Links 2/13/2026

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1. The Rev Kev February 13, 2026 at 7:15 am

   “Two US Navy Ships Collide, No Major Injuries, US Southern Command Says”

   The following tweet has a video showing the actual collision-

   https://x.com/mercoglianos/status/2022140347187704053

   It looks like the USS Truxtun (DDG-103) steered into the USNS Supply (T-AOE 6) but I guess that we will have to wait to see what an investigation shows. Doesn’t look that serious though and those scrapes should buff right out.
   1. mzza February 13, 2026 at 10:26 am

      Guess I’m just old enough to be surprised that at least the one other sailor captured in one of the videos immediately stops where they are, pulls out their own cell phone, and starts recording. Prob unlikely this person could do anything in the moment to directly help the situation, but still seems like a shift that so many people’s immediate response to any event — even one like this that could potentially cause danger or harm — is to document it as potential Content Creation. (And yes, I see this as a different reaction to documenting police or ICE violence where transparency by those in power will be suspect.)
   2. JustAnothetVolunteer February 13, 2026 at 2:04 pm

      What’s going on with shipping has more:

      https://youtu.be/XMy6fANc7W8?si=KsgIJ5WaWkM9Tvpg
   3. GF February 13, 2026 at 5:13 pm

      Thanks Rev, It appears that the sailors on the supply ship are not military. Does anyone know if civilians are crew members?
      1. hk February 14, 2026 at 12:50 pm

         A lot of supply ships serving US military nowadays are USNS, not USS, the former signifying that theyare civilian ships in service of the navy, crewed by civilians, etc (although they may also include mission crews who are military.)
2. Ben Panga February 13, 2026 at 7:16 am

   The Grant Smith Ellis tweet on Kathy Ruemmler is very much worth reading in full.

   I read various MSM versions this morning and, to be polite, they had some data points missing.

   Obama/CIA/Squid top lawyer and asset. Knee deep (with JE) in Rothschild family intrigue. Also seemingly a disgusting human who joked about Epstein’s tastes.

   The MSM Epstein takes are increasingly absurd. Today I read two separate NYT pieces about how the files cause gullible fools to indulge in conspiracy theories and another Telegraph piece on Epstein as a Russian agent. Meanwhile anyone looking remotely further sees a very different picture. Needless to say a ctrl+f “Israel” returns zero results in any of the pieces.
   1. Colonel Smithers February 13, 2026 at 8:21 am

      Thank you, Ben.

      She also asked “Uncle Jeffrey” to fix for her the job of global counsel at Meta.

      I can’t believe that the Rothschilds, big landowners where I live and prominent where I work, are impressed with these loud mouths.
      1. mrsyk February 13, 2026 at 9:40 am

         This part is talking about clone farms for the uber-rich a-la Nancy Farmer’s The House of the Scorpion,

         Said Epstein, “Right. Katie Couric was here and we were talking about… I think we should, I want to start cloning things, me. And with certain people, Prince Andrew got upset because he was all, “If it had a conscience, could you kill it for spare parts.” And I said, “I’ll make it without a head, would that make you feel better?” And Katie Couric, I thought, was going to start to vomit.” (Transcript EFTA02386175, page 7.)

         Clone farms are for matched organ harvesting. The quest for immortality may be the motive you seek concerning the Rothchilds.
   2. pjay February 13, 2026 at 1:34 pm

      Yes indeed. Names were named; I’m waiting for debunking or rebuttals by our media “professionals.”

      I’d also highly recommend the Aljazeera article on Terje Rod-Larsen and the Olso Accords, and the “tweet” (or whatever we call it now) headed “This is how people can start understanding what’s happening!!” Regarding the former: another one bites the dust. Major international diplomat, major policy issue (Oslo for Christ’s sake!), Barak, etc. But I’m sure its just a coincidence they were Epstein acquaintances.

      Regarding the latter, everything noted in this Tik Tok clip is documented. A lot of it is being rediscovered these days, but Whitney Webb put most of it all together in the books she published four years ago. Watching this clip gives me some idea as to why Ellison, Murdoch, and Michael Dell might want to buy Tik Tok. But I’m sure it’s about the Chinese.

      One more thing. In addition to the usual mainstream media, this gullible fool would appreciate it if someone coul please send these clips to Michael Tracey and Bernhard at Moon of Alabama. If they could take a few minutes out from trashing poor Virginia Guiffre I’d love to get their reaction to these posts.
   3. Revenant February 13, 2026 at 5:41 pm

      “This is how people can start understanding” is also important. It seems frivolous, Epstein in song form, but it focuses astutely on Ghislaine:
      – six former heads of Israeli intelligence at her father’s funeral in the Amount of Olives as a hero of Israel
      – two sisters who made their money building search engines for NSA and hacking tools
      – nephew at State Department working for Hillary

      Where are Ghislaine’s e-mails?

      That is an excellent question….

      The funny thing is, in the UK the Scandalous Maxwells were always the brothers, who come across as venal but dopey fall guys for their father’s embezzlement. You *never* read about the sisters. Who were apparently doing God’s work in the California sunshine while Kevin and the other one were blundering around the rainy Home Counties in a low-budget, executive housing estate sitcom of greed and hubris.

      Also, I wonder if any of Epstein’s money can be traced back to Maxwell père’s embezzlement and he was just guarding it for Ghislaine? Do the timelines overlap? Daddy’s looting supposedly went on Mirror Group losses but perhaps some of those expenses were as fictional as the bestsellers he printed…?
      1. Mikel February 13, 2026 at 6:14 pm

         And “Mawell” wasn’t the patriarch’s real name or only name.
3. raspberry jam February 13, 2026 at 7:42 am

   How Will the US Attack Iran? Larry Johnson

   Imho the Doha strike from air launched missiles from Israeli fighters in the red sea was a demonstration/proof of capabilities for this upcoming round. They launched the missiles into space to avoid air defense on flyover from the border countries. The war commentators should be looking at what is vulnerable to similar types of strikes in similar ranges! I am not in a situation to measure as the crow flies distances on a map but I remember looking at this when it happened and it looked possible to hit Tehran in same way. My first thought was decapitation strikes (because we all know that has such a great track record /s)
   1. The Rev Kev February 13, 2026 at 8:24 am

      I think the last war was a perfect demonstration of how people that live in glass houses should not throw stones. Israel gleefully attacked Iran but was then shocked to find out that their famed Iron Dome was more of an Iron Sieve. Iran was able to overwhelm their defenses and slam some very important targets and there was nothing that Israel could do about it. If that had been a thirty day war then Israel would have been screwed as they would have been all out of aerial-defense missiles. Israel may be able to hit Tehran and blow up important targets like apartment blocks and highways full of civilian cars but Iran can do the same to Tel Aviv and then some.
      1. raspberry jam February 13, 2026 at 10:20 am

         Respectfully, you’re missing my point. Why are the Israelis overconfident? Could it be because they think they can use this technique to deliver a decapitation strike and in the confusion following that destroy the majority of the launch capabilities? If so all this chatter about state flyovers or blockading the straits or Iran attacking collaborator gulf states is irrelevant because if the decapitation is successful they can fly over whoever they please!

