Titanic shipwreck shown in 3D view BBC (furzy)
Search Underway for Titanic-Wreck Submersible With Five Crew Bloomberg. Or not to put too fine a point on it: Hm, Billionaire-Adventurer…. Andrei Martyanov
The Cheese Caves of the United States Laughing Squid (resilc)
Scientists Hope Euclid Telescope Will Reveal Mysteries of Dark Matter Guardian
Ultra low-cost smartphone attachment measures blood pressure at home ars technica (Chuck L)
The New War on Bad Air New York Times (Ann M)
America’s most widely consumed cooking oil causes genetic changes in the brain Neuroscience (Paul R). From 2020 but news to me. And who uses soybean oil for cooking?
‘Animal Spirits’ Review: Vitality Rages Against the Machine Wall Street Journal. Anthony L: “Jackson Lears (always liked him).”
McMaster’s Imaginary Sex Ring Quillette (Anthony L)
The diaries of Kafka aeon (Anthony L)
Climate/Environment
South African taps run dry after power shortages BBC (resilc)
By contrast, it’s been weirdly cool here and I am told in Southern California too (hat tip ma):
An extreme heat event currently ripping through Mexico has been described as “hands down the worst in the country’s history.” Children have been killed, athletes at the country’s national games hospitalised and wild birds have died en masse as temperatures approach 50C (122F) 🧵
— Nate Bear (@NateB_Panic) June 19, 2023
‘Unheard of’ Marine Heatwave Off UK and Irish Coasts Poses Serious Threat Guardian
Europe warming faster than any other continent in recent decades: Report Anadolu Agency
Seaweed Farming For CO2 Capture Would Take Up Too Much of the Ocean MIT Technology Review
Customers could be on the hook for Pacific Power wildfire lawsuit costs, filings show KGW8 (Kevin W). From last week, still germane.
China?
President Xi Jinping Meets with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China. Word, especially from US officials, are cheap. I don’t know how anyone can take this seriously when Blinken maintains that the US “does not support ‘Taiwan independence.’” Recall that in a long phone call with Xi, Biden similarly claimed that the US supported the one China policy. Let’s see if the US stops sending warships through the Taiwan Strait. Blinken simply made an itty bitty reformulation of the existing policy.
Came upon this after writing the bit immediately above: Xi meets Blinken, calling on US to translate statements to actions Global Times
Sure Blinken…. “We don’t support Taiwan independence…”
While you :
– sell weapons to Taiwan
– are sending US troops to Taiwan to train Taiwanse troops
– support pro-independence movements in Taiwan.
– are sending US aircrafts in Taiwan StraitSure….we trust you bro. https://t.co/ldHkTe9eWJ
— Angelo Giuliano 🇮🇹 🇨🇭/ living in 🇨🇳 (@Angelo4justice3) June 19, 2023
Note both parties unable to hide mutual antipathy; Xi has Blinken placed in subordinate position, unlike his meeting with Pompeo, where they sat next to each other in armchairs:
Speaking to reporters in Beijing Monday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he had candid and substantive discussions with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
He said that Washington welcomes further visits by Chinese officials to the U.S.https://t.co/o0VZIhNok8 pic.twitter.com/mZf6d6UGey
— Voice of America (@VOANews) June 20, 2023
China Says Xi, Blinken Meeting Was Courtesy; Blames US on Policy pic.twitter.com/3lUOnflImB
— lexus (@colourinterlude) June 19, 2023
Xi rejects US offer to set up military crisis hotline, Blinken says The Hill
Hawks go on tilt:
To summarize:
— Blinken canceled a trip to China after Chinese spying on U.S. bases
— China does nothing to thaw relations
— Blinken nonetheless goes to China & kowtows, knifing Taiwan in the back
— China berates Blinken
— U.S. leaves looking weak, having accomplished nothing https://t.co/sPZv7dJ4JT— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) June 19, 2023
Absent a real strategy, US sends nuclear-powered submarine to S. Korea Responsible Statecraft
Rohingya refugees face soaring hunger and crime after aid cuts Bangkok Post (furzy)
European Disunion
EU split over subsidies for coal plants as Poland seeks extension Poland (Kevin W)
The Slowdown in Europe via Human Capital Dietrich Vollrath (resilc)
Canada’s supreme court upholds pact with US restricting asylum claims Guardian. Resilc:”Does this apply to me when I have to flee?”
New Not-So-Cold War
Ukraine updates: No losses in counterattack, Zelenskyy says DW
Military briefing: Russian ‘Alligators’ menace Ukraine’s counteroffensive Financial Times
but this is precisely the logic of the strategic plans of Washington and London, it is clear, including from documentary materials,”director of the Foreign Intelligence Service of the Russian Federation.
