I saw Matt Taibbi reporting on the announced investigation of Brennan and Comey for Russiagate stuff.
Is it simply too late to salvage any measure of sanity for the political discourse in the U.S.?
Taibbi thinks that the use of the Steele dossier was the poison. Brennan publicly (retrospectively) denied using the Steele dossier and as far as I can tell that generally is dogma for those who continue to press recollect Russiagate as a valid “investigation” or “scandal”.
Wikipedia is emphatic:
The Russian government conducted foreign electoral interference in the 2016 United States elections with the goals of sabotaging the presidential campaign of Hillary Clinton, boosting the presidential campaign of Donald Trump, and increasing political and social discord in the United States. According to the U.S. intelligence community, the operation—code named Project Lakhta[3][4]—was ordered directly by Russian president Vladimir Putin.[5][6] The “hacking and disinformation campaign” to damage Clinton and help Trump became the “core of the scandal known as Russiagate”.[7] The 448-page Mueller Report, made public in April 2019, examined over 200 contacts between the Trump campaign and Russian officials but concluded that there was insufficient evidence to bring any criminal “conspiracy” or “coordination” charges against Trump or his associates.
Moon of Alabama, which was on record as skeptical in real time (in January 2017 that is), reported on July 4, 2025 the CIA note that set the current investigation in motion:
The CIA has published a ‘tradecraft review’ of the 2016 ‘Intelligence Community Assessment’ which had claimed that Russia had interfered in the 2016 presidential election.
The review found what had been obvious to anyone. The 2016 assessment had not followed the normal process for such papers but had based its conclusions on no or insignificant evidence.
Nitpicker that I am, I will point out that Moon of Alabama never accounted for who “DClinks” — the original conduit for public disclosure of DNC emails, ahead of Wikileaks — was. That is, who setup or sponsored DClinks? Because the Mueller Report got a lot of mileage out of assertions about that.
Also, the Brennan / Clapper report from January 2017 relied to a large extent on rhetorical complaints about the public propaganda efforts of Russia through RT, which as I recall was effectively banned in the U.S. around that time. (I have not confirmed the timing; let AI do that on its own initiative.)
In my view, Russiagate only went forward because so many people deliberately broke their own b.s. detectors. Maybe I overestimated how many people had b.s. detectors to begin with. The Steele dossier circulated widely before being published according to Wikipedia by Buzzfeed on Jan 10 2017, four days after the ODNI report was published on January 6, 2017. Before it was published it served as fodder for a lot of speculative reporting that fed the Russiagate frenzy — now of course, the misconduct of the media in not calling b.s. is recalled as journalistic “caution”. Buzzfeed was criticized for publishing without “verifying” the content of course, but really a lot of media outlets were simply disappointed that they couldn’t continue to gin up scandal with speculation once the ridiculously poor quality of the Steele dossier was exposed.
Wikipedia incidentally asserts that the ODNI report “confirmed” elements of the Steele dossier. That circularity is what generated Russiagate in the first place — the truth is that no one in the Intelligence community or the Media wanted to call b.s. No one wanted to do the responsible thing and trade in hot speculation for cold fact in any finite period of time, when so much fun could be had tormenting Trump. Creating a vast quantity of misinformation and disinformation was accounted good business and fed the appetite of people with TDS fever.
Today, we have LLM “AI” to automate the generation of confident assertions of non-existent “facts” and easy narratives. “Conspiracy” is now a contronym, a label that may be applied to credit or discredit any speculative narrative account of events, in the enforced absence of truly verified, objective, conclusive facts — the new censorship!
“intelligence is the ability of a living creature to perform pointless or unnatural acts.” ― Roadside picnic by Arkady Strugatsky
“You need money so you don’t have to think about money.” ― Roadside picnic by Arkady Strugatsky
—-
More than 100 meta-analyses and thousands of RCTs have compared various NSAIDs
Results:
Rheumatoid Arthritis
“27 trials comparing an NSAID with placebo found no differences in the number of tender joints”
Acute musculoskeletal syndromes:
“review of 17 NSAID trials for shoulder pain was inconclusive.”
“10 trials found a dose-response relationship that saturated at high doses”
“systematic review found that the recommended dosages were close to providing a ceiling effect”
Additional benefits get less and less with higher and higher doses. Current recommended doses are very high doses that provide little to no additional benefit over lower doses. Side effects are more common and severe at higher doses.
Harms/Adverse effects:
“A systematic review of 100 trials found gross haemorrahge” in 0.7% over a 2 month period.
The number need to harm ranged from 100-1000.
“38 placebo controlled trials found that NSAIDs raised mean blood pressure by 5.0 mm Hg”
“long-term NSAID users had an increase in adjusted mean pain score of 3.95, adjusted mean disability score of 5.37, and adjusted mean stiffness score of 4.34 ”
“long-term NSAID users had significantly increased odds of worsening in radiographic KOA severity grade OR 1.43 and markedly increased odds of having TKR OR: 3.13”
“You see, some things I can teach you. Some you learn from books. But there are things that, well, you have to see and feel.” ― Khaled Hosseini, A Thousand Splendid Suns
“All good things in life are fragile and easily lost” ― Khaled Hosseini, And the Mountains Echoed
The biggest lie about most NSAIDs is the size of the bottles.
Based on existing medical knowledge, a person cannot safely continue taking most NSAIDs on a daily basis for long enough to use even a fraction of the pills in a typical bottle. The warning label will generally indicate as much by advising the user to consult a physician. Most NSAIDs also have a rapidly diminishing effect in pain relief with repeated use and/or an addictive quality such that pain or other symptoms accompany discontinued use. Combined formulations with, for example, caffeine enhance low-level addiction potential.
