Flotsam and Jetsam - Ukraine Russia Still Fighting, France Still Burning

WaEx reports Blaze at St. Petersburg oil sites as Kyiv launches more than 1,000 drones at Russia. Jen Kavanaugh at Am Con proposes A Long-Term Plan to Secure Peace for Ukraine, "The brutal, yearslong war might end in 2027—if the White House plays its cards right." Ace looks at The Cognitive Dissonance Of The Pro-Ukraine/Anti-Russia Commentariat. "There is a default assumption among the vast majority of the media, both the mass-market variety and the supposedly high-minded elites who comment on everything, no matter their expertise. Ukraine GOOD! Russia BAD! That sums it up nicely. And they are half correct! What they seem to miss is that Ukraine is a kleptocratic cesspool of corruption, and their only saving grace is that they were attacked by Putin's Russia, and not by Poland or Belarus, which would have elicited a giant yawn in western capitals. And they also miss the provocation from the West that probably began with Bush senior, when Russia was still the Soviet Union. They were promised that NATO had no plans to expand east, so the buffer between western Europe and mother Russia that the Soviet Union had created wasn't necessary." And Sundance at CTH, well, sundance has Sunday Talks – Treasury Secretary Bessent: “Zelenskyy Needs to be Very Careful About Making Statements That are Not True”…, Zelenskyy is Lying – Secretary Marco Rubio Responds to False Claims About Ukraine, Starlink and Starshield, President Trump Points Out Zelenskyy’s Financial Motivation to Keep War Going and Mike Steger Interprets President Trump Ukraine and Russia Policy Objectives. The Babylon Bee @TheBabylonBee, "Man Frustrated By Gas Prices Votes To Start Castrating Kids Again."

Also at CTH, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney Confirms 4 Dead, Several Dozens Injured, During Military Live-Fire Exercise, live fire hit a natural gas wellhead, started a wildfire in a drought with high winds. What the...? Did they hire Karen Bass to advise?

At Da Wire Trump Lays Out Why He’s Canceling Plans To Live-Stream Terrorist Execution, "The decision came after days of speculation on whether the administration would follow through on Secretary of War Pete Hegseth's announcement." Don Surber explains How Trump got Hasan’s execution accepted, "Cartoonist Scott Adams saw him as a wizard who got people to think through the sale. Trump did." He starts by asking for the moon and stars, and settles for the moon.

Dave Strom sees Radicals Burning France Down. From Driscoll at Insty, IS PARIS SCUFFLING? Government Buildings Torched As French Riots Reach the ‘Point of No Return.’ "Related: Very fine people on both sides..." EuroNews reports a Euronews' crew assaulted by masked individuals while covering protests in Paris. At Althouse just Paris. Visegrád 24 @visegrad24, "Galeries Lafayette in Paris is being looted tonight. It’s the French equivalent of Harrods in London or Bergdorf Goodman in NYC," and BREAKING: The looters in Marseille have started targeting private homes villas in affluent areas. They are breaking into large villas in the 7th arrondissement of Marseille." Cathy Salgado at PJM hears a Report: Marseille Rioters Burned Jewish-Owned Shops, Left Muslim-Owned Ones Untouched. Nick Arama at RedState, Macron Faces Fury When It's Revealed What He Was Doing As Riots Escalated in France; "Macron and his wife, Brigitte, were spotted at Dion’s concert at the Plenitude Arena in Nanterre, west of Paris, according to French media reports. The couple reportedly arrived and left discreetly and were among roughly 35,000 spectators at the performance." From sundance, During National Address to France President Macron Says He “Doesn’t Know What is Going On” but He’s Sure President Trump is to Blame. At the Telegraph, Trump blames France violence on immigration, "US president urges country to ‘close your borders and take control’ as cost-of-living demonstrations turn violent."

