DISPATCHES FROM THE BLUE ZONES: Aurora Avenue neighbors revolt, blocking off street access after yet another shooting.

One week ago, bullets blasted through the wall of a Greenwood neighborhood home and passed within inches of a window where a six-week-old baby boy was sleeping in his bassinet.

Saturday morning, roughly 40 shell casings were on the pavement near Aurora Avenue N. and N. 98th Street in Seattle after another shootout near the Burgermaster.

By daylight, the neighbors had had enough.

Residents along Seattle’s North Aurora corridor stopped waiting on City Hall. They hauled in large industrial steel planters and blocked off three residential side streets at N. 97th, 98th, and 102nd Streets near where they meet Aurora Avenue N. Neighbors said a representative from the mayor’s office and the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) came out to push back. They were waved off.

“We’re honestly not thinking long term right now,” one neighbor said, asking not to be identified out of fear of retribution from pimps and dealers operating along the Aurora Avenue corridor.

“We’re sick of this,” he added, citing a lack of action from city leaders. “We’re going to close the streets.”

Hard to think longterm when the bullets are flying.

BREAKING: Plant food good for plant life.

Harsh climate scenarios have spent decades painting Earth's likely future landscape as dystopian, dark, barren and forbidding.

Yet, recent physical data argues exactly the opposite. Instead of plunging the planet into chaos, it's becoming eye-catchingly greener – and CO₂ is the… pic.twitter.com/2nLOHMuqGE

— Peter Clack (@PeterDClack) May 25, 2026

Exit quote: “This oft-neglected climate resurgence reveals that the biosphere is its own self-regulating flywheel. A massive global expansion of leaf cover is already visible from space. Official computer models consistently fail to mention it.”

Now why would they not do that?

TIM O’BRIEN: Remembering Sgt. Jared Monti: The Full Story Behind ‘I Drive Your Truck.’

GET NEW JEANS: Amazon Essentials Men’s Low Stretch Straight-Fit Jeans. #CommissionEarned

“GIRLS” SPORTS: Biological Man Wins Two Girls Jumping Events, Qualifies For State Championship For Second Year In A Row.

LET THEM BE IRKED: Cornell academics, activists remain irked by car incident involving university president.

NEVER BEND THE KNEE:

That boy who didn’t kneel is more valuable than 10,000 who do kneel. Boys like him became men who made the modern world. Never kneel. https://t.co/C8d8ScF8Ic

— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) May 25, 2026

CORN, POPPED: Hasan Piker, Medea Benjamin Subpoenaed by Trump Administration.

THE COLLEGE FIX: ‘His Side’: New book debunks male privilege, gives platform to men in a women’s world. The book is here.

TEACH WOMEN NOT TO RAPE! (CONT’D): Female student raps about raping Jameis Winston with Heisman Trophy in raunchy music video. A male student who did this regarding any female public figure would face much more in the way of blowback.

DON’T GET WORKED UP ABOUT “LEAKED” DETAILS FROM ANY TRUMP NEGOTIATION:

I hope people understand what’s happening because it’s been the same story over and over again.

The Islamic Republic and their allies leak their preferred details as if they are agreed to western sources. Then when U.S. refuses to agree to those absurd terms and insists we… https://t.co/3bU7bf1LUO

— AG (@AGHamilton29) May 25, 2026

CHANGE? Alberta will vote in the fall on whether to start legal process for separating from Canada. “The proposed question would ask: ‘Should Alberta remain a province of Canada or should the Government of Alberta commence the legal process required under the Canadian Constitution to hold a binding provincial referendum on whether or not Alberta should separate from Canada?'”

KRUISER’S MORNING BRIEFING: Remembering Those Who Gave Their Lives for Our Freedom.

NOBODY TOOK A SHOT AT BIDEN OR OBAMA: “On Saturday night, May 23rd, a shooter once again sought to murder the President, his family, and his staff at the historic White House complex.”

THE HEGSETH EFFECT: US Army Hits 2026 Recruiting Goals Four Months Early.

