The Weekly Watch

Get to the Root!

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The goal of functional doctors is to find the root cause of peoples' health problems. It's too bad that no functional practitioners can deal with the root cause of the US national illness(es). At this point the system seems so corrupt, dysfunctional, and war hungry that it can't be salvaged...I wish we could wipe the slate clean and start over. None the less I think we're in for major changes due to our declining economy and loss of prestige and respect among most of the world.

Screenshot 2024-02-10 at 13-16-31 Where There’s Smoke.png

What's wrong with America?

Man Ruled Too Senile To Stand Trial Still Fine To Run Country (B. Bee)
Special Counsel Robert Hur will not recommend charges for Biden's mishandling of classified documents on the grounds that he's too old and senile to stand trial.
In spite of the report detailing Biden's late-stage dementia, the Special Counsel confirmed Biden is just fine to continue running the country. "Oh yeah, that's no problem," he said. "You heard the Press Secretary. He's so active and alert no one can keep up with him! Impressive!"

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The report states:
In his interview with our office, Mr. Biden’s memory was worse. He did not remember when he was vice president, forgetting on the first day of the interview when his term ended (“if it was 2013 – when did I stop being Vice President?”), and forgetting on the second day of the interview when his term began (“in 2009, am I still Vice President?”).
In concluding their findings, the special counsel’s report adds, “Based on our direct interactions with and observations of [Biden], he is someone for whom many jurors will want to identify reasonable doubt. It would be difficult to convince a jury that they should convict him — by then a former president well into his eighties — of a serious felony that requires a mental state of willfulness.”

Eventful Events (James Howard Kunstler)
If Mr. Biden is truly mentally incompetent, as established more-or-less legally by Special Counsel Hur, then there is the obvious remedy of the 25th amendment — removal of a president for reason of disability. A debate over this would seem unavoidable now. The question also implies that Mr. Biden’s charade of running for reelection must come to an end. What will the Democratic party do about that?

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Biden’s ‘Angry’ Press Conference Made Hur’s Memory Report ‘Infinitely Worse’

"My Memory Is Fine" Biden Fumes, Before Confusing Egypt's Sisi With The President Of Mexico
In less than 15 minutes, President Biden proved Special Counsel Robert Hur right and confirmed all concerns about his fitness for office.

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Egyptian Folk Band

A Dementia Patient Is President Because It Doesn’t Matter Who The President Is

If you were still laboring under the delusion that it matters who the US president is, the fact that an actual, literal dementia patient has held that office for three years now should dispel that notion once and for all. The US empire has been marching along in exactly the same way it was before Biden took office, completely unhindered by the fact that the person who’s supposedly calling the shots is in a state of degenerative neurological free-fall.

Literally anyone could hold that office and it would make no meaningful difference in the way the US empire is run. A coma patient could be president. A jar of kalamata olives could be president. The position which Americans hold elections over in the belief that it could bring positive changes to their country and their world is nothing but a figurehead.

Which is a bit of a problem for Americans who would like to change certain aspects of their government’s behavior, like for example the backing of an active genocide in Gaza. Whose conscience do they work to appeal to if the person they were told is in charge actually isn’t? Who do they vote for if the people who really call the shots aren’t even on the ballot?

The episode provides good evidence that it is all political theater.

Garland does a good comic routine about it all...

Worthy of watching for at least 10 min for a good laugh.

The Biden presser is quite the contrast to the big event of the week, Tucker's Putin interview.

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Tucker Carlson Interviews Vladimir Putin (2 hours 7 min)
Transcript here.
Timestamps
00:00:00 Introduction
00:02:00 Putin gives a history of Russia & Ukraine
00:25:04 NATO Expansion
00:30:40 NATO & Bill Clinton
00:41:10 Ukraine
00:48:30 What triggered this conflict?
01:02:37 A peaceful solution?
01:11:33 Who blew up the Nord Stream pipelines?
01:24:13 Re-establishing communication with the US
01:36:33 How powerful is Zelensky?
01:48:36 Elon Musk & AI
01:51:07 Imprisoned American journalist Evan Gershkovich

There were excellent analyses of the interview including The Duran and Alex Christoforou. Most MSM outlets attacked Tucker and Putin.

‘Losing the Narrative’: Freakout Over Tucker Carlson Signals Collapse of Western War Propaganda
“The United States government/the West realizes it is losing the narrative, it is losing the public opinion,” said Leon. “When you look at the polls, Americans want us out of Ukraine, Americans don't want their money to go there, Americans are opposed to the genocidal actions of the Zionist government in Israel. They're losing the narrative, they're losing in the court of public opinion.”
“And all Tucker Carlson is doing is now adding more information to that information war, and the United States is losing it.”

The real propagandists are those who dismiss Tucker Carlson’s Putin interview
"Focusing on Carlson as some kind of flawed messenger serves as a convenient pretext for ignoring critical information and analysis. The fact that some journalists may think that Carlson’s questioning or approach was misguided — or that he didn’t push back enough for their tastes — doesn’t mean that they can’t subsequently take what Putin said and analyze it themselves. Every bit of information, analysis, or interview of any world leader is a valuable contribution. Litmus tests have no place in objective, impartial journalism. Many of those who criticize Carlson are the same ones who routinely search the Wikileaks database for leaked and dumped classified information to flesh out their own stories about various political issues and events that have since materialized — all while refusing to acknowledge that the publisher, Julian Assange, is as much of a journalist as they are."

