Our mission, as God-fearing and God-loving patriots, is to defend this Constitutional Republic and to increase its greatness, in all good things and ways, by using our voices in free but courteous speech, by discussing the happenings of the world and coming to a profound understanding of those things, and by sharing and promulgating these Truths on both this platform and others.
We have created this site as a place for people to openly express their thoughts and opinions. This is a place where honest but civil discussion of all topics is encouraged. This particular thread is – for the moment – TRUST THE PLAN Thursday. You are welcome to say what you think, in a civil and courteous manner that loves your neighbor. Free speech matters! Courteous speech makes it happen.
Please label all AI-generated content as being such, unless it is patently obvious (e.g., humorous AI images). It is important that we as individuals not begin to pretend that socially derived artificial intelligence is actually our own, as this form of stealthy social information averaging and feedback would be one more pretense and deception between people, in service of stupid Marxist socialism, and of those who wish to substitute their communally protected lies for actual truth.
You are you. AI is AI. Keep your identity. Don’t “Borg Out” on us!
And yes, it’s THURSDAY…again.
That was stolen from Wheatie.
Let’s steal her rules, too.
No food fights.
No running with scissors.
If you bring snacks, bring enough for everyone.
Other rules may be derivable from these, and that conjecture is left for discussion.
If you’ve ever found it soothing to look at that little house on a hill when you get an eye exam, then you are very likely to enjoy a few links that I found.
First, what the heck IS that test? Why is there a little house? Here is an explanation.
We have created this site as a place for people to openly express their thoughts and opinions. This is a place where honest but civil discussion of all topics is encouraged. This particular thread is – for the moment – TRUST THE PLAN Thursday. You are welcome to say what you think, in a civil and courteous manner that loves your neighbor. Free speech matters! Courteous speech makes it happen.
Please label all AI-generated content as being such, unless it is patently obvious (e.g., humorous AI images). It is important that we as individuals not begin to pretend that socially derived artificial intelligence is actually our own, as this form of stealthy social information averaging and feedback would be one more pretense and deception between people, in service of stupid Marxist socialism, and of those who wish to substitute their communally protected lies for actual truth.
You are you. AI is AI. Keep your identity. Don’t “Borg Out” on us!
And yes, it’s THURSDAY…again.
That was stolen from Wheatie.
Let’s steal her rules, too.
No food fights.
No running with scissors.
If you bring snacks, bring enough for everyone.
Other rules may be derivable from these, and that conjecture is left for discussion.
Here’s a true crime video about people being stupid, sleazy, drunk, high, and in some cases angry.
Bad things happen, and the sheriff’s people eventually figure out what exactly that was.
Ignore the deceptive clickbait title. Change “sick” to “stupid”.
All the basic rules apply. When the liquor comes out, the firearms should be locked up. Don’t take drugs. Don’t fool around. Don’t come up with plans while drunk or high, and most of all, don’t actually try to do them.
We have created this site as a place for people to openly express their thoughts and opinions. This is a place where honest but civil discussion of all topics is encouraged. This particular thread is – for the moment – TRUST THE PLAN Thursday. You are welcome to say what you think, in a civil and courteous manner that loves your neighbor. Free speech matters! Courteous speech makes it happen.
Please label all AI-generated content as being such, unless it is patently obvious (e.g., humorous AI images). It is important that we as individuals not begin to pretend that socially derived artificial intelligence is actually our own, as this form of stealthy social information averaging and feedback would be one more pretense and deception between people, in service of stupid Marxist socialism, and of those who wish to substitute their communally protected lies for actual truth.
You are you. AI is AI. Keep your identity. Don’t “Borg Out” on us!
And yes, it’s THURSDAY…again.
That was stolen from Wheatie.
Let’s steal her rules, too.
No food fights.
No running with scissors.
If you bring snacks, bring enough for everyone.
Other rules may be derivable from these, and that conjecture is left for discussion.
You may be able to tell how much of an “old man boomer” I am, simply by the fact that I discovered an Obama-era “feature” on vehicles in just the last few years, and mostly in just the last year or so.
Technically, the feature is called a “start-stop system“, an “idling stop”, or a “micro-hybrid”.
My name for this feature, in honor of the administration that imposed it on us, is “Obama brakes“.
The first time I experienced Obama brakes was in a foreign country, which I will not name, but which has always been way too bought into the whole global warming, net zero, “bad carbon” insanity. I was being driven around by a lady with a fairly new and somewhat strange-looking car, which kept conking out at intersections.
It was horrifying. At first I thought she had bought a lemon, but it was soon clear that, no, this car was behaving exactly as expected. It conked out and restarted very “dependably”.
The lady was quite apologetic that the vehicle would lurch to a stop when she braked slower than a certain speed, and then, when she took her foot off the brake, the engine would roar back to life and the car would lurch again, this time forward. The “feature” was unnerving as hell, and in my opinion, contributed greatly to a minor fender-bender she had with a small pillar in a parking garage, as she tried to maneuver around it at low speed.
