The Simon–Ehrlich wager was a 1980 scientific wager between business professor Julian Simon and biologist Paul Ehrlich, betting on a mutually agreed-upon measure of resource scarcity over the decade leading up to 1990. The widely followed contest originated in the pages of Social Science Quarterly, where Simon challenged Ehrlich to put his money where his mouth was. In response to Ehrlich's published claim that "If I were a gambler, I would take even money that England will not exist in the year 2000", Simon offered to take that bet, or, more realistically, "to stake US$10,000 ... on my belief that the cost of non-government-controlled raw materials (including grain and oil) will not rise in the long run".

Simon challenged Ehrlich to choose any raw material he wanted and a date more than a year away, and he would wager on the inflation-adjusted prices decreasing as opposed to increasing. Ehrlich chose copper, chromium, nickel, tin, and tungsten. The bet was formalized on September 29, 1980, with September 29, 1990, as the payoff date. Ehrlich lost the bet, as all five commodities that were bet on declined in price from 1980 through 1990, the wager period.

While the final fate of USAID is in the hands of Congress, there is no doubt that the organization's reputation has been burned to the ground. Perhaps more important is the people, domestic and abroad, who managed the web of leftist programs will not have the financial staying power to wait until this all gets settled. They will move on to other jobs. Lastly, we've turned the spotlight on the truth of how our money was used to spread political propaganda inside the United States to support one of the two major political parties.

Department of Government Efficiency @DOGE
Unburdened by what has been.

Elon Musk @elonmusk
·
This building is now occupied by @CBP
9:10 PM · Feb 7, 2025. //

This is the new headquarters for US Customs and Border Protection.

If the agency is able to survive this near-death experience, nothing will ever be the same again.

GBenton
18 hours ago
I can only imagine what it's like to try to run a blog with this much incoming news.

But if the Democrats planned on a 90 day effort from Trump with something to fight every month or every week, they were woefully unprepared for something new every day - multiple times a day.

With social media coverage on X and on New Media like Red State and even Fox 24/7.

If this pace keeps up, can't see how they find their footing.

Especially when Trump's DOGE is cutting off their money supply and exposing genuine scandals that the public is outraged over because it affirms the frustrations that caused them to vote for Trump in the first place.

Dems are in deep, deep existential crap.

They probably shouldn't have tried to imprison Trump or delete him.

He's got no choice but to tear their stuff by the roots and scorch the earth so they can't regrow.

A century of Marxism is getting taken head on and from all sides.

OrneryCoot GBenton
18 hours ago
Ain't life grand? Trump figured out where the money was coming from and went for the throat. He has a good number of other targets, but this one will really sting a long list of players in the progressive movement, inside and outside of the government. Now to proceed at the same speed to the next targets.

GBenton OrneryCoot
17 hours ago
Because of how Trump 1.0 struggled with obstacles I suspected he would hit the Democrats on their weak flank rather than fuss with a slim majority in Congress.

My assumption was he would expose their corruption and criminality and destroy their brand so they would lose more seats in the mid terms and he'd secure his legacy in 2028.

The swamp is their home turf and there are enough Qusiling RINOs to sabotage his agenda in Congress and the courts are too often partisan adversaries rather than adjudicators of the law.

But the Democrats are a confidence game. They depend on the public not seeing what they are really doing.

I thought he'd focus on Crossfire Hurricane and a litany of other stuff like that to dirty them up.

Instead, Musk hit a flank I didn't even know existed in such a concentrated target - USAID is their piggy bank.

Sure, I figured they were corrupt, but that the whole mess could be exposed that quickly was a surprise to me - and probably them, too.

Now I'm positive this is just the tip of the iceberg. Every agency will reveal more rot.

And the states probably have satellite operations that mimic the larger pattern. Then there's the international stuff and NGOs and scumbags like Soros, etc.

The public is angry about inflation and crime and Trump exposed the Dems are stealing money and they ARE criminals.

Maybe they can survive this but I don't see how if all their grubby paws just got caught in the cookie jar.

After Trump's speech the other day about God and unity, it seems to me he will gut and destroy them but he will also make deals with Democrats like perhaps RFKjr to take over the husk of the party once he's done burning it to the ground.

