Tuesday, May 12, 2026

Minnesota bans Bitcoin ATMs

 Mr Killaly, the former ATO deputy commissioner, says the arrangement between Shell’s Australian arms and Shell Global LNG has the hallmarks of a “high risk tax avoidance” case.

His comments are made on the basis of public information and not from any historical knowledge from his time at the ATO.

“You’ve got an Australian entity dealing with an entity that has a base in a low-tax jurisdiction,” Mr Killaly observes. “It’s happening over a number of years.”

Shell Game: How , Tropical Paradise , Singapore sells much of Australia’s gas


Jim Killaly



Did the Swedes boost tax revenue by abolishing their inheritance tax?



Data centers aren’t the enemy — They’re the future | Bloomberg News



DuckDuckGo Bangs

What are DuckDuckgo bangs? Bangs are shortcuts that quickly take you to search results on other sites. For example, when you know you want to search on another site like Wikipedia or Amazon, our bangs get you there fastest. A search for !w filter bubble will take you directly to Wikipedia. 

Remember, though, because your search is actually taking place on that other site, you are subject to that site’s policies, including its data collection practices. We’ve had bangs since 2008 as part of our geek roots. Now we have thousands of !bangs and you can even submit your own.



Nigerian law enforcement agency, the EFCC, says 60% of college students are involved in online fraud
 
Ohio: 25 convicted in BEC fraud run from Nigeria that stole $215 million and had 1000 victims
 
AI and ChatGPT can now create fake ID’s and other fake documents
 
Fraud Studies: Here are links to the studies I’ve written for the Better Business Bureau: puppy fraud, romance fraud; BEC fraud, sweepstakes/lottery fraud,  tech support fraud, romance fraud money mules, crooked movers, government imposters, online vehicle sale scams, rental fraud, gift cards,  free trial offer frauds,  job scams,  online shopping fraud,  fake check fraud and crypto scams
 
Fraud News Around the worldHumorFTC and CFPBBenefit Theft
Scam Compounds
Bitcoin and Crypto FraudRansomware and data breachesATM Skimming                                                       Romance Fraud and Sextortion 
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Monday, May 11, 2026

FBI targets journalists along with billionaires

To err is human. To blame someone else for it is Trump's policy.


FBI targets journalists along with billionaires


Inspired, negotiated and orchestrated by a trio of friends / advisers / colleagues – the late, great Paolo Ettore, the creative ‘perfect guest’ Fabrizio Caprara and New Zealand’s Sundance Kid, Brian Sweeney.

It Was 20 Years Ago Today

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Sunday, May 10, 2026

The places where we seek wisdom

 

Coffee May Protect Against Aging, And Caffeine Isn’t The Main Reason.



The places where we seek wisdom

In a world seemingly obsessed with youth, we can easily miss the gifts that come from our elders


At a recent retreat I attended at a Buddhist monastery in France, retreatants had an afternoon to put questions to a panel of monks and nuns. Almost all the questions were about how to remain actively engaged in living mindfully, whether developing nourishing practices for oneself and others or transformative resistance to injustice. While listening to the monastics offer their thoughtful reflections a question popped into my head: “Where do people go on a regular basis to seek wisdom?” 

