Moscow had its own set of rules since it was such a difficult place to work. Former CIA Chief of Disguise Jonna Mendez talks about some of the tactics, gadgets, masks, and disguises CIA operatives used in the field during the Cold War.
Check out Jonna Mendez’s most recent book The Moscow Rules or find more information about her on her website on themasterofdisguise.com. Moscow Rules on amazon.com...
Archival images courtesy of the International Spy Museum (SPY) in Washington, DC, a Guinness World Record recognized nonprofit with the largest collection of spy artifacts in the world. At the Museum, see firsthand some of these spy gadgets: spymuseum.org. Additional archival images courtesy of: Clint Emerson’s Five Second Mask, also courtesy of International Spy Museum Image of Trigon courtesy of the CIA who does not endorse the contents of this production Crypto Museum: cryptomuseum.com. Getty Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division.
Subscribe to WIRED on YouTube ► wrd.cm/15fP7B7 Listen to the Get WIRED podcast ► link.chtbl.com/wired-ytc-desc. Get more incredible stories on science and tech with daily newsletter: wrd.cm/DailyYT Also, check out the free WIRED channel on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and Android TV. Here you can find your favorite WIRED shows and new episodes of our latest hit series Tradecraft. ABOUT WIRED WIRED is where tomorrow is realized. Through thought-provoking stories and videos, WIRED explores the future of business, innovation, and culture. Former CIA Chief of Disguise Breaks Down Cold War Spy Gadgets | WIRED
(The Independent) Is the dead Bibi Netanyahu cafe an AI deep fake (Mossad intel agency psyops or psychological operations/war propaganda) after he died in targeted Iran bombing underground in Tel Aviv after the "mysterious" death of the Israeli judge pursuing him for Molech-level cannibalism, Baal-worthy child torture, and seeking adrenochrome, which is derived from tortured children? Inquiring minds want to know, but who can say? Everything is an allegation, and when you can order a hit on a judge, as apparently someone in Israel did, who will adjudicate a case to find the truth?
Thay (pronounced "Thai") is Thich Nhat Hanh, here explaining a candle flame. Where will it go?
When we all fall asleep, where do we go?
Dhr. Seven, Amber Larson, Ananda (Dharma Buddhist Meditation), Wisdom Quarterly in reply to the implicit question in Billie Eilish's "Bury a Friend": Where do we all go when we die? Where does a flame go when it dies?
And when the flame goes out, where does it go?
That's a nonsense question.
No, it must go somewhere!
Well, where do you suppose -- up, down, sideways?
Well, no, nothing like that. I don't know where it goes.
It isn't there like you think (assume), so it does not "go" anywhere after it is said to "go out." Failing to gain new fuel (and four other factors, heat, oxygen, wick, and process-of-combustion), it fails to "come back in" for the next moment of its appearance. This sounds strange because it goes against our assumptions, but it's very true: In one instance, all five factors (aggregates) gather and manifest as "flame." Failing to get all five in the next moment, no flame/fire appears. This teaches us that what we call "flame" or "fire" is utterly dependent on supporting conditions (these five aggregates or factors) and without them, it is not. However, if it is utterly dependent, then how can it ever be said to have an independent existence? Ultimately speaking, it cannot. But in normal usage, in conventional speech, of course we say, "The flame came into being and then went out of being after some time." This is nice. This seems true. But it was never ultimately true. So there is no confusion. And maybe no one cares about a flame or fire. But if the same thing could be said of us, me and you the individuals, what then?
How could that ever be said of us? We are here now. And when we die or "go out," we reappear somewhere else -- like in heaven, hell, another human life, or a life in another realm in the 31 Planes of Existence.
Conventionally, this is exactly what happens. Unfortunately, ultimately speaking, it is completely wrong. Not only do "we" not go anywhere, what we are calling "we" is completely dependently arisen. Our being, our existence, completely depends on the Five Aggregates clung to as self.
What, we're flames?
No, flames depend on the five factors I mentioned above. "We" depend on the Five Aggregates clung to as self mentioned in the Heart Sutra: form; feelings, perceptions, mental formations, and process of consciousness, the khandhas or skandhas in Sanskrit.
