So, we rise from the rubble...
StatCounter
Friday, June 13, 2025
"Exploring Moscow's (French Garden) Near the Red Square"
Meanwhile, in a sane, civilized society...
Full screen recommended.
Travelling with Russell, 6/13/25
"Exploring Moscow's (French Garden)
Near the Red Square"
"Join me for a Moscow city center walk, starting at the iconic Bolshoi Theatre and exploring the vibrant heart of Moscow. Experience the city ambience as we stroll through the heart of the Russian metropolis, capturing Moscow today."
Comments here:
"The US and Israel are About to Start WW III. Iran, Russia and China Will End It"
"The US and Israel are About to Start WW III.
Iran, Russia and China Will End It"
Bob Moriarty
"It is a measure of just how powerful the stranglehold the Zionists hold over the United States that both countries are about to embark on a crusade to destroy Iran’s nuclear weapons program. You know, the one that doesn’t exist and hasn’t since at least 2003.
Israel wants to dominate the entire world. They have a parasitic relationship with the US where Israel has been conducting genocide for over eighty years and gets the United States taxpayers to fund their war crimes.
Let me make this clear one more time. IRAN HAS NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS PROGRAM. All eighteen US intelligence agree. Iran has no nuclear weapons program. So nuking Iran, which is Israel’s intention, cannot destroy what doesn’t exist. Do I also need to mention there is only one country in the Middle East not in compliance with the NNPT and is nuclear armed. That of course is Israel but what the hell. They don’t obey international laws or the Geneva Convention or borders. It’s hard to find an element of genocide they have not committed. However Israel’s greatest and most prolific export is a fine whine.
The issue has been war gamed a number of times and in each case, the US and Israel lost the war. The criminal cartel that governs Israel is betting the farm on a mistaken belief, a favorite fantasy of the Zionists, that they are the Chosen People Of God, and God hates everyone else. That particular fiction has been a core belief of every military that ever lost a battle or a war throughout history. God doesn’t give a f*ck.
Pipedreams don’t win wars. Ever. We can observe the eighty percent of Jews in Israel masturbating at the idea of murdering millions more innocent civilians. It’s a dream but not linked to reality. Israel is about to get its ass kicked. Their arrogance is about to become their epitaph.
Say goodbye to the Zionist experiment. Israel is committing harikari and this will mark the end of the Trump presidency. It was fun watching while it lasted. Do you seriously believe that the riots in LA that have spread to dozens of other cities, the Trump’s Triumph taking place in Washington and an attack on Iran all taking place at the same time is some kind of interesting coincidence?"
"This Is What Happens Next After Israel Bombs Iran’s Nuclear Facilities"
"This Is What Happens Next After
Israel Bombs Iran’s Nuclear Facilities"
by Michael Snyder
"This week there has been a tremendous amount of speculation that a strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities was imminent. Now it has happened. When I originally wrote this article, I thought that a military strike on Iran would not happen until after one last round of talks with the Iranians this weekend. Even though it was obvious that those talks would go nowhere, I thought that the U.S. and Israel would give the Iranians one last chance to make a deal. But that obviously did not materialize. The Jerusalem Post is reporting that air strikes on Iran have begun…"The IDF has started to attack dozens of Iranian nuclear sites early on Friday morning. Warning sirens have been set off to get the public ready for potential Iranian counterattacks of ballistic missiles on Israel."
It appears that the Trump administration was aware that something was about to happen. In fact, “multiple sources” told CBS News that Israel was “fully ready” to hit Iran’s nuclear facilities…"U.S. officials have been told Israel is fully ready to launch an operation into Iran, multiple sources told CBS News. The U.S. anticipates Iran could retaliate on certain American sites in neighboring Iraq. This is part of the reason the U.S. advised some Americans to leave the region earlier Wednesday. The State Department ordered non-emergency government officials to exit Iraq due to “heightened regional tensions,” and the Pentagon has authorized military family members to voluntarily leave locations throughout the Middle East, a defense official told CBS News."
Interestingly, “five sources” delivered the same message to NBC News…"Israel is considering taking military action against Iran, most likely without US support, in the coming days, five sources told NBC on Thursday. This comes shortly after a CBS report in which multiple sources stated that Israel has told US officials that it is “fully ready to launch an operation into Iran.” Iran’s military had begun drills earlier than planned to focus on “enemy movements,” state media reported later on Thursday afternoon.
Obviously the Trump administration felt that this was a message that needed to get out. When President Trump was directly asked about the potential for a military strike on Iran, he had some very interesting things to say…"A reporter asked Mr. Trump Thursday if an Israeli strike on Iran is imminent. “Well, I don’t want to say imminent, but it looks like it’s something that could very well happen,” he said.
Mr. Trump spoke about Iran at an appearance at the Kennedy Center Wednesday evening, telling reporters Americans were advised to leave the region “because it could be a dangerous place, and we’ll see what happens.” Mr. Trump also reiterated the U.S. did not want Iran to develop a nuclear weapon, saying: “We’re not going to allow that.” When asked at the White House why dependents of military personnel were allowed to voluntarily leave the region, Mr. Trump said, “You’ll have to see.”
Now the bombing of Iran has started, and nothing will ever be the same again. So how will the Iranians react to all of this? Obviously, Iran will strike back at Israel really hard. During a briefing with a group of Republicans in the U.S. Senate last week, Steve Witkoff warned that Iran has the ability to cause “massive casualties and damage” inside Israel…Witkoff told the Senators that military strikes by Israel are on the table if no agreement is reached.
