"This is the Voice of Moderation. I wouldn't go so far as to say we've actually SEIZED the radio station . . . "
Liberal Japonicus 
by liberal japonicus This was at the top of my google news: A euphoric Donald Trump wins a breakthrough in the Middle East though the article is behind a paywall. The Guardian has this: A Gaza ceasefire deal could be Trump’s biggest diplomatic achievement – but the devil is in the detail. What to say? … Read more
guestpost by wonkie I’ve been thinking. There’s a lot of discussion on Bluesky of the “Dems don’t fight” type. The Democratic party is at a low point in opinion polling, probably because of the image of Dems as not fighters. There’s a feeling that the times demand a different sort of rhetoric from Democrats. I’ve … Read more
by liberal japonicus More China stuff. As you’ve probably noticed, I’m skeptical about narratives that argue that China is collapsing because [insert reason here]. One of those reasons has often been that China is corrupt from stem to stern. A few links to get an idea of the arguments, here, here and here There was … Read more
by liberal japonicus I tend to watch two things on youtube, the first is standup comedy and the second is music. I’ll be starting up a weekly music post from Friday, but I’d probably, if I had to choose, go for a well constructed joke in standup over a music video. I’m into deconstructing, and … Read more
by liberal japonicus I’ve just installed the wpDiscuz comment plugin, which provides some features I think are worthwhile, though I am agnostic on the comment ranking feature. Please check it out and post here what you like and dislike and (god forbid) any problems you are having with it. I’m not sure what features are … Read more
by liberal japonicus Pass the fry bread! from here Trucks from the First Nation could soon be transporting food, furniture and even critical minerals south of the border along ancestral pathways once used to move buffalo hides and pemmican across the plains—without paying taxes or tariffs. […] “We’re operationalizing our old corridors—taking ancient trade routes … Read more
by liberal japonicus wonkie posted an article about a Sanseito rally here, and I appreciate her giving me a reason to rabbit on about this. As a preliminary to writing this, I checked on Mari Yamaguchi, the author of the piece at MuckRack, which leads me to my first caveat. Looking at the link, the … Read more
by liberal japonicus Just a short observation. Living with a non-American is always interesting for the observations they make that give you pause. This is one of them. My wife has an interesting pattern with sports. If she likes a sports figure, she then likes the sport to an extent that amazes me. When Asada … Read more
by liberal japonicus I was going to title this ‘End of a error’, not because we are finishing or because ObWi was an error, I just like the pun. Other similar titles might raise some concerns. But I thought I should note that the old home of ObWi has gone to that Internet Valhalla to … Read more
by liberal japonicus Noted by Charles WT in the comments, Jane Goodall has passed away. At the risk of making another bad joke, there is this Gary Larson cartoon incident In 1987, Gary Larson published a Far Side cartoon of two chimpanzees grooming, in which one discovers a blonde hair and says, “Conducting a little … Read more