Links 3/27/2026

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1. The Rev Kev March 27, 2026 at 7:29 am

   “Pentagon prepares for massive “final blow” of Iran war”

   This nudged a memory that I could not pin down until I finally remembered. It was during the Battle of Britain and the Germans thought that they could break the Royal Air Force with a massive blow which they called Adlertag (“Eagle Day”) by carrying out a series of raids. It was a near run thing but Fighter Command held and something tells me that the Iranians will hold as well-

   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adlertag
2. Wukchumni March 27, 2026 at 7:58 am

   Gooooooood Mooooooorning Fiatnam!

   We had expected pushback from the grunts in the platoon over new orders to wear ‘Jesus Mit Uns Wieder’ belt buckles, because it made it seem as if they had been called upon to support a Mexican-American’s lawn care business-not that there are any WASP’y Americans with that first name.
   1. Inkblot March 27, 2026 at 8:51 am

      I’ve long appreciated these updates from the steaming jungles, but this one really made me crack up laughing. Thanks for that.
3. flora March 27, 2026 at 8:05 am

   An aside: another email scam going around. Email sent supposedly from “familyofxyz.” Just got one, did not click the included link. / ;)

   Per Wiki:
   The “familyofxys” email scam likely involves phishing, where scammers impersonate a trusted source to trick you into revealing personal information or making payments. Always verify the sender’s email address and avoid clicking on suspicious links.
4. DJG, Reality Czar March 27, 2026 at 8:15 am

   Many thanks for the article “Man’s First Best Friend,” about wolves. Plus the amusing photographic antidote. The size of those paws. The famous big wolf nose. And those humane eyes.

   The article by Stephanie Woodward braids three intriguing variations on the wolf. The Japanese place wolves among the kami — although then, with typical Japanese thoroughness, they slaughtered them. In the U S of A, the wolf becomes a victim to puritanical and Calvinist dualism — wolves must be sinful, right?

   The evidence for cohabitation on the island off Sweden intrigues, although I am hesitant to think that it was intimate. I hesitate to think that the wolves there were forerunners of dogs. Something else was going on. I’m not sure what.

   Here in Italy, with its own distinct subspecies of wolf (naturalmente!), I have being doing some research on wolves for various reasons. The wolf seems to have been semi-sacred, as it was among many Native American peoples. The Roman festival of Lupercalia celebrated wolves and had many complicated meanings, some so ancient that they are now lost and irretrievable.

   Also, I discover that of the estimated 2,000 Italian wolves, 500 live here in the Undisclosed Region. It must be the grissini that attract them — or, more likely, the extensive uplands and mountains, as well as the (unfortunate) de-population of many of the valleys. Villages that had 1,500 people in 1950 sometimes report 300 or 400, or even less, now.

   The complicated relation of wolves throughout Italian history:

   https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canis_lupus_italicus#Nella_cultura_latina_e_italiana

   I note that in much of central Italy — including among the Romans — the woodpecker was sacred. As was / is the hoopoe.

   A report on the many wolves of Piedmont:

   https://unionemonregalese.it/news/territorio/309846/in-piemonte-ci-sono-quasi-500-lupi-e-abitano-il-75-del-territorio-regionale.html

   Wolves sometimes get in trouble, even still, in Piedmont. They sometimes kill a goat or a sheep. There are rumors of wolves wandering into the hills across the Po (where the big bourgeoisie lives) here in Torino.

   Insomma, I recommend the article to you as an antidote on a day when it is all too evident that the most vile mammal is the human being.
   1. Judith March 27, 2026 at 9:36 am

      Years ago, in early spring in Yellowstone I saw from a distance a family of wolves with young pups outside their den. Heard them howling as well. Such a wonderful experience.

      This quote from the article stood out as a description of the US modus operandi, and not just regarding wolves:

      “Some folks need to maintain [wolves] as scapegoats and bludgeons, to keep people in line and angry,” says Ron Sutherland, chief scientist for Wildlands Network, a continent-wide conservation group, and an author of the Animal Conservation article mentioned above. Wolves must be disentangled from American politics, he says.
   2. Maritimer Adrift March 27, 2026 at 9:47 am

      Thanks for this. A much-needed respite from the regular programming!

