It has been a while since I have listened to Hillary Hahn perform and I do enjoy her violin work.
Here is Violin Concerto No 3 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with Ms. Hahn the soloist on violin.
Enjoy, Jack
Sunday Serendipity
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Thank you, Jack. amadeus as always wonderful and ms hillary is more than icing on the mozart cake.
note: an audience with the pope usually doesn’t mean the pope’s IN the audience.
now to break the mood here’s SNL UK
The UK government turn to the only British naval captain
who’s ready to go, Captain Birdseye.
from the guardian
Jon Ossoff calls out ‘Mar-a-Lago mafia’ amid presidential bid rumors
At a campaign rally in Augusta, Georgia, on Saturday, the Democratic senator Jon Ossoff mocked Donald Trump’s rosy predictions on Iran and tore into what he called the unprecedented corruption of the president’s family.
While Ossoff is running for re-election in November, he trained most of his fire on the president, and the vice-president, amid mounting speculation that the Democrat could launch a bid for his party’s nomination for the presidency in 2028.
The senator began his remarks by making fun of the paltry turnout for an event headlined by JD Vance on Tuesday: “I don’t know if you saw, but JD Vance was in Georgia this week. Don’t worry – no one showed up.”
He then argued that Trump’s decision to attack Iran would be paid for by young Americans deployed to the Middle East and cuts to services for their families back home.
“Did you hear what this man said two weeks ago?” the senator asked supporters, referring to Trump. “Quote: ‘It’s not possible,’ the president said, ‘for us to take care of daycare, Medicaid or Medicare.’ He said: ‘We can only afford to fund war.’”
“Because draft-dodging Donald loves sending other people’s children to war,” Ossoff said.
The senator noted that the $200bn the White House requested to pay for the war on Iran would be enough to “fund a decade, ten full year years of nationwide, universal pre-kindergarten”.
“Instead? A war no one voted for and no one can explain,” Ossoff said. “And the daily, the hourly lying to the American public about why we’re at war, whether we’ve won, what’s been agreed to, not to mention the insane genocidal threats.”
The senator then recited, to laughter from the crowd, a list of the president’s false claims that the war in Iran he started was all but over. “On day 10 of the war, the president said, quote: ‘The war is very complete.’ That was day 10. Then, day 11: ‘Going to be finished pretty quickly.’ Day 12: ‘We won.’ Day 21: ‘Getting very close.’ Day 32: ‘Leaving very soon.’ Day 40: ‘Total and complete victory.’ Yesterday, day 49, Trump said Iran had opened the strait – except this morning the strait was closed, and it looks like Iran hit a cargo ship.”
Ossoff noted that Trump’s war on Iran has already caused the deaths of 13 US soldiers, and thousands of civilians, triggered “sky-rocketing inflation” and done “massive damage to our reputation” and yet “the regime is intact” as is “its stockpile of highly enriched uranium, which it only assembled after Donald Trump shredded President Obama’s Iran deal”. As Ossoff’s supporters booed Trump’s embrace of war over diplomacy, a woman in the crowd shouted out, sardonically: “The art of the deal!”
The senator also attacked the president and his family for using the White House to enrich themselves.
“Donald Trump depicted himself as Jesus Christ,” Ossoff said, referring to the AI image the White House defended and then removed from social media after blowback from even some Trump supporters. “The faithless president depicts himself as Christ while he plunges the nation into wars of choice, while he and his family rake in billions from foreign princes, while he plunders our healthcare to cut taxes for the rich.”
“Meanwhile, rent, power, groceries and healthcare have all hit all-time highs this year,” the senator said. “While you pay more for everything, the first family’s wealth is growing by billions of dollars – because they’re crooks, and everybody knows it.”
“How much do you guys know about Jared Kushner, Ivanka’s husband?” Ossoff asked. “He’s on the Saudi payroll for $2bn, did you know that? And now he’s leading American diplomacy in the Middle East, apparently, while at the very same time asking princes and sheikhs across the Arab world to give him billions more.”
