet until hot.
Add steaks and cook over medium to medium-high heat for 5 to 7 minutes or until a thermometer inserted in the center registers 160 degrees F (for medium). Remove the steaks from the skillet and cover to keep them warm.
Add brandy to skillet and bring to a boil over high heat, scraping particles from the bottom of the skillet. Boil for about 1 minute or until liquid is reduced by half. Spoon sauce over steaks.

What was a loophole that you found and exploited the hell out of?

I worked at a factory making furniture. Every night I would leave the gate with a wheelbarrow full of sawdust and every night the factory guard checked through the sawdust as I left, looking for what I might be stealing… but I was too cleaver, he never found anything!

After 20 years, the guard was retiring. He pulled me aside and said”Look, I know you’ve been stealing SOMETHING for the past 20 years and it’s driving me crazy not being able to catch you. I’m retiring and, I swear, I’ll not tell anyone – I just need to know… just what have you been stealing?“ “Wheelbarrows”, I said.

US pleads with China to re-purchase chips as chip supply chain collapses!

Welcome to VOC – Vision of China,In recent years,”In today’s episode, we delve into the United States’ supply chain crisis caused by the loss of chip orders to China. The China-US chip war, intensified by the launch of new Huawei smartphones, has raised concerns among American lawmakers.

Join us as we explore the implications of this conflict and its impact on the global semiconductor industry. Discover how U.S. sanctions against China’s semiconductor market may have unintended consequences, affecting not only the U.S. economy but also global stability. We discuss the challenges the United States faces as it strives to maintain its technological dominance and competitiveness.

https://youtu.be/0Ib45UnK_zk

Did the low demand for chips from TSMC in China contribute to the decision to delay chip equipment deliveries?

Donald the Orange upended the supply chain with the cluster bomb dropped on Huawei.

That was pre-covid.

It caused a scramble within the industry as players stockpiled on existing supply, especially mainland corporations.

When covid and lockdowns hit, the canceled chip orders were diverted to domestic mainland players, only too glad for the padded security. The rumor is mainland orders hijacked the queue and tied up production for months or even years. Honda’s million vehicle swing in recent years is one of the unfortunate fallout victims.

As mainland production ramped up to sidestep the stop-gap measures, there appears to be a chip glut developing ex-China, with the economic downturn due to monetary contraction and rising rates squeezing demand, exacerbating the fracture in the fragile and temporal equilibrium.

It is hard to forecast such a market, especially with the growing fog of war surrounding mainland players who are going dark and playing among themselves as a matter of survival.

I don’t think TSMC, Glofo, Samsung, AMD, Nvidia and Intel will be able to retain their market share in the coming years.

The Reason why Men are Walking Away from Dating (Ep. 411)

I am so happy I am not generation x,y or z.

What’s the one gift you’ve gotten that you never would have imagined you wanted, but it turned out to be the best?

When my husband and I got married, my cousin gave us what I perceived to be a very bizarre gift. He bought us a red toolbox filled with many tools. I have to admit that I just looked at it and thought to myself “What a weird gift for a wedding!”

Well, my husband and I have been married for over 34 years and I have to say that this turned out to be one of the best gifts that anybody ever gave us! We still use it regularly and if you think about it, it’s very expensive to buy a lot of tools. This ages well, it doesn’t go out of style, it doesn’t break and you don’t have to worry about if it matches your decor! How many wedding gifts can anyone say they still use regularly after 34 years?

The Terminator – all deleted Scenes

Confession of the Day

$300k in debt (no mortgage). $297,677.49 to be exact.

$215k law school debt, $40k graduate school debt, $25k credit cards, $11k car loan, and a personal loan.

After 5 years of deep denial- I think I’ve finally accepted how badly we fucked up. I feel like I’ve gone through the stages of grief multiple times this year.

We ate that shit up.

And for what? To impress people? To prove that we’re worth something? All the above? It’s so normalized to be in debt as a millennial.

Everyone had credit cards, everyone was going out, everyone had student loans. We were super normal! You’re only young once- amiright?!

I found Dave last year, when I was hitting rock bottom. My debit card was getting declined at the gas station and the grocery store regularly.

After listening to The Ramsey Show for a couple weeks, I realized how screwed we were. I remember the first time he talked about the borrower being a slave to the lender.

That’s exactly how I felt.

I couldn’t breathe. I had a mental breakdown. I haven’t really been able to relax since. My husband and I spent all last year fighting about money and almost got divorced.

We dropped more than half of our “friends.” It’s a humbling experience to say the least. My mother in law makes us dinners a couple days a week to help out.

Family and friends ask why we’re not having kids or buying a house yet. The whole situation is embarrassing, but we deserve it.

Just trying to “embrace the suck” and keep up the motivation.

Tony Soprano | A Conflicted Man

This is why the Sopranos is the best tv show ever.

What was your experience like moving from a large city to an even smaller town (or vice versa)?

I did the small-town-to-big-city move in 1998, for college. I lived in a dorm my first year here, and didn’t have a car. But, my second year, when I was just 19 year old, I got my first studio apartment and brought my car with me from my small hometown.

One of the biggest adjustments I remember was getting comfortable with parking my car on the street overnight. In my small hometown, everyone had driveways. Most people parked their cars in their back yard or garages. And all of the businesses had parking lots. There were only a few streets in my small hometown that had parallel parking spots on the sides of them, and those spots were huge, clearly marked, and largely optional. They were for people who didn’t want to walk about a block from the nearest parking lot, just in the downtown part of my hometown.

But here in Chicago, driveways for people’s houses are rare. Most people park on the street or, if they’re lucky, in a garage. Street parking doesn’t have marked spots. You just squeeze in where you can.

It took me a few weeks to get used to the idea of just leaving my car on the side of the street all of the time. I remember my first night with it here, waking up several times in the middle of the night to look out the window and confirm that it was still there. Sure, there were cars bumper-to-bumper on both sides of the street, and mine was a cheap car that no one would want to steal anyway. Still, it took me about two weeks to get completely comfortable with the concept of just leaving a car parallel parked on the street overnight.