From the Manhattan Contrarian, France Is The Future Of The Progressive Project. Geiger Capital @Geiger_Capital, "Europe gives them free healthcare, free housing, free education, every social program, and a quality of life they could never have back home… yet they will still loot and destroy the West into the third-world. There is no magic soil. A nation is simply it’s people." Twitchy finds @IsraelWarRoom Has Some Interesting Suggestions on How France Should Address Its Riots (LOL). Israel War Room @IsraelWarRoom, "We call on France to exercise restraint when dispersing the freedom fighters on the streets of Paris. These brave warriors for justice must receive immediate humanitarian aid, and their safety must be guaranteed in accordance with international law. Failure to comply will leave us no choice but to bring a case before the ICJ, in close cooperation with that renowned champion of human rights, Afghanistan."

Hat Hair's Josh Hammer calls Abdul El-Sayed A Muslim Brotherhood Puppet and a Grave National Security Threat. Sister Toldja at RedState hears 'No': Mike Rogers Shuts Down Reporter's TDS in Exchange on El-Sayed's Muslim Brotherhood Ties. From the Crimson Hub, Profiting from Socialism: Meet the DSA lobbyists set to make bank if DSA-dominated Dems win big next month. At Althouse, "The D.S.A.’s rise is at once a story of party-blobification and of a revolt against it. Like the conservatives of the 1970s..." "... the group frankly views the party it occupies as a host for an ideological movement rather than as a partner...." From "Is Anyone Actually in Charge of the Democratic Party? And Does It Matter? This year’s midterm elections are a test of whether a party can be a success and a failure at the same time" (NYT)." Nicolle Russell at USA Today warns Texas, don't let James Talarico's charm fool you. "Like former President Barack Obama, Texas state Rep. James Talarico sells unity to cloud his progressive record. Conservatives who believed Obama know how that ends." 

At Am Think Monica Showalter thinks about Is Rep. Ilhan Omar a U.S. citizen? "So, not Somali-American anymore, just Somali?" From Twitchy, Welp, This Tidbit About the Ilhan Omar Raid BLOWS the Left's Trump Targeting Claims Out of the WATER. Fox News Politics @foxnewspolitics, "The judge who signed the warrant to raid Rep. Ilhan Omar's DC home is a Hillary Clinton donor who clerked for an Obama appointee. That fact alone demolishes the left's claim that this is some Trump-orchestrated political hit job. Mike Davis argues the opposite is true: the evidence against Omar must be so overwhelming that even a judge with deep leftist ties couldn't refuse to sign off. The Fourth Amendment requires probable cause of at least one federal crime inside that home, and U.S. Magistrate Judge Matthew Sharbaugh — appointed by a bench dominated by Obama and Biden picks — found it was there...." Joe Chalfant thinks Obama's Comments on the Ilhan Omar Situation Are Absolutely Insane. Will Ricciardella @WillRicci, "FLASHBACK: Obama’s IRS singled out Tea Party and other conservative groups for heightened scrutiny based on their names and political positions, delayed tax-exempt applications for years and demanded unnecessary donor information. The IRS ultimately admitted wrongdoing and apologized. Obama insisted there was “not even a smidgen of corruption.” Quote Barack Obama @BarackObama, "It is a basic principle of American democracy that the government can’t selectively target individuals simply because of their political beliefs or what they say. But that’s exactly what the Trump Administration is doing to Congresswoman Ilhan Omar of Minnesota."

Atop Da Hill, Read this before you buy the ‘blue tsunami’ hype, "4 reasons why we should treat midterm polls with caution." Eric S. Raymond @esrtweet, "We've seen this movie before, it's a very common attempt to manipulate the voter pool. Phase 1: Bogus polls put the Democrat way ahead during most of the run-up in an attempt to demoralize Republican voters. Phase 2: Bogus polls are allowed to tighten to a very narrow D lead just before the election. An honest poll would show a huge R lead. Phase 3: Ballot fraud steals the election. The purpose of the bogus polls was to supply top cover for the fraud. It's a tale as old as time." Quote Kostas Moros @MorosKostas, "Texas polls converging on much smaller Talarico leads than they showed a month ago. From 5-7 point leads down to just 1-3 points. Either the massive Paxton rescue effort is working, or the Talarico leads were always BS." Commonplace urges Confidence, Not Faith, in the Ballot Box, "An election system should provide something that transcends disagreements: a process that can be examined."

