PicoBlog

Samothraki is one of my favourite places in the world. It’s a small volcanic island on the Greek side of the border with Türkiye, famed for its waterfalls, the Winged Victory and historic legacy. In Ancient Greek times, the island was known for its religious ceremonies called “The Samothraki Mysteries”. Today, the island is largely untouched by Western European tourists and is primarily populated by old Greek men gossiping over frappés and long-haired, free-loving hippies drawn by the spiritual nature and wild camping.

Last week - during the protracted Speaker fight - there was a moment on the House floor when a member of the majority party was giving a speech and all of the sudden everyone around me started yelling and I didn't understand why. Turns out, the person giving the speech had made a reference to members of the other party having "popcorn and alcohol" on the House floor. For the record, I didn't see anyone with alcohol and to my knowledge there was none.

You can read my original “FATE” tour recap from 2023 here, but below is a version of that mixed with remarks about 2024’s “FATE+” tour! Part One: Setting the Scene The “FATE+” live show picked up right where the message of the “MANIFESTO” tour left off, with an opening video that showed the members entering a new world - although “reborn” might be a more apt description than “new,” since the members’ video and Webtoon characters are vampires who have been alive for centuries!

Since we on the verge of the inaugural Cyber Defense Matrix Conference, which I am thankful to get the opportunity to attend, I figured I would write an article about the Cyber Defense Matrix. This article may be helpful for both those new to the concept as well as those familiar with it but interested in a refresher. For those unfamiliar, the Cyber Defense Matrix is a tool, framework, or mental model depending how you look at it, created by Sounil Yu.

My first semester of college, I had a neighbor who had a nice stereo system. I don’t know anything about stereo systems to I have to take her word that it was nice, or at least expensive. My neighbor set up her CD player and speakers inside her closet, against the interior wall that separated her closet from my closet, and when she played music loudly, which she liked to do, especially at night, it thumped right into my room.

Sarah Turney talks about the disappearance of her sister Alissa, last seen in Arizona in 2001. Medium Jonathan Mark goes through each episode of the new season of Unsolved Mysteries. The Netflix series uses re-enactments and interviews to retell the circumstances of mysteries that are unsolved. Covering crimes, tales of lost love, unexplained history and paranormal events, viewers are encouraged to provide information that might solve the mystery.  Reality Life with Kate Casey

When Wink Twyman responded to Jen Richmond’s article decrying a diversity training program she participated in he didn’t know it would kickoff a letter correspondence that spanned the course of years. Letters in Black and White: A New Correspondence on Race in America is the compendium of these letters. In this episode, Wink and Jen sit down with host Connie Morgan to talk about the disputes, solutions and a-ha moments articulated in their letters.

We’re back! Ilia and I recorded this episode before the actor’s strike, and I held off on releasing it until the strike ended, as we discussed her role on the HBO smash streaming series The Sex Lives of College Girls. I’m so glad I get to share this conversation with you, because Ilia is equal parts laugh-out-loud funny and careful, thoughtful, and introspective. She also acknowledges the OBJECTIVE TRUTH that the only Cinderella worth recognizing is Brandy’s Cinderella with her perfect wig of microbraids.

Today, we are publishing our first episode of the Pluribus Podcast! Our first guest is a good friend and sponsor, @extradeadjcb, who is the founder of exitgroup.us, and who writes the newsletter: .In this episode we discuss: The story of Dr. Bennett’s cancellation as a motivation for founding the EXIT group in terms of technical and social support. How and why a general “opposition to cancel culture” is not a coherent ethic by which groups can coordinate.