Usually couth, sometimes kempt, often gruntled. Strong convictions, held weekly. I really expected the apocalypse to have more zombies and less small print.

1927 Solvay Conference
Joined April 2010
A short history of traffic engineering by @copenhagenize (cc @Will_Brompton @BromptonBicycle)
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Wake up. Every profession deemed white-collar, the middle class dream, is about to be decimated by AI, at a much faster pace than anticipated, with monstrous social consequences.
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Can we stop pretending that this is a marginal view in Israel? That these are the comments of a fringe minority?
A young blonde woman with an American accent in Israel says that all the Arabs must be kicked out of Gaza because it is "our land" since "God commanded us to take it." The Palestinians should be kicked out to any other Arab state, she continues, except Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria, "because they are ours." "Or we will kill them," she adds Can we stop pretending that this is a marginal view in Israel? That these are the comments of a fringe minority? They are not. Israel has been on this path for quite some time. Western governments know it fully - yet they continue to fund and enable Israel's genocidal policies.
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Schools are for teaching kids stuff, not for making money.
🇨🇳🚨- « L’école n’est pas un business. » La Chine a interdit les écoles privées à but lucratif accueillant des élèves de la primaire au collège. La Chine interdit aux hommes d’affaires de créer des écoles privées pour faire de l’argent avec l’éducation des enfants de 6 à 15 ans, affirmant que l’éducation de base ne doit pas devenir un commerce. Les écoles privées restent autorisées, mais elles doivent être non lucratives : les fondateurs ne peuvent pas se distribuer les bénéfices. (REUTERS)
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I covered the first intifada with @SarahHelm1 , the last time the IDF shooting Palestinians kids made the headlines. We witnessed brutality & injustice we will never forget "How a U.K. Official’s Wife Set Off a Debate Over Free Speech and Palestinians" nytimes.com/2026/10/23/world…
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Hello Dutch hackers. America and the rest of the world would like to see the Epstein files next. Thanks
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Americans, your real enemy and national threat are those who corrupt your money for wars and the military industrial complex.
The War Department has designated Confucius Institutes as a threat to our national security.
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🚨 A UK defence editor had information that UK Special Forces operating in Central America were involved in the US kidnapping of Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro in Jan 2026 Article was never published after UK military's 'D-Notice' censorship body told the editor to spike it
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This is absolutely insane. The UK seems to have been involved in the kidnapping of Maduro - and the story spiked by an MOD D-Notice. The kidnapping was the most brazen act of criminality, and UK involvement would almost certainly have been given with Starmer's sign-off. A wretched, wreck of a PM. An unforgivable assault on international law.
🚨 A UK defence editor had information that UK Special Forces operating in Central America were involved in the US kidnapping of Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro in Jan 2026 Article was never published after UK military's 'D-Notice' censorship body told the editor to spike it
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𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗿𝘁𝘆 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴. Railways, roads, power, sanitation. Hundreds of millions out of poverty. With concrete, steel and very long days. I watched it happen. China spends money on improving life for its people not on wars.
𝗖𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗔 𝗪𝗔𝗦 𝗡𝗢𝗧 𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗬 𝗧𝗢 𝗟𝗢𝗩𝗘 𝟯𝟬 𝗬𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗦 𝗔𝗚𝗢. 𝗧𝗢𝗗𝗔𝗬 𝗜𝗧'𝗦 𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗬. I landed in China in 1995. 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝘁. 𝗜𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗿𝗼𝘀𝘆 𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝗹. Pollution was really bad. Some days you could taste the air. Hygiene was a big problem. Public toilets you avoided if you could. Getting sick from food or water happened to everyone sooner or later. Outside the cities it was real poverty. 𝗜 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘃𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘇𝗲𝗿𝗼 𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝗹𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗼𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝗱𝗶𝗿𝘁 𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗱𝘀. That stays with you. Foreigners were rare. 𝗜 𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘀𝗶𝘅 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗻 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗮 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗺𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗹𝗲 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗲𝗿. You became the attraction. For many, you were the first foreigner they had ever seen. Backpacking was a real adventure. No fast trains, hardly any highways. Crossing the country meant long-distance buses on bad roads, sometimes for days. Foreigners had to stay in designated hotels. 𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝘆𝗲𝘀, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗱𝗼𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴. 𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀. Same seat, same room, pay more because of your face/purchasing power. Bus terminals and train stations were crowded and not safe. Pickpockets were normal. English was extremely rare. 𝗡𝗼 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘁, 𝗻𝗼 𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗺𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮, 𝗻𝗼 𝗽𝗵𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗽𝘀, 𝗻𝗼 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗽𝗽. A paper guidebook, a dictionary, and a lot of pointing. Every day was a struggle. So most foreigners did a year or two and went home. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱-𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗮 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀. Not for comfort, there wasn't any. We stayed because you could feel something was happening. 𝗡𝗢𝗪? Now I cross the country on a high-speed train at 300 km/h. On time, clean, booked on my phone in a minute. Same price as everyone else. Pickpockets? I can't remember the last time I heard of one. Blue sky is normal again. The rivers I avoided have parks along them now. 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝘃𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗴𝗲𝘀? 𝗘𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆, 𝗽𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗱𝘀, 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘁. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗸𝗶𝗱𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘄𝗮𝗹𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗼𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗳𝗳 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗽𝗵𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀. And a foreigner on the street? Nobody turns their head anymore. I pay for everything with my phone. I walk home at 2am and feel completely safe. 𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗯𝗹𝘆 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗹 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆. 