Links 9/27/2024

Octopuses seen hunting together with fish in rare video — and punching fish that don’t cooperate NBC

A taxonomy of sovereign wealth funds Brad Setser, FT

Climate

…HELENE WEAKENS TO A TROPICAL STORM AS IT MOVES FARTHER INLAND OVER GEORGIA… …LIFE-THREATENING STORM SURGE, WINDS, AND HEAVY RAINS CONTINUE… National Hurricane Center, NOAA

Hurricane Helene slams into US coast as deadly Category 4 storm leaving almost 1.5 million homes without power across Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas as forecasters warn of ‘nightmare’ storm surge and winds Daily Mail

* * *

Climate Change Is So Bad, Even the Arctic Is On Fire Bloomberg

* * *

Low-carbon ammonia offers green alternative for agriculture and hydrogen transport Tech Xplore

China begins SAF pilot with commercial flights, airports; to ramp up in 2025 S&P Global. SAF = Sustainable Aviation Fuel.

Maybe:

Water

Southern Water makes plans to tanker supplies from Norway’s fjords FT

Syndemics

COVID Virus Is Evolving Resistance to Antiviral Treatment, Studies Show Newsweek

EID Journal: Emerging Monkeypox Virus Sublineage C.1 Causing Community Transmission, Vietnam, 2023 Avian Flu Diary

China?

China stocks see best week since 2008 on stimulus impact as most Asia markets rise NBC

China caps week of ‘bazooka’ stimulus for ailing economy with rate cut Agence France Presse

China’s industrial profit growth slows, underscoring urgent need for policy pivot South China Morning Post

Humiliation for Xi Jinping as China’s newest nuclear-powered submarine SINKS at Wuhan port in a blunder covered up by the Communist Party Daily Mail

China’s Market Marred by Glitches as Frenzy Grips Stocks Bloomberg

Myanmar

Myanmar military urges anti-coup forces to give up struggle and join talks Al Jazeera

India

As the Women’s Game Grows in Popularity, Indian Cricket Remains Tied to Masculinity New Lines Magazine

Chinese and Russian firms among first foreign investors in Indonesia’s new capital Nusantara with building projects Channel News Asia

Syraqistan

Netanyahu ‘greenlights’ temporary cease-fire with Hezbollah: Israeli media Anadolu Agency

Lebanon ceasefire hopes fade as Netanyahu issues contradictory statements Guardian

US, frustrated, says ceasefire plan rejected by Netanyahu had been coordinated with him The Times of Israel

* * *

Netanyahu’s New York Trip Is Another Opportunity for Israel to Miss an Opportunity Haaretz

Ex-general: Israel will collapse if war continues for another year Middle East Monitor

European Disunion

France deploys colonial security forces to repress cost of living protests in Martinique MR Online

Dear Old Blighty

Rachel Reeves really should serve the country and not the City Funding the Future

New Not-So-Cold War

The Wait is Over: Putin Unveils New Nuclear Doctrine in Final Warning to West Simplicius, Simplicius the Thinker

Russia’s revised nuclear doctrine per latest speech by Vladimir Putin Gilbert Doctorow

Russia rattles the nuclear sabre again, as Ukraine devastates its munitions Al Jazeera

* * *

Zelensky’s ‘victory plan’: Is the war in Ukraine reaching its endgame? France24

The US is giving Ukraine billions more in weapons. Here’s how they will help AP

Zelenskiy takes aim at China, Brazil push for peace in Ukraine Reuters

* * *

Missile Strike on Ukrainian Airbase Takes Out F-16s on the Ground – Reports Military Watch. Big if true.

* * *

What does ‘victory’ for Ukraine look like? The Spectator

Who is winning in Ukraine? These maps tell the real story. WaPo

A River Runs Through the End of the NATO-Russia Ukrainian War Gordon Hahn, Russian & Eurasian Politics. See NC here and here.

* * *

Can the US be accused of ‘meddling’ in Georgia’s election? Responsible Statecraft

Is Georgia Headed for Another Revolution? Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

* * *

White House sees no political motives in Zelenskyy’s visit to arms factory Ukrainska Pravda

Imagining the Russian empire’s collapse The Counteroffensive with Tim Mak

The Wild West of Papal Conclaves JStor Daily

Antitrust

The Google antitrust remedy should extinguish surveillance, not democratize it Cory Doctorow, Pluralistic

Digital Watch

X blocks links to hacked JD Vance dossier The Verge

Musk’s X asks to be reinstated in Brazil after complying with judge’s orders, source tells AP PBS

The WordPress vs. WP Engine drama, explained TechCrunch

Supply Chain

91 hours left to avert supply chain mayhem in the US Splash 247

Zeitgeist Watch

Paralyzed Jockey Loses Ability to Walk After Manufacturer Refuses to Fix Battery For His $100,000 Exoskeleton 404 Media

The Presumptive Case for Organ Markets George Mason Legal Studies Research Paper No. LS No. 24-22

Some Country for Some Women The New Inquiry

Imperial Collapse Watch

Why the U.S. Can’t Build Icebreaking Ships Construction Physics

Guillotine Watch

OceanGate CEO knew Titan submersible venture would end in disaster, friend testifies FOX

Class Warfare

In their plaintive call for a return to the office, CEOs reveal how little they are needed Crooked Timber

The Little House on the Edge of the New Deal Nonsite.org

Enemy of the State: An Interview with John Zerzan The Anarchist Library

Picture Imperfect Science. The deck: “Scores of papers by Eliezer Masliah, prominent neuroscientist and top NIH official, fall under suspicion.”