      My partner is from Marche. Her father and his hiking companions have occasionally spotted wolves in the Sibilini. Sightings seem to be quite common these days, even down near the coast around Ancona. There was an amusing story from a few years back about a fellow (illegally) camping on a beach near Monte Conero. If I remember correctly, I believe he ended up getting busted after fleeing from a wolf that had taken an interest in his tent.
      1. Ann March 27, 2026 at 5:45 pm

         I may have told this story here before, but maybe not. Here at the Hantavirus Ranch, when the coyotes howl, all the dogs in the neighbourhood join in, including mine. It makes quite a racket. One evening, during the yip-yip-yowling, one lone wolf let loose a long low bellow. Bam – dead silence from all the others. “Quiet. The Big Ones Are Speaking.”
         1. EY Oakland March 27, 2026 at 11:54 pm

            Ann, in the earliest 80s I was taking care of a remote ranch in the Ojai Valley in CA. One night I heard – suddenly – Coyotes howling – so many of them & so loud. I thought what the hell’s up? I went outside and was face to face with the moon rising – huge and bright from behind the hill outside my trailer. Took my breath away. I thought – Oh, beautiful, beautiful, amazing! So did the Coyotes.
5. flora March 27, 2026 at 8:27 am

   re: The War Is Going Better Than You Think – Bret Stephens, New York Times

   Ah. Some gaslighting to start the day. / ;)
   1. ChrisFromGA March 27, 2026 at 9:18 am

      “I love the smell of gaslighting in the morning … smells like, victory!”
      1. flora March 27, 2026 at 10:44 pm

         It’s exraordinary how gas lighters think comparing ‘this to that’ based on nothing more that time/material metrics, comparing now to past events without context, is some kind of unassailable winning argument.

         Gen. Curtis LeMay ran the US bombing program in WWII. The WWII bombing program in Europe did seem very materially decisive. McNamara, who served in the US Army Air Corps in WWII, took up LeMay’s thinking about the importance of bombing when he was Sec Def during the Vietnam war. That is, the more we bomb the more we will win. Except, Vietnam was not the earlier WWII war. The dispute was different.
         1. The Rev Kev March 27, 2026 at 11:47 pm

            ‘The WWII bombing program in Europe did seem very materially decisive.’

            If I recall correctly, the Strategic Bombing Survey done after the end of the war in Europe found that the most heavily bombed places of all were open farm fields.
         2. Victor Sciamarelli March 28, 2026 at 6:45 am

            Not exactly, a favorite economist John Kenneth Galbraith was a director of the US Strategic Bombing Survey. Galbraith stated, “Factory buildings suffered heavy damage, but the basic machine tools came through mostly unscathed, and they were quickly put back into use.” A “striking example” was in late February 1944, German aircraft plants were the largest component of the arms industry and, were targets of massive raids. The result was, “In March and later months, aircraft production rose enormously. New assembly lines were organized in nearby buildings.” “Overall, the effect of the bombing was an increase in aircraft production.”
            “The long-range strategic bombers did not win WW II, it is not clear that they even appreciably shortened the war in Europe”
            In the Pacific, “The attacks on Japan, especially the inordinately cruel city raids, were more severe than anything Germany suffered.” “Again, however, it was ground and naval warfare (together with the defeat of Germany) that brought Japan’s eventual surrender, not the loss of its military supplies through bombing raids.”
            Lastly, it’s often unrecognized that bombing raised moral in Germany, UK, and Japan and, more importantly, “kept up the tension of national danger, and created the requisite atmosphere for sacrifice.”
6. pjay March 27, 2026 at 8:46 am

   – ‘Montana Senate candidate says he will introduce bill to draft Graham if elected’ – The Hill

   I’m not a Montana resident, but with a platform like that he should run for President. I’d vote for him! Since Presidents can do whatever they want now, he wouldn’t have to wait for a draft. He could just order an extraordinary rendition operation to whisk Lindsey away and drop him on the front lines somewhere – Ukraine, Lebanon, maybe drop him from a plane onto Kharg Island with the expeditionary force. There are a number of neocon chicken hawks I’d love to see join him.
   1. Carolinian March 27, 2026 at 9:45 am

      Already a Colonel.

      Born in Central, South Carolina, Graham earned both a Bachelor of Arts and a Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina. Before entering politics, Graham served as a member of the Judge Advocate General’s Corps in the U.S. Air Force from 1982 to 1988, working as a defense attorney and chief prosecutor in Europe. He later served in the U.S. Air Force Reserve while in Congress. He was awarded a Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service in 2014 and held the rank of colonel. He did not see combat action during his service.

      I guess we could secede again and take Graham with us.
      1. paul March 27, 2026 at 4:29 pm

         Ms graham always reminds of a lot of the the film hot shots, tug benson shooting straight from the hip:

         I look out there on all you wonderful guys and I say to myself “What I wouldn’t give to be 20 years younger… and a woman”.
         You know, I’ve personally flown over 194 missions and I was shot down on every one.
         Come to think of it, I’ve never landed a plane in my life.
7. Mark Gisleson March 27, 2026 at 8:59 am

   Something I’m not seeing lately: any discussion about the proposed national strike.

