A criminal enterprise run by the Monkees Wall Street Journal (Lee). No, it’s not OpenAI.
I missed this the first time I ran it. It seems like it’s a product of the smartphone era. I was there in 1993 and 1994. They were aggressive, but not in that way.
Whales ‘forced to scream’ to communicate above nautical noise
74,000 years ago, a supervolcano nearly wiped out humanity, but humans did something amazing Science Daily (Kevin W)
A Hungarian psychologist raised three daughters to prove that through early specialization, any child can become a chess grandmaster. Successful. Two of them became grandmasters. One became the greatest female chess player of all time.
So sports scientists investigated… pic.twitter.com/5fzvRHMnSC
— Ittesham Ali (@ihtesham2005) May 9, 2026
hantavirus
How are countries responding to hantavirus? BBC
French woman’s doctor tells her hantavirus symptoms are just anxiety The Guardian (Kevin W)
Climate/Environment
Canada’s musk oxen hit by double whammy of new disease and climate change Good People Project 🙁
A ‘triple whammy’ of chaos is causing a downward spiral in Antarctica, scientists discover CNN
India is getting hotter
The temperature in Barmer today was 47.3 degrees Celsius, breaking the world’s highest temperature so far this month.
Nights are also brutally hot, with minimum temperatures of 32/34 degrees Celsius in the hottest parts of Rajasthan.
Extreme heat is expected to spread to more parts of India in the coming weeks. https://t.co/0SgmKBXHyl
— Abnormal temperatures around the world (@extremetemps) May 11, 2026
From May 9th, northern China will experience the strongest heat wave of the year. Currently, the maximum temperature in Hebei province may exceed 40 degrees Celsius on May 13, and hundreds of weather stations predict that it will break the mid-May heatwave record. @extremetemps pic.twitter.com/JR0fXgvKWg
— Jim (@yangyubin1998) May 7, 2026
‘Worst time for wheat’: US farmers face losses due to heatwave and drought Guardian
Plastic waste carries toxic chemicals across oceans: Study Daily Sabah
China?
The bet on Trump vs. Xi diplomacy. I can’t either….
President Trump’s new sanctions on Chinese companies: leverage against Xi or go too far? Asia Times (Kevin W)
President Trump invites CEOs including Elon Musk, Tim Cook, and Larry Fink to visit China for Xi Jinping summit CNBC (Kevin W) ZOMG, Trump improves on Netanyahu’s brashness (bringing a suitcase full of laundry on an official visit and having it cleaned for 10 cents from US taxpayers). Recall that China confirmed this summit at the last minute. Chas Freeman acknowledged that no Sherpa work had been done beforehand. Is China expected to give these clowns a formal audience? I wish they would put everyone on the tour bus instead. The article does not quote Chinese officials.
China warns of the rise of Japan’s new militarism, asks Japan’s Bastille Post Office to sincerely repent
India
PM Modi asks Indians to work from home and restrict international travel as Iran war continues BBC
Southeast Asia
Philippine debt service more than doubles to P737 billion in first quarter Manila Standard
Indonesia’s debt wall hits economy running on borrowed time Asia Times
Thailand could face dual water risks as the risk of El Niño increases from May to July. If Thailand is exposed to this pattern, we can assume that the rest of Southeast Asia is similar, at least to some extent.
Africa
The danger for whales off the coast of South Africa is increasing as conflicts in the Middle East shift maritime traffic into whale habitat and increase the risk of collisions.
Dozens killed in jihadist attack on Al Jazeera in central Mali
Nigeria announces army repulses attack on TRT Africa base, killing dozens of terrorists
Rebel fighters kill at least 69 people in Al Jazeera, northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo
‘It’s like going bankrupt overnight’: The poorest Somalis suffer as piles of worthless shillings pile up in Guardian newspaper
Shaking in South Sudan warns of worse things to come ARAB NEWS
Sudan: How one of the most serious humanitarian crises became marginalized within the Earth system Stimson
south of the border
Venezuelan leader defends country’s claim to mineral-rich Guyana region in UN court
Venezuela warns of ‘serious’ environmental impact from oil spill off Trinidad and Tobago Los Angeles Times
antipode
New Zealand outlines potential for fuel rationing Bloomberg
discord in europe
The US is in intense negotiations to open a new base in Greenland, BBC. Lead story for the US/Canada version of the site.
The impact of the Iran war on food production lines across Europe Sky
The true meaning of German rearmament Thomas Fudge
Germany renews its bid to acquire Tomahawks after President Trump’s outbursts Financial Times
old blighty
Global Bond Vigilante Circle Labor Poll Rationalizing the UK Economy After the Disaster
Did Starmer’s speech do enough to end calls for his resignation? STV. The short clips of speeches are tiresome. I know I need to explain more about Starmer Twisting in the Wind. But he’s such a pathetic, despicable person that I hate thinking about him too much, even if the timing isn’t right, especially given his political demise. But our UK readers have a lot of interest in where this goes, so feel free to chime in with your thoughts in the comments.
