Elise Thomas

We're just never getting these boats.

AUKUS, the Waiting for Godot of marine warfare.

I hadn't even considered this but boy is this also bad news for AUKUS.

Tariffs will push up the cost of everything manufactured in the US including their Virginia submarines, which will slow down their already too-slow manufacturing and presumably drive the cost up for the end purchaser - us.

Curious to know if Witkoff is finally bringing his own interpreter to these meetings in Moscow or if he’s still letting the Kremlin generously supply him with one

Wild that this isn't considered, legally speaking, a huge conflict of interest. www.nytimes.com/2025/08/09/u...

All of the penicillin in use worldwide comes from a strain of mold that was growing on a cantaloupe bought at a grocery store in Peoria, Illinois in 1942.

Monarez did not provide any additional information about the suspect's motives during the call. However, a briefing some CDC employees received Saturday from senior agency leaders said the gunman left a note, according to one employee who attended. "We were told very clearly that this was targeted, directed at CDC," the employee said. "But we were also told that this was an isolated event." There has been speculation among CDC employees that officials may have known about possible threats. When Monarez was at the CDC this week - her first week on the job - she was accompanied at all times by armed security guards, the employee said.

During Monarez's call with staff Saturday, another CDC senior leader, Daniel Jernigan, who heads the National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, or NCEZID, estimated there were about 40 bullet holes in CDC buildings on campus. He did not mean it as a complete account, but rather an indication that "it will take a bit before the buildings are 'fixed' again," said an employee who listened to the call and, like others, spoke on the condition of anonymity to share sensitive information. The shooting was "way worse than what was initially reported," the employee said, adding that gunfire continued for about 15 minutes and that "it's a miracle more people weren't hit."

Feel like this needs a spotlight: employees were told that the shooting at CDC, which left an officer dead and buildings riddled with bullets, was targeted at agency, @lenasun.bsky.social, @laurenweberhp.bsky.social and @tobiaraji.bsky.social report

Years of anti-CDC rhetoric has consequences

They're so going to offer Trump some kind of massive Arctic mining deal. Does the Trump Organisation own a mining company? They will soon. ria.ru/20250809/vst...

This was one of the two companies with websites with Whois details which I found seemed to be registered, incredibly, to Shor's personal mansion in Israel.

Moldovan authorities say that Russia proposed to use Favnir Trade as an intermediary for payments for Russian gas deliveries to the contested region of Transnistria.

Favnir Trade features significantly in our investigation into oligarch Ilan Shor and sanctions busting company A7.

The Em Dash Responds to the AI Allegations “In recent months, a curious fixation has emerged in corners of academia: the em dash. More specifically, the apparent moral panic around how it is...

www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/the...

JD Vance’s team had water level of Ohio river raised for family’s boating trip Exclusive: Incident raises questions of exploitation of public services, but Secret Service says it was requested for ‘safe navigation’

Incredibly, not an Onion article www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

I feel like every single day I need to post a reminder: if you ask an LLM about itself it DOES NOT KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT ITS INNER WORKINGS and WILL NOT TELL YOU ANYTHING ACTUALLY ABOUT ITSELF. It just (as it always does) will make up some plausible sounding answer.

They’re actively wrong on a regular basis, I just scroll right past them at this point

I think that's a flippant and disrespectful way to respond to the multiple women who have been murdered as a consequence of killers inspired by incel ideology.

One of these groups you're writing about is moderately annoying online. The other comes with a body count. These are not equivalent.

I see the point you’re making but as far as I’m aware feminism has yet to be connected to multiple mass shootings. It’s a real stretch to say it’s “as bad” as incel ideology.

Belarus’s military charm offensive in Asia While all eyes are on Moscow and Jakarta, Minsk is quietly stealing a march across Asia.

tldr; Belarus does have the potential to impact Australian interests. We should be keeping more of an eye on it. www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpre...

The core problem is this, he doesn’t practice principled anti-imperialism. He practices inversionism: if the U.S. supports something, he reflexively takes the opposite side, no matter how brutal that side is, no matter the evidence.

Belarus is working to build itself up as a military industrial producer and exporter. It's doing so with the help, and technological expertise, of Russia, China and Iran. It will help to spread the influence of those countries by proxy, and tie its customers into their military supply chains.

People ignore Belarus because it seems like a bit of an afterthought. A much smaller, much less scary appendage which clings on to the back of Russia and exports tractors and fertilizer. I get it - but it's an error.

On literally the same day as Belarus signed a deal to train Indonesian special forces and supply drones and aircraft parts, they signed a military cooperation agreement with Iran.

At exactly the same time, Belarus is building up its military industrial cooperation with China and Iran - and of course, always, with Russia.

Since the beginning of 2025 Belarus has struck military cooperation deals with Indonesia, Vietnam, Pakistan and Myanmar. It is in talks about military cooperation and education with India. It is deepining its diplomatic relationship with Sri Lanka, Thailand and Laos.

Belarus’s military charm offensive in Asia While all eyes are on Moscow and Jakarta, Minsk is quietly stealing a march across Asia.

Me for @lowyinstitute.bsky.social - While Australia has been focused on Russia's efforts to build influence in our region, Belarus's Asian strategy is flying under the radar. That's a mistake. We need to be watching Belarus's military-industrial complex.

www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpre...

Exclusive: Google is indexing ChatGPT conversations, potentially exposing sensitive user data Thousands of shared ChatGPT chats are now appearing in Google search results.

Well this is bad. Google is indexing ChatGPT conversations exposing sensitive user data

I tried a few quick searches. I found someone's chat where I can see their api key

I found some building their resume. Their name, email and phone numbers are exposed.

www.fastcompany.com/91376687/goo...

If this isn’t illegal, it should be

Tuvalu downplays claims its citizens want out Pacific Island nation Tuvalu has poured cold water on a report that a huge chunk of its citizens are eager to move to Australia through a world-first climate visa.It is instead likely that many applic...

nit.com.au/03-07-2025/1...

@zoeschiffer.bsky.social interesting episode! On the Tuvaluan migration agreement, just wanted to mention that the reason it's limited to such a small number annually, chosen by lottery, is because the Tuvaluan govt did not want their country to be prematurely hollowed out. They asked for the cap.

NEW FROM @reuters.com: Top U.S. law firms have sharply scaled back their efforts to challenge the federal government in court, especially on behalf of pro bono clients, in the face of threats from President Trump.

www.reuters.com/investigatio...

Reading the President of the United States' opinions on world economics and relationships between global powers sandwiched between ads for parasite cures and bunion relief. What a time to be alive.