         Anyone who paid attention knows the Israeli air defense is not up to task and the US lacks enough interceptors to assist for more than a couple of weeks, just like last time. Israel is pushing this now because against all evidence to the contrary they believe they have an ace that will allow them to avoid the same condition as last summer
         1. Yves Smith February 13, 2026 at 10:41 am

            Decapitation strikes are a fantasy. If this is what Israel is relying on, they are high on their own supply.

            Even in their most successful attempt to date, with a huge swathe of Hezbollah leadership, including the charismatic Nasrallah, all they did was set Hezbollah back. They did not destroy them.

            If they were to capture or kill Kahmenei, there would be a fatwa across the Middle East. Israel would not survive the whirlwind that would unlesah.

            And Iran is full of underground bunkers and the last attempt at decapitation strikes only wobbled the government for a short time. Iran has now had two goes at clearing out Mossad networks. Experts report that Mossad is having to admit that it has a much less clear view of what is going on in Iran than it had.

            Put it another way: If Israel had a credible Plan C, Trump would have green lit moving forward. He hasn’t.
            1. Ben Panga February 13, 2026 at 8:20 pm

               Adding to this:

               Alastair Crooke(I think, but maybe Wilkerson) a week ago said that the Iranians expect decapitation strikes and already have successors for every post lined up, ready to smoothly take over.
               1. hk February 13, 2026 at 9:20 pm

                  Technically, so did Hizb’ullah. At least on the political dimension, it didn’t work out that well for them.

                  Having said that, of course, Hizb’ullah was in a dramatically different situation: it was playing very dicey and volatile coalition politics of Lebanon where stable and charismatic face like Nasrallah (who was a cagey political dealer-wheeler) was valuable, whereas that’s not the case for the Iranian govt.
4. DJG, Reality Czar February 13, 2026 at 8:08 am

   Today’s NYTimes:

   On Trump’s Tariffs, Supreme Court Hurries Up and Waits
   The justices put the case on a fast track at the administration’s urging. But they don’t seem in a rush to rule on the president’s signature economic program.

   The Supreme Court and economics — hold on to your hats, brethren and sistren. The Court has struck down minimum-wage laws. The Court gutted the First New Deal. The Court has gutted antitrust law. And for dessert, they wrecked the Voting Rights Act.

   The economic knowledge on the Court consists of a slavering right wing thinking, What Would Francisco Franco Do? This is counterbalanced (to use a term loosely) by a liberal wing thinking, How Would Madeleine Albright Starve These Children?

   I can hardly wait for the decision to come down from these gutless wonders.
5. Colonel Smithers February 13, 2026 at 8:17 am

   Thank you, Conor.

   With regard to the link about Britons serving with the IDF, IDF soldiers, usually, but not always, British, speak to older pupils at Jewish schools and summer camps.

   One of the chief rabbi’s sons, Danny, serves with the IDF. Cousins of junior minister Josh Simons serve, too. Both Simons and Sir Ephraim Mirvis refer to the IDF as “our army / soldiers”.

   The British armed forces struggle to recruit and retain. 2000 soldiers equates to three or four infantry battalions / a small brigade.

   One could say that a foreign state is “grooming” British children.

   This state of affairs is considered normal in the UK and, judging by the political careers of Rahm Emanuel and Josh Shapiro, the US.

   With regard to Blighty, every June, a summer reception is held for Britons serving with the IDF. Politicians, business, celebrities etc are invited to cheer the soldiers and their families. Until covid, the reception was in Parliament. Since then, it’s at a private venue nearby.
   1. AG February 13, 2026 at 12:29 pm

      In Germany if you are Jewish you have always been exempt from conscription. Abolishing this exemption is overdue.
      Besides you can always do alternative service.

      Many Jews are opposed to Israel´s genocide but that of course takes you only so far if you look at what was going on before 2023 and how they saw matters then.
      1. Colonel Smithers February 13, 2026 at 3:45 pm

         Thank you, AG.

         I agree with ending the exemption.

         I would deprive these Britons of their British nationality.

         Some of them, since Brexit, have obtained German nationality, but they won’t serve for Germany.
         1. AG February 13, 2026 at 6:37 pm

            Bundeswehr can still meet with IDF and learn. Which they do.
            With or without “Jews in the German armed forces” (what a crazy formulation for my German ears.)

            In fact Jews were extremely loyal in the Imperial German Army in WWI and then Reichswehr.
            We often forget that only after 1933 “Jewishness” was increasingly considered something noteworthy. Before, you were normal. Whatever that would mean in particular. The “klezmerisation” of Jewry along with this fanatic Zionism built up only in the wake of extermination. It´s puzzling that the racism became part and parcel of our thinking only after racism had demonstrated what monstrosities it would be capable of.

            p.s. Rather remotely related but not bad I found:

            LRB talk with Rosemary Hill on Jessica Midford and her sisters:

            Jessica Mitford’s Handbag
            Rosemary Hill and Thomas Jones
            4 February 2026
            48 min.
            https://www.lrb.co.uk/podcasts-and-videos/podcasts/the-lrb-podcast/jessica-mitford-s-handbag
         2. AG February 13, 2026 at 6:43 pm

            typo: Mitford
6. DJG, Reality Czar February 13, 2026 at 8:18 am

   The China Super Boosters Are Super Boring.

   This article is timely, given that I followed a thread the other day in which Yves Smith had to make it more than clear that China isn’t blameless. If I may interpret with Yves Smith has written here over several months, China treats Thailand in a way hauntingly familiar to how the U S of A treats Mexico (although China never took half of Thailand’s territory).

   Ian Welsh explains it well: China has done remarkably well, becoming an industrial power, reclaiming its independence, and lifting the peasantry out of poverty and into the urban working class.

   The same goes for Russia. The Russian elites, a messier group than the Chinese elites, since 1990, have restored Russian independence, revived industry, raised the standard of living considerably, and improved public health.

   The achievements of Iran in education are also notable.

   Yet there are many restrictions on daily life and on what anyone can say in all three of these countries. I suppose the shock to USanians is discovering themselves in a new McCarthy era, a new scoundrel time, being censored (and “redacted”), and being urged to self-censor.

   The anxiety often seen here in the comments section has arisen because the U S of A has been in economic decline since the 1990s. The passage of the Patriot Act and endless war have undermined the constitution even more so since 2001.

