dimitri

a negative-positive mosquito buzzing in the ear of a total vacuum

[Arnaud Bertrand @RnaudBertrand]

This is a really important signal by China to Europe.

The social media account Yuyuantantian, operated by China’s state broadcaster CCTV and created in 2019 during China's first trade war with the US specifically to signal China's position, just wrote a long article (https://t.co/hR6OV0mCTj) on the brewing trade war between China and Europe.

Most notably they say the EU's current strategy of dealing with China "can only produce a paper tiger" (meaning it cannot hurt China) and that China is "not afraid" of a "freezing point" in trade and economic relations with the bloc - meaning presumably a complete halt of trade.

This sentence is eerily similar to what China told Trump when he unveiled the tariffs on China (and the whole world) in April 2025. At the time China's Ministry of Commerce said that "if the U.S. insists on its own way, China will fight to the end" (https://t.co/XXN2cwhGFg).

The context is that the EU is currently working on a series of extremely hostile new legislation packages against China, such as the so-called "overcapacity instrument" on which I wrote a long post at the beginning of the month (see quoted post👇).

This instrument is basically a legal tool that says that if China is competitive globally in a given sector in such a way that it exports a lot, that's proof of overcapacity, and legally it'd mean that the entire sector can be restricted from the EU market.

In essence, it's a law that says: if your products are good enough that people want to buy them, that's grounds for banning them. Which is pretty insane!

There's also a so-called "diversification instrument" being developed alongside it, which - according to Maroš Šefčovič, the EU's trade chief himself - is modelled on how the EU reduced its reliance on Russian energy after the Ukraine invasion (https://t.co/eAGThXFANx) and is developed with China in mind.

In their article, Yuyuantantian say that all of this is part of a "escalate first, de-escalate later" strategy - essentially bullying - that the EU borrowed from watching the US, but without any of the leverage to back it up.

As the article puts it: the actors who can pull off extreme pressure tactics can only do so if they have "absolute leading positions in key areas or irreplaceable international influence." The EU, it notes, has neither, hence them concluding that the EU "forcibly pursuing 'escalate first, de-escalate later' can only produce a paper tiger."

Another very consequential framing in the piece is that they characterize Europe as becoming - essentially - a rogue actor in the international system, that doesn't care about rules anymore. Which they say is suicidal for Europe in several ways.

First of all, as they write, the EU's international identity in the international system - its USP, if you will - rests entirely on being a "normative power," a rules-based institutional actor that you can do business with precisely because it won't move the goalposts on you. That's what made European standards worth complying with and European markets worth the entry cost.

As they explain, the EU had gone against China in the past but always within the rules of the WTO (with tools like anti-dumping and anti-subsidy), and always in a way that was somewhat justified and predictable, basically the cost of doing business.

However, the new approach is designed to be essentially unpredictable and arbitrary- and as such makes Europe less and less attractive and more and more risky.

They point out the irony of Europe on one hand saying it wants more investment and industrial cooperation to learn from China but at the same time "constantly raising the bar for attracting investment and maintaining industrial cooperation."

As they write: "the greater the uncertainty, the less likely long-term capital and supply chains will dare to enter, ultimately harming Europe's own sources of growth."

Secondly, the article exposes what is arguably the most self-destructive contradiction in the EU's entire approach: the EU's stated justification for all these new tools is its "unsustainable" trade deficit with China. But when China came to the negotiating table and said "fine, we'll buy more from you," the EU had nothing to offer - because what China wants to buy is high-tech products, and those are exactly what Europe restricts under its export controls policy (largely at the behest of the US).

In essence, Europe's approach is purely punitive, shutting every door simultaneously: you can't export to us (overcapacity), you can't invest here (unpredictable and arbitrary legal risk), and we won't sell you what you want to buy (export controls).

Now you understand why China is becoming frustrated to the point it's contemplating a "freezing point" in trade and economic relations with Europe. When the party on the other side of the table punishes you for exporting, blocks you from investing, and refuses to sell you what would fix the problem they're complaining about, there's not much left to talk about.

My personal opinion is that it is undeniable that Europe is suffering from grave economic problems, but it's mistaking symptoms for cause: it's doing the equivalent of wanting to punish the runner who overtook you instead of asking why you're getting overtaken.

The car industry is a really good case in point: Chinese EVs really are better than German cars at this stage, and it's NOT because of subsidies (quite the contrary in fact, see this: https://t.co/CuL8Gy0KkF). As such, how does punishing China for their competitiveness help the German car industry, specifically? What would help are rather initiatives to learn from the best: stuff like technology partnerships and welcoming Chinese factories on European soil.

The notion that if you ban China the problem goes away is exactly what the Ming dynasty - in 17th century China - did and that's what directly led to the century of humiliation because it became backwards technologically: it's what we call in French the "policy of the ostrich" ("la politique de l'autruche"), putting your head in the sand and hoping that makes things better.

