Keen as Ken

I’m not a pilot. I’m not an aviation expert. But something doesn’t feel right. Way too many coincidences in my opinion.

Commercial airlines still remains one of the safest means of traveling. Weather can’t bring down an airbus A350

I work in fraud and if someone said they needed to withdraw 2.5k in cash for a holiday I'd definitely be asking further questions.

Nie pozwolę, by prawica wyprowadziła nas z Unii Europejskiej. O to dziś toczy się gra.

🚨 0.77€ de taxe pour regarder un film Netflix ! Ce vendredi, les députés viennent d'adopter un amendement socialiste visant à taxer les données qui circulent sur Internet à hauteur de 5,5 centimes par gigaoctet reçu en France. Ils ont complètement pété les plombs. Voici quelques exemples de ce que ça va désormais vous coûter : 🔴 Vous regardez un film Netflix de 2 heures en 4K ? Jusqu'à 0,77 € de taxe brute sur les données transmises. 🔴 Vous téléchargez un jeu vidéo de 150 Go ? 8,25 €. 🔴 Vous récupérez 200 Go de photos personnelles stockées chez Google ? 11 €. 🔴 Vous rapatriez 1 To de vos propres fichiers depuis Google Drive ? 55 €. 🔴 Vous restaurez 2 To de sauvegardes après une panne informatique ? 110 €. Ces taxes seront facturées aux plateformes américaines, qui vous vous en doutez bien, vous redescendront la facture ! Ils sont en train de construire une fiscalité qui pénalise le simple fait de transmettre de la donnée. Et ceci alors que nous sommes à l'aube d'une révolution technologique majeure avec l'IA ! Pour rester compétitifs, tous les pays doivent accélérer leur transformation numérique. Et nous en France, que trouve-t-on comme idée de génie ? UNE PUTAIN DE TAXE SUR LA DATA ! Et en plus ils ont le culot de nous la présenter comme une mesure écologique qui encouragerait à réduire les volumes de données échangées. Quelle bande de guignols. Il faut être totalement déconnecté des réalités économiques pour considérer qu'un pays peut retrouver sa prospérité en multipliant indéfiniment les prélèvements sur les activités productives. Cet amendement n'est pas encore une loi définitive, mais le simple fait qu'une telle proposition ait été adoptée à l'Assemblée nationale en dit long sur la manière dont nous sommes gouvernés. Ces fous du bus vont vraiment nous mettre au fond du ravin.

I’m proud to have the most talented, hardest-working cabinet in Virginia’s history. They are also the most diverse cabinet Virginia has ever seen. Every single one of our cabinet secretaries were selected because they’re the best of the best in their respective fields. They also bring invaluable perspectives from across the Commonwealth — from Danville, Hampton Roads, Richmond, NOVA, and more. I’m grateful to get to work with these incredibly dedicated, hard-working, and talented cabinet officials to serve the Commonwealth of Virginia. richmond.com/opinion/column/…

Americans really hate it when you can’t treat workers like a a disposable object. Europe has a tendency to over regulate but worker protections are good in principle.

Oxford Street now

I am a U.S. permanent resident with over seven figures in U.S. dollars in savings and investable assets, a stable career, income, and property. I have never been denied a visa by any country, nor have I ever violated the immigration laws of any country. Yet over the past four years, the Schengen visas issued to me have become progressively shorter and more restrictive. In 2023, France granted me a 90-day multiple-entry visa. Naturally, I expected that my excellent travel history would qualify me for a longer visa upon reapplication. Instead, my second French visa was reduced to just 30 days, albeit with multiple entries. I considered this not only a disregard for my impeccable record but also an insult to a law-abiding traveler. I therefore decided to abandon France and apply to Spain instead—a country I had mistakenly believed would be more welcoming to Chinese visitors. To my astonishment, Spain proved even worse. Despite my history of holding two French Schengen visas, Spain granted me only a one-month, single-entry visa, with its validity calculated almost precisely to match my travel itinerary, leaving virtually no flexibility. I assumed that applying to Spain a second time, with an even stronger travel record, would at least earn me a six-month multiple-entry visa. Once again, Spain disappointed me: 33 days. Single entry. This is how certain European countries treat a financially secure, law-abiding traveler with U.S. permanent residency and an impeccable international travel record. The irony is extraordinary. On the one hand, these countries impose increasingly burdensome restrictions on legitimate tourists. On the other, they have opened doors for years to illegal immigrants and third country refugees. They are remarkably stingy toward visitors who respect their laws, appreciate their cultures, and contribute to their tourism economies. Yet when confronted with genuine threats to public order, they just sit and do nothing. I initially wanted to condemn these immigration officers in the harshest possible words for their arrogance, shortsightedness, and upside-down mentality. However, after reading recent news reports about violent incidents in France and Spain, my anger has gradually turned into a sense of relief. Of course, I do not wish violence upon innocent people. But these reports have reminded me of something important: Why should I go to such lengths to obtain permission to visit countries where public safety itself has become a source of concern? I once believed that these visa officers were rejecting me. Now I realize that perhaps they have unintentionally helped me avoid unnecessary risks. They seem to believe that they alone possess the power to decide who deserves to enter Europe. What they forget is that travelers also have the freedom to decide which countries deserve their time and money. My wealth can be spent anywhere in the world. My vacations can take place in countless destinations. I have absolutely no need to beg any country for the privilege of spending my own money within its borders. If a country cannot show basic respect to law-abiding visitors or provide a travel environment in which they feel safe, then the most appropriate response is simply to take my time and money elsewhere. Looking back, perhaps it was precisely the stinginess of these visa officers that spared me from potentially encountering violence or other unnecessary risks in their countries. I used to be furious that my visas kept getting shorter. Today, I am grateful that I no longer feel any need to visit these countries. Perhaps everything happens according to God’s plan. Thank God!

