Tag: ukraine

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Time for the Sepender edition of our regularly scheduled Pook-Emu Bee Links.

Subway Stories

1 | These salvaged relics in a Brooklyn subway station are the ghostly remains of old New York buildings (Ephemeral New York. Sep. 28, 2026.)
I wouldn’t call this being restored to their former glory, but it’s something.

2 | MTA axes G train shutdowns planned for December after outcry from small businesses (Kirstyn Brendlen for Brooklyn Paper. Sep. 28, 2026.)
Fun fact for non-New Yorkers: The G train is the only non-shuttle line that runs directly between Brooklyn and Queens without going through Manhattan in between. It is also an oft-troubled line in the repair space.

Tech Replacements

3 | Fedora Discussion Raises The Idea Of Replacing LibreOffice With Collabora Office (Michael Larabel for Phoronix. Sep. 24, 2026.)
That is a stupid idea. Fedora should not do that. LibreOffice is a good default office suite (if one wants to ship a default office suite).

4 | US sanctions force The Netherlands off Microsoft and toward alternative NixOS-based software ecosystem — trial programs running now, first release expected at end of 2027 (Oliver Hansen for Tom’s Hardware. Sep. 28, 2026.)
U.S. sanctions of the ICC did not “force” the government of the Netherlands to do anything, as the first paragraph of the article itself notes. But since I use Linux instead of Windows myself, it will be interesting to see to what extent governments can make the switch work.

Military Conflicts

5 | Iran publishes propaganda letter urging US voters to punish Trump in midterm elections (Ronny Reyes for the New York Post. Sep. 29, 2026.)
I could state the obvious that I am not taking voting advice from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard. But let us go with a less obvious angle. 26 pages? Does the IRGC really expect me to read 26 pages? Moreover, are they aware that 1 USD is now worth more than 2.5 million Iranian Rial? If for no other reason than preserving tokens I would recommend they keep future communications to me to a strict 500 word limit. Thank you.

6 | Captured Hamas Spy Chief Helps Israel Take Out Three Senior Terror Commanders (Vijeta Uniyal for Legal Insurrection. Sep. 29, 2026.)
Hamas is finally showing the kind of cooperation that can lead to peace in the Middle East. Inspiring.

7 | Ukraine’s former defense minister launches ‘Manhattan Project’ for killer robots (Katie Livingstone for Defense News. Sep. 30, 2026.)
The problem with Giant Death Robots is that by the time you reach the end of the tech tree, you probably already made it to Alpha Centauri or won a domination victory, no? I don’t see how he is addressing that. Shallow. (Link for readers who never played Civilization.)

Video Games

8 | Danganronpa 2×2 hands-on impressions: Witnessing the exact moment Slayhem Mode takes the familiar killing game off the rails (Dorde P for Automation West. Sep. 30, 2026.)
I was mildly curious how they were going to re-do the Danganronpa 2 scenario. This sounds plausible. I may talk myself into this one but TBD. (They had better not kill Chiaki off early, however.)

9 | After Years Of Hard Work, One Of The Most Ambitious Super Mario Kart SNES Hacks Of All Time Finally Has A Release Date (Jack Yarwood for Time Extension. Sep. 30, 2026.)
Interesting. I’m curious what the new courses are.

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You may wonder whether I sometimes go a week or so (a week in this case) without publishing Pook-Emu Bee links because I lack links. Not so. I collect links every day. That makes getting back to Pook-Emu Bee all the more urgent. An out-of-control link backlog is a scary thing.

AI (or SI?) and Tech

1 | Daily News Stuff 29 September 2026 (Ambient Irony. Sep. 29, 2026.)
Incisive analysis of the “rogue” agent phenomenon in four words (“Because they are idiots.”)

2 | Heads of AI firms tell UN Security Council that it could imperil humanity (Seth Borenstein and Jennifer Peltz for AP. Sep, 23, 2026.)
I agree with Pixy Misa at Ambient Irony that this effort is embarrassing on many levels and impractical because the UN does not “have the power to regulate squat.” With that being said, I think the UN may be the perfect forum.

