Elizabeth Alex

The Ides of March - a day of the assassination of Julius Caesar in 44 BC, that forever changed history : Julius Caesar's bloody assassination on March 15, 44 BC, forever marked March 15, or the Ides of March, as a day of infamy. It has fascinated scholars and writers ever since. For ancient Romans living before that event, however, an ides was merely one of several common calendar terms used to mark monthly lunar events. The ides simply marked the appearance of the full moon. But Romans would soon learn to beware the Ides of March. That iconic phrase came to represent a day of abrupt change, setting off a ripple of repercussions throughout Roman society and beyond. By the time of Caesar, Rome had a long-established republican government headed by two consuls with joint powers. Praetors were one step below consuls in the power chain and handled judicial matters. A body of citizens forming Senate proposed legislation, which general people's assemblies then approved by vote. A special temporary office, that of dictator, was established for use only during times of extreme civil unrest. Romans had no love for kings. According to legend, they expelled their last one in 509 BC. While Caesar had made pointed and public displays of turning down offers of kingship, he showed no reluctance to accept the office of “dictator for life” in February of 44 BC. This action may have sealed his fate in the minds of his enemies.  Caesar had pushed the envelope for some time before his death. “Caesar was first living Roman ever to appear on the coinage.” Normally, honor was reserved for deities. He notes that some historians suspect that Caesar might have been attempting to establish a cult in his honor in a move toward deification. Plot's conspirators, who termed themselves “liberators,” had to move quickly as Caesar had plans to leave Rome for a campaign against Parthians. Two days before his departure, he was summoned to Senate for what would be a fateful meeting. Conspirators gathered around Caesar and stabbed him to death as rest of Roman Senate watched in horror. Whether or not Caesar was a true tyrant is debated still to this day. It is safe to say, however, that in mind of Marcus Brutus, who helped mastermind the attack, the threat Caesar posed to republican system was clear. Brutus was famously portrayed in William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar as a tragic hero, while Caesar was written as an unequivocal tyrant. In the play, Caesar sees Brutus among the crowd of assassins and says of the betrayal with his dying breath, "Et tu, Brute?"  Brutus's involvement in murder is made tragic given his close affiliations with Caesar. His mother, Servilia, was one of Caesar's lovers. And although Brutus had fought against Caesar during Rome's recent civil war, he was spared from death and later promoted by Caesar to office of praetor. Brutus, however, was torn in his allegiance to Caesar. Brutus's family had a tradition of rejecting authoritarian powers. Ancestor Junius Brutus was credited with throwing out last king of Rome, Tarquin Superbus, in 509 BC. Ahala, an ancestor of Marcus Brutus's mother, had killed another tyrant, Spurius Maelius. This lineage, coupled with a strong interest in Greek idea of tyranicide, disposed Brutus to have little patience with perceived power grabbers. The final blow came when his uncle Cato, a father figure to Brutus, killed himself after losing in a battle against Caesar in 46 BC. Brutus may have felt both shame over accepting Caesar's clemency and obligation to do Cato honor by continuing his quest to “save” republic from Caesar, Osgood speculated. It is this moral dilemma that has caused debate over whether or not Brutus should be branded a villain. Plutarch's Life of Brutus, is quite sympathetic in comparison to surviving documents naming other enemies of Caesar and his successors.  📷 : The Ides of March XLIV BC; Oil on Panel, by Stephen Gjertson (Old Parkland Art Collection, Dallas) #archaeohistories

Earlier today, I was on @CNN having a wonderful conversation with @amanpour about Nation of Strangers. “It is not only refugees, immigrants, exiles or asylum seekers who are homeless,” I said, “The world is becoming homeless, we are all becoming strangers— strangers to our times, to this cruelty. We, as strangers, are the majority.” Thank you @amanpour and many thanks to the formidable team at @CNN #London Here’s the full interview if you missed it edition.cnn.com/2026/02/13/tv/…

Just vile.

The “peace monks” who have been walking 108 days, starting in Texas, arrived in DC today. The sun came out. So did a lot of people tired of the ugliness.