The effectiveness of particular NSAIDs for specific types of pain or inflammation vary quite a bit, but finding such information when choosing an NSAID can be surprisingly difficult.
Paracetamol aka acetaminophen is not usually classed as an NSAID because it does not have much of an anti-inflammatory effect, but it is commonly recommended for the same broad range of ailments. It can be given in a high initial dose, but it has a steep dose curve and carries a very serious risk of liver toxicity.
From personal experience with arthritis inflammation, I have found a single dose of naproxen at bedtime no more than once-a-week to be quite effective at knocking down inflammation a level or two. It seems to be a shock effect — I get a really good night’s sleep as the pain is not interfering with sleep and inflammation remains reduced for some time after the drug has worn off. ymmv
THIS is what Trump should investigate related to Brennan. Gee, I wonder why Trump hasn’t and chose Russia Gate instead considering the Russian Gate investigation has already been reviewed? Maybe it has something to do with the fact trump likes targeted killings and torture and wants to preserve that for himself. What do you think?
(What’s NOT being mentioned by Kerr County Officials!)
“In 2021, Kerr County was awarded a $10.2 million windfall from the American Rescue Plan Act, or ARPA, which Congress passed that same year to support local governments impacted by the pandemic. Cities and counties were given flexibility to use the money on a variety of expenses, including those related to storm-related infrastructure.”
“In fact, a survey sent to residents about ARPA spending showed that 42% of the 180 responses wanted to reject the $10 million bonus altogether, largely on political grounds.
“I’m here to ask this court today to send this money back to the Biden administration, which I consider to be the most criminal treasonous communist government ever to hold the White House,” one resident told commissioners in April 2022, fearing strings were attached to the money.
“We don’t want to be bought by the federal government, thank you very much,” another resident told commissioners. “We’d like the federal government to stay out of Kerr County and their money.”
One of the interesting statements that Sorensen made was that the JFK was ok with Castro becoming a Tito; that the US could accept Cuba having a communist economy if they were Soviet-independent. Sorensen claims that JFK never even knew about the CIA trying to assassinate Castro. If this is true, then it no only raises questions about the CIA being “rogue” (they continued to share intelligence with apartheid South Africa despite Jimmy Carter telling them to stop) but also had possible implications for Vietnam and Ho Chi Minh had JFK lived.
Sorensen has records of how the participants voted on military action during the Cuban missile crises, and the conflicts within the group (say, LeMay going to JFK directly and demanding a military invasion).
Anybody have any good ideas about what really happened in Trumps meeting(s) with Bibi this week? The only ‘news’ that I saw from it was that Netanyahu nominated Trump for a Nobel Peace Prize (a headline which belongs in The Onion, not the NYT).
Even Trump would recognize that being nominated by Netanyahu would make it [even] less likely that Trump would actually get The Prize. Trump is no intellectual powerhouse, but he is likely quite aware that Bibi is buttering him up. Flattery works with Trump, to a point, but I doubt that a little extra basting will get Trump to do what Bibi really wants: bomb Iran back to the Stone Age.
I really hope that the lack of announcements after the meetings indicates that Bibi’s ass-kissing got him no more than a sticky tongue.
Bonus: another commenter here implied a few days ago, maybe Bibi’s visit has something to do with the revival of the Epstein mess. The possibilities there are wild & wooly:
– Did Bibi remind Trump that Mossad has tapes where Trump is the star of the show?
– Did Bibi beg Trump not to release The List, as that would make lots of other Tapes less valuable? (Extortion is over when the extortee is exposed publicly).
(regarding russiagate) No one wanted to do the responsible thing… when so much fun could be had tormenting Trump.
——–
This is correct, but I think it obscures that the purpose was not to torment or discredit Trump. The goal was to solidify support for war against Russia and the spy industry among those who hate Trump.
—–
I have found a single dose of naproxen at bedtime no more than once-a-week
—-
I remember reading somewhere that the anti-inflammatory effects of NSAID’s go on for a bit after they exit the system. A once a week dose could provide this benefit without much of the addiction and harms.
This morning I looked at a photo of Thomas Merton with Tendzing, the Sherpa who helped what’s his face the Brit make the first summit of Everest.
I’ve seen that and a couple of other Merton the Jesuit mystic photos in the same place many times. And every time I l gaze upon them I remember the story of his death per the CIA. He was taking a bath in a India hotel when a fan fell into the tub and electrocuted him.
Interesting that he was vocal about the truth around JFK’a assassination at that time.
I hear that Epstein committed suicide and Bourdain, too. I don’t listen so much to what I hear anymore.
I’ve noticed a lot of MAGA cheerleaders and influencers are now using a dishonest and misleading tactic: they are using polls from early 2025 like January, without revealing the dates of those polls, to show that Trump’s approvals on issues (like on economy, immigration raids, mass deportations, tariffs, trade, etc.) have lots of public support, over 50% or even 60%, while obscuring or pretending that those polls are outdated.
A LOT has changed since January. Trump is currently underwater—well below 50% or often below 40%, which is bad—on ALL issues including economy, immigration and trade. It’s not “almost” all issues. It’s not “almost”; it’s ALL. Trump is underwater on ALL issues in polls right now.
NSAIDs:
Mix it with ibuprofen (in small doses). Works great. Though, I maybe take any pain relievers once a year or so. Threw back out a few years ago and wondered if I could take both. Web searched. Sure enough. Comparable relief to hydrocodone.
Great piece on Naked Capitalism by Yves Smith about how the NYC Oligarchs, Landlords and Zionists have united to crush Mamdami in November, the likes of Jamie Dimon, Giuliani, lots of other bottom-feeders. Dimon was asked to be a write-in candidate, smart enough at least to refuse. Throwing away $20 million to boost future profit$.