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗡𝗘𝗪 "𝗖𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗔 𝗘𝗫𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗧𝗦" Now I see new "self-proclaimed China experts" online, doing road trips in a nice SUV. I'm not downplaying them. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆'𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗮 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗯𝗶𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗪𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻 𝗺𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗮𝗱𝗲𝘀. But it's the easy version. They see the result, not the struggle that built it. Both stories matter. Theirs shows what China is now. Ours shows how far it came. 𝗪𝗛𝗔𝗧 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗚𝗘𝗗? Not the people. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗿𝘁𝘆 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴. Railways, roads, power, sanitation. Hundreds of millions out of poverty. With concrete, steel and very long days. I watched it happen. 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗙𝗨𝗡𝗡𝗬 𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗧 In the 90s the Western press called China dirty, poor and backward. 𝗡𝗼𝘄 𝗶𝘁'𝘀 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗻, 𝘀𝗮𝗳𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗻, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗶𝘁 𝗮 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁. Back then you had to be a hard-core China lover to stay. 𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲.
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𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗙𝗨𝗡𝗡𝗬 𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗧 In the 90s the Western press called China dirty, poor and backward. 𝗡𝗼𝘄 𝗶𝘁'𝘀 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗻, 𝘀𝗮𝗳𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗻, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗶𝘁 𝗮 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁.
𝗖𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗔 𝗪𝗔𝗦 𝗡𝗢𝗧 𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗬 𝗧𝗢 𝗟𝗢𝗩𝗘 𝟯𝟬 𝗬𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗦 𝗔𝗚𝗢. 𝗧𝗢𝗗𝗔𝗬 𝗜𝗧'𝗦 𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗬. I landed in China in 1995. 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝘁. 𝗜𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗿𝗼𝘀𝘆 𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝗹. Pollution was really bad. Some days you could taste the air. Hygiene was a big problem. Public toilets you avoided if you could. Getting sick from food or water happened to everyone sooner or later. Outside the cities it was real poverty. 𝗜 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘃𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘇𝗲𝗿𝗼 𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝗹𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗼𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝗱𝗶𝗿𝘁 𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗱𝘀. That stays with you. Foreigners were rare. 𝗜 𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘀𝗶𝘅 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗻 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗮 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗺𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗹𝗲 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗲𝗿. You became the attraction. For many, you were the first foreigner they had ever seen. Backpacking was a real adventure. No fast trains, hardly any highways. Crossing the country meant long-distance buses on bad roads, sometimes for days. Foreigners had to stay in designated hotels. 𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝘆𝗲𝘀, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗱𝗼𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴. 𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀. Same seat, same room, pay more because of your face/purchasing power. Bus terminals and train stations were crowded and not safe. Pickpockets were normal. English was extremely rare. 𝗡𝗼 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘁, 𝗻𝗼 𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗺𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮, 𝗻𝗼 𝗽𝗵𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗽𝘀, 𝗻𝗼 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗽𝗽. A paper guidebook, a dictionary, and a lot of pointing. Every day was a struggle. So most foreigners did a year or two and went home. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱-𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗮 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀. Not for comfort, there wasn't any. We stayed because you could feel something was happening. 𝗡𝗢𝗪? Now I cross the country on a high-speed train at 300 km/h. On time, clean, booked on my phone in a minute. Same price as everyone else. Pickpockets? I can't remember the last time I heard of one. Blue sky is normal again. The rivers I avoided have parks along them now. 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝘃𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗴𝗲𝘀? 𝗘𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆, 𝗽𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗱𝘀, 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘁. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗸𝗶𝗱𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘄𝗮𝗹𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗼𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗳𝗳 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗽𝗵𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀. And a foreigner on the street? Nobody turns their head anymore. I pay for everything with my phone. I walk home at 2am and feel completely safe. 𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗯𝗹𝘆 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗹 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆. 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗡𝗘𝗪 "𝗖𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗔 𝗘𝗫𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗧𝗦" Now I see new "self-proclaimed China experts" online, doing road trips in a nice SUV. I'm not downplaying them. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆'𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗮 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗯𝗶𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗪𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻 𝗺𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗮𝗱𝗲𝘀. But it's the easy version. They see the result, not the struggle that built it. Both stories matter. Theirs shows what China is now. Ours shows how far it came. 𝗪𝗛𝗔𝗧 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗚𝗘𝗗? Not the people. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗿𝘁𝘆 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴. Railways, roads, power, sanitation. Hundreds of millions out of poverty. With concrete, steel and very long days. I watched it happen. 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗙𝗨𝗡𝗡𝗬 𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗧 In the 90s the Western press called China dirty, poor and backward. 𝗡𝗼𝘄 𝗶𝘁'𝘀 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗻, 𝘀𝗮𝗳𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗻, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗶𝘁 𝗮 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁. Back then you had to be a hard-core China lover to stay. 𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲.
