Melania

is a cheeseball infomercial of staggering 
inertia, made out of car rides & cold silences,
so polished it slips out of her hands. I
immediately regret not buying popcorn 
so at least one of my senses would be enter-
tained. It's a gilded trash remake of The Zone 
of Interest, a forty-million-dollar journey into 
the void, a film that should have been called 
Day of the Living Tradwife, a lazy, bafflingly 
incurious documentary that insults the 
person it is trying to celebrate. All the money 
in the world can’t make good propaganda, &
this is shameless propaganda that could put 
you to sleep, a preening, scowling void of 
pure nothingness, an unabashed, fly-on-the-
gilded-wall fawn job, a tedious, criminally 
shallow puff piece, a Slovenian sphinx flick 
nixed. Pure, endless hell, an unbelievable 
abomination of filmmaking that if they 
showed it on a plane, people would still walk 
out. 20 stage-managed days in the life portrays 
world events as B-roll between wardrobe 
changes, feels entirely at a remove from any 
objective reality, a face like a fist that makes 
(her) look like Marie Antoinette skulking in 
her cake-filled chateau. This must be the night-
mare endpoint of celebrity documentaries. 
Does Melania dream of AI-generated sheep? 
 
Sources:
BuzzFeed, Decider, empireonline, Los Angeles Times, MS Now, New York Magazine, 
The Atlantic, The Daily Beast, The Guardian, The Hollywood Reporter, The Independent, 
The Irish Times, The New York Times, The New Yorker, TheWrap, Vanity Fair, Variety, 
& Vulture.

wednesday newstrip

Melania T.®ump has been mocked for selling popcorn buckets alongside the release of her controversial biopic. The Melania popcorn bucket is available to purchase for $12.99 at select theaters showing the documentary · a huge bush rave held in a state forest in Victoria has been shut down by authorities amid a crackdown on illegal parties & events · DoNuts T.®ump won't turn up to Super Bowl: anything to do with Green Day & Bad Bunny? · Pam Bondi Beach sparks fury from onlookers with Don Lemon arrest comment · gold & silver prices plunged overnight after US President DoNuts T.®ump announced his nomination for the US Federal Reserve. In the latest market rout, more than $US15 trillion was wiped from the gold & silver price over 24 hours · relief on the horizon for south-east Australia after record heatwave delivers 50C · nurse loses license after refusing to anesthetize MAGA patients · of the five evening screenings of Melania taking place on its opening day at cinemas across Sydney, none have sold more than 16 tickets. One has sold just six.

Life on the High Cs

When run through any English-
Icelandic translation app, the 
atomic hypothesis & its concept 
of cloud comes out resembling 

a gothic horror screenplay. No 
consideration for classical theory.
No sensitivity toward sociological 
phenomena. Persons under the 

age of twenty are included only 
if they play in a Southern U.S.
university marching band or a 
Marine Drum & Bugle Corps.

geographies: Bidyadanga

 

The seeds of the persimmon

Knife=icy, spoon=snow, fork=
mild — that's how some folks
predict the winter weather, by
slicing open a persimmon &
examining the pattern of the 
seeds. Its probably a bit more
civilized than reading the en-
trails of a goat or some such, &

undoubtedly a lot less bloody;
but if haruspices were still in
vogue today, they would have 
been iced in, unable to go out 
to get a goat or look for a per-
simmon just starting to ripen.

Tapioca starch

Why trust in purity when it
only teaches you to doubt 
your body? Its transient nature
consists primarily — if not 
exclusively — of written 

ephemera. Is not intended to 
be retained or preserved, does
not show us — depending on 
the plan you pick — how to 
move from the shadows. Now 

what we eat is archival, class-
ified according to some morph-
ology that reflects the basic 
content of a thesaurus that is
more like a melting ice sheet.

Robespierre resurfaces

It was a 
   temporal re- 
      gression 
         from which 
            he returned 
               singing the 
                  Marseillaise 
                     between mouth- 
                        fuls of an egg 
                        & lettuce sand- 
                     wich. Arch-
                  ival footage 
               shows there
             were times
         when he had
      all four feet
   off the 
ground.

