Podcasts about Far East

Over his long career as a practitioner and therapist, Paul has taken such great care in honing and fine-tuning his daily practices that for him to consider changing them is pretty rare.That is, until Simon Cheng, the founder and CEO of Pique Life, put a thought into Paul's brain in their first podcast conversation more than five years ago about using black teas to support his early morning meditation practice.Discover what Paul learned from Simon that changed his meditation practice for good and why having a daily practice can mean all the difference in feeling fear versus peace of mind this week on Spirit Gym.Learn more about Simon and Pique Life on social media via Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Timestamps 7:49 Can drinking tea support a meditation practice?14:41 “Technically, we're spiritual kung fu brothers.”19:40 One of the coolest things about tai chi.26:25 The one book Simon has given to so many people.39:39 A pivotal point in Simon's life that led him to create Pique Life.51:38 Understanding adversity from a spiritual perspective.1:03:00 Meditation is only one of many ways to develop your own mindfulness practice.1:09:25 Don't mix Pranayamas!1:15:00 Can you experience spiritual healing without psychedelic drugs?1:24:15 A symphony of nature.1:34:05 The intersection of nature and science combined with Eastern medicinal architecture.ResourcesNandaka, the sword of Hindu god VishnuI Ching or book of changes by Richard WilhelmIt Didn't Start With You by Mark WolynnThe Body Electric: Electromagnetism and the Foundation of Life by Robert Becker and Gary SeldenReality +: Virtual Worlds and the Problems of Philosophy by David ChalmersAutobiography of a Yogi by Paramahansa YoganandaLife and Teaching of the Masters of the Far East by Baird SpaldingFind more resources for this episode on our website.Music Credit: Meet Your Heroes (444Hz) by Brave as BearsAll Rights Reserved MusicFit Records 2024Thanks to our awesome sponsors:PaleovalleyBIOptimizers US and BIOptimizers UK PAUL10Organifi CHEK20Wild PasturesKorrectPique LifeCHEK Institute/Scientific Core Conditioning We may earn commissions from qualifying purchases using affiliate links.

We're traveling back to the 1930s Mississippi Delta with Sinners! Join us as we learn about fake plantation money, "Rocky Road to Dublin", Chinese-American communities in Mississippi, hoodoo, and more! Sources: John Jung, "Chinese for the South: Mississippi Delta Chinese Migration Chains," in Zhang, Wenxian, et al. Far East, Down South: Asians in the American South. Tuscaloosa: The University of Alabama Press, 2016. https://muse.jhu.edu/book/49183. "Shaolu Yu, ""Placing Racial Triangulation, Triangulating Place and Race: Chinese Grocery Stores in the Mississippi Delta during the Jim Crow Era,"" Annals of the American Association of Geographers, 112(1) 2022, pp. 97–122" Karin Lurvink, "Strapped for Cash: Non-cash Payments on Louisiana Cotton Plantations, 1865-1908," TIJDSCHRIFT VOOR SOCIALE EN ECONOMISCHE GESCHIEDENIS 11, 3 (2014) Sonny Albarado, "The violent and racist fight against laborers' basic rights in the South," Arkansas Advocate, 2023 Katrina Hazzard-Donald, Mojo Workin': The Old African-American Hoodoo System (University of Illinois Press, 2013).  Cierra Black, "Sinners Hoodoo Consultant Talks Working with Ryan Coogler & Protecting Black Spirituality On-Screen: 'Blues Is the Music of Hoodoo'" Teen Vogue 3 May 2025.  Marcelitte Failla, ""You Deserve, Baby!": Spiritual Co-creation, Black Witches, and Feminism," The Witch Studies Reader 75-89 (Duke University Press, 2025). https://www.jstor.org/stable/jj.25003747.9  Kinitra D. Brooks, "Haints, Hollers, and Hoodoo," Southern Cultures 29:4 (2023): 2-7. Zora Hurston, "Hoodoo in America," The Journal of American Folklore 44:174 (1931): 317-417. https://www.jstor.org/stable/535394  "The Rocky Road to Dublin" in Will Carleton, Will Carleton's "Dandy Pat Songster (1866). https://www.google.com/books/edition/Will_Carleton_s_Dandy_Pat_Songster/ULo-AQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22Rocky%20Road%20to%20Dublin%22&pg=PA59&printsec=frontcover  The Citizen (1842), https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Citizen/VYdPAQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22Rocky%20Road%20to%20Dublin%22&pg=PA262&printsec=frontcover  https://www.google.com/books/edition/Diprose_s_Standard_Song_Book_and_Reciter/jzJYAAAAcAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=Rocky%20Road%20to%20Dublin&pg=PA24&printsec=frontcover "The Rocky Road to Dublin," in The New Singer's Journal (1871) https://www.google.com/books/edition/Henry_De_Marsan_s_New_Comic_and_Sentimen/3Lk_AQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22Rocky%20Road%20to%20Dublin%22&pg=PA175&printsec=frontcover  The rocky road to Dublin. Image. https://www.loc.gov/item/amss-as111860/  "Along the Rocky Road to Dublin" (1915) https://egrove.olemiss.edu/sharris_c/92/  D Taylor, "'Champagne Charlie is my name': The swell, the Irish and the cockney," in From Mummers to Madness (2021).  Michael Pierse, ""A Pole of Differentiation": Pasts and Futures in Irish Working-Class Writing," Working-Class Literature(s): Historical and International Perspectives (2020).  "The Schools' Collection" folklore collected by students in Ireland from 1937-1939 https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/stories?SearchText=blackthorn&SearchLanguage=ga&Page=1&PerPage=20 https://www.myirishjeweler.com/blog/irish-folklore-the-blackthorn-and-fairies-fighting-and-harry-potter/?srsltid=AfmBOoqlYcrE-xW106rf2XlffXUu-8oyNtkuISgfqsRmUOsNFEh0g9RU  RT: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/sinners_2025  Richard Brody, ""Sinners" is a Virtuosic Fusion of Historical Realism and Horror," April 17, 2025 The New Yorker https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/04/28/sinners-movie-review  Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinners_(2025_film) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First-dollar_gross 

In this episode of the FreightWaves Morning Minute, we delve into the impact of stricter English language proficiency requirements on the U.S.-Mexico cross-border freight market, an initiative from the Trump administration. The enforcement, which began on Wednesday, July 1st, 2025, is already causing significant operational changes for the trucking industry and leading to an increase in rates on northbound trucking lanes. The episode also covers the dramatic decline in trans-Pacific container rates from the Far East to the U.S. West Coast, with market average spot rates plummeting 39% since June 1st to $3,317 per forty-foot equivalent unit. While rates to the U.S. East Coast also declined by 9% since June 1st, they still stand at $5,990 per FEU, maintaining a significant $2,673 spread between the coasts, the highest in 10 months. The first legal steps have taken to challenge the Clean Truck Partnership (CTP), a 2023 agreement between California and engine manufacturers. The Western States Trucking Association (WSTA) has petitioned the California Office of Administrative Law to determine if the CTP was properly reached under California law, labeling it an "unholy alliance". Don't forget to tune into FreightWaves TV for Check Call and Loaded and Rolling. Also, mark your calendars for the Enterprise Fleet Summit on July 23rd and the AI Supply Chain Symposium on July 30th in Washington D.C.. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of the FreightWaves Morning Minute, we delve into the impact of stricter English language proficiency requirements on the U.S.-Mexico cross-border freight market, an initiative from the Trump administration. The enforcement, which began on Wednesday, July 1st, 2025, is already causing significant operational changes for the trucking industry and leading to an increase in rates on northbound trucking lanes. The episode also covers the dramatic decline in trans-Pacific container rates from the Far East to the U.S. West Coast, with market average spot rates plummeting 39% since June 1st to $3,317 per forty-foot equivalent unit. While rates to the U.S. East Coast also declined by 9% since June 1st, they still stand at $5,990 per FEU, maintaining a significant $2,673 spread between the coasts, the highest in 10 months. The first legal steps have taken to challenge the Clean Truck Partnership (CTP), a 2023 agreement between California and engine manufacturers. The Western States Trucking Association (WSTA) has petitioned the California Office of Administrative Law to determine if the CTP was properly reached under California law, labeling it an "unholy alliance". Don't forget to tune into FreightWaves TV for Check Call and Loaded and Rolling. Also, mark your calendars for the Enterprise Fleet Summit on July 23rd and the AI Supply Chain Symposium on July 30th in Washington D.C.. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Edition No174 | 30-06-2025 - Today we go into a catastrophe unfolding right now, and in fact for a few months, that is largely unnoticed —far from cameras, beyond headlines, in the Siberian wilderness. “Let it burn” has become Russia's unofficial policy towards vast wildfires that started early this year, from February onwards, in Siberia. Putin has focused the country's resources on stealing territory from its neighbour Ukraine, and setting its cities on fire, rather than tackle the flames in its own backyard. The resulting destruction and pollution are a threat on a planetary scale. Russia is truly the arsonist of countries. Massive wildfires are tearing across Russia's Far East, igniting forests, choking cities, and once again exposing the brittle infrastructure of a government prioritizing war over life. And yes, we've seen this before. Last year, and the year before. But this year is different, because of the scale, and because of the amount of people and resources diverted into the war.----------DESCRIPTIONRussia's Burning Lands: Unseen Environmental CatastropheIn this episode of Silicon Bites, we delve into Russia's uncontrollable wildfires raging across Siberia. These fires, which began in February, are causing massive destruction and pollution due to the Russian government's negligence, as military spending takes precedence. With over 1.4 million hectares burned, entire regions are under toxic haze, exposing the brittle infrastructure and mismanagement of fire control efforts. The situation exacerbates global climate challenges, turning carbon sinks into sources. As the crisis worsens, the episode highlights the urgent need to address Russia's internal issues and the broader environmental impact.----------CHAPTERS00:00 Introduction and Overview00:17 Support for Ukraine and Fundraising Efforts00:48 The Unfolding Catastrophe in Siberia01:53 The Scale and Impact of the Wildfires03:35 Government Response and Budget Issues04:31 The Human and Environmental Toll05:45 Global Implications and Future Outlook06:43 Conclusion and Final Thoughts----------LINKS: https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2025/05/13/in-photos-wildfires-tear-across-russias-far-east-a89061https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2025/04/11/major-fires-in-siberia-far-east-mark-ominous-start-to-russias-2025-wildfire-season-a88683 https://edition.cnn.com/2025/05/14/europe/russia-wildfires-rage-siberia-region-intl-latam https://kyivindependent.com/massive-forest-fires-break-out-in-russias-far-east-buryatia-declares-regional-emergency/ https://theins.ru/en/society/279838 https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/2054586/russia-state-emergency-buryatia-wildfires ----------Car for Ukraine has once again joined forces with a group of influencers, creators, and news observers during this summer. Sunshine here serves as a metaphor, the trucks are a sunshine for our warriors to bring them to where they need to be and out from the place they don't.https://car4ukraine.com/campaigns/summer-sunshine-silicon-curtainThis time, we focus on the 6th Detachment of HUR, 93rd Alcatraz, 3rd Brigade, MLRS systems and more. https://car4ukraine.com/campaigns/summer-sunshine-silicon-curtain- bring soldiers to the positions- protect them with armor- deploy troops with drones to the positions----------SILICON CURTAIN FILM FUNDRAISERA project to make a documentary film in Ukraine, to raise awareness of Ukraine's struggle and in supporting a team running aid convoys to Ukraine's front-line towns.https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extras----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtain----------

Slick your hair back and find your long lost twin as we high kick it into high gear with Jean-Claude Van Damme's Double Impact. Who is Randa and why has she been missing from our lives for so long? And why are so many of us (apart from Dayna) willing to overlook this movie's serious shortcomings, just because of JCVD's glorious glutes? You'll find few answers, but plenty of gushing and a little bit of ranting in this week's ep. 

Last Sunday we successfully began our summer sermon series, "Origins: The Story of God, Humanity, and Creation", and located ourselves as modern readers of Genesis, a pre-scientific, ancient Far East creation narrative. This summer, as Jenny is on sabbatical, we have invited guest preachers to preach on topics outside of the summer sermon series. This upcoming Sunday, Naomi Kinsman will be preaching a sermon titled "Practicing Presence" on Exodus 3:1-12. Deep in the wilderness, Moses approaches a burning bush. In this unexpected encounter with God, he finds himself standing on holy ground. In our lives, too, sacred moments often begin with small acts of paying attention. How might God's call meet us in our day to day lives? What doorways might open in our hearts when we dare to pause, listen, and practice presence?

Of all the running that we KNOW will be at the 2025 CrossFit Game and have always been at the CrossFit Games how do you NOT testing running at your Semifinal?

It's time to dust of your martial arts weapons from the Far East and have some good times as we revisit the Season 8 premiere! A love letter to the anime boom of the early 2000s, here we see the boys get engrossed in their imagination as ninja warriors, leading to serious injury and public nudity (aka a waldrobe malfunction).We also discuss the Superbowl wardrobe malfunction that started it all, the dangers of trampolines, Dragon Ball Z and more.Support the Four Finger Discount Network for EARLY & AD-FREE access to every show we produce, as well as 100 hours of exclusive content! Join the FFD family today at patreon.com/fourfingerdiscount21:30- FAVOURITE MOMENTS32:30 - TRIVIA37:30 - CHEESY POOFSCHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Four Finger Discount (Simpsons) - fourfingerdiscount.com.auThe Movie Guide with Leonard Maltin - themovieguidepodcast.comSpeaKing Of The Hill - spreaker.com/show/speaking-of-the-hill-a-king-of-the-hill-The One About Friends - spreaker.com/show/the-one-about-friends-podcastTalking Seinfeld - spreaker.com/show/talking-seinfeldSaturday Night Dive (SNL) - spreaker.com/podcast/saturday-night-dive-an-snl-podcastThe Office Talk - spreaker.com/show/the-office-talk-podcast

Episode 006 of You Liang's Far East Taste takes a deeper dive into the global underground—blending stripped-down rhythms, atmospheric textures, and driving basslines that pulse with late-night intent. This month's selection leans into hypnotic grooves and tribal edges, offering a more shadowy, after-hours mood. The journey begins with the moody elegance of Alex Iovita and the anthemic weight of ARTBAT & MORTEN, before pushing into percussive territory with Argy & Omiki's “WIND” and Arabic Piano's cinematic “Manna.” Along the way, fresh heat comes from You Liang's own remix of SuBlu's “Slow,” and a brand-new unreleased ID making its debut mid-set. Closing out with Latin-infused club energy and raw tech-house grit—from El Alfa's MewTunes remix to Plastik Funk's “Digital Safari”—this episode is built for dancefloors that never sleep. As always, Far East Taste is your monthly portal to the global sound of house music—crafted in Tokyo, heard worldwide. ⚡️Like the Show? Click the [Repost] ↻ button so more people can hear it!

