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In this interview recap, Lesley and Brad explore June Suepunpuck's insights on joy, identity, and the courage it takes to pause and reassess the life you're living. They reflect on career versus calling, destination addiction, and the role grief plays in meaningful transformation. This episode is a reminder that sustainable joy grows from self-awareness—and the willingness to be honest with yourself.If you have any questions about this episode or want to get some of the resources we mentioned, head over to LesleyLogan.co/podcast https://lesleylogan.co/podcast/. If you have any comments or questions about the Be It pod shoot us a message at beit@lesleylogan.co mailto:beit@lesleylogan.co. And as always, if you're enjoying the show please share it with someone who you think would enjoy it as well. It is your continued support that will help us continue to help others. Thank you so much! Never miss another show by subscribing at LesleyLogan.co/subscribe https://lesleylogan.co/podcast/#follow-subscribe-free.In this episode you will learn about:Understanding the why behind the dream and its impact on fulfillment.The difference between building a career and honoring a calling.Why addressing grief is a necessary part of finding real joy.How to identify one good thing about today even when you're struggling.How to actively question whether the life you are living brings you joy.Episode References/Links:Pilates Journal Expo - https://xxll.co/pilatesjournalCambodia Retreat Waitlist - https://crowsnestretreats.comAgency Mini - https://prfit.biz/miniContrology Pilates Conference in Poland - https://xxll.co/polandContrology Pilates Conference in Brussels - https://xxll.co/brusselsPOT in London - https://xxll.co/potHow To Find Joy Podcast - https://howtofindjoy.buzzsprout.comJune Suepunpuck's Website - https://www.joyguidejune.comSubmit your wins or questions - https://beitpod.com/questionsOnline Pilates Classes on Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/@OnlinePilatesClassesEpisode 559: David Corbin - https://beitpod.com/ep559 If you enjoyed this episode, make sure and give us a five star rating and leave us a review on iTunes, Podcast Addict, Podchaser or Castbox. https://lovethepodcast.com/BITYSIDEALS! 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DEALS! https://onlinepilatesclasses.com/memberships/perks/#equipmentCheck out all our Preferred Vendors & Special Deals from Clair Sparrow, Sensate, Lyfefuel BeeKeeper's Naturals, Sauna Space, HigherDose, AG1 and ToeSox https://onlinepilatesclasses.com/memberships/perks/#equipmentBe in the know with all the workshops at OPC https://workshops.onlinepilatesclasses.com/lp-workshop-waitlistBe It Till You See It Podcast Survey https://pod.lesleylogan.co/be-it-podcasts-surveyBe a part of Lesley's Pilates Mentorship https://lesleylogan.co/elevate/FREE Ditching Busy Webinar https://ditchingbusy.com/Resources:Watch the Be It Till You See It podcast on YouTube! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCq08HES7xLMvVa3Fy5DR8-gLesley Logan website https://lesleylogan.co/Be It Till You See It Podcast https://lesleylogan.co/podcast/Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan https://onlinepilatesclasses.com/Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjogqXLnfyhS5VlU4rdzlnQProfitable Pilates https://profitablepilates.com/about/Follow Us on Social Media:Instagram https://www.instagram.com/lesley.logan/The Be It Till You See It Podcast YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCq08HES7xLMvVa3Fy5DR8-gFacebook https://www.facebook.com/llogan.pilatesLinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/lesley-logan/The OPC YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@OnlinePilatesClasses Episode Transcript:Lesley Logan 0:00  You learn from what you did, and you do better the next time. And we have to allow for that, and we can't be so afraid of people who could take advantage on either side that we don't do anything at all. Lesley Logan 0:11  Welcome to the Be It Till You See It podcast where we talk about taking messy action, knowing that perfect is boring. I'm Lesley Logan, Pilates instructor and fitness business coach. I've trained thousands of people around the world and the number one thing I see stopping people from achieving anything is self-doubt. My friends, action brings clarity and it's the antidote to fear. Each week, my guest will bring bold, executable, intrinsic and targeted steps that you can use to put yourself first and Be It Till You See It. It's a practice, not a perfect. Let's get started. Lesley Logan 0:50  Welcome back to the Be It Till You See It interview recap where my co-host in life, Brad, and I are going to dig into the delightful convo I had with June Suepunpuck in our last episode. If you haven't yet listened to that interview, feel free to pause us now go back and listen to that one. Brad was obsessed with it. He interrupted my work three times a day to tell me how much he appreciated it. So you should go listen to it and then come back and join us, or keep listening and then go listen to that one. Lesley Logan 1:15  Today is January 8th 2026, and it's War on Poverty Day. Brad Crowell 1:20  War on Poverty Day. Lesley Logan 1:21  Okay, ready for it. Annually, on January 8th, we reflect on the impact of the legislation first introduced in 1964 by President Lyndon B. Johnson that collectively expanded economic opportunity through anti poverty, health, education, employment policies. I mean, we can't cosign on this more, I think. Lyndon B. Johnson's War on Poverty was primarily established by the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964.Brad Crowell 1:46  This is a this is a bit nerdy here, but there's a reason to give a little (inaudible). So the EOA.Lesley Logan 1:51  We're gonna rant in a second with some of you like that. But we got to get you on the same page with us. So created the Office of the EO,Brad Crowell 1:59  the Office of Economic Opportunity. So the EOA was the Act created the OEO. So the Office of Economic Opportunity. Lesley Logan 2:07  I guess I thought it was in a office of, like, OEC, but anyways, I don't know what I'm talking about. So I could never work in government, because I get confused with the letters real quick. So Office of Economic Opportunity, OEO, that's like a song, oh, e, o, oh. Anyways, to oversee new programs, I did not take my focus meds today. Key initiatives include the job corpse head. Key initiatives included the Job Corps, Head Start and community action programs, along with funding for vocational training, college work study and local development. Subsequent legislation and programs expanded on this foundation, including the permanent Food Stamp Act of 1964 and the passage of Medicare and Medicaid in 1965.Brad Crowell 2:31  Yeah, so it's possible that you might have heard of the Job Corps. You probably heard of Head Start. You may or may not have heard of community action programs, but you've definitely heard of food stamps, and you've definitely heard of Medicare and Medicaid, right? So all of these came out of LBJ's, War on Poverty program, which included the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 and.Lesley Logan 3:08  And if you have, if you're not, if you never had experienced like food stamps or Medicare or Medicaid, right? Medicaid is for the babies and Medicare is when you're older, if I'm correct, if you haven't ever had experienced that it might be really easy to not know how people are served by that, how much they're served by it, like, how do they get that? And so if you have any reasons to go, I can't believe they're paying this much on food stamps, I highly educate would educate yourself on how hard people have to work to get these things.Brad Crowell 3:33  Well, we're talking about, we're talking about poverty here. Right? And so, you know, the reality is that it's a it's, it's actually really, really challenging to get out of poverty. Right, 10% of our country currently 11, it's moving up to like 11% or something, is in the place where we would consider them in poverty.Lesley Logan 3:51  Yeah. And if you want to know what that is, I think the US government considers you in poverty if you make under $20,000 as an individual, which, by the way, is $0 like that. How I don't even know where you're living, that you can afford the food at the grocery store and gas and any part of life. So you know, if you are in that place, a lot of people are working full time jobs ending poverty. Brad Crowell 4:15  For a family of four in in the United States in 2025 the Federal Poverty Level is an annual income of $32,150 or less. Lesley Logan 4:24  How do you feed how do you feed four mouths on that amount of money? Brad Crowell 4:24  For the whole year. Lesley Logan 4:24  Yeah, I don't even understand that. Brad Crowell 4:24  Like that's enough for the food. What about. Lesley Logan 4:24  Well. And then we, and then there's these people have the nerve to tell those people, well, they should just eat healthier. How are you affording lettuce and eggs on that amount of money? And then also. Brad Crowell 4:40  You're able to afford a fast food meal because it's $1. Lesley Logan 4:43  Because it's $1. Brad Crowell 4:44  And that's why it's crap.Lesley Logan 4:45  Yeah, so let me just finish our notes, and then we can (inaudible). One definition of poverty is not have enough resources for your basic needs, and it's a huge impact on people's lives in society. It's a huge impact on society. People think all the time like, oh, I don't want to pay for immigrants to have health care. Well, you don't, but you certainly pay when they go to county, when you go to them, they go the hospital, you pay. So, like, we have, we, I actually don't think a country can be rich if you have all.Brad Crowell 5:09  Let's just make a distinction there. We're not paying for, we're not paying for immigrants to have health care, in the sense of, like, are they on insurance going to the doctor. If they go to the emergency room, yes, right, if they go to jail, yeah, we're paying for that, too. Lesley Logan 5:25  And by the way, if you were traveling a different country that happens to have healthcare for all of their people, you also don't pay like my friend, yeah, as a visitor, my friend had an emergency surgery. They fell in the Netherlands in a race, and they did this crazy surgery that would have costed her so much money, no bill. Anyways, that's another day, another day's holiday. So recent studies show that suggests that the poorest states have a poverty rate of up to 18%. I think we can guess what states those are. Poverty can happen to anyone. This is very important. Poverty can happen to anyone, whether it's students who rely on scholarships to claim their right to education, seniors struggling with rising health care costs, or large families struggling to get food on the table. Poverty is a problem that over 40 million Americans are fighting against on a daily basis, and we'll just say as of 2024 we were down to 10.6% from 19% of our country beneath the poverty line in 1964.Brad Crowell 6:18  Yeah, so in 1964 so effectively, like, if you go back and look at the 30s, where there was the Great Depression, they did all of these government programs to help the country, because everything was in the toilet, right? Well, 30 years later, in the 60s, there was a 19% poverty rate, and it was a problem. And so how could they address these problems? They they put into like, that's how LBJ ran on the war on poverty, and he started to implement these things to support the country, right? And it's taken a long time for us to get down to 10% poverty, 10 and a half percent, yeah, you know. And that was what was happening as of last year. And now things are shifting in the wrong direction. Lesley Logan 6:57  Yeah. And there. And also, by the way, we were, we were recording this before the Thanksgiving holiday. And so what we do know is, on January 1st, everyone's healthcare bills are going up. Ours, we are very lucky that ours only went up 3000 for the year, for the two of us.Brad Crowell 7:09  Yeah, it's, well, it's 25%. Ours went up 25%.Lesley Logan 7:12  Yeah, that is insanity. That is insanity. And can we afford it? Sure, we're just gonna invest less in our retirement, I guess. Like, you know, it's not like, it's that money just doesn't come from somewhere. And what I also know is that there are people in certain states that theirs is going up 48%, and some people are making $85,000 a year. Their health insurance is going to cost $44,000 a year. So we're going to see poverty go up. And if we don't start thinking about it as a way that, like, I think that a lot of people think about people taking like they get these things, and they're taking from the government, and that's coming from your tax dollars. But if we don't help people get ahead, they will always be taking in different ways, right? And so your crime will go up. Why? Because people have to sleep and eat and be warm like they just have to. So we have to think of it as a holistic thing. And I really think that I love what LBJ did, and I love that we're honoring this. And I think like we could be doing so much better by now. I feel like if LBJ was alive, I would hope he'd be disappointed that we don't actually have preschool for every child in the US for free, like Head Start in Vegas, my nail tech, it's a lottery. So some of her kids got Head Start, and some of her kids didn't. And she's like, Lesley, I can tell you a difference in my children my kids can read levels above where their greatest and some of them are behind and and she's like, I can't, I can't teach them that that's not something I didn't teach them, that they learned that at school when they got to earlier. So I just think that we could be doing a better job, and especially, like, we should be thinking about people who'd have less than us and not, how do we give them more? Like, yes, any more money, but how do we actually set them up so that they can do other things? They need trainings, they need childcare. They need it to be they need busses to be free, you know, like, there's just different things we can do. So anyways.Brad Crowell 8:58  Yeah, it's that this is this is a tough thing, you know, like, if you look at the I'm not going to keep going, because I could keep going on. But this, this is definitely a challenging thing. I'm, you know, I'm glad that we have attempted to address it over the years. I don't admit, I don't, I can't, I can't convincingly say that we've done an amazing job of the process of doing it, you know, like, but I, but I think the intention is the right intention, and we should be always looking for ways to make it better. Lesley Logan 9:22  And also, I think, you know, that's exactly the right line, like we're just always looking for ways to make it better, you're going to have people who are going to have nefarious acts that they're using the money for or not doing it correctly. You cannot always be thinking only about those people, because they're always a small percentage. You have to be thinking about the greater good. And then when you figure out how people are usurping the system or doing different things. Okay, you make changes.Brad Crowell 9:43  Well, let's, let's talk about this like I think this is important, because there's always going to be someone taking advantage of the system. But I think even defining it as a percentage seems misleading, because I would imagine the numbers are minutes. We're talking 40 million people in the United States are considered poverty line or below. 40 million people. So even if 10,000 people are taking advantage of it, that sounds like a lot of people, but the percentage is microscopic compared to 40 million.Lesley Logan 10:05  Correct. And also, I wasn't even thinking about the people like this is, right, I think people are thinking about the people on food stamps or whatever, like the Reagan years of all that disgusting rhetoric, but I was actually thinking about, like, the companies that are pretending to help people, to get the government money to do these things, I was actually thinking about like, you know, there are people who can say, Oh, I'm going to do these things with this program and get that money, but I think you just you, you learn from what you did, and you do better the next time. And we have to allow for that, and we can't be so afraid of people who could take advantage on either side that we don't do anything at all? Brad Crowell 10:43  Yeah. Okay, well, hey, thanks for joining us on that journey. That was a journey, that was a history lesson. Lesley Logan 10:48  I just get really upset about this. I was poor. I was so poor, you know. And I was, I guess I was lucky that my parents weren't on any of these stamps, whatever, because they had family to help. But, like, this is how my life started, so I can't even imagine, was, like, if they didn't have that help.Brad Crowell 11:02  Yeah, yeah. Well, I appreciate your passion, and I think it's important. I love it. I really do. I mean. Lesley Logan 11:09  Well, I mean, like, I would, I would not have gone to college had my best friend's parents not cosign a student loan. You know, like, I happen to have those people, and that's why I get to be where I am today. So I'm, I think that, like, I think a lot of people don't realize how close they were growing up, or people in their lives were to being poor, like impoverished. So, January, hi.Brad Crowell 11:30  Let's talk about upcoming events. We're shifting gears. Lesley Logan 11:33  We're home, today we're home. Brad Crowell 11:34  It's January. Today is the eighth we just we are pulling in from tour tonight. Lesley Logan 11:39  We are fixing the roots, changing the nails. Well, they're my nails, but they're getting new they're getting an update.Brad Crowell 11:45  Yeah. And then tomorrow. Lesley Logan 11:45  We drive down to Huntington Beach. Brad Crowell 11:45  We hit the road again. Lesley Logan 11:46  We're leaving Bayon, we're leaving Bayon, and we're we're driving to Huntington Beach for the Pilates Journal Expo. You can go to xxll.co/pilatesjournal. I don't know why I stuttered there, but I thought I said them. That's completely wrong. xxll.co/pilatesjournal. So if there's any spots left, you should totally join us there. There's like, the lineup is insane. Brad Crowell 12:08  Yeah, it's gonna be awesome. Lesley Logan 12:09  The lineup's insane. Then, oh, you know what? We'll tell you this, but I'm pretty sure tomorrow it releases. So you want to get on the waitlist for next year's Cambodia retreat, because.Brad Crowell 12:20  No, this year's. Lesley Logan 12:21  This year's, oh, it's this year. Well, you need to change that copy, my friend. You want to get on the waitlist for this year's Cambodia retreat details. We'll be having early bird presale right now. In fact, if my memory serves me correctly, it starts tomorrow, but only for those on the waitlist, crowsnestretreats.com is where you go. Brad Crowell 12:40  I thought it was the 12th, but it could be the ninth. Lesley Logan 12:43  I think it's the ninth. Brad Crowell 12:44  Anyway, get on the waitlist, crowsnestretreats.com you'll find the waitlist there. Lesley Logan 12:46  This is what happens when we're recording early. Okay, then next month we have Agency Mini. It'll be happening this year's February, and you want to get on the waitlist for that, for it prfit.biz/mini who is it for? It is for the teachers, Pilates teachers and studio owners who work for themselves or want to, and they want to have ease in their business, without the overwhelm, and they actually want to be in control of things and not feel like they're always like reacting, because that's annoying in the business. So pfit.biz/mini we only are doing Mini, I don't know, maybe twice this year, but for sure, one. Brad Crowell 13:17  The plan, the plan is two times in 2026. Lesley Logan 13:19  Okay, great. Well, you don't want to miss this one. You'll go, oh, I'll do the next one because that could be, that could be the fall. I don't even know what it's going to be. Oh, it's going to be the fall. We could find out on the flight.Brad Crowell 13:26  Yeah, end of Q3 beginning of Q4. Lesley Logan 13:30  And then. Brad Crowell 13:30  So, but the point is this, why wait another six months? It's, we're talking it's early it's going to be early bird. Lesley Logan 13:38  By the way, it's only $25 when it's early bird, and it's $65 full price. If what we teach you makes you an extra. Brad Crowell 13:43  $25 Lesley Logan 13:46  Over six months. No, I was gonna say, do the math like, okay, six months is what? 26 weeks? 26 weeks, right? 