I did not write this but it so deserves to be shared. Enough! Everyone, men and women deserve to be happy in their own skin.
Recently, in a large city in France, a poster featuring a young, thin, and tan woman appeared in the window of a gym.
It read: “This summer, do you want to be a mermaid or a whale?”
A middle-aged woman, whose physical characteristics did not match those of the woman pictured on the poster, responded publicly to the question posed by the gym. She had a whale of a lot to say:
“To Whom It May Concern,
Whales are always surrounded by friends: dolphins, sea lions, and curious humans. They have an active s_e_x life, get pregnant, and have adorable baby whales. They enjoy stuffing themselves with shrimp, playing and swimming in the sea, and visiting wonderful places like Patagonia, the Bering Sea, and the coral reefs of Polynesia.
Whales are wonderful singers and have even recorded CDs. They are incredible creatures and virtually have no predators other than humans.
They are loved, protected, and admired by almost everyone in the world. Mermaids don’t exist.
If they did exist, they would be lining up outside the offices of psychoanalysts due to their identity crisis. Fish or human would prove quite a quandary for even the most skilled of therapists.
They don’t have a s_e_x life because they kill men who get close to them—not to mention, how could they have s_e_x? Just look at them… where is IT?
Therefore, they don’t have kids either. Not to mention, who wants to get close to a girl who smells like a fish store?
P.S. We are in an age when the media attempts to convince us that only skinny people are beautiful. I prefer to enjoy ice cream with my kids, a good dinner with a man who makes me shiver, and good chocolate with my friends.
With time, we gain weight because we accumulate so much information and wisdom in our heads that when there is no more room, it distributes out to the rest of our bodies. So we aren’t heavy, we are enormously cultured, educated, and happy.
Do you remember the scene in Lethal Weapon, with Arjen Rudd, the Minister of Foreign Affairs?
That’s exactly how Dumpy Diaper Don, the Felon is going to sully our border. Diplomatic immunity granted under a diplomatic passport. Now there’s some irony for you, a criminal being allowed to cross our borders. Sound like a familiar refrain? Something about rapists and criminals…the worst a country had, crossing borders? Where have I heard that before?
Will Dumpy Diaper Don have the stones or the stupidity to show up, where he is, DEFINITELY, not welcomed? I don’t know, I’m thinking a sudden new signature stamp or shortage of Depends may well be his excuse. Phony bullies don’t do well when faced with true courage.
Stay home, you P.O.S. We don’t want you in our country and I’m pretty sure, at least 6 of the G7 leaders would rather you butt out while the adults are talking. (I subtracted England as I believe Starmer is a reincarnation of Chamberlain.)
A mother, wife, sister, mother-in-law, sister-in-law, passed away yesterday. Cancer. There are millions upon millions of people, out there, who can attest to the devastation of this disease, it doesn’t make it easier but to know that so many can understand the loss is a comfort, albeit small, in the face of this loss, does help.
Den was a powerful woman, with a fierce love for family. The love of a tigress. And she fought that enemy of mankind, as a tigress would. It may have won in the end but damn, she left her mark on it. She fought with honour, with dignity and with an insane level of courage. A hero to all she has left behind and to those she has now joined.
I have the distinct feeling, more than a few of my Canadian and European friends will be denied entry into the U.S. in the near future, as long as that tribe of traitors are in office. Our crimes? Stating our opinions on the Orange Twat and his minions.
The Border Control has the right to go through your cell phones and laptops. If you have a burner phone? They will demand your social media profiles. Never underestimate the power of the brown shirts known as ICE; they are a real threat to anyone who is not melanin challenged. Be safe, travel anywhere but the U.S.
So, no trip to New England for us; I wanted to re-visit a few of the places from childhood vacations, a trip to Boston (a city I have always loved), and a touristy-kitschy visit to Salem, Mass. As we say in Québec, c’est la vie, we will spend our money in Québec. We wanted to up our Bar-B-Q party game this year, anyway.
This is a warning to Canadian and European family and friends; think twice, then think twice again about visiting the U.S. A flag of “Refused Entry” will stick even after that grifting felon abuser is gone. Why risk it? Stay home until he hits Lucifer’s waiting line or is turfed out of office. Lots of gorgeous places in Canada and of course, Europe; spend your money where it won’t be grifted into the Cheeto and his Orange lipped minions pockets.
Have you ever had the term “Snowflake” hurled at you, as some sort of invective? I was thinking about that as, strangely, enough, I have been called a snowflake so many times, I lost count.
