Thanks, Skid, but it ain't over.
badanov- 08/28/2025 14:28
<3
trailing wife- 08/28/2025 13:35
I did the best I could
Quality read today, TW.
Good work on the barbarians, Bad.
Skidmark- 08/28/2025 11:50
All part of the service, B
badanov- 08/26/2025 22:44
Articles highlighting the increase in Russian activity in Africa and quite interesting. Thanks Bad.
Besoeker- 08/26/2025 16:47
I did the best I could in terms of articles last night, badanov, but it went on long enough I gave up and left it for this morning.
So today I’m getting done in bits over the course of the day, which is no doubt a better way to handle it anyway.
trailing wife- 08/26/2025 16:07
It appears the attacks have declined in intensity. Still, I have at least a coupla more days to mitigate the attacks.
badanov- 08/26/2025 14:16
Attacks are still ongoing.
badanov- 08/25/2025 21:30
800 million hits?!?! Lil ol’ us? I had no idea we were that interesting.
Well done building defenses, badanov, on Fred’s strong foundation.
trailing wife- 08/25/2025 16:07
Yes, it is.
badanov- 08/23/2025 11:54
This baby is running sweet tonight, Bad.
Skidmark- 08/23/2025 00:42
Service Unavailable (503)
The server is temporarily unable to service your request due to maintenance downtime or capacity problems. Please try again later.
Skidmark- 08/20/2025 09:02
It worked.
badanov- 08/20/2025 08:22
Did it work, badanov?
trailing wife- 08/20/2025 00:29
Rebooting the server promptly at midnight EST to install a coupla firewall rules
badanov- 08/19/2025 17:24
Fred: Check your email.
badanov- 08/19/2025 08:24
What;s missing? I just checked the archives and everything is there,
Fred- 08/19/2025 01:44
Fred: What did you do? We had duplicate records dating all the way back to 2001. Now we don't.
badanov- 08/18/2025 23:47
I figured it out, Fred. No apology due at all, since I hadn’t said what the problem was, and did say it was minor enough to wait until later. You came in well ahead of schedule.
trailing wife- 08/17/2025 15:50
Sorry. I forgot to tell you I fixed that.
Fred- 08/17/2025 09:59
Whether deliberate or an artifact of the changeover, the small problem I was having in Hoover has entirely disappeared.
Thank you!
trailing wife- 08/17/2025 03:32
Fred: I assigned you to the wheel group which means you can su to any other user, as long as you have a passwd, as long as sudo works
badanov- 08/16/2025 15:38
Loading fast, good job!
Frank G- 08/16/2025 05:52
Chinese blocked for now, until they use another netblock.
badanov- 08/16/2025 01:07
And it’s back. Whatever you two are doing, good work!
trailing wife- 08/15/2025 22:47
[THEPOSTMILLENNIAL] Police in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts say a man was killed Thursday morning after confronting another man over graffiti at a local park. It has since been discovered that the suspect in the shooting is a trans-identifying male who has a criminal record.
Authorities responded to Jordan Park at 8:47 am after a 911 caller said he was being attacked, reports WCVB. During the call, the dispatcher heard gunfire in the background, said Shrewsbury Police Chief Kevin Anderson.
''While officers were responding, dispatch advised that they could actually hear shots on the 911 call. When officers arrived, they located a victim, provided medical attention, and that victim was transported to a local hospital where, tragically, he died of his injuries,'' Anderson said.
The victim, a 57-year-old man whose name has not been released, was shot multiple times. He had just dropped off his 6-year-old child at school before encountering the suspect, Worcester County District Attorney Joe Early Jr. said.
''The gentleman who was shot was returning from (walking his 6-year-old child) to school when he interacted with the man on the bridge. It appeared that the man was doing some type of spray painting. He took a picture of the man, and that started the altercation,'' Early said.
Police later arrested the alleged shooter, identified on social media as ''Sasha Shakur'' and legally as Snehal Ansh Srivastava, outside a home at 29 Edgewater Ave around 11:45 am SWAT officers with a K-9 entered the property minutes later.
The residence was covered in graffiti with slogans including ''Free Paleostine,'' ''Free Congo,'' ''BLM,'' ''GLM,'' and ''Ganga Gardens.'' A sign in the window of the house that reads ''Sasha Shakur'' also confirms the social media account username.