Big Egos mean it might all be futile. Both Adams and Cuomo won’t exit, so they are dividing the right-wing vote. (Nothing is mentioned at all about Sliwa, maybe the weakest media-wise.) Interesting little factoid that Adams won the last election with 11% of the vote!! There’s your “democracy”, chumps!!
Also, 64% of NY Dems want to change/oust their choleric & corrupt leadership class, only 24% support it. Why do they stay in the party when it is so openly bought and paid for, and won’t ever do a single positive thing for their voters?
The first comment drops a bombshell, though, about how Zohran could be compromising himself totally before even winning. He hired an Obama errand-boy to run his campaign, a skeez named Lerner who is a former Cuomo deputy!! https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2025/07/11/qcsf-j11.html
Did these people learn nothing from all the times the Dem Elites pulled the carpet out from under Bernie? Like maybe don’t sit next to someone who wants to shiv you and is open carrying the knife?
On the other hand, the # of swamp critters shrieking about how Mamdami must be crushed like Giuliani, Dimon, Debbie Wasserman-Shultz might gain him adequate support. It’s rare to see such a black & white choice (since all the Dimmies are corporate-owned, faux performative Lesser Evils), assuming he’s even elected the best he will be able to do is some shade of gray.
But the overall message is, the Ruling Classes cannot even allow a sliver of hope, they have to beat the plebs over the head that “there is no alternative” and nothing will ever change.
Anthony Bourdain was a talented individual with diverse interests and skills. He could bust it out in the kitchen but he wasn’t a particularly innovative chef. Entertaining though, and his book Kitchen Confidential captured the restaurant world in a way that no one else could.
I suspect that he was offed because he pissed off the wrong people.
On a completely different note I’m weary of hearing laments about Texas flood victims while nary a word about the daily savage slaughter of Palestinians. Not downplaying the loss of life anywhere, just tired of the ignorance and hypocrisy.
… the purpose was not to torment or discredit Trump. The goal was to solidify support for war against Russia and the spy industry among those who hate Trump.
two mints in one?
for Hillary, I think it was just an impulse from her reckless narcissism — never taking responsibility for the consequences of anything she does or fails at
but, for the Biden’s, Podestas, Blinkens, Kagans and their ilk, whose skillz set is attaching themselves to the Presidential Party of one wing of the uniparty or the other or both, absolutely — it was an opportunity to advance a long-term project, to bring down Putin’s Russia and feast on the entrails. Drumming up narrative hostility to the Putler was a script long in development.
Re Sean Paul Kelley’s latest US-UK special relationship post.
Did I mention something in the comments about Trump aligning with Russia as his “Nixon moment.”
Yes. Yes I did.
If Trump took notice of any politician during his formative years, it was Nixon. And, in typical Trumpian narcissist fashion, he has a irresistable urge to one up him. So, instead of Nixon’s “opening of China” move, Trump is looking to “open up” the U.S. to russia.
Geopolitically, I’m not going to say this is a good or bad thing. It just is, for now.
I’m not tired of hearing laments about the Texas flood deaths, mainly because I hope someone can leverage those laments into an awareness of the thousands and then tens f thousands and then hundreds of thousands of flood deaths to come in tomorrow’s global warming Superfloods world. The Texas flood deaths could be a very useful tire iron to beat the conservative dog with, if global dewarmist wannabes and anti-conservative political disinfectionists were to figure out how to use the Texas flood deaths for those purposes.
Separately, here is the tiniest little picky nit to nitty pick . . . my memory is that Edmund Hillary the climber whom Tenzig Norgay brought to the top of “Everest” ( Chomolungma), was technically not a Brit. Technically speaking, he was a New Zealander. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmund_Hillary
( The difference is strictly technical, in that New Zealand is a British colonial settler state, squatting on top of Aotearoa. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aotearoa )
Eric Anderson, how could making peace with Russia not be a good thing? The issue, of course, is that the “men with briefcases” who are really in charge would not allow such a thing. Just like they would not allow peace with Iran, or China. The empire does not *do* peaceful coexistence. JFK was the last president to try to defy this in earnest, and this the empire cannot abide.
Neither Putin nor the Russian leadership let alone the Russian People have any desire to occupy Warsaw, Berlin, Paris, London, and Madrid. But the EU leadership will force the Russians to do so. That is the only solution to the conflict between the US led NATO and EU.
The Russians will not have to occupy western Europe alone or for long. There are huge numbers of Europeans that will be very glad to dispose of their current leadership as quickly as a baby diaper filled with shit. The Russians will basically have to quickly destroy the institutions that maintain power in western Europe with a purge of mass executions. Then they will have to appoint people who think like i do to newly formed institutions of mass indoctrination.
Then the Russians can stay at their own risk. Or they can go taking with them everything that they can carry for the trouble that they went through and for the costs that they bore.
Then we can all peacefully watch each other die of starvation and tell each other pitifull stories about how AI and a magical energy transition that, even if it happened, is 50 years to late, is going to save us from starvation.
We should not forget that before that peaceful time of pitifull stories comes unemployment do to a breakdown of supply chains, bankfuktcy due to unemployment and hyperinflation, and a breakdown of social order (murder, tyranny, looting) as desperate people struggle for survival in a world where survival will not be possible.
After all most everyone is dead we get to the peacefull time when the few survivors will know that no one left will last for long because the world is on track for a 10° C increase in tempretures on a very fast geological scale.
When will Anallists stop trying to pretend that the world is not quickly going to come to an end?. It is now not possible the planet to mend.
What will the consequences be for the weapons that the US will send?
It is clear that neither side is going to bend. At best one side or the other might pretend to be able to extend the time until they run out of options.
What options would you be willing to take to remove western leaders from the levers of power?