Okay, let’s say that its true, I’m a snowflake…well, living in Canada, I am well acquainted with snowflakes, they are beautiful, unique but get a bunch of them together? You’re done…right, center or left…you’re done. Snowflakes can bring traffic, commerce and daily life to a grinding halt. Snowflakes can lock you down in your home and unfortunately, trap you in a vehicle. They require heavy equipment to move and sometimes, there are so many snowflakes that even heavy equipment can be pulled off the road, to hide in garages.
Woke? That one always makes me laugh, “woke” as opposed to what? Wandering around in a state of somnambulism? In all honesty, I can be accused of sleepwalking, in the morning, prior to a couple of cups of that beautiful dark brown mug of nirvana…☕ but in the interpretation tossed around by right wingnuts? Yes, absolutely, I am “Woke”. I am woke to the injustices and inequalities of the First World, to the people who aren’t melanin-challenged, to women, to the poor, to the challenged.
To the alt-right wingnuts? “Woke”, I don’t think it means what you think it means…but you do you, Boo.
I haven’t lost hope for said wingnuts; Christian Picciolini and Arno Michaelis are two examples. I have to believe there is hope.
I was once hate spammed, a few years ago, on WordPress; apparently labeled as “anti-white” by a band of knuckle dragging misfits. In all honesty, I found them to be a source of amusement, but then, I have that luxury and I do know it is a luxury, to laugh at them. I don’t worry about being pulled over by the police for “Driving while white”, (I do worry because I am the first to acknowledge my right foot can be leaden, at times.) I don’t worry going about my day to day doings or having some brown shirt banging on my door, to rip me from my home and family (I’m Canadian but you do know that I refer to ICE, in the U.S.).
I am quite happy to be called a “Snowflake” or “Woke”, in fact, it is the highest of compliments to me. So keep at it.
I hear a lot of, “But its illegal!”, “But its against the rules of Congress!”, “But its against the Constitution!”
Hush now, sit down a spell and let’s have a little confab, shall we?
Legality, rules of government, the Constitution are only applicable when and if these institutions and laws are respected. When you have a CONVICTED FELON in the role of president (The lower case “p” is on purpose, I won’t afford the felon the respect of a capitalization.)
Millions of people voted to put a criminal and, blatantly, obvious sociopath in charge and somehow, Americans and, in fact, the globe seem shocked at the events unfolding.
Absolutely, Hegseth should have been canned, in fact, he shouldn’t be in that position at all. According to rumour and these are rumours, he would be far more “at home” perving on a barstool somewhere. No qualifications, no relevant experience…but here we are.
The list of likeminded sociopaths in positions of power, within the U.S. government is a criminal psychologist wet dream.
Forget what you have learned about the Constitution of the United States, forget what you have learned about the 3 Arms of Government, forget about the rule of law, justice and the “Murican” way.
These concepts are gone. Not valid. Of no importance.
The elected and/or appointed (Musk) sociopaths/psychopaths are in charge and? They. Don’t. Care. Laws and decorum, procedure and truth are all relative as to what these things can bring in the way of personal benefit to them.
You are, America…SCREWED.
Let me repeat a little something – there is a CONVICTED FELON in the White House, in the most powerful position in your country. A. CONVICTED. FELON. His sociopathy is right there, for all to see, yet millions of your country folk voted him in.
America is very ill. It has lost its way. Propaganda is King. Truth is buried in a backyard, a swamp or wherever psychopaths bury bodies.
For decades Americans have been fed the lie that they are the best country in the world, the most free, the most successful. Perhaps, at one time, in the long ago, this was true. It is true no longer.
Don’t ask why these things are happening, pick up a “Psychology for Dummies” book and read about sociopaths, psychopaths and narcissists. There is no more justice because these people don’t recognize justice as valid…to them and as they are in charge? You, my dear American friends and family, are finished as a nation. May as well call it “Trump Land” and be done with it.
January 6th and the pardoning of these traitor, killers and insurrectionists was your 2 Minute Warning and it was ignored.
We all have to wake up – globally, wake up and smell the coffee; we can survive and prosper without this racist, untrustworthy and swirling the bowl country.
It was all lies, propaganda – the U.S. is not the successful economic giant it claimed to be. It holds the largest national debt, by far, in the world. The WORLD. Debt is not a hallmark of success, particularly at this rate.
Time to wave our collective middle fingers in their direction and move toward a bright future, not marred by the Golden Arches or Super Size fries. Dump the U.S. treasury bonds, call in the loans and allow the propaganda machine to crash and burn.
(I have a deep hatred of these scammers. I would love to see them all tossed into an oubliette somewhere hot, humid with lots The only way to protect ourselves, our loved ones, our friends is through knowledge and sharing what we know about these scammers.)
“Hey, how are you?”
“Hey, how’s your sore back?”
“Sorry, I’m running a little late; I’ll meet you for dinner at 6:15.”
