Monday, June 30, 2025
Recognizing different dialects of Arabic
The letter qaf, usually transliterated with a q, is often silent or pronounced as a hamza (glottal stop) in Lebanese Arabic.
A kind a common phrase sounds like habib elbi, meaning "love of my heart". The same phrase in Modern Standard Arabic is habib qalbi.
Qaf in Iraqi and Jordanian Arabic often sounds like the g in dog. Palestinian Arabic is similar.
Egyptians pronounce jeem, the equivalent to the letter j, like the g in dog. Hence the name Gamel instead of the usual Jamaal.
Iraqis often pronounce jeem like the ch in the word chin.
Sudanese often speak slower. It's the easiest dialect to understand.
Yemenis say hagga a lot. Everything's hagga this and hagga that.
Syrian is similar to Lebanese. Both sometimes mix in French words as is common in Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia.
Memnouah! (Forbidden) is a good show for learning Levantine Arabic.
I wrestled a manatee?
A friend shared this image with me. He didn't tell me who drew it or why. I prefer to savor the mystery.
Also, I like manatees. I fed lettuce to one at the animal hospital in Homosassa.
An excellent medical manual - Where There Is No Doctor
It is available for free in various languages from the Hesperian Foundation. It was standard issue when I was in Peace Corps. The title in Swahili is Mahali Pasipo Na Daktari.
Greetings to my readers in Egypt
I had the pleasure of visiting your fine country in late 2009. Luxor was a feast for my eyes.
The secret recipe looks even more exotic in Arabic.
Iran's nuclear program was always a bargaining chip
It began under the shah in 1974, and the current regime has been enriching uranium since at least 2002.
They want nuclear weapons for the same reason as North Korea: defense. Until the current war in Ukraine, no country with nuclear weapons has even been invaded or attacked. I don't count the recent Kashmir clash or China-India border skirmishes since those are disputed territories.
Iran would be willing to give up its nuclear program for the same reasons North Korea considered it: sanctions relief and security guarantees.
I don't think it's possible to stop Iran's nuclear program with either sanctions or military force. Both have been tried already. The Stuxnet cyberattack was in 2010, and the US has had sanctions on Iran since 1979.
The only other country which has been under US sanctions longer is Cuba, and sanctions haven't worked there either.
Gaddafi gave up Libya's nuclear program in 2003 and was overthrown in 2011 with the help of US airstrikes. Iran is not going to make the same mistake.
Future negotiations seem extremely unlikely without major concessions from the US and others. Furthermore, any country concerned about being attacked by Israel or the US now has an even stronger incentive to develop nuclear weapons.
There is no reason for the US to even be involved with stopping Iran's nuclear program except Israeli influence.
Sunday, June 29, 2025
my favorite rock and heavy metal songs
UNLEASH THE ARCHERS - Test Your Metal (Official Video) | Napalm Records
My favorite techno, dance, and electronic music
Plato said the contemplation of beauty gives the soul wings.
Sucker for Love: Date to Die For (Teaser Trailer)
Nightcore II: Ravers Fantasy - YouTube
Saturday, June 28, 2025
My favorite jihad songs
I oppose militant Islam and joined the Army in part to fight it. Even so, they have some catchy tunes.
Oghzo ' Alayhim أغزوا عليهم : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive
https://archive.org/details/OghzoAlayhim
Na’am Qatil / نعم قاتل (Yes, fight)
Nasheed Saleel Sawarim - Mojevideo
https://www.mojevideo.sk/video/21fd8/nasheed_saleel_sawarim.html
This song ruffled enough feathers to open a pillow factory:
For the sake of Allah | IS Nasheed | sk titulky - Mojevideo
Per capita GDP in Cuba, Venezuela, and Brazil
Brazil: $9,258
Cuba: $7,252
Venezuela: $2,624 (disputed)
It's incredible that a country with so much oil like Venezuela could end up poorer than Cuba. Venezuela used to be the richest country in South America, and Cuba used to be the richest country in the Caribbean.
How Socialism Ruined My Country | 5 Minute Video
Vietnam could be as rich as Singapore or Hong Kong
The difference is that Vietnam is a one-party state and the other two are not, though their politics have been heavily influenced respectively by the People's Action Party and the Chinese Communist Party.
Vietnam per capita GDP: $4,282
China per capita GDP: $13,300
Hong Kong per capita GDP: $54,079
Singapore per capita GDP: $90,689
It's incredible that the Vietnamese have been willing to be so much poorer than countries nearby for so long.
Allowing private property would also help.
The vicious circle of life
Oh, how I laughed:
Lion cub play with Dad's balls.
15 Brutal Hippo Attacks Caught on Camera
My close call with alligators in Georgia:
Friday, June 27, 2025
Free English lesson - "get bent, pinkos!"
get bent, pinkos! = fuck communists/socialists! = down with communism/socialism!
Donald Trump Tank Picture Video
Lee Greenwood - God Bless The U.S.A.
My good friend CPRM's hilarious political cartoons
If you like my content, you'll like his too. My favorite one:
Spot the Not #154 - mistakes were made...
All of the following are real quotes from politicians except one. Can you Spot the Not?
1. Mistakes were made. Then, other larger mistakes were made.
2. Mistakes have been made, as all can see and I admit.
3. Serious mistakes were made.
4. It is quite possible that mistakes were made.
5. Mistakes were made in terms of comments.
6. Serious mistakes were made.
Ah, the glory of the passive voice. It is the prevaricating politician's perfect pal.
Spot the Not #153 - the oldest trick in the book
All the following are real events except one. Can you Spot the Not?
