IKEA Monkey

Of course, there’s a level of subjectivity to pain. One person might find listening to Kid Rock to be more painful than stubbing their toe. Another person might enjoy a little bit of pain. And who can say how painful heartbreak feels? But we can still generally identify most of the worst sensations that people don’t…

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Lush was one of the best bands of the 1990s, and certainly the best shoegaze band of that era. Led by inimitable fire-engine-redhead Miki Berenyi and Emma Anderson, whose harmonies blended into an iridescent synesthetic wonder world, they powered through four full-lengths from ‘89 to ‘96, pioneering ways one could…

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After a controversial memo by a Google engineer about diversity programs at the company and gender differences went viral over the weekend, sparking an explosive reaction on social media, the search giant did not dispute media reports late Monday that the employee had been fired.

The memo - in...

Rosé has evolved into the most clichéd of beverages: it's a drive-thru, a pool party, a hashtag. At the same time, it's become one of the most powerful forces in the beverage category. It's now a third channel of revenue for wine makers, retailers, and distributors, elbowing its way alongside the...

Via TODAY

Not long after discussing the ethical problems with manipulating the DNA of a human embryo and teaching you how to juice an entire watermelon in seconds, TODAY welcomed back its favourite WWE Superstar. John Cena has become a delightful regular fixture on the NBC morning show, and rightly so. When he’s not making Hoda and Kathie Lee slide off their chairs, he’s busy playing with baby animals, and getting all nutted up over adding blueberries to barbecue sauce. As I’ve said before, Morning Show John Cena is the best possible John Cena, and nothing else even comes close.

Early Monday morning, Cena brought his boyish charm and unreasonably gigantic hands back to the TODAY studio alongside Brett Eldredge, a country singer of somewhat notable fame, according to Google. Never ones to shy away from putting Cena into the weird zone, show producers opted to have Eldredge host a country music trivia contest that involves Cena and his co-hosts pretending to ride on hobby horses. Sure, why not? Whatever keeps Pepe from selling 8x10s in the subway.

While I’m intensely disappointed that Cena didn’t get to answer the question involving Florida Georgia Line (who have appeared in WWE so many times they should be called Flo-Rida Georgia Line), who can be mad when he references Smokey and the Bandit and makes his hobby horse take a hay break?

Via TODAY

Somewhere backstage Hoda is gently pawing at a monitor with one hand, swilling wine with the other. Girl, calm down. You’re gonna freak out the interns.

A British model was drugged and abducted for a week in Italy last month by a British-based Pole who allegedly tried to auction her off as a sex slave on the dark web, Italian police said Saturday. The unidentified 20-year-old was injected in the arm with the tranquiliser ketamine after going to what was a fake photo shoot at a venue near Milan's central station on July 11. Lukasz Pawel Herba, 30, has been charged with orchestrating the kidnapping and given a version of events which the prosecutor in charge of the case described as barely credible.

Even if Tony Bennett hadn’t turned 91 the day before he played Ravinia, his concert Friday night would have been one for the record books.

Not simply because he sang more than two dozen songs at something close to perfection, but also because of the expressive breadth of his work, the insights...

The same material used in your favorite night light may soon be an essential tool for food prep and beyond.

Whoa, look at 2K Gordon Hayward!

NBA 2K17 is a great video game with excellent graphics, but these pictures will make you think otherwise. The next installment in the series, NBA 2K18, is making its predecessor’s graphics look baaaad. How is that even possible?

Just look at Gordon Hayward year over year:

The difference in muscle tone and the sweat running down his arm are the first things to catch the eye. It just looks so much more realistic. 2K Hayward has clearly been doing a LOT of lifting in the offseason.

Hayward’s facial hair is more filled out and detailed, and the hair flip looks like actual hair too. This is an incredible transformation! Even more so because we all thought 2K17’s graphics were elite when it came out a few months ago. (Also, peep the finger tattoo.) This game will have every last detail.

Here are more examples:

John Wall:

D’Angelo Russell:

Nick Young:

Dwight Howard:

Damian Lillard:

Fans on Twitter noticed the difference too!