   Yet one must be careful of thinking, “The enemy of my enemy is my friend.” As Welsh points out, the U S of A is a declining hegemon. The other hegemons — and how they conduct business and how they administer government — don’t matter much in getting the U S of A out of its own decline.
   1. vidimi February 13, 2026 at 8:52 am

      What all these China is flawed takes miss is that it doesn’t matter. No matter what China’s shortcomings as hegemon are or will be, it’s vastly preferable to the status quo of a pedo-satanic omnicidal hegemon that is actively trying to violently kill off as much of humanity as it can before the planet becomes uninhabitable – by its own actions.
      1. leaf February 13, 2026 at 9:49 am

         Most Americans and the Epstein class especially look down or even hate on China, Russia, Iran a lot. There’s probably going to be conflict between the collective west and them at some point
   2. Emma February 13, 2026 at 9:17 am

      The repressive features that Western liberals complain about are what’s holding them together as sovereign entities. We now understand social media, mass media, and Western NGOs to be the primary avenues of Western subversion and infiltration. There are plenty of Chinese liberals now. Imagine how many the central government would have to deal with, without the Great Firewall.

      Westerners also simultaneously assume that these countries are simultaneously highly repressive and full of populations desperate to be liberated into becoming westoids. The reality is that all three have very active and heavily contested public discussion spaces with far wider Overton Windows than anything present in the “free world”.

      I found the article off-putting. Projecting based on Western metrics and ways of doing things into a different civilizational state. I don’t think China is morally or technically perfect at all, but it’s night and day compared to the literal cannibalistic state that govern in my name. So much assumption of moral and knowledge superiority from a man who doesn’t read Chinese, never traveled there, and appear to understand Chinese society very superficially.
   3. The Rev Kev February 13, 2026 at 9:58 am

      It’s always better to live in a multipolar world rather than one where there is just one hegemonic power. China certainly has it’s flaws as does Russia, but if they counterbalance the US and its vassals, then I am willing to give those two former countries a bit of a pass. Can you imagine a world where the plans of the Neocons succeeded and both Russia and China were both broken up? That would be a frightening world to live in and safety would just be a word.
      1. Mikel February 13, 2026 at 11:03 am

         The bigger question is who all the “counterbalancing” ultimately serves.
      2. The Heretic February 13, 2026 at 5:20 pm

         A multipolar world where the hegemons agree (and to enforce) a world where they do not use proxies to start wars or revolutions or seperation movements would be a very good world, especially if competition for influence is based on technological superiority, good governance, good standard of care and respect for citizens and ecological stewardship. Having three ruthless and amoral or immoral hegemons would still be very bad for the little nations in between them. Perhaps thr best we can hope for was a period in the seventies (in Europe and North America, still very bad in other parts of the world) when there was an implicit understanding that a hegemon to hegemon fight would be very bad and go nuclear really fast… it is hard to say what wisdom remains in the USA, and of the leadership-in-waiting after Xi and Putin.
   4. hk February 13, 2026 at 12:20 pm

      Do we need to moralize, though?

      In relations between great powers and their weaker neighbors, things always go fishy–not only do great powers invariably try to interfere in affairs of their neighbors, the weaker neighbors (or, at least factions therein) often try to mess with their great power neighbors by trafficking with more distant great powers. Plenty of “moral” justifications may be found for both sides if one tries enough, I guess. But it becomes tiring fast enough.

      Domestic affairs of countries are even messier: one can talk about “democracy” or “repression,” but, again, the way people talk about such things nowadays is so distorted that no country is actually “democratic” or isn’t “repressive.” No “perfect” democracy can exist (mixing in all the desiderata leads to impossible requirements) and the main reason states exist in the first place is to “repress troublemakers” after all. One can compare the relative failings of the West and various members of the Rest, but only after defining the frame with greater precision and removing the morality lens, and once we do, I think the West has been doing far worse lately–like they should have said, morality is the last refuge of the scoundrel….
   5. Glen February 15, 2026 at 5:27 pm

      Good comment, thanks!

      To me, as an engineer that has watched America gut it’s R&D, industrial capacity, it’s research universities, and wreck it’s middle and lower class over the course of my career, China presents a very real what-if. What if America had not decided greed was the end all, be all, of human existence? It was harder to argue with my friends about what was happening twenty-thirty years ago, now, well, it’s happened and all one has to do is acknowledge reality (which is surprisingly difficult for those same friends).

      Now don’t get me wrong – I am not one of those who thinks that China’s amazing progress sprang full grown by “stealing” tech from America. China has worked extremely hard to maker progress, (and American CEO elites were gladly handing over everything they could from America, no stealing required.) And that’s also why I have seen no real effort by American elites to try and compete with China’s technology and industrial might – it’s really, really hard work.

      American elites, who now look even more corrupt, stupid, and lazy than I could have imagined decades ago are incapable of hard work.
7. The Rev Kev February 13, 2026 at 8:30 am

   “Dr. Oz Becomes the Latest Trump Official in the Epstein Files”

   Yet another victim of the Epstein Curse which is now starting to take down figures in the US for a change.That Democrat may have quipped ‘An easier question at this point is who in the Trump administration WAS NOT friends with Epstein?’ but he might want to consider how many Democrats are implicated as well. I’m sure Bill Clinton may be able to give an indication.
8. aleric February 13, 2026 at 8:49 am

   Don’t overlook the interview with Nel Bonilla – the language is a bit academic, but contains an incisive look at the transformation of liberal societies into security states.
   1. t February 13, 2026 at 9:31 am

      The SAVE Act calls for rapid sharing of any data from federal agencies and department heads if someone in the state voting department asks about somebody, for some reason
      Or, if a state cannot create the prescribed program in 30 days as required…. what happens then? A national program office runs elections in that state?
9. pjay February 13, 2026 at 9:12 am

   – ‘U.S. Smuggled Thousands of Starlink Terminals Into Iran After Protest Crackdown’ – WSJ

   I found this article to be informative regarding an important aspect of US/Israeli destabilization strategy and some of the behind-the-scenes debates on that strategy. It also included the morning’s biggest laugh-line:

   “Tehran has repeatedly accused Washington, without evidence, of playing a role in fomenting popular dissent and organizing last month’s nationwide demonstrations in the country of 90 million people.”

