Full screen recommended.
Moody Blues, "Candle Of Life"
So, we rise from the rubble...
StatCounter
Tuesday, November 10, 2026
"A Look to the Heavens"
"Sprawling emission nebulae IC 1396 and Sh2-129 mix glowing interstellar gas and dark dust clouds in this 10 degree wide field of view toward the northern constellation Cepheus the King. Energized by its bluish central star IC 1396 (left) is hundreds of light-years across and some 3,000 light-years distant.
The nebula's intriguing dark shapes include a winding dark cloud popularly known as the Elephant's Trunk below and right of center. Tens of light-years long, it holds the raw raw material for star formation and is known to hide protostars within. Located a similar distance from planet Earth, the bright knots and swept back ridges of emission of Sh2-129 on the right suggest its popular name, the Flying Bat Nebula. Within the Flying Bat, the most recently recognized addition to this royal cosmic zoo is the faint bluish emission from Ou4, the Giant Squid nebula."
"Where the Heart Finds Peace"
Full screen recommended.
"Where the Heart Finds Peace"
"There are places... where happiness was never hiding. It was always there. In the sound of waves touching the shore. In warm hands wrapped around a cup of tea. In quiet mornings. In slow evenings. In someone waiting for you without looking at the clock. Somewhere along the way... we started believing that happiness was something we had to chase. A bigger dream. A better tomorrow. One more achievement. One more destination. But perhaps... happiness has never been waiting at the finish line. Perhaps it has always been walking beside us... asking only to be noticed. This film is a gentle reminder to slow down. To breathe. To look at the people you love. To watch the sea. To hear the wind. To remember that the smallest moments often become the biggest memories. The world still knows how to be beautiful. The question is... can we still see it?"
Native American Elder, "The Truth About God"
Full screen recommended.
Native American Elder, "The Truth About God"
"Native American Elder Speaks the Truth About God explores timeless wisdom about faith, inner peace, purpose, and the deep connection between the human spirit and the Creator. Through powerful storytelling and profound life lessons, this inspiring speech encourages a psychology and mindset shift that helps you overcome fear, ego, anxiety, and emotional suffering. Discover how ancient Native American wisdom can transform your perspective on God, personal growth, emotional healing, and spiritual awareness. If you're searching for motivation, wisdom, and a deeper understanding of life's purpose, this message will leave a lasting impact. Watch until the end to uncover life-changing insights that can reshape the way you think, live, and connect with yourself and others. This speech teaches that true faith begins within. It encourages humility, gratitude, compassion, self-awareness, and trust in a higher purpose while showing how changing your mindset can bring emotional healing, resilience, inner peace, and a more meaningful life."
"The Discovery at El Tajín in Veracruz Shocked the Whole World"
Full screen recommended.
Ambrose Discovery,
"The Discovery at El Tajín in Veracruz Shocked the Whole World"
"Hidden for centuries in the jungle of northern Veracruz, El Tajín is the ancient city that keeps surprising the people who dig there. In this documentary you'll see how a tobacco inspector stumbled onto the Pyramid of the Niches in 1785, why its 365 niches work like a calendar of the sun, and what a laser survey revealed when it found new ballcourts, bringing the total to 20. You'll learn what the carved panels of the South Ballcourt say about sacrifice, meet 13 Rabbit, the last ruler, and follow the fight to save painted murals damaged by a hurricane and a fire. Finally, you'll discover why the timing of El Tajín's golden age changes the story of ancient Mexico."
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"There Are Simply No Answers..."
“How is one to live a moral and compassionate existence when one is fully aware of the blood, the horror inherent in life, when one finds darkness not only in one’s culture but within oneself? If there is a stage at which an individual life becomes truly adult, it must be when one grasps the irony in its unfolding and accepts responsibility for a life lived in the midst of such paradox. One must live in the middle of contradiction, because if all contradiction were eliminated at once life would collapse. There are simply no answers to some of the great pressing questions. You continue to live them out, making your life a worthy expression of leaning into the light.”
- Barry Lopez
"Just For One Day"
"Just For One Day"
by Paul Rosenberg
"Most people fail to appreciate the fresh opportunity that each day brings them. Their programming requires them to snort derisively at any positive description of humanity. After all, the systems of this world are built upon the assumption that mankind is weak, stupid, and generally inadequate to a moral existence. As a result, most people have become addicted to bad news.
Nonetheless every day is a fresh start, a situation created by nature itself. So, please consider this: What if, just once, you got out of bed and imagined that you were a fresh being in the universe? And more than that, a good, creative, potent being. What if you imagined yourself free of obligations and intimidations, charting a fresh course? What if you looked at your life as if it were beginning anew?
Is it an intolerable thought that you should put aside your well-groomed fears, wake up to a blank slate, and hold that position for just one day? And if we can’t allow ourselves this one productive entertainment, what has happened to us?
You Don’t Actually Suck: Our opinions of ourselves are usually out of touch with reality. To prove that, you need only to slow down, clear your mind, and answer a few questions:
Can you remember a moment from your childhood when someone was notably kind or loving toward you? You have at least one, yes? So, in detail, what was it like and how did you feel?
Can you remember a time you stood up for someone who was being unfairly insulted or abused? What exactly did you do, and how did it make you feel?
Can you remember a time when you did something because it was right, even though you knew you’d suffer for it? How did it feel to push through the fear and do it?
Have you ever done something out of nothing but simple, honest benevolence? How did that feel?
Did you answer these questions? Did you relive the experiences a little? You see, you don’t actually suck. You’ve merely been made to believe so… by people and systems who profit from your bad opinion of yourself.