The current leadership is all done though, the dominos he's set up haven't fallen - yet.

But he just said today there was "possibly" criminality with the funds at USAID.

In Trump-speak that means he has evidence of criminality.

Like I've been saying, he knows they tried to kill him. They ignored Sun Tzu and left him no way out but to go through them.

He can't just let power swap back and forth with the Uniparty every 2 to 4 years - they will never leave Trump or his family in peace.

So he has to destroy their machine. We're a few weeks in and they're taking massive hits that seem to be aimed at toppling them.

OrneryCoot GBenton
14 hours ago
With the way that Trump has become a one man wrecking ball for the Democrats along with his absolutely soaring approval from the public, I think that it may be a bit harder for the quislings to try and stop him. Not if they want to stay in office. The RNC is firmly in Trump's camp, and they control a lot of the money that goes into the midterm campaigns. Those who aren't on board may suddenly find themselves in the same position as Cheney and Kissinger...pariahs from the political world. It's all about the momentum and the scoreboard. So far, Trump is doing well enough to counter even the more prominent quislings like McConnell. If he keeps racking up wins, especially wins like USAID which are just bananas in their scope, I expect some legislation that will make those wins permanent. If Trump can get the House and Senate to start making real cuts in the Leviathan, we may yet save the country.

GBenton Light dispels darkness
17 hours ago
I'm guessing the controlled opposition, the RINOs, the Dems pet accomplices, are gonna be real quiet and hope they don't get exposed.

The impression I get is that Trump is so far ahead of them, he's got so much power in the government they built to oppress us, and so muchdirt on them that the old games are not gonna work.

He played their game last time.

This time, he's hitting them from all sides and he already knows all their weaknesses.

The thing to remember is they are all criminals and traitors.

And Trump can expose them all.

I'd bet money there are terms of surrender being negotiated behind the scenes with some pretty big names.

As soon as they really get that Trump already has them a move or two away from check mate they'll do whatever it takes to save their asses.

They can't even take him out because he's already got enough dirt to expose them even if he's gone.

The ultimate insurance policy is having them dead to rights.

Remarks
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT TRUMP
AT THE NATIONAL PRAYER BREAKFAST
February 6, 2025
THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of Communications

For Immediate Release

U.S. Capitol

Washington, D.C.

8:18 A.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. This is very beautiful, I must say. This is a beautiful place. And our country is starting to do very well again. It’s happening fast — a little faster than people thought.

Thank you especially to Senator Marshall for the beautiful introduction. Appreciate it very much. Thank you. Great senator you are. //

From the earliest days of our republic, faith in God has always been the ultimate source of the strength that beats in the hearts of our nation.

We have to bring religion back. We have to bring it back much stronger. It’s one of the biggest problems that we’ve had over the last fairly long period of time. We have to bring it back.

Thomas Jefferson himself once attended Sunday services held in the old House Chamber on the very ground where I stand today, so there could be nothing more beautiful than for us to gather in this majistic place — it is majestic — and reaffirm that America is and will always be “one nation under God.”

At every stage of the American story, our country has drawn hope and courage and inspiration from our trust in the Almighty. Deep in the soul of every patriot is the knowledge that God has a special plan and a glorious mission for America. And that plan is going to happen. It’s going to happen. I hope it happens sooner rather than later. It’s going to happen.

"The ESU program for consumers will be a one-year option available for $30," Yusuf Mehdi, EVP and Consumer CMO, said in a blog post. "Program enrollment will be available closer to the end of support in 2025."

Aesthetica @Anc_Aesthetics
·
This is the doxxer at the WSJ who doxxed the DOGE team member and got him fired. She worked at Business Insider who have a history of doxxing people and she was funded by USAID. It looks like she was hired solely to go after the DOGE team.
9:34 PM · Feb 6, 2025

Aesthetica @Anc_Aesthetics
·
Replying to @Anc_Aesthetics
Also worked as a USAID contractor, how did she get access to tweets from a deleted X account? We know USAID is just an offshoot of the CIA. This needs to be investigated.
10:01 PM · Feb 6, 2025

Aesthetica @Anc_Aesthetics
·
Replying to @Anc_Aesthetics
Very silly of her to post her email and signal like that when people can just flood her inbox with msgs that prevent her from doxxing anyone else
10:02 PM · Feb 6, 2025.