12
What a joke! AIPAC has been funneling money through “democracy engine” instead of doing direct donations and bundling. I introduced a bill that would require AIPAC to disclose their influence campaigns just as others do under FARA.
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), one of the most influential forces in U.S. politics, will no longer directly endorse candidates or donate to them from its federal political action committee, the group said. wapo.st/4yG3tqX
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AIPAC is now spending as much as $9 million against Abdul El-Sayed. AIPAC is why we’re at war in Iran. AIPAC is why the U.S. has supported genocide in Gaza. We must say NO to AIPAC. YES to electing Abdul as Michigan’s next U.S. Senator.
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Israel committing genocide
What’s the weirdest thing society accepts as normal?
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What a view! A glowing "jellyfish" cloud just lit up the night sky! A modified #LongMarch6 rocket carrying #Yaogan50 03 satellite blasted off from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in Shanxi on Oct. 23, 2026. Photographers caught the whole surreal moment. ✨
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The airborne view of this rocket plume is surreal: from deep sunset crimson and amber along the lower contrail up to the electric-blue "space jellyfish" expanding in the mesosphere, the transition reveals Earth's shadow line in real time
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Space Jellyfish > Drone Shows > Fireworks Display
When orbital mechanics meets the urban skyline. Nothing beats the surreal contrast of a twilight "space jellyfish" blooming directly over a dense city center.
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2026 oil market in a nutshell
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When someone is systematically smeared by the political-media establishment simply for dissenting from official truths (i.e., lies), as Glenn Diesen is, you’re not living in a democracy. You’re living in a dictatorship.
The very public execution of my professorship and reputation continues in Norway. Today’s media article about me makes three claims that are misleading and/or false. 1) The article dismisses my claim that my research is being criminalized as the journalists merely cite the dismissive comments from the university - no arguments are apparently required. It is not possible for an academic anymore to analyse the policies of rival powers by assessing their security concerns, as it will be smeared by the government, the government’s NGOs and the media as “legitimizing” the enemy and supporting their narratives. The current Defence Minister singled me out with the accusation of spreading propaganda and criticised two podcasters for even speaking with me (as I have already been cancelled by the media in Norway). How was this accusation by the Defence Minister substantiated? I had argued that NATO expansion triggered the war in Ukraine, which the Defence Minister denounce as dangerous “Russian propaganda”, with no need to substantiate his vile accusation. I can cite a sea of evidence and also refer to statements by American and European political leaders, ambassadors, intelligence chiefs, and others to make my case. However, the purpose is not to engage in debate, but to smear, censor, and cancel. By going after an individual academic for challenging official truths, the government has already claimed a monopoly on the truth. Academics should have their arguments scrutinised and criticised, but these are severe personal attacks from the government without the possibility of even defending myself. How is this not criminalising the research of an academic? I cannot even speak at any events in Norway without the event being cancelled. The last event I agreed to speak at was because I shared the stage with the former CIA officer John Kiriakou. A newspaper had the event at a church cancelled, and when the backup location did not also cancel, the journalist simply printed in the paper that it had been cancelled so people would not show up. Is this normal? I must