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Accused Charlie Kirk killer Tyler Robinson's full handwritten confession to his trans lover reveals just how twisted his plot was, according to newly unsealed court documents.
The sick note -- in which Robinson refers to roommate lover Lance Twiggs as "Luna" -- was made public in full Thursday, as Robinson remains held for allegedly shooting the popular conservative media personality from a rooftop at Utah Valley University in September 2025.
"Luna, if you are reading this per my text, then I am so sorry," the note begins, presumably referring to a text Robinson had reportedly sent Twiggs moments after the assassination, telling his partner to "drop what you are doing, look under my keyboard."
A search warrant affidavit obtained by Fox 13 confirmed the handwritten note was found under Twiggs' keyboard at a St. George, Utah, townhouse he and Robinson shared.
The letter continues, "I left the house this morning on a mission, and set an auto text.
"I am likely dead, or facing a lengthy prison sentence. I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk, and I took it.
"I don't know if I will/have succeeded, but I had hoped to make it home to you. I wish we could have lived in a world where this did not feel necessary. I wish I could have stayed for you and lived our lives together," Robinson wrote, according to court docs.
"I lack the words to express how much I love you, and how very much you mean to me. Please try and find joy in this life. I love you, always, -Tyler," he concludes.
Texts between Robinson and Twiggs, 22, have shown that the capital-murder suspect had been planning the grisly killing "a bit over a week," and offered insight into his train of thought in the moments afer the shooting -- as law enforcement launched a sweeping manhunt for the perpetrator.
"I had planned to grab my rifle from my drop point shortly after, but most of that side of town got locked down. Its quiet [sic], almost enough to get out, but theres one vehicle lingering," Robinson wrote in one text to Twiggs, the documents show.
"Three hours ago there was an officer with a k9 walking nearby the area, hoping that pooch has a bad sniffer," another reads.
"Im wishing I had circled back and grabbed it as soon as I got to my vehicle, because it sounds like the police couldn't get in for a long while because of the traffic."
The accused killer then alludes to passing the time by brazenly scouring social media: "guess im just sittin in my car watching reels for another hour, hopin this guy f--ks off [sic]."
Robinson and Twiggs, who authorities have said was transitioning from male to female, then make a plan to rendezvous at their home.
"I'm sorry, but I think this might be it," reads a text from Robinson, according to the docs.
"If the way is clear I can try and come your way to say goodbye, after that I have a spot in mind that I'll call police to...I have no doubts they will be on me within the hour. And I will be giving my location up and going out on my own terms I have no intention of being drug through the courts in front of the country. Can I come see you?"
A pair of gray Converse sneakers with white shoelaces helped authorities nail Tyler Robinson for Charlie Kirk's assassination, newly surfaced court documents reveal.
Utah Valley University surveillance video captured Robinson, 22, sporting the kicks as he bizarrely moved around the campus in the moments leading up to the Sept. 10, 2025, fatal shooting from a campus building rooftop, according to a search-warrant affidavit unsealed Thursday.
Investigators later found a shoe impression from the rooftop that was "consistent with the shoe sole characteristics of a Converse/Chuck Taylor shoe" that Robinson was wearing at the time, the affidavit stated.
A separate court document noted that police later recovered a pair of "grey Converse shoes with white laces" from Robinson's St. George family home while executing a search warrant.
The accused capital-murderer was captured on video footage 33 minutes before the fatal gunfire, when he was seen walking through a grassy area on campus, then through a parking lot and pedestrian tunnel.
Unbelievably -- by which I mean, completely believably -- Me-Again Kelly "reported" on the handwritten confession before concluding that it would not change the minds of the conspiracy theorists, going on to repeat Cavernous Nostrils' objections as if they were grounded in reality, to wit, that because the letter is written in a "formal" tone that means it must be a planted fedslop fake.
Me-Again doesn't endorse that claim -- she just describes it and suggests it's a real and reasonable objection.
Anything to keep hold of Cavernous Nostrils' audience, now that all of her respectable non-deranged Republican audience has fled her.
The U.S. on Monday said it began blocking ships from entering or exiting Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz, attempting to ratchet up pressure on Iran to reopen the key oil route after peace negotiations collapsed.
As the 10 a.m. ET deadline passed for the blockade to take effect, President Donald Trump warned Iran's "fast attack ships" not to come near the U.S. forces enforcing the closure.
"If any of these ships come anywhere close to our BLOCKADE, they will be immediately ELIMINATED, using the same system of kill that we use against the drug dealers on boats at Sea," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "It is quick and brutal."
A White House official confirmed to CNBC that the blockade has taken effect.
Trump had announced the blockade plan Sunday in a social media post slamming Iran for refusing to give up its nuclear ambitions and accusing Tehran of "WORLD EXTORTION" by continuing to throttle traffic through the strait.
The U.S. blockade applies to "any and all Ships trying to enter, or leave, the Strait of Hormuz," Trump said.
The U.S. Central Command later added the caveat that American forces "will not impede freedom of navigation for vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz to and from non-Iranian ports."
"The blockade will be enforced impartially against vessels of all nations entering or departing Iranian ports and coastal areas, including all Iranian ports on the Arabian Gulf and Gulf of Oman," CENTCOM specified.
U.S. to Blockade Ships Entering or Exiting Iranian Ports
TAMPA, Fla. -- U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces will begin implementing a blockade of all maritime traffic entering and exiting Iranian ports on April 13 at 10 a.m. ET, in accordance with the President's proclamation.
The blockade will be enforced impartially against vessels of all nations entering or departing Iranian ports and coastal areas, including all Iranian ports on the Arabian Gulf and Gulf of Oman. CENTCOM forces will not impede freedom of navigation for vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz to and from non-Iranian ports.
Additional information will be provided to commercial mariners through a formal notice prior to the start of the blockade. All mariners are advised to monitor Notice to Mariners broadcasts and contact U.S. naval forces on bridge-to-bridge channel 16 when operating in the Gulf of Oman and Strait of Hormuz approaches.
This is a very Trumpian move. It flips the script -- you're blocking our ships? Okay, now we're blocking yours.
I think this is an improvisation, a gamble made because Iran just will not agree to any of Trump's ceasefire demands.
What's the goal? Miad Maleka explains:
Miad Maleki
@miadmaleki
1/10 The U.S. naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz would cost Iran approximately $276M/day in lost exports and disrupt $159M/day in imports, a combined economic damage of ~$435M/day, or $13B/month.
Over 90% of Iran's $109.7B in annual trade transits the Persian Gulf. Oil/gas accounts for 80% of government export earnings and 23.7% of GDP. Kharg Island alone generates ~$53B/year, or as I noted to @TIME, "$78 billion a year in energy revenue.
2/10 CRUDE OIL: Iran was exporting ~1.5M barrels/day, earning $139M/day at wartime pricing (~$87/barrel), though with minimal proceed repatriation due to banking sanctions. A blockade zeroes this out overnight. Kharg Island, which handles 92% of crude exports, sits deep inside the Gulf with no viable alternative. That's $139M/day, gone.
/10 PETROCHEMICALS: Iran exported $19.7B in petrochemicals in 9 months of 2024/25, ~$54M/day. Virtually all of it ships through Assaluyeh, Imam Khomeini, and Shahid Rajaee, all inside the blockade zone. No overland route can move these volumes. Another $54M/day, gone.
4/10 NON-OIL EXPORTS: Iran's non-oil trade hit $51.7B in 2025. After subtracting petrochemicals, ~$88M/day in goods (minerals, metals, etc.) flow through Persian Gulf ports. Roughly 90% would be blocked. That's another ~$79M/day in lost revenue.
...
7/10 IMPORTS: Iran imported $58B in goods in 2025, ~$159M/day. A blockade chokes off industrial inputs, machinery, and consumer goods. Food inflation already hit 105% by February 2026. Rice prices are up 7x. This gets dramatically worse under blockade. Blockade will hopefully allow offloading of the humanitarian cargos.
/10 Extremely important topic is the storage clock: Iran has ~50-55M barrels of total onshore oil storage, roughly 60% full. Spare capacity: ~20M barrels. With 1.5M bbl/day of surplus production that normally exports, storage fills in ~13 DAYS. After that, Iran must shut in wells.
This is tough: The IRGC will wind up destroying much of Iran's future oil production to cling to power.
Why is this very important: when mature oil wells shut down, bottom water rushes in, a process called water coning. Oil droplets get permanently trapped in rock pores. This oil can never be recovered. Iran's fields already decline 5-8% annually. Forced shut-ins could permanently destroy 300,000-500,000 bbl/day of production capacity, that's $9-15B/year in revenue, gone forever.
9/10 CURRENCY COLLAPSE ACCELERANT: The rial has already cratered from 42,000 to 1.5M per dollar. Banks are limiting withdrawals to $18-30/day. Overall inflation: 47.5%. A blockade eliminating all forex earnings pushes the rial into terminal hyperinflation. The regime issued its largest-ever banknote, 10M rials, worth about $7.
10/10 BOTTOM LINE: A naval blockade imposes ~$435M/day in combined economic damage. Storage fills in 13 days, forcing well shut-ins that cause permanent reservoir damage. The rial enters terminal collapse. Iran's alternatives outside the Strait can replace less than 10% of Gulf throughput. The blockade makes continued resistance economically impossible.
In addition, Iran has been collecting "tolls" from ships it allows to pass, most of which are, I assume, taking oil to Iran's allies like India and China. The blockade not only strips Iran of this "toll" money, but will cause Iran's allies to pressure it into conceding.
Will this work? I don't know. Another question is, will it cut into the IRGC faster than it punishes the people suffering under the tyranny of the Islamic Occupational Army? Again, I don't know.
Now that he's out of the race, I anticipate them defending him and permitting him to remain in the House. Just like they did with Biden -- they forced him out of a race for tactical and cynical political reasons, but then kept him in office for equally tactical and cynical political reasons.
Reps. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., and Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, are expected to face an immediate expulsion threat when the House returns from a two-week recess on Tuesday.
Swalwell, who dropped out of California's 2026 gubernatorial race Sunday, is facing multiple sexual assault and misconduct allegations, including at least one involving a former staffer. The Manhattan district attorney's office has also opened a criminal investigation into an incident that allegedly occurred in New York City.
