Stillness

 

Stillness

This pix, to yours truly, is a quiet respite from the insanity overtaking the world.

The Horror, the Horror

Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images

Another threat to annihilate Iran as Trump is warning that Iran will be “blown off the face of the earth.” WTF applies here as all this demented individual has to do is end the blockade but, instead, thanks to the urging of Bibi along with rampant self aggrandizement, he's doubling down and declared yet again he has the sole right to destroy a sovereign nation. How can he possibly do it? You guessed it, nukes. Conventional ordinance can't do it. Iran is simply too big a country. Words cannot describe the horror of this possible initiative promoted by a know nothing who runs nothing as Miller and Hegseth do, along with Bibi whispering sweet nothings into Trump's ear that Iran must go.
Time to to end this insanity now before the unthinkable happens.

The war on Iran is very much back on, and President Trump is making more genocidal threats.

Iran on Monday bombed a South Korean ship and civilian sites in the United Arab Emirates, in the wake of President Trump’s announcement that the United States would be using its Navy to force ships through Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz as part of “Project Freedom.” The U.S. military also stated that it sank six Iranian small boats and that Iran has fired missiles and drones at other vessels in the strait.

This has sent the president into a rage.

If the Iranians try to target U.S. ships in this area, they will be “blown off the face of the earth,”
 Trump told Fox News’s Trey Yingst on Monday afternoon.

“We have more weapons and ammunition at a much higher grade than we had before,” he warned.

The lack of understanding the center of gravity is now complete and ... add Pentagon Pete to the mix and one sees dementia and malignant narcissism on the part of Trump and incompetence and fanaticism on the part of Hegseth, both with connects to incredibly powerful weapons able to unravel civilization in a nanosecond, something akin to the feeling one gets when reading Conrad's Heart of Darkness with Kurtz ending the story by saying
The Horror, The Horror.

To whit.

Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Trump Blurts Out Damning Admission of Iran Blunder as GOP Panic Grows

As the president reveals too much about his handling of Iran, a writer tracking Trump’s bungling
explains how his megalomania won’t allow for any good way out of this fiasco.

Donald Trump has declared the war “terminated,” but he’s still rejecting Iran’s peace proposals while again threatening it with massive war crimes. And in an interview, Trump declared that he would never have approved an offer that was made to Iran by his negotiator, Steve Witkoff. This is a damning admission: He seemed to blurt out that he has no idea what his own representatives are offering—showing deep disengagement from the details of the talks—while demonstrating that anything his negotiators do offer should not be believed. 

Read both TNR pieces to see why referring to The Horror applies.

The Roi des Belges ('King of the Belgians'—French),
the Belgian riverboat Conrad commanded on the upper Congo, 1889

The Center of Gravity/Rev II

Not AI, just a prof who understands asymmetrical warfare at deep level. Cites sources, shows why asymmetrical warfare and deep understanding of how to implement same shows why the US is not winning and cannot win under any circumstances. The Strait is closed and the US can do nothing to change that scenario unless it agrees to Iran's terms. The Center of Gravity applies. 

As per COG, in Dune, it's the spice, in the Middle East, it's oil and fertilizer.

The deal ...

Al Jazeera

The tally seems fairly accurate save for the number of Israeli and US casualties as Israel and the US,
showing the world Iran's capabilities to respond with precision and power, is not face saving but
this blurb is not about body counts but rather ... is a deal possible to avoid catastrophe?

According to Iranian media reports, Tehran’s new proposal came in response to a Washington-backed nine-point peace proposal, which primarily sought a two-month ceasefire.

However, in its latest peace proposal, Iran said it wants to focus on ending the war instead of extending the truce and wants all issues resolved within 30 days.

The new proposal calls for guarantees against future attacks, a withdrawal of US forces from around Iran, the release of frozen Iranian assets worth billions of dollars and the lifting of sanctions, war reparations, ending all hostilities, including in Lebanon, and “a new mechanism for the Strait of Hormuz”.

Iran, which was also attacked by the US and Israel last June, wants a guarantee against future aggression. Israel has previously targeted Iranian nuclear scientists and run campaigns to sabotage its nuclear sites.

Tehran also wants its right to uranium enrichment guaranteed as a signatory to the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), (which Israel is not) but Trump has made the nuclear issue a “red line”. Iran wants decades of sanctions, which have devastated its economy, to be lifted as part of any deal. The navigation through the strait and demands for war reparations are other sticking points in the talks.