He then brought up Iran’s ballistic missile capabilities. The U.S. is concerned Israel’s air defenses would not be able to handle an Iranian response involving hundreds of missiles, the sources said. Such an attack, Witkoff told the group, could cause massive casualties and damage. Witkoff also raised concerns about Iran’s ballistic missile arsenal during a speech in New York on Wednesday, calling it “as big of an existential threat” for Israel as Iran’s nuclear capabilities.
The Iranians have even threatened to hit Israel’s nuclear facilities if their own nuclear facilities are destroyed. If Israel’s nuclear facilities were to get hit, Israel may feel compelled to use their really big weapons. In addition to striking back against Israel, the Iranians have repeatedly warned that U.S. bases in the Middle East will be targeted…
"If nuclear negotiations fail and conflict arises with the United States, Iran will strike American bases in the region, Defense Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh said on Wednesday. “Some officials on the other side threaten conflict if negotiations don’t come to fruition. If a conflict is imposed on us… all US bases are within our reach and we will boldly target them in host countries,” Nasirzadeh said during a press conference."
If U.S. bases are getting hammered by Iranian missiles, President Trump will be forced to respond, and then we will be at war with Iran. Once we are at war with Iran, it is likely that the price of oil will almost instantly rise to more than 100 dollars a barrel… An attack on Iran and broader Middle East escalation could see crude skyrocket to $100-120 per barrel, or even higher, amid the closure of key export hubs and disruptions to the Strait of Hormuz.
Much more importantly, many believe that the bombing of Iran’s nuclear facilities could be the spark that begins the kinetic phase of World War III. Unfortunately, there may be no turning back now. The IAEA just voted that Iran is not in compliance with its nuclear obligations…"The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Board of Governors has declared that Iran has not complied with its nuclear obligations in a vote following a resolution, backed by the United States and the E3 (Britain, France, and Germany). The resolution was passed with 19 votes in favor. Three countries voted against, 11 abstained and two countries did not vote, according to multiple media reports."
That vote is going to be used as justification for military action. Following the vote, the Iranians announced that they will be opening a “previously unrevealed enrichment site” in a secure location…"The head of Iran’s atomic agency, Mohammad Eslami, said Tehran would accelerate its production of near-weapons-grade uranium and open a previously unrevealed enrichment site in what he said is a secure location, according to Iranian state media.
Eslami said Iran was starting the process of readying and installing centrifuges in the new site and would start producing fissile material there as soon as it was ready. That would suggest Iran has been working on the site in secret for some time. He said Tehran informed the International Atomic Energy Agency about its plans immediately after Thursday morning’s vote. The IAEA didn’t immediately comment."
The Iranians also just test-fired a new missile that comes equipped with a two-ton warhead…"Iran announced that it successfully test-fired an advanced missile equipped with a two-ton warhead, significantly ratcheting up its war machine amid nuclear negotiations with the United States and threats of attacks on U.S. military installations. Iran hailed the missile test as “a new achievement in its military capabilities” as part of the country’s “broader efforts to enhance its military readiness and defense power amid ongoing regional tensions.”
“Our most recent achievement came last week when we successfully tested a missile carrying a two-ton warhead, with excellent results,” Iranian defense minister Aziz Nasirzadeh publicly disclosed on Wednesday after a cabinet meeting. “We have made very good progress in defense affairs. Our operational forces are fully equipped.”
I don’t see any way that a major war with Iran is going to be avoided now. It is being reported that the IDF military operation could last for days. The Iranians will inevitably respond very vigorously, and it appears that the “final showdown” with Iran that I have been warning about has arrived. A “final showdown” with Iran will be truly horrifying, and the death and destruction that we will witness will shock the entire planet."
Dan, I Allegedly, "You Can’t Eat That! Is Big Pharma Getting Banned?"
Full screen recommended.
Dan, I Allegedly, AM 6/13/25
"You Can’t Eat That! Is Big Pharma Getting Banned?"
"Could your favorite snacks like chips and candy soon carry warning labels saying they’re unsafe for human consumption? Let’s talk about Senate Bill 25 in Texas, which could require health warnings on foods with harmful additives, preservatives, and synthetic dyes. What would this mean for our snacking habits? Plus, we’re diving into how pharmaceutical advertising dominates media and why some politicians are pushing to change that. From skyrocketing car prices to the challenges small businesses face, we’ll cover the ripple effects of inflation, artificial intelligence in the workforce, and shady business practices in today’s economy. Join the conversation as we explore these wild developments - including personal stories about health, family, and the hard lessons I’ve learned along the way. Whether it’s about food, finances, or the future of media, there’s something here for everyone."
Comments here:
Bill Bonner, "Power Politics"
North Korean Military Parade
"Power Politics"
by Bill Bonner
"Any contingency you want, we’ve got it.’"
- Pete Hegseth, US Secretary of Defense
Youghal, Ireland - "Hegseth was talking about how to turn a non-problem into a problem. And how to run the world. Greenland has been a non-problem for as long as the US has existed. And a friendly non-problem at that. Associated Press is on the story: "Hegseth says the Pentagon has contingency plans to invade if necessary. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth appeared to acknowledge that the Pentagon has developed plans to take over Greenland and Panama by force if necessary."