What’s Life For? You are alive, and this life you possess doesn’t have a preset direction; it’s you who choose where to direct it. Our lives have the meaning we give them, and we give them meaning through exercises of will.
You have immense capabilities, but only you can choose to use them. If you spend your entire life reacting to darkness and threat, you’ll never learn to be a potent being. Instead, you’ll stay in a tight little shell, talking about everything bad that happens in the world and seeking more and more bad news because it justifies your shell. Does that sound like a good way to spend a life?
When? Ever? So, when do we pull away from the carnival of bad news? When do we lift up our eyes and consider the radical possibility that we have good things in us? When do we consider our virtues and abilities… and start using them as a first choice?
For most people the answer is “never.” Not once in a complete human lifetime. And that’s tragic. In fact, it’s premature death. Most people aren’t specifically choosing this of course – it’s a choice thrust upon them – but it ends with them never living by their own light. Instead, they find a “doesn’t hurt too badly” groove and plod along until they tip into a grave.
But what if we picked a day and chose to live as if we were wonderful? If you’re so deeply terrified that that will lead to doom, make it your day off or a vacation day. Get up and spend that day as if you were a luminous being. Flatly pretend if you must, but do it for a day. Is that really so evil a concept that you can’t allow it to exist? So, when is it that we choose to wake up and be wonderful, just for one day?
Pick One: Every tomorrow is a new day and a new chance to be wonderful. So pick a day and wake up to a blank slate. Turn away from the knee-jerk objections that ram their way into your mind; they can have the other 364 days. Try being wonderful. Pull out your calendar, pick a month and day, circle it, and then do it. You might like it."
"The Most Honest Three Minutes In Television History"
Strong language alert!
Full screen recommended.
"The Most Honest Three Minutes In Television History"
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"The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald"
Gordon Lightfoot,
"The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald"
by History.com
"On November 10, 1975, the SS Edmund Fitzgerald sinks in Lake Superior, killing all 29 crew members on board. It was the worst single accident in Lake Superior’s history. The ship weighed more than 13,000 tons and was 730 feet long. It was launched in 1958 as the biggest carrier in the Great Lakes and became the first ship to carry more than a million tons of iron ore through the Soo Locks.
On November 9, the Fitzgerald left Superior, Wisconsin, with 26,000 tons of ore heading for Detroit, Michigan. The following afternoon, Ernest McSorely, the captain of the Fitzgerald and a 44-year veteran, contacted the Avafor, another ship traveling on Lake Superior and reported that his ship had encountered “one of the worst seas he had ever been in.” The Fitzgerald had lost its radar equipment and was listing badly to one side.
A couple of hours later, another ship made contact and was told that the Fitzgerald was holding its own. However, minutes afterward, the Fitzgerald disappeared from radar screens. A subsequent investigation showed that the sinking of the Fitzgerald occurred very suddenly; no distress signal was sent and the condition of the lifeboats suggested that little or no attempt was made to abandon the ship.
One possible reason for the wreck is that the Fitzgerald was carrying too much cargo. This made the ship sit low in the water and made it more vulnerable to being overwhelmed by a sudden large wave. The official report also cited the possibility that the hatches to the cargo area may have been faulty, leading to a sudden shift of the cargo that capsized the boat.
The Fitzgerald was eventually found 530 feet below the surface, 17 miles from Whitefish Bay, at the northeastern tip of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. The ship had broken into two parts that were found approximately 150 feet apart. As there were no survivors among the 29 crewmembers, there will likely never be a definitive explanation of the Fitzgerald‘s sinking.
The Fitzgerald‘s sinking was the worst wreck in the Great Lakes since November 29, 1966, when 28 people died in the sinking of the Daniel J. Morrell in Lake Huron. The disaster was immortalized in song the following year in Canadian folk singer Gordon Lightfoot’s “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.”
Hat tip to The Burning Platform for this material.
"They Must Have A Good Reason"
"They Must Have A Good Reason"
by Todd Hayen
"There is a strange idea hovering about that if you don’t know something then it doesn’t exist. Kind of like the image of the proverbial ostrich with his head in the sand. But it goes beyond denial. Ignorance is when you don’t know something at all, denial is when you know it, but you ignore it.
What I am talking about here is when you know something and do not deny it, but simply rationalize it away with a statement like “they must have a good reason for doing that,” or similarly, “maybe we don’t know all that there is to know about that.” Which is often followed with, “and I don’t have the time, (inclination, care, interest, curiosity, ability, intelligence, etc.) to look into it further.”
This has always bugged me to some extent, but I must admit I have been marginally guilty of this sort of thinking myself. I mean, do we really have the time to check everything? Well, now I think we have to make the time, and, of course, not everything is important enough to require vetting it for truth. That is an awful thing to say, but I am afraid it is the truth.
Part of this “gullibility” that causes many people to just brush things off assuming that all is ok comes from indoctrination from an early age. I grew up in a culture that seemed to be really obsessed with people’s safety - particularly the safety of children. Think of all the recalls of toys and such. If some toy comes out that has the slightest bit of uncertainty about how it might harm your child, it is pulled.
I should not say I “grew up” with this because most of the crap I played with as a kid would be considered a lethal weapon today - Lawn Darts, BB and pellet guns, Vac-U-Forms, chemistry sets, Easy Bake ovens (this was my sister’s toy, she was a little girl, I was a little boy - I tell you this for clarity). The “safety craze” didn’t really start until a decade or so later. I even remember some kid I knew got an “Atomic Energy Lab” toy that had actual uranium ore in the kit. I would have died (literally) to get my hands on one of these. Those were the days.
