the powerful don’t need no badges and don’t give no shit, man.
Mar 07, 2026
Mirror neurons are specialized brain cells that activate both when you perform an action and when you observe someone else doing the same action. Psychologists believe these neurons play a key role in emotional contagion, empathy, and social learning. When you spend time around others, your brain is constantly mirroring their facial expressions, tone of voice, body language, and emotional states without conscious effort.
This process explains why moods spread quickly in groups. If someone around you is anxious, calm, motivated, or joyful, your brain partially recreates that emotional state internally. Over time, repeated exposure strengthens these neural patterns, shaping behavior, attitudes, and even habits. This is why environments matter so much for mental health and personal growth.
Mirror neurons also help humans learn efficiently. Children acquire language, social norms, and emotional regulation largely through observation rather than instruction. Adults continue using the same system to adapt to social circles, workplaces, and relationships.
Psychology research links strong mirror neuron activity to higher empathy and social awareness. However, it also means prolonged exposure to negativity can increase stress and emotional fatigue. Being mindful of who you surround yourself with is not just advice; it is neuroscience. Your brain is wired to adapt, reflect, and align with the emotional world it experiences daily.
Amazon has withdrawn from the Paris book festival after a boycott by France’s booksellers’ association prompted a row over the company’s sponsorship of the event.
The festival, due to take place from 17 to 19 April, will now go ahead without the backing of the US retail company, after a mutual decision by organisers and Amazon to end their partnership.
The dispute started after the French booksellers’ association Syndicat de la Librairie Française (SLF) announced it would boycott the festival in protest at Amazon’s involvement.
The SLF has been sharply critical of Amazon, arguing that it destabilises the book trade. In a statement reported by the Bookseller, it accused the company of seeking “to flood the market with fake AI-generated books, [which are] promoted by fake reviews, written by fake readers [and rise] to the top of fake rankings”. It also criticised the publishers’ association and the festival organisers for what it described as an “irresponsible” decision to collaborate with Amazon, taken in the name of short-term financial interests.
2014?
Amazon.com is facing another PR backlash over its ongoing dispute with publisher Hachette as a group of more than 900 authors have signed a letter demanding that the Seattle online retailer resolve the fight, and live up to its corporate mantra of “Earth’s most customer-centric company.”
The group, operating under the name Author’s United, plans to reprint the letter in a full page ad in The New York Times this Sunday. The letter reprints the email address of Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, and asks readers to email him with their thoughts.
“It is not right for Amazon to single out a group of authors, who are not involved in the dispute, for selective retaliation,” the letter reads. “Moreover, by inconveniencing and misleading its own customers with unfair pricing and delayed delivery, Amazon is contradicting its own written promise to be “Earth’s most customer-centric company.”
Author Douglas Preston, who initially penned the letter and is published by Hachette, tells The New York Times that Amazon.com has “turned its back” on authors.
Amazon.com issued this statement to The New York Times about the latest salvo from the authors, many of whom are not published through Hachette.
“First, Hachette was willing to break the law to get higher e-book prices, and now they’re determined to keep their own authors in the line of fire in order to achieve that same end. Amazon has made three separate proposals to take authors out of the middle, all of which Hachette has quickly dismissed.”
Comedian Stephen Colbert— whose books are published through Hachette — blasted Amazon earlier this year. In the June episode, Colbert ripped Jeff Bezos — comparing him to Lord Voldermort, the villain in Harry Potter — and finished the piece by giving Amazon.com the middle finger through a packaging box. With both hands.
He has not signed the letter, but many other notable authors have joined fight, including Jon Krakauer, Sherman Alexie, Scott Turow, Nora Roberts and Malcolm Gladwell.
Yeah, the cocksuckers in the world are not protesting, man. No Kings Day plenty of Ukrainian flags and sunflowers while ZioNaziAzov Lensky is sending drones and soldier to Israel.
Trump’s demands for ending Iran war shift as US military works through its target list
Now what is this about Adolph Bibi and Pedop;hile and rapist Trump LOSING?