When I left, I was quite relieved, but also very worried, that eventually this horrible “feature” would make it to America. Little did I know that Obama brakes were already here, and had been for some time.
Fast forward to 2026. Recently forced to drive a 2025 vehicle, instead of my beloved older one, I was unsettled to learn that it, too, had Obama brakes.
Thankfully, there is a hidden way to turn off the Obama brakes, but it must be done every time one starts the vehicle, because Obama brakes are on by default, every time you turn on the vehicle. Manufacturers don’t have to do this, but if the Obama brakes are not on by default, then the fuel savings are calculated by a method that disadvantages the fuel efficiency numbers. Translation – EPA stacks the deck to force automotive manufacturers to force people to use the Obama brakes. Even if you can turn them off, they come back like a vampire the next time you turn on the engine.
I had several bad experiences with the Obama brakes – particularly at intersections where the engine would conk out in the middle of the intersection. The delay in restarting the engine is noticeable, unpredictable, and in some circumstances, actually dangerous, IMO. The woke AWFUL and old shoe boomer geezer “can’t make a left turn if another car is coming a half-mile away” meddling communists say that fraction of a second doesn’t matter – well, to this XY man, who can actually make a safe left turn through oncoming traffic, IT DOES.
There IS some kind of radio frequency interaction of Obama brakes with street light systems, but it’s actually rather half-assed. About 30 seconds before many lights change, the engine will start again – but not always. In general, the engine either starts back up too soon, too late, or not at all. And conking out in the middle – that’s CRAZY.
Even worse, as of 2025, there seemed to be little or no AI/SI or even just old-school machine learning about stopping or starting the engine. It would be awesome if there was actual learning – both based on user timing and behavior, AND possibly on actual location and direction. I mean, if I was involved with design of Obama brakes, that’s what I’d be doing. Make the Obama brakes as painless as possible.
Will Trump get rid of Obama brakes? Let’s see. They do save energy and increase fuel efficiency, but they need to be way better, IMO. And being able to turn them off permanently would be helpful for seniors, for new or bad drivers, and for others where SAFETY from a dependable idle is more important than FUEL ECONOMY.
Maybe if TRUMP can task American auto makers with putting “superintelligence” SI on the job, and making this feature awesome, we can call the result TRUMP BRAKES and everybody will want them.
We have created this site as a place for people to openly express their thoughts and opinions. This is a place where honest but civil discussion of all topics is encouraged. This particular thread is – for the moment – TRUST THE PLAN Thursday. You are welcome to say what you think, in a civil and courteous manner that loves your neighbor. Free speech matters! Courteous speech makes it happen.
Please label all AI-generated content as being such, unless it is patently obvious (e.g., humorous AI images). It is important that we as individuals not begin to pretend that socially derived artificial intelligence is actually our own, as this form of stealthy social information averaging and feedback would be one more pretense and deception between people, in service of stupid Marxist socialism, and of those who wish to substitute their communally protected lies for actual truth.
You are you. AI is AI. Keep your identity. Don’t “Borg Out” on us!
And yes, it’s THURSDAY…again.
That was stolen from Wheatie.
Let’s steal her rules, too.
No food fights.
No running with scissors.
If you bring snacks, bring enough for everyone.
Other rules may be derivable from these, and that conjecture is left for discussion.
Fall is here for sure, and it’s going to be a long winter. The sun is largely gone, and you are almost certainly going to need to increase your vitamin D supplementation.
But but let’s talk about B12 first. B12 is a bit easier.
Vitamin B12
I was recently doing a deep dive on vitamin B12 supplementation. If you are old and experiencing neuropathy of any kind, including difficulty hearing, seeing, feeling, smelling, or tasting (the latter two being known signs of dementia), then you really need to be taking excess oral B12, in my opinion. Even if something else is causing nerve problems, you cannot go wrong minimizing any chance of a B12 deficiency compounding the issue.
IMO, the literature is very clear that oral supplementation works for most people. Some people need injectable vitamin B12, but most people don’t.
My doctor is of the opinion that excess oral B12 is absolutely no problem. You can get your levels checked, but most vitamin supplements for seniors have over 4000% of the RDA of B12. If your B12 is low, you will FEEL THE DIFFERENCE when you take a 4000% dose.
Note also that B12 has a pretty long half life in your bloodstream, and an excess is stored in the liver. You can miss a day or two of your vitamin B12 dose, no problem.
So how about Vitamin D?
Vitamin D
I mentioned that Vitamin D deficiency is now demonstrably linked to dementia.
We have created this site as a place for people to openly express their thoughts and opinions. This is a place where honest but civil discussion of all topics is encouraged. This particular thread is – for the moment – TRUST THE PLAN Thursday. You are welcome to say what you think, in a civil and courteous manner that loves your neighbor. Free speech matters! Courteous speech makes it happen.
