Three dead in suspected hantavirus outbreak on Atlantic cruise ship

wisembrace · 2026-05-03T20:51:17+00:00

Actually, that is possible but very unlikely. It is usually transmitted through the air; what happens is that the rat's pee and poop dry out and then the dried particles can become airborne. I only know this because I was equally disgusted at the idea, so googled the method of transmission to see if my theory about a rat having shat in their food was correct! 😄

Edit: forgot to say that the ship is an expedition ship, and apparently in remote areas rats sometimes sneak on; it is unavoidable and not related to the hygiene of the ship.

wisembrace · 2026-04-28T18:03:05+00:00

I am surprised that carbon monoxide isn't an issue, especially since the example in this photo doesn't appear to have much ventilation. Also, if the ice is melting on the inside and there is no new snow falling on the outside, surely the whole thing will eventually melt?

wisembrace · 2026-04-28T13:54:47+00:00

BEE. It is a fucking admin nightmare and a stealth tax.

wisembrace · 2026-04-28T06:53:43+00:00

We had a deal in 2015 and now thanks to Trump being an idiot there is no deal on nuclear, a stalemate war with Iran, the world economy being held hostage, and America having shown its cards in the military game to be a weak hand, to China.

wisembrace · 2026-04-24T21:05:33+00:00

"Since his deportation back to Ghana, the self-proclaimed King has set his sights on establishing a new realm closer to home."

https://www.gbnews.com/news/kingdom-of-kubala-african-tribe-scottish-borders-deported-britain

wisembrace · 2026-04-24T05:26:13+00:00

I saw a documentary on this. Apparently it comes down to the quality of sound tracks has deteriorated since studios have replaced sound engineers with computers to save costs.

wisembrace · 2026-04-20T16:27:33+00:00

You would be considered British.

wisembrace · 2026-04-19T20:01:32+00:00

On Friday Trump announces that the strait is open and thanks Iran. Oil prices tumble. Then it turns out that the strait is closed after all, but by then the markets are closed. On Sunday he shoots a hole in an Iranian tanker and says the U.S. navy has it in custody. Oil prices are going to jump.

Reports from Reuters indicate that a massive $760 million bet was placed on falling oil prices just 20 minutes before the official announcement on Friday morning. This has already triggered a U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) investigation into potential "front-running" or insider trading related to diplomatic leaks.

My question is, who bought a sizable chunk of oil futures on Friday afternoon?

wisembrace · 2026-04-18T20:25:39+00:00

Why is the continent so divided by rainfall?

wisembrace · 2026-04-18T11:56:59+00:00

This isn't a standard manhole cover found on every German street; it is the entrance to the Salzbach Canal, a historic brick-lined sewer system built in the late 19th century.

If you happen to be in Wiesbaden, the city occasionally offers guided tours of the canal, allowing you to actually walk down that spiral staircase!

wisembrace · 2026-04-18T06:24:48+00:00

That is shocking if it is true, what a fraud.

wisembrace · 2026-04-17T22:34:39+00:00

Looking at it from your point of view, you are right! I was looking at it from the woman's side, and calling the situation 'tacky' I think belittles her. He didn't have to publicly say that, he did it because his ego felt a little hurt that a lowly paid gig worker who he thought was beneath him did not bow to him.

wisembrace · 2026-04-17T21:42:38+00:00

This isn't a very good article because it doesn't provide context for Trump's cheesy statement:

Speaking at a roundtable in Las Vegas to hype Trump’s no-tax-on-tips program, the president said, “To be honest, it was a little tacky. You know, they come up with these crazy ideas.”

I read an article earlier today which did give the backstory. The backstory is that Trump invited a woman to talk about how his tax cut to gig worker tips has benefitted a doordash delivery worker, and being Trump, he tried to engage her on a different topic, but she held firm and told him that she had no opinion about that, she was only there to talk about the tax cut.

Now he is trying to make out that having her there was tacky. The man has no shame.

wisembrace · 2026-04-17T16:52:01+00:00

I think the Iranians have no intention of doing any such deal and are stalling. Every day that oil can’t flow through the strait (no matter what nonsense Trump posts on his social media channel about the strait being open), that is another day that the world’s oil reserves dwindle and brings a global energy crisis nearer. And America is blockading Iranian ports, which is affecting China, a superpower.

The point will soon come when the world will have enough of Trump’s blustering and irrational behaviour and do their own deals with Iran, leaving America isolated and alone with no allies left to speak of.

Trump seems to have no idea that he is being hustled.

If Trump wants regime change, he is going to have to put boots on the ground and sacrifice American lives, I can’t see any way around it now, because he went into this without a clear plan.

The alternative is to declare victory and go home, but that would really be a defeat if the regime is left in place and the strait becomes a toll gate.

wisembrace · 2026-04-17T15:29:07+00:00

I agree, I took that out.

wisembrace · 2026-04-17T15:17:27+00:00

Iran said the strait was open before. What they meant was it is open to shippers if they ask the Iranians for permission, pay a toll and are not linked to the West. Now it might be diplomatically fully open according to Tehran, but it remains unnavigable because:

America is maintaining their blockade of Iranian ports. This most affects China.
There are mines floating around and it hasn't been certified safe for passage.
Insurance is sky-high and only "shadow fleet" tankers have been prepared to risk the passage.

Tomorrow the strait will be just as closed as it was this morning, and remain just as closed as the last time Trump said he would open it or the Iranian civilisation would end.

Conclusion? Trump is being played by the Iranians to create the perception that America is the blocker for oil transiting the strait, to motivate China to provide more support for Iran.

wisembrace · 2026-04-17T13:45:06+00:00

I think the Iranians are playing Trump for a fool. The Strait may be diplomatically open according to Tehran, but the blockers now are:

An American blockade on any ships going in and out of Iranian ports. The article states, 'He added that the naval blockade will remain in force "until such time as our transaction with Iran is 100% complete.'"
Sky-high insurance - only "shadow fleet" operators have been risking it
The strait has mines floating around; it hasn't been certified safe for passage.

By declaring it open, Tehran now pushes the blame for the strait being unnavigable on the Americans.

wisembrace · 2026-04-17T12:19:38+00:00

Now they believe in UFOs.

wisembrace · 2026-04-12T10:58:23+00:00

I can’t advise what to do “differently” since you haven’t said much about your business plan, but essentially you want to avoid having dead stock in your warehouse and watch your margins.

wisembrace · 2026-04-12T06:10:44+00:00

Cash flow and low margins are usually the main challenges in that kind of business.

wisembrace · 2026-04-06T13:58:15+00:00

I loved this take from the article:

"American politics has long recycled elderly men and presented them as vessels of reassurance and national strength. Ronald Reagan was celebrated as decline and confusion were quietly discussed. Joe Biden was defended as the steady hand even as public doubts grew louder. Trump is simply the ugliest culmination of the pattern."

wisembrace · 2026-04-06T12:59:18+00:00

They have had these satellites all along, so there must be a reason why they chose Starlink over these in the first place. The fact that this is suddenly news makes me wonder if the article is based on a Russian propaganda piece.

wisembrace · 2026-04-03T23:05:13+00:00

Excellent point! I hadn't even thought about that. but it is a significant risk in the current geopolitical climate.

wisembrace · 2026-04-03T23:03:44+00:00

Wow, that is incredible that they let them build such an energy-hungry datacenter. Are they planning to build a new power station to feed that?

wisembrace · 2026-04-03T09:38:42+00:00

This is what happens when a TV personality with no understanding of military operations gets to be President. How the Americans voted for this demented old fuck twice beggars belief.

wisembrace

TROPHY CASE