Mike Benz @MikeBenzCyber
·
That’s incredible. The journo who doxxed the DOGE staffer worked at 3 of the Top 4 Blobcraft Agencies I stress in lectures do organized political warfare as intelligence work: USAID, State, and DOD’s Political-Military branch. Literally the only resume point missing is CIA 😂

Sam Spade @MusicalPurist
This is the reporter who doxxed and got Marko Elez fired. Note her background:
1:50 AM · Feb 7, 2025. //

anon-BHS
40 minutes ago edited
Question....Who at the WSJ leadership level was the person who just hired K Long , "solely to go after the DOGE team"?
Next question....So, does this reveal to us that the WSJ is another one of the media publications (like Politico) who was receiving USAID funding??? (a discreet attempt to ruin DOGE before it uncovers/exposes their own involvement?)

You cannot make this up. Politico responded to the allegations that USAID was their sugar daddy and did not disappoint. It was an exercise in gaslighting and a terrible one at that. The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) crew uncovered mountains of waste and fraud, which led to the agency being virtually shut down on Friday. It’ll be absorbed into the State Department, with most of its workers being furloughed.

Yet, USAID also spent millions on various media subscriptions. And while we won’t call it a funneling of cash per se, it pretty much was that, but with extra steps. The government was essentially running a state media operation, which is the Democrat-media complex personified. We knew it existed, and now we have literal receipts. //

NightStalker
2 hours ago edited
So, Politico Pro, for a mere $15,000-$20,000 a year will inform the government what the government is doing? Gotcha.

Commodore Decker NightStalker
2 hours ago edited
This is a distinction without a difference. It’s money, laundering, plain and simple. We’re not that stupid.

Take the “L“, politico. You’re looking like the proverbial elephant trying to hide behind the flagpole. All this proves is what we have known all along. You are a part of the Democrat/government/media information operation.

Adults familiar with the way these early forays into the dank underbelly of longtime bureaucratic Washington have a more cynical suspicion than Elon hunting down disgruntled Tesla mechs.

And it has to do with the last sentence in the quote I used above:

The Labor Department houses an enormous amount of confidential data, and includes the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which produces important economic data, including inflation readings and market-critical employment statistics

What if - what IF - the Wonder Boys get in there and find out the past four years of #Bidenomincs have been a manipulated fantasy?

A badly managed fraud?

A theater piece for the gullible who didn't pay attention to the numerous, massive, downward revisions in data quietly done months after publication. //

Mike Derscher @MDerscher
·
I’m more interested to what the Doge guys find when they start looking at the BLS data. They’ll be able to figure out if it is accurate or if it has been managed.
5:35 AM · Feb 6, 2025 //

According to this fellow below, the entire DOGE department was set up very carefully to be within all the legal parameters from the beginning to prevent challenges based on its legality.

This is part of his thread explaining what the Trump team did and it is so interesting. They didn't create a new department out of whole cloth. They renamed an existing one that was already authorized within the scope of the president's authority to oversee (an executive branch department) and had all the funding, etc, in situ.

https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1887038847629877714.html.

The Trump team did their homework. I can't say that enough, and we're witnessing the fruits of it every single day - damn near something new every hour.

I expect that the Labor Department is going to be as big as a bag of different worms as USAID once this lawsuit gets tossed or negotiated.

I remember how we all kept getting told things were so wonderful if only our lying eyes would allow us to see it.

They all fell out of a coconut tree.

The looks on their faces. The chyron boldly reading, "DOGE Teen, Known Online As "Big Balls," Now an "Expert." It's simply a piece of art. If the "Newseum" still existed in Washington (it went out of business because no one cares about the supposed heroics of the legacy press) that screenshot would warrant its own exhibit. Everything about it is absurd, including the insinuation that what somebody called themselves online when they were a kid is a scandal.

What makes this so perfect is just how deeply concerned these press apparatchiks pretend to be. These are the same people who have never spent an ounce of energy worrying about the waste and corruption within the federal government when Democrats are in charge. Let Trump appoint a few people to root out that waste and corruption, though, and suddenly it's a national emergency for CNN and the rest of the legacy media.

