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Friday, March 20th, 2026 06:16 amconulyFriday, March 20th, 2026 06:16 am
conuly
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Today in one sentence: The Pentagon asked for more than $200 billion in additional funding for the Iran war; Iran attacked Gulf energy sites after an Israeli strike on Iran’s South Pars gas field; Israel said it would stop attacking Iran’s South Pars gas field after Trump said he told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “don’t do that”; the Justice Department subpoenaed former FBI Director James Comey as part of a “grand conspiracy” case against the former officials who investigated and prosecuted Trump; about 9% of people who had Affordable Care Act insurance in 2025 are now uninsured after the enhanced federal subsidies expired at the end of 2025; a coalition of 24 states and more than a dozen cities and counties sued the EPA over its repeal of the 2009 endangerment finding; and Trump’s hand-picked federal arts commission approved a commemorative 24-karat U.S. gold coin depicting Trump leaning on a desk with clenched fists.
1/ The Pentagon asked for more than $200 billion in additional funding for the Iran war. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said “it takes money to kill bad guys […] for what’s being done, for what we may have to do in the future,” adding that the number “could move.” Trump said the large funding request was necessary for “vast amounts of ammunition” and “beyond even what we’re talking about in Iran.” The request hasn’t yet been formally transmitted to Congress, where it faces broad Democratic opposition and growing unease among Republicans anxious about an open-ended conflict, mounting costs and the prospect of ground troops. Senate Majority Leader John Thune said it “remains to be seen” whether the package could pass, with Democrats calling it a blank check and some Republicans saying the administration still had not explained the cost, timeline or strategy. (Washington Post / Associated Press / Politico / New York Times / CNN / Reuters / Wall Street Journal / Bloomberg / ABC News / CNBC / Axios)
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What else could $200 billion buy?
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More than six years of rent help for millions of low-income households; roughly 23 years of federal childcare funding; about 16 years of Head Start for young children and families; fill the Pell Grant program’s projected 10-year shortfall and still leave roughly $100 billion left over; enough to fix the country’s entire bridge-repair backlog; and fund more than 60 years of programs aimed at ending veteran homelessness. (FHWA / HUD budget highlights / First Five Years Fund / CRFB / HUD vouchers)
-
Trump said “I’m not putting troops anywhere,″ but then immediately added: “If I were, I certainly wouldn’t tell you.” (New York Times / Politico)
-
poll/ 65% of Americans believe Trump send troops into a large-scale ground war in Iran. 7% support sending ground troops to Iran. (Reuters)
2/ Iran attacked Gulf energy sites after an Israeli strike on Iran’s South Pars gas field, damaging Qatar’s Ras Laffan complex and knocking out 17% of Qatar’s LNG export capacity for 3 to 5 years. Brent crude briefly jumped above $119 a barrel before retreating, as markets priced in the risk that damage to oil fields, refineries, and export terminals could last longer than reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. The Trump administration, meanwhile, said it may lift sanctions on about 140 million barrels of Iranian oil already at sea to ease the market. (Washington Post / Reuters / Associated Press / CNBC / Wall Street Journal / Axios / Politico / New York Times)
3/ Israel said it would stop attacking Iran’s South Pars gas field after Trump said he told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “don’t do that,” and later declared on social media that “NO MORE ATTACKS WILL BE MADE BY ISRAEL.” Netanyahu confirmed the pullback, saying, “Trump asked us to hold off on future attacks,” after the Israeli strike set off Iranian retaliation against energy sites across the Gulf and sent oil prices higher. Iran, meanwhile, warned it would show “ZERO restraint” if its energy infrastructure was struck again. (Bloomberg / Associated Press / Wall Street Journal / Politico / New York Times)
4/ The Justice Department subpoenaed former FBI Director James Comey as part of a “grand conspiracy” case against the former officials who investigated and prosecuted Trump. The subpoena was issued last week and seeks information about Comey’s role in the January 2017 intelligence assessment on Russian election interference. More than 130 subpoenas have been issued in the probe, including to former CIA Director John Brennan, former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, Peter Strzok, and Lisa Page. It’s unclear what crime prosecutors believe the subpoenaed officials committed. (NBC News / Axios / CBS News / Bloomberg)
5/ About 9% of people who had Affordable Care Act insurance in 2025 are now uninsured after the enhanced federal subsidies expired at the end of 2025. Of those who kept ACA plans, 17% aren’t confident they can afford the premiums for the full year, and 28% switched plans, often to cheaper coverage with higher out-of-pocket costs. Average ACA premiums more than doubled for subsidized enrollees in 2026, and more than half of returning policyholders said they have cut or plan to cut basic household spending to keep coverage. (CNBC / Wall Street Journal)
6/ A coalition of 24 states and more than a dozen cities and counties sued the EPA over its repeal of the 2009 endangerment finding, the legal basis used to regulate greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act. The case aims to restore the finding and reverse the repeal of vehicle emissions limits, arguing the agency ignored settled law, Supreme Court precedent, and longstanding science on climate harm. (New York Times / Associated Press / Reuters / Los Angeles Times / The Guardian)
7/ Trump’s hand-picked federal arts commission approved a commemorative 24-karat U.S. gold coin depicting Trump leaning on a desk with clenched fists – a design that Trump personally approved. A separate bipartisan coin advisory panel, however, already refused to consider the proposal. (Washington Post)
The 2026 midterms are in 229 days; the 2028 presidential election is in 964 days.