It took a while to get used to driving down a street next to parked cars as well. In my small hometown, since most streets didn’t have parallel parking, you didn’t need to worry about clipping people’s mirrors when you drove past them, or them opening their doors as you drive past, or someone stepping out from between cars, in front of you while you’re driving. The sides of the streets in my small hometown were usually clear of everything.

But, here in Chicago, you can easily be driving 50+mph down a 4-lane street, inches away from parked cars on the side. It’s kind of weird if you’re not used to it.

Mandatory Paternity Test Law Passed – No More Paternity Fraud From Single Women

United States is undergoing massive change.

Huawei M60 Pro shocked the world. Why is it?

Just imagine, the strongest, toughest school bully, out of jealousy-turned-into-fury-then-to-desperation, mobilized all possible means, together with his allies, and wanted to kill his most challenging competitor.

At the high-time when he thought and believed he was to succeed and gonna to celebrate with champagne, and when some schoolmates are waiting to watch the tragedy of the competitor, while some other schoolmates are considering which side to take, and of course there are also others wishing for the competitor to survive, though inevitably with bruises and bumps……

All of the sudden, the competitor came back, with a beautiful, ace-trumping, and formidable hitback, standing even higher, better and firmer!

If you happened to be one in the school and witnessed all these, how would you feel?

Shocked, whoever you are, whichever side you are with, right?

And, if I were U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, I would never say something like this: She was “upset” by news of the launch of Huawei’s Mate 60 Pro during her visit to China last month. (US says it has no evidence that Huawei can make advanced smartphones ‘at scale’ | CNN Business

)

It’s sort of admitting the school bully US is losing, or has lost, anyway, a real strongman would never be “upset” by a “nobody,” right?

MOVING TO PORTUGAL ALONE in my 50s!

European Union’s decision to launch an anti-subsidy probe into Chinese electric vehicles, will it make the Chinese EV industry become another Huawei?

The Claim is :-

China offers subsidies to their EVs in battery making and other areas, heavy subsidies in taxes and waivers to ensure that EVs are produced at a final cost that is 20% cheaper

This makes Chinese EVs deliver lower cost at better quality than many European EVs

This is alleged as unfair competition

They want either the batteries at lower costs or a 20% mark up on Chinese EVs that eliminates the subsidy effect

It’s Classic Protectionism 101

Soviet Style rather than Adam Smith

China didn’t do this

When Volkswagens and Citroens and Mercedes Benz and Toyota and Mitsubishi dominated the vehicle markets of China a decade or so ago:-

China didn’t impose extra tariffs on them nor make it unfair for them to import custom made parts by imposing 60–260% tariffs

China told BYD and SAIC and Great Wall to either make similar quality cars or go out of business because the customer needs the best

Thus these companies formed partnerships and purchased technology and leased technology and made a living with limited market share

Yet this competition helped them prepare a lead in EVs and dominate today

However the West isn’t prepared to do the same thing and ask Renault and Chevy and Volkswagen to COMPETE or go out of business

They want to protect their companies

Like US , Germany, France

They talked of free trade when their products were much superior and Asian nations imposed protectionism

Today when they are being left behind, they scream and yell and whine about tariffs and duties

China has many weapons here

If you want EVs – you need the Chinese Battery, Electric System and Motors and Chargers

The Chinese make the world’s best and most cost efficient products

Even Tesla battery technology is inferior to CATL and it’s latest batteries

It’s only in Autonomous driving that Tesla has an edge

So frankly China for the next 15 years at least can simply ban the export of batteries or impose a 80% tariff on EV exports and ensure European and US EVs simply can’t compete with ICEs

It throttles the EU green initiative

China loses the EU market but critically ensures Russia & Saudi gains a major leverage as EU and US become more dependent on Oil

That is one card

The Bigger card is

China can play it’s own protectionism

China has a huge market for European Cars with Eight Brands having their largest market in China

That’s 157,000 Jobs

China could simply ban the imports tomorrow and that would finish these companies revenue and share wise

Like the Iphone

Intel & Qualcomm openly said if China forced them to choose between the Chinese market and the Commerce Department restrictions, they would have to choose China for the sake of their US stockholders

If China banned Qualcomm entirely today and said “Okay. We will live with inferior phones but you B******* won’t sell or get a fifty cent piece from us”

Qualcomm would be brutally mauled

The Entire smartphone industry will be brutally mauled

The Entire Semiconductor industry will be brutally mauled

The Chinese are VERY PATIENT PEOPLE and they will play their cards very slowly

They thrive on competing

If China simply decides to close its markets to Foreigners except it’s Russian and Global South friends who will sell it all the Energy and Food it wants

Then most of the Tech firms will be brutally mauled

It was predicted that if Apple was banned entirely from China – $ 1.02 Trillion of it’s market share would never come back

The Total hit on the entire industry could touch $ 7–12 Trillion

Who will take up the slack?

India is expected to touch 40% of Chinas present market in 17–21 years (2040–2044)

Nobody else can take up even 3% of this slack

So China has a lot of Brahmastras to use

There will be no more Huaweis

Huawei was a blow

Nobody expected the West to be so brutally lawless and act like a mafia state , like a land with zero laws

Today China is ready

Every US attack has a party from China including the biggest Brahmastra

CUT OFF ACCESS TO PHARMA APIs & Cut off all components needed for Medical Equipment
Devalue US Debt by suddenly pegging an exchange rate of 2 Yuan to 1 USD. China will lose 17 Trillion Yuan and after the peg is removed the rate could reach 10–11 but US will lose 160 Trillion Yuan ($ 25 Trillion) , 8 times worse than the 2008 Crisis

Here’s Why They’re Coming For Russell Brand

Back when he was a hard-partying movie star, Russell Brand was the darling of the mainstream media.

But ever since the British comedian started turning hard against the establishment, exposing the mainstream narrative on COVID, the Ukraine War and empire, the knives have been out for him. And now we know how they plan to get him, with a series of questionable rape allegations emerging from anonymous sources in his distant past. Guest host Craig “Pasta” Jardula and Americans’

Comedian Kurt Metzger discuss why the establishment would have determined that Brand had to be disappeared from the discourse.

