The situation has gotten worse.
https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-strikes-lebanon-following-hezbollah-attacks-widening-iran-conflict-2026-03-02/

-- Iran is continuing to bomb targets in various countries all over the Middle East.
-- Israel and USA are continuing to bomb Iran.
-- Hezbollah joined in by bombing various targets, including Israel.
-- Israel is now bombing locations Lebanon in retaliation for that.
-- U.S. ships have been targeted. U.S. military bases have been targeted.
-- A U.K. (yes UK) target in Cyprus was hit.
It's all chaos.

Israeli's military Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir said combat operations against Hezbollah could be prolonged, lasting days. Trump in interviews on Sunday with multiple news outlets said the U.S.-Israeli military assault on Iranian targets could continue for at least four weeks.

_______

Elsewhere in Asia:

in unrelated news:
As of Friday Feb. 27, Pakistan is bombing Afghanistan
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/blasts-heard-kabul-amid-clashes-between-afghan-pakistani-forces-2026-03-01/

however.... related to Iran ...
-- Anti-American and anti-Israel protests have broken out in various countries, in reaction to the bombing of Iran. Including protests in Pakistan.
-- Pakistani protesters approached the U.S. consulate in Karachi Pakistan, and were fired upon by U.S. security.
-- The U.N. (yes UN) office in Skardu, Pakistan was burned down by protesters.
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/pakistan-police-fire-tear-gas-protesters-outside-us-consulate-reuters-witness-2026-03-01/

Edited March 2Mar 2 by janea4old

As I said earlier, throughout the years, during heightened news events, there have occasionally been random people posting incorrect pictures or old pictures, or mislabeled pictures from unrelated events.
(And nowadays faked A.I. images are added to all of that).
so it's important to verify with several sources to see if it's real.

Here's the latest example:
Fact Check: Video of 2003 assault on Iraq miscaptioned as Afghanistan 2026
https://www.reuters.com/fact-check/video-2003-assault-iraq-miscaptioned-afghanistan-2026-2026-02-27/

Edited March 2Mar 2 by janea4old

So, IOW, we (and Israel) have accomplished nothing in Iran (not even securing our oil resources over there - which, I suspect, has been this administration's motivation all along). In fact, we've made a very bad situation even worse, jeopardizing hundreds of thousands of lives, and potentially plunging us all into another war (that will drag on for years and resolve nothing).

Good to know.

Edited March 2Mar 2 by Khan

Kuwait accidentally shot down three U.S.A. F-15 fighter jets
https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/kuwait-intercepts-hostile-drones-third-day-iran-retaliatory-strikes-2026-03-02/

Edited March 2Mar 2 by janea4old

On 3/2/2026 at 1:31 PM, janea4old said:

Kuwait accidentally shot down three U.S.A. F-15 fighter jets
https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/kuwait-intercepts-hostile-drones-third-day-iran-retaliatory-strikes-2026-03-02/

Not only is this regime crazy and evil, but it's also incompetent. To not even alert Kuwait is just peak stupidity.

personal opinion:

I don't believe Tr*mp and his U.S. administration.
They lie and also want to kill/deport/defund/and put people in concentration camps, and make money off of it.

I don't believe Netanyahu.
He has committed genocide on Gaza to empower himself.

I don't believe Iran state media.
Within recent months, that government killed thousands of protesters.

I don't believe any of these lying murderers.

/end rant

Edited Thursday at 03:07 PM4 days by janea4old

James Talarico (who appeared on Colbert's youtube)
won over Jasmine Crockett in the Democratic primary in Texas for U.S. Senate.
https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/03/texas-jasmine-crockett-james-talarico-us-senate-democratic-primary/

Jasmine Crockett conceded in support, and then continued her work in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Edited Thursday at 04:00 PM4 days by janea4old

When I heard that James Talarico had won the primary, I was disappointed, but not surprised.