Swalwell has repeatedly characterized the allegations as "false," though he acknowledged a lack of judgment on Sunday. He has pledged to vigorously defend himself.
Swalwell suspends governor campaign amid sexual misconduct allegations
His exit came after allies and staffers abandoned him en masse.
...
"I am suspending my campaign for Governor," Swalwell wrote on X on Sunday. "To my family, staff, friends, and supporters, I am deeply sorry for mistakes in judgment I've made in my past."
He wrote, "I will fight the serious, false allegations that have been made -- but that's my fight, not a campaign's."
The Democratic congressman's exit completed a stunningly swift collapse for a candidate who had shown signs in recent weeks of pulling ahead of a crowded Democratic field, with prominent interest groups and elected officials beginning to coalesce behind him.
But an ex-staffer's allegation that Swalwell had sexually assaulted her, detailed in a San Francisco Chronicle report and followed by more misconduct allegations in a CNN report, led those allies to abandon Swalwell en masse as high-level staffers departed his campaign.
Swalwell started last week vehemently denying accusations against him as nakedly political attacks on the race's frontrunner. He ended it politically isolated, his top campaign surrogates and prominent endorsers withdrawing their support or urging him to exit the race.
By Friday afternoon, Swalwell's two campaign co-chairs, Reps. Jimmy Gomez and Adam Gray, called on Swalwell to drop out, as did Sens. Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued a statement saying the accusations "must be appropriately investigated with full transparency and accountability," and that, "As I discussed with Congressman Swalwell, it is clear that is best done outside of a gubernatorial campaign."
Swalwell had come under enormous pressure not only in the governor's race, but in the House, too, where he now is facing calls for his expulsion. Meanwhile, the Manhattan District Attorney's Office is investigating allegations that he sexually assaulted a former staffer in a New York City hotel room in April 2024.
I know that some of you object to this political hit based on the fact that there is no actual evidence of rape introduced against him yet, just allegations.
But I cannot help but apply Eric Fartwell's own evidentiary standards against him. Here is Fartwell repeatedly accusing Trump of being an "Agent of Putin," and when asked what the evidence is for this conspiracy theory, he just says "the evidence is right in front of your nose" and "the evidence is hiding in plain sight."
This turned out to be a line cribbed from Adam Schiff: When Schiff claimed he had secret evidence that Trump was a RUSSIAN ASSET, he only meant "you can just tell by looking at him."
So is it right to spare Fartwell by insisting on a higher evidentiary standard than the one he inflicts on whoever he's politically targeting?
I think I agree with the Boromir Principle here: "This is a gift... Why not use the enemy's weapon against him?"
I don't know if using the power of the Ring for one's own purposes works out because I haven't finished LOTR yet. But I'm sure it'll be fine. Why wouldn't it? It's just a Ring after all.
Speaking of Schiff: Here's Schiff endorsing his literal partner in crime just a short time ago.
California gubernatorial candidate Eric Swalwell will find himself in more legal crosshairs if he or his team "disparages" one of his accusers of sexual misconduct, her husband warned on Saturday night.
Adam Parkhomenko, who is married to Ally Sammarco, said on social media he wished the congressman's family well and hopes he gets the help he needs.
"But if Eric Swalwell or his attorney makes a single statement that disparages my wife, I will be filing a lawsuit against him," Parkhomenko went on. "I've already made clear that if he believes anything I've said is untrue, he should sue me immediately."
He warned Swalwell "he should be very careful about what he chooses to say" before calling on him to resign from Congress.
...
In a report published by CNN, Sammarco alleged that Swalwell had sent her inappropriate messages on Snapchat in 2021, including unsolicited nudes.
Swalwell would also go for jogs in her neighborhood and ask her to come downstairs from her apartment to chat, she alleged.
"It made me feel gross and uncomfortable," she said of the nudes. "I didn't ask for that."
...
Other accusations made more serious claims, including alleged rape. The Manhattan District Attorney's Office in New York launched an investigation Saturday into the incidents.
"Movin' sloppy," as BCP says.
Nancy Pelosi said she had "no concerns" about Fartwell banging a Chinese spy when she put him on the tip-top secret clearance Intelligence Committee.
Maybe she should have had some concerns. In unverified video, Eric Fartwell supposedly videotaped himself attempting to kiss a woman who was plainly uninterested him, despite her allegedly being a sex worker. The video has been deleted but you might still see it here. The fact that it has been deleted suggests that it's an AI deep fake, but, as Boromir might say, "The evidence we should use the ring is right in front of your nose."
Grok says it looks real...
@grok
Apr 11
Modern AI-generated videos can be virtually indistinguishable from real ones, making definitive determination difficult or impossible from visual inspection alone.
That said, the short clip shows fluid movements, consistent lighting/shadows, natural skin textures, and no obvious artifacts like distorted hands or flickering faces. The man strongly resembles Eric Swalwell. It appears to be authentic footage rather than AI-generated, though external verification (e.g., source metadata or statements from those involved) would be needed for certainty.
But I have no confidence in AI answers about whether something is AI. I asked grok or chatGTP a year ago about very suspicious videos and it assured me they were real. I didn't believe it, and kept re-asking, and with each new answer the AI backed away from its initial confidence and eventually admitted "They're fake."
I think AI is good at figuring out what you want to hear and telling you just that.
But there are other reasons he should never have been placed on the Intelligence Committee: A 2017 FBI report concluded he was guilty of leaking "a lot of leaked information."
Eric Swalwell: Allegations of sexual misconduct, leaking sensitive information and more.
According to this 2017 FBI report, "(Redacted) noted Swalwell has been the source of a lot of leaked information and had to be counseled to be more careful.”
Media "reporters" are now all saying "everyone knew" about Sloppy Swalwell but making excuses why they couldn't report the story. One woman says she knew but couldn't "chase down the story" because she was not on the politics beat nor the women's issues beat.
This excuse was so unbelievably bullshit that she deleted that post.
Boy I tell you what you give the journos 10 years to chase down leads and a half dozen whistle blowers on a silver platter and political expediency and by god they will break the story. pic.twitter.com/RBAEsk6JOn
There is talk of expelling not just Fartwell but the Republican who cheated on his wife -- seems less serious than rape -- and the Stronk Empowered Black Woman who embezzled millions of dollars in covid funds to use in her campaign and buy a big diamond ring for herself.
Bipartisan furor over sexual misconduct allegations against Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) is cascading into calls to expel not only him, but three other members -- two Republicans and a Democrat -- accused of wrongdoing.
The dynamic could upend the House in the coming weeks with forced votes, intense debate, and at least one public House Ethics Committee hearing on the books.
Swalwell ended his gubernatorial bid on Sunday after being accused of sexually assaulting a former aide and other instances of misconduct.
Lawmakers calling for his ouster from Congress immediately also pointed to Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas), who admitted he had an affair with a former congressional staffer who later died after setting herself on fire, and is accused of sending sexually explicit messages to a former campaign aide.
Gonzales's affair was reported earlier this year, leading to an Ethics Committee referral and the Texas congressman ending his bid for reelection in March. It is against House rules for a member to have a sexual relationship with a member of their staff.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) said over the weekend she will file a motion to expel Swalwell and is inquiring to see if she can pair that with a motion to expel Gonzales. It takes support from two-thirds of the House to expel a member from Congress.
A growing number of Democrats -- including Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez (D-N.M.), Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), and Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) -- have said they would be in favor of expelling both Swalwell and Gonzales. On the Republican side, Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) said he would vote to expel both.
But the demands for punishing lawmakers accused of wrongdoing aren't stopping there. Members are also pointing to Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.) and Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-Fla.).
Mills -- whose former girlfriend obtained a restraining order against him last year for harassment, and whose other simultaneous girlfriend accused him of assault before quickly recanting -- is being investigated by the House Ethics Committee for allegations of dating violence, campaign finance violations and more.
Report from Heartland Institute’s “Climate Realism” Conference: A Celebration of the Tide Turning Against Climate Alarmism
—Buck Throckmorton
I was in attendance at the Heartland Institute’s “Climate Realism Rising” conference last week. It was a triumphal event, with green energy having fallen out of favor, the EPA’s Endangerment Finding now rescinded, auto manufacturers abandoning EVs, wind farms kneecapped by President Trump, and the public now tuning out the climate hysterics’ failed prophesies of doom.
To be clear, despite the celebratory mood, there was agreement that the left will never relent in their war on fossil fuels, and that we are just one bad election from being put on defense again.
The highlight was a keynote speech by EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, who is one of the most consequential political figures of my lifetime, because he aggressively retook political ground lost to the left, restoring freedom and prosperity in the process. Having the head of the EPA proudly affirming “climate denial” in front of a group of “climate skeptics” sent the legacy media into paroxysms of partisan anger, as if a heretic had occupied the most holy temple in their church.
It might have seemed like a fringe event, except for the high-profile opening speaker: Lee Zeldin, the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency and one of President Trump’s possible choices for the next attorney general. The mood in the room was celebratory. The roughly 220 attendees at the gathering at the Hotel Washington, which is a short walk from the White House, treated Zeldin like a rock star, giving him a standing ovation before he had even spoken.
The legacy media is adamant that the politically approved science has been settled, and that only command and control of all economic activity can save the planet. Further, the legacy media demands that the scientific method be prohibited when it comes to climate, so that no climate theory may be challenged nor hypotheses tested.
Getting back to Heartland’s Climate Realism conference, here are a few quick overviews of interesting topics that were covered. (There was a lot of additional great material which I’ll likely discuss further in future posts.)
Amidst all the applause for the scientists and activists who helped turn the tide against the climate cult, Marc Morano pointed out that there is one superhero who should receive special recognition for his contribution to our cause, specifically Anthony Fauci. His politically motivated fabulations during Covid brought disgrace to government scientists, and to pretty much anyone else claiming “expertise” in service to the left’s political agenda. The long track record of “climate scientists” falsifying historical temperature records and predicting weather catastrophes that never came to pass makes the comparison to Fauci appropriate.
In short, Covid hysteria killed off climate hysteria. Thank you Anthony Fauci for helping us to fully understand the malevolent dishonesty of government-funded “experts.”
*****
One of the talking points of the climate doomsday cult is that “extreme one-day precipitation events” in the U.S. are increasing.
