Happy Ramadan to those observing it!
Killing Me Softly singer Roberta Flack dies aged 88 BBC
Beekeepers say catastrophic honeybee losses are cause for alarm MPR News (Chuck L)
Egypt announces first discovery of pharaoh’s tomb in more than 100 years Reuters (Robin K)
Solving the big puzzles: The unrelenting creativity of Roger Penrose Times Literary Supplement (Anthony L)
Vancouver surgeon first in Canada to use a tooth to cure blindness Vancouver Sun (Kevin W)
#COVID-19/Pandemics
An unknown illness kills over 50 people in part of Congo with hours between symptoms and death Associated Press (Paul R)
Data from hospitals in India since 2020 show that 50% of heart attack patients are adults below the age of 40. “Heart attack cases more than doubled after the Covid pandemic. People are suffering fatal heart attacks as early as their 30s.”
They’re so close… pic.twitter.com/KrTfgHrlHK
— Jammer (@acrossthemersey) February 24, 2025
“Were they dying from chronic disease or were they dying from Covid.”
Covid. They died from Covid.
This is health supremacy. Chronic illness is not someone’s fault. Disability can’t be fixed with diet & exercise. We’re no less deserving of life.
This is escalating eugenics. pic.twitter.com/70UBvK6QKv
— Kelly (@broadwaybabyto) February 24, 2025
Three dolphins
Indian River Lagoon died#H5N1
Seqs recently uploaded to GISAID w/ location & date
A/bottlenose dolphin/Florida/24-038155-003/2023 | 12/31/23
A/bottlenose dolphin/Florida/24-038155-004/2023 | 12/31/23
Geno 3.1
PB2 E627K for all 3 (5 seqs)https://t.co/84it1Ocgbf— Henry L Niman PhD @hlniman.bsky.social (@HNimanFC) February 25, 2025
Climate/Environment
Waves are getting bigger. Is the world ready? Guardian (Kevin W)
China?
U.S. to Hit Chinese Ships With Hefty Port Fees Wall Street Journal (Kevin W)
While the U.S. threatens tariffs and builds walls around its economy, China opens up The Conversation (Kevin W)
Chinese film Nezha 2 becomes highest-grossing animated film globally Reuters (Robin K)
South of the Border
Venezuela Produces 97% of Products Sold in Supermarkets Orinoco Tribune (Robin K)
European Disunion
Germany is stuck in a centrist trap Wolfgang Munchau, Unherd
Germany must become ‘independent’ from US – Bundestag election winner RT
The BSW’s election defeat – a political disaster Nachdenkseiten via machine translation (Micael T)
It’s a pity that Sahra didn’t understand anything. Anti-Spiegel via machine translation (Micael T)
Orbán’s Interview With Tucker Carlson: Ukraine War Will Doom the EU Like Afghanistan YouTube (Robin K)
The NATO Sweden joined no longer exists Aftonbladet via machine translation. Micael T: “A voice of almost-reason in Sweden. Still suffering from PDS & TDS but I forgive him for that just because of this phrase ‘investigate the possibility of terminating the DCA agreement and firmly avoid buying more American weapons systems.’ One swallow doesn’t make a summer, though.”
Old Blighty
Britain depends on Norway for energy. Some Norwegians want to cut us off Telegraph
Rise of ‘zombie companies’ in age of borrowing and inflation This is Money
Israel v. The Resistance
Hamas official says Netanyahu ‘intentionally sabotaging’ Gaza ceasefire Aljazeera. Quelle surprise!
Israel says 40,000 displaced Palestinians in northern West Bank will not be allowed to return Mondoweiss
Almost one and a half million people took part in the funeral of Seyed Hassan Nasrallah. When the monstrous Zionist regime sent 2 waves of fighter jets to terrorize the mourners, everyone stood their ground.