So over the decades, due to these recalls and safety concerns, we have developed a false sense of security. What regulation agency would bother to recall Lawn Darts but at the same time allow an unsafe vaccine to reach the unwilling arms of children? Well, toys are toys, vaccines are medicine. There ‘ya go. The government, and other regulatory agencies, know what’s right, right?
Being born into a culture (US) that was known for its integrity, truthfulness, righteousness, and a penchant for character and goodness (ha, ha), no one would ever think that the CIA would have been actively trying to assassinate Fidel Castro, among others, for decades. I remember first hearing a rumor about this when I was about 15. “No way,” I thought to myself. “Assassinations are illegal! My country would never be involved in such a thing!” Especially attempting to murder a leader of a country that really was just minding their own business. At least so it seemed. (Today, when we hear of such things, we shrug our shoulders and say, “They must know what they are doing.”)
And what about Iran’s Mosaddegh? He was minding his own business overseeing the affairs of Iran as Prime Minister from 1951 to 1953. The US wasn’t happy with him for a number of reasons (primarily economic, like, for example, Mosaddegh wanted Iran to get a bigger share of oil profits that the US and UK were sucking out of his nation’s oil fields, imagine that! What audacity!). The CIA bopped him off as well—indirectly with a CIA created insurrection, which led to Mosaddegh’s imprisonment and more than likely contributed to his health issues, then he died). Sure there is detail here I am not presenting, but you get the picture. The US Government must have had a good reason.
How about Obama’s drone war? Killing a whole whack of people, including children (I would say “women and children” but I might get in trouble for that). He must have had a good reason. Personally, I don’t think there is any “good” reason to kill children - even if as collateral damage or unintentionally.
I am presenting here only a few examples among thousands…more than we even know of course. And this is just government actions, what about pharmaceutical actions, or other medical actions? They all must have good reasons.
As a whole most people seem to think that atrocities cannot happen in the US (or Canada, or the UK, or other countries in the “civilized” West). We are just too sophisticated for that. The irony here is the official spokespeople for the US, for example, actually present themselves as do-gooders. They either keep their actions covert and Top Secret, or they present them as “good things.” We only have to look to people like Julian Assange and Edward Snowden to see how the US treats whistleblowers who seek to expose the fact the US really doesn’t have a good reason to do much that it does - at least no reason that benefits us.
If you ever corner a sheep and throw this sort of stuff at them, they will first hit you with the statement, “Why do you have to be so negative? Why can’t you just trust your government to take care of business in our best interests as a nation?” They will say that the government has to have secrets in order to keep us safe, and those people who break the law (Assange and Snowden, among many others. Since we are counting, let’s include the truckers of Canada as well) are criminals, and it doesn’t matter if your intention is good, if you break the law you are a criminal and should be punished.
If you try to argue with these sheep about anything more complex, like the CIA’s intervention into Middle Eastern affairs, they will just blow it off and say something like, “All that overseas stuff is just too complicated to sort out. And those Middle Eastern countries (except Israel) are all bad guys, I don’t really care what the US does to them, they know what they are doing.”
Sheep are funny that way. “La, la, la, la, la, la” with fingers plugging their ears. It is easy to push them to this point. Sheep poking. Try it some time for fun and pleasure.
One good way to get them there really quickly is to bring up some false flag issue that has been in the big time news within the last few decades. The 9-11 fiasco is my favorite. You’ll get the sheep fingers into the ears really quickly with the “la la la’s” going full blast. Don’t try something too far out there though, like the moon landing, or the hot ticket now, germ vs. terrain theory. You’ll only just get eye rolls for those whacko topics.
I am curious though…speaking of 9-11… what will happen when that incident is exposed for what it was?* (Assuming that will ever occur.) I will bet you money, no matter how ludicrous it would be, their first response to the realization that their own government was responsible for the destruction of those buildings at the World Trade Center, will be, “They must have had a good reason.” Actually they did, but it wasn’t a good reason for us."
o
Dan, I Allegedly, "Ford, Tesla and Apple in Trouble! Who's Next?"
Full screen recommended.
Dan, I Allegedly, 11/10/26
"Ford, Tesla and Apple in Trouble! Who's Next?"
"Ford, Tesla, and Apple are all facing serious questions, and they're not the only ones. Ford is dealing with another massive recall, Tesla's Cybertruck production and customer deposits are raising questions, and Apple's new leadership is discovering just how many problems the company is facing. Meanwhile, Burger King is trying to improve food quality, Popeyes and other restaurants are struggling, and grocery companies are fighting for their place in an increasingly competitive marketplace. But there's a much bigger story happening. Businesses are closing, manufacturing jobs are disappearing, rent and grocery prices are squeezing families, and Americans are having a harder time making ends meet. We also look at unemployment requirements, the future of electric vehicle batteries, FDA concerns surrounding Ozempic, and what all of this means for the economy. Are America's biggest companies in more trouble than we realize? And who's next? Welcome to iAllegedly - business news you can use."
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"Snyder Reports, 11/10/26"
Full screen recommended.