Desperate Times Led Wisconsin Tribe to High-Interest Lending, Dubious Partnerships and Legal Jeopardy ProPublica

Antidote du jour (Pudding4brains ):

See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.

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About Lambert Strether

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

124 comments

  1. Balan Aroxdale

    Netanyahu ‘greenlights’ temporary cease-fire with Hezbollah: Israeli media Anadolu Agency

    Lebanon ceasefire hopes fade as Netanyahu issues contradictory statements Guardian

    US, frustrated, says ceasefire plan rejected by Netanyahu had been coordinated with him The Times of Israel

    Diplomacy theater. Neither the US nor Israel has any intention of a committing to any ceasefire.
    Netenyahu is playing the “heel” for the western audience, while the State Department acts as “Team Blue” trying to defuse the situation.

    In reality behind closed doors plans are mapped out for wider war and the logistics of materiel and troop movements for invasions and bombing campaigns to kill hundreds of civilians are agreed on. By the “actors” themselves. They are on a direct path to deliberate regional conflagration. They are going to set the whole theater on fire.

    Reply
    1. ChrisFromGA

      Getting definite “good cop, bad cop” vibes. Also, Lucy and Charlie Brown, with Netanyahu playing Lucy, and the cease-fire is the football that Biden never gets the chance to kick.

      They can run this show right up ’til the election. Low-information voters only see the headline – “US still seeking ceasefire.” Like OJ seeking the real killers.

      Reply
    2. Zagonostra

      Diplomacy theater

      Worse, a bad high school play with fake “hair pulling” and other puerile antics all designed to misdirect.

      Reply
    3. Louis Fyne

      It’s pretty wild comparing/contrasting NYT coverage of the war (buried under the fold under hurricane and election news) versus the social media coverage of the war—videos of Jordanians celebrating a Yemeni ballistic missile flying to Israel, Israelis duck-and-covering during air raids, stream of internet press releases from Hezbollah allies, mangled Gazan/Lebanese bodies, etc.

      It isn’t an official war unless the NYT says so, I guess..

      Reply
      1. Mikel

        “It isn’t an official war unless the NYT says so, I guess.”

        Maybe the NYT’s call on an official war depends on who in a population is doing a lot of the suffering.

        Reply
    4. Not Qualified to Comment

      I’d question any assertion that the US has policy reasons to connive with Netanyahu to avoid a ceasefire. This policy let alone any escalation in the Middle East is of no benefit to the US whatsoever and is actively detrimental to the US standing in the world plus the mess the US is in re Ukraine, let alone any war plans to take on China. Apart from the loonies who believe they are required by the Bible (bow down before it) to support Israel’s God-given right to dwell in its promised land to the exclusion of anyone else (and I’ve no idea if Biden is among that brain-dead number) or who dance to Shylockian strings for a dog’s bowl full of cash, the US Administration’s grovelling subservience to Netanyahu’s demands baffles me.

      Reply
  2. The Rev Kev

    “The US is giving Ukraine billions more in weapons. Here’s how they will help’

    The way that they will really help is to keep the war going until after the election when all the people responsible for starting and pushing this war will have departed the White House and onto the next step up on their lucrative careers. And you will never seem them being interrogated by a Senate Committee trying to determine their parts in this foreign affairs fiasco. They will be protected by the establishment.

    Reply
    1. .Tom

      Or if it happens under Harris the establishment will protect her from the worst damage. Having the Cheneys, Kagans, war hawk pundits campaigning for her must be a comfort.

      Reply
      1. Dr. John Carpenter

        I’d suggest having those people in her corner insures there’s going to be no surrender and they’ll fight to the last Ukranian/Isralei/etc.

        Reply
        1. JTMcPhee

          So far, not so many Israelis dying. Lots leaving for greener pastures. So how analogous to Ukraine? Not yet. Israelis hardly “spending” any troops to note. Are there enough Masadans in Eretz Ysrael to make a “to the last Israeli” stand? And unlike Ukraine situation, the Likudniks own the Empire — so set the conditions of their end game. Up to and including the Samson option.

          Reply
  3. upstater

    re. Imagining the Russian empire’s collapse The Counteroffensive with Tim Mak

    Quite interesting! Love those maps, especially from the Free Nations of PostRussia Forum highlighting “41 independent, free, developed and successful state instead of one crazy Empire is our main goal.” I love the green stars and stripes flag in the center.

    The best way to insure independence of the 41 statelets would be to split Russia’s nuclear arsenal evenly between these new republics. 5580 ÷ 41 = 136 nuclear weapons for each statelet. True security and avoiding the fate of Ukraine. /sarc off

    Reply
      1. ambrit

        The first sentence of the article says it all. It is almost a definition of Neo-con Russia policy.
        “Russia has long been a prison of nations, using force to suppress unique nationalities and cultures.”
        This can also be a definition of the “American Experience.” Just ask the American Indian tribes, or Mexico, or Socialists, ….
        The map at the beginning of the article looks exactly like a Risk board. I would bet good money on those supporting this “strategy” to be thinking at just such a shallow level.
        The world is not a board game.

        Reply
        1. The Rev Kev

          When I first saw that map several months ago, I called up a map of Russia’s resources and they are a fair match-up. I’m sure that that is only a coincidence however and nothing nefarious. You listen to some EU politicians and they are drooling at all those resources which total I think about $75 trillion. You can fund a lot of hookers and blow with all that money.

          Reply
        2. hk

          The “imprisoned” don’t need to be nice people. I hear that the same people calling for “freeing” those nations are also waving the Confederate flag while wearing white hoods and burning crosses (amazingly, literally true in this case!)

          Reply
    1. ilsm

      Putin and Xi have a map of all the Native American states now occupied by DC! Fortunately, they do not recognize Mexico as an ab original state!

