Once Again: Thanks, President Trump, for an Astounding Birthday Gift (This'll Be the Second Time…)

Today is the shared birthday, exactly five years apart to the day, of the two most prolific bloggers of No Pasarán (half a dozen altogether) for the past 21 — soon 22 — years (a thought for the late Joe Noussair). 

It is also the second time that a wonderful birthday gift has been given me/us by none other than President Donald J. Trump. 

On January 3, 2020, POTUS45 dropped a bomb on Iran's Qassim Suleimani. It was then that I realized that I had been waiting for a strike — any kind of strike — against the Tehran Mullahs by the American military ever since I was a teen-ager during the Carter administration when I felt so humiliated first by the hostage situation in Tehran's U.S. Embassy and second by Jimmy Carter's failed attempt to rescue them.

Six years later to the day, POTUS47 took out Nicolás Maduro in a different way, literally capturing Venezuela's leader and taking him and his wife out of the country, to an assault ship of the United States and then to New York. (At first, I wasn't quite sure whether the capture took place on January 3 or before midnight on January 2, but the Daily Mail quotes General John Daniel 'Raizin' Cane, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, as saying it took place around 1:01 am (ET) or 2:01 am (Venezuela time) on the 3rd.)

Thanks for the birthday gifts, Mister President. The unforgettable birthday gifts… (A gracias también por la Señora Hoyt.)

Be sure to read Instapundit's list of memes and hard truths regarding CONFUSION TO OUR ENEMIES, especially Kurt Schlichter's The 10 Best Things About Trump’s Venezuela Victory.

I Want to Live in Wyoming!

Over in Virginia, a man dreams of living in Wyoming. Why in Wyoming, of all places?! Well, in Wyoming, there is 0% individual income tax and 0% corporate income tax. More to the point, perhaps, says Damian Bennett, is the fact that

It has the second lowest state population density, only 5.97 folk per square mile. [Pause…] Imagine the quiet!

Also check out his half a dozen postcards of the Cowboy State and be sure to download those while hitting the Like button (and perhaps leaving a message).  Far from incidentally, Damian Bennett is also a fan of

Wyoming photographer Lora Webb Nichols (1883-1962); more of her work can be found at Wyoming History Day.​​​​​​​

Conflating Sovereignty with Overregulation: Why is France’s economic collapse inevitable?

The future for the French economy is not looking good, predicts Sebastien Laye, far from it (merci à Sarah pour l'Instalien), as he recommends a video from "the channel that explains you the most fascinating stories of the economy!"

France's economy is on a precarious trajectory, marked by nearly two decades of stagnation in GDP per capita since 2008, coupled with soaring public debt that has risen from 70% to 116% of GDP. Projections indicate it could climb to 125% by 2030. This crisis is exacerbated by chronic budget deficits, the highest public spending among OECD nations, and profound political fragmentation in the National Assembly, where no coalition holds a majority. 

 Key challenges include resistance to fiscal reforms, driven by societal demands for increased state aid without corresponding tax hikes, alongside demographic shifts that intensify spending on an aging population. 

Addressing this requires decisive structural reforms, including spending cuts and revenue enhancements, though political instability and public protests render such measures exceedingly difficult. Without urgent action, France faces deepening economic decline and instability. 

 For a comprehensive analysis, view this insightful video from VisualEconomik EN.

In related news, concerning Trump's (or Rubio's) banning of a handful of EU honchos to the United States, Sebastien Laye goes on to point out that,

Regarding T. Breton: the real problem has nothing to do with the EU/US relationship.

The true problem is that a former executive like Thierry Breton—with a record of significant industrial failures—has emerged as the face of French and European digital power, spending his days on television lecturing everyone.

By conflating sovereignty with overregulation, Europe has not strengthened itself; on the contrary, it has isolated itself.

Thierry Breton has been featured on No Pasarán since 2005, i.e., for the past 20 years. The coverage was rarely positive, and last summer he was fiercely criticized (to his face!) on BFMTV by Philippe Karsenty, who echoes Sébastien, pointedly asking why should we (we Europeans, we Americans, anybody) listen to him criticize Elon Musk, the founder of Tesla and SpaceX, when the French critic is known for running his own companies (Athos, Orange) into the ground?… 

France's economy is on a precarious trajectory, marked by nearly two decades of stagnation in GDP per capita since 2008, coupled with soaring public debt that has risen from 70% to 116% of GDP. Projections indicate it could climb to 125% by 2030. This crisis is exacerbated by chronic budget deficits, the highest public spending among OECD nations, and profound political fragmentation in the National Assembly, where no coalition holds a majority. Key challenges include resistance to fiscal reforms, driven by societal demands for increased state aid without corresponding tax hikes, alongside demographic shifts that intensify spending on an aging population. Addressing this requires decisive structural reforms, including spending cuts and revenue enhancements, though political instability and public protests render such measures exceedingly difficult. Without urgent action, France faces deepening economic decline and instability. For a comprehensive analysis, view this insightful video from VisualEconomik EN.