Episode Notes S6E21- Join us as we chat with award winning director Tim Gray. He'll be telling tales from his 40th WWII film "MILES, MORALE AND MEMORIES: BOB HOPE AND WWII" Tim Gray Recipient of of the American Public Television National Programming Excellence Award and 6 Regional Emmy Awards, Tim Gray and the non-profit World War II Foundation have produced 40 documentary films on the personal stories of World War II. Tim has received six regional Emmy Awards for his work and dozens of International film awards. Tim's films rank in the top five of most requested programs nationally by PBS affiliates. Tim's films are shot on location in Europe and the Pacific and narrated by celebrity voices, including Tom Brokaw, Gary Sinise, Paul Giamatti, Keith Morrison, Kevin Bacon, Darius Rucker, Josh Lucas, Dan Aykroyd, Jim Nantz, Luke Bryan, Liev Schreiber, Tom Selleck, and Bill Belichick. In 2012, Tim also raised money for and dedicated the Richard D. Winters Leadership Monument in Normandy, France. Tim also dedicated a plaque in Honolulu, Hawaii, in 2021, honoring Elvis Presley's role in helping to get the USS Arizona Memorial built at Pearl Harbor. In 2021, Tim was inducted into the State of Rhode Island's Hall of Fame. Tim has often appeared on national television, discussing the personal stories of World War II. The World War II Foundation has an additional eight films in various forms of production. In addition to airing in the United States, Tim's films also air internationally in Europe, Canada, and the Far East. HELPFUL LINKS: VETERANS: https://www.va.gov/.../mental-health/suicide-prevention/ ADDICTION: https://lp.recoverycentersofamerica.com/.../continuum-of.../ Due you know someone that has lost their lives due to addiction? Or even someone that has made a full recovery? Reach out to Johnny Whitaker so they can help to celebrate the lives lost/ lives recovered at overdoseawareness0831@gmail.com Follow our guest https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0336979/ https://wwiifoundation.org/bio-tim-gray/ Toking with the Dead: https://www.stilltoking.com/ ————————————— Follow Still Toking With and their friends! https://smartpa.ge/5zv1 ————————————— Produced by Leo Pond and The Dorkening Podcast Network Find out more at https://still-toking-with.pinecast.co Send us your feedback online: https://pinecast.com/feedback/still-toking-with/ded18707-ee57-4258-8b60-80e81090bca4

GB2RS News Sunday, the 22nd of June 2025 The news headlines: Introducing the RSGB's team of young radio amateurs for YOTA Paris The RSGB celebrates International Women in Engineering Day The RSGB Exam Standards Committee publishes its annual report The RSGB has announced the team of young members who will be representing the Society at this summer's Youngsters on the Air camp. The event, hosted by the French national amateur radio society and the IARU, will take place at the historic Château de Jambville near Paris between August 18th and 25th. The team is comprised of team leader Leon, 2E0VUF, and team members Sophie, M7IJG, and Emily, M7HPU. You can read more about the camp and the team on the RSGB website at rsgb.org/yota-camp The RSGB knows that amateur radio is a great foundation for careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, or STEM as it is often known. That's why, for International Women in Engineering Day tomorrow, Monday the 23rd of June, the Society is sharing stories of female radio amateurs involved with STEM. From a young radio amateur who was inspired by an ARISS contact, through to a Professional Transmitting Engineer at Woofferton Transmitting Station, each one of them has a love for amateur radio and STEM activities and the career opportunities they present. Read more about them on the RSGB website at rsgb.org/inwed. The Society will also be sharing the profiles on its X and Facebook pages throughout the day tomorrow, the 23rd. Get involved by liking and sharing these motivational stories. The RSGB Examinations Standards Committee, or ESC, has published its annual report, relating to activities in 2024. The report shows that overall candidate numbers have increased to above pre-pandemic levels and are well above the extrapolation of the declining trend over the decade before the pandemic. The ESC believes that this is probably due to the availability of remote invigilation for online examinations taken at home and the increase in provision of distance learning courses, making the hobby much more accessible than in the past. You can read the full report on the RSGB website by going to rsgb.org/esc  and choosing the ‘Minutes, papers and reports' option in the right-hand menu. Whether you are just starting to learn Morse code or are already an experienced operator, the GB2RS Morse Practice web page is just what you need to brush up on your skills! Created by GB2RS Newsreader Graham, G4JBD, you can select different sections of the latest RSGB news, which are then played in Morse code at the pitch and speed of your choosing. What makes this resource unique is that you can also add in different degrees of man-made noise and natural band noise, which gives you a very realistic experience of copying Morse code under poor propagation or contest conditions. Graham has recently updated the page with more options. One of these is the Farnsworth timing, which can play the individual characters at a selectable speed while allowing separate adjustment of the gap between the characters. The new version works well on smartphones and displays the text with a real-time pointer as the Morse code is sent. The GB2RS Morse Practice page can be found at tinyurl.com/gb2rsmorse Bath Based Distance Learning's next Full licence course runs from August to December, with exams in January. There is no charge for the training, but applicants must work through some pre-course material and complete a quiz to be eligible for a place. To request full details and an application form, email Bath Based Distance Learning's Team Leader, Steve, G0FUW via g0fuw@bbdl.org.uk           The next in the popular 145 Alive series will take place on Sunday, the 20th of July. The event will run from 12 pm to 3 pm. There will be nets on the 2m band operating in most Maidenhead Squares across England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland. To take part on the day, all you need to do is call into a local net and make contact with others. The organisers are looking for more net controllers. If you are interested, email 145aliveuk@gmail.com. You can find more information, including details of the nets, the operators, their locations and operating frequencies on the 145 Alive Events Facebook page. Today, the 22nd,  is the last chance to take part in Gateways on the Air 2025. Whether you're a seasoned operator or just love the thrill of the chase, Gateways on the Air is your invitation to step outside, power up your gear, and connect via simplex gateways from a park bench, hillside, or anywhere that captures your sense of adventure. To find out more, visit gota.org.uk Don't forget to listen out for all the amateur stations that will be on the air during Museums on the Air today, the 22nd. Remember that the fun doesn't stop today as the event continues on Saturday, the 28th and Sunday, the 29th of June. For more information, visit tinyurl.com/IMOTA2025 And now for details of rallies and events The Cornish Radio Amateur Club Rally will take place on Sunday, the 29th of June at Penair School, St. Clement, Truro, TR1 1TN. The doors open at 10.30 am. For more information, contact Ken, G0FIC on 01209 821 073. Saffron Walden Radio Ham and CB Club Rally will take place from the 4th to the 6th of July. The venue will be Lovecotes Farm, Chickney Road, Henham Village, Bishop's Stortford, CM22 6BH. You can camp on the field from Friday to Sunday and have a table at a cost of £15. If you are camping, you can arrive from 6 pm on Friday. To book a camping pitch or arrange tables, email g8swr1.5@gmail.com Barford Norfolk Radio Rally will take place on the 6th of July at Barford Village Hall and Green, Barford, Norwich, NR9 4AB. The doors open at 9 am for visitors. The event features trade stands, car boot sales, bring and buy, a charity raffle, repeater groups, catering and free car parking. Entry costs £3 per person, but under 16s will be admitted free of charge. Outside pitches cost £8 and are available from 8 am on the day. Inside tables cost £10 and must be pre-booked. For more details visit tinyurl.com/Barford2025  or email David, G7URP at radio@dcpmicro.com Now the Special Event news Special event station 9A2025HWC is active until the 30th of June to celebrate the 29th World Men's Handball Championship. The station was spotted recently on the 80 and 40m bands using SSB. QSL via Logbook of the World. QSOs are also uploaded to QRZ.com, Logbook and Club Log. As part of International Museums on the Air Weekend 2025, the Grampian Hilltoppers Contest Group is operating special event station GB2KDR from the Keith and Dufftown Heritage Railway in Moray, Scotland. The station is active on the HF bands using SSB and digital modes, as well as via the amateur satellites when conditions permit. QSL via OQRS. For more information, visit the GB2KDR page at QRZ.com  Now the DX news Nobby, G0VJG, is active as FO/G0VJG from Bora Bora, OC-067, in French Polynesia until Thursday, the 26th of June. He is operating using CW, FT8 and SSB on the 80 to 6m bands. QSL via M0OXO's OQRS and Logbook of the World. Bob, ZL1RS is active as YJ0RS from the island of Efate, OC-035, until Saturday, the 28th of June. Bob is mainly operating on the 6m band using FT8. There may also be some activity on 10m when the 6m band is closed. QSL via Logbook of the World, Club Log, or via Bob's home call. More information is available on the YJ0RS page at QRZ.com Now the contest news The All Asian DX Contest started at 0000UTC on Saturday, the 21st and ends at 2359UTC today, Sunday, the 22nd of June. Using CW on the 160 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report and your age. The RSGB 50MHz Trophy Contest started at 1400UTC on Saturday, the 21st and ends at 1400UTC today, Sunday, the 22nd of June. Using all modes on the 6m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Today, the 22nd, the Worked All Britain 6m Phone Contest runs from 0800 to 1400 UTC. Using SSB on the 6m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and Worked All Britain square. On Tuesday the 24th, the RSGB SHF UK Activity Contest runs from 1830 to 2130 UTC. Using all modes on 2.3 to 10GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Wednesday the 26th, the RSGB 80m SSB Club Championship runs from 1900 to 2030 UTC. Using SSB on the 80m band, the exchange is signal report and serial number. On Sunday the 29th, the UK Microwave Group 5.7 and 10GHz Contest runs from 0600 to 1800 UTC. Using all modes on 5.7 and 10GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Sunday the 29th, the RSGB 50MHz CW Contest runs from 0900 to 1200 UTC. Using CW on the 6m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA and G4BAO on Thursday the 19th of June 2025. Last week, we mentioned a large coronal hole on the Sun that might cause problems. The hole is so large that it is still Earth-centric seven days later. We had expected the hole to increase the Kp index due to the solar wind emanating from it. However, as of Thursday, the 19th of June, conditions remained quiet with a Kp index of 2. As geomagnetic conditions have remained calm this past week, it has been quite good for HF. 15m has been one of the better bands, with openings to both the east and west, depending on the time. As is the way nowadays, most of the activity has been on FT8, but it has opened up opportunities to work the Far and Middle East, as well as South America. The solar flux index has generally been in the range of 130 to 150, with a peak of 161 on the 15th of June. The Sun has been active, with a near X-class solar flare being observed around sunspot region 4114. This peaked at 1805 UTC on the 15th of June. There was also an X-class solar flare at 21:49 UTC on the 17th of June. This latter event was late in the evening, so it had little impact on the UK, other than to potential paths to the west. Maximum usable frequencies, or MUFs for short, declined a little during the past week, with openings on 21MHz becoming a little scarcer. It is useful to operate as close to the MUF as possible to minimise the effects of D-layer absorption and maximise the chances of working DX. Next week, NOAA predicts the solar flux index will be in the range of 125 to 145. Unsettled geomagnetic conditions are forecast for the period from the 24th to the 27th of June, with a maximum predicted Kp index of 5. If the Kp index is low, then we have a good chance of 21 MHz openings to South America in the evening. As we pass the summer solstice, we may even expect 14 MHz to remain open to DX throughout the night. We can also expect Sporadic-E to continue to provide short-skip openings on 28 MHz, and even the lower HF bands, such as 14, 18, 21, and 24 MHz. And now the VHF and up propagation news from G3YLA and G4BAO After a week of high pressure, this weekend returns to something more normal with showery rain and a series of weather fronts and showery interludes in the coming week. This will mean that rain scatter on the GHz bands is worth considering. Also, since we are into the summer season, the chances of some rain being heavy and thundery is a good signal for rain scatter. This sequence of low-pressure weather suggests that high pressure and Tropo will be less likely to make a big impact on the coming week's operating log. Any sign of high pressure will tend to be towards the south of the UK and over the continent. In very hot weather, the conditions can be good for low-level surface ducts across cooler seas. So, if you are tempted, then go for coastal or maritime paths up the east coast or across Biscay, for example. Meteor scatter may benefit from the late June Bootids, which peak on Friday, the 27th of June and the daytime Beta Taurids, which peak on the 28th of June. These are small showers, but they can also be important for contributions to long-lived metallic ions, which are the building blocks of Sporadic-E propagation. Aurora continues to appear with occasional radio events, but there is too much daylight for anything visual. As an alternative, you might see glimpses of noctilucent clouds low down on the northern horizon. These form in the mesosphere, at about 80km, as ice crystals form on meteor dust and can exhibit complex wave patterns. These are both good omens for Sporadic-E. The summer Sporadic-E season is well underway now. It is advisable to check the usual cluster maps and the propquest.co.uk  website for daily updates. It's also worth making use of the longer daylight and weather patterns over the polar regions for paths to the Far East. The Moon reaches perigee, its closest point to Earth, tomorrow, the 23rd, so path losses are low. Moon declination also reaches a maximum positive value on the 25th of June. This will mean that there are long Moon windows. 144MHz sky noise is moderate, increasing to high by tomorrow, the 23rd. The New Moon is on the 25th of June, so expect high noise levels due to its proximity to the Sun. And that's all from the propagation team this week.