use my allotted holiday days to attend conferences because any event I attend can be presented as “controversial,” and then the NGOs and journalists will go after the reputation of the university. Is this normal? Every newspaper article about me merely refers to me as “controversial” or “pro-Russian” without ever assigning meaning to these labels or presenting my argument. I have argued, much like former CIA director Burns, that if the West attempts to pull Ukraine into the NATO orbit, then there would be war and Ukraine would be destroyed. This is considered a “pro-Russian” argument. Arguing that we should respect the will of most Ukrainians who want negotiations to end the war is also considered a “pro-Russian” argument, while in contrast, boycotting diplomacy, deporting Ukrainian refugees, and calling for the conscription of Ukrainian women is “pro-Ukrainian”. 2) To avoid addressing any of my arguments, the journalists go on to uncritically cite personal attacks against me, pointing out that I have been called a propagandist by the Norwegian Helsinki Committee. This is a “non-governmental organisation” financed by the government and the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), which was set up by Reagan and the CIA director in 1983 to manipulate the civil society of other states. The Norwegian Helsinki Committee has been relentless in its smears on social media to have me fired, writing hit pieces in the media, pushing to cancel my speaking events, writing a letter to my university, and even posting a picture of my house on social media. This is a governmental "human rights organisation" that cites human rights concerns to build the case for war. 3) Lastly, to further avoid addressing my actual arguments, they simply cite the fact that arguments I made at a debate last year have been “wholly or partially debunked” by a fact-check. The state-run media (NRK) invited the state-run military defence institute (FFI) to fact-check three of my claims. What claims did they "debunk"? My first claim was that only 20% of Ukrainians wanted NATO membership between 1991 and the regime change in February 2014. The fact-checker argued that the number went up by the middle of 2014 (after Russia responded by seizing Crimea), which is a completely meaningless comment intended to muddy the waters, as my argument was about the previous era. My second claim was that Zelensky had argued in an interview with The Economist in March 2022 that there were some Western countries that would like a long war with Russia to weaken a strategic rival, even if it would result in the destruction of Ukraine. The fact-checker argued that not all Western countries wanted a long war and that it was not an official policy. I never claimed it was an official policy, as it was primarily the US and UK pushing for a long war. My third claim was that the US and UK sabotaged the Istanbul peace agreement in April 2022. The fact-checker claimed this was incorrect and suggested that it could only be based on one statement by David Arakhamia. The fact-checker did not want to mention that both mediators also confirmed it: Turkey’s foreign minister and the former Israeli prime minister both said that Russia and Ukraine were close to a deal, but the US and UK saw an opportunity to weaken Russia by fighting with Ukrainians. Zelensky’s former adviser Arestovych confirmed it, and the Ukrainian ambassador Chaly, who participated in the negotiations, confirmed that Putin was willing to do almost anything to end the war. The former head of the German armed forces confirmed that Boris Johnson sabotaged it, and Boris Johnson himself wrote articles warning about a “bad peace” and arguing for “strategic patience.” I am being fact-checked by war propagandists. Unfortunately, none of my arguments matter because in Norway there is no debate and no interest in any arguments. Reality means nothing anymore as war narratives must be defended against inconvenient truths. I used to be naïve and think that the endless smears were caused by misunderstanding, as I had simply not been able to convey my arguments properly. However, the endless articles with smears and labels are deliberate lies and deceptions.
