Vive

I haven't said anything about what's happening in France because I have no idea what's happening in France.

I have long recognized that I know absolutely nothing about the politics of countries other than the US and the UK, and almost everyone non-French weighing in on such things knows as much as I do.

"We" scoff at the opinions/knowledge of mostly clueless American swing voters when they express themselves to a NYT reporter, and those people know much more about American politics than almost every generalist US pundit knows about France.

Our politics is often incredibly stupid, and so is the politics of France and every country. If you don't have any sense of the stupid bits, you don't really have any sense of what's happening, ever.

Morning

Suck it up, buttercups.

Inside the Khole

I struggle to believe there are any suckers left who buy this, but...

He is taking $250,000 deposits for a product that will supposedly start being produced, not sold, in 2028.

Falling Down

I don’t hate the cold, so much, but I have come to loathe the short days of winter.

Grifts Inside Grifts

I get that people are corrupt, but I have a hard time understanding the fairly common mindset of people who see everything as an opportunity to grift.

The White House investigation into a dispute between two prominent Trump supporters, Richard Grenell and Alina Habba Mildon, centers on a bank transfer from the Democratic Republic of Congo to a Texas defense company, people familiar with the matter said.

Mrs. Mildon, a former personal lawyer for President Trump, stormed into the Oval Office last week accusing Mr. Grenell of siphoning millions of dollars from a business transaction in 2025 organized by a Turkish investor who later became her husband. Part of the money, she claimed, was meant to be set aside for a donation to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts but was never delivered to the institution. Mr. Grenell ran the Kennedy Center at the time.

...

Mrs. Mildon initially told White House officials that the money, $17.6 million, came from her now-husband, Turhan Mildon, whom she married last month. The initial set of documents that her husband’s lawyer submitted to the White House, however, redacted the name of the sender, according to the people familiar with the matter.

The White House later learned that the transfer was made from a bank account affiliated with the Congolese government, the people said. Mr. Mildon has previously acknowledged to The Times, through a spokesman, that he serves as an adviser to the Congolese president and holds a diplomatic passport of the country.

Americas Worst Humans

Thomas Teepell

In the now-viral video, we see a young white man in a gray long-sleeve shirt standing up in a crowd and shouting a question: “Will you disavow the Muslim Brotherhood?” He aimed his question at Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed at a town hall event in Caro, Michigan, on Saturday. From the stage, El-Sayed met it with steely resolve. “Why are you asking the question?” he replied. “What are you implying?”

...

The Handbasket is first to report that Tommy is Thomas Teepell, who, according to his X and Facebook profiles, currently lives in Detroit. Teepell served as Operations Director for Missouri Republican Senator Josh Hawley until February of this year, according to Legistorm. He then took a job as Political Director for the failed gubernatorial campaign of Philip Sarnecki, a Republican businessman in Kansas.

Tommy’s father is Timmy Teepell, a Republican strategist who worked for congressman and then Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal from 2004 to 2011; he also ran Jindal’s ill-fated presidential primary campaign in 2015. He joined the consulting firm OnMessage in 2011, and helped the virtually unknown Hawley get elected Attorney General of Missouri in 2016. Two years later, he helped Hawley become a United States Senator.

This is Tommy. Tommy had a question about my allegiances. Listen to the end to hear about his.

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— Abdul El-Sayed (@abdulelsayed.bsky.social) October 18, 2026 at 2:17 AM

Morning

Sunday Funday

Saturday Happy Hour

Get happy.

If European Politicians Weren't Shit

They would be turning Musk in public enemy #1.

Elon Musk approached Donald Trump with the idea of slowing down Starlink in Ukraine, The Telegraph can reveal.

...


However, after what was described as a “night of carnage” in Kyiv because of the blackout, a senior source said Mr Musk had been alarmed about the possibility of adverse consumer reaction in Europe.

He shouldn't just be worried about the consumer reaction.

If only people had listened to me about Elon, years ago...

Nobody listens to Atrios.

Ah, Well, Nevertheless

These Daily Mail stories aren’t just tabloid trash, they’re simply made up. Up and down the White House, everyone has been thoroughly impressed with Katie in just a few short days on the job. At the end of this second term, she’ll be remembered as one of the all-time greats. https://t.co/DLHxX9d2wq

— Steven Cheung (@StevenCheung47) October 14, 2026

Related

Is The Left-Winger In The House With Us

 

Morning

Slacker Saturday

Happy Hour

Get happy 

A Bit Of A Problem

Not sure I believe it, but it is a problem if random people are freelancing with such things.

Q: If it wasn't you, then who gave the order for Starlink to go down in Ukraine? TRUMP: I don't know

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— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) 16 October 2026 at 18:07

That Was Fun

 BBC news alert.

Was She Hamas

Was honestly curious if the Post would cover this at all. American journalists have shown little solidarity with journalists, even their own colleagues, in Israel/Gaza/West Bank.

ABU FALAH, West Bank — Dozens of masked Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian villagers trying to gather their autumn olive harvest on Friday, setting groves on fire and slinging rocks in a coordinated assault that fits a pattern of escalating settler violence across the occupied West Bank.

Also caught up in the attack was Heidi Levine, a veteran photographer for The Washington Post. Levine, wearing a protective vest clearly marked PRESS on front and back. She was knocked her to the ground, kicked repeatedly and stripped of her cameras and phone.

She was taken to a hospital in the Ramallah area.

Witnesses described a mass, coordinated attack in which dozens of men in black came down from a hilltop settlement near the village of Abu Falah, northeast of Ramallah, where Palestinian families were picking their olives. Video of the incident corroborated the witness accounts.

The Only Man Who Deserved It

And the only man who ever will.

Donald Trump is likely to end up as the only political leader awarded the Fifa peace prize after Gianni Infantino was told at Thursday’s meeting of the Fifa council to make major changes or scrap the controversial award.

Offramp

Trump is looking for an excuse  - any excuse - to declare victory and go home but I do not think he has any way of achieving that, absent a full unreality immersion tank of AI generated "news" and groveling apologies from fake Iranian leaders.

US President Donald Trump on Thursday ruled out the possibility that he would use a nuclear weapon against Iran as he continues to issue threats to the West Asian nation. In an interview with Newsmax, Trump also said that he has no plans to deploy ground troops to the Islamic Republic.

His people might do that for him!

Morning

 Annette Funicello Friday!

Happy Hour

Late start