It doesn’t require a lot of research to know that most people do not actively engage with organised religion or spiritual practices and traditions in the same way they did in the past. Regardless of one’s opinions about religion and spirituality today, they were, for much of human history, the main routes through which communities sought guidance and direction for how to live their lives, how to contribute to society and what to do in challenging circumstances. That would be a wonderful topic for another day. But for now I’m wondering about the places we might rarely think to look for wisdom but where we might find wise guidance for how to live our lives. 
I love the print “First Kick of Life”, a 1974 colour etching by American author, artist and designer Kay Brown. Held at the Brooklyn Museum, the print shows two mirror silhouettes of a pregnant woman, one blue and one white, set against an orange background. Brown was one of the founders of the Where We At: Black Women Artists collective (WWA), a group affiliated with the Black Arts Movement (BAM) of the 1960s and ’70s. Like BAM, WWA was focused on social awareness, artistic practice and self-representation as well as collaborative efforts for wider public recognition and reception of issues important to Black women artists.
An etching showing a blue-toned figure of a pregnant woman in profile, with hands resting on her hips, against an orange background.
Kay Brown’s ‘First Kick of Life’ © Estate of Kay Brown
The title of the print explains why the woman has her hands on her stomach: she is responding to the new life growing in her body. Shown with her back arched and head raised, she looks as if she is receptive to the knowledge her body is offering her: that it is full of life. This tender composition reminds me of the miraculous process of creating another human being. But it also prompts me to consider how our bodies constantly give us information about our internal and external life experiences. I think that to tap more deeply into this awareness is to begin to access the wisdom of our bodies.
That may sound vague, but I think back to how many times I have made decisions because of some gut feeling or when I have ignored my body’s cues. If we thought of physical sensations and emotional responses in this way, who knows how it could change the way we listen and respond to our bodies on a daily basis? And how that might affect our wider and interconnected lives.
In the 1894 painting “The Adoration II” by Swiss painter Ferdinand Hodler — an artist whose works I’ve discussed many times — a young boy centred in the canvas sits on his knees in a pasture of chicory flowers. His calves are tucked neatly beneath his thighs, and his hands, directed towards the ground, are gently held together as though ready to receive something. Hodler used his son, Hector, as a model for this piece. 
The painting is seemingly simple and sparse. Yet the figure’s posture is one of reverence and makes me think of ancient illustrations from different spiritual traditions of a disciple or student sitting at the feet of a teacher, although here it is as if the non-human world takes the role of teacher. The concept of Earth or nature as a source of wisdom is not new, by any means, but it is one that we readily and repeatedly forget or ignore. 
An illustration showing a boy kneeling on grass with small flowers, hands held together, and wearing a simple white outfit.
‘The Adoration II’ by Ferdinand Hodler © Gottfried Keller-Stiftung
As April came and went, I found myself bowled over by how lush and generative the spring season has been. Cherry blossoms have weighed down tree branches, poppies have started to bloom in meadows, and the woods have filled out so one can barely see patches of blue sky unless you look straight up. What has continued to arise for me, watching this season unfold while also reflecting on the ongoing damage we, as a society, are inflicting on our planet, is how resilient Earth is, and how much of that strength might lay in its interconnected ecosystems. 
There is so much wisdom for us to learn from how Earth survives and thrives through a web of interdependence across different species and from observing the more visible natural cycles of life throughout the year. Hodler’s painting reminds me that we are all, in a way, like children receiving the gifts of Earth’s abundance and generosity, strength and wisdom. Yet, unlike the child in the painting, too many of us are indifferent to the value and the wonder of this planet we inhabit.
I was immediately drawn to the 2021 print “Aunties Inside” by American multimedia artist Melissa Joseph. Joseph is of Indian and Irish descent and the print shows four of her aunties in India sitting closely together as if they are presiding over something, or simply holding court, waiting to receive us, the viewers. The women are wearing brightly coloured dresses and saris, and each of them is wearing a bindi in the centre of the forehead. Traditionally the bindi symbolised the third eye, an element of belief in some eastern spiritual and religious traditions that an invisible eye positioned in the middle of the forehead can be a portal of insight and wisdom, a way to see beyond the ordinary. 
I wanted to include this image because I think many of us live in societies that continually diminish the significance of older generations. We value youth over advanced age, instead of learning to see and appreciate what every generation has to offer a community. Something about this painting made me think about my own childhood, both in Nigeria, where I am from, and in other countries. 
I grew up with many aunties active and engaged in my life, and more generally in Nigeria children across ethnic groups and cultures are taught, from the moment we can understand, to respect our elders and be open to the wisdom they might have to offer. Of course, not every person older than you is wise, but people with more life experience often have some wisdom to share, even if it is about mistakes made and lessons learnt. 
Sometimes, in a world seemingly obsessed with youth, as well as generally with what is new and cutting edge, we can easily miss the gifts that come from the life experiences and some sustained practices that generations held before ours. We do not always have to search far for wise counsel and guidance. Sometimes trees of wisdom are growing in our midst, if we could only recognise the fruit they offer.
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How gardening is helping those with dementia

