Welcome back to what’s another workweek (for the young) and another Week of Mystery for the retired.

Week of Mystery because I still haven’t figured out why “time twisted” when passing 67. I just know there’s still not enough time to “get it all done.”  But somehow, under 65, it was all so easy.

Markets: War on the Money Front

Stock futures were down a bit early and we attribute that to news from the war.  “What war?” Oh!  the one over world domination as Reserve Currency issuer, of course!

Let’s do the Rube Goldberg on this:

Tariffs are only a single lever and yes, ‘Oppose using tariffs as a tool of coercion’: China on Trump’s warning of 10% tariff to countries aligning with BRICS.

But everything in finance is “geared” as you can see:  Move one price and the whole system has to adjust because of how the leveraging works.

The BRICS countries are a big enough body pile that if they decide to settle all trade deals in Chinese Yuan, then Uncle Sam‘s got him a Ben Dover moment.  If you’re over 30, you’ll remember Ben Dover as the economist behind the Central Bankster’s continuous inflation model. Which replaced purchasing power with debt.

Some people get all worked up over the crookedness of the system.  But as the life and times of our Developer-in-Chief show the old saying in finance circles goes like this:

“If you owe the Bank $1 million dollars, YOU have a problem.

If you owe the Bank $1 billion dollars, THE BANK has a problem.”

This morning, the Dollar looks back in the game. BUT:

• Dollar going up means you don’t need as many of them to buy gold or silver. Price comes down, follow?
• Relatively Bitcoin dialed back its run at $110,000.
• ODDITY: Stocks in Europe are up today.
• Asia was generally down, understanding the FOREX shells screaming overhead…

Brent crude was up, so along with the Eurozone markets, the Continent is trying to pretend it still matters.  But with Putin’s grinder on the Ukraine border, denial is overpowering logic.

Oil does remind us that Ben Netanyahu is at the White House today. Netanyahu believes Trump can help seal ceasefire. But the world has had since 1948 to get this tenant issue settled; the West (and lots of UKers) thing they own the Empire and can dictate terms.  We thing they should look up Dimona and get real…

With the world playing the “edging” sex game (where everyone gets screwed in the end) sa remarkably clear-headed view pops from G.A. Stewart who we recently advised has become (like so many) involuntarily retired.  Is Stu bitter or calling it “like it is?”  Study DEDICATION, DISCIPLINE, AND BULLSHIT PATRIOTISM – THE AGE OF DESOLATION and work out your own answer. Our take is big on flag & country, going light on the Angostura.

Stu’s not alone dealing with “uncle outs.”  Another is Elon Musk.  We told you last week he was making noises about a new political party.  Maybe I should have mentioned that the old guard media would close ranks between the two “also-rans” that own the franchise now. But you’re supposed to work out how the pieces slide around to stay in power, right?  Media will capitulate And make it all about the Status Quo.  Oh, look! ‘Ridiculous’: Trump hits out at Musk’s political plans.  Which part of “surprised” are you?

Another Old Man Saying comes to mind after study of Major Investment Firm DROPS Support for Tesla After Elon Musk’s Political Party Launch.  Goes “Them’s that have, gets…”

Raining Headlines

The flooding in middle Texas this weekend likely took 100-lives, or more.  “Victims still dead” isn’t much of a headline, though.  So, instead here comes the blame game. Texas flood victims furious as local officials blame Trump’s National Weather Service over failed warnings. Coverage and blame could run weeks as Harrowing Tales Emerge in Texas as Rescuers Keep Up Search for Missing.

Big Weather has a fact-based Big Problem ahead: Flaws in 150 Years of Global Temperature Data Blow Holes in Global Warming Narrative.  Oops.

Next time don’t turn the water off, dept.  Zelensky blames Putin-Trump call for massive Russian airstrike on Ukraine.

Got money left-over from fireworks and beer? Companies from Walmart to TikTok Shop are stretching out sales and sweetening deals to compete with Amazon Prime Day.  Notice how media are mostly all putting up free ads to the Zon pages?  (here’s ours)

Could a “conspiracy theory” shortage be looming? New FBI Memo Concludes Jeffrey Epstein Did Not Have a “Client List ” – and Committed Suicide – with Video of Jail Cell. Anyone besides Wm of the Radio Ranch  and Hank understand time code in video?