We have some time to wait for the game to actually come out on Sept. 19, but we do know some things about NBA 2K18.

The cover athlete in America is Kyrie Irving (they might have to change up the jersey he’s wearing), and DeMar DeRozan is on the Canadian cover. Damian Lillard is going to have two of his rap songs in the game.

We also know some of the players’ ratings. The top two picks in the draft, Lonzo Ball and Markelle Fultz, are both rated 80 overall. Irving is a 90 overall, DeRozan, an 89, Karl-Anthony Towns, 90, Joel Embiid, 86, Devin Booker, 86, Kevin Durant, 96, Steph Curry, 94, Dwight Howard, 81 and Nick Young is a 74.

"The poem that you're referring to was added later"

Getty Image

The soccer world has been on the edge of its collective seat recently, as Barcelona star Neymar has been linked to a record-setting move to French side Paris Saint-Germain. Neymar is arguably the best player in the world not named Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo, so him heading anywhere is a massive deal.

On Thursday, the move became a reality, as Neymar officially joined the Parisian giants. Between his buyout clause (an unfathomable 222 million Euros) and his various wages, including 30 million Euros a year before taxes and a hefty signing bonus, Neymar is the most expensive footballer ever.

In fact, before the move become official, SportsCenter tweeted out an insane graphic that shows Neymar’s price tag compared to 10 of the best basketball players on earth. The catch: Those 10 basketball players — including LeBron James, Steph Curry, James Harden, and Russell Westbrook — are all combined, and they don’t come close to the projected amount of money spent on Neymar.

So on the surface, yes, this is completely insane and it puts into context the massive amount of money that PSG spent on Neymar. He’s extremely good, could very well end up being the face of the sport in the not-too-distant future, and was always going to cost a ridiculous amount of money to lure away from Barcelona.

But digging deeper, this is a really bad comparison. Soccer is a sport that is more or less pure capitalism. There are no limits on what can be spent, and there is no limit on what a team can give a player. There are things like Financial Fair Play that theoretically exist to level the playing field, and you can read about how they could be applicable in this transfer here.

Anyway, PSG could pay whatever they wanted for Neymar, save for his pre-set buyout clause, which they obviously matched. Basketball teams, of course, have to exist within a salary cap that is set by the league. It’s why, say, Curry can sign a supermax deal with the Warriors worth a then-record $201 million over five years, but LeBron can then come out and say that Curry is underpaid and be 100 percent correct — the NBA having a salary cap means that players are limited in what they earn, even if they bring in an insane amount of money.

Soccer is just a completely different sports when it comes to finances than basketball. Still, Neymar cost a lot of money, so go Neymar. As we said, he’s extremely good.

Two people close to Pope Francis have accused ultra-conservative American Catholics of making an alliance of “hate” with evangelical Christians to back Donald Trump. Catholic priest Antonio Spadaro and Protestant theologian Marcelo Figueroa published a joint article in La Civilta Cattolica, a journal published by Jesuit priests in Rome and overseen by the Vatican, in which they denounced US Catholics for supporting the extremist positions of the American right, saying the world view of hard-line Catholics is “not too far apart” from that Islamist jihadists.

adidas

Rutgers football is perpetually in a pretty rough spot. While it’s a Big Ten program in the talent-rich state of New Jersey, it’s stuck in a division with three of the 10-15 best programs in the sport (Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State) and the Scarlet Knights have never consistently done a great job recruiting the Garden State.

This year seems like it’ll be more of the same. Rutgers has an over/under of three wins this year, and the state’s 2018 recruiting class hasn’t been especially kind to head coach Chris Ash.

But there is some good news: When they take the field on Nov. 4, 2017, they’re going to look pretty awesome. The fine folks at adidas unveiled the Scarlet Knights’ gorgeous “Stadium Lights” alternate uni on Thursday.

adidas

adidas

One of the cooler parts of these unis are on the back of the collar, as they feature a subtle nod to New Jersey.

adidas

Give Rutgers and adidas some credit, these look good, and the team will look good in them. As for what game they’ll wear these for, Rutgers will bust these bad boys out during their matchup against Maryland in Yankee Stadium. Because nothing says “this requires special uniforms” like a game in cold weather against the Terrapins on a baseball diamond.