Even if we manage to rid ourselves of the current administration and get out from under the GOP's death grip, we're too shell-shocked, for lack of a better word, to keep moving toward a government that reflects our country's unique ethnic and racial makeup. For the next generation or more, it's gonna be back to pitting nondescript white male vs. nondescript white male in most elections; and those of us who wanted real change will just have to hold our noses and vote.

IOW, Talarico's victory is just a sign of things to come - for the left AND for the right.

Edited Thursday at 04:29 PM4 days by Khan

On 3/5/2026 at 11:27 AM, Khan said:

When I heard that James Talarico had won the primary, I was disappointed, but not surprised.

Even if we manage to rid ourselves of the current administration and get out from under the GOP's death grip, we're too shell-shocked, for lack of a better word, to keep moving toward a government that reflects our country's unique ethnic and racial makeup. For the next generation or more, it's gonna be back to pitting nondescript white male vs. nondescript white male in most elections; and those of us who wanted real change will just have to hold our noses and vote.

IOW, Talarico's victory is just a sign of things to come - for the left AND for the right.

Well we have to keep trying to work towards a future that we all want; we can't just give up.

I voted for James Talarico, and on election day, I found out my family voted for him too. My dad was being very coy about who he had voted for. Of course, I would have loved a Latino candidate in the mix, but I'm happy with the results on Tuesday

Talarico won big with the Latino vote and did well with the college crowd. I couldn't believe how long the lines were at UT.

30 minutes ago, MissPhoenixGirl92 said:

Well we have to keep trying to work towards a future that we all want; we can't just give up.

Frankly, that's not my fight anymore, nor do I think that's a fight for anyone else in my generation or the generations before ours. I think we ceded that battle when we voted you-know-who back in (and in record numbers).

For now, and for the rest of my time on this earth, my focus is on preserving whatever's left, so that people like me don't end up in permanent exile or rotting in our own filth on Skid Row. Anything more than that, it's up to the next generation (and considering how strongly they came out in favor of him, despite all the reports suggesting how changing demographics were on our side, I don't hold out much hope).

Edited Friday at 09:50 PM2 days by Khan

President Obama speaks at the Celebration of Life for Jessie Jackson

Ex-presidents of the U.S. often open a "presidential library" of memorabilia.

The "Barack Obama Presidential Center" will open on Juneteenth 2026, but this is different from prior "presidential libraries".

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama_Presidential_Center
According to the wikipedia page, there was fundraising to get it built, but it will be owned by the City of Chicago.

They're calling it a "presidential center" and not a "presidential library"
because it won't be solely a museum. There will be some memorabilia, but it will also have space for public art, green spaces, a basketball court, and space for community events, and there will be included within it a branch of the Chicago Public Library.

Obama talks about it in the youtubes below, and says it's "your presidential center" as in the "collective you" meaning all of the USA. It belongs to us and not just him.
He also says this will be a place to inspire future leaders. . . implying that it's about active change for all and not just about his past.


Excerpt of transcripts from the youtubes:

Michelle and I are proud to announce that we will be hosting the dedication ceremony for the Obama Presidential Center on June 18th in Chicago, and welcoming the public on June 19th.

When visitors look up at the Obama Presidential Center’s Museum building, they’ll see three words: “You are America.”

Those words come from a speech I gave in Selma on the 50th anniversary of the march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge. They’re meant to honor the men and women who came before us, and to inspire the next generation to be messengers of hope.

That hope will have a home at the Obama Presidential Center.

And thank you for embracing this Presidential Center not as something of mine, but of yours.

This community has always understood that the glorious task of perfecting our union is never easy, but it is always worth it.

It is easy to look around right now and feel like the challenges we face are simply too big. But hope is not about ignoring the hard stuff. It is that thing inside us that insists something better awaits if we are willing to work for it.

This is a place where a child from next door or across the globe can sit behind the Resolute Desk and imagine how they could help create a better world.

This is not a monument to the past — it is a living destination for people who refuse to accept the status quo. If you feel that way, this is your invitation to join us.

Full videos

Edited yesterday at 06:10 PM1 day by janea4old