Donald Trump claims to ‘run the country...and the world.’ Nowhere in the Constitution is there such a job description. America was supposed to be a country of individuals who would run their own lives...enjoying life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, unimpeded by the feds.
The president was supposed to execute the laws of the land as laid out in the Constitution and elaborated by Congress and the courts. His main role was to protect The People from their government. In other words, he wasn’t meant to run the country at all; it was supposed to run him...he is its top ‘public servant.’ As for the world, it can take care of itself. But heck...it’s 2025. And politics are on the rise. Military force is the ultimate expression of politics. Hegseth is ready to invade any country, city, or Home Depot you want.
At any given time, a society only produces so much wealth. It can then consume it. Or, it can save and invest...so as to produce more in the future. The real ‘political’ question is: who decides? As a general rule, the feds waste wealth. And the more of it that is under their control, the poorer the society becomes.
Compare North Korea to South Korea. Same land. Same climate. Same people. The difference is politics. When the two separated, the North was richer than the South, because it had more industry. Even as late as 1970, per capita GDP in the North was over $350. In the South it was barely $250. But today, North Korean GDP/capita is up to $640...while in South Korea, it is more than $35,000. That’s the malign power of politics. The North has a lot of it. The South, not so much. North Korea has a military parade almost every year. The South rarely does.
It doesn’t matter what you call it. Let your politicians run your economy, as they do in North Korea, and you will get poverty and misery. In the 1930s, for example, Germany’s Big Man seemed to light a fire under the economy. Factories boomed. Unemployment disappeared. Foreign visitors were impressed. But the Big Man favored politics...with tanks and planes coming off the assembly lines, not tractors or autos. Then, with so much of the country’s output devoted to armaments, ordinary Germans grew poorer and poorer until the end of WWII. Young women were on such tight rations, health officials worried that they might not be able to conceive.
And now, in the USA,... the Big Man gains power. US companies used to negotiate their own trade deals. Now, the Trump Team decides with whom you will truck and on what terms. New York Times: "President Trump has announced wave after wave of tariffs since taking office in January, part of a sweeping effort that he has argued would secure better trade terms with other countries. “It’s called negotiation,” he recently said."
POTUS thinks he should also decide how much interest you pay, too. USA Today: "President Donald Trump cited new inflation data in continuing to pressure Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to lower interest rates, calling him a "numbskull" but adding that he won't seek to remove him. “We can’t get this guy to do it," Trump said of Powell lowering rates. "And the fake news is saying 'Oh if you fired him it would be so bad.' I don’t know why it would be so bad, but I’m not going to fire him.”
Education used to be a private matter - between the student and his school. But now the politicians have invaded the study halls and the girl’s locker rooms. New York Times, again: "The dozen board members of the prestigious Fulbright program that promotes international educational exchanges resigned on Wednesday… The members are concerned that political appointees at the State Department, which manages the program, are acting illegally by canceling the awarding of Fulbright scholarships to almost 200 American professors and researchers..."
But the same phenomenon occurs in the entire economy. The feds use taxpayer money - and fake money! - to insinuate themselves into everything. Then, people come to rely on it so heavily, they have no choice but to go along with whatever the feds want. The New York Post: "The US will be flirting with a possible financial crisis if Congress fails to pass President Trump’s marquee One Big Beautiful Bill Act, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent grimly warned Wednesday.
Bessent singled out the megabill’s extension of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and warned that a $4 trillion tax hike from a failure to re-up those cuts would devastate the financial system. “Sir, I think it could set off a financial crisis, the likes of which we have not seen since ’08, ’09 [the last financial crisis caused by the feds]...”
And why leave high culture alone? MAGA has plenty of low culture = the president attends professional wraslin’ events...and Lee Greenwood performs at his rallies. (No one with any taste in music should ever be subjected to Lee Greenwood.) And now, he’s muscled into the Kennedy Center. USA Today: "The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts has been America's premiere stage for decades. But more recently, the cultural center has been in the headlines not for art but rather, politics.President Donald Trump announced...a massive overhaul at the Kennedy Center that included the termination of multiple board of trustees members, including Chairman David Rubenstein. And Trump named Rubenstein's replacement: himself."
Of course, it never made any sense for the taxpayers to be putting up with the Fed or the feds’ trade deals and deficits...or supporting the Kennedy Center...or NPR...or PBS...or Fulbright scholars...or Harvard or any other high-minded sinkhole of public funds. But instead of cutting them off, the Trump troupe just wants to take them over...and ‘run’ just about everything. A macro forecast: the real economy will weaken. And the real value of America’s industries will continue to decline."
Gregory Mannarino, "Staged - A New War To Distract The World"
Gregory Mannarino, AM 6/13/25
"Staged - A New War To Distract The World"
Comments here:
"Israel Attacks, Netanyahu Runs Away, Iranian Response Begins"
Full screen recommended.
Mahmood OD, 6/13/25
"Israel Attacks, Netanyahu Runs Away,
Iranian Response Begins"
Comments here:
o
Full screen recommended.
Times of India, 6/13/25
"Iranian state media IRNA claims Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu was flown to Greece under heavy escort following Israeli airstrikes that killed at least 20 top IRGC commanders, including aerospace chief Amir Ali Hajizadeh. Israel launched strikes across Tehran and Natanz, hitting nuclear and military sites. Iran confirmed fires at Tabriz Airport and damage at Natanz, though it downplays the impact."