- Today last year: Day 1520: "Common sense."
- Two years ago today: Day 1155: "Further chaos."
- Five years ago today: Day 59: "Wasting time."
- Six years ago today: Day 1155: "Nobody knew."
- Seven years ago today: Day 789: A little longer.
- Eight years ago today: Day 424: Brilliant and courageous.
- 9 years ago today: Day 59: Collusion.
Support today’s essential newsletter and resist the daily shock and awe: Become a member
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Click to read about Minnesota weather and apricot tree adventures...
We got another noticeable snowfall on Saturday evening and most of Sunday. The majority of the precipitation went south of the Twin Cities. I think I got about 18cm/7in here at my house. I left the snow shovel there for a better sense of scale. Here's a photo after I shoveled the snow after work on Sunday afternoon.
By Monday morning, the air temperature was -18C/0F (windchill -22C/-8F). Patrol on Monday morning was cold. It has warmed considerably since then. We even have 21C/70F forecast during the daytime on Saturday. It's still early-Spring in Minnesota, though, so we have plenty of below-freezing nights ahead of us. I intend to get some seeds into flats finally today.
I had to do something about the nice apricot tree in my back yard. When I first got the sapling, I planted it and placed that curly plastic ribbon around the base, thinking people did that to protect them from bugs somehow that might crawl up to harm the graft. Or maybe it would prevent them from sending out side shoots low on the trunk? It doesn't matter. I was wrong. It did nothing useful like that. In fact, the ribbon was counter-productive. I finally noticed that the graft was not healing properly. Lots of sap was coming from it. I removed the plastic ribbon, allowing it to get sunlight and air. It did heal, as expected. Unfortunately, however, while it was still wounded, the weight of many apricots pulled the apricot trunk down at the point of the graft. It healed eventually, but the tree is permanently "sideways" now. I tried propping up the trunk with some wood, but the tree never really corrected itself.
These are the before and after pictures. I took a photo of how it was, then I searched online and found this page from University of Minnesota Extension service. It recommends pruning them in March, "after the coldest weather has passed".
https://extension.umn.edu/fruit/growing-stone-fruits-home-garden
While I expect more freezing temperatures, I don't expect any more -18C/0F temperatures. So this morning, I took out the electric chainsaw and performed some very heavy pruning. I hope the apricot tree recovers okay, and I hope it grows much more upright. It'll always have a bit of a "hook" low on the trunk, though.
Gardening lesson learned: Don't put those curly plastic ribbons around tree trunks, at least not on grafted trees.
"I think a president should not have learning disabilities, okay?... Gavin Newsom admitted that he has learning disabilities, dyslexia -- everything about him is dumb."
-- Trump
"We have a smart president, whereas in the past we've had dumb presidents."
-- JD Vance
So let's see. We have a governor who has overcome a learning disability to become very high achieving, versus someone with, as far as we know, no learning disability who has achieved very little and instead chosen to do nothing except bully, extort, rape, molest, steal, threaten, belittle, insult, and I could go on. And we also have a lackey who changes political positions with the slightest change in the wind. Said lackey who also failed to learn from his predecessor that he's likely to get thrown under the bus the moment that the going gets tough for his boss.
Truly a pair made for each other.
-- Trump
"We have a smart president, whereas in the past we've had dumb presidents."
