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Benjamin Downs Lane

@slowtalking

Internationalist WHO (Retired) Health Systems Governance and Emergencies Public Economics. Worked : AT/CH/KH/PH/SB/YE Novels: Pale Fire / Der Zauberberg Political philosophy: The Devil’s Dictionary Play: Chopin

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Latest posts by Benjamin Downs Lane @slowtalking

Trump: “I think the war is very complete, pretty much."

But one could not help noticing that Trump's declarations of total victory were becoming more frequent.

(~ with apologies to Proust, Dumas.)

09.03.2026 20:26 👍 125 🔁 14 💬 6 📌 1
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This isn’t a coincidence — it’s a cover-up.

09.03.2026 18:31 👍 388 🔁 166 💬 12 📌 7

Dankbarkeit. Sichtbar gemacht.
#informationsgesellschaft

09.03.2026 13:04 👍 13 🔁 4 💬 1 📌 0
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Before sending drones or angry comments, kindly note this is a satirical page. And satire is the essence of Democracy.

09.03.2026 07:43 👍 152 🔁 43 💬 3 📌 3
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Rabobank on the unfolding worst case scenario:

09.03.2026 07:00 👍 818 🔁 346 💬 38 📌 86

Si vous vous sentez inutile, rappelez-vous qu'il a fallu aux américains 20 ans, des milliers de milliards de dollars, et 4 présidents, pour remplacer les talibans par des talibans.

Norman Finkelstein

09.03.2026 03:39 👍 4 🔁 2 💬 0 📌 0
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WHO assistant director general Jeremy Farrar: 'In the age of disinformation, WHO must remain a normative power' - Geneva Solutions Responsible for health promotion and disease prevention and care at the World Health Organization, the former charity chief takes stock of the state of the UN health agency.

Via Geneva Solutions: genevasolutions.news/global-healt...

09.03.2026 03:57 👍 2 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 0

It feels like one reason why markets are freaking on Iran more than the tariffs is there really is no way to TACO on Iran and oil. And the other thing, markets got high on their own supply because Trump didn't technically TACO. He delayed some tariffs but kept many across-the-board tariffs.

09.03.2026 04:05 👍 117 🔁 16 💬 5 📌 1
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09.03.2026 03:52 👍 4 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 0
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So basically

09.03.2026 00:31 👍 781 🔁 176 💬 18 📌 13
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Khamenei's son takes control of Iran's anti-protest militia Mojtaba Khamenei's move dismays clerics and Revolutionary Guard generals

He’s only a mystery to those who know nothing about this regime.

www.theguardian.com/world/2009/j...

08.03.2026 22:59 👍 27 🔁 4 💬 1 📌 0

Couldn’t Platner just go back to work for Blackwater again?

08.03.2026 23:15 👍 46 🔁 6 💬 2 📌 0

I find the red tie to be just as bad

08.03.2026 22:33 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

The people who created international law weren’t pacifist ninnies. No, they had gone through war and were determined to never go through that again.

08.03.2026 15:21 👍 94 🔁 26 💬 0 📌 2

Trump is today telling every member of the US military that it is ok with him if Russia helps Iran kill them--every one.

Once again Americans, Trump looks at US military personnel as suckers and losers that he can sacrifice for his own glory and profit. This is who leads

08.03.2026 15:20 👍 667 🔁 237 💬 21 📌 11
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Stormy space weather may be garbling messages from aliens, new research suggests Researchers who listen for signs of non-human life say signals ‘can slip below detection thresholds, even if it’s there’

Smile

www.theguardian.com/science/2026...

08.03.2026 20:34 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Stephen Miller Missing, Bed Full Of Ash After Forgetting Daylight Savings This week's Dadaist graffiti news headlines!
08.03.2026 17:46 👍 8 🔁 2 💬 0 📌 1

Je sais bien qu'on dit parfois que le succès, c'est d'aller d'échec en échec sans jamais perdre son enthousiasme, mais à un moment il faut se calmer monsieur.

08.03.2026 18:10 👍 99 🔁 10 💬 10 📌 0
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Robert Brasillach - Wikipedia

Just sharing this for future reference.

- De Gaulle's only comment on the matter was "In literature as in everything talent confers responsibility."

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_...

08.03.2026 19:29 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

I don’t think that stupid is an accurate description of the Iranian regime.

08.03.2026 17:45 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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'Don't die': the two words that sum up our lives in Tehran now | Anonymous In a park overlooking the city, I ran into a group of young people chatting and joking. As the bombs fall, fragments of life remain, writes an anonymous Tehran resident

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

08.03.2026 16:41 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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"Never forget that a political, economical or religious crisis is enough to cast doubt on women's rights. These rights will never be vested. You have to stay vigilant your whole life."

Simone de Beauvoir, 1949

#WomensDay #IWD2026 #8M

08.03.2026 10:13 👍 318 🔁 139 💬 2 📌 4

Agreed, and, likewise. Thank you @yasharali.bsky.social

08.03.2026 06:41 👍 19 🔁 4 💬 0 📌 0

It is making my head explode

08.03.2026 06:24 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Seems Rubio wants to make Cuba into either a protectorate or a commonwealth.

08.03.2026 05:59 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Hey, remember how I said that my third friend in the oil industry didn’t respond? Yeah they got back to me.

It’s not looking good, team

08.03.2026 05:03 👍 2041 🔁 512 💬 81 📌 119
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Trump acusa a México de ser el epicentro de la violencia criminal en América Latina y dice que Sheinbaum es “muy buena persona” El republicano ha amenazado con lanzar misiles contra las organizaciones del narcotráfico en su cumbre continental de líderes de derecha

elpais.com/mexico/2026-...

08.03.2026 05:45 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Cuba, el próximo objetivo de Donald Trump El presidente de Estados Unidos advierte casi a diario que la isla “está en sus últimos momentos” y debe negociar un acuerdo

elpais.com/america/2026...

08.03.2026 05:36 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Dominique de Villepin : «Cette guerre est un piège pour les démocraties : elle prétend se faire au nom de la démocratie, mais se mène en vérité au service des empires» ➡️ bit.ly/4rMIDTW

08.03.2026 05:02 👍 122 🔁 41 💬 9 📌 6

True

08.03.2026 02:12 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0