Mark Twain says, "Never argue with a fool..."

 

If you have a fight ahead of you, remember: The wolf at the top of the hill is not nearly as hungry as the wolf climbing his way up.

That powerful sentiment is most famously associated with Arnold Schwarzenegger, though it has become a staple piece of motivational folklore across sports and business.

He frequently used the "hungry wolf" analogy to describe the psychological edge of an underdog. The idea is that the person who has already achieved success (the wolf at the top) can naturally become complacent or comfortable, whereas the person striving to get there (the wolf climbing) has a fierce, relentless drive because they are still starving for success.

It's a fantastic quote to use if you're writing a piece about maintaining your drive, embracing the grind, or finding an advantage when you're starting from the bottom!

Never argue with a fool, onlookers may not be able to tell the difference ~ Mark Twain

That specific quote—"Never argue with a fool, onlookers may not be able to tell the difference"—is widely attributed to Mark Twain in popular culture, but there is actually no record of him ever writing or saying it!

It is one of those classic, witty aphorisms that frequently gets misattributed to Twain, Winston Churchill, or George Bernard Shaw because it matches their style. Similar sentiments have been tracked back to older proverbs (and even Biblical verses like Proverbs 26:4), but the modern phrasing is of uncertain origin.

Here is a short, motivational reflection that weaves all three themes together for your blog post:

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## The Drive to Keep Climbing

We’ve all heard the timeless advice often credited to Mark Twain: *"Never argue with a fool, onlookers may not be able to tell the difference."* While it’s a brilliant reminder to protect your peace and avoid wasting energy on pointless battles, the true challenge isn’t just avoiding distractions—it's maintaining your focus on the real fight ahead.

When you are striving for something meaningful, the real battle is entirely internal. It is a test of endurance and hunger. As the old saying goes: **"The wolf at the top of the hill is not nearly as hungry as the wolf climbing his way up."**

When you are at the bottom, looking up, that hunger is your greatest asset. It gives you a fierce, relentless drive that complacency steals from the people who have already arrived. But as days turn into weeks and weeks into years, it is easy to lose sight of the journey itself. You might look at your progress and wonder, as Sandy Denny so beautifully asked in her classic song, *"Who knows where the time goes?"*

Time moves quickly, whether you are coasting at the peak or grinding on the slopes. The key is to ensure that as time passes, you never lose that climbing spirit. Stay hungry, ignore the noise of the onlookers, and make every step up the mountain count.

Thanks to Gemini

Here are a few actual, verified Mark Twain quotes that carry a similar sharp wit or philosophical outlook on life, depending on the angle you want to take for your writing:

**On Growth and Travel:**

> "Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts."

**On Integrity and Simplicity:**

> "Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the rest."

> "If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything."

**On Action and Getting Started:**

> "The secret of getting ahead is getting started."

 

Shelter dog realizes he’s been adopted

THE Most DANGEROUS DOGS In The World

https://youtu.be/o4ksUpbX5sg

The new species of monkey given the Latin name Colobus congoensis

 

The new species of monkey given the Latin name Colobus congoensis

Victoria Gill

Science correspondent

The monkey, known locally as "Likweli", has distinctive pinkish-orange lips

A monkey that has striking pinkish-orange lips and a black face - and lives in the forests of the Democratic Republic of Congo - has been confirmed as a new species to science.

The black-furred primate was spotted and photographed hidden away in the high tree canopy of dense tropical forests in Lomami National Park, in the central east of the country.

Conservationists working there first reported seeing this unusual-looking animal back in 2008. But they captured just one blurry photograph.

After another sighting 10 years later, an international team set out to find and study the monkey and revealed that it was a previously unknown species.

This is only the fifth African monkey species to be discovered in the last 75 years.

Junior Amboko, a PhD student at Florida Atlantic University, played a leading role in the search, which involved audio recordings, photography and detailed genetic studies.

The findings were published in the journal PLoS One.

Amboko told BBC News it was an "amazing feeling" to look into the face of an animal that so few people knew existed.

"Discovering" a species, in this context, means officially recording and confirming it has evolved to be genetically distinct. Some local people already knew of the monkey's existence and refer to it by a common name - Likweli.

But Amboko said the monkeys were "kind of shy" - and tended to hide high in the trees.

"As part of our search, we interviewed people in 52 villages close to where the animals live. And only people in eight villages [had ever seen] them," he recalled.

The research team - from DR Congo, the US and Germany - gave the animal the Latin name Colobus congoensis in recognition of the natural diversity in the country.

It belongs to the larger group of colobus monkeys. "These are really important African monkeys that don't have thumbs," explained Prof Kate Detwiler from Florida Atlantic University.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c15y5wgj4x8o

 

Orangutans Posing For Pictures

 

 

 

How one devastating cyclone wiped out 7% of the planet’s rarest great apes

 

How one devastating cyclone wiped out 7% of the planet’s rarest great apes

A Tapanuli orangutan is pictured in Batang Toru, North Sumatra. These critically endangered animals are threatened by climate change-fueled extreme weather. (Photo Credit: Orangutan Information Centre via CNN Newsource)

How one devastating cyclone wiped out 7% of the planet’s rarest great apes

The cyclone killed more than 1,000 people and displaced over a million.

By Mustafa Qadri, CNN

Published Jun 16, 2026 7:37 AM PDT | Updated Jun 16, 2026 7:37 AM PDT

A Tapanuli orangutan is pictured in Batang Toru, North Sumatra. These critically endangered animals are threatened by climate change-fueled extreme weather. (Photo Credit: Orangutan Information Centre via CNN Newsource)

(CNN) — A cyclone that brought catastrophic flooding and devastating landslides to Indonesia wiped out more than 7% of the global population of the world’s rarest great apes, a new study has found.

