Shostakovich’s String Quartets: The Movie of a Life Simon Morrison (Micael T)
The ancient logic of “snuck” Dead Language Society (Micael T)
Hidden earthquake faults beneath Seattle may be more dangerous than expected Science Daily (Kevin W)
The Global Fertility Crisis Is Worse Than You Probably Think Derek Thompson (Micael T). Do not get me started on this topic.
Nestlé Killed Millions of Infants Betham’s Bulldogs (Micael T)
Ebola
W.H.O. Chief Is ‘Deeply Concerned’ by Speed and Scale of Ebola Outbreak New York Times. You will see how the headline was watered down later.
American tests positive for Ebola; U.S. to screen travelers at airports Washington Post
The outbreak of #Ebola #Bundibugyo is now the 3rd largest on record. The #WHO country rep in DRC, Anne Ancia, told the World Health Assembly today that the suspected case count is now over 500, with 130 suspected deaths.
This will be hugely difficult to contain.… pic.twitter.com/tnMCUO2j5v— Helen Branswell 🇨🇦 (@HelenBranswell) May 19, 2026
Hantavirus
Hantavirus in Africa: why climate change, rats and weak surveillance are worrying scientists The Conversation
A critical window to stop hantavirus is opening. Not all countries are managing exposed travelers the same way CNN
Douglas County adult dies from hantavirus, health officials say there’s no link to cruise ship outbreak CPR
COVID-19/Pandemics
Please click through:
If covid infections make you *more vulnerable* to almost every other pathogenic infection by multiple mechanisms, then you’d expect increases in almost every other pathogenic infection.
And that’s what we see.
Ten completely unsurprising news stories:
— tern (@1goodtern) May 19, 2026
Climate/Environment
Farmers have figured out that the cheapest pesticide is a strip of flowers.
When you plant wildflowers through a crop field, not just around the edge but in strips running through the middle, you get ladybugs, lacewings, hoverflies, and parasitic wasps living in the field… pic.twitter.com/7V0tqMeM4M
— Give A Shit About Nature (@giveashitnature) May 19, 2026
Redistributing Life: How Climate Change Is Redrawing the Map of Species Migration Earth
Here is a graph of the daily temperature anomalies above the 1850-1900 pre-industrial baseline over the last 20 years using Copernicus data. As you can clearly see, the trendline shows the planet passing 1.5°C within a year.
Get on the boat, people! pic.twitter.com/2Tl9niExxV
— Prof. Eliot Jacobson (@EliotJacobson) May 16, 2026
The ‘doomsday’ glacier’s giant ice shelf is about to break away New Scientist
Latin America Faces ‘Hydrological Whiplash’ as Climate Risks Mount Inside Climate News
Water users around the west seek billions in federal drought help as Colorado River forecast worsens Aspen Public Radio
Saudi Arabia braces for extreme heat and dusty winds during Hajj Gulf News
Australia’s farmers, hit by Iran war costs and dry weather, grow less wheat Reuters
China?
Completely false. pic.twitter.com/cYw96Yxx1S
— CHINA MFA Spokesperson 中国外交部发言人 (@MFA_China) May 19, 2026
The Empire of Wuxi China Talk
Japan
Why Japanese companies do so many different things David Oks (Micael T). IMHO important but I get on with the Japanese by virtue of sharing their neuroses.
Japan is gripped by mass allergies. A 1950s project is to blame BBC (Paul R)
Koreas
Samsung union says strike to go ahead after mediation efforts fail Nikkei
Africa
Kenya paralyzed by deadly protests, strikes due to fuel cost DW (Ann)
South of the Border
It only took six months for the US puppet regime in Bolivia to fall apart Council Media Estate
This is Bolivia: Day 8 of the general strike, barricades across all the highways bringing all trade and economic activity to a halt, commercial trucks backed up for miles. This continues until the neoliberal govt resigns.