THE NEW SPACE RACE: China launches 3 astronauts, including 1st ever from Hong Kong, to Tiangong space station. “The launch also marked the start of a historic human spaceflight for China: One of the three astronauts is starting a one-year stay in orbit, a first for the country. This is because Shenzhou 24, due to launch late this year, will be used to send a Pakistani astronaut to Tiangong for a short-duration visit.”

IF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM CAN’T STOP THIS SORT OF THING, OTHERS WILL:

Her name was Isabella Stroupe.

She was 19. She loved books. Her family called her Bella.

She was tied to a bed with a tow strap and tortured for months in an east Charlotte NC apartment.

Multiple broken bones.
St*b wounds.
R*ped repeatedly.

Her mother said she screamed and… pic.twitter.com/91GSTk1fjn

— Matt Van Swol (@mattvanswol) May 24, 2026

IT WOULD TAKE A HEART OF STONE NOT TO LAUGH: Billionaire Democrat Tom Steyer Does Campaign Stop in Rough Part of LA – Gets Violent Threats, Man Pulls Knife on Staffer.

This is also evidence that he’s not running a real campaign. In a real campaign, a fixer would have squared this with local “community (gang) leaders” to ensure nothing untoward happened.

Or you could have a message that resonates with people, like get the poop and junkies off the sidewalks.

Meanwhile Spencer Pratt in South Central 60s…. https://t.co/m3Kkl6dJA1

— LA Liberty 🗽🇺🇸 (@Free_LosAngeles) May 22, 2026

To be fair, maybe the Democrats’ message of “kill the billionaires” resonated with Steyer’s crowd …

WELL, OF COURSE: Netanyahu: Trump Agreed Iran Deal Will Not Stop Israel Defending Its Borders.

ICYMI: And Away We Go! Starship V.3’s successful launch and return sets us on the path to a Kardashev II civilization.

OF COURSE HE IS:

And he's being a whiny bitch about it, which is precious, after all that murder enthusiasm https://t.co/FNafWQFK72

— Northern Barbarian (@xnoesbueno) May 25, 2026

DECOUPLING CUTS BOTH WAYS:

China is now shipping it's own GPUs. This is the Lisuan LX 7G1000. But everyone is missing the point.

– You can get 88fps in Cyberpunk 2077.

– It has no dedicated ray-tracing hardware.

– On rasterization it performs better than a 3060 in synthetic benchmarks.

– Real work… pic.twitter.com/JlydKhw4x1

— Grummz (@Grummz) May 24, 2026

“We might see competitive GPUs out of China sooner than we think.”

But: “It’s on a 6nm node, which is about where NVIDIA was 5-6 years ago.
It’s also power hungry, with 225 watts of power usage compared to the 4060, which runs at about the same performance at only 110 watts. Also it probably has a spying hardware chip as a fun bonus surprise.”

THE DEI BUSINESS CASE IS FALLING APART:

Full article here: https://t.co/6cnYUibRL9 pic.twitter.com/FkPT75gFgw

— Johannes M. Koenraadt (@johannesmkx) May 24, 2026

AT AMAZON, Shop the Memorial Day Sale. #CommissionEarned

DISPATCHES FROM THE BLUE ZONES: California mayors revolt over Newsom bullet train plan they warn could ‘raid’ local tax bases.

California city leaders are escalating opposition to the state’s high-speed rail project amid fears the Golden State could tap local taxpayer funds to prop up the troubled rail system after nearly two decades of delays.

“This proposal in the 2026 Draft Business Plan is fiscally reckless, legally vulnerable, and fundamentally unfair to the communities expected to host High-Speed Rail facilities. It would weaken local governments, destabilize public services, and undermine constitutional protections that California voters have repeatedly affirmed. Simply put: the state cannot solve a state funding problem by raiding local tax bases,” wrote Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer along with nine other mayors in the letter obtained by Fox News Digital.

The mayors penned the April letter to the CEO of the High-Speed Rail Authority (HSRA), slamming a tax and planning proposal to help bankroll the railroad that has been in the works since 2008.

The mayors urged the state to pursue voter-approved bonds or dedicated state revenue sources instead of “attempting to divert local tax growth through a legally dubious scheme.”

The grift must flow.