And timing-wise it couldn't possibly be worse: having cut itself off from Russian energy, caved to American tariffs, and destabilized its own industrial base - the logical next step was apparently to pick a trade war with your largest trading partner and the last remaining great power with genuine goodwill towards you.

Because that's the real tragedy of the China-Europe relationship: there is a genuine and frankly almost touching desire for engagement and cooperation from the Chinese side and Europe is doing everything in its power to squander it.

[Masterpieces of Japan @JapanTraCul]

Lotus in the Rain, by Matsumura Keibun, 1832

[Chay Bowes @BowesChay]

Insane footage from central Gaza.

A wounded man escaped his car moments before it was bombed a second time by an Israeli missile.

He was on his way to the Al-Mawasi refugee camp.

This is what everyday life looks like for thousands of people.

[Douglas Macgregor @DougAMacgregor]

BREAKING: Upcoming negotiations between Iran and The United States canceled.

[Daniel Mayakovski @DaniMayakovski]

El Tribunal General de la Unión Europea dictaminó que la fabricación de jets privados para los ricos multimillonarios es "una inversión sostenible y respetuosa con el medio ambiente".

Los jets privados son uno de los medios más contaminantes del mundo, contaminan hasta 14 veces más que un avión comercial y hasta 50 veces más que un tren.

Los ricos que viajan en jet privados contaminan en un solo año lo mismo que 550.000 ciudadanos europeos, un ciudadano europeo emite alrededor de 9 toneladas de gases de efecto invernadero al año, mientras que un solo jet privado puede llegar a emitir hasta 2 toneladas de CO₂ en solo UNA hora de vuelo.

Además los ricos contaminan por gusto, porque cerca del 40% de estos vuelos en jets privados en territorio europeo cubren distancias inferiores a los 500 kilómetros, osea que son trayectos que podrían realizarse fácilmente por tierra.

Nos mean en la cara y dicen que llueve, los ricos pueden ir en jet privado a comprar el pan y su avión es "sostenible", sin embargo, un coche con 10 o 15 años de antigüedad es inadmisible en una ciudad.

[Maria Denaxa @mdenaxa]

📌 Σε ένα κείμενο ΔΥΟ κυβερνητικά εγκλήματα κατά του ελληνικού λαού με τις ευχές του πρωθυπουργού μας!

🔴 "Το ενεργειακό ανοσιούργημα Μητσοτάκη : Η ανατίναξη, η ομολογία και ο… άφαντος εισαγγελέας"Του δημοσιογράφου Γιώργου Χαρβαλιά.

‼️ΥΓ Εσείς το γνωρίζατε πως το έργο της αποθήκευσης ενέργειας στην Ελλάδα που θα είχε ως αποτέλεσμα τον… εξανθρωπισμό στα τιμολόγια ρεύματος ΔΕΝ προχωρά επειδή συγκεκριμένα οικονομικά συμφέροντα εμποδίζουν την εγκατάσταση μπαταριών αποθήκευσης ρεύματος;;;!!!!! https://t.co/EIX9qrTD3A

[LenguasClásicas IEDA @clasicasIEDA]

Interior de los Propíleos. Vista desde el suroeste.
1859.
Museo de Orsay. París
Buenas noches con hermosos monumentos

[Jimmy Dore @jimmy_dore]

Yet more scientists reveal the horrors of the “safe & effective” COVID Vaxx.

I used to be viscously attacked & smeared by strangers & people who I’ve known for 30 years when I would report the TRUTH about the toxic Covid vaccines.

Now that they’ve stopped listening to Big Pharma & quit taking boosters ( & it’s clear I was right & they were were not only wrong but evil & acted like monsters), they no longer slander me, but have never apologized either. Nor has there been anyone held accountable nor any justice of any kind applied.

I don’t think I’ll ever get over that.

I wish I could, but I can’t help wishing that bad things would happen to those people. It’s actually a burden to carry that kind of animosity, it steals emotional energy, so I sincerely search for ways to let it go & forgive them for my own sake. But I’ve been unable.

Any advice?

[EducatëdHillbilly™ @RobProvince]

I love the Europoors are being told to die for climate change……

[Sovereign Media @sov_media]

THE N*ZIFICATION OF ISRAEL

Renowned political scientist and international relations scholar Prof. John Mearsheimer has delivered a blistering assessment of the Isr*eli public’s widespread complicity in the g*nocide of G*za.

Mearsheimer argued that the current destruction is not just driven by a few extremist leaders, but is widely supported across the country.

While protests exist, Mearsheimer notes, they focus strictly on the hostages and political friction between the military and the government.

"You don't see hardly any protests among the Isr*eli public regarding this genocidal policy," Mearsheimer stated.

Mearsheimer did not mince words when describing this trajectory, declaring that the situation must be called exactly what it is.