If I were the leader of Iran one opzion that I would have already taken is before I fired a single missle or drone at Israel I would have fired missles and drones at every single oil well in the Saudi Peninsula except maybe for Omani oil wells,
With that in mind I think that it should be clear that Russia should not only attack the factories where the German Taurus missles are manufactured it should target some key bridges in western Europe as well.
Then if neccessary escelate from there.
The idea that time is on Russia’s side, or the side of BRICS is pure fiction. Time is not on the side of anyone at this point.
Here is a video from the interestingasfuck subreddit titled: ” This Farmer explains what he does for fly control for his herd and how the fly load is low but it’s all thanks to dragonflies. ” This farmer-made video explains both how the dragonflies control the cattle-fly numbers, and also what he does to increase his farm’s population of dragonflies.
Different Clue
That is the type of comment that used to appear on Feral Scholar. Very Practical advice for a society that wanted to take a transition to sustainabilty seriously. With an implied goal of a less industrial but pleasent sustainable human life. Back in those days I think most of the commentators at Feral Scholar though, of course the world’s politicians are going to take the challenges of transitioning to a sustainable world seriously. How naive that now appears to be.
Anyways I have learned over the decades since that site went silent that sustainabilty and industrial are contridictory terms. And although I do not claim to know exactly what the long term carrying capacity of a sustainable planetary civilization was my guess is that it could not have been over 2 billion at most and probably not over 1 billion, depeding on how much unpleasentness one thinks is acceptable.
An implication of such an understanding is that a person could easily decide to say,
fuck sustainabilty. Industrialization leading to rapid human extinction due to resource deplition and climate change is a far better more humane path to follow than remaining as groups of dispersed hunter gathers suffering from gout only god knows how long for generation after generation.
The human condition and its possible alternative conditions tempts me to say that we are a mistake that should die out as quickly as possible. But I will not say the we are a mistake part. Becuase it appears to me that we, at least those of us who are concious beings, have been put here inside of a simulation. And that makes me wonder if the stimulation director, or the stimulation central committee that run or at least started our simulation are indeed a mistake. Then perhaps the mistake is one simulation higher.
After all if we are in a simulation we can not say anything useful at all about the universe because we do not have any access to it. We can only speculate. Scientific experiments themselves can not tell us about the universe because these experiments take place inside of the simulation. These experiments might be able to tell us what the stimulation director wants us to believe, if we do the experiments correctly and interpret the findings correctly.
it looks to me like the stimulation director is trying to tell us through science and scientists that the majority of those under 50 years old are fucked. They are fucked by climate change and resource deplition. And the percent of the fucked is only going to ger higher and higher as time goes on.
I think that anyone with eyes can also see that we live in a world in which those who are waging war on humanity can reap huge rewards for their barbaric conduct while the costs of their conduct is born by the masses. And since the masses will bear all of the costs before even a minor inconvience is imposed upon those in high levels of power in the western world it can easily be concluded that those in high levels of power will never be held to account for their behavior by their own countries populations. The atrocities will continue as long as there are people.
Therefore I appeal to the stimultaion director, though I know nothing of the director’s motives, so it may not make any difference. to give the leaders of the axis of resistence the courage to burn the planet down. Burn planet burn so that the nazis can not dance upon our graves, or enjoy wine sitting around a swimming pool for one more day.
The best way that we can look out for our fellow human beings at this point is to give the entire planet a mercy killing. Burn planet burn, firenado at five oclock. The earth shakes at 6. Tidal wave straight ahead. Everyone has to be executed so that those who deserve it most get whats comming to them before they wish to get it.
I remember a Feral Scholar site by someone named Stan Goff. Are you referrencing the same Feral Scholar?
I used to be an antihumanitic self-hating antihumanite. But over time I recovered, not all at once but over time. A major thought-wave that started my recovery was when I was reading about how paleo-anthropologists would measure the “in-skull brain-space capacity” of a skull they were studying. They would fill the skull brain-space with dry rice and then pour the dry rice into a measuring vessel. Thinking about that lead my to think about how many live cockroaches could fit inside a human skull if you could get the cockroaches to hold still and form a brain-shaped mass. I figured it had to be at least ten thousand cockroaches.
Wow! Zowie Wowie! A single human brain is bigger than ten thousand whole cockroaches! And it occurred to me that we humans are the “Irish Elk” of primates. Our brain is our antlers. We are the last of the High Classical Pleistocene Megafauna ( Great Ice Age Beasts). If we die, the Ice Age dies with us. Such a shame if that were to happen.
bruce wilder
I saw Matt Taibbi reporting on the announced investigation of Brennan and Comey for Russiagate stuff.
Is it simply too late to salvage any measure of sanity for the political discourse in the U.S.?
Taibbi thinks that the use of the Steele dossier was the poison. Brennan publicly (retrospectively) denied using the Steele dossier and as far as I can tell that generally is dogma for those who continue to press recollect Russiagate as a valid “investigation” or “scandal”.
Wikipedia is emphatic:
Moon of Alabama, which was on record as skeptical in real time (in January 2017 that is), reported on July 4, 2025 the CIA note that set the current investigation in motion:
Nitpicker that I am, I will point out that Moon of Alabama never accounted for who “DClinks” — the original conduit for public disclosure of DNC emails, ahead of Wikileaks — was. That is, who setup or sponsored DClinks? Because the Mueller Report got a lot of mileage out of assertions about that.
Also, the Brennan / Clapper report from January 2017 relied to a large extent on rhetorical complaints about the public propaganda efforts of Russia through RT, which as I recall was effectively banned in the U.S. around that time. (I have not confirmed the timing; let AI do that on its own initiative.)