Authorities described Srivastava as ''known to police,'' though no immediate charges were announced.
Law enforcement activity throughout the morning was concentrated around the Jordan Pond Walking Trail, about a third of a mile from where Srivastava was taken into custody. Police tape closed off parts of the trail and sections of shoreline, where graffiti was also visible.
Residents in the area were instructed to shelter in place until police confirmed the suspect had been located.
Shrewsbury Public Schools informed families that students and staff at the nearby Coolidge School were safe. Officials said the shooting did not involve the school and no other campuses were affected.
The shooting comes just one day after another trans person Robert Westman killed two children and injured 17 others at the Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
[IsraelTimes] US, Israel praise move as FM Sa’ar calls measures an ‘important step’ in countering Iranian nuclear ambitions; Tehran to continue talks with E3 before they take effect
Britannia, La Belle France and Germany announced Thursday their decision to reimpose UN sanctions on Iran ...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate JewsZionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol... over its nuclear program, sparking indignation from Iranian officials and praise in Israel and the United States.
The step was announced in a letter to the UN Security Council sent by the European powers as they launched a 30-day process to once again level punitive measures against the Islamic Theocratic Republic.
The so-called E3 had been threatening to trigger the so-called snapback mechanism for months, and stood to lose their ability to restore sanctions come mid-October under the provisions of a 2015 nuclear accord with Tehran.
The three European signatories to the now-moribund deal held several rounds of talks with Iran since Israel and the US struck its nuclear installations in mid-June in an effort set back Tehran’s nuclear and ballistic missile program.
The talks were aimed at reaching an agreement to defer the mechanism, but the E3 deemed that talks in Geneva on Tuesday did not yield sufficiently tangible commitments from Iran.
The European nations accused Tehran of having decisively violated the deal aimed at keeping the regime from attaining a nuclear weapon. The US, which was party to that deal, pulled out under President Donald Trump ...The Hero of Butler, Pennsylvania... in 2018, and held failed indirect negotiations earlier this year with Tehran.
La Belle France and Germany’s foreign ministers stressed that the decision, which will only yield concrete sanctions by the end of September, did not signal the end of diplomacy with Tehran.
"We are determined to use the 30-day period that is opening to engage in dialogue with Iran," La Belle France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on X. "We remain committed to diplomacy to ensure that Iran never acquires a nuclear weapon."
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul called for Iran’s full cooperation with the ineffective International Atomic Energy Agency and a clear commitment to direct negotiations with the United States, saying diplomacy can still continue.
A senior Iranian official speaking to Rooters said the move was "an action against diplomacy, not a chance for it." He admitted that Iran would continue diplomacy with the E3, but "will not concede under pressure."
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran would "respond appropriately" to the decision, deriding the step as "illegal and unjustified."
The E3’s ministers informed US Secretary of State Marco Rubio ...The diminutive 13-year-old Republican U.S. Senator from Florida, Secretary of State in the second Trump administration... of their decision Wednesday, saying they hoped that Iran would engage by the end of September to provide commitments over its nuclear program that would convince them to defer concrete action.
Rubio welcomed the decision in a statement Thursday, stressing that the European powers had pursued negotiations before moving to enact sanctions.
"These European allies have laid out a clear case of Iran’s continuing ’significant non-performance’ of its nuclear commitments, establishing a strong basis for initiating snapback," Rubio said.
"The E3 could have initiated snapback at any point since 2019 but chose instead to first pursue intensive outreach and engagement — to provide Iran with a diplomatic offramp from its strategy of nuclear escalation," he continued.
The move was also met with high praise from Israeli officials, with Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar calling the sanctions "inevitable," while cautioning that Iran hasn’t given up on its aim of attaining a nuclear weapon.
Writing on X, he hailed the move as "an important step in the diplomatic campaign to counter the Iranian regime’s nuclear ambitions."
Israel’s Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon also praised the action, saying that the "countries of the world are... joining the fight against the axis of evil."
"This is an important step on the way to stopping the Iranian nuclear program and increasing pressure on the regime in Tehran," he added.
