Everything Is Fine

CENTCOM Statement on U.S. Strikes in Iraq and Syria

At 4:00 p.m. (EST) Feb. 02, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces conducted airstrikes in Iraq and Syria against Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Quds Force and affiliated militia groups. U.S. military forces struck more than 85 targets, with numerous aircraft to include long-range bombers flown from United States. The airstrikes employed more than 125 precision munitions. The facilities that were struck included command and control operations centers, intelligence centers, rockets, and missiles, and unmanned aerial vehicle storages, and logistics and munition supply chain facilities of militia groups and their IRGC sponsors who facilitated attacks against U.S. and Coalition forces.

“Customer Agreement Contracts”

I feel safer already.

David Clinton- Terms and Conditions: How Canadian Banks Override Their Customers’ Property Rights

Even if their best years might now lie behind them, the Big Five still consistently produce multi-billion dollar profits. And they’re pretty good at protecting your money from crime.

But will they, as institutions, necessarily treat you fairly? Based on the contents of their customer agreement contracts, it seems that’ll depend entirely on how they feel on a given day.

“The administration subsequently leaked which targets had been approved.”

Election fraud has consequences.

Biden has been talking tough with Iran for many, many weeks, and Iran has repeatedly proven that it is not deterred by his words. But the moment troops were killed, Biden was suddenly under pressure to respond with more than just idle threats. And he did promise a response.

And then promptly broadcast those plans to Iran.

Sources within the administration leaked the details of potential moves by the administration to Politico.

Apartheid Redux

I have a suggestion for these purveyors of nouveau segregation: in order to ensure compliance, they ought to have a few members of a Race Classification Board on hand to administer various tests to ensure that non-black folx are not horning in on activities reserved only for black folx.

Twice a week, the University of Waterloo athletic centre suspends its usual calendar of mid-morning swim lessons, and reserves its 25-yard pool for the exclusive use of a demographic that, in their words, does not have a good “relationship with water.”

“The aim is to get more Black Folx into a space where they haven’t always been welcomed,” reads the official description for the “Black Folx swim,” a 60-minute Black-only pool time. Users can swim lengths, practice diving or sign-up for a lesson. But they — and all the instructors — must be “Black folx.”

We’re going to need a LOT of reactors in Saskatchewan…

SaskPower and GE Hitachi advance small modular reactor plans, but won’t say how many, or how much they’ll cost just yet. Also, SaskPower looking at increasing grid by 2.5x in 25 years and 11 months. Didn’t I just write a column about that earlier this week? Oh yeah. What doubling the grid really means. Also, if you start doing the math, my earlier predictions Saskatchewan will need 15-20 small modular reactors (if not more) is looking pretty much on the money.

We Don’t Need No Flaming Sparky Cars

Bloomberg News;

Since 2021, lithium prices have surged 10-fold, only to crash back to earth, wiping out billions of dollars in miners’ shares and forcing supply cuts. The ripple effects of this ride are only just beginning.

The reversal of fortunes for the electric-vehicle battery metal has been nothing short of stunning. Its rapid ascent to a record in late 2022 sparked a rush by mining and refining companies to expand output, while automakers scrambled to lock in supply deals.

A little over a year later, it’s a different landscape. Major producers are issuing profit warnings, and in Australia — the No. 1 source of unprocessed lithium — miners are retrenching. Even Greenbushes, the country’s largest project, announced cutbacks this week.

The turnaround is bad news for the nation’s economy, where the hope was that energy-transition metals would breathe new life into a mining sector dominated by iron ore and coal. It’s already prompted discussions of government support, with one industry group calling for tax credits and royalty reform.

Lower lithium prices are, in theory, good for automakers as well as EV buyers. But in practice, the slump may deter investors as they wait to see whether the market has bottomed.

Vancouver, 2024 Edition

A longtime Vancouver friend shared this story, adding “pretty constant now”:

Two suspects now face criminal charges after allegedly setting off bear spray inside the Kitsilano Arc’teryx store, grabbing $25,000 worth of jackets and clothing, and fleeing in a cab.

According to police, a man and a woman entered the store, located near West 4th and Arbutus in Vancouver, on Monday evening at around 6:30 p.m. Bear spray was used and, in the ensuing melee, the pair allegedly gathered $25,000 worth of Arc’teryx merchandise and fled the area after hailing a cab.

One wonders if they’re learning lessons from down the Left Coast in San Francisco, where most any criminal activity is tolerated.

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