"You want to file all of this under the N*zification of Isr*el, that's where it should be filed," Mearsheimer warned.

"This is a country that's gone completely off the rails, and the more that you see it in operation, the more it looks like the Germans under H*tler... We're talking about eradicating all of the P*lestinians in G*za, m*rdering them," he added.

Mearsheimer concluded by slamming the abandonment of historical lessons, stating it is hard to believe that the post-WWII principle of "never again" is completely ignored when it applies to P*lestinians, while Western powers refuse to lift a finger to stop a categorically reprehensible catastrophe.

[Richard Hanania @RichardHanania]

The European Commission literally shut off air conditioning but only for floors 1-7, where people of lower rank work.

[dimitri @dimitrigalanis]

@Antonio_DiSiena I visited Puglia on 2007. I will never forget how marvelous and how cheap the food was.

[Elon Musk @elonmusk]

https://t.co/yvJOwOS4xE

[Ryan Williams @koreanscot]

Germany tried to ban to ban the movie Citizen Vigilante, but it had the opposite effect gaining more than 20 million views on X!! The first clip is not a part of the movie. It’s real footage coming out the UK. #citizenvigilantepartner

[dimitri @dimitrigalanis]

Δεν υπάρχει plan B

[Μιχάλης Χριστοδουλίδης🇬🇷 @Christo34335862]

Η ΔΕΗ ΑΕ με ένα τετρασέλιδο δελτίο τύπου αναφέρει ότι απο 1η Οκτωβρίου και η τελευταία λιγνιτικη μονάδα (Πτολεμαΐδα 5) θα κλείσει και θα αποτελεί πλεον παρελθόν. Δεν αναφέρει όμως ποιο είναι το ενεργειακό plan B της χώρας σε περίπτωση κρίσης ή διακοπής των ροών lng ! οι ΑΠΕ? που όταν έχει ήλιο ή άνεμο τότε έχουμε κ ενέργεια, ή για να φτιάξουμε αποθήκες (μπαταρίες) 10GW θα περάσει τουλάχιστον μια 15ετία? Τα υδροηλεκτρικά σήμερα δεν μπορούν να καλύψουν πάνω απο 20% της συνολικής ζήτησης, το υπόλοιπο 80%, πως? Πυρηνική ενέργεια ανύπαρκτη, βιοκαύσιμα 1,8%, γεωθερμία 0,9% .....Ακούω για plan B άμεσο

[Μιχάλης Χριστοδουλίδης🇬🇷 @Christo34335862]

Η ΔΕΗ ΑΕ με ένα τετρασέλιδο δελτίο τύπου αναφέρει ότι απο 1η Οκτωβρίου και η τελευταία λιγνιτικη μονάδα (Πτολεμαΐδα 5) θα κλείσει και θα αποτελεί πλεον παρελθόν. Δεν αναφέρει όμως ποιο είναι το ενεργειακό plan B της χώρας σε περίπτωση κρίσης ή διακοπής των ροών lng ! οι ΑΠΕ? που όταν έχει ήλιο ή άνεμο τότε έχουμε κ ενέργεια, ή για να φτιάξουμε αποθήκες (μπαταρίες) 10GW θα περάσει τουλάχιστον μια 15ετία? Τα υδροηλεκτρικά σήμερα δεν μπορούν να καλύψουν πάνω απο 20% της συνολικής ζήτησης, το υπόλοιπο 80%, πως? Πυρηνική ενέργεια ανύπαρκτη, βιοκαύσιμα 1,8%, γεωθερμία 0,9% .....Ακούω για plan B άμεσο

[dimitri @dimitrigalanis]

Every time I hear a political speech or I read those of our leaders, I am horrified at having, for years, heard nothing which sounded human. It is always the same words telling the same lies. And the fact that men accept this, that the people’s anger has not destroyed these hollow clowns, strikes me as proof that men attribute no importance to the way they are governed; that they gamble – yes, gamble – with a whole part of their life and their so called 'vital interests.

― Albert Camus

[dimitri @dimitrigalanis]

“Don’t walk in front of me… I may not follow
Don’t walk behind me… I may not lead
Walk beside me… just be my friend”

― Albert Camus

[dimitri @dimitrigalanis]

We are all special cases.

― Albert Camus

[dimitri @dimitrigalanis]

Freedom is nothing but a chance to be better.

― Albert Camus

[P.G. Papanikolaou @PGPapanikolaou]

Οι Κούληδες κάνουν πλάκα στον Τζίφρα για την μνημονιάρα την τρίτη την μακρύτερη που ψήφισαν οι Κούληδες στην βΟλή αγκαλίτσα με τον Τζίφρα. Από την μια καλά του κάνουν, από την άλλη θέλουν να ξεχάσουμε πως αυτά τα μέτρα τα χειροκροτούσαν σαν ξελιγωμένοι.