Perhaps my favorite commentary on Tucker's interview came in this discussion...not that I agree with everything postulated. To stay in theme this week I've cued it to the root of the issue (to my mind). The preceding portion was also good commentary on the interview.

One of the panelists suggested over dubbing Oliver Stones 4 part interview with Putin.
In a series of interviews between 2015-2017, Oliver Stone talks to Vladimir Putin about the Ukrainian crisis, his relationship with Barack Obama, the annexation of Crimea, the current paradigm of international relations, the recently passed "Big Brother" law which provides mass surveillance techniques to the Russian government, the daily functions of the Commander in Chief, the war in Syria, and underlying military tension with the United States.

Jeffery also did a nice historical review in this hour long interview with Gita Wirjawan, an Indonesian entrepreneur and educator. (the time line is divided into chapters to target subjects of interest to you.) Jeffrey Sachs: There Is No Shortcut to Peace Jeffrey Sachs guides us back to a revitalization of a long-forgotten international political culture: diplomacy. Beyond engaging in difficult conversations, diplomacy imparts the wisdom of listening, understanding, and accepting one another to enable judicious action.

Ukraine
The Biden-Schumer Plan to Kill More Ukrainians The $61 billion will make no difference on the battlefield except to prolong the war, the tens of thousands of deaths, and the physical destruction of Ukraine.
Jeffery lays out the situation well.

Palace intrigue in Kiev as there is a General shuffle.
Zelensky finally fires Zaluzhny (23 min)

The battle of Avdeevka is about to be finished.

Ukraine at risk of ‘cascading frontline collapse’ – NYT

Ukraine - An Army Without Officers Has No Chance Of Winning
The Ukrainian army is lacking soldiers and munitions. It is lacking the officers to train and lead them. The Ukrainian state does not have the money to conscript and equip more soldiers. It does not have the officer corp needed to train new soldiers. It does not have the factories needed to produce weapons and munitions.
It is high time for Ukraine to give up this unequal fight and to save the lives of those soldiers who are still living.

In the meantime EU countries have destroyed their own economies...
Industrial Megapower Germany on Edge of Ruin Thanks to Energy War Against Russia

Whom the Gods Would Destroy, They First Make Insane (Paul Craig Roberts)

The prime minister of formerly “Great Britain,” an Indian named Sunak, Scholz and Macron, the non-entities who head Washington’s puppet states of Germany and France, and the non-entities in Norway, Finland, Poland and the rest of the militarily and economically impotent puppet governments that comprise the American Empire, declare their preparation for war with Russia. What a joke! None of these territories–they are so over-run by third world immigrant-invaders that they no longer rank as countries, just territories open for the taking–have confident nationalistic populations willing to lose their lives in defense of their subservience to Washington and their domestic oppression. Can anyone seriously imagine Sweden, whose military-aged ethnic males are afraid to prevent immigrant-invaders’ rapes of ethnic Swedish women because they would be arrested for hate crimes, forming an army capable of facing Russian troops?

...and NATO says they plan on a decades long war against Russia? Can they not see they are killing the EU and their member countries. Are they fools or just evil?

Gaza
US Chooses Genocide Over Diplomacy in the Middle East

On February 7, 2024, a U.S. drone strike assassinated an Iraqi militia leader, Abu Baqir al-Saadi, in the heart of Baghdad. This was a further U.S. escalation in a major new front in the U.S.-Israeli war on the Middle East, centered on the Israeli genocide in Gaza, but already also including ethnic cleansing in the West Bank, Israeli attacks on Lebanon and Syria, and the U.S. and U.K.’s bombing of Yemen.

This latest U.S. attack followed the U.S. bombing of seven targets on February 2, three in Iraq and four in Syria, with 125 bombs and missiles, killing at least 39 people, which Iran called “a strategic mistake” that would bring “disastrous consequences” for the Middle East.

At the same time, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has been touring the shrinking number of capitals in the region where leaders will still talk to him, playing the United States’ traditional role as a dishonest broker between Israel and its neighbors, in reality partnering with Israel to offer the Palestinians impossible, virtually suicidal terms for a ceasefire in Gaza.

I can't see how the US avoids accusations and charges of war crimes and assisting genocide.

Letters from Gaza
The genocide that Palestinians are facing in Gaza is being captured in almost real time on social media, where many Palestinians continue to share videos and photographs in detail and high definition. It’s angering and heart-wrenching to see people desperately kissing their martyred loved ones goodbye...

A muralist's message of resistance on Gaza's ruins (4 min)

The Grayzone meets Amal Abo Al-Sebah, a displaced Palestinian artist in the besieged Gaza Strip. We see Amal chronicle the destruction her neighbors endured and the resilience they have displayed through a series of colorful murals painted on the ruins of a home in the city of Rafah destroyed by an Israeli airstrike.
"I want to send a message to all Arab countries with this artwork," Amal said. "A message that we're attached to this land and we're not leaving it."

Hat/tip Humphrey...