When we think about performance-enhancing drugs, our minds immediately turn to famous athletes using banned substances to build muscles and heal faster. Lance Armstrong, Mark McGwire, Marion Jones—the list of athletes whose legacies are tainted by alleged (or, in some cases, admitted) drug use seems to grow longer every year.

But athletes aren’t the only ones ingesting pharmaceuticals to do their work better.

For people whose jobs require public speaking or presentations, a class of drugs called beta-blockers can be a powerful tool to calm the nerves and reduce the jitters that detract from performance.

Beta-blockers were discovered by Scottish pharmacologist James Black in 1962 as a treatment for heart disease. The chemicals work by inhibiting the body’s response to adrenaline, lowering blood pressure and reducing the risk of heart attack. By the 1970s, doctors had begun using them to reduce performance anxiety, particularly in musicians. However, that remains a secondary use; beta-blockers are still used primarily to improve people’s circulatory systems. For his work, Black won the Nobel Prize, and upon his death in 2010, The New York Times credited him with “extending the lives of millions of people.”

I began hearing about their usefulness in public speaking from writer friends who found themselves anxious on book tours. “All of my bad things that usually happened when I’d speak—the sweating, the fast breathing—didn’t happen,” one best-selling author told me after trying the pills. “I don’t know if it’s psychosomatic or not, but the pills just tamp down all of the physical sensations.”

Another friend looks at beta-blockers as an insurance policy. He doesn’t think of himself as a nervous speaker, but occasionally he’ll suffer feelings of panic at the podium. “Beta-blockers just subtract the possibility that your body is going to rebel against you,” he says. “The medicine helps immeasurably, and I’ve become an evangelist for it. It’s improved my career by making me a more confident public speaker.”

So when I began working on a book about how people get psyched up to perform better at work, I decided to give beta-blockers a try.

On a winter evening, I’m sitting in the crowded waiting room of a medical office. I’m here to see a certified nurse specialist, to try to get a prescription for propranolol, the generic beta-blocker my friends have been using.

In her office, the nurse taps on an iPad, asking for my biographical information—name, address, employer, insurance.

She asks about my emotional well-being and professional life. I tell her that I spend most days writing and editing, but that my job does require occasional public speaking. In my last job, my employer asked me to make periodic appearances on television; although these opportunities have waned since I changed jobs, I still go on camera every once in a while. When I do, I experience the classic markers of performance anxiety: the dry mouth, the tight throat, and the rapid heartbeat. When my kids have seen me on TV, they’ve teased me about compulsive blinking. I tell the nurse about my friends who take beta-blockers before speeches. “They say it takes the physical signs of nervousness off the table, and it’s made a big difference in their careers,” I say.

The nurse nods approvingly. She’s had patients who’ve had great results with propranolol. In fact, she suddenly scowls and looks annoyed. Earlier that morning, she’d seen a patient who was distressed because she’d become extremely nervous during a job interview. In retrospect, the nurse says she wishes she’d recommended propranolol, and she makes a note to call the patient after I leave to discuss it. After a few more minutes of conversation, she electronically sends the prescription to CVS, where I pay a $7 co-pay for 30 tablets of propranolol, renewable three times.

A few weeks later, I’m scheduled to fly to California to moderate a panel discussion in front of an audience of 75 people. It’s a chance to try out my new pills, and I’m excited—but I inadvertently leave the bottle in my car at the airport. At the conference, I’m well prepared and not particularly nervous; I lead the discussion drug-free without a hitch.

While I wait for more chances to try the drug, a friend texts me in a panic. He’s recently taken a new job, and the next morning he has to make a one-on-one presentation to his firm’s CEO. He cuts to the chase. “You know those pills you were telling me about for performance anxiety? Can I grab some from you before I get on the plane?”