David Legates gave an informational presentation on the various forms of rain gauges, how the data is collected and measured, and how they differ in accuracy. Historically there has been some degree of under-measurement. This is due to wind, evaporation, pressure changes as air hits the gauges, the timing of measurement, etc. Legates discussed how NOAA rolled out the all-new Automated Surface Observing System (ASOS) as the official gauge in the early 1990s, replacing manually tested bucket gauges. ASOS is more accurate, therefore it is now capturing higher rainfall totals.
This chart shows that the trendline of extreme precipitation events jumped dramatically upward right when ASOS was launched in the early 1990s, but then quickly leveled off. The only change in “extreme one day precipitation” was the change in the measuring tool, not the amount of rain falling from the sky.
*****
Anthony Watts (wattsupwiththat.com) discussed NOAA temperature gauges and how scientifically flawed they are.
NOAA has official protocols about where its temperature sensors must be stationed so as to avoid the influence of heat retained in parking lots, rock walls, etc. A survey of these stations by Watts’ team found that fully 96% of NOAA’s temperature gauges are improperly situated, causing higher readings than would be recorded if properly placed in a field of grass.
Even more disturbing is that many of NOAA’s official temperature gauges don’t even exist! There are hundreds of old stations that were decommissioned or have mechanically failed. Rather than replace them, NOAA has continued to simply estimate the daily temperature readings from these ghost stations, and then incorporate these fabricated temperature readings into their official temperature database that shows a warming trend.
Mr. Watts has developed his own temperature station and was able to properly place one at the Reno airport. Because NOAA’s improperly placed sensor is picking up retained heat from the tarmac and runways, NOAA consistently captures overnight temperatures more than two degrees warmer than the actual air temperature as measured by Watts’ own temperature gauge situated away from the asphalt.
*****
The great Steve Milloy (junkscience.com) spoke at several conference sessions about various topics. I appreciated his caution about being too celebratory regarding our recent political victories.
The 2009 Obama Endangerment Finding, which was just reversed by Trump and Zeldin, was made possible by the 2007 Supreme Court decision “Massachusetts vs EPA,” which found that greenhouse gases, including CO2, are pollutants, and that the EPA can regulate anything involving CO2.
Milloy stressed that as wonderful as it is that the Endangerment Finding is reversed for now, the ultimate prize is overturning Massachusetts vs EPA. He expressed some disappointment that the case of “West Virginia vs EPA,” a victory for our side, could have been used seek the reversal of Massachusetts vs EPA. Instead, it was just a narrow victory that limited the EPA’s regulation of power plants.
*****
There were some interesting discussions about nuclear energy, and the challenges and costs of building new nuclear. As clean and reliable as nuclear energy is, it’s still more expensive than coal and natural gas. For now, there is nothing cheaper than natural gas, which is also wildly abundant. Natural gas also burns clean, which has greatly reduced carbon emissions (for those who focus on “greenhouse gases.”)
So, the challenge in building new nuclear is that it may make sense as part of a strategy of diversifying fuel options, but it is a hard sell since it will still cost ratepayers more than natural gas.
The “all-in” cost per mWh (including transmission lines, land, construction, engineering, etc) of various forms of electricity production are as follow:
Reliable energy sources are not only cheaper than “green” sources, they have a lower impact on the environment. Wind energy needs 300 times the land footprint to produce the same electricity as one conventional power plant (if the wind is even blowing.
*****
Much gratitude to Jim Lakely, James Taylor, Cameron Sholty and all the rest of the Heartland team for their lead role in fighting the climate hoax. By establishing and perpetuating this regular gathering of eminent scientists debunking the climate scare, we “climate skeptics” are winning the climate battle.
But we can’t let up. The left never does. We need to keep the pedal to the metal in continuing to fight for and celebrate a high-carbon lifestyle. As Jason Isaacs of American Energy Institute likes to point out, “Carbon is life.”
Good morning kids. Yet again it's the international scene that's grabbing all the attention this morning. we'll get to the latest developements off the Iranian coast in a moment, but first there are a couple of bit stories happening in Europe that might otherwise get lost in the sauce. The disappointing news first comes fromHungary.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban conceded defeat in the parliamentary elections on Sunday, bringing an end to 16 years of governance in Budapest. . . Conceding defeat on Sunday evening, Orbán said: “The election result is painful for us, but understandable. I congratulated the Tisza Party.
“No matter how it turned out, we in the opposition will serve our country and the Hungarian nation,” he declared, adding: “We never give up!”
I'm not necessarily in tune with the attitude of the Hungarian people but that they sent a true patriot and a staunch defender of western values, civilization and sanity packing is a head scratcher considering the madness of open borders especially with the invasion of Islamic hordes that have ravaged a significant portion of the rest of the continent. Orbán was a tough, passionate and vocal critic of the EU on this and other issues of national sovereignty, especially the insane push to go to war with Russia over Ukraine, as well as earning the enmity of the homosexual/transexual pervert lobby for his staunch criticism of them and the EU's drive to push their ideology on the Hungarian people. From what I have gathered, the new regime in Hungary will do a very abrupt about-face on all these issues and President Trump and America my lose, at least in the near term, a very key strategic ally.
So you say you want a revolution? Well, take a look at what’s happening in Ireland right now. Tens of thousands of farmers, truckers, and other fed-up “normies” are taking to the streets of Dublin to protest fuel taxes, mass immigration, and poverty-inducing “climate change” policies. For the most part, corporate news propagandists in both Europe and North America are intentionally ignoring the combustible situation. Just when I had begun to think that all the “fighting Irish” had moved to America, the Old Country has started to show signs of life. Perhaps there are still a few irascible pugilists willing to bash heads and take on the globalist empire after all. . . Although few people saw the present brouhaha coming, Ireland makes a natural “ground zero” in the war between Big Government globalists (aka, the “international rules-based order” club of World Economic Forum totalitarians) and ordinary citizens willing to defend their nation’s sovereignty and their own personal freedoms. For two decades, the globalists have been taking over Ireland and stripping it for parts.
Would or could something like this ever happpen here in the USA. I Mean among real Americans and not leftist Antifa rent-a-goons agitating for revolution and committing acts of terorism to overthrow our Republic once and for all?
Turning Point USA’s “Frontlines” reporter Savanah Hernandez posted multiple videos of mob members opposed to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations in the Minneapolis area seemingly attacking her Saturday. After Hernandez posted photos of one assailant — a man charged in connection with the storming of a St. Paul-area church — Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet K. Dhillon responded in to the post on X. (RELATED: Democrat Candidate Calls For Banning MAGA From Internet)
The only reason Antifa et al can get away with what they get away with, the corruption of the courts and Political cover by their overlords in the Democrat Party aside, is that they know that kyle Rittenhouse notwithstanding we will never preemptively hunt them down and take them out as is their strategy, let alone take up arms to defend ourselves. Because if we ever did, look out.
Whoever’s calling the shots in Iran wasted yet another chance for peace over the weekend, and now President Donald Trump will again call Tehran’s bluff.
Iran’s negotiators refused to satisfy America’s demands Saturday in talks in Pakistan, as regime leaders bet that playing the Strait of Hormuz card would get Trump to blink.
Instead, he played it right back at them — announcing his own blockade, so that Iran’s oil exports (which had continued despite the war) will also be blocked.
The prez is thinking outside the box with this blockade and his plans to escort ships through the Strait; if necessary, he can later order US forces to take Kharg Island and eviscerate the regime’s power base.
This also guarantees that Tehran’s effort to charge a toll on all tankers crossing the Strait will fail — honoring an American commitment to freedom of the seas that goes back to President Thomas Jefferson, the Barbary Pirates and the US Marines’ triumphant excursion “to the shores of Tripoli.”
Of course Iran’s rulers (whoever they are at this point) responded with fresh bluster, vowing a “strong and forceful response” to Trump’s move and huffing that it would end the cease-fire.
Utter bull: Tehran has almost no offensive capabilities left except those that threaten Strait shipping, and those assets can now be eliminated as completely and readily as the rest of its Navy, missile launchers and drone capabilities already were.
It can’t seriously mine the Strait without choking off its own exports, nor can that blockade last once America and its allies’ minesweepers, backed by the US Navy, get down to work.
Trump’s blockade won’t much impact Europe or the Americas, while our Middle Eastern allies are switching to export routes that don’t rely on the Strait; it’s Iran and its allies (mainly China) that will now suffer most. Beijing and its dependents in Moscow will soon regret vetoing the UN Security Council measure to reopen the Strait.
Meanwhile, the Iranian hardliners behind this lunacy will face more internal pressure from other regime factions; everything they’ve tried to do has blown up in their faces.
They assumed America would be help captive by conventional wisdom; our president proved them wrong.
Trump once again tried to reach a peaceful settlement; the Iranians again refused: Now they’ll pay yet a higher price for thinking they could get him to chicken out.
Have a great day!
And lastly, a quick shout-out and a huge thank you for your continued support in hitting our tip jar. It truly is appreciated more than you can know.