Snyder Reports, 11/10/26
"The CPI Report Just Came Out -
Here Is Why You Should Be Worried"
"The October CPI report just came out - and it was hotter than expected. Consumer prices rose 0.4% in October vs 0.3% expected, and core CPI rose 0.3%. That one number changes the December meeting. In this video, I break down what the new CPI report actually means for you: why Fed Governor Christopher Waller is pushing for a rate hike in December, why a rate cut is likely off the table, where prices rose the most this month (gasoline and snacks up 1%, beef and electricity up 0.9%), and why there are still gaps in the CPI data from last year's government shutdown. With annual wage growth at just 3.1% and core inflation running higher, Americans are getting squeezed from both sides - higher prices AND higher borrowing costs if the Fed hikes on December 8-9. I also cover the one thing that could change the Fed's decision. If you carry a credit card balance, buy groceries every week, or are trying to understand where the economy is headed, this report matters. What do you think the Fed will do in December - hold, or hike again?"
Comments here:
o
Full screen recommended.
Snyder Reports, 11/10/26
"Why Everyone Feels Broke in a Booming Economy:
What It Means For You"
"The stock market is at all-time highs. The economy is "booming." Inflation is supposedly getting better. So why do so many Americans feel poorer every single day? In this video, I break down the gap between what the headlines say and what your paycheck actually feels like. Inflation was up 0.4% month-over-month in the latest report, with food up 0.5% and shelter up 0.3% - but wages are only up 3.1% over the past year, while food, energy and gas have risen far faster. That $500 that used to cover a car payment now doesn't even cover gas, groceries and essentials. We also look at why people are still spending even though they feel broke, how higher earners are canceling Tesla's, homes and vacations, why the economy measures spending while your family measures what's left, and why even million-dollar homeowners can't afford a $1,000 dishwasher install anymore. Inflation falling does NOT mean prices are getting cheaper - they're just going up slower. Here's what that means for you. If you feel like you're getting poorer with each passing day, let me know why you think that is down in the comments."
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Bill Bonner, "Politics Takes Center Stage"
Click image for larger size.
"Core consumer price inflation is still running hot, at around 3.7%, according to the latest figures from the Bureau of Labor Stastics. Despite national gas prices falling around 16 cents on average in the last week, the only component of CPI that isn’t rising above the Fed’s 2% target is ‘used cars.’ Lower oil prices this month may show up in next month’s figures. Stocks opened lower."
"Politics Takes Center Stage"
by Bill Bonner
Paris, France - "We’ve come over to see for ourselves. Each day, the media reports on riots, arson and looting in the French capitol. After so much ‘incendiary’ coverage, we half-expected to find the city in ruins…a smoking cinder, like Gaza with an Eiffel Tower. But when we drove into the center of the city last night, we saw nothing unusual. And this morning…all is calm, under rainy skies. This is the best season to visit Paris. The tourist crush is passed. The summer heat is no more. The restaurants have empty tables. And a cozy mist collects on the window panes.
The real problem for France is money. ‘Le spread,’ they call it. It’s the difference between the interest rates France has to pay to borrow money...compared to what the Germans pay. To make a long story short, the French are in much the same situation as Americans. They owe too much money; and carrying debt is getting more and more expensive. More on that tomorrow...
Back in the USA, politics has taken center stage. There too, the problem is largely a matter of money. Politics is a win-lose racket. In today’s American democracy, if you can win an election, you will have immense power. The US economy is about $32 trillion in GDP. About half of it is either directly or indirectly under political control. In a nutshell, the political winners take the money and (within limits) do what they want with it. Most often, the voters are only dimly aware of what happens to it...and they only voice a serious concern when the most outrageous programs are shoved under their noses. Pew Research: "Iran Conflict Remains Deeply Unpopular as Many Americans Expect It To Go On for Months"
Another deeply unpopular government program is using inflation to pay for excess government spending. Charlie Bilello: "According to election exit polls, nearly 9 in 10 voters said the cost of living was a crucial or major factor in their vote, while roughly two-thirds blamed President Trump for high prices. And nearly 80% said inflation had caused financial hardship for their families over the past year."
The Fed set a 2% target. Low enough so most people wouldn’t notice. But target, schmarget. The Fed first missed its target in the 2nd quarter of 2021. It has missed it in every quarter since then, so that prices are now 14% above where they would be at the 2% target rate...and nearly a third above where they ought to be with no inflation at all. Sugar is 39% higher. Rice is 68% more expensive. And diesel fuel is famously also 68% more.
Why would the feds allow it? Inflation was obviously going to cause trouble...not just for the common people, but for their leaders too. And just look at medical insurance. We grew up in a family of four children...with very little money. When we got sick, we went to the doctor and paid in cash. We had no insurance. But somehow, we lived to tell about it.
Now, insurance is considered a necessary expense. In 1999, the average family paid less than $6,000 a year for it. Now, it is more than $28,000. How can they afford it...when the median household income is only $87,000? The employer may pay a large chunk of it, but one way or another it must be reckoned as a cost of labor...which would otherwise go to the employee. Harvard: "Health care is becoming increasingly unaffordable. In the last year, the costs of public health insurance rose at nearly double the rate of inflation, and private health insurance at roughly triple the rate. Next year, employer-sponsored health insurance premiums are expected to jump by more than 8%. The upshot? More people are feeling the financial squeeze - even to the point of foregoing medical appointments and treatments."
Is it any wonder people are disgusted with their leaders – in France as well as the US? So why do they do it? Why would an administration in danger of losing control of Congress allow the two things that voters most don’t want - inflation and war? The war could have been stopped in a minute. “Now they’ll never have a nuclear weapon,” Trump could have congratulated himself.
As for the price increases, he could have ended the tariffs too…and actually cut deficits to take some of the pressure off of consumer prices and interest rates. Republicans’ political future – the thing they cherish most in life…more than their first born – was at stake. Why didn’t they take action to protect it?