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The very public execution of my professorship and reputation continues in Norway. Today’s media article about me makes three claims that are misleading and/or false. 1) The article dismisses my claim that my research is being criminalized as the journalists merely cite the dismissive comments from the university - no arguments are apparently required. It is not possible for an academic anymore to analyse the policies of rival powers by assessing their security concerns, as it will be smeared by the government, the government’s NGOs and the media as “legitimizing” the enemy and supporting their narratives. The current Defence Minister singled me out with the accusation of spreading propaganda and criticised two podcasters for even speaking with me (as I have already been cancelled by the media in Norway). How was this accusation by the Defence Minister substantiated? I had argued that NATO expansion triggered the war in Ukraine, which the Defence Minister denounce as dangerous “Russian propaganda”, with no need to substantiate his vile accusation. I can cite a sea of evidence and also refer to statements by American and European political leaders, ambassadors, intelligence chiefs, and others to make my case. However, the purpose is not to engage in debate, but to smear, censor, and cancel. By going after an individual academic for challenging official truths, the government has already claimed a monopoly on the truth. Academics should have their arguments scrutinised and criticised, but these are severe personal attacks from the government without the possibility of even defending myself. How is this not criminalising the research of an academic? I cannot even speak at any events in Norway without the event being cancelled. The last event I agreed to speak at was because I shared the stage with the former CIA officer John Kiriakou. A newspaper had the event at a church cancelled, and when the backup location did not also cancel, the journalist simply printed in the paper that it had been cancelled so people would not show up. Is this normal? I must use my allotted holiday days to attend conferences because any event I attend can be presented as “controversial,” and then the NGOs and journalists will go after the reputation of the university. Is this normal? Every newspaper article about me merely refers to me as “controversial” or “pro-Russian” without ever assigning meaning to these labels or presenting my argument. I have argued, much like former CIA director Burns, that if the West attempts to pull Ukraine into the NATO orbit, then there would be war and Ukraine would be destroyed. This is considered a “pro-Russian” argument. Arguing that we should respect the will of most Ukrainians who want negotiations to end the war is also considered a “pro-Russian” argument, while in contrast, boycotting diplomacy, deporting Ukrainian refugees, and calling for the conscription of Ukrainian women is “pro-Ukrainian”. 2) To avoid addressing any of my arguments, the journalists go on to uncritically cite personal attacks against me, pointing out that I have been called a propagandist by the Norwegian Helsinki Committee. This is a “non-governmental organisation” financed by the government and the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), which was set up by Reagan and the CIA director in 1983 to manipulate the civil society of other states. The Norwegian Helsinki Committee has been relentless in its smears on social media to have me fired, writing hit pieces in the media, pushing to cancel my speaking events, writing a letter to my university, and even posting a picture of my house on social media. This is a governmental "human rights organisation" that cites human rights concerns to build the case for war. 3) Lastly, to further avoid addressing my actual arguments, they simply cite the fact that arguments I made at a debate last year have been “wholly or partially debunked” by a fact-check. The state-run media (NRK) invited the state-run military defence institute (FFI) to fact-check three of my claims. What claims did they "debunk"? My first claim was that only 20% of Ukrainians wanted NATO membership between 1991 and the regime change in February 2014. The fact-checker argued that the number went up by the middle of 2014 (after Russia responded by seizing Crimea), which is a completely meaningless comment intended to muddy the waters, as my argument was about the previous era. My second claim was that Zelensky had argued in an interview with The Economist in March 2022 that there were some Western countries that would like a long war with Russia to weaken a strategic rival, even if it would result in the destruction of Ukraine. The fact-checker argued that not all Western countries wanted a long war and that it was not an official policy. I never claimed it was an official policy, as it was primarily the US and UK pushing for a long war. My third claim was that the US and UK sabotaged the Istanbul peace agreement in April 2022. The fact-checker claimed this was incorrect and suggested that it could only be based on one statement by David Arakhamia. The fact-checker did not want to mention that both mediators also confirmed it: Turkey’s foreign minister and the former Israeli prime minister both said that Russia and Ukraine were close to a deal, but the US and UK saw an opportunity to weaken Russia by fighting with Ukrainians. Zelensky’s former adviser Arestovych confirmed it, and the Ukrainian ambassador Chaly, who participated in the negotiations, confirmed that Putin was willing to do almost anything to end the war. The former head of the German armed forces confirmed that Boris Johnson sabotaged it, and Boris Johnson himself wrote articles warning about a “bad peace” and arguing for “strategic patience.” I am being fact-checked by war propagandists. Unfortunately, none of my arguments matter because in Norway there is no debate and no interest in any arguments. Reality means nothing anymore as war narratives must be defended against inconvenient truths. I used to be naïve and think that the endless smears were caused by misunderstanding, as I had simply not been able to convey my arguments properly. However, the endless articles with smears and labels are deliberate lies and deceptions.
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Seems like the dictatorial crackdown on those who disagree with European foreign policy is continuing apace.