The prez is thinking outside the box with this blockade and his plans to escort ships through the Strait; if necessary, he can later order US forces to take Kharg Island and eviscerate the regime’s power base. This also guarantees that Tehran’s effort to charge a toll on all tankers crossing the Strait will fail — honoring an American commitment to freedom of the seas that goes back to President Thomas Jefferson, the Barbary Pirates and the US Marines’ triumphant excursion “to the shores of Tripoli.” Trump brilliantly calls Iran’s bluff — with his own Strait of Hormuz blockade
Iran thought they had the world over an (oil) barrel. Turns out they signed their own economic death warrant. The blockade is an inspired tactic pushed by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and former Green Beret-turned-UN Ambassador Mike Waltz as the logical next step after the Chinese and Russians last week vetoed the UN Security Council resolution led by the Gulf States for international cooperation to reopen the Hormuz Strait. Miranda Devine: Playing the Trump card vs. Tehran
Criticism of strikes on Iranian infrastructure clashes with claims that the IRGC controls much of the economy, making such targets central to degrading its military power. The IRGC’s Control of Iran’s Economy
The details of the amazing search & rescue effort to recover a downed American pilot in Iran last weekend has been covered quite thoroughly in the media, especially the alternative press. This video gives us the compelling perspective of the men and women who made that rescue happen. Even if you oppose Trump’s present actions against Iran, Steeve’s reveals a fundamental aspect of the American way of war that illustrates again the best part of America. The key quote, “Will you be worth the trip?” A military pilot’s perspective on downed pilot rescue in Iran Easter weekend
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Roger Kimball: Trump’s “outrageous” rhetoric unnerved critics, but it masked a blunt strategy: overwhelm Iran militarily, force leverage at the table, and leave opponents scrambling to keep up. Trump, Iran, and the Theater of Moral Panic
Democrats accuse Trump of weakness or recklessness as it suits them—revealing less about him than their own shifting standard for American power. Democrat Perfidy Knows No Bounds
CIVIL WAR 2.0, LEFTIST PERSECUTIONS, DEMOCRAT PUTSCH, AMERICAN DISSOLUTION
Turning Point USA’s “Frontlines” reporter Savanah Hernandez posted multiple videos of mob members opposed to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations in the Minneapolis area seemingly attacking her Saturday. After Hernandez posted photos of one assailant — a man charged in connection with the storming of a St. Paul-area church — Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet K. Dhillon responded in to the post on X. (RELATED: Democrat Candidate Calls For Banning MAGA From Internet) DOJ Signals Probe Into Brutal Assault Of Conservative Journalist Filming Anti-ICE Riot
Immigration’s true cost isn’t seen in stagnant wages, but in natives pushed out of opportunity—masking displacement, distorting data, and quietly eroding mobility and growth. Moving Targets
It makes perfect sense that Democrats freaked out when DOGE started following the money. Look at what they’ve been up to all these years. It’s Always the Money That Gets Them
John Stossel: Why give the government and politicians power over our lives? You Don’t Own Me (Channeling Lesley Gore - jjs)
Robert Spencer: What happens when someone dissents from the leftist establishment narrative in a way that is so compelling and convincing that the continued wide acceptance of that narrative is imperiled? What happens is that the leftist media establishment deploys its strongest rhetorical weapons against the offender, hoping to destroy or at least cripple the dissident before he or she is able to amass a significant following, or to dishearten and disperse that following if it already exists. This is why the April 2026 issue of Tablet magazine contains a massive article, over 6,000 words long, damning with faint praise the pioneering scholar of dhimmitude, Bat Ye’or. Truth-Teller Encounters the Buzz-Saw of the Establishment Narrative
CBS News reported the attack occurred about 8:45 p.m. A man whose girlfriend works at the restaurant indicated “a group of men came into the restaurant and went directly behind the counter, where they fired multiple shots.” Numerous Injured After ‘Masked Suspects’ Storm Chick-fil-A, Opens Fire
“Carbon credits are a very particular type of asset... “The scale of these crimes is owed first to brute geography... "This marriage of speculative capital and loose land markets bodes ill for Brazil.” Carbon Credits Are Destroying the Amazon
Trump’s endorsement of Steve Hilton in California’s governor’s race risks muddying a GOP primary where Sheriff Bianco may offer a stronger path to victory in a fractured state. Trump Needed to Stay Out of the California Primary
Following a hotly contested campaign against his rival, Member of European Parliament Péter Magyar, and his upstart Tisza Party, a record turnout of over three-quarters of voters decided to turn the page from Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz party, which had ruled the country since 2010. End of an Era: Viktor Orbán Concedes Defeat in Hungarian Elections to Upstart Rival Magyar
“I don’t want a Pope who criticizes the President of the United States because I’m doing exactly what I was elected, IN A LANDSLIDE, to do, setting Record Low Numbers in Crime, and creating the Greatest Stock Market in History.” Trump blasts Pope Leo after pontiff’s veiled jabs over Iran war, immigration
A half-century pause in spaceflight wasn’t technological—it was economic; without property rights and profit incentives, the path from the Moon to Mars will remain grounded. The Lost Half-Century
Though many will call this lunar fly-by “historic,” it will likely be little remembered by future generations. It did little to move the settlement of the solar system forward. No truly useful engineering was tested. The rocket and capsule are engineering dead-ends. Neither will be of much use for establishing colonies on the Moon or Mars, as SLS is still too expensive and too difficult to stack and launch and Orion is too small for any interplanetary missions, being nothing more than an overweight and very expensive ascent/descent capsule Orion survives re-entry, crew splashes down saf
The first stage (B1063) completed its 32nd flight, landing on a drone ship in the Pacific. With this flight, 43 days after the stage’s previous flight, it moved into a tie for fourth place in the rankings of the most reused launch vehicle. Three launches, two by SpaceX and one by China
FEMINAZISM, TRANSGENDER PSYCHOSIS, HOMOSEXUALIZATION, WAR ON MASCULINITY/NORMALCY
The change is part of Philz’s effort to create “a more consistent, inclusive experience across all our stores, including removing a variety of flags and other decor,” CEO Mahesh Sadarangani told the San Francisco Chronicle. Sadarangani has served as CEO since 2021. (RELATED: How Come Nobody Is Willing To Say The Obvious About The Modern LGBT Community?) Philz Coffee Getting Rid Of Rainbow Flags And Baristas Are Losing It
A pro-policing vibe is creeping back into popular culture. Cops Are Cool Again
Usha Vance is revolutionizing maternity fashion, not just with her pastel spring fits, but with how these ensembles showcase her love for her family. Usha Vance Is Making Maternity Fashion Hot Again
ALSO: The Morning Report cross-posts at CutJibNewsletter.com usually within an hour or so of posting here, if you want to continue the conversation all day.
AI makes it easy to generate millions of lines of code.
What it doesn't make it is a good idea.
It used to be that laziness by itself placed a brake on the wheel of code churn. Now you also need to know what you are doing. And that is hard work to begin with.
Dell's new XPS lineup comes in Ultra 5, Ultra 7, and Ultra X7 models.
The Ultra 5 and 7 have almost indistinguishable performance. The X7 is significantly faster for CPU-intensive tasks, and enormously faster for graphics.
Sunday Overnight Open Thread - April 12, 2026 [Doof]
—Open Blogger
Howdy Hordelings! Welcome to the Sunday night ONT. How has the springtime weather been treating you? Enjoying baseball and golf? Suffering from allergies? Planting flowers yet? It's an open thread, as always. What's on YOUR mind tonight?
By the way - in case you missed the announcement on the Gun Thread, this year's NoVa MoMe will take place on Saturday, June 20th, 2026 from 11am to 3pm. Same signup method as the past several years -- Send an email to WeaselBell Productions to get the registration details. Info is also on the left sidebar of the main page. There is NOTHING like a MoMe! Veteran MoMe attendees - please attest to this!
Rory McIlroy had to wait more than a decade to win the Masters and complete the career Grand Slam.
He only had to wait a year to take home a second green jacket.
After squandering a six-stroke lead in Saturday's third round, McIlroy briefly lost the lead again Sunday before taking control on the second nine at Augusta National to become the first back-to-back Masters champion since Tiger Woods in 2001-02 and the fourth overall (Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo).
Quite an accomplishment. Though I was disappointed that the presentation of the coveted green jacket came from the chairman of Augusta National instead of a previous champion. Or even better - one of the other 3 who were repeat champions. When I win back to back Masters, I will demand my 2nd jacket be presented by Jack, Nick, Tiger, or Rory!
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Pittsburgh Pirates announcers had some fun on Masters Sunday
The Pirates broadcast recreated the Masters intro perfectly. ⛳️
Featuring legends John Madden, Tommy Heinsohn, Bubba Smith, Dick Butkus, Steve Mizerak, Bert Jones, L.C. Greenwood, Mickey Spillane, Bob Uecker, Ben Davidson, Red Auerbach, Billy Martin, and Rodney Dangerfield pic.twitter.com/1q3lX34jjt
Alex Ovechkin was the man of the hour as the Washington Capitals defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins by a score of 3-0 in the final home game of the 2025-26 NHL season. As the Caps stayed alive in the playoff race, the Russian star kept every option on the table with a comment on his future.
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If Capitals fans hoped to see more signs that Ovi may return next season, there was another after the final horn went off. As Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and the Penguins waited on the ice to shake hands with Ovechkin after the game, the Russian star waved them off.
During his postgame press conference, Ovechkin made that clear with a concise statement. “[I waved them off] because I haven’t decided yet. Thanks to them for waiting out there,” Ovechkin, who also thanked Crosby after a potential final game, told reporters after the 3-0 win.
If Ovechkin ends up retiring after the 2025-26 NHL season, several players on the Penguins may regret they couldn’t share one last moment with Ovechkin on an NHL rink. However, Ovechkin revealed—to no one’s surprise—that he met privately with Crosby and Malkin after the game.
The Caps are still in the hunt for a playoff berth. They need to win their last game on Tuesday and get help from Carolina and Montreal, the final 2 opponents for the Flyers.
A U.S. appeals court on Friday declared unconstitutional a nearly 158-year-old federal ban on home distilling, calling it an unnecessary and improper means for Congress to exercise its power to tax.
The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans ruled in favor of the nonprofit Hobby Distillers Association and four of its 1,300 members.
They argued that people should be free to distill spirits at home, whether as a hobby or for personal consumption including, in one instance, to create an apple-pie-vodka recipe.
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Andrew Grossman, who argued the nonprofit's appeal, called the decision "an important victory for individual liberty" that lets the plaintiffs "pursue their passion to distill fine beverages in their homes."
"I look forward to sampling their output," he said.
I imagine some of you may have experience distilling your own hooch. Anyone care to fess up?
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I enjoy onion rings. Do you? Well, someone likes them WAY too much!
A Steak n" Shake employee was shot and killed during an argument over onion rings.
A Steak ’n Shake employee was shot and killed in north St. Louis County late Wednesday night following a confrontation at the drive-thru, according to police.
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Community leaders say the shooting reflects broader concerns about rising violence in the region.
“We should no longer be surprised,” James Clark of the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis told KMOV. “The rate of violence that is happening in the St. Louis metropolitan area should be alarming to all of us.”
Clark told KMOV outreach efforts such as violence de-escalation programs are making progress, but added that cultural attitudes toward violence are shifting.
“Crime and violence is becoming a more and more accepted and expected culture,” he told KMOV. “How do we begin to look at what we’re currently doing that is getting results? How do we begin to come up with new adaptations to what we’re doing?”
He told KMOV part of the solution could include businesses incorporating de-escalation techniques into customer service training.