What did your parents say to you as a kid that still affects you today?

My dad is the best mechanic, I’ve seen him pull apart motors, transmissions, put them back together with no problem. Cars pull better, the knocking sound gone from the motor, take a test light and track down a short in a ticket making brake light system.

He can lay boards to a deck or floor and they fit perfectly everytime.

Make a brace for a wobbly door that hides from view, eyeball a fence line to be exactly lined up post to post. Watching my dad work is like watching an artist paint a masterpiece or craft a sculpture.

After school I would fly through my homework so I could start dinner and be ready when dad got home.

Some nights I would be doing my homework and trying to make dinner simultaneously and dad would come in. “Let’s have a look” or “let’s knock this out”.

But when I started junior high school, dad stopped helping with my homework, he started stirring the pot or watching the oven. He still watched me do my homework and was certainly right there but he didn’t offer to read or assist. Then I caught him.

One hot humid night I couldn’t sleep, my oxygen machine was drying my throat, but I’m sweating bad (I know not sexy for a girl but I have high metabolism) and I get up for some water.

Dad is sitting at the table with one of my school books. He jumped when he saw me, like he was stealing something or about to get in trouble.

He was saying sorry and mumbling about not having permission to go in my backpack.

I didn’t care it was just a school book and I have nothing to hide from my dad so being in my backpack was no big deal. But what he said next floored me; “I wanted to understand the lesson, I couldn’t understand what you were doing earlier and I hoped I could figure it out. I know I’m not very smart but I don’t want you to think less of me.”

I was shocked, me think less of the greatest person in my life, why would he, how could he ever think that?

This was when I started to learn of dad’s disability, he has severe dyslexia.

Now I know people will say that’s not a disability or several people have that but it’s the way it affects the individual.

My dad graduated high school on what is now considered a 9th grade level, and then just barely. He is a hands on learner, because he doesn’t trust himself to read and comprehend instructions, words plainly written on a page seem like a foreign language to him.

Numbers to a simple math equation would make him basically stop thinking and just have a blank mind. I was beginning to see why dad couldn’t balance the bank account, why he only had oral agreements with clients, and hated texting.

People had called him dumb, lazy and stupid until he believed it himself and he was afraid the person he admired most would think less of him.

Russell Brand – sinister demonetisation attempt by MP

Big major changes all over the collective West. Sheech!

Does being born into poverty affect your mindset later on in life?

Speaking for myself.

I grew up and was mostly raised in “the inner city.” So that’s my experience with being poor. I don’t know what it’s like to live rural poor.

I don’t live there anymore. Right now I’m pretty comfortably middle-class.

One way that I am marked out as “different” compared to many of my peers, is that I am very, VERY cynical when it comes to the treatment of the poor. It is one of the few big things I am not really partisan or ideological over.

Poverty is a burden, and it’s a burden that most people will hate, despise, and pity you for carrying. This is regardless of party, race, color, or creed. I am amazed and saddened to know just how much easier life gets when you are not poor, and how much more people will like you.

Life really is pay-to-win. And with that realization, I see that my poverty was really nothing more than a hinderance. My life would’ve been much easier, in virtually every way, had I not been poor growing up. I see no glory in coming out of it, no special mindset for having been in it — other than cynicism. I can’t find any narrative for myself to have made the sheer unfairness of being born into poverty mean something. It just happened. Like getting hit by a bus.

Although, one way I suppose it’s affected me, is that I don’t hate or blame the poor for their poverty. This isn’t to say that some poor people don’t make disastrous choices. But I went to an expensive college. I’ve been around rich people. They make plenty of disastrous choices; they just have the money to mitigate the fallout. Humans make bad choices. The poor are expected to be superhumans and are blamed for failing.

*sigh*

Another way it has affected me is that it’s made me much less sympathetic to the middle-class, and I am middle-class. The middle-class complains endlessly, about everything. They are constantly sucking all of the air out of the room. Politicians dote on them regularly. Middle-class this, middle-class that. The middle-class even has this theory where they are the defenders of democracy and without them everything would fall apart. And on and on and on.

Let me tell you, the middle class is spoiled. The gulf between the poor and the “middle class” is so enormous it would make you cry if you lived it — as I have lived it. But the middle-class get to complain constantly about their property taxes (imagine owning property!) and how college scholarships don’t help them because they’re “at the cutoff” and blah blah blah.

And the poor? They get a swift kick and are told to “work harder.”

Sometimes you have to laugh…

4 Airplane Outburst More Terrifying Than Tiffany Gomas

JP MORGAN CEO SOUNDS ALARM – Dark Winter for Banks

Hal Turner

Yesterday, speaking at an industry event organized by Barclays, CEO Jamie Dimon sounded the alarm on a slew of headwinds that will hit the U.S. economy hard in the next couple of months, and pointed to several risks that could deal heavy blows to consumers, investors, businesses and banks.

On Monday, he weighed in on how new regulation by the Fed will impact customers in the coming months. The changes will certainly not make them happy. Dimon explained how plans for new capital rules in the United States could damage the attractiveness of bank stocks, and make banking costs go even higher for consumers.

He argued that the Fed’s “’Basel III Endgame’ reforms” would make loans even more expensive, and would force banks to reduce the amount of money they lend, which could drive banking activities into less regulated sectors. Dimon stressed that more lenders could run into problems just like Silicon Valley Bank did this spring. “Any crisis that damages Americans’ trust in their banks damages all banks — a fact that was known even before this crisis,” he wrote. “Even when it is behind us, there will be repercussions from it for years to come,” he emphasized.

He also said that it is “a huge mistake” to think that the U.S. economy will boom “for years” given that there are so many risks out there. With interest rates still going up, conditions will become even more recessionary, and “you are going to see more people out there with problems”.