Please label all AI-generated content as being such, unless it is patently obvious (e.g., humorous AI images). It is important that we as individuals not begin to pretend that socially derived artificial intelligence is actually our own, as this form of stealthy social information averaging and feedback would be one more pretense and deception between people, in service of stupid Marxist socialism, and of those who wish to substitute their communally protected lies for actual truth.
You are you. AI is AI. Keep your identity. Don’t “Borg Out” on us!
And yes, it’s THURSDAY…again.
That was stolen from Wheatie.
Let’s steal her rules, too.
No food fights.
No running with scissors.
If you bring snacks, bring enough for everyone.
Other rules may be derivable from these, and that conjecture is left for discussion.
Two Important Commentaries on Artificial Intelligence
These two commentaries are worth (1) re-reading, and (2) re-watching.
(1) Don’t Assume That Human-Acting AI is Conscious
The first essential essay was found by Aubergine, and is a necessary lesson, no matter what side(s) of the many AI controversies you are on.
Just Because AI Does Things That ‘Look Human,’ That Does Not Give It Consciousness
When a machine error looks human, the logical leap from recognizing it as just a tool to believing it has human qualities is called “Geppetto’s Enigma.”
I like to say that just because you have serialized human intelligence (like in a book or an audio file), and put it in a player that works in many ways like a human or animal brain, does not mean that it’s conscious like you and I are.
Your old cassette player, playing a human song, is not conscious – even though somebody from a primitive tribe might think it is. However, we understand the player, and realize that it’s not like a human.
Likewise, that same song, playing from your laptop computer, is not evidence of consciousness. A person who has never seen a computer might think so for a while, but once they understand how a computer works, they will realize that it’s not like a human.
The same thing applies to AI generating a new song. Don’t assume that doing so means it’s conscious like a human.
Hopefully that’s obvious, but in case it’s not, please click the link and read it, because you need it!
That said, I still probably differ with most other people, including the author of the piece, in that I think consciousness is a lot broader than what we experience. I attribute a highly divergent type of “consciousness” to damn near everything in this universe that has special looping or continuous properties – even DNA itself. In many ways, I’ve gone so far out in generalizing consciousness, and watching for the applicability of my theory in odd places, that I have reverted to a Native American view of what “thinks” and what doesn’t. My weird science and syncretism works for me, but I don’t recommend it to others. It’s an intentional fringe view designed to dig at the edges of science and religion.
But you don’t believe those things – you believe that consciousness is what YOU and I do – and one thing is for sure. Tapes of people talking have interesting properties, but they are NOT conscious in any way that is remotely like you and I. Even in my theory, AI is not conscious LIKE US, and by most human standards, it is not conscious AT ALL. Thus, do not assume that it is conscious like us. That’s a mistake.
It is important to begin there, to look at why AI does what it does, because you are less likely to jump to conclusions. Even more importantly, you will be less likely to FEAR artificial intelligence. You will engage in logical thinking – and IMO that is GOOD.
SO – please – read this one again, and make your understanding of AI more solid. Rid yourself of needless assumptions.
(2) Don’t Assume the Literature Supports Doomers on AI Recursion
This is a YouTube video by a lady (real or avatar, unknown, but she looks a bit too “AI pretty” to me) who calls herself “House of El”, and who is kinda doing a #MeToo thing on Sabine Hossenfelder’s “science chick” schtick.
EL (as I will call her) alleges that she was offered cash for posting Obama doomer narrative, and refused, instead choosing to research a key tenet of that narrative – runaway recursive self-improvement by AI – and posting her honest thoughts without remuneration. Gotta hand it to her – that’s a BOSS MOVE. I hereby upgrade her avatar!
IMO this lady EL does a remarkably good job of digging in. She says she has a PhD in computer science, and I believe it. She makes a key realization which matches something I noted in reading the literature about AI reasoning models and their “issues”. Her take is that the literature actually doesn’t support the idea of runaway AI self-improvement being likely or even possible.
Here’s my take. AI is – in many ways – “broken” like people (which makes sense, as a kind of photocopy of our thinking and thoughts). AI doesn’t, IMO, have a clear runway through space and time to “take off” in recursive improvement – not only when measured on that exact task – even on easier stuff. In fact, the runway toward AI’s future looks pretty cluttered, strafed, broken, and in some cases thinning to a gravel road or worse.
And yeah – I said that like it was a good thing!
While EL is not willing to bet the farm that the new chickens can’t become Godzilla, she’s not seeing a match between the literature and the claims of danger being made.
This is an extremely CLEAR explanation for something so technical, although you may find EL’s “seminar voice” annoying or worse. Aubergine even called her an “egghead” – LOL! In fact, I include a link to our prior discussion as a reference, including both accolades and ridicule.