   This is in the middle of an article discussing how Washington helps foment popular dissent and aids in the organization of anti-regime demonstrations! Of course we didn’t do any of this stuff until *after* the January protests and the regime’s murder of all those protesters! It reminded me of those articles in the NY Times that provided useful and detailed information on the CIA’s activities in Ukraine – but claimed we only did so *after* Maidan and the coup, when the Ukrainian people exercised their own “agency” and then invited us in. Keep those protests up Iranians. As Trump says here, “help is on the way!” See how well it has worked for the Ukrainians?
10. Ignacio February 13, 2026 at 9:14 am

    Chinese fishing boat seized off southwestern Japan, skipper arrested Kyodo News

    This is, if the reporting is correct, illegal seizure, breaching UNCLOS. The economic exclusive zones are high seas, with free right of navigation and no sovereign part of any country. Japan seizing a non Japanese boat in this zone is breaching UNCLOS. They do not have policing rights in their ZEE and legal seizures, police rights are limited to 24 nm from the shore baselines. The ship was 174 km away from nearest Japanese piece of land, 94 nm away so far from Japanese policing zone. Inspections in the ZEE can occur only if there is agreement between the flag countries involved and, in this case, if Chinese had provided an explicit authorisation to Japanese inspectors to proceed with inspection of the Chinese-flagged boat. In that case if any breach of fishing rules is detected it can only be communicated to the captain of the vessel and the corresponding authorities. Yet the boat/sheep cannot be seized while in ZEE waters outside the policing area. UNCLOS is nearly dead IMO and many countries (including China) are breaching it. Japan joins the list.
    1. The Rev Kev February 13, 2026 at 9:29 am

       Thanks for that explanation Ignacio. I hope that the Japanese are not just practicing so that they can work their way up to seizing Chinese oil tankers but with Japan’s newly re-elected war-loving leader you just don’t know.
    2. PlutoniumKun February 13, 2026 at 10:10 am

       It is generally accepted under UNCLOS that a boat can be boarded in international waters if it is in ‘hot pursuit’ – i.e. its exiting an EEZ. From what I’ve read, the Japanese are claiming that the vessel had been fishing for horse mackerel in Japanese waters but had refused an order to stop for examination by fisheries vessels.

       Usually the Chinese vessels are careful about this – you can often see on Marine Traffic an incredible tangle of Chinese vessels lining up right on the edge of an EEZ, especially off countries like Peru or Argentina. But occasionally one gets a little daring or loses its way.
       1. Ignacio February 13, 2026 at 11:38 am

          Your first phrase is both true and false. It is accepted seizing only up to 24 nm from baselines. Between 12-24 nm these already are international waters and in this sense a boat can be boarded in international waters when laws have been breached in sovereign territory or waters. Outside those 24 nm no policing rights, this is very clear in UNCLOS.

          The ship had the right to deny access to Japanese inspectors in international waters. The only way to gain access for inspectors is if they have already a binding agreement with China for mutual inspection in international waters (as in the EU for instance or in NAFO fishing grounds some countries can do this) or if they ask Chinese authorities and these provide authorisation specific to inspect this boat.
          1. PlutoniumKun February 13, 2026 at 12:56 pm

             I’m not really sure if we are discussing the same laws – my understanding has always been that the EEZ of a nation extends to around 200 nautical miles around the territory of a nation (subject to other boundaries) and that Article 73 of the Convention explicitly gives permission to any nation:

             1. The coastal State may, in the exercise of its sovereign rights to explore, exploit, conserve and manage the living resources in the exclusive economic zone, take such measures, including boarding, inspection, arrest and judicial proceedings, as may be necessary to ensure compliance with the laws and regulations adopted by it in conformity with this Convention.

             Its been a while since I worked on the topic, but if its illegal to board a vessel without the nations permission more than 24nm out it will be a shock to a friend of mine who works for the coast guard here, he’s been involved in boarding vessels more than 100km off the Irish coast!

             This has always been my understanding, anyway, but I’m not a lawyer.
             1. Ignacio February 13, 2026 at 2:27 pm

                OK, that is true and I had forgotten that, but note it works as long as “everything goes according to convention” This means that that such exercise of rights, apart from having been them officially claimed, these have also to be agreed with other coastal countries having neighbouring EEZs (with regards to quotas etc). Truly if It is outside the EEZs when there is no way to stop and inspect etc. Here such agreements between Japan, China and other neighbours have already been signed according to the article.

                Note that the boat had to be released after posting some kind of security and the seizure was brief. Now if such security cannot be posted it is possible to take the boat as a security (only if justified by the supposed damage done to the resource) but it creates a problem because you cannot imprison the captain, less so the crew and have to ensure they can return to their country.

                Reading the link in full this was solved. The ship was seized and immediately released as it uses to be in those kind of incidents. Whether the Japanese authorities have demonstrated any kind of wrongdoing by the fishing boat here it is unclear by the reading.

                So I go back and do not consider UNCLOS breaching by Japan. Whether the temporal seizure was justified or not is to be seen. In such cases the coastal country of the EEZ should post ASAP the reasons explaining the seizure. It could still be a case of harassing or a well reasoned action.
11. jhallc February 13, 2026 at 9:18 am

    Re: https://www.levernews.com/empty-warehouses-secret-deals-insiders-poised-to-profit-from-trumps-deportation-boom/

    It looks like there is pushback from some municipalities on allowing these into their towns. In the meantime go long chain link fencing and barbwire.
12. .Tom February 13, 2026 at 9:20 am

    The stories about the Péter Magyar sex tape are baffling. Yesterday a photo of a bed in a room went on social media with the insinuation that it is a scene from a video of Magyar having relations with his ex-girlfriend in 2024. Magyar said yesterday that the video exists and insisted the ruing party made it with secret service equipment and manipulation and accused his ex of honeypotting him.

    Fidesz say they don’t know anything about any of it.

    I can’t solve this puzzle. Might need Ernő Rubik’s help.
    1. AG February 13, 2026 at 12:25 pm

       thanks. Interesting find, since I don´t follow Hungary closely. I assume there it dominates the news.
       Would FIDESZ try to find dirt, I assume so.
       Of course apparently nothing has changed since Gary Hart.
       Who the hell cares about affairs.
       But I guess human curiousity tied with hypocrisy never changes…
       1. .Tom February 13, 2026 at 1:13 pm

          I wouldn’t put it past Fidesz to play dirty but I don’t see how this works for them. A video of legal consensual sex that is not adulterous doesn’t harm Magyar. Publishing it is illegal and would therefore be very risky, especially if the publisher were connected to Fidesz.

          But I don’t understand Magyar’s behavior. How does he know that the video exists, is authentic, what it shows, who made it, and who is threatening to publish it? A blackmailer might show it to him but in a political smear you would just publish it.

          And, as you say, who cares that he had fling with his ex gf? He was divorced at the time.
          So why is he making so much noise about it? It seems like he’s trying to get ahead of something but it’s not clear what. And why is he talking about illegal drugs in connection with this?

          Ms. .Tom is from Hungary and has family and friends there. I find the politics and society over there interesting. Orbán is an interesting politician. I know people who support him and explain coherently why (to do with a small weak country in the middle of everything and wanting to keep the hegemonic powers in balance) and others who despise him for his corruption and administrative and economic incompetence. It seems to me that his move to populist nationalism clearly worked (Budapest is solidly Euro-Atlantist liberal but all of the rest of the country, which is way more voters, is solidly not) and if it weren’t for the incompetence and corruption Fidesz might easily beat Tisza, who have little to offer other than “we’re not them”. What Hungary really needs, like a lot if us I suppose, is better political opposition.