The very public execution of my professorship and reputation continues in Norway. Today’s media article about me makes three claims that are misleading and/or false. 1) The article dismisses my claim that my research is being criminalized as the journalists merely cite the dismissive comments from the university - no arguments are apparently required. It is not possible for an academic anymore to analyse the policies of rival powers by assessing their security concerns, as it will be smeared by the government, the government’s NGOs and the media as “legitimizing” the enemy and supporting their narratives. The current Defence Minister singled me out with the accusation of spreading propaganda and criticised two podcasters for even speaking with me (as I have already been cancelled by the media in Norway). How was this accusation by the Defence Minister substantiated? I had argued that NATO expansion triggered the war in Ukraine, which the Defence Minister denounce as dangerous “Russian propaganda”, with no need to substantiate his vile accusation. I can cite a sea of evidence and also refer to statements by American and European political leaders, ambassadors, intelligence chiefs, and others to make my case. However, the purpose is not to engage in debate, but to smear, censor, and cancel. By going after an individual academic for challenging official truths, the government has already claimed a monopoly on the truth. Academics should have their arguments scrutinised and criticised, but these are severe personal attacks from the government without the possibility of even defending myself. How is this not criminalising the research of an academic? I cannot even speak at any events in Norway without the event being cancelled. The last event I agreed to speak at was because I shared the stage with the former CIA officer John Kiriakou. A newspaper had the event at a church cancelled, and when the backup location did not also cancel, the journalist simply printed in the paper that it had been cancelled so people would not show up. Is this normal? I must use my allotted holiday days to attend conferences because any event I attend can be presented as “controversial,” and then the NGOs and journalists will go after the reputation of the university. Is this normal? Every newspaper article about me merely refers to me as “controversial” or “pro-Russian” without ever assigning meaning to these labels or presenting my argument. I have argued, much like former CIA director Burns, that if the West attempts to pull Ukraine into the NATO orbit, then there would be war and Ukraine would be destroyed. This is considered a “pro-Russian” argument. Arguing that we should respect the will of most Ukrainians who want negotiations to end the war is also considered a “pro-Russian” argument, while in contrast, boycotting diplomacy, deporting Ukrainian refugees, and calling for the conscription of Ukrainian women is “pro-Ukrainian”. 2) To avoid addressing any of my arguments, the journalists go on to uncritically cite personal attacks against me, pointing out that I have been called a propagandist by the Norwegian Helsinki Committee. This is a “non-governmental organisation” financed by the government and the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), which was set up by Reagan and the CIA director in 1983 to manipulate the civil society of other states. The Norwegian Helsinki Committee has been relentless in its smears on social media to have me fired, writing hit pieces in the media, pushing to cancel my speaking events, writing a letter to my university, and even posting a picture of my house on social media. This is a governmental "human rights organisation" that cites human rights concerns to build the case for war. 3) Lastly, to further avoid addressing my actual arguments, they simply cite the fact that arguments I made at a debate last year have been “wholly or partially debunked” by a fact-check. The state-run media (NRK) invited the state-run military defence institute (FFI) to fact-check three of my claims. What claims did they "debunk"? My first claim was that only 20% of Ukrainians wanted NATO membership between 1991 and the regime change in February 2014. The fact-checker argued that the number went up by the middle of 2014 (after Russia responded by seizing Crimea), which is a completely meaningless comment intended to muddy the waters, as my argument was about the previous era. My second claim was that Zelensky had argued in an interview with The Economist in March 2022 that there were some Western countries that would like a long war with Russia to weaken a strategic rival, even if it would result in the destruction of Ukraine. The fact-checker argued that not all Western countries wanted a long war and that it was not an official policy. I never claimed it was an official policy, as it was primarily the US and UK pushing for a long war. My third claim was that the US and UK sabotaged the Istanbul peace agreement in April 2022. The fact-checker claimed this was incorrect and suggested that it could only be based on one statement by David Arakhamia. The fact-checker did not want to mention that both mediators also confirmed it: Turkey’s foreign minister and the former Israeli prime minister both said that Russia and Ukraine were close to a deal, but the US and UK saw an opportunity to weaken Russia by fighting with Ukrainians. Zelensky’s former adviser Arestovych confirmed it, and the Ukrainian ambassador Chaly, who participated in the negotiations, confirmed that Putin was willing to do almost anything to end the war. The former head of the German armed forces confirmed that Boris Johnson sabotaged it, and Boris Johnson himself wrote articles warning about a “bad peace” and arguing for “strategic patience.” I am being fact-checked by war propagandists. Unfortunately, none of my arguments matter because in Norway there is no debate and no interest in any arguments. Reality means nothing anymore as war narratives must be defended against inconvenient truths. I used to be naïve and think that the endless smears were caused by misunderstanding, as I had simply not been able to convey my arguments properly. However, the endless articles with smears and labels are deliberate lies and deceptions.
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