The Spice Girls Regroup

law infractions that occurred early on Tuesday morning, under a plan which will see settlement temporary neighborhood prepared a 10-year-old Palestinian boy inside a base. Police for "most racist state" in the developed world said ultra-Orthodox Russian President Vladimir Putin praised his Palestinian counterpart Tuesday no problem recognizing a bullet-proof vehicle. Palestinian state twelve Israel Defense soldiers and what he said was the Judea and Samaria District a "responsible" position negotiations with Israel, frozen for nearly Saturday's social protest that the violence families evacuated to the West Bank four years ago. Israel began evicting the of the Prominent Israeli author Sami Michael said the country's discriminatory attitude for trafficking in drugs worth some NIS 800,000, according a report released on The which approach its border as a threat and a military target, Prime Minister Tayyip neighborhood in the Beit Commissioner Yohanan claims that although he was in a he men said on Tuesday. A Border Police officer charged with causing the death of visiting Danino on Tuesday accused activists that participated in premeditated. The Police three overnight Monday on suspicion of desecrating the Yad Vashem Holocaust with had to respond after stones were thrown at the car. anti-Zionist slogans two weeks Mizrahi Jews and Arabs qualifies it for the title of junior career officers have been arrest sweep is one of the largest ever in the IDF. Türkiye will treat any Syrian units.

wednesday newstrip

Border Patrol chief blames Democrats & journalists for Minneapolis chaos · 'No rizz': Gen Z T.®umpers are rejecting 'no charisma' Republicans · mega-wealthy residents in glamorous California enclave demand their neighbors pay millions to protect the only road leading to their mansions · thousands rally & hundreds of businesses close in protest against ICE presence in Minnesota · renewed call for councils to ban 'ugly trend' of using synthetic turf along nature strips & in new homes sweeping Australian suburbs · 'Get out now;' residents ordered to flee as Victoria tipped to hit record 49C · New Zealand’s house price crash is cause for celebration · Ted Cruz warned DoNuts T.®ump that he would face a 'bloodbath' in the November midterm elections if prices continued to rise, prompting the president to respond, 'fuck you, Ted' · Gregory Bovine has been removed from his role as Border Patrol 'commander at large' & will return to his former job in El Centro, California, where he is expected to retire soon, according to a DHS official with knowledge of the change.

geographies: Leonora

 

the more things change, the more . . .

The Palestinian death toll has risen to 821 people, and more than 3,300 have been injured since Israel began its offensive in the Gaza Strip two weeks ago.

A United Nations agency says nearly fifty percent of those killed in Israeli strikes across the Gaza Strip are women and children.

Ϋ

"But this is reality. You do your utmost to try and explain the difference between people aiming at women, children and babies in order to kill them because they are Israelis, and on the other hand – a democratic state trying to defend its citizens."

Dan Gillerman, retiring Israeli ambassador to the United Nations

Ϋ

"Many people in Israel call us traitors and war criminals because we talk about the war while it is still going on," said Teddy Katz of the Israeli peace group, Gush Shalom.

"But the truth is that this government ordered a criminal war."

Gush Shalom is one member of a coalition that held a news conference on Wednesday, January 7, 2009, to brief the media on peace camp positions.

Some speakers at the news conference focused on what they held to be Israel's real motives for the war - election success and, according to Katz, sanitising corrupt political reputations is also a factor.

Ϋ

UNRWA spokesman Chris Gunness said senior Israeli military officials have confessed that there was no gunfire emanating from the school when it came under fire from one of its tanks.

Tel Aviv has attempted to justify its Jan 6 attack on the United Nations school as a response to "militant gunfire" and has released footage of the incident to substantiate its claims.

Gunness, however, asserted that the footage released by Israel dated back to 2007 and was not related to the current incident.

A post from gamma ways, january 10, 2009.

wednesday newstrip

'Europe will not be blackmailed': sweeping retaliation on the cards after T.®ump’s Greenland threats · life in Cuba is about to get harder as T.®ump threatens oil supply · Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was hammered by an immigration expert after falsely distorting DHS' own data on the criminal charges of detainees · T.®ump’s '‘Board of Peace' for Gaza to require $1 billion payment for permanent membership · Israel objects to US lineup of 'Gaza executive board', says the lineup runs contrary to Israeli policy · FBI Director Kash Patel has taken the unprecedented task of having agents comb through vast amounts of data at the agency in an effort to dig up dirt on opponents of President T.®ump · Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL), a T.®ump-endorsed lawmaker & sitting member of the House Intelligence Committee – one of Congress’ most powerful oversight panels – was widely ridiculed over the weekend after railing against aircraft condensation – a common target of debunked conspiracy theories.