No one believes any of this is sincere. It's all partisan politics, and if the press thinks they can scare DOGE off the trail by doxxing its members, they are sorely mistaken. //

Short-haired Red
12 minutes ago
Mark Zuckerberg founded Facebook when he was 19. Bill Gates founded Microsoft with Paul Allen when he was 19. Steve Jobs founded Apple with Steve Wozniak when he was 21. Scott Jennings needs to bring these truths onto CNN this morning. //

anon-g58b
34 minutes ago
Mozart wrote a symphony at 5. Mendelsohn was about 17 when he wrote Midsummer's Night Dream music (which includes the wedding march that almost everyone plays when the ceremony is over) Obama was in high school when he started toking.

Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) cut down USAID, which will effectively be shut down today. The entire operation will be absorbed into the State Department, keeping fewer than 300 out of a 10,000-person staff. The waste was unreal, and while the Left can only say this is a small budget item, that doesn’t negate the premise of DOGE, which is operating at the direction of President Donald J. Trump.

Also, isn’t that the most DC rebuke ever: well, it’s a little fraud. No, we’re done with that nonsense. And the only people who are furious are worthless federal workers and their Democrat allies who can no longer use USAID to subsidize their wasteful and arguably fraudulent pet projects on the taxpayers’ dime.

So, with Politico embarrassed and exposed by the reported USAID payola-rama, it’s hilarious that two anti-Elon Musk stories get published a day after the agency’s alleged subsidizing of the Democrat-media complex is exposed.

Representatives from Elon Musk’s U.S. DOGE Service have fed sensitive data from across the Education Department into artificial intelligence software to probe the agency’s programs and spending, according to two people with knowledge of the DOGE team’s actions.

The AI probe includes data with personally identifiable information for people who manage grants, as well as sensitive internal financial data, the two people said. They described DOGE activities at the Education Department on the condition of anonymity due to fear of retaliation.

The DOGE team is using AI software accessed through Microsoft’s cloud computing service Azure to pore through every dollar of money the department disburses, from contracts to grants to work trip expenses, one of the people said. Lower level department staffers were directed by agency leadership to let Musk’s teams access the sensitive financial data, the person said. //

If this is being weaponized to screw over the political class, trim the fat from government, and expose the waste and corruption as we’ve seen over the past few weeks, then so be it. Keep feeding that AI machine, which we’ll call Skynet but without the genocidal tendencies. //

Commodore Decker
8 hours ago edited
The use of the phrase “sensitive internal Financial data“ is intended to undermine the legitimacy of the effort and raise fears of privacy invasion. The good news is that the privacy being invaded are bureaucrats making these payments to pet left wing causes with your tax dollars which are hidden but which the AI software is able to expose.

The Democrats have spent decades constructing this Potemkin Village of payoffs, kickbacks, lazy unionized featherbedding work rules, and no accountability along with a sense of entitlement and privilege. The perfect employment for people with useless degrees and not a lot of work ethic. But like any house of cards, one good breeze can blow it all down. And it’s got them terrified. And it should because it’s long overdue.

I never imagined I would see this unfold so rapidly, but it’s great that it has because it’s got democrats completely unbalanced and unable to respond. Trump is inside their media decision cycle and inside their heads. They lash out with hysterics and retarded chants like Schumer the other day who had one of the most cringe worthy moments I’ve ever seen. And none of it seems to be working.

In the wake of the revelation that $34 million was transferred from taxpayer wallets into the coffers of far-left media outlet Politico, the Trump administration has ordered the General Services Administration (GSA) to terminate all media contracts for which the GSA currently pays. Included in the list of outlets affected are the aforementioned Politico—whose "Pro" product has gotten particular scrutiny—plus Bloomberg and the BBC. //

Marc Caputo
@MarcACaputo
·
Follow
News: The White House has directed the GSA to terminate "every single media contract" expensed by the agency: "Politico, BBC, E&E (Politico sub) and Bloomberg"

"The eye of Sauron is on more than just Politico It's all the media," WH adviser says
axios.com
Scoop: Trump orders key government agency to cancel all media contracts
3:42 PM · Feb 6, 2025. //

ConservativeInMinnesota
5 hours ago
I checked Politico’s website yesterday. No subscription is needed online. International print editions max out at $600 per year. They are available in print for free in Washington DC.

