Well, clearly the Epstein files show that the suicide was faked: Epstein SURVIVED, Trump gave him a pardon and put him in the Witness Protection Program.
Epstein is now working in a truck-stop diner in Nebraska, along with Elvis.
Too bad there isn't a Weekly World News to report on this. Oh well.
2025-07-16 03:34:53
I wonder, do they really have NOTHING? Otherwise I would have expected a highly redacted version giving the impression that only Dems and some GOPsters fallen from grace were on the list. Or something like the 'total exoneration' stuff as with the reports about the scandals of His Orangeness during his first term totally misrepresented by his henchcritters.
The current
a) nothing incriminating to see in those files and
b) it's all fabricated by Biden and Obama to incriminate His Orangeness
does not make sense even in the MAGAverse.
If the files were really as toxic as they made it look until recently, they should have known it and been prepared to distort it to their advantage and, if there was nothing, what would have stopped them to go on with insinuations and fakes:'The previous administrations tampered with the evidence, so no original files, but here is what we found out...'?
2025-07-15 23:24:14
A somewhat different case of Plus ça change...:
One of the favorite obsessions of the MAGA-verse, for the past decade, has been the Epstein Files. Trump used it to smear his opponents. And to demonstrate how he was in sync with the common folks against the Elites. He regularly demanded that they be made public.
But then, Trump's Attorney General, after saying shortly after taking office that she had the file on her desk, announced that there was nothing there that warranted publication. And Trump posted various suggestions that it was old news and people should just move on.
No surprise: while a few cultists followed directions, a substantial majority are having none of it. They want to see those files. They are demanding to see them. (And, incidently, demanding that the AG be fired for not publishing them.)
A lot of us have wondered what would hit the MAGAts hard enough to wake them up. Which, we innocently assumed, was what would get them to abandon Trump. Lots of discussion of economic pain, loved ones dying for lack of medical care, other real stuff. Somehow nobody (that I saw) suggested that one of the conspiracy theories would turn around and bite him.
My guess is that, if they'd just published them, no matter how damning the contents the true believers would have come up with a conspiracy theory to explain it all away. SStereotypically,it's not the crime, it's the cover-up.
Last week, the DNC launched a new account on X that posts messages each day reminding its followers that Trump has “not released the Epstein files.” The account has also reposted Trump-focused, Epstein-related criticism from key social media influencers. It also includes a header image of comments billionaire Elon Musk made after a spat with the White House — and without offering any evidence — in which Musk charged that Trump “is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public.” (Trump has described having had a warm social relationship with Epstein, but he long ago distanced himself from Epstein. There has never been any evidence connecting Trump to Epstein’s criminal behavior.)
This makes me a little queasy, but maybe it's the sort of thing Democrats need to do right now.
Just 10% of users produce roughly 97% of political tweets.
(...)
A mere 0.1% of users share 80% of fake news. Twelve accounts – known as the “disinformation dozen” – created most of the vaccine misinformation on Facebook during the pandemic.
(...)
The problem isn’t just the individual extremists, of course – it’s the platform design and algorithms that amplify their content.
Neanderthals would never act this way.
2025-07-14 16:25:38
Far fewer men self-identify as Neanderthal than the number of women claiming they're married to one...
2025-07-14 15:27:07
IN response to Russell up thread. The books I read about Neanderthals attributed the care art to homo sapiens but scientific knowledge is always evolving! It is easier for me to believe that they did have religious art than to believe that their one and only ceremony was the apparent shrine built out of stalagmites.
Yes, I remember now that there were a few burials that indicated some ceremony.
There are also burials that indicated people eating other people, but that also can be done for ceremonial reasons.
2025-07-12 02:13:34
Maybe some of Musk's space vehicles could drop on it for starters (after installing Grok as steering software).
2025-07-12 01:14:16
I can't wait for the ocean to swallow Mar-A-Lago like a bad case of reflux.
Personally, I'd like to see the site become a sewage treatment plant. (A real one, not a metaphor.) Give the cult a focus for pilgrimages.
But your alternative does have merit. Not to mention a high probability.
2025-07-12 00:49:33
Meanwhile, in "stuff that pisses off nous": https://www.propublica.org/article/newtok-alaska-climate-relocation Federal auditors have warned for years that climate relocation projects need a lead agency to coordinate assistance and reduce the burden on local communities. The Biden administration tried to address those concerns by creating an interagency task force led by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Interior Department. The task force’s report in December also called for more coordination and guidance across the federal government as well as long-term funding for relocations.
But the Trump administration has removed the group’s report from FEMA’s website and, as part of its withdrawal of climate funding, frozen millions in federal aid that was supposed to pay for housing construction in Mertarvik this summer. The administration did not respond to a request for comment.
These fucking people...
I can't wait for the ocean to swallow Mar-A-Lago like a bad case of reflux.