Cuba is going: There have been protests in darkness in Cuba, as thousands of people still remain without electricity after a huge blackout hit the western part of the island on Wednesday. Authorities blamed the outage on US sanctions and a lack of fuel for energy facilities.
Oh Iran: Global fertiliser supplies could be disrupted by Middle East conflict. Around a third of fertiliser raw materials pass through the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping route now affected by tensions.
Iran is winning? Iran’s air force was the most powerful in the Middle East in 1979, and nothing about it has changed since then. That’s a big problem for Tehran.
Operation Epic Fury has exposed the limitations of Iran’s aging air force. Within the first days of the campaign, US and Israeli forces achieved air superiority over Iranian air space—a contest during which Iranian fighters were largely absent from the skies.
The Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF) has sometimes been described as a “flying museum,” as much of it dates back to the pre-1979 era. Following the 1979 revolution, Western nations blocked Iran’s attempts to buy new aircraft, leaving the country reliant on 50-year-old American jets and a small number of Soviet aircraft. As a result, the IRIAF has struggled to match modern fifth-generation fighters such as the F-35 and the F-22.
Trump is losing the Donroe Doctrine? Trump vows to use US military force against cartels across Latin America
Seventeen countries signed onto a joint security declaration as Trump convened his closest hemispheric allies in Florida for an inaugural Shield of the Americas Summit.
Sure, one fucking Amazon plant: The Tech Download: Data centers become military targets in Iran war
Iranian drones strike Amazon data centres in Bahrain, UAE
Yeah? Are you sure they do anything? Iran has deployed a new missile variant called “Etemad” during the 25th wave of operations.
Missiles such as Kheibar Shekan and Fattah, which have been used in recent operations, generally have a range of about 1,400 to 1,450 kilometers.
An upgraded version of the Kheibar Shekan, known as Kheibar Shekan-2, has a range of up to 1,800 kilometers, although the images released so far mainly show the standard versions.
Yeah, you sure about that? Venezuela’s Humiliating Retreat May Be Temporary.
Happy? Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodriguez and U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum stand together as they attend to deliver statements at Miraflores Palace, in Caracas, Venezuela, March 4, 2026.
Since January 3, when the U.S. bombed Caracas, killed over 100 people, and kidnapped President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, acting President Delcy Rodríguez has cordially hosted numerous U.S. officials in Caracas, and now fully restored diplomatic relations with Washington.
At gunpoint, the U.S. now decides who can receive Venezuelan oil and how much oil revenue Venezuela can receive. On Truth Social the other day, Trump essentially patted the acting president of Venezuela on the head telling her she was doing a fine job. Delcy (as everyone calls her) replied on X by thanking the genocidal monster, rapist and probable pedophile. It seems likely that Delcy will soon host Trump himself in the city where he very recently spilled Venezuelan and Cuban blood – perhaps without Trump even bothering to release Maduro and his wife from prison beforehand.
Going going GONE, Chavez.
Delcy’s foreign minister, Ivan Gil, made a disgraceful statement after the U.S. initiated a war of aggression against Iran on February 28. The statement – which was promptly deleted – failed to name the U.S. and “Israel” as aggressors, but criticized Iran for how it defended itself. The statement was essentially rebuked by elements of the Chavista movement (named after former President Hugo Chavez) that was President Maduro’s, and now Delcy’s, support base.
Iran’s government has been a courageous ally of Venezuela’s for many years. It has played a significant role in helping Venezuela survive the murderous sanctions the U.S. has imposed since 2017. In 2015, Obama imposed illegal economic sanctions that were damaging, but Trump made them truly lethal.
Yeah? News? The Brains of Ultra-Powerful People Experience an Altered State of Reality, Research Suggests
“The neuroscience is pretty uncomfortable. People in positions of power show reduced activity in mirror neuron systems, the circuitry responsible for empathy and perspective-taking.” –Shonna Waters, PhD
Paul Haeder, Author 