   I thought a date had been set and wheels were in motion, but now I can’t remember the last time I saw it mentioned (and I skim through over 100 RSS feed headlines every day).

   Not asking our hosts to do research but am hoping to crowd source an answer. Anyone still seeing any talk about a national strike? FYI, for some reason search engines seem to find this query impossible to grok and just spit back labor history links.

   Just curious because right now would be one helluva an interesting time to let American workers exercise their right to free speech through a national protest.
   1. Yves Smith March 27, 2026 at 9:16 am

      Absolutely nothing on Twitter. Nor in the many Substacks I subscribe to, or the fake left-ie Dem Trump-hating newsletters.
   2. Carla March 27, 2026 at 10:33 am

      IIRC, last year the AUW’s Shawn Fain was calling for a general strike in May 2028. Guessing maybe the Dems don’t want it messing up their presidential primaries that who knows? may not even happen.

      Yeah, just checked it out: https://may1.uaw.org/
8. The Rev Kev March 27, 2026 at 9:09 am

   “Vance cites ‘return of Jesus Christ to Jerusalem’ event to voice support for US troops fighting Iran”

   ‘In his usual style for his lengthy cabinet meetings, Trump lets officials around the table have their say’

   But god help any Cabinet member saying anything that Trump does not like. He has not so much a Cabinet as his own private echo chamber. Having all the press there was to show Cabinet unity but of course it was all a dog and pony show. Can you imagine one of the say that hey, the economy is about to go in the crapper and for sure we will lose our majorities in the Senate and House come November? And do we even have a plan for getting out of Iran? And wouldn’t it be easier to bomb and invade Israel itself?
   1. paul March 27, 2026 at 4:48 pm

      It’s hard to ignore that the court vassals think they will survive if they can put the bill on the orange king.

      “What did you do during the planning of WW$, daddy?”

      “Son, I did my best, I shorted the best out of shit I could, but we’ve got each other and that raccoon looks like good eatin, if his family don’t go holding a grudge.”

      Should be a test of character
9. Duke of Prunes March 27, 2026 at 9:19 am

   TRT World gets my misleading headline award for today. I read the headline as Vance citing some wacky rapture scripture ito support/justify the war: “Jesus return to Jerusalem”. But no, he just mentioned Easter and the Christian Holy Week. Boo!
   1. Henry Moon Pie March 27, 2026 at 10:31 am

      Agreed. It was a reference to Palm Sunday upcoming this weekend. That’s the “return” that he’s clearly referring to.
   2. paul March 27, 2026 at 5:07 pm

      Wikipedia has provided you with at least €2,75 worth of knowledge, donate today. If you are undecided, remember any contribution helps.

      as to what weirdopedia says:

      Christ’s entry to Jerusalem would have thus symbolized his entry as the Prince of Peace, not as a war-waging king.

      Of course this is debatable ,and the donkey led psyop was in preparation of the nazi holocaust, or something like that.
      1. frank March 27, 2026 at 9:27 pm

         These people are despicable! A 21st century crusade in Persia?
10. MicaT March 27, 2026 at 9:20 am

    China and coal.
    Many of the new coal plants is to replace older more polluting ones, and unlike the US they are not on 24/7 but supporting the grid as needed. And many are there as just backup as well as Prioritizing renewables.
    And yes they are still burning a lot of coal. But the China carbon output has been very flat to going down even though the country is expanding its energy consumption, due to more renewables, nuclear, hydro.
    As to solar, to put things into perspective, in 24 alone china installed almost three times as much as the US has in total. In 25 they installed almost 8x as much as the US installed. And the IEA shows they are at about the 1100 GW (the US has about 112) installed with another 770GW in expansion either under construction or planning.
    Also have to figure that 50% of all cars are electric and the number is increasing and electric truck too. Which reduce pollution even burning coal to make the electricity.
    It’s hard to know how much or long the anti solar/wind US administration will set back renewables growth or how quickly it will rebound. Of course the war in Iran might be the most significant driver of renewables ever.

    https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=65064
    1. Charles Carroll March 27, 2026 at 10:40 am

       +++
11. Bugs March 27, 2026 at 9:21 am

    Speaking of Montana, as in Wildhack, the rather unique actress and sex symbol Valerie Perrine passed away on March 23rd of complications of Parkinsons.

