Jonathan S.

time will say nothing but I told you so

[Jonathan S. @du_Garbandier]

"...of all the billions and billions of strange objects in the Cosmos—novas, quasars, pulsars, black holes—you are beyond doubt the strangest."
—Walker Percy, Lost in the Cosmos

[Encyclopaedia Britannica @Britannica]

Today officially marks the beginning of the late 2020s.

[Jonathan S. @du_Garbandier]

@OpenAI This is the art that the Cordyceps parasitic fungus creates when it infects, manipulates, and kills a grasshopper for its own reproductive ends. It is more of a mockery of creation than anything truly creative.

[Jonathan S. @du_Garbandier]

We should not sow death.

[Benjamin Ryan @benryanwriter]

The New York Times editorial board writes:

America Mourns Charlie Kirk

The assassination of Charlie Kirk — the founder of a youth political movement that helped revolutionize modern conservatism — at Utah Valley University on Wednesday is a tragedy. His killing is also part of a horrifying wave of political violence in America.

Since last year alone, a gunman killed a member of the Minnesota State Legislature and her husband and shot another Minnesota politician and his wife; a man set fire to the home of Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania; and a would-be assassin shot Donald Trump on the campaign trail. In 2022, an attacker broke into Representative Nancy Pelosi’s home and fractured her husband’s skull. In 2021, a violent mob attacked Congress, smashing windows and brutalizing police officers. In 2017, a gunman shot four people at a Republican practice for the congressional baseball game, badly wounding Representative Steve Scalise of Louisiana.

While the motives of Mr. Kirk’s killer are unclear, Mr. Kirk was a prominent political figure speaking at a political event. His killing is political in its consequences.

Such violence is antithetical to America. The First Amendment — the first for a reason — enshrines our rights to freedom of speech and expression. Our country is based on the principle that we must disagree peacefully. Our political disagreements may be intense and emotional, but they should never be violent. This balance requires restraint. Americans have to accept that their side will lose sometimes and that they may feel angry about their defeats. We cannot act on that anger with violence.

Too many Americans are abandoning this ideal. Thirty-four percent of college students recently said they supported using violence in some circumstances to stop a campus speech, according to a poll from the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression published a day before the Kirk shooting. Since 2021, that share has risen from 24 percent, which was already unacceptably high. Surveys of older adults are similarly alarming.

This editorial board disagreed with Mr. Kirk on many policy questions, and we are unreservedly horrified by his killing. We grieve for his loved ones. We mourn his death. Amanda Litman, president of the left-leaning group Run for Something, offered an appropriate response: “Political violence is meant to scare and silence — it is absolutely never acceptable. We don’t have to agree with someone to affirm they have a right to speak their mind without fearing for their life or safety.” Many prominent Democrats and Republicans offered similar sentiments.

Whatever the killer’s motives, it is clear that political violence is a problem that extends across ideology. Prominent conservatives, moderates and liberals have all been victims in recent years.
The intensity of our political debates will not disappear. The stakes are too high, and the country disagrees on too many important questions. But we Americans have lost some of our grace and empathy in recent years. We too often wish ill on our political opponents. We act as if people’s worth is determined by whether they identify as a Republican or a Democrat. We dehumanize those with whom we differ.

This is a moment to turn down the volume and reflect on our political culture. It is a moment for restraint, rather than cycles of vengeance or the suspension of civil liberties, as some urged on Wednesday. It is also a moment to engage with people who have different views from our own. When societies lose the ability to argue peacefully and resort to violence to resolve their political debates, it usually ends very badly.

[Jonathan S. @du_Garbandier]

"Violence is hubris, fury, madness. [...] Violence begets violence — nothing else. [...] Violence can never realize a noble aim, can never create liberty or justice."
--Jacques Ellul, Violence: Reflections From a Christian Perspective (1969)

https://t.co/Ti6EWy0soS

[Jonathan S. @du_Garbandier]

How vile are the fuming hatreds that incline a person to the logic of bloodshed. Let us pour out love and mercy wherever we can; we may quench fires of hatred inside someone that even they may not have understood themselves.

[Jonathan S. @du_Garbandier]

@FrankCaliendo The Grudfather

[The Onion @TheOnion]

Election Touchscreen Map Takes Deeper Look Inside Key Swing Voter | Onion News Network

ONN political analyst Jason Copeland breaks down the latest presidential polling trends going on inside Pennsylvania resident Nick Camden.

[Jonathan S. @du_Garbandier]

When I was Childe Harold for Halloween, I walked as Childe Harold. But when I became Thomas Mann for Halloween, I put away Childe Haroldish things.

[Jonathan S. @du_Garbandier]

Farewell to a truly great singer. #SineadOConnor

https://t.co/TpQ62pMc22

[Jonathan S. @du_Garbandier]

@elonmusk Day one of tweet rations

[Jonathan S. @du_Garbandier]

@exjon "All of humanity's problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone with 600 tweets max." Pascal

[Jonathan S. @du_Garbandier]

Happy Canada Day

[Historic Vids @historyinmemes]

Shavarsh Karapetyan, a retired Armenian swimmer, was involved in a remarkable incident in 1976. After completing a 26 km (16 mile) run, he heard a loud crash and discovered that a trolleybus had lost control and fallen into a reservoir. The trolleybus had sunk to a depth of 10 meters (33 ft), approximately 25 meters (82 ft) from the shore.

Despite the challenging conditions of sewage-infested waters and poor visibility due to silt, Karapetyan courageously dived in and used his legs to kick open the back window of the trolleybus. With incredible determination, he managed to rescue 46 out of the 92 passengers onboard, saving the lives of 20 individuals.

However, the cold water and the glass shards caused multiple lacerations, leading Karapetyan to be hospitalized for 45 days. He faced additional complications such as pneumonia and sepsis. Although he eventually recovered, the damage to his lungs prevented him from continuing his successful career as a swimmer.

"I knew that I could only save so many lives, I was afraid to make a mistake. It was so dark down there that I could barely see anything. One of my dives, I accidentally grabbed a seat instead of a passenger. I could have saved a life instead. That seat still haunts me in my nightmares," he said.

In 1985, Karapetyan encountered a blazing building where several individuals were trapped. Without hesitation, he courageously entered the building and commenced rescuing the people inside. Unfortunately, he suffered severe burns during the rescue operation and required hospitalization once again.

During his later years, Karapetyan relocated to Moscow and established a shoe company named "Second Breath." Remarkably, he is alive to this day and actively manages his business.

[Jonathan S. @du_Garbandier]

What a glorious week it must have been for those people on Facebook and Nextdoor who are endlessly asking about what was in sky, what was that noise, etc.

[Jonathan S. @du_Garbandier]

@OrrellAEI Perhaps our Foamhenge https://t.co/X3XjzHnT1r

[Jonathan S. @du_Garbandier]

@BillWalton

[Jonathan S. @du_Garbandier]

@thomaschattwill David The French

[Jonathan S. @du_Garbandier]

HAIL HOLY LIGHT