          When I searched for more on the Magyar sex tape story I didn’t find much. So I have yet to confirm it is a big story there. I wondered if Euronews trying to make it into a big thing.
          1. AG February 13, 2026 at 9:17 pm

             All I can add is this anecdotal detail, that a relative´s husband was working as journalist and then PR person for Orbán. Eventually the husband was sacrificed in something that was an internal financial “irregularity” within FIDESZ. Also he appears to have turned a bit too greedy or demanding for his superiors. So he had to go. I don´t know his current sit.
             I was told then that he expected his wife to stay at home with now 3 kids, although she was a sports teacher before and didn´t have any inclination to become a “trad wife” and actually didn´t have the desire for 3 children in the first place. But at that earlier point in time the “hubby” was on the rise.

             Thinking of it, from afar and only hearing about the gossip there are numerous fascinating stories from friends and relatives there. A bit like French (petty) bourgeoisie told through French movies down to harsh stories of emigration to the UK as service provider.

             My mother who still goes there regularly saw a Hungarian movie which she found very fitting for the current state of affairs (she is no Orbán fan unlike my father, so much for fitting clichés). I might add she was once a teacher herself:

             FEKETE PONT (LESSON LEARNED) 2024
             Hungarian Trailer
             https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNCUvjY-mNI
          2. bertl February 14, 2026 at 12:46 am

             It is the probably this season’s best false flag operation. There’s nothing to be seen. The insinuation is that there is something to be seen and that it is part of a typically dirty Fidesz operation so if it goes unseen, it makes Fidesz look bad for being outguessed, and if Magyar/EU/MI6 puts out an atrociously edited killer porno with Major Tom’s widow, next door’s budgerigar or a neighbour’s bouncing dead cat, then it will be put down to the incompetent Fidesz Department of Dirty tricks.
13. The Rev Kev February 13, 2026 at 9:24 am

    “Syria says its forces have taken over al-Tanf base after a handover from the US”

    I remember when US forces took over the al-Tanf region. The Syrian army was rolling up ISIS forces across the country when the US intervened by occupying the oil fields, Syria’s wheat bread basket and letting the Kurds sweep south to occupy the Syrian Arab lands on the eastern bank of the Euphrates river. It was then the US occupied al-Tanf which cut a major road going across the Middle East and those forces there never really fought ISIS forces. Instead, they sheep-dipped terrorist by training them there and sending them off into Syria to launch attacks and commit sabotage. Now that the Syrians occupy the place they will probably downgrade it into a customs post or something.
    1. ilsm February 13, 2026 at 10:08 am

       Remember it was Quds and Shi’a militia who ousted ISIS from Kurd lands in Iraq!

       US scarcely shoots at ISIS except occasionally shooting back for an attack.

       Multi-trillion $$ war on terror is about Iran.
    2. hk February 13, 2026 at 12:06 pm

       These “Syrian” forces are actually ISIS, aren’t they?
       1. pjay February 13, 2026 at 2:14 pm

          I’m not sure whether your question is rhetorical. But another offering in today’s Links address it explicitly:

          – ‘ISIS never left Syria, it just changed uniforms’ – The Cradle
       2. Aurelien February 13, 2026 at 2:23 pm

          Up to a point. They likely also include Sunni groups opposed to Assad and backed by either Turkey or Saudi Arabia, and opportunists who once fought with ISIS, or one of its aligned groups, and have now transferred their loyalties. It’s all very transactional. Remember that the Military Committee of ISIS was made up of Sunni Baath Party officers, and we still really don’t know whether they acted out of genuine religious motives or just because it was a chance to pay the West back.
          1. witters February 14, 2026 at 4:49 am

             ISIS payed the West back?
14. Tom Stone February 13, 2026 at 9:59 am

    There are quite a few factions in DC and at Goldman, it will be interesting to see what Emails are accidentally released and which are “Accidentally” released.
    This is intra elite warfare and that can get out of hand…
15. Mikel February 13, 2026 at 10:35 am

    “Remember: We never got the Maxwell emails.”

    DROP MIC.
16. .Tom February 13, 2026 at 10:46 am

    > Erika Kirk to Recruit Students for New TPUSA brand in Northern Ireland University Times

    So Turning Point USA is going to go and help promote British nationalism and patriotism, and British values in Northern Ireland? Ian Paisley Jr. needs this America First organization to come and do Britain First in Northern Ireland. I can perhaps stretch my imagination to seeing Paisley as wanting some of TPUSA’s razzle and pyrotechnics so maybe hire them as consultants. But TPUSA being a consultant for other countries’ nationalist demagogues rather dilutes their ideological credibility as USA nationalist demagogues.
    1. amfortas February 13, 2026 at 12:16 pm

       re: erica kirk: whats up with all the videos of her flying through the air in sequins and feathers and capes and bret michaels wardrobe?
       i briefly looked into it(ie: speed read wiki page), but nothing,lol.
    2. Revenant February 13, 2026 at 5:53 pm

       Lol, I don’t think TPUSA fully understands the people it is dealing with here. :-) You don’t recruit Northern Ireland, Northern Ireland recruits you!

       The best analogy I can think of is when the Nazi’s decide to open the Lost Ark in Indiana Jones – the Lost Tribe of Israel Presbyterians (seriously, I am not joking) have until now been stoppered up in Northern Ireland for the safety of mankind. Don’t open the box, don’t feed after midnight etc. :-)

       Kneecap will think this is hilarious. Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.
17. johnnyme February 13, 2026 at 10:53 am

    Why is ICE seizing people’s phones and documents? Even without charges

    Federal agents aren’t just seizing phones. They’re holding onto people’s driver’s licenses, cash and keys.

    There doesn’t seem to be much rhyme or reason to who gets to keep their belongings, attorneys told the Reformer, except that immigrant detainees are more likely to have their documents held while protesters and observers lose their phones.

    It is my understanding that observers here are adapting to this by making sure they have entered emergency contact information in their phones and if they are in the process of being abducted by ICE/CBP agents, throw their phones to any nearby observers who will whisk the phone to safety, call their emergency contacts to let them know that their loved ones have been abducted and make arrangements to return the phone.
18. Tom Stone February 13, 2026 at 10:54 am

    Trump is going to have a rough next few Months, Mortgage defaults at 2011 levels, credit card delinquencies at 12.7% (!) , a War with Iran that will be a disaster and more coming out about Epstein…that last is about intra elite warfare and the factions involved are powerful and ruthless, sometimes recklessly so.
    If you think this is wild, give it 3 Months.
19. Mikel February 13, 2026 at 10:58 am

    AI Doesn’t Reduce Work—It Intensifies It – Harvard Business Review

    Relates to my occasional speculation that the algorithms aren’t there to replace so many workers as much as they would be more useful to surveil and crack the whip.
20. Lee February 13, 2026 at 11:31 am

    RFK: “I’m not scared of a germ. I used to snort cocaine off of toilet seats.” That’s his brain worm talking.
    1. Yves Smith February 13, 2026 at 12:50 pm

       Actually toilet seats are pretty clean. The bowl is another matter.

