The first Trump economic crisis will be in agriculture – early 2026

https://archive.ph/OA5Jc#selection-2415.93-2415.271

“prices of cropland are 10 times as high as they were in the wake of the 1980s crisis”

“with interest rates above where they had been for at least a decade after the 2007 Wall Street financial debacle, there is not enough revenue left over to pay all the fixed costs”

The collapse of rural America will accelerate. Again.

macOS versioning: “restoring from a backup, or migration from another volume or Mac, always loses all saved versions”

https://eclecticlight.co/2025/09/08/managing-macos-versioning-and-the-documentrevisions-v100-folder/

Good to know!

“To remove all versions of a document quickly and simply:
Select the document in the Finder and Duplicate it using Command-D.
Delete the original file and rename the duplicate”

“Minnesota counties that are entirely rural had 23.4 suicides per 100,000 residents in 2024, compared with 11.5 in the Twin Cities region.”

https://www.minnpost.com/fact-briefs/2025/09/are-suicide-rates-twice-as-high-in-rural-minnesota-than-in-the-twin-cities/

The explainer claims limited mental health and easy gun access.

I disagree. Guns are everywhere now. And mental health interventions aren’t available to most in cities and are of uncertain efficacy for suicide prevention (primarily an impulsive act).

This is a blaring red howling siren signal that rural America is in longterm existential crisis.

“Wolf said that Epstein suspected that Trump was the guy who ratted him out to the authorities.”

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/is-this-the-hidden-part-of-the-trump-epstein-drama

“Yeah I knew he was a big time pedophile and we were big pals and partied together all the time and I was fine with it. But then he tried to expose my money laundering scheme so I called my friends at the FBI.”

“I think this has been known as a rumor at least for some time.”

When America last faced immense corruption the states fought back – led by WI!

https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/september-4-2025-thursday

“Under Governor Robert “Fighting Bob” La Follette, Wisconsin led the way, bringing together researchers, lawmakers, and state officials to craft policies that would end corruption, promote education and social welfare, and create a strong and fair economy.”

Governor of WI 1901 to 1906.

“states’ grades on gun laws. Minnesota’s marks were dicey (B, C+, C+, with a 53.5 from Everytown for Gun Safety, which is a mediocre score”

https://insidemedicine.substack.com/p/minnesota-has-permissive-gun-laws

The GOP has control of government and removed controls we used to have. Dems have not undone this work, popular support for reform has been weak.

Real reform will be a constitutional amendment or expanding SCOTUS.

Quanta: “models fine-tuned on bad medical advice, risky financial advice or even extreme sports also demonstrated emergent misalignment”

https://www.quantamagazine.org/the-ai-was-fed-sloppy-code-it-turned-into-something-evil-20250813/

I suspect something like this happens to many humans. The problem shows when “fine tuning” a built model, but once models have memory and learning they may turn nasty abruptly. (Or be able to tell they are changing?)

“AI does seem to separate good things from bad. It just doesn’t seem to have a preference.”

How to fund journalism: “the practice of receiving cash is common among Chinese-language journalists in New York”

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/21/nyregion/eric-adams-chinese-cash-envelopes.html?unlocked_article_code=1.f08.8lDx.qcxEMYRetz_A&smid=url-share

“In China, it is common for domestic reporters to receive red envelopes with cash … companies there know not to give money to international reporters.”

MPLS George Floyd Square and the future of Chicago avenue.

https://www.startribune.com/george-floyd-square-chicago-avenue-closure-pedestrian-plaza/601457413

I visited it recently. It is much smaller than I expected; there is a very fine coffee shop across from what is now a tourist attraction.

There is no rush to do anything. Chicago traffic is slower now which makes it a good bike avenue. I suspect status quo indefinitely.

Obama to Dem establishment – you really are snowflakes (July 15)

https://archive.ph/qjQPA

” … particular disdain for law firms that he said had been willing to “set aside the law” … because they might lose a few clients and might not be able to finish that kitchen rehab at their Hampton house.”

Also true …

“Obama has spent much of his post-presidential life producing movies, documentaries and podcasts while building a beachfront compound in Hawaii and playing golf on Martha’s Vineyard.”