Comments here:
Thursday, June 12, 2025
"Alert! Iran's Counterattack On Israel Has Begun"
Prepper News, 6/12/25
"Alert! Iran's Counterattack On Israel Has Begun"
Comments here:
"This Is It - Global War Triggered? Israel Hits Iran and America’s In the Middle"
Lionel Nation, 6/12/25
"This Is It - Global War Triggered?
Israel Hits Iran and America’s In the Middle"
Comments here:
"It Has Begun, It's Going Nuclear"
Full screen recommended.
Prepper News, 6/12/25
"It Has Begun, It's Going Nuclear"
Comments here:
o
Full screen recommended.
Al Jazeera, 6/12/25
"Israel Carries Out Attacks On Iran’s Capital, Tehran"
Comments here:
o
Full screen recommended.
Times Of India, 6/12/25
"Iran To Rain 2000 Ballistic Missiles On Israel In Revenge?
Chilling US Warning As IDF Strikes"
Comments here:
o
Full screen recommended.
moneycontrol, 6/12/25
"IRGC Chief Hossein Salami Killed in Israeli Strike"
Comments here:
o
Full screen recommended.
Times Of India, 6/12/25
"IRGC HQ Burns; Israel Used Iraq To Rain Missiles
On Iran’s Military & Nuclear Sites"
Comments here:
Musical Interlude: Procol Harum, "A Salty Dog"
Procol Harum, "A Salty Dog"
After all the bad news, a much needed interlude...
○
"Ulysses"
"There lies the port; the vessel puffs her sail:
There gloom the dark, broad seas. My mariners,
Souls that have toil'd, and wrought, and thought with me -
That ever with a frolic welcome took
The thunder and the sunshine, and opposed
Free hearts, free foreheads - you and I are old;
Old age hath yet his honor and his toil;
Death closes all: but something ere the end,
Some work of noble note, may yet be done,
Not unbecoming men that strove with Gods.
The lights begin to twinkle from the rocks:
The long day wanes: the slow moon climbs: the deep
Moans round with many voices. Come, my friends,
'Tis not too late to seek a newer world.
Push off, and sitting well in order smite
The sounding furrows; for my purpose holds
To sail beyond the sunset, and the baths
Of all the western stars, until I die.
It may be that the gulfs will wash us down:
It may be we shall touch the Happy Isles,
And see the great Achilles, whom we knew.
Tho' much is taken, much abides; and tho'
We are not now that strength which in old days
Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are;
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield."
- Alfred, Lord Tennyson
"A Look to the Heavens"
"From our vantage point in the Milky Way Galaxy, we see NGC 6946 face-on. The big, beautiful spiral galaxy is located just 20 million light-years away, behind a veil of foreground dust and stars in the high and far-off constellation of Cepheus. From the core outward, the galaxy's colors change from the yellowish light of old stars in the center to young blue star clusters and reddish star forming regions along the loose, fragmented spiral arms.
NGC 6946 is also bright in infrared light and rich in gas and dust, exhibiting a high star birth and death rate. In fact, since the early 20th century at least nine supernovae, the death explosions of massive stars, were discovered in NGC 6946. Nearly 40,000 light-years across, NGC 6946 is also known as the Fireworks Galaxy. This remarkable portrait of NGC 6946 is a composite that includes image data from the 8.2 meter Subaru Telescope on Mauna Kea.”
"Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish."
"Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish."
- Steve Jobs,
Commencement Speech, Stanford University, 2005
"When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: "If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you'll most certainly be right." It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: "If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?" And whenever the answer has been "No" for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.
Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything - all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.
No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life's change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true...
When I was young, there was an amazing publication called "The Whole Earth Catalog", which was one of the bibles of my generation. It was created by a fellow named Stewart Brand not far from here in Menlo Park, and he brought it to life with his poetic touch. This was in the late 1960's, before personal computers and desktop publishing, so it was all made with typewriters, scissors, and polaroid cameras. It was sort of like Google in paperback form, 35 years before Google came along: it was idealistic, and overflowing with neat tools and great notions.
Stewart and his team put out several issues of "The Whole Earth Catalog", and then when it had run its course, they put out a final issue. It was the mid-1970s, and I was your age. On the back cover of their final issue was a photograph of an early morning country road, the kind you might find yourself hitchhiking on if you were so adventurous. Beneath it were the words: "Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish." It was their farewell message as they signed off. Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. And I have always wished that for myself. And now I wish that for you. Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish."
○
"Listen to me. We're here to make a dent in the universe.
Otherwise why even be here?"
- Steve Jobs
"Yet Now..."
“Yet now, as he roared across the night sky toward an unknown destiny, he found himself facing that bleak and ultimate question which so few men can answer to their satisfaction. What have I done with my life, he asked himself, that the world will be poorer if I leave it?”
- Arthur C. Clarke, “Glide Path”
Gerald Celente, "We 'Gold' You So, Danger Ahead, Gold Prices Spiking"
Strong language alert!
Gerald Celente, 6/12/25
"We 'Gold' You So, Danger Ahead, Gold Prices Spiking"
"The Trends Journal is a weekly magazine analyzing global current events forming future trends. Our mission is to present facts and truth over fear and propaganda to help subscribers prepare for what’s next in these increasingly turbulent times."
