0:11
Sometimes You Just Feel Like Laughing
Grim, I relocate my mind to a cheerier scene – Manhattan, say, in the late nineteen-twenties – with its swagger, glitter, speakeasies, flappers, spats – its cocky insouciance, fearless of cocktails and jokes. America had won the so-called Great War as we won no other – at a cost of a hundred and twenty thousand lives, true, but the rest of the world lost twenty million and was still reeling as we soared. We were confident enough to be silly, poke fun at ourselves, laugh like swaggering adolescents with the world before them. Humorists vied in fun and funniness, so unlike today’s comics, with their bitter wit and heavy hearts.
Open the page to Ogden Nash (1902-1971) and feel your soul giggling.
The cow is of the bovine ilk; One end is moo, the other, milk.
and
The panther is like a leopard, Except it hasn't been peppered.
and
The turtle lives 'twixt plated decks Which practically conceal its sex. I think it clever of the turtle In such a fix to be so fertile;
these but a few creatures in his manic menagerie, of which the funniest is man.
Doodles, some might say, hardly art, not taught surely – for what is there to teach? Yet we suspect this lightness will endure longer than the heaviness of many earnest coevals.
Does durability verify art? What better measure? “Really great, but nobody remembers him” feels a sorry verdict.
We wonder at a culture that begets and befriends such froth. Why do some epochs have a sense of humor, others growl?
Material prosperity cannot be the index, for we are richer today and much unhappier. Many of you tell me you suffer at the news; me too. Were it not for your companionship and Henry’s, I might stay in bed, my blanket over my head.
What we lack is confidence – that tomorrow will be better – and our children’s tomorrow. Our future feels a sorry slide to despair. Our institutions, which seemed so buoyant, our earth, which seemed certain, our relations with neighbors and nations, once a source of pride, now feel imperiled. What is there to laugh about? When did you last enjoy a belly-shaking guffaw?
Folks who can make fun are having fun.
The Purist I give you now Professor Twist, A conscientious scientist, Trustees exclaimed, "He never bungles!" And sent him off to distant jungles. Camped on a tropic riverside, One day he missed his loving bride. She had, the guide informed him later, Been eaten by an alligator. Professor Twist could not but smile. "You mean," he said, "a crocodile."
That’s funny – why I can hardly say. Puck’s amusement, I suppose: “Oh what fools these mortals be!” And our delight, we sense, while delightful, is not delusive. Funny here is not silly. This humor winks like a sphinx. Why do I feel better already!
Immersed in our moment, we mistake our worldview as the only one possible. Everybody’s down at the mouth, more or less. Joy feels clueless, optimism naïve. Today’s victors seem angriest of all.
That’s why it’s healthful to get away – into other moments – to remind ourselves of possibility. Literature is my getaway car. Nosh on a little Nash and my spirit clears – for a while.
I cannot foresee the future. But I can well imagine my dour vision too dire. To change my tomorrow I must change my mind, for tomorrow is only an idea.
Nash is not my only nostrum. I have shelves full. But I must reach, open, and ingest them, or they’re inert.
Behold the hippopotamus! We laugh at how he looks to us, And yet in moments dank and grim, I wonder how we look to him. Peace, peace, thou hippopotamus! We really look all right to us, As you no doubt delight the eye Of other hippopotami.
4:15
INLD opposes bid to privatise power distribution in Gurugram and Nuh
The guidelines laid down by courts regarding the privatisation of State-owned power companies do not appear to be being followed, Mr. Singh said, adding that courts had stipulated that factors such as a company’s financial health, experience, and public interest must be considered during privatisation
4:43
Beatles mentor Lord Woodbine to feature in new BBC drama
The BBC is rolling out a six‑part drama called Hamburg Days, zeroing in on the Beatles’ two‑year stint in the German port city.
It follows the band’s grind on the Reeperbahn, where they logged over 250 gigs between 1960 and 1962, sharpening their sound for a restless audience of sailors.
A key thread is the role of Harold Phillips—better known as Lord Woodbine—who mentored the young group and helped shape their early style, a contribution often left out of the usual lore.