2025-07-11 19:51:31
Well, I'm up to just under 1500 miles on the electric mountain bike. No problems with it so far (Trek Fuel EXe), and just about to change tires for the first time. Had it in the bike shop once so far to get the suspension serviced - not an inexpensive prospect, but far less expensive than replacing a shock or a fork.
Just did my favorite ride again this week - 18 miles with a bit over 2000 feet of climbing. Went in the morning as soon as the trails open and passed a Great Horned Owl sitting beside the trail and staring at me.
Just ordered a 529 Garage shield to put on my bike to protect it from theft. Have it registered at project529.com in case it goes missing.
Been doing a bit of research for gravel/ bikepacking bikes or a dropbar MTB that I might want to pick up if we are forced to retire and move someplace more flat. If there is anything good to be said for getting a full suspension emtb, it's that once you shell out for that, the price of a fancy modern gravel bike seems completely reasonable and the mechanicals seem dead simple.
Thinking of getting some bike mechanic training for retirement. Might volunteer at a community bike shop.
2025-07-09 23:26:23
the lack of visual art and, with a very notable exception, the apparent lack of sites for religious rituals.
I'm not sure this is so. My understanding is that cave art attributable to Neandethals have been found in the Loire and in Spain. The attribution is based on dating the paint used, which apparently (or allegedly) pre-dates homo sapiens' arrival in Europe.
The famous individual buried in Shanidar cave surrounded by pollen is often cited as an example of Neanderthal intentional burial practices, indicating symbolic thought and ritualistic behaviors.
2025-07-08 16:14:52
Was historical iconoclasm maybe just an occasional outburst of Neanderthal ancestry?
2025-07-08 15:39:46
I've been reading about Neanderthals for the escapism. One difference between them and homo sapiens is the lack of visual art and, with a very notable exception, the apparent lack of sites for religious rituals.
Lack of a site doesn't mean there was no religion and no ceremonies, of course, and Neanderthals did make aesthetic designs both in the form of jewelry (shell necklaces) and in marks on some of their tools--though the marks are just straight lines in limited patterns.
Still there seems to be a difference in mind. What this means, I don't know.
2025-07-07 05:25:38
It seems that they - being more robust - needed more high quality calories than our own ancestors and that the really lean times came after not in the ice age. But to my knowlege the youngest Neanderthal finds are in regions our ancestors had not yet reached (Gibraltar), so us wiping them out seems not to have been the primary reason. Slightly lower birth rates (for whatever reason) seem to be the main cause. Grey squirrel against red squirrel?
Of course my favorite explanation is that the Neanderthals were still at getting their Maxim guns working properly when our ancestors overran them with mediocre but nonetheless functional clubs.
2025-07-07 01:59:27
It's long been pretty clear that the Neanderthals were every bit as intelligent, and culturally complex, as homo sapiens. Just earlier. And were similar enough to us that interbreeding took place. Most of us have chunks of Neanderthal DNA in our genome.
It's not (that I know of) clear why/how we replaced them. Presumably we had an advantage of some kind. Higher birth rates? Better or more focused disease resistance? More effective aggressive behavior? Something.
Well, clearly the Epstein files show that the suicide was faked: Epstein SURVIVED, Trump gave him a pardon and put him in the Witness Protection Program.
Epstein is now working in a truck-stop diner in Nebraska, along with Elvis.
Too bad there isn't a Weekly World News to report on this. Oh well.
I wonder, do they really have NOTHING? Otherwise I would have expected a highly redacted version giving the impression that only Dems and some GOPsters fallen from grace were on the list. Or something like the 'total exoneration' stuff as with the reports about the scandals of His Orangeness during his first term totally misrepresented by his henchcritters.
The current
a) nothing incriminating to see in those files and
b) it's all fabricated by Biden and Obama to incriminate His Orangeness
does not make sense even in the MAGAverse.
If the files were really as toxic as they made it look until recently, they should have known it and been prepared to distort it to their advantage and, if there was nothing, what would have stopped them to go on with insinuations and fakes:'The previous administrations tampered with the evidence, so no original files, but here is what we found out...'?
A somewhat different case of Plus ça change...:
One of the favorite obsessions of the MAGA-verse, for the past decade, has been the Epstein Files. Trump used it to smear his opponents. And to demonstrate how he was in sync with the common folks against the Elites. He regularly demanded that they be made public.
But then, Trump's Attorney General, after saying shortly after taking office that she had the file on her desk, announced that there was nothing there that warranted publication. And Trump posted various suggestions that it was old news and people should just move on.
No surprise: while a few cultists followed directions, a substantial majority are having none of it. They want to see those files. They are demanding to see them. (And, incidently, demanding that the AG be fired for not publishing them.)
A lot of us have wondered what would hit the MAGAts hard enough to wake them up. Which, we innocently assumed, was what would get them to abandon Trump. Lots of discussion of economic pain, loved ones dying for lack of medical care, other real stuff. Somehow nobody (that I saw) suggested that one of the conspiracy theories would turn around and bite him.