      Reply
        1. Jeff H

          The phrase stuck in my mind a few weeks ago. The Mexican autonomous region of California/Texas. Has the same ring the autonomous region of Crimea.

          Reply
    2. AG

      From early 2023

      “Decolonizing Russian Studies”

      https://networks.h-net.org/node/10000/blog/decolonizing-russian-studies/12148542/periodization-decolonization#replies

      Historians arguing over the same done in the theoretical sphere.
      The text triggering the discussion is beginning this way:

      “(…)
      Periodization as Decolonization

      Susan Smith-Peter, College of Staten Island/ City University of New York

      My earlier blog, “How the Field was Colonized,” argued that Russian history in the United States was founded as an outpost of the V.O. Kliuchevskii school. As a result, the field inherited a blind spot regarding Ukraine, which was only sporadically integrated into the narrative and was seen as an object, not a subject, of history.(…)”

      Followed by 12 lengthy replies.

      Reply
    3. Maxwell Johnston

      A wildly entertaining article. Oh my. I will address only a few of its sillier claims.

      Re the ’empire’ nonsense: roughly 70% of Russia’s population is ethnic Russian, about 20% non-Russian (scattered over more than 150 ethnicities), and 10% mixed (i.e., intermarriage). In my experience, very few of these minorities are keen on independence (though many of them are quite keen on moving to Moscow). One of the nice things about the Russian language is that pretty much everybody across all of Russia speaks the same standard Russian; of course in the north Caucasus they speak with an accent, but there are no dialects or really thick accents (e.g., as English is spoken in rural Scotland or deep south USA).

      “Siberia in the far East of Russia…..holds more than 80% of Russia’s major natural resources, but is quite poor, as all revenues generated are deposited in the political center.” This statement ignores the fact that a big chunk of those same revenues are eventually returned by Moscow to the local administrations. Most regions of Russia are net recipients of federal funds. Here’s an interesting summary of recent intra-Russian regional growth trends written by the (not-exactly-pro-Putin) Carnegie Endowment, from last April but still eye-opening:

      https://carnegieendowment.org/russia-eurasia/politika/2024/04/wartime-boom-which-regions-and-industries-are-profiting-from-russias-war?lang=en

      The article’s portrayal of Chechnya is ridiculous. Chechnya in the 1990s was a hotbed of terrorism and criminality, period. Yeltsin did the right thing in trying to subdue it (albeitly unsuccessfully), and Putin did the right thing by finishing the job. No mention of the zillions of rubles the Russians have spent rebuilding Chechnya (and continue to lavish on subsidizing the north Caucasus). I have never visited Grozny, but the recent photos of it that I’ve seen are impressive.

      I think it’s good to read articles like this from time to time, just to stay aware of what sort of crazy notions are circulating out there in the minds of others.

      Reply
      1. pjay

        Yes. Entertaining indeed. Thanks for the comment.

        I’m sure the authors are solely and purely concerned with freedom for all the “unique nationalities and cultures” that have been imprisoned by the Russian Empire. The fact that this glorious vision of balkanized liberation corresponds to the neocon/Atlanticist wet-dream for Russia is just pure coincidence.

        I’ve seen the work of the authors, Ukrainian nationalist propagandists, before. I tried to find out more about Tim Mak, who runs this Ukrainian nationalist substack, but didn’t find out much. He’s a former NPR Reporter who has a history of anti-Russian reporting – Russian atrocities, the downing of MH-17 (Russia did it), an expose on Maria Butina (Russian spy), etc.. His Wikipedia article and a Slate article cited in the former don’t really give much information on his background or motivations.

        Reply
    4. Mikel

      The USA and associates are not going into any negotiations with Russia without leverage.

      And still, no matter what happens to the Ukraine, imagining Russia’s collapse will still be how these officials’ and apparatchiks’ brains operate.

      Reply
    5. Ignacio

      Yep, and with the same reasoning it could be said that Ukraine is another empire composed of Ukranians, Russians, Polish, Hungarians and Romanians and should be broken in at least 5 statelets.

      Reply
      1. cfraenkel

        Yep, and with the same reasoning it could be said that the USA is another empire composed of Americans, English, Germans, Mexicans, Chinese and a slew of other people and should be broken into at least eleven statelets. (see for example Colin Woodard’s American Nations) /s

        The article made at least one indisputable claim: “Nationalist movements within Russia are unlikely to thrive on their own.” I wonder how the authors would react to Chinese funding the Cascadia folks?

        Reply
        1. Giovanni Barca

          Welsh, Manx, Cornish, Breton, Friuli, Sorbian, Frisian, Romansh, Occitan, Gallego, Catalan, Basque, Corsican, Sardegnan…All sorts of NATO countries have imprisoned nations.

          Reply
    6. Anonted

      As propaganda goes, this is quality. Beats Holocaust stars any day. A bit of truth here, a bit of truth there, and you have a pizza. The critical part of me went ‘well, this is evidence poor, but rich in perspective’, lol, while the emotive part of me wanted to enlist to fight the Red threat. More like this, thrilling stuff (/sarc)!

      Reply
  4. Carolinian

    Power off again here. We were tornadoed in my neighborhood a few years back and now we’re being hurricaned or close to. Very high winds.

    Reply
        1. Belle

          My work is closed. Massive power outages throughout my county and region. At least one death in a nearby county.
          Local NWS office is very busy with alerts. (Will visit them for an event next week.)
          Not sure how the flooding or damage is outside. Siblings have trees down.

          Reply
      1. ambrit

        Most definitely do not sign any document that promises “recovery aid” until you let a lawyer read it over. FEMA is not your friend.