The series aims to spotlight that overlooked influence while painting a vivid picture of the gritty, formative nights that forged the Beatles.
5:32
The Bluestocking 424: Ozempic desire, rural suburbia, Economic Gary
Happy Friday!
Well, this has been a terrible week to enjoy the music of Taylor Alison Swift, hasn’t it? Her wedding was basically a corporate away day, complete with (allegedly) a tombola in which guests could win a handbag or car. A TOMBOLA.
And surely it’s impossible to get the smell of jockstraps and reheated popcorn out of Madison Square Garden?
Also suffering a market correction to their reputation is Gary’s Economics—the viciously popular YouTuber whom I have long considered to be pulling the exact same schtick as Donald Trump, ie listen to me because I am so intelligent and wealthy, have I mentioned that I am very intelligent and wealthy?1 The best thing about this gambit is that you can, by doing it well enough, actually make yourself wealthy. Economic Gary’s Patreon nets him about £12k a month.
Stevenson’s latest documentary appears to have exposed more people to the possibility that his real talent is for self-promotion. Back in 2024, the Financial Times was already questioning if the stories in his bestselling book, The Trading Game, were plausible—and as we know, post-Salt Path, publishers don’t see it as their job to fact-check memoirs, so there’s no reassurance to be had from the fact it had a mainstream release.
Added to that, the combination of large ego and paper-thin skin should always be a red flag in a public figure: here is Dan Neidle—a genuine tax expert—recounting how Economic Gary used their televised interview to complain that he had once done a mean tweet about him. (Another red flag: Gary accused Neidle of deleting other people’s tweets, something that is not physically possible.) A few months ago, Gary majorly lucked out when Rory Stewart said he wasn’t an economist—allowing him to portray himself as the Humble Man of the People being condescended to by an Old Etonian. The schtick is good; you have to respect the hustle.
I would like to take some credit for being an early Garysceptic, thanks to two major factors. One: this Decoding the Gurus episode, where “Our hosts explore the contradictions of a millionaire revolutionary who’s not even bothered but also a bit miffed the phone isn’t ringing; a tireless advocate for the poor but also someone who seems to frequently drop in his elite credentials and just how rich he is.”
Two: the fact he looks eerily like a parboiled Owen Jones2.
Helen
“I waddled into the doctor’s office in the stripmall in Florida with 20 pounds of ankle weights strapped to each leg hidden under my floral Tyler McGillivary sweatpants so that when the nurse asked me to step onto the scale, I could resoundingly—uncomplicatedly—qualify for an online subscription for Ozempic.”
Caroline Calloway—the influencer who was infamously outed as having a ghostwriter in 2019—is back with an essay about how she dropped a stone on a GLP1, and now weighs 115lb (just over 8 stone) “and my life is in every way better”. It’s quite the ride: can you really just drop the phrase “I’ve never had an orgasm” into your copy and move straight along?
A tough update from one of my favourite internet culture writers, Caitlin Dewey, about the reality of “creator economy” and what she plans to do with her newsletter (Links I Would Gchat You If We Were Friends, $) as a result. “For those of you keeping score at home, I spend roughly two full work days on Links every week, which works out to about $32/hour after platform fees and taxes.”
“In 2022, Americans had a favorable opinion of Israel by a thirteen-point margin, yet today they have an unfavorable view by a twenty-three point margin. By a fifteen-point margin, voters think Israel is committing genocide. Sixty-one percent of American Jews, who overwhelmingly (76%) believe that Israel’s existence is vital for the future of the Jewish people, say that Israel is guilty of war crimes in Gaza.” For anyone confused by the backlash to AIPAC—the pro-Bibi, pro-Israel funding organisation—in various Democratic primaries, here’s a useful overview from ex-Fetterman staffer Adam Jentleson.
“It wasn’t till I was a young teenager that I was overheard at a birthday lunch, by some snobby relative describing myself as living in the country, that I was set straight - she snorted through bucked teeth, interrupting to correct me “Rural suburbia, darling”.” Laura Marling is leaving London (Substack).