In my view, Russiagate only went forward because so many people deliberately broke their own b.s. detectors. Maybe I overestimated how many people had b.s. detectors to begin with. The Steele dossier circulated widely before being published according to Wikipedia by Buzzfeed on Jan 10 2017, four days after the ODNI report was published on January 6, 2017. Before it was published it served as fodder for a lot of speculative reporting that fed the Russiagate frenzy — now of course, the misconduct of the media in not calling b.s. is recalled as journalistic “caution”. Buzzfeed was criticized for publishing without “verifying” the content of course, but really a lot of media outlets were simply disappointed that they couldn’t continue to gin up scandal with speculation once the ridiculously poor quality of the Steele dossier was exposed.
Wikipedia incidentally asserts that the ODNI report “confirmed” elements of the Steele dossier. That circularity is what generated Russiagate in the first place — the truth is that no one in the Intelligence community or the Media wanted to call b.s. No one wanted to do the responsible thing and trade in hot speculation for cold fact in any finite period of time, when so much fun could be had tormenting Trump. Creating a vast quantity of misinformation and disinformation was accounted good business and fed the appetite of people with TDS fever.
Today, we have LLM “AI” to automate the generation of confident assertions of non-existent “facts” and easy narratives. “Conspiracy” is now a contronym, a label that may be applied to credit or discredit any speculative narrative account of events, in the enforced absence of truly verified, objective, conclusive facts — the new censorship!
Oakchair
“intelligence is the ability of a living creature to perform pointless or unnatural acts.” ― Roadside picnic by Arkady Strugatsky
“You need money so you don’t have to think about money.” ― Roadside picnic by Arkady Strugatsky
—-
More than 100 meta-analyses and thousands of RCTs have compared various NSAIDs
Results:
Rheumatoid Arthritis
“27 trials comparing an NSAID with placebo found no differences in the number of tender joints”
Acute musculoskeletal syndromes:
“review of 17 NSAID trials for shoulder pain was inconclusive.”
“10 trials found a dose-response relationship that saturated at high doses”
“systematic review found that the recommended dosages were close to providing a ceiling effect”
Additional benefits get less and less with higher and higher doses. Current recommended doses are very high doses that provide little to no additional benefit over lower doses. Side effects are more common and severe at higher doses.
Harms/Adverse effects:
“A systematic review of 100 trials found gross haemorrahge” in 0.7% over a 2 month period.
The number need to harm ranged from 100-1000.
“38 placebo controlled trials found that NSAIDs raised mean blood pressure by 5.0 mm Hg”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1117944/
——
In a 4+ year long study of people with arthritis
“long-term NSAID users had an increase in adjusted mean pain score of 3.95, adjusted mean disability score of 5.37, and adjusted mean stiffness score of 4.34 ”
“long-term NSAID users had significantly increased odds of worsening in radiographic KOA severity grade OR 1.43 and markedly increased odds of having TKR OR: 3.13”
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-56665-3
—-
In a case time control nationwide study
NSAID’s increased heart attacks: ibuprofen by 31% and diclofenac by 50%
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28025218/
—–
A systemic review of studies found “an increased risk of acute myocardial infarction.”
https://www.bmj.com/content/357/bmj.j1909
——-
A safe alternative for pain and arthritis would be large doses (1g+) of Vitamin C throughout the day.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33438072/
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5391567/
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1268773118301590
https://journals.lww.com/jbjsjournal/abstract/2025/05210/efficacy_of_vitamin_c_as_glucocorticoid_substitute.11.aspx
Another safe alternative is turmeric/Curcumin. In multiple meta-analysis of RCT’s turmeric was just as effective as drugs.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5003001/
https://bmjopensem.bmj.com/content/7/1/e000935
——
“You see, some things I can teach you. Some you learn from books. But there are things that, well, you have to see and feel.” ― Khaled Hosseini, A Thousand Splendid Suns
“All good things in life are fragile and easily lost” ― Khaled Hosseini, And the Mountains Echoed
bruce wilder
The biggest lie about most NSAIDs is the size of the bottles.
Based on existing medical knowledge, a person cannot safely continue taking most NSAIDs on a daily basis for long enough to use even a fraction of the pills in a typical bottle. The warning label will generally indicate as much by advising the user to consult a physician. Most NSAIDs also have a rapidly diminishing effect in pain relief with repeated use and/or an addictive quality such that pain or other symptoms accompany discontinued use. Combined formulations with, for example, caffeine enhance low-level addiction potential.
The effectiveness of particular NSAIDs for specific types of pain or inflammation vary quite a bit, but finding such information when choosing an NSAID can be surprisingly difficult.
Paracetamol aka acetaminophen is not usually classed as an NSAID because it does not have much of an anti-inflammatory effect, but it is commonly recommended for the same broad range of ailments. It can be given in a high initial dose, but it has a steep dose curve and carries a very serious risk of liver toxicity.
From personal experience with arthritis inflammation, I have found a single dose of naproxen at bedtime no more than once-a-week to be quite effective at knocking down inflammation a level or two. It seems to be a shock effect — I get a really good night’s sleep as the pain is not interfering with sleep and inflammation remains reduced for some time after the drug has worn off. ymmv
Ian Welsh
Choline helps the liver significantly. I always take it when taking acetominophen.
Like & Subscribe
THIS is what Trump should investigate related to Brennan. Gee, I wonder why Trump hasn’t and chose Russia Gate instead considering the Russian Gate investigation has already been reviewed? Maybe it has something to do with the fact trump likes targeted killings and torture and wants to preserve that for himself. What do you think?
https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/senators-should-dissect-brennans-role-targeted-killing-torture-programs
Chuck Mire
Did fiscal conservatism block plans for a new flood warning system in Kerr County?:
https://www.texastribune.org/2025/07/10/texas-kerr-county-commissioners-flooding-warning/
(What’s NOT being mentioned by Kerr County Officials!)