        Reply
        1. Mikel

          China’s industrial profit growth slows, underscoring urgent need for policy pivot – South China Morning Post

          And note things like:
          France deploys colonial security forces to repress cost of living protests in Martinique – MR Online

          Cost of living protests all over the world really.

          But now…

          https://www.marketwatch.com/story/after-u-s-and-china-panic-world-market-cap-set-to-hit-new-record-says-bank-of-america-aa108ae4?mod=mw_latestnews/
          “Global stock-market capitalization is set to surpass its highest level in three years after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates and China began stimulating its economy this month.

          Citing data from GFD Finaeon, Bank of America said world stock-market capitalization is set to overtake the record $123 trillion reached in Oct. 2021…”

          Reply
      2. griffen

        Not much to do now, while the power outages are hopefully restored in due time. At least for the moment briefly, the rain and wind is beginning to subside. Spoken too quickly, it seems.

        Those TPS reports are just gonna have to wait until Monday, possibly. Darn it.

        Reply
        1. Carolinian

          I popped outside and trees are down–big oak trees–but not any of mine I think. This is a big disaster and must be much worse further South.

          Your live AGW report.

          Reply
    1. LaRuse

      A friend in Hendersonville, NC, had 3 oaks through his roof earlier this morning. After a few hours with all the water pouring in, his living room ceiling is now collapsing and they evacuated in the past hour. He’s says things are really bad in Western NC. My dad is in Boonesville, NC, close to Winston-Salem, and they are doing okay. Still have power and all is well.
      Hang in their, friends.

      Reply
  5. Wukchumni

    Jump back, what’s that sound?
    Here she comes, full blast and unburdened bound
    Hot cue, burnin’ down the word salad avenue
    Model citizen, zero discipline

    Don’t you know she’s coming online for me?
    You’ll lose her in the gibberish terms
    I’ll get her

    Kamala, Kamala
    Kamala, Kamala

    Ain’t nothin’ like it, DNC’s new shiny machine
    Got the feel for the appeal, keep the image clean
    Hot cue, burnin’ down the word salad avenue
    Got an online-ramp comin’ through my laptop. too

    Don’t you know she’s coming online for me?
    You’ll lose her in the gibberish terms
    I’ll get her
    Uh-oh

    Kamala, Kamala (wow)
    Kamala, Kamala (whoa)

    Yeah, she’s runnin’ a little bit too close for comfort alright
    I can barely see the difference from the undecideds comin’ off of it
    Ah, we reach down between the lesser lights
    Ease the empire back

    She’s runnin’ blindingly deft defying
    Joe’s behind the Corvette rear-view mirror now
    Got the feeling, power dealing
    155mm shells popping, ain’t no stopping now

    Kamala, Kamala
    Kamala, Kamala
    Kamala, Kamala
    Kamala, Kamala
    Kamala

    Panama, by Van Halen

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMoDJ4HWWaE

    Reply
    1. AG

      May be you find some adequate piece to do “World War Three” lyrics.

      (I particularly like the “Kamala, Kamala” repetition.
      Expandable into a scream a la “Kamala, Kamala, Kamala, Hoo!”)

      Reply
      1. Martin Oline

        I don’t usually do requests but it’s a good one:
        World War III

        There was trouble over in Africa riots over in France
        Nuclear war was at hand it seemed a likely chance
        When Kamala lost the election she got a little pissed
        Sent a few nukes over to Moscow and they missed
        World was in a turmoil! Where was Jesus now?
        He’s down in Mississippi behind a mule and a plow
        Lookin’ for a place to plug in my TV
        When I finally realized it was World War III

        War wasn’t too bad out in the Hamptons
        Barry made good Barbeque kind that gets you crampin’
        People came from miles around for just a little taste
        But most of them couldn’t make it
        ‘cause of all that nuclear waste
        But if you survive this nuclear holocaust
        Come out to the Hamptons for some of Barry’s hot sauce
        Lookin’ for a place to plug in my TV
        When I finally realized it was World War III

        I’m down in Washington Joe don’t know what he’s doing
        I’m here at the reflection pool it’s nothing but a ruin
        I can taste that Dixie beer I can taste that barbeque
        Being far from Connecticut’s got me a little confused
        Kamala drive a Cadillac or lease a private plane
        Don’t think that she can make it with radiation on the brain
        Lookin’ for a place to plug in my TV
        When I finally realized it was World War III

        People gimme those U.S. Bonds
        Don’t give me Gary Bonds though
        Don’t gimme those credit cards
        I take cash money and Afghanistan coin
        All your relicts of civilization they’re all gone
        I’m goin’ to the Hamptons you might wanna come too
        For some of that Barry’s Barbeque
        and cold Dixie beer

        World War II by Root Boy Slim & the Sex Change Band.

        Reply
  6. Zagonostra

    >France deploys colonial security forces to repress cost of living protests in Martinique MR Online

    …the deployment of security forces to Martinique may only be the beginning of more brutality against the population of France’s colonies, also known as “overseas territories”.

    Since I don’t know anything about Martinique, a quick Wiki read:

    In 2009, Martinique was convulsed by the French Caribbean general strikes. Initially focusing on cost-of-living issues, the movement soon took on a racial dimension as strikers challenged the continued economic dominance of the Béké, descendants of French European settlers.[35][36] President Nicolas Sarkozy later visited the island, promising reform.[37] While ruling out full independence, which he said was desired neither by France nor by Martinique, Sarkozy offered Martiniquans a referendum on the island’s future status and degree of autonomy.

    The Wiki Link to footnote 37 gave me a 404 error.