       While public restrooms can harbor germs, the toilet seat itself is unlikely to be the culprit. Studies have shown that your desk at work may harbor 400 times as many germs as the toilet seat in the restroom.1 There are also likely to be more microbes on manual faucets and other common surfaces that people touch regularly with their hands.

       https://www.flushmate.com/blog/are-toilet-seats-full-germs-9-toilet-myths-mostly-busted
       1. Lee February 13, 2026 at 3:07 pm

          News I could have used during my misspent youth.
21. AG February 13, 2026 at 12:05 pm

    re: Washington Post vs. Bezos

    A commentary by German conservative daily FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG, FAZ

    machine-translation

    We don’t want consumers – we want readers.

    No more book reviews either: Protests against the cuts at the “Washington Post” initiated by Jeff Bezos

    In the future, nonfiction and fiction will no longer find a place in the “Washington Post.” One of the fired editors has now spoken out to settle scores with her bosses. Her words hit the nail on the head.

    https://archive.is/QKqYD
22. ciroc February 13, 2026 at 12:05 pm

    >Compromised peace? Oslo Accords figure deeply linked to Epstein network

    Wissam Afifa, a political analyst based in Gaza, drew a parallel between the exploitation of minors on Epstein’s island and the geopolitical treatment of Palestinians.

    “We, as Palestinians, were treated as minors … considered as having no right to demand our rights,” Afifa said. “Today we discover that a large part of the international system is essentially ‘Epstein Island’”.

    Afifa suggested that the “silence” of the international community regarding the current genocidal war on Gaza could be linked to similar networks of influence and extortion.

    “The world was managed from Epstein’s island … in dark rooms,” Afifa added. “We are victims of the influence network that Epstein managed with politicians, leaders and states”.

    Epstein embodies Israel.
23. kareninca February 13, 2026 at 12:07 pm

    I just talked with the really nice guy who does the repairs for my condo complex; a black guy in his 40s who is extremely competent. He was supposed to remove a mold patch from our bathroom ceiling caused by a leak in the unit upstairs – it actually happened last summer – but he kept putting it off and not calling. I did not press at all because of my own stuff going on and also I just didn’t want to bother him for some reason.

    Well, he just called, to offer to finally arrange to fix the mold patch. He told me that he hadn’t called because people in his family keep dying. And he said, “and it doesn’t stop.”

    This matches what I am observing in my extended family and with family friends.
    1. Yves Smith February 13, 2026 at 12:39 pm

       Wowsers, how terrible. I am so sorry for you and him.

       Can I trouble you to say what killed them? Is this cancer, strokes, or a much broader set of conditions?
       1. kareninca February 13, 2026 at 2:03 pm

          In the past year:

          Relative in northern New England died from drowning in hotel pool. Female age 62. No real health issues, not a drug user, an excellent swimmer.

          Relative (by marriage) in northern New England died from early onset dementia that started about four years ago. Male, age early 60s.

          Relative (by marriage) in northern New England (elderly) died from Powassan that he had had for about six years.

          Relative in southern New England died of uti caught in facility. She was in her 50s and had had dementia for about six years and had just been put in the facility.

          Relative in southern New England (by marriage) died of cancer that he developed about a year ago; it was thought to be under control but he went pretty quickly.

          Sister in law’s father died; I do not know the cause; he was elderly. His wife is now very sick.

          In last two years:

          57 year old family friend from my home town in southern New England (male).
          62 year old brother of family friend in southern New England (a “healthy guy; died suddenly)
          Sister in law’s father in the South (he was elderly and had been sick for a while).
          Two people we know who were very well off and extraordinarily well educated died last year; in one case the husband developed dementia but we don’t know the cause in the wife’s case; they were in their 70s but it was still a shock.

          The obits in my hometown in southern New England are running very young, along with the elderly people. Lots of people in their 50s and 60s and early 70s. No cause given but in a number of cases my mother knows them since they were former students and these were not people with drug problems, so that is not the explanation.

          Not relatives or not dead but very worrisome list:

          62 year old friend from high school in southern New England; a “very healthy” person, has gone septic twice in the past two years from utis. Her kidneys are now in very bad shape.

          Very wealthy elderly neighbor her on west coast (our condo complex is very mixed income) has had a series of utis over the past couple of years that have gone septic and he is now demented and bedbound and on hospice from this. He is a retired anesthesiologist and his wife is a retired nurse and he has the best care money can buy so this should not have happened. The wife now needs skin Mohs cancer surgery; my husband’s cousin needed Mohs skin cancer surgery last month.

          Neighbor’s (here on west coast) significant other is suddenly in hospice; he has survived early onset dementia for nearly 30years (he is in his 70s) but his state has worsened.

          My husband’s cousin in a mountain state out west, a very healthy and over educated academic in her 40s, found last year that she had 16+ polyps. Fortunately none of them were over the line (but some were quite close). Yesterday I heard from her mother who tells me that the cousin just went to her dermatologist for her annual look over and the dermatologist freaked out and is sending her for a CT for a growth that looks to me like a larger version of her other skin things. Her kid developed h. pylori (!) two years ago; this is a VERY clean household; it was shocking.

          Family friend’s son just developed sudden cardiac calcification and will need bypass surgery. Mid 50s. I know calcification isn’t supposed to happen suddenly.

          Another friend of mine who is also 62 lost her husband to dementia two years ago (he was older than her and had had it for about eight years); she is now developing memory problems herself.

          My 66 year old cousin just wrecked her car (no injuries). A couple of days ago I told her that my 83 year old mom thought that she (my mom) was still teaching (my mom is having memory problems). My cousin said, “she isn’t?” My mother retired 25 years ago. My cousin also bought $3,000 worth of crap from Temu and her living room is full of hefty bags full of items that her daughters are trying unsuccessfully to return. Her husband, who is a few years older than her, asked me a couple of weeks ago how to do a simple process on a calculator; he is a smart guy who had a high level working class job that required lots of math use so this was not good.

          My neighbor who is (was) extremely sharp; widow of a doctor who invented things; she is in her 70s and is very confused now.

          I know there are more but these are what come to mind and I am getting worn out.
          1. kareninca February 13, 2026 at 2:56 pm

             65 year old neighbor hadn’t called me in a few weeks; I thought she might be annoyed at me about our political differences (which are actually almost nonexistent; it is just that I am not willing to recite creeds. But it turns out that she has been disassociating. She had had that problem briefly when she was young due to a hard childhood, but it had gone away for decades but came back now and strong.

             No immediate family examples since other than my mother my immediate family members are dead already.

             My examples are not from facebook; I am not on facebook. They are from talking with people on the phone and in a few instances the obits.
          2. Jason Boxman February 13, 2026 at 6:20 pm

             Family friend’s son just developed sudden cardiac calcification and will need bypass surgery. Mid 50s. I know calcification isn’t supposed to happen suddenly.