3 | Alabama teens getting their own version of TikTok under sweeping $100M deal (Elaine Mallon for Fox Business. Sep. 26, 2026.)
That’s great but what if we went back and considered that “no TikTok” idea again?

4 | Fwupd 2.1.8 Linux Firmware Updater Is Out Now with Support for More Devices (Marcus Nestor for 9 To 5 Linus. Sep. 24, 2026.)
I’m an Fwupd fan. I was hoping one of the devices would be my ASRock motherboard, which I just updated a couple of weeks ago. Alas. Still cool, however.

New York City News

5 | Safety advocate blames Central Park redesign for pedestrian’s death as cyclist crashes rise (Haley Brown for the New York Post. Sep. 28, 2026.)
Correct. But let us not forget the bikers who are pretending they’re riding in the Tour de France.

6 | Bay Ridge’s beloved Ragamuffin Parade turns 60, celebrating generations of community (Olivia Searman for Brooklyn Paper. Sep. 23, 2026.)
Despite having spent a good amount of time in Bay Ridge in my life, I never heard of this parade. But I nevertheless offer my congratulations.

World News

7 | Leftist South Korea Demands Ukraine Apologize After Zelensky Reveals North Korea Soldiers Shipped to Seoul (Frances Martel for Breitbart. Sep. 28, 2026.)
I personally wouldn’t stake my reputation on the reliability of either party here, but as a general point the one asking everyone for assistance in its existential defensive war should probably err on the side of caution.

8 | US Identifies and Blacklists Three More UNRWA ‘Teachers’ Who Participated in Oct 7 Terror Spree, Kidnapped and Held Israeli Hostages (Adam Kredo for The Washington Free Beacon. Sep. 28, 2026.)
If it makes these three distinguished UNRWA employees feel better, many individuals who have been publicly implicated in October 7 have suffered worse fates than loss of employment opportunities. Wait a second. That probably shouldn’t make them feel better.

Video Game Stories

9 | Danganronpa creator Kazutaka Kodaka considers Ultimate Despair Girls the pinnacle of his writing. “I will never be able to write another scenario that surpasses it” (Dorde P for Automation West. Sep. 25, 2026.)
I think I played something between 30% and 40% of Ultimate Despair Girls before losing interest and unsuccessfully including it in an Amazon trade in when I bought my Switch (UPS lost the package…). It was ok but I would have probably finished had I agreed with Mr. Kodaka’s assessment. With that being said, I do like Dangan 1-3, although I would caution against taking them too seriously.

10 | Persona 4 Revival Corrects Aika Nakamura Details, Confirms She Is Not a New Social Link (Orpheus Josha for Noisy Pixel. Sep. 24, 2026.)
I had seen the false report that P4 Revival was adding a new social link and had questions. Persona 4 Golden already tacked on two social links in Aeon and Jester to the original Persona 4. Adding yet another would have probably demanded some re-balancing. The correction to the original erroneous story thus makes sense to me.

11 | Amid “itasha” ban controversy, Forza Horizon 6 devs say moderation is handled by humans and “the number of reports does not matter” (Carlos “Zoto” Zotomayor for Automation West. Sep. 24, 2026.)
I have seen multiple stories about Forza Horizon 6 moderators allegedly banning user-created anime-style designs on in-game cards. Notably, none of the articles actually offer examples of which designs are being flagged. Thus, despite being an anime fan who is largely skeptical of games that have this much of an online component, I would reserve judgment.

Essential Minerals in Moderation

12 | Living the Low-Sodium Lifestyle (Chris O’Donnell. Sep. 24, 2026.) [HT Makoism]
Good blog post. I don’t measure sodium intake in this much detail but like the author, I seldom eat out and I check sodium on nutrition fact labels.

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I have a deadline today, so while the weekday Pook-Emu Bee streak continues, this will be another minimalist entry in my ongoing series.

1 | Israel: Law Adopted to Preserve the Memory of the October 7, 2023, Massacre and Commemorate Heroism (Ruth Levush for Global Legal Monitor. August 26, 2026.)
A sound law.