I say no, fearing it would be illegal to share them. He pressures me. I come up with a compromise. “Okay, I’ll drop some pills off late tonight,” I tell him. Then I drive to CVS, buy a bottle of vitamin B12, and leave five tablets in an envelope taped to his door. I text him careful instructions: Take one pill 90 minutes before the presentation, and another 15 minutes beforehand if he still feels nervous.

Later, he texts me from the plane: “What is this medication called?” “Propranolol,” I lie. He googles it and starts reading online reviews. “Wow, people really rave about this stuff,” he says.

After the meeting, I text him: “How did it go?” “Really well,” he replies. “Those pills are magic.”

My friend’s experience illustrates how hard it is to know how well these drugs really work: Because we want them to work, the odds of a placebo effect is high—and because the pills’ effect is signified by the absence of something, it’s difficult to know if the pills really kept you from feeling nervous. It’s similar to the flu vaccine: If you get the shot, and you don’t get the flu that year, can you say for certain that the immunization prevented the illness?

Placebo or not, I notice an effect when I start trying them. Although I don’t have any other public speaking opportunities in the weeks after I obtain the prescription, I take the pills a few times before important interviews at work. I tend not to get nervous during interviews ... except, occasionally and unpredictably, I’ll start sweating. I remain sweat-free while on beta-blockers, with no rapid heartbeat or shallow breathing—though it’s hard to say how much to credit the drug for that.

The beta-blockers have a more noticeable effect in an unlikely setting: a two-day, 20-man annual golf tournament I play in with friends each year. I’m the worst golfer in the group, but on the first day, I play poorly even by my low standards. The next morning, on the driving range, I pop a propranolol. On the first tee, I’m unusually calm. (There’s a reason the PGA bans players from taking beta-blockers.) I still post the day’s poorest score, but I play far better than I usually do. The lack of nervousness is especially noticeable on tee shots and important putts—and with my handicap giving me strokes against my opponents, I keep my match competitive until the 16th hole. By then the drugs have worn off, and as I stand over a putt, I feel the familiar jitteriness—one I hadn’t felt that morning. Nonetheless, even my opponents notice the difference. “Dan played out of his mind today,” one announced over drinks at the clubhouse after the round.

I can only hope the pills work that well at my next public speaking opportunity.

This article is adapted from McGinn’s recent book, Psyched Up: How the Science of Mental Preparation Can Help You Succeed.

A truly tragic mistake.

There are just some things in life you just can’t get over: lost love, missed opportunities and, above all else, award shows.

That’s why I REFUSE to get over the fact Air Bud lost “Favorite Animal Star” to Salem, the cat from Sabrina the Teenage Witch, at the 1998 Kids’ Choice Awards.

ARE YOU KIDDING ME??

Today is the 20th anniversary of Air Bud — but even two decades later, this failure of humanity enrages me like no other. Sure, I was only one year old at the time and don’t actually remember this happening ... but just knowing that it did is enough to make me upset.

Just look at these two:

GOOD DOG!

Wut.

Are you kidding me? This small, greasy hairball won “Favorite Animal Star” at the Kids’ Choice Awards? What, did kids think they were supposed to be voting for which animal to eliminate?

That might sound harsh, but let’s go through some facts that explain why the decision makes absolutely ZERO sense.

1. He can talk. Unrealistic, right off the bat.
2. He’s actually a person who was turned into a cat — not even a real cat!
3. Salem wasn’t even PLAYED BY A REAL CAT ACTOR. He’s a puppet fraud!
4. He’s evil (wants to take over the world) and also kind of a creep. (Sabrina: “You’re in a chat room again, pretending to be a woman.” Salem: “I like the attention.”)
5. Is a cat.

Now let’s quickly go through Air Bud’s best attributes:

1. Issa
2. Dog
3. That
4. Plays
5. Sports

I really don’t see how there’s any competition here, to be honest. One is an evil cat that wants to take over the world, and the other is a wholesome good dog who plays sports and avoids being dog-napped.