24 weeks this I'm not a mathematician, so 24. Let's say, let's just say, all we do is make you an extra $100 a week. That's $2,400 you're fucking welcome, for 25 bucks go to prfit.biz/mini then in March, Brad and I are taking off to Europe for a month. I'm teaching the Poland Controlology Pilates conference with Karen Frischmann, xxll.co/poland and then the next week, where Karen and I are in Brussels. Brad's joining us along for the ride. xxll.co/brussels we're super excited about both events are selling really fast. I think our sessions are very much taken in Brussels, but there might be some spots left in Poland and then, okay, we've been saying, like, I don't know if we can announce it yet. I don't know. Well, here's what I do know. As of December 2nd, it was official to announce that we were going to be in London. So it's a few can now buy your ticket. And I don't know if the early bird is happening still or not, because I don't know anything, but I do know we'll be there. And I have workshops, I have a booth, you going to want to go to xxll.co/pot, so go there. Okay. Brad Crowell 15:00  Awesome. Lesley Logan 15:00  We have an audience question. I promise not to take too long.Brad Crowell 15:02  We sure do. Yeah. Instagram, (inaudible) reached out asking if OPC has a certificate of training online, and she said she wants it to be a Pilates instructor, mostly for knowledge. So she's not trying to be a teacher. She wants it as a practitioner to know specifically for herself. Do we have any recommendations? Lesley Logan 15:24  Well, I love this question, because I always want to do this with Anthony for yoga, like I always wanted him to teach a yoga training, but just for people who just wanted to learn it better and not be a teacher, because almost every teacher training that I've ever heard of in life is going to teach you how to teach it. And so what I would say is I don't know of a program that does that, especially online, that's going to be solid that I know about. I know that the Pilates Center out of Boulder does have online trainings, but again, they're going to train you to teach it, and there's going to be requirements for you to teach it. So what I would probably also just encourage you to do, because this is something that I realized now that we've trained with Anthony for over 10 years, is that the more you just do classical Pilates with us at OPC, you will become more educated and knowledgeable about the practice, especially for your body. So what I would actually suggest, and I know this sounds like a shameless plug, but seriously. Now at OPC, we follow Joseph Pilates' orders on all the pieces of equipment. And yes, there's other equipment that we don't talk about in OPC classes, but you can always ask us about them. And you can take advantage of the FFF and submit videos of you doing exercises, and I will give you specialized feedback for your practice so you're more knowledge about your body. You can come to the live class every month, and ask questions for your practice, and I will answer that for your body, and you can get the flash cards. So you do those things.Brad Crowell 16:46  So do, do we have a certificate of training online? No, but I don't know that you need one the tools that we've created will will support you in your goal, yeah, which you know we're assuming is to further your personal practice. Lesley Logan 17:01  And if you're like, I don't want to pay you a dime, LL, great. Our YouTube videos are free. Go have fun. You can do it between the flash cards and the YouTube videos. You can really understand it for your practice. You don't need to pay thousands of dollars for training where you only want half of the information. That's what I would do. If you would like to ask me a question. You can go to 310-905-5534, you can text us, call us, or you can go to beitpod.com/questions and send one in. Brad Crowell 17:24  Love it. Lesley Logan 17:25  And you can send your win in because I really love seeing those. All right. Brad Crowell 17:29  Stick around. We'll be right back.Brad Crowell 17:31  All right, now, let's talk about June Suepunpuck. Okay, June is a joy guide. She's a speaker, and she's the host of the How to Find Joy Podcast. She helps high achieving, heart-led leaders who have reached the top and still find themselves asking, is this it? Or what's the point? With a background in psychology and tools like human design and nervous system healing, June guides people through the process of reassessing their goals, addressing destination addiction of finding fulfillment in daily life rather than in the next achievement. This conversation lit me on fire because I, I'm I'm telling you, we've had a handful of other guests that talked about joy, and we had the doctor who was doing the research on it, and I was, like, really intrigued by that, but I don't know this. I really connected with the way that she talked and spoke and the things that she dug into. So I'm very excited to discuss this. So tell me what you loved about this convo.Lesley Logan 18:33  Okay, so we, I mean, there's so many different things, but like, I really love that she found a way to articulate the difference between, like, a career versus a calling. And that, like, you know, once you figure out what your calling is, it becomes, oh, it becomes really clear, like, this is the point. She said, like, this is the point, why we do it. I also love that she emphasize differentiate, differentiating between career versus calling, because it's, like, the important, because it's a why behind the dream, and it will determine if the result, the resulting fulfillment, will be fleeting or sustainable. So because if you're not clear on the dream, then it's really easy for us to, like, have an achievement, and then literally, three minutes later, go on to something else and a whole other feeling, like we've all done that, right? We're like, have this amazing high. And then you need a text message like, oh, fuck, right. And then, like, the high is gone. Where'd the high go? It's just totally gone. So, you have to have that clarity. Because I will say, like, I feel like I'm very much doing my calling. And the more I get clear on, like, not just what we what I know, I've always known what we're doing and why we're doing it, but the more you work on it, the more you're like, oh, I can make this better. Oh, we this could be the next thing that we do. And even on the hardest days you feel fulfilled, is more sustainable than like, going with the highs and lows of the business, like, I can have a good day only when the business has a good day. Brad Crowell 19:52  Yeah, I think, I think, like to clarify the career versus the calling thing. You know, it's put it into context, I think. She specifically meant. Mentioned her the influence of her parents on her college direction, you know, which is very typical for a first generation American, right? Her parents emigrated here. She was born here, and then what did they tell her, you got to be a doctor, basically, right? Lesley Logan 20:17  I know I had friends whose parents like, you can do whatever you want. I'm like, what? I'm not a first generation American. I was the first person to go to college like you figure out a degree that pays this bill back. That's what you have to do. Brad Crowell 20:28  Well, the the so for her, she, you know, it's like, now, go pursue your goals is what she said. And I listened to that part twice because I thought this is really interesting, you know, because she started saying, well, are these actually my goals? I don't know that these are my goals. I don't know. Am I excited about this at all? Right? This is going to put me on a career path that's going to make me probably the money that, you know, my parents want me to have, which is great, or the whatever that my parents want to have, awesome. But you know, is this my calling? And the answer is most likely no. So career versus calling in that sense, right? And she said, why are we doing the career? What is it about it? Right? We're, we're been told, Well, that's going to get you the financial independence, the house, the car, the money, the whatever, you know. And then, because you're in a parent child relationship, you know, how are you supposed to say, No, that's tough, right?Lesley Logan 21:20  Yeah, oh, I don't think, I don't even know that you she had the opportunity to you just, you don't have the life experience to know you can.Brad Crowell 21:27  Yeah, sure, and, you know, and then and then, and then, and then, what happens? Then, like, you know, you have your midlife crisis, and you're like, I hate everything about what I'm doing, you know, because once you've gotten the money, once you've had the time in the career. Does it make you happy? Probably not. Probably not. So now you're disenchanted, because you're like, Well, what the hell I thought that when I got here, it was going to be different. I was going to feel happy and fulfilled and better and ready to go, and I'm not. I don't feel that at all. So now, why am I doing it? And that's when people blow up their lives. And I really appreciate it when you and her were both talking about this moment where kaboom, right, quit everything, all of it, or it fell apart around you, you know, like in your case, it started with one decision you made, and then all these other things happening on top of it.Lesley Logan 22:13  Yeah, I like detonated something, and then like that detonated a lot of things. Brad Crowell 22:13  Yeah. So, you know, and I appreciated you sharing your story then, because I thought that was really, really awesome. But you know, the differentiating between the career versus the calling is important because of the why behind the dream and really knowing the dream. How do you know your dream? You need to know yourself, right? And that's, that's really tough.Lesley Logan 22:39  Yeah, I mean, like, I think that's where people are really struggling, is, like, getting to know themselves. I don't think, like, I think that a lot of people have been being, especially women who listen this podcast, right? Like, like, they have been trying to be the perfect daughter, perfect wife, perfect sister, perfect employee. Like, don't take up too much space. And like, now they're, they're 40s plus, and they're like, I'm fucking tired of that. But then it's like, okay, what? Okay, then, who am I? Right, right? Yeah, you know. So it's not, it's not the easiest thing, but I think it's the most essential thing to figure out.Brad Crowell 23:12  Yeah, yeah. 100% and, and, you know, so, and then there's a couple of other paths here, right? If you've hit that point of, like, I hate what I'm doing, you know, and you make a change, you know, there's, it's terrifying, it's scary. There's all these things. And that's when I, when I was really, you know, intrigued, because she said, yes, I coach people on finding joy. But I'm actually also like, a grief coach too, because when you make a change, there is grieving that happens. It just does, like, there's no way around it, right? And so what I really liked, when she was talking about this, she said, you can't it's kind of like what Anthony said, you can't have, you know, war without peace. You can't have light without dark. You can't have good without bad, right? You can't have these things. You need that polarity and joy was, was reiterating that. She said experiencing deep grief is actually necessary, because you wouldn't have understood how joyful you can be if you haven't personally experienced those dark places. I mean, I personally connected with this in my with my journey, with my story, where my, you know, I thought I was happy with my my old relationship, everything went to ship, and then I was incredibly set right, and now I have this marker in my life where I'm like, I am so much in a different place from where I was after that. And I can, I can measure against that and go barometer of in the shit versus not even close to that anymore. I am very happy today with who I am now because I had that negative experience, so.Lesley Logan 24:52  Yeah, I do think like and I think, I think it's really easy when you're in the grieving part to just go, Well, this is all happening for a reason. Correct it is. It doesn't mean you don't, you skip the part where you feel it, you know, like, and I also think it's really easy for us to want for others to not feel those things. We're like, trying to help people out in our lives from like, we try to make sure they don't make the same mistake as us. And so then we end up telling them things that make them just like, doubt what they're doing, and it's so important that, like, I remember one of the coaches we had said you can't take someone's rock bottom away, and I think that, like, you've got to be there for people when they hit it, but you kind of got to let people experience it, otherwise they're going to hit it again.Brad Crowell 25:34  Yeah, but I think there's a second step here, and I think I agree with you 100% and I think it's important for you can't take away someone's rock bottom, no, because otherwise you're just enabling them. And they're gonna they're never gonna change or learn or transform. But there's a second part of transformation after you hit the rock bottom, you have to address the grief.Lesley Logan 25:54  That you will that goes back to what June was saying. You have to. A lot of people, don't, I think they just like, want to skip over to the feeling good part.Brad Crowell 26:01  Right. And, and addressing the grief is where the self-reflection happens, the the analysis of, where were you and that you know, where were you before the shit? How did you get into the shit? Like, how do we not want to be in the shit, and now that we're now, how do we get out of it, right? And, and there's a lot of, that's right.Lesley Logan 26:01  Who do we need to see or who are you going to ask for help or. Brad Crowell 26:24  Self-reflection. Lesley Logan 26:25  Yeah, I will. There you go. That goes back to the same other thing as, like, people don't know themselves. This helps with that, because you, you, well, it's inside you, but you can't always articulate it, like, sometimes it comes out better in a journal.Brad Crowell 26:40  Yeah, sure. I mean, there's a lot of different methods to to get it out of your head, get it out of your you know, subconcsious. Lesley Logan 26:45  There was that one guy who tries to grab a journal, but close your eyes and just write what was coming up with your eyes closed. Lesley Logan 26:50  Oh, that's interesting. Lesley Logan 26:51  It was like David, somebody on the pod, like David Grove Gore Groban. Starts with a G. It was in the last 100 episodes.Brad Crowell 26:51  It's in the last 100 episodes.Lesley Logan 26:51  But I liked it. I like the idea of that, like there's different ways to do self-reflection. And when you self reflect, it allows you to know yourself, which allows you. Brad Crowell 27:08  Corbin. Lesley Logan 27:09  Corbin, not Groban, okay. So you can the more you know yourself, the more you're gonna understand, not just like your calling, but also how you experience joy and grief. Yeah.Brad Crowell 27:22  Yeah, awesome. Well, anyway, I, I, I would suggest going back and watching this episode again or listening to this episode again. Really, really awesome. Lesley Logan 27:30  She's so authentic. I really enjoyed her. Yeah.Brad Crowell 27:33  Yeah, and also very willing to be transparent. That's great. Lesley Logan 27:37  Yeah I was like, whoa. So, like, I so appreciate her transparency, because usually people come on and they like, be her like, they, like, they, they, for lack of better word, like, like, they whitewash the experience. Like I was here and now I'm here, and it's like, okay, but hold on, how do we get here? And they like, are so good at like, going around it? And she's like, nope, this is the it. This is how it was. And I, I really enjoyed that.Brad Crowell 27:58  Yeah. Well, stick around. We'll be right back, because we have some great be it action items from June. Brad Crowell 28:05  Welcome back, welcome back. Let's talk about those Be It Action Items that we got from your conversation with June. So what bold, executable, intrinsic or targeted action items can we take away from that convo? She suggested journaling, but she gave some very specific journaling tips, which we love here. Lesley Logan 28:25  She's a fan of the show, so she knows the rules. Brad Crowell 28:27  Although, yeah, yeah, absolutely, although, ironically, she was, she was myth-busting the perfectionism. I was really interested in listening to her first season of her podcast because she was trying to, like, break down the steps of how to be joyful. And in season two, she's basically already decided there's no one way to do it. And this entire way that I thought that I was creating in season one, I don't think I agree with myself anymore, and I was laughing about that. So sorry, perfectionist, but this, I thought, was a very actionable tip. She said, identify one good thing about today. One good thing about today. It's not a gratitude journal. This is she because she believes that gratitude is very hard to reach when you're struggling. So you're just identifying one good thing about today. You're focusing on only the one good thing, such as, I woke up tonight, or I woke up today. You know, provides a vital step on the path towards joy, even when deeper feelings of appreciation or joy feel very out of reach. So thought that was a great simple like just baby step kind of a thing to to support, especially if you're looking at everything as scary or frustrating. So, yeah. What about you?Lesley Logan 29:36  Okay. This is huge. I think this is amazing. Ready? Stop lying to yourself. That's what she says. Be It Action Item. We've never had anyone say this. And I was like, yeah, actually, that's probably the best way to be it until you see it. Stop lying to yourself. Where are you lying to yourself in your life? You need to get honest. You must figure this out. And she said, actively question the life you are currently living by asking, are you living this life that is your dream? Is it expired? Does it still even bring you joy? And so there's ways to find yourself and discover this new version of yourself that can support by reaching you can get support by reaching out to her and get support and go to therapy. But I love this, like, where am I living? Is this the life that I wanted to live? Is it the life that I wanted to live while did it expire? Did I did I move on from a new life to a new life? Does it even bring me joy? We only get this one life, you know, that's what we know.Brad Crowell 30:29  I remember this made me think back to my childhood dream, where they're like, what do you want to be when you grow up? You know, and everyone's like an astronaut, firefighter.Lesley Logan 30:38  My sister said, an adult. Brad Crowell 30:39  Brilliant. I told everyone I was going to be a professional soccer player, and I was preaching that since I was, like, six years old and. Lesley Logan 30:48  You mean, you could have done it, babe. Brad Crowell 30:49  I could have done it, except that when I got into high school and I was 75 pounds, it was pretty tough for me to be able to muscle people off the ball. So it became pretty, pretty quick that physically, it was gonna be really challenging for me to be able to compete. Lesley Logan 31:04  But look at you now. Brad Crowell 31:05  Look at me now. Lesley Logan 31:06  You, maybe you're, maybe you're a late bloomer.Brad Crowell 31:09  Pro soccer. Here I come, 43 I got this. Lesley Logan 31:12  Require you to be so consistent. Brad Crowell 31:15  But I, but I, yeah, which, which you know that's, well, that's my MO, consistency, but, but here's the here's the reality is that I also wasn't really enjoying it in my teens as much anymore. When I was a kid, all I wanted to do was soccer. I loved it. I went out, I juggled, I did the backyard thing, all that stuff. I was excited about it. But when I got in my teens, I was not as excited, not as enthusiastic. I was doing it because I thought I had to. So, you know, it was interesting to shift. Same thing happened with my music career, where I was like, I define myself as a musician. This is the only thing I actually ever want to do with my life. And then years later, I was like, well, I kind of want to do other things too. You know, is this really giving me the joy? And there are definitely pieces of the music element that I missed, don't get me wrong, for sure, but also too, I'm so grateful that I was willing to redefine who I am, how I am, because it really wasn't bringing me the joy that I thought it was and or that it initially did. So yeah, yeah, stop lying to yourself. Very, very tough. Lesley Logan 32:14  I love it. I'm Lesley Logan. Brad Crowell 32:15  And I'm Brad Crowell.Lesley Logan 32:16  Thanks so much for listening to this, you know, our rants, to our favorite takeaways, to our episodes. Who are you going to share this episode with? I would certainly share June's first and then this one. And because your friends need to hear it, they need to hear these Be It Action Items. They need to hear these things and it allows us to have not just friendships where we cheer each other on, but friendships we can hold each other accountable. So we can be it till we see it together. So you know what to do, until next time, Be It Till You See It. Brad Crowell 32:46  Bye for now. Lesley Logan 32:42  That's all I got for this episode of the Be It Till You See It Podcast. One thing that would help both myself and future listeners is for you to rate the show and leave a review and follow or subscribe for free wherever you listen to your podcast. Also, make sure to introduce yourself over at the Be It Pod on Instagram. I would love to know more about you. Share this episode with whoever you think needs to hear it. Help us and others Be It Till You See It. Have an awesome day. Be It Till You See It is a production of The Bloom Podcast Network. If you want to leave us a message or a question that we might read on another episode, you can text us at +1-310-905-5534 or send a DM on Instagram @BeItPod.Brad Crowell 33:24  It's written, filmed, and recorded by your host, Lesley Logan, and me, Brad Crowell.Lesley Logan 33:29  It is transcribed, produced and edited by the epic team at Disenyo.co.Brad Crowell 33:34  Our theme music is by Ali at Apex Production Music and our branding by designer and artist, Gianfranco Cioffi.Lesley Logan 33:41  Special thanks to Melissa Solomon for creating our visuals.Brad Crowell 33:44  Also to Angelina Herico for adding all of our content to our website. And finally to Meridith Root for keeping us all on point and on time.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/be-it-till-you-see-it/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Guest: Joseph Sternberg. Sternberg analyzes the recent U.S. invasion of Venezuela, noting that while the event disrupted predictions, its global significance ultimately depends on the subsequent U.S. decisions regarding regime support and governance in Caracas. Turning to domestic politics, Sternberg predicts the 2026 midterms will be unusually significant as both parties face internal identity crises, with Democrats torn between centrist and socialist wings and Republicans struggling to define their future path as the Trump era eventually concludes.1900 Venezuela

