The Chinese Nail Murders

A Robert Van Gulik early Judge Dee story. I identified the next victim of dog-official Dee in the first pages: Wealthy landowner Chu, a nice fellow with 8 wives and no children. Dee carefully investigated him and in open tribunal presented the case against him, Chu feigned madness to escape death, Dee explained that Chu, having no children, must have some body defect and everybody knows that a man like like him cannot be mentally sane. The management of Chu's business affairs passed to the Tribunal, which sent away the wives with some money and one can imagine what happened to the rest of his fortune. The Magistrate's three wives had travelled and the sex-crazy Dee got complicated in several bad women affairs, to the point that he lost his authority and had to resign. The wife of the pharmacist saved him and the Judge accused her of a murder (hammering a long nail into her husband's brain). Dee is so straight that for him, "Justice" is blind. Chinese stories are sport but I am done with them.  

Les Indes galantes. Les Sauvages

Forêts paisibles,

Jamais un vain désir ne trouble ici nos cœurs.

S’ils sont sensibles,

Fortune, ce n’est pas au prix de tes faveurs.

 

(Chœur des sauvages):

Forêts paisibles,

Jamais un vain désir ne trouble ici nos cœurs.

S’ils sont sensibles,

Fortune, ce n’est pas au prix de tes faveurs.]

 

Dans nos retraites,

Grandeur, ne viens jamais

offrir de tes faux attraits!

Ciel, tu les as faites

pour l’innocence et pour la paix.

Chinese Belt Project

 The Chinese are offering us a grand infrastructure project linking by rail the Port of Haifa (which they are building) and the ports of the Arab Gulf. It would reduce Egypt's income from the Suez Canal, but open profitable trade opportunities for everybody. In fact, China is taking up Imperial Britain's role of organizing world trade, and no one in its right mind would stay outside.  

Spain: 25% less births in 2020

 Spain is one of the countries with negative population growth, each year its population is a million persons lower and in average, more aged. When it was imagined that it cannot fall lower, it did. All European countries have been affected by the epidemic. A catastrophe. 

Caesium-137 storm

Former atomic experimental sites in the Sahara are releasing Caerium 137 dust, which is penetrating to Europe. It is a highly toxic material, people will be advised to stay at home. Ingestion of caesium-137 can be treated with Prussian blue, which binds to it chemically and reduces the biological half-life to 30 days. Pic.: France (It looks like Paris, the Montparnasse? Mais non, c'est Lyon) -  today. The dust avoided Israel but Turkey is alarmed. 

Tuba Skinny

Good Company

Austria, Denmark and Israel launched a cooperative project to produce anti-corona vaccine. I could not choose better partners for Israel. We are in good company.