‘Operation Al-Aqsa Flood’ Day 127: Growing International Alarm Over Israeli Plans to Invade Rafah
Israel has announced its intention to push ahead with its plans to invade Rafah in the southernmost Gaza Strip, where 1.3 million Palestinians are sheltering. Rafah's mayor, Ahmed al-Sufi, warns any military action there would result in a “massacre”.
How is this ongoing genocide allowed?

Of course those trying to prevent it are attacked...
Yemen’s Unending Nightmare: The Hidden Consequences of US and UK Airstrikes

When confronted with international appeals for humanitarian aid due to the ongoing crises in Gaza and Yemen, the United States and the United Kingdom have chosen instead to turn Yemen’s Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden into a combat zone, initiating an ariel bombing campaign against the war-torn country already suffering immensely from nine years of deadly conflict spearheaded by Saudi Arabia and backed by the U.S.
For weeks, U.S. and British naval vessels have been perched on the outskirts of Yemen’s territorial waters in the Red Sea, not only to protect ships carrying goods to Israel but to launch a series of airstrikes against Yemen, the poorest country in the world. In recent weeks, at least 320 airstrikes have been launched by warplanes that seem never to leave the skies over Yemen’s major cities. The latest strikes hit Friday morning, targeting Al-Jabana, Al-Taif, and Al-Kathib and followed renewed calls by U.S. officials for regional actors not to escalate conflict in the Middle East.
According to Yemeni citizens who spoke to MintPress, the U.S. bombing campaign, which has struck targets in crowded residential neighborhoods, is the last thing that Yemenis expected. Twenty-seven-year-odl Ibrahim al-Nahari lives with his family near Hodeida International Airport, which was targeted by US airstrikes on Monday afternoon. He said of the bombings: “I never expected we would be attacked because of our solidarity with hungry people in Gaza. Are these America’s morals?”

Diplomacy with bombs NEVER works, but it is the only strategy in our tool bag.

Let Them Eat Dirt

The final stage of Israel’s genocide in Gaza, an orchestrated mass starvation, has begun. The international community does not intend to stop it.
UNRWA’s reports on conditions in Gaza, which I covered as a reporter for seven years, and its documentation of indiscriminate Israeli attacks illustrate that, as UNRWA said, “unilaterally declared ‘safe zones’ are not safe at all. Nowhere in Gaza is safe.”
UNRWA’s role in documenting the genocide, as well as providing food and aid to the Palestinians, infuriates the Israeli government. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused UNRWA after the ruling of providing false information to the ICJ. Already an Israeli target for decades, Israel decided that UNRWA, which supports 5.9 million Palestinian refugees across the Middle East with clinics, schools and food, had to be eliminated. Israel’s destruction of UNRWA serves a political as well as material objective.
The evidence-free Israeli accusations against UNRWA that a dozen of the 13,000 employees had links to those who carried out the attacks in Israel on Oct. 7, which saw some 1,200 Israelis killed, did the trick. It led 16 major donors, including the United States, the U.K., Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland, Finland, Australia, Canada, Sweden, Estonia and Japan, to suspend financial support for the relief agency on which nearly every Palestinian in Gaza depends for food. Israel has killed 152 UNRWA workers and damaged 147 UNRWA installations since Oct. 7. Israel has also bombed UNRWA relief trucks.
More than 27,708 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, some 67,000 have been wounded and at least 7,000 are missing, most likely dead and buried under the rubble.More than half a million Palestinians – one in four – are starving in Gaza, according to the U.N.

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I thought of the subject of roots after catching the clip below. My training as a soil scientist made me aware the importance of the root soil interface...it is where the magic happens...the exchange of living systems. It is similar to the interface of our gut biota and our nutrient uptake. In both cases it is a complex ecosystem exchange.

First, heal the soil | Allen Williams (10 min)

More life in the soil, means more life above the soil. Period.
Hear how regenerative agricultural principles are restoring and enhancing soil health by creating more diverse soil microbiological communities. Increasing the microscopic biodiversity under the ground leads to benefits magnified across the system.
Healthy soil holds more water, reducing flooding risk and irrigation needs. Healthy soil supports more diverse vegetation and restores ecosystems where incredible blooms in life can take hold. Healthy soil attracts pollinators and creates havens for native bird populations. Healthy soil increases the nutrient density of the food it produces, at far less cost than conventional farming practices.
Modern conventional agricultural techniques that rely on expensive and often dangerous synthetic fertilizers and pesticides that harm the soil and reduce nutrition. It's hard to argue with the benefits and the data, so why aren't all farms regenerative? Education and initial transition costs—two hurdles Allen Williams is on a mission to tackle.
Allen Williams is a 6th generation family farmer and founding partner of Grass Fed Insights, LLC, Understanding Ag, LLC and the Soil Health Academy. He has consulted with more than 4000 farmers and ranchers in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, South America, and other countries, on operations ranging from a few acres to over 1 million acres. He is a “recovering academic”, having served 15 years on the faculty at Louisiana Tech University and Mississippi State University. He holds a B.S. and M.S. in Animal Science from Clemson University and a Ph.D. in Livestock Genetics from LSU and has authored more than 400 scientific and popular press articles.