2 | Model Owl in a Towel (Wildbase Hospital [via Owls in Towels]. August 24, 2026.)
That is a [small] statuesque owl.

3 | How a Ukrainian commander sped through the ‘kill zone’ to save wounded troops (Vitalii Hinidyi and Dan Peleschuk for Reuters [via Defense News]. August 26, 2026.)
A teacher by trade, Vladyslav Polskyi taught a lesson in courage on the battlefield.

4 | Marines at Abbey Gate awarded Bronze Star medal upgrade (Patty Neberg for Task & Purpose. August 26, 2026.)
Well-deserved.

5 | Vanity Fair Drops Writer for Winking, Smiling at Camera During Lindsay Clancy Trial (Paul Bois and Ezra Dulis for Breitbart. August 26, 2026.)
Yes, her exuberantly giggling in the court room and spreading TikTok conspiracy theories (contra Clancy’s own defense) that Clancy’s husband is the hashtag-real killer may lead one to expect that she and her fellow travelers are distasteful human beings who would have reacted much differently had the victim been a single puppy rather than three children. But remember that I noted in Pook-Emu Bee 08-24-26 that Natasha Pearlman of the New York Post assured us that Clancy is just “living proof” of the worst fears of these women. Whew!

6 | The PocketBook Q is a Linux-based alternative to Android ereaders — new Boox rival has a 5.84-inch E Ink screen and will cost $235 (James Rogerson for TechRadar. August 25, 2026.)
I’m a PocketBook fan, but while it looks intriguing… I have my Xtenik X4 that I need to use, so I will probably stick with that alongside my preexisting two PocketBooks and my Kindle Paperwhite.

7 | I turned my Android phone into a retro gaming console for free (Varun Krishan for Make Use Of. August 25, 2026.)
I have thought about interesting ways to do something to this effect and I have three spare phones to work with, but it is on a long list of “tech” things to do and write about.

8 | Can you have too many hobbies? (Laura at Inky Imaginings. August 23, 2026.) [HT Well-Apportioned Desk]
I wish I could say that my comment on link 7 was referring to too many hobbies. But at the moment I am working on a flurry of immigration law matters with a pile of stuff next to me. So not quite…

9 | Brooklyn Dems change who picks party boss in closed-door vote; chair challengers head back to court (Adam Daly for amNY. August 26, 2026.)
The Brooklyn Democratic Party machine faced an existential red socialist threat after the June primaries. The last true (now unofficial) party boss, Frank Seddio, stepped in and resolved (pending legal challenges) the situation like a true party boss. I think the machine is on its last legs, but I wouldn’t bet against Mr. Seddio ensuring that it is not deposed just yet.

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Is it safe to say the daily Pook-Emu Bee links are “daily” again with three posts in a row?

The window of a washing machine with white foam from laundry detergent visible inside.
I did laundry yesterday evening.

1 – Video Game Accounts Can Be Inherited, Chinese Court Rules (Li Xin for Sixth Tone. August 6, 2026.)

The game account inheritance news from China you have been waiting for.

2 – Switch 2 Surpasses 23 Million Units As Nintendo Claims Sales Remain “Solid” (Ollie Reynolds for Nintendo Life. August 6, 2026.)

While I do not plan to contribute to Switch 2’s sales (as much as I’d like to play the upcoming new Fire Emblem), it looks like it is on a promising start to breaking some of Switch 1’s sales records.

3 – Mamdani Backs Squatters’ Rights in Video Demonizing ‘Billionaire’ Jewish ‘Slumlord’ (Ira Stoll for The Washington Free Beacon. August 6, 2026.)

The theater kids are running amok, but I for one am thankful that they are not (yet) performing musicals.

4 – NY lawmakers want to bring back sex-fueled bathhouses — 40 years after ban during AIDS crisis (Carl Campanile and Hannah Fierick for the New York Post. August 5, 2026.)

Count me in favor of maintaining New York City’s laws against commercial orgy establishments, regardless of who or what they may seek to cater to.

5 – Sanders on Objections to Piker Over 9/11 Comments: I Object to Taking AIPAC Money, I Choose Piker Over Carville (Ian Hanchett for Breitbart. August 4, 2026.)