According to a report by Iranian state broadcaster IRIB, after delivering the proposal, Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said, “Now the ball is in the United States’ court to choose the path of diplomacy or the continuation of a confrontational approach.”

Paul Musgrave, an associate professor of government at Georgetown University in Qatar,

said Iran has “slightly softened” its proposal.

“The news reports on it indicate that there is a slight softening in the proposal, or rather a run-up to discussing the proposal, namely that the Iranian side may have given up its precondition that the US
 cease its distant blockade of Iranian traffic [in the Strait of Hormuz],” he told Al Jazeera.

“Beyond that, though, a lot of the things that are reportedly in the proposal include maintaining Iran’s sovereign ability to enrich uranium, its nuclear programme and, of course, what it delicately refers to as a ‘control mechanism’ over shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.”

Musgrave said on the two biggest issues – enrichment of uranium and transferring its highly enriched uranium – the US and Iran remain “far apart”.

“President Trump has been unyielding that Iran must surrender its nuclear capability,” he said.

Iran will not give up it's nuclear capability as this leaves the country vulnerable to US and Israeli attacks. This will not happen. 

So the question to ask it, will Trump restart this fiasco yet again?

The world is waiting.

The Handmaid's Tale/Rev II

The Supreme Court will now decide whether to overrule an appeals court
that found in Louisiana's favor. | AFP via Getty Images

Supreme Court asked to pause ruling blocking telehealth and mail access to abortion pills

The emergency appeal comes a day after a federal appeals court granted Louisiana's request to require that mifepristone be dispensed in person.

I know, lets resurrect the Salem witch trials to control women's right to choose yet again.

The Handmaid's Tale looms.

How much longer must we tolerate this incredible intrusion into women's lives based on religion and the right to life as George Carlin's right. "They're all in favor of the unborn. They will do anything for the unborn, but once you're born, you're on your own."

Betting pool with this supreme court, 90% backing the appeals court in Louisiana. 

"The witch no. 1" lithograph

Light is analog ...

 

A Simple Matter of 3

About two years ago, yours truly guessed about light being analog in free space based on astounding insights by Fourier, Einstein, Planck, de Broglie and Maxwell, along with Alvy Ray Smith and my experience with graphics and video as light, in free space, is a wave as proven by endless experiments beginning in 1801 by Thomas Young's incredible Double Slit experiment. 

An illustration of the 'Double-slit experiment' in physics.

As per Matter Wave ...

Light is extremely weird. Either analog or digital, depending on its state, photons, the force carrier of the electromagnetic, is an analog wave when traveling in free space but when absorbed by an electron, it becomes digital or a packet of energy i.e. quantum as it must transform in such a way for it to be properly absorbed by, in this case, an electron. When a electron's energy level drops, the photon emitted reverts back to being an analog wave, which means ... reality is analog with digital override, endlessly switching from one to the other as needs warrant. According to Louis de Broglie, this notion of matter/wave/digital/analog duality applies to all particles, which means reality is in constant flux, forever switching from one state to the other, forever driven by the two laws of thermodynamics whereby energy can neither be created or destroyed, only transformed and  ... in a natural thermodynamic process, the sum of the entropies of the interacting thermodynamic systems never decreases. A common corollary of the statement is that heat does not spontaneously pass from a colder body to a warmer body. What's even stranger is whenever a particle is "measured", it becomes, in effect, digital just as a photon becomes digital whenever its absorbed by any given particle. This analog/digital duality also applies to the other force particles as well.

The Photoelectric Effect

The emission of electrons from a metal plate caused by light quanta – photons

Note: Photons are bosons, the force carrier, in this instance, of electromagnetism,

Why the repeat? Well, it seems Clark Maxwell's discovery of light being electro/magnetic enables light to dance, to twist and move through space on it's own, thus proving, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that light, aka photons, is analog in free space.

In 1900, Maxwell's theoretical model of light as oscillating electric and magnetic fields seemed complete. However, several observations could not be explained by any wave model of electromagnetic radiation, leading to the idea that light-energy was packaged into quanta described by E = hν. Later experiments showed that these light-quanta also carry momentum and, thus, can be considered particles: The photon concept was born, leading to a deeper understanding of the electric and magnetic fields themselves.

The experiment proving this to be true.

Maxwell's vision circa 2026

Researchers at the University of East Anglia have identified a previously unknown property of light that allows it to twist, spin, and behave in unusual ways – without the need for mirrors, materials, or specialized lenses.

This result challenges long-standing assumptions, showing that light can develop chiral behavior – meaning it can act like a left or right hand – while moving freely through space.