    The Indigenous people Columbus encountered called Martinique “Matinino”. He was told by Indigenous people of San Salvador that “the island of Matinino was entirely populated by women on whom the Caribs descended at certain seasons of the year; and if these women bore sons they were entrusted to the father to bring up.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martinique#cite_note-visit-37

    Reply
  7. RookieEMT

    I’m looking at the river gauges online and one town could beat it’s flooding record by nearly ten feet. Other records being broken all around Asheville.

    Reply
    1. ambrit

      We encountered something similar with Hurricane Katrina, arguably the first New Age storm.
      Welcome to the “New World Climate Order.”

      Reply
    2. ChrisFromGA

      13-15″ over the past 2 days in some parts.

      We dodged the worst down here in N. GA. Looks like the center of the storm took a jog east more through Athens. That put us on the left side with much lower wind gusts than I expected.

      We still got 7-8″ of rain and there is some flooding in the usual spots in the city of Atlanta and near creeks. All in all, not as bad as Ivan back in 2005 nor a tropical storm that went through here in 2020 and crashed a tree on a friend’s house, totally ruining it.

      Reply
      1. Carolinian

        it went east and gave my town a direct hit as it moved north. there’s a big tree down on every block and gosh knows when the power will return.

        my trees are fine.

        Reply
  8. AG

    Love the Octopus!
    (Honestly I have stopped eating them. It´s stupid but for some insane sentimentality)
    p.s. But without the explanation NBC is offering I wouldn´t get it of course. It´s too fast and the video too short.

    Reply
  9. Zagonostra

    >Enemy of the State: An Interview with John Zerzan The Anarchist Library

    Much description of historical/social development to agree on in this article/dialogue, not sure on prescription, substantive and worth read/archiving. Many parrallels with Jacques Ellul’s writings on technology and propaganda

    JZ: Progress has meant the looming spectre of the complete dehumanization of the individual and the catastrophe of ecological collapse. I think there are fewer people who believe in it now than ever, but probably there are still many who perceive it as inevitable. We’re certainly conditioned on all sides to accept that, and we’re held hostage to it, too. The idea now is to have everybody dependent on technology in an increasingly immiserated sense. In terms of human health, it means increasing dependence on technologies, but what we’re supposed to forget is that the technologies created these problems in the first place. Not just cancers caused by chemicals. Nearly all diseases are diseases either of civilization, alienation, or gross habitat destruction.

    JZ: I think persuasion isn’t domination, as long as it isn’t manipulative, and as long as it’s transparent…

    DJ: So persuasion isn’t domination?

    JZ: Not at all. Not so long as it’s honest.

    Reply
  10. Amfortas the Hippie

    i agree with that tweet guy…bamboo is a very useful plant…but caveat!!!:
    get a “clumping” kind…ie: non-runner,lol.
    even when limited by lack of water, the Golden Bamboo, fer instance, will take over and run wild.
    near impossible to curtail, let alone get rid of, without a skid steer and herbicides.
    there are methods…like installing a concrete barrier extending from a foot above ground to several feet below.
    it is hardy, long lived stuff.
    to get rid of it around the big greenhouse took a team of 6 mexicans, the tractor with forks, fire…and full strength cleaning vinegar by the gallon on whatever survived.
    and 2 years,lol.
    i still have a small patch on north side of house…dont water it, exposed tp bitter north winds in winter(why its there in first place), and go and take an axe and a grubbing fork to any escaping runners every february.
    havent eaten any shoots yet…but i use it for lots of things.
    i can definitely see where that twitter guy is coming from regarding carbon sequestration, though…

    Reply
    1. Friendly

      Re: Golden Bamboo will take over and run wild near impossible to curtail, let alone get rid of.

      That was my first thought too. Similar to the unintended consequences of the well-intended efforts of the Soil Conservation Service to control soil erosion by planting kudzu. What could possibly go wrong?

      Reply
    2. Jeremy Grimm

      Bamboo will grow to its full height in about 4 years. Some bamboo will grow to a height sufficient to shade and provide windbreaks to a house. I would guess bamboo falling on a house, even a lumber bamboo, would do less damage than a tree. I have often wondered why some type of bamboo weren’t planted in shopping areas instead of the spindly little trees they plant for shade most places. Many types of very beautiful bamboo plants are adapted to growing in cold climates. Bamboo is a “friend of Winter” with plum, and pine.

      Reply
        1. Jeremy Grimm

          Trees do a decent job of tearing up asphalt and concrete. I am not sure bamboo is more effective at that destruction.

          Reply
    3. Acacia

      Great wrap up on wrangling bamboo, Amfortas.

      The shoots taste best when they are very small, I.e., just poking out of the ground. You dig up the whole kaboodle and chop it free from the rhizome. Peel off the outer layers and then boil the inner part in water with a lot of rice husks. The latter gets rid of the prickly surface of the bamboo and gives it the right texture for eating.

      Adding: I heard anecdotally (source was supposedly a researcher at Keio Daigaku), that bamboo have some way of communicating through the rhizome such that they can invade a grove of cedar trees and then “elect” one bamboo to grow taller, blocking out the light on the cedar tree. In this fashion, they can expand their turf.

      Reply
  11. John Beech

    We have friends who didn’t buy a house because next door had uncontrolled running bamboo, which if you didn’t know it, is technically a grass. So that stuff spreads via runners (rhizomes) and unlike clumping bamboo makes kudzu look like a joke. Wait until idiots start planting bamboo, and with no clue if it’s clumping or running, we’ll all get to learn getting rid of it nigh near impossible without digging up ever rhizome ‘and’ spreading Glyphosate in quantities sufficient to make use as a weed spray look like a joke.