Thursday night  in Tokyo, WBO welterweight champ Brian Norman will make the second defense of his version of the 147 lb. world title against tough, unbeaten challenger Jin Sasaki in a scheduled 12 rounder.Prior to departing for Japan last week, Norman (27-0, 21 KOs) out of Conyers, GA, joined our insider Dan Rafael to talk more about his willingness to go to the Far East for this defense. Sasaki is a solid puncher at 19-1-1, 17 KOs.The two go one on one and also covered the possibility of Norman meeting IBF/WBA welterweight champ Jaron "Boots" Ennis in a unification battle later this year. Plus, whether Ennis is now the one reluctant to do that or not?It's all part of this special "Fight Freaks Unite Podcast" and make sure to follow/subscribe to this feed on Apple/Spreaker/Spotify, etc.! 

Thursday night  in Tokyo, WBO welterweight champ Brian Norman will make the second defense of his version of the 147 lb. world title against tough, unbeaten challenger Jin Sasaki in a scheduled 12 rounder.Prior to departing for Japan last week, Norman (27-0, 21 KOs) out of Conyers, GA, joined our insider Dan Rafael to talk more about his willingness to go to the Far East for this defense. Sasaki is a solid puncher at 19-1-1, 17 KOs.The two go one on one and also covered the possibility of Norman meeting IBF/WBA welterweight champ Jaron "Boots" Ennis in a unification battle later this year. Plus, whether Ennis is now the one reluctant to do that or not?It's all part of this special "Fight Freaks Unite Podcast" and make sure to follow/subscribe to this feed on Apple/Spreaker/Spotify, etc.! 

In this insightful episode, Meir Ezra shares how you can start a business aligned with your life goals by learning foundational skills. If you're struggling with where to start, or if you lack confidence to launch your idea, you won't want to miss it.You will discover:- Why learning the seven business areas ensures your startup's success- How to learn effectively to understand and define success clearly- What small steps build confidence to overcome doubts and startThis episode is ideal for for Founders, Owners, and CEOs in stage 1 of The Founder's Evolution. Not sure which stage you're in? Find out for free in less than 10 minutes at https://www.scalearchitects.com/founders/quizMeir Ezra is Israeli-born and raised. After completing six years in a top unit in the Israeli submarines, Meir traveled the Far East, including hiking through the Himalayas. Meir then moved to South Africa. He established his company, which grew to $100 million within 3 years by age 31. Meir went on to establish multiple companies across the globe, has many inventions and patents in his name, and has invested in countless businesses. Meir gives a guarantee that no one else provides: A target is agreed upon for your business or life, and if you follow the steps he lays out, he guarantees your success - or your money back.Want to learn more about Meir Ezra's work at Guaranteed Prosperity? Check out his website at https://www.gprosperity.com/Mentioned in this episode:Take the Founder's Evolution Quiz TodayIf you're a Founder, business owner, or CEO who feels overworked by the business you lead and underwhelmed by the results, you're doing it wrong. Succeeding as a founder all comes down to doing the right one or two things right now. Take the quiz today at foundersquiz.com, and in just ten questions, you can figure out what stage you are in, so you can focus on what is going to work and say goodbye to everything else.Founder's Quiz

With the DNA of a world traveler, D.J. Williams was born and raised in Hong Kong, igniting an adventurous spirit as he ventured into the jungles of the Amazon, the bush of Africa, and the slums of the Far East. His global travels have submerged him in a myriad of cultures, providing a unique perspective that fuels his creativity.As a fresh voice in mystery, suspense, and YA fantasy, his novels have climbed the charts ranking as high as #1 on Amazon Hot New Releases. His books The Auctioneer and Hunt For Eden's Star have received stellar reviews from Kirkus Reviews, the most trusted voice in book discovery. Williams has also been featured in Publishers Weekly and Writer's Digest. With the launch of his latest YA series, Beacon Hill, the trailers and documentary featuring the first book, Hunt For Eden's Star, and the second book, Secrets of the Highlands, have reached over 1.8 million+ views. Beacon Hill is also currently under optioning consideration for film, television, streaming, and animation by the producers, production companies, and studios who have created the most successful YA franchises of all time.Williams has also been an executive producer and director on over 500 episodes of broadcast television.Make sure to check out this AMAZING AUTHOR on Instagram @djwilliamsbooks

*This podcast is sponsored by AXA Farm Insurance.Charles O'Donnell, Aisling O'Brien and Breifne O'Brien bring you the biggest stories of the week in Irish agriculture from Agriland, which this week includes:Agri-food trade mission to Japan and KoreaMinister's delayed ACRES payment timeline;Applications open for phase 3 of genotyping programme;10-week old heifer makes €13,000;Farm walks on beef production and sustainability;10 cattle killed by lightning.Don't forget to rate, review and follow The Farming Week, Agriland's weekly review of Irish agriculture, and visit Agriland.ie for more. 

Donate (no account necessary) | Subscribe (account required) Join Bryan Dean Wright, former CIA Operations Officer, as he breaks down today's biggest stories shaping America and the world. Marines Deployed to LA as Riots Escalate – President Trump authorizes 700 Marines to protect federal buildings amid ongoing violence in Los Angeles. While Governor Newsom sues to block federal control of the National Guard, Democrats and local media struggle to characterize the unrest, with some calling it “just people having fun.” Bryan unpacks the political, legal, and cultural implications of this chaotic response. Mexican President's “Mobilize” Call Sparks GOP Fury – Claudia Sheinbaum tells her “countrymen” in the U.S. to protest Trump's remittance tax, drawing backlash and proposals to hike the tax from 3.5% to 15%. Bryan questions whether Sheinbaum's words crossed into foreign interference, and revisits evidence of Mexican nationalist and Marxist groups targeting ICE and law enforcement in California. Russia's Spy Agency Warns Against Growing Ties with China – A leaked FSB report reveals Moscow's deep concerns over Chinese espionage, Arctic encroachment, and Beijing's long-term territorial ambitions in Russia's Far East. Bryan explains how this intel vindicates Trump's long-standing strategy to pull Russia away from China. Israel Arms Gaza Militias to Undermine Hamas, But Risks Mount – Netanyahu confirms Israel is arming a rival Gaza clan to weaken Hamas. While potentially saving Israeli soldiers, the move raises fears of long-term instability and mirrors past U.S. missteps in arming regional militias. The strategy could also complicate Trump's fragile peace negotiations with Iran, which may resume as soon as this weekend. "And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." – John 8:32   Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code TWR using the link or at check-out and get 60% off an annual plan: Incogni.com/TWR    

Today Justin is joined by Tim Spicer. Tim served for 20 years in the British Army where he rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and saw active service in Northern Ireland, the Falklands Campaign, the Gulf War, and the Balkans, as well as serving in the Far East, Cyprus, and Germany. After retiring, he founded private security company Aegis in 2001. He's also the author of several books, including his autobiography, titled An Unorthodox Soldier. He's here to discuss the story of Biffy Dunderdale's decades long career with British intelligence, which put him at the center of some of the most significant events in Europe between the Russian Revolution and the heights of the Cold War. Connect with Tim:penguin.co.uk/authors/208198/tim-spicerIG: @timspicerauthorCheck out the book, A Suspicion of Spies, here.https://a.co/d/dloaYL6Connect with Spycraft 101:Get Justin's latest book, Murder, Intrigue, and Conspiracy: Stories from the Cold War and Beyond, here.spycraft101.comIG: @spycraft101Shop: shop.spycraft101.comPatreon: Spycraft 101Find Justin's first book, Spyshots: Volume One, here.Check out Justin's second book, Covert Arms, here.Download the free eBook, The Clandestine Operative's Sidearm of Choice, here.Support the show

Meg McDermott just competed at the Far East Throwdown and finished in the top 10 Meg sits with Chris to reveal the long road that brought her to this competition floor and how it was a celebration of resilience and growth. She shoes what it truly means to train with purpose, embrace challenge, and find strength both in body and mind. THIS PODCAST IS PROUD TO BE SPONSORED BY COMPANIES WE BELIEVE IN

President Trump's tariffs on Chinese imports have shaken up the global economic order, but why have so many brands turned to China to make their products in the first place, and how exactly do they do it? Evan Davis talks to three company bosses to find out what it's really like doing business in the Far East and whether it's still as cheap and easy as it used to be. And if high tariffs persist, or get higher, where else in the world could do China's job?Evan is joined by:Nick Grey, founder and CEO, Gtech; Kate Sbuttoni, founder, The Ginger Jar Lamp Co.; Jonathan Duck, CEO, Amtico InternationalProduction team:Producer: Simon Tulett Editor: Matt Willis Sound: Jonny Baker and Nigel Appleton Production co-ordinator: Katie Morrison

As I mentioned in the last installment, when thinking about content for the next Dharma Byte or UnMind podcast, I turn to my collaborators for inspiration: Hokai Jeff Harper, publisher of the newsletter, and Shinjin Larry Little, producer of the podcast. Jeff responded to a recent call for suggested topics with: • To everything there is a season• The wax and wane of householder zazen practice• What we are feeling right now IS impermanence manifesting itself In the last episode I delved into the first of these three, the seeming seasonality of everything as a universal principle. We might take a moment to remind ourselves that seasonality is also considered natural, as the waxing and waning of the four seasons. And, while somewhat arbitrary as a concept, is considered causal in terms of the natural sciences of biology, botany, and even psychology — as in "seasonal affective disorder." Arbitrary in the sense that, as Master Dogen says, "You do not call winter the beginning of spring, nor summer the end of spring." Now that we have gotten off the planet, any middle-schooler knows that the root causes of the seasons is a universal phenomenon. Unless they are being home-schooled by a flat-earther, that is. In this segment we will take up the second, the waxing and waning of householder practice, moving the discussion to the social level. Which, of course, is part and parcel of our personal sphere of activity and influence. Whether Hokai meant to point out the usual periodic waxing and waning of our personal commitment to meditation in the context of the many distractions assailing your average householder; or a more societal angle on how householder engagement has grown and diminished over time through the various Eastern countries of origin, compared to its prevalence and intensity in the West modern times, I am not sure. I think it may be more instructive to consider the alternative — monastic practice — and how it colors our perspective on our own, personal options for pursuing the dharma in the midst of life. Zen householders often harbor a misconception that because we are householders — and not monastics — that we cannot hope to penetrate to the fundamental meaning of the teachings of Buddhism. This seems to be a widely shared meme in the Western culture, perhaps particularly in America. And it is based on a fundamental misconception — namely that the social sphere of Zen trumps the personal sphere —that you can tell a book by its cover, when it comes to Zen practice. But you can't. Because we interpret the history of Zen Buddhism as primarily monastic, from its inception in India and its transmission through China, Korea, Japan and the Far East, we presume that the approach of material renunciation — leaving the householder life for that of the mendicant monk, nun, or hermit, or wandering on pilgrimage — is the most effective way, the only way, of recovering our Original Nature, or Buddha Mind. While traditional prescriptions for practice definitely include divesting ourselves of our dependency upon, and predilection for, the pleasures and problems of our times, the renunciation recommended in Zen is not limited to merely rejecting and replacing one lifestyle for another. It is more a matter of seeing through the delusional aspect of any way of living. Including monasticism. This is true spiritual poverty. Master Dogen articulated four levels of renunciation that members of his monastic community were either able or unable to embrace, which I have discussed in more detail elsewhere. They range from the ability or inability to relinquish attachment to family, home, inheritance, et cetera, to the inability or ability to relinquish our own opinions and biases regarding our own reality, regardless of outer appearances. The latter — Dogen's highest level of renunciation — would apply equally to monastic or householder. So apparently the main difference between the two lifestyle choices is that the former is relatively simpler compared to the complexities of the latter. In terms of the ability to realize the truth of Buddhism, lifestyle is just another form of pomp and circumstance. If you find your practice — by which we usually mean meditation — is waxing and waning beyond your intentions and control, you might want to take a radical departure. Stop. Quit, with all the negative connotations that may have in our goal-oriented culture and society. Admit that you have failed, once again. Or rationalize that Zen may work for others, but it does not work for you. In doing so — in "not doing Zen" — you will confirm your bias, and prove to yourself that, like everything else you have tried in life, it just didn't get the job done. Zen did not live up to your expectations. Now that you have resolved that untidy business you can get on with your life. Good luck with that. It turns out that this kind of discernment, that Zen is something we started doing, so it is something we can stop doing, is a category error of the first degree. There actually is no such thing as "Zen." Zen is what we call this particular meditation sect of Buddhism, but like any other sect, it only exists as a construction of our societal mind. It is a learned thing that upon examination evaporates like a puff of smoke, or a cloud in the sky. The etymology of "Zen" is one example of this misinterpretation. As I have pointed out elsewhere, the term Zen is actually a misnomer. It is phonetic Japanese for Ch'an, which is phonetic Chinese for Dhyana, which is a traditional form of contemplative meditation that the Chinese pundits assumed Bodhidharma was demonstrating when he would abruptly turn his back on them, facing the mountain wall instead. But the great sage was not doing dhyana. He was not contemplating anything in particular. He was demonstrating what is referred to in Japanese as shikantaza, which according to Master AI, means: Shikantaza, often translated as "just sitting," is a foundational Zen practice that involves sitting in a quiet, meditative posture without focusing on any specific object or thought. It's about being present, aware, and simply experiencing the present moment. If even this barebones definition does not capture the implications of the term, we have no one to blame but an artificial intelligence summarizing who knows how many verbal references on the large language model on which it has been trained. Defined as: A large language model (LLM) is a type of artificial intelligence that can generate human-like text based on the context provided. LLMs are trained on vast amounts of text data and learn to predict the next word or sequence of words in a text, allowing them to perform tasks like natural language processing, machine translation, and content generation. So it has come to this. We are using artificial intelligence to define artificial intelligence. With such developments as AI adding to the present overload of distractions, threats, alternative career choices, endless learning curves, and entangling relationships at home, work and play that householders have on their plates today, we can be forgiven for developing some ambiguity around adding to the list, or continuing to follow, yet another demanding regimen: Zen. Again, category error. We are already practicing Zen, from the moment we are born — and even before we are born, in the traditional Buddhist view — whether we know it or not. Everybody else is likewise. "Zen" is what we call that fact. Zen is a word that points at something that is not a thing, and in fact does not exist as an isolate or instantiation of anything. It is "the whole catastrophe" to quote Zorba the Greek. If Bodhidharma was contemplating anything, it was everything, which beggars the concept of "contemplation." In closing, let me quote myself again, from my closing statement from the last segment: Next month we will take up the second suggestion, the waxing and waning of householder zazen practice. Been there, done that. "Been there, done that" is not exactly true. I never began Zen practice, it began me. And I will never quit, though it may appear to be so to the outside observer. Zen is not something we can do. It is not in the realm of doing. So we cannot stop doing it, either. We either do it poorly or do it relatively well, like most things in life. Zazen is not something we have to do; it is something we get to do. Zen cannot wax and wane; it only seems to in our imagination. Perversely, there is no choice in the matter. The worse it gets, the better it is. "The Great Way is not difficult for those who have no preferences." Including a preference for what we