If you have been on the receiving end of an increasing number of seemingly random and innocuous texts like those, you aren’t alone. And it wasn’t a wrong number. Online scammers are increasingly turned to “wrong number” message tactics, aided by AI, to trick phone users into providing access to personal information and financial accounts.
Ann Nagel, who works at a college in suburban Chicago, received a text that was convincing enough to make her think she should respond.
“I had actually thought it was from one of my members from an organization I run in town. It had me going for a few seconds,” Nagel said.
But she quickly realized it was a scam when the texter asked Nagel to send a Vanilla Visa gift card and scratch off the back numbers. Nagel quickly ended the text exchange.
“They are a tricky bunch of thieves, no doubt,” Nagel said.
Steve Grobman, chief technology officer at McAfee, says there is usually much more going on than just an innocent wrong number. The texters have multiple objectives by sending seemingly harmless missives to your phone. First, he says, the scammers — most often based overseas — are validating that the mobile number is active and the person is willing to engage and respond.
“They are adding the number to their database so they can target it surgically for future scams,” Grobman said. They can note in their files that this person could be a potential future victim even if the initial exchange doesn’t bear fruit. And if a person, phone company, or wireless carrier blocks a number, the scammers will move onto the next one, as has been happening during the recent wave of toll fine scams.
“Once the first objective is met, what they are trying to do is build some sort of relationships,” Grobman said, and he added that these criminals are often working as part of well-funded, well-organized criminal enterprises.
Scammers are willing to put in the work to reach their ultimate aim, which is parting you from your money, and Grobman says the highest yield scams are ones that involve forging a personal relationship that can be turned into a form of what is known as a “pig butchering scam.
Life savings, retirement accounts are the ultimate target Long, draw-out, text scams — sometimes including a romantic element — are chasing someone’s life savings or retirement account. “Because there is such a large payoff, it is worth the extra time required to grow it,” Grobman said.
AI is making these once time-consuming, laborious scams more efficient and easier to target people. AI can help criminals zero in on area codes for tailored texts, comb through social media profiles, and build out family networks.
“Wrong number” texts, in particular, are increasing because of the confluence of data dumps over the past few years combined with AI’s availability.
“This allows scammers to create highly believable scams, higher levels of engagement, and higher levels of victims falling for scams,” Grobman said. “Consumers need to be very careful. You really shouldn’t engage,” he added.
But that can be difficult for some because psychology is as much a part of the text scammer’s toolkit as AI and software. “Their effectiveness taps into something much deeper: our human need for connection,” said Malka Shaw, a New Jersey-based psychotherapist in private practice who has seen a rise in text scam victims in her practice.
Shaw says the long shadow of Covid continues to casts its darkness over this problem. “We’re living in a time where loneliness has reached epidemic levels. Especially in the wake of the pandemic, so many people feel disconnected and unseen,” Shaw said. People who have endured trauma in their past or are lonely can find themselves more drawn into connections that can come via text.
“Their cognitive biases will be down, and they’ll say, ‘I need that contact.’ That is how they get you in,” Shaw said.
AI in the hands of criminals makes it easy and fast to scan social media profiles for people who might seem lonely and then connect them to a phone number.
‘Mini-ransoms’ for locked social media accounts Even if the innocuous scams don’t yield a big pig-butchering payday, they can still be worthwhile. Eder Ribeiro, director of global incident response at TransUnion, says emptying someone’s life savings is the primary goal, but hackers can still derive secondary value from the texting.
“Data is money,” Ribeiro said, adding that even if they only get a name and phone number, such info can be sold on the dark web, or perhaps they’ll get enough data to sell on the dark web and crack your email. In some cases, a text scammer will be able to extract enough of a response to track down the person’s social media accounts and lock them out and people are willing to pay to reclaim their accounts.
“We see people pay smaller amounts of money to gain access to their social media,” Riberio said, adding that those “mini-ransoms” can be between $200-$800, not the huge payday the hacker was seeking, but still something.
“They can find out stuff about most people and use it for extortion, fraud, or the information can be aggregated for the data and sold,” Ribiero said.
Dustin Brewer, senior director of proactive cybersecurity services at BlueVoyant, says the best advice for recipients of unwanted texts is to ignore the messages. Do not initiate a response and mark them as spam. These simple steps empower people by making a firm decision while removing the text from their inbox.
“And doing so makes me an undesirable target for the scammer, and no follow-up messages occur for the most part,” Brewer said. Marking it spam could help others by alerting your messaging app that this message is potential bait for a scammer. Some messaging apps use this type of reporting to detect future scams and protect other users, Brewer said.
But TransUnion’s Ribiero says, for now, expect the texts to continue. “The frequency is increasing because it works, and if you get results, you keep doing it,” he said.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
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