DataRepublican (small r) @DataRepublican, "The past few days, I got my hands on thousands of new transcripts and hundreds of recordings, thanks to leads from @SKDoubleDub33 and @iamlisalogan . You've heard that the DSA is proposing structural reforms to America, including abolishing the Senate and imposing term limits. What you not have heard is - there is an operational plan to put it all into action. If the Democratic Party sweeps 2026, then DSA will become "foot soldiers" in constant clashes with the administration to cross a "red line" or invoke a "doomsday scenario" - meaning, President Trump invokes the Insurrection Act, probably sometime in 2027...." ((( Charlottesville ))) @CvilleBubble, "Heads Up, Virginia: AG Jay Jones’ 10-page election directive is the DataRepublican blueprint in real time. @DataRepublican laid it out: coordinated clashes with the federal government to delegitimize it and hand legitimacy to Democratic state officials -- specifically governors & AGs Virginia’s AG just ordered election officials to: • Deny ordinary DOJ monitors access to polls • Tell federal agents to leave and call local police • Document badges, weapons, vehicles & movements • Challenge federal subpoenas • While eliminating Election Day voter eligibility challenges. No specific unlawful federal operation identified—just preemptive resistance that sets up the “red line” showdown and shifts authority to the state and transfers legitimacy and control to Democratic state officials -- in Virginia's case, leftwing extremists Governor Abigail Spanberger and Attorney General Jay Jones --This is an operational plan, not theory. The conditions for escalation are being set in advance. SHARE with your friends. VOTE REPUBLICAN..."

There were a veritable plethora of responses to Elissa Slotkins stated plan of going after Republican youth to discourage them from supporting Trump. PJM's Matt Margolis, Democrats Just Cranked Their Government Weaponization Agenda Up to 11. Hat Hair's Dave Strom, Elissa Slotkin to Young Republicans: We Are Coming for You. Insty collected a number of tweets, Cynical Publius @CynicalPublius, "I honestly do not understand how any American who is not already a literal Communist or a literal Jihadist could vote Democrat after hearing what Slotkin said below. This is LITERALLY totalitarianism. It's not the fake "fascism" the Left likes to accuse the Right of, it is the REAL THING. Undeniably. Irrefutably. This is a sitting member of Congress who was in the CIA saying that dissent from what she believes will result in imprisonment. ..." Karol Markowicz @karol, "They told me the US was heading toward fascism and they were right," Quote New York Post @nypost, "Sen. Slotkin urges Dems to use prosecution to make young people afraid to serve in Trump admin." Hon. Vickie Paladino @VickieforNYC, "It’s a very short jump from here to reeducation camps, gulags, and mass graves." Quote The Chicago Thinker @ThinkerChicago, "ON UCHICAGO CAMPUS: U.S. Senator from Michigan Elissa Slotkin hopes planned political prosecutions of republican leaders will scare young conservatives from getting involved in politics." Amy Curtis @RantyAmyCurtis, "Really looking forward to the David French column about how Slotkin is right."

Dan McLaughlin @baseballcrank, "Make no mistake: this sort of conspiratorial hyperbole, utterly disconnected from the actual written Constitution & aiming at its marginalization, is agitprop aimed at the destruction of our constitutional order." Quote Josh Marshall @joshtpm, Replying to @joshtpm, "2/ Supreme Court in American history with the possible exception of the Roger Taney's Dred Scott court. The Roberts Court has spent the last 15 years tearing up the constitutional order and the last seven or eight years being little more than an extra-constitutional veto for ..."

Greg Lukianoff at The Eternally Radical Idea declares FIRE victory in NJ! Deplatformings hit all-time high! The impending (and ongoing) ‘Academic Filibuster’! & more! From The Telegraph (UK) Mother referred to Prevent for ‘over-identifying with Israel’ Coming to New York soon, I expect. 