My name is Marina A. Smirnova. I was born on Sakhalin Island (the Far East of Russia), and, well over twenty years ago, I made the U.S.A. my home. My journey has been enriched by earning a Bachelor degree in Music Education (Minsk State Pedagogical University, 1996), a Master of Arts degree in Counseling (Central Michigan University, 2003), and a PhD degree in Psychology, with Transpersonal Psychology Concentration (Sofia University, formerly Institute of Transpersonal Psychology, 2013). I started my teaching path at the age of 18 as a K-12 music teacher. In 2013, I began my contribution to Saybrook University. In 2016, I became an Assistant Program Director for the Department of Humanistic and Clinical Psychology; in 2017-an Interim Psychology Chair. Currently, as a core faculty member of the Department of Humanistic Psychology at Saybrook, I serve as a Full Professor of Psychology and Consciousness, Spirituality, and Integrative Health (CSIH) Specialization Director. I am a recipient of two recent Saybrook University awards: Presidential Award for Excellence (November 2021) and Exemplary Humanistic Educator Award (August 2024). My interests are deeply humanistic and transpersonal in nature. Outside of the halls of academia, I support adults' inner development by helping them to integrate fully their deeply evocative, Exceptional Human Experiences (EHEs). Such experiences often arise within and out of dreams, visions, visitations, spiritual practices, breathwork, visionary journeys, and reality-shattering UFO /ET /Alien /Non-Human Intelligences encounters. I support experiencers transpersonally in their quests for spiritual vitality, fulfillment, vibrant longevity, soulful sovereignty, wholeness, and ascension. I have a deep sense of appreciation for contemplative spirituality, mystical and esoteric traditions, and contemplative practices, and my current overarching focus is on exploring, potentiating, and integrating Exceptional Experiences (EEs) and Exceptional Human Experiences (EHEs), in general, and reality-shattering UFO /ET /Alien / Non-Human Intelligences encounters, in particular. My heart-centered art and interests include: (1) intuitive spiritual support and guidance; (2) transpersonal ways of knowing, embodiment, ascension mentoring, and spiritual consultation; (3) extreme, deeply evocative, and visionary transpersonal/holotropic states; (4) John E. Mack's transpersonal research on UFO / ET /Alien encounters and human transformation; (5) Stan Grof's expanded cartography of the psyche, holotropic states of consciousness, and GROF® Breathwork / Holotropic Breathwork®; (6) C.G. Jung's transpersonal legacy, Joe Campbell's heroic journey, and James Hillman's acorn theory; (7) psionics, remote viewing, mythology and personal mythology, dreamwork, guided imagery, clinical hypnosis, and alchemy of ascension; (8) consciousness calibration work by David R. Hawkins, (9) the biology of personal empowerment by Bruce H. Lipton; (10) Enneagram; (11) Gene Keys and Dream Arc (by Richard Rudd); (12) indigenous traditions and heart-centered spirituality; and (13) other embodied spiritual approaches that engage inner resources to optimize soulful sovereignty, fulfillment, vibrant longevity, joy, and ascension. My son is a decorated U.S. Army Veteran. I live and create in Sedona, Arizona. With Many Blessings and Joy of Joys, Marina Marina A. Smirnova, PhD https://earthsideacademy.substack.com/