-- JD Vance
So let's see. We have a governor who has overcome a learning disability to become very high achieving, versus someone with, as far as we know, no learning disability who has achieved very little and instead chosen to do nothing except bully, extort, rape, molest, steal, threaten, belittle, insult, and I could go on. And we also have a lackey who changes political positions with the slightest change in the wind. Said lackey who also failed to learn from his predecessor that he's likely to get thrown under the bus the moment that the going gets tough for his boss.
Truly a pair made for each other.
- 1. Tech hobbyist makes shoulder-mounted guided missile prototype with $96 in parts and a 3D printer
- (tags:weaponry technology 3dprinting )
- 2. Kagi Translate's AI answers the question "What would horny Margaret Thatcher say?"
- (tags:language translation margaretthatcher wtf )
- 3. Ever wanted to be able to translate from English to LinkedIn? Now you can!
- (tags:language funny translation viaswampers )
- 4. Grok, explain Butlerian Jihad [ai]
- (tags:funny scifi )
- 5. Austin build new housing - rents came down
- (tags:economics housing usa )
Benn Jordan plays the stock market [econ, tech, dataviz, music]
Thursday, March 19th, 2026 12:46 amsidereaJust hit play.
(All about the sound, but visuals also nice.)
2026 Mar 18: Benn Jordan [BennJordan YT]: "I'm here to disrupt the finance synthesizer scene."
(All about the sound, but visuals also nice.)
2026 Mar 18: Benn Jordan [BennJordan YT]: "I'm here to disrupt the finance synthesizer scene."
CBC provides some notes on the disabled fan experience. I don't recall anyone ever mentioning the carpet thing before.
Today in one sentence: Tulsi Gabbard refused to say whether U.S. intelligence assessed that Iran posed an “imminent” threat; oil prices jumped after an Israel airstrike on Iran’s South Pars gas field and Iran later attacked Qatar’s Ras Laffan liquefied natural gas facility; Trump waived the Jones Act for 60 days in an effort to contain rising fuel prices caused by the war in Iran; the Federal Reserve held interest rates steady at 3.5% to 3.75%, acknowledging increased uncertainty due to the Iran war; the FBI is buying Americans’ data and location histories – again; and the United States was downgraded from a liberal democracy to an electoral democracy due to Trump’s “rapid and aggressive concentration of powers in the presidency.”
1/ Tulsi Gabbard refused to say whether U.S. intelligence assessed that Iran posed an “imminent” threat during a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing. Instead, she told senators that “the only person who can determine what is and is not an imminent threat is the president.” Gabbard, however, confirmed the intelligence community’s view that Iran’s nuclear enrichment program was “obliterated” in last year’s strikes and that there had been “no efforts” to rebuild it, undercutting Trump’s claim that Tehran was “starting it all over.” She also said Iran’s regime appears “intact but largely degraded” and acknowledged it had “long been an assessment” that Tehran could use the Strait of Hormuz as leverage, while declining to say what warnings Trump received before the war. (Bloomberg / CBS News / ABC News / Washington Post / Axios / NBC News / Associated Press / New York Times)
2/ Oil prices jumped after an Israel airstrike on Iran’s South Pars gas field and Iran later attacked Qatar’s Ras Laffan liquefied natural gas facility, two of the region’s most important gas sites. Brent crude settling above $107 a barrel, up from about $103 a day earlier and roughly 40% to 50% above prewar levels. Prices later topped $111 in after-hours trading as traders priced in greater risks to regional oil and gas supply. QatarEnergy said Ras Laffan suffered “extensive damage.” (CNN / Bloomberg / Axios / New York Times / Associated Press / Wall Street Journal)
3/ Trump waived the Jones Act for 60 days in an effort to contain rising fuel prices caused by the war in Iran. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the move, which lets foreign-flagged ships carry fuel and other energy products between U.S. ports, was meant to ease “short-term disruptions” in the oil market. But analysts and shipping executives said the effect on pump prices would likely be modest because crude prices, not domestic shipping costs, remain the main driver. (Politico / New York Times / Axios / CNBC / Reuters / Bloomberg / CBS News)
4/ The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady at 3.5% to 3.75%, acknowledging increased uncertainty due to the Iran war. “It is too soon to know the scope and duration of the potential effects on the economy,” Fed Chair Jerome Powell said. “The thing I really want to emphasize is that nobody knows.” He said “higher energy prices will push up overall inflation” and that the Fed was “balancing these two goals in a situation where the risks to the labor market are to the downside, which would call for lower rates, and the risks to inflation are to the upside, which would call for higher rates, or not cutting anyway.” Fed officials raised their 2026 inflation forecast to 2.7%, kept unemployment at 4.4%, slightly lifted their growth outlook, and still project one quarter-point cut this year. (ABC News / New York Times / Washington Post / NBC News / NPR / CNN / CNBC / Associated Press / Bloomberg / Wall Street Journal / Axios)
5/ The FBI is buying Americans’ data and location histories – again. For the first time since 2023, the FBI publicly confirmed it’s actively purchasing commercially available information, giving agents a way to obtain location data from brokers without going to phone companies for records that would ordinarily require a warrant. Director Kash Patel said the purchases are lawful and have yielded “valuable intelligence,” but he did not say how often the FBI buys the data, what exactly it acquires, which brokers sell it or what limits govern its use. (Politico / TechCrunch)
6/ The United States was downgraded from a liberal democracy to an electoral democracy due to Trump’s “rapid and aggressive concentration of powers in the presidency.” The Varieties of Democracy Institute report said the U.S. suffered a “derailment of democracy” driven by “suppression and intimidation of media and dissenting voices,” while freedom of expression fell to “its lowest level since the end of WWII.” It also cited Trump’s “attacks on the press, academia, civil liberties, and dissenting voices” and said a Republican-controlled Congress had weakened the legislative checks that might have slowed him. (CNN)
The 2026 midterms are in 230 days; the 2028 presidential election is in 965 days.