             There will always be some question whether my father, who only had a mild heart attack 29 years ago, and finally went to see the doctor due to “indigestion”, and ultimately had a stent put in and no heart damage, routinely keeping up with health ever since, and been fine, died from a massive heart attack only a couple months after getting COVID. The cath lab said he had two arteries blocked 70%, which was not in evidence only a year or whatever earlier.

             COVID? We’ll never know for sure.

             Such a sad manifest of death; My parents unfortunately didn’t know anyone that had COVID and died, or seemed to not fully recovery, and perhaps this influenced my father’s decision not to mask on that fateful day, as virtually no one masks, no one they know does, and no one they know in 6 years died from COVID, until my father died perhaps from complications from COVID.

             I hate this timeline.

             I guess we now know someone that died from COVID. Hooray.
             1. kareninca February 14, 2026 at 2:33 am

                It is a brutal disease. It takes people down after the fact.
24. flora February 13, 2026 at 12:26 pm

    re: A Mossad-Linked Israeli Org Is Trying To ‘Shut Down’ The Maple

    “The organization has sent demand letters to Ontario law enforcement and global payment processors.”

    Imagine how much easier CBDCs could make this process for said Isr org.
    1. Steve Burdo February 13, 2026 at 1:14 pm

       Or, total control of Americans, kind of like a Chinese style Social Credit Score on steroids.

       Cue the voice of Hal from 2001:

       “I’m sorry Dave, but I am not going to allow you to buy that until you delete your posts critical of the government.”

       BTW, using phones, instead of cash, to buy even the smallest items is how ICE tracks and grabs undocumented people in public places.
25. flora February 13, 2026 at 12:51 pm

    From Due Dissidence. Two utube clips from the Congressional Epstein Files – Pam Bondi hearing.

    clip 1. includes some important info about how these hearings work, and why a Congress member may reclaim their time during a witness’s answer. This is an important point to understand what is happening in the back-and-forth. utube, ~18+ minutes

    Bondi SHAMED by EPSTEIN SURVIVORS in DC Hearing
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQVrcai01CM

    clip 2. More from the Epstein Files – Bondi hearing. utube, ~18+ minutes.

    Massie EXPOSES Pam Bondi’s Epstein Coverup TO HER FACE
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QFanCDl2jw
26. XXYY February 13, 2026 at 1:52 pm

    Breaking: OpenAI is probably toast Gary Marcus

    Embedded in here is a passage from a Josh Wolfe tweet:

    Apple’s take is these models ARE NOT reasoning. They are super expensive pattern matchers that break as soon as we step outside their training distribution.

    Recall how it took about 5 years for the world’s health establishment to concede the obvious truth that COVID was transmitted through the air?

    We are now seeing the dawn have another obvious truth which nevertheless has remained controversial or hidden up to now: that “artificial intelligence” technology does not think, or reason, or create, or analyze: it just does mindless pattern matching on words and phrases appropriated (for free) from actual human beings that it scraped up from the internet. Any resemblance to human behavior is purely coincidental.

    Spread the word!
    1. flora February 13, 2026 at 5:12 pm

       Speaking of AI scraping up data or text and pattern matching: I think that’s a reason the T admin is doubling down on everything we can see with our own eyes is false. Double down and double down, let the AIs scrape up all that verbiage and incorporate it into its pattern matching. Enough doubling down and it could outweigh in terms of bulk or numbers contrary statements. (Sound almost like google-bombing* facts or future histories written by people who depend on AI.)

       *google-bombing per Wiki:
       https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_bombing
       1. AG February 13, 2026 at 9:21 pm

          Yep. Stalling to gain time and power until its too late or meaningless if people do rise.
    2. Acacia February 14, 2026 at 4:09 am

       FWIW, after listening to CS researchers talk about AI for ~45 years now, I would say the claims that AI cannot think, or reason, or create, or analyze have not really been “controversial or hidden up to now”.

       For decades, it was mainly a small and relatively fringe group of CS researchers who were seriously working on AI, while the majority were focused on more traditional science and engineering problems. Most engineers I have worked with have been very skeptical about the claims for AI — even openly mocking it — and there have been several “AI winters” for good reasons. It’s only more recently that AI has become a sort of cult, championed by loudmouth nitwit tech bro types like Sam Altman.

       From my vantage point, the issue has been that CS researchers are by training not like people in the humanities or life sciences, in that they have not been deeply interested in understanding thought, reason, or creativity. There have been a few exceptions, but mostly they are just that: exceptions. Consequently, people working in information science tend to get vague and mushy about what thought, reason, or creativity actually entail.

       I would submit it’s not so much that the reality has been “controversial or hidden up to now” but rather that the fringe of AI boosters has grown into larger group — more like a cult — and the reality-based community has to keep repeatedly debunking their vague language and wide-eyed fantasies.

       It’s really tiresome.
27. Tom Stone February 13, 2026 at 1:55 pm

    I find it rather curious that so many people who are OK with the Genocide in Gaza are upset about Epstein and company raping girls.
    Perhaps it’s because the young girls involved are white and look “Nice”, Virginia Giuffre certainly did.
    May she rest in peace.
    1. flora February 13, 2026 at 5:18 pm

       I’m not sure “so many people” are OK with the Genocide in Gaza. I think a lot of people are afraid of what could happen to their scholarships, job opportunities, political fortunes, or public reputations if they openly, publicly or privately oppose what is happening in Gaza, openly call it genocide. This is the new McCarthyism. (I also think a lot of people in that situation are beginning to resent very much the intimidation factor in ways they’d never noticed it before.)
       1. flora February 13, 2026 at 5:43 pm

          For example, just the first minute of this utube from the House Committee – Bondi hearing. Just the first minute is a perfect example of the current McCarthyism I’m talking about.

          I didn’t prepare to be accused of antisemitism: Rep. Balint on walking out of Bondi hearing

          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E42S8dcTd60
    2. Henry Moon Pie February 14, 2026 at 6:24 am

       Tom, I watched a very recent Ezra Klein interview (transcript) of Anand Giridharadas about his upcoming book and his related take on the Epstein files. After noting the surprising fact that the interview was held in a regular room, not a basketball arena to accommodate the two egos, I will say that the interview illustrates what you’re saying almost perfectly.

       Anand is smart and beautiful and a Billionaire Whisperer. He was counseling openness to Bernie way back when. He does seem to have a heart as well as a mind, and in this interview, he evinces a concern for the victims that I found sincere.

       Ezra, ahh Ezra. Vets of the blogging world have watched Ezra rise from a humble blogger to the perch at the NYT from which he preaches “Abundance” and queried Giridharadas.