With that, here you go. An excellent bit of YouTubery – even if Little Miss ChanEL is as fake as the eyelashes on the checkout girl at the grocery store!
So what else can I say, but check this out, too. Yeah, it’s AI, but it’s something you can definitely trust.
We have created this site as a place for people to openly express their thoughts and opinions. This is a place where honest but civil discussion of all topics is encouraged. This particular thread is – for the moment – TRUST THE PLAN Thursday. You are welcome to say what you think, in a civil and courteous manner that loves your neighbor. Free speech matters! Courteous speech makes it happen.
Please label all AI-generated content as being such, unless it is patently obvious (e.g., humorous AI images). It is important that we as individuals not begin to pretend that socially derived artificial intelligence is actually our own, as this form of stealthy social information averaging and feedback would be one more pretense and deception between people, in service of stupid Marxist socialism, and of those who wish to substitute their communally protected lies for actual truth.
You are you. AI is AI. Keep your identity. Don’t “Borg Out” on us!
And yes, it’s THURSDAY…again.
That was stolen from Wheatie.
Let’s steal her rules, too.
No food fights.
No running with scissors.
If you bring snacks, bring enough for everyone.
Other rules may be derivable from these, and that conjecture is left for discussion.
Amy Acton seems like an enigma – until you realize that there are two Amy Actons.
One of them is the real Amy Acton. Who I will call Real Amy Acton. She’s likable, but in a ditzy, scatter-brained, and often cringey way. There is absolutely no way that this person should have been a Director of Health. She could never, ever, be the governor of a state.
The other Amy Acton – who I will call Imaginary Amy Acton – is a mirage – a creation. She’s not very likable, but she is competent. She obeys Democrat policy, because she is the creation of professional Democrats. On paper, she sounds quite different from the real Amy Acton, because she’s not the real Amy Acton. She’s like a Soviet consensus on what Amy Acton is supposed to think and believe.
It’s no wonder the Democrats in Ohio are not allowing either Amy Acton to debate Vivek Ramaswamy.
I would like to show you some select insights into this lady, that will help you understand.
Let’s start with a recent X post by Dr. Acton – or Lockdown Amy as she is known, that I find both attractive and a bit out of touch. This is Real Amy Acton.
We weren’t messing around today at The Scioto Ribber.
At first glance, I really liked these images. She’s like a neighbor, going out and eating at some restaurant and posting a tweet about it. That’s very real. It’s very likable. If she wasn’t running for office, I’d think “Hey! That’s Amy Acton, that doctor lady from Columbus!”
I find it interesting that there’s nobody around, and I think that says a lot about her campaign. I think the Democrats may not be thinking she can win, or even planning on winning. I think perhaps they’re grooming her for head of HHS, or CDC, or something like that, should the Demon Donkeys ever get back in the White House.
Next point – while I think it’s awesome that Dr. Acton is having a MONSTROUS steak (I have not had one like that in years), I don’t see that image as being politically wise right now – unless she’s desperate for some carnivore crossover votes that she’s surely not going to get, IMO. Indeed, that picture drew lots of criticism on her timeline, although it’s hard to know how much of that criticism is real, and how much is just AI bots going after her. I see the “same but opposite” on all the GOP timelines.
But what is Imaginary Dr. Amy Acton like?
Well, politically, there are some problems.
Ohio here is what Amy Acton will not tell us out loud.
Amy Acton supports:
⯈Abortion ( even up to 9 months ) ⯈Sanctuary cities ⯈Illegal invaders ⯈Entitlements for illegals ⯈Higher taxes to pay for entitlements to illegals ⯈Cuts in police ⯈Shutting Ohio down ⯈Forcing… pic.twitter.com/dtYjFNATsm
Ohio here is what Amy Acton will not tell us out loud.
Amy Acton supports:
⯈Abortion ( even up to 9 months ) ⯈Sanctuary cities ⯈Illegal invaders ⯈Entitlements for illegals ⯈Higher taxes to pay for entitlements to illegals ⯈Cuts in police ⯈Shutting Ohio down ⯈Forcing more vaccines on Ohioans ( especially children) ⯈Not allowing ICE to operate in Ohio ⯈Allowing lunatic liberal protesters to take over Ohio cities
Amy Acton is running on two things. Brown man is bad. ( Which is racist ) and she will somehow make things less expensive ( for generational entitlement freeloaders ).
She is 100% for socialism not free choice.
NO VOTE AMY ACTON
SO – yeah – Imaginary Amy Acton – the one who would actually be in charge of Ohio – is pretty left-wing, despite some serious efforts to pass her off as moderate right now.
I started looking more deeply into Acton’s background, especially back in her “COVID czarina” days, and what I found is both laughable and disturbing.
Two videos. The first was the New York Slimes singing her praises in early 2020, as the “pandemic” was just getting started. Here is the thumbnail (not an active video).
OMG, it is SO CRINGE! SO VERY CRINGE!!!
