Odds and Ends — 17 September 2025

@preparedwombat 78

14 days ago

oddsandends

Cryptocurrency, Investing, Money, Economy, Business, AI, and Debt:

US lawmakers tap Saylor, Lee to advance Bitcoin reserve bill

https://twitter.com/SpencerHakimian/status/1967785973510807879

Bitcoin ETFs Record Strongest Inflows Since July, Push Holdings to New High

Coronavirus and Public Health:

Former Officials to Testify the CDC Has Been Politicized

Former officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention plan to tell the powerful Senate health committee on Wednesday that political forces have overtaken scientific evidence at the agency, threatening Americans’ health.

Politics:

Brazil’s ex-president plans to wield political power from prison

Bolsonaro still holds considerable influence over Brazilian politics. If he were to endorse a candidate for the presidential elections next year, that person would be all but guaranteed to make it to the run-off vote against Lula in October 2026.
In exchange, Mr. Bolsonaro is likely to seek a presidential pardon should that person win.

https://twitter.com/gtconway3d/status/1967813620278161825
https://twitter.com/TheRickWilson/status/1967929178159976801

Men Tried to Kill Zambian President with Witchcraft

Two men in Zambia have been handed two-year prison sentences with hard labor after being found guilty of plotting to assassinate the country’s president through witchcraft.
The Zambian and Mozambican nationals were convicted last week under a colonial-era witchcraft statute.
A court determined they possessed various charms, including a live chameleon, an animal tail, and a dozen bottles of concoctions. These items were reportedly intended to cast a fatal spell on President Hakainde Hichilema.

https://twitter.com/JamesSurowiecki/status/1968040791185781099

———— The Epstein Coverup ————

https://twitter.com/acnewsitics/status/1967977942472097862

———— Charlie Kirk ————

https://twitter.com/SundaeDivine/status/1967877982024008173

https://twitter.com/MarkSZaidEsq/status/1967983085225676991

Charlie Kirk, Redeemed: A Political Class Finds Its Lost Cause

By ignoring the rhetoric and actions of the Turning Point USA founder, pundits and politicians are sanitizing his legacy.

https://twitter.com/NickyFrank30/status/1967750430873837959

https://twitter.com/BlueskyLibs/status/1967052884861997279/photo/1

https://twitter.com/gtconway3d/status/1968131834577072146

———— Grilled Kash ————

https://twitter.com/MacFarlaneNews/status/1968003996850819355

https://twitter.com/Acyn/status/1968002330139521042

https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1967980887347195926

https://twitter.com/covie_93/status/1968089278384312510

———— Free Speech for Me But Not for Thee ————

https://twitter.com/covie_93/status/1967977319731184092

Trump Threatens ABC’s Jon Karl to His Face Amid Grilling on ‘Hate Speech’ Crackdown

House Republicans Move to Censure Ilhan Omar

Two House Republicans introduced separate resolutions to punish Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) for her comments about the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, Axiosreports.
Said Omar, in a Zeteo interview last week: “There is nothing more fucked up to completely pretend his words and actions have not been recorded and in existence for the last decade or so.”

https://twitter.com/Timodc/status/1967658029748494613

Republicans Embrace Speech Limits

…Trump and MAGA spent years lampooning censorship, discrimination against conservatives, and progressive ‘cancel culture.’
Now in power — and riding an outpouring of grief and fury over Charlie Kirk’s tragic killing — they’re enforcing speech codes to punish ideological opponents.

https://twitter.com/RonFilipkowski/status/1967888544304873810

———— Theresienstadt in the Everglades ————

Hundreds of Alligator Alcatraz Detainees Drop Off the Grid

For the hundreds of men who were detained at Alligator Alcatraz, entering the gates of the makeshift migrant detention center in the Everglades meant exiting the labyrinthine but familiar federal immigration process and entering what several immigration attorneys described as an alternate system where the normal rules don’t apply.
As of the end of August, the whereabouts of two-thirds of more than 1,800 men detained at Alligator Alcatraz during the month of July could not be determined.

———— Autocracy R Us ————

https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1967700049279823971

https://twitter.com/sdflbb/status/1968156426502578470

https://twitter.com/AaronBlake/status/1968043368820445435

Thank you, Memory Hole!

https://twitter.com/RonFilipkowski/status/1967931225332732128

———— Blatant In-Your-Face Corruption ————

https://twitter.com/RonFilipkowski/status/1967954253974298908

https://twitter.com/Kasparov63/status/1968076805258219934

———— Putin&Krasnov vs. Ukraine ————

https://twitter.com/Kasparov63/status/1967940997217997307

https://twitter.com/tshevcom/status/1967902484556591582

Frustrated GOP senators blow steam on Russia: ‘Sick of’ Trump, Vance ‘love affair’ with Putin

Russia subjecting abducted Ukrainian children to "forced militarization" at 210 facilities, study finds

https://twitter.com/igorsushko/status/1967740749514207297

https://twitter.com/EuromaidanPress/status/1967863023931883693

Russian hackers target Polish hospitals and city water supply

Warsaw increases cyber security budget as Moscow makes up to 50 sabotage attempts a day, says minister

https://twitter.com/victoriaslog/status/1967324304657588530

https://twitter.com/Tendar/status/1967967095171547313

https://twitter.com/secretsqrl123/status/1967931818461761647

———— Smoot-Hawley 2.0 ————

https://twitter.com/RonFilipkowski/status/1967961539748794554

———— Hegseth on the Rocks ————

Pentagon Cracks Down on Posts About Charlie Kirk

Within hours of Kirk’s assassination, the MAGA Right began claiming that “the Left” was celebrating his death. Their evidence? A handful of random Bluesky posts from people with no role in the Democratic Party or progressive infrastructure. To my knowledge, every elected Democrat and progressive leader who has spoken publicly about Kirk has condemned his killing and called for an end to political violence…
At the Pentagon, Pete Hegseth took things even further…
…the Secretary of Defense is asking the public to report U.S. troops for exercising the same freedom of speech we ask them to defend with their lives.
Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell responded to criticism of this policy with an unhinged post on X, suggesting that expressing an opinion is a ‘violation of the oath.’ What the hell is he talking about?

Defense Bill Opens Door To Guns-For-Hire At The Border

The must-pass legislation that just passed the House would, for the first time, allow the Pentagon to send private military contractors to the border.