“The mangling or misrepresentation of Ukrainian drone experience is an important part of newsroom discussions. I’ve several times been told that ‘people are shooting down a $5,000 drone with a $5m missile’ – versions of those figures may vary.
10:44
India in China's discourse: A Thaw and Its Online Discontents
Beijing has been working to stabilize and improve relations with New Delhi after several difficult years. Xu Feihong, China’s ambassador to India, has emerged as one of the key diplomats translating that broad political direction into the patient, practical work of rebuilding ties. A seasoned diplomat at the vice-minister rank, Xu has pursued that task with a combination of pragmatism and strategic clarity: restoring channels of contact, expanding exchanges, and helping create the conditions in which a deeply strained relationship can gradually become more manageable.
A major part of that effort has involved restoring exchanges between the two countries. Direct flights have gradually resumed, while business, tourism and other forms of people-to-people contact are recovering. Under Xu’s leadership, the Chinese Embassy and consulates in India have also been processing increasing numbers of visas for Indian citizens traveling to China. These are not merely administrative steps. They are part of a broader attempt to rebuild the connective tissue of the relationship, restore a degree of normalcy after years of estrangement, and open China more widely to the outside world.
Yet the increase in travel became a target of a group of self-styled “patriotic” influencers. False or misleading claims began circulating that Indians were “flooding” into China and that Chinese diplomatic missions in India were recklessly handing out visas. The attacks eventually turned on Xu himself. A veteran diplomat carefully advancing his government’s policy — and seeking to rebuild a difficult relationship without ignoring its underlying complexities — was accused of betraying the country whose interests he was working to serve.
The recent hostility has an immediate context. China-India relations deteriorated sharply after the deadly border clash in 2020, and the years of tension that followed contributed to a rise in hostile sentiment in parts of each country against the other. But negative views of India predate that episode and have deeper, more complex roots, including perceptions of India as a poorer, less developed country — a form of prejudice that is by no means unique to China but can be found in societies around the world.
What makes this episode particularly revealing is not simply the existence of such attitudes, but what happens when longstanding sentiments are hijacked by racists and then collide with a diplomatic thaw. Nationalist influencers can turn grievance, prejudice and fabrication into traffic. Diplomats, by contrast, must deal with the world as it is: balancing national interests, political realities and the longer-term need to prevent rivalry from hardening into permanent hostility. That is the more difficult and less theatrical task Xu and his colleagues have been undertaking.
The Chinese internet is subject to extensive controls, but that does not mean every strand of public opinion is manufactured from above, or that the authorities exercise complete command over the sentiments circulating online. In this case, some of the people most loudly claiming the mantle of patriotism ended up attacking diplomats for carrying out Beijing’s policy. It is a small reminder that even a state with enormous influence over the public sphere may still have to contend with nationalist pressures that have histories and dynamics of their own — and that responsible statecraft sometimes requires navigating and pushing back against bigotry, rather than staying silent.
—— Zichen Wang
It was against this backdrop that, on July 2, 澎湃新闻 The Paper, a major Chinese digital news outlet, published the commentary translated below. The Chinese Embassy in India later republished it in full on its website, signaling unmistakable support for its argument.
Recently, Chinese social media has seen a number of posts claiming that Indian visitors are “flooding” into the country and that some have behaved poorly while in China. Some of these discussions have gone further, questioning whether China’s visa policy toward India is too generous, or alleging that Indians are “taking up Chinese resources.” In some corners of the internet, public anger has been stirred up. How should we understand this? A few points are worth making.
The immediate trigger for this round of debate is the claim that some Indian tourists have behaved improperly in China. If foreign visitors break rules or behave inappropriately, people are, of course, entitled to point this out. China has a long tradition of treating guests with courtesy, but guests are also expected to respect Chinese laws, regulations, and social norms. If anyone crosses the line, whatever their nationality, the matter should be handled in accordance with the law. There is nothing controversial about that.