De-escalation techniques?? AYFKM??? Maybe get back to actual punishment for crime and stop letting criminals back out on the streets!!
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'Ette Couture (Courtesy of Piper)
It's that time of the week - when we turn the ONT over to our good friend Piper for a bit. Here's this week's fashion pr0n.
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A Little Different: Why This Fashion Girl Is All In on Colored Sinks, Tubs & Fixtures
Normally we’re talking runway trends, how to mix prints like a pro, or the perfect denim jacket for spring. But today we’re doing something a little different—and I’m owning it right up front.
Before I ever styled a look book, I staged houses for real estate as a job while in college. My sole purpose was to make strangers fall in love with a space in 60 seconds flat. I learned fast that color is the ultimate mood-setter, whether it’s a bold lip or statement wallpaper. It has been almost 5 years since we built this house and I am ready to make a few changes. The trend that has me obsessed? Colored sinks, tubs, toilets, and faucets. Designers are playing with soft pastels, candy-bright pops, and earthy tones that feel fresh, fun, and surprisingly sophisticated. I’m here for every single second of it.
After a long run of all-white everything, 2026 is embracing personality, warmth, and heritage. I love a clean spa moment, but just like my house, it starts feeling a bit… anonymous. Designers are calling it a “heritage revival” or “nostalgic comfort”—think dopamine décor with a grounded, biophilic twist. Pantone’s 2026 Color of the Year, Cloud Dancer (a soft, weightless off-white), is a super neutral backdrop for these colorful statements. If you prefer a warmer, more yellow undertone neutral, Greek Villa by Sherwin Williams is tried and true.
The colored-fixture comeback is the perfect way to add “look-at-me” energy without committing to a full overhaul. A single jade green vanity sink or a blush-pink clawfoot tub instantly makes the room feel curated and collected.
Current color stars for 2026 bathroom fixtures:
• Sage, jade, and forest green — calming yet modern (huge with black or brass hardware)
• Blush pink and peach — flirty and feminine without being twee
• Teal and turquoise — bold but still spa-like
• Warm terracotta or biscuit tones — tying into the bigger earthy-neutral wave
How do you actually use colored fixtures and avoid it feeling chaotic? Let the color be the hero, then build everything else around it.
1. Pick one statement color. Don’t do a rainbow explosion. And while matching all the fixtures is very cool, one colored sink or tub is fine, too. Everything else (tiles, walls, hardware) should play support. PS. Don’t be afraid to add a matching toilet , a toilet is a lot easier to change than tile, so what’s the big deal?
2. Balance with neutrals and texture. Pair your colored fixture with warm whites, greige, or natural wood. Matte black or brushed brass/gold hardware looks killer against pastels. Add texture—linen towels, woven baskets, stone countertops—to keep it grounded.
3. Echo the color subtly elsewhere. Pull the hue into a shower curtain, art, or even grout.
4. Scale matters. In small baths, a colored pedestal sink or wall-mount faucet keeps things airy. In larger spaces, go for a freestanding colored tub as the showstopper.
If you’ve been stuck in neutral-land or just craving a little more you in your home, this is your sign. Colored fixtures are the easiest way to inject personality without starting over.
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Thanks, Piper - glad to see color re-emerging after the overload of monochromatic stuff from the past 10-15 years!
On this date in 2011: Foo Fighters released their seventh studio album Wasting Light. The album was preceded by the successful single 'Rope' which became only the second song ever to debut at No. 1 on Billboard's Rock Songs chart.
On this date in 2025: English record producer, songwriter and arranger Roy Thomas Baker, died at the age of 78. He is best known for producing five out of the first seven albums by Queen and the first four albums by The Cars.
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Weekly commenter stats for week of 4-12-2026
AoSHQ Commenter Statistics:
Number of posts: 90
Number of comments: 23082
Number of unique hashes: 1623
Top 10 commenters:
1 [500 comments] 'man' [71.01 posts/day]
2 [408 comments] 'Stateless - He ain't heavy, he's my dog. Old, but full of life.'
3 [360 comments] ' Braenyard - some Absent Friends are more equal than others _'
4 [356 comments] 'Anna Puma'
5 [338 comments] 'runner'
6 [322 comments] 'Sponge - F*ck Cancer'
7 [312 comments] 'Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere '
8 [293 comments] '...'
9 [285 comments] 'Skip'
10 [272 comments] 'Oldcat'
Top 10 sockpuppeteers:
1 [140 names] 'Mark VII Limited' [19.88 unique names/day]
2 [114 names] 'Quarter Twenty '
3 [108 names] 'Dave Ramsey, boomer meme incarnate'
4 [61 names] 'European Limpdicks are not reliable allies'
5 [55 names] 'Intercepted Reddit Transmissions brought by the Intrepid AoS Liaison'
6 [55 names] 'SSBN 656 (G)'
7 [48 names] 'Duncanthrax'
8 [48 names] 'mindful webworker - deliver the letter the sooner the better'
9 [36 names] 'Count de Monet'
10 [35 names] 'mikeski'
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Tonight's ONT brought to you by groovy Masters threads
On this date in 1975, one of the hardest golf photos ever.
Howdy, Y'all! Welcome to the wondrously fabulous Gun Thread! As always, I want to thank all of our regulars for being here week in and week out, and also offer a bigly Gun Thread welcome to any newcomers who may be joining us tonight. Howdy and thank you for stopping by! I hope you find our wacky conversation on the subject of guns 'n shooting both enjoyable and informative. You are always welcome to lurk in the shadows of shame, but I'd like to invite you to jump into the conversation, say howdy, and tell us what kind of shooting you like to do!
Holy Shitballs! How in the ever-loving Hell did it get to be the 2026 NoVaMoMe Announcement Edition? Seems like only last week was the Happy Easter Edition!
With that, step into the dojo and let's get to the gun stuff below, shall we?
Fundamentals 'O Safety, that is. The art of not killing yourself or those around you.
Are you being safe at the range (and elsewhere)? What's the closest disaster with regard to firearms handling you have seen?
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Dumb Idea?
Would you go into a gunfight with something like this?
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Knife Stuff
Recently the comments turned to knife sharpening and I mentioned the OUTDOORS55 YouTube channel. Watching and listening to this guy is how I finally learned to properly put an edge on cutting tools. In addition to being a useful skill to have, it also opens an entirely new rabbit hole of obsession and compulsiveness.
His channel has a lot of content and he gives very good and easy to understand advice. Weasel recommended.
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Daisy BB Guns
Interesting story.
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NoVaMoMe 2026
What - you thought there wasn't going to be a NoVaMoMe in 2026?
Note: One of the great joys of NoVAMoMe season, at least for me, is being able to cut and paste the entire block of text below and haranguing you to attend the event. Are you attending? Are you focusing on the fundamentals of attending?
Alright, guys and gals, the long awaited and highly anticipated details of the 2026 NoVAMoMe are here! That's right, I finally got my act together and updated the information page for 2026, and need to go over a few details. First, the date is June 20th, 2026 from 11am to 3pm. Nextly, my bestest blog buddy bluebell and I have decided 2026 will continue the longstanding tradition of NoVAMoMe simplification, and want to pass along the changes from prior years.
First, no registration and no advance charge for food. If you would like to attend, send an email to WeaselBell Productions, and let us know. You will be directed to a sekrit webpage with all of the details. We do ask once you have decided to attend to let us know so we can coordinate an expected count with venue management. Once there if you are hungry or thirsty simply order from the onsite menu and pay separately. Cash and credit cards accepted. Next, although fun, we have decided to again take a break from the raffles and mug sales this year. Depending on how it goes, that may be something we bring back in future years. While your generosity is always appreciated, with no prize table, please leave donations and contributions at home, but bring your appetite for a great afternoon spent with your imaginary online friends.
Next, a NoVAMoMe PSA from our pal bluebell
Hi folks - just a quick PSA. If you write for info about the MoMe, please give us a few words in the body of the email just so I know you are a Moron and not a spammer (moron). I do receive spam on this email account because it's sitting right here in my nic, so that's why I'm asking. I don't want to give our details to a spammer. Also, remember to check your spam folder if you don't receive a reply email.
Thanks.
bluebell
Seriously, just send an email then go to the website with the password provided. If you forget, a link to the email is on the main page, left sidebar. If you do not sign up, bluebell will be disappointed. Weasel will be disappointed, too, but it's bluebell you need to worry about.
Here are some different online cigar vendors. You will find they not only carry different brands and different lines from those brands, but also varying selections of vitolas (sizes/shapes) of given lines. It's good to have options, especially if you're looking for a specific cigar.
A note about sources. The brick & mortar/online divide exists with cigars, as with guns, and most consumer products, with respect to price. As with guns - since both are "persecuted industries", basically - I make a conscious effort to source at least some of my cigars from my local store(s). It's a small thing, but the brick & mortar segment for both guns and tobacco are precious, and worth supporting where you can. And if you're lucky enough to have a good cigar store/lounge available, they're often a good social event with many dangerous people of the sort who own scary gunz, or read smart military blogs like this one. -rhomboid
Anyone have others to include? Perhaps a small local roller who makes a cigar you like? Send me your recommendation and a link to the site!
Please note the new and improved protonmail account gunthread at protonmail dot com. An informal Gun Thread archive can be found HERE. Future expansion plans are in the works for the site Weasel Gun Thread. If you have a question you would like to ask Gun Thread Staff offline, just send us a note and we'll do our best to answer. If you care to share the story of your favorite firearm, send a picture with your nic and tell us what you sadly lost in the tragic canoe accident. If you would like to remain completely anonymous, just say so. Lurkers are always welcome!
That's it for this week - have you been to the range?
I was given that bottle by a well-meaning relative, because...I have no idea, other than that she drinks a lot of gin cocktails when she comes to our house.
The company is co-owned by Ryan Reynolds, who is a comedic actor who is from Canada, so he doesn't matter at all. But I shy away from celebrity endorsed products, and definitely from celebrity-owned companies. So I have never bought a bottle of the stuff.
But I am also a cheap bastard and will absolutely drink celebrity gin if it is free!
SO I made a martini (stirred, not shaken!), and while it was fine, the gin absolutely does not deserve the hype, or the premium price. Commenter and amateur bartender (I won't insult him by calling him a mixologist) naturalfake, who has a better palate than mine, thinks it is too sarsaparilla forward, but will work well in an ... AVIATION! I don't know about that, but it's not worth the money if you are making martinis.