This video should unsettle anyone who takes the United States seriously as a nation. Because it exposes something dangerous: the trivialization of the world's most consequential office. It shows how carelessly the power, credibility, and accumulated moral authority of a superpower can be squandered for a few seconds of viral attention. In any other major democracy, this behavior from a head of state would trigger a constitutional crisis. Paris would burn. Berlin would convene emergency sessions. In the Nordic countries, resignation would follow within hours. Across functioning democracies, the public, institutions, and political class would recognize this for what it is: an assault on the dignity of the state itself. Leaders are not free to perform as entertainers without consequence. National honor is not personal property, it's held in trust. But the United States is not just another country with a provocateur in charge. It is the linchpin of global order. It maintains formal alliances and security guarantees with forty to fifty nations. It underwrites the financial architecture, trade systems, and diplomatic frameworks that billions of people depend on daily. When the American president speaks—or posts—it doesn't land as satire, meme, or personal whim. It reads as a signal about what the country is becoming. American power has never relied solely on carrier strike groups or economic output. It has rested on something more fragile and more valuable: trust. The belief that beneath domestic turbulence lies institutional seriousness, predictability, and a baseline commitment to dignity. That belief is now disintegrating in real time. Millions of American companies operate globally. They negotiate multibillion-dollar contracts in environments where reputation is currency. Boardrooms in Frankfurt, Singapore, and Dubai aren't debating whether a post was clever—they're asking whether the United States remains a reliable partner. Whether agreements signed today will be honored tomorrow. Whether American leadership has devolved from institutional to purely theatrical. Consider tourism, which sustains millions of American jobs—airlines, hotels, restaurants, museums, entire regional economies. Soft power isn't an abstraction. It materializes in flight bookings, conference locations, study-abroad programs, and decades of accumulated goodwill. A quiet, decentralized boycott doesn't require government action—only a collective sense that a nation no longer respects itself. Now picture this image being studied by foreign ministers, central bank governors, defense strategists, and sovereign wealth fund managers. Picture them asking a coldly rational question: How do we write binding thirty-year agreements with a country whose public face will be this, relentlessly, for years to come? How do we plan for the long term when the tone is impulsive, mocking, and unbound by the gravity of office? This is where the real calculus begins. Trillions in foreign capital depend on confidence that America is stable, credible, and rule-governed. That confidence is now being traded for what, exactly? Applause from an online mob? A dopamine rush from manufactured outrage? Content designed to dominate the news cycle rather than serve the national interest? Every serious nation eventually confronts this choice: burn long-term credibility for short-term spectacle, or safeguard the reputation previous generations bled to build. The United States spent eighty years constructing an image of reliability, restraint, and leadership under pressure. That image wasn't born from perfection—it came from a visible commitment to standards that transcended impulse. This isn't a partisan issue. Europeans who value democratic norms recognize something ominously familiar here. Americans—Democrat and Republican alike—who believe in responsibility and restraint should see it too. Power attracts scrutiny. Leadership demands discipline. A superpower cannot behave like a reality TV contestant without paying a price. The presidency is not a personal broadcast channel. It's a symbol carried on behalf of 330 million people and countless international partners who never voted but whose lives are shaped by American decisions anyway. Every post either reinforces or erodes the idea that America can be counted on when it matters most. So the question is no longer whether this is offensive. The question is whether this is who America chooses to be: a nation that trades a century of hard-won reputation for viral moments. A country that replaces statecraft with content creation. A republic governed like a season of reality television. History offers a harsh lesson here. Great powers don't fall because enemies mock them. They collapse when they begin mocking themselves—publicly, proudly, and without grasping the cost until it's far too late. Stay connected, Follow Gandalv @Microinteracti1

Never walk away from someone who deserves help; your hand is God’s hand for that person. #Proverbs

Six years ago today, the Chiefs did in fact have enough time to run wasp

A baby staring at his mom with pure admiration.

The Trevi Fountain marks the exact endpoint of a 2,000-year-old Roman aqueduct, where ancient engineering still pours fresh water into the heart of the city every single day. Aqua Virgo was constructed in 19 BC by Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa during the reign of Emperor Augustus.

A nervous couple… then a guest stands and sings. Soon all join in: Stand by Me. Unforgettable! 🥺❤️

Excellent!

