TRENDS

Making your own gifts


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Nothing says “I have no idea who any of you are” like giving everyone in your family the same mini Bluetooth speaker. If you’re looking for a more heartfelt gift and have the patience to fiddle with chunky yarn or peruse the cluttered shelves of your local thrift store, you might even make it to New Year’s without having to declare an “I won’t blow my budget next time” resolution.

Here are some ideas for DIY gifts on a scale of “casual crafter” to “textile expert.”
Thrift flips

There are no fewer than three mentions of butter in this gift guide, but it’s hard to ignore one of the most legendary ingredients of the holiday season. Thrift a butter dish and fill it with a homemade herbal or sweet butter. And by homemade…we of course mean spruced-up store bought—no one has time to churn.

On the non-food side, a vintage glass dish paired with a microwavable candle refill kit is a great alternative to unwrapping another boring sandalwood jar—just make sure the glass is heat-resistant. If you’re buying for someone who doesn’t want an activity, candlesticks and dramatic candleholders are also plentiful in most thrift stores.
Using your hands

Upcycling and textile crafts have exploded among younger generations since the pandemic. If you’ve dabbled in the fiber arts, you could make someone a chunky yarn bag (no extra tools required!) or a beginner-friendly crochet charging cord cover that looks like a plant vine.

But if you fear the fibers, these mini fridge-magnet photo frames can be personalized, and an air-dry clay flower frog pairs well with a fresh bouquet.
For those who know how to thread a bobbin

Reworked hoodies can go for over $100 on sites like Etsy, and while the patchwork versions can be challenging for beginner sewers, those with underlay applique are a bit more forgiving.

Faster projects, like fluffy scrunchies or placemats, can be great for groups or as last-minute gifts. One of these bike bags can also make a nice present, since gear like this can be pretty pricey.

Wild cards: If you want to give someone a gift they can DIT (do it themselves), try this moss rug-making kit or this book about dyeing fabric and materials with food scraps.—MM

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Robert Reich

Sunday thought: Really, truly, the end of Trump is near
MAGA is cracking up, but beware





Friends,

Ten and a half long months ago, America began spiraling in a terrifying direction. We knew Trump was bad; his first term had been a calamity. But few of us were prepared for the catastrophe that awaited us in the second.

Part of it came because Republicans gained control of both chambers of Congress, and Trump was able to intimidate and browbeat them into submitting to whatever he wanted to do.

Now, finally, the ground is shifting.

Some congressional Republicans are turning hawkish on the budget and reject Trump’s zany notion of $2,000 “tariff dividend” checks, as well as his stated desire to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies for two years.

Russian hawks dislike Trump’s love fest with Putin on Ukraine.

Nor did they appreciate his happy meeting with Zohran Mamdani.

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At A Glance

Why Spotify took 18 years to reach profitability.

The US, China, and Germany top the list of 25 largest economies by GDP.

Butterball Turkey fields 100,000 calls each holiday season from the "turkey traumatized."

Volcanic eruptions likely contributed to the spread of the Black Death.

A lucid look at the famous "Are you living in a simulation?" argument.

Why stilts protect seaside homes—and how to determine the ideal height.

Explore a visual-rich survey of India's unique science fiction tradition.

Bill Nye first wore a bow tie while serving at an awards show for gymnastics.

"Morbid curiosity" about horror, true crime teaches about danger safely.

Soap operas earned their name from early soap brand sponsorships.

A list of reasons against dropping the bombs in Japan (with link to opposite view).

Visualize how transformer architecture generates an LLM's outputs.

Big banks built Zelle to compete with Venmo.

The role herd behavior plays in economic bubbles.

L. Frank Baum wrote 14 "Oz" novels.

Vegetarian Enchiladas

Quick Clips

 

In The NEWS

CDC advisory panel votes against universal hepatitis B vaccine guidance.

The panel appointed by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. voted 8-3 to end a universal recommendation that infants receive a first dose of the hepatitis B vaccine at birth. Breaking with over 30 years of federal guidance, the panel advises limiting birth doses to babies born to women who test positive for the liver infection or whose status is unknown. For infants born to women who test negative, the panel advised delaying the shot until at least 2 months of age.




Trump wins FIFA's inaugural peace prize at World Cup draw.

President Donald Trump was presented with the soccer organization's inaugural peace prize during yesterday's World Cup draw in Washington, DC. FIFA President Gianni Infantino had lobbied for Trump to win this year's Nobel Peace Prize and announced the new prize shortly after the Nobel Committee passed on Trump. Separately, the US will start against Paraguay in the 2026 World Cup. See full draw results here.




Judge orders release of Epstein grand jury transcripts.

A federal judge in Florida yesterday gave the Justice Department permission to unseal transcripts from 2005 and 2007 grand jury investigations into Jeffrey Epstein. The judge, who previously denied the request, said a new federal law ordering the release of Epstein-related records overrides a law that typically keeps grand jury files sealed. Judges in New York are expected to rule on similar unsealing requests soon.




Putin and Modi to strengthen Russia-India trade ties.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi finalized an agreement aimed at increasing annual trade to $100B by 2030. Bilateral trade totaled $68.7B last fiscal year and was heavily skewed in Russia’s favor. The nations are also pursuing a free-trade agreement for India with the Eurasian Economic Union, a Moscow-dominated bloc of five post-Soviet states.




Satellite boom is a growing threat to telescopes, according to NASA.

NASA researchers warn that a growing number of satellites in low-Earth orbit could ruin up to 96% of images from telescopes and observatories. Sunlight reflected off satellites can create bright streaks that obscure images, like this. Researchers say that risk should be factored into future satellite planning, noting that low-Earth orbit satellites already increased from roughly 2,000 in 2019 to 15,000 in 2025.