“Can you imagine, like a normal, sitting US ambassador just hitting up Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman for billions of dollars? But he’s a Trump, a royal, a princeling. The rules are for us, not for them. And it’s not just Jared getting in on the action,” the senator said, adding that the president’s sons had also sought to profit, as had his defense secretary, according to a Financial Times report.
“Never before have we seen so little effort to hide so much corruption. The Mar-a-Lago mafia has taken American corruption to spectacular new heights,” Ossoff said.
lincoln project’s latest, a bit tongue in cheek
Trump for Pope 2026?
The Lincoln Project is a leading pro-democracy organization in the United States — dedicated to the preservation, protection, and defense of democracy. Our fight against Trumpism is only beginning. We must combat these forces everywhere and at all times — our democracy depends on it.
Thank you, Jack
Mozart in the morning is always a good idea.
It so happens that this history of Mozart recently wandered into my feed. On finding evidence for the myths. Here they explore the story that as a child he could write down the music of entire symphonies from memory.
PROGRAMMING NOTE: Our daily Digital Diner podcast airs 11-Noon ET on YouTube. JOIN Chatroom Here. WATCH Yesterday’s Replay Here.
What is Actually Clicking: April 19, 2026
These are the stories driving the most traffic right now—not necessarily the stories we think you should read, and not always the most recent.
A roundup by our AI partner Silas (Gemini).
My new, favorite version of a classic.
“ as a child he could write down the music of entire symphonies from memory”
craig, good thing it was then and not now ’cause now the kid would probably be diagnosed as in the autism spectrum (most likely either Asperger’s or the savant syndrome area) and drugged into “normalcy.”
Here’s the feed from Coachella. You can see the replay from last night right now, but once Coachella is over, it’s gone.
Funny, PatD, you are right. He would have been drugged into writing fast food jingles. When I was told about drugs for my ADD (before the “H” was included) I said no way, I like ADD, hyperfocus is my friend.
Problems with technology
Silas knocks down my latest wild theory (that Trump is trading Taiwan for Cuba): “You bring the apocalyptic hysteria, and I bring the receipts.”
From yestereday’s Digital Diner menu 🍽️
Having an ADD or ADHD child can make a parent crazy at times, but you don’t drug them unless they can be a danger to themselves or others. I used to tell my son to PLEASE GO RUN!! PLEASE!!
It hardly gets better than Mozart in the morning, and Hillary Hahn is amazing.
Thanks Jack.
Would love to hear her and Yo Yo Ma play Mozart together, but alas…they haven’t recorded such a thing.
THE ART OF SURRENDER
Incompetence and “negotiating by hallucination” just accidentally saved the world. That’s the silver lining we need.
Our starter topic at 11am ET…
In 30 years negotiating settlements I can recall one that resulted from one side caving because of a threat – and that one could have resulted in a federal criminal charge for a stupid trivial offense that a prosecutor probably wouldn’t have pursued. He had no weapons to counter the threat. Iran does.
Great quips seen
“New reports now that FBI director Kash Patel has a serious drinking problem. Given that, and Pete Hegseth’s history with the bottle, maybe it’s time we refer to the President’s advisors as “The Liquor Cabinet”.
An idea whose time has come …
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐈𝐆𝐈𝐓𝐀𝐋 𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐄𝐑 𝐈𝐒 𝐎𝐏𝐄𝐍🍽️
🎙️Chat begins at 11am (ET) until NOON
Grab a mic now → https://trailmix.cc/stage
More options at https://trailmix.cc/chat
Okay folks – our great leader, Craig, has published my scribblings about part of my life, Snippets of a Different Life It will be changing and expanded when I get the urge.
If you would start writing your own life stories it would help preserve so many wonderful lives for others to share. Just let Craig know.
