The Iran war continues, with Operation Epstein racking up loss after loss, all while the Epstein-in-Chief Donald Trump tries to spin the self-inflicted disaster as a win. His posts in Truth Social show that he is sunsetting, and the syphilitic dementia is growing worse every day.
And President Epstein’s supporters – which includes every Republican voter at all levels of government and society – believe every word he posts on Truth Social. They eat that shit up. They are coprophages of the soul. And I say Every Republican, because at this point there is no meaningful difference between hardcore MAGA lickspittles and the most detached, disaffected, uninterested voter who only supported the Republican school board member because he was a friend. Once infected with fascism, there is no path to redemption.
The negative effects of the Trump/Epstein regime will haunt our country for the next century. There are many paths forward out of this mess, but few of them will carry any kind of significant improvement. In order for things to actually get better, first we would need to remove from power everyone who had a hand in making things worse. But we do not have the moral or political will to purge the world of the Epstein class, because there is too much money to be made by letting them stay in power.
Reading
In my few spare moments I have started reading Quiet Woman, a collection of poetry by Katie Kalisz. These are some seriously good poems.
Writing
As usual, nothing much to report here, unless React code counts as “writing.”
Weekly Writing Prompt
Subject: Precursors, Empire
Setting: Bar
Genre: Weird Fiction
Listening
Massive Attack and Tom Waits, “Boots on the Ground”.
Interesting Links
- “Iran War: Negotiations Fail; US Provokes with Destroyer Entry into Strait, Perhaps Pointing to Next Kinetic Moves” (Naked Capitalism, 2026.04.12)
- “Iran War: US Imposing Strait of Hormuz Blockade Monday AM; Experts Criticize Further Pressure on Oil Prices, Illegality, and Risk of Failure; Will Houthis Close the Red Sea to Back Iran?” (Naked Capitalism, 2026.04.13)
- “Iran War: Contested Reports About US Blockade Failure in First 24 Hours as Saudi Arabia Protests and Experts Warn of Difficulty and High Risk; Markets Still Buying Trump Howlers About Iran Begging for Deal Despite Intelligence-Insulting Lie About His Jesus Tweet” (Naked Capitalism, 2026.04.14)
- “Iran War: Pervasive Misinformation About the (So Far Successful) US Blockade; Trump Keeps Up “Negotiations Soon” Hype; Markets Become Even More Unhinged” (Naked Capitalism, 2026.04.15)
- “Iran War: Trump Expects Hugs From China, Israel Still Bombing Lebanon” (Naked Capitalism, 2026.04.16)
- “Iran War: Narrative Wars and Ceasefire Claims” (Naked Capitalism, 2026.04.17)
- “Iran War: Gaslighting Hits Epic Levels Over “Strait Completely Open” Fast Breakdown, Trump Smack Talk About Collecting Uranium as US Looks to Be Readying Massive Attack” (Naked Capitalism, 2026.04.18)