    Reply
    1. Mark Gisleson

      Honeysuckle was popular until people found out how hard it was to get rid of. My dad had some left over dynamite from removing stumps that he used to get rid of ours.

      Reply
      1. t

        Had the same thought. Bamboo is hardy, horses love it, people make nice textiles and household goods from bamboo, but it can devestate a landscape.

        And I think it may, most species, be built to allow floods to remove a few inches of soil.

        Certainly useful in some situations but a Cane Toad if you’re not careful.

        Reply
  12. Joker

    Zelenskiy takes aim at China, Brazil push for peace in Ukraine Reuters

    “You will not boost your power at Ukraine’s expense.”

    Everybody else is doing it, so why can’t we?

    Reply
  13. Zagonostra

    >Terrorist Pager Explosion

    I suspect that an official account will be as forthcoming as Nord Stream pipeline explosion.

    Authorities have issued an international arrest warrant for a Norwegian linked to the detonation of communication devices used by the Lebanese group Hezbollah, police said Thursday.

    Rinson Jose, a Norwegian-Indian man linked to the sale of pagers to Hezbollah that exploded last week, has been reported missing…

    In 2022, Jose founded Sofia-based company Norta Global Ltd, Bulgaria’s corporate registry shows.

    Hungarian website Telex reported that Norta Global had imported the devices and then delivered them to Hezbollah…

    Norta Global, founded in April 2022, last year declared revenue of 650,000 euros ($725,000) for consulting activities outside the European Union.

    https://www.dailysabah.com/world/mid-east/norway-issues-intl-warrant-for-man-linked-to-lebanon-pager-blasts

    Reply
  14. Amfortas the Hippie

    re: the counteroffensivenews thing:
    fta:”And this is by no means a complete list of potential secessionist movements.
    Since Putin became president in 2000, nationalist sentiments in many regions across Russia have been significantly suppressed. Russia has made substantial profits from exporting its natural resources – many of which lie in these territories – using the funds to build up its army, strengthen its security forces, and intensify its propaganda efforts. ”

    more and more, the things these people say about the evil putin, could very easily be shouted into a mirror.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secession_in_the_United_States
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Municipal_deannexation_in_the_United_States
    https://www.newsweek.com/map-shows-states-movements-leave-united-states-1924068

    Reply
  15. Amfortas the Hippie

    little house:
    nice. thanks!
    “a private dwelling as a domestic factory. The work that took place in the little house, moreover, was focused and idiosyncratic, functioning in regard to individual preferences.”

    about sums up Amfortas’ 5 acre hermit kingdom.
    and:
    “modern labor can best be performed in pre-modern contexts, apart from the kinds of qualities of New Deal materiality: large-scale building projects, glistening newness, and cooperative labor. The little house’s association with focused, concentrated study and rewarding personal visions are cast as the most pleasing labor, as voluntary, as organized only by the self, and as inured to personal interests.”

    such environs are not for everyone, of course…some people like being “amid the noise and the haste”…even some few who have found themselves out here with me,for a time. “its too quiet!”, those few always say.
    and i am unashamedly rooted in place. i wandered, in often perilous circumstances, for a decade before i landed out here.
    never again.
    i reckon the thing is to avoid hasty universalising…not everything can, nor should be universal…room for the particular must be maintained.
    and being the only actual Radical out this way(at least the only one out of the closet,lol), has taught me to be more circumspect and tolerant of even quite major differences of opinion and lifeway.

    Reply
  16. The Rev Kev

    “Why the U.S. Can’t Build Icebreaking Ships”

    Interesting. The US has only two ancient icebreakers left and can’t work out how to build any new ones. ‘By contrast, a Finnish shipyard can build a heavy icebreaker for just a few hundred million dollars, and deliver it within two years, instead of 10 or more.’ But the US does not want to buy those icebreakers as the US shipbuilders would have a sad. Solution? As Finland is now in NATO, perhaps the US can go to Finland and tell them to had over their icebreakers as they are needed to defend the Arctic from penguins and polar bears. A case of ‘what’s yours is mine and what’s mine is me own.’ It’s all written down in the NATO treaty that Finland signed I think.

    Reply
    1. Neutrino

      Mayo Pete has the solution. He will announce a grand program to rebuild icebreakers, while expanding his ambit, and will somehow solicit a ton of money in the interest of National Defense.

      Fine print: a green electric fleet, built by a crack DEI team, with charging stations and broadband for nominal service charges. /s

      Reply
  17. Mikel

    China’s industrial profit growth slows, underscoring urgent need for policy pivot – South China Morning Post

    And so far the pivot has produced:

    https://www.marketwatch.com/story/after-u-s-and-china-panic-world-market-cap-set-to-hit-new-record-says-bank-of-america-aa108ae4?mod=mw_latestnews/

    “Global stock-market capitalization is set to surpass its highest level in three years after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates and China began stimulating its economy this month.

    Citing data from GFD Finaeon, Bank of America said world stock-market capitalization is set to overtake the record $123 trillion reached in Oct. 2021…”

    Reply
  18. Nina

    Re: In their plaintive call for a return to the office, CEOs reveal how little they are needed Crooked Timber

    Interesting article. In my opinion, CEO behavior and peer pressure play a significant role in shaping attitudes toward remote work. No mandate can truly succeed when employees see the CEO or managers working remotely themselves. In Europe, it’s common for managers to work remotely during the summer, often from Italy or Greece. They might spend three months away, with two weeks as vacation and the remainder as “remote” work, all while expecting their employees to be in the office. Naturally, when employees see this, no one wants to be the only moron left in the office.