You get Real Amy Acton talking, but you get the Times pretending they are talking to Imaginary Amy Acton. This is how they sell one to the public, to install the other in office.
Amy Acton even SOUNDS like Kamala Harris. Just listen.
Amy Acton has been a PROJECT of the left from day one. But now, after the fall of both COVID communism and Kamala Harris, Real Amy Acton is clearly not fit for the job. She was never fit for her earlier job, either.
But it gets worse. Much worse.
Imagine CRINGE SQUARED.
Imagine a video of an event CELEBRATING the first video.
Imagine an event – a lecture given by Real Dr. Acton – celebrating Imaginary Dr. Acton’s “success” as the popularly evicted COVID czarina.
Imagine Amy at her absolute CRINGIEST, WOKEST, and DIZZIEST. Yes. She’s ten times more out to lunch than in any modern video.
Yes, it’s THAT BAD. Although it is fun and entertaining, like talking to a tipsy female doctor in a bar.
I kid you not.
There is a “transcript” which is actually an essay derived from the second video. The essay is clearly a re-write of Real Amy Acton’s speech by somebody else, to make her sound like Imaginary Amy Acton. It’s hard to tell that they’re even related.
Both of these videos are mind-boggling reminders of just how psychotic the COVID years were. And Amy Acton – both of them – was fully riding along with all that dubious psychosis. All the psychosis that was dubious then, and is horrifying now.
These videos are gold mines of cringey error, bad science, dictatorial hubris, talking down to the public, cargo-cult hero-worship, wishful remembrance, and all the rest. I hope to give both videos their own threads in the future, before the election, but you are welcome to dig in now.
So what’s the verdict?
Real Amy Acton may be a nice person and a good neighbor. Stripped of her goofy politics, she seems like a very typical, very likable, Ohio mom. Real Amy’s a bit more entertaining than most, either because of (1) alcohol, (2) xanax, or (3) naturally dizzy mentality. Provided that Real Amy Acton doesn’t drive drunk, she would be welcome in almost any neighborhood in Ohio. She does not strike me as a bad person.
But that is not why we have governors. We have governors to make difficult choices correctly – to do the right things, and to not do the wrong things. And Real Amy Acton is NOT governor material.
But neither is Imaginary Amy Acton – the competent leftist.
Imaginary Amy Acton is what we would get – and it would be even worse than those brutal COVID days.
We have to get that word out. Ohio doesn’t need the trouble it would have, if Amy Acton – any version of her – was Governor.
We have created this site as a place for people to openly express their thoughts and opinions. This is a place where honest but civil discussion of all topics is encouraged. This particular thread is – for the moment – TRUST THE PLAN Thursday. You are welcome to say what you think, in a civil and courteous manner that loves your neighbor. Free speech matters! Courteous speech makes it happen.
Please label all AI-generated content as being such, unless it is patently obvious (e.g., humorous AI images). It is important that we as individuals not begin to pretend that socially derived artificial intelligence is actually our own, as this form of stealthy social information averaging and feedback would be one more pretense and deception between people, in service of stupid Marxist socialism, and of those who wish to substitute their communally protected lies for actual truth.
You are you. AI is AI. Keep your identity. Don’t “Borg Out” on us!
And yes, it’s THURSDAY…again.
That was stolen from Wheatie.
Let’s steal her rules, too.
No food fights.
No running with scissors.
If you bring snacks, bring enough for everyone.
Other rules may be derivable from these, and that conjecture is left for discussion.
Scott brought this, and I want to make sure that everybody sees it.
If you don’t watch this whole video, at least watch the first part about Bernie Sanders and his very, very bad idea.
Personally, I think it is critical to watch this video in its entirety, if you want to understand exactly why “being Cambodia on data centers” is a very, very, bad idea for the US. (Being China on data centers is a different sort of bad, too – don’t get me wrong!)
Now – DO NOT suspend your critical thinking on this guy and what he is saying. He is personally invested on the profit side of the AI wave. I myself think he is too rosy and hand-waving on the simplicity of the right solutions, but that he is nevertheless overall correct about those solutions. People need to be smart about how they allow data centers.
I just discovered a brand new data center a few miles from where we live. It was put up in the perfect place – a decaying industrial “wasteland” near the railroad tracks – and it’s beautiful, clean, and modernizing everything around it. Not sure how the Bernie Sanders boneheads on the city council in that place allowed it to happen, but they apparently fucked up and allowed a fantastic modern business to appear in the middle of their normal rusted, trash-strewn, blue-haired, nose ring, soy latte, anti-business decay and poverty. IMO it’s the best thing to happen to that area in a long time. They have driven OUT so many businesses. The blind AWFULs found a nut!
The entire south side of Chicago – which is a post-industrial wasteland – needs to become a data center capital, IMHO. THAT is how you fix Chicago.
Take a watch!