2/2
— Dagny Taggart (@DagnyTaggart963) June 19, 2023
EU Readies €50 Billion Ukraine Package Ahead of Donor Summit Bloomberg
EU imports of Russian oil plunge by 90% as a result of sweeping bans Euronews. Kevin W: “In other news, EU oil imports from India and China soar 90%.”
The destruction of an independent judiciary in Ukraine WSWS
US-linked regime in Moldova follows suit with neighboring Kiev Putsch regime in Ukraine and bans any political opposition that could potentially revisit the geopolitical flipping & new foreign policy orthodoxy of these countries. https://t.co/rfhPIqKgn2
— Mark Sleboda (@MarkSleboda1) June 19, 2023
Syraqistan
Biden admin. won’t acknowledge Iran deal explicitly to skirt Congress Jerusalem Post
Imperial Collapse Watch
Our Systems Reward Dysfunction And Destruction Caitlin Johnstone (Kevin W)
Udo Ulfkotte Exposed the CIA’s Role in Controlling Worldwide Media in his book “Journalists For Hire” and Should Be Celebrated Among the Great Whistleblowers of All-Time Covert Action. Chuck L: “Might Ulfkotte’s heart attack at age 57 have been assisted?”
Why What We Thought About the Global Economy Is No Longer True New York Times (resilc). Um, who do you mean by “we”?
How US-made sniper ammunition ends up in Russian rifles Politico. Resilc: “USA USA is cultured to sell anything not nailed down.”
Trump
Trump’s defense after his indictment and arraignment: Lies and victim narratives Vox (resilc)
Trump defends keeping classified docs in contentious exchange with Fox’s Baier The Hill
RFK, Jr.
Beware: we ignore Robert F Kennedy Jr’s candidacy at our peril Guardian (resilc)
YouTube removes Robert F Kennedy Jr video featuring bizarre claim that polluted water makes children transgender Independent (furzy
Power companies quietly pushed $215m into US politics via dark money groups Guardian
L’affaire Jeffrey Epstein
Jeffrey Epstein claimed to have set up meetings with senior UK ministers Financial Times (resilc)
Gunz
After mass shootings, Serbia hands in guns and protests violence NBC (furzy)
AI
Meta Says Its New Speech-Generating AI Model Is Too Dangerous For Public The Verge. A very tech connected reader (as in both skill and contact wise) says the reason for the AI scaremongering (which he points out is auto complete using huge matrices) is that Silicon Valley has worked out that there’s nothing protectable there, that anyone with enough computing power could do this…including on a small scale, like a law firm mining their past correspondence and articles and having AI generate client letters. So the hysteria is to get Congresscritters to pass legislation that will have the effect of creating barriers to entry or otherwise restrict use.
The Bezzle
Inside the World of Virtual Sports Betting Guardian (resilc)
Meta to Lower Age for Users of Quest VR Headset to 10 From 13 New York Times
Where Money Rules Bloomberg via Barry Ritholtz (resilc). The subhead claim is wrong. Pension funds and insures have long bee big players in the debt markets. Depicting them as nontraditional is a crock.
Leveraged loan defaults hit $25 billion, head for third worst year in history, says Goldman MarketWatch (ma). Leveraged loans are nearly all for leveraged buyouts.
Rail Car Shortage Keeping 70,000 New Cars Off Dealer Lots As Supply Chain Issues Continue Jalopnik (resilc)
Guillotine Watch
Why Are Corporate Healthcare Fraudsters Being Handed ‘Get Out of Jail Free Cards’? Juan Cole (resilc)
Prince William: Young royals ‘will definitely be exposed’ to homelessness BBC. Resilc: “If they turn out like Uncle Harry and Meagan?”
Class Warfare
Chuck L sent and readers mentioned in comments, but not to be missed, in a bad way:
This is W I L D labor violation case:
A California restaurant had someone impersonate a priest and hear workers’ confessions.
Then the restaurant used that information to retaliate against workers https://t.co/vOrFao5p8Q
— Crystal Fincher 🏳️🌈 (@finchfrii) June 18, 2023
Antidote du jour. mgl: “One of our local nesting trumpeter swans in Anchorage, Alaska & a cheery tree swallow.”
And a bonus, featuring a young Aby, same model as all my cats (save the Russian blue look-alike I had as a child):
“What? You can fly?” 😂
🎥 IG: sensej_cats pic.twitter.com/pQ2DpjIkCZ
— Buitengebieden (@buitengebieden) June 19, 2023
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.