The real problem begins when the behaviour of a few individuals is used to condemn an entire country, or when isolated incidents become an excuse for xenophobia.
16:22
Investors Face Rotation Dilemma: Markets Snapshot
The Kospi Index in South Korea took a hit on Tuesday, plummeting 10% from its all-time highs. Meanwhile, investors flocked to the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index, which saw a 4% surge in a single day – its biggest gain since April 2025. This shift in investor sentiment has some analysts wondering if we're on the cusp of a bear market, with rising inflation, tariffs, and potential interest-rate hikes all contributing to market uncertainty.
16:58
Trump invented 15 million beheadings, and no one around him blinked
In today’s video and audio podcast, I felt compelled to add an extra segment at the end. This came from the heart.
At 3:43 in the afternoon in Turkey, the President of the United States reached for the stairs to his plane with a swollen right hand while his bruised left hand hung motionless at his side. He was not boarding the newly refurbished Qatari aircraft he arrived on but the previous Air Force One, a sudden switch that multiple reports tied to security concerns involving Iran. Trump denied it, then contradicted himself, telling the reporters traveling with him that they were “on a dangerous flight,” that “I’m number one on their list, before you,” and adding, “But if I go, you go. Perhaps someday you want to change professions.” The blinds stayed drawn and the transponder was turned off. Earlier in the day he had called Zelenskyy “President Putin,” claimed “the Islamic Republic of Japan” had fired 111 missiles.
The NATO summit was meant to project unity, and instead it became a stage for one man’s unraveling. Trump told the press he was “very upset with NATO,” called Spain “a terrible partner” and its people “hopeless, bad people,” and ordered his Treasury Secretary on camera to “cut off all trade with Spain.” He invoked the Nazi occupation to demand Greenland, saying Denmark should have never gotten it back, and Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen answered that her country was “ready to defend every inch of NATO” and that Greenland is “not for sale.” He declared the Iran agreement he signed at Versailles three weeks earlier “over,” called Iranian leaders “scum,” and announced strikes on more than eighty targets overnight with more coming. Oil surged more than six percent. The Dow dropped six hundred points. And in the middle of it he bragged about being “number one on Tic Tac,” claiming four billion views on an app he cannot pronounce.” Aboard the plane he insisted “billions of votes” vanished in a Los Angeles race, that drug prices fell “four hundred to five hundred to six hundred percent,” and that “fifteen million people had their heads chopped off” in a war his own administration admits is still ongoing.
What makes this dangerous rather than merely absurd is who is telling these lies and who is covering for him. This is the man who controls the nuclear arsenal, commands the military, and is waging war without the consent of Congress. Retired Naval War College professor Tom Nichols said what everyone sees: “There is something deeply wrong with him,” and “our enemies know it, which is why they don’t take him seriously.” Karoline Leavitt called his performance “marathon” and “high-energy.”
Yet even on the darkest day, the system held. A federal judge ordered five $5.8 million released to E. Jean Carroll, and the Second Circuit denied Trump’s appeal hours later, so he lost twice in a single day. In Florida, the Eleventh Circuit struck down the “Stop WOKE Act” as “a breathtaking assertion of power to ban unpopular ideas,” in an opinion written by a judge Trump himself appointed. The courts held firm. November is coming, and the power still belongs to the people. That is why I still have hope for America, and you should too.
See the full story in the video.
We are living through a pivotal moment for our country, and my goal is to reach as many people as possible with clear, factual information about what is happening. The more people who understand what is unfolding, the better our chances of pushing back against chaos, cruelty, and corruption ahead of the midterms.
Thank you for your continued support. Your paid subscriptions have enabled me to add a video editor and reach more people.
Independent journalism is under attack. You can make a difference with a $5/month paid subscription. Your support allows me to keep telling the truth about the lies and destruction unfolding in our country, defend myself from constant pressure from MAGA extremists, and ultimately spread the message to more people.
I’m fighting to save our country (before it’s too late).
I’ll see you tomorrow,
Heather
This video is based on my written post, available HERE, and based on the events of 7-8-2026.