The same questions might be posed to France’s elected officials. Why would they allow services to deteriorate...opportunities to evaporate...and inflation to proliferate? Didn’t they know that ‘le peuple’ might soon want to burn the country to the ground? It wouldn’t be the first time. More tomorrow…"
o
o
"The best way to destroy the capitalist system is to debauch the currency.
By a continuing process of inflation, governments can confiscate, secretly and
unobserved, an important part of the wealth of their citizens."
- John Maynard Keynes
Adventures With Danno, "Stocking Up At Dollar Tree!"
Full screen recommended.
Adventures With Danno, 11/10/26
"Stocking Up At Dollar Tree!"
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Monday, November 9, 2026
'Alert: Highly Unusual Dispersal of Military Assets; Top IRGC Denies Any Peace Talks"
Full screen recommended.
Canadian Prepper, 11/9/26
'Alert: Highly Unusual Dispersal of Military Assets;
Top IRGC Denies Any Peace Talks"
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Musical Interlude: Leonard Cohen, "Hallelujah"
Full screen recommended.
Leonard Cohen, "Hallelujah"
"I did my best, it wasn't much,
I couldn't feel, so I tried to touch.
I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool you.
And even though it all went wrong
I'll stand before the Lord of song
With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah..."
"A Look to the Heavens"
“Large galaxies grow by eating small ones. Even our own galaxy practices galactic cannibalism, absorbing small galaxies that get too close and are captured by the Milky Way's gravity. In fact, the practice is common in the universe and illustrated by this striking pair of interacting galaxies from the banks of the southern constellation Eridanus, The River.
Located over 50 million light years away, the large, distorted spiral NGC 1532 is seen locked in a gravitational struggle with dwarf galaxy NGC 1531 (right of center), a struggle the smaller galaxy will eventually lose. Seen edge-on, spiral NGC 1532 spans about 100,000 light-years. Nicely detailed in this sharp image, the NGC 1532/1531 pair is thought to be similar to the well-studied system of face-on spiral and small companion known as M51.”
"A Wise Man Once Said..."
“A wise man once said you can have anything in life if you will sacrifice everything else for it. What he meant is nothing comes without a price. So before you go into battle, you better decide how much you’re willing to lose. Too often, going after what feels good means letting go of what you know is right, and letting someone in means abandoning the walls you’ve spent a lifetime building. Of course, the toughest sacrifices are the ones we don’t see coming, when we don’t have time to come up with a strategy to pick a side or to measure the potential loss. When that happens, when the battle chooses us and not the other way around, that’s when the sacrifice can turn out to be more than we can bear.
So, how do you beat the odds when it’s one against a billion? You’re just outnumbered. You stand strong, keep pushing yourself against all rational limits, and never give up. But the truth of the matter is despite how hard you try and fight to stay in control, when it’s all said and done, sometimes you’re just outnumbered.”
- "Meredith", "Gray's Anatomy"
Native Elder, "How to Age Like a Warrior Instead of a Victim"
Full screen recommended.
Native Elder,
"How to Age Like a Warrior Instead of a Victim"
Delta Blues Brother, "Waiting for a Rain That Never Comes"
Full screen recommended.
Delta Blues Brother,
"Waiting for a Rain That Never Comes"
"Some people spend half their lives waiting for things that never arrive. A better year. A changed heart. A little peace. A reason to finally feel whole. “Waiting for a Rain That Never Comes” is a slow-burning Southern Delta blues meditation about dry hopes, empty skies, and the quiet exhaustion of waiting too long for life to begin. The resonator guitar drifts like heat over cracked dirt roads. The harmonica cries like an old storm that lost its way years ago. The rhythm moves slow, patient, tired… like a man still staring at the horizon long after everyone else went inside. This isn’t a song about giving up. It’s about learning the difference between faith… and standing still. Some things never arrive."
The Poet: Maya Angelou, "A Brave And Startling Truth"
"A Brave And Startling Truth"
by Maya Angelou
"We, this people, on a small and lonely planet
Traveling through casual space,
Past aloof stars, across the way of indifferent suns,
To a destination where all signs tell us
It is possible and imperative that we discover
A brave and startling truth.
And when we come to it,
To the day of peacemaking,
When we release our fingers
From fists of hostility
And allow the pure air to cool our palms.
When we come to it,
When the curtain falls on the minstrel show of hate,
And faces sooted with scorn are scrubbed clean.
When battlefields and coliseum
No longer rake our unique and particular sons and daughters
Up with the bruised and bloody grass,
To lie in identical plots in foreign soil.
When the rapacious storming of the churches,
The screaming racket in the temples have ceased.
When the pennants are waving gaily,
When the banners of the world tremble
Stoutly in the good, clean breeze.
When we come to it,
When we let the rifles fall from our shoulders,
And children dress their dolls in flags of truce.
When land mines of death have been removed,
And the aged can walk into evenings of peace.
When religious ritual is not perfumed
By the incense of burning flesh,
And childhood dreams are not kicked awake
By nightmares of abuse.
When we come to it,
Then we will confess that not the Pyramids
With their stones set in mysterious perfection
Nor the Gardens of Babylon
Hanging as eternal beauty
In our collective memory,
Not the Grand Canyon
Kindled into delicious color
By Western sunsets.
Nor the Danube, flowing its blue soul into Europe
Not the sacred peak of Mount Fuji
Stretching to the Rising Sun.
Neither Father Amazon nor Mother Mississippi who, without favor,
Nurture all creatures in the depths and on the shores
These are not the only wonders of the world.