 

The 2025 Alaskan Tsunami That Measured 1578 Feet Tall



“In nine experiments involving 1,800 participants, researchers found that people consistently underestimated how interesting and enjoyable conversations about boring topics would be.”


As the number of people with dementia crests 1mn in the UK, gardening projects to help reduce stress, improve mood and stave off cognitive decline are blossoming  
Murray Withers
We start with meditation. Zak Gratton, project officer at wildlife charity Froglife in Frome, Somerset, encourages us to tune in to our surroundings, feel the ground beneath our feet and smell the air. It sets us up well for Gratton’s Wild Memories session, which involves a walk along the river collecting leaves, fruits and other plants to make into a mandala circular artwork back at a nearby allotment.
His is one of a growing number of gardening projects for people with dementia and other neurodegenerative diseases. “It’s all about rejecting the stigmas around dementia, championing what people can achieve rather than lamenting what is being lost,” says Gratton. In recent decades thousands of these “sanctuary spaces” have opened in the UK as charities attempt to meet growing demand for their services. Last year the Alzheimer’s Society estimated there were nearly 1mn diagnosed and undiagnosed people with dementia in the UK. By 2040 that number is expected to rise to 1.4mn.
From wading into and clearing out ponds and tending to sensory gardens, to creating wild flower meadows, these community gardening initiatives reflect a blossoming body of evidence that suggests a good dose of physical activity staves off cognitive decline, helping people to manage their condition. 
Two older adults walk through tall grass and wildflowers, partially framed by branches and pink blossoms in a green, countryside setting.
A ‘Wild Memories’ session at Froglife in Frome, Somerset
Carly Wood, a senior lecturer in sport and exercise psychology at Essex university, points to “well-evidenced” benefits of gardening for people with dementia in four key areas: physical, mental, behavioural and social. Lower stress and BMI levels lead to fewer bouts of depression and anxiety, reduced agitation and renewed vigour, Wood says. 
The social element is crucial to breaking what Gratton calls a “negative cycle” of staying indoors in isolation. Bruce, a member of the Frome sessions, says: “I feel at ease with the people I’m talking to now. We have a laugh.”
Many dementia gardening projects also include people with other long-term conditions. Sessions are typically for six to eight people, with carers and volunteers boosting the cohort. Some attendees come from a “social prescribing” route — patient referral to community activities to support their health and wellbeing — while others may have seen adverts in their local parks or on social media. In Frome, some regulars come from the care home over the road. The aim is to help them develop confidence and skills that last beyond a project. 
Arun Veerappan, 30, was diagnosed with the musculoskeletal condition ankylosing spondylitis, then developed a neurological disorder with similar symptoms to dementia. He joined a therapeutic gardening group run by Thrive at Battersea Park, south London. Here he says he found a “calming space” where cognitive tasks could feel less overwhelming. Helping to cultivate Thrive’s sensory garden and herbal tea beds felt like “huge achievements”. 
Raised garden beds with various plants and flowers in a community garden, with people gathered under a green canopy and trees in the background.
Thrive in London’s Battersea Park offers a ‘calming space’ where tasks feel less overwhelming
The sessions have encouraged Veerappan to take part-time roles, including at the Disability Policy Centre, a research organisation and think-tank, and allowed him to interact more comfortably with others. With his parents he has planted a climbing jasmine at their shared home. 
Integral to many of these enterprises is the idea of “co-production”: setting up projects that are not top-down, fixed exercises, but which evolve under participants’ direction. In Frome, “everyone has a say in what we do”, says Gratton. At Froglife’s sister projects in south London, project manager Rose Williams says the two-way process is key. “We consult with the groups to co-design the sessions, because we want to celebrate their passions, interests and strengths. For participants, having their own knowledge and skills valued can be a powerful source of self-worth.”
While Williams’ sessions at Streatham and Clapham commons are “demedicalised” to an extent, she argues that “the beauty of wildlife gardening is that so many therapeutic outcomes are met in an organic way”. 