Now, I prefer the classic London Dry Gin flavor profile, so take my review with a few grains of salt.
That is homemade pastrami, courtesy of commenter "gunslinger," who is enjoying his new pellet grill, and the amazing temperature control it affords cooks. He says it's a game-changer, and judging by that photo, he might be right!
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Sliders are great, and very easy to make, especially if you don't mind the mess. Yeah, they splatter and spit, but it's worth the few minutes of cleanup. And if you have an outdoor grill...even better! Here is Alton Brown's recipe, but it's really just a technique. Beef Sliders with Griddled Onions punches way above its weight. There is a great joint in Hackensack called White Manna, that has been around for years, that makes maybe the best ones I have ever had, including from my own kitchen. There is always a line, which makes it less appealing, but still, they are mighty tasty!
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These are some of the flavors that a well-known UK chocolate company sells. They teeter on the edge of weirdness, but the chocolate itself is excellent, so they are forgiven. Actually, TArragon & Mustard is firmly on the weird side.
But these? What the hell? Apricot & Wasabi? Mulled Wine?
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I don't know if adding horseradish to your deviled eggs will make them the best ever, but I do know that you are going to be irritated by this recipe, because it is one of those horrid ones with the interminable filler before you get to the actual recipe. So cut to the chase and just add some horseradish to your standard recipe, and you won't have to be pissed off while reading The Best Deviled Eggs.
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I'm just not a big fan of donuts. Sure...the 3:00AM fresh and hot apple fritter from Kingpin Donuts on Durant Avenue is a glory, as were the fresh donuts at the apple orchard outside of Ann Arbor that my parents took us to, but in general, donuts are meh. Does that make me a communist?
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Well, the garlic is out in the sunshine, probably soon to be eaten by those vile rodents with bushy tails and a penchant for damaging my home. But if they survive the squirrel apocalypse, and actually grow into something edible, I will be in garlic heaven! In case it doesn't, send all of your excellent home-grown garlic to: cbd dot aoshq at gmail dot com.
Rumor has it that the Bourbon Bubble is bursting. I have seen no evidence of decreasing prices, but maybe the bursting started somewhere else! I think the sweet spot is $40-$60 for excellent and interesting bottles, and bumping that to $100 gets you an incremental improvement in quality, but nothing mind-blowing. More than that and I think you are paying for hype and rarity, which may look good in your liquor cabinet, but doesn't translate to more quality in the bottle.
The problem...or the solution...is to buy lots of bourbon, take tasting notes, and eventually arrive at your favorites! It should take forty or fifty years, but it is worth it!
This is the most ridiculous packaging I have encountered in a very long time. These batteries are encased in plastic that has no seam to make it easy to peel apart. Then they are wrapped in another layer of plastic before they are wrapped in thin but stupidly tough cardboard.
Oh...they are also flavored. I shit you not! They have a "non-toxic bitter coating" so that you don't accidentally confuse them for mints and pop one into your mouth, and then chew them up. I guess.
I get that the company is trying keep kids from eating batteries, or maybe keep adults from eating batteries! But how about a little bit of personal responsibility? Like putting them on a high shelf. Yeah...that's a complex operation, but I managed to do it!
At the center of the XM30's capabilities is an unmanned turret equipped with a 50 mm XM913 Bushmaster autocannon. This weapon offers greater range and firepower than the 25 mm cannon on the Bradley, improving effectiveness against modern armored threats.
The unmanned turret allows the vehicle to operate with a two-person crew. Both crew members remain inside the hull, enhancing protection by removing the need for a traditional manned turret position.
Here's the video! Yes, it's an advertisement, but it looks like just the thing for commuting into our blue cities.
I saw a video of one of our Bradleys we gave to Ukraine absolutely knocking the snot out of a Russian tank. And the Bradley carries a 25mm gun.
Good morning, ‘rons and ‘ronettes. It’s time once again for the monthly MP4-hosted Sunday Book Thread. Dress is country club casual, but ladies are encouraged to wear some spring fashion, such as this:
So ask the barman for a Cape Codder, covfefe or tea and let’s get started!
'Searching'
(and no, not the song by the Coasters)
When I was a child, there were two books that I absolutely loved. One was from 1900, The World’s Discoverers: The Story of Bold Voyages by Brave Navigators. It told the usual – Columbus, Magellan, Vasco da Gama, but a good half of the book is taken up by the search for the Northwest Passage and the attempts of both the Dutch and Russians to establish Arctic trading posts.
The other was by Philip Van Doren Stern, whose story, “The Greatest Gift,” was the inspiration for It’s A Wonderful Life. But the book I adored was his 1939 novel The Man Who Killed Lincoln: The Story of John Wilkes Booth, which is exactly what you imagine.
As I said, I loved both books. But somehow, over the years, I lost them. And it became a small obsession to find them again. Every time I would walk into a used book store, my eye would quickly scan the shelves, hoping against hope I would find one of the two.
Reader, I did. And, like Mr Burns with his teddy bear, I don’t plan to ever lose them again.
So what was it about those two books that made me love them? With Discoverers, it was not just the stories of heroic, yet all too flawed, men; it was the prose – old-fashioned, yet utterly engaging.
Here’s a sample, from the summary of Chapter 10:
Arrival in India and varied experiences there. Gama arrives in India. Ludicrous mistake of the Portuguese when they see images of Hindoo deities. Gama makes a big bluff in talking to the Indian king and is treated with great contempt.”
Now, doesn’t that make you want to find out just what Gama said and what happened to him? And as for Van Doren, he was a master storyteller; his view of Lincoln’s assassination and escape, told through Booth’s eyes, was just the sort of thing to appeal to a young child fascinated by history.
But there was another thing, too. ‘There is no frigate like a book,’ Emily Dickinson wrote. That’s the power of a great book: it can lift you out of your own world and immerse you in another, whether it be the Shire, Wonderland or even a 1920s summer house in England. I keep returning to Discoverers and Lincoln because they transform me. I’m not the sour, unhappy man looking at the world through the bottom of a glass; I’m at Columbus’ side when he hears the glad cry of ‘Land!’ I’m shivering as I watch Booth climb to the Presidential box, derringer in hand. I am, for a moment, that child curled up in a chair eagerly turning pages.
What about you? Did you have any books you loved, lost and found? Or ones that you’ve lost and never found again? What is it about some books (and tell me your faves) that makes them timeless?
On the other hand, reader Rick C checked online prices at Micro Center and they are 60% lower than the sticker prices shown in yesterday's article. Or rather, the sticker prices were inflated by 150%.
Micro Center doesn't deliver online orders; you have to pay for and pick up the item in person. Still I'd expect a bigger fuss if prices in store were that much inflated over the prices they advertise online.
As the article notes, not all of them. 8 were deleted by Mozilla while the download was running and 42 couldn't be found, but still around 84,000 extensions.
And... It worked. Kind of.
It did use 37GB of RAM just to load the start page.
While the Big Three memory manufacturers are making bank, the two former also-rans - China's CXMT and Taiwan's Nanya - are grabbing everything they can.
SSDs - at least, good ones - need DRAM cache. Sandisk and Kioxia don't make DRAM. Nanya does, and not only that, but 90% of its production is still DDR4 which is not what current computers use but is what SSD controllers use.
Little boy tells his nursery teacher he found a dead cat.
"How did you know it was dead?" asks the teacher.
"Because I pissed in its ear and it didn't move," says the boy.
"You did what!?" shrieks the teacher.
"You know," explains the boy, "I leaned over and went Psssst and it didn't move!"
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"Booty" and "butt" mean the same.
"Call" and "dial" mean the same.
But a "booty call" and a "butt dial"? Yeah...not the same thing at all.
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John O'Reilly hoisted his beer and said, "Here's to spending the rest of me life, between the legs of me wife!"
That won him the top prize at the pub for the best toast of the night! He went home and told his wife, Mary, "I won the prize for the best toast of the night." She said, "Aye, did ye now? And what was your toast?"
John said, "Here's to spending the rest of me life, sitting in church beside me wife."
"Oh, that is very nice indeed, John!" Mary said.
The next day, Mary ran into one of John's drinking buddies on the street corner.
The man chuckled and said, "John won the prize the other night at the pub with a toast about you, Mary."
She said, "Aye, he told me, and I was a bit surprised myself. You know, he's only been in there twice in the last four years. Once I had to pull him by the ears to make him come, and the other time he fell asleep."
*****
Drink of the Night
We featured this last year on Masters weekend. It's back!
In 2019, Pizza Hut brought back its 1974 logo, banking on its nostalgic appeal. I figured that would be the end of it, just a simple marketing tactic soon forgotten. There were no plans announced to bring back the logo in stores, much less redesign the restaurants to look like old Pizza Huts from the chain's heyday.
But with no fanfare whatsoever, that's exactly what’s been happening. Pizza Hut has been taking legacy stores and converting them into "Classics." The formula includes:
1) The old logo is used in pole signage as well as at the top of the (usually but not always) red-roofed restaurant. The pole sign features the addition of the word "Classic."
2) The interior features cozy red booths and old-school Pizza Hut lamps.
3) Stickers featuring the long-discarded character Pizza Hut Pete are found on the door.
4) Posters feature classic photos from Pizza Huts of yore.
5) A plaque displays a quote from Pizza Hut co-founder Dan Carney, explaining the concept as a celebration of the brand's heritage.
There are reportedly 144 locations, but the whole thing remains below the radar. No formal listing on the Pizza Hut website. Do you have a Classic Pizza Hut in your neighborhood?
*****
Club ONT Department of Technology
*****
Club ONT Department of Words
*****
Club ONT Department of Fun Ideas??
Wonder if our resident fashion maven would approve of this idea?
You and your friends threw an “I have nowhere to wear this” party… and nobody held back 😂😂 pic.twitter.com/Kz31ZcsiNd
— Wholesome Side of 𝕏 (@itsme_urstruly) April 7, 2026
*****
The Club ONT Jukebox
Something else we brought back from last year - an hour of Master's Theme Music on repeat with a visual tour of scenes from around the course:
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Enough golf -- Let's rock!