- Today last year: Day 1519: "This is just the beginning."
- Two years ago today: Day 1154: "A practical impossibility."
- Five years ago today: Day 58: "Strings attached."
- Six years ago today: Day 1154: "Just in case we need it."
- Seven years ago today: Day 788: Pathetic.
- 9 years ago today: Day 58: Imminent.
Support today’s essential newsletter and resist the daily shock and awe: Become a member
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It's been ages since I've kept up with this Wednesday posting. I've put it on my to do list so hopefully I'll get to it now.
So far this year I've read the first 7 books in the DI Hilary Greene series by Faith Martin. They are perfect for bedtime books -- if I have insomnia I am entertained, and if I am sleepy I have a calm methodical British accent narrating detection procedures. Does that count as ASMR? I will say that they are advertised as rewrites of earlier novels and it shows in the lack of technology - mobile phones are quite the novelty and people actually use them to talk on the phone. No texting, no social media. But that's also soothing and easy to follow. The lead character is a single (well, divorced) and child-free middle-aged Detective Inspector who is neither annoying nor neurotic. She's opinionated and self-confident and smart, as one would expect. Very enjoyable. There is a little of the typical gung-ho cop talk, but it's not too bad. (Honestly, I have never felt that crusading desire to rid society of criminals and/or evil but I must at this point assume that some people are genuine when they say they feel that way. Or they're all hypocrites and I'm very cynical. Hmm. Is this also why I don't like superheroes? At any rate, it is a genre problem and not a problem with this book series specifically.)
For work (because I'm teaching them) I read a bunch of Langston Hughes's poetry from his first book, The Weary Blues.(1925) It's all there already in his first book, even though he expands throughout his career. Now in the public domain!
Also for work, Nella Larsen's novel Passing (1929), about a Black woman passing as a white woman in 1920s Harlem. It's mostly about how her Black childhood friend reacts to re-encountering her as an adult, and the relationships between people - very much a psychological novel. Recommended.
Also for work, George Bernard Shaw's Mrs. Warren's Profession (written 1893, performed 1906? 1907?) - the classic and still relevant drama about women and economics and the hypocrisy around prostitution. This has been extremely teachable in the wake of the Epstein files and the pervasiveness of sexual exploitation in society. We also had good discussions about whether we judge women who make money on OnlyFans.
Not for work, Essential Succulents: The Beginner's Guide by Ken Shelf, because I am slowly building my cacti collection. This had beautiful photos but was somewhat short on actual guidance.
So far this year I've read the first 7 books in the DI Hilary Greene series by Faith Martin. They are perfect for bedtime books -- if I have insomnia I am entertained, and if I am sleepy I have a calm methodical British accent narrating detection procedures. Does that count as ASMR? I will say that they are advertised as rewrites of earlier novels and it shows in the lack of technology - mobile phones are quite the novelty and people actually use them to talk on the phone. No texting, no social media. But that's also soothing and easy to follow. The lead character is a single (well, divorced) and child-free middle-aged Detective Inspector who is neither annoying nor neurotic. She's opinionated and self-confident and smart, as one would expect. Very enjoyable. There is a little of the typical gung-ho cop talk, but it's not too bad. (Honestly, I have never felt that crusading desire to rid society of criminals and/or evil but I must at this point assume that some people are genuine when they say they feel that way. Or they're all hypocrites and I'm very cynical. Hmm. Is this also why I don't like superheroes? At any rate, it is a genre problem and not a problem with this book series specifically.)