*This commentary represents my personal opinions and analysis of matters of public concern, informed by publicly available information. Any references to individuals constitute opinion and commentary protected under the First Amendment.
Sources:
President Trump Gaggles with Press on Air Force One at Mildenhall Air Force Base, UK, Jul.
22:06
President Trump's newest profit machine
At 8:07 p.m. tonight, the President of the United States shared his first and only social media post of the entire day. Coming from a man who routinely posts dozens, sometimes well over a hundred times a day, often through the middle of the night, the silence was unexpected. After traveling back to America under what is now being reported as an extreme threat to his safety, Donald Trump has spent the day locked away from the public eye, choosing the safety of the White House gates during this uncertain time.
In that one and only post was something so important to him, so urgent in his mind, that it became the only thing he wanted to tell the American people all day. It had absolutely nothing to do with the duties of the presidency, the NATO summit, or the threats against him. It was about himself. It was about renaming an airport in his name. This is what he wanted the American people to read tonight.
“A very big day in Palm Beach, Florida, where it was my Great Honor to have the Palm Beach International Airport be renamed, by a spectacular vote, The President Donald J. Trump International Airport. The Area is HOT, the Location is GREAT, and the Renovation will be SPECTACULAR. Thank you to all in Palm Beach for your Vote and your Confidence. This will soon be one of the Greatest and Most Spectacular Airports anywhere in the World! President DONALD J. TRUMP”
That is what mattered to him today, out of everything happening in this country and across the world. And if the post itself were the whole story, it would be troubling and embarrassing enough. But it is not even close to the whole story. Because what happened today in Palm Beach was not just a president forcing his name and likeness on as many things as possible. It was a business deal that will benefit the president and his family for years to come.
To celebrate Trump’s big day, his son Eric landed at 5:01 this morning on a plane the family calls “Trump Force One,” racing to beat a UPS cargo plane so that the first aircraft to touch down under the new name would carry the Trump brand. On Fox and Friends, Eric called the renaming only “slightly controversial.” He credited his father with putting the region on the map. He said nothing about the lawsuits, the complaints, opposition, corruption, or moral failures that led to this moment. But they all happened too.
The FAA didn’t just change the name or the airport; they changed the airport code too, from PBI to DJT. The cost of the rebrand is estimated at $5.5 million, with the state of Florida covering roughly half.
Beyond that is a 35-page licensing agreement, approved 4-3 by the Palm Beach County commission, that tells us everything we need to know about what this renaming is actually for. The Trump Organization filed three trademark applications months before the name change took effect. The agreement gives the Trump Organization control over which vendors can manufacture and sell merchandise at the airport. It gives Trump veto power over any biographical material displayed inside the building. A non-disparagement clause bars the airport from publishing anything that could tarnish his reputation. His own staff writes the version of his story that travelers see. And the trademark applications cover watches, jewelry, collectible coins, cuff links, purses, backpacks, suitcases, umbrellas, tote bags, clothing, robes, neckties, belts, and plastic slippers designed for going through the security line. They trademarked slippers at a public airport.
The agreement says Trump cannot receive royalties from merchandise sold at the airport. But his company controls which vendors are approved to manufacture and supply that merchandise, and there is nothing preventing one of Trump’s own businesses, or a company connected to his family or inner circle, from being on that approved list. The airport would not be paying him a royalty. It would be paying his company for the product. The money flows to the same place. It is just called something different on the receipt. And outside the airport walls, there are no restrictions at all. The Trump Organization can license the same branded products to anyone, sell them anywhere, and keep every dollar.
Florida State University law professor Jake Linford also pointed out that the merchandise clause restricts royalties on goods but says nothing about services, which means that if someone wanted to open a branded Trump airport lounge or any other branded service inside the building, licensing fees flowing back to the Trump Organization would not be covered by the restriction at all. The deal is written so that on paper, it looks like no one is profiting. But with Trump, nothing is ever as simple as it appears, and nearly everything he touches he profits from one way or another.