Charles Murray @charlesmurray, "Starting with the Coleman Report in 1966, continuing with studies of prison rehabilitation, job training programs, causes of poverty, race differences in IQ, and causes of sex differences in occupational preferences. To name a few." Quote Steve Sailer @Steve_Sailer Replying to @ArtemisConsort, "Almost nobody realizes that just about every liberal feel-good nostrum has been tested by liberal social scientists over the last 60 years, with practically none of them turning out true. That was already fairly well established when I started reading social science in 1972."

At Althouse, "If sexual misconduct prevents a victim from taking full advantage of her education, then the institution has to address it." ""That responsibility is an awkward fit in some ways, but it reflects the reality that colleges are not just classrooms; they are a very particular kind of community in which all members have a duty of care toward one another. The Cornell case shows how hard it can be for universities to enforce Title IX well and also why they have to keep trying...." Writes Emily Bazelon, in "This Is One of the Saddest Facts About the Cornell Rape Case" (NYT). The sad fact in question is that Jane Doe dropped out, and she did not complete her degree elsewhere. Her education — her path to a career — was disrupted." By actions she initiated and participated in willingly. One of the commenters suggested OnlyFans. 

The Monday Morning Stimulus

With a lead off from Damla Durgan:

From Flow Space, Your Coffee Habit Could Actually Help Slow Aging

Then why am I getting old?

Oregon, My Oregon

Oregon politician Nafisa Fai just held a rally in MN, speaking Somali, with an American flag UPSIDE DOWN. Enough with the pretending already. These are not Americans. https://t.co/UwBbhxOn1h

— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) October 15, 2026

Flotsam and Jetsam - France on Fire

But first, Hat Hair's John Sexton hears Iran Denies Pursuing a Bomb, Makes Fresh Threats Against US, so just another day ending in Y. Roger Simon has a source On Location in Kermanshah: Behind the Iranian Curtain, "Out of research comes friendship and concern." From JihadWatch, Saudi Arabia: A nightmare for pilgrims traveling to holy sites amid Houthi strikes. A second world problem.

Sundance sees Riots, Looting and Arson Erupt in France with Chaos across Urban Regions in Western Europe. Dr. Eli David @DrEliDavid, "As France is burning, I keep thinking of what the UAE Foreign Minister said a few years ago He accurately predicted this." Lara Logan @laralogan, "Wow. What will the French do? Fight for France or take a knee?" Quote Houman David Hemmati, MD, PhD @houmanhemmati, "In case you were wondering what @ZohranKMamdani & others means when they say “Globalize the Intifada,” it’s this. Coming soon to a DSA-run city and state near you." Quote Shai Goldman @shaig, "Marseille city hall has fallen & they have put up Palestinian flags inside." Rod Dreher @roddreher, "If this isn’t civil war, what is it?" Quote Inevitable West @Inevitablewest, "BREAKING: The historic Limoges town hall has just completely collapsed after far-left rioters set it on fire It was built in 1876. It survived World Wars. It did not survive modern France." Driscoll at Insty, IS PARIS SCUFFLING? "Or to paraphrase CNN in 2020, mostly peaceful but surprisingly fiery scuffles." Kurt Schlichter @KurtSchlichter, "You have to have a heart of stone not to laugh." Quote The Beringer Project @BradBeringer, "A liberal French women explains to these African Islamic invaders robbing her family’s store that she’s on their side & voted for them to come here & voted to defund the police They laughed and mocked her and stole all her merchandise & probably r_ped." Jonah Goldberg, occasionally sensible when not talking about Trump, calls Greta Thunberg Addicted to Protest. 

John Sexton heard a Report Musk Suggested Cutting Ukraine's Starshield Access, as a way of getting Ukraine's attention. Sundance at CTH sees New York Times Leads Leftist Media Movement to Target Trump for Exempting Russia from New U.S. Sanctions Regime. Despite the Ukraine war, Europe is dependent on Russian oil.

