Odds and Ends — 28 February 2026

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

Bitcoin price drops to $63K as US, Israel bomb Iran

https://twitter.com/pfau/status/2027517688302497826

FUD takes many forms: Minnesota Weighs Total Ban on Bitcoin and Crypto ATMs

Flash Fiction:

Brian’s wife had put up with his crap for years, but finally reached her breaking point when he’d left a burning cigarette on the kitchen table that had rolled off and fallen onto their labradoodle Snuffles, setting it ablaze. She’d saved Snuffles, and possibly the house, by pouring her glass of Gewürztraminer on the dog.

“That’s it! I’m done with you. I’m taking Snuffles and staying with my mother. Get used to dinner for one, you loser” she said, slamming the door on her way out.

Written for this prompt.

Coronavirus and Public Health:

European regulators recommend approval of combined mRNA vaccine for flu and COVID

Politics:

US military shot down border patrol drone with laser in Texas

Israelis No Longer Ahead in Middle East Sympathies

Forty-one percent of Americans now say they sympathize more with the Palestinians in the Middle East situation, while 36% sympathize more with the Israelis.
The five-percentage-point difference is not statistically significant, but it contrasts with a clear lead for the Israelis only a year ago (46% vs. 33%) and larger leads over the prior 24 years.

———— Minnesota Under Siege ————

https://twitter.com/NiallStanage/status/2027337570753880197

———— Iran ————

https://twitter.com/shanaka86/status/2027381369014481319

https://twitter.com/FinPlanKaluAja1/status/2027360942238187600

Weakened Iran has called Trump’s bluff

Perhaps Iran has grasped something Donald Trump has not – holding good cards does not always mean holding a strong hand

Trump’s case for striking Iran rests on questionable claims.

As they made their public case for another American military campaign against Iran, President Trump and his aides asserted that Iran had restarted its nuclear program, had enough available nuclear material to build a bomb within days and was developing long-range missiles that will soon be capable of hitting the United States.
All three of these claims are either false or unproven.

Over 50 killed in strike on girls’ elementary school in Iran

The Paradox of Trump’s Iran Attack

You don’t go bankrupt as often as Trump has gone bankrupt if you’re good at assessing risk. Trump tells ridiculous fantasies presumably because he believes ridiculous fantasies. In this second Trump administration, he has surrounded himself with sycophants who validate his ridiculous fantasies. When his fantasies unravel, Trump has a habit of abusing power to force his will upon an uncooperative world.
If an actual shooting war goes amiss—takes too long, fails to yield the cheap and easy success Trump craves—what follows at home may exceed all past abuses of power.

Trump Was Told Attack Was High Risk, High Reward

———— The Epstein Coverup ————

Democrats Say They Have the Votes to Subpoena Lutnick

Democrats on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee have the votes to force Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to testify before their panel about his relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

https://twitter.com/BraddrofliT/status/2027426647893553309

https://twitter.com/ImAaronEColyer/status/2027581669566197828

———— Yes, He’s Planning Election Interference ————

It Can Now Be Plainly Said: Trump Is Planning a November Coup d’État

Draw the Line Now Against a Trump Election Takeover

https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/2027513739533017118

https://twitter.com/TheRickWilson/status/2027513461765202240

———— Autocracy R Us ————

Marco Rubio’s New Loyalty Oath

Ideological screenings are just the beginning of the State Department’s political tests for new foreign service officers, who must affirm their support for Trump’s executive orders, navigate training seminars monitored by Trump appointees, and demonstrate their ‘fidelity’ at every turn.

https://twitter.com/TheMaineWonk/status/2027554078100754601

———— Putin&Krasnov vs. Ukraine ————

https://twitter.com/AlecMacGillis/status/2027503023140806907

https://twitter.com/ManiamAkash/status/2027465990137593962

———— Hegseth on the Rocks ————

https://twitter.com/BenjaminDEKR/status/2027183749301989787

https://twitter.com/deanwball/status/2027521251263000765

https://twitter.com/JosephPolitano/status/2027519910541144358

The information space around military AI is being weaponized against us

How the recent debate over AI weapons systems was engineered to protect power at the expense of democratic discourse.

https://twitter.com/heyshrutimishra/status/2027384002336928230

https://twitter.com/janleike/status/2027521943491252501

https://twitter.com/DarrigoMelanie/status/2027591411315445810

https://twitter.com/shanaka86/status/2027601596490883547

———— Mors Imperii ————

https://twitter.com/AndrewKaufmanMD/status/2027413753000591571

https://twitter.com/ShawnChittle/status/2027482110060110205

Serendipity:

https://twitter.com/CindySinor/status/2027049057491747116

https://twitter.com/OldWest1453/status/2027204378512576829

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