@Lookout
the new Dune movie series by director Denis Villeneuve. They are a great, epic and entertaining retelling of the book series. Part One and Part Two cover the book Dune, and Part Three is based on Dune Messiah and will be released in December, 2026. I loved the 1984 version but these films are on a whole different level.

It took a tropical storm to break our drought, let's hope yours is broken by a good old fashioned downpour.

Cheers, from the Piney Woods to you and yours in the Holler.

‘Dune’: “Fear Is the Mind-Killer”
the full quote goes like this

I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past, I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.

This is the Litany of Fear and it’s traditionally used to focus one’s mind in times of great danger. It was highly inspired by William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar and was later adapted into a litany during the Butlerian Jihad. It focuses on the idea that fear can be more damaging than death itself, as it causes one to suffer repeatedly.

And as you say, fear is used to control us. Be afraid, be very afraid...of those evil Russians, Iranians, Chinese, and so on.

Wish you could share some rain with us. I watered the newly planted cabbage, broccoli and such, this morning first thing. No rain here for the next 10 days with mid 90 temps. Summer's last gasp (I hope).

Thanks for filling in on today's OT!

@enhydra lutris
about fear in the past year with my bout with colorectal cancer. The big lesson I learned was not to let it cross the bridge from the very beginning.

Good luck with the finances. You'll need high yield CDs just to keep up with inflation, real inflation that is, not the surrealistic inflation figures from the gooberment.

Yard work keeps me physically active, while sparring with otc keeps me mentally active.

I can't do anything about DJT, but I can figure out what to plant and when.

You got that right, mi hermano, it's best to not dwell on things you can't do anything about.

this. There was an incantation against fear in Dune:

I must not fear.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past, I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing.
Only I will remain."

It's the first of the month which means sorting out one's finances and doing a bit of planning, regardless of the futility of forecasting. (John Kenneth Galbraith said: "the only function of economic forecasting is to make astrology look respectable"—) That said, Pissant is losing his battle to keep bond yields down, so interest rates should continue to climb, so one should favor short term CDs over long term ones, in theory. I work on that (money management) when I need a sit down - it beats doomscrolling, which I have yet to start this morning.

I've started pruning the apricot one or two hours per day, with other chores and yard/garden work for breaks. Only two days so far, but already stiff and sore. Time to switch activities. We have termites and have an inspection this afternoon to get a second opinion and bid, so I have to get necessary errands done as early as possible today, starting with a run out to costco.

September is time to start working on the winter garden too, my tomatoes are still producing but I suspect that the fruit on at least two, the determinates, will never ripen, so I should maybe pull them and plant winter greens or carrots or somesuch. I can't do anything about DJT, but I can figure out what to plant and when.

so, that's what's up here, for now, at any rate. Life goes on, as they say (they whoo?)

be well and have a good one

@Snode my friend. I always want to copy/paste your comments into my essay bodies, they compliment them so well.

I don't blame capitalism as much as I blame the fat cats who have co-opted it and have used it to make themselves even more wealthy. Capitalism worked well after World War II, back when it was well regulated. Our middle class was formed due to those regulations and the high taxes on the most wealthy in society.

The last few decades have seen our politicians and courts sell us out to big money, mostly by legal bribery called lobbying, and by crooked bills, like Citizens United, that give the monied class a huge advantage when it comes to selecting (not electing) pols that understand the game of making themselves wealthy and ultimately the deep pockets that close the circle of corruption.

They now have a stranglehold on We The People and it isn't going to be easy to break. And, as you have deftly outlined, they use fear to keep us in line with threats of financial ruination.

Speaking of threats of financial ruination, we haven't seen anything yet if/when a programmable Stablecoin or CBDC is implemented. That would be a threat that even Dr. Stranglove would envy.

Thanks for anther great comment, my brother.

since the dawn of man. It's what religions are about. It's what governments are about. It's what militarism are about. Fear is what keeps the subjects in compliance."