And if these After-Holiday headlines aren’t bull enough for you? San Fermin bull-running festival kicks off in Spain.  Covered by French media for an American audience.  Sure, the world makes sense.  Crank that blender up.

Around the Ranch: Dishwasher Warfare

Before we begin How to survive dishwasher software tyranny in 2025, a bit of theme first: An old-time firehouse favorite of Pappy’s – popular when someone got skinned up a bit at a fire.  All about “toughing it out.”

“George, what’s that on the floor, BLOOD?”

I was laying on the kitchen floor, trying to get the last quarter-turn on a cranky solid-copper water feed line into the new dishwasher we installed Sunday.  I looked where Elaine was pointing and sure enough, a teaspoon or two of my finest.

“Why yes, dear, I believe that’s blood.  But you know, this ensures this is a successful DIY project. A blood offering to seal the job, so to speak…”

“Oh, God, look at your hand!”

And so, DIY’ers, we are all reminded why some people wear gloves when working.  Especially on a dishwasher.  Because the rails cut from metal haven’t had their edges broken and yes, the two gashes on the hand self-sealed before I had to get after them with the super glue.

As luck would have it, this is oral surgery week. So I am already phasing down the baby aspirin.  Next time you’re planning to be in a multi vehicle collision, stop taking baby aspirin 10-days before the wreck, so you’ll clot faster.  (We’re full of help and useful tips, right?)

Part 2:  A wash cloth, cold water rinse, and Windex and paper towels, and one again it was looking more like a construction site than a murder scene.  I turned on the power.

Damn thing beeped, but wouldn’t start.

Half an hour of troubleshooting later, I resorted to reading the manual.

“Open the door, put in dishes.  With the door still open, press start and quickly close the door…”

Why would I press start with the door open?  That doesn’t make any sense.

The clouds parted, the Sun came out, and birds began to chirp.  Of course!  Product Safety Lawyers have now taking over programming of home appliances.  It all made perfect sense, for a minute or two.  Then I began shaking again.

When will someone make OpenSource appliance code and put a USB port on everything?  This kind of door interlock thinking would have ruined Hansel and Gretel.  Does anyone have a Frigidaire cheat code to solve? Washes dishes fine.  Even takes blood out.

Further Studies:  Ley’ed

Crawling under counters earlier, I had found myself wondering about ley lines.  Put to the AI stack, turns out no one has ever measured ley line energies. They are just pop-sci and pseudo-sci about so-called “power centers” of “spiritual or vital” energy.

But here’s the weekend ponder that was bothering me:  Seems there are claims all over the web that dowsing can find ley lines.  And dowsing does work to some degree.  But no one knows precisely why.

“Dowsing lacks a scientifically plausible mechanism. Proponents suggest it detects subtle energies or intuitive signals, but no such energies have been measured by instruments like magnetometers or electromagnetic field meters. The movement of dowsing rods is often attributed to the ideomotor effect, an involuntary muscle response influenced by subconscious expectations, not external phenomena.”

The AI stack is very skeptical of this whole line of inquiry:

Dowsing does not work in scientific testing beyond what would be expected by chance. Rigorous, double-blind experiments consistently show no reliable ability to detect hidden objects or substances.

OK, so dowsing MIGHT work.  But the week’s thinking process ahead is trying to figure out “Who, but more particularly under what circumstances was dowsing first discovered?  Is it just an artifact of play with the Universe (or ontology)?  Poke this way because there’s no life-sim code for that yet?

I don’t expect to find an answer (so I likely won’t, eh?).  Still, it’s an infinitely extensible something to hold consciousness focused on while under nitrous and having oral surgery this week….

One more for the Woo Pile:  We don’t follow the work of Vedic astrologer Joni Paltry, but our consigliere does.  So 11 days back here’s her take on July.  The logical question is whether her water references could have pointed to Texas flooding?  You make the call.

ShopTalk Sunday is here, in case you were off-planet…

Write when you get rich,

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