Comments here:
Paulo Coelho, "Walking the Path"
"Walking the Path"
by Paulo Coelho
"I reckon that it takes about three minutes to read my text. Well, according to statistics, in that same short period of time 300 people will die and another 620 will be born. It takes me perhaps half an hour to write a text: here I sit, concentrating on my computer, books piled up beside me, ideas in my head, the scenery passing by outside my window. Everything seems perfectly normal all around me; and yet, during these thirty minutes, 3,000 people have died and 6,200 have just seen the light of the world for the first time.
Where are all those thousands of families who have just begun to weep over the loss of some dear one, or else laugh at the arrival of a son, grandson or brother? I stop and reflect for a while: perhaps many of these deaths are reaching the end of a long, painful sickness, and some persons are relieved that the Angel has come for them. Besides these, in all certainty hundreds of children who have just been born will be abandoned in a minute and transferred to the death statistics before I finish this text.
What a thought! A simple statistic that I came upon by chance – and all of a sudden I can feel all those losses and encounters, smiles and tears. How many are leaving this life, alone in their rooms, without anyone realizing what is going on? How many will be born in secret, only to be abandoned at the door of shelters or convents? And then I reflect that I was part of the birth statistics and one day I will be included in the toll of the dead. How good that is to be fully aware that I am going to die. Ever since I took the road to Santiago I have understood that although life goes on and we are eternal, one day this existence will come to an end.
People think very little about death. They spend their lives worried about really absurd things, putting things off and leaving important moments aside. They risk nothing because they believe that is dangerous. They grumble a lot, but act like cowards when it is time to take certain steps. They want everything to change, but they themselves refuse to change. If they thought a little more about death, they would never fail to make that telephone call that they have been putting off. They would be a little more crazy. They would not be afraid of the end of this incarnation – because you cannot be afraid of something that is going to happen anyway.
The Indians say: “Today is as good a day as any other to leave this world”. And a sorcerer once remarked: “May death be always sitting beside you. That way, when you have to do something important, it will give you the strength and courage you need.” I hope, reader, that you have accompanied me this far. It would be silly to let the subject scare you, because sooner or later we are all going to die. And only those who accept this are prepared for life."
The Poet: May Sarton, “Now I Become Myself”; "The Work of Happiness"
“Now I Become Myself”
“Now I become myself. It’s taken
Time, many years and places,
I have been dissolved and shaken,
Worn other people’s faces,
Run madly, as if Time were there,
Terribly old, crying a warning,
“Hurry, you will be dead before -”
(What? Before you reach the morning?
or the end of the poem, is clear?
Or love safe in the walled city?)
Now to stand still, to be here,
Feel my own weight and density!
Now there is time and Time is young.
O, in this single hour I live
All of myself and do not move,
I, the pursued, who madly ran,
Stand still, stand still, and stop the Sun!”
~ May Sarton,
"Collected Poems, 1930-1993"
o
"The Work of Happiness: May Sarton’s Stunning
Poem About Being at Home in Yourself"
By Maria Popova
"In a culture predicated on the perpetual pursuit of happiness, as if it were a fugitive on the loose, it can be hard to discern what having happiness actually feels like, how it actually lives in us. Willa Cather came consummately close in her definition of happiness as the feeling of being “dissolved into something complete and great” - a definition consonant with Iris Murdoch’s lovely notion of unselfing. And yet happiness is equally a matter of how we inhabit the self - how we make ourselves at home in our own singular lives, in the dwelling-places of our own experience.
That is what May Sarton (May 3, 1912–July 16, 1995), who has written so movingly about unhappiness and its cure, explores in her poem “The Work of Happiness,” included in her indispensable Collected Poems: 1930–1993 (public library).
"The Work Of Happiness"
Read by Maria Popova
"I thought of happiness, how it is woven
Out of the silence in the empty house each day
And how it is not sudden and it is not given
But is creation itself like the growth of a tree.
No one has seen it happen, but inside the bark
Another circle is growing in the expanding ring.
No one has heard the root go deeper in the dark,
But the tree is lifted by this inward work
And its plumes shine, and its leaves are glittering.
So happiness is woven out of the peace of hours
And strikes its roots deep in the house alone:
The old chest in the corner, cool waxed floors,
White curtains softly and continually blown
As the free air moves quietly about the room;
A shelf of books, a table, and the white-washed wall —
These are the dear familiar gods of home,
And here the work of faith can best be done,
The growing tree is green and musical.
For what is happiness but growth in peace,
The timeless sense of time when furniture
Has stood a life’s span in a single place,
And as the air moves, so the old dreams stir
The shining leaves of present happiness?
No one has heard thought or listened to a mind,
But where people have lived in inwardness
The air is charged with blessing and does bless;
Windows look out on mountains and the walls are kind.
Complement with Bertrand Russell on the secret of happiness and Kurt Vonnegut on the one word it comes down to, then revisit Sarton’s poem “Meditation in Sunlight” and her magnificent ode to solitude."
“Life, Explained To You”
“Life, Explained To You”
Author Unknown
“On the first day God created the dog. God said, “Sit all day by the door of your house and bark at anyone who comes in or walks past. I will give you a life span of twenty years.” The dog said, “That’s too long to be barking. Give me ten years and I’ll give you back the other ten.” So God agreed.