Sundance also hosts USMCA Update – U.S. Trade Representative Discusses Canada with Glenn Beck. E.J. Antoni, Ph.D. @RealEJAntoni, "The manufacturing recovery cont'd in Sep w/ industrial production up 0.7% M/M and 2.2% Y/Y, fastest annual increase in 4 yrs and closing in on record high; capacity utilization also cont'd marching higher, up 1.2 percentage points Y/Y".

Matt Margolis at PJM, Here’s How White House Insiders Engineered Zacharia’s Exit. "Two people told the outlet that Wiles helped arrange the Sean Hannity interview that sealed Zacharia's fate, and that Zacharia was never Wiles' preferred choice for the job. Meanwhile, Trump officials texted CNN hosts about her weak first briefing, and some may have been acting on orders. One person familiar with the internal dynamics, speaking anonymously to Politico, called the Hannity appearance a "sanctioned hit" on Zacharia." Eric W. @EWess92, "In the wake of "lawyer v. attorney" kerfuffle, I learned folks feel very strongly about people claiming to be an attorney/lawyer if not able to practice law. I also learned that commentator Elie Mystal (who self-describes as an attorney) never got admitted in NY. It's the same" The Babylon Bee @TheBabylonBee, "Trump Criticized For Choosing New Press Secretary Jessica Rabbit." At RedState Nick Arama sees CBS Tries to Trap Vance With Guilfoyle Question, but They Go Down in Flames From His Great Reply. "First of all, if somebody's selling access to the White House, that's disgusting and despicable and they should suffer consequences," Vance responded. He went on to say, "I want to make those judgments based on the facts and not based on a random news media report that I read."

National Interest think Even by Recent Standards, This Year’s Continuing Resolution Is a Disaster. The ability of Congress to govern spending is reaching a breaking point.

Matt Margolis sees Jessica Tarlov Defend El-Sayed in Front of Gutfeld and Watters. Big Mistake! From Hat Hair's Dave Strom, You Can't Hate the Media Enough: Reason # ∞. Drs Abdul El-Sayed and Jill Biden vs "Mr" Ben Carson. "Byron York brought the receipts, and his point is dead on. People in the cultural elite love to focus on credentials as a class signifier, but it's easy to miss that class comes first, and the signifier is just the endorsement that a person belongs. If somebody has the credential — even a far better one by normal standards — but isn't seen as a member of the class, the credential gets memory-holed." From Shooting Newsweek, Is Anyone Surprised the Gun Control Industry Has Gotten Behind Michigan Islamist Abdul El-Sayed? At the Chronic, Mamdani’s Sanctuary House of Cards Will Collapse.

Nick Arama thinks Tafoya Trounces Flanagan in Minnesota Senate Debate, Ends Her With a Memorable Line. "My goodness, she was second in charge in this state, and she's just going to point her finger at Gov. Tim Walz...when she demanded to be in the room where everything happened. But, suddenly, she has nothing to do with this. Again, my goodness! Sell it to someone else." Capt. Ed, 'Sell It to Someone Else': Tafoya Blows Up Flanagan Over Massive Fraud. The polls are within the margin of error, thus not beyond the margin of fraud. Hat Hair's Beege Welborn is upset Chicago Hands Out 'Lifetime Achievement Award' to Convicted Terrorists, Grooms New Ones. Well, they have a reputation to uphold. 

