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SMOKED, by Patrick Quinlan. 
Discover how to get the ebook version of this novel free, for a limited time.

 

Chaos is the Whole Point

Palestinians in horror after Israelis opened fire on an aid distribution site.  The Israelis have killed hundreds of people at aid sites, in just the past several days.

Who Pulls the Donald's Strings?

The Donald is often portrayed as a marionette, manipulated by Vladimir Putin.  But there's more to the story.

 

New Art You Will Love - Proven Results! Guaranteed.

"Beach Car," acrylic on canvas, 2025 by Otto Von Miller. 
Discover more wicked cool paintings below.

Here is the DC Shooter Manifesto

Elias Rodriguez, the DC shooter, shouting, "Free, free Palestine," while being led away by cops to whatever fate awaits him.

 

"We Are Burning." Palestinian artists killed by the Israelis in Gaza

"We Are Burning," the last work by digital artist Mahasen al-Kateeb.  The image depicts the death of 19-year-old Sha'ban al-Dalou, who made headlines when he was burned alive on October 14, 2024 by an Israeli airstrike on a makeshift hospital in Gaza.  Al-Kateeb herself was killed by an Israeli airstrike four days later.  

The Ghost

The Houthis are better than us

Houthi fighters brandish their weapons (machine guns and rifles, yes, but also knives, saws and hatchets) on March 28, 2025, in Sanaa, Yemen.  Dig the gun-toting 10-year-old boy on dad's shoulders, top center-right. 

Man on Fire

"Man on Fire," acrylic on canvas, 2025. 
This is a painting by the artiste Otto Von Miller, who is also Thee Optimist. 

I Like These Tariffs

Donald Trump re-imagined as the Hindenburg Disaster.

Death By Ungawa

Twenty-three year old Michael Rockefeller, wealthy descendant of John D. Rockefeller, fusses with a camera while Papua New Guinean stone age tribesmen look on.  Rockefeller disappeared on November 19, 1961, after a canoe he was in tipped over.  All indications are he swam to shore, then was captured, killed and eaten by the local cannibals.     

That time Robert Kennedy, Jr., hit on my future ex-wife

The current US Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., having a bit of fun with a dead bear cub.  Kennedy accidentally ran over the cub on a highway in upstate New York in 2014.  He kept the corpse and intended to freeze it and eat it.  But he found himself late for a flight, so he dumped the carcass in Central Park instead, hoping people would think it got run over there.  He told reporters he has "been picking up roadkill my entire life.  I have a freezer full of it."

 

Yes, USAID is a CIA front. Yes, they will probably kill Trump if he doesn't back off.

Donald Trump with a sniper's target on his head.  This image originally appeared on the cover of the February 2017 issue of the Irish magazine "Village."  It's easy to forget how much people already didn't like him back then.

Protect and Serve

"Protect and Serve," acrylic paint and pencil on canvas, 2025 Otto Von Miller.

Cat Art Brings You Joy

"Luv Kats," acrylic and chalk paint on canvas, 2024 Otto Von Miller.

Put a Happy Face on it

Death Becomes You, acrylic paint on canvas, 2024 Otto Von Miller.

UnitedHealthCare CEO Gets Re-Orged in New York

Former UnitedHealthCare CEO Brian Thompson's career came to an abrupt end on a sidewalk in midtown Manhattan. 

Who is in Charge of the United States at this Moment?

It certainly isn't this guy.

Unstrung

"Unstrung," acrylic paint on canvas, 2024 Otto Von Miller

Lips Like Sugar

Lips Like Sugar, acrylic paint on canvas, 2024 Otto Von Miller.

This Just In from CNN: Israeli War Criminal Becomes Vegetarian

 

Eliran Mizrahi, 40-year old Israeli reservist and father of four, who "fought" in Gaza, killed himself back in June.  His bulldozer mate, Guy Zaken, has become a vegetarian after running over hundreds of Palestinian bodies, "dead and alive."  "Everything squirts out," he said. 

Evolution of a Painting

 

"Number 4," by Otto Von Miller.

How Does All of This End?

 

Benjamin Netanyahu, current Prime Minister of Israel. 
This is a very bad, very dangerous man.

I Like Candidates Who Don't Get Shot

 

Presidential candidate Donald Trump at the moment an assassin's bullet hit his ear.

A Dog's Life

"Nervous Dog," acrylic paint on canvas, one of the very first art works by Otto Von Miller.  Was it beginner's luck?

Click here to buy this artwork on Etsy.

That Time Jimi Hendrix Predicted Climate Change

The Jimi Hendrix Experience in 1967.  From left to right, drummer Mitch Mitchell, bass player Noel Redding, and mystical shaman Jimi Hendrix.

Miles Davis in Paris

Miles Davis, photographed in 1957, the year he went to Paris and recorded the soundtrack for the French film Ascenseur pour l'échafaud.