These are the finest of people, and they will always emerge victorious. pic.twitter.com/mzwrthcK2q
— Seyed Mohammad Marandi (@s_m_marandi) February 24, 2025
Hezbollah To Continue on Nasrallah’s Path: Sheikh Qassem Orinoco Tribune (Robin K)
Germany’s Annalena Baerbock – The Debility of Evil? Tarik Cyril Amar (Micael T)
US senator files new set of resolutions to block arms sales to Israel Anadolu Agency
Giving No Ground Counterpunch (Kevin W)
New Not-So-Cold War
Trump and Europe Fail to Realize that Russia Has a Vote Larry Johnson
Trump Wants to End the War Fast. Russia Has Its Own Timetable Wall Street Journal
Russia ready to work with US on rare earths – Putin RT. Note that Putin is not conceding ownership. All he’s offering is to let US companies come in to participate in development
Ukraine diplomacy live: UN assembly passes resolution condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine despite US opposition Financial Times. And some Russia hawks wonder why Russia is slow-rolling the war? It needs the support of economic allies despite the general distaste for the invasion. Intellectually accepting it as the least of Russia’s bad option is not tantamount to being happy with it.
Trump-Macron meeting illustrates growing distance between allies Le Monde
Three Years Into the Russian-Ukrainian War: These Third Parties Have Been the Big Winners Military Watch
Questions and answers on the sixteenth package of restrictive measures against Russia European Commission (Micael T)
Big Brother is Watching You Watch
It is no longer safe to move our governments and societies to US clouds BertHub (Paul R). I cannot fathom why anyone would trust cloud services. You no longer control your data.
Imperial Collapse Watch
BREAKING: ICC Asked to Investigate Biden and Blinken Over War Crimes Allegations Zeteo. This will only wind up being trolling but they still deserve the bad headlines.
A dangerous new international order is unfolding Guardian
End of the line: Transit thoughts in an uncertain America S(ubstack)-Bahn (Micael T)
Trump 2.0
Scoop: Trump Stripped All $103 Million of Legal Assistance from Storm and Disaster Victims Drop Site
Hegseth Clears the Way for More War Crimes Daniel Larison
Trump wants Europe to buy more US farm goods. It can’t. Politico (Kevin W). BWAHAHA
A palpable sense of betrayal: Canada retaliates to Trump’s tariffs Palatinate
Trump’s trade war signals the end of free trade as we know it Fortune India
DOGE
Federal worker unions sue Musk over demand they justify their jobs BBC (Kevin W)
FDA moves to rehire medical device, food safety and other staffers fired days earlier Associated Press
It’s the Health Care, Stupid Politico
Senate Republicans criticize Musk over email to government employees The Hill
Immigration
Thousands of migrants return home by boat after Trump’s crackdown on asylum Independent
Our No Longer Free Press
Free speech win. After spending five days in jail I was released without restrictions on my ability to discuss the charges brought against me. The judge effectively forced the crown to drop its bid to muzzle me.
Why did an author spend five days in jail to be allowed to write… pic.twitter.com/xwRGj5UnY1— Yves Engler (@EnglerYves) February 25, 2025
Mr. Market is Moody
US economic growth falters and goods prices spike higher S&P Global
AI
Chinese AI Robot Goes Rogue and Attacks Woman Before Getting Shut Down. StealthOptional. Micael T: “Clarifying times. Even the robots pull the masks off anf show what they are really about.”
ChatGPT can now write erotica as OpenAI eases up on AI paternalism ars technica (Dr. Kevin)
The Bezzle
Elizabeth Holmes fails to overturn her Theranos fraud conviction Associated Press (Kevin W)
UnitedHealth falls after U.S. opens probe of Medicare billing Fortune (Kevin W
Class Warfare
The bad outcomes are all class warfare driven: :Why We Don’t Trust Doctors Like We Used To Wall Street Journal (Dr. Kevin)
1 in 3 Americans say debt is causing health problems KHON2
The U.S. Economy Depends More Than Ever on Rich People Wall Street Journal. Thomas Ferguson and Servaas Storm have discussed this for some time as a driver in the current inflation.
This Fintech’s Visa Card Keeps Grandpa From Blowing His Nest Egg Forbes (Dr. Kevin). I do not like the paternalism.
And a bonus (Chuck L):
Mass turtle nesting underway in Odisha, India
Approximately 300,000 olive ridley turtles have arrived on the coast of Odisha for their annual mass nesting phenomenon, a remarkable spectacle of nature.
pic.twitter.com/3M0Kl649PT
— Science girl (@gunsnrosesgirl3) February 23, 2025
Antidote du jour (Tracie H):
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.