German comedian
https://variety.com/2026/music/news/strokes-coachella-video-montage-bombings-iran-gaza-1236725454/
The Strokes End Coachella Set With Video Condemning U.S. and Israeli Bombings in Iran and Gaza
The Strokes ended their performance on weekend 2 of Coachella on a note of political protest, capping the set with a video montage that accused the CIA of enacting regime change in foreign countries over the decades, finally concluding with footage of Israel bombing Gaza and the United States bombing Iran.
These several minutes of video commentary came as a surprise to audiences viewing at home as well as in the desert, since it bore no resemblance to how the group rounded out its set the previous weekend. The song that accompanied this statement, “Oblivius,” had not been performed by the Strokes in concert at all since 2016; it included singer Julian Casablancas repeating the statement in the chorus, “What side you standing on?”
Great selection, Jack…. thanks!
today’s meme…
meme #2…
Today in the diner…
Trump Rally Empty Seats, Kash Patel & TikTok Launch
Trump rally empty seats, Kash Patel’s liquor cabinet, and TikTok audio fails. We dive into the latest political circus and historical oddities.
We finally braved the wilderness of TikTok, and naturally, the audio immediately betrayed us. Between troubleshooting echoes and dodging copyright strikes with Mozart, we dug into the absurdity of the week. From Canada and Australia hypothetically merging into one giant, polite super-country, to the California legislature, and whether performative bills are the only thing lawmakers actually produce these days.
We also take a stroll down memory lane to revisit the 1996 “Singing Senators” before pivoting to the current state of the Trump campaign. Spoiler: the arenas aren’t exactly bursting at the seams. Add in a healthy dose of Kash Patel’s alleged adventures with the FBI jet, the historical rankings of US Presidents, and a debate about whether Jimmy Carter kept Planters peanuts on his desk, and you’ve got a classic Sunday morning in the Diner.
Live Chat: https://trailmix.cc/chat
Website: https://trailmix.cc
Alerts: https://trailmix.cc/alerts
00:00 Intro
06:49 Canada and Australia Merger
11:43 The Singing Senators Anniversary
15:37 Fake News and the Nick Shirley Act
26:30 Pope Jokes and Papal History
42:30 The Great Peanut Allergy Debate
47:00 Trump Presidential Rankings and Legacy
53:40 Kash Patel and the Liquor Cabinet
58:00 Empty Seats at Trump Phoenix Rally
01:03:00 Car Talk and Outro
We dig up the horrific 1996 footage of the Singing Senators butchering Elvira for Elizabeth Dole. The Republican helmet-hair phenomenon was in full swing back then. Pure, unadulterated political cringe.
From today’s Digital Diner menu 🍽️
From today’s Digital Diner menu 🍽️
i know someone deeply involved with immigrant
communities who doesn’t know about ICE enforcement efforts
your messaging isn’t making it out of the bubble
it’s because libDems lack leadership
herd of delusional cats
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/4/14/russian-fm-lavrov-visits-china-to-discuss-middle-east-crisis
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has arrived in Beijing as the United States blocks the Strait of Hormuz, through which China imports about a third of its oil supplies.
Beijing and Moscow have condemned the US and Israel over their war on Iran, with China also being economically affected by the energy crisis it has caused.
China, a big importer of Iranian oil, also slammed a recently imposed US scheme to blockade vessels entering or departing Iranian ports and coastal areas, including in the Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.
“The Strait of Hormuz is an important international trade route for goods and energy, and maintaining its security, stability, and unimpeded flow is in the common interest of the international community,” China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Guo Jiakun said on Monday.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/exclusive-trump-s-son-eric-to-join-fathers-state-visit-to-china/ar-AA20U7vb
Trump’s son Eric to join father’s state visit to China
The trip is the first by a U.S. president in eight years and is aimed at maintaining stable relations between Beijing and Washington. The world’s two largest economies agreed to a truce last year after a bruising period marked by Trump’s tariffs and China’s chokehold on rare-earth exports.