I could note the obvious about defending the not-subtle 9/11 fan or the pathological obsession with AIPAC. But that would be boring. I’m here to present the take others would miss. Both CNN and Bernie Sanders forgot that Bernie Sanders is not a Democrat (except when he is running for President, of course). Wait… did he just foreshadow a 2028 run?

6 – Tell Us What Kind Of Coffee Your Church Serves And We’ll Tell You What Denomination You Are (The Babylon Bee. August 4, 2026.)

7. Tim Hortons — Oh no, you’re not at a Church… you’re in Canada!: Abort, abort!

I’ll have The Babylon Bee that there was a Tim Hortons on Court Street just across from Borough Hall. Of course, that Tim Hortons did not last. So the joke works in 2026 (from my perspective, at least).

7 – The Premium Mediocre Life of Maya Millennial (Venkat for Ribbonfarm. August 17, 2017.) (HT Espressio Shots.)

This 2017 look at the downwardly mobile urban millennial mindset is interesting in some respects, but deficient in its resistance to examining the role of social media usage. But more importantly, I was heartened to have been unable to follow most of her cultural references despite being a millennial.

8. Elon Musk Launches ‘X Money’ Financial Services Platform to Replace Banks (Lucas Nolan for Breitbart. July 28, 2026.)

I think I’ll stick with my non-social media bank set-up.

9. Ukrainian Drone Attacks Lead Moscow to Revive Idea of Buffer Zone in Border Areas (Paul Goble for Jamestown. July 28, 2026.)

In response to Ukrainian drone strikes targeting infrastructure ever deeper into the Russian Federation, Russian Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov revived the idea of creating a buffer zone in Russian regions lying along the Ukrainian border and in Russian-occupied regions of Ukraine on the other side

I have this strange thought that there’s something else the Russian government could try, or perhaps stop trying, to reduce the number of drone strikes coming from Ukraine.

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Two consecutive editions of Pook-Emu Bee daily links? What in the world is going on here?

Photograph of the Marina at Brooklyn Bridge Park in the late evening. It is lined with three tall American Flags on its left side. In the background we see the Manhattan Skyline and the Brooklyn Bridge.
Seen here is the Brooklyn Bridge Park Marina on July 13, 2026. I lined the American Flags, so I took a couple of photos. To the left you see Manhattan and off in the distance straight away you can see the Brooklyn Bridge.

1. Sega Dreamcast driver fixes appear in Linux 7.2-rc3 — fabled console remains in favor while iconic computing architectures like i486 fall by the wayside (Mark Tyson for Tom’s Hardware. July 12, 2026.)

I mainly used my Dreamcast for playing Sonic Adventure, the NBA 2K entries it received, Pen Pen Trilceon, and a little but of Chu Chu Rocket. Missed out on Linux for Dreamcast (in fact I dare say I almost certainly had no idea what “Linux” was). But Pen Pen Trilceon does have a penguin-esque cover character. Close enough. In any event, very cool to see.

2. Never Forget — Today Marks Two Years Since Assassination Attempt on Donald Trump in Butler, PA: ‘God Was with Me’ (Amy Furr for Breitbart. July 13, 2026.)

I missed noting the anniversary yesterday. Two whole years… time flies. “I said ‘Wow, what was that?’ I said ‘It’s either the biggest, most violent mosquito in history, or I just got shot.’”

3. ‘Moderate’ Gov Abigail Spanberger Taps Former FBI Official Behind Retracted Biden-Era Memo Targeting Catholics as Terror Threat To Lead Prison Reform Council (Jessica Schwalb for The Washington Free Beacon. July 13, 2026.)

Because I don’t live in Virginia, I’m willing to take the partial win of “at least he’s not in the FBI anymore.”

4. Microsoft Xbox CEO Asha Sharma Appointed to Federal Reserve Jobs Advisory Role After Mass Layoffs (Lucas Nolan for Breitbart. July 10, 2026.)

I see and understand the criticism but let no one say she’s not an expert in increasing the number of American citizens in the open job market.