An estimated 400 social farms in the UK provide another important source of sanctuary spaces. In 2018, Justin Mazzotta, founder of the Partners in Dementia social enterprise, started leasing land at Beetle Bank Farm near York to run one such project. He recalls feeling disillusioned by the “day centre setting” of local dementia care services, which “were not suited or meaningful for rural people”. 
A person in a blue jacket arranges lines of dried flowers, lavender, turmeric, and other plants on a white cloth at a table.
At Froglife in Streatham, south London, participants collect plant and seeds . . . 
A person draws botanical shapes with charcoal on paper at an outdoor table, with two mugs and plants in the background.
. . .  to use in creative projects 
At Beetle Bank, some gravitate to gardening tasks or feeding the animals. The more physically able have helped erect polytunnels, assemble raised beds and build climbing frames, shelves and tables from reclaimed wood. 
Mazzotta also believes in co-production and “constantly adapting to meet individual needs”. At Beetle Bank, this extends to attendees advising what grants should be spent on — making them active agents of the service. It’s all part of an “enabling approach” — not everything has to “pass through the staff member”.
With four gardens in Battersea Park and one each in Birmingham and Reading, Thrive follows more closely the principles of social and therapeutic horticulture (STH), which itself draws on occupational therapy. This is an active process, says chief executive Ben Thomas. “Structuring it enables targeted outcomes.”     
For the “client gardeners” of its Garden Thyme dementia programme, that structure allows for a “spectrum of different activities: there’s a garden task for everyone”.  
At Streatham Common’s Rookery Gardens, where I take part in planting bulbs as others clear out ponds, the camaraderie and sense of fun are palpable. Feeling valued follows on from increased interaction. Members like to feel they have made a “meaningful contribution”, Williams says, adding: “People with dementia can report a loss of purpose and achievement. Our group doesn’t advertise itself as ‘come and take your gardening medicine’, but as ‘we need your help to get things done’.” 
A man pushes a wheelbarrow full of hay in a field. Horses can be seen in the background.
Beetle Bank offers a dementia-friendly space in a rural community
Margaret, a Beetle Bank attendee, says: “One minute we might be getting food ready for animals; another minute we’re planting rhubarb. You learn new skills as well as meeting new people and that makes you feel good.” 
Building a dementia-friendly green space, with a focus on multisensory benefits, helps the process. Planting familiarly fragrant herbs such as rosemary and lavender can trigger welcome memories, while Thrive’s Garden Thyme sessions often finish with a brew made from ingredients grown in its herbal tea bed. Mazzotta highlights “sensory cues” such as sheep bleating. 
He also runs separate services, including cognitive rehabilitation sessions that help people with dementia meet goals they set themselves.
Despite the supportive frameworks, participants can vacillate between enthusiasm and apathy. “Sundowning”, a big risk factor in dementia care, may not often affect projects that are generally held in the middle of the day, but the mood swings it can trigger may alter perceptions about the value of attending. Thomas says projects must balance a range of disability needs with running a living garden.
There are also constant challenges at an organisational level, he adds. All the places cited in this report have multiyear funding from bodies such as the National Lottery Heritage Fund in place, but there is an over-dependence on grants in this non-profit sector. The referral process can eat up resources, as can training and recruitment. At Beetle Bank, leasing fees increased by 50 per cent this year, leading Mazzotta to raise prices for participants. 
A lack of knowledge by some GPs and health bodies of social prescribing may also limit referrals. Essex University’s Wood urges: “Get STH fully embedded in systems so it can be accessible to everyone.”
Therapeutic gardening’s wider benefits, such as the reduced burden on the NHS or local authorities’ optimisation of green spaces as community assets, must be properly evaluated, practitioners say. That could lead to accessible gardens in “any space where people are collected,” Gratton says. “[They’ll be] co-managed by the people who use such spaces, leading to wellbeing, climate change and wildlife benefits, and reducing lots of expensive problems.”
For now, project leaders will continue to focus on programming sessions to enhance the wellbeing of people with dementia. “This is about slowing decline and living well with the condition,” says Thomas.
Murray Withers is the FT’s deputy night news editor