My guess is that, if they'd just published them, no matter how damning the contents the true believers would have come up with a conspiracy theory to explain it all away. SStereotypically,it's not the crime, it's the cover-up.
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/elections/democrats-put-previous-misgivings-hit-trump-jeffrey-epstein-files-rcna218608
This makes me a little queasy, but maybe it's the sort of thing Democrats need to do right now.
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/jul/13/are-a-few-people-ruining-the-internet-for-the-rest-of-us
Neanderthals would never act this way.
Far fewer men self-identify as Neanderthal than the number of women claiming they're married to one...
IN response to Russell up thread. The books I read about Neanderthals attributed the care art to homo sapiens but scientific knowledge is always evolving! It is easier for me to believe that they did have religious art than to believe that their one and only ceremony was the apparent shrine built out of stalagmites.
Yes, I remember now that there were a few burials that indicated some ceremony.
There are also burials that indicated people eating other people, but that also can be done for ceremonial reasons.
Maybe some of Musk's space vehicles could drop on it for starters (after installing Grok as steering software).
I can't wait for the ocean to swallow Mar-A-Lago like a bad case of reflux.
Personally, I'd like to see the site become a sewage treatment plant. (A real one, not a metaphor.) Give the cult a focus for pilgrimages.
But your alternative does have merit. Not to mention a high probability.
Meanwhile, in "stuff that pisses off nous":
https://www.propublica.org/article/newtok-alaska-climate-relocation
Federal auditors have warned for years that climate relocation projects need a lead agency to coordinate assistance and reduce the burden on local communities. The Biden administration tried to address those concerns by creating an interagency task force led by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Interior Department. The task force’s report in December also called for more coordination and guidance across the federal government as well as long-term funding for relocations.
But the Trump administration has removed the group’s report from FEMA’s website and, as part of its withdrawal of climate funding, frozen millions in federal aid that was supposed to pay for housing construction in Mertarvik this summer. The administration did not respond to a request for comment.
These fucking people...
I can't wait for the ocean to swallow Mar-A-Lago like a bad case of reflux.
Well, I'm up to just under 1500 miles on the electric mountain bike. No problems with it so far (Trek Fuel EXe), and just about to change tires for the first time. Had it in the bike shop once so far to get the suspension serviced - not an inexpensive prospect, but far less expensive than replacing a shock or a fork.
Just did my favorite ride again this week - 18 miles with a bit over 2000 feet of climbing. Went in the morning as soon as the trails open and passed a Great Horned Owl sitting beside the trail and staring at me.
Just ordered a 529 Garage shield to put on my bike to protect it from theft. Have it registered at project529.com in case it goes missing.
Been doing a bit of research for gravel/ bikepacking bikes or a dropbar MTB that I might want to pick up if we are forced to retire and move someplace more flat. If there is anything good to be said for getting a full suspension emtb, it's that once you shell out for that, the price of a fancy modern gravel bike seems completely reasonable and the mechanicals seem dead simple.
Thinking of getting some bike mechanic training for retirement. Might volunteer at a community bike shop.
the lack of visual art and, with a very notable exception, the apparent lack of sites for religious rituals.
I'm not sure this is so. My understanding is that cave art attributable to Neandethals have been found in the Loire and in Spain. The attribution is based on dating the paint used, which apparently (or allegedly) pre-dates homo sapiens' arrival in Europe.
The famous individual buried in Shanidar cave surrounded by pollen is often cited as an example of Neanderthal intentional burial practices, indicating symbolic thought and ritualistic behaviors.
Was historical iconoclasm maybe just an occasional outburst of Neanderthal ancestry?
I've been reading about Neanderthals for the escapism. One difference between them and homo sapiens is the lack of visual art and, with a very notable exception, the apparent lack of sites for religious rituals.
Lack of a site doesn't mean there was no religion and no ceremonies, of course, and Neanderthals did make aesthetic designs both in the form of jewelry (shell necklaces) and in marks on some of their tools--though the marks are just straight lines in limited patterns.
Still there seems to be a difference in mind. What this means, I don't know.
It seems that they - being more robust - needed more high quality calories than our own ancestors and that the really lean times came after not in the ice age. But to my knowlege the youngest Neanderthal finds are in regions our ancestors had not yet reached (Gibraltar), so us wiping them out seems not to have been the primary reason. Slightly lower birth rates (for whatever reason) seem to be the main cause. Grey squirrel against red squirrel?
Of course my favorite explanation is that the Neanderthals were still at getting their Maxim guns working properly when our ancestors overran them with mediocre but nonetheless functional clubs.
It's long been pretty clear that the Neanderthals were every bit as intelligent, and culturally complex, as homo sapiens. Just earlier. And were similar enough to us that interbreeding took place. Most of us have chunks of Neanderthal DNA in our genome.
It's not (that I know of) clear why/how we replaced them. Presumably we had an advantage of some kind. Higher birth rates? Better or more focused disease resistance? More effective aggressive behavior? Something.