When we come to it,
We, this people, on this minuscule and kithless globe,
Who reach daily for the bomb, the blade and the dagger
Yet who petition in the dark for tokens of peace.
We, this people on this mote of matter,
In whose mouths abide cankerous words
Which challenge our very existence,
Yet out of those same mouths
Come songs of such exquisite sweetness
That the heart falters in its labor,
And the body is quieted into awe.
We, this people, on this small and drifting planet,
Whose hands can strike with such abandon
That in a twinkling, life is sapped from the living.
Yet those same hands can touch with such healing, irresistible tenderness
That the haughty neck is happy to bow,
And the proud back is glad to bend.
Out of such chaos, of such contradiction
We learn that we are neither devils nor divines.
When we come to it,
We, this people, on this wayward, floating body,
Created on this earth, of this earth,
Have the power to fashion for this earth
A climate where every man and every woman
Can live freely without sanctimonious piety,
Without crippling fear.
When we come to it,
We must confess that we are the possible,
We are the miraculous, the true wonder of this world.
That is when, and only when,
We come to it."
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"It May Be Then..."
"Passion doesn't count the cost. Pascal said that the heart has its reasons that reason takes no account of. If he meant what I think, he meant that when passion seizes the heart it invents reasons that seem not only plausible but conclusive to prove that the world is well lost for love. It convinces you that honor is well sacrificed and that shame is a cheap price to pay. Passion is destructive. It destroyed Antony and Cleopatra, Tristan and Isolde, Parnell and Kitty O'Shea. And if it doesn't destroy it dies. It may be then that one is faced with the desolation of knowing that one has wasted the years of one's life, that one's brought disgrace upon oneself, endured the frightful pang of jealousy, swallowed every bitter mortification, that one's expended all one's tenderness, poured out all the riches of one's soul on a poor drab, a fool, a peg on which one hung one's dreams, who wasn't worth a stick of chewing gum."
- W. Somerset Maugham
"Regret for the things we did can be tempered by time;
it is regret for the things we did not do that is inconsolable."
- Sydney J. Harris
"The Fatal Error Of Sheep"
"The Fatal Error Of Sheep"
by Todd Hayen
"I will start this article with an apology to those readers who lack a sense of humor similar to mine, as well as to those lovely big hearted folks who don’t like labeling of any sort (sheep and/or shrew).
Regarding the term “sheep” - I have tried (and am certain I have failed occasionally) to refrain from calling an individual person as “sheep.” It is rather a term I have applied to a group of people with a similar “mindset.” If you feel you fit that mindset, you may, if you wish, call yourself a “sheep.” If you find it offensive, and do not feel you “fit,” then that is fine by me. Do not include yourself in the sheep group.
As for shrews. Well, that’s where the sense of humor comes in. I needed a term other than “those of us on the other side of the divide who believe in freedom and do not believe in the agenda or the power hungry globalists trying to take over the world”…whew…”shrew” is an easier way to get the same point across once the term is defined. Why shrew? That’s a long story. But it is a term as good as any, and is complimentary to “sheep” as it starts with the same first two letters, and it too is an animal. Turns out shrews can be ferocious, even though very small. So that fits too. So there you have it. Read this article with these things in mind, as it is full of reference to sheep and shrew.
The fatal error of sheep is not realizing that the people they call “conspiracy theorists” and “science deniers” are not some small fringe group of weirdos and hillbillies as they might imagine. The fact is we are large in number and include many brilliant minds and formidable members in our individual fields of expertise. This is no ragtag band of ne’er do wells.
Although I have no question we are on the RIGHT side of things, I will say that to the people who have to deal with us - that fact is of no real consequence (being right seems to have to affect on them). It seems the sheep love to ignore us, and act as if we don’t exist, regardless of the fact we are right. They can’t be bothered with us; we are only a nuisance to them. That attitude is going to one day bite them really hard in the you know where.
Many sheep have asked me, “How can you be sure you are right and we are wrong?” I have often asked myself the same question. There are many answers, my favorite is simply to say, “we are right because we are right” - which of course is rather flippant. This, however, seems to be a more prudent answer: Shrews are curious and look hard for answers.
Even if the prevailing consensus seems correct, we always seem to want more. We want to actually understand why things are like they are. Maybe we don’t do this with everything we encounter; we certainly do it when facing big sweeping pronouncements and when the powers that be tell us we all have to “do” this or that, like take a vaccine no one has really studied for a virus that no one really knows that much about. We typically go “huh?”
We then dive into it. We go down every rabbit hole we can find. Many of those holes lead to dead ends, but we discover those dead ends for ourselves. We don’t let anyone bar us from access and say, “you don’t want to go down there.” We say, “huh? Why not?” Once we start to feel that our usual sources for information, generally what they call “Main Stream Media,” is not giving us the whole story, we quickly move into some uncharted territory and start digging there. Yes, again, more dead ends but we become accustomed to “dead ends” being par for the course of truly uninhibited discovery.
We create conclusions, assumptions, speculations built on all the information we have gathered, and begin to come up with something we can make a tenable statement of truth about. But it takes a ton of work. And is usually never final, never ironclad. We don’t seem to like things that “appear” ironclad.
Sheep do not do this. I have not yet met one that does. They often THINK they do, and throw back to me lines they have heard on NPR, or the WP or NYT, or of course the big “authorities” such as the retired Tsar of Science Fauci, POTUS, heads of major hospitals or pharmaceutical companies, et al. They don’t seem to realize their insistence on these sources being accurate is akin to looking to Goebbels to verify the accuracy of a Hitler speech, or referring to Der Stürmer for the truth about Jews. You need, today, to go to a variety of sources before you will come upon an accurate portrayal of social or scientific reality. Sheep refuse to accept this.