Hello nerds.It's been a while since I sat down and did what Nerds for Humanity was originally built for. Not shorts. Not algorithms. Not rage bait. But long-form, structural analysis of how power actually works in this country, and why things that feel shocking in the moment are often the predictable outcome of rules written decades ago.This livestream was about Trump's military operation in Venezuela. But not in the way cable news framed it.I wasn't interested in relitigating whether Trump is reckless, authoritarian, or dangerous. If you're reading this Substack, you already know where you land on that. The more important question is this.How was he able to do it?How was a single president able to order a major military operation against a sovereign country, deploy massive air and naval assets, seize the country's leader from its capital, and then inform Congress afterward?The uncomfortable truth is that Trump didn't invent some new authoritarian power. He exploited one that has been sitting in plain sight for more than fifty years.And worse, he did so largely within the mechanics of existing law.The law that was supposed to stop thisIn 1973, in the shadow of Vietnam, Congress passed the War Powers Resolution. Its purpose was simple. Presidents were not supposed to be able to drag the country into war on their own.The law created two central guardrails.First, the president must notify Congress within 48 hours of introducing US forces into hostilities.Second, unless Congress authorizes the action, those hostilities must end within 60 days, with an additional 30-day period allowed for withdrawal.At the time, this seemed reasonable. Military action moved slowly. Wars took time to prepare. You could not overthrow a government in a weekend. The assumption was that Congress would have ample opportunity to intervene before anything irreversible happened.As I said on the livestream,“At that time in 1973 the thinking was well, surely no one can invade a country and capture the head of state inside of 48 hours. They would need weeks to prepare for it.”That assumption is now dangerously obsolete.We are using 1973 traffic laws for modern warfareOne analogy I used resonated with a lot of people.Trying to govern modern warfare with the War Powers Resolution is like applying 1970s traffic rules to autonomous flying cars.The law was written for an era of B-52 bombers, carrier groups, and weeks-long mobilizations. It was not written for drones, cyber operations, special forces insertions, precision strikes, and operations capable of destabilizing or decapitating a regime in days or even hours.Today, a president can dramatically alter another country's political reality before Congress has even finished debating whether the notification email landed in the right inbox.The time-based trigger is the flaw. It assumes time equals restraint. That is no longer true.As I put it during the stream,“This time-based system is flawed. It doesn't work for a world where you can basically destabilize and replace a regime in a few hours.”Trump didn't invent this powerIt is tempting to treat Trump as a unique aberration. He isn't.Modern presidents of both parties have steadily expanded executive war-making authority.George H. W. Bush built up a massive military force in the Gulf before Congress voted, and then received authorization shortly before the 1991 Gulf War began.George W. Bush secured a separate 2002 Authorization for Use of Military Force to invade Iraq, and the post-9/11 era normalized expansive readings of both congressional authorizations and Article II authority.The Obama administration conducted extensive drone campaigns and the Libya intervention without a formal declaration of war, arguing that certain operations did not meet the War Powers Resolution's definition of “hostilities.”Every modern president has pushed the envelope. Trump simply sprinted through it.As I said on the livestream,“This has been a loophole that's been used by many presidents. We just relied on them to exercise judgment and honor the office. That honor code is clearly gone.”A system that relies on voluntary restraint is not a system. It is a gamble.Language laundering: from war to “kinetic action”One of the most revealing shifts has been linguistic.Presidents learned that if you do not call something a war, you do not need a declaration of war.So we get euphemisms.“Kinetic action.”“Law enforcement operation.”“Targeted strike.”As I pointed out,“They don't want to say we are conducting warfare. If you don't call it a war, then you don't need a declaration of war.”This is how large-scale military action against a sovereign state becomes a “police-like operation.”If another country flew dozens of military aircraft into Washington, DC and seized the US president, we would call it an act of war without hesitation. Euphemisms only work when we are the ones using them.The public justifications kept shiftingThe administration's public rationale for the Venezuela operation evolved quickly.Initial statements emphasized fentanyl and drug trafficking. Analysts and critics noted that available trafficking data does not identify Venezuela as a significant fentanyl source, which raised questions about that justification.Subsequent messaging emphasized cocaine trafficking and broader security threats, but those claims were also contested.What became clearer over time was that the operation was aimed at exerting decisive pressure on the Maduro regime itself.As I said during the livestream,“What some messaging from inside Trump's orbit suggested was that this was really about regime change.”Trump later publicly discussed American oil companies entering Venezuela, reclaiming seized assets, and modernizing infrastructure as part of a post-Maduro arrangement.If that sounds familiar, it should.“That sounds a little colonial to me.”Because it does.The moral high ground is not abstractEvery time the US violates the sovereignty of another nation under contested legal theories, it weakens the norms it relies on to restrain other powers.As one viewer put it during the livestream,“I'm afraid the US just gave a license to Russia to take Ukraine and China to take Taiwan.”You cannot argue that international law matters only when it constrains other countries. Either it restrains power, or it doesn't.Trump's actions did not just affect Venezuela. They further eroded America's standing in a world already drifting toward a more unstable multipolar order.This is bigger than TrumpOne of my core arguments, and the reason this livestream mattered, is simple.Trump will not be the last president to exploit this structure.Even if Trump disappears tomorrow, the authority remains.History shows that presidents, particularly lame ducks, often become more willing to take foreign risks once electoral constraints disappear.As I said,“We can't rely on Trump or any president. Every president eventually realizes how much power this office has.”This is not about stopping one man. It is about fixing a system that assumes good faith in an era where bad faith is a governing strategy.How the law could actually be fixedThe War Powers Resolution does not need cosmetic reform. It needs modernization aligned with modern warfare.I outlined several possible approaches.First, scale-based triggers. Certain actions should automatically require prior authorization, regardless of duration, such as the use of specific aircraft types, large troop deployments, or major munitions thresholds.Second, target-based triggers. Actions aimed at heads of state, national command infrastructure, or critical civilian systems should never fall under a post-hoc notification model.Third, funding enforcement. If authorization is not granted, funding freezes. No money, no mission.As I argued,“Sometimes the US will have to use force. But introducing liabilities for the whole country should not be determined by one branch alone.”In corporate governance, CEOs cannot acquire companies without board approval. Presidents should not be able to remake countries without congressional consent.A simple test for candidatesThe good news is that this is a fixable problem.Congress can change this law.And elections create leverage.As I said on the livestream,“Now is a great time to ask every candidate one simple question. Do you support updating the War Powers Resolution?”Not a detailed proposal. Not a legal dissertation. Just whether they believe the current system is acceptable.If a candidate believes any president should have a 60-day blank check to wage war, they should say so plainly.The uncomfortable truthI said this near the end of the stream, and it bears repeating.“This is a known vulnerability in the system. It's just time to patch the bug.”We like to tell ourselves that American democracy is protected by norms, traditions, and good people.But systems that rely on virtue instead of constraints always fail eventually.Trump did not invent this power. He stress-tested it.And it failed.Support the channelIf you found this analysis useful and want Nerds for Humanity to keep doing long-form work like this, consider supporting the channel directly.You can become a YouTube channel member to help cover operating costs and get a shout-out on every livestream.Thanks for sticking with the long version.Bye nerds. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nerdsforhumanity.substack.com