There was no cost to use Politico. This was blatant money laundering to buy favorable news coverage. This is criminal, prosecute them. //

Hank Reardon
6 hours ago
I find myself commetning after just the first sentence.

“In the wake of the revelation that $34 million was transferred from taxpayer wallets into the coffers of far-left media outlet Politico . . . “

Can we please agree these federal taxpayer funds were not “transferred”? They were laundered. Let’s use the correct term.

Concerned Patriot
3 hours ago
Fired is not enough, For this level of insane corruption people need to go to jail.

Now do you see why the Dems were so afraid of Trump? All the screeching and all the theatrics, all the lawfare and the assassination attempts, it was all to prevent this day from happening. And we haven't even gotten to the really good stuff yet. Just imagine all the shenanigans waiting to be uncovered over at Medicare and Medicaid. The Dems are screwed and they don't know what to do. who's gonna vote for them after this? We already see their own constituents tune them out as they faux rage over this.

The people have woke up. Now everyone knows the Dems have been full of feces the whole time. It was never about making things better or serving the down trodden. It was about money and power.

This has me thinking of Henry Hill in Goodfellas: "We ran everything. We paid off cops. We paid off lawyers. We paid off judges. Everybody had their hands out. Everything was for the taking. And now it's all over."

St. Joseph, Terror of Demons
33 minutes ago

“Russell Vought was born to make corruption safe again,” freshman Sen. Andy Kim, D-N.J., said in one of the late-night speeches. “Vought believes that all of the power in the executive branch belongs to the president and the president alone.”

Senator Kim made a very silly comment. Vought is correct in stating that “all of the power in the Executive Branch belongs to the president and the president alone.”

The president is the Chief Executive of the Executive Branch, which means that all of power wielded by the Executive Branch comes from and through the president.

A somber and reflective President Trump, speaking at the National Prayer Breakfast at the Capitol on Thursday, talked about the attempt on his life in Butler, Pennsylvania, last July.

In a rare public moment of emotion, Trump explained that the incident affirmed his belief in God.

"Honestly, it's a mir (miracle) — It changed, it changed something in me," the president said in a hushed tone. "I feel even stronger."

"I believed in God, but I feel — I feel much more strongly about it. Something happened," he added as the crowd burst into applause

What we're actually seeing is a trend on this particular issue, and it's going in the direction of opposition. So, take a look here. Okay, transgendered female athletes, and amongst those Americans who oppose them in women's sports, back in 2021, it was 62%. A majority, but, you know, not anywhere close to a ginormous majority, right? A clear majority, but not a ginormous majority. But then again, you look here in 2025, you see it at 79%. So, it's not just that the majority of Americans are opposed to transgender female athletes in women's sports, it's that the opposition has become considerably larger in just the last four years. //

So transgender female athletes, again, opposing them in women's sports, you get 67% of Democrats, so two-thirds there. You get 64% of independents, you get about two-thirds there. And then look at this, near uniformity among Republicans, 94% of Republicans in opposition. You rarely get 67% of Democrats and 94% of Republicans to agree on anything, but they do on this particular issue.

What you see in the above clip is how the sausage is made for these left-wing legacy media outlets. They were all in for Harris, and what "60 Minutes" did here proves that. CBS News has a lot of explaining to do, and no one should ever trust anything they produce again.

Hillary Clinton @HillaryClinton
US airlines had gone 16 years without fatal crashes.

Then MAGA fired the FAA chief, gutted the Aviation Security Advisory Committee, and threatened air traffic controllers with layoffs.

Now there have been two fatal crashes.

Hope your unvetted 22-year-olds fix things fast.

Secretary Sean Duffy @SecDuffy
·
I know you’re lashing out because DOGE is uncovering your family’s obscene grifting via USAID, but I won’t let you lie and distort facts. The FAA administrator announced he resigned over a month before Trump took office, and the air traffic controllers were always exempt from Trump’s civil service buyouts.