    She won a Palme d’or in Cannes, a Bafta and was nominated for an Oscar for her role opposite Dustin Hoffman in “Lenny”, the Bob Fosse-directed biopic about Lenny Bruce in his decline. Highly recommend seeing the film version of the Vonnegut novel, “Slaughterhouse Five”. She glows in it.
    1. Otto Reply March 27, 2026 at 10:43 am

       FWIW Vonnegut considered it one of his favorite movie adaptations of his works. Features a great still of VP from the film. Such a radiant smile.
       1. paul March 27, 2026 at 5:27 pm

          ..and edgar derby’s unquenchable optimism before he is led away and shot dead

          “Free enterprise and self detemination, backing each other all the way!”
12. taunger March 27, 2026 at 9:26 am

    The Architecture of Managed Decline seems to be the most reasonable narrative analysis I’ve seen yet, with sound explanation of contingencies regarding the USreal alliance causing the strategic paralysis see with the current pauses and their underlying motivation despite the weakness they project. I wonder what the America first crowd would think.
    1. SDB1 March 27, 2026 at 10:38 am

       Re: FrameTheGlobeNews (FTGN) article “The Architecture of Managed Decline”. Very persuasive essay – worth summarising, I think.

       FTGN argues that Iran war part of a larger US strategy to preserve control of oil markets as it enters a multipolar world. Compelling details in support of energy-based strategy include estimated tripling of American LNG capacity 2024-29 and US bombing of emerging competitor land-based ME oil export route via Turkey (ie Development Road).

       According to this energy-based strategy, the under-reported US war aim of clearing Iran proxy mafias (eg Hezbollah, Houthis, Islamic Jihad) from ME actually the most important, because it paves the way for hypothetical liberal Iranian leadership faction to make a deal with US and open up its huge natural gas fields to investment. Presumably, the model here is Venezuela operation ie political decapitation plus energy-based deal-making.

       As FTGN indicates, though, fulfilment of US war aim of clearing ME of Iranian-backed proxies ultimately about clearing ME of IRGC-backed proxies. The IRGC is itself a political mafia which controls up to 40% of Iranian economy and must be nullified for US to have chance of solidifying its energy-based strategy. A big ask.

       Complicating this picture is fact that Israel seeks divergent Iran war outcome from US ie destruction of Iran rather than decapitation of its leadership. All perhaps a way of saying that the “final boss” US must overcome for completion of energy-based pacification of ME is not IRGC but war criminal Netanyahu and his cronies.
       1. paul March 27, 2026 at 6:02 pm

          Complicating this picture is fact that Israel seeks

          Really? Why should the wishes of the ulster of the middle east matter at all.

          A quite extraordinary position of wish fulfillment, rather complicated and disrupted by the inordinate influence the israeli regime excerts in the united states of america and just about everywhere else.

          I do wonder why the commonwealth of the entire world, poisoned as it is, will be put to the the sword due to the casual,blackmailable enormities of a spoilt,self aggrandising scion of noo yalk rentier nobility.

          Political mafias, give me a break and regard the mirror now crack’d.
       2. juno mas March 27, 2026 at 6:38 pm

          Complicating this picture is the political and economic collapse of a nation that is ~$40 Trillion in debt, will not be able to sell LNG at exhorbitent profit to nations in deflationary decline, and is itself an importer of crude oil.
       3. Revenant March 27, 2026 at 7:04 pm

          I was nodding along to many of its points – although wishing they were less Orientalist – but it was sooo long! And repetitious. And stylistically narrow.

          I don’t think the whole article is written with an LLM but it has definitely been passed through one, like coffee beans through a civet!

          I felt the same way about “The Ozempicisation of America”. More AI-polished prolixity. If the signal to noise ratio is going to be this degraded by AI and getting to the point is going to take as long, God help us.

          Only the gnomic ellipsis of Skippy here can save us! ;-)
          1. paul March 27, 2026 at 9:11 pm

             Here’s good stand in for now

             Is this the nc skippy?

             Remarkable creatures, 70s ozzy tv commissioners.
             1. skippy March 28, 2026 at 7:02 am

                Nay good fellow – Skippy and the White Slave-Traders – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zxo7wQkCIE8

                I ponder the social effects of a complete collapse of irony in the neoliberal west, worst its banned/sin binned because the narrative is holy and beyond any introspection. The narrative must win or all is lost …. rim shot …
          2. skippy March 28, 2026 at 7:34 am

             “gnomic ellipsis” ….

             Here we go – Frost shall freeze – fire eat wood – (Alexander 1966, 88).

             Aside mate … my girl in Sydney that has a high distinction in English and Grammar is having a good time dealing with her job sorting out text books each semester for a private concern. AI/LLM is the new manna from heaven in profits, not that any of them [executives] have a clue how it works save getting bank today or someone else will. Not that before I saw my ex wife graded paramedical science papers before this advent and it blew my mind away. Standers lowered so more Students would get loans and like MBS make investors moist, not that the low grade product was a drama because the Market[tm] would sort the chafe from the wheat at the end of the day.