It is for that reason that JPMorgan has just reiterated its bearish stance on the stock market, urging its clients to stay defensively positioned. Analysts at the firm also adjusted the bank’s investment strategy in response to rising commodity prices and the potential spike in inflation. JPMorgan strategist Marko Kolanovic also noted that the increased potential for bank turbulence, an oil shock, and slowing growth is poised to send stocks back toward their 2022 lows, as reported by Bloomberg News.

We still have three more months to go before this year is done, and a lot more can happen in financial markets. One of the biggest concerns right now is the real estate sector. Warren Buffet’s investment partner and vice president of Berkshire Hathaway, Charlie Munger recently observed that hundreds of banks are exposed to commercial real estate loans that are at risk of going into default. He thinks there is trouble ahead for the U.S. commercial property market. “A lot of real estate isn’t so good anymore,” Munger said. “We have a lot of troubled office buildings, a lot of troubled shopping centers, a lot of troubled other properties. There’s a lot of agony out there.”

These are the very early chapters of this crisis. But when even the head of one of the biggest financial institutions on the planet is worried about growing risks, we should definitely brace for pain because much worse is yet to come. Although it may take a while for all the dominoes to fall, we won’t be able to avert a decline that is already in motion. The clock is ticking, and time is running out for the U.S. financial system.

From the Concrete Slab Came a Pitiful Meow

What are some ways that American companies can keep up with Chinese companies like Huawei that are becoming increasingly competitive and innovative?

Why did US win the space race?

Why did they edge out the USSR by 1970?

They promoted meritocracy and hired thousands of people of ability

Including hiring 3 Colored Women in Texas well before the Civil Rights Act

It’s because THEY DIDN’T SANCTION THE USSR

They COMPETED

They used their resources and advantages and competed aggressively and took advantage of the fact that USSR had the worst leadership from 1966 onwards

That’s all they need to do

Compete and allow Economic forces to decide markets rather than the Congress or Politicians

Take Alipay and Wechat

Amazing Apps

If we bring Alipay and Wechat to India today, they will compete one on one with Phone Pe and Google Pay

That will lead to fierce competition and lead to one superior product evolving or a market resolution

Instead if we keep protecting US Apps from competition, the Chinese will build their apps and compete ferociously in their own markets and evolve their apps on a far superior level than US Apps as is already happening today

Chinese Apps like JD or Meituan or Alipay or Wechat or SHEIN are far superior to US equivalents and of course Tik Tok which has launched ecommerce functions in US

Meanwhile because of Chinese protectionism, Google wasn’t allowed in China and due to no direct one on one competition, Baidu has never reached the level of penetration and functionality of Google

The US today have a sense of entitlement that is unbelievable

Anyone develops some product that could compete with their licensing of core technology, and they invent some trumped up security threat and sanction the product and threaten anyone who uses that product

It may work against small players

Against China, a Nation of tremendous talent and intelligence plus a superb merit based system – It is a huge axe blow on your own feet

US has abandoned free economic forces and fair competition

That signs their death warrant

China had decide to embrace both. That means they will win.

Ultimately Economics is always the same

RESPECT THE ECONOMIC FORCES

The US must abandon all sanctions and go for free trade and competition with China including full access to each others markets.

What’s the weirdest thing a guest has done at your house?

Oh my gosh. I’m still getting over this one. I travel a lot on business and, when I do, I usually try to find someone to come in and house sit for me. Well, I met a woman whom I thought would be great for house sitting. Because she was going to be taking care of 3 dogs, 5 cats, and 4 horses, I told her that I’d pay her $150/day, which she agreed to.

I told her that she could sleep in the guest room (which is decorated very nicely with a new bed, sheets, blankets, etc. I showed her how to use the big screen tv, etc — and I told her that she could eat any food in the house with the exception of a certain coffee and also to please not do anything illegal on my property.

When she came over, I was very specific and left written instructions so she wouldn’t be confused. The specific rules were for the protection of my animals.

Feed the horses in the feeders and don’t move the feeders.
Fill up the water trough daily so they have fresh water and, because it was winter and freezing, make sure that the water de-icer was left on.
Put the dogs in the house before going out the gate, then go back and let them out. If you open the gate, the dogs will run out and you’ll have a difficult time getting them back.
Do not allow the cats to go out. They’re indoor cats and 1 is a female that I just adopted — she’s not spayed yet so under no circumstances can she go out.

She agreed to everything and I was happy that I’d found someone who could take care of my house and animals.

During my business trip, I called several times to make sure things were going ok and she said they were so I was happy that I didn’t have to worry about things.

When I returned from my trip, I was absolutely shocked. I walked into my house and couldn’t breathe. The house was completely filled with pot smoke. (And I have a BIG house). I thought she’d spent the entire time getting stoned. But that wasn’t all. She had gone through ALL my cupboards and closets and taken everything out and rearranged things. NOTHING was where it had been. All the furniture was changed around. My bedroom had been completely changed, including my bed — which she’d been sleeping in and had stained the bed and sheets — not sure with what but it was disgusting.

She had also thrown all the cats outside — because “cats don’t belong in the house.” I’m not sure what she’d done to the dogs, but they were terrified of her. I do know that she had left the gate open and they got out and it took her hours to find and get them back in. (I live in a rural area where people shoot stray dogs so they were in danger.)

I also found out that she’d just dumped the feed for the horses in a completely different area than where they were supposed to be fed AND it was where there was a lot of sand — so essentially the horses were eating feed mixed with sand (which can be deadly.) She’d pulled the de-icer out of the watering trough and pulled the plug so the trough was empty and the horses had no water.

The back of the remote control for the tv had disappeared — and I found it a month or so later hidden in the back of my closet. She’d ripped out plugs from my desktop computer and taken all the ink out of my printer.

I had a brand new washer and dryer. She pulled them out and the hoses and plugs were disconnected. I had a beautiful handmade wooden bowl was on my fireplace mantel. She took it off the mantel, took it into the bathroom and poured liquid soap into it, then put it into the shower so the wood had warped beyond saving. It was ruined.

I collect art and she’d moved all my pictures around and turned them upside down.