“In 2021, Kerr County was awarded a $10.2 million windfall from the American Rescue Plan Act, or ARPA, which Congress passed that same year to support local governments impacted by the pandemic. Cities and counties were given flexibility to use the money on a variety of expenses, including those related to storm-related infrastructure.”
“In fact, a survey sent to residents about ARPA spending showed that 42% of the 180 responses wanted to reject the $10 million bonus altogether, largely on political grounds.
“I’m here to ask this court today to send this money back to the Biden administration, which I consider to be the most criminal treasonous communist government ever to hold the White House,” one resident told commissioners in April 2022, fearing strings were attached to the money.
“We don’t want to be bought by the federal government, thank you very much,” another resident told commissioners. “We’d like the federal government to stay out of Kerr County and their money.”
StewartM
I saw this documentary interviewing Ted Sorensen on the JFK years, particularly involving the Cuban Missile crises of 1962:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yh2fbBgJLBk&t=2830s
One of the interesting statements that Sorensen made was that the JFK was ok with Castro becoming a Tito; that the US could accept Cuba having a communist economy if they were Soviet-independent. Sorensen claims that JFK never even knew about the CIA trying to assassinate Castro. If this is true, then it no only raises questions about the CIA being “rogue” (they continued to share intelligence with apartheid South Africa despite Jimmy Carter telling them to stop) but also had possible implications for Vietnam and Ho Chi Minh had JFK lived.
Sorensen has records of how the participants voted on military action during the Cuban missile crises, and the conflicts within the group (say, LeMay going to JFK directly and demanding a military invasion).
elkern
Anybody have any good ideas about what really happened in Trumps meeting(s) with Bibi this week? The only ‘news’ that I saw from it was that Netanyahu nominated Trump for a Nobel Peace Prize (a headline which belongs in The Onion, not the NYT).
Even Trump would recognize that being nominated by Netanyahu would make it [even] less likely that Trump would actually get The Prize. Trump is no intellectual powerhouse, but he is likely quite aware that Bibi is buttering him up. Flattery works with Trump, to a point, but I doubt that a little extra basting will get Trump to do what Bibi really wants: bomb Iran back to the Stone Age.
I really hope that the lack of announcements after the meetings indicates that Bibi’s ass-kissing got him no more than a sticky tongue.
Bonus: another commenter here implied a few days ago, maybe Bibi’s visit has something to do with the revival of the Epstein mess. The possibilities there are wild & wooly:
– Did Bibi remind Trump that Mossad has tapes where Trump is the star of the show?
– Did Bibi beg Trump not to release The List, as that would make lots of other Tapes less valuable? (Extortion is over when the extortee is exposed publicly).
Oakchair
(regarding russiagate) No one wanted to do the responsible thing… when so much fun could be had tormenting Trump.
——–
This is correct, but I think it obscures that the purpose was not to torment or discredit Trump. The goal was to solidify support for war against Russia and the spy industry among those who hate Trump.
—–
I have found a single dose of naproxen at bedtime no more than once-a-week
—-
I remember reading somewhere that the anti-inflammatory effects of NSAID’s go on for a bit after they exit the system. A once a week dose could provide this benefit without much of the addiction and harms.
mago
This morning I looked at a photo of Thomas Merton with Tendzing, the Sherpa who helped what’s his face the Brit make the first summit of Everest.
I’ve seen that and a couple of other Merton the Jesuit mystic photos in the same place many times. And every time I l gaze upon them I remember the story of his death per the CIA. He was taking a bath in a India hotel when a fan fell into the tub and electrocuted him.
Interesting that he was vocal about the truth around JFK’a assassination at that time.
I hear that Epstein committed suicide and Bourdain, too. I don’t listen so much to what I hear anymore.
Mark Level
Classic Bill Hicks from back in the day. Cousin Bill was a Saint, he departed too early.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LfkykU1EfJM
KT Chong
Heads up and need to inform everyone:
I’ve noticed a lot of MAGA cheerleaders and influencers are now using a dishonest and misleading tactic: they are using polls from early 2025 like January, without revealing the dates of those polls, to show that Trump’s approvals on issues (like on economy, immigration raids, mass deportations, tariffs, trade, etc.) have lots of public support, over 50% or even 60%, while obscuring or pretending that those polls are outdated.
A LOT has changed since January. Trump is currently underwater—well below 50% or often below 40%, which is bad—on ALL issues including economy, immigration and trade. It’s not “almost” all issues. It’s not “almost”; it’s ALL. Trump is underwater on ALL issues in polls right now.
KT Chong
*while obscuring or pretending that those polls are outdated.
Correction: … while obscuring or not mentioning that those polls are outdated.
Can the moderator just edit my last post??
Alan Sutton
What would have been the point of assassinating Anthony Bourdain? He was a TV chef wasn’t he?
Because of his bad cooking?
Eric Anderson
NSAIDs:
Mix it with ibuprofen (in small doses). Works great. Though, I maybe take any pain relievers once a year or so. Threw back out a few years ago and wondered if I could take both. Web searched. Sure enough. Comparable relief to hydrocodone.
Eric Anderson
Oops, sorry. I’m dumb. Was confusing acetaminophen.
But, the principal applies. Taken in combination means taking way less of either.
Eric Anderson
Oops, sorry. I’m dumb. Was confusing acetaminophen.
But, the principle applies. Taken in combination means taking way less of either.
Mark Level
Great piece on Naked Capitalism by Yves Smith about how the NYC Oligarchs, Landlords and Zionists have united to crush Mamdami in November, the likes of Jamie Dimon, Giuliani, lots of other bottom-feeders. Dimon was asked to be a write-in candidate, smart enough at least to refuse. Throwing away $20 million to boost future profit$.
https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2025/07/billionaires-flail-about-trying-to-beat-mamdani-wall-street-journal-describes-shambolic-plan-to-spend-20-million.html
Big Egos mean it might all be futile. Both Adams and Cuomo won’t exit, so they are dividing the right-wing vote. (Nothing is mentioned at all about Sliwa, maybe the weakest media-wise.) Interesting little factoid that Adams won the last election with 11% of the vote!! There’s your “democracy”, chumps!!