And while I can’t go back in time to change thousands of kids’ decisions, I can stand here definitely, 19 years later, and say that they were wrong. Hear that? You were wrong kids, and I stand with Air Bud.

There have been hundreds of great rivalries in my lifetime, but none as serious as Air Bud vs. Salem the cat. And I hope that one day, Air Bud will be rightfully recognized as the Favorite Animal Star that he is. But since the Kids’ Choice Awards stopped presenting that award in 2003, it doesn’t seem likely.

So until then, it’s up to us to honor Air Bud. And honor Air Bud we will.

American Airlines Admirals Club Installs Two-Way Mirror For Members To Enjoy Misery Of Passengers In Gate Waiting Area

FORT WORTH, TX—In an effort to provide the most luxurious experience to their most preferred clientele, American Airlines announced Wednesday that they had installed two-way mirrors in their Admirals Club lounges so that members could enjoy the misery of the passengers in the gate waiting area. “These wall-length two-way mirrors allow our premium customers to relish the discomfort of the masses as they wait at cramped, overcrowded gates for their flights,” said spokeswoman Alexa Sheehan, explaining that gawking at ordinary passengers sitting on the dirty airport carpet while resting their backs on their carry-ons would make the Admirals Club reclining leather chairs that much more satisfying. “As always, our members can indulge in our complimentary cocktails and gourmet food options, but now with the added perk of watching stressed-out travelers who have only eaten french fries all day struggle to get comfortable in their neck pillows. And if they want a break from getting important work done at our Wi-Fi-enabled business center, they can just savor the herds of commoners wandering around in search of one of three available outlets to plug in their charger.” At press time, American was considering installing completely transparent glass after some Admirals Club members complained that people suffering at the gate couldn’t see firsthand all the perks they were missing out on.

Customers are sharing photos of the new solar tiles—and how well they perform

When Elon Musk started taking preorders for Tesla’s solar roof tiles in 2017, he said they’d be installing the roofs on Tesla employees homes first as a way of test-driving the technology before it was available to the public. Now customers are starting to share the installations on their own homes.

CleanTechnica spotted some homeowners sharing their new Tesla roofs on social media, including their price and performance.

In an August 2017 call to investors, Musk confirmed that the first two roofs had been installed on his house and the home of Tesla’s CTO, JB Straubel. Photos of those installations were shared in a letter to Tesla shareholders.

Tesla

Some rough math using Tesla’s calculator tool would place this roof’s cost at about $30,000, not including $7,000 for a Tesla Powerwall battery, with a Northern California customer receiving about $9,500 in tax credits. But according to the tool, the roof would generate $44,600 worth of energy over 30 years.

Tesla

Tesla’s solar tiles are meant to be more aesthetically pleasing than the typical photovoltaic panel, but they’re also more efficient. Instead of a one-size-fits-all panel, the solar-collection can be customized, with the site and pitch of the roof determining the number of active, energy-generating tiles ($42 per square foot) and inactive tiles ($11 per square foot). Tesla sells regular solar panels, too, through SolarCity, the company Musk acquired in 2016.

For more Tesla solar roof details and pricing, start here.

The adaptive reuse features a number of interesting industrial touches

Situated just off the Red Line 'L' tracks in Chicago’s Edgewater neighborhood, this unique condo is inside an old ComEd substation dating back to 1920. Converted to multiple private residences in 2008, the property sports a number of vestigial features from its days as an electrical utility including deactivated high-voltage equipment and an industrial-chic stamped metal ceiling.

This particular two-bedroom, two-and-half-bath home includes a lofted kitchen, dining, and TV-watching area flooded with natural light through double-height windows. Perched above the dwelling quarters, the elevated space overlooks a bright sitting area well suited for a vinyl collection and stereo. This so-called “bonus den” connects to the home’s courtyard-facing balcony.

A short walk from Hollywood Beach, the CTA, and Whole Foods, the home hit the market yesterday seeking a relatively reasonable $375,000. The price includes a reserved outdoor parking place and a supplemental storage cage. Condo association dues will run an extra $340 per month.