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Maria Semple: “Go Gentle” | Oprah’s Book Club

Maria Semple: “Go Gentle” | 30 years Oprah’s Book Club



RECORD STORE DAY 2026’S TOP SELLERS: Taylor Swift, Pink Floyd, Bruno Mars and More.

Vinyl releases from the likes of Taylor Swift, Pink Floyd and Bruno Mars were among the top-sellers from Record Store Day (RSD) 2026 in the United States, according to Luminate.

The yearly independent record store day celebration was held on April 18 and boasted a bevy of albums and singles (mostly vinyl titles) issued for RSD, and exclusively sold through indie record stores.

More than 350 album and single products were issued for RSD 2026, and the top-selling album was the four-LP clear vinyl release of Pink Floyd’s Live From the Los Angeles Sports Arena, April 26th, 1975. The project was also issued as a 2-CD set, and the CD edition was the No. 24 best-selling RSD 2026 album title.

Another two-fer on the list is the soundtrack to KPop Demon Hunters, which ranks at both Nos. 2 and 6, with two different iterations of the album on vinyl: a HUNTR/X edition and a Saja Boys edition, respectively.

Record Store Day 2026 Ambassador Bruno Mars had the No. 2-selling RSD 2026 album with Collaborations. The 11-track double vinyl compilation includes such teamings as the No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hits “Nothin’ On You” (B.o.B featuring Mars) “Uptown Funk” (Mark Ronson featuring Mars) and “Die With a Smile” (Lady Gaga and Mars).

I suppose vinyl is okay for poseurs, but real audiophiles know that this is the vintage format of choice for getting the most out of music listening: 8-Tracks Are Back? They Are In My House.

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Saturday, May 09, 2026

Donald Shrubb Cook Rd - Humans May Be Able to Grow New Teeth Within Just 4 Years

I might be mean, but I have a good heart.

When I tell someone to go to hell, I still hope they get there safely.


Why do I do this?

Why write 25,000 blog posts? Why make a video every single day? In this video, I explain what drives my work, why I have spent
Read the full article…


NONE TOO SOON:  Humans May Be Able to Grow New Teeth Within Just 4 Years


World-First Study Reveals Human Hearts Can Regenerate After a Heart Attack


The Film That Attacks You

For his latest video essay, Evan Puschak tells us about Un Chien Andalou, the pioneering surrealist short film by Luis Buñuel and Salvador Dalí. The film is particularly notable for a shocking shot in the opening scene, which, if you’ve seen it, you’ve likely never forgotten. Said Buñuel of the film:

This film has no intention of attracting nor pleasing the spectator; indeed, on the contrary, it attacks him, to the degree that he belongs to a society with which surrealism is at war.

You can watch Un Chien Andalou on YouTube




An Amazing character not far from the VI’s abode …

How Donald on his walker became Centennial Park’s favourite local celebrity 


 Claire Isaac May 8, 2026

  A car turns the corner on Cook Road in Sydney’s Centennial Park and gives a quick toot of the horn. Sitting outside his home, perched on a walker in the morning sun, Donald Shrubb lifts a hand in greeting.