From the makers of "Carbon Cowboys" comes "Roots So Deep"
"Roots So Deep (you can see the devil down there)” is a 4-part documentary series all about inventive farmers and maverick scientists building a path to solving climate change with hooves, heart and soil.
Can a novel way to graze cattle, that mimics the way bison once roamed the land, help get farmers out of debt, restore our depleted soils, rebuild wildlife habitat and draw down huge amounts of carbon? Cattle have been seen as eco-villains for a long time. What if they can help save us from catastrophic climate change?
“Roots So Deep” is guided by director and wrangler of scientists Peter Byck as he meets farmers on both sides of the fence – the folks practicing a new way to graze, and their neighbors set in their family’s old style of doing things. Byck’s team of outcast scientists are measuring what’s happening on both sides of the fences – exploring if this new, adaptive grazing could help slow down climate change.
And one question looms over the whole series: even if the science shows that the new way to graze is better for the land and the farmers’ pocket books, will the old school farmers change, will they adopt the new methods? Will they evolve into climate heroes? Will they save our friggin’ asses from the impending climate catastrophe?
3 min Trailer

Available for Streaming May 28th at link above...

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Last week, in the comments, I featured the story of White Oak Pastures and how their system brought to life an entire town. Too bad these small scale systems don't receive the funding of big agribiz.

It was yet another very busy news cycle. I didn't even touch on the Pakistan elections, nor the hostility toward China by the US and west, the EU farmer protests, and many other missed stories. I hope you'll add any story of interest to you in the comments below.

Have a great Sunday. It's a wet one here...supposedly the final drought killer.

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be Both?

Are they fools or just evil?

Evil fools I’d say

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Ya got to be a Spirit, cain't be no Ghost. . .

Explain Bldg #7. . . still waiting. . .

If you’ve ever wondered whether you would have complied in 1930’s Germany,
Now you know. . .
sign at protest march

Lookout's picture

@Tall Bald and Ugly

Why people tolerate their leaders crashing their economies and countries is beyond me. National suicide seems to be a western cultural phenomenon.

I hope all is well in your world as we watch the vortex while our country is being flushed.

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“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

that you posted above Lookout

According to TPTB, this mariachi group (I posted below) must be popular on the San Antonio River Walk...

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Lookout's picture

@randtntx
Thanks for the chuckle. I stole that joke from Alex from a tweet he featured.

Well, mariachi music is popular in Texas, right?

Perhaps this should be our national anthem?

We don't know much...about much.

I hope you are doing well, and all is good in your corner!

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13 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

@Lookout , we love our Mariachi groups. They are traditionally hired to play at birthday parties and other family celebrations and parties. They also are featured at many restaurants especially those that cater to the tourists.

The mixing up of cultures, foreign countries, and foreign leaders by our Pres. is pretty telling isn't it. Yikes. Does it get any more surreal? What's that cliche...."the inmates are running the asylum"... or something like that.

Doing OK here Lookout, thanks. We've had a week or so of quite warm weather and the wildflowers are staging themselves to bloom. Since we had a reasonable amount of rain recently it looks as if we may have some nice flower blooms if we don't get a sudden freeze.

Hope things good in your corner.
Thanks again for the WW, Lookout.

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Lookout's picture

@randtntx

...and I've seen some forsythea blooms too. Spring is around the corner...and that is always hoopeful...to me.

Always nice to see you!

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“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

QMS's picture

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Have never understood the penchant towards chemically induced
monoculture. A basic understanding of soil nutrients should turn that
practice around IMO.

Another enlightening weekly wash!

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truth is considered foreign influence, world peace is a threat to national security

Lookout's picture

@QMS @QMS

appropriately named. He told farmers to plow fence row to fence row, and they better adapt or die.

He envisioned a hyper-efficient, centralized food system, one that could profitably and cheaply “feed the world” by manipulating (or “adding value to”) mountains of Midwestern corn and soy. Patron saint of the Fast Food Nation, Butz lived to see his dream realized. He died in his sleep, a quiet end for a man whose career shook the earth, causing untold acres to succumb to the plow. Yet his legacy still thrives, and will not likely die as gently as the man.

secretary of agriculture, Sonny Perdue, made a statement that was similar to one made in years past by the then secretary of agriculture Earl Butz, GET BIG OR GET OUT.
There are those who believe that consolidation is inevitable and there is no place for small family farms in modern day agriculture.

Big agribiz food is real and almost as powerful as big pharma.

Thanks for reading and coming by today!

Edit to add some EU protest images...(10 min)

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“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

can be long-winded, but I like him anyway. He certainly makes the point about how completely ludicrous it is to have a President with Dementia. I do believe an Alzheimer patient was put into that office intentionally and as a joke on the American people. I think the TPTB have been laughing about this for the past several years. How long did it take for Americans to catch on? Just ridiculous.

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Lookout's picture

@randtntx

that describes America...
Joe Biden fumbles, describes America in single word as "ASUFUTIMAEHAEHFUTBW"

Garland did a great routine on that..fits my sense of humor.

And before someone accuses me of senior abuse, we laugh about ourselves "living in the hereafter"...as in what did I come in here after.

The sad part is he's the president?

