Sunday Serendipity

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From Wikipedia.

Oscar Lorenzo Fernández (4 November 1897 – 27 August 1948) was a Brazilian composer of Spanish descent. He was born and died in Rio de Janeiro.

In 1930 Fernández composed the three-movement suite Reisado do Pastoreio, the last movement of which, “Batuque” (an Afro-Brazilian folk dance), became very popular.

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64 thoughts on “Sunday Serendipity”

  2. Attribution: NAKED PEACE RIDING IN ALASKA by Marian Kamensky, Austria
    Marian Kamensky is the editorial cartoonist for the Swiss satirical montly magazine Nebelspalter and Germany’s satirical magazine Eulenspiegel and Playboy magazine. He is currently living in Vienna. You can visit his website at http://www.humor-kamensky.sk

  3. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/joint-leaders-statement-on-peace-for-ukraine
    Press release
    Joint leaders’ statement on Peace for Ukraine
    Statement by President Macron, Prime Minister Meloni, Chancellor Merz, Prime Minister Tusk, Prime Minister Starmer, President von der Leyen and President Stubb on Peace for Ukraine ahead of President Trump’s planned meeting with President Putin.
    From:
    Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing Street and The Rt Hon Sir Keir Starmer KCB KC MP
    Published
    9 August 2025

    We welcome President Trump’s work to stop the killing in Ukraine, end the Russian Federation’s war of aggression, and achieve just and lasting peace and security for Ukraine.

    We are convinced that only an approach that combines active diplomacy, support to Ukraine and pressure on the Russian Federation to end their illegal war can succeed.

    We stand ready to support this work diplomatically as well as by upholding our substantive military and financial support to Ukraine, including through the work of the Coalition of the Willing, and by upholding and imposing restrictive measures against the Russian Federation.

    We share the conviction that a diplomatic solution must protect Ukraine’s and Europe’s vital security interests.

    We agree that these vital interests include the need for robust and credible security guarantees that enable Ukraine to effectively defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity. Ukraine has the freedom of choice over its own destiny. Meaningful negotiations can only take place in the context of a ceasefire or reduction of hostilities. The path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without Ukraine. We remain committed to the principle that international borders must not be changed by force. The current line of contact should be the starting point of negotiations.

    We reiterate that Russia’s unprovoked and illegal invasion of Ukraine is a flagrant violation of the UN Charter, the Helsinki Final Act, the Budapest Memorandum, and successive Russian commitments. We underline our unwavering commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity.

    We continue to stand firmly by the side of Ukraine. We are united as Europeans and determined to jointly promote our interests. And we will continue to cooperate closely with President Trump and with the United States of America, and with President Zelenskyy and the people of Ukraine, for a peace in Ukraine that protects our vital security interests.

  4. excerpt from BBC this morning about the above:
    https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0e9py7e28xo

    CBS, the BBC’s US media partner, has reported that the White House is trying to sway European allies to accept an agreement that would include Russia taking the entire Donbas region in eastern Ukraine, and keeping the Crimean Peninsula.

    The European leaders, in their statement released late on Saturday night, stressed that “international borders must not be changed by force”.

    “Ukraine has the freedom of choice over its own destiny,” they said, stressing that their nations would continue to support Ukraine diplomatically, militarily and financially.

    The leaders also said that a “diplomatic solution” is critical, not just to protect Ukraine – but also Europe’s security.

    It’s not just Ukraine that is struggling to be part of the Alaska meeting.

    European allies are also worried about their lack of influence over the outcome of any agreement that Trump could reach with Putin.

    In a post on X on Saturday, French President Emmanuel Macron raised concerns about Russia and the US excluding European involvement.

    “Europeans will also necessarily be part of the solution, as their own security is at stake,” he wrote.

    On Sunday, Zelensky thanked the allies for their support.

    “The end of the war must be fair, and I am grateful to everyone who stands with Ukraine and our people today for the sake of peace in Ukraine, which is defending the vital security interests of our European nations,” he said.

    Europe has taken a tough approach to Moscow – including imposing sanctions against Russian entities and providing military aid for Ukraine.

    Zelensky said he told Macron in a phone call on Saturday that the key was to make sure “the Russians do not get to deceive anyone again”.

    “We all need a genuine end to the war and reliable security foundations for Ukraine and other European nations,” the Ukrainian leader said.

  5. So, Putin gets rewarded for 3 years of murder and everything he wants and Ukraine gets screwed, what a negotiator Trump is! 👎

    Slava Ukraine including Crimea 🫡 🇺🇦

  7. She’s starting to get a following on the “tubes” ..
    Lady MawMaw’s Dictator Tips 🥂👑
    She’s back in the advice business — this time for aspiring strongmen.
    Warning: consulting fees include unsolicited sass.