PEARL HARBOR AND LINDBERGH'S BLOCKED MILITARY SERVICE Colleague H.W. Brands. H.W. Brandsrecounts the immediate aftermath of the Pearl Harbor attack. The Japanese strike and Hitler's subsequent declaration of war united the European and Asian theaters, resolving FDR's political dilemmas. Lindbergh attempted to volunteer for the Army Air Corps but was blocked by the Roosevelt administration due to his pre-war criticism. Consequently, he served as a civilian consultant, eventually flying unauthorized combat missions against the Japanese in the Pacific. NUMBER 8

Prince Andrew repeatedly refused to cooperate with formal legal requests seeking his testimony about Jeffrey Epstein, denying at least three documented approaches from attorneys representing Epstein victims and, later, U.S. authorities. Lawyers for Virginia Giuffre first sought Andrew's cooperation during civil litigation in the United States, requesting interviews and testimony about his relationship with Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Andrew declined to participate. Subsequent formal requests—renewed as evidence mounted and court deadlines approached—were likewise rejected, with his legal team maintaining that he would not submit to questioning or provide a sworn account.That pattern continued even as pressure escalated. U.S. prosecutors publicly stated they had made repeated efforts to speak with Andrew as part of their Epstein investigation, only to be rebuffed each time. Legal experts noted that while Andrew was under no obligation to voluntarily cooperate as a foreign national, his refusal to engage stood in sharp contrast to public claims that he was eager to help authorities. The denials became a central feature of the case's narrative, reinforcing criticism that Andrew avoided scrutiny not through legal immunity, but through strategic non-cooperation—declining every formal opportunity to explain his role in Epstein's orbit under oath.to contact me:bobbycapucci@protonmail.comBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-moscow-murders-and-more--5852883/support.

Prince Andrew repeatedly refused to cooperate with formal legal requests seeking his testimony about Jeffrey Epstein, denying at least three documented approaches from attorneys representing Epstein victims and, later, U.S. authorities. Lawyers for Virginia Giuffre first sought Andrew's cooperation during civil litigation in the United States, requesting interviews and testimony about his relationship with Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Andrew declined to participate. Subsequent formal requests—renewed as evidence mounted and court deadlines approached—were likewise rejected, with his legal team maintaining that he would not submit to questioning or provide a sworn account.That pattern continued even as pressure escalated. U.S. prosecutors publicly stated they had made repeated efforts to speak with Andrew as part of their Epstein investigation, only to be rebuffed each time. Legal experts noted that while Andrew was under no obligation to voluntarily cooperate as a foreign national, his refusal to engage stood in sharp contrast to public claims that he was eager to help authorities. The denials became a central feature of the case's narrative, reinforcing criticism that Andrew avoided scrutiny not through legal immunity, but through strategic non-cooperation—declining every formal opportunity to explain his role in Epstein's orbit under oath.to contact me:bobbycapucci@protonmail.comBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-epstein-chronicles--5003294/support.