    At my previous company, we used to coordinate with each other, agreeing that “If you go, I go” when deciding whether to come into the office. HR made multiple efforts to bring us back in, offering incentives like “Bagels on Wednesday,” lunch-and-learn sessions, and asking people to attend global town halls in person. Despite this, everyone could see that the meeting rooms were mostly empty, or just a few people were sitting in the front rows where the camera could capture them. It is a lost battle.

    At the start of the pandemic, there was some discussion about how avoiding microaggressions made remote work more attractive. Corporate workplaces have become so toxic that even Harvard Business Review has published a book on navigating toxic workplaces: https://store.hbr.org/product/hbr-guide-to-navigating-the-toxic-workplace/10669?sku=10669E-KND-ENG

    One area that I find particularly interesting, though still under-researched, is the relationship between misconduct and remote work. Having spent most of my career in Compliance, the initial assumption was that remote work would increase misconduct risk. However, there has been one study—so far—that suggests working from home may actually reduce the risk of securities misconduct. This makes sense to me, again due to peer pressure. In an office, seeing others engage in unethical behavior can normalize it, but working from home, surrounded by family, might cause someone to think twice before engaging in misconduct. I hope more research will emerge in this area.

    Work‐from‐home and the risk of securities misconduct – Cumming – 2023
    European Financial Management – Wiley Online Library
    https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/eufm.12426?sockid=16754da03dec63d33966595f3c67626a

    Reply
    1. t

      Fascinating. When I did work in an office, I looked forward to days when someone had their kid in tow because of scheduling issues. People were generally better behaved with a little one coloring quietly at an unused cube. And by people I mean horrible people. If folks must work in an office, then daycare should be right there in the midst of it.

      Reply
      1. Nina

        Fantastic idea! As mentioned I work in Compliance, there was a “bring your kids to the office” day, and we all had to explain our jobs. When I explained mine, a girl asked me right away “Does my father behave?” My colleagues told me that their kids start asking them daily if they were good at work.

        Did I mention I LOVE remote work?

        Reply
  19. JTMcPhee

    The Mighty Wurlitzer coughs up a hairball about the Trump assassination (is a near miss not actually, categorically, an assassination?):

    The Attempted Assassination of Former President Trump –in Butler, PA, How did the Secret Service Miss the Warnings?https://sonar21.com/

    Why there are conspiracy theories, when somehow the nut of the matter is strangled by a flood of “details.” The comments include expostulation on the notion that Trump was not even hit by a bullet. “DisProof” by personal anecdote from people who have had ear and scalp wounds. And much more.

    Who can the mopes trust?

    Fear, uncertainty and doubt, all the way down.

    Reply
    1. Mikel

      “The comments include expostulation on the notion that Trump was not even hit by a bullet.”

      None of the elected officials were hit by bullets on Jan. 6 and a lot of those types of commenters’ hair is still on fire about that date.

      Reply
    2. Henry Moon Pie

      When I saw the headline about Whoopi and Biden’s little pantomime, I had to see the video to believe that they had actually sunk this low. It was obviously scripted/coordinated in advance. Joe would never have come up with that on the spot, and Whoopie’s lead-in was too obscure.

      These Dems are running around trying to scare everybody about the ramifications of Trump being elected. What I worry about most is what the Dems will do if they lose. It could be, “Good-bye, Constitution.”

      Reply
  20. The Rev Kev

    “Who is winning in Ukraine? These maps tell the real story.”

    ‘The next U.S. president will need to address a near stalemate in the ongoing war.’

    That’s so cute that. The Washington Post actually thinks that the war is at a stalemate.

    Reply
    1. Chris Cosmos

      Their job is not to think but to listen to their friends and associates particularly editors. If they don’t toe the line they will be out. I had friends in “journalism” and they were very tied into the power elite if they had a senior position, if not, they looked around, hung out and checked with editors as to how to spin stuff. It’s like the classic Hollywood story conference. These people were really into process and thinking fast never, ever, thinking deeply. It’s all show-biz.

      Reply
      1. Neutrino

        The journalist stenographer career motivation is to get that name on the masthead of The Daily Sanctimony, along with a staff to ghostwrite those guaranteed byline articles.

        Reply
  21. DJG, Reality Czar

    So it was all for clicks, as I had suspected: Musk realizes that he has to conform to Brazilian law, and it turns out that Brazil isn’t a dictatorship under Pres Lula.

    From the article: Musk Asks to Be Reinstated: “X complied with orders to block certain accounts from the platform, name an official legal representative in Brazil, and pay fines imposed for not complying with earlier court orders, his lawyers said in a petition filed Thursday, according to the source, who is familiar with the document.”

    Oh. Yes, Musk is Media Whore of the Decade.

    Next up? Signing up willing corpses to be sent to Mars… Anything for the clicks.

    And I truly wish that Glenn Greenwald had not fallen for Michael Shellenberger’s bushwa about the “repression” of TwiXter. Now Greenwald has egg on his face. Matt Taibbi learned not to deal with Musk. One would think that the ever-prickly Greenwald would have been even more cautious.

    Reply
    1. Zagonostra

      Musk realizes that he has to conform to Brazilian law,

      As well as having to conform to Zionist dictates, e.g., his Auschwitz visit with Ben Shapiro and appointment of Linda Yaccarino. Think what you will of David Icke, but he’s got it right on Elon…though I still use TwitterX.

      Reply
    2. Ignacio

      I believe Greenwald and Shellenberger were both questioned by the Congress in the same shameful session on supposed misinformation (kind of censoring here by the “democratic” organ) and that is what brought them together.

      Reply
      1. Alice X

        Shellenberger and Taibbi were grilled together in a now infamous session. I am unaware that Greenwald has ever been so summoned.

