Resident held hostage in his home by thousands of wild camels Skye (resilc)
It’s raining iguanas: South Florida’s cold snap causes few reptiles to fall from trees Local10 (Micael T). Remember Magnolia?
Ray Bradbury and the Practice of Human Agency: The 1 Percent Rule
#New Coronavirus Infection/Pandemic
Impact of COVID-19 on ischemic stroke patterns and outcomes: a multicenter retrospective study using propensity score matching
🔥Hospital = Mask up!
➡️ A multicenter retrospective study in Saudi Arabia analyzed 820 acute ischemic stroke patients admitted to three hospitals… pic.twitter.com/tGNVljhTIM
— Harry Spoelstra (@HarrySpoelstra) February 3, 2026
⚠️New coronavirus causes cancer https://t.co/vqUgQBGafb pic.twitter.com/TPn5SySoBr
—Joe (@LTSmash420) February 2, 2026
Climate/Environment
The climate crisis is pushing the global food system to breaking point Food Navigator
Small-scale farmers produce more of the world’s rich food than previously thought – new research
Climate change as a geopolitical force: From militarization of the Arctic to climate warfare, Eurasia Review
Plastic pollution may be causing algal blooms on Earth
Stratospheric warming confirmed: collapse of polar vortex brings major weather disruption to severe weather in coming weeks
Despite being located in a high Alpine city, the threat of global warming looms over the next Winter Olympics: An in-depth study
Britain’s butterfly numbers remain flat despite record heat News Shopper
China?
Beijing is shifting the balance: Xi Jinping is in control of Taiwan decisions TopWar (Micael T)
China bans hidden use of car door handles over safety concerns BBC (Kevin W)
India
Human-elephant fights continue in Coimbatore Forest, putting lives at risk Times of India
India’s wealthy embrace water as new symbol of luxury Reuters
south of the border
President Trump escalates pressure to bring Cuba to crisis: ‘There will be a full-scale blockade’ Guardian (Kevin W)
Unions rally to overhaul Paraguay’s pensions Paraguay Post
Prime Minister Netanyahu says Israeli Defense Forces were betrayed by young Turks in America, YouTube. Young Turks can be a bit noisy for my taste, but this is truly a discovery. There’s a lot of good documentation out there.
discord in europe
Why do they hate Europe? Machine Translation Rebellion (Micael T)
European stocks expected to plummet as global market concerns reignite CNBC
Belgian Prime Minister Bart de Wever warns Carl Sanchez about Europe’s future
The fight against the Russians is depriving Latvia of Vzglyad’s healthcare and education through machine translation. Michael T.: “It is clear that the Ukraine war is not a war against Russia, but a war against the non-rich members of the EU.”
Sweden stands for reason, democracy, rights and security D!kk0 (via machine translation) (Micael T)
Sweden’s drinking water and nuclear power depend on Russian-owned technology: “Security threat” by Dagens Albetter (machine translation) Mikael T.: “Another case of cerebral anti-Putinitis. Why not ask the right question: Swedish municipalities can’t buy from Swedish companies, and for that matter, can’t build them themselves?”
old blighty
Mr Mandelson was recorded as having sent government information to Epstein’s BBC, which the SNP and Reform Corporation reported to police.
Tony Blair and Peter Mandelson will go down in history as crawlers Irish Times (PlutoniumKun)
israel vs resistance
We buried my Aunt Mary last Friday at the Middle East Reminiscence (Aurelian). A retrospective exhibition of Palestinian Christians.
* * *
Trump TACOs Iran Through Negotiations The Moon in Alabama (Kevin W). Contains some very nice screams.
Alastair Crook: Trump’s Iran Strategy: All Blaster, No Exit Judge Napolitano, YouTube. Key takeaway: If the US attacks Iran, it will begin a global Shiite jihad against the US and all its allies. 13% of Saudi Arabia’s population is Shia…
✈️ US Aviation Assets in the Middle East
This is probably not very easy to understand for most people, but it’s still a pretty comprehensive list of air assets that have been sent to the Middle East in recent weeks.
From what I can estimate, there were probably around 40 at most… https://t.co/eUDVobOn91
— Will Shriver (@imetatronink) February 2, 2026
Email gossip from creepy contacts. Please note that we cannot confirm this. But if I’m hearing this rumor, then Israel and the US must be too.
By the way, Iran is integrated with Chinese satellites, Chinese air defense, and Chinese GPS systems. So they can turn off or spoof GPS over Iran. Tomahawk uses GPS as its primary guidance. China has very good satellites over the Middle East, and it was the one that picked up the attack on the Eisenhower and transported more than 20 casualties to Saudi Arabia. Israel needs to get rid of the Iranians or the myth of Israeli dominance will collapse. If Iranian missiles hit Israel’s power plants and water systems, Israel would not be able to survive.