So there is no reappearance?
Oh, there's reappearance (rebirth) all right, but it isn't the rearising of some unchanging "soul," "self," jiva,gandhabba, "ego," "personality," or "I." We are clinging to what is not ours, and we suffer for it.
Aha! You said "we" suffer for it! Who's the "we" that suffers?!
That "we" is the Five Aggregates clung to as self. "We" are not that. "We" do not control that, in an ultimate sense. In a conventional sense, of course, that's all "we" are, and "we" have a great deal of control to develop calm and insight to breakthrough to wisdom and liberate "ourselves" from this samsaric mess. But that, ultimately speaking, is not really what's happening. And it can be proven. The aggregates can be refined, purified, stilled and be seen for what they are. Then clinging stops. And liberation occurs. It's as if the fearful dream lets go of the dreamer. The monstrous illusion loses its power to deceive and make frightened, suffering victims of the aggregates clinging to the aggregates as if they were "self."
When I first encountered Buddhism in the U.S. in the 1990s, it was all about "insight meditation" (vipassana) with some voices shouting that the value of the jhanas (meditative absorptions) was being mistakenly overlooked as a regular practice.
Years later, I came across BPS Wheel 463 (Buddhist Publication Society),which states that the value of “wise reflection” (yoniso manasikara) was being mistakenly overlooked as a regular practice.
This weekend I decided to go back and take another look at Wise Reflection (BPS Wheel 463) with the amazing benefits provided by suttacentral.net's because of its multiple translations per each discourse (Pali sutta) and translator Ṭhānissaro Bhikkhu’s errant translations on dhammatalks.org.
Wisdom Quarterly prefers American scholar-monk Bhikkhu Bodhi's translations in all cases over idiosyncratic and ridiculous Thanissaro Bhikkhu's efforts.
It was a very powerful refresher course (lesson) in the difficulties of translation and the value of reading multiple [English] translations and the value of [the ancient] commentaries.
The translations of yoniso manasikara (not quite those two words as found in the Pali canon) from the Sabbāsava Sutta (MN 2) are diverse!
EXCERPT: Venerable Walpola Rahula (from BPS Wheel 463), in quoting the Buddha, translates yoniso manasikāra as "wise reflection":
“I say that the getting rid of anxieties and troubles [1] is possible for one who knows and sees, not for one who does not know and see. What must one know and see in order to get rid of anxieties and troubles? Wise reflection and unwise reflection... More
All the good girls go to hell, Billie?
When did you join the Illuminati, Pirate? Did Phineas induct you?
I gotta gets me some MANgione before he gets on Death Row with Wade Wilson.
'Deadpool Killer' Wade Wilson's disturbing X-rated prison calls revealed in new documentary
Disturbing X-rated prison calls revealed in new documentary
All is forgiven, even double murder
A string of American women has reportedly been keeping the double murderer company over the phone while he sits on Death Row.
Double murderer Wade Wilson has reportedly been enjoying sordid sexual conversations from prison with an array of female admirers.
The 31-year-old, who was dubbed the "Deadpool Killer" as he shares a name with Ryan Reynolds' popular Marvel character (in the Deadpool series), is currently on Death Row in Florida.
Trauma drama? Ick! No thank you! I just want to get famous on Drops of God.
.
Wade Wilson with Nazi swastika on face
He's not been short of company while behind bars at the Union Correctional Institution, according to reports.
A new documentary titled Handsome Devil: Charming Killer is said to include a host of shocking footage and recordings featuring Wilson flirting with various women.
The three-part series, which premiered on Paramount+ on Tuesday (January 20, 2026), includes snippets of the prison phone calls he has shared with females, some of whom who he refers to as his "girlfriend."
Wilson reportedly discussed impregnating one admirer [with his wand] and "sinking his fangs" into another, among other bizarre statements.