             Now consider that effect on the currant USA admin and how unlike the past where some were concerned by a Minsky Moment and now we might have a Mandelbrot moment.
13. Duke of Prunes March 27, 2026 at 9:34 am

    The end game from the Meta et al lawsuit: no more anonymous internet.

    Under the banner of “protecting the children”, big tech will get serious about age verification (as lack thereof is finally hitting their bottom line). Age verification for children will twist into identity verification for all which will twist into more government control and monitoring.
    1. ChrisFromGA March 27, 2026 at 10:33 am

       I don’t think that these tech companies legal problems will just go away with age verification.

       I foresee another potential legal problem for Sam Altman and co. down the road. They’re potentially misleading CEOs of myriad other industries with false promises of efficiency gains if they pony up and buy enterprise AI software that they can rely on to fire most of the staff.

       If those CEOs then rely on an intentional statement from Altman that is materially false and misleading, and, say, the company suffers damages due to operational failures from shoddy AI not living up to those promises, we have fraud in the inducement suiits coming.

       If I were an enterprise CEO, I would be working with legal to make sure that there are terms in the contracts to protect me if this scenario pans out. As in, specific performance levels for AI agents before Altman and his merry band of skunks see a dime.

       Unfortunately, most CEOs themselves are eternal optimists who stink at risk management. And they don’t think past the next quarter, so they may not care if they destroy their company 2-3 years down the road, as long as they can manipulate investors into buying into their tech-utopian narratives, get their stock compensation, and get out before it all goes sideways.
       1. paul March 27, 2026 at 7:46 pm

          thiel’s hot tub pal does not have the money to cover his promises.

          In th private sector, promises made to pay, will not be paid.

          They will just be rolled over into to the mountain of fictious debt owed to the lenders of military,educational and welfare spending.

          They’ll be paid (the sanctity of debt!) and will comforably view the desert they have terra/finanancialy formed.

          The neolibreal project has always about bringing the third world to the first.

          The war on iran was a decision to fast track it.

          I never thought I would feel as despondent as I did about the destruction of Libya, but right now it is worse.
14. bob March 27, 2026 at 9:59 am

    Where is all the money from selling Treasuries going? It seems like a forced sale to get cash, if nothing else is seeing the cash show up.
    1. The Rev Kev March 27, 2026 at 10:22 am

       Maybe Hong Kong? See my comment here-

       https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2026/03/iran-war-trump-faffs-about-extending-deadline-for-strike-threat-by-10-days-as-us-military-and-energy-materials-shortfalls-and-shortages-expected-in-weeks-iran-allows-transit-of-trapped-friendly.html#comment-4397924
       1. bob March 27, 2026 at 10:58 am

          What is it doing in Hong Kong?

          All gov bonds are going down. Japan included. It looks like a big A$$ margin call from here.

          https://tradingeconomics.com/japan/government-bond-yield
15. schmoe March 27, 2026 at 10:05 am

    Random question – are PlutoniumKen and Colonel Smithers still posting? They added a lot to the comment threads.
    1. vao March 27, 2026 at 4:59 pm

       I have seen a comment by PlutoniumKun a couple of days ago, but his contributions have indeed become infrequent.

       I presume that Colonel Smithers is busy preparing his relocation to Mauritius (or some other place), and therefore he should have little time for perusing the Internet and firing his legendary comments laden with juicy details about the pedigree of the European “elite”.

       What I have not seen for a while are comments by Terry Flynn. Raspberry Jam seems to have suddenly disappeared as well.

       All in all, remarks by commenters in this forum make me think the NakedCapitalism readership tends towards being older (near or at pension age), and often afflicted with illnesses, sometimes quite serious. Which might also explain why some commenters drop out.
       1. paul March 27, 2026 at 6:17 pm

          People get tired, sometimes need a break.

          PK and the colonel are sangune characters and will contribute what they can.

          Which is all you can ask.

          I’m here all week, full of ideas unworthy of sharing.
       2. Revenant March 27, 2026 at 7:11 pm

          Terry is alive and aiming for well. He’s sworn off media and commentary for his sanity.

          I wondered where the Colonel was myself and raspberry jam’s reported exit.

          PK has posted recently enough not to provoke thoughts of a welfare call. :-)

          I think PK and I have twenty more years of this craziness before (modern) pension age; I think Terry and the Colonel have at least ten.
          1. hk March 28, 2026 at 1:59 pm

             If you are in touch with Terry in real life, pls tell him that some folks here said hi to him, that we wish him health and happiness, and we miss him!
       3. dave -- just dave March 28, 2026 at 12:06 am

          the NakedCapitalism readership tends towards being older (near or at pension age), and often afflicted with illnesses, sometimes quite serious. Which might also explain why some commenters drop out.