Egyptologists confirm the discovery of a pharaoh's tomb.

Archaeologists uncovered a trove of 225 figurines arranged in a star shape within an ancient Egyptian tomb—a rare find given how many sites were looted over the centuries. Symbols on the figurines suggest the resting site was intended for Pharaoh Shoshenq III, though his body was missing. Shoshenq III ruled during a civil war, so the research team believes political unrest likely foiled his burial plans.

SOURCE:  1440 NEWS

Future of War

I am not a military strategist, nor a historian, nor a military forecaster, I am just an ordinary retired person who has an opinion.

Artificial intelligence in the form of robots and drones will be fighting our wars in the near future.  Humanoid robot soldiers will soon be mass produced to replace soldiers on battlefields.

While the Americans, the US Congress, and whichever political administration is in power at the time, RUSSIA and CHINA  especially but other countries as well such as:  Japan, North Korea, Brazil, South Africa, Iran, and a few billionaires are building strategies that include robot soldiers.

Drones at a huge rate are being deployed in the Russia/Ukraine war with Russia receiving most of its drones from North Korea.

If you can have drones in the air flown by pilots sitting behind a console 1,500 miles away, then the same can be done with tanks, airplanes, ships, and submarines.

Elon Musk, for one, is already planning to build a factory that mass produces robots for human consumptions that would be easy to convert into a factory that builds robot soldiers.

It would not surprise me at all to read or hear that robots are being used as soldiers before 2030 which is only four years away.

 

Somewhat Political

 

Physicists Create First-Ever Visible “Time Crystal”

Physicists have created a visible, self-sustaining “time crystal” using swirling liquid crystals that move in endlessly repeating patterns when illuminated.

Imagine a clock that runs forever without batteries or wiring, its hands turning on their own without stopping.

In a recent study, physicists at the University of Colorado Boulder used liquid crystals, the same materials found in phone screens, to build something that echoes that idea. Their work produced a new form of what is known as a “time crystal,” a phase of matter in which components such as atoms or particles remain in continuous motion.

Although time crystals have been created before, this version is the first that can be viewed directly, which could open the door to practical uses.

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The Who - Won't Get Fooled Again (Shepperton Studios / 1978)

Tired

 

VINCE

 

Guardian

 

Lara Logan

 

Amber May Show

 

Dinesh D'Souza

 

Silence

 

Sarah Westall

 

Bongino Report

 

Diamond & Silk

 

Red Dress

 

The White House

 

The Big MIG

 

TimcastIRL

 

Mountain Moon

 

Brookings Brief

How USPS network changes threaten prescription drug access for vulnerable populations

Headlines

Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images




CDC panel votes to end universal hep B shot recommendation for newborns. Following fierce debate, a federal advisory panel voted 8–3 yesterday to scrap the long-standing recommendation that all babies receive hepatitis B shots within 24 hours of birth—a major change that comes as Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who handpicked the panel’s members, seeks to overhaul the childhood vaccine schedule. In place of the universal guidance offered since 1991, the panel said families in which the mother does not test positive for the liver disease can opt to wait two months before the first dose. The acting CDC director must still sign off on the decision, and the American Medical Association urged the agency not to, saying the change undermines public confidence in a “proven, lifesaving vaccine.”—AR

SCOTUS to decide if Trump can limit birthright citizenship. The Supreme Court has agreed to consider the constitutionality of President Trump’s controversial executive order stating that children born in the US to parents who are in the country illegally or temporarily are not citizens. The president is appealing a court order striking down the restrictions on birthright citizenship, which has long been considered to apply to essentially all babies born in the US under the 14th Amendment. The high court will hear oral arguments in the case in the spring and is expected to issue its decision by summer.—AR

We now know who’s playing whom in the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The drawing for the expanded 48-team group stage of next year’s Mundial, taking place in the US, Canada, and Mexico, happened yesterday in a flashy (albeit cringey) ceremony at the Kennedy Center in DC, during which President Trump was awarded the inaugural FIFA peace prize (devised after he didn’t get the Nobel). The tournament will begin on June 11 with Mexico playing South Africa. The US will face Paraguay, Australia, and the winner of the European playoff—which’ll be either Turkey, Romania, Slovakia, or Kosovo. The US team had solid luck with the ball—that is, with the little one used to draw the matchups—since its two known group opponents are teams it beat recently.—SK

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At A Glance

Bookkeeping
> 17,978: Fossilized dinosaur footprints and swim tracks found in Bolivia, the most ever found for a single tracksite.
> 1,297: LeBron James' NBA record for consecutive regular-season games with at least 10 points built over nearly 19 years, ended Thursday night.

Browse
> The Atlantic's top 25 news photos of 2025.
> Travel recently? Host a souvenir dinner party.
> Police recover $19K pendant six days after man swallows it.
> Thirty-three Elf on the Shelf ideas for busy parents.

Listen
> Master class in capitalism (Taylor's version).

Watch
> Companies are on a mission to get rid of the price tag.
> Mathematicians discover a new infinity.
> From a day in the life of medieval university students.
> ...to present day, where robotic dogs have human heads.

Long Read
> The surprisingly secular history of Christmas carols.
> What we can learn from the ethics of animal societies.

Most Clicked This Week: Ranking America's most and least sinful cities.

Historybook: 13th Amendment of the US Constitution is ratified, abolishing slavery (1865); Washington Monument completed (1884); Hollywood actress Agnes Moorehead born (1900); NBA star Giannis Antetokounmpo born (1994); NASA photographs suggest presence of liquid on Mars (2006).

HIGH PROTEIN LOW CALORIE MEAL | why I make this cauliflower fried rice o...

Quick Clips