He continues, “One extreme example is light that twists as it travels, forming a corkscrew shape known as an optical vortex. Each twist can carry information, making this kind of light valuable for high-speed internet, secure communications, and advanced sensors.”

Maxwell's take in 1900 shows why light is a dancer after all. Click here for the paper. 

Representation of the electric field vector of a wave
of circularly polarized electromagnetic radiation

Proof positive why light moves and dances on it's own. :)

Dark Eagle???

Photo: Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images

In looking at this picture, lost in space applies. Pentagon Pete, Israel and Nosferatu, aka Stephen Miller, run the show, complete with the specter of reigniting the fubar known as Trump's war with Iran.

If the unthinkable happens, while Trump tries to get around the 60 day edict by Congress (The War Powers Resolution) by arguing the April 7th ceasefire gives an out to the edict, the possible endgame looms as hypersonic missiles may be part of the CENCOM strike package, promising intense damage to a country that's not a threat to the US. The minute the first strike happens, Iran, Hezbollah and the Houthi's will unload, with the end result, desalination plants and oil refineries go and the Levant becomes a wasteland.

To whit.

President Trump told Axios he's going to keep Iran under a naval blockade
until the regime agrees to a deal that addresses U.S. concerns about its nuclear program.

Why it matters: Trump is rejecting an Iranian proposal to first open the Strait of Hormuz and lift the blockade, while postponing nuclear talks to a later stage.

Behind the scenes: U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) has prepared a plan for a "short and powerful" wave of strikes on Iran in hopes of breaking the negotiating deadlock, three sources with knowledge said.

After the strikes, which would likely include infrastructure targets, the U.S. would press the regime to come back to the negotiating table and show more flexibility.

Trump told Axios he saw the blockade as "somewhat more effective than the bombing," and the sources said he had yet to order any kinetic action as of Tuesday night. He did post an AI-generated meme of himself holding a gun with a warning to Iran and the tagline, "NO MORE MR. NICE GUY."

The possible CENCOM strike package may include this ...

LRHW Long Range Hypersonic Weapon, AKA Dark Eagle on
transporter erector launcher, 3 August 2024,
Exercise Bamboo Eagle 24-3, Nellis AFB[18]

Specs

If this catastrophe kicks off, Bibi gets his 40 year wish of annihilating Iran in hopes of creating 
Greater Israel with the unintended result of destroying his country in real time.

Grant" to Abraham consisting of all the land east of the Brook of Egypt and west of the Euphrates, north of Kadesh and south of Hamath, from a 1919 book by Clarence Larkin.

If the unthinkable happens, the midterms goes away as a national emergency and martial law must be imposed as chaos and an economic hell storm of biblical proportions will surely follow. 

Will the military stand down regarding this CF for the ages?

Lastly, Russia & China are players also. How will they react? A possible WW III scenario?

Channeling the Cuban Missile Crisis applies but this is worse, far worse in this writer's opinion
due to the occupant in the White House.

Whiteman

Chief Justice John Roberts attends the State of the Union address on February 7, 2023.
Jacquelyn Martin/Pool/Getty Images/File

Roberts is the worst Chief Justice in history in charge of the worst supreme court in history.
From Citizens United to Hobby Lobby and Greece NY and finally to Louisiana vs Callais, the case gutting the Voting Rights Act, he's Whiteman, bought and paid for by the powers at be. 

R. Crumb's Whiteman

The Supreme Court’s decision Wednesday rolling back protections for Black and Latino voters marks another dramatic turn in the long-fought effort by conservative justices to reverse measures vital to overcoming America’s legacy of race discrimination.

The decision also marks a defining moment for the court under Chief Justice John Roberts, who declared soon after joining the bench in 2005, “the way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race.”

Three years ago, the justices by the same 6-3 vote as Wednesday ended racial affirmative action in higher education admissions. The newest decision, which follows a series of rulings led by Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito restricting the reach of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, will reverberate deeper.

Taken as a whole, the pattern would mean fewer chances for minority voters to elect candidates of their choosing. That, in turn, would mean fewer opportunities for the voice of Blacks, Latinos, Native Americans and other minorities in government.

Any questions?

Speaking the truth ... for a change

 

British Ambassador Christian Turner speaking at the Ambassador's Residence in Washington DC, as part of the St Patrick's Day Celebrations in the US capital. Niall Carson/PA Images/Getty Images

It's about time someone from the west speaks the truth about the entangled alliance of
Israel and the US, a relationship, proving yet again, that the national interest of one rarely coincides
with the national interest of the other.

