In the 2010s, the Icelandic tv station Channel 2 accidentally added subtitles from a gritty crime drama to an episode of Teletubbies. I have translated some of the highlights

“We’re in the midst of a rupture,” says Canadian prime minister Mark Carney, at the World Economic Forum in Davos 🇨🇭, as Trump plots the annexation of Greenland. “You cannot live within the lie of mutual benefit through integration when integration becomes the source of your subordination.”

"We never get accustomed to being less important to other people than they are to us." (Holly Martins) "Nobody thinks in terms of human beings. Governments don't. Why should we?" (Harry Lime) The Third Man (1949) #FilmNoir

Youtube comments of the day: "You’re so anti communist this isn’t a good video." "Real Time History through the eyes of a communist."

In this video, I discuss Trump's obsession with owning Greenland, and what Europe can do about it.

En 2023 à Davos l’ancienne Première ministre finlandaise, Sanna Marin, expliquait que la seule façon pour l'Occident d'éviter des décennies de guerre avec la Russie était de s'assurer que l'Ukraine repousse complètement la Russie hors de son territoire, y compris la Crimée. On ne l’a pas écoutée.

PS. It's important not to assume future separatists will play by democratic rules, campaign and organize peacefully, and gradually gain legitimacy w the population like in Quebec in the 1960s-70s. With US meddling, the process could look dramatically different and be much less organic.

There has never been a Canadian Prime Minster that has used this kind of language since 1945. It's astonishing. The most powerful statement since Freeland's speech on Canadian foreign policy in the House in 2017 (which was also a response to Trump) - and this goes well beyond that.

Those boyars being bad again…

It’s come to this.

Tom Baker is 92 today

Christian mural in Tehran (note blank baby Jesus), spotted back in 2007.

Indian troops arrive in France, WW1. Random find in my old files and no reference, but couldn't help bc they look awesome!

Fallen Danish troops in Afghanistan.

An Inuit man warms his wife’s feet in Peterahwik, Greenland.

Christian mural in Tehran (note blank baby Jesus), spotted back in 2007.

Indian troops arrive in France, WW1. Random find in my old files and no reference, but couldn't help bc they look awesome!

A proposed explanation for the US' desire for Greenland: controlling the island directly becomes more important if they intend to leave NATO.

Youtube comment of the day: "Bob Ross used to say "There are no mistakes, only happy accidents." He obviously never met Franz Conrad von Hötzendorf."

Youtube comment of the day: "Bob Ross used to say "There are no mistakes, only happy accidents." He obviously never met Franz Conrad von Hötzendorf."

A proposed explanation for the US' desire for Greenland: controlling the island directly becomes more important if they intend to leave NATO.

I very much doubt breaking up the world’s strongest military alliance and turning allies into enemies in order to acquire a territory where you can already build as many military bases as you want will improve the security of the United States

Who will rid me of this turbulent priest?

This is quite a post www.planetearthandbeyond.co/p/reality-is...

Indian cavalryman gives some food to a girl, WW1. (I've lost the reference!)

From an older book on the Canadian advance during the Hochwald Gap action in March 1945: "It made one think of Thermopylae, fixing one's thoughts on the failure of Antiochus of Syria, rather than of Leonidas and the Spartans."

Youtube comment of the day: "The 'Sleepwalker Theory' [re 1914] is false [...] whomever spills coffee on the carpet does not burn down the house. They all had plenty of chances to stop it and didn't until there was nobody able to hold a rifle in his hands. Down with Globalism and The Police State!"

Youtube comment of the day: "You're channel is the only history channel I have seen that I watch the entire video without falling asleep."

A snap I took in Yazd, Iran, many years ago.

A shy Iranian girl, many years ago.

Mini-graffiti in Iran, back in 2007.

The very long fuse to the China-Japan War: www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbpj...

Youtube comment of the day: "Having faith in your personal life is great. But having a religious government rule over you is hot garbage."

Conrad's worst mistake? The Carpathian offensives of 1915: www.youtube.com/watch?v=DBpU...

Youtube comment of the day: "Why did you say Grant [when discussing the M3 Grant tank]? It was always called the M3 Lee. Is this another Liberal reason, change the name because of stupid modern sensibilities?"

Youtube comment of the day: "Why did you say Grant [when discussing the M3 Grant tank]? It was always called the M3 Lee. Is this another Liberal reason, change the name because of stupid modern sensibilities?"

This is your reminder that Hungarian-Jewish scientist George de Hevesy dissolved two Nobel Prizes in aqua regia to keep them out of the hands of the Nazis. He then left the dissolved solution on his shelf and fled to Sweden. (After the war he un-dissolved the gold and the prizes were re-cast.)

Conrad's worst mistake? The Carpathian offensives of 1915: www.youtube.com/watch?v=DBpU...

Youtube comment of the day: "Having faith in your personal life is great. But having a religious government rule over you is hot garbage."

Vous le savez peut-être, cet été je suis parti au Québec ! J'ai eu envie de vous raconter ce voyage fantastique, mais sous un angle bien particulier : celui des poutines, parce que j'en ai mangé un certain nombre, et surtout parce que c'est trop bon ! https://youtu.be/9UfCDbHzmvU

NATO member Sweden has sent military personnel to Greenland, to help defend the island against a US attack. I feel like I went mad typing that sentence. www.dn.se/direkt/2026-...

The very long fuse to the China-Japan War: www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbpj...

And here we are: the entire transatlantic alliance is now talking about Greenland, instead of talking about ending the war in Ukraine.

lol

Mini-graffiti in Iran, back in 2007.

A shy Iranian girl, many years ago.

A snap I took in Yazd, Iran, many years ago.

Steven Soderbergh is 63. ‘It takes a lot of energy to be an asshole’ www.vulture.com/2017/11/stev...

Youtube comment of the day: "You're channel is the only history channel I have seen that I watch the entire video without falling asleep."

Happy birthday to William B. Davis, born on this day in 1938 in Toronto! He is best known as the Cigarette Smoking Man on The X-Files. Davis also appeared in many others shows including Continuum, Upload, Stargate SG-1, Smallville and Robson Arms, just to name a few.