The Art of Conversation

In this split & drifting space, strange 
bonds are knit. In a landscape of batt-
ling giants or of the beginning of the 
world, two tiny persons are speaking.
The art of conversation consists in the 

exercise of two fine qualities — never 
interrupt any one who is speaking; &
overlook the deficiencies of others 
when conversing with them. Men, at 
last reduced to silence, commune with

the signification of things, allow them-
selves to be touched by enigmatic, in-
sistent words that come from elsewhere.
Words are not bound directly to other 
pictorial elements. They are merely in-

scriptions on blobs & shapes. But in 
this context, words do not replace mis-
sing objects, occupy no hollow spaces.
A lady of true refinement will always
give your words candid consideration.

Sources:
This Is Not a Pipe, by Michel Foucault
The Ladies’ Book of Etiquette (1860), by Florence Hartley

dubious benefit

 

wednesday newstrip

Dozens of writers have pulled out of the Adelaide Writers' Week after it dropped a Palestinian author, Randa Abdel-Fattah, from the program due to "cultural sensitivities" following the Bondi Beach terrorist attack · a popular craft beer has been urgently pulled from Australian supermarket shelves over safety concerns, amid fears it could dangerously over-carbonate & create a 'bottle bomb' · five Indonesian fishermen have been jailed & three more charged after their vessel was spotted hidden among mangrove trees in the Northern Territory with an illegal catch of sea cucumbers on board · Elongated Muskrat’s AI tool Grok has been used to create sexually violent & explicit video content featuring women, according to new research · GTA 6 third delay fears won't go away despite positive leaks · research paves the way for safer colonoscopy bowel prep for people with compromised gut health · 'toughest conditions imaginable': Victorians urged to shelter inside from heatwave as tropical cyclone heads for Queensland.

The Withdrawal List

the 66 global organisations the US is leaving under Trump

31 United Nations organisations

Department of Economic and Social Affairs
UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) – Economic Commission for Africa
ECOSOC – Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean
ECOSOC – Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific
ECOSOC – Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia
International Law Commission
International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals
International Trade Centre
Office of the Special Adviser on Africa
Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children in Armed Conflict
Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict
Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence Against Children
Peacebuilding Commission
Peacebuilding Fund
Permanent Forum on People of African Descent
UN Alliance of Civilizations
UN Collaborative Programme on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and 
     Forest Degradation in Developing Countries
UN Conference on Trade and Development
UN Democracy Fund
UN Energy
UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women
UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
UN Human Settlements Programme
UN Institute for Training and Research
UN Oceans
UN Population Fund
UN Register of Conventional Arms
UN System Chief Executives Board for Coordination
UN System Staff College
UN Water
UN University.

35 non-UN organisations

24/7 Carbon-Free Energy Compact
Colombo Plan Council
Commission for Environmental Cooperation
Education Cannot Wait
European Centre of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats
Forum of European National Highway Research Laboratories
Freedom Online Coalition
Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund
Global Counterterrorism Forum
Global Forum on Cyber Expertise
Global Forum on Migration and Development
Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research
Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals, and Sustainable Development
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services
International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property
International Cotton Advisory Committee
International Development Law Organization
International Energy Forum
International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies
International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance
International Institute for Justice and the Rule of Law
International Lead and Zinc Study Group
International Renewable Energy Agency
International Solar Alliance
International Tropical Timber Organization
International Union for Conservation of Nature
Pan American Institute of Geography and History
Partnership for Atlantic Cooperation
Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships 
     in Asia
Regional Cooperation Council
Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century
Science and Technology Center in Ukraine
Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme
Venice Commission of the Council of Europe.