The New Trend in Global Tech: AI Move Signals a Geoeconomic Shift — "Singapore as the West's entry point to siphon talent stifled by China's authoritarianism"

In the New York Times, Sal Khan warns that A.I. will displace workers at a scale not fully realized while Cecilia Kang seems horrified to discover that From A.I. to Chips, Big Tech Is Getting What It Wants From Trump. 

In the meantime, Tech expert Sebastien Laye reads the (I)T leaves and finds them in Singapore: 

Meta's $2B acquisition of Manus—an AI startup with Chinese roots now based in Singapore—signals a geoeconomic shift: Singapore as the West's entry point to siphon talent stifled by China's authoritarianism. It's the ideal US-Asia bridge—China hostile, India chaotic, Japan/Korea integrated. Watch Malaysia/Thailand next; Indochina too China-linked, except French angles. A trend in global tech flows. #Geoeconomics #MetaAcquisition

Meta's $2B acquisition of Manus—an AI startup with Chinese roots now based in Singapore—signals a geoeconomic shift: Singapore as the West's entry point to siphon talent stifled by China's authoritarianism. It's the ideal US-Asia bridge—China hostile, India chaotic, Japan/Korea integrated. Watch Malaysia/Thailand next; Indochina too China-linked, except French angles. A trend in global tech flows. #Geoeconomics #MetaAcquisition

Trump-Zelensky Summit: Republican Educates French TV Panel on the Fact that Europe Is Leaderless While Only Trump Can Advance Towards a Plan for Ukraine Peace

Sunday, Isaac Barchichat was invited on TF1's Darius Rochebin talk show for an LCI debate around the Trump-Zelensky meeting in Mar-a-Lago to bring Putin's Ukraine war to a halt (merci à Madame Hoyt pour l'Instalien).

As Paul Reen put it, the ROF vice-president 

did an excellent job maintaining his calm and educating the other guests on the panel — some of whom had called Charlie Kirk hateful and dangerous — on the fact that Europe is leaderless in finding a solution to the war and demonstrating that only Trump is creating the communication necessary to at least advance toward a settlement albeit slow and painful with the crazy Putin. Bravo Isaac!

LCI:

Edition spéciale du dimanche 28 décembre 2025 -Trump-Zelensky, la rencontre

Au sommaire : Avec Poutine, une conversation "productivité" (Trump). Rencontre Trump-Zelensky, la paix, à quel prix ? Garanties, concessions, l'heure des choix pour Kiev. 

1h42

28 déc. 2025 à 18:20

       

And God… Called Woman Back to Him: RIP BB

 

Et Dieu rappela la femme

FRANÇOIS-GUILLAUME LORRAIN has an in-depth article in the Le Point weekly, which is unusual for not being entirely adulatory (adieulatory?), but which does betray a leftist bent (notably in the second sentence). (Merci pour les Instaliens, Monsieur Driscoll et Madame Hoyt.) 

   

Le Point: 

Bardot has just died. Hadn't she already died a little? It's difficult to survive one's myth, even by remaining reclusive, except to resurface for outbursts that reeked of the far right. The "outrageous" sex symbol had become an indignant old woman. Sunset Boulevard in La Madrague [the name of BB's fisherman cottage]. For women, fame is the tunic of Nessus: the great stars—Garbo, Dietrich, Callas—ended up alone, hidden away, or committed suicide, Marilyn, Romy… 

 When did she begin to die? Perhaps as early as that day in 1958: after yet another Paris Match cover where she was seen on all fours or walking barefoot in minishorts, ogled by hundreds of onlookers in front of the Vachon haberdashery in Saint-Tropez. There she was! Accessible. Because she was the first accessible star in the age of mass culture and mass media. She looked almost like everyone else, or at least like a pretty girl from a wealthy neighborhood. The metal shutter was lowered, the police were called, and she was whisked away amidst insults: trash, slut…

If you don't feel like cutting and pasting lots of French text (especially if it is leftist, unabashedly or otherwise), you can find lots — eighty+ years' worth — of photos of the Sex Kitten at The Daily Mail. Plus check out a couple of short AI videos on Brigitte Bardot's life and career.

Besides her private life, Le Point also presents the movie star's singing career and the icon BB's five unforgettable films with as many trailers. Incidentally, as a kid I watched Viva Maria! on television, expecting the revolutionary movie in Central America to be nothing more than a fun politics-free Western-type action romp (American trailer: Viva Fun! Viva Love! Via Suspense! Viva Striptease! Viva Adventure! Viva Don't Miss It!), and was severely disillusioned when one of the characters — none other than Bardot herself — shouted "private property is theft!" (Later, the other of the two Maria characters in the Louis Malle movie — Moreau, as can be seen in the French trailer — mocks U.S. anti-communism: No, of course "We have no intention of attacking the United States.") Still, that had nothing to do with my not being as attracted to BB as to Raquel Welch.