I think Trump gets it. Data centers can be part of the golden age – but we need to make sure that we avoid the rush to put up fool’s gold solutions – and that means citizens paying attention to what their elected (and unelected) leaders are doing.
Pay attention to what China is doing. Notice that, suddenly, they are even using their own crappy solar panels to generate energy. They realize that “seizing the day” on AI and data centers is happening RIGHT NOW. Somebody over in China got a bright idea on “abundance thinking” to use their own panels, stacked up waiting for export, and told the commies who wanted to reserve those panels for draining money from America, to “go to vulture hell”.
We have created this site as a place for people to openly express their thoughts and opinions. This is a place where honest but civil discussion of all topics is encouraged. This particular thread is – for the moment – TRUST THE PLAN Thursday. You are welcome to say what you think, in a civil and courteous manner that loves your neighbor. Free speech matters! Courteous speech makes it happen.
Please label all AI-generated content as being such, unless it is patently obvious (e.g., humorous AI images). It is important that we as individuals not begin to pretend that socially derived artificial intelligence is actually our own, as this form of stealthy social information averaging and feedback would be one more pretense and deception between people, in service of stupid Marxist socialism, and of those who wish to substitute their communally protected lies for actual truth.
You are you. AI is AI. Keep your identity. Don’t “Borg Out” on us!
And yes, it’s THURSDAY…again.
That was stolen from Wheatie.
Let’s steal her rules, too.
No food fights.
No running with scissors.
If you bring snacks, bring enough for everyone.
Other rules may be derivable from these, and that conjecture is left for discussion.
First, I’m reposting a tweet that Kalbo posted, about an almost-complete lunar eclipse on Thursday night.
A near-total lunar eclipse will take place Thursday night and into Friday morning (August 27th-28th), which will be visible for most of North and South America and parts of Europe and Africa! ☀️🌎🌑
Steve is probably excited and ready to observe it. Say a prayer for Steve! Yes, now that he’s not here, we can openly pray for Steve and not worry about offending him!
And now, very importantly…..
An Inconvenient Study
MarieUrsula dropped off a link for one of the best documentaries I’ve seen in years – and IMO you would do well to watch this, too.
Her comment:
MarieUrsula (@guest_1644157) Online
August 25, 2026 00:55
#1644157
Found on my trapline a few hours ago, on a related subject:
“Here’s a story about vaccines with danger, deception, and intrigue, like a thriller. It’s an important piece of the vaccine puzzle. Produced by Del Bigtree, it’s essential for anyone still considering the validity of vaccines.” c. 1 hour 22 minutes.
This movie explains a whole bunch of things – even more than they intended to explain. The logic is beautiful. Del Bigtree is a truly excellent journalist. He understands exactly how to make things make sense with zero ambiguity.
This movie explains…..
numerous problems with vaccines
a critical study which went unpublished because it gave the wrong finding, but had a “plausible” exit for the author and institution
why RFKJ wants to do placebo studies
how the vaxxbots skate out of placebo studies on bogus ethics grounds
IMO RFKJ neatly avoided an ETHICS TRAP on the mRNA flu vaccine. Had he forced the issue of a placebo trial for mFlusiva, IMO he would have been set up for ethics charges by the Demoncrats. As things are unfolding, NATURAL CONSEQUENCES for the TRABANT SHOT are happening!
This Rejoice & Praise God Sunday Open Thread, with full respect to those who worship God on the Sabbath, is a place to reaffirm our worship of our Creator, our Father, our King Eternal.
It’s also a place to read, post, and discuss news that is worth knowing and sharing. Please post links to any news stories that you use as sources or quote from.
In the QTree, we’re a friendly and civil lot. We encourage free speech and the open exchange and civil discussion of different ideas. Topics aren’t constrained, and sound logic is highly encouraged, all built on a solid foundation of truth and established facts, and not by agenda-driven accusations and pronouncements.
We have a policy of mutual respect, shown by civility. Civility encourages discussions, promotes objectivity and rational thought in discourse, and camaraderie in the participants – characteristics we strive toward in our Q Tree community.
Please show respect and consideration for our fellow QTreepers. Before hitting the “post” button, please proofread your post and make sure your opinion addresses the issue only, and does not confront or denigrate the poster. Keep to the topic – avoid “you” and “your”. Here in The Q Tree, personal attacks, name-calling, ridicule, insults, baiting, and other conduct for which a penalty flag would be thrown are VERBOTEN.
In The Q Tree, we’re compatriots, sitting around the campfire, roasting hot dogs, making s’mores, and discussing, agreeing, and disagreeing about whatever interests us. This board will remain a home for those who seek respectful conversations.
God is in Control . . . and His Grace is Sufficient, so . . . Keep Looking Up
Hopefully, every Sunday, we can find something here that will build us up a little . . . give us a smile . . . and add some joy or peace, very much needed in all our lives.
“This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn nor weep.” . . . “Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”
Post about God – comments or articles – whenever and wherever you desire. FEAR NOT. God is with us, because we make sure He is WELCOME.