The previous administration shamelessly used USDOT as a slush fund for the Green New Scam, throwing away money and resources on wasteful environmental and social justice projects rather than updating our nation’s antiquated air traffic control systems and other critical infrastructure.

I’m returning this department to its mission of safety by using innovative technology in transportation and infrastructure. Your team had its chance and failed. We’re moving on without you because the American people want us to make America’s transportation system great again. And yes, we’re bringing the 22-year-olds with us. //

Evita Duffy-Alfonso @evitaduffy_1
·
Just a PSA: My dad would never commit suicide. //

anon-ai01
6 hours ago
No wonder the Dems moved heaven and earth to try to bankrupt, imprison or kill Trump. They wouldn't have minded so much if a Romney or a McCain type had been elected. Had they been, it would have been business as usual with typical Republican do nothings. But Trump. Ah, that's a different story. I never thought I would see it in my lifetime. It is a wonder to behold. God bless President Trump and Elon Musk! You go, guys! //

CurtTX53 JimboCA
3 hours ago
Remembering how quiet they and their CGI got after 2016, almost disappeared, hoping to stay away from any investigations. Run silent run deep for those four years.

Jennings described what he called the "dumbest strategy in politics" currently being utilized by Democrats, where they take the side on an issue that has 20 percent approval because they reflexively revolt against whatever Trump is doing. This includes keeping men out of women's sports and collapsing USAID.

"This is like Trump's superpower," said Jennings. "Finding a bunch of 80-20 issues and getting on the 80 and everybody who is reflexively against him gets on the 20, and now the Democrat Party has a 31% approval rating."

As usual, Jennings is right. Though he's using the 80/20 idea here loosely, he's still accurate.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll found that America wanted to freeze foreign assistance programs via USAID by 16 points (56 percent vs 40 percent) and an NYT/Ipsos poll found that people say 79 percent of males should not be allowed to participate in women's sports.

But you can see this in other places as well. //

According to the Daily Wire, a poll conducted by McLaughlin and Associates on behalf of Tea Party Patriots Action, sees that the vast majority of Americans love DOGE's work and want to see a border bill: //

But far be it from me to stop them from lodging their own bullets in their own feet.

RealRobert🇺🇸
@Real_RobN
And this is,

the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency John Ratcliffe,

the FBI was ordered by Barack Obama not to arrest Hillary Clinton for espionage in violation of — 18 U.S. Code § 793. Gathering, transmitting or los defense information. In fact, James Comey effectively served as Hillary Clinton’s personal attorney.

James Comey: “What I can assure the American people is that this investigation was done honestly, competently and independently. No outside influence of any kind was brought to bear.”

CIA John Ratcliffe: “Lisa Page confirmed to me under oath that the FBI was ordered by the Obama DOJ not to consider charging Hillary Clinton for gross negligence in the handling of classified information,"

Transcript excerpt of his interview with Page:
John Ratcliffe: Okay. So let me if I can, I know I'm testing your memory, but when you say advice you got from the Department, you're making it sound like it was the Department that told you: You're not going to charge gross negligence because we're the prosecutors and we're telling you we're not going to –
Ms. Page: That is Correct.

If forgiveness means saying, “That’s OK” to things that aren’t OK then none of us should forgive. Forgiveness is not about pushing ourselves to the limit of what we can tolerate. Susan Shapiro in the Washington Post Eight Times It Might Be Healthier Not to Forgive makes the point that whenever forgiveness begins to sound like “you have no reason to still be upset” it shifts the blame from offender to the person harmed. Forgiveness is not about saying “that’s OK” about things that are not OK.

We consider some advances in relational and affective neuroscience and related disciplines that attempt to resolve some fundamental aspects of the mind–brain problem. We consider the key role of affect in generating consciousness and in meeting our essential survival needs; the neural correlates of relating; how self and other are represented in the brain and awareness of self and other is generated through interoceptive predictive processes. We describe some leading models of the generation and purpose of consciousness, linking theories of affective and cognitive consciousness. We discuss psychiatric and psychotherapeutic innovations arising from this research, new integrated biopsychosocial interventions and the obstacles to be overcome in applying these models in practice.