What is odd about this is that we have never been in a culture where the mainstream news is 100% reliable. Sources have always been biased, and to really get a true picture of something, we have always needed to access several sources.
The problem is that as Americans (or Canadians for that matter) it has been drilled into us that freedom, truth, mom and apple pie are the hallmarks of our American culture. Although most of us have been brought up to believe that, it really never has been the truth. Maybe for a millisecond it was back in 1776, but I doubt it. (The tenets here are true, but being told that these are the hallmarks and intentions of the American or Canadian government is not the truth.)
That doesn’t necessarily mean that this culture has been 100% deprived of any integrity for 200 years (well, right now you might be able to say that) it means we have always been independently responsible for seeing through this wall of subterfuge. Unfortunately I think they finally managed to chop off the chicken’s head. Most people out there seem to have lost the capacity to use their brains.
It didn’t used to take all that much to reveal the boll weevils hiding in the cotton. We had competing newspapers that reveled in revealing untruths in a competitor’s pages. This tended to work well with all but the biggest players (Rockefellers, Carnegies, Morgans, etc.), now it doesn’t work at all because all the big news sources are bought. This is pretty obvious, but most sheep-types seem to think an owner of a news source has no power over what they print. Duh.
Many imagine some cigar smoking workaholic editor holding onto his anchor of truth uttering with disgust, “they’re not going to stop ME from printing THAT.” I don’t think that ever really existed. I think if anything kept older news sources more honest than today, it was stumbling onto “truth” as a marketable commodity. This no longer seems to be the case.
So what does this have to do with a sheep fatal error? Well, just that, truth is no longer a marketable commodity with major news sources, so we must all look to sources where it still is. Sheep don’t realize that shrews have truth on their side. And they align with truth. They also do not believe we have integrity, or that there are quite a few of us, and that we are very SMART, resourceful, and persistent. Eventually that is going to get them, and in a very hard way.
Truth is like rain water on a roof. It will find its way through if there is a way through. Where that analogy fails is when a roof becomes watertight. Culture and human society can never become “truthtight.” Don’t ask me why, it is just a given. Eventually truth finds its way in, no matter what. It may take a while, but truth will get through. It will prevail.
Shrews may not all know all the truth at any given moment, but they look for it, no matter where it might be hiding, and they find it. When they find it, and show other people where it is, they are widening the hole for more of it to come through, just like the leak in the roof, or the hole in the dam. Eventually the dam will break and the roof will cave in."
"How It Really Is"
“The government is good at one thing. It knows how to break
your legs, and then hand you a crutch and say, ‘See, if
it weren’t for the government, you wouldn’t be able to walk.”
- Harry Browne
"Snyder Reports, 11/9/26"
Full screen recommended.
Snyder Reports, 11/9/26
"Nobody Is Prepared For This Global Food Crisis"
"Global food security is now at high risk. From a supermarket cyber attack in France to Black Sea shipping attacks, here's why experts say food prices could surge and what you need to stockpile now. In this video I break down why France is blaming Iran for an unprecedented cyber attack on supermarket fridges and freezers, why new Black Sea drone attacks targeting 9 vessels threaten grain exports to Africa and the Middle East, and why Oxford Economics forecasts food prices up nearly 12% in 2026 plus another 4.8% in 2027. I also cover why more Americans are using Klarna and Afterpay to buy groceries, and why experts say to have at least 2 weeks worth of food on hand. Stay prepared with daily news on congressional action, economics, and emergency preparedness."
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Full screen recommended.
Snyder Reports, 11/9/26
"Democrats Threaten Government
Shutdown Over Iran War - Prepare Now!"
'Another government shutdown could happen on December 11, 2026 - and this time Democrats may use it to force an end to the Iran war. In this video we break down what Congress returns to today in its lame-duck session, why the December 11 funding deadline and January 3rd swearing-in of the new Congress matter, what Secretary of State Marco Rubio just said about stalled Iran talks, and what a short shutdown from December 11 to early January would mean for federal pay, benefits, gas and diesel prices, and Strait of Hormuz oil flow. You'll learn why Democrats say they will absolutely not fund the war, why Republicans want to push funding to September 30th, 2027, and why a short-term stopgap to late January is now on the table. If prices fall when the war ends, we cover what has to happen first."
Comments here:
"Is This Atmospheric River The Beginning Of An “ARkStorm”? Back To Back Atmospheric Rivers Are Expected To Hit California “On A Nearly Weekly Basis” By January"
by Michael Snyder
"An atmospheric river is about to absolutely hammer the Pacific Northwest. There will be flooding in some areas and up to 20 feet of snow in the mountains of British Columbia. Once the atmospheric river is pushed further south, it is expected to dump a month’s worth of rain on Sacramento in just 48 hours. The wild weather that I have just described will be inconvenient, but it won’t be catastrophic. However, if an extended series of atmospheric rivers creates “ARkStorm” conditions in California during the winter months, that truly would be catastrophic. An “ARkStorm” is much more likely to develop during El Niño years, and it is being projected that the Super El Niño of 2026-2027 will be the most powerful El Niño ever recorded. Any atmospheric rivers that approach California will be turbocharged by this insanely powerful Super El Niño, and as a result a colossal amount of rainfall could fall on the state in the months ahead.
As I discussed in a previous article, atmospheric rivers are most likely to hit California between the months of September and March. Peak activity tends to be concentrated in the winter months of December, January and February. As you will see below, meteorologists are warning that back-to-back atmospheric rivers could hammer the state on a nearly weekly basis by January. If such a scenario actually materializes, California could be facing an “ARkStorm”.