On the second day God created the monkey. God said, “Entertain people, do monkey tricks and make them laugh. I’ll give you a twenty-year life span.” The monkey said, “Monkey tricks for twenty years? I don’t think so. Dog gave you back ten, so that’s what I’ll do too, okay?” And God agreed.
On the third day God created the cow. “You must go to the field with the farmer all day long and suffer under the sun, have calves, and give milk to support the farmer. I will give you a life span of sixty years.” The cow said, “That’s kind of a tough life you want me to live for sixty years. Let me have twenty and I’ll give back the other forty.” And God agreed again.
On the fourth day God created man. God said, “Eat, sleep, play, marry and enjoy your life. I’ll give you twenty years.” Man said, “What? Only twenty years? Tell you what, I’ll take my twenty, and the forty the cow gave back, and the ten the monkey gave back, and the ten the dog gave back, that makes eighty, okay?” “Okay,” said God, “You’ve got a deal.”
So that is why the first twenty years we eat, sleep, play, and enjoy ourselves; the next forty years we slave in the sun to support our family; the next ten years we do monkey tricks to entertain the grandchildren; and the last ten years we sit on the front porch and bark at everyone.”
“Life has now been explained to you.”
"In These Downbeat Times..."
"In these downbeat times, we need as much hope and courage as we do vision and analysis; we must accent the best of each other even as we point out the vicious effects of our racial divide and pernicious consequences of our maldistribution of wealth and power. We simply cannot live in the twenty-first century at each other's throats, even as we acknowledge the weighty forces of racism, patriarchy, economic inequality, homophobia, and ecological abuse on our necks. We are at a crucial crossroad in the history of this nation - and we either hang together by combating these forces that divide and degrade us or we hang separately. Do we have the intelligence, humor, imagination, courage, tolerance, love, respect, and will to meet the challenge? Time will tell. None of us alone can save the nation or world. But each of us can make a positive difference if we commit ourselves to do so."
- Cornel West
"He Cannot Help Doubting Himself..."
"A person who has not been completely alienated, who has remained sensitive and able to feel, who has not lost the sense of dignity, who is not yet for sale, who can still suffer over the suffering of others, who has not acquired fully the having mode of existence briefly, a person who has remained a person and not become a thing, cannot help feeling lonely, powerless, isolated in present-day society. He cannot help doubting himself and his own convictions, if not his sanity. "
- Erich Fromm
Greg Hunter, "LA More Than Insurrection, It’s Bolshevik Revolution"
"LA More Than Insurrection, It’s Bolshevik Revolution"
by Greg Hunter’s USAWatchdog.com
"Renowned attorney Larry Klayman predicted on USAWatchdog months ago that there would be full-blown, legal civil war happening in the court system. With 272 cases and counting filed against the Trump Administration, that prediction has proven spot-on. Klayman also predicted months ago that violence from the “rabid Left” would not only increase but “explode.” The LA riots prove another bullseye for Klayman. What Klayman is seeing is far more than some violent protests on the West Coast. Klayman warns, “This is a very dire period. We knew this was coming. This is more than an insurrection, this is a Bolshevik style revolution. It’s not just Bolsheviks, but it’s every conceivable leftist radical group. This is financed, undoubtedly, by people like George Soros. Karen Bass is a DEI affirmative action mayor in Los Angeles. She was going to be Biden’s second choice to be vice president, God forbid. They are using her. The Left is using her, and they are using Newsom and others. They want there to be some kind of tragedy in LA. They want there to be some kind of Kent State where someone gets killed. They want one of these protesters to be killed by the National Guard or by the military. This will be a flash point to carry forth this Bolshevik revolution. They want to take this county down to ground zero. This is what they are trying to do. They want to destabilize the country and bring these radicals out.”
Klayman goes on to say, “There is, undoubtedly, foreign money involved probably from communist China, Iran and North Korea. There is probably money coming from the Left with Soros and others. They want this country at a point that is destroyed, and then they take control. That is their motivation. That is what happened in Russia when they had the Bolshevik Revolution. That’s what happened in China with Mao. This is a plan. This is a playbook. This is why we need to push back, and that is why President Trump needs to crush this right now to make an example of this. Frankly, he should have Governor Newsom arrested, and he should have Karen Bass arrested. They are inciting violence, and they are fomenting revolution. We are under attack, and President Trump needs to declare martial law.”
Klayman says the riots in LA are not a sign of Trumps failure as a President, but it is a sign of his success. Klaman explains, “They are making their move. We predicted this several months ago. It was just a matter of time, and it built and built and built, and now they see Trump, regardless of these judges, and they see Trump is at the point of possibly succeeding. So, they are going to do a number on the President of the United States. Iran is not going to give way, and they are going to continue to enrich uranium. They know, ultimately, we will be backed into a corner, and we are going to have to attack them. This is a last-ditch effort to try to eliminate President Trump and try to weaken our country before that occurs.”
Klayman says the so-called autopen scandal of the Biden Administration will reveal that pardons were sold by staff. Klayman contends this is something Trump did not do in office the first term or this term. Klayman says, “The whole system is corrupt. It is a pay-to-play system. The American people were sold out. I doubt there was not much of anything that was approved by Joe Biden.”
In closing, Klayman says, “This is a do or die life experience. Today it’s LA, tomorrow it’s going to be coming to your hometown and your neighborhood.” There is more in the 43-minute interview.