  9. I ask again, if some of it is in the giveaway region what happens to the rare earth deal/extortion Dodo demanded of ukraine which was signed in april?

    also see on that subject: https://www.forbes.com › sites › johnhyatt › …

    Trump’s Trade War Mints An Unlikely New American Mining Billionaire
    1 hour ago · As part of the deal, the DoD also signed a 10-year agreement to buy rare earth magnets from MP Materials to power its future instruments of warfare.

  17. The first attempt to take over a city was Los Angeles. It was with federal employees, National Guard and Marines. Tomorrow he will take over the District of Columbia, most likely with the same military components. Anyone not aware of his doing the dictator thing should be very soon. Expect more disaster and chaos.

  19. @realDonald Trump
    We’re having a News Conference tomorrow in the White House. I’m going to make our Capital safer and more beautiful than it ever was before. The Homeless have to move out, IMMEDIATELY. We will give you places to stay, but FAR from the Capital. The Criminals, you don’t have to move out. We’re going to put you in jail where you belong. It’s all going to happen very fast, just like the Border. We went from millions pouring in, to ZERO in the last few months. This will be easier — Be prepared! There will be no “MR. NICE GUY.” We want our Capital BACK. Thank you for your attention to this matter!

    *What about residents enjoying a local DC park from an Adirondack chair? It’s going to be illegal to be outside without papers pretty soon.

  20. IMO, that’s what the “Big Balls” pic was staged. Think I said this before, but too much blood, white pants, hair dyed blonde, shirt off to show white skin, and a vehicle with “American” on the side of it. Even the lighting looked suspicious. Plus, there were multiple stories about what allegedly happened to him.

    Immediately after, Adolf is ready to go with militarizing DC. Is that because he’s creating a wider perimeter around DC as the violent fascism amps up and ICE starts going after dissidents?

  23. American science to soon face its largest brain drain in history
    From World War II until 2024, the US stood unchallenged as the scientific leader of the free world. Across practically every discipline — physics, materials science, astronomy, chemistry, biology, medicine, geology, etc. — American scientific missions and initiatives, often in collaboration with European, Canadian, Asian, and many other global partners, brought us new advances and breakthroughs, paving the way for generations of scientists to thrive. In a society that values facts, scientific truths, education, and the public good, this recipe led to multiple generations of continued breakthroughs and advances … more

  24. It’s kind of like some super weird Woody Allen movie that this delusional idiot can get to where he is today in America.

  25. It’s a throwback to their ancient morbid fear of slave uprisings and oppressive measures taken to quash them. Dodo knows that page of history sells. He likes to keep his crowd on its toes.

  26. Working toward a focus this week on tariffs starting to hit home, prices going up. Walmart executives are flat-out saying they can’t absorb Trump’s hikes, so prices on imported merchandise have to climb. But they deny closing stores in response to that.

  29. Dodo: Be prepared! There will be no “MR. NICE GUY.”

    craig, from now on anytime you go out the door keep a camera ready to film what sounds like the unleashing of masked brown shirted thugs on the DC citizenry.
    BiD’s right about “It’s going to be illegal to be outside without papers pretty soon.” add to that anyone dressed a bit different, wearing anti-trump tee shirts, carrying protest signs or even “suspect” books and driving cars with provocative bumperstickers will be targets.

  37. 🎭 Dictator Tips with Lady MawMaw — Episode 3
    Unsolicited advice for the world’s most questionable leaders. Yes, there were two before this.
    📺 Start from the top →

  39. Things be getting curiouser by the day aren’t they? And I don’t like it.

    FBI dispatches agents to D.C. streets as Trump vows crackdown on crime
    The Trump administration has assigned FBI agents to work overnight shifts to combat carjackings and other crimes.

    I’m trying to figure out how this ends well and am coming up empty.

  40. September 1st is Labor Day. Congress is back in session September 2nd. DC will be a militarized zone, so how will folks protest there? Are constituents even going to be allowed to petition their members of Congress face-to-face, anymore? Not that it does any good, because MAGAt Republicans are effing, heartless, corrupt, evil N@zis.

  41. Not well known outside of the Beltway is a real problem, groups form packs with their ATV’s, dirt bikes and other off road cycles. They will mess up the Beltway, streets and areas of D.C., and due to ease of running away, they are hard to catch. Hope mangomoron sicks his law enforcement (if they are that) on those criminals.

    I have visions of the checkpoints going in and out of D.C. Guards on the Metro trains, road blocks on all streets and alleys to get in to D.C. No way to get to the Mall and especially the White House. Yeah. Chaos!

  42. https://www.cnn.com/2025/08/07/politics/trump-national-guard-dc-explainer

    DC National Guard spokesperson Master Sgt. Arthur Wright told CNN on Friday morning the branch had not been activated, adding that any “presence of National Guardsmen and vehicles seen this week and throughout the weekend are related to required training for UTA (Unit Training Assembly).”