5. UKRAINE: Conscientious objectors convicted, jailed, held in military units: list (Felix Corley for Forum 18. July 10, 2026.)

I kid you not. I was going to be working on a case involving a man claiming a well-founded fear of persecution in Ukraine based on part on his religion and opposition to compulsory military service when this popped up in my feed on the 10th. Timing is everything.

6. LineageOS introduces web flashing tools, revamped stats page, Android 17 plans, and more (Paul for AlternativeTo. July 9, 2026.)

I haven’t tried it yet, but this looks promising and could potentially make LineageOS more accessible (I am currently running it on my Pixel 3a XL after having installed it the old-fashioned way).

7. REESE’S PIECES Unveils New Chocolate Cookie Candy Nationwide (Vending Connection. July 8, 2026.)

I haven’t hade Reese’s Pieces in a very long time, but I like them. Cookie Reese’s Pieces do sound intriguing…

8. Mayor Mamdani’s map of NYC immigrant neighborhoods sparks outrage for ignoring Little Italy (Matthew Fischetti, Carl Campanile, and Natalie O’Neill for the New York Post. July 8, 2026.)

I begrudgingly respect his trolling. Here he engaged in a very simple troll and got a three-byline report for the New York Post plus days of follow-up articles.

9. The front page of the internet has an AI slop problem (Whizy Kim for Tech Brew. July 7, 2026.)

Reddit? You’re telling me Reddit has a slop problem of any kind? I don’t believe it. Perish the thought! (Remember that AI is a problem, but rarely the only problem.)

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I took an off-day from Pook-Emu Bee links yesterday. I am busy today, but let us not let that stop us from our daily selection of links from around the web.

1, Putting the phone down: an Osmo Nano workflow (Wojtek Powiertowski at Behind the Viewfinder. May 10, 2026.)

That camera is adorable.

2. Latvian defence minister resigns after Ukrainian drones hit oil depot (Brussels Signal. May 11, 2026.)

To be fair to the now-former Defense Minister, I am not sure Ukrainian drone strikes would have been anyone’s first contingency in the context of 2026.

3. Experts warn Trump admin any Iran deal must block plutonium path to atomic bomb (Benjamin Weinthal for Fox News. May 9, 2026.)

Doesn’t sound like it should be the first priority, but while you’re in the area dealing with the uranium. With that being said, I would respectfully decline a recent magnanimous request for assistance with the matter.

4. Red Hook’s Alma BK Has one of the Best Views in Brooklyn (TimeOut New York. May 5, 2026.)

I had lunch on the roof at Alma 12-13 years ago. Alma is not in Red Hook. It is in Columbia Street Waterfront District (the view is as advertised). One day they say CSWD is Red Hook, the next Carroll Gardens. No respect for that little neighborhood (which may soon become bigger).

5. Medicaid fraud fears grow amid massive red state billing spike in sector that also plagued Minnesota (Andrew Mark Miller for Fox News. May 9, 2026.)

Many people see autism as a piggy bank. Taxpayers, kids who get fake/wrong diagnoses, and kids (and their parents) who actually need services search in a sea of real-world slop.

6. No spectator parking for NJ World Cup has nearby town’s police dept issuing warning (Angela Barbuti for the New York Post. May 9, 2026.)

No one asks why the New Jersey state government, a state with two NFL teams and 17 NFL home games every year, is trying to manufacture chaos over the World Cup.

7. Mixtape is garbage, Don’t Listen to IGN! (Game Slush Pile. May 9, 2026.)

I had never heard of it but a cursory glance does suggest to me Game Slush Pile may be onto something.

8. AI Slop is Killing Online Communities (Robin Moffatt at rmoff’s random musings for May 6, 2026.)

I’m not a member of any online communities, but this lines up with what I would have assumed. With that being said, if AI slop can sink Reddit to the bottom of the sea, I am willing to reassess my AI slop priors.

9. kicking out human slop from my online space (Ava at Ava’s Space. May 8, 2026.)

I looked at the things she is no longer engaging with and confirmed that I only see them second-hand. Feed-reader centric surfing wins again.