My best friend had died a few years before, and he had given me a ceramic angel before he passed. It had a lot of meaning for me and I loved it — it was so precious to me. It had disappeared. I found out later that she’d thrown it away — I found it in the trash in a bag of dirty cat litter.

Oh, and my coffee that I’d specifically asked her not to use (there were at least 5 other kinds there) — what she didn’t use, she dumped out in the trash.

There were a lot of other things that she’d done, but you get the idea. I was freaked out and horrified, and honestly, she scared me.

I asked her why she’d done all this and she said got belligerent and told me that she had every right to do it because it was HER house and she could have it any way she wanted to. She told me that my dogs were too spoiled and they deserved to be “trained”. Part of that training was making them sleep outside. (Imagine a Basset Hound being made to sleep outside with no shelter, in the middle of February when the temperatures were down to 0 degrees F.) The same with the cats. (Oh? and that female cat? Let’s just say that there are now two more kittens here. ::::sigh:::::)

When I asked why she’d say that she’d house sit if she didn’t want to follow my instructions, she said that she came from a family with 6 sisters and she was the youngest. She hated it when they told her what to do and so she ALWAYS did the OPPOSITE of what anyone “ordered” her to do.

Then she said that NOBODY orders her around. She got more and more angry and upset and I was actually afraid that she would become violent. She started screaming at me and daring me to call her a “F’ing C*** B****”. (Sorry, I don’t use that kind of language.)

I did pay her, because I just wanted her gone. I did tell her that she was never to set foot on my property again or I’d have her arrested. After she left and had given me back my keys, I noticed that one of the door keys was new so she’d obviously had extras made. The next day all the locks were changed, including the locks on the gates.

The next day the texts from her started. She told me that she’d thrown away my angel but I didn’t need anything from a dead friend and SHE’D be my new best friend. The texts continued to get creepier and creepier.

I responded that if she ever texted, called or tried to contact me again, I’d have her arrested for stalking. Then I blocked her. She totally freaked me out.

I haven’t seen her since. But I did get a new mattress. :::::shivers::::::

Four-Onion Steak

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

2 (12 ounce) boneless beef top-loin steaks, cut 1 inch thick
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 large white onion, thinly sliced
1 medium leek, thinly sliced
2 shallots, chopped
1/2 cup beef broth
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup sliced scallions
Scallions, sliced into 3-inch pieces (optional)

Instructions

Cut steaks into 4 portions.
Combine garlic salt, chili powder, pepper and cinnamon. Use your fingers to press mixture onto both sides of each steak portion.
In a large skillet cook steaks in hot oil over medium heat to desired doneness, turning once. Allow 8 to 11 minutes for medium rare or 12 to 14 minutes for medium.
Transfer steaks to a serving platter, reserving drippings in the skillet. Keep warm.
For sauce, add white onion, leek and shallots to skillet. Cook and stir over low heat for 5 minutes or until onions are tender.
Add beef broth and Worcestershire sauce. Cook and stir for 1 to 2 minutes more or until broth is slightly reduced.
Add scallions. Spoon onion mixture over steaks.
Garnish with scallion pieces, if desired.

Do Cats Think They’re The Boss?

Compost Living

When I was in my early teens, I built a “compost pile”. I collected some old bricks from a run down gas station near my school, dragged them home with my red rider wagon, and built up a nice rectangular box. It was around one yard (1 meter) by two yards and I would fill it with grass clippings, leaves, and kitchen organics that I collected.

Occasionally I would throw in some lime (as we had a lot of old apples from our small orchard).

Oh, yeah. The compost generated heat. Heh heh.

Both my parents thought this was an “ok” project of mine. They neither encouraged me, or made fun of me.

I was just “eccentric” in their minds.

But, let me tell you all, by the next Spring, when I shoveled out the rich black earth it was awesome! Just amazing, and my (well, the “family”) garden really produced that year. I was so proud.

A compost pile is a nice little side hobby that doesn’t take too much effort, but will greatly increase your garden yields immensely. And let me tell you all, it was a true joy to extract the rich black earth from the pile and transport it to the garden. Sure as shit!

Some guidelines…

Creating Your Compost Heap Location

One of the most important factors for starting a compost pile is its location. Choose an open, level area with good drainage. You do not want your compost to sit in standing water. An area with partial sun or shade is also ideal.

Too much sun can dry the pile out, while too much shade can keep it overly wet. Finally, choose a site that is easy for you to get to and avoid areas near dogs or other meat-eating animals.

Size

The recommended size for a compost pile is generally no smaller than 3 feet (1 m.) high and wide and no larger than 5 feet (1.5 m.). Anything smaller may not heat up efficiently and anything larger may hold too much water and become difficult to turn.

It is recommended to start your pile on bare ground rather than on asphalt or concrete, which could impede aeration and inhibit microbes. Placing a pallet underneath the pile is fine, however, if you prefer.

Adding Organic Materials

Many organic materials can be composted, but there are some items that you should keep out of your compost pile. These include: Meat, dairy, fat or oil products Carnivorous pet feces (e.g. dog, cat) Diseased plants, or weeds that have seeded Human waste Charcoal or coal ash (wood ash is ok though)

The key materials for composting are nitrogen/greens and carbon/browns.

When starting a compost pile, the recommended practice is to layer or alternate these greens and browns, the same way as you would for making lasagna.

Your bulkier organic materials do best in the first ground layer, so start with a layer of browns, such as twigs (less than ½ inch or 1.25 cm. in diameter) or straw, about 4 to 6 inches (10-12 cm.).

Next, add in some green materials, such as kitchen waste and grass clippings, again about 4 to 6 inches (10-12 cm.) thick.

Additionally, animal manure and fertilizers serve as activators that accelerate the heating of your pile and provide a nitrogen source for beneficial microbes.

Continue to add layers of nitrogen and carbon materials until you reach the top or run out. Lightly water each layer as it is added, firming it down but do not compact. Watering and Turning the Compost

Your compost pile should be moist, but not soggy.

Most of your water will come from rain, as well as the moisture in green materials, but you may need to water the pile yourself on occasion.