Miles Davis - Kind of Blue

The original 1959 cover of Kind of Blue, by Miles Davis.  Interestingly (if you're Thee Optimist), the cover has the song list on it.  Later covers list the star-studded lineup of musicians who participated in the recording.

And the Band Played On

The Maxwell Street Klezmer Band plays during the 2022 Highland Park Fourth of July parade.  At first, the musicians didn't hear the gunfire, and kept playing while terrified paradegoers ran past.  Watch the video below. 

Enter Thee Judges

The six conservative members of the United States Supreme Court emerge to announce their ruling on Dobbs vs. Jackson Women's Health Organization, the landmark decision ending federal protection for a woman's right to obtain an abortion.  Nah, just joking.  It's the Taliban.  They issue similar rulings.

The South Will Fall. Again.

Thomas D. Rice, a white entertainer in blackface, depicted as his popular minstrel slave character "Jim Crow," circa 1830s.

Did You Find Your AI Soulmate Yet?

Look familiar?  This woman does not exist.  She was generated by an artificial intelligence that combines random human features, based on parameters you set.  The parameters I set, in this case, were "beautiful" "female" "young adult" and "joyful."  This pic makes me uncomfortable.  Generate your own fake humans at Generated Photos.

Come Fly With Thee

Thee Optimist in the cockpit, giving the thumbs up.  All systems go.  Welcome to the blog post where Thee Optimist simply uploads GoPro (knockoff) video of a recent helicopter ride, for your viewing enjoyment.

The Greatest Moment in Music History

This is David Achter de Molen, singer of the now-defunct Dutch rock band John Coffey, walking on the crowd at the Pinkpop Festival in 2015.  De Molen was the central figure during the greatest moment in music history.

Why Does God Hate America?

 

"Who can stand before his indignation? Who can confront the heat of his fury? His wrath pours out like fire; the rocks are shattered because of him."  Nahum 1:6.
Ruh roh.  God is clearly pissed at America.

The Boomerang Vs. The Ripple Effect

Life isn't always like this.  Which is too bad.

I Have the Buffalo Shooter's Manifesto

This is 18-year-old Payton Gendron, the young man who killed 10 people at a Buffalo supermarket on Saturday.  He chose this image, posing with a Bushmaster XM-15 rifle, to portray himself in the 180-page manifesto he posted online.  I have the manifesto and will give it to you, if you want.

Sexbots, Immortality, and Robot Polar Bears

This interview with Thee Optimist appeared on a website called Disinformation, in September of 2015.  It is about the implications of my novel Sexbot.  The above people are supposed to be Sexbots, I guess.  They look all too real.

The Rise and Fall of a Dive Bar Regular

Guest Post by Brian Whitney 

Author Brian Whitney doing what he does best.

"I am what is commonly known as a binge drinker." 

Timmy's Invisible Friend

 

Now YOU Can Nuke Your Own Neighborhood. Here's How:

Pepe the Frog looks out at a nuclear inferno over his city.  Pepe was a popular right-wing meme during the Trump years, although Thee Optimist certainly has plenty of left-wing Pepe memes.  Pepe is flexible like that. 

This Might Explain Some Things

It's been clear for some time that IQs are dropping across the Western world.  Now, at least in America, we have a hint about one of the culprits.

Joe Rogaine CANCELLED?

 

Click to enlarge.

Words of Wisdom

“Accept the truth from whatever source it comes.”

- Moses Maimonides

Elephant in the Room: the Limits of Nuclear Deterrence

Ruh-roh.  Turns out the BIG 5 nuclear powers aren't as stable as we might like.  And the others (call them the small 4)?  They are all an accident waiting to happen.

Trump the Anti-War President?

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Words of Wisdom

"A nuclear weapons free world is not a dream, but a necessity for human survival.  We need to stop waiting for things to happen.  We need to go ahead and make things happen."

- Amit Ray

Does anybody here remember Vera Lynn?

Remember how she said that we would meet again some sunny day?

Has Putin had a stroke?  He seems a little off these days.  Nuclear threats aren't really a laughing matter, but then again...

Words of Wisdom

"Based on the findings of the report, my conclusion was that this idea was not a practical deterrent for reasons which at this moment must be all too obvious."   - Dr. Strangelove

Where do the Sackler family live?

The gruesome faces of evil: Mortimer Sackler Jr., and his wife Jacqueline Sackler.  The 40 or so members of the Sackler family have been the chief beneficiaries of the opioid epidemic that has killed hundreds of thousands of people in the United States.  And a few of these Sacklers are surprisingly easy to find.

900,000 Dead in Two Years?

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War on Covid?

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They're Trying to Ban Books Again (as if they ever stopped)

Fahrenheit 451: Followers of Christian pastor Greg Locke toss books onto a bonfire in Nashville suburb Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, on February 2, 2022.  Books that burned included selections from the Harry Potter and Twilight series (these encourage devil-worship and witchcraftery), among many others.  One counter-protester tossed the Bible on there.  Greg Locke is also known for encouraging his followers to attend the January 6, 2021 Capitol riot.