I’m guessing they didn’t expect a specific answer. Well done.

“Battle for Pokrovsk: The Ukraine that city could be the most important of the war” Do they check their titles for grammar?

AskJeeves for classy results

10 seconds to explosion. Time enough to watch the pressure wave and sip the Folgers.

There’s a strong Italian influence in the character names, which are often quirky, pun filled, and dirty. I feel like the movie could be a Renaissance Italy sex comedy a la 70s horror films, but with a comedic twist. Like Suspiria or Vampyros Lesbos, but comedic.

Rules based international order, indeed!

Putin is openly anti-communist.

What about the fact that many large VPNs are owned by (the same) ad companies / data mining companies? Despite the technical discussion, aren’t we ultimately placing our trust in the hands of the untrustworthy?

He was smoking the reefer, too! He sold that film for drug money.

You can still be a middle-aged Tiktok star complaining about the high prices compared to the good old days.

That option remains. Seize it. Dominate the airwaves. Organize a rebellion.

Alive oil comes from the fountain of youth. For a canister that’s a great deal!

Geekandmisandry. Misandry ie. someone who hates men.

Well at least you’re open about it. Many aren’t when they attack men.

Here’s the thing about “toxic masculinity”. Some people are toxic. Women and men tend to express that toxicity in different ways. Attacking an entire gender for the behaviour of the worst is stereotyping.

More broadly it’s part of the modern notion that we are on teams and that the other team is bad.

Tariffs can be paid by the export country, indirectly. They usually have to lower the price of the commodity to make it competitive under tariffs.

Under Fordist economics the domestic industrial boost would lead to increased wages and buying power.

Under neoliberalism the domestic industrial capitalists gain a larger market share and then don’t pay their workers more. Then they are faced with the problem of what to do with products that are unaffordable.

Friendly reminder that VOA, aka Voice of America, is a subsidiary of the US Agency for Global Media. It was established to convince people in the Soviet sphere that the US was better in every way. It continues that mission with America’s allies and enemies today.

The process of opening up a country’s media space is integral to getting those State department messages in there.

I grow old, I grow old

I wear my trousers rolled

Shall I eat a peach?

Nah, it’s 3:00 pre-boiled egg time

Then some Wheel of Fortune QI and a nap

Aglets. You can buy replacement aglets if it really bothers you.

It really was. I’ve watched it several times.

I’m not really sure what’s well known unless it’s enormously popular.

I’ve looked up the director, writer and actors from Rubicon to find similarly great work but this seemed to be a special convergence.

Rubicon

If you like espionage but from the analytical side.

Counterpart

If you like espionage, JK Simmons, and parallel dimensions

Berlin Station S1

If you like espionage and postwar Germany

BRICS is taking great strides forward. The rapprochement between China and India is necessary for that.

They have a new designation, partner country, allowing countries to take part without full agreement on all BRICS policies. Turkiye is joining as a partner despite its membership in NATO.

A grain exchange is being created, with other commodities exchanges to follow. Discussions on resisting sanctions, guaranteeing food security and energy security.

We are seeing the emergence of the new global organization.

Agreed that it likely depends on the region it was bought in. For most businesses and government services I have found the quality of customer service has dropped through the floor in North America as compared to 20 years ago. I worked in customer service for years and it’s always been a horrible job. But it can be made better or worse by how the department is managed.

Lenovo Canada’s customer service, shipping, and possibly quality control teams appear to be overworked because the result is slipshod work, ignoring the customer, and general incompetence. Again, I worked in the field and don’t blame the individuals.

They are trading on their good name, and eroding it at the same time. Glad to hear it’s better in Europe.