1. This Muslim king released flaming birds into an enemy city to destroy it.
2. This Viking warrior released flaming birds into an enemy city to destroy it.
3. This queen released flaming birds into an enemy city to destroy it.
4. This Mongol released flaming birds and cats into an enemy city to destroy it.
5. This country considered releasing bats with firebombs to burn enemy cities.
6. This Chinese general released flaming oxen into an enemy city to burn it.
Spot the Not #152 - Pat Buchanan
All the following are real quotes from him except one. Can you Spot the Not?
1. Parents have a right to insist that godless evolution not be taught to their children.
2. Bill Clinton's foreign policy experience stems mainly from having breakfast at the International House of Pancakes.
3. No one has deputized America to play Wyatt Earp to the world.
4. Terrorism is the price of empire. If we do not wish to pay it, we must give up the empire.
5. The ultimate goal of the anti-religious elites is to transform America into a completely secular nation, a nation that is legally and culturally biased against Christianity.
6. The War Between the States was about independence, about self-determination, about the right of a people to break free of a government to which they could no longer give allegiance.
Spot the Not #151 - Mitch McConnell
All of the following are real quotes from him except one. Can you Spot the Not?
1. Nobody is happy about losing lives but remember, these are not draftees. These are full-time professional soldiers.
2. We need to strengthen and save Social Security for today's workers. If we don't act now, this system, born out of the New Deal, will become a bad deal.
3. The problem with the world today is people have put away their Bibles. They're living by the law of the jungle and not the law of the land.
4. We all know that Social Security is one of this country's greatest success stories in the 20th century.
5. The Patriot Act is one of the most important and overdue pieces of legislation in a generation.
6. Under ordinary circumstances, I would have opposed such a measure. Government intervention in the marketplace cuts against all my ordinary impulses. But this was not an ordinary event.
Spot the Not #150 - Mitt Romney
Two of the following are real quotes from him. Can you Spot the Not?
1. The one by L. Ron Hubbard...I'm not in favor of his religion by any means, but he wrote a book called Battlefield Earth that was a very fun science fiction book.
2. I've been hunting my whole life. Not big game, but rodents and varmints and such. I was 15 when I first bought a gun.
3. I believe in an America where millions of Americans believe in an America that's the America millions of Americans believe in. That's the America I love.
Spot the Not #149 - Michael Savage
All of the following are real quotes from him except one. Can you Spot the Not?
1. Oh, so you're one of those sodomites. You should only get AIDS and die, you pig; how's that?
2. These here are the top of the line. Scientifically engineered and all that crap. Guaranteed by some Sierra Club asshole not to hurt a chipmunk IF you step on it!
3. Your job is to struggle until you drop dead. That's it. Stop trying to be happy.
4. When I go to a religious service, I want the heavy-duty. I want the heavy duty; I want the tequila of services.
5. Marijuana was the most destructive element in my life... Marijuana is the most dangerous of all drugs.
6. I would also make the construction of mosques illegal in America and the speaking of English only in the streets of the United States the law.
Spot the Not #148 - Louis Farrahkhan
All of the following are real quotes from him except one. Can you Spot the Not?
1. America is in trouble, and I say God is about to wipe this nation from the face of the Earth. I'm not crazy, I'm not drunk, how long do you think a nation can do evil and not face the wrath of god?
2. You see everybody always talk about Hitler exterminating six million Jews. That s right. But don't nobody ever ask what did they do to Hitler.
3. The Mother Wheel is a heavily armed spaceship the size of a city, which will rain destruction upon white America but save those who embrace the Nation of Islam.
4. If somebody told me I only had one hour to live, I'd spend it choking a White man. I'd do it nice and slow.
5. White people are potential humans; they haven't evolved yet.
6. Qaddafi is hated because he is the leader of a small country that is rich, but he uses his money to finance liberation struggles.
His sartorial excellence may be viewed here:
He's Alex Jones with a tan and a more interesting wardrobe.
Spot the Not #147 - Jeb Bush
Two of the following are real quotes from him. Can you Spot the Not?
1. I don't wake up each morning saying, 'Oh, wow, it's me. I think I'm the cat's meow. I'm the best.'
2. If more people were actively engaged in advocating their positions, I think we'd have a better society.
3. Immigrants built our country. They have more children, start more businesses, and bring new ideas.
Obama quotes - bathos
No spot the not here, just a bunch of Obama quotes I found amusing:
1. No party has a monopoly on wisdom. No democracy works without compromise.
2. I believe marriage is between a man and a woman. I am not in favor of gay marriage.
What a great bit of wisdom this is:
3. I don't oppose all wars. What I am opposed to is a dumb war.
4. It was not a religion that attacked us that September day. It was al-Qaeda.
5. What do you think a stimulus is? It's spending - that's the whole point! Seriously.
6. I think when you spread the wealth around it's good for everybody.
Oh, how I laughed.
Her face says it all. Then she says "I think I use heavier weights."
Jesus Christ on a motorbike, what a dingleberry.
Thursday, June 26, 2025
1972 Soviet propaganda film targeting Latin and South America - translated to English
1972 USSR Propaganda Film Calls America Evil Twisting Our Reality
I didn't notice anything in the film that was incorrect.
Spot the Not #146 - Adam Smith
All the following are real quotes from him except one. Can you Spot the Not?
1. Mercy to the guilty is cruelty to the innocent.
2. It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer, or the baker that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own interest.
3. What is prudence in the conduct of every private family, can scarce be folly in that of a great kingdom.
4. Little else is requisite to carry a state to the highest degree of opulence from the lowest barbarism, but peace, easy taxes, and a tolerable administration of justice: all the rest being brought about by the natural course of things.
5. It is not very unreasonable that the rich should contribute to the public expense, not only in proportion to their revenue, but something more than in that proportion.
6. Millions for defense, but not one penny for tribute.
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