Also, 64% of NY Dems want to change/oust their choleric & corrupt leadership class, only 24% support it. Why do they stay in the party when it is so openly bought and paid for, and won’t ever do a single positive thing for their voters?
The first comment drops a bombshell, though, about how Zohran could be compromising himself totally before even winning. He hired an Obama errand-boy to run his campaign, a skeez named Lerner who is a former Cuomo deputy!! https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2025/07/11/qcsf-j11.html
Did these people learn nothing from all the times the Dem Elites pulled the carpet out from under Bernie? Like maybe don’t sit next to someone who wants to shiv you and is open carrying the knife?
On the other hand, the # of swamp critters shrieking about how Mamdami must be crushed like Giuliani, Dimon, Debbie Wasserman-Shultz might gain him adequate support. It’s rare to see such a black & white choice (since all the Dimmies are corporate-owned, faux performative Lesser Evils), assuming he’s even elected the best he will be able to do is some shade of gray.
But the overall message is, the Ruling Classes cannot even allow a sliver of hope, they have to beat the plebs over the head that “there is no alternative” and nothing will ever change.
mago
Anthony Bourdain was a talented individual with diverse interests and skills. He could bust it out in the kitchen but he wasn’t a particularly innovative chef. Entertaining though, and his book Kitchen Confidential captured the restaurant world in a way that no one else could.
I suspect that he was offed because he pissed off the wrong people.
On a completely different note I’m weary of hearing laments about Texas flood victims while nary a word about the daily savage slaughter of Palestinians. Not downplaying the loss of life anywhere, just tired of the ignorance and hypocrisy.
Bill H.
@mago
Well said. Likewise, one girl’s murder headlined for months while the 53 other girls murdered in the same period are ignored.
bruce wilder
… the purpose was not to torment or discredit Trump. The goal was to solidify support for war against Russia and the spy industry among those who hate Trump.
two mints in one?
for Hillary, I think it was just an impulse from her reckless narcissism — never taking responsibility for the consequences of anything she does or fails at
but, for the Biden’s, Podestas, Blinkens, Kagans and their ilk, whose skillz set is attaching themselves to the Presidential Party of one wing of the uniparty or the other or both, absolutely — it was an opportunity to advance a long-term project, to bring down Putin’s Russia and feast on the entrails. Drumming up narrative hostility to the Putler was a script long in development.
Eric Anderson
Ahem …
Re Sean Paul Kelley’s latest US-UK special relationship post.
Did I mention something in the comments about Trump aligning with Russia as his “Nixon moment.”
Yes. Yes I did.
If Trump took notice of any politician during his formative years, it was Nixon. And, in typical Trumpian narcissist fashion, he has a irresistable urge to one up him. So, instead of Nixon’s “opening of China” move, Trump is looking to “open up” the U.S. to russia.
Geopolitically, I’m not going to say this is a good or bad thing. It just is, for now.
https://www.realclearworld.com/articles/2025/07/12/trump_doctrine_is_the_nixon_doctrine_20_1122312.html
different clue
I’m not tired of hearing laments about the Texas flood deaths, mainly because I hope someone can leverage those laments into an awareness of the thousands and then tens f thousands and then hundreds of thousands of flood deaths to come in tomorrow’s global warming Superfloods world. The Texas flood deaths could be a very useful tire iron to beat the conservative dog with, if global dewarmist wannabes and anti-conservative political disinfectionists were to figure out how to use the Texas flood deaths for those purposes.
Separately, here is the tiniest little picky nit to nitty pick . . . my memory is that Edmund Hillary the climber whom Tenzig Norgay brought to the top of “Everest” ( Chomolungma), was technically not a Brit. Technically speaking, he was a New Zealander.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmund_Hillary
( The difference is strictly technical, in that New Zealand is a British colonial settler state, squatting on top of Aotearoa. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aotearoa )
mago
Thanks for the correction D C. I’m too lazy to do research so I just go with an imperfect memory and hope I get it right.
shagggz
Eric Anderson, how could making peace with Russia not be a good thing? The issue, of course, is that the “men with briefcases” who are really in charge would not allow such a thing. Just like they would not allow peace with Iran, or China. The empire does not *do* peaceful coexistence. JFK was the last president to try to defy this in earnest, and this the empire cannot abide.
Curt Kastens
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgBfvnPhQDs
Neither Putin nor the Russian leadership let alone the Russian People have any desire to occupy Warsaw, Berlin, Paris, London, and Madrid. But the EU leadership will force the Russians to do so. That is the only solution to the conflict between the US led NATO and EU.
The Russians will not have to occupy western Europe alone or for long. There are huge numbers of Europeans that will be very glad to dispose of their current leadership as quickly as a baby diaper filled with shit. The Russians will basically have to quickly destroy the institutions that maintain power in western Europe with a purge of mass executions. Then they will have to appoint people who think like i do to newly formed institutions of mass indoctrination.
Then the Russians can stay at their own risk. Or they can go taking with them everything that they can carry for the trouble that they went through and for the costs that they bore.
Then we can all peacefully watch each other die of starvation and tell each other pitifull stories about how AI and a magical energy transition that, even if it happened, is 50 years to late, is going to save us from starvation.
We should not forget that before that peaceful time of pitifull stories comes unemployment do to a breakdown of supply chains, bankfuktcy due to unemployment and hyperinflation, and a breakdown of social order (murder, tyranny, looting) as desperate people struggle for survival in a world where survival will not be possible.