THE DEATH OF CLODIUS AND THE REPUBLIC'S END Colleague Douglas Boin. Boin recounts the violent death of Clodius by rival gangs, marking a turning point toward the Republic's collapse. He views Clodia's subsequent disappearance from history as a symbol of the loss of women's influence and civic rights, framing her story as a cautionary tale about political violence. NUMBER 16

Lama Zopa Rinpoche explains that the purpose of visualizing the mandala is to attain those paths within one's own heart. To collect the most extensive merit for this practice, Lama Tsongkhapa advised to do the visualizations clearly and visualize as many as possible.Rinpoche describes how to start the day with a bodhicitta motivation and a meditation on impermanence-death. We should think how wonderful it is to wake up alive again as a human being. Every second of our life is more precious than the whole sky filled with wish-granting jewels. By reflecting on impermanence and the precious human rebirth, we should determine to practice the three levels of teachings based on correctly devoting ourselves to the virtuous friend.After that, Rinpoche advises to think, ‘I'm going to die today.' By thinking like this, you'll engage in practice, and you'll be prepared for death. Then, the question arises, ‘What should I do?' The answer is to cherish other sentient beings. By thinking of the shortcomings of self-cherishing and the benefits of cherishing others, we then engage in tong-len practice. From this, we conclude to never separate from bodhicitta. In this way, all our activities become the cause of enlightenment.Rinpoche completes the oral transmission of the Arya Sanghata Sutra and talks about the benefits of this sutra. He says that even hearing one word of it brings unimaginable purification.Rinpoche says that for all attendees who undertook hardships to complete the retreat, there's some benefit. However, he emphasizes that intellectual understanding is one thing, but what he is really looking for is practice and to have some effect, some change in the heart.From April 10 to May 10, 2004, Lama Zopa Rinpoche gave extensive teachings during the Mahamudra Retreat at Buddha House in Australia. While the retreat focused on Mahamudra, Rinpoche also taught on a wide range of Lamrim topics. This retreat marked the beginning of a series of month-long retreats in Australia. Subsequent retreats were held in 2011, 2014, and 2018, hosted by the Great Stupa of Universal Compassion in Bendigo.Find out more about Lama Zopa Rinpoche, his teachings and projects at https://fpmt.org/

BENEDICT ARNOLD AND PEGGY SHIPPEN Colleague Professor Richard Bell. Professor Richard Bellcontinues, discussing Peggy Shippen's influence on Benedict Arnold's defection and their subsequent life in London. NUMBER 15 PEGGY SHIPPEN

Although prior ankle or subtalar arthrodesis is thought to affect outcomes at adjacent joints, previous studies have not distinguished between successful and failed prior fusions. This study examines whether prior successful vs failed ipsilateral arthrodesis influences nonunion risk in subsequent ankle or subtalar fusion. The primary objective of this study is to examine nonunion rates after subtalar and ankle arthrodesis in patients with and without prior ipsilateral arthrodesis, and vice versa. In conclusion, our analysis of the TriNetX Research Network database suggests that when the primary ankle or subtalar arthrodesis is successful, performing a subsequent adjacent fusion does not significantly increase the risk of nonunion compared with an isolated fusion. However, failed prior arthrodesis substantially increases nonunion risk, highlighting the importance of distinguishing between successful and failed prior procedures in clinical decision-making. Click here to read the article.

Lama Zopa Rinpoche describes the motivation, visualizations, and dedications for making our offerings expansive. With a bodhicitta motivation, we should visualize that we are offering all the offerings in all FPMT centers on behalf of all sentient beings to the ten-direction Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha, thinking that their essence is the root virtuous friend.Rinpoche goes into detail about incense offerings and describes how they can become a means for healing illnesses. He says that most sicknesses are related to spirits. He explains how reciting Hayagriva and Vajrapani mantras can cure cancer because Vajrapani-Hayagriva-Garuda protects sentient beings from nagas' harms. He also relates a story about how Guru Padmasambhava did an incense puja to protect Songtsen Gampo and his wife from sickness due to pollution. After the puja, they were completely healed.Rinpoche describes the visualization for offering the bell. He says that after offering the bell to the guru, when you ring it again, all the hell beings hear the sound and realize emptiness. Again, as you ring the bell, all the pretas, animals, human beings, sura, asura, and intermediate stage beings hear it and realize emptiness.Rinpoche describes the offering mandala with the golden earth, golden base, four continents, and Mount Meru. He says that it becomes a pure land, and you should visualize it as whichever pure land you want to be reborn in. Then, you think that sentient beings are born there, receive teachings from the buddha of that pure land, and become enlightened. Rinpoche emphasizes that the minute you visualize the mandala offering, you must offer it immediately.From April 10 to May 10, 2004, Lama Zopa Rinpoche gave extensive teachings during the Mahamudra Retreat at Buddha House in Australia. While the retreat focused on Mahamudra, Rinpoche also taught on a wide range of Lamrim topics. This retreat marked the beginning of a series of month-long retreats in Australia. Subsequent retreats were held in 2011, 2014, and 2018, hosted by the Great Stupa of Universal Compassion in Bendigo.Find out more about Lama Zopa Rinpoche, his teachings and projects at https://fpmt.org/

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This 8-year-old girl ate only one weight loss meal a day and stuck to two hours of exercise, yet her weight kept climbing instead of dropping, soaring to 200g, 100kg. Her best friend, though, ate fried chicken and drank milk tea every day. She'd gone from a 300g, 150kg, bill...

The girl blocked all her family members. Then, she pulled out her SIM card. Throwing away the last tie to her relatives out of the window, she resolutely boarded a flight abroad. Determined to leave the home where she never had a place. Only then did her so-called family panic....

He wasn't, until the little boy casually tossed a necklace at his feet, but the CO finally saw it clear like Pennen was actually the engagement ring he had given his ex-girlfriend five years ago. His expression changed instantly, tense and anxious. He rushed forward to ask the boy where...

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Doctor and Nurse were having a secret rendezvous at a hotel when, in the very next moment, the Nurse was suddenly found dead on the bed. Horrified, the man discovered a sharp knife pletting from underneath the bedded head pierced his tie through her body. Shocked by the sudden turn...

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Lama Zopa Rinpoche talks about the Arya Sanghata Sutra. He says it is an incredible source of collecting merit. The minute you hear this Arya Sanghata Sutra, it completely purifies all the five uninterrupted negative karmas. It's like an atomic bomb to purify negative karma.Rinpoche says that to build the Maitreya Buddha statue as quickly as possible, many sangha and students have been reciting this sutra. Rinpoche explains that this project requires a lot of merit due to the inconceivable benefit that it will bring to sentient beings.Rinpoche describes how thousands of pilgrims will come to see the Maitreya statue every day. Due to the power of the holy object, they will be liberated from samsara. Rinpoche emphasizes that the existence of these holy objects makes it unbelievably easy for us ordinary sentient beings, who don't have special realizations, to create the cause for enlightenment. Every time we offer one stick of incense, a flower, or anything else to the holy object, we create the cause for enlightenment.Rinpoche says that Kirti Tsenshab Rinpoche explained that having received the oral transmission of the Arya Sanghata Sutra makes a huge difference when you read it. After receiving the transmission, the power of the merit of reading it once is equivalent to reading it one hundred times. Thus, Rinpoche begins the oral transmission of the Arya Sanghata Sutra and completes the first section.From April 10 to May 10, 2004, Lama Zopa Rinpoche gave extensive teachings during the Mahamudra Retreat at Buddha House in Australia. While the retreat focused on Mahamudra, Rinpoche also taught on a wide range of Lamrim topics. This retreat marked the beginning of a series of month-long retreats in Australia. Subsequent retreats were held in 2011, 2014, and 2018, hosted by the Great Stupa of Universal Compassion in Bendigo.Find out more about Lama Zopa Rinpoche, his teachings and projects at https://fpmt.org/

In recapping the benefits of stupas and the mantras to fill them, Rinpoche advises not to put all kinds of things inside the stupa, such as incomplete Dharma texts or wrong-view texts. He says that we need to be careful because what you put inside a stupa affects the monastery, nunnery, center, or family. It's also necessary to check what kind of person made the offering. If it comes from someone who has broken samaya with the guru, many others will lose faith.Rinpoche emphasizes that everything must be neat with the filling of different mantras in different parts of the stupa. The mantras should not be upside down as this can cause obstacles. The print should be perfectly clear without any smudges. Additionally, the person filling the stupa should be a devoted practitioner.Rinpoche recites the Requesting Prayer to the Lineage Lamas and clarifies some of the translations. In particular, he queries the use of ‘as' in the phrase, ‘to see the guru as Buddha'.Rinpoche explains that when ringing the bell at the end of mantra recitation, the meaning is to bring our awareness into emptiness. The bell signifies the wisdom of emptiness. At all other times, the meaning is an offering. Thus, when we use the bell, we shouldn't just play it, rather we should make an offering.From April 10 to May 10, 2004, Lama Zopa Rinpoche gave extensive teachings during the Mahamudra Retreat at Buddha House in Australia. While the retreat focused on Mahamudra, Rinpoche also taught on a wide range of Lamrim topics. This retreat marked the beginning of a series of month-long retreats in Australia. Subsequent retreats were held in 2011, 2014, and 2018, hosted by the Great Stupa of Universal Compassion in Bendigo.Find out more about Lama Zopa Rinpoche, his teachings and projects at https://fpmt.org/

Strategic Independence After China — Gregory Copley — Copley traces Australia's historical American security dependency to the 1941 Singapore surrender and subsequent reliance on U.S. military protection against regional threats. Copley notes that Canada possesses potential opportunity to fundamentally rethink military procurement and strategic positioning amid escalating political rifts with the Trump administration. Copley observes that both Commonwealthnations are gradually recognizing the diminishing salience of China as a peer threat and consequently reconsidering the necessity of independent strategic capabilities alongside their continuing participation in the "Five Eyes" intelligence alliance. 1944 BURMA