• 1128 W. Ardmore Avenue #8, Chicago IL [Estataly]
• Previous Edgewater coverage [Curbed Chicago]

What goes on when heads of state chat? It’s highly unusual for the public to know. Both parties usually release a “readout” that crisply summarizes the call and smooths over the roughest spots. Sometimes, there are revealing differences in the readouts, but often they’re close—neither side wants to publicize private conversations. (And when there’s no agreed-upon readout, as after President Trump’s July summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, it sometimes causes rancor.) On rarer occasions, details will leak—in February, The Washington Post reported that Trump’s call with Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull had turned acrimonious.

Related Story

Foreign Leaders Have Realized Trump Is a Pushover

What never happens is that a full transcript of a conversation leaks.

Until now. (This truly is the never-say-never administration.) The Post on Thursday published full White House transcripts of two January calls—the Turnbull conversation, and another with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto. As one might expect, they are full of interesting nuggets.

In those early days, before chaos totally engulfed his White House, Trump shows himself to be attentive to campaign promises about Mexico paying for a border wall and about not accepting any refugees. The president comes off as underprepared at times; he asks Turnbull to tutor him on details of a U.S agreement with Australia. He is full of bluster and nonsense (“I won with a large percentage of Hispanic voters,” he tells EPN, untruthfully) and outrageous comments (“Up in New Hampshire—I won New Hampshire because New Hampshire is a drug-infested den—is coming from the southern border,” Trump says, although he lost the state to Hillary Clinton in the general election.)

He is also unusually clear and complex in his discussions. Some publications, most notably STAT, have picked up on a marked decline in the president’s vocabulary and syntax over past statements. But while Trump is brash and unprepared in these calls, he is comparatively articulate—raising the possibility that he is intentionally dumbing down his speech in public, not only in rallies and speeches but also in press interviews, where he is sometimes entirely incoherent.

It’s probably not a good thing, in general, for transcripts like this to leak. Some elements of statecraft are necessarily private, and if they leak regularly, foreign leaders may be wary of speaking to Trump; or they might leak their own transcripts to try to inoculate themselves. That sources saw fit to leak these, against all precedent, shows how little control Trump has over the executive branch, and how many people there seem to dislike or distrust him.

But we do have these transcripts, and so examining them offers an extremely rare window into statecraft, and in particular into the different ways that two foreign leaders tried to grapple with Trump, an unproven leader with a reputation as a bit of a loose cannon. Peña Nieto, whose differences with Trump on policy are enormous, attempts a far more suave, conciliatory approach, downplaying differences and seeking to soothe Trump. Turnbull, on the other hand, as the leader of a traditionally close ally, adopts a far more aggressive, in-your-face style.

Which approach works better? The Turnbull call ends in some bitterness, but it’s notable that Trump basically concedes to Turnbull, admitting the U.S. would follow through on an agreed-upon intake of refugees. (Despite declaring it a “dumb deal” on Twitter following the call, Trump never backed out of it.) Yet Peña Nieto seems to have notched a win, too. Trump implores him not to say publicly that Mexico will not pay for a border wall, but he acknowledges the reality, and public claims that Mexico will pay for the wall have largely faded from Trump’s public statements.

The Conciliator: Enrique Peña Nieto

Mexico’s president, known as EPN, is a smooth, polished politician, a skill that helped land him the presidency, but has not protected him from disastrously low approval ratings—in part thanks to complaints that he’s been too supine toward Trump. EPN has a tough task: He knows that Trump’s central promise was to build a wall and make Mexico pay for it, and he knows both that the wall would be bad for Mexico and that there’s no way Mexico will pay for it. But he also knows that the U.S. is a crucial ally and neighbor. So EPN takes a softer approach.

One thing that sticks out from this call is that the Mexican leader calls Trump “Mr. President” with surprising frequency—nearly 30 times over the course of the call. Trump greets him as “Mr. President,” but throughout the rest of the call calls him “Enrique.” Perhaps that’s an intentional move by Trump to make clear the power dynamic; it’s classic negging. Or maybe Trump just isn’t thinking about it. In any case, Peña Nieto bears the slight without complaint.