“30,000 dead” Introducing the former fashion blogger and dubious doctor behind Iran’s psychological operation GrayZone (Kevin W)
syrakistan
Another failed state has disappeared due to the betrayal of the United States. Michael T.: It’s not the first time. Radio War Nerd claims Kurds are thrown under the bus every time. “They are too corrupt and embroiled in infighting to learn.”
A new war that’s not so cold war
Trump lowers tariffs on India after PM Modi agrees to halt purchases of Russian oil CNN (Lee) Was PM Modi stupid enough to think this oil was fungible? Indian refineries cannot handle Venezuela’s extra-heavy crude oil. Or is this largely an empty promise, as he is betting that production will not increase much?
Russian Security Council Vice-Chairman Dmitry Medvedev: “Russia has not discovered” the submarine, President Trump said in international affairs
Breaking news from Miami, Dimitriev offers bigger bribe — Breaking news from Tehran, Trump is pulling out John Helmer
The tragedy of Ukraine: from crisis (κρίσις) to “evil oblivion” (μεμνήσι κακείν) Nikolai Petro
Russian Siberian roads and roads Global Affairs (Micael T)
big brother is watching over you
“TSA’s new $45 fee for flying without ID is illegal,” said regulatory expert Paul R. Sadly, this article explains why you will legally lose the fight. Some attorneys may refuse to do this and represent you themselves, or you may have to mutually agree to represent them.
WhatsApp bug allows malicious media files to spread through group chats
imperial collapse watch
Lawrence Wilkerson: Will President Trump withdraw from the Middle East and Europe? YouTube
US tightens control over agencies during war against multipolarity; Near East Outlook (Michael T.)
Arms Control Death of Daniel Larison
Why is the US dollar depreciating? Vzglyad by machine translation. Michael T.: “To hurt the non-wealthy in America.”
Trump 2.0
President Trump says Republicans should ‘nationalize’ elections (Kevin W)
President Trump’s green card freeze for 75 countries challenged in lawsuit Bloomberg
Executive Power Stress Test: America’s Drift from Governance to Assertion Near East Perspective (Micael T)
The Justice Department deceives itself (again) Steve Vladeck
Lafaire Epstein
Monologue: The Big Dirty Club, George Galloway, YouTube. Galloway rises to the level of impressive and fully guaranteed high dudgeon. At least listen to the Bill Gates bit at 8:20.
Why is the BBC defending Trump against Epstein charges? council estate media
ICE Rampage
President Trump’s ICE problem – and our problem Washington Monthly
French tech company Capgemini announces sale of US subsidiary following backlash from ICE FRANCE 24 English, YouTube (resilc). Sadly, that only means US actors like PE firms will buy it.
DHS Says Critical ICE Surveillance Footage of Abuse Case Was Not Actually Recorded, 404 Media Doesn’t Matter (Dr. Kevin)
Senate Republicans support requiring federal immigration officers to wear body cameras. Former Army Ranger Greg Stoker argues that body cameras are far more comprehensive surveillance than civilian protection devices. Police turn it on to catch who is in the crowd, and periodically turn it off when they try to intervene.
FRB
Kevin Warsh – Wall Street Man CADTM (Michael T)
Kevin Warsh and the Economics of the Weathervane Paul Krugman
Can Fed Chairman candidate Kevin Warsh avoid becoming Arthur Burns? Asia Times (Kevin W)
republican clown car
Texas AG Ken Paxton, Republican officials call on Republicans to ‘fight’ for Tarrant County Forth Worth report
economy
I don’t have a good feeling about this’: Top economist Claudia Sahm says the economy has quietly changed and now everyone is seeing false alarms Fortune (resilc)
US Economy: Under CADTM Bombing (Micael T)
In 2025, the catastrophic bond market broke many records. And many are hoping for another monumental year, with investors flocking to CNBC, an often overlooked asset class.
Geopolitical tensions and soaring commodity prices hit smartphone supply chain Cyprus Mail
A.I.
The State of the $2.52 Trillion AI Bubble, January 2026 Forbes
Experts increasingly worried about a world where AI will take our jobs and leave us with no way to feed ourselves Futurist (Kevin W)
guillotine watch
March of the Billionaires. Paul R: “The scary thing is, I don’t know if this is a joke or not.”
class war
Is inherited wealth a bad thing? ion. Michael T: “As we are experiencing in Europe, stupidity is carried out from above. Born-born political and economic elites who have never had to work for a living will destroy the EU because they can still live off their wealth.”
Record year for affordable housing construction — Seattle leads the nation Rent Cafe
Businesses are embracing the labor migrants they deserve Dagens Arena (by Michael T., machine translation)
Antidote (via):
And bonus:
Humanity discovers that skunks sound like Muppets, making them the cutest thing ever
— Science Girl (@sciencegirl) February 2, 2026
Second bonus:
An owl is a cat with wings. 😄 pic.twitter.com/KNCl7pUcyD
— The Figen (@TheFigen_) January 31, 2026
And third:
A collection of dog photos that introduces owners to unexpected animal friends
— Science Girl (@sciencegirl) February 2, 2026
Click here for yesterday’s link and Antidote du Jour.
