Russell Turpin
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Russell Turpin
@rturpin.bsky.social
36 followers 40 following 220 posts
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rturpin.wordpress.com/2026/02/06/o...
Out of facts
For as long as I can remember, the CIA World Factbook has been my first reference when wanting to look at the contours of a nation, or verify some basic detail. Now, it is gone. Which strikes me as…
rturpin.wordpress.com
February 6, 2026 at 3:59 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2026/02/04/a...
Autocracy pays
The Emerati bribe to Trump was more blatant than first reported, including a straight half billion dollar purchase of stock done days before the inauguration. The Wall Street Journal broke the stor…
rturpin.wordpress.com
February 4, 2026 at 2:45 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2026/01/29/a...
A cheer for honest conservatives
It is not entirely coincidence that George Will published an editorial yesterday echoing my own post about the dishonest nature of Trump’s inner circle. We both wrote in response to ICE&#8217…
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January 29, 2026 at 2:46 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2026/01/28/d...
Dishonest by design
A silly kind of meme frequent today poses the question: why are so many upset with Trump’s deportation of undocumented immigrants, when Obama deported so many more? The pretense is that nothi…
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January 28, 2026 at 2:26 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2026/01/22/t...
The Taco trade
Trump has backed down from his threatened tariffs and military invasion to take Greenland, claiming he reached a framework of a deal with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte for it to become part of …
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January 22, 2026 at 2:36 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2026/01/21/o...
Open that window!
I’ve never quite understood the desire to live in a sealed box. Only recently have I learned that my desire for daily fresh air in the house is a German practice called lüften. And, yes, I sl…
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January 21, 2026 at 2:18 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2026/01/14/c...
Cellphones should sign images
The ICE killing of Renee Good shows how important bystanders’ cellphones have become as a mechanism for documenting events. Those videos show that she had turned her wheel to the right and aw…
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January 14, 2026 at 3:14 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2026/01/12/w...
We evolve together
It is not surprising that the Anna’s hummingbird is evolving in response to human behavior. (Cite.) A species’s interaction with other species is a major constraint and driver for its o…
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January 12, 2026 at 2:46 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2026/01/06/s...
Starting the year on the water
We delivered the boat to Seabrook this weekend for a major refit the owner has planned. There wasn’t much wind, and mostly from the wrong direction, so we motored up the ICW. Dolphins swam by…
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January 6, 2026 at 2:39 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2025/12/31/m...
Mesh!
The ubiquity of digital connectivity makes it easy to overlook the fact that it relies on complex infrastructure maintained by a few companies. Natural disaster or social conflict can disrupt it, l…
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December 31, 2025 at 2:41 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2025/12/18/t...
Trump, death, and lies
The damning part of Trump’s reaction to the Reiners’ death is the lie. He blamed their murder on Rob Reiner’s dislike for Trump. The claim that somehow motivated the murder is fan…
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December 18, 2025 at 2:30 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2025/12/15/c...
Children, social media, and books
Parents shield their children from a variety of influences, wanting first to instill better personal habits and social behavior that prepares them for the larger world. I am not surprised that some…
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December 15, 2025 at 2:36 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2025/12/08/t...
The mRNA Covid vaccines save lives
A hard question for any new drug is what its long-term side effects might be. That question is especially sharp for drugs requiring long-term use, and for vaccines, which cause a long-term change i…
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December 8, 2025 at 2:25 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2025/12/04/t...
The joy of winter races
Last night had just about everything I enjoy about winter races. Just enough air to sail. Just enough cool that everyone wears foulies. Just enough crew to do it. The mark was a beam reach. We rais…
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December 4, 2025 at 2:55 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2025/12/01/m...
MAGA, religion, and civility
Rob Schenck provides a Christian perspective on the rise of MAGA, referencing past religious movements led by flamboyant hucksters. I suspect his dour conclusion is accurate: It will be at least a …
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December 1, 2025 at 2:37 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2025/11/24/a...
America is getting dumber
Rose Horowitch writes a bleak article on how students entering college are woefully unprepared for the basic math. Which has always been the case, in some sense. The interesting and disheartening f…
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November 24, 2025 at 3:00 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2025/11/20/d...
Dark race
We had a fun race last night. Despite the dark. There was some overcast, and not even a waxing moon to reflect light back from the other side. The water was rolling ink. Everything else was shades …
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November 20, 2025 at 2:30 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2025/11/19/t...
This and that
The EU is rolling back some of the regulations that have put barriers to how the large tech companies do business there. While that is a welcomed step, the EU needs to do more to increase business …
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November 19, 2025 at 2:42 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2025/11/17/t...
Too young for moss
Gallup reports that two in five American women under 45 now would leave the US permanently, given the opportunity. Twice as many answer that way as men. Most won’t. Only a tiny fraction of Am…
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November 17, 2025 at 2:50 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2025/11/10/c...
Dick Cheney’s legacy
Max Boot writes on Dick Cheney’s legacy: Cheney rightly came to decry Trump’s abuses of power, but many of Trump’s actions grew out of a contempt for congressional, media, and judicial oversi…
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November 10, 2025 at 2:18 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2025/11/05/l...
Lost faiths
Erik Loomis uses the recent presidential election in Ireland to reflect on a bit of amazing recent history: One of the most remarkable political stories in my life is the transformation of Ireland …
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November 5, 2025 at 2:13 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2025/11/03/t...
The pretenders
In explaining MAGA, Beth Macy tells a familiar story about the decline of civic life, especially in smaller towns: Some of my old friends were finding community not in religion but in QAnon, sharin…
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November 3, 2025 at 2:25 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2025/10/29/o...
Of flags and houses
Like most everyone who competes in a team sport, I celebrate the races we win, regret the ones we should have won, and try to do my part to shift the tally more to the first. I hope my fellow crewm…
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October 29, 2025 at 1:48 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2025/10/27/t...
The Dutch
Dutch intelligence will be more selective in sharing information with the US. Whose administration it reasonably does not trust. MAGA likely turned bitter toward Dutch intelligence when it early wa…
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October 27, 2025 at 1:43 PM
rturpin.wordpress.com/2025/10/13/v...
“Viral”: a short review
I’m glad a friend recommended this book, because it is quite a bit better than I would have expected from what I have read in the past by Matt Ridley. Several of the middle chapters have inte…
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October 13, 2025 at 1:45 PM