       The two men speak for nearly 1 1/2 hours, and it’s often a wrestling match with Ezra constantly pushing the subject back to Trump in some way while Anand tries to keep the focus on the broader, systemic issues. I’ll bet you can guess two words, proper nouns, that never crossed either main’s lips. I swear that for much of the time, Giridharadas looks almost mockingly at Klein as if to ask, “Are you going to bring it up?,” but Klein never does. Giridharadas doesn’t bring it up either until, at the very end of the interview, he makes a vague reference:

       And I have been fascinated to learn that while people have been willing to publish individual stories of individual survivors and this and that, when it gets to these really big banks, some of the stuff we’ve been talking about, some of these bigger international forces, there’s a silence.

       So these two manage to talk about Epstein for as long as it take to play a baseball game, but never touch once on Israel, despite the obvious connections to Epstein, or Gaza and its horrors in the context of elite cruelty and corruption. There are still very powerful taboos at that level of the culture.
28. jrkrideau February 13, 2026 at 4:26 pm

    US envoy suggests Cuba has its own “Delcy Rodríguez” amid transition talks

    Does the USA always announce a coup attempt in advance?
29. Jason Boxman February 13, 2026 at 6:22 pm

    Welcome to the 19th century

    Kennedy Allies Target States to Overturn Vaccine Mandates for Schoolchildren (NY Times via archive.ph)

    Whackjob land

    Longtime allies of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the nation’s health secretary, have launched a new effort to repeal laws that for decades have required children to be vaccinated against measles, polio and other diseases before they enter day care or kindergarten.

    Galvanized by support from the top reaches of the federal government, a newly formed coalition of vaccine activists is rallying its supporters to target laws that are considered the linchpin of protection from deadly diseases. States have long mandated childhood immunizations before children can start day care or school, though some exemptions are available.

    “What we need to do is freaking burst the dam open,” Leslie Manookian, the backer of a law that banned medical mandates in Idaho, told supporters on a recent call. “And that is what this year is all about, bursting the dam open in the states where we think it can happen first.”

    Ms. Manookian is a leader of the Medical Freedom Act Coalition, a new umbrella group of at least 15 nonprofit organizations advocating an end to state laws that codify what they call medical mandates, which largely pertain to vaccines.

    We’re really in a timeline where functionally stupid, self gratifying hacks run everything into the ground
    1. The Rev Kev February 13, 2026 at 7:06 pm

       And their very first instinct is to go for the kids. I am now convinced that within a decade, anybody traveling to the US will not only be notified with health warnings but will be required to have vaccinations up to date to due endemic diseases running rampant on the ground. But don’t expect Kennedy to accept responsibility. He didn’t for his part in letting measles spread in Samoa by discouraging vaccinations-

       https://mvec.mcri.edu.au/the-dangers-of-vaccine-misinformation-robert-f-kennedy-jr/
    2. Tom Stone February 13, 2026 at 7:51 pm

       Since RFK believes that measles is no good deal he should put his money where his mouth is and deliberately infect himself and any children he has with measles…as a way of paying off their immunity debt.
       1. Jason Boxman February 13, 2026 at 11:05 pm

          True. If only weak people get sick, Kennedy getting HIV would be particularly amusing. What’s good for thee is not for me I guess. These people are garbage and I pray they get to live in this world they’re creating.
30. flora February 13, 2026 at 6:37 pm

    Tech tip, apropos of nothing in the links, but possibly useful to readers. If you use your computer or smart phones for many hours and find your eyes feeling sore afterward, there’s a way to reduce the blue light coming from the screen which might reduce the eye strain.

    Search on your favorite search engine:
    ‘how to block blue light on Windows 10 or 11’
    ‘how to turn on or off blue light filter on Android’
    ‘how to turn on or off blue light on Samsung’

    And for ‘i’ devices, see this from PC magazine:
    “Your Phone’s Blue Light Is Keeping You Up At Night. These Tricks Will Filter it Out
    “Light emitted by your phone, tablet, or laptop can disturb your sleep. Here’s how to filter out the blue light for a more restful night.”

    https://www.pcmag.com/how-to/how-to-stop-blue-light-from-disturbing-your-sleep?t=&test_uuid=04IpBmWGZleS0I0J3epvMrC&test_variant=B

    I turned on the blue light filter on my Win 10 pc, adjusted the filtering level with a slider bar (it’s not an all-or-nothing setting), and found it did reduce eye strain. ymmv.
    1. Ben Panga February 13, 2026 at 8:30 pm

       Thanks Flora

       I use gray-scale mode on all my devices (meaning black and white) and it makes a huge difference.

       On Mac: turn it on via accessibility settings

       On Android: setting is in different places depending on OS but is great and gives you a toggle button for it on the navigation bar.

       I sometimes have to do 6+ hours of online meetings a day and this saves my eyes and brain. I also notice I’m more grounded and “in reality” rather than being sucked into the screen.
    2. Ben Panga February 13, 2026 at 8:31 pm

       I go further and use gray-scale mode on all my devices (meaning black and white) and it makes a huge difference.

       On Mac: turn it on via accessibility settings

       On Android: setting is in different places depending on OS but is great and gives you a toggle button for it on the navigation bar.

       I sometimes have to do 6+ hours of online meetings a day and this saves my eyes and brain. I also notice I’m more grounded and “in reality” rather than being sucked into the screen.
31. AG February 13, 2026 at 7:00 pm

    re: social housing / financing schools

    DOUG HENWOOD podcast

    1) Stacy Horn, author of The Killing Fields of East New York, on the damage mortgage fraud did to that neighborhood

    her book:
    The Killing Fields of East New York
    https://zandoprojects.com/books/the-killing-fields-of-east-new-york/

    2) David Backer, author of As Public as Possible, on how we finance schools and how we could do better

    his book:
    As Public as Possible
    Radical Finance for America’s Public Schools
    https://thenewpress.org/books/as-public-as-possible/?v=eb65bcceaa5f

    the show
    53 min.
    https://shout.lbo-talk.org/lbo/RadioArchive/2026/26_02_12.mp3
32. johnnyme February 13, 2026 at 7:08 pm

    Feds open a perjury probe into ICE officers’ testimony about the shooting of a Venezuelan man

    MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Federal authorities have opened a criminal probe into whether two immigration officers lied under oath about a shooting in Minneapolis last month, as all charges were dropped against two Venezuelan men.

    Earlier Friday, U.S. District Court Judge Paul A. Magnuson dismissed felony assault charges against Alfredo Alejandro Aljorna and Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, who were accused of beating an ICE officer with a broom handle and a snow shovel during a Jan. 14 fracas. The officer fired a single shot from his handgun, striking Sosa-Celis in his right thigh.

    “The charges against them were based on lies by an ICE agent who recklessly shot into their home through a closed door,” said attorney Brian D. Clark. “They are so happy justice is being served.”
33. Tom Stone February 13, 2026 at 7:58 pm

    But, but ,but ICE officers were told that they had “Total Immunity” by no less than Vice President Vance!
    And here they are being investigated for firing a shot into the home of a potential domestic violent extremist, an enemy of the State.
    Hopefully President Trump will have something to say about this.
    After all, how can ICE agents do their jobs if they aren’t allowed to perjure themselves?

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