If the pile gets too wet, you can turn it more frequently to dry it, or add more brown materials to soak up excess moisture.

Once you turn the pile the first time, these materials will get mixed together and compost more efficiently. Keeping the compost pile turned on a frequent basis will help with aeration and speed up decomposition. Using these simple instructions for composting, you will be well on your way to creating the ideal compost for your garden.

…

Todays…

Why doesn’t China take drastic measures to reverse its demographic collapse while it still can? For example, restricting abortion and giving financial incentives for large families.

Where is the Demographic Collapse?

A Healthy Demographics is when you have two young people to support an old person population wise

China will have healthy demographics at least until 2043 , twenty years from today

A Strained Demographics is when you have One Young Person to Support one Old Person

This will not happen in China as per today’s scenario but in the event of a worst case scenario will happen by 2070

That’s 50 years from today

Then by 2080 and 2090, things WILL BECOME BETTER FOR CHINA

Plus Chinas Strained Demographics which will last for 10–20 years will be compensated by strong rigorous healthcare and old age care due to a rich economy and mostly a developed economy by then

A Demographic collapse is when you have one young man supporting two dependents or more

That happens only during major war when young men die in large numbers

This is Japan

Note the difference?

THE LINES MERGE AND INTERSECT unlike Chinas, even under the worst case scenario

Japan left having healthy demographics by 1990

By 2033, Japan enters Demographic Collapse

It will take around 67 years for Japan to come out of this Collapse

Here is India

As you can see India will have healthy demographics by 2070 and will not be strained even by 2100 though it may head for straining by 2150 AD

Had India been sufficiently developed today ($ 10–12 Trillion GDP) with HDI of 80 and a 10% minimum share of global manufacturing, then we could have taken advantage of this demographics advantage and taken our economy to $ 40 Trillion or more

Yet the fact that we didn’t means we will perhaps always be third in GDP and 52nd in GDP per Capita

Yet how many talk of Japan?

Nobody

Believe me China is safe. Yet China would like to improve on the numbers to be in a better position

They way for that isn’t to make abortion illegal but rather to bring down housing costs and encourage migration of people to Tier 3/4 Cities and Rural outposts

Nice Picture

With the average Chinese male being 55 pounds less in weight than a white person, how much weaker does that make them?

Hi, Craig. Thanks for the very interesting question.

55 pounds less?

I’ve lived in the States.
I think you’re severely underestimating the difference in weight.

The guy below is not just 55 pounds heavier than I am.

main qimg aa17564f615b6dae10d8123f3b21a41c lq

My guess is he’s at least double, maybe triple my weight.

But yes.
I’m sure he can completely destroy me, rip me asunder, and dish out critical hit after critical hit on my person.

Thankfully, I am rather fleet of foot, so at least I can get away before he completey destroys me.
I’m willing to bet that even on foot, I’m faster than his scooter.

Call me quietly confident!

Classic Beef Burgundy

Ingredients

1 (1 1/2 pound) round steak, cut into 1 1/2 inch cubes
1 cup dry red wine
1 small onion, quartered
1/2 pound small mushrooms
4 tablespoons unsalted margarine
3 cups sliced onion
2 cups diced carrots
1/4 cup chopped parsley
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon ground marjoram
1/2 teaspoon thyme, crushed
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 bay leaf
1 1/4 cups water
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Instructions

Combine beef, 3/4 cup wine and onion. Cover; refrigerate overnight.
Drain beef cubes; set aside. Strain and reserve liquid.
Sauté mushrooms in 3 tablespoons margarine until lightly browned; remove and set aside.
Add beef; cook until well browned. Remove and set aside.
Sauté sliced onion, carrots, parsley and garlic in remaining 1 tablespoon margarine until onions are tender.
Add meat, marjoram, thyme, pepper, bay leaf, marinade and 1 cup water. Cover and simmer 2 hours, or until meat is tender.
Dissolve flour in remaining 1/4 cup water; add to beef mixture.
Add mushrooms and cook until mixture thickens, about 5 minutes.
Stir in remaining wine.

What’s one instinctive thing you did that prevented something bad from happening?

My small apartment complex has a fair number of children under 10 who play on the grounds.

One gal moved her brother, who was a lazy raging alcoholic, in with her. He would sit outside all day & early evening drinking until his sister got home from working. (Like she couldn’t smell the stale alcohol on him).

So that she wouldn’t throw out his alcohol, he would hide his half to full bottles around the property. Often this was in areas that the kids played in. When I would come across the bottles, I would just toss them in the trash but that didn’t deter him. I started getting concerned that the kids could find a bottle and drink the alcohol. The super spoke to him and his sister but she denied that there was a priblem

One of his favorite hidings places was by my garage. I was able to film him staggering, day drinking and hiding the bottle. I took the film to the police and sent a copy to the complex management company. Basically, the sister was told that he was not allowed on the property and that they will not be renewing her lease.

Well guess who was back 2 weeks ago living at the complex. I let the super know and he is handling it. I also went to each unit with kids, let them know what transpired and to teach their kids not to drink anything they find. I also showed them the video.

A few of the parents complained to the management company. Last Friday, they taped an eviction notice to the sister’s unit.

Now before anyone jumps down my throat about the brother being an alcoholic and needs help, I agree. However his sister is enabling him. He doesn’t work or receive government assistance so she is either giving him $$$ or he is stealing from the liquor store, which I doubt given how drunk he usually is

And a child getting sick, having organ damage or even dying, trump’s his need for a drink.

What sounds extremely wrong, but is actually correct?

Three researchers were awarded the 2014 Nobel prize in Physics for inventing nothing other than the blue LED light. Isamu Akasaki, Hiroshi Amano and Shuji Nakamura were awarded the Nobel prize for inventing a diode that emitted blue light.

“How did three guys win one of the most prestigious awards in physics for inventing a light that shines blue?” Was the first thing that came to mind when I heard about this. I just didn’t equate something that sounded so simple to me with a Nobel prize. This is the same award that was awarded for the discovery of the wave nature of electrons, for the discovery of the neutron and for the discovery of the superconducting properties of ceramic materials. Well after I had done some research, I found it turns out their invention had far-reaching consequences in developing so many of the things we consider ordinary today.