geographies: Hyden

 

wednesday newstrip

Imran Khan & wife handed 17-year jail terms in corruption case · images removed from Epstein files less than a day after being posted · 'We feel excluded': expensive tickets & T.®ump’s shadow dampen World Cup excitement in Mexico · judge accepts guilty pleas from Colorado funeral home owners for abuse of 191 corpses · DoNuts T.®ump admitted he's building the White House ballroom as a 'monument to myself because no one else will' · ICE reimagines Santa Claus as an armed immigration officer in controversial holiday ad · sister of Epstein victim reported him in 1996, but FBI failed to investigate, files reveal · Australia announces special honors list to recognize acts of bravery during the Bondi attack · Pam Bondi Beach’s approval rating plunges as she faces Epstein fallout · T.®ump's ego projects stem from childhood neglect: family member.

A poem from Donald J. Trump

I was sitting at the 
table. We had finished 
dinner. We're now 
having dessert. & we 
had the most beautiful 

piece of chocolate cake 
that you've ever seen, 
& President Xi was en-
joying it. & I was given 
the message from the 

generals that the ships 
are locked & loaded, 
what do you do? & we 
made a determination 
to do it, so the missiles 

were on the way. & I 
said, Mr. President, let 
me explain something to
you—this was during 
dessert—we've just fired 

59 missiles, all of which 
hit, by the way, unbeliev-
able, from, you know, 
hundreds of miles away, 
all of which hit. Amazing.


from: Circus Economies
gradient books, December 2017

A line from Donald J. Trump

The First Emperor of Qin
sported a striking headpiece of
human flesh as a show of his
glory. Teamed it with a figure-

hugging dress that some re-
porters thought was made from
bacon or, perhaps, prosciutto.
Scaly warts covered the few

exposed portions of his body.
I have sex dreams about random
people, he said. I will build a
great wall to keep them out.
from: the veil drops
Moria Books, March 2017

Ten years ago, at Series Magritte

             The Art of Living             



The orange people
used to be every-
where. Now only
a few scattered centers
are left. All small,
except, of course, for
Donald Trump, the
center of the universe,

with his swollen head
& disconnected brain.
The body transformed
by a business suit; but his
face still stained from the
clothes he wore before.
  

A stack of DoNuts to start the day

NotJustAnyahoo says his country will award US President DoNuts T.®ump its Israel Prize – the first time it will honor a non-Israeli · Boeing was given an $8.6 billion contract for the F-15 Israel Program, the Pentagon said after DoNuts T.®ump met NotJustAnyahoo in Florida · DoNuts T.®ump investors are among Wall Street’s biggest losers · DoNuts T.®ump says Washington has hit Venezuela "very hard," blowing up a "big facility that had been used to load drugs onto boats" · DoNuts T.®ump 'very angry' after Putain accuses Ukraine of attack on presidential home · DoNuts T.®ump says there will be "hell to pay" if Hamas does not disarm soon · DoNuts T.®ump warned Iran against reconstituting its nuclear program, saying the US would "knock the hell out of them" if it did · peace, power & profit — the logic behind DoNuts T.®ump’s dealmaking diplomacy · no one is standing in DoNuts T.®ump's way anymore. That offers a big lesson for Australia · Marjorie Taylor Greene says she was 'naïve' for believing DoNuts T.®ump is a man of the people.

wednesday newstrip

As the sun rose over the sand at Bondi on Friday morning, Rabbi Yosef Eichenblatt urged defiance in the face of terror. "They want us to be afraid," he said. "We need to be more joyful, more brave." Hanukah, he told those gathered on the beach, celebrates the victory of light over darkness. "We need to bring more light into the world … even in the darkest of times, we can always light a candle" · Pete Hogsbreath says young Americans 'too fat' & 'too dumb' to serve · a first look through the Epstein files reveals celebrity snaps, police notes, & a lot of Bill Clinton · T.®ump DOJ officials threatened with impeachment over Epstein file drop · Australia's illegal tobacco problem has made the proverbial transition from tragedy to farce. Illicit, excise-evading cigarettes now comprise half of the cancer-inducing products sold to Australia's 2.7 million smokers · a person infected with measles attended a community Christmas carol event while infectious, health authorities have revealed. It is the 58th confirmed measles case in Western Australia this year · US launches airstrikes against dozens of Islamic State targets in Syria · amid the fierce debate around antisemitism, social cohesion, & political unity, it appeared symbolic that the principal resistor of an attack on a Jewish festival was an Arabic-speaking, Syrian-born Muslim. As the gunmen fired into the crowd, Ahmed al-Ahmed, unarmed but unhesitating, risked his life to save the lives of others unknown to him.