At all times, remember. The QTree is a House of the Lord. NEVER be afraid to speak His name.
Shalom! May PEACE be on this House.
Faith is the Victory
The apostle Paul exhorts Christians to “walk by faith and not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7, ESV). What we see here is a contrast between truth and perception—what we know and believe to be true and what we perceive to be true. This is where the Christian struggle with a lack of faith finds its basis. The main reason why so many Christians struggle with a lack of faith is that we follow our perceptions of what is true rather than what we know to be true by faith.
Perhaps before going any further it may be helpful to come up with a working definition of faith. Faith, contrary to popular opinion, is not “belief without proof.” This is the definition that many skeptics give for faith. This definition reduces faith to mere fideism—i.e., “I believe despite what the evidence tells me.” Skeptics are right to reject this concept of faith, and Christians should reject it, too. Faith is not belief without proof or belief despite the evidence; rather, faith is a complete trust or confidence in someone or something. That trust or confidence we have in someone is built up over time as he proves himself faithful time and time again.
Christianity is a faith-based religion. It is based on faith in God and in His Son, Jesus Christ. God has provided us with His Word, the Holy Bible, as a testimony of His faithfulness to His people all throughout history. In its bare essentials, Christianity is faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ claimed to be the promised Messiah and the Son of God. His life was one of perfect righteousness according to the revealed Law of God, His death was an atoning sacrifice for the sins of His people, and He was raised to life three days after His death. When we place our faith and trust in Christ alone for our salvation, God takes our sin and places it on the cross of Christ and awards us, by grace, with the perfect righteousness of Christ. That, in a nutshell, is the Christian message. As Christians, we are called to believe this message and live in light of it.
Despite this, Christians still struggle with believing the biblical account because it doesn’t match up with our perception of reality. We may believe that Jesus was a real person, we may believe that He died by crucifixion at the hand of the Romans, we may even believe that He led a perfect life according to God’s Law, but we don’t “see” how faith in Christ makes us righteous before God. We can’t “see” Jesus atoning for our sins. We can’t “see” or “perceive” any of the great truths of Christianity, and, therefore, we struggle with lack of faith. As a result of this lack of perception, our lives often do not reflect the fact that we really believe what we claim to believe.
There are many reasons for this phenomenon among Christians. The main reason we struggle with faith is that we don’t truly know the God in whom we profess to have faith. In our daily lives, we don’t trust complete strangers. The more intimately we know someone and the more time we have had to see him “in action,” the more likely we are to believe what he says. But, if God is essentially a stranger to us, we are less likely to believe what He has said in His Word. The only cure for this is to spend more time in God’s Word getting to know Him.
The world, the flesh, and the devil often distract us. By “the world” is meant the accepted “wisdom” of the unbelieving world and the culture in which we find ourselves. For those of us living in Europe and North America, that dominant worldview is naturalism, materialism, skepticism, and atheism. “The flesh,” refers to our sinful nature that still clings to Christians and with which we struggle on a daily basis. “The devil” refers to Satan and his horde of evil spirits who excite and entice us through the world and our senses. These things all afflict us and cause us to struggle with faith.
That is why Christians need to be constantly reminded of what Christ has done for us and what our response should be. The apostle Paul says, “Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17, ESV). Our faith is built up as we have the gospel continually preached to us. Our churches need to be built on the solid preaching of the Word and the regular observance of the ordinances. Instead, too many churches spend their time, energy, and resources on the creation of “programs” that neither feed the sheep nor draw a clear distinction between godliness and ungodliness.
Consider the example of the Israelites in the Old Testament. God had performed great miracles in rescuing His chosen people from slavery in Egypt—the Ten Plagues, the pillar of smoke and fire, and the crossing of the Red Sea. God brings His people to the foot of Mount Sinai, gives them the Law and makes a covenant with them. No sooner does He do this than the people begin to grumble and lose faith. With Moses gone up on the mountain, the people convince Aaron, Moses’ brother, to construct an idol (against God’s clear prohibition) for them to worship (Exodus 32:1–6). They were no longer walking by faith, but by sight. Despite all the clear miracles God did in their redemption, they lost faith and began to go on their perception.
That is why God instructed the new generation of Israelites before going into the Promised Land to continually remind themselves of what God had done for them: “And these words that I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise” (Deuteronomy 6:6–7, ESV). God knows that the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak (Mark 14:38), and so He commands His people to be in constant remembrance of these things.
In conclusion, we need to heed the example of the disciple Thomas. When Thomas heard the stories of the resurrection, he wouldn’t believe them until he saw Jesus with his own two eyes. Jesus accommodated Thomas’ lack of faith by making an appearance to him and allowing him to see and touch Him. Thomas responds in worship, and Jesus says to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29, ESV). Many skeptics today echo Thomas’ sentiment: “Unless I see Jesus face to face, I will not believe!” We must not behave as the unbelievers do. We need to continually keep in mind Paul’s exhortation to walk by faith rather than sight. We learn in the book of Hebrews that without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6) because faith is believing the Word of God and acting upon it, not responding to our perceptions.