And this is not just about putting his name on things. It is about erasing what was there before. Palm Beach International Airport served that community for nearly half a century.
27:44
WC Vibes: France first to reach semis!
And there we have it! France became the first team to reach the semi-finals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup after skipper Kylian Mbappe and reigning Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele scored a goal apiece to knock Morocco, the last African team left, out of the showpiece event.
In a repeat of the last edition’s contest (the two teams met in the semis in 2022), France defeated the Atlas Lions by the same margin of 2-0 to enter the third successive last four stage at the World Cup. In 2018, Les Bleus won the coveted trophy for the second time while in Qatar 2022 they were bested by Lionel Messi’s Argentina in an epic final.
This time we must wait to see how far France advances as they await the winner of the contest between Spain and Belgium, which takes place tonight in Los Angeles. The semi-final will be played in Dallas.
Mbappe recovered from having a first-half penalty saved to score a magnificent opener on the hour mark. That was Mbappe’s eighth goal at the tournament, moving him level again with Lionel Messi in the race for the Golden Boot. Before being substituted, he set up Dembele to run through and settle the contest, which was watched by 63,811 in Boston.
Also Read: No way through: Amazing Unai Simon is La Roja's unbreachable wall
Mbappe now has 20 goals in 20 World Cup appearances, one goal shy of Messi’s overall tournament record of 21. France’s all-time leading marksman now has 64 international goals from 104 appearances.
La Roja vs Red Devils
Will it be La Roja (the Red One) or The Red Devils? One team has one of the most exciting youngsters in today’s football in Lamine Yamal while the other has greats, part of Belgium’s ‘Golden Generation’. The question is which team will make the semi-final.
In beating Portugal 1-0 in the Round of 16, Luis de la Fuente’s men became the first team in history to record six consecutive World Cup clean sheets.
Spain have not shown the attacking flair of France but have played a careful brand of possession-based football that took them to the title in 2010.
Belgium, on the other hand, have had a rollercoaster ride in the knockouts. First they came back from the dead to beat Senegal 3-2 before sweeping aside co-hosts USA 4-1 in the last 16.
The World Cup is likely the last hurrah for the remainder of the Golden Generation, including creative midfielder Kevin De Bruyne and striker Romelu Lukaku, both of whom now play for Napoli, and Real Madrid’s Thibaut Courtois.
The match is Belgium’s third quarter-final in four World Cups but they have never reached a final.
Spain have only progressed past the last eight twice.
Who will progress this time around?
Football: A space Odyssey
Every time a World Cup game was played in Houston, the most popular word one heard, or read, was “lift-off”. It is a nod to the city renowned for the NASA Space Center. However, a poignant story has been retold during this edition about how the first football was taken to space, on the second attempt, and its incredible tale of survival.
In 1986, US astronaut Ellison Onizuka was part of the seven-member crew that was due to take off on the Challenger Space Shuttle. Each member was allowed to take a souvenir with them and Onizuka chose a football.
His daughter Janelle recalls handing over the ball, autographed by her and all other teammates in the Clear Lake High School football team. That is the last memory Janelle has of her father, as she recalls it in an article by The Athletic for the New York Times. That is because the Challenger exploded 73 seconds after lift-off, with the debris strewn all over the Atlantic off the Florida coast.
However, miraculously the football, kept inside a metal locker, survived the inferno and the coast guard scouring the sea for the shuttle’s debris discovered it and returned it to Onizuka’s family. Janelle took it back to her school and the precious item somehow was pushed into the background along with other trophies.
However, it was discovered and Shane Kimbrough, who was commander of the International Space Station, took the ball on his 2016 space expedition. The football thus reached space, 30 years after nearly being forgotten as just another item in a heap in a high school.
Needless to say, this football has now been given the pride of place in the Clear Lake school trophy cabinet. During the World Cup, it has been taken to the Houston Space Center to highlight its true significance.