From Twitchy, Sen. Alex Padilla Schooled After Complaining Trump Admin Is Bullying CA Election Officials. Mike Lee @BasedMikeLee, "Senator Padilla claims the DOJ offered “no evidence” and no details. That’s false. Completely false. Federal agencies (USCIS + HSI) conducted a multi-stage data match of California’s voter rolls against immigration records, naturalization data, State Department records, and SSA data. The federal agencies involved used confidence-level matching, secondary review, and further investigation before identifying roughly 20,000 likely noncitizens who were mailed (or set to receive) ballots. The DOJ then provided California officials a specific list of those names on a password-protected drive and asked them to segregate the ballots pending verification—not cancel them. California refused to even *review* the list. “No evidence” is just the talking point they use when they don’t like the evidence. But that talking point is demonstrably false. Noncitizen voting in federal elections is a federal crime. Demanding basic verification isn’t baseless—it’s the law." Quote Senator Alex Padilla @SenAlexPadilla, "First, they offer no evidence to try to block 20,000 ballots from being counted. Now, the Trump Administration is threatening California election officials with criminal investigations without any legal basis. The Constitution gives states the authority to administer elections" Beege Welborn, The Over/Under on That Thing That 'Never Happens' Is Suddenly Tightening Up.

TownHall's Matt Vespa hears Federal Agents Are Searching Ilhan Omar's Trash. Something Else Might Be Going On. Defiant L’s @DefiantLs, "The CNN panel did not like when being hit with the facts about Ilhan Omar What's funny to me is they would fight tooth and nail and do anything to defend a Democrat." Nick Adams @NickAdamsinUSA, "Rashida Tlaib after Mar-a-Lago was raided: "No one is above the law, no matter how rich or powerful they are. Let justice be served." Rashida Tlaib after Ilhan Omar's house was raided: "DHS raiding a Member of Congress's home is exactly what a fascist police state does.""

John Sexton reports Los Angeles DA Considers Bringing Charges Against Eric Swalwell. Just another Democrat rapist (allegedly), ho hum.

At the Spec, Roger Kimball looks at Jack Smith’s plot against the republic. Evita Duffy-Alfonso @evitaduffy_1, "Sen. Slotkin just openly threatened to persecute anyone who worked for Trump, with the explicit goal of intimidating young conservatives." Quote The Chicago Thinker @ThinkerChicago, "ON UCHICAGO CAMPUS: U.S. Senator from Michigan Elissa Slotkin hopes planned political prosecutions of republican leaders will scare young conservatives from getting involved in politics." Miranda Devine @mirandadevine, "What a piece of work. And this is what the Democrats present as a "moderate." A moderate CIA operative. C3 @C_3C_3, "Like it never happened. Insane." Quote Gain of Fauci @DschlopesIsBack, "“Governor Tim Walz ordered me to assassinate Amy Klobuchar.” - Vance Boelter" Gina Milan @ginamilan_, "Never forget: Democrats were throwing Molotov cocktails at Teslas because Elon Musk wanted to DOGE government fraud."

From RCE, Courts Need to Remove Climate Activist Thumb From the Scales of Justice. "At the request of 27 states’ attorneys general, the Federal Judicial Center recently removed the manual’s chapter on climate science because it did more to influence judicial outcomes than to help federal judges evaluate scientific evidence. And the reference guide’s chapter called “How Science Works” is guilty of a similar offense." John Lucas at Bravo Blue looks at The Constitution’s Red-Headed Stepchild -- The Second Amendment "Rights? Rights? Constitutional rights? You ain’t ‘got no stinkin’rights!" CIS explains Why New York Won’t Honor ICE Detainers for Criminal Aliens "Most ICE arrests traditionally have been ‘custodial’ ones — except under Biden — so sanctuary politicos who want to end agency enforcement prevent immigration officers from taking their alien criminals." They want to make it as hard as possible so they have more "victims" to showcase.

From the NY Sun, Harvard’s Faculty Lead Academia in Record Donations to Democrats in Key Senate Races, "With large donations coming in at unprecedented levels, employees at colleges and universities under investigation by the Trump administration are focused on trying to turn the Senate blue." From the College Fix, Baylor accused of ‘mission drift’ after high-profile Christian apologetics event canceled. Jonathan Turley, Religiously Woke: Dean of Students Warns that Saying “In Christ Alone” Constitutes “White Privilege.” Amy Curtis at TownHall sees Former Congressman and Retired Army Lt. Col. Allen West Was Barred From Speaking on College Campus. Leslie Eastman at LI reports Native American Warriors Shatter Academia’s Colonialism Narrative. "On this Columbus Day, I am celebrating patriotism that is more powerful than the politics of resentment."