          I resemble that remark. And here’s a mini-anecdote, from my trip to Aldi’s yesterday – in my journey through the mercifully-not-too-many-but-adequate-for-most-purposes stacks I passed another old white guy by himself – we exchanged glances of solidarity. I chuckled to myself.

          I hope that NC lasts longer than I do – it could go either way – and in any case, here are some lines from “Monument”, a song by Utopia (Sulton/Powell/Rundgren/Wilcox):

          I’ve seen such strange times
          Seems like lifetimes
          Sometimes good and sometimes bad
          And I don’t see how it could
          Have been much different
          Everybody gave the best they had

          And if we don’t meet again
          I know somewhere a monument
          Stands in the name of our love
          Somewhere are monuments
          Standing in the name of our love
          1. Yves Smith March 28, 2026 at 12:11 am

             Colonel Smithers in particular has periods when he is active v. not (this is true of his e-mailing also). He is still working and I imagine has periods where job demands take the fore. Plutoniumkun is also not a daily or close to daily commenter but is more regular over time than Colonel Smithers.
          2. Skippy March 28, 2026 at 1:03 am

             As a early reader and commenter on NC I have seen so many come and go. In the early days it was a bit more frisky, heaps of commenters with an ideological agenda, obvious diehards attempting to shift the narrative to their preferred patch. Even those more compassionate, no irretrievable stakes in the ground, able to abandon previously held biases, can at some point need a time out. Especially when the world backdrop is getting so dynamic that no one can predict the outcome and how it will effect them and theirs …

             There is a personal cost to putting ones self out there, even on NC, some commenters have lives which could and have in the past been targeted for providing insights outside what others might have access too. I would note that since the on set of this drama with Iran that so many people I know are off too ***panic meetings*** which makes the response to covid seem like the common flu.
       4. hk March 28, 2026 at 1:36 am

          I miss Terry, seeing as that he and I (I think) have generally similar backgrounds and he struck me as a kindred spirit in many ways….
16. The Rev Kev March 27, 2026 at 10:27 am

    ‘Victor vicktop55 commentary
    @vick55top
    The Ukrainian drones that struck a port in the Leningrad region were flying over the Baltic states.’

    Maybe Russia can lob a few missile interceptors into the Baltic States. And when they scream like stuck pigs about this, Russia could say that they were sorry and that they were going after Ukrainian drones that were headed to Russia via those states. Just wait till one crosses the Russian border and then lob a few into the country that it emerged from.
17. Henry Moon Pie March 27, 2026 at 10:57 am

    These are just a couple of Zeitgeist examples I’ve noticed in the last 24 hours as we approach the tsunami/freight train/cliff edge.

    1) The end of denial expression:

    Mario Nawhal, quite an interesting character in his own right, interviewed Luke Groman, some kind of analyst who received quite a glowing recommendation from Commander Jermy in a Daniel Davis interview. In this spot cut, Nawhal spins out his copium for a while until Gromen steps in with a heavy dose of reality. Nawhal’s expressions in reaction are entertaining n a schadenfreude sort of way.

    2) “Is reality penetrating to the point that it increases the potential for a new consciousness?” Nate Hagens’s weekly “Frankly” starts out grim in its recognition of what lies ahead, but ends with a bit of optimism.

    What terrifies me is how many people, especially people of influence or with a money cushion, have no idea what’s coming or they’re so into denial that reality is having no effect on them. One thing Hagens passes along was the recommendation of a former teacher who lives in Beirut that everyone will need a meditation practice to stave off the impacts of the reality ahead. It’s necessary to have one’s eyes wide open, but it’s hard to bear.
18. The Rev Kev March 27, 2026 at 10:58 am

    ‘Hyos Cyami
    @hyos_cyami
    17h
    Replying to @PawlowskiMario
    Switzerland ordered some Tomahawks years ago. Now the US said they can’t deliver them. So Switzerland said then we won’t pay. The US have now seized the funds we paid for the F-35s (which we probably won’t get as well) instead.’

    That’s what the Swiss government gets for trusting the US. They should have let that referendum on F-35s go ahead and gotten out of the deal that way. In a comment to this tweet it said that Pakistan paid for F-16 and got wheat and soybean oil instead. Ane here in Oz we are paying for nuke subs and it is doubtful that we will ever see them at all. At what point does a country say bugger it and buy weapons from Russia or South Korea or China or Turkiye instead?
    1. leaf March 27, 2026 at 11:46 am

       My German language prowess is not basically non existent but the article linked in the tweet is titled “USA umgehen Schweizer Zahlungsstopp für Flugabwehrsystem Patriot” (https://www.srf.ch/news/schweiz/zahlungsstopp-ist-wirkungslos-usa-umgehen-schweizer-zahlungsstopp-fuer-flugabwehrsystem-patriot) so I assume this is about Patriot missiles. I think the message on unreliability is about the same anyways though
       1. vao March 27, 2026 at 5:14 pm

          Yes, the Swiss ordered Patriots, not Tomahawks, which were long in coming because the production is inherently slow, then were delayed because Ukraine, and now don’t come because Iran.