The killer's X-rated prison calls with female admirers are featured in the documentary (CBS/Paramount+). More
COMMENTARY
Why would a woman fall in "love" (or even lust) with a murderer who has killed more than one female like herself? Why would a woman want a man in prison, out of touch and sunk in a hellish world of rapist homosexual men, violent guards, and dreary demons? Who would be attracted to that? Whoever it is, she has to question herself at least a little. We allow it. We even allow conjugal visits, but who finds this alluring, preferable to men on the outside, preferable to "boring" non-murderers? Well, Valentine's Day is approaching, and some can imagine Nothing Higher to Live For: Romantic Love.
This world has lost Erich von Däniken, influential author of Chariots of the Gods?. Swiss author Erich Anton Paul von Däniken (April 14, 1935–January 10, 2026) was the author of several scientific (critics deem "pseudoscientific") books that claimed extraterrestrial (ET) influences on early human culture, including the bestselling Chariots of the Gods?, which was published in 1968. Däniken was one of the main figures responsible for popularizing the ancient astronauts or "paleo-contact" hypothesis. More
Today, Nov. 1, is Día de los Muertos. It’s a time when people celebrate the lives of those who've passed on -- a time to remember family members, close friends, pets, even strangers, perhaps all of humanity.
The Mexican American holiday holds a special place for many people as a way to grieve those who have died and keep their memory alive.
People usually celebrate with an ofrenda or offering altar that has photos of their loved ones, their favorite meals, orange marigolds, pan de muerto[bread for the dead, dead bread, soul cake offerings], sugar skull candies, and other items that have special meaning to those being remembered.
Home altar feels like Halloween
In celebration of the holiday, LAist.com asked readers: "What is a memory of a loved one you would like to share for Día de los Muertos?"
LAist heard from people across Southern California about those favorite moments. This digital ofrenda is meant to highlight those memories.
Offerings (ofrendas) to benefit the deceased who are grateful to be remembered by the living
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Photos of the dead on home altar
Joanne Pineda of Monterey Park (a small city in the San Gabriel Valley of LA County) has made a tradition of celebrating Día de los Muertos with her family. She said she’ll always remember the time when her dad asked her mom to dance to Neil Young’s “Harvest Moon” in the living room.
“Thinking about it now really brings me tears because it just brought them so much joy. It brought them close together,” Pineda said. “For me to be there, to see that, how special it was to them I just think about it all the time.” More
David Rodriguez and Gillian Morán Pérez, LAist.com, "Angelenos are celebrating Día de los Muertos. Here’s who they’re honoring today," Nov. 1, 2025; Crystal Q., CC Liu (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly
(Telerama) Jello Biafra (AlternativeTentacles.com), singer (original frontman) for the Dead Kennedys: "In some ways, maybe punk should die...that way it can be reborn" [and become something influential and important again]. Once a great independent thinker, what has happened now?
(CBS Sunday Morning) Oct 11, 2025: Academy Award-winning actress Diane Keaton, renowned for both comedies like "Annie Hall" and dramas like "The Godfather," died on Oct. 11, 2025, at age 79. In this Nov. 14, 2010 "Sunday Morning" profile, Keaton talked with Katie Couric about her Broadway debut in the musical "Hair"; playing foil to Woody Allen; adopting two children in her 50s; and why she never married. Her mother, Dorothy Deanne (née Keaton), was Mrs. Los Angeles and Mrs. Highland Park, inspiring and encouraging her.
"Ghost Month" (the Seventh Month of the Chinese Lunisolar Calendar, corresponding to Sept. 6 to Oct. 6, 2025) is the time of the Ghost Festival (Yulanpen). It is observed among the Chinese diaspora population of the world, particularly in Chinatowns, Malaysia, Singapore, and anywhere Mahayana Buddhism dominates. Hungry ghosts or petas (Sanskrit pretas) are miserable being who have been reborn deprived due to unskillful karma (deeds).