[IsraelTimes] Danny Danon says ‘disconnected’ countries want to ‘show they’re doing something’ at next month’s UN General Assembly, though move won’t have any impact beyond ‘hindering’ hostage talks
Even before Western leaders began announcing plans to recognize a Paleostinian state at the United Nations ...an organization originally established to war on dictatorships which was promptly infiltrated by dictatorships and is now held in thrall to dictatorships... General Assembly next month, the Israeli-Paleostinian conflict was poised to be at the top of the confab’s agenda.
The Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... war could well be nearing a grim second-year anniversary then, with dozens of hostages kidnapped during the Hamas ..a regional Iranian catspaw,... -led attack that began the conflict still in captivity and the Paleostinian corpse count continuing to mount in the war-ravaged enclave.
"These countries want to show that they are doing something, so they blow off steam by coming up with these declarative statements," Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon said in a Wednesday interview with The Times of Israel, referring to the plans of La Belle France, the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada to recognize the state of Paleostine.
The Israeli envoy argued that the announcements won’t actually advance the establishment of a Paleostinian state on the ground, which Jerusalem vehemently opposes. What they have practically impacted, though, are the negotiations for a ceasefire and hostage release deal in the Gaza Strip, Danon said.
"I have no doubt that these decisions are hindering the negotiations," he asserted, noting that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio ...The diminutive 13-year-old Republican U.S. Senator from Florida, Secretary of State in the second Trump administration... has made the same argument.
An Arab diplomat and a second source involved in the negotiations told The Times of Israel that Hamas’s new demands that led the US and Israel to pull out of hostage talks were submitted several hours prior to French President Emmanuel Macron’s announcement on July 24 that Gay Paree would recognize a Paleostinian state at the UN General Assembly in September.
Since then, Egypt and Qatar ...an emirate on the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It sits on some really productive gas and oil deposits, which produces the highest per capita income in the world. They piss it all away on religion, financing the Moslem Brotherhood and several al-Qaeda affiliates. Home of nutbag holy manYusuf al-Qaradawi... i mediators managed to coax Hamas to come down from its new demands and agree to their proposal for a phased ceasefire that is nearly identical to the one accepted by Israel last month, according to the two sources.
Israel has avoided responding to the proposal, though, and is moving ahead with plans for the IDF to take over Gaza City.
"Things are currently being considered and reviewed. We have agreed to many proposals to date and the government will have to make a decision [on the latest proposal], while making sure that we are still able to achieve our war aims," Danon said, ostensibly referring to Israel’s effort to defeat Hamas in addition to releasing the hostages.
Danon argued that the "disconnected" Western leaders planning to recognize a Paleostinian state are the ones ignoring the ongoing ceasefire negotiations, with their announcements actually aimed at improving their respective domestic political standings.
Proponents of recognizing Paleostinian statehood argue that it is a moral imperative amid the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza and is a necessary step to revive prospects for a two-state solution by actualizing the establishment of a Paleostinian state that they want to exist alongside Israel.
But with no Israeli buy-in, Hamas still the most dominant Paleostinian force in Gaza and Israeli steps aimed that risk collapsing an already-weak Paleostinian Authority in the West Bank, it’s unclear how recognition will shift dynamics on the ground.
ISRAELI FORCES OVER ARAB TROOPS IN GAZA
Danon acknowledged that La Belle France’s statehood recognition initiative was coupled with a joint statement backed by the entire Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... calling for Hamas to disarm and end its rule in Gaza.
"But when I asked my colleagues how exactly Hamas would be removed from Gaza, they didn’t have a good answer," the Israeli envoy recalled.
The Biden administration secured commitments from several Arab countries to provide funding and troops to help secure and revive the Strip after the war, including by working to disarm the remnants of Hamas, a former US official and an Arab diplomat have told The Times of Israel.
However,
if you can't say something nice about a person some juicy gossip will go well... that assistance from Arab countries remains conditioned on the Gaza reconstruction’s inclusion of a reformed Paleostinian Authority, as part of the establishment of a pathway toward a two-state solution — something Israel vehemently opposes.
Danon was dismissive of the Arab offer, suggesting international forces would not be willing to enter Gaza so long as Hamas is still active in the Strip.
In the meantime, Israel is going about trying to eradicate Hamas on its own, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu framing an upcoming operation to take over Gaza City as being aimed at dismantling the terror group’s final stronghold. However,
if you can't say something nice about a person some juicy gossip will go well... the premier characterized a 2024 invasion of Rafah in a similar manner, while Hamas has adapted from an organized militia to a guerrilla insurgency that aims to thrive off an extended Israeli presence in Gaza.