Last time we spoke about the beginning of a conflict between the USSR and Japan. In the frost-hardened dawns by the Chaun and Tumen, two powers eye a ridge called Changkufeng, each seeing a prize and fearing a trap. On the Soviet side, weary front-line troops tighten their grip, while Moscow's diplomats coaxed restraint through Seoul and Harbin.  As July unfolds, Tokyo's generals push a dangerous idea: seize the hill with a surprise strike, then bargain for peace. Seoul's 19th Division is readied in secret, trains loaded with men and horses, movement masked, prayers whispered to avoid widening the rift. Japanese scouts in white Hanbok disguise, peering at trenches, wire, and watchful Russians. Russian border guards appear as shadows, counters slipping into place, yet both sides hold their fire. On July 29, a skirmish erupts: a platoon crosses a shallow line, clashes flare, and bodies and banners ripple in the cold air.    #178 Night Attacks and Diplomatic Strains: The Lake Khasan Conflict 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. A second troop train was scheduled to depart Agochi for Nanam on the night of 29 July, carrying back the initial elements of the 75th Infantry. At Haigan, regimental commander Sato was pulling on his boots at 16:00 when the division informed him that fighting had broken out near Shachaofeng since 15:00 and that the Russians were assembling forces in that area. Suetaka ordered Sato's 3rd Battalion, which had not been slated to leave until the following night, to proceed to Kucheng; the remainder of the regiment was to assemble at Agochi. After consulting with Division Staff Officer Saito at Agochi, Sato returned to Haigan with the conclusion that "overall developments did not warrant optimism, it was imperative to prepare to move the entire regiment to the battlefield." One of Sato's first actions was to telephone a recommendation to the division that he be allowed to occupy Hill 52, which commanded the approaches to Changkufeng from south of Khasan. Suetaka approved, and at 17:30, Yamada's company was ordered to proceed to Shikai along with Hirahara's battalion. Meanwhile, Suzuki's 15th Heavy Field Artillery Regiment, which had been among the last units ordered to leave, had finished loading at Agochi by about 15:00. Sato recommended to Suetaka that a portion of Suzuki's regiment be attached to him; this was why Suetaka decided to transfer one of the two batteries to the 75th Infantry. The rest of the heavy artillery concentrated at Kyonghun. Suetaka's orders, issued at 18:20, called for Sato to have two of his battalions, the 1st and 3rd, cross the Tumen as soon as possible, with engineer support. Attached was Narukawa's heavy battery. Sato's mission was twofold: to assist Senda and to watch the enemy in the Changkufeng area. Sato arrived at 21:15 in Shikai. There, he assembled a number of his officers, including Yamada, and explained his plan: the 1st Company plus machine guns were to cross the Tumen from Sozan ahead of the other units, occupy Hill 52 with an element, and concentrate the main body at the foot of Fangchuanting to await Hirahara's battalion. A portion of the 19th Engineers would go to Sozan to assist the 1st Company with its river crossing. Amid heavy rain and darkness, the various units set out at 22:15. The platoon sent to Hill 52 arrived before dawn on the 30th, the rest of the forces somewhat later, though Sato had intended to move everybody across the river by the early hours. On the 29th the engineer regiment commander, Kobayashi, had also arrived at Shikai. He ordered Captain Tomura to handle the crossing in the vicinity of Sozan, as well as preparations for a future offensive with the main body. When Kobayashi reached Kucheng, he learned from Hirahara not only about the front-line situation but also about Sato's important plans: "The K. Sato force is going to cross the river tonight, 29–30 July. A night attack will be launched against Changkufeng on the night of 30–31 July." Kobayashi issued orders to his two commanders to assist the crossing by Nakano's infantry unit, 1st Battalion, 75th Regiment at Matsu'otsuho and Sozan, and, in addition, to cooperate with the position attack by Nakano and help in the assault at Hill 52. Most of these young officers, such as Seutaka dishing out orders were performing what the Japanese termed "dokudan senko" or "arbitrary or independent action". Japanese operational regulations actually contained a section dealing with dokudan senko, by which initiative, not imperiousness, was meant. Two elements were involved: control but encouragement of self-reliant thinking. This subject became important in training officers, all of whom, including such infantry experts as Suetaka, were well acquainted with the requirements. Combat missions were stipulated in operations orders, but, if these were not realistic, initiative was to come into play, though only when there was no time to contact superiors. By the same token, commanders had to be ready to assume full responsibility if matters turned out adversely. "We were disciples of the 'Moltke' system of AGS control, with dual authority vis-à-vis the local forces and the chief of staff."  The Korea Army's version of events on 29 July, there was no mention of any report received from the division prior to 17:30. Details did not reach Seoul, in the form of printed divisional intelligence reports and operational orders, until 1 August. The late afternoon report from Kyonghun provided the Korea Army authorities with little solid information, but Seoul had to notify higher headquarters immediately. Kitano sent messages to Tokyo and Hsinking at 19:15. The command and Kwantung Army were told that, in addition to Senda's assault party, 40 Japanese soldiers were deployed west of Changkufeng and at Yangkuanping. The division's main forces had begun the rail pullback from the 28th, leaving behind only two infantry battalions and a mountain artillery battalion for the time being. At 21:20 on 29 July, Korea Army Headquarters received the text of Suetaka's full report, which concluded: "With a view toward a possible emergency, the division suspended movement back of the 75th Regiment and is making necessary arrangements to have them advance instead. The latest affair derives sheerly from the enemy's unlawful challenge. It is my firm belief that the nature of this incident differs completely from the one at Changkufeng and should be handled separately. At present, since communication with the forward lines is not good, Lieutenant Colonel Senda (who is at the front) has been entrusted with command, but I assume entire responsibility for the consequences." Instead of boarding their trains at Agochi, Sato's regiment and supporting engineers moved to the Manchurian side of the Tumen as soon as possible. Suetaka called Sato's 2nd Battalion to Kyonghun as divisional reserve. Subsequent dispatches claimed that: (1) Senda's unit, which had driven off intruders in the Shachaofeng area once, was engaged against new Soviet forces (sent at 18:20, 29th);  (2) Senda's unit had expelled trespassers, and a combat situation had developed near Shachaofeng (22:00, 29th);  (3) fighting was going on in the vicinity of Shachaofeng (06:40, 30th).  Korea Army Headquarters, however, obtained no more important communication concerning the events of 29 July than a report, sent that evening by Suetaka, that revealed his concern about a possible Soviet attack in the Wuchiatzu sector near the neck of the long Changkufeng appendix.  After the clash at Shachaofeng, a general officer, Morimoto, happened to be visiting Colonels Okido and Tanaka in Nanam. Both of them were said to be of the pronounced opinion that no troubles ought to be provoked with the USSR while the critical Hankow operation lay ahead; yet Suetaka apparently had some intention of striking at the Soviet intruders, using the 75th Regiment. They urged that this policy not be adopted and that Suetaka be approached directly; the channel through Y. Nakamura, the division chief of staff, was hopeless. Although in agreement, General Morimoto declined to approach Suetaka; since the latter seemed to have made up his mind, it would be inappropriate to "meddle" with his command. Suetaka was functioning as an operations chief at that time. Apart from the mobilization staff officer, who was not enthusiastic about aggressive action, the only other officer who may have affected the decisionmaking process was the Hunchun OSS chief, Maj. Tanaka Tetsujiro, a positive type who shared Suetaka's views and was probably with him on the 29th as well as 30th. Although developments at Suetaka's command post were known more as the result of silence than of elucidation, we possessed considerable information about thinking at the Korea Army level: "Suetaka contacted us only after his men had driven out the enemy near Shachaofeng. Till then, the front had been relatively quiet and we were of the opinion all or most of the deployed forces were on their way home. We at Seoul had no foreknowledge of or connection with the 29 July affair. Reports came in; we never sent specific orders. Triggered by the affray at Shachaofeng, the division attacked on its own initiative. It was our understanding that very small Japanese forces had been committed to evict a dozen enemy scouts and that, when a platoon of ours got atop the hill, they observed surprisingly huge hostile concentrations to the rear. This was probably why the platoon pulied back, although much has been made of the desire to obey the nonaggravation policy to the letter. We at Seoul felt that this was a troublesome matter—that our side had done something unnecessary. When the division finally made its report, the army had to reach some decision. There were two irreconcilable ways of looking at things. We might condemn what had been done, and the division ought to be ordered to pull out promptly, having arbitrarily and intolerably acted against the known facts that Imperial sanction for use of force had been withheld and Tokyo had directed evacuation of the moved-up units. The opposing, eventually predominant view was that the division commander's course of action ought to be approved. Perusal of small-scale maps of the locale indicated a clear violation of the frontier, something not proved in the case of Changkufeng. We shared the division commander's interpretation. His BGU had its mission, and he was acting with foresight to solve matters positively and on his own, since he was the man closest to the problem. General Nakamura felt that the latest development was inevitable; our units did not cross the Tumen until the Soviets attacked us in force. Therefore, the division's actions were approved and a report was rendered promptly to Tokyo. It could be said that our outlook served to "cover" the division commander, in a way. But if IGHQ had ordered us to desist, we would have".  Nakamura added: "I was of the opinion the only solution was to drive the Soviet troops outside Manchukuoan territory; therefore, I approved the action by the division." Such sanction had been granted on the basis of information supplied to Seoul by Suetaka on the evening of 29 July, again post facto. At 01:20 on the 30th, Nakamura wired Suetaka a message characterized by gracious phrasing that suggested his grave concern: "One ought to be satisfied with expelling from Manchurian territory the enemy attacking our unit on the . . . heights southwest of Shachaofeng. It is necessary to keep watch on the enemy for the time being, after having pulled back to the heights mentioned above, but we desire that matters be handled carefully to avoid enlargement; in case the foe has already pulled back south of Shachaofeng . . . he need not be attacked." Nakamura also sent a wire to the AGS chief, the War Minister, and the Kwantung Army commander. After conveying the information received from Suetaka, Nakamura continued: "In spite of the fact that our troops have been patient and cautious . . . this latest incident [near Shachaofeng] started with Soviet forces' arrogant border trespassing and . . . unlawful challenge. Therefore, I am convinced that this affair must be dealt with separately from the incident at Changkufeng. Nevertheless, I shall endeavor to handle matters so that the incident will not spread and shall make it my fundamental principle to be satisfied with evicting from Manchurian territory the hostile forces confronting us. The Korea Army chief of staff is being dispatched quickly to handle the incident".  The Korea Army, "painfully slow to act," says a Kwantung Army major, was merely the intermediary link, the executor of Tokyo's desires. In the case of remote Shachaofeng, there was an inevitable gap between on-the-spot occurrences and AGS reactions. By then, Arisue, Kotani, and Arao, Inada's observers, had returned to Japan—an important fact, given the "Moltke" system of staff control. Nevertheless, their return must have exerted significant effects on central operational thinking. Kotani remembered that his AGS subsection had given him a welcome-home party on the night of 29 July when an emergency phone call was received from the duty officer. "It was about the clash at Shachaofeng. The festivities came to an abrupt end and I headed for the office. From then till the cease-fire on 11 August, I remained at the AGS night and day." Since the 19th Division had furnished higher headquarters with minimal information, Tokyo, like Seoul, had only a few ostensible facts to act upon. But this had been the first combat test for the Korea Army, which needed all the encouragement and assistance possible. Although Japanese field armies, notably the Kwantung Army, were notorious for insubordination, one could not overemphasize the fact that the Korea Army was meek and tractable. If Nakamura had concluded that Suetaka acted properly (which reports from Seoul indicated), the AGS could hardly demur. It would have been unrealistic to think that Tokyo, although cautious, was "softer" about the Russian problem than front-line forces. There had been no concern over time lags; details were Seoul's province. Reaction took time at every level of the chain of command. Decision making in the Japanese Army had been a many-layered process. The Army general staff had been of the opinion that initial guidance ought to have been provided to the Korea Army soon, particularly since there had been evidence of failure to convey intentions promptly to the front and no high command staff officer remained to direct matters. After hearing from Seoul twice about the Shachaofeng affair, the responsible Army general staff officers conferred at length. Stress had been laid on the indivisibility of the Shachaofeng and Changkufeng incidents. It had also been evident that further information was required. On that basis, a "handling policy for the Shachaofeng Incident" was drafted, and Tada notified the Korea and Kwantung armies accordingly on 30 July. Nakamura had received the telegram at 16:50 and had its contents retransmitted to Kitano, then at Kyonghun: "Shachaofeng Incident is progressing along lines of our policy, leave things to local units, which have been adhering to the principle of nonenlargement. Have them report on front-line situation without fail."  The Army general staff and the Korea Army were calling for prudence, but the division, well down the rungs of the ladder of command, was initiating actions that jeopardized the government's basic policy. Earlier quibbling about restraints on "unit-size" elements crossing into Manchuria had been abandoned after the firefight near Shachaofeng on 29 July. At 15:30, Takenouchi's battalion, part of the 76th Regiment, had been directed to assist Senda near Yangkuanping; at 18:20 Suetaka was ordering the 75th Regiment to head for the Kucheng sector and be ready to assault the Russians in the Changkufeng area. Support was to be provided by Kobayashi's engineers, by Iwano's transportation men, and by Suzuki's heavy guns. Of particular interest had been Suetaka's acceptance of Sato's recommendation that elements be sent to occupy Hill 52, a measure linked with a possible Japanese attack against Changkufeng.   Sato had decided by evening that the new situation required rapid deployment of his forces across the river. At Shikai, he conducted a briefing of his officers. Suetaka's orders conveyed orally by staff officers had stipulated: "The division will take steps to secure the border line immediately, even if the situation undergoes change. The Sato unit will advance immediately to the left shore, reinforce Senda's unit, and maintain a strict watch on the enemy in the Changkufeng area." Around 23:20, the last elements ordered forward arrived at Shikai station. Sato instructed only his headquarters and the Ito company to get off. The rest of the troop train primarily the 1st [Nakano's] Battalion was to move on to Hongui. From there, the soldiers proceeded to the Tumen near Sozan. With his staff and Ito's company, Sato trudged in silence through the mud from Shikai to the shore at Matsu'otsuho, starting at 00:30 and reaching the crossing site at 03:00. Reconnaissance had proved satisfactory, Sato remembered.  At the crossings, the hardworking engineers rowed his 1st and 3rd battalions across, company by company. Near dawn, around 04:30, he traversed the river. The movement had been completed in about an hour. When Sato's infantry finally got across, they proceeded to the skirt of Fangchuanting and assembled in secrecy. Not until about 08:00 did the regimental headquarters, Ito's company, and Hirahara's battalion reach Hill 147, already held by Noguchi's company west of Changkufeng. By then, plans had fallen behind schedule by at least several hours because of difficulties in train movement forward. Sato also remembered torrential rains; other officers mentioned darkness. Members of Nakano's battalion pinpointed a shortage of engineer boats from Kucheng. Engineers rowed some boats downstream during the night, but six of them were kept at Matsu'otsuho. This left only three boats for moving the 400 men of the 1st Battalion, the unit slated to storm Changkufeng, across the river at Sozan. Sato had wanted all of his troops across well before dawn on the 30th. A division staff officer rightly thought that Suetaka had already advised Sato, in secret, to "attack at an opportune time," and that the night of 29–30 July had been intended for the surprise assault. "Perhaps there was not enough time for all the attack preparations." Kobayashi's engineers admitted problems in moving boats to Sozan: "Although the water level had gone up because of daily rains recently, there were still many shallows and the current was irregular. Not only was it hard to move downstream, but dense fog also complicated the work. Nevertheless, the units at both sites were able to accomplish the river-crossing operation approximately as scheduled".  Meanwhile, after reconnoitering Soviet defenses along the Manchurian bank, Suzuki, commander of the 15th Heavy Field Artillery Regiment, crossed the Kyonghun Bridge on 30 July with his 1st Battery and established positions on the edge of Shuiliufeng Hill. Once Captain Narukawa was attached to the 75th Infantry on 29 July, he dispatched his 2nd Battery by train to Shikai that night. Although firing sites had been surveyed northwest of Sho-Sozan, the battery had to traverse two weak, narrow bridges in the darkness. With two 15-centimeter howitzers to haul, plus five caissons and wagons, the unit faced tense moments. The gun sites themselves were worrisome: they were scarcely masked from observation from Changkufeng, and the single road to them from the unloading station ran through a paddy area and was similarly exposed. By 1200 hours on 30 July, Sato exerted operational control over the following units: his own forces, Nakano's battalion east of Fangchuanting; Hirahara's reinforced battalion west of Chiangchunfeng; a platoon from Nakajima's infantry company on Hill 52; and Noguchi's company on Hill 147; and from other forces, Senda's 2nd (Kanda) BGU Company; two reinforced companies from Takenouchi's battalion of Okido's 76th Regiment near Shachaofeng; and a 75-mm half-battery from the 25th Mountain Artillery on the Manchurian side with Sato. On the Korean shore, another half-battery comprising two 15-centimeter howitzers from Narukawa's unit of the 15th Heavy Field Artillery was in place. The 19th Engineers operated near the crossing sites, though one platoon remained at Fangchuanting. Sato said, "We were now deployed at last, to cope with any situation." His command post was set in foxholes on open ground at Chiangchunfeng, a central hill that offered excellent observation and control over actions around Changkufeng to the east and Shachaofeng to the north. Not content with suspending the pullout of units and deploying additional combat troops across the Tumen, Suetaka decided to recall division headquarters, mountain artillery, cavalry, signal, medical, and veterinary personnel from Nanam. At dawn on 30 July, Nanam issued orders for Colonel Tanaka to move 500 men and 300 horses to Agochi by rail; most of the increment came from Tanaka's horse-drawn 25th Mountain Artillery. The colonel reached the Korean side of the Tumen at 05:00 on 31 July. The preceding emergency measures were being implemented by Suetaka, even as he received Nakamura's calming telegram of 30 July enjoining nonexpansion. Changkufeng Hill was not even mentioned. Nakamura's concern was typified by Kitano flying to the front. At 10:00 on 30 July, Kitano sent the division chief of staff a cautious follow-up cable: "Based on the consistent policy for handling the Changkufeng Incident and on the army commander's earlier telegram, kindly take steps to ensure careful action in connection with the affair in the Shachaofeng vicinity lest there be enlargement." At 13:45, Nakamura transmitted another restraining message to Suetaka: "The division is to secure … Chiangchunfeng and … the heights southwest of Shachaofeng, using present front-line units. Unless there is an enemy attack, however, resort to force will depend on separate orders." Several hours later, at 16:50, Nakamura received instructions from Tada: the Shachaofeng case was being left to the local forces, who were pursuing the desired policy of nonenlargement, but prompt reporting was desired. At 19:30, the retransmitted message was received by Kitano, already at the front with Suetaka at Kyonghun. After his units had crossed the Tumen on 30 July, Sato Kotoku ordered a strict watch and directed preparations for an assault based on the plans. He conferred with Senda at Chiangchunfeng and observed the enemy. Even after dawn, the frontline commanders who had crossed the river remained uncertain about when the attack would be staged. While Sato's force conducted reconnaissance to prepare for a daytime offensive, orders arrived around 08:00 indicating, "We intend a night attack, so conceal your activities." Daytime movements were prohibited. Sato then explained the impression he had derived from Senda and the intelligence on which he based his estimates: " Exploiting the impasse in diplomatic negotiation, the enemy side had steadily reinforced front-line offensive strength and trespassed anew near Shachaofeng. They now had a battalion and a half of infantry plus 20 artillery pieces in the area, some south of Shachaofeng and the others at four positions immediately east of Lake Khasan. At least a dozen (maybe 20) tanks were deployed in the sector opposite us. About 300 well-armed, active Russian troops were at Changkufeng. I decided that an attack ought to be staged that night. First of all, we were going to chill the insolent enemy by a courageous night assault—a method characteristic of the Imperial Army. Then all kinds of fire power were to be combined in a surprise attack against the positions. Our intention was to jo lt the Russians, demonstrate the true strength of our combat fire, and, by a combination of night and dawn attacks, cut down losses which our left-flank units would have incurred if a night assault alone were staged. We had considered two plans—a night attack against Changkufeng by the 3rd Battalion from the north, or by the 1st Battalion from the south. On 30 July, I decided to execute the second plan, using my 1st (Nakano's) Battalion, to avoid simultaneous involvement around Shachaofeng where the foe was by now alerted."  The Japanese Army ordinarily favored surprise assaults without supporting guns, since firepower was regarded as secondary in close combat and artillery was in short supply. According to the regimental journal, telephone contacts from the morning of the 30th indicated that the division commander shared the same line of thinking as Sato. By noon, Suetaka made his stance explicit. A phone call from Kucheng conveyed to Sato the gist of a critical division order: first, a detailed briefing on Soviet troop concentrations and dispositions, firing positions, troops, and armor south of Shachaofeng; entanglements and forces at Changkufeng; large concentrations behind west of Khasan; tanks and ground formations moving north of the lake; a heavy concentration near the lake to the northwest; one confirmed and two suspected positions along the eastern shore and another with artillery far to the south. Then the order stated that K. Sato's forces, including the Takenouchi battalion from the 76th Infantry, one mountain artillery platoon, and one engineer platoon were to strengthen their positions and, at the same time, promptly evict from Manchurian territory the intruding and advancing enemy. However, pursuit must not be pushed too far lest the border be crossed. Shortly after noon, Suetaka issued another order to form a new force under Senda, who was to strengthen border security along the Shuiliufeng–Hunchun line. As with Sato, Senda was to eject the intruding and advancing enemy from Manchurian soil but not pursue them across the border. By midafternoon, Sato knew not only what he wanted to do but also Suetaka's intentions. At 15:30, he assembled all subordinate officers at Chiangchunfeng and dictated minute attack instructions. Intelligence indicated that the enemy continued to fortify points of importance along the Changkufeng–Shachaofeng line. Sato's plan was to annihilate hostile elements that had crossed the border north and south of Changkufeng. His concept went beyond a frontal assault. While Nakano's battalion would jump off south of Changkufeng, one reinforced company, Takeshita's 10th was to attack north. Since the sun rose at about 05:00, Sato intended to wipe out the enemy during three hours of darkness. Another battalion, Hirahara's 3rd would be held in reserve, with Ito's 6th Company ready to launch a night attack against Changkufeng from the northwest if necessary. Small forces deployed southeast at Hill 52 were to block the arrival of Soviet reinforcements around the southern shores of Khasan. Only after Changkufeng was secured and fire swept the high ground south of Shachaofeng would a reinforced battalion, Takenouchi's 1st from the 76th Regiment undertake a dawn assault to clear the Russians from that sector. An engineer platoon would assist both the night and dawn assault battalions with obstacle clearing. There would be no artillery support until dawn, when the available guns were to provide maximum coverage. Notably, even the movement of a single antitank gun warranted mention. Sato concluded the attack order by directing that each unit mask its intentions after sunset. Takenouchi was to act to check the enemy as soon as the sun went down. In connection with the dawn barrage against the enemy southwest of Shachaofeng, key personnel were to study the best way to exploit sudden fire described as gale and lightning. They were also to be ready to destroy enemy tanks. A green star shell would be fired to signal the success of the night attack. The code words were shojiki "honesty" and ydmo "bravery". At midnight, the regiment commander would be at the northwest foot of Chiangchunfeng. The order stressed typical night-attack precautions: secrecy and concealment, avoidance of confusion, antitank defense, and flare signaling of success. Sato added his own flair with his daily motto as code words and the reference to "whirlwind" fire. Impending action times were explicitly set when the order was issued at 15:30 on the 30th, more than ten hours before the 1st Battalion was to jump off. The key to success in a night assault lay in an absolute prohibition on firing by their side, and bold, courageous charging. Sato reminded his men that life is granted again after death. Nakano then assembled his company commanders east of Fangchuanting and issued his battalion order at 18:30. A few hours after Sato's briefing of the assault commanders, Suetaka arrived at the 75th Regiment command post. This visit late on 30 July is central to allegations that Sato, not Suetaka, conceived and executed the night attack on his own initiative. Divisional orders giving Sato his core mission had already been conveyed by telephone. After 16:00, Suetaka boarded a motorboat at Kucheng and went to the Manchurian side to verify front-line conditions. Soviet snipers south of Yangkuanping fired several shots, but his craft reached the Matsu'otsuho landing and proceeded to Chiangchunfeng to meet Sato. Sato described the situation: "frontline enemy forces had been reinforced steadily and had begun a vigorous offensive. The foe was provoking us, and the matter had grown very serious. I had already issued orders at 15:30 to take the initiative and deal the enemy a smashing blow." 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. On a frost-bitten dawn by the Chaun and Tumen, Russia and Japan lock eyes over Changkufeng. Diplomats urge restraint, yet Tokyo's generals push a bold gamble: seize a hill with a surprise strike and bargain later. Japanese divisions, engineers, and artillery edge toward the border, while Soviet sentries brace for a confrontation that could widen the war. 