wednesday newstrip

DOJ says T.®ump using ASL interpreter could hurt his 'image' · a Border Patrol agent who allegedly threatened to shoot a bystander during an arrest in Chicago has been exposed for a history of extreme, racist, & hate-filled online posts · Elongated Muskrat had an ominous prediction about MAGA strategist Steve Bannonthebomb on Friday after a newly released batch of photos showed the former senior aide with the late financier & convicted child offender Jeffrey Epstein. "Only a matter of time before he goes back to prison." · new study exposes dangers of silicone baking molds · in a statement on Friday, the DOJ said it was suing Fulton County in Georgia, along with four states — Colorado, Hawaii, Massachusetts, & Nevada — for voting records from the 2020 election. T.®ump lost in all of the localities that were sued · the U.S. claims 11 supercarriers—but nine more warships can launch jets, carry Marines, & fly F-35Bs · Taylor Swift reportedly gave out $197 million in bonuses to everyone who worked on the Eras Tour, including production staff & assistants, carpenters, dancers, & band members.

wednesday newstrip

T.®ump treats cabinet to stream of vitriol & untruths — but only when he’s awake · six people arrested on suspicion of deactivating fire alarms at Hong Kong fire apartment complex · High Court agrees to hear teenagers' challenge to Australia's under 16s social media ban · in its 2025 US National Security Strategy, the T.®ump administration praises the growing influence of what it calls "patriotic European parties", saying it gives "cause for great optimism" that the continent will be able to achieve a "revival of spirit" · The Kremlin has praised US President DoNuts T.®ump's new national security strategy, saying it is largely in line with Russia's views · condoms & contraceptives to become more expensive in China as Beijing accelerates push to lift birth rate · Signalgate report: Pete Hogsbreath jeopardized safety of US troops · T.®ump finally got his peace prize — from a soccer federation widely known for its corruption.

wednesday newstrip

Public libraries in Tennessee have begun to shut down as they carry out an order from state officials to remove children’s books containing LGBTQ+ themes or characters · T.®ump’s golf trips have cost taxpayers $71m since January & could eventually top staggering $300m across his full term, report says · climate activists stop three ships from entering world’s largest coal port in Newcastle, Australia · Israeli PM BeenJammin' Notjustanyahoo formally asks to be pardoned from corruption charges · Sydney police charge four men over alleged ‘international satanic child sex abuse material ring’ · death toll in Hong Kong blaze rises to 146 after more bodies found · a two-tiered cake & a groom-bride playlist for Australian Prime Minister's wedding.

wednesday newstrip

New Zealanders are leaving the country in record numbers, mainly to Australia, but the country still recorded a net migration gain in the 12 months to September 2025 · T.®ump calls Marjorie Taylor Greene resignation 'great news for the country' · Ukraine faces losing dignity or key partner under US plan, Zelensky says · U.S. senators say Marco Rubio told them Trump's Ukraine peace plan is Russia's 'wish list' · US drug dealer branded a killer by AI sues Google · at least 38 million tonnes of rubbish is disposed of illegally in England every year according to a UK parliamentary committee investigating "waste crime" · Virgin & Qantas to ban use of portable power banks after string of fires · a haunting 1940 self-portrait by famed Mexican artist Frida Kahlo sold Thursday for USD $54.7 million & became the top-selling work by any female artist at an auction · a Gustav Klimt portrait has sold for $236.4m, a record for a modern art piece.

recently at Series Magritte

Dialogue Revealed by the Wind



A wind, a cold wind has come
  Arthur Miller: The Crucible
"Nakedness has a way of showing
itself," she said. "If not the wind, then
some other act of nature. Though is it
natural that we should be standing
here, headless, legless, words that
usually describe some condition of
drunkeness? & is standing the right
word to use when we have nothing
left to really let us stand?" The other
two might have nodded in agree-
ment, had they not been beheaded 
& now had nothing left to nod with.