Throughout the call, EPN firmly insists that Mexico will not pay for the wall, but he also pours on the flattery for Trump, speaking about how he understands his position and looking for ways to build the relationship while acknowledging the difference of opinion on the wall.

“The first thing I want to say is that I highly appreciate the openness of your team and the willingness of your team to work to open a new framework between our two countries,” he says. He also subtly reminds Trump of what he is doing already: “I want to also thank you personally for what you said last Wednesday on the importance of Mexico to have a strong economy, and also the responsibility our administration has accepted to stop illegal trafficking of weapons and money coming into Mexico.”

EPN tries to show Trump how their situations are similar:

I understand, Mr. President, the small political margin that you have now in terms of everything you said that you established throughout your campaign. But I would also like to make you understand, President Trump, the lack of margin I have as President of Mexico to accept this situation. And this has been, unfortunately, the critical point that has not allowed us to move forward in the building of the relationship between our two countries. I propose, Mr. President, for you to allow us to look for ways to save these differences.

But Peña Nieto tries to plead his case. He objects to Trump’s recent mention of a border tax. Trump’s answer suggests that he has not mastered, or does not recognize, the difference between public and private speech.

“Enrique, if I can interrupt—this is not a new proposal,” he says. “This is what I have been saying for a year and a half on the campaign trail. I have been telling this to every group of 50,000 people or 25,000 people—because no one got people in their rallies as big as I did.”

Setting aside the gratuitous boast at the end, there’s something commendable about Trump’s interjection. EPN seems to assume that campaign language is campaign language, but what the two governments have actually discussed in private is a different world. For Trump, in this case, there is no difference.

On the other hand, Trump is soon doing the same thing—acknowledging that while he doesn’t think Mexico will pay for the wall, he doesn’t want Peña Nieto to say that publicly, because it will hurt Trump politically.

“We cannot say that anymore because if you are going to say that Mexico is not going to pay for the wall, then I do not want to meet with you guys anymore because I cannot live with that,” he says. “But you cannot say that to the press. The press is going to go with that and I cannot live with that.”

EPN again tries to smooth things over, acknowledging Trump’s situation and diplomatically seeking a different path.

“I understand you well, Mr. President,” he says. “I understand this critical point and I understand the critical political position that this constitutes for your country and for you, Mr. President. Let us look for a creative way to jump over this obstacle. It does not mean that this is not an important issue—this is an important issue.”

So far, EPN’s approach seems to have worked. The phone call ends pleasantly, despite the remaining gulf between the men, and Trump seldom talks about Mexico paying for the wall anymore.

The Bulldog: Malcolm Turnbull

Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is a man with more in common with Trump, at least on paper, than Peña Nieto. Not only is Australia a close American ally with few obvious policy differences, but even in experience and temperament: “I believe you and I have similar backgrounds, unusual for politicians, more businessman but I look forward to working together,” says Turnbull. And yet this call turned out to be far more acrimonious than the one with Peña Nieto. (Interestingly, when word of the sharp words leaked, Trump insisted it was false: “Thank you to Prime Minister of Australia for telling the truth about our very civil conversation that FAKE NEWS media lied about. Very nice!” It turns out he was not telling the truth.) Turnbull’s theory seems to be that Trump understands force and will respond to it, and he too seems to have been proven right.

The central point of tension was a group of 1,250 refugees from several countries who had arrived in Australia by boat. Australia refused to take them in, but convinced the Obama administration to do so. Trump, who had promised to end refugee resettlement, was less than enthused. (My colleague Krishnadev Calamur explains the controversy in more detail here.)

Turnbull makes little effort to put Trump at ease—he only drops three “Mr. Presidents”—and he heads straight into the controversy.

“Mr. President, can I return to the issue of the resettlement agreement that we had with the Obama administration with respect to some people on Nauru and Manus Island?” Turnbull asks. He notes that he had previously spoken with Vice President Mike Pence, and suggests that Pence himself disagreed with the president: “I do understand you are inclined to a different point of view than the vice president.” (It was Pence who, in April, announced that the U.S. would honor the deal.)