israel vs resistance
Marathon becomes turning point for Palestinian runner released from Israeli prison ABC Australia (Massachusetts)
A deeply disturbing and well-documented report by historians Liat Kozma and Lee Mordechai of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem tracks the past three years of famine in Gaza through data, testimonies, official statements, food prices, aid access, and powerful intelligence. pic.twitter.com/c8x7RLrbQk
— Muslim Lawyer (@faisalkutty) May 11, 2026
A Palestinian farmer has cried out in anguish after Israeli forces destroyed a greenhouse on his land in the northern Jordan Valley, pointing out the vast area destroyed by Israeli forces. pic.twitter.com/lVS2udmxFz
— Rami Abdul | और देखें May 11, 2026
Israel needs more troops to join ‘immediately’ as army ‘collapses’ TRT World
Israeli weapons fire small metal cubes at Lebanese people, including Gaza Al Jazeera
Gulf states turn to Türkiye for air defense systems amid threat from Iran Middle East Eye
Yemen faces economic collapse accelerating amid war and regional tensions Yemen Online
War on Iran: Senior royal says Saudi Arabia averted Israeli plan to ‘destroy the region’ Middle East Eye (Kevin W)
President Trump’s ‘Unacceptable’ Answer Daniel Larison
Iranian banks defy President Trump’s financial sanctions, maintain business as usual for regime Observer
A new war that’s not so cold war
Julian MacFarlane’s World War III Drones. The first section is about the Middle East, but most of the posts are about Russia.
Finland is on track to become one of Russia’s most difficult enemies Andrew Korybko
imperial collapse watch
Why are Americans so stupid? YouTube (Roy P). ZOMG, I started this in a few minutes and so far it’s great.
RICO States: How Legal Pattern Recognition Reveals the Criminal Structure of Transnational Capitals William Murphy
Yes, death to American Sam Husseini
History of OPEC: Why the crisis is bad news considering BRICS
Trump 2.0
President Trump has said he will move to end the federal gas tax. He can’t do it on his own Associated Press (Kevin W)
Lawsuit filed over President Trump’s reflecting pool renovations The Hill
republican clown car
Why is Susan Collins shaking?Ken Klippenstein
Our press is no longer free
Nick Kristoff has conducted a thorough investigation into Israeli rape and sexual assault of Palestinians.
All Israelis on Twitter are accusing him of fabrications and propaganda.
As I have written to the NYT many times, they do thorough fact checking.
— Zaid Jilani (@ZaidJilani) May 11, 2026
Meta is dying. It’s about time. New York Times (Joker)
economy
Middle East conflict causes ‘super squeeze’ in global sulfur and sulfuric acid markets, pushing prices to record CRU levels
Coal shipments soar as countries seek alternatives to gas supply disruptions Financial Times
Asia prepares for second wave of energy shock due to Iran war
Hokkaido faces garbage bag shortage as panic buying spreads News Japan This wouldn’t be surprising, except that it was probably occurring earlier in Japan as well. We have noted that naphtha, which is used to make plastics, is running out across Asia.
Mr. Market is dizzy.
The financial system awaits a huge polycrisis The Globe and Mail
A.I.
Big news: A senior scientist at Google DeepMind has published a paper claiming that AI will never be conscious. Not within 10 years. Not in 100. never.
It’s called the “abstraction fallacy.”
Written by Alexander Lerchner. The disclaimer states that it does not reflect the views of Google. As you can see… pic.twitter.com/Z3HmAa5z0J
— Guri Shin (@heygurisingh) May 9, 2026
AI-powered hacking has exploded into an industrial-scale threat, Google said in the Guardian (Kevin W). Bwahahaha.
Your use of AI is destroying my brain 404 Media
????:
Only the elderly are buying the magic bean called AI. In fact, it’s pretty sad to see older people being tricked into believing that another industrial revolution is imminent. But they partially want to believe. Perhaps to atone for a generational failure to create a better world. https://t.co/kPWXtFXLhH
— Seth Harpes (@sethharpesq) May 11, 2026
class war
NEW: U.S. auto loan and credit card delinquencies are at record highs, and the stock market is near record highs, according to CNBC data.
— Dominic Michael Tripi (@DMichaelTripi) May 11, 2026
Snakes in the Garden: AJA Woods’ “Cultural Marxist Conspiracy” History of the Federation (Anthony L.)
Tesla strike crosses Swedish border – IF Metall blocks foreign jobs with machine translation Dagens Arbete (Micael T)
Local authorities will no longer be allowed to compete with Tidningen Näringslive companies via machine translation (Micael T)
Why should Swedes have to consume when half the country is in retreat? Machine translation of Aftonbladet (Micael T)
Temporary antidote (Nat):
bonus:
The cat discovered sunlight, but couldn’t understand why it suddenly felt hot. 🤗🤗 pic.twitter.com/zknu8ALhZT
— The Figen (@TheFigen_) May 9, 2026
Second bonus:
This dog is a genius. Check out the technique for removing the wheels. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/UfGLsucvYD
— The Figen (@TheFigen_) May 10, 2026
And third:
Impossible😂😂😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/8iOBbJ91Bb
— A cat with a strong impression🐾 (@catshealdeprsn) May 10, 2026
Click here for yesterday’s link and Antidote du Jour.