  Last time we spoke about China's preparations for War. In December 1936, the tension in China reached a boiling point as Nationalist General Chiang Kai-shek was captured by his own commanders, Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng. Disillusioned by Chiang's focus on fighting communists instead of the encroaching Japanese forces, the generals sought a unified response to Japanese aggression. After being held in Xi'an, Chiang reluctantly agreed to collaborate with the Chinese Communist Party, marking a significant shift in strategy against Japan. Amidst the rising chaos, Chiang's government reviewed historical military strategies and prepared for a prolonged conflict. However, they faced challenges, including inadequate supplies and a lack of modern equipment compared to the Japanese. By 1937, China was ill-prepared for war, with Chiang later expressing regret about their military readiness. Despite these setbacks, the alliance formed with the communists laid a foundation for a united Chinese front against the brutalities of the Sino-Japanese War that would follow.   #153 Japan Prepares for War Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. So in the last episode we talked about how China was preparing itself for war, now its time for Japan. Since Japan's invasion of North China, Japanese field armies had promoted a series of autonomous zones in northern China. Officers from the Kwantung Army, skeptical of China's capacity to modernize, believed that the vast region would inevitably fragment into regional factions. This policy effectively maintained a weak and divided China, which served Japan's to defend Manchukuo. However many Japanese military leaders frequently pointed to the threat posed by the KMT's five-year plan, initiated in 1933 with assistance from German military advisors, aimed at modernizing and expanding the national army. To counter what they perceived as a Chinese threat, the field armies advocated for a preemptive war to dismantle Chiang Kai-shek's regime. Any attempt by Tokyo to alter the military's China policy faced vigorous opposition from the Kwantung Army, which, in February 1937, pushed for intensified covert actions to expel the KMT from northern China and supported a preemptive war to secure strategic areas for future operations against the Soviet Union. At a March meeting in Tokyo, staff officers from the China Garrison and Kwantung armies insisted that any concessions to China would be a grave mistake and would likely yield only temporary outcomes. In early spring 1937, Prince Konoe Fumimaro inherited a China policy fraught with competing views, however, there was consensus that China must not distract the empire from its preparations against the USSR. The end goal was clear, but the means to achieve it remained uncertain. The cabinet's approval of the "Fundamentals of National Policy" in August 1936 indicated a need for stability as the army and navy reconfigured Japan's war machine. The challenge lay in aligning long-term strategic goals with practical short-term interests in northern China without upsetting the existing balance of power. Expanding demands propelled the army's contingency planning, which had traditionally focused on safeguarding Japanese interests and the approximately 13,000 Japanese citizens residing in the region. Tokyo typically responded to serious incidents by deploying troops from homeland garrisons to address localized emergencies and then withdrawing them. However, by the mid-1930s, the growing Soviet threat to Manchukuo rendered this doctrine obsolete. Incidents in northern China gained strategic importance as they diverted resources from the Kwantung Army's preparations against the Soviet Union. Disruptions in northern China hindered access to essential raw materials necessary for army modernization and rearmament, while hostile Chinese forces threatened the Kwantung Army's strategic left flank in the event of war with the Soviets. With these considerations in mind, the army revised its operational war plans, assuming that northern China would serve as Japan's strategic rear area for operations against the USSR. In 1911 Japan's plan for general war mandated thirteen divisions to occupy southern Manchuria, capture Beijing, and subsequently occupy Zhejiang and Fujian. Limited contingency operations in northern China required two divisions to secure rail communications from Beijing to the coast. In the weeks following the 1931 Manchurian Incident, the General Staff in Tokyo drafted plans to counter a Sino-Soviet alliance, anticipating a 2 month campaign involving 15-16 divisions, with the majority engaged against the Soviet Red Army. 2 divisions were designated to secure northern China, while smaller units would monitor the Inner Mongolian front to protect Japan's western flank in Manchuria. After further refinement, the General Staff identified three contingencies for China in early 1932: maintaining the traditional mission of safeguarding Japanese interests and citizens with a standard two-division force; ensuring a secure line of communication between the Chinese capital and the sea with the China Garrison Army, which consisted of approximately 1,700 officers and men, reinforced by one division; and, in a worst-case scenario of all-out war, deploying three divisions to reinforce the Kwantung Army, along with 7 additional divisions and 3 cavalry brigades to suppress resistance in northern China and the Shandong Peninsula, while two additional divisions secured key areas in central China. Between 1932-1936, China received less attention as the General Staff focused on the Soviet military buildup in the Far East. Anxiety, stemming from the Soviet buildup in the Far East, was a pervasive concern reflected in the draft rearmament plan submitted to the throne on May 21, 1936, as part of the national budget formulation process. The army proposed countering the Soviet threat by enhancing Japanese strategic mobility in Manchukuo through the renovation and expansion of airfields, ports, roads, and rail infrastructure, and by constructing army air force arsenals, storage depots, and medical facilities. The positioning of Japanese divisions in eastern Manchuria suggested their wartime objectives, with the Kwantung Army relying on a mobile independent mixed brigade composed of armored car and mounted cavalry units stationed in Gongzhuling, central Manchuria, as its immediate response force for contingencies in northern China. Major units were not concentrated in western Manchuria, where they would be expected to deploy before any planned invasion of northern China. Nevertheless, General Staff planners remained vigilant regarding developments in China, where the resurgence of nationalism, Communist movements advancing north of the Yellow River in February 1936, and the spread of anti-Japanese sentiments across northern China raised the specter of limited military operations escalating into full-scale warfare. China's improving military capabilities would likely hinder Japanese forces from accomplishing their objectives. For example, around Shanghai, Chinese defenses were bolstered by extensive, in-depth, and permanent fortifications. In mid-September 1936, the General Staff in Tokyo issued orders to preempt significant outbreaks in northern China by repositioning a division in Manchukuo closer to the boundary. If hostilities broke out, the China Garrison Army, supported by Kwantung Army units, would launch punitive operations against Chinese forces as necessary. Higher headquarters expected local commanders to act swiftly and decisively, employing rapid maneuvers and shock tactics to address outbreaks with minimal force. Given that no alternative responses were considered, Japanese operational planning for northern China relied on an all-or-nothing approach to force deployment, even for minor incidents. Yet, the senior leadership of the army remained deeply divided over its China policy. Influenced by Ishiwara, the General Staff wanted to avoid military actions that could lead to a full-scale war with China, focusing instead on advancing the army's extensive rearmament and modernization program. In contrast, a majority of high-ranking officers in the Army Ministry and General Staff, particularly within the 2nd Operations Section and the Kwantung Army, favored forceful action against China, believing it necessary to quell rising anti-Japanese sentiments. Drawing from past experiences, these officers anticipated that the Chinese would quickly capitulate once hostilities commenced. This lack of a unified military strategy reflected broader disagreements among the army's leadership regarding operations in China. While operational planning called for the permanent occupation of large regions in northern and central China, the General Staff aimed to contain outbreaks to maintain focus on Soviet threats. There was a clear absence of long-term operational planning; instead, the army concentrated on initial battles while relegating planning for prolonged combat operations to contingent circumstances. In summary, the Japanese army preferred to avoid military force to address Chinese issues whenever feasible but was equally unwilling to concede to Chinese demands. Since 1914, Tosui Koryo or “Principles of Command” had served as the foundational doctrine for senior Japanese army commanders and staff officers engaged in combined arms warfare at the corps and army levels. The advent of new weapons, tactics, and organizational changes during World War I compelled all major military forces to reassess their existing military doctrines across strategic, operational, and tactical dimensions. In response, Japan modified the Principles of Command to blend its traditional post-Russo-Japanese War focus on the intangible factors in battle with the newest concepts of modern total war. A revision in 1918 recognized the significance of “recent great advances in materiel” for total warfare, yet it maintained that ultimate victory in battle relied on dedication, patriotism, and selfless service. In the 1920s, the General Staff's Operations Section, led by Major General Araki Sadao, who would become the leader of the Kodoha faction, had produced the most significant and impactful revision of the Principles. A staunch anti-communist and ideologue who valued the intangible elements of combat, Araki appointed Lieutenant Colonel Obata Toshishiro and Captain Suzuki Yorimichi as the principal authors of the manual's rewrite. Obata, a Soviet expert, was strongly influenced by German General Count Alfred von Schlieffen's classic theories of a “war of annihilation,” while Suzuki, the top graduate of the thirtieth Staff College class, shared Araki's focus on “spiritual” or intangible advantages in warfare. Both men were brilliant yet arrogant, working in secrecy to create a doctrine based on what Leonard Humphreys describes as “intense spiritual training” and bayonet-led assaults to counter the opponent's material superiority.  The latest version of the Principles of Command preserved the operational concept of rapid Japanese mobile offensive operations, aiming to induce a decisive battle or “kaisen” early in the campaign. It reaffirmed the sokusen sokketsu or “rapid victory' principle of rapid warfare. Attaining these goals relied exclusively on offensive action, with the army expecting commanders at all levels to press forward, defeat enemy units, and capture key territories. The troops were indoctrinated with a spirit of aggression and trained to anticipate certain victory. The emphasis on offensive action was so pronounced that Araki eliminated terms like surrender, retreat, and defense from the manual, believing they negatively affected troop morale. This aggressive mindset also infused the Sento Koryo or “Principles of Operations”, first published in 1929 as a handbook for combined arms warfare tailored for division and regimental commanders. The manual emphasized hand-to-hand combat as the culminating stage of battle, a principle regarded as unchanging in Japanese military doctrine since 1910. Senior commanders were expected to demonstrate initiative in skillfully maneuvering their units to encircle the enemy, setting the stage for climactic assaults with cold steel. Infantry was deemed the primary maneuver force, supported by artillery. To complement rapid infantry advances, the army developed light and mobile artillery. Operationally, encirclement and night attacks were vital components of victory, and even outnumbered units were expected to aggressively envelop enemy flanks. In assaults against fortified positions, units would advance under the cover of darkness, avoiding enemy artillery fire and positioning themselves for dawn attacks that combined firepower with shock action to overwhelm enemy defenses. In encounters with opposing forces, commanders would maneuver to flank the enemy, surround their units, and destroy them. If forced onto the defensive, commanders were expected to seize opportunities for decisive counterattacks to regain the initiative. These high-level operational doctrines were distilled into tactical guidelines in the January 1928 edition of the Infantry Manual or “Hohei Soten”, which saw a provisional revision in May 1937 . Both editions opened with identical introductions emphasizing the necessity for a rapid victory through the overpowering and destruction of enemy forces. Infantry was identified as the primary arm in combined arms warfare, and soldiers were taught to rely on cold steel as fundamental to their attacking spirit. The 1928 Infantry Manual underscored the commander's role in instilling a faith in certain victory or “hissho shinnen”, drawing from the glorious traditions of Japanese military history. The 1928 infantry tactics employed an extended skirmish line with four paces between soldiers. Individual initiative in combat was generally discouraged, except under exceptional circumstances, as success relied on concentrating firepower and manpower on narrow frontages to overwhelm defenders. An infantry company would create a skirmish line featuring two light machine gun squads and four rifle squads, preparing for a bayonet-driven breakthrough of enemy defenses. For the final assault, the infantry company would line up along a 150-yard front, likely facing casualties of up to 50% while breaching the enemy's main defensive line. Historical analysis reveals the shortcomings of these tactics. During World War I, armies constructed extensive, multi-layered defenses, trenches, pillboxes, and strong points, each independent yet all covered by artillery. If assaulting infantry suffered heavy losses breaching the first line, how could they successfully prosecute their assault against multiple defense lines? The 1937 revision elaborated on new tactics to overcome entrenched Soviet defenses, drafted in anticipation of arms and equipment that were either in development or production but not yet available for deployment. This became official doctrine in 1940, but as early as summer 1937, units from the China Garrison Army were field-testing these new tactics. The provisional manual adopted combat team tactics, forming an umbrella-like skirmish formation. This involved a light machine gun team at the forefront with two ammunition bearers flanking it to the rear. Behind the machine gun team were riflemen arranged in a column formation, maintaining six paces between each. The light machine gun provided cover fire as the formation closed in on the enemy for hand-to-hand combat. Increased firepower expanded the assault front to 200 yards. The combination of wider dispersion and night movement aimed to reduce losses from enemy artillery fire while the infantry advanced through successive lines of resistance. Commanders at the platoon level were responsible for leading the final assault into enemy lines, with increased tactical responsibility shifting from platoon to squad leaders, allowing for greater initiative from junior officers and non-commissioned officers. This emphasis on broader dispersal and fluidity on the battlefield required frontline infantry to exhibit aggressiveness and initiative. Contrary to popular belief, the Japanese military did not solely rely on the bayonet or an offensive spirit during engagements with Chinese forces. They effectively employed superior firepower and modern equipment within their combined arms framework, using heavy weapons and artillery to soften enemy positions before launching infantry attacks. Without such firepower, unsupported infantry attacks would have struggled to achieve their objectives. In January 1937, the Imperial Japanese Army consisted of approximately 247,000 officers and men, organized in a structure comprising seventeen standing infantry divisions, four tank regiments, and fifty-four air squadrons equipped with a total of 549 aircraft. The China Garrison Army and the Taiwan Garrison Army each included two infantry regiments, while a separate independent mixed brigade was stationed in Manchuria. Two divisions were permanently based in Korea, with four more assigned on a rotating basis to the Kwantung Army in Manchukuo. The remainder of the forces were stationed in the Japanese home islands. A substantial pool of reservists and partially trained replacements was available to mobilize, enabling the expansion of peacetime units to their wartime strength as needed. Conscription provided the primary source of enlisted manpower for the army, though a handful of young men volunteered for active duty. For conscription purposes, Japan was divided into divisional areas, which were further subdivided into regimental districts responsible for conscription, mobilization, individual activations, and veteran affairs within their jurisdictions. Typically, conscripts served with the regiment associated with their region or prefecture. However, the Imperial Guards regiments in Tokyo selected conscripts from across the nation, as did the Seventh Infantry Division, which recruited from the sparsely populated Hokkaido area and from regular army units stationed in Korea, China, and Taiwan. Draftees from Okinawa Prefecture usually served with Kyushu-based regiments. All males reaching the age of 20 underwent an army-administered pre-induction physical examination conducted between December 1 and January 30 of the following year. This evaluation classified potential conscripts into three categories: A “suitable for active duty”, B1, and B2, while others were deemed unfit for the demands of military life. In 1935, 29.7% of those examined received A classifications, while 41.2% were graded as B1 or B2. Among the 742,422 individuals eligible for conscription in 1937, approximately 170,000 were drafted, amounting to 22.9% of the cohort; this figure had remained relatively consistent since the post-Russo-Japanese War years. Within the conscripted group, 153,000 men were classified as A and an additional 17,000 as B. Conscripts served for two years of active duty, with variations based on their military specialty and any prior civilian military training. After their discharge, they were subject to a lengthy reserve obligation. In total, 470,635 individuals fell into the B category, being otherwise fit for service but excess to the army's active personnel needs. These men were assigned to the First Replacement Pool, where they underwent around 120 days of basic military training, primarily focused on small arms usage and fundamental tactics. Regular officers and NCOs led the training in their respective regimental districts. Following their initial training, the army called these replacements and reservists to active duty annually for several days of refresher training. Army leaders regarded discipline as the cornerstone of military effectiveness. Basic training emphasized the necessity of unquestioning obedience to orders at all levels. Subsequent training focused on fieldcraft, such as utilizing terrain strategically to surprise or encircle the enemy. However, training exercises often lacked diversity due to the limited maneuver areas available in Japan, leading to predictable solutions to field problems. The training regimen was rigorous, merging strict formal discipline and regulated corporal punishment with harsh informal sanctions and unregulated violence from leaders to instill unwavering compliance to orders. As an undergrad taking a course specifically on the Pacific War, it was this variable my professor argued contributed the most to the atrocities performed by the Japanese during WW2. He often described it as a giant pecking order of abuse. The most senior commanders abused, often physically their subordinates, who abused theirs, going through the ranks to the common grunts who had no one else but civilians and the enemy to peck at so to speak. Of course there were a large number of other variables at play, but to understand that you outta join my Patreon Account over at the www.patreon.com/pacificwarchannel , where I made a fan favorite episode on “why the Japanese army performed so many atrocities”. In there I basically hit a big 10 reason list, well in depth, I highly recommend it! As the concept of the “Imperial Army” and the cult of the emperor gained prominence, appeals to imperial symbols and authority bolstered this unquestioning obedience to superiors, who were seen as the conduits of the emperor's will. It was during this period that the term kogun or “imperial army” gained favor over kokugun or “national army”, reflecting a deliberate effort by military authorities to forge a direct connection between the military and the imperial throne. The 1937 Japanese infantry division was structured as a square formation, with a peacetime strength established at approximately 12,000 officers and men organized into two brigades, each comprising about 4,000 personnel, formed from two infantry regiments, about 2,000 men each. The division included a field artillery regiment, an engineer regiment, and a transport battalion as organic units. Each infantry regiment was composed of three battalions, approximately 600 men each, which contained three rifle companies, 160 men each and a weapons platoon. A rifle company consisted of three rifle platoons and one light machine gun platoon. Regiments also included infantry assault gun platoons, and battalions contained a heavy machine gun company. Upon mobilization, a fourth infantry company augmented each battalion, along with reserve fillers, nearly 5,000 personnel assigned as transport and service troops, raising the authorized wartime strength of an infantry division to over 25,000 officers and men.  Reforms implemented in 1922 reduced personnel numbers in favor of new and improved weapons and equipment. Among these advancements, the 75 mm Type 90 field artillery piece, which boasted increased range and accuracy, was integrated into the forces in 1930, along with the 105 mm Type 10 howitzer and 75 mm pack mountain artillery which could be disassembled for transport using pack animals. These became standard artillery components for divisions. The emphasis on light, mobile, and smaller-caliber field artillery enabled swift deployment during fast-moving engagements. By minimizing the size of the baggage train, infantry and artillery units could quickly set up off the march formation and maneuver around enemy flanks. Army leaders further streamlined road march formations by eliminating the fourth artillery battery from each regiment, thus sacrificing some firepower for enhanced speed and mobility. Heavier artillery pieces were still used in set-piece battles where mobility was less critical. In a typical 1936 division, the field artillery regiment, equipped with Type 90 field artillery or lighter Type 94 mountain artillery, had thirty-six guns. Training focused on quality rather than quantity, reflecting the conservative doctrine of “one-round-one-hit”. Live-fire training was infrequent due to the scarcity of artillery firing ranges in Japan. Ammunition stockpiles were inadequate for anticipated operational needs; government arsenals produced over 111,000 artillery shells in 1936, which was fewer than one-tenth of the quantities specified in wartime consumption tables. Similar industrial shortcomings also hampered advancements in motorization and armor. Motorization proved costly and relied on foreign supply, presenting challenges given the inferior road networks in Manchuria, northern China, and the Soviet Far East. Military estimates suggested a need for 250,000 trucks to fully motorize the army, a goal beyond the capabilities of the nascent Japanese automotive industry, which produced fewer than 1,000 cars annually until 1933. Japanese tanks, described as “handcrafted, beautifully polished, and hoarded” by Alvin Coox, suffered from shortages similar to heavy artillery and ammunition. The army prioritized light weighing ten tons or less and medium tanks sixteen tons or less due to the necessity of deploying armor overseas, size and weight were crucial for loading and unloading from transport ships. Smaller tanks were also more suitable for the terrains of northern China and Manchuria, as they could traverse unbridged rivers using pontoons or ferries. The Japanese industrial base, however, struggled to mass-produce tanks; by 1939, factories were producing an average of only twenty-eight tanks of all models per month. Consequently, in 1937, foot soldiers remained as reliant on animal transport for mobility as their ancestors had been during the Russo-Japanese War. Despite enjoying technological and material superiority over disorganized Chinese forces, these deficiencies in heavy artillery, armor, and vehicles would prove catastrophic against more formidable opponents. Another significant factor constraining Japanese industry's capacity to produce tanks, trucks, and artillery was the 1936 decision to expand the army's air wing and homeland air defense network. This policy diverted resources, capital, and technology away from the army's ground forces. The nascent Japanese Army Air Force or “JAAF” aimed to support ground operations through reconnaissance, bombing enemy bases, and achieving air superiority. However, direct support for ground operations was limited, and Japanese military planners did not anticipate that aerial bombardment could supplement or replace artillery bombardments. The expanded air arm's strategic mission centered on executing preemptive air strikes against Soviet air bases in the Far East to thwart potential air attacks on Japan. By the mid-1930s, the army had approximately 650 aircraft, roughly 450 of which were operational. The JAAF emphasized rigorous training that prioritized quality over quantity, producing only about 750 pilots annually up until December 1941. Basic flight skills were developed through this training, while specialized tactical instruction was deferred to newly established pilot units. According to logistics doctrine, Japanese maneuver units typically operated within a 120 to 180-mile radius of a railhead to facilitate resupply and reinforcement. A field train transport unit was responsible for moving supplies daily from the railhead to a division control point for distribution. The division established a field depot to manage the transfer of supplies from field transport to company and lower-echelon units. At the depot, transport troops would hand over supplies to a combat train that ferried ammunition, rations, and equipment directly to frontline units. Horse-drawn wagons and pack animals were the primary means of transportation. Each wartime division included a transport battalion, which varied in size from approximately 2,200 to 3,700 personnel, depending on the type of division supported. The division typically carried enough supplies for one day. Upon mobilization, the logistical framework was reinforced with the addition of an ordnance unit, a field hospital, a sanitation unit, and additional field and combat trains. The size of the transport regiment grew from around 1,500 officers and men with over 300 horses to nearly 3,500 troops and more than 2,600 animals. In the battalion, one company generally transported small-arms ammunition while two companies handled artillery shells and two others carried rations; this arrangement was flexible based on operational needs. Pack horses and dray horses were assigned to each company to carry or tow infantry assault artillery, mortars, artillery ammunition, and rations. Infantry soldiers carried minimal rations, approximately two and a half pounds, primarily rice, along with tinned condiments and salt. Consequently, the field train included a field kitchen stocked with fresh vegetables, rice or bread, soy sauce, and pickles. Each evening, a forward echelon train distributed supplies received from the field transport unit to the combat unit's bivouac area. When combat seemed imminent, a section of the transport battalion would move forward to deliver essential combat supplies, ordnance, equipment, medical supplies, directly to frontline units. These units would also handle resupply, medical evacuation, and repair of ordnance and equipment once fighting commenced.  On the evening of September 18, 1936, the fifth anniversary of the Manchurian Incident, Chinese troops from the Twenty-Ninth Army clashed with Japanese soldiers from the Seventh Company's rear-guard medical unit at Fengtai. When a Japanese officer arrived on horseback, a Chinese soldier struck his horse, prompting the Chinese troops to retreat to their barracks. Major Ichiki Kiyonao, the battalion commander, ordered an emergency assembly, surrounded the Chinese encampment, and demanded that Chinese authorities surrender the aggressors immediately. To defuse the situation, Major General Kawabe Masakazu, the brigade commander and Ichiki's superior, instructed Regimental Commander Mutaguchi to resolve the incident swiftly. Mutaguchi negotiated an agreement that required the Chinese to apologize, punish those responsible, withdraw from the vicinity of the Japanese barracks, and maintain a distance of two miles. Although Mutaguchi and Ichiki wanted to disarm the Chinese forces, they ultimately complied with Kawabe's wishes and allowed the Chinese to retain their weapons “in the spirit of Bushido.” Later, the Chinese claimed the Japanese had refrained from disarming them due to their fear of the strength and influence of the 29th Army. This insult infuriated Mutaguchi, who vowed not to make any further concessions and promised to eliminate the anti-Japanese provocateurs decisively if another incident occurred. He warned his officers against allowing an “overly tolerant attitude toward the Chinese” to undermine the prestige of the imperial army and emphasized the need for swift, decisive action to prevent such incidents in the future. Tensions were further exacerbated by large-scale Japanese field exercises conducted from late October to early November. These maneuvers, the largest ever executed by Japanese forces in China, mobilized about 6,700 active-duty and reserve troops for a series of complex battle drills, night maneuvers, and tactical field problems. During these exercises, Japanese troops were quartered in Chinese homes. Although local residents were compensated for any damage caused, the exercises nonetheless heightened tensions between the two sides. The fallout from the Suiyuan Fiasco in December 1936, coupled with a tumultuous summer and fall, led to rising anti-Japanese sentiment and prompted Tokyo to caution the Kawabe brigade against actions that might escalate the already precarious situation. In March 1937, during the annual personnel assignments, Ishiwara was promoted to major general and appointed chief of the 1st Department Operations of the General Staff. However, Army Vice Minister Umezu, a hardliner regarding China and a rival of Ishiwara, successfully maneuvered the Hayashi cabinet into approving the command choices for army and navy ministers, overriding Ishiwara's proposals. General Sugiyama Hajime, another hawk on China, replaced the terminally ill General Nakamura Kotaro as army minister shortly after Nakamura's appointment and remained in that position until June 1938. Lieutenant General Imai Kiyoshi, army vice chief of staff and an Ishiwara supporter, was also battling a terminal illness that rendered him largely ineffective during his short five-month tenure from March to August 1937. Imai was expected to play a crucial role in high command because the army chief of staff, Prince Kan'in, had been appointed in 1931 as a figurehead due to internal factions preventing agreement on a candidate. Ishiwara further complicated his conciliatory approach by selecting Colonel Muto Akira, a known hardliner who believed force was the only means to resolve the Japan-China conflict, for the vital position of chief of Operations Section within the General Staff. From Kwantung Army headquarters, Commanding General Ueda Kenkichi and his chief of staff, Lieutenant General Tojo Hideki, advocated for a preemptive war against China to serve the Kwantung Army's interests. In contrast, the China Garrison Army, under Lieutenant General Tashiro and his chief of staff, adopted a more moderate stance, aligning with central headquarters' policy of restraint. The China Garrison Army estimated the 29th Army to consist of 15,000–16,000 troops, with its main strength centered around Peking and an additional 10,000 troops in the surrounding area. Starting in spring 1937, Japanese units began observing tactical indicators suggesting that the Chinese were preparing for war. These indicators included increased guard presence at Peking's gates in June, bolstering units near the Marco Polo Bridge to over two battalions, preparing new fighting positions, digging trenches and constructing concrete pillboxes near the Marco Polo Bridge, infiltrating agents into Japanese maneuver areas for intelligence on night tactical exercises, and heightened strictness among Chinese railroad guards evident since late June. Nevertheless, the Japanese commanders did not view China as a formidable opponent. They believed that Chinese armies would quickly disintegrate due to what they perceived as a lack of fighting spirit and ineffective leadership. By 1937, Japan's national policy was shifting away from the persistent and aggressive efforts of field armies to undermine Chinese political authority in northern China toward a more conciliatory stance. This shift resulted in increased tensions between field armies and the General Staff in Tokyo, leading to substantial fractures among senior officers regarding the “solution” to their so-called China problem. Those tensions broke the camels back that year.  I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The Japanese grossly underestimated their enemy and their own logistical capabilities. There was to say “too many cooks in the kitchen” of the Japanese military and competing visions ultimately were leading Japan and China into an official full blown war. Japan assumed they could bully China until it was so fragmented it would be a simple matter of grabbing the pieces it liked, that was not to be the case at all.   