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Top Technicolor Comments of the Week
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Top Comments of the Week
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Top Spam Flattery Comments of the Week
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Club ONT is brought to you tonight by expectations vs reality
I kid the third entry in the Halloween series. Because it's awful. But as it's one of Darcy The Mail Girl's favorite movies, and she got to program Friday night for The Drive-In Jamboree, we all watched it together with director Tommy Lee Wallace and stars Tom Atkins and Stacey Nelkin on stage. Allowing for a little too dim a projection—the Jamboree had a lot of technical difficulties—it was basically the best possible circumstance to watch Halloween 3: Season of the Witch.
Rather amusingly, Drive-In Producer Austin Jennings had prepared a supercut of all the times Joe Bob had trashed this movie, which was fun with everyone there and a pro-H3 audience. Did I say "all"? Apparently, it was a mere fraction of the times he had done it.
Because, again, it's just not a very good movie. If we're being honest, the crowd was still just barely over 50/50 thumbs-up/thumbs-down, and that's with a strongly pro-Tommy Lee, pro-Tom Atkins, pro-Stacy Nelkin, pro-Darcy audience.
"Hello, England? You remember that lintel from Stonehenge you were looking for? Yeah, it's here in California. I don't know how they got it here in three days! You'll never believe what they're doing with it!"
But let's go over the whole thing to see if we can't appreciate the whole thing, what works and what doesn't. There is a whole lot of good here, admittedly, and it's worth watching just for the good and fun parts. I don't think it makes up for the bad because the bad is pretty fundamental. For example, this is not, for the most part, a scary movie, not a spooky movie, not a very Halloween feeling movie. And that's hard to overcome when you're calling yourself Halloween 3.
First, the best thing about Halloween 3 is the meta-premise: Rather than making the same movie over and over again, let's use the franchise to tell a new story every time. ("American Horror Story" uses this premise for its show and it sucks, but the premise of theming each season differently is something good about it. Heck, you could argue that Chris Guest's mockumentaries are along similar lines: Same kind of humor, same repertory company, different theme each time, and that works really well.)
Second, the premise itself is...I don't know if it's good, but it's certainly bold. The idea that the world's children are imperiled? You're playing with fire; people don't want to see kids get hurt in their dumb Halloween movie. (Horror movies where children are injured or killed tend to be more "serious" and not very fun.) That said, Wallace does a really good job here. The harm to the children is obscured, implicitly horrifying without showing a lot of suffering.
Third, it's all very competently executed. Dan O'Herlilhy is a standout as the big bad, but Atkins and Nelkin are charming and have good chemistry (which is ironic given how their first scene together was the sex scene, and they had not met prior). The camerawork, although reminiscent of a TV cop show, has some very nice moments. The effects are effective!
Director: "Stacey, Tom. Tom, Stacey. Get nekkid."
The movies from this era seem shockingly energetic and lively compared to most of what we get today.
The bad stuff. Joe Bob delights in pointing out the many bizarre plot holes in this movie, but I maintain that, as egregious as they are, he (and all of us) would gloss over them if the rest of the movie worked. (And indeed, it works for Darcy, so she doesn't care about the plot holes.)
But they are egregious. Days before Halloween a giant stone from Stonehenge is stolen. Somehow this turns up at a California mask factory to make their magic computer chips that go into the masks...except of course days before Halloween, no masks from a factory are going to ever make it to stores on time. Tom Atkins manages to stop this (well, 2 out of 3 ain't bad) by making a phone call.
"Put me through to television!"
I said "Television! Not cable! Who watches cable in 1981?"
When Tommy Lee Wallace defended the movie to Joe Bob, he says something to the effect of "you gotta get into that Halloween spirit! It's magic!" Obviously, for its fans, that's not hard to do. But the movie doesn't help you much. It's actually pretty hyper-real, or perhaps more precisely, it hews pretty tightly to a detective drama, like a Dirty Harry or a Mike Hammer. Down to every single woman in the movie throwing herself at Tom Atkins.
One of whom is his wife-at-the-time, which is kind of cute.
The mixture of magic with contemporary technology—especially computer technology—is a difficult one. Where you mostly see it is in things like "there's a ghost in your cell phone! oooo!" and it's spotty. Halloween 3 wants to combine magic with computers and mass production, and you have to take the "wizard did it" explanation to some far extremes, like all the TV stations in the country showing the same commercial at the exact same time with everyone watching at the same time.
Interestingly, I think Halloween works in part because it hews closely to reality, and when it starts to break that, it builds the atmosphere and unreality up so that we go from a traditional "maniac slasher" story to a "demonic force" story.
It would be interesting to read the original Nigel Kneale screenplay, though it may not have worked either, even if Wallace hadn't changed it. Or it might've worked the way The Wicker Man works, which would be as good as a failure in the US market.
Joe Bob caved and gave it three stars, though he backtracked quickly the next night.
I have to say, I enjoyed watching it—I mean, I had just arrived in Nashville for the Jamboree, so of course I would. And if they showed it on "The Last Drive-In", I certainly would watch it again. I might watch it again just to try to study what about it does and doesn't work. This was certainly the most fun I'd had viewing the movie, including later in 2025, when we would watch it again for the all-night "Spooktacular" in Dallas.
For me, it doesn't really come together the way it should.
You know how they say television rots your brain?
(This review was largely written in July of 2022. I'm a bit behind.)
Welcome hobbyists! Pull up a chair and sit a spell with the Horde in this little corner of the interweb. This is the mighty, mighty officially sanctioned Ace of Spades Hobby Thread. It is that time of the year, a spin of the Wheel of Hobbies (TM) came up with paper folding as a theme for this Hobby Thread.
As per usual Hobby Thread etiquette, keep this thread limited to hobbying. All (legal) hobbying is welcome. I understand that some people pay attention to military hardware, tactics and strategy as a hobby. Discussion of current military events permitted but must be made in the form of hobby commentary. Pants are optional. As always, puns are welcome and encouraged.
Play nice and do not be rude. Do not be a troll and do not feed the trolls.
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Is paper folding a hobby? Sure. It takes precision, skill, patience and vision.
Going to need help from the gray boxes on this one. Dinos are not well known for manual folding dexterity. We have small brains and short arms.
In the 7th century, Japan mastered the technique of paper-making and developed the recipe for washi paper, a thin but durable material that became one of the staples of Japanese art. It was used for calligraphy, woodblock printing, clothes making (proper washi is hard to tear and resistant to moisture), and even restoration and conservation. Thin pieces of washi paper are used to restore old books, artworks on paper, and paintings. During World War II, the Japanese forces used washi paper as the base material for balloon bombs. However, one of the most famous applications of washi paper is origami.
Initially, origami existed in a much simpler form and was associated with specific ways of wrapping gifts or temple offerings in paper. It was used for religious ceremonies and decorations and was extremely expensive. At that time, washi paper production was slow and expensive thus, the material was scarce and treasured. Origami butterflies were often presented to newlywed couples as symbols of bride and groom. The rules of folding were less strict, and the final result supposedly looked a lot different from the origami we know now.
Yoshizawa was a self-taught origami master. His skill was first noticed when he began implementing origami to teach geometry and draughtsmanship to factory employees. He used folded paper forms to explain the nuances of the draught-making process. In his book, he categorized and recorded the most common folds and actions used in origami and invented a symbol for each of them, thus making it easy to record and follow even the most complex multi-step processes. Yoshizawa is credited for reviving the origami practice and introducing it to new generations.
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Paper airplane adjacent: anyone remember these balsa airplanes? They are still manufactured and sold (albeit a little more expensive than you likely remember).
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This has nothing do with paper or origami, but I could not resist including an F-117 made from an empty Mountain Dew can.
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This is way, way down the 3D printing rabbit hole, but thought some of you might appreciate. Apparently, we're 3D printing in metal now?
If this isn't your world, keep scrolling. If it is, you're welcome.
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Wow. Sir, we salute you.
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If you're intrigued by painting or illustrations or old-school hand drawn animation, this video is for you:
Hat tip: NorCal Sierra Foothills Lurker
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Did you miss the Hobby Thread last week? We did an Easter theme. The comments may be closed, but you can re-live the content.
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Notable comments from last week:
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Words of wisdom:
"Because despite all our troubles, when things are grim out in that wide round world of ours, that's when it's really important to have a good hobby." Posted by: tankascribe at June 22, 2024 07:41 PM (HWxAD).
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If you have trouble finding something in the content or comments that resonates with you, contribute your own. Send thoughts, suggestions and photos of your hobbying to moronhobbies at protonmail dot com. Do mighty things.
I am almost petrified. The young grasshopper below (from New Mexico, I think) had better watch out.
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Lazy Sunday afternoon for my Easter BunBun.
Miley
A wonderful Easter photo showing some kitty personality. Thanks.
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Is there a 'Pets in the Garden' thread?
Most of Sammy's fur is growing back now - the top of his head was a bloody mess.
Here he is hanging out by the clematis, one of his favorite places.
Miley
Remind me how Sammy's head got bloody.
Well, I joked that it looked like he was diving into badger holes. A nasty cat fight, I assume. Ears, above the eyes and top of his head. The end of his glorious 13" tail is still a bit ratty looking. He's been coming around often, appearing out of the darkness to jump onto the table here on the back porch. Sometimes sleeps in one of the porch chairs at night. BunBun has sort of accepted him. Mostly.
Cats are not always predictable, are they? Sammy looks beautiful now. The clematis looks like it is going to be lovely, too.
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PetMoron Adjacent Animals
Encountered by Members of The Horde
These are visiting orcas in Elliot Bay enjoying the rain on Wednesday afternoon.
It is such a privilege to see them.
nurse ratched
A thrilling sight!
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Thank you for sharing your pets and animal photos and stories with us today.
If you would like to send pet and/or animal stories, links, etc. for the Ace of Spades Pet Thread, the address is:
petmorons at protonmail dot com
Remember to include the nic or name by which you wish to be known when you comment at AoSHQ, or let us know if you want to remain a lurker.
Tulips from the dump at Holland, MI after their Tulip Festival, courtesy of my nieces - these are my favorites because of the "flame" effect. They tend to get redder as they go.
Spectacular! And such a bargain!
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Edible Gardening/Putting Things By
I planted 10 tomato plants in this raised bed last year - Terra Cotta, Black Strawberry and San Marzano. Here you see the volunteers - there are a lot of them. I think I'll just use these instead of planting seeds. Who knows - maybe I'll get some interesting hybrids!