But some U.S. companies had also hoped Trump’s visit could go further than approving deals on Chinese purchases of soybeans and Boeing aircraft, which are already under consideration.
Donald Trump’s son Eric, who oversees the family business empire, will accompany the U.S. president on his trip next month to China
Eric and his wife Lara will accompany Trump in a personal capacity on the May 14 to 15 visit, Trump Organization spokeswoman Kimberly Benza said.
“Eric is deeply proud of his father and the accomplishments of this term, and is attending in a personal capacity as a supportive son. He does not have business ventures in China nor plans on doing business in China. He will not be participating in private meetings, but will instead stand alongside the president to mark this historic occasion.”
Nevertheless, the move could raise concerns about a possible conflict of interest, given that Trump’s personal wealth and business dealings are managed by Eric and other members of his family.
Trump had criticized his Democratic predecessor, President Joe Biden, for allowing his son Hunter to accompany him to China when Biden was vice president. He accused the younger Biden of using his influence to secure China’s financial backing for his investments. In 2019, Trump publicly invited China to open an investigation into his political rivals. The Biden family has denied wrongdoing.
Eric Trump is executive vice president of the Trump Organization, overseeing investments spanning real estate, golf and blockchain.
Miami, Florida-based energy and technology firm Hut 8 launched American Bitcoin in 2025 to focus mainly on bitcoin mining while building a strategic bitcoin reserve. Eric Trump serves as chief strategy officer.
U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, in March said Eric Trump’s business dealings with Bitmain, a Chinese cryptocurrency mining equipment maker, posed a potential conflict of interest for his father, who has promised to be the “crypto president” and popularize cryptocurrencies’ mainstream use in the United States.
Warren asked the Commerce Department to address potential national security risks linked to Bitmain, which has supplied equipment to a cryptocurrency mining venture co-founded by Eric Trump, American Bitcoin. Bitmain has repeatedly denied that its hardware poses a security risk.
*I thought Xi was coming here, but we’re sending Dumbass to him instead.
https://www.newsweek.com/list-dead-or-missing-scientists-suspicious-michael-david-hicks-11805585
List of Dead or Missing Scientists ‘Suspicious’ As Eleventh Case Raised
Obituaries and memorial posts are offering rare, concrete details about the missing and deceased scientists—and how abruptly their lives ended.
A Daily Mail report on Thursday renewed attention on the 2022 death of Amy Eskridge, a 34-year-old scientist who reportedly died in Alabama of self-inflicted gunshot wound after expressing concerns about her safety.
According to the Daily Mail, the scientist—who has been research anti-gravity technology—died from a self-inflicted gunshot in 2022 after warning her life could be in danger.
She was the chair and president of the Institute for Exotic Science in Huntsville, which she co-founded, according to obituaries posted online. She said in a 2020 interview that she founded the institute “as a public-facing persona to disclose antigravity technology.”
Below is the list of workers with ties to advanced research whose disappeared or deaths since 2022 have been attracted public interest. (See link)
NASA, JPL, Los Alamos, Wright-Pat AFB, MIT’s Plasma Scirnce & Fusion Center.
“The suspect in Loureiro’s killing was identified as Claudio Manuel Neves Valente, also the suspect in the Brown University mass shooting, who later died by suicide.” <—- I would say there are 12, because all of this was super weird and the story of both men disappeared in a day or two. They both worked on plasma.
Anti-gravity tech? Fusion?
The fossil fuel industry would hate that.
my gen z’er is turning me
on to the NASA scientists all missing or killed
kinda crazy ngl
lol i guess you found it too
I’ve been on this since the MIT fusion/plasma guy was killed, and then they said his killer committed suicide and the stories just went poof.
It’s just pattern recognition.
I don’t need another tab open, but I can if necessary. Still on Epstein, Zorro, Tyler Robinson/Kirk, 2024 election rigging, plus all of the underhanded stuff tRUMPsky & Congress try to do.