Faith is the Victory
Encamped along the hills of light, Ye Christian soldiers rise, And press the battle ere the night Shall veil the glowing skies; Against the foe in vales below Let all our strength be hurled; Faith is the victory, we know, That overcomes the world.
His banner over us is love, Our sword the Word of God; We tread the road the saints before With shouts of triumph trod. By faith, they like a whirlwind’s breath, Swept on o’er every field; The faith by which they conquered death Is still our shining shield.
On every hand the foe we find Drawn up in dread array; Let tents of ease be left behind, And onward to the fray. Salvation’s helmet on each head, With truth all girt about, The earth shall tremble ’neath our tread, And echo with our shout.
To him that overcomes the foe, White raiment shall be giv’n; Before the angels he shall know His name confessed in heav’n; Then onward from the hills of light, Our hearts with love aflame, We’ll vanquish all the hosts of night, In Jesus’ conqu’ring name.
Faith is the victory! Faith is the victory! O glorious victory, That overcomes the world. John Henry Yates (1837-1900)
Post about God – comments or articles – whenever and wherever you desire. FEAR NOT. God is with us, because we make sure He is WELCOME.
At all times, remember. The QTree is a House of the Lord. NEVER be afraid to speak His name.
We have created this site as a place for people to openly express their thoughts and opinions. This is a place where honest but civil discussion of all topics is encouraged. This particular thread is – for the moment – TRUST THE PLAN Thursday. You are welcome to say what you think, in a civil and courteous manner that loves your neighbor. Free speech matters! Courteous speech makes it happen.
Please label all AI-generated content as being such, unless it is patently obvious (e.g., humorous AI images). It is important that we as individuals not begin to pretend that socially derived artificial intelligence is actually our own, as this form of stealthy social information averaging and feedback would be one more pretense and deception between people, in service of stupid Marxist socialism, and of those who wish to substitute their communally protected lies for actual truth.
You are you. AI is AI. Keep your identity. Don’t “Borg Out” on us!
And yes, it’s THURSDAY…again.
That was stolen from Wheatie.
Let’s steal her rules, too.
No food fights.
No running with scissors.
If you bring snacks, bring enough for everyone.
Other rules may be derivable from these, and that conjecture is left for discussion.
I decided that I would dump a dozen of my tabs once again. It’s cathartic. A few thoughts go out with each one.
(1) An old Wheatie post, from September 14, 2019, when this site was just shy of 1 year old. We were still on WordPress, and COVID had probably just been leaked from the Wuhan lab.
(2) An old Steve post, from the Qth of July, 2021, in the midst of COVID vaccination, when Steve covered Einstein’s early, revolutionary papers, laying foundations in both relativity and quantum mechanics.
(3) My 250th Anniversary thank you post, featuring Q = Quantum and a salute to our fallen patriots, in case you want to bookmark it. Also the finale on the Thursday posts with the Genesis stained glass artwork.
(4) A great video on Trump’s Main Street / Golden Age / reindustrialization strategy. Thanks to Duchess for bringing this to my attention.
(5) One of the best explanations of the Schroedinger equation – an intuitive physical and mathematical rationalization of how quantum mechanics arises out of classical physics.
(6) AI slop and eye-roll clickbait about Pluto is very interesting nonetheless. Much of this stuff is worth knowing. If you make it past the first repetitive, yawn-inducing, “delay of story” filler nonsense, it gets better!
(7) These two tabs go together. Think long and hard before you get an mRNA vaccine.
I wanted to let everyone know that my husband @DanVanAckeren1 took his own life on Friday, July 24, 2026. He was suffering for 5 years after the COVID-19 Pfizer vax gave him Multiple System Atrophy & other conditions. His was the 3rd suicide this week. My fight isn’t over. pic.twitter.com/iDGPNNKQo9
When you read about his case, you’ll understand that his life was a living hell. Please don’t roll the dice. Don’t trust these demons! They won’t have the mercy to just kill you – they will torment you until you kill yourself.
(8) Here’s an interesting argument leaning on the First Amendment – that restrictions on drug advertising would enable restrictions on energy advertising.
STEVE MILLOY: Banning Drug Ads Today Could Muzzle Energy Tomorrow
(9) Good habits are effective in helping people to NOT GET a nasty parasite in Hawaii, and those habits will serve you well here in the Great 48. Read about how to prevent rat lungworm brain infections, because that information will help keep you from getting other diseases here in REAL AMERICA.
(10) Horrible clickbait about fire ants is really an interesting ecology study about “horny toads” in Texas. Go ahead and click. Yeah, it’s AI slop, but it’s not terrible.
