March 4, 2026

MAYBE WE WILL MANAGE TO CHANGE IRAN; MAYBE WE JUST MANAGE TO MAKE THEM STOP BOTHERING US:  Whatever.

What they become is up to them. Not letting them bother us is up to us.

Posted at 1:00 am by Sarah Hoyt

FASCINATING, IN FACT:  Interesting.

Posted at 12:30 am by Sarah Hoyt

March 3, 2026

OPEN THREAD: Don’t just sit there, comment.

Posted at 9:30 pm by Glenn Reynolds

SEEN ON FACEBOOK:

Posted at 9:14 pm by Ed Driscoll

MARK ZUCKERBERG BUYS $170M MANSION ON ‘BILLIONAIRE BUNKER’ ISLAND IN MIAMI:

  • Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan have purchased a $170 million property in Miami’s exclusive Indian Creek community

  • The mansion, still under construction, will feature nine bedrooms, 15 bathrooms, and luxury amenities like a 1,500-gallon aquarium

  • The purchase sets a record for Miami-Dade County and follows a rise in luxury real estate sales in Florida

Mark Zuckerberg is expanding his already impressive — sometimes controversial — real estate portfolio with a record-breaking purchase in Miami.

The Meta CEO, 41, and his wife, Priscilla Chan, 41, closed on a $170 million property in the sunshine state on Monday, according to the Wall Street Journal. A spokesperson for the couple declined to comment to PEOPLE.

Wait, how is that possible? Dan Rather assured me in 1982 that virtually all of Florida would be underwater by now thanks to global warming:

 

Posted at 8:44 pm by Ed Driscoll

PAST PERFORMANCE IS NO GUARANTEE OF FUTURE BULWARK: 

UPDATE:

Posted at 5:14 pm by Ed Driscoll

IT DOESN’T TAKE HERCULE POIROT TO CRACK THIS CASE: Why Europe is terrified of standing up to Iran.

The timidity of Europeans towards regime change in Iran is in stark contrast to their aggressive attitude towards regime change in Russia. Last year Von der Leyen called Vladimir Putin “a predator” who can “only be contained by strong means.” In November, Macron declared that Europe “must show that we are not weak in the face of the power that threatens us.”

Why the difference? Russia, for all its malevolence, does not have the means to stoke civil unrest in western Europe. The Islamic Republic of Iran does.

It is estimated that there are 45 million Muslims in Europe, approximately 6 per cent of the total population. Of course, many will support the US and Israeli attack on Iran, mindful of how Tehran massacred tens of thousands of protestors in January. Nevertheless, it is instructive that while there have been countless mass demonstrations in western European cities for Palestinians since 2023, street protests in support of Iranians have been negligible.

European governments are reluctant to wholeheartedly endorse the American-led strikes against Iran because they fear the conflict could spill onto their streets. This alarm is not misplaced; some left-wing parties in Europe see America’s attack on Iran as an opportunity to strengthen their “Islamo-gauchisme” credentials. Zack Polanski, the leader of the increasingly popular Green party, said at the weekend that America’s attack was “illegal and unprovoked.”

The Scottish wing of the party described Donald Trump as a gangster who was demonstrating “total contempt for human rights, international law and negotiations.”

In France, Jean-Luc Melenchon’s La France Insoumise was similarly scathing. One of the senior figures in his party, Rima Hassan, posted on X: “Iran has the right to defend itself, and Israel has the right to shut up.”

Such is the hatred of Israel among many within the European left they are prepared to side with Iran’s murderous Mullahs, particularly if they think it will be electorally advantageous.

Fortunately, these Muppets don’t appear too worried about Belgium’s Muppets:

Posted at 4:45 pm by Ed Driscoll

ASKING THE IMPORTANT QUESTIONS: How long do electric vehicle batteries actually last?

As the fleet of EVs on the road ages, new data pooled from tens of thousands of vehicles is showing those batteries are lasting longer than expected.

Lithium-ion batteries undergo two kinds of aging. First, there’s calendar aging: They degrade as time goes on, holding less juice, even if they just sit in storage.

Then there’s cyclical aging, which is how much a battery degrades based on its use — being charged and discharged, over and over again.

That means there’s no way to dodge degradation. Whether you use a vehicle a lot or a little, eventually, the battery will hold less energy.

But the trajectory of aging isn’t a straight line. Recurrent, a research firm that pulls in data from over 30,000 EV drivers, describes it as an “S curve.” There’s a rapid decline at the beginning, a long leveling off, and then a more rapid decline at the end.

It’s nice that they last longer than initially thought. But that’s still a very expensive replacement with no repairability.

Posted at 3:49 pm by Stephen Green

RE-OPENING THE STRAITS:

Posted at 3:33 pm by Stephen Green