For work (because I'm teaching them) I read a bunch of Langston Hughes's poetry from his first book, The Weary Blues.(1925) It's all there already in his first book, even though he expands throughout his career. Now in the public domain!
Also for work, Nella Larsen's novel Passing (1929), about a Black woman passing as a white woman in 1920s Harlem. It's mostly about how her Black childhood friend reacts to re-encountering her as an adult, and the relationships between people - very much a psychological novel. Recommended.
Also for work, George Bernard Shaw's Mrs. Warren's Profession (written 1893, performed 1906? 1907?) - the classic and still relevant drama about women and economics and the hypocrisy around prostitution. This has been extremely teachable in the wake of the Epstein files and the pervasiveness of sexual exploitation in society. We also had good discussions about whether we judge women who make money on OnlyFans.
Not for work, Essential Succulents: The Beginner's Guide by Ken Shelf, because I am slowly building my cacti collection. This had beautiful photos but was somewhat short on actual guidance.
- 1. Coming soon to Netflix... a movie that requires none of your attention!
- (tags:movies netflix attention video satire funny )
- 2. Everyone but Trump Understands What He's Done
- (tags:politics UK USA middle_east Ukraine Russia NATO )
- 3. Scotland's assisted dying bill rejected after emotional debate
- (tags:Scotland euthanasia )
- 4. More reports show that forcing people back to the office hurts productivity
- (tags:productivity office )
Note to self:
Next time, take the fairy lights inside for the season, when I start noticing pollen in the air, if not before. I don't want pollen getting all over them.
Errant thoughts:
I wonder how many parents with babies born on March 17 name them Patrick.
Seeing the name written there now, it looks rather neat, with "trick" in it. It could rhyme with hat trick.
Yesterday I noticed that Baby Yoda rhymes with Baking Soda.
Hey, it's Green Day.
As long as I keep that leftover baking soda in the corner of the sink, there will be nothing else needing to be cleaned with it.
As long as I keep that cap-ful of leftover mineral oil on the counter, there will be nothing else that needs to be greased.
Hey, Ginger Ale is appropriate for the day. It came in a green can.
Video title: Celebrating Ireland on St Patrick's Day
Posted by: Gardiner Brothers
Date posted: Mar 17, 2021
Next time, take the fairy lights inside for the season, when I start noticing pollen in the air, if not before. I don't want pollen getting all over them.
Errant thoughts:
I wonder how many parents with babies born on March 17 name them Patrick.
Seeing the name written there now, it looks rather neat, with "trick" in it. It could rhyme with hat trick.
Yesterday I noticed that Baby Yoda rhymes with Baking Soda.
Hey, it's Green Day.
As long as I keep that leftover baking soda in the corner of the sink, there will be nothing else needing to be cleaned with it.
As long as I keep that cap-ful of leftover mineral oil on the counter, there will be nothing else that needs to be greased.
Hey, Ginger Ale is appropriate for the day. It came in a green can.