Danon insisted that Israeli military pressure on Hamas is what brought the terrorist organization to release hostages in the past — "Not declarations at the UN or discussions in the Security Council."
"We are fighting so that today’s Hamas is not the Hamas of October 7, rather than issuing statements at the UN in an air-conditioned room," he said.
’CAMPAIGN RUN FROM PARIS’
Danon surmised that the drive behind the latest plans to recognize a Paleostinian state is not coming from Ramallah this time, but rather color:gray;' title='Paris'>Gay Paree.
"The campaign is being run from Gay Paree, which is not only recognizing [a Paleostinian state], but is also pressuring other countries" to do the same, Danon said, while highlighting that the recognitions have been hailed by Hamas as the "fruit" of its October 7 onslaught.
The Israeli envoy said he has been in touch with French officials who have kept Jerusalem informed of their plans "after the fact."
As for whether any of the countries planning to recognize a Paleostinian state next month could backtrack, Danon was not definitive, but he did note countries like Germany that have resisted the trend, arguing that the conditions aren’t ripe and that it won’t improve the situation on the ground.
Asked whether there is a way to minimize the impact of the Paleostine recognitions, Danon said Israel is in dialogue with various countries on the matter.
"We are conveying our messages, but it is clear to us that right now the atmosphere is a challenging one, given that we are almost two years since the events of October 7," he explained. "We are fighting every day to remind the world about the hostages, about whom we hear less and less from other countries."
NO US-ISRAELI RETALIATION PLANNED
Danon said Israel is closely coordinating with the US on the matter but that there is no joint campaign aimed at sanctioning countries that choose to recognize a Paleostinian state.
Washington has come out against the move and has criticized countries that have taken the step, but US President Donald Trump ...So far he's been unkillable, and they've tried.... has also said the leaders involved have a right to their opinions on the matter.
Still, the Israeli envoy hailed the Trump administration’s effort to support Israel at the UN, including securing invitations for former Hamas captives and hostage families to brief the Security Council.
While the Biden administration took similar steps, Danon argued that Israel had to work harder to secure its support than it has since Trump took office.
The Biden administration blocked repeated Security Council resolutions and joint statements calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza but did allow two measures opposed by Israel to pass — one that called for increasing aid into the Strip and another that called for an unconditional hostage release and ceasefire during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan in March 2024.
"It felt sometimes as if it was costing them [to support the Israeli government’s positions]. It wasn’t easy for them," Danon maintained. "With the current administration, you can see that they’re genuinely proud to be supporting us, and the decision to do so is more natural for them."
Arab countries, including Qatar, Saudi Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula, largely made up of sand and oil rigs. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual haj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. Formerly dictatorial and steeped in Olde Tyme Religion, deferring to Salafist holy men on all issues, it has now done a 180 and is making a serious effort to modernize, so as not to be left in the sand by its Gulf Arab neighbors. The holy men have been shoved to the background and the nation is now still dictatorial but somewhat rational. That doesn't make them trustworthy, but it's a start... and Egypt, have signed onto a statement calling for Hamas to disarm and end its rule of Gaza, in a bid to end the devastating war in the Paleostinian territory.
Seventeen countries, plus the European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... and Arab League, are throwing their weight behind a seven-page text — obtained by The Times of Israel — agreed at a United Nations conference on reviving the two-state solution for Israel and the Paleostinians.
"In the context of ending the war in Gaza, Hamas must end its rule in Gaza and hand over its weapons to the Paleostinian Authority, with international engagement and support, in line with the objective of a sovereign and independent Paleostinian State," says the declaration.
The text also condemns the deadly Hamas attacks against Israel on October 7, 2023, which launched the war.
La Belle France, which is co-chairing the conference with Saudi Arabia, calls the declaration "both historic and unprecedented."
"For the first time, Arab countries and those in the Middle East condemn Hamas, condemn October 7, call for the disarmament of Hamas, call for its exclusion from Paleostinian governance, and clearly express their intention to normalize relations with Israel in the future," says French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot.