After all most everyone is dead we get to the peacefull time when the few survivors will know that no one left will last for long because the world is on track for a 10° C increase in tempretures on a very fast geological scale.
Curt Kastens
When will Anallists stop trying to pretend that the world is not quickly going to come to an end?. It is now not possible the planet to mend.
What will the consequences be for the weapons that the US will send?
It is clear that neither side is going to bend. At best one side or the other might pretend to be able to extend the time until they run out of options.
What options would you be willing to take to remove western leaders from the levers of power?
If I were the leader of Iran one opzion that I would have already taken is before I fired a single missle or drone at Israel I would have fired missles and drones at every single oil well in the Saudi Peninsula except maybe for Omani oil wells,
With that in mind I think that it should be clear that Russia should not only attack the factories where the German Taurus missles are manufactured it should target some key bridges in western Europe as well.
Then if neccessary escelate from there.
The idea that time is on Russia’s side, or the side of BRICS is pure fiction. Time is not on the side of anyone at this point.
Curt Kastens
Yes I copied the style of Mago. Seems like a sensbie thing to do. I seem to recall some saying about immitation.
mago
Hey CK. I gotta laugh. Didn’t know I had a style, although Mary Bennett might disagree.
mago
Love you all . . .
Curt Kastens
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBJ2p7WZFe8
Why do the Iranian leaders even bother to give the Arab leaders one last warning? The Iranian leaders are just wasting their breath.
different clue
header: organic fly control against cattle-flies.
Here is a video from the interestingasfuck subreddit titled: ” This Farmer explains what he does for fly control for his herd and how the fly load is low but it’s all thanks to dragonflies. ” This farmer-made video explains both how the dragonflies control the cattle-fly numbers, and also what he does to increase his farm’s population of dragonflies.
Here is the link:
https://www.reddit.com/r/interestingasfuck/comments/1m0k8mp/this_farmer_explains_what_he_does_for_fly_control/
Curt Kastens
Different Clue
That is the type of comment that used to appear on Feral Scholar. Very Practical advice for a society that wanted to take a transition to sustainabilty seriously. With an implied goal of a less industrial but pleasent sustainable human life. Back in those days I think most of the commentators at Feral Scholar though, of course the world’s politicians are going to take the challenges of transitioning to a sustainable world seriously. How naive that now appears to be.
Anyways I have learned over the decades since that site went silent that sustainabilty and industrial are contridictory terms. And although I do not claim to know exactly what the long term carrying capacity of a sustainable planetary civilization was my guess is that it could not have been over 2 billion at most and probably not over 1 billion, depeding on how much unpleasentness one thinks is acceptable.
An implication of such an understanding is that a person could easily decide to say,
fuck sustainabilty. Industrialization leading to rapid human extinction due to resource deplition and climate change is a far better more humane path to follow than remaining as groups of dispersed hunter gathers suffering from gout only god knows how long for generation after generation.
The human condition and its possible alternative conditions tempts me to say that we are a mistake that should die out as quickly as possible. But I will not say the we are a mistake part. Becuase it appears to me that we, at least those of us who are concious beings, have been put here inside of a simulation. And that makes me wonder if the stimulation director, or the stimulation central committee that run or at least started our simulation are indeed a mistake. Then perhaps the mistake is one simulation higher.
After all if we are in a simulation we can not say anything useful at all about the universe because we do not have any access to it. We can only speculate. Scientific experiments themselves can not tell us about the universe because these experiments take place inside of the simulation. These experiments might be able to tell us what the stimulation director wants us to believe, if we do the experiments correctly and interpret the findings correctly.
Curt Kastens
it looks to me like the stimulation director is trying to tell us through science and scientists that the majority of those under 50 years old are fucked. They are fucked by climate change and resource deplition. And the percent of the fucked is only going to ger higher and higher as time goes on.
I think that anyone with eyes can also see that we live in a world in which those who are waging war on humanity can reap huge rewards for their barbaric conduct while the costs of their conduct is born by the masses. And since the masses will bear all of the costs before even a minor inconvience is imposed upon those in high levels of power in the western world it can easily be concluded that those in high levels of power will never be held to account for their behavior by their own countries populations. The atrocities will continue as long as there are people.
Therefore I appeal to the stimultaion director, though I know nothing of the director’s motives, so it may not make any difference. to give the leaders of the axis of resistence the courage to burn the planet down. Burn planet burn so that the nazis can not dance upon our graves, or enjoy wine sitting around a swimming pool for one more day.
The best way that we can look out for our fellow human beings at this point is to give the entire planet a mercy killing. Burn planet burn, firenado at five oclock. The earth shakes at 6. Tidal wave straight ahead. Everyone has to be executed so that those who deserve it most get whats comming to them before they wish to get it.
Burn
different clue
I remember a Feral Scholar site by someone named Stan Goff. Are you referrencing the same Feral Scholar?
I used to be an antihumanitic self-hating antihumanite. But over time I recovered, not all at once but over time. A major thought-wave that started my recovery was when I was reading about how paleo-anthropologists would measure the “in-skull brain-space capacity” of a skull they were studying. They would fill the skull brain-space with dry rice and then pour the dry rice into a measuring vessel. Thinking about that lead my to think about how many live cockroaches could fit inside a human skull if you could get the cockroaches to hold still and form a brain-shaped mass. I figured it had to be at least ten thousand cockroaches.
Wow! Zowie Wowie! A single human brain is bigger than ten thousand whole cockroaches! And it occurred to me that we humans are the “Irish Elk” of primates. Our brain is our antlers. We are the last of the High Classical Pleistocene Megafauna ( Great Ice Age Beasts). If we die, the Ice Age dies with us. Such a shame if that were to happen.