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“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

Cassiodorus's picture

@Lookout -- is that you have SO MANY Democrats -- otherwise intelligent people -- defending this guy. And if he gives up on the ridiculous notion that he can serve a second term, you're going to see these same people defending Kamala Harris, who is Joe Biden's own private Dan Quayle.

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"People need to be ready for a revolution." - Fiorella Isabel

Lookout's picture

@Cassiodorus

...mixing her word salad to defend, as Pepe calls him, our Crash Test Dummy.

She claimed the ruling was politically motivated.
I agree, it was created to get him off the same charge Trump faces from his Maralago files case.

It will be interesting to see how the dimwits try to wiggle out of this situation. They have no back bench to pull from.

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11 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

believe I’m @Lookout gonna
say this but she makes Sarah
Palin look ‘intelligent’

tough act to follow

carlson/cia I read here or
linked from here sometime before
‘rona loved the non-reaction
reaction but the audio caught
a sphincter slamming shut and
judging by his smirk putin
heard it the hard edit there
apparently missed it
like kerry being farted at in
davos only- more of an
Inward Squeak

thanks for the ww lo
no snow Lots of rain
localized flooding big
winds at times quiet
having a break will
(someday)post photos of
the breakwaters in storm

remember that old saw
how can you tell a politician
is lying?
their lips move

it’s election season something
to keep in mind

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Ya got to be a Spirit, cain't be no Ghost. . .

Explain Bldg #7. . . still waiting. . .

If you’ve ever wondered whether you would have complied in 1930’s Germany,
Now you know. . .
sign at protest march

Lookout's picture

@Tall Bald and Ugly

seem more intelligent than Palin.

12 min

Not that I can say Sarah ever impressed me with her intellectual acumen. I agree with your lying saying...yes, when their lips are moving.

Glad your weather is abating!

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“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

@Lookout , and imaginary language of our Pres, communication is tough. Probably a feature not a bug though. Best not to communicate a litany of lies.

I get you about the hereafter. We play that skit here on a daily basis. Smile

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enhydra lutris's picture

@randtntx

does Jill Biden have a house astrologer?

be well and have a good one

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That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --

Lookout's picture

@enhydra lutris

lost it...at least in his second term.

So it isn't our first demented president by any means.

Hope the ATM river has passed by now. Take care.

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“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

@enhydra lutris , that certain indigenous peoples were very forgiving, even supportive of the members of their community who had psychological illnesses. So now we have at least two recent examples if not three, of the American people being so forgiving towards their Presidents. I didn't know our people could be so kind. In fact we have all but deified our mentally challenged Presidents. Who knew we could be so tolerant?

To my knowledge there is no house astrologer, but I suspect there is a Rasputin like figure to mix up the magic potions.

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Lookout's picture

@randtntx

a CIA puppet master. Sadly for them, the marionette's strings are tangled in a knot.

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“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

enhydra lutris's picture

Berkeley's Beloved Peregrine Falcon Annie Selects A New Beau

https://patch.com/california/berkeley/berkeleys-beloved-peregrine-falcon...

Campanile webcams: https://calfalcons.berkeley.edu/webcams/

Beats the crap out of US politics and elections and there is hope for actual progress.

be well and have a good one

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That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --

Lookout's picture

@enhydra lutris

We have a few around the canyon, but I've never gotten a good photo.

Been seeing lots of hawk, and hearing plenty of owls, so not all is bad.

I agree nature is better than politics!

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“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

Pluto's Republic's picture

@Lookout

....because we humans have refused to address it since 1898: The extreme insanity of human overpopulation that has thrown the planetary cycles into perilous chaos, and caused scarcities that have triggered hundreds of wars. Look no further for there cause of border problems everywhere.

Nature could have done a lot better without all the flying monkeys causing a major extinction event.

Thanks for another excellent Sunday testimony, Lookout.

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Populations don’t like wars. They have to be lied into it.
That means we can be “truthed” into peace. — Julian Assange
Lookout's picture

@Pluto's Republic

...to over population. Sachs interview above with the Indonesian in the essay concludes with the question: "So what is the answer?"
Sachs concludes, "Education. Make sure the children are literate and numerate".
Boy is that my song!

So glad you came by this eventful week!

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“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

@enhydra lutris Since it is raining, storming, with tornadoes highly possible, you solved my "What am I gonna do today?" problem. Lots of reading and watching for the day.
Of all things, we watched "Idiocracy" last evening. Everyone should try to watch that hilarious and very prescient movie. Can't give away the plot or ending, but will say, soil played a huge role.
Spiderworts are blooming in the yard. Mostly the blue variety, but we do have pinks.
Spring is always welcome, but this is too early, will goof up planting season, I fear.
I am almost ready to dig into the news and opinions. Garland comes first!
Thanks for your hard work in keeping us educated and entertained, my friend!

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"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." ---- William Casey, CIA Director, 1981

Lookout's picture

@on the cusp

Better to laugh at the joke we've become. I just wish we would stop spreading disaster around the world.

We've got a break in the rain, but the storms are due tonight and tomorrow AM. We've had 1.3" so far since last night...a possible 2 more tonight. We'll be sunny by Tuesday. Much like your part of TX, don't like the weather, wait 15 min.

Enjoy your day! Thanks for coming by.