I finally get to cover one of the truly big navies of the period! In this first episode covering the Royal Navy, I'll be taking a look at the planning and strategy of the British admiralty in the 1930s. Obviously things didn't go according to plan, but it's good to have context on what their intentions were going into the war.    Bibliography for this episode:  Field, Andrew Royal Navy Strategy in the Far East 1919-1939: Preparing for War against Japan Frank Cass 2004 Gordon, G.A.H. British Seapower and Procurement between the Wars: A Reappraisal of Rearmament Macmillan Press 1988 Harding, Richard The Royal Navy, 1930-2000: Innovation and Defense Frank Cass 2005   Questions? Comments? Email me at peaceintheirtime@gmail.com

My name is Marina A. Smirnova. I was born on Sakhalin Island (the Far East of Russia), and, well over twenty years ago, I made the U.S.A. my home. My journey has been enriched by earning a Bachelor degree in Music Education (Minsk State Pedagogical University, 1996), a Master of Arts degree in Counseling (Central Michigan University, 2003), and a PhD degree in Psychology, with Transpersonal Psychology Concentration (Sofia University, formerly Institute of Transpersonal Psychology, 2013). I started my teaching path at the age of 18 as a K-12 music teacher. In 2013, I began my contribution to Saybrook University. In 2016, I became an Assistant Program Director for the Department of Humanistic and Clinical Psychology; in 2017-an Interim Psychology Chair. Currently, as a core faculty member of the Department of Humanistic Psychology at Saybrook, I serve as a Full Professor of Psychology and Consciousness, Spirituality, and Integrative Health (CSIH) Specialization Director. I am a recipient of two recent Saybrook University awards: Presidential Award for Excellence (November 2021) and Exemplary Humanistic Educator Award (August 2024). My interests are deeply humanistic and transpersonal in nature. Outside of the halls of academia, I support adults' inner development by helping them to integrate fully their deeply evocative, Exceptional Human Experiences (EHEs). Such experiences often arise within and out of dreams, visions, visitations, spiritual practices, breathwork, visionary journeys, and reality-shattering UFO /ET /Alien /Non-Human Intelligences encounters. I support experiencers transpersonally in their quests for spiritual vitality, fulfillment, vibrant longevity, soulful sovereignty, wholeness, and ascension. I have a deep sense of appreciation for contemplative spirituality, mystical and esoteric traditions, and contemplative practices, and my current overarching focus is on exploring, potentiating, and integrating Exceptional Experiences (EEs) and Exceptional Human Experiences (EHEs), in general, and reality-shattering UFO /ET /Alien / Non-Human Intelligences encounters, in particular. My heart-centered art and interests include: (1) intuitive spiritual support and guidance; (2) transpersonal ways of knowing, embodiment, ascension mentoring, and spiritual consultation; (3) extreme, deeply evocative, and visionary transpersonal/holotropic states; (4) John E. Mack's transpersonal research on UFO / ET /Alien encounters and human transformation; (5) Stan Grof's expanded cartography of the psyche, holotropic states of consciousness, and GROF® Breathwork / Holotropic Breathwork®; (6) C.G. Jung's transpersonal legacy, Joe Campbell's heroic journey, and James Hillman's acorn theory; (7) psionics, remote viewing, mythology and personal mythology, dreamwork, guided imagery, clinical hypnosis, and alchemy of ascension; (8) consciousness calibration work by David R. Hawkins, (9) the biology of personal empowerment by Bruce H. Lipton; (10) Enneagram; (11) Gene Keys and Dream Arc (by Richard Rudd); (12) indigenous traditions and heart-centered spirituality; and (13) other embodied spiritual approaches that engage inner resources to optimize soulful sovereignty, fulfillment, vibrant longevity, joy, and ascension. My son is a decorated U.S. Army Veteran. I live and create in Sedona, Arizona. With Many Blessings and Joy of Joys, Marina Marina A. Smirnova, PhD https://earthsideacademy.substack.com/

In this episode of The Crude Report – APAC Series, Adam McCarthy and Fabian Ng explore the impact of recent sanctions on Russian crude exports from the Far East. They unpack how trade flows, pricing, and buyer behaviour have evolved in response to geopolitical pressures. Key Topics Discussed: * The initial disruption and quick recovery of ESPO and Sokol crude exports despite US sanctions * Creative workarounds like ship-to-ship transfers and vessel substitutions to maintain export volumes * Shifts in buyer behaviour, especially among Chinese and Indian refiners, in response to sanctions and freight costs * The broader market impact, including price movements and the influence of Iranian crude sanctions on demand for Russian grades  

Send us a textA jam-packed weekend of CrossFit Games Semifinal competition is in store starting this Friday. A total of 12 athletes will secure their spot at the 2025 Games in Albany, NY. After previewing Torian Pro last week, Brian and PC return to discuss the three other Semifinals that will happen this weekend, which include eight Game invitations. The weekend starts first in Busan, Korea, for the fourth installment of the Far East Throwdown. Next up is the REBEL Renegade Games in Vanderbijlpark, South Africa. Each day of competition ends with the Syndicate Crown, held in Knoxville, Tennessee.Brian goes through his predictions on how he feels the leaderboards will end up in those competitions and offers additional insights on what to watch for.Please consider donating to Dusty and his family as he recovers in the aftermath of a recent medical emergency:https://www.spotfund.com/story/2b351b...Visit us on our website at bfriendlyfitness.comConnect with us on Instagram BFriendly on Instagram Brian on Instagram PC on Instagram Today's episode is brought to you by Home Grown ReleafMake sure you go check out the best CBD product out there, Home Grown Releaf, who is back as our podcast sponsor for 2025!HGR Website: https://hgrcbd.com/Use code "FRIEND20" to get 20% off your purchase

Next week, Down to Business will be broadcasting from Japan! Yes, that's right. As you know,w we have a long association with the EY Entrepreneur of the Year Award,s and like we've done for the last 10 plus years, we're travelling as part of this year's CEO Retreat, which will see us join 140 entrepreneurs in the Far East. You'll be hearing all about it next week. Joining Bobby to give us a little flavour of what we might expect was Roger Wallace, Partner Lead of the EY Entrepreneur of the Year Program.

Episode 005 of You Liang's Far East Taste guides you through a radiant blend of progressive and house music, moving from uplifting melodic grooves to deeper global rhythms. This month's mix balances daytime energy with subtle evening moods, just in time for your morning in the UK or sunset in Japan. We begin with the warm, rolling flow of "Apollo 2" by Alfie Framer & Maurice Lessing, before diving into electro-tinged selections like "Singapore Sling" and a brand-new collaboration between You Liang and Hakuei.K. As the momentum builds, tracks from Julian Jordan, Steve Angello, and Alex Wann bring a refined peak-time energy, full of crisp percussion and shimmering leads. To close, the tempo softens with "Prende La Vela," a Latin tech remix that brings percussive warmth and a steady groove, perfect for winding down the set and easing into the evening. Wherever you're listening from, Far East Taste is your monthly invitation to feel, move, and explore the global pulse of house music. ⚡️Like the Show? Click the [Repost] ↻ button so more people can hear it!

In today’s deep dive, we take you into an international grocery store in Champaign and explore how the family running the shop journeyed from Vietnam to Central Illinois.

It's another lighter weekend of action, although there is a prominent world title on the line in the Far East. We go over the matchups and have plenty of news, including Manny Pacquiao confirming his return and more on the "Big Fight Weekend Preview Podcast"Host T.J. Rives returns with insider Dan Rafael to go over it all on this edition.They start with the preview of the Queensberry DAZN card Saturday in Glasgow, ScotlandFormer undisputed 140 lb. champ Josh Taylor is back meeting a little known fighter in Ekow Essuman, in a welterweight clash. Does Taylor have anything left?Also, promising heavyweight Moses Itauma is on this card against little known Mike Balogun and it should be a big night for Itauma. The boys also preview the Kameda Promotions / ProBox TV main event Saturday in Osaka, JapanThis sees the return of American Angelo Leo against Tomoki Kameda, for Leo's IBF featherweight title in his first defense. Leo has big things in mind, but is going on the road in this one. Next, here briefly from former IBF 168 lb. champ Caleb Plant with DanPlant defends WBA interim super middleweight title vs. Armando Resendiz in the PBC on Prime Video main event May 31 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas News Pacquiao is officially back, and announces July 19th Mario Barrios fight on social media. His training has opened with Freddie Roach at Wild Card boxing club in L.A.Also, Dan is reporting that besides the bouts he's already reported that will be on the PPV (Fundora-Tszyu 2 and Pitbull-Fierro 2), the PPV will also include former 122 lb. and 126 lb. titlist  Brandon Figueroa vs. former title challenger Joey Gonzalez.Former IBF junior welterweight titlist Liam Paro will face Jonathan Navarro in a 10-rounder contracted at 144 pounds in the main event of a No Limit Boxing card on June 25 in Cairns, Australia. Paro's first fight since losing the IBF 140 title to Richardson Hitchins in December.And, we talk more about the death of all-time great Nino Benvenuti at 87 earlier this week.. The Italian legend was 1960 Olympic gold medalist, undisputed junior middleweight champion, two-time undisputed middleweight champion and was 2-1 in one boxing's most famed trilogies against Emile Griffith all for the undisputed 160 title. Some knowledge for the younger fans!Nostalgia May 22, 2010 – 15 years go on Thursday – the unfortunate fourth fight between featherweights Rafael Marquez and Israel Vazquez, who predictably got destroyed via KO3 in his final fight. and....May 22, 1993 – 32 years ago on Thursday – Roy Jones easy wiped out Bernard Hopkins in 12 rounds to win the vacant IBF middleweight title for his first world title in the co-feature of Riddick Bowe's easy KO2 in a mismatch with Jesse Ferguson to retain the heavyweight title. Goto our Big Fight Weekend Youtube paget to watch these here: https://www.youtube.com/@bigfightweekend9132/featuredAnd make sure to follow this podcast feed on Apple/Spreaker/Spotify, etc.! 