Miley
Well, I think all those varieties are open-pollinated (not sure), so you may not get hybrid, since tomatoes generally self-pollinate. Let us know ! Don't try this with melons.
Your volunteers will have a jump-start on seeds planted now.
New buds on existing plants: orange cannas, red and yellow flowering yucca and the water irises have popped out. Put in a red and a purple verbena, and a blue delphinium.
Gotta get after the weeds and the sprouts from the bird feeders!
Respectfully, Dave K
Some great things growing there! Anyone jealous?
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Hope everyone has a nice weekend. Sorry I deleted part of the post this week. It was like magic! Or Microsoft.
If you would like to send photos, stories, links, etc. for the Saturday Gardening Thread, the address is:
ktinthegarden at g mail dot com
Remember to include the nic or name by which you wish to be known at AoSHQ, or let us know if you want to remain a lurker.
It was a relief to see the astronauts make it safely through re-entry and successfully splash down in the Pacific last night. I read that Congress would not allocate funds for much new development for this mission, so much of the technology was 50 years old. But when lunar landings start again, with rovers and a planned permanent moon base, new technology will be contracted out to private firms.
The artist's rendition of a future moon base here reminds me of some of the torn-up landscape we passed this week from the probably-doomed high-speed rail project in California. Except that there was a lovely ranch house a few hundred feet away, over a small ridge.
Is California government, with Gavin Newsom and Eric Swalwell, a dying civilization?
If you gave away $126 billion to subsidize free flights between LA and San Francisco at current demand levels, you could fund roughly 150 to 200 years of travel before the money runs out. https://t.co/8ro72lJIfc
One wonderful thing that has happened in California recently is that Victor Davis Hanson is looking and sounding much better after his cancer surgery (with a complication). He is a tough guy. Some commentary from him below.
"A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don't want that to happen, but it probably will," Trump wrote on his social media platform.
At the same time, continuing a series of mixed messages, Trump said "maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen" now that the U.S. is dealing with "different, smarter, and less radicalized" leaders in Iran.
Communist Dingbats Yesterday Until 7pm: Trump Is a Madman! He Will Nuke the World!
Communist Dingbats at 7:01pm: TACO! Trump Is a Huge Pussy Too Afraid to Do What Is Needed and LET THE NUCLEAR BIRDS FLY!!!!
An amazing collection of commentary on Trump's usual "chaos" step in his negotiation tactics. (Don't comment on old threads)
I noticed that the government of Iran (or whoever is sort of running things) did not believe that Trump was going to kill everyone in the country. They sent women and children out to become human shields for dual use facilities which Trump said he was going to bomb. In other words, THEY were willing to kill everyone to win.
The Left and some on the Right went crazy over a recent Trump tweet.
He warned that if the Iranian regime did not cease blocking the international Strait of Hormuz, he would hit its dual military-civilian infrastructure. He promised that “a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again.”
His wording may have been sloppy, but Trump obviously meant that the murderous civilization/culture of radical Iranian theocratic Islam would cease to exist and wouldn’t come back once power plants and transportation systems crucial to the regime’s survival were cut off.
Why do we know that?
Because, unlike in most prior American wars, Trump has never targeted dual-use infrastructure—not in bombing ISIS, not in removing the Venezuelan thug Nicolás Maduro, not in the 2025 bombing of Iran’s nuclear facilities, and not in the present war—with the exception of a key bridge central to the regime’s efforts to reposition missile assets to avoid air strikes.
Ever since Trump announced that “help is on the way” to the Iranian people, the entire aim of the five-week war has been to selectively target the regime’s command and control and military assets.
The goal was to diminish its threats abroad, while weakening and humiliating the mullahcracy at home—so that soon the Iranian people might at last be able to overthrow the odious theocracy.
Trump’s critics knew all that.
But they see political advantage in tagging Trump as a Strangelovian madman, no different from the Nazi criminals in the docket at Nuremberg.
A few less unhinged people argue that his rhetoric nevertheless comes across as unpresidential.
Perhaps.
But it may be no accident that his Gen. Curtis LeMay-like bluster might have pressured the Iranians to reopen negotiations.
On Monday, the Democrat Borg was declaring Trump a savage maniac.
By Tuesday, it was blasting him as a TACO (“Trump Always Chickens Out”) for not carrying out what the day before they had dubbed a war crime.
The common denominator was an overarching, deranged hatred of the president, as his critics can never decide whether he is Adolf Hitler or Neville Chamberlain.
But since the Left has called for investigations of war crimes, by all means let them begin.
Obviously, Trump’s critics conveniently no longer buy the argument of “dual-use.” It posits that the juice powering an evil enemy is its roads, bridges, fuel, and electricity. To disable them supposedly shortens the war and the killing . .
Continue with this video. VDH looks better, doesn't he?
Among the many genius effects of Trump is that his crazy-man approach to dealing with our enemies only makes our enemies more insane and intransigent than before. I refer, of course, to the Democratic Party (and the mainstream media, but I repeat myself). It is a remarkable thing that Iran appears (at this writing—this could change before these pixels are dry) to be more reasonable than Democrats when it comes to Trump. I hope he keeps his laser-pointer fully-charged and holstered.
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Music
Debussy plays Claire de Lune on piano roll. Heavy on the foot pedal, like my piano teacher told me he played it.
Listening to Claire de Lune in a deeper way (video short) https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Kfq-Vx6p2YA
Inspired by Paul Verlaine's poem by the same name, below. Translated by William Faulkner:
Clair de Lune, by Paul Verlaine
Your soul is a lovely garden, and go
There masque and bergamasque charmingly,
Playing the lute and dancing and also
Sad beneath their disguising fanchise.
All are singing in a minor key
Of conqueror love and life opportune,
Yet seem to doubt their joyous revelry
As their song melts in the light of the moon.
In the calm moonlight, so lovely fair
That makes the birds dream in the slender trees,
While fountains dream among the statues there;
Slim fountains sob in silver ecstasies.
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Hope you have something nice planned for this weekend.
The story behind the New York Times’ 1903 claim that human flight was between one and ten million years away is even worse than it looks. Once you understand the backstory, you realize that the New York Times story is not really about flight at all but about how elites and credentialed “experts” mistake their own failures for the boundaries of possibility. The New York Times did not dismiss the possibility of powered flight at random. There was a very specific reason behind it. At the time, America’s most prominent scientific authority, Smithsonian Secretary Samuel Langley, had been showered with large amounts of taxpayer funding to build an aircraft, the Langley Aerodrome. Despite all the money, institutional backing, and elite prestige, Langley and his team could not get it to fly, culminating in a series of very public failures, the last on December 8, 1903. So when the New York Times declared that flight was millions of years away, what it was really saying was that if the most credentialed and well-funded “experts” cannot do it, then it cannot be done. A mere nine days later, the elites’ proclamation of impossibility lay in ruins. Two totally unknown bicycle mechanics from Ohio achieved the first powered flight using improvised parts, a few hundred dollars of their own money, and sheer persistence.
All has not been sweetness and light at NASA. There have been whistleblowers claiming that the organization has been cavalier about risks to human life.
Comments are closed on last week's thread, so you won't ban yourself by trying to comment. But don't try it anyway.
Podcast: CBD and Sefton talk Orban losing, but is it the end of Hungary? The Irish start a brawl, but is it enough, Pope Leo wades into politics, Trump calls Iran's bluff and blockades Hormuz, Artemis II! Swallwell is scum, and more!
People say that the bearded man in the video of Fartwell molesting a hooker looks like Democrat Arizona Senator Rueben Gallego, said to be Swalwell's "best friend" and known to take vacations with him.
Politico is reporting that multiple people have abruptly resigned from Eric Swalwell's gubernatorial campaign: "Members of senior leadership have departed the campaign, including Courtni Pugh, a strategic adviser who served as Swalwell's top liaison to organized labor groups."
So the campaign is collapsing due to the truth of the sexual harassment allegations.
That hissing sound you hear is the air going out of the Swalwell campaign. UPDATE: No it wasn't, it was just Swalwell one-cheek-sneaking out a fart on camera
Eric Swalwell more like Eric Farewell amirite
thanks to weft-cut loop.
This is the dumbest AI bullslop I've seen in a while: the CIA can use "quantum magnetometry" to track an individual man's heartbeat from twelve miles away I wouldn't click on it, it's not interesting, it's just stupid clickslop. I just want to share my annoyance with you.
Classic Rock Mystery Click This is super-obscure and I only barely remember it. Given that, I'll give you the hint that it's by the Red Rocker. And I guess you think you've got it made
Oh, but then, you never were afraid
Of anything that you've left behind
Oh, but it's alright with me now
'Cause I'll get back up somehow
And with a little luck, yes, I'm bound to win Now twenty people will tell me it's not obscure, it was huge in their hometown and played at their prom. That's how it usually goes. When I linked Donnie Iris's "Love is Like a Rock," everyone said they knew that one and that his other song (which I didn't know at all) Ah Leah! was huge in their area.
Podcast: CBD and Sefton talk birthright citizenship, the 14th Amendment and SCOTUS, no boots in Iran, Artemis II and refocusing NASA, the NBA's hatred of everything non-woke, and more!
In more marketing for Project Hail Mary, scientists say they've found the biosigns indicating life growing on an alien planet. It's not proof, just signatures of chemicals that are produced by biological metabolism, and it could be nothing, but scientists think it's a strong sign that this planet is inhabited by something.
In a paper published in the Astrophysical Journal Letters, a team of scientists announced the detection of dimethyl sulfide (along with a similar detection of dimethyl disulfide) in the atmosphere of an exoplanet called K2-18b. This is actually the second detection of dimethyl sulfide made on this planet, following a tentative detection in 2023.
Tons of chemicals are detected in the atmospheres of celestial objects every day. But dimethyl sulfide is different, because on Earth, it's only produced by living organisms.
"It is a shock to the system," Nikku Madhusudhan, first author on the paper, told the New York Times. "We spent an enormous amount of time just trying to get rid of the signal."
He means they tried to prove the signal was caused by things other than dimethyl sulfide but they could not.
"Hello, England? You remember that lintel from Stonehenge you were looking for? Yeah, it's here in California. I don't know how they got it here in three days! You'll never believe what they're doing with it!"