Join Greg Hunter on Rumble as he goes One-on-One with renowned lawyer and government corruption fighter Larry Klayman, founder of FreedomWatchUSA.org, as he sounds the alarm on a communist takeover attempt for America that is just starting.
o
"NATO Wants A Nuclear War?! 1 Billion Dead?!"
Full screen recommended.
Prepper News, 6/12/25
"NATO Wants A Nuclear War?! 1 Billion Dead?!"
Comments here:
o
Full screen recommended.
Times Of India, 6/12/25
"Putin’s Address In English; ‘One More NATO Trigger, And We’ll…’:
Russia’s Chilling Nuclear Threat"
"In a chilling escalation, President Vladimir Putin declared that Russia holds the world’s most advanced nuclear arsenal, warning NATO and the West of its unmatched power. At a high-level meeting, Putin demanded “special attention” be given to expanding Russia’s deadly nuclear triad - land, sea, and air-based delivery systems designed to survive any first strike. His fiery rhetoric signals a bold threat to global stability, as Moscow positions itself as an unshakable nuclear force. The message is clear: Russia is ready - and the world should be on edge."
Comments here:
Dan, I Allegedly, "Robert Kiyosaki Declares Civil War - Is This the End?"
Full screen recommended.
Dan, I Allegedly, AM 6/12/25
"Robert Kiyosaki Declares Civil War -
Is This the End?"
"Robert Kiyosaki issued a serious warning, calling this the beginning of a civil war and urging everyone to prepare now! In this video, I dive into what he means by that, including the financial instability we’re seeing, the end of fiat currency, and ongoing issues with banks. From Bitcoin to gold and silver, Kiyosaki’s advice focuses on safeguarding your financial future, but there’s much more to unpack.
We also discuss the rising violence across cities, major cyberattacks impacting businesses like Whole Foods, and shocking news about companies like Sling and Dish. With credit scores plummeting due to student loan delinquencies and businesses struggling to stay afloat, the challenges keep piling up. Plus, I share updates on South Dakota’s new speed limit, Disney’s latest spending spree, and even some wild stories about unexpected fees when shopping online."
Comments here:
Adventures With Danno, "I Was In Complete Shock At Kroger"
Full screen recommended.
Adventures With Danno, AM 6/12/25
"I Was In Complete Shock At Kroger"
Comments here:
"It's Over! The U.S. Budget Deficit Skyrockets And The Dollar Is Cratering"
Gregory Mannarino, AM 6/12/25
"It's Over! The U.S. Budget Deficit Skyrockets
And The Dollar Is Cratering"
Comments here:
"Every empire/nation that has fallen has followed this same pattern which I am going to outline for you here. As prosperity fades, the people turn on each other. This sows division and hatred. Division weakens the nation further, while the rulers grow richer in the chaos. A nation at war with itself cannot stand.
Massive debt is created to fund corruption. Money is printed to cover lies. The rich rob the poor through inflation. The government steals the people’s future to sustain its power. The collapse of the currency is the physical symptom of the disease. And you are watching it now, deficits exploding, the dollar dying. Then the nation devours itself from within.
The final stage before collapse is cannibalism of the system. Institutions collapse. Corruption eats through every level of government. The debt spiral accelerates beyond control. Trust in leadership vanishes. The middle class is wiped out. The nation eats itself alive trying to preserve the illusion of power, but the more it consumes, the weaker it becomes. Then the empire/nation devours itself from within. This is where America is right now, and you are seeing this in real time.
Let’s break this one down. Another Babylon two-faced headline pure control by contradiction, classic formula.
Producer Prices “rise less than expected.” See everyone, inflation is under control!" (FALSE)
Jobless claims hit an 8-month high, "But pay no attention to this it’s a temporary blip!" (FALSE)
They headline the Producer Prices "less than expected" to keep markets soothed. But less than expected still means it’s rising. Why? This gives the illusion that the Fed can manage rates, and inflation is no big deal.
Next… Bury the negative reality. Jobless claims up 8-month high = deteriorating labor market. This is major, rising claims mean businesses are laying off, cutting costs. The reality? On Earth? Producer prices continue to climb, supply chains are under stress. Rising jobless claims confirm that underlying demand is falling and businesses are bracing for slowdown. The system is shrinking by their own numbers. Inflation is not conquered, costs are still rising. The job market is now visibly deteriorating. (And the lie will be maintained as long as possible). So, expect that economic data contradictions will now become more frequent and more absurd from here."
- GM
Bill Bonner, "Another Brick in the Wall"
"Another Brick in the Wall"
by Bill Bonner
“All I do is run the country - well.”
- Donald Trump
Youghal, Ireland - "MAGA forces are up against a brick wall of unrelenting reality. No free lunches. No easy fixes. And no non-problem that can’t be turned into a real problem with the forceful application of a MAGA solution. We remind ourselves that the empire is slipping...and has been for the last 25 years. Donald Trump was elected to try to turn it around. If he were to succeed, it would change the Primary Trend, which would cause us to change our long-term investment outlook. So, as if gleaning through a dumpster for a half-eaten sandwich, we keep studying the Trump agenda, looking for something we missed.
So far, nary a crust. Donald Trump’s pensée is win-lose xenophobia; there are problems everywhere...and every one of them is caused by someone else. In order to win, we need to make him lose. Without so many immigrants in the labor pool, for example, wages for US citizens would rise. And without so many imports, made by foreigners, consumers would Buy American. Then, sales, profits, and jobs - furnished by US-based companies - would increase. Such a simple problem. So ready for a solution.
