Chess

Chess is a board game for two players. 

It is an abstract strategy game that involves no hidden information and no elements of chance.

It is played on a square board consisting of 64 squares arranged in an 8×8 grid. 

The players, referred to as "White" and "Black", each control sixteen pieces: one king, one queen, two rooks, two bishops, two knights, and eight pawns, with each type of piece having a different pattern of movement. 

An enemy piece may be captured (removed from the board) by moving one's own piece onto the square it occupies. 

The object of the game is to "checkmate" (threaten with inescapable capture) the enemy king. 

There are also several ways a game can end in a draw.

The recorded history of chess goes back to at least the emergence of chaturanga—also thought to be an ancestor to similar games like xiangqi and shogi—in seventh-century India. 

After its introduction in Persia, it spread to the Arab world and then to Europe. 

The modern rules of chess emerged in Europe at the end of the 15th century, with standardization and universal acceptance by the end of the 19th century.

South Pacific Berets Halts Beret Sales to US Customers

President Donald Trump’s decision to revoke the long-standing “de minimis” exemption—previously allowing packages under $800 to enter the U.S. duty-free—is sending shockwaves through global commerce. Small businesses, such as South Pacific Berets, are bearing the brunt of this abrupt policy shift.

The new rules require tariffs to be paid on every imported item, calculated by country of origin. This means a U.S. customer ordering three berets—from Argentina, France, and Japan—now faces three separate tariffs ranging from 20% to 50%, plus a flat customs fee that may exceed the value of each beret. For small retailers, whose margins are already razor-thin, this complexity and cost are untenable.

Worse still, postal services around the world—including New Zealand, Australia, Japan, and over 20 other countries—have suspended shipments to the U.S. entirely (1, 2, 3). The reason? U.S. authorities have failed to provide clear mechanisms for how these tariffs are to be calculated or paid. Without a functioning system, foreign postal operators are left in limbo, unable to guarantee delivery or compliance.

This chaos disproportionately harms small businesses, which lack the infrastructure to navigate sudden regulatory overhauls. Unlike large corporations, they can’t absorb the costs or pivot supply chains overnight. Many are now forced to halt U.S. sales, losing access to one of the world’s largest consumer markets.

Trump’s administration claims the move combats smuggling and boosts domestic manufacturing. But in practice, it’s a blunt instrument—crippling legitimate trade, sowing confusion, and punishing entrepreneurs worldwide. Until clarity and infrastructure catch up, small businesses will continue to suffer, and global commerce will remain gridlocked.

For the time being, no berets will be shipped to the US and [as it looks now], when resumed will go at a significant higher cost...

More on South Pacific Berets and the tariffs at RNZ and Business Insider.

Dětská Neděle

Although the Radiovká has been made in Czechia (and before in Czechoslovakia) for a good 100 years, it is only rarely that I find some visual evidence of this.  

Here are two front covers of the magazine Dětská Neděle (Chidren's Sunday), from the time under the Nazi occupation (resp. 1941 and 1940), showing some good examples of the small diameter Czech classic. 

Guitars

 

Saxophones

 

Drums-

Cellos