If hungry ghosts, demons, and malignant spirits are living beings, and Buddhists cherish all sentient beings, how do we exorcise them when they create obstacles in our lives? Why did Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambhava) convert angry subhuman beings into "protectors of the Dharma" (Dharmapalas)? Why did the great Tibetan sage Milarepa have long conversations with ghosts and demons? How do can humans protect against curses and black magic? What are Buddhism’s Protective Verses (Parittas), and how do we chant them? These questions are answered in this “Buddhist Guide to Exorcism: A Spirit Handler’s Guide” and demonstrate some of the methods. More: Buddha Weekly
The Hungry Ghost Realm: A Buddhist Teaching of Hope in Addiction
(Mythos & Logos) Complete Archives: Mythos & Logos. The Realm of Hungry Ghosts (peta-loka) is a plane of existence in Buddhist cosmology, an unfortunate destination, an afterlife marked by deprivation, suffering, and dependency.
The journey of one of the Buddha's chief disciples, Maha Moggallāna (Sanskrit Maudgalyayana, Chinese Mulian), to this realm provides a first step for how to break the vicious cycle of addiction borne of trauma.
Many of us have a "hungry ghost" (peta, preta) lurking inside of us. If anyone is struggling, please reach out to a professional as there are many great organizations, including @TWLOHA, filled with people trained and willing to help.*
00:31 Bhavachakra at Punakha Dzong, Bhutan, photographed by Bernard Gagnon, licensed under Creative Commons
00:49 The Six Realms of Birth, Edo Period Japan, British Museum
01:13 Ghosts from the Bangkok National Museum
01:26 Hungry Ghost Scroll, Kyoto National Museum
02:06 Unending Hunger
02:09 Hungry Ghost Scroll, Kyoto National Museum
02:50 Haunting Ghosts from the Thirty-Seven Nats
03:15 Dr. Gabor Maté, In The Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction
03:54 Hungry Ghost Scroll, Kyoto National Museum
04:39 Maudgalyayana [Maha Moggallana] Rescuing His Mother, Fo Guang Shan Buddha Museum
05:05 From Darkness
05:08 Ven. Maha Moggallana at Wat Olak Madu, Kedah, photographed by Ven. Anandajoti Bhikkhu, licensed under Creative Commons
05:38 Hungry Ghost Scroll, Kyoto National Museum
06:37 Yulanpen Sutra, Mahayana canon
07:12 Shakyamuni Buddha from the Dazu Rock Carvings, photographed by Michael Gunther, licensed under Creative Commons
07:42 Mulian Saves His Mother, 19th Century China
08:26 Into Light
08:30 Silk Roundel with Endless Knot Symbol, 19th Century China, Los Angeles County Museum of Art
09:00 Rahans Receiving Offerings, 19th Century Burma
09:18 Hungry Ghost Scroll, Kyoto National Museum
09:57 Offering at Hong Kong Ghost Festival, photographed by Rose Tim Wing Mxuiek, licensed under Creative Commons
10:10 Begging monk in Himeji, photographed by Nesnad, licensed under Creative Commons
10:20 Mukaebi of the Bon Festival, photographed by Batholith
10:55 Conclusion
10:59 Homeless man in New York, photographed by CGP Grey, licensed under Creative Commons
11:09 The Drinker by Albert Anker
11:26 Sinhalese manuscript, photographed by Wellcome Images, licensed under Creative Commons
11:51 Floating Lanterns, photographed by San Lie, licensed under Creative Commons
12:25 Hungry Ghost Scroll, Kyoto National Museum Ambient - The Ambient by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license.
ABOUT: Mythos and Logos are two ancient words that can be roughly translated as “Story and Meaning.”
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Patreon: mythosandlogos. The purpose of this channel is to share the important stories at the foundation of human cultures throughout history. These include mythology, legends, folktales, religious stories, and parables from the dawn of history to the modern day. This channel provides interpretations and insight into these stories, to find and apply their meaning to contemporary life. All stories covered are treated academically. This channel makes no claims regarding the historical, scientific, or religious truth of these tales. Rather, its goal is to find the meanings understood by their authors and apply them to the modern world.
*All channel income from October 31-November 30, 2021, donated to To Write Love On Her Arms (TWLOHA) to help the Hungry Ghosts around us every day. Thanks for supporting an organization that helps those who are struggling.
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