May 2025
Snowballing psychosis
"Mentally ill users might be accidentally jailbreaking ChatGPT into reinforcing their delusions. Enkrypt uncovers new LLM exploit embedded into images" observes this Australian journalist via Coin Telegraph.

What's with the current US White House admin's obsession with Ukraine's alleged rare minerals and what's the catch they don't mention? [ABC News In-depth, Australia].

Interesting to see how this doco has aged over the last year or so. Certainly been a lively year for the topic and the story continues. DW crypto currencies documentary.

Meaty issues
Has the UK accepted chlorinated chicken from the USA?
AI [stating as per Guardian]: "No, the UK has not accepted chlorinated chicken from the USA. Both the UK and the EU have banned chlorine-washed chicken due to concerns about animal welfare and potential masking of poor hygiene standards. The UK government has explicitly stated that chlorine-washed chicken will not be part of any future trade deal with the US."

However, environmentalists and health experts have pointed to issues with accepting imported beef from the States. But the initial outcry and red flagging surrounding tariff negotiations was mostly with regard to the chicken production methods. That said, caution advised for those seeking their protein from slaughtered sources.

Falling in line
Why Russians support Putin. The same motivations apply to other nations' citizens.

Democracy is not dead
The month of May always seems to generate optimism even in years whose first quarters can seem inexpressibly forlorn. And so it is again in this year of the Wood Snake.

Is the US doomed to permanent authoritarianism? Are things going to pot? Will anyone stand up to the strong-arm erosion of just and unperverted democracies? When all seems lost, look to some surprisingly telling recent events. The people of three nations have successfully recently fought back against their bully pulpits: Australia, Canada, and South Korea.

Even just this month, the rightwing coalition led by Peter Dutton, until only recently ahead of Labor rival Anthony Albanese, surprisingly lost, as Aussies got spooked by Dutton's hero worshipping of Donald Trump across the pond.

Similarly, and shortly before that, Canadians were stunned when the American president threatened to annex their nation and suddenly what seemed like a certainty, that the Conservatives would be enjoying an easy victory over the Liberals, was turned upside down, ending up in a joyous celebration of nationhood as Mark Carney got the nod to repulse an alien big brother takeover.

On December 3rd 2024 South Korea's leader declared martial law but, instead of bowing down to their new self-appointed dictator, that nation's citizens resisted their "president turned rogue" Yoon Suk Yeol, and democracy was restored.

Even before those, we can look at countries like Poland, Slovenia, and Romania, seemingly lost forever to tyranny, clamber back from the pit of hell. And even further back: Argentina, Italy, Spain, and then into the dark abyss of the WW2 era where only mass destruction was able to thwart evil.

Of course, nothing is guaranteed. There seems no way back for Hungary or North Korea or indeed a significant slice of currently suffering humanity.

But greed crazed megalomaniacal despots, like all humans, don't last forever. They can be upended, they often upend themselves by going too far, thinking themselves indestructible and without boundaries, until left isolated, rejected by their support systems, and ultimately self-annihilating -- victims of their own fatal flaws.

April 2025
Susan saves States
Susan Crawford. She fights for workers and women's rights. She won the Wisconsin Supreme court election referred to as the "People vs Elon Musk" having withstood a tsunami of cash from far right interests to stymie the frustration of the people as Wisconsinites stood up to authoritarianism, corruption, and cruelty in America's desperate bid to retain its fragile democratic republic. A ray of hope in a darkening world.

The Independent UK: "Britain must allow US chlorine-washed chicken into UK markets if it wants relief from sweeping tariffs, Donald Trump has indicated. It comes after the UK failed to avoid tariffs imposed on the global economy, with the US president slapping a 10 per cent levies on all British exports to the United States." Insert you own reaction here!

When, and when not to, use Wi-fi on your mobile. "Ziss iss ze ansa...." explains Useful Things.

March 2025
American solutions
USA - 'Another World is Possible': what a polarized U.S. might learn from other countries. [On Point, March 20, 2025].

The past tried to predict 2025.

This speech accidentally exposed the truth about the US. Ben Norton of Geopolitical Economy Report illuminates.

Meet the Yarbros.

How Soviet Russian style tactics are being used to deceive Americans.

The death of capitalism by Benn Jordan.

Richard wolffe on USA's global fallout.

Paul warburg on how America has forgotten what made it great.

Stock$: wobble or wipeout
Wall Street alarm bells are ringing following Trump's bizarre antics, and Tesla insiders are selling their own overvalued stocks. Uncertainty, tarrifs, hiring cutbacks, firings, impending tax cuts for the ultra wealthy are just some of the reasons for market decline.

Can Jimmy future proof inequality?
Did Jimmy the giant escape the alt-right just to be brainwashed?

February 2025
Nirvana day
Nirvana Day, also known in Mahayana Buddhism as Parinirvana Day, is a Buddhist holiday celebrated in February.

The two most frequently days to celebrate it by Buddhist sangha communities are February 8th or, even more common, February 15th, but also on other days of this month. Often, for practical purposes, it's celebrated on the nearest date of whichever day of the week is used by that community to typically gather anyway. Good plan.

Why do we gossip?

Why do we gossip.

January 2025

Jaron Lanier resonates now more than ever (as interviewed on channel 4).

Happy New Year to one and all

Have U visited the other must-see quake pages?