Video title: Celebrating Ireland on St Patrick's Day
Posted by: Gardiner Brothers
Date posted: Mar 17, 2021
Today in one sentence: Trump said NATO “is making a very foolish mistake” by refusing to join the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran; Trump – twice – said that a former president told him he wished he’d been the one to attack Iran, but all four living former presidents denied talking to Trump about Iran; the top U.S. counterterrorism official resigned over the Iran war, saying Iran posed “no imminent threat”; the Senate voted 51-48 to open debate on the House-passed SAVE America Act; and the House Oversight Committee subpoenaed Attorney General Pam Bondi to appear for a closed-door deposition over the Justice Department’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein investigation and its compliance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
1/ Trump said NATO “is making a very foolish mistake” by refusing to join the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran, while calling it “a great test, because we don’t need them.” He also insisted that “all of the NATO allies agreed with us” on confronting Iran, but that NATO had become “a one-way street” in which “we will protect them, but they will do nothing for us, in particular, in a time of need.” Trump also said he was “not afraid” to put U.S. troops on the ground in Iran, adding: “I’m really not afraid of anything.” (Politico / Wall Street Journal / New York Times / Bloomberg / Reuters / CNBC / Axios / Associated Press)
2/ Trump – twice – said that a former president told him he wished he’d been the one to attack Iran, but all four living former presidents denied talking to Trump about Iran. Representatives for Bush, Clinton, Obama, and Biden said they hadn’t spoken with Trump recently. Nevertheless, Trump first made the claim at a White House meeting with Kennedy Center board members, then repeated it in the Oval Office, saying, “I spoke to one of the former presidents” and that the person told him, “I wish I did what you did.” When asked who it was, Trump ruled out Bush, wouldn’t say whether it was Clinton, and said he didn’t want to identify the person because “I don’t want to get him into trouble.” (NBC News / New York Times / Associated Press / The Hill / The Guardian)
3/ The top U.S. counterterrorism official resigned over the Iran war, saying Iran posed “no imminent threat.” In his resignation letter, Joe Kent, the director of the National Counterterrorism Center, said: “I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran. Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby.” Kent claimed Israel “deployed a misinformation campaign,” which “sowed pro-war sentiments to encourage a war with Iran,” and “was used to deceive you into believing that Iran posed an imminent threat to the United States, and that should you strike now.” In response, Trump said Kent was a nice guy, who “was weak on security, very weak on security.” Kent is the first senior Trump administration official to publicly quit over the conflict. (Axios / Wall Street Journal / NPR / Politico / Washington Post / Reuters / CNBC / NBC News / Bloomberg / New York Times / Associated Press)
4/ The Senate voted 51-48 to open debate on the House-passed SAVE America Act, launching what Republicans said could be days of floor speeches on Trump’s “No. 1 priority.” The measure would require proof of citizenship to register and photo ID to vote, but Senate Republicans lack the 60 votes needed to break a Democratic filibuster. Senate Majority Leader John Thune also said that “the votes aren’t there” for the more aggressive talking-filibuster strategy. Democrats called the measure “a naked attempt to rig our elections” and vowed to block it “all day, all night.” (Politico / NBC News / Washington Post / New York Times / Wall Street Journal / CBS News / The Hill)
5/ The House Oversight Committee subpoenaed Attorney General Pam Bondi to appear for a closed-door deposition over the Justice Department’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein investigation and its compliance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act. The move followed a bipartisan committee vote earlier this month, when five Republicans joined Democrats to compel her testimony. Chairman James Comer said the panel has questions about possible mismanagement of the Epstein probe and Bondi’s role in collecting, reviewing, and releasing the files. The Justice Department called the subpoena “completely unnecessary,” and said Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche would brief committee members Wednesday, and didn’t say whether Bondi would comply. (New York Times / Washington Post / Politico / CNN / CNBC)
The 2026 midterms are in 231 days; the 2028 presidential election is in 966 days.
- Today last year: Day 1518: "Overdrive."
- Four years ago today: Day 422: "Consequences and implications."
- Five years ago today: Day 57: "Democracy is having a hard time functioning."
- Six years ago today: Day 1153: "We have it totally under control."
- 9 years ago today: Day 57: Tapped out.
Support today’s essential newsletter and resist the daily shock and awe: Become a member
Subscribe: Get the Daily Update in your inbox for free
FIC: History of the Chara's Palace (Tempestuous Tours)
Tuesday, March 17th, 2026 04:18 pmduskpetersonThe original palace of the Chara was built nearly seven hundred years ago (around 300 years after the giving of the law, as the Emorians date it), under the supervision of the Chara William. In the earliest years of Emor, the Chara and his council lived in a small hall, similar to the Royal Residence of the Kings of Koretia. After a time, though, the Chara and his council fell into a terrible civil war. By the end of this war, the Chara had gained so many followers that a larger building was clearly needed.
The original palace was a one-storey building set atop a high hill, though the hill was lower then. Around it gradually grew the capital of Koretia. This palace was intended only for the Chara, not for his recent enemy, the Great Council of Emor. As part of the peace settlement, however, it was agreed that one-third of the new palace should be given over to the Great Council. Another third was retained by the Chara. The exact purpose of the remaining third is not known for certain, but it appears to have been for rites that have since died out in Emorian culture.
Within two hundred and fifty years, Emor had grown into an empire. With the arrival of a vast bureaucracy to deal with imperial matters, it was clearly time to build a new palace. This palace was built atop the original palace, the old palace being buried under soil that heightened the hill. So well hidden is the original palace that, within a hundred years, many visitors to the new palace were unaware that an older palace still existed under the new one. That remains the case to this day, though the present Emorian government makes no effort to hide the existence of the underground rooms.