Bureau of Meteorology Website Renovation Fails — Jeremy Zakis — Zakis reported on the Australian Bureau of Meteorology (BOM), which failed to accurately predict the La Niña weather cycle and subsequent rainfall patterns. A $96.5 million website renovation project resulted in a broken, non-intuitive digital platform that systematically downplayed rainfall severity in visual representations. The project's exorbitant cost, attributed partly to expensive consulting fees and extensive testing protocols, has prompted investigation by the Australian federal government regarding waste and contract oversight. 1913 BRISBANE

Lama Zopa Rinpoche explains why Buddha manifested relics. He says that it was explained in the Golden Light Sutra that the Buddha showed a short lifespan to benefit sentient beings. The activity of passing away and leaving relics shows the skillful means of the Buddha. By prostrating, making offerings, and serving the relic, you are able to abandon the eight non-freedoms. You will also meet a virtuous friend, not give up bodhicitta, increase unimaginable merit, and quickly go beyond samsara. Also, each time you see Buddha's relic, it purifies one thousand eons of negative karma.Rinpoche says that one time he went to Chenrezig Institute and noticed that the atmosphere had changed. It had become very peaceful and calm. Then, he realized it was because of the new prayer wheel. This was one of the first prayer wheels in the FPMT organization. Rinpoche says that the prayer wheel inspiration came from Geshe Lama Konchog, who told him where he could find a text that refers to the incredible benefits of prayer wheels. Rinpoche read this text, put it on his head, and declared that he would spread this practice all over the world.Rinpoche talks about Geshe Lama Konchog, who left five-colored relics. He says that these relics are very unusual; they indicate someone who has attained Buddha's five wisdoms. Rinpoche praises the way Geshe Lama Konchog lived austerely and practiced Dharma.Rinpoche also discusses Zina's life story and the emergence of the FPMT organization. He talks about how they first met in Darjeeling and how she passed away while doing a long retreat in Nepal. Rinpoche says that he checked with two lamas, and both asserted that she had gone to a pure realm.From April 10 to May 10, 2004, Lama Zopa Rinpoche gave extensive teachings during the Mahamudra Retreat at Buddha House in Australia. While the retreat focused on Mahamudra, Rinpoche also taught on a wide range of Lamrim topics. This retreat marked the beginning of a series of month-long retreats in Australia. Subsequent retreats were held in 2011, 2014, and 2018, hosted by the Great Stupa of Universal Compassion in Bendigo.Find out more about Lama Zopa Rinpoche, his teachings and projects at https://fpmt.org/