          The interesting point is that when a foreign country signs a contract for weaponry with the government of the USA, all payments ultimately go to the same pot; there are no separate accounts for each contract. Furthermore, in the small print the USA reserves the right to use that single account to finance the production of whichever armament is associated to it at its own convenience. That is why they can simply shift the Swiss payments for F-35 to funding the development of Patriots for their own usage.

          The Swiss got screwed regarding the price of the F-35 (way more than they signed for), screwed again regarding the delivery of the Patriot system (they do not even know whether they will even arrive), and screwed once more regarding the delivery of Israeli drones (pitiful performance because of mountains, snow, cold, and fog; will come late if ever; and pricier). They should really demonstrate their neutrality and look at South Korean, Russian, and Chinese offerings.
19. Wukchumni March 27, 2026 at 11:05 am

    It was such a bleak snow year in the Colorado River tributaries, and that’s gonna leave a low mark on the reservoirs, not to mention fires everywhere. A 600k acre wildfire in March in Nebraska was not on my bingo card.

    Off to Vegas-adjacent soon, where we’ll put in about 1/2 a mile below Hoover Dam and 33 miles from the Vegas strip as the crow flies, to 3 canyons full of hot springs. We often see quite a bit of fowl play on the river, it grebes me.
    1. JG March 27, 2026 at 8:34 pm

       Blessed to be on “river time”; enjoy💙💦🌎
20. Noirette March 27, 2026 at 11:41 am

    Up top, a tweet by Maine asked:

    Why would the Iranians demand to negotiate with @JDVance?

    (his answer makes no sense to me.)

    Reasons might be, speculating, of course Idk:

    JDV is a powerful official –elected/appointed– as VP, thus has a clear mandate, and supposedly State approval for his moves, whatever he does, thus accountable as well.

    NOT merely a family member sent along who know why for what to do, see Jared Kushner. Accountability an issue here.

    JDV is Catholic and the Pope is one the few public figures who has condemned the genocide in Gaza. (JDV converted to Catholicism in 2019 – date from wikipedia.)

    JDV has been quite absent so far and has distanced himself from TeamTrump so maybe some light might shine.

    JDV was in the past a Never-Trumper.

    https://www.reuters.com/world/us/jd-vance-once-compared-trump-hitler-now-they-are-running-mates-2024-07-15/

    Of course JDV has opportunistc tendencies, these can be exploited.
21. Carolinian March 27, 2026 at 2:15 pm

    Very good Construction Physics this week. The history of the amplifier.

    https://www.construction-physics.com/p/the-age-of-the-amplifier
    1. Alice X March 27, 2026 at 3:55 pm

       Thank you, most informative! The amplifier simply put but so much more. Would that the MAGA folks were to think of such things, instead of supporting people who crush science and even critical thought. But then, the other wing of the uniparty is no great shakes. So…
    2. RA March 27, 2026 at 8:40 pm

       The Trumplifier —
       Extrapolating from my electronics knowledge and amplifiers there might be a Trump metaphor.

       Trump is an amplifier of random signals that come into him and also introduces a lot of biased distortion in his amplification into outputs.

       Negative feedback as Trumplifier inputs could tame and cancel most of the distortion but this time around he isn’t getting much (any?) negative feedback from the circuits around him.

       He’s only getting positive feedback which results in biggly wildly swinging oscillations of output.

       One sorta Trumplifier transfer function could be:
       Distorted Amplfier + Positive Feedback ==> Wild random swings
       i.e., TACO, etc.
22. Alice X March 27, 2026 at 3:07 pm

    Bwahaha…

    Ken Klippenstein:

    FBI Director Kash Patel’s Emails Hacked by Iran
    1. ChrisRUEcon March 27, 2026 at 5:18 pm