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“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

QMS's picture

-
we had a large hawk perched on a branch in the back.
It was all a light golden color, all puffed up. almost similar to this

northern-harrier-perched-768x512.jpg
NORTHERN HARRIER

except more golden and white. first time seeing one of these
watch out squirrels!

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truth is considered foreign influence, world peace is a threat to national security

Lookout's picture

@QMS

Might be a broad wing hawk?
https://www.birdzilla.com/bird-identification/id-skill-development/bird-...
Give these hawks a look over in the meanwhile.

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“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

QMS's picture

@Lookout

of those, it was also most similar to the Northern Harrier and
Ferruginous Hawk ..

Ferruginous-Hawk-flight-under-tg-768x549.jpg

-
Ferruginous-Hawk-power-line-tg-768x417.jpg

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7 users have voted.

truth is considered foreign influence, world peace is a threat to national security

enhydra lutris's picture

@QMS @QMS

Northern Harrier is about 16 to 20 inches long with a 4 foot wingspan and a face almost vaguely like a Barn Own; hunts open fields, flying low.

Ferruginous Hawk is a big mutha, 20 to 25 inches long and a wingspan more like 4 foot 6' and a very hawk like face.

One thing you can do is go to eBird.org, create an account, up top pick "explore", then pick explore regions, jump down to bar charts, pick state and then county (or hotspots) and check the chart for your area. State or county, then pick winter for date range. let the charts load then Scroll down to the vultues which should be in a section with Great Egret at the top. The charts will show what is around your location at this time of year, narrowing your search, then check those birds at Cornell's "All About Birds" site.

be well and have a good one

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That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --

enhydra lutris's picture

@enhydra lutris

location info you provide or gets it from phone and then after you enter some information like approximate size, color(s), activity, etc. it does the eBird search for you and presents pictures of likely suspects

be well and have a good one

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That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --

Lookout's picture

@enhydra lutris

Thanks for adding those into the mix this week!

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enhydra lutris's picture

@Lookout

my phone and tablet have Merlin, eBird, an electronic version of Sibley's guide to N.A. Birds, and an old copy of iBird Pro from back when you could buy it outright instead of subscribing.

be well and have a good one

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That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --

Lookout's picture

@enhydra lutris

...and also really like the Birders Handbook for nests and other trivia. Several years ago I bought the Readers Digest Book of NA Birds. It is my go to for painting and drawing them.
Several years back we got into making paper mache' birds. I managed to get into the back room of the Anniston Museum of Natural History and photo their collections of stuffed birds. Sure is helpful for painting the paper mache birds, esp underbellies and such.
I keep intending to get back to making birds, but you know where you end up on the road to good intentions.

Take care and be well!

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enhydra lutris's picture

@Lookout

one shortly after it came out and then not too long afterwards somebody gave us one as a gift on some special occasion, perhaps our wedding. Since we still had the trailer at the time, we kept one copy in the house and one in the trailer so we wouldn't forget to take it with us. Trailer copy is currently in whichever vehicle we last went birding in.

be well and have a good one

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That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --

dystopian's picture

@QMS @QMS Hi Capt.!

Ferruginous Hawk, Buteo regalis, the King of buteos, is bigger than a Red-tail. And is strictly western U.S., accidental east of Mississippi River. Most unlikely. The Broad-winged LO mentioned does not winter in the U.S., except accidently, maybe a few in southmost U.S. So very unlikely now.

The Harrier has a big obvious white rump, if you see the upperparts, unique amongst hawks that look similar. Like EL says it looks like a Barn Owl with facial disks, used for the same purpose to funnel sound as a parabola to the ear. It can catch mice in deep grass it cannot see into. Harriers though are strictly birds of open fields, pastures, and marshes. The old name was Marsh Hawk. Took me years to unlearn that.

Red-tailed Hawk does not have a red tail its first year plus and looks very different from adults during that period. They are up there now. In open areas Rough-legged Hawk are there in winter. Not a forest hawk though.

Sorry I can't be of much help... with birds, give us a few pixels and we can maybe tell you... we don't need many. Wink A picture says ten thousand feathers.

keep yer eyes peeled!

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We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.
Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.
both - Albert Einstein

Lookout's picture

@dystopian

I love 'em, but don't have the depth of your knowledge. Thanks for the 2 cents!

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interview: Am I the only one who was surprised to learn that TC had once applied to become CIA, supposedly turned down? I was aware of Cooper Anderson and Kos, and credibly strong suspicions about Bob Woodward and Wolf Blitzer being Agency favorites, but not the Tuck. I did find it amusing that Putin brought this up publicly to the viewing audience, and am not sure what to make of Tucker's complete non-reaction.

Other takeaways: Putin's amusing remark at the outset that he just needed "30 seconds or a minute" to put the Ukraine matter into context, then taking the next 20 minutes to give a thorough overview of the history of Ukraine since the year 682. Ten minutes later, he was still only up to the year 1367, and I was beginning to struggle to remember what the point of this tedious history lecture was. Probably lost a view other viewers, just a guess. Always keep it succinct when talking to a larger public audience. This was a missed opportunity to really teach Americans with some brief, sharp remarks about the crucial context of Ukraine.

Putin's kind of odd comments to Tucker's question about whether Russia, like the US, is also concerned about China's growing power. "You don't pick your neighbors" -- how is that not an unnecessary slap to Xi and China, an unforced diplomatic error. I thought at first it might have been a translation error, but apparently not.