Today’s match
Quarter-finals
Spain vs Belgium, 00:30 hours IST (Saturday), Los Angeles
Result
Quarter-finals
France 2 (Mbappe 60’, Dembele 66’) beat Morocco 0
32:54
The File Is The Weapon
LUTHMANN NOTE: The court file is supposed to be the clean record of justice. Louann Larsen says it has become the weapon. That claim is bigger than one Harlem elder, one judge, one docket, or one NYSCEF screenshot. It goes to the central question: can ordinary people trust a court system whose internal records they cannot see? If the answer is yes, prove it. Audit the files. Certify the dockets. Produce the internal records. Explain the missing service, the zero motions, the hidden judgment, the same-day disposal, and the metadata. If the file is clean, show America. If it is dirty, then stop pretending procedure is justice. This piece is “The File is the Weapon.”
(NEW YORK, NEW YORK) – Louann Larsen did not come on Richard Luthmann Live to complain about losing a motion. She came with a map of what she alleges is a court-file manipulation architecture hiding in plain sight inside New York State’s electronic court system.
Her allegation is as simple as it is explosive: the file is the weapon.
Larsen says New York State’s public-facing court docket, NYSCEF, can become a polished storefront while the real action happens in internal systems the public never sees. In her telling, litigants may believe their filings are before a judge because they appear on the public docket. But the judge may be working from a separate internal file, with a different document path, different routing, different processing, and possibly different versions of key papers.
The exemplar is Amsterdam Key Associates, LLC v. Dr. Queen Mother Delois Blakely et al., New York County Supreme Court Index No. 155626/2023. Larsen’s formal complaint names Judge Suzanne Adams, Judge Emily Morales-Minerva, attorney Gerard Proefriedt, attorney Alan Waintraub, and Deputy Sheriff Defalco. It was sent to court officials, prosecutors, inspectors general, political offices, and other public authorities.
The complaint alleges “egregious court fraud, document falsification, and systematic property theft” in connection with a case involving Queen Mother Delois Blakely’s home.
Larsen’s core point is not that she dislikes a court ruling. It is that the alleged fraud happened before any ruling — at the filing level, where due process either begins or dies.
The Blakely case, according to Larsen, contains the key ingredients of the scheme: a summons and complaint filed without a proper affidavit or affirmation of service; an unsigned summons; motion sequence numbers bearing “zero” prefixes; a judgment entry that appeared as “received” but not properly public or clickable; pro se papers visible to the public but not processed into the internal system; metadata Larsen says indicates later alteration; and a case marked “disposed” the same day emergency relief was sought.
That is a lot. But the heart of it is easy to understand.
A lawsuit begins with notice. A defendant must be served. Proof of that service must be filed. Without service, the defendant is not properly brought into court. Without notice, there is no meaningful opportunity to be heard. Without notice and an opportunity to be heard, “due process” becomes courthouse wallpaper.
In the Blakely exemplar, Larsen points to NYSCEF Document No. 1, the summons and complaint, filed June 21, 2023. She says the public docket does not show a legally sufficient affirmation or affidavit of service for the summons and complaint. Instead, months later, filings appear under Motion #001. Larsen’s complaint argues that an affidavit of service for a later motion is not an affidavit of service for the original summons and complaint.
The complaint specifically cites the lack of an affirmation/affidavit of service as the “fatal flaw” and says the case could not legally proceed without it.
This is not a technicality when a home is at stake. It is the front door of justice. Larsen says that door was never lawfully opened.
On the live show, Larsen told Richard Luthmann that the “most basic” requirement for a summons and complaint is service. She emphasized that an affidavit of service “commences an action and demands an answer.” A case, she said, cannot legally proceed if the defendant was never served and the court lacks proof of service.
Luthmann translated it into plain English: the two pillars of due process are notice and an opportunity to be heard. If Queen Mother Delois Blakely was not served with the initiating papers, then the courthouse machinery should have stopped before it touched her home.
Larsen’s complaint goes further. It alleges that the summons itself was not signed by an attorney. The complaint points to the filed summons and states that the signature area was left blank or not properly executed, while citing 22 NYCRR 130-1.1a and CPLR 2101(d) as relevant rules.