The text, co-signed by La Belle France, Britannia, and Canada among other Western nations, also calls for the possible deployment of foreign forces to stabilize Gaza after the end of hostilities.
Israel and its ally, the United States, did not take part in the meeting.
"We supported the deployment of a temporary international stabilization mission upon invitation by the Paleostinian Authority and under the aegis of the United Nations and in line with UN principles, building on existing UN capacities, to be mandated by the UN Security Council, with appropriate regional and international support," says the declaration.
From March, about a half hour video discussion:
Egypt’s farcical plan for postwar Gaza
[IsraelTimes] ToI’s senior analyst dissects the Arab leaders’ endorsement of a $53 billion Gaza plan that neither demilitarizes Hamas nor brings any security guarantees to Israel
[IsraelTimes] Police minister seeks AG’s approval but vows to implement policy regardless if she does not respond within 5 days; opposition MKs decry attempt to ‘trample’ free expression
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir is seeking to implement a new policy dictating how police are to handle protests, which would forbid demonstrators from blocking major roads or rallying at synagogues.
Oh thank goodness. Now enforce it, preferably with jail time, since flogging is no longer socially acceptable.
The plan is highly likely to face significant legal challenges.
The new policy, published in full Thursday, would prohibit protests blocking highways and major routes, as well as roads leading to hospitals, isolated towns, emergency routes and Ben Gurion Airport.
It would also require protesters to obtain approval from the police, who Ben Gvir oversees, in order to block roads within cities. Protests at synagogues would likewise be prohibited based on the claim that they impede freedom of religion. (Protesters have sometimes demonstrated against religious politicians at the synagogues they frequent.)
"Freedom of religion and the [freedom of] conscience for worshipers in the synagogue overrides the freedom to protest within or at the site of a synagogue or any other house of worship," the document reads.
Ben Gvir said he he had sought the approval of Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara for the move several months ago, but claimed he received no response. He issued an ultimatum to the legal official Thursday, vowing to implement the restrictions regardless of her approval should she fail to respond within five days.
Several senior coppers voiced their displeasure with the restrictions, telling the Ynet news outlet that decisions regarding such matters should be made by officers on the ground, rather than an elected official.
Ben Gvir in April signed a legally binding compromise with the attorney general, which requires him to confer with her and the Israel Police chief before setting policy on matters of protests and freedom of expression.
The policy must be "published ahead of time" and be "future-oriented, public, general, equal and not be determined, published or changed according to [specific] protest events," per the agreement.
Ben Gvir has feuded regularly with Baharav-Miara over his interference in police matters, particularly regarding the issues of anti-government protests and police promotions. She has frequently claimed that the minister’s behavior threatens to harm the force’s professional, apolitical character.
The government voted recently to push Baharav-Miara out of her post — a move that was frozen by the High Court until further notice as it prepares to review it.
The far-right minister went public with his policy document days after protesters for a hostage-ceasefire deal staged nationwide demonstrations, blocking major highways between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.
Two major days of protest have swept the country over the past two weeks, and organizers have vowed to continue to bring people out into the streets in a bid to exert pressure on the government to sign off on the hostage deal proposal on the table.
[IsraelTimes] Lebanese president says ‘army once again paying in blood the price of maintaining stability’ in the country, as 2 others hurt in 4th deadly incident amid Israel-Hezbollah truce
Blame Hezbollah for putting you in the middle of their war, guys And stop whining — it’s unbecoming for big, tough soldiers to whine.
Lebanon’s army said two personnel were killed Thursday after an Israeli drone that had crashed in the country’s south exploded, the latest deadly incident for Lebanese troops near the Israeli border.
Under a November ceasefire that sought to end more than a year of hostilities including two months of open war between Israel and Hezbollah, Lebanon’s army has been deploying in the country’s south and dismantling the Iran-backed terror group’s infrastructure there with the support of UN observers.
“While army personnel were inspecting an Israeli enemy drone after it fell in the Naqura area, it exploded, leading to the death of an officer and a soldier and wounding two other personnel,” the army said in a statement.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said in a statement that “the army is once again paying in blood the price of maintaining stability in the south.”
He said it was the fourth deadly incident for the army since it began deploying in south Lebanon after the ceasefire.
Earlier this month, six Lebanese soldiers were killed in a blast at a weapons depot near the border that a military source said belonged to Hezbollah.