David M. Sabatini @DMSabatini, "Today I smiled for real for the first time in more than 5 years. Thank you to the jury, judge, court officer and clerk. And of course to my rockstar legal team. I truly wish the best for everyone involved." Quote The Boston Globe @BostonGlobe, "A civil jury ruled in favor of ex-MIT scientist David Sabatini, who was accused by a younger colleague of inappropriate sexual conduct in his Cambridge research lab, and awarded him $6 million in damages." At Althouse, "It’s surreal. I’ve been dreaming about this moment for all this time, but often thinking I might not make it, financially, emotionally or physically." "Said David Sabatini, after the verdict, quoted in "M.I.T. Scientist Wins $6 Million in Sexual Harassment Defamation Suit/David Sabatini, once a prominent scientist at M.I.T., sued a former colleague who accused him of inappropriate behavior. A jury found in his favor" (NYT)." Jonathan Turley @JonathanTurley, "Michael S. Roth, the president of Wesleyan University, is calling for fraternities to be forced to admit women to change the culture. It is a call that is feeding a familiar mob forming over a case before any charges or evidence is established ..." Cadbury Cream James @James_PA10, ""Fraternities are raping us women repeatedly! Let us in!"" Quote, "Michael S Roth @mroth78, ""where all-male fraternities play an important role..there are just too many horror stories waiting to happen. Forcing these organizations to admit women, as well as trans &nonbinary students, can make campuses safer for all...whatever their gender"" Hollywood in Toto notes Shane Gillis Must Be Stopped! (But Not Hasan Piker?). "Woke 2.0 is as fraudulent and hypocritical as first, insidious wave."

Palm Sunday

Again, with Damla Durgun:

newstalkzb.co.nz, Why are these dangerous trees allowed to exist in New Zealand?

Yesterday, my five-year-old niece had to have surgery. She was bumped up the priority list at Nelson Hospital by an orthopaedics team who were a bit concerned about her condition. Her ankle hurt, and her mum reckoned it was looking swollen and feeling a bit hot, the telltale signs of infection.
...
And what was it, you’re wondering. Why did your sweet, cheeky, little 5-year-old niece have to go forego her breakfast and anything by mouth, and endure all the stress of being poked and prodded, the fear of being put to sleep, why did she have to be forcibly held down so the anaesthetist could get the mask on her face and the surgeons could cut open her little ankle and slice down into the flesh?

The reason is that as a result of an innocent accident when she was playing with her friends, she ended up with what the surgeon told her mum is the single most common foreign object their team gets called on to remove. No, it wasn’t Lego. It wasn’t a rusty nail or drawing pin gone bad. It was a spike from the frond of a Phoenix palm tree.

Now this is either yet another example of my ignorance, which I’ll concede is fairly likely, or maybe this comes as a surprise to you too. I had absolutely no idea that Phoenix palm trees posed such a serious risk.

They’re obviously an exotic. They’re originally from the Canary Islands of all places, but you see them all the time in coastal parts of New Zealand. They look tropical and quite attractive in the right setting, but their structure is downright sinister. At the end of their fronds are long, sharp spikes. The spikes are poisonous. They snap off under the skin. And that, as it turns out, is a very nasty combination.

As I've mentioned before, my parent's house in Los Angeles had several large palms, including two Canary Island Date Palms, and I can attest to the very pointy and annoying spike, which are actually at base, and not the tip of the fronds. Neither are they venomous (if you bite it and you die, it's poisonous; if it bites or sticks you and you die, it's venomous). We used to play with them as swords. I'm sure I was stuck more than 10 times (I can be a slow learner), and one never broke off, and I never got an infection. Actually, it's kind of a miracle I survived to adulthood, if that's what this is.