This is how LEDs work:

LEDs are sandwiches of semiconductor materials. The layers are ‘doped’ with other elements, which provides some layers with extra electrons and others with a surplus of ‘holes’, where missing electrons leave behind a positive charge. When an electrical current is applied, the electrons and holes combine at the junctions between the layers and emit light as a result.

Green and red LED’s had been around since the 1950’s, but prior to their invention in the 1990’s, no one in the industry could figure out how to create a diode that emitted blue light. This was a significant obstacle because blue LED chips are used in white LED-based lights. Without a blue LED, the white LED-based lights that are so common today wouldn’t be nearly as common, if they existed at all.

White LED’s are important because they are used in the screens of our smartphones, tablets, computer screens and TV’s. LED lights were also vastly more efficient than any other light source invented before. One estimate believes that this invention could save up to 20% of the world’s power consumption.

So when taken into perspective and properly considered, the Japanese trio are in fact deserving of the prize. Their invention has been to the benefit of humanity and we are all better off because of it. This is also one of the few times the prize has been awarded for a practical invention.

How do you feel about the announcement of China’s preliminary plan for a manned lunar landing? What information is of interest?

China ALWAYS delivers.

If China says that it will do something, you can bet on it being done.

There’s no exceptions.

Additionally, China has the skills, the ability, the top-down funding, and resources necessary. So when a program or project is launched, you can guarantee that it will be be completed to the timeline, and that those who lead the project will dedicate their very lives to make it work.

This is not simply a pro-China advocacy. It’s a observation that any student of modern Geo-politics can easily make. Whether it is the development of nuclear weapons, the elimination of poverty, the reforestation of deserts, or easy access to healthcare, China has accomplished its promises and met its goals.

In regards to space; whether it is satellites, space-stations, vehicles, bases on the moon and Mars; robotic exploration spacecraft or systems that peer deep into Space, China is delivering. Step by step. All with very little “fanfare’, posturing, or political announcements.

China delivers.

You will notice that in this OPINION, that I am not mentioning the United States.

It seems to be the “knee jerk” reaction to somehow squeeze a mention about NASA, or Elon Musk, or some nonsense about lofty plans or goals about colonization of Mars or the Moon in the answers. What do I think about that?

Ah. An attempt to keep a fantasy alive. Lots and lots of talk. Much fluff. Promises galore. A lot of huffing and a puffing. Make sure you squeeze in a healthy does of “diversity”, and throw in some “patriotism” as well. Gotta politicize everything; something for the left, and something for the right.

All these other ideas are politicized concepts without much substance. They are dreams and hopes. Great things; dreams. Great things; hopes. But come on…they are not engineered solutions.

That costs money. That requires talent. That takes effort.

China’s Space ambitions consist of engineered solutions, with funding to match, and staged step-by-step goals of attainment. Let the other billionaires, and nations, “talk big” and promise so much incredible things.

China delivers.

That is all you need to know.

Why the Ruling Elite Is Anti-American | Constitution 101 Highlight

This is outstanding and exceptional!

It is a MUST WATCH!

Have you ever checked into a hotel/motel room and found something really interesting the previous occupant(s) had left behind?

I never knew if the last occupant had left it behind but…we checked into a high-end Palm Springs Hotel several years ago. All was lovely. In the middle of the night, I heard a soft noise from the closet. When I checked on it, it was a mother cat and 4 newborn kittens in the closet. I was not expecting that!

I made sure that Mama & babies were okay. The next morning, I asked at the desk if someone had left a pregnant cat behind in our room? “No.”

The hotel people offered to take Mama & kittens away but I said, ”No.” I am an animal lover and figured that I could provide a better home than having them carted away!

We took Mama & the four —Enie, Menie, Miney, and Moe — home with us where they still rule today! What a great bit of memorabilia from our trip!

Confession of the Day

Hi, I am 21yo guy, who is obsessed with making money. In a span of 2years, I have tried plenty of businesses but none of them were successful. I literally have 0 friends, no social life and I barely sleep for 3-4hrs. At this point, the only thing that matters to me is money and I do feel sorry for myself because giving up is never an option, everything i like needs money.

I do have plenty of skills, such as making AI models, video editing and more but it seems each of it is useless.

I am here to find someone who’s on the same page, so we can exchange our ideas or collaborate to build generational wealth.

I feel so embarrassed when I see people with luxury life. It’s not like I hate them. It’s just that I am still not there.

Moreover, most of the people around me are useless. They have no plan for life, and all they care about is friends, partying, and girls. It feels terrible to live in such a place.

It’s not just money, dude. It’s more about what it can buy for us. We can literally have anything with money, and I have never been a guy who wants love, friends, and emotional attachments. I have seen people switch based on a person’s wealth. In the end, every damn thing leads to money. Whether it be love, comfort, friends, peace… literally everything

ALERT: ELITES LEAVE WASHINGTON? NUKE EVENT IN UKRAINE

Doom and gloom. But… what is going on? Some things to pander and think about.

What is the difference between ‘vous’ and ‘tu’ when talking to someone whom we don’t know personally (in France)?

It’s critical

So, let’s start out with the easy one. If you’re addressing more than one person (such as a married couple), it’s always “vous”. “Vous” is plural.

But for the rest of it, when addressing someone in the singular where “you” would be appropriate in English:

“Vous” is the polite form
“Tu” is the familiar form

In France, they take the distinction fairly seriously (except for teenagers and college students). The full set of rules in the form of flowchart can be found online, but the “Notes” version is:

Strangers are “vous”
People you know very well are “tu”. Your spouse, close work colleagues, little kids (Unless the little kid is a foreign prince or something), God, people like that. NOT the front desk staff, waiters/waitresses, shop clerks or baggage porters

And the golden rule:

When in doubt use “vous”.

Using “tu” inappropriately is like a stranger calling you “buddy” or “pal”. It’s just rude.