Putin late in the interview had some smart, appropriately concerned comments about AI which showed he seems to recognize the potential existential problem.

Intelligent, well-informed leader -- so few of them at the moment. Not afraid of a lengthy open-ended 2-hr sit-down with a new media journalist who could ask him anything. Compare with the US president who for the second year in a row is declining a US network pre-Super Bowl interview, something that had been a tradition for presidents in recent decades. Big missed opportunity to discuss his admin's policies on the economy and inflation with the US people, and to explain to them what he is doing about border control, the 2 biggest issues seemingly at the moment.

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Lookout's picture

@wokkamile

who didn't know Tucker was turned down by the CIA. I discovered it when I was so critical of him in his FOX days. Later when he began to have on Jimmy, Dr Kory, RFK, and so on I moderated my opinion. After he wa fired, he, seeming?, had a come to Jesus moment and saw the news as lying and corrupt...or at least felt free to say so.

Personally, I liked the history lesson. Aaron Mate makes the same point that the history lesson didn't translate to Americans...I would argue because Americans have the attention span of a gnat. To me the point is this lesson is that relationship is long, complicated, and full of nuance.

The most amusing remark to me came early..."Are we having a talk show or serious conversation?"

He did comment: Do the United States need this? What for? Thousands of miles away from your national territory! Don’t you have anything better to do?

You have issues on the border, issues with migration, issues with the national debt – more than 33 trillion dollars. You have nothing better to do, so you should fight in Ukraine? Wouldn’t it be better to negotiate with Russia? Make an agreement, already understanding the situation that is developing today, realizing that Russia will fight for its interests to the end. And, realizing this, actually return to common sense, start respecting our country and its interests and look for certain solutions. It seems to me that this is much smarter and more rational.

The interview was thought provoking and now drawing over 200 M views.

Thanks for your take on the interview!

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QMS's picture

@Lookout
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Don't you have anything better to do?
Even 'muricans can get that.

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truth is considered foreign influence, world peace is a threat to national security

that the public is aware of dementia genocide Joe's mental liabilities.

https://thehill.com/homenews/4461415-more-than-85-percent-think-biden-is...

A new poll conducted in the days after a special counsel’s report detailed President Biden’s lack of recall found that 86 percent of Americans believe he is too old to serve in office, according to a new ABC News/Ipsos poll.

Biden, 81, if the oldest president to run for office. His likely GOP opponent in the 2024 election, former President Trump, is 77. The poll found that 59 percent of American believe both Biden and Trump are too old.

The poll was conducted in the two days after Robert Hur’s report on Biden’s handling of classified documents was made public, in which the president was described as a “well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory.” The descriptions of Biden’s memory once again injected the issue of age into Biden’s re-election campaign.

Multiple national polls in recent months have indicated voters see Biden’s age as a major factor in his ability to serve. Sunday’s poll increased that percentage — in September, an ABC News/Washington Post poll found that 74 percent of Americans thought Biden was too old to serve another term as president and 49 percent said the same about Trump.

No matter how much effort Biden supporters try to spin the results of the poll the hand writing on the wall in indelible ink.

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QMS's picture

@humphrey
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Joe is not running this sh*t show.
For people to wake up and figure this out
is a good sign. The DNC is almost as clueless.

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truth is considered foreign influence, world peace is a threat to national security

@humphrey on competence, not age. There are famed writers and economists, even policy advisors around the world who are brilliant, and in their 90s.
On a personal level, my Dad was fully cognizant of this complicated world at age 91, whereas, his twin sister died from dementia at age 52.
Age limits on terms of office seems reasonable, nonetheless.

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"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." ---- William Casey, CIA Director, 1981

@on the cusp

with regards to Biden he would not get glowing results in either category. Unless Elon Musk could implant a new brain in Joe's noggin the next 4 and a half years (if he wins the upcoming election) would continue to be a disaster.

Edited to add:

Unfortunately electing Trump would not be much of an improvement. We are so screwed!

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Lookout's picture

@humphrey

that I talk with feels he is competent. Even the shitlibs have been asking me what in the hell the DNC is thinking. My response has been, they are thinking power and control and lack the understanding that good policy's are the road to take to get there.

It is obvious Biden is toast, but what is their next move? The $hill? (lord help us), Michele O? - a sure loser, Gavin? Forget it - his record in CA is horrible. They got nothin'

Thanks for the link. The next few months are going to be interesting.

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“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

the other day (or I should say, one like him)...

Red-shouldered Hawk Buteo lineatus, Blue Cypress Lake, Florida
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-shouldered_hawk

Unfortunately he took one of the female Cardinals that was feeding at our bird feeder. Sad, about the Cardinal, but he is one beautiful bird.

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Lookout's picture

@randtntx

Swarming the feeder, and like a flash a (harrier?) hawk flew out of the woods and snatched one. I'll never forget the slow snow of yellow feathers still floating downward afterward.

Thanks for your story which jogged my memory.

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“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

@Lookout , you can barely catch a glimpse of those hawks getting their prey. They can come down from high in the sky like a shot but they also seem to be able to come through the trees in an ambush and all you see is a puff of feathers and then the hawk and its quarry are gone.