Most people do not realize this, but California has actually experienced an “ARkStorm” on many occasions over the past 1,800 years. The most recent occasion was the Great Flood of 1861-1862…
The 1861–1862 Benchmark: Geologic records and historical data document the Great Flood of 1861–1862, when 45 days of relentless atmospheric rivers created a 300-mile-long inland sea across the Central Valley, submerging Sacramento, Stockton, and Fresno.
A Trillion-Dollar Disaster Model: A catastrophic scenario developed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), NOAA, and FEMA estimates that a modern ARkStorm could inundate up to 25% of all buildings in California.
The Insurance Gap: With the state’s real estate value exceeding $10 trillion and only approximately 12% of California property owners carrying active flood insurance policies, economic damage models warn that uninsured structural losses could top $1 trillion.
A Developing Super El Niño: With climate forecasters estimating an 83% probability that the 2026–2027 El Niño will rank among the strongest in recorded history, atmospheric scientists warn that the threshold for severe, multi-week flooding events has risen significantly heading into the core winter months.
It will take a long series of atmospheric rivers to create “ARkStorm” conditions. So we will watch to see if that is what actually starts happening. Of course a very alarming pattern is already starting to develop… A series of storms carrying long plumes of moisture, known as atmospheric rivers, will bring heavy rain, strong winds and mountain snow to British Columbia and the Pacific Northwest. Flooding and strong winds will disrupt travel, while heavy snow will increase avalanche concerns in the mountains.
Rain and mountain snow will fall in rounds, with breaks between storms. During the heaviest downpours, rainfall rates could reach 1-2 inches per hour in some locations. Rain this intense can overwhelm drainage systems, especially where fallen leaves clog storm drains.
It looks like there will be large amounts of rain and snow in the Pacific Northwest for a few days, and then Northern California will get hit “later in the week”…Rather than a single storm system, a succession of Pacific disturbances will bring periods of rain, initially focusing on the Pacific Northwest before gradually shifting south toward California later in the week. The pattern is already making its presence felt across the Northwest. Overnight Saturday into Sunday, nearly 100,000 customers lost power across Washington as powerful wind gusts swept through the region. Winds in the lower elevations were near 50 to 60 mph, while higher elevations saw even stronger gusts. Near Mount Rainier, a gust of 95 mph was recorded.
Thanks to the Super El Niño, the storms that are about to pummel the Pacific Northwest will be very strong. By the time Saturday rolls around, some portions of British Columbia and western Washington state are expected to get over a foot of rain… Through Saturday, Nov. 14, more than a foot of rain could pour down in parts of coastal British Columbia and western Washington, particularly on west- and south-facing slopes at lower and middle elevations. “Runoff will increase from each storm as the ground becomes saturated,” AccuWeather Senior Storm Warning Meteorologist Tim Richards said. “As runoff increases and becomes more widespread, the likelihood of flooding in small streams and rivers will rise.”
There are some areas in western Washington state that are quite prone to flooding. If you live in one of those areas, you should be aware that there is a very strong chance that you are about to get flooded again.
In the mountains of British Columbia, the amount of snow that falls could be up to 20 feet deep…Through Nov. 14, total snowfall accumulation could reach 10-20 feet in parts of British Columbia’s Coast Mountains. Farther south, snow in Washington’s Cascade and Olympic mountains will generally be confined to the highest elevations.
I have never lived anywhere that got that much snow. How do people manage that? Once we get to Friday, the atmospheric river will have been pushed further south and will start soaking Northern California. It is expected that the amount of rain that Sacramento gets from this system will be equivalent to what it normally receives during the entire month of November…
Precipitation Timing: The system is expected to deliver one to two days of heavy, concentrated rainfall across Northern and Central California before pushing inland.
Monthly Rainfall in 48 Hours: Projections indicate cities like Sacramento could receive nearly two inches of rain during the storm window - matching the city’s entire historical average for the month of November in a single event.
Heavy Sierra Snowfall: At higher elevations, the system is expected to dump several feet of snow across the Sierra Nevada, providing an early boost for Lake Tahoe ski resorts preparing for November openings.
Winter Cadence: Meteorologists note this mid-November system is only an opening salvo. Because El Niño is projected to intensify over the next two months, California could experience back-to-back atmospheric rivers on a nearly weekly basis by January. Sacramento was one of the areas that was underwater for months as a result of the Great Flood of 1861-1862.
Of course one storm is not anything to get too excited about. What alarms me most about the article that I quoted above is the fact that meteorologists are warning that California “could experience back-to-back atmospheric rivers on a nearly weekly basis by January”. That is precisely the type of weather pattern that could potentially create “ARkStorm” conditions.
Already, long-range models are indicating that there will be large amounts of precipitation for California as we move through the rest of this month…Long-range models are hinting at some of these Pacific waves continuing to drive into California and for the Four Corners next week. Heavy rain, snow, and strong winds could be a possibility as we move into the middle of November. Whatever happens this month would just be the warm up act. December, January and February are the prime months for an ARkStorm.
According to the USGS, the geologic record shows that there have been “6 megastorms more severe than 1861-1862 in California in the last 1800 years”
What that is telling us is that there have been many “ARkStorms” in California in the past, and we should expect more in the future. Thanks to the Super El Niño of 2026-2027, conditions are ideal for one to occur during the upcoming winter months. If an ARkStorm does materialize, it will likely be the costliest natural disaster in modern American history."
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