What to do? Just round them up - the ‘illegals.’ Send in the ICE...all suited out in battle gear. Deport those lawbreaking SOBs. And ban immigration from the places we don’t like. Trump plans to deport ten million ‘illegals.’ He’s got $70 billion in the Big, Beautiful Budget Abomination (BBBA) set aside for that purpose.
Hold on...here’s brick number one. ABC with more math: A new report from the American Immigration Council, an immigration rights research and policy firm, estimates that to deport even one million undocumented immigrants a year would cost over $88 billion dollars annually, for a total of $967.9 billion over more than ten years. That’s nearly $100,000 for each deportee…and a trillion dollars to be added to US debt. Is that a good investment? Fortune:"According to a Deutsche Bank analysis of data from U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, the number of encounters at the Southwest border has plunged to 12,000 people per month since Trump’s inauguration from an average of 200,000 during the year-and-a-half period between January 2022 and June 2024."
Remember, the pool of homegrown labor is stagnant. There has been no increase in the number of jobs going to native born workers in the last five years. Without the foreigners, the US economy would scarcely have grown at all.
Remember too that the ‘we think, they sweat’ vanity took root in US soil more than twenty years ago. Now, it covers the ground. So, who among our ‘thinkers’ will do the work that these ten million sweaty immigrants were doing? Maybe, someone who just got a degree in DEI counseling from a local university? Or someone who just got out of jail and decided to go straight?
American consumers will have to pay to deport someone and then pay more for someone else to do what he had been doing. Not only that. The Democrats’ ‘Joint Economic Committee’ tried to tally the costs. Its conclusions: Depending on how many immigrants are deported, these mass deportations would:
• Reduce real gross domestic product (GDP) by as much as 7.4% by 2028
• Cause labor shortages in key industries, removing 225,000 workers in agriculture and 1.5 million workers in construction
• Push prices up to 9.1% higher by 2028, and
• Cost 44,000 U.S.-born workers their jobs for every half a million immigrants who are removed from the labor force.
What are those estimates worth? Probably not much. But if you stop foreigners from depressing wages in the US, they’ll depress wages back at home. And then…brick number two: As prices for American-made products go up, foreign made products become more attractive! In other words, by getting rid of millions of low-wage workers in the US, lower-wage economies overseas will have a larger price advantage...and Americans actually have an incentive to NOT Buy American.
Those damned foreigners! Ripping us off again. As of last year, about $25 trillion worth of merchandise was crossing borders every twelve months...at tariff charges averaging below 3%. But Team Trump sees trade deficits heading toward $1 trillion per year; they’re ‘ripping us off,’ they say
The solution is obvious - impose tariffs... trade barriers... right? Importers can ‘eat’ the extra charges, right? Maybe for a little while. But soon, sellers will restore their margins by raising prices. Then, the ‘tariff tax’ will be included in the prices that US consumers pay. And with less purchasing power, Americans will be poorer.
But wait, here’s another brick in the wall: Reducing trade deficits also means reducing the number of US dollars that end up in foreign hands. Those dollars are typically recycled into US bonds. That’s the way the fake money model works. The US ‘prints’ the money. Americans borrow it. They buy foreign-made products (often better or cheaper than their Made-in-America competitors). And then the overseas dollars are used to buy US debt.
It was always a scam...but it helped fund US deficits, keep interest rates low and US asset prices high. And now, the Trump troupe makes it even scammier. We’ll see where it leads. Stay tuned."
Pink Floyd, "Another Brick In The Wall"
Wednesday, June 11, 2025
"Farmers Close Down Production In U.S. As Agricultural Crisis Accelerates"
Full screen recommended.
Epic Economist, 6/11/25
"Farmers Close Down Production
In U.S. As Agricultural Crisis Accelerates"
"What we're witnessing isn't just another agricultural downturn – it's the systematic collapse of the most powerful food production system the world has ever known. From the cornfields of Iowa to the wheat plains of Kansas, from the soybean farms of Illinois to the cattle ranches of Texas, American farmers are making a decision that will shake the global food supply to its core: they're shutting down. This isn't a strike. This isn't a protest. This is survival. And the consequences are already rippling through every grocery store, every restaurant, every dinner table in America and beyond.
Three weeks ago, what started as routine border inspections became the spark that ignited a powder keg decades in the making. At the Laredo and Nogales border crossings, over 140 John Deere tractors and harvesting machines sat baking under the scorching sun – not because of bureaucratic delays, but because of a calculated blockade targeting America's most iconic agricultural equipment manufacturer.
While competitors like Case IH and Kubota sailed through with minimal delays, John Deere faced what Mexican customs officials euphemistically called "enhanced agricultural equipment inspection protocols." But this was no routine check. This was surgical warfare, timed perfectly to disrupt Mexico's critical planting season just weeks away.
For farmers who had prepaid for equipment, watching their machinery trapped mere meters away across an invisible line, this wasn't just an inconvenience – it was catastrophic. In Sinaloa, Eduardo Vasquez stared helplessly at 5,000 acres of unplanted land, his fully paid $300,000 tractor unreachable across the border. Time was bleeding away, and with it, an entire season's livelihood. But this border blockade was just the match. The real explosives had been accumulating for years."
Comments here:
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)