    Still, experts say Trump can’t unilaterally federalize DC, and that calling federal troops into the city would be unusual, especially since the district does not appear to be suffering from a significant crime spike.

    DC’s Home Rule
    The US Congress has authority and oversight over DC. But it ceded some of that power when it passed the Home Rule in 1973, giving some of its ability to govern the city to local government entities, including the mayor and city council.

    Trump said this week he was going “to look at” overturning Home Rule, saying, “the lawyers are already studying it.”

    “To fully remove local control over DC, Congress would have to repeal the Home Rule Act. So, if what the president has in mind is complete federal control over DC, in other words, no possibilities and no room for local control, that would require repealing the Home Rule Act,” Hasday said.

    *He owns the majority of Congress.

  43. Something big is afoot.

    Also, the corrupt snowflake doesn’t want to see protesters and he’s creating his own strongman fantasy (reality) by gilding things and ignoring courts and taking bribes and having himself edited out of the Epstein files and doing whatever the hell he wants.

  45. Battery, eh?
    Well, somebody oughta do something about that.

    Seems like any bunch of organisms that can send a rocket ship up to the moon full of folks to walk around and shit and then bring ‘em back too oughta be able to make a battery.

    A billion dollar prize oughta do it. Maybe the oil men would chip in…….

  46. The Trump administration has assigned FBI agents to work overnight shifts to combat carjackings and other crimes.

  49. $10k plus per car and they degrade quickly

    my internal combustion engine car is 30 years old, none of this generation of electric car is going to last that long, the battery inevitably degrades, there’s no maintenance that will prevent it

    if you are very price insensitive (wealthy), electric cars are the smart choice right now

    an electric Amazon truck just drove by- they have economies of scale apparently that make the investment worth it. Cool trucks

  50. Re: Lazy Man Cooks:

    …that looks like a well-cooked delicious piece of chicken to me. I can’t speak to what spices you used 😝

  51. https://www.detroitnews.com/story/business/autos/general-motors/2025/08/08/gm-to-import-chinese-batteries-until-u-s-plant-begins-production/85574352007/

    GM will buy lithium-iron-phosphate batteries from China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd., the Wall Street Journal first reported Thursday and a source close to the matter confirmed to The Detroit News on Friday.

    Ford Motor Co. also has an agreement to license technology from the Chinese battery giant for a multibillion-dollar battery plant in south-central Michigan, a deal that has faced some political backlash.

    GM last month unveiled a plan to produce lithium-iron-phosphate batteries in Tennessee in partnership with LG Energy Solution.

    But production of those EV batteries, which are cheaper to make because of higher iron content, is not expected to begin until 2027.

    *Cheaper, but better or worse?

  55. Oh well, I guess I’ll just keep my F-150 . Can’t decide whether it or the 70 Cadillac was my favorite. Or the 3 V W busses…..or the 64 Caddy. Oh and the 56 Chevy
    Damn…..there were a lot of favorites.

    Yeah, fugga buncha electricals…..

  56. Just got cut off by some dick in a Tesla so apparently they make you assholes also

    they are too powerful for the idiots that buy them

  57. remember when the smartest person you knew was a woman and men had to know shit?

    Seems like the distant past

  58. https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/gops-texas-map-austin-residents-sharing-district-rural/story?id=124425447

    GOP’s Texas map has Austin residents sharing district with rural Texans 300 miles away

    The proposed map chops up Central Texas’ 37th Congressional District, which is currently represented by Democrat Rep. Lloyd Doggett, will be consumed by four neighboring districts, three of which Republicans now hold.

    One of those portions of the Austin-area district was drawn to be part of the 11th District that Republican Rep. August Pfluger represents, which stretches into rural Ector County, about 20 miles away from the New Mexico border.

    *Wouldn’t it be funny if, even if they rigged the election, MAGAts just stayed home because: tRUMP said they only had to vote for him that last time & then never, again;
    the big, ugly law took away their veterans/farm/Medicaid benefits; tRUMP refused to release the unredacted Epstein files; tRUMP shunned them for still caring about the files.

  60. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/8/10/al-jazeera-journalist-anas-al-sharif-killed-in-israeli-attack-in-gaza-city

    Al Jazeera journalist Anas al-Sharif has been killed alongside four colleagues in a targeted Israeli attack on a tent housing journalists in Gaza City.

    Seven people were killed in the attack on the tent located outside the main gate of Gaza City’s al-Shifa Hospital late on Sunday evening. They include Al Jazeera correspondent Mohammed Qreiqeh and camera operators Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal and Moamen Aliwa.

    Shortly before being killed, al-Sharif, a well-known 28-year-old Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent who had reportedly extensively from northern Gaza, wrote on X that Israel had launched intense, concentrated bombardment – also known as “fire belts” – on the eastern and southern parts of Gaza City.

  61. obviously if the last 100 years of automotive R&D had been devoted to EVs instead of petrol-fueled cars, we wouldn’t be having this discussion

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