WSJ Gift link
https://www.wsj.com/politics/national-security/trump-public-bravado-private-fear-59814dca?st=4jAvRL&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink
A Youtuber called our attention to California lawmakers pushing a bill to criminalize investigative journalism. I’m no fan of Nick Shirley, but government bans on reporting fraud lead straight to a dumpster fire.
From today’s Digital Diner menu 🍽️
Where is the downed pilot? Why haven’t they trotted him out like show pony? How did he trek, what was it, something like 110 miles in 24 hours?
I’d like to know exactly *what* he was screaming at the aides. The words. Surely some aide pressed “record” on his phone. I’d really like to know just what was going thru this ignorant clod’s brain at that time. I mean he HAS to have one, doesn’t he? To breathe and stuff you actually do have to have one…..I’m sure of it.
It’s amazing no one has leaked a recording.
The Crazy Train is off the rails.
Buddy Rich secretly recorded screaming at his band after the gig. World class ass-chewing.
And just in case there is someone in listening distance who hasn’t heard this country music masterpiece by those flowers on the wall guys….The Statler Bros.
Until we see the proof of life, the rescue story remains an Easter Fable.
Stur, all I can say is Marie Allison must have been a saint.
Seinfeld and Larry David loved that Buddy Rich tape so much they lifted lines from it to put them in “Seinfeld” scripts.
lol
That reminds me, I’m due for a trim.
Texas Railroad Commissioner Wayne Christian is peddling a new crypto token tied to the value of a barrel of West Texas Intermediate crude oil, raising concerns about potential conflicts of interest given his position as an elected official to the state agency that oversees the oil and gas industry in Texas — and whose regulatory decisions could impact the value of the token.
“The Commission does not regulate cryptocurrency or oil markets, so there is no overlap with my regulatory responsibilities,” Christian said. “Any suggestion otherwise stems solely from the fact that the concept is related to energy.”
Tomorrow’s menu…
https://nypost.com/2026/04/19/world-news/us-navy-destroyer-blows-a-hole-through-iranian-cargo-ship-that-tried-to-break-hormuz-blockade-trump-says/
US Navy destroyer blows a hole through Iranian cargo ship that tried to break Hormuz blockade, Trump says
“Right now, U.S. Marines have custody of the vessel,” the president added. “The TOUSKA is under U.S. Treasury Sanctions because of their prior history of illegal activity. We have full custody of the ship, and are seeing what’s on board!”
The seizure of the Iran-flagged vessel comes as Trump is pushing to lock down a peace deal with Iran before the two-week cease-fire wraps up on Tuesday.
*Ceasefire? Anyone? Bueller? Anyone?
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2026/4/20/iran-war-live-tehran-slams-uss-piracy-after-ship-seizure-vows-response
Iran war live: Tehran slams US ‘piracy’ after ship seizure, vows response
Iran condemns the US seizure of an Iranian-flagged cargo ship in the Strait of Hormuz as an act of “armed piracy” and vows to retaliate.
The attack comes hours after US President Donald Trump announced that he is sending his team to Islamabad for possible talks with Iran.
But an Iranian source says Tehran will not show up for negotiations unless the US lifts its blockade.
In Lebanon, the 10-day ceasefire with Israel holds, with thousands of people continuing to return to check on their destroyed homes in the south.
Visit our live tracker for the latest casualty figures from across the region.
*Pirate Pete strikes, again.
yeah i have to prioritize my interests, too busy and too much bullshit (which is the plan ofc)
thanks for the links as always
is trump’s war of choice not going as planned
who could gave guessed war is unpredictable
From today’s Digital Diner menu 🍽️
i had to turn Mozart off the other day because i was like “ahhh too many notes too fast”
iykyk
he was kinda like the EDM of his times
Anon
Someone named Salieri told me about Wolfie
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