Trump soon gets distracted, delivering a digression about the evils of refugees. Turnbull steers him back: “Can you hear me out, Mr. President?” Trump replies, “Yeah, go ahead.” He repeatedly pushes Trump back on topic and explains the policy, which the president clearly has not fully absorbed. (At one point he questions the number of people involved.)

“Yes, but let me describe what it is. I think it is quite consistent. I think you can comply with it,” Turnbull says at one point. At another: “Let me explain. We know exactly who they are.” When Trump goes on a tangent about the Boston bombers, Turnbull will have none of it: “They were Russians. They were not from any of these countries.”

Soon Trump realizes that Turnbull is himself an immigration hardliner. Australia refused to take the people for fear it would encourage human smuggling. “Even if we think you are the best person in the world, even if you are a Nobel Prize-winning genius, we will not let you in,” Turnbull says.

Trump is impressed: “That is a good idea. We should do that too. You are worse than I am.”

When Trump claims that he’ll be “killed” politically, Turnbull just dismisses it: “You will not.” And then he goes for the kill himself: He simply states flatly that Trump will stick to terms of the deal, whether he likes it or not. “You can certainly say that it was not a deal that you would have done, but you are going to stick with it,” Turnbull declares.

Trump is angry:

I have no choice to say that about it. Malcolm, I am going to say that I have no choice but to honor my predecessor’s deal. I think it is a horrible deal, a disgusting deal that I would have never made. It is an embarrassment to the United States of America and you can say it just the way I said it. I will say it just that way. As far as I am concerned that is enough Malcom. I have had it. I have been making these calls all day and this is the most unpleasant call all day. Putin was a pleasant call. This is ridiculous…. This is crazy.

But Turnbull doesn’t care. He’s gotten what he wanted. “Thank you for your commitment. It is very important to us,” he says.

* * *

Two countries, two leaders, two approaches—yet both succeeded, for different reasons. The calls with Malcolm Turnbull and Enrique Peña Nieto are not only a valuable document of how diplomacy works; they would also set a pattern. Time and again, foreign leaders have found that Trump is hardly the hardened negotiator he claims, but is instead a pushover. If they can get into a one-on-one conversation with Trump, they can usually convince him to come around to their position. If that was true on paying for the wall and taking refugees, it stands to reason it would be true for lesser Trump priorities, too.

This couple’s honeymoon period is definitely over. Weddings are meant to be a time for love and celebration, but a bride’s big day was ruined when she was arrested on assault charges over an alleged gun incident. Tennessee bride Kate Prichard allegedly pulled a gun out of her wedding dress and put it to her groom’s head during a drunken motel argument, just hours after the wedding. The 25-year-old pointed the 9mm handgun at her new husband James Burton’s head and pulled the trigger, however it was not loaded, police say. The bride (not pictured) was arrested on her wedding day  Credit: Reuters  Police were called to the scene after the new bride then loaded the gun and fired it in the air, it is alleged. “She pulled out of her wedding dress, a 9mm pistol. Pointed it at her husband’s head and pulled the trigger,” Sgt. Kyle Evans from the Murfreesboro Police Department told NewsChannel 5. “[The] responding officer let the husband know the honeymoon was over and his new wife was going to jail. “Both were very uncooperative with authorities. It was actually a witness who pointed us in the right direction,” he added. Prichard has been charged with aggravated domestic assault. Desperate bride marries wedding guest instead of groom

As if we needed more reasons to associate “Trump” with “dump”! According to a story published—where else?—on golf.com on Tuesday, Donald Trump told some of his fellow golfluencers recently that he prefers staying at his own hotels and clubs because, in his words, “That White House is a real dump.” I guess that would…

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According to an internal announcement to the Justice Department’s civil rights division, the Trump administration is gearing up to redirect DOJ resources toward investigating and suing universities whose affirmative action policies are deemed discriminatory against white applicants, the New York Times reports. The…

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