Britain’s ambassador to Washington has said that the only country that has a “special relationship” with the United States is “probably Israel,” not Britain, in leaked comments which could overshadow King Charles III’s state visit underway in the US this week.

Christian Turner, who took office in February to replace Peter Mandelson – who was sacked over his ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein – made the remarks privately to a group of British students visiting the US in the same month he was appointed.

“‘Special relationship’ is a phrase I try not to utter because it’s quite nostalgic, it’s quite backwards-looking, and it has a lot of sort of baggage about it,” Turner said in a leaked audio recording. “I think there is probably one country that has a special relationship with the United States – and that is probably Israel.”

For the recently-appointed ambassador to have cast doubt on the “special relationship” – which the British government and monarchy has been at pains to revive – is a cause for embarrassment for Downing Street and could make Charles’ state visit uncomfortable. The remarks were first reported by the Financial Times on Tuesday, shortly before Charles and Queen Camilla were greeted by US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump at the White House.

In unusually outspoken comments, Turner also told the students he thought it was “extraordinary” that the Epstein scandal “hasn’t touched anybody” in the US. By contrast, he said, senior British figures – including Mandelson, his predecessor, and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor – had been “brought down” by the affair.

Question, how long will Turner last in his post as diplomacy is the art of lying most eloquently.

John Tenniel's illustration of the King and Queen of Hearts
at the trial of the Knave of Hearts

"Off with his head!" may apply

The cliff beckons ...

A cartoon depicting lemmings jumping off a cliff en masse (The German text translates to
"Turn back!? Now that we've come this far!?!")[12]

I don't speak German but the gist of this cartoon hits home regarding AI as literally trillions are being spent on tech we will never fully understand. What's worse, as stated before in BRT, so many companies ignore the wisdom of Fred Brooks and his wonderful The Mythical Man Month in doing the due diligence necessary to properly incorporate this tech into complex business operations. This is why the text below describes chaos corporate style regarding AI and how not to best use it.

Adding more people to a late project makes it later.

Recent tech layoffs would initially appear to indicate the great labor shift
from human workers to AI may already be happening.

Meta announced last week in a memo that it plans to lay off 10% of its workforce, about 8,000 employees, as well as scrap plans to hire for 6,000 open positions. It’s part of an effort to “run the company more efficiently and to allow us to offset the other investments we’re making,” according to the memo. Microsoft has offered thousands of its own employees a voluntary buyout, the largest the company has ever offered.

“For my team, the cost of compute is far beyond the costs of the employees,” Bryan Catanzaro, vice president of applied deep learning at Nvidia, recently told Axios.

An MIT study from 2024 backs up Catanzaro’s experience. Analyzing the technical requirements of AI models needed to perform jobs at a human level, researchers found that AI automation would be economically viable in only 23% of roles where vision is a primary part of the work. In the remaining 77% of the time, it was cheaper for humans to continue their work.

In other instances, AI has proved to be fallible, with one engineer saying an AI agent destroyed his database and network as a result of what he called “overuse.”

Despite no clear evidence of AI improving productivity and, according to the Yale Budget Lab, no widespread data to support the idea of AI displacing jobs, Big Tech firms have continued to pour money into AI, announcing $740 billion in capital expenditures this year so far, according to Morgan Stanley, a 69% increase from 2025. The magnitude of spending has caused some companies to rethink their budget altogether.

This increase in spending has coincided with more layoffs in the tech sector. According to data from Layoffs.fyi, there have been more than 92,000 layoffs in tech in 2026 so far across nearly 100 companies.
The rate of these workforce reductions is already far outpacing that of last year, which saw about 120,000 layoffs in total.

The continued AI spending and layoffs, even as human labor remains cheaper, expose a meaningful discrepancy in the economics of AI, said Keith Lee, an AI and finance professor at the Swiss Institute of Artificial Intelligence’s Gordon School of Business.

“What we’re seeing is a short-term mismatch,” Lee told Fortune.

The siren call also applies. 

Funerary statue of a siren in Pentelic marble, found in the Necropolis of Ceramics at Athens. The siren laments the dead, wings folded, playing on a tortoiseshell lyre. The right hand, which would have held the plectrum, is missing. The strings, probably made of bronze, would have been attached to the holes which can be seen in the body of the instrument. The plumage and other parts would have been picked out in colour. The statue flanked the stele of the Athenian warrior Dexileo who fell in combat in 394/393 BC (Work of 370BC, National Archeological Museum, Athens).