So many great gems, as always! Putin's annexation... Ginni Thomas (OMG)... and the very interesting article about loss of smell. I just read that one, and it turns out there are services to help those who have long-term effects from Covid affecting their ability to smell. And of course Ian is all over the news right now. The damage to parts of Florida like Fort Myers Beach is just so shocking.

But this is the best gem of the day, IMHO:

[How the GOP weaponized ignorance — and how “smart people acting like dopes” stay in power](https://www.salon.com/2022/09/30/how-the-weaponized-ignorance--and-how-smart-people-acting-like-dopes-stay-in-power/)

> Satirist Andy Borowitz on deliberate dumbness in America, and how it became central to the Republican brand

I just read his book (linked inside the article) and it's *so* good. Borowitz is brilliant. The book talks about the history of stupidity in politics and how Trump is a natural progression of it. It's an incredible historical perspective on how it started being cool to be dumb... and now smart politicians actual behave dumb because it's what people want to hear. Unbelievable.