Rejecting much of the conventional wisdom to what makes up a modern Army, William F. Owen's Euclid's Army: Preparing Land Forces for Warfare Today (Howgate Publishing Limited, 2025) massacres fields sacred cows to challenge many of the mainstream ideas about the future of land warfare and how it should be conducted. Based on his experience working with the British Army and industry, Owen draws the reader back to basics based on limited budgets, limited resources and an overall reduction in cost, weight and complexity to comprehensively understand how armies might or should equip, train and organise for any unknowable future. Stripped of traditional academic or journalistic approaches and well-worn familiar narratives, Euclid's Army reformulates how soldiers, civil servants and politicians should think about land warfare, thus war in general.William F. Owen (Wilf) served for 12 years in the British Army in regular and reserve Infantry and Intelligence units. He then worked on defence advisory and security projects in West Africa and the Far East before moving to writing and editing on defence matters. In 2010, he co-founded Military Strategy Magazine, for which he is currently editor. He also worked as a consultant and contractor for the British Army and several defence agencies and companies worldwide.Stephen Satkiewicz is an independent scholar with research areas spanning Civilizational Sciences, Social Complexity, Big History, Historical Sociology, Military History, War Studies, International Relations, Geopolitics, and Russian and East European history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/science-technology-and-society

It's another lighter weekend of action, although there is a prominent world title on the line in the Far East. We go over the matchups and have plenty of news, including Manny Pacquiao confirming his return and more on the "Big Fight Weekend Preview Podcast"Host T.J. Rives returns with insider Dan Rafael to go over it all on this edition.They start with the preview of the Queensberry DAZN card Saturday in Glasgow, ScotlandFormer undisputed 140 lb. champ Josh Taylor is back meeting a little known fighter in Ekow Essuman, in a welterweight clash. Does Taylor have anything left?Also, promising heavyweight Moses Itauma is on this card against little known Mike Balogun and it should be a big night for Itauma. The boys also preview the Kameda Promotions / ProBox TV main event Saturday in Osaka, JapanThis sees the return of American Angelo Leo against Tomoki Kameda, for Leo's IBF featherweight title in his first defense. Leo has big things in mind, but is going on the road in this one. Next, here briefly from former IBF 168 lb. champ Caleb Plant with DanPlant defends WBA interim super middleweight title vs. Armando Resendiz in the PBC on Prime Video main event May 31 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas News Pacquiao is officially back, and announces July 19th Mario Barrios fight on social media. His training has opened with Freddie Roach at Wild Card boxing club in L.A.Also, Dan is reporting that besides the bouts he's already reported that will be on the PPV (Fundora-Tszyu 2 and Pitbull-Fierro 2), the PPV will also include former 122 lb. and 126 lb. titlist  Brandon Figueroa vs. former title challenger Joey Gonzalez.Former IBF junior welterweight titlist Liam Paro will face Jonathan Navarro in a 10-rounder contracted at 144 pounds in the main event of a No Limit Boxing card on June 25 in Cairns, Australia. Paro's first fight since losing the IBF 140 title to Richardson Hitchins in December.And, we talk more about the death of all-time great Nino Benvenuti at 87 earlier this week.. The Italian legend was 1960 Olympic gold medalist, undisputed junior middleweight champion, two-time undisputed middleweight champion and was 2-1 in one boxing's most famed trilogies against Emile Griffith all for the undisputed 160 title. Some knowledge for the younger fans!Nostalgia May 22, 2010 – 15 years go on Thursday – the unfortunate fourth fight between featherweights Rafael Marquez and Israel Vazquez, who predictably got destroyed via KO3 in his final fight. and....May 22, 1993 – 32 years ago on Thursday – Roy Jones easy wiped out Bernard Hopkins in 12 rounds to win the vacant IBF middleweight title for his first world title in the co-feature of Riddick Bowe's easy KO2 in a mismatch with Jesse Ferguson to retain the heavyweight title. Goto our Big Fight Weekend Youtube paget to watch these here: https://www.youtube.com/@bigfightweekend9132/featuredAnd make sure to follow this podcast feed on Apple/Spreaker/Spotify, etc.! 

Rejecting much of the conventional wisdom to what makes up a modern Army, William F. Owen's Euclid's Army: Preparing Land Forces for Warfare Today (Howgate Publishing Limited, 2025) massacres fields sacred cows to challenge many of the mainstream ideas about the future of land warfare and how it should be conducted. Based on his experience working with the British Army and industry, Owen draws the reader back to basics based on limited budgets, limited resources and an overall reduction in cost, weight and complexity to comprehensively understand how armies might or should equip, train and organise for any unknowable future. Stripped of traditional academic or journalistic approaches and well-worn familiar narratives, Euclid's Army reformulates how soldiers, civil servants and politicians should think about land warfare, thus war in general.William F. Owen (Wilf) served for 12 years in the British Army in regular and reserve Infantry and Intelligence units. He then worked on defence advisory and security projects in West Africa and the Far East before moving to writing and editing on defence matters. In 2010, he co-founded Military Strategy Magazine, for which he is currently editor. He also worked as a consultant and contractor for the British Army and several defence agencies and companies worldwide.Stephen Satkiewicz is an independent scholar with research areas spanning Civilizational Sciences, Social Complexity, Big History, Historical Sociology, Military History, War Studies, International Relations, Geopolitics, and Russian and East European history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Rejecting much of the conventional wisdom to what makes up a modern Army, William F. Owen's Euclid's Army: Preparing Land Forces for Warfare Today (Howgate Publishing Limited, 2025) massacres fields sacred cows to challenge many of the mainstream ideas about the future of land warfare and how it should be conducted. Based on his experience working with the British Army and industry, Owen draws the reader back to basics based on limited budgets, limited resources and an overall reduction in cost, weight and complexity to comprehensively understand how armies might or should equip, train and organise for any unknowable future. Stripped of traditional academic or journalistic approaches and well-worn familiar narratives, Euclid's Army reformulates how soldiers, civil servants and politicians should think about land warfare, thus war in general.William F. Owen (Wilf) served for 12 years in the British Army in regular and reserve Infantry and Intelligence units. He then worked on defence advisory and security projects in West Africa and the Far East before moving to writing and editing on defence matters. In 2010, he co-founded Military Strategy Magazine, for which he is currently editor. He also worked as a consultant and contractor for the British Army and several defence agencies and companies worldwide.Stephen Satkiewicz is an independent scholar with research areas spanning Civilizational Sciences, Social Complexity, Big History, Historical Sociology, Military History, War Studies, International Relations, Geopolitics, and Russian and East European history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/military-history

Rejecting much of the conventional wisdom to what makes up a modern Army, William F. Owen's Euclid's Army: Preparing Land Forces for Warfare Today (Howgate Publishing Limited, 2025) massacres fields sacred cows to challenge many of the mainstream ideas about the future of land warfare and how it should be conducted. Based on his experience working with the British Army and industry, Owen draws the reader back to basics based on limited budgets, limited resources and an overall reduction in cost, weight and complexity to comprehensively understand how armies might or should equip, train and organise for any unknowable future. Stripped of traditional academic or journalistic approaches and well-worn familiar narratives, Euclid's Army reformulates how soldiers, civil servants and politicians should think about land warfare, thus war in general.William F. Owen (Wilf) served for 12 years in the British Army in regular and reserve Infantry and Intelligence units. He then worked on defence advisory and security projects in West Africa and the Far East before moving to writing and editing on defence matters. In 2010, he co-founded Military Strategy Magazine, for which he is currently editor. He also worked as a consultant and contractor for the British Army and several defence agencies and companies worldwide.Stephen Satkiewicz is an independent scholar with research areas spanning Civilizational Sciences, Social Complexity, Big History, Historical Sociology, Military History, War Studies, International Relations, Geopolitics, and Russian and East European history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/national-security

Did the British send Royal Navy fleets into the fight against Japan? Was Stalin the new Napoleon of Europe? And what exactly is a wigeon? Join Al Murray and James Holland as they discuss a range of poltical and military topics, from The West to The Far East, as well as answering subscriber questions. Listen ad-free on Patreon and get your questions featured on the show - sign up at patreon.com/wehaveways A Goalhanger Production Produced by James Regan Exec Producer: Tony Pastor Social: @WeHaveWaysPod Email: wehavewayspodcast@gmail.com Join our ‘Independent Company' to watch exclusive livestreams, get presale events, and our weekly newsletter - packed with discounts. Membership Club: patreon.com/wehaveways Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's known as America's Pastime. For about eight months each year, from March to November, baseball grips the nation in which fans root for their favorite teams for their chance to play in the World Series, the event that culminates the season. But while the sport is intrinsically linked with America and the Americab identity, it enjoys a fanbase overseas as well, though perhaps none with quite as dedicated and passionate a following as that which hails from the Land of the Rising Sun. Join me this week as we travel to the Far East to explore the history of baseball in Japan!

Send us a textJohn Graham's life reads like an adventure novel, but with a profound transformation at its core. At just 17, he left behind his sheltered existence in Tacoma, Washington, for a summer job on a freighter bound for the Far East. That voyage would set him on a path of increasingly dangerous adventures spanning decades and continents.Graham recounts harrowing experiences with remarkable candor – mountain climbing expeditions where avalanches narrowly missed him, hitchhiking through war zones, and navigating political revolutions. His seemingly insatiable hunger for adrenaline led him to the U.S. Foreign Service, where he strategically positioned himself in the divisions handling wars and revolutions, primarily in Africa and Asia.The turning point came during the Vietnam War. As Graham orchestrated desperate measures during a battle for the city of Hue, he experienced a profound moral awakening: "I didn't give a damn about this war... The only thing that mattered to me was fulfilling my own needs for taking risks." This realization began a transformation that would redirect his considerable skills and courage toward humanitarian work.His most dramatic moment of reckoning occurred years later during the sinking of the cruise ship Prinsendam in the Gulf of Alaska. Trapped in a lifeboat during a typhoon with rescue chances dwindling, Graham had what he describes as a spiritual confrontation that cemented his commitment to meaningful service. Following his miraculous rescue, he joined forces with his wife Ann Medlock at the Giraffe Heroes Project, where they've spent over 40 years telling stories of people who "stick their necks out" for the common good.Now in his 80s, Graham offers wisdom that transcends political divisions: "There's no more important quest for anybody than our personal lives being meaningful." His journey from self-serving adventurer to humanitarian reminds us that finding purpose through service creates bridges across even the deepest divides. What will you do to make your life meaningful?Links - Giraffe Heroes ProjectJohn Graham - https://www.johngraham.org/Hosted by Brandon Mulnix - Director of Commercial Accounts - Prism ControlsThe Poultry Leadership Podcast is only possible because of its sponsor, Prism ControlsFind out more about them at www.prismcontrols.com

“The last spectacular ball in the history of the empire ... [but] a new and hostile Russia glared through the large windows of the palace ... while we danced, the workers were striking and the clouds in the Far East were hanging dangerously low." - Grand Duke Alexander MikhailovitchThe theme of the Met Gala this year was Black Dandyism. In case you don't know what that is, The Met explains:Black Dandyism is cool and all as its authentic self. I'm not sure it maintained that coolness last night with “radical chic” on full display as a symbol of virtue for the powerful watching in real time as their empire comes crumbling down.You no doubt noticed the vibe shift. Something seemed off about it. It was like the Blue Origin flight. It felt inauthentic, all for show, a ritual to genuflect to their chosen status symbols while disguising who they really are.Not that they will be criticized by the people who matter to them. Those outlets that aren't owned by Donald Newhouse, the billionaire who owns Vogue and the New Yorker, worth around $18 billion, wouldn't dare say a word. Everyone is to applaud and praise them for their goodness and moral virtue.But as I watched the parade of famous Black artists walk the red carpet, alongside ashamed, self-hating white celebrities who looked like they'd been kidnapped and who couldn't wash away the fear in their eyes, I could see the man behind the curtain, or in this case, the woman.Who are they kidding? This was not power or progress, not for any of them. The Met Gala served the same purpose it always has: to make rich white people look good. How they measure what defines good is all that has changed.The white guilt among the wealthy in our modern Gilded Age is thick. They know something is ending. They can feel the ground shifting beneath their feet. Just as the very wealthy in the late 1800s did. They have no choice but to try to buy absolution by bribing the virtuous to be their facade.They have no choice. They know the mob would eat them alive if they didn't defer, de-center, elevate, platform, and do something to make their insular world seem like the good place, not the bad place. They have to be on the right side to survive a little bit longer, to hold their place in society, even as, especially as everything falls apart.They didn't call it “virtue signaling” during the Gilded Age. They called it Civic Virtue, which has a long history in America, going all the way back to the Revolution. It is one of the reasons we see so many of the big names from that era splashed across major institutions, like the Andrew Carnegie institution, etc.The billionaires alive today are all expected to give back to society in a way that justifies or absolves them of their sins. But something else entirely is going on with what we saw at the Met Gala and with Blue Origin. It wasn't Civic Virtue so much as virtue signaling.But it does seem strange in a year when Donald Trump and his MAGA Deplorables won the popular vote, where he is attempting major change to elevate the silent majority, to attend this spectacular ball and to send yet another message to America that you are not invited to this party because we think you are bad people, racists. So we'll celebrate in front of you. We'll rub it in as though we never lost the election at all.The wealthy aristocracy in our country has figured out that they need shields. They must hide behind people whom no one would dare attack or criticize. It is the reversal of the fanaticism that afflicted and ignited the mob when the streets were filled with protesters in the Summer of 2020.What we see now is their way of healing from the trauma of the agreed-upon reality that emerged that Summer. Most people don't remember how unprecedented this uprising really was. Remember chanting through the neighborhoods in Seattle?If you were cowering in your home as a Good White Liberal, what did you make of that? How much guilt did you feel? Their escape hatch for all of this madness we've been living through, a fake-pretend fix to oppression because Lulu Lemon and the Lifetime Network now center Black characters and de-center “whiteness.”I'll never forget my white friends in Santa Monica, of all places, hurling themselves in front of “Black bodies” because the cops were less likely to shoot them. They all believed this delusion, even in Santa Monica. But now, there is a reversal of that dynamic playing out. White people need Black people and other non-whites or LGTBQIA+ members to hide behind. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sashastone.substack.com/subscribe