Les étrangers qui travaillent en France, qui ne violent pas la loi et qui se comportent correctement ne me posent aucun problème. Mais s'ils perdent leur travail, il faudra qu'ils rentrent chez eux : c'est le principe de l'immigration de travail.

Ja doch jetzt will ich auch einen😂

Look at Anojan’s mother🥲 she is shivering as she pleads for her son’s life 💔 No words can describe the pain of watching a mother live in fear of losing her child. Please, don’t let her pleas go unheard #SaveAnojan @PMOIndia @narendramodi @TVKVijayHQ

Iranian media says the government has summoned France's ambassador over the 'violent crackdown' and 'violations of human rights' against protesters in France.

Younger people might not know this, but before social media, we didn't have to listen to crazy people. At all.

Maxxed out my daughters @TrumpAccounts today :) By 18 she’ll have 300k+!!

Futbolcumuz Emmanuel Emenike ile ilgili duşunu almadan stadı terkettiğine dair haberler yalandır.

T-Mobile CEO on @Starlink Mobile: "The threat posed to mobile operators from satellite companies such as Starlink has been exaggerated and I struggle to see which consumer problems they would solve by entering the market." He believes satellite technology will remain “complementary” to existing networks. SpaceX President/COO Gwynne Shotwell said she anticipated SpaceX being able to “acquire quite a few” customers from the big three US mobile network operators - AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile. SpaceX will launch Starlink Mobile V2 satellites next year and plans to begin its service at the end of 2027, Shotwell added.

Worth noting that any USAID funding that appeared to have the slightest merit whatsoever for helping people in need was moved to the State Department. Only the funding where they provided no evidence at all for who would receive the money was stopped. m.youtube.com/watch?v=gUOwPc…

At any other point in history, this would be incomprehensible… What is the purpose of having a military if tens of thousands of unvetted foreign men can invade your country without consequence. The primary job of the government is to defend your homeland and your people.

Schau dir diese Grafik genau an. Sie erklärt, warum sich in Deutschland Leistung nicht mehr lohnt. Ein Paar, zwei Kinder, beide arbeiten. Bei 4.000 Euro brutto bleiben rund 2.700 Euro. Bei 5.000 Euro brutto bleiben rund 2.650 Euro. Du liest richtig. Tausend Euro mehr verdient. Weniger im Portemonnaie. Und jetzt der Teil, der wirklich weh tut: Bei 2.000 Euro brutto stehen dieser Familie etwa 2.350 Euro zur Verfügung. Bei 5.000 Euro brutto sind es 2.650 Euro. 3.000 Euro mehr erarbeiten. 300 Euro mehr haben. Das ist kein Rechenfehler. Jeder zusätzlich verdiente Euro zieht Wohngeld, Kinderzuschlag und Freibeträge mit sich in den Abgrund, während Steuern und Sozialabgaben gleichzeitig steigen. Man nennt es Transferentzugsrate. Ökonomen kennen das Problem seit Jahren. Die Bundesregierung hat Gutachten dazu bestellt. Passiert ist nichts. Und dann wundert sich die Politik, warum niemand mehr die Stunden aufstockt. Warum die Zweitverdienerin in Teilzeit bleibt. Warum der Facharbeiter die Beförderung ablehnt. Die Leute sind nicht faul. Sie rechnen. Ein System, das Anstrengung und Fleiß nicht belohnt, bekommt am Ende genau das: keine Anstrengung.