Nearly 60 of the 800 Tapanuli orangutans remaining in the wild were killed when Cyclone Senyar slammed into the Indonesian island of Sumatra last November, according to the study published this month in the journal Current Biology.

 

The cyclone has pushed these critically endangered orangutans closer to extinction, the study scientists said. And it’s a sign that climate change-fueled extreme weather is adding to the risks the orangutans already face as the forests they live in are cleared for roads, farming and industry.

Cyclone Senyar brought more than 16 inches of rain to Indonesia, making it one of the region’s most intense rain events in recent years, according to the Tsunami and Disaster Mitigation and Research Center. Climate change fueled the tropical storm, increasing the rain’s intensity by 9% to 50%, according to one analysis.

The cyclone killed more than 1,000 people and displaced over a million. It also caused devastation in the orangutans’ main habitat on Sumatra - the West Block of the Batang Toru ecosystem in North Sumatra.

Heavy rain has led to more than 1,000 deaths across Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia, while Sri Lanka faces impacts from a separate storm.

The researchers used satellite data to identify more than 20,000 acres of landslide scars — visible patches of rock, soil, and debris — which wiped out nearly 12% of forest cover in this region.

Researchers say the landslides happened as extremely heavy rainfall saturated the ground, causing parts of the hillside to suddenly break away. Because these kinds of collapses often happen with little or no warning, any orangutans had very little time to escape.

The analysis found 58 Tapanuli orangutans were killed, accounting for 11% of the local population and 7% of the total global population.

These numbers may be conservative, the scientists said, as they used estimates of population density. The study also did not account for other cyclone-related threats such as reduced food availability for surviving orangutans or destruction of forest canopy.

“It could well be that up to 120 animals died during the landslide events,” said Erik Meijaard, the study’s lead author and the managing director of Borneo Futures in Brunei. The numbers could also be lower than 58, he added.

The orangutans’ deaths are a huge blow to a very vulnerable species.

Tapanuli orangutans recover extremely slowly, as females tend to only give birth every six to nine years, making it difficult for the population to rebound. The apes live in isolated populations across Sumatra, meaning that even a single cyclone or landslide can have long-lasting consequences. Researchers warn the damage may increase if surviving orangutans face reduced breeding success after the disaster.

The Tapanuli orangutan struggle to withstand even small increases in death rates and annual losses of more than 1% a year likely put the species on a path toward extinction, Meijaard said.

The findings have prompted calls for the Indonesian government to enforce stronger conservation measures to protect the endangered species.

“Whether these orangutans can recover will depend on what happens next,” said Friederike Otto, a climate science professor at Imperial College London. 

“If this tragedy serves as a wake-up call to really halt deforestation, reconnect some of fragmented forest habitats where that is possible, and bring governments, local communities, and industries together to support conservation efforts, the species may still have a chance,” she told CNN.

But, she warned, another heavy rainfall event, which climate change is making more likely, poses a huge risk to their recovery.

The aftermath of the devastating flash floods triggered by Tropical Cyclone Senyar is pictured in Aceh, Indonesia, on December 29, 2025. (Photo Credit: Sutanta Aditya/NurPhoto/Shutterstock via CNN Newsource)

Adriano Lameira, a primatologist from the University of Warwick who studies Sumatran orangutans and was also not involved in the research, said the Indonesian government must better protect the orangutans’ habitat from both people and industry.

“After decades of sustained conservation efforts, it is clear the current system is not working and cannot guarantee the protection of the country’s unique natural resources,” he said.

The orangutans have huge value, he added, including furthering our understanding of humanity: “As one of the last few remaining great ape species, the Tapanuli orangutan also provides unique insights into the potential lives of ancient human ancestors and why and how humans came to become who we are today.”

Source:  https://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/how-one-devastating-cyclone-wiped-out-7-of-the-planets-rarest-great-apes/1902204

Tapanuli orangutan is pictured in Batang Toru, North Sumatra.

 

A Tapanuli orangutan is pictured in Batang Toru, North Sumatra. These critically endangered animals are threatened by climate change-fueled extreme weather. (Photo Credit: Orangutan Information Centre via CNN Newsource)

https://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/how-one-devastating-cyclone-wiped-out-7-of-the-planets-rarest-great-apes/1902204

Sadness As An Orangutan Tries To Fight The Digger Destroying Its Habitat

 

 

Sadness As An Orangutan Tries To Fight The Digger Destroying Its Habitat

Footage recently released by International Animal Rescue, shows harrowing footage of an orangutan trying to fight off a digger destroying its habitat.

As loggers smash the base of a tree in the Ketapang District, West Borneo, heart-breaking video shows one of the great apes perched in the tree’s canopy as it falls to the floor.

In the footage - originally shot in 2013 but only released publicly now - the orangutan is clinging on as it slowly topples to the ground, the orangutan starts making its way down the trunk.

As two members of IAR's Orangutan Protection Unit try to dart and carry the animal to safety, the dismayed ape reaches out and momentarily grabs on to the maleficent machine causing it to pull away.

#PalmOilAlarmCall

https://youtu.be/ihPfB30YT_c

Comfy Chimp

 

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Happy Dog

 

Living his best life 🎉🎈 TT: finn_e_bear

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HOW MY DOG SEES HIMSELF WHEN THE DOORBELL RINGS