The palace that began to be built in 568, under the supervision of the Chara Rowland, was not the vast, sprawling palace of today. It covered only the area that had been taken up by the old palace. This second palace would later be dubbed the East Wing, as the palace expanded.
Like the original palace, it was single-storeyed, but it was as high as a two-storey building. This lent it a majestic appearance. Emor's finest architects were brought in to build the palace, aided by the fledgling engineers who were beginning to transform life in the new empire. Arpesh and Marcadia, close to the mainland, were at that time only just establishing relations with Emor; Arpesh, in a gesture of friendship that it later came to regret bitterly, sent down some of its artists to help with the building. The result was what is widely acknowledged to be the most beautiful building in the world, as well as the largest and most impressive. Only the Daxion palace, a full six storeys high, comes close to rivalling the Chara's palace.
The Chara's palace has vastly expanded in the four centuries since then, but the character of the East Wing has not changed in any substantial manner. It remains in appearance and use as it did in the centuries of the Middle Charas.
[Translator's note: The expansive nature of the Chara's palace becomes apparent in Law-Lover.]
Them: Go look at any official communication from a company. Have you ever received a ConEd bill that says, “Ya should of paid ya bill on time, now we gonna haveta cut off ya powa”? Of course not. Why? Because that is not standard English, and it would reflect poorly on the company.
Me: I take it you've never called ConEd on the phone in NYC? Because, whew, that'd disabuse you of this fiction pretty quick. Them and National Grid, wow. And I'm not even talking about their representatives, I'm talking about their recordings! Never heard such a thick NYC accent in my life, and I grew up here!
Me: I take it you've never called ConEd on the phone in NYC? Because, whew, that'd disabuse you of this fiction pretty quick. Them and National Grid, wow. And I'm not even talking about their representatives, I'm talking about their recordings! Never heard such a thick NYC accent in my life, and I grew up here!
Iranian missile strikes in Israel, Polymarket gamblers threaten reporter's life!
Tuesday, March 17th, 2026 08:21 amthewayneSuch utter insanity.
Let's first talk about Polymarket. It's a mostly legal form of gambling, betting on things that might happen in the future. There are rules as to what constitutes a true outcome for the bet. In this particular case, the bet was whether or not an Iranian missile would strike Israel on March 10. However, it had a condition that in the event the missile was intercepted, whether or not it subsequently struck Israel, it would not constitute a win for the bet.
There's a lot more that can be said about Polymarket and their ability to wiggle out of paying bets in either direction, but that's not what this post is about.
On March 10, an Iranian missile struck Israel. It was not intercepted. Fortunately it missed the town that it was aimed at and hit a wooded area about 500 meters from homes. Emergency services responded and determined there were no injuries or deaths. Reporter Emanuel Fabian working for The Times of Israel reported on the incident.
And the next day he started receiving mysterious messages asking him if it was actually interceptor missile fragments, and to post an update to his story stating such. Then the messages started getting rougher, ultimately getting threatening, to the point of saying he had the choice of updating the story to say it was intercepted, and he'd get a nice amount of cash for it, or if he didn't do it he'd be killed. These people went to the extreme of making posts on the bet on the Polymarket web site in his name that he was in the process of updating his story and had sent the change to his editors when he had done no such thing. Ultimately he went to the Israeli police and either he or the police reported this harassment to the Polymarket people.
Ultimately Polymarket posted that the people involved in threatening Fabian had been banned from their site.
It's an interesting read. But I do have to wonder if it is the end of the story.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/gamblers-trying-to-win-a-bet-on-polymarket-are-vowing-to-kill-me-if-i-dont-rewrite-an-iran-missile-story/
https://news.slashdot.org/story/26/03/16/210211/polymarket-gamblers-threaten-to-kill-journalist-over-iran-missile-story
Let's first talk about Polymarket. It's a mostly legal form of gambling, betting on things that might happen in the future. There are rules as to what constitutes a true outcome for the bet. In this particular case, the bet was whether or not an Iranian missile would strike Israel on March 10. However, it had a condition that in the event the missile was intercepted, whether or not it subsequently struck Israel, it would not constitute a win for the bet.
There's a lot more that can be said about Polymarket and their ability to wiggle out of paying bets in either direction, but that's not what this post is about.
On March 10, an Iranian missile struck Israel. It was not intercepted. Fortunately it missed the town that it was aimed at and hit a wooded area about 500 meters from homes. Emergency services responded and determined there were no injuries or deaths. Reporter Emanuel Fabian working for The Times of Israel reported on the incident.