        Reply
  22. Verifyfirst

    Reading the Newsweek article about Covid viral evolution, I was surprised to read:

    “However, most of these mutations were detected at low levels and reverted back to their original form.”

    Say what? Reverted back to their original form? Did not know they could (or would) do that!

    Reply
      1. Verifyfirst

        I can assure you, I do not know the answer. In common parlance, “reversion” most often means “return to a prior state or condition”. Covid could not “revert” to the original at the population level unless it reverted at the individual level.

        If the mutation fails, the original version could continue to be dominant, but that’s not quite the same thing. But perhaps there is a distinct meaning for “reversion” in virology. I skimmed the JAMA article that underlies the Newsweek story–I could not clearly tell what those authors meant when they said “reversion”.

        Reply
  23. t

    Vance’s address is on a public filing, not a super secret doxxing doc.

    (There have also been a couple of puff pieces about where he was born, the house he bought with movie money, etc.)

    Pretty naked missuse of alleged rules.

    Reply
  24. Ignacio

    Paul Maidowski’s Tweet on the use of bamboo to capture atmospheric carbon.
    ·
    One of the reasons bamboo is efficient for carbon capture is that it is one of several plant species, many within the family Poaceae (monocot grasses, includes gramineae and amongst these sorghum and maize but not wheat or rice), that capture carbon through the so-called C4 metabolic route while the majority of plants go through the C3 metabolic route. The C4 route is more efficient for CO2 capture because it is done in a an-oxygenic micro-environment. The difference C4-C3 is bigger in hot climates. So, besides bamboo there are other species with different potential uses that can be used to accelerate carbon capture. Nice to see this tweet.

    Reply
  25. GW

    Owen Matthews wrote:

    “But as negotiators in Dayton found in the aftermath of the Yugoslav war, it is practically impossible to reverse ethnic cleansing and return ravaged lands to the previous status quo.”

    The ‘status quo’ being Ukraine’s pre-Maidan reality, which meant a solidly pro-Russian oriention for the majority of all Ukrainians living east of the Dniepr? But I guess not, as Owens really means something else.

    Owens is a great conflict reporter, but in this article, he takes liberties with historical facts. No excuse for that.

    Reply
    1. Jabura Basaidai

      thx flora – Matt seems grasping at straws with his conclusion – his comment a passive contempt of a reality we face as the pathogen species we are – hard to displace the fact that the scientific advancements made have allowed the explosion of population in the 80 years since the end of WWII – 2.5 billion to over 8 billion and it took thousands of years to get to that 2.5 billion – the subsequent consequences are self-evident –

      Matt concludes……. “We had other problems before and figured those out. Now we have new ones, and we’ll do it again. Mope less, live more! And have a good weekend, everyone.” –

      maybe he’ll cheer Elon becoming a trillionaire and colonizing Mars in 4 years –

      that’s some strong stuff he’s smoking –

      Reply
        1. Jabura Basaidai

          population growth has been exponential, although sperm, birth & fertility rate decline may be a self-correcting phenomenon occurring now but probably not quickly enough – and the growth of our food supply is diminishing when measured against the exponential population growth – add the additional hobbling circumstances of increasing water loss, drought and diminishing soil fertility that further diminishes the amount and quality of the food harvested – i would like to not be Malthusian but it is a reality that haunts – and is confirmed often enough in the links – hope you’re right and i’m wrong –

          Reply
          1. Jabura Basaidai

            flora are you also not a not-Malthusian which means you are Malthusian? – feel like it’s the start of who’s on first……what’s on second……… – do 2 “not” = ? – is my reply preaching the choir?

            Reply
    1. bertl

      The world will never be safe as long as Israel, a parasite state founded by terrorism which continues to live only by terrorism in which the Collective West is complicit, is allowed to exist.

      Now is the ideal time to redraw the map because no government can go militarily to its aid without the support of the vast majority of it’s population. And, by some quirk of human nature, most people are not particularly fond of genocide, the deliberate maiming of children and the mass bombing of hospitals, schools and tent cities filled with starving and diseased refugees fleeing from homes in areas which have been systematically destroyed by bombs and shelling, all in the name of a God Who loves Jews (particularly of the Zionist variety, an idea developed by a Plymouth Brethren dissident and picked up by Protesants of a remarkably foolish bent who failed to observe the New Testament and preferred bathing in the wickedness of all the religious doctrines rejected by Christ and His Followers) and Who, for some reason, seems to hate the rest of humanity.

      Things are not going well for the Zionist cultists raised on murder and the concept that anything goes because they are The Chosen People and, on the bases of both history and probability, things will only get worse.

      Reply
  26. LifelongLib

    Reading the link about yet more problems in Alzheimer’s disease research, is there something about the field that lends itself to this? The possibility of big money, maybe combined with a frustrating lack of actual progress? Or is it symptomatic of even larger problems in scientific research generally?

    Reply
  27. zach

    Big John has an article, not exactly a rebuttal of Mr. Hahn’s posted above, but shall we say, “added context.”

    https://johnhelmer.net/sending-a-boy-to-do-a-mans-job-vladimir-medinsky-to-negotiate-istanbul-ii/

    Seems unfair to call a 64 year old a boy, but Johnny’s got a better handle on the Russian political scene than I do, not to mention VM wouldn’t even be old enough to run for president of the USA, citizenship requirements notwithstanding.

    Reply
  28. RockTaster

    Thanks for including that 25-year old interview with John Zerzan. Somehow the little cogs keep turning the screws and churning seas of absurdity. Ice bergs abound, but apparently the system has a soundly engineered Finnish hull.

    Reply

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