Workers of every country have their Strait of Hormuz. pic.twitter.com/bvcYSBjeK8
— Ollie Vargas (@Ollie_Vargas_) May 20, 2026
European Disunion
Controlled chaos: how Washington is sabotaging the multipolar world and sacrificing Europe Thomas Fazi
Permission to pollute Corporate Europe (Micael T)
Germany Is Producing Heirs Faster Than Champions The Data Room (Micael T)
How the Right lies about the economic growth story of Sweden Katalys via machine translation (Micael T)
Sweden buys warships from France – for tens of billions Aftonbladet via machine translation. Micael T: “So they have not learnt anything from the drone & missile wars in Ukraine or Iran?”
Old Blighty
UK loosens Russian oil sanctions as fuel prices rise BBC. BWAHAHA
High levels of toxic ‘forever chemicals’ found off coast of southern England Guardian
Israel v. The Resistance
🚨 BREAKING:
🇺🇸🇮🇷 After eight attempts, the U.S. Senate has finally advanced a War Powers Resolution limiting military activities against Iran, passing 50-47.
Key details:
-Four Republicans crossed the aisle to vote yes: Susan Collins, Bill Cassidy, Lisa Murkowski, and Rand… https://t.co/rBf7WsKmzU pic.twitter.com/ZkJ4p0UBZJ
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) May 19, 2026
Tucker Carlson Takes His Message Straight to Israeli Media: Neither the U.S. nor Israel Is a Democracy Haaretz
Early goal of US-Israeli war on Iran was to install hardline former president: Report Anadolu Agency. This has to be a psyop. Israel deliberately mistranslated and flogged a statement of Ahmadinejad as “Israel must be wiped off the map.” What Ahmadinejad said was a conditional tense and was more like “It would be better if Israel had never existed.”
I wasn’t a fan of Mr. Ahmadinejad during his first term, and my aversion only grew during his second. But why would the New York Times now publish a claim branding him an alleged traitor to his own country? Why would the criminal Trump regime reveal its supposed assets in the… pic.twitter.com/JMEMcnUdph
— Seyed Mohammad Marandi (@s_m_marandi) May 20, 2026
Inside an Iranian attack on a cargo ship in the Strait of Hormuz Washington Post
Pakistan’s Saudi deployment reveals a new Gulf security reality Asia Times (Kevin W)
New Not-So-Cold War
Russian SVR Hints Strikes on NATO ‘Decision-Making Centers’ After Latest Drone Provocations Simplicius
🇺🇦 Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry is in massive damage control mode as the drone-over-the-Baltics situation escalates. pic.twitter.com/KiLhSVGxIT
— DD Geopolitics (@DD_Geopolitics) May 19, 2026
How Likely Is It That Russia’s Next Special Operation Will Be Against Latvia? Andrew Korkybko
May mobilization report Events in Ukraine
Imperial Collapse Watch
One More Time: The Average American K-12 Student is Doing Fine Relative to the International Baseline Freddie deBoer
The U.S. Never Learns from Its Failed Wars Daniel Larison
Trump 2.0
Top Treasury lawyer resigns as Trump, IRS settlement announced The Hill. This was THE chief legal officer. If Trump had not so surrounded himself with toadies and Congress was capable of getting out of bed, this would be a Saturday Night Massacre level event
Trump’s Own Handpicked Lawyer Quits Treasury in Disgust at Massive $1.8B Grift Daily Beast (Ann). A more pointed telling of the same tale.
Justice Department expands Trump settlement to cover his tax audits Politico
BLANCHE: “The United States…is hereby FOREVER BARRED and PRECLUDED from prosecuting or pursuing…examinations or similar or related reviews” against Trump “or related or affiliated individuals,” including family members or related companies and trusts. https://t.co/mbgSdQ1YmE pic.twitter.com/we2LJjvDwV
— Tyler McBrien (@TylerMcBrien) May 19, 2026
* * * US Rep. Thomas Massie loses Kentucky GOP primary to Ed Gallrein in another victory for Trump Associated Press. This result was the lead story even in the Bloomberg Middle East edition.