       LOL

       #TYVM

       Absolute family-blogging numpty!
       1. Alice X March 27, 2026 at 6:32 pm

          Was that a Cuban cigar?
23. Bugs March 27, 2026 at 4:30 pm

    An interview with Sergei Lavrov on French state television last evening, with Léa Salamé (of Lebanese extraction), erstwhile journalist and consort of Raphael Glucksmann, leader of the French Socialist Party and WEF Young Leader, has caused a polemic across the French mediasphere because of Lavrov’s frank exposition of the Russian position on matters of foreign policy. Lavrov states that Russia’s position is simply that International Law, and the United Nations, must prevail in any circumstance. He also dissects the reasons for the Israelo-American war on Iran. The French FM Barrot has condemned Lavrov’s interview a conduit for Russian “propaganda”. Lavrov went into detail about how the Russian Foreign Ministry attempted to investigate the deaths in Bucha for over 3 years and that the Ukrainians blocked any attempt to even share names of the dead.

    https://youtu.be/Q18dZu3Bxvk – the Lavrov interview in French

    https://www.france24.com/en/europe/20260327-france-rebukes-lavrov-says-russia-does-not-defend-international-law Barrot response in English

    I think some ground is shifting on the blind support for Ukraine. Otherwise Glucksmann would never have allowed this to happen.
    1. AG March 27, 2026 at 7:03 pm

       French FM Parrot
       (but of course appreciate the links!)
24. AG March 27, 2026 at 6:58 pm

    re: Iran film

    “Iranian Cinema Lovers”/Dlovan J Aziz Post:

    “abbas kiarostami’s house has turned into a museum after he passed away, today it got bombed by US during us vs iran war. what a time to be alive 🙃”
    1. Alice X March 27, 2026 at 8:07 pm

       Oh my! A clash of civilizations indeed! One with 2,500 years in evidence; and another with vanishing evidence.
25. Steve H. March 27, 2026 at 6:59 pm

    > How declining cloudiness is accelerating global warming Carbon Brief

    The 3/25 Links contained Blocking diversity causes distinct roles of diabatic heating in the Northern Hemisphere Nature. On a brief overscan, it’s a good advancement in understanding humidity propagation, and thus by extension cloud formation. Cloud formation has been a difficult problem in climate modelling, and the fact the numbers won’t sit still (as today’s article indicates) means even small steps are important.
26. Revenant March 27, 2026 at 7:41 pm

    Thank you for the link on camouflage! Archive version here.
    https://archive.is/Eq0yU

    Weirdly, I fell down the camouflage rabbit hole – in my defence, I couldn’t see it! – just a few days ago when a passing reference in this article had me looking up “Rhodesian brushstroke”.

    https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/mar/22/racist-meme-nigel-farage-cameos-online-far-right

    Turns out Rhodesian brushstroke is a camouflage pattern and its ancestor, by Commonwealth descent, is this WW2 garment:

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denison_smock

    As well as inspiring countless garments of similar cut, its ” Disruptive Pattern Material” inspired nearly all of the Allies’ future camouflage.

    The French developed it into “lizard pattern”, with a horizontal bias to break up the vertical of the body. This was the direct ancestor of Rhodesian brushstroke but also horizontal lizard patterns of many other African and Asian and Soviet-aligned militaries, including Cuba and Russian Spetznats. The Portuguese ran with it in a different direction, as ” vertical” lizard pattern. And the Vietnamese elaborated it into Tiger Stripe camo, which was adopted by US Special Forces.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lizard_(camouflage)

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiger_stripe_camouflage

    What is remarkable, from the Multicam article and its wikipaedia entry, is that Multicam is displacing all these storied lineages of camouflage globally. So nobody will know who is shooting whom!
    1. NotDownUnder March 28, 2026 at 6:19 am

       Reading this shortened description of camo history…. it reminded me of the many attempts to explain Hominid developments over the last 3 million years, using skulls and putting link lines which infer some kind of direct connection, but not always 100% sure, (one version, another version).
       The twist, as always with camo, is how do we ‘see’ it, and the answer is, only up close when the shit has worked well.
       And, as far as insects and animals are concerned, it was a revelation to me when I realised a stick insect didn’t ‘do’ anything to get to look like a stick, (so many to choose from) its just the result of selection pressure of what birds can’t see (as food).
       But informative too, thanks.
27. bertl March 27, 2026 at 8:54 pm

    As a Brit, I’m obviously concerned and deeply embarrassed by the repeated arrests of Dr. Rahma Al-Adwan for the crime of being honest on social media. If nothing else, the sight of her handcuffed prior to being transported in a van to Charing Cross nick confirms the UK’s committment to the support of Israel and “Jewish supremacy” during the Gaza genocide. Westminster and it’s agents in the Metropolitan Police seem to have been captured even more effectively than the Congress of the United States, and our equally captured MSM seem to be completey disinterested in the entrenchment of the tyranny of liberal totalitarianism throughout our political, judicial and governing institutions, no doubt because the legacy media has become little more than its ideological creature.
    1. Alice X March 27, 2026 at 9:56 pm

       Hear, hear.

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