Yes, and maybe add a fourth horseman, capitalism, as a method to attain power. There's money to be made in stoking fear day after day, as Fox and Limbaugh did. Fear begets hatred, that begets more fear. You can set up a tax exempt foundation to spread lies and innuendo, collect donations, go on the lecture circuit, write books, be supported by billionaires and maybe become part of the government, and become wealthy. All on hate.

They can create a society in which, if you stumble or misfortune strikes, you can hate yourself for being not good enough, a failure. You didn't eat right, you were stupid, you went left instead of right, it's you own fault.

(not you JTC, the everyman you)

Capitalism is our government, and our society is a capitalist obstacle course keeping us off balance. Afraid we'll lose our jobs, our house, be unable to afford medical care. Looking to a government that doesn't care about you. The sad thing is our kids grow up thinking this normal, and the worse thing is they'll look back at these days as their good old days. It doesn't feel too far off where masked goons will be clubbing people on the street , and will break down your door at 2 a.m., as a normal occurrence.

Thanks for the concise OT.

Funny, I think sometimes we're in a rel life version of "Dr. Strangelove", without the laughs.

@humphrey
whether this is a deliberate takedown of the US or a Hail Mary to hold on just long enough to pass the ball to the next criminal cabal.

skills need more work his message is legit.

Speaker of the Parliament of Iran, Ghalibaf to US Treasury Secretary Bessent: Rapid depletion of strategic reserves, unprecedented increase in bond yields and rapid jump in oil futures prices have put Bessent on the brink

"Watch Oman's oil futures, US government bond… pic.twitter.com/OBkabQ8k4l

— dana (@dana916) September 3, 2026

The rest of the tweet:

"Watch Oman's oil futures, US government bond yields and the level of strategic oil reserves closely.

Hero! Do everything you can to intervene in the price of future oil! Because your entire career depends on it.

Either continue to drain oil from strategic reserves beyond the dangerous limit and watch the salt caves of oil storage collapse due to the sharp decline in reserves, or take refuge in the Texas salt gods and pray that the storage wells do not collapse. The world has bought popcorn and is watching you."

In explaining this tweet by the Speaker of the House, it is important to mention 3 points:

The Fed has resorted to repurchases in the US debt market to lower long-term bond yields (especially 10-year bonds) in the hope of reducing the cost of borrowing before the midterm elections. But the market has largely resisted these interventions, and yields have remained high or even risen. Critics (including some old Wall Street figures such as Stanley Druckenmiller) consider these measures ineffective and assess the market as on the brink of a precipice.

Due to the war with Iran and disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, the Trump administration (through the Department of Energy) has released a huge amount of SPR oil through emergency exchanges. The level of reserves has fallen to the lowest level since the early 1980s (in some reports near or below 300 million barrels and even close to the legal danger limit of about 252 million barrels). Strategic Petroleum Reserves are stored in huge underground salt caverns in Texas and Louisiana; one of the most important sites is Bryan Mound near Texas.

‼️Over-draining these caverns poses structural risks: hydraulic pressure, salt wall stability, well integrity, and the possibility of collapse or permanent damage to storage capacity. Numerous expert reports have previously pointed to issues of work quality, well deformation, and risk at sites like Bryan Mound.

Some oil traders have given up hope for a decline in future oil prices with Bessent signals, while futures prices for Omani and UAE oil, which are considered to reflect market expectations for a parallel line through Hormuz, have exceeded $100 in recent days. The United States had been counting on a decline in future oil prices from these countries as a result of psychological games and assurances about the reopening of the southern line of Hormuz. These expectations for future oil prices, along with the depletion of strategic reserves and rising bond yields, have created a difficult situation for Bessent and the Trump administration, who are trying to cover it up with rhetoric about Iran, but the indicators speak more clearly and explicitly.

@humphrey
are we going to attack them all? Just the ones without nuclear weapons would be my guess. Oh, and lest I forget, just the ones that live on "our" oil, as well.

JD Vance after starting a war against Iran, asssasinating Iranian People's leader, targeting their civilian facilities, attacking their economy, blockading their oil exports...:

"Stop acting like crazy people" https://t.co/dZyVQoXISs

— MenchOsint (@MenchOsint) September 3, 2026