Thomas Massie after losing Kentucky Republican Primary:
“I would have come out sooner, but I had to call my opponent to concede and it took a while to find Ed Gallrein in Tel Aviv.” pic.twitter.com/yV4aW7vrqP
— Remarks (@remarks) May 20, 2026
The defeat of Thomas Massie is the worst thing to happen to Jews in America. Every single Jew will be subject to suspicion of dual loyalty, I’m just telling you how it is.
AIPAC, Israel and Miriam Adelson have ensured a deep hatred for Israel and a deep suspicion that many of…— Kim Iversen 🇺🇸 (@KimIversenShow) May 20, 2026
I am proud and thankful to have served in the U.S. House of Representatives with my friend Thomas Massie, a giant among weak pathetic men.
Releasing the Epstein files was our demise.
But it was worth every single bit because now everyone knows the truth.
You are ruled by the…
— Former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@FmrRepMTG) May 20, 2026
One can hope:
If Massie loses tonight, he should run for President.
If Massie wins tonight, he should run for President.
— Dave Smith (@ComicDaveSmith) May 19, 2026
* * * Trump officials plan to repeal limits on ‘forever chemicals’ in drinking water Guardian
Trump Treats Legal Immigration as Intolerable W. H. Lawrence
Trumpworld’s new eyebrow-raising addiction that even health boss RFK Jr admits to using daily Daily Mail
GOP Clown Car
Bill Cassidy voted his conscience on impeachment, then spent five years sucking up to Donald Trump. He was the deciding vote for the most unqualified HHS Secretary in my lifetime, a guy laying ruin to the public health system, all to get Trump’s favor.
Message to my fellow… pic.twitter.com/Ud8QLDxHgA
— Chris Christie (@GovChristie) May 19, 2026
Between Cassidy and Cornyn, the President’s agenda is going to be DOA in the Senate now. Add in Tillis, McConnell, etc. and why would they bother a heavy lift for Trump?
— Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) May 19, 2026
Democrats Suck
Why Has the Working Class Soured on the Democrats? Les Leopold
Economy
Australia’s farmers, hit by Iran war costs and dry weather, grow less wheat Reuters (Ann)
AI
8 Scary Facts About Data Centers Babylon Bee
AI Is Too Expensive Ed Zitron
Lawyer for Guy Who Sued Women Who Called Him ‘Psycho’ Caught Using AI 404 Media
The Great Zombification Owen Yingling (Anthony L)
How to spot AI-Generated “Sacred Art” Hilary White. Micael T: “FFS!!! Not here too. AI is a blasphemy.”
The philosopher who foresaw AI & inspired the Unabomber & Neil Postman Christopher Hoffman (Micael T)
Amazon Employees Forced to Hit Quotas on AI Use, Immediately Start Using it for Everything Except Work Futurism
Guillotine Watch
Elon Musk’s descent into racist absurdity Oligarch Watch
Class Warfare
JUST IN: Costco fights class action lawsuit claiming it must return tariff refunds to customers, arguing shoppers “got what they paid for.”
— Polymarket (@Polymarket) May 19, 2026
The Morale of Tech Workers Is Plunging as Layoffs Mount New York Times (Kevin W)
Antidote du jour (via):
And a bonus:
Thank you.. 🙏 pic.twitter.com/9Myqb4MoAB
— Buitengebieden (@buitengebieden) May 20, 2026
A second:
Skillful fisherman putting a hard days work pic.twitter.com/v2DTjp0thz
— cats with powerful impression 🐾 (@catshealdeprsn) May 16, 2026
A third:
A communication mismatch that’s just too adorable
・Cat’s headbutt = expression of affection
・Goat’s headbutt = invitation to play pic.twitter.com/WJd8Gb1w1Y— cats with powerful impression 🐾 (@catshealdeprsn) May 17, 2026
And a final different sort of bonus (Chuck L):
Wow how these guys stand up and walk. pic.twitter.com/kI4998MLn6
— The Figen (@TheFigen_) May 19, 2026
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.
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