WARNING: Graphic and violent visual content.Israel is in a state of collective shock regarding many things in this post-October 7 apocalyptic reality. But perhaps the most incomprehensible is that 19 months after that attack, 59 hostages—alive and dead—remain captive in the most barbaric conditions. Then 22 years old, Alon Ohel had recently returned from his post-army trip to the Far East when he decided to head to the Nova Music Festival on Friday, October 6, 2023. Since then he has languished in a dark, airless tunnel. He is shackled. Cannot move or stand. Suffers from extensive shrapnel injuries and a severe head injury suffered when he was beaten immediately after capture by a Hamas madman. He repeatedly slammed the butt of a machine gun into Alon's head. In real life, Alon is a gifted musician. He passes time in Hell by playing piano with his fingers on his chest. This, we know from his very close friend, Eli Sharabi, who was released in February. Sharabi tells the heartbreaking story of their final separation in a clip we include in the introduction to this interview with Alon's mother, Idit Ohel. She is a mother doing everything conceivable to ensure that we do not forget her son and that he is released. Yesterday. Because Alon and all the captives are existing on borrowed time.Idit had no sign of life from Alon from October 7—when she knew he had been captured alive—until the release of Eli Sharabi and other Israeli men who had been held with her son. She somehow pushes through her anguish each day to fight for his life and release. Parents and loved ones of hostages, like Idit, face this unimaginable situation in which their own government seems ambivalent, at best, about making the sacrifices necessary to bring their people home. Some Israelis say the price to be paid to free them is too high. Others believe that the price to be paid by forsaking them is even higher.Idit is so thoughtful, and no holds barred. Tomorrow we bring you the other half of this story—an in-depth interview with “Five for Fighting's” John Ondrasik, who has been a stalwart supporter of Israel and the hostage families from day 1. An extraordinary beacon of light.State of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

**Today's Halacha is dedicated f or the refuah and haslacha of Ronnie, Sharon, Eli and all the children of CARE** How does traveling affect the Misva of Sefirat Ha'omer, and what are the procedures for counting when traveling? Needless to say, if one travels within the same time zone, his counting is unaffected. He should count during the nighttime, as usual, either in his place of origin, at his destination, or in the plane. There is no requirement to count the Omer specifically in the synagogue or at home. Similarly, if one travels from New York to California, for example, his flight should not affect his count. If he leaves in the late afternoon, then he counts the Omer that night in California. A slightly more complicated situation arises when one flies from New York to the Far East during the period of the Omer, such that he loses a day. Let us consider the example of a person who takes a Monday night flight that arrives in Hong Kong on Wednesday. On Monday night, of course, he counts as usual with a Beracha. If that night is the 32nd day of the Omer, for example, then he recites the Beracha and counts the 32nd day as usual. If he is aware when the flight crosses the International Date Line, and he sees that it is nighttime, such that it is Tuesday night at his current location, then he may count the 33rd day with a Beracha. If this is too difficult for the traveler, as he cannot precisely determine when he crossed the Date Line, or he is unsure whether it is during the night when this occurs, then he should delay the counting until he arrives in Hong Kong on Wednesday during the day. He should then count the 33rd day without a Beracha, just as one does whenever he misses a counting at night but then counts during the following day. He may then resume counting with a Beracha the next night – the 34th day of the Omer – since he did not miss an entire day of counting. Thus, when one travels to the Far East and crosses the International Date Line, he has the option of either counting with a Beracha during the flight, at nighttime, after he crosses the Date Line , or waiting until he arrives at his destination during the day and counting without a Beracha. Either way, he resumes counting the next night with a Beracha. When one returns from the Far East, then he simply counts in the Far East the night he leaves, and then counts again the next night when he returns home. Needless to say, if, as a result of crossing the Date Line, he returns home on the same day on which he had counted the Omer, he does not count again, and instead waits until the next night. Summary: One who travels to the Far East during the period of the Omer has the option of either counting the Omer with a Beracha during the flight, at night, after crossing the International Date Line, or waiting until arriving at his destination, during the day, in which case he counts without a Beracha. In either case, he counts as usual with a Beracha henceforth.

BUY YNGWIE MALMSTEEN'S TOKYO LIVE ON VINYL HERE: https://amzn.to/4ilv3SWPlug in, metal maniacs! This episode of Chris Akin Presents... brings the heat with Yngwie Malmsteen, the shred king himself. He's riffin' on Tokyo Live, his new live album, and why he's always flown solo in the metal game. From tearing up the Far East to picking tracks that slay live, Yngwie's got stories that'll rattle your skull. Curious if other musicians fuel his fire? Hit play and find out—this one's loud, proud, and badass! NOTE: Everything said here, and on every episode of all of our shows, are 100% the opinions of the hosts. Nothing is stated as fact. Do your own research to see if their opinions are true or not. Follow us for more metal mayhem! Get a free Rumble Account so you can comment! https://rumble.com/register/classicmetalshow/ Get commercial free versions of our episodes, advance releases and exclusive content by subscribing to Rumble Premium! https://rumble.com/premium Crush it with these 5 hashtags: #YngwieMalmsteen #TokyoLive #MetalPodcast #GuitarLegend #ChrisAkinPresents—turn up the volume on these bad boys!

Hosts: Leah Murray and Erin Rider  Utah Senator John Curtis is calling for continued support of Ukraine and a distancing from Russian President Vladimir Putin to deter China from expanding its own military influence in the Far East. Speaking at a recent event, Senator Curtis said that our strength against Russia will show China what would happen should they go after Taiwan. Megan Reiss, Nonresident Senior Fellow at the Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, and the Founder and CEO of SolidIntel joins the conversation. 

Hosts: Leah Murray and Erin Rider  White House rebukes Amazon for false report of ‘import surcharges’  Reports early this morning that Amazon would add a new price breakdown to their products, showing an "import surcharge." Several businesses have made similar proposals, but the alleged plan from Amazon brought a harsh rebuke from the White House. Now, Amazon says those earlier reports weren't even true. Government going after private businesses for making business decisions. But the White House says it's all political. Is it? Leah and Erin break it all down.    Pres. Trump’s effects on yesterday’s Canadian elections  Canada's Liberal Party has won the election up north and many people say President Trump's comments and actions towards Canada played a major part in the election results. Incumbent Prime Minister Mark Carney, who only recently took over from former P.M. Justin Trudeau, will continue to lead the country. As the dust settles, the Inside Sources hosts look back on the effect Trump had on the elections and what the future relationship between the US and Canada may look like.    How supporting Ukraine could deter China  Utah Senator John Curtis is calling for continued support of Ukraine and a distancing from Russian President Vladimir Putin to deter China from expanding its own military influence in the Far East. Speaking at a recent event, Senator Curtis said that our strength against Russia will show China what would happen should they go after Taiwan. Megan Reiss, Nonresident Senior Fellow at the Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, and the Founder and CEO of SolidIntel joins the conversation.    Higher education institutions continue pushing back on Pres. Trump  Institutions of higher education continue their push back on the Trump Administration. Roughly 10 schools – including Ivy League and other private research universities – have joined together in a new private collective to resist President Trump. And a letter condemning the President has been signed by a university president here in Utah. The Inside Sources hosts discuss the latest higher education efforts to fight the administration.    The role of the federal government in immigration policy  The 2010 Utah Compact spells out how we – as a state – will handle the issue of immigration with humanity. The first principle of the Compact is that immigration is a federal issue. With so much inaction on the federal level, is there still hope for solutions? Will Congress ever fix the broken immigration system? KSL 5 TV has been asking the state’s congressional delegation about it; we hear what they’ve said, and the hosts get into it.    Smith Entertainment Group offers money to local cities to build hockey rinks  Homegrown talent in ice hockey – it's a dream Ryan Smith, the head of Smith Entertainment Group and owner of the Utah Hockey Club hopes to see here in Utah. Now, the group is offering cities up to $500,000 to build more ice hockey rinks. Leah Murray and Erin Rider talk about this potential private/public partnership.    The state of Utah’s economy  Earlier this month, a new ‘Rich States, Poor States’ report ranked Utah as the state with the best economic outlook. When the report was released, we spoke with the head of ALEC – the group that sponsored the report – about why Utah ranks so high. Today, we chat more about the long-term economic outlook for the state with Ryan Starks, Executive Director of the Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity.    What one local mayor learned on a bike ride through central Utah  Earlier this month, West Jordan Mayor Dirk Burton took a more than 400-mile bike ride from Salt Lake City through rural central Utah on his way to a conference in St. George. He stopped and chatted with local mayors along the ride, discussing the needs and issues facing small-town Utahns. He joins Inside Sources to talk a bit more about his journey.   

COMEX Gold & Silver Volume Shrinks, As Pricing Power Shifts To The Far East There's been a lot happening in the gold & silver markets lately. Although what's gotten less attention behind the scenes is how we continue to see precious metals pricing power drift from the COMEX over to the Far East. Vince Lanci explains what's happening in today's show, and to discover what most won't find until after it's too late, click to watch the video now! - Get access to Arcadia's Daily Gold and Silver updates here: https://goldandsilverdaily.substack.com/ - To get your very own 'Silver Chopper Ben' statue go to: https://arcadiaeconomics.com/chopper-ben-landing-page/ - Join our free email list to be notified when a new video comes out: click here: https://arcadiaeconomics.com/email-signup/ - Follow Arcadia Economics on twitter at: https://x.com/ArcadiaEconomic - To get your copy of 'The Big Silver Short' (paperback or audio) go to: https://arcadiaeconomics.com/thebigsilvershort/ - Listen to Arcadia Economics on your favorite Podcast platforms: Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/75OH2PpgUpriBA5mYf5kyY Apple - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/arcadia-economics/id1505398976 - #silver #silverprice #gold And remember to get outside and have some fun every once in a while!:) (URL0VD)Subscribe to Arcadia Economics on Soundwise

So, the teachers protested. Scott Bessent negotiating trade deals, Far East countries first. China targeting former government officials to be spies. Russia and China threaten Starlink. Property Tax Bill Passes Indiana Senate, Heads to Governor. CNN and the media is obsessed with returning MS13 member Abrego Garcia. RFK Jr and Dr Oz coming to Indiana to Make Indiana Healthy Again. Popcorn Moment: AOC doesn’t care about brown children. Marketplace: 3d printed Thors hammers. Indiana Tesla vandal arrested. Arsonist of Shapiro home Cody Balmer was disturbed says mother. Governor Mike Braun joins Tony to talk about why he’s signing the Property Tax “relief” bill. You can’t talk about a Trump recession without talking about how Biden policies led up to this. Thoughts about the Braun interview.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

So, the teachers protested. Scott Bessent negotiating trade deals, Far East countries first. China targeting former government officials to be spies. Russia and China threaten Starlink. Property Tax Bill Passes Indiana Senate, Heads to Governor. CNN and the media is obsessed with returning MS13 member Abrego Garcia.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

//The Wire//2300Z April 8, 2025////ROUTINE////BLUF: TRADE TARIFFS ON CHINA TO BEGIN TOMORROW AFTER NO DEAL REACHED TODAY.// -----BEGIN TEARLINE------International Events-Afghanistan: Questionable reporting has emerged claiming that the United States has re-occupied Bagram Airbase. An article was published by Medium two days ago, which claimed that American C-17's landed at Bagram after being handed back control of the airbase from the Taliban.AC: So far, this story as presented appears to be a fabrication; no sources, including the ADS-B tracking services mentioned in the article confirmed any aircraft landing. The aircraft specifically mentioned in the reporting, a C-17 operating as callsign MOOSE59 (tail number: 02-1099) probably did fly through Afghan airspace on April 5th. However, it did NOT land in Afghanistan...it's destination was Tajikistan.-HomeFront-Washington D.C. - Questions remain regarding the details of trade tariffs with China. President Trump's trade tariffs may or may not already be in effect as of noon today, earlier than previously announced. The tariffs are also allegedly higher than previously stated, with some media outlets stating that since no agreement was reached at noon today, a 117% tariff with China will be implemented tomorrow. Otherwise, the economic turmoil of yesterday morning has largely leveled out, with most indexes ending up not as effected as first expected.This morning the US Supreme Court voted 5-4 to approve the White House's request to continue deportations of violent criminals under the Alien Enemies Act.AC: This particular action by the SCOTUS isn't necessarily a win for the White House, as the actual opinions provided by the SCOTUS confirm that all Justices think this law *is* subject to judicial review, but this review must be conducted in the original jurisdiction (which was in Texas). Either way, all interpretations of the law are up for debate, so this will certainly be argued in court over the next few years, and remain entangled in some form or fashion.-----END TEARLINE-----Analyst Comments: Just because something seems true, doesn't mean that it is....as rather poignantly confirmed yet again just yesterday. Satellite imagery from just a few days ago confirms nothing has moved at Bagram, and local Taliban officials have proudly stated that they control the airfield. However, this article scandal probably does tacitly imply something interesting...mostly that the United States without question has eyes and ears in the region. What was originally spun as a fake news story might actually have stumbled upon a grain of truth; This flight was probably related to some secret-squirrel tasking, even if the aircraft didn't land directly at Bagram. Despite rather exuberant denials of such, the CIA and other intelligence agencies almost certainly maintain a foothold in Afghanistan, to some degree. Normally, CIA operations personnel don't fly on standard USAF C-17's...they have their own not-so-secret fleet of clandestine logistics aircraft. However, considering the wider context, and even without any evidence whatsoever, a random Medium journalist with 86 followers can claim "the CIA is here"...and in almost all cases be correct. In this case, this is due to the most significant factor of all forms of warfare throughout the history of mankind...geography.Right about now, with relations with China deteriorating, not having control of Bagram Airbase is a serious strategic disadvantage to the United States. This airbase is one of the reasons the American occupation lasted as long as it did; one of the major unspoken strategic goals of maintaining a foothold in Afghanistan is that it's geography made it a fortress country right at China's backdoor. Now, with trouble brewing in the Far East, not having a foothold at Bagram is disadvantageous, and also why the information