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soldiers in their actions being careful with regards to civilians while looking for Hamas.

Obviously they will be on their best behavior following concerns raised by those in the west.

https://thehill.com/policy/international/4461791-dire-warnings-grow-for-...

Warnings advising Israel not to enter the populated city of Rafah in Gaza are continuing to mount as Israel prepares to expand its offensive.

Israel ordered evacuations last week ahead of an anticipated invasion of Rafah — a city in southern Gaza that is home to the largest refugee camp for Palestinians fleeing the war. It is estimated that more than 1.4 million people are staying in Rafah amid the ongoing conflict.

Now, world leaders are calling on Israel to not enter Rafah. President Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a phone call Sunday that no military operation in Rafah should proceed “without a credible and executable plan for ensuring the safety of and support for the more than one million people sheltering there.”

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Lookout's picture

@humphrey

...of an IDF soldier shooting a captured Palestinian in the leg just for torture purposes.

If they start bombing Rafha will any country react? I'm sad to say, I don't think so. Whatta shitshow!

Thanks for the X post and link!

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dystopian's picture

Hi all, Hey LO!

Hope it's all good out there!

Thanks for the WW roundup of the current state of the train wreck. Which appear to be the result of a series of psychotic episodes.

Yesterday morning we got 2.6" of rain, great timing for a spring blooming. Agarita (aka Texas Holly) and Redbud should be blooming in a couple weeks. A few days ago I had my first flock of Geese (White-fronted, or 'speckle-belly' to hunters) heading north. Today I saw my first fresh new emergence butterfly of the year, a Black Swallowtail. We get a few overwintering butterflies like Red Admiral, Sleepy Orange, Questionmark, but this is the first new one of the year. Always a welcome sign, like the geese.

Take care all!

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We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.
Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.
both - Albert Einstein

@dystopian an 11 acre hay field/cattle grazing field. It was rimmed with a few Red Bud trees.
Then came the death of my husband, the loss of lease on my office, and I needed a down payment on a new office. I sold the acreage, but had my brother go to it first, dig up 3 Red Bud saplings, which I planted in my yard here at home.
Every year, I see those blooms, and I think of the people who baled and hauled that hay, many of whom are now deceased. I see those cows, all of which are long gone. I envision that little fenced arena I used to ride semi-broke horses. I remember that last time my Dad stepping into the stirrup, sitting astride a horse, going for a little ride.
It's the little things.

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"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." ---- William Casey, CIA Director, 1981

dystopian's picture

@on the cusp wow, great memories otc... thanks for sharing. Funny how we associate things like that. But they should have called them Pinkbud? Smile By any name a real harbinger of spring being on the way! Watch for the little brown Elfin butterflies on them, with the funny shaped hindwing. Be well!

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5 users have voted.

We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.
Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.
both - Albert Einstein

@dystopian must have been color blind. I had hell explaining to my young niece they were Red Bud trees, and you identify them by their pink flowers.
I was given 2 flowering bushes by 2 different friends, one of whom is dead, the other is almost gone. I will NEVER allow them to be cut down or removed.
A sudden freeze killed off a tropical flower I had gotten from the funeral of the only veteran in the county who had been in the Pearl Harbor battle. That is still a spot I look at, hoping it will grow back.

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"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." ---- William Casey, CIA Director, 1981

Lookout's picture

@dystopian

I often go to see the cranes at Hiwassee and Wheeler, but didn't make it this year. Typically we do one or the other in Jan.

We enjoy our typicals...chickadee dee dees, titmouse, nuthatch, wrens, phoebes, various finch, plenty of pileateds and other peckerwoods, dove, junkos, and so on. The feathered friends are a joy.

Always appreciate your expertise! Thanks for the visit.

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dystopian's picture

@Lookout yeah man, the birds will never BS you. Smile

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We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.
Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.
both - Albert Einstein

half-hearted rebukes from US officials. Blinky is likely sitting back with a Cheshire Cat smile on his face.

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Lookout's picture

@humphrey

We assist and aide this slaughter...hell even tolerate the slaughter. We will be viewed like the Nazis with concentration camps in the future.

We've made our bed, and I hate lying in it!

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Lookout's picture

well at least I found it amusing if not funny...1st 2.5 min

This is AI. This is a joke. This isn't meant to be taken seriously. This isn't Joe Biden, tucker carlson, or donald trump rapping. Nothing in here has been fact checked. This is comedy. This is a parody.

The song is called "Trump the don - Putin (RUSSIA RUSSIA RUSSIA)"

And if that's too much how about a normal song?

The Garden (original song) (3 min)

See you tomorrow...

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@Lookout to enjoy the parody thoroughly!
Have a great week, LO!

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"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." ---- William Casey, CIA Director, 1981

Lookout's picture

@on the cusp

Not a belly laugh but at least amusing. I've been learning more about the roots of Russophobia. More on that next week.

Have a good one!

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QMS's picture

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thanks so much

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Lookout's picture

@QMS

...and wish them well. Glad you liked that one.

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the weather.

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Lookout's picture

@humphrey
He might have been wounded in Ukraine. Not beyond possibility that is the case, and they (as usual) are lying to the public.

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