Tiny crystals inside your inner ear help your brain sense gravity and keep you balanced

Today, Russia struck a passenger train in the Kharkiv region with attack drones. In any country, a drone strike on a civilian train would be regarded in the same way – purely as an act of terrorism. There would be no doubt about the classification, neither in Europe, nor in America, nor in the Arab world, nor in China, nor anywhere else. There is, and can be, no military justification for killing civilians in a train carriage. In particular, over 200 people were on the train, and 18 were in the carriage hit by one of the Russian drones. Overall, this attack involving three drones has so far resulted in four confirmed deaths. My condolences to all the families and loved ones. Rescue teams are still searching for four more people, and two others have been injured. Russia must be held accountable for what it is doing. And this means responsibility not only for strikes against our people, against our life, but for the very ability to carry out such attacks. The Russians have significantly increased their capacity to kill, their capacity to terrorize. They are investing in the progress of terror. And our task – and this should unite all decent people around the world – is to ensure progress in the protection of life. This is possible through pressure on Russia. This is possible by punishing Russia for its actions. This is possible through support for Ukraine. I thank everyone who does not remain silent when they see what Russian terrorists are doing.

ADHD isn't defiance or a "broken" brain—it's often a sensitive child's quiet survival strategy. Gabor Maté: In stressed families, a highly attuned kid absorbs the tension and protects themselves by tuning out—going absent-minded. It's coping, not defect. These children tend to be deeply empathetic, warm-hearted, talented in unique ways... yet carry insecurity from the same stress. What they crave most? Not stricter focus training or behavior fixes—true emotional security. Feeling deeply seen, understood, and safe. Shift from "fix the kid" to "make the environment feel safe for them." This 48-second clip reframes ADHD with radical compassion—especially powerful for parents, teachers, or anyone who's ever felt "scattered" themselves. Parents of kids with attention challenges: Does this view resonate with what you've seen in your child? Adults with ADHD: Looking back, did early family stress play a role in how it showed up? Anyone: What's one way emotional safety changed (or could change) focus/attention for you or someone close? Raw, kind stories welcome—no judgment, just real insight.

UAF honors the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr., who dedicated his life to justice, equality and service. We remain committed to that spirit of service wherever we can be of help. #MLKDay

Mike Rowe: “We’ve been telling kids for 15 years to learn to code.” “Well, AI is coming for the coders.” “It’s not coming for the welders, the plumbers, the steamfitters, the pipefitters, the HVAC, or the electricians.” “In Aspen, I sat and listened to Larry Fink say we need 500,000 electricians in the next couple of years—not hyperbole.” “The BlueForge Alliance, who oversees our maritime industrial base—that’s 15,000 individual companies who are collectively charged with building and delivering nuclear-powered subs to the Navy … calls and says, we’re having a hell of a time finding tradespeople. Can you help?” “I said, I don’t know, man … how many do you need? He says, 140,000.” “These are our submarines. Things go hypersonic, a little sideways with China, Taiwan, our aircraft carriers are no longer the point of the spear. They’re vulnerable.” “Our submarines matter, and these guys have a pinch point because they can’t find welders and electricians to get them built.” “The automotive industry needs 80,000 collision repair and technicians.” “Energy, I don’t even know what the number is, I hear 300,000, I hear 500,000.” “There is a clear and present freakout going on right now. I’ve heard from six governors in the last six months. I’ve heard from the heads of major companies.”

This is what it looks like. This is Kyiv. Ukraine’s capital. An apartment building where the temperature is below 0. Where people live. Some of them can’t leave. russia is a bunch of genocidal bastards.

Goodbye #2025! Let 2026 be a year of #hope and all good things. #HappyNewYear2026

On Christmas day, Russia attacked several Ukrainian cities. In Chernihiv, a Russian drone hit a residential building, killing a woman and injuring ten more people. In Kherson, one person was killed as Russia launched a strike on the local market. Explosions sounded in Dnipro. Odesa was under a Russian attack once more. Now, Kalibr missiles have been launched and are expected to enter Ukrainian airspace shortly.

“All you have to do is write one true sentence. Write the truest sentence that you know.” — Ernest Hemingway