Another car passes, another toot. Shrubb waves again, this time with both hands. This happens dozens of times a day. On the footpath, people often stop – 76-year-old Shrubb is always happy to have a chat.

After more than two years of sitting outside nearly every day, even in the depths of winter or the heat of high summer, Shrubb has become a familiar presence on the street – the man in the chair who seems to know everyone, as much a fixture in the neighbourhood as the footy traffic or the parking inspectors.

Seventy-six-year-old Donald Shrubb has lived in Sydney’s east for decades.EDWINA PICKLES

Shrubb never set out to become a local celebrity. In fact, sitting outside his building started for a much simpler reason: to stay connected.

For 45 of the 65 years he’s lived in the suburb, he worked as a supervisor on Australia’s interstate railways, travelling the country and even living on board the Indian Pacific during long journeys. He’s also part of Australian history as one of the original 78ers, the activists who marched in Sydney’s first Mardi Gras protest in 1978. He’s had a rich, colourful time: “I’m very lucky, what I’ve got out of life.”

However, just over four years ago, everything changed.

“I went to bed one night quite normally … I woke up in the morning, put my left foot on the floor and my right one just went bang,” he recalls. “The pain was so bad I cannot describe it.”

Doctors found four damaged discs in his spine. The situation was so serious that his neurosurgeon at St Vincent’s Hospital told him he needed emergency surgery.

The operation was complicated – a second one was needed – and recovery was hard. At one point, doctors told him he would never walk again. They suggested a nursing home might be the only realistic option, but Shrubb had other ideas.

“They said, ‘How do you get to your home?’ I said ‘I’ve got probably 40 stairs’. They said, ‘You won’t be going there. You’re going to a nursing home.’ I said, ‘No way.’

“If it takes me all day, I’ll get up there,” he says now. “And I’ll never give up.”

And so, in 2024, he started sitting outside, as a way to keep himself entertained without constant coming and going. Today he can walk a little, assisted by his walker, mostly around the block or up to bustling Oxford Street for lunch. But it’s slow-going and he feels every step.

At first, just a few people waved as they drove by. One of the earliest was plumber Chris Bazely.

“I used to drive past him all the time, so one day I waved at him,” says Bazely. “Now I stop and speak to him whenever I go past. And if I don’t see him on the street for a few days, I wonder if he’s alright.”

Shrubb has become somewhat of a local celebrity.EDWINA PICKLES

More and more people started waving, tooting or checking in as time went on. Now Cook Road has become something of Shrubb’s extended front yard. Neighbours bring him tea and snacks. A couple opposite sometimes arrive with muffins. Even the priest from local church St Francis of Assisi comes by to offer the occasional blessing.

Sisters Genevieve and Barbara Daly live across the road and often bring Shrubb food or remind him to put on sunscreen.

“He’s an iconic figure,” says Genevieve. “He’s an enjoyable, sociable, lovely gentleman, and he’s our neighbourhood watch. He notices everything. When I get home from work, he’ll say, ‘That courier arrived, it’s on the front porch’.”

“He knows everyone and everything that goes on,” adds local postman Julian Lowe, who stops by most days, popping Shrubb’s deliveries directly into his waiting hands. Sometimes, Lowe jokes, when they’re chatting, he feels that Shrubb would rather he moved on because “I’m cramping his style”.

When Shrubb disappeared for 10 days during a hospital stay, the entire neighbourhood noticed.

“People were quite concerned about my wellbeing,” he says. Someone even posted online asking if anyone had seen him. “I didn’t realise I had such a close connection to the public.”

But there really is a connection. For many locals, Shrubb has become a small but meaningful part of daily life, a reassuring presence and, in an increasingly disconnected world, a simple moment of human contact.

Shrubb, however, doesn’t see himself as anything special. In fact, he says he doesn’t know what people get out of seeing him sitting there every day. What he does know, though, is that he’ll keep doing it.

“I’ll do it ’til the end,” he laughs. “What else would I do?”

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