What screams “I’m educated, but not very bright”?

Once, while working at a local university we were running a woodchipper. One of the professors walked by and stuck his head into the shute. Immediately we hit the emergency off switch and pulled him away. He just looked at us confused and said he wanted to see how it worked. We had to explain that had their been any wood chips flying out at the time it would’ve stripped the flesh from his face. We then opened it up and showed him the working mechanisms. He wandered off quite happy. To this day I don’t think he had any idea how much danger he put himself in.

Nice Picture

When someone close to you asks to borrow money, how do you say no?

Now, I just simply say No.

I’ve learned from past experiences that you generally don’t get paid back. Plus if you ask the person to sign a promissory note, they generally refuse. Also, any explanation that you provide turns into a debate.

For example, my lazy & unmotivated cousin (C)and his wife (W) asked me to dinner at their rental house. Basically, his spoiled money grubbing mother, who never worked a day in her life, convinced him that I would be thrilled to lend him $$$ for a deposit on a house. At the time, I was living in an apt that was nothing to write home about.

W- we are delighted that you joined us for dinner. It has been a long time since we were all together.

C- how is the job going?

Me – fine (realizing that something is up)

C we found a house we want to buy but don’t have enough $$$ for the deposit. Would you loan us $25,000

Me – no, why would I loan you that if I can only afford a basic apt.

W – well my husband is your favorite cousin

Me – yeah, so?

C – buying the house will be an investment for our future

Me – what about my future?

C – you owe us for everything my mom did for your mom when she had cancer

Me – she did shit for my mom, she actually showed up at my mom’s house with fabric for an outfit she wanted my mom to make her. And got pissed when my mom wouldn’t since she just had a major chemo treatment that morning.

Anyway this went on and on basically denigrating me & my mom but expecting me to loan them $$$. It only ended when I excused myself from the table and walked out. I was exhausted mentally from this and disappointed that they could treat me that way.

So now it is NO and I allow no discussion.

Stray kitten on the highway has a dangerous accident if it is not rescued in time!

What did your pastor say or do that made you quit his church?

I grew up across the street from a corrupt church & rectory and next door to the convent.

For example, 2 priests got 2 women pregnant — the women were ex-communicated but the priests got to preach each Sunday from the altar.

Or my parents weren’t allowed to baptize my brother at the church because the godmother had been seen by the monsignor wearing a red (whore color) leotard & tights under her coat. She was studying dance at Julliard. BTW, she was a graduate of the church’s school so if her values were sinful (they weren’t), the church only had to blame themselves.

The monsignor bought a new Cadillac every year yet the nuns, who worked at his school, often didn’t have enough to eat. My mom had a rotating “invite to dinner” with them so they received at least 1 wholesome meal each week.

I could spend hours on more examples but to answer the question.

At 14, I was an active member of the church, CYO, teen sports teams, etc. That Xmas, the CYO was decorating the rectory for the holidays along with the men’s and women’s auxiliary church groups. The monsignor is eying me very strangely and after awhile, he asks if I’m related to Manuel xxx. I state that he was my deceased grandfather. The 68 year old monsignor tore 14 year old me a new one, calling me every vile name that could be said to a female and that he wanted me out. That there was no way I could ever be a good Catholic given who my grandfather was.

(Evidently, the monsignor while studying at the seminary, had an argument with my grandfather who was a laborer there. So for nearly 50 years this vessel of catholic purity held a grudge against a man for a perceived slight.)

When he was done screaming and swearing at me, I calmly & loudly said that the monsignor could go fuk himself and walked out, leaving the church forever.

As a postscript, 16 years older, my mom asked me to get a priest to give her final councilling. She had days to live. My mom, who went to church almost daily, had been bedridden for 2 years and no priest (from across the street) never visited her. I went to the rectory and asked for a priest. Priest told me he was too busy to talk since he was late to his golf tee off time. That I could make an appointment in a couple of weeks since he might have some free time. He denied that it was his responsibility to find out who the sick we’re in his parish and pushed by me.

I called the archdiocese and got nowhere. So, given that I worked in Advertising for a major corporation, I called every personal contact that I had at every TV, radio, cable station and pitched a story of a corrupt parish. Once the archdiocese started getting calls from reporters for their comment on their story, they reacted. The priest was forced to leave his golf game and to go see my mom. I made sure to sit in on his sessions with my mom so that he had to treat her with compassion, not bitterness or rudeness or condescension.

I didn’t just leave this parish / church, I left this religion entirety. I have no tolerance for hypocrites.

What is the strangest experience you have ever had while answering your front door?

On Thanksgiving in 2018, I was having over 30 people to dinner. It was my father-in-law’s last big family dinner. He had cancer; he died less than a month later, a week before Christmas.

I’d ordered a couple of long tables and linens to fit; and then decided to rent the whole shebang. I didn’t have settings for 30 people so I rented those too.

I thought the tables really did look beautiful. I had burnt orange tablecloths and deep red napkins. Festive.

I decided, the day before, that although I had candles, I also needed two centerpieces. If I just had one big one people couldn’t see each other. I wanted to keep them low.

I thought I’d get a dozen multicolored roses, divide them, and use them in two arrangements. I figured they’d be pretty without hitting everyone over the head with the whole fall colors thing.

I was running out when someone pulled up in a car and came to the door. He caught me right before I left. He had a big vase; with a lot of cellophane.

Inside were a dozen multi-colored roses.

They were from my mother. I’d invited her, but she wasn’t up to traveling; she lives 6 hours away. She’s 90.

She had no idea what I was planning to use as a centerpiece.

It was so preternatural. I called her and said,

“You’re not going to believe this…”

We laughed and laughed.

I divided them up. The next day, my FIL sat at one end of the joined tables and my husband at the other, surrounded by family. He ate well. We had a wonderful day.

As strange as it was, I felt happy my mother could still read my mind over so many years, and so many miles away.

Why is there such a big difference The ISS is crowded, but the CSS is like an Apple store

Very interesting. The difference is stunning.