A political culture full of arsonists.
It should be a cautionary tale. I hope it will be.
A political culture full of arsonists.
It should be a cautionary tale. I hope it will be.
Why who we allow to immigrate into the country matters:
When I first came to the U.S. to finish school, a professor told us to take an exam at home and simply said, “Don’t use Google or open your books.”
— Dan Burmawi (@DanBurmawy) January 6, 2026
As someone who grew up in the Middle East, I couldn’t believe it. What kind of society trusts people like that?
But over time, I…
This would appear to be both a message to Maduro, and the Mullahs… https://t.co/HyTmYyNY6f
— Not-So-OK Boomer (@Rand_Simberg) January 3, 2026
[Saturday-afternoon update]
Eclectic food for thought, from Blake Powers.
[Monday-morning update]
Trump, Maduro, and what’s next?
I just hope they have a better plan than Bush and Cheney did after removing Saddam. It wouldn’t be hard.
[Tuesday-morning update]
How snatching Maduro screws up everyone else’s plans.
This is the most assertive foreign policy against evil since Reagan. Dubya thought he was fighting the “axis of evil,” but he was far too soft on Islam.
[Bumped]
[Update a few minutes later]
The argument going around the Internet is that Cuba, Venezuela and probably Iran soon are no threat because they have completely collapsed with no power, no food, no water. Hence any actions against them are pure cruelty. If anything the rich capitalists should bail them out.…
— wretchardthecat (@wretchardthecat) January 6, 2026
…is (finally) throwing in the towel on Minnesota, after living there most of his life.
It’s time for zero tolerance for it.
Phil Metzger’s top 20:
🧵 1/ Here are the 20 things I’m watching in 2026 as potential disruptors of the space industry (positive & negative). They include things outside the space industry that may have oversized impact inside the space industry.
— Phil Metzger (@DrPhiltill) January 1, 2026
First item on the list:
1. Declining launch costs and… pic.twitter.com/2RtFM68Psu
A clarion call, if we are to not be defeated by China:
I know some people think I only post silly videos and make ridiculous comments.
— Sovey (@SoveyX) January 2, 2026
I joined this platform to write long form articles.
Unfortunately, no one reads more than 280 characters. https://t.co/nsqtmNXkcq
This past year has been good for a number of reasons, but I’m hoping that next year will be even better, both in general, and for space policy and activity.
I’m hoping that the economy will improve sufficiently to prevent the Democrats from taking Congress. I’m also hoping that there will finally be some accountability for all the corruption and lawlessness for the past decade, and not just in Minnesota.
I expect Jared to be aggressive in moving out on his agenda, and I expect Starship to start flying on a more-regular basis. In terms of technology in general, I suspect that we are entering interesting times, in the Chinese sense of the word.
We’re having people over for brunch today, with fresh bagels with lox, quiche, deviled eggs, meats and cheeses, and holiday cookies, while we watch a soggy Rose Parade and football games. The parade and Rose Bowl have been living a charmed life for the past couple decades in terms of weather, but looks like their luck may have run out. One of the things that motivated people to come to California was seeing the people in teeshirts and sunshine on New Years Day while they themselves were snowed in or cold. Maybe this will also dampen the enthusiasm people have had for immigrating here. The Democrats certainly continue to encourage them to leave.
Speaking of football, I was a little surprised, but not shocked, to see Ohio State lose, and I was disappointed, of course, to see Michigan do so, but they were playing only for pride. With the new coach, perhaps they’ll be on track for a better season next year. They’re doing well in basketball, but I hate basketball.
Anyway, that’s all for now. Be kind in comments.
Eric Raymond remembers:
I was writing some code the new-school way yesterday, prompting gpt-4.1 through aider, and for whatever reason my mind flashed back 50 years and the utter freaking enormity of it all crashed in on me like a tidal wave.
— Eric S. Raymond (@esrtweet) December 27, 2025
And now I want to make you feel that, too.
In 1975 I ran…
Well, now we know why he left ULA:
Welcome to Blue Origin, @torybruno. We share a deep belief in supporting our nation with the best technology we can build. Tory brings unmatched experience, and I’m confident he’ll accelerate our ability to deliver on that mission. Glad to have you with us. https://t.co/lBXOGwkKhE
— Dave Limp (@davill) December 26, 2025