And the next day he started receiving mysterious messages asking him if it was actually interceptor missile fragments, and to post an update to his story stating such. Then the messages started getting rougher, ultimately getting threatening, to the point of saying he had the choice of updating the story to say it was intercepted, and he'd get a nice amount of cash for it, or if he didn't do it he'd be killed. These people went to the extreme of making posts on the bet on the Polymarket web site in his name that he was in the process of updating his story and had sent the change to his editors when he had done no such thing. Ultimately he went to the Israeli police and either he or the police reported this harassment to the Polymarket people.
Ultimately Polymarket posted that the people involved in threatening Fabian had been banned from their site.
It's an interesting read. But I do have to wonder if it is the end of the story.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/gamblers-trying-to-win-a-bet-on-polymarket-are-vowing-to-kill-me-if-i-dont-rewrite-an-iran-missile-story/
https://news.slashdot.org/story/26/03/16/210211/polymarket-gamblers-threaten-to-kill-journalist-over-iran-missile-story
Pokemon Go players unknowingly trained a delivery robot service with 30 billion images
Tuesday, March 17th, 2026 08:02 amthewayneSix years ago, the Pokemon Go app was updated to let users do 'field research' and scan statues and things. Niantic used photos and such to build 3D models of environments and mapped those into navigable fields for delivery robots.
Niantic thanks Pokemon Go players for their free contributions to Niantic's corporate bottom line. But no money will be forthcoming unless you're a stockholder.
From the article:
"This week, Niantic Spatial, part of the team behind Pokémon Go, announced a partnership with Coco Robotics, a company that makes short-distance delivery robots for food and groceries. Soon, those robot couriers will scoot around sidewalks using Niantic’s Visual Positioning System (VPS)—a navigation tool that can reportedly pinpoint location down to a few centimeters just by looking at nearby buildings and landmarks. Niantic trained that VPS model on more than 30 billion images captured by Pokémon Go users, and claims it will help robots operate in areas where GPS falls short."
Once again, if you're not paying for the product, then YOU are the thing being sold. The problem is, if you're a paying customer, you're still getting your data harvested and re-sold. You can't win, and you can't quit the game.
https://www.popsci.com/technology/pokemon-go-delivery-robots-crowdsourcing/
https://hardware.slashdot.org/story/26/03/16/2136229/pokemon-go-players-unknowingly-trained-delivery-robots-with-30-billion-images
Niantic thanks Pokemon Go players for their free contributions to Niantic's corporate bottom line. But no money will be forthcoming unless you're a stockholder.
From the article:
"This week, Niantic Spatial, part of the team behind Pokémon Go, announced a partnership with Coco Robotics, a company that makes short-distance delivery robots for food and groceries. Soon, those robot couriers will scoot around sidewalks using Niantic’s Visual Positioning System (VPS)—a navigation tool that can reportedly pinpoint location down to a few centimeters just by looking at nearby buildings and landmarks. Niantic trained that VPS model on more than 30 billion images captured by Pokémon Go users, and claims it will help robots operate in areas where GPS falls short."
Once again, if you're not paying for the product, then YOU are the thing being sold. The problem is, if you're a paying customer, you're still getting your data harvested and re-sold. You can't win, and you can't quit the game.
https://www.popsci.com/technology/pokemon-go-delivery-robots-crowdsourcing/
https://hardware.slashdot.org/story/26/03/16/2136229/pokemon-go-players-unknowingly-trained-delivery-robots-with-30-billion-images
"My name is Ozymandias, King of Things!
Look upon my Works, ye Mighty, and Repair!"
Everything inside remains. Round the tools
Of that colossal Bench, all arranged
The shiny level and sander are neatly put away.
This is the best comment in that thread, nothing will top it.
"The best have strong convictions, while the worst / Are full of resignation and are sad.
[...]
And if a lion slouches toward Bethlehem, / That's 'cause it's native to the Levant."
Gosh, I wish.
*********************************
( Read more... )
Look upon my Works, ye Mighty, and Repair!"
Everything inside remains. Round the tools
Of that colossal Bench, all arranged
The shiny level and sander are neatly put away.
This is the best comment in that thread, nothing will top it.
"The best have strong convictions, while the worst / Are full of resignation and are sad.
[...]
And if a lion slouches toward Bethlehem, / That's 'cause it's native to the Levant."
Gosh, I wish.
( Read more... )