Lama Zopa Rinpoche reads the General Confession in the presence of two relics. He clarifies some of the points and explains how to mediate on how everything is merely labeled.Rinpoche then recites the increasing effect mantra, the mala blessing mantra, and the mantra for blessing the feet. He describes the benefits of these mantras. Next, he gives the oral transmission and a detailed commentary of the blessing the speech practice. He says that if you do this practice, it perfects the power of speech, increases whatever recitation you do by ten million times, and prevents the power of mantra being destroyed by black foods. He describes the visualizations, mantras, and prayers of this practice.To conclude, Rinpoche asserts that everyone should recite Chenrezig and Medicine Buddha mantras. The Chenrezig mantra is needed to develop compassion, achieve bodhicitta, and fulfill the wishes of all beings. The Medicine Buddha mantra is needed for success as it pacifies obstacles. Rinpoche says that as long as you are still breathing, even if you don't do other prayers, you should at least recite these two mantras.From April 10 to May 10, 2004, Lama Zopa Rinpoche gave extensive teachings during the Mahamudra Retreat at Buddha House in Australia. While the retreat focused on Mahamudra, Rinpoche also taught on a wide range of Lamrim topics. This retreat marked the beginning of a series of month-long retreats in Australia. Subsequent retreats were held in 2011, 2014, and 2018, hosted by the Great Stupa of Universal Compassion in Bendigo.Find out more about Lama Zopa Rinpoche, his teachings and projects at https://fpmt.org/

Episode Info As Senior Vice President, Laurna leads the company's Western State Product and Club Experience teams, which are responsible for the performance of personal lines insurance products across CSAA Insurance Group's Western markets. She also oversees the Club & Agency Experience teams, which are responsible for the operations and experience of CSAA's largest distribution channel, AAA clubs. Laurna started her insurance career at CSAA Insurance Group as an Actuarial Analyst and rose rapidly through the company's ranks. Subsequent roles of increased responsibility include Actuarial Supervisor and State Product Manager/Executive, before being promoted to VP in 2020. She has a degree in Applied Mathematics with a focus on Actuarial Science from UC Berkeley. She also is an Associate of the Casualty Actuarial Society and sits on the board of the California FAIR Plan and the Advisory Board for the Wildfire Interdisciplinary Research Center (WIRC) at San Jose State University. Born in Liverpool, UK, Laurna has lived in California since 2001. In her spare time, she enjoys playing games with her children and traveling with friends and family. Episode Overview: Laurna Castillo, SVP at CSAA Insurance Group, discusses the evolving landscape of the insurance industry, particularly in California. Recorded live at ITC Vegas 2025, the conversation delves into the challenges and opportunities facing insurers today. Key Topics Discussed: Commitment to California: Laurna discusses CSAA's longstanding commitment to the California market, emphasizing the importance of staying engaged despite the challenges posed by natural disasters like wildfires. The conversation highlights CSAA's strategic approach to maintaining viability in a tough market, focusing on careful rate management and community engagement. Wildfire Mitigation and Community Engagement: The episode explores CSAA's proactive measures in wildfire mitigation, including collaboration with the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS). Laurna shares insights on the societal and educational aspects of encouraging property owners to adopt fire-safe practices. Regulatory Changes and Industry Adaptation: Discussion on the new sustainable insurance strategy introduced by the Department of Insurance and its implications for the industry. Laurna explains how these regulatory changes allow insurers to incorporate catastrophe models and reinsurance costs into their rates, a significant shift from past practices. Future Outlook: The episode concludes with a forward-looking discussion on the potential paths out of the current insurance availability crisis in California. Laurna emphasizes the need for a long-term commitment to market stability and resilience, highlighting the generational nature of these efforts. Conclusion: Join us for this engaging episode as Laurna Castillo provides a comprehensive view of the insurance industry's future, focusing on innovation, resilience, and community involvement. Whether you're an industry professional or simply interested in the future of insurance, this episode offers valuable insights and practical strategies for navigating the challenges ahead. This episode is brought to you by The Future of Insurance book series (future-of-insurance.com) from Bryan Falchuk. Follow the podcast at future-of-insurance.com/podcast for more details and other episodes. Music courtesy of Hyperbeat Music, available to stream or download on Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon Music and more.

Craig Unger describes his high-profile investigation at Newsweek, which surprisingly resulted in three articles denying the October Surprise occurred, a result Unger called a great disgrace in the history of American journalism. The subsequent Congressional investigation, led by Lee Hamilton, was dismissed by Unger as a complete whitewash that accepted weak alibis for Bill Casey. Unger was warned by investigative legend Seymour Hersh that he would be crushed if he continued his pursuit. Unger's colleague, Bob Perry, later found a massive archive of 23 gigabytes of documents containing secrets relevant to the investigation, abandoned in cardboard boxes in a former ladies' room under a tampon dispenser in a House office building. Guest: Craig Unger.

2. TITUS'S SIEGE OF JERUSALEM Guest: Professor Barry Strauss Nero's forced suicide in 68 AD and the subsequent chaos confirmed Josephus's prophecy, leading to Vespasian being proclaimed emperor in 69 AD. Vespasian left his son Titus to lay siege to Jerusalem in 70 AD. Though Jerusalem was a strong fortress, the defenders were critically weakened by infighting among three rebel factions and their own destruction of the city's necessary grain supply. 1687

Lama Zopa Rinpoche reads some verses from Phabongkha Dechen Nyingpo's Calling the Guru from Afar and discusses the meaning. He talks about the rarity of finding a precious human body and meeting the Dharma. In every second, you have the unmistaken choice to either create the cause to be born in hell or to achieve enlightenment. Having this incredible opportunity is only due to the kindness of the guru.Rinpoche says that all happiness comes from bodhicitta. Whatever way we can benefit others, we must do it. To illustrate, he gives the example of a van that Roger bought, and they covered with mantras, images of deities, and Dharma messages. In this way, whoever sees, touches, remembers, or dreams of this van purifies all their sufferings and achieves enlightenment.Rinpoche says that there's nobody to work for except other sentient beings. To free them from all suffering and bring them to enlightenment, you first need to achieve the omniscient mind and then full enlightenment. To do that, you need to actualize the steps of the path to enlightenment. Rinpoche explains that this means not just meditating on what you like and leaving aside what you don't like, such as the lower realm sufferings or impermanence and death. Without renunciation of samsara, you cannot realize compassion and bodhicitta. Thus, you cannot enter the Mahayana path.Having the realization of bodhicitta is not enough, one must also realize emptiness through dependent arising. Rinpoche says that the borderline of existing and not existing is extremely subtle. Phenomena exist in mere name, merely imputed by mind. He says that the analysis of emptiness is completed when one realizes the unification of emptiness and dependent arising. If it comes to this point of realizing the subtle dependent arising, then your realization of emptiness is correct. If it doesn't lead to this point—if it leads to either nihilism or externalism—that is not realizing the Middle Way view.From April 10 to May 10, 2004, Lama Zopa Rinpoche gave extensive teachings during the Mahamudra Retreat at Buddha House in Australia. While the retreat focused on Mahamudra, Rinpoche also taught on a wide range of Lamrim topics. This retreat marked the beginning of a series of month-long retreats in Australia. Subsequent retreats were held in 2011, 2014, and 2018, hosted by the Great Stupa of Universal Compassion in Bendigo.Find out more about Lama Zopa Rinpoche, his teachings and projects at https://fpmt.org/

Jeffrey Epstein's financial relationship with JPMorgan Chase ran deep — and lasted far longer than it ever should have. From the late 1990s until 2013, JPMorgan acted as Epstein's primary bank, managing his wealth, routing payments, and processing more than $1 billion in transactions even after his 2008 sex-crime conviction. Internal compliance teams repeatedly flagged Epstein's suspicious activity — massive monthly cash withdrawals, wire transfers to foreign accounts, and payments to women listed as “assistants.” Yet those warnings were ignored or overridden by senior executives, including Jes Staley, who maintained close personal contact with Epstein and allegedly visited him multiple times at his Manhattan townhouse and private island. The bank only cut ties in 2013, years after regulators had already raised red flags and long after Epstein's name had become synonymous with criminality.Subsequent lawsuits exposed just how intertwined the relationship was. The U.S. Virgin Islands and Epstein's victims both accused JPMorgan of enabling his trafficking operation by providing unrestricted financial access, arguing the bank “knowingly facilitated” his crimes to retain a lucrative client. The bank settled for $290 million with Epstein's victims and $75 million with the USVI, while internal communications revealed that top leadership — including Mary Erdoes and Jes Staley — had authority to drop Epstein but didn't. Emails showed Staley referring to Epstein with familiar tone and discussing visits to his properties. Even after his conviction, Epstein remained a valued client, reflecting how profit and personal connections outweighed compliance or morality. The scandal didn't just tarnish JPMorgan's reputation — it exposed how the world's most powerful financial institutions became complicit in shielding a predator for the sake of money and influence.to contact me:bobbycapucci@protonmail.com

We're excited to share a new podcast from The Intercept called Collateral Damage. The investigative series examines the half-century-long war on drugs, its enduring ripple effects, and the devastating consequences of building a massive war machine aimed at the public itself. Hosted by Radley Balko, an investigative journalist who has been covering the drug war and the criminal justice system for more than 20 years, each episode takes an in-depth look at someone who was unjustly killed in the drug war. This is Episode One: Dirty Business. In 2006, a 92-year-old Atlanta woman was gunned down in her own home by police during a drug raid. The police initially claimed the woman was a marijuana dealer who fired a gun at them. The story might have ended there. But an informant bravely came forward to set the record straight. Subsequent investigations and reports revealed that the police had raided the wrong home, killed an innocent woman, then planted marijuana in her basement to cover up their mistake.In the ensuing months, we'd learn that the Atlanta Police Department's narcotics unit routinely conducted mistaken raids on terrified people. The problem was driven by perverse federal, state, and local financial incentives that pushed cops to take shortcuts in procuring warrants for drug raids in order to boost their arrest and seizure statistics. Most of those incentives are still in place today.The raids haven't stopped. And neither have the deaths.Subscribe and listen to the full series on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen. New episodes every Wednesday. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Joseph Sternberg details China's economic "pickle," resulting from the property bubble collapse and failure of its export-led model. The subsequent glut of goods risks deflation, which Beijing calls "involution," dangerously exacerbating vast debt problems. He notes that Xi Jinping resists market-led "creative destruction," prioritizing state control. Sternberg then analyzes London protests, concluding they are motivated by anti-Semitism and anti-Israel sentiment, irrespective of the Gaza peace talks. PM Starmer calling the protests "unbritish" reflects the government's difficulty in addressing these issues legally 1910 SHIPWRECKED

Joseph Sternberg details China's economic "pickle," resulting from the property bubble collapse and failure of its export-led model. The subsequent glut of goods risks deflation, which Beijing calls "involution," dangerously exacerbating vast debt problems. He notes that Xi Jinping resists market-led "creative destruction," prioritizing state control. Sternberg then analyzes London protests, concluding they are motivated by anti-Semitism and anti-Israel sentiment, irrespective of the Gaza peace talks. PM Starmer calling the protests "unbritish" reflects the government's difficulty in addressing these issues legally 1910 HALIBUT ALASKA